Thereupon all the freemen and the Hon""'^ Company's servants, or at least, a majority of them, (he, the deponent, especially, being Sergeant of the burghers) addressed themselves to the Commandant and requested that he would give orders for defence. To which Bicker answered: What should I do ? He did not give nor issue any order; the deponent requested the Commandant to allow the gates to be locked, which he did not. About eleven o'clock in the forenoon, the Swedes, with about 30 men armed, landed from on

G04 NEW-YORK COLONIAL MANUSCRIPTS. board the sliip which fired shotted guns over the fort. Although advised of the designs of the Swedes, and seeing the armed soldiers land with a Captain and Lieutenant, the Commandant, without giving any orders to the soldiers, nor directing them to see to their arms, nor providing them with powder, which he said he had not, went out of the fort to welcome, receive and conduct the Swedes into the fort, of which they immediately took possession and disarmed the soldiers to such a degree that they could not retain their side arms. This being accomplished, the beforenamed Commandant Bicker commanded Adriaen van Thienhoven, and requested this deponent, to go to the Swedish ship and the newly arrived Swedish Governor to inquire and ask the reasons, and by what authority his men forcibly took possession of, and invaded Fort Casimier, situate on the South' river of New Nelherland, for and in the name of the Crown of Sweden. The Swedish Governor, whose name is John Rysingh, answered that he did so by authority of her Majesty in Sweden, who, he also stated, had sent Ambassadors to their High Mightinesses to ascertain if their High Mightinesses had authorized and ordered to locate Fort Casimier at this place, and to encroach on the limits of territory belonging to the Crown.