CJ (#59) A Second Letter 1692 (10)

The accusations continue.  The posts numbered #59 are still from the same correspondence.

"And in destributing the Lords Lands, he gives greater Portions by far to Idle Drones, who make no improvement, than the Lords allow to the most Industrious Planters; and at the same time denyeth many Laborious men any Land that lies convenient; whereby divers who came hither on purpose to Settle and Plant, have been so discouraged, as to depart again with Damage, and others who have staid long in hopes, are yet destitute: And he suffers Punch Houses to be kept in such an unlimited manner, that they do Devour the Fruits of the peoples labours, and thereby, and the idle expence of their time the Growth and Flourishing of the Settlement is greatly Obstructed.  And he so much connives at, or rather incourageth Profaness and Debauchery, that we may fear God's wrath, to break forth against us, in some Tremendous Judgment He himself keeping a Young Wench, which he calls his Miss, whose Father was a Notorious Pirate, and her Mother is a Punch House Keeper, his Disciple Lightwood (who came with him) hath kept a mans Wife (who made him his Attorney here) as his own, and by her he hath had three Bastards, two whereof were Abortive Twins.  His Secretary Graves, who by him was made a Deputy to one of the Lords Propriators (having a Wife in London) for several hears did live here in Adultery with a kind of a Mustee, who was his Bought Servant, by whom he hath had three Bastards, and with whom he hath lived, till (being deprived Justly of his Secretaries Place) he thought fit to go home to England, to seek for new preferment.  Mercier (another of the Lords Deputies) hath lived here, in a state of separation from his wife (who is said to be at New Yorke) 4 or 5 years; great part of which time, he hath lived in Adultery with a Nasty Punk, which he took as a Servant, by who he hath a Bastard living.  And these and such like, have been his peculiar Privado's and most inward Cabinet Councellers, by whom he hath carried on his Villanies, and supported himself therein hitherto."

To the Puritan mind, the items presented in this part of the letter would certainly be serious concerns.  Not sure of a number of terms used, but believe 1) "Punch Houses" is where a drink composed of water sweetened with sugar, with a mixture of lemon juices and spirit was served, and 2) "Mustee" as used in the West Indies, was a person of a mixed breed.  [Definitions from Noah Webster's 1828 Dictionary.]