Rev. John Eliot "Apostle to the Indians" (his neice m. John Farnsworth)

[Farns10th at aol.com]

Rev. John Eliot
Source: Journal of John Winthrop
p.41
November 3l, 1631
The ship Lion, William Peirce master, arrived at Nan-
tucket.  There came in her, the governor's wife, Margar-
et Winthrop 1591-1647, John Winthrop's 3d wife, married
1618 and by 1631 had borne him 6 children, four of whom
were living.  Upon arrival she immediately joined the
Boston Church.  Also, his eldest son, John Winthrop, Jr.
1606-1676, who was the future founder of three New-Eng-
land towns and governor of CT.  Other of John Winthrop's
children aboard the Lion were Mary Winthrop aged 19 and
Samuel Winthrop, aged 4.  Two other sons, Stephen (aged
12 and Adam aged 11) had come over with their father in
1630.  Deane Winthrop aged 8 was left in England.  Also
arriving on the Lion was Mr. Eliot, a minister.  (Rev.
John Eliot 1604-1690 who had taught school at Little
Baddow, Essex, England.  In New England, he served as
pastor to the Roxbury church for nearly 60 years and be-
came the most notable Massachusetts missionary to the
Indians. Also aboard the Lion were other families, being
in all about 60 persons who all arrived in good health,
having been 10 weeks at sea and lost none of the company
but two children, whereof one was the governor's daughter
Anne, about one year and half old, which died about a
week after they came to sea.


p.322  October 1646
Mention was made before of some beginning to instruct
the Indians etc.   Mr. John Eliot, teacher of the Church
of Roxbury, found much encouragement as he took great
pains to get their language and in a few months could
speak of the things of God to their understanding, and
God prospered his endeavors so as he kept a constant
lecture to them in two places, one week at the wigwam
of one Wabon, a mere sachem, near Watertown Mill, and
the other the next week in the wigwam of Cutshamekin
near Dorchester Mill.  And for the furtherance of the
work of God, divers of the English resorted to his
lecture, and the governor and other of the magistrates
and elders sometimes, and the Indians began to repair
thither from other parts.  His manner of proceeding was
thus: he would persuade one of the other elder or some
magistrate to begin the exercise with prayer in English.
Then he took a text and read it first in the Indian
language and after in English.  Then he preached to them
in Indian about an hour (but first I should have spoke
of the catechizing their children, who were soon brought
to answer him some short questions, whereupon he gave 
every of them an apple or a cake).  Then he demanded of
some of the chief if they understood him.  If they
answered yea, then he asked of them if they had any
questions to propound, and they had usually two or three
or more questions which he did resolve.  At one time,
(when the governor was there and about 200 people, Indian
and English, in one wigwam of Cutshamekin's) and old man
asked him if God would receive such an old man as he
was; to whom he answered by opening the parable of the
workmen that were hired into the vineyard (72.Matt.20:1
to 16.) and when he had opened it he asked the old man if
he did believe it, who answered he did and was ready to
weep.  A second question was, what was the reason that
when all Englishmen did know God,  yet some of them were
poor.  His answer was: 1. That God knows it is better
for his children to be good than to be rich; he knows
withal that if some of them had riches they would abuse
them and wax proud and wanton, etc; therefore he gives
them no more riches than may be needful for them that
they may be kept from pride, etc., depended upon him.
2. He would hereby have men know that he hath better
blessings to bestow upon good men than riches, etc., and
that their best portion is in heaven, etc.  

A third question was: if a man had two wives (which was
ordinary for them), seeing he must put away one, which
should he put away.  To this it was answered that by
the law of God the first is the true wife and the other
is no wife, but if such a case fell out they should then
repair to the magistrates and they would direct them
what to do, for it might be that the first wife might
be an adultress, etc., and then she was to be put away.
When all their questions were resolved, he concluded
with prayer in the Indian language.

The Indians were usually very attentive and kept their
children so quiet as caused no disturbance.  Some of
them began to be seriously affected and to understand
the things of God and they were generally ready to re-
form whatsoever they were told to be against the word
of God, as their sorcery (which they call pawwawing),
their whoredoms, etc., idleness, etc.  The Indians grew
very inquisitive after knowledge both in things divine
and also human, so as one of them meeting with an honest
plain Englishman would needs know of him what were the 
first beginnings, which we call principles, of a common-
wealth?  The Englishman being far short in the knowledge
of such matters, yet ashamed that an Indian should find
an Englishman ignorant of anything, bethought himself what
answer to give him, at last resolved upon this, viz.
that the principle of a commonwealth was salt,  for (saith
he) by means of salt we can keep our flesh and fish to
have it ready when we need it, whereas you lose much for
want of it and are sometimes ready to starve. A principle
is iron, for therewith we fell trees, build houses, till
our land, etc.  A third principle is ships, by which we
carry forth such commodities as we have to spare and fetch
in such as we need, as cloth, wine, etc.  

Alas (saith the Indian) then I fear we shall never be
a commonwealth, for we can neither make salt, nor iron,
nor ships...

p.326 March-June 1647
Canonicus the great sachem of Narragansett died a very
old man.  
The synod began again at Cambridge.  The next day Mr.
Ezekiel Rogers of Rowley preached in the forenoon and
the magistrates and deputies were present, and in the
afternoon, Mr. Eliot preached to the Indians in their
own language before all the Assembly.

The success of Mr. Eliot's labors in preaching to the
Indians appears in a small book set forth by Mr. Shepard
and by other observations in the country (Two tracts
published in London describing Eliot's mission work:
an anonymous pamphlet, probably by Thomas Shepard, en-
titled The Day-Breaking, If Not the Sun-Rising of the
Gospel With the Indians in New-England (1647) followed
by Thomas Shepard's The Clear Sun-Shine of the Gospel
Breaking Forth upon the Indians in New-England (1648)
________________________________________________________
Transcribed by Janice Farnsworth
Note: Rev. John Eliot's neice, Hannah Aldis married John Farnsworth son of
Matthias Farnsworth, a founder of Groton, MA