John Winthrop First Governor of the Masschusetts Colony

JOHN WINTHROP.
CHAPTER I.
THE LITTLE SPEECH.
There is preserved to us in the early story of
Massachusetts a scene so interesting in itself, so illus-
trative of the time in which it occurred and of the
actors appearing in it, that it may fitly be recalled
by way of introducing the subject of this volume, who
is its central figure. The date is July 3, 1645 J tne
place the meeting-house of the town of Boston, where
a long session of the Great and General Court, or Legislature,
is drawing to a close. ^ Thirteen magistrates and
thirty-five deputies from me twenty-three towns of
the colony, whose total population numbers about
fifteen thousand, have been in attendance, according
to the roll. A memorable session it has been, en-
gaging to an extraordinary degree the public atten-
tion ; for since it opened, on the 14th of May, it
has been largely occupied with what is in effect the
impeachment of Deputy-Governor John Winthrop.
He is the recognized chief man of the colony j generally
hitherto its most honoured citizen, — as he
will be henceforward, — but now for a brief period
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