Womans Life in Colonial Days | Page 5

their own health,
fetched them wood, made them fires, ... in a word did all the homely,
and necessary offices for them."
The conditions were the same whether in the Plymouth or in the
Massachusetts Bay Colony. And yet how brave--how pathetically
brave--was the colonial woman under every affliction. In hours when a
less valiant womanhood would have sunk in despair these wives and
mothers strengthened one another and praised God for the humble
sustenance He allowed them. The sturdy colonist, Edward Johnson, in
his Wonder Working Providence of Zions Saviour in New England,
writing of the privations of 1631, the year after his colony had been
founded, pays this tribute to the help-meets of the men:
"The women once a day, as the tide gave way, resorted to the mussels,
and clambanks, which are a fish as big as horse-mussels, where they
daily gathered their families' food with much heavenly discourse of the
provisions Christ had formerly made for many thousands of his
followers in the wilderness. Quoth one, 'My husband hath travelled as
far as Plymouth (which is near forty miles), and hath with great toil
brought a little corn home with him, and before that is spent the Lord
will assuredly provide.' Quoth the other, 'Our last peck of meal is now

in the oven at home a-baking, and many of our godly neighbors have
quite spent all, and we owe one loaf of that little we have.' Then spake
a third, 'My husband hath ventured himself among the Indians for corn,
and can get none, as also our honored Governor hath distributed his so
far, that a day or two more will put an end to his store, and all the rest,
and yet methinks our children are as cheerful, fat and lusty with feeding
upon these mussels, clambanks, and other fish, as they were in England
with their fill of bread, which makes me cheerful in the Lord's
providing for us, being further confirmed by the exhortation of our
pastor to trust the Lord with providing for us; whose is the earth and the
fulness thereof.'"
It is a genuine pleasure to us of little faith to note that such trust was
indeed justified; for, continued Johnson: "As they were encouraging
one another in Christ's careful providing for them, they lift up their
eyes and saw two ships coming in, and presently this news came to
their ears, that they were come--full of victuals.... After this manner did
Christ many times graciously provide for this His people, even at the
last cast."
If we will stop to consider the fact that many of these women of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony were accustomed to the comfortable living
of the middle-class country people of England, with considerable
material wealth and even some of the luxuries of modern civilization,
we may imagine, at least in part, the terrifying contrast met with in the
New World. For conditions along the stormy coast of New England
were indeed primitive. Picture the founding, for instance, of a town that
later was destined to become the home of philosopher and
seer--Concord, Massachusetts. Says Johnson in his _Wonder Working
Providence_:
"After they had thus found out a place of abode they burrow themselves
in the earth for their first shelter, under some hillside, casting the earth
aloft upon timber; they make a smoke fire against the earth at the
highest side and thus these poor servants of Christ provide shelter for
themselves, their wives and little ones, keeping off the short showers
from their lodgings, but the long rains penetrate through to their great

disturbance in the night season. Yet in these poor wigwams they sing
psalms, pray and praise their God till they can provide them houses,
which ordinarily was not wont to be with many till the earth by the
Lord's blessing brought forth bread to feed them, their wives and little
ones.... Thus this poor people populate this howling desert, marching
manfully on, the Lord assisting, through the greatest difficulties and
sorest labors that ever any with such weak means have done."
And Margaret Winthrop writes thus to her step-son in England: "When
I think of the troublesome times and manyfolde destractions that are in
our native Countrye, I thinke we doe not pryse oure happinesse heare as
we have cause, that we should be in peace when so many troubles are
in most places of the world."
Many another quotation could be presented to emphasize the
impressions given above. Reading these after the lapse of nearly three
centuries, we marvel at the strength, the patience, the perseverance, the
imperishable hope, trust, and faith of the Puritan woman. Such
hardships and privations as have been described above might seem
sufficient; but these were by no means all or even the greatest of