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Letter from the Directors in Amsterdam to the Director General and Council

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The 26th of September 1655.

Honorable, Pious, Dear, Faithful.

Our last general letter to you was dated the 26th of May last past[1] and was sent by the ship Waegh van Amsterdam, which sailed from here on the 7th of June following. We have since received here the letters of the Council there of the 11th and 28th of May last by the Groote Christofel and the Swarten Arent, also Director Stuyvesant's letters of the 8th, 13th and 24th of June,[2] by the last of which we were informed of his departure from Curacao, and we have no doubt, he arrived in New Amsterdam shortly afterward and has taken care that the contents of our aforesaid letters and of others sent over since his departure have been attended to as far as it had not been done already; we expect to hear from you on these matters in due time. In the meantime and as the ship the Gelderse Bloem now sails to New Netherland, we shall answer your letters briefly, as far as required. The principal point is the settlement of the boundaries with the people of New England, about which we have now written several times, as you too have done, but, we must confess, not in such a manner, as we would have wished and we are compelled to declare that we have no such thorough and complete information of the affair and of the proceedings, as far as any have taken place, as the importance of the matter requires. It is stated for instance in a letter of the 26 of November 1650 that a provisional agreement concerning the boundaries had been made to stand until a future convention and the final ratification by the mutual governments at home, whereby in the meantime further acquisitions of territory on the main land and on Long Island were prohibited. Later letters make no mention of this agreement, but they recommend that the question be settled in England or here and finally now it is stated that the English claim they will show the approval and ratification of the aforesaid agreement by the present government, when the same has also been approved and ratified by their High Mightinesses. Considering these aforesaid contradictory statements, we must confess that you have managed this matter very badly and that you change your opinion too easily. All depends upon whether an agreement was made at Hartford in l650 containing a provisional settlement of the boundaries or not. If it was made, it ought to have been sent over so that the approval of our government and of that of England might be demanded; if not, as many here believe, and if instead of it the question was only the subject of debate, which each side could interpret in their own fashion, then it would be useless to demand approval of a matter, which cannot be found. In that case efforts should be made, to have the boundary question decided here or to request that the governors there be authorized to do it upon the basis of what resulted from the debates at Hartford, as far as it may be of any good. We have taken all possible steps, so far without success, to bring about one or the other, but we have been assured that the pretended English approbation is as yet fictitious, and that they allege it only to lull you into sleep, for their continued coming closer and occupying land would keep you too wide awake; you will do well therefore, to inform us explicitly, how the whole question stands, and especially of the aforementioned agreement made at Hartford, which is the foundation of all; ordering meanwhile, that, contract or no contract, the English be prevented by all possible means from farther encroaching upon our territory. The commerce with Virginia, which begins to flourish there, must be encouraged by all proper means and we hope that it will also favorably affect the trade from here to that country.

We have not heard here of the agent of the crown of Sweden nor anything concerning that whole nation there. We are anxious to learn what the forces lately sent by us have accomplished and we recommend that you will give us a detailed and pertinent statement of everything, so that we may be well prepared for a defense against whatever accusations shall be brought up against us; they are much more likely to be made now, as this nation is getting a so much higher opinion of itself, because their designs against Poland seem likely to be successful.

You will assist the agents of Baron van der Capellen toe Ryssel in pressing his claims for a proper accounting with vouchers and funds as well against Melyn and Dincklage as against others, but as to establishing a colony under the same conditions as those of Rensselaerswijck, you know very well that long ago we have considered the granting of such colonies unadvisable and injurious to the increase of population and that instead of it we have decided to accommodate private parties with as much land, as they are able to cultivate, without giving them any privileges. You will act accordingly.

To prevent the English of Boston from sending in their vessels, victuals and other necessaries of life to the Swedes on the South River, is not in our power; but it looks very strange that people participate in it and consequently increase this trade, who are in our service and whom you possibly trust too much; however, as the reports thereof have come here by themselves, it must have been known there and you will therefore do well to inform ourselves about it and report the result by the first opportunity.

We shall not mention now the matters concerning the island of Curacao, but await the arrival of the Vice Director; we recommend, however, that in employing the persons brought away from Brazil, care be taken not to injure or cause expenses to the Company; this refers especially to the men, who have been soldiers and have for the most part behaved like scoundrels.

We have noticed in several documents that the members of the council there assume the title of high council, which we have not given them by their commissions or instructions. You will do well to abstain therefrom in the future and be satisfied with the title belonging to each office.

As we have before done repeatedly, so we now order and direct you hereby again, to send us from time to time the list of the soldiers and of those, who have served their time or who have been discharged for other reasons, also of those, who are coming over; for if we remain ignorant of the debit charges against them there, the Company must necessarily suffer loss, as it has happened lately with one M. Breyer, a soldier arrived from there by the Groote Christofel, to whom upon his lamentations we would have advanced money on account of his monthly salary, if we had not been informed by private parties that he had been banished from there for some misdeed, (they did not know of what kind), of which you in your letter do not say a word. In the future you must do better.

We send you herewith a list of the soldiers, who came over to you last year, 1654,[3] and who were assigned here two months' pay yearly or became indebted for transportation. You will take care that every one of them is duly charged in his account that not too much be paid to them.

What we, at the urgent request of Pieter Lucassen, former skipper on the ship Abrahams Offerande, have paid here and also refused to have balanced on account there or otherwise paid by your honors, can be seen in the accompanying extract of our resolution dated 12 July 1655 and a copy of the account.[4] We do not doubt but that your honors shall have charged the accounts of these mariners who were credited with this money on their monthly wages.

We repeat our recommendation to have a box made there for letters posted for here, because serious complaints have been repeatedly made over bad delivery of letters. Have it hung up at the warehouse or whatever other place you think suitable, so that the letters for the benefit of merchants and the community may be gathered there continually and when a ship sails be placed in a sack and sent to us under seal in care of the supercargos and duly delivered here; just as your honors can see from the method employed by us.

Hereby, Honorable, Pious, Beloved, Faithful, we shall commend your honors to God's protection, and remain,

Isaack van Beeck
Edward Man

Amsterdam, the 25th of September 1655.

ADDRESSED: ] To the Director and Council of New Netherland.

The manifest of private goods loaded on this ship, the Gelderse Blom accompany this. The free people or passengers coming over in the same ship are Jevert Pietersen and Lijsbet Hendricks, (wife of Wouter Albertsen Backer) with her five children, of whom three are boys. This is for your information. Dated as above.

Ab. de Decker de Jonge

Received with the Gelderse Blom on 6 February 1656.

Notes

See 12:22 for this letter.
These letters have not survived.
This list does not survive.
See 12:29 and 12:30 for this resolution and account, respectively.

References

A complete copy of this publication is available on the New Netherland Institute website.