第31章

"He was the chief agent of the mischief，" answered Grandfather； "but we will not suppose that he acted otherwise than conscientiously. He believed that there were evil spirits all about the world. Doubtless he imagined that they were hidden in the corners and crevices of his library， and that they peeped out from among the leaves of many of his books， as he turned them over， at midnight. He supposed that these unlovely demons were everywhere， in the sunshine as well as in the darkness， and that they were hidden in men's hearts， and stole into their most secret thoughts."Here Grandfather was interrupted by little Alice， who hid her face in his lap， and murmured a wish that he would not talk any more about Cotton Mather and the evil spirits. Grandfather kissed her， and told her that angels were the only spirits whom she had anything to do with.

He then spoke of the public affairs of the period.

A new War between France and England had broken out in 1702， and had been raging ever since. In the course of it， New England suffered much injury from the French and Indians， who often came through the woods from Canada and assaulted the frontier towns. Villages were sometimes burned， and the inhabitants slaughtered， within a day's ride of Boston.

The people of New England had a bitter hatred against the French， not only for the mischief which they did with their own hands， but because they incited the Indians to hostility.

The New-Englanders knew that they could never dwell in security until the provinces of France should be subdued and brought under the English government. They frequently， in time of war， undertook military expeditions against Acadia and Canada， and sometimes besieged the fortresses by which those territories were defended. But the most earnest wish of their hearts was to take Quebec， and so get possession of the whole province of Canada. Sir William Phips had once attempted it， but without success.

Fleets and soldiers were often sent from England to assist the colonists in their warlike undertakings. In 1710 Port Royal， a fortress of Acadia， was taken by the English. The next year， in the month of June， a fleet， commanded by Admiral Sir Hovenden Walker， arrived in Boston Harbor. On board of this fleet was the English General Hill， with seven regiments of soldiers， who had been fighting under the Duke of Marlborough in Flanders. The government of Massachusetts was called upon to find provisions for the army and fleet， and to raise more men to assist in taking Canada.

What with recruiting and drilling of soldiers， there was now nothing but warlike bustle in the streets of Boston. The drum and fife， the rattle of arms， and the shouts of boys were heard from morning till night. In about a month the fleet set sail， carrying four regiments from New England and New York， besides the English soldiers. The whole army amounted to at least seven thousand men. They steered for the mouth of the river St. Lawrence.

"Cotton Mather prayed most fervently for their success，" continued Grandfather， "both in his pulpit and when he kneeled down in the solitude of his library， resting his face on our old chair. But Providence ordered the result otherwise. In a few weeks tidings were received that eight or nine of the vessels had been wrecked in the St.

Lawrence， and that above a thousand drowned soldiers had been washed ashore on the banks of that mighty river. After this misfortune Sir Hovenden Walker set sail for England； and many pious people began to think it a sin even to wish for the conquest of Canada.""I would never give it up so，" cried Charley.

"Nor did they， as we shall see，" replied Grandfather. "However， no more attempts were made during this war， which came to a close in 1713. The people of New England were probably glad of some repose； for their young men had been made soldiers， till many of them were fit for nothing else.

And those who remained at home had been heavily taxed to pay for the arms， ammunition； fortifications， and all the other endless expenses of a war. There was great need of the prayers of Cotton Mather and of all pious men， not only on account of the sufferings of the people， but because the old moral and religious character of New England was in danger of being utterly lost.""How glorious it would have been，" remarked Laurence， "if our forefathers could have kept the country unspotted with blood！""Yes，" said Grandfather； "but there was a stern， warlike spirit in them from the beginning. They seem never to have thought of questioning either the morality or piety of war."The next event which Grandfather spoke of was one that Cotton Mather， as well as most of the other inhabitants of New England， heartily rejoiced at. This was the accession of the Elector of Hanover to the throne of England， in 1714， on the death of Queen Anne. Hitherto the people had been in continual dread that the male line of the Stuarts， who were descended from the beheaded King Charles and the banished King James， would be restored to the throne.

"The importance of this event，" observed Grandfather， "was a thousand times greater than that of a Presidential election in our own days. If the people dislike their President， they may get rid of him in four years； whereas a dynasty of kings may wear the crown for an unlimited period."The German elector was proclaimed king from the balcony of the town-house in Boston， by the title of George I.； while the trumpets sounded and the people cried amen. That night the town was illuminated； and Cotton Mather threw aside book and pen， and left Grandfather抯 chair vacant， while he walked hither and thither to witness the rejoicings.