Publisher's Synopsis
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1918 edition. Excerpt: ... to Virginia with his father. Known as "Conjurer" Scarburgh by the Indians, he was certainly the foremost man of the Eastern Shore, and, without doubt, in many respects, the most virile and active man in the entire Colony during his day. His influence seems to have been unbounded, and even Governor Berkeley and the General Assembly failed on several occasions in attempts to discipline him for various high-handed transactions. Nor was Governor Bennett, whose daughter married his son, able to gain control over him or punish him for his rebellious and seditious conduct against the Cromwellian Government. He has even been credited with the authorship of the Northampton Resolutions of 1649 declaring Charles II. the rightful successor of his father: with the instigation of the Northampton Protest in 1651. which declared "Taxation without Representation" to be tyranny; and with organizing the revolt against Parliament which occurred in Northampton in 1652. He was a personal friend of Gov. Peter Stuyvesant of New Netherlands, and owned a large number of trading vessels, as many as nine at one time, which plied between New England, New Amsterdam, the West Indies, and Accomack. On one occasion he waged war on his private account against the Dutch on the Delaware River. He owned many thousand acres of land in Accomack and Maryland, and was the largest individual landholder in the Colony at one time. He was granted an absolute monopoly for the manufacture of salt in Virginia, and erected an extensive plant for the purpose on Smith Island. He was a Burgess in 1642, 1644, 1645, 1647, 1652, 1659, and from 1660 to 1671. In 1645 he was Speaker of the House, and in 1648 he was appointed collector of the revenues for Northampton, and Sheriff in 1660 and...
