Our first century . m in their authority against the resolute protests ofan energetic and spiritually independent people. Thosepeople resisted. The king decided, therefore, to annulthe charter they held and to leave the people of thecolony with no rights whatever, except such as he might EARLY REBELLION FOR THE RIGHT 141 grant them of his own good pleasure. That charter, ashas been related before, was granted in 1629 and wasintended to be a grant of privilege to a company inEngland. But, as we have also seen, the Puritans hadtransferred it and the seat of its government to Massa-chusetts, maki
Our first century . m in their authority against the resolute protests ofan energetic and spiritually independent people. Thosepeople resisted. The king decided, therefore, to annulthe charter they held and to leave the people of thecolony with no rights whatever, except such as he might EARLY REBELLION FOR THE RIGHT 141 grant them of his own good pleasure. That charter, ashas been related before, was granted in 1629 and wasintended to be a grant of privilege to a company inEngland. But, as we have also seen, the Puritans hadtransferred it and the seat of its government to Massa-chusetts, making the people of that colony members ofthe company, and thus securing to them all the authoritythat the charter was intended to grant to a company inEngland. Subservient courts in England yielded to KingCharless will and granted his request for an annulmentof the charter. The people of Massachusetts resolutelydeclined to accept the judgment of those courts or inany other way to surrender their rights under the char-. New England elephant piece,ter. Their charter was annulled, but they continued toregard themselves possessed of all the liberties it hadguaranteed to them in perpetuity. They were perfectly right in this. It was under theguarantees of personal liberty and self-government whichthat charter gave them—not temporarily but for all 142 OUR FIRST CENTURY time—that they had crossed a tempestuous sea andtaken upon themselves the risks, the dangers and thehardships of colonists in order to build up an Englishnation on these shores. They had fulfilled, and morethan fulfilled, their part of the contract. They wereentirely right, therefore, in declining to recognize adecree depriving them of their liberties. Such annul-ment of their charter robbed them of their share of thecontract benefits, while leaving the king and the Englishgovernment in full enjoyment of all that they had gainedfrom the endeavors, the endurance and the suffering ofthe men and women of Massachusetts. T
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