volved no less a question than the allegiance of the island to Holland or England, this small partof the Dutch Empire followed the prece dent of the nations and listened to the woman. When James Coffin came in to dinner after hard work upon the Venture, Mary fed him first and then, deeming him to be in condition, she gently instructed him. "What do the men say? " she asked. "That the Court must decide the matter at the next sitting," answered James. " Ed ward Macy fears the Dutch." "And we're afraid! " said Mary, with much sarcasm. " A fine lot of men we are, and English blood in our veins every drop of it, to let the ship get off to Holland, and our fish catch none too good. I almost believe we are Dutch from the very slowness of us. If the same question asked itself in Boston, I'm thinking the Court would find but little to decide on," and Mary poked the fire until the sparks flew. "Perhaps it's as well to let the Court give word on it," said James, "and belike their decision will be what we'd have it." "And belike it won't," said Mary, ad ministering more pokes to the fire, " and Re becca Macy telling how the Dutch would do this or that, and she born at Plymouth with Myles Standish the only gumptious man in the place." And Mary was about to give her opinion of Rebecca when James wisely recalled a duty on the beach, and went out, leaving Mary to her own reflections. In another humble little house by the shore Rebecca Macy was painting in lurid colors her estimate of Mary Coffin. The two women had met that morning. Mary, with real English loyalty, was stating to a few friends her view of the cargo problem; and Rebecca, impelled only by a sweet and simple desire to disagree with anything Mary might say, took up arms for justice and the Dutch. Whereby it may be judged that two state parties came to exist among the Nantucket seamen, known to history as the English and the Dutch, but really insti
gated by these two rival leaders of island life. And so Rebecca Macy told her hus band she had cause that day to be proud of him, the one man at the meeting whose judgment stood unmoved by mere passing opinion, and she ended by recalling the words spoken in New York when Macy had delivered the tribute of codfish, which con tained a pleasantly vague hint that the Dutch Governor was looking for the right man to appoint as magistrate on his loyal island and that the name of Macy was not unknown to him; which delicately pointed reminder of possibilities was not lost upon Edward Macy, who went down to his fishing boats with a pleasing consciousness of his recognized wisdom and with a growing de termination to stand by the Dutch cause. The Venture, in her dismasted condition, lay at her mooring for some weeks, waiting for the sitting of the island court which was to decide her fate, and Isaac Melyne passed the time with what patience he could. He fished for cod with the men of Nantucket, listening with friendly interest to their quar rels about land-holdings, dogs, Indians and sheep, and in a guileless way trying to turn the same to his own behoof. Mary Coffin and Rebecca Macy now openly slandered each other upon the highway. Mary had detected strong Dutch features in the Macy children, to which she called the attention of the town. Rebecca, while resolutely sup porting a Dutch cause, with a sweet consist ency, resented the supposed discovery of Dutch blood in her offspring, and loudly questioned the reasons which had brought the Severance family, of which Mary was a member, across the sea; stating her belief that it was nothing less than horsethieving, at the very least. Mary Coffin then called the Plymouth Colony a set of " prayer-mon gers " and Rebecca Macy, who came from Plymouth, openly doubted if the Coffin family ever had prayed at all. So the days slipped away and the fateful 20th of October, 1673, drew near.
