independent; that he was in advance of the times in which he lived.
When the bitter and violent persecution of the celebrated Anne
Hutchinson, on account of her Antinomian sentiments, took place, Mr.
Scruggs disapproved and denounced it. He gave his whole influence,
earnestly and openly, against such attempts to suppress freedom of
inquiry and the rights of conscience. He, with others in Salem, was
proscribed, disarmed, and deprived of his public functions. He appears
to have been suffered to remain unmolested on his estate, and died
there in 1654. He had but one child, Rachel; and the name, as derived
from him, became extinct. The inventory of his property is dated on
the 24th of June of that year. The items mentioned in it amount to
£244. 10_s._ 2_d._ Considering the rates of value at that time, it
was a large property. At the same date, an agreement is recorded by
which his widow, Margery, conveys to her son-in-law, John Raymond, all
her real estate, upon these conditions: She to have the use of her
house during her life, the bedding, and other "household stuff;" and
he to pay her five pounds "in hand," twenty pounds per annum, and five
pounds "at the hour of her death." This was an ample provision, in
those times, for her comfort while she lived, and for her funeral
charges. I do not remember to have found this last point arranged for,
in such a form of expression, in any other instance.

William Alford was an early settler. He was a member of the numerous
and wealthy society, or guild, of Skinners, in the city of London, and
probably came here with the view of establishing an extensive trade in
furs. He received accordingly, in 1636, a grant of two hundred acres,
including what was for some time called Alford's Hill, afterwards Long
Hill, now known as Cherry Hill. It is owned and occupied by R.P.
Waters, Esq. Alford sympathized in religious views with his neighbor
Scruggs, and with him was subjected to censure, and disarmed by order