New England have been derived. We rejoice to believe that they will
preserve it, and keep its honor bright.

Winthrop was recognized as the great leader in the early history of
the Colony. He had a combination of qualities that marked him as a
wise and good man, and gave him precedence. The eminent dignity of his
character was admired and revered by all. No one was more ready to
admit this than Endicott. Never were men placed towards each other in
relations more severely testing their magnanimity, and none ever bore
the test more perfectly. But Endicott was, after all, the most
complete representative man of that generation. He was thoroughly
identified with the people, participating in their virtues and in
their defects. He was a strict religionist, a sturdy Puritan, a firm
administrator of the law; at the same time, there are indications that
he was of a genial spirit. He was personally brave, and officially
intrepid. His administration of the government required nerve, and he
had it. Sometimes the ardor of his temperament put him for a moment
off his guard; but he was quick to acknowledge his error. He was true
to the people, who never faltered in their fidelity to him. The author
of "Wonder-working Providence" described him as "a fit instrument to
begin the wilderness worke, of courage bold undaunted, yet sociable
and of a cheerful spirit." I have presented some instances of his kind
and pleasant relations with his workmen and neighbors. His name will
ever be held in honored remembrance in this vicinity, where his useful
enterprise was appreciated; and his descendants in our day, and to the
present time, have contributed to the prosperity and the adornment of
the community.

It is not unlikely, that hostile feelings towards the Nurses, which
contributed afterwards to serious results, may have been engendered in