Pietas in patriam the life of His Excellency Sir William Phips, Knt. late Captain…

They set up Good Orders, as well as they could among themselves and, besides their daily Devotions, they Observed the Lord's Days, with more solemn Exercises of Religion.

But it was not long before they began to feel the more mortal effects of the Straits, whereinto they had bin Reduced: Their short Commons, Their Drink of Snow-Water, Their Hard and Wet, and Smoky Lodgings, and their Grievous Despair of Mind, overwhelmed some of them, at such a Rate, and so ham-stringed them, that sooner than be at the pains to go abroad, and cut their one Fuel, they would lie after a Sottish manner in the Cold; these things quickly brought Sicknesses among them. The first of their Number who Died, was their Doctor, on the 20th of December; and then they dropped away, one after another, till between thirty and forty of the sixty, were buried by their disconsolate Friends, whereof every one looked still to be the next that should lay his Bones in that Forsaken Region. These poor Men did therefore, on Monday the Twenty Seventh of January, keep a Sacred Fast (as they did, in some sort, a civil one, every day, all this while) to beseech of Almighty God, that his Anger might be turned from them, That he would not go on to cut them off in his Anger, That the Extremity of the Season might be mitigated, and, That they might be prospered in some Essay to get Relief as the Spring should Advance upon them; and they took Notice, That God gave them a Gracious Answer to every one of these Petitions.

But it was not long before they began to feel the more mortal effects of the Straits, whereinto they had bin Reduced: Their short Commons, Their Drink of Snow-Water, Their Hard and Wet, and Smoaky Lodgings, and their Grievous Despair of Mind, overwhelmed some of them, at such a Rate, and so ham-string'd them, that sooner than be at the paines to go abroad, and cut their one Fuel, they would ly after a Sottish manner in the Cold; these things quickly brought Sicknesses among them. The first of their Number who Died, was their Doctor, on the 20th of December; and then they dropt away, one after another, till between thirty and forty of the sixty, were buried by their disconsolate Friends, whereof every one look'd still to be the next that should lay his Bones in that Forsaken Region. These poor Men did therefore, on Monday the Twenty Seventh of January, keep a Sacred Fast (as they did, in some sort, a civil one, every day, all this while) to beseech of Almighty God, that his Anger might be turned from them, That he would not go on to cut them off in his Anger, That the Extremity of the Season might be mitigated, and, That they might be prospered in some Essay to get Relief as the Spring should Advance upon them; and they took Notice, That God gave them a Gracious Answer to every one of these Petitions.