"Diary of
Cotton Mather" MHS Collections,
Series Seven Vol.8 (herinafter Cited as MD) p.481.
October 17, 1717: G.D.
Tho' Satan by frequent Assaults upon me, designs and labours to discourage my
unceasing Projections to serve the Kingdom of God; for I am satisfied, I should
not suffer what I do from him, and his Instruments, if my continual
contrivances to do Good were not such as they are: Yett, I will in this way
make myself much more vile; and be stedfast and immoveable, always abounding in
the work of the Lord; beleeving a good Issue of all.
What I now think of, is; how to render the conditon of
the poor Pyrates, who are coming on their Trial, serviceable unto the Interests
of piety in the World.
MD:481
October 21, 1717: G.D.
I would entertain the Flock, with a discourse agreeable to the Said Occasion
given, in a Number of Wicked Pirates, who are speedily to be destroyed among
us. A Discourse on the Folly of getting Riches, and not by Right.
MD:491.
November 26, 1717: I
had sometimes made a Prayer, that the Condition of the late Pirates, might be
so ordered, as to furnish me with some special Opportunities to do Service for
the Kingdome of GOD. After the Execution of the Criminals, I had some thoughts
of writing down the conference I had with them in the way from the Prison to
the Gallows: adding the strange story of their capture, and the Sermon I
preached unto my Flock on their occasion. But my thoughts were so feeble and
flitting that I laid them aside. However, I resumed them; and remaining still
entirely at a loss what to do, I betook myself unto the Lott. I wrote one Bitt
of Paper, "Proceed," on another, "Forbear," and after a
solemn Invocation of the glorious Lord, I drew the Lott, which fell to be
"Proceed." I sett myself to the Work, and in a few Hours I made a
Strange Dispatch of it. The Bookseller for whom I intended the Work, declined
it; which caused me to wonder at my Direction to Proceed. But some other
Booksellers, from whom I least expected it, without any offer of Mine to them,
accepted it, and print no less than twelve hundred of them; and the Cause of
Piety, is likely to be more than a little served.
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