The history of Massachusetts : from the landing of the Pilgrims to the present time. Including a narrative of the persecutions by state and church in England ; the early voyages to North America ; the explorations of the early settlers ; their hardships, sufferings and conflicts with the savages ; the rise of the colonial power ; the birth of independence ; the formation of the commonwealth ; and the gradual progress of the state from its earliest infancy to its present high position