heavy forests, being burned over by the Indians every year. Thus the first settlers were attracted by the grassy intervales along the banks of the river. The explorers of this basin must have come by the river through the gap in the mountains, or it is possible that stragglers from the old "Bay Path" should have climbed the mountain spurs from the east and looked into the valley. At all events, in a short space of time, the single broad street of Hadley was staked out for each family dwelling-place, while the outlying lands were absorbed for agricultural purposes. Indeed, so rapid was the spread of this new people that their outlying settlements reached to the north, beyond the dome of Sugarloaf. The Indians were crowded to the mountain fastnesses, where they watched the absorption of their hunting grounds with increasing jealousy.
In addition, there was the constant menace of royal displeasure from home, as well as danger of invasion from the north, by rival colonies in Canada.
Such was the state of affairs when Charles II. ascended the throne of England and commenced the persecution of his father's judges. Three of the "Regicides" fled to the colonies, and two of Cromwell's supporters, Lt.-Gen. Whalley and Maj.-Gen. Goffe, were for a long time hid in a cellar close by the present village inn in Hadley. Not much definite information can be gathered at this time, as their movements were enveloped in mystery and known to a very few. We can imagine their wanderings in the wilderness. First they appeared at Boston, then at New Haven, Hartford, and finally at Hadley, where Whalley died.
When "King Philip's War" broke out Hadley was the centre of the military movement, and there occurred the romantic episode dear to the popular heart, called "A visitation of the angel of the Lord." A man of noble and imposing men appeared during an Indian attack upon the town, and led the "chosen people" to victory; then, while they were praying, suddenly disappeared and left no trace. Poets and novelists have made much of this mysterious thread of legendary lore.
One item may be added to the list of probabilities. The small mill stream rising in the Amherst hills joins the Connecticut
