John Eliot's First Indian Teacher and Interpreter Cockenoe-de-Long Island and The Story of His Career from the Early Records

Transcriber's Note
Edition Limited To 215 Copies. No. 169.
INDIAN GRAVES ON FORT HILL, MONTAUK
He was the first that I made use of to teach me words and to be my interpreter. — Eliot's Letter , 2, 12, 1648.
RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED TO THE OFFICERS AND MEMBERS OF THE SUFFOLK COUNTY (N. Y.) HISTORICAL SOCIETY BY YOUR FELLOW MEMBER

This little work is a brief résumé of the career of an Indian of Long Island, who, from his exceptional knowledge of the English language, his traits of character, and strong personality, was recognized as a valuable coadjutor and interpreter by many of our first English settlers. These personal attributes were also known and appreciated by the inhabitants of some parts of Connecticut and Massachusetts, by the Commissioners of the United Colonies of New England, and by the Governor of the Colony of New York, all of whom found occasion for his services in their transactions with the Indians. The facts which I shall present in their chronological order, and the strong circumstantial evidence adduced therefrom, will indicate the reasons why I have unraveled the threads of this Indian's life from the weft of the past, and why the recital of his career should be the theme of a special essay, and worthy of a distinctive chapter in the aboriginal, as well as in the Colonial, history of Long Island.
William Wallace Tooker.
Sag Harbor, L. I., March, 1896 .


In proof of these findings of fact we have the testimony of the Rev. John Eliot, than whom no one is better known for his labors in behalf of the spiritual welfare of the Indians of eastern Massachusetts, and for his works in their language, including that monumental work which went through two editions, Eliot's Indian Bible. It is thought that Eliot began his study of the Indian language about 1643, but it is possible that he began much earlier. In a letter dated February 12, 1649 (2-12-'48), he wrote: