So it
will be only of the doings of this branch that we shall read. Colonists
were to be carried to New Netherland from Holland; farms were to be laid
out and cultivated; cities were to be built, and the West India Company
was to have absolute control over all, and was to rule all the people.
To do these things they had authority from the States-General of
Holland, which was the name given to the men who made the laws for that
country. The Company was to make regular reports to the States-General,
and tell of the growth of the colony and the progress of the people in
it. But as the years went on the Company was not as particular as it
should have been about what it told the States-General.
[Illustration: Hall of the States-General of Holland.]
It was not until the West India Company took charge of New Netherland
that it was decided to make the settlement on the Island of Manhattan a
city. Up to this time it had been merely a trading station. In order to
build up a city, the Company knew that it would be necessary to send
people in sufficient numbers so that no matter how many were killed by
the Indians the settlement would not be wiped out. Many inducements were
offered, and men with their families soon began to flock to New
Netherland.
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