62 DUTCH AND ENGLISH ON THE HUDSON

he established two annual fairs to be held on the
present Bowling Green, one in October for cattle
and one in November for hogs; and he built a new
stone church within the fort, operated a brewery,
founded a hostelry, and planted orchards and
gardens. But on the other side of the account he
was responsible for a bloody war with the Indians
which came near to wrecking the colony.

His previous record held scant promise for his
success as a governor. He had failed as a merchant
in Rochelle, for which offense his portrait had been
affixed to a gallows. Such a man was a poor person
to be put in control of the complicated finances of
New Netherland and of the delicate relations be-
tween the colonists and the Indians — relations
calling for infinite tact, wisdom, firmness, and
forbearance.

The natives in the region of New Amsterdam
were increasingly irritated by the encroachments
of the whites. They complained that stray cows
spoiled their unf enced cornfields and that various
other depredations endangered their crops. To
add to this irritation Kieft proposed to tax the
natives for the protection afforded them by the
Fort, which was now being repaired at large ex-
pense. The situation, already bad enough, was