After this, while D’Aulnay went to France to get fresh orders from the king against his rival, De la Tour came to Massachusetts in May, 1644, in hopes of again interesting the Puritans there in his fortunes.  But John Endicott had been elected governor in the place of Winthrop, and all the cheer De la Tour could get in return for permitting free-trade was the promise of a letter addressed to D’Aulnay urging peace with De la Tour and protesting against the capture of Massachusetts’ trading vessels.[16]

In September, 1644, the federal commissioners met at Hartford, and showed dislike of the conduct of ex-Governor Winthrop by passing a resolution to the effect that “no jurisdiction within this confederation shall permit any voluntaries to go forth in a warlike way against any people whatever without order and direction of the commissioners of the other jurisdictions.”  In the mean while, D’Aulnay came back from France with fresh orders from the king for the arrest of De la Tour, and in October, 1644, sent to Boston an envoy with the new credentials.  The Massachusetts authorities were reluctant to abandon De la Tour, but seeing no alternative they made a treaty for free-trade, subject to confirmation by the federal commissioners.[17]

Still the ties that bound the Boston merchants to De la Tour were not wholly dissolved even now.  They gave an asylum to De la Tour’s wife at Boston, and sent her with supplies to his fort at Port Royal; and when the fort succumbed under D’Aulnay’s attack they fitted her husband out with a ship and truck for trading.  At last De la Tour’s dealings thoroughly opened their eyes.  When the ship came to Cape Sable, De la Tour and his Frenchmen suddenly arose against the English crew, put them out in the woods, and seized and appropriated the vessel and cargo.  Prominent among those who had lent money and influence to De la Tour was Major Edward Gibbons, who lost upward of L2500.

D’Aulnay retaliated and took a ship belonging to Massachusetts, and in September, 1646, a new treaty was made with him by envoys representing the confederacy.  The English made a formal acknowledgment of error, and the French accepted in full satisfaction a present to D’Aulnay of a sedan-chair, which had been sent as a present by the viceroy of Mexico to his sister, but was captured in the West Indies by Cromwell and given by him to Governor Winthrop.[18]

In 1648 the colony of Massachusetts applied to the French officials at Quebec for a reciprocity of trade.  As the Iroquois had proved very destructive to the French and their Algonquin and Huron allies, the French governor caught at the plan of granting the desired privileges in return for military aid.  Accordingly, in 1650, the French governor, D’Aillebout, sent the Jesuit father Druillettes, who had acted as missionary among the Algonquins of Maine, as envoy to Boston to negotiate a treaty.[19] But Massachusetts did not repeat the error of former times, and would do nothing without consent of the federal commissioners.  To them, therefore, the matter was referred, with the result that the commissioners declined to involve the confederacy in a war with the Iroquois by authorizing any assistance to be given the French privately or officially.[20]