Without entering at all into the consideration of the character ofthe early settlers of Virginia and of Massachusetts, one contrastforces itself upon the mind as we read the narratives of thedifferent plantations. In Massachusetts there was from the beginninga steady purpose to make a permanent settlement and colony, andnearly all those who came over worked, with more or less friction,with this end before them. The attempt in Virginia partook more ofthe character of a temporary adventure. In Massachusetts from thebeginning a commonwealth was in view. In Virginia, although theLondon promoters desired a colony to be fixed that would beprofitable to themselves, and many of the adventurers, Captain Smithamong them, desired a permanent planting, a great majority of thosewho went thither had only in mind the advantages of trade, theexcitement of a free and licentious life, and the adventure ofsomething new and startling. It was long before the movers in itgave up the notion of discovering precious metals or a short way tothe South Sea. The troubles the primitive colony endured resultedquite as much from its own instability of purpose, recklessness, andinsubordination as from the hostility of the Indians. The majorityspent their time in idleness, quarreling, and plotting mutiny.
The ships departed for England in December, 1608. When Smithreturned from his expedition for food in the winter of 1609, he foundthat all the provision except what he had gathered was so rotted fromthe rain, and eaten by rats and worms, that the hogs would scarcelyeat it. Yet this had been the diet of the soldiers, who had consumedthe victuals and accomplished nothing except to let the savages havethe most of the tools and a good part of the arms.
Taking stock of what he brought in, Smith found food enough to lasttill the next harvest, and at once organized the company into bandsof ten or fifteen, and compelled them to go to work. Six hours a daywere devoted to labor, and the remainder to rest and merry exercises.
Even with this liberal allowance of pastime a great part of thecolony still sulked. Smith made them a short address, exhibiting hispower in the letters-patent, and assuring them that he would enforcediscipline and punish the idle and froward; telling them that thosethat did not work should not eat, and that the labor of forty orfifty industrious men should not be consumed to maintain a hundredand fifty idle loiterers. He made a public table of good and badconduct; but even with this inducement the worst had to be driven towork by punishment or the fear of it.
The Dutchmen with Powhatan continued to make trouble, andconfederates in the camp supplied them with powder and shot, swordsand tools. Powhatan kept the whites who were with him to instructthe Indians in the art of war. They expected other whites to jointhem, and those not coming, they sent Francis, their companion,disguised as an Indian, to find out the cause. He came to the Glasshouse in the woods a mile from Jamestown, which was the rendezvousfor all their villainy. Here they laid an ambush of forty men forSmith, who hearing of the Dutchman, went thither to apprehend him.
The rascal had gone, and Smith, sending twenty soldiers to follow andcapture him, started alone from the Glass house to return to thefort. And now occurred another of those personal adventures whichmade Smith famous by his own narration.
On his way he encountered the King of Paspahegh, "a most strong,stout savage," who, seeing that Smith had only his falchion,attempted to shoot him. Smith grappled him; the savage prevented hisdrawing his blade, and bore him into the river to drown him. Longthey struggled in the water, when the President got the savage by thethroat and nearly strangled him, and drawing his weapon, was about tocut off his head, when the King begged his life so pitifully, thatSmith led him prisoner to the fort and put him in chains.
In the pictures of this achievement, the savage is represented asabout twice the size and stature of Smith; another illustration thatthis heroic soul was never contented to take one of his size.
The Dutchman was captured, who, notwithstanding his excuses that hehad escaped from Powhatan and did not intend to return, but was onlywalking in the woods to gather walnuts, on the testimony of Paspaheghof his treachery, was also "laid by the heels." Smith now proposedto Paspahegh to spare his life if he would induce Powhatan to sendback the renegade Dutchmen. The messengers for this purpose reportedthat the Dutchmen, though not detained by Powhatan, would not come,and the Indians said they could not bring them on their backs fiftymiles through the woods. Daily the King's wives, children, andpeople came to visit him, and brought presents to procure peace andhis release. While this was going on, the King, though fettered,escaped. A pursuit only resulted in a vain fight with the Indians.
Smith then made prisoners of two Indians who seemed to be hangingaround the camp, Kemps and Tussore, "the two most exact villains inall the country," who would betray their own king and kindred for apiece of copper, and sent them with a force of soldiers, under Percy,against Paspahegh. The expedition burned his house, but did notcapture the fugitive. Smith then went against them himself, killedsix or seven, burned their houses, and took their boats and fishingwires. Thereupon the savages sued for peace, and an amnesty wasestablished that lasted as long as Smith remained in the country.
Another incident occurred about this time which greatly raisedSmith's credit in all that country. The Chicahomanians, who alwayswere friendly traders, were great thieves. One of them stole aPistol, and two proper young fellows, brothers, known to be hisconfederates, were apprehended. One of them was put in the dungeonand the other sent to recover the pistol within twelve hours, indefault of which his brother would be hanged. The President, pityingthe wretched savage in the dungeon, sent him some victuals andcharcoal for a fire. "Ere midnight his brother returned with thepistol, but the poor savage in the dungeon was so smothered with thesmoke he had made, and so piteously burnt, that we found him dead.
The other most lamentably bewailed his death, and broke forth in suchbitter agonies, that the President, to quiet him, told him that ifhereafter they would not steal, he would make him alive again; but he(Smith) little thought he could be recovered." Nevertheless, by aliberal use of aqua vitae and vinegar the Indian was brought again tolife, but "so drunk and affrighted that he seemed lunatic, the whichas much tormented and grieved the other as before to see him dead."Upon further promise of good behavior Smith promised to bring theIndian out of this malady also, and so laid him by a fire to sleep.
In the morning the savage had recovered his perfect senses, hiswounds were dressed, and the brothers with presents of copper weresent away well contented. This was spread among the savages for amiracle, that Smith could make a man alive that was dead. Henarrates a second incident which served to give the Indians awholesome fear of the whites: "Another ingenious savage of Powhatanhaving gotten a great bag of powder and the back of an armour atWerowocomoco, amongst a many of his companions, to show hisextraordinary skill, he did dry it on the back as he had seen thesoldiers at Jamestown. But he dried it so long, they peeping over itto see his skill, it took fire, and blew him to death, and one or twomore, and the rest so scorched they had little pleasure any more tomeddle with gunpowder.""These and many other such pretty incidents," says Smith, "so amazedand affrighted Powhatan and his people that from all parts theydesired peace;" stolen articles were returned, thieves sent toJamestown for punishment, and the whole country became as free forthe whites as for the Indians.
And now ensued, in the spring of 1609, a prosperous period of threemonths, the longest season of quiet............