The Early English Colonies at Virginia and New England
Assignment 1
Book III: The Proceedings and Accidents of the English Colony in Virginia
[Smith describes the early experiences of the colony; he refers to his own actions in third person throughout the book]
Being thus left to our fortunes, it fortuned that within ten days scarce ten amongst us could either go, or well stand, such extreme weakness and sickness oppressed us. And thereat non need marvel, if they consider the cause and reason, which was this:
While the ships stayed, our allowance was somewhat bettered by a daily proportion of biscuit, which the sailors would pilfer to sell, give, or exchange with us, for money, sassafras, furs, or love. But when they departed, there remained neither tavern, beerhouse, nor place of relief, but the common kettle. Had we been as free from all sins as gluttony and drunkenness we might have been canonized for saints; but our President would never have been admitted for engrossing to his private oatmeal, sack, oil, aquavitæ; beef, eggs, or what not, but the kettle; that indeed he allowed equally to be distributed, and that was half a pint of wheat, and as much barley boiled with water for a man a day, and this having fried some twenty-six weeks in the ship's hold, contained as many worms as grains; so that we might truly call it rather so much bran than corn. Our drink was water, our lodgings castles in the air.
With this lodging and diet, our extreme toil in bearing and planting palisades so strained and bruised us, and our continual labor in the extremity of the heat had so weakened us, as were cause to have made us as miserable in our native country or any other place in the world.
From May to September , those that excaped lived upon sturgeon, and sea crabs. Fifty in this time we buried; the rest seeing the President's projects to escape these miseries in our pinnace by flight (who all this time had neither felt want nor sickness) so moved our dead spirits, as we deposed him and established Ratcliffe in his place (Gosnall being dead), Kendall deposed. Smith newly recovered, Martin and Ratcliffe was by his care preserved and relieved, and the most of the soldiers recovered with the skillful diligence of Master Thomas Wotton our surgeon general.
But now was all our provision spent, the sturgeon gone, all helps abandoned, each hour expecting the fury of the savages; when God, the patron of all good endeavors, in that desperate extremity so changed the hearts of the savages, that they brought such plenty of their fruits and provision, as no man wanted.
And now where some affirmed it was ill done of the Council to send forth men so badly provided, this incontradictable reason will show them plainly they are too ill advised to nourish such ill conceits; first, the fault of our going was our own, what could be thought fitting or necessary we had; but what we should find, or want, or where we should be, we were all ignorant, and supposing to make our passage in two months, with victual to live, and the advantage of the spring to work; we were at sea five months, where we both spent our victual and lost the opportunity of the time and season to plant, by the unskillful presumption of our ignorant transporters, that understood not at all what they undertook.
Such actions have ever since the world's beginning been subject to such accidents, and everything of worth is found full of difficulties: but nothing so difficult as to establish a commonwealth so far remote from men and means, and where men's minds are so untoward as neither do well themselves, nor suffer others. But to proceed.
The new President, and Martin, being little beloved, of weak judgment in dangers, and less industry in peace, committed the managing of all things abroad to Captain Smith, who by his own example, good words, and fair promises, set some to mow, others to bind thatch, some to build houses, others to thatch them, himself always bearing the greatest task for his own share, so that in short time, he provided most of them lodgings, neglecting any for himself.
This done, seeing the savages' superfluity begin to decrease, (with some of his workmen) [he] shipped himself in the shallop to search the country for trade. The want of the language, knowledge to manage boat without sails, the want of a sufficient power (knowing the multitude of the savages), apparel for his men, and other necessaries, were infinite impediments yet no discouragement.
Being but six or seven in company we went down the [Chickahominy] river to Kecoughtan, where at first they scorned him, as a famished man, and would in derision offer him a handful of corn, a piece of bread, for their swords and muskets, and such like proportions also for their apparel. But seeing by trade and courtesy there was nothing to be had, he made bold to try such conclusions as necessity enforced, though contrary to his commission: let fly his muskets, ran his boat on shore, whereat they all fled into the woods.
So marching toward their houses, they might see great heaps of corn; much ado he had to restrain his hungry soldiers from present taking it, expecting as it happened that the savages would assault them, as not long after they did with most hideous noise. Sixty or seventy of them, some black, some red, some white, some parti-coloured, came in a square order, singing and dancing out of the woods, with their Okee (which was an idol made of skins, stuffed with moss, all painted and hung with chains and copper) borne before them; and in this manner, being well armed with clubs, targets , bows, and arrows, they charged the English, that so kindly received them with their muskets loaded with pistol shot, that down fell their God, and divers lay sprawling on the ground; the rest fled again to the woods, and ere long sent one of their Quiyoughkasoucks to offer peace and redeem their Okee.
Smith told them, if only six of them would come unarmed and load his boat, he would not only be their friend but restore them their Okee, and give them beads, copper, and hatchets besides, which on both sides was to their contents performed; and then they brought him venison, turkies, wild fowl, bread, and what they had singing and dancing in sign of friendship till they departed. . . .
The next voyage he proceeded so far that with much labor by cutting of trees asunder he made his passage; but when his barge could pass no farther, he left her in a broad bay out of danger of shot, commanding none should go ashore till his return: himself with two English and two savages went up higher in a canoe, but he was not long absent, but his men went ashore, whose want of government, gave both occasion and opportunity to the savages to surprise one George Cassen, whom they slew, and much failed not to have cut off the boat and all the rest.
Smith little dreaming of that accident, being got to the marshes at the river's head, twenty miles in the desert, had his two men slain (as is supposed) sleeping by the canoe, whilst himself by fowling sought them victuall who finding he was beset with 200 savages, two of them he slew, still defending himself, with the aid of a savage his guid[e], whom he bound to him with his garters, and used him as a buckler, yet he was shot in his thigh a little, and had many arrows that stuck in his clothes but no great hurt, till at last they took him prisoner.
When this news came to Jamestown, much was their sorrow for his loss, few expecting what ensued.
Six or seven weeks those barbarians kept him prisoner, many strange triumphs and conjurations they made of him, yet he so demeaned himself amongst them, as he not only diverted them from surprising the fort, but procured his own liberty, and got him and his company such estimation amongst them, that those savages admired him more than their own Quiyoughkasoucks.
The manner how they used and delivered him is as followeth.
The savages having drawn from George Cassen whether Captain Smith was gone, prosecuting that opportunity they followed him with 300 bowmen, conducted by the King of Pamaunkee, who in divisions searching the turnings of the river, found Robinson and Emry by the fireside; those they shot full of arrows and slew. Then finding the Captain, as is said, that used the savage that was his guide as his shield (three of them being slain and divers other so galled), all the rest would not come near him. Thinking thus to have returned to his boat, regarding them, as he marched, more than his way, [Smith] slipped up to the middle in an oozy creek and his savage with him, yet durst they not come to him till being near dead with cold, he threw away his arms. Then according to their composition they drew him forth and led him to the fire, where his men were slain. Diligently they chafed his benumbed limbs.
[At this point, go to your Heath Anthology and read the passage from Book III Chapter 2 on pp. 126-128. You do not need to read the Chapter 8 passage or any of the other John Smith passages in Heath. Finally, read the paragraph below: ]
Now in Jamestown they were all in combustion, the strongest preparing once more to run away with the pinnace; which with the hazard of his life, with Sakre falcon and musket shot, Smith forced now the third time to stay or sink.
Some, no better then they should be, had plotted with the President, the next day to have put him to death by the Levitical law , for the lives of and Robinson and Emry, pretending the fault was his that had led them to their ends: but he quickly took such order with such lawyers, that he laid them by the heels till he sent some of them prisoners for England.
1. What hardships did the colonists face during their first several months in the New World? What characteristics of the group made their goals difficult to achieve?
2. What assistance did they receive?
3. What criticisms does Smith make of the new president and colonist Martin?
Whom does Smith praise, and why?
4. What happens to Smith during his expedition on the Chickahominy River?
How is he saved from death? Why are most historians skeptical about this account?
5. What does Smith discover when he returns to Jamestown after his release? What do the other colonists want to do, and how does Smith prevent it?
6. What impression of Smith do you get from this account?
7. What seems to be Smith's attitude toward the Native Americans?
8. Why do you think Smith wrote in the third person, referring to himself as "he" instead of "I"?
Assignment 2
Add the following passage from Of Plymouth Plantation to page 167 between "just hand of God upon him" and "But to omit other things... ."
After they had enjoyed fair winds and weather for a season, they were encountered many times with cross winds, and met with many fierce storms, with which the ship was shroudly shaken, and her upper works made very leaky; and one of the main beams in the mid ships was bowed and cracked, which put them in some fear that the ship could not be able to perform the voyage. So some of the chief of the company, perceiving the mariners to fear the sufficiency of the ship, as appeared by their mutterings, they entered into serious consultation with the master and other officers of the ship, to consider in time of the danger; and rather to return then to cast themselves into a desperate and inevitable peril. And truly there was great distraction and difference of opinion among the mariners themselves; fain would they do what could be done for their wages sake, (being now half the seas over,) and on the other hand they were loath to hazard their lives too desperately. But in examining of all opinions, the master and others affirmed they knew the ship to be strong and firm under water; and for the buckling of the main beam, there was a great iron screw the passengers brought out of Holland, which would raise the beam into his place; the which being done, the carpenter and master affirmed that with a post put under it, set firm in the lower deck, and other-ways bound, he would make it sufficient. And as for the decks and upper works they would caulk them as well as they could, and though with the working of the ship they would not long keep staunch, yet there would otherwise be no great danger, if they did not overpress her with sails. So they committed themselves to the will of God, and resolved to proceed. In sundry of these storms the winds were so fierce, and the seas so high, as they could not bear a knot of sail, but were forced to hull, for divers days together. And in one of them, as they thus lay at hull, in a mighty storm, a lusty young man (called John Howland) coming upon some occasion above the gratings, was, with a seele of the ship thrown into the sea; but it pleased God that he caught hold of the topsail halyards, which hung overboard, and ran out at length; yet he held his hold (though he was sundry fathoms under water) till he was hauled up by the same rope to the brim of the water, and then with a boat hook and other means got into the ship again, and his life saved; and though he was something ill with it, yet he lived many years after, and became a profitable member both in church and commonwealth. In all this voyage there died but one of the passengers, which was William Butten, a youth, servant to Samuel Fuller, when they drew near the coast.
[return to textbook and read until you get to the Ch. XIX excerpt on p. 173]
1. What hardships do the Pilgrims endure during their trip across the Atlantic?
2. What happens to the "very profane young man"?
What happens to John Howland?
What do you suppose Bradford was trying to teach his readers by detailing these two episodes?
3. What is the Pilgrims' first act when they are "brought safe to land?"
4. Explain the situation between the sick and the healthy crew members (i.e., the sailors, not the Pilgrims) during the first winter.
How does the crew members' behavior compare to that of the Pilgrims?
What moral point is Bradford making through his descriptions?
5. How would you characterize the Pilgrims' reactions to the hardships they encountered during their first winter in Plymouth?
6. Find at least four passages that demonstrate Bradford's belief in the Calvinist tenets in your Early English-American Groups outline; summarize each passage and indicate which belief it seems to illustrate.
7. What are the terms of the peace agreement between the Pilgrims and Native Americans?
8. What change occurs in Bradford's attitude toward the Native Americans?
9. How does the Native Americans' attitude toward the Pilgrims change?
10. Based on Bradford's descriptions, what do you think brought about these changes in attitude?
11. Do you feel that the changing attitudes of the settlers toward the Native Americans and the Native Americans toward the settlers reflect typical experiences with newcomers? Why or why not?
12. What assessment does Bradford make about community property in the last excerpt you read (from Chapter XIV "End of the 'Common Course and Condition'")?
13. How might the end of community property be seen as the beginning of the end of the concept of the Puritans' "City on a Hill" created for the glory of God?
Assignment 3
Read pp. 147-149 on John Winthrop and the journal excerpts on pp. 159-164
1. Who was Anne Hutchinson (refer to the introduction to New England as well)? Why did the Puritan hierarchy condemn her? What role does gender play in her story?
2. What eventually happened to Hutchinson?
3. What truly bizarre assertion does Winthrop make in the entry for September 1638 (at the top of p. 162)?
4. In the July 3 1645 entry, Winthrop quotes the deputy governor (ie, himself&emdash;he was demoted for a while!) at length. Describe what Deputy Governor Winthrop has to say about men and women on p. 163, and then state your thoughts about his statements.