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selfe, then to haue all fresh men, because those men maye bee inabled to direct others that hee shall haue hearafter.

No. II is

John Bruce, editor, Letters and Papers of the Verney Family by JOHN (Camden Society, London, 1853), 160-162.

II. Some Rarities of New England

(1663-1671)

JOSSELYN, a traveller who paid two visits to New England, in 1638-39 and 1663-71 respectively. Shortly after his return from his

second trip he published

HE Six and twentieth [of July, 1663] we had sight the book

THE

of land.

The Seven and twentieth we Anchored at Nantascot, in the afternoon I went aboard of a Ketch, with some other of our passengers, in hope to get to Boston that night; but the Master of the Ketch would not consent.

The Eight and twentieth being Tuesday, in the morning about 5 of the clock he lent us his Shallop and three of his men, who brought us to the western end of the town where we landed, and having gratified the men, we repaired to an Ordinary (for so they call their Taverns there) where we were provided with a liberal cup of burnt Madera-wine, and store of plum-cake, about ten of the clock I went about my Affairs. .

The shore is Rockie, with high cliffs, having a multitude of considerable Harbours; many of which are capacious enough for a Navy of 500 sail, one of a thousand, the Countrie within Rockie and mountanious, full of tall wood, one stately mountain there is surmounting the rest, about four score mile from the Sea: The description of it you have in my rarities of New-England, between the mountains are many ample rich . . . valleys as ever eye beheld, beset on each side with variety of goodly Trees, the grass man-high unmowed, uneaten and uselesly withering; within these val

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Le, original

source.

A groat was four pence.

leys are spacious lakes or ponds well stored with Fish and Beavers; the original of all the great Rivers in the Countrie, of which there are many with lesser streams (wherein are an infinite of fish) manifesting the goodness of the soil . . . The whole Countrie produceth springs in abundance replenished with excellent waters, having all the properties ascribed to the best in the world. . . .

Frogs too there are in ponds and upon dry land, they chirp like Birds in the spring, and latter end of summer croak like Toads. . . .

The Toad is of two sorts, one that is speckled with white, and another of a dark earthy colour; there is of them that will climb up into Trees and sit croaking there; but whether it be of a third sort, or one of the other, or both, I am not able to affirm; but this I can testifie that there be Toads of the dark coloured kind that are as big as a groat loaf. . . .

Now before I proceed any further, I must (to prevent misconstructions) tell you that these following Creatures, though they be not properly accounted Serpents, yet they are venomous and pestilent Creatures. As, first the Rat, but he hath been brought in since the English came thither, but the Mouse is a Native, of which there are several kinds not material to be described; the Bat or flitter mouse is bigger abundance than any in England and swarm, which brings me to the insects or cut-wa[i]sted Creatures again, as first the honey-Bee, which are carried over by the Eng✩lish and thrive there exceedingly . . But the wasp is common, and they have a sort of wild humble-Bee that breed in little holes in the earth. Near upon twenty years since there lived an old planter at Black-point, who on a Sunshine day about one of the clock lying upon a green bank not far from his house, charged his Son, a lad of 12 years of age to awaken him when he had slept two hours, the old man falls asleep and lying upon his back gaped with his mouth wide [open] . . . after a little while the lad sit

ting by spied a humble-Bee creeping out of his Fathers mouth, which taking wing flew quite out of sight, the hour as the lad ghest [guessed] being come to awaken his Father he jogg'd him and called aloud Father, Father, it is two a clock, but all would not rouse him, at last he sees the humble-Bee returning, who lighted upon the sleepers lip and walked down . . . and presently he awaked. . . .

The Diseases that the English are afflicted with, are the same that they have in England, with some proper to NewEngland.

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they are troubled with a disease in the mouth or Possibly throat which hath proved mortal to some in a very short diphtheria. time, Quinsies, and Impostumations of the Almonds [ton- Tonsilitis. sils], with great distempers of cold. Some of our NewEngland writers affirm that the English are never or very rarely heard to sneeze or cough, as ordinarily they do in England, which is not true. For a cough or stitch upon cold, Wormwood, Sage, Marygolds, and Crabs-claws boiled in posset-drink and drunk off very warm, is a soveraign medicine. . .

Catts and Dogs are as common as in England, but our Dogs in time degenerate; yet they have gallant Dogs both for fowl & wild Beasts all over the Countrey: the Indians store themselves with them, being much better for their turns, than their breed of wild dogs . . .

Of English Poultry too there is good store, they have commonly three broods in a year; the hens by that time they are three years old have spurs like the Cock, but not altogether so big, but as long, they use to crow often, which is so rare a thing in other Countries, that they have a proverb Gallina recinit a Hen crowes.

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John Josselyn, An Account of Two Voyages to New-England (London, 1675), 41–193 passim.

Posset = a

drink composed of hot milk and liquor.

By THOMAS
ASH, a clerk

on board his
majesty's
ship Rich-
mond, sent

out to Caro

lina in 1680

royal instruc-
tions to
inquire into
the state of

that province.
Ash gives
the earliest
account of
the English

settlers in

Carolina

before their

Charleston.

One of the

of the suc

12. Praise of Indian Corn (1682)

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BUT

UT now their Gardens begin to be supplied with such European Plants and Herbs as are necessary for the Kitchen, viz. Potatoes, Lettice, Coleworts with special [cabbage], Parsnip, Turnip, Carrot and Reddish: Their Gardens also begin to be beautified and adorned with such Herbs and Flowers which to the Smell or Eye are pleasing and agreable, viz. The Rose, Tulip, Carnation and Lilly. &c. Their Provision which grows in the Field is chiefly Indian Corn, which produces a vast Increase, yearly, yielding Two plentiful Harvests, of which they make wholesome Bread, and good Bisket, which gives a strong, sound, and nourishsettlement of ing Diet; with Milk I have eaten it dress'd various ways: Of the Juice of the Corn, when green, the Spaniards with chief reasons Chocolet, aromatiz'd with Spices, make a rare Drink, of an excellent Delicacy. I have seen the English amongst the Caribbes roast the green Ear on the Coals, and eat it with a great deal of Pleasure: The Indians in Carolina parch the ripe Corn, then pound it to a Powder, putting it in a Leathern Bag: When they use it, they take a little quantity of the Powder in the Palms of their Hands, mixing it with Water, and sup it off: with this they will travel several days. In short, it's a Grain of General Use to Man and Beast, many thousands of both kinds in the West Indies having from it the greater part of their Subsistence. The temporaries, American Physicians observe that it breeds good Blood, removes and opens Oppellations and Obstructions. At Carolina they have lately invented a way of makeing with it good sound Beer; but it's strong and heady: By Maceration, when duly fermented, a strong Spirit like Brandy may be drawn off from it, by the help of an Alembick.

cess of the English colonies lay in the fact that they settled inside the corn belt, which furnished unfailing food. For the Carolinas, see Contem

poraries, I, ch. xii; for corn, Con

I, No. 66.

Corn whiskey, made by a still.

T[homas] A[sh], Carolina; or a Description of the Present
State of that Country (London, 1682), 13-14.

CHAPTER III-FIRST ERA OF

H

COLONIZATION

13. Settlement of Virginia (1607)

Written in 1626 by CAPTAIN

JOHN SMITH (1580-1631), soldier, explorer, colonist, and later

president of

Though he
was some-
what boastful
in relating
his personal
exploits, it is
largely due to

his efforts Jamestown colony sucspite of

that the

ceeded. In

ONOURABLE Gentlemen, for so many faire and Nauigable Riuers so neere adioyning [adjoining], and piercing thorow [through] so faire a naturall Land, free from any inundations, or large Fenny vnwholsome Marshes, I haue not seene, read, nor heard of: And for the building Virginia. of Cities, Townes, and Wharfage, if they will vse the meanes, where there is no more ebbe nor floud [flood], Nature in few places affoords any so conuenient, for salt Marshes or Quagmires. In this tract of Iames Towne Riuer I know very few; some small Marshes and Swamps there are, but more profitable then [than] hurtfull: and I thinke there is more low Marsh ground betwixt Eriffe and Chelsey, then [than] Kecoughton and the Falls, which is about one hundred and eighty miles by the course of the Riuer. Being enioyned [enjoined] by our Commission not to vnplant nor wrong the Saluages [savages], because the channell was so neere the shore, where now is James Towne, then a thicke groue of trees; wee cut them downe, where the Saluages pretending as much kindnesse as could bee, they hurt and slew one and twenty of vs in two houres: At this time our diet was for most part water and bran, and three ounces of little better stuffe in bread for fiue men a meale, and thus we liued neere three moneths: our lodgings vnder boughes of trees, the Saluages being our enemies, whom we neither knew nor vnderstood; occasions I thinke sufficient to make men sicke and die.

obvious exaggerations,

books are

records from

Smith's valuable contemporary one who had opportunities for observaother pieces by Smith, see Humphrey, Colonial Tracts, Nos. 13. 14; American History Leaflets, No. 27; Contem

the best of

tion. For

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