far up the Susquehanna. Here the Indians were of gigantic stature and fierce disposition. On the return voyage Smith explored every sound and inlet of any note, as far as the Rappahannoc. This stream he ascended to the head of navigation, and then returned to Jamestown. He had been absent a little more than three months, and had explored the coast of the great bay for fully three thousand miles. He had been driven about by storms, once wrecked, once stung by a poisonous fish and brought so near to death that his comrades digged his grave; now he was come back to the colony with a MAP OF THE CHESAPEAKE, which he sent by Newport to England, and which is still preserved.

20. Smith was now formally elected president. Soon there was a marked change for the better; gold-hunting ceased, and the rest of the year was noted as a time of prosperity. In the autumn Newport arrived with seventy additional immigrants. The health was so good that only seven deaths occurred between September and the following May. Every well man was obliged to work six hours a day. New houses were built, new fields fenced in; and through the winter the sound of axe and hammer gave token of a prosperous and growing village.

RECAPITULATION.

Bad character of the first settlers.-Necessity drives them to labor.-The king gives sealed instructions.-Smith is arrested.-Restored to his place in the council. He and Newport explore the James.-Newport goes to England.-The colonists are discouraged.-Disease ravages the settlement.-Gosnold dies.Wingfield embezzles the funds.-Is removed from office.-Ratcliffe succeeds.And is impeached.-Smith takes control of the colony.-Sketch of his life.— The settlement flourishes.-Smith procures supplies.-The Indians bring provisions. Smith explores the Chickahominy.-Is captured by the Indians.— Saves his life by stratagem.--Is carried to Orapax.-Is condemned to death.And saved by Pocahontas.-Is liberated.-Returns to Jamestown.-Terrifies the savages.-Deplorable condition of the settlement.-Plot to abandon the place.Newport arrives with new immigrants.-As bad as the others.-The goldhunters go abroad.-And find mica in the sand.-A ship load of dirt sent to England. The planting season goes by.-Smith makes his exploration of the Chesapeake.-Returns.-Is elected president.-Newport arrives with immigrants and supplies.-Progress of the colony.

CHAPTER X.

VIRGINIA.-THE SECOND CHARTER.

N the 23d day of May, 1609, King James granted to the London Company a new charter, by which the government of Virginia was completely changed. The territory was extended from Cape Fear to Sandy Hook, and westward to the Pacific Ocean. The members of the Superior Council were now to be chosen by the stockholders of the company, vacancies were to be filled by the councilors, who were also empowered to elect a governor.

2. The new council was at once organized, and Lord De La Ware chosen governor for life. With him were joined in authority Sir Thomas Gates, Sir George Somers, Christopher Newport, Sir Thomas Dale, and Sir Ferdinand Wainman. Five hundred emigrants were speedily collected, and in June a fleet of nine vessels sailed for America, Lord Delaware did not himself accompany the expedition, but delegated his authority to Somers, Gates, and Newport. In July the ships, then in the West Indies, were scattered by a storm. One vessel was wrecked, and another, having on board the commissioners of Delaware, was driven ashore on one of the Bermudas; the other seven ships came safely to James

town.

3. Captain Smith continued in authority under the old constitution; but the colony was in an uproar. The president was in daily peril of his life. He put some of the most rebellious brawlers in prison, and then, in order to distract the attention of the rest, planned two new settlements-one, of a hundred and twenty men, at Nansemond; the other, of the same number, at the falls of the James. Both companies behaved badly. In a few days after their departure troubles arose with the Indians. While

attempting to quell these difficulties, Smith was wounded by the explosion of a bag of gunpowder. Despairing of relief under the imperfect medical treatment which the colony afforded, he decided to return to England. He accordingly delegated his authority to Sir George Percy, and about the middle of September, 1609, left the scene of his toils and sufferings, never to return.

4. A colony of four hundred and ninety persons remained at Jamestown. Such was the bad management after Smith's departure that the settlement was soon brought face to face with starvation. The Indians became hostile; stragglers were murdered; houses were set on fire; disease returned to add to the desolation; and cold and hunger made the winter long remembered as THE STARVING TIME. By the last of March only sixty persons were left alive.

5. Meanwhile, Sir Thomas Gates and his companions who had been shipwrecked in the Bermudas, constructed two small vessels, and set sail for Virginia. They came in expectation of a joyful greeting. What was their disappointment when a few wan, halfstarved wretches crawled out of their cabins to beg for bread! Whatever stores the commissioners had brought with them were distributed to the settlers, and Gates assumed control of the gov

ernment.

6. But the colonists had now determined to abandon the place forever. In vain did the commissioners remonstrate; they were almost driven to yield to the common will. An agreement was made to sail for Newfoundland, and on the 8th of June Jamestown was abandoned. The disheartened settlers were anxious to burn the town, but Gates prevented them from doing so. Embarking in their four boats, the colonists dropped down with the river, and it seemed that the enterprise of Raleigh and Gosnold had ended in a failure.

7. Lord Delaware was already on his way to America. Before the escaping settlers had reached the sea the ships of the governor came in sight. He brought additional immigrants, plentiful supplies, and promise of better things. The colonists reluctantly consented to return, and before nightfall the fires were again kindled at Jamestown. On the next day the governor caused his commis

sion to be read, and entered upon the discharge of his duties. His amiability and virtue, no less than the wisdom of his administration, endeared him to all and inspired the colony with hope.

8. Lord Delaware was compelled, on account of ill-health, to return to England. His authority was delegated to Percy, who had been the deputy of Captain Smith. The Superior Council had already dispatched a new shipload of stores and another company of emigrants, under Sir Thomas Dale. When the vessel arrived at Jamestown, Percy was superseded by Dale, who adopted a system of martial law as the basis of his administration. In the latter part of August, Sir Thomas Gates arrived with a fleet of six ships, having on board three hundred additional immigrants and a large quantity of stores.

9. Thus far the property of the settlers at Jamestown had been held in common. The colonists had worked together, and in time of harvest deposited their products in public storehouses. Now the right of holding private property was recognized. Governor Gates had the lands divided so that each settler should have three acres of his own; every family might cultivate a garden and plant an orchard, the fruits of which no one but the owner was allowed to gather. The benefits of this system of labor were at once apparent, and the laborers became cheerful and industrious.

RECAPITULATION..

King James grants a new charter.-Changes are made in the government.~ A new council is organized.-Delaware is chosen governor.-His associates.A fleet with emigrants sails for America.-Encounters a storm.-Two vessels are wrecked.-Seven ships reach Jamestown.-The commissioners are left on the Bermudas.-Smith retains the presidency.-New settlements are projected. Smith is wounded.-Returns to England.-Colony suffers after his departure. The starving time.-Gates and his companions reach Virginia.The settlement is abandoned.-Delaware meets the colony.-And persuades them to return.-Prosperity begins.-Delaware falls sick.-And returns to England.-Percy is deputy.-Dale arrives as governor.-Brings immigrants.-New colonists arrive.-The colony improves.-Gates is made governor.-The right of private property is recognized.

CHAPTER XI.

VIRGINIA-THE THIRD CHARTER.

IN the year 1612 the London Company obtained from the king a third patent, by which the character of the government was again changed. The Superior Council was abolished, and the stockholders were authorized to elect their own officers and to govern the colony on their own responsibility. The cause of this change was the unprofitableness of the colony and the dissatisfaction of the company with the management of the council. The new patent was a great step toward a democratic form of government in Virginia.

2. In 1613, while Captain Samuel Argall was on an expedition up the Potomac, he learned that Pocahontas was residing in that neighborhood. With the help of an Indian family the captain enticed the girl on board his vessel and carried her captive to Jamestown. The authorities of the colony decided that Powhatan should pay a heavy ransom for his daughter's liberation. The old king indignantly refused, and ordered his tribes to prepare for war. Meanwhile, Pocahontas was converted to the Christian faith and became a member of the Episcopal Church. Soon afterward John Rolfe, a worthy young man of the colony, sought the hand of the princess in marriage. Powhatan and his chiefs gave their consent, and the nuptials were celebrated in the spring of the next year. By this means a bond of union was established between the Indians and the whites.

3. Two years later, Rolfe and his wife went to England, where they were received with great respect. Captain Smith gave them a letter of introduction to Queen Anne, and many attentions were bestowed on the modest daughter of the Western wilderness. In the following year, while Rolfe was making preparations to return