the meantime, that which we have gotten we have sent by this ship; and though it be not much, yet it will witness for us that we have not been idle, considering the smallness of our number all this summer. We hope the mer5 chants will accept of it, and be encouraged to furnish us with things needful for further employment, which will also encourage us to put forth ourselves to the uttermost.

Now because I expect your coming unto us, with other of our friends, whose company we much desire, I thought 10 good to inform you of a few things needful. Be careful to have on ship a very good bread room to put your biscuits in. Let your cask for beer and water be iron-bound, for the first tire, if not more. Let not your meat be drysalted; none can better do it than the sailors. Let your 15 meal be so hard trod in your cask that you shall need an adze or hatchet to work it out with. Trust not too much on us for corn at this time, for by reason of this last company that came, depending wholly upon us, we shall have little enough till harvest. Be careful to have some 20 of your meal to use by the way; it will much refresh you. Build your cabins as open as you can, and bring good store of clothes and bedding with you. Bring every man a musket or fowling-piece. Let your piece be long in the barrel, and fear not the weight of it, for most of our 25 shooting is from stands. Bring juice of lemons, and take it fasting; it is of good use. If you bring anything for comfort in the country, butter or salad oil, or both, is

very good. Our Indian corn, even the coarsest, maketh as pleasant meat as rice; therefore do not bring that, unless to use by the way. Bring paper and linseed oil for your windows, with cotton yarn for your lamps. Let your shot be most for big fowls, and bring store of powder 5 and shot. I forbear further to write for the present, hoping to see you by the next return. So I take my leave, commending you to the Lord for a safe conduct unto us, resting in him,

Your loving friend,

Plymouth, in New England, this 11th of December, 1621.

E. W.

How long had the Pilgrims been in Plymouth at the date of this writing? Give an account of the first Puritan Thanksgiving. What did Edward Winslow think of the Indians? What comparison did he make between the climates of New England and England? What advantages had the new country? What were some of the things which he recommended his friend to bring over from England? Which give you some idea of the homes of these early settlers? What general impression of Puritan life in New England do you get from this letter? How do his closing words show the character of these people?

What qualities that a good letter should possess do you find in this? What old-fashioned words or expressions have you noticed? You will notice how little the Colonists understood the climate of the land when Winslow speaks of using oiled paper for windows. Why is the turkey eaten at Thanksgiving?

Spelling. Parched, partakers, covenant, venison, industrious, recreations.

Composition.

In writing always keep in mind your subject, and do not stray off into something that may be interesting, but which does not bear closely on your main theme.

This does not apply to a letter in which you may wish to inform the person to whom you are writing of a variety of things, all of which may be interesting to him. Even in a letter, however, you should, if possible, finish all you wish to say on one subject before going on to another.

Select any one topic suggested by this letter and write a short composition. Be sure to keep to your subject. If your topic is The Character of the Pilgrims, select all the things spoken of in the letter that help to show their character; reject everything else. Make an outline before you begin.

64

A PURITAN MAIDEN

[Miles Standish, the brave captain of Plymouth, has sent his young friend, John Alden, to ask for him the hand of the beautiful Puritan maiden, Priscilla, in marriage. Now John Alden himself loved Priscilla, but thought it his duty to do as his friend desired. The following verses of Longfellow give an account of the interview between John and Priscilla. It may interest you to know that Longfellow was himself a descendant of the John Alden who is the hero of this poem.]

So through the Plymouth woods John Alden went on his errand;

Crossing the brook at the ford, where it brawled over pebble and shallow.

Gathering still, as he went, the May-flowers blooming around him,

Fragrant, filling the air with a strange and wonderful

sweetness,

Children lost in the woods, and covered with leaves in

their slumber.

"Puritan flowers," he said, "and the type of Puritan maidens,

Modest and simple and sweet, the very type of Priscilla ! So I will take them to her; to Priscilla the May-flower of

Plymouth,

Modest and simple and sweet, as a parting gift will I take them;

Breathing their silent farewells, as they fade and wither

and perish,

Soon to be thrown away as is the heart of the giver.'

So through the Plymouth woods John Alden went on his errand;

Came to an open space, and saw the disk of the ocean, Sailless, somber, and cold with the comfortless breath of

the east-wind;

Saw the new-built house, and people at work in a meadow;

Heard, as he drew near the door, the musical voice of Priscilla

Singing the hundredth Psalm, the grand old Puritan

anthem,

Music that Luther sang to the sacred words of the

5

10

Psalmist,

15

5

10

Full of the breath of the Lord, consoling and comforting

many.

Then as he opened the door, he beheld the form of the

maiden

Seated beside her wheel, and the carded wool like a snow

drift

Piled at her knee, her left hand feeding the ravenous

spindle,

While with her foot on the treadle she guided the wheel in its motion.

So he entered the house: and the hum of the wheel and the singing

Suddenly ceased; for Priscilla, aroused by his step on the threshold,

Rose as he entered, and gave him her hand, in signal of welcome,

Saying, "I knew it was you, when I heard your step in the passage;

For I was thinking of you, as I sat there singing and spin

ning."

Awkward and dumb with delight, that a thought of him had been mingled

Thus in the sacred psalm, that came from the heart of the

maiden,

Silent before her he stood, and gave her the flowers for an

answer,