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 .. 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. 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 on board his majesty's ship Richmond, sent out to Caro lina in 1680 with special royal instructions 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) 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 [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 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 be drawn off from it, by the help of an Alembick. may 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, Contemporaries, I, No. 66. Corn whiskey, made by a still. T[homas] A[sh], Carolina; or a Description of the Present CHAPTER III-FIRST ERA OF H COLONIZATION 13. Settlement of Virginia (1607) Written in 1626 by CAPTAIN JOHN SMITH (1580-1631), plorer, colonist, and later soldier, ex president of Though he in relating that the ceeded. In colony sucspite of obvious exaggerations, 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 Iames 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. books are Smith's valuable contemporary one who had opportunities for observaother pieces records from the best of tion. - For by Smith, see Humphrey, Colonial Tracts, Nos. 13. 14; American History Leaflets, No. 27; Contem poraries, I, Nos. 62, 90. Hist. Studies, Erith and English towns. Kecoughton, now Hampton, Va. The Falls, now Richmond, Va. = Unplant dispossess. The site of Jamestown was ill chosen, being low, swampy, and unhealthy; it is now no longer inhabited. Necessity thus did inforce me with eight or nine, to try conclusions amongst the Saluages, that we got prouision which recouered the rest being most sicke. Six weeks I was led captiue by those Barbarians, though some of my men were slaine, and the rest fled, yet it pleased God to make their great Kings daughter the means to returne me safe to Iames towne, and releeue [relieve] our wants, and then our Commonwealth was in all eight and thirty, the remainder of one hundred and fiue. Being supplied with one hundred and twenty, with twelue men in a boat of three tuns, I spent foureteene weeks in those large waters; the contents of the way of my boat protracted by the skale [scale] of proportion, was about three thousand miles, besides the Riuer we dwell vpon, where no Christian knowne euer was, and our diet for the most part what we could finde, yet but one died. The Saluages being acquainted, that by command from England we durst not hurt them, were much imboldned; that famine and their insolencies did force me to breake our Commission and instructions, cause Powhatan fly his Countrey, and take the King of Pamavuke Prisoner; and also to keepe the King of Paspahegh in shackels, and put his men to double taskes in chaines, till nine and thirty of their Kings paied vs contribution, and the offending Saluages [were] sent to Iames towne to punish at our owne discretions in the two last yeares I staied there, I had not a man Pocahontas's slaine. throwing herself between him and the hatchet. In later editions of his account, Smith introduced the doubtful story of See also Con- All those conclusions being not able to preuent the bad euents of pride and idlenesse, hauing receiued another supply of seuentie, we were about two hundred in all, but not twentie work-men: In following the strict directions from England to doe that was impossible at that time; So it hapned, that neither wee nor they had any thing to eat, but what the Countrey afforded naturally; yet of eightie who liued vpon Oysters in Iune and Iuly, with a pint of corne a week for a man lying vnder trees, and 120 for the most part liuing vpon Sturgion, which was dried til we pounded it to powder for meale, yet in ten weeks but seuen died. It is true, we had of Tooles, Armes, & Munition sufficient, Aquavitæ some Aquavitæ, Vineger, Meale, Pease, and Otemeale, but liquor. in two yeares and a halfe not sufficient for six moneths, though by the bils of loading the proportions sent vs, would = well haue contented vs, notwithstanding we sent home ample Wainscot = proofes of Pitch, Tar, Sope Ashes, Wainskot, Clapboord, ceiling. Silke grasse, Iron Ore, some Sturgion and Glasse, Saxefras, Sassafras. Cedar, Cypris, and blacke Walnut, crowned Powhaton, sought the Monacans Countrey, according to the instructions sent vs, but they caused vs [to] neglect more necessary workes: they had better haue giuen for Pitch and Sope ashes one hundred pound a tun in Denmarke : Wee also maintained fiue or six seuerall Plantations. At the head of the James River. The timely arrival of Newport greatly aided in this work. Iames towne being burnt, wee rebuilt it and three Forts more, besides the Church and Store-house, we had about fortie or fiftie seuerall houses to keepe vs warme and dry, inuironed [environed] with a palizado of foureteene or fifteene foot, and each [stake] as much as three or foure men could carrie. We digged a faire Well of fresh water in the Fort, where wee had three Bulwarks, foure and twentie peece of Ordnance, of Culuering [culverin], Demiculuering, These are all species of Sacar and Falcon, and most well mounted vpon conuenient cannon. plat-formes, [and we] planted one hundred acres of Corne. We had but six ships to transport and supply vs, and but two hundred seuenty seuen men, boies [boys], and women, by whose labours Virginia being brought to this kinde of perfection, the most difficulties past, and the foundation thus laid by this small meanes; yet because we had done no more, they called in our Commission, tooke a new [one] in their owne names, and appointed vs neere as many offices and Officers as I had Souldiers, that neither knew vs nor Smith was justified in what he here says. The Company was looking out for the its share interests of holders rather than for the good munity. of the com |