Richard of Jamestown : a Story of the Virginia Colony

by James Otis

  In this he succeeded so far as then seemed necessary, and when it wasknown that the fleet was nearly ready to make sail, he came to Blackwallwith all his belongings tied in his doublet.

  To get on board the Susan Constant without attracting much attentionwhile she was being visited by so many curious people, was not a hardtask for Nathaniel Peacock, and three days before the fleet was gotunder way, my comrade had hidden himself in the very foremost part ofthe ship, where were stored the ropes and chains.

  There he had remained until thirst, or hunger, drove him out, on thisnight of which I am telling you, and he begged that I go on deck, wherewere the scuttle butts, to get him a pannikin of water.

  For those of you who may not know what a scuttle butt is, I will explainthat it is a large cask in which fresh water is kept on shipboard. WhenNathaniel's burning thirst had been soothed, he began to fear that Imight give information to Captain John Smith concerning him; but afterall that had been done in the way of hiding himself, and remembering hissuffering, I had not the heart so to do.

  During four days more he spent all the hours of sunshine, and thegreater portion of the night, in my bed, closely covered so that thesailors might not see him, and then came the discovery, when he wasdragged out with many a blow and harsh word to give an account ofhimself. I fear it would have gone harder still with Nathaniel, if I hadnot happened to be there at that very moment.

  As it was, I went directly to Captain John Smith, my master, telling himall Nathaniel's story, and asking if the lad had not shown himself madeof the proper stuff to be counted on as one of the adventurers.

  Although hoping to succeed in my pleading, I was surprised when thecaptain gave a quick consent to number the lad among those who were togo into the new land of Virginia, and was even astonished when his namewas written down among others as if he had been pledged to the voyage indue form.

  But for the sickness of Master Hunt, and the fear we had lest he shoulddie, Nathaniel and I might have made exceeding merry while we lay atanchor in the Downs, for food was plentiful; there was little of work tobe done, and we lads could have passed the time skylarking with such ofthe sailors as were disposed to sport, except orders had been given thatno undue noise be made on deck.

  WE MAKE SAIL AGAIN

  It seemed to me almost as if we spent an entire lifetime within sightof the country we were minded to leave behind us, and indeed six weeks,with no change of scene, and while one is held to the narrow limits of aship, is an exceeding long time.

  However, as I have heard Captain Smith say again and again, everythingcomes to him who waits, and so also came that day when the winds werefavoring; when Captain Newport, the admiral of our fleet, gave the wordto make sail, and we sped softly away from England's shores, littledreaming of that time of suffering, of sickness, and of sadness whichwas before us.

  To Nathaniel and me, who had never strayed far from London town, andknew no more of the sea than might have been gained in a boatman'swherry, the ocean was exceeding unkind, and for eight and forty hoursdid we lie in that narrow bed, believing death was very near at hand.

  There is no reason why I should make any attempt at describing thesickness which was upon us, for I have since heard that it comes toall who go out on the sea for the first time. When we recovered, it wassuddenly, like as a flower lifts up its head after a refreshing showerthat has pelted it to the ground.

  I would I might set down here all which came to us during the voyage,for it was filled with wondrous happenings; but because I would tell ofwhat we did in the land of Virginia, I must be sparing of words now.

  THE FIRST ISLAND

  It is to be remembered that our fleet left London on the twentieth dayof December, and, as I have since heard Captain Smith read from thepages which he wrote concerning the voyage, it was on the twenty-thirdof March that we were come to the island of Martinique, where for thefirst time Nathaniel Peacock and I saw living savages.

  When we were come to anchor, they paddled out to our ships in frailboats called canoes, bringing many kinds of most delicious fruits,which we bought for such trumpery things as glass beads and ornaments ofcopper.

  It was while we lay off this island that we saw a whale attacked andkilled by a thresher and a swordfish, which was a wondrous sight.

  And now was a most wicked deed done by those who claimed to be incommand of our company, for they declared that my master had laid a plotwith some of the men in each vessel of the fleet, whereby the principalmembers of the company were to be murdered, to the end that CaptainSmith might set himself up as king after we were come to the new world.

  All this was untrue, as I knew full well, having aided him in such workas a real clerk would have done, and had there been a plot, I must havefound some inkling of it in one of the many papers I read aloud to him,or copied down on other sheets that the work of the quill might be morepleasing to the eye.

  Besides that, I had been with the captain a goodly portion of the timewhile the ships were being made ready for the voyage, and if he hadharbored so much of wickedness, surely must some word of it have come tome, who sat or stood near at hand, listening attentively whenever he hadspeech with others of the company of adventurers.

  CAPTAIN SMITH A PRISONER

  When the voyage was begun, and the captain no longer had need of me, Iwas sent into the forward part of the ship to live, as has already beenset down, and therefore it was I knew nothing of what was being done inthe great cabin, where the leaders of the company were quartered, untilafter my master was made a prisoner. Then it was told me by the seamanwho had been called by Captain Kendall, as if it was feared my master,being such a great soldier, might strive to harm those who miscalled hima traitor to that which he had sworn.

  It seems, so the seaman said, that Captain John Martin was the one whomade the charges against my master, on the night after we set sail fromMartinique, when all the chief men of the company were met in the greatcabin, and he declared that, when it was possible to do so, meaningafter we had come to the land of Virginia, witnesses should be broughtfrom the other ships to prove the wicked intent. Then it was thatCaptain George Kendall declared my master must be kept a close prisoneruntil the matter could be disposed of, and all the others, save CaptainBartholomew Gosnold, agreeing, heavy irons were put upon him. He wasshut up in his sleeping place, having made no outcry nor attempt to doany harm, save that he declared himself innocent of wrong doing.

  But for Captain Gosnold and Master Hunt, the preacher, I should nothave been permitted to go in and learn if I might do anything for hiscomfort. The other leaders declared that my master was a dangerousman, who should not be allowed to have speech with any person savethemselves, lest he send some message to those who were said to beconcerned with him in the plot.

  I ATTEND MY MASTER

  Master Hunt spoke up right manfully in behalf of Captain Smith, with theresult that I was given free entrance to that small room which had beenmade his prison, save that I must at all times leave the door open, sothose who were in the great cabin could hear if I was charged with anymessage to the seamen.

  My eyes were filled with tears when my master told me that he hadno thought save that of benefiting those who were with him in theadventure, and that he would not lend his countenance to any wickedplot.

  I begged him to understand that I knew right well he would do no mannerof wrong to any man, and asked the privilege of being with him all thetime, to serve him when he could not serve himself because of the ironsthat fettered his legs.

  And so it was that I had opportunity to do that which made my master astrue a friend as ever lad had, for in the later days when we werecome to Virginia and beset by savages more cruel than wild beasts,he ventured his own life again and again to save mine, which was soworthless as compared with his.

  Only that I might tell how the voyage progressed, did I go on deck, orhave speech with Nathaniel Peacock, and only through me did my masterknow when we were come to this island or that, together with what
was tobe seen in such places.

  SEVERAL ISLANDS VISITED

  Therefore it was that when, on the next day after he was made aprisoner, we were come to anchor off that island which the savagescalled Gaudaloupe, and Nathaniel had been permitted to go on shore inone of the boats, I could tell my master of the wondrous waters whichwere found there.

  Nathaniel told me that water spouted up out of the earth so hot, thatwhen Captain Newport threw into it a piece of pork tied to a rope, themeat was cooked in half an hour, even as if it had been over a roaringhot fire.

  After that we passed many islands, the names of which I could notdiscover, until we came to anchor within half a musket shot from theshore of that land which is known as Nevis. Here we lay six days, andthe chief men of the company went on shore for sport and to hunt, savealways either Captain Martin or Captain Kendall, who remained on boardto watch the poor prisoner, while he, my master, lay in his narrow bedsweltering under the great heat.

  During all this while, the seamen and our gentlemen got much profit andsport from hunting and fishing, adding in no small degree to our storeof food. Had Captain Smith not been kept from going on shore by thewickedness of those who were jealous because of his great fame as asoldier, I dare venture to say our stay at this island of Nevis wouldhave been far more to our advantage.

  From this place we went to what Master Hunt told me were the Virginislands, and here the men went ashore again to hunt; but my master,speaking no harsh words against those who were wronging him, lay in thesmall, stinging hot room, unable to get for himself even a cup of water,though I took good care he should not suffer from lack of kindly care.

  Then on a certain day we sailed past that land which Captain Gosnoldtold me was Porto Rico, and next morning came to anchor off the islandof Mona, where the seamen were sent ashore to get fresh water, for oursupply was running low.

  Captain Newport, and many of the other gentlemen, went on shore to hunt,and so great was the heat that Master Edward Brookes fell down dead,one of the sailors telling Nathaniel that the poor man's fat wasmelted until he could no longer live; but Captain Smith, who knows moreconcerning such matters than all this company rolled into one, save Imight except Master Hunt, declared that the fat of a live person doesnot melt, however great the heat. It is the sun shining too fiercely onone's head that brings about death, and thus it was that Master Brookesdied.

  A VARIETY OF WILD GAME

  Our gentlemen who had the heart to make prisoner of so honest, upright aman as my master, did not cease their sport because of what had befallenMaster Brookes, but continued at the hunting until they had brought downtwo wild boars and also an animal fashioned like unto nothing I hadever seen before. It was something after the manner of a serpent, butspeckled on the stomach as is a toad, and Captain Smith believed thetrue name of it to be Iguana, the like of which he says that he hasoften seen in other countries and that its flesh makes very good eating.

  If any one save Captain Smith had said this, I should have found it hardto believe him, and as it was I was glad my belief was not put to thetest. Two days afterward we were come to an island which Master Huntsays is known to seamen as Monica, and there it was that Nathaniel wenton shore in one of the boats, coming back at night to tell me a mostwondrous story.

  He declared that the birds and their eggs were so plentiful that thewhole island was covered with them; that one could not set down hisfoot, save upon eggs, or birds sitting on their nests, some of whichcould hardly be driven away even with blows, and when they rose in theair, the noise made by their wings was so great as to deafen a person.

  Our seamen loaded two boats full of the eggs in three hours, and all inthe fleet feasted for several days on such as had not yet been spoiledby the warmth of the birds' bodies.

  It was on the next day that we left behind us those islands whichCaptain Smith told me were the West Indies, and the seaman who stood atthe helm when I came on deck to get water for my master, said we weresteering a northerly course, which would soon bring us to the land ofVirginia.

  THE TEMPEST

  On that very night, however, such a tempest of wind and of rain cameupon us that I was not the only one who believed the Susan Constant mustbe crushed like an eggshell under the great mountains of water whichat times rolled completely over her, so flooding the decks that but fewcould venture out to do whatsoever of work was needed to keep the shipafloat. After this fierce tempest, when the Lord permitted that even ourpinnace should ride in safety, it was believed that we were come nearto the new world, and by day and by night the seamen stood at the rail,throwing the lead every few minutes in order to discover if we wereventuring into shoal water.

  Nathaniel and I used to stand by watching them, and wishing that wemight be allowed to throw the line, but never quite getting up ourcourage to say so, knowing full well we should probably make a tangle ofit.

  THE NEW COUNTRY SIGHTED

  As Master George Percy has set down in the writings which I have copiedfor him since we came to Virginia, it was on the twenty-sixth dayof April, in the year of our Lord 1607, at about four o'clock in themorning, when we were come within sight of that land where were to bebuilt homes, not only for our company of one hundred and five, countingthe boys, but for all who should come after us.

  It was while the ship lay off the land, her decks crowded with ourcompany who fain would get the first clear view of that country in whichthey were to live, if the savages permitted, that I asked my master whoamong the gentlemen of the cabin was the leader in this adventure.

  To my surprise, he told me that it was not yet known. The London Companyhad made an election of those among the gentlemen who should formthe new government, and had written down the names, together withinstructions as to what should be done; but this writing was enclosedin a box which was not to be opened until we had come to the end of ourvoyage.

  THE LEADER NOT KNOWN

  There could be no doubt but that Captain Kendall and Captain Martin bothbelieved that when the will of the London Company was made known, itwould be found they stood in high command; but there was in my hearta great hope that my master might have been named. Yet when I put thematter to him in so many words, he treated the matter lightly, saying itcould hardly be, else they had not dared to treat him thus shamefully.

  However, it was soon to be known, if the commands of the London Companywere obeyed, for now we had come to this new land of Virginia, and thetime was near at hand when would be opened the box containing the namesof those who were to be officers in the town we hoped soon to build.

  As for myself, I was so excited it seemed impossible to remain quietmany seconds in one place, and I fear that my duties, which consistedonly in waiting upon the prisoner, my master, were sadly neglectedbecause of the anxiety in my mind to know who the merchants in Londonhad named as rulers of the settlement about to be made in the new world.

  One would have believed from Captain Smith's manner that he had noconcern whatsoever as to the result of all this wickedness and scheming,for it was neither more nor less than such, as I looked at the matter,on the part of Captain Kendall and Captain Martin.

  Here we were in sight of the new world, at a place where we were to liveall the remainder of our lives, and he a prisoner in chains; but yetnever a word of complaint came from his lips.

  ARRIVAL AT CHESAPEAKE BAY

  When the day had fully dawned, and the fleet stood in toward the noblebay, between two capes, which were afterward named Cape Henry and CapeComfort, Captain Smith directed me to go on deck, in order to keep himinformed of what might be happening.

  He told me there was no question in his mind but that we were come tothe mouth of Chesapeake Bay, where it had been agreed with the Londonmerchants we were to go on shore.

  Standing at the head of the companionway, but not venturing out on decklest I should be sent to some other part of the ship, and thus be unableto give my master the information which he desired, I looked out uponwhat seemed to me the most goodly land that c
ould be found in all thewide world.

  Trees there were of size fit for masts to the king's ships; flowersbordered the shore until there were seemingly great waves of this color,or of that, as far as eye could reach, and set within this dazzlingarray of green and gold, and of red and yellow, was a great sea, whichCaptain Smith said was called the Chesapeake Bay.

  We entered for some distance, mayhap three or four miles, before comingto anchor, and then Master Wingfield, Captain Gosnold, and CaptainNewport went on shore with a party of thirty, made up of seamen andgentlemen, and my master, who had not so much as stretched his legssince we sailed from Martinique, was left in his narrow cabin with nonebut me to care for him!

  I had thought they would open the box containing the instructions fromLondon, before doing anything else; but Captain Smith was of the mindthat such business could wait until they had explored sufficiently tofind a place where the new town might be built.

  It was a long, weary, anxious day for me. The party had left the ship inthe morning, remaining absent until nightfall, and at least four or fivetimes every hour did I run up from the cabin to gaze shoreward in thehope of seeing them return, for I was most eager to have the businesspushed forward, and to know whether my master's enemies were given, bythe London Company, permission to do whatsoever they pleased.