CHAPTER VI
THE CURSE OF GREED
In Hartford, where the expedition arrived safe and well after a week ofsteadfast traveling, Mr. Bradley encountered much that surprised him.Sometimes we judge the world by our own standards, thinking thateverybody moves as rapidly or slowly as we ourselves; suddenly we arebrought face to face with the real situation, and we find ourselvesoutwitted and outrun.
It so happened to Mr. Bradley, who up to this time had made no effortsto extend his trade as far as the Connecticut River. When finally hearrived on the scene, he discovered that competitors had establishedthemselves long ago in this paradise of the huntsman and the trapper.
The Englishmen from Massachusetts Colony, who had come here in theprevious year, had erected themselves sturdy log huts with a strong fortin the midst, to protect them against a possible attack of the Indians,and all along the river traders were plying their craft.
However, others had been there even before them. From the South, Dutchtrappers had come from New York, and these had gained the good will ofthe Indians, from whom they purchased their furs. The Dutch were verycunning, and while they did not always treat the Indians fairly, theynevertheless maintained their friendship and cooperation.
The land along the Connecticut River was very fertile, and the PequotIndians, who sided with the Dutch, had driven away the original tribeswhich had dwelled there. These expelled tribes were friendly to thePuritans, and when the Puritan settlers seized the land, they broughtback the Indians whom the Pequots had just driven away. At this thePequots were enraged, and they now took revenge by killing Englishtraders where they had opportunity. The English at once punished theIndians by hanging a few of their representative men, and theythreatened them with war, should they engage in other punitivemeasures.
The Dutch, however, whom the invading Englishmen crowded out, incitedthe Indians to rebellion war against the Puritans, and thus there wassown the seed of hatred and war which in time brought forth viciousfruits.
When Mr. Bradley arrived at Hartford, he at once met several friendswho encouraged him not to turn back, but to establish a trading postup the river, near enough to the fort to enjoy its protection.
This he did, and the venture gave the children no little pleasure.Indian help was readily obtained, and in addition several skilledcarpenters, who urged the Indians to work hard and rapidly, so thatwithin a month a large and strong log house was completed. It stood onthe west bank of the river, about ten miles from the fort, which couldeasily be reached by the boat. As hostilities might be expected, itwas built much like a small fort, the second story jutting out over thefirst so that it could the more easily be defended. The log house hadno windows, but there were a number of small, narrow apertures throughwhich the inmates could shoot in case of attack.
The furs and stores were provided for in the first story, while in thesecond there were three rooms in which the traders might live and sleep.
No sooner was the trading post established when Mr. Bradley left withhis wife to return to Boston, where important business negotiations hadto be attended to by himself. He promised to send John Rawlins, and putFred and Matthew in charge of the log house.
Agnes was to return to the Boston Colony, but she begged her parents topermit her to remain, and this permission was finally granted. So aftera last service, Mr. and Mrs. Bradley left, and the three childrenremained in the wilderness alone, amply supplied with provisions andarticles of trade.
For their traffic Mr. Bradley had purchased a fine, strong boat, inwhich they could easily reach Hartford whenever they cared to go there.In the barn which was built to the house, stood three horses, accustomedto traveling in the woods, and altogether faithful and reliable.
Fred, who till the arrival of John Rawlins was in charge of everything,at once made preparations to become acquainted with the Indians and togain their friendship, for on them he depended for furs.
He secured a Pequot Indian boy, from whom he could learn the nativelanguage, and he won his confidence and good will by little gifts whichhe gave him.
The task of learning the language of the Indians was the most importantone, and each morning several hours were set aside for that purpose.The work proved itself a very delightful one, for the method was simple.
Each of the three white children had a little notebook into which theywould write the words which the Indian boy mentioned to them, andalthough many mistakes occurred at first which caused a good deal oflaughter, they progressed very fast so that in a short time they knewthe Indian words for the most important articles.
But also on their expeditions the Indian boy had to serve as teacher,and so he was troubled with perpetual questions which his inquisitivefriends asked him. As the Pequot Indians had long associated with theDutch, not a few Dutch words were added to their vocabulary, thoughstrangely changed by the lips of the Indians.
The visits to the Indians, whether made by boat or on horseback, alsoproved themselves a source of pleasure. It is true, they did not findthem in the same friendly mood as the Mohicans, but since openhostilities had not been declared, there was still a chance to win themover.
And how could the Indians resist the three children, who came to them soboldly, and yet so innocently and kindly! Not a village they leftwithout having enriched it with treasures which the Indians prized verymuch. Wherever they went, they spread the spirit of peace and good will.
Agnes was of great help to the two boys, for by her fine singing and heralluring playing on her faithful lute, she endeared herself to theIndian women, who gave to her the name "little bird of the woods."
When the Indians came to the trading post, they were received kindly,and when they brought furs, they were paid the highest prices possible.In addition, Fred doled out to them little sacks of tobacco, while Agnesusually won over the women and children by some sweets of sugar orfruit.
Thus it happened that when winter came, the trading post became a centerof much activity. Furs came in aplenty, which were stored away first inthe log house, and then were taken to Hartford, where they were securedin the fort, in which they were safe against a possible attack by theIndians.
That winter John Rawlins did not come, for no sooner had Mr. Bradleyreturned when he took sick, and was confined to his bed for many monthswith a lingering illness.
The children heard of this through messengers at Hartford, which, inview of impending troubles, kept in close contact with the strongercolonies in Massachusetts. Though they longed to see theirfoster-father, yet they realized that their presence in Connecticut wasabsolutely necessary, and they knew that they could serve his interestbest by staying where they were and doing their duty.
However, they did more. One evening when the work was done and theywere gathered around the table, Agnes said, "We have forgotten oneimportant duty."
"And what is that?" asked Fred who in all things was most conscientious.
"We have not included Mr. Bradley in our prayers," the girl replied."Let us do so right away."
This they did at once, and from that time on they never omitted the holywork of praying for their foster-parents, whom they loved dearly and towhom they were sincerely grateful, as they had bestowed upon them somany and great kindnesses.
Of course, not a day passed on which they did not study the Bible. Inthose early times attention was not drawn away from the spiritual valuesby all kinds of worldly interests. There were no daily papers, no trashybooks, and at the trading post, where the three children lived, they didnot come in contact with men whose influence was bad. The work washard; traps had to be set and examined; the furs had to be cured andprepared for trade; the Indian trappers who were in the employment ofthe post, had to be superintended; supplies had to be bought at thefort, and so the children were kept incessantly busy. When theevenings came, the children were glad to be alone, and to find comfortand strength for their daily tasks in that book, which was found inalmost every settler's home,---the Holy Bible.
/> However, as the winter continued, and the snow depended, shutting themoff from the outside world, and at times interrupting their work, theysought new activities in which they could exercise themselvesprofitably.
The thought was really suggested by Matthew, who was keenly interestedin spiritual things, and who chafed under the monotony of the drearySundays which the children spent alone in the wilderness.
While the river was still open, they had worshiped at Hartford, but nowheavy snow covered the ice that they could reach that settlementneither by boat nor on their skates.
"Well, what do you suggest that we should do?" Fred asked.
"My idea is that we gather the Indian children on Sundays and instructthem in the Bible and psalmody."
"That's a fine thought!" Agnes exclaimed; "and I know that we shallalways get enough children to attend."
That same week they invited a number of children through Tom, theIndian boy, who always stayed with them, and on the following Sundayseveral Indian children gathered in the house. Several of them hadbrought their mothers, who were glad to have an occasion to hear Agnessing and play, and at once the Sunday school was opened. The childrenwere instructed in Bible stories, Agnes sang many of her fine hymnswhich she had crudely translated into the Indian language, andafterwards the children were treated to such dainties as they had inthe house. The venture proved so successful that after that severalclasses were arranged for, which kept the little teachers so busy allday that they no longer complained of monotony.
The new venture, however, also cemented the friendship with the adultIndians, and during the whole winter the furs came in from everywhereso that the supply in the fort increased from week to week.
When finally spring came and the trapping ceased, the children foundthemselves richly repaid by their work, and when at last Mr. Rawlinsarrived with a number of pack horses to convey the furs to the BostonColony, there were so many of them that more pack horses had to besecured.
So with grateful hearts Fred locked the door of the trading house,turned the key over to an old, friendly trapper, who spent his summersin Hartford, and returned to Massachusetts.
The children as well as John Rawlins were in high spirits, and had itnot been for the heavily loaded pack horses, they would have gallopedall the way to Massachusetts.
But they had to be patient, while day after day they covered smalldistances through the thick woods.
They were dressed oddly enough, and looked more like Indians than likewhite people. Agnes was dressed like the boys, with a fur cap on herhead, fur coats and trousers on her body, and her feet covered withmoccasins. Yet no one took notice of that, for many of the settlerswere clothed in this way, since it was hard to obtain woolen cloth fromthe old country.
When they returned to Massachusetts, they were greeted with great joy,not only by their foster parents, but also by the other villagers, whomarveled that children so young had undertaken so serious a venture.
Yet we must not judge the children of that time by standards of our ownday. Their life was lived largely outdoors where they grew up like thetrees of the ever present forest. Their daily experiences made themalert and self confident, and while they were behind the children of ourtime in school learning, they knew a thousand arts which the children ofour later times have never heard of.
Life was hard, and the struggle for existence made them strong, hardy,and enterprising. Had those early pioneers been of a weaker fiber, thehistory of our country would never have been written in glory. But letus not forget that the pioneers were mostly men of deep piety, whoserugged strength was rooted in true faith and the fear of God. Letthose who scoff at religion, remember that without it our country wouldnever have become what it is today. The fear of God is not only thebeginning of wisdom, but also the keynote to prosperity and a nation'ssuccess.
Three Young Pioneers Page 6
