[32. Walter Raleigh sends two ships to America; how the Indians received the Englishmen.]—Although John Cabot discovered the continent of North America in 1497 and took possession of the land for the English,[2] yet the English themselves did not try to settle here until nearly a hundred years later.
Then (1584) a young man named Walter Raleigh, who was a great favorite of Queen Elizabeth's, sent out two ships to America. The captains of these vessels landed on Roanoke[3] Island, on the coast of what is now the state of North Carolina. They found the island covered with tall red cedars and with vines thick with clusters of wild grapes. The Indians called this place the "Good Land." They were pleased to see the Englishmen, and they invited them to a great feast of roast turkey, venison,[4] melons, and nuts.
1 Raleigh (Raw'li).
2 See paragraph [22].
3 Roanoke (Ro-a-nok').
4 Venison (ven'i-zon or ven'zon): deer meat.
[33. Queen Elizabeth names the country Virginia; first settlers; what they sent Walter Raleigh.]—When the two captains returned to England, Queen Elizabeth—the "Virgin Queen," as she was called—was delighted with what she heard of the "Good Land." She named it Virginia in honor of herself. She also gave Raleigh a title of honor. From that time he was no longer called plain Walter Raleigh or Mr. Raleigh, but Sir Walter Raleigh.
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THE FIRST PIPE OF TOBACCO. (Raleigh's servant thought his master was on fire.) |
Sir Walter now (1585) shipped over emigrants[5] to settle in Virginia. They sent back to him as a present two famous American plants—one called Tobacco, the other the Potato. The queen had given Sir Walter a fine estate in Ireland, and he set out both the plants in his garden. The tobacco plant did not grow very well there, but the potato did; and after a time thousands of farmers began to raise that vegetable, not only in Ireland, but in England too. As far back then as that time—or more than three hundred years ago—America was beginning to feed the people of the Old World.