Campfire Girls' Lake Camp; or, Searching for New Adventures

by Irene Elliott Benson; Stella M. Francis

The youth had fitted another arrow to his bow, and now drew it to the head. The keen eyes of Captain Smith noted every movement. He saw that after drawing his right hand half-way back, Nantaquas held it stationary. He saw that if he fired again, and the man serving as his target dodged, the arrow was likely to strike Captain Smith, unless he was equally quick in eluding it. Moreover, the distance was increasing so fast that every second added to the difficulty of the shot. He knew which man had befriended Pocahontas, and eager as he was to slay the criminal, he must forego that pleasure in order to spare the friend.

Holding the long bow poised for a few seconds, he slowly lowered it, still keeping the notch of the arrow pressed against the string, as if expecting a new chance to present itself. If the boat would turn partially sideways toward him, as at first, he might still bring down his man; but the oarsman had learned wherein their safety lay, and took care to make no mistake.

All this time the boat was moving rapidly, and it was not long before it passed beyond bowshot.

Nantaquas remained standing in full view on the shore, his sister beside him, both watching the receding craft until it came alongside the large one, and the three stepped aboard, leaving the small boat to be towed at the stern. Then brother and sister turned about, and passed from sight in the forest.

A brisk breeze was blowing, and Captain Smith and his companions had hardly joined their friends when the anchor was hoisted, and they were carried at good speed toward Jamestown, which they reached early that afternoon. There they learned that the settlement had passed through a trying experience during the absence of Captain Smith and his party.

Although the Englishmen arrived at the site of Jamestown rather late in the season for planting, and although many of them were too indolent to work, others did what they could to make up for the lost time. In the rich soil, which had been cleared of trees, corn that had been obtained from the Indians was planted, and quickly showed a vigor of growth that promised the best results.

On the day that Captain Smith sailed up the James to make his call of state upon Powhatan, more than twenty men were engaged in planting and cultivating the corn already put in the ground. Without any warning, and when no one dreamed of danger, the woods near by began raining arrows. They came in bewildering showers, amid the shouts of the Indians, of whom only occasional glimpses were caught, as they flitted from tree to tree, while they used the trunks as shields. The English, stricken with panic, dropped their implements and ran behind the stockades, which had been finished only a short time before. Hurried as was their flight, those who glanced behind them saw one man lying motionless on his face. He was dead, pierced by so many arrows that he looked like a huge porcupine. Nearly all the others had been struck, some of them two or three times; and when they ran panting through the open gate the missiles were still sticking in their bodies and clothing. Actual count showed that seventeen men had been wounded, most of them slightly, though three or four seemed likely to die of their hurts. Happily, however, all recovered.

Instead of leaving, the Indians kept their places in the woods, continually launching their arrows at the settlers. While these were harmless when directed against the stockades, some of the warriors showed great skill in curving them so that they dropped inside the defences. It required keen watchfulness on the part of the defenders to save themselves from being badly hurt, for, when a sharp-pointed missile comes almost straight downward from a height of more than a hundred feet, it is likely to do fatal damage. The Englishmen could protect themselves from mishaps, but could do little in the way of driving off their assailants while they were so well shielded among the trees.

Matters stood thus when the Sarah Constant took a hand. Dropping a little way down stream, so as to get clear range of the stretch of woods in which their enemies shielded themselves while keeping up their attack, she discharged two of her cannon that were loaded to the muzzle with slugs. It is not likely that any of the warriors were hurt by the missiles, but when they saw large limbs splintered and falling about their heads, and heard the rattle among the leaves and twigs overhead and about them, they were terrified, and scurried off in as headlong a panic as that of the settlers when attacked by the red men.

Not another foe was seen during the day, though there could be no doubt that more than one pair of black eyes were peeping from among the vegetation, the owners, no doubt, wondering as to the nature of the awful weapon that could tear the big branches from the trees. Some time after dark, however, the sentinels heard sounds in the woods near at hand, which showed that their enemies had returned, and, of course, were plotting mischief. The larger vessel, which had held her place after driving off the Indians earlier in the day, now fired another assortment of missiles, and this ended all trouble of that nature for some time to follow. It was the report of this cannon which had travelled up the James to the boat where Captain Smith sat meditatively smoking.