The 25th, our flyboat and the rest of our planters arrived all safe at Hatorask, to the great joy and comfort of the whole company.But the master of our admiral,[215] Ferdinando, grieved greatly at their safe coming; for he purposely left them in the Bay of Portugal, and stole away from them in the night, hoping that the master thereof, whose name was Edward Spicer,—for that he never had been in Virginia,—would hardly find the place, or else, being left in so dangerous place as that was, by means of so many men-of-war as at that time were abroad, they should surely be taken, or slain. But God disappointed his wicked pretences.
The 28th, George Howe, one of our twelve assistants, was slain by divers savages which were come over to Roanoke, either of purpose to espy our company, and what number we were, or else to hunt deer, whereofwere many in the island. These savages—being secretly hidden among high reeds, where oftentimes they find the deer asleep, and so kill them—espied our man wading in the water alone, almost naked, without any weapon save only a small forked stick, catching crabs therewithal, and also being strayed two miles from his company; and shot at him in the water, where they gave him sixteen wounds with their arrows; and, after they had slain him with their wooden swords, they beat his head in pieces, and fled over the water to the main.
On the 30th of July, Master Stafford and twenty of our men passed by waterto the Island of Croatoan,[216] with Manteo, who had his mother and many of his kindred dwelling in that island; of whom we hoped to understand some news of our fifteen men, but especially to learn the disposition of the people of the country towards us, and to renew our old friendship with them. At our first landing, they seemed as though they would fight with us; but,perceiving us to begin to march with our shot[217] towards them, they turned their backs, and fled. Then Manteo their countryman called to them in their own language, whom as soon as they heard, they returned, and threw away their bows and arrows; and some of them came unto us, embracing and entertaining us friendly, desiring us not to gather or spill any of their corn, for they had but little. We answered them that neither their corn, nor any thing of theirs, should be diminished by any of us; and that our coming was only to renew the old love that was between us and them at the first, and to live with themas brethren and friends: which answer seemed to please them well. Wherefore they requested us to walk up to their town, who there feasted us after their manner, and desired us earnestly that there might be some token or badges given them of us, whereby we might know them to be our friends when we met them anywhere out of the town or island.…
We understood by them of Croatoan, how that the fifteen Englishmen left at Roanoke the year before by Sir Richard Grenville were suddenly set upon by thirty of the men of Secota, Aquascogoc, and Dasamonguepeuk in manner following. They conveyed themselves secretly behind the trees, near the houses where our men carelessly lived. And, having perceived that of those fifteen they could see but eleven only, two of those savages appeared to the eleven Englishmen, calling to them by friendly signs, that but two of their chiefest men should come unarmed to speak with those two savages, who seemed also to be unarmed. Wherefore two of the chiefest of our Englishmen went gladly to them; but, whilst one of those savages traitorously embraced one of our men, the other with his sword of wood, which he had secretly hidden under his mantle, struck him on the head, and slew him; and presently the other eight and twenty savages showed themselves.
The other Englishman, perceiving this, fled to his company, whom the savages pursued with their bows and arrows so fast, that the Englishmen were forced to take the house, wherein all their victuals and weapons were; but the savages forthwith set the same on fire, by means whereof our men were forced to take upsuch weapons as came first to hand, and without order to run forth among the savages, with whom they skirmished above an hour. In this skirmish,another of our men was shot into the mouth with an arrow, where[218] he died; and also one of the savages was shot into the side by one of our men,with a wildfire arrow,[219] whereof he died presently.
The place where they fought was of great advantage to the savages, by means of the thick trees, behind which the savages, through their nimbleness, defended themselves, and so offended our men with their arrows, that our men, being some of them hurt, retired fighting to the water-side, where their boat lay, with which they fled towards Hatorask. By that time they had rowed but a quarter of a mile, they espied their four fellows coming from a creek thereby, where they had been to fetch oysters. These four they received into their boat, leaving Roanoke, and landed on a little island on the right hand of our entrance into the harbor of Hatorask, where they remained a while, but afterward departed, whither as yet we know not.
Having now sufficiently despatched our business at Croatoan, the same day departed friendly, taking our leave, and came aboard the fleet at Hatorask.…
The 18th, Eleanor, daughter to the governor, and wife to Ananias Dare, one of the assistants, was delivered of a daughter in Roanoke, and the same was christened there the Sunday following; and, because this child was the first Christian born in Virginia, she was named Virginia. By this time, our ships had unladen thegoods and victuals of the planters, and began to take in wood and fresh water, and to new calk and trim them for England: the planters, also, prepared their letters and tokens to send back into England.…
The next day, the 22d of August, the whole company, both of the assistants and planters, came to the governor, and with one voice requested him to return himself into England, for the better and sooner obtaining of supplies and other necessaries for them; but he refused it.…
