This savage, one of Powhatan’s council, being amongst them held an understanding fellow, the king purposely sent him to number the people here, and inform him well what we were, and our state. Arriving at Plymouth, according to his directions, he got a long stick, whereon by notches he did think to have kept the number of all the men he could see; but he was quicklyweary of that task. Coming to London, where by chance I met him, having renewed our acquaintance, where many were desirous to hear and see his behavior, he told me Powhatan did bid him to find me out, to show him our God, the king, queen, and prince I so much had told them of. Concerning God I told him the best I could; the king I heard he had seen; and the rest he should see when he would. He denied ever to have seen the king, till by circumstances he was satisfied he had. Then he replied very sadly, “You gave Powhatan a white dog, which Powhatan fed as himself; but your king gave me nothing, and I am better than your white dog.”
The small time I staid in London, divers courtiers and others my acquaintances hath gone with me to see her, that generally concluded they did think God had a great hand in her conversion; and they have seen many English ladies worse favored, proportioned, and behaved. And, as since I have heard, it pleased both the king’s and queen’s Majesty honorably to esteem her, accompanied with that honorable lady, the Lady De la Ware, and that honorable lord, her husband, and divers other persons of good qualities, both publicly at the masques, and otherwise, to her great satisfaction and content; which doubtless she would have deserved, had she lived to arrive in Virginia.
The treasurer, council, and company having well furnished Captain Samuel Argall, the lady Pocahontas alias Rebecca with her husband and others, in the good ship called “The George,” it pleased God at Gravesend to take this young lady to his mercy, where she madenot more sorrow for her unexpected death than joy to the beholders to hear and see her make so religious and godly an end. Her little child, Thomas Rolfe, therefore was left at Plymouth with Sir Lewis Stukely that desired the keeping of it.
XII.—First Buildings of the Virginia Colonists.
[This description was written by Smith in the last year of his life,—1631.]
When I went first to Virginia, I well remember we did hang an awning—which is an old sail—to three or four trees to shadow us from the sun. Our walls were rails of wood, our seats unhewed trees till we cut planks, our pulpit a bar of wood nailed to two neighboring trees. In foul weather we shifted into an old rotten tent, for we had few better;and this came by the way of adventure[327] for new. This was our church till we built a homely thing like a barn, set upon crotchets, covered with rafts, sedge, and earth: so was also the walls.The best of our houses [were] of the like curiosity,[328] but the most part far much worse workmanship,that could neither well defend[329] wind nor rain; yet we had daily common prayer morning and evening, every Sunday two sermons, and every three months the holy communion, till our minister died. But our prayers daily, with an homily on Sundays, we continued two or three years after, till more preachers came.…
Notwithstanding, out of the relics of our miseries, time and experience had brought that country to agreat happiness, had they not so much doted on their tobacco,on whose fumish[330] foundation there is small stability; there being so many good commodities besides.