Illil ' 111. liiL — . DAYS OF THE COLONISTS Author of "Days of the Discoverers," etc. Great events in the early days of our history vividly described and vitalized by the use of new naterial . Starting with John Smith in 1607, on through the finding of Plymouth; the early settlement of Manhattan; the early days of Delaware, New Hampshire, Maryland; the founding of Connecticut—all the events of outstanding days are made real, through to the signing of the Declaration of Indepen- dence. The distinctive feature of this author's work -. the feature that has made her books invaluable -^^P. -fco to parents , teachers and librarians—is her ability B© ^a q f-" to get at and put into living words fresh informa- * tion on subjects seemingly exhausted by histo- rians. Not only does Miss Lamprey tell the important facts connected with the development of the different colo- W^'^ nies but she also brings out the human side of history and tells interestingly of the beginnings of some of the I -^ -^ most significant features of American life. Do you L-ii-<' know about the first American inventor? About the girl who started the indigo industry in the South ? About the first Swedish settlements? Do \^ou know about the first appearance of young George Washington in public life? About the first missionary work among the negro slaves? All this can be found in these remarkable stories which, taken together, form a real history of American life. Digitized by tine Internet Arciiive in 2007 with funding from IVIicrosoft Corporation littp://www.arcliive.org/details/daysofcolonistsOOIamp ' 1'^ . j^a 'THE CHILDREN WERE QUAINT MINIATURES OF THEIR ELDERS, IN STIFF, RICH COSTUMES." — Page ^"6,' GREAT DAYS IN AMERICAN HISTORY SERIES DAYS OF THE COLONISTS BY L. LAMPREY Author of "Days of the Discoverers," "In the Days of the Guild" "Masters of the Guild," etc. ILLUSTRATED BY FLORENCE CHOATE and ELIZABETH CURTIS NEW YORK FREDERICK A. STOKES COMPANY PUBLISHERS THE NEW YOT^K PUBL'C IIBFARY 6G6544 A AfcTOR, t-ENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS R 1933 L Copyright, 1923, by Frederick A. Stokes Company All rights reserved, including that of translation into foreign languages. 14 printed in the United States of America 2%. — TO DIANTHA HARDY Where Parson Page his orchard set Beside the terrace wall, And vireo, bluebird, woodpecker, Crossbill and catbird call, There lived a garden quaintly sweet, All planted for delight. With blossoms brave in rose and gold Or pinafored in white. And if they stood so prim and tall As pilgrim children stand. And if they served the gracious Lord Who gave them to the land, When summer moonlight waked on earth Its wild mysterious spell, O then the flowers remembered things They never chose to tell! Then morning-glories trumpeted Their elfin reveille. And dewdrop lanterns lit the masque That vanished with the day, When Ragged Robin, Bouncing Bet, Lad's Love and London Pride Went dancing to the fairy lutes. With many a flower beside! Grandmother's garden! How it knew The little children's ways. The heart of life, the lore of death, The dreams of all our days! i^ And when we come to Paradise *^ And with our loves are met, C*l Love walks within a garden there •^ The flowers will not forget! •0 CO CONTENTS PAGE To Diantha Hardy v I Mataoka's White Man i Bermuda Hundred Il II The Finding of Plymouth 12 III The Pow-Wow in the Swamp 23 Indian Pipes . 32 IV Fairy Godmother's Petticoat ....... 34 The Friendly Spirits 43 V The "Key of Kalmar" 45 fVild Honey 56 VI Winds of the Spirit 57 The Missionaries 68 VII The "Ark" and the "Dove" 69 The Old Talk 77 VIII Persis Whittemore, Spinster 78 The Sampler 86 vii viii CONTENTS IX PACK King of Cocheco 87 The Oldest Friend 99 X Tom Tiddler's Ground 100 Weaving Song 108 XI Adventures of a Connecticut Pedler .... 109 The Encounter 118 XII Soldiers OF Fortune 119 The Utopians 127 XIII The Treaty AT Shackamaxon 128 Harvest Song 138 XIV The Son of the Bear 139 The Snowshoe Trail 148 XV Dark Orchard 149 Incantations 160 XVI The Patroon's Cellar 162 The Voyageurs 172 XVII The Founding of Detroit 173 The Bayou 180 XVIII The Little Casket Girl 181 Camp Meeting Song igo CONTENTS ix XIX ?AGB The Outlaw's Inheritance 191 To Miss Lucas 200 XX Blue Roses 201 A Song of the Forge 2II XXI At the Bag o' Nails 213 XXII The Map-Makers 223 The Riders ... 234 XXIII The Game of War 235 XXIV The Tail of the Lake 246 New Leaders 258 XXV Wise Men's Counters 259 A Dish of Tea 267 XXVI Orange Lilies 268 XXVII The Voice of the Great Bell 275 Shadow and Flame 284 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS "The children were quaint miniatures of their elders, in stiff, rich costumes" (in color) . Frontispiece FACING PAGE " 'Father, give him to me!'" {in color) 6 "Through deep and heavy sand they plodded" ... i8 "Tanneke was to have it for a petticoat when she was old enough to be betrothed" 36 " 'My lad, thou must be brave, for I have heavy news for thee' " (in color) 60 "Sitting where she could jog the cradle with her foot, Persis began to spin" 80 "She brought down the broomstick with a resounding whack" 88 "The Indians drew nearer to watch" 122 "He told her she might call him Friend William" . 130 " 'I guess you wouldn't go through Dark Orchard alone after sundown' " 152 " 'Are you really primed for pirate-hunting? If so, I have work for you' " 162 "They regarded their hour with their young mistress as a treat" 204 "'Con-found you!' roared the youth. 'Do you take me for a groom?'" {in color) 222 "Officers and men were mowed down by hundreds" . 256 " 'Proclaim—liberty—throughout—all the land,' he read" 276 xi DAYS OF THE COLONISTS DAYS OF THE COLONISTS mataoka's white man * I ""HE shallop was making her way at a snail's -- pace through the windings of the sluggish unknown river which was to be heard of later as the Chicka- hominy. John Smith was scouring the Virginia wilder- ness for corn. He had with him eight other Englishmen and two Indian guides. Even with the light draft of the little vessel he was tacking cautiously as the wind served, lest he run aground. When Captain Newport sailed for England he had left the colony with barely four months' provisions. That was on June 22nd, and it was now the loth of December. Before the fierce heat of the summer was half over, the daily ration for each man was only half a pint of wheat and half a pint of barley, boiled to an unpalatable mush. The brackish river water was the only drink. More than fifty of the hundred colonists Newport had left were now in their graves, and no help had come from home. The Indians had grown shy or suspicious, and re- moved themselves with their stores of corn to some unknown place. In one way this was a relief, since a single attack by savages might have wiped out the colony altogether. But as Smith observed, whetting his dagger on the sole of his jack-boot, a man is no more dead when brained with a stone club than when 2 DAYS OF THE COLONISTS starved to death—only dead a little sooner. When cool weather came they fared a Httle better, for there was fresh meat. Wild geese were honking northward, ducks and pigeons could be snared or shot, now and then there was venison, some of which was dried for future use by the careful Captain. Still, nothing could take the place of grain. If the settlers hoped to live through the winter they must have bread—if it was only the flat cakes of Indian meal such as the wild men had. It would go excellently well with a fat 'possum knocked off a tree somewhere and roasted over the camp-fire. The exploring party was following the river, which Smith reckoned by his compass to be hereabouts more or less parallel to the James. The weather was mild and delicate, with no sign of winter, and he meant to keep on somehow, afoot or afloat, until he found that corn. When the shallop, a sloop-rigged craft of about twelve tons, could go no further, he could take the two Indians and two white companions and proceed by canoe. This he presently did, leaving the rest to guard the sailing vessel where it lay at anchor. A while after the canoe disappeared those who re- mained thought they caught a glimpse of shadowy figures flitting in the same direction through the forest, though the woodlands were as silent as the creeping waters. Then they fancied that far away they heard shots and a cry, but nothing more occurred, nor did any message or sign come from their leader. At last they gave up hope and went back to Jamestown. Meanwhile the canoe had gone bravely on till the water trail it was following led into a swamp, a wild gigantic mockery of a Lincolnshire fen, its waters black as night in the pools. But over its wide stretches no MATAOKA'S WHITE MAN 3 wind-mills creaked and no bells rang, and the white oaks had never heard the sound of axe. The Captain landed to take his bearings and examine the forest, and there was a whooping rush of savages upon them.