Great Epochs in American History, Volume 2: The Planting of the First Colonies: 1562—1733
History
Great Epochs in American History, Volume 2: The Planting of the First Colonies: 1562—1733
United States -- History
Let it also be considred what weake hopes of supply & succoure they
left behinde them, y^e might bear up their minds in this sade
condition and trialls they were under; and they could not but be very
smale. It is true, indeed, y^e affections & love of their brethren at
Leyden was cordiall & entire towards them, but they had litle power to
help them, or them selves; and how y^e case stode between them & y^e
marchants at their coming away, hath allready been declared. What
could now sustaine them but y^e spirite of God & his grace?...
Being thus arrived at Cape-Codd y^e 11. of November, and necessitie
calling them to looke out a place for habitation, (as well as the
maisters & mariners importunitie,) they having brought a large shalop
with them out of England, stowed in quarters in y^e ship, they now
gott her out & sett their carpenters to worke to trime her up; but
being much brused & shatered in y^e shipe w^th foule weather, they saw
she would be longe in mending. Whereupon a few of them tendered them
selves to goe by land and discovere those nearest places, whilst y^e
shallop was in mending; and y^e rather because as they wente into y^t
harbor ther seemed to be an opening some 2. or 3. leagues of, which
y^e maister judged to be a river. It was conceived ther might be some
danger in y^e attempte yet seeing them resolute, they were permited to
goe, being 16. of them well armed, under y^e conduct of Captain
Standish, having shuch instructions given them as was thought meete.
They sett forth y^e 15. of Nove^br: and when they had marched aboute
y^e space of a mile by y^e sea side, they espied 5. or 6. persons with
a dogg coming towards them, who were salvages; but they fled from
them, & rane up into y^e woods, and y^e English followed them, partly
to see if they could speake with them, and partly to discover if ther
might not be more of them lying in ambush. But y^e Indeans seeing them
selyes thus followed, they again forsooke the woods, & rane away on
y^e sands as hard as they could, so as they could not come near them,
but followed them by y^e tracte of their feet sundrie miles, and saw
that they had come the same way. So, night coming on, they made their
randevous & set out ther sentinels, and rested in quiete y^e night,
and the next morning followed their tracte till they had headed a
great creeke, & so left the sands, & turned an other way into y^e
woods. But they still followed them by guess, hopeing to find their
dwellings; but they soone lost both them & them selves, falling into
shuch thickets as were ready to tear their cloaths & armore in peeces,
but were most distressed for wante of drinke.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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