The colonists had been warned against marshy land, and forbidden to settle near a low or moist place, and that was just what Jamestown Island was, although it looked enticingly green along the tawny river. Half of its fifteen hundred acres were swampy, but the settlers counted on making the cleared land produce crops in another year, and a quick wheat crop just now. They were tired of seeking a haven, and this spot had a subtle charm, for secret pools and creeks meandered from marsh to forests, and wide weed-ridden marshes were slashed through the forests like alleys. At Black Point they would soon see lilies and mallows blanching the sable ground. Smith was allowed to go with Captain Newport on an exploring trip to the falls of the river in search of gold. On their way they made friends with a savage chief who was the son of the great Powhatan. Their "firewater" overwhelmed him for a day, but on the next day he was ready for more. While they were gone, the unprotected colony was attacked by Indians. Fortunately, in Smith's absence, someone else had an idea, and a thundering broadside from the boat dispersed the enemy who had victory in their grasp if they had only known it. Smith had been suspecting that mischief was brewing back behind the screens of fire which the Indians maintained. Had he not told them that they needed a palisade? II He was allowed to take his seat on the council on the tenth of June. Eleven days later the Reverend Robert Hunt gave Communion to all. Captain Newport, having dined ashore that Sunday, invited the leaders to supper on his ship. He sailed the next morning to report the grim time which the colonists were having without sufficient supplies. Smith wrote: "Our drink was water, our lodgings, castles in the air." Every man was doled out three ounces of bread, and a skimpy helping of bran and water. Typhoid and malaria took their toll. Weakened by both diet and disease, they staggered as they toted logs to the fort, and they made a pitiful spectacle for any Indians or spying Spaniards who may have seen them. While wheat grew as high as a man's head within seven weeks of the planting, there was not enough to satisfy the hungry. By mid-June the fort was built on a low and level half-acre, which was shaped like a triangle. There were streets of occupied houses--each of which had about thirty feet clearance of the palisade. Mud or thatched-reed clamped heavy roofs on the early huts, making them suffocatingly hot. Added to this misery, the eating of molded corn and drinking of brackish water downed nearly all, and killed half of the colonists before the summer had passed. Once only five men were up and about. "Had we been as free from all sins as gluttony and drunkenness we might have been canonized," observed Smith.