Although the object of their expedition had been gained, Vaughan's heart
felt sad as he thought of returning to James Town without his brother.
Powhattan had expressed his intention of accompanying the party, with
his daughter, to visit the English governor; no longer, therefore, were
difficulties or dangers to be apprehended, as no foes would dare to
attack the powerful chief; while his hunters would bring in an ample
supply of game. Had Gilbert and Fenton not been missing, he would still
have felt that his great object--the discovery of his father--seemed no
nearer than before; for neither from Powhattan nor Canochet had he been
able to obtain any information about him. Canochet gave him hopes that
Gilbert and Fenton were still alive, and would be recovered; but till
the appearance of the party sent in pursuit of their supposed captors
nothing certain could be known.
The chief having made up his mind to visit the English, was eager to set
off; he was attended by fifty of his braves, dressed in their gayest
costume; he marching, however, on foot, while his daughter was conveyed
in a litter, cushioned with skins, and canopied with boughs to shield
her from the hot rays of the sun. Very different was her lot from that
of the other women of the tribe, who were, the Englishmen observed with
no little disgust, compelled to labour hard from morning till night,
while their lords and masters lolled in the shade and smoked their
pipes.
While Captain Smith marched in front with the chief, Harry Rolfe often
found himself by the side of Pocahontas, with whom in her own language
he managed to converse. He told her of the wonders of the ocean, of the
mode by which the ships found their way across it, of England, of its
great cities, its magnificent palaces, its superb temples, its armies of
horse and foot, with their guns, dealing death and destruction among
their foes, and capable of battering down strong walls. The Indian
maiden listened with wondering ears; for some time she spoke not, at
length she sighed. Rolfe inquired what grieved her.
"That I can never hope to see the wonders you speak of. Till now, I
thought my father the most powerful king on earth, and you have shown me
that our people are but children compared to those existing beyond the
mighty ocean."
To the latter remark Rolfe made, no reply, as he did not wish further to
wound the maiden's vanity. "Would you desire to visit those distant
lands and see the wonders I have been describing?" he asked.
"I cannot leave my father and my people," she answered. "But go on--
tell me more about your country--I will try to bring the scenes you
describe so well before my eyes."
Rolfe continued, as desired; and the Indian girl seemed never weary of
listening to him. Thus, whatever others might have done, he found the
journey too speedily brought to an end. The governor received the
Indian chief in a becoming manner, with all the pomp he could assume.
Banners were flying, music playing, and guns firing. The sound of the
artillery especially seemed to affect the chief; and when he saw a shot
fired across the river strike a tree and tear off a large branch, he
lifted up his hands in wonder, and exclaimed, "Who can stand against a
people so armed?"
Vaughan had hastened home with a sad heart to break the intelligence of
Gilbert's loss to his mother. At her house he found Captain Layton, who
had already heard through the forethought of Roger what had occurred.
"Do not be cast down, Mistress Audley," he said, after Vaughan had given
her the account; "we have certain notice from Gilbert himself that the
Indians did not kill him and Fenton when they were first seized; and the
savages well know that it will be more to their interest to preserve
their lives than to take them; and as they tell me that the great chief
who has just come to the settlement has no small power among the people
of this country, we may trust to his being able to recover them before
long. I have much hope, also, that with his assistance we may at length
find your husband. I had determined, on the return of my son, to sail
along the shore of the Chesapeake, and to make inquiries among all the
natives I can meet with. Should Powhattan not be able to help us as we
hoped, I shall forthwith carry out my plan. My two seamen have now come
back; I will question them afresh. And now that they have seen more of
the country, they may be able to say whether it was here or elsewhere
they met with the poor wretch Batten: would that he had lived--he would
have helped us more than they have done, or are likely to do."
While Mistress Audley's spirits were somewhat revived by Captain
Layton's assurances, she received a message from the governor,
requesting her to act the hostess to the Indian princess just arrived
with her father. This she could not refuse; and Lettice and Cicely were
well pleased with the thoughts of having the Indian maiden under their
care. Accordingly word was sent to the governor that they were willing
to receive her as their guest. In a short time Pocahontas arrived,
still seated on her litter, with Harry Rolfe by her side. Mistress
Audley, with Lettice and Cicely, went forth to meet her, and taking her
hand as the bearers placed the litter on the ground, helped her to rise,
and led her into the house, followed by Harry Rolfe, who seemed
unwilling to give up the charge of the damsel even to them. The
beautiful young savage, for such, in the presence of the English matron
and the two young maidens, she truly seemed, cast looks of admiration at
their fair features, and their dresses, which appeared to her of
wondrous texture. Although they could exchange but a few words with
her, they were able with the assistance of Harry Rolfe to answer her
questions; and in a short time she appeared perfectly at home with them.
At length she asked whether they were Harry's sisters, and hearing that
they were not so was silent, looking up first to one, and then to the
other, and then towards Harry himself; and it could be easily seen that
her brain was busy though her tongue was silent. A hut had been
prepared for the chief, suitable to his wants, though bearing little
resemblance to a royal palace. He came the next day to see his
daughter, and appeared to be so well pleased with the treatment she
received, that he intimated to the governor his intention of leaving her
for a while with her new friends. His proposal was gladly accepted, as
it proved his good feelings towards the English, and the confidence he
placed in them. Captain Layton and Vaughan, with the assistance of
Harry Rolfe, had a long talk with him. Regarding Captain Audley he
promised to make inquiries among the tribes of his nation. While they
were speaking, the head of the party sent out to follow the trail of the
Indians who had carried off Gilbert and Fenton arrived. He and his
people had traced them, he said, far to the north, when they found
themselves in the country of a hostile tribe, from among whom they had
great difficulty in escaping. On hearing this, Powhattan was
exceedingly wroth, and threatened to punish the Annaboles, the tribe
spoken of, who owed him, he affirmed, allegiance. Rolfe, however,
entreated that he would employ mild measures, lest the Annaboles might
retaliate on their two prisoners. This information was on the whole
unsatisfactory. Gilbert and Fenton might, it was hoped, be still alive,
but that they had been carried to a distance was certain, and their
recovery would be difficult, as Powhattan, notwithstanding his boasted
power, could, it was clear, afford them no assistance.
"It seems to me, Vaughan, that we must trust to our own strong arms and
mother-wit to recover the two lads," observed Captain Layton, when they
had parted from the chief. "What say you, Roger?"
"I hold to your opinion, father; if we could get together some thirty
trusty fellows, and the means of carrying our provisions, we would march
from one end of the country to the other, and compel those knavish
Indians at the point of our swords to deliver up their prisoners,"
answered Roger; "we might then, perchance, fall in also with Captain
Audley, if he is, as I trust, still in the land of the living."
"Those `ifs' and `ans' are stubborn things," observed the captain.
"We might, however, manage to carry provisions on our shoulders for a
week or more," said Roger, "and thus be enabled to march for three or
four days inland from the shore, and back again without the need of
hunting, provided we could keep in the open country, and not get
entangled among forests or rocky defiles where our foes might pick us
off without our being able to reach them."
"I know not whether we should gain much by that, unless we could manage
to surprise an Indian village, and capture some of their chief men to
hold as hostages till they agreed to give up their captives. These
Indians are very different to the cowardly tribes we have been wont to
meet with on the Spanish Main, as experience should already have taught
you," observed the captain: "still, with discipline and determination we
shall be able, I doubt not, to tackle them. I like your proposal,
however, and as soon as we can get a crew together, we will sail up the
Chesapeake and try what we can do."
Vaughan, grieved by the long, though unavoidable, delay which had
already occurred, was willing to take part in any plan his friends
proposed, and they accordingly at once set to work to collect a crew for
the expedition. They had, however, except the promise of good pay, no
inducements to offer. Had they proposed an expedition to the Spanish
Main they would speedily have collected as many men as they required;
but as only hard knocks were to be expected, without the chance of
prize-money, those who would have had no objection to the two combined
hung back. The captain at length, in despair, promised that if men
would come forward, and they should succeed in their enterprise, he
would take a cruise in search of Spaniards, and that the prizes taken
should be divided equally among all hands. This offer was likely enough
to have succeeded, when a party who had been out hunting returned full
of excitement, with the news that they had discovered a vein of gold, or
as some said a mine, at a stream some six miles distant from James Town.
The news spread like wildfire through the settlement, and every one was
eager to be off with spades and pickaxes to gather up the golden
treasure. The seamen who had engaged to serve on board the _Rainbow_
were among the first to be off; those who were labouring in the fields
left their ploughs; the few who had opened shops closed their doors and
set out, for there were no buyers of their wares.
The governor and admiral, and a few other officers, remained at their
posts. Captain Layton, in very vexation of spirit, refused to go even
to look at the mines, declaring that "all is not gold that glitters;"
and it might be, after all, this seeming gold was no better than dross;
or that if gold it was, it would stay there till he had time to go and
fetch it. Roger and Vaughan were of his opinion; indeed, neither would
have left those they were bound to protect, were it to prove as rich as
the mines of Peru and Mexico. Some days had passed away, when some of
the explorers came dropping in, their backs heavily laden with sacks
full, as they said, of gold-dust.
"Mixed with not a little dross, I guess," observed Captain Layton, who
met Ben Tarbox staggering along under as heavy a load as he had ever
attempted to carry in his life. "Let us see, let us see thy precious
gold-dust," he exclaimed. Ben, letting the sack drop on the ground,
produced a handful. The evening sun was shining brightly, and the dust
undoubtedly glittered.
"I have seen stuff like that before," observed Roger, who just then came
up, "and what do you think it was worth, lads?--not the pains of moving
from where it lay."
"They say it be gold," exclaimed Ben, looking somewhat aghast; "gold
glitters, and so does this."
"There the resemblance ends, my lad," observed Captain Layton. "If no
better gold is to be got out of the mine up there than thy sack
contains, the settlers have lost many a day's work, and the colony is so
much the poorer; though, from all accounts, it is not seldom they have
thrown away their time before."
"Then what can I do with this sackful of stuff?" exclaimed Ben, who,
having unbounded confidence in his captain, fully believed what he said.
"Sell it to the first fool who will buy it of thee for what he thinks it
is worth," answered the captain, laughing. "Make thy bargain when the
sun shines, though, or he may chance to set a low value on it."
Ben, it was supposed, followed his captain's advice, for the next day at
noon he appeared on board the _Rainbow_ without his sack, but chinking
some Spanish pesos in his pocket.
Captain Layton, as did the governor, the admiral, and Master Hunt, the
chaplain, warned those who returned of the utter worthlessness of the
stuff they had brought, but they were not believed; and the idea got
abroad that their object was to appropriate it, and thus to gain the
benefit of their labours. Most of them, therefore, as soon as they had
deposited their treasure in such places of security as they could find,
set off for a fresh supply; while the boldest speculator proposed to
charter two or three of the remaining ships, and send them home loaded
with the precious dust.
The first addressed himself to Captain Layton, offering him a cargo for
the _Rainbow_.
"There are two reasons against accepting your proposal, good sir,"
answered the captain; "the first is that I have other occupation for my
ship, and the second is that I have no wish to become the laughing-stock
of people at home, should I arrive with a shipload of dust not worth
carting on shore."
Thereat Master Jarvis turned away, highly indignant, remarking, "Fools
know not their own interest." The captain smiled, but replied not,
recollecting that to answer an angry man is but adding oil to the fire.
Master Jarvis was more successful with the captains of two other ships,
which, as fast as the toiling settlers could bring in their sacks of
dust, took them on board, the vessels being filled up with sassafras and
other woods, and a few small packages of tobacco, all deemed, however,
but of little value compared to the glittering dirt, as Captain Layton
called it. There was no lack of volunteers to man the ships, as all
were promised shares in the proceeds of the cargoes. Not till they had
sailed could Captain Layton obtain a crew for the _Rainbow_. He
summoned the remaining mariners in the settlement, who, already grown
weary of tobacco-planting and digging, and their backs aching with the
sacks of dust they had brought from the mine, were ready for any fresh
adventure proposed to them.
"Lads," he said, "there are two things I have set myself to do: first,
to look for the honourable gentleman who has been held captive for many
years by the Indians; as also for his son and young Master Fenton; and
when we have found them, to go in search of two or more Spanish ships,
which will put more gold into the pockets of each one of us than will
all the dust you have just sent home."
It might be that the remarks of the governor and admiral, and more
especially those of Captain Smith, had by this time begun to open the
eyes of the settlers as to the real value of the said dust. One thing
was certain, that had they devoted their labours to the production of
corn instead of to the digging and carrying of the glittering soil, they
would not have been so hard-pressed as they now were. Those who had
come from the Bermudas recollected the ample supply of provisions those
islands afforded. The good admiral, Sir George Summers, offered, though
now sixty years of age, to sail in the _Patience_, the stout pinnace he
had built, and to bring back a supply for the benefit of the colony. He
asked but for a score of men to accompany him; a few faithful hearts
obeyed his call, and with the hopes of finding their wants speedily
relieved, the colonists saw that true knight sail away on his hazardous
voyage. Alas! they were to see him no more; overcome by the hard toil
he had so long endured for the good of others, he had not long arrived
when he yielded up his brave spirit at those islands, which were,
rightly, for many years called after his name.
The appeal made by Captain Layton was not in vain. Ben Tarbox was the
first volunteer, and others followed his lead. "And what, Senor
Nicholas, are you not going to join us?" asked Ben of his old messmate
Flowers, who winced, Ben observed, whenever thus addressed. "Art not to
be tempted by the prospect of fighting the Dons, man, and pocketing some
of their gold? Thou canst speak their lingo, for I have heard thee talk
it in thy sleep."
"I have had enough of fighting in my time, and have come out here to end
my days in peace," answered Flowers.
"Thou wouldst end them with a better conscience by repenting of thy
misdeeds and doing a worthy act to prove thy sincerity," answered Ben.
His arguments, however, could not move his former messmate, who refused
to the last to accompany him. Vaughan was doubtful whether he ought to
stay for the protection of his mother and sister and Cicely, seeing that
Captain Layton was going away, or to accompany him in search of his
father and brother; but the governor and Captain Smith promised to
defend them whatever might happen, and even Mistress Audley urged him to
go. Captain Layton could ill spare one good man and true, for with all
his exertions he had been able to collect barely a sufficient number of
followers for his object; and Vaughan, though brought up at college, had
a strong arm and a stout heart, and he might, should the first part of
the enterprise prove successful, return to the settlement without the
necessity of sailing forth again to fight the Spaniards.
Thus the _Rainbow_ sailed down the river, under the command of Captain
Layton, with Roger and Vaughan as his lieutenants; and young Andrew
Dane, who had begged hard to be allowed to go.
In the mean time, the Indian princess, as the settlers called her, was
rapidly learning English and becoming accustomed to English ways and
manners; but the period during which her father had promised to allow
her to remain was drawing to a close, when he had said he would return
to take her back to her home. Harry Rolfe was a frequent visitor at the
house, as also was Captain Smith, who owing his life to her, could not
fail to regard her with gratitude, if with no other feeling; but she was
in age compared to him a mere child, and might have been his daughter.
Still, when he came to the house, Mrs Audley had some doubts as to the
sentiments he entertained towards the Indian girl; nor could she
discover how Pocahontas regarded him. Still, it did not become her to
speak to him on the subject; but when the story became known of the way
Pocahontas had saved the life of the brave captain, it was generally
reported that he would certainly, should Powhattan permit it, make her
his wife, and Harry Rolfe often heard the matter discussed. The
governor was naturally well pleased at the thoughts of such an event
taking place, as it would, he hoped, secure the friendship of Powhattan,
and the active support of his tribe. Harry Rolfe had at first been
struck by the unusual beauty of the Indian girl, and had become deeply
enamoured. How matters would have gone had Lettice regarded him with
that affection he once sought, it is hard to say; but his cousin, though
she received him in a friendly manner, treated him, it was evident, with
indifference, and at length he was fain to acknowledge that his
happiness depended on making the Indian girl his wife. Could he,
however, hope to win her, should his commander, the bravest and wisest
man in the settlement as all acknowledged, regard her with affection; if
so, he might yield to him who had the prior claim, and he would go on
board the first ship sailing, to make war on the Spaniards, or would
engage in any desperate enterprise afoot.
It happened that day that Pocahontas, who, though an Indian princess,
had the fancies and foibles of many of her sex, had taken it into her
head that she would be dressed as her companions. Cicely's gown was too
short and somewhat too wide; and Lettice, willing to please her, dressed
her in the best she possessed; putting on her a hat with feathers in it.
Scarcely had the three damsels appeared in the parlour, when who should
arrive but Captain Smith, Mistress Audley coming in directly afterwards.
He gazed with more astonishment than admiration at the young Indian,
for the costume, though becoming enough to the fair complexion of
Lettice, sat but ill on the Indian girl, accustomed to the free play of
her limbs; its colour harmonising worse with her dark skin. Forgetting
the progress Pocahontas had made in English, he said with slight caution
to Mistress Audley, in his blunt fashion, "You will spoil the little
savage, Madam, if she is thus allowed to be made ridiculous by being
habited in the dress of a civilised dame. I owe her a debt of gratitude
for saving my life; but that does not blind me to her faults, and the
sooner she is sent back to her father the better for her, I opine."
"My daughter simply wished to please her, and it is but a harmless
freak," answered Mistress Audley, "though I acknowledge that her Indian
costume becomes her best."
Pocahontas, who had understood something of what was said, casting an
angry look at the captain, burst into tears--then, taking the hand of
Lettice, she rushed out of the room.
"I had no intention of offending her," said Captain Smith, "but her
manner proves that if she stays much longer here she will be spoilt."
"Heaven forbid!" said Mistress Audley; "our great wish is not only to
instruct her in English manners, but to teach her the simple truths of
the Gospel, that she may assist in imparting them to her benighted
countrymen, and for that purpose I would fain keep her here as long as
her father will allow her to stay. Master Hunt is assisting us in the
work, which God's grace alone can accomplish, we being but weak
instruments in His hands."
"That alters the case," observed the captain. "If you have any hope of
success by all means keep her with you, but let her not indulge the
fancy that a silk dress will enable her to become like an English maiden
of high degree."
Mistress Audley promised to follow the captain's advice. Cicely put in
a word in favour of their guest.
"Well," observed the captain, "I leave it with you, kind ladies, to make
my peace with her;" and before Pocahontas returned he had taken his
departure. Soon afterwards Harry Rolfe appeared; the agitation of her
feelings had brought the colour into the face of the Indian girl, who he
thought looked more lovely than ever, habited as she now was in her
native costume. His eye showed this, if his words did not, and she
understood him.
"You would not laugh at me," she said, in her artless way, "if I were to
dress as your countrywomen; and such I wish to become;" and Rolfe told
her honestly that in his eyes she would be lovely however habited. She
showed her satisfaction in a way he could not mistake; he left the house
convinced that her heart was his. Soon afterwards, meeting Captain
Smith, he frankly told him of his love for the Indian maiden, adding,
"But should you, my dear friend, entertain thoughts of her, I am
resolved to quit the country and seek my fortune elsewhere."
"Stay and be happy with her," was the answer, "if wedding with one who
is half a savage can make you so."
Whereat Master Rolfe, thanking the captain from his heart, assured him
that so rapid was the progress she had made that ere many weeks were
over she would be fit company for the proudest dames in England, and
much more of the same nature; at which the captain smiled, and patting
him on the back, assured him that it mattered not, provided Mistress
Audley and her fair daughter, who were the proudest dames in Virginia,
were content to treat her as their friend.
So Harry Rolfe went back and asked Pocahontas in plain language to
become his bride, to which she willingly consented, telling him to let
her settle the matter with her father. Harry Rolfe looked forward with
no little anxiety to the arrival of the king, who came at length,
attended by fifty warriors; at which the prudent governor, not knowing
how many might be behind, got all the men in the settlement under arms,
as if to do him honour, but secretly keeping a strict watch on his
movements. He was convinced, however, that the king's intentions were
honest, the more so when, after visiting his daughter, he announced that
she had his full permission to marry the English chief, Harry Rolfe. As
Master Hunt, after consulting with the governor, was willing to perform
the ceremony, the marriage took place before Powhattan quitted James
Town, much to the satisfaction of all the colonists. The long harangue
delivered by Powhattan need not be repeated, nor need the replies of the
governor, Captain Smith, and the happy bridegroom. He, being no
sluggard, had built a house for himself, to which he at once took his
bride. Flags were hoisted, guns were fired, and the bell of the church
(hung to the bough of a tree, as there was no steeple yet built) rang
right merrily, and the people shouted till they were hoarse, believing
that from henceforth war with the Indians was at an end, and that they
might go on and prosper in the land.