MORE ABOUT THE PILGRIMS.
=54. The Hardships caused by the Winter Season.=--We may think it
unfortunate, and so indeed it was, that the Pilgrims had not come to
this country in the spring or summer. They would have had a much
pleasanter voyage, and on their arrival might have found the forests
green, the birds singing in the trees, and the ground adorned with
flowers. If they could have come in April or May they would probably
have had warm, pleasant weather for landing or exploring, and could have
built their houses at their leisure. They could have planted their
fields as soon as they landed, and in a few months could have gathered
sufficient crops for their support.
=55. The Toil and Perils of the First Winter.=--As it was, our Pilgrim
fathers found the landing very tedious. In a single small boat they had
to come and go, and bring all their provisions and household goods. Some
of these very articles of furniture, such as Governor Carver's armchair,
old spinning wheels, odd-looking seats and chests, and the big iron
kettles in which they boiled their dinners, and also Captain Miles
Standish's sword, we can see at Plymouth to-day.
While the men were moving the goods, and until rude structures had been
prepared for their shelter on shore, the women and children remained on
the Mayflower. Of course the best houses that could be made were very
rude affairs. In fact, rough though they were, it was a hard task to
build them at all; for hardly one of the company was really fit for such
work.
Many times the weary men were forced to wade in deep snow. When they ran
their loaded boat on the sandy beach, they often had to leap into the
cold water up to their waists to pull it ashore. More than once they
were obliged to be out all day in a furious storm of rain and sleet,
which froze on their clothes till every man wore a covering of ice.
=56. Suffering, Sickness, and Death make Sad Havoc.=--Thus it came about
that the Pilgrims suffered severely from exhaustion and disease. There
were soon only a few men well enough to chop down the trees for their
houses. Without beasts of burden, the tired workers themselves had to
drag the logs as best they could, and then with slow and painful toil
hew them to the right size and shape and put them in their proper
places.
Through that long and tiresome winter nearly all sickened, and many
died. Before spring one-half of those who had landed from the Mayflower
were gone. That the Indians might not know how terribly the numbers had
been diminished by death, the bodies were buried secretly; and the
graves were marked by no mounds nor stones, but were made level with the
surrounding soil.
[Illustration: SAMOSET'S FIRST VISIT TO THE PILGRIMS.]
The wonder is that these Pilgrims, ill, hungry, and cold, did not become
discouraged, give up their enterprise, and go back to England in the
Mayflower. Splendidly courageous indeed they were to pursue their
purpose so bravely. Weeks and months they worked and suffered, but they
never flinched. They were content and even happy in the consciousness of
freedom gained and duty done. They had come to stay--and they stayed.
At last the dreary winter wore away. Spring came, bringing the soft
south winds and the songs of birds. Busy hands were soon planting and
cultivating. The hearts of the Pilgrims were filled with hope.
=57. A Kindly Visit from the Indians.=--One day in early spring they were
surprised at seeing an Indian march boldly into their settlement,
saying, "Welcome, English! Welcome, English!" His name was Samoset. He
had learned a little English from fishermen on the coast of Maine. The
settlers received him very kindly. After several hours he went away.
In a few days he came back with another Indian named Squanto, who had
once lived in Plymouth but had been kidnapped and carried to England.
Squanto said that Massasoit, the chief of the tribes in the
neighborhood, was near by, and that with sixty of his men he would
shortly pay a visit to the Pilgrims. The Indian chief soon appeared and
was cordially received. He promised to be a good friend to the English,
and in return the settlers agreed to treat the Indians kindly. For over
fifty years this promise was sacredly kept.
Squanto made himself very useful to the Pilgrims. He showed them how to
plant maize by first manuring the ground with fish, then putting the
kernels and the alewives together in the hill. The grain now first
received the name of Indian corn. He also taught the settlers how to
catch eels by treading them out of the mud with their feet. Shortly
afterwards Squanto came to live with the Pilgrims, and proved himself
their firm friend.
Sometimes other Indians were hostile. Once a chief named Canonicus, who
was an enemy of Massasoit and did not like the Pilgrims, sent to
Governor Bradford a bundle of arrows wrapped in the skin of a
rattlesnake. He meant this to be a threat of war. The resolute governor
threw the arrows on the ground, filled the snake's skin with powder and
bullets, and sent it back to the chief! Canonicus was quick-witted
enough to take the hint, and thereafter he let the Pilgrims alone.
=58. First Houses built in the New Home.=--The first building the Pilgrims
put up was a log house twenty feet square, in which they stowed away
their scanty provisions, furniture, guns, and powder. They slept there
till houses were built for separate families. This storehouse also
served as a kind of fort till they had put up a better one on top of the
high hill, now known as "Burial Hill," close by. As they had no
shingles nor boards, they used for a covering of the roof long grass and
seaweed. The chimneys they made mainly of big stones; the upper part,
however, consisted of large sticks plastered over with clay.
The dirt floor was soon trodden hard and smooth. The large cracks
between the logs of the walls were filled with a kind of mortar made of
mud and grass. In those days glass was very costly, and so for windows
oiled paper was used.
After the storehouse was sufficiently advanced, the settlers began to
work on other houses. They laid out a street which they called Leyden
Street, and built their houses on each side of it. The same street with
the same name is in Plymouth to-day. The whole colony was divided into
family groups, each unmarried young man choosing a family to live with,
and each group having its own dwelling.
=59. Perils and Mishaps of the First Winter.=--Even before the houses were
finished, the men built a high picket fence around the whole settlement,
with a stout gate on each side; for they were in constant fear of the
Indians. In fact, they had to keep a sharp lookout every day, and a
guard watched every night to give the alarm in case of danger. So
watchful were they that, whether chopping wood, eating dinner, or at
meeting on Sunday, every man had his gun close at hand, ready for
instant use.
One day, soon after the storehouse was finished, it happened that
Governor Carver and William Bradford were both within, sick in bed.
Suddenly the dry thatch caught fire from the chimney sparks, and the
whole roof went up in a blaze. The sick men were lifted out safely. No
serious damage was done to anything but the roof, and that was soon
replaced by a new one.
=60. How the First Log Houses were built.=--If we could have made a visit
to one of the rough log houses of the Pilgrims after they had brought in
their scanty furniture from the vessel, and when affairs had become a
little settled, many things would have seemed strange to us.
There is no front entry to the house, for there is only one rough door,
and that opens directly into the house; no parlor, no bedroom, no
kitchen, but all in one, with perhaps a loft overhead. The inside walls
are like the outside, rough, but plastered between the logs. The roof is
made of timbers, for there is no sawmill for sawing logs into boards.
The timbers do not fit closely, and although there is a covering of
thatch, the snow blows in quite freely.
=61. A Peep into a Pilgrim's House.=--Let us take a glimpse into one of
these Pilgrim houses. The huge fireplace, made of rough stones laid in
clay, fills nearly one whole side of the house. The men bring in great
logs of wood for the fire. Even when the logs are on the fire there is
room for a person to sit on a stool at each end of the logs, and yet be
inside of the fireplace. This is the children's favorite seat.
The chimney has a big throat, as large as a hogs-head. One can sit at
the end of the logs and look up and see the sky. The sides of the
chimney are roughly laid, and the big stones project so far into the
room that the children use them as a staircase in climbing up to their
bed in the loft.
[Illustration: A SETTLER'S LOG CABIN.]
In those days nobody had ever heard of a stove. All the cooking of the
family was done over a huge fire or in front of it. They used the iron
pots and skillets they had brought from England, some of which are still
preserved at Plymouth. If they had the good luck to shoot a wild goose
or turkey, they thrust a long iron rod through it and roasted it above
or before the fire, giving it a turn now and then; or else they hung it
very near the fire with a stout string, turning it around at times. The
wintry winds often dashed in strong gusts down the big chimney, making
it freezing cold all through the house.
=62. The Scant Furnishings of their Homes.=--There were few or no chairs,
but here and there a stool, or some solid blocks cut from the trees. In
one corner, on a rude shelf resting upon two wooden pins driven into the
log, were a few books,--always a Bible, a hymn book, the Psalms, and
possibly a few others.
Hanging from a beam was a little iron cup, in which there was some fish
oil, with a twisted rag or a bit of wick; this contrivance served for a
lamp when needed. But the big fire usually answered for an evening lamp.
On one side of the room was a rough cupboard or case of shelves for
their few dishes. They had no nice glass or china with which to make a
display. The glass they had was coarse and of a brownish tint. The early
settlers often used leather bottles, leather cups, and rough plates
called trenchers, chipped from blocks of wood. Often two persons ate out
of one trencher. At this time forks were not in general use. The
Pilgrims cut their food with knives and then managed it with their
fingers.
Their few pewter dishes they were very proud of, and they kept them in
sight in the cupboard, bright with frequent scouring; for the Pilgrim
women were excellent housewives, and everything about the house was
scrupulously neat and clean.
[Illustration: PILGRIMS GOING TO CHURCH.]
=63. Other Articles of Household Furniture.=--Around the log cabin were
two or three big chests, in which each family brought over its goods.
These were used to keep their better clothing in, if they had any, and
for seats. In the corner was a spinning wheel to spin the wool for their
clothing. On these large wheels the mothers and daughters used to spin
great piles of wool and flax. Two or three of the houses had large
looms--machines on which the thread they spun was woven into stout cloth
for the family.
We should have seen no timepiece in their living rooms. There was
neither clock nor watch in the whole settlement. On sunny days the
women knew when to have dinner ready by the noon mark, as it was
called--a notch cut on some beam near the window, showing just where the
line betwixt sunshine and shadow came at twelve o'clock.
In the corner of the log house was the gun, close to the door, where it
would be ready for use at any moment.
Although the family slept in the one big room, we should not have seen
any bed in the daytime. It was turned up against the wall, and fastened
to the side of the cabin. At night it was turned down and nearly filled
the room. None of the beds were very soft, for they were filled with hay
or leaves. By and by, after they had shot enough wild fowl, they had
feather beds.
=64. Around the Dinner Table.=--When the little family gathered around the
table for dinner, there was before them neither an abundance nor a
variety of food. There was no milk, butter, nor cheese; for there was no
cow in the colony. It was four years before a cow was brought over from
England. They had no eggs, no beef nor pork nor lamb, and of course no
vegetables yet, nor any nice white bread. The provisions they brought in
the ship were partly spoiled, and were nearly used up. So they had to
get food as best they could.
Now and then the colonists killed some game, but they had to be careful
and not waste their powder and shot. One day they shot and cooked an
eagle; but, as Bradford wrote in his journal, it was "woefully tough."
They could not often shoot a bear or a deer. They obtained some corn of
the Indians by trading such trifles as they could best spare. The
records tell us that once a Pilgrim bartered a little dog for a peck of
corn.
=65. The Daily Fare becomes scant; Hardships increased by Hunger.=--By and
by all the other food failed, so that their main article of diet was
corn. This they made into meal by pounding it on smooth stones. But even
this supply from the Indians was often scanty and uncertain, so that at
times they were without it until, after a year or two, they raised their
own crops.
The rest of their provisions they obtained from the ocean--clams,
lobsters, and various kinds of fish. But their fishing boat was so frail
and their hooks and nets were so poor that this source many times
disappointed them.
Thus, the two articles on which they chiefly depended being Indian corn
and sea-food, they were sometimes entirely destitute, unable to obtain
either.
What a condition! "I have seen men," wrote one of the Pilgrims,
"stagger by reason of faintness for want of food; they knew not at night
where to have a bit in the morning." They were so badly off that if it
were possible for a friend to visit them, the best they could offer him
would be a piece of fish and some water!
[Illustration: PILGRIMS WATCHING THE RETURN OF THE MAYFLOWER.]
Such was the daily living of the first Pilgrim settlers in this country.
Such were a few of the hardships they bravely and patiently endured. And
yet, strange to say, when the Mayflower sailed for home in the early
spring, as we have before stated, not one of these stout-hearted men and
women returned in her to England.