136

CANOE AND DEER-TRAP.

CHAP. the one side, the other on the other side.' We could

IX.

Nov.

not believe it was a canoe, till we came near it. So 1620. we returned, leaving the further discovery hereof to 16. our shallop, and came that night back again to the fresh water pond; and there we made our rendezvous that night, making a great fire, and a barricado to windward of us, and kept good watch with three sentinels all night, every one standing when his turn came, while five or six inches of match was burning. It proved a very rainy night.

Nov.

17.

In the morning, we took our kettle and sunk it in the pond, and trimmed our muskets, for few of them would go off because of the wet; and so coasted the wood again to come home, in which we were shrewdly puzzled, and lost our way. As we wandered we came to a tree, where a young sprit' was bowed down over a bow, and some acorns strewed underneath. Stephen Hopkins said, it had been to catch some deer. So as we were looking at it, William Bradford being in the rear, when he came looked also upon it, and as he went about, it gave a sudden jerk up, and he was immediately caught by the leg. It was a very pretty

much like battledoors; if a cross
wave (which is seldom) turn her
keel upside down, they by swim-
ming free her, and scramble into
her again." Wood, ch. 17.

That is, of the bank, in the two
arms of the creek.

2 This proves that their guns were matchlocks. See p. 125.

3 The wood was terminated by
the Pond, by the side of which they
travelled, and then through a valley,
which is continued from it, east,
toward the ocean. F.

A sapling, a young tree.
Wood says, ch. 15, "their deer
traps are springs made of young

trees and smooth wrought cords; so strong as it will toss a horse if he be caught in it. An English mare, being strayed from her owner, and grown wild by her long sojourning in the woods, ranging up and down with the wild crew, stumbled into one of these traps, which stopped her speed, hanging her, like Mahomet's coffin, betwixt earth and heaven. In these traps deer, moose, bears, wolves, cats and foxes are often caught." "The salvages" says T. Morton, ch. 5, "take the deer in traps made of their natural hemp, which they place in the earth, where they fell

2

THE EXPLORING PARTY RETURN.

3

137

IX.

Nov.

device, made with a rope of their own making, and CHAP. having a noose as artificially made as any roper1 in England can make, and as like ours as can be; which 1620. we brought away with us. In the end we got out of 17. the wood, and were fallen about a mile too high above the creek; where we saw three bucks, but we had rather have had one of them. We also did spring three couple of partridges; and as we came along by the creek, we saw great flocks of wild geese and ducks,5 but they were very fearful of us. So we marched some while in the woods, some while on the sands, and other while in the water up to the knees; till at length we came near the ship; and then we shot off our pieces, and the long boat came to fetch us.

4

6

7

Master Jones and Master Carver being on the shore, with many of our people, came to meet us. And thus we came both weary and welcome home; and delivered in our corn into the store to be kept for seed, for we knew not how to come by any, and therefore were very glad, purposing, so soon as we could meet with any of the inhabitants of that place, to make them large satisfaction. This was our first discovery, whilst our shallop was in repairing.

Our people did make things as fitting as they could,

138

IX.

THE SECOND EXPEDITION.

CHAP. and time would, in seeking out wood, and helving of tools, and sawing of timber, to build a new shallop. 1620. But the discommodiousness of the harbour did much hinder us; for we could neither go to nor come from the shore but at high water, which was much to our hindrance and hurt; for oftentimes they waded to the middle of the thigh, and oft to the knees, to go and come from land. Some did it necessarily, and some for their own pleasure; but it brought to the most, if not to all, coughs and colds, (the weather proving suddenly cold and stormy,) which afterwards turned to the scurvy, whereof many died.

When our shallop was fit, (indeed before she was fully fitted, for there was two days' work after bestowed on her,) there was appointed some four and twenty men of our own, and armed, then to go and make a more full discovery of the rivers before mentioned. Master Jones was desirous to go with us, and we took such of his sailors as he thought useful for us; so as we were in all about four and thirty men.2 We made Master Jones our leader; for we thought it best herein Nov. to gratify his kindness and forwardness. When we were set forth, it proved rough weather and cross winds; so as we were constrained, some in the shallop, and others in the long boat, to row to the nearest shore the wind would suffer them to go unto, and then to wade out above the knees. The wind was so strong as the shallop could not keep the water, but was forced But we marched six or

27.

5

to harbour there that night.

1

2

See note on page 120.

Of course they had ten of
Jones's crew.

3 This shows that they could
have harboured no suspicion
that Jones had betrayed and

wronged them. See note on page 102.

This was ten days after their return from their first excursion. 5 In East Harbour. The men who marched several miles, and

THE PILGRIMS EXPLORE PAMET RIVER.

139

IX.

seven miles further, and appointed the shallop to come CHAP. to us as soon as they could. It blowed and did snow all that day and night, and froze withal. Some of our 1620. people that are dead took the original of their death here.1

4

3

2

28.

The next day, about eleven o'clock, our shallop came Nov. to us, and we shipped ourselves; and the wind being good, we sailed to the river we formerly discovered, which we named Cold Harbour; to which when we came, we found it not navigable for ships; yet we thought it might be a good harbour for boats, for it flows there twelve foot at high water. We landed our men between the two creeks, and marched some four or five miles by the greater of them, and the shallop followed us. At length night grew on, and our men were tired with marching up and down the steep hills and deep valleys, which lay half a foot thick with snow. Master Jones, wearied with marching, was desirous we should take up our lodging, though some of us would have marched further. So we made there our rendezvous for that night under a few pine trees; and as it fell out, we got three fat geese and

what they supposed to be six or seven miles farther, were landed on Beach Point, which forms this harbour. F.

'See pages 120 and 138.

2 The mouth of Pamet river is twelve feet deep at high water. Thence the water gradually decreases to five feet, which is the depth at the lower bridge. This is to be understood of the lowest tides, during the summer. F.

The men were landed at the foot of Old Tom's hill. F.

From Old Tom's hill to the head of Paret river the distance is about three miles and a half, as the hills run, or three miles in a

6

straight line. The tradition is, that
Pamet river was formerly deeper
than it is at present, and therefore
the shallop might easily follow
them. F.

This is an exact description of
the land on Pamet river. F.
Truro is composed of hills and
narrow circular valleys. There are
also some long valleys, running at
right angles with the shore. The
tops of some of the hills spread
out into a plain.

"There are three kinds of goose, the gray goose, the white goose, and the brant." Josselyn, p. 9. "There are geese of three sorts, viz. brant geese, which are

140

Nov.

29.

THEY RETURN TO HOPKINS'S CLIFF.

CHAP. Six ducks' to our supper, which we eat with soldiers' IX. stomachs, for we had eaten little all that day. Our 1620. resolution was, next morning to go up to the head of this river, for we supposed it would prove fresh water. But in the morning our resolution held not, because many liked not the hilliness of the soil and badness of the harbour. So we turned towards the other creek, that we might go over and look for the rest of the corn that we left behind when we were here before. When we came to the creek, we saw the canoe lie on the dry ground, and a flock of geese in the river, at which one made a shot and killed a couple of them; and we launched the canoe and fetched them, and when we had done, she carried us over by seven or eight at once. This done, we marched to the place where we had the corn formerly, which place we called Cornhill; and digged and found the rest, of which

pied, and white geese which are
bigger, and gray geese which are
as big and bigger than the tame
geese of England, with black legs,
black bills, beads and necks black;
the flesh far more excellent than
the geese of England, wild or
tame. There is of them great
abundance; I have had often a
thousand before the mouth of my
gun."
T. Morton, ch. 4. "The
geese of the country be of three
sorts; first a brant goose, which is
a goose almost like the wild goose
of England. The second kind is
a white goose, almost as big as an
English tame goose; these come in
great flocks about Michaelmas;
sometimes there will be two or
three thousand in a flock; those
continue six weeks, and so fly to
the southward, returning in March,
and staying six weeks more, re-
turning to the northward. The
third kind of goose is a great gray
goose, with a black neck and a

black and white head, strong of flight, and these be a great deal bigger than the ordinary geese of England; most of these geese remain with us from Michaelmas to April. They feed on the sea, upon the grass in bays at low water, and gravel, and in the woods of acorns, having, as other fowl have, their pass and repass to the northward and southward." Wood, ch. S.

"Ducks there are of three kinds, pied ducks, gray ducks, and black ducks, in great abundance; they are bigger bodied than the tame ducks of England." T. Morton, ch. 4. "The ducks of the country be very large ones, and in great abundance. So there is of teal likewise. If I should tell you how some have killed a hundred geese in a week, fifty ducks at a shot, forty teal at another, it may be counted almost impossible, though nothing more certain." Wood, ch. 8.