Document 1: Powhatan and John Smith
Many American Indian people occupied the area near Jamestown in 1607, when the English established their first American colony. The settlers in Jamestown probably would not have survived were it not for two men, Powhatan, an American Indian Chieftain in the area, who supplied the colony with corn and other vital foods; and John Smith, the leader of the Colony who forced many of the reluctant Englishmen into working. Despite Powhatan' s generosity, Smith treated the American Indian with contempt and raided Powhatan's villages to take corn and other produce by force. As a result, Powhatan wrote the letter below:
Dear Captain Smith,
I have grown old and will soon die. Leadership must pass in order, to my brothers, Opitchapan, Opekankanough, and Catataugh, and then to my two sisters and their two daughters. I wish that your love for us might not be less than ours for you.
Why should you take from us by force what you can have by love? Why should you destroy us, who have provided you with food? What can you get by war? We can hide our provisions and fly into the woods. Then you would starve because you have wronged your friends.
What is the cause of your jealousy? We are unarmed. We are willing to supply your wants, if only you come in a friendly manner, not with swords and guns as if you were invading an enemy. Why must my people be constantly on guard, so that if a twig breaks all would cry out, "Here comes Captain Smith." In such a miserable manner might I end my life.
But, Captain Smith, this might soon be your fate too, because of your rashness and thoughtless actions. I therefore urge you to confer peaceably with us. Above all, I insist that guns and swords, the cause of all our jealousy and uneasiness, be removed and sent away.
