University of Virginia Library

INTRODUCTION

THE FIRST INHABITANTS

The Indians of Virginia. — When the territory now
included in Virginia was first settled by the English, it
was occupied by an Indian population numbering about
ten thousand, divided among more than forty clans or
tribes. Each of these was ruled over by a chief; and
about thirty of them were united in a loose confederacy
under a head-chief named Powhatan. There were also two
smaller confederacies and a few scattering tribes which
maintained their independence. All the Virginia Indians
belonged to the great Algonkin[1] family.

Appearance. — The Virginia Indians were manly in appearance,
being tall, straight, and well-proportioned. They
were copper-colored, had high cheek bones, piercing black

eyes, and coarse black hair. The women wore their hair
long and allowed it to hang over their shoulders. The
men cut theirs short on one side, but let it grow long on
the other. On the top of their heads, they carefully preserved
a lock or ridge, like a cock's comb, which was
called the scalp lock. This was the warrior's pride and

Virginia Indian

his token of defiance to his enemies,
whom he dared to take it.
Their clothing was made chiefly
of the skins of the deer, the
raccoon, the beaver, and the
otter. Their shoes were made
of buckskin, and were called
moccasins. They possessed in
a high degree the fondness for
ornaments and toys that has
been observed in all savages.
They tattooed their bodies with
representations of flowers, fruits,
and birds, and adorned themselves
with handsome mantles
made of curiously interwoven
feathers, which were dyed red
or blue, as fancy dictated. Their
heads and shoulders they painted
red, with the juice of the bloodroot
plant; and both men and women wore necklaces of
beads and pearls. Altogether, they were a curious and
picturesque looking race.

Their Character. — Bravery and fortitude were good
qualities which the Indians generally possessed. But they
were cruel, vindictive, and treacherous. They had no laws
to restrain evil doers; and so, when a man was wronged

by another, he had to punish the offender himself. In this
way, the spirit of revenge was so cultivated that it became
an Indian's pride never to forget an injury. He would
carefully conceal his resentment, while he waited long
years for an opportunity to wreak his vengeance; and
when it came, he would execute the penalty with interest.
Thus it happened that among them it was the custom to
return evil for evil. Their training gave them no idea
of the golden rule; and so they knew not how to render
good for evil, though at times they would repay kindness
with kindness.

Weapons. — Bows and arrows, stone hatchets, called
tomahawks, stone knives, wooden spears and clubs constituted

their chief weapons. In hunting, they depended
mainly upon the bow and arrow, which by constant practice
they learned to use with great skill. They could discharge
their arrows with so much force that they were
able to bring down their game at a distance of more than
a hundred yards. The arrows were winged with turkey
feathers and had heads made of stone. Specimens of these
arrowheads are still found in Virginia.

Wigwams. — The Indians dwelt in villages, chiefly along
the banks of the numerous rivers that flow through Virginia.
They constructed their cabins, which were called
wigwams, by driving stakes in the ground and fastening

them together at the top by means of bent poles. They
covered them with reeds, bark, and skins. These rude
houses were sometimes fifty or a hundred feet long; and
some of them exhibited a slight advance toward civilization
by being divided into separate
rooms. At the top, a small opening
was left for smoke to escape.
If the fire on the hearth went
entirely out, this was regarded
by the women as an evil omen,
and accordingly it was rarely allowed
to occur. For chairs the
Indians used mats, and for beds
they constructed raised platforms,
which were covered with mats
and skins.

Wigwams

Habits and Customs. — They engaged
in agriculture to a limited
extent, cultivating corn, beans, and tobacco. As they
possessed no iron or steel instruments to fell the forests,
where their crops were to be planted, they girdled the
trees with stone hatchets, cutting the bark away in a
ring, which stopped the flow of the sap and caused the
trees to die. This practice, which originated with the
savages, is still used in parts of Virginia. All work was
performed by women, or squaws, as they were called,
the men spending their time in hunting, fishing, and in
fighting their enemies. When the Indians went off on
long hunting expeditions, the women carried the burdens,
and when the day drew to a close cut down saplings and
built arbors, while the warriors looked complacently on,
smoking their pipes, or else practiced shooting at targets.

Indian Warfare. — The savages were usually in a state
of warfare with tribes that were hostile to them. They
never fought a pitched battle, nor did they contend in an
open field, but depended upon strategy, surprises, and silent
approaches. Their method was to entrap their enemies
in ambuscades, or else to creep upon them in Indian file,
and attack them unexpectedly. Prisoners, especially women

and children, were frequently adopted into the tribe, but
many were tortured to death.

Running the Gantlet. — A favorite method of torture,
called running the gantlet, was to compel a captive to run
between two rows of warriors, each of whom would strike
him with a club or knife, as he passed along. At times,
a prisoner would escape torture if he showed bravery in a
high degree, so much did the savages value this quality.

A marked example of this occurred in the case of General
Stark of New Hampshire. The Indians captured him,
and decided that he must run the gantlet. Stark saw
death staring him in the face; but as he started, he
snatched a club from one of the savages, and swinging it
right and left, rushed on between the lines of astonished
warriors, laying them out as he went along. Thus he
passed through the ordeal almost unhurt. The savages
loudly applauded his daring, and the old men laughed
at the young braves who had been so unceremoniously
knocked over. Instead of torturing Stark again, they
bestowed upon him the honors of a hero.

Education. — The Indians were quick of apprehension
and ingenious. They learned what they could from nature,
finding out the habits of animals and discovering the properties
of plants. Nothing escaped their notice. So well
did they train their ears and eyes, that, in the forests, they
could hear sounds and see sights which could not be perceived
by a white man; and they could travel with ease
for miles in a straight line through the thickest woods.
The boys and girls were taught how to make earthen pots,
to fashion stone hatchets and arrowheads, and to manufacture
beads out of the shells found on the seacoast.
Beyond such rude arts as these, their education did not extend.
Their idea of numbers was very limited. It is said
that some of them could count only ten, while others could
reckon a thousand. "As numerous as pigeons in the
woods or as the stars in the heavens," was the way they
expressed a large number. Some years after the English
arrived at Jamestown, Powhatan sent Tomocomo, one
of his chiefs, over to England with instructions to find
out the population of the country. Tomocomo carried
along with him a bundle of sticks, and he was ordered to

cut a notch for every Englishman he met. The story
tells us that he diligently followed his instructions till he
reached London, when, amazed by the multitude he saw
thronging the streets, his arithmetic failed him, and, throwing
away his sticks, he gave up the undertaking.

How they Looked upon Self-control. — From infancy,
they were taught to bear pain patiently and silently. The
boys played a game of "Choosing Chief," in which each
one would press a live coal to his naked body in order to
see who could hold it there the longest, and the successful
one was honored by being selected leader. A story told
by an early missionary, also illustrates the value which
the savages placed upon self-control. A great bear was
wounded by an Indian, and groaned piteously as he lay
on the ground. The Indian, hearing this, addressed him
as follows: "Bear, you are a coward and no warrior.
Your tribe and mine are at war, and yours began it. Had
you wounded me, I should not have uttered a sound, while
here you are bringing disgrace upon your tribe."

Seasons and Festivals. — They counted their years by
winters, which they called "Cohonks," from the shrill cry
of the migratory wild geese, which they heard as cold
weather approached. They held a number of feasts, such
as, one for the coming of the wild fowl, one for the return
of the hunting season, and one for the ripening of certain
fruits. But their greatest festival took place at the time
when they gathered corn. This lasted some days and
was frequently participated in by the inhabitants of several
villages. On this occasion, the warriors boasted that, as
their corn had been gathered, which furnished food enough
for the women and children, they were free to hunt, seek
new adventures, or go to war, as they fancied. So they
rejoiced, sang heroic songs, and danced. The historian,

Beverley, describes a festival dance, saying that it is
executed by the "dancers themselves forming a ring, and
moving around a circle of carved posts, that are set up for
that purpose, or else round a fire, made in a convenient
part of the town; and then each has his rattle in his hand,
or what other thing he fancies most, as his bows and
arrows, or his tomahawk. They also dress themselves up
with branches of trees, or some other strange accoutrements.
Thus they proceed, dancing and singing, with all
the antic postures they can invent, and he is the bravest
fellow that has the most prodigous gestures."

Religion. — The Indians are represented as believing
that when death came they went "beyond the mountains
towards the setting sun." One of the earliest writers[2] on
Virginia says they believed in "the immortality of the soul,
when, life departing from the body, according to the good
or bad works it hath done, it is carried up to the tabernacles
of the gods to perpetual happiness, or to Popogusso,
a great pit, which they think to be at the farthest parts of
the world where the sun sets, and there burn continually."
They held that it was unnecessary to pray to a good god,
for the reason that he would not injure them anyway, but
that with the spirit of evil it was different. He might
do them harm and so should be appeased. They called
him Kiwassa or Okee, and directed their worship to him
They had a legend that once Kiwassa had been on earth;
the foundation of the legend is as follows: Below Richmond,
about a mile from the James River, there are to be
seen on a rock some impressions of unknown origin.
They look like the footprints of a giant. To these the
Indians pointed, and claimed that they were made by
Kiwassa when he came among them.

Powhatan. — Powhatan inherited a part of the dominion
over which he ruled, and the rest he acquired by conquest.
He was among the Indians a kind of rude Napoleon,
who had, by conquering tribe after tribe, so increased his
ancestral domain that he had risen to some degree of
kingly dignity and power. He accomplished this by his
bravery, energy, and wisdom. He not only possessed
some of the better qualities of human nature, but at times
displayed touches of princely

Powhatan

magnanimity. From his
followers, he exacted many
ceremonial observances, and
he ruled over them with the
authority of a despot. A
body-guard of braves attended
him by day, and at
night sentinels guarded his
dwelling while he slept. In
1607, when the history of
Virginia really opens, this
monarch of the forest was
about sixty years old. "His
head was somewhat hoary,
which, together with his stature,
carriage, and countenance, gave him an air of savage
majesty." Naturally he viewed the coming of the English
into his domain with alarm, but he was too shrewd and
politic to make open war upon them, and so he ended his
days in the land of his ancestors. Better would it have been
for the Indians of Virginia, had Powhatan's successors followed
his example. But instead of doing this, they arrayed
themselves against the incoming civilization, and brought
on a contest which ended in the destruction of their race.

QUESTIONS

• 1. How many Indians did the English find in Virginia, and what is
  said of their clans or tribes?

• 2. To what great family did they belong?

• 3. Describe the appearance of the Virginia Indians.

• 4. Of what did their clothes consist, and how did they show their love
  of ornament?

• 5. Give an estimate of the character of the Indian.

• 6. Why was it their custom to return evil for evil?

• 7. Describe their weapons.

• 8. How did they construct their wigwams?

• 9. Why did they never allow the fire to go out?

• 10. What did they use for chairs and beds?

• 11. What products did they cultivate, and how did they clear their
  lands?

• 12. What is said of the women or squaws?

• 13. What was their method of warfare?

• 14. Explain what was meant by "running the gantlet."

• 15. What did they learn from nature?

• 16. What rude arts did they teach their children?

• 17. Did they have much idea of numbers?

• 18. On what mission did Powhatan send Tomocomo to London?

• 19. Give illustrations of how they regarded self-control.

• 20. How did they count years, and from what was the name derived?

• 21. Describe their chief festival.

• 22. Their festival dance.

• 23. What was the belief of the Indians?

• 24. Why did they pray to the evil spirit?

• 25. What legend had they as to their god, Kiwassa?

• 26. What was Powhatan's position among them?

• 27. How did he view the coming of the English?