University of Virginia Library

CXVI. John Pory. A Letter to Sir Edwin Sandys
June 12, 1620

Honble Sr

The Swan of Barnestaple arryved here at James Citty ye 15th of May
and departed hence ye first of June. The London Marchant, and ye

Jonathan came to an Anchor in this porte ye seven and twentyeth of
May, and set sayle from hence, ye London Marchant ye 7th of June, and
ye Jonathan ye 9th The Duty arryved here ye 25th of May, and departed
yesterday beinge ye Eleventh of June. By ye three former ships, and in
answer to ye ɫres of ye Counsell and of Smyths hundred socyety both ye
Governor and Counsell ioyntly, and ye Governor also aparte have wrytten.
This in their absence I thought expedyent to adde by ye Duty nowe
bound to trade and fish in Canada, where wee hope they will finde some
men of Plymouth, to ye ende that as yow had wrytten by every one, so
wee might ymitate yor example.

The thingℯ wch I will nowe propound to yor Considerac̃on are first. The
season of ye yeare wch for mens health may be fyttest to arryve in this
Country. Wee here are in or opinions absolutely for ye leafefall and ye
winter havinge found ye springe and som̄er both fatall and vnproffitable to
newe Com̃ers, and those other two seasons quyte Contrary, ffor instance,
in these three last menc̃oned ships ye people this springe Came in sickly,
and too [too] late eyther by plantinge, settinge, howinge, clearinge ground,
or buyldinge, to doe any worke of ymportance. The second thinge con-
siderable is ye elecc̃on of yor people; that as near as may be none but sound
persons be sent hither, and those yf it be possible tradesmen, husbandmen,
and true labourers. The inconvenyence of vnsound bodyes amonge sound
and healthfull, and of arryvinge in ye springe, wee found in or voyadge by
ye Dyana both at sea, and after wee come on shore. And of this ye Jonathan
may be a sad president, who lost twenty five of yor land people at sea,
besides Mr Rand ye Mr, and three marriners, and some more of ye passengrs
nowe dead on shore. A third matter of ymportance is ye passage from
England hither, vpon ye speedynes whereof ye health of or people, and
many other Comodityes doe mainely depende. Such a passage wee hope
Mr Elford Pylot of ye Swan hath found by ye Course of ye Som̃er Ilands,
those other passages by ye West Indyes, and by ye North beinge ye two
extreames of that golden Medyum wch I hope will by proffitable vse verify
ye sayinge Medio tutissimus ibis.

John Damyron notwthstandinge he made a kinde of a vowe vpon or vn-
toward northerly passage in ye Dyana that he would never stand ye like
Course for Virginia againe preferred nowe obedyence before sacrafice, and
followed ye companyes direcc̃ons by ye way of ye north, and by longe

Contynuance at sea (besides other inconvenyence) lost to ye Colony ye
benefytt of those silkewormes wch his Maty had so gratiously bestowed
vpon vs. And I pray god ye Bonaventure, ye Tryall and ye ffalcon (of
whom wee can yet heare no newes) be not fallen into ye same incon-
venyence out of ye same direcc̃ons. And yf wee may wthout offence (as I
humbly beseech wee may) vtter or mindes, wee wonder why any should so
much doute vpon a northerne passage, wch is never Comodious but in ye
springe and towardℯ som̃er, both wch seasons in respect of ye health of
newe com̃ers, of ye plenty of ye Country, and of proffitt to be raysed are
ye most ymproper. Mr Elford by being blest of god wth a short passage
brought all his people in health, who having bene here nowe allmost a
moneth, doe all god be praysed as yet hold vp their heades, doe worke
stoutly, and take very good lykinge to ye Country. But they were a
party of sound, honest, and Country labouringe men.

Nowe as Conc9ninge ye buyldinge of guest-houses, this tyme of ye year is
most vnfittinge, in respect of ye tymbr to be felled, wch would nowe be
full of sap in respect of ye heate, and lastly in respect of ye peoples attend-
inge their corne, where on depende ye lives of vs all. In winter some good
wilbe done in that kinde. To drawe ye old planters also to assist in ye
Iron workes wilbe very harsh and difficult, And I doe verily knowe, and
wthout flattery may [1b] confidently affirme, that ye Governor yf he wer
able would defray all these publique affaires out of his owne purse, and
would not put ye people to so much as an howers worke. He hath allready
by ye George, and ye Bona Nova (ye wch I was much against) proffered
his salary towards ye buyldinge of a forte at Poynt Comforte. If ye
Company please they may apply that to ye buylding of guest-houses,
and other publique vses, and to keepe ye old planters from losse and
murmuringe.

It is not longe agone, since ye Governor made those that watched here at
James Citty to contribute some labor to a bridge, and to c9taine plat-
formes to mounte greate ordinance vpon, beinge both for ye vse and
defense of ye same Citty, and so of themselves; yet they repyned as much
as yf all their goods had bene taken from them.

Of these Iron workes so much affected by ye Company, neyther ye Gov-
ernor, nor wee of ye Counsell have any skill at all and must therefor be
slowe in delyvering or opinions. Onely wee thinke, that so heavy and so
ymportant a worke, beinge fytt to exercyse ye most perfect Comon weale,
should have taken moe tyme of delibration there in England. But espe-
cially some skillfull man should have p̱vsed ye country for a whole yeare
before, and should have bene sure of some abundant Iron mine and fyt
places to worke yt in, Notwthstandinge that heretofore there hath in many
partes of this Country bene gathered some quantety of that mine from
ye sup̳ficyes of ye earth.

ffor Pytch and tarre, true yt is, that as some quantety hath heretofore
bene made, so may there be some made hereafter, but some here that have
lyved longe in Poland doe say, that ye worth will no way contrvaile ye
chardge, and one reason is, that whereas in Poland a principall country
for that comodity, there be whole forrests of pytch trees and none else,
and that for fower, and five hundred myles together in this parte of
Virginia ye same kinde of trees growe but * * * skatteringe here
one and there one, and may indeed be employed to that vse but wth greate
labor, and as greate losse.

ffor tymber, and bourdes well may they serve for ye vse of ye Colony, but
in sendinge for ye same expressly out of England, ye fraight would cost
double ye pryce of ye comodity.

Silke is a marvellous hopefull comodity in this Country, here beinge as
many mulbery trees as in Persia, or in any other parte of ye world besides.
Vynes Cannot but prosper admirably well in this Country, where in many
places yow can hardly walke ye woods for their intanglemts. And in most
parte of ye Country yow shall see vines wth a body as big as a mans leg,
as tall, and vpright as ye mast of a ship, not touchinge ye espoused tree
any where but at ye top. Besides though ye ordinary grape be but a
Crab, very small, wth a thick skin, greate stones, and iuice harsh, and
lytle, yet many sortes whereof I my selfe have tasted are to be found of
ye quite contrary qualityes, and that in much excellency. Here be also
singular white grapes though rare to be founde, yet shall yt goe hard but

I will bringe Mr Chanterton to ye findinge of them. Sure I am I haue
tasted some grapes here as good as in Greece or Italy: But Sr I must tell
yow by ye way, that Mr Chanterton smells too much of Roome (in ye terri-
tory whereof he served ye Colonnessi) as he attempts to worke myracles
wth his Crucyfixe, and to shewe as much Zeale in mayntaining his sensles
religion as he doth professe yt wth blindnes. Whereof ye Governor, vnles
he perceive some danger, will take no notyce, till ye man have discovered
his skill to ye Country, and then yf he prove turbulent, he will do wth him
as he shall see cause, or as he shalbe Comaunded out of England. Meane
while he may be come hither as a spy, wch pointe [2] wee doe beseech yow
throughly to consider of He told me he was at Roome in Octobr last,
and is nowe got hither by May, and ther fore yf he be come vpon such an
errand, he hath made greate speed. Out of ye Country by mine advise
he shall not goe in hast to tell tales.

The last Com̃odity spoken of in yor Chartr is salt; ye workes whereof wee
doe much marvell, yow would have restored to their former vse; whereas
I will vndertake in one day to make as much salt by ye heate of ye sunne,
after ye manner vsed in ffrance, Spaine, and Italy, as can be made in a
yeare by that toylesome and erroneous way of boyling sea water into salt
in kettles as or people at Smyths Iland have hitherto accustomed. And
therefore when yow entr into this worke, yow must send men skillfull in
salt pondes, such as yow may easily procure from Rochell, and yf yow can
have none there, yet will some be found at Lymington, and in many other
places in England. And this indeed in a short tyme might prove a reall
worke of greate sustenance to ye Colony at home, as of gaine abroad, here
beinge such stulls of excellent good fish, as ought rather to be admyred of
such as have not seene ye same, then Credited. Whereas ye company doe
give their tennants fifty acres vpon Smyths Iland some there are that
smyle at yt here, sayinge there is no ground in all ye whole Iland worth
ye manuringe. But over against yt on ye maine, wch Sr Thomas Dale
bought from ye Indyans for ye company, there is as good ground as any
is in Virginia, and such a place to live in by ye reporte of those that have
bene there as (savinge ye incomodity of Musquitos, wch ye ground beinge
once cleared will vanish) ye like is skarce to be found againe in ye whole
country. And for my partycular, I was never so enamoured of any place
wch I have not seene, nor shalbe satisfyed till I have seene yt.

Cordage, wch I had allmost iniuryously omytted, yf or Virginia hempe and
flaxe, (wch are sayd to be ye most growinge thinges in ye country) doe
prosper, will ye best in ye world be made here, ye stuffe by reporte beinge
thrise as stronge as ors, and a greate deale more free from rottinge, and
wearinge.

Whereas yow have sent two Germans skillfull in mynes, here is a freind of
mine as skillfull as themselves, and my selfe, though vnskillfull, who doe
purpose wthin fewe dayes to make tryall of their skill, in c9taine places
where wee hope to finde better Comodity, and of lesse labor then Iron mine,
and yet will not goe about to preiudice ye Iron mine neither. And yf wee
Chance to send yow over any tryall, yt shalbe both in that quantety, and
in that truth and c9tainty as there shalbe no doubt to be made of yt.
Where I speake above in this ɫre in ye person of more then my selfe, I
beseech yow pardon me, because there I speake not mine owne but ye
com̃on opinion.

The cominge hither of that vertuous gentleman Capt Thorpe, was to vs in
many respects as of an Angell from heaven, neyther did I ever see any
mans face out of my natyve countrey, that did more ioy me. He will
helpe to beare or burthen, and wilbe able in many matters soundly to
resolve yow at home. I pray god send more like vnto him. Two things
might have much discouraged me from doinge my duty. One is yor not
vouchsafinge to answer, had yt bene but in three lines, my so many, and
so confident ɫres, so that I knowe not whither I wryte nowe to a freind or
to an enemy. The other was ye imbecillity of some of Sr George his
freinds, who not havinge courage enough to defende his ɫre by ye fflemish
man of warr, layd all ye whole envy vpon me, as yf Sr George had bene
so weake, as to have signed to any thinge ignorantly, or against his will
or as yf I had counterfaycted his hand and seale. My comfort is that
this wronge hath advanced me to so high a dignity as yt is nowe in my
power to pardon my betters. Nowe that I suppose I have wearyed yow, I
growe weary my selfe, though I shall never be weary to pray from ye
Almighty all happines vpon yow and yors, nor to contynue