CDLXVIII. Council in Virginia. Letter to the Earl of Southampton
and the Council and Company of Virginia
December 2, 1624
(1) Manuscript Records Virginia Company, III, pt. ii, p. 11a. (2) C. O. 1, Vol. III,
No. 30
Document in (1) Library of Congress, Washington, D. C.; (2) Public Record Office,
London. Document signed
List of Records No. 743
1624,
Dec. 2.
Right Honõble:
We haue Receaued L̃res from the Lords of his maties most Honorbl͠e.
privie Counsell of espeeyall recomendac̃one in the behalfe of Capt John
Martine, dated the xixo of december. 1623. Accompened wth yours of the
first of ffebruary. to the same effect, which, by divers reportes and rumors
synce his arivall by him raysed he hath little deserved at your handes,
Notwthstandinge in obedience to theire and your Lorp̃s L̃res, We haue and
are redye to give our best asistance to the accomodation of his business,
Wherof, when it shalbe finished (wherin we will vse our best expeditione)
We will give you A p̱ticular Accompte
As for Order Concerninge the Wyddow Smaley, wee had receaved none, till
the Receipt of your last L̃res, she her self as yett is nott arived in Virginia,
but remaines in new Englande, nor hath appoynted any to Solycite her
cause, Butt at her arivall shee shall finde all lawfull favor
Yt hath pleased God this yeere to give us a greate Victorie over Otiotan
& ye Pomunkeys, with theire Confederates, by a hand full, beinge in all
not aboue 60 ffyghtinge men (wherof 24 were ymployde only in the
Cuttinge downe of Corne) Conducted by the Gouernor, in wch was shewed
wt the Indyans coulde doe, havinge mantayned fighte two days together,
and much therof in open fielde, The younge men beinge beaten vpp by the
elder, Many slayne, and as much Corne cutt downe, as by the Estimatione
of men of good Judgment, Was Sufficyent to haue Sustayned fower Thousand
men for a Twellv mounthe, who were so discoraged, that they gave over
fightinge and dismayedly, stood most ruthfully lookinge one while theire
Corne was Cutt downe, And had we been well furnished with powder,
The Gouernor had p̳ceeded further to Matepany River, wherby he had
hassarded the Starvinge of all those nationes, In this expeditione
sixteene of the English were hurte, the firste and seconde daye wherby nyne
of the best shott were made vnserviceable for that tyme, yett never A
man slayne, nor none that miscaried of those hurtes (since when they haue
nott greatly troubled us, nor interupted our Labors, The Indyans
were never knowne to shew soe greate resolutione, either encoraged by the
paucytie of ours, or theire owne greate numbers, There beinge of the
Pomuckeys eight hundred bowmen, besides divers nationes that cam to
asiste them, fightinge nott only for safegarde of theire howses and such a
huge quantetie of Corne, but for theire reputatione wth ye rest of the Salvages:
wch we now hope they haue loste, it depending much vppon the success of
this Actione, The Pomunckeys havinge made greate braggs, of what they
would doe, Amonge the Northerne nationes: of whom the kinge of Potuxsone
sent an Indyan vnto us expressly to be an eye witnes of the evente
Yf our store of powder had been answerable to [o]ur intentions and readines,
We had gone vppon our neighboringe Indyans, although we vnderstande,
yt they haue quitted their former Plantac̃ons by the harshe vissitts, wch
they receaved from us the former Sumer, and as we conceave did much
relye vppon releiffe from the Pomukeys, who therfore planted ye greater
quantitie, Our powder is now so farr exhausted, that we shall not be able to
mantayne our Plantacons, should they make anny atempt vppon us, yf
shortly a s[u]pplye come not in, Yt beinge now the seconde of decem-
ber and noe shipp harde of, A thinge vnaccustomed, And for many reasones
doth putt us to many p̱plexities, We therfore earnestly desire that yf
powder be not allready sente accordinge to our former L̃res, That order bee
taken for the sendinge thereof wth the greatest Celeritie, that possible
may bee
This Sumer, god be thanked, the Colony hath very well stoode to health:
wch assureth us that ye mortalitie of former yeers, is to be imputed to other
accydents, and not to ye Clymate And am[o]nge so many of his benefitts
God hath sent us a plentifull harvest of Corne and the industrious are well
stored wth other provisiones, soe that exceptinge ye number of men the
Colony hath worne owt the Skarrs of the massacre, and yf in any thinge it
come shorte in many thingℯ it exceeds the former Condicone
Thus humbly desiringe your former favor and fervency in the Supporte
of this Actione and ye settlinge of our estate much shaken by rumor, wch
hath bred a generall irresolutione amonge us, wee humbly take our leaues
and remaine
Your devoted Servants
Fra: Wyatt
ffra: West
George Yardley
George Sandys
Jo: Pott
Roger Smith
Raphe Hamer
James Cytie the seconde of december 1624
To the right Honobl͠e. Henry Earle of
Suthamptone, wth the Lordes and
others of the Counsell & Compony
of Virginia
