University of Virginia Library

CCCXXVIII. Captain Miles Kendall. Letter from the Somers
Islands to Sir Edwin Sandys
April 15, 1623

Right Worshipfull my humbull duty remēbred &c. I have reseued your
letter sent me in the Seflower wher in ye write that ye hope I haue reseued
your letters sent by the gouerner and Mr Shirife wch I did & I hope ye haue
reseued sattysfactyon conserninge them, but for my beinge in plase of
gayne I am not nether euer doe I expecte to be and for beinge a counseler
that I am though wth no profit & god willinge I will behaue my sellfe, so
that I will doe nothinge but what shall be fitt, in it: for my studdy shall be
to p̱forme my plase to the glorye of god & the good of this Cuntry: Kynd
Sr I humbley thancke you allwayes for your Paynes care and trauell for
me and in my busynes & for your greate care in defendynge my good name
& repitatyon the wch by that machauill butler hath ben sought to depriue
me of to the vttermost of his power both by Candelus lybells sent and allso
by exactynge his atorryty as ye shall perseaue in my former letters, eauen
to the vttermost of his power for the takeinge a waye of my life, for his
clarcke, toke a fallse othe agaynst me wch aughter ward he be inge trubled
in consyense Confessed and desyred god my sellfe & the cuntry to forgiue
him I culd relate unto you maney other such diuelish practyses that he
in uented agaynst me, but god for giue him hom I dout not but will still
bringe the truth to light and defend the in o sent. my worthey friend
Mr Right wth hom I had good corespondance & for house death I did much
greue in respecte of the losse of that I find of him. he mad a god ley & a
Christyan lyke eand wch god of his mercy grand we may all doe the lyke.
wee haue yet worthey honest religious minesters: namely Mr Barnard.
Mr Stapulles & Mr Sterke whom god of his mersie bles unto us. & send us
mor when it shall please him for heare is greate want of them in this
pore rud cuntrye Our worth Gouerner Captayn Barnud is ded, but I
hope wee haue mad choyse of a honest godley and religious man hom god
blesse unto us.

Worthy Sr I cannot but aquaynt you wth the strandge accident that be
fell about 18th of March. The Seflower that came safe in to our harbour
though by the p̳uidense of god sum [of] her men & boyes war ded, yet the
shippe wth the Semen & the remayner of the passengers all resonabull well
re couered and the Mr makynge what speade possebull might be for his
expected hauene. sum off ther frindℯ the daye aboue mentyoned be inge
abourd mery Sum̃ in * * * Greate cabin and sum̃ in the Gunroume a
drinckeinge Tobaco by neclygense of ther fyer Blue vppe the Shyppe to the
death §of§ about 14 preasantley be sydes as maney spyled wch sethens sum of
them are deade: of Semen these: Mr Dallby mr mate the mr Elldest sunn
the Guñer: and ou9 mr Ship[nan] but not of that Shypes coumpaney a
John Dauis Captt Dauisses Sũ, & for Land men ther was slayne Christofer
Carter his wife & one §to§ of his seruantes, Captt: Leyton Captt of the
Kynges Castell ffather Tomsun Henry Rober[dℯ] Passengers for Virginie
Mr Burd & his man & one Tressell: wee haue sought all the meanes that
Possebull may be for the prforminge of what possebull may be but as yet
ther is littell recouered onley sum mealle vineger anow and then a Chest
wth sum apparell wee haue lost auery honest man by Diueinge one morgan
Gynn, they diue in greate danger & dare [are] aloud by the Gouerner for
ther labor for what goodℯ they take of the passengers the one hallfe & for
the companeyes companey a therd. they haue sought meanes to blowe her
up but as yet it will take no effecte I did yeuse my best in deuor to in
quier what letters ware sent ether by you to the Gouerner or by mr ffarer
to the Gouerner or what ye haue sent to mr Gorge Sandes and I have seene
maney dyrected to them, but they war all spyled that wee could make
nothinge of them in so much that the Gouerner helde it not fit they should
be opyned. maney writinges are found wch are preserued wth as much
care as possebull may be.

[2a] And for what goodℯ are taken vpp the Sherif takes notyse of them
whose they eare and what they are, & for my parte I will do my indeuor
wth my selfe & my Boatt & Seruantes what I may: they should have ben
furnyshed wth what potatos Oranges Pidgones masty dodge and plantes
& frutes of all sourtes what this pore Island could haue afourded for wee
desyer to haue corespondanse wth the9: I pray god Blese and prosper them
and us her: for lyttell doe you knowe ther, the misery & hassardℯ wee pore
men in duer both heare and theare wee haue had greate want of bread &

are lyke to in duer wãt the next crope for our courne & potatose fayle we
haue onley the See to releue us & fish is hard to recouer wthout greate
danger: I pry god our frindℯ in virginie are not in mor want then we: Now
conserninge your busynesses here first my care shall be holley for your
profut, though my selfe as I yet haue not neuer gayne peney but still spend
my on and wast my yonge yeares my care shall be that your peopull make
good Tobac9. & for your land at Sumerset is fulley peopulld for your land
in Smithes Trybe those V Share that Middleten9 and Humferyes are on9
are sufficyentley supplyed if ye send them 4 Boyes apese they haue had
ill sucses wth those they brought & for the other 5 Shares I pray send 4
Boyes they shall pay the on halfe for ther Transe port the land is bad
but I hope ye shall find by this yer what it will doe for Tobaco. I am much
pusseled about mr farers busynes I could wish as I haue oughten dun by
letters that they war all in virginie they eare in his deate but heare are
neuer lykley to recouer out of it for ther land is fit for nothinge but p̳uisyon
& not to suppley the third part of them he hath ben at greate chardge but
it hath ben imbasseled away and they neuer had the p̳fit: they prefered
a pitcen to the Gouerner & counsell that in respect they ware not abull to
liue on his land they might make the best of ther laboures & that they
might liue ellse wher wch was granted they paying one moyety of ther labor
tell ther Just det was payed or ellse to be transe ported a cordinge to ther
condytyones the wch I wish they ware.

[2b] It much greues me to see the * * of the poure men and to see that my
worthy frynd should be so daimified & I heare not knowinge how to right
him, his goodℯ be inge imbaseled away by my predysessors in so much
that ther is nothinge left & he restinge no sattysfactyon nor his peopull
no benyfit.

I am hartyley sorye to heare of the sicknes of that kynd Religeous and
vertyous lady for hose health and hapynes I pray dayley wth all her swett
Chilldren. I hope are this ye haue reseued sum Seders wch god willinge
I will haue a care to see repayd agayne and the remaynor to be sent the
next shippinge though wth much dificulltye I was not [unm̃full] to haue a
care of your land for the true layinge of it out & for the performans of it
wee adminerstred to him an oth the wch I hope he did per forme. but your
land proues very bad & a gradeall worse then I did suppose, for it takes in
Gorgis pynt wch is nothing but amer rocke. ther shall not want for in

deuor to rturne you profit: I did your Conmendatyones to Captt:
Tucker: I hould him not my frynd though I neuer gaue him cause to the
contrarye: for he was on of my hea[uie] fryndℯ about my negros, the wch
for the redeninge of I solley relye upon god, and your selfe: & for the
candulles I hope I haue by the cuntry sufficyent ley cleared, unles Butlers
sickauantes doe ther falsley sware agaynest me as formarley they haue
duñ I dout not but ye remẽber werupon I speake, thus being obuld to
trubell you wth these my rud and tedyous discourse I betake you wth
youers to the p̳tectyon of the allmighty