Little Folks of North America Part 9

The colony settled on an island near the sh.o.r.e, and here was born the first English white child of the United States. The new baby, whose grandfather was Governor Dare, was called Virginia like her home, but sad to say, no one knows how long she lived nor what befell her, for Governor Dare went back to England for a time, and when he returned little Virginia and her people had disappeared and there was no one to tell where they had gone. Perhaps the Indians had killed them, or had made slaves of them and taken them far inland. At any rate, none of the neighboring red men would tell what had happened to the white strangers who had come to live among them.

Other English settlers followed soon afterwards, however, and built villages among the Indians; and among the oak forests of Virginia little white children were born in rough log houses and played on the beaches along the sh.o.r.e. Their fathers planted fields of corn, and tobacco which they had learned to smoke. They hunted deer, hares, and wild turkeys in the forests.

These early English settlers built walls around their villages in case of sudden attack, for they could not trust their red neighbors, who were not pleased to have the white strangers settling in the country around them.

The little English children were generally happy. The country around them was beautiful, the birds sang sweet songs in the trees near by, and there were flowers and fruits in plenty. When Christmas came they watched the Yule log burn in the big fireplace, and gathered around tables loaded with roasted turkeys, venison and other good things to eat.

Years pa.s.sed by, and other settlers came to America. Most of them were from England, but there were some from Holland and Sweden and other countries of Europe.

Among the newcomers were the Quakers under William Penn, who called their new home in America Pennsylvania, meaning, Penn's woods. They were gentle and peaceful and had little trouble with their Indian neighbors.

Then there were the Pilgrims who landed at Plymouth in New England one bleak November day. They were quiet and sober-faced. They left their old home to seek one in which they would be free to worship G.o.d in the way they thought best. As it happened, they chose for themselves the coldest corner of the United States in which to settle and they had before them years of struggle and hard work.

They found the winters in New England colder than those they had known in England and the sharp winds crept in between the cracks in the walls of their rough log houses, chilling their backs even when they were gathered around the blazing logs in the big fireplaces. The crops of corn and beans were often scanty, because the soil was poor, and around them not far away were the Indians, some of whom scowled and muttered ugly words when they spoke of the white settlers who were hunting the game in the forests, and planting gardens on the land to which they thought they alone had the right.

The children of the Pilgrims were taught to be very quiet and sober in their ways. They loved to listen to the squirrels chattering in the trees, and to watch the rabbits scamper across the paths. They gathered blueberries and blackberries in summer and chestnuts and hickory nuts in the autumn. The boys dragged their sisters on rough sleds over the snow in winter and waded with them in the brooks as the days grew warmer, and at such times they laughed and chattered like all happy children. But when they reached home their faces became sober and their voices low, for they were taught that among older folks children should be seen and not heard.

When evening came they sat in straight chairs in the big kitchen which was the "living room" as well, while the men talked over the day's work, and the women knit socks for the family.

Sometimes as the little Pilgrims settled themselves for the night's sleep they were roused by the howling of wolves outside. They shuddered as they thought, "Suppose that had been the war whoop of the Indians coming to attack our village."

On Sunday when the Pilgrims went to church the men led the way armed with muskets which might be needed at any moment in defending their families.

After the Pilgrims, the Puritans came to New England. They were even more sober and strict in their ways than the Pilgrims, and they, too, had trouble with their Indian neighbors.

Perhaps the jolliest people who came from Europe were the Dutch, who settled on the Hudson River in New York. You remember poor Henry Hudson who was left to his sad fate in Hudson Bay. Before he went there he discovered the beautiful river of that name, and when he went back to Europe he told the king of Holland about the Indians he had met, and of the loads of rich furs which they brought home from their hunting trips.

His words were not forgotten, and so it came to pa.s.s that the thrifty Dutchman made settlements in that part of the New World which they claimed through the discovery of Henry Hudson. They were not poor, like the Pilgrims east of them. They brought chests of linen and silver from Holland, and they built comfortable homes for themselves on the banks of the Hudson River, with porches where they sat with their children on summer evenings, telling fairy stories and laughing together in their own jolly way. The children's eyes grew bright as they listened to the stories, and as they looked out on the woods and fields in the silvery moonlight, they fancied they could see fairies in gauzy green robes dancing on the gra.s.s and little brown gnomes stepping out from under the rocks.

The Dutch children had the grandest time at Christmas. They hung up their stockings by the fireplace the night before and then, as they lay in their beds, too much excited to sleep, they fancied they heard the reindeer of the good Santa Claus pawing away the snow on the roof overhead. Of course there were presents the next morning and a lovely Christmas tree, followed by a feast of all good things that grew about the new home. Yes, Christmas was the best day in all the year to the rosy-cheeked roly-poly Dutch children with blue eyes and flaxen hair.

While they were having such good times, their fathers were trading with the Indians with whom they had less trouble than the Pilgrims and Puritans. They sold the red men beads and blankets, guns and trinkets, and in exchange took furs of the marten and mink, the beaver and otter, which the Indians shot or trapped in the country around. Once in a while a big ship from Holland sailed into New York Harbor, bringing tea and sugar, blankets and dress-goods for the Dutchmen and their families, and were then reloaded with the furs obtained from the Indians.

As time pa.s.sed by the settlements along the sh.o.r.es of the United States grew larger and more numerous. The Indians scowled more and more deeply and there were dreadful wars between them and the white men. In their spare time the settlers made roads through the country and cleared away some of the forests. In the north they traded with the Indians for furs and planted fields of corn and other grains and vegetables. Farther south tobacco and cotton were raised on the plantations. Sheep were tended on the hillsides and the wives of the settlers carded and spun the wool and wove it in hand-looms into clothing for their families.

Cargoes of Negro slaves were brought from Africa to work on the plantations. The cotton that was raised there was sent across the Atlantic to be made into cloth in the factories of Europe.

During all these years the white men did not move far inland because of the Indians, and of mountains which must be crossed. At last, however, some brave men ventured out alone into the wilderness beyond. They found there were valleys between the mountains, and through these they pa.s.sed to the other side. They often had to hide from the watchful Indians, not daring even to make camp-fires lest they should be discovered.

These explorers found that on the other side of the Appalachian Mountains, for that was the name given to them, was a beautiful country, richer by far than that on the eastern side where they had been living.

There were also many rivers flowing westward, making the soil rich and fertile. Forests of maple and elm trees, as well as pines, spruces, and oaks which were abundant along the coast, were to be seen there.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Picking Cotton on a Georgia Plantation.]

When the explorers returned home they told such bright stories of the country to the west that the families of some of them agreed to go there and live. In those days there were no trains to carry them and not a single road through the mountain pa.s.ses. The journey had to be made on foot or on horseback, and few household goods could be carried. At any moment the travelers might be surprised by Indians, so the men were obliged to keep their muskets loaded and ready to shoot every moment of the way.

When the place for the new home was reached the men and boys set to work to cut down the trees and make a clearing, while the women prepared the meals. Everyone must eat and sleep outdoors while a rough log house was being built. All through the night a big fire was kept blazing to keep the wolves and other wild animals at a distance.

The new house was easily furnished. A few chairs, a rough table, and some bedsteads were made from the trees that had been cut down. The feather beds brought from the old home were spread on the slats of the bedsteads; the family Bible was laid on the table; the kettles, also brought from home, were hung on cranes over the fireplace, and housekeeping in the wilderness began.

Notwithstanding the hard life, the girls and their brothers grew up brave and strong and ready to push still farther into the wilderness than their fathers had done. West of them,-far west as it seemed then-was a mighty river flowing from north to south through the country.

It was the Mississippi, or Father of Waters, as the Indians well called it, because so many large streams flowed into it on either side. The Frenchmen from Canada had long since sailed along the Great Lakes and down the whole length of the Mississippi, and for this reason had claimed the land on both sides and made settlements at different places.

Now, as the English settlers moved westward, they did not wish the French to own any part of the country. By and by there was a great war between the two peoples-the French who held Canada and the Mississippi, and the English colonies who were living in the eastern part of the United States. Then came the battle of Quebec and the French gave up their rights in North America.

But there were other troubles still, for wars took place with the Indians who had become bitter enemies, but they were beaten again and again, and driven still farther west till few tribes were left east of the Mississippi.

Then there was another war-a very great one this time-and with England herself. The Revolution was fought through seven long years. With General Washington as their leader, the people fought on to victory, when they in truth made their country the free and independent United States of America.

After this more and more men took their wives and children and traveled west in search of new homes. They had found by this time that in many places there were great plains where they did not need to make a clearing, for the ground was covered with gra.s.s for miles in every direction. Some of these gra.s.sy plains, or prairies, were quite level.

Others stretched in long, low waves of earth. The soil was rich and the gra.s.s grew long and thick. There could be no better place in the world for raising corn, wheat and hay, or feeding cattle.

Rough roads had been built through the wilderness by this time, so the women and children, together with the bedding and dishes, were bundled into big clumsy wagons with rounded, canvas tops called prairie-schooners. Horses or oxen were harnessed to the wagons and cows were hitched behind. Then away started the family for the distant prairies.

All day long the people traveled, but when evening came the animals were unhitched from the "schooner" and allowed to feed on the gra.s.s; supper was cooked over the camp-fire, and beds were made upon the bottom of the wagon, where the family would sleep during the night.

Many days were often spent on the journey, but like everything else, it came to an end at last. Think if you can, of a sea of gra.s.s stretching around you as far as the eyes can see; not a building of any kind in sight; not even the smoke of a pa.s.sing train to remind you that there are other people in the world; no sound in the air except the chirping of the crickets or the howling of the wolves; in summer, the blinding sun dazzling your eyes and turning the gra.s.s a withered brown; in winter, a carpet of snow stretching around you over the earth in every direction. This was the life in store for the boys and girls who went out on the prairies to seek a home in the early days of this country.

To be sure a herd of bison sometimes appeared near the children's home, and then the men hurried out with their guns to kill as many as possible before the animals were put to flight. Before the coming of the white men these bison roamed together in thousands and the Indians of the plains made their tents and clothing from their skins and feasted on the flesh of the bison. Every year since that time they have grown scarcer till only a few are left in the country, and these are on exhibition in the parks of the west.

After the sun set in the evening sky the children of the prairie did not venture far from home, both on account of prowling wolves, and for fear of the Indians who might be skulking near by.

Lewis and Clark, and What They Saw.

Not many years after the Revolution Thomas Jefferson, the third president, did many things for the good of the United States. Through his advice the people purchased a great deal of land in the southern part of the country from France, to whom it had been given by Spain. It was called the Louisiana Purchase.

Jefferson was not satisfied yet. He thought, "There is a vast country beyond us of which we know nothing. No one of our people has yet crossed it and reached the Pacific. This should certainly be done."

He knew it would be a dangerous journey, for it was a wild country, roamed over by tribes of fierce Indians. Two men, however, offered to lead the expedition. Their names were Meriwether Lewis and William Clarke.

In the summer of 1803 they started out at the head of a party of men, carrying with them presents for the Indians they might meet, three canoes, two horses which should help them in hunting game, and a few blankets and cooking utensils.

During the winter they camped on the banks of the Mississippi, and with the coming of spring they began their journey up a broad river which emptied into it and which we know now as the Missouri. As the men followed the course of the river they moved farther and farther into the west. All summer long they slept under the stars, but as the cold winter set in and deep snows fell, they made rough cabins in which to live, and went no farther on their journey for several months. They killed bison and other game which furnished them with food, but they could not keep the biting cold out of their huts, and they suffered with the cold.

Fierce Indian tribes were around them on all sides, friends were far away, but they had no thought of turning back. So, with the second spring, they pushed on.

When they reached the source of the Missouri there were high mountains before them, much higher than the Appalachian, and with their summits crowned with snow. After a long, hard journey they reached the other side, and launched their canoes on a small stream which grew ever broader till it entered a large river. This was the Columbia, along which they traveled till the Pacific Ocean lay spread before their eyes.

They had journeyed more than four thousands miles since they left the banks of the Mississippi and were the first white men to cross the United States. They had visited the homes of Indians who had never seen a white person before or even known there were such beings. They had crossed broad plains where thousands of bison fed on the rich gra.s.s.

They had discovered broad rivers shaded by lofty forests and crossed mountains containing mines of gold and silver, which before long would be opened up to give their rich stores to the people of the United States. They still had before them the long and dangerous journey home, which they reached two years and four months after they had left it.

There was great rejoicing among the people when the news spread of the safe return of the travelers and of the wonders they had to tell. From that time many boys and girls looked forward to moving into the great, far-western country with their parents.

On a Wheat Farm.

Many of the children of the prairies live on farms where wheat is raised. As the sun shines down on the broad fields, the tiny grains sprout and grow with astonishing quickness. Then, when the heavy dews fall at night and the earth cools, they get new strength for the next day, so that the farmers gather abundant crops.

As the summer days pa.s.s by and the wheat ripens, the children in the big farm house get ready for an exciting time. Their mother makes dozens of pies and loaves of bread and cake. A cow and perhaps a hog or two, are killed and cut up, for an extra number of "hired hands" begin to arrive.

The farmer himself is unusually busy. Big machines and engines are brought out from the barns to be cleaned and oiled, for the wheat is about to be harvested.