The Story of Pocohantas | Page 6

hath been more industrious, or who hath had (Capt. Geo. Percie
excepted) greater experience amongst them, however misconstruction
may traduce here at home, where is not easily seen the mixed
sufferances, both of body and mynd, which is there daylie, and with no

few hazards and hearty griefes undergon."
There are two copies of the Strachey manuscript. The one used by the
Hakluyt Society is dedicated to Sir Francis Bacon, with the title of
"Lord High Chancellor," and Bacon had not that title conferred on him
till after 1618. But the copy among the Ashmolean manuscripts at
Oxford is dedicated to Sir Allen Apsley, with the title of "Purveyor to
His Majestie's Navie Royall"; and as Sir Allen was made "Lieutenant of
the Tower" in 1616, it is believed that the manuscript must have been
written before that date, since the author would not have omitted the
more important of the two titles in his dedication.
Strachey's prefatory letter to the Council, prefixed to his "Laws" (1612),
is dated "From my lodging in the Black Friars. At your best pleasures,
either to return unto the colony, or pray for the success of it heere." In
his letter he speaks of his experience in the Bermudas and Virginia:
"The full storie of both in due time [I] shall consecrate unto your
view.... Howbit since many impediments, as yet must detaine such my
observations in the shadow of darknesse, untill I shall be able to deliver
them perfect unto your judgments," etc.
This is not, as has been assumed, a statement that the observations were
not written then, only that they were not "perfect"; in fact, they were
detained in the "shadow of darknesse" till the year 1849. Our own
inference is, from all the circumstances, that Strachey began his
manuscript in Virginia or shortly after his return, and added to it and
corrected it from time to time up to 1616.
We are now in a position to consider Strachey's allusions to Pocahontas.
The first occurs in his description of the apparel of Indian women:
"The better sort of women cover themselves (for the most part) all over
with skin mantells, finely drest, shagged and fringed at the skyrt,
carved and coloured with some pretty work, or the proportion of beasts,
fowle, tortayses, or other such like imagry, as shall best please or
expresse the fancy of the wearer; their younger women goe not
shadowed amongst their owne companie, until they be nigh eleaven or
twelve returnes of the leafe old (for soe they accompt and bring about

the yeare, calling the fall of the leaf tagnitock); nor are thev much
ashamed thereof, and therefore would the before remembered
Pocahontas, a well featured, but wanton yong girle, Powhatan's
daughter, sometymes resorting to our fort, of the age then of eleven or
twelve yeares, get the boyes forth with her into the markett place, and
make them wheele, falling on their hands, turning up their heeles
upwards, whome she would followe and wheele so herself, naked as
she was, all the fort over; but being once twelve yeares, they put on a
kind of semecinctum lethern apron (as do our artificers or handycrafts
men) before their bellies, and are very shamefac't to be seene bare. We
have seene some use mantells made both of Turkey feathers, and other
fowle, so prettily wrought and woven with threeds, that nothing could
be discerned but the feathers, which were exceedingly warme and very
handsome."
Strachey did not see Pocahontas. She did not resort to the camp after
the departure of Smith in September, 1609, until she was kidnapped by
Governor Dale in April, 1613. He repeats what he heard of her. The
time mentioned by him of her resorting to the fort, "of the age then of
eleven or twelve yeares," must have been the time referred to by Smith
when he might have married her, namely, in 1608-9, when he calls her
"not past 13 or 14 years of age." The description of her as a "yong
girle" tumbling about the fort, "naked as she was," would seem to
preclude the idea that she was married at that time.
The use of the word "wanton" is not necessarily disparaging, for
"wanton" in that age was frequently synonymous with "playful" and
"sportive"; but it is singular that she should be spoken of as "well
featured, but wanton." Strachey, however, gives in another place what
is no doubt the real significance of the Indian name "Pocahontas." He
says:
"Both men, women, and children have their severall names; at first
according to the severall humor of their parents; and for the men
children, at first, when they are young, their mothers give them a name,
calling them by some affectionate title, or perhaps observing their
promising inclination give it