THE SAVAGES COME TO TOWN
FROM the day I recovered from the sickness of the
sea, I looked forward to seeing a live savage, of which
[31] I had been told there were many in America, and
when we sighted land for the first time I remained on
deck waiting for the first glimpse of an Indian.
When at last, the John and Sarah came to anchor
off the bank in which we were to make our home, and
where I fully expected to see the shore lined with
savages, never one met my eager gaze for several days,
and great was my disappointment.
I would have gone in search of some, regarding not
the danger of being lost, or of coming upon evil-minded
Indians who would do me harm; but, as I have
already set down, I was in duty bound to do whatsoever
of work I might, in order
to aid my parents, therefore did it seem to me as
if I would never be able
to satisfy my curiosity.
We had scarce been
in our cave home a
week, however, when I,
who was helping mother
hang some quilts to
keep out the dampness,
which seemed really, to
soak through the earth,
heard a great cry above us, and, running into the
open air to learn the cause, I saw a company of
[32] eight savages, who stood not many yards away from
William Markham's hut, staring about them curiously.
Verily I was disappointed in them. It had been in
my mind that I should see a wonderful race of people,
when I stood face to face with the savages, and yet they
were not unlike our own people, save as to the color
of their skin, and the fanciful dress they wore.
One could see at a single glance that they were not
Negroes, and yet they were very dark; much the
color of a penny that has been passed from hand to
hand until it has lost its brightness.
Some of our company, eager to show a friendly
front to these odd-looking visitors, went forth to greet
the savages; but there was little chance of their
making themselves understood, since neither party could
speak the other's language, and after a deal of jabbering
and much making of gestures, the Indians went
away, leaving us none the wiser for their having
come.
It was understood by us who had voyaged in the
John and Sarah, that when William Penn came over
to take charge of this city, we were to build, it would
be his right to make friends with these savages in
behalf of us all; but until he could attend to it, no one,
except William Markham, whom we called the deputy
governor, had any reason for doing other than as we
had done during this first visit.
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