by Effie Moore Salem

Created on: November 02, 2009

The first winter at Plymouth was bleak indeed. Over half of the one hundred and one saints - the name they called themselves - who came over on the Mayflower died. Hunger and disease took its toll. The scarce leftovers of their food brought with them and the occasional wild animal in hunting were what they ate. William Bradford gives a detailed picture of the enormity of the problem of survival during this fateful time in his book Of Plymouth Plantation.

The journey was rough and tempest tossed and when they finally touched ground they were thankful indeed, Being thus arrived in a good harbor, and brought safe to land, they fell upon their knees and blessed the God of Heaven. In the next paragraph he explains that their troubles were not over. This was December and in the next three months, until the spring thaw, they would know nothing but heartache and misery. They had no friends to welcome them nor inns to entertain or refresh their weatherbeaten bodies; no houses or town to repair to seek for succor.

Further on in the book Bradford tells of one lucky find of corn the Indians had stashed away in an Indian graveyard. They had intended it for the edification of the departed souls, but hungry and in need of food they stole it and carried it back to the ship with them. Most of them still lived on board. Of course, on good weather days, those well enough to work, worked in building shelters and in hunting for food.

This certainly was no time for idleness. At first, there were one or two Indian shacks also discovered empty where some Probably camped. In these abandoned houses where once Indians had lived, corn and beans were found. These they later shared with their Indian friends and were also used for planting.

There were a few skirmishes with the Indians in these first months and the goodwill and cooperation did not actually begin until that fateful day, March 16th 1721 when Samoset, a nearby Indian welcome them to their neighborhood. Until then they were fearful and suspicious day and night. To relieve that they relied on their God. Their muskets protected them too. There were a few skirmishes, one in particular noteworthy. About a dozen Indians were spotted about their business now and then, but mainly, each group kept out of the way of the other.

One evening, while scouting for land before the actual settlement of Plymouth was discovered, some of the men ran in into their makeshift camp yelling that Indians were about. Arrows were flying amongst them. They

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