Of Plymouth Plantation

In an excerpt from William Bradford's Of Plymouth Plantation, Puritans experience hardships in their voyage to America, in their initial arrival and in their dealings with the Indians, they still maintain their reverence to God and to one another.

"I shall not take upon me exactly to describe their proceedings in these things, because I expect it will be fully done by themselves who best know the carriage and circumstances of things. I shall therefore but touch them in general. From Connecticut, who were most sensible of the hurt sustained and the present danger, they sent out a party of men, and another party met them from the Bay, at Narragansetts, who were to join with them. The Narragansetts were earnest to be gone before the English were well rested and refreshed, especially some of them which came last. It should seem their desire was to come upon the enemy suddenly and undiscovered. There was a bark of this place, newly put in there, which was come from Connecticut, who did encourage them to lay hold of the Indians’ forwardness, and to show as great forwardness as they, for it would encourage them, and expedition might prove to their great advantage. So they went on, and so ordered their march as the Indians brought them to a fort of the enemy’s (in which most of their chief men were) before day. They approached the same with great silence and surrounded it both with English and Indians, that they might not break out; and so assaulted them with great courage, shooting amongst them, and entered the fort with all speed. And those that first entered found sharp resistance from the enemy who both shot at and grappled with them; others ran into their houses and brought out fire and set them on fire, which soon took in their mat; and standing close together, with the wind all was quickly on a flame, and thereby more were burnt to death than was otherwise slain; it burnt their bowstrings and made them unserviceable; those that scraped the fire were slain with the sword, some hewed to pieces, others run through with their rapiers, so as they were quickly dispatched and very few escaped. It was conceived they thus destroyed about 400 at this time. It was a fearful sight to see them thus frying in the fire and the streams of blood quenching the same, and horrible was the stink and scent thereof; but the victory seemed a sweet sacrifice, and they gave the praise thereof to God, who had wrought so wonderfully for them, thus to enclose their enemies in their hands and give them so speedy a victory over so proud and insulting an enemy."

Of Plymouth Plantation. Georgetown University. August 24, 2009. <http://www.georgetowncollege.edu/Departments/English/coke/bradford.htm>.

This particular paragraph interests me most because the English obviously don't see anything wrong with pushing out the Indians, stealing their food, and not giving them any land. But especially because they have no remorse for taking over a fort and killing everyone in there. Including the women and children.

This paragraph also depicts how far the colonists have come. They first arrived here nearly helpless and only their strong belief in God kept them going. Then they progressed to seeing some Indians and stealing their corn and they began to grow and catch their own food. Then they had a Confrontation with the Indians, they won. Then they started building houses and forts. And eventually started successfully pushing back the Indians like this paragraph depicts.