Free The Landing of the Pilgrims by James Daugherty Page B

hunt in the forest. Flocks of fat wild turkeys trooped in the underbrush, andalong the streams and marshes huge flocks of geese and ducks prepared for their southward flight. The black bears ambled under the oak trees seeking acorns, and the deer browsed on the southern slopes among the birch and pine trees.
    In a single day the hunters killed enough turkeys to last for a week. Gratefully they gathered on Sabbath days and sang praise to God for his goodness and mercy to the children of men.
    Now the forests were turning to the autumn splendor of red and gold. It was a time for a celebration, for a feast of rejoicing, for a day of Thanksgiving.
    The twelve women of New Plymouth began great preparations. From the kitchens came the savory smell of roasting geese and turkey. An abundance of corn bread and hasty pudding was being prepared. Stewed eels, boiled lobsters, and juicy clam stews simmered over the fires.
    Before the feast, Squanto was sent with an invitation to Massasoit and his chiefs. On the appointed day, the Chief appeared with ninety tall warriors. For a moment there was consternation among the cooks. They were not prepared to feed ninety extra guests, but Massasoit took care of the difficulty by sending his hunters into the forest. They returned with five deer. The feast now became a barbecue with juicy cuts of roast venison for all.
    There were shooting contests with bows andguns. The Plymouth Musketeers under their Captain, Miles Standish, put on a drill with drums and trumpets. In return the Indians performed their tribal dances and chants for the amazed English. Everyone relaxed. There was laughter and clowning. The Indians were in no hurry to go home as long as the food held out, and the holiday-making carried on for three days. Squanto and Samoset translated long speeches of friendship and good will. White men and red would keep the peace as long as the sun shone and the grass grew.
    There would be lean times and hard work aplenty in the days ahead, but it was a goodly country. Though the English still were strangers in it, this was for them the Promised Land.
    After the Thanksgiving feast, Plymouth settled down to its second winter. Daily Governor Bradford parceled out to each one a ration of corn from the common store. Because there were thirty-five newcomers to feed, he had to cut the corn rations to half of what had been planned at harvest time. When snow came, the hunters found no game in the bare woods. Each day the Governor sent the axmen to the forest to cut wood for the fires that must be kept burning in Plymouth against the bitter cold.
    Christmas Day was no exception. That morning the newcomers came to the Governor and explained it was against their conscience to work onChristmas Day. “Very well, until you learn better,” said the Governor as he marched off with the workers to the woods.
    When the workers came home at noon, they found some of the newcomers playing games in the street, “some pitching ye bar and some at stoole-ball and suchlike sports.” The Governor gathered up the gaming implements and drily announced that it was against
his
conscience for some to play while others worked. Through the bleak winter months, the men soon learned that hard work was not a virtue in Plymouth. It was a necessity.
    In March a meeting was called to plan the second spring planting. The Governor divided up their common land and gave to each his lot, together with his share of the seed corn. This had been carefully saved from the common supply. It was now clear that they would not have enough food to last until the harvest. For weeks to come they would again have to fight off starvation as best they could while they waited for the crops to ripen.
    Although Bradford’s bold answer to Canonicus had discouraged the Narragansetts from making war, there was still danger. Standish pointed out that the little group of houses on the hill slope was unprotected. His plan was to build a log palisade to enclose the