Thanksgiving: Thanksgiving in Plymouth (Day 4 of 5)

Narrator: Hope began to grow again as temperatures rose slightly in early March. A few families began preparations for planting their crops, but the most memorable event in March, perhaps of the whole winter, was the arrival, on March the 16th, of a single, nearly naked Indian brave. Unlike other Indians who ran away when confronted, this man strode boldly to the door of the meeting house and, to the surprise of all, cried out, "Welcome," in English.

Stunned by his boldness and use of English, yet still wary of his intentions, the pilgrims hesitantly invited him in and offered him a plate of food and some brandy. The Indian ate and drank enthusiastically. After his meal, the Indian informed his hosts that he knew English food and customs through contacts with English fishermen. The settlers learned that his name was Samoset.

He was a chief the Algonquins, and his home tribe was further up the coast to the north in what is now Maine. He said that the Indians who had inhabited this area were called the Pawtuxets. They were a large Indian tribe who had murdered every white man who had ever landed in their territory. But four years before the pilgrims arrived, the tribe suffered a mysterious plague, and everyone had died.

Neighboring tribes were so surprised by the tribe's misfortune and total demise that they avoided the area, fearing they, too, would be killed by the plague. As a result, no one lived on the land, and no one owned it. It was another example of God's remarkable provision for the pilgrims. Samoset went on to explain about the other Indian tribes in the surrounding area.

The nearest Indians lived about 50 miles south of Plymouth. They were the Wampanoags, which means "people of the dawn." They were a friendly tribe headed by their chief, Ousamequin Massasoit. With Samoset's help, the pilgrims planned to make contact with braves from the Wampanoags to trade for animal skins. Near the end of March, with the weather improving and the worst of the influenza outbreak over, the surviving pilgrims assessed their winter losses.

Several entire families had perished in the epidemic, 15 of 19 women were dead, and only four couples had both spouses survived. The children had fared best. Of 10 girls, nine survived, and only eight of 23 boys died. Nearly half of those who had arrived on the Mayflower now lay in the shallow graves dug on a windswept hill beside the sea.

With the days lengthening and the temperatures warming, the pilgrims turned their attention to planting the crops desperately needed if they were to survive a second winter in America, but they were interrupted by the reappearance of their new friend, Samoset, who arrived at the settlement with five Indians.

Though the pilgrims didn't know it at the time, one of these Indians would play perhaps the largest role in the survival of New England. Bradford wrote of him that he was a special instrument sent of God for their good beyond their expectation. His name was Tesquantum, or "Squanto" for short. Squanto also spoke English because years earlier he had been captured by a treacherous sea captain and taken to Europe as a slave. Since Squanto had been away when the plague wiped out his tribe, he was the lone surviving Pawtuxet.

Because Squanto's English was quite good, he was asked to take the role of lead translator when the pilgrims met Massasoit. Within a week, a meeting was arranged where gifts were exchanged, a pipe smoked, and an agreement reached that guaranteed peace between the pilgrims and this Indian tribe. This peace pact would last for 50 years.

As the days passed, both Indians and pilgrims met frequently in the nearby woods without incident. The pilgrims rested more easily. Squanto stayed on in Plymouth and adopted these families as his own, "never leaving them until he died," Bradford wrote. It was clear they needed his help and his invaluable practical knowledge. He showed the pilgrims how to catch eels and fish at the river to use as fertilizer for their planting of corn. This crop would save their lives in the winter to come. He taught them how to plant pumpkins and tap the maple trees for syrup. And for their economic benefit, he introduced them to the trade of trapping beaver for their pelts. This skill, too, would be important for their future survival.

In early April, Captain Jones decided it was time to sail the Mayflower home to England. With the spring sunshine restoring the health of the colonists, he felt it was now safe to leave. Even after all the hardships and many deaths, every pilgrim in the colony elected to stay in Plymouth rather than return to the homeland.

With increasing hours of daylight and recovered strength, everyone in the colony soon enjoyed a pleasing weekly rhythm of work and worship. Six long days the pilgrims tilled, hunted, fished, mended, built, cooked, and washed. The only break in routine each week was on Sunday, when the group faithfully observed the Sabbath.

On this day ordinary work clothes were exchanged for more colorful attire. Unlike the somberly clothed Puritans who, in the years to come, would settle further to the north, the Plymouth colonists wore brightly colored dresses, suits, and hats and garments of blue, red, green, and violet and yellow. The congregation sang and prayed and listened to a rousing sermon by their elder, William Brewster.

Springtime turned the thoughts of some away from the grief of lost husbands and wives to new love. The first remarriage occurred in May between two of the widowed – Edward Winslow and Susannah White. The wedding reception gave everyone an opportunity to laugh, sing madrigals, and enjoy special food and drinks.

Another potential romance almost turned tragic. Two young men, both named Edward, fell in love with a beautiful 15-year-old girl named Constance. The rivalry became so intense that the two suitors decided a duel was the only way to decide who should win the girl. The two Edwards met on the beach and began to fight with daggers and swords. Both drew blood, but their shouts alerted other colonists. Several men came running and separated the two before either was killed. Apparently Constance was unimpressed. She chose not to marry either Ed.

In August, during some conflict among Indian tribes, the friend of the pilgrims, Squanto, was taken hostage and threatened with death. Under the leadership of Miles Standish, an armed detail left Plymouth to rescue him. In the middle of the night, the pilgrims burst into the village where Squanto was a hostage. After a brief fight in which several Indian braves suffered sword wounds, Squanto was rescued unharmed. This aggressive military action made such an impression on all of the area tribes that, within days, new peace treaties were agreed to by all parties.

By October 1621, the corn planted that spring was ready for harvest. The fields yielded a large crop that would keep the colony from starvation in the coming winter. Their hearts were full of gratitude for their renewed health, for the abundant harvest, and for the peace they enjoyed with the Indians.

William Bradford, who, at only 30 years of age, had been elected leader of the colony after the death of John Carver that summer, was thankful for the harvest. As the new governor, he declared that Plymouth should hold a Thanksgiving festival and invite the settlement's Indian friends as special guests. A date was set, and an invitation delivered to Chief Massasoit. To make sure there was adequate food, the pilgrim men went hunting and fishing. In just a day, enough wild turkeys, eels, geese, lobster, partridge, and shellfish were gathered to guarantee a great feast.

But when Massasoit arrived with 90 hungry braves all smeared with ceremonial bear grease, the pilgrims became worried. How could they feed that many people? And if they used too much of their previous stockpiled corn, would they have an adequate food supply to survive the winter? Fortunately, the Indians along the Atlantic coast also were accustomed to celebrating the harvest with what they called "the green corn dance." They thought the pilgrim festival must be the white man's version of this observance.

So when Massasoit and his men arrived at Plymouth, they, too, went to the woods and seashore to gather food. Soon five deer and more fish and seafood were presented for roasting. The pilgrims breathed a sigh of relief and began preparing the meal.

When it was time to eat, the menu was impressive – venison, goose, lobster, eel, oysters, clam chowder, parsnips, turnips, cucumbers, onions, carrots, cabbage, beets, radishes, and dried fruit that included gooseberries, strawberries, cherries, and plums. Some of the fruit was cooked inside dough to make a crude pie. The newly harvested corn was ground and served in the form of ash cakes, or hoecakes – a thin slice of bread baked in a fire on the plate of a hoe.

A special treat was supplied by the Indians. They placed corn on hot coals, and the kernels blew into white puffs – popcorn. The Indians dribbled maple syrup over the white snack and made popcorn balls. The beverage was a fresh wine made by the pilgrims from the summer's fruit crop. But before they began to eat, their spiritual leader offered a prayer to the God who had so clearly and miraculously led them to this place.

Though they had suffered much, their experience was remarkably better than others who had attempted to colonize on the American shores. Plymouth had lost 50 percent of its numbers, but Jamestown and Virginia had lost 90 percent. The Plymouth settlers had successfully built a little community and grown crops to provide for themselves while other colonies were totally dependent for supplies of the arrival of ships from England.

Yes, God had blessed them abundantly, and they sincerely offered Him their thanks and praise.

William Brewster: May we live by thee, live for thee, never be satisfied with Christian progress but only insomuch as we resemble Christ, and may conformity to His principles temper and conduct grow hourly in our lives. Amen.

Narrator: The feasting continued over a three-day period during which both Indians and pilgrims participated in games and exhibitions of shooting skill with bows and arrows and guns. The pilgrim boys joined the races and wrestling matches of the Indians and, in turn, the Indians learned how to play stool ball, a game resembling croquet played with a ball and wickets.

At night the Indians slept in nearby fields. The relationship between the settlers and Indians was now so solid and peaceful that the pilgrims no longer posted guards. When the fun and feasting ended, both Indians and colonists agreed they wanted to have a similar feast the following year.