Anne:

The larger issue (diets aside) is whether English and Indian children 
(and others?) would've engaged in such friendly socializing in 1609, or 
any other time. 1609 is a bad year to select for your story: the English 
settlement was on the brink of dissolution and torn by internal power 
struggles; and the relations between the local Indians and the colonists 
were not good, to put it mildly. See chapter 6 of James Horn's new book, 
A Land As God Made It. He describes, among other things, an abortive 
attempt by the English in 1609 to purchase a small island from the 
Nansemond Indians' "king," who had no interest in selling it (it was one 
of their holy places with graves, etc.). The Nansemonds had "sacrifysed" 
the two English messengers who had visited the island to negotiate its 
transfer; their "Braynes [were] cut and scraped out of their heades with 
mussell shelles." The English, upon hearing this, ordered the island 
taken by force, and George Percy (one of the group's leaders) reported 
afterwards that they had "Beate the Salvages outt of the Island," 
burning their houses, ransacking their temples, pillaging the corpses of 
their dead kings in their tombs. They had also "caryed away their 
pearles, Copper and braceletts, wherewith they do decore their kings 
funeralles." (Horn, p.165)

Doug Deal

To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions
at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html