The Sailing Ship
May was a beautiful month in the land of the Algonquin Indians. There were tall trees and colorful flowers everywhere. The sky and the sea were deep blue.
Pocahontas was the favorite daughter of Chief Powhatan. She was an Indian princess. Chief Powhatan was a powerful chief of the Algonquin tribe.
Pocahontas was eleven years old. She was a lovely young girl with black hair and dark eyes. She wore a buckskin dress and moccasins. She had a feather in her hair.
Pocahontas was always happy. She ran in the forest and danced in the fields. She sat on the hill and looked at the blue sea.
On May 6, 1607, Pocahontas sat on the hill and she saw something strange in the bay. It was a big sailing ship! She was very surprised. The sailing ship was something new. It had big white sails and flags. She looked at it for a long time. Where did it come from? Why was it there? She was very excited.
Pocahontas ran to her village to tell her father and brother the news.
"Father, father!" she said. "There's a big sailing ship in the bay! It has white sails and colored flags!"
Her father, Chief Powhatan, was outside his longhouse. He was a tall man, with long black hair. He wore the feathers of an Indian chief on his head. He listened to the news, but he was not happy.
"The white men are here," Powhatan said sadly. "This is bad news for our people. There is no peace with the white men here."
Nantaquas was Pocahontas' brother. He was eighteen years old. He was a strong Indian warrior. He looked at his sister and said, "In the past the white people killed the Indians. They want to take our land."
"Oh, Nantaquas, let's go to see the white people. Let's go to see their big ship!" said Pocahontas.
"You can go to see them, but don't go near the ship. Stay far away! Be careful!" said Powhatan. "Remember, Pocahontas, white men are dangerous."
Nantaquas and Pocahontas went to the river. There were many canoes near the river. They got into a small canoe. Then Nantaquas paddled down the river to the bay. In the bay they saw the big sailing ship. There was a tall, white man on the ship. He smiled at them. There were other white men too. They all looked at the small canoe and at the two Indians.
Pocahontas smiled at the white man. "Let's go to the ship," she said.
"No," said Nantaquas. "It's dangerous. We don't know who these white men are. We can look and then go home. We must obey our father."
The white man on the ship smiled again. "Look, Nantaquas," said Pocahontas, "that man has red hair and white skin! He's smiling at us. Look at his clothes! They are strange."
Nantaquas turned the canoe and paddled up the river. When they arrived home, Nantaquas said, "I saw a big sailing ship. There were many white men on the ship." Powhatan talked to his medicine men and tribe advisers. They all sat inside the longhouse for a long time.
He said, "White men bring us problems. They have a strange magic. They carry thunder sticks to kill our people. They want to take our land, our lakes, our rivers and our forests. They can stay for a short time but they cannot stay here forever. Let's watch them and see what they do!"
By Kelly Reinhart