he trap
which had been set for them. She told them that the crew of an English
shallop, which not long before had come to visit the place, probably
from a ship afraid to venture higher up the river, had all been
slaughtered, and that it was the jackets of these men that some of her
countrymen were wearing.

Like a sensible man, De Vries paid attention to this story, and did not
venture into Timber Creek. Whether or not he rewarded the good woman who
came to warn him of his danger, is not known; but his account of the
affair places her in the position of one worthy of a monument by the
women of the State.

When the Indians came again to De Vries, he declared to them that his
Great Spirit, or "Maneto," had revealed their wicked purposes, and that
he would not sail up the Timber Creek, nor would he allow one of them
upon his vessel; and, having ordered them all on shore, he dropped some
distance down the river.

This conduct doubtless inspired the Indians with great respect for the
brave Dutchmen, and shortly afterwards the chiefs from nine different
tribes came on board the "Squirrel" for the purpose of making a treaty
of peace and commerce with the Dutch. All of these were now dressed in
furs, which were their ordinary garments; but some of them were
recognized as the same men who had formerly worn the jackets of the
murdered English sailors. These, however, were just as cordial and
friendly as any of the others, and there is no reason to suppose that
they now intended treachery. The visitors sat down on the deck of the
yacht, and held a regular council, and, with appropriate ceremonies,
made presents of beaver skins to the whites, and solemnly concluded a
treaty of friendship.

THE WINNING OF THE PRIZE.

After the importance of the discovery of North America came to be
properly appreciated by the nations of Europe, the ownership was looked
upon as a great national prize, and there were several nations who were
anxious to play for it. This country, so readily approached by the
Delaware, became attractive not only to kings and sovereigns, but to
settlers and immigrants. Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden granted a charter
to a company called the West India Company, which was formed for the
purpose of making settlements on the shores of the Delaware Bay and
River, and commissioned them to take possession of this country, without
the slightest regard to what the English sovereign and the Dutch
sovereign had granted