w. Into this the boat was
turned and rowed briskly onward, under the direction of the leader of
the expedition. They were soon in the heart of the wildwood, whose dense
forest growth clustered thickly on either bank of the stream, which ran
in a narrow silver thread through the green wilderness. The stream they
pursued is that now known as the Chickahominy River, so called from an
Indian tribe of that name, the most daring and warlike of all the
savages of the region.

As they went on the stream grew narrower still, and in time became so
shallow that the boat could go no farther. As they sat there in doubt,
debating what had better be done, the bushes by the waterside were
thrust aside and dusky faces looked out upon them through the leaves.
The leader of the whites beckoned to them and two men stepped out of the
bushy thicket, making signs of great friendliness. They pointed to the
large boat, and indicated by gestures that they had smaller craft near
at hand and would lend one to the whites if they wished to go farther
up. They would go along with them and show them the way.

The leader of the party of whites was named John Smith. This is a very
common name, but he was the one John Smith who has made the name famous
in history. He had met many Indians before and found most of them
friendly, but he had never seen any of the Chickahominies and did not
know that they were enemies to the whites. So he accepted the offer of
the Indians. The boat was taken back down the stream to a sort of wide
bay where he thought it would be safe. Here the Indians brought him one
of their light but strong canoes. Smith wanted to explore the stream
higher up, and, thinking that he could trust these very friendly looking
red men, he got into the canoe, bidding two of his men to come with him.
To the others he said,--

"Do not leave your boat on any account. These fellows seem all right,
but they are never to be trusted too far. There may be more of them in
the woods, so be wide awake and keep your wits about you."

The two Indians now got into the canoe with Smith and his men and began
to paddle it up the stream, keeping on until they were miles from the
starting-point. Undergrowth rose thickly on the banks and vines hung
down in green masses from the trees, so that the boat they had left was
quickly lost to sight. Soon after that the men in the large boat did a
very foolish thing. Heedless of the orders of their leader, they left
the b