ey found them single, so
our men durst not go abroad single, for fear of being surrounded with
their numbers. The best was they had no weapons; for though they had
bows, they had no arrows left, nor any materials to make any; nor had
they any edge-tool among them. The extremity and distress they were
reduced to was great, and indeed deplorable; but, at the same time, our
men were also brought to very bad circumstances by them, for though their
retreats were preserved, yet their provision was destroyed, and their
harvest spoiled, and what to do, or which way to turn themselves, they
knew not. The only refuge they had now was the stock of cattle they had
in the valley by the cave, and some little corn which grew there, and the
plantation of the three Englishmen. Will Atkins and his comrades were
now reduced to two; one of them being killed by an arrow, which struck
him on the side of his head, just under the temple, so that he never
spoke more; and it was very remarkable that this was the same barbarous
fellow that cut the poor savage slave with his hatchet, and who
afterwards intended to have murdered the Spaniards.

I looked upon their case to have been worse at this time than mine was at
any time, after I first discovered the grains of barley and rice, and got
into the manner of planting and raising my corn, and my tame cattle; for
now they had, as I may say, a hundred wolves upon the island, which would
devour everything they could come at, yet could be hardly come at
themselves.

When they saw what their circumstances were, the first thing they
concluded was, that they would, if possible, drive the savages up to the
farther part of the island, south-west, that if any more came on shore
they might not find one another; then, that they would daily hunt and
harass them, and kill as many of them as they could come at, till they
had reduced their number; and if they could at last tame them, and bring
them to anything, they would give them corn, and teach them how to plant,
and live upon their daily labour. In order to do this, they so followed
them, and so terrified them with their guns, that in a few days, if any
of them fired a gun at an Indian, if he did not hit him, yet he would
fall down for fear. So dreadfully frightened were they that they kept
out of sight farther and farther; till at last our men followed them, and
almost every day killing or wounding some of them, they kept up in the
woods or hollow place