The Native Americans And Merchants - 1305 Words

From Trading to Disaster Through reading this book I have discovered how well the Native Americans and merchants actually got along, early on. The Natives in the coastal villages had started trading with merchants early on in primitive, yet intelligent ways. Giovanni da Verrazzano reported, â€Å"They sent us what they wanted to give us on a rope continually shouting to us not to approach the land.† (Cronon 83) He also reported how the Native Americans would only meet them on very rocky tracts of coast where they could not land. Was this lack of trust warranted, or just foolish woe? According to Verrazzano, â€Å"No greater good could come to them than to have our friendship.† (Cronon 83) This suggest that the merchants, and colonists, want to†¦show more content†¦The early relations with the natives were a mix of cooperation and conflict. This goes back to Verrazzano reporting that the natives were willing to trade with them, but were not willing to put their trust in the Europeans. Then on the other end of the spectrum, we have Powhatan. He wanted to absorb the Europeans into their own ways through hospitality and gifts. â€Å"By 1609, [he] realized that the English intended to stay. Moreover, he was disappointed that the English did not return his hospitality nor would they marry Indian women (an affront from the Native perspective).† (Colonial Settlement) After this realization, the natives began attacking European settlements in an attempt to drive them out. Powhatan knew that the Europeans were there to stay and was sure that they were going to be pushed out of their land, so he arranged for his daughter, Pocahontas, to marry John Rolfe. This marriage helped the relations between the two groups for the time being. This false sense of security let the Europeans expand their settlements farther up the James River. This also made the settlers more vulnerable to attacks from the natives. A truce seemed like a great idea, but all it did was force the conflict to build up. As time went on many of the settlers avoided the Indians all together. This forced the natives to start trade with the French