The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-07-29
THE INDIAN MAIDEN.
pFpLy TO =. D. NFILLS ShhTCHhS
on P0CAHONTAS.
His Attacks on Her Character ana hep"-
tet,on shown to he Entirely without
Foundation Her Marriage to John
Yolfc "Reminiscences of Her Lie

To discover the truth and make II
known is always a good thing 10 do, ana
whatever may he the effect let II he tod.
Whenever il is found that some cherish
GA belief. some time honorcd tradition is
really without ground IN TACT, or 'he' !"
giving love and admiration to some i'in'
Gus name we have been woIshiD'"s
false god the truth which Is Ia"'l 'u'
tandidly made known to rs, shou'u W
received. and due praise gwen 10 'hoSo
who have disclosed II; but When men
snpear under the guise OF searchers a'ter
tbe truth OF history and tradition,
mo appear to be instigated rather by a
iovc of notorictv than by candor, ana
mo rejoice more in throwing stain on
a character that generations have taught
~ revere. than 20 bring stronger proofs
IN support Of bright pages OF past hlsio-
~ we should examine with great caution
,bc evidence they lay before Us, and the
aeducticns they draw from IT,
Tho preceding remarks are occasion
GA nv several works on Virginia history.
se NJ f. y Ncill Nj Ncill is an in
lns,riou- compiler from the stores OF
Virginia history which have long IAN
.nnoiic,d in manuscript especially IN
Frglish public record Offices, and in con
,eoucrcc his works have attracted alien
,ion from the number OF hitherto un'
oub.i,hed papers they contain. The doc.
sments are valuable. but unfortunate ~
the same cannot be said of the conclu-
lions which Mr.. Nell draws from mem
many Of which are utterly unsound' IN"
some of them ridiculous.
II ispot difficult 20 select suhJects ID
regard 10 which hc has blundtreu' uu'
one will be sufficient 90 treat oil mere.
He has gone very fully into the history
of Rolfe and Pocahontas, ana has maze
statements which fll with surprise those
acquainted with the subject. The story
If The maiden Cir has long been re
ca,d,d as the incident Of deepest Interest
IN our early Colonial history, and on,
which Virginians have loved TO tell anC
honor. How this little daughter OF th'
SAVAGE chief first became the friend o.
the settlers how she repeatedly aide(
and protected them, having savage anger
the dangers Of darkness and winter
woods and water how she became th'
6rst Christian OF her nation how sh'
loved and married her trip to England
her presentation al court her NE ~
London. where "she ever bore her as INT
daughter Of king - ana hei cary
death. have for centuries been mousse non
words and she has been he'o
ty high and low as The guardian ange
al the colony, and as @ character OF rare
beauty. Historians and orators LaV'
-nokm her praise. e1f great men nave
been ur. ui of their descent from her hu
LOW comes Mr. Neil and tells Us that IN
,,eid of being pure size was corrupt
Chat her marriage Will Role wa, no Iea
marriage a. alb. hut "a criminal connec
ton Gud,c1. in one place he intimates
doubt whether the marriage ever TOOK
Mace 40 alN. that she was Lot the VIE ol
John Rolfc but Of one Thomas
Wrothe." and that Thomas Role whom
past generations have supposed TO be hei
son. was not her son, but Of later vile
Of John R0ifes. lud that he was born IN
1919 instead Of 1910 The reader may
well stop I'm establishment and ask where
the learned historian finds the proofs iol
an this rcycIsi0n of former history, and
il is the purpose 4 this Article TO examine
Lis statements and as 10 disc0yel
whether r. Is really fact that no one j.,
the W, r'd. before Nr Ncill, ever knc8
ANYTHING al0u. Virginia history.
The question o. tlc rescue az smith b'
Pocahonta, rests On the statement of the
former alone il is mere question OF be
i,cfm h.s ycracity but as he very nam'
Of Smith is auathcma 90 Mr.. Nell, Wh'
Droclaims him a brag-art and liar, II,
incident a. the life of POcah)ntas Wnlci
depends on "a statement made by Nmlu
will be- discussed here. and in order tina
The question Of smiths tTuthfulncss ma
not De- introduced. FOR there is too mucl
other evidence 90 make it necessary ~
use will be made Of any Of his writings
The attacks on the accepted truth o
The history Of Role and POcahOntas ar
contained in Nh Neills history Of tn
Virginia company, and his Virgins
Ne,usta. He begins by quoting iron
Shockev's Virginia Britannica page 81
tw0 paragraphs, one Sd which states tina
POcahOntas when girl OF II years Of
age would come % jamestown, ant
throw sOmersaults with the bows in tn
streets" This was story Shockcy
heard, Tor be never saw fOcdhOntas, anC
wrote his book in England between 1912
rs from notes made in Virginia l6l0.l2
However this may be, it is what Neil
POUNDS his charge of early immortality
and impurity upon. Pocahontas was OF
course, like her people, and had lheiI
customs, but it has been reserved tor thi,
historian o. discover corruption and vice
~ necessary concomi.auts Of uulutoreC
innocence. P0caLou;as then doubles.
knew ii,tle but what the Wild children OF
her native tribe knew. hut her near wa'
not roo un,uiorod 90 feel -reat pity t0i
hc suffering settlers, anu 60 induce hei
t1srccor audi project them Whenever sAc
could And again, I'M order to prove
This part Of bis statement Mr. Nell ha,
distorted from its original meaning au
old word and tried % have E, undors God
in it. modern sense. when hc quote, thC
other paragraph of StacheN referred Co.
who speaks of Lcr as "a wen featured
but wauton gIl.' This word 80 lifetime
itvas written meant "playiul' or "irol
irsomc.' and even u IT'S worst sense "nol
submitilr Go control such is Mr.
NciIfs ground tog hi, iiis' charge-sucl
is fair example of the way hc conducts
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