Magyar Egyház, 1987 (66. évfolyam, 2. szám)
1987-04-01 / 2. szám
CALVIN SYNOD HERALD — 4 — REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA Hungarians in the past. With the same good fortune they retook Varad and Somoly. From here Smith went with Meldrich’s detachment to Moldavia to fight against the Tartar Khan and Jeremiah Pasha. In this battle Smith was wounded and lost a lot of blood. He was found crawling among the dead. Recognized by his clothing, he was dragged in to slavery to Constantinople. (Here is a brief reference to Smith ’s own account of his captivity and of his escape. But there is also an interesting annotation concerning the conditions Smith found in Transylvania at the time): At this time Transylvania was in ruins because of the devastation by the Tartars. The population was decimated. In three days of travel one could hardly find five or six homes. They were all built of wood with crossbeams and plank roofs held together by wooden nails. They had never even heard of iron nails. (After his adventures as a prisoner, Smith managed to make his way back to England. And in 1608 he was entrusted with the command of the ships and troops in the Virginia Colony at Jamestown.) Smith had dropped anchor before Jamestown. The entire region belonged then to the Choctaw Indians ruled by the powerful chief Powhattan. Smith conducted many raids against the Indians with varying success. In one of these encounters he was captured with a few others and only by clever maneuvering was he able to escape. Finally both sides got tired of the constant incursions and concluded a peace treaty which the English again violated. A new conflict broke out in which Smith was captured a second time. It was impossible to escape and he was sure to die. But the chief’s beautiful daughter Pocohontas took pity on the prisoner and tried to ease his suffering in every way she could. The Indian war council decided to have Smith stoned to death. In spite of all Pocohontas’ efforts Smith was being led to his execution when she threw herself upon his prostrate body to be stoned to death with him if they would not yield to her entreaties. Powhattan and the war council were touched by the tender spectacle and released Smith subject to certain stiff conditions whereby he was obliged to deliver a quantity of arms and gunpowder to Powhattan. Smith returned to Jamestown and, while the peace lasted, the lovers could freely see each other. But the truce was soon broken. The Indians after long and secret powwows decided to wipe out the white settlers. They had planned a surprise night attack. First they were going to burn down the ships with all their crews, and then destroy the ones on land. Pocohontas, learning of the plot, fearing the loss of her favorite, once again put herself to the test. On a stormy night, through the dense forest, in spite of great dangers, she rode to Jamestown. She had spied Smith’s ship tossing on the high, stormy waves. But love knows no obstacles. Pocohontas jumped into the water and safely reached the ship, where she informed Smith of the conspiracy and thus saved him a second time from certain death. Smith’s gratitude knew no bounds and Pocohontas’ love grew more torrid. She had thought, as did her father and the Indians, that Smith would marry her and because of this belief the colony enjoyed a more enduring peace. But Pocohontas did not know that Smith had a wife in England, and Smith was recalled to England. In this ticklish situation, contending with conflicting emotions and also concerned with the safety of the colony, it was decided to announce his sudden death. Smith secretly returned to England. For a long time Pocohontas was inconsolable over the purported death of her lover. Captain Rolfe, a man of fine character, replaced Smith in command. He was very much interested in the story of Pocohontas. After a lengthy stay their acquaintance blossomed into love and Rolfe married her. Later Rolfe also was recalled and Pocohontas accompanied him to England. One day, on the streets of London, Pocohontas met Smith. The unexpected encounter affected her so much that she fell into a deep depression from which she never recovered. Rolfe decided to take her back to America in the hope that the old surroundings might ease her affliction, but she died while crossing the ocean. The marriage of Rolfe and the unfortunate Pocohontas produced a son who settled in America and who in turn left two female descendants, who were the maternal ancestors of the wellknown and large Randolph and Robinson families of Virginia. To commemorate their interesting history they always give the middle name Powhattan to their first-born male child and Pocohontas to the first-born female child. (Reference: “Journey to America’’ (1834) by Alexander Boloni-Farkas. Published by the American Philosophical Society. Copied from the Hungarian Heritage Review.
