Our first century . ves to be de-termined fighters. Their method of warfare has alwaysbeen to make a dash. If the dash were successful theyslaughtered their victims ; if it were unsuccessful they re-tired and gave up the fight. The colonists early learnedthis by experience, and they ^^• arranged their defensiveworks in full recognition ofthe Indian habit of other great difficultythat the early colonists en-countered was their totallack of knowledge concern-ing the climate and soil ofthe regions in which theyhad settled. After they hadquit hunting for gold and fora northwest passage th
Our first century . ves to be de-termined fighters. Their method of warfare has alwaysbeen to make a dash. If the dash were successful theyslaughtered their victims ; if it were unsuccessful they re-tired and gave up the fight. The colonists early learnedthis by experience, and they ^^• arranged their defensiveworks in full recognition ofthe Indian habit of other great difficultythat the early colonists en-countered was their totallack of knowledge concern-ing the climate and soil ofthe regions in which theyhad settled. After they hadquit hunting for gold and fora northwest passage through the continent, they at last setthemselves to farming. They did so however with a de-gree of ignorance which in many cases proved did not know what crops could be successfully cul-tivated in this country and so they tried practicallyeverything of which they had ever heard—but chieflysuch crops as grow only in warm climates. In New Eng-land they could grow corn, potatoes, turnips, pumpkins, N. Ancient handmade spade.(State Agricultural Museum, Al-bany, N. Y.) 210 OUR FIRST CENTURY squashes, beans, peas, and the hke, but mstead of thatthey tried the cuhivation of silk, wine, madder, ohves,tea, coffee, cacao—the bean from which chocolate andcocoa are prepared—and many other things that can begrown only in tropical or low subtropical regions. These attempts of course resulted in failures andsometimes even in the impoverishment of those whomade them. It was only little by little that such mis-takes w^ere corrected and that the colonists learned whatcrops they could grow with profit upon such lands andin such climates as they had. Little by little at the same time they learned how tolive in their new surroundings. The New Englanderslearned the use of sleds in winter and of they and the Virginians learned how to make theabundant game and fish a profitable food supply. In the meanwhile all the colonists learned much thataided them to live com
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