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About this time Raleigh married secretly a young girl who was Elizabeth's maid of honor. When Elizabeth heard of this marriage, she was very angry and had Raleigh sent to the Tower to punish him. He had been a prisoner here some time when some of his ships which had been out to look for Spanish prizes brought in a Spanish vessel loaded with valuable goods. As Raleigh was chief owner of the fleet which had captured the prize he was set free so that he might help divide the booty. Elizabeth was much pleased with her share and upon Raleigh's return to prison sent word that he might be liberated. He lived quietly in one of his castles with his beautiful wife for a while, but hearing of the wonders of Guiana in South America, he resolved to visit that country and to add it and its wealth to his beloved England.

According to Spanish accounts this Guiana on the north coast of South America was in truth the land of gold. Stories were told of a great city which stood on the heights in the interior of the country, "where the very troughs at the corners of the streets at which the horses were watered were made of solid blocks of gold and silver; and where billets of gold lay about in heaps as if they were logs of wood marked out to be burned." It was also said that Montezuma had sent his great treasures to this city when he was captured by Cortes, and that the boundless wealth of the Inca of Peru had been sent

to the same place when he was conquered by Pizarro. Raleigh disliked the Spaniards very much and to prevent their getting this land of gold he determined to go himself to take possession of it in the name of his queen, Elizabeth. He had given up his attempts to colonize Virginia after so many failures but this seemed a new and more promising field for colonization. In 1594 five stout ships provided with crews and arms and provisions, and with Sir Walter Raleigh himself as commander, left the harbor of Plymouth. The fleet reached Guiana in safety. Raleigh ascended the Orinoco some distance and brought away some stones containing gold. He returned to England to get more men, as he feared the Spaniards would try to keep from him the great wealth he expected to bring to England. When he reached England he

was needed in an attack against Spain and could not return to America.

and King James of ScotNow James did not like offices and estates. This

Soon after this Elizabeth died land became king of England. Raleigh and took from him his made Raleigh angry and he said many bitter things of the king. Some of his enemies claimed that he was guilty of treason and he was tried and convicted, though there was really no proof that he was guilty. He was imprisoned in the Tower where he remained thirteen years. While in prison he wrote a history of the world. At last he was

released from prison that he might go again to Guiana to find the gold mines of which he had heard.

This expedition was not successful and upon his return Raleigh was again thrown into prison. The old charge of treason was revived and Raleigh was taken from prison and beheaded. His efforts to found colonies in America had not been successful, but he had kept up the interest of Englishmen in America and soon afterward colonies were successfully planted.

CHAPTER IV

JOHN SMITH1

THE adventures of John Smith began when he was very young. Before reaching his twentieth year he had fought for a while in the French army and had served three years in the Netherlands. In the year 1600 he returned to his home in England, "where," he says in the history of his life, "within a short time, being glutted with too much. company wherein he took small delight, he retired himself into a little woody pasture a good way from any town, environed with many hundred acres of woods. Here by a fair brook he built a pavilion of boughs where only in his clothes he lay." Here he read books upon the art of war and studied the wise sayings of Marcus Aurelius. He also took exercise with "a good horse, with lance and ring; his food was thought to be more of venison than anything else." But he soon grew tired of this quiet life. "He was desirous to see more of the world and try his fortune against the Turks; both lamenting and repenting to have seen so many Christians slaughtering one another.”

1 Authority: Fiske's "Old Virginia and Her Neighbors" and other

sources.

After an adventure in France with robbers, in which he lost everything he had with him, he reached Marseilles. Here he embarked for Turkey with a band of pilgrims. A storm arose "which they said was all because of their having this heretic on board, and so, like Jonah, the young adventurer was thrown into the sea. He was a good swimmer, however, and 'God brought him,' he says, 'to a little island with no inhabitants but a few kine and goats."" Next morning he was picked up by a Breton vessel whose captain knew some of Smith's friends in France and treated him with much kindness. The vessel was bound for Egypt and Cyprus. On the return voyage they were fired upon by a Venetian argosy and a hot fight took place until the Venetian struck her colors. After taking from her a rich treasure of silks and velvet and Turkish coins in gold and silver, the Bretons let her go on her way. When the spoil was divided, Smith received £225 in coin and a box of goods worth nearly as much more. His friend, the captain, landed him in Piedmont, and he journeyed to Naples, enjoying himself "sight seeing." He visited Rome, Florence, and Bologna, and finally made his way to Venice. From here he went to Styria and entered the service of the Emperor Rudolph II. He was soon given command of a company of 250 cavalry, with the rank of captain. "On one occasion he made himself useful by devising a system of signals, and on

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