Myles+Standish

Myles Standish Interview

 * Tell us about your life in England or the Netherlands.**

//I was born in 1584, at Lancashire, England. My parents were Robert Standish and Margaret Croft. I was a military officer in England. I joined Queen Elizabeth’s army and received the rank of a lieutenant. Also, I did not travel to the Netherlands for religious reasons. I was a stranger. And yes, I was married to Rose Standish. I was 36 years old when I boarded the Mayflower.//

//I got on the Mayflower to captain the militia. I was a stranger and hired to go and protect the people on board. There were many breathtaking heartwrenching storms, and the food was running low. We were forced to eat hard, stale food while searching for bugs in it. The trip truly was my worst nightmare. With 102 passengers, no bathrooms, and sixty six days of it, it was not pleasant at all. One day, one of the ship’s main beams cracked. Everybody thaught they were going to die. Thank the God above, Captain Jones and his crew were able to fix it.//
 * Why did you decide to go to the New World on the Mayflower? What was that voyage like?**

==//The Mayflower had just landed. No more stale biscuits! As soon as we set foot on land, we sent men out in search of land to settle in. The climate is much warmer in the summer and colder in the winter. There are plenty of trees to live off of. We can use them to barricade our village. We’ve also noticed a small island that can be easily defended, but it has a little amount of trees and the ground is rocky, so it’s bad for growing crops. We don’t know of the land out there. There could be hiding Indians anywhere, and we can’t forget about the booby traps, so we’ll have to be careful. Plus it was easier commanding men back in England, but here our people feel free to do what they want.//==
 * How did the land and climate of Plimoth compare to what you were used to in England or the Netherlands?**

//One of the hardest changes to get used to was Indian ambushes. We had to be on our toes every second of the day. They were hiding everywhere! Not only were the Indians a big problem, but their traps were springing off everywhere. And they camouflaged the traps so well, I bet some of us wouldn’t have been able to see a trap if it was right in front of us!! Not only was there people we had to worry about, but there was the wild animals, too. When we slept we occasionally heard growls, howls, and snarls nearby. We would get ready to attack but for no reason because the animals would not expose themselves. Only some times did they reveal there presence, and when they did, they would attack one of our villagers and we would shoot them before they could do any real harm. There were many other difficult changes too, like finding land to build our village on. There was so much good land, but each place had at least one flaw. Some were easy to defend but had too rocky ground to plant crops. Others were islands close to the shore so supplies could have been gotten in less time but had a scarce amount of trees for building houses. We finally settled upon a hilly land with rich soil, plenty of trees, and was easy to fend off Indians trying to raid our village. The hard part was building the actual houses. We worked and worked for hours cutting down trees and using them to build our houses. First we built the fort/meetinghouse, but eventually we built more houses. Until we were finished with most of the houses, we faced the hardest difficulty of all: death. Many of our villagers were dying from sickness and diseases from the horrid weather. Since we arrived at America during the winter, it was very cold outside. Villagers were dying everywhere. And the most horrible news that I never wanted to hear came to my ear. My wife, Rose Standish had perished. It was too much to take at once. I couldn’t concentrate on my work for weeks. I even messed up a whole military operation because of it! But I learned to face the facts and accept the death of my wife. I had to bury her at night like in secret we did to everyone so the Indians wouldn’t find out. If they did, they would know we’re decreasing in number and attack and overwhelm us.//
 * What was the first year like? What was hardest about adjusting to life in a new place?**

VC

Here, the first year at New Plymouth, the weather is different. I think our soldiers will have difficulties adjusting to the new climate. I will have difficulties myself, my dear wife has died. Things will be different, and affect us all. The weather is colder, there are no roads, no bridges, there is fresh water though. Many trees are available so building houses is easy. Scurvy is washing over us like a big wave. Many of us have died. When a body is to be buried, we need to do it during the night. The dark light prevents the Indians seeing how many lives we’ve lost. Food was different. We don’t have milk, but there are many wild animals to hunt. We are eating new foods as well such as Indian corn. Things are tough, but I think we’ll manage the first year enough to survive. SG