The Native Americans

Today the people once called American Indians, prefer to be called Native Americans. They were
the first people to live in America.

The first and most famous Indian friend of the white settlers was a young princess named
Pocahontas. She was only 12 years old when English settlers came to Jamestown in Virginia in 1607.
Captain John Smith, who was one of the leaders of the expedition wrote that he owed his life to
Pocahontas. According to this story Pocahontas threw her arms around John Smith to prevent her
father, who was an Indian chief, from killing him. Pocahontas often visited the English colony and
brought food and other gifts to the colonists who needed much help. Though she was very kind to the
settlers they didn't act in the same way. Once when she was 17 she was kidnapped by the settlers
who used her as a hostage to guarantee the good behavior of the Indian tribe, to which she belonged.
In the following year Pocahontas married one of the white colonists and later travelled with him to
England, where she was introduced to English society. She lived some time in England, but at the age
of 21 she died suddenly of smallpox. She had a son and many Virginians today say that they are his
descendants.

Of all that the Indians gave to the white settlers food was probably the most important thing at
that time. Indian foods and methods of planting, hunting, and fishing helped the settlers to survive in
their own home. Two of the most important crops in the world today - Indian corn and white
potatoes - were first planted by American Indians, who also introduced the settlers to more than 80
other foods, including the sweet potato, tomato, peanut, pumpkin, squash, banana, pineapple and
avocado, Cacao (for chocolate), chicle (for chewing gum), and tobacco were also among the new
crops. Many of the drugs which Indians received from plants (such as cocaine, which was used to kill
pain) are used today for medical purposes.

Indians also helped the settlers by introducing them to Indian utensils, clothing, methods of
transportation. They include canoes, dog sleds, hammocks, pipes, rubber balls, snowshoes,
moccasins,
parkas.

The influence of Indian cultures is quite evident in American English. Thousands of mountains,
rivers, lakes, cities, states have Indian names, as well as common nouns - tobacco, skunk, moose,
canoe, and hundreds of others.

Although the Indians helped the European settlers in many ways, the latter didn't treat the natives
in the same way. They soon began to cheat them, and seize their lands. The whites didn't respect
Indian culture. They considered them to be savage, and so they didn't care about Indian rights. As a
result of this the Native Indians and white settlers became bitter enemies. The colonization of North
America became a history of bloodshed and cruelty towards the Indians. They were doomed to defeat
since the white settlers had guns and bullets, while the Indians fought mainly with bows and arrows.
Also, the settlers were able to unite, while the Indians were divided into hundreds of different tribes
which were hostile to each other.

As early as 1786, the United States government began setting aside special territories (called
reservations) for the Indians. They were pushed onto these lands which were mostly in the South-
west and the North-west of the USA. During the middle of the 19th century they were kept in the
reservations and forbidden to leave them without permission.

The Indians began to protest against such treatment receiving more and more support from the
American public. As a result American treatment of Indians began to improve. The majority of the
Indians live in or near the federal reservations, but they are, of course, free to live. Most Indians live
in the South-west - Arizona, Oklahoma, New Mexico and California. A few in other parts of the USA.
On the reservations traditional Indian customs, languages have survived. Tourists visit these
reservations to observe the Indian way of life. The Indian population remains physically as well as
socially apart from the majority white population.
1. Pacahontas
a) She was famous friend for white settlers in Jamestown
b) She saved lives to John Smith’s crew by protecting from her father’s indians tribe
c) Pacahontas was often visited settlers to bring food to them, she was very kind, but settlers
was not kind in return
d) In 17 y.o. she was kidnapped by white settlers, they wanted her to be a hostage to
guarantee their lives saved
e) Later she was married on one of the colonist and traveled to England
f) In 21 she died suddenly from smallpox
g) She had a son, and many Virginian today say that they are probably Pocahontas
descendants
2. Food
a) Indians have provided many kinds of food to Europeans
b) Corn, pumpkins, potato, tomato, banana, pineapple
3. Some things (clothes, methods of transport.)
a) Beside food they introduced to white settlers utensils, clothing, methods of transportation
(canoes)
4. Names of rivers, mountains, lakes
a) The big influence of indians was to the names of the places such as lakes, rivers, mountains
and so on
5. Fall of natives
a) Although the Indians helped the European settlers in many ways, but Europeans didn’t
helped them in back
b) Europeans cheat them
c) They became bitter enemies
d) Europeans owned guns and bullets but indians fought mainly with bows and arrows
e) Europeans were united but Indians weren’t
6. Reservation
a) In the end on 18th century US government decided to create reservations for natives
b) They were forbidden to leave it without permission until the middle of 19 th century
7. Current situation
a) Indians began to protest against treatment, and their life began to be more better
b) Most indians living in Arizona, New Mexico, California
c) Tourists like to visit their reservation to see their life