Thomas Wentworth Higginson, A book of American explorers

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[198] departure from them in 1587, I willed them, that, if they should happen to be distressed in any of those places, then they should carve over the letters or name a cross +in this form; but we found no such sign of distress. And, having well considered of this, we passed toward the place where they were left in sundry houses; but we found the houses taken down, and the place very strongly enclosed with a high palisado of great trees, with curtains¹ and flankers,² very fort-like. And one of the chief trees or posts at the right side of the entrance had the bark taken off; and five feet from the ground, in fair capital letters, was graven C R O A T O A N, without any cross, or sign of distress. This done, we entered into the palisado, where we found many bars of iron, two pigs of lead, four iron fowlers,³ iron saker-⁴ shot, and such like heavy things, thrown here and there, almost overgrown with grasses and weeds.

From thence we went along by the water-side, toward the point of the creek, to see if we could find any of their boats or pinnace; but we could perceive no sign of them, nor any of the last falcons⁵ and small ordnance which were left with them at my departure from them. At our return from the creek, some of our sailors, meeting us, told us they had found where divers chests had been hidden, and long since digged up again, and broken up, and much of the goods in them spoiled and scattered about, but nothing left, of such things as the savages knew any use of, undefaced. Presently Captain Cooke and I went to the place, which was in the end of an old trench, made two years past