They Say Bacon's Rebellion 2

When it comes to the topic of Bacon's Rebellion, most of us will readily agree that the Indians were mistreated. Where this agreement usually ends, however, the rebellion was suppose to effect who? Whereas some are convinced that the up rise was towards the corrupt government in Virginia, others maintain that it was hatred towards the Indians.In Howard Zinn and Rebecca Stefoff's view, "the Politicians and big landowners who ran the colony wouldn't fight - Maybe because the were using some of the Indians as spies and allies against the others."(pg.36) Zinn and Stefoff is insisting that the powerful people in authority were favoring the Indians over the poor colonists, because they are using the Indians and unwilling to defend for the colonists. Even though Micheal J. Puglisi writes about how in 1675 the Praying Indians were accused of being involved in an attack on Lancaster, it was only a suspicion created by the Indians culture and traditions of "Singing and Dancing, and Having Bullets and Slugs, and much Powder hid in their Baskets."(Puglisi pg.80) So why is government defending Lancaster but not the colonists on the frontier. According to Zinn and Stefoff, "It blended the frontiersmen's hatred of the Indians with the common people's anger toward the rich."(pg.38) Basically, Zinn and Stefoff is saying that Bacon's Rebellion is a combination of the issue between the frontiersmen and the Indians and the issue between the common men and the rich. Puglisi states "they portrayed their continuing belief that in spite of difficult circumstances, they deserved better."(pg.83) Puglisi point is that it is obvious that the Indians were mistreated.

Not only were the Indians mistreated but so were the English colonists. The document of The History of Bacon's and Ingram's Rebellion,1676 states that "For som, before that they would deprive them of there lives, they would take a grate deale of time to deprive them first of there skins, and if that life had not, through [the ang]uish of there paine, forsaken there tormented bodyes, they [with] there teeth(or som instrument,) teare the nailes of [their fingers and their] toes, which put the poore sufferer to a wo[ful condition."(doc.5 pg8) This statement explains in detail how the Indians tortured the English, so it goes both ways during the Rebellion. Another interesting statement from this document is "the Indians quickly found out where about these Mouse traps were sett, and for what purpose, and so reslaved to keepe out of there danger."(doc.6 pg8)Which is evidence that the colonists and the Indians were at war with each other resulting in a rebellion cause the governor would not give the colonists permission to attack the Indians.