The Saber and Scroll Journal Volume 7, Issue 1, Winter 2018 | Page 11

and merchandise for the Indians; the second ship, the Swan, brought emigrants;
and finally, the Key and Lamp both arrived with supplies. 16 The Indians provided
the Swedes with much of their foodstuff. Settlers offered gifts to the natives to
maintain good relations. Infrequent shipments from Sweden made it difficult to
have an adequate number of gifts for the Indians, which weakened the colony’s
bargaining ability.
Printz dedicated himself to expanding and securing New Sweden’s
political and economic
interests. The Swedish
government expected the
colony to send raw
materials such as tobacco
back to Sweden after it
became
self-sufficient,
like
the
tobacco-
producing
English
colonies. He wanted New
Sweden to imitate their
success. However, Printz
found tobacco cultivation
difficult without adequate
food and supplies for the
farmers. Because of this,
settlers focused on trade
with the Indians for
supplies
rather
than
putting energy towards
cultivating tobacco. Even
if the settlers cultivated
and
stockpiled
the
tobacco,
Sweden’s
Figure 2. Johan Printz, artist unknown, seventeenth
underdeveloped shipping
century.
system meant that the
arrival of Swedish ships was unreliable and too infrequent to ensure prompt
return of the raw materials to Sweden. Goods awaiting transport would remain in
storage for lengthy periods, and they were easy targets for destruction by
vermin. 17
Conditions in the colony deteriorated during 1643-44. An unknown
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