Cronon 5

despite differences in property systems, Europeans and Indians traded eagerly

for Europeans, there was a demand for fur, for fur coats and hats

for Indians it was a new model--

wampum beads
Furs were cheap from the Indians, if the Europeans could find something they wanted


Impact of illness:


Even minor diseases such as chicken pox could cause high death rates to people with no exposure

Smallpox was endemic in Europe
we know more about it just because it is easy to identify

"The role of disease in American conquest was threefold: firstly, it reduced the fighting capability of the Aztec and Incan armies as they became sick and died. Secondly, the deaths of their heads of political leadership left power vacuums, and much of the attention of vassal leaders was occupied with civil wars. The conquistadors played factions against each other. Thirdly, the prevailing beliefs of these cultures led them to believe that the European forces were employing supernatural powers, and many military leaders decided to either join the conquistadors, or flee, rather than fight them. Consequently, resistance was weak, disorganized, and usually nonexistent." (Graeme Kennedy)

What we think of as the indian civilization in North America is actually what was left after diseases had done much harm

the exchange was one-sided
at most only one disease imported from the Americas caused significant problems in Europe
Europeans had had to learn to live with the diseases they brought with them
the Americas had fewer diseases because of  less crowded conditions, fewer domestic animals, and
isolation
recreation of the giving of smallpox infected
              blankets