The colonists were informed that if they did not accumulate any wealth, financial support for their efforts would come to an end. Many of the men spent their days futilely searching for gold they would never find. One of the largest problems the Jamestown settlement faced was the fact that most of the first colonists were gentlemen of wealth that did not posses any useful skills and were not used to manual labo. Instead of putting their efforts toward building and hunting the majority of the men spent endless hours looking for gold. Therefore, much of their energy was wasted and their pursuit of gold was in vain. If it were not for the leadership of John Smith the colony may well have perished. He imposed strict rules and discipline on the colonists. “he who shall not work, shall not eat”" was a saying he used frequently to ensure each colonist spent four hours per day farming. Before too long they learned how to grow the primary food crops of the natives which included corn and maize. They also discovered a habitual pleasure of the natives,