 So the Virginia Company sent along a sealed box that they were only to open once they arrived in Virginia, and it had the names of eight men who would be on the governing council of Jamestown. Wingfield is the very first name on the list. No one is surprised. It's followed by several other gentlemen, and everyone is shocked when they read the last name on the list, Captain John Smith. So maybe Captain Newport knew this, and that's why he protected John Smith.