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A New Voyage Round the World by a Course Never Sailed Before

by Daniel Defoe · English · Gutenberg #35774 · 646,144 chars · public domain (US)

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Title: A New Voyage Round the World by a Course Never Sailed Before

Author: Daniel Defoe


        
Release date: April 5, 2011 [eBook #35774]

Language: English

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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A NEW VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD BY A COURSE NEVER SAILED BEFORE ***




Produced by Steven Gibbs, Martin Pettit and the Online
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A NEW VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD,

BY A Course never sailed before.

BEING

A VOYAGE undertaken by some MERCHANTS, who afterwards proposed
the Setting up an _East-India_ Company in FLANDERS.

_LONDON:_

Printed for A. BETTESWORTH, at the _Red-Lyon_,
in _Pater-Noster-Row_; and W. MEARS, at the
_Lamb_, without _Temple-Bar_. M.DCC.XXV.




NEW VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD.


It has for some ages been thought so wonderful a thing to sail the tour
or circle of the globe, that when a man has done this mighty feat, he
presently thinks it deserves to be recorded like Sir Francis Drake's. So
soon as men have acted the sailor, they come ashore and write books of
their voyage, not only to make a great noise of what they have done
themselves, but pretending to show the way to others to come after them,
they set up for teachers and chart makers to posterity. Though most of
them have had this misfortune, that whatever success they have had in
the voyage, they have had very little in the relation; except it be to
tell us, that a seaman when he comes to the press, is pretty much out of
his element, and a very good sailor may make but a very indifferent
author.

I do not in this, lessen the merit of those gentlemen who have made such
a long voyage as that round the globe; but I must be allowed to say, as
the way is now a common road, the reason of it thoroughly known, and the
occasion of it more frequent than in former times, so the world has done
wondering at it; we no more look upon it as a mighty thing, a strange
and never heard of undertaking; this cannot be now expected of us, the
thing is made familiar, every ordinary sailor is able to do it, if his
merchants are but qualified to furnish him for so long a voyage; and he
that can carry a ship to Lisbon, may with the same ease carry it round
the world.

Some tell us, it is enough to wonder at a thing nine days, one would
reasonably then conclude, that it is enough that sailing round the world
has been wondered at above a hundred years. I shall therefore let the
reader know, that it is not the rarity of going round the world that has
occasioned this publication, but if some incidents have happened in
such a voyage, as either have not happened to others, or as no other
people, though performing the same voyage have taken notice of, then
this account may be worth publishing, though the thing, viz. The Voyage
round the World, be in itself of no value.

It is to be observed, of the several navigators whose Voyages round the
World have been published, that few, if any of them, have diverted us
with that variety which a circle of that length must needs offer. We
have a very little account of their landings, their diversions, the
accidents which happened to them, or to others by their means; the
stories of their engagements, when they have had any scuffle either with
natives, or European enemies, are told superficially and by halves; the
storms and difficulties at sea or on shore, have nowhere a full
relation; and all the rest of their accounts are generally filled up
with directions for sailors coming that way, the bearings of the land,
the depth of the channels, entrances, and bars, at the several ports,
anchorage in the bays, and creeks, and the like things, useful indeed
for seamen going thither again, and how few are they? but not at all to
the purpose when we come expecting to find the history of the voyage.

Another sort of these writers have just given us their long journals,
tedious accounts of their log-work, how many leagues they sailed every
day; where they had the winds, when it blew hard, and when softly; what
latitude in every observation, what meridian distance, and what
variation of the compass. Such is the account of Sir John Narborough's
Voyage to the South Seas, adorned with I know not how many charts of the
famous Strait of Magellan, a place only now famous for showing the
ignorance of Sir John Narborough, and a great many wise gentlemen before
him, and for being a passage they had no need to have troubled
themselves with, and which nobody will ever go through anymore.

Such also are the Voyages of Captain John Wood, to Nova Zemla, at the
charge of the public, in King Charles the Second's time, and Martin
Frobisher to the North-West Passages, in Queen Elizabeth's time; all
which, are indeed full of their own journals, and the incidents of
sailing, but have little or nothing of story in them, for the use of
such readers who never intend to go to sea, and yet such readers may
desire to hear how it has fared with those that have, and how affairs
stand in those remote parts of the world.

For these reasons, when first I set out upon a cruising and trading
voyage to the East, and resolved to go anywhere, and everywhere that the
advantage of trade or the hopes of purchase should guide us, I also
resolved to take such exact notice of everything that past within my
reach, that I would be able, if I lived to come home, to give an account
of my voyage, differing from all that I had ever seen before, in the
nature of the observations, as well as the manner of relating them. And
as this is perfectly new in its form, so I cannot doubt but it will be
agreeable in the particulars, seeing either no voyage ever made before,
had such variety of incidents happening in it, so useful and so
diverting, or no person that sailed on those voyages, has thought fit to
publish them after this manner.


Having been fitted out in the river of Thames so lately as the year
1713, and on a design perhaps not very consistent with the measures
taking at that time for the putting an end to the war, I must be allowed
to own I was at first obliged to act not in my own name, but to put in a
French commander into the ship, for the reasons which follow, and which
those, who understand the manner of trade upon closing the late war, I
mean the trade with Spain, will easily allow to be just and well
grounded.

During the late war between Great Britain and her confederates on one
side, and the united crowns of France and Spain on the other, we all
know the French had a free trade into the South Seas; a trade carried on
with the greatest advantage, and to the greatest degree, that any
particular commerce has been carried on in the world for many ages past;
insomuch, that we found the return of silver that came back to France by
those ships, was not only the enriching of the merchants of St. Malo,
Rochelle, and other ports in France, some of whom we saw get immense
estates in a few years, even to a million sterling a man; but it was
evident, the King of France himself was enabled, by the circulation of
so much bullion through his mints, to carry on that war with very great
advantage.

It was just at the close of this war, when some merchants of London,
looking with envy on the success of that trade, and how the French,
notwithstanding the peace, would apparently carry it on, for some years
at least, to infinite advantage, began to consider whether it might not
be possible to come in for a portion of it with France, as they were
allied to Spain, and yet go abroad in the nature of a private cruiser.

To bring this to pass, it was thought proper, in the first place, to get
a share if possible, in a new design of an East India trade in Flanders,
just then intended to be set up by some British merchants, by the
assistance of an imperial charter, or at least under colour of it: and
so we might go to sea in a threefold capacity, to be made use of as
occasion might present, viz., when on the coast of New Spain we sought
to trade, we were Frenchmen, had a French captain, and a sufficient
number of French seamen, and Flemish or Walloon seamen, who spoke
French, so to appear on all proper occasions. When at sea we met with
any Spanish ship worth our while, we were English cruisers, had letters
of mart from England, had no account of the peace, and were fitted for
the attack. And when in the East Indies we had occasion to trade, either
at the English or Dutch settlements, we should have imperial colours,
and two Flemish merchants, at least in appearance, to transact
everything as we found occasion. However, this last part of our project
failed us, that affair not being fully ripe.

As this mysterious equipment may be liable to some exceptions, and
perhaps to some inquiries, I shall for the present conceal my name, and
that of the ship also. By inquiries, I mean inquiries of private persons
concerned; for, as to public inquiries, we have no uneasiness, having
acted nothing in contradiction to the rules and laws of our country; but
I say, as to private persons, it is thought fit to prevent their
inquiries, to which end, the captain, in whose name I write this, gives
me leave to make use of his name, and conceal my own.

The ship sailed from the river the 20th of December, 1713, and went
directly over to the coast of Flanders, lying at an anchor in Newport
Pitts, as they are called, where we took in our French Captain Jean
Michael Merlotte, who, with thirty-two French seamen, came on board us
in a large snow from Dunkirk, bringing with them one hundred and
twenty-two small ankers or rundlets of brandy, and some hampers and
casks of French wine in wickered bottles. While we were here, we lay
under English colours, with pendants flying, our ship being upwards of
five hundred ton, and had forty-six guns mounted, manned with three
hundred and fifty-six men; we took the more men on board, because we
resolved, as occasion should present, to fit ourselves with another
ship, which we did not question we should meet with in the South Seas.

We had also a third design in our voyage, though it may be esteemed an
accident to the rest, viz., we were resolved to make some attempts for
new discoveries, as opportunity offered; and we had two persons on board
who were exceeding well qualified for our direction in this part, all
which was derived from the following occasion.

The person who was principally concerned in the adventure was a man not
only of great wealth, but of great importance; he was particularly
addicted to what we call new discoveries, and it was indeed upon his
genius to such things, that the first thought of the voyage was founded.
This gentleman told me, that he had already sent one ship fully equipped
and furnished for a new attempt upon the North-West or North-East
passages, which had been so often in vain tried by former navigators;
and that he did not question the success, because he had directed them
by new measures, and to steer a course that was never attempted yet; and
his design in our voyage was to make like discoveries towards the South
pole; where, as he said, and gave us very good reasons for it, he did
not doubt but we might discover, even to the pole itself, and find out
new worlds and new seas, which had never been heard of before.

With these designs, this gentleman came into the other part of our
project, and contributed the more largely, and with the more freedom, to
the whole, upon that account; in particular, all the needful
preparations for such discoveries were made wholly at his expense, which
I take notice of here, as being most proper in the beginning of our
story, and that the reader may the less wonder at the particular way we
took to perform a voyage which might with much more ease have been done
by the usual and ordinary way.

We sailed from the coast of Flanders the 2nd of January, and, without
any extraordinary incident, made the coast of Galway, in Ireland, the
10th, where we stayed, and took in a very extraordinary store of
provisions, three times as much as usual, the beef being also well
pickled or double packed, that we might have a sufficient reserve for
the length of our voyage, resolving also to spare it as much as
possible.

We had a very rich cargo on board, consisting of all sorts of British
manufactures suitable for the Spanish trade in their West Indies; and,
as we aimed at nothing of trade till we came to the Spanish coast, we
sailed directly for the Canary Islands: having not fully resolved
whether we would make our voyage to the South Seas first, and so round
the globe by the East Indies, as has been the usual way, or whether we
would go first by the East Indies, and upon the discoveries we were
directed to, and then cross the great Pacific Ocean to the west coast of
America, as was at last resolved.

We made the Canaries, the 11th of February; and, coming to an anchor
there to take in some fresh water, we put out French colours, and sent
our boat on shore, with a French boatswain and all French seamen, to buy
what we wanted: they brought us on board five butts or pipes of wine,
and some provisions, and having filled our water, we set sail again the
13th. In this time we called a council among ourselves, by which way we
should go.

I confess I was for going by the Cape of Good Hope first, and so to the
East Indies: then, keeping to the south of Java, go away to the
Moluccas, where I made no doubt to make some purchase among the Dutch
Spice Islands, and so away to the Philippines; but the whole ship's
company, I mean of officers, were against me in this scheme, although I
told them plainly, that the discoveries which would be made in such a
voyage as that, were the principal reasons why our chief owner embarked
in the adventure, and that we ought to regard the end and design of our
voyage; that it would certainly in the conclusion amount to the same, as
to trade, as if we went the usual way, seeing the places we were to go
to were the same one way as the other, and it was only putting the
question which we should go to first; that all the navigators, on such
voyages as these, went by the South Seas first, which would be no honour
to us at all: but, if we went by the East Indies first, we should be the
first that ever went such a voyage, and that we might make many useful
discoveries and experiments in trying that course; that it would be
worth our while, not only to go that way, but to have all the world take
notice of it, and of us for it.

I used a great many arguments of the like nature, but they answered me
most effectually, with laying before me the difficulties of the voyage,
and the contrary methods of trade, which, in a word, made the going that
way impracticable: First, the difficulty of the voyage, over the vast
ocean called the Pacific Sea, or South Sea, which, if we kept a southern
latitude, and took the variable winds, as we should find them, as I
proposed to do, might very well be a voyage of six or eight months,
without any sight of land, or supply of provisions or water, which was
intolerable; that, as to trade, it was preposterous, and just setting
the voyage with the bottom upward; for as we were loaden with goods, and
had no money, our first business, they said, was to go to the South
Seas, where our goods were wanted, and would sell for money, and then to
the East Indies, where our money would be wanting, to buy other goods to
carry home, and not to go to the East Indies first, where our goods
would not sell, and where we could buy no other for want of money.

This was seemingly so strong a way of reasoning, that they were all
against me, as well French as English, and even the two agents for
discoveries submitted to it; and so we resolved to stand away from the
Canaries to the coast o Brazil, thence upon the eastern coast of South
America to Cape Horn, and then into the South Seas; and, if we met with
anything that was Spanish by the way, we resolved to make prize of it,
as in a time of war.

Accordingly, we made the coast of Brazil in twenty-six days, from the
Canary Islands, and went on shore at Cape St. Augustine, for fresh
water; afterwards we put into the bay of All Saints, got some fresh
provisions there, and about an hundred very good hogs, some of which we
killed and pickled, and carried the rest on board alive, having taken on
board a great quantity of roots and maize, or Indian corn, for their
food, which they thrived on very well.

It was the last of March when we came to the bay, and having stayed
there fourteen days, to furnish ourselves with all things we wanted, we
got intelligence there, that there were three ships at Buenos Ayres, in
the river Rio de la Plata, which were preparing to go for Europe, and
that they expected two Spanish men of war to be their convoy, because
of the Portuguese men of war which were in Brazil, to convoy the Brazil
fleet.

Their having two Spanish men of war with them for their convoy, took
away a great deal from the joy we had entertained at the news of their
being there, and we began to think we should make little or nothing of
it; however, we resolved to see the utmost of it, and, particularly, if
our double appearance would not now stand us in some stead.

Accordingly, we went away for the river of Plata, and, as usual,
spreading French colours, we went boldly up to Buenos Ayres, and sent in
our boat, manned with Frenchmen, pretending to be homeward bound from
the South Seas, and in want of provisions.

The Spaniards received us with civility, and granted us such provisions
as we wanted; and here we found, to our great satisfaction, that there
was no such thing as any Spanish man of war there; but they said they
expected one, and the governor there for the King of Spain asked our
French officer if we would take one of their ships under our convoy?
Monsieur Merlotte answered him warily, that his ship was deep loaden,
and foul, and he could not undertake anything; but, if they would keep
him company, he would do them what service he could; but that also, as
they were a rich ship, they did not design to go directly to France, but
to Martinico, where they expected to meet with some French men of war to
convoy them home.

This answer was so well managed; though there was not one word of truth
in it, that one of the three ships, for the other two were not ready,
resolved to come away with us, and, in an evil hour for them, they did
so.

To be brief, we took the innocent Spaniard into our convoy, and sailed
away to the northward with them, but were not far at sea before we let
them know what circumstances they were in, by the following method. We
were about half a league a head of them, when our captain bringing to,
and hauling up our courses, made a signal to the Spaniards for the
captain to come on board, which he very readily did; as soon as he was
on board, our captain let him know that he was our prisoner, and all his
men, and immediately manning their boat with thirty of our men, we sent
them on board their ship, to take possession of her, but ordered them
that they should behave civilly to the men on board, and plunder
nothing. For we made a promise to the Spanish captain, that his ship
should not be plundered, upon condition he would give us a just account
of his loading, and deliver peaceably to us what riches he had on board;
then we also agreed, that we would restore him his ship, which by the
way, we found was chiefly loaden with hides, things of no value to us,
and that the ship also was an old vessel, strong, but often doubled, and
therefore a very heavy sailer, and consequently not at all fit for our
purpose, though we greatly wanted a ship to take along with us, we
having, as I have said, both too many men, and being too full of goods.

The Spanish captain, though surprised with the stratagem that had
brought him thus into the hands of his enemies, and greatly enraged in
his mind at being circumvented, and trepanned out of his ship, yet
showed a great presence of mind under his misfortune; and, as I verily
believe, he would have fought us very bravely, if we had let him know
fairly what we were, so he did not at all appear dejected at his
disaster, but capitulated with us as if he had been taken sword in hand.
And one time, when Captain Merlotte and he could not agree, and the
Spanish captain was a little threatened, he grew warm; told the captain
that he might be ill used, being in his hands, but that he was not
afraid to suffer whatever his ill fortune had prepared for him, and he
would not, for fear of ill usage, yield to base conditions; that he was
a man of honour, and if he was so too, he demanded to be put on board
his own ship again, and he should see he knew how to behave himself.
Captain Merlotte smiled at that, and told him, he was not afraid to put
him on board his own ship, and fight for her again, and that, if he did
so, he was sure he could not escape him; the Spanish captain smiled too,
and told him he should see, if he did, that he knew the way to heaven
from the bottom of the sea as well as any other road, and that men of
courage were never at a loss to conquer their enemy one way or other;
intimating, that he would sink by his side rather than be taken, and
that he would take care to be but a very indifferent prize to him, if he
was conquered.

However, we came to better terms with him afterwards. In short, having
taken on board all the silver, which was about two hundred thousand
pieces of eight, and whatever else we met with that was valuable, among
the rest his ammunition, and six brass guns, we performed conditions,
and sent him into the Rio de la Plata again with his ship, to let the
other Spanish captains know what scouring they had escaped.

Though we got a good booty, we were disappointed of a ship; however, we
were not so sensible of that disappointment now, as we were afterwards:
for, as we depended upon going to the South Seas, we made no doubt of
meeting with vessels enough for our purpose. Of what followed, the
reader will soon be informed.

We had done our work here, and had neither any occasion or any desire to
lie any longer on this coast, where the climate was bad, and the weather
exceeding hot, and where our men began to be very uneasy, being crowded
together so close all in one ship; so we made the best of our way south.

We met with some stormy weather in these seas, and particularly a
north-west blast, which carried us for eleven days a great way off to
sea; but, as we had sea-room enough, and a stout strong-built ship under
us, perfectly well prepared, tight and firm, we made light of the storms
we met with, and soon came into our right way again; so that, about the
4th of May, we made land in the latitude of 45 deg. 12', south.

We put in here for fresh water; and, finding nothing of the land marked
in our charts, we had no knowledge of the place, but, coming to an
anchor at about a league from the shore, our boat went in quest of a
good watering-place; in pursuit of this, they went up a creek about two
leagues more, where they found good water, and filled some casks, and so
came on board to make their report.

The next day we came into the creek's mouth, where we found six to eight
fathom water within a cable's length of the shore, and found fresh water
enough, but no people or cattle, though an excellent country for both.

Of this country I made many observations, suitable to the design and
desire of our ingenious employer and owner; and those observations are
one end of publishing this voyage. I shall mention only one observation
here, because I shall have occasion to speak of them hereafter more
largely. My observation here is as follows:--


     _An observation concerning the soil and climate of the continent
     of America, south of the river De la Plata; and how suitable to the
     genius, the constitution, and the manner of living of Englishmen,
     and consequently for an English colony._

     The particular spot which I observe upon, is that part of the
     continent of America which lies on the shore of the North Seas, as
     they are called, though erroneously, for they are more properly the
     East Seas, being extended along the east shores of South America.
     The land lies on the same east side of America, extended north and
     south from Coasta Deserta, in 42 deg., to Port St. Julian, in 491/2 deg.,
     being almost five hundred miles in length, full of very good
     harbours, and some navigable rivers. The land is a plain for several
     scores of miles within the shore, with several little rising hills,
     but nowhere mountainous or stony; well adapted for enclosing,
     feeding, and grazing of cattle; also for corn, all sorts of which
     would certainly not only grow, but thrive very well here, especially
     wheat, rye, pease, and barley, things which would soon be improved
     by Englishmen, to the making the country rich and populous, the
     raising great quantities of grain of all sorts, and cattle in
     proportion. The trade which I propose for the consumption of all the
     produce, and the place whither to be carried, I refer to speak of by
     itself, in the farther progress of this work.


I return now to the pursuit of our voyage. We put to sea again the 10th
of May, with fair weather and a fair wind; though a season of the year,
it is true, when we might have reason to expect some storms, being what
we might call the depth of their winter. However, the winds held
northerly, which, there, are to be esteemed the warm winds, and bringing
mild weather; and so they did, till we came into the latitude of 50 deg.,
when we had strong winds and squally weather, with much snow and cold,
from the south-west and south-west by west, which, blowing very hard, we
put back to Port St. Julian, where we were not able to stir for some
time.

We weighed again the 29th, and stood south again past the mouth of the
Straits of Magellan, a strait famous for many years, for being thought
to be the only passage out of the North Seas into the South Seas, and
therefore I say famous some ages; not only in the discovery of it by
Magellan, a Spanish captain, but of such significance, that, for many
years, it was counted a great exploit to pass this strait, and few have
ever done it of our nation, but that they have thought fit to tell the
world of it as an extraordinary business, fit to be made public as an
honour to their names. Nay, King Charles the Second thought it worth
while to send Sir John Narborough, on purpose to pass and take an exact
survey of this strait; and the map or plan of it has been published by
Sir John himself, at the public expense, as a useful thing.

Such a mighty and valuable thing also was the passing this strait, that
Sir Francis Drake's going through it gave birth to that famous old
wives' saying, viz., that Sir Francis Drake shot the gulf; a saying that
was current in England for many years after Sir Francis Drake was gone
his long journey of all; as if there had been but one gulf in the world,
and that passing it had been a wonder next to that of Hercules cleansing
the Augean stable.

Of this famous place I could not but observe, on this occasion, that, as
ignorance gave it its first fame and made it for so many ages the most
eminent part of the globe, as it was the only passage by which the whole
world could be surrounded, and that it was to every man's honour that
had passed it; so now it is come to the full end or period of its fame,
and will in all probability never have the honour to have any ship,
vessel, or boat, go through it more, while the world remains, unless,
which is very improbable, that part of the world should come to be fully
inhabited.

I know some are of opinion, that, before the full period of the earth's
existence, all the remotest and most barren parts of it shall be
peopled; but I see no ground for such a notion, but many reasons which
would make it appear to be impracticable, and indeed impossible; unless
it should please God to alter the situation of the globe as it respects
the sun, and place it in a direct, as it now moves in an oblique
position; or that a new species of mankind should be produced, who might
be as well qualified to live in the frozen zone as we are in the
temperate, and upon whom the extremity of cold could have no power. I
say, as there are several parts of the globe where this would be
impracticable, I shall say no more than this, that I think it is a
groundless suggestion.

But to return to our voyage; we passed by the mouth of this famous
Strait of Magellan, and those others which were passed through by Le
Maire the Dutch sailor afterwards; and keeping an offing of six or seven
leagues, went away south, till we came into the latitude of 58 deg., when we
would, as we had tried three days before, have stretched away
south-west, to have got into the South Seas, but a strong gale of wind
took us at west-north-west, and though we could, lying near to it,
stretch away to the southward, yet, as it over-blowed, we could make no
westward way; and though we had under us an excellent strong-built
vessel, that, we may say, valued not the waves, and made very good work
of it, yet we went away to leeward in spite of all we could do, and lost
ground apace. We held it out, however, the weather being clear, but
excessive cold, till we found ourselves in the latitude of 64 deg..

We called our council several times, to consider what we should do, for
we did but drive to leeward the longer we strove with it; the gale held
still on, and, to our apprehensions, it was set in; blowing like a kind
of monsoon, or trade-wind, though in those latitudes I know there is no
such thing properly called, as a trade-wind.

We tried, the wind abating, to beat up again to the north, and we did
so; but it was by running a great way to the east; and once, I believe,
we were in the longitude of St. Helena, though so far south, but it cost
us infinite labour, and near six weeks' time. At length we made the
coast, and arrived again at the Port of St. Julian the 20th of June,
which, by the way, is the depth of their winter.

Here we resolved to lay up for the winter, and not attempt to go so far
south again at that time of the year, but our eager desire of pursuing
our voyage prevailed, and we put out to sea again, having taken in fresh
provisions, such as are to be had there; that is to say, seals,
penguins, and such like, and with this recruit we put to sea, I say, a
second time.

We had this time worse luck than we had before; for, the wind setting in
at south-west, blew a storm, and drove us with such force away to sea
eastward, that we were never able to make any way to the southward at
all, but were carried away with a continued storm of wind, from the same
corner, or near it. Our pilot, or master, as we called him, finding
himself often obliged to go away before it, which kept us out long at
sea, and drove us far to the north-east, eastward, that he advised us to
stand away for the Cape of Good Hope; and accordingly we did so, and
arrived there the last day of July.

We were now disheartened indeed, and I began to revive my proposal of
going to the East Indies, as I at first proposed; and to answer the
objection which they then made against it, as being against the nature
of trade, and that we had nothing on board but European goods, which
were not fitted for the East Indies, where money only was suitable to
the market we were to make; I say, to answer this objection, I told them
I would engage that I would sell our whole cargo at the Philippine
Islands as well as on the coast of America; for that those islands being
Spanish, our disguise of being French would serve us as well at the
Philippines, as it would in New Spain; and with this particular
advantage, that we should sell here for four times the value we should
on the coast of Chili, or Peru; and that, when we had done, we could
load our ship again there, or in other places in the Indies, with such
goods as would come to a good market again in New Spain.

This I told them was indeed what had not been practised, nor at any
other time would it be practicable: for as it was not usual for any
ships to go from the East Indies to the Philippines, so neither was it
usual for any European ships to trade with freedom in the South Seas,
till, since the late war, when the French had the privilege; and I could
not but be amazed that the French had never gone this way, where they
might have made three or four voyages in one, and with much less hazard
of meeting with the English or Dutch cruisers; and have made twice the
profits which they made the other way, where they were frequently out
three or four years upon one return; whereas here they might make no
less than three returns, or perhaps four, in the same voyage and in much
less time.

They were now a little surprised, for in all our first debates we had
nothing of this matter brought in question; only they entertained a
notion that I was going upon strange projects to make discoveries,
search for the South pole, plant new colonies, and I know not how many
whims of their own, which were neither in my design, or in my
instructions. The person, therefore, who was our supercargo, and the
other captain, whose name I have not mentioned, together with the French
Captain, Merlotte, and the rest, who had all opposed me before, came
cheerfully into my proposal; only the supercargo told me, in the name of
the rest, that he began to be more sensible of the advantages of the
voyage I had proposed, than he was before; but that, as he was equally
intrusted with me in the government of the trading part, he begged I
would not take it ill, that he desired I would let him farther into that
particular, and explain myself, at least as far as I thought proper.

This was so just a request, and so easy for me to do, and, above all,
was made with so much good manners and courtesy, that I told him, if I
had been otherwise determined, the courteous and good-humoured way with
which he required it, would constrain me to it; but that, however, I was
very ready to do it, as he was intrusted with the cargo jointly with me,
and that it was a piece of justice to the owners, that whom they thought
fit to trust I should trust also; upon this I told him my scheme, which
was as follows:

First, I said, that, as the Philippine Islands received all their
European goods from Acapulco, in America, by the king of Spain's ships,
they were obliged to give what price was imposed upon them by the
merchants, who brought those goods by so many stages to Acapulco. For
example, the European goods, or suppose English goods in particular,
with which they were loaden, went first from England to Cadiz, from
Cadiz by the galleons to Porto Bello, from Porto Bello, to Panama, from
Panama to Acapulco; in all which places the merchants had their several
commissions and other profits upon the sale; besides the extravagant
charges of so many several ways of carriage, some by water, some by
land, and besides the king's customs in all those places; and that,
after all this, they were brought by sea from Acapulco to the Philippine
Islands, which was a prodigious voyage, and were then generally sold in
the Philippine Islands at three hundred per cent. advance.

That, in the room of all this, our cargo being well bought and well
sorted, would come to the Philippine Islands at once, without any
landing or re-landing, and without any of all the additions of charge to
the first cost, as those by the way of New Spain had upon them; so that,
if we were to sell them at the Philippine Islands a hundred per cent.
cheaper than the Spaniards usually sold, yet we should get abundantly
more than we could on the coast of Peru, though we had been allowed a
free trade there.

That there were but two objections to this advantage, and these were,
our liberty of trading, and whether the place would consume the quantity
of goods we had; and to this I had much to answer. First, that it was
well known at the Philippine Isles, that the kings of France and Spain
were united firmly together; that the king of Spain had allowed the king
of France's subjects a free trade in his American dominions, and
consequently, that it would not be denied there; but, on the other hand,
that, if it was denied by the governor, yet there would be room to find
out a trade with the inhabitants, and especially with the Chinese and
Japan merchants, who were always there, which trade the governor could
not prevent; and thus we could not fear a market for all our cargo, if
it was much greater than it was.

That as to the returns, we had the advantage either way: for, first, we
should be sure to receive a great part of the price of our goods in
Chinese or Japan gold and silver, or in pieces of eight; or, if we
thought fit to trade another way, we might take on board such a quantity
of China damasks, and other wrought silks, muslins and chintz, China
ware, and Japan ware; all which, would be immediately sold in America;
that we should carry a cargo of these goods to New Spain, infinitely to
our advantage, being the same cargo which the four great Acapulco ships
carry back with them every year: That when we had gone to the South Seas
with this cargo, of which we knew we should make a good market, we had
nothing to do but to come back, if we thought fit, to the East Indies
again, where we might load for England or Flanders such goods as we
thought proper; or, if we did not think fit to take so great a run, we
might go away to the south, and round by Cape Horn into the Atlantic
Ocean, and perfect those discoveries, which we made part of in the
beginning of our voyage.

This was so clear a scheme of trade, that he seemed surprised with it,
and fully satisfied in every part of it. But the captain then objected
against the length of the voyage to the South Seas from the Philippines,
and raised several scruples about the latitude which we should keep in
such a voyage; that we should not be able to carry any provisions which
we could take on board in those hot countries, that would keep for so
long a run, and several other difficulties; to all which I made answer,
that when we had sold our cargo at the Philippines, and found our
advantages there to answer our desires, I would not oppose our returning
from thence directly to England if they found it needful; or, if they
thought a farther adventure would not answer the risks we were to expect
in it, we would never have any dispute about that.

This satisfied them fully, and they went immediately with the news to
the men, as what they thought would please them wonderfully, seeing they
were mighty uneasy but two or three days before, about their being to go
back again to the south of America, and the latitude of 64 deg., where we
had not only been twice driven back, as if heaven had forbidden us to
pass that way, but had been driven so far to the south, that we had met
with a most severe cold, and which pinched our men exceedingly, who
being come, as we might say, a hot-weather voyage, were but ill
furnished for the state of the air usual in the latitudes of 64 deg..

But we had a harder task to go through than we expected, upon this
occasion; and it may stand here upon record, as a buoy or beacon to warn
officers and commanders of ships, supercargoes, and such as are trusted
in the conduct of the voyage, never to have any disputes among
themselves, (I say not among themselves), about the course they shall
take, or whither they shall go; for it never fails to come among the men
after them, and if the debate is but named on the outside of the great
cabin door, it becomes immediately a dispute among the officers upon the
quarter-deck, the lieutenants, mates, purser, &c.; from thence it gets
afore the mast, and into the cook room, and the whole ship is
immediately divided into factions and parties; every foremast man is a
captain, or a director to the captain; every boatswain, gunner,
carpenter, cockswain, nay, and even the cook, sets up for a leader of
the men; and if two of them join parties, it is ten to one but it comes
to a mutiny, and perhaps to one of the two last extremities of all
mutinies, viz., running away from the ship, or, what is worse, running
away with the ship.

Our case was exactly thus, and had issued accordingly, for aught I know,
if we had not been in a port where, we got immediate assistance, and
that by a more than ordinary vigour in the management too.

I have mentioned the first time when we called a council about our
voyage at the Canaries, and how it was carried against my opinion not to
go to the East Indies, but to go to the South Seas, about by Cape Horn.
As the debate of this was not at all concealed, the officers of the
ship, viz., the two lieutenants and two mates, the purser, and others,
came in, and went out, and not only heard all we said, but talked of it
at liberty on the quarter-deck, and where they pleased, till it went
among the whole ship's crew. It is true, there came nothing of all this
at that time, because almost all the votes being against my opinion, as
I have said already, the ship's company seemed to join in naturally with
it, and the men were so talked into the great prospects of gain to
themselves, by a voyage to the South Seas, that they looked upon me, who
ought to have had the chief direction in the business, to be nobody, and
to have only made a ridiculous proposal, tending to hurt them; and I
perceived clearly after this, that they looked upon me with an evil eye,
as one that was against their interest; nay, and treated me with a sort
of contempt too, as one that had no power to hurt them, but as one, that
if things were left to me, would carry them on a wildgoosechase they
knew not whither.

I took no notice of this at first, knowing that, in the process of
things, I should have opportunity enough to let them know I had power to
oblige them many ways; as also, that I had authority sufficient to
command the whole ship, and that the direction of the voyage was
principally in me, though I being willing to do everything in a friendly
way, had too easily, and, I may say, too weakly, put that to the vote,
which I had a right to have commanded their compliance with. The ill
consequences of which appeared not for some time, but broke out upon the
occasion of our new measures, as will presently appear.

As soon as we had determined our voyage among ourselves in the great
cabin, the supercargo and Captain Merlotte went out upon the
quarter-deck, and began to talk of it among the officers, midshipmen,
&c.; and, to give them their due, they talked of it very honestly; not
with any complaint of being over-ruled, or over-persuaded, but as a
measure that was fully agreed to among us in the great cabin.

The boatswain, a blunt, surly, bold fellow, as soon as he heard of it,
Very well, says he, so we are all come back into Captain Positive's
blind proposal (for so he called me); why this is the same that
everybody rejected at the Canaries; and now, because we are driven
hither by contrary winds, those winds must be a reason why we must
undertake a preposterous, ridiculous voyage, that never any sailor would
have proposed, and that man never went before. What, does the captain
think that we cannot find our way to the coast of America again, and
because we have met with cross winds, we must never meet with fair ones?
I warrant him, let us but go up the height of St. Helena, we will soon
reach the Rio de la Plata and Port St. Julian again, and get into the
South Seas too, as others have done before us.

The gunner took it from the boatswain, and he talks with one of the
midshipmen in the same dialect. For my part, says he, I shipped myself
for the South Seas when I first came aboard the ship, and in hopes of
good booty; and if we go thither, I know nothing can hinder us, wind and
weather permitting: but this is such a voyage as no man ever attempted
before; and whatever the captain proposes, can have nothing in it for
the men, but horrid fatigue, violent heats, sickness, and starving.

One of the mates takes it from him, and he says as openly, I wonder what
a plague the rest of the gentlemen mean; they were all against the
captain when he started this whimsical voyage before, and now they come
all into it of a sudden, without any consideration; and so the project
of one man must ruin the most promising voyage ever yet undertaken, and
be the death of above two hundred as stout fellows as ever were together
in one ship in this part of the world.

One of the midshipmen followed the mate, and said, We were all promised
that another ship should be gotten, either purchased or taken, and that
the first ship we took, should be manned and victualled out of this
ship, where we were double manned, and crowded together enough to bring
an infection among us, in such hot climates as we are going into; and
if we were in the South Seas, we should easily buy a ship, or take a
ship for our purpose, almost where we would; but in all this part of the
world there is no such thing as a ship fit for an Englishman to set his
foot in. We were promised, too, that when we got into such a ship, we
that entered as midshipmen should be preferred to offices, as we were
qualified, and as our merit should recommend us. What they are going to
do with us now, I cannot imagine, unless it be to turn us afore the
mast, when half the foremast men are dead, and thrown overboard.

The master, or pilot of the ship, heard all these things, and sent us
word into the great cabin of all that passed, and, in short, assured us,
that, if these things went a little farther, he was afraid they would
come up to a mutiny; that there was great danger of it already, and that
we ought to apply some immediate remedy to it, or else he thought it
would be too late. He told me the particulars also, and how the whole
weight of their resentment seemed to tend to quarrelling at my command,
as believing that this project of going to the East Indies was wholly
mine; and that the rest of the officers being a little influenced by the
accident of our being driven so far out of our way, were only biassed in
the rest by my opinion; and, as they were all against it before, would
have been so still, if it had not been for me; and he feared, if they
went on, they might enter into some fatal measures about me, and perhaps
resolve to set me on shore in some barren uninhabited land or other, to
give me my bellyful of new discoveries, as it seems some of them had
hinted, and the second mate in particular.

I was far from being insensible of the danger I was in, and indeed of
the danger the whole voyage, ship and all, was in; for I made no
question, but that, if their brutish rage led them to one villanous
action, they would soon go on to another; and the devil would take hold
of that handle to represent the danger of their being punished for it
when they came home; and so, as has been often the case, prompt them to
mutiny against all command, and run away with the ship.

However, I had presence of mind enough to enter into prompt measures for
our general safety, and to prevent the worse, in case of any attempt
upon me. First, I represented the case to the rest of the gentlemen and
asked if they would stand by me, and by the resolutions which we had
taken for the voyage; then I called into our assistance the chief mate,
who was a kinsman of one of our owners, a bold resolute gentleman, and a
purser, who we knew was faithful to us; as also the surgeon and the
carpenter. I engaged them all to give me first their opinions whether
they were convinced of the reasonableness of my scheme for the voyage I
had proposed; and that they might judge for themselves, laid it all
before them again, arguing every part of it so clearly to them, that
they were convinced entirely of its being the most rational prospect of
the voyage for us, of any we could go about.

When I had done this, I recommended it to them to expostulate with the
men, and if possible, to keep them in temper, and keep them to their
duty; but at the same time, to stand all ready, and upon a signal which
I gave them, to come all to the steerage, and defend the great cabin
door with all the other hands, whom they could be sure of; and in the
mean time to be very watchful over the motions of the men, and see what
they drove at.

At the same time I fortified myself with the French captain, and the
supercargo, and the other captain; and by the way, all the French
captain's men were true to him, and he true to us, to a man. We then
brought a sufficient store of ammunition and small arms into the great
cabin, and secured the steerage, as also the roundhouse, so that we
could not possibly be surprised.

There was nothing done that night, but the next morning I was informed,
that the gunner and second mate were in a close cabal together, and one
or two of the midshipmen, and that they had sworn to one another, not
that they would not go the voyage as was proposed, for that might have
ended in their running away, which I should not have been sorry for;
but, in short, their oath was, that the ship should not go the voyage;
by which I was presently to understand, that they had some measures to
take to prevent my design of the voyage to the Philippines, and that,
perhaps, this was to run away with the ship to Madagascar, which was not
far off.

I had, however, this apparent encouragement, that as the contrivance was
yet but two days' old, for it was but two days since they had any notice
of our intentions to go, they would be some days caballing and forming
an interest among the men, to make up a party strong enough to make any
attempt; and that, as I had a trusty set of men, who would be as
diligent the other way, they would be contriving every method to get the
men over to their opinion, so that at least it would be some time before
they could make their party up.

The affair was rightly conjectured, and the three men who had made
themselves the head of the mutineers, went on apace, and my men
increased too, as much as could be desired for the time; but the Friday
after, which was about five days from the first discovery, one of the
midshipmen came, and desired to speak with me, and begged it might not,
if possible, be known that he was with me. I asked him if he desired to
be alone; he said no, I might appoint whom I thought convenient that I
could trust, but that what he had to say was of the last importance to
all our lives, and that therefore, he hoped I would be very sure of
those in whom I confided.

Upon this, I told him, I would name the chief mate, the French captain,
and the supercargo, and in the mean time, I bade him not be too much
surprised, for that I had already some warning of the scheme which I
believed he had to tell me of, and that I was preparing all things to
disappoint it: that, however, I should not value his fidelity the less,
and that he might speak freely his mind before those men, for they were
all in the secret already, and he might be sure both of protection and
reward.

Accordingly, I bade him go out upon the quarter-deck, and walk there,
and that, when the chief mate went off into the roundhouse, he should go
down between decks as if he was going into his cabin to sleep, and that,
when he heard the chief mate call the cabin boy, a black of mine, whose
name was Spartivento, he should take that for a signal that the steerage
was clear, and he might come up, and should be let into the great cabin;
all which was so managed, and in so short a time, that he was with us in
the great cabin in a quarter of an hour after the first conference, and
none of the men perceived it.

Here he let me into the whole secret, and a wicked scheme it was; viz.,
that the second mate, the gunner, three midshipmen, the cockswain, and
about six-and-thirty of the men, had resolved to mutiny, and seize upon
all us who were in the new project, as they called it; and to confine us
first, then to set us on shore, either there where we were, or
somewhere else, and so carry the ship away to the South Seas, and then
to do as they found convenient; that is to say, in a word, to seize upon
me, the other captain, the French captain, the supercargo, the chief
mate, doctor, and carpenter, with some others, and run away with the
ship.

He told me, that they had not fully concluded on all their measures, nor
gained so many of the men as they intended; that they were to sound some
more of the men the next morning, and, as soon as they had made their
number up fifty, they were resolved to make the attempt, which they did
not question would be by Thursday, and this was Monday morning; and
that, if they were then ready, they would make the onset at changing the
watch the same evening. He added, that, as they were to go on shore the
next morning for fresh water, I should know the truth of it by this;
that the second mate would come to me, and tell me that they wanted more
water, and to know if I pleased the boats should go on shore, and that,
if I chose it, he would go with them, or any else whom I pleased to
appoint; and that, upon supposition that I would leave it to him, to
take those he thought fit to go with him, he would then take occasion to
choose the principal conspirators, that they might, when they were on
shore, conclude upon the measures they intended to pursue.

I had all that day (Monday) to order my preparations, and upon this
plain intelligence, I determined to lose no time, nor was it long before
I resolved what to do; for as their design was desperate, so I had
nothing but desperate remedies to provide. Having therefore settled my
measures, I called for the cockswain, and bade him man the pinnace, for
that I was to go on shore, and I appointed only the supercargo, and the
surgeon, and the French captain, to go with me.

There were no English ships in the road, but there were about five Dutch
vessels homeward-bound, waiting for more, and three outward-bound. As I
passed by one of the outward-bound East India ships, the French captain,
as we had agreed before, pretended to know the ship, and that the
commander was his old acquaintance, and asked me to give him leave to
visit him, and told me he was sure he would make us all welcome. I
seemed unwilling at first, telling him I intended to go on shore and
pay my respects to the governor, and, as was usual, to ask him leave to
buy some provisions, and that the governor would take it very ill if I
did not go. However, upon his alleging that we would not stay, and that
the Dutch captain, upon his going on board, would, he was sure, give us
a letter of recommendation to the governor, by which we should have
everything granted that we could desire, I consented to his importunity,
and we went on board.

Captain Merlotte, who spoke Dutch very well, hailed the ship, asked the
captain's name, and then asked if he was on board; they answered, Yes;
then he bade them tell him the captain of the English ship was come to
visit him; upon which, immediately their chief mate bade them man the
side, and stood at the side to receive us, and, before we could get up,
the Dutch captain came upon the quarter-deck, and with great civility
invited us into his cabin; and, while we were there, the chief mate, by
the captain's order, entertained the boat's crew with like civility.

When we were in the cabin, Captain Merlotte told the Dutch captain that
we came indeed to him in the form of a visit, but that our business was
of the greatest importance, and desired we might speak to him of it in
the hearing of none but such as he could trust. The captain told us with
the greatest open-heartedness imaginable, that though we were strangers
to him, yet we looked like honest men, and he would grant our request;
we should speak it in the hearing of none but those we could trust, for
there should be nobody by but ourselves.

We made him fully sensible that we knew how obliging that compliment
was, but begged he would admit any whom he thought worthy to be trusted
with a secret of the last importance. He then carried it as far the
other way, and told us, that then he must call in the whole ship's
company, for that there was not a man in the ship but he could trust his
life in his hands. However, upon the whole, he sent everybody out of the
cabin but us three and himself, and then desired we would speak our
minds freely.

Captain Merlotte, who spoke Dutch, began, but the Dutch captain
interrupted him, and asked if the English captain, meaning me, spoke
Dutch; he said no; upon which he asked Captain Merlotte if he spoke
English, and he said yes, upon which he let me know that he understood
English, and desired I would speak to him in English.

I was heartily glad of this, and began immediately with the story, for
we had time little enough, I told him that he was particularly happy in
having it in his power to say he could put his life in the hand of any
man, the meanest in his ship; that my men were unhappily the reverse of
his; and, then beginning at the first of the story, I gave him a full
account of the whole, as related above.

He was extremely affected with it, and asked me what he could do to
serve me, and assured me that he would not only do what in him lay, but
would engage all the ships in the road to do the like, and the governor
also on shore. I thanked him very sincerely, and told him what at
present was the circumstance I thought lay before me, was this, viz.,
that the chief conspirators would be on shore on the morrow, with one,
or perhaps two, of our boats, to fetch water and get some fresh
provisions, and I should be very glad to have them seized upon by
surprise, when they were on shore, and that then I thought I could
master the rest on board well enough.

Leave that to me, says he, I will give the governor notice this evening,
and as soon as they come on shore they shall be all seized; But, says
he, if you think they may incline to make any resistance, I will write a
line to the governor, and give it you now; then, when your men go on
shore, order two of the principal rogues to go and wait on the governor
with the letter from you, and when he receives it, he shall secure them
there; so they will be divided, and taken with the more ease.

In the mean time, added he, while this is doing on shore, I will come on
board your ship, with my long boat and pinnace, and as many men as you
please, to repay you the compliment of this visit, and assist you in
reducing the rest.

This was so kind, and so completely what I desired, that I could have
asked nothing more; and I accepted his visit in his barge, which I
thought would be enough, but was afraid that, if more came, our men
might be alarmed, and take arms before I was ready; so we agreed upon
that, and, if I desired more help, I should hang out a signal, viz., a
red ancient, on the mizen top.

All things being thus consulted, I returned on board, pretending to our
men that I had spent so much time on board the Dutch ship, that I could
not go on shore; and indeed some of my men were so drunk, that they
could scarce sit to their oars; and the coxswain was so very far gone,
that I took occasion to ask publicly, to leave him on board till the
next day, giving the Dutch captain also a hint that he was in the
conspiracy, and I should be glad to leave him on that account.

The next day, about nine o'clock, the second mate came to me, and told
me they wanted more water, and, if I pleased to order the boat on shore,
he would go if I thought fit, and see if he could get any fresh
provisions, the purser being indisposed.

I told him, yes, with all my heart; that the Dutch captain last night
had given me a letter to the governor, to desire we might be furnished
with whatever we had occasion for, and that I had thoughts of calling
for him to go on shore and deliver it, and that, perhaps, the governor
might make him some present in compliment to the English nation.

He seemed extremely pleased at this, and even elevated, and going out to
give orders about the boat, ordered the long-boat and the shallop, and
came in again, and asked me whom I pleased to have go along with him. I
answered, smilingly to him. Pick and choose then yourself, only leave
the pinnace's crew that went with me yesterday, because they must go on
board again to carry the Dutch captain a little present of English beer
that I am going to send him, and fetch aboard their drunken coxswain,
who was so intoxicated that we were fain to leave him behind us.

This was just what he wanted; and we found he chose all the chief rogues
of the conspiracy; such as the boatswain, the gunner, the midshipmen we
spoke of, and such of the foremast men as he had secured in his design;
and of the rest, we judged they were in the plot, because he took them
with him; and thus having the long-boat and the shallop, with about
six-and-thirty men with them, away they went to fill water.

When they came on shore, they had presently three Dutchmen, set by the
Dutch captain, unperceived by them, to be spies upon them, and to mark
exactly what they did; and at the same time found three boats of
Dutchmen at the watering-place, (for the captain had procured two boats
to go on shore from two other ships,) full of men also, having
acquainted them with the design. As soon as our boats came on shore, the
men appeared to be all very much engaged in something more than
ordinary, and, instead of separating, as it was expected they should,
they went all into one boat, and there they were mighty busily engaged
in discourse one with another.

The Dutch captain had given the charge of these things to a brisk bold
fellow, his mate, and he took the hints the captain gave him so well,
that nothing could have been better; for, finding the men thus in a kind
of a cabal, he takes four of his men with muskets on their shoulders,
like the governor's men, and goes with them to the Englishmen's boat,
and asks for their officer, the second mate, who, upon this, appears. He
tells them he comes from the governor, to know if they were Englishmen,
and what their business was on shore there: the mate answered, they came
from on board the English ship, that they were driven there by stress of
weather, and hoped they might have leave to fill water and buy
necessaries for their money.

He told them he supposed the governor would not refuse them when he knew
who they were, but that it was but good manners to ask leave: the
Englishman told him, that he had not yet filled any water or bought any
provisions, and that he had a letter to the governor from the captain,
which he supposed was to pay the usual civilities to him, and to give
him the civility of taking leave, as was expected.

The Dutchman answered, that was hael weel; that he might go and carry
it, if he pleased, then, and, if the governor gave them leave, all was
right and as it should be; but that the men could not be admitted to
come on shore till his return.

Upon this, away goes the second mate of our ship and three of the men
with him, whereof the gunner was one; for he had asked the Dutchman how
many he might carry with him, and he told him three or four: and those
he took you may be sure, were of the particular men whom he had a
confidence in, because of their conversing together by the way.

When they came to the governor, the mate sent in a message first, viz.,
that he was come from on board the English ship in the road, and that
he had a letter from the captain to his excellence.

The governor, who had notice given him of the business, sends out word,
that the gentlemen should send in the letter, and the governor would
give them an answer: in the mean time, there appeared a guard of
soldiers at the governor's house, and the four Englishmen were let into
the outer room, where the door was shut after them, and the soldiers
stood without the door, and more soldiers in another room between them
and the parlour which the governor sat in.

After some time, the mate was called in, and the governor told him that
he had read the letter which he brought, and asked him if he knew the
contents of it; he answered, No: the governor replied, he supposed not,
for, if he had, he would scarce have brought it; at the same time told
him, he was obliged to make him and all his men prisoners, at the
request of their own captain, for a conspiracy to raise a mutiny and run
away with the ship. Upon which, two great fat Dutchmen came up to him,
and bid him deliver his sword, which he did with some reluctance; for he
was a stout strong fellow; but he saw it all to no purpose to dispute or
resist.

At the same time, the three men without were made prisoners also by the
soldiers. When the governor had thus secured these men, he called them
in, and inquired the particulars of the case, and expostulated with them
very pathetically upon such a horrid, villanous design, and inquired of
them what the occasion could be; and, hearing all they had to say in
their defence, told them he could do nothing more in it till their
captain came on shore, which would be in a day or two, and that, in the
mean time, they must be content to remain in custody, which they did,
separated from one another. They were very civilly treated, but strictly
kept from speaking or sending any messages to one another, or to the
boats.

When this was accomplished, the governor sent six files of musketeers
down to the watering-place, with an order to secure all the Englishmen
in the two boats, which was done. They seemed inclined to make some
resistance at first, being all very well armed; but the seamen of the
three Dutch long-boats, joining themselves to the soldiers, and notice
being given the English seamen, that if they fired one gun, they should
have no quarter; and especially their two principal men, the chief mate
and the gunner, being absent, they submitted, and were all made
prisoners also.

When this was done, of which the Dutch captain had notice by a signal
from the shore, he came off in his shallop, with about sixteen seamen,
and five or six gentlemen and officers, to pay his visit to me. I
received him with all the appearance of ceremony imaginable, ordered an
elegant dinner to be prepared for him, and caused his men to be all
treated upon the deck, and made mighty preparations for the feast.

But in the middle of all this, Captain Merlotte, with all his Frenchmen,
being thirty-two, appeared in arms on the quarter-deck; the Dutch
captain's attendants stood to their arms on the main-deck, and I, with
the supercargo, the doctor, and the other captain, leaving the Dutch
captain and some men in the great cabin as a reserve, came to the
steerage door, cleared the steerage behind me, and stood there with a
cutlass in my hand, but said nothing; neither was there a word spoke
anywhere all the while.

In this juncture, the chief mate, the faithful midshipmen, the
carpenter, and the gunner's mate, with about twenty men whom they could
trust, went fore and aft between decks, and secured all the particular
men that we had the least suspicion of, being no less than thirty-five
more. These they secured, bringing them up into the steerage, where
their hands were tied behind them, and they were commanded not to speak
a word to one another upon pain of present death.

When this was done, the chief mate came to me to the steerage door, and
passing by, went forward with his men, entered the cook-room, and posted
himself at the cook-room door. There might be still about eighty men
upon the forecastle and midships upon the open decks; and there they
stood staring, and surprised at what was doing, but not being able to
guess in the least what was meant, what was the cause of it, or what was
intended to be done farther.

When I found all things ready, I moved forward a step or two, and
beckoning to the mate to command silence, I told the men that I was not
disposed to hurt any man, nor had I done what I now did, but by
necessity, and that I expected they should all submit; that, if any one
of them made the least resistance, he was a dead man; but that, if they
would be easy and quiet, I should give a very good account to them all,
of every part of the voyage, or scheme of a voyage, which I had laid,
and which had been so ill represented to them.

Then I caused my commissioner letter of mart to be read to them all, by
which it appeared that I was really chief commander of the ship, and had
a right to direct the voyage as I thought best; with a paper of written
instructions, signed by the owners and adventurers, and directed to me,
with another paper of instructions to all the officers, to be directed
by me in all things; which, indeed, was all news to them, for they did
not think I was the chief captain or commander of the ship and voyage.

When I had done this, I gave them a long and full account of the reasons
why I thought it best, as our present circumstances were stated, not to
go to the South Seas first, but to go away to the Philippine Islands,
and what great prospect of advantage to the owners there was, as well as
to the men; and that I wondered much that such measures were taken in
the ship as I heard there were; and that I was not, they might see,
unprovided of means to reduce every one of them to their duty by force,
and to punish those that were guilty, as they deserved, but that I
rather desired to win them with kindness; and that, therefore, I had
resolved, that if any of them had any reason to dislike the voyage, they
should be safely set on shore, and suffered to go to the second mate and
his comrades: and farther, I told them what circumstances they were in
and how effectually they were secured.

This astonished them, and surprised them exceedingly, and some of them
inquired more particularly into the circumstances of the said second
mate and his fellows: I told them they were safe enough, and should
remain so; for, as I could prove they had all a villanous design to run
away with the ship, and set me on shore, either here, or in a worse
place, I thought that only upon account of my own safety, such men were
not fit to go in the ship, being once capable to entertain such horrid
mischievous thoughts, or that could be guilty of such a villany; and
that, if any of them were of their minds, they were very welcome, if
they thought fit, to go to them.

At this offer, some bold rogues upon the forecastle, which I did not
discern, by reason of the number that stood there, cried out, _One and
all_, which was a cry, at the same time, of mutiny and rebellion, that
was certain, and in its kind very dangerous.

However, to let them see I was not to be daunted with it, I called out
to one of the men among them, whom I saw upon the forecastle; You Jones,
said I, tell me who they are, and come away from them, for I will make
an example of them, whoever they are. Will Jones slunk in among the
rest, and made me no answer, and immediately _One and all_ was cried
again, and a little huzza with it, and some of the men appeared to have
fire-arms with them. There was a great many of them, and I presently
foresaw, that, if I went to the extremity, I should spoil the voyage,
though I conquered them; so I bridled my passion with all my power, and
said calmly, Very well, gentlemen, let me know what you mean by _one and
all_? I offered any of you that did not like to go the voyage to quit
the ship; is that what you intend by _one and all_? If so, you are
welcome, and pray take care to do it immediately; as for what chests or
clothes you have in the ship, you shall have them all with you. Upon
this I made the chief mate, who was now come to me again, advance a
little with some more men, and get between the men upon the forecastle
and those who were upon the main deck; and, as if he had wanted room,
when he had gotten between them, he said to them, Stand aft a little,
gentlemen, and so crowded them towards me.

As they came nearer and nearer to where I stood, I had an opportunity to
speak to them singly, which I did calmly and smilingly.

Why, how now, Tom, says I, to one of them; what are you among the
mutineers?

Lord, sir, says Tom, not I, they are mad, I think; I have nothing to say
to them; I care not where I go, not I; I will go round the globe with
you, it's all one to me.

Well, Tom, says I, but what do you do among them then? come away into
the steerage, and show yourself an honest man.

So Tom comes in, and after him another, and then two more. Upon my
saying to Tom, What do you do among them? one of the fellows says to one
of the officers that stood at a little distance from me, What does the
captain mean by saying, among them? What, does he reckon us to be in the
plot? He is quite wrong, we are all ignorant, and surprised at it. He
immediately tells me this, and I was glad, you may be sure, to hear it,
and said aloud to the man that he spoke to, If they are honest men, and
would not appear in this villany, let them go down between decks, and
get out of the way, that they may have no share in the punishment, if
they have none in the crime. With all my heart, says one; God bless you,
captain, says another, and away they dropt one by one in at the steerage
door, and down between decks, every one in his hammock or cabin, till
there were not above five or six of them left.

By this time, our two boats appeared from the shore, being both manned
with Dutchmen, viz. the Dutch captain's mate and about twenty of his
men, all the water casks full, but not a man of mine with them, for they
were left on shore in safe custody.

I waited till they came on board, and then turning to the men on the
forecastle, I told them they should go on board the boats immediately,
as soon as the butts of water were hoisted in. They still said, _One and
all_, they were ready, desired they might go and fetch their clothes.

No, no, says I, not a man of you shall set your foot any more into the
ship; but go get you into the boat, and what is your own shall be given
you into the boat.

As I spoke this in an angry tone, and with a kind of passion, that
bespoke resentment to a high degree, they began to see they had no
opportunity to choose; and some of them slipt down the scuttle into the
cook-room. I had ordered the officer who was there, who was one of the
midshipmen, to wink at it, and let as many come down as offered it; and
the honest man did more than that, for he went to the scuttle himself,
and, as if he had whispered, so that I should not hear him, called them
one by one by their names, and argued with them; Prithee, Jack, says he
to one of them, do not you be distracted, and ruin yourself to gratify a
rash drunken humour; if you go into the boat you are undone; you will be
seized as soon as you come on shore, as the rest are, and will be sent
to England in irons, and there you will be infallibly hanged; why you
are certainly all mad.

Jack replies, he had no design to mutiny, but the second mate drew him
in, and he did not know what to do, he wished he had not meddled; he
knew he was undone; but now what could he do?

Do, says the midshipman, leave them for shame, and slip down here, and
I will see and get you off if I can.

Accordingly he pulled him down, and after him so many got out of sight
the same way, that there was not above seventeen or eighteen left upon
the forecastle.

I seemed to take no notice of that, till at last one of the men that was
left there, with his hat or cap in his hand, stepping just to the edge
of the forecastle, which was next to me, said, in a very respectful
manner, that I saw how many had slunk away and made their peace, or at
least obtained pardon, and that I might, perhaps, know that they who
were left were only such as had their duty there, being placed there of
course before the mutiny began, and that they had no hand in it, but
abhorred it with all their hearts, which he hoped I would consider, and
not join them with those that had offended, merely because they came
upon the forecastle, and mixed there with the men who had the watch.

I told him, if that was true, it would be in their favour, but I
expected he would prove it to my satisfaction before I accepted that for
an excuse. He told me, it might, perhaps, be hard to prove it, seeing
the boatswain and his mate, and the second mate, were gone, but the rest
of the ship's crew could all testify that they were a part of the men
whose watch it was, and that they were upon the forecastle by the
necessity of their duty, and no otherwise; and called several men who
were upon duty with them to witness it, who did confirm it.

Upon this, I found myself under a necessity, in justice to the men, to
approve it; but my own management was a bite upon myself in it; for,
though I did allow the midshipman to wink at their slipping away, as
before, yet I made no question but I should have some left to make
examples of; but as I could not go back from the promise of mercy which
I had allowed the midshipman to offer in my name, so I tricked myself by
their mistake into a necessity of pardoning them all, which was very far
from my design; but there was no remedy.

However, the men, when they were so happily escaped, desired the
midshipman, who had been instrumental to their deliverance, to assure
me, that as they were sensible that they had deserved very ill at my
hands, and that yet I had treated them thus kindly, they would not only
reveal to me all the particulars of the conspiracy, and the names of
those principally concerned in it, but that they would assure me they
would never more dispute any of my measures, but were very ready to do
their duty as seamen, to what part of the world soever I might think fit
to go, or which way I thought fit to carry them, whether outward or
homeward; and that they gave me the tender of their duty in this manner
with the utmost sincerity and with thankfulness, for my having forgiven
them that conduct which was the worst that a seamen could be guilty of.

I took this very kindly, and sent them word I did so, and that they
should see they had taken the wiser course; that I had an entire
confidence in their fidelity; and that they should never find I would
reproach them with, or use them the worse for, what had past.

I must confess, I was very glad of this submission of the men; for
though, by the measures I had taken, I was satisfied I should conquer
them, and that I was safe from their attempts; yet, carrying it on by
resentment, and doing justice upon the offenders, whatever advantage it
had one way, had this disadvantage in the consequence; viz., that it
would ruin the voyage, for at least half the men were in the plot.

Having thus conquered them by good usage, I thought my next work was to
inquire into the mistakes which had been the foundation of all this: so,
before I parted with the men who had returned to their duty, I told
them, that as I had freely forgiven what was past, so I would keep my
word, that I would never reproach them with it; but that I thought it
was necessary their judgments should be convinced how much they were
imposed upon, as well as their tempers be reduced by my kindness to
them. That I was of the opinion that they had been abused in the account
given them of what I had designed to do, and of the reasons I had to
give for doing it; and I would desire them to let me know afterwards,
whether they had been faithfully informed or not; and whether in their
own judgment, now when they were freed from the prepossessions they were
under, they could object anything against it or no.

This I did with respect to the other men whom I had made prisoners in
the steerage, whom I had the same design to be kind to as I had to
these; but upon whom I resolved to work this way, because, after all, I
might have this work to do over again, if I should meet with any
disappointment or miscarriage in the voyage; or especially, if we should
be put to any difficulties or distresses in the pursuing it.

In order to this I caused the voyage itself, and the reasons of it, the
nature of the trade I was to carry on by it, the pursuit of it to the
South Seas, and, in a word, everything just as we had argued and settled
it in the great cabin, to be put into writing and read to them.

The fellows, every one of them, declared they were fully satisfied in
the voyage itself, and that my reasons for it were perfectly good; and
that they had received a quite different account of it; as that I would
carry them into the island of the Moluccas, which was the most unhealthy
part of the East Indies; that I would go away to the south for new
discoveries; and that I would go away thence to the South Seas; which
was a voyage of such a length, that no ship could victual for; that it
was impossible to carry fresh water such a length; and, in a word, that
it was a voyage that would destroy us all.

It was the chief mate and the midshipman who took them all down the
scuttle, that brought me this account from them: so I made him take two
of those penitent mutineers with him, and go to the men in the steerage,
whom he had made prisoners at first, and see whether their delusions
were of the same kind, and what kind of temper they were in;
accordingly, he went to them directly, for this was not a business that
admitted giving them time to club and cabal together, and form other
societies or combinations which might have consequences fatal to us
still.

When he came to them, he told them, the captain was willing to do all
the justice possible to his men, and to use them, on all occasions, with
equity and kindness; that I had ordered him to inquire calmly what it
was had moved them to these disorders, and what it was which they had
been made to believe was doing, that they could enter into measures so
destructive to themselves, and to those who had intrusted them all with
the ship and cargo; for that, in a voyage, every foremast-man, in his
degree, is trusted with the safety of the whole ship.

They answered it was the second mate; that they had never shown
themselves discontented, much less disorderly, in the ship; that they
had, on all occasions, done their duty through the whole voyage till
now; and that they had no ill design upon any one, much less had they
any design to destroy the voyage, or injure the captain; but that they
were all told by the second mate, that the captain had imposed upon
them, by proposing a mad voyage to the south pole, that would be the
death of them all, and that they were to lay aside the trading and
cruising voyages which they came out upon, and were now to spend the
whole voyage in new discoveries; by which the men could propose nothing
to themselves but hardships, and perhaps perishing with hunger and cold;
whereas, had they gone to the South Seas as was intended, they might all
have been made; and that the hazards, with that prospect, had some
consolation in them; whereas, in this project, there was nothing but
certain destruction.

The mate delivered them a copy of the scheme I had proposed, the reasons
of it, the trade I had designed, the return I was to make, and
everything, as I have already mentioned, and bade them take it and
consider of it.

As I was justly provoked to see how I had been abused and misrepresented
to the men, so they were astonished when they read my scheme, and saw
what mischiefs they had been led into, for they knew not what, and
without any reason or just consideration: and, after they had debated
things awhile among themselves, they desired the chief mate might come
to them again, which he did; then they told him, that as they had been
thus grossly abused, and drawn into mischiefs which they never designed,
by such plausible pretences, and by being told such a long story full of
lies, and to carry on an infernal project of the second mate's, they
hoped their being so much imposed upon would a little extenuate their
fault; that they were convinced the captain had proposed nothing but
what was very rational, and a voyage that might be very profitable to
the owners and to every individual; and they entirely threw themselves
upon the captain's mercy, and humbly begged pardon; that, if I pleased
to forgive them, they would endeavour to merit such forgiveness by their
future behaviour; and that, in the mean time, they submitted to what
punishment I pleased to lay upon them: and, particularly, that, as they
had forfeited, by their conspiracy, all the claims they had upon the
ship, and might justly have been turned on shore at the first land they
came to, they were willing to sign a discharge for all their wages due
to them, which was now near eight months a man, and to be considered for
the rest of the voyage as they deserved: that they would all take a
solemn oath of fidelity to me to do their duty, to go wherever I would
carry them, and to behave with the greatest submission and diligence, in
hopes to regain my favour by their future behaviour, and to show their
gratitude for the pardon I should grant them.

This was, indeed, just as I would have it, for I wanted nothing more
than to have something offered, which I might give them back again; for
I ever thought, and have found it by experience, to be the best way; and
men were always secured in their duty by a generous kindness, better
than by absolute dominion and severity: indeed, my opinion was justified
in all the measures I took with these men; for as I found they were
sufficiently humbled, and that I had brought them low enough, I let them
know that it was not their punishment but their amendment I desired;
that I scorned to make a prey of them, and take that forfeiture they had
offered, by putting the wages due to them for their labour in my pocket.
I then sent them word I was very glad to hear that they were sensible
how much they had been imposed upon; that, as it was not my design to
offer anything to them which they or any honest men ought to refuse, so
it was not my desire to make any advantages of their follies but what
might tend to bring them back to their duty; that, as I had no prospect
that was inconsistent with their safety and interest, so I scorned to
make an advantage of their submission; that as to their wages, though
they had forfeited them by their mutiny, yet God forbid I should convert
them to my own profit; and since forgiving their offence was in my
power, the crime being in one particular an offence against me, they
should never be able to say I made a gain of their submission, and, like
the Pope, should sell them my pardon; that, upon their solemnly engaging
to me never to offer the least disturbance of any kind in the ship for
the future, but to do their duty faithfully and cheerfully, I would
forget all that was passed; only this I expected, that two of them, who
were particularly guilty of threatening the life of Captain Merlotte,
should be punished as they deserved.

They could not deny but this was most just; and they did not so much as
offer to intercede for those two; but, when one of the two moved the
rest to petition for them, they answered they could not do it, for they
had received favour enough for themselves, and they could not desire
anything of the captain for their sakes, for they had all deserved
punishment as well as they.

In a word, the two men were brought upon deck, and soundly whipped and
pickled; and they all proved very honest ever after: and these, as I
said at first, were two-and-thirty in all.

All this while Captain Merlotte with his Frenchmen were in arms, and had
possession on the quarter-deck to the number of twenty-three stout men;
I had possession of the main-deck with eighteen men and the sixteen
Dutchmen, and my chief mate with the midshipman, had possession of the
cook-room and quarter-deck; the Dutch captain, our supercargo, the
surgeon, and the other captain, kept the great cabins with a guard of
twelve musketeers without the door, and about eight more within, besides
servants. Captain Merlotte's man also had a guard of eight men in the
roundhouse. I had now nothing to do but with my men who were on shore;
and of these, six were no way culpable, being men not embarked in the
design, but carried on shore by the chief mate, with a design to engage
them with him; so that, indeed, they fell into a punishment before they
fell into the crime, and what to do with these men was a nice point to
manage.

The first thing I did, was to dismiss my visitor, the Dutch captain,
whom I had a great deal of reason to think myself exceedingly obliged
to: and, first, I handsomely rewarded his men, to whom I gave four
pieces of eight a man; and having waited on the captain to the ship's
side, and seen him into his boat, I fired him twenty-one guns at his
going off; for which he fired twenty-five when he came on board his
ship.

The same afternoon I sent my pinnace on board him for my drunken
cockswain, and with the pinnace I sent the captain three dozen bottles
of English beer, and a quarter cask of Canary, which was the best
present I had to make him; and sent every one of his other seamen a
piece of eight per man; and, indeed, the assistance I had from the ship
deserved it; and to the mate, who acted so bravely with my men on
shore, I sent fifty pieces of eight.

The next day I went on shore to pay my respects to the governor, when I
had all the prisoners delivered up to me. Six men I caused to be
immediately set at liberty, as having been innocent, and brought all the
rest on board, tied hand and foot, as prisoners, and continued them so,
a great while afterward, as the reader will find. As for the second
mate, I tried him formally by a council of war, as I was empowered by my
commission to do, and sentenced him to be hanged at the yard-arm: and
though I suspended the execution from day to day, yet I kept him in
expectation of the halter every hour; which, to some, would have been as
grievous as the hanging itself.

Thus we conquered this desperate mutiny, all principally proceeding from
suffering the private disputes among ourselves, which ought to have been
the arcana of the whole voyage, and kept as secret as death itself could
have kept it, I mean so as not to come among the seamen afore the mast.

We lay here twelve days, during which time we took in fresh water as
much as we had casks for, and were able to stow. On the 13th day of
August, we weighed and stood away to the east, designing to make no land
any more till we came to Java Head, and the Straits of Sunda, for that
way we intended to sail; but the wind sprung up at E. and E. S. E., and
blew so fresh, that we were obliged, after two days' beating against it,
to bear away afore it, and run back to the Cape of Good Hope.

While we were here, there came in two Dutch East Indiamen more,
homeward-bound, to whom had happened a very odd accident.

They had been attacked by a large ship of forty-four guns, and a stout
sloop of eight guns; the Dutch ships resolving to assist one another,
stood up to the Frenchman, (for such it seems he was,) and fought him
very warmly. The engagement lasted six or seven hours; in which the
privateer had killed them some men; but in the heat of the fight, the
sloop received a shot, which brought her mainmast by the board; and this
caused the captain of the frigate to sheer off, fearing his sloop would
be taken; but the sloop's men took care of themselves, for, hauling a
little out of the fight, they got into their own boats, and a boat which
the frigate sent to their help, and abandoned the sloop; which the
Dutchmen perceiving, they manned out their boats, and sent and took the
sloop with all that was in her, and brought her away with them.

The Dutchmen came into the road at the Cape with this prize while our
ship was there the second time; and we saw them bringing the sloop in
tow, having no mast standing, but a little pole-mast set up for the
present, and her mizen, which was also disabled, and of little use to
her.

I no sooner saw her, but it came into my thoughts, that, if she was
anything of a sea-boat, she would do our business to a tittle; and, as
we had always resolved to get another ship, but had been disappointed,
this would answer our end exactly; accordingly I went with my chief
mate, in our shallop, on board my old acquaintance the Dutch captain,
and inquiring there, was informed that it was a prize taken, and that in
all probability the captain that took her would be glad to part with
her; and the captain promised me to go on board the ship that brought
her in, and inquire about it, and let me know.

Accordingly, the next morning the captain sent me word I might have her;
that she carried eight guns, had good store of provisions on board, with
ammunition sufficient, and I might have her and all that was in her for
twelve hundred pieces of eight. In a word, I sent my chief mate back
with the same messenger and the money, giving him commission to pay for
her, and take possession of her, if he liked her; and the Dutch captain,
my friend, lent him twelve men to bring her off to us, which they did
the same day.

I was a little put to it for a mast for her, having not anything on
board we could spare that was fit for a main-mast; but resolving at last
to mast her not as a sloop, but as a brigantine, we made shift with what
pieces we had, and a spare foretop-mast, which one of the Dutch ships
helped me to; so we fitted her up very handsomely, made her carry twelve
guns, and put sixty men on board. One of the best things we found on
board her, were casks, which we greatly wanted, especially for
barrelling up beef and other provisions, which we found very difficult;
but our cooper eked them out with making some new ones out of her old
ones.

After staying here sixteen days more, we sailed again. Indeed, I thought
once we should never have gone away at all; for it is certain above
half the men in the ship had been made uneasy, and there remained still
some misunderstanding of my design, and a supposition of all the
frightful things the second mate had put in their heads; and, by his
means, the boatswain and gunner.

As these three had the principal management of the conspiracy, and that
I had pardoned all the rest, I had some thoughts of making an example of
these; I took care to let them know it, too, in a manner that they had
no room to think it was in jest, but I intended to have them all three
hanged; and I kept them above three weeks in suspense about it: however,
as I had no intention to put them to death, I thought it was a piece of
cruelty, something worse than death, to keep them continually in
expectation of it, and in a place too where they had but little more
than room to breathe.

So, having been seventeen days gone from the Cape, I resolved to relieve
them a little, and yet at the same time remove them out of the way of
doing me any capital injury, if they should have any such design still
in their heads. For this purpose, I caused them to be removed out of the
ship into brigantine, and there I permitted them to have a little more
liberty than they had on board the great ship; and where two of them
entered into another conspiracy, as wild and foolish as ever I heard of,
or as, perhaps, was ever heard of by any other; but of this I shall say
more in its place.

We were now to sail in company, and we went away from the Cape, the 3rd
of September, 1714. We found the brigantine was an excellent sea-boat,
and could bear the weather to a miracle, and no bad sailer; she kept
pace with us on all occasions, and in a storm we had at S. S. E., some
days after, she shifted as well as we did in the great ship, which made
us all well pleased with her.

This storm drove us away to the northward; and I once thought we should
have been driven back to the Cape again; which, if it had happened, I
believe we should never have gone on with the voyage; for the men began
to murmur again, and say we were bewitched; that we were beaten off
first from the south of America, that we could never get round there,
and now driven back from the south of Africa; so that, in short, it
looked as if fate had determined this voyage to be pursued no farther.
The wind continued, and blew exceeding hard: and, in short, we were
driven so far to the north, that we made the south point of the island
of Madagascar.

My pilot knew it to be Madagascar as soon as he had a clear view of the
land; and, having beaten so long against the sea to no purpose, and
being in want of many things, we resolved to put in; and accordingly
made for Port St. Augustine, on the west side of the island, where we
came to an anchor in eleven fathom water, and a very good road.

I could not be without a great many anxious thoughts upon our coming
into this island; for I knew very well that there was a gang of
desperate rogues here, especially on the northern coast, who had been
famous for their piracies; and I did not know but that they might be
either strong enough as pirates to take us, or rogues enough to entice a
great many of my men to run away; so I resolved neither to come near
enough the shore to be surprised, nor to suffer any of my men to go on
shore, such excepted as I could be very secure of.

But I was soon informed by a Dutchman, who came off to me with some of
the natives in a kind of canvass boat, that there were no Europeans
there but himself, and the pirates were on the north part of the island;
that they had no ship with them of any force, and that they would be
glad to be fetched off by any Christian ship; that they were not above
two hundred in number, their chief leaders, with the only ships of force
they had, being out a cruising on the coast of Arabia, and the Gulf of
Persia.

After this, I went on shore myself with Captain Merlotte, and some of
the men whom I could trust; and we found it true as the Dutchman had
related. The Dutchman gave us a long history of his adventures, and how
he came to be left there by a ship he came in from Europe, which, he
running up into the country for sport with three more of his comrades,
went away without them, and left them among the natives, who, however,
used them extremely well; and that now he served them for an interpreter
and a broker, to bargain for them with the European ships for
provisions. Accordingly, he engaged to bring us what provisions we
pleased, and proposed such trinkets in return as he knew the natives
desired, and as were of value little enough to us; but he desired a
consideration for himself in money, which, though it was of no use to
him there, he said it might be hereafter; and, as his demand was but
twenty pieces of eight, we thought he very well deserved them.

Here we bought a great quantity of beef, which, having no casks to
spare, we salted, and then cured it in the sun, by the Dutchman's
direction, and it proved of excellent use to us through the whole
voyage; for we kept some of it till we came to England, but it was then
so hard, that a good hatchet would hardly cut it.

While we lay here, it came into my thoughts, that now was a good time to
execute justice upon my prisoners; so I called up the officers to a kind
of council of war, and proposed it to them in general terms, not letting
them know my mind as to the manner of it. They all agreed it was
necessary, and the second mate, boatswain, and gunner, had so much
intelligence of it from the men, that they prepared for death as much as
if I had signed a dead-warrant for their execution, and that they were
to be hanged at the yard-arm.

But, in the midst of those resolves, I told the council of officers, my
design was to the north part of the island, where a gang of pirates were
said to be settled, and that I was persuaded I might get a good ship
among them, and as many men as we desired, for that I was satisfied the
greatest part of them were so wearied of their present situation, that
they would be glad of an opportunity to come away, and especially such
as had, either by force, or rash, hasty resolutions, been, as it were,
surprised into that sort of life; that I had been informed they were
very far from being in such a formidable posture as they had been
represented to us in Europe, or anything near so numerous; but that, on
the contrary, we should find them poor, divided, in distress, and
willing to get away upon any terms they could.

Some of the officers of the ship differed from me in my opinion. They
had received such ideas of the figure those people made in Madagascar,
from the common report in England, that they had no notion of them, but
as of a little commonwealth of robbers; that they were immensely rich;
that Captain Avery was king of the Island; that they were eight thousand
men; that they had a good squadron of stout ships, and that they were
able to resist a whole fleet of men of war; having a harbour so well
fortified at the entrance into it, that there was no coming at them
without a good army for land-service, to assist in the enterprise.

I convinced them how impossible this was to be true, and told them all
the discourse I had with the Dutchman, at the place where I now was, who
had received a full account of the particulars from several of them who
had come down to St. Augustine's in little boats in order to make their
escape from their comrades, and to get passage for Europe; that he had
always assisted, and got them off, whenever any ship touched at that
port; and that they all agreed in their relation of their state and
condition, which was indeed miserable enough, saving that they wanted
not for victuals.

In a word, I soon brought them to enter into the reason of it, and to be
of my opinion; and, accordingly, I ordered to get ready, and in three
days' time weighed anchor, and stood away for the north of the island,
taking care not to communicate our debates and resolves to the men
before the mast, as had been done before, we having had enough of that
already.

While we were thus coasting the island to the north, and in the channel
or sea between the island and the main of Africa, it came into my
thoughts, that I might now make use of my traitors to my advantage and
their own too, and that I might, if they were honest, gain my end, and
get a full intelligence of the people I had my eye upon; and, if they
were still traitors, they would desert and go over to the pirates, and I
should be well rid of them, without the necessity of bringing them to
the yard-arm; for I was very uneasy in my mind about hanging them, nor
could I ever have been brought to do it, I believe, whatever risk I had
run from their mutinous disposition.

I was now got in the latitude of fifteen degrees and a half south of the
line, and began to think of standing in for the shore; when I ordered
the second mate, who lay in irons in the brigantine, to be brought on
board the great ship, and to be called up into the great cabin. He came
in great concern, though he was of himself a very bold and resolute
fellow, yet, as he made no doubt that he was sent for to execution, he
appeared thoroughly softened, and quite another man than he was before.

When he was brought in, I caused him to be set down in a nook of the
cabin where he could not stir to offer any violence to me, had he been
so inclined, two large chests being just before him; and I ordered all
my people to withdraw, except Captain Merlotte and the supercargo; and
then, turning myself to the criminal, I told him, as he knew his
circumstances, I need not repeat them, and the fact for which he was
brought into that condition; that I had hitherto, from time to time,
delayed his execution, contrary to the opinion of the rest of the chief
officers, who in full council had unanimously condemned him; that a
sudden thought had come into my mind, which, if he knew how to merit
mercy, and to retrieve his circumstances by his future fidelity, might
once again put it into his power, not only to save his life, but to be
trusted in the ship again, if he inclined to be honest; that, however,
if he had no inclination to merit by his service, I would put it to his
choice, either to undertake with courage and fidelity what I had to
propose to him, in which case he might expect to be very well treated,
or, if not, I would pardon him as to the death he had reason to expect,
and he with his two fellow-criminals should be set on shore to go
whither they pleased.

He waited, without offering to speak a word, till I made a full stop,
and then asked me if I gave him leave to answer.

I told him he might say whatever he thought proper.

Then he asked if I gave him leave to speak freely, and would not take
offence at what he might say? I replied, he should speak as freely as if
he had never offended; and that, as I had given him his life, I now
would give him my word, nothing he could say should revoke the grant;
and that he should not only go freely on shore, (for I expected by his
words that he had made that choice) but I would give him the lives of
his two fellow-prisoners; and would give them arms and ammunition, and
anything else that was reasonable for them to ask, or necessary to their
subsisting on shore in such a country.

He told me then, that had it been any other part of the world than at
Madagascar, he would readily have chosen to have gone on shore; nay,
though the place had been really desolate and uninhabited; that he did
not object because my offer was not very generous and kind, and that it
would be always with regret that he should look back upon the mercy he
should have received, and how ill he had deserved it at my hands.

But that as it was at this place that I mentioned setting him at
liberty, he told me, that though he had been mutinous and disorderly,
for which he had acknowledged he had deserved to die, yet he hoped I
could not think so ill of him as to believe he could turn pirate; and
begged that, rather than entertain such hard thoughts of him, I would
execute the worst part of the sentence, and send him out of the world a
penitent and an honest man, which he should esteem far better than to
give him his life in a condition in which he could preserve it upon no
other terms than those of being the worst of villains. He added, that if
there was anything he could do to deserve so much mercy as I intended
him, he begged me that I would give him room to behave himself as became
him, and he would leave it wholly to me to use him as he should deserve,
even to the recalling the pardon that I had granted him.

I was extremely satisfied with what he said, and more particularly with
the manner of his speaking it; I told him I was glad to see that he had
a principle of so much honesty at the bottom of a part so unhappy as he
had acted; and I would be very far from prompting him to turn pirate,
and much more from forcing him to do so, and that I would, according to
his desire, put an opportunity into his hands to show himself a new man,
and, by his fidelity, to wipe out all that was past. And then, without
any more ceremony, I told him my whole design, which was, to send him,
and four or five more men with him, on shore among the pirates as spies,
to see what condition they were in, and to see whether there were any
apprehensions of violence from them, or whether they were in the mean
circumstances that I had reason to believe they were in; and, lastly,
whether they had any ship or vessel which might be bought of them, and
whether men might be had to increase our company; that is to say, such
men as, being penitent for their rogueries and tired with their
miseries, would be glad of the opportunity of turning honest men before
they were brought to it by distress and the gallows.

He embraced the offer with the greatest readiness, and gave me all the
assurances that I could desire of his fidelity. I then asked him whether
he thought his two fellow-prisoners might be trusted upon the same
conditions.

In reply, he asked me if I would take it for a piece of sincerity, if,
after a trial, he should tell me his mind, and would not be displeased
if he declined speaking his thoughts till he had talked with them.

I told him he should be at liberty to give his farther answer after he
had proposed it to them; but I insisted upon his opinion first, because
it was only his opinion that I asked now; whereas, if he reported it to
them, then he had no more to do but to report their answer.

He then asked me if I would please to grant him one thing, that,
whatever his opinion should be, what he should say should be no
prejudice to them in their present condition.

I told him it was a reasonable caution in him, and I would assure him
that, whatever he said should not do them any prejudice; and, to
convince him of it, I gave him my word that I would not put them to
death on any account whatsoever, merely for his sake.

He bowed, and thanked me very heartily for that grant, which, he said,
obliged him to be the plainer with me on that head; and as, he said, he
would not deceive me in anything whatever, so he would not in this,
especially; and therefore told me it was his opinion, they would not
serve me faithfully; and he referred me to the experience I should find
of it; and added, that he would be so just to me in the beginning, as
that, while he begged to be merciful to them, yet for my own sake he
would also beg me not to trust them.

I took the hint, and said no more at that time, but ordered his irons to
be taken off, with direction for him to have leave to go to his former
cabin, and to have his chests and things restored to him; so that he was
at full liberty in the ship, though not in any office, or appointed to
any particular business.

A day or two after this we made land, which appeared to be the
north-west part of the island, in the latitude of 13 deg. 30'; and now I
thought it was time to put our design into execution; for I knew very
well that it could not be a great way from this part of the island where
the pirates were to be heard of: so I ordered the boat on shore, with
about sixteen men, to make discoveries, and with them my new-restored
man.

I gave him no instruction for anything extraordinary at this time, our
work now being only to find out where they were. The boat came on board
again at night, (for we had now stood in within two leagues of the
shore) and brought us an account, that there were no English or
Europeans on that part of the island, but that they were to be heard of
a great way farther; so we stood away to the north all the night, and
the next day, the wind being fair and the sea smooth, and by our
reckoning we went in that time about forty leagues.

The next evening, the same company went on shore again, and were shown
by some of the natives where the pirates inhabited; which, in short, was
about five or six and twenty miles farther north still, in a river very
commodious for shipping, where they had five or six European-built
ships, and two or three sloops, but they were all laid up, except two
sloops, with which they cruised sometimes a great distance off to the
north, as far as the Arabian Gulf. The mate returned with this
intelligence the same night; and by his direction we stood in as close
under the shore as we could conveniently, about six leagues farther
north; here we found a very good road under a little cape, which kept us
perfectly undiscovered; and in the morning, before day, my man went on
shore again with the boat, and keeping only four men with him, sent the
boat on board again, agreeing on a signal for us to send the boat for
him again when he should return.

There was a pretty high ledge of hills to the north of the place where
he landed, and which, running west, made the little cape, under the lee
of which our ship rode at anchor.

As soon as he came to the top of those hills, he plainly discovered the
creek or harbour where the pirates' ships lay, and where they had formed
their encampment on the shore. Our men took proper observations of the
situation of the place they were in, upon the hill, that they might not
fail to find their way back again, though it were in the night; and
that, by agreeing in the account they should give of themselves, they
might be all found in the same tale. They boldly went down the hill, and
came to the edge of the creek, the pirates' camp being on the other
shore.

Here they fired a gun, to raise a kind of alarm among them, and then,
hanging out a white cloth on the top of a pole, a signal of peace, they
hailed them in English, and asked them if they would send a boat and
fetch them over.

The pirates were surprised at the noise of the piece, and came running
to the shore with all speed; but they were much more surprised when they
heard themselves hailed in English. Upon the whole, they immediately
sent a boat to fetch them over, and received them with a great deal of
kindness.

Our men pretended to be overjoyed at finding them there, told them a
long story, that they came on shore on the west side of the island,
where, not far off, there were two English ships; but that the natives
quarrelling with their men, upon some rudeness offered to their women,
and they being separated from their fellows, were obliged to fly; that
the natives had surrounded the rest, and, they believed, had killed them
all; that they wandered up to the top of the hill, intending to make
signals to their ship, to send them some help, when, seeing some ships,
and believing some Europeans were there, they came down to take some
shelter, and begged of them a boat to carry them round the cape to their
comrades, unless they would give them leave to stay with them, and do as
they did, which they were very willing to do.

This was all a made story; but, however, the tale told so well, that
they believed it thoroughly, and received our men very kindly, led them
up to their camp, and gave them some victuals.

Our men observed they had provisions enough, and very good, as well beef
as mutton, that is to say, of goats' flesh, which was excellent; also
pork and veal; and they were tolerable good cooks too; for they found
they had built several furnaces and boilers, which they had taken out of
their ships, and dressed a great quantity of meat at a time: but,
observing they had no liquor, the mate pulled a large bottle of good
cordial water out of his pocket, and gave it about as far as it would
go, and so did two others of the men, which their new landlords took
very kindly.

They spent good part of the first day in looking about them, seeing the
manner of the pirates' living there, and their strength, and soon
perceived that they were indeed in but a sorry condition every way,
except that they had live cattle and flesh meat sufficient. They had a
good platform of guns indeed, and a covered pallisadoe round where they
lodged their ammunition: but as for fortifications to the landward, they
had none, except a double pallisadoe round their camp, and a sort of a
bank thrown up within to fire from, and stand covered from the enemies'
lances, which was all they had to fear from the natives. They had no
bread but what they made of rice, and the store they had of that was
very small: they told our men, indeed, that they had two ships abroad,
which they expected back every day, with a quantity of rice, and what
else they could get, especially some arrack, which they were to trade
for with the Arabian merchants, or take it by force, which should first
offer.

Our men pretended to like their way of living mighty well and talked of
staying with them, if they would let them; and thus they passed their
first day of meeting.

Our men had two tents or huts given them to lodge in, and hammocks hung
in the huts very agreeably, being such, I suppose, as belonged to some
of their company who were dead, or were out upon adventure; here they
slept very securely, and in the morning walked about, as strangers might
be suffered to do, to look about them. But my new manager's eye was
chiefly here upon two things: first, to see if they had any shipping for
our purpose; and, secondly, to see if he could pitch upon one man, more
likely than the rest, to enter into some confidence with; and it was not
long before he found an opportunity for both. The manner was thus:

He was walking by himself, having ordered his other men to straggle
away, two and two, this way and that, as if they had not minded him,
though always to keep him in sight; I say, he walked by himself towards
that part of the creek where, as was said, three of their largest ships
lay by the walls, and when he came to the shore right against them, he
stood still, looking at them very earnestly.

While he was here, he observed a boat put off from one of them, with
four oars and one sitter only, whom they set on shore just by him, and
then put off again; the person whom they set on shore, was, it seems,
one who had been with our men the evening before, but, having some
particular office on board one of those ships, lay on board every night
with about ten or twelve men, just to watch and guard the ship, and so
came on shore in the morning, as is usual in men-of-war laid up.

As soon as he saw our man he knew him, and spoke very familiarly to him;
and seeing he was looking so earnestly at the ship, he asked him if he
would go on board; our man faintly declined it, as on purpose to be
asked again, and upon just as much farther pressing as was sufficient to
satisfy him that the gunner (for that was his office) was in earnest,
he yielded; so the gunner called back the boat, and they went on board.

Our man viewed the ship very particularly, and pretended to like
everything he saw; but, after some conversation, asked him this home
question, namely, Why they did not go to sea, and seek purchase, having
so many good ships at their command?

He shook his head, and told him very frankly, that they were in no
condition to undertake anything, for that they were a crew of
unresolved, divided rogues; that they were never two days of a mind;
that they had nobody to command, and therefore nobody to obey; that
several things had been offered, but nothing concluded; that, in short,
they thought of nothing but of shifting every one for himself as well as
he could.

My mate replied, he thought it had been quite otherwise, and that made
him tell them the night before that he had an inclination to stay with
them.

I heard you say so, said the gunner, and it made me smile; I thought in
myself that you would be of another mind when ye knew us a little
better; for, in a word, said he, if our people should agree to lend you
a boat to go back to your ship, they would fall together by the ears
about who should go with you, for not a man of them that went with you
would ever come back again hither, if your captain would take them on
board, though the terms were, to be hanged when they came to England.

My mate knew that this was my opinion before; but he was really of
another mind himself, till he saw things and till he talked with the
gunner, and this put new thoughts in his head; so he entertained the
gunner with a scheme of his own, and told him, if it was so as he
related it, and that he had really a mind to come off from the gang, he
believed that he could put him in a way how to do it to his advantage,
and to take a set of his people with him, if he could pick out some of
them that might be depended upon.

The gunner replied, I can pick out a set of very brave fellows, good
seamen, and most of them such as, having been forced into the pirates'
ships, were dragged into that wicked life they had lived, not only
against their consciences, but by a mere necessity to save their lives,
and that they would be glad at any price to go off.

The mate then asked him, Pray, gunner, how many such men can you answer
for?

Why, says he, after a short pause, I am sure I can answer for above a
hundred.

Upon this my mate told him the circumstances we were in, the voyage we
were upon; that we were a letter of mart ship of such a force, but that
we were over-manned and double-stored, in hopes of getting a good ship
upon our cruise to man out of the other; that we had been disappointed,
and had only got the sloop or brigantine which we bought at the Cape;
that, if he could persuade the men to sell us one of their ships, we
would pay them for it in ready money, and perhaps entertain a hundred of
their men into the bargain.

The gunner told him he would propose it to them; and added, in positive
terms, that he knew it would be readily accepted, and that he should
take which of the three ships I pleased.

The mate then desired that he would lend him his shallop to go on board
our ship, to acquaint me with it, and bring back sufficient orders to
treat.

He told him, he would not only do that, but, before I could be ready to
go, he would propose it to the chief men that he had his eye upon, and
would have their consent, and that then he would go along with him on
board to make a bargain.

This was as well as our mate could expect; and the gunner had either so
much authority among them, or the men were so forward to shift their
station in the world, that the gunner came again to our mate in less
than two hours, with an order, signed by about sixteen of their
officers, empowering him to sell us the ship which the gunner was on
board of, and to allot so many guns, and such a proportion of ammunition
to her, as was sufficient, and to give the work of all their carpenters
for so many days as were necessary to repair her, calk, and grave her,
and put her in condition to go to sea.

She was a Spanish-built ship; where they had her the gunner said he did
not know; but she was a very strong, tight ship, and a pretty good
sailer.

We made her carry two-and-thirty guns, though she had not been used to
carry above twenty-four.

The gunner being thus empowered to treat with my mate, came away in
their shallop, and brought the said gunner and two more of their
officers with him, and eight seamen. The gunner and I soon made a
bargain for the ship, which I bought for five thousand pieces of eight,
most of it in English goods such as they wanted; for they were many of
them almost naked of clothes, and, as for other things, they had scarce
a pair of stockings or shoes among them.

When our bargain was made, and the mate had related all the particulars
of the conference he had had with the gunner, we came to talk of the
people who were to go with us: the gunner told us that we might indeed
have good reason to suspect a gang of men who had made themselves
infamous all over the world by so many piracies and wicked actions; but,
if I would put so much confidence in him, he would assure me, that, as
he should have the power in his hands to pick and choose his men, so he
would answer body for body for the fidelity of all the men he should
choose; and that most, if not all of them, would be such as had been
taken by force out of other ships, or wheedled away when they were
drunk: and he added, there never was a ship load of such penitents went
to sea together as he would bring us.

When he said this, he began to entreat me that I would please to give
him the same post which he held in the ship, viz., of gunner, which I
promised him; and then he desired I would permit him to speak with me in
private; I was not at first very free to it, but he having consented to
let the mate and Captain Merlotte be present, I yielded.

When all the rest were withdrawn, he told me, that having been five
years in the pirates' service, as he might call it, and being obliged to
do as they did, I might be sure he had some small share in the purchase;
and however he had come into it against his will, yet, as he had been
obliged to go with them, he had made some advantage; and that, being
resolved to leave them, he had a good while ago packed up some of the
best of what he had got, to make his escape, and begged I would let him
deposit it with me as a security for his fidelity.

Upon this he ordered a chest to be taken out of the shallop, and brought
into my great cabin; and, besides this, gave me out of his pocket, a
bag, sealed up, the contents of which I shall speak of hereafter.

The shallop returned the next day, and I sent back the mate with my
long-boat and twenty-four men, to go and take possession of the ship;
and appointed my carpenter to go and see to the repairs that were
necessary to be done to her: and some days after, I sent Captain
Merlotte with the supercargo, in our sloop, to go and secure the
possession, and to cover the retreat of any of the men who might have a
mind to come away, and might be opposed by the rest; and this was done
at the request of the gunner who foresaw there might be some debate
about it.

They spent six weeks and some odd days in fitting out this ship,
occasioned by the want of a convenient place to lay her on shore in,
which they were obliged to make with a great deal of labour; however,
she was at last completely fitted up.

When she was equipped, they laid in a good store of provisions, though
not so well cured as to last a great while. One of the best things we
got a recruit of here was casks, which, as said before, we greatly
wanted, and which their coopers assisted us to trim, season, and fit up.

As to bread, we had no help from them; for they had none but what they
made of rice, and they had not sufficient store of that.

But we had more to do yet: for, when the ship was fitted up, and our men
had the possession of her, they were surprised one morning, on a sudden,
with a most horrible tumult among the pirates: and had not our
brigantine been at hand to secure the possession, I believe they had
taken the ship from our men again, and perhaps have come down with her
and their two sloops, and have attacked us. The case was this:

The gunner, who was a punctual fellow to his word, resolved that none of
the men should go in the ship but such as he had singled out; and they
were such as were generally taken out of merchant ships by force: but
when he came to talk to the men of who should go, and who should stay,
truly they would all go, to a man, there was not a man of them would
stay behind; and, in a word, they fell out about it to that degree that
they came to blows, and the gunner was forced to fly for it, with about
twenty-two men that stood to him, and six or seven were wounded in the
fray, whereof two died.

The gunner being thus driven to his shifts, made down to the shore to
his boat, but the rogues were too nimble for him, and had got to his
boat before him, and prepared to man her and two more, to go on board
and secure the ship.

In this distress, the gunner, who had taken sanctuary in the woods at
about a mile distance, but unhappily above the camp, so that the
platform of guns was between him and the ship, had no remedy but to send
one of his men, who swam very well, to take a compass round behind the
pirates' camp and come to the water-side below the camp and platform, so
to take the water and swim on board the ship, which lay near a league
below their said camp, and give our men notice of what had happened; to
warn them to suffer none of their men to come on board, unless the
gunner was with them; and if possible, to send a boat on shore to fetch
off the gunner and his men, who were following by the same way, and
would be at the same place, and make a signal to them to come for him.

Our men had scarce received this notice, when they saw a boat full of
men put off from the platform, and row down under shore towards them:
but as they resolved not to suffer them to come on board, they called to
them by a speaking-trumpet, and told them they might go back again, for
they should not come on board, nor any other boat, unless the gunner was
on board.

They rowed on for all that, when our men called to them again, and told
them, if they offered to put off, in order to come on board, or, in
short, to row down shore any farther than a little point which our men
named, and which was just ahead of them, they would fire at them. They
rowed on for all this, and even till they were past the point; which,
our men seeing, they immediately let fly a shot, but fired a little
ahead of them, so as not to hit the boat, and this brought them to a
stop; so they lay upon their oars awhile, as if they were considering
what to do, when our men perceived two boats more come off from the
platform, likewise full of men, and rowing after the first.

Upon this, they called again to the first boat with their
speaking-trumpet, and told them, if they did not all go immediately on
shore, they would sink the boat. They had no remedy, seeing our men
resolved, and that they lay open to the shot of the ship; so they went
on shore accordingly, and then our men fired at the empty boat, till
they split her in pieces, and made her useless to them.

Upon this firing, our brigantine, which lay about two leagues off in the
mouth of a little creek, on the south of that river, weighed
immediately, and stood away to the opening of the road where the ship
lay; and the tide of flood being still running in, they drove up towards
the ship, for her assistance, and came to an anchor about a cable's
length ahead of her, but within pistol-shot of the shore; at the same
time sending two-and-thirty of her men on board the great ship, to
reinforce the men on board, who were but sixteen in number.

Just at this time, the gunner and his twenty-one men, who heard the
firing, and had quickened their pace, though they had a great compass to
fetch through woods and untrod paths, and some luggage to carry too,
were come to the shore, and made the signal, which our men in the ship
observing, gave notice to the officer of the brigantine to fetch them on
board, which he did very safely. By the way, as the officer afterwards
told us, most of their luggage consisted in money, with which, it seems,
every man of them was very well furnished, having shared their wealth at
their first coming on shore: as for clothes, they had very few, and
those all in rags; and as for linen, they had scarce a shirt among them
all, or linen enough to have made a white flag for a truce, if they had
occasion for it: in short, a crew so rich and so ragged, were hardly
ever seen before.

The ship was now pretty well manned: for the brigantine carried the
gunner and his twenty-one men on board her; and the tide by this time
being spent, she immediately unmoored, and loosed her topsails, which,
as it happened, had been bent to the yards two days before; so with the
first of the ebb she weighed, and fell down about a league farther, by
which she was quite out of reach of the platform, and rid in the open
sea; and the brigantine did the same.

But by this means, they missed the occasion of the rest of the gunner's
men, who, having got together to the number of between seventy and
eighty, had followed him, and come down to the shore, and made the
signals, but were not understood by our ship, which put the poor men to
great difficulties; for they had broken away from the rest by force,
and had been pursued half a mile by the whole body, particularly at the
entrance into a very thick woody place, and were so hard put to it, that
they were obliged to make a desperate stand, and fire at their old
friends, which had exasperated them to the last degree. But, as the case
of these men was desperate, they took an effectual method for their own
security, of which I shall give a farther account presently.

The general body of the pirates were now up in arms, and the new ship
was, as it were, in open war with them, or at least they had declared
war against her: but as they had been disappointed in their attempt to
force her, and found they were not strong enough at sea to attack her,
they sent a flag of truce on board. Our men admitted them to come to the
ship's side; but as my mate, who now had the command, knew them to be a
gang of desperate rogues, that would attempt anything, though ever so
rash, he ordered that none of them should come on board the ship, except
the officer and two more, who gave an account that they were sent to
treat with us; so we called them the ambassadors.

When they came on board, they expostulated very warmly with my new
agent, the second mate, that our men came in the posture of friends, and
of friends too in distress, and had received favours from them, but had
abused the kindness which had been shown them; that they had bought a
ship of them, and had had leave and assistance to fit her up and furnish
her; but had not paid for her, or paid for what assistance and what
provisions had been given to them: and that now, to complete all, their
men had been partially and unfairly treated; and when a certain number
of men had been granted us, an inferior fellow, a gunner, was set to
call such and such men out, just whom he pleased, to go with us; whereas
the whole body ought to have had the appointing whom they would or would
not give leave to, to go in the ship: that, when they came in a
peaceable manner to have demanded justice, and to have treated amicably
of these things, our men had denied them admittance, had committed
hostilities against them, had fired at their men, and staved their boat,
and had afterward received their deserters on board, all contrary to the
rules of friendship. And in all these cases they demanded satisfaction.

Our new commander was a ready man enough, and he answered all their
complaints with a great deal of gravity and calmness. He told them, that
it was true we came to them as friends, and had received friendly usage
from them, which we had not in the least dishonoured; but that as
friends in distress, we had never pretended to be, and really were not;
for that we were neither in danger of anything, or in want of anything;
that as to provisions, we were strong enough if need were, to procure
ourselves provisions in any part of the island, and had been several
times supplied from the shore by the natives, for which we had always
fully satisfied the people who furnished us; and that we scorned to be
ungrateful for any favour we should have received, much less to abuse
it, or them for it.

That we had paid the full price of all the provisions we had received,
and for the work that had been done to the ship; that what we had
bargained for, as the price of the ship, had been paid, as far as the
agreement made it due, and that what remained, was ready to be paid as
soon as the ship was finished, which was our contract.

That as to the people who were willing to take service with us, and
enter themselves on board, it is true that the gunner and some other men
offered themselves to us, and we had accepted of them, and we thought it
was our part to accept or not to accept of such men as we thought fit.
As for what was among themselves, that we had nothing to do with: that,
if we had been publicly warned by them not to have entertained any of
their men, but with consent of the whole body, then indeed we should
have had reason to be cautious; otherwise, we were not in the least
concerned about it. That it is true, we refused to let their boats come
on board us, being assured that they came in a hostile manner, either to
take away the men by force, which had been entered in our service, or
perhaps even to seize the ship itself; and why else was the first boat
followed by two more, full of men, armed and prepared to attack us? That
we not only came in a friendly manner to them, but resolved to continue
in friendship with them, if they thought fit to use us as friends; but
that, considering what part of the world we were in, and what their
circumstances were, they must allow us to be upon our guard, and not put
ourselves in a condition to be used ill.

While he was talking thus with them in the cabin, he had ordered a can
of flip to be made, and given their men in the boat, and every one a
dram, but would not suffer them to come on board; however, one or two of
them got leave to get in at one of the ports, and got between decks
among our men; here they made terrible complaints of their condition,
and begged hard to be entertained in our service; they were full of
money, and gave twenty or thirty pieces of eight among our men, and by
this present prevailed on two men to speak to my mate, who appeared as
captain, to take the boat's crew on board.

The mate very gravely told the two ambassadors of it, and added, that,
seeing they were come with a flag of truce, he would not stop their men
without their consent, but the men being so earnest, he thought they
would do better not to oppose them. The ambassadors, as I call them,
opposed it, however, vehemently, and at last desired to go and talk with
the men, which was granted them readily.

When they came into their boat, their men told them plainly, that, one
and all, they would enter themselves with their countrymen; that they
had been forced already to turn pirates, and they thought they might
very justly turn honest men again by force, if they could not get leave
to do it peaceably; and that, in short, they would go on shore no more;
that, if the ambassadors desired it, they would set them on shore with
the boat, but as for themselves, they would go along with the new
captain.

When the ambassadors saw this, they had no more to do but to be
satisfied, and so were set on shore where they desired, and their men
stayed on board.

During this transaction, my mate had sent a full account to me of all
that had passed, and had desired me to come on board and give farther
directions in all that was to follow; so I took our supercargo and
Captain Merlotte along with me, and some more of our officers, and went
to them. It was my lot to come on board just when the aforesaid
ambassadors were talking with my mate, so I heard most of what they had
to say, and heard the answer my mate gave them, as above, which was
extremely to my satisfaction; nor did I interrupt him, or take upon me
any authority, though he would very submissively have had me shown
myself as captain, but I bade him go on, and sat down, as not concerned
in the affair at all.

After the ambassadors were gone, the first thing I did, was, in the
presence of all the company, and, having before had the opinion of those
I brought with me, to tell my second mate how well we were all satisfied
with his conduct, and to declare him captain of the ship that he was in;
only demanding his solemn oath, to be under orders of the great ship, as
admiral, and to carry on no separate interests from us; which he
thankfully accepted, and, to give him his due, as faithfully performed,
all the rest of our very long voyage, and through all our adventures.

It was upon my seeming intercession, that he gave consent to the boat's
crew, who brought the ambassadors, to remain in our service, and set
their statesmen on shore; and in the end, I told him that as far as
about one hundred and fifty, or two hundred men, he should entertain
whom he thought fit. Thus having settled all things in the ship to our
satisfaction, we went back to our great ship the next day.

I had not been many hours on board, till I was surprised with the firing
of three muskets from the shore; we wondered what could be the meaning
of it, knowing that it was an unusual thing in that place, where we knew
the natives of the country had no fire-arms; so we could not tell what
to make of it, and therefore took no notice, other than, as I say, to
wonder at it. About half-an-hour after, we heard three muskets more, and
still, not knowing anything of the matter, we made them no return to the
signal. Some time after three muskets were fired again, but still we
took no notice, for we knew nothing of what return was to be made to it.

When night come on, we observed two great fires upon two several hills,
on that part of the shore opposite to us, and after that, three rockets
were fired, such as they were, for they were badly constructed; I
suppose their gunner was ill provided for such things: but all signified
nothing; we would have made any return to them that had been to be
understood, but we knew nothing of any agreed signal; however, I
resolved that I would send a boat on shore, well manned, to learn, if
possible, what the meaning of all this was; and, accordingly, in the
morning, I sent our long-boat and shallop on shore, with two-and-thirty
men in them both, to get intelligence; ordering them, if possible, to
speak with somebody, before they went on shore, and know how things
stood; that then, if it was a party of the pirates, they should by no
means come near them, but parley at a distance, till they knew the
meaning of their behaviour.

As soon as my men came near the shore, they saw plainly that it was a
body of above a hundred of the pirates; but seeing them so strong, they
stood off, and would not come nearer, nor near enough to parley with
them; upon this, the men on shore got one of the islanders' canvass
boats, or rather boats made of skins, which are but sorry ones at best,
and put off, with two men to manage the sail, and one sitter, and two
paddles for oars and away they came towards us, carrying a flag of
truce, that is to say, an old white rag; how they came to save so much
linen among them all, was very hard to guess.

Our men could do no less than receive their ambassador, and a flag of
truce gave no shadow of apprehension, especially considering the figure
they made, and that the men on shore had no other boats to surprise or
attack us with; so they lay by upon their oars till they came up, when
they soon understood who they were, viz.--that they were the gunner's
selected men; that they came too late to have their signal perceived
from the other ship, which was gone out of sight of the place they were
directed to; that they had with great difficulty, and five days and
nights' marching, got through a woody and almost impassable country to
come at us; that they had fetched a circuit of near a hundred miles to
avoid being attacked by their comrades, and that they were pursued by
them with their whole body, and therefore they begged to be taken on
board; they added, if they should be overtaken by their comrades, they
should be all cut in pieces, for that they had broke away from them by
force, and moreover had been obliged, at the first of their pursuit, to
face about and fire among them, by which they had killed six or seven of
them, and wounded others, and that they had sworn they would give them
no quarter, if they could come fairly up with them.

Our men told them they must be contented to remain on shore, where they
were, for some time, for that they could do nothing till they had been
on board, and acquainted their captain with all the particulars; so they
came back immediately to me for orders.

As to me, I was a little uneasy at the thoughts of taking them on board;
I knew they were a gang of pirates at best, and what they might do I
knew not, but I sent them this message, that though all their tale might
be very good for aught I knew, yet that I must take so much time as to
send an express to the captain of the other ship, to be informed of the
truth of it; and that if he brought a satisfactory answer, I would send
for them all on board.

This was very uncomfortable news to them, for they expected to be
surrounded every hour by their comrades, from whom they were to look for
no mercy; however, seeing no remedy, they resolved to march about twenty
miles farther south, and lie by in a place near the sea, where we agreed
to send to them; concluding that their comrades not finding them near
the place where we lay, would not imagine they could be gone farther
that way. As they guessed, so it proved, for the pirates came to the
shore, where they saw tokens enough of their having been there, but
seeing they could not be found, concluded they were all gone on board
our ship.

The wind proving contrary, it was no less than four days before our boat
came back, so that the poor men were held in great suspense: but when
they returned, they brought the gunner with them who had selected those
men from all the rest for our new ship; and who, when he came, gave me a
long account of them, and what care he had taken to pick them out for
our service, delivering me also a letter from my new captain to the same
purpose: upon all which concurring circumstances, we concluded to take
them on board; so we sent our boats for them, which, at twice, brought
them all on board, and very stout young fellows they were.

When they had been on board some days and refreshed themselves, I
concluded to send all on board the new ship; but, upon advice, I
resolved to send sixty of my own men joined to forty of these, and keep
thirty-four of them on board my ship; for their number was just
seventy-four, which with the gunner and his twenty-one men, and the
sixteen men who came with the worthy ambassadors, and would not go on
shore again, made one hundred and twelve men; and, as we all thought,
were enough for us, though we took in between forty and fifty more
afterwards.

We were now ready to go to sea, and I caused the new ship and the
brigantine to come away from the place where they lay, and join us;
which they did, and then we unloaded part of our provisions and
ammunition; of which, as I observed at first, we had taken in double
quantity; and, having furnished the new ship with a proportion of all
things necessary, we prepared for our voyage.

I should here give a long account of a second infernal conspiracy, which
my two remaining prisoners had formed among the men, which was to betray
the new ship to the pirates; but it is too long a story to relate here;
nor did I make it public among the ship's company: but as it was only,
as it were, laid down in a scheme, and that they had no opportunity to
put it in practice, I thought it was better to make as little noise
about it as I could. So I ordered my new captain, for it was he who
discovered it to me, to punish them in their own way, and, without
taking notice of their new villanies, to set them on shore, and leave
them to take their fate with a set of rogues whom they had intended to
join with, and whose profession was likely, some time or other, to bring
them to the gallows. And thus I was rid of two incorrigible mutineers;
what became of them afterwards I never heard.

We were now a little fleet, viz., two large ships and a brigantine, well
manned, and furnished with all sorts of necessaries for any voyage or
any enterprise that was fit for men in our situation to undertake; and,
particularly, here I made a full design of the whole voyage, to be again
openly declared to the men, and had them asked, one by one, if they were
willing and resolved to undertake it, which they all very cheerfully
answered in the affirmative.

Here we had an opportunity to furnish ourselves with a plentiful stock
of excellent beef, which, as I said before, we cured with little or no
salt, by drying it in the sun; and, I believe, we laid in such a store,
that, in all our three vessels, we had near a hundred and fifty tons of
it; and it was of excellent use to us, and served us through the whole
voyage. There was little else to be had in this place that was fit to be
carried to sea; except that, as there was plenty of milk, some of our
men, who were more dexterous than others, made several large cheeses;
nor were they very far short of English cheese, only that we were but
indifferent dairy folks. Our men made some butter also, and salted it to
keep, but it grew rank and oily, and was of little use to us.

It was on the 15th of December that we left this place, a country
fruitful, populous, full of cattle, large and excellent good beef, and
very fat; and the land able to produce all manner of good things; but
the people wild, naked, black, barbarous, perfectly untractable, and
insensible of any state of life being better than their own.

We stood away towards the shore of Arabia, till we passed the line, and
came into the latitude of 18 deg. north, and then stood away east, and
east-by-north, for the English factories of Surat, and the coast of
Malabar; not that we had any business there, or designed any, only that
we had a mind to take on board a quantity of rice, if we could come at
it; which at last, we effected by a Portuguese vessel, which we met with
at sea, bound to Goa, from the Gulf of Persia. We chased her, and
brought her too, indeed, as if we resolved to attack and take the ship;
but, finding a quantity of rice on board, which was what we wanted, with
a parcel of coffee, we took all the rice, but paid the supercargo, who
was a Persian or Armenian merchant, very honestly for the whole parcel,
his full price, and to his satisfaction; as for the coffee, we had no
occasion for it. We put in at several ports on the Indian coast for
fresh water and fresh provisions, but came near none of the factories,
because we had no mind to discover ourselves; for though we were to sail
through the very centre of the India trade, yet it was perfectly without
any business among them. We met indeed on this coast with some pearl
fishers, who had been in the mouth of the Arabian Gulf, and had a large
quantity of pearl on board. I would have traded with them for goods, but
they understood nothing but money, and I refused to part with it; upon
which the fellows gave our supercargo some scornful language, which
though he did not well understand what they said, yet he pretended to
take it as a great affront, and threatened to make prize of their barks,
and slaves of the men; upon which they grew very humble; and one of
them, a Malabar Indian, who spoke a little English, spoke for them, that
they would willingly trade with us for such goods as we had; whereupon I
produced three bales of English cloth, which I showed them, and said
they would be of good merchandise at Gombaroon in the Gulf, for that the
Persians made their long vests of such cloths.

In short, for this cloth, and some money, we bought a box of choice
pearls, which the chief of them had picked out from the rest for the
Portuguese merchants at Goa; and which, when I came to London, was
valued at two thousand two hundred pounds sterling.

We were near two months on our voyage from Madagascar to the coast of
India, and from thence to Ceylon, where we put in on the south-west part
of the island, to see what provisions we could get, and to take in a
large supply of water.

The people here we found willing to supply us with provisions; but
withal so sharp, imposing upon us their own rates for everything, and
withal, so false, that we were often provoked to treat them very rudely.
However, I gave strict orders that they should not be hurt upon any
occasion, at least till we had filled all our water-casks and taken in
what fresh provisions we could get, and especially rice, which we valued
very much. But they provoked us at last beyond all patience; for they
were such thieves when they were on board, and such treacherous rogues
when we were on shore, that there was no bearing with them; and two
accidents fell out upon this occasion which fully broke the peace
between us; one was on board, and the other on shore, and both happened
the same day.

The case on board was this. There came on board us a small boat, in
which were eleven men and three boys, to sell us roots, yams, mangoes,
and such other articles as was frequent for them to do every day; but
this boat having more goods of that kind than usual, they were longer
than ordinary in making their market. While they were thus chaffering on
board, one of them having wandered about the ship, and pretending to
admire everything he saw, and being gotten between decks, was taken
stealing a pair of shoes which belonged to one of the seamen. The fellow
being stopped for his theft, appeared angry, raised a hideous screaming
noise to alarm his fellows; and, at the same time, having stolen a long
pair of scissors, pulled them out, and stabbed the man who had laid hold
of him into the shoulder, and was going to repeat his blow, when the
poor fellow who had been wounded, having struck up his heels and fallen
upon him, had killed him if I had not called to take him off, and bring
the thief up to me.

Upon this order, they laid hold of the barbarian, and brought him up
with the shoes and the scissors that he had stolen, and as the fact was
plain, and needed no witnesses, I caused all the rest of them to be
brought up also; and, as well as we could, made them understand what he
had done.

They made pitiful signs of fear, lest they should all be punished for
his crime, and particularly when they saw the man whom he had wounded
brought in; then they expected nothing but death, and they made a sad
lamentation and howling, as if they were all to die immediately.

It was not without a great deal of difficulty that I found ways to
satisfy them, that nobody was to be punished but the man that had
committed the fact; and then I caused him to be brought to the gears,
with a halter about his neck, and be soundly whipped; and indeed, our
people did scourge him severely from head to foot; and, I believe, if I
had not run myself to put an end to it, they would have whipped him to
death.

When this punishment was over, they put him into their boat, and let
them all go on shore. But no sooner were they on shore, but they raised
a terrible outcry in all the villages and towns near them, and they were
not a few, the country being very populous; and great numbers came down
to the shore, staring at us, and making confused ugly noises, and
abundance of arrows they shot at the ship, but we rode too far from the
shore for them to do us any hurt.

While this was doing, another fray happened on shore, where two of our
men, bargaining with an islander and his wife for some fowls, they took
their money and gave them part of the fowls, and pretended the woman
should go and fetch the rest. While the woman was gone, three or four
fellows came to the man who was left; when talking a while together, and
seeing our men were but two, they began to take hold of the fowls which
had been sold, and would take them away again; when one of our men
stepped up to the fellow who had taken them, and went to lay hold of
him, but he was too nimble for him, and ran away, and carried off the
fowls and the money too. The seamen were so enraged to be so served,
that they took up their pieces, for they had both fire-arms with them,
and fired immediately after him, and aimed their shot so well, that
though the fellow flew like the wind, he shot him through the head, and
he dropped down dead upon the spot.

The rest of them, though terribly frightened, yet, seeing our men were
but two, and the noise bringing twenty or thirty more immediately to
them, attacked our men with their lances, and bows and arrows; and in a
moment there was a pitched battle of two men only against twenty or
thirty, and their number increasing too.

In short, our men spent their shot freely among them as long as it
lasted, and killed six or seven, besides wounding ten or eleven more,
and this cooled their courage, and they seemed to give over the battle;
and our men, whose ammunition was almost spent, began to think of
retreating to their boat, which was near a mile off, for they were very
unhappily gotten from their boat so far up the country.

They made their retreat pretty well for about half the way, when, on a
sudden, they saw they were not pursued only, but surrounded, and that
some of their enemies were before them. This made them double their
pace, and, seeing no remedy, they resolved to break through those that
were before them, who were about eleven or twelve. Accordingly, as soon
as they came within pistol shot of them, one of our men having, for want
of shot, put almost a handful of gravel and small stones into his piece,
fired among them, and the gravel and stones scattering, wounded almost
all of them; for they being naked from the waist upwards, the least
grain of sand scratched and hurt them, and made them bleed if it only
entered the skin.

Being thus completely scared, and indeed more afraid than hurt, they all
ran away, except two, who were really wounded with the shot or stones,
and lay upon the ground. Our men let them lie, and made the best of
their way to their boat; where, at last, they got safe, but with a great
number of the people at their heels. Our men did not stay to fire from
the boat, but put off with all the speed they could, for fear of
poisoned arrows, and the country people poured so many of their arrows
into the boat after them, and aimed them also so truly, that two of our
men were hurt with them; but, whether they were poisoned or not, our
surgeons cured them both.

We had enough of Ceylon; and having no business to make such a kind of
war as this must have been, in which we might have lost but could get
nothing, we weighed, and stood away to the East. What became of the
fellow that was lashed we knew not; but, as he had but little flesh
left on his back, which was not mangled and torn with our whipping him,
and we supposed they were but indifferent surgeons, our people said the
fellow could not live; and the reason they gave for it was, because they
did not pickle him after it. Truly, they said, that they would not be so
kind to him as to pickle him: for though pickling, that is to say,
throwing salt and vinegar on the back after the whipping, is cruel
enough as to the pain it is to the patient, yet it is certainly the way
to prevent mortification, and causes it to heal again with more ease.

We stood over from Ceylon east-south-east cross the great Bay of Bengal,
leaving all the coast of Coromandel, and standing directly for Achen, on
the north point of the great island of Sumatra, and in the latitude of
6 deg. 81' north.

Here we spread our French colours, and, coming to an anchor, suffered
none of our men to go on shore but Captain Merlotte and his Frenchmen;
and, having nothing to do there, or anywhere else in the Indian seas,
but to take in provisions and fresh water, we stayed but five days; in
which time we supplied ourselves with what the place would afford; and,
pretending to be bound for China, we went on to the south through the
straits of Malacca, between the island of Sumatra and the main or
isthmus of Malacca.

We had here a very difficult passage, though we took two pilots on board
at Achen, who pretended to know the straits perfectly well; twice we
were in very great danger of being lost, and once our Madagascar ship
was so entangled among rocks and currents, that we gave her up for lost,
and twice she struck upon the rocks, but she did but touch, and went
clear.

We went several times on shore among the Malayans, as well on the shore
of Malacca itself, as on the side of Sumatra. They are as fierce, cruel,
treacherous, and merciless a crew of human devils as any I have met with
on the face of the whole earth; and we had some skirmishes with them,
but not of any consequence. We made no stay anywhere in this strait but
just for fresh water, and what other fresh provisions we could get, such
as roots, greens, hogs, and fowls, of which they have plenty and a great
variety: but nothing to be had but for ready money; which our men took
so unkindly, and especially their offering two or three times to cheat
them, and once to murder them, that afterwards they made no scruple to
go on shore a hundred or more at a time, and plunder and burn what they
could not carry off; till at last we began to be such a terror to them,
that they fled from us wherever we came.

On the 5th of March we made the southernmost part of the Isthmus of
Malacca, and the island and straits of Sincapora, famous for its being
the great outlet into the Chinese sea, and lying in the latitude of 1 deg.
15' north latitude.

We had good weather through these straits, which was very much to our
comfort; the different currents and number of little islands making it
otherwise very dangerous, especially to strangers. We got, by very good
luck, a Dutch pilot to carry us through this strait, who was a very
useful, skilful fellow, but withal so impertinent and inquisitive, that
we knew not what to say to him nor what to do with him; at last he grew
saucy and insolent, and told our chief mate that he did not know but we
might be pirates, or at least enemies to his countrymen the Dutch; and
if we would not tell him who we were and whither we were bound, he would
not pilot us any farther.

This I thought very insolent, to a degree beyond what was sufferable;
and bade the boatswain put a halter about the fellow's neck, and tell
him that, the moment he omitted to direct the steerage as a pilot, or
the moment the ship come to any misfortune, or struck upon any rock, he
should be hung up.

The boatswain, a rugged fellow, provided himself with a halter, and
coming up to the pilot, asked him what it was he wanted to be satisfied
in?

The pilot said he desired to have a true account whither we were going.

Why, says the boatswain, we are agoing to the devil, and I shall send
you before to tell him we are coming; and with that he pulled the halter
out of his pocket and put it over his head, and taking the other end in
his hand, Come, says the boatswain, come along with me; do you think we
can't go through the strait of Sincapora without your help? I warrant
you, says he, we will do without you.

By this time it may be supposed the Dutchman was in a mortal fright, and
half choked too with being dragged by the throat with the halter, and,
full heartily he begged for his life: at length the boatswain, who had
pulled him along a good way, stopped and the Dutchman fell down on his
knees; but the boatswain said, he had the captain's orders to hang him,
and hang him he would, unless the captain recalled his orders; but that
he would stay so long, if anybody would go up to the captain and tell
him what the Dutchman said, and bring back an answer.

I had no design to hang the poor fellow, it is true, and the boatswain
knew that well enough. However, I was resolved to humble him
effectually, so I sent back two men to the boatswain, the first was to
tell the boatswain aloud that the captain was resolved to have the
fellow hanged, for having been so impudent to threaten to run the ship
aground; but then the second, who was to stay a little behind, was to
call out, as if he came since the first from me, and that I had been
prevailed with to pardon him, on his promises of better behaviour. This
was all acted to admiration; for the first messenger called aloud to the
boatswain, that the captain said he would have the Dutchman hanged for a
warning to all pilots, and to teach them not to insult men when they are
in difficulties, as the midwives do whores in labour, and will not
deliver them till they confess who is the father.

The boatswain had the end of the halter in his hand all the while; I
told you so, says he, before. Come, come along Mynheer, I shall quickly
do your work, and put you out of your pain; and then he dragged the poor
fellow along to the main-mast. By this time the second messenger came
in, and delivered his part of the errand, and so the poor Dutchman was
put out of his fright, and they gave him a dram to restore him a little,
and he did his business very honestly afterwards.

And now we were at liberty again, being in the open sea, which was what
we were very impatient for before. We made a long run over that part
which we call the sea of Borneo, and the upper part of the Indian
Arches, called so from its being full of islands, like the Archipelago
of the Levant. It was a long run, but, as we were to the north of the
islands, we had the more sea-room; so we steered east half a point, one
way or other, for the Manillas, or Philippine Islands, which was the
true design of our voyage; and, perhaps, we were the first ship that
ever came to those islands, freighted from Europe, since the Portuguese
lost their footing there.

We put in on the north coast of Borneo for fresh water, and were
civilly used by the inhabitants of the place, who brought us roots and
fruits of several kinds, and some goats, which we were glad of: we paid
them in trifles, such as knives, scissors, toys, and several sorts of
wrought iron, hatchets, hammers, glass-work, looking-glasses, and
drinking-glasses; and from hence we went away, as I said, for the
Philippine Islands.

We saw several islands in our way, but made no stop, except once for
water, and arrived at Manilla the 22nd of May, all our vessels in very
good condition, our men healthy, and our ships sound; having met with
very few contrary winds, and not one storm in the whole voyage from
Madagascar. We had now been seventeen months and two days on our voyage
from England.

When we arrived, we saluted the Spanish flag, and came to an anchor,
carrying French colours. Captain Merlotte, who now acted as commander,
sent his boat on shore the next day to the governor, with a respectful
letter in French; telling him that, having the King of France's
commission, and being come into those seas, he hoped that, for the
friendship which was between their most Christian and catholic
majesties, he should be allowed the freedom of commerce and the use of
the port; the like having been granted to his most Christian majesty's
subjects in all the ports of new Spain, as well in the southern as in
the northern seas.

The Spanish governor returned a very civil and obliging answer, and
immediately permitted us to buy what provisions we pleased for our
supply, or anything else for our use; but added, that, as for allowing
any exchange of merchandises, or giving leave for European goods to be
brought on shore there, he was not empowered to grant.

We made it appear as if this answer was satisfactory; and the next
morning Captain Merlotte sent his boat on shore with all French sailors
and a French midshipman, with a handsome present to the governor,
consisting of some bottles of French wines, some brandy, two pieces of
fine Holland, two pieces of English black baize, one piece of fine
French drugget, and five yards of scarlet woollen-cloth.

This was too considerable a present for a Spaniard to refuse; and yet
these were all European goods, which he seemed not to allow to come on
shore. The governor let the captain know that he accepted his present;
and the men who brought it were very handsomely entertained by the
governor's order, and had every one a small piece of gold; and the
officer who went at their head had five pieces of gold given him: what
coin it was I could not tell, but I think it was a Japan coin, and the
value something less than a pistole.

The next day the governor sent a gentleman with a large boat, and in it
a present to our captain, consisting of two cows, ten sheep, or goats,
for they were between both; a number of fowls of several sorts, and
twelve great boxes of sweetmeats and conserves; all of which were indeed
very acceptable; and invited the captain and any of his attendants on
shore, offering to send hostages on board for our safe return; and
concluding with his word of honour for our safety, and free going back
to our ships.

The captain received the present with very great respect, and indeed it
was a very noble present; for at the same time a boat was sent to both
the other ships with provisions and sweetmeats, in proportion to the
size of the vessels. Our captain caused the gentleman who came with this
present, to have a fine piece of crimson English cloth given him,
sufficient to make a waistcoat and breeches of their fashion, with a
very good hat, two pair of silk stockings, and two pair of gloves: and
all his people had a piece of drugget given them sufficient to make the
like suit of clothes; the persons who went to the other ship, and to the
brigantine, had presents in proportion.

This, in short, was neither more nor less than trading and bartering,
though, from supercilious punctilio, we had in a manner been denied it.

The next day the captain went on shore to visit the governor, and with
him several of our officers; and the captain of the Madagascar ship,
formerly my second mate, and the captain of the brigantine. I did not go
myself for that time, nor the supercargo, because, whatever might
happen, I would be reserved on board; besides, I did not care to appear
in this part of the business.

The captain went on shore like a captain, attended with his two
trumpeters, and the ship firing eleven guns at his going off. The
governor received him like himself, with prodigious state and formality;
sending five gentlemen and a guard of soldiers to receive him and his
men at their landing, and to conduct them to his palace.

When they came there they were entertained with the utmost profusion and
magnificence, after the Spanish manner; and they all had the honour to
dine with his excellence; that is to say, all the officers. At the same
time the men were entertained very handsomely in another house, and had
very good cheer; but it was observed that they had but very little wine,
except such as we had sent them, which the governor apologised for, by
saying his store, which he had yearly from New Spain, was nearly spent.
This deficiency we supplied the next day by sending him a quarter cask
of very good Canary, and half a hogshead of Madeira; which was a present
so acceptable, that, in short, after this, we might do just as we
pleased with him and all his men.

While they were thus conversing together after dinner, Captain Merlotte
was made to understand, that though the governor could not admit an open
avowed trade, yet that the merchants would not be forbid coming on board
our ship, and trading with us in such manner as we should be very well
satisfied with; after which, we should be at no hazard of getting the
goods we should sell put on shore; and we had an experiment of this made
in a few days, as follows:

When Captain Merlotte took his leave of the governor, he invited his
excellence to come on board our ship, with such of his attendants as he
pleased to bring with him, and in like manner offered hostages for his
return. The governor accepted the invitation, and with the same
generosity, said he would take his parole of honour given, as he was the
King of France's captain, and would come on board.

The governor did not come to the shore side with our people; but stood
in the window of the palace, and gave them the compliment of his hat and
leg at their going into their boats, and made a signal to the platform,
to fire eleven guns at their boats putting off.

These were unusual and unexpected honours to us, who, but for this
stratagem of the French commission, had been declared enemies. It was
suggested to me here, that I might with great ease surprise the whole
island, nay, all the islands, the governor putting such confidence in
us, that we might go on shore in the very fort unsuspected. But though
this was true, and that we did play them a trick at the Rio de la
Plata, I could not bear the thoughts of it here; besides, I had quite
another game to play, which would turn out more advantageous to us and
to our voyage, than an enterprise of so much treachery could be to
England, which also we might not be able to support from thence, before
the Spaniards might beat us out again from Acapulco, and then we might
pass our time ill enough.

Upon the whole, I resolved to keep every punctilio with the governor
very justly, and we found our account in it presently.

About three days afterwards we had notice that the governor would pay us
a visit, and we prepared to entertain his excellence with as much state
as possible. By the way, we had private notice that the governor would
bring with him some merchants, who, perhaps, might lay out some money,
and buy some of our cargo; nor was it without a secret intimation that
even the governor himself was concerned in the market that should be
made.

Upon this intelligence, our supercargo caused several bales of English
and French goods to be brought up and opened, and laid so in the
steerage and upon the quarter-deck of the ship, that the governor and
his attendants should see them of course as they passed by.

When the boats came off from the shore, which we knew by their fort
firing eleven guns, our ship appeared as fine as we could make her,
having the French flag at the main-top, as admiral, and streamers and
pendants at the yard-arms, waste cloths out, and a very fine awning over
the quarter-deck. When his excellency entered the ship, we fired
one-and-twenty guns, the Madagascar ship fired the like number, and the
brigantine fifteen, having loaded her guns nimbly enough to fire twice.

As the governor's entertainment to us was more meat than liquor, so we
gave him more liquor than meat; for, as we had several sorts of very
good wines on board, we spared nothing to let him see he was very
welcome. After dinner we brought a large bowl of punch upon the table, a
liquor he was a stranger to: however, to do him justice, he drank very
moderately, and so did most of those that were with him. As to the men
that belonged to his retinue, I mean servants and attendants, and the
crews of the boats, we made some of them drunk enough.

While this was doing, two gentlemen of the governor's company took
occasion to leave the rest and walk about the ship; and, in so doing,
they seemed, as it were by chance, to cast their eyes upon our bales of
cloth and stuffs, baize, linen, silks, &c, and our supercargo and they
began to make bargains apace, for he found they had not only money
enough, but had abundance of other things which we were as willing to
take as money, and of which they had brought specimens with them; as
particularly spices, such as cloves and nutmegs; also China ware, tea,
japanned ware, wrought silks, raw silk, and the like.

However, our supercargo dealt with them at present for nothing but ready
money, and they paid all in gold: the price he made here, was to us
indeed extravagant, though to them moderate, seeing they had been used
to buy these goods from the Acapulco ships, which came in yearly, from
whom to be sure they bought them dear enough. They bought as many goods
at this time as they paid the value of fifteen thousand pieces of eight
for, but all in gold by weight.

As for carrying our goods on shore, the governor, being present, no
officer had anything to say to them; so they were carried on shore as
presents, made by us to the governor and his retinue.

The next day three Spanish merchants came on board us, early in the
morning, before it was light, and desired to see the supercargo. They
brought with them a box of diamonds and some pearl, and a great quantity
of gold, and to work they went with our cargo, and I thought once they
would have bought the whole ship's loading; but they contented
themselves to buy about the value of two-and-twenty thousand pieces of
eight, which did not cost, in England, one-sixth part of the money.

We had some difficulty about the diamonds, because we did not understand
the worth of them, but our supercargo ventured upon them at ten thousand
pieces of eight, and took the rest in gold. They desired to stay on
board till the next night, when, soon after it was dark, a small sloop
came on board and took in all their goods, and, as we were told, carried
them away to some other island.

The same day, and before these merchants were gone, came a large shallop
on board with a square sail, towing after her a great heavy boat, which
had a deck, but seemed to have been a large ship's long-boat, built
into a kind of yacht, but ill masted, and sailed heavily. In these two
boats they brought seven tons of cloves in mats, some chests of China
ware, some pieces of China silks, of several sorts, and a great sum of
money also.

In short, the merchants sold so cheap and bought so dear, that our
supercargo declared he would sell the whole cargo for goods, if they
would bring them, for, by his calculation, he had disposed of as many
goods as he received the value of one hundred thousand pieces of eight
for, all which, by his accounts, did not amount to, first cost, above
three thousand pounds sterling in England.

Our ship was now an open fair; for, two or three days after, came the
vessel back which went away in the night, and with them a Chinese junk,
and seven or eight Chinese or Japanners; strange, ugly, ill-looking
fellows they were, but brought a Spaniard to be their interpreter, and
they came to trade also, bringing with them seventy great chests of
China ware exceeding fine, twelve chests of China silks of several
sorts, and some lackered cabinets, very fine. We dealt with them for all
those, for our supercargo left nothing, he took everything they brought.
Our traders were more difficult to please than we: for as for baize and
druggets, and such goods, they would not meddle with them; but our fine
cloths and some bales of linen they bought very freely. So we unloaded
their vessel and put our goods on board. We took a good sum of money of
them besides; but whither they went we knew not, for they both came and
went in the night too, as the other did.

This trade held a good while, and we found that our customers came more
from other islands than from the island where the governor resided; the
reason of which, as we understood afterwards, was, because, as the
governor had not openly granted a freedom of commerce, but privately
winked at it, so they were not willing to carry it on openly before his
face, or, as we say, under his nose; whereas, in other islands, they
could convey their goods on shore with very little hazard, agreeing with
the custom-house officer for a small matter.

These boats came and went thus several times, till, in short, we had
disposed almost of the whole cargo; and now our men began to be
convinced that we had laid out our voyage very right, for never was
cargo better sold; and, as we resolved to pursue our voyage for New
Spain, we had taken in a cargo very proper to sell there, and so,
perhaps, to double the advantage we had already made.

In the mean time, all our hands were at work to store ourselves anew,
with such provisions as could be had here for so long a run as we knew
we were to have next; namely, over the vast Pacific Ocean, or South Sea,
a voyage where we might expect to see no land for four months, except we
touched at the Ladrones, as it might happen; and our greatest anxiety
was for want of water, which our whole ship could scarce be able to stow
sufficient for our use; and our want of casks was still as bad as the
want of water, for we really knew not what to put water in when we had
it.

The Spaniards had helped us to some casks, but not many; those that they
could spare were but small, and at last we were obliged to make use of
about two hundred large earthen jars, which were of singular use to us.
We got a large quantity of good rice here, which we bought of a Chinese
merchant, who came in here with a large China vessel to trade, who
bought of us also several of our European goods.

Just as we were ready to sail, a boat came from the town of Manilla, and
brought a new merchant, who wanted more English goods, but we had but
few left; he brought with him thirty chests of calicoes, muslins,
wrought silks, some of them admirably fine indeed, with fifteen bales of
romals, and twelve tons of nutmegs. We sold him what goods we had left,
and gave him money for the rest, but had them at a price so cheap, as
was sufficient to let us know that it was always well worth while for
ships to trade from Europe to the East Indies; from whence they are sure
to make five or six of one. Had more of these merchants come on board,
we were resolved to have laid out all the gold and silver we had, which
was a very considerable quantity.

The last merchant who came on board us was a Spaniard; but I found that
he spoke very good French, and some English; that he had been in England
some years before, and understood English woollen manufactures very
well. He told me he had all his present goods from Acapulco, but that
they were then excessively dear. He had considerable dealings with the
Chinese, and some with the coast of Coromandel and Bengal, and kept a
vessel or two of his own to go to Bengal, which generally went twice in
a year.

I found be had great business with New Spain, and that he generally had
one of the Acapulco ships chiefly consigned to him; so that he was full
of all such goods as those ships generally carried away from the
Manillas, and, had we traded with him sooner, we should have had more
calicoes and muslins than we now had; however, we were exceedingly well
stored with goods of all sorts, suitable for a market in Peru, whither I
resolved to go.

We continued chaffering after this manner about nine weeks, during which
time we careened our ships, cleaned their bottoms, rummaged our gold,
and repacked some of our provisions; endeavouring, as much as possible,
to keep all our men as fully employed as we could, to preserve them in
health, and yet not to overwork them, considering the heat of the
climate.

Some time before we were ready to sail, I called all the warrant
officers together, and told them, that as we were come to a country
where abundance of small things were to be bought, and going to a
country where we might possibly have an opportunity to sell them again
to advantage, I would advance to every officer a hundred dollars, upon
account of their pay, that they might lay it out here, and dispose of it
again on the coast of New Spain to advantage. This was very acceptable
to them, and they acknowledged it; and here, besides this, by the
consent of all our superior officers, I gave a largess or bounty of five
dollars a man, to all our foremast men; most of which I believe they
laid out in arrack and sugar, to cheer them up in the rest of the
voyage, which they all knew would be long enough.

We went away from Manilla, in the island of Luconia, the 15th of August,
1714; and, sailing awhile to the southward, passed the Straits between
that island and Mindora, another of the Philippines, where we met with
little extraordinary, except extraordinary lightning and thunders, such
as we never heard or saw before, though, it seems, it is very familiar
in that climate; till, after sixteen days' sailing, we saw the isle of
Guam, one of the Ladrones, or Islands of Thieves, for so much the word
imports; here we came to an anchor, Sept. 3, under the lee of a steep
shore, on the north side of the isle of Guam; but, as we wanted no trade
here, we did not at first inquire after the chief port, or Spanish
governor, or anything of that kind; but we changed our situation the
next day, and went through the passage to the east side of the island,
and came to an anchor near the town.

The people came off, and brought us hogs and fowls, and several sorts of
roots and greens, articles which we were very glad of, and which we
bought the more of because we always found that such things were good to
keep the men from the scurvy, and even to cure them of it if they had
it. We took in fresh water here also, though it was with some
difficulty, the water lying half a mile from the shore.

When I parted from Manilla, and was getting through the Strait between
the island of Luconia and that of Mindora, I had some thoughts of
steering away north, to try what land we might meet with to the
north-east of the Philippines; and with intent to have endeavoured to
make up into the latitude of 50 or 60 deg., and have come about again to the
south, between the island of California and the mainland of America; in
which course, I did not question meeting with extraordinary new
discoveries, and, perhaps, such as the age might not expect to hear of,
relating to the northern world, and the possibility of a passage out of
those seas, either east or west, both which, I doubt not, would be
found, if they were searched after this way; and which, for aught I
know, remain undiscovered for want only of an attempt being made by
those seas, where it would be easy to find whether the Tartarian seas
are navigable or not; and whether Nova Zembla be an island or joined to
the main; whether the inlets of Hudson's Bay have any opening into the
West Sea; and whether the vast lakes, from whence the great river of
Canada is said to flow, have any communication this way or not.

But though these were valuable discoveries, yet, when I began to cast up
the account in a more serious manner, they appeared to have no relation
to, or coherence with, our intended voyage, or with the design of our
employers, which we were to consider in the first place, for though it
is true that we were encouraged to make all such kinds of useful
discoveries as might tend to the advantage of trade, and the improvement
of geographical knowledge and experience, yet it was all to be so
directed as to be subservient to the profits and advantages of a trading
and cruising voyage.

It is true that these northern discoveries might be infinitely great,
and most glorious to the British nation, by opening new sources of
wealth and commerce in general: yet, as I have said, it was evident that
they tended directly to destroy the voyage, either as to trading or to
cruising, and might perhaps end in our own destruction also. For
example, first of all, if adventuring into those northern seas, we
should, by our industry, make out the discovery, and find a passage,
either east or west, we must follow the discovery so as to venture quite
through, or else we could not be sure that it was really a discovery;
for these passages would not be like doubling Cape de Bon Esperance, on
the point of Africa, or going round Cape Horn, the southernmost point of
America, either of which were compassed in a few days, and then
immediately gave an opening into the Indian or Southern Oceans, where
good weather and certain refreshment were to be had.

Whereas, for the discovery in the north, after having passed the
northernmost land of Grand Tartary, in the latitude of 74 even to 80 deg.,
and perhaps to the very north pole, there must be a run west, beyond the
most northerly point of Nova Zembla, and on again west-south-west, about
the North Kyn and North Cape, about six hundred leagues, before we could
come to have any relief of the climate; after that, one hundred and
sixty leagues more, and even to Shetland and the north of Scotland,
before we could meet with any relief of provisions, which, after the
length we must have run, from the latitude of 31/2 deg., where we now were at
the Philippine Islands, to 74 deg. north, being near five thousand miles,
would be impossible to be done, unless we were sure to victual, and
furnish ourselves again with provisions and water by the way, and that
in several places.

As to the other passage east, towards the continent of America, we had
this uncertainty also; namely, that it was not yet discovered whether
the land of California was an island or a continent, and if it should
prove the latter, so as that we should be obliged to come back to the
west, and not be able to find an opening between California and the land
of north America, so as to come away to the coast of Mexico, to
Acapulco, and so into the South Sea, and at the same time should not
find a passage through Hudson's Bay, &c., into the North Sea, and so to
Europe, we should not only spoil the voyage that way also, but should
infallibly perish by the severity of the season and want of provisions.

All these things argued against any attempt that way; whereas, on the
other hand, for southern discoveries, we had this particular
encouragement; that whatever disappointment we might meet with, in the
search after unknown countries, yet we were sure of an open sea behind
us; and that whenever we thought fit to run south beyond the tropic, we
should find innumerable islands where we might get water, and some sort
of provisions, or come back into a favourable climate, and have the
benefit of the trade winds, to carry us either backward or forward, as
the season should happen to guide us.

Last of all, we had this assurance, that, the dangers of the seas
excepted, we were sure of an outlet before us, if we went forward, or
behind us, if we were forced back; and, having a rich cargo, if we were
to do nothing but go home, we should be able to give our employers such
an account of ourselves, as that they would be very far from being
losers by the voyage; but that, if we reached safe the coast of New
Spain, and met with an open commerce there, as we expected, we should
perhaps make the most prosperous voyage that was ever made round the
globe before.

These considerations put an end to all my thoughts of going northward;
some of our secret council, (for, by the way, we consulted our foremast
men no more, but had a secret council among ourselves, the resolutions
of which we solemnly engaged not to disclose); some of these, I say,
were for steering the usual course, from the Philippines to New Spain,
viz., keeping in the latitudes of 11 or 13 deg. north the line, and so
making directly for California; in which latitude they proposed that we
might, perhaps, by cruising thereabout, meet with the Manilla ships,
going from New Spain to Manilla, which we might take as prizes, and then
stand directly for the coast of Peru. But I opposed this, principally
because it would effectually overthrow all my meditated discoveries to
the southward; and, secondly, because I had observed, that, on the north
of the line, there are no islands to be met with, in all the long run of
near two thousand leagues, from Guam, one of the Ladrones, to the land
of California; and that we did not find we were able to subsist during
so long a run, especially for want of water; whereas, on the south of
the line, as well within the tropic as without, we were sure to meet
with islands innumerable, and that even all the way; so that we were
sure of frequent relief of fresh water, of plants, fowl, and fish, if
not of bread and flesh, almost all the way.

This was a main consideration to our men, and so we soon resolved to
take the southern course; yet, as I said, we stood away for the Ladrones
first. These are a cluster of islands, which lie in about 11 to 13 deg.
north latitude, north-east from the Moluccas, or Spice Islands, and east
and by north from that part of the Philippines where we were, and at the
distance of about four hundred leagues, and all the ships which go or
come between the Philippines and New Spain touch at them, for the
convenience of provisions, water, &c.; those that go to Spain put in
there, in order to recruit and furnish for, and those that come from
Spain, to relieve themselves after so long a run as that of six thousand
miles, for so much it is at least from Guam to Acapulco; on these
accounts, and with these reasonings, we came to the isles of the
Ladrones.

During our run between the Philippine and Ladrone islands, we lived
wholly upon our fresh provisions, of which we laid in a great stock at
Manilla, such as hogs, fowls, calves, and six or seven cows, all alive,
so that our English beef and pork, which lay well stored, was not
touched for a long time.

At the Ladrones we recruited, and particularly took on board, as well
alive as pickled up, near two hundred hogs, with a vast store of roots,
and such things as are their usual food in that country. We took in also
above three thousand cocoa-nuts and cabbages; yams, potatoes, and other
roots, for our own use; and, in particular, we got a large quantity of
maize, or Indian wheat, for bread, and some rice.

We stored ourselves likewise with oranges and lemons; and, buying a
great quantity of very good limes, we made three or four hogsheads of
lime-juice, which was a great relief to our men in the hot season, to
mix with their water; as for making punch, we had some arrack and some
sugar, but neither of them in such quantity as to have much punch made
afore the mast.

We were eighteen days on our passage from the Strait of Mindora to Guam,
and stayed six days at the latter, furnishing ourselves with
provisions, appearing all this while with French colours, and Captain
Merlotte as commander. However we made no great ceremony here with the
Spanish governor, as I have said already, only that Captain Merlotte,
after we had been here two days, sent a letter to him by a French
officer, who, showing his commission from the king of France, the
governor presently gave us product, as we call it, and leave to buy what
provisions we wanted.

In compliment for this civility, we sent the governor a small present of
fine scarlet camlet and two pieces of baize; and he made a very handsome
return, in such refreshments as he thought we most wanted.

There was another reason for our keeping in this latitude till we came
to the Ladrones; namely, that all the southern side of that part of the
way, between the Philippines and the Ladrones, is so full of islands,
that, unless we had been provided with very good pilots, it would have
been extremely hazardous; and, add to this, that, beyond these islands
south, is no passage; the land, which they call Nova Guinea, lying away
east and east-south-east, farther than has yet been discovered; so that
it is not yet known whether that country be an island or the continent.

Having for all these reasons gone to the Ladrones, and being
sufficiently satisfied in our reasons for going away from thence to the
southward, and having stored ourselves, as above, with whatever those
islands produced, we left the Ladrones the 10th day of September in the
evening, and stood away east-south-east, with the wind north-north-west,
a fresh gale; after this, I think it was about five days, when, having
stretched, by our account, about a hundred and fifty leagues, we steered
away more to the southward, our course south-east-by-south.

And now, if ever, I expected to do something by way of discovery. I knew
very well there were few, if any, had ever steered that course; or that,
if they had, they had given very little account of their travels. The
only persons who leave anything worth notice being Cornelius Vanschouten
and Francis Le Mare, who, though they sailed very much to the south, yet
say little to the purpose, as I shall presently show.

The sixteenth day after we parted from the Ladrones, being, by
observation, in the latitude of 17 deg. south of the line, one of our men
cried, A sail! a sail! which put us into some fit of wonder, knowing
nothing of a ship of any bulk could be met with in those seas; but our
fit of wonder was soon turned to a fit of laughter, when one of our men
from the foretop, cried out, Land! which, indeed, was the case; and the
first sailor was sufficiently laughed at for his mistake, though, giving
him his due, it looked at first as like a sail as ever any land at a
distance could look.

Towards evening we made the land very plain, distance about seven
leagues south-by-east, and found that it was not an island, but a vast
tract of land, extended, as we had reason to believe, from the side of
Gilolo, and the Spice Islands, or that which we call Nova Guinea, and
never yet fully discovered. The land lying away from the west-north-west
to the south-east-by-south, still southerly.

I, that was for making all possible discovery, was willing, besides the
convenience of water, and perhaps fresh provisions, to put in here, and
see what kind of country it was; so I ordered the brigantine to stand in
for the shore. They sounded, but found no ground within half a league of
the shore; so they hoisted out their boat, and went close in with the
shore, where they found good anchor-hold in about thirty-six fathom, and
a large creek, or mouth of a river; here they found eleven to thirteen
fathom soft oozy sand, and the water half fresh at the mouth of the
creek.

Upon notice of this, we stood in, and came all to an anchor in the very
creek; and, sending our boats up the creek, found the water perfectly
fresh and very good upon the ebb, about a league up the river.

Among all the islands in this part of the world, that is to say, from
the Philippines eastward, of which there are an infinite number, we
never came near any but we found ourselves surrounded with canoes and a
variety of boats, bringing off to us cocoa-nuts, plantains, roots, and
greens, to traffic for such things as they could get; and that in such
numbers, we were tired with them, and sometimes alarmed, and obliged to
fire at them. But here, though we saw great numbers of people at a
distance from the shore, yet we saw not one boat or bark, nor anything
else upon the water.

We stayed two or three days taking in fresh water, but it was impossible
to restrain our men from going on shore, to see what sort of a country
it was; and I was very willing they should do so. Accordingly, two of
our boats, with about thirty men in both of them, went on shore on the
east side of the creek or harbour where our ship lay.

They found the country looked wild and savage; but, though they could
find no houses, or speak with the inhabitants, they saw their footsteps
and their seats where they had sat down under some trees; and after
wandering about a little, they saw people, both men and women, at a
distance; but they ran away from our men, at first sight, like
frightened deer; nor could they make any signal to them to be
understood; for when our men hallooed and called after them, they ran
again as if they had been bewitched.

Our men gathered a great variety of green stuff, though they knew not of
what kind, and brought it all on board, and we eat a great deal of it;
some we boiled and made broth of, and some of our men, who had the
scurvy, found it did them a great deal of good; for the herbs were of a
spicy kind, and had a most pleasant agreeable taste: but none of us
could tell what to call them, though we had several men on board who had
been among the Spice Islands before in Dutch ships.

We were very uneasy that we could get nothing here but a little grass
and potherbs, as our men called it, and the men importuned me to let
them have two boats, and go up the river as high as the tide would carry
them; this I consented to, being as willing to make the discovery as
they; so I ordered the captain of the Madagascar ship, who had, as I
have said, been formerly my second mate, to go along with them.

But in the morning, a little before the flood was made, I was called out
of my cabin to see an army, as they told me, coming to attack us. I
turned out hastily enough, as may be easily conjectured, and such an
army appeared as no ship was ever attacked with; for we spied three or
four hundred black creatures, come playing and tumbling down the stream
towards us, like so many porpoises in the water. I was not satisfied at
first that they were human creatures, but would have persuaded our men,
that they were sea-monsters, or fishes of some strange kind.

But they quickly undeceived us, for they came swimming about our ships,
staring and wondering and calling to one another, but said not one word
to us, at least, if they did, we could not understand them.

Some of them 

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