Internet Archive
(navigation image)
Home American Libraries | Canadian Libraries | Universal Library | Open Source Books | Project Gutenberg | Children's Library | Biodiversity Heritage Library | Additional Collections

Search: Advanced Search

Anonymous User (login or join us)Upload
See other formats

Full text of "A voyage round the world in the years 1740-44"







r v 




[AMINING A TORTOISE ON DECK. DRAKE AND DAMPIER'S VOYAGES. 
(Frontispiece.} 



A 

VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD 



BY 



SIR FRANCIS DRAKE 



AND 



WILLIAM DAMPIER 



to the Text of the Original Narratives 



EDITED, WITH NOTES, ETC., BY 
D. LAING PUEVES 

Special lEtu'tt'on. 



LONDON: 
PUBLISHED BY THE LI-QUOB, TEA COMPANY, 

5 GEORGE STREET, TOWER HILL. 
1879. 



MORRISON AND GIBB, EDINBURGH, 
PRINTERS TO HER MAJESTV'S STATIONERY OFFICE 









CONTENTS. 



BlOGEAPHICAL NOTICES, . 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



PAGE 

Dedication, . . . .9 

Equipment of the Pelican, Eliza- 
beth, Marigold, Swan, and the 
Christopher for the voyage, . 10 
Set sail from Plymouth, . . 11 

At Mogador, . . .11 

Among Cape Verd Islands, . 13 

Volcanoes of Fogo and Brava, . 15 
Off the coast of Brazil, . .17 

Severe storms, . . .19 

Barbarous customs of the natives, 21 
In Port St Julian, . . .23 

Trial and execution of Thomas 

Doughty, . . . .26 

Islands of St George and Elizabeth, 29 
Passage through Straits of Magellan, 30 
On the coast of Peru, '. .35 

Help received from the Indians, . 37 
Cruelty of the Spaniards, . . 39 



The Llama, . .''.' 

The Catholics of Lima, . 
Earthquake off Nicaragua, . 
AtGuatulco, . . 

Sufferings through extreme cold 
In Bay of San Francisco, . 
Customs of the natives, . 
A visit from the King, . 
Courted by the natives, . 
Departure from the Calif orni an coas , 
Molucca or Spice Islands, . 
AtTernate, . . . 

At anchor off Crab Island, . 
Helpless on a shoal, . 

Off the coast of Celebes, . 
Visit from the Rajahs of Java, 
Voyage home, . . 

At Sierra Leone, . . 

Arrival at Plymouth, . . 



DRAKE 5 S LAST VOYAGE. 



Expedition to the West Indies, 
Quai'rel with Sir John Hawkins, 
Death of Sir John Hawkins, 
Rio de la Hacha taken, 
Burning of La Rancheria, . 
Treasure taken at Nombre de Dios, 



73 
74 

76 
77 
77 
80 



Death of Sir Francis Drake, 
The homeward voyage, 
At anchor in the Channel, . 
Remarks on Spanish possessions 

the West Indies, . 
End of Maynarde's Narrative, 



PAGE 
41 
43 
45 
46 
47 
49 
51 
53 
55 
57 
59 
60 
65 
67 
69 
71 
71 
71 
72 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 

The Author's account of himself, . . "*'; .'' . . 87 

The Epistle dedicatory, . . . . . . . .93 

Preface, .......... 94 

The Introduction, containing the Author's departure from England into the 
West Indies and the South Seas to the time of his leaving Captain Sharp, 95 

CHAPTER I. 
His return out of the South Seas to his landing at the Isthmus of America, . 97 

CHAPTER II. 
His return by land over the Isthmus, . . . . . 101 

CHAPTER III. 
His traverses among the West India Islands and coast, and arrival in Virginia, 107 

CHAPTER IV. 

His departure for the South Seas again ; his touching at the Islands of Cape 
Verd and the African coast, and arrival at the Isle of Juan Fernandez, . 123 



4 CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER V. TAOB 

His course thence northward to the Isles of Lobos and Gallapagos, to Caldera 
Bay, Realejo, and Amapalla, in the kingdom of Mexico, . . .132 

CHAPTER VI. 

He goes back towards Peru to the Isle Plata, Point Santa, Hellena, Manta, 
Paita, Lobos, Puna, Guayaquil, and Plata again, .... 145 

CHAPTER VII. 
His progress northward again to the River Santiago, Toinaco, the Isle Galleo, 

Isle Gorgonia, the Pearl Islands, etc., in the Bay of Panama, . . 156 

CHAPTER VIII. 

He proceeds along the Mexican coast to the keys of Quibo, Realego, and the 
harbour of Guatulco, ........ 171 

CHAPTER IX. 

He coasts along to Acapulco, Petaplan, Estapa, Couma, Sallagua, Cape Cor- 
rientes ; thence to the Isles of Chametly, Bay of Valderas, Isles of Pon- 
tique, other Isles of Chametly, Massaclan, Rosario, River Santiago, Santa 
Pecaque, Isles of Santa Maria, Valderas, and Cape Corrientes again, . 179 

CHAPTER X. 

He stands over the Southerr Ocean for the East Indies, and arrives at Guam, 
one of the Ladrone Isles, . . . . . . .194 

CHAPTER XI. 

His arrival at Mindanao, one of the Philippine Islands, and of its natural state, 199 

CHAPTER XII. 
The political state of Mindanao, . . . . , . .204 

CHAPTER Xlil. 
Occurrences during the Author's stay at Mindanao, .... 212 

CHAPTER XIV. 

He departs towards Manilla in the Isle of Luconia; touching at Bat Island 
and the Isle of Mindora, and leaving Luconia, he goes to Pulo Condore, 
on the coast of Cambodia, to Pulo Obi, in the Bay of Siam, and to Pulo 
Condore again, ........ 223 

CHAPTER XV. 

He goes to the Island of St John on the coast of China, to the Isles Pesca- 
dores near Formosa, and the Bashee or five islands between Formosa and 
Luconia, called Orange, Monmouth, Grafton, Bashee, and Goat Isles, . 231 

CHAPTER XVI. 

He coasts along the east side of Luconia, Mindanao, and other of the Philip- 
pines, and touching at the Islands of Celebes and Callasusung in the 
Island of Bouton, he arrives at New Holland, .... 246 

CHAPTER XVII. 

He goes thence, touches at the Island Trieste and another, and steering along 
the west coast of Sumatra, arrives at the Island of Nicobar, Avhere he stays 
ashore, and the ship departs, ...... 257 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

He stands over from thence in an open boat to Passange Jonca, and thence to 
Achin ; and after several traverses comes to Bencoolen, all on the Island 
of Sumatra, ......... 264 

CHAPTER XIX. 
He ships himself for England, and arrives at the Cape of Good Hope, . . 276 

CHAPTER XX. 
His departure thence to St Helena, and arrival in the Downs, . . .282 



BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES 

OP 

SIR FEANCIS DRAKE & WILLIAM DAMPIEE. 



AMONG the voyagers and naval heroes nourishing in the times of 
Queen Elizabeth, a high place must be given to Sir Francis Drake 
for his courage and persevering bravery, displayed in almost every 
enterprise, successful or unsuccessful, with which he was identi- 
fied. His father is said to have been a poor yeoman, inhabiting a 
humble cottage at Tavistock, Devonshire, where his son, Francis, 
was bom in or about the year 1539 or 1541; but having embraced 
the Protestant religion, he was compelled to fly into Kent, where, 
for some time, the family are said to have inhabited the hull of a 
ship on the sea coast. His family being in poor circumstances, 
and Francis being the eldest of twelve sons, he was early inured to 
hardihood, and was trained as a sailor from earliest youth. He 
was apprenticed to the master of a bark trading on the coast, and 
making occasional voyages between Zealand and France, in which 
employment he is said to have proved himself so painstaking and 
diligent, that his old master, having no children of his own, at his 
death bequeathed to him his bark and all its belongings. He 
continued this coasting trade for some time, but these narrow 
seas proving insufficient for his adventurous spirit, and fired with 
the idea of the possible wealth to be gained from an expedition to 
the New "World, he gladly took advantage of an opportunity to 
join Captain John Hawkins in a voyage to the Spanish Main. 
Selling his vessel, he embarked his fortune and his person in this 
expedition at Plymouth in 1567. Drake's ship was called the 
Judith (50 tons), and which, notwithstanding the perils of the 
voyage, by skilful seamanship, he brought safely home. Thi? 
expedition proving unfortunate, and losing all he had, he returned 
with an enlarged experience, and an increased and growing hatred 
towards the Spaniards. On the 24th of May 1572, he sailed from 
Plymouth in command of the Pasha, of 70 tons, and the Swan, of 
25 tons, the latter commanded by his brother. In the end of 
July he came in sight of Santa Martha, and a few days afterwards 
was unexpectedly reinforced by another English bark, the Lion, 



6 BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES, 

commanded by Captain Rouse, and with thirty men 011 board- 
The Lion willingly joined the Pasha and the Swan, when they 
sailed together for Nombre de Dios. Leaving his ships in charge 
of Blouse, he selected three-and-fifty men, and with these he landed 
under cover of the night of July 22d, and made his attack upon 
the town, which proved successful. 

After this voyage his thoughts were directed to the best means of 
realising his dream of ploughing the Pacific Ocean with English keels. 
While gathering help and enlisting supporters, he served with the 
Earl of Essex in an Irish campaign ; and his tactics and brilliant 
valour secured him the patronage of Queen Elizabeth. He was 
thus enabled, towards the close of 1577, to sail from Plymouth, 
with five vessels, the largest of which was 100 and the smallest 
15 tons. This was destined to prove his great voyage of circum- 
navigation, which occupied about two years and ten months. The 
execution of Thomas Doughty in the course of this voyage has 
been regarded as one of the most doubtful acts in "Drake's life, 
although he is represented as being perfectly honest and straight- 
forward in the act, regretting Doughty's death, but looking upon 
it as necessary for the safety of the expedition. On his return he 
was knighted by Queen Elizabeth. 

Drake was next employed as commander-in- chief of the great 
fleet despatched in September 1585 against the Spanish West 
Indies. They made a successful attack on San Domingo, and, 
after a desperate struggle, carried Carthagena. Then, after doing 
infinite damage, and securing immense booty, Drake brought back 
his fleet to England in perfect safety. At this time he is said to 
have visited Virginia, and it is stated by Camden with regard to 
this voyage, that he was the first to bring tobacco to England, 
though Raleigh was the first to make its use popular. On the 
same authority it is stated that from the books, papers, and charts 
which were taken from an East India ship which he captured off 
the coast of Spain in 1587, originated the first suggestion for 
undertaking our East Indian trade, and suggested an application 
to the Queen for liberty to establish an East India Company 
Drake played a high and honourable part in the defeat of the 
" Invincible Armada " of Spain. 

In Ap\ il 1589 he took the command of the naval portion of a 
joint expedition against Spain. Corunna was captured, but owing 
to disease appearing among the land forces, little else was done or 
attempted, and Drake returned to England. For some time he 
addressed himself to civil pursuits, and in 1592-3 sat in Parlia- 
ment as the representative of Plymouth. In 1594 he was again 
called to active service, Queen Elizabeth's government having 
determined on a new expedition against the Spanish colonies. It 



BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES. 7 

consisted of six royal and twenty private ships, and Drake and 
Hawkins were associated in the command. 

The narrative of this ill-fated expedition, written by Thomas 
Maynarde, is given in the present work. When they had taken 
and plundered in succession Rio de la Hacha, Santa Marthaf and 
Nombre de Dios, it became evident that Drake's career was nearly 
ended. He was seized with a severe illness, which, acting fatally 
on an already weakened frame, terminated in his death on the 
20th December 1596. His body was placed in a leaden coffin, the 
solemn service of the Church was read over it, and then it was 
lowered into the deep. 

In Stowe's Annals Drake is described as "low of stature, of 
strong limbs, broad breasted, rounde headed, broune hayre, full 
bearded ; his eyes round, large, and clear, well favoured, fayre, 
and of a cheerfull countenance. His name was a terror to the 
French, Spaniard, Portugal, and Indians." 

The incursions of the buccaneers on the Spanish settlements in 
the South Seas, though undertaken in the first place for gain and 
plunder, helped to familiarise our English seamen with the geo- 
graphy of the South American coast, and the other islands in the 
South Seas. The derivation of the word " buccaneer " is ascribed to 
the method which prevailed in Cuba at that time of killing, and 
curing the flesh of the cattle, according to the Carib method, 011 
hurdles raised a few feet above the fire. This apparatus, the meat, 
and also the method of preparing it, the Indians called boocan, and 
hence those sailors who were engaged in supplying it to the cruisers 
and others were called buccaneers. Many of these adventurers 
were Englishmen, carrying on a smuggling trade both by sea and 
land. They all, without exception, plundered the Spaniards, and 
under this bond and unity of aim, they were sometimes called the 
brethren of the coast. Those who did their plundering on shore 
were called freebooters, and those who mainly cruised against the 
Spaniard were called buccaneers. If, in the case of a war with 
>pain, a commission could be obtained, these buccaneers became 
privateers. The ordinary buccaneer set propriety at defiance by 
lirtiness and negligence in dress. Every buccaneer leader had a 
mate, who was heir to all his money, and in some cases they held 
a community of property. 

Among the more notable of the buccaneers who have left a record 
of their doings in the South Seas, we must place the name of 
Captain William Dampier, whose Yoyage Hound the World is 
given in the present volume. While reading this narrative, we 
feel that he was one of the most acute of observers, readily remark 
ing anything which at that time would be counted new or extra" 



8 BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES, 

ordinary, although these details at the present time, with our 
amazingly increased facilities of travel, and increased familiarity 
with the places and people described, may be ranked as more com- 
monplace. In the " author's account of himself " we have a con- 
cise narrative of his early training and way of life, with a graphic 
sketch of logwood cutting in Campeachy Bay, till the date of his 
joining with the buccaneers in 1679. His Voyage Round the 
World may be considered as a natural continuation of the story of 
his life, as it deals with all the public and personal affairs in which 
lie was concerned up till the date of his return to England on Sep- 
tember 16th, 1691, 

Dampier having recommended himself very favourably to public 
attention by the publication of his " Voyage Round the World," at 
the instance of the Earl of Pembroke he was given the command of 
an expedition, ordered by King William in 1699 for the discovery 
of new countries, and the examination of New Holland and New 
Guinea. A vessel called the Roebuck was equipped for this pur- 
pose. After visiting New Holland, he sailed for New Guinea, 
which he descried on January 1st, 1700. He had explored the 
west and north-west coasts of Australia, and gave his name to a 
small archipelago, east of North-west Cape. After exploring the 
coasts of New Guinea, New Britain, and New Ireland, he returned. 
In the homeward voyage the Roebuck sprang a leak off the 
Island of Ascension, Dampier and his men were forced to stay 
ten weeks on the island, but they were eventually picked up by 
three English ships of war, and conveyed to England. 

Although his last voyage had been partially unfortunate as far 
as the loss of the vessel was concerned, we find that he was next 
given command of the St George, a vessel of 26 guns, which, with 
the Cinque Ports of 16 guns, had been fitted out by English 
merchants on a privateering expedition to the South Seas. He 
did not shine as a commander, being, it is said, at times too 
familiar with his men, at other times iising injudicious severity 
with frequent bursts of ill temper. The story of the crew of this 
somewhat mutinous expedition contains the incidents in the life 
of Alexander Selkirk, which form the groundwork of De Foe's 
world-famous " Robinson Crusoe." 

Little is known of Dampier's personal history after this voyage, 
although he remained at sea up till 1711. After forty years' 
wandering over the world, he seems to have sunk into obscurity, 
ns no record remains of how or when he died. 



THE VOYAGE ABOUT THE WOBLD 

BY SIE FEANCIS DEAKE. 



TO 

THE TRULY NOBLE 

ROBERT EARL OF WARWICK. 



RIGHT HONOURABLE, 

FAME and envy are both needless 
to the dead because unknown ; some- 
times dangerous to the living when 
too well known ; reason enough that 
I rather choose to say nothing, than 
too little, in praise of the deceased 
author, or of your Lordship my de- 



sired fautor. 1 COLUMBUS did neatly 
check his emulators, by rearing an egg 
without assistance. Let the slighter 
of this voyage apply. If your Lord- 
ship vouchsafe the acceptance, 'tis 
yours ; if the reader can pick out either 
use or content, 'tis his; and I am 
pleased. Example being the public, 
and your Lordship's favour theprivate, 
aim of 

Your humbly devoted, 

FRANCIS DRAKE.* 



EVER since Almighty God command- 
ed Adam to subdue the earth, there 
have not wanted in all ages some 
heroical spirits which, in obedience to 
that high mandate, either from mani- 
fest reason alluring them, or by secret 
instinct enforcing them, thereunto, 
have expended their wealth, employed 
their time, and adventured their per- 
sons, to find out the true circuit 
thereof. 

Of these, some have endeavoured 
to eifect this their purpose by conclu- 
sion and consequence, drawn from the 
proportion of the higher circles to this 
nethermost globe, being the centre of 
the rest. Others, not contented with 
school points and such demonstrations 
(for that a small error in the begin- 
ning groweth in the progress to a 



great inconvenience) have added there- 
unto their own history and experience. 
All of them in reason have deserved 
great commendation of their own ages, 
and purchased a just renown with all 
posterity. For if a surveyor of some 
few lordships, whereof the bounds and 
limits were before known, worthily 
deserve his reward, not only for his 
travel, but for his skill also in mea- 
suring the whole and every part 
thereof, how much more, above com- 
parison, are their famous travels by 
all means possible to be eternized, who 
have bestowed their studies and en- 

1 Favourer, patron. 

2 Nephew of "the General," as 
Drake is called throughoiit Mr Flet- 
cher's narrative. 



10 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1577. 



deavour to survey and measure this 
globe, almost unm easurable ? Neither 
is here that difference to be .objected 
which in private possessions is of 
value: "Whose land survey you?" 
forasmuch as the main ocean is by 
right the Lord's alone, and by nature 
left free for all men to deal withal, as 
very sufficient for all men's use, and 
large enough for all men's industry. 

And therefore that valiant enter- 
prise, accompanied with happy suc- 
cess, which that right rare and thrice 
worthy captain, Francis Drake, achiev- 
ed, in first turning up a furrow about 
the whole world, doth not only over- 
match the famous Argonauts, but also 
outreacheth in many respects that 
noble mariner, Magellan, and by far 
surpasseth his crowned victory. But 
hereof let posterity judge. It shall 
for the present be deemed a sufficient 
discharge of duty to register the true 
and whole history of that his voyage, 
with as great indifference of affection 
as a history doth require, and with 
the plain evidence of truth, as it was 
left recorded by some of the chief and 
divers other actors in that action. 

The said Captain Francis Drake, 
having in a former voyage, in the years 
1572 and 1573 (the description whereof 
is already imparted to the view of the 
world 1 ), had a sight, and only a sight, 

1 It was written by Philip Nichols, 
preacher, and subsequently published 
by the navigator's nephew, heir, and 
godson, Sir Francis Drake. In the 
course of an expedition to intercept a 
convoy of treasure from Panama to 
Nombre de Dios, Drake was conducted 
by a friendly native chief to a "great 
and goodly tree" upon the ridge of 
the hills, from a bower or look-out in 
the top of which both the Atlantic 
and the Pacific could be seen. When 
Drake had beheld that sea, "of which 
he had heard such golden reports, he 
besought Almighty God of His good- 
ness to give him life and leave to sail 
once in an English ship in that sea." 
Calling up his men, he acquainted 
them, John Oxenham especially, with 
his resolve, which all approved. Ox- 
enham, indeed, more than kept his 



of the South Atlantic ; and thereupon, 
either conceiving a new, or renewing 
a former, desire of sailing on the 
same in an English bottom, he so 
cherished, thenceforward, this his 
noble desire and resolution in himself, 
that notwithstanding he was hindered 
for some years, partly by secret envy 
at home, and partly by public service 
for his Prince and country abroad 
(whereof Ireland, under Walter Earl 
of Essex, gives honourable testimony), 
yet, against the year 1577, by gracious 
commission from his sovereign, and 
with the help of divers friends ad- 
venturers, he had fitted himself with 
five ships : 

1. The Pelican, Admiral, burthen 
one hundred tons, Captain -General 
Francis Drake. 

2. The Elizabeth, Vice-Admiral, 
burthen eighty tons, Captain John 
Winter. 

3. The Marigold, a bark of thirty 
tons, Captain John Thomas. 

4. The Swan, a fly-boat of fifty 
tons, Captain John Chester. 

5. The Christopher, a pinnace of 
fifteen tons, Captain Thomas Moon. 

These ships he manned with one 
hundred and sixty-four able and suffi- 
cient men, and furnished them also 
with such plentiful provision of all 
things necessary, as so long and dan- 
gerous a voyage did seem to require ; 
and, amongst the rest, with certain 
pinnaces ready framed, but carried 
aboard in pieces, to be new set up in 
smoother water when occasion served. 
Neither had he omitted to make pro- 
vision also for ornament and delight, 
carrying to this purpose with him ex- 
pert musicians, rich furniture (all the 
vessels for his table, yea, many be- 
longing even to the cook-room, being 
of pure silver), and divers shows of 
all sorts of curious workmanship, 
whereby the civility and magnificence 

promise to follow his chief, for two 
years later, crossing the Isthmus with 
a devoted band, he built a pinnace, 
launched it on the South Sea, and took 
two Spanish ships ; but being made 
prisoner on his return, he was execut- 
ed at Lima. 



1577.] 



AT MOGADOR. 



11 



of his native country might, amongst 
all nations whithersoever he should 
come, be the more admired. 

Being thus appointed, we set sail 
out of the Sound of Plymouth x about 
five o'clock in the afternoon, Novem- 
ber 15, of the same year 1577, and 
running all that night SW., by the 
morning were come as far as the 
Lizard, where meeting the wind at SW. 
(quite contrary to our intended 
course), we were forced, with our 
whole fleet, to put into Falmouth. 
The next day, towards evening, there 
arose a storm, continuing all that 
night and the day following (especially 
between ten of the clock in the fore- 
noon and live in the afternoon) with 
such violence, that though it was in 
a very good harbour, yet two of our 
ships the Admiral, wherein our 
General himself went, and the Marigold 
were fain to cut their mainmasts 
by board ; and for the repairing of 
them, and many other damages in 
the tempest sustained (as soon as the 
weather would give leave), to bear 
back to Plymouth again, where we 
all arrived the thirteenth day after 
our first departure thence [November 
28]. Whence, having in a few days 
supplied all defects, with happier 
sails we once more put to sea, Decem- 
ber 13, 1577. As soon as we were 
out of sight of land, our General gave 
us occasion to conjecture in part 
whither he intended, both by the 
directing of his course, and appoint- 
ing the rendezvous, if any should be 
severed from the fleet, to be the 
Island Mogador. And so sailing with 
favourable winds, the first land we 
had sight of was Cape Caulin 2 in 
Barbary, December 25, Christmas 
Day, in the morning. The shore is 
fair white sand, and the inland 
country very high and mountainous ; 
it lies in 32 30' N. latitude : and so 

1 To throw the Spaniards off their 
guard, the destination of the fleet 
was given out as Alexandria ; and to 
give countenance to the report the 
course first steered was towards the 
Straits of Gibraltar. 

2 Inlat. 32 K, long. 10* W. 



coasting from hence southward about 
eighteen leagues, we arrived the 
same day at Mogador, the island 
before named. 

This Mogador lies under the dom- 
inion of the Xing of Fesse, 3 in 31 40', 
about a mile off from the shore, by 
this means making a good harbour 
between the land and it. It is unin- 
habited, of about a league in circuit, 
not very high land, all overgrown 
with a kind of shrub breast high, not 
much unlike our privet, very full of 
doves, and therefore much frequented 
of goshawks and such-like birds of 
prey, besides divers sorts of sea-fowl 
very plenty. At the south side of 
this island are three hollow rocks, 
under which are great store of very 
wholesome but very ugly fish to look 
to. Lying here about a mile from 
the main, a boat was sent to sound 
the harbour, and finding it safe, and 
in the very entrance on the north 
side about five or six fathoms' water 
(but at the south side it is very dan- 
gerous), we brought in our whole 
fleet, December 27, and continued 
there till the last day of the month, 
employing our leisure the meanwhile 
in setting up a pinnace, one of the 
four brought from home in pieces 
with us. Our abode here was soon 
perceived by the inhabitants of the 
country, who coming to the shore, 
by signs and cries made show that 
they desired to be fetched aboard, to 
whom our General sent a boat, into 
which two of the chief of the Moors 
were presently received, and one man 
of ours, in exchange, left aland, as a 
pledge for their return. They that 
came aboard were right courteously 
entertained with a dainty banquet, 
and such gifts as they seemed to be 
most glad of, that they might thereby 
understand that this fleet came in 
peace and friendship, offering to 
traffic with them for such commodities 
as their country yielded, to their own 
content. This offer they seemed most 
gladly to accept, and promised the 
next day to resort again, with such 

3 Fez, the northern portion of the 
Empire of Morocco. 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE HOUND THE WORLD. 



[1577. 



things as they had, to exchange for 
ours. It is a law amongst them to 
drink no wine, notwithstanding by 
stealth it pleaseth them well to have 
it abundantly, as here was experience. 
At their return ashore, they quietly 
restored the pledge which they had 
stayed; and the next day at the hour ap- 
pointed returning again, brought with 
them camels, in show laden with 
wares to be exchanged for our com- 
modities, and calling for a boat in 
haste, had one sent them, according 
to order which our General (being at 
this present absent) had given before 
his departure to the island. Our 
boat coming to the place of landing, 
which was among the rocks, one of 
our men, called John Fry, mistrust- 
ing no danger nor fearing any harm 
pretended by them, and therefore in- 
tending to become a pledge, accord- 
ing to the order used the day before, 
readily stepped out of the boat and 
ran aland ; which opportunity (being 
that which the Moors did look for) 
they took the advantage of, and not 
only they which were in sight laid 
hands on him to carry him away with 
tli em, but a number more, who lay 
secretly hidden, did forthwith break 
forth from behind the rocks, whither 
they had conveyed themselves, as it 
seems, the night before, forcing our 
men to leave the rescuing of him that 
was taken as captive, and with speed 
to shift for themselves. 

The cause of this violence was a de- 
sire which the King of Fesse had to 
understand what this fleet was, whe- 
ther any forerunner of the King of 
Portugal's 1 or no, and what news of 
certainty the fleet might give him. 
And therefore, after that he wns 
brought to the King's presence, and 
had reported that they were English- 
men, bound to the Straits under the 
conduct of General Drake, he was sent 
back again with a present to his Cap- 
tain, and offer of great courtesy and 

1 King Sebastian was then prepar- 
ing that expedition into Mauritania, 
the calamitous result of which, on the 
fatal day of Aleazar-Seguer, will after- 
wards appear. 



friendship, if he would use his country. 
But in this meantime the General, be- 
ing aggrieved with this show of injury, 
and intending, if he might, to recover 
or redeem his man, his pinnace being 
ready, landed his company, and march- 
ed somewhat into the country, with- 
out any resistance made against him, 
neither would the Moors come nigh 
our men to deal with them any way ; 
wherefore having made provision of 
wood, as also visited an old fort built 
sometime by the King of Portugal but 
now ruined by the King of Fesse, 
we departed, December 31, towards 
Cape Blanco, in such sort that when 
Fry returned he found to his great 
grief that the fleet was gone ; but yet, 
by the King's favour, he was sent 
home into England not long after, in 
an English merchant ship. 

Shortly after our putting forth of 
this harbour, we were met with con- 
trary winds and foul weather, which 
continued till the 4th of January ; yet 
we still held on to our course, and 
the third day after fell with Cape de 
Guerre, 2 in 30, where we lighted on 
three Spanish fishermen called caun- 
ters, whom we took with our new 
pinnace, and carried along with us 
till we came to Rio del Oro, 3 just under 
the Tropic of Cancer, where with our 
pinnace also we took a carvel. From 
hence till the fifteenth day we sailed 
on towards Cape Barbas, where the 
Marigold took a carvel more, and so 
onward to Cape Blanco till the next 
day at night. This cape lies in 20 s 
30', showing itself upright like the 
corner of a Avail, to them that come 
towards it from the north, having be- 
tween it and Cape Barbas, low, sandy, 
and very white land all the way. Here 
we observed the South Guards, called 
the Croziers, 4 9 30' above the horizon. 
Within the Cape we took one Spanish 
ship more riding at anchor (all her 
men being fled ashore in the boat save 



2 Cape Ghir, in about latitude 31 ; 
it marks the end of the Atlas moun- 
tain-chain towards the Atlantic. 

3 Rio do Ouro. 

. 4 The constellation of the Southern 
Cross. 



1573.] 



AMONG THE CAPE VERB ISLANDS. 



13 



two), which, with all the rest we had 
Torrnerly taken, we carried iiito the 
harbour, throe leagues within the 
Cape. 1 

Here our General determined for 
certain days to make his abode, both 
for that the place afforded plenty of 
fresh victuals for the present refresh- 
ing of our men, and for their future 
supply at sea (by reason of the infinite 
store of divers sorts of good fish which 
are there easy to be taken, even within 
the harbour, the like whereof is hardly 
to be found again in any part of the 
world), as also because it served very 
fitly for the despatching of some other 
businesses that we had. During the 
time of our abode at this place, our 
General, being ashore, was visited by 
certain of the people of the country, 
who brought down with them a wo- 
man, a Moor (with her babe hanging 
upon her dry dug, having scarce life 
in herself, much less milk to nourisli 
her child), to be sold as a horse, or a 
cow and calf by her side ; in which 
sort of merchandise our General would 
not deal. But they had also amber- 
gris, with certain gums of some estima- 
tion, which they brought to exchange 
with our men for water, whereof they 
have great want ; so that coming with 
their alforges* (they are leathern bags 
holding liquor) to buy water, they 
cared not at what price they bought 
it, so they might have it to quench 
their thirst. A very heavy judgment 
of God upon the coast ! The circum- 
stances whereof considered, our Gene- 
ral would receive nothing of them for 
water, but freely gave it to them that 
came to him, yea, and fed them also 
ordinarily with our victuals, in eating 
whereof their manner was not only 
uncivil 3 and unsightly to us, but even 
inhuman and loathsome in itself. 4 



1 Probably the Bay du Levrier, 
which runs up into the land north- 
wards behind the peninsula-promon- 
tory that Cape Blanco forms. 

2 Spanish, " Alforja," a saddle-bag. 

3 Barbarous, uncivilised. 

4 These people were worshippers of 
the sun; they never quitted their 
abodes until he had mounted above 



And having washed and trimmed 
our ships, and discharged all our 
Spanish prizes except one caunter (for 
which we gave to the owner one of 
our own ships, the Christopher) and 
one carvel, formerly bound to St lago, 
which we caused to accompany us 
hither, where she also was discharged ; 
after six days' abode here, we departed, 
directing our course for the Islands of 
Cape Verd, where (if anywhere) we 
were of necessity to store our fleet with 
fresh water, for a long time, for that 
our General from thence intended to 
run a long course, even to the coast 
of Brazil, without touch of land. And 
now having the wind constant at NE. 
and ENE. , which is usual about those 
parts, because it blows almost con- 
tinually from the shore, January the 
27th we coasted Buenavista, and the 
next day after we came to anchor 
under the western part, towards St 
lago, of the island Mayo ; it lies in 
15 high land, saving that the north- 
west part stretches out into the sea 
the space of a league, very low j and 
is inhabited by subjects to the King 
of Portugal. Here landing, in hope 
of traffic witli the inhabitants for 
water, we found a town, not far from 
the water-side, of a great number of 
desolate and ruinous houses, with a 
poor naked chapel or oratory, such as 
small cost and charge might serve 
and suffice, being to small purpose, 
and as it seems only to make a show, 
and that a false show, contrary 
to the nature of a scarecrow, which 
feareth birds from coming nigh ; this 
enticeth such as pass by to haul in 
and look for commodity, 3 which is 
not at all to be found there ; though 
in the inner parts of the island it is 
in great abundance. 

For when we found the springs and 
wells which had been there (as ap- 
peared) stopped up again, and no 
other water to purpose to be had to 
serve our need, we marched up to 



the horizon, and then paid their adora- 
tion prostrate, or kneeling upon a 
liillock or stone. 

5 Accommodation, convenience of 
supply, etc. 



14 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



seek some more convenient place to 
supply our want, or at least to see 
whether the people would be dealt 
withal to keep us therein. In this 
travelling, we found the soil to be 
very fruitful, having everywhere 
plenty of fig trees, with fruit upon 
most of them. But in the valleys 
and low ground, where little low cot- 
tages were built, were pleasant vine- 
yards planted, bearing then ripe and 
most pleasant grapes. There were 
also tall trees, without any branch 
till the top, which bare the cocoa 
nuts. There were also great store of 
certain lower trees, with long and 
broad leaves, bearing the fruit which 
they call plantains in clusters to- 
gether like puddings, a most dainty 
and wholesome fruit. All of these 
trees were even laden with fruit, 
some ready to be eaten, others coming 
forward, others overripe. Neither 
can this seem strange, though about 
the midst of "Winter with us, for that 
the Sun doth never withdraw himself 
farther off from them, but that with 
his lively heat he quickeneth and 
strengtheneth the power of the soil 
and plant; neither ever have they 
any such frost and cold as thereby to 
lose their green hue and appearance. 

We found very good water in divers 
places, but so far off from the road, 1 
that we could not with any reasonable 
pains enjoy it. The people would by 
no means be induced to have any con- 
ference with us, but keeping in the 
most sweet and fruitful valleys among 
the hills, where their towns and 
places of dwelling were, gave us leave 
without interruption to take our plea- 
sure in surveying the island, as they 
had some reason not to endanger 
themselves, where they saw they 
could reap nothing sooner than 
damage and shame, if they should 
have offered violence to them which 
came in peace to do them no wrong 
at all. This island yieldeth other 
great commodities, as wonderful 
herds of goats, infinite store of wild 
hens, and salt without labour (only 
the gathering it together excepted), 

1 The roadstead. 



which continually in 



[1578. 
marvellous 



quantity is increased upon the sands 
by the flowing of the sea, and the 
heat of the sun kerning 2 the same. 
So that of the increase thereof they 
keep a continual traffic with their 
neighbours in the other adjacent 
islands. We set sail thence the 30th 
da 



y [of January]. 
Being departec 



ing departed from Mayo, the 
next day we passed by the island of 
St lago, ten leagues west of Mayo, in 
the same latitude, inhabited by the 
Portugals and Moors together. The 
cause whereof is said to have been in 
the Portugals themselves, who, con- 
tinuing long time lords within them- 
selves in the said island, used that 
extreme and unreasonable cruelty 
over their slaves, that (their bondage 
being intolerable) they were forced to 
seek some means to keep themselves 
and to lighten that so heavy a bur- 
then ; and thereupon chose to fly 
into the most mountainous parts of 
the island ; and at last, by continual 
escapes, increasing to a great number, 
and growing to a set strength, do 
now live with that terror to their op- 

Eressors, that they now endure no 
;ss bondage in mind than the for- 
catoz did before in body ; besides the 
damage that they daily suffer at their 
hands in their goods and cattle, to- 
gether with the abridging of their 
liberties in the use of divers parts of 
the fruitful soil of the said island, 
which is very large, marvellous fruit- 
ful (a refuge for all such ships as are 
bound towards Brazil, Guinea, the 
East Indies, Binny, 3 Calicut, etc.), 
and a place of rare force, if it were 
not for the cause afore recited, which 
hath much abated the pride and 
cooled the courage of that people, 
who under pretence of traffic and 
friendship at first making an en- 
trance, ceased not practising upon 
the poor islanders (the ancient re- 



2 Granulating, forming into corns 
or kernels. 

3 Apparently Benin, on the west 
coast of Africa, is meant, though in 
the list of places it is geographically 
out of order. 



THE VOLCANOES OF FOGO AND BRAVA. 



1578.] 

mainder of the first planters thereof, 
as it may seem from the coast of 
Guinea), until they had excluded 
them from all government and liber- 
ty, yea almost life. On the south- 
west of this island we took a Portugal, 
laden the best part with wine, and 
much good cloth, both linen and 
woollen, besides other necessaries, 
bound for Brazil, with many gentle- 
men and merchants in her. 1 As we 
passedby with our fleet, in sight of three 
of their towns, they seemed very joyful 
that we touched not with their coast ; 
and seeing us depart peaceably, in 
honour of our fleet and General, or 
rather to signify that they were pro- 
vided for an assault, shot off two 
great pieces into the sea, which were 
answered by one given them again 
from us. 

South-west from St lago, in 14 
30', about twelve leagues distant, yet 
by reason of the height seeming not 
above three leagues, lies another 
island, called of the Portugals ' ' Fogo, " 
the burning island, or fiery furnace 
in which rises a steep upright hill, 
by conjecture at least six leagues, or 
eighteen English miles, from the 
upper part of the water ; within the 
bowels whereof is a consuming fire, 
maintained by sulphury matters, 
seeming to be of a marvellous depth, 
and also very wide. The fire showeth 
itself but four times in an hour, at 
which times it breaketh out with 
such violence and force, and in such 
main abundance, that besides that it 
giveth light like the moon a great 
way off, it seemeth that it would not 
stay till it touch the heavens them- 



1 Command of this prize was given 
to Thomas Doughty, who afterwards 
figures so prominentty in the narra- 
tive ; "but being found appropriating 
to his own use the propitiatory pre- 
sents made by the prisoners, he was 
superseded by Thomas Drake, brother 
of the Admiral. The pilot of the 
"Portugal " ship, Nuno da Silva an 
expert mariner and well acquainted 
with the coast of Brazil was de- 
tained by Drake, and afterwards 
liberated at Guatulco. 



selves. Herein are engendered great 
store of pumice-stones, which being 
in the vehement heat of the fire car- 
ried up without the mouth of that 
fiery body, fall down, with other gross 
and slimy matter, upon the hill, to 
the continual increasing of the same ; 
and many times these stones falling 
down into the sea are taken up and 
used, as we ourselves had experience 
by sight of them swimming on the 
water. The rest of the island is fruit- 
ful, notwithstanding, and is inhabited 
by Portugals, who live very commo- 
diously therein, as in the other islands 
thereabout. 

Upon the south side, about two 
leagues off this Island of Burning, 
lieth a most sweet and pleasant 
island ; the trees thereof are always 
green and fair to look on, the soil 
almost set full of trees, in respect 
whereof it is named the Brave Island, 3 
being a storehouse of many fruits and 
commodities, as figs always ripe, 
cocoas, plantains, oranges, lemons, 
cotton, etc. From the banks into 
the sea do run in many places the 
silver streams of sweet and whole- 
some water, which with boats or 
pinnaces may easily be taken in. 
But there is no convenient place or 
road for ships, neither any anchoring 
at all. For after long trial, and 
often casting of leads, there could no 
ground be had at any hand, neither 
was it ever known, as is reported, 
that any line would fetch ground in 
any place about that island. So that 
the top of Fogo burneth not so high 
in the air, but the root of Brava (so 
is the island called) is buried and 
quenched as low in the seas. The 
only inhabitant of this island is a 
hermit, as we suppose, for we found 
no other houses but one, built as it 
seemed for such a purpose ; and he 
was so delighted in his solitary living, 
that he would by no means abide our 
coming, but fled, leaving behind him 
the relics of hie false worship ; to wit, 
a cross with a crucifix, an altar with 
his 3 superaltar, and certain other 
idols of wood of rude workmanship. 



2 Ilha Brava. 



ItS. 



16 

Here we dismissed the Portugals 
taken near St lago, 1 and gave them 
in exchange of their old ship our 
new pinnace built at Mogador, with 
wine, bread, and fish for their pro- 
vision, and so sent them away, Feb- 
ruary 1. 

Having thus visited, as is declared, 
the Islands of Cape Verd, and pro- 
vided fresh water as we could, the 
2d of February we departed thence, 
directing our course towards the 
Straits, 2 so to pass into the South 
Sea ; in which course we sailed sixty- 
three days without sight of land 
(passing the Line Equinoctial the 
17th day of the same month) till we 
fell with the coast of Brazil, the 
5th of April following. During 
which long passage on the vast gulf, 
where nothing but sea beneath us 
and air above us was to be seen, as 
our eyes did behold the wonderful 
works of God in His creatures, which 
He hath made innumerable both 
small and great beasts, in the great 
and wide seas : so did our mouths 
taste, and our natures feed on, the 
goodness thereof in such fulness at 
all times, and in every place, as if 
He commanded and enjoined the 
most profitable and glorious works of 
His hands to wait upon us, not only 
for the relief of our necessities, but 
also to give us delight in the contem- 
plation of His excellence, in behold- 
ing the variety and order of His pro- 
vidence, with a particular taste of 
His fatherly care over us all the while. 
The truth is, we often met with ad- 
verse winds, unwelcome storms, and, 
to us at that time, less welcome 
calms ; and being as it were in the 
bosom of the burning zone, we felt 
the effects of sweltering heat, not 
without the affrights of flashing 
lightnings, and terrifyings of often 
claps of thunder ; yet still with the 
admixture of many comforts. For 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [1573, 

this we could not but take notice of, 
that whereas we were but badly fur- 
nished (our case considered) of fresh 
water, having never at all watered, to 
any purpose, or that we could say we 
were much the better for it, from our 
first setting forth out of England till 
this time, nor meeting with any place 
where we might con veniently water, till 
our coming to the River of Plate, long 
after continually, after once AVC were 
come within four degrees of the Line 
on this side, viz., after February 10, 
and till we were past the Line as many 
degrees towards the south, viz., till 
February 27, there was no one day 
went over us but we received some 
rain, whereby our want of water was 
much supplied. This also was observ- 
able, that of our whole fleet, being 
now six in number, notwithstanding 
the uncouthncss 3 of the way, and 
whatever other difficulties, by weather 
or otherwise, we met withal, not any 
one, in all this space, lost company 
of the rest ; except only our Portugal 
prize for one day, who, March 28, 
Avas severed from us, but the day fol- 
lowing, March 29, she found us again, 
to both her own and our no little 
comfort. She had in her twenty- 
eight of our men, and the best part 
of all our provision for drink ; her 
short absence caused much doubting 
and sorrow in the whole company, 
neither could she then have been 
finally lost without the overthrow of 
the whole voyage. 

Among the many strange creatures 
which we saw, we took heedful notice 
of one, as strange as any, to wit, the 
flying fish, a fish of the bigness and 
proportion of a reasonable or middle 
sort of pilchards ; he hath fins, of the 
length of his whole body, from the 
bulk to the top of the tail, bearing 
the form and supplying the like use 
to him that wings do to other crea- 
tures. By the help of these fins, 
when he is chased of the Bonits, or 
great mackerel (whom the Aurata, or 
dolphin likewise pursueth), and hath 
not strength to escape by swimming 
any longer, lie lifteth up himself 



1 Except the pilot Nuna da Silva, 
who willingly stayed with Drake 
when he learned that the voyage was 
to be prosecuted into Mare del Zur, 
or the South Sea. 

Of Magellan. 



3 Strangeness, unknown character, 



1578.] 

above the water, and flietli a pretty 
height, sometimes lighting into boats 
or barks as they sail along. The 
quills of their wings are so proportion- 
able, and finely set together, with a 
most thin and dainty film, that they 
might seem to serve for a much longer 
and higher flight ; but the dryness 
of them is such, after some ten or 
twelve strokes, that he must needs 
into the water again to moisten them, 
which else would grow stiff and unfit 
for motion. The increase of this little 
and wonderful creature is in a man- 
ner infinite, the fry \vhereof lies upon 
the upper part of the waters, in the 
heat of the sun, as dust upon the face 
of the earth ; which being in bigness 
of a wheat straw, and in length an 
inch more or less, do continually 
exercise themselves in both their 
faculties of nature ; wherein, if the 
Lord had not made them expert in- 
deed, their generation could not have 
continued, being so desired a prey to 
many which greedily hunt after them, 
forcing them to escape in the air by 
flight when they cannot in the waters 
live in safety. Neither are they al- 
ways free, or without danger, in their 
flying ; but as they escape one evil by 
refusing the waters, so they sometimes 
fall into as great a mischief by mount- 
ing up into the air, and that by means 
of a great and ravening fowl, named 
of some a Don or Spurkite, who feed- 
ing chiefly on such fish as he can come 
at by advantage, in their swimming 
in the brim of the waters, or leaping 
above the same, presently seizes upon 
them with great violence, making 
great havoc, especially among these 
flying fishes, though with small pro- 
fit to himself. There is another sort 
of fish which likewise flies in the air, 
named a Cuttill ; it is the same wlxosc 
bones the goldsmiths commonly use, 
or at least not unlike that sort, a 
multitude of which have at one time 
in their flight fallen into our ships 
among our men. 

Passing thus, in beholding the 
most excellent works of the Eternal 
God upon the seas, as if we had been 
in a garden of pleasure, April 5 we 
fell iu with the coast of Brazil, in 



OFF THE COAST OF BRAZIL. 17 

30 30' towards the Pole Antarctic, 1 
where the land is low near the sea, 
but much higher within the country 
having in depth not above twelve 
fathoms three leagues off from the 
shore ; and being descried by the in- 
habitants we saw great and huge fires 
made by them in sundry places. 
Which order of making fires, though 
it be universal as well among Christ- 
ians as heathens, yet it is not likely 
that many use it to that end Avhich 
the Brazilians do : to wit, for a sacri- 
fice to devils, whereas they intermix 
many and divers ceremonies of con- 
jugations, casting up great heaps of 
sand, to this end, that if any ships 
shall go about to stay upon their 
coasts, their ministering spirits may 
make wreck of them, whereof the 
Portugals by the loss of divers of 
their ships have had often experi- 
ence. 
In the reports of Magellan's voyage, 



it is said that this people pray to no 
manner of thing, but live only ac- 
cording to the instinct of nature ; 
which if it were true, there should 
seem to be a wonderful altera- 
tion in them since that time, being 
fallen from a simple and natural crea- 
ture to make gods of devils. But I 
am of the mind that it was with them 
thea as now it is, only they lacked 
then the like occasion to put it in 
practice which now they have ; for 
then they lived as a free people among 
themselves, but now are in most 
miserable bondage and slavery, both 
in body, goods, wife, and children, 
and life itself, to the Portugals, whose 
hard and most cruel dealings against 
them force them to fly into the more 
unfruitful parts of their own land, 
rather there to starve, or at least live 
miserably, with liberty, than to abide 
such intolerable bondage as they lay 
upon them ; using the aforesaid 
practices with devils both for a 
revenge against their oppressors, and 
also for a defence, that they have no 
further entrance into the country. 
And supposing indeed that no others 



1 That is, in latitude South of the 
Line. 

B 



18 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



had used travel by sea in ships, but 
their enemies only, they therefore 
used the same at our coming ; not- 
withstanding, our God made their 
devilish intent of none effect ; for 
albeit there lacked not, within the 
space of our falling with this coast, 
forcible storms and tempests, yet did 
we sustain no damage, but only the 
separating of our ships out of sight 
for a few days. Here our General 
would have gone ashore, but we could 
find no harbour in many leagues. 
And therefore coasting along the land 
towards the south, April 7, we had a 
violent storm for the space of three 
hours, with thunder, lightning, and 
rain in great abundance, accompanied 
with a vehement south wind directly 
against us, which caused a separation 
of the Christopher (the caunter which 
we took at Cape Blanco in exchange 
for the Christopher, whose name she 
thenceforward bore) from the rest of 
the fleet. After this we kept on our 
course, sometimes to the seaward, 
sometimes toward the shore, but al- 
ivays southward, as near as we could, 
till April 14, in the morning, at which 
time we passed by Cape St Mary, which 
lies in 35, near the mouth of the 
River of Plate ; and running within 
it about six or seven leagues, along 
by the main, we came to anchor in a 
bay under another cape, w r hich our 
General afterwards called Cape Joy, 
by reason that the second day after 
our anchoring here the Christopher, 
whom we had lost in the former storm, 
came to us again. 

Among other cares which our Gene- 
ral took in this action, 1 next the 
main care of effecting the voyage it- 
self, these were the principal and 
chiefly subordinate : to keep our 
whole fleet, as near as possibly we 
could, together ; to get fresh water, 
which is of continual use ; and to re- 
fresh our men, wearied with long toils 
at sea, as oft as we should find any 
opportunity of effecting the same. 
And for these causes it was deter- 
mined, and public notice thereof 
given at our departure from the 



Enterprise, expedition. 



Islands of Cape Verd, that the next 
rendezvous, both for the re-collecting 
of our navy if it should be dispersed, 
as also for watering and the like, 
should be the River of Plate ; whether 
we were all to repair with all the con- 
venient speed that could be made, 
and to stay one for another if it 
should happen that we could not 
arrive there all together ; and the 
effect we found answerable to our ex- 
pectations, for here our severed ship 
(as hath been declared) found us again, 
and here w r e found those other helps 
also so much desired. The country 
hereabout is of a temperate and most 
sweet air, very fair and pleasant to 
behold, and, besides the exceeding 
fruitfulness of the soil, it is stored 
with plenty of large and mighty deer. 
Notwithstanding that in this first bay 
w,e found sweet and wholesome water, 
even at pleasure, yet the same day, 
after the arrival of the caunter, we 
removed some twelve leagues farther 
up into^another, where we found a 
long rock, or rather island of rocks, 
not far from the main, making a 
commodious harbour, especially 
against a southerly wind ; under 
them we anchored and rode till the 
20th day at night, in which mean 
space we killed divers seals, or sea- 
wolves as the Spaniard calls them, 
which resorted to these rocks in great 
abundance. They are good meat, 
and were an acceptable food to us for 
the present and a good supply of our 
provision for the future. Hence, 
April 20, we weighed again and sailed 
yet farther up into the river, even 
till we found biit three fathoms' 
depth, and that we rode with our 
ships in fresh water ; but we stayed 
not there, nor in any other place of 
the river, because that the winds being 
strong, the shoals many, and no safe 
harbour found, we could not without 
our great danger so have done. Hauling 
therefore to seaward again, the 27th 
of the same month, after that we had 
spent a just fortnight in the river to 
the great comfort of the whole fleet, 
we passed by the south side thereof 
into the main. The land here lies 
SW., and NNE., with shoal water 



1578.] SEVERE STORMS. 19 

some three or four leagues off into | of these dangers to another's pains, 



the sea ; it is about 36 20' and some- 
what better S. latitude. 

At our very first coming forth to 
sea again, to wit, the same night, our 
fly-boat, the Swan, lost company of 
us : whereupon, though our General 
doubted nothing of her happy coming 
forward again to the rest of the fleet, 
yet because it was grievous to have 
such often losses, and that it was his 
duty as much as in him lay to prevent 
all inconveniences besides that might 
grow, he determined to reduce the 
number of his ships, thereby to draw 
his men into less room, that both the 
fewer ships might the better keep 
company, and that they might also 
be the better appointed with new and 
fresh supplies of provisions and men, 
one to ease the burthen of another : 
especially for that he saw the coast 
(it drawing now towards winter here) 
to be subject to many and grievous 
storms. And therefore he continued 
on his course to find out a convenient 
harbour for that use ; searching all 
the coast from 36 to 47, as diligently 
as contrary winds and sundry storms 
would permit, and yet found none for 
the purpose. And in the meantime 
viz., May 8, by another storm 
the caunter also was once more 
severed from us. May 12 we had 
sight of land in 47, where we were 
forced to come to anchor in such road 
as we could find for the time. Never- 
theless our General named the place 
Cape Hope ; by reason of a bay dis- 
covered within the headland, which 
seemed to promise a good and com- 
modious harbour. But by reason of 
many rocks lying off from the place, 
we durst not adventure with our ships 
into it without good and perfect dis- 
covery beforehand made. Our Gene- 
ral, especially in matters of moment, 
was never wont to rely on other men's 
care, how trusty or skilful soever they 
might seem to be ; but always con- 
temning danger, and refusing no toil, 
he was wont himself to be one, who- 
soever was a second, at every turn 
where courage, skill, or industry, 
was to be employed ; neither would 
he at this time entrust the discovery 



rat rather to his own experience, in 
searching out and sounding of them. 
A boat being therefore hoisted forth, 
himself with some others the next 
morning, May 13, rowed into the 
bay ; and being now very nigh the 
shore, one of the men of the country 
showed himself unto him, seeming 
very pleasant, singing and dancing, 
after the noise of a rattle which he 
shook in his hand, expecting earnestly 
his landing. 

But there was suddenly so great an 
alteration in the weather, into a thick 
and misty fog, together with an ex- 
treme storm and tempest, that our 
General, being now three leagues from 
his ship, thought it better to return 
than either to land or make any other 
stay; and yet the fog thickened so 
mightily, that the sight of the ships 
was bereft them ; and if Captain 
Thomas, upon the abundance of his 
love and service to his General, had 
not adventured with his ship to enter 
the bay in this perplexity, where good 
advice would not suffer our ships to 
bear in while the winds were more 
tolerable and the air clearer, we had 
sustained some great loss, or our 
General had been further endangered. 
Who was now quickly received aboard 
his ship j l out of which, being within 
the bay, they let fall an anchor, and 
rode there (God be praised) in safety ; 
but our other ships, riding without, 
were so oppressed with the extremity 
of the storm, that they were forced to 
run off to sea for their own safeguard, 
being in good hope only of the success 
of the ship which was gone in to re- 
lieve our General. Before this storm 
arose, our caunter, formerly lost, was 
come in the same day unto us in the 
road, but was put to sea again, the 
same evening, with the rest of the 
fleet. 

The next day, May 14, the weather 
being fair and the winds moderate, but 
the fleet out of sight, our General 
determined to go ashore, to this end, 
that he might, by making of fires, 

1 Captain Thomas's ship, the Mari- 
gold. 



20 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [1578. 



give signs to the dispersed ships to 
come together again into that road ; 
whereby at last they were all as- 
sembled, excepting the Swan, lost 
long time before, and excepting our 
Portugal prize, called the Mary, which, 
weighing in this last storm the night 
before, had now parted company, and 
was not found again in a long time 
after. In this place (the people being 
removed up into the country, belike 
for fear of our coming) we found near 
unto the rocks, in houses made for 
that purpose, as also in divers other 
places, great store of ostriches, at 
least to the number of fifty, with much 
other fowl, some dried and some in 
drying, for their provision, as it 
seemed, to carry with them to the 
place of their dwellings. The os- 
triches' thighs were in bigness equal 
to reasonable legs of mutton. They 
cannot fly at all ; but they run so 
swiftly, and take so long strides, that 
it is not possible for a man in running 
by any means to take them, neither 
yet to come so nigh them as to have 
a shot at them either with bow or 
piece ; whereof our men had often 
proof on other parts of the coast, for 
all the country is full of them. We 
found there the tools or instruments 
which the people use in taking them. 
Among other means they use in be- 
traying these ostriches, they have a 
great and large plume of feathers, or- 
derly compact together upon the end 
of a staff, in the forepart bearing the 
likeness of the head, neck, and bulk 
of an ostrich, and in the hinder part 
spreading out very large, sufficient 
(being held before him) to screen the 
most part of the body of a man. With 
this, it seemeth, they stalk, driving 
them into some strait or neck of 
land close to the seaside, where spread- 
ing long and strong nets, with their 
dogs which they have in readiness at 
all times, they overthrow them, and 
make a common quarry. The country 
Is very pleasant, and seemeth to be a 
fruitful soil. Being afterwards driven 
to fall with this place again, we had 
great acquaintance and familiarity 
with the people, who rejoiced greatly 
in our coming, and in our friendship, 



in that we had done them no harm. 
But because this place was no fit or 
convenient harbour for us to do our 
necessary business, neither yet to 
make much provision of such things 
as we wanted, as water, wood, and 
the like, we departed thence the 15th 
of May. 

At our departure hence, we held 
our course South and by West, and 
made about nine leagues in twenty- 
four hours, bearing very little sail, 
that our fleet might the easier get up 
with us, which by reason of contrary 
winds were cast astern of us. In 
47 30' we found a bay which was 
fair, safe, and beneficial to us, very 
necessary for our use, into which we 
hauled, and anchored May 17 ; and 
the next day we came further into the 
same bay, where we cast anchor, and 
made our abode full fifteen days. The 
very first day of our arrival here, our 
General having set things in some 
order, for the despatch of our neces- 
sary business, being most careful for 
his two ships which were wanting, 
sent forth to the southward Captain 
Winter in the Elizabeth, Vice-ad- 
miral, himself in the Admiral going 
forth northward into the sea, to see if 
happily they might meet with either 
of them ; at which time, by the good 
providence of God, he himself met 
with the Swan, formerly lost at our 
departure, from the River of Plate, 
and brought her into the same har- 
bour the same day ; where being after 
wards unladen and discharged of he 
freight, she was cast off, and, her 
iron- work and other necessaries being 
saved for the better provision of the 
rest, of the remainder was made fire- 
wood and other implements which we 
wanted. But all this while of the 
other ship, which we lost so lately in 
our extremity, we could have no 
news. 

While we were thus employed, after 
certain days of our stay in this place, 
being on shore in an island nigh unto 
the main, where at low-water was free 
passage on foot from the one to the 
other, the people of the country did 
show themselves unto us with leap- 
ing, dancing, and holding up their 



BAUBAHOUS CUSTOMS OF THE NATIVES. 21 



1578.] 

hands, and making outcries after 
their manner ; but, being then high 
water, we could not g over to them 
on foot Wherefore the General 
caused immediately a boat to be in 
readiness, and sent unto them such 
things as he thought would delight 
them, as knives, bells, bugles, etc. 
Whereupon they, being assembled 
together upon a hill, half an English 
mile from the water-side, sent down 
two of their company, running one 
after the other with a great pace, 
traversing their ground, as it seemed 
after the manner of their wars, by de- 
grees descending towards the water's 
side very swiftly. Notwithstanding, 
drawing nigh unto it, they made a 
stay, refusing to come near our men : 
which our men perceiving, sent such 
tilings as they had, tied with a string 
upon a rod, and stuck the same up a 
reasonable distance from them, where 
they might see it. And as soon as 
our men were departed from the place, 
they came and took those things, 
leaving instead of them, as in recom- 
pense, such feathers as they use to 
wear about their heads, with a bone 
made in manner of a toothpick, 
carved round about the top, and 
in length about six inches, being 
very smoothly burnished. Where- 
upon our General, with divers of his 
gentlemen and company, at low water, 
went over to them to the main. 
Against his coming they remained 
still upon the hill, and set themselves 
in a rank, one by one, appointing one 
of their company to run before them 
from the one end of the rank to the 
other, and so back again, continually 
East and West, with holding up his 
hands over his head, and yielding 
forward his body in his running to- 
wards the rising and setting of the 
Sun, and, at every second or third 
turn at the most, erected his body 
against the midst of the rank of the 
people, lifting himself vaulting-wise 
from the ground towards the Moon, 
being then over our heads : signify- 
ing thereby, as we conceived, that 
they called the Sun and Moon (which 
they serve for gods) to witness that 
they meant nothing towards us but 



peace. But when they perceived that 
we ascended the hill apace, and drew 
nigh unto them, they seemed very 
fearful of our coming. Wherefore 
our General, not willing to give them 
any way any occasion to mislike or be 
discomfited, retired his company ; 
whereby they were so allured, and did 
so therein confirm themselves of us 
that we were no enemies, neither 
meant them harm, that without all 
fear divers came down with all speed 
after us, presently entering into traffic 
with, our men. Notwithstanding, 
they would receive nothing at our 
hands, but the same must first be 
cast upon the ground, using this 
word, "Zussus," for exchange, 
"Toytt," to cast upon the ground. 
And if they misliked anything, they 
cried "Cor6h! Coroh f" speaking 
the same with rattling in the throat. 
The wares we received from them 
were arrows of reeds, feathers, and 
such bones as are afore described. 

This people go naked, except a skin 
of fur, which they cast about their 
shoulders when they sit or lie in the 
cold ; but having anything to do, as 
going or any other labour, they use 
it as a girdle about their loins. They 
wear their hair very long ; but lest it 
might trouble them in their travel, 
they knit it up with a roll of ostrich 
feathers, using the same rolls and 
hair together for a quiver for their 
arrows, and for a store-house, in 
which they carry the most things 
which they carry about them. Some . 
of them, within these rolls, stick on 
either side of their heads (for a sign 
of honour in their persons) a large and 
and plain feather, showing like horns 
afar off ; so that such a head upon a 
naked body if devils do appear with 
horns might very nigh resemble 
devils. Their whole bravery and set- 
ting out themselves standeth 1 in 
painting their bodies with divers 
colours, and such works as they can 
devise. Some wash 2 their faces with 
sulphur, or some such like substance ; 

1 Consists. 

2 Dye their faces, "or give them a 
wash, to use a modern phrase. 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1578. 



some paint their whole bodies black, 
leaving only their necks before and 
behind white, much like our damsels 
that wear their squares, 1 their necks 
and breasts naked. Some paint one 
shoulder black, another white ; and 
their sides and legs interchangeably, 
with the same colours, one still con- 
trary to the other. The black part 
hath set upon it white Moons, and 
the white part black Suns, being the 
marks and characters of their gods, 
as is before noted. They have some 
commodity 2 by painting of their 
bodies, for the which cause they use 
it so generally ; and that I gather to 
be, the defence it yieldeth against the 
piercing and nipping cold. For the 
colours being close laid on upon their 
skin, or rather in their flesh, as by 
continual renewing of these juices 
which are laid on, soaked into the 
inner part thereof, doth fill up the 
pores so close that no air or cold 
can enter, or make them once to 
shrink. 

They have clean, comely, and 
strong bodies ; they are swift of foot, 
and seem very active. Neither is 
anything more lamentable, in my 
judgment, than that so goodly a 
people, and so lively creatures of God, 
should be ignorant of the true and 
living God. And so much the more 
is this to be lamented, by how much 
they are more tractable, and easy to 
be brought to the sheepfold of Christ ; 
having, in truth, a land sufficient to 
recompense any Christian Prince in 
the world for the whole travail and 
labour, cost and charges, bestowed in 
their behalf : with a wonderful en- 
larging of a kingdom, besides the 
glory of God by increasing the Church 
of Christ. It is wonderful to hear, 
being never known to Christians be- 
fore this time, how familiar they 
became in short space with us ; 
thinking themselves to be joined 



1 Square-bodied dresses ; the repro- 
duction of which is only one of the 
signs of the fatigue of fashionable in- 
ventions which have fallen to the 
present period. 

2 They gain some convenience. 



with such a people as they ought 
rather to serve than offer any wrong 
or injury unto ; presuming that they 
might be bold with our General as 
with a father, and with us as brethren 
and their nearest friends ; neither 
seemed their love less towards us. 
One of the chiefest among them 
having on a time received a cap off 
the General's head, which he did 
daily wear, removing himself but a 
little from us, with an arrow pierced 
his leg deeply, causing the blood to 
stream out upon the ground : signify- 
ing thereby how unfeignedly he loved 
him, and giving therein a covenant 
of peace. The number of men which 
did here frequent our company was 
about fifty persons. "Within, in the 
southernmost part of this bay, there 
is a river of fresh water, with a 
great many profitable islands ; of 
which some have always such store of 
seals, or sea-wolves, as were able to 
maintain a huge army of men. Other 
islands, being many and great, are so 
replenished with birds and fowl, as if 
there were no other victuals : a 
wonderful multitude of people might 
be nourished by the increase of them 
for many posterities. Of these we 
killed some with shot, and some with 
staves, 3 and took some with our 
hands, from men's heads and shoul- 
ders, upon which they lighted. We 
could not perceive that the people of 
the country had any sort of boat or 
canoe to come to these islands. Their 
own provisions which they ate, for 
ought we could perceive, was com- 
monly raw : for we should sometimes 
find the remnants of seals, all bloody, 
which, they had gnawn with their teeth 
like dogs. They go all of them armed 
with a short bow, of about an ell in 
length, in their hands, with arrows 
of reeds, and headed witli a flint stone, 
very cunningly cut and fastened. 

This bay, by reason of the plenty 
of seals therein found, insomuch that 
we killed two hundred in the space of 
one hour, we called Seal Bay. A.nd 
having now made sufficient provision 



3 Or, possibly, by misreading of the 
text, ' ' stones. " 



1578.] IN PORT 

of victuals and other necessaries, as 
also happily finished all our businesses, 
on June 3 \ve set sail from thence ; 
and coasting along towards the Pole 
Antarctic, on June 12 we fell in with 
a little hay, in which we anchored 
for the space of two days, spent in 
the discharging of our caunter, the 
Christopher, which we here laid up. 
The 14th day we weighed again, 
and kept on our course southward till 
the 17th, and then cast anchor in an- 
other hay, in 50 20', lacking hut little 
more than one degree of the mouth of 
the Straits through which lay our so 
much desired passage into the South 
Sea. Here our General, on good advice, 
determined to alter his course, and 
turn his stern to the northward 
again, if haply God would grant that 
we might find our ship 1 and friends 
whom we lost in the great storm, as 
is before said. Forasmuch as, if we 
should enter the Straits without them 
in our company, it must needs go 
hard with them ; and we also in the 
mean time, as well by their absence 
as by the uncertainty of their state, 
must needs receive no small discom- 
fort. And therefore, on June 18 in 
the morning, putting to sea again, 
with hearty and often prayers we 
joined watchful industry to serve 
God's good providence, and held on 
our purpose to run back towards the 
Line into the same height 2 in which 
they were first dissevered from us. 
The 19th day of June, towards night, 
having sailed within a few leagues of 
Port St Julian, we had our ship in 
sight, for which we gave God thanks 
with most joyful minds. And foras- 
much as the ship was far out of order, 
and very leaky, by reason of ex- 
tremity of weather which she had 
endured, as well before her losing 



1 The "Portugal prize," the Mary ; 
which had on board most or all of 
their provision of liquor for the 
voyage. 

a Latitude ; the word is frequently 
used in this and in other old voyagers' 
narrations, to signify the amount of 
ascendant, on one side or the other, 
towards the plane of the Equator. 



ST JULIAN. 23 

company as in her absence, our Gene- 
ral thought good to bear into Port St 
Julian with his fleet, because it was so 
nigh at hand, and so convenient a 
place ; intending there to refresh his 
wearied men, and cherish them who 
had in their absence tasted such 
bitterness of discomfort, besides the 
want of many things which they sus- 
tained. 

Thus the next day, the 20th of 
June, we entered Port St Julian, 
which stands in 49 30', and has on 
the south side of the harbour peaked 
rocks like towers, and within the 
harbour many islands, which you 
may ride hard aboard of, but in going 
in you must borrow of the north 
shore. Being now come to anchor, 
and all things fitted and made safe 
aboard, our General with certain of 
his company viz., Thomas Drake 
his brother, John Thomas, Robert 
"Winter, Oliver the master-gunner, 
John Brewer, and Thomas Hood on 
June 22 rowed farther in with a boat 
to find out som e convenient place which 
might yield us fresh water, during; 
the time of our abode there, and fur- 
nish us with supply for provision to 
take to sea with us at our departure ; 
which work, as it was of great neces- 
sity, and therefore carefully to be per- 
formed, so did not he think himself 
discharged of his duty if he himself 
bestowed not the first travail therein, 
as his use was at all times in all other 
things belonging to the relieving of 
our wants and the maintenance of our 
good estate, by the supply of what 
was f needful. Presently upon his 
landing he was visited by twc af the 
inhabitants of the place, whom Ma- 
gellan named "Patagous," or rather 
" Pentagours, " from their huge 
stature and strength proportionable. 
These, as they seemed greatly to re- 
joice at his arrival, so did they show 
themselves very familiar, receiving at 
our General's hands whatsoever he 
gave them, and taking great pleasure 
in seeing Mr Oliver, the master-gunner 
of the Admiral, shoot an English 
arrow trying with him to shoot at 
length, but came nothing near him. 

Not loner after came one more of 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



the same cast, but of a sourer sort ; 
for he, misliking of the familiarity 
which his fellows had used, seemed 
very angry with them, and strove 
earnestly to withdraw them, and to 
turn them to become our enemies. 
Which our General, with his men, 
not suspecting in them, used them as 
before, and one Mr Robert Winter, 
thinking of pleasure to shoot an 
arrow at length, as Mr Oliver had 
done before, that he who came last 
also might have a sight thereof, the 
string of his bow broke ; which, as 
before it was a terror unto them, so 
now, broken, it gave them great en- 
couragement and boldness, and, as 
they thought, great advantage in 
their treacherous intent and purpose, 
not imagining that our calivers, 1 
swords, and targets, were any muni- 
tion or weapon of war. In which 
persuasion as the General and his 
company were quietly, without any 
suspicion of evil, going down towards 
the boat they suddenly, being pre- 
pared and gotten by stealth behind 
them, shot their arrows, and chiefly 
at him which had the bow, not suffer- 
ing him to string the same again, 
which he was about to have done, as 
well as he could ; but being wounded 
in the shoulder at the first shot, and 
turning about, was sped by an arrow, 
which pierced his lungs, yet he fell 
not. But the Master Gunner, being 
ready to shoot off his caliver, which 
took not fire in levelling thereof, 2 was 
presently slain outright. In this ex- 
tremity, if our General had not been 
both expert in such affairs, able to 
judge and to give present direction in 
the danger thereof, and had not val- 
iantly thrust himself into the dance 
against these monsters, there had no 
one of our men, that there were 



1 The sam* word as "the modern 
calibre ; " both, by old philologists, 
derived from "equilibrium. " Caliver, 
strictly, not merely means a gun, but 
the shot, of whatever weight, which 
the gun propels. 

2 That is, though he aimed his 
piece, it missed fire, or flashed in the 
pan. 



landed, escaped with life. 



[1578. 
He there- 



fore, giving order that no man should 
keep any certain ground, but shift 
from place to place, encroaching still 
upon the enemy, using their targets 
and other weapons for the defence of 
their bodies, and that they should 
break so many arrows as by any 
means they could come by, being 
shot at them, wherein he himself was 
very diligent, and careful also in call- 
ing upon them, knowing that their 
arrows being once spent, they should 
have these enemies at their devotion 
and pleasure, to kill or save ; and 
this order being accordingly taken, 
himself, I say, with a good courage 
and trust in the true and living God, 
taking and shooting off the same 
piece which the Gunner could not 
make to take fire, despatched the 
first beginner of the quarrel, the same 
man who slew our Master Gunner. 
For the pieces being charged with a 
bullet and hail-shot, and well aimed, 
tore out his belly and guts, with 
great torment, as it seemed by his 
cry, which was so hideous and horri- 
ble a roar, as if ten bulls had joined 
together in roaring ; wherewith the 
courage of his partners was so abated, 
and their hearts appalled, that not- 
withstanding divers of their fellows 
and countrymen appeared out of the 
woods on each side, yet they were 
glad, by flying away, to save them- 
selves, quietly suffering our men 
either to depart or stay. Our General 
chose rather to depart, than to take 
farther revenge of thein, which now 
he might, by reason of his wounded 
man, whom for many good parts he 
loved dearly, and therefore would 
rather have saved him than slain a 
hundred enemies ; but being past re- 
covery, he died the second day after 
his being brought on board again. 
That night, our Master Gunner's body 
being left ashore, for the speedier 
bringing of the other aboard, our 
General himself the next day, with 
his boat well-appointed, returned to 
the shore to find it likewise ; which 
they found lying where it was left, 
but stripped of his uppermost gar- 
ment, and having an English arrow 



SYMPTOMS OF A PLOT DISCOVERED. 25 



1578.J 

stuck in his right eye. Both of these 
dead bodies were laid together in one 
grave, with such reverence as was fit 
for the earthen tabernacles of immor- 
tal souls, and with such commendable 
ceremonies as belong \into soldiers of 
worth in time of war, which they 
most truly and rightfully deserved. 

Magellan was riot altogether de- 
ceived in naming them Giants, for 
they generally differ from the com- 
mon sort of men, both in stature, 
bigness, and strength of body, as also 
in the hideousness of their voice ; 
but yet they are nothing so monstrous 
or giantlike as they were reported, 
there being some Englishmen as tall 
as the highest of any that we did see : 
but peradventure the Spaniards did 
not think that ever any Englishman 
would come thither to reprove them, 
and thereupon might presume the 
more boldly to lie ; the name " Pen- 
tagones," "Five Cubits," viz., seven 
feet and a half, describing the full 
height, if not somewhat more, of the 
highest of them. But this is certain, 
that the Spanish cruelties there used 
have made them more monstrous in 
mind and manners than they are in 
body, and more inhospitable to deal 
with any strangers that shall come 
hereafter. For the loss of their 
friends (the remembrance whereof is 
assigned and conveyed over from one 
generation to another among their 
posterity) breedeth an old grudge, 
which will not easily be forgotten 
with so quarrelsome and revengeful 
a people. Notwithstanding, the ter- 
ror which they had conceived of us 
did henceforward so quench their 
heat, and take down their edge, that 
they both forgot revenge, and, seeming 
by their countenance to repent them 
of the wrong they had offered us that 
meant them no harm, suffered us to 
do what we would the whole space of 
two months after this, without any 
interruption 01 molestation by them ; 
and it may be perhaps a means to 
breed a peace in that people towards 
all that may, hereafter this, come that 
way. 

To this evil, thus received at the 
hands of infidels, there was adjoined 



and grew another mischief, wrought 
and contrived closely amongst our- 
selves ; as great, yea, far greater, and 
of far more grievous consequence, than 
the former, but that it was by God's 
providence detected and prevented in 
time ; which else had extended itself 
not only to the violent shedding of 
innocent blood by murdering our 
General, and such others as were most 
firm and faithful to him, but also to 
the final overthrow of the whole action 
intended, and to divers other most 
dangerous effects. 1 These plots had 
been laid before the voyage began, in 
England : the very model of them 
was showed and declared to our Gen- 
eral in his garden at Plymouth before 
his setting sail : which yet he either 
would not credit as true or likely of 
a person whom he loved so dearly, 
and was persuaded of to love him, 2 
likewise uufeignedly ; or thought by 
love and benefits to remedy it, if there 
were any evil purposes conceived 
against him. And therefore he did 
not only continue to this suspected 
and accused person, all countenance, 
credit, and courtesies which he was 
wont to show and give him ; but in- 
creased them, using him in a manner 
as another himself; giving him the 
second place in all companies, in his 
presence; leaving in his hand the 
state, as it were, of his own person in 
his absence ; imparting unto him all 
his counsels ; allowing him free liberty 
in all things that were reasonable ; 
and bearing often, at his hands great 
infirmities : yea, despising that any 
private inquiry should break so firm 
a friendship as he meant towards him. 
And therefore was he oftentimes not 



1 Without entering here on the 
much-debated question as to Drake's 
conduct in the trial and execution of 
Doughty which has been well called 
the most dubious act in the life of the 
great navigator it may be briefly said, 
that the balance both of testimony and 
of character is decidedly in Drake's 
favour. The matter has been more 
fully handled in the Introduction. 

2 'That is, "and who he was per- 
suaded loved him." 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1578. 



a little offended even with those who, 
upon conscience of their duty, and 
knowledge that otherwise they should 
indeed offend, disclosed from time to 
time unto him how the fire increased 
that threatened his own together with 
the destruction of the whole action. 1 
But at length, perceiving that his 
lenity of favours did little good, in 
that the heat of ambition was not yet 
allayed, nor could be quenched, as it 
seemed, but by blood ; and that the 
manifold practices 2 grew daily more 
and more, even to extremities ; he 
thought it high time to call these 
practices into question before it were 
too late to call any question of them 
into hearing. And therefore setting 
good watch over him, and assembling 
all his captains and gentlemen of his 
company together, he propounded to 
tlism the good parts which were in 
the gentleman, the great good will and 
inward affection, more than brotherly 
which, he had ever since his first ac- 
quaintance borne him, not omitting 
the respect which was had of him 
among no mean personages in Eng- 
land ; and afterwards delivered the 
letters which were written to him, 
with the particulars from time to 
time which had been observed, not 
so much by himself as by his good 
friends ; not only at sea, but even in 
Plymouth ; not bare words, but writ- 
ings ; not writings alone, but actions, 
tending to the overthrow of the ser- 
vice in hand, and making away of 
his 3 person. Proofs were required 
and alleged, so many and so evident, 
that the gentleman himself, stricken 
with remorse of his inconsiderate and 
unkind dealing, acknowledged him- 
self to have deserved death, yea many 
deaths ; for that he conspired, not 
only the overthrow of the action, but 



1 That threatened his own destruc- 
tion, along with the ruin of the whole 
enterprise. 

2 " Practice," in the time of Drake, 
was used generally in an ill sense 
and is thus a rare specimen of a word 
which has improved, or at least grown 
less tart, by keeping. 

3 The Admiral's. 



of the principal actor also, who was 
not a stranger or ill-wilier, but a dear 
and true friend unto him ; and there- 
fore in a great assembly openly be- 
sought them, in whose hands justice 
rested, to take some order for him, 
that he might not be compelled to 
enforce his own hands against his 
own bowels, 4 or otherwise to become 
his own executioner. 

The admiration 5 and astonishment 
hereat in all the hearers, even those 
who were his nearest friends and 
most affected him, was great, yea, in 
those who for many benefits received 
from him had good cause to love him ; 
but yet the General was most of all 
distracted, and therefore withdrew 
himself, as not able to conceal his 
tender affection, requiring them that 
had heard the whole matter to give 
their judgments as they would another 
day answer it unto their Prince and 
unto Almighty God, judge of all the 
earth. Therefore they all, above 
forty in number, the chiefest of place 
and judgment in the whole fleet, after 
they had discussed diversly of the 
case, and had alleged whatsoever 
came in their minds, or could be there 
produced by any of his other friends, 
with their own hands, under seal, ad- 
judged that ' ' He had deserved death : 
and that it stood by no means with 
their safety to let him live : and 
therefore they remitted the matter 
thereof, with the rest of the circum- 
stances, to the General. " This judg- 
ment, and as it were assize, was held 
aloud, in one of the islands of the 
port, which afterwards, in memory 
hereof, was called the Island of " True 
Justice and Judgment." 

Now after this verdict was thus re- 
turned unto our General (unto whom, 
for his company, Her Majesty before 
his departure had committed her 
sword, to use for his safety, with this 
word : "We do account that he which 
striketh at thee, Drake, striketh at 
us "), he called for the guilty party, 

4 A curious and literal description 
of the Japanese " hari-kari, ' or 
"happy despatch." 

5 AVonder. 



1578.] THE EXECUTION OF 

and caused to be read unto liini the 
several verdicts which were written 
and pronounced of him. "Which 
being acknowledged for the most part 
(for none had given heavier sentence 
against him than he had given against 
himself), our General proposed unto 
him this choice : ' ' Whether he would 
take, to be executed in this island? 
or to be set a-land on the main ? or 
return into England, there to answer 
his deed before the Lords of Her 
Majesty's Council ? He most humbly 
thanked the General for his clemency, 
extended towards him in such ample 
sort ; and craving some respite to 
consult thereon, and so make his 
choice advisedly, the next day he re- 
turned this answer : "That albeit he 
had yielded in his heart to entertain 
so great a sin, whereof now he was 
justly condemned ; yet he had a care, 
and that excelling all other cares, to 
die a Christian man, that whatsoever 
did become of his clay body, he might 
yet remain assured of an eternal in- 
heritance in a far better life. This 
he feared, if he should be set a-land 
among Infidels, how he should be 
able to maintain this assurance ; 
feeling, in his own frailty, how 
mighty the contagion is of lewd 
custom." And therefore he besought 
the General most earnestly, "That 
he would yet have a care and regard 
of his soul, and never jeopard it 
amongst heathen and savage Infidels. 
If he should return into England, he 
must first have a ship, and men to 
conduct it, besides sufficient victuals ; 
two of which, although they .were 
had, yet for the third, he thought 
that no man would accompany him, 
in so bad a message, to so vile an 
issue, from so honourable a service. 
But if that there were who could in- 
duce their minds to return with him, 
yet the very shame of the return would 
be as death, or grievouser, were that 

Cible : because he should be so 
j a-dying, and die so often. 
Therefore he professed, that with all 
his heart he did embrace the first 
branch of the General's proffer, de- 
siring only this favour, that they 
might receive the Holy Communion 



THOMAS DOUGHTY. 27 

once again together before his death, 
and that he might not die other than 
a gentleman's death. " 

Though sundry reasons were used 
by many to persuade him to take 
either of the other ways, yet when he 
remained resolute in his former deter- 
mination, both parts of his last re- 
quest were granted ; and the next 
convenient day a communion was 
celebrated by Mr Francis Fletcher, 
preacher and pastor of the fleet at 
that time. The General himself com- 
municated at this Sacred Ordinance, 
with this condemned penitent gentle- 
man, who showed great tokens of a 
contrite and repentant heart, as who 
was more deeply displeased with his 
own act than any man else. And 
after this holy repast they dined, also 
at the same table together, as cheer- 
fully in sobriety, as ever in their 
lives they had done aforetime : each 
cheering up the other, and taking 
their leave, by drinking each to other, 
as if some journey only had been in 
hand. After dinner, all things being 
brought in readiness by him that sup- 
plied the room of the Provost Mar- 
shall, without any dallying, or delay 
ing the time, he came forth and 
kneeled down, preparing at once his 
neck for the axe, and his spirit for 
Heaven ; which having done without 
long ceremony, as who had before di- 
gested this whole tragedy, he desired 
all the rest to pray for him, and 
willed the executioner to do his office, 
not to fear nor spare. 

Thus having by the worthy manner 
of his death being much more honour- 
able by it than blamable for any other 
of his actions) fully blotted out what- 
ever stain his fault might seem to 
bring upon him, he left unto our 
fleet a lamentable example of a goodly 
gentleman who, in seeking advance- 
ment unfit for him, cast away him- 
self ; and unto posterity a monument 
of I know not what fatal calamity, 1 



1 The context shows that these 
words would have been better re- 
versed ; the Narrator plainly refer- 
ring to the " calamitous fatality " of 
the place, where botli Drake and 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WOULD. 



[1578. 



as incident to that port, and such 
like actions, which might haply afford 
a new pair of Parallels to be added to 
Plutarch's : In that the same place, 
near about the same time of the year, 
witnessed the execution of two gen- 
tlemen, suffering both for the like 
cause, employed both in like service, 
entertained both in great place, en- 
dued both with excellent qualities, 
the one fifty-eight years after the 
other. For 'on the main our men 
found a gibbet, fallen down, made of 
a spruce mast, with men's bones 
underneath it, which they conjectured 
to be the same gibbet which Magellan 
commanded to be erected, in the year 
1520, for the execution of John Car- 
thagena, 1 the Bishop of Burger's cou- 
sin, who by the King's order was joined 
with Magellan in commission, and 
made his Vice-admiral. In the 
island as we digged to bury this gen- 
tleman, we found a great grinding- 
stone, broken in two parts, which we 
took and set fast in the ground, the 
one part at the head, the other at the 
feet, building up the middle space 
with other stones and tufts of earth, 
and engraved in the stones the names 
of the parties buried there, with the 
time of their departure, and a me- 
morial of our General's name, in Latin, 
that it might be the better understood 
of all that should come after us. 

These things thus ended and set in 
order, our General discharged the 
Mary our Portugal prize because 
she was leaky and troublesome, defac- 
ed her, 2 and then left her ribs and keel 
upon the island where for two months 
together we had pitched our tents. 
And so having wooded, watered, 
trimmed our ships, despatched all 

Magellan had to exercise the extrem- 
ity of justice. 

1 Not Don Juan de Carthagena, 
"but Don Luis de Mendoza upon 
whom Magellan placed great reliance 
suffered, with some other ring- 
leaders in the mutiny, the fate indi- 
cated in the text; Don Juan, with 
several of the less guilty accomplices, 
being left among the Patagonians. 

2 Stripped her of her planking. 



our othfT business, and brought our 
fleet into the smallest number 
even three only, besides our pinnaces 
that we might the easier keep our- 
selves together, be the better fur- 
nished with necessaries, and be the 
stronger manned, against whatsoever 
need should be August 17, we de- 
parted out of this port ; and being 
now in great hope of a happy issue to 
our enterprise, which Almighty God 
hitherto had so blessed and prospered, 
we set our coast for the Straits, south- 
west. 

August 20, we fell with the Cape 
near which lies the entrance into the 
Straits, called by the Spaniards Capo 
Virgin Maria, 3 appearing four leagues 
before you come to it, with high and 
steep grey cliffs, full of black stars, 
against which the sea beating showeth 
as it were the spouting of whales, 
having the highest of the cape like 
Cape Vincent in Portugal. At this 
cape our General caused his fleet, in 
homage to our Sovereign Lady the 
Queen's Majesty, to strike their top- 
sails upon the bunt, 4 as a token of his 
willing and glad mind to shew his 
dutiful obedience to her Highness, 
whom he acknowledged to have full 
interest and right in that new dis- 
covery ; and withal, in remembrance 
of his honourable friend and favourer, 
Sir Christopher Hatton, he changed 
the name of the ship which himself 
went in from the Pelican to be called 
the Golden Hind. 5 Which ceremon- 
ies being ended, together with a ser- 
mon, teaching true obedience, with 
S -avers and giving of thanks for Her 
ajesty and her most honourable 
Council, with the whole body of the 
Commonweal and Church of God, we 
continued our course on into the 
said f'rete, 6 where passing with land in 
sight on both sides, we shortly fell with 

3 Cabo de las Virgenes, or Cape 
Virgins, in modern maps. 

4 To lower the topsails half -way, 
upon the bunt or bend of the sail. 

6 Conjectured to have formed part 
of the Chancellor's armorial bearings. 

A sound or narrow seu ; Latin, 
"IVetum." 



THE ISLANDS OF ST GEORGE AND ELIZABETH. 29 



1578.] 

so narrow a strait, as, carrying with it 
rtiuch wind, often turnings, and many 
dangers, requireth an expert judg- 
ment in him that . shall pass the 
same : it lies WNW. and ESE. But 
having left this strait astern, we 
seemed to be come out of a river of 
two leagues broad, into a large and 
main sea ; having, the night follow- 
ing, an island in sight, which being 
in height nothing inferior to the is- 
land Fogo, before spoken of burneth, 
like it also, aloft in the air, in a won- 
derful sort, without intermission. 

It has formerly been received as an 
undoubted truth, that the seas, fol- 
lowing the course of the first mover, 
from East to West, have a continual 
current through the Strait, but our 
experience found the contrary ; the 
ebbings and Sowings here being as 
orderly in which the water rises and 
falls more than five fathoms upright 
as on other coasts. 

The 24th of August, being Bartholo- 
mew's Day, we fell with three islands, 
bearing triangle-wise one from an- 
other : one of them was very fair and 
large and of a fruitful soil, upon 
which, being next unto us and the 
weather very calm, our General with 
his gentlemen and certain of his mari- 
ners then landed, taking possession 
thereof in Her Majesty's name, and 
to her use, and calling the same 
Elizabeth Island. The other two, 
though they were not so large nor so 
fair to the eye, yet were they to us 
exceeding useful, for in them we 
found great store of strange things, 1 
which could not fly at all, nor yet run 
so fast as that they could escape us 
with their lives ; in body they are 
less than a goose, and bigger than a 
mallard, short and thick set together, 
having no feathers, but instead thereof 
a certain hard and matted down ; 
their beaks are not much unlike the 
bills of crows ; they lodge and breed 
upon the land, where, making earths, 
as the conies do, in the ground, they 
lay their eggs and bring up their 
young ; their feeding and provision to 
live on is in the sea, where they swim 



in such sort, as Nature may seem to 
have granted them no small preroga- 
tive in swiftness, both to prey upon 
others, and themselves to escape from 
any others that seek to seize upon 
them. And such was the infinite re- 
sort of these birds to these islands, 
that in the space of one day we ki Jed 
no less than 3000, and if the increase 
be according to the number, it is not 
to be thought that the world hath 
brought forth a greater blessing, in 
one kind of creature in so small a 
circuit, so necessarily and plentifully 
serving the use of man. They are a 
very good and wholesome victual. 
Our General named these islands, the 
one Bartholomew, according to the 
day, the other Saint George's, in honour 
of England, according to the ancient 
custom there observed. In the Is- 
land of Saint George we found the 
body of a man, so long dead before, 
that his bones would not hold toge- 
ther, being moved out of the place 
whereon they lay. 

From these islands to the entrance 
into the South Sea, the frete is very 
crooked, having many turnings, and 
as it were shuttings-up, as if there 
were no passage at all ; by means 
whereof we were often troubled with 
contrary winds, so that some of our 
ships recovering a cape of land, enter- 
ing another reach, the rest were forced 
to alter their course and come to an- 
chor where they might. It is true 
which Magellan reports of this pas- 
sage : namely, that there be many 
fair harbours and store of fresh water ; 
but some ships had need to be freight- 
ed with nothing else besides anchors 
and cables, to find ground in most of 
them to come to anchor ; which when 
any extreme gusts or contrary winds 
do come, whereunto the place is alto- 
gether subject, is a great hindrance 
to the passage, and carries with it no 
small danger. The land on both sides 
is very high and mountainous, having 
on the North and "West side the con- 
tinent of America, and on the South 
and East part nothing but islands, 
among which lie innumerable fretes 
or passages into the South Sea. The 
mountains arise with such tops and 



30 



DEAKE'S VOYAGE HOUND THE WOULD. 



[1578. 



spires into the air, and of so rare a 
height, as they may well be accounted 
amongst the wonders of the world ; 
environed, as it were, with many re- 
gions of congealed clouds and frozen 
meteors, whereby they are continually 
fed and increased, both in height and 
bigness, from time to time, retain- 
ing that which they have once receiv- 
ed, being little again diminished by 
the heat of the sun, as being so far 
from reflection and so nigh the cold 
and frozen region. But notwithstand- 
ing all this, yet are the low and plain 
grounds very fruitful, the grass green 
and natural, the herbs, that are of 
very strange sorts, good and many ; 
the trees, for the most part of them, 
always green ; the air of the tempera- 
ture of our country ; the water most 
pleasant ; and the soil agreeing to 
any grain which we have growing in 
our country : a place, no doubt, that 
lacketh nothing but a people to use 
the same to the Creator's glory and 
the increasing of the Church. The 
people inhabiting these parts made 
<jres as we passed by in divers places. 
Drawing nigh the entrance of the 
South Sea, we had such a shutting-up 
to the northwards, and such large 
and open fretes towards the south, 
that it was doubtful which way we 
should pass, without further dis- 
covery; 1 for which cause, our Gene- 
ral having brought his fleet to anchor 
under an island, himself, with certain 
of his gentlemen, rowed in a boat 
to descry the passage: who having 
discovered a sufficient way toward 
the North, in their return to their 
ships met a canoe, under the same 
island where we rode then at anchor, 
having in her divers persons. This 
canoe, or boat, was made of the bark 
of divers trees, having a prow and a 
stern standing up, and semicircle- 
wise yielding inward, of one form and 
fashion, the body whereof was a most 
dainty mould, bearing in it most 
comely proportion and excellent work- 
manship, in so much as to our Gene- 
ral and us it seemed never to have 
been done without the cunning and 

1 Exploration. 



expert judgment of art ; and that not 
for the use of so rude and barbarous 
a people, but for the pleasure of some 
great and noble personage, yea, of 
some Prince. It had no other closing- 
up or caulking in the seams, but the 
stitching with thongs made of seal 
skins, or other such beast, and yet so 
close that it received very little or no 
water at all. 

The people are of a mean 2 stature, 
but well set and compact in all their 
parts and limbs; they have great 
pleasure in painting their faces, as the 
others have, of whom we have spoken 
before. Within the said Island they 
had a house of mean building, of cer- 
tain poles, and covered with skins of 
beasts, having therein fire, water, 
and such meat as commonly they can 
come by, as seals, mussels, and such 
like. The vessels wherein they keep 
their water, and their cups in which 
they drink, are made of barks of 
trees, as was their canoe, and that 
with no less skill (for the bigness of 
the thing), being of a very formal 
shape and good fashion. Their work- 
ing tools, which they use in cutting 
these things- and such other, are 
knives made of most huge and mon- 
strous mussel shells (the like whereof 
have not been seen or heard of lightly 
by any travellers, the meat thereof 
being very savoury and good in eat- 
ing) ; which after they have broken 
off the thin and brittle substance of 
the edge, they rub and grind them 
upon stones had for the purpose, till 
they have tempered and set such an 
edge upon them, that no wood is so 
hard but they will cut it at pleasure 
with the same ; whereof we ourselves 
had experience. Yea, they cut there- 
with bones of a marvellous hardness, 
making of them fisgies 3 to kill fish, 
wherein they have a most pleasant 
exercise with great dexterity. 

The 6th of ^September we had left 
astern of us all these troublesome 
islands, and were entered into the 
South Sea, or Mare del Zur, 4 at the 



2 Middling, ordinary. 

3 Or fizgigs; see Note 4, page 128. 

4 Drake was the fourth person who 



1578.] 

Cape whereof our General had de- 
termined with his whole company to 



have gone on shore, and there, after 
a sermon, to have left a monument 
of Her Majesty, engraven in metal, 
for a perpetual remembrance, which 
he had in a readiness for that end 
prepared : but neither was there any 
anchoring, neither did the wind suffer 
us by any means to make a stay. 
Only this by all our men's observa- 
tions was concluded: that the en- 
trance, by which we came into this 
Strait, was in 52, the middle, in 53 
15', and the going out in 52 30', being 
150 leagues in length: at the very 
entry, supposed also to be about ten 
leagues in breadth. After we were 
entered ten leagues within it, it was 
found not past a league in breadth : 
farther within, in some places very 
large, in some very narrow; and in 
the end found to be no Strait at all, 
but all islands. Now when our Gene- 
ral perceived that the nipping cold, 
under so cruel and frowning a winter, 
had impaired the health of some of 
his men, he meant to have made the 
more haste again towards the Line, 
and not to sail any further towards 
the Pole Antarctic, lest being further 
from the sun, and nearer the cold, 
we might haply be overtaken with 
some greater danger of Sickness. But 
God, giving men leave to purpose, re- 
served to himself the disposition of 
all things; making their intents of 
none effect, or changing their mean- 
ing oft-times clean into the contrary, 
as may best serve for his own glory 
and their profit. 

For September 7th, the second day 
after our entrance into the South Sea 
called by some Marc Pacificum, but 
proving to us rather to be Mare Furio- 



A VIOLENT STORM. 31 

sum God by a contrary wind and 
intolerable tempest seemed to set him- 



achieved the passage of the Straits, 
having been preceded by Magellan in 
1520, by Loyasa in 1526, and by 
Juan de Ladrilleros, from the Pacific 
side, in 1558. The English com- 
mander had better fortune than his 
predecessors, in respect to weather 
and temperature; accomplishing in 
about ^a fortnight what had occupied 
months. 



self against us, forcing iis not only to 
alter our course and determination, 
but witE. great trouble, long time, 
many dangers, hard escapes, and final 
separating of our fleet, to yield our- 
selves unto his will. Yea, such was 
the extremity of the tempest, that it 
appeared to us as if he had pronounced 
a sentence not to stay his hand, nor 
to withdraw his judgment, till he had 
buried our bodies, and ships also, in 
the bottomless depths of the raging 
sea. In the time of this incredible 
storm, the 15th of September, the 
moon was eclipsed in Aries, and 
darkened about three points, for the 
space of two glasses; which being 
ended might seem to give us some 
hope of alteration and change of 
weather to the better. Notwithstand- 
ing, as the ecliptical conflict could add 
nothing to our miserable estate, no 
more did the ending thereof ease us 
anything at all, nor take away any of 
our troubles from us : but our eclipse 
continued still in its full force, so 
prevailing against us, that, for the 
space of full fifty-two days together, 
we were darkened more than the 
moon by twenty parts, or more than 
we by any means could ever have 
preserved or recovered light of our- 
selves again, if the Son of God, which 
laid this burthen upon our backs, 
had not mercifully borne it up with 
his own shoulders, and upheld us in 
it by his own power, beyond any pos- 
sible strength or skill of man. Neither 
indeed did we at all escape, but, 
with the feeling of great discomforts 
through the same. For these violent 
and extraordinary flaws, such as sel- 
dom have been seen, still continuing or 
rather increasing, September 30th, in 
the night, caused the sorrowful separa- 
tion of the Marigold from us; in 
which was Captain John Thomas, 
with many others of our dear friends, 
who by no means that we could con- 
ceive could help themselves, but by 
spooming along before the sea. 1 With 



1 Running straight before the wind, 
and with the sea ; usually done in the 



32 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1578. 



whom albeit we could never meet 
again, yet (our General having before- 
hand given order, that if any of our 
fleet did lose company the place of 
resort to meet again should be in 30 
or thereabouts upon the coast of Peru 
towards the Equinoctial) we long time 
hoped, till experience shewed our 
hope was vain, that there we should 
joyfully meet with them : especially 
for that they were well provided of 
victuals, and lacked no skilful and 
sufficient men (besides their Captain) 
to bring forward the ship to the place 
appointed. 

From the 7th of September, in 
which the storm began, till the 7th 
of October, we could not by any 
means recover any land; having in 
the meantime been driven so far 
south as to the 57 and somewhat 
better. On this day, towards night, 
somewhat to the northward of that 
Cape of America whereof mention is 
made before in the description of our 
departure from the Strait into this 
Sea, with a sorry sail we entered a 
harbour where hoping to enjoy some 
freedom and ease till the storm was 
ended, we received within few hours 
after our coming to anchor so deadly 
a stroke and hard entertainment that 
our Admiral left not only an anchor 
behind her, through the violence and 
fury of the flaw, but in departing 
thence also lost the company and 
sight of our Vice-Admiral, the Eliza- 
beth, partly through the negligence 
of those who had the charge of her, 
partly through a kind of desire that 
some in her had to be out of these 
troubles, and to be at home again; 
which (as since is known) they thence- 
forward by all means assayed and 
performed. For the very next day, 
October 8th, recovering the mouth of 
the Straits again, which we were 
now so near unto, they returned back 
the same way by which they came 



case of weak ships, which by lying to 
the sea might have their masts car- 
ried by the board. The Mangold 
justified the worst apprehensions of 
her friends, for nothing more was 
ever heard of her or of her company. 



forward, and so coasting Brazil they 
arrived in England June 2d the year 
following. So that now our Admiral, 
if she had retained her old name of 
Pelican, which she bare at our de- 
parture from our Country, she mi^ht 
have been now indeed said to be a,\ a 
pelican in the wilderness. For albeit 
our General sought the rest of his 
fleet with great care, yet could we m t 
have any sight or certain news cf 
them by any means. 1 

From this Bay of Parting of Friends, 
we were forcibly driven back again 
into 55 towards the Pole Antarctic. 
In which height we ran in among 
the islands before mentioned, lying to 
the southward of America, through 
which we passed from one sea to 
the other, as hath been declared. 
Where coming to anchor, we found 
the waters there to have their in- 
draught and free passage, and that 
through no small guts or narrow chan- 
nels, butindeed through as large fretes 
or straits as it hath at the supposed 
Straits of Magellan, through which 
we came. Among these islands mak- 
ing our abode with some quiet u ess 
for a very little while (viz. , two days) 



1 Edward Cliffe, who narrates the 
voyage of the Elizabeth back to Eng- 
land, denies that Winter intended to 
desert his Admiral, and declares that 
some attempts were made to rejoin 
him. As these attempts, however, 
seem to have been limited to the light- 
ing of fires on the shore within the 
narrows, just the direction in which 
Drake did not design to prosecute his 
voyage, they do not seem to have 
been either very energetic or very 
sincere. The Elizabeth's company, 
after resting and recruiting them- 
selves in Port Health for several 
weeks, desired to resume the enter- 
prise ; but Captain Winter compelled 
them to abandon the voyage, "full 
sore against the mariners' minds," 
affirming that he now despaired of 
the Admiral's safety, or of being able 
to gain the golden shores of Peru. 
Winter was the first Englishman to 
navigate the Straits of Magellan 
eastward. 



1573.] CONTINUANCE 

and finding divers good and whole- 
some herbs, together with fresh water ; 
our men, who before were weak, and 
much impaired in their health, began 
to receive good comfort, especially by 
the drinking of one herb (not much 
unlike that herb which we commonly 
call Pennyleaf) which, purging with 
great facility, afforded great help and 
refreshing to our weaned and sickly 
bodies. But the winds returning to 
their old wont, and the seas raging 
after their former manner, yea every- 
thing as it were setting itself against 
our peace and desired rest, here was 
no stay permitted us, neither any 
safety to be looked for. For such was 
the present danger by forcing and 
continual flaws, that we were rather 
to look for present death than hope 
for any delivery, if God Almighty 
should not make the way for us. 
The winds were such as if the bowels 
of the Earth had set all at liberty, or 
as if all the clouds under heaven had 
been called together to lay their force 
upon that one place. The seas, 
which by nature and of themselves 
are heavy, and of a weighty sub- 
stance, were rolled up from the depths, 
even from the roots of the rocks, as 
if it had been a scroll of parchment 
which by the extremity of heat run- 
neth together ; and being aloft were 
carried in most strange manner and 
abundance, as feathers or drifts of 
snow, by the violence of the 'winds, 
to water the exceeding tops of high 
and lofty mountains. Our anchors, 
as false friends in such a danger, gave 
over their holdfast, and as if it had 
been with horror of the thing, did 
shrink down to hide themselves in 
this miserable storm, committing the 
distressed ship and helpless men to 
the uncertain and rolling seas, which 
tossed them like a ball in a racket. 
In this case, to let fall more anchors 
a'ould avail us nothing; for being 
driven from our first place of anchor- 
ing, so unmeasurable was the depth, 
that 500 fathoms would fetch no 
ground. So that the violent storm 
without intermission; the impos- 
sibility to come to anchor ; the 
want of opportunity to spread any 



OF THE ST011M. 33 

sail ; the most mad seas ; the lee 
shores ; the dangerous rocks ; the con- 
trary and most intolerable winds; 
the impossible passage out; the des* 
perate tarrying there, and inevitable 
perils on every side, did lay before us 
so small likelihood to escape present 
destruction, that if the special provi- 
dence of God himself had not sup- 
ported us, we could never have en- 
chired that woeful state, as being 
environed with most terrible and 
most fearful judgments round about. 
For, truly, it was more likely that 
the mountains should have been rent 
in sunder from the top to the bottom, 
and cast headlong into the sea, by 
these unnatural winds, than that we 
by any help or cunning of man 
should free the life of any amongst 
us. 1 

Notwithstanding, the same God of 
mercy which delivered Jonah out of 
the whale's belly, and heareth all 
those that call upon him faithfully in 
their distress, looked down from 
heaven, beheld our tears, and heard 
our humble petitions, joined with 
holy vows. Even God whom not 
the winds and seas alone, but even 
the devils themselves and powers of 
hell obey did so wonderfully free 
us, and make our way open before us, 
as it were by his holy angels still 
guiding and conducting us, that, more- 
than the affright and amaze of this 
Estate, we received no part of damage 
in all the things that belonged to us. 
But escaping from these Straits and 
miseries, as it were through the 
needle's eye (that God might have 
the greater glory in our delivery), by 
the great and effectual care and travail 
of our General, the Lord's instrument 
therein; we could now no longer for- 
bear, but must needs find some place 
of refuge, as well to provide water, 
wood, and other necessaries, as to 
comfort our men, thus worn and tired 
out by so many and so long intoler- 
able toils ; the like whereof, it is to 
be supposed, no traveller hath felt, 



1 Compare with this account of 
Drake's difficulties^ that of Anson's 
in the same navigation. 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1578. 



neither hatli there ever been such a 
tempest, that any records make men- 
tion of, so violent and of such continu- 
ance, since Noah's flood ; for, as hath 
been said, it lasted from September 7th 
to October 28th, full fifty-two days. 

Not many leagues, therefore, to the 
southward of our former anchoring, 
we ran in again among these islands, 
where we had once more better likeli- 
hood to rest in peace ; and so much 
the rather, for that we found the 
people of the country travelling for 
their living from one island to an- 
other in their Canoes, both men, 
women, and young infants wrapt in 
skins and hanging at their mothers' 
backs ; with whom we had traffic for 
such things as they had, as chains of 
certain shells, and such other trifles. 
Here the Lord gave us three days to 
breathe ourselves and to provide such 
things as we wanted, albeit the same 
was with continual care and troubles 
to avoid imminent dangers, which 
the troubled seas and blustering winds 
did every hour threaten unto us. But 
when we seemed to have staid there 
too long, we were more rigorously as- 
saulted by the not formerly ended 
but now more violently renewed 
storm, and driven thence also with 
no small danger, leaving behind us 
the greater part of our cable with the 
anchor ; being chased along by the 
winds and buffeted incessantly in each 
quarter by the seas, (which our Gene- 
ral interpreted as though God had 
sent them of purpose to the end which 
ensued), till at length we fell with the 
uttermost part of land towards the 
South Pole, and had certainly dis- 
covered how far the same doth reach 
southward from the coast of America 
aforenamed. 1 The uttermost cape or 
headland of all these islands stands 
near in 56, without 2 which there is 
no main nor island to be seen to the 
southwards, but that the Atlantic 



1 Thus Drake accidentally dis- 
covered Cape Horn, which received 
its name from Schouten and Le Maire, 
who sailed round it for the first time 
in 1616. 

* Beyond, outside. 



Ocean and the South Sea meet in a 
most large and free scope. 

It hath been a dream through many 
ages, that these islands have been a 
main, 3 and that it hath been Terra 
Incognita, wherein many strange 
monsters lived. Indeed, it might 
truly before this time be called In- 
cognita* for howsoever the maps and 
general descriptions of cosmographers, 
either upon the deceivable reports of 
other men, or the deceitful imagina- 
tions of themselves (supposing never 
herein to be corrected), have set it 
down, yet it is true, that before this 
time it was never discovered or cer- 
tainly known by any traveller that 
we have heard of. And here, as in a 
fit place, it shall not be amiss to re- 
move that error in opinion, which 
hath been held by many, of the im- 
possible return out of Mare del Zur 
into the West Ocean by reason of the 
supposed Eastern current and levant 
winds, which (say they) speedily 
carry any thither, but suffer no re- 
turn. They are herein likewise alto- 
gether deceived, for neither did we 
meet with any such current, nor had 
we any such certain winds with any 
such speed to carry us through ; but 
at all times, in our passage there, we 
found more opportunity to return 
back again into the West Ocean, than 
to go forward into Mare del Zur, by 
means either of current or winds to 
hinder us, whereof we had experience 
more than we wished : being glad 
oftentimes to alter our course, and to 
fall astern again with frank wind, 
without any impediment of any such 
surmised current, farther in one after- 
noon, than we could fetch up or 
recover again in a whole day, with a 
seasonable gale. And in that they 
allege the narrowness of the frete, 
and the want of sea-room, to be the 
cause of this violent current, they 
are herein no less deceived, than they 



3 A continent or mainland of them- 
selves. 

4 Elsewhere we read that Drake 
held himself warranted in changing 



the title of Terra Incognita 
Terra nunc bene Cognita. 



into 



1578.] 



ON THE COAST OF PERU. 



were in the other without reason : for 
besides that it cannot be said, that 
there is one only passage, but rather 
innumerable, it is most certain that, 
a-seaboard * all these islands, there is 
one large and main sea ; wherein if 
any will not be satisfied, nor believe 
the report of our experience and eye- 
sight, he should be advised to suspend 
his judgment till he have either tried 
it himself by his own travel, or shall 
understand, by other travellers, more 
particulars to confirm his mind herein. 

Now as we were fallen to the utter- 
most part of these islands, October 
28th, our troubles did make an end, 
the storms ceased, and all our cala- 
mities (only the absence of our friends 
excepted) were removed ; as if God, 
all this while, by his secret provi- 
dence, had led us to make this dis- 
covery, which being made, according 
to his will, he stayed his hand, as 
pleased his majesty therein, and re- 
freshed us as his servants. At these 
southerly parts we found the night in 
the latter end of October to be but 
two hours long : the sun being yet 
above seven degrees distant from the 
Tropic ; so that it seems, being in the 
Tropic, to leave very little or no night 
at all in that place. There be few of 
all these islands but have some inha- 
bitants, whose manners, apparel, 
houses, canoes, and means of living, 
are like unto those formerly spoken of, a 
little before our departure out of the 
Strait. To all these islands did our 
General give one name, to wit, Eliza- 
bethides. After two days' stay which 
we made in and about these islands, 
the 30th of October we set sail, shap- 
ing our course right North-west, to 
coast alongst the parts of Peru (for so 
the general mapo set out the land to 
lie) both for that we might, with con- 
venient speed, fall with the height of 
30, being the place appointed for the 
rest of our fleet to re-assemble ; as 
also that no opportunity might be 
lost in the meantime to find them 
out, if it seemed good to God to 
direct them to us. 

In this course we chanced, the next 



On the seaward side, to the South. 



day, with two islands, being, as it 
were, storehouses of the most liberal 
provision of victuals for us, of birds ; 
yielding not only sumcient and 
plentiful store for us who were pre- 
sent, but enough to have served all 
the rest also who were absent. 
Thence, having furnished ourselves 
to our content, we continued our 
course, November 1st, still North- 
west, as we had formerly done ; but 
in going on we soon espied that we 
might easily have been deceived ; 
and therefore casting about and steer- 
ing upon another point we found that 
the general maps did err from the 
truth in setting down the coast of 
Peru for twelve degrees at least to 
the Northward of the supposed Strait, 
no less than is the NW. point of the 
compass different from the NE. ; 
perceiving thereby that no man had 
ever by travel discovered any part of 
these twelve degrees ; and therefore 
the setters forth of such descriptions 
are not to be trusted, much less 
honoured, in their false and fraudu- 
lent conjectures which they use, not 
in this alone, but in divers other 
points of no small importance. 

We found this part of Peru, all 
alongst to the height of Lima, which 
is 12? south of the Line, to be moun- 
tainous and very barren, without 
water or wood, for the most part, 
except in certain places inhabited by 
the Spaniards, and few others, which 
are very fruitful and commodious. 
After we were once again thus fallen 
with the land, we continually coasted 
along, till we came to the height of 
37 9 or thereabout ; and rinding no 
convenient place of abode, nor likeli- 
hood to hear any news of our ships, 
we ran off again with an island which 
lay in sight, named of the Spaniards 
Mucho, by reason of the greatness 
and large circuit thereof. 2 At this 
island coming to anchor November 
25th, we found it to be a fruitful place, 
and well stored with sundry sorts of 



8 It is, despite this derivation, 
marked in the maps as "Mocha," 
lying off the Chilian coast midway 
between Valdivia and Concepcion. 



36 DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



good tilings : as sheep and other 
cattle, maize (which is a kind of 
grain whereof they make bread), 
potatoes, with such other roots ; be- 
sides that, it is thought to be won- 
derfully rich in gold, and to want no 
good thing for the use of man's life. 
The inhabitants are such Indians as 
by the cruel and most extreme dealing 
of the Spaniards have been driven to 
fly from the main here, to relieve 
and fortify themselves. "With this 
people our General thought it meet 
to have traffic for fresh victuals and 
water ; and for that cause, the very 
same night of our arrival there, him- 
self with divers of his company went 
ashore, to whom the people with 
great courtesy came down, bringing 
with them such fruits and other vic- 
tuals as they had, and two very fat 
sheep, which they gave our General 
for a present. In recompense whereof 
he bestowed upon them again many 
good and necessary things ; signify- 
ing unto them that the end of his 
coming was for no other cause but by 
way of exchange, to traffic with them 
for such things as we needed and 
they could spare ; and, in particular, 
for such as they had already brought 
down unto us, besides fresh water, 
which we desired of them. Herein 
they held themselves well contented, 
and seemed to be not a little joyful 
of our coming, appointing where we 
should have the next morning fresh 
water at pleasure, and withal signify- 
ing that then also they would bring 
us down such other things as we de 
sired to serve our turns. 

The next day therefore, very early 
in the morning (all things . being 
made ready for traffic, as also vessels 
prepared to bring the water), our Gene- 
ral, taking great care for so necessary 
provision, repaired to the shore again ; 
and setting a-land two of his men, 
sent them with their barricoes l to the 
watering-place assigned the night be- 
fore. "Who having peaceably passed 
on one-half of the way, were then 
with no small violence set upon by 



[1578. 

those traitorous people, and suddenly 
slain : and to the end that our Gene- 
ral with the rest of his company 
should not only be stayed from rescu- 
ing them, but also might fall, if it 
were possible, into their hands in 
like manner, they had laid closely 
behind the rocks an ambushment 
(as we guessed) of about 500 men, 
armed and well appointed for such a 
mischief. Who suddenly attempting 
their purpose (the rocks being very 
dangerous for the boat, and the sea- 
gate 2 exceeding great) by shooting 
their arrows hurt and wounded every 
one of our men, before they could free 
themselves, or come to the use of 
their weapons to do any good. The 
General himself was shot in the face, 
under his right eye, and close by his 
nose, the arrow piercing a marvellous 
way in under basis cerebri, with no 
small danger of his life ; besides that 
he was grievously wounded in the 
head. The rest, being nine persons, 
in the boat, were deadly Avounded in 
divers part of their bodies, if God 
almost miraculously had not given 
cure to the same. For our chief sur- 
geon being dead, and the other absent 
by the loss of our Vice-admiral, and 
having none left us but a boy whose 
goodwill was more than any skill he 
had, we were little better than alto- 
gether destitute of such cunning and 
helps as so grievous a state of so many 
wounded bodies did require. Not- 
Avithstanding God, by the good advice 
of our General, and the diligent put- 
ting-to of every man's help, did give 
such speedy and wonderful cure, that 
we had all great comfort thereby, and 
yielded God the glory thereof. 

The cause of this force and injury 
by these islanders was no other' but 
the deadly hatred which they bear 
against their cruel enemies the Spani- 
ards, for the bloody and most tyran- 
nous oppression which they had used 
towardsthem. And therefore with pur- 
pose against them (suspecting us to 
be Spaniards indeed, and that the 
rather by occasion that, though corn- 



Casks; Spanish, " Barrica," a 



2 The force of the waves liftim 
boat towards the rocks. 



the 



1578.] 

in and was given to the contrary, some 
of our men, in demanding water, 
used the Spanish word "Aqua") 
sought some part of revenge against 
us. Our General, notwithstanding 
he might have revenged this wrong 
with little hazard or danger, yet being 
more desirous to preserve one of his 
own men alive, than to destroy an 
hundred of his enemies, committed 
the same to God ; wishing this only 
punishment to them, that they did 
out know whom they had wronged ; 
and that they had done this injury 
not to an enemy, but to a friend ; not 
to a Spaniard, but to an Englishman ; 
who would rather have been a patron 
to defend them, than any way an in- 
strument of the least wrong that 
should have been done unto them. 
The weapons which this people use in 
their wars, are arrows of reeds, with 
heads of stone very brittle and in- 
dented, but darts of a great length, 
headed Avith iron or bone. 

The same day that we received this 
dangerous affront, in the afternoon, 
we set sail from thence ; and because 
we were now nigh the appointed 
height wherein our ships were to be 
looked for, as also the extremity and 
crazy 1 state of our hurt men advising 
us to use expedition to find some con- 
venient place of repose which might 
afford them some rest, and yield us 
necessary supply of fresh victuals for 
their diet ; we bent our course, as the 
wind would suffer us, directly to run 
in with the main. "Where falling with 
a bay called Philip's Bay, 2 in 32 or 
thereabout, November 30, we came 
to anchor and forthwith manned and 
sent our boat to discover what likeli- 
hood the place would offer to afford 
us such things as we stood in need of. 
Our boat doing her uttermost endea- 



HELP FROM THE INDIANS. 



37 



1 Used in the simply physical sense 
of sickly or weakly. 

2 The name, conferred in honour of 
the natives afterwards mentioned, who 
guided them to Valparaiso, has not 
been maintained in the modern maps ; 
probably the place was Pichidanqui 
Cove, rather more than a degree to 
the north of Valparaiso. 



vour iu a diligent search, yet after 
long travel could find no appearance 
of hope for relief, either of fresh 
victuals or of fresh water ; huge herds 
of wild buffs 3 they might discern, 
but not so much as any sign of any 
inhabitant thereabout. Yet in their 
return to us they descried within the 
bay an Indian with his canoe, as he 
was a-fishing ; him they brought 
aboard our General, canoe and all, as 
he was in it. A comely personage, 
aad of a goodly stature ; his apparel 
was a white garment, reaching scarcely 
to his knees ; his arms and legs were 
naked ; his hair upon his head very 
long ; without a beard, as all the 
Indians for the most part are. He 
seemed very gentle, of mild and 
humble nature, being very tractable 
to learn the use of everything, and 
most grateful for such things as our 
General bestowed upon him. In him 
we might see a most lively pattern of 
the harmless disposition of that people, 
and how grievous a thing it is that 
they should by any means be so 
abused as all those are whom the 
Spaniards have any command or 
power over. 

This man being courteously enter- 
tained, and his pains'of coming doubly 
requited, after we had shewed him, 
partly by signs, and partly by such 
things as we had, what things we 
needed, and would gladly receive by 
his means, upon exchange of such 
things as he would desire, we sent 
him away with our boat and his own 
canoe (which was made of reed straw) 
to land him where he would. Who 
being landed, and willing our men 
to stay his return, was immediately 
met with by two or three of his 
friends ; to whom imparting his news, 
and shewing what gifts he had re- 
ceived, he gave so great content, that 
they willingly furthered his purpose : 
so that, after certain hours of our 
men's abode there, he with divers 
others (among whom was their head 
or captain) made their return, bring 
ing with them their loadings of sucll 
things as they thought would dc 



Buffaloes, wild oxen. 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 

us good, as some hens, eggs, a fat 
hog, and such like. All which, that 
o-ur men might be without all suspi- 
cion of all evil to be meant or in- 
tended by them, they sent in one of 
their canoes, a reasonable distance 
from off the shore, to our boat, the 
sea-gate being at present very great ; 
and their captain, having sent back 
his horse, would needs commend him- 
self to the credit of our men, though 
strangers, and come with them to the 
General, without any of his own 
acquaintance or countrymen with 
him. which was nailed a god of the same 

rnptfl.l * \Vfi Rrtpirh snmp. t.imfi in rfi- 



By his coming, as we understood 
that there was no means or way to 
have our necessities relieved in this 
place ; so he offered himself to be our 
pilot to a place, and that a good har- 
bour, not far back to the southward 
again, where, by way of traffic, we 
might have at pleasure both water 
and those other things which we 
stood in need of. This offer our Gene- 
ral very gladly received, 1 and so 
much the rather, for that the place 
intended was near about the place 
appointed for the rendezvous of our 
fleet. Omitting therefore our pur- 
pose of pursuing the buffs formerly 
spoken of, of which we had otherwise 
determined, if possible, to have killed 
some, this good news of better provi- 
sion, and more easy to come by, drew 
us away; and so the fifth day after 
our arrival, December 4, we departed 
hence, and the next day, by the will- 
ing conduct of our new Indian pilot, 
we came to anchor in the desired har- 
bour. This harbour the Spaniards 
call Valparaiso, and the town adjoin- 
ing Saint James 8 of Chili : it stands 
in 35 40' 3 ; where, albeit we neither 
met with our ships nor heard of 
them, yet there was no good thing 

1 By other accounts, it had been 
Drake's purpose to go for Valparaiso, 
but he oversailed that port, and 
Felipe the name of the "head or 
captain " undertook to pilot them 
back, believing them Spaniards. 

2 Santiago, the present capital of 
Chili. 

a An obvious misprint for 33 40'. 



[1578. 

which the place afforded, or which 
our necessities indeed for the present 
required, but we had the same in 
great abundance. Amongst other 
things, we found in the town divers 
storehouses of the wines of Chili ; and 
in the harbour a ship called the Cap- 
tain of Moriall, or the Grand Captain 
of the South, Admiral to the Islands 
of Salomon, laden for the most part 
with the same kind of liquors ; only 
there was besides a certain quantity 
of fine gold of Baldivia, and a great 
cross of gold beset with emeralds, on 



metal. 4 We spent some time in re- 
freshing ourselves, and easing this 
ship of so heavy a burthen ; and on 
the 8th day of the same month 
having in the meantime sufficiently 
stored ourselves with necessaries, as 
wine, bread, bacon, &c., for a long 
season we set sail, returning back 
toAvards the Line, carrying again our 
Indian pilot with us, whom our Gene- 
ral bountifully rewarded, and enriched 
with many good things, which pleased 
him exceedingly, and caused him by 
the way to be landed in the place 
where he desired. 5 

4 Drake's men were welcomed with 
beat of drum by the few Spaniards on 
board, and asked to partake of Chili 
wine, under the belief that they were 
compatriots. The Spaniards were 
soon rudely undeceived; but one 
escaped to shore and alarmed the 
town, the inhabitants of which 
speedily took refuge inland. About 
1800 jars of wine, and a quantity of 
gold variously stated at from 25,000 
to 60,000 pesos, were found in the 
Grand Captain, when she was subse- 
quently overhauled at sea; she was 
destined for Peru. Mr Fletcher 
touches mildly on this act of open 
piracy; he does not mention at all 
the sacrilege of which the explorers 
were guilty, in plundering the church 
of its ornaments and relics among 
the former two cruets, a silver chalice, 
and an altar-cloth, -which became by 
gift the property of the chaplain him- 
self. 

5 Felipe, who had unwittingly be- 



1578.] 



CRUELTY OF THE SPANIARDS. 



39 



Our necessities being thus to our 
content relieved, our next care was 
the regaining if possible of the 
company of our ships so long severed 
.from us : neither would anything 
have satisfied our General or us so 
well, as the happy meeting or good 
news of them. This way therefore, 
all other thoughts for the present set 
apart, were all our studies and endea- 
vours bent, how to fit it so as that no 
opportunity of meeting them might 
be passed over. To this end, con- 
sidering that we could not conveni- 
ently run in with our ship in search 
of them to every place where there 
was likelihood of being a harbour, and 
that our boat was too little, and unable 
to carry men enough to encounter the 
malice or treachery of the Spaniards 
(if we should by any chance meet with 
any of them) who are used to show 
no mercy where they may overmaster ; 
and therefore, meaning not to hazard 
ourselves to their cruel courtesy, we 
determined, as we coasted now to- 
wards the Line, to search diligently 
for some convenient place where we 
might, in peace and safety, stay l the 
trimming of our ship, and the erect- 
ing of a pinnace, in which we might 
with better security than in our boat, 
and without endangering of our ship 
by running into each creek, leave no 
place untried, if happily we might so 
find again our friends and country- 
men. 

For this cause, December 19th, we 
entered a bay not far to the south- 
ward of the town of Cyppo, 2 now in- 
habited by the Spaniards, in 29 30' ; 
where, having landed certain of our 
men, to the number of fourteen, to 
search what conveniency the place 
was likely to afford for our abiding 
there, we were immediately descried 
by the Spaniards of the town of Cyppo 



trayed the Spaniards at Valparaiso, 
was replaced in the post of temporary 
pilot by a Greek, named Juan Griego, 
captured on board the Grand Captain, 
who took Drake as far as Lima. 

1 Remain so long as would suffice 
for. 

2 Coquimbo. 



aforesaid, who speedily made out 300 
men at least, whereof 100 were Span- 
iards, every one well-mounted upon 
his horse : the rest were Indians, run- 
ning as dogs at their heels, all naked, 
and in most miserable bondage. 3 They 
could not come anyway so closely, 
but God did open our eyes to see them, 
before there was any extremity of 
danger ; whereby our men, being 
warned, had reasonable time to shift 
themselves as they could : first from 
the main to a rock within the sea, 
and from thence into their boat, 
which, being ready to receive them, 
conveyed them with expedition out 
of the reach of the Spaniards' fmy, 
without the hurt of any man. Only 
one Richard Minioy, being over bold 
and careless of his own safety, would 
not be entreated by his friends, nor 
feared 4 by the multitude of his ene- 
mies, to take the present benefit of 
his own delivery ; but chose either 
to make 300 men, by outbraving 
of them, to become afraid, or else 
himself to die in the place; the 
latter of which he did. Whose 
dead body being drawn by the In- 
dians from the rock to the shore, was 
there manfully by the Spaniards be- 
headed, the right hand cut off, the 
heart plucked out ; all which they 
carried away in our sight, and for 
the rest of his carcass thev caused the 



Indians to shoot 



xsstney cai 
it full of 



arrows, 



made but the same day, of green wood, 
and so left it to be devoured by the 
beasts and fowls, but that we went 
ashore again and buried it ; wherein 
as there appeareth a most extreme 
and barbarous cruelty, so doth 
it declare to the world in what miser- 
able fear the Spaniard holdeth the 
Government of those parts ; living in 
continual dread of foreign invasion 
by strangers, or secret cutting of their 
throats by those whom they kept 
under them in so shameful slavery, I 
mean the innocent and harmless 
Indians. And therefore they make 
sure to murder what strangers soever 

3 Other accounts make the numbers 
I 300 horse and 200 foot. 

4 Alarmed. 



40 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



they can come by, and suffer the In- 
dians by no means to have any wea- 
pon longer than they be in present 
service : as appeared by their arrows 
cut from the tree the same day, as also 
by the credible report of others \vho 
knew the matter to be true. Yea, 
they suppose they show the wretches 
great favour when they do not for 
their pleasures whip them with cords, 
and day by day drop their naked 
bodies with burning bacon, which is 
one of the least cruelties among many 
which they universally use against 
that nation and people. 

This not being the place we looked 
for, nor the entertainment such as we 
desired, we speedily got hence again, 
and December 20th, the next day, fell 
with a more convenient harbour, in a 
bay somewhat to the northward of 
the forenamed Cyppo, lying in 27 25' 
South the Line. In this place we 
spent some time in trimming of our 
ship, and building of our pinnace, 
as we desired ; but still the grief for 
the absence of our friends remained 



[1578. 

All our businesses being thus de- 
spatched, January 19th we set sail from 
hence ; and the next place that we fell 
withal, January 22d, was an island 
standing in the same height with the 
north cape of the province of Mor- 
morena. At this island we found four 
Indians with their canoes, who took 
upon them to bring our men to a place 
of fresh water on the foresaid cape ; in 
hope whereof, our General made them 
great cheer, as his manner was to- 
wards all strangers, and set his course 
by their direction ; but when we came 
unto the place, and had travelled up 
a long way into the land, we found 
fresh water indeed, but scarce so much 
as they had drunk wine in their pas- 
sage thither. As we sailed along, 
continually searching for fresh water, 
we came a place called Tarapaca, 1 
and landing there we lighted on 
a Spaniard who lay asleep, and had 
lying by him thirteen bars of sil- 
ver, weighing in all about 4000 Span- 
ish ducats : we would not, could we 
have chosen, have awaked him of his 



with us, for the finding of whom our nap : but seeing we, against our wills, 
General, having now fitted all things did him that injury, we freed him of 



to his mind, intended leaving his 
ship the meanwhile at anchor in the 
bay with his pinnace and some 
chosen men, himself to return back 
to the southwards again, to see if 
happily he might either himself meet 
with them, or find them in some har- 
bour or creek, or hear of them by any 
others whom he might meet with. 
With this resolution he set on, but 
after one day's sailing, the wind be- 
ing contrary to his purpose, he was 
forced, whether he would or no, to 
return again. Within this bay, dur- 
ing our abode there, we had such 
abundance of fish, not much unlike 
our gurnard in England, as no place 
had ever afforded us the like Cape 
Blanco only upon the coast of Bar- 
bary excepted since our first setting 
forth of Plymouth until this time ; 
the plenty whereof in this place was 
such, that our gentlemen sporting 
themselves day by day, with four or 
five hooks or lines, in two or three 
hours would take sometimes 400, 
sometimes more, at one time. 



his charge, which otherwise perhaps 
would have kept him waking, and so 
left him to take out, if it pleased him, 
the other part of his sleep in more 
security. Our search for water still 
continuing, as we landed again not 
far from thence we met a Spaniard 
with an Indian boy, driving eight 
lambs or Peruvian sheep : each sheep 
bare two leathern bags, and in each 
bag was 50 pounds weight of refined 
silver, i;i the whole 800 pounds 
weight : we could not endure to see 
a gentleman Spaniard turned carrier 
so, and therefore without entreaty we 
offered our service and became drovers ; 
only his directions were not so per- 
fect that we could keep the way which 
he intended, for almost as soon as he 
was parted from us, we with our new 
kind of carriages were come unto our 
boats. 2 

1 Better known now by its port of 
Iquique, a few miles distant. 

2 It is somewhat amusing to notice 
the grim humour with which the re- 



1579.] 



THE LLAMA OR PERUVIAN SHEEP. 



Farther beyond this cape fore- 
mentioned lie certain Indian towns, 
from whence, as we passed by, came 
many of the people in certain hawses 1 
made of sealskins ; of which two be- 
ing joined together, of a just length, 
and side by side, resemble in fashion 
or form a boat : they have in either 
of them a small gut, or some such 
thing, blown full of wind/ by reason 
whereof it floateth, and i/rowed very 
swiftly, carrying in it no small bur- 
then. 2 In these, upon sight of our 
ships, they brought store of fish of 
divers sorts, to traffic with us for any 
trifles we would give them, as knives, 
margarites, 3 glasses, and such like, 
whereof men of sixty and seventy years 
old were as glad as if they had re- 
ceived some exceeding rich commo- 
dity, being a most simple and plain- 
dealing people. Their resort unto us 
was such as, considering the short- 
ness of the time, was wonderful to us 
to behold. 

Not far from this, viz., in 22 30', 
lay Mormorena, 4 another great town 
of the same people, over whom two 



verend chaplain carried off acts that 
in their nature fell very little short of 
sheer highway robbery. 

1 Boats, * ' bottoms " ; " bawse " 
may be either connected with "base," 
or with "buss," a box-shaped small 
decked vessel employed in fishery. 

2 Answering very much to the de- 
scription of the Greenland boats, as 
given by Dr Rae, in his latest book, 
"The Land of Desolation, " O wh ere the 
"women's canoes" or "Omyacks" 
are made of sealskins extended on a 
wicker frame. 

8 Beads : the original word, "mar- 
guerite " or "margarette," is used to 
signify a pearl by Wycliffe, and a 
daisy by Chaucer. 

4 Neither the town nor the province 
of this name survives in maps of the 
present day. They seem, however, 
generally to correspond with the dis- 
tricts of Atacam and Cobija, at the 
extreme north of Chili, and the con- 
tiguous region of Moquegua, at the 
extreme south of Peru. Cobija town 
El Puerto de la Mar would nearly 



Spaniards held the government ; with 
these our General thought meet to 
deal, or at least to try their courtesy, 
whether they would, in way of traffic, 
give us such things as we needed or 
no ; and therefore, January the 26th, 
we cast anchor here. We found them 
more from fear than from love, some- 
what tractable, and received from them 
by exchange many good things, very 
necessary for our uses. Amongst 
other things which we had of them, 
the sheep of the country (such as we 
mentioned before, bearing the leathern 
bags) were most memorable. Their 
height and length was equal to a 
pretty 6 cow, and their strength fully 
answerable, if not by much exceeding 
their size or stature. Upon one of 
their backs did sit at one time three 
well-grown and tall men, and one 
boy, no man's foot touching the 
ground by a large foot in length, the 
beast nothing at all complaining of 
his burthen in the mean time. These 
sheep have necks like camels, their 
heads bearing a reasonable resem- 
blance of another sheep. The 
Spaniards use them to great profit. 
Their wool is exceeding fine, their 
flesh good meat, their increase ordin- 
ary, and besides they supply the room 
of horses for burthen or travel ; yea, 
they serve to cany over the moun- 
tains marvellous loads, for 300 leagues 
together, where no other carriage can 
be made but by them only, 6 there- 
about, as also all along, and up into 
the country throughout the province 
of Cuzco, the common ground, where- 
soever it be taken up, in every hun- 



answer to the latitude ascribed to 
Mormorena in the text. 

6 A somewhat small or undersized 
cow, like the Alderney. 

6 All later and more scientific ac- 
counts of the llama, or Peruvian 
sheep, only serve to corroborate 
Drake's description. They stand to 
the south American populations of 
the Cordillera coast, even in these 
days of partial railroad invasion, much 
in the same relation as the "ship of 
the desert " to the Beclaween of Sahara 
or the Arabian wilderness. 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



dred pounds weight of earth yieldeth 
25s. of pure silver, after the rate of a 
crown an ounce. The next place 
likely to afford us any news of our 
ships (for in all this way from the 
height where we builded our pinnace, 
there was no bay or harbour at all for 
shipping) was the port of the town of 
Arica, standing in 20, 1 whither we 
arrived the 7th of February. This 
town seemed to us to stand in the 
most fruitful soil that we saw all 
alongst these coasts, both for that it 
is situate in the mouth of a most 
pleasant and fertile valley, abounding 
with all good things, as also in that 
it hath continual trade of shipping, 
as well from Lima as from all other 
parts^of Peru. It is inhabited by the 
Spaniards. In two barks here we 
found some forty and odd bars of sil- 
ver, of the bigness and fashion of a 
brickbat, and in weight each of them 
about twenty pounds ; of which we 
took the burthen on ourselves to ease 
them, and so departed towards Chow- 
ley, 2 with which we fell the second 
day following, February 9th ; and in 
our way to Lima we met with another 
bark at Arequipa, which had begun 
to load some silver and gold, but 
having had (as it seemed, from Arica 
by land) some notice of our coming, 
had unladen the same again before 
our arrival. 3 Yet in this passage we 
met another bark laden with linen, 
some of which we thought might 
stand us in some stead, and therefore 
took it with us. 

At Lima we arrived February 15th, 
and notwithstanding the Spaniards' 
forces, though they had thirty ships 
at that present in harbour there, 
whereof seventeen (most of them the 

1 More nearly in 18 30' or 18 40'. 

2 Either Ylo, or Yslay, both lying 
on the coast between Arica and 
Quilca, the port of Arequipa ; pro- 
bably Ylo is intended, that town ly- 
ing within the northern sweep of the 
Point of Colas, which the very un- 
Spanish word in the text may have 
been meant to represent* 

3 The plate amounted to 800 bars of 
silver, belonging to the King of Spain. 



[1579. 



especial ships in all the South Seas) 
were fully ready, we entered and an- 
chored all night in the midst of them, 
in the Callao, and might have made 
more spoil amongst them in a few 
hours, if we had been affected to re- 
venge, than the Spaniards could have 
recovered again in many years. 4 But 
we had more care to get up that com- 
pany which, we had so long missed, 
than to recompense their cruel and 
hard dealing by an even requital, 
which now we might have taken. 
This Lima stands in 12 30' South 
Latitude. 5 Here, albeit no good news 
of our ships could be had, yet got we 
the news of some things that seemed 
to comfort if not to countervail our 
travels thither ; as, namely, that in 
the ship of one Miguel Angels there, 
there were 1500 bars of plate ; besides . 
some other things (as silks, linen, 
and in one a chest full of royals of 
plate), which might stand us in some 
stead, in the other ships, aboard 
whom we made somewhat bold to bid 
ourselves welcome. Here also we 
heard the report of something that 
had befallen in and near Europe since 
our departure thence ; in particular 
of the death of some great personages, 
as the King of Portugal, and both the 
Kings of Morocco and Fesse, dead all 
three in one day at one battle ; 6 the 



4 According to another narrative 
that of Nuno da Silva, the Portuguese 
pilot taken at the Cape Verd Islands 
the English, being among the ships, 
enquired for that which had the sil- 
ver, on board ; but learning that all 
the silver had been carried on shore, 
they cut the cables of all the ships 
and the masts of the two largest, and 
so left them. A ship which came in 
from Panama nearly fell into the 
hands of the English in the harbour ; 
alarmed in time, she made her escape 
to sea, but was afterwards captured 
and plundered. 

6 Callao is in 12. 

6 The battle of Aleazar-Seguer, 
fought August 4th 1578, when Se- 
bastian of Portugal, and his ally 
Muley Hamet of Fez, fell in the 
decisive overthrow inflicted on their 



1579.] 



THE CATHOLICS OF LIMA. 



4:3 



death of the King of France, and the 
Pope of Rome, 1 whose abominations, 
as they are in part cut off from some 
Christian kingdoms, where his shame 
is manifest, so do his vassals and ac- 
cursed instruments labour by all means 
possible to repair that loss, by spread- 
ing the same the farther in these parts, 
where his devilish illusions and dam.- 
nable deceivings are not known. And 
as his doctrine takes place anywhere, 
so do the manners that necessarily 
accompany the same insinuate them- 
selves together with the doctrine. 
For as it is true, that in all the parts 
of America where the Spaniards have 
any government, the poisonous infec- 
tion of Popery hath spread itself ; so 
on the other side it is as true, that 
there is no city, as Lima, Panama, 
Mexico, etc., no town or village, yea, 
no house almost in all these provinces, 
wherein (amongst the other like Span- 
ish virtues) not only whoredom, but 
the filthiness of Sodom, not to be 
named among Christians, is not com- 
mon without reproof : the Pope's 
pardons 2 being more rife in these 
parts than they be in any part of 
Europe for these filthinesses, where- 
out he sucketh no small advantage. 
Notwithstanding, the Indians, who 
are nothing nearer the true knowledge 
of God than they were before, abhor 
this most filthy and loathsome manner 
of living ; showing themselves, in re- 
spectof the Spaniards, as the Scythians 
did in respect of the Grecians : who, in 
their barbarous ignorance, yet in life 
and behaviour did so far excel the 



combined invading forces by Muley 
Moluc, the Emperor of Morocco 
himself dying of a lingering malady 
before the fight began, and dead before 
it ended. 

1 This reference is somewhat be- 
wildering. Henry III. of France 
reigned from 1574 to 1589. Gregory 
XIII. was Pope from 1572 to 1585; 
and it is difficult to imagine that on 
leaving England in 1577, Drake and 
his followers had not learned the 
death of the predecessors of these 
potentates. 

2 Indulgences. 



wise and learned Greeks, as they were 
short of them in the gifts of learning 
and knowledge. But as the Pope 
and anti- Christian Bishops labour by 
their wicked factors 8 with tooth and 
nail to deface the glory of God, and to 
shut up in darkness the light of the 
Gospel ; so God doth not suffer His 
name and religion to be altogether 
without witness, to the reproving both 
of his 4 false and damnable doctrine, 
as also crying out against his unmea- 
surable and abominable licentiousness 
of the flesh, even in these parts. For 
in this city of Lima, not two months 
before our coming thither, there were 
certain persons, to the number of 
twelve, apprehended, examined, and 
condemned for the profession of the 
Gospel, and reproving the doctrines 
of men, with the filthy manners used 
in the city : of which twelve, six were 
bound to one stake and burnt, the 
rest remained yet in prison, to drink 
of the same cup within few days. 

Lastly, here we had intelligence of 
a certain rich ship which was laden 
with gold and silver for Panama, that 
had set forth of this haven the 2d of 
February. The very next day, there- 
fore, in the morning, the 16th of the 
same month, we set sail, as long as 
the wind would serve our turn, and 
towed our ship as soon as the wind 
failed ; continuing our course towards 
Panama, making stay nowhere, but 
hastening all we might, to get sight 
if it were possible of that gallant ship 
the Cacafuego, the great glory of the 
South Sea, which was gone from Lima 
fourteen days before us. "We fell with 
the port of Paita in 4 20', February 
20th ; with the port Saint Helena and 
the river and port of Guayaquil, Feb- 
ruary 24th. We passed the Line on the 
28th, and on the 1st of March we fell 
with Cape Francisco, where, about 
mid-day, we descried a sail ahead of 
us, with whom, after once we had 
spoken with her, we lay still in the 
same place about six days to recover 
our breath again, which we had al- 
most spent with hasty following, and 
to recall to mind what adventures 



Agents. 



4 The Pope's. 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



had passed us since our late coming 
from Lima ; but especially to do Juan 
de Anton a kindness, in freeing him 
of the care of those things with which 
his ship was laden. This ship we 
found to he the same of which we had 
heard, not only in the Callao of Lima, 
but also by divers occasions after- 
wards, which now we are at leisure to 
relate, viz., by a ship which we took 
between Lima and Paita ; by another, 
which we took laden with wine in the 
port of Paita ; by a third, laden with 
tackling and implements for ships, 
besides eighty pounds weight in gold l 
from Guayaquil ; and lastly, by Ga- 
briel Alvarez, with whom we talked 
somewhat nearer the Line. We found 
her to be indeed the Caciifuego, though 
before we left her she were now named 
by a boy of her own the Cacaplata.' 2 
We found in her some fruit, conserves, 
sugars, meal, and other victuals, and 
(that which was the especialest cause 
of her heavy and slow sailing), a cer- 
tain quantity of jewels and precious 
stones, thirteen chests of royals of 
plate, eighty pounds weight in gold, 
twenty-six tons of uncoined silver, two 
very fair gilt silver drinking-bowls, 
and the like trifles, valued in all at 

1 Besides a golden crucifix, with 
"goodly great emeralds " set in it, of 
which the Reverend Mr Fletcher 
2arefully eschews notice. Between 
Lima and Panama, the Viceroy, Don 
Francisco de Toledo, although sur- 
prised by this unexpected inroad of 
the English, had fairly defended his 
coasts from any descent, and had 
even put such a force to sea, that 
Drake judged it prudent having 
richer game to stalk to show a clean 
pair of heels. 

2 Or, as the jest is narrated in Hak- 
luyt : "The pilot's boy said to our 
General, ' Captain, our ship shall be 
called no more the Cacafuego, but the 
Cacaplata, and your ship shall be the 
Cacafuego,' which pretty speech of 
the pilot's boy ministered matter of 
laughter to us both then and long 
after." 



[1579. 



about. 300.000 pesos. 3 We gave the 
master a little linen and the like for 
these commodities, and at the end of 
six days we bade farewell and parted. 
He hastened, somewhat lighter than 
before, to Panama ; we plying off to 
sea, that we might with more leisure 
consider what course henceforward 
were fittest to be taken. 4 



8 The total value of the silver and 
gold alone has been estimated at 
750,000 or 1,000,000 of our present 
money, leaving the precious stones 
and other booty out of account. It 
is narrated elsewhere that the com- 
mander of the Cacafuego so little sus- 
pected the presence of enemies in those 
seas, as to let the Golden Hind ap- 
proach him in full security, without 
taking any defensive measures till the 
last moment, believing that she was 
a Spanish ship sent after him with 
despatches from the Viceroy ; yet he 
did not strike his flag until one of his 
masts had fallen by the board and 
he himself was wounded. The silver 
bowls belonged to the pilot, to whom 
Drake said, "that these were fine 
bowls, and he must needs have one 
of them ; to which the pilot yielded, 
not knowing how to help himself; 
but, to make this appear less like 
compulsion, he gave the other to tho 
Admiral's Steward." 

4 Drake at parting gave the captain 
of the Cacafuego the following letter, 
addressed to Captain Winter, on the 
chance of her falling in with the Eliza- 
beth : "Master Winter, if it pleaseth 
God that you should chance to meet 
with this ship of Sant John de Anton, 
I pray you use him well, according 
to my word and promise given unto 
them ; and if you want anything that 
is in this ship of Sant John de Anton, 
I pray you pay them double the value 
for it, which I will satisfy again, antf 
command your men not to do her any 
hurt ; and what composition or agree 
ment we have made, at my return 
into England I will by God's help 
perform, although I am in doubt that 
this letter will never come to your 
hands : notwithstanding I am the 
man 1 have promised to be : beseech- 



1579.] 



EARTHQUAKE OFF NICARAGUA. 



And considering that now we were 
come to the Northward of the Line 
(Cape Francisco standing in the en- 
trance of the Bay of Panama, in 1 
North latitude), and that there was 
no likelihood or hope that our ships 
should be before us that way by any 
means : seeing that, in running so 
many degrees from the Southernmost 
Islands hitherto, we could not have 
any sign or notice of their passage 
that way, notwithstanding that we 
had made so diligent search and care- 
ful enquiry after them, in every har- 
bour and creek almost, as we had 
done ; and considering also that the 
time of the year now drew on where- 
in we must attempt, or of necessity 
wholly give over, that action which 
chiefly oiir General had determined, 
namely, the discovery of what pas- 
sage there was to be found about the 
Northern parts of America from the 
South Sea into our own Ocean (which 
being once discovered and made 
known to be navigable, we should 
not only do our country a good and 
notable service, but we also ourselves 
should have a nearer cut and passage 
home ; where otherwise we were to 
make a very long and tedious voyage 
of it, which would hardly agree with 
our good liking, wehavingbeen so long 

ing God, the Saviour of all the world, 
to have us in his keeping, to whom 
only I give all honour, praise, and 
glory. What I have written is not 
only to you Mr Winter, but also to 
Mr Thomas, Mr Charles, Mr Caube, 
and Mr Anthony, with all our other 
good friends, whom I commit to the 
tuition of him that with his blood 
redeemed us, and am in good hope 
that we shall be in no more trouble, 
but that he will help us in adversity ; 
desiring you, for the passion of Christ, 
if you fall into any danger, that you 
will not despair of God s mercy, for 
he will defend you and preserve you 
from all danger, and bring us to our 
desired haven ; to whom be all hon- 
our, glory, and praise, for ever and 
ever, Amen. Your sorrowful Cap- 
tain, whose heart is heavy for you, 
"FRANCIS DKAKE." 



45 

from home already, and so much of 
our strength separated from us), which 
could not at all be done if the oppor- 
tunity were now neglected : we there- 
fore all of us willingly harkened and 
consented to our General's advice, 
which was, first to seek out some 
convenient place wherein to trim our 
ship, and store ourselves with wood 
and water and other provisions as we 
could get, and thenceforward to has- 
ten on our intended journey for the dis- 
covery of the said passage, through 
which we might with joy return to 
our longed homes. 1 

From this Cape therefore we set 
onward, March the 7th, shaping our 
course towards the Island of Cano, 2 
with which we fell March 16th, setting 
ourselves for certain days in a fresh 
river, between the main and it, 
for the finishing of our needful busi- 
nesses, as it is aforesaid. While we 
abode in this place, we felt a very 
terrible earthquake, the force where- 
of was such that our ship and pin- 
nace, riding very near an English 
mile from the shore, were shaken and 
did quiver as if it had been laid on 
dry land. We found here many good 
commodities which we wanted, as 
fish, fresh water, wood, &c., besides 
alargartoes, monkeys, and the like ; 
and in our journey hither we met 
with one ship more (the last we met 
with in all those coasts), laden with 
linen, China silk, and China dishes, 
amongst which we found also a fal- 
con of gold, handsomely wrought, 
with a great emerald set in the breast 

1 "It is not unworthy of notice," 
says one modern chronicler of this 
voyage, "that the scheme for ex- 
ploring a North-eastern channel from 
the Pacific, thus adopted by Drake, 
is the same with that recommended 
about a century later by the celebrated 
Dampier. " See post, Dampier's Voy- 
age, Chapter IX. 

2 Off the coast of Nicaragua ; it is 
mentioned by Dampier, who (Chap- 
VIII., page 172) "coasted along 
shore, passing by the Gulf of Nicoya, 
the Gulf of Dulce, and the Island 
Cano." 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [1579. 

parted the day following, viz., April 



46 

of it. From thence we parted the 
24th day of the month forenamed, 



with full purpose to run the nearest 
course, as the wind would suffer us, 
without touch of land a long time ; 
and therefore passed by port Papa- 
gaya : the port of the Yale, of the 
most rich and excellent balms of 
Jericho ; Quantapico, 1 and divers 
others ; as also certain gulfs here- 
about, which without intermission 
send forth such continual and violent 
winds, that the Spaniards, though 
their ships be good, dare not venture 
themselves too near the danger of 
them. Notwithstandinghaving notice 
that we should be troubled with 
often calms and contrary winds if we 
continued near the coast, and did not 
run off to sea to fetch the wind, and 
that if we did so we could not then fall 
with land again when we would ; our 
General thought it needful that we 
should run in with some place or 
other before our departure from the 
coast, to see if happily we could, by 
traffic, augment our provision of 
victuals and other necessaries, that 
being at sea we might not be driven 
to any great want or necessity ; al- 
beit we had reasonable store of good 
things aboard us already. 

The next harbour therefore which 
we chanced with, on April 15th, in 
15 40', was Guatulco, so named of the 
Spaniards who inhabited it, with 
whom we had some intercourse, to 
the supply of many things which we 
desired, and chiefly bread, &c. And 
now having reasonably, as we thought, 
provided ourselves, we departed from 
the coast of America for the present ; 
but not forgetting, before we got a- 
shipboard, to take with us also a cer- 
tain pot, of about a bushel in bigness, 
full of royals of plate, which we found 
in the town, together with a chain of 
gold and some other jewels which we 
entreated a gentleman Spaniard to 
leave behind him as he was flying 
out of town. 2 From Guatulco we de- 

1 Probably Tehuan tepee is meant. 

2 Here the voyagers surprised a 
council engaged in the trial of some 
Indians accused of trying to burn the 



16th, setting our course directly into 
the sea, whereon we sailed 500 
leagues in longitude, to get a wind : 
and between that and June 3d, 1400 
leagues in all, till we came into 42 
of North latitude, wherein the night 
following we found such alteration of 
heat into extreme and nipping cold, 
that our men in general did grievously 
complain thereof, some of themfeeling 
their healths much impaired thereby ; 
neither was it that this chanced in 
the night alone, but the day follow- 
ing carried with it not only the marks, 
but the stings and force of the night 
going before, to the great admiration 3 
of us all. For besides that the pinch- 
ing and biting air was nothing al- 
tered, the very ropes of our ship were 
stiff, and the rain which fell was an 
unnatural congealed and frozen sub- 
stance, so that we seemed rather to 
be in the Frozen Zone than any way 
so near unto the Sun, or these hotter 
climates. Neither did this happen 
for the time only, or by some sudden 
accident, but rather seems indeed to 
proceed from some ordinary cause, 
against which the heat of the Sun 
prevails not ; for it came to that ex- 
tremity in sailing but two degrees 
farther to the Northward in our 
course, that though seamen lack not 
good stomachs, yet it seemed a ques- 
tion to many amongst us whether their 
hands should feed their mouths, or 
rather keep themselves within their 
coverts from the pinching cold that 
did benumb them. Neither could 
we impute it to the tenderness of our 



town, and carried culprits and judges 



board 
prisoners. 



together as temporary 
The name of the man 



who pursued and plundered the 
wearer of the golden chain was Tho- 
mas Moon. At Guatulco the Portu- 
guese pilot, Nuno da Silva, and all 
the other prisoners, were liberated; 
the pilot wrote a narrative of the voy- 
age up to this point, which was sent 
to the Portuguese Yiceroy in India, 
and afterwards fell into English 
hands. 

3 Wonder, astonishment. 



1579.] 



SUFFERINGS THROUGH EXTREME COLD. 



bodies, though we came lately from 
the extremity of heat, by reason 
whereof we might be more sensible 
of the present cold ; insomuch as the 
dead and senseless creatures were as 
well affected with it as ourselves : our 
meat, as soon as it was removed from 
the fire, would presently in a manner 
be frozen up, and our ropes and 
tackling in few days were grown to 
that stiffness, that what three men 
afore were able with them to perform, 
now six men, with their best strength' 
and uttermost endeavour, were hardly 
able to accomplish : whereby a sudden 
and great discouragement seized upon 
the minds of our men, and they were 
possessed with a great mislike and 
doubting of any good to be done that 
way. Yet would not our General be 
discouraged, but as well by comfort- 
able speeches, of the Divine Provi- 
dence and of God's loving care over 
his children, out of the Scriptures, as 
also by other good and profitable per- 
suasions, adding thereto his own 
cheerful example, he so stirred them 
up to put on a good courage, and 
to quit themselves like men, to en- 
dure some short extremity to have 
the speedier comfort, and a little 
trouble to obtain the greater glory, 
that every man was throughly armed 
with willingness, and resolved to see 
the uttermost, if it were possible, of 
what good was to be done that way. 

The land in that part of America 
bearing farther out into the West 
than we before imagined, we were 
nearer on it than we were aware ; and 
yet the nearer still we came unto it, 
the more extremity of cold did seize 
upon us. The 5th day of June, we were 
forced by contrary winds to run in 
with the shore, which we then first 
descried, and to cast anchor in a bad 
bay, the best road we could for the 
present meet with, where we were not 
without some danger by reason of the 
'many extreme gusts and flaws that 
beat upon us, which if they ceased and 
were still at any time, immediately 
upon their intermission there fol- 
lowed most vile, thick, and stinking 
togs, against which the sea prevailed 
nothing, till the gusts of wind again 



removed them, which brought with 
them such extremity and violence 
when they came, that there was no deal- 
ing or resisting against them. In this 
place was no abiding for us ; and to go 
farther North, the extremity of the 
cold (which had now utterly discour- 
aged our men) would not permit us ; 
and the winds, directly bent against 
us, having once got us under sail 
again, commanded us to the South- 
ward whether we would or no. From 
the height of 48 in which now we 
were, to 38, we found the land, by 
coasting along it, to be but low and 
reasonably plain ; evssj hill (whereof 
we saw many, but none very high), 
though it were in June, and the sun in 
his nearest approach unto them, being 
covered with snow. In 38 30' we 
fell with a convenient and fit har- 
bour, and, June 17th, came to anchor 
therein, where we continued till the 
23d day of July following. During 
all which time, notwithstanding it 
was in the height of summer, and so 
near the sun, yet were we continually 
visited with like nipping colds as we 
had felt before; insomuch that if 
violent exercises of our bodies, and 
busy employment about our necessary 
labours, had not sometimes compelled 
us to the contrary, we could very 
well have been contented to have kept 
about us still our winter clothes, yea 
(had our necessities suffered us), to 
have kept our beds; neither could 
we at any time, in whole fourteen 
days together," find the air so clear as 
to be able to take the height of sun 
or star. 

And here having so fit occasion 
(notwithstanding it may seem to be 
beside the purpose of writing the his- 
tory of this our voyage), we will a 
little more diligently enquire into the 
causes of the continuance of the ex- 
treme cold in these parts, as also into 
the probabilities or unlikelihoods of 
a passage to be found that way. 
Neither was it (as hath formerly been 
touched) tenderness of our bodies, 
coming so lately out of the heat, 
whereby the pores were opened, that 
made us so sensible of the colds we 
here felt : in this respect, as in many 



48 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[15; 



others, we found our God a provident 
Father and careful Physician for us. 
We lacked no outward helps nor in- 
ivard comforts to restore and fortify 
nature, had it been decayed or weak- 
ened in us ; neither was there wanting 
to us the great experience of our Gene- 
ral, who had often himself proved the 
force of the Burning Zone, whose 
advice always prevailed much to the 
preserving of a moderate temper in 
our constitutions ; so that even after 
our departure from the heat we always 
found our bodies, not as sponges, but 
strong and hardened, more able to 
bear out cold, though we came out of 
excess of heat, than a mimber of 
chamber champions could have been, 
who lie on their feather-beds till they 
go to sea, or rather, whose teeth in a 
temperate air do beat in their heads 
at a cup of cold sack and sugar by the 
fire. And that it was not our tender- 
ness, but the very extremity of the 
cold itself, that caused this sensible- 
ness in us, may the rather appear, in 
that the natural inhabitants of the 
place (with whom we had for a long 
season familiar intercourse, as is to be 
related), who had never been ac- 
quainted with such heat, to whom 
the country, air, and climate was 
proper, and in whom custom of cold 
was as it were a second nature, yet 
used to come shivering to us in their 
warm furs, crowding close together, 
body to body, to receive heat one of 
another, and sheltering themselves 
under a lee bank, if it were possible, 
and as often as they could labouring 
to shroud themselves under our gar- 
ments also to keep them warm. Be- 
sides, how unhandsome and deformed 
appeared the face of the earth itself ! 
showing trees without leaves, and the 
ground without greenness, in those 
months of June and July. The poor 
birds and fowls not daring (as we had 
great experience to deserve it) so much 
as once to arise from their nests after 
the first egg laid, till it, with all the 
rest, be hatched and brought to some 
strength of nature, able to help itself. 
Only this recompense hath Nature 
afforded them, that the heat of their 
own bodies being exceeding great, it 



perfecteth the creature with greater 
expedition, and in shorter time than 
is to be found in many places. 

As for the causes of this extremity, 
they seem not to be so deeply hidden 
but that they may, at least in part, 
be guessed at. The chief of which we 
conceive to be the large spreading of 
the Asian and American continent, 
which (somewhat Northward of these 
parts), if they be not fully joined, yet 
seem they to come very near one to 
the other. From whose high and 
snow-covered mountains the North 
and North-west winds (the constant 
visitants of these coasts) send abroad 
their frozen Nymphs, to the infecting 
the whole air with this insufferable 
sharpness: not permitting the Sun, 
no, not in the pride of his heat, to 
dissolve the congealed water and snow 
which they have breathed out so nigh 
the Sun, and so many degrees distant 
from themselves. And that the North 
and North-west winds are here con- 
stant in June and July, as the North 
wind alone is in August and Septem- 
ber, we not only found by our own 
experience, but were fully confirmed 
in the opinion thereof by the con- 
tinued observations of the Spaniards. 
Hence comes the general squalidness 
and barrenness of the country ; hence 
comes it that in the midst of their 
Summer the snow hardly departeth 
even from their very doors, but is 
never taken away from their hills at 
all ; hence come those thick mists and 
most stinking fogs, which increase so 
much the more by how much higher 
the Pole is raised: 1 wherein a blind 
pilot is as good as the best director of 
a course. For the Sun striving to 
perform his natural office, in elevating 
the vapours out of these inferior 
bodies, draweth necessarily abundance 
of moisture out of the sea; but the 
nipping cold, from the former causes, 
meeting and opposing the Sun's en- 
deavour, forces him to give over his 
work imperfect, and, instead of 
higher elevation, to leave in the lowest 



1 The nearer one approaches to the 
Pole, causing the North Star to rise 
apparently higher in the heavens. 



T579.] PRESENTS FROM 

region, wandering upon the face of the ' 
earth and waters, as it were a second 
sea, through which its own beams 
cannot possibly pierce, unless some- 
times when the sudden violence of 
the winds doth help to scatter and 
break through it; which thing hap- 
peneth very seldom, and when it 
nappeneth is of no continuance. Some 
of our mariners in this voyage had 
formerly been at Wardhouse, 1 in 72 
of North latitude, who yet affirmed 
that they felt no such nipping cold 
there in the end of the Summer, when 
they departed thence, as they did here 
in those hottest months of June and 
July. And also from these reasons 
we conjecture, that either there is no 
passage at all through these Northern 
coasts (which is most likely); or if 
there be, that yet it is unnavigable. 
Add hereunto, that though we searched 
the coast diligently, even unto the 
forty-eighth degree, yet found we not 
the land to trend so much as one 
point in any place towards the East, 
but rather running on continually 
North-west, as if it went directly to 
meet with Asia; and even in that 
height, when we had a frank wind 
to have carried us through, had there 
been a passage, yet we had a smooth 
and calm sea, with ordinary flowing 
and reflowing, which could not have 
been had there been a frete ; 2 of which 
we rather infallibly concluded, than 
conjectured, that there was none. But 
to return. 

The next day after our coming to 
anchor in the aforesaid harbour, 3 the 
people of the country shewed them- 
selves, sending off a man with great 
expedition to us in a canoe. Who 
being yet but a little from the shore, 
and a great way from our ship, spake 
to us continually as he came rowing 
on. And at last at a reasonable dis- 
tance staying himself, he began more 



1 "Wardhys, at the extreme north- 
east point of Norway. 

2 A narrow passage or contracted 
channel. 

3 The Bay of San Francisco, the 
present prosperous capital of Call 
fornia. 



THE NATIVES. 49 

solemnly a long and tedious oration, 
after his manner : using in the de- 
livery thereof many gestures and 
signs, moving his hands, turning his 
head and body many ways; and 
after his oration ended, with great 
show of reverence and submission 
returned back to shore again. He 
shortly came again the second time 
in like manner, and so the third 
time, when he brought with him, as 
a present from the rest, a bunch of 
feathers, much like the feathers of a 
black crow, very neatly and artificially 4 
gathered upon a string, and drawn 
together into a round bundle ; being 
very clean and finely cut, and bearing 
in length an equal proportion one with 
another : a special cognisance (as we 
afterwards observed) which they that 
guard their King's person wear upon 
their heads. With this also he 
brought a little basket made of rushes, 
and filled with an herb which they 
called ' ' Tabah. " 5 Both which, being 
tied to a short rod, he cast into our 
boat. Our General intended to have 
recompensed him immediately with 
many good things he would have be- 
stowed on him ; but entering into the 
boat to deliver the same, he could not 
be drawn 6 to receive them by any 
means, save one hat, which being cast 
into the water out of the ship, he took 
up (refusing utterly to meddle with 
any other thing, though it were upon 
a board put off to him), and so pre- 
sently made his return. After which 
time our boat could row no way, but, 
wondering at us as at gods, they 
would follow the same with admira- 
tion. 

The third day following, viz., the 
21st, our ship, having received a leak 
at sea, was brought to anchor nearer 
the shore, that, her goods being 
landed, she might be repaired; but 
for that we were 7 to prevent any dan- 
ger that might chance against our 
safety, our General first of all landed 
his men, with all necessary provision 



4 Cleverly, skilfully. 

5 Tobacco " tabac 

6 Induced, tempted. 



in French. 
7 Were obliged or bound 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1579. 



to build ttiits and make a fort for the 
defence of ourselves and goods, and 
that we might under the shelter of it 
with more safety (whatever should 
befall) end our business. Which 
when the people of the country per- 
ceived us doing, as men set on fire to 
war in defence of their country, in 
great haste and companies, with such 
weapons as they had, they came down 
unto us, and yet with no hostile 
meaning or intent to hurt us ; stand- 
ing, when they drew near, as men 
ravished in their minds with the 
sight of such things as they never had 
seen or heard of before that time : 
their errand being rather with sub- 
mission and fear to worship us as gods, 
than to have any war with us as 
with mortal men. Which thing, as 
it did partly show itself at that in- 
stant, so did it more and more mani- 
fest itself afterwards, during the whole 
time of our abode amongst them. At 
this time, being willed by -signs to lay 
from them their bows and arrows, they 
did as they were directed ; and so did 
all the rest, as they came more and 
more by companies unto them, grow- 
ing in a little while to a great number, 
both of men and women. To the intent, 
therefore, that this peace which they 
themselves so willingly sought might, 
without any cause of the breach thereof 
on our part given, be continued, and 
that we might with more safety and 
expedition end our businesses in quiet, 
our General, with all his company, 
used all means possible gently to 
entreat them, bestowing upon each of 
them liberally good and necessary 
things to cover their nakedness ; 
withal signifying unto them that we 
were no gods, but men, and had 
need of such things to cover our own 
shame; teaching them to use them 
to the same ends. For which cause 
also we did eat and drink in their 
presence, giving them to understand 
that without that we could not live, 
and therefore were but men as well 
as they. Notwithstanding, nothing 
could persuade them, nor remove 
that opinion which they had con- 
ceived of us, that we should be gods. 
In recompense of those things 



which they had received of us, aa 
shirts, linen cloth, &c., they bestowed 
upon our General, and divers of our 
company, divers things ; as feathers, 
cauls of network, the quivers of their 
arrows, made of fawn-skins, and the 
very skins of beasts that their women 
wore upon their bodies. Having thus 
had their fill of this time's visiting 
and beholding of us, they departed 
with joy to their houses; which 
houses are digged round within the 
earth, and have from the uppermost 
brims of the circle clefts of wood set 
up, and joined close together at the 
top, like our spires on the steeple of 
a church ; which being covered with 
earth, suffer no water to enter, and 
are very warm. The door in the most 
part of them performs the office also 
of a chimney to let out the smoke : 
it is made in bigness and fashion like 
to an ordinary scuttle in a ship, and 
standing slopewise. Their beds are 
the hard ground, only with rushes 
strewed upon it, and, lying round 
about the house, have their fire in 
the midst, which, by reason that the 
house is but low vaulted, round, and 
close, giveth a marvellous reflection 
to their bodies to heat the same. 
Their men for the most part go naked ; 
the women take. a kind of bulrushes, 
and kembing it 1 after the manner of 
hemp, make themselves thereof a 
loose garment, which being knit about 
their middles, hangs down about their 
hips, and so affords to them a cover- 
ing of that which Nature teaches 
should be hidden ; about their shoul- 
ders they wear also the skin of a deer, 
with the hair upon it. They are 
very obedient to their husbands, and 
exceeding ready in all services; yet 
of themselves offering to do nothing, 
without the consent or being called 
of the men. As soon as they were 
returned to their houses, they began 
amongst themselves a kind of most 
lamentable weeping and crying out, 
which they continued also a great 
while together, in such sort that in 
the place where they left us (being 



it. 



Combing it out, or "heckling 



1679 ] SACRIFICE MADE 

near about three-quarters of an Eng- 
lish mile distant from them) we very 
plainly, with wonder and admiration, 
did hear the same, the women especi- 
ally extending their voices in a most 
miserable and doleful manner of 
shrieking. Notwithstanding this 
humble manner of presenting them- 
selves, and awful demeanour used to- 
wards us, we thought it no wisdom too 
far to trust them (our experience of 
former Infidels dealing with us before, 
made us careful to provide against an 
alteration of their affections or breach 
of peace if it should happen); and 
therefore with all expedition we set 
up our tents, and entrenched our- 
selves with walls of stone; that so 
being fortified within ourselves, we 
might be able to keep off the enemy 
(if they should so prove) from coming 
amongst us without our good wills. 
This being quickly finished, we went 
the more cheerfully and securely 
afterwards about our other business. 

Against the end of two days, during 
which time they had not been with 
us again, there was gathered together 
a great assembly of men, women, and 
children (invited by the report of 
them which first saw us, who, as it 
seems, had in that time of purpose 
dispersed themselves into the country, 
to make known the news), who came 
now the second time unto us, bring- 
ing with them, as before had been 
done, feathers and bags of " Tabah " 
for presents, or rather indeed for sacri- 
fices, upon this persuasion that we 
were gods. When they came to the 
top of the hill, at the bottom whereof 
we had built our fort, they made a 
stand; where one, appointed as their 
chief speaker, wearied both us his 
hearers, and himself too, with a long 
and tedious oration, delivered with 
strange and violent gestures, his voice 
being extended to the uttermost 
strength of nature, and his words 
falling so thick one in the neck of 
another, that he could hardly fetch 
his breath again. As soon as he had 
concluded, all the rest, with a rever- 
enl bowing of their bodies (in a 
dreaming manner, and long producing 
of the same) cried "Oh:" thereby 



TO THE "GODS." 



51 



giving their consents that all was 
very true which he had spoken, and 
that they had uttered their mind by 
his mouth unto us. "Which done, the 
men laying down their bows upon 
the hill, and leaving their women 
and children behind them, came down 
with their presents ; in such sort as if 
they had appeared before a God in- 
deed, thinking themselves happy that 
they might have access unto our 
General, but much more happy when 
they saw that he would receive at 
their hands those things which they 
so willingly had presented: and no 
doubt they thought themselves nearest 
unto God when they sat or stood next 
to him. In the meantime the women, 
as if they had been desperate, used 
unnatural violence against them- 
selves, crying and shrieking piteously, 
tearing their flesh with their nails 
from their cheeks in a monstrous 
manner, the blood streaming down 
along their breasts ; besides, despoil- 
ing the upper parts of their bodies of 
those single coverings they formerly 
had, and holding their hands above 
their heads that they might not rescue 
their breasts from harm, they would 
with fury cast themselves upon the 
ground, never respecting whether it 
were clean or soft, but dashed them- 
selves in this manner on hard stones, 
knobby hillocks, stocks of wood, and 
pricking bushes, or whatever else lay 
in their way, iterating the same 
course again and again ; yea, women 
great with child, some nine or ten 
times each, and others holding out 
till fifteen or sixteen times, till their 
strength failed them, exercised this 
cruelty against themselves: a thing 
more grievous for us to see or suffer, 
could we have help 1 it, than trouble 
to them, as it seemed, to do it. This 
bloody sacrifice, against our wills, 
being thus performed, our General, 
with his company, in the presence of 
those strangers, fell to prayers; and 
by signs in lifting up our eyes and 
hands to heaven, signified unto them 
that that God whom we did serve, 
and whom they ought to worship, 



1 Helped, prevented, 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1579. 



was above l beseeching God, if it were 
His good pleasure, to open by some 
means their blinded eyes, that they 
might in due time be called to the 
knowledge of Him, the true and 
everlasting God, and of Jesus Christ 
whom He hath sent, the salvation of 
the Gentiles. In the time of which 
prayers, singing of Psalms, and read- 
ing of certain chapters in the Bible, 
they sat very attentively : and observ- 
ing the end at every pause, with one 
voice still cried "Oh," greatly rejoic- 
ing in our exercises. Yea, they took 
Such pleasure in our singing of Psalms, 
that whensoever they resorted to us, 
their first request was commonly this, 
"Gnaah," by which they entreated 
that we would sing. Our General 
having now bestowed upon them 
divers things^ at their departure they 
again, none carry - 



restordd them all 



Ing with him anything of whatsoever 
lie had received, thinking themselves 
sufficiently enriched and happy that 
they had found so free access to see us. 
Against the end of three days 
more (the news having the while 
spread itself farther, and as it 
seemed a great way up into the coun- 
try), were assembled the greatest 
number of people which we could 
reasonably imagine to dwell within 
any convenient distance round about. 
Amongst the rest the King himself, 
a man of a goodly stature and a comely 
personage, attended with his guard of 
about 100 tall and warlike men, 
this day, June 26th, came down to see 
us. Before his coming, were sent 
two ambassadors or messengers to our 
General, to signify that their " Hioh," 
that is, their King, was coming and 
at hand. They in the delivery of 
their message, the one spake with a 
poft and low voice, prompting his 
fellow; the other pronounced the 
same, word by word, after him with 
a voice more audible, continuing their 
proclamation, for such it was, about 
half an hour. Which being ended, 
they by signs mado request to our 
General to send something by their 
liancls to their "Hioh " or King, as a 
token that hin corning might be in 
Our fteiKyaJ willingly satis- 



fied their desire ; and they, glad m*?n, 
made speedy return to their " Hioh," 
Neither was* it long before their King 
(making as princely a show as pos- 
sibly he could) with all his train came 
forward. In their coming forwards 
they cried continually after a singing 
manner, with a lusty courage. And 
as they drew nearer and nearer to- 
wards us, so did they more and more 
strive to behave themselves with a 
certain comeliness and gravity in all 
their actions. In the forefront came 
a man of a large body and goodly 
aspect, bearing the sceptre or royal 
mace (made of a certain kind of black 
wood, and in length about a yard and 
a half), before the King. Whereupon 
hung two crowns, a bigger and a 
less, with three chains of a marvellous 
length, and often doubled, besides a 
bag of the herb "Tabah." The 
crowns were made of network, wrought 
upon most curiously with feathers of 
divers colours, very artificially placed, 
and of a formal fashion. The chains 
seemed of a bony substance, every 
link or part thereof being very little, 
thin, most finely burnished, with a 
hole pierced through the midst. The 
number of links going to make one 
chain is in a manner infinite; but of 
such estimation is it amongst them, 
that few be the persons that are ad- 
mitted to wear the same; and even 
they to whom it is lawful to use 
them, yet are stinted what number 
they shall use, as some ten, some 
twelve, some twenty, and as ^they 
exceed in number of chains, so there- 
by are they known to be the more 
honourable personages. 

Next unto him that bare this 
sceptre was the King himself, with his 
guard about him ; his attire upon his 
head was a caul 1 of network, wrought 
upon somewhat like the crowns, but 
differing much both in fashion and 
perfectness of work ; upon his shoul- 
ders he had on a coat of the skins of 
conies, reaching to his waist : his 
guard also had each coats of the same 
shape, but of other skins ; some 
having cauls likewise stuck with 

1 Cowl, cap. 



1679.] 



A VISIT FROM THE KING. 



feathers, or coyeied over with a cer- 
tain down, which groweth up in the 
country upon an herb much like our 
ettuce, which exceeds any other 
down in the world for fineness, and 
being laid upon their cauls, by no 
winds can be removed. Of such esti- 
mation is this herb amongst them, 
that the down thereof is not lawful to 
be worn, but of such persons as are 
about the King (to whom also it is 
permitted to wear a plume of feathers 
on their heads in sign of honour), and 
the seeds are not used but only in sacri- 
fice to their gods. After these in their 
order did follow the naked sort of com- 
mon people, whose hair, being long, 
was gathered into a bunch behind, in 
which stuck plumes of feathers ; but 
in the forepart only single feathers 
like horns, every one pleasing him- 
self in his own device. This one 
thing was observed to be general 
amongst them all, that every one 
had his face painted, some with white, 
some black, and some with other 
colours, every man also bringing in 
his hand one thing or other for a gift 
or present. Their train or last part 
of their company consisted of women 
and children, each woman bearing 
against her breast a round basket or 
two, having within them divers 
things, as bags of " Tabah," a root 
which they call "Petah," 1 whereof 
they make a kind of meal and either 
bake it into bread or eat it raw ; 
broiled fishes, like a pilchard ; the 
seed and down aforenamed ; with 
such like. Their baskets were made 
in fashion like a deep bowl, and 
though the matter were rushes, or 
such other kind of stuff, yet was it so 
cunningly handled, that the most 
part of them would hold water : about 
the brims they were hung with pieces 
of the shells of pearls, and in some 
places with two or three links at a 
place of the chains forenamed : there- 
by signifying that they were vessels 
wholly dedicated to the only 2 use of 
the gods they worshipped, and be- 
sides this they were wrought upon with 



1 Probably the potato. 
Sole. 



the matted down of red feathers, dis- 
tinguished into divers works and 
forms. 

In the mean time, our General 
having assembled his men together (as 
forecasting the danger and worst that 
might fall out) prepared himself to 
stand upon sure ground, that we might 
at all times be ready in our own defence, 
if any thing should chance otherwise 
than was looked for or expected. 
Wherefore every man being in a war- 
like readiness, he marched within his 
fenced place, making against their 
approach a most warlike show (as he 
did also at all other times of their re- 
sort), whereby if they had been des- 
perate enemies they could not have 
chosen but have conceived terror and 
fear, with discouragement to attempt 
anything against us, in beholding of 
the same. 

When they were come somewhat 
near unto us, trooping together they 
gave us a common or general saluta- 
tion, observing in the mean time a 
general silence. Whereupon, he who 
bare the sceptre before the King, be- 
ing prompted by another whom the 
King assigned to that office, pro- 
nounced with an audible and manly 
voice what the other spake to him in 
secret, continuing, whether it were 
his oration or proclamation, at the 
least half an hour. At the close 
whereof there was a common ' 'Amen" 
in sign of approbation given by every 
person : and the King himself, with 
the whole number of men and women 
(the little children only remaining be- 
hind), came further down the hill, 
and as they came set themselves again 
in their former order. And being 
now come to the foot of the hill and 
near our fort, the sceptre-bearer, with 
a composed countenance and stately 
carriage, began a song, and answer- 
able thereunto observed a kind of 
measures in a dance : whom the 
King with his guard and every other 
sort of person following, did in like 
manner sing and dance, saving only 
the women, who danced but kept 
silence. As they danced they still 
came on : and our General, perceiving 
their plain and simple meaning, gave 



54 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1579. 



order that they might freely enter 
without interruption within our bul- 
wark. Where after they had entered, 
they yet continued their song and 
dance a reasonable time, their women 
also following them with their was- 
sail bowls in their hands, their bodies 
bruised, their faces torn, their dugs, 
breasts, and Bother parts bespotted 
with blood, trickling down from the 
wounds which with their nails they 
had made before their coming After 
that they had satisfied or rather tired 
themselves in this manner, they made 
signs to our General to have him sit 
down ; unto whom both the King 
and divers others made several ora- 
tions, or rather, indeed, if we had un- 
derstood them, supplications, that he 
would take the province and king- 
dom into his hand, and become their 
king and patron : making signs that 
they would resign unto him their 
right and title in the whole land, and 
become his vassals in themselves and 
their posterities : which that they 
might make us indeed believe that it 
was their true meaning and intent, 
the King himself, with all the rest, 
with one consent and with great re- 
verence, joyfully singing a song, set 
the crown upon his head, enriched 
his neck with all their chains, and 
offering him many things, honoured 
him by the name of "Hioh." Ad- 
ding thereunto, as it might seem, a 
song and dance of triumph, because 
they were not only visited of the 
gods (for so they still judged us to 
be) but the great and chief god was 
now become their god, their king and 
patron, and themselves were become 
the only happy and blessed people in 
the world. 

These things being so freely offered, 
our General thought not meet to re- 
sign or refuse the same, both for that 
he would not give them any cause of 
mistrust or disliking of him (that be- 
ing the only place wherein at this 
present, we were of necessity enforced 
to seek relief of many things), and 
chiefly for that he knew not to what 
good end God had brought this to 
pass, or what honour and profit it 
might bring to our country in time 



to come. Wherefore, in the name 
and to the use of Her most excellent 
Majesty, he took the sceptre, crown, 
and dignity of the said country into 
his hand; wishing nothing more 
than that it had lain so fitly for Her 
Majesty to enjoy, as it was now her 
proper own, and that the riches and 
treasures thereof (wherewith in the up- 
land countries it abounds) might with 
as great conveniency be transported, 
to the enriching of her kingdom here 
at home, as it is in plenty to be at- 
tained there ; and especially that so 
tractable and loving a people as they 
shewed themselves to be might have 
means to have manifested their most 
willing obedience the more unto her, 
and by her means, as a Mother and 
Nurse of the Church of Christ, might 
by the preaching of the Gospel be 
brought to the right knowledge and 
obedience of the true and ever-living 
God. The ceremonies of this resign- 
ing and receiving of the kingdom be- 
ing thus performed, the common sort, 
both of men and women, leaving the 
the King and his guard about him, 
with our General, dispersed them- 
selves among our people, taking a 
diligent view or survey of every man ; 
and finding such as pleased their 
fancies (which commonly were the 
youngest of us), they presently en- 
closing them about offered their sacri- 
fices unto them, crying out with 
lamentable shrieks and moans, weep- 
ing and scratching and tearing their 
very flesh of their faces with their 
nails; neither were it the women 
alone which did this, but even old 
men, roaring and crying out, were as 
violent as the women were. We 
groaned in spirit to see the power of 
Satan so far prevail in seducing these- 
so harmless souls, and laboured by ail 
means, both by showing our great 
dislike, and, when that served not, by 
violent withholding of their hands 
from that madness; directing them, 
by our eyes and hands lift up towards 
heaven, to the living God whom 
they ought to serve. But so mad 
were they upon their idolatry, that 
forcibly withholding them would not 
prevail ; for as soon as they could 



>579.j 

get liberty to tlieir hands again they 
would he as violent as they were be- 
fore, till such time as they whom 
they worshipped were conveyed from 
them into the tents; whom yet, as 
men beside themselves, they would 
with fury and outrage seek to have 
again. 

After that time had a little qualified 
their madness, they then began to 
show and make known unto us their 
griefs 1 and diseases which they 
carried about them ; some of them 
having old aches, some shrunk sinews, 
some old sores and cankered ulcers, 
some wounds more lately received, 
and the like : in most lamentable 
manner craving help and cure thereof 
from us, making signs, that if we did 
but blow upon their griefs, or but 
touched the diseased places, they 
would be whole. Their griefs we could 
not but take pity on them, and to 
our power desire to help them ; but 
that (if it pleased God to open their 
eyes) they might understand we were 
but men and no gods, we used ordin- 
ary means, as lotions, plasters, and 
unguents, most fitly, as far as our 
skills could guess, agreeing to the 
natures of their griefs ; beseeching 
God, if it made for his glory, to give 
cure to their diseases by these means. 
The like we did from time to time as 
they resorted unto us. Few were the 
days wherein they were absent from 
us, during the whole time of our 
abode in that place ; and ordinarily 
every third day they brought their 
sacrifices, till such time as they cer- 
tainly understood our meaning, that 
we took no pleasure but were dis- 
pleased with them ; whereupon their 
zeal abated, and their sacrificing, for 
a season, to our good liking ceased. 
Notwithstanding they continued still 
to make their resort unto us in great 
abundance, and in such sort, that 
they oftentimes forgot to provide 
meat for their own sustenance, so 
that our General (of whom they 
made account as of a father) was fain 



COURTED BY THE NATIVES. 



55 



1 Used here, of course, in the mere- 
ly physical sense of pain, or wound, 
or sore. 



to perform the office of a father to- 
wards them, relieving them with such 
victuals as we had provided for our- 
selves, as mussels, seals, and such 
like, wherein they took exceeding 
much content ; and seeing that their 
sacrifices were displeasing unto us, 
yet (having gratitude) they sought to 
recompense us with such things as 
they had, which they willingly forced 
upon us, though it were never so 
necessary or needful for themselves to 
keep. They are people of a tractable, 
free, and loving nature, without 
guile or treachery ; their bows and 
arrows (their only weapons, and al- 
most all their wealth) they use very 
skilfully, but yet not to do any great 
harm with them, being by reason of 
their weakness more fit for children 
than for men, sending the arrows 
neither far off nor with any great 
force : and yet are the men commonly 
so strong of body, that that which 
two or three of our men could hardly 
bear, one of them would take upon 
his back, and without grudging carry 
it easily away, up hill and down hill, 
an English mile together. They are 
also exceeding swift in running, and 
of long continuance, the use whereof 
is so familiar with them, that they 
seldom go, but for the most part run. 
One thing we observed in them with 
admiration, that if at any time they 
chanced to see a fish so near the shore 
that they might reach the place with- 
out swimming, they would never, or 
very seldom, miss to take it. 

After that our necessary businesses 
were well despatched, our General, 
with his gentlemen and many of his 
company, made a journey up into the 
land, to see the manner of their dwell- 
ing, and to be the better acquainted 
with the nature and commodities 
of the country. Their houses were 
all such as we have formerly describ- 
ed, and being many of them in one 
place, made several villages here and 
there. The inland we found to be 
far different from the shore, a goodly 
country and fruitful soil, stored with 
many blessings fit for the use of man. 
Infinite was the company of very large 
and fat deer which there we saw by 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1579. 



thousands, as we supposed, in a 
herd; besides a multitude of a 
strange kind of conies, by far exceed- 
ing hem in number. The head and 
body, in which they resemble other 
conies, are but small ; his tail, like 
the tail of a rat, exceeding long, 
and his feet like the paws of a want 
or mole ; under his chin, on either 
side, he hath a bag, into which he 
gathereth his meat, when he hath 
filled his belly abroad, that he may 
with it either feed his young, or feed 
himself when he lists not to travel 
from his burrow. The people eat 
their bodies, and make great account 
of their skins, for their King's holi- 
day coat was made of them. x 

This country our General named 
Albion, 2 and that for two causes : the 
one in respect of the white banks and 
cliffs which lie towards the sea ; the 
other, that it might have some affin- 
ity, even in name also, with our own 
country, which was sometimes so 
called. Before we went from thence, 
our General caused to be set up a 
monument of our being there, as also 
of Her Majesty's and successor's right 
and title to that kingdom : namely, 
a plate of brass, fast nailed to a great 
and firm post, whereon is engraven 
her Grace's name, and the day and 
year of our arrival there, and of the 
free giving up of the province and 
kingdom, both by the King and peo- 
ple, into Her Majesty's hands ; to- 
gether with Her Highness' picture 
and arms, in a piece of sixpence cur- 
rent English money, showing itself 



1 Captain Beechey, in his "Voyage 
to the Pacific," says that the fields 
about San Francisco are burrowed by 
a small rat resembling the field- 
mouse, by a larger mountain rat, and 
by another little animal resembling a 
squirrel, called the "ardillo," which 
is excellent eating. The coney de- 
scribed by Drake is thought to an- 
swer most closely to the Canada 
pouched rat, or Mus barsarius. 

3 More correctly, New Albion ; the 
whiteness of the cliffs, which suggest- 
ed the name to Drake, has bmi noted 
by subsequent voyagers. 



by a hole made of purpose Vhrough 
the plate ; underneath was likewise 
engraven the name of our General, &c. 
The Spaniards never had any dealing, 
or so much as set a foot in this coun- 
try, the utmost of their discoveries 
reaching only to many degrees south- 
ward of this place. 3 

And now as the time of our depar- 
ture was perceived by them to draw 
nigh, so did the sorrows and miseries 
of this people seem to themselves to 
increase upon them, and the more 
certain they were of our going away, 
the more doubtful they showed them- 
selves what they might do : so that 
we might easily judge that that joy 
(being exceeding great) wherewith 
they received us at our first arrival, 
was clean drowned in their excessive 
sorrow for our departing. For they 
did not only lose on a sudden all 
mirth, joy, glad countenance, pleasant 
speeches, agility of body, familiar re- 
joicing one with another, and all 
pleasure whatever flesh and blood 
might be delighted in, but with sighs 
and sorrowings, with heavy hearts 
and grieved minds, they poured out 
woeful complaints and moans, with 
bitter tears and wringing of their 
hands, tormenting themselves. And 
as men refusing all comfort they only 
accounted themselves as castaways, 
and those whom the gods were about 
to forsake : so that nothing we could 
say or do was able to ease them of 
their so heavy a burthen, or to de- 
liver them from so desperate a strait, 
as our leaving of them did seem to 
them that it would cast them into. 

3 This is a mistake, for Juan Rodri- 
guez Cabrillo, a Portuguese by birth, 
had by command of the Viceroy of 
New Spain explored the same coast 
thirty-seven years before. Indeed, 
some English editors have shown a 
decided inclination to take a very 
liberal discount from Mr Fletcher's 
eloquent and elaborate account of the 
doings in California so much in 
contrast with the meagre details he 
gives of such really important in- 
cidents as the combat with and cap- 
lure of the Caoafuego. 



1579.] DEPARTURE FROM THE 

Ilowbeit, seeing they could not still 
enjoy our presence, they (supposing 
us to be gods indeed) thought it their 
duty to entreat us that, being absent, 
we would yet be mindful of them ; 
and making signs of their desires 
that in time to come we would see 
them again, they stole upon us a sacri- 
fice, and set it on fire ere we were 
aware, burning therein a chain and a 
bunch of feathers. We laboured by 
all means possible to withhold or 
withdraw them, but could not pre- 
vail, till at last we fell to prayers and 
singing of Psalms, whereby they were 
allured immediately to forget their 
folly, and leave their sacrifice uncon- 
sumed, suffering the fire to go out ; 
and imitating us in all our actions, 
they fell a-lifting of their eyes and 
hands to heaven, as they saw us do. 

The 23d of July they took a sorrow- 
ful farewell of us ; but, being loth to 
leave us, they presently ran to the 
top of the hills to keep us in their 
sight so long as they could, making 
fires before and behind and on each 
side of them, burning therein (as is 
to be supposed) sacrifices at our de- 
parture. 

Not far without this harbour did 
lie certain islands (we called them the 
Islands of Saint James), 1 having on 
them plentiful and great store of seals 
and birds, with one of which we fell 
July 24th, whereon we found such 
provision as might competently serve 
our turn for a while. We departed 
again the day next following, July 
25th. And our General now consider- 
ing that the extremity of the cold not 
only continued, but increased, the 
Sun being gone farther from us, and 
that the wind blowing still, as it did 
at first, from the North-west, cut off 
all hope of finding a passage through 
these Northern parts, thought it 
necessary to lose no time ; and there- 
fore, with general consent of all, bent 
his course directly to run with the 
Islands of the Moluccas. And so 

1 The three Farallons, North, Mid- 
dle, and South, which lie about a 
day's sail to the Westward of the Gol- 
den Gate. 



CALIFORNIAN COAST. 57 

having nothing in our view but air 
and sea, without sight of any land 
for the space of full sixty-eight days 
together, we continued our course 
through the main Ocean, till Septem- 
ber 30th 2 following, on which day 
we fell in ken of certain islands lying 
about eight degrees to the Northward 
of the Line. From these islands, 
presently upon the discovery of us, 
came a great number of canoes, hav- 
ing in each of them in some four, iii 
some six, in some fourteen or fifteen 
men, bringing with them cocoas, fish, 
potatoes, and certain fruits to small 
purpose. 3 Their canoes were made 
after the fashion that the canoes of 
all the rest of the Islands of Moluccas 
for the most are, that is, of one tree, 
hollowed within with great art and 
cunning, being made so smooth, both 
within and without, that they bore 
a gloss as if it were a harness most 
finely burnished. A prow and stern 
they had of one fashion, yielding in- 
ward in manner of a semicircle, of a 
great height, and hung full of certain 
white and glistening shells for bra- 
very : 4 on each side of their canoes 
lay out two pieces of timber, about a 
yard and a half long, more or less 
according to the capacity of their 
boat. At the end whereof was fastened 
crosswise a great cane, the use where- 
of was to keep their canoes from over- 
throwing, and that they might be 
equally borne up on each side. r - 

The people themselves have the 
nether parts of their ears cut round 
or circle-wise, hanging down very low 
upon their cheeks, wherein they hang 
things of a reasonable weight. The 



2 By another account, the 13th ot 
October. The islands were doubtless 
some of the Caroline group, which lay 
in the direct track from Drake's Califor- 
nianharbour whether San Francisco 
or Port Sir Francis Drake under Punta 
de los Reyes to the North to the 
Moluccas. 

3 Of little value or consequence. 

4 Adornment. 

5 Compare Dampier's minute de- 
scription of similar craft at Guam j 
Chapter X. 



58 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



(.1579. 



nails on the fingers of some of them 
were at least an inch long, and thew* 
teeth as black as pitch, the colour 
whereof they use to renew by often 
eating of an herb, with a kind of pow- 
der, which in a cane they carry about 
them to the same purpose. The first 
sort and company of those canoes 
being come to our ship (which then, 
by reason of a scant wind, made little 
way) very subtilely and against their 
natures began in peace to traffic with 
us, giving us one thing for another 
very orderly, intending (as we per- 
ceived) hereby to work a greater mis- 
chief to us ; entreating us by signs 
most earnestly to draw nearer towards 
the shore, that they might, if possible, 
make the easier prey both of the ship 
and us. But these passing away, and 
others continually resorting, we were 
quickly able to guess at them what 
they were ; for if they received any- 
thing once into their hands, they 
would neither give recompense nor 
restitution of it, but thought what- 
ever they could finger to be their own, 
expecting always with brows of brass 
to receive more, but would part with 
nothing. Yea, being rejected for 
their bad dealing, as those with whom 
we would have no more to do, using 
us so evilly, they could not be satis- 
fied till they had given the attempt 
to revenge themselves because we 
would not give them whatsoever they 
would have for nothing : and having 
stones good store in their canoes, let 
fly amain of them against us. It was 
far from our General's meaning to 
requite their malice by like injury. 
Yet that they might know that he 
had power to do them harm if he had 
listed, he caused a great piece to be 
shot off, not to hurt them, but to 
affright them. Which wrought the 
desired effect amongst them ; for at 
the noise thereof they every one leap- 
ed out of his canoe into the water, 
and, diving under the keel of their 
boats, stayed them from going any 
way till our ship was gone a good way 
from them. Then they all lightly re- 
covered into their canoes, and got 
them with speed toward the shore. 
Notwithstanding, other new com- 



panies (but all of the same mind) con- 
tinually made resort unto us. And 
seeing that there was no good to be 
got by violence, they put on a show 
of seeming honesty ; and offering in 
show to deal with us by way of ex- 
change, under the pretence they cun- 
ningly fell a-filching of what they 
could, and one of them pulled a dagger 
and knives from one of our men's 
girdles, and being required to restore 
it again, he rather used what means 
he could to catch at more. Neither 
could we at all be rid of this ungra- 
cious company, till we made some of 
them feel some smart as well as terror ; 
and so we left that place, by all pas- 
sengers to be known hereafter by the 
name of the Island of Thieves. 

Till the 3d of October we could not 
get clear of these consorts, but from 
thence we continued our course 
within sight of land till the 16th of 
the same month, when we fell with 
four Islands standing in 7 5' to the 
Northward of the Line. We coasted 
them till the 21st day, and then an- 
chored and watered upon the biggest 
of them, called Mindanao. The 22d 
of October, as we passed between two 
islands, about six or eight leagues 
south of Mindanao, 1 there came from 
them two canoes to be talked with 
us, and we would willingly be talked 
with them, but there arose so much 
wind that put us from them to the 
Southwards. October the 25th we 
passed by the island named Talao, 2 
in 3 40'. We saw to the northward 
of it three or four other islands, Teda, 
Selan, Saran (three islands so named 
to us by an Indian), the middle where- 
of stands in 3. We passed the last 

1 Supposed to be Serangan and Can- 
digar, or the Saddle Islands, South of 
the southernmost point of Mindanao. 
Other narrators name the islands of 
" Tagulada, Zelon, and Zewarra," as 
passed by the voyagers on their way 
to the Moluccas, the first producing 
much cinnamon, and the inhabitants 
of all being friendly with the Portu- 
guese. 

2 The Tulour Islands, about half 
way between Mindinao and Gilolo. 



1579.] MOLUCCA OR SPiCE ISLANDS. 



59 



save one of these, and the first day of 
the following month in like manner 
we passed the isle Suaro, in l p 30', 
and the 3d of November we came in 
sight of the Islands of the Moluccas, 
as we desired, These are four high- 
peaked islands : their names, Ternate, 
Tidore, Matchan, Batchan, all of 
them very fruitful and yielding abund- 
ance of cloves, whereof we furnished 
ourselves of as much as we desired at 
a very cheap rate. At the east of 
them lies a very great island called 
Gilolo. 

"We directed our course to have 
gone to Tidore, but in coasting along 
a little island z belonging to the King 
of Ternate, November 4th, his deputy 
or viceroy with all expedition came 
off to our ship in a canoe, and without 
any fear or doubting of our good 
m eaning came presently aboard. Who, 
after some conference with our Gen- 
eral, entreated him by any means to 
run with Ternate, not with Tidore : 
assuring him that his King would be 
wondrous glad of his coming, and be 
ready to do for him what he could, 
and what our General in reason should 
require. For which purpose he him- 
self would that night be with his King 
to carry him the news ; with whom 
if he once dealt, he should find that 
as he was a King, so his word should 
stand : whereas if he dealt with the 
Portuguese, who had the command of 
Tidore, 2 he should find in them no- 
thing but deceit and treachery. And 
besides that if he went to Tidore be- 
fore he came to Ternate, then would 
his King have nothing to do with us, 
for he held the Portuguese as an 
enemy. On these persuasions our 
General resolved to run with Ternate, 
where the next day, very early in the 
morning, we came to anchor: and 
presently our General sent a messen- 
ger to the King with a velvet cloak, 
for a present and token that his com- 

1 The island of Motir. 

a They had been expelled from their 
settlements at Ternate by the war- 
like monarch whose friendship was 
offered to Drake, and had established 
themselves at Tidore. 



ing should be in peace, and that he 
required no other thing at his hands, 
but that (his victuals being spent in 
so long a voyage) he might have sup- 
ply from him by way of traffic and 
exchange of merchandise (whereof he 
had store of divers sorts) of such 
things as he wanted. Which he 
thought he might be the bolder to 
require at his hands, both for that 
the thing was lawful, and that he 
offered him no prejudice or wrong 
therein ; as also because he was en- 
treated to repair to the place by his 
Viceroy at Motir, who assured him of 
necessary provision in such manner 
as now he required the same. 

Before this the Viceroy, according 
to his promise, had been with the 
King, signifying unto him what a 
mighty Prince and Kingdom we be- 
longed to ; what good things the King 
might receive from us, not only now, 
but for hereafter by way of traffic : 
Yea what honour and benefit it might 
be to him, to be in league and in 
friendship with so noble and famous 
a Prince as we served; and farther, 
what a discouragement it would be to 
the Portuguese his enemies to hear and 
see it. In hearing whereof the King 
was so presently moved to the well 
liking of the matter, that before our 
messenger could come half the way, he 
had sent the Viceroy, with divers 
others of his nobles and councillors, 
to our General, with special message 
that he should not only have what 
things he needed, or would require, 
with peace and friendship, but that 
he would willingly entertain amity 
with so famous and renowned a 
Princess as was ours ; and that if it 
seemed good in her eyes to accept of 
it, he would sequester the commodi- 
ties and traffic of his whole island from 
others (especially from his enemies 
the Portuguese, from whom he had 
nothing but by the sword), and re- 
I serve it to the intercourse of our 
! nation, if we would embrace it. lu 
token whereof he had now sent to our 
General his signet, and would within 
short time after come in his own per- 
son, with his brethren and nobles, 
with boats or canoes, into our ship, 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



and be a means of bringing her into 
a safer harbour. While they were 
delivering their message to us, our 
messenger was come unto the Court, 
who being met by the way by certain 
noble personages, was with great 
solemnity conveyed into the King's 
presence; at whose hands he was 
most friendly and graciously enter- 
tained; and having delivered his 
errand, together with his present 
unto the King, the King seemed to 
him to judge himself blameworthy 
that he had not sooner hastened in 
person to present himself to our 
General, who came so far and from so 
great a Prince; and presently, with 
all expedition, he made ready him- 
self, with the chief of all his States 
and Councillors, to make repair unto 
us. The manner of his coining, as it 
was princely, so truly it seemed to 
us very strange and marvellous : 
serving at the present not so much to 
set out his own royal and Kingly 
state (which was great) as to do honour 
to Her Highness, to whom we be- 
longed; wherein how willingly he 
employed himself, the sequel will 
make manifest. 

First, therefore, before his coming, 
did he send off three great and large 
canoes, in each whereof were certain 
of the greatest personages that were 
about him, attired all of them in 
white lawn, or cloth of Calicut, having 
over their heads, from one end of the 
canoe to the other, a covering of thin 
and fine mats, borne up by a frame 
made of reeds, under which every 
man sat in order according to his dig- 
nity; the hoary heads of many of 
them set forth the greater reverence 
due to their persons, and manifestly 
showed that the King used the advice 
of a grave and prudent Council in his 
affairs. Besides these were divers 
others, young and comely men, a 
great number attired in white, as were 
the other, but with manifest differ- 
ences : having their places also under 
the same covering, but in inferior 
order, as their calling required. The 
rest of the men were soldiers, who 
stood in comely order round about on 
both sides ; on the outside of whom, 



again, did sit the rowers, in certain gal- 
leries, which being three on each side 
all alongst the canoe, did lie off from 
the side thereof some three or four 
yards, one being orderly builded lower 
than the other : in every of which 
galleries was an equal number of 
banks, whereon did sit the rowers, 
about the number of fourscore in one 
canoe. In the forepart of each canoe 
sat two men, the one holding a ta- 
brel, x the other a piece of brass, where- 
on they both at once struck; and 
observing a due time and reasonable 

j space between each stroke, by the 

! sound thereof directed the rowers to 
keep their stroke with their oars : as, 
on the contrary, the rowers ending 
their stroke with a song, gave warning 
to the others to strike again ; and so 
continued they their way with mar- 
vellous swiftness. Neither were their 
canoes naked or unfurnished of war- 
like munition; they had each of 
them at least one small cast piece, 
of about a yard in length, mounted 
upon a stock which was set upright ; 
besides, every man except the rowers 
had his sword, dagger, and target, 
and some of them some other weapons, 
as lancos, calivers, 2 bows, arrows, and 
many darts. 

These canoes, coming near our ship 
in order, rowed round about us one 
after another ; and the men, as they 
passed by us, did us a kind of homage 
with great solemnity, the greatest 
personages beginning first, with rev- 
erent countenance and behaviour, to 
bow their bodies even to the ground : 

I which done, they put their own mes- 
senger aboard us again, and signified 

j to us that their King, who himself 
was coming, had sent them before him 

J to conduct our ship into a better 
road, desiring a hawser to be given 
them forth, that they might employ 
their service, as their King com- 
manded, in towing our ship there- 
with to the place assigned. The 
King himself was not far behind, 
but he also with six grave and 
ancient fathers in his canoe approach- 
ing, did at once, together with them, 



1 A small drum. 



2 Guns. 



1579.] 



A VISIT FROM THE KING OF TERNATE. 



61 



yield us a reverent kind of obeisance, 
in far more humble manner than was 
to be expected. He was of a tall 
stature, 1 very corpulent and well set 
together, of a very princely and graci- 
ous countenance : his respect amongst 
his own was such, that neither his 
Viceroy of Motir aforenamed, nor any 
other of his councillors, durst speak 
unto him but upon their knees, not 
rising again till they were licensed. 
Whose coming, as it was to our Gene- 
ral no small cause of good liking, so 
was he received in the best manner 
we could, answerable unto his state ; 
our ordnance thundered, which we 
mixed with great store of small shot, 
among which sounding our trumpets 
and other instruments of music, both 
of still and loud noise ; wherewith he 
was so much delighted, that request- 
ing cur music to come into the boat, 
lie joined his canoe to the same, and 
was towed at least a whole hour to- 
gether, with the boat at the stern of 
our ship. Besides this, our General 
sent him such presents as he thought 
might both requite his courtesy already 
received, and work a further confirma- 
tion of that good liking and friend- 
ship already begun. The King being 
thus in musical paradise, and enjoy- 
ing that wherewith he was so highly 
pleased, his brother, named Moro, 
with no less bravery 2 than any of the 
rest, accompanied also with a great 
number of gallant followers, made 
the like repair, 3 and gave us like 
respect; and, his homage done, he 
fell astern of us till we came to anchor : 
neither did our General leave his 
courtesy unrewarded, but bountifully 
pleased him also before we parted. 

The King, as soon as we were come 
to anchor, craved pardon to be gone, 
and so took leave, promising us that 
the next day he would come aboard, 
and in the mean time would prepare 
and send such victuals as were requi- 
site and necessary for our provision. 
Accordingly the same night, and the 



1 Fuller" Holy State," page 127 
calls him "a true gentleman Pagan. " 

2 Magnificence, splendid show. 
8 Paid a similar visit. 



morrow following, we received what 
was there to be had in the way of 
traffic, to wit, rice in pretty quantity, 
hens, sugar-canes, imperfect and 
liquid sugar, a fruit which they nail 
Figo (Magellan calls it a fig of a span 
long, but it is no other than that 
which the Spaniards and Portuguese 
have named Plantains), cocoas, and a 
kind of meal which they call sago, 
made of the tops of certain trees, 
tasting in the mouth like sour curds, 
but melts away like sugar; whereof 
they make a kind of cake which will 
keep good at least ten years. Of this 
last we made the greatest quantity of 
our provision : for a few cloves we' did 
also traffic, whereof, for a small mat- 
ter, we might have had greater store 
than we could well tell where to be- 
stow: but our General's care was, 
that the ship should not be too much 
pestered or annoyed therewith. 

At the time appointed, our General, 
having set all things in order to re- 
ceive him, looked for the King's re- 
turn ; who, failing both in time and 
promise, sent his brother to make his 
excuse, and to entreat our General to 
come on shore, his brother being the 
while to remain on board, as a pawn for 
his safe restoring. Our General could 
willingly have consented, if the King 
himself had not first broken his word : 
the consideration whereof bred an 
utter disliking in the whole company, 
who by no means would give consent 
he should hazard himself, especially 
for that the King's brother had 
uttered certain words, in secret confi- 
dence with our General aboard his 
cabin, which bred no small suspicion 
of ill intent. Our General being thus 
resolved not to go ashore at this time, 
reserved the Viceroy for a pledge, and 
so sent certain of his gentlemen to 
the Court, both to accompany the 
King's brother, and also with special 
message to the King himself. They, 
being come somewhat near unto the 
castle, were received by another 
brother of the King's, and certain 
others of the greatest states, and con- 
ducted with great honour towards the 
castle, where being brought into a 
large and fair house, they saw gathered 



62 

to 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1579. 



gether a great multitude of people, 
by supposition at least 1000, the chief 
whereof were placed round about the 
house, according, as it seemed, to 
their degrees and calling : the rest 
remained without. The house was in 
form four-square, covered all over 
with cloth of divers colours, not 
much unlike our usual pentadoes, 1 
borne upon a frame of reeds, the sides 
being open from the groundsill to the 
covering, and furnished with seats 
round about : it seems it was their 
Council -house, and not commonly 
employed to any other use. At the 
side of this house, next unto the 
Castle, was seated the chair of state, 
having directly over it, and extending 
very largely every way, a very fair 
and rich canopy, as the ground also, 
for some ten or twelve paces' compass, 
was covered with cloth of Arras. 
Whilst our gentlemen awaited in this 
place the coming of the King, which 
was about the space of half-an-hour, 
they had the better opportunity to 
observe these things ; as also that 
before the King's coming there were 
already set threescore noble, grave, 
and ancient personages, all of them 
reported to be of the King's privy 
council. At the nether end of the 
house were placed a great company of 
young men, of comely personage and 



comely personage 
Without the house, on the 



young 
attire. 

right side, stood four ancient, comely, 
hoar-headed men, clothed all in red 
down to theground, but attired'on their" 
heads not much unlike the* Turks. 
These they called Romans, or strangers, 
who lay as lidgiers, 2 there to keep 

1 Canopies, tents. 

2 Resident or permanent ambassa- 
dors ; the word is spelled in various 
other ways, as "leger," "ligier," 
"legier;" it comes from the Anglo- 
Saxon " leigan," to lie or remain ; and 
the word "ledger," a book that lies to 
receive entries, is from the same 
source. In "Measure for Measure," 
Isabella, informing her brother of his 
impending death, says : 

" Lord Angelo, having affairs to heaven, 
Intends you for his swift ambassador, 
Where you shall be an everlasting leigcr." 



perpetual traffic with the people : 
there were also two Turks, one Italian, 
as lidgiers, and last of all one Spaniard, 
who being freed by the King out of 
the hands of the Portuguese, in the 
recovering of the island, served him 
now instead of a soldier. 

The King at last coming from the 
castle, with eight or ten grave Sena- 
tors following him, had a very rich 
canopy, adorned in the midst with 
embossings of gold, borne over him, 
and was guarded with twelve lances, 
the points turned downwards. Our 
men, accompanied with Moro the 
King's brother, arose to meet him, 
and he very graciously did welcome 
and entertain them. He was for per- 
son such as we have before described 
him, of low voice, temperate in speech, 
of kingly demeanour, and a Moor by 
nation. His attire was after the 
fashion of the rest of his country, but 
far more sumptuous, as his condition 
and state required : from the waist to 
the ground was all cloth of gold, and 
that very rich ; his legs bare, but on 
his feet a pair of shoes of cordovan, 
dyed red ; in the attire of his head 
were finely wreathed-in divers rings 
of plated gold, of an inch or an inch 
and a-half in breadth, which made a 
fair and princely show, somewhat re- 
sembling a crown in form ; about his 
neck he had a chain of perfect gold, 
the links very great and one fold 
double. On his left hand were a 
diamond, an emerald, a ruby, and a 
turquoise, four very fair and perfect 
jewels ; on his right hand, in one 
ring, a big and perfect turquoise, and 
in another ring many diamonds of a 
smaller size, very artificially set and 
couched together. As thus he sat in 
his chair of state, at his right side 
there stood a page with a very costly 
fan, richly embroidered and beset 
with sapphires, breathing and gather- 
ing the air to refresh the King, the 
place being very hot, both by reason 
of the sun, and the assembly of so 
great a multitude. After a while, 
our gentlemen, having delivered their 
message, and received answer, were 
licensed to depart, and were safely 
conducted back again, by one of the 



1579.] A CHINAMAN 

Chiefs of the King's Council, who 
had charge from the King himself to 
perform the same. . 

Our gentlemen, observing the castle 
as well as they could, could not con- 
ceive it to be a place of any great 
force ; two cannons only there they 
saw, and those at that present untra- 
versable, because unmounted. These, 
with all other furniture of like sort 
which they have, they have gotten 
them from the Portuguese, by whom 
the castle itself was also builded, while 
they inhabited that place and island. 
Who seeking to settle tyrannous 
government (as in other places so) 
over this people, and not contenting 
themselves with a better estate than 
they deserved (except they might, as 
they thought, make sure work by 
leaving none of the Royal blood alive, 
who should make challenge to the 
kingdom), cruelly murdered the King 
himself father to him who now reigns 
and intended the like to all his 
sons. Which cruelty, instead of esta- 
blishing brought such a shaking on 
their usurped estate, that they were 
fain without covenanting to carry 
away goods, munition, or anything 
else, to quit the place and the whole 
island, to save their lives. For the 
present King, with his brethren, in 
revenge of their father's murder, so 
bestirred themselves, that the Portu- 
guese were wholly driven from the 
island, and glad that he yet keeps 
footing in Tidore. These four years 
this King hath been increasing, and 
was (as was affirmed) at that present, 
Lord of an Hundred Islands there- 
about, and was even now preparing 
his forces to hazard a chance with the 
Portuguese for Tidore itself. The 
people are Moors, whose religion con- 
sists much in certain superstitious 
observations of new moons, and cer- 
tain seasons, with a rigid and strict 
kind of fasting. We had experience 
hereof in the Viceroy and his retinue, 
who lay aboard us all the time for the 
most part during our abode in this 
place ; who during their prescribed 
time would neither eat nor drink, not 
so much as a cup of cold water in the 
day (so zealous are they in their self- 



AT TERNATE. 6S 

devised worship), but yet in the night 
would eat three times, and that very ' 
largely. This Ternate stands in 27' 
North latitude. 

While we rode at anchor in the 
harbour at Ternate, besides the na- 
tives there came aboard us another, 
a goodly gentleman, very well accom- 
panied, with his interpreter, to view 
our ship and to confer with our Gene- 
ral. He was apparelled much after 
our manner, most neat and court-like, 
his carriage the most respective and 
full of discreet behaviour that ever we 
had seen. He told us that he was 
himself but a stranger in those islands, 
being a natural of the province of 
Paghia in China ; his name Pausaos, 
of the family of Hombu ; of which 
family there had eleven reigned in 
continual succession these 200 years, 
and King Bonog, by the death of 
his elder brother who died by a fall 
from his horse the rightful heir of 
all China, is the twelfth of this race. 
He is twenty -two years of age ; his 
mother yet living; he hath a wife, 
and by her one son; he is well-be- 
loved and highly-honoured of all his 
subjects, and lives in great peace from 
any fear of foreign invasion. But it 
was not this man's fortune to enjoy 
his part of this happiness, both of his 
King and country, as he most desired. 
For being accused of a capital crime, 
whereof though free, 1 yet he could 
not evidently make his innocence 
appear, and knowing the peremptory 
justice of China to be irrevocable, if 
he should expect 2 the sentence of the 
Judges ; he beforehand made suit to 
his King, that it would please him 
to commit his trial to God's provi- 
dence and judgment, and to that end 
to permit him to travel, on this con- 
dition, that if he brought not home 
some worthy intelligence, such as 
His Majesty had never had before, 
and were most fit to be known, and 
most honourable for China, he should 
for ever live an exile, or else die for 
daring to set foot again in his own 
country ; for he was assured that the 
God of heaven had care of innocency. 



1 Guiltless. 



2 Await. 



64 

The King granted his suit, and now 
lie had been three years abroad ; and 
at this present came from Tidore 
(where he had remained two months), 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [1579. 

by some called Quinzai, which is the 
liief city of all China, they had brass 
ordnance of all sorts (much easier to 
be traversed than ours were, and so 



to see the English General, of whom 
he heard such strange things, and 
from him (if it pleased God to afford 
it) to learn some such intelligence as 
might make way for his return into 
his country : and therefore he earnestly 
entreated our General to make rela- 
tion to him of the occasion, way, and 
manner of his coming so far from 
England thither, with the manifold 
occurrences that had happened to 
him by the way. Our General gave 
ample satisfaction to each part of his 
request ; the stranger hearkened with 
great attention and delight to his 
discourse, and as he naturally ex- 
celled in memory, besides his help of 
art to better the same, so he firmly 
printed it in his mind, and with 
great reverence thanked God, who 
had so unexpectedly brought him to 
the notice of such admirable things. 
Then fell he to entreat our General 
with many most earnest and vehe- 
ment persuasions, that he would be 
content to see his country before his 
departure any farther Westward ; 
that it should be a most pleasant, 
most honoiirable, and most profitable 
thing for him ; that he should gain 
thereby the notice, and carry home 
the description, of one of the most 
ancient, mightiest, and richest king- 
doms in the world. Hereupon he 
took occasion to relate the number 
and greatness of the provinces, with 
the rare commodities and good things 
they yielded : the number, stateliness, 
and riches of their cities ; with what 
abundance of men, victuals, munition, 
and all manner of necessaries and de- 
lightful things they were stored with ; 
in particular touching ordnance and 
great guns the late invention of 
scab-skinned Friar amongst us in 
Europe 1 he related that in Suntien, 



1 This scarcely complimentary de- 
scription may apply either to the Eng- 
lish Monk Roger Bacon, or, more 
appropriately, to the German Monk 
Berthold Schwartz, whom accident 



perfectly made that they would hit a 
shilling) above 2000 years ago. With 
many other worthy things which our 
General's own experience, if it would 
please him to make trial, would better 
than his relation assure him of. The 
breeze would shortly serve very fitly 
to carry him. thither, and he himself 
would accompany him all the way. 
He accounted himself a happy man 
that he had but seen and spoken with 
us ; the relation of it might perhaps 
serve him to recover favour in the 
country ; but if he could prevail with 
our General himself to go thither, he 
doubted not but it would be a means 
of his great advancement, and increase 
of honour with his King. Notwith- 
standing, our General could not on 
such persuasions be induced, and so 
the stranger parted, sorry that he 
could not prevail in his request, but 
yet exceeding glad of the intelligence 
he had learned. 

By the 9th of November, having 
gotten wha.t provision the place could 
afford us, we then set sail : and con- 
sidering that our ship for want of 
trimming was now grown foul, that 
our casks and vessels for water were 
much decayed, and that divers other 
things stood in need of reparation, 
our next care was, how we might fall 
with such a place where with safety 
we might awhile stay for the redress- 
ing of these inconveniences. The 
calmness of the winds, which are al- 
most continual before the coming of 
the breeze (which was not yet ex- 
pected) persuaded us it was the fittest 
time that we could take. With this 
resolution we sailed along till Novem- 
ber 14th, at what time we arrived at 
a little island to the southward of 
Celebes, standing in 1 40' towards 
the Pole Antarctic : which being 
without inhabitants, gave us the 
better hope of quiet abode. We 
anchored, and finding the place con- 



enlightened as to the projectile force 
of "villainous saltpetre." 



11579.] AT ANCHOR OFF 

venient for our purposes (there want- 
ing nothing here which we stood in 
need of, but only water, which we 
were fain to fetch from another island 
somewhat farther to the south), made 
our abode here for twenty-six whole 
days together. The first thing we did, 
we pitched our tents and entrenched 
ourselves as strongly as we could 
upon the shore, lest at any time per- 
haps we might have been disturbed 
by the inhabitants of the greater 
island, which lay not far to the west- 
ward of us. After we had provided 
thus for our security, we landed our 
goods, and had a smith's forge set up, 
both for the making of some neces- 
sary shipwork, and for the repairing 
of some iron-hooped casks, without 
which they could not long have serv- 
ed our use. And for that our smith's 
coals were all spent long before this 
time, there was order given and fol- 
lowed for the burning of charcoal, 
by which that want might be sup- 
plied. 

We trimmed our ship, and per- 
formed our other businesses to our 
content. The place affording us not 
only all necessaries (which we had not 
of our own before) thereunto, but 
also wonderful refreshing to our 
wearied bodies, by the comfortable 
relief and excellent provision that 
here we found, whereby of 1 sickly, 
weak, and decayed, as many of us 
seemed to be before our coming hither, 
we in short space grew all of us to be 
strong, lusty, and healthful persons. 
Besides this, we had rare experience 
of God's wonderful wisdom in many 
rare and admirable creatures which 
here we saw. The whole island is a 
through 2 grown wood, the trees for 
the most part are of large and high 
stature, very straight and clean, 
without boughs, save only in the 
very top ; the leaves whereof are not 
much unlike our brooms in England. 
Among these trees, night by night, 
did show themselves an infinite swarm 
of fiery-seeming worms flying in the 
air, whose bodies, no bigger than an 



1 From being. 

2 Thoroughly. 



CRAB ISLAND. 65 

)rdinary fly, did make a show and 
give such light as if every twig on 
every tree had been a lighted candle, 
or as if that place had been the starry 
sphere. To these we may add the 
relation of another, almost as strange 
a creature, which here we saw, and 
;hat was an innumerable multitude of 
iuge bats or reremice, equalling or 
rather exceeding a good hen in big- 
ness. They fly with marvellous 
swiftness, but their flight is very 
short ; and when they light, they 
tiang only by the boughs, with their 
backs downward. Neither may we 
without ingratitude, by reason of the 
pecial use we made of them, omit to 
speak of the huge multitude of a cer- 
tain kind of crayfish, of such a size, 
that one was sufficient to satisfy four 
hungry men at a dinner, being a very 
good and restorative meat ; the special 
means (as we conceived it) of our in- 
crease of health. They are, as far as 
we could perceive, utter strangers to 
the sea, living always on the land, 
where they work themselves earths 
as do the conies, or rather they dig 
great and huge caves under the roots 
of the most huge and monstrous trees, 
where they lodge themselves by com- 
panies together. Of the same sort 
and kind we found, in other places 
about the Island Celebes, some that, 
for want of other refuge, when we 
came to take them did climb up into 
trees to hide themselves, whither we 
were enforced to climb after them if 
we would have them, which we would 
not stick to do rather than to be with- 
out them. This island we called 
Crab Island. 

All necessary causes of our staying 
longer in this place being at last 
finished, our General prepared to be 
in a readiness to take the first advan- 
tage of the coming of the breeze or 
wind which we expected ; and hav- 
ing the day before furnished our- 
selves with fresh water from the other 
island, and taken in provision of wood 
and the like, December 12th we put to 
sea, directing our course toward the 
West. The 16th day we had sight 
| of the Island of Celebes or Silebis, 
! but having a bad wind and being 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1580. 



entangled among many islands, en- 
cumbered also with many other diffi- 
culties, and some dangers, and at 
last meeting with a deep bay out of 
which we could not in three days 
turn out again, we could not by any 
means recover the North of Celebes, 
or continue on our course farther 
west, but were enforced to alter the 
same towards the South ; finding that 
course also to be both difficult and 
very dangerous by reason of many 
shoals, which lay far off, here and there 
among the islands ; insomuch that in 
all our passages from England hither- 
to, we had never more care to keep 
ourselves afloat, and from sticking on 
them. Thus were we forced to beat 
up and down with extraordinary care 
and circumspection, till January 9th, 
at which time we supposed that we 
had at last attained a free passage, the 
lands turning evidently in our sight 
about to westward, and the wind be- 
ing enlarged, followed us as we de- 
sired with a reasonable gale. 

When lo ! on a sudden, when we 
least suspected, no show or suspicion 
of danger appearing to us, and we 
were now sailing onward with full 
sails, in the beginning of the first 
watch of the said day at night, even 
in a moment, our ship was laid up 
fast upon a desperate shoal, with no 
other likelihood in appearance but 
that we with her must there pre- 
sently perish ; there being no proba- 
bility how anything could be saved, 
or any person escape alive. The un- 
expectedness of so extreme a danger 
presently roused us up to look about 
us, but the more we looked the less 
hope we had of getting clear of it 
again, so that nothing now present- 
ing itself to our minds, but the 
ghastly appearance of instant death, 
affording no respite or time of paus- 
ing, called upon us to deny ourselves, 
and to commend ourselves into the 
merciful hands of our most gracious 
God. To this purpose we presently 
fell prostrate, and with joined prayers 
sent up unto the throne of grace, 
humbly besought Almighty God to 
extend his mercy unto us in his Son 
Christ Jesus, and so preparing as it 



were our necks unto the block, we 
every minute expected the final 
stroke to be given unto us. Notwith- 
standing that we expected nothing 
but imminent death, yet that we 
might not seem to tempt God, by 
leaving any second means unattempt- 
ed which he afforded presently, as 
soon as prayers were ended, our Gene- 
ral (exhorting us to have the especi- 
alest care of the better part, to wit, 
the soul, and adding many comfort- 
able speeches, of the joys of that 
other life which we now alone looked 
for) encouraged us all to bestir our- 
selves, shewing us the way thereto 
by his own example. And first of 
all the pump being well plied, and 
the ship freed of water, we found 
our leaks to be nothing increased ; 
which though it gave us no hope 
of deliverance, yet it gave us some 
hope of respite, insomuch as it as- 
sured us that the bulk 1 was sound; 
which truly we acknowledged to be 
an immediate providence of God 
alone, insomuch as no strength of 
wood and iron could have possibly 
borne so hard and violent a shock as 
our ship did, dashing herself under 
full sail against the rocks, except the 
extraordinary hand of God had sup- 
ported the same. 

Our next essay was for good ground 
and; anchor-hold to seaward of us, 
whereon to haul ; by which means, if 
by any, our General put us in comfort, 
that there was yet left some hope to 
clear ourselves. In his own person 
he therefore undertook the charge of 
sounding,' and but even a boat's 
length from the ship he found that 
the bottom could not by any length 
of line be reached unto ; so that the 
beginning of hope, which we were 
willing to have conceived before, 
were by this means quite dashed 
again ; yea, our misery seemed to be 
increased, for whereas at first we 
could look for nothing but a present 
end, that expectation was now turned 
into the awaiting for a lingering 
death, of the two the far more dread- 
ful to be chosen. One thing fell out 

* The hull. " 



1580.] 

happily for us, that the most of our 
men did not conceive this thing ; 
which had they done, they would in 
all likelihood have been so much dis- 
couraged, that their sorrow would the 
more disable them to have sought the 
remedy : our General, with those few 
others that would judge of the event 
wisely, dissembling the same, and 
giving, in the mean time, cheerful 
speeches and good encouragements 
unto the rest. For whilst it seemed 
to be a clear case that our ship was 
so fast moored that she could not 
stir, it necessarily followed that 
either we were there to remain on the 
place with her, or else, leaving her, 
to commit ourselves in a most poor 
and helpless state to seek some other 



HELPLESS ON A SHOAL. 67 

yet could our abode there profit us 
nothing, but increase our wretched- 
ness and enlarge our sorrows ; for as 
her store and victuals were not much 
sufficient to sustain us only some 
few days, without hope of having any 
increase, no not so much as of a cup 
of cold water so must it inevitably 
come to pass, that we, as children in the 
mother's womb, should be driven even 
to eat the flesh from off our own arms, 
she being no longer able to sustain 
us ; and how horrible a thing this 
would have proved, is easy by any 
one to be perceived. And whither, 
had we departed from her, should we 
have received any comfort ? nay, the 
very impossibility of going appeared 
to be no less than those other before 



place of stay and refuge, the better of 
which two choices did carry with it 
the appearance of worse than a thou- 
sand deaths. As touching the ship, 
this was the comfort that she could 
give us, that she herself lying there 
confined already upon the hard and 
pinching rocks, did tell us plain that 
she continually expected her speedy 
despatch, as soon as the sea and 
winds should come, to be the severe 
executioners of that heavy judgment 
by the appointment of the Eternal 
Judge already given upon her, who 
had committed her there to Adaman- 
tine bonds in a most narrow prison, 
against their coming for that pur- 
pose : so that if we could stay with 
her, we must peril with her ; or if 
any, by any yet unperceivable means, 
should chance to be delivered, his 
escape must needs be a perpetual 
misery, it being far better to have 
perished together, than with the loss 
and absence of his friends to live in 
a strange land : whether a solitary life 
(the better choice) among wild beasts, 
as a bird on the mountains without 
all comfort, or among the barbarous 
people of the heathen, in intolerable 
bondage both of body and mind. And 
put the case that her day of destruction 
should be deferred longer than either 
reason could persuade us, or in any 
likelihood could seem possible (it be- 
ing not in the power of earthly things to 
endure what she had suffered already ), 



mentioned. Our boat was by no 
means able at once to carry above 
twenty persons with any safety, and 
we were fifty-eight in all ; the nearest 
land was six leagues from us, and the 
wind from the shore directly bent 
against us ; or should we have thought 
of setting some ashore, and after that 
to have fetched the rest, there being 
no place thereabout without inhabit- 
ants, the first that had landed must 
first have fallen into the hands of the 
enemy, and so the rest in order ; and 
though perhaps we might escape the 
sword, yet would our life have been 
worse than death, not alone in respect 
of our woeful captivity and bodily 
miseries, but most of all in respect of 
our Christian liberty, being to be de- 
prived of all public means of serving 
the true God, and continually grieved 
with the horrible impieties and devil- 
ish idolatries of the heathen. Our 
misery being thus manifest, the very 
consideration whereof must needs 
have shaken flesh and blood, if faith 
in God's promises had not mightily 
sustained us, we passed the night with 
earnest longings that the day would 
once appear; the mean time we 
spent in often prayers and other god- 
ly exercises, thereby comforting our- 
selves, and refreshing our hearts, 
striving to bring ourselves to an hum- 
ble submission under the hand of 
God, and to a referring of ourselves 
wholly to his good will and pleasure. 



68 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1580. 



The day therefore at length appear- 
ing, and it being almost fall sea about 
that time, after we had given thanks 
to God for his forbearing of us hither- 
to, and had with tears called upon 
him to bless our labours ; we again 
renewed our travail to see if we could 
now possibly find any anchor-hold, 
which we had formerly sought in 
vain. But this second attempt prov- 
ed as fruitless as the former, and left 
us nothing to trust to but prayers and 
tears ; seeing it appeared impossible 
that ever the forecast, counsel, policy, 
or power of man could ever effect the 
delivery of our ship, except the Lord 
only miraculously should do the same. 
It was therefore presently motioned, 
and by general voice determined, to 
commend our case to God alone, leav- 
ing ourselves wholly in his hand to 
spill 1 or save us, as [might] seem best 
to his gracious wisdom. And that our 
faith might be the better strengthen- 
ed, and the comfortable apprehen- 
sion of God's mercy in Christ be more 
clearly felt, we had a sermon and the 
Sacrament of the body and blood of 
our Saviour celebrated. After this 
sweet repast was thus received, and 
other holy exercises adjoined were 
ended, lest we should seem guilty in 
any respect for not using all lawful 
means we could invent, we fell to 
another practice yet unessayed, to wit, 
to unloading of our ship by casting 
some of her goods into the sea ; which 
thing, as it was attempted most will- 
ingly, so it was despatched in very 
short time. So that even those 
things which we before this time, nor 
any other in our case could be with- 
out, did now seem as things only 
worthy to be despised ; yea, we were 
herein so forward, that neither our 
munition for defence, nor the very 
meal for sustentation of our lives, 
could find favour with us, but every 
thing as it first came to hand went 
overboard : assuring ourselves of this, 
that if it pleased God once to deliver 
us out of that most desperate strait 
wherein we were, he would fight for 
us against our enemies, neither would 



Destroy. 



he suffer us to perish for want of 
bread. But, when all was done, it 
was not any of our endeavours, but 
God's only hand, that wrought our 
delivery ; 'twas he alone that brought 
us even under the very stroke of 
death ; 'twas he alone that said unto 
us, ' ' Ileturn again, ye sons of men ! " 
'twas he alone that set us at liberty 
again, that made us safe and free, 
after that we had remained in the 
former miserable condition the full 
space of twenty hours ; to his glorious 
name be the everlasting praise. The 
manner of our delivery (for the rela- 
tion of it will especially be expected) 
was only this : The place whereon 
we sat so fast Avas a firm rock, in a 
cleft whereof it was we stuck on the 
larboard side. At low water there was 
not above six feet of depth in all on 
the starboard ; within little distance, 
as you have heard, no bottom to be 
found ; the breeze during the whole 
time that we stayed blew somewhat 
stiff directly against our broadside, 
and so perforce kept the ship upright. 
It pleased God in the beginning of 
the tide, while the water was yet al- 
most at lowest, to slack the stiffness 
of the wind ; and now our ship, 
which required thirteen feet of water 
to make her float, and had not at that 
time on the one side above seven at 
most, wanting her prop on the other 
side, which had too long already kept 
her up, fell a-heeling towards the 
deep water, and by that means freed 
her keel and made us glad men. 
This shoal is at least three or four 
leagues in length ; it lies in 2, lack- 
ing three or four minutes, South 
latitude. The day of this deliverance 
was the 10th of January. 

Of all the dangers that in our 
whole voyage we met with, this was 
the greatest ; but it was not the last, 
as may appear by what ensueth. 
Neither could we indeed for a long 
season free ourselves from the con- 
tinual care and fear of them ; nor 
could we ever come to any convenient 
anchoring, but were continually for the 
most part tossed amongst the many 
islands and shoals which lie in infinite 
number round about on the South part 



1580.] 

of Celebes, till the 8th day of the 
following month. January 12th, not 
being able to bear our sails, by reason 
of the tempest, and fearing of the 
dangers, we let fall our anchors upon 
a shoal in 3 30'. January 14th, we 
were gotten a little farther South, 
where, at an island in 4 6', we again 
cast anchor, and spent a day in water- 



ing and wooding. After this we met 
with foul weather, Westerly winds, 
and dangerous shoals, for many days 
together ; insomuch that we were 
utterly weary of this coast of Celebes, 
and thought best to bear with Timor. 
The Southernmost cape of Celebes 
stands in 5 that side x the Line. But 
of this coast of Celebes we could not 
so easily clear ourselves. The 20th 
of January we were forced to run 
with a small island not far from 
thence ; where having sent our boat 
a good distance from us to search out 
a place where we might anchor, we 
were suddenly environed with no 
small extremities. For there arose a 
most violent, yea an intolerable flaw 
and storm out of the South-west 
against us, making us (who were on 
a lee-shore amongst most dangerous 
and hidden shoals) to fear extremely 
not only the loss of our boat and 
men, but the present loss of ourselves, 
our ship, and goods, or the casting of 
those men, whom God should spare, 
into the hands of Infidels. Which 
misery could not by any power or in- 
dustry of ours have been avoided, if 
the merciful goodness of God had not, 
by staying the outrageous extremities 
wherewith we were set upon, wrought 
our present delivery ; by whose un- 
speakable mercy our men and boats 
also were unexpectedly, yet safely, 
restored unto us. We got off from 
this place as well as we could, and 
continued on our course till the 26th 
day [of January ], when the wind took us, 
very strong against us, W. and WS W. , 
so as that we could bear no more sail till 
the end of that month was full ex- 
pired. February 1st, we saw very 
high land, and as it seemed well in- 
habited, we would fain have borne 



OFF THE COAST OF CELEBES. 69 

with it, to have got some succour, 
but the weather was so ill that we 
could find no harbour, but we were 
very fearful of adventuring ourselves 
too far amongst the many dangers 
which were near the shore. The 
third day also we saw a little island, 
but being unable to bear any sail, but 
only to lie at hull, 2 we were by the 



1 That is, to the South side. 



storm carried away and could not 
fetch it. February 6th, we saw five 
islands, one of them towards the 
East, and four towards the West of 
us, one bigger than another ; at the 
biggest of which we cast anchor, and 
the next day watered and wooded. 

After we had gone on thence, on 
February 8th, we descried two canoes, 
who having descried us, as it seems, 
before, came willingly unto us, and 
talked with us, alluring and conduct- 
ing us to their town not far off, named 
Barativa ; it stands in 7 13' South 
the Line. The people are Gentiles, 
of handsome body and comely stature, 
of civil demeanour, very just in deal- 
ing, and courteous to strangers ; of all 
which we had evident proof, they 
showing themselves most glad of our 
coming, and cheerfully ready to re- 
lieve our wants with whatsoever their 
country could afford. The men all 
go naked, save their heads and secret 
parts, every one having one thing or 
other hanging at his ears. Their 
women are covered from the middle 
to the foot, wearing upon their naked 
arms bracelets, and that in no small 
number, some having nine at least 
upon each arm, made for the most 
part of horn or brass, whereof the 
lightest, by our estimation, would 
weigh two ounces. With this people 
linen cloth, whereof they make rolls 
for their heads and girdles to wear 
about their loins, is the best merchan- 
dise, and of greatest estimation. They 
are also much delighted with mar- 
garites, 3 which in their language they 
call "Saleta," and such other like 

2 A ship lies at hull, or a hull, when 
either in a dead calm or in a storm 
all her sails are taken in, and she 
shows only bare masts and rigging. 

3 Beads. 



70 



DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



[1580. 



trifles. Their island is both rich and 
fruitful ; rich in gold, silver, copper, 
tin, sulphur, c. Neither are they 
only expert to try those metals, "but 
very skilful also in working of them 
artificially into divers forms and 
shapes, as pleaseth them best. Their 
fruits are diverse likewise and plenti- 
ful, as nutmegs, ginger, long pepper, 
lemons, cucumbers, cocoas, figs, sago, 
with divers other sorts, whereof we 
had one in reasonable quantity, in 
bigness, form, and husk, much like a 
bay-berry, hard in substance, but 
pleasant in taste, which being sodden 
becomes soft, and is a most profitable 
and nourishing meat. Of each of 
these we received of them whatsoever 
we desired for our need, insomuch 
that (such was God's gracious good- 
ness to us) the old proverb was veri- 
fied with us, "After a storm cometh 
a calm, after Avar peace, after scarcity 
followeth plenty :" so that in all our 
voyage, Ternate only excepted, from 
our departure out of our own country, 
hitherto we found not anywhere 
greater comfort and refreshing than 
we did at this time in this place. In 
refreshing and furnishing ourselves 
here we spent two days, and departed 
hence February 10th. When we were 
come into the height of 8 4', February 
12th, in the morning we espied a green 
island to the Southward ; not long 
after, two other islands on the same 
side, and a great one more towards 
the "North : they seemed all to be 
well inhabited, but we had neither 
need nor desire to go to visit them, 
and so we passed by them. The 14th 
day we saw some other reasonably big 
islands ; and February 16th we passed 
between four or five big islands more, 
which lay in the height 1 9 40'. The 
18th, we cast anchor under a little 
island, whence we departed again the 
day following ; we wooded here, but 
other relief, except two turtles, we 
received none. The 22d, we lost 
sight of three islands on our starboard 
side, which lay in 10 and some odd 
minutes. After this we passed on to 
the Westward without stay or any- 

1 Latitude (South of thr> Line). 



thing to be taken notice of till the 
9th of March, when in the morning 
we espied land, some part thereof very 
high, in 8 20' South latitude. Here 
we anchored that night, and the next 
day weighed again, and bearing fur- 
ther North and nearer shore, we came 
to anchor the second time. The llth 
of March we first took in water, and 
after sent our boat again to shore, 
where we had traffic with the people 
of the country ; whereupon, the same 
day, we brought our ship more near 
the town, and having settled ourselves 
there that night, the next day our 
General sent his man ashore to pre- 
sent the King with certain cloth, both 
linen and woollen, besides some silks ; 
which he gladly and thankfully re- 
ceived, and returned rice, cocoas, hens, 
and other victuals in way of recom- 
pense. This island we found to be 
the Island of Java, the middle where- 
of stands in 7 30' beyond the Equator. 
The 13th of March our General him- 
self, with many of his gentlemen and 
others, went to shore, and presented 
the King (of whom he was joyfully 
and lovingly received) with his 
music, and shewed him the manner 
of our use of arms, by training his 
men with their pikes and other wea- 
pons which they had, before him. 
For the present, we were entertained 
as we desired, and at last dismissed 
with a promise of more victuals to be 
shortly sent us. 

In this island there is one chief, 
but many under-governors, or petty 
kings, whom they call Rajahs, who 
live in great familiarity and friend- 
ship one with another. The 14th 
day we received victuals from two of 
them ; and the day after that, to wit 
the 15th, three of these kings in their 
own persons came aboard to see our 
General, and to view our ship and 
warlike munition. They were well 
pleased with what they saw, and with 
the entertainment which we gave 
them. And after these had been 
with us, and on their return had, as 
it seems, related what they found, 
Rajah Donan, the chief King of the 
whole land, bringing victuals with 
him for our relief, he also the next 



1580.] VISIT FROM THE 

day after came aboard us. Few were 
the days that one or more of these 
kings did miss to visit us, insomuch 
that we grew acquainted with the 
names of many of them, as of Rajah 
Pataiara, Rajah Cabocapalla, Rajah 
Manghango, Rajah Boccabarra, Rajah 
Tiinbanton : whom our General al- 
ways entertained with the best cheer 
that we could make, and shewed them 
all the commodities of our ship, with 
our ordnance and other arms and 
weapons, and the several furnitures 
belonging to each, and the uses for 
which they served. His music also, 
and all things else whereby he might 
do them pleasure, wherein they took 
exceeding great delight with admira- 
tion. One day, amongst the rest, 
March 21st, Rajah Donan coming 
aboard us, in requital of our music 
which was made to him, presented 
our General with his country music, 
which though it were of a very strange 
kind, yet the sound was pleasant and 
delightful. The same day he caused 
an ox also to be brought to the water's 
side and delivered to us, for which he 
was to his content rewarded by our 
General with divers sorts of very 
costly silks, which he held in great 
esteem. Though our often giving en- 
tertainment in this manner did hinder 
us much in -the speedy despatching 
of our businesses, and made us spend 
the more days about them, yet there 
we found all such convenient helps, 
that to our contents we at last ended 
them. The matter of greatest impor- 
tance which we did, besides victual- 
ling, was the new trimming and wash- 
ing of our ship, which by reason of 
our long voyage was so overgrown 
with a kind of shellfish sticking fast 
unto her, that it hindered her exceed- 
ingly, and was a great trouble to her 
sailing. The people, as are their 
kings, are a loving, a very true, and 
a just-dealing people. We trafficked 
with them for hens, goats, cocoas, 
plantains, and other kinds of victuals, 
which they offered us in such plenty, 
that we might have laden our ship if 
we had needed. 1 

1 In every village, other narratives 



RAJAHS OF JAVA. 71 

We took our leaves and departed 
from them the 26th of March, and 
set our course WS W. , directly towards 
the Cape of Good Hope, or Bon 
Esperance, and continued without 
touch of aught but air and water 
until the 21st of May, when we espied 
land to wit, a part of the main of 
Africa in some places very high, 
under the latitude of thirty-one and 
a half degrees. We coasted along till 
June 15th, on which day, having very 
fair weather, and the wind at South- 
east, we passed the Cape itself so near 
in sight, that we had been able with 
our pieces to have shot to land. 2 July 
15th we fell with the land again about 
Rio de Sesto, where we saw many ne- 
groes in their boats a-fishing, whereof 
two came very near us, but we cared 
not to stay, nor had any talk or deal- 
ing with' them. The 22d of the 
same month we came to Sierra Leone, 
and spent two days for watering in 
the mouth of Tagoine, and then put 
to sea again ; here also we had oysters, 3 



inform us, was a house of assembly or 
public hall, where the people met 
twice daily to partake of a common 
meal and enjoy the pleasures of con- 
versation. "To this festival every 
one contributed, at his pleasure or 
convenience, fruits, boiled rice, roast- 
ed fowls, and sago. The viands were 
spread on a table raised three feet, 
and the party gathered round, one 
rejoicing in the company of another." 

2 The Cape is described by another 
chronicler as "a most stately thing, 
and the fairest cape we saw in the 
whole circumference of the earth." 
They passed it in perfectly calm and 
clear weather ; making them affirm, 
that the Portuguese had not less 
falsely alleged the extreme peril of 
the passage from continual tempests, 
than the Spaniards, to deter voyagers 
of other nations, had exaggerated the 
dangers of the course round the south- 
ern extremity of America. 

3 The voyagers came here upon a 
kind of oysters which "was found on 
trees, spawning and increasing in- 
finitely ; the oyster suffering no bud 
to grow. " 



72 



DRAKE'S LAST VOYAGE. 



[1580. 



and plenty of lemons, which gave us 
good refreshing. "We found ourselves 
nnder the Tropic of Cancer, August 
15th, having the wind at North-east, 
and we fifty leagues off from the nearest 
land. The 22d day we were in the 
height of the Canaries. 

And the 26th of September (which 
was Monday in the just and ordinary 
reckoning of those that had stayed at 
home in one place or country, but in 
our computation was the Lord's Day 
or Sunday 1 ) we safely, with joyful 



1 The same circumstance, which 
"every schoolboy" can now explain, 
had also astonished the companions 
of Magellan, who, on their return 
from their circumnavigation to San 
Lucar in 1522, discovered that they 
had "lost a day." Dampier notes 
the same thing at the commencement 



minds and thankful hearts to God, 
arrived at Plymouth, the place of our 
first setting forth, after we had spent 
two years, ten months, and some few 
odd days besides, in seeing the won- 
ders of the Lord in the deep, in di 
covering so many admirable things, 
in going through with so many strange 
adventures, in escaping out of so many 
dangers, and overcoming so many 
difficulties, in this our encompassing 
of this nether globe, and passing 
round about the world, which we 
have related. 

Soli rerum maximarum Effectori, 
Soli totius nmndi Gubernatori, 
Soli suorum Conservator!, 
Soli Deo sit semper Gloria. 

of his Fourteenth Chapter. See page 
223. 



END OF DRAKE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



DKAKE'S LAST VOYAGE. 

1595. 



[An account of Drake's unfortunate expedition to the "West Indies in 
1595, written by Thomas Maynarde, one of his companions on the occasion, 
is still preserved, and is given here though a little apart from the main, 
purpose of the present volume as an appropriate sequel to Mr Fletcher's 
narrative of his most brilliant achievement.] 



IT appears by the attempts and 
known purposes of the Spaniard as 
by his greedy desire to be our neigh- 
bour in Britain, his fortifying upon 
the river of Brest, to gain so near us 
a quiet and safe road for his fleet, his 



carelessness in losing the strongholds 
and towns which he possessed in the 
Low Countries, not following those 
wars in that heat which lie wonted, 
the rebellious rising of the Earl of 
Tyrone (wrought or drawn thereto 



1595.] 



EXPEDITION TO THE WEST INDIES. 



73 



undoubtedly by his wicked practices) 
that he leaveth no means unat- 
tempted which he judged might be a 
furtherance to turn our tranquillity 
into accursed thraldom ; so robbing 
us of that quiet peace which we, from 
the hands of Her Majesty (next under 
God), abundantly enjoy. This his 
bloodthirsty desire foreseen by the wis- 
dom of our Queen and Council, they 
held no better means to curb his unjust 
preten 2es, than by sending forces to 
invado him in that kingdom from 
whence he hath feathers to fly to the 
top of his high desires ; they knowing 
that if for two or three years a blow 
were given him there that might hin- 
der the coming into Spain of his 
treasure, his poverty, by reason of his 
huge daily payments, would be so 
great, and his men of war, most of 
them mercenaries, that assuredly 
would fall from him, so would he 
have more need of means to keep his 
own territories, than he now hath of 
superfluity to thrust into others' rights. 
This invasion was spoken of in 
June 1594, a long time before it was 
put in execution ; and it being partly 
resolved on, Sir Francis Drake was 
named General in November follow- 
ing : a man of great spirit and fit to 
undertake matters : in my poor opin- 
ion, better able to conduct forces and 
discreetly to govern in conducting 
them to places where service was to 
be done, than to command in the ex- 
ecution thereof. But, assuredly, his 
very name was a great terror to the 
enemy in all those parts, having hers- 
tofore done many things in those 
countries to his honourable fame and 
profit. But entering into them as 
the child of fortune, it may be his 
sell- willed and peremptory command 
was doubted, and that caused Her 
Majesty, as should seem, to join Sir 
John Hawkins in equal commission : 
a man old and wary, entering into 
matters with so laden a foot, that 
the other's meat would be eaten before 
his spit could come to the fire ; men 
of so different natures and dispositions, 
that what the one desireth the other 
would commonly oppose against ; and 
though their wary carriages sequestered 



ing the distributing of so gr 
their miserable providing for 



it from meaner wits, yet was it appar- 
ently seen to better judgments before 
our going from Plymouth, that whom 
the one loved, the other smally es- 
teemed. Agreeing best, for what I 
could conjecture, in giving out a glori- 
ous title to their intended journey, 
and in not so well victualling the navy 
as, I deem, was Her Majesty's pleasure 
it should be, both of them served them 
to good purpose ; for, from this hav- 
'eat sums, 
or us would 

free them frorn incurring any great 
loss, whatsoever befell of the journey. 
And the former l drew unto them so 
great repair of voluntaries, 8 that they 
had choice to discharge such few as 
they had pressed, and to enforce the 
stay of others who gladly would be 
partakers of their voyage. But not- 
withstanding matters were very for- 
ward, and that they had drawn to- 
gether three thousand men, and had 
ready furnished twenty-seven ships, 
whereof six were Her Majesty's, yet 
many times was it very doubtful 
whether the journey should proceed ;* 
and had not the news of a galleon of 
the King of Spain, which was driven 
into Saint John de Puerto Rico with 
two millions and a half of treasure, 
come unto them by the report of cer- 
tain prisoners, whereof they advertised 
Her Majesty, it is very likely it had 
been broken, but Her Majesty, per- 
suaded by them of the easy taking 
thereof, commanded them to hasten 
their departure. 

So on Thursday, being the 28th of 
August, in the year 1595, having 
stayed two months in Plymouth, we 
went thence twenty-seven sail, and 



1 That is, the "giving out a glori- 
ous title" to their intended expedi- 
tion. 

2 Resort of volunteers. 

3 It was detained, among othei 
causes, by artfully propagated ru- 
mours that another great Armada 
was being prepared for the invasion 
of England the Spaniards thus gain- 
ing time to put their colonies in good 
defence against the formidable attack 
now menaced. 



DRAKE'S LAST VOYAGE. 



[1595. 



were two thousand five hundred men 
of all sorts. This fleet was divided 
into two squadrons ; not that it was 
so appointed by Her Majesty, for 
from her was granted as powerful 
authority unto either of them over 
the whole as any part, but Sir Francis 
victualling the one half and Sir John 
the other, it made them, as men af- 
fecting what they had done, 1 to chal- 
lenge a greater prerogative over them 
than the whole ; wherein they wronged 
themselves and the action, 2 for we had 
not run sixty or seventy leagues in 
our course, before a flag of council 
was put out in the Garland, unto which 
all commanders with the chief masters 
and gentlemen repaired. Sir Francis 
complained that he had three hundred 
men more in his squadron than were 
in the other, and that he was much 
pestered in his own ship, whereof he 
would gladly be eased. Sir John 
gave no other hearing to this motion, 
but seemed to dislike that he should 
bring more than was concluded be- 
twixt them ; and this drew them to 
some choleric speeches. But Sir John 
would not receive any unless he were 
entreated ; to this Sir Francis' stout 3 
heart could never be driven. This 
was on the 2d of September, and after 
they were somewhat qualified,* they 
acquainted us that Sir Thomas Bas- 
kerville, our Colonel-general, was of 
their council by virtue of the broad 
seal, and that they would take unto 
them Sir Nicholas Clifford and the 
other captains appointed by Her 
Majesty, who were, eleven for the 
land, four for the ships in which they 
themselves went not. They gave us 
instructions for directing our course, 
if, by foul weather or mischance, any 
should be severed, and orders what 
allowances we should put our men 
into for preservation of victuals, with 
other necessary instructions. In the 

1 Taking a greater interest in what 
had engaged their own attention and 
touched their own pocket. 

2 Enterprise. 

3 Proud, stubborn. 

4 After their passion had somewhat 
abated. 



end, Sir John revealed the places 
whither we were bound, in hearing of 
the basest mariner ; observing there- 
in no warlike or provident advice, 
nor was it ever amended to the time 
of their deaths, but so he named Saint 
John de Puerto Rico, where the trea- 
sure before spoken of was to be taken, 
even without blows ; from whence we 
should go direct to Nombre de Dios, 
and so over land to Panama. What 
other things should fall out by the 
way, he esteemed them not worth 
the naming, this being sufficient to 
make a far greater army rich to their 
content. 

Some seven or eight days after 
this, we were called aboard the De- 
fiance, where, Sir Francis Drake pro- 
pounding unto us whether we should 
give upon the Canaries or Madeiras 
(for he was resolved to put for one of 
them by the way), we seeing his bent 
and the earnestness of the Colonel- 
general, together with the apparent 
likelihood of profit, might soon have 
been drawn thereto, but for consider- 
ing the weighty matters we had 
undertaken, and how needful it was 
to hasten us thither. But General 
Hawkins utterly misliking this no- 
tion it being a matter, as he said, 
never before thought of knew no 
cause why the fleet should stay in any 
place till they came to the Indies, 
unless it should be by his 5 taking in 
of so great numbers to consume his 
waters and other provision; the 
which, if Sir Francis would acknow- 
ledge, he would rid him and relieve 
him the best he could. Now the fire 
which lay hid in their stomachs began 
to break forth, and had not the 
Colonel pacified them, it would have 
grown farther ; but their heat some- 
what abated, and they concluded to 
dine next day aboard the Garland 
with Sir John, when it was resolved 
that 'we should put for the Grand 
Canaries, though, in my conscience, 
whatsoever his tongue said, Sir John's 
heart was against it. These matters 
were well qualified, and for that 
place we shaped our course ; in which 



5 Drake's. 



1595.] 



AT ANCHOR OFF GUADALOUPE. 



75 



we met with a small Fleming bound 
for the Straits, and a small man-of- 
war of Weymouth, who kept us com- 
pany to the Canaries. On Wednes- 
day, the 24th day, we had sight of 
Lancerotta and Forteventura. The 
25th, at night we descried the Cana- 
ries, it being a month after our de- 
parture from Plymouth. On Friday, 
being the 26th, we came to anchor 
some saker-shot from a fort which 
stands to the WNW. of the harbour. 
Sir Francis spent much time in seek- 
ing out the fittest place to land ; 
the enemy thereby gaining time to 
draw their forces in readiness to im- 
peach x our approach. At length we, 
putting for the shore in our boats and 
pinnaces, found a great siege 2 and 
such power of men to encounter us, 
that it was then thought it would 
hazard the whole action if we should 
give further upon it, whereupon we 
returned without receiving or doing 
any harm worthy the writing ; but, 
undoubtedly, had we launched under 
the fort at our first coming to anchor, 
we had put fair to be possessors of 
the town, for the delays gave the 
enemy great stomachs 3 and daunted 
our own ; and it being the first ser- 
vice our new men were brought into, 
it was to be doubted they would prove 
the worse the whole journey follow- 
ing. 

We presently weigned hence and 
came to anchor the 27th at the 
WSW. part of this island, where we 
watered. Here Captain Grimstone, 
one of the twelve captains for land, 
was slain by the mountaineers, with 
his boy and a surgeon. Hence we 
departed the 28th, holding our course 
SW. three weeks, then we ran WSW. 
and W. by S. until the 27th of 
October, on which day we had sight 
of Maten, an island lying south-east 
from Dominica. Our Generals meant 
to water at Guadaloupe, for Dominica 
being inhabited by Indians, our men 



1 Prevent ; French, "empecher." 
The word is still used in Ireland in 
the sense of hindering or obstructing. 

2 Fortification. 
* Courage. 



straggling soon would have their 
throats cut. General Drake lying 
ahead the fleet, ran in by the north 
of Dominica, Sir John by south. 
The 29th we anchored under Guada- 
Loupe ; Sir Francis being there a day 
before us. On the 30th, Josias, cap- 
tain of the Delight, brought news to 
the Generals, that the Francis, a 
small ship of company, was taken by 
nine frigates ; whereupon Sir Francis 
would presently have followed them, 
either with the whole fleet or some 
part, for that he knew our intentions 
were discovered by reason they were 
so openly made known, as I afore 
have set down, by Sir John Hawkins. 
Sir John would in no wise agree to 
either of these motions, and he was 
assisted in his opinion by Sir Nicho- 
Clifford, all others furthering 



las 



his desires, which might be a means 
to stay them for going into Puerto 
Rico before us ; but Sir John pre- 
vailed, for that he was sickly, Sir 
Francis being loth to breed his further 
disquiet. The reason of his stay was, 
to trim his ships, mount his ordnance, 
take in water, set by some new pin- 
naces, and to make things in that 
readiness, that he cared not to meet 
with the King's whole fleet. Here 
we stayed doing these necessaries 
three days. This is a desert, and 
was without inhabitants. 

On the 4th of November we depart- 
ed, and being becalmed under the 
lee of the land, Sir Francis caused the 
Richard, one of the victuallers, to be 
unladen and sunk. The 8th we 
anchored among the Virgins, other 
west islands : here we drew our com- 
pany on shore, that every man 
might know his colours, and we 
found our company short of the one 
thousand two hundred promised for 
land service, few of the captains hav- 
ing above ninety, most not eighty, 
some not fifty ; which fell out partly 
for that the Generals had selected to 
them a company for their guard, of 
many of the gallantest men of the 
army. Sir John's sickness increased. 
Sir Francis appointed captains to the 
merchants' ships ; this consigned 
time till the llth, when we passed a 



76 

sound, though, by 1 our mariners, 
never passed by fleet afore, and \ve 
came to anchor before Puerto Rico on 
the 12th about three of the clock in 
the afternoon, at which time Sir John 
Hawkins died. I made my men 
ready presently to have landed, know- 
ing that our sudden resolution would 
greatly have daunted the enemy, and 
have held ours in opinion of assured 
victory ; but I was countermanded 
by authority, and during the time of 
our deliberation the enemy laboured 
by all means to cause us to disanchor, 
so working, that within an hour he 
had planted three or four pieces of 
artillery upon the shore next to us, 
and playing upon the Defiance, know- 
ing her to be the Admiral, whilst our 
Generals sat at supper with Sir Nicho- 
las Clifford and divers others, a shot 
came amongst them, wherewith Sir 
Nicholas, Brute Brown, Captain 
Strafford, who had Grimstone's com- 
pany, and some standers-by, were 
hurt. Sir Nicholas died that night, 
so seconding Sir John Hawkins in his 
death, as he did in his opinion at 
Guadaloupe. My brother Brown 
lived five or six days after, and died 
much bewailed. This shot made our 
General weigh and fall farther to the 
westward, where we rode safely. The 
frigates before spoken of rode within 
their forts : we had no place now to 
land our men but within them, in the 
face of the town, which was danger- 
ous, for that both forts and ships 
could play on us ; it was therefore 
concluded that boats should fire them 
where they rode. Captain Poore and 
myself had the command of this ser- 
vice ; for the regiments, Captain 
Salisbury commanding j the grand 
captain company was sent by the 
Generals ; divers sea commanders 
were also sent ; and on the 13th at 
night, passing in hard under the fort, 
we set three of them on fire ; only 
one of which, it was my chance to 
undertake, was burnt ; on the others 
the fire held not, by reason that be- 
ing once out they were not maintain- 
ed with new. The burnt ship gave a 



DRAKE'S LAST VOYAGE. [1595. 

great light, the enemy thereby play- 
ing upon us with their ordnance and 
small shot as if it had been fair day, 
and sinking some of our boats : * a 
man could hardly command his mar- 
iners to row, they foolishly thinking 
every place more dangerous than 
where they were, when, indeed, none 
was sure. Thus doing no harm, we 
returned with two or three prisoners, 
when, indeed, in my poor opinion, it 
had been an easier matter to bring 
them out of the harbour than fire 
them as we did, for our men aboard 
the ships numbered five thousand one 
hundred and sixty pieces of artillery a 
that played on us during this ser- 
vice ; and it had been less dangerous 
to have abidden them close in the 
frigates and in the dark than as we 
did. But great commanders many 
times fail in their judgment, being 
crossed by a co-partner. But I had 
cause of more grief than the Indies 
could yield me of joy, losing my 
alferez, 3 Davis Pursell ; MrVaughan, 
a brother-in-law of Sir John Haw 
kins, with three others ; Thomas 
Powton, with five or six more, hurl 
and maimed ; and was somewhat dis- 
comfited, for the General feigned here 
to set up his rest ; but examining the 
prisoners, by whom he understood 
that these frigates were sent for his 
treasure, and that they would have 
fallen among us at Guadaloupe had 
they not taken the Francis, his mind 
altered : calling to council, he com- 
manded us to give our opinions what 
we thought of the strength of the 
place. Most thought it would hazard 
the whole action. 4 But one Rush, a 
captain, more to me alleged, that 
without better putting for it 5 than 
bare looking upon the outside of the 
forts, we could hardly give such judg- 



According to the report of. 



8 A number wholly incredible ; the 
Spanish accounts say that there were 
only seventy pieces. 

3 Standard-bearer ; a word borrow- 
ed from the Arabic, as its prefix 
plainly enough shows. 

4 That to attack it would bring the 
whole expedition into jeopardy. 

5 Without some further effort 



1595.] 



SOME SPANIARDS AND NEGROES TAKEN. 



77 



ment ; and I set it plainly tinder my 
hand, that if we resolutely attempted 
it, all was ours ; and that I persuad- 
ed myself no town in the Indies 
could yield us more honour or profit. 
The General presently said : "I will 
bring thee to twenty places far more 
wealthy and easier to be gotten." 
Such like speeches I think had be- 
witched the Colonel, for he most de- 
sired him to hasten him hence. The 
enemy, the day after we had fired the 
frigates, sunk together four to save 
us labour, but chiefly to strengthen 
their forts : two other great ships 
they sunk and fired in the month of 
the harbour, to give them light to 
play on us from their forts, as \ve en- 
tered the first night. And hence we 
went the 15th. Here I left all hope 
of good success. 

On the 19th we came to anchor in 
a fair bay, the Bay of Sta Jermana, 1 
at the westernmost part of the island, 
where we stayed till the 24th, setting 
up more new pinnaces and unloading 
the other new victualler, the General 
taking the most part into his own 
ship, as he did of the former. Cap- 
tain Torke, in the Hope, was made 
Vice-Admiral This is a very plea- 
sant and fertile island, having upon 
it good store of cattle, fruits, and fish, 
with all things necessary to man's 
sustenance ; and were itwell manured, 
no place could yield it in greater 
abundance or better. Departing 
hence, we had our course for Curac,oa. 
The second day after our putting off, 
the Exchange, a small ship, sprung 
her mast, and was sunk ; the men 
and part of the victuals were saved by 
other ships. Upon Curacoa there is 
great store of cattle and goats, and 
we fell with it upon Saturday the 
29th ; but our General, deceived by 
the current and westerly course, made 
it for Aruba, 2 an island lying ten or 
twelve leagues to the westward, and 
so made no stay ; when, next morn- 
ing descrying whether he found his 
error, we bore with Cape de la Vela, 
and from thence our Colonel, with all 



1 San German. 

2 Mistook it for Oruba. 



the companies in the pinnaces and 
boats, were sent to the city of Rio de 
la Hacha, and with small resistance 
we took it the 1st of December at 
night. The General came unto us 
the next morning with the fleet. 
This town was left bare of goods ; 
the inhabitants, having intelligence 
of our coming, had carried all in the 
woods, and hid their treasures in 
caches; but, staying here seventeen 
days, we made so good search, that 
little remained imfouiid within four 
leagues of the town. We took many 
prisoners, Spaniards and Negroes, 
some slaves repairing to us volun- 
tarily. The General with two hundred 
men went in boats to Lancheria, 3 
which is a place where they fish for 
pearl, standing ten leagues to the 
eastward of their town, from whence 
they brought good store of pearl, and 
took a carvel, in which was some 
money, wine, and myrrh. During 
our stay here, the Governor once, 
divers others often, repaired unto us 
to redeem their town, Lancheria, 
their boats, and slaves. They did 
this to gain time to convey away the 
King's treasure, and to advertise their 
neighbour towns to convey their trea- 
sure in more safety than themselves 
had done ; for the whole (except the 
slaves who voluntarily repaired unto 
us) was yielded unto them for twenty- 
four thousand pesos, five shillings and 
sixpence a piece, to be paid in pearls ; 
bringing these to their town at the 
day, and valuing in double the price 
they were worth. Our General deli- 
vered the hostages and set their town 
Lancheria and boats on fire, carrying 
their slaves with us. The wealth we 
had here was given to countervail the 
charge of the journey ; but I fear it 
will not so prove in the end. Our 
Vice-Admiral, Captain Torke, died 
here of sickness. This is an exceed- 
ingly good country, champaign and 
well inhabited ; great store of cattle, 
horses, sheep, goats, fish, and fowl, 
whereon we fed, but small store of 
grain or fruit near the town, rich only 
in pearl and cattle. 

3 La Ranclieria. 



78 DRAKE'S LAST VOYAGE. 

The 20th, being Saturday, we came 
to Santa Martha. We sunk two 



ketches, before we came to Rio de la 
Hacha, which we brought out of 
England. Presently, iipon our com- 
ing to anchor, we landed and gave 
upon 1 the town. We found small re- 
sistance more than a few shot playing 
out of the woods as we marched to- 
wards the town. Companies were 
presently sent abroad to discover and 
search the country. The inhabitants 
had too long forewarning to carry 
their goods out of our possibility to 
find them in so short time ; little or 



[1595. 

left very bare ; 4 wherefore it was re- 
solved that we should hasten with 



speed to Panama. Nombre de Dios 
standeth on the North Sea, Panama 
upon the South, 5 distant some eigh- 
teen or nineteen leagues. There were 
only two ways to get thither ; one by 
the River Chagre, which lies to the 
westward twenty leagues ; upon this 
it is passable within five leagues of 
Panama : the other through deserts 
and over mountains void of inhabi- 
tants : this was troublesome and 
hard, as well for want of means to 
carry our provision of meat and 



nothing of value was gotten, only the \ munition, as for the ill passage with 



Lieutenant-Governor and some others 
were taken prisoners ; and firing the 
town the 21st, we departed. Captain 



an army through these deserts and 
unknown places. That by the river 
our General held more dangerous, 



Worrell, our trenchmastej-, 2 died at j feigning there was no place for our 

' fleet to wade safely. This made our 
Colonel yield to the way by the moun- 
tain, though he and others foresaw 
the danger before our setting hence ; 
but he resolved to make trial of what 
could be done. 

So on Monday the 29th we began 
our journey, taking with us the 
strongest and lustiest of our army, 
to the number of fifty 6 men and 
seven colours. Before our setting 
hence, we buried Captain Arnold 
Baskerville, our Sergeant-major-gene- 
ral, a gallant gentleman. The first 
day we marched three leagues ; the 
next, six leagues, where we came to a 
great house which the enemy had set 
on fire, it being a place where the 
King's mules do use to lodge coming 
from Panama to Nombre de Dios 
with his treasure : it is the midway 
betwixt both places. The house 
would receive five hundred horses. 
We had not marched fully a league 
on Wednesday morning, when we 
came to a place fortified upon the top 
of a hill, which the enemy defended. 
We had no other way to pass nor no 

4 They found, however, at the top 
of an adjacent watchtower, more than 
2000 Ibs. of silver, with some gold 
and other valuables. 

5 The Atlantic and Pacific respec- 
tively. 

6 The number was really 750. 



this town of sickness. This was a 
very pretty town, and six leagues off 
there was a gold mine. If part of our 
company had been sent thither upon 
our first arrival at Rio de la Hacha, 
doubtless we had done much good ; 
but now they had scrubbed it very 
bare. In this place was great store 
of fruit and much fernandobuck ; 3 
for that the wind blew so extremely, 
and the road wild, we could not ship 
it. Before we departed hence, it was 
concluded that we should pass Car- 
thagena and go directly for N ombre 
de Dios. We anchored in the road 
on Sunday following, being the 28th ; 
and landing presently, receiving some 
small shot from the town, we found 
small resistance more than a little fort 
at the east end of their town, in which 
they had left one piece of ordnance, 
which brake at the first shot. They 
gave upon us as we gave upon them : 
certain prisoners were taken in the 
flying, who made it known, that hav- 
ing intelligence long before of our 
coming, their treasure was conveyed 
to places of more safety, either to 
Panama, or secretly hidden ; and it 
might very well be, for the town was 

1 Attacked ; French, " donner 
sur." 

* Engineer. 

3 Wood of Pernambuco or Fenian- 
dobuco ; Brasil wood, 



1596.] 

means to make our approach but a 
very deep lane, where but one could 
pass at once, unless it were by clam- 
bering upon the banks and creeping 
up the hill through the brakes, which 
some of our men did, and came to the 
trees which they had plashed 1 to 
make their palisado, over which they 
could not pass, the many boughs so 
hindered them. It was my chance, 
clambering up the banks to repair to 
three musketeers whom I had helped 
up, to fall directly between two of 
their places fortified, coming unto 
two paths by which they fetched 
their water, and giving presently 
upon them, the place being open, my 
small number found too good resist- 
ance, and I was driven to retire with 
the loss of these few. Here was the 
only place to beat them from their 
hold, whereof I sent the Colonel 
word, Captain Poore and Bartlett and 
others repairing to me. I shewed 
them the path ; we heard the enemy 
plashing and felling of trees far before 
us. The Colonel sent for us to come 
unto him : he debated with us what 
he foresaw before our coming from 
Nombre de Dios, and though he 
thought, in his opinion, we should 
fear the enemy hence, yet, having 
retreats upon retreats, they would 
kill our best men without taking 
little or any hurt themselves ; and 
our men began to drop apace ; our 
powder and match were spoiled by 
much rain and waters which we had 
passed, unless it were such as some 
of our soldiers had with more care 
preserved. The provision for meat at 
our coming from Nombre de Dios 
was seven or eight cakes of biscuit or 
rusk for a man, which was either by 
wet spoiled, or their greediness had 
devoured ; so there remained to few 
one day's bread, to most none at all. 
Our hurt men, as Captain Nicholas 
Baskerville and some others of ac- 
count, we should be driven to leave 
to the mercy of the enemy, unless they 
could hold company. Before our 
coming to Panama, had we beaten 
them from all these holds, which I 



DANGEROUS MARCH. 79 

think would have been too dangerous 
for us to have attempted, considering 
the estate we were in, we must have 
fought with them at a bridge where 
they had entrenched themselves in a 
far greater number than we were ; 
and it is manifest, if we had not 
within three days gotten some relief, 
we had been overthrown, though no 
enemy had fought against us. But 
our stomachs calling these, with 
other dangers, to his careful consider- 
ation, he resolved to retire, and so 
commanded us to cause the slain to be 
thrown out of sight, the hurt to be 
sent to the quarters from whence we 
came that morning, and the rest to 
be drawn away. Here were slain Cap- 
tain Marchant, our Quarter-master, 
with some other officers, gentlemen, 
and soldiers. Upon our coming to 
the quarters, the Colonel took view 
of the hurt, and for such as could 
ride he procured all the horses of the 
army ; for the other, he entreated the 
enemy to treat them kindly, as they 
expected the like from us towards 
theirs, of which we had a far greater 
number. On the 2d of January we 
returned to Nombre de Dios ; our 
men so wearied with the illness of the 
way, surbatted 2 for want of shoes, 
and weak with their diet, that it 
would have been a poor day's service 
that we should have done upon an 
enemy had they been there to resist 
us. I am persuaded that never army, 
great or small, undertook a march 
through so unknown places so weakly 
provided and with so small means to 
help themselves, unless it might be 
some few going covertly to do some 
sudden exploit before it were thought 
of by the enemy, and so return un- 
spied ; for, undoubtedly, two hundred 
men foreknowing their intentions and 
provided with all things necessary, 
are able to break or weaken the great- 
est force that any prince in Christen- 
dom can bring thither, if he had 
place to find more than we had. This 
march had made many swear that he 
will never venture to buy gold at such 
a price again. I confess noble spirits, 



1 Pleached, or plaited, like a hedge. 2 Bruised, wearied, footsore. 



DRAKE'S LAST VOYAGE. [1506. 

desirous to do service to their Prince | the furthest limit of his knowledge. 



and country, may soon be persuaded 
to all hardness and danger, but having 
once made trial thereof, would be very 
loth, as I suppose, to carry any force 
that way again ; for beholding it in 
many places, a man Avould judge it 
dangerous for one man to pass alone, 
almost impossible for horses and an 
army. 

The day that our General had 
news of our return, he meant to 
weigh and fall nearer to the River 
Chagre with the fleet, leaving some 
few to bring us if we were enforced to 
retire, whereby , he little doubted. 
But being beaten from the place 
where it appeared all his hopes rested 
for gaining to himself and others this 
mass of treasure which he so confi- 
dently promised before, it was high 
time for him to devise of some other 
course. Wherefore, on the 4th of 
January, he called us to council, and 
debated with us what was now to be 
done. All these parts had notice 
long before of all our intentions, as it 
appeared by letters written from the 
Governor of Lima to the Governor of 
Panama and Nombre de Dios, giving 
them advice to be careful and to look 
well to themselves, for that Drake 
and Hawkins were making ready in 
England to come upon them. Lima 
is distant from these places more than 
three hundred leagues, all overlaid 
with snakes. It appears that they 
had good intelligence. This made 
them to convey their treasure to 
places which they resolved to defend 
with better force than we were able to 
attempt. Like as upon the coming of 
the sun, dews and mists begin to 
vanish, so our blinded eyes began now 
to open, and we found that the glor- 
ious speeches, of a hundred places 
that they 1 knew in the Indies to 
make us rich, was but a bait to draw 
Her Majesty to give them honourable 
employments, and us to adventure 
our lives for their glory; for now 
charts and maps must be our chiefest 
directors, he 2 being in these parts at 



1 The promoters of the expedition. 

2 Drake. 



There he found out a lake called 
Laguna de Nicaragua, upon which 
stand certain towns, as Granada, 
Leon, and others ; also the Bay of 
Honduras, a place known to be of 
small wealth by itself, unless it be 
brought thither to be embarked for 
Spain. He demanded which of these 
we would attempt ; our Colonel said, 
"Both, one after the other, and all 
too little to content us if we took 
them." It was then resolved that 
we should first for the river, and as 
matters fell out, for the other. 
Nombre de Dios, together with their 
Negro town, was fired ; and we sunk 
and fired fourteen small frigates 
which we found in the road. We got 
here twenty bars of silver, with some 
gold and certain plate ; more would 
have been found had it been well 
sought : but our General thought it 
folly to gather our harvest grain by 
grain, being so likely at Panama to 
thrust our hands into the whole 
heaps ; and after our return, being 
troubled in mind, he seemed little to 
regard any counsel that should be 
given him to that purpose, but to 
hasten thence as fast as he might. 
This is a most wealthy place, being 
settled upon a ground full of cam- 
phire, environed with hilly woods and 
mountains, the bottom a dampish fen. 
Hence we departed the 5th, and held 
our course for Nicaragua. 

On the 9th we found a very deep 
and dangerous bay, playing it here 
up and down ; all men weary of the 
place. The 10th we descried a small 
island called Escudes, 3 where we came 
to anchor ; and here we took a frigate 
which was an advice 4 of the King's. 
By this we learned that the towns 
standing upon this Lake 5 were of 
small wealth and very dangerous, by 
reason of many shoals and great 
roughs our mariners should have, it 
being a hundred leagues : yet if the 
wind would have permitted, we had 



3 Escudo Island, near the bottom 
of Mosquito Bay. 

4 An ' ' aviso, " or despatch-boat 
f Of Nicaragua. 



1596.] 



DEATH OF SIR FRANCIS DRAKE. 



.81 



assuredly put for them, and never re- 
turned to one half again. Here we 
stayed, at a waste 'island where tliere 
was no relief but a few tortoises for 
such as could catch them, twelve days. 
This is counted the sickliest place of 
the Indies; and here died many of 
our men, victuals beginning to grow 
scarce with us. In the end, finding 
the wind to continue contrary, he re- 
solved to depart, and to take the wind 
as God sent it. 

So on the 22d we went hence, hav- 
ing there buried Captain Plott, Eger- 
ton, and divers others. I questioned 
with our General, being often private 
with him whilst we stayed here, to 
see whether he would reveal unto me 
any of his purposes ; and I demanded 
of him, why he so often conjured me, 
being in England, to stay with him 
in these parts as long as himself, and 
where the place was ? He answered 
me with grief, protesting that he was 
as ignorant of the Indies as myself, 
and that he never thought any place 
could be so changed, as it were from 
a delicious and pleasant arbour into a 
waste and desert wilderness ; besides 
the variableness of the wind and 
weather, so stormy and blusterous as 
he never saw it before. But he most 
wondered that since his coming out 
of England he never saw sail worth 
giving chase unto : yet in the great- 
ness of his mind, he would in the 
end, conclude with these words : " It 
matters not, man ; God hath many 
things in store for us ; and I know 
many means to do Her Majesty good 
service and to make us rich, for we 
must have gold before we see Eng- 
land ; " when, good gentleman, in 
my conceit, it fared with him as 
with some careless-living man who 
prodigally consumes his time, fondly 
persuading himself that the nurse 
that fed him in his childhood will 
likewise nourish him in his old age, 
and, finding the dug dried and wither- 
ed, enforced then to behold his folly, 
tormented in mind, dieth with a 
starved body. He had, besides his 
own adventure, gaged his own reputa- 
tion greatly, in promising Her Majesty 
to do her honourable service, and to 



return her a very profitable adven- 
ture ; and having sufficiently exper- 
ienced, for seven or eight years 
together, how hard it was to regain 
favour once thought ill of, the mis- 
tress of his fortune now leaving him 
to yield to a discontented mind. 1 
And since our return from Panama 
he never carried mirth nor joy in his 
face ; yet no man he loved must con- 
jecture that he took thought thereof. 
But here he began to grow sickly. 
At this island we sunk a carvel which 
we brought out of England, putting 
her men and victuals into a last-taken 
frigate. From hence a great current 
sets towards the eastward ; by reason 
whereof, with the scant of wind we 
had, on "Wednesday, being the 28th, 
we came to Portobello, which is with- 
in eight or nine leagues of Nombre 
de Dios. It was the best harbour we 
came into since we left Plymouth. 

This morning, about seven of the 
clock, Sir Francis died. The next 
day Sir Thomas Baskerville carried 
him a league off, and buried him in 
the sea. In this place, the inhabi- 
tants of Nombre de Dios meant to 
build a town, it being far more healthy 
than where they dwell. Here they 
began a fort which already cost the 
King seven thousand purses, and a 
few houses towards their town, which 
they called Civitas Sti Philippi. 
Them we fired, razing the fortifica- 
tion to the ground. Here we found, 
as in other places, all abandoned ; 
their ordnance cast into the sea, some 
of which we found, and carried aboard 
the Garland. 

Our Generals being dead, most 
men's hearts were bent to hasten for 
England as soon as they might ; but 
Sir Thomas Baskerville, having the 
command of the army by virtue of 

1 Referring, doubtless, to the fail- 
ure of the expedition to Portugal, for 
the restoration of Dom Antonio, 
which Drake undertook in 1589, with 
Sir John Novis as commander of the 
land forces. Though the Admiral 
was acquitted honourably of all 
blame, his reputation seems to have 
for the time lain under a cloud. 



82 DRAKE'S LAST VOYAGE. 

Her Majesty's broad seal, endeavoured 
to prevent the dissevering of the fleet, 
and to that end talked with such as 
he heard intended to quit company 
before the}' were disembogued, 1 and 
drew all companies to subscribe to 
certain articles signifying our pur- 
poses : viz., that putting hence, we 
should turn it back to Santa Martha, 
if the wind would surfer us, otherwise 
to run over for Jamaica, where it was 
thought w r e should be refreshed with 
some victuals. Matters thus con- 
cluded, the Delight, the Elizabeth, 
and our late taken frigates were sunk. 
Many of the Negro men and base 2 
prisoners were here put on shore ; and 
here we weighed on Sunday the 8th 
of February. Our victuals began to 
shorten apace, yet we had lain a long 
time at very hard allowance four 
men each morning one quart of beer 
and cake of biscuit for dinner, and 
for supper one quart of beer and two 
cakes of biscuit and two cans of water, 
with a pint of pease, or half a pint of 
rice, or somewhat more of oatmeal. 
This was our allowance being at Por- 
tobello, and six weeks before, but that 
we had sometimes stock-fish. From 
thence there is a current that sets to 
the eastward, by the help of Avhich, 
on the 14th, we had sight of an is- 
land short of Carthagena fifteen or 
sixteen leagues ; further than this we 
could not go to the eastward, for that 
the current had left us. The loth at 
night, it being fair weather, we lost 
sight of our fleet. Here as I grew 
discontented, knowing it touched 
my poor regulation so to leave the 
army ; and I had many things to 
persuade me that it was done of pur- 
pose by the captain and master, 
thereby gaining an excuse to depart ; 
I showed the captain the danger he 
would run into by leaving so honour- 
able forces when they had need of our 
company; and God knoweth that 
had I but had judgment which way 
to have cast for them, I would rather 



1 Before they passed the Boccas or 
narrow seas, and entered the wider 



Ocean. 

2 Commoner sort. 



f!596. 

have lost my life than so forsake the 
like. He deposed on the Bible, and 
Christianity made me believe him. 
But playing it up and down about 
twelve of the clock, and discovering 
none of them, the wind blew so con- 
trary that the seamen affirmed by 
holding this course we should be cast 
back in the bay, and they were per- 
suaded that our fleet could not attain 
Santa Martha, but were gone over for 
Jamaica, whither they would follow 
them. I plainly foresaw that if we 
missed them there, it was like that 
we should no more meet till we came 
to England, which would have made 
me to persuade a longer search upon 
the main ; but my hope of their being 
there, together with the weakness of 
our men and the small means we had 
to retain them, fearing lest my delay 
might endanger Her Majesty's ships 
and the whole company, 1 yielded to 
their persuasions. We were in ten de- 
grees and a half when we put from hen ce, 
and we came till the 22d, when we had 
sight of a very dangerous shoal which 
our seamen thought they had passed 
near two days ago. If we had fallen in 
with it in the night we had been all 
lost. The shoal is named Secrana. 

On Shrove "Wednesday, being the 
24th, we fell with Jamaica, and by 
means of a Mulatto and an Indian we 
had, this night, forty bundles of dried 
beef, which served our whole company 
so many days. We came to anchor 
at the westernmost part of the island, 



in a fair sandy bay, where we watered, 
and stayed, in hope to have some 
news of our fleet, seven days. This 
our stay brought no intelligence, 
wherefore, our seamen thought that 
our fleet, not able to recover this 
place, were fallen either with Cape 
Corrientes or Cape Saint Antonio ; 3 
these places we meant to touch in 
our course ; and hence we went the 
1st of March. On the 6th we saw a 
ship on the leeward of us, and the 
next morning we made her to be the 
Pegasine, one of our fleet, who, us 
they said, lost the Admiral near the 
time as we did, beii)g by the Colonel 

3 At the west of Cuba. 



1596.] HOMEWAKD BOUND. 

sent to the Susan Bonaventure, whom 
they left in great distress, by reason 
of a leak they had taken, and I greatly 
feared, by their report, they are per- 
ished. There were in her one hundred 
and thirty or one hundred and forty 
persons, many gallant gentlemen and 
good men. If they perish this ship 
shall repent it. Holding our course 
for these places, we descried five sails 
astern of us. "We stayed for them, 
and soon made them out to be none 
of our fleet ; and we had good reason 
to persuade us they were enemies. 
They had the wind of us, but we soon 
regained it upon them, which made 
them, upon a piece of ordnance shot 
oif by the greatest ship, tack about, ; 
we tacked with them ; when the cap- 
tain of this ship faithfully protested 
unto me not to shoot a piece of ord- 
nance till we came board and board, 
and then I promised him, with our 
small shot, to win the greatest or lose 
our persons. This we might have 
done without endangering Her Ma- 
jesty's ships ; but our eiieni} 7 , playing 
upon us with their ordnance, made 
our gunners fall to it ere we were at 
musket shot, and no nearer could I 
bring them, though I had no hope to 
take any of them but by boarding. 
Here we popped away powder and 
shot to no purpose, for most of our 
gunners would hardly have stricken 
Paul's steeple had it stood there. I 
am a young seaman, yet my small 
judgment and knowledge make me 
avow, that never ship of Her Majesty's 
went so vilely manned out of her 
kingdom ; not twenty of them worthy 
to come into her ships ; and I know 
not what had possessed the captain, 
but his mind was clean altered, tell- 
ing me that he had no authority to 
lay any ship aboard, whereby he 
might endanger this, Her Majesty's ; 



and they being, as he said, the King's 
men of war, they would rather fire with 
us than be taken., _Had I been a mer- 
chant of her burthen (God favouring 
me) they would have been mine, as 
many as stood to the trial of their 
fortune ; but the paltry Pegasie we 
lately met withal never came near us 
by a league, which was some colour to 



83 

our men to give them over. So after 
I had endeavoured, by myself, my 
lieutenant, and other gentlemen, by 
persuasion, to work the captain reso- 
lutely to attempt them, and finding 
no disposition in him but to consume 
powder and shot to no purpose but 
firing it in the air, I yielded to give 
them over, persuading myself that 
God had even ordained that we should 
not, with any nature, attempt where 
we were resisted with never so weak 
forces. Thus away we went, and the 
wind chopping us southerly, our sea- 
men held that our fleet could neither 
ride at Corrientes nor at Saint Antonio, 
which made me condescend to leave 
the Indies, with all their treasure, 
and to ply the next course to disem- 
bogue, for little hope Avas left me that 
we should do Her Majesty any ser- 
vice, or good to ourselves, when, upon 
the feigned excuse of endangering her 
ships which she sent forth to fight if 
occasion were offered ; and to persuade 
myself that Her Majesty prizeth not 
her ships dearer than the lives of so 
many faithful subjects, who gladly 
would have ventured their lives, and 
upon no brain-sick humour, but from 
a true desire to do Her Highness some 
service for the charge and adventure 
she had been at in this glorious spoken- 
of j ourney. Fortune's child was dead, 
things would not fall into our mouths, 
nor riches be our portions, how dearly 
soever we ventured for them. Thus 
avoiding Scylla (after the proverb) we 
fell into Charybdis, and indeed we were 
not now far from it. 

Our master, a careful old man, but 
not experienced upon these coasts, 
rather following the advice of others 
than relying on his own judgment, 
brought us, on the 12th three hours 
before day, into a very shallow water, 
upon a dangerous bank, which some 



held to be the Meltilettes, others the 
Tortugas, either like enough to have 
swallowed us, had not God blessed us 
with fair weather. Freeing ourselves 
of this danger, upon Monday thejl 5th 
of March we entered the Gulf, and by 
ten of the clock we brought the Cape 
of Florida west of us. On the 17th 
(the Lord be thanked) we were dis- 



84 

embogued. After tins we ran with 
most foul weather and contrary winds 
till the 1st of May, when we had 
soundings in ninety fathoms, being 
in the Channel, and on the 3d we had 
sight of Scilly ; the which day, ere 
night we came to anchor (the Lord be 
therefore praised) 1596. 

To give mine opinion of the Indies, 
I verily think that filching men-of- 
war shall do more good, than such a 
fleet if they have any forewarning of 
their coming. And unless Her Ma- 
jesty will undertake so royally as to 
dispossess him of the lands of Puerto 
Ilico, Hispaniola, and Cuba, her 
charge will be greater in sending 
thither, than the profit such a ileet 
can return ; for having but a few 
days' warning, it is easy for them to 
convey their goods into assured safety, 
as experience hath taught us. Their 
towns they dare not redeem, being 
enjoined the contrary by the King's 
commandment. These places will be 
taken and possessed by two thousand 
men ; and by this Her Majesty might 
debar the King of Spain of his whole 
profit of the Indies ; and the first 
gaining them will return her a suift- 
cient requital for her adventure. God 
grant I may live to see such an enter- 
prise put in practice ; and the King 
of Spain will speedily fly to what 
conditions of peace Her Majesty will 
require. 

Thus I have truly set dowii the 



DRAKE'S LAST VOYAGE. [1596. 

whole discourse of our voyage, using 
therein many idle words and ill-com- 
pared sentences. It was done on the 
sea, which I think can alter any dis- 
position. Your loves, I think, can 
pardon these faults, and secrete them 
from the view of others. 

The 1st of March the fleet fell in 
with the Island of Finos, on the land 
of Cuba, which day they had sight of 
the Spanish fleet by eleven of the 
clock ; where Sir Thomas Baskerville 
gave directions for the fleet as thus : 
the Garland, being Admiral, with one 
half of the fleet, to have the van- 
guard ; the Hope, being Vice-admiral, 
with the other half, the rearward. 
The fight continued fiercely three 
hours within musket-shot. That 
night they saw the Spanish Vice- 
admiral, a ship of seven hundred 
tons, burnt, witli other six lost and 
sunk by the next morning, when they 
departed. The Hope received a leak 
and was forced to go from the fleet to 
an island, called Saint Crusado, inha- 
bited by cannibals, where they had 
store of hens and Indian wheat for 
nine weeks. March 8th, the fleet 
shot the Gulf and came for England, 
leaving Florida on the starboard side ; 
and when they came to the Enchanted 
Islands 1 they were dispersed, and 
came home one by one. 

THOMAS MAYNARDE. 



1 The Azores. 



ZKD OF DRAKE'S LAST VOYAG& 



DAMPIER'S 

VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 
16791691. 



THE AUTHOK'S ACCOUNT OF HIMSELF. 



[The Second Edition of Dampier's 
" Voyage Eound the Terrestrial Globe " 
appeared in two volumes ; the first 
containing the Circumnavigation 
proper, the second occupied by three 
Appendices, to which frequent refer- 
ences were made in the chief recital. 
These Appendices bore the following 
titles: I. "A Supplement of the 
Voyage round the World," being a 
fuller account of the Author's voyag- 
ings and observations during the time 
he spent in the East Indies between 
his arrival there in 1686 and his de- 
parture for England in 1691. II. 
"Two Voyages to Campeachy," nar- 
rating Dampier's experiences among 
the logwood cutters in the Bay of 
Campeachy between 1675 and 1678, 
and describing the western and south- 
western coast of the Caribbean Sea. 
III. "A Discourse of Trade Winds, 
Breezes, Storms, Seasons of the Year, 
Tides, and Currents of the Torrid 
Zone," entirely meteorological and 
professional. In the second Appendix 
the Author gives an account of him- 
self fuller than any that we have from 
other sources ; and, both from their 
autobiographical interest, and from 
the direct way in which they lead up 
to the greater subject, the main per- 
sonal incidents of the Campeachy 
Voyages are here prefixed to the 
"Voyage Round the World."] 

MY friends did not originally design 
me for the sea, but bred rte at school 
till I came to years fit for a trade. 1 
But upon the death of my father and 
mother, they who had the disposal 
of me took other measures ; and hav- 
ing removed me from the Latin school 
to learn writing and arithmetic, they 
soon after placed me with a master of 



Dampier was born in 1652. 



a ship at Weyinouth, 2 complying 
with the inclinations I had very early 
of seeing the world. With him I 
made a short voyage to France ; and, 
returning thence, went to Newfound- 
land, being then about eighteen years 
of age. In this voyage I spent one 
summer, but [was] so pinched with 
the rigour of that cold climate, that 
upon my return I was absolutely 
against going to those parts of the 
world, but went home again to my 
friends. Yet going up, a while after 
to London, the offer of a warm voyage 
and a long one, both which I always 
desired, soon carried me to sea again. 
For hearing of an outward-bound East 
Indiaman, the John and Martha of 
London, I entered myself aboard, and 
was employed before the mast, for 
which my two former voyages had 
some way qualified me. We went 
directly for Bantam in the Isle of 
Java, and staying there about two 
months, came home again in little 
more than a year ; touching at San- 
tiago of the Cape Verd Islands at our 
going out, and at Ascension in our 
return. In this voyage I gained more 
experience in navigation, but kept 
no journal. We arrived at Plymouth 
about two months before Sir Robert 
Holms went out to fall upon the 
Dutch Smyrna fleet ; and the second 
Dutch War breaking out upon this, 
I forebore going to sea that summer, 
retiring to my brother in Somerset- 
shire. But growing weary of staying 
ashore, I listed myself on board the 
Royal Prince, commanded by Sir 
Edward Spragge, and served under 
him in the year 1673, being the last 
of the Dutch War. We had three 
engagements that summer ; I was in 
two of them, but falling very sick, I 



2 About 1669. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. [1669-74. 



88 

was put on board an hospital ship, a 
day or two before the third engage- 
ment, seeing it at a distance only ; and 
in this Sir Edward Spragge was killed. 
Soon after I was sent to Harwich, with 
the rest of the sick and wounded ; and 
having languished a great while, I 
went home to my brother to recover 
my health. By this time the war 
with the Dutch was concluded ; and 
with my health I recovered my old 
inclination for the sea. A neighbour- 
ing gentleman, Colonel Hellier of 
East Coker in Somersetshire, my 
native parish, made uie a seasonable 
offer to go and manage a plantation 
of his in Jamaica, under one Mr 
"VVhalley : for which place I set out 
with Captain Kent in the Content of 
London. J was then about twenty- 
two years old, and had never been in 
the West Indies ; and therefore, lest 
I might be trepanned and sold as a 
servant after my arrival in Jamaica, 
I agreed with Captain Kent to work 
as a seaman for my passage, and had 
it under his hand to be cleared at our 
first arrival. We sailed out of the River 
Thames in the beginning of the year 
1674, and, meeting with favourable 
winds, in a short time got into the 
trade-wind and went merrily along, 
steering for the Island of Barbadoes. 
When we came in sight of it Captain 
Kent told his passengers, if they 
would pay his port charges he would 
anchor in the road, and stop whilst 
they got refreshment ; but the mer- 
chants not caring to part with their 
money, he bore away, directing his 



course towards Jamaica, 
where we arrived, 



bringing 



with us the first news they had of 
the peace with the Dutch. Here, 
according to my contract, I was im- 
mediately discharged ; and the next 
day I went to the Spanish Town, 
called Santiago de la Vega ; where 
meeting with Mr Whalley, we went 
together to Colonel Hellier' s planta- 
tion in Sixteen-Mile Walk. . . . 
I lived with Mr Whalley at Sixteen- 
Mile Walk for almost six months, 
and then entered myself into the 
service of one Captain Heming, to 
manage his plantation at St Ann's, 



on the north side of the Island, and 
accordingly rode from Santiago de la 
Vega towards St Ann's. This road 
has but sorry accommodation for 
travellers. The first night I lay at 
a poor hunter's hut, at the foot of 
Mount Diabolo [Devil's Mountain], 
on the south side of it, where for 
want of clothes to cover me in the 
night I was very cold when the land 



wind sprang up. 



The next 



day, crossing Mount Diabolo, I got a 
hard lodging at the foot of it on the 
north side ; and the third day after 
arrived at Captain Heming' s planta- 
tion. I was clearly out of my element 
there ; and therefore, as soon as Cap- 
tain Heming came thither, I disen- 
gaged myself from him, and took my 
passage on board a sloop to Port 
Royal, with one Mr Statham, who 
used to trade round the Island, and 
touched there at that time. From 
Port Royal I sailed with one Mr 
Fishook, who traded to the north 
side of the Island, and sometimes 
round it ; and by these coasting 
voyages I came acquainted with all 
the ports and bays about Jamaica, as 
also with the benefit of the land and 
sea winds. For our business was to 
bring goods to, or carry them from 
planters to Port Royal ; and we were 
always entertained civilly by them, 
both in their houses and plantations, 
having liberty to walk about and 
view them. They gave us also plan- 
tains, yams, potatoes, &c., to carry 
aboard with us; on which we fed 
commonly all our voyage. But after 
six or seven months I left that employ 
also, and shipped myself aboard one 
Captain Hudswell, who was bound to 
the Bay of Campeachy to load logwood. 
We sailed from Port Royal about the 
beginning of August, in 1675, in 
company with Captain Wren in a 
small Jamaica bark, and Captain 
Johnson, commander of a ketch be- 
longing to New England. This 
voyage is all the way before the 
wind, and therefore ships commonly 
sail it in twelve or fourteen days : 
neither were we longer in our pas- 
sage ; for we had very fair weather, 
and touched nowhere till we came to 



1675.] CUTTING LOGWOOD IN CAMPEACIIY BAY. 



Trist Island, in the Bay of Campeachy, 
which is the only place they go to. 
. . . Trist is the road only for 
big ships. Smaller vessels that draw 
but a little water run three leagues 
farther, by crossing over a great 
lagoon that runs from the island up 
into the mainland ; where they anchor 
at a place called One Bush Key. "We 
stayed at Trist three days to fill our 
water, and then with our two consorts 
sailed thence with the tide of flood ; 
and the same tide arrived there. 
This Key is not above forty paces 
long, and five or six broad, having 
only a little crooked tree growing on 
it, and for that reason it is culled 
One Bush Key. . . . [It] is 
about a mile Irom the shore ; and 
just against the island is a small 
creek that runs a mile farther, and 
then opens into another wide lagoon ; 
and through this creek the logwood 
is brought to the ships riding at the 
Key. . . . Here we lay to take 
in our lading. Our cargo to purchase 
logwood was rum and sugar ; a very 
good commodity for the logwood 
cutters, who were then about 250 
men, most English, that had settled 
themselves in several places here- 
abouts. Neither was it long before 
we had these merchants come aboard 
to visit us. \Ve were but six men 
and a boy in the ship, and all little 
enough to entertain them ; for be- 
sides what rum we sold by the gallon 
or firkin, we sold it made into punch, 
wherewith they grew frolicsome. "We 
had none but small arms to fire at 
their drinking healths, and therefore 
the noise was not very great at a dis- 
tance - r but on board the vessels we 
were loud enough till all our liquor 
was spent. "We took no money for 
it, nor expected any ; for logwood 
was what we came hither for, and we 
had of that in lieu of our commodi- 
ties after the rate of 5 per ton, to be 
paid at the place where they cut it ; 
and we went with our long boat to 
fetch small quantities. But because 
it would have taken up along time to 
load our vessel with our own boat 
only, we hired a periago of the log- 
wood cutters, to bring it on board, 



89 

and by that means made the quicker 
despatch. 1 made two or three trips 
to their huts, where I and those with 
me were always very kindly enter- 
tained by them with pork and pease, 
or beef and dough-boys. Their beef 
they got by hunting in the savannahs. 
As long as the liquor lasted which 
they bought of us, we were treated 
with it, either in drams or punch. 
It was the latter end of 
September 1675, when we sailed from 
One Bush Key with the tide of ebb, 
and anchored again at Trist that same 
tide ; where we watered our vessel in 
order to sail. This we accomplished 
in two days, and the third day sailed 
from Trist towards Jamaica. A voyage 
which proved very tedious and hazard- 
ous to us, by reason of our ship's 
being so sluggish a sailer that she 
would not ply to windward, whereby 
we were necessarily driven upon several 
shoals that otherwise we might have 
avoided, and forced to spend thirteen 
weeks incur passage, [which] is usually 
accomplished in half that time. 

[Dampier gives a long and particu- 
lar account of the voyage to Jamaica, 
with descriptions of the Alacranes 
Islands or Reefs on which the ship 
struck, and the Island of Pines, near 
Cuba, on which the crew landed in 
pursuit of food. After narrowly es- 
caping capture by the Spaniards, 
shipwreck, and death by starvation, 
the mountains of Jamaica were sight- 
ed, and the ship anchored at Negril. ] 

As soon as we came to anchor, we 
sent our boat ashore to buy provisions 
to regale ourselves, after our long 
fatigue and fasting, and were very 
busy going to drink a bowl of punch ; 
when unexpectedly Captain Rawlings, 
commander of a small New England 
vessel that we left at Trist, and Mr 
John Hooker, who had been in the 
Bay [of Campeachy] a twelvemonth 
cutting logwood, and was now com- 
ing up to Jamaica to sell it, came 
aboard, and were invited into the 
cabin to drink with us. The bowl 
had not yet been touched (I think 
there might be six quarts in it), but 
Mr Hooker being drunk to by Captain 
Rawlings, who pledged Captain Hud- 



90 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



swell, and having the bowl in his 
hand, said, that he was under an oath 
to drink but three draughts of strong 
liquor a day ; and putting the bowl 
to his head, turned it off at one 
draught, and so making himself 
drunk, disappointed us of our expecta- 
tions, till we made another bowl. 
The next day, having a brisk NW. 
wind, ... we arrived at Port 
Royal, and so ended this troublesome 
voyage. It was not long after our 
arrival at Port Royal, before we were 
paid off, and discharged. Now, Cap- 
tain Johnson of New England being 
bound again into the Bay of Cam- 
peachy, I took the opportunity of go- 
ing a passenger with him, being re- 
solved to spend some time at the log- 
wood trade ; and accordingly provided 
such necessaries as were required 
about it, viz., hatchets, axes, 
macheats 1 (i.e., long knives), saws, 
wedges, &c., a pavilion to sleep in, a 
gun, with powder and shot, &c. And 
leaving a letter of attorney with Mi- 
Fleming, a merchant of Port Royal, 
as well to dispose of anything that I 
should send up to him, as to remit to 
me what I should order, I took leave 
of my friends, and embarked. About 
the middle of February 1675-6 we 
sailed from Jamaica, and with a fair 
wind and weather soon got as far as 
Cape Catoche and there met a pretty 
strong north, which lasted two days. 
After that the trade [wind] settled 
again at ENE., which speedily carried 
us to Trist Island. In a little time I 
settled myself in the west creek of the 
west lagoon with some old logwood 
cutters, to follow the employment 
with them. 

[Dam pier here suspends "the re- 
lation of his own affairs," to give a 
long description of the coast and 
country bordering on the Bay of Cam- 
peachy, with its natural products by 
land and sea ; and an account of the 
life and habits of the logwood cutters.] 

. . . The logwood trade was 
grown very common before I came 
hither, there being, as I said before, 



1 Spanish, ' ' machete, " a long knife, 
or cutlass. 



ROUND THE WORLD. [1675-76. 

about 260 or 270 men living in all 
the lagoon and at Beef Island. This 
trade had its rise from the decay 
of privateering ; for after Jamaica 
was well settled by the English, and 
a peace established with Spain, the 
Privateers, who had hitherto lived 
upon plundering the Spaniards, were 
put to their shifts ; for they had pro- 
digally spent whatever they got, and 
now wanting subsistence, were forced 
either to go to Petit Goave, 2 where 
the Privateer trade still continued, or 
into the Bay for logwood. The more 
industrious sort of them came hither ; 
yet even these, though they could 
work well enough if they pleased, 
yet thought it a dry business to toil 
at cutting wood. They were good 
marksmen, and so took more delight 
in hunting ; but neither of these em- 
ployments affected them 3 so much as 
privateering ; therefore they often 
made sallies out in small parties 
among the nearest Indian towns, 
where they plundered, and brought 
away the Indian women to serve 
them at their huts, and sent their 
husbands to be sold at Jamaica. 
Besides, they had not their old drink- 
ing-bouts forgot, and would still 
spend 30 or 40 at a sitting aboard 
the ships that came hither from 
Jamaica, carousing and firing off guns 
three or four days together. And 
though afterwards many sober men 
came into the Bay to cut wood, yet 
by degrees the old standers so de- 
bauched them, that they could never 
settle themselves under any civil 
government, but continued in their 
wickedness till the Spaniards, en- 
couraged by their careless rioting, 
fell upon them, and took most of 
them singly at their own huts, and 
carried them away prisoners to Cam- 
peachy or La Vera Cruz ; from whence 
they were sent to Mexico, and sold 
to several tradesmen in that city ; 
and from thence, after two or three 
years, when they could speak Spanish, 
many of them made their escapes, 

2 See page 166. 

3 They affected, or relished, neither 
of these employments. 



1676.] MANNER OF CUTTING AND SHIPPING LOGWOOD. 91 



and marched in by paths back to La 
Vera Cruz, and [were] by the Flota 1 
conveyed to Spain, and so to England. 
I have spoken with many of them 
since, who told me that none of them 
were sent to the silver mines to work, 
but kept in or near the city, and 
never suffered to go with their cara- 
vans to New Mexico or that way. I 
relate this, because it is generally 
suggested that the Spaniards common- 
ly send their prisoners thither, and 
use them very barbarously ; but I 
could never learn that any European 
has been thus served ; whether for 
fear of discovering their weakness, or 
for any other reason, I know not. 
But to proceed : it is most certain 
that the logwood cutters that were 
in the Bay when I was there were 
all routed or taken ; a thing I ever 
feared ; and that was the reason 
that moved me at last to come away, 
although at a place where a man 
might have gotten an estate. 2 . . . 
Though I was a stranger to their em- 
ployment and manner of living, as 
being known but to those few only of 
whom we bought our wood in my 
former voyage hither, yet that little 
acquaintance I then got encouraged 
me to visit them after my second 
arrival here, being in hopes to strike 
in to work with them. There were 
six in compan} r , who had a hundred 
tons ready cut, logged, and chipped, 
but not brought to the creek's side ; 
and they expected a ship from New 
England in a month or two, to fetch 
it away. When I came thither they 
were beginning to bring it to the 
creek ; and because the carriage is the 
hardest work, they hired me to help 
them, at the rate of a ton of wood per 
month ; promising me that after this 
carriage was over I should strike in 
to work with them, for they were all 
obliged in bonds to procure this 100 
tons jointly together, but for no more. 



1 An explanation of the terms 
Armada and Flota will be found in 
Chapter VII. of the Voyage : see 
page 161 ; and the Flota is described 
on next page. 

2 Enriched himself. 



This wood lay all in the circumference 
of 500 or 600 yards, and about 300 
from the creek side, in the middle of 
a very thick wood, impassable with 
burthens. The first thing we did 
was to bring it all to one place in the 
middle ; and from thence we cut a 
very large 3 path to carry it to the 
creek's side. We laboured hard at 
this work five days in the week, and 
on Saturdays went into the savannahs 
and killed beeves. . . . When 
my month's service was up, in which 
time we brought down all the wood 
to the creek's side, I was presently 
paid my ton of logwood ; with which, 
and some more that I borrowed, I 
bought a little provision, and was 
afterwards entertained as a companion 
at work with some of my former 
masters ; for they presently broke up 
consortships, letting the wood lie 
till either Mr West came to fetch it, 
according to his contract, or else till 
they should otherwise dispose of it. 
Some of them immediately went to 
Beef Island, to kill bullocks for their 
hides, which they preserve. . . . 
I was yet a stranger to this work, 
therefore remained with three of the 
old crew to cut more logwood. . . . 
[By and by, two of the company, 
Scotsmen, get tired of the work and 
go away, the third a Welshman, 
Price Morris by name, though the 
author calls him a Scotsman also 
proves lazy and self-indulgent; and 
Dampier "keeps to his work by him- 
self." He is hindered, however, by 
a growth of worms in his leg ; after- 
ward a great storm makes the region 
so uninhabitable, that with some 
other cutters he takes his departure for 
One Bush Key, and finding little aid 
from the ships there, themselves suffi- 
ciently distressed, goes to Beef Island, 
to hunt cattle for the sake of their 
hides. Dampier describes very min- 
utely the features, peoples, and pro- 
ducts of the southern and western 
coasts of the Bay of Campeachy ; in- 
cidentally, in his mention of Vera 
Cruz, giving the following account of 
the Spanish West Indian squadrons :] 



Broad. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [1676-79. 
wounded in taking the fort ; being 
four or five hours engaged in that 
', in which time the inhabitants, 



92 

The Flota comes hither every three 
years from Old Spain ; and besides 
goods of the product of the country, 
and what is brought from the East 
Indies [across New Spain from the 
port of Neapulco] and shipped aboard 
them, the King's plate that is gathered 
in this kingdom, together with what 
belongs to the merchants, amounts to 
a vast sum. Here also comes every 
year the Barralaventa Fleet in Octo- 
ber or November, and stays till 
March. This is a small squadron, 
consisting of six or seven sail of stout 
ships, from 20 to 50 guns. These are 
ordered to visit all the Spanish sea- 
port towns once every year, chiefly to 
hinder foreigners from trading, and to 
suppress Privateers. ... If they 
meet with any English or Dutch trad- 
ing-sloops, they chase and take them, 
if they are not too nimble for them ; 
the Privateers keep out of their way, 
having always intelligence where they 
are. 

[The personal narrative is resumed 
and concluded thus : ] 

The account I have given of the 
Campeachy rivers, &c., was the result 
of the particular observations I made 
in cruising about that coast, in which 
I spent eleven or twelve months. For 
when the violent storm before-men- 
tioned took us, I was but just settling 
to work ; and not having a stock of 
wood to purchase such provision as 
was sent from Jamaica, as the old 
standards had, I, with many more in 
my circumstances, was forced to range 
about to seek a subsistence in company 
of some Privateers then in the Bay. 
In which rambles we visited all the 
rivers, from Trist to Alvarado ; and 
made many descents into the country 
among the villages there, where we 
got Indian corn to eat with the beef 
and other flesh that we got by the way, 
or manatee, 1 and turtle, which was 
also a great support to us. Alvarado 
was the westernmost place I was at. 
Thither we went in two barks with 
thirty men in each, and had ten or 
eleven men killed and desperately 

1 Described in Voyage, Chapter III. 



having plenty of boats and canoes, 
carried all their riches and best mov- 
ables away. It was after sunset before 
the fort yielded ; and growing dark, 
we could not pursue them, but rested 
quietly that nig] it ; the next day we 
killed, salted, and sent aboard twenty 
or thirty beeves, and a good quantity 
of salt tish, and Indian corn, as much 
as we could stow away. Here were 
but few hogs, and those ate very fishy ; 
therefore we did not much esteem 
them, but of cocks, hens, and ducks 
were sent aboard in abundance. . . . 
So that, with provision chests, hen- 
coops, and parrot-cages, our ships were 
full of lumber, with which we intend- 
ed to sail ; but the second day after 
we took the fort, having had a west- 
erly wind all the morning, with rain, 
seven armadilloes that were sent from 
La Vera Cruz appeared in sight, 
within a mile of the bar, coming in 
with, full sail. But they could scarce 
stem the current of the river ; which 
was very well for us, for we were not 
a little surprised. Yet we got under 
sail, in order to meet them ; and clear- 
ing our decks by heaving all the lum- 
ber overboard, we drove out over the 
bar, before they reached it : but they 
being to windward, forced us to ex- 
change a few shot with them. Their 
admiral was called the Toro ; she had 
10 guns and 100 men ; another had 
4 guns and 80 men : the rest, having 
no great guns, had only 60 or 70 men 
a piece, armed with muskets, and the 
vessels barricaded round with bull- 
hides breast high. We had not above 
50 men in both ships, 6 guns in one 
and 2 in the other. As soon as we 
were over the bar, we got our larboard 
tacks aboard and stood to the east- 
ward, as nigh the wind as we could 
lie. The Spaniards came away quar- 
tering on us ; and, our ship being the 
headmost, the Toro came directly to- 
wards us, designing to board us. We 
kept firing at her, in hopes to have 
lamed either mast or yard ; but fail- 
ing, just as she was sheering aboard, 
we gave her a good volley, and pre- 



1676-79.] THE EPISTLE 

sently clapped the helm a-weather, 
wore our ship, and got our starboard 
tacks aboard, and stood to the west- 
ward : and so left the Toro, but were 
saluted by all the small craft as we pass- 
ed by them, who stood to the eastward, 
after the Toro, that was now in pur- 
suit [of] and close by our consort. We 
stood to the westward till we were 
against the river's mouth ; then we 
tacked, and by the help of a current 
that came out of the river, we were 
near a mile to windward of them all : 
then we made sail to assist our con- 
sort, who was hard put to it ; but on 
our approach the Toro edged away to- 
wards the shore, as did all the rest, 
and stood away for Alvarado ; and we, 
glad of the deliverance, went away to 
the eastward, and visited all the rivers 
in our return again to Trist. . . . And 
now the effects of the late storm being 
almost forgot, the lagoon men settled 
again to their employments j and I 



DEDICATORY. 



93 



amongst the rest fell to work in the 
east lagoon, where I remained till my 
departure for Jamaica. . . . After 
I had spent about ten or twelve months 
at the logwood trade, and was grown 
pretty well acquainted with the way 
of traffic here, I left the employment ; 
yet with a design to return hither 
after I had been in England ; and 
accordingly went from hence with 
Captain Chambers of London, bound 
to Jamaica. We sailed from Trist 
the beginning of April 1678, and 
arrived at Jamaica in May, where I 
remained a small time, and then re- 
turned for England with Captain 
Loader of London. I arrived there 
the beginning of August the same 
year ; and at the beginning of the 
following year I set out again for 
Jamaica, in order to have gone thence 
to Cam peachy : but it proved to be a 
Voyage round the World. . . . 



ME WILLIAM DAMPIER'S 

VOYAGE EOUND THE TEEEESTEIAL GLOBE. 



THE EPISTLE DEDICATORY. 

To THE RIGHT HONOURABLE 
CHARLES MOUNTAGUE, ESQ., 

President of the Royal Society, One of the 
Lords Commissioners of the Treasury, <tc. 

SIR, May it please you to pardon 
the boldness of a stranger to your 
person, if upon the encouragement of 
common fame he presumes so much 
upon your candour, as to lay before 
you this Account of his Travels. As 
the scene of them is not only remote, 
but for the most part little frequented 



also, so there may be some things in 
them new even to you, and some, 
possibly, not altogether unuseful to 
the public : And that just veneration 
which the world pays, as to your 
general worth, so especially to that 
zeal for the advancement of knowledge 
and the interest of your country which 
you express upon all occasions, gives 
you a particular right to whatever 
may any way tend to the promoting 
these interests, as an offering due to 
your merit. I have not so much of 
the vanity of a traveller, as to be 
fond of telling stories esDecially of 



94 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 

this kind ; nor can I think this plain 
piece of mine deserves a place among 
your more curious collections, much 
less have I the arrogance to use your 
name by way of patronage for the too 
obvious faults both of the Author and 
the Work. Yet dare I avow, accord- 
ing to my narrow sphere and poor 
abilities, a heavy zeal for the promot- 
ing of useful knowledge, and of any- 
thing that may never so remotely 
tend to my country's advantage ; and 
I must own an ambition of transmit- 
ting to the public through your hands 
these essays I have made toward those 
great ends of which you are so deserv- 
edly esteemed the patron. This hath 
been my design in this publication, 
being desirous to bring in my glean- 
ings here and there in remote regions, 
to that general magazine of the know- 
ledge of foreign parts which the Eoyal 
Society thought you most worthy the 
custody of when they chose you for 
their President; and if in perusing 
these papers your goodness shall so 
far distinguish the experience of the 
Author from his faults, as to judge 
him capable of serving his country 
either immediately, or by serving 
you, he will endeavour by some real 
proofs to show himself, 

Sir, Your most Faithful, 

Devoted, Humble Servant, 
W. DAMPIEE. 



THE PREFACE. 

BEFORE the Reader proceeds any 
further in the perusal of this Work, 
I must bespeak a little of his patience 
here, to take along with him this short 
account of it. It is composed of a 
mixed relation of places and actions, 
In the same order of time in which 



ROUND THE WORLD. 

they occurred ; for which end I kept 
a Journal of every day's observations. 

In the description of places, their 
produce, &c., I have endeavoured to 
give what satisfaction I could to my 
countrymen ; though possibly to the 
describing several things that may 
have been much better accounted for 
by others ; choosing to be more parti- 
cular than might be needful with 
respect to the intelligent Reader, 
rather than to omit what I thought 
might tend to the information of per- 
sons no less sensible and inquisitive, 
though not so learned or experienced. 
For which reason my chief care hath 
been to be as particular as was consist- 
ent with my intended brevity in set- 
ting down such observables l as I met 
with, nor have I given myself any 
great trouble since my return to com- 
pare my discoveries with those of 
others ; the rather, because, should it 
so happen that I have described some 
places or things which others have done 
before me, yet in different accounts, 
even of the same things, it can hardly 
be but there will be some new light 
afforded by each of them. But after 
all, considering that the main of this 
voyage hath its scene laid in long 
tracts of the remoter parts both of the 
East and West Indies, some of which 
are very seldom visited by English- 
men, and others as rarely by any 
Europeans, I may without vanity en- 
courage the Reader to expect many 
things wholly new to him, and many 
others more fully described than lie 
may have seen elsewhere ; for which 
not only this Voyage, though itself 
of many years' continuance, but also 
several former long and distant voy- 
ages, have qualified me. 

As for the actions of the company 
among whom I made the greatest part 
of this Voyage, a thread of which I 
have carried on through it, it is not to 
divert the Reader with them that I 
mention them, much less that I take 
any pleasure in relating them, but for 
method's sake, andfortheReader'ssatis- 
faction, who could not so well acquiesce 
in my description of places, &c., without 



1 Notable things or incidents. 



AUTHOR'S PREFACE AND INTRODUCTION". 



95 



knowing the particular traverses I 
made among them ; nor in these, 
without an account of the concomitant 
circumstances ; "besides that I would 
not prejudice the truth and sincerity 
of my relation, though by omissions 
only. And as for the traverses them- 
selves, they make for the Reader's 
advantage, how little soever for mine, 
since thereby I have been the better 
enabled to gratify his curiosity ; as 
one who rambles about a country can 
give usually a better account of it, 
than a carrier who jogs on to his inn 
without ever going out of his road. 

As to my style, it cannot be ex- 
pected that a seaman should affect po- 
liteness ; for were I able to do it, > et I 
think I should be little solicitous about 
It in a work of this nature. I have fre- 
quently indeed divested myself of sea- 
phrases to gratify the land Reader ; for 
which the seamen will hardly forgive 
me ; and yet possibly I shall not seem 
complacent enough to the other ; be- 
cause I still retain the use of so 
many sea-terms. I confess I have 
not been at x all scrupulous in this mat- 
ter, either as to the one or the other 
of these ; for I am persuaded, that if 
what I say be intelligible, it matters not 
greatly in what words it is expressed. 

For the same reason I have not 
been curious as to the spelling of the 
names of places, plants, fruits, animals, 
&c., which in many of these remoter 
parts are given at the pleasure of tra- 
vellers, and vary according to their 
different humours : neither have I 
confined myself to such names as are 
given by learned authors, or so much 
as inquired after many of them. I 
write for my countrymen ; and have 
therefore for the most part used such 
names as are familiar to our English 
seamen, and those of our colonies 
abroad, yet without neglecting others 
that occurred. And it may suffice me 
to have given such names and descrip- 
tions as I could : I shall leave to those 
of more leisure and opportunity the 
trouble of comparing these with 
those which other authors have de- 
signed. . . . x 



1 Two paragraphs are omitted here, 



I have nothing more to add, but 
that there are here and there some 
mistakes made, as to expression and 
the like, which will need a favourable 
correction as they occur upon reading. 
For instance, the log of wood lying 
out at some distance from [the] sides 
of the boats described at Guam, 2 and 
parallel to their keel, which for dis- 
tinction's sake I have called the little 
boat, might more clearly and properly 
have been called the side-log, or by 
some such name ; for though [it is] 
fashioned at the bottom and ends 
boatwise, yet [it] is not hollow at 
top, but solid throughout. In other 
places also I may not have expressed 
myself so fully as I ought : but any 
considerable omission that I shall re- 
collect, or be informed of, I shall en- 
deavour to make up in these accounts 
I have yet to publish ; and for any 
faults I leave the Reader to the joint 
use of his judgment and candour. 



THE INTRODUCTION. 

I FIRST set out of England on this 
voyage at the beginning of the year 
1679, in the Loyal Merchant of Lon- 
don, bound for Jamaica, Captain 
Knapman, commander. I went a 
passenger, designing when I came 
thither to go from thence to the Bay 
of Campeachy, in the Gulf of Mexico, 
to cut logwood ; where in a former 
voyage I had spent about three years 
in that employ, and so was well ac- 
quainted with the place and the 
work. "We sailed with a prosperous 
gale, without any impediment or re- 
markable passage in our voyage : un- 
less that, when we came in sight of 
the Island of Hispaniola, and were 
coasting along on the south side of it. 
by the little Isles of Vacca, or Ash, 3 I 



which refer to the Appendices already 
noticed, and to the "maps and 
draughts" that illustrated the earlier 
editions of the work. 

2 Chapter X. ' 

3 La Vache is a small island at the 
south-west end of Hayti ; in Dam- 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. 



observed Captain Knapman was more 
vigilant thaa ordinary, keeping at a 
good distance off shore, for fear of com- 
ing too near those small low islands ; as 
he did once, in a voyage from England, 
about the year 1673, losing his ship 
there by the carelessness of his mates. 
But we succeeded better, and arrived 
safe at Port Royal in Jamaica some 
time in April 1679, and went im- 
mediately ashore. I had brought 
some goods with me from England 
which I intended to sell here, and 
stock myself with rum and sugar, 
saws, axes, hats, stockings, shoes, 
and such other commodities as I 
knew would sell among the Cam- 
peachy logwood cutters. According- 
ly I sold my English cargo at Port 
Royal ; but upon some maturer con- 
siderations of my intended voyage to 
Campeach > y, I changed my thoughts 
of that design, and continued at 
Jamaica all that year, in expectation 
of some other business. 

I shall not trouble the Reader with 
my observations at that isle, so well 
known to Englishmen ; nor with the 
particulars of my own affairs during 
my stay there. But in short, having 
there made a purchase of a small 
estate in Dorsetshire, near my native 
country of Somerset, of one whose 
title to it I was well assured of, I 
was just embarking myself for Eng- 
land, about Christmas 1679, when 
one Mr Hobby invited me to go first 
a short trading voyage to the country 
of the Mosquitoes. I was willing to 
get up some money before my return, 
having laid out what I had at Jamaica ; 
so I sent the writing of my new pur- 
chase along with the same friends 
whom I should have accompanied to 
England, and went on board Mr 
Hobby. Soon after our setting out, 
we came to an anchor again in Negril 
Bay, at the west end of Jamaica ; but 
finding there Captains Coxon, Sawkins, 
Sharpe, and other Privateers, Mi- 
Hobby's men all left him to go with 
them upon an expedition they had 
contrived, leaving not one with him 



pier's time called "Ash " by English 



[1C79. 

besides myself; and being thus left 
alone, after three or four days' st*y 
with Mr Hobby, I was the more easily 
persuaded to go with them too. 

It was shortly after Christmas 1679 
when we set out. The first expedi- 
tion was to PortobellOj which being 
accomplished, it was resolved to 
march by land over the Isthmus of 
Darien, upon some new adventures in 
the South Seas. Accordingly, on the 
5th of April 1680, we went ashore on 
the Isthmus, near Golden Island, one 
of the Sambaloes, 1 to the number of be- 
tween 300 and 400 men, carrying with us 
such provisions as were necessary, and 
toys wherewith to gratify the wild 
Indians through whose country we 
were to pass. In about nine days' 
march we arrived at Santa Maria, and 
took it ; and after a stay there of 
about three days, we went on to the 
South Sea coast, and there embarked 
ourselves in such canoes and 
periagoes, 2 as our Indian friends fur- 
nished us withal. We were in sight 
of Panama by the 23d of April, and 
having in vain attempted Pueblo 
Nuevo, before which Sawkins, then 
commander-in-chief, and others, were 
killed, we made some stay at the 
neighbouring Isles of Quibo. Here 
we resolved to change our course and 
stand away to the southward for the 
coast of Peru. Accordingly we left 
the Keys or Isles of Quibo the 6th of 
June, and spent the rest of the year 
in that southern course ; for, touch- 
ing at the isles of Gorgona and Plata, 
we came to Ylo, a small town on the 
coast of Peru, and took it. This 
was in October, and in November we 
went thence to Coquimbo on the 
same, coast, and about Christmas were 
got as far as the Isle of Juan Fernan- 



acamen. 



1 Probably corresponding with 
what is now called the Muletas Archi- 
pelago, a number of small islands 
and rocks extending along the north- 
eastern coast of the Isthmus of 
Darien, from Point San Bias. 

2 Piroques ; large canoes made 
square at one of the ends ; called 
also "piraguas : " Italian, "piroga ; " 

j Spanish, "piragua." 



1681.] THE BUCCANEERS 

dez, which was the furthest of our 
course to the southward. After 
Christmas, we went back again to 
the northward, having a design upon 
Arica, a strong town advantageously 
situated in the hollow of the elbow 
or bending of the Peruvian coast. 
But being there repulsed with great 
loss, we continued our course north- 
ward, till by the middle of April we 
were come in sight of the Isle of 
Plata, a little to the southward of 
the Equinoctial Line. . . . 

While we lay at the Isle of Juan 
Fernandez, Captain Sharpe 1 was by 
general consent displaced from being 
commander, the company being Dot 
satisfied either with his courage or 
behaviour. In his stead, Captain 
Watling was advanced ; but, he being 
killed shortly after before Arica, we 
were without a commander during all 
the rest of our return towards Plata. 
Now, Watling being killed, a great 
number of the meaner sort began to 
be as earnest for choosing Captain 
Sharpe again into the vacancy, as be- 
fore they had been as forward as any to 
turn him out ; and, on the other side, 
the abler and more experienced men, 
being altogether dissatisfied with 
Sharpe's former conduct, would by 
no means consent to have him chosen. 
In short, by the time we were come 
in sight of the Island of Plata, the 
difference between the contending 
parties was grown so high, that they 
resolved to part companies, having 
first made an agreement, that which 
party soever should, upon polling, 
appear to have the majority, they 
should keep the ship, and the other 
should content themselves with the 
launch or longboat, and canoes, and 
return back over the Isthmus, or go 
to seek their fortune other ways, as 
they would. Accordingly, we put it 
to the vote, and, upon dividing, 
Captain Sharpe's party carried it. I, 
who had never been pleased with his 
management, though I had hitherto 
kept my mind to myself, now de- 



1 Who had been made chief in com- 
mand after Sawkins was killed at 
Pueblo Nuevo. 



PART COMPANY. 97 

clared myself on the side ot those 
that were outvoted ; and, according 
to our agreement, we took our shares 
of such necessaries as were fit to 
carry overland with us (for that was 
our resolution), and so prepared for 
our departure. 



CHAPTER I. 

APRIL the 17th, 1681, about 10 
o'clock in the morning, being twelve 
leagues NW. from the Island of Plata, 
we left Captain Sharpe and those who 
were willing to go with him in the 
ship, and embarked into our launch 
and canoes, designing for the River 
of Santa Maria, 2 in the Gulf of San 
Miguel, which is about 200 leagiics 
from the Isle of Plata, We were in 
number forty -four white men, who 
bore arms ; a Spanish Indian, who 
bore arms also ; and two Mosquito 
Indians, who always bare arms 
amongst the Privateers, and are much 
valued by them for striking fish and 
turtle, or tortoise, and manatee or 
sea-cow ; and five slaves taken in the 
South Seas, who fell to our share. 
The craft which carried us was a 
launch or longboat, one canoe, and 
another canoe which had been sawn 
asunder in the middle, in order to 
have made bumkins, or vessels for 
carrying water, if we had not se- 
parated from our ship. This we 
joined together again and made it 
tight, providing sails to help us along ; 
and for three days before we parted, 
we sifted as much flour as we could 
well carry, and rubbed up 20 or 30 Ibs. 
of chocolate, with sugar to sweeten 
it ; these things and a kettle the 
slaves carried also on their backs 
after we landed. And because there 
were some who designed to go with 
us that we knew were not well able 
to march, we gave out, that if any 
man faltered in the journey overland, 
he must expect to be shot to death ; 

2 Now, apparently, the Tuyra, 
which flows into the south-east cor- 
ner of the Gulf, 

G 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. I. 



for we knew that the Spaniards would 
soon be after us, and one man falling 
into their hands might be the ruin 
of us all, by giving an account of our 
strength and condition ; yet, this 
would not deter them from going 
with us. We had but little wind 
when we parted from the ship, but 
before 12 o'clock the sea breeze came 
in strong, which was like to founder 
us before we got in with the shore. 
For our security, therefore, we cut up 
an old dry hide that we brought with 
us, and barricaded the launch all 
round with it, to keep the water out. 
About 10 o'clock at night we got in 
about seven leagues to windward of 
Cape Pasado, under the Line, and 
then it proved calm, and we lay and 
drove all night, being fatigued the 
preceding day. The 18th we had 
little wind till the afternoon, and 
then we made sail, standing along 
the shore to the northward, having 
the wind at SSW. , and fair weather. 
At 7 o'clock we came abreast of Cape 
Pasado, and found a small bark at 
anchor in a small bay to leeward of 
the Cape, which we took, our own 
boats being too small to transport us. 
We took her just under the Equinoc- 
tial Line. She was not only a help 
to us, but in taking her we were safe 
from being described. We did not 
design to have meddled with any 
when we parted with our consorts, 
nor to have seen any if we could 
have helped it. The bark came from 
Gallo, laden with timber, and was 
bound for Guayaquil. The 19th, in 
the morning, we came to an anchor 
about twelve leagues to the southward 
of Cape San Francisco, to put our 
new bark into a better trim. In three 
or four hours' time we finished our 
business, and came to sail again, and 
steered along the coast with the wind 
at SSW., intending to touch at Gor- 
gona. 

Being to the northward of Cape 
San Francisco, we met with very wet 
weather ; but, the wind continuing, 
we arrived at Gorgona the 24th, in 
the morning, before it was light : we 
were afraid to approach it in the day- 
^time, for fear the Spaniards should 



lie there for us, it being the place 
where we careened lately, and where 
they might expect us. When we 
came ashore we found the Spaniards 
had been there to seek after us, by a 
house they had built which would 
entertain 100 men, and by a great 
cross before the doors. This was token 
enough that the Spaniards did ex- 
pect us this way again, therefore AVC 
examined our prisoners if they knew 
anything of it, who confessed they 
had heard of a periago, that rowed 
with fourteen oars, which was kept in 
a river on the main, and once in two 
or three days came over to Gorgona 
purposely to seek for us ; and that, 
having discovered us, she was to 
make all speed to Panama with the 
news, where they had three ships 
ready to send after us. We lay here 
all the day, and scrubbed our new 
bark, that if ever we should be chased 
we might the better escape ; we filled 
our water, and in the evening went 
from thence, having the wind at S W. , 
a brisk gale. The 25th we had much 
wind and rain, and we lost the canoe 
that had been cut and was joined to- 
gether ; we would have kept all our 
canoes to carry us up the river, the 
bark not being so convenient. The 
27th we went from thence with a 
moderate gale of wind at SW. In 
the afternoon we had excessive 
showers of rain. 

The 28th was very wet all the morn* 
ing ; betwixt ten and eleven it cleared 
up, and we saw two great ships about 
a league and a half to the westward 
of us, we being then two leagues from 
the shore, and about ten leagues to 
the southward of Point Garachina. 
These ships had been cruising be- 
tween Gorgona and the Gulf six 
months; but whether our prisoners 
did know it, I cannot tell. We pre- 
sently furled our sails, and rowed in 
close under the shore, knowing that 
they were cruisers. The glare did 
not continue long before it rained 
again, and kept us from the sight of 
each other ; but if they had seen and 
chased us, we were resolved to run 
our bark and canoes ashore, and take 
ourselves to the mountains and travel 



1681.] IN DANGER FROM 

overland, for we knew that the In- 
dians which lived in these parts never 
had any commerce with the Spaniards, 
so we might have had a chance for 
our lives. The 29th, at 9 o'clock in the 
morning, we came to an anchor at 
Point Garachina, about seven leagues 
from the Gulf of San Miguel, which 
was the place where we first came in- 
to the South Seas, and the way by 
which we designed to return. Here 
we lay all the day, and went ashore 
and dried our clothes, cleaned our 
guns, dried our ammunition, and 
fixed ourselves 1 against our enemies if 
we should be attacked ; for we did 
expect to find some opposition at 
landing ; we likewise kept a good 
lookout all the day, for fear of those 
two ships that we saw the day before. 
The 30th, in the morning at 8 o'clock, 
we came into the Gulf of San Miguel's 
mouth ; for we put from Point Gar- 
achina in the evening, designing to 
have reached the islands in the Gulf 
before day, that we might the better 
work our escape from our enemies, if 
we should find any of them waiting 
to stop our passage. About 9 o'clock 
we came to an anchor a mile without 
a large island, which lies four miles 
from the mouth of the river ; we had 
other small islands without us, and 
might have gone up into the river, 
having a strong 'tide of flood, but 
would not adventure farther till we 
had looked well about us. "We im- 
mediately sent a canoe ashore on the 
island, where we saw (what we always 
feared) a ship at the mouth of the 
river, lying close by the shore, and a 
large tent by it, by which we found 
it would be a hard task for us to 
escape them. When the canoe came 
aboard with this news, some of our 
men were a little disheartened ; but 
it was no more than I ever expected. 
- Our care was now to get safe over- 



1 Prepared ourselves, put ourselves 
in trim : the so-called Americanism 
"to fix," like other words now speci- 
ally used in the United States, having 
really its origin in a possibly 
technical or local English use of the 
word. 



THE SPANIARDS. 99 

land, seeing we could not land here 
according to our desire ; therefore, 
before the tide of flood was spent, we 
manned our canoe and rowed again 
to the island, to see if the enemy w r as 
yet in motion. When we came ashore 
we dispersed ourselves all over the 
island, to prevent our enemies from 
coming any way to view us ; and 
presently after high water, we saw a 
small canoe coming over from the 
ship to the island that we were on, 
which made us all get into our canoe 
and wait their coming j and we lay 
close till they came within pistol 
shot of us, and then, being ready, we 
started out and took them. There 
were in her one white man and two 
Indians, who, being examined, told 
us that the ship whicli we saw at the 
river's mouth had lain there six 
months guarding the river, waiting 
for our coming; that she had 12 
guns, and 150 seamen and soldiers ; 
that the seamen all lay aboard, but 
the soldiers lay ashore in their tent ; 
that there were 300 men at the mines, 
who had all small arms, and would 
be aboard in two tides' time. They 
likewise told us, that there were two 
ships cruising in the bay, between 
this place and Gorgona ; the biggest 
had 20 guns and 200 men ; the other 
10 guns and 150 men. Besides all 
this, they told us that the Indians on 
this side the country were our ene- 
mies, which was the worst news of 
all. However, we presently brought 
these prisoners aboard, and got under 
sail, turning out with the tide of ebb, 
for it was not convenient to stay 
longer there. We did not long con- 
sider what to do, but intended to 
land that night or the next day be- 
times ; for we did not question but 
we should either get a good com- 
merce with the Indians by such toys 
as we had purposely brought with us, 
or else force our way through their 
country in spite of all their opposi- 
tion ; and we did not fear what these 
Spaniards could do against us in case 
they should land and come after us. 
We had a strong southerly wind, 
which blew right in ; and the tide of 
ebb being far spent, we could not 



100 



DAMPIE7TS VOYAGE 



turn out. I persuaded 1 them to run 
into the River of Congo, which is a 
large river, about three leagues from 
the islands where we lay ; which, with 
a southerly wind, we could have done ; 
and when we were got as high as the 
tide flows, then we might have landed. 
But all the arguments I could use 
were not of force sufficient to con- 
vince them that there was a large 
river so near us ; but they would 
land somewhere, they neither did 
know how, where, nor when. "When 
we had rowed and towed against the 
wind all night, we just got about Cape 
San Lorenzo in the morning, and 
sailed about four miles farther to the 
westward, and ran into a small creek 
within two keys 2 or little islands, and 
rowed up to the head of the creek, being 
about a mile up, and there we landed, 
May 1st, 1681. We got out all our 
provision and clothes, and then sunk 
our vessel. While we were landing 
and fixing our snapsacks 3 to march, 
our Mosquito Indians struck a plenti- 
ful dish of fish, which we immedi- 
ately dressed, and therewith satisfied 
our hunger. 

Having made mention of the Mos- 
quito Indians, it may not be amiss to 
conclude this Chapter with a short 
account of them. They are tall, 
well made, rawboned, lusty, strong, 
and nimble of foot; long-visaged, 
lank black hair, look stern, hard- 
favoured, and of a dark copper- colour- 
ed complexion. They are but a small 
nation or family, and not 100 men of 
them in number, inhabiting on the 
main, on the north side, near Cape 
Cracias Dios, between Cape Honduras 



1 Advised. 

2 A key or cay (Latin, "cautes," 
a cliff; Spanish, "cayo;" French, 
"cayes") is a low island or ledge of 
rocks rising above the water ; it is 
generally of coralline formation, and 
differs from a reef inasmuch as the 
latter is either below water, or washed 
by the waves. Keys are numerous 
among the West Indian Islands, and 
in the Gulf of Mexico, &c. 

3 (Swedish, "snappiick") soldiars' 
bags, knapsacks. 



HOUND THE WOULD. [CiiAK I. 

and Nicaragua. They are very inge- 
nious at throwing the lance, fisgig, 4 
harpoon, or any manner of dart, being 
bred to it from their infancy, for the 
children, imitating their parents, 
never go abroad without a lance in 
their hands, which they throw at any 
object, till use has made them masters 
of the art. Then they learn to put by 5 
a lance, arrow, or dart, The manner 
is thus : Two boys stand at a small 
distance, and dart a blunt stick at one 
another, each of them holding a small 
stick in his right hand, with which he 
strikes away that which was darted at 
him. As they grow in years they be- 
come more dexterous and courageous, 
and then they will stand a fair mark 
to any one that will shoot arrows at 
them, which they will put by with a 
very small stick no bigger than the 
rod of a fowling-piece ; and when they 
are grown to be men, they will guard 
themselves from arrows though they 
come very thick at them, provided 
two do not happen to come at once. 
They have extraordinary good eyes, 
and will descry a sail at sea farther, 
and see anything better, than we. 
Their chief employment in their own 
country is to strike fish, turtle, or 
manatee, the manner of which I de- 
scribe elsewhere (Chapter III.). For 
this they are esteemed and coveted by 
all Privateers, for one or two of them 
in a ship will maintain 100 men ; so 
that when we careen our ships, we 
choose commonly such places where 
there is plenty of turtle or manatee 
for these Mosquito men to strike ; and 
it is very rare to find Privateers desti- 
tute of one or more of them when the 
commander or most of the men are 
English; but they do not love the 
French, and the Spaniards they hate 
mortally. When they come among 
Privateers they get the use of guns, 
and prove very good marksmen. They 
behave themselves very boldly in 



4 A kind of harpoon or spear, with 
several barbed prongs, and a line 
attached ; it is used for striking fisli 
at sea, and is also called a " fishgig " 
or " fisgy." 

5 Parry. 



1681.] DESCRIPTION OF THE 
fight, and never seem to flinch nor 
hang back, for they think that the 
White men with whom they are know 
better than they do when it is best to 
fight; and, let the disadvantage of 
their party be never so great, they will 
never yield nor give back while any of 
their party stand. I could never per- 
ceive any religion, nor any ceremonies, 
or superstitious observations 1 among 
them, being ready to imitate us in 
whatsoever they saw us do at any 
time. Only they seem to fear the 
devil, whom they call IVallesaw; and 
they say he often appears to some 
among them, whom our men com- 
monly call their priests, when they 
desire to speak with him on urgent 
business, but the rest know not any- 
thing of him, nor how he appears, 
otherwise than as these priests tell 
them. Yet they all say they must 
not anger him, for then he will beat 
them, and that sometimes he carries 
away these their priests. Thus much 
I have heard from some of them who 
speak good English. 

They many but one wife, with 
whom they live till death separates 
them. At their first coming to- 
gether the man makes a very small 
plantation, for there is land enough, 
and they may choose what spot they 
please. They delight to settle near 
the sea, or by some river, for the sake 
of striking fish, their beloved employ- 
ment. Far within land there are 
other Indians with whom they are 
always at war. After the man has 
cleared a spot of land, and has planted 
it, he seldom minds it afterwards but 
leaves the managing of it to his wife, 
and goes out a-striking. Sometimes 
he seeks only for fish, at other times 
for turtle or manatee ; and whatever 
he gets he brings home to his wife, 
and never stirs out to seek for more 
till it is all eaten. When hunger 
begins to bite, he either takes his 
canoe and seeks for more game at sea, 
or walks out into the woods and hunts 
about for peccary, 2 warree each a 



1 Observances. 

2 The Mexican hog, or taja9U 
Dicotyles taja$u. 



MOSQUITO INDIANS. 101 

sort of wild hogs or deer, and sel- 
dom returns empty-handed, nor seeks 
for any more so long as any of it lasts. 
Their plantations are so small that 
they cannot subsist with what they 
produce, for their largest plantations 
have not above twenty or thirty plan- 
tain-trees, a bed of yams and pota- 
toes, a bush of Indian pepper, and a 
small spot of pine-apples, which last 
fruit is a main thing they delight in, 
for with these they make a sort of 
drink which our men call pine-drink, 
much esteemed by these Mosquitoes, 
and to which they invite each othe? 
to be merry, providing fish and flesh 
also. Whoever of them makes of this 
liquor treats his neighbours, making 
a little canoe full at a time, and so 
enough to make them all drunk; and 
it is seldom that such feasts are made 
but the party that makes them hath 
some design, either to be revenged 
for some injury done him, or to de- 
bate of such differences as have hap- 
pened between him and his neigh- 
bours, and to examine into the truth 
of such matters. Yet before they 
are warmed with drink they never 
speak one word of their grievances ; 
and the women, who commonly know 
their husbands' designs, prevent them 
from doing any injury to each other 
by hiding their lances, harpoons, bows 
and arrows, or any other weapon that 
they have. 

While they are among the English 
they wear good clothes, and take de- 
light to go neat and tight ; but when 
they return again to their own coun- 
try they put by all their clothes, and 
go after their own country fashion, 
wearing only a small piece of linen 
tied about their waists hanging down 
to their knees. 



CHAPTER II. 

BEING landed, May the 1st, we began 
our march about 3 o'clock in the 
afternoon, directing our course by our 
pocket compasses NE. ; and having 
gone about two miles we came to the 
foot of a hill, where we built small 



102 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



huts and lay all niglit, having exces- 
sive rains till 12 o'clock. The 2d, in 
the morning, having fair weather, we 
ascended the hill, and found a small 
Indian path, Avhich we followed till 
we found it ran too much easterly, 
and then, doubting 1 il would carry 
us out of our way, we climbed some 
of the highest trees on the hill, which 
was not meanly furnished with as 
large and tall trees as ever I saw. At 
length we discovered some houses in 
a valley on the north side of the hill, 
but it being steep [we] could not de- 
scend on that side, but followed the 
small path, which led us down the 
hill on the east side, where we pre- 
sently found several other Indian 
houses. The first that we came to 
at the foot of the hill had none but 
women at home, who could not speak 
Spanish, but gave each of us a good 
calabash or shell full of corn-drink. 
The other houses had some men 
at home, but none that spoke 
Spanish; yet we made a shift to 
buy such food as their houses or 
plantations afforded, which we dress- 
ed and ate all together, having all 
sorts of our provision in common, 
because none should live better than 
others, or pay dearer for anything 
than it was worth. This day we had 
marched six miles. In the evening the 
husbands of those women came home, 
and told us in broken Spanish that 
they had been on board the guard- 
ship which we fled from two days 
before ; that we were now not above 
three miles from the month of the 
River of Congo, and that they could 
go from thence aboard the guard-ship 
in half a tide's time. This evening 
we supped plentifully on fowls and 
peccary which we bought of the 
Indians; yams, potatoes, and plan- 
tains served us for bread, whereof we 
had enough. After supper we agreed 
with one of these Indians to guide us 
a day's march into the country to- 
wards the north side ; he was to have 
for his pains a hatchet, and his bar- 
gain was to bring us to a certain 
Indian's habitation who could speak 



Suspecting, apprehending. 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. II. 

Spanish, from whom we were in hopes 
to be better satisfied of our journey. 

The 3d, having fair weather, we 
began to stir betimes, and set out 
betwixt 6 and 7 o'clock, marching 
through several old ruined planta- 
tions. This morning one of our men, 
being tired, gave us the slip. By 12 
o'clock we had gone eight miles, and 
arrived at the Indian's.house, who lived 
on the bank of the River Congo, and 
spoke very good Spanish ; to whom 
we declared the reason of this visit. 
At first he seemed to be very dubious 
of entertaining any discourse with 
us, and gave very impertinent an- 
swers to the questions that we de- 
manded of him ; he told us he knew 
no way to the north side of the coun- 
try, but could carry us to Chepo, or 
to Santa Maria, which we knew to 
be Spanish garrisons, the one lying to 
the eastward of us, the other to the 
westward : either of them at least 
twenty miles out of our way. We could 
get no other answer from him, and all 
his discourse was in such an angry 
tone as plainly declared he was not 
our friend. However, we were forced 
to make a virtue of necessity and 
humour him ; for it was neither time 
nor place to be angry with the In- 
dians, all our lives lying in their 
hand. We were now at a great loss, 
not knowing what course to take, for 
we tempted him with beads, money, 
hatchets, macheats or long knives, 
but nothing would work on him, till 
one of our men took a sky-coloured 
petticoat out of his bag, and put it 
on his wife ; who was so much pleased 
with the present, that she immedi- 
ately began to chatter to her husband, 
and soon brought him into a better 
humour. He could then tell us that 
he knew the way to the north side, and 
would have gone with us, but that 
he had cut his foot two days before, 
which made him incapable of serving 
us himself : but he would take care 
that we should not want a guide ; 
and therefore he hired the same In- 
dian who brought us hither, to con- 
duct us two days' march farther for 
another hatchet. The old man would 
have stayed us here all the day, be- 



1681.] A MARCH TO 

cause it rained very hard; but our 
business required more haste, our 
enemies lying so near us, for he told 
us that he could go from his house 
aboard the guard-ship in a tide's time ; 
and this was the fourth day since they 
saw us. So we inarched three miles 
farther, and then built huts, where 
we stayed all night ; it rained all the 
afternoon, and the greatest part of 
the night. The 4th, we began our 
inarch betimes, for the forenoons were 
commonly fair, but much rain after 
noon ; though whether it rained or 
shined it was much at one with us, for 
I verily believed we crossed the rivers 
thirty times this day : the Indians hav- 
ing no paths to travel from one part 
of the country to another, and there- 
fore, guiding themselves by the rivers. 
We marched this day twelve miles, 
and then built our huts and lay down 
to sleep ; but we always kept two 
men on the watch, otherwise our own 
slaves might have knocked us on the 
head while we slept. It rained vio- 
lently all the afternoon and most part 
of the night. "We had much ado to 
kindle a fire this evening : our huts 
were but very mean or ordinary, and 
our fire small, so that we could not 
dry our clothes, scarce warm ourselves, 
and no sort of food for the belly ; all 
which made it very hard with us. I 
confess these hardships quite expelled 
the thoughts of an enemy ; for now, 
having been four days in the country, 
we began to have but few other cares 
than how to get guides and food : the 
Spaniardswere seldom in our thoughts. 
The 5th, we set out in the morning 
betimes, and having travelled seven 
miles in those wild pathless woods, by 
10 o'clock in the morning we arrived 
at a young Spanish Indian's house who 
had formerly lived with the Bishop 
of Panama. The young Indian was 
very brisk, spoke very good Spanish, 
and received us very kindly. This 
plantation afforded us store of provi- 
sion, yams, and potatoes, but nothing 
of any flesh besides two fatmonkeyswe 
shot, part whereof we distributed to 
some of our company who were weak 
and sickly ; for others we got eggs, 
and such refreshments as the Indians 



THE COAST. 103 

had ; for we still provided for the sick 
and weak. We had a Spanish Indian 
in our company, who first took up 
arms with Captain Sawkins, and had 
been with us ever since his death. 
He was persuaded to live here by the 
master of the house, who promised 
him his sister in marriage, and to be 
assistant to him in clearing a planta- 
tion ; but we would not consent to 
part with him here for fear of some 
treachery, but promised to release 
him in two or three days, when we 
were certainly out of danger of our 
enemies. We stayed here all the 
afternoon, dried our clothes and am- 
munition, cleared our guns, and pro- 
vided ourselves for a march the next 
morning. Our Surgeon, Mr Wafer, 
came to a sad disaster here. Being 
drying his powder, a careless fellow 
passed by with his pipe lighted, and 
set fire to his powder, which blew 
up and scorched his knee, and re- 
duced him to that condition that he 
was not able to march ; wherefore we 
allowed him a slave to carry his things, 
being all of us the more concerned at 
the accident, because liable ourselves 
every moment to misfortune, and 
none to look after us but him. This 
Indian plantation was seated on the 
bank of the River Congo, in a very 
fat soil ; and thus far we might have 
come in our canoe, if I could have per- 
suaded them to it. 

The 6th, we set out again, having 
hired another guide. Here we first 
crossed the River Congo in a canoe, 
having been from our first landing on 
the west side of the river ; and being 
over, we marched to the eastwards 
two miles, and came to another river, 
which we forded several times, though 
it was very deep. Two of our men 
were not able to keep company with 
us, but came after us as they were 
able. The last time we forded the 
river, it was so deep, that our tallest 
men stood in the deepest place and 
handed the sick, weak, and short 
men ; by which means we all got 
over safe, except those two who were 
behind. Foreseeing a necessity of 
wading through rivers frequently in 
our land march, I took care, before I 



104 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



left the ship, to provide^myself a large 
joint of bamboo, which I stopped at 
both ends, closing it with wax, so as 
to keep out any water. In this I 
preserved my journal and other writ- 
ings from being wet, though I was 
often forced to swim. When we were 
over this river, we sat down to wait 
the coming of our consorts who were 
left behind, and in half an hour they 
came. But the river by that time 
\vas so high, that they could not get 
over it ; neither could we help them 
over, but bid them be of good comfort 
and stay till the river did fall : but 
we marched two miles farther by the 
side of the river, and there built our 
huts, having gone this day six miles. 
We had scarce finished our huts be- 
fore the river rose much higher, and, 
overflowing the banks, obliged us to 
remove into higher ground : but the 
night came on before we could build 
more huts, so we lay straggling in the 
woods, some under one tree, some 
under another, as we could find con- 
yeniency; which might have been 
indifferent comfortable if the weather 
had been fair, but the greatest part 
of the night we had extraordinary 
hard rain, with much lightning and 
terrible claps of thunder. These hard- 
ships and inconveniences made us all 
careless, and there was no watch kept 
(though I believe nobody did sleep) ; 
so our slaves, taking opportunity, 
went away in the night, all but one 
who was hid in some hole and knew 
nothing of their design, or else fell 
asleep. Those that went away carried 
with them our Surgeon's gun and all 
his money. The next morning, be- 
ing the 8th, we went to the river's 
side and found it much fallen ; and 
here onr guide would have us ford 
it again, which, being deep, and 
the current running swift, we could 
not. Then we contrived 1 to swim 
over ; those that could not swim we 
were resolved to help over as well as 
we could ; but this was not so feasi- 
ble, for we should not be able to get 
all our things over. At length we 
concluded to send one man over with 



1 Planned, sought to devise means. 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. II. 

a line, who should haul over all our 
things first, and then get the men 
over. This being agreed on, one 
George Gayny took the end of a line, 
and made it fast about his neck, and 
left the other end ashore ; and one 
man stood by the line, to clear it 
away to him. But when Gayny was 
in the midst of the water, the line in 
drawing after him chanced to kink, or 
grow entangled ; and he that stood 
by to clear it away stopped the line, 
which turned Gayny on his back, 
and he that had the line in his hand 
threw it all into the river after him, 
thinking he might recover himself ; 
but the stream running very swift, 
and the man having three hundred 
dollars at his back, [he] was carried 
down, and never seen more by us. 
Those two men whom we left behind 
the day before told us afterwards that 
they found him lying dead in a creek, 
where the eddy had driven him ashore, 
and the money on his back ; but they 
meddled not with any of it, being 
only in care how to work their way 
through a wild unknown country. 
This put a period to that contrivance. 
This was the fourth man that we lost 
in this land journey; for those two 
men that we left the day before did 
not come to us till we were in the 
North Seas, so we yielded them also 
for lost. Being frustrated of getting 
over the river this way, we looked 
about for r a tree to fell across the 
river. At length we found one, which 
we cut down, and it reached clear 
over ; on this we passed to the other 
side, where we found a small plantain 
walk, which we soon ransacked. 
While we were busy getting plantains, 
our guide was gone ; but in less than 
two hours came to us again, and 
brought with him an old Indian, to 
whom he delivered up his charge ; 
and we gave him a hatchet and dis- 
missed him, and entered ourselves 
under the conduct of our new guide : 
who immediately led us away, and 
crossed another river, and entered 
into a large valley of the fattest land 
I did ever take notice of ; the trees 
were not very thick, but the largest 
that I saw in all my travels. We 



1681.] THE MARCH 

saw great tracks which were made by 
the peccaries, but saw none of them. 
We marched in this pleasant country 
till 3 o'clock in the afternoon, in all 
about four miles, and then arrived at 
the old man's country-house, which 
was only a habitation for hunting ; 
there was a small plantain walk, 
some yams and potatoes. Here we 
took up our quarters for this day, and 
refreshed ourselves with such food as 
the place afforded, and dried our 
clothes and ammunition. At this 
place our young Spanish Indian pro- 
vided to leave us, for now we thought 
ourselves past danger. This was he 
that was persuaded to stay at the last 
house we came from, to marry the 
young man's sister ; and we dismissed 
him according to our promise. 

The 9th the old man conducted 
us towards his own habitation. We 
inarched about five miles in this 
valley, and then ascended a hill, and 
travelled about five miles farther over 
two or three small hills before we 
came to any settlement. Half a mile 
before we came to the plantations we 
light of 1 a path, which carried us 
to the Indians' habitations. We saw 
many wooden crosses erected in the 
way, which created some jealousy 2 in 
us that here were some Spaniards ; 
therefore we new-primed all our guns, 
and provided ourselves for an enemy ; 
but coming into the town [we] found 
none but Indians, who wore all got 
together in a large house to receive 
us : for the old man had a little boy 
with him that he sent before. They 
made us welcome to such as they had, 
which was very mean ; for these were 
new plantations, the corn being not 
eared. Potatoes, yams, and plantains 
they had none but what they brought 
from their old plantations. There 
were none of them spoke good Span- 
ish ; two young men could speak a 
little ; it caused us to take more 
notice of them. To these we made a 
present and desired them to get us a 
guide to conduct us to the north side, 



CONTINUED. 



105 



1 Came upon, lighted upon. 

2 Suspicion; to "jalouse" is still 
used in Scotland for to suspect. 



or part of the way ; which they pro- 
mised to do themselves if we would 
reward them for it ; but told us we 
must lie still the next day. But we 
thought ourselves nearer the North 
Sea than we were, and proposed to go 
without a guide rather than stay here 
a whole day. However some of our 
men who were tired, resolved to stay 
behind ; and Mr Wafer, our Surgeon, 
who marched in great pain ever since 
his knee was burned with powder, 
was resolved to stay with them. The 
10th we got up betimes, resolving 
to march, but the Indians opposed it 
as much as they could ; but seeing 
they could not persuade us to stay, 
they came with us ; and having taken 
leave of our friends we set out. Here 
therefore we left the Surgeon and two 
more, as we said, and marched away 
to the eastward, following our guides. 
But we often looked on our pocket 
compasses, and showed them to the 
guides, pointing at the way that we 
would go ; which made them shake 
their heads, and say they were pretty 
things, but not convenient 3 for us. 
After we had ascended the hill on 
which the town stood, we came down 
into a valley, and guided ourselves by 
a river which we crossed thirty-two 
times ; and having marched nine 
miles, we built huts and lay there all 
night. This evening I killed a quam, 4 
a large bird as big as a turkey, where- 
with we treated our guides ; for we 
brought no provision with us. This 
night our last slave ran away. The 
llth we marched ten miles farther 
and built huts at night, but went 
supperless to bed. The 12th, in the 
morning we crossed a deep river, 
passing over it on a tree, and march- 
ed seven miles in a low swampy 
ground, and came to the side of a 
great deep river, but could not get 
over. We built huts upon its banks, 
and lay there all night, upon our 

3 Of no advantage. 

4 Or Guan ; Penelope cristata, a bird 
resembling the curassow, thirty inches 
long, of a dusky black above, glossed 
with green and olive, the neck and 
breast spotted with white. 



106 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. II. 

abode all day. Not a man of us but 



barbecues, or frames of sticks, raised 
about three feet from the ground. 
The 13th, when we turned out, the 
river had overflowed its banks, and 
was two feet deep in our huts, and 
our guides went from us, not telling 
us their intent, which made us think 
they were returned home again. Now 
we began to repent our haste in com- 
ing from the last settlements, for we 
had no food since we came from 
thence. Indeed we got macaw- 
berries in this place, wherewith we 
satisfied ourselves this day, though 
coarsely. The 14th, in the morning 
betimes, our guides came to us again, 
and, the waters being fallen within 
their bounds, they carried us to a 
tree that stood on the bank of the 
river, and told us if we could fell that 
tree across it, we might pass ; if not, 
we could pass no farther. Therefore 
we set two of the best axemen that Ave 
had, who felled it exactly across the 
river, and the boughs just reached 
over ; on this we passed very safe. 
"We afterwards crossed another river 
three times, with much difficulty ; 
and at 3 o'clock in the afternoon we 
came to an Indian settlement, where 
we met a drove of monkeys, and 
killed four of them, and stayed here 
all night ; having marched this day 
six miles. Here we got plantains 
enough, and a kind reception of the 
Indian that lived here all alone, ex- 
cept one boy to wait on him. The 
15th, when we set out, the kind 
Indian and his boy went with us in a 
canoe, and set us over such places as 
we could not ford, and being past 
those great rivers he returned back 
again, having helped us at least two 
miles. "We marched afterwards five 
miles, and came to large plantain walks, 
where we took up our quarters that 
night ; we there fed plentifully on plan- 
tains, both ripe and green, and had 
fair weather all the day and night. 
I think these were the largest plan- 
tain walks, and the biggest plantains 
that ever I saw ; but no house [was] 
near them. We gathered what we 
pleased by our guides' orders. The 
16th, we marched three miles, and 
came to a large settlement, where we 



wished the journey at an end : our 
feet being blistered, and our thighs 
stripped with wading through so 
many rivers ; the way being almost 
continually through rivers or pathless 
woods. In the afternoon five of us 
went to seek for game, and killed 
three monkeys, which Ave dressed for 
supper. Here we first began to have 
fair weather, which continued with us 
till we came to the North Seas. The 
18th, we set out at 10 o'clock ; and 
the Indians with five canoes carried 
us a league up a river, and when we 
landed, the kind Indians went with 
us and carried our burthens. We 
marched three miles farther, and 
then built our huts, having travelled 
from the last settlements six miles. 
The 19th, our guides lost their way, 
and we did not march above two 
miles. The 20th, by 12 o'clock, we 
came to Chepo River. The rivers 
we crossed hitherto, ran all into the 
South Seas ; and this of Chepo was 
the last we met that ran that way. 
Here an old man who came from the 
last settlements distributed his bur- 
then of plantains amongst us, and 
taking his leave returned home. 
Afterwards we forded the river and 
marched to the foot of a very high 
mountain, where we lay all night. 
This day we marched about nine 
miles. The 21st, some of the Indians 
returned back, and we marched up a 
very high mountain ; being on the 
top, we went some miles on a ridge, 
and steep on both sides ; then de- 
scended a little, and came to a fine 
spring, where we lay all night, having 
gone this day about nine miles ; the 
weather still very fair and clear. 
The 22d, we marched over another 
very high mountain, keeping on the 
ridge, five miles. When we came to 
the north end, we to our great com- 
fort saw the sea ; then we descended 
and parted ourselves into three com- 
panies, and lay by the side of a river, 
which was the first we met that runs 
into the North Sea. The 23d, we 
came through several large plantain 
walks, and at 10 o'clock came to an 
Indian habitation not far from the 



1681,] 

North Sea. Here we got canoes to 
carry us down the River Concepcion 
to the seaside ; having gone this day 
about seven miles. We found a great 
many Indians at the mouth of this 
river. They had settled themselves 
here for the benefit of trade with the 
Privateers, and their commodities 
were yams, potatoes, plantains, sugar- 
canes, fowls, and eggs. These In- 
dians told us that there had been a 
great many English and French ships 
here, which were all gone but one 
barcolongo, 1 a French Privateer, that 
lay at La Sound's Key or Island. 
This island is about three leagues 
from the mouth of the River Concq> 
cion, and is one of the Sambaloes, a 
range of islands reaching for about 
twenty leagues from Point Samballas 2 
to Golden Island eastward. These 
islands or keys, as we call them, were 
first made the rendezvous of Priva- 
teers in the year 1679, being very 
convenient for careening, and had 
names given to some of them by 
the Captains of the Privateers ; as 
this La Sound's Key particularly. 
Thus we finished our journey from 
the South Sea to the North in twenty- 
three days ; in which time, by my 
account, we travelled 110 miles, cross- 
ing some very high mountains ; but 
our common march was in the valleys 
among deep and dangerous rivers. 

On the 24th of May, having lain 
one night at the river's mouth, we all 
went on board the Privateer who lay 
at La Sound's Key. It was a French 
vessel ; Captain Tristian, commander. 
The first thing we did was to get such 
things as we could to gratify our 
Indian guides, for we were resolved 
to reward them to their hearts' con- 
tent. This we did by giving them 
beads, knives, scissors, and looking- 
glasses, which we bought of the 
Privateer's crew; and half-a-dollar 
a man from each of us, which we 

1 A small, low, long, sharp-built 
vessel without a deck, going with oars 
and sails ; Spanish, " barcalonga. " 

2 Point San Bias, from which 
Dampier's title for the islands seems 
to be corrupted. 



ON BOARD A PRIVATEER, 107 

would have bestowed in goods also, 
but could not get any, the Privateer 
having no more toys. They were so 
well satisfied with these, that they 
returned with joy to their friends, 
and were very kind to our consorts 
whom we left behind ; as Mr "Wafer 
our Surgeon, and the rest of them 
told us, when they came to us some 
months afterwards, as shall be said 
hereafter. 



CHAPTER III. 

THE Privateer on board which we 
went being now cleaned, and our In- 
dian guides satisfied and set ashore, 
we set sail in two days for Springer's 
Key, another of the Sambaloes Isles, 
about seven or eight leagues from La 
Sound's Key. Here lay eight sail of 
Privateers more, viz. : 

English commanders and English 

men. 

Captain Coxon, 10 guns, 100 men. 
Captain Payne, 10 guns, 100 men. 
Captain Wright, a barcolongo, 4 
guns, 40 men. 

Captain Williams, a small barco- 
longo. 

Captain Yanky, a barcolongo, 4 
guns, about 60 men, English, Dutch, 
and French ; himself a Dutchman. 

French commanders and men. 
Captain Archembo, 8 guns, 40 men. 
Captain Tucker, 6 guns, 70 men. 
Captain Rose, a barcolongo. 

An hour before we came to the 
fleet, Captain Wright, who had been 
sent to the Chagres River, arrived at 
Springer's Key, with a large canoe or 
periago laden with flour, which he 
took there. Some of the prisoners 
belonging to the periago came from 
Panama not above six days before he 
took her, and told the news of our 
coming overland, and likewise related 
the condition and strength of Panama, 
which was the main thing they in- 
quired after ; for Captain Wright was 
sent thither purposely to get a 
prisoner that was able to inform them 



108 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. III. 

how many families ? whether most 
Spaniards? or whether the major 



of the strength of that city, because 
these Privateers designed to join all 



their force, and by the assistance of 
the Indians (who had promised to be 
their guides) to march overland to 
Panama ; and there is no other way 
of getting prisoners for that purpose 
but by absconding 1 between Chagres 
and Porto Bello, because there are 
much goods brought that way from 
Panama, especially when the Armada 
lies at Porto Bello. All the com- 
manders were aboard of Captain 
"Wright when we came into the fleet, 
and were mighty inquisitive of the 
prisoners to know the truth of what 
they related concerning us. But as 
soon as they knew we were come, 
they immediately came aboard of 
Captain Tristian, being all overjoyed 
to see us ; for Captain Coxon and 
many others had left us in the South 
Seas about twelve months since, and 
had never heard what became of us 
since that time. They inquired of 
us what we did there? how we lived ? 
how far we had been ? and what dis- 
coveries we made in those seas ? After 
we had answered these general ques- 
tions, they began to be more particu- 
lar in examining us concerning our 
passage through the country from the 
South Seas. We related the whole 
matter, giving them an account of 
the fatigues of our march, and the in- 
conveniences we suffered by the rains, 
and disheartened them quite from 
that design. Then they proposed 
several other places where such a 
party of men as were now got to- 
gether might make a voyage ; but the 
objections of some or other still hin- 
dered any proceeding. For the 
Privateers have an account of most 
towns within twenty leagues of the 
sea on all the coast from Trinidad 
down to La Vera Cruz, and are able 
to give a near guess of the strength 
and riches of them, for they make it 
their business to examine all prisoners 
that fall into their hands concern- 
ing the country, town, or city they 
belong to : whether born there, 
or how long they have known it? 



Lying in ambush or concealment, 



part are 



or 
not 



copper-coloured, as 



mulattoes, Mustesoes, or Indians ? 
whether rich, and what their riches 
consist in? and what their chief 
manufactures ? If fortified, how 
many great guns, and what number 
of small arms ? whether it is possible 
to come undescried on them ? how 
many look-outs or sentineLs ? for such 
the Spaniards always keep ; how the 
look-outs are placed ? whether possi- 
ble to avoid the look-outs or take 
them ? If any river or creek comes 
near it, or where the best landing? 
with innumerable other such ques- 
tions, which their curiosity leads 
them to demand. And if they have 
had any former discourse of such 
places from other prisoners, they 
compare one with the other ; then 
examine again, and inquire if he 
or any of them are capable to be 
guides to conduct a party of men 
thither ; if not, where and how any 
prisoner may be taken that may do 
it ; and from thence they afterwards 
lay their schemes to prosecute what- 
ever design they take in hand. 

It was seven or eight days before 
any resolution was taken, yet consul- 
tations were held every day. The 
French seemed very forward to go 
to any town that the English could 
or would propose, because the Go- 
vernor of Petit Goave (from whom 
the Privateers take commissions) had 
recommended a gentleman lately come 
from France to be General of the'ex- 
pedition, and sent word by Captain 
Tucker, with whom this gentleman 
came, that they should if possible 
make an attempt on some town be- 
fore he returned again. The English, 
when they were in company with the 
French, seemed to approve of what 
the French said, but never looked on 
that General to be lit for the service 
in hand. At length it was concluded 
to go to a town called Coretaga, a 



2 Cartago, near San Jose, the pie- 
sent capital of Costa Rica ; the "Car- 
penter's River " afterwards mention eel 
would be the Matina, 



CAPTURE OF A SPANISH "TARTANE." 



1G81.] 

which Iks a great way in the country, 
but not such a tedious march as it 
would be from hence to Panama. 
Our way to it lay up Carpenter's 
River, which is about sixty leagues 
to the westward of Porto Bello. Our 
greatest obstruction in this design 
was our want of boats, therefore it 
was concluded to go with all our fleet 
to St Andreas, 1 a small uninhabited 
island lying near the Isle of Provi- 
dence, to the W. of it, in 13 15' 1ST. Lat., 
and from Porto Bello NNW. about 
seventy leagues, where we should be 
but a little way from Carpenter's 
River. And besides, at this island 
we might build canoes, it being 
plentifully stored with large cedars for 
such a purpose ; and for this reason 
the Jamaica-men come hither fre- 
quently to build sloops, cedar being 
very fit for building, and being to be 
had here at free cost, besides other 
wood. Jamaica is well stored with 
cedars of its own, chiefly among the 
Rocky Mountains ; these also of St 
Andreas grow in stony ground, and 
are the largest that ever I knew or 
heard of, the bodies alone being ordi- 
narily forty or fifty feet long, many 
sixty or seventy and upwards, and of 
a proportionable bigness. The Ber- 
mudas Isles are well stored with them ; 
so is Virginia, which is generally a 
sandy soil. I saw none in the East 
Indies, nor in the South Sea coast, ex- 
cept on the Isthmus as I came over it. 2 
We reckon the periagoes and canoes 
that are made of cedar to be the best of 
any ; they are nothing but the tree it- 
self made hollow boat-wise, with a flat 
bottom, and the canoegenerally sharp 
at both ends, the periago at one only, 
with the other end flat. But what is 
commonly said of cedar, that the worm 
will not touch it, is a mistake ; for I 
have seen it very much worm-eaten. 

All things being thus concluded on, 
we sailed from hence, directing our 
course toward St Andreas. "We kept 

1 St Andrew's Island. 

2 The Author afterwards (Chapter 
IX., page 193) tells us that he found 
large cedars at the Three Marias 
Islands, off the coast of Mexico. 



109 



company the first day, but at night 
it blew a hard gale at NE., and some 
of our ships bore away. The next 
day others were forced to leave us, 
and the second night we lost all our 
company. I was now belonging to 
Captain Archembo, for all the rest of 
the fleet were over-manned. Captain 
Archembo wanting men, we that came 
out of the South Seas must either sail 
with him or remain among the In- 
dians. Indeed, we found no cause to 
dislike the Captain ; but his French 
seamen were the saddest creatures 
that ever I was among ; for though 
we had bad weather that required 
many hands aloft, yet the biggest 
part of them never stirred out of 
their hammocks but to eat or ease 
themselves. We made a shift to find 
the Island the fourth day, where we 
met Captain Wright, who came thither 
the day before, and had taken a 
Spanish tartane, 3 wherein were thirty 
men, all well armed. She had four 
petercroes, 4 and some long guns placed 
in a swivel on the gunwale. They 
fought an hour before they yielded. 
The news they related was, that they 
came from Carthagena in company of 
eleven armadilloes (which are small 
vessels of war) to seek for the fleet of 
Privateers lying in the Sambaloes ; 
that they parted from the armadil- 
loes two days before ; that they were 
ordered to search the Sambaloes for 
us, and if they did not find us, then 
they were ordered to go to Porto 
Bello, and lie there till they had 
further intelligence of us; and he 
supposed these armadilloes to be 
now there. We that came overland 
out of the South Seas, being weary 
of living among the French, desired 
Captain Wright to fit up his prize the 
tartane, and make a man-of-war of 



3 A small coasting vessel used in 
the Mediterranean, with one mast and 
a large lateen sail; Spanish, "tar- 
tana;" French, "tartane." 

4 Or pedereroes (Spanish, "pedrero," 
from "piedra," a stone) ; a sort of 
swivel-gun which, before the inven- 
tion of iron balls, were loaded with 
stone shot. 



110 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



her for us, which he at first seemed 
to decline, because he was settled 
among the French on Hispaniola, and 
was very well beloved both by the 
Governor of Petit Goave, and all the 
gentry ; and they would resent it ill 
that Captain Wright, who had no 
occasion of men, should be so unkind 
to Captain Archembo as to seduce his 
men from him ; he being so meanly 
manned that he could hardly sail his 
ship with his Frenchmen. We told 
him we would no longer remain with 
Captain Archembo, but would go 
ashore there andb"ild canoes to trans- 
port ourselves d-^n to the Mosquitoes 
if he would not entertain us ; for Priva- 
teers are not obliged to any ship, but 
free to go ashore where they please, 
or to go into any other ship that will 
entertain them, only paying for their 
provision. When Captain Wright 
saw our resolution, he agreed with us 
on condition we should be under his 
command as one ship's company, to 
which we unanimously consented. 

We stayed here about ten days to 
see if any more of our fleet would 
come to us ; but there came no more 
of us to the island but three, Captain 
Wright, Captain Archembo, and Cap- 
tain Tucker. Therefore we conclud- 
ed the rest were bore away either for 
Boca del Toro or Blewfields River on 
the main ; and we designed to seek 
them. We had fine weather while 
we lay here, only some tornadoes or 
thunder-showers. But in this Isle 
of St Andreas there being neither 
fish, fowl, nor deer, and it being 
therefore but an ordinary place for us 
who had but little provision, we sailed 
from hence again in quest of our scat- 
tered fleet, directing our course for some 
islands lying near the main, called by 
the Privateers the Corn Islands ; being 
in hopes to get corn there. These islands 
I take to be the same which are gene- 
rally called in the maps the Pearl Is- 
lands, lying about the lat. of 12 10' N. 
Here we arrived the next day, and 
went ashore on one of them, but 
found none of the inhabitants, for 
there are but a few poor naked Indians 
that live here, who have been so often 
plundered by the Privateers, that 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. III. 

they have but little provision ; and 
when they see a sail they hide them- 
selves, otherwise ships that come here 
would take them, and make slaves of 
them ; and I have seen some of them 
that have been slaves. They are peo- 
ple of a mean stature, yet strong 
limbs ; they are of a dark copper- 
colour, black hair, full round faces, 
small black eyes, their eye-brows 
hanging over their eyes, low fore- 
heads, short thick noses, not high 
but flattish ; full lips, and short chins. 
They have a fashion to cut holes in 
the lips of the boys when they are 
young, close to their chin, which they 
keep open with little pegs till they are 
fourteen or fifteen years old : then they 
wear beards in them made of turtle or 
tortoise shell. A little notch at the 
upper end they put in through the 
lip, where it remains between the 
teeth and the lip ; the under part 
hangs down over their chin. This 
they commonly wear all day, and 
when they sleep they take it out. 
They have likewise holes bored in 
their ears, both men and women, 
when young ; and by continual 
stretching them with great pegs, 
they grow to be as big as a milled 
five-shilling piece : herein they wear 
pieces of wood cut very round and 
smooth, so that their ear seems to be 
all wood, with a little skin about it. 
Another ornament the women use is 
about their legs, which they are very 
curious in ; for from the infancy of 
the girls their mothers make fast a 
piece of cotton cloth about the small 
of their leg, from the ankle to the 
calf, very hard, which makes them 
have a very full calf : this the women 
wear to their dying day. Both men 
and women go naked, only a clout 
about their waists; yet they have 
but little feet though they go bare- 
foot. Finding no provision here, we 
sailed towards Blewfields River, where 
we careened our tartan e ; and there 
Captain Archembo and Captain Tuc- 
ker left us, and went towards Boca del 
Toro. This Blewfields River 1 comes 



1 Marked on some modern maps as 
the River Escondido or Segovia ; it 



1681.] 



STRIKING THE MANATEE OR SEA-COW. 



Ill 



out betvvivn the Rivers of Nicaragua 
and Veragua. It had this name from 
Captain Blewfield, a famous Privateer 
living on Providence Island long be- 
fore Jamaica was taken : which Island 
of Providence was settled by the Eng- 
lish and belonged to the Earls of War- 
wick. In this river we found a canoe 
coming down the stream ; and though 
we went with our canoes to seek for 
inhabitants, yet we found none, but 
saw in two or three places signs that 
Indians had made on the side of the 
river. The canoe which we found was 
but meanly made for want of tools ; 
therefore we concluded these Indians 
have no commerce with the Spaniards 
nor with other Indians that have. 

While we lay here, our Mosquito- 
men went in their canoe and struck 
us some manatee or sea-cow. 1 Be- 
sides this Blewfields River I have 
seen the manatee in the Bay of Cam- 
peachy, 011 the coasts of Boca del 
Drago and Boca del Toro, in the 
River of Darien, and among the south 
keys or little islands of Cuba. I have 
heard of their being found on the 
north of Jamaica, a few ; and in the 
rivers of Surinam in great multitudes, 
which is a very low land. I have 
seen them also at Mindanao, one of 
the Philippine Islands, and on the 
coast of New Holland. This creature 
is about the bigness of a horse, and 
ten or twelve feet long. The mouth 
of it is much like the mouth of a cow, 
having great thick lips. The eyes 
are no bigger than a small pea. The 
ears are only two small holes on each 
side of the head. The neck is short 
and thick, bigger than the head. 
The biggest part of this creature is at 
the shoulders, where it has two large 
fins, one on each side of its belly. 
Under each of these fins the female 
has a small dug to suckle her young. 



runs south-eastward to the sea through 
the Mosquito country, and at its 
mouth are Blewfields town and lagoon. 
1 The description generally applies 
to some variety of the Phoca, or seal 
known in different seas and to dif- 
ferent navigators as the sea-dog, the 
sea-calf, the sea- cow, and the sea-lion. 



From the shoulders towards the tail 
it retains its bigness for about two feet, 
then grows smaller and smaller to the 
very tail, which is flat, and about 
fourteen inches broad and twenty 
inches long, and in the middle 
four or five inches thick, but about 
the edges not above two inches 
thick. From the head to the tail 
it is round and smooth, without any 
fin but those two before-mentioned. 
I have heard that some have weighed 
above 1200 Ibs., but I never saw any 
so large. The manatee delights to 
live in brackish water ; and they are 
commonly in creeks and rivers near 
the sea. They live on grass seven or 
eight inches long, and of a narrow 
blade, which grows in the sea in many 
places, especially among islands near 
the main ; this grass grows likewise in 
creeks or in great rivers near the sides 
of them, in such places where there 
is but little tide or current. They 
never come ashore, nor into shallower 
water than where they can swim. Their 
flesh is white, both the fat and the 
lean, and extraordinary sweet whole- 
some meat. The tail of a young cow 
is most esteemed ; but if old both 
head and tail are very tough. A calf 
that sucks is the most delicate meat ; 
Privateers commonly roast them, as 
they do also great pieces cut out of 
the bellies of the old ones. The skin 
of the manatee is of great use to Priva- 
teers; for they cut them outinto straps, 
which they make fast on the sides of 
their canoes, through which they put 
their oars in rowing, instead of tholes a 
or pegs. The skin of the bull or of 
the back of the cow is too thick for 
this use ; but of it they make horse- 
whips, cutting them two or three feet 
long ; at the handle they leave the full 
substance of the skin, and from thence 
cut it away tapering, but very even 
and square [on] all the four sides. 
While the thongs are green they twist 
them and hang them to dry ; which 
in a week's time become as hard as 
wood. The Mosquito-men have al- 
ways a small canoe for their use, to 



oar in 



2 Pins in the gunwale to support th 
rin rowing; also called "thowls. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. III. 



112 

strike fish, tortoise, or manatee : 
which they keep usually to them- 
selves, and very neat and clean. They 
use no oars, "but paddles, the broad 
part of which does not go tapering 
towards the staff, pole, or handle of 
it as in the oar ; nor do they use it in 
the same manner, by laying it on the 
side of the vessel, but hold it perpen- 
dicularly, gripping the staff hard with 
both hands, and putting back the 
water by main strength and very 
quick strokes. One of the Mosquitoes 
(for there go but two in a canoe) sits 
in the stern, the other kneels down 
in the head ; and both paddle till 
they come to the place where they 
expect their game. Then they lie still, 
or paddle very softly, looking well 
about them ; and , he that is in the 
head of the canoe lays down his pad- 
dle and stands up with his striking 
staff in his hand. This staff is about 
eight feet long, almost as big as a 
man's arm at the great end, in 
which there is a hole to place his 
harpoon in. At the other end of his 
staff there is a piece of light wood 
called bob-wood, with a hole in 
it through which the small end 
of the staff comes ; and on this 
piece of bob-wood there is a line of 
ten or twelve fathoms wound neatly 
about, and the end of the line made 
fast to it. The other end of the line 
is made fast to the harpoon, which is 
at the great end of the staff ; and the 
Mosquito-man keeps about a fathom 
of it loose in his hand. When he 
strikes, the harpoon presently comes 
out of the staff, and as the manatee 
swims away the line runs off from the 
bob ; and although at first both staff 
and bob may be carried under water, 
yet as the line runs off it will rise 
again. Then the Mosquito-men pad- 
dle with all their might to get hold of 
the bob again, and spend usually a 
quarter of an hour before they get it. 
When the manatee begins to be tired, 
it lies still ; and then the Mosquito- 
men paddle to the bob and take it 
up, and begin to haul in the line. 
When the manatee feels them he j 
swims away again with the canoe after 
him ; then he that steers must be j 



nimble to turn the head of the canoe 
that way that his consort points, who 
being in the head of his canoe, and 
holding the line, both sees and feels 
which way the manatee is swimming. 
Thus the canoe is towed with a vio- 
lent motion till the manatee's strength 
decays. Then they gather in the 
line, which they are often forced to 
let all go to the very end. At length, 
when the creature's strength is spent, 
they haul it up to the canoe's side, 
and knock it on the head, and tow it 
to the nearest shore, where they make 
it fast, and seek for another ; which 
having taken, they go ashore with it 
to put it into their canoe. For it is so 
heavy that they cannot lift it in ; but 
they haul it up in shoal water as near 
the shore as they can, and then over- 
set the canoe, laying one side close to 
the manatee. Then they roll it in, 
which brings the canoe upright ngain ; 
and when they have heaved out the 
water they fasten a line to the other 
manatee that lies afloat, and tow it 
after them. 1 

When we had cleaned our tartane 
we sailed from hence, bound for Boca 
del Toro, which is an opening between 
two islands about 10 10' N., between 
the Rivers of Veragua and Chagres. 
Here we met with Captain Yanky, 
who told us that there had been a 
fleet of Spanish armadilloes to seek 
us : that Captain Tristian having 
fallen to leeward, was coming to 
Boca del Toro, and fell in amongst 
them, supposing them to be our fleet : 
that they fired and chased him, but 
he rowed and towed, and they sup- 
posed he got away ; that Captain 
Payne was likewise chased by them, 



1 The manner of striking the tor- 
toise is also given at length, but be- 
ing much the same as the method 
employed in striking the sea-cow, it 
has been omitted. Instead of a har- 
poon, a four-square sharp iron peg 
on the end of a striking staff is used, 
with a line attached. When the tor- 
toise is struck it flies off, but the iron 
with the end of the line attached be- 
ing buried beneath the shell, there is 
no possibility of its escape. 



1631.1 



SEEKING PROVISIONS. 



113 



and Captain "Williams, and that they 
had not seen them since ; that they 
lay within the islands ; that _the 
Spaniards never came in to him ; 
and that Captain Coxon was in at the 
careening place. This Boca del Toro 
is a place that the Privateers use to 
resort to as much as any place in all 
the coast, because here is plenty of 
green tortoise and a good careening 
place. The Indians here have no 
commerce with the Spaniards, but 
are very barbarous, and will not be 
dealt with. They have destroyed 
many Privateers, as they did not 
long after this some of Captain Payne's 
men ; who having built a tent ashore 
to put his goods in while he careened 
his ship, and some men lying there 
with their arms, in the night the In- 
dians crept softly into the tent and 
cut oil the heads of three or four men, 
and made their escape ; nor was this 
the first time they had served the Pri- 
vateers so. There grow on this coast 
vinelloes in great quantity, with 
which chocolate is perfumed ; these 
I shall describe elsewhere. 1 

Our fleet being thus scattered, there 
were now no hopes of getting toge- 
ther again ; therefore every one did 
what they thought most conducing 
to obtain their ends. Captain Wright, 
with whom I now was, was resolved 
to cruise on the coast of Carthagena ; 
and it being now almost the westerly 
wind season, we sailed from hence, 
and Captain Yanky with us ; and we 
consorted, because Captain Yanky 
had no commission, and was afraid 
the French would take away his bark. 
"We passed by Scuda, 2 a small island 
where it is said Sir Francis Drake's 
bowels were buried, and came to a small 
river to westward of Chagres, where we 
took two new canoes, and carried them 
with us into the Sambaloes. "We had 
the wind at W. with much rain ; which 
brought us to Point Samballas. 3 Here 



1 See Chapter VIII. 

2 Escudo de Veragua, off the Lagoon 
of Chiriqui. In Maynarde's narrative, 
however (ante, page 81), it is stated 
that Drake was buried at sea, 

3 San Bias. 



Captain "Wright and Captain Yanky 
left us in the tartane to fix the 
canoes, while they went on the coast 
of Carthagena to seek for provision. 
We cruised in among the islands, and 
kept our Mosquito-men or strikers 
out, who brought aboard some half- 
grown tortoise ; and some of us went 
ashore every day to hunt for what we 
could find in the woods. Sometimes 
we got peccary, warree, or deer j at 
other times we lighted on a drove of 
large fat monkeys or quams, corro- 
soes 4 (each a large sort of fowl), pig- 
eons, parrots, or turtle-doves. We 
lived very well on what we got, not 
staying long in one place : but some- 
times we would go on the islands, 
where there grow great groves of sap- 
podillas, 5 which is a sort of fruit much 
like a pear, but more juicy ; and un- 
der those trees we found plenty of 
soldiers, 6 a little kind of animals that 
live in shells, and have two great 
claws like a crab, and are good food. 
One time our men found a great many 
large ones, and, being sharp-set had 
them dressed, but most of them were 
very sick afterwards, being poisoned 
by them : for on this island were 
many manchineel trees, 7 whose fruit 

4 For Quam or Guan see Note 4, 
page 105. The Corroso, orCurassow, 
is described elsewhere by Dampier as 
" a larger fowl than the quam : the 
cock is black, the hen is of a dark 
brown. The cock has a crown of 
black feathers on his head, and ap- 
pears very stately. These live also 
on berries, and are very good to eat ; 
but their bones are said to be poison- 
ous ; therefore we do either burn or 
bury them, or throw them into the water 
for fear our dogs should eat them." 

5 Sappodilla is the name applied to 
plants of the genus Ackras, natives 
of the West Indies and some parts of 
South America ; the plum, or fruit, 
according to Lindley, is esteemed as 
an article of the dessert ; the bark is 
employed in medicine as an astring- 
ent. 

6 Soldier-crab, or hermit-crab. 

7 Spanish, '" Manzanilla ;" a West 
Indian tree, used for furniture, and 

H 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. III. 



114 

is like a small crab, 1 and smells very 
well, but they are not wholesome ; 
and we commonly take care of med- 
dling with any animals that eat them. 
And this we take for a general rule : 
when we find any fruits that we have 
not seen before, if we see them peck- 
ed by birds we may freely eat ; but if 
we see no such sign we may let them 
alone ; for of this fruit no birds will 
taste. - Many of these islands have 
these manchineel trees growing on 
them. Thus cruising in among these 
islands at length we came again to 
La Sound's Key ; and the day before, 
having met with a Jamaica sloop that 
was come over on the coast to trade, 
she went with us. It was in the 
evening when we came to an anchor, 
and the next morning we fired two 
guns for the Indians that lived on the 
main to come aboard ; for by this 
time we concluded we should hear 
from our five men that we left in the 
heart of the country among the Indians, 
this being about the latter end of 
August, and it was the beginning of 
May when we parted from them. 
According to our expectation the In- 
dians came aboard and brought our 
friends with them. Mr Wafer wore 
a clout about him, and was painted 
like an Indian ; and he was some 
time aboard before I knew him. One 
of them, named Richard Cobson, died 
within three or four days after, and 
was buried on La Sound's Key. After 
this we went to other keys to the 
eastward of these, to meet Captain 
Wright and Captain Yanky, who met 
with a fleet of periagoes laden with 
Indian corn, hog, and fowls, going 
to Carthagena ; being convoyed by a 
small armadillo of two guns and six 
petereroes. Her they chased ashore, 
and most of the periagoes ; but they 
got two of them off and brought 
them away. Here Captain Wright's 
and Captain Yanky's barks were clean- 
ed ; and we stocked ourselves with 
corn and then went towards the coast 
of Carthagena. In our way thither we 

well known for its poisonous white 
juice ; the Ilippoma'iie, mancinella. 
1 Apple. 



passed by the River of Darien ; which 
is very broad at the mouth, but not 
above six feet [of] water on a spring- 
tide ; for the tide rises but little here. 
Captain Coxon, about six months be- 
fore we came out of the South Seas, 
went up this river with a party of 
men : every man carried a small 
strong bag to put his gold in, expect- 
ing great riches there, though they 
got little or none. They rowed up 
about 100 leagues before they came 
to any settlement, and then found 
some Spaniards who lived there to 
truck 2 with the Indians for gold ; 
there being gold scales in every 
house. The Spaniards admired 3 how 
they came so far from the mouth of 
the river ; because there are a sort of 
Indians living between that place and 
the sea who are very dreadful to the 
Spaniards, and will not have any com- 
merce with them, nor with any white 
people. 

To return therefore to the prosecution 
of our voyage. Meeting with nothing 
of note, we passed by Carthagena, 
which is a city so well known that I 
shall say nothing of it. We sailed 
by in sight of it, for it lies open to 
the sea ; and had a fair view of Madre 
de Popa, or Nuestra Sefiora de Popa, 
a monastery of the Virgin Mary, 
standing on the top of a very steep 
hill just behind Carthagena. It is a 
place of incredible wealth, by reason 
of the offerings made there continu- 
ally ; and for this reason often in 
danger of being visited by the Priva- 
teers, did not the neighbourhood of 
Carthagena keep them in awe. It is, 
in short, the very Loretto of the West 
Indies : it has innumerable miracles 
related of it. Any misfortune that 
befalls the Privateers is attributed to 
this Lady's doing ; and the Spaniards 
report that she was abroad that night 
the Oxford man-of-war was blown up 
at the Isle of Vacca near Hispaniola, 
and that she came home all wet ; as, 
belike, she often returns with her 
clothes dirty and torn with passing 

2 Barter, traffic by exchange ; Span- 
ish, "trocar," French, "troquer." 

3 Wondered. 



1631.] 



ANOTHER PRIZE TAKEN. 



115 



through woods and bad ways when 
she has been out upon any expedi- 
tion ; deserving doubtless a new suit 
for such eminent pieces of service. 
From hence we passed on to the Rio 
Grande, 1 where we took up fresh 
water at sea, a league off the mouth 
of that river. From thence we sailed 
eastward, passing by Santa Marta, 
a large town and good harbour belong- 
ing to the Spaniards : yet hath it 
within these few years been twice 
taken by the Privateers. It stands 
close upon the sea, and the hill within 
land is a very large one, towering up 
a great height from a vast body of 
land. 2 I am of opinion that it is higher 
than the Peak of Teneriffe ; others also 
that Lave seen both, think the same ; 
though its bigness makes its height 
jess sensible. I have seen it in pass- 
ing by, thirty leagues off, at sea ; 
others, as they told me, above sixty. 
Its head is generally hid in the 
clouds ; but in clear weather, when 
the top appears, it looks white, sup- 
posed to be covered with snow. Santa 
Marta lies in Lat. 12. Being ad- 
vanced five or six leagues to the east- 
ward of Santa Marta, we left our 
ships at anchor, and returned back 
in our canoes to the Rio Grande, en- 
tering it by a mouth of it that disem- 
bogues itself near Santa Marta : pur- 
posing to attempt some towns that 
lie a pretty way up that river. But 
this design meeting with discourage- 
ments, we returned to our ships and 
set sail to Rio la Hacha. This hath 
been a strong Spanish town, and is 
well built ; but being often taken by 
the Privateers, the Spaniards deserted 
it some time before our arrival. It 
lies to the westward of a river ; and 
right against the town is a good road 
for ships, the bottom clean and sandy. 
The Jamaica sloops used often to 
come over to trade here : and I am 
informed that the Spaniards have 
again settled themselves in it and 

1 Now Rio Magdalena. 

* The Sierra de Santa Marta, the 
highest point of which, about thirty 
miles from the town, is 19,000 feet in 
devation. 



made it very strong. We entered 
the fort and brought two small guns 
aboard. From thence we went to the 
Rancherias, one or two small Indian 
villages where the Spaniards keep 
two barks to fish for pearl. 

When we had spent some time 
here, we returned again towards the 
coast of Carthagena ; and being be- 
tween Rio Grande and that place, we 
met with westerly winds, which kept 
us still to the eastward of Carthagena 
three or four days ; then in the morn- 
ing we descried a sail oif at sea, and 
we chased her at noon. Captain 
Wright, who sailed best, came up 
with her and engaged her j and in 
half an hour after, Captain Yanky, 
who sailed better than the tartane 
(the vessel that I was in), came up 
with her likewise and laid her aboard, 
then Captain Wright also ; and they 
took her before we came up. They 
lost two or three men, and had seven 
or eight wounded. The prize was a 
ship of 12 guns and forty men, who 
had all good small arms; she was 
laden with sugar and tobacco, and 
had eight or ten tons of marmalade on 
board : she came from Santiago de 
Cuba, and was bound to Carthageua. 
We went back with her to Rio 
Grande to fix our rigging, which was 
shattered in the fight, and to consider 
what to do with her ; for these were 
commodities of little use to us, and 
not worth going into a port with. 
At the Rio Grande, Captain Wright 
demanded the prize as his due by 
virtue of his commission ; Captain 
Yanky said it was his due by the law 
of Privateers. Indeed Captain Wright 
had the most right to her, having by 
his commission protected Captain 
Yanky from the French, who would 
have turned him out because he had 
no commission ; and he likewise be- 
gan to engage her first. But the 
company were all afraid that Captain 
Wright would presently carry her 
into a port ; therefore most of Captain 
Wright's men stuck to Captain Yanky, 
and Captain Wright losing 3 his prize, 
burned his own bark, and had Captain 

3 Yielding up. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CuAP. III. 



116 

Yanky's, it being bigger than his 
own ; the tartane was sold to a 
Jamaica trader, and Captain Yanky 
commanded the prize ship. We went 
again from hence to Rio la Hacha, 
and set the prisoners ashore : and it 
being now the beginning of Novem- 
ber, we concluded to go to Curagoa to 
sell our sugar, if favoured by westerly 
winds, which were now come in. We 
sailed from thence, having fair 
weather and winds to our mind, which 
brought us to Curacoa, a Dutch 
island. Captain Wright went ashore 
to the Governor, and offei-ed him the 
sale of the sugar : but the Governor 
told him he had a great trade with 
the Spaniards, therefore he could not 
admit us in there ; but if we would 
go to St Thomas, which is an island 
and free port belonging to the Danes, 
and a sanctuary for Privateers, he 
would send a sloop with such goods 
as we wanted, and money to buy the 
sugar, which he would take at a cer- 
tain rate ; but it was not agreed to. 

Curacoa is the only island of im- 
portance that the Dutch have in the 
West Indies. It is about five leagues 
in length, and may be nine or ten 
in circumference : the northernmost 
point is laid down in N. Lat. 12 40', 
and it is about seven or eight leagues 
from the main, near Cape San Roman. 
On the south side of the east end is a 
good harbour called Santa Barbara ; 
but the chief harbour is about three 
leagues from the SE. end, on the south 
side of it, where the Dutch have a very 
good town and a very strong fort. At 
the east end are two hills, one of them 
much higher than the other, and 
steepest towards the north side. The 
rest of the island is in different level ; 
where of late some rich men have 
made sugar-works ; which formerly 
was all pasture for cattle. There are 
also some small plantations of potatoes 
and yams, and they have still a great 
many cattle on the island : but it is 
not so much esteemed for its produce, 
as for its situation for the trade with 
the Spaniards. Formerly the harbour 
was never without ships from Cartha- 
gena and Porto Bello, that did use to 
buy of the Dutch here, 1000 or 1500 



Negroes at once, besides great quanti- 
ties of European commodities ; but of 
late that trade is fallen into the hands 
of the English at Jamaica : yet still 
the Dutch have a vast trade over all 
the West Indies, sending from Holland 
ships of good force laden with Euro- 
pean goods, whereby they make very 
profitable returns. The Dutch have 
two other islands there, but of little 
moment in comparison of Curacoa ; 
the one lies seven or eight leagues 
to the westward of Curacoa, called 
Oruba ; the other nine or ten leagues 
to the eastward of it, called Buen 
Ayre. ^ From these islands the Dutch 
fetch in sloops, provision for Curacoa, 
to maintain their garrison and Negroes. 
I was never at Oruba, therefore cannot 
say anything of it as to my own 
knowledge ; but by report it is much 
like Buen Ayre, which I shall de- 
scribe, only not so big. Between 
Cura?oa and Buen Ayre is a small is- 
land called Little Curacoa ; it is not 
above a league from Great Curacoa. 
The King of France has long had an 
eye on Curacoa, and made some at- 
tempts to take it, but never yet suc- 
ceeded. I have heard that about 
twenty -three or twenty -four years 
since the Governor had sold it to the 
French, but died a small time before 
the fleet came to demand it ; and by 
his death that design failed. After- 
wards, in the year 1678, the Count 
D'Estrecs, who a year before had 
taken the Isle of Tobago from the 
Dutch, was sent hither also with a 
squadron of stout ships, very well 
manned, and fitted with bombs and 
carcasses, 1 intending to take it by 
storm. This fleet first came to 
Martinico ; where, while they stayed, 
orders were sent to Petit Goave for 
all Privateers to repair thither and 
assist the Count in his design. There 
were but two Privateers' ships that 
went thither to him, which were 



1 Carcasses (Italian, "carcassa," 
Spanish, "carcax" or "carcaza") 
are hollow cases made of ribs of iron, 
filled with inflammable matter, and 
thrown into besieged places with 
incendiary intent. 



ISLANDS OF BUEN AYKE AND AVES. 



1681.] 

manned partly with French, partly 
with Englishmen. These set out 
with the Count ; but in their way to 
Cura^oa, the whole fleet was lost on a 
reef or ridge of rocks that runs off 
from the Isle of Aves ; not above two 
ships escaping, one of which was one 
of the Privateers : and so that design 
perished. 

Wherefore not driving a bargain 
for our sugar with the Governor of 
Curacoa, we went from thence to 
Buen Ayre, another Dutch island, 
where we met a Dutch sloop come 
from Europe laden with Irish beef 
which we bought in exchange for 
some of our sugar. Buen Ayre is the 
easternmost of the Dutch islands, and 
the largest of the three, though not 
the most considerable. The middle 
of the island is laid down in Lat. 12 
16' [N.]. It is about twenty leagues 
from the main, and nine or ten from 
Cura?oa, and is accounted sixteen or 
seventeen leagues round. The road 
is on the SW. side, near the middle 
of the island, where there is a pretty 
deep bay runs in. The houses are 
about half-a-mile within land, right 
in the road. There is a Governor 
lives here, a deputy to the Governor 
of Cura9oa, and seven or eight soldiers, 
with five or six families of Indians. 
There is no fort ; and the soldiers in 
peaceable times have little to do but 
to eat and sleep, for they never watch 
but in time of war. The Indians are 
husbandmen, and plant maize and 
Guinea corn, and some yams and 
potatoes : but their chief business is 
about cattle ; for this island is plenti- 
fully stocked with goats ; and they 
send great quantities every year in 
salt to Curacoa. There are some 
horses, and bulls and cows ; but I 
never saw any sheep, though I have 
been all over the island. The south 
side is plain low land, and there are 
several sorts of trees, but none very 
large. There is a small spring of 
water by the houses, which serves 
the inhabitants, though it is brackish. 
At the west end of the island there is 
a good spring of fresh water, and three 
or four Indian families live there ; 
but no water nor houses at any other 



117 



place. On the south side near the 
east end is a good salt-pond, where 
Dutch sloops come for salt. From 
Buen Ayre we went to the Isle of Aves, 
or birds ; so called from its great 
plenty of birds, as man-of-war and 
boobies, but especially boobies. The 
booby is a water-fowl, somewhat less 
than a hen, of a light greyish colour. 
I observed the boobies of this island 
to be whiter than others. This bird 
has a strong bill, longer and bigger 
than a crow's, and broader at the 
end ; its feet are flat like a duck's 
feet. The man-of-war (as it is called 
by the English) is about the bigness 
of a kite, and in shape like it, but 
black ; and the neck is red. It lives 
on fish, yet never lights on the water, 
but soars aloft like a kite, and when 
it sees its prey, it flies down head- 
foremost to the water's edge, very 
swiftly takes its prey out of the sea 
with its bill, and immediately mounts 
again as swiftly, never touching the 
water with its body. His wings are 
very long ; his feet are like other 
land-fowl ; and he builds on trees, 
where he finds any ; but where they 
are wanting, on the ground. This 
Island of Aves lies about eight or nine 
leagues to the eastward of the island 
Buen Ayre, about fourteen or fifteen 
leagues from the main, and about the 
Lat. of 11 45' north. It is but 
small, not above four miles in length, 
and towards the east end not half-a- 
mile broad. On the north side it is 
low land, commonly overflown with 
the tide ; but on the south side there 
is a great rocky bank of coral thrown 
up by the sea. The west end is, for 
near a mile's space, plain even sa- 
vannah land, without any trees. 
There are two or three wells dug by 
Privateers, who often frequent this 
island, because there is a good har- 
bour about the middle of it on the 
north side, where they may conveni- 
ently careen. The reef or bank of 
rocks on which the French fleet was 
lost, runs along from the east end to 
the northward about three miles, then 
trends away to the westward, making 
as it were a half-moon. This reef 
breaks off all the sea, and there is 



118 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. Ill, 



good riding in even sandy ground to 
the westward of it. There are two or 
three small low sandy keys or islands 
within this reef, about three miles 
from the main island. The Count 
D'Estrees lost his fleet here in this 
manner : Coming from the eastward, 
he fell in on the back of the reef, 
and fired guns to give warning to the 
rest of his fleet. But they, suppos- 
ing their Admiral was engaged with 
enemies, hoised up their topsails, and 
crowded all the sail they could make, 
and ran full sail ashore after him ; 
all within half-a-mile of each other. 
For his light being in the maintop 
was an unhappy beacon for them to 
follow ; and there escaped but one 
King's ship, and one Privateer. The 
ships continued whole all day, and 
the men had time enough, most of 
them, to get ashore ; yet many 
perished in the wreck : and many 
of those that got safe on the 
island, for want of being accustom- 
ed to such hardships, died like rotten 
sheep. But the Privateers who had 
been used to such accidents, lived 
merrily ; from whom I had this re- 
lation : and they told me that if 
they had gone to Jamaica with 30 
a man in their pockets they could not 
have enjoyed themselves more. For 
they kept in a gang by themselves, 
and watched when the ships broke to 
get the goods that came from them ; 
and though much was staved against 
the rocks, yet abundance of wine and 
brandy floated over the reef, where 
these Privateers waited to take it up. 
They lived here about three weeks, 
waiting an opportunity to transport 
themselves back again to Hispaniola ; 
in all which time they were never 
without two or three hogsheads of 
wine and brandy in their tents, and 
barrels of beef and pork, which they 
could live on without bread well 
enough, though the new comers out 
of France could not. There were 
about forty Frenchmen on board one 
of the ships where there was good 
store of liquor, till the after part of 
her broke away and floated over the 
reef, and was carried away to sea, 
with all the men drinking and sing- 



ing, who, being in drink, did not 
mind the danger, but were never 
heard of afterwards. In a short time 
after this great shipwreck, Captain 
Payne, commander of a Privateer of 
6 guns, had a pleasant accident befell 
him at this island. He came hither 
to careen, intending to fit himself 
very well ; for here lay driven on the 
island, masts, yards, timbers, and 
many things that he wanted, there- 
fore he hauled into the harbour, close 
to the island, and unrigged his ship. 
Before he had come, a Dutch ship of 
20 guns was sent from Curac,oa to 
take up the guns that were lost on 
the reef. But seeing a ship in the 
harbour, and knowing her to be a 
French Privateer, they thought to 
take her first, and came within a 
mile of her, and began to fire at her, 
intending to warp in the next day ; 
for it is very narrow going in. Cap- 
tain Payne got ashore some of his 
guns, and did what he could to refit 
them, though he did in a manner 
conclude he must be taken. But, 
while his men were thus busied, he 
spied a Dutch sloop turning to get 
into the road, and saw her at the 
evening anchor at the west end of the 
island. This gave him some hope of 
making his escape, which he did, by 
sending two canoes in the night 
aboard the sloop, who took her, and 
got considerable purchase in her, and 
he went away in her, making a good re- 
prisal, and leaving his own empty ship 
to the Dutch man-of-war. There is an- 
other island to the eastward of the 
Isle of Aves about four leagues, called 
by Privateers the Little Isle of Aves, 
which is overgrown with mangrove 
trees. I have seen it, but was never 
on it. There are no inhabitants that 
I could learn on either of these islands 
but boobies, and a few other birds. 
While we were at the Isle of Aves we 
careened Captain Wright's bark, and 
scrubbed the sugar prize, and got two 
guns out of the wrecks, continuing 
here till the beginning of February 
1681-2. We went from hence to the 
Isles Roques to careen the sugar 
prize, which the Isle of Aves was not 
a place so convenient for. Accord- 



1682.] ROQUES AND TORTUGA ISLANDS DESCRIBED. 



119 



ingly we hauled close to one of the 
small islands, and got our guns 
ashore the first thing we did, and 
built a breastwork on the point, and 
planted all our guns there, to hin- 
der an enemy from coming to us while 
we lay on the careen ; then we made 
a house, and covered it with our 
sails, to put our goods and provisions 
in. While we lay here, a French 
man-of-war, of 36 guns, came through 
the keys or little islands, to whom we 
sold about ten tons of sugar. I was 
aboard twice or thrice, and very 
kindly welcomed both by the captain 
and his lieutenant, who was a Cava- 
lier of Malta ; and they both offered 
me great encouragement in France, 
if I would go with them ; but I ever 
designed to continue with those of 
my own nation. The Islands Roques 
are a parcel of small uninhabited 
islands, lying about the Lat. of 11 
40', about fifteen or sixteen leagues 
from the main, and about twenty 
leagues NW. by W. from Tortuga, 
and six or seven leagues AV. of Or- 
chillo, another island, lying about the 
same distance from the main. [Los] 
Roques stretch themselves E. and 
W. about five leagues, and their 
breadth [is] about three leagues. The 
northernmost of these islands is the 
most remarkable, by reason of a high 
white rocky hill at the west end of it, 
which may be seen a great way ; and 
on it there are abundance of tropic 
birds, men-of-war, boobies, and nod- 
dies, which breed there. The booby 
and man-of-war I have described 
already. 1 The middle of this island 
is low plain land, overgrown with 

1 The noddy is described as a small 
black bird, about the size of an Eng- 
lish blackbird, and esteemed good for 
food by voyagers there. In shape, 
they are round and plump like a par- 
tridge, and all white, save two or 
three feathers in each wing, which 
are of a light grey. 

On the Roques Islands here de- 
scribed, the water was found to taste 
"copperish," and after two or three 
days' use of it, no other water seemed 
to possess any taste. 



long grass, where there are multi- 
tudes of small grey fowls, no bigger 
than a blackbird ; yet [they] lay eggs 
bigger than a magpie's : and they are 
therefore by Privateers called egg- 
birds. The east end of the island is 
overgrown with black mangrove 
trees. 2 The other islands are low, 
and have red mangroves, and other 
trees on them. Here also ships 
may ride ; but no such place for 
careening as where we lay, because at 
that place ships may haul close to the 
shore ; and, if they have but four 
guns on the point, may secure the 
channel, and hinder any enemy from 
coming near them. 

After we had filled what water we 
could from hence, we set out again 
in April 1682, and came to Salt Tor- 
tuga ; so called to distinguish it from 
the shoals of Dry Tortugas, near 
Cape Florida, and from the Isle of 
Tortugas by Hispaniola, which was 
called formerly French Tortugas ; 
though not having heard any men- 
tion of that name a great while, I am 
apt to think it is swallowed up in 
that of Petit Goave, the chief garri- 
son the French have in those parts. 
This island we arrived at is pretty 
large, uninhabited, and abounds with 
salt. It is in Lat. 11 N., and lies 
W. and a little K from Margarita, 
an island inhabited by the Spaniards, 
strong and wealthy; it is distant 
from it about fourteen leagues, and 
seventeen or eighteen from Cape 
Blanco on the main. 3 At this isle we 



2 The mangrove trees according to 
Dampier, are of three sorts, black, 
red, and white. Of these, the black 
and red form the most serviceable 
timber. The young saplings were 
used by the Privateers for making 
that part of the oar within the boat, 
called the "loom" or handle. 

3 Some remarks not generally in- 
teresting, are here made on a large 
salt pond at the east end of the 
Island of Tortuga, and often visited 
by ships to lade salt. This island had 
its name from the turtle or tortoise, 
which came upon the sandy bays to 
lay their eggs. 



120 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



thought to have sold our sugar among 
the English ships that come hither 
for salt ; but failing there we designed 
for Trinidad, an island near the main 
inhabited by the Spaniards, tolerably 
strong and wealthy : but the current 
and easterly winds hindering us, we 
passed through between Margarita 
and the main, and went to Blanco, 1 
a pretty large island almost north of 
Margarita, about thirty leagues from 
the main, and in 11 50' N. Lat. 
It is a flat, even, low, uninhabited 
island, dry and healthy, most savannah 
of long grass, and has some trees of 
Liynum-vitcc growing in spots, with 
shrubby bushes of other wood about 
them. It is plentifully stored with 
guanos, 2 which are an animal like a 
lizard, but much bigger. The body 
is as big as the small of a man's leg, 
and from the hind quarter the tail 
grows tapering to the end, which is 
very small. If a man takes hold of 
the tail, except very near the hind 
quarter, it will part and break off in 
one of the joints, and the guano will 
get away. They lay eggs, as most of 
those amphibious creatures do, and 
arc very good to eat. Their flesh is 
much esteemed by Privateers, who 
commonly dress them for their sick 
men ; for they make very good broth. 
They are of divers colours, as almost 
black, dark brown, light brown, daik 
green, light green, yellow, and 
speckled ; they all live as well in the 
water as on land, and some of them 
are constantly in the water, and 
among rocks : these are commonly 
black. Others that live in swampy 
wet ground are commonly on bushes 
and trees : these are green. But such 
as live on dry ground, as here at 
Blanco, are commonly yellow ; yet 
these also will live in the water, and 
are sometimes on trees. There are 
sandy bays round the island, where 

1 Or Blanquilla. 

* Guana, or iguana, is the designa- 
tion of several species of lizards, the 
best known being the Iguana tuler- 
culatum, found in many parts of 
America and the West Indies, and 
valued for its ilesh. 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. III. 

turtle or tortoise come up in great 
abundance, going ashore in the night. 
Those that frequent this island are 
called green turtle ; and they are the 
best of that sort, both for largeness 
and sweetness, of any in all the West 
Indies. 

We stayed at the Isle of Blanco not 
above ten days, and then went back 
to Salt Tortuga again, where Captain 
Yanky parted with us. And from 
thence, after about four days, all 
which time our men were drunk and 
quarrelling, we in Captain Wright's 
ship went to the coast of Caracas on 
the mainland. 3 The cacao tree 4 has 
a body about a foot and a half thick 
(the largest sort) and seven or eight 
feet high to the branches, which 
are large, and spreading like an oak, 
with a pretty thick, smooth, dark- 
green leaf, shaped like that of a plum 
tree, but larger. The nuts are en- 
closed in cods as big as both a man's 
fists put together, at the broad end of 
which there is a small, tough, limber 5 
tree, by which they hang pendulous 
from the body of the tree in all parts 
of it from top to bottom, scattered at 
irregular distances, and from the 
greater branches a little way up, espe- 
cially at the joints of them, or part- 
ings, where they hang thickest, but 
never on the smaller boughs. There 
may be ordinarily about twenty or 
thirty of these cods upon awell-bearing 
tree, and they have two crops of them 
in a year, one in December, but the 
best in June. The cod itself, or shell, 
is almost half-an-inch thick ; neither 
spongy nor woody, but of a substance 
between both, brittle, yet harder than 
the rind of a lemon, like which, its 

3 The low-lying lands on the coast 
of Caracas are here characterised as 
extremely fertile, well watered, and 
inhabited by Spaniards and their 
Negroes, and that the main product 
of these valleys is the cacao nut, of 
which the chocolate is made, and of 
which such a painstaking description 
follows. 

4 Not to be confused with tie 
cocoa-nut tree. 

5 Supple, flexible. 



1682.] CARACAS AND ITS CACAO TREES. 

surface is grained or knobbed, but 
more coarse and unequal. The cods 
at first are of a dark green, but the 
side of them next the sun of a muddy 
red. As they grow ripe the green 



turns to a fine bright yellow and the 
muddy to a more lively beautiful red, 
very pleasant to the eye. They neither 
ripen nor are gathered [all] at once; 
but for three weeks or a month, when 
the season is, the overseers of the 
plantations go every day about to see 
which are turned yellow, cutting at 
once, it may be, not above one from 
a tree. The cods thus gathered they 
lay in several heaps to sweat, and 
then, bursting the shell with their 
hands, they pull out the nuts, which 
are the only substance they contain, 
having no stalk or pith among them ; 
and (excepting that these nuts lie in 
regular rows) are placed like the 
grains of maize, but sticking to- 
gether, and so closely stowed, that 
after they have been once separated, 
it would be hard to place them again 
in so narrow a compass. There are 
generally near 100 nuts in a cod, in 
proportion to the greatness of which, 
for it varies, the nuts are bigger or 
less. When taken out they dry them 
in the sun upon mats spread on the 
ground, after which they need no 
more care, having a thin hard skin of 
their own, and much oil, which pre- 
serves them. Salt water will not 
hurt them, for we had our bags rotten 
lying in the bottom of our ships, and 
yet the nuts never the worse. They 
raise the young trees [from] nuts set 
with the great end downward in fine 
black mould, and in the same places 
where they are to bear, which they 
do in four or five years' time without 
the trouble of transplanting. There 
are ordinarily of these trees from 500 
to 2000 and upwards in a plantation, 
or cacao walk as they call them ; and 
they shelter the young trees from the 
weather with plantains set about them 
for two or three years, destroying all 
the plantains by such time the cacao 
trees are of a pretty good body and 
able to endure the heat, which I take 
to be most pernicious to them of any- 
thing; for though these valleys lie 



121 

open to the north winds, unless a 
little sheltered here and there by some 
groves of plantain trees which are 
purposely set near the shores of the 
several bays, yet, by all that I could 



either observe or learn, the cacaos in 
this country are never blighted, as I 
have often known them to be in other 
places. Cacao nuts are used as money 
in the Bay of Campeachy. 

The chief town of this country is 
called Caracas, a good way within 
land ; it is a large wealthy place, where 
live most of the owners of these cacao 
walks that are in the valleys by the 
shore, the plantations being managed 
by overseers and Negroes. It is in a 
large savannah country that abounds 
with cattle; and a Spaniard of my 
acquaintance, a very sensible man 
who hath been there, tells me that 
it is very populous, and he judges it to 
be three times as big as Corufia in 
Galicia. The way to it is very steep 
and craggy, over that ridge of hills 
which 1 said closes up the valleys and 
partition hills of the cacao coast. In 
this coast itself the chief place is La 
Guayra, a good town close by the 
sea; and though it has but a bad 
harbour, yet it is much frequented 
by the Spanish shipping, for the 
Dutch and English anchor in the 
sandy bays that lie here and there in 
the mouth of several valleys, and 
where there is very good riding. The 
town is open, but has a strong fort, 
yet both were taken some years since 
by Captain Wright and his Priva- 
teers. It is seated about four or five 
leagues to the westward of Cape 
Blanco, which is the easternmost boun- 
dary of this coast of Caracas. Farther 
eastward, about twenty leagues, is a 
great lake or branch of the sea, called 
La Laguna de Venezuela, about which 
are many rich towns ; but the mouth 
of the lake is [so] shallow that no 
ships can enter. Near this mouth is 
a place called Cumana, where the 
Privateers were once repulsed without 
daring to attempt it any more, being 
the only place in the North Seas they 
attempted in vain for many years; 
and the Spaniards since throw it in 
their teeth frequently as a word of 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. III. 



122 

reproach or defiance to them. Not 
far from that place is Varinas, a small 
village and Spanish plantation famous 
for its tobacco, reputed the best in the 
world. But to return to Caracas. 
All this coast is subject to dry winds, 
generally north-east, which caused us 
to have scabby lips; and we always 
found it thus, and that in different 
seasons of the year, for I have been 
on this coast several times. In other 
respects it is very healthy, and a sweet 
clear air. The Spaniards have look- 
outs or scouts on the hills, and 
breastworks in the valleys, and most 
of their Negroes are furnished with 
arms also for defence of the bays. 
The Dutch have a very profitable 
trade here almost to themselves. I 
have known three or four great ships 
at a time on the coast, each, it may 
be, of 30 or 40 guns. They carry 
hither all sorts of European commo- 
dities, especially linen, making vast 
returns, chiefly in silver and cacao. 
And I have often wondered and re- 
gretted that none of my own country- 
men find the way thither directly 
from England, for our Jamaica-men 
trade thither indeed, and find the 
sweet 1 of it, though they carry Eng- 
lish commodities at second or third 
hand. 

While we lay on this coast we went 
ashore in some of the bays and took 
seven or eight tons of cacao ; and after 
that, three barks, one laden with 
hides, the second with European com- 
modities, the third with earthenware 
and brandy. With these three barks 
we went again to the Islands of 
Roques, where we shared our commo- 
dities, and separated, having vessels 
enough to transport us all whither 
we thought most convenient. Twenty 
of us (for we were about sixty) took 
one of the vessels and our share of the 
goods, and went directly for Virginia. 
In our way thither we took several of 
the sucking-fishes, 2 for when we see 
them about the ship we cast out a line 
and hook, and they will take it with 



1 Advantage, gratification. 

2 The Echcneis remora, or sea lam- 
prey. 



any manner of bait, whether fish or 
flesh. The sucking-fish is about the 
bigness of a large whiting, and much 
of the same shape towards the tail, 
but the head is flatter. From the 
head to the middle of its back there 
grows a sort of flesh of a hard gristly 
substance, like that part of the lim- 
pet, a shell-fish tapering up pyramidi- 
cally, which sticks to the rocks; or 
like the head or mouth of a shell- 
snail, but harder. This excrescence 
is of a flat oval form about seven or 
eight inches long and five or six 
broad, and rising about half-an-inch 
high. It is full of small ridges, with 
which it will fasten itself to anything 
that it meets with in the sea, just as 
a snail does to a wall. When any of 
them happen to come about a ship, 
they seldom leave her, for they will 
feed on such filth as is daily thrown 
overboard, or on mere excrements. 
When it is fair weather and but little 
wind, they will play about the ship ; 
but in blustering weather, or when 
the ship sails quick, they commonly 
fasten themselves to the ship's bot- 
tom, from whence neither the ship's 
motion, though never so swift, nor 
the most tempestuous sea, can remove 
them. They will likewise fasten 
themselves to any other bigger fish, 
for they never swim fast themselves 
if they meet with anything to carry 
them. I have found them sticking 
to a shark after it was hauled in on 
the deck, though a shark is so strong 
and boisterous a fish, and throws 
about him so vehemently for half-an- 
hour together, it may be, when caught, 
that did not the sucking-fish stick at 
no ordinary rate it must needs be cast 
off by so much violence. It is usual 
also to see them sticking to turtle, to 
any old trees, planks, or the like, 
that lie driving at sea. Any knobs 
or inequalities at a ship's bottom are 
a great hindrance to the swiftness of 
its sailing, and ten or twelve of these 
sticking to it must needs retard it as 
much, in a manner, as if its bottom 
were foul. So that I am inclined to 
think that this fish is the JRemora, of 
which the ancients tell such stories : 
if it be not, I know no other that is, 



1682.] 



PREPARATIONS FOR A NEW VOYAGE. 



123 



and I leave the reader to judge. 1 I 
have seen these sucking-fishes in great 
plenty in the Bay of Campeachy, and 
in all the sea between that and the 
coast of Caracas, as about those islands 
particularly I have lately described, 
Roques, Blanco, Tortuga, &c. They 
have no scales, and are very good meat. 
We met nothing else worth remark 
in our voyage to Virginia, where we 
arrived in July 1682. That country 
is so well known to our nation, that 
I shall say nothing of it ; nor shall I 
detain the reader with the story of 
my own affairs, and the troubles that 
befell me during about thirteen 
months of my stay there : but in the 
next Chapter enter immediately upon 
my Second Voyage into the South 
Seas and round the Globe. 



CHAPTER IV. 

BEING now entering upon the rela- 
tion of a new voyage, which makes 
up the main body of this book, pro- 
ceeding from Virginia by the way of 
Tierra del Fuego and the South Seas, 
the East Indies, and so on, till my 
return to England by the way of the 
Cape of Good Hope, I shall give my 
reader this short account of my first 
entrance upon it. Among those who 
accompanied Captain Sharpe into the 
South Seas in our former expedition, 
and, leaving him there, returned 
overland (as is said in the Introduc- 



1 Pliny, in the opening chapter of 
his 32d book, is very eloquent on the 
powers of the echineis, or remora, or 
delaying-fish. ' ' Let the winds rush, " 
he says, among other grandiose 
things, "and the storms rage, one 
little ftshling lays commands on their 
fury, and controls their mighty forces, 
and compels the ships to stand still : 
a thing that could be done by no 
bonds, by no anchor cast with irrevo- 
cable weight. It curbs the shocks 
and tames the madness of the world 
by no labour of its own, not by hold- 
ing back, nor in any other way than 
simply by adhering." 



tion and in the First and Second 
Chapters), there was one Mr Cooke, 
an English native of St Christopher's, 
a Creole, as we call all born of Euro- 
pean parents in the West Indies. 
He was a sensible man, and had been 
some years a Privateer. At our join- 
ing ourselves with those Privateers 
we met at our coming again to the 
North Seas, his lot was to be with 
Captain Yanky, who kept company 
for some considerable time with Cap- 
tain Wright, in whose ship I was, 
and parted with us at our second 
anchoring at the Isle of Tortuga. 
After our parting, this Mr Cooke, 
being Quarter-master under Captain 
Yanky, the second place in the ship, 
according to the law of Privateers, 
laid claim to a ship they took from 
the Spaniards ; and such of Captain 
Yanky 's men as were so disposed, par- 
ticularly all those who came with us 
overland, went aboard this prize ship, 
under the new Captain Cooke. This 
distribution was made at the Isle of 
Vacca, or the Isle of Ash, as we call 
it ; and here they parted also such 
goods as they had taken. But Cap- 
tain Cooke having no commission, as 
Captain Yanky, Captain Tristian, and 
some other French commanders had, 
who lay then at that island, and they 
grudging the English such a vessel, 
they all joined together, plundered 
the English of thefr ship, goods, and 
arms, and turned them ashore. Yet 
Captain Tristian took in about eight 
or ten of these English, and carried 
them with him to Petit Goave ; of 
which number Captain Cooke was 
one, and Captain Davis another, who 
with the rest found means to seize 
the ship as she lay at anchor in the 
road, Captain Tristian and many of 
his men being then ashore. And the 
English sending ashore such French- 
men as remained in the ship and were 
mastered by them, though superior 
in number, stood away with her im- 
mediately for the Isle of Vacca, before 
any notice of this surprise could reach 
the French Governor of that Isle ; so 
deceiving him also by a stratagem, 
they got on board the rest of their 
countrymen who had been left on 



124 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. IV. 



that island ; and going thence they 
took a ship newly come from France 
laden with wines. They also took a 
ship of good force, in which they re- 
solved to embark themselves and 
make a new expedition into the South 
Seas, to cruise on the coast of Chili 
and Peru. But first they went for 
Virginia with their prizes ; where they 
arrived the April after my coming 
thither. The best of their prizes 
carried eighteen guns : this they 
fitted up there with sails and every- 
thing necessary for so long a voyage ; 
selling the wines they had taken for 
such provisions as they wanted. 
Myself and those of our fellow-travel- 
lers over the Isthmus of America who 
came with me to Virginia the year 
before this (most of whom had since 
made a short voyage to Carolina, and 
were again returned to Virginia), re- 
solved to join ourselves to these new 
adventurers ; and as many more en- 
gaged in the same design as made our 
whole crew consist of about seventy 
men. So having furnished ourselves 
with necessary materials, and agreed 
upon some particular rules, especially 
of temperance and sobriety, by reason 
of the length of our intended voyage, 
we all went on board our ship. 

August 23d, 1683, we sailed from 
Achamack 1 in Virginia, under the 
command of Captain Cooke, bound 
for the South Seas. I shall not 
trouble the reader with an account of 
every day's run, but hasten to the 
less known parts of the world, to give 
a description of them : only relating 
such memorable accidents as happened 
to us, and such places as we touched 
at by tjie way. We met nothing 
worth observation till we came to the 
Islands of Cape Verd, except a terrible 
storm, which [we] could not escape : 
this happened in a few days after we 
left Virginia, with a SSE. wind just 
in our teeth. The storm lasted above 



1 Accomack is a county in or rather 
of Virginia, lying in some sort as an 
enclave in the peninsula of Maryland, 
which runs down towards Cape Charles 
between the Chesapeake and the At- 
lantic Ocean. 



a week : it drenched us all like so 
many drowned rats, and was one of 
the worst storms I ever was in. One 
I met with in the East Indies was 
more violent for the time, but of not 
above twenty-four hours' continuance. 
After that storm we had favourable 
winds and good weather ; and in a 
short time we arrived at the Island [of] 
Sal, which is one of the easternmost 
of the Cape Verd Islands. Of these 
there are ten in number, so consider- 
able as to bear distinct names ; and 
they lie several degrees off from Cape 
Verd in Africa, whence they receive 
that appellation ; taking up about 5 
of longitude in breadth, and about as 
many of latitude in their length, viz., 
from near 14 to 19 North. They 
are mostly inhabited by Portuguese 
banditti. This of Sal is an island, 
lying in Lat. 16, in Long. 19 33' 
W. from the Lizard in England, 
stretching from north to south 
about eight or nine leagues, and 
not above a league and a half or two 
leagues wide. It has its name from 
the abundance of salt that is natur- 
ally congealed there, the whole island 
being full of large salt ponds. The 
land is very barren, producing no tree 
that I could see, but some small 
shrubby bushes by the sea-side ; 
neither could I discern any grass ; 
yet there are some poor goats on it. 
[The island was also well stocked with 
wild fowl, especially flamingoes, 
which build their nests in shallow 
ponds among the mud. The bird 
itself is in shape like a heron, but 
bigger, and of a reddish colour. The 
flesh of both the young and old birds 
they found eatable, especially the 
tongue, "a dish of flamingoes' 
tongues being fit for a prince's 
table."] 

There were not above five or six 
men on this Island of Sal, and a poor 
Governor, as they called him, who 
came aboard in our boat, and brought 
three or four poor lean goats for a 
present to our Captain, telling him 
they were the beet that the island 
did afford. The Captain, minding 
more the poverty of the giver than 
the value of the present, gave him iu 



1683.] 



AMONG THE CAPE VERB ISLANDS. 



125 



requital a coat to clothe him ; for 
he had nothing but a few rags on his 
hack, and an old hat not worth three 
farthings ; which yet I believe he 
wore but seldom, for fear he should 
want before he might get another, for 
he told us there had not been a ship in 
three years before. "We bought of 
him about twenty bushels of salt for 
a few old clothes ; and he begged a 
little powder and shot. We stayed 
here three days : in which time one 
of these Portuguese offered to some 
of our men a lump of ambergris in 
exchange for some clothes, desiring 
them to keep it secret ; for he said if 
the Governor should know it he should 
be hanged. At length one Mr Cop- 
pinger bought it for a small matter ; 
yet 1 believe he gave more than it 
was worth. We had not a man in the 
ship that knew ambergris : but I 
have since seen it in other places, 
and therefore am certain it was not 
right. It was of a dark colour like 
sheep's dung, and very soft, but of 
no smell ; and possibly it was some of 
their goats' dung. . . . We went 
from this Island of Sal to San Nicolas, 
another of the Cape Verd Islands, 
lying WSW. from Sal about twenty- 
two leagues. We arrived there the 
next day after we left the other, and 
anchored on the SE. side of the 
island. This is a pretty large island ; 
it ' is one of the biggest of all the 
Cape Yerd, and lies in a triangular 
form. The largest side, which lies 
to the east, is about thirty leagues 
long, and the other two above twenty 
leagues each. It is a mountainous 
barren island, and rocky all round 
towards the sea ; yet in the heart of 
it there are valleys where the Portu- 
guese which inhabit here have vine- 
yards and plantations and wood for 
fuel. Here are many goats, which 
are but poor in comparison with those 
in other places, yet much better than 
those at Sal ; there are likewise many 
asses. The Governor of this island 
came aboard us, with three or four 
gentlemen more in his company, who 
were all indifferently well clothed, and 
accoutred with swords and pistols ; 
tut the rest that accompanied him to 



the sea-side, which were about twenty 
or thirty men more, were but in a 
ragged garb. The Governor brought 
aboard some wine made in the island, 
which tasted much like Madeira 
wine ; it was of a pale colour, and 
looked thick. He told us the chief 
town was in a valley fourteen miles 
from the bay where we rode ; that he 
had there under him above one hun- 
dred families besides other inhabitants 
that lived scattering in valleys more 
remote. They were all very swarthy ; 
the Governor was the clearest of them, 
yet of a dark tawny complexion. At 
this island we scrubbed the bottom 
of our ship ; and here also we dug 
wells ashore on the bay, and filled 
all our water ; and after five or six 
days' stay we went from hence to 
Mayo, another of the Cape Verd 
Islands, lying about forty miles E. 
and by S. from the other ; arriving 
there the next day, and anchoring on 
the N W. side of the island. We sent 
our boat on shore, intending to have 
purchased some provision, as beef or 
goats, with which this island is better 
stocked than the rest of the islands. 
But the inhabitants would not suffer 
our men to land ; for about a week 
before our arrival, there came an Eng- 
lish ship, the men of which came ashore 
pretending friendship, and seized on 
the Governor with some others, and 
carrying them aboard made them 
send ashore for cattle to ransom their 
liberties : and yet after this set sail, 
and carried them away, and they had 
not heard of them since. The Eng- 
lishman that did this, as I was after- 
wards informed, was one Captain 
Bond of Bristol. Whether ever he 
brought back those men again, I 
know not. He himself and most of 
his men have since gone over to the 
Spaniards : and it was he who had 
like to have burnt our ship after this 
in the Bay of Panama, as I shall have 
occasion to relate. * This Isle of Mayo 
is but small and environed with 
shoals, yet a place much frequented 
by shipping, for its great plenty ol 
salt ; and though there is but bad 

1 In Chapter VII. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. IV. 



12G 

landing, yet many ships lade here 
every year. Here are plenty of bulls, 
cows, and goats ; and at a certain 
season in the year, as May, June, July, 
and August, a sort of small sea tor- 
toise come hither to lay their eggs : 
but these turtle are not so sweet as 
those in the West Indies. The inha- 
bitants plant corn, yams, potatoes, 
and some plantains, and breed a few 
fowls ; living very poor, yet much 
better than the inhabitants of any 
other of these islands, Santiago ex- 
cepted, which lies four or five leagues 
to the westward of Mayo, and is the 
chief, the most fruitful, and best in- 
habited of all the Islands of Cape 
Vcrd ; yet mountainous, and much 
barren land in it. 

On the east side of the Isle of San- 
tiago is a good port, which in peace- 
able times especially is seldom with- 
out ships ; for this hath long been a 
place which ships have been wont to 
touch at for water and refreshments, 
as those outward bound to the East 
Indies, English, French, and Dutch ; 
many of the ships bound to the coast 
of Guinea, and Dutch to Surinam, 
and their own Portuguese Fleet going 
for Brazil, which is generally about 
the latter end of September : but few 
ships call in here in their return for 
Europe. When any ships are here 
the country people bring down their 
commodities to sell to the seamen 
and passengers, viz., bullocks, hogs, 
goats, fowls, eggs, plantains, and 
cocoa-nuts ; which they Avill give in 
exchange for shirts, drawers, hand- 
kerchiefs, hats, waistcoats, breeches, 
or in a manner for any sort of cloth, 
especially linen ; for woollen is not 
much esteemed there. They care not 
willingly to part with their cattel * of 
any sort but in exchange for money, 
or linen, or some other valuable com- 



modity, 
of these 



Travellers must have a care 
people, for they are very 



thievish, and, if they see an oppor 
tunity, will snatch anything from 
you and run away with it. We did 
not touch at this island in this voyage ; 
but I was there before this in the year 



Goods, chattels. 



1670, when I saw a fort here lying on 
the top of an hill, and commanding 
the harbour. The Governor of this 
island is chief over all the rest of the 
islands. I have been told that there are 
two large towns on this island, some 
small villages, and a great many in- 
habitants ; and that they make a 
great deal of wine, such as is that of 
San Nicolas. I have not been on 
any other of the Cape Yerd Islands, 
nor near them, but have seen most 
of them at a distance. They seem to be 
mountainous and barren, some of these 
before mentioned being the most fruit- 
ful and most frequented by strangers, 
especially Santiago and Mayo. As to 
the rest of them, Fogo and Brava are 
two small islands lying to the west- 
ward of Santiago, but of little note ; 
only Fogo is remarkable for its being 
a volcano. It is all of it one large 
mountain of a good height, out of the 
top whereof issue flames of fire, yet 
only discerned in the night ; and then 
it may be seen a great way at sea. 
Yet this island is not without inha- 
bitants, who live at the foot of the 
mountain near the sea. Their sub- 
sistence is much the same as in the 
other islands ; they have some goats, 
fowls, plantains, cocoa-nuts, &c., as 
I am informed. The remainder of 
these islands of Cape Yerd are San 
Antonia, Santa Lucia, San Yincente, 
and Bona Yista : of which I know 
nothing considerable. 

Our entrance among these islands 
was from the NE. ; for in our passage 
from Virginia we ran pretty far to- 
ward the coast of Gualata 2 in Africa, 
to preserve the trade-wind, lest we 
should be borne off too much to the 
westward, and so lose the islands. 
We anchored at the south of Sal, and 
passing by the south of San Nicolas 
anchored again at Mayo, as hath been 
said ; where we made the shorter 
stay, because we could get no flesh 
among the inhabitants, by reason of 



2 Apparently the coast north of 
Cape Blanco, under the Tropic of 
Cancer ; two Arab tribes with the 
designation of Aoulad or Walad in- 
habit the interior. 



ON THE GUINEA COAST. 



1683-1] 

the regret they had at their Governor 
and his men being carried away by 
Captain Bond. So leaving the Isles 
of Cape Verd we stood away to the 
southward with the wind at ENE., 
intending to have touched no more 
till we came to the Straits of Magel- 
lan. But when we came into the Lat. 
of 10 N., we met the winds at S. by 
W. and SSW., therefore we altered 
our resolutions, and steered away for 
the coast of Guinea, and in few 
days came to the mouth of the River 
of Sherboro', which is an English 
factory lying south of Sierra Leone. 
We had one of our men who was well 
acquainted there ; and by his direc- 
tion we went in among the shoals, 
and came to an anchor. Sherboro' 
was a good way from us, so I can give 
no account of the place, or our factory 
there ; save that I have been inform- 
ed, that there is a considerable trade 
driven there for a sort of red wood for 
dyeing, which grows in that country 
very plentifully ; it is called by our 
people Camwood. A little within the 
shore where we anchored was a town 
of Negroes, natives of this coast. It 
was screened from our sight by a 
large grove of trees that grew between 
them and the shore ; but we went 
thither to them several times during 
the three or four days of our stay 
here, to refresh ourselves ; and they 
as often came aboard us, bringing 
with them plantains, sugar-canes, 
palm-wines, rice, fowls, and honey, 
which they sold us. They were no 
way shy of us, being well acquainted 
with the English, by reason of our 
Guinea factories and trade. This 
town seemed pretty large ; the houses 
but low and ordinary ; but one great 
house in the midst of it, where their 
chief men meet and receive strangers : 
and here they treated us with palm- 
wine. As to their persons they are 
like other Negroes. While we lay 
here we scrubbed the bottom of our 
ship, and then filled all our water- 
casks ; and buying up two puncheons 
of rice for our voyage, we departed from 
hence about the middle of November 
1683, prosecuting our intended course 
towards the Straits of Magellan. 



127 

We had but little wind after we 
got out, and very hot weather, with 
some fierce tornadoes, commonly ris- 
ing out of the NE., which brought 
thunder, lightning, and rain. These 
did not last long ; sometimes not a 
quarter of an hour ; and then the 
wind would shuffle about to the south- 
ward again, and fall flat calm; for 
these tornadoes commonly come 
against the wind that is then blowing, 
as our thunder-clouds are often ob- 
served to do in England. At this 
time many of our men were taken 
with fevers : yet we lost but one. 
While we lay in the calms we caught 
several great sharks ; sometimes two 
or three in a day, and ate tbem all, 
boiling and squeezing them dry, and 



then stewing them 
pepper, &c., for 



with vinegar, 
we had but little 
flesh aboard. We took the benefit of 
every tornado, which came sometimes 
three or four in a day, and carried 
what sail we could to get to the south- 
ward, for we had but little wind when 
they were over; and those small 
winds between the tornadoes were 
much against us till we passed the 
Equinoctial Line. In the Lat. of 5 S. 
we had the wiud at ESE., where it 
stood a considerable time, and blew a 
fresh topgallant gale. We then mad e 
the best use of it, steering on briskly 
with all the sail we could make ; and this 
wind by the 18th of January carried 
us into the Lat. of 36 S. In all this 
time we met with nothing worthy 
remark ; not so much as a fish, except 
flying fish, which have been so often 
described, that I think it needless for 
me to do it. Here we found the sea 
much changed from its natural green- 
ness, to a white or palish colour, 
which caused us to sound, supposing 
we might strike ground ; for when- 
ever we find the colour of the sea to 
change, we know we are not far from 
land, or shoals which stretch out into 
the sea, running from some land. 
But here we found no ground with 100 
fathom line. The 20th, one of our 
Surgeons died, much lamented, be- 
cause we had but one more for such a 
dangerous voyage. 

January 28th, we made the Sibbel 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. IV. 



de "Wards, 1 which are three islands 
lying in the Lat. of 51 25' S., and 
Long. W. from the Lizard in Eng- 
land, by my account, 57 28'. I had, 
for a month before we came hither, 
endeavoured to persuade Captain Cooke 
and his company to anchor at these 
islands, where I told them we might 
probably get water, as I then thought ; 
and in case we should miss it here, 
yet by being good husbands of what 
we had, we might reach Juan Fer- 
nandez in the South Seas, before our 
water was spent. This I urged to 
hinder their designs of going through 
the Straits of Magellan, which I knew 
would prove very dangerous to us ; 
the rather, because our men being 
Privateers, and so more wilful and 
less under command, would not be so 
ready to give a watchful attendance 
in a passage so little known. For 
although these men were more under 
command than I had ever seen any 
Privateers, yet I could not expect to 
find them at a minute's call in coming 
to anchor, or weighing anchor : be- 
sides, if ever we should have occasion 
to moor, or cast out two anchors, we 
had not a boat to carry out or weigh 
an anchor. These Islands of Sibbel 
de Wards were so named by the 
Dutch. They are all three rocky 
barren islands without any tree, only 
some dildo bushes growing on them ; 
and I do believe there is no water on 
any one of them, for there was no ap- 
pearance of any water. 

Leaving therefore the Sibbel de 
Ward Islands, as having neither good 
anchorage nor water, we sailed on, 
directing our course for the Straits of 
Magellan. But the winds hanging in 
the wester-board, and blowing hard, 
oft put us by our topsails ; so that we 
could not fetch it. The 6th of 
February we fell in with the Straits 



1 The Sebaldine group, lying on 
the north-west of the Falkland Is- 
lands ; they were discovered by the 
Dutch navigator Sebald de Wert in 
1600, and, until Commodore Byron 
rechristened them in 1765, they gave 
their name to the whole group now 
called the Falklands. 



of Le Maire, which is very high land 
on both sides, and the Straits very 
narrow. We had the wind at NNW. 
a fresh gale ; and seeing the opening 
of the Straits, we ran in with it, till 
within four miles of the mouth, and 
then it fell calm, and we found a 
strong tide setting out of the Straits 
to the northward, and like to founder 
our ship ; but whether flood or ebb I 
know not ; only it made such a short 
cockling sea as if we had been in a 
race, or place where two tides meet. 
For it ran every way, sometimes 
breaking in over our waist, sometimes 
over our poop, sometimes over our 
bow, and the ship tossed like an egg- 
shell, so that I never felt such uncer- 
tain jerks in a ship. At 8 o'clock in 
the evening we had a small breeze at 
WNW., and steered away to the east- 
ward, intending to go round the 
Staten Island, the east end of which 
we reached the next day by noon, 
having a fresh breeze all night. At 
the east end of Staten Island are three 
small islands, or rather rocks, pretty 
high, and white with the dung of 
fowls. Having observed the sun, we 
hauled up south, designing to pass 
round to the southward of Cape Horn, 
which is the southernmost land of 
Tierra del Fuego. The winds hung 
in the western quarter betwixt the 
NW. and the W., so that we could 
not get much to the westward, and 
we never saw Tierra del Fuego after 
that evening that we made the Straits 
of Le Maire. I have heard that there 
have been smokes and fires on Tierra 
del Fuego, not on the tops of hills, 
but in plains and valleys, seen by 
those who have sailed through the 
Straits of Magellan ; supposed to be 
made by the natives. 3 

The 14th of February, being in Lat. 
57, and to the west of Cape Horn, we 
had a violent storm, which held us 
till the 3d day of March, blowing 
commonly at SW. and SW. by W. 



2 In the account of Drake's voyage 
(ante, page 56), we find it stated: 
"The people inhabiting these parts 
made fires as we passed by la divers 
places." 



1684.] THE MOSQUITO INDIAN 

and WSW., thick weather all the 
time, with small drizzling rain, but 
not hard. We made a shift, however, 
to save twenty-three barrels of rain- 
water besides what we dressed our 
victuals withal. March the 3d, the 
wind shifted at once, and came about at 
S., blowing a fierce gale of wind ; soon 
after it came about to the eastward, 
and we stood into the South Seas. 
The 9th, having an observation of the 
sun, not having seen it of late, we 
found ourselves in Lat. 47 10'. The 
wind stood at SE. , we had fair weather, 
and a moderate gale; and the 17th, 
we were in Lat. 36 by observation. 
The 19th day, when we looked out in 
the morning, we saw a ship to the 
southward of us coming with all the 
sail she could make after us. We lay 
muzzled to let her come up with us, 
for we supposed her to be a Spanish 
ship come from Valdivia bound to 
Lima; we being now to the north- 
ward of Valdivia, and this being the 
time of the year when ships that trade 
thence to Valdivia return home. They 
had the same opinion of us, and there- 
fore made sure to take us, but coming 
nearer we both found our mistakes. 
This proved to be one Captain Eaton, 
in a ship sent purposely from London 
for the South Seas. We hailed each 
other, and the Captain came on 
board, and told us of his actions on 
the coast of Brazil and in the river of 
Plate. He met Captain Swan, one 
that came from England to trade 
here, at the east entrance into the 
Straits of Magellan, and they accom- 
panied each other through the Straits, 
and were separated after they were 
through by the storm before men- 
tioned. Both we and Captain Eaton 
being bound for Juan Fernandez's 
Isle, we kept company, and we spared 
him bread and beef and he spared 
iis water, which he took in as he 
passed through the Straits. 

March the 22d, 1684, we came in 
sight of the island, and the next day 
got in and anchored in a bay at the 
south end of the island, in twenty-five 
fathom water, not two cables' length 
from the shore. We presently got out 
our canoe and went ashore to seek for 



OF JUAN FERNANDEZ. 129 
a Mosquito Indian whom we left here 
when we were chased hence by three 
Spanish ships in the year 1681, a little 
before we went to Arica, Captain 
Watling being then our commander, 
after Captain Sharpe was turned out. 
This Indian lived here alone above 
three years, and although he was 
several times sought after by the 
Spaniards, who knew he was left on 
the island, yet they could never find 
him. He was in the woods hunting 
for goats when Captain Watling drew 
off his men, and the ship was under 
sail before he came back to shore. H : 
had with him his gun and a knife, 
with a small horn of powder, and fe 
few shot, which being spent, he con- 
trived a way, by notching his knife, 
to saw the barrel of his gun into small 
pieces, wherewith he made harpoons, 
lances, hooks, and a long knife ; heat- 
ing the pieces first in the fire, which 
he struck with his gun-flint, and a 
piece of the barrel of his gun, which 
lie hardened, haying learnt to do that 
among the English. The hot pieces 
of iron he would hammer out and 
bend as he pleased with stones, and 
saw them with his jagged knife, or 
grind them to an edge by long labour, 
and harden them to a good temper as 
there was occasion. All this may 
seem strange to those that are not 
acquainted with the sagacity of the 
Indians ; but it is no more than these 
Mosquito men are accustomed to in 
their own country, where they make 
their own fishing and striking instru- 
ments without either forge or anvil, 
though they spend a great deal of 
time about them. Other wild Indians 
who have not the use of iron, which 
the Mosquito men have from the Eng- 
lish, make hatchets of a very hard 
stone, with which they will cut down 
trees (the cotton tree especially, which 
is a soft tender wood), to build their 
houses or make canoes; and though 
in working their canoes hollow they 
cannot dig them so neat and thin, yet 
they will make them fit for their ser- 
vice. This their digging or hatchet- 
work they help out by fire, whether 
for the felling of the trees or for the 
making the inside of their canoes hol- 
I 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. IV. 



130 

low. These contrivances are used 
particularly by tlie savage Indians of 
Blewfields River, whose canoes and 
stone hatchets I have seen. These 
stone hatchets are about ten inches 
long, four broad, and three inches 
thick in the middle. They are 
ground away flat and sharp at both 
ends; right in the midst, and clear 
round it, they make a notch, so wide 
and deep that a man might place his 
finger along it ; and taking a stick or 
withe about four feet long, they bind 
it round the hatchet-head in that 
notch, and so twisting it hard, use it 
as a handle or helve, 1 the head being 
held by it very fast. Nor are other 
wild Indians less ingenious. Those 
of Patagonia, particularly, head their 
arrows with flint cut or ground, which 
I have seen and admired. 8 

But to return to our Mosquito man 
on the Isle of Juan Fernandez. With 
such instruments as he made in that 
manner, he got such provision as the 
island afforded, either goats or fish. 
He told us that at first he was forced 
to eat seal, which is very ordinary 
meat, before he had made hooks ; but 
afterwards he never killed any seals 
but to make lines, cutting their skins 
into thongs. He had a little house 
or hut half-a-mile from the sea, 
which was lined with goatskin ; his 
couch, or barbecue, of sticks, lying 
along about two feet distant from the 
ground, was spread with the same, 
and was all his bedding. He had no 
clothes left, having worn out those 
he brought from Watling's ship, but 
only a skin about his waist. He saw 
our ship the day before we came to an 
anchor, and did believe we were Eng- 
lish, and therefore killed three goats 
in the morning before we came to 
anchor, arid dressed them with cab- 
bage to treat us when we came ashore. 
He came then to the sea-side to con- 
gratulate our safe arrival. And when 
we landed, a Mosquito Indian, named 
Robin, first leaped ashore, and run- 
ning to his brother Mosquito-man, 

1 From Anglo-Saxon "helf," a 
haft or handle. 
8 Marvelled at. 



threw himself flat on his face at jiis 
feet, who, helping him up and em- 
bracing him, fell flat with his face 
on the ground at Robin's feet, and 
was by him taken up also. We stood 
with pleasure to behold the surprise 
and tenderness and solemnity of this 
interview, which was exceedingly af- 
fectionate on both sides; and when 
their ceremonies of civility were over, 
we also that stood gazing at them 
drew near, each of us embracing him 
we had found here, who was overjoyed 
to see so many of his old friends come 
hither, as he thought, purposely to 
fetch him. He was named Will, as 
the other was named Robin. These 
were names given them by the Eng- 
lish, for they have no names among 
themselves; and they take it as a 
great favour to be named by any of 
us, and will complain for want of it 
if we do not appoint them some name 
when they are with us, saying, of 
themselves they are poor men and 
have no name. 

This island is in Lat. 34 15', and 
about 120 leagues from the main. It 
is about twelve leagues round, full of 
high hills and small pleasant valleys, 
which, if manured, would probably 
produce anything proper for the cli- 
mate. The sides of the mountains 
are part savannahs, part woodland. 
Savannahs are clear pieces of land 
without woods, not because more 
barren than the woodland, for they 
are frequently spots of as good land 
as any, and often are intermixed with 
woodland. [The grass in these savan- 
nahs is here described as long and 
flaggy, and the valleys well stocked 
with wild goats, these having been first 
left there by Juan Fernandez in his 
voyage from Lima to Valdivia. The 
sea about it is described as swarming 
with fish, "so plentiful that two men 
in an hour's time will take with hook 
and line as many as will serve 100 
men."] 

Seals swarm as thick about this 
island as if they had no other place 
to live in, for there is not a bay 
nor rock that one can get ashore 
on but is full of them. The seals 
are a sort of creatures pretty well 



1684.] DESCRIPTION OF THE SEAL AND "SEA-LION. 



known, yet it may not "be amiss to 
describe them. They are as big as 
calves, the head of them like a dog, 
therefore called by the Dutch sea- 
hounds. Under each shoulder grows 
a long thick fin ; these serve them to 
swim with them in the sea, and are 
instead of legs to them when on the 
land, for raising their bodies up on 
end by the help of these fins or 
stumps, and so having their tail-parts 
drawn close under them, theyrebound, 
as it were, and throw their bodies 
forward, drawing their hinder parts 
after them ; and then again rising up 
and springing forward with their 
fore-parts alternately, they lie tum- 
bling up and down all the while they 
are moving on land. From their 
shoulders to their tails they grow 
tapering like fish, and have two small 
fins on each side of the rump, which 
is commonly covered with their fins. 
These fins serve instead of a tail in 
the sea, and on land they sit on them 
when they give suck to their young. 
Their hair is of divers colours, as 
black, grey, dun, spotted, looking 
very sleek and pleasant when they 
come first out of the sea ; for these at 
Juan Fernandez have fine thick short 
fui, the like I have not taken notice 
of anywhere but in these seas. Here 
are always thousands, I might say 
possibly millions of them, sitting on 
the bays or going and coming in the 
sea round the island, which is covered 
with them, as they lie at the top of 
the water playing and sunning them- 
selves for a mile or two from the 
shore. When they come out of the 
sea, they bleat like sheep for their 
young ; and though they pass through 
hundreds of others' young ones before 
they come to their own, yet they will 
not suffer any of them to suck. The 
young ones are like puppies, and lie 
much ashore; but when beaten by 
any of us, they, as well as the old 
ones, will make towards the sea, and 
swim very swift and nimble, though 
on shore they lie very sluggishly, and 
will not go out of our ways unless we 
beat them, but snap at us. A blow 
on the nose soon kills them. Large 
ships might here load themselves with 



131 

seal-skins and train-oil, for they are 
extraordinary fat. Seals are found as 
well in cold as hot climates, and in 
the cold places they love to get on 
lumps of ice, where they will lie and 
sun themselves as here on the land. 
They are frequent in the northern 
parts of Europe and America, and 
in the southward parts of Africa, 
as about the Cape of Good Hope, 
and at the Straits of Magellan ; 
and though I never saw any in the 
West Indies but in the Bay of Cam- 
peachy, at certain islands called the 
Alecranes, and at others called the 
Desertas, yet they are over all the 
American coast of the South Seas, 
from Tierra del Fuego up to the Equi- 
noctial Line ; but to the north of the 
Equinox again in these seas I never 
saw any till as far as 21 N. Nor did 
I ever see any in the East Indies. In 
general they seem to resort where 
there is plenty of fish, for that is their 
food ; and fish such as they feed on, 
as cods, groopers, &c., are most plen- 
tiful on rocky coasts, and such is 
mostly the western coast of South 
America. 

The sea -lion 1 is a large creature 
about twelve or fourteen feet long. 
The biggest part of his body is as big 
as a bull : it is shaped like a seal, but 
six times as big. The head is like a 
lion's head ; it hath a broad face, 
with many long hairs growing about 
its lips like a cat. It has a great goggle 
eye, the teeth three inches long, 
about the bigness of a man's thumb. 
In Captain Sharpe's time some of our 
men made dice with them. They 
have no hair on their bodies like the 
seal ; they are of a dun colour, and 
are all extraordinary fat : one of them 
being cut up and boiled will yield a 
hogshead of oil, which is very sweet 
and wholesome to fry meat withal. 
The lean flesh is black, and of a 
coarse grain, yet indifferent good 
food. They will lie a week at a time 
ashore if not disturbed. Where 
three or four or more of them come 
ashore together, they huddle one on 



1 A large species of seal, the male 
of which has a mane on its nek. 



182 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. V. 

and their diseases were chiefly scor- 
butic. 



another like swine, and grunt like 
them, making a hideous noise. They 
eat fish, which I believe is their com- 
mon food. The snapper is a fish 
made much like a roach, but a great 
deal bigger. It has a large head and 
mouth, and great gills. The back is 
of a bright red, the belly of a silver 
colour. The scales are as broad as a 
shilling. The snapper is excellent 
meat. They are in many places in 
the West Indies and the South Seas. 
The rock-fish 1 is called by seamen a 
grooper : the Spaniards call it " bac- 
calao," which is the name for cod, 
because it is much like it. It is 
rounder than the snapper, of a dark 
brown colour, and hath small scales 
no bigger than a silver penny. This 
fish is good sweet meat, and is found 
in great plenty on all the coast of 
Peru and Chili. 

There are only two bays in the 
whole island where ships may anchor ; 
these are both at the east end, and in 
both of them is a rivulet of good fresh 
water. Either of these bays may be 
fortified, with little charge, to that 
degree that fifty men in each may be 
able to keep off 1000 ; and there is no 
coming into these bays from the west 
end but with great difficulty, over 
the mountains, where if three men 
are placed they may keep down as 
many as come against them on any 
side. This was partly experienced 
by five Englishmen that Captain 
Davis left here, who defended them 
selves against a great body of Span- 
iards who landed in the bays, and 
came here to destroy them ; and 
though the second time one of their 
consorts deserted and fled to the 
Spaniards, yet the other four kept 
their ground, and were afterward 
taken in from hence by Captain 
Strong of London. 

We remained at Juan Fernandez 
sixteen days. Our sick men were 
ashore all the time, and one of Cap- 
tain Eaton's doctors (for he had four 
in his ship) tending and feeding them 
with goat, and several herbs, whereof 
here is plenty growing in the brooks ; 



The Golius niqtr, or black goby. 



CHAPTER V. 

THE 8th of April 1684, we sailed from 
the Isle of Juan Fernandez with the 
wind at SE. We were now two ships 
in company : Captain Cooke's, whose 
ship I was in, and who here took the 
sickness of which he died a while 
after; and Captain Eaton's. Our 
passage lay now along the Pacific Sea, 
properly so called. For though it be 
usual with our map-makers to give 
that name to this whole Ocean, call- 
ing it Mare Australe, Mare del Zur, or 
Mare Pacificum ; yet, in my opinion, 
the name of the Pacific Sea ought not 
to be extended from S. to N. farther 
than from 30 to about 4 S. Lat. , and 
from the American shore westward 
indefinitely. In this sea we made 
the best of our way towards the Line, 
till in the Lat. of 24 S., where we 
fell in with the mainland of South 
America. All this course of the 
land, both of Chili and Peru, is vastly 
high ; therefore we kept twelve or 
fourteen leagues off from shore, being 
unwilling to be seen by the Spaniards 
dwelling there. The land (especially 
beyond this, from 24 S. Lat. to 17 , 
and from 14 to 10") is of a most pro- 
digious height. It lies generally in 
ridges parallel to the shore, and three 
or four ridges one within another, 
each surpassing other in height ; and 
those that are farthest within land 
are much higher than the others. 
They always appear blue when seen 
at sea : sometimes they are obscured 
with clouds, but not so often as the 
high lands in other parts of the world ; 
for here are seldom or never any rains 
on these hills, any more than in the 
sea near it ; neither are they subject 
to fogs. These are the highest moun- 
tains that ever I saw, far surpassing 
the Peak of Teneriffe, or Santa Marta, 
and I believe any mountains in the 
world. The excessive height of these 
mountains may possibly be the rea- 
son that there are no rivers of note 
that fall into these seas. Some small 



1684.] A "TIMBER" 

rivers indeed there are, but very few 
of them, for in some places there is 
not one that comes out into the sea 
in 150 or 200 leagues; and where 
they are thickest, they are thirty, 
forty, or fifty leagues asunder, and 
too little and shallow to be navigable. 
Besides, some of these do not con- 
stantly run, but are dry at certain 
seasons of the year, being rather tor- 
rents or land-floods caused by their 
rains at certain seasons far within 
land than perennial streams. 

"We kept still along in sight of this 
coast, but at a good distance from it, 
encountering nothing of note, till in 
the Lat. of 9 40' S., on the 3d of 
May, we descried a sail to the north- 
ward of us, plying to windward. We 
chased her, and Captain Eaton being 
ahead soon took her. She came from 
Guayaquil about a month before, laden 
with timber, and was bound to Lima. 
Three days before we took her she 
came from Santa, whither she had 
gone for water, and where they had 
news of our being in these seas by an 
express from Valdivia ; for, as we 
afterwards heard, Captain Swan had 
been at Valdivia to seek a trade there, 
and he having met Captain Eaton in 
the Straits of Magellan, the Spaniards 
of Valdivia were doubtless informed 
of us by him ; suspecting him also to 
be one of us, though lie was not. 
Upon this news, the Viceroy of Lima 
sent expresses to all the seaports, that 
they might provide themselves against 
our assaults. We immediately steered 
away for the Island of Lobos, which 
lies in Lat. 6 24' S., and is five leagues 
from the main : it is called Lobos de 
la Mar, 1 to distinguish it from an- 
other that is not far from it, and 
extremely like it, called Lobos de la 
Tierra, for it lies near the main. 
Lobos, or Lovos, is the Spanish name 
for a seal, of which there are great 
plenty about these and several other 
islands in these seas that go by this 
name. The 9th of May, we arrived 
at this Isle of Lobos de la Mar, and 
came to an anchor with our prize. 
This Lobos consists indeed of two 



Or Lobos de Afuera. 



PRIZE TAKEN. 133 

little islands, each about a mile round, 
of an indifferent height, a small chan- 
nel between, fit for boats only ; and 
several rocks lying on the north side 
of the islands, a little way from shore. 
Within land they are both of them 
partly rocky and partly sandy, barren, 
without any fresh water, tree, shrub, 
grass, or herbs ; or any land animals 
(for the seals and sea-lions come 
ashore here) but fowls, of which there 
are great multitudes j as boobies, 
but mostly penguins, which J have 
seen plentifully all over the South 
Seas, on the coast of Newfoundland, 
and off the Cape of Good Hope. They 
are a sea fowl, about as big as a duck, 
and such feet, but a sharp bill ; feeding 
on fish. They do not fly, but flutter, 
having rather stumps like a young 
gosling's than wings ; and these are 
instead of fins to them in the water. 
Their feathers are downy. Their 
flesh is but ordinary food ; but their 
eggs are good meat. There is an- 
other sort of small black fowl, that 
make holes in the sand for their night 
habitations, whose flesh is good sweet 
meat : I never saw any of them but 
here, and at Juan Fernandez. 

Here we scrubbed our ships, and 
being in readiness to sail, the pri- 
soners were examined, to know if any 
of them could conduct us to some 
town where we might make some at- 
tempt ; for they had before informed 
us that we were descried by the 
Spaniards, and by that we knew that 
they would send no riches by sea so 
long as we were here. Many towns 
were considered on, as Guayaquil, 
Sana, Truxillo, and others. At last 
Truxillo was pitched on as the most 
important, therefore the likeliest to 
make us a voyage if we could conquer 
it, which we did not much question, 
though we knew it to be a very popu- 
lous city. But the greatest difficulty 
was in landing ; for Huanchaco [to 
the north of Truxillo], which is the 
nearest seaport to it, but six miles off, 
is an ill place to land, since some- 
times the very fishermen that live 
there are not able to go out in three 
or four days. However, the I7tb of 
May, in the afternoon, our men were 



134 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



mustered of both ships' companies, 
and their arms proved. We were in 
all 108 men fit for service, besides the 
sick ; and the next day we intended 
to sail and take the wo<jd prize with 
us. But the next day one of our 
men, being ashore betimes on the 
island, descried three sail bound to 
the northward ; two of them without 
the island to the westward, the other 
between it and the continent. We 
soon got our anchors up and chased ; 
and Captain Eaton, who drew the 
least draught of water, put through 
between the westernmost island and 
the rocks, and went after those two 
that were without the islands. We 
in Captain Cooke's ship went after 
the other, which stood in for the 
mainland ; but we soon fetched her 
up ; and, having taken her, stood in 
again with her to the island, for we 
saw that Captain Eaton wanted no 
help, having taken both those that 
he went after. He came in with one 
of his prizes ; but the other was so 
far to leeward, and so deep, that he 
could not then get her in, but he 
hoped to get her in the next day ; 
but being deeply laden, as designed 
to go down before the wind to Pana- 
ma, she would not bear sail. The 
19th, she turned all day, but got no- 
thing nearer the island. Our Mos- 
quito strikers, according to their cus- 
tom, went out and struck six turtles ; 
for here are indifferent plenty of 
them. These ships that we took the 
day before we came from Huanchaco 
were all three laden with flour, bound 
for Panama. Two of them were laden 
as deep as they could swim ; the 
other was not above half laden, but 
was ordered by the Viceroy of Lima 
to sail with the other two, or else she 
should not sail till we were gone out 
of the seas ; for he hoped they might 
escape us by setting out early. In 
the biggest ship was a letter to the 
President of Panama from the Vice- 
roy of Lima, assuring him that there 
were enemies come into that sea ; for 
which reason he had despatched these 
three ships with flour, that they 
might not want (for Panama is sup- 
plied from Peru), and desired him to 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. V. 

be frugal of it, for he knew not when 
he should send more. In this ship 
were likewise seven or eight tons of 
marmalade of quinces, and a stately 
mule sent to the President, and a very 
large image of the Virgin Mary in 
wood, carved and painted, to adorn 
a new church at Panama, and sent 
from Lima by the Viceroy ; for this 
great ship came from thence not long 
before. She brought also from Lima 
890,000 pieces of eight, to carry with 
her to Panama ; but while she lay at 
Huanchaco, taking in her lading of 
flour, the merchants, hearing of Cap- 
tain Swan's being at Valdivia, ordered 
the money ashore again. These pri- 
soners likeAvise informed us that the 
gentlemen, inhabitants of Truxillo, 
were building a fort at Huanchaco, 
close by the sea, purposely to hinder 
the designs of any that should attempt 
to land there. Upon this news we 
altered our former resolutions, and 
resolved to go with our three prizes 
to the Galapagos, which are a great 
many large islands, lying some under 
the Equator, others on each side 
of it. 

The 19th, in the evening, we sailed 
from the Island of Lobos, with Cap- 
tain Eaton in our company. We 
carried the three flour prizes with us, 
but our first prize, laden with timber, 
we left here at anchor. We steered 
away NW. by N., intending to run 
into the latitude of the Isles of Gala- 
pagos, and steer off AY., because we 
did not know the certain distance, 
and therefore could not shape a direct 
course to them. When we came 
within 40' of the Equator, we steered 
W., having the wind at S., a very 
moderate gentle gale. It was the 
31st of May when we first had sight 
of the Islands Galapagos. Some of 
them appeared on our weatherbow, 
some on our lee bow, others right 
ahead. We at first sight trimmed our 
sails, and steered as nigh the wind as 
we could, striving to get to the 
southernmost of them ; but our prizes 
being deep laden, their sails but 
small and thin, and a very small gale, 
they could not keep up with us. 
Therefore we likewise edged away agaii 1 



1684.] 



AMONG THE GALAPAGOS ISLANDS. 



135 



a point from the wind, to keep near 
them ; and, in the evening, the ship 
that I was in, and Captain Eaton, 
anchored on the east side of one of 
the easternmost islands, a mile from 
the shore, in sixteen fathoms water, 
clean, white, hard sand. The Gala- 
pagos Islands are a great number of 
uninhabited islands lying under and 
on both sides of the Equator. The 
easternmost of them are about 110 
leagues from the main. The Span- 
iards who first discovered them, and 
in whose draughts alone they are laid 
down, report them to be a great 
number, stretching north-west from 
the Line as far as 5 N. ; but we saw 
not above fourteen or fifteen. They 
are some of them seven or eight 
leagues long, and three or four broad. 
They are of a good height, most of 
them flat and even on the top ; four 
or five of the easternmost are rocky, 
barren, and hilly, producing neither 
tree, herb, nor grass, but a few dildo 
trees, except by the sea-side. The 
dildo tree is a green prickly shrub, 
that grows about ten or twelve feet 
high, without either leaf or fruit. It 
is as big as a man's leg from the root 
to the top, and it is full of sharp 
prickles, growing in thick rows from 
top to bottom. This shrub is fit for 
no use, not so much as to burn. 
Close by the sea there grow in some 
places bushes of Burton-wood, which 
is very good firing. This sort of wood 
grows in many places in the West 
Indies, especially in the Bay of Cam- 
peachy, and in the Sambaloes. I did 
never see any in these seas but here. 
There is water on these barren 
islands, in ponds and holes among 
the rocks. Some others of these 
islands are mostly plain and low, and 
the land more fertile ; producing trees 
of divers sorts unknown to us. Some 
of the westernmost of these islands are 
nine or ten leagues long, and six or 
seven broad ; the mould deep and 
black. These produce trees of great and 
tall bodies, especially mammee trees, 1 



1 The Mammeo Americana, a genus 
with only one species ; it bears a fruit 
sweet in taste and aromatic in odour. 



which grow here in great groves. In 
these large islands there are some 
pretty big rivers; and on many of 
the other lesser islands there are 
brooks of good water. The Spaniards, 
when they first discovered these 
islands, found multitudes of guanas, 
and land-turtle or tortoise, and named 
them the Galapagos Islands. I do 
believe there is no place in the world 
that is so plentifully stored with these 
animals. The guanas here are as fat 
and large as any that I ever saw; 
they are so tame, that a man may 
knock down twenty in an hour's time 
with a club. The land-turtle are so 
numerous, that 500 or 600 men might 
subsist on them alone for several 
months, without any other sort of 
provision ; they are extraordinary 
large and fat, and so sweet, that no 
pullet eats more pleasantly. One of 
the largest of these creatures will 
weigh 150 or 200 Ibs., and some of 
them are two feet or two feet six 
inches over the gallapee 2 or belly. I 
did never see any but at this place 
that will weigh above 30 Ibs. I have 
heard that at the Isle of St Lawrence 
or Madagascar, and at the English 
Forest, an island near it, called also 
Don Mascarin, 3 and now possessed 
by the French, there are very large 
ones ; but whether so big, fat, and 
sweet as these, I know not. There 
are three or four sorts of these crea- 
tures in the West Indies. One is 
called by the Spaniards "hecatee;" 
these live most in fresh-water ponds, 
and seldom come on land. They 
weigh about 10 or 15 Ibs.; they have 
small legs and flat feet, and small 



2 The callipee is the gelatinous sub- 
stance, of a light yellowish colour, 
which forms part of the lower 
shield of the turtle ; callipash is the 
similar substance, of a dull greenish 
hue, which belongs to the upper 
shield. 

3 The general name for the group 
of islands in the Indian Ocean that 
comprises Mauritius and Keunion, is 
the Mascarenhas Islands, so called 
from the name of their Portuguese dis- 
coverer, in 1545. 



135 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



long necks. Another sort is called 
terrapin j 1 these are a great deal less 
than the hecatee ; the shell on their 
backs is all carved naturally, finely 
wrought and well clouded ; the backs 
of these are rounder than those be- 
fore mentioned ; they are otherwise 
much of the same form : these de- 
light to live in wet swampy places, 
or on the land near such places. Both 
these sorts are very good meat. They 
are in great plenty on the Isle of 
Pines near Cuba . there the Spanish 
hunters, when they meet them in the 
woods, bring them home to their 
Luts, and mark them by notching 
their shells, then let them go ; this 
they do to have them at hand, for 
they never ramble far from thence. 
When these hunters return to Cuba, 
after about a month or six weeks' stay, 
they carry with them 300 or 400, or 
more, of these creatures to sell ; for 
they are very good meat, and every 
man knows his own by their marks. 
These tortoises in the Galapagos are 
more like the hecatee, except that, 
as I said before, they are much 
bigger, and they have very long 
small necks and little heads. There 
are some green snakes on these 
islands, but no other land animal 
that I did ever see. There are great 
plenty of turtle doves, so tame, that 
a man may kill five or six dozen in 
a forenoon with a stick. They are 
somewhat less than a pigeon, and 
are very good meat, and commonly 
fat. 

There are good wide channels be- 
tween these islands, fit for ships to 
pass, and in some places shoal water, 
where there grows plenty of turtle- 
grass ; therefore these islands are 
plentifully stored with sea-turtle, of 
that sort which is called the green 
turtle. There are four sorts of sea- 
turtle viz., the trunk turtle, the 
loggerhead, the hawksbill, and the 
green turtle. The trunk turtle is 
commonly bigger than the others, 
their backs are higher and rounder, 
and their flesh rank and not whole- 

1 Otherwise "terrapene," the box- 
tortoise. 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. V. 

some. The loggerhead is so called 
because it has a great head, much 
bigger than the other sorts ; their 
flesh is likewise very rank and sel- 
dom eaten but in case of necessity ; 
they feed on moss that grows about 
rocks. The hawksbill turtle is the 
least kind ; they are so called because 
their mouths are long and small, some- 
what resembling the bill of a hawk. 
Hawksbill turtle are in many places 
of the West Indies. They have 
islands and places peculiar to them- 
selves, where they lay their eggs, and 
seldom come among any other turtle. 
These, and all other turtle, lay eggs 
in the sand ; in N. Latitude, their 
time of laying is in May, June, July ; 
in S. Latitude, about Christmas ; 
some begin sooner, some later ; they 
lay three times in a season, and at 
each time eighty or ninety eggs. 
Their eggs are as a big as a hen's 
egg, and very round, covered only 
with a white tough skin. There are 
some bays on the north side of 
Jamaica, where these hawksbills re- 
sort to lay. In the Bay of Honduras 
are islands which they likewise make 
their breeding - places, and many 
places along all the. coast on the main 
of the West Indies, from Trinidad to 
La Vera Cruz, in the Bay of Nova 
Hispania. When a sea-turtle turns 
out of the sea to lay, she is at least 
an hour before she returns again ; for 
she is to go above high-water mark, 
and if it be low-water when she 
comes ashore, she must rest once or 
twice, being heavy, before she comes 
to the place where she lays. When 
she has found a place for her purpose, 
she makes a great hole with her fins 
in the sand, wherein she lays her 
eggs, then covers them two feet deep 
with the same sand which she threw 
out of the hole, and so returns ; 
sometimes they come up the night 
before they intend to lay, and take a 
view of the place ; and so, having 
made a tour or semicircular march, 
they return to the sea again, and 
they never fail to come ashore the 
next night to lay near that place. 
All sorts of turtle use the same 
methods in laying. I knew a man 



1684.] THE "HAWKSBILL" 

in Jamaica that made 8 sterling of 
the shell of these hawksbill turtle 
which he got in one season, and in 
one small bay not half a mile long. 
The manner of taking them is to 
watch the bay by walking from one 
part to the other all night ; making 
no noise, nor keeping any sort of 
light. When the turtle come ashore, 
the man that watches for them turns 
them on their backs, then hauls them 
above high-water mark, and leaves 
them till the morning. A large green 
turtle, with her weight and strug- 
gling, will puzzle two men to turn 
her. The hawksbill turtle are not 
only found in the West Indies, but 
on the coast of Guinea, and in the 
East Indies ; I never saw any in the 
South Seas. 

The green turtle are so called be- 
cause their shell is greener than any 
other. It is very thin and clear, and 
better clouded than the hawksbill ; 
but it is used only for inlays, being 
extraordinary thin. These turtles 
are generally larger than the hawks- 
bill ; one will weigh 200 or 300 Ibs.; 
their backs are flatter than the 
hawksbill, their heads round and 
small. Green turtle are the sweetest 
of all the kinds ; but there are de- 
grees of them, both in respect to their 
flesh and their bigness. I have 
observed that at Blanco, in the West 
Indies, the green turtle (which is 
the only kind there) are larger than 
any others in the North Seas ; there 
they commonly will weigh 280 or 
300 Ibs. Their fat is yellow and the 
lean white, and their flesh extraordin- 
ary sweet. At Boca del Toro, west of 
Porto Bello, they are not so large, 
their flesh not so white, nor the fat 
so yellow. Those in the Bays of 
Honduras and Campeachyare some- 
what smaller still ; their fat is green, 
and the lean of a darker colour than 
those at Boca del Toro. I heard of a 
monstrous green turtle once taken at 
Port Royal, in the Bay of Campeachy, 
that was four feet deep from the back 
to the belly, and the belly six feet 
broad. Captain Rocky's son, of about 
nine or ten years of age, went in it, 
as in a boat, on board his father's 



AND GREEN TURTLE. 137 

ship about a quarter of a mile from 
the shore ; the leaves l of fat afforded 
eight gallons of oil. The turtle that 
live among the keys or small islands 
on the south side of Cuba are a mixed 
sort, some bigger, some less ; and so 
their flesh is of a mixed colour, some 
green, some dark, some yellowish. 
With these, Port Royal, in Jamaica, 
is kept constantly supplied by sloops 
that come hither with nets to take 
them. They carry them alive to 
Jamaica, where the turtles have wires 
made with stakes in the sea to pre- 
serve them alive ; and the market 
is every day plentifully stored with 
turtle, "it being the common food 
there, chiefly for the ordinary sort of 
people. 

There is another sort of green 
turtle in the South Seas, which are 
but small, yet pretty sweet ; these 
lie westward, on the coast of Mexico. 
One thing is very strange and re- 
markable in these creatures ; that, at 
the breeding time, they leave for two 
or three months their common haunts 
where they feed most of the year, and 
resort to other places, only to lay 
their eggs. And it is not thought 
that they eat anything during this 
season ; so that both he's and she's 
grow very lean, but the he's to that 
degree that none will eat them. The 
most remarkable places that I did 
ever hear of for their breeding is at 
an island, in the West Indies, called 
Cayman, and the Isle of Ascencion, 
in the Western Ocean ; and when the 
breeding time is past there is none 
remaining. Doubtless they swim 
some hundreds of leagues to come to 
those two places. For it has been 
often observed that at Cayman, at 
the breeding time, there are found all 
those sorts of turtle before described. 
The South Keys of Cuba are above 
forty leagues from thence, which is 
the nearest place that these creatures 
can come from ; and it is most cer- 
tain that there could not live so 
many there as come here in one 
season. Those that go to lay at 
Ascencion must needs travel much 



Layers. 



138 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



farther, for there is no land nearer it 
than 300 leagues. And it is certain 
that these creatures live always near 
the shore. In the South Sea, like- 
wise, the Galapagos is the place where 
they live the biggest part of the year ; 
yet they go from thence at their 
season over to the main to lay their 
eggs ; which is 100 leagues, the 
nearest place. Although multitudes 
of these turtles go from their com- 
mon places of feeding and abode to 
those laying places, yet they do not 
all go. And at the time when the 
turtle resort to these places to lay 
their eggs, they are accompanied with 
abundance of fish, especially sharks ; 
the places which the turtle then 
leave being at that time destitute of 
fish, which follow the turtle. When 
the she's go thus to their places to 
lay, the males accompany them, and 
never leave them till their return. 
Both male and female are fat [in] the 
beginning of the season ; but, before 
they return, the males, as I said, are 
so lean, that they are not fit to eat, 
but the females are good to the very 
last, yet not so fat as at beginning of 
the season. It is reported of these 
creatures, that they are nine days 
engendering, and in the water, the 
male on the female's back. It is 
observable that the male, while 
engendering, do not easily forsake 
their female ; for I have gone and 
taken hold of the male when engen- 
dering, and a very bad striker may 
strike them then ; for the male is not 
shy at all, but the female, seeing a 
boat when they rise to blow, would 
make her escape, but that the male 
grasps her with his two fore fins and 
holds her fast. When they are thus 
coupled, it ivs best to strike the female 
first, then you are sure of the male 
also. These creatures are thought to 
live to a great age ; and, it is ob- 
served by the Jamaica turtlers, that 
they are many years before they come 
to their full growth. 

The air of these islands is temperate 
enough, considering the clime. There 
is constantly a fresh sea breeze all 
day, and cooling refreshing winds in 
the night ; therefore the heat is not 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. V. 

so violent here as in most places near 
the Equator. The time of the year 
for the rains is in November, Decem- 
ber, and January. Then there is 
oftentimes excessive dark tempest- 
uous weather mixed with much 
thunder and lightning. Sometimes 
before and after these months there 
are moderate refreshing showers ; but 
in May, June, July, and August, the 
weather is always very fair. We 
stayed at one of these islands, which 
lies under the Equator, but one night ; 
because our prizes could not get Into 
an anchor. We refreshed ourselves 
very well, both with land and sea 
turtle : and the next day we sailed 
from thence. The next island of the 
Galapagos that we came to is but two 
leagues from this : it is rocky and 
barren like this ; it is about five or 
six leagues long, and four broad. We 
anchored in the afternoon, at the 
north side of the island, a quarter of 
a mile from the shore, in sixteen 
fathoms water. It is steep all round 
this island, and no anchoring, only at 
this place. As soon as we came to an 
anchor, we made a tent ashore for 
Captain Cooke who was sick. Here 
we found the sea-turtle lying ashore 
on the sands ; this is not customary 
in the West Indies. We turned them 
on their backs that they might not 
get away. The next day more came 
up; when we found it to be their 
custom to lie in the sun : so we never 
took care to turn them afterwards, 
but sent ashore the cook every morn- 
ing, who killed as many as served for 
the day. This custom we observed 
all the time we lay here, feeding some- 
times on land-turtle, sometimes on 
sea-turtle, there being plenty of either 
sort. Captain Davis came hither 
again a second time; and then he 
went to other islands on the west side 
of these. There he found such plenty 
of land-turtle, that he and his men 
ate nothing else for three months that 
he stayed there. They were so fat, 
that he saved sixty jars of oil out of 
those that he spent. This oil served 
instead of butter to eat with dough- 
boys and dumplings in his return out 
of these seas. He found very con- 



1684.] DEATH OF CAPTAIN COOKE. 

venient places to careen, and good 
channels between the islands; and 
very good anchoring in many places. 
There he found also plenty of brooks 



139 



of good fresh water, and firewood 
enough ; there being plenty of trees 
fit for many uses. Captain Harris, 
one that we shall- speak of hereafter, 
came hither likewise, and found some 
islands that had plenty of mammee 
trees, and pretty large rivers. The 
sea about these islands is plentifully 
stored with fish, such as are at Juan 
Fernandez. They are both large and 
fat, and as plentiful here as at Juan 
Fernandez ; here are particularly 
abundance of sharks. These Isles of 
the Galapagos have plenty of salt. 
We stayed here but twelve days : in 
which time we put ashore 5000 packs 
of flour, for a reserve, if we should 
have occasion of any before we left 
these seas. Here one of our Indian 
prisoners informed us that he was 
born at B,ealejo, and that he would 
engage to carry us thither. He being 
examined of the strength and riches 
of it, satisfied the company so well, 
that they were resolved to go thither. 
Having thus concluded, the 12th 
of June, we sailed from hence, design- 
ing to touch at the Island of Cocos, 
as well to put ashore some flour there, 
as to see the island, because it was in 
our way to Realejo. [But] despairing 
as the winds were, to find the Island 
of Cocos, we steered over to the main. 
The Island of Cocos is so named by 
the Spaniards, because there are 
abundance of cocoa-nut trees grow- 
ing on it. They are not only in one 
or two places, but grow in great 
groves all round the island, by the 
sea. This is an uninhabited island ; 
it is seven or eight leagues round, and 
pretty high in the middle, where it is 
destitute of trees, but looks very green 
and pleasant, with an herb called by 
the Spaniards "gramadel." It is 
low land by the sea-side. "We had 
very fair weather and small winds 
in this voyage from the Galapagos, 
and at the beginning of July we fell 
in with Cape Blanco, on the main of 
Mexico. This is so called from two 
white rocks lying off it. When we 



are off at sea, right against the cape, 
they appear as part of the cape ; but 
being near the shore, either to the 
eastward or westward of the cape, 
they appear like two ships under sail 
at first view, but coming nearer they 
are like two high towers, they being 
small, high, and steep on all sides, 
and they are about half-a-mile from 
the cape. This cape is in Lat. 9 
56'. It is about the height of Beachy 
Head in England, on the coast of Sus- 
sex. It is a full point, with steep 
rocks to the sea. The top of it is 
flat and even for about a mile ; then 
it gradually falls away on each side 
with a gentle descent. It appears 
very pleasant, being covered with 
great lofty trees. From the cape on 
the NW. side, the land runs in NE. 
for about four leagues, making a small 
bay called by the Spaniards Caldera. 
From the bottom of this bay it is but 
fourteen or fifteen leagues to the Lake 
of Nicaragua, on the JSTorth Sea coast : 
the way between is somewhat moun- 
tainous, but mostly savannah. Cap- 
tain Cooke, who was taken sick at 
Juan Fernandez, continued so till we 
came within two or three leagues of 
Cape Blanco, and then died of a 
sudden, though he seemed that morn- 
ing to be as likely to live as he had 
been some weeks before ; but it is 
usual with sick men coming from the 
sea, where they have nothing but the 
sea air, to die off as soon as ever they 
come within view of the land. About 
four hours after, we all came to an 
anchor (namely, the ship that I was 
in, Captain Eaton, and the great meal 
prize), a league within the cape, right 
against [a] brook of fresh water, in 
fourteen fathoms, clean hard sand. 
Presently after we came to an anchor, 
Captain Cooke was carried ashore to 
be buried; twelve men carried their 
arms to guard those that were ordered 
to dig the grave ; for although AVG 
saw no appearance of inhabitants, yet 
we did not know but the country 
might be thickly inhabited. And 
before Captain Cooke was interred, 
three Spanish Indians came to the 
place wnere our men were digging the 
grave, and demanded what they were, 



HO DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. V. 

the Governor of Panama's advice, lest 



and whence they came? To whom 
our men answered, they came from 
Lima and were bound to Realejo, but 
that the captain of one of the ships, 
dying at sea, obliged them to come 
into this place to give him Christian 
burial. The three Spanish Indians, 
who were very shy at first, began to 
be more bold, and drawing nearer, 
asked many silly questions, and our 
men did not stick to soothe them up 
with as many falsehoods, purposely 
to draw them into their clutches. 
Our men often laughed at their 
temerity, and asked them if they 
never saw any Spaniards before? 
They told them, that they themselves 
were Spaniards, and that they lived 
among Spaniards, and that although 
they were born there, yet they had never 
seen three ships there before. Our 
men told them, that neither now 
might they have seen so many, if it 
had not been on an urgent occasion. 
At length they drilled Athena by dis- 
course so near, that our men laid hold 
on all three at once ; but before Cap- 
tain Cooke was buried, one of them 
made his escape ; the other two were 
brought off aboard our ship. Captain 
Eaton immediately came aboard, and 
examined them ; they confessed they 
came purposely to view our ship, and 
if possible to inform themselves what 
we were ; for the President of Panama 
not long before sent a letter of advice 
to Nicoya, informing the magistrates 
thereof that some enemies were come 
into these seas, and that therefore it 
behoved them to be careful of them- 
selves. Nicoya is a small Mulatta 
town about twelve or thirteen leagues 
east from hence, standing on the 
banks of a river of that name. It is 
a place very fit for building ships, 
therefore most of the inhabitants are 
carpenters, who are commonly em- 
ployed in building new or repairing 
old ships. It was here that Captain 
Sharpe, just after I left him, in the 
year 1681, got carpenters to fix his 
ship before he returned for England ; 
and for that reason it behoved the 
Spaniards to be careful, according to 

1 Enticed. 



any men at other times wanting such 
necessaries as that place afforded 
might again be supplied there. These 
Spanish Indians told us likewise that 
they were sent to the place where they 
were taken, in order to view our 
ships, as fearing these were those 
mentioned by the President of 
Panama. It being demanded of them 
to give an account of the estate and 
riches of the country, they said, that 
the inhabitants were mostly husband- 
men, who were employed either in 
planting and manuring of corn, or 
chiefly about cattle ; they having 
large savannahs, which were well 
stored with bulls, cows, and horses : 
that by the sea-side in some places 
there grew some red wood useful in 
dyeing ; of this they said there was 
little profit made, because they were 
forced to send it to the Lake of Nicar- 
agua, which runs into the North 
Seas : that they sent thither also 
great quantities of bull and cow 
hides, and brought thence in exchange 
European commodities : as hats, linen, 
and woollen, wherewith they clothed 
themselves ; that the flesh of the 
cattle turned to no other profit than 
sustenance for their families; as for 
butter and cheese, they made but 
little in those parts. 

After they had given this relation, 
they told us, that if we wanted pro- 
vision, there was a beef estantion, 2 or 
farm of bulls or cows, about three 
miles off, where we might kill what 
we pleased. This was welcome news, 
for we had no sort of flesh since we 
left the Galapagos ; therefore twenty- 
four of us immediately entered into 
two boats, taking one of these Spanish 
Indians with us for a pilot, and went 
ashore about a league from the ship. 
There we hauled up our boats dry, 
and marched all away, following our 
guide, who soon brought us to some 
houses, and a large pen for cattle. 
This pen stood in a large savannah, 
about two miles from our boats ; 
there were a great many fat bulls and 



2 Spanish, "Estancia," a mansion 
or farm, or place of store. 



1684.] SURROUNDED BY 

cows feeding in the savannahs. Some 
of us would have killed three or 
four to carry on board; but others 
opposed it, and said it was better to 
stay all night, and in the morning 
drive the cattle into the pen, and 
then kill twenty or thirty, or as 
many as we pleased. I was minded 
to return aboard, and endeavoured 
to persuade them all to go with 
me, but some would not ; therefore 
I returned with twelve, which was 
half, and left the other twelve be- 
hind. At this place I saw three 
or four tons of the red wood, which 
I take to be that sort of wood 
called in Jamaica bloodwood or Ni- 
caragua wood. "We who returned 
aboard met no one to oppose us, 
and the next day we expected our 
consorts that we left ashore, but none 
came ; therefore at four o'clock in 
the afternoon ten men went in our 
canoe to see what was become of them. 
When they came to the bay where we 
landed to go to the estantion, they 
found our men all on a small rock, 
half a mile from the shore, standing 
in the water up to their waists. These 
men had slept ashore in the house, 
and turned out betimes in the morn- 
ing to pen the cattle : two or three 
went one way, and as many another 
way, to get the cattle to the pen ; 
and others stood at the pen to drive 
them in. When they were thus 
scattered, about forty or fifty armed 
Spaniards came in among them. Our 
men immediately called to each other, 
and drew together in a body before 
the Spaniards could attack them, 
and marched to their boat, which 
was hauled up dry on the sand ; but 
when they came to the sandy bay 
they found their boat all in flames. 
This was a very unpleasing sight, for 
they knew not how to get aboard, 
unless they marched by land to the 
place where Captain Cooke was buried, 
which was near a league. The great- 
est part of the way was thick woods, 
where the Spaniards might easily lay 
in ambush for them, at which they 
are very expert. On the other side, 
the Spaniards now thought them 
secure; and therefore came to them 



THE SPANIARDS. 141 

and asked them if they Would be 
pleased to walk to their plantations, 
with many other such flouts; but 
our men answered never a word. It 
was about half ebb when one of our 
men took notice of a rock a good dis- 
tance from the shore, just appearing 
above water ; he showed it to his con- 
sorts and told them it would be a 
good castle for them if they could 
get thither. They all wished them- 
selves there ; for the Spaniards, who 
Jay as yet at a good distance from 
them behind the bushes, as secure of 
their prey, began to whistle now and 
then a shot among them. Having 
therefore well considered the place, 
together with the danger they were 
in, they proposed to send one of the 
tallest men to try if the sea between 
them and the rock were fordable. 
This counsel they presently put in 
execution, and found it according to 
their desire. So they all marched 
over to the rock, where they remained 
till the canoe came to them ; which 
was about seven hours. It was the 
latter part of the ebb when they first 
went 'over, and then the rock was 
dry ; but when the tide of flood re- 
turned again the rock was covered, 
and the water still flowing ; so that 
if our canoe had stayed but one hour 
longer they might have been in as 
great danger of their lives from the 
sea as before from the Spaniards ; for 
the tide rises here about eight feet. 
The Spaniards remained on the shore, 
expecting to see them destroyed, but 
never came from behind the bushes 
where they first planted themselves ; 
they having not above three or four 
hand-guns, the rest of them being 
armed with lances. The Spaniards 
in these parts are very expert in 
heaving or darting the lance, with 
which, upon occasion, they will do 
great feats, especially in ambuscades ; 
and by their good will they care not 
for fighting otherwise, but content 
themselves with standing aloof, 
threatening and calling names, at 
which they are as expert as at the 
other ; so that if their tongues be 
quiet, we always take it for granted 
they have laid some ambush. Before 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. V. 



142 

night our canoe came aboard, and 
brought our men all safe. 

The day before we went from hence, 
Mr Edward Davis, the company's 
Quarter-master, was made Captain 
by consent of all the company ; for it 
was his place by succession. The 
20th day of July we sailed from this 
Bay of Caldera, with Captain Eaton, 
and our prize which we brought from 
the Galapagos, in company, directing 
course for Realejo. The wind was at 
N., which, although but an ordinary 
wind, yet carried us in three days 
abreast of our intended port. Realejo 
is the most remarkable land on all 
this coast ; for there is a high-peaked 
burning mountain, called by the 
Spaniards Volcano Viejo, or the Old 
Volcano. The volcano may be easily 
known, because there is not any other 
so high a mountain near it, neither is 
there any that appears in the like 
form all along the coast ; besides it 
smokes all the day, and in the night 
it sometimes sends forth flames of 
fire. This mountain may be seen 
twenty leagues. Being within three 
leagues of the harbour, the entrance 
into it may be seen. There is a small 
flat low island which makes the har- 
bour. This harbour is capable of re- 
ceiving 200 sail of ships. The best 
riding is near the main, where there 
is seven or eight fathoms water; 
clean hard sand. Realejo town is two 
leagues from hence, and there are two 
creeks that run towards it ; the wes- 
ternmost comes near the back-side of 
the town, the other runs up to the 
town ; but neither ships nor barks 
can go so far. These creeks are very 
narrow, and the land on each side 
drowned, and full of red mangrove- 
trees. About a mile and a half below 
the town, on the banks of the east 
creek, the Spaniards had cast up a 
strong breastwork ; it was likewise 
reported they had another on the 
west creek, both so advantageously 
placed that ten men might with ease 
keep 200 men from landing. 

We were now in sight of the vol- 
cano, being, by estimation, seven or 
eight leagues from the shore ; and 



in our topsails, and hauled up our 
courses, intending to go with our 
canoes into the harbour in the night. 
In the evening we had a very hard 
tornado out of the NE., with much 
thunder, lightning, and rain. The 
violence of the wind did not last 
long, yet it was 11 o'clock at night 
before we got out our canoes, and 
then it was quite calm. We rowed 
in directly for the shore, and thought 
to have reached it before day ; but it 
was 9 o'clock in the morning before 
we got into the harbour. When we 
came within a league of the Island of 
Realejo, that makes the harbour, we 
saw a house on it ; and coming nearer 
we saw two or three men, who stood 
and looked on us till we came within 
half-a-mile of the island, then they 
went into their canoe, which lay on 
the inside of the island, and rowed 
towards the main ; but we overtook 
them before they got over, and brought 
them back again to the island. There 
was a horseman right against us on 
the main when we took the canoe, 
who immediately rode away towards 
the town as fast as he could. The 
rest of our canoes rode heavily, and 
did not come to the island till 12 
o'clock ; therefore we were forced to 
stay for them. Before they came, 
we examined the prisoners, who told 
us that they were set there to watch, 
for the Governor of Realejo received 
a letter about a month before, where- 
in he was advised of some enemies 
come into the sea, and therefore ad- 
monished to be careful ; that imme- 
diately thereupon the Governor had 
caused a house to be built on this 
island, and ordered four men to be 
continually there to watch night and 
day ; and if they saw any ship com- 
ing thither, they were to give notice 
of it. They said they did not expect 
to see boats or canoes, but looked out 
for a ship. At firgt they took us in 
our advanced canoe to be some men 
that had been cast away and lost our 
ship ; till, seeing three or four canoes 
more, they began to suspect what we 
were. They told us likewise, that the 
horseman we saw did come to them 



the mountain bearing NE., we took [ eveiy morning, and that in less thau 



THE ATTACK ON REALEJO GIVEN UP. 143 



1684.] 

an hour's time he could be at the 
town. When Captain Eaton and his 
canoes came ashore, we told them 
what had happened. It was now 
three hours since the horseman rode 
away, and we could not expect to get 
to the town in less than two hours ; 
in whicli time the Governor, having 
notice of our coming, might be pro- 
vided to receive us at his breastworks ; 
therefore we thought it best to defer 
this design till another time. Here 
we stayed till 4 o'clock in the after- 
noon ; then our ships being come 
within a league of the shore, we all 
went on board, and steered for the 
Gulf of Amapalla, intending there to 
careen our ships. 

The 26th of July, Captain Eaton 
came aboard our ship to consult with 
Captain Davis how to get some In- 
dians to assist us in careening. It 
was concluded, that when we came 
near the Gulf, Captain Davis should 
take two canoes, well manned, and 
go before, and Captain Eaton should 
stay aboard. According to this 
agreement, Captain Davis went away 
for the Gulf the next day. The Gulf 
of Amapalla 1 is a great arm of the 
sea, running eight or ten leagues into 
the country. It is bounded on the S. 
side of its entrance with Point Casi- 
vina, and on the NW. side with St 
Michael's Mount. Both these places 
are very remarkable. Point Casivina 
is in Lat. 12 40' N". It is a high 
round point, which at sea appears 
like an island, because the land with- 
in it is very low. St Michael's Mount 
is a very high peaked hill, not very 
steep : the land at the foot of it on 
the SE. side is low and even for at 
least a mile. From this low land the 
Gulf of Amapalla enters on that side. 
Between this low land and Point 
Casivina are two considerable high 
islands ; the southernmost is called 
Mangera, the other is called Amapal- 



1 Marked in the modern maps as 
the Gulf of Fonseca. The southern 
headland is Cape Cosiguina, called 
Casivina by Dampier ; the northern, 
which he called St Michael's Mo\mt, 
is Cape Candadillo. 



la ; and they are two miles asunder. 2 
. . . There are a great many more 
islands in this Bay, but none inhabited 
as these. There is one pretty large 
island, belonging to a nunnery, as 
the Indians told us ; this was stocked 
with bulls and cows. Three or four 
Indians lived there to look after 
the cattle, for the sake of which we 
often frequented this island while we 
lay in the bay. They are all low 
islands, except Amapalla and Man- 
gera. There are two channels to 
come into thia gulf ; one between 
Point Casivina and Mangera, the 
other between Mangera and Ama- 
palla ; the latter is the best. 

It was into this gulf that Captain 
Davis was gone with the two canoes, 
to endeavour for a prisoner, to gain 
intelligence, if possible, before our 
ships came in. He came the first 
night to Mangera, but for want of a 
pilot did not know where to look for 
the town. In the morning he found 
a great many canoes hauled up on the 
bay ; and from that bay found a path 
which led him and his company to 
the town. The Indians saw our ships 
in the e v ening coming towards the 
island, and being before informed of 
enemies in the sea, they kept scouts 
out all night for fear ; who seeing 
Captain Davis coming, ran into the 
town, and alarmed all the people. 
When Captain Davis came thither, 
they all ran into the woods. The 
Friar happened to be there at this 
time ; who, being unable to ramble 



2 Mangera is described as a high 
round island, about two leagues in 
compass, and appearing from the sea 
like a tall grove. There is mention 
made of one town, about the middle 
of the island. Amapalla is much 
larger than Mangera, with two towns 
on it. The Indians of both places 
cultivate maize, a few plantains, and 
the hog plum. The towns were gov- 
erned from St Michael's, to which 
they paid tribute in maize. There 
was but one friar or padre living 
amongst them, who exacted a tenth 
from the natives, and who was the 
only white man on the island. 



m DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 

into the woods, fell into Captain 
Davis's hands ; there were two Indian 
boys with him who were likewise 
taken. Captain Davis went only to 
get a prisoner, therefore was well 
satisfied with the Friar, and imme- 
diately came down to the sea-side. 
He went from thence to the Island of 
Amapalla, carrying the Friar and the 
two Indian boys with him. These 
were his pilots to conduct him to the 
landing-place, where they arrived 
about noon. They made no stay 
here, but left three or four men to 
look after the canoes, and Captain 
Davis, with the rest, marched to the 
town, taking the Friar with them. 
The town, as is before noted, is about 
a mile from the landing-place, stand- 
ing in a plain on the top of a hill, 
having a very steep ascent to go to it. 
All the Indians stood on the top of 
the hill, waiting Captain Davis's com- 
ing. The Secretary, mentioned be- 
fore, had no great kindness for the 
Spaniards. It was he that persuaded 
the Indians to wait Captain Davis's 
coming; for they were all running 
into the woods ; but he told them, 
that if any of the Spaniards' enemies 
came thither, it was not to hurt 
them, but the Spaniards, whose 
slaves they were; and that their 
poverty would protect them. This 
man, with the Cacique, stood more 
forward than the rest, at the bank of 
the hill, when Captain Davis with 
his company appeared beneath. They 
called out therefore in Spanish, de- 
manding of our men what they were, 
and whence they came? To whom 
Captain Davis and his men replied, 
they were Biscay ers, and were sent 
thither by the King of Spain to clear 
those seas from enemies ; that their 
ships were coming into the gulf to 
carefti, and that they came thither 
before the ships to seek a convenient 
place for it, as also to desire the 
Indians' assistance. The Secretary, 
who, as I said before, was the only 
man that could speak Spanish, told 
them that they were welcome, for he 
had a great respect for any Old Spain 
men, especially for the Biscayers, of 
whom he had heard a very honour- 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CiiAP. V. 

able report ; therefore he desired them 
to come up to their town. Captain 
Davis and his men immediately 
ascended the hill, the Friar going 
before ; and they were received with a 
great deal of affection by the Indians. 
The Cacique and Secretary embraced 
Captain Davis ; and the other Indians 
received his men with the like cere- 
mony. 

These salutations being ended, 
they all marched towards the church, 
for that is the place of all public 
meetings, and all plays and pastimes 
are acted there also ; therefore in the 
churches belonging to Indian towns 
they have all sorts of vizards and 
strange antic dresses both for men and 
women, and abundance of musical 
hautboys and strumstrums. The 
strumstrum is made somewhat like 
a cittern ; most of those that the 
Indians use are made of a large gourd, 
cut in the midst, and a thin board 
laid over the hollow, which is fast- 
ened to the sides. This serves for 
the belly, over which the strings are 
placed. The nights before any holi- 
days, or the nights ensuing, are the 
times when they all meet to make 
merry. Their mirth consists in sing- 
ing, dancing, and sporting in those 
antic habits, and using as many antic 
gestures. If the moon shine they 
use but few torches ; if not, the 
church is full of light. They meet 
at these times all sorts of both sexes. 
All the Indians that I have been 
acquainted with who are under the 
Spaniards seem to be more melancholy 
than other Indians that are free ; and 
at these public meetings, when they 
are in the greatest of their jollity, their 
mirth seems to be rather forced than 
real. Their songs are very melancholy 
and doleful, so is their music ; but 
whether it be natural to the Indians 
to be thus melancholy, or the effect 
of their slavery, I am not certain. 
But I have always been prone to be- 
lieve that they are then only condol- 
ing their misfortunes, the loss of their 
country and liberties, which, although 
those that are now living do not 
know nor remember what it was to be 
free, yet there seems to be a deep 



1684.] 



FAILURE AT AMAPALLA. 



145 



impression in their thoughts of the 
slavery which the Spaniards have 
brought them under, increased pro- 
bably by some traditions of their 
ancient freedom. Captain Davis in- 
tended, when they were all in the 
church, to shut the doors and then 
make a bargain with them, letting 
them know what he was, and so draw 
them afterwards by fair means to our 
assistance, the Friar being with him, 
who had also promised to engage 
them to it. But before they were all 
in the church, one of Captain Davis's 
men pushed one of the Indians, to 
hasten him into the church. The 
Indian immediately ran away, and all 
the rest, taking the alarm, sprang 
out of the church like deer ; it was 
hard to say which was first ; and 
Captain Davis, who knew nothing of 
what happened, was left in the church 
only with the Friar. When they were 
all fled, Captain Davis's men fired, 
and killed the Secretary ; and thus 
our hopes perished by the indiscretion 
of one foolish fellow. 

In the afternoon the ships came into 
the gulf between Point Casivina and 
Mangera, and anchored near the Island 
of Amapalla, on the E. side, in ten 
fathoms water, clean hard sand. In 
the evening Captain Davis and his 
company came aboard, and brought 
the Friar with them, who told Cap- 
tain Davis, that if the Secretary had 
not been killed he could have sent 
him a letter by one of the Indians 
that was taken at Mangera, and per- 
suaded him to come to us ; but now 
the only way was to send one of those 
Indians to seek the Cacique, and [he] 
himself would instruct him what to 
say, and did not question but the 
Cacique would come on his word. 
The next day we sent ashore one of 
the Indians, who before night return- 
ed with the Cacique and six other 
Indians, who remained with us all 
the time that we stayed here, These 
Indians did us good service, especi- 
ally in piloting us to an island, where 
we killed beef whenever we wanted ; 
and for this their service we satisfied 
them to their hearts' content. It was 
at this Island of Amapalla that a party 



M 

r 



of Englishmen and Frenchmen came 
afterwards and stayed a great while, 
and at last landed on the main, and 
marched overland to the Cape River, 
which disembogues into the North 
Seas near Cape Gracias a Dios, and is 
therefore called the Cape River. 1 Near 
the head of this river they made bark- 
logs (which I shall describe in the 
next Chapter), and so went into the 
North Seas. This was the way that 
Captain Sharpe had proposed to go if 
he had been put to it, for this way 
was partly known to Privateers by the 
discovery that was made into the 
country about thirty years since by a 
party of Englishmen that went up that 
river in canoes, about as far as the 
place where these Frenchmen made 
their bark-logs; there they landed 
and marched to a town called Segovia 
in the country. They were near a 
month getting up the river, for there 
are many cataracts where they were 
often forced to leave the river and 
haul their canoes ashore over the 
land till they were past the cataracts, 
and then launch their canoes again 
into the river. I have discoursed 
[with] several men that were in that 
expedition, and if I mistake not, Cap- 
tain Sharpe was one of them. But 
to [return to our voyage in hand ; 
when both our ships were clean, and 
our water filled, Captain Davis and 
Captain Eaton broke off consortships. 
Captain Eaton took aboard of his 
ships 400 packs of flour, and sailed 
out of the gulf the 2d of September. 



CHAPTER VI. 

THE 3d of September 1684, we 
sent the Friar ashore, and left the 
Indians in possession of the prize 
which we brought in hither, though 
she was still half- laden with flour ; 
and we sailed out with the land-wind, 
passing between Amapalla and Man- 
gera. When we were a league out, 



1 Variously called in modem maps 
theVanquez, or Yanks, or Tints, or 
Segovia, or Coco River. 



146 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



we saw a canoe coming with sail and 
oars after us, therefore we shortened 
sail and stayed for her. She was a 
canoe sent by the Governor of St 
Michael's town to our Captain, desir- 
ing him not to carry away the Friar. 
The messenger being told that the 
Friar was set ashore again at Ama- 
palla, he returned with joy, and we 
made sail again, having the wind at 
"VVN W. We steered towards the coast 
of Peru. "We had tornadoes every day 
till we made Cape San Francisco, 
which from June to November are 
very common on these coasts ; and we 
had with the tornadoes very much 
thunder, lightning, and rain. When 
the tornadoes were over, the wind, 
which while they lasted was most 
from the SE., came about again to 
the W., and never failed us till we 
were in sight of Cape San Francisco. 
This cape is in Lat. 1 N. ; it is a high 
bluff or full point of land, clothed 
with tall great trees. The land in 
the country within this cape is very 
high, and the mountains commonly 
appear very black. When we came 
in with this cape we overtook Captain 
Eaton plying under the shore ; he in 
his passage from Amapalla, while he 
was on that coast, met with such ter- 
rible tornadoes of thunder and light- 
ning that, as he and all his men 
related, they had never met with the 
like in any place. They were very 
much affrighted by them, the air 
smelling very much of sulphur, and 
they apprehending themselves [to be] 
in great danger of being burnt by the 
lightning. He touched at the island 
of Cocos, and put ashore 200 packs 
of flour there, and loaded his boat 
with cocoa-nuts, and took in fresh 
water. In the evening we separated 
again from Captain Eaton, for he 
stood off to sea, and we plied up under 
the shore, making our best advantage 
both of sea and land winds. 

The 20th of September we came to 
the Island of Plata, and anchored in 
sixteen fathoms. We had very good 
weather from the time that we fell 
in with Cape San Francisco, and were 
now fallen in again with the same 
places from whence I begin the ac- 



ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. TI. 

count of this voyage in the First 
Chapter, having now compassed in 
the whole continent of South America. 
The Island of Plata, as some report, 
was so named by the Spaniards after 
Sir Francis Drake took the Cacafue- 
go, 1 a ship chiefly laden with plate, 
which they say he brought hither and 
divided it here with his men. It is 
about four miles long and a mile and 
a half broad, and of a good height. It 
is bounded with high steep cliffs clear 
round, only at one place on the east 
side. The top of it is flat and even, 
the soil sandy and dry ; the trees it 
produces are but small-bodied, low, 
and grow thin ; and there are only 
three or four sorts of trees, all un- 
known to us. I observed they were 
much overgrown with long moss. 
There is good grass, especialty in the 
beginning of the year. There is no 
water on this island, but at one place 
on the east side close by the sea; 
there it drills 2 slowly down from the 
rocks, where it may be received into 
vessels. There were plenty of goats, 
ed. There 
mal that I 



but they are now all destroy 
is no other sort of land anil 
did ever see ; there are plenty of boo- 
bies and man-of-war birds. At this 
island are plenty of those small sea- 
turtle spoken of in my last Chapter. 

The 21st, Captain Eaton came to 
an anchor by us ; he was very willing 
to have consorted with us again, but 
Captain Davis's men were so unrea- 
sonable that they would not allow 
Captain Eaton's men an equal share 
with them in what they got ; there- 
fore Captain Eaton stayed there but one 
night, and the next day sailed from 
hence, steering away to the south- 
ward. We stayed no longer than the 
day ensuing, and then we sailed to- 
ward Point Santa Elena, intending 
there to land some men purposely to 
get prisoners for intelligence. 

Point Santa Elena bears S. from 



1 The capture of this rich prize is 
narrated in Drake's Voyage. See 
page 44. 

2 Penetrates, trickles. Bishop Tay- 
lor uses the word "drill " to signify 
a small water-course. 



1684.] 



MANTA, AN INDIAN VILLAGE, TAKEN. 



147 



the Island of Plata. It lies in Lat. 
2 15' S. The point is pretty high, 
flat, and even at top ; overgrown with 
many great thistles but no sort of 
tree ; at a distance it appears like an 
island because the land within it is 
very low. This point strikes out west 
into the sea, making a pretty large 
bay on the north side. . . . When 
we were abreast of this point we sent 
away our canoes in the night to take 
the Indian village. They landed in 
the morning betimes close by the 
town, and took some prisoners. They 
took likewise a small bark which the 
Indians had set on fire, but our men 
quenched it, and took the Indian 
that did it, who being asked where- 
fore he set the bark on fire, said, that 
there was an order from the Viceroy 
lately set out commanding all seamen 
to burn their vessels if attacked by 
us, and betake themselves to their 
boats. There was another bark in a 
small cove a mile from the village ; 
thither our men went, thinking to 
take her, but the seamen that were 
aboard set her in flames and fled. In 
the evening, our men came aboard, 
and brought the small bark with 
them, the fire of which they had 
quenched ; and then we returned 
again towards Plata, where WB ar- 
rived the 26th of September. 

In the evening we sent out some 
men in our bark lately taken and 
canoes, to an Indian village called 
Manta, two or three leagues to the 
W. of Cape San Lorenzo, hoping there 
to get other prisoners, for we could 
not learn from those we took at Point 
Santa Elena the reason why the Vice- 
roy should give such orders to burn 
the ships. They had a fresh sea 
breeze till 12 o'clock at night, and 
then it proved calm, wherefore they 
rowed away with their canoes as near 
to the town as they thought conven- 
ient, and lay still till day. Manta is 
a small Indian village on the main, 
distant from the Island of Plata seven 
or eight leagues. It stands so advan- 
tageously to be seen, being built on 
a small ascent, that it makes a very 
fair prospect to the sea, yet but a few 
poor scattering Indian houses. There 



is a very fine church, adorned with a 
great deal of carved work. It was 
formerly a habitation of Spaniards, 
but they are all removed from hence 
now. The land about it is dry and 
sandy, bearing only a few shrubby 
trees. These Indians plant no man- 
ner of grain or root, but are supplied 
from other places, and commonly keep 
a stock of provision to relieve ships 
that want, for this is the first settle- 
ment that ships can touch at which 
come from Panama bound to Lima, 
or any other port in Peru. The land, 
being dry and sandy, is not fit to 
produce crops of maize, which is the 
reason they plant none. There is a 
spring of good water between the vil- 
lage and the sea. On the back of the 
town, a pretty way up in the country, 
there is a very high mountain, tower- 
ing up like a sugar-loaf, called Monte 
Christo. It is a very good sea mark, 
for there is none like it on all the 
coast. The body of this m ountain bears 
due S. from Manta. 1 From Manta to 
Cape San; Lorenzo the land is plain 
and even, of an indifferent height. 

As soon as ever the day appeared, our 
men landed, and marched towards the 
village, which was about a mile and 
a half from their landing-place. Some 
of the Indians who were stirring saw 
them coming, and alarmed their 
neighbours ; so that all that were 
able got away. They took only two 
old women, who both said, that it 
was reported that a great many ene- 
mies were come overland through the 
country of Darien into the South 
Seas, and that they were at present 
in canoes and periagoes ; and that 
the Viceroy upon this news, had set 
put the fore-mentioned order for burn- 
ing their own ships. Our men found 
no sort of provision here ; the Vice- 
roy having likewise sent orders to all 
seaports to keep no provision, but 
just to supply themselves. These 

1 It has been conjectured that 
Chimberazo is here meant, but that 
mountain lies east by south, and not 
south, from Manta, and probably 
Dampier refers to some smaller emi- 
nence nearer the coast. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VI. 

bay of Guayaquil ; she came from the 
town of that name, and was bound 
to Lima. The commander of this 
prize said, that it was generally re- 
ported and believed at Guayaquil, 



women also said, that the Manta 
Indians were sent over to the Island 
of Plata to destroy all the goats 
there, which they performed about a 
month ago. "With this news our men 



returned again, and arrived at Plata 
the next day. We lay still at the 
Island of Plata, being not resolved 
what to do, till the 2d of October ; 
and then Captain Swan, in the Cygnet 
of London, arrived there. He was 
fitted out by very eminent merchants 
of that city, on a design only to trade 
with the Spaniards or Indians, having 
a very considerable cargo well sorted 
for these parts of the world; but meet- 
ing with divers disappointments, and 
being out of hopes to obtain a trade 
in these seas, his men forced him to 
entertain a company of Privateers 
which he met with near Nicoya, a 
town whither he was going to seek a 
trade ; and these Privateers were 
bound thither in boats to get a ship. 
These were the men that we had 
heard of at Manta ; they came over- 
land, under the command of Captain 
Peter Harris, nephew to that Cap- 
tain Harris who was killed before 
Panama. Captain Swan was still 
commander of his own ship, and 
Captain Harris commanded a small 
bark under Captain Swan. There 
was much joy on all sides when they 
arrived ; and immediately hereupon, 
Captain Davis and Captain Swan 
consorted, wishing for Captain Eaton 
again. Our little bark, which was 
taken at Santa Elena, was immedi- 
ately sent out to cruise while the 
ships were fitting ; for Captain Swan's 
ship, being full of goods, was not fit 
to entertain his new guests, till the 
goods were disposed of; therefore he, 
by the consent of the supercargoes, 
got up all his goods on deck, and sold 
to any one that would buy, upon trust. 
The rest was thrown overboard into 
the sea, except fine goods, as silks, 
muslins, stockings, &c., and except 
the iron, whereof he had a good quan- 
tity, both wrought and in bars ; this 
was saved for ballast. The third day 
after our bark was sent to cruise, she 
brought in a prize of 400 tons, laden 
with timber ; they took her in the 



that the Viceroy was fitting out ten 
sail of frigates to drive us out of the 
Seas. This news made our unsettled 
crew wish that they had been per- 
suaded to accept of Captain Eaton's 
company on reasonable terms. Cap- 
tain Davis and Captain Swan had 
some discourse concerning Captain 
Eaton ; they at last concluded to 
send our small bark towards the coast 
of Lima, as far as the Island of Lobos, 
to seek Captain Eaton. This being 
approved by all hands, she was 
cleaned the next day, and sent away, 
manned with twenty men, ten of 
Captain Davis's, and ten of Swan's 
men ; and Captain Swan wrote a 
letter directed to Captain Eaton, de- 
siring his company ; and the Isle of 
Plata was appointed for the general 
rendezvous. When this bark was 
gone, we turned another bark which 
we had into a fireship, having six or 
seven carpenters, who soon fixed her ; 
and while the carpenters were at work 
about the fireship, we scrubbed and 
cleaned our men-of-war, as well as 
time and place would permit. The 
19th of October we finished our 
business, and the 20th we sailed to- 
wards the Island of Lobos, where our 
bark was ordered to stay for us, or 
meet us again at Plata. We had but 
little wind, therefore it was the 23d 
before we passed by Point Santa 
Elena. The 25th we crossed over the 
Bay of Guayaquil. The 30th we 
doubled Cape Blanco. This cape is 
in Lat. 3 45'. It is counted the 
worst cape in all the South Seas to 
double, passing to the southward. 
This cape is of an indiiferent height. 
It is fenced with white rocks to the 
sea ; for which reason, I believe, it 
has this name. 1 The land in the 
country seems to be full of high, 
steep, rugged, and barren rocks. 

The 2d of November we got as high 
as Payta. We lay about six leagues 

1 Cabo Blanco White Cape. 



1084. J THE TOWN 

off shore all the day, that the Span- 
iards might not see us ; and in the 
evening sent our canoes ashore to 
take it, manned with 110 men. 
Payta is a small Spanish seaport 
town, in Lat. 5? 15' S. It is built 
on the sand, close by the sea, in a 
nook, elbow, or small bay, under a 
pfetty high hill. There are not 
above seventy-five or eighty houses, 
and two churches. The houses are 
but low and ill-built. The building 
in this country of Peru is much alike 
on all the sea-coast. The walls are 
built of bricks made with earth and 
straw kneaded together ; they are 
about three feet long, two feet broad, 
and a foot and a half thick ; they never 
burn them, but lay them a long time 
in the sun to dry before they are 
used in building. In some places 
they have no roofs, only poles laid 
across from the side walls, and 
covered with mats ; and then those 
walls are carried up to a considerable 
height. But where they build roofs 
upon their houses, the walls are not 
made so high, as I said before. The 
houses in general all over this king- 
dom are but meanly built : one chief 
reason, with the common people 
especially, is the Avant of materials to 
build withal ; for, however it be more 
within land, yet here is neither stone 
nor timber to build with, nor any 
materials but such brick as I have 
described ; and even the stone which 
they have in some places is so brittle 
that you may rub it into sand with 
your fingers. Another reason why 
they build so meanly is, because it 
never rains ; therefore they only en- 
deavour to fence themselves from the 
sun. Yet their walls, which are built 
but with an ordinary sort of brick in 
comparison with what is made in 
other parts of the world, continue a 
long time as firm as when first made, 
having never any winds nor rains to 
rot, moulder, or shake them. How- 
ever, the richer sort have timber, 
which they make use of in building ; 
but it is brought from other places. 
This dry country commences to the 
northward, from about Cape Blanco 
to Coquimbo, in about 30 S., having 



OF PAYTA. 



149 



no rain that I could ever observe or 
hear of, nor any green thing growing 
in the mountains, neither yet in the 
valleys, except where here and there 
watered with a few small rivers dis- 
persed up and down. So that the 
northernmost parts of this tract of 
land are supplied with timber from 
Guayaquil, Galleo, Tumaco, and 
other places that are watered with 
rains, where there is plenty of all 
sorts of timber. In the south parts 
as about Huasco and Coquimbo, they 
fetch their timber from the Island of 
Chiloe, or other places thereabouts. 
The walls of churches and rich men's 
houses are whitened with lime both 
within and without ; and the doors 
and posts are very large, and adorned 
with carved work, and the beams also 
in the churches ; the in sides of the 
houses are hung round with rich em- 
broidered or painted cloths. They 
have likewise abundance of fine pic- 
tures, which add no small ornament 
to their houses. These, I suppose, 
they have from Old Spain. But the 
houses of Payta are none of them so 
richly furnished. The churches were 
large, and fairly carved. At one end 
of the town there was a small fort, 
close by the sea, but no great guns in 
it. This fort, only with muskets, 
will command all the bay, so as to 
hinder any boats from landing. There 
is another fort on the top of the hill, 
just over the town, which commands 
both it and the lower fort. There is 
neither wood nor water to be had 
here. They fetch their water from 
an Indian town called Golan, about 
two leagues NNE. from Payta ; for at 
Golan there is a small river of fresh 
water which runs out into the sea, 
from whence ships that touch at Payta 
are supplied with water and other 
refreshments, as fowls, hogs, plan- 
tains, yams, and maize : Payta being 
destitute of alt these things, only as 
they fetch them from Golan as they 
have occasion. 

The Indians of Golan are all fisher- 
men. They go out to sea and fish on 
bark-logs. 1 Bark-logs are made of 



,' l This title has been supposed to 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VI. 



150 

many round logs of wood, in the man- 
ner of a raft, and very different, accord- 
ing to the use that they are designed 
for, or the humour of the people that 
make them, or the matter that they 
are made of. If they are made for 
fishing, then they are only three or 
four logs of light wood, of seven or 
eight feet long, placed by the side of 
each other, pinned fast together with 
wooden pins, and bound hard with 
withes. The logs are so placed that the 
middlemost are longer than those by 
the sides, especially at the head or fore 
part, which grows narrower gradually 
into an angle or point, better to cut 
through the water. Others are made 
to carry goods. The bottom of these 
is made of twenty or thirty great 
trees, of about twenty, thirty, or 
forty feet long, fastened as the other, 
side to side, and so shaped. On the 
top of these they place another shorter 
row of trees across them, pinned fast 
to each other, and then pinned to the 
undermost row. This double row of 
planks makes the bottom of the float. 
. . . They always go before the wind, 
being unable to ply against it, and 
therefore are fit only for these seas 
where the wind is always in a man- 
ner the same, not varying above a 
point or two all the way from Lima 
till such time as they come into the 
Bay of Panama ; and even there they 
meet with no great sea, but sometimes 
northerly winds ; and then they lower 
their sails, and drive before it, wait- 
ing a change. All their care then 
is only to keep off from shore, for 
they are so made that they cannot 
sink at sea. These rafts carry sixty 
or seventy tons of goods and upwards. 
Their cargo is chiefly wine, oil, flour, 
sugar, Quito cloth, soap, goat-skins 
dressed, &c. The float is managed 
usually by three or four men, who, 
being unable to return with it against 
the trade-wind, when they come to 



be a mistranslation of "barcolongo " 
(see Note 1, p. 107). But the descrip- 
tion which follows shows plainly 
enough that the word means just 
what it says that is, barks of log or 
log-barks. 



Panama dispose of the goods and 
bottom together, getting a passage 
back again for themselves in some 
ship or boat bound to the port they 
came from ; and there they make a 
new bark -log for their next cargo. 
The smaller sort of bark-logs, de- 
scribed before, which lie flat on the 
water, and are used for fishing or 
carrying water to ships or the like 
(half a ton or a ton at a time), are 
more governable than the other, 
though they have masts and sails too. 
"With these they go out at night by 
the help of the land-wind, which is 
seldom wanting on this coast, and 
return back in the daytime with the 
sea-wind. This sort of floats are used 
in many places both in the East and 
West Indies. On the coast of Coro- 
mandel in the East Indies they call 
them Catamarans. These are but 
one log, or two sometimes, of a sort 
of light wood, and are made without 
sail or rudder, and so small that they 
carry but one man, whose legs and 
breech are always in the water ; and 
he manages his log with a paddle, 
appearing at a distance like a man 
sitting on a fish's back. 

November the 3d, at 6 o'clock in 
the morning, our men landed about 
four miles to the south of the town, 
and took some prisoners that were 
sent thither to watch for fear of us ; 
and these prisoners said, that the 
Governor of Piura came with 100 
armed men to Payta the night before, 
purposely to oppose our landing there 
if we should attempt it. Our men 
marched directly to the fort on the 
hill, and took it without the loss of 
one man. Hereupon the Governor of 
Piura with all his men, and the in- 
habitants of the town, ran away as 



fast as they could, 
entered the town, 



Then our men 
and found it 



emptied both of money and goods ; 
there was not so much as a meal of 
victuals left for them. The prisoners 
told us a ship had been here a little 
before and burnt a great ship in the 
road, but did not land their men ; 
and that here they put ashore all 
their prisoners and pilots. We knew 
this must be Captain Eaton's ship 



1684.] 



THE BURNING OF PAYTA. 



which had done this ; and by these 
circumstances we supposed lie was 
gone to the East Indies, it being 
always designed by him. The pri- 
soners told us also, that since Captain 
Eaton was here, a small bark had 
been off the harbour and taken a pair 
of bark-logs a-fishing, and made the 
fishermen bring aboard twenty or 
thirty jars of fresh water. This we 
supposed was our bark that was sent 
to Lobos to seek Captain Eaton. In 
the evening we came in with our 
ships, and anchored before the town 
in ten fathoms water, near a mile 
from the shore. Here we stayed till 
the 6th day, in hopes to get a ransom 
for the town. Our Captains demand- 
ed 300 packs of flour, 3000 Ibs. of 
sugar, twenty -five jars of wine, and 
1000 jars of water to be brought off to 
us ; but we got nothing of it. There- 
fore Captain Swan ordered the town 
to be fired, which was presently done. 
Then all our men came aboard, and 
Captain Swan ordered the bark which 
Captain Harris commanded, to be 
burnt, because she did not sail well. 

At night, when the land-wind came 
off, we sailed from hence towards 
Lobos. The 10th, in the evening we 
saw a sail, bearing NW. by N., as 
far as we could well discern her on 
our deck. "We immediately chased, 
separating ourselves, the better to 
meet her in the night, but we missed 
her. Therefore the next morning we 
again trimmed sharp, and made the 
best of our way to Lobos de la Mar. 
The 14th, we had sight of the Island 
of Lobos de Tierra : it bore E. from 
us ; we stood in towards it, and be- 
twixt 7 and 8 o'clock in the night 
came to an anchor at the NE. end 
of the island, in fourteen fathoms 
water. This island at sea is of an 
indifferent height, and appears like 
Lobos de la Mar. About a quarter 
of a mile from the north end there is 
a great hollow rock, and a good 
channel between, where there is seven 
fathoms water. The 15th, we went 
ashore, and found abundance of pen- 
guins and boobies, and seals in great 
quantities. We sent aboard of all 
these to be dressed, for we had not 



tasted any flesh in a great while be- 
fore ; therefore some of us did eat 
very heartily. Captain Swan, to en- 
courage his men to eat this coarse 
flesh, would commend it for extra- 
ordinary good food, comparing the 
seal to roasting pig, the boobies to 
hens, and the penguins to ducks. 
This he did to train them to live con- 
tentedly on coarse meat, not knowing 
but we might be forced to make use 
of such food before -we departed out of 
these seas ; for it is generally seen 
among Privateers that nothing em- 
boldens them sooner to mutiny than 
want, which we could not well suffer 
in a place where there are such quan- 
tities of these animals to be had, if 
men could be persuaded to be content- 
ed with them. 

[Dampier now sailed from Lobos de 
Tierra to Lobos de la Mar on the 19th. 
On the 21st he sent out his Mosquito 
strikers for turtle, which they brought 
in, in great abundance. On the 
evening of the 26th, a suspicious- 
looking bark was observed about three 
leagues NNW. from the island. The 
next morning she stood off to sea, 
which they allowed her to do without 
giving chase. On the 28th day the 
ships' bottoms were scrubbed. On 
the morning of the 29th they were 
steering for the Bay of Guayaquil. 
In the vicinity, the cat-fish are said 
to be abundant. It is so called from 
its great wide mouth and the strings 
pointing out from each side of it like 
cats' whiskers.] 

From the Island Santa Clara to 
Punta Arenas is seven leagues ENE. 
This Punta Arenas, or Sandy Point, 
is the westernmost point of the Island 
of Puna, Here all ships bound into 
the River of Guayaquil anchor, and 
must wait for a pilot, the entrance 
being very dangerous for strangers. 
The Island of Puna is a pretty large 
flat low island, stretching E. and W., 
about twelve or fourteen leagues long, 
and about four or five leagues wide. 
The tide runs very strong all about 
this island, but so many different 
ways, by reason of the branches, 
creeks, and rivers that run into the 
sea near it, that it casts up many dan- 



152 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 

gcrous shoals on all sides of it. There 

?s in the island only one Indian town, 

on the south side of it, close by the 

sea, and seven leagues from Point 

Arenas, which town is also called 

Puna. The Indians of this town are 

all seamen, and are the only pilots in 

these seas, especially for this river. 

Their chief employment, when they 

are not at sea, is fishing. These men 

are obliged by the Spaniards to keep 

good watch for ships that anchor at 

Point Arenas. The place where they 

keep this watch is at a point of land 

on the Island of Puna that starts out 

into the sea, from whence they can 

see all ships that anchor at Point 

Arenas. The Indians come thither 



in the morning, and return at night 
on horseback. From this watching 

}>oint to Point Arenas it is four 
eagues, all drowned mangrove-land : 
and midway between these two points 
is another small point, where these 
Indians are obliged to keep another 
watch, when they fear an enemy. 
The sentinel goes thither in a canoe 
in the morning, and returns at night ; 
for there is no coming thither by land 



through 
ground. 7 



that mangrove marshy 
There are in the town of 



Puna about twenty houses, and a small 
church. The houses stand all on 
posts, ten or twelve feet high, with lad- 
ders on the outside to go up into them. 
I did never see the like building any- 
where but among the Malayans in the 
East Indies. They are thatched with 
palmetto leaves, and their chambers 
well boarded, in which last they ex- 
ceed the Malayans. 

From Puna to Guayaquil is reckon- 
ed seven leagues. It is one league 
before you come to the River of Guaya- 
quil's mouth, where it is above two 
miles wide j from thence upwards the 
river lies pretty straight, without any 
considerable turnings. Both sides of 
the river are low swampy land, over 



1 The middle of the island is de 
scribed as good pasture land, with 
ridges of woodland, abounding in 
palmettoes. The Indians cultivatec 
part of these ridges with maize, yams 
and potatoes. 



[CHAP. VI. 

grown with red mangroves, so that 
here is no landing. Four miles be- 
bre you come to the town of Guaya- 
quil, there is a low island standing in 
,he river ; this island divides the 
river into two parts, making two very 
"air channels for ships to pass up and 
down. The SW. channel is the 
videst ; the other is as deep, but 
larrower and narrower yet, by reason 
>f many trees and bushes which 
pread over the river both from the 
main and from the island ; and there 
are also several great stumps of trees 
standing upright in the water on either 
side. The island is above a mile long. 
From the upper part of the island to 
the town of Guayaquil is almost a 
League, and near as much from one 
side of the river to the other. In 
that spacious place, ships of the 
greatest burthen may ride afloat ; but 
the best place for ships is nearest to 
that part of the land where the town 
stands ; and this place is seldom with- 
out ships. Guayaquil stands facing 
the island, close by the river, partly 
on the side, and partly at the foot of 
a gentle hill declining towards the 
river, by which the lower part of it is 
often overflown. There are two forts, 
one standing in the low ground, th 
other on the hill. This town makes 
a very fine prospect, it being beauti- 
fied with several churches and other 
good buildings. Here lives a Gover- 
nor, who, as I have been informed, 
has his patent from the King of 
Spain. Guayaquil may be reck- 
oned one of the chief seaports in 
the South Seas : the commodities 
which are exported from hence are 
cacao, hides, tallow, sarsaparilla, and 
other drugs, and woollen cloth, com- 
monly called cloth of Quito. The 
cacao grows on both sides of the river 
above the town. It is a small nut, 
like the Campeachy nut, I think the 
smallest of the two. They produce as 
much cacao here as serves all the 
kingdom of Peru ; and much of it is 
sent to Acapulco, and from thence to 
the Philippine Islands. Sarsaparilla 
grows in the water by the sides of the 
river, as I have been informed. The 
Quito cloth comes from a rich town in 



1684.] THE COMMERCE OF QUITO AND GUAYAQUIL. 



153 



the country within laud, called Quito. 1 
There is a great deal made, both 
serges and broadcloth. This cloth 
is not very fine, but is worn by the 
common sort of people throughout 
the whole kingdom of Peru. This 
and all othertommodities which come 
from Quito are shipped off at Guaya- 
quil for other parts ; and all imported 
goods for the city of Quito pass by 
Guayaquil : by which it may appear 
that Guayaquil is a place of no mean 
trade. Quito, as I have been inform- 
ed, is a very populous city, seated in 
the heart of the country. It is inha- 
bited partly by Spaniards ; but the 
major part of its inhabitants are In- 
dians under the Spanish Govern- 
ment. It is environed with moun- 
tains of a vast height, from whose 
bowels many great rivers have their 
rise. These mountains abound in 
gold, which by violent rains is washed 
with the sand into the adjacent 
brooks ; where the Indians resort in 
troops, washing away the sand, and 
putting up the gold-dust in their 
calabashes or gourd-shells. Quito is 
the place in all the kingdom of Peru 2 
that abounds most with this rich 
metal, as I have been often informed. 
The country is subject to great rains, 
and very thick fogs, especially the 
valleys. For that reason it is very 
unwholesome and sickly. The chief 
distempers are fevers, violent head- 
ache, pains in the bowels and fluxes. 
I know no place where gold is found 
but what is very unhealthy. Guaya- 
quil is not so sickly as Quito and 
other towns farther within land ; yet 
in comparison with the towns that 
are on the coast of Mare Pacificum, 
south of Cape Blanco, it is very 
sickly. 

It was to this town of Guayaquil 
that we were bound ; therefore we 



J " Coarse cottons," says M'Cul 
loch, "and woollen cloths, baizes, flan 
nels, ponchos, and stockings are mad< 
in Quito." 

3 Quito was annexed to the empire 
of Peru not long before the Spanish 



conquest ; it is now the 
the Kepublic of Ecuador. 



capital 



eft our ships off Cape Blanco, and 
an into the Bay of Guayaquil with 
ur bark and canoes, steering in for 
he Island of Santa Clara, where we 
arrived the next day after we left our 
hips ; and from thence we sent away 
wo canoes the next evening to Point 
Arenas. At this point there are 
ibundance of oysters, and other shell- 
ish, as cockles and mussels ; there- 
ore the Indians of Puna often come 
lither to get these fish. Our canoes 
got over before day, and absconded 3 
n a creek, to wait for the coming of 
;he Puna Indians. The next morn- 
ng some of them, according to their 
custom, came thither on bark-logs, at 
;he latter part of the ebb, and were 
ill taken by our men. The next day, 
by their advice, the two watchmen 
f the Indian town of Puna were taken 
by our men, and all its inhabitants, 
not one escaping. The next ebb they 
;ook a small bark laden with Quito 
cloth. She came from Guayaquil 
;hat tide, and was bound to Lima ; 
;hey having advice that we were gone 
off the coast, by the bark which I 
said we saw while we lay at the Island 
of Lobos. The master of this cloth- 
bark informed our men that there 
were three barks coming from Guaya- 
quil laden with Negroes ; he said they 
would come from thence the next 
tide. The same tide of ebb that they 
took the cloth-bark, they sent a canoe 
to our bark, where the biggest part of 
the men were, to hasten them away 
with speed to the Indian town. The 
bark was now riding at Point Arenas ; 
and the next flood she came with all 
the men, and the rest of the canoes, 
to Puna. The tide of flood being 
now far spent, we lay at this town 
till the last of the ebb, and then 
rowed away, leaving five men aboard 
our bark, who were ordered to lie still 
till 8 o'clock the next morning, and 
not to fire at any boat or bark ; but 
after that time they might fire at any 
object : for it was supposed that 
before that time we should be masters 
of [Guayaquil. We had not rowed 
above two miles, before we met and 

8 Concealed themselves. 



154 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE 



took one of the three barks laden with 
Negroes ; the master of her said, that 
the other two would come from Guaya- 
quil the next tide of ebb. We cut 
her mainmast down, and left her at 
anchor. It was now strong flood, 
and therefore we rowed with all speed 
towards the town, in hopes to get 
thither before the flood was down ; 
but we found it farther than we did 
expect it to be ; or else our canoes, 
being very full of men, did not row so 
fast as we would have them. The 
day broke when we were two leagues 
from the town, and then we had not 
above an hour's flood more ; therefore 
our Captain desired the Indian pilot 
to direct us to some creek where we 
might abscond all day, which was 
immediately done, and one canoe was 
sent towards Puna to our bark, to 
order them not to move nor fire till 
the next day. But she came too late 
to countermand the first orders : for 
the two barks before mentioned, laden 
with Negroes, came from the town 
the last quarter of the evening tide, 
and lay in the river, close by the 
shore on one side, and we rowed up 
on the other side and missed them ; 
neither did they see nor hear us. As 
soon as the flood was spent, the two 
barks weighed and went down with 
the ebb towards Puna. Our bark, 
seeing them coming directly towards 
them, and both full of men, supposed 
that we'by some accident had been de- 
stroyed, and that the two barks were 
manned with Spanish soldiers, sent 
to take our ships ; and therefore they 
fired three guns at them a league 
before they came near. The two 
Spanish barks immediately came to 
an anchor, and the masters got into 
their boats and rowed for the shore ; 
but our canoe that was sent from us 
took them both. The firing of these 
three guns made a great disorder 
among our advanced men, for most 
of them did believe they were heard 
at Guayaquil, and that therefore it 
could be no profit to lie still in the 
creek, but either row away to the 
town, or back again to our ships. It 
was now quarter ebb ; therefore we 
could not move upwards, if we had 



ROUND THE WOKLD [CHAP. VI. 
been disposed so to do. At length 
Captain Davis said he would imme- 
diately land in the creek where they 
lay, and march directly to the town, 
if but forty men would accompany 
him ; and without saying more words, 
he landed among the mangroves in 
the marshes. Those that were so 
minded followed him, to the number 
of forty or fifty. Captain Swan lay 
still with the rest of the party in the 
creek, for they thought it impossible 
to do any good that way. 

Captain Davis and his men were 
absent about four hours, and then 
returned all wet and quite tired, and 
could not find any passage out into 
the firm land. He had been so far, 
that he almost despaired of getting 
back again ; for a man cannot pass 
through those red mangroves but 
with very much labour. When Cap- 
tain Davis was returned, we concluded 
to be going towards the town the be- 
ginning of the next flood ; and if we 
found that the town was alarmed, we 
purposed to return again without 
attempting anything there. As soon 
as it was flood we rowed away, and 
passed by the island through the NE. 
channel, which is the narrowest. 
There are so many stumps in the 
river, that it is very dangerous pass- 
ing in the night (and that is the time 
we always take for such attempts) ; 
for the river runs very swift, and one 
of our canoes stuck on a stump, and 
had certainly overset if she had not 
been immediately rescued by others. 
When we were come almost to the 
end of the island, there was a musket 
fired at us out of the bushes on the 
main. We then had the town open 
before us, and presently saw lighted 
torches or candles all the town over, 
whereas before the gun was fired there 
was but one light : therefore we now 
concluded we were discovered. Yet 
many of our men said that it was a 
holiday the next day, as it was indeed, 
and that therefore the Spaniards were 
making fireworks, which they often 
do in the night against such times. 
We rowed therefore a little farther, 
and found firm land; and Captain 
Davis pitched his canoe ashore and 



ATTEMPT ON GUAYAQUIL ABANDONED. 



755 



landed with liis men. Captain Swan 
and most of his men did not think it 
convenient to attempt anything, see- 
ing the town was alarmed ; but at 
last, being upbraided with cowardice, 
Captain Swan and his men landed 
also. The place where we landed 
was about two miles from the town. 
It was all overgrown with woods, so 
thick that we could not march through 
in the night ; and therefore we sat 
down waiting for the light of the day. 
We had two Indian pilots with us ; 
one that had been with us a month, 
who, having received some abuses 
from a gentleman of Guayaquil, to be 
revenged, offered his service to us, and 
we found him very faitbful ; the other 
was taken by us not above two or 
three days before, and he seemed to 
be as willing as the other to assist us. 
This latter was led by one of Captain 
Davis's men, who showed himself 
very forward to go to the tojyn, and 
upbraided others with faint-hearted- 
ness. Yet this man, as he afterwards 
confessed, notwithstanding his cour- 
age, privately cut the string that the 
guide was made fast with, and let 
him go to the town by himself, not 
caring to follow him ; but when he 
thought the guide was got far enough 
from us, he cried out that the pilot 
was gone, and that somebody had cut 
the cord that tied him. This put 
every man into a moving posture to 
seek the Indian, but all in vain ; and 
our consternation was great, being in 
the dark and among woods ; so the 
design was wholly dashed, for not a 
man after that had the heart to speak 
of going farther. Here we stayed till 
day, and then rowed out into the 
middle of the river, where we had a 
fair view of the town ; which, as I 
said before, makes a very pleasant 
prospect. We lay still about half an 
hour, being a mile, or something 
better, from the town. They did not 
fire one gun at us, nor we at them. 
Thus our design on Guayaquil failed ; 
yet Captain Townley and Captain 
Francois Gronet took it a little while 
after this. When we had taken a 
full view of the town, we rowed over 
the river, where we went ashore to a 



beef estantion or farm, and killed a 
cow, which we dressed and ate. We 
stayed there till the evening tide of 
ebb, and then rowed down the river, 
and the 9th December in the morning 
arrived at Puna. In our way thither 
we went aboard the three barks laden 
with Negroes, that lay at anchor in 
the river, and carried the barks away 
with us. There were 1000 Negroes in 
the three barks, all lusty young men 
and women. When we came to 
Puna, we sent a canoe to Point 
Arenas, to see if the ships were come 
thither. The 12th day she returned 
again, with tidings that they were 
both there at anchor. Therefore in 
the afternoon we all went aboard of 
our ships, and carried the cloth-bark 
with us, and about forty of the stout- 
est Negro men, leaving their three 
barks with the rest ; and out of these 
also Captain Davis and Captain Swan 
chose about fourteen or fifteen a-piece, 
and turned the rest ashore. 

There was never a greater oppor- 
tunity put into the hands of men to 
enrich themselves than we had, to 
have gone with these Negroes, and 
settled ourselves at Santa Maria on 
the Isthmus of Darien, and emploj'ed 
them in getting gold out of the mines 
there, which might have been done 
with ease ; for about six -months be- 
fore this, Captain Harris, who was 
now with us, coming overland from 
the North Seas with his body of Pri- 
vateers, had routed the Spaniards 
away from the town and gold mines 
of Santa Maria, so that they had 
never attempted to settle there again 
since. Add to this, that the Indian 
neighbourhood, who were mortal ene- 
mies to the Spaniards, and had been 
flushed by their successes against 
them through the assistance of the 
Privateers for several years, were our 
fast friends, and ready to receive and 
assist us. We had, as I have said, 
1000 Negroes to work for us ; we had 
200 tons of flour that lay at the Gala- 
pagos ; there was the River of Santa 
Maria, where we could careen and 
fit our ships, and might fortify the 
mouth so, that if all the strength the 
Spaniards have in Peru had come 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WOULD. [CHAP. Vll, 



156 

against us we could have kept them 
out. If they lay with guard-ships of 
strength to keep us in, yet we had a 
great country to live in, and a great 
nation of Indians that were our 
friends. Besides, which was the prin- 
cipal thing, we had the North Seas 
to befriend us ; from whence we could 
export ourselves or effects, or import 
goods or men to our assistance ; for 
in a short time we should have had 
assistance from all parts of the West 
Indies, many thousands of Privateers 
from Jamaica arid the French islands 
especially would have flocked over to 
us, and long before this time AVC 
might have been masters not only of 
those mines (the richest gold mines 
ever yet found in America), but of all 
the coast as high as Quito ; and much 
more than I say might then probably 
have been done. 

But these may seem to the reader 
but golden dreams. To leave them, 
therefore ; the 13th day we sailed from 
Point Arenas towards Plata, to seek 
our bark that was sent to the Island 
of Lobos in search of Captain Eaton. 
We were two ships in company, and 
two barks ; and the 16th day we ar- 
rived at Plata, but found 110 bark 
there, nor any letter. The next day 
we went over to the main to fill water, 
and in our passage met our bark ; she 
had been a second time at the Island 
of Lobos, and, not finding us, was 
coming to Plata again. They had 
been in some want of provision since 
they left us, and therefore they had 
been at Santa Elena and taken it j 
where they got as much maize as 
served them three or four days ; and 
that, with some fish and turtle which 
they struck, lasted them till they 
came to the Island of Lobos de Tierra. 
They $ot boobies' and penguins' eggs, 
of which they laid in a store ; and 
went from thence to Lobos de la Mar, 
where they replenished their stock of 
eggs, and salted up a few young seal, 
for fear they should want ; and being 
thus victualled, they returned again 
towards Plata. When our water was 
filled we went over again to the Island 
of Plata. There we parted the cloths 
that were taken in the cloth -bark 



into two lots or shares ; Captain 
Davis and his men -had one part, and 
Captain Swan and his men had the 
other part. The bark which the 
cloth was in, Captain Swan kept for 
a tender. At this time there were at 
Plata a great many large turtle, which 
I judge came from the Galapagos ; 
for I had never seen any here before, 
though I had been here several times : 
this was their coupling-time, which 
is much sooner in the year here than 
in the West Indies properly so called. 
Our strikers brought aboard every 
day more than we could eat. Cap- 
tain Swan had no striker, and there- 
fore had no turtle but what was sent 
him from Captain Davis ; and all his 
flour too he had from Captain Davis : 
but since our disappointment at 
Guayaquil, Captain Davis's men mur- 
mured against Captain Swan, and 
did not willingly give him any provi- 
sion, because he was not so forward 
to go thither as Captain Davis. How- 
ever, at last these differences were 
made up, and we concluded to go 
into the Bay of Panama, to a town 
called La Velia ; but because we had 
not canoes enough to laud our men, 
we were resolved to search some 
rivers where the Spaniards have no 
commerce, there to get Indian canoes. 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE 23d of December 1684, we saile 
from the Island of Plata towards the 
Bay of Panama; the wind at SSK, a 
fine brisk gale, and fair weather. 
The next morning we passed by Cape 
Pasado. This cape is in Lat. 28 
S. of the Equator. It runs out into 
the sea with a high round point, 
which seems to be divided in the 
midst. It is bald against the sea, 1 
but within land, and on both sides, 
it is full of short trees. The land in 
the country is very high and moun- 
tainous, and it appears to be very 
woody. Between Cape Pasado and 
Cape San Francisco, the land by the 



Bare on the side facing the sea. 



1684.] 



A SEARCH MADE FOR CANOES. 



157 



sea is full of small points, making as 
many little sandy bays between them, 
and is of an indifferent height, covered 
with trees of divers sorts. 1 . . . 

It was to the River Santiago that 
we were bound to seek for canoes ; 
therefore the 26th, supposing our- 
selves to be abreast of it, we went 
from our ships with four canoes. 
The 27th in the morning we entered 
at half flood into the smaller branch 
of that river, and rowed up six leagues 
before we met any inhabitants. There 
we found two small huts thatched 
with palmetto leaves. The Indians, 
seeing us rowing towards their houses, 
got their wives and little ones, with 
their household-stuff, into their can oes, 
and paddled away faster than we could 
row ; for we were forced to keep in 
the middle of the river because of our 
oars, but they with their paddles kept 
close under the banks, and so had 
not the strength of the stream against 
them as we had. These huts were 
close by the river on the east side of 
it, just against the end of the island. 
We saw a great many other houses a 
league from us on the other side of 
the river ; but the main stream into 
which we were now come, seemed to 
be so swift, that we were afraid to put 
over for fear we should not be able to 
get back again. We found only a 
hog, some fowls, and plantains in 
the huts ; we killed the hog and the 
fowls, which were dressed presently. 
Their hogs they got, as I suppose, 
from the Spaniards by some accident, 
or from some neighbouring Indians 
who converse 2 with the Spaniards; for 
this that we took was of their Euro- 
pean kind, which the Spaniards have 



1 Passing Cape San Francisco, they 
came to the River Santiago (now sup- 
posed to be the River Alira, which, 
rising N. of Quito, enters the sea S. 
of the Bay of Tumaco), where it was 
their intention to search for canoes. 
The land near the river's mouth is of 
a deep black mould, producing both 
the cotton and the cabbage trees in 
great abundance. The particular de- 
scription of these trees is now omitted. 

2 Have intercourse 



introduced into America very plenti- 
fully, especially into the Islands of 
Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Cuba above 
all, this last being very largely stored 
with them, where they feed in the 
woods in the daytime, and at night 
come in at the sounding of a conch 
shell, and are put up in their crawls 3 
or pens. And yet some turn wild, 
which, nevertheless, are often decoyed 
in by the others ; which being all 
marked, .whenever they 4 see an un- 
marked hog in the pen, they know it 
is a wild one, and shoot him pre- 
sently. These crawls I have not seen 
on the continent, where the Spaniards 
keep them tame at home. Among 
the wild Indians, or in their woods, 
are no hogs, but peccary and warree, 
a sort I have mentioned before. After 
we had refreshed ourselves, we re- 
turned towards the mouth of the river. 
It was the evening when we came 
from thence, and we got to the river's 
mouth the next morning before day 
Our ships when we left them were 
ordered to go to Gallo, where they 
were to stay for us. Gallo is a small 
uninhabited island, lying in between 
2 and 3 N. Lat. It lies in a wide 
bay about three leagues from the 
mouth of the River Tumaco, and four 
leagues and a half from a small Indian 
village called Tumaco. The Island 
of Gallo is of an indifferent height ; 
it is clothed with very good timber 
trees, and is therefore often visited 
by barks from Guayaquil and other 
places ; for most of the timber carried 
from Guayaquil and Lima is first 
fetched from Gallo. Tumaco is a large 
river that takes its name from the 
Indian village so called. It is reported 
to spring from the rich mountains 
about Quito. It is thickly inhabited 
with Indians, and there are some 
Spaniards that live there, who traffic 
with the Indians for gold. The vil- 
lage Tumaco is but small, and is 
seated not far from the mouth of the 
river. It is a place to entertain the 



3 "Crawl," a corruption of the 
Spanish "corral," is a pen or en- 
closure of hurdles for fish or turtle. 

4 The Spaniards. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VII. 



158 

Spanish merchants that come to Gallo 
to load timber, or to traffic with the 
Indians for gold. From the branch 
of the River Santiago, where we now 
lay, to Tumaco is about five leagues ; 
the land low, and full of creeks, so 
that canoes may pass within land 
through those creeks, and from thence 
into Tumaco River. 

[On the 28th they left the River 
Santiago, and coming to Tumaco town 
about 12 o'clock at night, they took 
all the inhabitants of the village, in- 
cluding a Spanish knight called Don 
Diego de Pinas, who had come in a 
ship from Lima to lade timber. On 
the 1st of January 1685, they went 
from Tumaco towards Gallo. On the 
way they had news of a Spanish 
Armada, which they determined to 
try and intercept among the King's 
Islands. On the 8th they took a 
ship laden with about ninety tons of 
flour.] 

"We jogged on after this with a gentle 
gale towards Gorgon a, an island lying 
about twenty-five leagues from the 
Island of Gallo. The 9th we anchored 
at Gorgona, on the west side of the 
island, in thirty-eight fathoms, clean 
ground, not two cables' length from 
the shore. Gorgona is an uninhabited 
island, in Lat. about 3 N. It is a 
pretty high island, and very remark- 
able by reason of two saddles, or 
risings and fallings, on the top. It 
is about two leagues long, and a 
league broad, and it is four leagues 
from the main. At the west end is 
another small island. The soil or 
mould of it is black and deep in the 
low ground, but on the side of the 
high land it is a kind of a red clay. 
This island is very well clothed with 
large trees of several sorts, that are 
flourishing and green all the year. 
It is very well watered with small 
brooks that issue from the high land. 
Here are a great many little black 
monkeys, some Indian conies, and a 
few snakes, which are all the land 
animals that I know there. Here are 
pearl oysters in great plenty; they 
grow to the loose rocks in four, five, 
or six fathoms water, by beards or 
little small roots, as a mussel. These 



oysters are commonly flatter and 
thinner than other oysters, otherwise 
much alike in shape. The fish is not 
sweet, nor very wholesome ; it is as 
slimy as a shell snail. They taste 
very copperish, if eaten raw, and are 
best boiled. The Indians, who gather 
them for the Spaniards, hang the 
meat of them on strings, like Jews'- 
ears, 1 and dry them before they eat 
them. The pearl is found at the 
head of the oyster, lying between the 
meat and the shell. Some will have 
twenty or thirty small seed pearls, 
some none at all, and some will have 
one or two pretty large ones. The 
inside of the shell is more glorious 
than the pearl itself. I did never see 
any in the South Seas but here. It is 
reported there are some at the south 
end of California. In the West Indies, 
the Rancho Reys or Rancherias, spoken 
of in Chapter III., 2 is the place where 
they are found most plentifully. It is 
said there are some at the Island of 
Margarita, near St Augustine, a town 
in the Gulf of Florida, &c. In the 
East Indies, the Island of Ainam, 3 
near the south end of China, is said 
to have plenty of these oysters, more 
productive of large round pearls than 
those in other places. They are found 
also in other parts of the East Indies, 
and on the Persian coast. 

At this Island of Gorgona we rum- 
maged our prize, and found a few 
boxes of marmalade, and three or four 
jars of brandy, which were equally 
shared between Captain Davis, Captain 
Swan, and their men. Here we filled 
all our water, and Captain Swan fur- 
nished himself with flour ; afterwards 
we turned ashore a great many prison- 
ers, but kept the chief to put them 
ashore in a better place. The 13th 
we sailed from hence toward the 
King's Islands. We were now six 
sail two men-of-war, two tenders, a 
fireship, and the prize. The 16th we 
passed by Cape Corrientcs. This 
cape is in Lat. 5 10' [N.]; it is high 



1 A tough, thin, rumpled fungus, 
like a flat and variously-hollowed cup. 

2 Seepage 115. 

3 Hai-man, in the Gulf of Tonquin. 



1685.] 



THE KING'S ISLANDS. 



159 



bluff land, with three or four small 
hillocks on the top. It appears at a 
distance like an island. The day 
after we passed by the cape, we saw 
a small white island, which we chased, 
supposing it had been a sail, till, 
coming near, we found our error. 
The 21st we saw Point Garachina. 
This point is in Lat. 7 20' N. j 1 it is 
pretty high land, rocky, and destitute 
of trees, yet within land it is woody. 
It is fenced with rocks against the 
sea. Within the point by the sea, 
at low water, you may find store of 
oysters and mussels. The King's 
Islands, or Pearl Keys, are about 
twelve leagues distant from this point. 
Between Point Garachina and them 
there is a small, low, flat, barren 
island called Galera, at which Captain 
Harris was sharing with his men the 
gold he took in his pillaging Santa 
Maria, which I spoke of a little be- 
fore* when on a sudden five Spanish 
barks, fitted out on purpose at Pana- 
ma, came upon him; but he fought 
them so stoutly with one small bark 
he had and some few canoes, boarding 
their admiral particularly, that they 
were all glad to leave him. By this 
island we anchored, and sent our 
boats to the King's Islands for a 



good careening place. 
The King's Islands 



are a great 



many low, woody islands lying NW. 
by N. and SE. by S. They are about 
seven leagues from the main, and 
fourteen leagues in length, and from 
Panama about twelve leagues. Why 
they are called the King's Islands I 
know not ; they are sometimes, and 
mostly in maps, called the Pearl 
Islands. 2 I cannot imagine wherefore 
they are called so, for I did never see 
one pearl oyster about them, nor any 
pearl oyster shells ; but on the other 
oysters I have made many a meal 
there. The northernmost island of 



1 It is really in 8 10' ST. 

2 The Isola ^ del Key, or King's 
Island, is an island of considerable 
size in the Bay of Panama ; and the 
Pearl Keys are an archipelago of small 
islets between King's Island and the 
coast to the north-west. 



all this range is called Pacheca or 
Pacheque ; this is but a small island, 
distant from Panama eleven or twelve 
Leagues. The southernmost of them 
is called St Paul's. Some of these 
islands are planted with plantains 
and bananas, and there are fields of 
rice on others of them. The gentle- 
men of Panama, to whom they belong, 
keep Negroes there to plant, weed, 
and husband the plantations. Many 
of them, especially the largest, are 
wholly un tilled, yet very good fat 
land, full of large trees. These un- 
planted islands shelter many runaway 
Negroes, who abscond 3 in the woods 
all day, and in the night boldly pil- 
lage the plantain walks. Betwixt 
these islands and the main is a chan- 
nel of seven or eight leagues wide ; 
there is good depth of water, and 
good anchoring all the way. The 
islands border thick on each other, 
yet they make many small, narrow, 
deep channels fit only for boats to 
pass between most of them. At the 
SE. end, about a league from St 
Paul's Island, there is a good place 
for ships to careen or haul ashore. 
It is surrounded with the land, and 
has a good deep channel on the 
north side to go in at. The tide rises 
here about ten feet perpendicular. 
We brought our ships into this place 
on the 25th, but were forced to tarry 
for a spring-tide before we could have 
water enough to clean them; there- 
fore we first cleaned our barks, that 
they might cruise before Panama 
while we lay there. The 27th, our 
barks being clean, we sent them out 
with twenty men in each. The fourth 
day after, they returned with a prize 
laden with maize or Indian corn, salt 
beef, ^and fowls. She came from 
Lavelia, and was bound to Panama. 
Lavelia is a town we once designed 
to attempt; it is pretty large, and 
stands on the banks of a river on the 
north side of the Bay of Panama, six 
or seven leagues from the sea. Nata 
is another such town, standing in a 
plain near another branch of the same 
river. In these towns, and some 

3 Hide. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VII. 



160 

others on the same coast, they breed 
Logs, fowls, bulls, and cows, and 
plant maize, purposely for the sup- 
port of Panama, which is supplied 
with provision mostly from other 
towns and the neighbouring islands. 1 

The 14th of February 1685, we 
made an end of cleaning our ship, 
tilled all our water, and stocked our- 
selves with firewood. The 15th, we 
went out from among the islands, 
and anchored in the channel between 
them and the main, in twenty-five 
fathoms water, soft oozy ground. 
The Plate Fleet was not yet arrived ; 
therefore we intended to cruise before 
the city of Panama, which is from 
this place about twenty-five leagues. 
The next day we sailed towards Pana- 
ma, passing in the channel between 
the King's Islands and the main. 
"When we came abreast of Old Panama 
we anchored, and sent our canoe ashore 
with our prisoner Don Diego de Pinas, 
with a letter to the Governor, to 
treat about an exchange for our man 
they had spirited away, as I said, 
and another Captain Harris left in 
the River of Santa Maria the year 
before, coming overland. Don Diego 
was desirous to go on the errand in 
the name and with the consent of the 
rest of our Spanish prisoners; but 
by some accident he was killed 
before he got ashore, as we heard 
afterwards. 

Old Panama was formerly a famous 
place ; but it was taken by Sir Henry 
Morgan about the year 1673, 2 and at 
that time great part of it was burned 
to ashes, and it was never re-edified 
since. New Panama is a very fair 
city, standing close by the sea, about 
four miles from the ruins of the old 

1 The island where they here car- 
eened their ships is described as 
being environed with rocks, on which 
they gathered abundance of oysters, 
clams, mussels, and limpets. 

3 Really at the end of January 
1671, when Morgan and his men com- 
mitted atrocities that made the cap- 
ture of Panama conspicuous even 
avnong the brutal records of the 
Buccaneers. 



town. It gives name to a large bay, 
which is famous for a great many 
navigable rivers, some whereof are 
very rich in gold; it is also very 
pleasantly sprinkled with islands that 
are not only profitable to their owners, 
but very delightful to the passengers 
and seamen that sail by them. It is 
encompassed on the back side with a 
pleasant country, which is full of 
small hills and valleys, beautified 
with many groves and spots of trees, 
that appear in the savannahs like so 
many little islands. This city is en- 
compassed with a high stone wall ; 
the houses are said to be of brick ; 
their roofs appear higher than the 
top of the city wall. It is beautified 
with a great many fair churches and 
religious houses, besides the Presid- 
ent's house, and other eminent build- 
ings ; which altogether make one of 
the finest objects that I did ever see, 
in America especially. There are a 
great many guns on the walls, most 
of which look toward the land. They 
had none at all against the sea when I 
first entered those seas with Captain 
Sawkins, Captain Coxon, Captain 
Sharpe, and others ; for till then they 
did not fear any enemy by sea : but 
since then they have plan ted ^ guns 
clear round. This is a flourishing 
city, by reason it is a thoroughfare 
for all imported or exported goods 
and treasure to and from all parts of 
Peru and Chili, whereof their store- 
houses are never empty. The road 
also is seldom or never without ships. 
Besides, once in three years, when the 
Spanish Armada comes to Porto Bello, 
then the Plate Fleet also from Lima 
comes hither with the King's treasure, 
and abundance of merchant ships full 
of goods and plate. At that time the 
city is full of merchants and gentle- 
men ; the seamen are busy in landing 
the treasure and goods, and the car- 
riers or caravaiimasters employed in 
carrying it overland on mules, in vast 
droves every day, to Porto Bello, and 
bringing back European goods from 
thence. Though the city be then so 
full, yet during this heat of business 
there is no hiring of an ordinary slave 
under a piece of eight a-day ; houses 



1685.J 



THE SPANISH ARMADA. 



101 



also, chambers, beds, and victuals, are 
then extraordinary dear. 

Now I am on the subject, I think 
it will not be amiss to give the reader 
an account of the progress of the 
Armada from Old Spain which comes 
thus every three years into the Indies. 
Its first arrival is at Carthagena, from 
whence, as I have been told, an ex- 
press is immediately sent overland to 
Lima, through the Southern Contin- 
ent, and another by sea to Porto Bello, 
with two packets of letters, one for 
the Viceroy of Lima, the other for the 
Viceroy of Mexico. I know not which 
way that of Mexico goes after its 
arrival at Porto Bello, whether by 
land or sea ; but I believe by sea to 
La Vera Cruz. That for Lima is 
sent by land to Panama, and from 
thence by sea to Lima. Upon men- 
tion of these packets I shall digress 
yet a little further, and acquaint my 
reader, that before my first going over 
into the South Seas with Captain 
Sharpe (and indeed before any Priva- 
teers, at least since Drake and Oxen- 
ham, had gone that way which we 
afterwards went, except La Sound, a 
French Captain, who by Captain 
Wright's instructions had ventured 
as far as Chepo Town with a body of 
men, but was driven back again), I 
being then on board Captain Coxon, 
in company with three or four more 
Privateers, about four leagues to the 
east of Porto Bello, we took the packets 
bound thither from Carthagena. "We 
opened a great quantity of the mer- 
chants' letters, and found the contents 
of many of them to be very surprising ; 
the merchants of several parts of Old 
Spain thereby informing their corre- 
spondents of Panama and elsewhere 
of a certain prophecy that went about 
Spain that year, th* tenor of which 
was, that there would be English 
Privateers that year in the West In- 
dies, who would make such great dis- 
coveries as to open a door into the 
South Seas which they supposed was 
fastest shut ; and the letters were 
accordingly full of cautions to their 
friends to be very watchful and care- 
ful of their coasts. This door they 
spoke of we all concluded must be the 



passage overland through the country 
of the Indians of Darien, who were a 
little before this become our friends, 
and had lately fallen out with the 
Spaniards, breaking off the intercourse 
which for some time they had with 
them : and upon calling also to mind 
the frequent invitations we had from 
those Indians a little before this time, 
to pass through their country and fall 
upon the Spaniards in the South Seas, 
we from thenceforward began to en- 
tertain such thoughts in earnest, and 
soon came to a resolution to make 
those attempts which we afterwards 
did with Captains Sharpe, Coxou, &c. 
So that the taking of these letters 
gave the first life to those bold under- 
takings : and we took the advantage 
of the fears the Spaniards were in 
from that prophecy, or probable con- 
jecture, or whatever it were ; for we 
sealed up most of the letters again, 
and sent them ashore to Porto Bello. 
The occasion of this our late friend- 
ship with those Indians was thus : 
About fifteen years before this time, 
Captain Wright being cruising near 
that coast, and going in among the 
Sambaloes Isles to strike fish and 
turtle, took there a young Indian lad 
as he was paddling about in a canoe. 
He brought him aboard his ship, and 
gave him the name of John Gret, 
clothing him, and intending to breed 
him among the English. But his 
Mosquito strikers, taking a fancy to 
the boy, begged him of Captain 
Wright, and took him with them at 
their return into their own country, 
where they taught him their art ; and 
he married a wife among them, and 
learnt their language, as he had done 
some broken English while he was 
with Captain Wright, which he im- 
proved among the Mosquitoes, who, 
corresponding so much with us, do 
all of them smatter English after a 
sort; but his own language he had 
almost forgot. Thus he lived among 
them for many years ; till, about six 
or eight months before our taking 
these letters, Captain Wright being 
again among the Sambaloes, took 
thence another Indian boy about ten 
or twelve years old, the son of a man 
L 



DAMPIEE'S YOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VII. 



162 

of some account among those Indians ; 
and wanting a striker, he went away 
to the Mosquito country, where he 
took in John Gret, who was now very 
expert at it. John Gret was much 
pleased to see a lad there of his own 
country, and it came into his mind 
to persuade Captain Wright upon 
this occasion to endeavour a friend- 
ship with those Indians ; a thing our 
Privateers had long coveted, but 
never durst attempt, having such 
dreadful apprehensions of their num- 
bers and herceness. But John Gret 
offered the Captain that he would go 
ashore and negotiate the matter ; 
who accordingly sent him in his 
canoe till he was near the shore, 
which of a sudden was covered with 
Indians, standing ready with their 
bows and arrows. John Gret, who 
had only a clout about his middle, as 
the fashion of the Indians is, leapt 
then out of the boat and swam, the 
boat retiring a little way back ; and 
the Indians ashore, seeing him in 
that habit, and hearing him call to 
them in their own tongue (which he 
had recovered by conversing with the 
boy lately taken, suffered him quietly 
to land, and gathered all about to 
hear how it was with him. He told 
them particularly, that he was one of 
their countrymen, and how he had 
been taken many years ago by the 
English, who had used him very 
kindly ; that they were mistaken in 
being so much afraid of that nation, 
who were not enemies to them, but 
to tfie Spaniards. To confirm this, 
he told them how well the English 
treated another yoirag lad of theirs 
they had lately taken, such an 
one's son ; for this he had learnt of 
the youth ; and his father was one of 
the company that was got together on 
the shore. He persuaded them, 
therefore, to make a league with these 
friendly people, by whose help they 
might be able to quell the Spaniards ; 
assuring, also, the father of the boy, 
that if he would but go with him to 
the ship, which they saw at anchor at 
an island there (it was Golden Island, 
the easternmost of the Sambaloes, a 
place where there is good striking for 



turtle), he should have his son re- 
tored to him, and they might all 
expect a very kind reception. Upon 
these assurances, twenty or thirty of 
them went off presently, in two or 
three canoes laden with plantains, 
bananas, fowls, &c. ; and, Captain 
Wright having treated them on board, 
went ashore with them, and was 
entertained by them, and presents 
were made on each side. Captain 
Wright gave the boy to his father in 
a very handsome English dress, which 
he had caused to be made purposely 
for him ; and an agreement was im- 
mediately struck up between the 
English and these Indians, who in- 
vited the English through their 
country into the South Seas. Pur- 
suant to this agreement, the English, 
when they came upon any such 
design, or for traffic with them, were 
to give a certain signal which they 
pitched upon, whereby they might 
be known. But it happened that Mr 
La Sound, the French Captain spoken 
of a little before, being then one of 
Captain Wright's men, learnt this 
signal, and staying ashore at Petit 
Goave, upon Captain Wright's going 
thither soon after, who had his com- 
mission from thence, he gave the 
other French there such an account 
of the agreement before mentioned, 
and the easiness of entering the South 
Seas thereupon, that he got at the 
head of about 120 of them, who made 
that unsuccessful attempt uponChepo, 
as I said ; making use of the signal 
they had learnt for passing the In- 
dians' country, who at that time 
could not distinguish so well between 
the several nations of the Europeans 
as they can since. From such small 
beginnings arose those great stirs 
that have been^ince made all over 
the South Seas, viz., from the letters 
we took, and from the friendship con- 
tracted with these Indians by means 
of John Gret. Yet this friendship 
had like to have been stifled in its 
infancy ; for, within a few months 
after, an English trading sloop came 
on this coast from Jamaica, and John 
Gret, who by this time had advanced 
himself to be a grandee among these 



1685.J 



EXPORTATION OF SPANISH TREASURE. 



163 



Indians, together with five or six 
more of that quality, went off to the 
sloop in their long gowns, as the 
custom is for such to wear among 
them. Being received aboard, they 
expected to find everything friendly, 
and John Gret talked to them in 
English ; but these Englishmen, 
having no knowledge at all of what 
had happened, endeavoured to make 
them slaves, as is commonly done ; 
for upon carrying them to Jamaica 
they could have sold them for 10 or 
12 a-piece. But John Gret and the 
rest perceiving this, leapt all over- 
board, and were by the others killed 
every one of them in the water. The 
Indians on shore never came to the 
knowledge of it ; if they had, it 
would have endangered our corre- 
spondence. Several times after, upon 
our conversing with them, they in- 
quired of us what was become of 
their countrymen ; but we told them 
we knew not, as, indeed, it was a 
great while after that we heard this 
story ; so they concluded the Span- 
iards had met with them, and killed 
or taken them. 

But to return to the account of the 
progress of the Armada, which we 
left at Carthagena. After an ap- 
pointed stay there of about sixty days, 
as I take it, it goes thence to Porto 
Bello, where it lies thirty days and 
no longer. Therefore the Viceroy of 
Lima, on notice of the Armada's 
arrival at Carthagena, immediately 
sends away the King's treasure to 
Panama, where it is landed, and lies 
ready to be sent to Porto Bello upon 
the first news of the Armada's arrival 
there. This is the reason partly of 
their sending expresses so early to 
Lima, that upon the Armada's first 
coming to Porto Bello, the treasure 
and goods may lie ready at Panama 
to be sent away upon the mules ; and 
it requires some time for the Lima 
fleet to unlade, because the ships 
ride not at Panama, but at Perica, 
which are three small islands two 
leagues from thence. The King's 
treasure is said to amount commonly 
to about 24,000,000 pieces of eight ; 
besides abundance of merchants' 



money. All this treasure is carried 
on mules, and there are large stables 
at both places to lodge them. Some- 
times the merchants, to steal the 
custom, pack up money among goods, 
and send it to Venta de Cruces, on 
the River Chagres ; from thence down 
the river, and afterwards by sea to 
Porto Bello : in which passage I have 
known a whole fleet of periagoes and 
canoes taken. The merchants who 
are not ready to sail by the thirtieth 
day after the Armada's arrival are 
in danger to be left behind ; for the 
ships all weigh the thirtieth day pre- 
cisely, and go to the harbour's mouth. 
Yet sometimes, on great importunity, 
the Admiral may stay a week longer ; 
for it is impossible that all the mer- 
chants should get ready, for want of 
men. "When the Armada departs 
from Porto Bello it returns again to 
Carthagena, by which time all the. 
King's revenue which comes out of the 
country is got ready there. Here also 
meets them again a great ship, called 
the Patache, 1 one of the Spanish gal- 
leons, which, before their first arrival 
at Carthagena, goes from the rest of 
the Armada, on purpose to gather the 
tribute of the coast, touching at the 
Margaritas and other places in her 
way thence to Carthagena, as Punta de 
Guayra, Maracaibo, Rio la Hacha, and 
Santa Marta, and at all these places 
takes in treasure for the King. After 
the set stay at Carthagena, the Armada 
goes away to the Havana, in the Isle 
of Cuba, to meet there the Flota, 
which is a small number of ships that 
go to La Vera Cruz, and there take in 
the effects of the city and country of 
Mexico, and what is brought thither 
in the ship which comes thither every 
year from the Philippine Islands ; 
and having joined the rest at the 
Havana, the whole Armada sets sail 
for Spain through the Gulf of Florida. 
The ships in the South Seas lie a great 

1 A patache (French, from Italian, 
"patascia") is a vessel, generally 
small, used in the conveyance of men, 
stores, or orders from ship to ship or 
place to place ; a kind of messenger 
or auxiliary ship. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VII. 



164 

deal longer at Panama before they 
return to Lima, The merchants and 
gentlemen which come from Lima 
stay as little time as they can at 
Porto Bello, which is at the best but 
a sickly place, and at this time is very 
full of men from all parts. But 
Panama, as it is not overcharged with 
men so unreasonably as the other, 
though very full, enjoys a good air, 
lying open to the sea- wind, which 
rises commonly about 10 or 11 o'clock 
in the morning, and continues till 8 
or 9 o'clock at night ; then the land- 
wind comes, and blows till 8 or 9 in 
the morning. There are no woods 
nor marshes near Panama, but a brave, 
dry, champaign land, not subject to 
fogs nor mists. The wet season be- 
gins in the latter end of May and con- 
tinues till November. The rains are 
not so excessive about Panama itself 
as on either side of the bay ; yet in 
the months of June, July, and August 
they are severe enough. Gentlemen 
that come from Peru to Panama, 
especially in these months, cut their 
hair close to preserve them from 
fevers ; for the place is sickly to them, 
because they come out of a country 
which never has any rains or fogs, 
but enjoys a constant serenity ; but 
I am apt to believe this city is healthy 
enough to any other people. Thus 
much for Panama. 

The 20th, we went and anchored 
within a league of the Islands of 
Perica, which are only three little 
barren rocky islands, in expectation 
of the President of Panama's answer 
to the letter I said we sent him by 
Don Diego, treating about exchange 
of prisoners ; this being the day on 
which he had given us his parole to 
return with an answer. The 21st, we 
took another bark laden with hogs, 
fowl, salt beef, and molasses ; she 
came from Lavelia and was going to 
Panama. In the afternoon we sent 
another letter ashore by a young Mos- 
teso (a mixed breed of Indians and 
Europeans), directed to the President ; 
and three or four copies of it to be 
dispersed abroad among the common 
people. This letter, which was full 
of threats, together with the young 



man's managing the business, wrought 
so powerfully among the common 
people, that the city w r as in an up- 
roar. The President immediately 
sent a gentleman aboard, who de- 
manded the flour prize that we took 
off Gallo, and all the prisoners, for 
the ransom of our two men ; but our 
captains told him they would ex- 
change man for man. The gentle- 
man said he had not orders for that, 
but if we would stay till the next 
day he would bring the Governor's 
answer. The next day he brought 
aboard our two men, and had about 
forty prisoners in exchange. [On the 
24th, they ran over to the Island of 
Taboga, about six leagues south from 
Panama. Its principal products are 
said to be the plantain, the banana, 
and the cocoa-nut. A small town, 
with a church at one end, is described 
as standing by the sea, the whole 
having been much destroyed by Pri- 
vateers.] . . . 

While we lay at Taboga we had 
like to have had a scurvy trick played 
us by a pretended merchant from 
Panama, who came as by stealth to 
traffic with us privately ; a thing 
common enough with the Spanish 
merchants, both in the North and 
South Seas, notwithstanding the 
severe prohibitions of the Governors ; 
who yet sometimes connive at it, and 
will even trade with the Privateers 
themselves. Our merchant was by 
agreement to bring out his bark laden 
with goods in the night, and we to 
go and anchor at the south of Perica. 
Out he came, with a fireship instead 
of a bark, and approached very near, 
hailing us with the watchword we 
had agreed upon. We, suspecting 
the worst, called to them to come to 
an anchor, and upon their not doing 
so, fired at them ; when immediately 
their men going out into the canoe& 
set fire to their ship, which blew up 
and burnt close by us ; so that we 
were forced to cut our cables in all 
haste and scamper away as well as we 
could. The Spaniard was not alto- 
gether so politic in appointing to 
meet us at Perica, for there we had 
sea-room ; whereas had lie come tlnia 



1685.] TREACHERY OF 

upon us atTaboga, the land-wind bear- 
ing hard upon\is as it did, we must 
either have been burnt by the fireship, 
or, upon loosing our cables, have been 
driven ashore. But I suppose they 
chose Perica rather for the scene of 
their enterprise, partly because they 
might there best skulk among the 
islands, and partly because, if their 
exploit failed, they could thence es- 
cape best from our canoes to Panama, 
but two leagues off. During this ex- 
ploit, Captain Swan, whose ship was 
less than ours, and so not so much 
aimed at by the Spaniards, lay about 
a mile off, with a canoe at the buoy of 
his anchor, as fearing some treachery 
from our pretended merchant ; and a 
little before the bark blew up, he saw 
a small float on the water, and, as it 
appeared, a man on it, making to- 
wards his ship ; but the man dived, 
and disappeared of a sudden, as 
thinking probably that he was dis- 
covered. This was supposed to be 
one coming with some combustible 
matter to have stuck about the 
rudder. For sitch a trick Captain 
Sharpe was served at Coquimbo, and 
his ship had like to have been burnt 
by it, if by mere accident it had not 
been discovered. I was then aboard 
Captain Sharpe's ship. Captain 
Swan, seeing the blaze by us, cut his 
cables as we did ; his bark did the 
like ; so we kept under sail all the 
night, being more scared than hurt. 
The bark that was on fire drove burn- 
ing towards Taboga ; but after the 
first blast she did not burn clear, only 
made a smother ; for she was not well 
made, though Captain Bond had the 
framing and management of it. 

This Captain Bond was he of whom 
I made mention in my Fourth Chap- 
ter. 1 He, after his being at the Isles 
of Cape Verd, stood away for the 
South Seas, at the instigation of one 
Richard Morton, who had been with 
Captain Sharpe in the South Seas. 
In his way he met with Captain 
Eaton, and they two consorted a day 
or two ; at last Morton went aboard 
of Captain Eaton, and persuaded him 



See page 125. 



CAPTAIN BOND. 1<J5 

to lose Captain Bond in the night, 
which Captain Eaton did ; Morton 
continuing aboard of Captain Eaton, 
as finding his the better ship. Cap- 
tain Bond thus losing both his consort 
Eaton, and Morton his pilot, and his 
ship being but an ordinary sailer, de- 
spaired of getting into the South 
Seas ; and he had played such tricks 
among the Caribbee Isles, as I have 
been informed, that he did not dare to 
appear at any of the English Islands. 
Thereforehe persuaded his men to go to 
the Spaniards, and they consented to 
do anything that he should propose ; 
so he presently steered away into the 
West Indies, and the first place where 
he came to an anchor was at Porto 
Bello. He presently declared to the 
Governor that there were English 
ships coming into the South Seas, 
and that if they questioned it, he 
offered to be kept a prisoner till time 
should discover the truth of what ho 
said ; but they believed him, and 
sent him away to Panama, where he 
was in great esteem. This several 
prisoners told us. The Spaniards of 
Panama could not have fitted out 
their fireship without this Captain 
Bond's assistance : for it is strange 
to say how grossly ignorant the 
Spaniards in the West Indies, but 
especially in the South Seas, are of 
sea affairs. They build indeed good 
ships ; but this is a small matter, for 
any ship of a good bottom will serve 
for these seas on the south coast. 
They rig their ships but untowardly, 
have no guns but in three or four of 
the King's ships ; and are as meanly 
furnished with warlike provisions, 
and as much at a loss for the making 
any fireships or other less usual ma- 
chines. Nay, they have not the 
sense to have their guns run within 
the sides upon their discharge, but 
have platforms without for the men 
to stand on to charge them ; so that 
when we come near we can fetch them 
down with small shot out of our boats. 
A main reason of this is, that the 
native Spaniards are too proud to be 
seamen, but use the Indians for all 
those offices ; one Spaniard, it may 
be, going in the ship to command it, 



166 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VII. 



and himself of little more knowledge 
than those poor ignorant creatures ; 
nor can they gain much experience, 
seldom going far off to sea, but coast- 
ing along the shores. 

But to proceed. In the morning 
when it was light we came again to 
an anchor close by our buoys, and 
strove to get our anchors again ; but 
our buoy -ropes, being rotten, broke. 
While we were puzzling about our 
anchors, we saw a great many canoes 
full of men pass between Taboga and 
the other island. This put us into a 
new consternation ; we lay still some 
time, till we saw that they came 
directly towards us, then we weighed 
and stood towards them ; and when 
we came within hail, we found that 
they were English and French Priva- 
teers come out of the North Seas 
through the Isthmus of Darien. They 
were 280 men, in twenty-eight canoes ; 
200 of them French, the rest English. 
They were commanded by Captain 
Gronet and Captain Lequie. We 
presently came to an anchor again, 
and all the canoes came aboard. 
These men told us that there were 
180 Englishmen more, under the 
command of Captain Townley, in the 
country of Darien, making canoes (as 
these men had been) to bring them 
into these seas. All the Englishmen 
that came over in this party were 
immediately entertained by Captain 
Davis and Captain Swan in their own 
ships ; and the Frenchmen were or- 
dered to have our flour prize to carry 
them, and Captain Gronet, being the 
eldest commander, was to command 
them there ; and thus they were all 
disposed of to their hearts' content. 
Captain Gronet, to retaliate this kind- 
ness, offered Captain Davis and Cap- 
tain Swan each of them a new com- 
mission from the Governor of Petit 
Goave. It has been usual for many 
years past for the Governor of Petit 
Goave to send blank commissions to 
sea by many of his captains, with 
orders to dispose of them to whom 
they saw convenient ; those of Petit 
Goave by this means making them- 
selves the sanctuary and asylum of 
all people of desperate fortunes, and 



increasing their own wealth and the 
strength and reputation of their party 
thereby. Captain Davis accepted of 
one, having before only an old com- 
mission which fell to him by inheri- 
tance at the decease of Captain Cooke, 
who took it from Captain Tristian, 
together with his bark, as is before 
mentioned. 1 But Captain Swan re- 
fused it, saying he had an order from 
the Duke of York neither to give 
offence to the Spaniards nor to receive 
any affront from them ; and that he 
had been injured by them at Valdivia, 
where they had killed some of his 
men, and wounded several more j so 
that he thought he had a lawful com- 
mission of his own to right himself. 
I never read any of these French 
commissions while I was in these 
seas, nor did I then know the import 
of them ; but I have learned since 
that the tenor of them is, to give a 
liberty to fish, fowl, and hunt. The 
occasion of this is, that the Island of 
Hispaniola, where the garrison of 
Petit Goave is, belongs partly to the 
French and partly to the Spaniards, 
and in time of peace these commis- 
sions are given as a warrant to those 
of each side to protect them from 
the adverse party ; but in effect the 
French do not restrain them to His- 
paniola, but make them a pretence 
for a general ravage in any part of 
America, by sea or land. 

Having thus disposed of our asso- 
ciates, we intended to sail towards 
the Gulf of San Miguel, to seek Cap- 
tain Townley, who by this time w r e 
thought might be entering into these 
seas. Accordingly the 2d of March 
1685, we sailed from hence towards 
the Gulf of San Miguel. This gulf 
lies near thirty leagues from Panama 
towards the SE. The way thither 
from Panama is to pass between the 
King's Islands and the main. It is 
a place where many great rivers, hav- 
ing finished their courses, are swal- 
lowed up in the sea. It is bounded 
on the S. by Point Garachina, which 
lies in N. Lat. 6 40', and on the N. 



1 At the opening of Chapter IV, 



1685.] 



IN THE GULF OF SAN MIGUEL. 



167 



by Cape San Lorenzo. . . . The 
chief rivers which run into this gulf 
are Santa Maria, Sambu, and Congo. 
The River Congo (which is the river 
I would have persuaded our men to 
have gone up as their nearest way in 
our journey overland, mentioned 
Chapter I.) comes directly out of the 
country, and swallows up many small 
streams that fall into it from both 
sides ; and at last loses itself on the 
N. side of the gulf, a league within 
Cape San Lorenzo. It is not very 
wide, but deep, and navigable some 
leagues within land. There are sands 
without it, but a channel for ships. 
It is not made use of by the Spaniards, 
because of the neighbourhood of Santa 
Maria River ; where they have most 
business on account of the mines. 
The River of Sambu seems to be a 
great river, for there is a great tide 
at its mouth ; but I can say nothing 
more of it, having never been in it. 
This river falls into the sea on the 
south side of the gulf, near Point 
Garachina. Between the mouths of 
these two rivers on either side the 
gulf runs in towards the land some- 
what narrower, and makes five or six 
small islands, which are clothed with 
great trees, green and nourishing all 
the year, and good channels between 
the islands. Beyond which, farther 
in still, the shore on each side closes 
so near, with two points of low man- 
grove land, as to make a narrow or 
strait scarce half-a-mile wide. This 
serves as a mouth or entrance to the 
inner part of the gulf, which is a deep 
bay two or three leagues over every 
way ; and about the east end thereof 
are the mouths of several rivers. The 
River of Santa Maria is the largest of 
all the rivers of this gulf ; it is navig- 
able eight or nine leagues up, for so 
high the tide flows. Beyond that 
place the river is divided into many 
branches, which are only fit for 
canoes. [They now sailed towards 
the Gulf of San Miguel in search 
of Captain Townley. Near the 
mouth of the River of Santa Maria 
which falls into the gulf, the Span- 
iards, twenty years before, made 
their first discovery of the gold 



there, and built the town of Santa 
Maria. These mines were still being 
worked by the Spaniards and na- 
tive Indians, when visited by Dam- 
pier. Another town known by its 
Indian name of Nisperal, also stood 
at the mouth of the river, described 
as being more airy and habitable 
than Santa Maria itself. On the 
2d of March they anchored at Pa- 
cheque ; on leaving and sailing out 
towards the gulf they met Captain 
Townley, who had taken two barks 
bound for Panama, and laden with 
wine, brandy, and sugar, &c.] The 
10th, we took a small bark that 
came from Guayaquil ; she had no- 
thing in her but ballast. The 12th 
there came an Indian canoe out of the 
River of Santa Maria, and told us 
that there were 300 English and 
French men more coming overland 
from the North Seas. The 15th we 
met a bark with five or six English- 
men in her, that belonged to Captain 
Knight, who had been in the South 
Seas five or six months and was now 
on the Mexican coast. There he had 
spied this bark ; but not being able 
to come up with her in his ship, he 
detached these five or six men in a 
canoe, who took her, but when they 
had done could not recover their own 
ship again, losing company with her 
in the night ; and therefore they 
came into the Bay of Panama, intend- 
ing to go overland back into the 
North Seas, but that they luckily 
met with us : for the Isthmus of 
Darien was now become a common 
road for Privateers to pass between 
the North and South Seas at their 
pleasure. This bark of Captain 
Knight's had in her forty or fifty jars 
of brandy : she was now commanded 
by Mr Henry More ; but Captain 
Swan, intending to promote Captain 
Harris, caused Mr More to be turned 
out, alleging that it was very likely 
these men were run away from their 
commander. Mr More willingly re- 
signed her, and went aboard of Cap- 
tain Swan, and became one of his 
men. 

It was now the latter end of the 
dry season here ; and the water at 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CiiAr. VII. 



168 

the King's or Pearl Islands, of which 
there was plenty when we first came 
hither, was now dried away. There- 
fore we were forced to go to Point 
Garachina, thinking to water our ships 
there. Captain Harris, being now 



lately taken. Because we could not 
fill our water here, we designed to go 
to Taboga again, where we were sure 
to be supplied. Accordingly, on the 
30th we set sail, being now nine ships 
in company ; and had a small wind 



commander of the new bark, was sent I at SSE. The 3d of April in the even 



into the River of Santa Maria, to see 
for those men that the Indians told us 
of, whilst the rest of the ships sailed 
towards Point Garachina ; where we 
arrived the 21st day, and anchored 
two miles from the point, and found 
a strong tide running out of the River 
Sambu. The next day we ran within 
the point, and anchored in four fathoms 
at low water. The Indians that in- 
habit in the River Sambu came to us 
in canoes, and brought plantains and 
bananas. They could not speak nor 
understand Spanish ; therefore I be- 
lieve they have no commerce with 
the Spaniards. We found no fresh 
water here neither ; so we went from 
hence to Puerto Pin as, which is seven 
leagues S. by W. from hence. Puerto 
Pinas lies in Lot 7 N. It is so called 
because there are many pine trees 
growing there. The land is pretty 
high, rising gently as it runs into the 
country. This country near the sea 
is all covered with pretty high woods ; 
the land that bounds the harbour is 
low in the middle, but high and rocky 
at both sides. The 25th we arrived 
at this harbour of pines, but did not 
go in with our ships, finding it but an 
ordinary place to lie at. We sent in 
our boats to search it, and they found 
a stream of good water running into 
the sea : but there were such great 
swelling surges came into the har- 
bour, that we could not conveniently 
fill our water there. The 26th day 
we returned to Point Garachina again. 
In our way we took a small vessel 
laden with cacao : she carne from 
Guayaquil. The 29th we arrived at 
Point Garachina. There we found 
Captain Harris, who had been in the 
River of Santa Maria ; but he did not 
meet the men that he went for ; yet 
he was informed again by the Indians 
that they were making canoes in one 
of the branches of the River of Santa 
Maria. Here we shared our cacao 



ing we anchored by Perica, and the 
next morning went to Taboga, where 
we found our four canoes. Here we 
filled our water and cut firewood ; and 
from hence we sent four canoes over 
to the main, with one of the Indians 
lately taken, to guide them to a sugar- 
work ; for, now we had cacao, we 
wanted sugar to make chocolate. But 
the chief of their business was to get 
coppers ; for each ship having now 
so many men, our pots would not boil 
victuals fast enough, though we kept 
them boiling all the day. About two 
or three days after, they returned 
aboard with three coppers. 

While we lay here, Captain Davis 's 
bark went to the Island of Otoque. 
This is another inhabited island in 
the Bay of Panama, not so big as 
Taboga, yet there are good plantain 
walks on it, and some Negroes to look 
after them. These Negroes rear fowls 
and hogs for their masters, who live 
at Panama ; as at the King's Islands. 
It was for some fowls or hogs that 
our men went thither ; but by accident 
they met also with an express that 
was sent to Panama with an account 
that the Lima fleet was at sea. Most 
of the letters were thrown overboard 
and lost, yet we found some that said 
positively that the fleet was coming 
with all the strength that they could 
make in the kingdom of Peru ; yet 
were ordered not to fight us, except 
they were forced to it (though after- 
wards they choose to fight us, having 
first landed their treasure at Lavelia) ; 
and that the pilots of Lima had been 
in consultation what course to steer 
to miss us. [Dampier here inserts 
translations of two of the captured 
letters reporting the resolutions taken 
by the committee of pilots, and laying 
down the course to be steered by the 
fleet] The 10th we sailed from Ta- 
boga towards the King's Islands again, 
because our pilots told us that the 



1685.] 



AT THE ISLAND OF TABOGA. 



169 



King's ships did always come this 
way. The llth we anchored at the 
place where we careened. Here we 
found Captain Harris, who had gone 
a second time into the River of Santa 
Maria, and fetched the body of men 
that last came overland, as the In- 
dians told us, but they fell short of 
the number they told us of. The 
19th we sent 250 men in fifteen 
canoes to the River Chepo to take 
the town of Chepo. The 21st, all 
our ships but Captain Harris, who 
stayed to clean his ship, followed 
after. The 22d we arrived at the 
Island of Chepillo, the pleasantest 
island in the Bay of Panama. It is 
but seven leagues from the city of 
Panama, and a league from the main. 
This island is about two miles long, 
and almost so broad ; it is low on the 
north side, and rises by a small ascent 
towards the south side. The soil is 
yellow, a kind of clay. The high 
side is stony ; the low land is planted 
with all sorts of delicate fruits, viz., 
sappodillas, Avocado pears, mammees, 
mammee - sapotas, star apples, &c. 
The middle of the island is planted 
with plantain trees, which are not 
very large, but the fruit extraordinary 
sweet. 1 

The River Chepo is very deep, and 
about a quarter of a mile broad ; but 
the mouth of it is choked up with 
sands, so that no ships can enter, but 
barks may. There is a small Spanish 
town of the same name within six 
leagues of the sea ; it stands on the 
left hand going from the sea. The 
land about it is champaign, with 
many small hills clothed with woods, 
but the biggest part of the country is 
savannah. On the south side of the 
river it is all woodland for many 
leagues together. It was to this 
town that our 250 men were sent. 
The 24th they returned out of the 
river, having taken the town without 
any opposition, but they found no- 
thing in it. By the way going thither 
they took a canoe, but most of the 
men escaped ashore upon one of the 



1 The particular description of these 
fruits is now omitted. 



King's Islands; she was sent out well 
appointed with armed men to watch 
our motions. The 25th, Captain Har- 
ris came to us, having cleaned his 
ship. The 26th we went again to- 
Avard Taboga ; our fleet now, upon 
Captain Harris joining us again, con- 
sisted of ten sail. We arrived at 
Taboga the 28th ; there our prisoners 
were examined concerning the strength 
of Panama ; for now we thought our- 
selves strong enough for such an en- 
terprise, being near 1000 men. Out 
of these, on occasion, we could have 
landed 900 ; but our prisoners gave 
us small encouragement to it, for 
they assured us that all the strength 
of the country was there, and that 
many men were come from Porto 
Bello besides its own inhabitants, 
who of themselves were more in num- 
ber than we. These reasons, together 
with the strength of the place, which 
has a high wall, deterred us from at- 
tempting it. While we lay here at 
Taboga, some of our men burned the 
town on the island. [From the 4th 
of May till the 27th, they were cruis- 
ing among the King's Islands waiting 
for the Spanish fleet from Lima.] 
The 28th we had a very wet morning, 
for the rains were come in, as they 
do usually in May or June sooner or 
later ; so that May is here a very un- 
certain month. However about 11 
o'clock it cleared up, and we saw the 
Spanish fleet about three leagues 
WjS^V. from the Island of Pacheque, 
standing close on a wind to the E. ; 
but they could not fetch the island 
by a league. We were riding a league 
SE. from the island, between it and 
the main; only Captain Gronet was 
about a mile to the northward of us 
near the island. He weighed so soon 
as they came in sight, and stood over 
for the main, and we lay still, ex- 
pecting when he would tack and come 
to us ; but he took care to keep him- 
self out of harm's way. 

Captains Swan and Townley came 
aboard of Captain Davis to order how 
to engage the enemy, who we saw 
came purposely to fight us, they being 
in all fourteen sail, besides periagoea 
rowing with twelve and fourteen oars 



170 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



a-piece. Six sail of them were ships 
of good force : first the Admiral, 48 
guns, 450 men ; the Vice- Admiral, 
40 guns, 400 men ; the Rear- Admiral, 
36 guns, 360 men ; a ship of 24. guns, 
300 men; one of 18 guns, 250 men ; 
and one of 8 guns, 200 men; two 
great fireships, six ships only with 
small arms, having 800 men on board 
them all ; beside two or three hundred 
men in periagoes. This account of 
their strength we had afterwards from 
Captain Knight, who, being to the 
windward on the coast of Peru, took 
prisoners, of whom he had this in- 
formation, being what they brought 
from Lima.. Besides these men, they 
had also some hundreds of Old Spain 
men that came from Porto Bello, and 
met them at Lavelia, from whence 
they now came; and their strength 
of men from Lima was 3000 men, 
being all the strength they could 
make in that kingdom, and for greater 
security they had first landed their 
treasure at Lavelia. Our fleet con- 
sisted of ten sail : first Captain Davis, 
36 guns, 156 men, mostly English ; 
Captain Swan, 16 guns, 140 men, all 
English. These were the only ships 
of force that we had, the rest having 
none but small arms. Captain Town- 
ley had 110 men, all English ; Captain 
Gronet, 308 men, all French ; Captain 
Harris, 100 men, mostly English ; 
Captain Branley, 36 men, some Eng- 
lish, some French ; Davis's tender, 8 
men; Swan's tender, 8 men; Town- 
ley's bark, 80 men ; and a small bark 
of thirty tons made a fireship, Avith a 
canoe's crew in her. We had in all 
960 men. But Captain Gronet came 
not to us till all was over, yet we 
were not discouraged at it, but re- 
solved to fight them ; for being to 
windward of the enemy, we had it at 
our choice whether we would fight or 
not. It was 3 o'clock in the after- 
noon when we weighed, and being all 
under sail we bore down right afore 
the wind on our enemies, who kept 
close on a wind to come to us ; but 
night came on without anything be- 
sides the exchanging of a few shot on 
each side. When it grew dark, the 
Spanish Admiral put out a light as a 



[CHAP. VII. 

signal for his fleet to come to an 
anchor. We saw the light in the 
Admiral's top, which continued about 
half-an-hour, and then it was taken 
down. In a short time after, we saw 
the light again ; and being to wind- 
ward, we kept under sail, supposing 
the light had been in the Admiral's 
top ; but, as it proved, this was only 
a stratagem of theirs, for this light 
was put out the second time at one of 
their barks'j topmast-head, and then 
she went to the leeward, which de- 
ceived us, for we thought still the 
light was in the Admiral's top, and 
by that means thought ourselves to 
windward of them. In the morning, 
therefore, contrary to our expectation, 
we found they had got the weather- 
guage of us, and were coming upon 
us with full sail; so we ran for it, 
and after a running fight all day, and 
having taken a turn almost round the 
Bay of Panama, we came to an anchor 
again at the Isle of Paeheque, in the 
very same place from whence we set 
out in the morning. Thus ended this 
day's work, and with it all that wo 
had been projecting for five or six 
months, when, instead of making 
ourselves masters of the Spanish fleet 
and treasure, we were glad to escape 
them, and owed that too, in a great 
measure, to their want of courage to 
pursue their advantage. 

The 30th day, in the morning, 
when we looked out, we saw the 
Spanish fleet all together, three 
leagues to leeward of us, at anchor. 
It was but little wind till 10 o'clock, 
and then sprang up a small breeze at 
S., and the Spanish fleet went away 
to Panama. What loss they had I 
know not ; w e lost but one man ; and 
having held a consult, 1 we resolved 
to go to the Keys of Quibo or Cabaya, 
to seek Captain Harris, who was 
forced away from us in the fight ; 
that being the place appointed for 
our rendezvous upon any such accident. 
As for Gronet, he said his men would 
not suffer him to join us in the fight ; 
but we were not satisfied with that 
excu,se ; so we suffered him to go with 

1 Council, or consultation. 



1685.] ISLANDS OF QUIBO, QUICARA, AND RANCHERIA. 171 



us to the Isles of Quibo, and there 
cashiered our cowardly companion. 
Some were for taking from him the 
ship which we had given him ; but 
at last he was suffered to keep it with 
his men, and we sent them away in 
it to some other place. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

ACCORDING to the resolutions we had 
taken, we set out, June the 1st, 1685, 
passing between Point Garachina and 
the King's Islands. The 3d we 
passed by the Island of Chuche, the 
last remainder of the isles in the Bay 
of Panama. In our passage to Quibo, 
Captain Branley lost his mainmast, 
therefore he and all his men left his 
bark, and came aboard Captain Davis's 
ship. Captain Swan also sprung his 
maintopmast, and got up another; 
but while he was doing it, and we 
were making the best of our way, we 
lost sight of him, and were now on 
the north side of the bay ; for this 
way all ships must pass from Panama, 
whether bound towards the coast of 
Mexico or Peru. The 10th we passed 
by Morro de Puercos, or the Moun- 
tain of Hogs, why so called I know 
not ; it is a high round hill on the 
coast of Lavelia. This side of the 
Bay of Panama runs out westerly to 
the Islands of Quibo ; there are on 
this coast many rivers and creeks, 
but none so large as those on the 
south side of the bay. It is a coast 
that is partly mountainous, partly 
lowland, and very thick of woods 
bordering on the sea ; but a few 
leagues within land it consists mostly 
of savannahs, which are stocked with 
bulls and cows. The rivers on this 
side are not wholly destitute of gold, 
though not so rich as the rivers on 
the other side of the bay. The coast 
is but thinly inhabited ; for except 
the rivers that lead up to the towns 
of Nata and Lavelia I know of no 
other settlement between Panama 
and Puebla Nueva. The Spaniards 
may travel by land from Panama 
through all the kingdom of Mexico, 



as being full of savannahs ; but to- 
wards the coast of Peru they cannot 
pass farther than the River Chepo, 
the land there being so full of thick 
woods, and watered with so many 
great rivers, besides less rivers and 
creeks, that the Indians themselves 
who inhabit there cannot travel far 
without much trouble. 

We met with very wet weather in 
our voyage to Quibo, and with SSW. 
and sometimes SW. winds, which re- 
tarded our course. It was the 15th 
of June when we arrived at Quibo, 
and found there Captain Harris whom 
we sought. The Island of Quibo or 
Cabaya is in Lat. 7 14' N. of the 
Equator; it is about six or seven 
leagues long, and three or four broad. 
The land is low, except only near the 
NE. end ; it is all over plentifully 
stored with great tall flourishing trees 
of many sorts, and there is good water 
on the E. and NE. sides of the island. 
Here are some deer, and plenty of 
pretty large black monkeys, whose 
flesh is sweet and wholesome ; besides 
a few guanas and some snakes. I 
know no other sort of land animal on 
the island. There are many other 
islands, lying some on the SW. side, 
others on the N. and NE. sides, of 
this island ; as the Island of Quicara, 
which is a pretty large island SW. of 
Quibo, and on the north of it is a 
small island called Rancheria, on 
whicliare plenty of Palma-Maria trees. 
The Palma-Maria is a tall, straight- 
bodied tree, with a small head, but 
very unlike the palm tree, notwith- 
standing the name. It is greatly 
esteemed for making masts, being very 
tough, as well as of a good length ; 
for the grain of the wood runs not 
straight along it, but twisting gra- 
dually about it. These trees grow in 
many places of the West Indies, and 
are frequently used both by the Eng- 
lish and Spaniards there for that use. 
The Islands of Canales and Cantarras 
are small islands lying on the NE. of 
Rancheria. These have all channels 
to pass between, and good anchoring 
about them, and they are as well 
stored with trees and water as Quibo. 
Captain Swan gave to several of thes* 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VIII. 



islands the names of those English 
merchants and gentlemen who were 
owners of his ship. [On June 16th, 
Captain Swan came to anchor by 
them, when they held a consulta- 
tion as to how they might advance 
their fortunes, as the sea was pro- 
mising them little. The result was 
a decision to take the town of 
Puebla Nueva, which they accord- 
ingly did with 150 men. On the 5th 
of July Captain Knight came to them, 
having captured two bark-logs laden 
with flour. After this, each ship's 
company began the making of 
canoes.] 

Captain Davis made two very large 
canoes : one was thirty-six feet long, 
and five or six feet wide ; the other 
thirty-two feet long, and near as wide 
as the other. In a month's time we 
finished our business, and were ready 
to sail. Here Captain Harris went 
to lay his ship aground to clean her, 
but she being old and rotten, fell in 
pieces ; and therefore he and all his 
men went aboard of Captain Davis 
and Captain Swan. While we lay 
here we struck turtle every day, for 
they were now very plentiful ; but 
from August to March there are not 
many. The 18th of July, John Rose, 
a Frenchman, and fourteen men more 
belonging to Captain Gronet, having 
made a new canoe, came in her to 
Captain Davis, and desired to serve 
under him ; and Captain Davis ac- 
cepted of them because they had a 
canoe of their own. The 20th of 
July we sailed from Quibo, bending 
our course for Realejo, which is the 
port for Leon, the city that we now 
designed to attempt. We were now 
640 men, in eight sail of ships, com- 
manded by Captain Davis, Captain 
Swan, Captain Townley, and Captain 
Knight; with a fireship, and three 
tenders, which last had not a constant 
crew. We passed out between the 
River Quibo and Rancheria, leaving 
Quibo and Quicaro on our larboard 
side, and Rancheria, with the rest of 
the islands, and the main, on the star- 
board side. The wind at first was at 
SSW. We coasted along shore, pass- 
ing by the Gulf of Nicoya, the Gulf 



ui Dulce, and the Island Cano. All 
this coast is low land, overgrown with 
thick woods ; and there are but few 
inhabitants near the shore. The 8th 
of August, being in Lat. 11 20' by 
observation, we saw a high hill in 
the country, towering up like a sugar 
loaf, which bore NE. by 1ST. We sup- 
posed it to be Volcano Viejo by the 
smoke which ascended from its top ; 
therefore we steered in N., and made 
it plainer, and then knew it to be 
that volcano, which is the sea-mark 
for the harbour for Realejo. When 
we had brought this mountain to 
bear NE., we got out all our canoes, 
and provided to embark into them 
the next day. 

The 9th in the morning, being 
about eight leagues from the shore, 
we left our ships under the charge of 
a few men, and 520 of us went away 
in thirty-one canoes, rowing towards 
the harbour of Realejo. We had fair 
weather and little wind till 2 o'clock 
in the afternoon ; then we had a 
tornado from the shore, with much 
thunder, lightning, and rain, and 
such a gust of wind that we were all 
like to be foundered. In this ex- 
tremity we put right afore the wind, 
every canoe's crew making what shift 
they could to avoid the threatening 
danger. The small canoes, being 
most light and buoyant, mounted 
nimbly over the surges ; but the 
great heavy canoes lay like logs in 
the seas, ready to be swallowed by 
every foaming billow. Some of our 
canoes were half full of water, yet kept 
two men constantly heaving it out. 
The fierceness of the wind continued 
about half-an-hour, and abated by 
degrees ; and as the wind died away, 
so the fury of the sea abated ; for in 
all hot countries, as I have observed, 
the sea is soon raised by the wind, 
and as soon down again when the 
wind is gone : and therefore it is a 
proverb among the seamen, "Up 
wind, up sea : down wind, down 
sea." At 7 o'clock in the evening it 
was quite calm, and the sea as smooth 
as a millpond. Then we tugged to 
get into the shore, but finding we 
could not do it before day, we rowed 



1885.] 

oft' again, to keep ourselves out of 
sight. By the time it was day, we 
were five leagues from the land, which 
we thought was far enough off shore. 
Here we intended to lie till the even- 
ing ; but at 3 o'clock in the after- 
noon we had another tornado more 
fierce than that which we had the 
day before. This put us in greater 
peril of our lives, but did not last so 
long. As soon as the violence of the 
tornado was over, we rowed in for the 
shore, and entered the harbour in the 
night. The creek which leads to- 
wards Leon lies on the SE. side of the 
harbour. Our pilot being very well 
acquainted here, carried us into the 
moiith of it, but could carry us no 
farther till day, because it is but 
a small creek, and there are other 
creeks like it. The next morning as 
soon as it was light, we rowed into 
the creek, which is very narrow ; the 
land on both sides lying so low, that 
every tide it is overflown with the 
sea. This sort of land produces red 
mangrove trees, which are here so 
plentiful and thick that there is no 
passing through them. Beyond these 
mangroves, on the firm land close by 
the side of the river, the Spaniards 
have built a breastwork purposely to 
hinder an enemy from landing. When 
we came in sight of the breastwork we 
rowed as fast as we could to get ashore ; 
the noise of our oars alarmed the In- 
dians who were set to watch ; and 
presently they ran away towards the 
city of Leon to give notice of our 
approach. We landed as soon as we 
could, and marched after them : 470 
men were drawn out to march to the 
town, and I was left with fifty-nine 
men more to stay and guard the 
canoes till their return. [The city of 
Leon, twenty miles up the country, 
is here described as surrounded with 
long grassy savannahs, and clumps 
of high woods. It was thought at 
the time by some to be the pleasantest 
place in all America, and the paradise 
of the Indies. The wealth of the 
place consisted in the pastures, cattle, 
and plantations of sugar.] 

Our men were now marching to 
Leon; they went from the canoes 



THE CITY OF LEON TAKEN. 173 

about 8 o'clock. Captain Townley 



with eighty of the briskest men 
marched before, Captain Swan with 
100 men marched next, Captain Davia 
with 170 men marched next, and 
Captain Knight brought up the rear. 
Captain Townley, who was near two 
miles ahead of the rest, met about 
seventy horsemen four miles before 
he came to the city, but they never 
stood him. About 3 o'clock Captain 
Townley only with his eighty men 
entered the town, and was briskly 
charged in a broad street by 170 or 
200 Spanish horsemen ; but two or 
three of their leaders being knocked 
down, the rest fled. Their foot con- 
sisted of about 500 men, which were 
drawn up in the Parade; for the 
Spaniards in these parts make a large 
square in every town, though the 
town itself be small. This square is 
called the Parade; commonly the 
church makes one side of it, and the 
gentlemen's houses with their gal- 
leries about them another. But the 
foot also, seeing their horse retire, 
left an empty city to Captain Town- 
ley, beginning to save themselves by 
flight. Captain Swan came in about 
4 o'clock, Captain Davis with his 
men about five, and Captain Knight, 
with as many men as he could oh- 
courage to march, came in about^ : x, 
but he left many men tired on .lie 
road ; these, as is usual, came tip- 
ping in one or two at a time, as they 
were able. The next morning the 
Spaniards killed one of our tired 
men. He was a stout old grey- 
headed man, aged about eighty- 
four, who had served under Oliver 
in the time of the Irish Rebellion ; 
after which he was at Jamaica, 
and had followed privateering ever 
since. He would not accept of the 
offer our men made him to tarry 
ashore, but said he would venture as 
far as the best of them ; and when 
surrounded by the Spaniards he re- 
fused to take quarter, but discharged 
his gun amongst them, keeping a 
pistol still charged ; so they shot him 
dead at a distance. His name was 
Swan. He was a very merry, hearty 
old man, and always used to declare 



174 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VIII. 



man 
spe 



he would never take quarter. But 
they took Mr Smith, who was tired 
also j he was a merchant belonging 
to Captain Swan ; and being carried 
before the Governor of Leon, was 
known by a Mulatto woman that 
waited on him. Mr Smith had lived 
ny years in the Canaries, and could 
x ak and write very good Spanish ; 
and it was there this Mulatto woman 
remembered him. He, being exa- 
mined how many men we were, said 
1000 at the city and 500 at the 
canoes ; which made well for us at 
the canoes, who straggling about 
every day might easily have been 
destroyed. But this so daunted the 
Governor, that he did never offer 
to molest our men, although he had 
with him above 1000 men, as Mr 
Smith guessed. He sent in a flag of 
truce about noon, pretending 1 to 
ransom the town rather than let it 
be burnt ; but our captains demanded 
300,000 pieces of eight for its ran- 
som, and as much provision as would 
victual 1000 men four months, and 
Mr Smith to be ransomed for some 
of their prisoners ; but the Spaniards 
did not intend to ransom the town, 
but only capitulated day after day to 
prolong time till they had got more 
men. Our captains therefore, con- 
sidering the distance that they were 
from the canoes, resolved to be march- 
ing down. The 14th, in the morning, 
they ordered the city to be set on 
fire, which was presently done, and 
then they came away ; but they took 
more time in coming down than in 
going up. The 15th, in the morning, 
the Spaniards sent in Mr Smith, and 
had a gentlewoman in exchange. 
Then our captains sent a letter to 
the Governor, to acquaint him that 
they intended next to visit Realejo, 
and desired to meet him there ; they 
also released a gentleman on his pro- 
mise of paying 150 beeves for his ran- 
som, and to deliver them to us at 
Realejo ; and the same day our men 
came to their canoes, where having 
stayed all night, the next morning we 
all entered our canoes, and came to 

1 Professing his desire. 



the harbour of Realejo, and in the 
afternoon our ships came thitherto 
an anchor. 

The creek that leads to Realejo 
lies from the NW. part of the har- 
bour, and runs in northerly. It is 
about two leagues from the island in 
the harbour's mouth to the town; 
two-thirds of the way it is broad, 
then you. enter a narrow deep creek 
bordered on both sides with red man- 
grove trees, whose limbs reach almost 
from one side to the other. A mile 
from the mouth of the creek it turns 
away west. There the Spaniards 
have made a very strong breastwork, 
fronting towards the mouth of the 
creek, in which were placed 100 sol- 
diers to hinder us from landing ; and 
twenty yards below that breastwork 
there was a chain of great trees placed 
across the creek, so that ten men 
could have kept off 500 or 1000. 
"When we came in sight of the breast- 
work we fired but two guns, and they 
all ran away ; and we were afterwards 
near half-an-hour cutting the boom 
or chain. Here we landed, and 
marched to the town of Riolexo or 
Realejo, 2 which is about a mile from 
hence. This town stands on a plain 
by a small river. It is a pretty large 
town, with three churches and an 
hospital that hath a fine garden be- 
longing to it, besides many large fair 
houses ; they all stand at a good dis- 
tance one from another, with yards 
about them. This is a very sickly 
place, and I believe hath need enough 
of an hospital, for it is seated so nigh 
the creeks and swamps that it is 
never free from a noisome smell. The 
"land about it is a strong yellow cla3 T , 
yet where the town stands it seems to 
be sand. Here are several sorts of 



2 The chief trade of Realejo was 
in pitch, tar, and cordage, with the 
produce of their sugar-works and 
estantions or beef- farms. They stayed 
from the 17th to the 24th helping 
themselves to the produce of the 
country ; when on leaving, some of 
the more mischievous of the crew set 
on fire the town, which they left 
burning. 



1685.] 



THE TRADE OF GUATEMALA. 



175 



fruits, as guavas, 1 pine -apples, melons, 
and prickly pears. 2 . . . 

The 25th, Captain Davis and Cap- 
tain Swan broke off consortships, for 
Captain Davis was minded to return 
again on the coast of Peru, but Cap- 
tain Swan desired to go farther to the 
westward. I had till this time been 
with Captain Davis, but now left him 
and went aboard of Captain Swan. It 
was not from any dislike to my old 
Captain, but to get some knowledge 
of the northern parts of this continent 
of Mexico ; and I knew that Captain 
Swan determined to coast it as far 
north as he thought convenient, and 
then pass over for the East Indies, 
which was a way very agreeable to my 
inclination. Captain Townley, with 
his two barks, was resolved to keep 
us company; but Captain Knight 
and Captain Harris followed Captain 
Davis. The 27th, in the morning, 
Captain Davis, with his ships, went 
out of the harbour, having a fresh 
land-wind. They were in company, 
Captain Davis's ship, with Captain 
Harris in her, Captain Davis's bark 
and fireship, and Captain Knight in 
his own ship, in all four sail. Captain 
Swan took his last farewell of him by 
firing fifteen guns, and he fired eleven 
in return of the civility. [While lying 
here, they were visited by a malignant 
fever, of which several of the men 
died. On the 3d September, all their 
prisoners and pilots were turned 
ashore, they being unacquainted with 
the coast farther westward. The 
same day they steered westward, 
meeting Avith a severe storm in the 
passage. ] 

We had kept at a good distance off 



1 The guava grows on a hard 
scrubbed shrub, is a fruit much like 
a pear, with a thin rind, and full of 
small seeds. It is one of the few 
West Indian fruits which may be 
eaten while still green. 

2 The prickly pear, according to 
Dampier, thrives best in barren sandy 
ground near the sea, the fruit being 
' ' as big as a large plum, small near the 
leaf, and big towards the top, where 
it opens like a medlar." 



shore, and saw no land till the 14th 
day; but then being in Lat. 12 50', 
the volcano of Guatemala appeared in 
sight. This is a very high mountain 
with two peaks or heads appearing 
like two sugar-loaves. It often bel- 
ches forth flames of fire and smoke 
from between the two heads, and this, 
as the Spaniards do report, happens 
chiefly in tempestuous weather. It 
is called so from the city of Guate- 
mala, which stands near the foot of 
it, about eight leagues from the South 
Sea, 3 and by report, forty or fifty 
leagues from the Gulf of Amatique in 
the Bay of Honduras in the North 
Seas. This city is famous for many 
rich commodities that are produced 
thereabouts, some almost peculiar to 
this country and yearly sent into 
Europe, especially four rich dyes 
indigo, otta or anatta, Silvester, and 
cochineal. 

Indigo is made of an herb which 
grows a foot and a half or two feet 
high, full of small branches, and the 
branches full of leaves resembling the 
leaves which grow on flax, but more 
thick and substantial. They cut this 
herb or shrub and cast it into a large 
cistern made in the ground for that 
purpose, which is half full of water. 
The indigo stalk or herb remains in 
the water till all the leaves, and I 
think the skin, the rind or bark, rot 
off and in a manner dissolve ; but if 
any of the leaves should stick fast, 
they force them off by much labour, 
tossing and tumbling the mass in the 
water till all the pulpy substance is 
dissolved. Then the shrub, or woody 
part, is taken out, and the water, 
which is like ink, being disturbed no 
more, settles, and the indigo falls to 
the bottom of the cistern like mud. 
When it is thus settled they draw off 
the water, and take the mud and lay 
it in the sun to dry, which there be- 
comes hard as you see it brought 



8 The new city of Guatemala stands 
to the south-east of the old city about 
twenty-five miles, and only some six- 
teen miles from the sea. The old city 
was destroyed by an earthquake in 
1776, but has been rebuilt. 



176 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VIII. 



home. Otta, or anatta, 1 is a red sort 
of dye. It is made of a red flower 
that grows on shrubs seven or eight 
feet high. It is thrown into a cistern 
of water as the indigo is, but with 
this difference, that there is no stalk, 
nor so much as the head of the flower, 
but only the flower itself pulled off 
from the head as you peel rose-leaves 
from the bud. This remains in the 
water till it rots, and by much jumb- 
ling it dissolves to a liquid substance 
like the indigo; and being settled, 
and the water drawn off, the red mud 
is made up into rolls or cakes and 
laid in the sun to dry. 

Indigo is produced all over the 
West Indies, on most of the Caribbee 
Islands, as well as the main ; yet no 
part of the main yields such great 
quantities, both of indigo and otta, as 
this country about Guatemala. I 
know not what quantities either of 
indigo or otta are made at Cuba or 
Hispaniola ; but the place most 
used 2 by our Jamaica sloops for these 
things is the Island of Porto Rica, 
where our Jamaica traders did use to 
buy indigo for three reals and otta 
for four reals the pound, which is 
but 2s. 3d. of our money ; and yet at 
the same time otta was worth in 
Jamaica 5s. the pound, and indigo 
3s. 6d. the pound; and even this 
also paid in goods, by which means 
alone they got 50 or 60 per cent. 
Our traders had not then found the 
way of trading with the Spaniards in 
the Bay of Honduras ; but Captain 
Coxon went thither (as I take it) at 
the beginning of the year 1679, under 
pretence to cut logwood, and went 
into the Gulf of Matique, which is in 
the bottom of that bay. There he 
landed with his canoes, and took a 
whole storehouse full of indigo and 
otta in chests, piled up in several 
parcels, and marked with different 
marks, ready to be shipped off aboard 

1 Otherwise called arnotto or an- 
notto ; it is obtained from the seeds 
of the tree Bixa orellana, and used, 
besides dyeing, for colouring cheese, 
butter, and liquors. 

8 Frequented. 



two ships that then lay in the road 
purposely to take it in ; but these 
ships could not come at him, it being 
shoal water. He opened some of the 
chests of indigo, and, supposing the 
other chests to be all of the same 
species, ordered his men to carry 
them away. They immediately set 
to work, and took the nearest at 
hand ; and having carried out one 
heap of chests, they seized on another 
great pile of a different mark from 
the rest, intending to carry them 
away next. But a Spanish gentle- 
man, their prisoner, knowing that 
there was a great deal more than 
they could carry away, desired them 
to take only such as belonged to the 
merchants, whose marks he under- 
took to show them, and to spare such 
as had the same mark with those in 
that great pile they were then enter- 
ing upon ; because, he said, those 
chests belonged to the ship captains, 
who following the seas as themselves 
did, he hoped they would for that 
reason rather spare their goods than 
the merchants'. They consented to 
his request ; but upon their opening 
their chests (which was not before 
they came to Jamaica, where by con- 
nivance they were permitted to sell 
them) they found that the Don had 
been too sharp for them ; the few 
chests which they had taken of the 
same mark with the great pile prov- 
ing to be otta, of greater value by far 
than the other ; whereas they might 
as well have loaded the whole ship 
with otta as with indigo. The cochi- 
neal is an insect bred in a sort of 
fruit much like the prickly pear. 
The tree or shrub that bears it is like 
the prickly-pear tree, about five feet 
high, and so prickly, only the leaves 
are not quite so big, but the fruit is 
bigger. 3 . . . 



3 The gathering of the cochineal 
insect and the red grain called silves- 
ter by the Indians, is here minutely 
described. The cochineal is bred in 
the fruit of a shrub like a prickly- 
pear tree, from which it is dislodged, 
and on being exposed to the heat oJF 
the sun falls down dead, and is caught 



1685.] A SKIRMISH WITH 

When we first saw the mountain 
of Guatemala, we were by judgment 
twenty-five leagues' distance from it. 
As we came nearer the land it ap- 
peared higher and plainer, yet we 
saw no fire, but a little smoke pro- 
ceeding from it. The land by the 
sea was of a good height, yet but low 
in comparison with that in the coun- 
try. The sea for about eight or 
ten leagues from the shore was full 
of floating trees, or drift-wood, as it 
is called (of which I have seen a 
great deal, but nowhere so much as 
Here), and pumice-stones floating, 
which probably are thrown out of 
the burning mountains, and washed 
down to the shore by the rains, 
which are very violent and frequent 
in this country ; and on the side of 
Honduras it is excessively wet. The 
24th, we were in Lat. 14 30' N., and 
the weather more settled. Then Cap- 
tain Townley took with him 106 men 
in nine canoes, and went away to the 
westward, where he intended to land 
and rummage in the country for some 
refreshment for our sick men ; we 
having at this time near half our 
men sick, and many were dead since 
we left Realejo. We in the ships lay 
still, with our topsails furled and our 
courses or lower sails hauled up, this 
day and the next, that Captain Town- 
ley might get the start of us. The 
26th we made sail again, coasting to 
the westward, having the wind at N. , 
and fair weather. We ran along by 
a tract of very high land, which came 
from the eastward more within land 
than we could see ; after we fell in 
with it, it bare us company for about 
ten leagues, and ended with a pretty 
gentle descent towards the west. The 
2d of October, Captain Townley came 
aboard ; he had coasted along shore 

in a cloth spread on the ground to 
receive them. These when dried 
yield the much-esteemed scarlet dye. 
The Silvester is the seed of the cochi- 
neal fruit, which readily falls out of 
the fruit, on being shaken when ripe. 
The dye it yields is very similar to 
the cochineal, but not quite so valu- 
able. 



THE SPANIARDS. 177 

in his canoes, seeking for an entrance, 
but found none. At last, being out 
of hopes to find any bay, creek, or 
river into which he might safely en- 
ter, he put ashore on a sandy bay, 
but overset all his canoes ; he had 
one man drowned, and several lost 
their arms, and some of them that 
had not waxed up their cartridge or 
cartouche boxes wet all their powder. 
Captain Townley with much ado got 
ashore, and dragged the canoes up 
dry on the bay ; then every man 
searched his cartouche-box, and drew 
the wet powder out of his gun, and 
provided to march into the country ; 
but finding it full of great creeks, 
which they could not ford, they were 
forced to return again to their canoes. 
In the night they made good fires to 
keep themselves warm ; the next 
morning 200 Spaniards and Indians 
fell on them, but were immediately 
repulsed, and made greater speed back 
than they had done forward. Cap- 
tain Townley followed them, but not 
far, for fear of his canoes. These 
men came from Tehuantepec, a town 
that Captain Townley went chiefly to 
seek, because the Spanish books made 
mention of a large river there, but 
whether it was run away at this time, 
or rather Captain Townley and his 
men were short-sighted, I know not ; 
but they could not find it. Upon 
his return, we presently made sail, 
coasting still westward. We saw no 
opening nor sign of any place to land 
at, so we sailed about twenty leagues 
farther, and came to a small high 
island called Tangola, where there is 
good anchoring. The island is in- 
differently well furnished with wood 
and water, and lies about a league 
from the shore. The main against 
the island is pretty high champaign 
savannah land by the sea ; but two 
or three leagues within land it is 
higher and very woody. We coasted 
a league farther and came to Huatul- 
co. This port is in Lat. 15 30' ; it 
is one of the best in all this kingdom 
of Mexico. Near a mile from the 
mouth of the harbour, on the east 
side, there is a little island close by 
the shore; and on the west side of 



178 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. VIII. 



the mouth of the harbour there is a 
great hollow rock, which by the con- 
tinual working of the sea in and out 
makes a great noise which may be 
heard a great way. Every surge that 
comes in forces the water out of a 
little hole on its top, as out of a pipe, 
from whence it flies out just like the 
blowing of a whale; to which the 
Spaniards also liken it. They call 
this rock and spout the Buffadore ; * 
upon what account I know not. Even 
in the calmest seasons the sea beats 
in there, making the water spout out 
at the hole ; so that this is always a 
good mark to find the harbour by. 
The harbour is about three miles 
deep, and one mile broad ; it runs in 
NW. ; and at the bottom of the har- 
bour there is a fine brook of fresh 
water running into the sea. Here 
formerly stood a small Spanish town, 
or village, which was taken by Sir 
Francis Drake ; 2 but now there is 
nothing remaining of it besides a 
little chapel standing among the 
trees about 200 paces from the sea. 
The land appears in small short 
ridges parallel to the shore, and to 
each other ; the innermost still gra- 
dually higher than that nearer the 
shore ; and they are all clothed with 
very high flourishing trees, that it. is 
extraordinary pleasant and delightful 
to behold at a distance. I have no- 
where seen anything like it. 

At this place, Captain Swan, who 
had been very sick, came ashore, and 
all the sick men with him, and the 
surgeon to tend them. Captain 
Townley again took a company of 
men with him, and went into the 
country to seek for houses or inhabit- 
ants. He marched away to the east- 
ward, and came to the River Capalita, 
which is a swift river, yet deep near 
the mouth, and is about a league 
from Huatulco. There two of his 



1 The Roarer, or Snorter ; from the 
Spanish "bufar," signifying to puff 
and blow with anger, to snort. 

2 It was here that he parted with 
Nuno da Silva, the Portuguese pilot, 
captured at the Cape Verd Islands. 



men swam over the river, and took 
three Indians that were placed there 
as sentinels to watch for our coming. 
These could none of them speak 
Spanish ; yet our men by signs made 
them understand that they desired to 
know if there was any town or village 
near ; who, by the signs which they 
made, gave our men to understand 
that they could guide them to a 
settlement ; but there was no under- 
standing by them whether it was a 
Spanish or Indian settlement, nor how 
far it was thither. They brought 
these Indians aboard with them ; and 
the next day, which was the 6th of 
October, Captain Townley, with 140 
men (of whom I was one) went ashore 
again, taking one of these Indiana 
with us for a guide to conduct us to 
this settlement. Our men that stayed 
aboard filled our water, and cut wood, 
and mended our sails ; and our Mos- 
quito men struck three or four turtle 
every day. They were a small sort 
of turtle, and not very sweet, yet 
very well esteemed by us all, because 
we had eaten no flesh a great while. 
The 8th we returned out of the 
country, having been about fourteen 
miles directly within land before we 
came to any settlement. There we 
found a small Indian village, and in 
it a great quantity of vinelloes dry- 
ing in the sun. The vinello is a little 
cod full of small black seeds ; it is 
four or five inches long, about the 
bigness of the stem of a tobacco leaf, 
and when dried much resembling it ; 
so that our Privateers at first have 
often thrown them, away when they 
took any, wondering why the Span- 
iards should lay up tobacco stems. 
This cod grows on a small vine, which 
climbs about and supports itself by 
the neighbouring trees ; it first bears 
a yellow flower, from whence the cod 
afterwards proceeds. It is first green, 
but when ripe it turns yellow ; then 
the Indians, whose manufacture it is, 
and who sell it cheap to the Span- 
iards, gather it and lay it in the sun, 
which makes it soft ; then it changes 
to a chestnut colour. Then they fre- 
quently press it between their fingers, 
which makes it flat. If the Indiana 



1685.] 



THE CURING OF THE VINELLO. 



179 



do anything to them besides, I know 
not ; but I have seen the Spaniards 
sleek them with oil. These vines 
grow plentifully at Boca del Toro, 
where I have gathered and tried _ to 
cure them, but could not, which 
makes me think that the Indians 
have some secret, that I know not of, 
to cure them. I have often asked the 
Spaniards how they were cured, but I 
never could meet with any could tell 
me. One Mr Cree, also, a very 
curious person, who spoke Spanish 
well, and had been a Privateer all his 
life, and seven years a prisoner among 
the Spaniards at Porto Bello and 
Carthagena, yet, upon all his inquiry, 
could not find any of them that under- 
stood it. Could we have learnt the 
art of it, several of us would have gone 
to Boca del Toro yearly, at the dry 
season, and cured them, and freighted 
our vessel. We there might have had 
turtle enough for food, and store of 
vinelloes. Mr Cree first showed me 
those at Boca del Toro. At or near 
a town, also, called Caihooca, 1 in the 
Bay of Campeachy, these cods are 
found. They are commonly sold for 
threepence a cod among the Span- 
iards in the "West Indies, and are 
sold by the druggist, for they are 
much used among chocolate to per- 
fume it. Some will use them among 
tobacco, for it gives a delicate scent. 
I never heard of any vinelloes but 
here in this country, about Caihooca, 
and at Boca del Toro. The Indians 
of this village could speak but little 
Spanish. They seemed to be a poor 
innocent people ; and by them we 
understood that there are very few 
Spaniards in these parts ; yet all the 
Indians hereabout are under them. 

1 Such names as Tangola, Capalita 
River, and Caihooca, will be hard to 
find on modern maps. Dampier 
places the first, an island, between 
Tehuantepec and Point Sacrificios ; 
the second he makes run into the 
sea a little to the eastward of the 
point ; and the third he lays down, 
as nearly as may be, at Cape Moril- 
los, not far from the bottom of the 
Bay of Campeachy. 



The land from the sea to their houses 
is black earth, mixed with some stones 
and rocks ; all the way full of very 
high trees. 

The 10th we sent four canoes to 
the westward, who were ordered to 
lie for us at Port Angels ; where we 
were in hopes that by some means 
or other they might get prisoners 
that might give us a better account 
of the country than at present we 
could have ; and we followed them 
with our ships. All our men being 
now pretty well recovered of the 
fever, which had raged amongst us 
ever since we departed from Realejo. 



CHAPTER IX. 

IT was the 12th of October 1685, 
when we set out of the harbour of 
Huatulco with our ships. $ We coasted 
along to the westward, keeping as 
near the shore as we could for the 
benefit of the land-winds, for the sea- 
winds were right against us ; and we 
found a current setting to the east- 
ward which kept us back, and 
obliged us to anchor at the Island of 
Sacrificios, 2 which is a small green 
island about half-a-mile long. It 
lies about a league to the W. of 
Huatulco, and about half-a-mile from 
the main. [On the 18th they sailed 
from Point or Island Sacrificios, keep- 
ing near the shore till they were 
abreast of Port Angels (Puerto de los 
Angelos), where they anchored.] 

The 28d we landed about 100 men 
uid marched thither, where we found 
plenty of fat bulls and cows feeding 
in the savannahs, and in the house 
good store of salt and maize, and 
some hogs, and cocks, and hens j but 
the owners or overseers were gone. 
We lay here two or three days, feast- 
ing on fresh provisions ; but could 
not contrive to carry any quantity 
aboard, because the way was so long, 
and our men but weak, and a great 



2 Apparently off Point Sacrificioa, 
which forms the western limit of the 
Gulf of Tehuantepec. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. [CiiAK IX. 



180 

wide river to ford. Therefore we re- 
turned again from thence the 26th 
day, and brought every one a little 
beef or pork for the men that stayed 
aboard. The two nights that we 
stayed ashore at this place we heard 
great droves of jackals, as we sup- 
posed them to be, barking all night 
long not far from us. None of us saw 
these ; but I do verily believe they 
were jackals, though I did never see 
those creatures in America, nor hear 
any but at this time. "We could not 
think that there were less than thirty 
or forty in a company. "We got 
aboard in the evening, but did not 
yet hear any news of our two canoes. 
The 27th, in the morning, we sailed 
from hence, and in the evening we 
anchored in sixteen fathoms water by 
a small rocky island which lies about 
half-a-mile from the main and six 
leagues westward from Port Angels. 
The 28th, we sailed again with the 
land-wind ; in the afternoon the sea 
breeze blew hard, and we sprung our 
maintopmast. This coast is full of 
hills and valleys, and a great sea falls 
in upon the shore. In the night we 
met with the other two of our canoes 
that went from us at Huatulco. They 
had been as far as Acapulco to seek 
Port Angels. Coming back from 
thence, they went into a river to get 
water, and were encountered by 150 
Spaniards ; yet they filled their water 
in spite of them, but had one man 
shot through the thigh. Afterwards 
they went into a lagoon, or lake of 
salt water, where they found much 
dried fish, and brought some aboard. 
We being now abreast of that place, 
sent in a canoe manned with twelve 
men for more fish. The mouth of this 
lagoon is not a pistol-shot wide, and on 
both sides are pretty high rocks, so 
conveniently placed by nature that 
many men may abscond behind ; and 
within the rock the lagoon opens 
wide on both sides. The Spaniards 
being alarmed by our two canoes that 
had been two or three days before, 
came armed to this place to secure 
their fish ; and seeing our canoe com- 
ing, they lay snug behind the rocks, 
and suffered the canoe to pass in, then 



they fired their volley and wounded 
five of our men. Our people were a 
little surprised at this sudden adven- 
ture, yet fired their guns and rowed 
farther into the lagoon, for they durst 
not adventure to come out again 
through the narrow entrance, which 
was near a quarter of a mile in length. 
Therefore they rowed into the middle 
of the lagoon, where they lay out of 
gun-shot,"and looked about to see if 
there was not another passage to get 
out at broader than that by which 
they entered, but could see none. So 
they lay still two days and three 
nights in hopes that we should come 
to seek them, but we lay off at sea, 
about three leagues distant, waiting 
for their return, supposing by their 
long absence that they had made 
some greater discovery, and were gone 
farther than the fish range ; because 
it is usual with Privateers, when they 
enter upon such designs, to search 
farther than they proposed if they 
meet any encouragement. But Cap- 
tain Townley and his bark being 
near the shore heard some guns fired 
in the lagoon. So he manned his 
canoe and went towards the shore, and, 
beating the Spaniards away from the 
rocks, made a free passage for our 
men to come out of their pound, where- 
else they must have been starved or 
knocked on the head by the Spaniards. 
They came aboard their ships again 
the 31st of October. From hence we 
made sail again, coasting to the west- 
ward. The 2d of November we passed 
by a rock called by the Spaniards 
the Algatross. The land hereabout 
is of an indifferent height and woody, 
and more within the country, moun- 
tainous. Here are seven or eight 
white cliffs by the sea, which are very 
remarkable, because there are none so 
white and so thick together on all the 
coast. They are five or six miles to 
the west of the Algatross Rock. Two 
leagues to the "W. of these cliffs there 
is a pretty large river which forms a 
small island at its mouth. The chan- 
nel on the east side is but shoal and 
sandy, but the west channel is deep 
enough for canoes to enter. On the 
banks of this channel the Spaniards 



1685.] 



THE TOWN OF ACAPULCO. 



181 



have made a breastwork to hinder an 
enemy from landing and filling water. 
The 3d, we anchored abreast of 
this river, in fourteen fathoms water, 
about a mile and a half off shore. 
The next morning we manned our 
canoes, and went ashore to the breast- 
work with little resistance, although 
there were about 200 men to keep us 
off. They fired twenty or thirty guns 
at us, but seeing we were resolved to 
land, they quitted the place. One 
chief reason why the Spaniards are so 
frequently routed by us, although many 
times much our superiors in numbers, 
and in many places fortified withbreast- 
works, is their want of small firearms ; 
for they have but few on all the sea- 
coasts, unless near their larger garri- 
sons. Here we found a great deal of 
salt, brought hither as I judge to salt 
fish, which they take in the lagoons. 
The fish I observed here mostly were 
what we call snooks, J neither a sea-fish 
nor freshwater-fish, but very numerous 
in these salt lakes. This fish is about 
a foot long, and round, and as thick as 
the small of a man's leg, with a pretty 
long head ; it has scales of a whitish 
colour, and is good meat. How the 
Spaniards take them I know not ; for 
we never found any nets, hooks, or 
lines, neither yet any bark, boat, or 
canoe among them on all this coast ; 
except the ship I shall mention at 
Acapulco. We marched two or three 
leagues into the country, and met 
with but one house, where we took a 
Mulatto prisoner, who informed us of 
a ship that was lately arrived at Aca- 
pulco ; she came from Lima. Captain 
Townley wanting a good ship, thought 
now he had an opportunity of get- 
ting one, if he could persuade his 
men to venture with him into the 
harbour of Acapulco and fetch this 
Lima ship out. Therefore he imme- 
diately proposed it, and found not 
only all his own men willing to assist 
him, but many of Captain Swan's 
men also. Captain Swan opposed it, 
because, provision being scarce with 
us, he thought our time might be 



1 Or sea-pike ; Centropon 
cimalis. 



uncle - 



much better employed in first provid- 
ing ourselves with food ; and there 
was plenty of maize in the river where 
we now were, as we were informed by 
the same prisoner, who offered.. to con- 
duct us to the place where it was. But 
neither the present necessity, nor 
Captain Swan's persuasion, availed 
anything, no, nor yet their own in- 
terest ; for the great design we had 
then in hand was to lie and wait for 
a rich ship which comes to Acapulco 
every year richly laden from the 
Philippine Islands. But it was neces- 
sary we should be well stored with 
provisions, to enable us to cruise about 
and wait the time of her coming. 
However, Townley 's party prevailing, 
we only filled our water here, and 
made ready to be gone. So the 5th, 
in the afternoon, we sailed again, 
coasting to the westward, towards 
Acapulco. The 7th, in the afternoon, 
being about twelve leagues from the 
shore, we saw the high land of Aca- 
pulco, which is very remarkable ; for 
there is a round hill standing between 
other two hills, the westernmost of 
which is the biggest and highest, 
and has two hillocks like two paps on 
its top ; the easternmost hill is higher 
and sharper' than the middlemost. 
From the middle hill the land de- 
clines toward the sea, ending in a 
high round point. There is no laud 
shaped like this on all the coast. In 
the evening Captain Townley went 
away from the ships with 140 men in 
twelve canoes, to try to get the Lima 
ship out of Acapulco harbour. 

Acapulco is a pretty large town 17 
M". of the Equator. It is the seaport 
for the city of Mexico on the west 
side of the continent ; as La Vera 
Cruz, or San Juan D'Ulloa, in the Bay 
of Nova Hispania, is on the north 
side. This town is the only place of 
trade on all this coast ; for there is 
little or no traffic by sea on all the 
north-west part of this vast kingdom, 
there being, as I have said, neither 
boats, barks, nor ships, that I could 
ever see, unless only what come 
hither from other parts, and some 
boats near the SE. end of California ; 
as I guess by the intercourse between 



182 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. IX. 



that and the main for pearl-fishing. 
The ships that trade hither are only 
three ; two that constantly go once 
a-year between this and Manilla in 
Luzon, one of the Philippine Islands, 
and one ship more every year to and 
from Lima. This from Lima com- 
monly arrives a little before Christ- 
mas ; she brings them quicksilver, 
cacao, and pieces of eight. Here she 
stays till the Manilla ship arrives, 
and takes in a cargo of spices, silks, 
calicoes, muslins, and other East In- 
dia commodities, for the use of Peru, 
and then returns to Lima. This is 
but a small vessel of twenty guns ; 
but the two Manilla ships are each 
said to be above 1000 tons. These 
make their voyages alternately, so that 
one or other of them is always at 
Manilla. When either of them sets 
out from Acapulco, it is at the latter 
end of March or the beginning of 
April ; she always touches to refresh 
at Guam, one of the Ladrone Islands, 
in about sixty days' space after she 
sets out. There she stays but two or 
three days, and then prosecutes her 
voyage to Manilla, where she com- 
monly arrives some time in June. By 
that time the other is ready to sail 
from thence laden with East India 
Commodities. She stretches away 
to the north as far as 36, or some- 
times 40 3ST. Lat., before she gets a 
wind to stand over to the American 
shore. She falls in first with the 
coast of California, and then coasts 
along the shore to the south again, 
and never misses a wind to bring her 
away from thence quite to Acapulco. 
When she gets the length of Cape 
San Lucas, which is the southernmost 
point of California, she stretches 
over to Cape Corrientes, which is in 
about 20 N". Lat. ; from thence she 
coasts along till she comes to Solagua, * 
and there she sets ashore passengers 



1 Apparently the Bay of Manzanilla, 
which is directly west of Mexico, and 
answers to the position Dampier's 
map assigns to " Sallagua "or " Sola- 
gua." Dampier's subsequent account 
of the place agrees with the situation 
and features of Manzanilla. 



that are bound to the city of Mexico. 
From thence she makes her best way, 
coasting still along shore, till she 
arrives at Acapulco, which is com- 
monly about Christmas, never more 
than eight or ten days before or after. 
Upon the return of this ship to 
Manilla, the other, which stays there 
till her arrival takes her turn back 
to Acapulco. Sir John Narborough 
therefore was imposed on by the 
Spaniards who told him that there 
were six sail or more that used this 
trade. The port of Acapulco is very 
commodious for the reception of ships, 
and so large, that some hundreds 
may safely ride there without dam- 
nifying 2 each other. The harbour 
runs in north about three miles ; then 
growing very narrow it turns short 
about to the west, and runs about a 
mile farther, where it ends. The 
town stands on the NW. side, at the 
mouth of this narrow passage, close 
by the sea ; and at the end of the 
town there is a platform with a great 
many guns. Opposite to the town, 
on the east side, stands a high strong 
castle, said to have forty guns of a 
very great bore. Ships commonly 
ride near the bottom of the harbour, 
under the command both of the castle 
and the platform. Captain Townley, 
who, as I said before, with 140 men, 
left our ships on a design to fetch the 
Lima ship out of the harbour, had 
not rowed above three or four leagues 
before the voyage was like to end with 
all their lives ; for on a sudden they 
were encountered with a violent tor- 
nado from the shore, which had like 
to have foundered all the canoes : but 
they escaped that danger, and the 
second night got safe into Port Mar- 

Sues. Port Marques is a veiy good 
arbour a league to the east of Aca- 
pulco harbour. Here they stayed all 
the next day to dry themselves, their 
clothes, their arms and ammunition ; 
and the next night they rowed softly 
into Acapulco harbour : and because 
they would not be heard, they hauled 
in their oars and paddled as softly as 
if they had been seeking manatee. 

2 Incommoding or injuring. 



1685.] 

They paddled close to the castle ; 
then struck over to the town, and 
found the ship riding between the 
breastwork and the fort, within about 
100 yards of each. When they had 
well viewed her, and considered the 
danger of the design, they thought it 
not possible to accomplish it ; there- 
fore they paddled softly back again 
till they were out of command of the 
forts, and then they went to land, 
and fell in among a company of Span- 
ish soldiers (for the Spaniards, having 
seen them the day before, had set 
guards along the coasts), who imme- 
diately fired at them, but did them 
no damage, only made them retire 
farther from the shore. They lay 
afterwards at the mouth of the har- 
bour till it was day, to take a view 
of the town and castle; and then 
returned aboard again, being tired, 
hungry, and sorry for their disap- 
pointment. [On the 13th, they made 
sail farther westward, where the coast 
is described as low, producing many 
trees, and the spreading palm in 
great plenty.] 

The land in the country is full of 
small peaked barren hills, making 
as many little valleys, which appeal- 
flourishing and green. At the "W. 
end of this bay is the hill of Petatlan. l 
We came to an anchor on the NW. 
side of the hill and went ashore, 
about 170 men of us, and marched 
into the country twelve or fourteen 
miles. There we came to a poor In- 
dian village that did not afford us a 
meal of victuals. The people all fled, 
only a Mulatto woman and three or 
four small children, who were taken 
and brought aboard. She told us that 
a carrier (one who drives a caravan of 
mules) was going to Acapulco laden 
with flour and other goods, but stop- 
ped in the road for fear of us a little 
to the west of this village (for he had 
heard of our being on this coast), and 
she thought he still remained there : 
and therefore it was we kept the 
woman to be our guide to carry us 
to that place. At this place where 
we now lay, our Mosquito men struck 



SEIZURE OF A MULE TRAIN. 



183 



1 Morro de Petatlan. 



some small turtle and many small 
Jew-fish. 

We went from hence with our ships 
on the 13th, and steered westward 
about two leagues farther, to a place 
called Chequetan. 2 The 14th, in the 
morning we went with ninety-five 
men in six canoes to seek for the 
carrier, taking the Mulatto woman 
for our guide ; but Captain Townley 
would not go with us. Before day 
we landed at a place called Istapa, a 
league to the west of Chequetan. The 
woman was well acquainted here, 
having been often at this place for 
mussels, as she told us, for here are 
great plenty of them ; they seem in 
all respects like our English mussels. 
She carried us through the pathless 
wood by the side of a river for about 
a league ; then we came into a savan- 
nah full of bulls and cows ; and here 
the carrier before mentioned was lying 
at the estantion -house with his mules, 
not having dared to advance all this 
while, as not knowing where we lay ; 
so his own fear made him, his mules, 
and all his goods become a prey to 
us. He had forty packs of flour, 
some chocolate, a great many small 
cheeses, and abundance of earthen- 
ware. The eatables we brought away, 
but the earthen vessels we had no 
occasion for, and therefore left them. 
The mules were about sixty ; we 
brought our prize with them to the 
shore, and so turned them away. 
Here we also killed some cows, and 
brought [them] with us to our canoee. 
In the afternoon our ships came to 
an anchor half-a-mile from the place 
where we landed, and then we went 
aboard. Captain Townley, seeing 
our good success, went ashore with 
his men to kill some cows, for there 
were no inhabitants near to oppose 
us. The land is very woody, of a 
good fertile soil, watered with many 
small rivers, yet it hath but few 
inhabitants near the sea. Captain 
Townley killed eighteen beeves, and 
after he came aboard, our men, con- 



2 Probably Siguantanejo, a town 
of some importance corresponding in 
position to tne indications in the text. 



184 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAT. IX. 

house nor sign of inhabitants, al- 
though we passed by a fine valley 
called the Valley of Maguella. 2 Only 
at two places, the one at our first 
setting out on this expedition, and 
the other at the end of it, we saw a 



trary to Captain Swan's inclination, 

ave Captain Townley part of the 
our which we took ashore. After- 
wards we gave the woman some 
clothes for her and her children, and 
put her and two of them ashore ; but 



one of them, a very pretty boy about 
seven or eight years old, Captain 
Swan kept. The woman cried and 
begged hard to have him ; but Cap- 
tain Swan would not, but promised 
to make much of him, and was as 
good as his word. He proved after- 
wards a very fine boy for wit, cour- 
age, and dexterity; I have often 
wondered at his expressions and 
actions. 

The 21st, in the evening, we sailed 
hence with the land-wind, and coast- 
ed along to the westward. The land 
is high, and full of ragged hills ; and 
west from these ragged hills the land 
makes many pleasant and fruitful 
valleys among the mountains. The 
25th we were abreast of a very re- 
markable hill, which, towering above 
the rest of its fellows, is divided in 
the top, and makes two small parts. 
The Spaniards make mention of a 
town called Thelupan 1 near this hill, 
which we would have visited if we 
could have found the way to it. 
The 26th, Captain Swan;and Captain 
Townley, with 200 men, of whom I 
was one, went in our canoes to seek 
for the city of Colima, a rich place 
by report, but how far within land I 
could never learn ; for, as I said be- 
fore, here is no trade by sea, and 
therefore we could never get guides 
to inform us or conduct us to any 
town but one or two on this coast ; 
and there is never a town that lies 
open to the sea but Acapulco ; and 
therefore our search 'was commonly 
fruitless, as now, for we rowed above 
twenty leagues along shore and found 
it a very bad coast to land ; we saw no 



1 The hills and town appear to cor- 
respond to the town of Texupan, and 
the twin eminences near it called 
Cabo de Tetas, or the Paps of Texu- 
pan, at the mouth of a river of the 
same name. Telupan is at some dis- 
tance to the south-eastward. 



horseman set, as we supposed, as a 
sentinel to watch us. At both places 
we landed with difficulty, and at each 
place we followed the tracks of the 
horse on the sandy bay, but where 
they entered the woods we lost tho 
track ; and although we diligently 
searched for it, yet we could find it 
no more, so we were perfectly at a 
loss to find out the houses or town 
they came from. The 28th, being 
tired and hopeless to find any town, 
we went aboard our ships, that were 
now come abreast of the place where we 
were ; for always when we leave our 
ships, we either order a certain place 
of meeting, or else leave them a sign to 
know where we are by making one or 
more great smokes. After we came 
aboard we saw the Volcano of Colima. 
This is a very high mountain, in 
about 18 36' N., standing five or 
six leagues from the sea, in the midst 
of a pleasant valley. It appears with 
two sharp peaks, from each of which 
there always issue flames of fire or 
smoke. The valley in which this 
volcano stands is called the Valley of 
Colima, from the town itself, which 
stands there not far from the volcano. 
The town is said to be great and rich, 
the chief of all its neighbourhood ; 
and the valley in which it is seated, 
by the relation which the Spaniards 
give of it, is the most pleasant and 
fruitful valley in all the kingdom of 
Mexico. This valley is about ten 
or twelve leagues wide by the sea, 
where it makes a small bay ; but how 
far the vale runs into the country, I 
know not. The 29th, our captains 
went away from our ships with 200 
men, intending at the first convenient 
place to land and search about for a 

2 The valley through which the 
River Almeria that passes Colima 
enters the sea has near the coast a 
little town named Olola ; not unlike 
in sound to the word in the text. 



1685.] 



THE SPANIARDS DRIVEN INLAND. 



1S5 



path ; for the Spanish books made 
mention of two or three other towns 
hereabouts, especially one called 
Solagua, to the west of this bay. 
Our canoes rowed along as near the 
shore as they could; but the sea 
went so high that they could not 
land. About ten or eleven o'clock 
two horsemen came near the shore, 
and one of them took a bottle out of 
his pocket, and drank to our men ; 
while he was drinking, one of our men 
snatched up his gun and let drive at 
him, and killed his horse ; so his 
consort immediately set spurs to his 
horse and rode away, leaving the 
other to come after afoot. But lie 
being booted made but slow haste ; 
therefore two of our men stripped 
themselves and swam ashore to take 
him ; but he had a macheat, or long 
knife, wherewith he kept them both 
from seizing him, they having no- 
thing in their hands wherewith to 
defend themselves or offend him. 
The 30th, our men came all aboard 
again, for they could not find any 
place to land in. 

The 1st of December we passed by 
the port of Solagua. This port is in 
Lat. 18 52'. It is only a pretty 
deep bay, divided in the middle with 
a rocky point, which makes, as it 
were, two harbours. Here we saw a 
great new thatched house, and a 
great many Spaniards, both horse 
and foot, with drums beating and 
colours flying, in defiance of us as we 
thought. We took no notice of them 
till the next morning, and then we 
landed about 200 men to try their 
courage ; but they presently with- 
drew. The foot never stayed to ex- 
change one shot ; but the horsemen 
stayed till two or three were knocked 
down, and then they drew off, ourmen 
pursuing them. At last two of our 
men took two horses that had lost 
their riders, and mounting them rode 
after the Spaniards full drive till they 
came among them, thinking to have 
taken a prisoner for intelligence, but 
had like to have been taken them- 
selves ; for four Spaniards surrounded 
them, after they had discharged their l Guadalajara, about 160 miles in- 
pistols, and unhorsed them ; and if I land. 



some of our best footmen had not 
come to their rescue, they must have 
yielded or have been killed. They 
were both cut in two or three places, 
but their wounds were not mortal. 
The four Spaniards got away before 
our men could hurt them, and 
mounting their horses speeded after 
their consorts, who were marched 
away into the country. Our men, 
finding a broad road leading into the 
country, followed it about four 
leagues in a dry stony country, full 
of short woods ; but finding no signs 
of inhabitants they return ed again. In 
their way back they took two Mulattoes 
who were not able to march as fast 
as their consorts, therefore they had 
skulked in the woods, and by that 
means thought to have escaped our 
men. These prisoners informed us 
that this great road did lead to a 
great city called Oarrha, 1 from whence 
many of those horsemen before spoken 
of came ; that this city was distant 
from hence as far as a horse will go 
in four days, and that there is no 
place of consequence nearer ; that 
the country is very poor and thinly 
inhabited. They said, also, that 
these men came to assist the Philip- 
pine ship, that was every day expect- 
ed here, to put ashore passengers for 
Mexico. 

"We now intended to cruise off Cape 
Corrientes to wait for the Philippine 
ship ; so the 6th of December we set 
sail, coasting to the westwards, to- 
wards Cape Corrientes. We had fair 
weather, and but little wind. Here 
I was taken sick of a fever and ague, 
that afterwards turned to a dropsy, 
which I laboured under a long time 
after ; and many of our men died of 
this distemper, though our surgeons 
used their greatest skill to preserve 
their lives. The dropsy is a general 
distemper on this coast, and the 
natives say, that the best remedy 
they can find for it is the stone or 
cod of an alligator (of which they 
have four, one near each leg, within 
the flesh) pulverised and drunk in 



186 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WOULD. 



water. This receipt we also found 
mentioned in an almanac made at 
Mexico ; I would have tried it, but 
we found no alligators here, though 
there are several. There are many 
good harbours between Solagua and 
Cape Corrientes ; but we passed by 
them all. As we drew near the Cape, 
the land by the sea appeared of an in- 
different height, full of white cliffs ; 
but in the country, the land is high 
and barren, and full of sharp peaked 
hills, unpleasant to the sight. To 
the west of this ragged land is a 
chain of mountains running parallel 
with the shore ; they end on the west 
with a gentle descent, but on the east 
side they keep their height, ending 
with a high steep mountain which hath 
three small sharp peaked tops, some- 
what resembling a crown, and there- 
fore called by the Spaniards Coron- 
ada, the Crown land. The llth we 
were fair in sight of Cape Corrientes ; 
it bore N. by W., and the Crown 
land bore N. The cape is of an in- 
different height, with steep rocks to 
the sea. It is flat and even on the 
top, clothed with woods ; the land in 
the country is high and doubled. 
This cape lies in 20 28' N. Here 
we had resolved to cruise for the 
Philippine ship, because she always 
makes this cape in her voyage home- 
ward. We were, as I have said, four 
ships in company : Captain Swan 
and his tender, Captain Townley and 
his tender. It was so ordered that 
Captain Swan should lie eight or ten 
leagues off shore, and the rest about 
a league distant from each other, be- 
tween him and the cape, that so we 
might not miss the Philippine ship ; 
but we wanted provision, and there- 
fore we sent Captain Townley's bark, 
with fifty or sixty men to the west of 
the cape, to search about for some 
town or plantations where we might 
get provision of any sort ; the rest 
of us in the meantime cruising in 
our stations. The 17th the bark 
came to us again, but had got no- 
thing ; for they could not get about 
the cape, because the wind on this 
coast is commonly between the NW. 
and SW. , which makes it very diffi- 



[CiiAr. IX. 

cult getting to the westward ; but 
they left four canoes with forty-six 
men at the cape, who resolved to 
row to the westward. The 18th wo 
sailed to the Keys of Chametly l to 
fill our water. These keys or islands 
of Chametly are about sixteen or 
eighteen leagues to the eastward of 
Cape Corrientes. They are small, 
low, and woody, environed with 
rocks ; there are five of them, lying 
in the form of a half moon, not a 
mile from the shore ; and between 
them and the main is very good 
riding, secure from any wind. The 
Spaniards report that here live fisher- 
men to fish for the inhabitants of the 
city of Purificacion. This is said to 
be a large town, the best hereabouts ; 
but it is fourteen leagues up in the 
country. The 20th we entered with- 
in these islands, passing in on the 
SE, side, and anchored between the 
islands and the main in five fathoms 
clean sand. Here we found good 
fresh water and wood, and caught 
plenty of rock-fish with hook and 
line, a sort of fish I described at the 
Isle of Juan Fernandez ; but we saw 
no sign of inhabitants besides threa 
or four old huts, therefore I believe 
that the Spanish or Indian fishermen 
come hither only at Lent, or some 
other such season, but that they do 
not live here constantly. The 21st, 
Captain Townley went away with 
about sixty men to take an Indian 
village seven or eight leagues from 
hence to the westward, more towards 
the cape ; and the next day we went 
to cruise off the cape, where Captain 
Townley was to meet us. 

The 24th, as we were cruising 
off the cape, the four canoes before 
mentioned, which Captain Townley's 
bark left at the Cape, came off to us. 
They, after the bark left them, passed 
to the west of the cape, and rowed 
into the valley of Valderas, 2 or per- 
haps Val d'Iris ; for it signifies the 



1 The locality of these islands cor- 
responds with that of the Puerto do 
Tamatlan, a small bay due west from 
the city of La Purificacion. 

2 The Bay of Banderas, to the 



1685-6.] DEADLY ENCOUNTER 
Valley of Flags. This valley lies in 
the bottom of a pretty deep bay, that 
runs in between Cape Corrientes on 
the SE., and the Point of Pontique 1 
on the NW., which two places are 
about ten leagues asunder. The 
valley is about three leagues wide ; 
there is a level sandy bay against 
the sea, and good smooth landing. 
In the midst of the bay is a fine 
river, whereinto boats m ay ^ enter. 
When our canoes came to this plea- 
sant valley, they landed thirty-seven 
men, and marched into the country 
seeking for some houses. They had 
not gone past three miles before 
they were attacked by 150 Spaniards, 
horse and foot. There was a small 
thin wood close by them, into which 
our men retreated to secure them- 
selves from the fury of the horse ; yet 
the Spaniards rode in among them 
and attacked them very furiously, 
till the Spanish captain and seven- 
teen more tumbled dead off their 
horses ; then the rest retreated, be- 
ing many of them wounded. We 
lost four men, and had two desper- 
ately wounded. In this action the 
foot, who were armed with lances 
and swords, and were the greatest 
number, never made any attack ; the 
horsemen had each a brace of pistols, 
and some short guns. If the foot 
had came in, they had certainly de- 
stroyed all our men. When the 
skirmish was over, our men placed 
the two wounded men on horses, and 
came to their canoes. There they 
killed one of the horses, and dress- 
ed it, being afraid to venture into 
the savannah to kill a bullock, of 
which there was store. When they 
had eaten and satisfied themselves, 
they returned aboard. The 25th, 
being Christmas, we cruised in pretty 
near the cape, and sent in three 
canoes with the strikers to get fish, 
being desirous to have a Christmas 
dinner. In the afternoon they re- 
turned aboard with three great Jew- 
fish, which feasted us all ; and the 



north of Cape Corrientes, seems to be 
here intended. 

1 Now called Point of Mita. 



WITH THE SPANIARDS. 187 

next day we sent ashore our canoes 
again and got three or four more. 
Captain Townley, who went from us 
at Chametly, came aboard the 28th, 
and brought about forty bushels of 
maize. He had landed to the east- 
ward of Cape Corrientes, and marched 
to an Indian village that is four or 
five leagues in the country. The In- 
dians, seeing him coming, set two 
houses on fire that were full of maize 
and ran away. Yet he and his men 
got in other houses as much as they 
could bring down on their backs, 
which he brought aboard. 

We cruised off the Cape till the 1st 
of January 1686, and then made to- 
wards the valley of Valderas to hunt 
for beef; and before night we an- 
chored in the bottom of the bay in 
sixty fathoms water, a mile from the 
shore. Here we stayed hunting till 
the 7th, and Captain Swan and Cap- 
tain Townley went ashore every morn- 
ing with about 240 men, and marched 
to a small hill, where they remained 
with fifty or sixty men to watch the 
Spaniards, who appeared in great 
companies on other hills not far dis- 
tant, but did never attempt anything 
against our men. Here we killed and 
salted above two months' meat, be- 
sides what we spent fresh ; and might 
have killed as much more if we had 
been better stored with salt. Our 
hopes of meeting the Philippine ship 
were now over, for we did all conclude 
that while we were necessitated to 
hunt here for provisions she was past 
by to the eastwards, as indeed she 
was, as we did understand afterwards 
hy prisoners. So this design failed 
through Captain Townley's eagerness 
after the Lima ship, which, he at- 
tempted in Acapulco harbour, as I 
have related. For though we took 
a little flour hard by, yet the same 
guide which told us of that ship would 
nave conducted us where we might 
have had store of beef and maize ; but 
instead thereof, we lost both our time 
and the opportunity of providing 
ourselves, and so were forced to be 
victualling when we should have been 
cruising off Cape Corrientes in expec- 
tation of the Manilla ship. Hitherto 



188 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



we had coasted along here with two 
different designs ; the one was to get 
the Manilla ship, which would have 
enriched us beyond measure, and this 
Captain, Townley was most for. Sir 
Thomas Cavendish formerly took the 
Manilla ship off Cape San Lucas in 
California (where we also would have 
waited for her had we been early 
enough stored with provisions to have 
met her there), and threw much rich 
goods overboard. The other design, 
which Captain Swan and our crew 
were most for, was to search along the 
coast for rich towns, and mines chiefly 
of gold and silver, which we were 
assured were in this country, and, we 
hoped, near the shore ; not knowing 
(as we afterwards found) that it was 
in effect an inland country, its wealth 
remote from the South Sea coast, and 
having little or no commerce with it, 
its trade being driven eastward with 
Europe by La Vera Cruz. Yet we 
had still some expectation of mines, 
and so resolved to steer on farther 
northward. But Captain Townley, 
who had no other design in coming 
on this coast but to meet this ship, 
resolved to return again towards the 
coast of Peru. So here we parted, he 
to the eastward and we to the west- 
ward, intending to search as far to 
the westward as the Spaniards were 
settled. 

It was the 7th of January in the 
morning when we sailed from this 
pleasant valley. Before night we 
passed by Point Pontique ; it is high, 
round, rocky, and barren ; at a dis- 
tance it appears like an island. A 
league to the W. of this point are two 
small barren islands called the Islands 
of Pontique. 1 There are several high, 
sharp, white rocks that lie scattering 
about them ; we passed between these 
rocky islands on the left and the 
main on the right, for there is no 
danger. The 14th we had sight of 
a small white rock which appears very 
much like a ship under sail. This rock 



1 Two or three small islands, in- 
cluding Corvetena and Marieta, are 

marked in modern maps in a corre- , 

Bponding situation off Point Mita. ] Mazatlau. 



[CHAP. IX. 

is in Lat. 21 15'; it is three leagues 
from the main. At night we anchored 
in six fathoms water, near a league 
from the main, in good oozy ground. 
"We caught a great many cat-fish here, 
and at several places on this coast 
both before and after this. From this 
island the land runs more northerly, 
making a fair sandy bay ; but the sea 
falls in with such violence on the 
shore that there is no landing. We 
came to an anchor every evening, and 
in the mornings we sailed off with the 
land-wind. 

The 20th we anchored about three 
miles on the east side of the Islands 
of Chametly, 3 different from those 
of that name before mentioned; for 
these are six small islands in Lat. 
23 11', a little to the south of the Tro- 

Sic of Cancer and about three leagues 
"om the main, where a salt lake has 
its outlet into the sea. These isles 
are of an indifferent height ; some of 
them have a few shrubby bushes, the 
rest are bare of any sort of wood. 
There is a sort of fruit growing on 
these islands, called penguins, and it 
is all the fruit they have. The pen- 
guin fruit is of two sorts, the yellow 
and the red. The yellow penguin 
grows on a green stem as big as a 
man's arm above a foot high from the 
ground. The leaves of this stalk are 
half a foot long and an inch broad ; 
the edges full of sharp prickles. The 
fruit grows at the head of the stalk in 
two or three great clusters, sixteen or 
twenty in a cluster. The fruit is as 
big as a pullet's egg, of a round form, 
and in colour yellow. It has a thick 
skin or rind, and the inside is full of 
small black seeds mixed among the 
fruit. The red penguin is of the big- 
ness and colour of a small dry onion, 
and in shape much like a ninepin, for 
it grows not on a stalk or stem as the 
other, but one end on the ground, the 
other standing upright. There are 
some guanas on these islands, but no 



2 Properly the Islands of Mazatlan, 
the name in the text being errone- 
ously taken from a town called Cha- 
matla, about forty miles south of 



1686'.] SEIZURE OF AN 

other sort of land animal. The bays 
about the islands are sometimes visited 
by seal. 

Captain Swan went away from 
hence with 100 men in our canoes to 
the northward to seek for the River 
Culiacan, possibly the same with the 
River of Piastla, l which some maps lay 
down in the province or region of 
Culiacan. This river lies in about 
24 N. Lat. We were informed that 
there is a fair and rich Spanish town 
seated on the east side of it, with 
savannahs about it full of bulls and 
cows, and that the inhabitants of this 
town pass over in boats to the Island 
of California, where they fish for 
pearl. I have been told since by a 
Spaniard that said he had been at 
the Island California, 2 that there are 
great plenty of pearl oysters there, 
and that the native Indians of Cali- 
fornia near the pearl fishery are mortal 
enemies to the Spaniards. Our canoes 
were absent three or four days, and 
said they had been above thirty 
leagues but found no river ; that the 
land by the sea was low and all sandy 
bay, but such a great sea that there 
was no landing. They met us in their 
return in Lat. 23*? 30', coasting along 
shore after them towards Culiacan, so 
we returned again to the eastward. 
This was the farthest that I was to 
the north on this coast. Six or seven 
leagues NNW. from the Isles of Cha- 
metly there is a small narrow entrance 
into a lake which runs about twelve 
leagues easterly, parallel with the 
shore, making many small low man- 
grove islands. The mouth of this 
lake is in Lat. about 23 30'. It 
is called by the Spaniards Rio de 

1 The Culiacan and the Piastla are 
two distinct streams, the former being 
the more northerly. 

2 In the maps accompanying the 
second edition of Dampier's Voyage 
(London, 1697), from which the text 
is printed, California is more than 
once laid down as an island, though 
the author, near the end of the pre- 
sent Chapter, mentions some later 
Spanish maps in which it is made "to 
join to the main." 



INDIAN VILLAGE. 189 

Sal, for it is a salt lake. Theie is 
water enough for boats and canoes to 
enter, and smooth landing after you 
are in. On the west side of it there 
is a house and an estantion or farm 
of large cattle. Our men went into 
the lake and landed, and coming to 
the house, found seven or eight 
bushels of maize, but the cattle were 
driven aAvay by the Spaniards ; yet 
there our men took the owner of the 
estantion and brought him aboard. 
He said that the beeves were driven 
a great way into the country for fear 
we should kill them. While we lay 
here, Captain Swan went into this 
lake again, and landed 150 men on the 
NE. side, and marched into the coun- 
try. About a mile from the landing- 
place, as they were entering a dry 
Salina or salt-pond, they fired at two 
Indians that crossed the way before 
them. One of them, being wounded 
in the thigh, fell down ; and being 
examined, he told our men that there 
was an Indian town four or five 
leagues o ( ff, and that the way which 
they were going would bring them 
thither. "While they were in dis- 
course with the Indian, they were 
attacked by 100 Spanish horsemen, 
who came with a design to scare them 
back, but wanted both arms and 
hearts to do it. Our men passed on 
from thence, and in their way marched 
through a savannah of long dry grass. 
This the Spaniards set on fire, think- 
ing to burn them ; but that did not 
hinder our men from marching for- 
ward, though it did trouble them a 
little. They rambled for want of 
guides all this day and part of the 
next before they came to the town the 
Indian spoke of. There they found a 
company of Spaniards and Indians, 
who made head against them, but 
were driven out of the town after a 
short dispute. Here our Surgeon and 
one man more were wounded with 
arrows, but none of the rest were 
hurt. When they came into the 
town they found two or three Indians 
wounded, who told them that the 
name of the town was Mazatlaii ; 
that there were a few Spaniards living 
in it, and the rest were Indians ; that 



190 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. IX. 



five leagues from this town there were 
two rich gold mines where the Span- 
iards of Compostella, 1 which is the 
chief town in these parts, kept many 
slaves and Indians at work for gold. 
Here our men lay that night, and the 
next morning packed up all the maize 
that they could find, and brought it 
on their backs to the canoes, and came 
aboard. 

We lay here till the 2d of February, 
and then Captain Swan went away 
with about eighty men to the River 
Rosario, 2 where they landed and 
marched to an Indian town of the 
same name. They found it about 
nine miles from the sea ; the way to 
it fair and even. This was a fine 
little town, of about sixty or seventy 
houses, with a fair church ; and it 
was chiefly inhabited by Indians. 
They took prisoners there who told 
them that the River Rosario is rich 
in gold, and that the mines are not 
above two leagues from the town. 
Captain Swan did not think it con- 
venient to go to the mines, but made 
haste aboard with the maize which 
lie took there, to the quantity of 
about eighty or ninety bushels, which 
to us, in the scarcity we were in of 
provisions, was at that time more 
valuable than all the gold in the 
world ; and had he gone to the mines 
the Spaniards would probably have 
destroyed the corn before his return. 
The 3d of February we went with our 
ships also towards the River Rosario, 
and anchored the next day against 
the river's mouth. The 7th, Captain 
Swan came aboard with the maize 
which he got. This was but a small 
men as we were, 
the place we 
strangers and haying 
no pilots to direct or guide us into 
any river ; and we being without all 



1 Nueva Compostella, a city built 
by Nunez de Guzman, once the see 
of a bishop, now removed to Guada- 
laxara, along with the importance, if 
not the very existence, of the place. 

2 At no great distance east of Mazat- 
lan ; several miles up the river is the 
town of Asilo de Rosario. 



sort of provisions but what we were 
forced to get in this manner from the 
shore. The 8th, Captain Swan sent 
about forty men to seek for the River 
Olita, which is to the eastward of the 
River Rosario. The next day we 
followed after with the ships. In the 
afternoon our canoes came again to 
us, for they could not find the River 
Olita ; therefore we designed next 
for the River Santiago, to the east- 
ward still. The llth, in the evening, 
we anchored against the mouth of 
the river, about two miles from the 
shore. It is one of the principal 
rivers on this coast. The mouth of 
this river is near half-a-mile broad, 
and very smooth entering. Within 
the mouth it is broader ; for three or 
four rivers more meet there and issue 
all out together. The llth, Captain 
Swan sent seventy men in four canoes 
into this river, to seek a town ; for 
although we had no intelligence of 
any, yet, the country appearing very 
promising, we did not question but 
they would find inhabitants before 
they returned. They spent two days 
in rowing up and down the creeks 
and rivers ; at last they came to a 
large field of maize, which was almost 
ripe : they immediately fell to gather- 
ing as fast as they could, and intended 
to lade the canoes; but seeing an 
Indian that was set to watch the corn, 
they quitted that troublesome and 
tedious work and seized him and 
brought him aboard, in hopes by his 
information to have some more easy 
and expeditious way of a supply by 
finding corn ready cut and dried. He 
being examined said that there was a 
town called Santa Pecaque 3 four 
leagues from the place where he was 
taken ; and that if we designed to go 
thither he would undertake to be our 
guide. Captain Swan immediately 
ordered his men to make ready, and 
the same evening went away with 
eight canoes and 140 men, taking the 
Indian for their guide. 

3 Marked on Dampier's map a little 
way up the left or south bank of the 
River Santiago, but not traceable in 
modern maps. 



1686.] 



SANTA PECAQUE. 



191 



He rowed about five leagues up the 
nver, aiid landed the next morning. 
The river at this place was not above 
pistol-shot wide, the banks pretty 
high on each side, and the land plain 
and even. He left twenty-three men 
to guard the canoes, and marched 
with the rest to the town. He set 
out from the canoes at 6 o'clock in 
the morning, and reached the town 
by ten. The way through which he 
passed was very plain, part of it 
woodland, part savannahs. The 
savannahs were full of horses, bulls, 
and cows. The Spaniards seeing him 
coming ran all away ; so he entered 
the town without the least opposition. 
This town of Santa Pecaque stands 
on a plain in a savannah by the side 
of a wood, with many fruit trees 
about it. It is but a small town, 
but very regular, after the Spanish 
mode, with a parade in the midst. 
The houses fronting the parade had 
all balconies ; there were two churches, 
one against the parade, the other at 
the end of the town. It is inhabited 
mostly by Spaniards. Their chief oc- 
cupation is husbandry. There are also 
some carriers, who are employed by 
the merchants of Compostella to trade 
for them to and from the mines. 
Compostella is a rich town about 
twenty-one leagues from hence. It 
is the chief in all this part of the 
kingdom, and is reported to have 
seventy White families ; which is a 
great matter in these parts, for it 
may be that such a town has no less 
than 500 families of copper-coloured 
people besides the Whites. The sil- 
ver mines are about five or six leagues 
from Santa Pecaque ; there, as we 
were told, the inhabitants of Compo- 
stella had some hundreds of slaves at 
work. The silver here and all over 
the kingdom of Mexico is .said to be 
finer and richer in proportion than 
that of Potosi or Peru, though the ore 
be not so abundant ; and the carriers 
of this town of Santa Pecaque carry 
the ore to Compostella, where it is 
refined. These carriers or sutlers 
also furnish the slaves at the mines 
with maize, whereof there was great 
plenty now in the town, designed for 



that use ; there was also sugar, salt, 
and salt-fish. 

Captain Swan's only business at 
Santa Pecaque was to get provision ; 
therefore he ordered his men to 
divide themselves into two parts, 
and by turns carry down the provi- 
sion to the canoes ; one half remain- 
ing in the town to secure what they 
had taken, while the other half were 
going and coming. In the afternoon 
they caught some horses ; and the 
next morning, being the 17th, fifty- 
seven men and some horses went 
laden with maize to the canoes. 
They found them, and the men left 
to guard them, in good order, though 
the Spaniards had given them a small 
diversion, and wounded one man ; 
but our men of the canoes landed 
and drove them away. These that 
came loaded to the canoes left seven 
men more there, so that now there 
were thirty men to guard the canoes. 
At night the others returned; and 
the 18th, in the morning, that half 
which stayed the day before at the 
town took their turn of going, with 
every man his burthen, and twenty- 
four horses laden. Before they re- 
turned, Captain Swan and his other 
men at the town caught a prisoner, 
who said that there were near 1000 
men of all colours, Spaniards and In- 
dians, Negroes and Mulattoes, in 
arms at a place called Santiago, but 
three leagues off, the chief town on 
this river ; that the Spaniards were 
armed with guns and pistols, and the 
copper - coloured with swords and 
lances. Captain Swan, fearing the 
fl consequence of separating his 
small company, was resolved the 
next day to march away with the 
whole party ; and therefore he or- 
dered his men to catch as many 
horses as they could, that they might 
carry the more provision with them. 
Accordingly, the next day, being the 
19th of February 1686, Captain Swan 
called out his men betimes to be 
gone ; but they refused to go, and 
said that they would not leave the 
town till all the provision was in the 
canoes; therefore he was forced to 
yield to them, and suffered half the 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. IX. 



192 

company to go as before. They had 
now fifty-four horses laden, which 
Captain Swan ordered to be tied one 
to another, and the men to go in 
two bodies, twenty -five before and as 
many behind ; but the men would go 
at their own rate, every man leading 
his horse. The Spaniards observed 
their manner of marching, and laid 
an ambush about a mile from the 
town, which they managed with such 
success, that falling on our body of 
men who were guarding the corn to 
the canoes, they killed them every 
one. Captain Swan hearing the re- 
port of their guns, ordered his men 
who were then in the town with him 
to march out to their assistance ; but 
some opposed him, despising their 
enemies ; till two of the Spaniards' 
horses that had lost their riders came 
galloping into the'.town in a great fright, 
both bridled and saddled, with each 
a pair of holsters by their sides, and 
one had a carbine newly discharged ; 
which was an apparent token that 
our men had been engaged, and that 
by men better armed than they ima- 
gined they should meet with. There- 
fore Captain Swan immediately 
marched out of the town, and his 
men all followed him ; and when he 
came to the place where the engage- 
ment had been, he saw all his men 
that went out in the morning lying 
dead. They were stripped, and so 
cut and mangled that lie scarce knew 
one man. Captain Swan had not 
more men then with him than those 
were who lay dead before him ; yet 
the Spaniards never came to oppose 
him, but kept at a great distance ; 
for it is probable the Spaniards had 
not cut off so many men of ours, but 
with the loss of a great many of their 
own. So he marched down to the 
canoes, and came aboard the ship 
with the maize that was already in 
the canoes. We had about fifty men 
killed. 

This loss discouraged us from at- 
tempting anything more hereabouts. 
Therefore Captain Swan proposed to 
go to Cape San Lucas, on California, 
to careen. He had two reasons for 
tli is : first, that lie thought he could 



lie there secure from the Spaniards ; 
and next, that if he could get a com- 
merce with the Indians there, he 
might make a discovery in the Lake 
of California, and by their assistance 
try for some of the plate of New 
Mexico. This Lake of California 
(for so the sea, channel, or strait, 
between that and the continent is 
called) is but little known to the 
Spaniards, by what I could ever 
learn ; for their draughts do not 
agree about it. Some of them make 
California an island. Some of their 
draughts newly made make Califor- 
nia to join to the main. I believe 
that the Spaniards do not care to 
have this lake discovered, for fear less 
other European nations should get 
knowledge of it, and by that means 
visit the mines of New Mexico. 
New Mexico, by report of several 
English prisoners there, and Span- 
iards I have met with, lies NW. 
from Old Mexico between 400 and 
500 leagues, and the biggest part of 
the treasure which is found in this 
kingdom is in that province j but with- 
out doubt there are plenty of mines in 
other parts, as well as in this part of 
the kingdom where we now were, as 
in other places ; and probably on the 
main bordering on the Lake of Cali- 
fornia, although not yet discovered 
by the Spaniards, who have mines 
enough, and therefore as yet have no 
reason to discover more. In my 
opinion, here might be very advan- 
tageous discoveries made by any^that 
would attempt it, for the Spaniards 
have more than they can well manage. 
I know yet they would lie like the dog 
in the manger ; although not able to 
eat themselves, yet they would en- 
deavour to hinder others. But the 
voyage thither being so far, I take 
that to be one reason that has hin- 
dered the discoveries of these parts ; 
yet it is possible that a man may find 
a nearer way hither than we came ; I 
mean by the north-west. I know 
there have been divers attempts made 
about a north-west passage, and all 
unsuccessful ; yet I am of opinion 
that such a passage may be found. 
All our countrymen that have gone 



1686.] 



THE NORTH-WEST PASSAGE. 



193 



to discover the NW. passage, have 
endeavoured to pass to the westward, 
beginning their search along Davis's 
or Hudson's Bay. But if I were to go 
on this discovery, I would go first into 
the South Seas, bend my course from 
thence along by California, and that 
way seek a passage back into the 
"West Seas. For as others have spent 
the cummer in first searching on this 
more known side nearer home, and 
so before they got through, the time 
of the year obliged them to give over 
their search and provide for a long 
course back again, for fear of being 
left in the winter ; on the contrary, I 
would search first on the less known 
coasts of the South Sea side, and then 
as the year passed away 1 should 
need no retreat, for I should come 
farther into my knowledge * if I suc- 
ceeded in my attempt, and should be 
without that dread and fear which 
the others must have in passing from 
the known to the unknown; who, 
for aught I know, gave over their 
search just as they were on the point 
of accomplishing their desires. I 
would take the same method if I 
were to go to discover the north-east 
passage. I would winter about 
Japan, Corea, or the north-east part 
of China ; and taking the spring and 
summer before me, I would make my 
first trial on the coast of Tartary ; 
wherein, if I succeeded, I should come 
into some known parts, and have a 
great deal of time before me to reach 
Archangel or some other port. Cap- 
tain "Wood indeed says this north-east 
passage is not to be found for ice ; 
but how often do we see that some- 
times designs have been given over 
as impossible, and at another time 
and by other ways those very things 
have been accomplished ? But enough 
of this. 

The next day after that fatal skir- 
mish near Santa Pecaque, Captain 
Swan ordered all our water to be 
filled, and to get ready to sail. The 
21st we sailed from thence, directing 
our course towards California. We 



1 Into the regions of which I had 
knowledge. 



passed by three islands, called the 
[Three] Marias. 2 We beat till the 
6th of February, but it was against a 
brisk wind, and proved labour in vain. 

Finding, therefore, that we got 
nothing, but rather lost ground, being 
then in 21 5' N., we steered away 
more to the eastward again for the 
Islands Marias, and the 7th we came 
to an anchor at the east end of the 
middle island. The Marias are three 
uninhabited islands in Lat. 21 40' ; 
they are distant from Cape San Lucas 
on California forty leagues, bearing 
ESE. , and from Cape Corrientes twenty 
leagues, bearing upon the same points 
of the compass with Cape San Lucas. 
They stretch NW. and SE. about four- 
teen leagues. There are two or three 
small high rocks near them ; the 
westernmost of them is the biggest 
island of the three, and they are all 
three of an indifferent height. The 
soil is stony and dry; the land, in 
most places, is covered with a shrubby 
sort of wood, very thick and trouble- 
some to pass through. In some places 
there is plenty of straight, large cedars. 
[These islands are described as unin- 
habitable, but guanas, racoons, turtle, 
tortoise, and seal were to be had in 
abundance. Captain Swan named the 
middle island Prince George's Island. 
Dampier was here sick of a dropsy, 
but having been buried half-an-hour 
in the hot sand to induce perspiration, 
he got well shortly afterwards.] . . . 

We stayed here till the 20th ; and 
then both vessels being clean, we 
sailed to the valley of Valderas to 
water. The 28th we anchored in the 
bottom of the bay of the valley of 
Valderas, right against the river, 
where we watered before ; but this 
river was brackish now in the dry 
season, and therefore we went two or 
three leagues nearer Cape Corrientes, 
and anchored by a small round island 
not half a-mile from the shore. Here 
our strikers struck nine or ten Jew- 



2 There are really four islands in 
the group; the fourth, lying farthest 
to the north-west, is called Santa 
Juanic. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [C'nAP. X. 



194 

fish : some we did eat, and the rest 
we salted; and the 29th we filled 
thirty -two tons of very good water. 

Having thus provided ourselves, we 
had nothing more to do but to put in 
execution our intended expedition to 
the East Indies, in hopes of some 
better success there than we had met 
with on this little frequented coast. 
We came on it full of expectations ; 
for besides the richness of the country, 
and the probability of finding some 
seaports worth visiting, we persuaded 
ourselves that there must needs be 
shipping and trade here, and that 
Acapulco and La Vera Cruz were to 
the kingdom of Mexico what Panama 
and Porto Bello are to that of Peru, 
viz., marts for carrying on a constant 
commerce between the South and 
North Seas, as indeed they are. But 
whereas we expected that this com- 
merce should be managed by sea from 
the places along the west coast, we 
found ourselves mistaken ; that of 
Mexico being almost wholly a land 
trade, and managed more by mules 
than by ships; so that instead of 
profit, we met with little on this 
coast besides fatigues, hardships, and 
losses, and so were the more easily 
induced to try what better fortune 
we might have in the East Indies. 
But, to do right to Captain Swan, he 
had no intention to be as a privateer 
in the East Indies; but, as he has 
often assured me with his own mouth, 
he resolved to take the first oppor- 
tunity of returning to England; so 
that he feigned a compliance with 
some of his men who were bent upon 
going to cruise at Manilla, that he 
might have leisure to take some 
favourable opportunity of quitting 
the privateer trade. 



CHAPTER X. 

I HAVE given an account in the last 
Chapter of the resolutions we took of 
going over to the East Indies. But 
having more calmly considered on the 
length of our voyage from hence to 
Guam, one of the Ladrone Islands, 



which is the first place that we could 
touch at, and there also being not 
certain to find provisions, most of 
our men were almost daunted at the 
thoughts of it, for we had not sixty 
days' provision, at a little more than 
half a pint of maize a-day for each 
man, and no other provision except 
three meals of salted Jew-fish; and 
we had a great many rats aboard 
which we could not hinder from eat- 
ing part of our maize; besides the 
great distance between Cape Corri- 
entes and Guam, which is variously 
set down. The Spaniards, who have 
the greatest reason to know best, 
make it to be between 2300 and 2400 
leagues : our books also reckon it 
differently between 90 and 100 de- 
grees, which all comes short indeed 
of 2000 leagues; but even that was a 
voyage enough to frighten us, con- 
sidering our scanty provisions. Cap- 
tain Swan, to encourage his men to 
go with him, persuaded them that 
the English books did give the best 
account of the distance; his reasons 
were many, although but weak. He 
urged, among the rest, that SirThomas 
Cavendish and Sir Francis Drake did 
run it in less than fifty days, and 
that he did not question but that our 
ships were better sailers than those 
which were built in that age ; and 
that he did not doubt to get there in 
little more than forty days, this being 
the best time in the year for breezes, 
which undoubtedly is the reason that 
the Spaniards set out from Acapulco 
about this time; and that although 
they are sixty days in their voyage, 
it is because they are great ships, 
deep-laden, and very heavy sailers; 
besides, they, wanting nothing, are 
in no great haste in their way, but 
sail with a great deal of their usual 
caution, and when they come near 
the Island of Guam, they lie by in 
the night for a week before they make 
land. In prudence we also should 
have contrived to lie by in the night 
when we came 'near land; for other- 
wise we might have run ashore, or 
have outsailed the islands and List 
sight of them before morning. But 
our Tbold adventurers seldom proceed 



1686.] 



SHORT OF PROVISIONS. 



195 



with such wariness when in any straits. 
But of all Captain Swan's arguments, 
that which prevailed most with them 
was his promising them, as I have 
said, to cruise off Manilla. So he 
and his men being now agreed, and 
they encouraged with the hope of 
gain, which works its way through 
all difficulties, we set out from Cape 
Corrientes, March ^the 31st, 1686. 
We were two ships in company, Cap- 
tain Swan's ship and a bark com- 
manded under Captain Swan by Cap- 
tain Tait, and we were 150 men 100 
aboard of the ship, and 50 aboard the 
bark, besides slaves, as I said. 

The next morning, about 10 o'clock, 
we had the sea breeze at NNE. , so 
that at noon we were thirty leagues 
from the cape. It blew a fresh gale 
of wind, which carried us off into the 
true trade-wind. At first we had it 
at NNE., so it came about easterly, 
and then to the east as we ran off. 
At 250 leagues' distance from the 
shore we had it at ENE., and there 
it stood till we came within forty 
leagues of Guam. When we had 
eaten up our three meals of salted Jew- 
fish in so many days' time, we had 
nothing but our small allowance of 
maize. After the 1st of May we 
made great runs every day, having 
very fair clear weather and a fresh 
trade-wind, which we made use of 
with all our sails, and we made many 
good observations of the sun. At our 
first setting out we steered into the 
Lat. of 13, which is near the Latitude 
of Guam ; then we steered west, keep- 
ing in that Latitude. By the time we 
had sailed twenty days, our men, see- 
ing we made such great runs, and the 
wind like to continue, repined because 
they were kept at such short allow- 
ance. Captain Swan endeavoured to 
persuade them to have a little patience, 
yet nothing but an augmentation of 
their daily allowance would appease 
them. Captain Swan, though with 
much reluctance, gave way to a small 
enlargement of our commons, for now 
we had not above ten spoonfuls of 
boiled maize a - man once a - day, 
whereas before we had eight. I do 
believe that this short allowance did 



me a great deal of good, though others 
were weakened by it, for I found that 
my strength increased and my dropsy 
wore off. Yet I drank three times 
every twenty-four hours ; but many of 
our men did not drink in nine or ten 
days' time, and some not in twelve 
days ; one of our men did not drink 
in seventeen days' time, and said he 
was not a-dry when he did drink ; yet 
he made water every day, more or 
less. One of our men in the midst of 
these hardships was found guilty of 
theft, and condemned for the same to 
have three blows from each man in 
the ship with a two-inch and a half 
rope on his bare back. Captain Swan 
began first, and struck with a good 
will, whose example was followed by 
all of us. It was very strange that 
in all this voyage we did not see one 
fish, not so much as a flying fish, nor 
any sort of fowl; but at one time, 
when we were by my account 4975 
miles west from Cape Corrientes; 
then we saw a great number of boo- 
bies, which we supposed came from 
some rocks not far from us, which 
were mentioned in some of our sea- 
charts, but we did not see them. 

After we had run the 1900 leagues 
by our reckoning, which made the 
English account to Guam, the men 
began to murmur against Captain 
Swan for persuading them to come 
this voyage ; but he gave them fair 
words, and told them that the Spanish 
account might probably be the truest, 
and seeing the gale was likely to con- 
tinue, a short time longer would end 
our troubles. As we drew nigh the 
island, we met with some small rain, 
and the clouds settling in the west 
were an apparent token that we wera 
not far from land ; for in these cli- 
mates between or near the Tropics, 
where the trade-wind blows constantly, 
the clouds, which fly swift overhead, 
yet seem near the limb 1 of the horizon 
to hang without much motion or 
alteration where the land is near. I . 



1 The utmost edge or border; an 
astronomical term applied to the 
border of the disc of the sun, the 
moon, or any planet. 



196 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



have often taken notice of it, especi- 
ally if it is high land, for you shall 
then have the clouds hang about it 
without any visible motion. The 
20th day of May our bark, being 
about three leagues ahead of our ship, 
sailed over a rocky shoal on which 
there was but four fathom water, and 
abundance of fish swimming about 
the rocks. They imagined by this 
that the land was not far off ; so they 
clapped on a wind with the bark's 
head to the north, and being past the 
shoal, lay by for us. When we came 
up with them, Captain Tait came 
aboard us and related what he had 
seen. We were then in Lat. 1 2 55', 
steering W. The Island of Guam is 
laid down in Lat. 13 N. by the 
Spaniards, who are masters of it, 
keeping it as a baiting-place 1 as they 
go to the Philippine Islands. There- 
fore we clapped* on a wind and stood 
to the N., being somewhat troubled 
and doubtful whether we were right, 
because there is no shoal laid down in 
the Spanish draughts about the Island 
of Guam. At four o'clock, to our 
great joy, we saw the Island Guam 
at about eight leagues' distance. It 
was well for Captain Swan that we 
got sight of it before our provision 
was spent, of which we had but enough 
for three days more; for, as I was 
afterwards informed, the men had 
contrived 2 first to kill Captain Swan 
and eat him when the victuals were 
gone, and after him, all of us who 
were accessory in promoting the un- 
dertaking this voyage. This made 
Captain Swan say to me after our 
arrival at Guam, "Ah! Dampier, you 
would have made them but a poor 
meal," for I was as lean as the Cap- 
tain was lusty and fleshy. The wind 
was at ENE. and the land bore NNE. ; 
therefore we stood to the northward 
till we brought the island to bear 
east, and then we turned to get in to 
an anchor. [Dampier here occupies 
several pages with a detailed table, 
showing every day's run during the 



1 A place of provisioning or refresh- 
ment. 

2 Plotted, arranged. 



[CHAP. X. 
voyage, with the course steered, the 
direction of the wind, and the obser- 
vations made; the result being, by 
his computation, a total westing of 
7323 miles, or 125 11' of longitude, 
" allowing fifty-eight or fifty-nine 
Italian miles to a degree in these lati- 
tudes." And upon the ground of 
this calculation he disputes the ordi- 
nary reckoning of hydrographers, who 
make the breadth of the South Sea 
"only about 100 degrees, more or 
less." The tables and argument are 
omitted, being purely technical and 
practically obsolete.] 

The Island of Guam, or Guahan 
(as the native Indians pronounce it), 
is one of the Ladrone Islands, and 
belongs to the Spaniards, who have a 
small fort with six guns in it, with 
Governor and twenty or thirty sol- 
diers. They keep it for the relief and 
refreshment of their Philippine ships 
that touch here in their way from 
Acapulco to Manilla, but the winds 
will not so easily let them take this 
way back again. The Spaniards of 
late have named Guam the Island 
Maria ; it is about twelve leagues long 
and four broad, lying N. and S. It 
is a pretty high champaign land. The 
21st of May 1686, at eleven o'clock 
in the evening, we anchored near the 
middle of the Island of Guam, on the 
west side, a mile from the shore. At 
a distance it appears flat and even, 
but coming near it you will find it 
stands shelving; and the east side, 
which is much the highest, is fenced 
with steep rocks that oppose the vio- 
lence of the sea which continually 
rages against it, being driven with 
the constant trade-wind, and on that 
side there is no anchoring. The west 
side is pretty low and full of small 
sandy bays, divided with as many 
rocky points. The soil of the island 
is reddish, diy, and indifferent fruit- 
ful. The fruits are chiefly rice, pine- 
apples, water-melons, musk-melons, 
oranges and limes, cocoa-nuts, and a 
sort of fruit called by us bread-fruit. 

The cocoa-nut trees grow by the 
sea on the western side in great 
groves, three or four miles in length, 
and a mile or two broad. This tree 



1686.1 



BOAT-MAKING AT GUAM. 



197 



is in shape like the cabbage tree, and 
at a distance they are not to be 
known each from other, only the 
cocoa-nut tree is fuller of branches ; 
but the cabbage tree generally is 
much higher, though the cocoa-nut 
trees in some places are very high. . . . 

The natives of this island are strong- 
bodied, large-limbed, and well-shaped. 
They are copper-coloured like other 
Indians ; their hair is black and long, 
their eyes meanly proportioned ; they 
have pretty high noses ; their lips 
are pretty full, and their teeth in- 
different white. They are long-vis- 
aged, and stern of countenance ; yet 
we found them to be affable and 
courteous. They are many of them 
troubled with a kind of leprosy. 

The natives are very ingenious "be- 
yond any people in making boats, or 
proas as they are called in the East 
Indies, and therein they take great 
delight. These are built sharp at 
both ends. The bottom is of one 
piece, made like the bottom of a little 
canoe, very neatly dug, and left of a 
good substance. This bottom part is 
instead of a keel ; it is about twenty- 
six or twenty-eight feet long ; the 
under part of this keel is made round, 
but inclining to a wedge, and smooth ; 
and the upper part is almost flat, hav- 
ing a very gentle hollow, and is about 
a foot broad. From hence both sides 
of the boat are carried up to about 
five feet high with narrow plank, not 
above four or five inches broad, and 
each end of the boat turns up round 
very prettily. But, \fhat is very 
singular, one side of the boat is made 
perpendicular, like a wall, while the 
other side is rounding, made as other 
vessels are, with a pretty full belly. 
Just in the middle it is about four or 
five feet broad aloft, or more, accord- 
ing to the length of the boat. The 
mast stands exactly in the middle, 
with a long yard that peaks up and 
down like a mizzen-yard. One end of 
it reaches down to the end or head of 
the boat, where it is placed in a notch 
that is made there purposely to re- 
ceive it and keep it fast j the other 
end hangs over the stern. To this 
yard the sail is fastened. At the foot 



of the sail there is another small yard, 
to keep the sail out square, and to 
roll up the sail on when it blows 
hard ; for it serves instead of a reef to 
take up the sail to what degree they 
please, according to the strength of 
the wind. Along the belly-side of 
the boat, parallel with it, at about six 
or seven feet distance, lies another 
small boat or canoe, being a log of 
very light wood, almost as long as the 
great boat, but not so wide, being not 
above a foot and a half wide at the 
upper part, and very sharp like a 
wedge at each end. And there are 
tAvo bamboos of about eight or ten 
feet long, and as big as one's leg, 
placed over the great boat's side, one 
near each end of it, and reaching 
about six or seven feet from the side 
of the boat ; by the help of which the 
little boat is made firm and contigu- 
ous to the other. ... I have been 
the more particular in describing these 
boats, because I believe they sail the 
best of any boats in the world. I did 
here for my own satisfaction try the 
swiftness of one of them ; sailing by 
our log, we had twelve knots on our 
reel, and she ran it all out before the 
half-minute glass was half out, which, 
if it had been no more, is after tho 
rate of twelve miles an hour ; but I do 
believe she would have run twenty- 
four miles an hour. . . . 

The Indians of Guam have neat 
little houses, very handsomely thatch- 
ed with palmetto .thatch. They, in- 
habit together in villages built by 
the sea on the west side, and have 
Spanish priests to instruct them in 
the Christian religion. The Spaniards 
have a small fort on the west side, 
near the south end, with six guns in it. 
There is a Governor, and twenty or 
thirty Spanish soldiers. There are 
no more Spaniards on the island, be- 
sides two or three priests. Not long 
before we arrived here, the native's 
rose on the Spaniards to destroy 
them, and did kill many; but 
the Governor with his soldiers at 
length prevailed, and drove them out 
of the fort. So, when they found 
themselves disappointed of their in- 
tent, they destroyed the plantations 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. X. 



198 

and stock, and then went away to 
other islands. There were then 300 
or 400 Indians on this island ; but 
now there are not above 100, for all 
that were in this conspiracy went 
away. As for those who yet remain, 
if they were not actually concerned 
in that broil, yet their hearts also 
are bent against the Spaniards ; for 
they offered to carry us to the fort, 
and assist us in the conquest of the 
island ; but Captain Swan was not 
for molesting the Spaniards here. 
Before we came to an anchor here, 
one of the priests came aboard in the 
night with three Indians. They first 
hailed us to know from whence we 
came and what we were ; to whom 
answer was made in Spanish that we 
were Spaniards, and that we came 
from Acapulco. It being dark, they 
could not see the make of our ship, 
nor very well discern what we were. 
Therefore they came aboard ; but per- 
ceiving the mistake they were in in 
taking us for a Spanish ship, they 
endeavoured to get from us again ; 
but we held their boat fast, and made 
them come in. Captain Swan re- 
ceived the priest with much civility, 
and, conducting him into the great 
cabin, declared that the reason of our 
coming to this island was want of 
provision, and that he came not in 
any hostile manner, but as a friend, 
to purchase with his money what he 
wanted ; and therefore desired the 
priest to write a letter to the Gover- 
nor to inform him what we were and 
on what account we came. For 
having him now aboard, the Captain 
was willing to detain him as a host- 
age till we had provision. The 
Padre told Captain Swan that pro- 
vision was now scarce on the island, 
but he would engage that the Gover- 
nor would do his utmost to furnish us. 
In the morning, the Indians, in 
whose boat or proa the Friar came 
aboard, were sent to the Governor 
with two letters, one from the Friar, 
and another very obliging one from 
Captain Swan, and a present of four 
yards of scarlet cloth, and a piece of 
broad silver and gold lace. The Go- 
vernor lives near the south end of the 



island, on the west side, which was 
about five leagues from the place 
where we were ; therefore we did not 
expect an answer till the evening, not 
knowing then how nimble they were. 
Therefore, when the Indian canoe 
was despatched away to the Governor, 
we hoisted out two of our canoes, and 
sent one a-fishing and the other ashore 
for cocoa-nuts. Our fishing canoe got 
nothing, but the men that went 
ashore for cocoa-nuts came off laden. 
About 11 o'clock that same morning, 
the Governor of the island sent a 
letter to Captain Swan, compliment- 
ing him for his present, and promis- 
ing to support us with as much pro- 
vision as he could possibly spare ; and 
as a token of his gratitude he sent a 
present of six hogs of a small sort, 
most excellent meat, the best, I think, 
that ever I ate ; they are fed with 
cocoa-nuts, and their flesh is hard as 
brisket beef. They were doubtless of 
that breed in America which came 
originally from Spain. He sent also 
twelve musk-melons, larger than ours 
in England, and as many water- 
melons, both sorts here being a very 
excellent fruit ; and sent an order to 
the Indians that lived in a village 
not far from our ship to bake every 
day as much of the bread-fruit as we 
desired, and to assist us in getting as 
many dry cocoa-nuts as we Avould 
have, which they accordingly did, 
and brought of the bread-fruit every 
day hot, as much as we could eat. 
After this the Governor sent every 
day a canoe or two with hogs and 
fruit, and desired for the same pow- 
der, shot, and arms, which were sent 
according to his request. We had a 
delicate 1 large English dog, which the 
Governor did desire, and had it given 
him very freely by the Captain, 
though much against the grain of 
many of his men, who had a great 
value for that dog. Captain Swan 
endeavoured to get this Governor's 
letter of recommendation to some 
merchants at Manilla, for he had 
then a design to go to Fort St George,* 

1 Handsome, or favourite. 
8 Madras. 



1686.] FRIENDLINESS OF THE 
and from thence intendeu to trade at 
Manilla : but this his design was 
concealed from the company. While 
we lay here, the Acapulco ship 
arrived in sight of the island, but 
did not come in sight of us ; for the 
Governor sent an Indian proa with 
advice of our being here. Therefore 
she stood off to the southward of the 
island, and coming foul of the same 
shoal that our bark had run over be- 
fore, was in great danger of being lost 
there ; for she struck off her rudder, 
and with much ado got clear, but not 
till after three days' labour. This we 
heard afterwards, when we were on the 
coast of Manilla ; but these Indians of 
Guam did speak of her being in sight 
of the island while we lay there, 
which put our men in a great heat to 
go out after her ; but Captain Swan 
persuaded them out of that humour, 
for he was now wholly averse to any 
hostile action. 

The 30th of May the Governor sent 
his last^ present, which was some 
hogs, a jar of pickled mangoes, a jar 
of excellent pickled fish, and a jar of 
fine rusk, or bread of fine wheat 
flour, baked like biscuit, but not so 
hard. He sent besides six or seven 
packs of rice, desiring to be excused 
from sending any more provision to 
us, saying he had no more on the 
island that he could spare. He sent 
word also that the west monsoon was 
at hand ; that therefore it behoved us 
to be jogging from hence, unless we 
were resolved to return back to Ame- 
rica again. Captain Swan returned 
him thanks for his kindness and ad- 
vice, and took his leave; and the 
same day sent the Friar ashore that 
was seized on at our first arrival, and 
gave him a large brass clock, an as- 
tralobe, and a large telescope ; for 
which present the Friar sent us 
aboard six hogs and a roasting pig, 
three or four bushels of potatoes, 
and fifty pounds of Manilla tobacco. 
Then we prepared to be gone, being 
pretty well furnished with provision 
to carry us to Mindanao, where we 
designed next to touch. We took 
aboard as many cocoa-nuts as we 
could well stow; and we had a 



GOVERNOR OF GUAM. 



199 



good stock of rice, and about fifty 
hogs in salt. 



CHAPTER XI. 

WHILE we lay at Guam, we took up a 
resolution of going to Mindanao, one 
of the Philippine Islands, being told 
by the Friar and others that it was 
exceedingly well stored with provi- 
sions ; that the natives were Mahomet- 
ans, and that they had formerly a 
commerce with the Spaniards, but 
that now they were at war with them. 
This island was therefore thought to 
be a convenient place for us to go to ; 
for besides that it was in our way to 
the East Indies, which we had re- 
solved to visit ; and that the westerly 
monsoon was at hand which would 
oblige us to shelter somewhere in a 
short time ; and that we could not 
expect good harbours in a better 
place than in so large an island as 
Mindanao ; besides all this, I say, 
the inhabitants of Mindanao being 
then, as we were told (though falsely), 
at war with the Spaniards, our men, 
who it should seem were very squeam- 
ish, of plundering without license, 
derived hopes from thence of getting 
a commission there from the Prince 
of the island to plunder the Spanish 
ships about Manilla, and so to make 
Mindanao their common rendezvous. 
And if Captain Swan was minded to 
go to an English port, yet his men, 
who thought he intended to leave 
them, hoped to get vessels and pilots 
at Mindanao fit for their turn to 
cruise on the coast of Manilla. As 
for Captain Swan, he was willing 
enough to go thither, as best suiting 
his own design; and therefore this 
voyage was concluded on by general 
consent. Accordingly, June 2d, 1686, 
we left Guam, bound for Mindanao. 

The 21st of June, we arrived at the 
Island St John, 1 which is one of the 



1 It would seem that Dampier was 
misled by the deep indentation of 
the coast on the south of Mindanao 
to fancy two islands when there was 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XL 



200 

Philippine Islands. The Philippines 
are a great company of large islands, 
taking up about 13 of Lat. in length, 
reaching near upon from 5 N. Lat. 
to 19, and in breadth about 6 of 
Longitude. They derive this name 
from Philip the second king of Spain ; 
and even now they do most of them 
belong to that crown. The chief 
island in this range is Luconia, 1 
which lies on the north of them all. 
At this island Magellan died in the 
voyage that he was making round 
the world. For after he had passed 
those straits between the south end 
of ^ America and Tierra del Fuego 
which now bear his name, and had 
ranged down in the South Seas on 
the back of America, from thence 
stretching over to the East Indies he 
fell in with the Ladrone Islands, and 
from thence steering east still he fell 
in with these Philippine Islands, and 
anchored at Luconia, where he warred 
with the native Indians, to bring 
them in obedience to his master the 
King of Spain, and was by them 
killed with a poisoned arrow. It is 
now wholly under the Spaniards, 
who have several towns there. The 
chief is Manilla, which is a large sea- 
port town near the SE. end, opposite 
to the Island Mindoro. It is a place 
of great strength and trade ; th3 two 
great Acapulco ships before men- 
tioned fetching from hence all sorts 
of East Indian commodities, which 
are brought hither by foreigners, 
especially by the Chinese and Por- 
tuguese. Sometimes the English 
merchants of Fort St George send 
their ships thither as it were by 
stealth, under the charge of Portu- 
guese pilots and mariners ; for as yet 
we cannot get the Spaniards there to 
a commerce with us or the Dutch, 
although they have but few ships of 
their own. This seems to arise from 
a jealousy or fear of discovering the 
riches of these islands ; for most if 
not all the Philippine Islands are rich 



only one ; unless, indeed, he really 
touched first at Sa,mar, to the north, 
not the east, of Mindanao, 
,, * Lujonia, or Luzon. 



in gold ; and the Spaniards have no 
place of much strength in all theso 
islands that I could ever hear of, be- 
sides Manilla itself. Yet they have 
villages and towns on several of the 
islands, and Padres or priests to in- 
struct the native Indians, from whom 
they get their gold. The Spanish 
inhabitants, of the smaller islands 
especially, would willingly trade with 
us if the government was not so severe 
against it ; for they have no goods 
but what are brought from Manilla 
at an extraordinary dear rate. I am 
of the opinion that if any of our 
nations would seek a trade with them 
they would not lose their labour, for 
the Spaniards can and will smuggle 
as well as any nation that I know ; 
and our Jamaicans are to their profit 
sensible enough of it. And I have 
been informed that Captain Goodlud 
of London, in a voyage which he made 
from Mindanao to China, touched at 
some of these islands, and was civilly 
treated by the Spaniards, who bought 
some of his commodities, giving him 
a very good price for the same. There 
are about twelve or fourteen more large 
islands lying to the southwards of 
Luconia, most of which, as I said be- 
fore, are inhabited by the Spaniards. 
Besides these there are an infinite 
number of small islands of no account ; 
and even the great islands, many of 
them, are without names, or at least 
so variously set down, that I find the 
same islands named by divers names. 
The Islands of St John and Min- 
danao are the southernmost of all 
these islands, and are the only 
islands in all this range that are not 
subject to the Spaniards. St John's 
Island is on the east side of Min- 
danao, and distant from it three or 
four leagues, in Lat. about 7 or 8 N. 
This island is in length about thirty- 
eight leagues, stretching NNW. and 
SSE., and in breadth about twenty- 
four leagues in the middle of the 
island ; the northernmost end is 
broader, and the southernmost is 
narrower. 2 This island is of a good 

2 This answers fairly enough tlio 
description of the eastern part of 



THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 



1686.] 

height, and is full of many small 
hills. The land at the SE. end, 
where I \vas ashore, is of a black fat 
mould ; and the whole island seems 
to partake of the same fatness, by the 
vast number of large trees that it 
produces, for it looks all over like 
one great grove. As we were passing 
by the SE. end we saw a canoe of the 
natives under the shore ; therefore 
one of our canoes went after to have 
spoken with her, but she ran away 
from us, seeing themselves chased, 
put their canoe ashore, leaving her, 
fled into the woods, nor would be 
allured to come to us, although we 
did what we could to entice them. 
Besides these men we saw no more 
here, nor sign of any inhabitants at 
this end. "When we came aboard our 
ship again, we steered away for the 
Island Mindanao, which was now fair 
in sight of us ; it being about ten 
leagues distant from this part of St 
John's. The 22d we came within a 
league of the east side of the island, 
and steered toward the north end, 
keeping on the east side, till we came 
into the Lat. of 7 40', and there we 
anchored. Some of our books gave 
us an account that Mindanao city 
and isle lie. in 7 40'. We guessed 
that the middle of the island might 
lie in this latitude, but we were at a 
great loss where to find the city, 
whether on the east or west side. 
Indeed, had it been a small island, 
open to the eastern wind, we 
">ably have searched first 



on the west side ; for commonly the 
islands within the Tropics, or within 
the bounds of the trade-winds, have 
their harbours on the west side, as 
best sheltered ; but Mindanao being 
guarded on the east side by St John's 
Island, we might as reasonably ex- 
pect to find the harbour and city 01 
this side as anywhere else. Bui 



201 



lying 
might 



Mindanao, which, with a broken bul 
fairly continuous coast line on th 
north and east, is deeply penetratec 
on the south-east by Davao Bay, 
which might easily have misled Dam 
pier into supposing the existence o 
two islands. 



,oming into the Latitude in which we 
udged the city might be, we found 
10 canoes or people that might give 
is any umbrage l of a city or place of 
;rade near at hand, though we coasted 
within a league of the shore. 

The Island Mindanao is the biggest 
f all the Philippine Islands except 
lUconia. It is about sixty leagues 
ong, and forty or fifty broad. The 
south end is in about 5 N., and the 
STW. end reaches almost to 8. It 
s a very mountainous island, full of 
lills and valleys. The mould in 
general is deep and black, and extra- 
ordinary fat and fruitful. The sides 
f the hills are stony, yet productive 
enough of very large tall trees. In 
the heart of the country there are 
some mountains that yield good gold. 
The valleys are well moistened with 
pleasant brooks and small rivers of 
lelicate water, and have trees of divers 
sorts flourishing and green all the 
year. The trees in general are very 
large, and most of them are of kinds 
unknown to us. There is one sort 
which deserves particular notice, called 
by the natives libby trees. 3 These 
grow wild in great groves of five or 
six miles long by the sides of the 
rivers. Of these trees sago is made, 
which the poor country people eat 
instead of bread three or four months 
in the year. This tree, for its body 
and shape, is much like the palmetto 
tree or the cabbage tree, but not so 
tall as the latter. The bark and wood 
are hard and thin like a shell, and 
full of white pith like the pith of an 
elder. This tree they cut down and 
split it in the middle, and scrape out 
all the pith, which they beat lustily 
with a wooden pestle in a great mortar 
or trough, and then put into a cloth 
or strainer held over a trough, and 
pouring water in among the pith, 
they stir it about in the cloth. So 
the water carries all the substance of 
the pith through the cloth down into 
the trough, leaving nothing in the 
cloth but a light sort of husk which 
they throw away ; but that which falls 



1 Hint, foreshadowing. 

3 The sago palm j Sagus JRumphii. 



202 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XI. 



into the trough settles in a short time 
to the bottom like mud, and then 
they draw off the water and take up 
the muddy substance, wherewith they 
make cakes, which being baked proves 
very good bread. The Mindanao 
people live three or four months of 
the year on this food for their bread 
kind. The native Indians of Ternate 
and Tidore, 1 and all the Spice Islands, 
have plenty of these trees, and use 
them for food in the same manner. 

The plantain I take to be the king 
of all fruit, not excepting the cocoa 
itself. The tree that bears this fruit 
is about three feet or three feet and 
a half round, and about ten or twelve 
feet high. These trees are not raised 
from seed (for they seem not to have 
any), but from the roots of other old 
trees. If these young suckers are 
taken out of the ground and planted 
in another place, it will be fifteen 
months before they bear; but if let 
stand in their own native soil, they 
will bear in twelve months. As soon 
as the fruit is ripe, the tree decays, 
but then there are many young ones 
growing up to supply its place. . . . 
As the fruit of this tree is of great use 
for food, so is the body no less ser- 
viceable to make cloths; but this I 
never knew till I came to this island. 
The ordinary people of Mindanao do 
wear no other cloth. The tree never 
bearing but once, and so being felled 
when the fruit is ripe, they cut it 
down close by the ground if they in- 
tend to make cloth with it. One 
blow with a macheat, or long knife, 
will strike it asunder : then they cut 
off the top, leaving the trunk eight 
or ten feet long, stripping off the 
outer rind, which is thickest towards 
the lower end. Having stripped two 
or three of these rinds, the trunk 
becomes in a manner all of one big- 
ness, and of a whitish colour : then 
they split the trunk in the middle, 
which being done, they split the two 



1 Two small islands between Celebes 
and Gilolo, in the Molucca Passage, 
south of Mindanao, mentioned by 
Drake. 



halves again as near the middle as 
they can. This they leave in the 
sun two or three days, in which time 
part of the juicy substance of the tree 
dries away, and then the ends will 
appear full of small threads. The 
women, whose employment it is to 
make the cloth, take hold of those 
threads one by one, which rend away 
easily from one end of the trunk to 
the other, in bigness like whited 
brown threads; for the threads are 
naturally of a determinate bigness, 
as I observed their cloth to be all of 
one substance and equal fineness ; but 
it is stubborn when new, wears out 
soon, and when wet feels a little 
slimy. They make their pieces seven 
or eight yards long, their warp and 
woof all one thickness and substance. 
The banana tree is exactly like the 
plantain for shape and bigness, nor 
easily distinguishable from it but by 
its fruit, which is a great deal smaller, 
and not above half so long as a plan- 
tain, being also more mellow and soft, 
less luscious, yet of a more delicate 
taste. They use this for the making 
drink oftener than plantains, and it 
is best when used for drink or eaten 
as fruit; but it is not so good for 
bread, nor does it eat well at all when 
roasted or boiled; for it is only ne- 
cessity that makes any use it this 
way. They grow generally where 
plantains do, being set intermixed 
with them purposely in their plantain 
walks. I have not seen the nutmeg 
trees anywhere ; but the nutmegs this 
island produces are fair and large, yet 
they have no great store of them, 
being unwilling to propagate them or 
the cloves, for fear that should invite 
the Dutch to visit them and bring 
them into subjection, as they have 
done the rest of the neighbouring 
islands where they grow. For the 
Dutch being seated among the Spice 
Islands have monopolised all the trade 
into their own hands, and will not 
suffer any of the natives to dispose of 
it but to themselves alone. Naj^ 
they are so careful to preserve it in 
their own hands, that they will not 
suffer the spice to grow in the unin- 
habited islands, but send soldiers to 



1686.] JEALOUSY OF DUTCH MERCHANTS. 

cut the trees down. . . . The free 
merchants are not suffered to trade to 






the Spice Islands, nor to many other 
places where the Dutch have factories; 
but, on the other hand, they are suf- 
fered to trade to some places where 
the Dutch Company themselves may 
not trade, as to Achin particularly; 
for there are some princes in the 
Indies who will not trade with the 
Company for fear of them. The sea- 
men that go to the Spice Islands are 
obliged to bring no spice from thence 
for themselves except a small matter 
for their own use, about a pound or 
two. Yet the masters of those ships 
do commonly so order their business, 
that they often secure a good quan- 
tity, and send it ashore to some place 
near Batavia before they come into 
that harbour (for it is always brought 
thither first before it is sent to Europe); 
and if they meet any vessel at sea 
that will buy their cloves, they will 
sell ten or fifteen tons out of a hundred, 
and yet seemingly carry their comple- 
ment to Batavia; for they will pour 
water among the remaining part of 
their cargo, which will swell them to 
that degree that the ship's hold will 
be as full again as it was before any 
were sold. This trick they use when- 
ever they dispose of any clandestinely, 
for the cloves when they first take 
them in are extraordinary dry, and 
so will imbibe a great deal of moisture. 
This is but one instance of many 
hundreds of little deceitful arts the 
Dutch seamen in these parts have 
among them, of which I have both 
seen and heard several. I believe 
there are nowhere greater thieves, 
and nothing will persuade them to 
discover one another ; for should any 
do it, the rest would certainly knock 
him on the head. But to return to 
the products of Mindanao. 

The betel nut is much esteemed 
here, as it is in most places of the 
East Indies. The betel tree grows 
like the cabbage tree, but it is not so 
big nor so high. The body grows 
straight, about twelve or fourteen feet 
high, without leaf or branch, except 
at the head; there it spreads forth 
long branches, like other trees of the 



203 

like nature, as the cabbage tree, the 
cocoa-nut tree, and the palm. These 



branches are about ten or twelve feet 
long, and their stems near the head 
of the tree as big as a man's arm. 
On the top of the tree, among the 
branches, the betel nut grows on a 
tough stem as big as a man's finger, 
in clusters much as the cocoa nuts 
do, and they grow forty or fifty in a 
cluster. This fruit is bigger than a 
nutmeg, and is much like it, but 
rounder. It is much used all over 
the East Indies. This island pro- 
duces also durians and jacks. The 
trees that bear the durians are as big 
as apple trees, full of boughs. The 
rind is thick and rough ; the fruit is 
so large that they grow only about 
the bodies, or on the limbs near the 
body, like the cacao. The fruit is 
about the bigness of a large pumpkin, 
covered with a thick, green, rough 
rind. When it is ripe, the rind be- 
gins to turn yellow, but it is not fit 
to eat till it opens at the top. Then 
the fruit in the inside is ripe, and 
sends forth an excellent scent. When 
the rind is opened, the fruit may be 
split into four quarters ; each quarter 
has several small cells that enclose a 
certain quantity of the fruit according 
to the bigness of the cell, for some 
are larger than others. The largest 
of the fruit may be as big as a pullet's 
egg; it is as white as milk and as 
soft as cream, and the taste very de- 
licious to those that are accustomed 
to them ; but those who have not 
been used to eat them will dislike 
them at first, because they smell like 
roasted onions. The jack or jaca is 
much like the durian, both in bigness 
and shape. The trees that bear them 
also are much alike, and so is their 
manner of the fruits growing; but the 
inside is different, for the fruit of the 
durian is white, that of the jack is 
yellow and fuller of stones. The 
durian is most esteemed, yet the jack 
is very pleasant fruit, and the stones 
or kernels are good roasted. There 
are many other sorts of grain, roots, 
and fruits in this island, which, to 
give a particular description of, would 
fill up a large volume. In this island 



204 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE FOUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XII. 



are also many sorts of beasts both 
wild and tame, as horses, bulls and 
cows, buffaloes, goats, wild hogs, deer, 
monkeys, guanas, lizards, snakes, &c. 
Of the venomous kind of creatures 
here are scorpions, whose sting is in 
their tail ; and centipedes, called by 
the English fork-legs, both which are 
also common in the West Indies, in 
Jamaica, and elsewhere. The fowls 
of this country are ducks and hens : 
other tame fowl I have not seen, 
nor heard of any. The wild fowl 
are pigeons, parrots, paroquets, turtle- 
doves, and abundance of small fowls. 
There are bats as big as a kite. 

There are a great many harbours, 
creeks, and good bays for ships to 
ride in ; and rivers navigable for 
canoes, proas, or barks, which are all 
plentifully stored with fish of divers 
sorts ; so is also the adjacent sea. 
The chief fish are bonetas, snooks, 
cavallies, breams, mullets, ten-pound- 
ers, &c. Here are also plenty of sea- 
turtle and small manatee. 

The weather at Mindanao is tem- 
perate enough as to heat, for all it 
lies so near the Equator ; and espe- 
cially on the borders near the sea. 
There they commonly enjoy the 
breezes by day, and cooling land- 
winds at night. The winds are east- 
erly one part of the year and westerly 
the other. The easterly winds begin 
to blow in October, and it is the mid- 
dle of November before they are 
settled. These winds bring fair 
weather. The westerly winds begin 
to blow in May, but are not settled 
till a month afterwards. The west 
winds always bring rain, tornadoes, 
and very tempestuous weather. At 
the first coming in of these winds 
they blow but faintly ; but then the 
tornadoes rise, one in a day, some- 
times two. These are thunder-showers 
which commonly come against the 
wind, bringing with them a contrary 
wind to what did blow before. After 
the tornadoes are over, the wind 
shifts about again, and the sky be- 
comes clear ; yet then in the valleys, 
and the sides of the mountains, there 
rises a thick fog, which covers tiie 
land. The tornadoes continue thus 



for a week or more ; then they come 
thicker, two or three in a day, bring- 
ing violent gusts of wind and ter- 
rible claps of thunder. At last they 
come so fast, that the wind remains 
in the quarter from whence these 
tornadoes do rise, which is out of the 
west, and there it settles till October 
or November. When these westward 
winds are thus settled, the sky is all 
in mourning, being covered with 
black clouds, pouring down excessive 
rains, sometimes mixed with thunder 
and lightning, that nothing can be 
more dismal ; the winds raging to 
that degree, that the biggest trees 
are torn up by the roots, and the 
rivers swell and overflow their banks, 
and drown the low land, carrying 
great trees into the sea. Thus it 
continues sometimes a week together, 
before the sun or stars appear. The 
fiercest of this weather is in the 
latter end of July and in August ; for 
then the towns seem to stand in a 
great pond, and they go from ouo 
house to another in canoes. At this 
time the water carries away all the 
filth and nastiness from under their 
houses. Whilst this tempestuous 
season lasts, the weather is cold and 
chilly. In September the weather is 
more moderate, and the winds are not 
so fierce, nor the rain so violent. The 
air thenceforward begins to be more 
clear and delightsome ; but then in 
the morning there are thick fogs, 
continuing till 10 or 11 o'clock, before 
the sun shines out, especially when 
it has rained in the night. In Octo- 
ber the easterly winds begin to blow 
again, and bring fair weather till 
April. Thus much concerning the 
natural state of Mindanao. 



CHAPTER XII. 

THIS Island is not subject to one 
prince, neither is the language one 
and the same ; but the people are 
much alike in colour, strength, and 
stature. They are all or most of 
them of one religion, which is Maho- 
metanism, and their customs and 



1686.] THE NATIVES 

manner of living are alike. The 
Mindanao people, more particularly 
so called, are the greatest nation in 
the island ; and trading by sea with 
other nations, they are therefore the 
more civil. 1 I shall say but little of 
the rest, being less known to me ; 
but so much as has come to my 
knowledge take as follows. There 
are, besides the Miudanayans, the 
Hilanoons (as they call them), or 
the Mountaineers, the Sologus, and 
Alfoores. The Hilanoons live in the 
heart of the country ; they have little 
or no commerce by sea, yet they have 
proas that row with twelve or four- 
teen oars a-piece. They enjoy the 
benefit of the gold mines, and with 
their gold buy foreign commodities 
of the Mindanao people. They have 
also plenty of bees-wax, which they 
exchange for other commodities. The 
Sologus inhabit the NW. end of the 
island. They are the least nation of 
all ; they trade to Manilla in proas, 
and to some of the neighbouring 
islands, but have no commerce with 
the Mindanao people. The Alfoores 
are the same with the Mindanayans, 
and were formerly under the subjec- 
tion of the Sultan of Mindanao, but 
were divided between the Sultan's 
children, and have of late had a Sul- 
tan of their own; but having by 
marriage contracted an alliance with 
the Sultan of Mindanao, this has 
occasioned that prince to claim them 
again as his subjects ; and he made 
war with them a little after we went 
away, as I afterwards understood. 

The Mindanayans, properly so 
called, are men of mean statures, 
small limbs, straight bodies, and 
little heads. Their faces are oval, 
their foreheads flat, with black small 
eyes, short low noses, pretty large 
mouths ; their lips thin and red, their 
teeth black yet very sound, their 
hair black and straight, the colour 
of their skin tawny, but inclining to 
a brighter yellow than some other 
Indians, especially the women. They 
have a ciistom to wear their thumb- 
nails very long, especially that on 



OF MINDANAO. 205 

their left thumb, for they do never cut 
it, but scrape it often. They are 
endowed with good natural wits, are 
ingenious, nimble, and active when 
they are minded ; but generally very 
lazy and thievish, and will not work 
except forced by hunger. This lazi- 
ness is natural to most Indians ; but 
these people's laziness seems rather 
to proceed not so much from their 
natural inclinations, as from the 
severity of their prince, of whom they 
stand in great awe : for he dealing 
with them very arbitrarily, and tak- 
ing from them what they get, this 
damps their industry, so they never 
strive to have anything but from hand 
to mouth. They are generally proud, 
and walk very stately. They are civil 
enough to strangers, and will easily be 
acquainted with them, and entertain 
them with great freedom ; but they are 
implacable to their enemies, and very 
revengeful if they are injured, fre- 
quently poisoning socretly those that 
have affronted them. They wear but 
few clothes ; their heads are circled 
with a short turban, fringed or laced 
at both ends ; it goes once about the 
head, and is tied in a knot, the laced 
ends hanging down. They wear frocks 
and breeches, but no stockings nor 
shoes. 

The women are fairer than the 
men, and their hair is black and long ; 
which they tie in a knot, that hangs 
back in their polls. 2 They are more 
round-visaged than the men, and 
generally well featured ; only their 
noses are very small, and so low be- 
tween their eyes, that in some of the 
female'children the risingthat should be 
between the eyes is scarce discernible ; 
neither is there any sensible rising in 
their foreheads. At a distance they 
appear very well, but being nigh 
these impediments are very obvious. 
They have very small limbs. They 
wear but two garments ; a frock, and 
a sort of petticoat : the petticoat is 
only a piece of cloth sewed both ends 
together : but it is made two feet too 
big for their waists, so that they may 
wear either end uppermost : that part 



1 The better civilised. 



2 Behind their heads. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. .[CHAP. XII, 



206 



that comes up to their waists, because 
it is so much too big, they gather in 
their hands and twist it till it sits 
close to their waists, tucking in the 
twisted part between the waist and 
the edge of the petticoat, which keeps 
it close. The frock sits loose about 
them, and reaches down a little below 
the waist. The sleeves are a great 
deal longer than their arms, and so 
small at the end, that their hands 
will scarce go through. Being on, 
the sleeve sits in folds about the 
wrist ; wherein they take great pride. 
The better sort of people have their 
garments made of long-cloth ; but 
the ordinary sort wear cloth made of 
plantain-tree, which they call saggen ; 
by which name they call the plantain. 
They have neither stocking nor shoe ; 
and the women have very small feet. 
The women are very desirous of the 
company of strangers, especially of 
white men ; and doubtless would be 
very familiar, if the custom of the 
country did not debar them from that 
freedom which seems coveted by them. 
Yet from the highest to the lowest 
they are allowed liberty to converse 
with or treat strangers in the sight 
of their husbands. There is a kind 
of begging custom at Mindanao that 
I have not met elsewhere with in all 
my travels, and which I believe is 
owing to the little trade they have ; 
which is thus : when strangers arrive 
here, the Mindanao men will come 
aboard, and invite them to their 
houses, and inquire who has a com- 
rade (which word I believe they have 
from the Spaniards) or a pagally, and 
who has not. A comrade is a familiar 
male friend ; a pagally is an innocent 
platonic friend of the other sex. All 
strangers are in a manner obliged to 
accept of this acquaintance and 
familiarity, which must be first pur- 
chased with a small present, and 
afterwards confirmed with some gift 
or other to continue the acquaintance : 
and as often as the stranger goes 
ashore, he is welcome to his comrade's 
or pagally's house, where he may be 
entertained for his money, to eat, 
drink, or sleep; and complimented 
with tobacco and betel-nut, which is 



all the entertainment he must expect 
gratis. The richest men's wives are 
allowed the freedom to converse with 
her pagally in public, and may give 
or receive presents from him. Even 
the Sultan's and the General's wives, 
who are always cooped up, will yet 
look out of their cages when a stranger 
passes by, and demand of him if he 
wants a pagally : and, to invite him 
to their friendship, will send a pre- 
sent of tobacco and betel-nut to him 
by their servants. 

The chief city on this island is 
called by the same name of Mindanao. 
It is seated on the south side of the 
island in Lat. 7 20' N. on the banks 
of a small river about two miles from 
the sea. The manner of building is 
somewhat strange, yet generally used 
in this part of the East Indies. Their 
houses are all built on posts about 14, 
16, 18, or 20 feet high. These posts 
are bigger or less, according to the 
intended magnificence of the super- 
structure. They have but one floor, 
but many partitions or rooms, and a 
ladder or stairs to go up out of the 
streets. The roof is large, and cover- 
ed with palmetto or palm leaves. So 
there is a clear passage like a piazza 
(but a filthy one) under the house. 
Some of the poorer people that keep 
ducks or hens have a fence made 
round the posts of their houses, 
with a door to go in and out ; and 
this under-room serves for no other 
use. Some use this place for the com- 
mon draught 1 of their houses ; but, 
building mostly close by the river in 
all parts of the Indies, they make the 
river receive all the filth of their 
houses ; and at the time of the land- 
floods all is washed very clean. The 
Sultan's house is much bigger than 
any of the rest. It stands on about 
180 great posts or trees, a great deal 
higher than the common building, 
with great broad stairs made to go up. 
In the first room he has about twenty 
iron guns, all saker and minion, 2 



1 Closet. 

2 That is, all of small calibre ; the 
"saker extraordinary," with a charge 
of 51bs. of powder, carried a 7-lb. 



1686.] 



MANNERS AND CUSTOMS AT MINDANAO. 



207 



placed on field-carriages. The Gene- 
ral and other great men have some 
guns also in their houses. About 
twenty paces from the Sultan's house 
there is a small low house built pur- 
posely for the reception of ambassa- 
dors or merchant strangers. This 
also stands on posts, but the floor is 
not raised above three or four feet 
above the ground, and is neatly mat- 
ted purposely for the Sultan and his 
Council to sit on, for they use no 
chairs, but sit cross-legged like tailors 
on the floor. The common food at 
Mindanao is rice or sago, and a small 
fish or two. The better sort eat buf- 
falo, or fowls, ill dressed, and abun- 
dance of rice with it. They use no 
spoons to eat their rice, but every 
man takes a handful out of the platter, 
and by wetting his hand in water 
that it may not stick to his hand, 
squeezes it into a lump as hard as 
possibly he can make it, and then 
crams it into his mouth. They all 
strive to make these lumps as big as 
their mouths can receive them, and 
seem to vie with each other and glory 
in taking in the biggest lump, so that 
sometimes they almost choke them- 
selves. They always wash after meals, 
or if they touch anything that is un- 
clean ; for which reason they spend 
abundance of water in their houses. 
This water, with the washing of their 
dishes, and what other filth they 
make, they pour down near their fire- 
place, for their chambers are not 
boarded but floored with split bam- 
boos like laths, so that the water 
presently falls underneath their dwell- 
ing-rooms, where it breeds maggots 
and makes a prodigious stink. Be- 
sides this filthiness, the sick people 
ease themselves and make water in 
their chambers, there being a small 
hole made purposely in the floor to 
let it drop through; but healthy 
sound people commonly ease them- 
selves and make water in the river. 
For that reason you shall always see 
abundance of people of both sexes in 



ball ; the smallest saker, with a 3 Ib. 
charge, a 4|-lb. ball. The minion 
was still a smaller piece. 



the river from morning till night- 
some easing themselves, others wash- 
ing their bodies or clothes. If they 
come into the river purposely to wash 
their clothes, they strip and stand 
naked till they have done, then put 
them on and march out again. Both 
men and women take great delight in 
swimming and washing themselves, 
being bred to it from their infancy. 

In the city of Mindanao they spoke 
two languages indifferently, their own 
Mindanao language and the Malay ; 
but in other parts of the island they 
speak only their proper language, 
having little commerce abroad. They 
have schools, and instruct the chil- 
dren to read and write, and bring 
them up in the Mahometan religion. 
Therefore many of the words, especi- 
ally their prayers, are in Arabic, and 
many of the words of civility the 
same as in Turkey; and especially 
when they meet in the morning, or 
take leave of each other, they express 
themselves in that language. Many 
of the old people, both men and 
women, can speak Spanish, for the 
Spaniards were formerly settled among 
them, and had several forts on this 
island ; and then they sent two friars 
to this city to convert the Sultan of 
Mindanao and his people. At that 
time these people began to learn 
Spanish, and the Spaniards encroach- 
ed on them and endeavoured to bring 
them into subjection ; and probably 
before this time had brought them all 
under their yoke if they themselves 
had not been drawn off from this 
island to Manilla to resist the Chinese, 
who threatened to invade them there. 
"When the Spaniards were gone, the 
old Sultan of Mindanao, father to the 
present, in whose time it was, razed 
and demolished their forts, brought 
away their guns, and sent away the 
friars ; and since that time [they] will 
not suffer the Spaniards to settle 011 
the islands. They are now most 
afraid of the Dutch, being sensible 
how they have enslaved many of the 
neighbouring islands. For that rea- 
son they have a long time desired the 
English to settle among them, and 
have offered them any convenient 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUKD THE WORLD. [CHAP. XII. 



208 

place to build a fort in, as the General 
himself told us ; giving this reason, 
that they do not find the English so 
encroaching as the Dutch or Spanish. 
The Dutch are no less jealous of their 
admitting the English, for they are 
sensible what detriment it would be 
to them if the English should settle 
here. 

There are but few tradesmen at the 
city of Mindanao. The chief trades 
are goldsmiths, blacksmiths, and car- 
penters. There are but two or three 
goldsmiths ; these will work in gold 
or silver, and make anything that you 
desire ; but they have no shop fur- 
nished with ware ready for sale. Here 
are several blacksmiths who work 
very well considering the tools that 
they work with. l . . . 

The Mindanao men have many 
wives, but what ceremonies are used 
when they marry I know not. There 
is commonly a great feast made by 
the bridegroom to entertain his friends, 
and the most part of the night is spent 
in mirth. 

The Sultan is absolute in his power 
over all his subjects. He is but a poor 
prince; for, as I mentioned be- 
fore, they have but little trade, and 
therefore cannot be rich. If the Sul- 
tan understands that any man has 
money, if it be but twenty dollars, 
which is a great matter among them, 
he will send to borrow so much money, 
pretending urgent occasions for it, 
and they dare not deny him. Some- 
times he will send to sell one thing 
or another that he has to dispose of 
to such whom he knows to have 
money, and they must buy it and 
give him his price ; and if afterwards 
he has occasion for the same thing he 
must have it if he sends for it. He 
is but a little man, between fifty and 
sixty years old, and by relation very 



1 The men there are described as 
accustomed to the use of the axe and 
adze. They also built serviceable 
ships, their principal article of export 
being gold, bees-wax, and tobacco. 
The natives were much subject to a 
kind of leprosy, which showed itself 
in a dry scurf all over their bodies. 



good-natured, but overruled by those 
about him. He has a queen, and 
keeps about twenty women, or wives, 
more, in whose company he spends 
most of his tim e. He has one daughter 
by his Sultaness or queen, and a great 
many sons and daughters by the rest. 
These walk about the streets, and 
would be always begging things of us ; 
but it is reported that the young 
Princess is kept in a room and never 
stirs out, and that she did never see 
any man but her father and Kaja 
Laut her uncle, being then about 
fourteen years old. When the Sultan 
visits his friends, he is carried in a 
small couch on four men's shoulders, 
with eight or ten armed men to guard 
him ; but he never goes far this way, 
for the country is very woody, and 
they have but little paths, which ren- 
ders it the less commodious. When 
he takes his pleasure by water, he car- 
ries some of his wives along with him. 
The proas that are built for this pur- 
pose are large enough to entertain 
fifty or sixty persons or more. The 
hull is neatly built, with a round 
head and stern, and over the hull 
there is a small slight house built 
with bamboos ; the sides are made up 
with split bamboos about four feet 
high, with little windows in them of 
the same to open and shut at their 
pleasure. The roof is almost flat, 
neatly thatched with palmetto leaves. 
This house is divided into two or 
three small partitions or chambers, 
one particularly for himself. This is 
neatly matted underneath and round 
the sides, and there is a carpet and 
pillows for him to sleep on. The 
second room is for his women, much 
like the former. The third is for the 
servants, who tend them with tobacco 
and betel-nut, for they are always 
chewing or smoking. 

The Sultan has a brother called 
Raja Laut, a brave man. He is the 
second man in the kingdom. All 
strangers that come hither to trade 
must make their address to him, for 
all sea affairs belong to him. He 
licenses strangers to import or export 
any commodity, and it is by his per- 
mission that the natives themsslvea 



1G86.] RELIGIOUS RITES 

are suffered to trade ; naj , the very 
fishermen must take a permit from 
him ; so that there is no man can 
come into the river or go out but by 
his leave. He is two or three years 
younger than the Sultan, and a little 
man like him. He has eight women, 
by some of whom he has issue. He 
has only one son, about twelve or 
fourteen years old, who was circum- 
cised while we were there. His eldest 
son died a little before we came 
thither, for whom he was still in 
great heaviness. If he had lived a 
little longer he should have married 
the young Princess ; but whether 
this second son must have her I know 
not, for I did never hear any dis- 
course about it. Raja Laut is a very 
sharp man ; he speaks and writes 
Spanish, which he learned in his 
youth. He has, by often conversing 
Avith strangers, got a great insight 
into the customs of other nations, and 
by Spanish books has some knowledge 
of Europe. He is General of the Min- 
danayans, and is accounted an expert 
soldier and a very stout man ; and the 
women in their dances sing many 
songs in his praise. The Sultan of 
Mindanao sometimes makes war with 
his neighbours the Mountaineers or 
Alfoores. Their weapons are swords, 
lances, and some hand cressets. 1 The 
cresset is a small thing like a bayonet, 
which they always wear in war or 
peace, at work or play, from the 
greatest of them to the poorest and 
meanest persons. They never meet 
each other so as to have a pitched 
battle, but they build small works or 
Ibrts of timber, wherein they plant 
little guns, and lie in sight of each 
other two or three months, skirmishing 
every day in small parties, and some- 
times surprising a breastwork ; and 
whatever side is like to be worsted, if 
they have no probability to escape by 
flight, they sell their lives as dear as 
they can ; for there is seldom any 
quarter given, but the conqueror cuts 
and hacks his enemies to pieces. 



OF THE NATIVES. 



209 



1 Creeses ; the Malay dagger, with 
zig-zag blade, often poisoned at th 
point. 



The religion of these people is 
Mahometanism. Friday is their 
Sabbath ; but I did never see any 
difference that they make between 
;his day and any other day, only the 
Sultan himself goes then to his 
mosque twice. Raja Laut never goes 
;o the mosque, but prays at certain 
lours, eight or ten times in a day ; 
yherever he is, he is very punctual to 
lis canonical hours, and if he be aboard 
,vill go ashore on purpose to pray. For 
no business nor company hinders him 
Tom his duty. Whether he is at 
lome or abroad, in a house or in a 
leld, he leaves all his company, and 
S about 100 yards off, and there 
ineels down to his devotion. He 
first kisses the ground, then prays 
aloud, and divers times in his prayers 
tie kisses the ground, and does the 
same when he leaves off. His ser- 
vants, and his wives and children 
talk and sing, or play how they 
please, all the time, but himself is 
very serious. The meaner sort of 
people have little devotion ; I did 
never see any of them at their prayers, 
or go into a mosque. In the Sultan's 
mosque there is a great drum with 
but one head, called a gong, which is 
instead of a clock. This gong is 
beaten at 12 o'clock, at three, six, 
and nine ; a man being appointed for 
that service. He has a stick as big 
as a man's arm, with a great knob at 
the end, bigger than a man's fist, 
made with cotton, bound fast with 
small cords ; with this he strikes the 
gong as hard as he can about twenty 
strokes, beginning to strike leisurely 
the first five or six strokes ; then he 
strikes faster, and at last strikes as 
fast as he can, and then he strikes 
again slower and slower so many more 
strokes ; thus he rises and falls three 
times, and then leaves off till three 
hours after. This is done night and 
day. 

They circumcise the males at eleven 
or twelve years of age or older ; and 
many are circumcised at once. This 
ceremony is performed with a great 
deal of solemnity. There had been 
no circumcision for some years before 
our being here, and then there was 
O 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XII. 



210 

one for Raja Laut's son. They choose 
to have a general circumcision when 
the Sultan or General or some other 
great person has a son fit to be cir- 
cumcised ; for with him a great many 
more are circumcised. There is 
notice given about eight or ten days 
before, for all men to appear in arms, 
and great preparation is made against 
the solemn day. In the morning, 
before the boys are circumcised, pre- 
sents are sent to the father of the 
child that keeps the feast, which, as 
I said before, is either the Sultan 
or some great person j and, about 
10 or 11 o'clock, the Mahometan 
priest does his office. After this, 
most of the men, both in city and 
country, being in arms before the 
house, begin to act as if they were 
engaged with an enemy, having 
such arms as I described. Only one 
acts at a time, the rest make a great 
ring of 200 or 300 yards round 
about him. He that is to exercise 
comes into the ring with a great 
shriek or two, and a horrid look; 
then he fetches two or three large 
stately strides, and falls to work. He 
holds his broadsword in one hand, 
and his lance in the other, and tra- 
verses his ground, leaping from one 
side of the ring to the other, and in a 
menacing posture and look, bids de- 
fiance to the enemy whom his fancy 
frames to him, for there is nothing 
but air to oppose him. Then he 
stamps and shakes his head, and grin- 
ning with his teeth, makes many rue- 
ful faces. Then he throws his lance, 
and nimbly snatches out his cresset, 
with which he hacks and hews the 
air like a madman, often shrieking. 
At last, being almost tired with 
motion, he flies to the middle of the 
ring, where he seems to have his 
enemy at his mercy ; and with two 
or three blows cuts on the ground as 
if he was cutting off his enemy's 
head. By this time he is all of a 
sweat, and withdraws triumphantly 
out of the ring, and presently an- 
other enters with the like shrieks and 
gestures. Thus they continue com- 
bating their imaginary enemy all the 
rest of the day ; towards the con- 



elusion of which the richest men act, 
and at last the General, and then the 
Sultan concludes this ceremony. He 
and the General with some other 
great men, are in armour, but the 
rest have none. After this the Sultan 
returns home, accompanied with 



abundance of 



people, 
the ar 



who wait on 



him there till they are dismissed. 

But at the time when we were 
there there was an after-game to be 
played ; for the General's son being 
then circumcised, the Sultan in- 
tended to give him a second visit in 
the night ; so they all waited to 
attend him thither. The General 
also provided to meet him in the best 
manner, and therefore desired Cap- 
tain Swan with his men to attend 
him. Accordingly Captain Swan. or- 
dered us to get our guns, and wait at 
the General's house till further orders. 
So about forty of us waited till 8 
o'clock in the evening, when the 
General, with Captain Swan, and 
about 1000 men, went to meet the 
Sultan, with abundance of torches 
that made it as light as day. The 
manner of the march was thus : first 
of all there was a pageant, 1 and upon 
it two dancing-women gorgeously 
apparelled, with coronets on their 
heads full of glittering spangles, and 
pendants of the same hanging down 
over their breasts and shoulders. 
These are women bred up purposely 
for dancing ; their feet and legs are 
but little employed, except some- 
times to turn round very gently ; but 
their hands, arms, head, and body 
are in continual motion, especially 
their arms, which they turn and twist 
so strangely, that you would think 
them to be made without bones. Be- 
sides the two dancing-women, there 
were two old women in the pageant, 
holding each a lighted torch in their 
hands close by the dancing-women, 
by which light the glittering spangles 
appeared very gloriously. This pa- 
geant was carried by six lusty men. 
Then came six or seven torches, light- 
ing the General and Captain Swan, 
who marched side by side next ; and 



A decorated or triumphal chariot. 



1686.] 



A GREAT PROCESSION. 



211 



we that attended Captain Swan fol- 
lowed close after, marching in order 
six and six abreast, with each man 
his gun on his shoulder, and torches 
on each side. After us came twelve 
of the General's men, with old Span- 
ish matchlocks, marching four in a 
row ; after them about forty lances, 
and behind them as many with great 
swords, marching all in order. After 
them came abundance only with cres- 
sets by their sides, who marched up 
close without any order. When we 
came near the Sultan's house the 
Sultan and his men met us, and we 
wheeled off to let them pass. The 
Sultan had three pageants went be- 
fore him. In the first pageant were 
four of his sons, who were about ten 
or eleven years old ; they had gotten 
abundance of small stones, which 
they roguishly threw about on the 
people's heads. In the next were 
four young maidens, nieces to the 
Sultan, being his sisters' daughters ; 
and in the third there were three of 
the Sultan's children, not above six 
years old. The Sultan himself fol- 
lowed next, being carried in his couch, 
which was not like your Indian 
palanquins, but open, and very little 
and ordinary. A multitude of people 
came after, without any order ; but 
as soon as he was past by, the General 
and Captain Swan and all our men 
closed in just behind the Sultan, and 
so all marched together to the Gene- 
ral's house. We came thither be- 
tween ten and eleven o'clock, where 
the biggest part of the company were 
immediately dismissed ; but the Sul- 
tan and his children and his nieces, 
and some other persons of quality, 
entered the General's house. They 
were met at the head of the stairs by 
the General's women, who with a 
great deal of respect conducted them 
into the house. Captain Swan and 
we that were with him followed after. 
It was not long before the General 
caused his dancing-women to enter 



the room and divert the 



company 



with that pastime. I had forgot to 
tell you that they have none but vocal 
music here, by what I could learn, 
except only a row of kind of bells 



without clappers ; sixteen in number, 
and their weight increasing gradually 
from about three to ten pounds' 
weight. These were set in a row on 
a table in the General's house, where 
for seven or eight days together before 
the circumcision day they were struck 
each with a little stick for the big- 
gest part of the day, making a great 
noise ; and they ceased that morning. 
So these dancing-women sung them- 
selves, and danced to their own music. 
After this the General's women and 
the Sultan's sons and his nieces 
danced. Two of the Sultan's nieces 
were about eighteen or nineteen years 
old, the other two were three or four 
years younger. These young ladies 
were very richly dressed with loose 
garments of silk, and small coronets 
on their heads. They were much 
fairer than any women that I did ever 
see there, and very well featured ; 
and their noses, though but small, 
yet higher than the other women's, 
and very well proportioned. When 
the ladies had very well diverted 
themselves and the company with 
dancing, the General caused us to 
fire some sky-rockets that were made 
by his and Captain Swan's orders 
purposely for this night's solemnity ; 
and after that the Sultan and his 
retinue went away with a few atten- 
dants, and we all broke up ; and thus 
ended this day's solemnity. 

They are not, as I said before, very 
curious or strict in observing any days 
or times of particular devotion, ex- 
cept it be the Eamdam time, 1 as we 
call it. The Ramdam time was then 
in August, as I take it, for it was 
shortly after OUT arrival here. In 
this time they fast all day, and about 
7 o'clock in the evening they spend 
near an hour in prayer. Towards 
the latter end of their prayer they 
loudly invoke their Prophet for about 
a quarter of an hour, both old and 
young bawling out very strangely, as 
if they intended to fright him out of 
his sleepiness or neglect of them. 
After their prayer is ended, they 

1 The Fast of Ramadan, the Maho- 
metan Lent. 



212 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



spend some time in feasting before 
they take their repose. Thus they 
do every day for a whole month at 
least, for sometimes it is two or three 
days longer before the Ramdam ends ; 
for it begins at the new moon, and 
lasts till they see the next new moon, 
\vhich sometimes in thick, hazy 
weather is not till three or four days 
after the change, as it happened 
while I was at A chin, where they 
continued the Ramdam till the new 
moon's appearance. The next day 
after they have seen the new moon, 
the guns are all discharged about 
noon, and then the time ends. A 
main part of their religion consists in 
washing often, to keep themselves 
from being denied, or after they are 
defiled to cleanse themselves again. 
They also take great care to keep 
themselves from being polluted by 
tasting or touching anything that is 
accounted unclean ; therefore swine's 
flesh is very abominable to them ; 
nay, any one that has either tasted of 
swine's flesh, or touched those crea- 
tures, is not permitted to come into 
their houses in many days after; and 
there is nothing will scare them more 
than a swine. Yet there are wild 
hogs in the island, and" those so plen- 
tiful that they will come in troops 
out of the woods in the night into 
the very city, and come under their 
houses, to rummage up and down the 
filth that they find there. The natives 
therefore would even desire us to lie 
in wait for the hogs to destroy them, 
which we did frequently by shooting 
them and carrying them presently on 
board ; but were prohibited their 
houses afterwards. And now I am 
on this subject, I cannot omit a story 
concerning the General. He once 
desired to have a pair of shoes made 
after the English fashion, though he 
did very seldom wear any ; so one of 
our men made him a pair, which the 
General liked very well. Afterwards 
somebody told him, that the threads 
wherewith the shoes were sewed were 
pointed with hog's bristles. This put 
him into a great passion ; so he sent 
the shoes to the man that made them, 
and sent him withal more leather to 



[CHAP. XIII. 

make another pair, with threads 
pointed with some other hair, which 
was immediately done, and then he 
was well pleased. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

HAVING in the two last Chapters 
given some account of the natural, 
civil, and religious state of Mindanao, 
I shall now go on with the prosecution 
of our affairs during our stay there. 
It was in a bay on the NE. side of 
the island that we came to an anchor, 
as li as been said. We lay in this bay 
but one night and part of the next 
day. Yet there we got speech with 
some of the natives, who by signs 
made us understand that the city 
Mindanao was on the west side of the 
island. We endeavoured to persuade 
one of them to go with ITS to be our 
pilot, but he would not; therefore in 
the afternoon we loosed from hence, 
steering again to the SE., having the 
wind at S'W. When we came to the 
SE. end of the Island Mindanao, we 
saw two small islands about three 
leagues distant from it. 1 We might 
have passed between them and the 
main island, as we learned since ; but 
not knowing them nor what dangers 
we might encounter there, we chose 
rather to sail to the eastward of them. 
But meeting very strong westerly 
winds, we got nothing forward in 
many days. In this time we first 
saw the Islands Meangis, which are 
about sixteen leagues distant from the 
Mindanao, bearing SE. The 4th of 
July we got into a deep bay, four 
leagues NW. from the two small 
islands before mentioned. But the 
night before, in a violent tornado, 
our bark, being unable to beat any 
longer, bore away; which put us in 
some pain for fear she was overset, as 
we had like to have been ourselves. 
We anchored on Ithe SW. side of the 
bay, in fifteen fathoms water, about 
a cable's length from the shore. Here 



1 The Serangani Islands, off tho 
southernmost point of Mindanao. 



1G86.J A VISIT FROM RAJA LAUT. 

we were forced to shelter ourselves 

from the violence of the weather, 

which was so boisterous with rains 

and tornadoes and a strong westerly 

wind, that we were very glad to find 

this place to anchor in, being the 

only shelter on this side from the 

west winds. On the west side of the 

bay, the land is of a mean height, 

with a large savannah bordering on 



the sea, and stretching from the month 
of the bay a great way to the west- 
ward. This savannah abounds with 
long grass, and it is plentifully stocked 
with deer. The adjacent woods are a 
covert for them in the heat of the 
day ; but mornings and evenings they 
feed in the open plains, as thick as in 
our parks in England. I never saw 
anywhere such plenty of wild deer, 
though I have met with them in 
several parts of America, both in the 
North and South Seas. The deer live 
here pretty peaceably and unmolested, 
for there are no inhabitants on that 
side of the bay. "We visited this 
savannah every morning, and killed 
as many deer as we pleased, sometimes 
sixteen or eighteen in a day ; and we 
did eat nothing but venison all the 
time we stayed here. We saw a great 
many plantations by the sides of the 
mountains on the east side of the 
bay, and we went to one of them, in 
hopes to learn of the inhabitants 
whereabouts the city was, that we 
might not oversail it in the night, 
but they fled from us. 

We lay here till the 12th before the 
winds abated of their fury, and then 
we sailed from hence, directing our 
course to the westward. Being now 
past the SE. part of the island, we 
coasted down on the south side, and 
we saw abundance of canoes a-nshing, 
and now and then a small village. 
Neither were these inhabitants afraid 
of us as the former, but came aboard; 
j^et we could not understand them, 
nor they us, but by signs ; and when 
we mentioned the word Mindanao, 
they would point towards it. The 
18th of July we arrived before the 
River of Mindanao. We anchored 
right against the river in fifteen 
fathoms water, clear hard sand, about 



213 

two miles from the shore. We fired 
seven or nine guns, I remember not 
well which, and were answered again 
with three from the shore, for which 
we gave one again. Immediately after 
our coming to an anchor, Raja Laut 
and one of the Sultan's sons came off 
in a canoe, being rowed with ten oars, 
and demanded in Spanish what we 
were and from whence we came. Mr 



Smith (he who was taken prisoner at 
Leon in Mexico) answered in the same 
language that we were English, that 
we had been a great while out of 
England. They told us that we were 
welcome, and asked us a great many 
questions about England, especially 
concerning our East India merchants, 
and whether we were sent by them to 
settle a factory here. Mr Smith told 
them that we came hither only to buy 
provision. They seemed a little dis- 
contented Avhen they understood that 
we were not come to settle among 
them ; for they had heard of our ar- 
rival on the east side of the island a 
great while before, and entertained 
hopes that we were sent purposely out 
of England hither to settle a trade 
with them ; which it should seem 
they are very desirous of, for Captain 
Goodlud had been here not long be- 
fore to treat with them about it, and 
when he went away he told them, as 
they said, that in a short time they 
might expect an ambassador from 
England to make a full bargain with 
them. Indeed, upon mature thoughts 
I should think we could not have 
done better than to have complied 
with the desire they seemed to have 
of our settling here, and to have taken 
up our quarters among them. For as 
thereby we might better have con- 
sulted our own profit and satisfaction 
than by the other loose roving way 
of life ; so it might probably have 
proved of public benefit to our nation, 
and been a means of introducing an 
English settlement and trade, not 
only here, but through several of the 
spice islands which lie in its neigh- 
bourhood. For the Islands Meangis, 
which I mentioned in the beginning 
of this Chapter, lie within twenty 
leagues of Mindanao. These are 



2U DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



three small islands that abound with 
gold and cloves, if I may credit my 
author, 1 Prince Jeoly, who was born 
on one of them, and was at this time 
a slave in the city of Mindanao. He 
might have been purchased by us of 
his master for a small matter, as he 
was afterwards by Mr Moody, who 
came hither to trade, and laded a 
ship with clove bark ; and by trans- 
porting him home to his own country 
we might have gotten a trade there. 
But of Prince Jeoly I shall speak 
more hereafter. These islands are as 
yet probably unknown to the Dutch, 
who, as I said before, endeavour to 
engross all the spice into their own 
hands. There was another oppor- 
tunity offered us here of settling on 
another spice island that was very 
well inhabited ; for the inhabitants 
fearing the Dutch, and understand- 
ing that the English were settling at 
Mindanao, their Sultan sent his 
nephew to Mindanao while we were 
there to invite us thither. Captain 
Swan conferred with him about it 
divers times, and I do believe he had 
some inclination to accept the offer ; 
and I am sure most of the men were 
for it ; but this never came to a head 
for want of a true understanding be- 
tween Captain Swan and his men, as 
may be declared hereafter. Besides 
the benefit which might accrue from- 
this trade with Meangis and other 
spice islands, the Philippine Islands 
themselves, by a little care and in- 
dustry, might have afforded us a very 
beneficial trade ; and all these trades 
might have been managed from Min- 
danao by settling there first. For 
that island lies very convenient for 
trading either to the Spice Islands or 
to the rest of the Philippine Islands ; 
since, as its soil is much of the same 
nature with either of them, so it lies, 
as it were, in the centre of the gold and 
spice trade in these parts ; the islands 
north of Mindanao abounding most 
in gold, and those south of Meangis 
in spice. ... As to the capacity 
we were then in of settling ourselves 
at Mindanao, although we were not 



1 Authority, informant. 



[CHAP. XIII. 
sent out of any such design of settling, 
yet we were as well provided, or 
better, considering all circumstances, 
than if we had. For there was 
scarce any useful trade but some 
or others of us understood it. We 
had sawyers, carpenters, joiners, 
brickmakers, bricklayers, shoemakers, 
tailors, &c. ; we only wanted a good 
smith for great work, which we 
might have had at Mindanao. We 
were very well provided with iron, 
lead, and all sorts of tools, as saws, 
axes, hammers, &c. We had powder 
and shot enough, and very good 
small arms. If we had designed to 
build a fort, we could have spared 
eight or ten guns out of our ship, and 
men enough to have managed it, and 
any affair of trade beside. We had 
also a great advantage above raw 
men that are sent out of England into 
these places, who proceed usually too 
cautiously, coldly, and formally, to 
compass any considerable design, 
which experience better teaches than 
any rules whatsoever; besides the 
danger of their lives in so great and 
sudden a change of air, whereas we 
were all inured to hot climates, hard- 
ened by many fatigues, and in gene- 
ral daring men, and such as would 
not be easily baffled. To add one 
thing more, our men were almost 
tired, and began to desire a quietus 
est ; and therefore they would gladly 
have seated themselves anywhere. 
We had a good ship, too, and enough 
of us (besides what might have been 
spared to manage our new settlement) 
to bring the news with the effects to 
the owners in England ; for Captain 
Swan had already 5000 in gold, 
which he and his merchants received 
for goods sold mostly to Captain 
Harris and his men, which if he had 
laid but part of it out in spice, as 
probably he might have done, would 
have satisfied the merchants to their 
hearts' content. So much by way of 
digression. 

To proceed therefore with our first 
reception at Mindanao. Raja Laut 
and his nephew sat still in their 
canoe and would not come aboard us, 
because, as they said, they had no 



1686.] 



SCHEMES OF THE EAST INDIA COMPANY. 



215 



orders for it from the SuUan. After 
about half-an -hour's discourse they 
took their leaves, first inviting Cap- 
tain Swan ashore, and promising him 
to assist him in getting provision, 
which they said at present was scarce, 
but in three or four months' time the 
rice would be gathered in, and then 
he might have as much as he pleased, 
and that in the meantime he might 
secure his ship in some convenient 
place for fear of the westerly winds, 
which they said would be very violent 
at the latter end of this month and all 
the next, as we found them. We did 
not know the quality of these two 
persons till after they were gone, else 
we should have fired some guns at 
their departure. When they were 
gone, a certain officer under the Sul- 
tan came aboard and measured our 
ship, a custom derived from the 
Chinese, who always measure the 
length and breadth and the depth of 
the hold of all ships that come to 
load there, by which means they 
know how much each ship will carry. 
But for what reason this custom is 
used either by the Chinese or Minda- 
nao men I could never learn, unless 
the Mindanayans design by this means 
to improve their skill in shipping, 
against they have a trade. Captain 
Swan, considering that the season of 
the year would oblige us to spend 
some time at this island, thought it 
convenient to make what interest he 
could with the Sultan, who might 
afterwards either obstruct or advance 
his designs. He therefore immedi- 
ately provided a present to send 
ashore to the Sultan, viz. , three yards 
of scarlet cloth, three yards of broad 
gold lace, a Turkish scimitar, and a 
pair of pistols ; and to Raja Laut he 
sent three yards of scarlet cloth and 
three yards of silver lace. This pre- 
sent was carried by Mr Henry More 
in the evening. He was first con- 
ducted to Raja Laut's house, where 
he remained till report thereof was 
made to the Sultan, who immedi- 
ately gave order for all things to be 
made ready to receive him. About 9 
o'clock at night a messenger came 
from the Sultan to bring the present 



away. Then Mr More was conducted 
all the way, with torches and armed 
men, till he came to the house where 
the Sultan was. The Sultan, with 
eight or ten men of his Council, were 
seated on carpets waiting his coming. 
The present that Mr More brought 
was laid down before them, and was 
very kindly accepted by the Sultan, 
who caused Mr More to sit down 
by them, and asked a great many 
questions of him. The discourse 
was in Spanish by an interpre- 
ter. This conference lasted about 
an hour, and then he was dismissed, 
and returned again to Raja Laut's 
house. There was a supper provided 
for him and the boat's crew, after 
which he returned aboard. 

The next day the Sultan sent for 
Captain Swan. He immediately wen t 
ashore, with a flag flying in the boat's 
head, and two trumpets sounding all 
the way. When he came ashore he 
was met at his landing by two prin- 
cipal officers, guarded along with sol- 
diers, and abundance of people gazing 
to see him. The Sultan waited for 
him in his chamber of audience, where 
Captain Swan was treated with to- 
bacco and betel, which was all his 
entertainment. The Sultan sent for 
two English letters for Captain Swan 
to read, purposely to let him know 
that our East India merchants did 
design to settle here, and that they 
had already sent a ship hither. One of 
these letters was sent to the Sultan from 
England by the East India merchants. 
The chief thing contained in it, as I re- 
member for I saw it afterwards in the 
Secretary's hand, who was very proud 
to show it to us was to desire some 
privileges in order to the building of 
a fort there. This letter was written 
in a very fair hand, and between each 
line there was a gold line drawn. The 
other letter was left by Captain Good- 
lud, directed to any Englishmen who 
should happen to come thither. This 
related wholly to trade, giving an 
account at what rate he had agreed 
with them for goods of the island, 
and how European goods should be 
sold to them ; with an account of 
their weights and measures, and their 



216 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XIII, 



difference from ours. Captain Good- 
lud's letter concluded thus: ''Trust 
none of them, for they are all thieves, 
but tacc is Latin for a candle." We 
understood afterwards that Captain 
Goodlud was robbed of some goods by 
one of the General's men, and that he 
that robbed him was fled into the 
mountains, and could not be found 
while Captain Goodlud was here. 
But the fellow returning to the city 
some time after our arrival here, Raja 
Laut brought him bound to Captain 
Swan, and told him what he had 
done, desiring him to punish him for 
it as he pleased ; but Captain Swan 
excused himself and said it did not 
belong to him, therefore he would 
have nothing to do with it. How- 
ever the General Raja Laut would not 
pardon him, but punished him ac- 
cording to their own custom. He was 
stripped stark naked in the morning 
at sun-rising, and bound to a post, 
so that he could not stir hand nor 
foot but as he was moved, and was 
placed with his face eastward against 
the sun. In the afternoon they 
turned his face towards the west that 
the sun might still be in his face, and 
thus he stood all day parched in the 
sun, which shines here excessively 
hot, and tormented with the mosqui- 
toes or gnats ; after this the General 
would have killed him if Captain 
8 wan had consented to it. Their 
common way of punishment is to 
strip them in this manner and place 
them in the sun, but sometimes they 
lay them flat on their backs on the 
sand, which is very hot, where they 
remain a whole day in the scorching 
sun, with the mosquitoes biting 
them all the time. This action 
of the General in offering Captain 
Swan the punishment of the thief, 
caused Captain Swan afterwards to 
make him the same offer of his 
men when any had offended the Min- 
danao men, but the General left such 
offenders to be punished by Captain 
Swan as he thought convenient. So 
that for the least offence Captain 
Swan punished his men, and that in 
the sight of the Mindanayans ; and I 
thick sometimes only for revenge, as 



he did once punish his chief mate Mr 
Tait, he that came captain of the 
bark to Mindanao. Indeed at that 
time Captain Swan had his men as 
much under command as if he had 
been in a king's ship; and had he 
known how to use his authority, he 
might have led them to any settle- 
ment and have brought them to assist 
him in any design he had pleased. 

Captain Swan being dismissed from 
the Sultan with abundance of civility, 
after about two hours' discourse with 
him, went thence to Raja Laut's 
house. Raja Laut had then some 
difference with the Sultan, and there- 
fore he was not present at the Sultan's 
reception of our Captain, but waited 
his return, and treated him and all 
his men with boiled rice and fowls. 
He then told Captain Swan again, 
and urged it to him, that it would be 
best to get his ship into the river as 
soon as he could, because of the usual 
tempestuous weather at this time of 
the year, and that he should want no 
assistance to further him in anything. 
He told him also that as we must of 
necessity stay here some time, so our 
men would often come ashore ; and he 
therefore desired him to warn his men 
to be careful to give no affront to the 
natives, who, he said, were very re- 
vengeful. That their customs being 
different from ours, he feared that 
Captain Swan's men might sometime 
or other offend them, though igno- 
rantly; that therefore he gave him 
this friendly warning to prevent it; 
that his house should always be open 
to receive him or any of his men ; and 
that he, knowing our customs, would 
never be offended at anything. After 
a great deal of such discourse he dis- 
missed the Captain and his company, 
who took their leave and came aboard. 
Captain Swan having seen the two 
letters, did not doubt that the English 
did design to settle a factory here ; 
therefore he did not much scruple 1 
the honesty of these people, but im- 
mediately ordered us to get the ship 
into the river. The river upon which 
the city of Mindanao stands is but 

1 Doubt, suspect. 



16SG.] 



HOSPITALITY OF THE MINDANAYANS. 



217 



small, and has not above "jen or eleven 
feet of water on the bar at a spring 
tide ; therefore we lightened our ship, 
and the spring coining on, we with 
much ado got her into the river, being 
assisted by fifty or sixty Mindanayan 
fishermen who lived at the mouth of 
the river, Raja Laut himself being 
aboard our ship to direct them. We 
carried her about a quarter of a mile 
up within the mouth of the river, and 
there moored her head and stern in a 
hole, where we always rode afloat. 
After this the citizens of Mindanao 
came frequently aboard to invite our 
men to their houses and to offer us 
pagallies. It was a long time since 
any of us had received such friend- 
ship, and therefore we were the more 
easily drawn to accept of their kind- 
nesses ; and in a very short time most 
of our men got a comrade or two, and 
as many pagallies, especially such of 
us as had good clothes and store of 
gold, as many had who were of the 
number of those that accompanied 
Captain Harris over the Isthmus of 
Darien, the rest of us being poor 
enough. Nay, the very poorest and 
meanest of us could hardly pass the 
streets but we were even hauled by 
force into their houses to be treated 
by them, although their treats were 
but mean, viz., tobacco or betel-nut, 
or a little sweet-spiced water. Yet 
their seeming sincerity, simplicity, 
and the manner of bestowing these 
gifts, made them very acceptable. 
When we came to their houses they 
would always be praising the English, 
as declaring that the English and 
Mindanayans were all one. This 
they expressed by putting their two 
forefingers close together, and saying 
that the English and Mindanayans 
were samo, samo that is, all one. 
Then they would draw their forefingers 
half a foot asunder and say the Dutch 
and they were bugeto, which signifies 
that they were at such distance in 
point of friendship. And for the 
Spaniards, they would make a greater 
representation of distance than for the 
Dutch, fearing these, but having felt 
and smarted from the Spaniards, who 
had once almost brought them under. 



Captain Swan did seldom go into 
any house at first but into Raja Laut's ; 
there he dined commonly every day ; 
and as many of his men as were 
ashore, and had no money to entertain 
themselves, resorted thither about 
12 o'clock, where they had rice 
enough boiled and well dressed, and 
some scraps of fowls or bits of buffalo 
dressed very nastily. Captain Swan 
was served a little better, and his two 
trumpeters sounded all the time that 
he was at dinner. After dinner Raja 
Laut would sit and discourse with 
him most part of the afternoon. It 
was now the Ramdam time, therefore 
the General excused himself that he 
could not entertain our Captain with 
dances and other pastimes as he in- 
tended to do when this solemn time 
was past, besides, it was the very 
height of the wet season, and there- 
fore not so proper for pastimes. . . . 

When the Ramdam time was over, 
and the dry time set in a little, the 
General, to oblige Captain Swan, en- 
tertained him every nightwith dances. 
The dancing-women that are pur- 
posely bred up to it, and make it 
their trade, I have already described. 
But besides them, all the women in 
general are much addicted to dancing. 
They dance forty or fifty at once, and 
thaft standing all round in a ring 
joined hand in hand, and singing and 
keeping time. But they never budge 
out of their places, nor make any 
motion till the chorus is sung ; then 
all at once they throw out one leg 
and bawl out aloud, and sometimes 
they only clap their hands when the 
chorus is sung. Captain Swan, to 
retaliate the General's favours, sent 
for his violins, and some that could 
dance English dances, wherewith the 
General was very well pleased. They 
commonly spent the biggest part of 
the nights in these sort of pastimes. 
Among the rest of our men that did 
use to dance thus before the General, 
there was one John Thacker, who was 
a seaman bred, and could neither 
write nor read, but had formerly 
learnt to dance in the music-houses 



bout Wapping. This man came into 
he South Seas with Captain Harris ; 



a 
the 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XIII. 



218 

and getting with him a good quantity 
of gold, and being a pretty good hus- 
band of his share, had still some left, 
besides what he laid out in a very 
good suit of clothes. The General 
supposed by his garb and his dancing 
that he had been of noble extraction, 
and, to be satisfied of his quality, 
asked of one of our men if he did not 
guess aright of him. The man of 
whom the General asked this question 
told him he was much in the right, 
and that most of our ship's company 
were of the like extraction, especially 
all those that had fine clothes, and 
that they came abroad only to see the 
world, having money enough to bear 
their expenses wherever they came; 
but that for the rest, those that had 
but mean clothes, they were only 
common seamen. After this the 
General showed a great deal of respect 
to all that had good clothes, but es- 
pecially to John Thacker, till Captain 
Swan came to know the business, and 
marred all, undeceiving the General, 
and drubbing the nobleman; for he 
was so much incensed against John 
l^acker that he could never endure 
lira afterwards, though the poor fel- 
low knew nothing of the matter. 

About the middle of November we 
began to work on our ship's bottom, 
which we found very much eaten with 
the worm ; for this is a horrid place 
for worms. . . . Having ripped off 
all our worm-eaten plank and clapped 
on new, by the beginning of December 
1686, our ship's bottom was sheathed 
and tallowed ; and the 10th we went 
over the bar, and took aboard the 
iron and lead that we could not sell, 
and began to fill our water and fetch 
aboard rice for our voyage. I was at 
that time a-hunting with the General 
for beef, which he had js long time 
promised us ; but now 1 saw that 
there was no credit to be given to his 
word, for I was a week out with him 
and saw but four cows, which were 
so wild that we did not get one. 
There were five or six more of our 
company with me ; these, who were 
young men, and had Delilahs there, 
which made them fond of the place, 
all agreed with the General to tell 



Captain Swan that there were beeves 
enough, only they were wild. But I 
told him the truth, and advised him 
not to be too credulous of the Gene- 
ral's promises. He seemed to be very 
angry, and stormed behind the Gene- 
ral's back, but in his presence was 
very mute, being a man of small 
courage. It was about the 20th of 
December when we returned from 
hunting, and the General designed 
to go again to another place to hunt 
for beef; but he stayed till after 
Christmas Day, because some of ua 
designed to go with him, and Captain 
Swan had desired all his men to be 
aboard that day, that we might keep 
it solemnly together ; and accordingly 
he sent aboard a buffalo the day be- 
fore, that we might have a good dinner. 
So the 25th, about 10 o'clock, Captain 
Swan came aboard, and all his men 
who were ashore ; for you must under- 
stand that near a third of our men 
lived constantly ashore with their 
comrades and pagallies, and some 
with women - servants whom they 
hired of their masters for concubines. 
Some of our men also had houses, 
which they hired or bought (for 
houses are very cheap) for five or six 
dollars; for many of them having 
more money than they knew what to 
do with, eased themselves here of the 
trouble of telling it, spending it very 
lavishly, their prodigality making the 
people impose upon them, to the 
making the rest of us pay the dearer 
for what we bought, and to the en- 
dangering the like impositions upon 
such Englishmen as may come here 
hereafter. For the Mindanayans knew 
how to get our squires' gold from 
them (for we had no silver), and 
when our men wanted silver they 
would change now and then an ounce 
of gold, and could get for it no more 
than ten or eleven dollars for a Min- 
danao ounce, which they would not 
part with again under eighteen dol- 
lars. Yet this, and the great prices 
the Mindanayans set on their goods, 
were not the only way to lessen their 
stocks; for their pagallies and com- 
rades would often be begging some- 
what of them, and our men wer 



1686.] 



DISCOURSE WITH THE NATIVE WOMEN. 



219 



generous enough, and v/ould bestow 
iialf-an-ounce of gold at a time in a 
ring for their pagallies, or in a silver 
wristband or hoop to come about their 
arms, in hopes to get a night's lodging 
with them. When we were all aboard 
on Christmas Day, Captain Swan and 
his two merchants, I did expect that 
Captain Swan would have made some 
proposals, or have told us his designs ; 
but he only dined and went ashore 
again without speaking anything of 
his mind. Yet even then I think 
that he was driving on a design of 
going to one of the Spice Islands to 
load with spice ; for the young man 
before mentioned, who I said was sent 
by his uncle, the Sultan of a spice 
island near Ternate, to invite the 
English to their island, came aboard 
at this time, and after some private 
discourse with Captain Swan they 
both went ashore together. This 
young man did not care that the 
Mindanayans should be privy to what 
he said. I have heard Captain Swan 
say that he offered to load his ship 
with spice, provided he would build 
a small fort and leave some men to 
secure the island from the Dutch; 
but I am since informed that the 
Dutch have now got possession of the 
island. 

The next day after Christmas the 
General went away again, and five or 
six Englishmen with him, of whom I 
was one, under pretence of going a- 
hunting ; and we all went together 
by water in his proa, together with 
his women and servants, to the hunt- 
ing-place. The General always carried 
his wives and children, his servants, 
his money and goods with him ; so 
we all embarked in the morning, and 
arrived there before night. I have 
already described the fashion of their 
proas, and the rooms made in them. 
We were entertained in the General's 
room or cabin. Our voyage was not 
so far but that we reached our port 
before night. At this time one of the 
General's servants had offended, and 
was punished in this manner : He 
was bound fast, flat on his belly, on a 
bamboo belonging to the proa, which 
was so near the water that by the 



vessel's motion it frequently delved 
under water, and the man along with 
it ; and sometimes when hoisted up 
he had scarce time to blow before he 
would be carried under water again. 
When we ha.d rowed about two 
leagues we entered a pretty large, 
deep river, and rowed up a league 
farther ; the water salt all the way. 
There was a pretty large village, the 
houses built after the country fashion. 
We landed at this place, where there 
was a house made ready immediately 
for us. The General and his women 
lay at one end of the house, and we 
at the other end ; and in the evening 
all the women in the village danced 
before the General. While he stayed 
here, the General with his men went 
out every morning betimes, and did 
not return till four or five o'clock in 
the afternoon ; and he would often 
compliment us by telling us what 
good trust and confidence he had in 
us, saying that he left his women and 
goods under our protection, and that 
he thought them as secure with us 
six (for we had all our arms with us) 
as if he had left a hundred of his own 
men to guard them. Yet for all this 
great confidence he always left one of 
his principal men, for fear some of us 
should be too familiar with his women. 
They did never stir out of their own 
room when the General was at home ; 
but as soon as he was gone out they 
would presently come into our room, 
and sit with us all day, and ask a 
thousand questions of us concerning 
our English women and our customs. 
You may imagine that before this 
time some of us had attained so much 
of their language as to understand 
them and give them answers to their 
demands. I remember that one day 
they asked how many wives the King 
of England had. We told them but 
one, and that our English laws did 
not allow of any more. They said it 
was a very strange custom that a man 
should be confined to one woman ; 
some of them said it was a very bad 
law, but others again said it was a 
good law ; so there was a great dis- 
pute among them about it. But one 
of the General's women said posi- 



220 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CiiAP. XIII. 



lively tliat our law was better than 
theirs, and made them all silent by 
the reason which she gave for it. 
This was the War Queen, as we called 
her, for she did always accompany 
the General whenever he was called 
out to engage his enemies, but the 
rest did not. By this familiarity 
among the women, and by often dis- 
coursing with them, we came to be ac- 
quainted with their customs and pri- 
vileges. The General lies with his 
wives by turns, but she by whom he 
had the first son has a double portion 
of his company ; for when it conies 
to her turn, she has him two nights, 
whereas the rest have him but one. 
She with whom he is to lie at night 
seems to have a particular respect 
shown her by the rest all the preced- 
ing day, and for a mark of distinc- 
tion wears a striped silk handker- 
chief about her neck, by which we 
knew who was queen that day. 

We lay here about five or six days, 
but did never in all that time see the 
least sign of any beef, which was the 
business we came about; neither 
were we suffered to go out with the 
General to see the wild kine, but we 
wanted for nothing else. However, 
this did not please us, and we often 
importuned him to let us go out 
among the cattle. At last he told us 
that he had provided a jar of rice- 
drink to be merry with us, and after 
that we should go with him. This 
rice-drink is made of rice boiled and 
put into a jar, where it remains a 
long time steeping in water. I know 
not the manner of making it, but it 
is very strong pleasant drink. The 
evening when the General designed 
to be merry, he caused a jar of this 
drink to be brought into our room, 
and he began to drink first himself, 
then afterwards his men ; so they 
took turns till they were all as drunk 
as swine, before they suffered us to 
drink. After they had enough, then 
we drank, and they drank no more, 
for they will not drink after us. The 
General leaped about our room a little 
while ; but, having his load, soon 
went to sleep. The next day we 
went out with the General into the 



savannah, where he had near 100 
men making a large pen to drive the 
cattle into, for that is the manner of 
their hunting, having no dogs, But 
I saw not above eight or ten cows, 
and those as wild as deer, so that we 
got none this day ; yet the next day 
some of his men brought in three 
heifers which they killed in the sa- 
vannah. With these we returned 
board, they being all that we got 
there. Captain Swan was much 
vexed at the General's actions ; for he 
promised to supply us with as much 
beef as we should want, but now 
either could not or would not make 
good his promise. Besides he failed 
to perform his promise in a bargain 
of rice that we were to have for the 
iron which he sold him, but he put 
us off still from time to time, and 
would not come to any account. 
Neither were these all his tricks ; for 
a little before his son was circum- 
cised, he pretended, a great strait for 
money to defray the charges of that 
day ; and therefore desired Captain 
Swan to lend him about twenty 
ounces of gold ; for he knew that 
Captain Swan had a considerable 
quantity of gold in his possession, 
which the General thought was his 
own, but indeed had none but what 
belonged to the merchants. How- 
ever, he lent it the General; but 
when he came to an account with 
Captain Swan he told him that it was 
usual at such solemn times to make 
presents, and that he received it as a 
gift. He also demanded payment for 
the victuals that our Captain and his 
men did eat at his house. These 
things startled Captain Swan, yet 
how to help himself he knew not. 
But all this, with other inward 
troubles, lay hard on our Captain's 
spirits, and put him very much out 
of humour ; for his own company also 
were pressing him every day to be 
gone, because now was the height of 
the easterly monsoon, the only wind 
to carry us farther into the Indies. 

About this time some of our men, 
who were weary and tired with wan- 
dering, ran away into the country 
and absconded, they being assisted, 



1687.] 



MUTINY ON BOARD. 



221 



as was generally believed, by Raja 
Laut. There were others also, who, 
fearing we should not go to an Eng- 
lish port, bought a canoe and de- 
signed to go in her to Borneo ; for 
not long before a Mindanao vessel 
came from thence and brought a 
letter directed to the chief of the 
English factory at Mindanao. This 
letter the General would have Cap- 
tain Swan to have opened ; but he 
thought it might come from some of 
the East India merchants, whose 
affairs he would not intermeddle 
with, and therefore did not open it. 
I since met with Captain Bowry at 
Achin, and telling him this story he 
said that he sent that letter, suppos- 
ing that the English were settled 
there at Mindanao ; and by this 
letter we also thought that there was 
an English factory at Borneo ; so 
here was a mistake on both sides. 
But this canoe wherewith some of 
them thought to go to Borneo, Captain 
Swan took from them, and threatened 
the undertakers very hardly. How- 
ever, this did not so far discourage 
them, for they secretly bought an- 
other; but their designs taking air, 
they were again frustrated by Captain 
Swan. The whole crew were at this 
time under & general disaffection, and 
full of very different projects ; and all 
for want of action. The main divi- 
sion was between those that had 
money and those that had none. 
There was a great difference in the 
humours of these ; for they that had 
money lived ashore, and did not care 
for leaving Mindanao ; whilst those 
that were poor lived aboard and 
urged Captain Swan to go to sea. 
These began to be unruly as well as 
dissatisfied, and sent ashore the mer- 
chants' iron to sell for rack and honey 
to make punch, wherewith they grew 
drunk and quarrelsome; which disor- 
derly actions deterred me from going 
aboard, for I did ever abhor drunken- 
ness, which now our men that were 
aboard addicted themselves wholly 
to. Yet these disorders might have 
been crushed if Captain Swan had 
used his authority to suppress them ; 
but he with his merchants living al- 



ways ashore, there was no command, 
and therefore every man did what he 

E leased and encouraged each other in 
isvillanies. Now Mr Hartop, who 
was one of Captain Swan's merchants, 
did very much importune him to settle 
his resolutions and declare his mind 
to his men ; which at last he con- 
sented to do ; therefore he gave warn- 
ing to all his men to come aboard the 
13th of January 1687. 

We did all earnestly expect to hear 
what Captain Swan would propose, 
and therefore were very willing to go 
aboard ; but unluckily for him, two 
days before this meeting was to be, 
Captain Swan sent aboard his gunner 
to fetch something ashore out of his 
cabin. The gunner rummaging to 
find what he was sent for, among 
other things took out the captain's 
journal from America to the Island 
of Guam, and laid it down by him. 
This journal was taken up by one 
John Reed, a Bristol man. He was 
a pretty ingenious young man, and 
of a very civil carriage and behaviour. 
He was also accounted a good artist, 
and kept a journal, and was now 
prompted by his curiosity to peep 
into Captain Swan's journal to see 
how it agreed with his own ; a thing 
very usual among seamen that keep 
journals, when they have an oppor- 
tunity, and especially young men 
who have no great experience. At 
the first opening of the book, he 
lighted on a place in which Captain 
Swan had inveighed bitterly against 
most of his men, especially against 
another John Reed, a Jamaica-man. 
This was such stuff as he did not seek 
after; but hitting so pat on the subject, 
his curiosity led him to pry further ; 
and therefore while the gunner was 
busy, he conveyed the book away, to 
look over it at his leisure. The gunner 
having despatched his business, locked 
up the cabin-door, not missing the 
book, and went ashore ; then John 
Reed shewed it to his name-sake, 
and to the rest that were aboard, 
who were by this time the biggest 
part of them ripe for mischief, only 
wanting some fair pretence to set 
themselves to work about it. There- 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XIII. 



222 

fore looking on what was written in 
this journal to be matter sufficient 
for them to accomplish their ends, 
Captain Tait, who, as I said before, 
had been abused by Captain Swan, 
laid hold on this opportunity to be 
revenged for his injuries, and aggra- 
vated the matter to the height, per- 
suading the men to turn out Captain 
Swan from being commander, in 
hopes to have commanded the ship 
himself. As for the seamen, they 
were easily persuaded to anything, 
for they were quite tired with this 
long and tedious voyage, and most of 
them despaired of ever getting home, 
and therefore did not care what they 
did or whither they went. It was 
only want of being busied in some 
action that made them so uneasy ; 
therefore they consented to what Tait 
proposed, and immediately all that 
were aboard bound themselves by 
oath to turn Captain Swan out, and 
to conceal this design from those 
that were ashore, until the ship was 
under sail ; which would have been 
presently, if the surgeon or his mate 
had been aboard : but they were both 
ashore, and they thought it no pru- 
dence to go to sea without a surgeon. 
Therefore the next morning they sent 
ashore one JohnCookworthy, to hasten 
off either the surgeon or his mate, by 
pretending that one of the men in the 
night broke his leg by falling into the 
hold. The surgeon told him that he 
intended to come aboard the next day 
with the Captain, and would not come 
before, but sent his mate Herman 
Coppingcr. This man, some time 
before this, was sleeping at his pa- 
gally's, and a snake twisted himself 
about his neck, but afterwards went 
away without hurting him. In this 
country it is usual to have the snakes 
come into the houses, and into fhe 
ships too ; for we had several came 
aboard our ship when we lay in the 
river. But to proceed : Herman Cop- 
pinger provided to go aboard ; and 
the next day, being the time appoint- 
ed for Captain Swan and all his men 
to meet aboard, I went aboard with 
him, neither of us mistrusting what 
was designed by those aboard till we 



came thither. Then we found it was 
only a trick to get the surgeon off ; 
for now, having obtained their de- 
sires, the canoe was sent ashore again 
immediately, to desire as many as 
they could meet to come aboard, but 
not to tell the reason, lest Captain 
Swan should come to hear of it. 

The 13th, in the morning, they 
weighed, and fired a gun. Captain 
Swan immediately sent aboard Mi- 
Nelly, who was now his chief mate, 
to see what the matter was ; to him 
they told all their grievances, and 
showed him the journal. He per- 
suaded them to stay till the next day 
for an answer from Captain Swan and 
the merchants ; so they came to an 
anchor again, and the next morning 
Mr Hartop came aboard. He per- 
suaded l them to be reconciled again, 
or at least to stay and get more rice ; 
but they were deaf to it, and weighed 
again while he was aboard. Yet at 
Mr Hartop's persuasion they promised 
to stay till 2 o'clock in the afternoon 
for Captain Swan and the rest of the 
men, if they would come aboard ; 
but they suffered no man to go ashore 
except one "William Williams that had 
a wooden leg, and another that was a 
sawyer. If Captain Swan had yet 
come aboard, he might have dashed 
all their designs ; but he neither came 
himself, as a captain of any prudence 
and courage would have done, nor 
sent till the time was expired. So 
we left Captain Swan and about 
thirty-six men ashore in the city, 
and six or eight that ran away ; and 
about sixteen we had buried there, 
the most of which died by poison. 
The natives are very expert at poison- 
ing, and do it upon small occasions : 
nor did our men want for given 
offence, through their general ro- 
gueries, and sometimes by dallying 
too familiarly with their women even 
before their faces. Some of their 
poisons are slow and lingering ; for 
we had some now aboard who were 
poisoned there, but died not till 
some months after. 



1 Advised. 



1687.] 



APPARENT CHANGE IN THE TIME. 



223 



CHAPTER XIV. 



THE 14th of January 1687, at 3 o'clock 
in the afternoon, we sailed from the 
River of Mindanao, designing to cruise 
before Manilla. It was during our 
stay at Mindanao that we were first 
made sensible of the change of time 
in the course of our voyage. For 
having travelled so far westward, 
keeping the same course with the sun, 
we must consequently have gained 
something insensibly in the length 
of the particular days, but have lost 
in the tale, the bulk, or number, of 
the days or hours. According to 
the different longitudes of England 
and Mindanao, this isle being west 
from the Lizard, by common compu- 
tation, about 210 degrees, the differ- 
ence of time at our arrival at Mindanao 
ought to be about fourteen hours : 
and so much we should have antici- 
pated our reckoning, having gained 
it by bearing the sun company. Now 
the natural day in every particular 
place must be consonant to itself : but 
this going about with or against the 
sun's course will of necessity make a 
difference in the calculation of the 
civil day between any two places. 
Accordingly, at Mindanao and all 
other places in the East Indies, we 
found them reckoning a day before 
us, both natives and Europeans ; for, 
the Europeans coming eastward by 
the Cape of Good Hope, in a course 
contrary to the sun and us, wherever 
we met they were a full day before us 
in their accounts. So, among the 
Indian Mahometans here, their Friday, 
the day of their Sultan's going to their 
mosques, was Thursday with us ; 
though it was Friday also with those 
who came eastward from Europe. 
Yet at the Ladrone Islands we found 
the Spaniards of Guam keeping the 
same computation with ourselves ; the 
reason of which I take to be, that they 
settled that colony by a course west- 
ward from Spain ; the Spaniards going 
first to America, and thence to the 
Ladrones and Philippines. . . . 

We coasted to the westward on the 
south side of the Island Mindanao, 
keeping within four or five leagues off 



the shore. The land from hence 
trends away W. by S. ; it is of a good 
height by the sea and very woody ; 
and in the country we saw high hills. 
The next day we were abreast of 
Chambongo, 1 a town in this island, 
thirty leagues from the River of Min- 
danao. Here is said to be a good har- 
bour and a great settlement, with 
plenty of beef and buffalo. It is re- 
ported that the Spaniards were for- 
merly fortified here also. About six 
leagues before we came to the west- 
end of the Island Mindanao, we fell 
in with a great many small low islands 
or keys; and about two or three leagues 
to the southward of these keys there is 
a long island, stretching NE. and SW. 
about twelve leagues. 2 This island 
is low by the sea on the north side, 
and has a ridge of hills in the middle 
running from one end to the other. 
Between this island and the small 
keys there is a good large channel. 
The 17th, we anchored on the east 
side of all these keys in eight fathoms 
water, clean sand. Here are plenty 
of green turtle, whose flesh is as sweet 
as any in the West Indies ; but they 
are very shy. A little to the west- 
ward of these keys, on the Island 
Mindanao, we saw abundance of cocoa- 
nut trees. Therefore we sent our 
canoe ashore, thinking to find inhabi- 
tants, but found none, nor sign of 
any, but great tracks of hogs and 
great cattle ; and close by the sea 
there were the ruins of an old fort ; 
the walls thereof were of a good 
height, built with stone and lime, 
and, by the workmanship, seemed to 
be Spanish. We weighed again the 
14th, and went through between the 
keys, but met such uncertain tides 
that we were forced to anchor again. 



1 Chambongo, or Zamboanga, stands 
at the south end of the great jut of 
land which forms the western portion 
of the Island of Mindanao ; the bay 
enclosed in the curve of the coast 
between Mindanao and Zamboanga 
being called the Bay of Liana or 
Illana. 

2 Evidently the Basilian group of 
islands to the south of Zamboanga. 



DAMPIEE'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XIV. 



The 22d, we got about the western- 
most point of all Mindanao, and stood 
to the northward, plying under the 
shore, and having the wind at NNE. , 
a fresh gale. Here we met with two 
proas belonging to the Sologus, one 
of the Mindanayan nations before 
mentioned. They came from Manilla 
laden with silks and calicoes. We 
kept on this western part of the 
island, steering northerly, till we 
came abreast of some other of the 
Philippine islands that lay to the 
northward of us, then -steered away 
towards them, but still keeping on 
the west side of them, and we had the 
winds at NNE. The 3d of February 
we anchored in a good bay on the 
west side of an island in Lat. 9 55', 
where we had thirteen fathoms water, 
good soft ooze. This island has no 
name that we could find in any book, 1 
but lies on the west side of Island 
Sebo. It is about eight or ten leagues 
long, mountainous and woody. At 
this place Captain Reed, who was the 
same Captain Swan had so much 
railed against in his journal, and was 
now made captain in his room (as 
Captain Tait was made master, and 
Mr Henry More quarter-master), or- 
dered the carpenters to cut down our 
quarter-deck, to make the ship snug 
and the fitter for sailing. When that 
was done we heeled her, scrubbed her 
bottom, and tallowed it ; then we 
filled all our water, for here is a deli- 
cate small run of water. The land 
was pretty low in this bay, the mould 
black and fat, and the trees of several 
kinds, very thick and tall. In some 
places we found plenty of canes, such 
as we use in England for walking- 
canes. These were short-jointed, not 
above two feet and a half or two feet 
ten inches the longest, and most of 
them not above two feet. They run 
along on the ground like a vine, or 
taking hold of the trees they climb up 
to their very tops. They are fifteen 
or twenty fathoms long, and much of 
a bigness froui the root till within 



1 It seems to be the Island of 
Negros, which lies to the west of 
Zebu, or, as Dampier calls it, Sebo. 



five or six fathoms of the end. They 
are of a pale green colour, clothed 
over with a coat of short thick hairy 
substance of a dun colour, but it 
omes off by only drawing the cane 
through your hand. We did cut 
many of them, and they proved very 
tough heavy canes. We saw no 
houses, nor sign of inhabitants. In 
the middle of this bay, about a mile 
from the shore, there " is a small low 
woody island not above a mile in cir- 
cumference ; our ship rode about a 
mile from it. This island was the 
habitation of an incredible number of 
great bats, with bodies as big as 
ducks or larger fowl, and with vast 
wings ; for I saw at Mindanao one of 
this sort, and I judge that the wings, 
stretched out in length, could not be 
less asunder than seven or eight feet 
from tip to tip, for it was much more 
than any of us could fathom with our 
arms extended to the utmost. 

We stayed here till the 10th of 
February 1687, and then, having 
completed our business, we sailed 
hence with the wind at north; but 
going out we struck on a rock, 
where we lay two hours. It was very 
smooth water, and the tide of flood, 
or else we should there have lost our 
ship. We struck off a great piece of 
our rudder, which was all the damage 
that we received ; but we more nar- 
rowly missed losing our ship this time 
than in any other in the whole voyage. 
This is a very dangerous shoal, be- 
cause it does not break, unless pro- 
bably it may appear in foul weather. 
After we were passed this shoal, we 
coasted along by the rest of the 
Philippine Islands, keeping on the 
west side of them. Some of them 
appeared to be very mountainous 
dry land. We saw many fires in the 
night as we passed by Panay, 2 a great 
island settled by Spaniards ; and by 
the fires up and down it seems to be 
well settled by them ; for this is a 
Spanish custom, whereby they give 
notice of any danger, or the like, from 
sea ; and it is probable they had 
seen our ship the day before. Tho 

3 Lying to the north-west of Negros. 



1687.] THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 

18th of February we anchored at the 
NW. end of the Island Mindoro, in 
ten fathoms water, about three-quar- 
ters of a mile from the shore. Min- 
doro is a large island, the middle of 
it lying in Lat. 13, about forty 
leagues long, stretching NW. and 
SE. It is high and mountainous, 
and not very woody. Here we saw 
great tracks of hogs and beef, and we 
saw some of each, and hunted them ; 
but they were wild, and we could kill 
none. While we lay here, there was 
a canoe with four Indians came from 
Manilla. They were very shy of us a 
while ; but at last, hearing us speak 
Spanish, they came to us, and told 
us that they were going to a friar that 
lived at an Indian village towards the 
SE. end of the island. They told us 
also that the harbour of Manilla is 
seldom or never without twenty or 
thirty sail of vessels, most Chinese, 
some Portuguese, and some few the 
Spaniards have of their own. They 
said that when they had done 
their business with the friar, they 
would return to Manilla, and hoped 
to be back again at this place in four 
days' time. "We told them that we 
came for a trade with the Spaniards 
at Manilla, and should be glad if they 
would carry a letter to some merchant 
there, which they promised to do. 

But this was only a pretence of ours, 

to get out of them what intelligence 

we could as to their shipping, strength, 

and the like, under colour of seeking 

a trade ; for our business was to pil- 
lage. Now if we had really designed 

to have traded here, this was as fair 

an opportunity as men could have 

desired, for these men could have 

brought us to the friar that they 

were going to, and a small present to 

him would have engaged him to do 

any kindness for us in the way of 

trade ; for the Spanish Governors do 

not allow of it, and we must trade by 

stealth. 
The 21st, we went from hence with 

the wind at ENE., a small gale. The 

23d, in the morning, we were fair by 

the SE. end of the Island Luconia," 



225 

he place that had been so long de- 
ired by us. We presently saw a sail 
oming from the northward, and 
naking after her, we took her in two 
lours' time. She was a Spanish bark 
hat came from a place called Panga- 
anam, a small town on the N. end 
f Luconia, as they told us ; pro- 
)ably the same with Pongassinay, 
which lies on a bay at the N W. side of 
he island. She was bound to Man- 
ila, but had no goods aboard ; and 
herefore we turned her away. The 
23d we took another Spanish vessel 
hat came from the same place as the 
>ther. She was laden with rice and 
otton cloth, and bound for Manilla 
Iso. These goods were purposely 
or the Acapulco ship ; the rice was 
'or the men to live on while they lay 
here, and in their return ; and the 
cotton cloth was to make sails. The 
master of this prize was boatswain of 
;he Acapulco ship, which escaped us 
at Guam, and was now at Manilla. 
It was this man that gave us the re- 
ation of what strength it had, how 
;hey were afraid of us there, and of 
;he accident that happened to them, 
as is before mentioned in the tenth 
Dhanter. We took these two vessels 
within seven or eight leagues of 
Manilla. 

Luconia I have spoken of already ; 
but I shall now add this further 
account of it. It is a great island, 
taking up between six and seven de- 
grees of Latitude in length, and its 
breadth near the middle is about 
sixty leagues, but the ends are nar- 
row. The north end lies in about 
19 N., and the south end in about 
12 30'. This great island has abun- 
dance of small keys or islands lying 
about it, especially at the north end. 
The south side fronts towards the 
rest of the Philippine Islands ; of 
these that are its nearest neighbours, 
Mindoro, lately mentioned, is the 
chief, and gives name to the sea or 



1 Not of the whole island, which 



stretches away south-east of Manilla, 
into a long jagged peninsula ; Dam- 
pier evidently means at the southern 
point of what we may call the main- 
land 

P 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XIV. 



226 

strait that parts it and the other 
islands from Luconia, being called 
the Straits of Mindoro. The body of 
the Island Luconia is composed of 
many spacious plain savannahs, and 
large mountains. The north end 
seems to be more plain and even, I 
mean freer from hills, than the south 
end ; but the land is all along of a 
good height. It does not appear so 
flourishing and green as some of the 
other islands in this range, especially ' 
that of St John, Mindanao, Bat 
Island, &c. ; yet in some places it is 
very woody. Some of the mountains 
of this island afford gold, and the 
savannahs are well stocked with herds 
of cattle, especially buffaloes. These 
cattle are in great plenty all over the 
East Indies ; and therefore it is very 
probable that there were many of 
these here even before the Spaniards 
came hither. But now there are also 
plenty of other cattle, as I have been 
told, as bullocks, horses, sheep, goats, 
hogs, &c., brought hither by the 
Spaniards. It is pretty well in- 
habited with Indians, most of them, 
if not all, under the Spaniards, who 
now are masters of it. The native 
Indians do live together in towns ; 
and they have priests among them to 
instruct them in the Spanish religion. 
Manilla, the chief, or perhaps only 
city, lies at the foot of a ridge of high 
hills, facing upon a spacious harbour 
near the SW. point of the island, in 
about 14 E". It is environed with a 
high strong wall, and very well forti- 
fied with forts and breastworks. The 
houses are large, strongly built, and 
covered with pantile. The streets 
are large and pretty regular, with a 

Earade* in the midst, after the 
panish fashion. There are a great 
many fair buildings, besides churches 
and other religious houses, of which 
there are not a few. The harbour is 
so large, that some hundreds of ships 
may ride here ; and is never without 
many, both of their own, and strangers. 
I have already given you an account 
of the two ships going and coming 
between this place and Acapulco. 



1 Plaza. 



Besides them, they have some small 
vessels of their own ; and they do 
allow the Portuguese to trade here ; 
but the Chinese are the chief mer- 
chants, and they drive the greatest 
trade ; for they have commonly 
twenty or thirty, or forty junks in 
the harbour at a time, and a great 
many merchants constantly residing 
in the city, beside shop-keepers and 
handicraftsmen in abundance. Small 
vessels run up near the town, but the 
Acapulco ships, and others of greater 
burthen lie a league short of it, where 
there is a strong fort also, and store- 
houses to put goods in. I had the 
major part of this relation two or 
three years after this time, from Mr 
Coppinger our surgeon ; for he made 
a voyage hither from Porto Novo, a 
town on the coast of Coromandel, in 
a Portuguese ship, as I think. We 
were not within sight of this town, 
but I was shown the hills that over- 
looked it, and drew a draught of them 
as we lay off at sea. 2 

The time of the year being now too 
far spent to do anything here, it was 
concluded to sail from hence to Pulo 
Condore, a little parcel of islands on 
the coast of Cambodia, and carry this 
prize with us, and there careen if we 
could find any convenient place for 
it ; designing to return hither again 
by the latter end of May, and wait 
for the Acapulco ship that comes 
about that time. By our draughts 
(which we were guided by, being 
strangers to these parts) this seemed 
to us, then, to be a place out of the 
Avay, where we might lie snug for a 
while, and wait the time of returning 
for our prey. For we avoided as 
much as we could, going to lie by at 
any great place of commerce, lest we 
should become too much exposed, 
and perhaps be assaulted by a force 



2 In the edition from which the 
present text is printed, there is a 
shaded skeleton drawing, about four 
inches long by three-quarters high, 
entitled "A Prospect of y e Coast of 
y e I. Luconia, near Manila, at 6 L. 
off shore, y e highest Pike bearing 
East." 



1687.] ISLANDS ON THE 

greater than our own. So having 
set our prisoners ashore, we sailed 
from Luconia the 26th of February. 
In our way we went pretty near the 
shoals of Pracel, 1 and other shoals 
which are very dangerous. "We were 
very much afraid of them, but escaped 
them without so much as seeing them, 
only at the very south end of the 
Pracel shoals we saw three little 
sandy islands or spots of sand, stand- 
ing just above water, within a mile 
of us. It was the 13th of March be- 
fore we came in sight of Pulo Con- 
dore, or the Island Condore, as 
"Pulo" signifies. The 14th about 
noon we anchored on the north side 
of the island, against a sandy bay 
two miles from the shore, in ten 
fathoms clean hard sand, with both 
ship and prize. Pulo Condore is the 
principal of a heap of islands, and 
the only inhabited one of them. 
They lie in Lat. 8 40' N. and about 
twenty leagues south and by east 
from the mouth of the River of Cam- 
bodia. 2 These islands lie so near to- 
gether, that at a distance they appear 
to be but one island. Two of these 
islands are pretty large, and of a good 
height ; they may be seen fourteen or 
fifteen leagues at sea ; the rest are 
but little spots. The biggest of the 
two (which is the inhabited one) is 
tf)out four or five leagues long, and 
lies east and west. It is not above 
three miles broad at the broadest 
place, in most places not above a mile 
wide. The other large island is about 
three miles long, and half-a-mile 
wide. This island stretches north 
and south. There are no more islands 
on the north side, but five or six on 
the south side of the great island. 
The mould of these islands for the 
biggest part is blackish, and pretty 



CAMBODIA COAST. 



227 



1 The Paracel Islands and reefs at 
the mouth^ of the Gulf of Tonquin. 

2 Or Mai-Kiang, which on its way 
to the coast traverses the whole ex- 
tent of the empire of Annam ; Pulo 
Condore is directly south of its main 
embouchure, at the mouth of which 
stands Saigon, chief town of the 
French colony of Cochin China. 



deep ; only the hills are someAvhat 
stony. The eastern part of the 
biggest island is sandy, yet all 
clothed with trees of divers sorts. 
The trees do not grow so thick as I 
have seen them in some places, but 
they are generally large and tall, and 
fit for any uses. There is one sort of 
tree much larger than any other on 
this island, and which I have not 
seen anywhere else. It is about three 
or four feet diameter in the body, 
from whence is drawn a sort of 
clammy juice, which being boiled a 
little becomes perfect tar; and if 
you boil it much it will become hard 
as pitch. 3 The fruit trees that Nature 
has bestowed on these isles are man- 
goes, and trees bearing a sort of grape, 
and other trees bearing a kind of wild or 
bastard nutmegs. These all grow wild 
in the woods, and in very great 
plenty. The mangoes here grow on 
trees as big as apple trees. Those at 
Fort St George are not so large. The 
fruit of these is as big as a small 
peach, but long and smaller towards 
the top. It is of a yellowish colour 
when ripe ; it is very juicy, and of a 
pleasant smell and delicate taste. 
When the mango is young, they cut 
them in two pieces, and pickle them 
with salt and vinegar, in which they 
put some cloves and garlic. The 
grape tree grows with a straight body, 
of a diameter about a foot or more, 
and has but few limbs or boughs. 
The fruit grows in clusters, all about 
the body of the tree, like the jack, 
durian, and cacao fruits. There are 
of them both red and white. They 
are much like such grapes as grow 
on our vines, both in shape and 
colour. The wild nutmeg tree is as 
big as a walnut tree ; but it does not 
spread so much. The boughs are 
gross, 4 and the fruit grows among 
the boughs as the walnut and other 
fruits. The animals of these islands 
are some hogs, lizards, guanas, 
and some of those creatures men- 
tioned in Chapter XL, which are 



3 Well known in commerce and for 
nautical purposes as Cambodia pitch. 

4 Thick. ""."" 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUKD THE WORLD. [CHAP. XIV. 

Islands, it seems borrowed for the 
carrying on*of trade. 



228 

like, but much bigger, than the 
guana. Here are many sorts of birds, 
as parrots, paroquets, doves, and 
pigeons. Here are also a sort of wild 
cocks and hens, which crow like ours, 
but much more small and shrill ; and 
by their crowing we do first find them 
out in the woods where we shoot them. 
Their flesh is very white and sweet. 
There are a great many limpets and 
mussels, and plenty of green turtle. 
These islands are pretty well watered 
with small brooks of fresh water, that 
run slush 1 into the sea for ten months 
in the years. The latter end of March 
they begin to dry away, and in April 
you shall have none in the brooks 
but what is lodged in deep holes ; but 
you may dig wells in some places. In 
May, when the rain comes, the land 
is again replenished with water, and 
the brooks run out into the sea. 

These islands lie very commodiously 
in the way to and from Japan, China, 
Manilla, Tonquin, Cochin China, and 
in general all this most easterly coast 
of the Indian continent, whether you 
go through the Straits of Malacca or 
the Straits of Sunda between Sumatra 
and Java ; and one of them you must 
pass in the common way from Europe, 
or other parts of the East Indies, un- 
less you mean to fetch a great com- 
pass round most of the East India 
islands, as we did. Any ship in dis- 
tress may be refreshed and recruited 
here very conveniently, and, besides 
ordinary accommodations, be furnish- 
ed with masts, yards, pitch, and tar. 
The inhabitants are by nation Cochin 
Chinese, as they told us, for one of 
tli em spoke good Malay, which lan- 
guage we learnt a smattering of, and 
some of us so as to speak it pretty 
well while we lay at Mindanao ; and 
this is the common tongue of trade 
and commerce (though it be not in 
several of them the native language) 
in most of the East India islands, 
being the lingua franca, as it were, 
of these parts. I believe it is the 
vulgar tongue at Malacca, Sumatra, 
Java, and Borneo ; but at Celebes, 
the Philippine Islands, and the Spice 



Full. 



The inhabit- 
ants of Pulo Condore are but a small 
people in stature, well enough shaped, 
and of a darker colour than the Min- 
danayans. They are pretty long-vis- 
aged, their hair is black and straight, 
their eyes are but small and black, 
their noses of a mean bigness and 
pretty high, their lips thin, their 
teeth white, and little mouths. They 
are very civil people, but extraordin- 
ary poor. Their chief employment is 
to draw the juice of those trees that I 
have described to make tar. They 
preserve it in wooden troughs, and 
when they have their cargo they 
transport it to Cochin China, their 
mother country. Some others of 
them employ themselves to catch 
turtle, and boil up their fat to oil, 
which they also transport home. 
These people have great large nets 
with wide meshes to catch the turtle. 
The Jamaica turtlers have such, and 
I did never see the like nets but at 
Jamaica and here. They are so free 
of their women that they would bring 
them aboard and offer them to us, 
and many of our men hired them for 
a small matter. This is a custom 
used by several nations in the East 
Indies, as at Pegu, Siam, Cochin 
China, and Cambodia, as I have been 
told. It is used at Tonquin also to 
my knowledge, for I did afterwards 
make a voyage thither, and most of 
our men had women aboard all the 
time of their abode there. In Africa 
also, on the coast of Guinea, our mer- 
chants, factors, and seamen that re- 
side there have their black misses. 
It is accounted a piece of policy to do 
it, for the chief factors and captains 
of ships have the great men's daugh- 
ters offered them, the Mandarin's or 
noblemen's at Tonquin, and even the 
King's wives in [New] Guinea ; and 
by this sort of alliance the country 
people are engaged to a greater friend- 
ship. And if there should arise any 
difference about trade, or anything 
else, which might provoke the natives 
to seek some treacherous revenge (to 
which all these heathen nations are 
very prone), then these Delilahs would 



1687.] 



CHINESE TEMPLES AND IDOLS. 



229 



certainly declare it to their white 
friends, and so hinder their country- 
men's designs. 

These people are idolaters; but 
their manner of worship I know not. 
There are a few scattering houses and 
plantations on the great island, and a 
small village on the south side of it ; 
where there is a little idol temple, 
and an image of an elephant, about 
five feet high, and in bigness propor- 
tionable, placed on one side of the 
temple, and a horse, not so big, placed 
on the other side of it : both stand- 
ing with their heads towards the 
south. The temple itself was low 
and ordinary, built of wood, and 
thatched, like one of their houses, 
which are but very meanly. The 
images of the horse and the elephant 
were the most general idols that I 
observed in the temple of Tonquin 
when I travelled there. There were 
other images also, of beasts, birds, 
and fish ; I do not remember I saw 
any human shape there, nor any such 
monstrous representations as I have 
seen among the Chinese. Wherever 
the Chinese seamen or merchants 
come (and they are very numerous 
all over the seas), they have always 
hideous idols on board their junks or 
ships, with altars, and images burn- 
ing before them. These idols they 
bring ashore with them. And be- 
sides those they have in common ; 
every man has one in his o\vri house. 
Upon some particular solemn days I 
have seen their Bonzes, or priests, 
bring whole armfuls of painted papers, 
and burn them with a great deal of cere- 
mony, being very careful to let no piece 
escape them. The same day they 
killed a goat, which had been pur- 
posely fatting a month before ; this 
they offer or present before their idol, 
and then dress it and feast themselves 
with it. I have seen them do this in 
Tonquin, where I have at the same 
time been invited to their feasts : and 
at Bencoolen, in the Isle of Sumatra, 
they sent a shoulder of the sacrificed 
goat to the English, who ate of it 
and asked me to do so too ; but I 
refused. 

"When 1 was at Madras, or Fort St 



George, I took notice of a great cere- 
mony used for several nights succes- 
sively by the idolaters inhabiting the 
suburbs. Both men and women 
(these very well clad) in a great mul- 
titude went in solemn procession with 
lighted torches, carrying their idols 
about with them. I know not the 
meaning of it. I observed some went 
purposely carrying oil to sprinkle into 
the lamps, to make them burn the 
brighter. They began their round 
about 11 o'clock at night ; and hav- 
ing paced it gravely about the streets 
till 2 or 3 o'clock in the morning, 
their idols were carried with much 
ceremony into the temple by the 
chief of the procession, and some of 
the women I saw enter the temple 
particularly. Their idols were differ- 
ent from those of Tonquin, Cambodia, 
&c., being in human shape. 

I have said already that we arrived 
at these islands the 14th of March 
1687. The next day we searched 
about for a place to careen in ; and 
the 16th we entered the harbour, and 
immediately provided to careen. Some 
men were set to fell great trees to saw 
into plank ; others went to unrigging 
the ship : some made a house to put 
our goods in, and for the sailmaker 
to work in. The country people re- 
sorted to us, and brought us of the 
fruits of the island, with hogs, and 
sometimes turtle ; for which they 
received rice in exchange, which we 
had a. shipload of, taken at Manilla. 
We bought of them also a good quan- 
tity of their pitchy liquor, which we 
boiled, and used about our ship's 
bottom. We mixed it first with lime, 
which we made here ; and it made an 
excellent coat, and stuck on very 
well. We stayed in this harbour 
from the 16th of March till the 16th 
of April ; in which time we made a 
new suit of sails of the cloth that was 
taken in the prize. We cut a spare 
main-topmast, arid sawed plank to 
sheathe the ship's bottom ; for she was 
not sheathed all over at Mindanao, 
and that old plank that was left on 
then we now ripped off, and clapped 
on new. While we lay here, two of 
our men died, who were poisoned at 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XIV. 



230 

Mindanao : they told us of it when 
they found themselves poisoned, and 
had lingered ever since. They were 
opened by our doctor, according to 
their own request before they died, 
and their livers were black, light and 
dry, like pieces of cork. Our busi- 
ness being finished here, we left the 
Spanish prize taken at Manilla, and 
most of the rice, taking out enough 
for ourselves : and on the 17th we 
went from hence to the place where 
we first anchored, on the north side 
of the great island, purposely to water; 
for there was a great stream when we 
first came to the island, and we thought 
it was so now. But we found it dried 
up, only it stood in holes, two or 
three hogsheads or a tun in a hole ; 
therefore we did immediately cut 
bamboos, and made spouts, through 
which we conveyed the water down 
to the sea-side by taking it up in 
bowls, and pouring it into these 
spouts or troughs. We conveyed 
some of it thus near half-a-mile. 
While we were filling our water, Cap- 
tain Reed engaged an old man, one 
of the inhabitants of this island (the 
same who, I said, could speak the 
Malay language), to be his pilot to 
the Bay of Siam : for he had often 
been telling us, that he was well ac- 
quainted there, and that he knew 
some islands there where there were 
fishermen lived, who he thought 
could supply us with salt- fish to eat 
at sea ; for we had nothing but rice 
to eat. The easterly monsoon was 
not yet done; therefore it was con- 
cluded to spend some time there, 
and then take the advantage of the 
beginning of the western monsoon to 
return to Manilla again. 

The 21st of April 1687, we sailed 
from Pulo Condore, directing our 
course W. by S. for the Bay of Siam. 
The 23d, we arrived at Pulo Uby. 1 
The island is about forty leagues to 
the westward of Pulo Condore ; it- 
lies just at the entrance of the Bay 
of Siam, and the SW. point of land 
that makes the bay, namely, the Point 



1 Pulo Obi, off the extreme southern 
point of the Cambodian peninsula. 



of Cambodia. This island is about 
seven or eight leagues round, and it 
is higher land than any of the Pulo 
Condore isles. Against the south- 
east part of it there is a small key, 
about a cable's length from the main 
island. This Pulo Uby is very woody. 
At Pulo Uby we found two small 
barks laden with rice. They belonged 
to Cambodia, from whence they came 
not above two or three days before ; 
and they touched here to fill water. 
Rice is the general food, of all these 
countries ; therefore it is transported 
by sea from one country to another, 
as corn is in these parts of the world. 
For in some countries they produce 
more than enough for themselves, 
and send what they can spare to those 
places where there is but little. The 
24th, we went into the Bay of Siam. 
This is a large deep bay,* of which 
and of this kingdom I shall at pre- 
sent speak but little. 2 We run down 
into the Bay of Siam till we came to 
the islands that our Pulo Condore 
pilot told us of, which lie about the 
middle of the bay ; 3 but as good a 
pilot as he was, he nin us aground ; 
yet we had no damage. Captain 
Reed went ashore at these islands, 
where he found a small town of fisher- 
men ; but they had no fish to sell, 
and so we returned empty. We had 
yet fair weather and very little wind ; 
so that being often becalmed, we were 
till the 13th of May before we got to 
Pulo Uby again. There we found 
two small vessels at anchor on the 
east side : they were laden with rice 
and lacquer, which is used in japan- 
ning of cabinets. One of these came 
from Champa, bound to the town of 
Malacca, which belongs to the Dutch, 
who took it from the Portuguese ; 
and this shows that they have a trade 
with Champa. This was a very pretty 
neat vessel, her bottom very clean 
and curiously coated ; she had about 
forty men all armed with cortans or 
broadswords, lances, and some guns 



2 Reserving a more particular ac- 
count to Appendix I. (see Introduc- 
tory Note on page 115). 

3 Probably Pulo Way, in Lat. 10 N. 



SAVAGE TREATMENT FROM THE MALAYS. 



1687.] 

that went with a swivel upon their 
gunwales. They were of the idolaters, 
natives of Champa, and some of the 
briskest, most sociable, without fear- 
fulness or shyness, and the most neat 
and dexterous about their shipping, 
of any such I have met with in all 
my travels. 1 The other vessel came 
from the River of Cambodia and was 
bound towards the Straits of Malacca. 
Both of them stopped here, for the 
westerly winds now began to blow, 
which were against them, being 
somewhat belated. "We anchored 
also on the east side, intending to fill 
water. 

The 21st of May we went back from 
hence towards Pulo Condore. In our 
way we overtook a great junk that 
came from Palembang, a town on the 
Island of Sumatra. She was full laden 
with pepper which they bought there, 
and was bound to Siam ; but it blow- 
ing so hard, she was afraid to venture 
into that bay, and therefore came to 
Pulo Condore with us, where we 
both anchored May 24th. This ves- 
sel was of the Chinese make, full of 
little rooms or partitions like our 
well-boats. I shall describe them in 
the next Chapter. The men of this 
junk told us that the English were 
settled on the Island of Sumatra, at 
a place called Sillabar ; and the first 
knowledge we had that the English 
had any settlement on Sumatra was 
from these. When we came to an 
anchor, we saw a small bark at anchor 
near the shore ; therefore Captain 
Reed sent a canoe aboard her to know 
from whence they came ; and suppos- 
ing that it was a Malay vessel, he 
ordered the men not to go aboard, 
for they are accounted desperate fel- 
lows, and their vessels are commonly 
full of men, who all wear cressets or 
little daggers by their sides. The 
canoe's crew, not minding the Cap- 
tain's orders, went aboard, all but one 
man that stayed in the canoe. The 
Malays, who were about twenty of 



231 



1 One is tempted to find in this 
graphic account traces of the Japanese, 
then little if at all known to even our 
most experienced navigators. 



;hem, seeing our men all armed, 
thought that they came to take their 
vessel ; therefore at once, on a signal 
given, they drew out their cressets 
ind stabbed five or six of our men 
before they knew what the matter 
was. The rest of our men leaped over- 
board, some into the canoe and some 
into the sea, and so got away. Among 
the rest, one Daniel Wallis leaped into 
the sea, who could never swim before 
nor since ; yet now he swam very 
well a good while before he was taken 
up. When the canoe came aboard, 
Captain Reed manned two canoes and 
went to be revenged on the Malays ; 
but they, seeing him coming, cut a 
hole in their vessel's bottom and went 
ashore in their boat. Captain Reed 
followed them, but they ran into the 
woods and hid themselves. 

Here we stayed ten or eleven days, 
for it blew very hard all the time. 
While we stayed here, Herman Cop- 
pinger our surgeon went ashore, in- 
tending to live here ; but Captain 
Reed sent some men and fetched him 
again. I had the same thoughts, and 
would have gone ashore too, but 
waited for a more convenient place. 
For neither he nor I when we went 
last on board at Mindanao had any 
knowledge of the plot that was laid to 
leave Captain Swan and run away 
with the ship ; and being sufficiently 
weary of this mad crew, we were 
willing to give them the slip at any 
place from whence we might hope to 
get a passage to an English factory. 
There was nothing else of moment 
happened whilst we stayed here. 



CHAPTER XV. 

HAVING filled our water, cut our 
wood, and got our ship in a sailing 
posture while the blustering hard 
winds lasted, we took the first oppor- 
tunity of a settled gale to sail towards 
Manilla. Accordingly, June the 4tb 
1687, we loosed from Pulo Condore 
with the wind at SW., fair weather, 
at a brisk gale. The pepper j unk bound 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XV. 

daunt us, for we were resolved to try 
our fortunes there if the winds would 
permit ; and we did beat for it five or 
six days, but at last were forced to 
leave that design also for want of 
winds, for the SE. winds continuing, 
forced us on the coast of China. 

It was the 25th of June when we 
made the land, and running iu to- 
wards the shore, we came to an anchor 
the same day on the NE. end of St 
John's Island. 3 This island is in 
Lat. about 22 30'' N., lying on the 
S. coast of the province of Quan Tung, 
or Canton, in China. It is of an in- 
different height and pretty plain, and 
the soil fertile enough. It is partly 
woody, partly savannahs or pasturage 
for cattle, and there is some moist 
arable land for rice. The skirts or 
outer part of the island, especially 
that part of it which borders on the 
main sea, is woody. The middle part 
of it is good thick grassy pasture, 
with some groves of trees ; and that 
which is cultivated land is low wet 
land, yielding plentiful crops of rice, 
the only grain that I did see here. 
The tame cattle which this island 
affords are China hogs, goats, buffa- 
loes, and some bullocks. The hogs of 
this island are all black ; they have but 
small heads, very short thick necks, 
great bellies commonly touching the 
ground, and short legs. They eat 
but little food, yet they are most of 
them very fat, probably because they 
sleep much. The tame fowls are 
ducks and cocks and hens. I saw no 
wild fowl but a few small birds. 

The natives of this island are 
Chinese. They are subject to the 
crown of China, and consequently at 
this time to the Tartars. 4 The Chinese 
in general are tall, straight-bodied, 



232 

to Siani remained there waiting for 
an easterly'wind ; but one of his men, 
a kind of bastard Portuguese, came 
aboard our ship and was entertained 
for the sake of his knowledge in the 
several languages of these countries. 
The wind continued in the SW. but 
twenty-four hours, or a little more, 
and then came about to the N. and 
then to the NE., and the sky became 
exceeding clear. Then the wind came 
at E., and lasted betwixt E. and SE. 
for eight or ten days. Yet we con- 
tinued plying to windward, expecting 
every day a shift of wind, because 
these winds were not according to the 
season of the year. We were now 
afraid lest the currents might deceive 
us and carry us on the shoals of Pra- 
cel, which were near us, a little to 
the NW.j but we passed on to the 
eastward without seeing any sign of 
them. Yet we were kept much to 
the northward of our intended course, 
and the easterly winds still continu- 
ing, we despaired of getting to Man- 
illa, and therefore began to project 
some new design ; and the result was, 
to visit the Island of Prata, 1 about 
the Lat. of 20 40' N., and not far 
from us at this time. It is a small 
low island environed with rocks clear 
round it, by report. It lieth so in 
the way between Manilla and Canton, 
the head of a province and a town of 
great trade in China, that the Chinese 
do dread the rocks about it more than 
the Spaniards did formerly dread Ber- 
mudas, 2 for many of their junks 
coming from Manilla have been lost 
there, and with abundance of treasure 
in them, as we were informed by all 
the Spaniards that ever we conversed 
with in these parts. They told us 
also that in these wrecks most of the 
men were drowned, and that the 
Chinese did never go thither to take 
up any of the treasure that was lost 
there for fear of being lost themselves. 
But the danger of the place did not 

1 Pratos, lying in the north of the 
Chinese Sea, about equidistant from 
Canton, Formosa, and the northern 
extremity of Luzon. 

8 " The vext Bcrmoothes. " 



8 Called in Chinese Chang-cheun, 
which is evidently an assimilation of 
the name given by the Portuguese ; it 
lies nearly a degree south-west of 
Macao. 

4 The Manchoo Tartars, after a 
war lasting nearly thirty years, had 
established their dynasty more than 
forty years before the time of which 
Dampier writes, 



1687.] 



HOME CUSTOMS OF THE CHINESE. 



233 



raw-boned men. They are long-vis- 
aged, and their foreheads are high ; 
but they have little eyes. Their 
noses are pretty large, with a rising 
in the middle. Their mouths are of 
a mean size, pretty thin lips. They 
are of an ashy complexion ; their 
hair is black, and their beards thin 
and long, for they pluck the hair out 
by the roots, suffering only some few 
very long straggling hairs to grow 
about their chin, in which they 
take great pride, often combing them 
and sometimes tying them up in a 
knot ; and they have such hairs too 
growing down from each side of their 
upper lip like whiskers. The ancient 
Chinese were very proud of the hair 
of their heads, letting it grow very 
long, and stroking it back with their 
hands curiously, and then winding 
the plats all together round a bod- 
kin thrust through it at the hinder 
part of the head ; and both men and 
women did thus. But when the 
Tartars conquered them, they broke 
them off this custom they were fond 
of by main force, insomuch that they 
resented this imposition worse than 
their subjection, and rebelled upon 
it ; but being still worsted, were 
forced to acquiesce ; and to this day 
they follow the fashion of their mas- 
ters the Tartars, and shave all their 
heads, only reserving one lock, which 
some tie up, others let it hang down 
to a great or small length, as they 
please. The Chinese in other coun- 
tries still keep their old custom, but 
if any of the Chinese is found wearing 
long hair in China, he forfeits his 
head ; and many of them have aban- 
doned their country to preserve their 
liberty of wearing their hair, as I have 
oeen told by themselves. The Chinese 
have no hats, caps, or turbans ; but 
when they walk abroad they carry a 
small umbrella in their hands, where- 
with they fence their heads from the 
sun or the rain by holding it over 
their heads. If they walk but a little 
way, they carry only a large fan made 
of paper or silk, of the same fashion 
as those our ladies have, and many 
of them are brought over hither ; one 
of these every man carries in his hand 



f he do but cross the street, screening 
lis head with it if he has not an urn- 
)rella with him. The common ap- 
)arel of the men is a loose frock and 
)reeches. They seldom wear stock- 
ngs, but they have shoes, or a sort 
of slippers rather. The men's shoes 
are made diversely. The women have 
very small feet, and consequently but 
ittle shoes, for from their infancy 
;heir feet are kept swathed up with 
Dands as hard as they can possibly 
endure them; and from the time 
;hey can go till they have done grow- 
ng, they bind them up every night. 
This they do purposely to hinder 
;hem from growing, esteeming little 
? eet to be a great beauty. But by 
this unreasonable custom they do in 
a manner lose the use of their feet, 
and instead of going, they only 
stumble about their houses, and pre- 
sently squat down again, being, as it 
were, confined to sitting all the days of 
their lives. They seldom stir abroad ; 
and one would be apt to think that, 
as some have conjectured, their keep- 
ing up their fondness for this fashion 
were a stratagem of the men's to 
keep them from gadding and gossip- 
ing about and confine them at home. 
They are kept constantly to their 

rk, being fine needle-women, and 
making many curious embroideries, 
and they make their own shoes ; but 
if any stranger be desirous to bring 
away any for novelty's sake, he must 
be a great favourite to get a pair of 
shoes of them, though he give twice 
their value. The poorer sort of women 
trudge about the streets, and to the 
market, without shoes or stockings ; 
and these cannot afford to have little 
feet,beingtogettheirlivingwiththem. 

The Chinese, both men and women, 
are very ingenious, as may appear by the 
many curious things that are brought 
from thence, especially the porcelain 
or China earthenware. The Span- 
iards of Manilla, that we took on the 
coast of Luconia, told me that this 
commodity is made of conch shells, 
the inside of which looks like mother- 
of-pearl. But the Portuguese, lately 
mentioned, who had lived in China, 
and spoke that and the neighbouring 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XV. 



234 

languages very well, said that it was 
made of a fine sort of clay that was 
dug in the province of Canton. I 
have often made inquiry about it, 
but could never be well satisfied in it ; 
but while I was on the coast of Can- 
ton I forgot to inquire about it. They 
make very fine lacquer ware also, and 
good silks ; and they are curious at 
painting and carving. China affords 
drugs in great abundance, especially 
China root ; but this is not peculiar 
to that country alone, for there is 
much of this root growing in Jamaica, 
particularly at Sixteen Mile Walk ; 
and in the Bay of Honduras it is very 
plentiful. There is a great store of 
sugar made in this country ; and tea 
in abundance is brought from thence, 
being much used there, and in Ton- 
quin and Cochin China as common 
drinking, women sitting in the streets 
and selling dishes of tea hot and 
ready made ; they call it Chan, and 
even the poorest people sip it. But 
the tea at Tonquin or Cochin China 
seems not so good, or of so pleasant a 
bitter, or of so fine a colour, or such 
virtue, as this in China ; for I have 
drank of it in these countries, unless 
the fault be in their way of making 
it, for I made none there myself ; and 
by the high red colour it looks as if 
they made a decoction of it, or kept it 
stale. Yet, at Japan, I was told there 
is a great deal of pure tea, very good. 1 
The Chinese are very great game- 
sters, and they will never be tired 
with it, playing night and day, till 
they have lost all their estates, then 
it is usual with them to hang them- 
selves. This was frequently done by 
the Chinese factor at Manilla, as I 
was told by Spaniards that lived there. 
The Spaniards themselves are much 
addicted to gaming, and are very ex- 
pert at it; but the Chinese are too 
subtle for them, being in general a 
very cunning people. But a particu- 
lar account of them and their country 
would fill a volume ; nor does my 
short experience of them qualify me 



1 Teahadbeen introduced in England, 
though only as a rare luxury, some 
thirty years before Dampier wrote. 



to say much of them. Wherefore, to 
confine myself chiefly to what I ob- 
served at St John's Island, where 
we lay some time, and visited the 
shore every day to buy provision, as 
hogs, fowl, and buffalo. Here was 
a small town standing in a wet 
swampy ground, with many filthy 
ponds amongst the houses, which 
were built 011 the ground as ours are, 
not on posts as at Mindanao. In 
these ponds were plenty of ducks ; 
the houses were small and low, and 
covered with thatch, and inside were 
but ill furnished, and kept nastily ; 
and I have been told by one who was 
there, that most of the houses in the 
city of Canton itself are but poor and 
irregular. The inhabitants of this 
village seem to be most husbandmen ; 
they were at this time very busy in 
sowing their rice, which is their chief 
commodity. The land in which they 
choose to sow the rice is low and wet, 
and when ploughed, the earth was like 
a mass of mud. They ploughed their 
land with a small plough drawn by 
one buffalo, and one man both holds 
the plough and drives the beast. 
When the rice is ripe and gathered 
in, they tread it out of the ear with 
buffaloes, in a large round place made 
with a hard floor fit for that purpose, 
where they chain three or four of 
these beasts, one at the tail of the 
other ; and driving them round in a 
ring, as in a horse-mill, they so order it 
that the buffaloes may tread upon it all. 
I was once ashore at this island, with 
seven or eight Englishmen more, and 
having occasion to stay some time, we 
killed a small "shore" or young 
porker, and roasted it for our dinners. 
While we were busy dressing of our 
pork, one of the natives came and sat 
down by us ; and when our dinner 
was ready, we cut a good piece and 
gave it him, which he willingly re- 
ceived. But by signs he begged more, 
and withal pointed into the woods ; yet 
we did not understand his meaning, 
nor much, mind him, till our hunger 
was pretty well assuaged, although 
he did still make signs, and walking 
a little way from us, he beckoned to 
us to come to him, which at last I did, 



1687.] DESCRIPTION OF A CHINESE JUNK. 

and two or three more, 
before, led the way in 



He, goin| 
small blinc 



path through a thicket into a small 
grove of trees, in which there was an 
old idol temple about ten feet square. 
The walls of it were about nine feet 
high, and two feet thick, made of 
bricks. The floor was paved with 
broad bricks, and in the middle of 
the floor stood an old rusty iron bell on 
its brims. This bell was about two 
feet high, standing flat on the ground ; 
the brims on which it stood were about 
sixteen inches diameter. From the 
brims it did taper away a little to- 
wards the head, much like our bells, 
but that the brims did not turn out 
so much as ours do. On the head of 
the bell there were three iron bar? as 
big as a man's arm, and about ten 
inches long from the top of the bell, 
where the ends joined as in a centre, 
and seemed of one mass with the bell, 
as if cast together. These bars stood 
all parallel to the ground ; and their 
further ends, which stood triangularly 
and opening from each other at equal 
distances, like the flyers of our 
kitchen-jacks, were made exactly in 
the shape of the paw of some mon- 
strous beast, having sharp claws on 
it. This, it seems, was their god ; 
for as soon as our zealous guide came 
before the bell, he fell flat on his face, 
and beckoned to us, seeming very 
desirous to have us do the like. At 
the inner side of the temple, against 
the walls, there was an altar of white 
hewn stone. The table of the altar 
was about three feet long, sixteen 
inches broad, and three inches thick. 
It was raised about two feet from the 
ground, and supported by three small 
pillars of the same white stone. On 
this altar there were several small 
earthen vessels ; one of them was full 
of small sticks that had been burned 
at one end. Our guide made a great 
many signs for us to fetch and to 
leave some of our meat there, and 
seemed very importunate ; but we 
refused. AVe left him there, and 
went aboard. I did see no other 
temple nor idol here. 

While we lay at this place, we saw 
several small China junks sailing in 



235 

the lagoon between the island^ and 
the main : one came and anchored 



by us. I and some more of our men 
went aboard to view her. She was 
built with a square flat head as well 
as stern, only the head or fore-part 
was not so broad as the stern. On 
her deck she had little thatched 
houses like hovels, covered with 
palmetto leaves, and raised about 
three feet high, for the seamen to 
creep into. She had a pretty large 
cabin, wherein there was an altar and 
a lamp burning ; I did but just look 
in, and saw not the idol. The hold 
was divided into many small parti- 
tions, all of them made so tight, that 
if a leak should spring up in any one 
of them, it could go no farther, and 
so could do but little damage, but 
only to the goods in the bottom of 
that room where the leak springs up. 
Each of these rooms belongs to one 
or two merchants, or more ; and every 
man freights his goods in his own 
room, and probably lodges there if he 
be on board himself. These junks 
have only two masts, a mainmast and 
a foremast. The foremast has a 
square yard and a square sail ; but 
the mainmast has a sail narrow aloft, 
like a sloop's sail ; and in fair weather 
they use a topsail, which is to haul 
down on the deck in foul weather, 
yard and all ; for they do not go up 
to furl it. The mainmast in their 
biggest junks seemed to me as big as 
any third-rate man-of-war's mast in 
England, and yet not pieced as ours, 
but made of one grown tree ; and in 
all my travels I never saw any single 
tree masts so big in the body, and so 
long, and yet so well tapered, as I 
have seen in the Chinese junks. 

Some of our men went over to a 
pretty large town on the continent of 
China, where we might have fur- 
nished ourselves with provision, 
which was a thing we were always 
in want of, and was our chief busi- 
ness here ; but we were afraid to lie 
in this place any longer, for we had 
some signs of an approaching storm, 
this being the time of the year in 
which storms are expected on this 
coast ; and here was no safe riding. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XV. 



236 

It was now the time of the year for 
the SW. monsoon ; but the wind had 
been whiffling about from one part of 
the compass to another for two or 
three days, and sometimes it would 
be quite calm. This caused us to put 
to sea, that we might have sea-room 
at least ; for such fluttering weather 
is commonly the forerunner of a tem- 
pest. Accordingly we weighed an- 
chor and set out ; yet we had very 
little wind all the next night. But 
the day ensuing, which was the 4th 
of July, about 4 o'clock in the after- 
noon, the wind came to the NE. and 
freshened upon us, and the sky looked 
very black in that quarter, and the 
black clouds began to rise apace and 
move towards us, having hung all the 
morning in the horizon. This made 
us take in our topsails ; and the 
wind still increasing, about 9 o'clock 
we reefed our mainsail and foresail. 
At ten we furled our foresail, keeping 
under a mainsail and mizzen. At 11 
o'clock we furled our mainsail, and 
ballasted our mizzen, at which time it 
began to rain, and by 12 o'clock at 
night it blew exceeding hard, and the 
rain poured down as through a sieve. 
It thundered and lightened prodi- 
giously, and the sea seemed all of a 
fire about us ; for every sea that broke 
sparkled like lightning. The violent 
wind raised the sea presently to a 
great height, and it ran very short 
and began to break in on our deck. 
One sea struck away the rails of our 
head ; and our sheet anchor, which 
was stowed with one fluke, or bend- 
ing of the iron over the ship's gun- 
wale, and lashed very well down to 
the side, was violently washed off, 
and had like to have struck a hole in 
our bow as it lay beating against it. 
Then we were forced to put right 
before the wind, to stow our anchor 
again, which we did with much 
ado ; but afterwards we durst not 
adventure 11 to bring our ship to the 
wind again, for fear of foundering, 
for the turning the ship either to or 
from the wind is dangerous in such 
violent storms. The fierceness of 
the weather continued till 4 o'clock 
that morning, in which time we cut 



away two canoes that were towing 
astern. After 4 o'clock the thunder 
and the rain abated, and then we 
saw a Corpus Sant 1 at our main-top- 
mast head, on the very top of the 
truck of the spindle. This sight re- 
joiced our men exceedingly ; for the 
height of the storm is commonly 
over when the Corpus Sant is seen 
aloft; but when they are seen lying 
on the deck it is generally accounted 
a bad sign. A Corpus Sant is a cer- 
tain small glittering light. When it 
appears, as this did, on the very top 
of the mainmast or at a yard-arm, it 
is like a star ; but when it appears on 
the deck it resembles a great glow- 
worm. The Spaniards have another 
name for it (though 1 take even this 
to be a Spanish or Portuguese name, 
and a corruption only of Corpus 
Sanctum) ; and I have been told that 
when they see them they presently go 
to prayers, and bless themselves for 
the happy sight. I have heard some 
ignorant seamen discoursing how they 
have seen them creep, or, as they say, 
travel about in the scuppers, telling 
many dismal stories that happened at 
such times ; but I did never see any 
one stir out of the place where it first 
was fixed, except upon deck, where 
every sea washes it about. Neither 
did I ever see any but when we have 
had hard rain as well as wind, and 
therefore do believe it is some jelly : 
but enough of this. We continued 
scudding right before wind and sea 
from 2 till 7 o'clock in the morning ; 
and then the wind being much abated, 
we set our mizzen again, and brought 
our ship to the wind, and lay under a 
mizzen till eleven. Then it fellflat calm, 

1 "Corposant. A name given to 
the luminous appearance often beheld 
in a dark tempestuous night about 
the decks and rigging of a ship, espe- 
cially aboiit the mast-heads, yard-arms, 
&c., caused by the electric fluid pass- 
ing upwards and downwards, 'by 
means of the humidity on the masts 
and rigging,' and 'most frequent in 
heavy rain accompanied by light- 
ning.'" Young's Nautical <*- 
ary. 



1687.] 



PESCADORES. 



237 



and it continued so for about two 
hours ; but the sky looked very black 
and rueful, especially in the SW., 
and the sea tossed us about like an 
eggshell for want of wind. About 1 
o'clock in the afternoon, the wind 
sprung up at SW., out of the quarter 
from whence we did expect it ; l there- 
fore we presently brailed up our mizzen 
and wore our ship ; but we had no 
sooner put our ship before the wind 
but it blew a storm again, and it 
rained very hard, though not so 
violently as the night before ; but the 
wind was altogether as boisterous, and 
so continued till 10 or 11 o'clock at 
night. All which time we scudded, 
or run, before the wind very swift, 
though only with our bare poles, that 
is, without any sail abroad. After- 
wards the wind died away by degrees, 
and before day we had but little wind 
and fine clear weather. 

I was never in such a violent storm 
in all my life ; so said all the com- 
pany. This was near the change of 
the moon ; it was two or three days 
before the change. The 6th, in the 
morning, having fine handsome wea- 
ther, we got up our yards again, and 
began to dry ourselves and our clothes, 
for we were all well sopped. This 
storm had deadened the hearts of our 
men so much that, instead of going 
to buy more provision at the same 
place from whence we came before 
the storm, or of seeking any more from 
the Island of Prata, they thought of 
going somewhere to shelter before the 
full moon, for fear of another such 
storm at that time ; for commonly, if 
there is any very bad weather in the 
month it is about two or three days 
before or after the full or change of 
the moon. These thoughts, I say, 
put our men on thinking where to 
go ; and the draughts or sea-plats 2 
being first consulted, it was concluded 

1 It had been in the NE. before ; 
and thus, though Dampier knew no- 
thing about modern theories of storms, 
it seems clear that in the two hours' 
lull he had passed through the vortex 
of a tornado. 

2 Plans or charts. 



to go to certain islands lying in Lat. 
23 N., called Pescadores. For there 
was not a man aboard that was any- 
thing acquainted on these coasts ; and 
therefore all our dependence was on 
the draughts, which only pointed out 
to us where such and such places or 
islands were, without giving us any 
account what harbour, roads, or bays 
there were, or the produce, strength, 
or trade of them. These we were 
forced to seek after ourselves. The 
Pescadores are a great many inhabited 
islands, lying near the Island of For- 
mosa, between it and China, in or 
near Lat. 23 N., almost as high as 
the Tropic of Cancer. 3 These Pesca- 
dore Islands are moderately high, and 
appear much like our Dorsetshire and 
Wiltshire Downs in England. They 
produce thick short grass and a few 
trees. They are pretty well watered, and 
they feed abundance of goats and some 
great cattle. There are abundance of 
mounts 4 and old fortifications on them, 
but of no use now, whatever they have 
been. Between the two easternmost 
islands there is a very good harbour, 
which is never without junks riding in 
it ; and on the west side of the eastern- 
most island there is a large town and fort 
commanding the harbour. The houses 
are but low, yet well built, and the town 
makes a fine prospect. This is a gar- 
rison of the Tartars, wherein are also 
three or four hundred soldiers, who 
live here three years, and then they 
are removed to some other place. On 
the island on the west side of the 
harbour, close by the sea, there is a 
small town of Chinese, and most of 
the other islands have some Chinese 
living on them, more or less. 

Having, as I said before, concluded 
to go to these islands, we steered 
away for them. The 20th of July we 
had first sight of them, and steered 
in among them, finding no pla/!e to 
anchor in till we came into the har- 
bour before mentioned. We blun- 
dered in, knowing little of our way, 
and we admired 5 to see so many 



8 They really lie about 20' to the 
northward of the Tropic. 
4 Mounds. 5 Wondered. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XV. 



238 

junks going and coining, and some at 
anchor, an d so great a town as the neigh- 
bouring easternmost town, the Tartar- 
ian garrison ; for we did not expect nor 
desire to have seen any people, being 
in care to lie concealed in these seas. 
However, seeing we were here, we 
boldly ran into the harbour, and pre- 
sently sent ashore our canoe to the 
town. Our people were met by an 
officer at their landing, and our quar- 
termaster, who was the chief man in 
the boat, was conducted before the 
Governor and examined, of what na- 
tion we were, and what was our busi- 
ness here. He answered that we were 
English, and were bound to Amoy or 
Anhay, which is a city standing on a 
navigable river in the province of 
Fo-kien in China, a place of vast 
trade, there being a huge multitude 
of ships there, and in general on all 
these coasts, as I have heard of several 
that have been there. He said also, 
that having received some damage by 
a storm, we therefore put in here to 
refit before we would adventure to go 
farther, and that we did intend to lie 
here till after the full moon, for fear 
of another storm. The Governor told 
him that we might better refit our 
ship at Amoy than here, and that he 
heard that two English vessels were 
arrived there already, and that he 
should be very ready to assist us in 
anything, but we must not expect 
to trade there, but must go to the 
places allowed to entertain merchant 
strangers, which wereAmoy andMacao. 
(Macao is a town of great trade also, 
lying in an island at the very mouth 
of the Eiver of Canton. It is forti- 
fied and garrisoned by a large Portu- 
guese colony, but yet under the 
Chinese Governor, whose people in- 
habit one moiety of the town, and 
lay on the Portuguese what tax they 
please; for they dare not disoblige 
the Chinese for fear of losing their 
trade. ) However, the Governor very 
kindly told our quartermaster that 
whatsoever we wanted, if that place 
could furnish us, we should have it ; 
yet that we must not come ashore on 
that island, but he would send aboard 
some of his men to know what we 



wanted, and they should also bring it 
off to us ; that nevertheless we might 
go on shore on the other islands, to 
buy refreshments of the Chinese. 
After the discourse was ended, the 
Governor dismissed him with a small 
jar of flour and three or four large 
cakes of very fine bread, and about a 
dozen pine-apples and water-melons 
(all very good in their kind) as a pre- 
sent to the Captain. 

The next day an eminent officer 
came aboard with a great many at- 
tendants. He wore a black silk cap 
of a particular make, with a plume of 
black and white feathers standing up 
almost round his head behind, and 
all his outside clothes were black silk. 
He had a loose black coat which 
reached to his knees, and his breeches 
were of the same, and underneath his 
coat he had two garments more of 
other coloured silk. His legs were 
covered with small black limber boots. 
All hi attendants were in a very 
handsome garb of black silk, all 
wearing those small black boots and 
caps. These caps were like the crown 
of a hat made of palmetto leaves, like 
our straw-hats, but without brims, 
and coming down but to their ears. 
These had no feathers, but had an 
oblong button on the top, and from 
between the button and the cap there 
fell down all round their head, as low 
as the cap reached, a sort of coarse 
hair like horse-hair, dyed (as I sup- 
pose) of a light red colour. The officer 
brought aboard, as a present from the 
Governor, a young heifer, the fattest 
and kindliest beef that I did ever 
taste in any foreign country ; it was 
small yet full grown ; two large hogs, 
four goats, two baskets of fine flour, 
twenty great flat cakes of fine well- 
tasted bread, two great jars of arrack 
(made of rice as I judged), called by 
the Chinese Sam- Shu, and fifty-five 
jars of Hog-Shu, as they call it, and 
our Europeans from them. This is a 
strong liquor, made of wheat, as I 
have been told. It looks like mum, 1 



1 Described in Bailey as "a strong 
liquor brought from Brunswick, in 
Germany" a drink so potent as to 



1687.] 



GRAFTON AND MONMOUTH ISLANDS. 



and tastes much like it, and is very 
pleasant and hearty. Our seamen 
love it mightily, and will lick their 
lips with it ; for scarce a ship goes to 
China but the men come home fat 
with soaking this liquor, and bring 
store of jars of it home with them. 
It is put into small, white, thick jars 
that hold near a quart; the double 
jars hold about two quarts. These 
jars are small below, and thence rise 
up with a pretty full belly, closing in 
pretty short at top, with a small 
thick mouth. Over the mouth of 
the jar they put a thin chip cut round 
just so as to cover the mouth, over 
that a piece of paper, and over that 
they put a great lump of clay, almost 
as big as the bottle or jar itself, with 
a hollow in it to admit the neck of 
the bottle, made round and about 
four inches long ; this is to preserve 
the liquor. If the liquor take any 
vent, it will be sour presently; so 
that when we buy any of it of the 
ships from China returning to Madras 
or Fort St George, where it is then 
sold, or of the Chinese themselves, 
of whom I have bought it at Achin 
and Bencooleu in Sumatra, if the clay 
be cracked, or the liquor mothery, 1 
we make them take it again. A quart 
jar there is worth sixpence. Besides 
this present from the Governor, there 
was a captain of a junk sent two jars 
of arrack, and abundance of pine- 
apples and water-melons. Captain 
Reed sent ashore, as a present to the 
Governor, a curious Spanish silver- 
hilted rapier, an English carbine, and 
a gold chain; and when the officer 
went ashore three guns were fired. 
In the afternoon the Governor sent 
off the same officer again, to compli- 
ment the Captain for his civility, and 
promised to retaliate his kindness 
before we departed ; but we had such 
blustering weather afterwards, that 
no boat could come aboard. 

We stayed here till the 29th, and 
then sailed from hence, with the 
wind at SW., and pretty fair weather. 



make "mum" the word with the 
imbiber. 

1 Mouldy, muddy. 



"We now directed our course for some 
islands we had chosen to go to that 
lie between Formosa and Luconia. 
They are laid down in our plots 2 
without any name, only with a figure 
of 5, denoting the number of them. 
It was supposed by us that these 
islands had no inhabitants, because 
they had not any name by our hydro- 
graphers ; therefore we thought to lie 
there secure, and be pretty near the 
Island of Luconia, which we did still 
intend to visit. In going to them we 
sailed by the SW. end of Formosa, 
leaving it on our larboard side. The 
6th of August we arrived at the five 
islands that we were bound to, and 
anchored on the east side of the nor- 
thernmost island, in fifteen fathoms, 
a cable's length from the shore. Here, 
contrary to our expectation, we found 
abundance of inhabitants in sight ; 
for there were three large towns all 
within a league of the sea, and another 
larger town than any of the three on 
the back side of a small hill close by 
also, as we found afterwards. These 
islands having no particular names in 
the draughts, some or other of us 
made use of the seamen's privilege to 
give them what names we pleased. 
Three of the islands were pretty large ; 
the westernmost is the biggest. This 
the Dutchmen who were among us 
called the Prince of Orange's Island, 
in honour of his present majesty. 
The other two great islands are about 
four or five leagues to the eastward 
of this. The northernmost of them, 
where we first anchored, I called the 
Duke of Grafton's Isle as soon as we 
landed on it ; having married my 
wife out of his Duchess's family, and 
leaving her at Arlington House at my 
going abroad. The other great isle 
our seamen called the Duke of Mon- 
mouth's Island ; this is about a league 
to the southward of Grafton Isle. 
Between Monmouth and the south 
end of Orange Island there are two 
small islands of a roundish form, 
lying east and west. The eastern- 
most island of the two our men un- 
animously called Bashee Island, from 



2 Plats ; maps, charts, or plates. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CiiAP. XV, 



'240 

a liquor which we drank there plenti- 
fully every day after we came to an 
anchor at it. The other, which is 
the smallest of all, we called Goat 
Island, from the great number of 
goats there ; and to the northward of 
them all are two high rocks. Orange 
Island, which is the biggest of them 
all, is not inhabited. It is high land, 
flat and even on the top, with steep 
cliffs against the sea ; for which rea- 
son we could not go ashore there, as 
we did on all the rest. Monmouth 
and Grafton Isles are very hilly, with 
many of those steep inhabited preci- 
pices on them that I shall describe par- 
ticularly. The two small islands are 
flat and even ; only the Bashee Island 
has one ste?p, scraggy hill, but Goat 
Island is all flat and very even. The 
mould of these islands in the valleys 
is blackish in some places, but in 
most red. The hills are very rocky ; 
the valleys are well watered with 
brooks of fresh water, which run into 
the sea in many different places. 
The soil is indifferent fruitful, espe- 
cially in the valleys, producing pretty 
great plenty of trees (though not very 
big) and thick grass. The sides of 
the mountains have also short grass, 
and some of the mountains have mines 
within them ; for the natives told us 
that the yellow metal they showed us 
(as I shall speak more particularly) 
came from these mountains ; for when 
they held it up they would point to- 
wards them. 

The fruit of the islands are a few 
plantains, bananas, pine-apples, pump- 
kins, sugar- canes, &c. ; and there 
might be more if the natives would, 
for the ground seems fertile enough. 
Here are great plenty of potatoes and 
yams, which is the common food for 
the natives for bread kind ; for those 
few plantains they have are only used 
as fruit. They have some cotton 
growing here, of the small plants. 
Here are plenty of goats and abun- 
dance of hogs, and few fowls, either 
wild or tame. For this I have always 
observed in my travels, both in the 
East and West Indies, that in those 
places where there is plenty of grain, 
that is, of rice in the one and maize 



in the other, there are also found 
great abundance of fowls ; but on the 
contrary, few fowls in those countries 
where the inhabitants feed on fruits 
and roots only. The few wild fowls 
that are here are paroquets and some 
other small birds. Their tame fowl 
are only a few cocks and hens. 

Monmouth and Grafton Islands are 
very thick inhabited ; and Bashee 
Island has one town on it. The 
natives of these islands are short, 
squat people ; they are generally 
round-visaged, with low foreheads 
and thick eyebrows ; their eyes of a 
hazel colour and small, yet bigger 
than the Chinese ; short low noses, 
and their lips and mouths middle 
proportioned. Their teeth are white ; 
their hair is black, and thick, and 
lank, which they wear but short ; it 
will just cover their ears, and so it is 
cut round very even. Their skins 
are of a very dark copper colour. 
They wear no hat, cap, or turbat, 1 
nor anything to keep off the sun. 
The men for the biggest part have only 
a small clout to cover their naked- 
ness ; some of them have jackets 
made of plantain leaves, which were 
as rough as any bear's skin. I never 
saw such rugged things. The women 
have a short petticoat made of cotton, 
which comes a little below their knees. 
It is a thick sort of stubborn cloth, 
which they make themselves of their 
cotton. Both men and women wear 
large earrings, made of that yellow 
metal before mentioned. Whether it 
were gold or no I cannot positively 
say ; I took it to be so, it was heavy, 
and of the colour of our paler gold. 
I would fain have brought away some 
to have satisfied my curiosity, but I 
had nothing wherewith to buy any. 
Captain Reed bought two of these 
rings with some iron, of which the 
people are very greedy ; and he would 
have bought more, thinking he was 
come to a very fair market, but that 
the paleness of the metal made him 
and his crew distrust its being right 
gold. For my part, I should have 
ventured on the purchase of some ; 



Turban. 



NATIVE HOUSE AND BOAT BUILDING. 

sible. Tliese precipices are natural j 
for the rocks seem too hard to work 
on ; nor is there any sign that art 
has been employed about them. On 
Bashee Island there is one such, and 
built upon, with its back next the sea. 
Graf ton and Monmouth Isles are very 
thick set with these hills and towns ; 
and the natives, whether for fear of 
pirates, or foreign enemies, or factions 
among their own clans, care not for 
building but in these fastnesses, which 
I take to be the reason that Orange 
Isle, though the largest, and as fertile 
as any, yet, being level and exposed, 
has no inhabitants. I never saw the 
like precipices and towns. 



1687.] 

but having no property in the iron, 
of which we had great store on board, 
sent from England by the merchants 
along with Captain Swan, I durst not 
barter it away. These rings when 
first polished look very gloriously; 
but time makes them fade, and turn 
to a pale yellow. Then they make a 
soft paste of red earth, and, smearing 
it over their rings, they cast them into 
a quick fire, where they remain till 
they be red-hot ; then they take them 
out and cool them in water, and rub 
off the paste ; and they look again of 
a glorious colour and lustre. These 
people make but small low houses. 
The sides, which are made of small 
posts, wattled with boughs, are not 
above four feet and a half high : the 
ridge pole is about seven or eight feet 
high. They have a fireplace at one 
end of their houses, and boards placed 
on the ground to lie on. They in- 
habit together in small villages, built 
on the sides and tops of rocky hills ; 
three or four rows of houses one above 
another, and on such steep precipices, 
that they go up to the first row with a 
wooden ladder, and so with a ladder 
still from every story up to that 
above it : there being no [other] way 
to ascend. The plain on the first pre- 
cipice may be so wide as to have room 
both for a row of houses that stand 
all along on the edge or brink of it, 
and a very narrow street running 
along before their doors ; between the 
row of houses and the foot of the next 
precipice, the plain of which is in a 
manner level to the tops of the houses 
below ; and so for the rest. The 
common ladder to eacli row or street 
comes up at a narrow passage left 
purposely about the middle of it ; 
and the street being bounded with a 
precipice also at each end, it is but 
drawing up the ladder, if they be 
assaulted, and then there is no com- 
ing at them from below, but by 



These people are pretty ingenious 
also in building boats. Their small 
boats are much like our Deal yawls, 
but not so big ; and they are built 
with very narrow plank, pinned with 
wooden pins and some nails. They 
have also some pretty large boats, 
which will carry forty or fifty men ; 
these they row with twelve or four- 
teen oars of a side. They are built 
much like the small ones, and they 
row double-banked ; that is, two men 
sitting on one bench, but one rowing 
on one side, the other on the other 
side, of the boat. They understand 
the use of iron, and work it them- 
selves. Their bellows are like those 
at Mindanao. The common employ- 
ment for the men is fishing ; but I 
did never see them catch much : 
whether it is more plenty at other 
times of the year I know not. The 
women do manage their plantations. 

I did never see them kill any of 
their goats or hogs for themselves ; 
yet they would beg the paunches of 
the goats that they themselves did 
sell to us : and if any of our surly 
seamen did heave them into the sea, 
they would take them np again, and 
the skins of the goats also. They 
would not meddle with hogs' guts, if 



climbing up as against a perpendi- l our men threw away any besides what 



cular wall ; and that they may not 
be assaulted from above, they take 
care to build on the side of such a 
hill whose back side hangs over the 
sea, or is some high, steep, perpendi- 
cular precipice, altogether inacces- 



they made chitterling and sausages 
oif. The goats' skins these people 
would carry ashore, and making a 
fire they would singe off all the hair, 
and afterwards let the skin lie and 
parch on the coals, till they thought 

Q 



242 



it eatable ; and then they would gnaw 
it, and tear it to pieces with their 
teeth, and at last swallow it. The 
paunches of the goats would make 
them an excellent dish : they dressed 
it in this manner. They would turn 
out all the chopped grass and crudities 
found in the maw 1 into their pots, 
and set it over the fire, and stir it 
about often ; this would smoke, and 
puff, and heave up as it was boiling ; 
wind breaking out of the ferment, 
and making a very savoury stink. 
While this was doing, if they had 
any fish, as commonly they had two 
or three small fish, these they would 
make very clean (as hating nastiness 
belike) and cut the flesh from the 
bone, and then mince the flesh as 
small as possibly they could ; and 
when that in the pot was well boiled, 
they would take it up, and strewing 
a little salt into it they would eat it, 
mixed with their raw minced fish. 
The dung in the maw would look 
like so much boiled herbs minced 
very small ; and they took up their 
mess with their fingers, as the Moors 
do their pillau, using no spoons. 
They had another dish made of a 
sort of locusts, whose bodies were 
about an inch and a half long, and 
as thick as the top of one's little 
finger ; with large thin wings, and 
long and small legs. At this time 
of the year these creatures came in 
great swarms to devour their potato- 
leaves and other herbs ; and the 
natives would go out with small nets, 
and take a quart at one sweep. When 
they had enough, they would carry 
them home, and parch them over the 
fire in an earthen pan ; and then 
their wings and legs would fall off", 
and their heads and backs would turn 
red like boiled shrimps, being before 
brownish. Their bodies being full, 
would eat very moist, their heads 
would crackle in one's teeth. I did 
once eat of this dish, and liked it well 
enough ; but their other dish my 
stomach would not take. 

Their common drink is water ; as 
it is of all other Indians. Besides 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XV. 

which, they make a sort of drink 
with the juice of the sugar-cane, 
which they boil and put some small 
black sort of berries among it. When 
it is well boiled, they put it into 
great jars, and let it stand three or 
four days, and work. Then it settles 
and becomes clear, and is presently 
fit to drink. This is an excellent 
liquor, and very much like English 
beer, both in colour and taste. It is 
very strong, and I do believe very 
wholesome : for our men, who drank 
briskly of it all day for several weeks, 
were frequently drunk with it, and 
never sick after it. The natives 
brought a vast deal of it every day 
to those aboard and ashore : for some 
of our men were ashore at work on 
Bashee Island ; which island they 
gave that name to from their drink- 
ing this liquor there, that being the 
name which the natives called this 
liquor by : and as they sold it to our 
men very cheap, so they did not spare 
to drink it as freely. And indeed, 
from the plenty of this liquor, and 
their plentiful use of it, our men called 
all these islands the Bashee Islands. 

What language those people speak 
I know not : for it had no affinity in 
sound to the Chinese, which is spoken 
much through the teeth ; nor yet to 
the Malay language. They called 
the metal that their earrings were 
made of, Bullawan, which is the 
Mindanao word for gold ; therefore 
probably they may be related to the 
Philippine Indies : for that is the 
general name for gold among all those 
Indians. I could not learn whence 
they have their iron ; but it is most 
likely they go in their great boats to 
the north end of Luconia, and trade 
with the Indians of that island for it. 
Neither did I see anything besides 
iron, and pieces of buffaloes' hides, 
which I could judge that they bought 
of strangers. Their clothes were of 
their own growth and manufacture. 
These men had wooden lances, and a 
few lances headed with iron ; which 
are all the weapons that they have. 
Their armour is a piece of buffalo 
hide, shaped like our carters' frocks, 
being without sleeves, and sewed both 



1 Stomach. 



1687.] 

sides together, with holes for the 
Head and the arms to come forth. 
This buff-coat reaches down to their 
knees ; it is close about their shoulders, 
but below it is three feet wide, and as 
thick as a board. 

I could never perceive them to wor- 
ship anything, neither had they any 
idols ; neither did they seem to ob- 
serve any one day more than another. 
I could never perceive that one man 
was of greater power than another ; 
but they seemed to be all equal : only 
every man ruling in his own house, 
and the children respecting and hon- 
ouring their parents. Yet it is pro- 
bable that they have some law, or 
custom, by which they are governed : 
for while we lay here we saw a young 
man buried alive in the earth ; and 
it was for theft, as far as we could 
understand from them. There was a 
great deep hole dug, and abundance 
of people came to the place to take 
their last farewell of him. Among 
the rest, there was one woman who 
made great lamentation, and took off 
the condemned person's earrings. "We 
supposed her to be his mother. After 
he had taken his leave of her and 
some others, he was put into the pit, 
and covered over with earth. He 
did not struggle, but yielded very 
quietly to his punishment ; and they 
crammed the earth close upon him, 
and stifled him. 

They have but one wife, with whom 
they live and agree very well ; and 
their children live very obediently 
under them. The boys go out a-fish- 
ing with their fathers, and the girls 
live at home with their mothers : and 
when the girls are grown pretty 
strong, they send them to their plan- 
tations, to dig yams and potatoes, of 
which they bring home on their heads 
every day enough to serve the whole 
family : for they have no rice nor 
maize. Their plantations are in the 
valleys, at a good distance from their 
houses : where every man has a cer- 
tain spot of land, which is properly 
his own. This he manages himself 
for his own use ; and provides enough, 
that he may not be beholden to 
his neighbour. Notwithstanding the 



HOME LIFE OF THE NATIVES. 



243 



seeming nastiness of their dish of 
goat's maw, they are in their persons 
a very neat cleanly people, both men 
and women : and they are withal the 
quietest and civilest people that I did 
ever meet with. I could never per- 
ceive them to be angry with one an- 
other. I have admired to see twenty 
or thirty boats aboard our ship at a 
time, and yet no difference among 
them, but all civil and quiet, endea- 
vouring to help each other on occa- 
sion : no noise, nor appearance of 
distaste : and although sometimes 
cross accidents would happen, which 
might have set "other men together 
by the ears, yet they were not moved 
by them. They have no sort of coin : 
but they have small crumbs of the 
metal before described, which they 
bind up very safe in plantain-leaves, 
or the like. This metal they exchange 
for what they want, giving a small 
quantity of it, about two or three 
grains, for a jar of drink that would 
hold five or six gallons. They have 
no scales, but give it by guess. Thus 
much in general. 

To proceed, therefore, with our 
affairs. I have said before that we 
anchored here the 6th of August. 
While we were furling our sails, there 
came near 100 boats of the natives 
aboard, with three or four men in 
each, so that our deck was full of men. 
We were at first afraid of them, and 
therefore got up twenty or thirty small 
arms on our poop, and kept three or 
four men as sentinels, with guns in 
their hands, ready to fire on them if 
they had offered to molest us. But 
they were pretty quiet, only they 
picked up such old iron as they found 
on our deck ; and they also took out 
our pump-bolts, and linch-pins out of 
the carriages of our guns, before we 
perceived them. At last one of our 
men perceived one of them very busy 
getting out one of our linch-pins, and 
took hold of the fellow, who immedi- 
ately bawled out ; and all the rest 
presently leaped overboard some into 
their boats, others into the sea and 
they all made away for the shore. 
But when we perceived their fright we 
made much of him that was in hold, 



244 

who stood trembling all the while ; 
and at last we gave him a small piece 
of iron, with which he immediately 
leaped overboard and swam to his 
consorts, who hovered about our ship 
to see the issue. Then we beckoned 
to them to come aboard again, being 
very loth to lose a commerce with 
them. Some of the boats came aboard 
again, and they were always very 
honest and civil afterwards. We pre- 
sently after this sent a canoe ashore 
to see their manner of living, and 
what provision they had. The canoe's 
crew were made very welcome with 
Bashee drink, and saw abundance of 
hogs, some of which they bought and 
returned aboard. After this the na- 
tives brought aboard both hogs and 
goats to us in their own boats ; and 
every day we should have fifteen or 
twenty hogs and goats in boats aboard 
by our side. These we bought for a 
small matter. We could buy a good 
fat goat for an old iron hoop, and a hog 
of seventy or eighty pounds' weight for 
two or three pounds of iron. Their 
drink also they brought off in jars, 
which we bought for old nails, spikes, 
and leaden bullets. Besides the fore- 
mentioned commodities, they brought 
aboard great quantities of yams and 
potatoes, which we purchased for 
nails, spikes, or bullets. It was one 
man's work to be all day cutting out 
bars of iron into small pieces with a 
cold chisel, and these were for the 
great purchases of hogs and goats, 
which they would not sell for nails, 
as their drink and roots. We never 
let them know what store we had, 
that they might value it the more. 
Every morning, as soon as it was 
light, they would thus come aboard 
with their commodities, which we 
bought as we had occasion. We did 
commonly furnish ourselves with as 
many goats and roots as served us all 
the day; and their hogs we bought 
in large quantities as we thought con- 
venient, for we salted them. Their 
hogs were very sweet, but I never saw 
so many measled ones. 

We filled all our water at a curious 
brook close by us in Grafton Isle, 
where we first anchored. We stayed 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XV. 

there about three or four days before we 
went to other islands. We sailed to the 
southward, passing on the east side 
of Grafton Island ; and then passed 
through between that and Monmouth 
Island, but we found no anchoring 
till we came to the north end of Mon- 
mouth Island, and there we stopped 
during one tide. When we went from 
hence, we coasted about two leagues 
to the southward on the west side of 
Monmouth Island ; and finding no 
anchor ground, we stood over to 
Bashee Island, and came to an anchor 
on the north-east part of it against a 
small sandy bay in seven fathom clean 
hard sand, and about a quarter of a 
mile from the shore. We presently 
built a tent ashore to mend our sails 
in, and stayed all the rest of our time 
here, viz., from the 13th of August 
till the 26th of September. In which 
time we mended our sails and scrub- 
bed our ship's bottom very well ; and 
every day some of us went to their 
towns and were kindly entertained 
by them. Their boats also came 
aboard with their merchandise to sell, 
and lay aboard all day ; and if we did 
not take it off their hands one day, 
they would bring the same again the 
next. We had yet the winds at SW. 
and SSW., mostly fair weather. In 
October we did expect the winds to 
shift to the NK, and therefore we 
provided to sail (as soon as the east- 
ern monsoon was settled) to cruise off 
Manilla. Accordingly we provided a 
stock of provision. We salted seventy 
or eighty good fat hogs, and bought 
yams and potatoes good store to eat 
at sea. 

About the 24th of September 
the winds shifted about to the E., 
and thence to the NE., fine fair 
weather. The 25th it came at N. 
and began to grow fresh, and the sky 
began to be clouded, and the wind 
freshened on us. At 12 of the clock 
at night it blew a very fierce storm. 
We were then riding with our best 
bower ahead, and though our yards 
and topmast were down, yet we drove. 
This obliged us to let go our sheet 
anchor, veering out a good scope of 
cable, which stopped us till 10 or 11 



1687.] SIX MEN PICKED UP. 

of the clock the next day. Then the 
wind came on so fierce that she drove 
again with both anchors ahead. The 
wind was now at N. by "W., and we 
kept driving till 3 or 4 of the clock 
in the afternoon ; and it was well for 
us that there were no islands, rocks, 
or sands in our way, for if there had 
been, we must have been driven upoii 
them. We used our utmost endeavours 
to stop her, being loth to go to sea, 
because we had six of our men ashore 
who could not get off now. At last we 
were driven out into deep water, and 
then it was in vain to wait any longer ; 
therefore we hove in our sheet cable, 
and got up our sheet anchor, and cut 
away our best bower (for to have 
heaved her \vp then would have gone 
near to have foundered us), and so 
put to sea. We had very violent 
weather the night ensuing, with very 
hard rain ; and we were forced to scud 
with our bare poles till 3 o'clock in 
the morning. Then the Avind slack- 
ened, and we brought our ship to 
under a mizzen, and lay with our head 
to the westward. The 27th the wind 
abated much, but it rained very hard 
all day and the night ensuing. The 
28th the wind came about to the NE. , 
and it cleared up and blew a hard 
gale ; but it stood not there, for it 
shifted about to the eastward, thence 
to the SE., then to the S. ; at last it 
settled at SW., and then we had a 
moderate gale and fair weather. It 
was the 29th when the wind came to 
the SW. Then we made all the sail 
we could for the island again. The 
30th we had the wind at W., and 
saw the islands, but could not get in 
before night. Therefore we stood oiF 
to the southward till 2 of the clock in 
the morning, then we tacked and 
stood in all the morning ; and about 
12 of the clock, the 1st of October, we 
anchored again at the place whence 
we were driven. 

Then our six men were brought 
aboard by the natives, to whom we 
gave three whole bars of iron for their 
kindness and civility, which was an 
extraordinary present to them. Mr 
Robert Hall was one of the men that 
were left ashore; I shall speak more 



245 

of him hereafter. He and the rest of 
them told me that after the ship was 
out of sight the natives began to be 
more kind to them than they had 
been before, and persuaded them to 
cut their hair short, as theirs was ; 
offering to each of them, if they would 
do it, a young woman to wife, and a 
small hatchet and other iron utensils 
fit for a planter, in dowry ; and withal 
showed them a piece of land for them 
to manage. They were courted thus 
by several of the town where they 



then were, but they took up their 
headquarters at the house of him with 
whom they first went ashore. When 
the ship appeared in sight again, then 
they importuned them for some iron, 
which is the chief thing that they 
covet, even above their earrings. We 
might have bought all their earrings 
or other gold they had, with our iron 
bars, had we been assured of its good- 
ness ; and yet when it was touched 
and compared with other gold, we 
could not discern any difference, 
though it looked so pale in the lump ; 
but the seeing them polish it so often 
was a new discouragement. 

This last storm put our men quite 
out of heart ; for although it was not 
altogether so fierce as that which we 
were in on the coast of China, which 
was still fresh in memory, yet it 
wrought more powerfully, and fright- 
ed them from their design of cruis- 
ing before Manilla, fearing another 
storm there. Now every man wished 
himself at home, as they had done a 
hundred times before ; but Captain. 
Reed, and Captain Tait, the master, 
persuaded them to go towards Cape 
Comorin, and then they would tell them 
more of their minds, intending, doubt- 
less, to cruise in the Red Sea; and 
they easily prevailed with the crew. 
The eastern monsoon was now at 
hand, and the best way had been to 
go through the Straits of Malacca ; 
but Captain Tait said it was danger- 
ous, by reason of many islands and 
shoals there, with which none of us 
were acquainted. Therefore he thought 
it best to go round on the east cide 
of all the Philippine Islands, and 
so keeping south toward the Spice 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVI. 



246 

Islands, to pass out into the East 
Indian Ocean about the Island Timor. 
This seemed to be a very tedious way 
about, and as dangerous altogether 
for shoals ; but not for meeting with 
English or Dutch ships, which was 
their greatest fear. I was well 
enough satisfied, knowing that the 
farther we went, the more knowledge 
and experience I should get, which 
was the main thing that I regarded ; 
and I should also have the more 
variety of places to attempt an escape 
from them, being fully resolved to 
take the first opportunity of giving 
them the slip. 



CHAPTER XVI. 

THE 3d of October 1687, we sailed 
from these islands standing to the 
southward, intending to sail through 
among the Spice Islands. We had 
fair weather, and the wind at W. 
We first steered SSW., and passed 
close by certain small islands that lie 
just by the north end of the Island 
Luconia. We left them all on the 
west of us, and passed on the east 
side of it, and the rest of the Philip- 
pine Islands, coasting to the south- 
ward. The NE. end of the Island 
Luconia appears to be good cham- 
paign land, of an indifferent height, 
plain and even for many leagues, only 
it has some pretty high hills stand- 
ing upright by themselves in these 
plains ; but no ridges of hills, or 
chains of mountains joining one to 
another. The land on this side 
seems to be most savannah, or pas- 
ture ; the SE. part is more mountain- 
ous and woody. Leaving the Island 
Luconia, and with it our golden pro- 
jects, we sailed on the southward, 
passing on the east side of the rest of 
the Philippine Islands. These appear 
to be more mountainous and less 
woody, till we came in sight of the 
Island St John, the first of that name 
I mentioned ; the other I spoke of on 
the coast of China. This I have 
already described to be a very woody 
island. Here the wind coming 



southerly, forced us to keep farther 
from the islands. The 14th of Octo- 
ber we came close by a small, low, 
woody island, that lies east from the 
SE. end of Mindanao, distant from it 
about twenty leagues. I do not find 
it set down in any sea-chart. The 
15th we had the wind at NE., and 
steered west for the Island Mindanao, 
and arrived at the SE. end again on 
the 16th. There we went in and 
anchored between two small islands. 
Here we found a fine small cove on 
the NW. end of the easternmost 
island, fit to careen in or haul ashore ; 
so we went in there, and presently 
unrigged our ship, and provided to 
haul our ship ashore, to clean her 
bottom. 

These islands are about three or 
four leagues from the Island Minda- 
nao ; they are about four or five miles 
in circumference, and of a pretty 
good height. The mould is black 
and deep, and there are two small 
brooks of fresh water. They are 
both plentifully stored with great 
high trees ; therefore our carpenters 
were sent ashore to cut down some of 
them for our use ; for here they made 
a new boltsprit, 1 which we did set 
here also, our old one being very 
faulty. They made a new foreyard 
too, andaforetopmast ; and our pumps 
being faulty and not serviceable, they 
did cut a tree to make a pump. They 
first squared it, then sawed it in the 
middle, and then hollowed each side 
exactly. The two hollow sides were 
made big enough to contain a pump- 
box in the midst of them both, when 
they were joined together, and it re- 
quired their utmost skill to close 
them exactly to the making a tight 
cylinder for the pump-box ; being un- 
accustomed to such work. We learnt 
this way of pump -making from the 
Spaniards, who make their pumps 
that they use in their ships in the 
South Seas after this manner ; and I 
am confident that there are no better 

1 Bowsprit, so called, probably, 
from the meaning of the word "bolt," 
as something projected or thrust out 
from the bow of the ship. 



1687.] 

hand-pumps in the world than they 

have. 

While we lay here, the young 
Prince that I mentioned in Chapter 
XIII. , came aboard. 1 He, under- 
standing that we were bound farther 
to the southward, desired us to trans- 
port him and his men to his own 
island. He showed it to us in our 
draught, and told us the name of it, 
which we put down in our draught, 
for it was not named there ; but I 
quite forgot to put it into my journal. 
This man told us, that not above six 
days before this he saw Captain Swan, 
and several of his men that we left- 
there, and named the names of some 
of them, who, he said, were all well, 
and now they were at the city of Min- 
danao ; but that they had been all of 
them out with Raja Laut, fighting 
under him in his wars against his 
enemies the Alfoores ; and that most 
of them fought with undaunted cour- 
age, for which they were highly hon- 
oured and esteemed, as well by the 
Sultan, as by the General Raja Laut. 
That now Captain Swan intended to 
go with his men to Fort St George, 2 
and that in order thereto, he bad prof- 
fered forty ounces of gold for a ship, 
but the owner and he were not yet 
agreed ; and that he feared the Sul- 
tan would not let him go away till 
the wars were ended. All this the 
Prince told us in the Malay tongue, 
which many of us had learnt ; and 
when he went away he promised to 
return to us again in three days' time, 
and so long Captain Reed promised 
to stay for him (for we had now al- 
most finished our business), and he 
seemed very glad of the opportunity 
of going with us. 

After this I endeavoured to persuade 
our men to return with the ship to 
the River of Mindanao and offer theii 
service again to Captain Swan. I took 
an opportunity when they were filling 
water, there being then half the ship's 



DEATH OF CAPTAIN SWAN. 

ompany ashore, and I 



1 Who had been sent by his uncle, 
the Sultan of a spice island, to Min- 
danao, with an invitation to Captain 
Swan to come and trade. 

2 Madras. 



247 

found these 

ill very willing to do it. I desired 
hem to say nothing till I had tried 
he minds of the other half, which I 
ntended to do the next day, it being 
heir turn to fill water then ; but one 
>f these men, who seemed most for- 
ward to invite back Captain Swan, 
old Captain Reed and Captain Tait 
if the project, and they presently dis- 
uaded the men from any such de- 
signs. Yet, fearing the worst, they 
made all possible haste to be gone. I 
lave since been informed that Captain 
Swan and his men stayed there a 
great while afterward, and that many 
of the men got passage thence in 
Dutch sloops to Ternate, particularly 
Mr Rofy and Mr Nelly. There they 
remained a great while, and at last 
a;ot to Batavia (where the Dutch took 
heir journals from them), and so to 
Europe ; and some of Captain Swan's 
men died at Mindanao, of which num- 
ber Mr Harthope and Mr Smith, Cap- 
tain Swan's merchants, were two. At 
last Captain Swan and his surgeon, 
going in a small canoe aboard of a 
Dutch ship then in the road, in order 
to get passage to Europe, were over- 
set by the natives at the mouth of the 
river, who waited their coming pur- 
posely to do it, but unsuspected by 
them, where they both were killed in 
the water. This was done by the 
General's order, as some think, to get 
his gold, which he did immediately 
seize on. Others say it was because 
the General's house was burnt a little 
before, and Captain Swan was sus- 
pected to be the author of it; and 
others say that it was Captain Swan's 
threats occasioned his own ruin, for 
he would often say, passionately, that 
he had been abused 3 by the General, 
and that he would have satisfaction 
for it ; saying also, that now he was 
well acquainted with their rivers, and 
knew how to come in at any time ; 
that he also knew their manner of 
fighting and the weakness of their 
country ; and therefore he would go 
away and get a band of men to assist 
him, and returning thither again he 



Dealt falsely with. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [Ciur. XVI. 



243 

would spoil and take all that they had, 
and their country too. When the 
General has been informed of these 
discourses he would say, "What, is 
Captain Swan made of iron, and able 
to resist a whole kingdom ? or does 
he think that we are afraid of him 
that he speaks thus?" Yet did he 
never touch him till now the Min- 
danayans killed him. It is very pro- 
bable there might be somewhat of 
truth in all this, for the Captain was 
passionate, and the General greedy of 
gold. But whatever was the occa- 
sion, so he wau killed, as several have 
assured me, and his gold seized on, 
and all his things ; and his journal 
also from England, as far as Cape Cor- 
rientes on the coast of Mexico. This 
journal was afterwards sent away from 
thence by Mr Moody (who was there 
both a little before and a little after 
the murder), and he sent it into Eng- 
land by Mr Goddard, chief mate of 
the Defence. 

But to our purpose. Seeing I could 
not persuade them to go to Captain 
Swan again, I had a great desire to 
have had the Prince's company ; but 
Captain Reed was afraid to let his 
fickle crew lie long. That very day 
that the Prince had promised to re- 
turn to us, which was November 2, 
1687, we sailed hence, directing our 
course SW. and having the wind at 
NW. This wind continued till we 
came in sight of the Island Celebes, 
then it veered about to the W. and 
to the S. of W. We came up with 
the NE. end of the Island Celebes on 
the 9th, and there we found the cur- 
rent setting to the W. so strongly 
that we could hardly get on the E. 
side of that island. 

The Island Celebes is a very large 
island, extended in length from north 
to south about seven degrees of Lati- 
tude, and in breadth about three de- 
grees. It lies under the Equator, 
the north end being in Lat. 1 30' N., 
and the south end in Lat. 5 30' S. ; 
and by common account the bulk of 
this island lies nearest north and 
south, but at the north-east end there 
runs out a long narrow point, stretch- 
ing NE. about thirty leagues; and 



about thirty leagues to the eastward 
of this long slip is the Island Gilolo, 
on the west side of which are four 
small islands close by it, which are very 
well stored with cloves. The two chief 
are Ternate and Tidore. And as the 
Isle of Ceylon is reckoned the only 
place for cinnamon, and that of Banda 
for nutmegs; so these are thought by 
some to be the only clove islands in 
the world ; but this is a great error, 
as I have already shown. At the 
south end of the Island Celebes there 
is a sea or gulf of about seven or eight 
leagues wide, and forty or fifty long, 
which runs up the country almost 
directly to the north ; and this gulf 
has several small islands along the 
middle of it. On the west side of the 
island, almost at the south end of it, 
the town of Macassar is seated a town 
of great strength and trade belonging 
to the Dutch. There are great inlets 
and lakes on the east side of the island, 
as also abundance of small islands and 
shoals lying scattered about it. We 
saw a high-peaked hill at the north 
end, but the land on the east side is 
low all along, for we cruised almost 
the length of it. The mould on this 
side is black A? id deep, and extraor- 
dinarily fat and rich, and full of trees ; 
and many brooks of water run out into 
the sea. Indeed all this east side of the 
island seems to be but one large grove 
of extraordinary great high trees. 

Having with much ado got on this 
east side, coasting along to the south- 
ward, and yet having but little wind, 
and even that little against us at SSW. 
and sometimes calm, we were a long 
time going about the island. The 
22d we were in Lat. 1 20' S., and 
being about three leagues from the 
island, standing to the southward, 
with a very gentle land wind, about 
2 or 3 of the clock in the morning, 
we heard clashing in the water, like 
boats rowing ; and fearing some sud- 
den attack, we got up all our arms 
and stood ready to defend ourselves. 
As soon as it was day we saw a great 
proa, built like the Mindanayan proas, 
with about sixty men in her, and six 
smaller proas. They lay still about a 
mile to windward of us to view us, 



1687.] 



FELLING A MONSTER TREE. 



249 



and probably designed to make a prey 
of us when they first came out, but 
they were now afraid to venture on us. 
At last we showed them Dutch colours, 
thinking thereby to allure them to 
come to us, for we could not go to 
them ; but they presently rowed in 
towards the island and went into a 
large opening, and we saw them no 
more ; nor did we ever see any other 
boats or men but only one fishing 
canoe while we were about this island, 
neither did we see any house on all 
the coast. 

About five or six leagues to the 
south of this place there is a great 
range of both large and small islands, 
and many shoals also that are not laid 
down in our draughts, which made it 
extremely troublesome for us to get 
through. But we passed between 
them all and the Island Celebes, and 
anchored against a sandy bay in eight 
fathomssandy ground abouthalf-a-mile 
from the main island, being then in 
Lat. 1 50' S. Here we stayed several 
days, and sent out our canoes a-strik- 
ing of turtle every day, for here is 
great plenty of them ; but they were 
very shy, as they were generally wher- 
ever we found them in the East India 
Seas. I know not the reason of it, 
unless thenatives go very much a-strik- 
ing here ; for even in the West Indies 
they are shy in places that are much 
disturbed ; and yet on New Holland 
we found them shy, as I shall relate, 
though the natives there do not molest 
them. On the shoals without us we 
went and gathered shell-fish at low 
water. There were a monstrous sort 
of cockles the meat of one of them 
would suffice seven or eight men. It 
was very good wholesome meat. "We 
did also beat about in the woods on 
the island, but found no game. One 
of our men, who was always troubled 
with sore legs, found a certain vine 
that supported itself by climbing 
about otner trees. The leaves reached 
six or seven feet high, but the strings 
or branches eleven or twelve. It had 
a very green leaf, pretty broad and 
roundish, and of a thick substance. 
These leaves pounded small, and boiled 
with hogs lard, make an excellent 



salve. Our men, knoAving the virtues 
of it, stocked themselves here ; there 
was scarce a man in the ship but got 
a pound or two of it, especially such 
as were troubled with old ulcers, who 
found great benefit by it. The man 
that discovered these leaves here had 
his first knowledge of them in the 
Isthmus of Darien, he having had 
this receipt from one of the Indians 
there; and he had been ashore in 
divers places since purposely to seek 
these leaves, but did never find any 
but here. 

Among the many vast trees here- 
abouts there was one exceeded all the 
rest. This Captain Reed caused to be 
cut down in order to make a canoe, 
having lost our boats, all but one 
small one, in the late storms ; so six 
lusty men, who had been logwood 
cutters in the Bays of Campeachy and 
Honduras (as Captain Reed himself, 
and many more of us had), and so 
were very expert at this work, under- 
took to fell it, taking their turns 
three always cutting together ; and 
they were one whole day and half the 
next before they got it down. This 
tree, though it grew in a wood, was 
yet eighteen feet in circumference and 
forty-four feet of clean body, without 
knot or branch ; and even there it had 
no more than one or two branches, and 
then ran clean again ten feet higher ; 
there it spread itself into many great 
limbs and branches like an oak, very 
green and flourishing; yet it was 
perished at the heart, which marred 
it for the service intended. So, leav- 
ing it, and having no more business 
here, we weighed and went from hence 
the next day, it being the 29th of 
November. We had the wind at NE. 
when we weighed, and we steered off 
SSW. In the afternoon we saw a 
shoal ahead of us, and altered our 
course to the SSE. In the evening, 
at 4 of the clock, we were close by 
another great shoal; therefore we 
tacked and stood in for the Island 
Celebes again for fear of running on 
some of the shoals in the night. By day 
a man might avoid them well enough, 
for they had all beacons on them, like 
huts built on tall posts, above high- 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVI. 



water mark, probably set up by the 
natives of the Island Celebes or those 
of some other neighbouring islands; 
and I never saw any such elsewhere. 

The 30th we had a fresh land wind, 
and steered away south, passing be- 
tween the two shoals which we saw 
the day before. Being past them, 
the wind died away, and we lay be- 
calmed till the afternoon ; then we 
had a hard tornado out of the SW., 
and towards the evening we saw two 
or three spouts, the first I had seen 
since I came into the East Indies : 
in the West Indies I had often met 
with them. A spout is a small ragged 
piece, or part of a cloud, hanging 
down about a yard, seemingly from 
the blackest part thereof. Commonly 
it hangs down sloping from thence, 
or sometimes appearing with a small 
bending or elbow in the middle. I 
never saw any hang perpendicularly 
down. It is small at the lower end, 
seeming no bigger than one's arm ; 
but it is fuller towards the cloud, 
whence it proceeds. They seem ter- 
rible enough : the rather because 
they come upon you while you lie 
becalmed like a log in the sea, and 
cannot get out of their way; but 
though I have seen and been beset 
by them often, yet the fright was 
always the greatest of the harm. 

December the 1st, we had a gentle 
gale at ESE. We steered south ; and 
at noon I was by observation in Lat. 
3 34' S. Then we saw the Island 
Bouton, bearing south-west, and 
about ten leagues distant. We had 
very uncertain and unconstant winds. 
The 5th, we got close by the NW. 
end of the Island Bouton, and in the 
evening, it being fair weather, we 
hoisted out our canoe, and sent the 
Mosquito men, of whom we had two 
or three, to strike turtle, for here are 
plenty of them ; but they being shj T , 
we chose to strike them in the night 
(which is customary in the West 
Indies also) for every time they come 
up to breathe, which is once in eight 
or ten minutes, they blow so hard, 
that one may hear them at thirty or 
forty yards' distance ; by which means 
the striker knows where they are, and 



in ay more easily approach them than 
in the day, for the turtle sees better 
than he hears : but, on the contrary, 
the manatee's hearing is quickest. In 
the morning they returned with a very 
large turtle, which they took near the 
shore ; and withal an Indian of the is- 
land came aboard with them. He spake 
the Malay language, by which we did 
understand him. He told us, that 
two leagues farther to the southward 
of us there was a good harbour, in 
which we might anchor : so having 
a fair wind, we got thither by noon. 

This harbour is in Lat. 4 54' S., 
lying on the east side of the Island 
Bouton. Which island lies near the 
SE. end of the Island Celebes, distant 
from it about three or four leagues. It 
is of a long form, stretching S W. and 
NE. about twenty-five leagues, and 
ten broad. It is pretty high land, 
and appears pretty even, and flat, and 
very woody. There is a large town 
within a league of the anchoring- 
place, called Callasusung, being the 
chief, if there were more ; which we 
knew not. It is about a mile from 
the sea, on the top of a small hill, in 
a very fair plain, encompassed with 
cocoa-nut trees. Without the trees 
there is a strong stone wall, clear 
round the town. The houses are 
built like the houses at Mindanao, 
but more neat ; and the whole town 
was very clean and delightsome. The 
inhabitants are small and well shaped. 
They are much like the Mindanayans 
in shape, colour, and habit; but 
more neat and tight. They speak 
the Malay language, and are all 
Mahometans. They are very obedi- 
ent to the Sultan, who is a little man, 
about forty or fifty years old, and 
has a great many Avives and children. 
About an hour after we came to an 
anchor, the Sultan sent a messenger 
aboard, to know what we were, and 
what our business. We gave him an 
account, and he returned ashore, and 
in a short time after he came aboard 
again, and told us that the Sultan 
was very well pleased when he heard 
that we were English, and said, that 
we should have anything the island 
afforded ; and that he himself would 



1687.1 



THE SULTAN OF BOUTOX. 



251 



come aboard in the morning. There- 
fore the ship was made clean, and 
everything put in the best order to 
receive him. 

The 6th, in the morning betimes, 
a great many boats and canoes came 
aboard, with fowls, eggs, plantains, 
potatoes, &c., but they would dispose 
of none till they had order for it from 
the Sultan, at his coming. About 
10 of the clock the Sultan came 
aboard in a very neat proa, built after 
the Mindanao fashion. There was a 
large white silk flag^at the head of 
the mast, edged round with a deep 
red for about two or three inches 
broad, and in the middle there was 
neatly drawn a green griffin, tramp- 
ling on a winged serpent that seemed 
to struggle to get up, and threatened 
his adversary with open mouth, and 
with a long sting that was ready to 
be darted into his legs. Other East 
Indian princes have their devices also. 
The Sultan, with three or four of his 
nobles, and three of his sons, sat in 
the house of the proa. His guards 
were ten musketeers, five standing 
on one side of the proa, and five on 
the other side : and before the door 
of the proa-house stood one with a 
great broad sword and a target, and 
two more such at the after-part of 
the house ; and in the head and stern 
of the proa stood four musketeers 
more, two at each end. The Sultan 
had a silk turban, laced with narrow 
gold lace by the sides, and broad lace 
at the end ; which hung down on one 
side the head, after the Mindanayan 
fashion. He had a sky-coloured silk 
pair of breeches, and a piece of red 
silk thrown across his shoulders, and 
hanging loose about him ; the greatest 
part of his back and waist appearing 
naked. He had neither stocking nor 
shoe. One of his sons was about 
fifteen or sixteen years old ; the other 
two were young things, and they were 
always in the arms of one or other of 
his attendants. 

Captain Reed met him at the side, 
and led him into his small cabin, and 
fired five guns for his welcome. As 
soon as he came aboard he gave leave 
to his subjects to traffic with us . and 



then our people bought what they 
had a mind to. The Sultan seemed 
very well pleased to be visited by the 
English ; and said he had coveted to 
have a sight of Englishmen, having 
heard extraordinary characters of their 
just and honourable dealings : but he 
exclaimed against the Dutch (as all 
the Mindanayans, and all the Indians 
we met with, do) and wished them at 
a greater distance. For Macassar is 
not very far from hence, one of the 
chief towns that the Dutch have in 
those parts. Thence the Dutch come 
sometimes hither to purchase slaves. 
The slaves that these people get here 
and sell to the Dutch are some of the 
idolatrous natives of the island, who, 
not being under the Sultan, and hav- 
ing no head, live straggling in the 
country, flying from one place to 
another to preserve themselves from 
this prince and his subjects, who hunt 
after them to make them slaves. For 
the civilising Indians of the maritime 
places, who trade with foreigners, if 
they cannot reduce the inland people 
to the obedience of their prince, catch 
all they can of them and sell them 
for slaves ; accounting them to be but 
as savages, just as the Spaniards do 
the poor Americans. 

After two or three hours' discourse, 
the Sultan went ashore again, and 
five guns were fired at his departure 
also. The next day he sent for Cap- 
tain Reed to come ashore ; and he, 
with seven or eight men, went to 
wait on the Sultan. I could not slip 
an opportunity of seeing the place ; 
and so accompanied them. "We were 
met at the landing-place by two of 
the chief men, and guided to a pretty 
neat house, where the Sultan waited 
our coming. The house stood at the 
farther end of all the town before 
mentioned, which we passed through ; 
and abundance of people were gazing 
on us as we passed by. When we 
came near the house, forty poor, 
naked soldiers with muskets made 
a line for us to pass through. This 
house was not built on posts, as the 
rest were, after the Mindanayan way ; 
but the room in which we were en- 
tertained was on the ground, covered 



252 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVI. 



with mats to sit on. Our entertain- 
ment was tobacco and betel -nut, and 
young cocoa-nuts ; and the house was 
beset with men, women, and children, 
who thronged to get near the windows 
to look on us. We did not tarry 
above an hour before we took our 
leave and departed. The next day 
the Sultan came aboard again, and 
presented Captain Reed with a little 
boy ; but he was too small to be ser- 
viceable on board ; and so Captain 
Reed returned thanks, and told him 
he was too little for him. Then the 
Sultan sent for a bigger boy, which 
the Captain accepted. This boy was 
a very pretty tractable boy ; but what 
was wonderful in him, he had two 
rows of teeth, one within another, on 
each jaw. None of the other people 
were so, nor did I ever see the like. 
The Captain was presented also with 
two he -goats, and was promised some 
buffalo, but I do believe that they 
have but few of either on the island. 
We did not see any buffalo, nor many 
goats ; neither have they much rice ; 
but their chief food is roots. We 
bought here about a thousand pound 
weight of potatoes. Here our men 
bought also abundance of crockadores 
and fine large paroquets, curiously 
coloured, and some of the finest I saw. 
The crockador is as big as a parrot, 
and shaped much like it, with such a 
bill ; but is as white as milk, and has 
a bunch of feathers on his head like 
a crown. At this place we bought a 
proa also of the Mindanayan make, 
for our own use, which our carpenters 
afterwards altered, and made a deli 
cate boat fit for any service. Sh^ 
was sharp at both ends ; but we 
sawed off one, and made that enc 
flat, fastening a rudder to it ; anc 
she rowed and sailed incomparably. 

We stayed here but till the 12th, 
because it was a bad harbour and fou" 
ground, and a bad time of the year too, 
for the tornadoes began to come in 
thick and strong. When we went to 
weigh our anchor, it was hooked in E 
rock, and we broke our cable, and 
could not get our anchor, though we 
strove hard for it ; so we went away 
and left it there. We had the wind 



t NNE., and we steered towards the 
3E. , and fell in with four or five small 
slands, that lie in 5 40' S. Lat., and 
ibout five or six leagues from Calla- 
susung harbour. These islands ap- 
peared very green with cocoa-nut 
;rees, and we saw two or three towns 
>n them, and heard a drum all night, 
'or we were got in among shoals, 
ind could not get out again till the 
lext day. We know not whether 
;he drum were for fear of us, or that 
;hey were making merry, as it is 
usual in these parts to do all the 
night, singing and dancing till morn- 
"ng. At last AVC passed between the 
islands, and tried for a passage on the 
east side. We met with divers shoals 
on this side also, but found channels 
to pass through ; so we steered away 
for the Island Timor, intending to 
pass out by it. The 16th, we got 
lear of the shoals, and steered S. by 
E., with the wind at WSW., but 
veering every half hour, sometimes at 
SW., and then again at W., and 
sometimes at NNW., bringing much 
rain, with thunder and lightning. 
The 20th we passed by the Island 
Omba, which is a pretty high island, 
lying in Lat. 8 20', and not above 
five or six leagues from the NE. part 
of the Island Timor. It is about 
thirteen or fourteen leagues long, and 
five or six leagues wide. About seven 
or eight leagues to the west of Omba 
is another pretty large island, but it 
had no name in our plans ; yet by 
the situation it should be that which 
in some maps is called Pentare. 1 We 
saw on it abundance of smokes by day, 
and fires by night, and a large town 
on the north side of it, not far from 
the sea ; but it was such bad weather 
that we did not go ashore. BetAveen 
Omba and Pentare, and in the mid- 
channel, there is a small, IOAV, sandy 
island, with great shoals on either 
side ; but there is a very good channel 
close by Pentare betAveen them and 
the shoals about the small isle. We 
were three days beating off and on, 
not having a wind, for it was at SSW. 

1 Or Pantor ; a small island about 
midway betAveen Timor and Floris. 



AUSTRALIA OR NEW HOLLAND. 



1688.] 

The 23d, in the evening, having a 
small gale at north, we got through, 
keeping close by Pentare. The tide 
of ebb here set out to the southward, 
by which we were helped through, 
for we had but little wind ; but this 
tide, which did us a kindness in set- 
ting us through, had like to have 
ruined us afterwards. For there are 
two small islands lying at the south 
end of the channel we came through ; 
and towards these islands the tide 
hurried so swiftly, that we very nar- 
rowly escaped being driven ashore ; for 
the little wind we had before at north 
died away ; we had not one breath of 
wind when we came there, neither 
was there an anchor-ground. But we 
got out our oars and rowed, yet all in 
vain ; for the tide set wholly on one 
of the small islands, that we were 
forced by might and main strength 
to bear off the ship, by thrusting with 
our oars against the shore, which was 
a steep bank, and by this means we 
presently drove away, clear of danger ; 
and having a little wind in the night 
at north, we steered away SSW. In 
the morning again we had the wind 
at WSW., and steered S. ; and the 
wind coming to the "WNW., we 
steered SW. to get clear of the SW. 
end of the Island Timor. The 26th, 
we saw the N W. point of Timor, SE. 
by E., distant about eight leagues. 
Timor is a long high mountainous 
island, stretching NE. and SW. It 
is about seventy leagues long, and 
fifteen or sixteen wide ; the middle 
of the island is in Latitude about 
9 S. I have been informed that the 
Portuguese trade to this island, but I 
know nothing of its produce, besides 
Coir, or making cables. 1 

Being now clear of all the islands, 
we stood off south, intending to touch 
at New Holland, a part of Terra Aus- 
tralia Incognita, to see what that 
country would afford us. In- 
deed, as the winds were, we could 
not now keep our intended course 
(which was first westerly, and then 
northerly) without going to New 
Holland, unless we had gone back 



253 



Cordage made of cocoa-nut fibre. 



again among the islands ; but this 
was not a good time of the year to 
be among any islands to the south of 
the Equator, unless in a good har- 
bour. The 31st, we were in Lat. 13 
20', still standing to the southward, 
the wind bearing commonly very 
hard at W., and we keeping upon it 
under two courses, and our mizzen, 
and sometimes a maintopsail reefed. 
About 10 of the clock at night we 
tacked and stood to the northward, 
for fear of running on a shoal, which 
is laid down on our draughts in 
Lat. 13 50' or thereabouts. At 
3 of the clock we tacked again, and 
stood S. by W. and SSW. In the 
morning, as soon as it was day, we 
saw the shoal right ahead. We 
stemmed right with the middle of it, 
and stood within half-a-mile of the 
rocks, and sounded, but found no 
ground. Then we went about and 
stood to the north two hours ; and 
then tacked and stood to the south- 
ward again, thinking to weather it, 
but could not. So we bore away on 
the north side, till we came to the 
east point, giving the rocks a small 
berth ; then we trimmed sharp, and 
stood to the southward, passing close 
to it, and sounded again, but found 
no ground. . . . 

The 4th of January, 1GS8, we fell 
in with the land of New Holland 
in Lat. 16 50', having made our 
course due south from the shoal that 
we passed by the 31st of December. 
We ran in close by it, and finding no 
convenient anchoring, because it lies 
open to the NW., we ran along shore 
to the eastward, steering NE. by E., 
for so the land lies. We steered thus 
about twelve leagues, and then came 
to a point of land, whence the land 
trends east and southerly for ten or 
twelve leagues, but how afterwards I 
know not. About three leagues to 
eastward of this point, there is a 
pretty deep bay, with abundance 
of islands in it, and a very good 
place to anchor in, or to haul 
ashore. About a league to the 
eastward of that point we anchored, 
January the 5th, 1688, two miles 
from the shore, in twenty -nine 



254 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 

fathoms, good hard sand, and clean 
ground. 

New Holland is a very large tract 
of Jand. It is not yet determined 
whether it is an island or a main con- 
tinent ; but I am certain that it joins 
neither to Asia, Africa, nor America. 
This part of it that we saw is all low 
even land, with sandy banks against 
the sea ; only the points are rocky, 
and so are some of the islands in this 
bay. The land is of a dry sandy soil, 
destitute of water, except you make 
wells ; yet producing divers sorts 
of trees ; but the woods are not 
thick, nor the trees very big. Most 
of the trees that we saw are dragon 
trees, as we supposed ; and these two 
are the largest trees of any there. 
They are about the bigness of our 
large apple trees, and about the same 
height, and the rind is blackish, and 
somewhat rough. The leaves are of 

a dark colour; the gum distils out 

of the knots or cracks that are in the 
bodies of the trees. We compared it 

with some gum-dragon, or dragon's 

blood, that was aboard, and it was of 

the same colour and taste. The other 

sorts of trees were not known by any 

of us. There was pretty long grass 

growing under the trees ; but it was 

very thin. We saw no trees that 

bore fruit or berries. We saw no sort 

of animal, nor any track of beast, 

but once, and that seemed to be the 

tread of a beast as big as a great mas- 
tiff dog. Here are a few small land- 
birds, but none bigger than a black- 
bird, and but few sea-fowls. Neither 

is the sea very plentifully stored with 

fish, unless you reckon the manatee 

and turtle as such. Of these crea- 
tures there is plenty ; but they 

are extraordinary shy, though the 

inhabitants cannot trouble them 

much, having neither boats nor 

arrows. 

The inhabitants of this country are 

the miserablest people in the world. 

The Hodmadods of Monomatapa, 1 

though a nasty people, yet for wealth 

are gentlemen to these, who have no 



1 The Hottentots of the Cape. 
Chapter XX. 



See 



[CHAP. XVI. 

houses and skin garments, sheep, 
poultry, and fruits of the earth, os- 
trich eggs, &c., as the Hodmadods 
have ; and setting aside their human 
shape, they differ but little from 
brutes. They are tall, straight- 
bodied, and thin, with small long 
limbs. They have great heads, 
round foreheads, and great brows. 
Their eyelids are always half-closed, 
to keep the flies out of their eyes, 
they being so troublesome here, that 
no fanning will keep them from 
coming to one's face ; and without 
the assistance of both hands to keep 
them off, they will creep into one s 
nostrils, and mouth too, if the lips 
are not shut very close. So that 
from their infancy, being thus an- 
noyed with these insects, they do 
never open their eyes as other people, 
and therefore they cannot see far, 
unless they hold up their heads, as 
if they were looking at somewhat 
over them. They have great bottle 
noses, pretty full lips, and wide 
mouths. The two fore teeth of their 
upper jaw are wanting in all of them, 
men and women, old and young ; 
whether they draw them out, I know 
not, neither have they any beards. 
They are long-visaged, and of a very 
unpleasing aspect, having no one 
graceful feature in their faces. Their 
hair is black, short and curled, like 
that of the Negroes, and not long 
and lank like the common Indians. 
The colour of their skins, both of 
their faces and the rest of their body, 
is coal black, like that of the Negroes 
of Guinea. They have no sort of 
clothes, but a piece of the rind of a 
tree, tied like a girdle about their 
waists, and a handful of long grass, 
or three or four small green boughs, 
full of leaves, thrust under theii 
girdle to cover their nakedness. 

They have no houses, but lie in the 
open air, without any covering, the 
earth being their bed, and the heaven 
their canopy. Whether they cohabit 
one man to one woman, or promiscu- 
ously, I know not : but they do live 
in companies, twenty or thirty men, 
women, and children together. Their 
only food is a small sort of fish, which 



1688.] 



WRETCHEDNESS OF THE NATIVES. 



255 



they get by making wears 1 of stone 
across little coves, or "branches of the 
sea ; every tide bringing in the small 
fish, and there leaving them for a prey 
to these people, who constantly attend 
there, to search for them at low water. 
This small fry I take to be the top of 
their fishery : they have no instru- 
ments to catch great fish, should they 
come ; and such seldom stay to be 
left behind at low water : nor could 
we catch any fish with our hooks and 
lines all the while we lay there. In 
other places at low water they seek 
for cockles, mussels, periwinkles. Of 
these shell-fish there are fewer still ; 
so that their chief dependence is upon 
what the sea leaves in their wears, 
which, be it much or little, they 
gather up, and march, to the places 
of their abode. There the old people, 
that are not able to stir abroad by 
reason of their age, and the tender 
infants, wait their return ; and what 
Providence has bestowed on them, 
they presently broil on the coals, and 
eat it in common. Sometimes they 
get as many fish as make them a 
plentiful banquet ; and at other times 
they scarce get every one a taste : but 
be it little or much that they get, 
every one has his part, as well the 
young and tender, as the old and 
feeble, who are not able to go abroad, 
and the strong and lusty. When 
they have eaten, they lie down till 
the next low water, and then all that 
are able to march out, be it night or 
day, rain or shine, it is all one : they 
must attend the wears, or else they 
must fast. For the earth affords 
them no food at all. There is neither 
herb, root, pulse, nor any sort of 
grain, for them to eat, that we saw : 
nor any sort of bird or beast that they 
can catch, having no instruments 
wherewithal to do so. 

I did not perceive that they did 
worship anything. These poor crea- 
tures have a sort of weapon to defend 
their wear, or fight with their enemies 
if they have any that will interfere 
with their poor fishery. They did at 
first endeavour with their weapons to 



frighten us, who lying ashore deterred 
them from one of their fishing-places. 
Some of them had wooden swords, 
others had a sort of lances. The 
sword is a "oiece of wood, shaped 
somewhat lik'e a cutlass. The lance 
is a long straight pole, sharp at one 
end, and hardened afterwards oy heat. 
I saw no iron, nor any other sort of 
metal : therefore it is probable they 
use stone hatchets, as some Indians 
in America do. 2 How they get their 
fire I know not : but probably, as 
Indians do, out of wood. I have seen 
the Indians of Buen Ayre 3 do it, and 
have myself tried the experiment. 
They take a flat piece of wood, that 
is pretty soft, and make a small dent 
in one side of it : then they take an- 
other hard round stick, about the 
bigness of one's little finger, and 
sharping it at one end like a pencil, 
they put that sharp end in the hole 
or dent of the flat soft piece ; then 
rubbing or twirling the hard piece 
between the palms of their hands, 
they drill the soft piece till it smokes 
and at last takes fire. 

These people speak some what through 
the throat ; but we could not under- 
stand one word that they said. We 
anchored, as I said before, January 
the 5th, and seeing men walking on 
the shore, we presently sent a canoe 
to get some acquaintance with them : 
for we were in hopes to get some pro- 
vision among them. But the inhabi- 
tants, seeing our boat coming, ran 
away and hid themselves. We searched 
afterwards three days, in hopes to find 
their houses, but found none ; yet we 
saw many places where they had made 
fires. At last, being out of hopes to 
find their habitations, we searched no 
farther ; but left a great many toys 
ashore, in such places where we thought 
that they would come. In all our 
search we found no water, but old 
wells on the sandy bays. At last we 
went over to the islands, and there we 



Dams or embankments. 



2 Mentioned in Chapter IV., page 
158. 

3 One of the Windward Islands, 
I visited by the Author in 1681. 



256 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVI. 

found a great many of the natives ; I | purpose, for they stood like statues, 



do believe there were forty on one 
island, men, women, and children. 
The men, at our first coming ashore, 
threatened us with their lances and 
swords ; but they were frighted by 
firing one gun, which we hred pur- 
posely to scare them. The island was 
so small, that they could not hide 
themselves ; but they were much dis- 
ordered at our landing, especially the 
women and children : for we went 
directly to their camp. The lustiest 
of the women, snatching up their 
infants, ran away howling, and the 
little children ran after squeaking and 
bawling ; but the men stood still. 
Some of the women, and such people 
as could not go from us, lay still by 
a fire, making a doleful noise, as if 
we had been coining to devour them. 
But when they saw we did not intend 
to harm them, they were pretty quiet ; 
and the rest, that fled from us at our 
first coming, returned again. This 
their place of dwelling was only a fire, 
with a few boughs before it, set up on 
that side the wind was off. After we 
had been here a little while, the men 
began to be familiar, and we clothed 
some of them, designing to have had 
some service of them for it ; for we 
found some wells of water here, and 
intended to carry two or three barrels 
of it aboard. But it being somewhat 
troublesome to carry to the canoes, 
we thought to have made these men 
to have carried it for us, and therefore 
we gave them some clothes ; to one an 
old pair of breeches, to another a 
ragged shirt, to a third a jacket that 
was scarce worth owning : which yet 
would have been very acceptable at 
some places where we had been, and 
so we thought they might have been 
with these people. We put them on 
them, thinking that this finery would 
have brought them to work heartily 
for us ; and our water being filled in 
small long ban-els, about six gallons 
in each, which were made purposely 
to carry water in, we brought these 
our new servants to the wells, and put 
a barrel on each of their shoulders for 
them to carry to the canoe. But all 
the signs we could make were to no 



without motion, but grinned like so 
many monkeys, staring one upon an- 
other : for these poor creatures seem 
not accustomed to carry burthens : 
and I believe that one of our ship- 
boys of ten years old would carry aa 
much as one of them. So we were 
forced to carry our water ourselves ; 
and they very fairly put the clothes 
off again, and laid them down, as if 
clothes were only to work in. I did 
not perceive that they had any great 
liking to them at first ; neither did 
they seem to admire l anything that 
we had. 

At another time our canoe being 
among these islands seeking for game, 
espied a drove of these men swimming 
from one island to another ; for they 
have no boats, canoes, or bark-logs. 
They took up four of them, and brought 
them aboard ; two of them were middle- 
aged, the other two were young men 
about eighteen or twenty years old. 
To these we gave boiled rice, and with 
it turtle and manatee boiled. They 
did greedily devour what we gave 
them, but took no notice of the ship, 
or anything in it ; and when they 
were set on land again, they ran away 
as fast as they could. At our first 
coming, before we were acquainted with 
them, or they with us, a company of 
them who lived on the main came 
just against our ship, and, standing 
on a pretty high bank, threatened us 
with their swords and lances, by 
shaking them at us : at last the Cap- 
tain ordered the drum to be beaten, 
which was done of a sudden with 
much vigour, purposely to scare the 
poor creatures. They, hearing the 
noise, ran away as fast as they could 
drive, and when they ran away in 
haste, they would cry "Gurry, Gurry," 
speaking deep in the throat. Those 
inhabitants also that live on the main 
would always run away from us ; yet 
we took several of them : for, as I 
have already observed, they had such 
bad eyes that they could not see us 
till we came close to them. We did 
always give them victuals, and let 

1 Wonder, be surprised at. 



1688.] 



DEPASTURE FROM NEW HOLLAND. 



257 



them go again ; but the islanders, 
after our first time of being among 
them, did not stir for us. 

When we had been here about a 
week, we hauled our ship into a small 
sandy cove, at a spring-tide, as far as 
she would float : and at low water she 
was left dry. All the neap-tides we 
lay wholly aground, for the sea did 
not come near us by about a hundred 
yards. We had therefore time enough 
to clean our ship's bottom, which we 
did very well. Most of our men lay 
ashore in a tent, where our sails were 
mending : and our strikers brought 
home turtle and manatee every day, 
which was our constant food. While 
we lay here, I did endeavour to per- 
suade our men to go to some English 
factory ; but was threatened to be 
turned ashore and left here for it. 
This made me desist, and patiently 
wait for some more convenient place 
and opportunity to leave them, than 
here : which I did hope I should ac- 
complish in a short time ; because 
they did intend, when they went 
hence, to bear down towards Cape 
Comorin. In their way thither they 
designed also to visit the Island Cocos, 
which lies in Lat. 12 12' N. by our 
draughts : hoping there to find of 
that fruit, the island having its name 
from thence. 1 



CHAPTER XVII. 

MARCH the 12th, 1688, we sailed from 
New Holland, with the wind at 
NNW., and fair weather. We di- 
rected our course to the northward, 
intending, as I said, to touch at the 
Island Cocos. It was the 26th of 
March before we were in the Latitude 
of the island, which is in 12 12' ; and 
then, by judgment, we were forty or 



1 Dampier lays it down, despite his 
text, in his " Map of the East Indies," 
in something between 12 and 13 
south of the Line, and to the SSW. 
of the Strait of Sunda. The island 
is subsequently several times men- 
tioned, 



fifty leagues to the east of it ; and the 
wind was now at SW. : therefore we 
did rather choose to bear away towards 
some islands on the west side of Su- 
matra, than to beat against the wind 
for the Island Cocos. I was very glad 
of this, being in hopes to;make my 
escape from them to Sumatra, or 
some other place. We met nothing 
of remark in this voyage, besides the 
catching two great sharks, till the 
28th. Then we fell in with a small 
woody island, in Lat. 10 30'. Its 
Longitude from "New Holland, whence 
we came, was by my account 12 6' W. 
It was deep water about the island, 
and therefore no anchoring ; but we 
sent two canoes ashore one of them 
with the carpenters, to cut a tree to 
make another pump the other canoe 
went to search for fresh water, and 
found a fine, small brook near the 
SW. point of the island; but there 
the sea fell in on the shore so high, 
that they could not get it off. At 
noon both our canoes returned aboard, 
and the carpenters brought aboard a 
good tree, which they afterwards made 
a pump with, such as they made at 
Mindanao. The other canoe brought 
aboard as many boobies and men-of- 
war birds as sufficed all the ship's 
company, when they were boiled. 
They got also a sort of land animal 
somewhat resembling a large craw- 
fish without its great claws. These 
creatures lived in holes in the dry, 
sandy ground like rabbits. Sir Fran- 
cis Drake, in his Voyage round the 
World, makes mention of such that 
he found at Ternate, or some other of 
the Spice Islands, or near them. 1 
They were very good sweet meat, and 
so large that two of them were more 
than a man could eat, being almost 
as thick, as one's leg. Their shells 
were of a dark brown, but red when 
boiled. 

About 1 o'clock in the afternoon 
we made sail from this island, with 
the wind at SW., and we steered 
NW. We met nothing of remark 
till the 7th of April, and then, being 
in Lat. 7 S., we saw the land of 

2 See page 6f>. 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVII. 



258 

Sumatra at a great distance, bearing 
north. The 8th we saw the east end 
of the Island Sumatra very plainly, 
we being then in Lat. 6 S. The 
10th, being in Lat. 5 11', and about 
seven or eight leagues from the Island 
Sumatra, on the west side of it, we 
saw abundance of cocoa-nuts swim- 
ming in the sea, and we hoisted out 
our boat and took up some of them, 
as also a small hatch, or scuttle rather, 
belonging to some bark. The nuts 
were very sound, and the kernel sweet; 
and in some the milk or water was 
yet sweet and good. The 13th we 
came to a small island called Triste, 
in Lat. (by observation) 4 S. It is 
about fourteen or fifteen leagues to 
the west of the Island Sumatra. From 
hence to the northward there are a 
great many small uninhabited islands 
lying much at the same distance from 
Sumatra. This Island Triste is not a 
mile round, and so low, that the tide 
flows clear over it. It is of a sandy 
soil, and full of cocoa-nut trees. The 
nuts are but small, yet sweet enough, 
full, and more ponderous than I ever 
felt any of that bigness, notwith- 
standing that every spring-tide the 
salt water goes clear over the island. 
We sent ashore our canoes for cocoa- 
jmts, and they returned aboard laden 
with them three times. Our strikers 
also went out and struck some fish, 
which was boiled for supper. They 
also killed two young alligators, which 
we salted for the next day. 

I had no opportunity at this place 
to make my escape, as I would have 
done, and gone over hence to Sumatra, 
could I have kept a boat with me. 
But there was no compassing this; 
and so on the 15th we went from 
hence, steering to the northward on 
the west side of Sumatra. Our food 
now was rice and the meat of the 
cocoa-nuts rasped and steeped in water, 
which made a sort of milk, into which 
we put our rice, making a pleasant 
mess enough. After we parted from 
Triste, we saw other small islands 
that were also full of cocoa-nut trees. 
The 19th, being in Lat. 3 25' S., the 
SW. point of the Island Nassau bore 
N. about five miles distant. This is 



a pretty large uninhabited island, in 
Lat. 3 20' S., and is full of high 
trees. About a mile from the Island 
Nassau, there is a small island full of 
cocoa-nut trees. There we anchored 
the 20th to replenish our stock of 
cocoa-nuts. A reef of rocks lies 
almost round this island, so that our 
boats could not go ashore, nor come 
aboard at low water, yet we got 
aboard four boat loads of nuts. The 
21st we went from hence, and kept 
to the northward, coasting still on 
the west side of the Island Sumatra. 
The 25th we crossed the Equator, still 
coasting to the northward between 
the Island Sumatra and a range of 
small islands lying fourteen or fifteen 
leagues off it. Among all these islands, 
Hog Island is the most considerable. 
It lies in Lat. 3 40' N. It is pretty 
high even land, clothed with tall, 
flourishing trees ; we passed by it on 
the 28th. 

The 29th we saw a sail to the north 
of us, which we chased ; but it being 
little wind, we did not come up with 
her till the 30th. Then, being within 
a league of her, Captain Reed went in 
a canoe and took her, and brought 
her aboard. She was a proa with 
four men in her, belonging to Achin, 1 
whither she was bound. She came 
from one of these cocoa-nut islands 
that we passed by, and was laden 
with cocoa-nuts and cocoa-nut oil. 
Captain Reed ordered his men to take 
aboard all the nuts, and as much of 
the oil as he thought convenient, and 
then cut a hole in the bottom of the 
proa, and turned her loose, keeping 
the men prisoners. It was not for 
the lucre of the cargo that Captain 
Reed took this boat, but to hinder 
me and some others from going ashore ; 
for he knew that we were ready to 
make our escape if an opportunity 
presented itself, and he thought that 
by his abusing and robbing the na- 
tives, we should be afraid to trust 
ourselves among them. But yet this 



1 Or Acheen, a native town at the 
extreme north point of Sumatra, 
which now carries on an extensive 
trade with Hindostan. 



1688.] 



AT ANCHOR OFF NIGOBAR ISLANDS. 



259 



proceeding of his turned to our great 
advantage, as shall be declared here- 
after. 

May the 1st we ran down by the 
north-west end of the Island Sumatra, 
within seven or eight leagues of the 
shore. All this west side of Sumatra 
which we thus coasted along, our 
Englishmen at Fort St George call 
the West Coast, simply without add- 
ing the name of Sumatra. The pri- 
soners who were taken the day before 
showed us the islands that lie off 
Achin harbour, and the channels 
through which ships go in, and told 
us also that there was an English 
factory at Achin. I wished myself 
there, but was forced to wait with 
patience till my time was come. We 
were now directing our course towards 
the Nicobar Islands, intending there 
to clean the ship's bottom, in order to 
make her sail weU. The 4th, in the 
evening, we had sight of one of the 
Nicobar Islands. The southernmost 
of them lies about forty leagues 
NNW. from the NW. end of the 
Island Sumatra. This most southerly 
of them is Nicobar itself, 1 but all the 
cluster of islands lying south of the 
Andaman Islands are called by our 
seamen the Nicobar Islands. 

The inhabitants of these islands 
have no certain converse with any 
nation; but as ships pass by them 
they will come aboard in their proas, 
and offer their commodities for sale, 
never inquiring of what nation they 
are : for all white people are alike to 
them. Their chief commodities are 
ambergris and fruits. Ambergris is 
often found by the native Indians of 
these islands, who know it very well, 
as also know how to cheat ignorant 
strangers with a certain mixture like 
it. Several of our men bought such 
of them for a small purchase. Cap- 
tain Weldon also about this time 
touched at some of these islands to 
the north of the island where we lay, 
and I saw a great deal of such amber- 
gris that one of his men bought there, 
but it was not good, having no smell 
at all. Yet I saw some there very 

1 Great Nicobar. 



good and fragrant. At that island 
where Captain Weldon was, there 
were two friars sent thither to con- 
vert the Indians. One of them came 
away with Captain Weldon, the other 
remained there still. He that came 
away with Captain Weldon gave a 
very good character of the inhabitants 
of that island, that they were very 
honest, civil, harmless people ; that 
they were not addicted to quarrelling, 
theft, or murder ; that they did marry, 
or at least live as man and wife, one 
man with one woman, never changing 
till death made the separation ; that 
they were punctual and honest in 
performing their bargains; and that 
they were inclined to receive the 
Christian religion. This relation I 
had afterwards from the mouth of a 
priest at Tonquin, who told me that 
he received this information by a letter 
from the friar that Captain Weldon 
brought away from thence. But to 
proceed. 

The 5th of May we ran down on 
the west side of the Island Nicobar 
properly so called, and anchored at 
the N W. end of it, in a small bay, in 
eight fathoms water, not half-a-mile 
from the shore. The body of this 
island is in 7 30' N. Lat. ; it is about 
twelve leagues long, and three or four 
broad. The south end of it is pretty 
high, with steep cliffs against the sea ; 
the rest of the island is low, flat, and 
even. The mould of it is black and 
deep, and it is very well watered with 
small running streams. It produces 
abundance of tall trees fit for any 
uses : for the whole bulk of it seems 
to be but one entire grove. But that 
which adds most to its beauty off at 
sea are the many spots of cocoa-nut 
trees which grow round it in every 
small bay. The bays are half-a-mile 
or a mile long, more or less, and these 
bays are intercepted or divided from 
each other with as many little rocky 
points of woodland. As the cocoa- 
nut trees do thus grow in groves 
fronting to the sea in the bays, so 
there is another sort of fruit tree in 
the bays bordering on the back side 
of the cocoa trees farther from the sea. 
It is called by the natives a melory 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CiiAr. XVII. 



260 

tree. This tree is as big as our large 
apple trees, and as high. It has a 
blackish rind, and a pretty broad 
leaf. The fruit is as big as the bread- 
fruit at Guam, or a large penny loaf. 
It is shaped like a pear, and has a 
pretty tough smooth rind of a light 
green colour. The inside of the fruit 
is in substance much like an apple, 
but full of small strings as big as a 
brown thread. I did never see these 
trees anywhere but here. 

The natives of this island are tall, 
well-limbed men ; pretty long-visaged, 
with black eyes; their noses middle 
proportioned, and the whole symmetry 
of their faces agreeing very well. 
Their hair is black and lank, and 
their skin of a dark copper colour. 
The women have no hair on their 
eyebrows. I do believe it is plucked 
up by the roots ; for the men had hair 
growing on their eyebrows, as other 
people. [The men all go naked, save 
a long, narrow strip of cloth round 
their waist. The women wear a short 
petticoat reaching from their waist to 
the knee. Their houses are described 
as small, square, and low, and curi- 
ously thatched with palmetto leaves. 
Their canoes are commonly manned 
by twenty or thirty natives, and sel- 
dom fewer than nine or ten.] . . . 

But to proceed with our affairs. It 
was, as I said, before the 5th of May, 
about ten in the morning, when we 
anchored at this island. Captain 
Reed immediately ordered his men 
to heel the ship, in order to clean 
her, which was done this day and the 
next. All the water vessels were 
filled, they intending to go to sea at 
night ; for the winds being yet at 
NJS r E., the Captain was in hopes to 
get over to Cape Comorin before the 
wind shifted, otherwise it would have 
been somewhat difficult for him to 
get thither, because the westerly 
monsoon was now at hand. I thought 
now was my time to make my escape, 
by getting leave, if possible, to stay 
here. For it seemed not very feasible 
to do it by stealth ; and I had no 
reason to despair of getting leave, 
this being a place where my stay 
could probably do our crew no harm, 



should I design it. Indeed, ono 
reason that put me on the thoughts 
of staying at this particular place, 
besides the present opportunity of 
leaving Captain Reed, which I did 
always intend to do as soon as I could, 
was, that I had here also a prospect 
of advancing a profitable trade for 
ambergris with these people, and of 
gaining a considerable fortune for my- 
self ; for in a short time I might have 
learned their language, and by accus- 
toming myself to row with them in 
their proas or canoes, especially by 
conforming myself to their customs 
and manners of living, I should have 
seen how they got their ambergris, and 
have known what quantities the) 7 got, 
and the time of the year Avhen most 
is found. And then afterwards, I 
thought it would be easy for me tc 
have transported myself from thence., 
either in some ship that passed this 
way, whether English, Dutch, or 
Portuguese, or else to have got some 
of the young men of the island to 
have gone with me in one of their 
canoes to Achin, and there to have 
furnished myself with such commodi- 
ties as I found most coveted by them ; 
and therewith, at my return, to have 
bought their ambergris. 

I had, till this time, made no open 
show of going ashore here. But now, 
the water being filled, and the ship 
in readiness to sail, I desired Cap- 
tain Reed to set me ashore on this 
island. He, supposing that I could 
not go ashore in a place less frequented 
by ships than this, gave me leave, 
which probably he would have re- 
fused, if he thought I should have 
got from hence in any short time ; 
for fear of my giving an account of 
him to the English or Dutch. I 
soon got up my chest and bedding, 
and immediately got some to row 
me ashore, for fear lest his mind 
should change again. The canoe 
that brought me ashore landed me on 
a small sandy bay, where there were 
two houses, but no person in them. 
For the inhabitants were removed to 
some other house, probably for fear 
of us, because the ship was close by ; 
and yet both men and women came 



1638.] 

aboard the ship without any sign of 
fear. When our ship's canoe was 
going aboard again, they met the 
owner of the houses coming ashore in 
his boat. He made a great many 
signs to them to fetch me off again ; 
but they would not understand 
him. Then he came to me and 
offered his boat to carry me off; 
but I refused. Then he made signs 
for me to go up into tlxe house, and 
according as I did understand him by 
his signs, and a few Malay words 
that he used, he intimated that some- 
what would come out of the woods in 
the night, when I was asleep, and 
kill me, meaning probably some 
wild beast. Then I carried my chest 
and clothes up into the house. 

I had not been ashore an hour, be- 
fore Captain Tait, and one John Dama- 
rell, with three or four armed men 
more, came to fetch me aboard again. 
They need not have sent an armed 
posse for me, for had they but sent 
the cabin-boy ashore for me, I would 
not have denied going aboard. For 
though I could have hid myself in the 
woods, yet then they would have abused 
r have killed some of the natives, 
purposely to incense them against 
me. I told them, therefore, that I 
was ready to go with them, and went 
aboard with all my things. When I 
came aboard I found the ship in an 
uproar, for there were three men more, 
who, taking courage by my example, 
desired leave also to accompany me. 
One of them was the surgeon, Mr 
Coppinger, the others were Mr Robert 
Hall, and one named Ambrose ; I 
have forgot his surname. These men 
had always harboured the same de- 
signs as I had. The two last were 
not much opposed ; but Captain Reed 
and his crew would not part with the 
surgeon. At last the surgeon leaped 
into the canoe, and taking up my 
gun, swore he would go ashore, and 
if any man did oppose it, he would 
shoot him. But Jitin Oliver, who 
was then quarter-master, leaped into 
the canoe, taking hold of him, took 
away the gun, and with the help of 
two or three more, they dragged him 
fegain into the ship. Then Mr Hall, 



DAMPIEB LEAVES THE SHIP. 



261 



and Ambrose, and I were again set 
ashore ; and one of the men that 
rowed us ashore stole an axe and gave 
it to us, knowing it was a good com- 
modity with the Indians. It was 
now dark, therefore we lighted a 
candle, and I being the oldest stander 
in our new country, conducted them 
into one of the houses, where we did 
presently hang up our hammocks. We 
had scarce done this, before the canoe 
came ashore again, and brought the 
four Malay men belonging to Achin, 
which we took in the proa we took 
off Sumatra, and the Portuguese that 
came to our ship out of the Siam junk 
at Pulo Condore, the crew having no 
occasion for these, being leaving the 
Malay parts, where the Portuguese 
served as an interpreter ; and not 
fearing now that the Achinese could 
be serviceable to us in bringing us 
over to their country, forty leagues 
off. Nor imagining that we durst 
make such an attempt, as, indeed, it 
was a bold one. Now we were men 
enough to defend ourselves against 
the natives of this island, if they 
should prove our enemies ; though if 
none of these men had come ashore 
to me, I should not have feared any 
danger. Nay, perhaps less, because 
I should have been cautious of giving 
any offence to the natives ; and I am of 
the opinion, that there are no people 
in the world so barbarous as to kill a 
single person that falls accidentally 
into their hands, or comes to live 
among them, except they have before 
been injured by some outrage or 
violence committed against them. 
Yet even then, or afterwards, if a man 
could but preserve his life from their 
first rage, and come to treat with 
them (which is the hardest thing, be- 
cause their way is usually to abscond, 1 
and rushing suddenly upon their 
enemy, to kill him at unawares), 
one might, by some sleight, insinuate 
one's self into their favour again ; 
especially T>y showing some toy or 
knack that they did never see before, 
which any European that has seen the 
world might soon contrive to amuse 

1 Conceal themselves, 



262 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



them withal, as might be done, gene- 
rally, even with a little fire struck 
with a flint and steel. 

As for the common opinion of An- 
thropophagi, or man-eaters, I did 
never meet with any such people. 
All nations or families in the world 
that I have seen or heard of, having 
some sort of food to live on, either 
fruit, grain, pulse, or roots, which 
grow naturally, or else planted by 
them, if not fish,' and land animals 
besides (yea, even the people of New 
Holland had fish amidst all their 
penury), would scarce kill a man pur- 
posely to cat him. I know not what 
barbarous customs may formerly have 
been in the world : and to sacrifice 
their enemies to their gods is a thing 
that has been much talked of with 
relation to the savages of America. 
I am a stranger to that also, if it be 
or have been customary in any nation 
there ; and yet, if they sacrifice their 
enemies, it is not necessary they 
should eat them too. After all, I 
will not be peremptory in the nega- 
tive, but I speak as to the compass 
of my own knowledge, and know 
some of these cannibal stories to be 
false ; and many of them have been 
disproved since I first went to the 
West Indies. At that time how bar- 
barous were the poor Florida Indians 
accounted, which now we find to be 
civil enough? What strange stories 
have we heard of the Indians whose 
islands were called the Isles of Canni- 
bals ? Yet we find that they trade very 
civilly with the French and Spaniards, 
and have done so with us. I own that 
they have formerly endeavoured to 
destroy our plantations at Barbadoes, 
and have since hindered us from 
settling the Island Santa Lucia, by 
destroying two or three colonies suc- 
cessively of those that were settled 
there; and even the Island Tobago 
has been often annoyed and ravaged 
by them, when settled by the Dutch, 
and still lies waste (though a delicate 
fruitful island) as being too near the 
Caribbees on the continent, who 
visit it every year. But this was to 
preserve their own right, by endea- 
vouring to keep out any that would 



settle themselves on 



[CHAP. XVII. 

those islands 



where they had planted themselves : 
yet even these people would not hurt 
a single person, as I have been told 
by some that have been prisoners 
among them. I could instance also 
the Indians of Bocca Toro and Bocca 
Drago, and many other places where 
they do live, as the Spaniards call it, 
wild and savage ; yet there they have 
been familiar with privateers, but by 
abuses have withdrawn their friend- 
ship again. As for these Nicobar 
people, I found them affable enough, 
and therefore did not fear them ; but 
I did not much care whether I had 
gotten any more company or no. But, 
however, I was very well satisfied, 
and the rather because we were now 
men enough to row ourselves over to 
the Island Sumatra ; and accordingly 
we presently consulted how to pur- 
chase a canoe of the natives. 

It was a fine clear moonlight night 
in which we were left ashore. There- 
fore we walked on the sandy bay, to 
watch when the ship would weigh 
and be gone, not thinking ourselves 
secure in our new-gotten liberty till 
then. About 11 or 12 o'clock we 
saw her under sail, and then we re- 
turned to our chamber, and so to 
sleep. This was the 6th of May. 
The next morning betimes, our land- 
lord, with four or five of his friends, 
came to see his new guests, and was 
somewhat surprised to see so many of 
us, for he knew of no more but my- 
self. Yet he seemed to be very well 
pleased, and entertained us with a 
large calabash of toddy, which he 
brought with him. Before he went 
away again (for wheresoever we came, 
they left their houses to us, but 
whether out of fear or superstition I 
know not), we bought a canoe of him 
for an axe, and did presently put out 
chests and clothes in it, designing to 
go to the south end of the island, 
and lie there till the monsoon shifted, 
which we expected every day. When 
our things were stowed away, we with 
the Achinese entered with joy into 
our new frigate, and launched off 
from the shore. We were no sooner 
off, but our canoe overset, bottom 



1688.J 



A CANOE UPSET. 



263 



upwards. We preserved our lives 
well enough by swimming, and dragged 
also our chests and clothes ashore ; 
but all our things were wet. I had 
.nothing of value but my journal, and 
some draughts of land of my own tak- 
ing, which I much prized, and which 
I had hitherto carefully preserved. 
Mr Hall had also such another cargo 
of books and draughts, which were 
now like to perish. But we presently 
opened our chests, and took out our 
books, which, with much ado, we did 
afterwards dry ; but some of our 
draughts that lay loose in our chests 
were spoiled. "We lay here afterwards 
three days, making great fires to dry 
our books. The Achinese in the 
meantime fixed our canoe with out- 
lagers on each side ; and they also 
cut a good mast for her, and made a 
substantial sail with mats. 

The canoe being now very well 
fixed, and our books and clothes dry, 
we launched out the second time, 
and rowed towards the east side of 
the island, leaving many islands to 
the north of us. The Indians of the 
island accompanied us with eight or 
ten canoes, against our desire ; for 
we thought that these men would 
make provision dearer at that side of 
the island we were going to, by giving 
an account what rates we gave for it 
at the place whence we came, which 
was owing to the ship's being there ; 
for the ship's crew were not so thirsty 
in bargaining (as they seldom are) as 
single persons or a few men might be 
apt to be, who would keep to one 
bargain. Therefore to hinder them 
from going with us, Mr Hall scared 
one canoe's crew by firing a shot over 
them. They all leaped overboard, and 
cried out ; but seeing us row away, 
they got into their canoes again, and 
came after us. The firing of that 
gun made all the inhabitants of the 
island our enemies. For presently 
after this we put ashore, at a bay 
where were four houses and a great 
many canoes : but they all went 
away, and came near ns no more, for 
several days. We had then a great 
loaf of melory, which was our con- 
stant food ; and if we had a mind to 



cocoa-nuts, or toddy, our Malays of 
Achin would climb the trees, and 
fetch as many nuts as we would have, 
and a good pot of toddy every morn- 
ing. Thus we lived till our melory 
was almost spent ; being still in hopes 
that the natives would come to us, 
and sell it as they had formerly done. 
But they came not to us : nay, they 
opposed us wherever we came, and 
often shaking their lances at us, 
made all the show of hatred that 
they could invent. At last, when 
we saw that they stood in opposition 
to us, we resolved to use force to get 
some of their food, if we could not get 
it other ways. With this resolution, 
we went in our canoe to a small bay 
on the north part of the island, 
because it was smooth water there, 
and good landing ; but on the othei 
side, the wind being yet on that 
quarter, we could not land without 
jeopardy of oversetting out 1*11100 
and wetting our arms, and then we 
must have lain at the mercy of our 
enemies, who stood 200 or 300 men 
in every bay rriiere they saw us com- 
ing, to keep us off. 

When we set out, we rowed directly 
tt> the north end, and presently were 
followed by seven or eight of their 
canoes. They keeping at a distance, 
rowed away faster than we did, and 
got to the bay before us : and there, 
with about twenty more canoes full 
of men, they all landed and stood to 
hinder us from landing. But we 
rowed in within a hundred yards of 
them ; then we lay still, and I took 
my gun, and presented at them : at 
which they all fell down flat on the 
ground. But I turned myself about, 
and, to show that we did not intend 
to harm them, I fired my gun off to 
sea, so that they might see the shot 
graze on the water. As soon as my 
gun was loaded again, we rowed 
gently in ; at which some of them 
withdrew. The rest, standing up, 
did still cut and hew the air, making 
signs of their hatred ; till I once 
more frighted them with my gun, 
and discharged it as before. Then 
more of them sneaked away, leaving 
only five or six men on the bay. Then 



DAMPIER'3 VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVIII. 



we rowed; in again, and Mr Hall, 
taking his sword in his hand, leaped 
ashore ; and I stood ready with my 
gun to fire at the Indians, if they had 
injured him. But they did not stir, 
till he came to them, and saluted 
them. He shook them by the hand, 
and by such signs of friendship as he 
made, the peace was concluded, rati- 
fied and confirmed by all that were 
present ; and others that were gone 
were again called back, and they all 
very joyfully accepted of a peace. 
This became universal over all the 
island, to the great joy of the inhabit- 
ants. There was no ringing of bells, 
nor bonfires made, for that is not the 
custom here ; but gladness appeared 
in their countenances, for now they 
could go out and fish again without 
fear of being taken. This peace was 
not more welcome to them than to 
us ; for now the inhabitants brought 
their melory again to us ; which we 
bought for old rags, and small stripes 
of cloth, about as broad as the palm 
of one's hand. I did not see above 
five or six hens, for they have but 
few on the island. At some places 
we saw some small hogs, which we 
could have bought of them reason- 
ably ; but we would not offend our 
Achinese friends, who were Mahome- 
tans. 

We stayed here two or three days, 
and then rowed toward the south end 
of the island, keeping on the east 
side, and we were kindly received by 
the natives wherever we came. When 
we arrived at the south end of the 
island, we fitted ourselves with melory 
and water. We bought three or four 
loaves of melory, and about twelve 
large cocoa-nut shells, that had all 
the kernel taken out, yet were pre- 
served whole, except only a small hole 
at one end ; and all these held for us 
about three gallons and a half of 
water. We bought also two or three 
bamboos, that held about four or five 
gallons more : this was our sea-store. 
We now designed to go to Achin, a 
town on the NW. end of the Island 
Sumatra, distant from hence about 
forty leagues, bearing SSE. We only 
waited for the western monsoon, 



which we had expected a great while, 
and now it seemed to be at hand ; 
for the clouds began to hang their 
heads to the eastward, and at last 
moved gently that way ; and though 
the wind was still at east, yet this 
was an infallible sign that the western 
monsoon was ni^h. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

IT was the 15th of May 1688, about 
4 o'clock in the afternoon, when wo 
left Nicobar Island, directing our 
course toward Achin, being eight 
men of us in company viz., three 
English, four Malays who were born 
at Achin, and the mongrel Portu- 
guese. Our vessel, the Nicobar canoe, 
was not one of the biggest nor of the 
least size. She was much about the 
burthen of one of our London wher- 
ries below bridge, and built sharp at 
both ends, like the forepart of a 
wheriy. She was deeper than a wherry, 
but not so broad, and was so thin 
and light that when empty, four men 
could launch her, or haul her ashore 
on a sandy bay. We had a good sub- 
stantial mast and a mat sail, and good 
outlagers lashed very fast and firm on 
each side the vessel, being made of 
strong poles. So that while thcso 
continued firm the vessel could not 
overset, which she would easily have 
done without them, and with them 
too, had they not been made very 
strong ; and we were therefore much 
beholden to our Achinese companions 
for this contrivance. These men were 
none of them so sensible of the danger 
as Mr Hall and myself, for they all 
confided so much in us that they did 
not so much as scruple anything that 
Ave did approve of. Neither was Mr 
Hall so well provided as I was, for 
before we left the ship I had purposely 
consulted our draught of the East 
Indies (for we had but one in the 
ship), and out of that I had written 
in my pocket-book an account of the 
bearing and distance of all the Ma- 
lacca coast, and that of Sumatra, Pegu, 
and Siam ; and also brought away 



1688.] 

with me a pocket compass for my 
direction in any enterprize that I 
should undertake. 

The weather at our setting out was 
very fair, clear, and hot. The wind 
was still at SE., a very small breeze 
just fanning the air ; and the clouds 
were moving gently from west to east, 
which gave us hopes that the winds 
were either at west already, abroad at 
sea, or would be so in a very short 
time. We took this opportunity of 
fair weather, being in hopes to accom- 
plish our voyage to Achin before the 
western monsoon was set in strong, 
knowing that we should have veiy 
blustering weather after this fair 
weather, especially at the first coming 
of the western monsoon. We rowed, 
therefore, away to the southward, 
supposing that when we were clear 
from the island we should have a true 
wind, as we call it, for the land hauls 
the wind ; and we often find the wind 
at sea different from what it is near 
the shore. We rowed with four 
oars, taking our turns j Mr Hall and 
I steered also by turns, for none of 
the rest were capable of it. We rowed 
the first afternoon, and the night en- 
suing, about twelve leagues, by my 
judgment. Our course was SSE., but 
the 16th, in the morning, when the 
sun was an hour high, we saw the 
island whence we came, bearing 
NW. by N. Therefore I found we 
had gone a point more to the east 
than I intended, for which reason we 
steered S. by E. In the afternoon, 
at 4 o'clock, we had a gentle breeze at 
WSW., which continued so till 9, all 
which time we laid down our oars 
and steered away SSE. I was then 
at the helm, and I found by the rip- 
pling of the sea that there was a 
strong current against us. It made a 
great noise that might be heard near 
half-a-mile. At 9 o'clock it fell calm, 
and so continued till 10. Then the 
wind sprung up again, and blew a 
fresh breeze all night. 

The 17th, in the morning, we 
looked out for the Island Sumatra, 
supposing that we were now within 
twenty leagues of it, for we had rowed 
and sailed, by our reckoning, twenty- 



AT SEA IN A CANOE. 



265 



four leagues from Nieobar Island ; and 
the distance from Nieobar to Achin 
is about forty leagues. But we looked 
in vain for the Island Sumatra, for, 
turning ourselves about, we saw, to 
our grief, Nieobar Island lying WN W. , 
and not above eight leagues distant. 
By this it was visible that we had 
met a very strong current against us 
in the night. But the wind freshened 
on us, and we made the best of it 
while the weather continued fair. 
The 18th, the wind freshened on us 
again, and the sky began to be 
clouded. It was indifferent clear tift 
noon, and we thought to have had an 
observation ; but we were hindered 
by the clouds that covered the face of 
the sun when it came on the meridian. 
We had then also a very ill presage 
by a great circle about the sun (fivo 
or six times the diameter of it), which 
seldom appears but storms of wind 
or much rain ensue. Such circles 
about the moon are more frequent, 
but of less import. We commonly 
take great* notice of those that are 
about the sun, observing if there be 
any breach in the circle, and in what 
quarter the breach is, for thence we 
commonly find the greatest stress of 
the wind will come. I must confess 
that I was a little anxious at the sight 
of this circle, and wished heartily 
that we were near some land. Yet I 
showed no signs of it to discourage 
my consorts, but made a virtue of 
necessity and put a good countenance 
on the matter. I told Mr Hall that 
if the wind became too strong and 
violent, as I feared it would, it being 
even then very strong, we must of 
necessity steer away before the wind 
and sea till better weather presented ; 
and that, as the winds were now, we 
should, instead of about twenty leagues 
to Achin, be driven sixty or seventy 
leagues to the coast of Cudda or Qucda, l 
a kingdom and town and harbour of 
trade on the coast of Malacca. 

The winds therefore bearing very 



1 Quedah, on the western coast of 
the Malayan Peninsula, a little to the 
north of the British settlement of 
Pulo Penan g. 



266 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVIII. 



hard, we rolled up the foot of our sail 
on a pole fastened to it, and settled 
our yard within three feet of the 
canoe sides, so that we had now but 
a small sail ; yet it was still too big, 
considering the wind, for the wind 
being on our broadside, pressed her 
down very much, though supported 
by her outlagers, insomuch that the 
poles of the outlagers going from the 
sides of their vessel bent as if they 
would break; and should they have 
broken, our overturning and perish- 
ing had been inevitable. Besides, the 
sea increasing would soon have filled 
the vessel this way. Yet thus we 
made a shift to bear up with the side 
of the vessel against the wind for a 
while ; but the wind still increasing, 
about 1 o'clock in the afternoon we 
put away right before wind and sea, 
continuing to run thus all the afternoon 
and part of the night ensuing. The 
wind continued increasing all the 
afternoon, and the sea still swelled 
higher and often broke, but did us no 
damage; for the ends of the vessel 
being veiy narrow, he that steered 
received and broke the sea on his 
back, and so kept it from coming in 
so much as to endanger the vessel ; 
though much water would come in, 
which we were forced to keep heaving 
out continually. And by this time 
we saw it was well that we had altered 
our course, every wave would else 
have filled and sunk us, taking the 
side of the vessel ; and though our 
outlagers were well lashed down to 
the canoe's bottom with rattans, yet 
they must probably have yielded to 
such a sea as this, when even before 
they were plunged under water and 
bent like twigs. 

The evening of this 18th was very 
dismal. The sky looked very black, 
being covered with dark clouds ; the 
wind blew hard and the seas ran high. 
The sea was already roaring in a white 
foam about us, a dark night coming 
on, no land in sight to shelter us, and 
cur little ark in danger to be swallow- 
ed by every wave ; and what was 
worst of all, none of us thought our- 
selves prepared for another world. 
The reader may better guess than T 



can express the confusion that we 
were all in. I had been in many im- 
minent dangers before now, some of 
which I have already related ; but 
the worst of them all was but a play- 
game in comparison with this. I 
must confess that I was in great con- 
flicts of mind at this time. Other 
dangers came not upon me with such 
a leisurely and dreadful solemnity : 
a sudden skirmish or engagement or 
so was nothing when one's blood was 
up and pushed forward with eager 
expectations. But here I had a lin- 
gering view of approaching death, and 
little or no hopes of escaping it ; and 
I must confess that my courage, which 
I had hitherto kept up, failed me 
here ; and I made very sad reflections 
on my former life, and looked back 
with horror and detestation on actions 
w^hich before I disliked, but now I 
trembled at the remembrance of. I 
had long before this repented me of 
that roving course of life, but never 
witli such concern as now. I did 
also call to mind the many miraculous 
acts of God's providence towards me 
in the whole course of my life, of 
which kind I believe few men have 
met with the like. For all these I 
returned thanks in a peculiar man- 
ner, and this once more desired God's 
assistance, and composed my mind as 
well as I could in the hopes of it ; 
and, as the event showed, I was not 
disappointed of my hopes. 

Submitting ourselves therefore to 
God's good providence, and taking 
all the care we could to preserve our 
lives, Mr Hall and I took turns to 
steer, and the rest took turns to 
heave out the water, and thus we pro- 
vided to spend the most doleful night 
I ever was in. About 10 o'clock it 
began to thunder, lighten, and rain ; 
but the rain was very welcome to 
us, having drunk up all the water 
we brought from the island. The 
wind at first blew harder than be- 
fore ; but within half-an-hour it 
abated, and became more moderate, 
and tho sea also assuaged of its fury ; 
and then by a lighted match, of which 
we kept a piece burning on purpose, 
we looked on our compass to sec how 



1688.] 

we steered, and found our course to 
be still east. We had no occasion to 
look on the compass before, for we 
steered right before the wind, which 
if it had shifted, we had been obliged 
to have altered our course accordingly. 
But now it being abated, we found 
our vessel lively enough, with that 
small sail which was then aboard, to 
haul to our former course, SSE., 
which accordingly we did, being now 
in hopes again to get to the Island 
Sumatra. But about 2 o'clock in 
the morning of the 19th, we had an- 
other gust of wind, with much thun- 
der, lightning, and rain, which lasted 
till day, and obliged us to put before 
the wind again, steering thus for 
several hours. It was very dark, and 
the hard rain soaked us so thoroughly, 
that we had not one dry thread about 
us. The rain chilled us extremely ; 
for any fresh water is much colder 
than that of the sea. For even in 
the coldest climates the sea is warm, 
and in the hottest climates the rain 
is cold and unwholesome for man's 
body. In this wet starveling plight 
we spent the tedious night. Never 
did poor mariners on a lee-shore more 
earnestly long for the dawning light, 
than we did now. At length the day 
appeared ; but with such dark black 
clouds near the horizon, that the first 
glimpse of the dawn appeared thirty 
or forty degrees high, which was 
dreadful enough. For it is a com- 
mon saying among seamen, and true, 
as I have experienced, that a high 
dawn will have high winds, and a 
low dawn, small winds. 

We continued our course still east, 
before wind and sea, till about 8 
o'clock in the morning of this 19th, 
and then one of our Malay friends 
cried out, "Pulo Way." Mr Hall, 
and Ambrose, and I, thought the 
fellow had said " Pull away," an ex- 
pression usual among English seamen 
when they are rowing ; and we won- 
dered what he meant by it, till we 
saw him point to his consorts, and 
then we looking that way, saw land 
appearing like an island, and all our 
Malays said it was an island at the 
NW. end of Sumatra, called Way, 



HARDSHIPS OF THE VOYAGE. 



267 



for Pulo Way is the Island Way. 
We, who were dripping with wet, 
cold and hungry, were all overjoyed 
at the sight of the land, and presently 
marked its bearing. It bore south, 
and the wind was still at west, a 
strong gale ; but the sea did not run 
so high as in the night. Therefore 
we trimmed our small sail no bigger 
than an apron, and steered with it. 
Now our outlagers did us a great 
kindness again ; for although we had 
but a small sail, yet the wind was 
strong, and pressed down our vessel's 
side very much ; but being supported 
by the outlagers, we could brook it 
well enough, which otherwise we 
could not have done. About noon we 
saw more land, beneath the supposed 
Pulo Way ; and steering towards it, 
before night we saw all the coast of 
Sumatra, and found the errors of our 
Achinese ; for the high land that we 
first saw, which then appeared like 
an island, was not Pulo Way, but a 

treat high mountain on the Island 
umatra, called by the English the 
Golden Mountain. Our wind con- 
tinned till about 7 o'clock at night, 
then it abated, and at 10 o'clock it 
died 'away. And then we stuck to 
our oars again, though all of us quite 
tired with our former fatigues and 
hardships. 

The next morning, being the 20th, 
we saw all the low land plain, and 
judged ourselves not above eight 
leagues off. About 8 o'clock in the 
morning we had the wind again at 
west, a fresh gale ; and steering in 
still for the shore, at 5 o'clock in the 
afternoon we ran to the mouth of a 
river on the Island Sumatra, called 
Passange Jonca. It is thirty-four 
leagues to the eastward of Achin, and 
six leagues to the west of Diamond 
Point. Our Malays were very well 
acquainted here, and carried us to a 
small fishing village, within a mile 
of the river's mouth, called also by 
the name of the Eiver Passango 
Jonca. The hardships of this voyage, 
with the scorching heat of the sun at 
our first setting out, and the cold 
rain, and our continuing wet for the 
last two days, cast its all into fevers, 



268 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVIII. 



so that now wo were not able to help 
each other, nor so much as to get our 
canoe up to the village ; but our 
Malays got some of the townsmen to 
bring her up. 

The news of our arrival being 
noised abroad, one of the Oramkais, 
or noblemen of the island, came in 
the night to see us. We were then 
lying in a small hut at the end of the 
town, and it being late, this lord only 
viewed us, and having spoken with 
our Malays, went away again ; but he 
returned to us the next day, and 
provided a large house for us to live 
in, till we should be recovered of our 
sickness ; ordering the town's-people 
to let us want for nothing. The 
Achinese Malays that came with us, 
told them all the circumstances of 
our voyage ; how they were taken by 
our ship, and where, and how we 
that came with them were prisoners 
aboard the ship, and had been set 
ashore 'together at Nicobar, as they 
were. It was for this reason, pro- 
bably, that the gentlemen of Sumatra 
were thus extraordinary kind to us, 
to provide everything that we had 
need of ; nay, they would force us to 
accept of presents from them, that we 
knew not what to do with, as young 
buffaloes, goats, &c. , for these we would 
turn loose at night, after the gentle- 
men that gave them to us were gone, 
for we were prompted by our Achinese 
consorts to accept of them for fear of 
disobliging by our refusal. But the 
cocoa-nuts, plantains, fowls, eggs, 
fish, and rice, we kept for our use. 
The Malays that accompanied us 
from Nicobar separated themselves 
from us now, living at one end of 
the house by themselves, for they 
were Mahometans, as all those of the 
kingdom of Achin are ; and though 
during our passage by sea together 
we made them be contented to drink 
their water out of the same cocoa- 
shell with us, yet, being now no 
longer under that necessity, they 
again took up their accustomed 
nicety and reservedness. They all lay 
sick, and as their sickness increased, 
one of them threatened us, that if 
any of them died, the rest should 



kill us, for having brought them this 
voyage ; yet I question whether they 
would attempted, or the country 
Deople have suffered it. We made a 
shift to dress our own food ; for none 
of these people, though they were 
very kind in giving us anything that 
we wanted, would yet come near us 
to assist us in dressing our victuals ; 
nay, they would not touch anything 
that we used. We had all fevers, 
and therefore took turns to dress 
victuals, according as we had strength 
to do it, or stomachs to eat it. I 
found my fever to increase, and my 
head so distempered, that I could 
scarce stand, therefore I whetted and 
sharpened my penknife, in order to 
let myself blood ; but I could not, 
for my knife was too blunt. We 
stayed here ten or twelve days, in 
hopes to recover our health ; but 
finding no amendment, we desired to 
go to Achin. But we were delayed 
by the natives, who had a desire to 
have kept Mr Hall and myself, to 
sail in their vessels to Malacca, Cudda, 
or other places whither they trade. 
But finding us more desirous to be 
with our countrymen in our factory 
at Achin, they provided a large proa 
to carry 'us thither, we not being 
able to manage our own canoe. Be- 
sides, before this, three of our Malay 
comrades were gone very sick into 
the country, and only one of them and 
the Portuguese remained with us, 
accompanying us to Achin, and they 
both as sick as we. 

It was the beginning of June 1688, 
when we left Passange Jonca. We 
had four men to row, one to steer, 
and a gentleman of the country that 
went purposely to give information 
to the Government of our arrival. 
We were but three days and nights 
in our passage, having sea-breezes by 
day and land winds by night, and 
very fair weather. When we arrived 
at Achin, I was carried before the 
Shabander, the chief magistrate iu 
the city. One Mr Dennis Driscall, 
an Irishman, and a resident in the 
factory which our East India Com- 

rny had there then, was interpreter, 
being weak, was suffered to stand 



1688.] 



DAMPIER'S ILLNESS AT ACHEEN. 



269 



in the Shabander's presence ; for it is 
their custom to make men sit on the 
floor, as they do, cross-legged like 
tailors ; but I had not strength then 
to pluck up my heels in that manner. 
The Shabander asked of rne several 
questions, especially^ how we durst 
adventure to come in a canoe from 
Nicobar Island to Sumatra. I told 
him that I had been accustomed to 
hardships and hazards, therefore I 
did with much freedom undertake it. 
He inquired also concerning our ship, 
whence she came, &c. I told him, 
from the South Seas; that she had 
ranged about the Philippine Islands, 
&c., and was now gone towards 
Arabia and the Eed Sea. The Malays 
also and Portuguese were afterwards 
examined, and confirmed what I de- 
clared ; and in less than half-an-hour 
I was dismissed with Mr Driscall, 
who then lived in the English East 
India Company's factory. He pro- 
vided a room for us to lie in, and 
some victuals. 

Three days after our arrival here, 
our Portuguese died of a fever. What 
became of our Malays I know not. 
Ambrose lived not long after. Mr 
Hall also was so weak, that I did not 
think he would recover. I was the 
best, yet still very sick of a fever, 
and little likely to live. Therefore 
Mr Driscall and some other English- 
men persuaded me to take some 
purging physic of a Malay doctor. I 
took their advice, being willing to 
get ease ; but after three dozes, each 
a large calabash of nasty stuff, finding 
no amendment, I thought to desist 
from more physic, but was persuaded 
to take one doze more ; which I did, 
and it wrought so violently, that I 
thought it would have ended my 
days. I thought my Malay doctor, 
whom they so much commended, 
would have killed me outright. I 
continued extraordinary weak for 
some days after his drenching me 
thus ; but my fever left me for above 
a week, after which it returned upon 
me again for a twelvemonth, and a 
flux \rith it. However, when I was 
a little recovered from the effects of 
my drench, I made a shift to go 



abroad ; and having been kindly in- 
vited to Captain Dowry's house there, 
my first visit was to him, who had a 
ship in the road, but lived ashore. 
This gentleman was extraordinary 
kind to us all, particularly to me, 
and importuned me to go as his 
boatswain to Persia, whither he was 
bound, with a design to sell his ship 
there, as I was told, though not by 
himself. Thence he intended to pass 
with the caravan to Aleppo, and so 
home for England. His business re- 
quired him to stay some time longer 
at Achin, I judge, to sell some com- 
modities that he had not yet disposed 
of. Yet he chose rather to leave the 
disposal of them to some merchant 
there, and make a short trip to the 
Nicobar Islands in the meantime, 
and on his return to take in his ef- 
fects, and so proceed towards Persia. 
This was a sudden resolution of Cap- 
tain Bowry's presently after the arri- 
val of a small frigate from Siam, with 
an Ambassador from the King of Siam 
to the Queen of Achiu. The Ambas- 
sador was a Frenchman by nation. 
The vessel that he came in was but 
small, yet very well manned, and 
fitted for a fight. Therefore it was 
generally supposed here that Captain 
Bowry was afraid to lie in Achin 
Road, because the Siamese were now 
at war with the English, and he was 
not able to defend his ship if he 
should be attacked by them. But 
whatever made him think of going 
to the Nicobar Islands, he provided 
to sail, and took me, Mr Hall, and 
Ambrose with him, though all of us 
so sick and weak that we could do 
him no service. It was some time 
about the beginning of June when 
we sailed out of Achin Road ; but we 
met with the winds at NW., with 
turbulent weather, which forced us 
back again in two days' time. Yet 
he gave us each twelve "mess*' a- 
piece a gold coin, each of which is 
about the value of fifteenpence Eng- 
lish. So he gave over that design, 
and some English ships coming into 
Achin Road, he was not afraid of the 
Siamese who lay there. After this 
he ogain invited me to his house at 



270 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVIII. 



Acliin, and treated me always with 
wine and good cheer, and still impor- 
tuned me to go with him to Persia. 
But I being very weak, and fearing 
the westerly winds would create a 
great deal of trouble, did not give 
him a positive answer, especially be- 
cause I thought I might get a better 
voyage in the English ships newly 
arrived, or some others now expected 
here. 1 

A short time after this, Captain 
Welden arrived here from Fort St 
George, in a ship called the Cartana, 
bound to Tonquin. This being a 
more agreeable voyage than to Persia, 
at this time of the year, besides that 
the ship was better accommodated, 
especially with a surgeon, and I 
being still sick, I therefore chose 
rather to serve Captain "Welden than 
Captain Bowry. But to go on with 
a particular account of that expedi- 
tion were to carry my reader back 
again ; whom having brought thus 
far towards England in my circum- 
navigation of the Globe, I shall not 
now weary him with new rambles, nor 
so much swell this volume, as I must, 
to describe the tour I made in those 
remote parts of the East Indies from 
and to Sumatra. So that my voyage 
to Tonquin at this time, as also 
another to Malacca afterwards, with 
my observations in them, and the 
descriptions of those and the neigh- 
bouring countries ; as well as the 
description of the Island Sumatra 
itself, and therein the kingdom and 
city of Achin, Bencouli, 2 &c., I shall 
refer to another place, where I may 
give a particular relation of them. 3 



1 Captain Bowry was the writer of 
the letter from Borneo to the " Eng- 
lish factory at Mindanao," referred to 
in Chapter XIII. 

2 Bencoolen, where the English had 
settled in 1685, and where a year or 
two later the East India Company 
built a fort, which was called Fort 
York. 

3 This Dampier does in Appendix 
No. I to his greater work. See In- 
troductory Note to "The Author's 
Account of Himself. 



In short, it may suffice that I set out 
to Tonquin with Captain Welden 
about July 1688, and returned to 
Achin in the April following. I stayed 
there till the latter end of September 
1689, and making a short voyage to 
Malacca, came thither again about 
Christmas. Soon after that I went 
to Fort St George, and staying there 
about five months, I returned once 
more to Sumatra ; not to Achin, but 
to Bencouli, an English factory on 
the west coast, of which I was gunner 
about five months more. So that, 
having brought my reader to Sumatra, 
without carrying him back, I shall 
bring him on next way from thence 
to England. And of all that occurred 
between my first setting out from this 
island in 1688, and my final departure 
from it at the beginning of the year 
1691, I shall only take notice at pre- 
sent of two passages which I think I 
ought not to omit. 

The first is, that at my return from 
Malacca, a little before Christmas 
1689, I found at Achin one Mr Mor- 
gan, who was one of our ship's crew 
that left me ashore at Nicobar, now 
mate of a Danish ship of Trangambar, 4 
which is a town on the Coast of Coro- 
mandel, near Cape Comorin, belong- 
ing to the Danes : and receiving an 
account of our crew from him and 
others, I thought it might not be 
amiss to gratify the reader's curiosity 
therewith, who would probably be 
desirous to know the success of those 
ramblers in their new intended ex- 
pedition towards the Red Sea. And 
withal I thought it might not be un- 
likely that these papers might fall 
into the hands of some of our London 
merchants, who were concerned in 
fitting out that ship ; which, I said 
formerly, was called the Cygnet of 
London, sent on a trading voyage 
into the South Seas, under the com- 
mand of Captain Swan. To proceed 
therefore with Morgan's relation. Ho 
told me, that when they in the Cyg- 
net went away from Nicobar, in pur- 
suit of their in tended voyage to Persin, 



4 Tranquebar, then capital of th< 
Danish possessions in India. 



1689.] FRESH DESERTIONS 

they directed their course towards 
Ceylon. But not being able to weather 
it, the westerly monsoon bearing hard 
against them, they were obliged to 
seek refreshment on the Coast of Coro- 
mandel. Here this mad, fickle crew 
were upon new projects again ; their 
designs meeting with such delays and 
obstructions, that many of them grew 
weary of it, and about half of them 
went ashore. Of this number, Mr 
Morgan, who told me this, and Mr 
Herman Coppinger the surgeon, went 
to the Danes at Trangambar, who 
kindly received them. There they 
lived very well ; and Mr Morgan was 
employed as a mate in a ship of theirs 
at this time to Achin ; and Captain 
Knox tells me, that he since com- 
manded the Curtana, the ship that I 
went in to Tonquin, which Captain 
Welden having sold to the Mogul's 
subjects, they employed Mr Morgan 
as captain to trade in her for them ; 
and it is an usual thing for the trad- 
ing Indians to hire Europeans to go 
officers on board their ships, especially 
captains and gunners. About two or 
three more of these that were set 
ashore went to Fort St George ; but 
the main body of them were for going 
into the Mogul's service. Our seamen 
are apt to have great notions of I know 
not what profit and advantages to be 
had in serving the Mogul ; nor do 
they want for fine stories to encourage 
one another to it. It was what these 
men had long been thinking and talk- 
ing of as a fine thing ; but now they 
went upon it in good earnest. The 
place where they went ashore was at 
a town of the Moors ; which name 
our seamen give to all the subjects of 
the Great Mogul, but especially his 
Mahometan subjects ; calling the 
idolaters Gentoos or Rashbouts. At 
this Moors' town they got a peon to 
be their guide to the Mogul's nearest 
camp : for he has always several 
armies in his vast empire. 

These peons are some of the Gen- 
toos or Rashbouts, who in all places 
along the coast, especially in seaport 
towns, make it their business to hire 
themselves to wait upon strangers, 
be they merchants, seamen, or what 



FROM THE CYGNET. 



271 



they will. To qualify them for such 
attendance, they learn the European 
languages, Englisli, Dutch, French, 
Portuguese, &c., according as they 
have any of the factories of these 
nations in their neighbourhood, or 
are visited by their ships. No sooner 
does any such ship come to an anchor 
and the men come ashore, but a great 
many of these peons are ready to 
proffer their service. It is usual for 
the strangers to hire their attendance 
during their stay there, giving them 
about a crown a month of our money, 
more or less. The richest sort of 
men will ordinarily hire two or three 
peons to wait upon them ; and even 
the common seamen, if able, will 
hire one a-piece to attend them, either 
for convenience or ostentation ; or 
sometimes one peon between two of 
them. These peons serve them in 
many capacities, as interpreters, 
brokers, servants to attend at meals, 
and go to market and on errands, 
&c. Nor do they give any trouble, 
eating at their own homes, and lodg- 
ing there, when they have done their 
masters' business for them ; expecting 
nothing but their wages, except that 
they have a certain allowance of about 
a "fanam," or threepence in a dollar, 
which is an eighteenth part profit, by 
way of brokerage for every bargain 
they drive : they being generally 
employed in buying and selling. 
When the strangers go away, their 
peons desire them to give them their 
names in writing, with a certificate 
of their honest and diligent serving 
them : and these they show to the 
next comers, to get into business; 
some being able to produce a large 
scroll of such certificates. 

But to proceed. The Moors' town 
where these men landed was not far 
from Cunnimere, a small English fac- 
tory on the Coroinandel Coast. The 
Governor whereof having intelligence 
by the Moors of the landing of these 
men, and their intended march to the 
Mogul's camp, sent out a captain with 
his company to oppose it. He came 
up with them and gave them hard 
words, but they being thirty or forty 
resolute fellows not easily daunted, 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE HOUND THE WORLD. [CnAr. XV I II. 



he durst not attack them, "but re- 
turned to the Governor ; and the news 
of it was soon carried to Fort St 
George. During their march, John 
Oliver, who was one of them, pri- 
vately told the peon who guided 
them, that himself was their captain. 
So when they came to the camp the 
peon told this to the General ; and 
when their stations and pay were as- 
signed them, John Oliver had a 
greater respect paid him than the 
rest ; and whereas their pay was ten 
pagodas a month each man (a pagoda 
is two dollars, or 9s. English), his pay 
was twenty pagodas. Which strata- 
gem and usurpation of his, occasioned 
him no small envy and indignation 
from his comrades. Soon after this, 
two or three of them went to Agra to 
be of the Mogul's guard. Awhile after, 
the Governor of Fort St George sent 
a message to the main body of them, 
and a pardon, to withdraw them from 
thence, which most of them accepted, 
and came away. John Oliver and 
the small remainder continued in the 
country, but leaving the camp, went 
up and down plundering the villages, 
and fleeing when they were pursued ; 
and this was the last news I heard of 
them. This account I had partly by 
Mr Morgan from some of those de- 
serters he met with at Trangambar, 
and partly from others of them whom 
I met with myself afterwards at Fort 
St George. And these were the ad- 
ventures of those who went up into 
the country. 

Captain Reed having thus lost the 
best half of his men sailed away with 
the rest of them, after having rilled 
his water and got rice, still intending 
for the Red Sea. When they were 
near Ceylon they met with a Portu- 
guese ship richly laden, out of which 
they took what they pleased, and 
then turned her away again. From 
thence they pursued their voyage, but 
the westerly winds bearing hard 
against them, and making it hardly 
feasible for them to reach the Red Sea, 
they stood away for Madagascar. 
There they entered into the service of 
one of the petty princes of that island, 
Vu assist him against his neighbours, 



with whom lie was at war. During 
this interval, a small vessel from New 
York came hither to purchase slaves, 
which trade is driven here, as it is 
upon the Coast of Guinea, one nation 
or clan selling others that are their 
enemies. Captain Reed, with about 
five or six more, stole away from their 
crew and went aboard this New York 
ship, and Captain Tait was made 
commander of the residue. Soon 
after which, a brigantine from the 
West Indies, Captain Knight com- 
mander, coming thither with design 
to go to the Red Sea also, these of 
the Cygnet consorted with them, and 
they went together to the Island 
Johanna. l Thence going together to- 
wards the Red Sea, the Cygnet proving 
leaky, and sailing heavily, as being 
much out of repair, Captain Knight 
grew weary of her company ; and 
giving her the slip in the night, went 
away for Achin ; for, having heard 
that there was plenty of gold there, 
lie went thither with a design to 
cruise ; and it was from one Mr 
Humes belonging to the Ann of Lon- 
don, Captain Freke commander, who 
had gone aboard Captain Knight, and 
whom I saw afterwards at Achin, that 
I had this relation. Some of Captain 
Freke's men, their own ship being 
lost, had gone aboard the Cygnet at 
Johanna; and after Captain Knight 
had left her, she still pursued her 
voyage towards the Red Sea. But the 
winds being against them, and the 
ship in so ill a condition, they were 
forced to bear away for Coromandel, 
where Captain Tait and his own men 
went ashore to serve the Mogul. But 
the strangers of Captain Freke's ship, 
who kept still aboard the Cygnet, un- 
dertook to carry her for England ; 
and the last news I heard of the 
Cygnet was from Captain Knox, who 
tells me that she now lies sunk in 
St Augustine's Bay in Madagascar. 3 
This digress.x>n I have made to give 
an account of our ship. 

The other passage I shall speak of 

1 One of the Comoro group, between 
Madagascar and Mozambique. 

2 On foe south-west of the island. 



1690.] 

that occurred during this interval of 
the tour I made from Achin is with 
relation to the Painted Prince whom 
I brought with me into England, and 
who died at Oxford. For while I was 
at Fort St George, about April 1690, 
there arrived a ship called the Min- 
danao Merchant, laden with clove- 
bark from Mindanao. Three of Cap- 
tain Swan's men that remained there 
when we went from thence came in 
her, from whom I had the account of 
Captain Swan's death, as is before 
related. There was also one Mr 
Moody, who was supercargo of the 
ship. This gentleman bought at 
Mindanao the Painted Prince Jeoly, 1 
and his mother, and brought them to 
Fort St George, where they were much 
admired by all that saw them. Some 
time after this, Mr Moody, who spoke 
the Malay language very well, and 
was a person very capable to manage 
the Company's affairs, was ordered by 
the Governor of Fort St George to 
prepare to go to Indrapore, an English 
factory on the west coast of Sumatra, 
in order to succeed Mr Gibbons, who 
was chief of that place. By this time 
I was very intimately acquainted with 
Mr Moody, and was importuned by 
him to go with him, and to be gunner 
of the fort there. I always told him 
I had a great desire to go to the Bay 
of Bengal, and that 1 had now an 
offer to go thither with Captain Met- 
calf, who wanted a mate, and had 
already spoken to me. Mr Moody, to 
encourage me to go with him, told 
me that if I would go with him to 
Indrapore he would buy a small ves- 
sel there, and send me to the Island 
Meangis as commander of her ; and 
that I should carry Prince Jeoly and 
his mother with me (that being their 
country), by which means I might 
gain a commerce with his people for 
cloves. This was a design that I 
liked very well, therefore 1 consented 
to go thither. It was some time in 
July 1690 when we went from Fort 
St George in a small ship called the 



ARRIVAL AT BENCOOLEN. 



273 



1 Who was a slave at Mindanao 
during Dampicr's stay there. See 
Chapter XIII. 



Diamond, Captain Howel commander. 
"We were about fifty or sixty passen- 
gers in all ; some ordered to be left at 
Indrapore, and some at Bencouli ; 
ave or six of us were officers, the rest 
soldiers to the Company. We met 
nothing in our voyage that deserves 
notice till we came abieast of Indra- 
pore ; then the wind came at NW., 
and blew so hard that we could not 
get in, but were forced to bear away 
to Bencouli, another English factory 011 
the same coast, lying fifty or sixty 
leagues to the southward of Indra- 
pore. 

Upon our arrival at Bencouli we 
saluted the fort, and were welcomed 
by them. The same day we came to 
an anchor, and Captain Howel and 
Mr Moody, with the other merchants, 
went ashore, and were all kindly 
received by the Governor of the fort. 
It was two days after before I went 
ashore, and then I was importuned by 
the Governor to stay there to be gunner 
of this fort, because the gunner was 
lately dead ; and this being a place of 
greater import than Indrapore, I 
should do the Company more service 
here than there. I told the Governor, 
if he would augment my salary, which 
by agreement with the Governor of 
Fort St George I was to have had at 
Indrapore, I was willing to serve him, 
provided Mr Moody would consent to 
it. As to my salary, he told me I 
should have twenty-four dollars per 
month, which was as much as he gave 
to the old gunner. Mr Moody gave 
no answer till a week after, and then, 
being ready to be gone to Indrapore, 
he told me I might use my own 
liberty, either to stay here or go with 
him to Indrapore. He added, that if 
I went with him, he was not certain 
as yet to perform his promise in get- 
ting a vessel for me to go to Meangis 
with Jeoly and his mother ; but he 
would be so fair to me, that because 
I left Madras on his account, he would 
give me the half share of the two 
painted people, and leave them in my 
possession and at my disposal. I ac- 
cepted of the offer, and writings were 
immediately drawn between us. 
Thus it was that I came to have 



274 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XVIII. 



this Painted Prince, whose name was 
Jeoly, and his mother. They were 
born on a small island called Meangis. 
I saw the island twice, and two more 
close by it. Each of the three seemed 
to be about four or five leagues round, 
and of a good height. Jeoly himself 
told me that they all three abounded 
with gold, cloves, and nutmegs; for 
I showed him some of each sort 
several times, and he told me in the 
Malay language, which he spake indif- 
ferent well, "Meangis hadda madoc- 
hala se bullawan ;" that is, "There 
is abundance of gold at Meangis." 
" Bullawan " I have observed to 
be the common word for gold at 
Mindanao ; but whether the proper 
Malay word I know not ; for I found 
much difference between the Malay 
language as it was spoken at Min- 
danao, and the language on the coast 
of Malacca and Achin. When I 
showed him spice, he would not only 
tell me that there was madochala, 
that is, abundance ; but, to make it 
appear more plain, he would also 
show me the hair of his head, a thing 
frequent among all the Indians that I 
have met with, to show their hair 
when they would express more than 
they can number. He told me -also 
that his father was Raja of the island 
where they lived ; that there were 
not above thirty men on the island, 
and about one hundred women ; that 
he himself had five wives and eight 
children, and that one of his wives 
painted him. He was painted all 
down his breast; between his should- 
ers behind ; on his thighs mostly 
before ; and in the form of several 
broad rings, or bracelets, round his 
arms and legs. I cannot liken the 
drawings to any figures of animals, 
or the like ; but they were very 
curious, full of great variety of lines, 
flourishes, chequered work, &c., keep- 
ing a very graceful proportion, and 
appearing very artificial, 1 even to 
wonder, especially that upon and 
between his shoulder blades. By the 
account he gave me of the manner of 
doing it, I understood that the paint- 

1 Skilful, ingenious. 



ing was done in the same manner as 
the Jerusalem Cross is made in men's 
arms, by pricking the skin and rub- 
bing in a pigment. 2 But whereas 
powder is used in making the Jerusa- 
lem Cross, they at Meangis use the 
gum of a tree beaten to powder, 
called by the English drammer, which 
is used instead of pitch in many parts 
of India. He told me that most of 
the men and women on the island 
were thus painted ; and also that they 
had all earrings made of gold, and 
gold shackles about their legs and 
arms ; that their common food, of 
the produce of the land, was potatoes 
and yams ; that they had plenty of 
cocks and hens, but no other tame 
fowl. He said that fish (of which he 
was a great lover, as wild Indians 
generally are) was very plentiful about 
the island ; and that they had canoes, 
and went a-fishing frequently in 
them ; and that they often visited 
the other two small islands, whose 
inhabitants speak the same language 
as they did ; which was so unlike the 
Malay, which he had learnt while he 
was a slave at Mindanao, that when 
his mother and he were talking to- 
gether in their Meangian tongue I 
could not understand one word they 
said. And indeed all the Indians 
who speak Malay, who are the trad- 
ing and politer sort, looked on these 
Meangians as a kind of barbarians; 
and, upon any occasion of dislike, 
would call them "bobby," that is, 
"hogs," the greatest expression of 
contempt that can be, especially from 
the mouth of Malays, who are gene- 
rally Mahometans. And yet the 
Malays everywhere call a woman 
babby, by a name not much differ- 
ent ; and mamma signifies a man : 
though these two last words properly 
denote male and female ; and as 
"ejam" signifies a fowl, so "ejam 
mamma" is a cock, and "ejam 
babby" is a hen. But this by the 
way. 

He said also, that the customs of 
those other isles, and their manner of 
living, was like theirs, and that they 



2 That is, by tattooing. 



1690.] HISTORY OF THE " 

were the only people with, whom they 
had any converse ; and that one time, 
as he, with his father, mother, and 
brother, with two or three men more, 
were going to one of these other 
islands, they were driven by a strong 
wind on the coast of Mindanao, 
where they were taken by the fisher- 
men of that island, and carried ashore 
and sold as slaves, they being first 
stripped of their gold ornaments. I 
did not see any of the gold that they 
wore ; but there were great holes in 
their ears, by which it was manifest 
that they had worn some ornaments 
in them. Jeoly was sold to one 
Michael, a Mindanayan, that spoke 
good Spanish, and commonly waited 
on Raja Laut, serving him as our 
interpreter where the Raja was at a 
loss in any word, for Michael under- 
stood it better. He did often beat 
and abuse his painted servant, to 
make him work, but all in vain ; for 
neither fair means, threats, nor blows 
would make him work as he would 
have him. Yet he was very timorous, 
and could not endure to see any sort 
of weapons ; and he often told me 
that they had no arms at Meangis, 
they having no enemies to fight with. 
I knew this Michael very well while 
we were at Mindanao. I suppose that 
name was given him by the Spaniards, 
who baptized many of them at the 
time when they had footing at that 
island ; but, at the departure of the 
Spaniards, they were Mahometans 
again as before. Some of our people 
lay at this Michael's house, whose 
wife and daughter were pagallies to 
some of them. I often saw Jeoly at 
his master Michael's house ; and when 
I came to have him so long after, he 
remembered me again. I did never 
see his father nor brother, nor any of 
the others that were taken with them ; 
but Jeoly came several times aboard 
our ship when we lay at Mindanao, 
and gladly accepted of such victuals 
as we gave him ; for his master kept 
him at very short commons. 

Prince Jeoly lived thus a slave at 
Mindanao four or five years, till at 
last Mr Moody bought him and his 
mother for sixty dollars, and, as is 



PAINTED PRINCE." 



275 



before related, carried him to Fort St 
George, and thence along with me to 
Bencouli. Mr Mjpody stayed at Ben- 
couli about three weeks, and then 
went back with Captain Howel to 
Indrapore, leaving Jeoly and his 
mother with me. They lived in a 
house by themselves without the fort. 
I had no employment for them, but 
they both employed themselves. She 
used to make and mend their own 
clothes, at which she was not very 
expert, for they wear no clothes at 
Meangis, but only a cloth about their 
waists ; and he busied himself in 
making a chest with four boards and 
a few nails that he begged of me. It 
was but an ill-shaped, odd thing, yet 
he was as proud of it as if it had been 
the rarest piece in the world. After 
some time they were both taken sick, 
and though I took as much care of 
them as if they had been my brother 
and sister, yet she died. I did what 
I could to comfort Jeoly ; but he 
took on extremely, insomuch that I 
feared him also. 1 Therefore I caused 
a grave to be made presently, to hide 
her out of his sight. I had her 
shrouded decently in a piece of new 
calico ; but Jeoly was not so satisfied, 
for Ke wrapped all her clothes about 
her, and two new pieces of chintz 
that Mr Moody gave her, saying that 
they were his mother's, and she must 
have them. I would not disoblige 
him, for fear of endangering his life ; 
and I used all possible means to re- 
cover his health ; but I found little 
amendment while we stayed here. In 
the little printed relation that was 
made of him when he was shown for 
a sight in England, there was a ro- 
mantic story of a beautiful sister of 
his, a slave with them at Mindanao, 
and of the Sultan's falling in love 
with her ; but these were stories in- 
deed. They reported also that his 
paint was of such virtue, that ser- 
pents and venomous creatures would 
flee from him ; for which reason, I 
suppose, they represented so many 
serpents scampering about in the 



1 That is, I feared for his life also, 
so profound was his grief. 



276 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CiiAP. XIX. 



printed picture that was made of 
him. But I never knew any paint 
of such virtue ; and as for Jeoly, I 
have seen him as much afraid of 
snakes, scorpions, or centipedes as 
myself. 

Having given this account of the 
ship that left me at Nicobar, and of 
my Painted Prince whom I brought 
with me to Bencouli, I shall now 
proceed with the relation of my voyage 
thence to England, after I have given 
this short account of the occasion of 
it, and the manner of my getting 
away. To say nothing, therefore, 
now of that place, and my employ- 
ment there as gunner of the fort, the 
year 1690 drew towards an end; and 
not finding the Governor keep to his 
agreement with me, nor seeing by his 
carriage towards others any great 
reason I had to suspect he would, I 
began to wish myself away again. I 
saw so much ignorance in him with 
respect to his charge, being much 
fitter to be a book-keeper than gover- 
nor of a fort ; and yet so much in- 
solence and cruelty with respect to 
those under him, and rashness in his 
management of the Malay neighbour- 
hood, that I soon grew weary of him, 
not thinking myself very safe, indeed, 
under a man whose humours were so 
brutish and barbarous. I had other 
motives also for my going away. I 
began to long after my native countiy, 
after so tedious a ramble from it ; and 
I proposed no small advantage to my- 
self from my Painted Prince, whom 
Mr Moody had left entirely to my 
disposal, only reserving to himself his 
right to one half share in him. For 
besides what might be gained by 
showing him in England, I was in 
hopes that when I had got some 
money, I might there obtain what I 
had in vain sought for in the Indies 
a ship from the merchants, where- 
with to carry him back to Meangis, 
and reinstate him there in his own 
country, and by his favour and ne- 
gotiation to establish a traffic for the 
spice and other products of those 
islands. 

Upon these projects, I went to the 
Governor and Council, and desired 



that I might have my discharge to 
go for England with the next ship 
that came. The Council thought it 
reasonable, and they consented to it ; 
he also gave me his word that I should 
go. Upon the 2d of January 1691, 
there came to an anchor in Bencouli 
Road the Defence, Captain Heath 
commander, bound for England, in 
the service of the Company. They 
had been at Indrapore, where Mr 
Moody then was; and he had made 
over his share in Prince Jeoly to Mr 
Goddard, chief mate of the ship. 
Upon his coming on shore, he showed 
me Mr Moody 's writings, and looked 
upon Jeoly, who had been sick for 
three months; in all which time I 
tended him as carefully as if he had 
been my brother. I agreed matters 
with Mr Goddard, and sent Jeoly on 
board, intending to follow him^ as I 
could, and desiring Mr Goddard's as- 
sistance to fetch me off and conceal 
me aboard the ship if there should bo 
occasion; which he promised to do, 
and the captain promised to entertain 
me. For it proved, as I had foreseen, 
that upon Captain Heath's arrival, 
the Governor repented him of his 
promise, and would not suffer me to 
depart. I importuned him all I 
could, but in vain; so did Captain 
Heath also, but to no purpose. In 
short, after several essays, I shipped 
away at midnight (understanding the 
ship was to sail the next morning, 
and that they had taken leave of tho 
fort); and, creeping through one of 
the portholes of the fort, I got to^tho 
shore, where the ship's boat waited 
for me, and carried me on board, 
brought with me my journal, and 
most of my written papers ; but some 
papers and books of value I left in 
haste and all my furniture, being glad 
I was myself at liberty, and had hopes 
of seeing England again. 



CHAPTER XIX. 

BEING thus got on board the Defence, 
I was concealed there till a boat which 
came from the fort laden with pepper 



1691.] A SEA FIGHT BEFORE FORT ST GEORGE. 

was gone off again. An:l then we 
set sail for the Cape of Good Hop 



January 25th, 1691, and made the 
best of our way, as wind and weather 
would permit, expecting there to meet 
three English ships more, bound home 
from the Indies : for the war with the 
French having been proclaimed at 
Fort St George a little before Captain 
Heath came from thence, he was 
willing to have company home if he 
could. 

A little before this war was pro- 
claimed, there was an engagement in 
the road of Fort St George between 
some French men-of-war and some 
Dutch and English ships at anchor 
in the road ; which, because there is 
such a plausible story made of it in 
Monsieur Duquesne's late Voyage to 
the East Indies, I shall give a short 
account of, as I had it particularly 
related to me by the gunner's mate 
of Captain Heath's ship, a very sen- 
sible man, and several others of his 
men who were in the action. The 
Dutch have a fort on the Coast of 
Coromandel, called Pullicat, about 
twenty leagues to the northward of 
Fort St George. Upon some occasion 
or other the Dutch sent some ships 
thither to fetch away their effects, 
and transport them to Batavia. Acts 
of hostility were already begun be- 
tween the French and Dutch; and 
the French had at this time a squad- 
ron newly arrived in India, and lying 
at Pondicherry, a French fort on the 
same coast southward of Fort St 
George. The Dutch, in returning to 
Batavia, were obliged to coast it along 
by Fort St George and Pondicherry 
for the sake of the wind ; but when 
they came near this last, they saw 
the French men-of-war lying at anchor 
there, and should they have proceeded 
along the shore, or stood out to sea, 
expected to be pursued by them. 
They therefore turned back again ; 
for though their ships were of a pretty 



good 
fight 



force, yet were they unfit for 
-ight, as having great loads of goods, 
and many passengers, women, and 
children on board : so they put in at 
Fort St George, and, desiring the 
Governor's protection, had leave to 



277 

anchor in the road, and to send their 
goods and useless people ashore. 
There were then in the road a few 
small English ships, and Captain 
Heath, whose ship was a very stout 
merchantman, and which the French 
relater calls the English Admiral, was 
just come from China, but very deep 
laden with goods, and the deck full 
of canisters of sugar, which he was 

r paring to send ashore ; but before 
could do it, the French appeared, 
coming into the road with their lower 
sails and topsails, and had with them 
a fireship. With this they 'thought 
to have burnt the Dutch Commodore, 
and might probably enough have done 
it as she lay at anchor, if they had 
had the courage to come boldly on ; 
but they fired their ship at a distance, 
and the Dutch sent and towed her 
away, where she spent herself without 
any execution. Had the French men- 
of-war also come boldly up and 
grappled with their enemies, they 
might have done something consider- 
able; for the ^fort could not have 
played on them without damaging 
our ships as well as theirs. But in- 
stead of this, the French dropped 
anchor out of reach of the shot of 
the fort, and there lay exchanging 
shot with their enemies' ships, with 
so little advantage to themselves, 
that after about four hours' fighting 
they cut their cables and went away 
in haste and disorder, with all their 
sails loose, even their topgallant sails, 
which is not usual but when ships 
are just next to running away. Cap- 
tain Heath, notwithstanding his ship 
was so heavy and encumbered, be- 
haved himself very bravely in the 
fight ; and upon the going off of the 
French, went on board the Dutch 
Commodore, and told him that if he 
would pursue them he would stand 
out with them to sea, though he had 
veryj little water aboard. But the 
Dutch commander excused himself, 
saying he had orders to defend him- 
self from the French, but none to 
chase them, or go out of his way to 
seek them. And this was the exploit 
which the French have thought fit to 
brag of. I hear that the Dutch have 



278 DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [Ciur. XIX. 



taken from them since their fort of 
Pondicherry. 

But to proceed with our voyage. 
We had not been at sea long before 
our men began to droop in a sort of 
a distemper that stole insensibly on 
them, and proved fatal to above thirty, 
who died before we arrived at the 
Cape. We had sometimes two and 
once three men thrown overboard in 
a morning. This distemper might 
probably arise from the badness of the 
water which we took in at Bencouli, 
for I did observe while I was there 
that the river water, wherewith our 
ships were watered, was very unwhole- 
some, it being mixed with the water 
of many small creeks that proceeded 
from low land, and whose streams 
were always very black, they being 
nourished by the water that drained 
out of the low swampy unwholesome 
ground. I have observed, not only 
there but in other hot countries also, 
both in the East and West Indies, 
that the land-floods which pour into 
the channels of the rivers about the 
season of the rains are very unwhole- 
some. This happens chiefly, as I take 
it, where the water drains through 
thick woods and savannahs of long 
grass and swampy grounds, with 
which some hot countries abound ; 
and I believe it receives a strong tinc- 
ture from the roots of several kind of 
trees, herbs, &c. ; and especially where 
there is any stagnancy of the water, 
it soon corrupts ; and possibly the 
serpents and other poisonous vermin 
Ji<I insects may not a little contri- 
bute to its bad qualities; at such 
times it will look very deep coloured, 
yellow, red, or black, &c. The season 
of the rains was over, and the land- 
floods were abating upon the taking 
up this water in the River of Bencouli ; 
but would the seamen have given 
themselves the trouble, they might 
have filled their vessels with excellent 
good water at a spring on the back 
side of the fort, not above 200 or 300 
paces from the landing-place, and 
with which the fort is served. Beside 
the badness of our water, it was 
stowed among the pepper in the hold, 
which made it very hot. Every morn- 



ing when V, T S came to take our allow- 
ance, it was so hot that a man could 
hardly suffer his hands in it, or 
hold a bottleful of it in his hand. I 
never anywhere felt the like, nor 
could I have thought it possible that 
water should heat to that degree in a 
ship's hold. It was exceeding black, 
too, and looked more like ink than 
water. Whether it grew so black with 
standing, or was tinged with the pep- 
per, I know not ; for this water was 
not so black when it was first taken 
up. Our food also was very bad, for 
the ship had been out of England 
upon this voyage above three years ; 
and the salt provision brought from 
thence, which we fed on, having been 
so long in salt, was but ordinary food 
for sickly men to feed on. Captain 
Heath, when he saw the misery of his 
company, ordered his own tamarinds 
of which he had some jars aboard 
to be given some to each mess to eat 
with their rice. This was a great 
refreshment to the men, and I do be- 
lieve it contributed much to keep us 
on our legs. This distemper was so 
universal that I do believe there was 
scarce a man in the ship but lan- 
guished under it ; yet it stole so in- 
sensibly on us, that we could not say 
we were sick, feeling little or no pain, 
only a weakness, and but little sto- 
mach. Nay, most of those that died 
in this voyage would hardly be per- 
suaded to keep their cabins or ham- 
mocks till they could not stir about ; 
and when they were forced to lie 
down, they made their wills, and 
piked off 1 in two or three days. 

The loss of these men, and the weak 
languishing condition that the rest of 
us were in, rendered us incapable to 
govern our ship when the wind blew 
more than ordinary. This often hap- 
pened when we drew near the Cape, 
and as oft put us to our trumps 2 to 



1 " Peaked off; " gradually dwindled 
and died. The word is used in the 
witches' curse in Macbeth, Act 1, s. 3 : 

" Weary seven nights, nine times nine, 
Shall he dwindle, peak, and pine." 

2 Forced us to our utmost efforts ; 
drove us to our wits' end. 



1691.] THE VOYAGE TO THE CAPE. 

manage the ship. Captain Heath, 

to encourage his men to their labour, 

kept his watch as constantly as any 

man, though sickly himself, and lent 

a helping hand on all occasions. But 

at last, almost despairing of gaining 



279 



his passage to the Cape by reason of 
the winds coming southerly, and we 
having now been sailing eight or nine 
weeks, he called all our men to con- 
sult about our safety, and desired 
every man, from the highest to the 
lowest, freely to give his real opinion 
and advice what to do in this danger- 
ous juncture ; for we were not in a 
condition to keep out long, and could 
we not get to land quickly, must have 
perished at sea. He consulted, there- 
fore, whether it were best to beat still 
for the Cape or bear away for Johanna, 
where we might expect relief, that 
being a place where our outward- 
bound East India ships usually touch, 
and whose natives are very familiar ; 
but other places, especially St Law- 
rence or Madagascar, 1 which was 
nearer, were unknown to us. We 
were now so nigh the Cape that, with 
a fair wind, we might expect to be 
there in four or five days ; but as the 
wind was now, we could not hope to 
get thither. On the other side, this 
wind was fair to carry us to Johanna ; 
but then Johanna was a great way 
off; and if the wind should con- 
tinue as it was, to bring us into a 
true trade-wind, yet we could not get 
thither under a fortnight ; and if we 
should meet calms, a:-> we might pro- 
bably expect, it might be much longer. 
Besides, we should lose our passage 
about the Cape till October or Novem- 
ber, this being about the latter end of 
March ; for after the 10th of May it 
is not usual to beat about the Cape to 
come home. All circumstances there- 
fore being weighed and considered, 
we at last unanimously agreed to pro- 
secute our voyage towards the Cape, 
and with patience wait for a shift of 
wind. But Captain Heath, having 

1 "Which received the name of St 
Lawrence from its Portuguese dis- 
coverer, Emanuel de Meneses, in 
1506. 



thus far sounded the inclination of his 
weak men, told them that it was not 
enough that they all consented to 
beat for the Cape, for our desires were 
not sufficient to bring us thither, but 
that there would need a more than 
ordinary labour and management from 
those that were able ; and withal, for 
their encouragement, he promised a 
month's pay gratis to every man that 
would engage to assist on all occa- 
sions, and be ready upon call, whether 
it were his turn to watch or not ; and 
this money he promised to pay at the 
Cape. This offer was first embraced 
by some of the officers, and then as 
many of the men as found themselves 
in a capacity listed themselves in a 
roll to serve their commander. This 
was wisely contrived of the captain, 
for he could not have compelled them 
in their weak condition, neither would 
fair words alone, without some hopes 
of a reward, have engaged them to so 
much extraordinary work; for the 
ship, sail, and rigging were much out 
of repair. For my part, I was too 
weak to enter myself in that list ; for 
else our common safety, which I 
plainly saw lay at stake, would have 
prompted me to do more than any 
such reward would do. In a short 
time after this it pleased God to 
favour us with a fine wind, which, 
being improved to the best advantage 
by the incessant labour of these new- 
listed men, brought us in a short time 
to the Cape. 

The night before we entered the har- 
bour, which was about the beginning 
of April, being near the land, we 
fired a gun every hour to give notice 
that we were in distress. The next 
day, a Dutch captain came aboard in 
his boat ; who, seeing us so weak as 
not to be able to trim our sails to 
turn into the harbour, though we 
did tolerably well at sea before the 
wind, and being requested by our 
captain to assist him, sent ashore for 
a hundred lusty men, who immedi- 
ately came aboard, and brought our 
ship in to an anchor. They also unbent 
our sails, and did everything for us 
that they were required to do, for 
which Captain Heath gratified them 



280 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



to the full. These men had better 
stomachs than we, and ate freely of 
such food as the ship afforded ; and 
they having the freedom of our ship, 
to go to and fro between decks, made 
prize of what they could lay their 
hands on, especially salt beef, which 
our men, for want of stomachs in the 
voyage, had hung up, six, eight, or 
ten pieces in a place. This was con- 
veyed away before we knew it or 
thought of it ; besides, in the night, 
there was a bale of muslins broken 
open, and a great deal conveyed 
away ; but whether the muslins were 
stolen by our own men or the Dutch 
I cannot say, for we had some very 
dexterous thieves in our ship. Being 
thus got safe to an anchor, the sick 
were presently sent ashore, to quar- 
ters provided for them, and those 
that were able remained aboard and 
had good fat mutton or fresh beef sent 
aboard every day. I went ashore, 
also, with my Painted Prince, where 
I remained with him till the time of 
sailing again, which was about six 
weeks, in which time I took the 
opportunity to inform myself of what 
I could concerning this country, 
which I shall in this next place give 
a brief account of, and so make what 
haste I can home. 

The Cape of Good Hope is the 
utmost bounds of the continent of 
Africa towards the south, lying in 
Lat. 34 30' S., in a very temperate 
climate. I look upon this Latitude 
to be one of the mildest and sweetest, 
for its temperature, of any whatso- 
ever. 1 . . . 

This large promontory consists of 
high and very remarkable land ; and 
off at sea it affords a very pleas- 
ant and agreeable prospect. And 
without doubt the prospect of it was 
very agreeable to those Portuguese 
who first found out this way by sea to 



1 A digression is here omitted, in 
which Dampier combats and explains 
a " common prejudice " among Euro- 
pean seamen, who look upon the 
Cape as much colder than other 
places in the same Latitude to the 
north of the Line. 



[CHAP. XIX. 

the East Indies, when after coasting 
along the vast continent of Africa, 
towards the South Pole, they had 
the comfort of seeing the land and 
their course end in this promontory, 
which therefore they called the Cape 
de Bon Esperance, or of Good Hope, 
finding that they might now proceed 
eastward. 2 The most remarkable 
land at sea is a high mountain, steep 
to the sea, with a flat even top, which 
is called the Table Land. On the 
west side of the Cape, a little to the 
northward of it, there is a spacious 
harbour, 3 with a low flat island lying 
off it, which you may leave on either 
hand, and pass in or out securely at 
either end. Ships that anchor here 
ride near the mainland, leaving the 
island at a farther distance without 
them. The land by the sea against 
the harbour is low, but backed with 
high mountains a little way in, to 
the southward of it. 

The soil of this country is of a 
brown colour ; not deep, yet indiffer- 
ently productive of grass, herbs, and 
trees. The grass is short, like that 
which grows on our Wiltshire or 
Dorsetshire Downs. The trees here- 
abouts are but small and few ; the 
country also farther from the sea does 
not much abound in trees, as I have 
been informed. The mould or soil 
also is much like this near the har- 
bour, which though it cannot be said 
to be very fat or rich land, yet it is 
very fit for cultivation, and yields 
good crops to the industrious hus- 
bandman ; and the country is pretty 
well settled with farms, Dutch 
families and French refugees, for 
twenty or thirty leagues up in the 
country ; but there are but few farms 
near the harbour. Here grows plenty 
of wheat, barley, pease, &c. Here 
are also fruits of many kinds, as 
apples, pears, quinces, and the 
largest pomegranates that I did ever 
see. The chief fruits are grapes. 
These thrive very well, and the 

2 A passage relating to soundings 
and signs of nearing the Cape in 
omitted, 

a Table Bay. 






1691.] 
country 



SOIL, FRUITS, AND ANIMALS AT THE CAPE. 



is of late years so well 



stocked with vineyards, that they 
make abundance of wine, of which 
they have enough and to spare, and 
do sell great quantities to ships that 
touch here. This wine is like a 
French high country white- wine, but 
of a pale yellowish colour ; it is sweet, 
very pleasant, and strong. 

The tame animals of this country 
are sheep, goats, hogs, cows, horses, 
&c. The sheep are very large and 
fat, for they thrive very well here. 
There is a very beautiful sort of wild 
ass in this country, whose body is 
curiously striped with equal lists 1 
of white and black ; the stripes 
coming from the ridge of his back, 
and ending under the belly, which is 
white. Here are a great many ducks, 
dunghill fowls, &c. ; and ostriches 
are plentifully found in the dry 
mountains and plains. The sea 
hereabouts affords plenty of fish of 
clivers sorts ; especially a small sort 
of fish, not so big as a herring, where- 
of they have such great plenty, that 
they pickle great quantities yearly, 
and send them to Europe. Seals are 
also in great numbers about the 
Cape, which, as I have still observed, 
is a good sign of the plentifulness of 
fish, which is their food. 

The Dutch have a strong fort by 
the seaside, against the harbour, where 
the Governor lives. At about 200 
or 300 paces distance from thence, 
on the west side of the fort, there is 
a small Dutch town, in which I told 
about fifty or sixty houses, low, but 
well built, with stone walls, there 
being plenty of stone drawn out of a 
quarry close by. On the back side of 
the town, as you go towards the 
mountains, the Dutch East India 
Company have a large house, and a 
stately garden walled in with a high 
stone wall. This garden is full of 
divers sorts of herbs, flowers, roots, 
and fruits, with curious spacious 
gravel walks and arbours ; and is 
vratered with a brook that descends 
out of the mountains, which being 
cut into many channels is conveyed 



281 

into all parts of the garden. The 
hedges which make the walks are 
very thick, and nine or ten feet high. 
They are kept exceeding neat and 
even by continual pruning. There 
are lower hedges within these again, 
which serve to separate the fruit 
trees from each other, but with- 
out shading them ; and they keep 
each sort of fruit by themselves, as 
apples, pears, abundance of quinces, 
pomegranates, &c. These all prosper 
very well, and bear good fruit, espe- 
cially the pomegranate. The roots 
and garden herbs have also their dis- 
tinct places, hedged in apart by them- 
selves ; and all in such order, that it 
is exceeding pleasant and beautiful. 
There are a great number of Negro 
slaves brought from other parts of 
the world ; some of which are con- 
tinually weeding, pruning, trimming 
and looking after it. All stranger! 



strangers 



Kings, streaks. 



are allowed the liberty to walk there ; 
and, by the servant's leave, you may 
be admitted to taste of the fruit ; but if 
you think to do it clandestinely you 
may be mistaken, as I knew one was 
when I was in the garden, who took 
five or six pomegranates, and was 
espied by one of the slaves, and 
threatened to be carried before the 
Governor. I believe it cost him some 
money to make his peace, for I heard 
no more of it. Farther up from the 
sea, beyond the garden, towards the 
mountains, there are several other 
small gardens and vineyards, belong- 
ing to private men ; but the moun- 
tains are so nigh, that the number of 
them is but small. 

The Dutch that live in the town 
get considerably by the ships that 
frequently touch here, chiefly by en- 
tertaining strangers that come ashore 
to refresh themselves : for you must 
give three shillings or a dollar a day 
for your entertainment ; the bread 
and flesh is as cheap here as in Eng- 
land. Besides, they buy good penny- 
worths of the seamen, both outward 
and homeward bound, which the far- 
mers up the country buy of them 
again at a dear rate ; for they have 
not an opportunity of buying things 
I at the best hand, but must buy of 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XX. 



282 

those that live at the harbour ; the 
nearest settlements, as I was informed, 
being twenty miles off. Notwith- 
standing the great plenty of corn and 
wine, yet the extraordinary high taxes 
which the Company lays on liquor 
make it very dear, and you can buy 
none but at the tavern, except it be 
by stealth. There are but three 
houses in the town that sell strong 
liquor, one of which is this wine- 
house or tavern ; there they sell only 
Avine ; another sells beer and mum l ; 
and the third sells brandy and to- 
bacco, all extraordinary dear. A flask 
of wine which holds three quarts will 
cost eighteen stivers, 2 for so much I 
paid for it ; yet I bought as much for 
eight stivers in another place, but it 
was privately, at an unlicensed house ; 
and the person that sold it would 
have been ruined had it been known. 
And thus much for the country and 
the European inhabitants. 



CHAPTER XX. 

THE natural 3 inhabitants of the Cape 
are the Hodmadods, as they are com- 
monly called, which is a corruption 
of the word Hottentot ; for this is the 
name by which they call to one an- 
other, either in their dances, or on 
any occasion, as if every one of them 
had this for his name. The word 
probably has some signification or 
other in their language, whatever it 
is. The Hottentots are people of a 
middle stature, with small limbs and 
thin bodies, full of activity. Their 
faces are of a flat, oval figure, of the 
Negro make, with great eyebrows, 
black eyes ; but neither are their 
noses so flat, nor their lips so thick, 
as the Negroes of Guinea. Their 



1 A kind of strong beer, introduced 
into England from Brunswick in Ger- 
many. 

2 According to Bailey's Dictionary, 
a stiver was, about the beginning of 
the eighteenth century, equivalent to 
a penny and one-fifth English. 

8 Native, aboriginal. 



complexion is darker than the com- 
mon Indians, though not so black 
as the Negroes or New Hollanders ; 
neither is their hair so much frizzled. 
They besmear, themselves all over 
with grease, as well to keep their 
joints supple, as to fence their half- 
naked bodies from the air by stopping 
up their pores. To do this the more 
effectually, they rub soot over the 
greased parts, especially their faces, 
which adds to their natural beauty 
as painting does in Europe ; but 
withal sends from them a strong 
smell, which, though sufficiently 
pleasing to themselves, is very un- 
pleasant to others. They are glad of 
the worst of kitchen stuff for this 
purpose, and use it as often as they 
can get it. This custom of anointing 
the body is very common in other 
parts of Africa, especially on the coast 
of Guinea, where they generally use 
palm oil, anointing themselves from 
head to foot ; but when they want oil 
they make use of kitchen stuff, which 
they buy of the Europeans that trade 
with them. In the East Indies also, 
especially on the coast of Cudda and 
Malacca, and in general on almost all 
the easterty islands, as well on Suma- 
tra, Java, &c,, as on the Philippine 
and Spice Islands, the Indian inhabi- 
tants anoint themselves with cocoa- 
nut oil two or three times a day, 
especially mornings and evenings. 
They spend sometimes half-an-hour 
in chafing the oil, and nibbing it into 
their hair and skin, leaving no place 
unsmeared with oil but their face, 
which they daub not like these Hot- 
tentots. The Americans also in 
some places do use this custom, but 
not so frequently, perhaps for want 
of oil and grease to do it. Yet some 
American Indians in the North Seas 
frequently daub themselves with a 
pigment made with leaves, roots, or 
herbs, or with a sort of red earth, 
giving their skins a yellow, red, or 
green colour, according as the pig- 
ment is. And these smell unsavourly 
enough to people not accustomed to 
them ; though not so rank as those 
who use oil or grease. 

The Hottentots wear no covering 



1691.] DRESS AND SOCIAL CUSTOMS OF THE HOTTENTOTS. 283 



on their heads, but deck their hair 
with small shells. Their garments 
are sheepskins wrapped about their 
shoulders like a mantle, with the 
woolly sides next their bodies. The 
men have, besides this mantle, a 
piece of skin like a small apron hang- 
ing before them. The women have 
another skin tucked about their waists 
which comes down to their knees 
like a petticoat : and their legs are 
wrapped round with sheepguts, two or 
three inches thick, some up as high 
as to their calves, others even from 
their feet to their knees ; which at a 
small distance seems to be a sort of 
boots. These dre put on when they 
are green ; and so they grow hard 
and stiff on their legs, for they never 
pull them off again, till they have 
occasion to eat them ; which is when 
they journey from home, and have 
no other food : then these guts, 
which have been worn, it may be, six, 
eight, ten, or twelve months, make 
them a good banquet. This I was 
informed of by the Dutch. They 
never pull off their sheepskin gar- 
ments but to louse themselves ; for 
by continual wearing them they are 
full of vermin, which obliges them 
often to strip and sit in the sun two 
or three hours together in the heat of 
the day, to destroy them. Indeed, 
most Indians that live remote from 
the Equator are molested with lice, 
though their garments afford less 
shelter for lice than these Hottentots' 
sheepskins do. For all those Indians 
who live in cold countries, as in the 
north and south parts of America, 
have some eort of skin or other to 
cover their bodies, as deer, otter, 
beaver, or seal skins, all which they 
as constantly wear, without shifting 
themselves, as these Hottentots do 
their sheepskins. And, hence they 
are lousy too, and strong scented, 
though they do not daub themselves 
at all, or but very little ; for even 
by reason of their skins they smell 
strong. 

The i Hottentots' houses are the 
meanest that I did ever see. They 
are about nine or ten feet high, and 
ten .or twelve from side to side. They 



are in a manner round, made with 
small poles stuck into the ground, 
and brought together at the top, 
where they are fastened. The sides 
and top of the house are filled up 
with boughs coarsely wattled between 
the poles, and all is covered over with 
long grass, rushes, and pieces of hides ; 
and the house at a distance appears 
just like a haycock. They leave only 
a small hole on one side, about three 
or four feet high, for a door to creep 
in and out at ; but when the wind 
comes in at this door they stop it up, 
and make another hole in the opposite 
side. They make the fire in the 
middle of the house, and the smoke 
ascends out of the crannies, from all 
parts of the house. They have no 
beds to lie on, but tumble down at 
night round the fire. Their house- 
hold furniture is commonly an earthen 
pot or two to boil victuals, and they 
live very miserably and hard; it is 
reported that they will fast two or 
three days together when they travel 
about the country. Their common 
food is either herbs, flesh, or shell- 
fish, which they get among the rocks, 
or other places at low water : for they 
have no boats, bark-logs, nor canoes 
to go a-fishing in ; so that their chief 
subsistence is on land animals, or on 
such herbs as the land naturally pro- 
duces. I was told by my Dutch land- 
lord that they kept sheep and bullocks 
here before the Dutch settled among 
them : and that the inland Hottentots 
have still great stocks of cattle, and 
sell them to the Dutch for rolls of 
tobacco ; and that the price for which 
they sell a cow or sheep, was as 
much twisted tobacco as will reach 
from the horns or head to the tail ; 
for they are great lovers of tobacco, 
and will do anything for it. This 
their way of trucking 1 was confirmed 
to me by many others, who yet said 
that they could not buy their beef 
this cheap way, for they had not the 
liberty to deal with the Hottentots, 
that being a privilege which the 
Dutch East India Company reserve to 
themselves. My landlord, having a 



Bartering, exchanging. 



284 

great many lodgers, fed us most with 
mutton, some of which he bought of 
the butcher, and there is but one in 
the town ; but most of it he killed in 
the night, the sheep being brought 
privately by the Hottentots, who 
assisted in skinning and dressing, 
and had the skin and guts for their 
pains. I judge these sheep were 
fetched out of the country a good 
Avay off; for he himself would be ab- 
sent a day or two to procure them, 
and two or three Hottentots with him. 
These of the Hottentots that live by 
the Dutch town have their greatest 
subsistence from the Dutch : for there 
is one or more of them belonging to 
every house. These do all sorts of 
servile work, and there take their 
food and grease. Three or four more 
of their nearest relations sit at the 
doors or near the Dutch house, wait- 
ing for the scraps and fragments that 
come from the table ; and if between 
meals the Dutch people have any 
occasion for them to go on errands or 
the like, they are ready at command, 
expecting little for their pains ; but 
for a stranger they will not budge 
under a stiver. 

Their religion, if they have any, is 
wholly unknown to me ; for they have 
no temple nor idol, nor any place of 
worship that I did see or hear of. Yet 
their mirth and nocturnal pastimes 
at the new and full of the moon look- 
ed as if they had some superstition 
about it. For at the full especially 
they sing and dance all night, making 
a great noise. I walked out to their 
huts twice at these times, in the even- 
ing, when the moon arose above the 
horizon, and viewed them for an hour 
or more. They seem all very busy, 
both men, women, and children, 
dancing very oddly on the green grass 
by their houses. They traced to and 
fro promiscuously, often clapping 
their hands and singing aloud. Their 
faces were sometimes to the east, some- 
times to the west ; neither did I see 
any motion or gesture that they used 
when their faces were towards the 
moon, more than when their backs 
vere towards it. After I had thus 
observed them for a while, I returned 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XX. 
to my lodging, which was not above 
200 or 300 paces from their huts ; and 
I heard them singing in the same 
manner all night. In the grey of the 
morning I walked out again, and 
found many of the men and women 
still singing and dancing, who con- 
tinued their mirth till the moon went 
down, and then they left off; some 
of them going into their huts to sleep, 
and others to their attendance in their 
Dutch houses. Other Negroes are 
less circumspect, in theirnight-dances, 
as to the precise time of the full moon, 
they being more general in these 
nocturnal pastimes, and use them 
oftener ; as do many people also in the 
East and West Indies. Yet there is 
a difference between colder and warmer 
countries as to their divertisements. l 
The warmer climates being generally 
very productive of delicate fruits, &c., 
and these uncivilised people caring 
for little else than what is barely 
necessary, they spend the greatest 
part of their time in diverting them- 
selves after their several fashions ; 
but the Indians of colder climates are 
not so much at leisure, the fruits of 
the earth being scarce with them, 
and they necessitated to be continu- 
ally fishing, hunting, or fowling for 
their subsistence ; not as with us, 
for recreation. As for these Hotten- 
tots, they are a very lazy sort of peo- 
ple ; and though they live in a delicate 
country, very fit to be manured, and 
where there is land enough for them, 
yet they choose rather to live as their 
forefathers, poor and miserable, than 
be at pains for plenty. And so much 
for the Hottentots : I shall now return 
to our own affairs. 

Upon our arrival at the Cape, Cap- 
tain Heath took a house to live in, 
in order to recover his health. Such 
of his men as were able did so too : 
for the rest he provided lodgings and 
paid their expenses. Three or four of 
our men, who came ashore very sick, 
died ; but the rest, by the assistance 
of the doctors of the fort, a fine air, 
and good kitchen and cellar physic, 
soon recovered their health. Those 



Sports, diversions. 



1691.] 



DEPARTURE FROM THE CAPE. 



285 



that subscribed to be at all calls, and 
assisted to bring in the ship, received 
Captain Heath's bounty, by which 
they furnished themselves with liquor 
for their homeward voyage. But we 
Avere now so few, that we could not 
sail the ship ; therefore Captain Heath 
desired the Governor to spare him 
some men ; and, as I was informed, 
had a promise to be supplied out of 
the homeward-bound Dutch East In- 
dia ships, that were now expected 
every day ; and we waited for them. 
In the meantime, in came the James 
and Mary, and the Josiah of London, 
bound home. Out of these we thought 
to have been furnished with men, but 
they had only enough for themselves ; 
therefore we waited yet longer for the 
Dutch Fleet, which at last arrived : 
but we could get no men from them. 
Captain Heath was therefore forced 
to get men by stealth, such as he 
could pick up, whether soldiers or 
seamen. The Dutch knew our want 
of men ; therefore near forty of them, 
those that had a design to return to 
Europe, came privately and offered 
themselves, and waited in the night 
at places appointed, where our boats 
went and fetched three or four aboard 
at a time, and hid them, especially 
when any Dutch boat came aboard 
our ship. Here at the Cape I met my 
friend Daniel "Wallis, the same who 
leaped into the sea and swam at Pulo 
Condore. 1 After several traverses 
to Madagascar, Don Mascarin, 2 Pon- 
dicherry, Pegu, Cunnimere, Madras, 
and the River Hooghly, he was now 
' got hither in a homeward-bound Dutch 
ship. I soon persuaded him to come 
over to us, and fou.id means to get 
him aboard our ship. 

About the 23d of May we sailed 
from the Cape in the company of the 
James and Mary and the Josiah, 
directing our course towards the Island 
Santa Helena. We met nothing of 
remark in this voyage except a great 
swelling sea out of the SW. , which, 

1 Escaping from a murderous Ma- 
layan crew. See end of Chapter XIV. , 
page 231. 

2 The Isle of Franco. 



taking us on the broadside, made us 
roll sufficiently. Such of our water- 
casks as were between decks, running 
from side to side, were in a short time 
all staved, and the deck well washed 
with the fresh water. The shot 
tumbled out of the lockers and gar- 
lands, and rung a loud peal, rumbling 
from side to side every roll that the 
ship made ; neither was it an easy 
matter to reduce them again within 
bounds. The guns being carefully 
looked after and lashed fast, never 
budged, but the tackles or pulleys 
and lashings made great music too. 
The sudden and violent motion of the 
ship made us fearful lest some of the 
guns should have broken loose, which 
must have been very detrimental to 
the ship's sides. The masts were also 
in great danger to be rolled by the 
board ; but no harm happened to any 
of us besides the loss of three or four 
butts of water, and a barrel or two of 
good Cape wine, which was staved in 
the great cabin. This great tumbling 
sea took us shortly after we came 
from the Cape. The violence of it 
lasted but one night; yet we had a 
continual swelling out of the SW. 
almost during all the passage to Santa 
Helena, which was an eminent token 
that the SW. winds were now violent 
in the higher latitudes towards the 
South Pole ; for this was the time 
of year for those winds. Notwith- 
standing this boisterous sea coming 
thus obliquely upon us, we had fine 
clear weather, and a moderate gale at 
SE., or between that and the east, 
till we came to the Island Santa 
Helena, where we arrived the 20th of 
June. There we found the Princess 
Ann at anchor waiting for us. 

The Island Santa Helena lies in 
about 16 S. Lat. The air is com- 
monly serene and clear, except in the 
months that yield rain; yet we had 
one or two very rainy days even while 
we were here. Here are moist seasons 
to plant and sow ; and the weather is 
| temperate enough as to heat, though 
' so near the Equator, and very healthy. 
The island is but small, not above 
nine or ten leagues in length, and 
stands 300 or 400 leagues from the 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CHAP. XX, 



286 

main land. J.t is "bounded against 
the sea with steep rocks, so that 
there is no landing but at two or 
three places. The land is high snd 
mountainous, and seems to be very 
dry and poor, yet there are fine val- 
leys proper for cultivation. The 
mountains appear bare, only in some 
places you may see a few low shrubs ; 
but the valleys afford some trees fit 
for building, as I was informed. 

This island is said to have been 
first discovered and settled by the 
Portuguese, 1 who stocked it with 
goats and hogs; but it being after- 
wards deserted by them, it lay waste 
till the Dutch, finding it convenient 
to relieve their East India ships, 
settled it again ; but they afterwards 
relinquished it for a more convenient 
place, I mean the Cape of Good Hope. 
Then the English East India Com- 
pany settled their servants there, and 
began to fortify it; but they being 
yet weak, the Dutch about the year 
1672 came thither and retook it, and 
kept it in their possession. This 
news being reported in England, 
Captain Monday was sent to retake 
it, who, by the advice and conduct of 
one that had formerly lived there, 
landed a party of armed men in the 
night in a small cove, unknown to 
the Dutch then in garrison, and 
climbing the rocks, got up into the 
island, and so came in the morning 
to the hills hanging over the fort 
which stands by the sea in a small 
valley. Thence firing into the fort, 
they soon made them surrender. 
There were at this time two or three 
Dutch East India ships either at 
anchor, or coming thither, when our 
ships were there. These, when they 
saw that the English were masters of 
the island again, made sail to be 
gone ; but being chased by the Eng- 
lish frigates, two of them became rich 
prizes to Captain Monday and his 
men. The island has continued ever 



1 By Juan de Nova, in 1501, who 
gave such a favourable account of the 
island, that the Portuguese Admirals 
were instructed in future to touch 
there for refreshments. 



since in the hands of the English 
East India Company, and has been 
greatly strengthened both with men 
and guns ; so that at this day it is 
secure enough from the invasion of 
any enemy. For the common land- 
ing-place is a small bay, like a half- 
moon, scarce 500 paces wide, between 
the two points. Close by the seaside 
are good guns planted at equal dis- 
tances, lying along from one end of 
the bay to the other ; besides a small 
fort, a little farther in from the sea, 
near the midst of the bay : all which 
makes this bay so strong, that it is 
impossible to force it. The small 
cove where Captain Monday landed 
his men when he took the island from 
the Dutch, is scarce fit for a boat to 
land at, and yet that is now also 
fortified. 

There is a small English town 
within the great bay, standing in a 
little valley between two high steep 
mountains. There may be about 
twenty or thirty small houses, whose 
walls are built with rough stones ; 
the inside furniture is very mean. 
The Governor has a pretty tolerably 
handsome low house by the fort, 
where he commonly lives, having a 
few soldiers to attend him, and to 
guard the fort. But the houses in 
the town before mentioned stand 
empty, save only when ships arrive 
here ; for their owners have all plan- 
tations farther in the island, where 
they constantly employ themselves. 
But when ships arrive, they all flock 
to the town, where they live all the 
time that the ships lie here ; for then 
is their fair or market, to buy such 
necessaries as they want, and to sell 
off the produce of their plantations. 
Their plantations afford potatoes, 
yams, and some plantains and ban- 
anas. Their stock consists chiefly of 
hogs, bullocks, cocks and hens, ducks, 
geese, and turkeys, of which they 
have great plenty, and sell them at 
a low rate to the sailors; taking in 
exchange shirts, drawers, or any light 
clothes, pieces of calico, silks, or 
muslins. Arrack, sugar, and lime- 
juice are also much esteemed and 
coveted by them. But now they are 



ST HELENA. 



287 



iii hopes to produce wine and brandy 
in a short time ; for they already 
begin to plant vines for that end, 
there being a few Frenchmen there 
to manage that affair. This I was 
told, but I saw nothing of it, for it 
rained so hard when I was ashore, 
that I had not the opportunity of 
seeing their plantations. I was also 
informed that they get manatee or 
sea-cows here, which seemed very 
strange to me. Therefore inquiring 
more strictly into the matter, I found 
the Santa Helena manatee to be, by 
their shapes and manner of lying 
ashore on the rocks, those creatures 
called sea-lions ; for the manatee 
never come ashore, neither are they 
found near any rocky shores as this 
island is, there being no feeding for 
them in such places. Besides, in this 
island there is no river for them to 
drink at, though there is a small 
brook runs into the sea out of the 
valley by the fort. 

We stayed here five or six days, all 
which time the islanders lived at the 
town, to entertain the seamen, who 
constantly flocked ashore to enjoy 
themselves among their country 
people. Our touching at the Cape 
had greatly drained the seamen of 
their loose coins, at which these 
islanders as greatly repined ; and some 
of the poorer sort openly complained 
against such doings, saying it was fit 
that the East India Company should 
be acquainted with it, that they 
might hinder their ships from to aching 
at the Cape. Yet they were extremely 
kind, in hopes to get what was re- 
maining. They are most of them 
very poor; but such as could get a 
little liquor to sell to the seamen at 
this time got what the seamen could 
spare, for the punch-houses were never 
empty. But had we all come directly 
hither, and not touched at the Cape, 
even the poorest people among them 
would have gotten something by en- 
tertaining sick men. For commonly 
the seamen coming home are troubled 
more or less with scorbutic distempers, 
and their only hopes are to get re- 
freshment and health at this island ; 
and these hopes seldom or never fail 



them if once they get footing here : 
for the island affords abundance of 
delicate herbs, wherewith the sick 
are first bathed to supple their joints, 
and then the fruits and herbs and 
fresh food soon after cure them of 
their scorbutic humours; so that in 
a week's time men that have been 
carried ashore in hammocks, and they 
who were wholly unable to go, have 
been able to leap and dance. Doubt- 
less the serenity and wholesomeness 
of the air contributes much to the 
carrying off of these distempers, for 
there is constantly a fresh breeze. 
While we stayed here, many of the 
seamen got sweethearts. One young 
man belonging to the James and 
Mary was married, and brought his 
wife to England with him. Another 
brought his sweetheart to England, 
they being each engaged by bonds to 
marry at their arrival in England; 
and several others of our men were 
over head and ears in love with the 
Santa Helena maids, who, though 
they were born there, yet very ear- 
nestly desired to be released from 
that prison, which they have no other 
way to compass but by marrying sea- 
men or passengers that touch here. 
The young women born here are but 
one remove from English, being the 
daughters of such. They are well 
shaped, proper, and comely, were 
they in a dress to set them off. 

My stay ashore here was but two 
days, to get refreshments for myself 
and Jeoly, whom I carried ashore 
with me; and he was very diligent 
to pick up such things as the island 
afforded, carrying ashore with him a 
bag, which the people of the isle 
filled with roots for him. They 
flocked about him, and seemed to 
admire him much. This was the 
last place where I had him at my 
own disposal; for the mate of the 
ship, who had Mr Moody 's share in 
him, left him entirely to my manage- 
ment, I being to bring him to Eng- 
land. But I was no sooner arrived 
in the Thames, but he was sent ashore 
to be seen by some eminent persons ; 
and I, being in want of money, was 
prevailed upon to sell first part of 



DAMPIER'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [CiiAP. XX. 



288 

my share in him, and by degrees all 
of it. After this I heard that he was 
carried about to be shown as a sight, 
and that he died of the small-pox at 
Oxford. 

But to proceed. Our water being 
filled, and the ships all stocked with 
fresh provision, we sailed hence in 
company of the Princess Ann, the 
James and Mary, and the Josiah, 
July the 2d, 1691, directing our 
course towards England, and design- 
ing to touch nowhere by the way. 
. . . In our passage before we got 
to the Line, we saw three ships, and 
making towards them, we found two 
of them to be Portuguese, bound to 
Brazil. The third kept on a wind, 
so that we could not speak with her ; 
but we found by the Portuguese it 
was an English ship, called the 
Dorothy, Captain Thwayt command- 
er, bound to the East Indies. After 
this we kept company still with our 
three consorts till we came near Eng- 
land, and then were separated by bad 
weather ; but before we came within 



sight of land, we got together again, 
all but the James and Mary. She 
got into the Channel before us, and 
went to Plymouth, and there gave an 
account of the rest of us ; whereupon 
our men-of-war who lay there came 
out to join us, and meeting us, brought 
us off Plymouth. There our consort 
the James and Mary came to us again ; 
and thence we all sailed in company 
of several men-of-war towards Ports- 
mouth. There our first convoy left 
us, and went in thither. But we did 
not want convoys, for our fleets were 
then repairing to their winter har- 
bours to be laid up ; so that we had 
the company of several English ships 
to the Downs, and a squadron also of 
Dutch sailed up the Channel, but 
kept off farther from our English 
coast, they being bound home to 
Holland. When we came as high as 
the South Foreland, we left them 
standing on their course, keeping on 
the back of the Goodwin Sands ; and 
we luffed in for the Downs, where we 
anchored September the 16th, 1691. 



END Oif DAMPIEll S VOYAGE. 




AN OLD SALT'S YARN. ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 
{Frontispiece.} 



A 

VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD 



IN THE YEAKS 174044 



GEOEGE ANSON 



EDITEP>, FROM THE ORIGINAL NARRATIVE, WITH NOTES, BY 
D. LAING PUKVES 



Special lEtottfon. 



LONDON: 
PUBLISHED BY THE LI-QUOB, TEA COMPANY, 

5 GEOKGE STREET, TOWER HILL. 
1879. 

^ 



CONTENTS. 



PAOH 

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH, ........ 5 

DEDICATION, . . . . . . . . .7 

INTRODUCTION, ......... 8 

BOOK I. 
CHAPTER I. 

Of the equipment of the squadron ; the incidents relating thereto from its first 
appointment to its setting sail from St Helens, . . . .10 

CHAPTER II. 

The passage from St Helens to the Island of Madeira, with a short account of 
that island, and of our stay there, . . . . . .17 

CHAPTER III. 
The history of the squadron commanded by Don Joseph Pizarro, . 21 

CHAPTER IV. 
From Madeira to St Catherine's, . . . . . . .26 

CHAPTER V. 

Proceedings at St Catherine's, and a description of the place, with a short 
account of Brazil, . . . . . . .29 

CHAPTER VI. 

The run from St Catherine's to Port St Julian, with some account of that 
port, and of the country to the southward of the River of Plate, . 31 

CHAPTER VII. 

Departure from the Bay of St Julian, and the passage from thence to Straits 
LeMaire, 35 

CHAPTER VIII. 

From Straits Le Maire to Cape Noir, . . . . .38 

CHAPTER IX. 

Observations and directions for facilitating the passage of our future cruisers 
round Cape Horn, ........ 42 

CHAPTER X. 
From Cape Noir to the Island of Juan Fernandez, . , , .42 

BOOK II. 
CHAPTER I. 

The arrival of the Centurion at the Island of Juan Fernandez, with a descrip- 
tion of that island, . . . . _ . . . .48 

CHAPTER II. 

The arrival of the Gloucester and the Anna pink at the Island of Juan Fer- 
nandez, . . . . . . . . .53 

CHAPTER III. 

A short narrative of what befell the Anna pink before she joined us, with an 
account of the loss of the Wager, . . . . .57 



4 CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER IV. TAGS 

Conclusion of our proceedings at Juan Fernandez, from the arrival of the 
Anna pink to our final departure from thence, . . . .66 

CHAPTER V. 

Our cruise from the time of our leaving Juan Fernandez to the taking the 
town of Paita, . . . . . . . .72 

CHAPTER VI. 
The taking of Paita, and our proceedings till we left the coast of Peru, . 80 

CHAPTER VII. 

From our departure from Paita to our arrival at Quibo, . . .90 

CHAPTER VIII. 
Our proceedings at Quibo, . , . . . . .94 

CHAPTER IX. 
From Quibo to the coast of Mexico, . . . . . .95 

CHAPTER X. 

An account of the commerce carried on between the city of Manilla on the 

Island of Luconia and the port of Acapulco oil the coast of Mexico, . 99 

CHAPTER XL 
Our cruise oft' the port of Acapulco for the Manilla ship, . . . 105 

CHAPTER XII. 

Description of the harbour of Chequetan and of the adjacent coast and country, 107 

CHAPTER XIII. 

Our proceedings at Chequetan and on the adjacent coast till our setting sail 
for Asia, ......... 108 

BOOK III. 

CHAPTER I. 

The run from the coast of Mexico to the Ladrones or Marian Islands, . . 114 

CHAPTER II. 

Our arrival at Tinian, and an account of the island and of our proceedings 
there till the Centurion drove out to sea, . . . . .119 

CHAPTER III. 
Transactions at Tinian after the departure of the Centurion, . . .124 

CHAPTER IV. 
Proceedings on board the Centurion when driven out to sea, . . . 127 

CHAPTER V. 
Employment at Tinian till the final departure of the Centurion from thence, 

with a description of the Ladrones, ...... 129 

CHAPTER VI. 
From Tinian to Macao, ........ 131 

CHAPTER VII. 
Proceedings at Macao, ........ 134 

CHAPTER VIII. 

From Macao to Cape Espiritu Santo ; the taking of the Manilla galleon, and 
returning back again, . . . . ... .141 

CHAPTER IX. 

Transactions in the River of Canton, . . . . . .149 

CHAPTER X. 

Proceedings at the city of Canton, and the return of the Centurion to England, 155 



BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 



GEORGE ANSON, Lord Anson, Baron Soberton, was the second son 
of William Alison, Esq., of Shugborough, in Staffordshire. His 
great-grandfather, who was an eminent barrister in the reign of 
James I., had purchased and founded the family mansion where 
he was born, 23d April 1697. Little is positively known about 
his early history and nautical training, save that his name was first 
found entered as a volunteer in the books of the Ruby, under date 
January 1712. His services being transferred from the Ruby to the 
Hampshire ship of war, he then received his acting orders as 
second lieutenant, on the 9th May 1716. From this date, up till 
1724, his progress was as follows : Promoted to the command of 
the Weasel sloop in 1718, raised to the rank of post-captain in 
1724, with the command of the Scarborough man-of-war. The 
Scarborough was at this time ordered to defend the coast of South 
Carolina against pirates, and to prevent illicit commerce with the 
Bahamas. His popularity among the settlers of South Carolina 
must have been considerable, as we find that his name was 
attached to several towns and districts, such as Alison's County, 
Alison's Yille, Anson's Mines, etc. He returned to England in 
1730, was cruising again on the American coast in 1733, but 
returned again in 1735. 

On the 9th December 1737, Captain Anson was appointed to 
the command of the Centurion, a ship of 60 guns, and despatched 
to the African coast, ostensibly with a view to the protection of 
our merchants engaged in the gum trade, from the annoyance of 
French ships of war. A resolution having been come to by the 
ministry to strike a blow against the Spanish power in the West 
Indies, South Seas, and at Manilla, two officers were selected 
for this purpose Captain Alison and Captain James Cornwall. 
On Anson's arrival at Spithead, 10th November 1739, he found a 
letter awaiting him from Admiral Sir Charles Wager, ordering 
him to proceed at once to the Admiralty. The first programme 
submitted to him, to say the least of it, was both difficult and 
dangerous, and may be taken as a proof of the confidence enter- 
tained in his ability as a seaman. He was to attack and carrj 



6 BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH. 

Manilla with part of his squadron, while another part, under 
Cornwall, was to go round Cape Horn into the Southern Ocean, 
attacking and destroying the Spanish settlements on the South 
American coasts, then crossing the Pacific to join the previous 
squadron at Manilla, and there await further orders. This 
scheme was never fully carried out, the proposed expedition to 
Manilla being dropped ; but the part of the plan which was to 
have been entrusted to Cornwall was eventually carried out by 
Anson. 

On the 10th January 1740, Anson was appointed commodore 
of the squadron which was designed to share in the riches which 
they imagined Spain derived from her possessions in the South 
Seas. Before sailing, he made himself acquainted with the best 
printed arid manuscript accounts of the Spanish settlements on the 
coasts of Chili, Peru, and Mexico. The victualling and manning 
of this squadron was a notorious example of avaricious and heart- 
less jobbery. In addition to the fact that several of the vessels 
were scarcely seaworthy and badly manned, the troops sent on 
board were worn-out pensioners from Chelsea, not one of whom 
returned alive. It is a record of this voyage round the world 
which is here presented. 

On the 3d May 1747, Anson achieved a brilliant victory over a 
French fleet bound for the Indies, off Cape Finisterre. In recog- 
nition of this service, he was created a peer under the title of Lord 
Anson, Baron of Soberton, in the county of Southampton, and 
shortly afterwards made Vice- Admiral of England. In 1751 he 
was appointed First Lord of the Admiralty, a position he held, 
except for a short interval, until his death. On 30th July 1761, 
he sailed from Harwich in the Charlotte yacht, to convey the 
future queen of George III. to England. In the month of Febru- 
ary 1762, in assisting at the ceremony of accompanying the 
queen's brother, Prince George of Mecklenberg, to Portsmouth, 
he caught a cold which proved fatal on 6th June 1762. In April 
1748, Lord Anson had married Elizabeth, eldest daughter of Lord 
Hardwicke, who died without issue, 1st June 1760. 

In business Anson was slow to decide, but quick to execute. 
In matters of ceremony and correspondence he was awkward, and 
in writing showed marks of a defective education. This was 
more than compensated by other sterling qualities of mind and 
character. In society he was modest and reserved,, it being said 
of him, "he had been round the world, but never in it." The 
Duke of Newcastle observed of him : " There never was a more 
able, a more upright, or a more useful servant of his king and 
country, or a more sincere and valuable friend." 



ANSON'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WOKLD, 



DEDICATION. 

To His Grace, John, Duke of Bed- 
ford, Marquis of Tavistock, Earl of 
Bedford, Baron Kussel, Baron Rus- 
sel of Thornhaugh, and Baron How- 
land of Streatham: one of His 
Majesty's Principal Secretaries of 
State, and Lord- Lieutenant and 
Oustos Rotulorum of the County of 
Bedford. 

MY LORD, The following narrative 
of a very singular naval achievement 
is addressed to Your Grace, both on 
account of the infinite obligations 
which the Commander-in- Chief at all 
times professes to have received from 
your friendship ; and also, as the sub- 
ject itself naturally claims the patron- 
age of one under whose direction the 
British Navy has resumed its ancient 
spirit and lustre, and has in one sum- 
mer ennobled itself by two victories, 
the most decisive and (if the strength 
and number of the captures be consider- 
ed) the most important that are to be 
met with in our annals. 1 Indeed, an 



1 In 1747, when Anson, then Rear- 
Admiral of the White, defeated the 
French Admiral, lonquierre, near 
Gape Finisterre, capturing six ships of 
the line and a valuable convoy, and 
gaining, as his reward, a peerage, 
with the title of Lord Anson, Baron 
Soberton ; and Hawke totally defeated 
the French fleet off Belleisle, also 



uninterrupted series of success, and a 
manifest superiority gained universally 
over the enemy, both in commerce 
and glory, seem to be the necessary 
effects of a revival of stric/t discipline, 
and of an unbiassed regard to merit 
and service. These are marks that 
must distinguish the happy period of 
time in which Your Grace presided, 
and afford a fitter subject for history 
than for an address of this nature. 
Very signal advantages of rank and 
distinction, obtained and secured to 
the naval profession by Your Grace's 
auspicious influence, will remain a 
lasting monument of your unwearied 
zeal and attachment to it, and be for 
ever remembered with the highest 
gratitude by all who shall be employed 
in it. As these were the generous 
rewards of past exploits, they will be 
likewise the noblest incentives and 
surest pledges of the future. That 
Your Grace's eminent talents, magna- 



taking six ships, and winning promo- 
tion to the rank of Vice -Admiral of 
the Blue. Of the first-named victory, 
it is narrated that when M. St George, 
captain of one of the French vessels, 
gave up his sword to Anson, he ad- 
dressed him thus, with allusion to 
the names of two of the ships that 
had surrendered : " Vous avez vaincu 
L'Invincible, et La Gloire vous suit" 
" You have vanquished the Invin- 
cible, and Glory follows you. " The 
Dedication was written in 1748. 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



nimity, and disinterested zeal, whence 
the public has already reaped such 
signal benefits, may in all times prove 
equally successful in advancing the 
prosperity of Great Britain, is the 
ardent wish of, My Lord, Your Grace's 
most obedient, most devoted, and 
most humble servant, 

RICHARD WALTER. 



INTRODUCTION. 

NOTWITHSTANDING the great improve- 
ment of navigation within the last 
two centuries, a Voyage Round the 
World is still considered as an enter- 
prise of a very singular nature ; and 
the public have never failed to be ex- 
tremely inquisitive about the various 
accidents and turns of fortune with 
which this uncommon attempt is 
generally attended. And though the 
amusement expected in a narration of 
this kind is doubtless one great source 
of this curiosity, and a strong incite- 
ment with the bulk of readers, yet the 
more intelligent part of mankind have 
always agreed that from these rela- 
tions, if faithfully executed, the more 
important purposes of navigation, 
commerce, and national interest may 
be greatly promoted. For every au- 
thentic account of foreign coasts and 
countries will contribute to one or 
more of these great ends in proportion 
to the wealth, wants, or commodities 
of those countries, and our ignorance 
of those coasts ; and therefore a Voy- 
age Round the World promises a spe- 
cies of information of all others the 
most desirable and interesting, since 
great part of it is performed in seas 
and on coasts with which we are as 
yet but very imperfectly acquainted, 
and in the neighbourhood of a coun- 
try renowned for the abundance of its 
wealth, though it is at the same time 
stigmatised for its poverty in the 
necessaries and conveniencies of a 
civilised life. 

These considerations have occa- 
sioned the publication of the ensuing 



work, which, in gratifying the inquisi- 
tive turn of mankind, and contribut- 
ing to the safety and success of future 
navigators and to the extension of our 
commerce and power, may doubtless 
vie with any narration of this kind 
hitherto made public. Since the cir- 
cumstances of this undertaking already 
known to the world may be supposed 
to have strongly excited the general 
curiosity. For whether we consider 
the force of the squadron sent on this 
service, or the diversified distresses that 
each single ship was separately in- 
volved in, or the uncommon instances 
of various fortune which attended 
the whole enterprise, each part, I 
conceive, must, 'from its rude well- 
known outlines, appear worthy of a 
completer and more finished delinea- 
tion. 1 

As there are hereafter occasionally 
interspersed some accounts of Spanish 
transactions, and many observations 
on the disposition of the American 
Spaniards, and on the condition of 
the countries bordering on the South 
Seas, and as herein I may appear to 
differ greatly from the opinions gene- 
rally established, I think it incumbent 
on me particularly to recite the author- 
ities I have been guided by on this 
occasion, that I may not be censured 
as having given way either to a 
thoughtless credulity on one hand, or, 
what would be a much more criminal 
imputation, to a wilful and deliberate 
misrepresentation on the other. Mr 
Anson, before he set sail upon this 

1 In the Introduction, and through- 
out the whole Narrative, all the de- 
scriptions and references which relate 
to the elaborate charts, plans, and 
drawings of the original edition, and 
which are cumbrous and unintelligible 
without them, have been omitted ; as 
also many digressions of the Narrator 
on nautical, topographical, or histori- 
cal points, which now serve little pur- 
pose but to delay the progress and 
enfeeble the interest of the main 
story. Those omissions, however, 
save where trivial in matter or in 
amount, have been mentioned in the 
notes. 



INTRODUCTION. 



expedition, besides tlie printed jour- 
nals to those parts, took care to fur- 
nish himself with the best manuscript 
accounts he could procure of all the 
Spanish settlements upon the coasts 
of Chili, Peru, and Mexico. These 
he carefully compared with the exami- 
nations of his prisoners, and the infor- 
mations of several intelligent persons 
who fell into his hands in the South 
Seas. He had likewise the good for- 
tune, in some of his captures, to pos- 
sess himself of a great number of 
letters and papers of a public nature, 
many of them written by the Viceroy 
of Peru to the Viceroy of Santa Fe, 
to the Presidents of Panama and 
Chili, to Don Bias de Lezo, Admiral 
of the Galleons, and to divers other 
persons in public employments ; and 
in these letters there was usually 
inserted a recital of those they were 
intended to answer ; so that they 
contained a considerable part of the 
correspondence between these officers 
for some time previous to our arrival 
on that coast. "We took besides many 
letters, sent from persons employed 
by the Government to their friends 
and correspondents, which were fre- 
quently filled with narrations of pub- 
lic business, and sometimes contained 
undisguised animadversions on the 
views and conduct of their superiors. 
From these materials those accounts 
of the Spanish affairs are taken which 
may at first sight appear the most 
exceptionable. In particular, the 
history of the various casualties which 
befell Pizarro's squadron is for the 
most part composed from intercepted 
letters : though indeed the relation of 
the insurrecti9n of Orellana and his 
followers is founded on rather a less 
disputable authority, for it was taken 
from the mouth of an English gentle- 
man then on board Pizarro, who often 
conversed with Orellana ; and it was, 
on inquiry, confirmed in its principal 
circumstances by others who were in 
the ship at the same time : so that 
the fact, however extraordinary, is, I 
conceive, not to be contested. 

And on this occasion I cannot but 
mention, that though I have endea- 
voured, with m^ utmost care, to adhere 



strictly to truth in every article of the 
ensuing narration, yet I am apprehen- 
sive that in so complicated a work some 
oversights must have been committed, 
by the inattention to which at times 
all mankind are liable. However, I 
know of none biit literal mistakes : 
and if there are other errors which 
have escaped me, I flatter myself 
they are not of moment enough to 
affect any material transaction, and 
therefore I hope they may justly claim 
the reader's indulgence. 1 

If what has been said merits the 
attention of travellers of all sorts, it 
is, I think, more particularly applic- 
able to the gentlemen of the Navy ; 
since without drawing and planning 
neither chart nor views of lands can 
be taken ; and without these it is 
sufficiently evident that navigation is 
at a full stand. It is doubtless from 
a persuasion of the utility of these 
qualifications, that his Majesty has 
established a drawing -master at Ports- 
mouth, for the instruction of those 
who are presumed to be hereafter in- 
trusted with the command of his 
royal navy. And though some have 
been so far misled as to suppose that 
the perfection .of sea-officers consisted 
in a turn of mind and temper resem- 
bling the boisterous element they had 
to deal with, and have condemned all 
literature and science as effeminate, 
and derogatory to that ferocity which, 
they would falsely persuade us, was 
the most unerring characteristic of 
courage : yet it is to be hoped that 
such absurdities as these have at no 
time been authorised by the public 
opinion, and that the belief of them 
daily diminishes. . . . Indeed, 



1 A long passage is here omitted, 
in which the Author animates his 
countrymen to "the encouragement 
and pursuit of all kinds of nautical 
and geographical observations, and 
every species of mechanical and com- 
mercial information," and especially 
insists on the advantage and neces- 
sity of a traveller's being able to 
draw, and possessing an acquaint- 
ance with the general principles of 
surveying. 



ANSON'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. [B.I.CH.L 



10 

when tlie many branches of science 
are considered of which even the com- 
mon practice of navigation is composed, 
and the many improvements which 
men of skill have added to this practice 
within these few years, it would induce 
one to believe that the advantages of 
reflection and speculative knowledge 
were in no profession more eminent 
than in that of a sea-officer. For, 
not to mention some expertness in 
geography, geometry, and astronomy, 
which it would be dishonourable for 
him to be without (as his journal and 
his estimate of the daily position of 
the ship are no more than the practice 
of particular branches of these arts), 
it may be well supposed^that the man- 
agement and working of a ship, the 
discovery of her most eligible position 
in the water (usually styled her trim), 
and the disposition of her sails in the 
most advantageous manner, are articles 
wherein the knowledge of mechanics 
cannot but be greatly assistant : and 
perhaps the application of this kind 
of knowledge to naval subjects may 
produce as great improvements in 



sailing and working a ship, as it has 
already done in many other matters 
conducive to the ease and convenience 
of human life. For when the fabric 
of a ship and the variety of her sails 
are considered, together with the arti- 
ficial contrivances of adapting them 
to her different motions, as it cannot 
be doubted but these things have 
been brought about by more than 
ordinary sagacity and invention, so 
neither can it be doubted but that a 
speculative and scientific turn of mind 
may find out the means of directing 
and disposing this complicated me- 
chanism much more advantageously 
than can be done by mere habit, or 
by a servile copying of what others 
may perhaps have erroneously prac- 
tised in the like emergency. But it 
is time to finish this digression, and 
to leave the reader to the perusal of 
the ensuing work ; which, with how 
little art soever it may be executed, 
will yet, from the importance of the 
subject, and the utility and excellence 
of the materials, merit some share of 
the public attention. 



BOOK I. 



CHAPTER I. 

THE squadron under the command of 
Mr Anson, of which I here propose to 
recite the most material proceedings, 
having undergone many changes in its 
destination, its force, and its equip- 
ment, in the ten months between its 
first appointment and its final sailing 
from St Helens, I conceive the his- 
tory of these alterations is a detail 
necessary to be made public, both 
for the honour of those who first 
planned and promoted this enter- 
prise, and for the justification of 
those who have been entrusted with 
its execution. Since it will from 
hence appear, that the accidents the 
expedition was afterwards exposed 
to, and which prevented it from pro- 



ducing all the national advantages, 
the strength of the squadron and the 
expectation of the public seemed to 
presage, were principally owing to a 
series of interruptions which delayed 
the commander in the course of his 
preparations, and which it exceeded 
his utmost industry either to avoid or 
to get removed. 

When, in the latter end of the 
summer of the year 1739, it was fore- 
seen that a war with Spain was in- 
evitable, 1 it was the opinion of several 

1 A convention regulating the sum 
to be paid by Spain to England on 
account of damage sustained to Eng- 
lish commerce through the arbitrary 
means taken by the Spaniards to protect 
their American trade, had been signed 



1739.] 



WAR WITH SPAIN INEVITABLE. 



11 



considerable persons, then trusted with 
the administration of affairs, that the 
most prudent step the nation could 
take, on the breaking out of the war, 
was attacking that Crown in her dis- 
tant settlements : for by this means 
(as at that time there was the greatest 
probability of success) it was sup- 
posed that we should cut off the prin- 
cipal resources of the enemy, and re- 
duce them to the necessity of sin- 
cerely desiring a peace, as they would 
hereby be deprived of the returns of 
that treasure by which alone they 
could be enabled to carry on a war. 1 
In pursuance of these sentiments, 
several projects were examined, and 
several resolutions taken in Council. 
And in these deliberations it was 
from the first determined thai, George 
Anson, Esq., then captain of the 
Centurion, 2 should be employed as 



at Madrid in January 1739. But the 
question of the Right of Search exer- 
cised by the Spanish Crown over 
English vessels trading to its western 
colonies, and other delicate subjects 
of dispute, were reserved for future 
negotiation ; a fierce clamour of dis- 
satisfaction with the Convention, and 
eagerness for war, arose among the 
British people and in Parliament ; 
and Walpole, unable to stem the tide 
of popular desire, resolved on enter- 
ing upon a conflict which he con- 
demned and deplored. The War is 
sometimes known as that of "the 
Merchants," arising, as it did, purely 
out of trade disputes; it was de- 
clared in London, amid wild public 
rejoicing, on the 19th of October 
1739. 

1 Compare the reasons assigned for 
Drake's fatal Puerto Rico expedition; 
ante, page 99. 

2 Earl Stanhope, in his "History 
of England," Chapter XXII., says of 
Anson: "George Anson deserves to 
be held forth as a model to British 
seamen of what may be accomplished 
by industry, by courage, by love of 
their profession. He was born of a 
family at that period new and obscure, 
nor had he the advantage of distin- 
guished talents. After his expedition, 



commander-in-chief of an expedition 
of this kind ; and he then being ab- 
sent on a cruise, a vessel was dis- 
patched to his station so early as the 
beginning of September, to order him 
to return with his ship to Portsmouth. 
And soon after he came there that 
is, on the 10th of November follow- 
ing he received a letter from Sir 
Charles Wager, ordering him to re- 
pair to London, and to attend the 
Board of Admiralty ; where, when 
he arrived, he was informed by Sir 
Charles that two squadrons would be 
immediately fitted out for two secret 
expeditions, which, however, would 
have some connection with each 
other ; that he, Mr Anson, was in- 
tended to command one of them, and 
Mr Cornwall (who has since lost his 
life gloriously in the defence of his 
country's honour) the other ; that 
the squadron under Mr Anson was 
to take on board three independ- 
ent companies of a hundred men 
each, and Eland's regiment of foot ; 
that Colonel Bland was likewise to 
embark with his regiment, and to 
command the land forces ; and that, 
as soon as this squadron could be 
fitted for the sea, they were to set 
sail, with express orders to touch 
at no place till they came to Java 
Head, in the East Indies ; that there 
they were only to stop to take in 
water, and thence to proceed directly 
to the city of Manilla, situated on 
Luconia, 3 one of the Philippine Is- 
lands; that the other squadron was 
to be of equal force with this corn- 



it used to be said of him that he had 
been round the world but never in 
it : he was dull and unready on land, 
slow in business, and sparing of 
speech. But he had undaunted 
bravery, steady application, and cool 
judgment ; he punctually followed his 
instructions, and zealously discharged 
his duty ; and by these qualities 
qualities within the attainment 
of all did he rise to well-earned 
honours, and bequeath an unsullied 
renown. " 

3 Or Luzon, the northernmost and 
largest of the group. 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.Cir.I. 



12 

manded by Mr Anson, and was in- 
tended to pass round Cape Horn into 
the South Seas, and there to range 
along that coast ; and after cruising 
upon the enemy in those parts, and 
attempting their settlements, this 
squadron in its return was to rendez- 
vous at Manilla, and there to join 
the squadron under Mr Anson, where 
they were to refresh their men, and 
refit their ships, and perhaps receive 
further orders. 1 

This scheme was doubtless ex- 
tremely well projected, and could not 
but greatly advance the public ser- 
vice, and at the same time the reputa- 
tion and fortune of those concerned 
in its execution ; for had Mr Anson 
proceeded for Manilla at the time and 
in the manner proposed by Sir Charles 
Wager, he would in all probability 
have arrived there before they had re- 
ceived any advice of the war between 
us and Spain, and consequently before 
they had been in the least prepared 
for the reception of an enemy, or had 
any apprehensions of their danger. 
The city of Manilla might be well 
supposed to have been at that time 
in the same defenceless condition with 
all the other Spanish settlements just 
at the breaking out of the war ; that 
is to say, their fortifications neglected, 
and in many places decayed ; their 
cannon dismounted, or useless by 
the mouldering of their carriages ; 
their magazines, whether of military 
stores or provision, all empty ; their 
garrisons unpaid, and consequently 
thin, ill-affected, and dispirited ; and 
the royal chests in Peru, whence 
alone all these disorders could receive 
their redress, drained to the very 
bottom. This, from the intercepted 
letters of their Viceroys and Gover- 
nors, is well known to have been the 
defenceless state of Panama and the 
other Spanish places on the coast of 
the South Seas, for near a twelve- 
month after our declaration of war. 
And it cannot be supposed that the 
city of Manilla, removed still farther 

1 Ed. 1776: "And perhaps receive 
orders for other considerable enter- 
prises." 



by almost half the circumference of 
the globe, should have experienced 
from the Spanish Government a 
greater share of attention and con- 
cern for its security than Panama, 
and the other important ports in 
Peru and Chili, on which their pos- 
session of that immense empire de- 
pends. Indeed, it is well known 
that Manilla was at that time in- 
capable of making any consider- 
able defence, and, in all probability, 
would have surrendered only on tho 
appearance of our squadron before it. 
The consequence of this city, and 
the island it stands on, may be in 
some measure estimated from the 
healthiness of its air, the excellency 
of its port and bay, the number and 
wealth of its inhabitants, and the 
very extensive and beneficial 2 com- 
merce which it carries on to the 
principal ports in the East Indies 
and China, and its exclusive trade 
to Acapulco, the returns for which, 3 
being made in silver, are upon the 
lowest valuation not less than three 
millions of dollars per annum. 

And on this scheme Sir Charles 
Wager was so intent, that in a few 
days after this first conference, that 
is, on November 18, Mr Anson re- 
ceived an order to take under his 
command the Argyle, Severn, Pearl, 
Wager, and Trial sloop; and other 
orders were issued to him in the same 
month, and in the December follow- 
ing, relating to the victualling of this 
squadron. But Mr Anson attending 
the Admiralty the beginning of Janu- 
ary, he was informed by Sir Charles 
Wager that for reasons with which 
he, Sir Charles, was not acquainted, 
the expedition to Manilla was laid 
aside. It may be conceived that Mr 
Anson was extremely chagrined at 
losing the command of so infallible, 
so honourable, and in every respect 
so desirable an enterprise, especially, 
too, as he had already, at a very 
great expense, made the necessary 
provision for his own accommodation 

2 Profitable. 

3 That is, for the Acapulco trade 
alone. 



1740.] EQUIPMENT OF 

ill tliis voyage, which he had reason 
to expect would prove a very long 
one. However, Sir Charles, to render 
this disappointment in some degree 
more tolerable, informed him that 
the expedition to the South Seas was 
still intended ; and that he, Mr 
Anson, and his squadron, as their 
first destination was now counter- 
manded, should be employed in that 
service. And on the 10th of January 
[1740] he received his commission, 
appointing him commander-in-chief 
of the forementioned squadron, which 
(the Argyle being in the course of 
their preparation changed for the 
Gloucester) was the same he sailed 
with above eight months after from 
St Helens. On this change of desti- 
nation, the equipment of the squad- 
ron was still prosecuted with as much 
vigour as ever ; and the victualling, 
and whatever depended on the Com- 
modore, was [soon] so far advanced, 
that he conceived the ships might be 
capable of putting to sea the instant 
he should receive his final orders, of 
which he was in daily expectation. 
And at last, on the 28th of June 
1740, the Duke of Newcastle, Princi- 

Eal Secretary of State, delivered to 
im his Majesty's instructions, dated 
January 31, 1739, with an additional 
instruction from the Lords Justices, 
dated June 19, 1740. On the receipt 
of these, Mr Anson immediately re- 
paired to Spithead, with a resolution 
to sail with the first fair wind, flat- 
tering himself that all his delays 1 
were now at an end. For though he 
knew by the musters that his _squad- 
ron wanted 300 seamen of their com- 
plement (a deficiency which, with all 
his assiduity, he had not been able to 
get supplied), yet as Sir Charles Wager 
informed him that an order from the 
Board of Admiralty was despatched 
to Sir John N orris to spare him the 
numbers which he wanted, he doubted 
not of his complying therewith. But 
on his arrival at Portsmouth he found 
himself greatly mistaken and disap- 
pointed in this persuasion ; for, on 
his application, Sir John N orris told 

1 Ed. 1776: "His difficulties." 



THE SQUADRON. 13 

him he could spare him none, for ho 
wanted men for his own fleet. This 
occasioned an inevitable and a very 
considerable delay ; for it was the 
end of July before this deficiency was 
by any means supplied, and all that 
was then done was extremely short of 
his necessities and expectation. For 
Admiral Balchen, who succeeded to 
the command at Spithead after Sir 
John Norris had sailed to the west- 
ward, instead of 300 able sailors, 
which Mr Anson wanted of his com- 
plement, ordered on board the squad- 
ron 170 men only, of which thirty- 
two were from the hospital and sick 
quarters, thirty-seven from the Salis- 
bury, with three officers of Colonel 
Lowther's regiment, and ninety-eight 
marines ; and these were all that were 
ever granted to make up the foremen- 
tioned deficiency. 

But the Commodore's mortification 
did not end here. It has been already 
observed, that it was at first intended 
that Colonel Eland's regiment, and 
three independent companies of 100 
men each, should embark as land 
forces on board the squadron. But 
this disposition was now changed, 
and all the land forces that were to 
be allowed were 500 invalids, to be 
collected from the out-pensioners of 
Chelsea College. As these out-pen- 
sioners consist of soldiers, who, from 
their age, wounds, or other infirmities, 
are incapable of service in marching 
regiments, Mr Anson was greatly 
chagrined at having such a decrepit 
detachment allotted to him ; for he 
was fully persuaded that the greatest 
part 'of them would perish long be- 
fore they arrived at the scene of action, 
since the delays he had already en- 
countered necessarily confined his 
passage round Cape Horn to the 
most rigorous season of the year. Sir 
Charles Wager, too, joined in opinion 
with the Commodore that invalids 
were no ways proper for this service, 
and solicited strenuously to have them 
exchanged ; but he was told, that 
persons who were supposed to be 
better judges of soldiers than he or 
Mr Anson thought them the properest 
men that could be employed on this 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. I. CH. I, 



II 

occasion. 1 And upon this determina- 
tion they were ordered on board the 
squadron on the 5th of August ; but 
instead of 500 there came on board 
no more than 259 ; for all those who 
had limbs and strength to walk out 
of Portsmouth deserted, leaving be- 
hind them only such as were literally 
invalids, most of them being sixty 
years of age, and some of them up- 
wards of seventy. Indeed, it is diffi- 
cult to conceive a more moving scene 
than the embarkation of these un- 
happy veterans ; they were themselves 
extremely averse to the service they 
were engaged in, and fully apprised 
of all the disasters they were after- 
wards exposed to ; the apprehensions 
of which were strongly marked by the 
concern that appeared in their coun- 
tenances, which was mixed with no 
small degree of indignation to be 
thus hurried from their repose into a 
fatiguing employ to which neither 
the strength of their bodies, nor the 
vigour of their minds, were any ways 
proportioned, and where, without 
seeing the face of an enemy, or in the 
least promoting the success of the 
enterprise they were engaged in, they 
would in all probability uselessly 
perish by lingering and painful dis- 
eases ; and this, too, after they had 
spent the activity and strength of 
their youth in their country's ser- 
vice. 

And I cannot but observe, on this 
melancholy incident, how extremely 
unfortunate it was, both to this aged 
and diseased detachment, and to the 
expedition they were employed in, 
that amongst all the out-pensioners 
of Chelsea Hospital, which were sup- 
posed to amount to 2000 men, the 
most crazy and infirm only should be 
culled out for so fatiguing and peril- 



1 Sir John Barrow, in his Life of 
Anson, says " The feelings of these 
excellent judges are not to be envied, 
when they were afterwards made ac- 
quainted with the fact, that not one 
of these unfortunate individuals, who 
went on the voyage, survived to reach 
their native land every man had 
perished. " 



ous an undertaking. For it was well 
known that, however unfit invalids 
in general might be for this service, 
yet by a prudent choice there might 
have been found amongst them 500 
men Avho had some remains of vigour 
left. And Mr Anson fully expected 
that the best of them would have 
been allotted him ; whereas the whole 
detachment that was sent to him 
seemed to be made up of the most 
decrepit and miserable objects that 
could be collected out of the whole 
body; and by the desertion above- 
mentioned, [even] these were a second 
time cleared of that little health and 
strength which were to be found 
amongst them, and he was to take up 
with such as were much fitter for an 
infirmary than for any military duty. 
And here it is necessary to mention 
another material particular in the 
equipment of this squadron. It was 
proposed to Mr Anson, after it was 
resolved that he should be sent to the 
South Seas, to take with him two 
persons under the denomination of 
agent-victuallers. Those who were 
mentioned for this employment had 
formerly been in the Spanish "West 
Indies, 2 in the South Sea Company's 
service ; and it was supposed that by 
their knowledge and intelligence on 
that coast, they might often procure 
provision for him by compact with 
the inhabitants, when it was not to 
be got by force of arms. These agent- 
victuallers were, for this purpose, to 
be allowed to carry to the value of 
15,000 in merchandise on board the 
squadron ; for they had represented 
that it would be much easier for them 
to procure provisions with goods, 
than with the value of the same 
goods in money. Whatever colours 
were given to this scheme, it was 
difficult to persuade the generality of 
mankind that it was not principally 
intended for the enrichment of the 
agents, by the beneficial commerce 
they proposed to carry on upon that 
coast. Mr Anson, from the begin- 
ning, objected both to the appoint- 



2 Ed. 1776 : "In the Spanish 
American colonies." 



1740.] MANNING AND VICTUALLING OF THE SQUADKON. 15 



ment of agent- victuallers, and the 
allowing them to carry a cargo on 
board the squadron. For he con- 
ceived that in those few amicable 
ports where the squadron might 
touch he needed not their assistance 
to contract for any provisions the 
place afforded ; and on the enemy's 
coast he did not imagine that they 
could ever procure him the necessaries 
he should want, unless (which he was 
resolved not to comply with) the 
military operations of his squadron 
were to be regulated by the ridicul- 
ous views of their trading projects. 
All that he thought the Government 
ought to have done on this occasion 
was to put on board to the value of 
2000 or 3000 only of such goods 
as the Indians, or the Spanish plan- 
ters in the less cultivated part of the 
coast, might be tempted with ; since 
it was in such places only that he 
imagined it would be worth while to 
truck with the enemy for provisions. 
And in these places, it was suffi- 
ciently evident, a very small cargo 
would suffice. 

But though the Commodore ob- 
jected both to the appointment of 
these officers, and to their project ; x 
yet, as they had insinuated that their 
scheme, besides victualling the squad- 
ron might contribute to settling a 
trade upon that coast, which might 
be afterwards carried on without dif- 
ficulty, and might thereby prove a 
very considerable national advantage, 
they were much listened to by some 
considerable persons. And of the 
15,000, which was to be the amount 
of their cargo, the Government agreed 
to advance them 10,000 upon im- 
prest, 8 and the remaining 5000 they 
raised on bottomry bonds ; and the 
goods purchased with this [latter] 
sum were all that were taken to sea 
by the squadron, how much soever 



1 Ed. 1776 adds : "Of the ill-suc- 
cess of which he had no question." 

2 " Prest money " is money ad- 
vanced on condition that it shall be 
"ready" when the lender demands it 
back. French, "pr6t j" that is, it is 
lent "on call." 



the amount of them might be after- 
wards magnified by common report. 
This cargo was at first shipped on. 
board the "Wager store-ship, and one 
of the victuallers ; no part of it being 
admitted on board the men-of-war. 
But when the Commodore was at St 
Catherine's, he considered, that in 
case the squadron should be separated, 
it might be pretended that some of 
the ships were disappointed of pro- 
visions for want of a cargo to truck 
with ; and therefore he distributed 
some of the least bulky commodities 
on board the men-of-war, leaving the 
remainder principally on board the 
Wager, where it was lost. And more 
of the goods perishing, by various 
accidents to be recited hereafter, and 
no part of them being disposed of 
upon the coast, the few that came 
home to England did not produce, 
when sold, above a fourth part of the 
original price. So true was the Com- 
modore's prediction about the event 
of this project, which had been by 
many considered as infallibly produc- 
tive of immense gains. But to return 
to the transactions at Portsmouth. 

To supply the place of the 240 in- 
valids which had deserted, as is men- 
tioned above, there were ordered on 
board 210 marines detached from 
different regiments. These were raw 
and undisciplined men, for they were 
just raised, and had scarcely anything 
more of the soldier than their regi- 
mentals, none of them having been 
so far trained as to be permitted to 
fire. The last detachment of these 
marines came on board the 8th of 
August, and on the 10th the squad- 
ron sailed from Spithead to St Helens, 
there to wait for a wind to proceed on 
the expedition. But the delays we 
had already suffered had not yet spent 
all their influence, for we were now 
advanced into a season of the year 
when the westerly winds are usually 
very constant and very violent ; and 
it was thought proper that we should 
put to sea in company with the fleet 
commanded by Admiral Balchen, and 
the expedition under Lord Cathcart. 3 



3 This expedition was designed to 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. I. CH. I, 



And as we made up in all twenty-one 
men-of-war, and a 124 sail of mer- 
chantmen and transports, we had no 
hopes of getting out of the Channel 
with so large a number of ships, with- 
out the continuance of a fair wind for 
some considerable time. This was 
what we had every day less and less 
reason to expect, as the time of the 
equinox drew near ; so that our 
golden dreams, and our ideal posses- 
sion of the Peruvian treasures, grew 
each day more faint, and the diffi- 
culties and dangers of the passage 
round Cape Horn in the winter season 
filled our imaginations in their room. 
For it was forty days from our arrival 
at St Helens to our final departure 
from thence. And even then (having 
orders to proceed without Lord Cath- 
cart) we tided it down the Channel 
with a contrary wind. But this in- 
terval of forty days was not free from 
the displeasing fatigue of often setting 
sail, and being as often obliged to 
return ; nor exempt from dangers 
greater than have been sometimes ex- 
perienced in surrounding the globe. 
For the wind coming fair for the first 
time on the 23d of August, we got 
under sail, and [Admiral] Balchen 
showed himself truly solicitous to 
have proceeded to sea ; but the wind, 
soon returning to its old quarter, 
obliged us to put back to St Helens, 
not without considerable hazard, and 
some damage received by two of the 
transports, which, in tacking, ran 
foul of each other. Besides this, w r e 
made two or three more attempts to 
sail, but without any better success ; 
and on the 6th of September, being 
returned to an anchor at St Helens, 
after one of these fruitless efforts, the 

reinforce Admiral Vernon, who had 
captured Porto Bello in the preceding 
November ; but through various de- 
lays it did not sail till the end of 
October, and after joining Vernon, 
the united force attacked Carthagena, 
only to be repulsed. Lord Cathcart, 
before that miscarriage, had died from 
the effects of the climate, General 
"VVentworth succeeding him in com- 
mand of the troopa. 



wind blew so fresh that the Avhole 
fleet struck their yards and topmasts 
to prevent their driving. And, not- 
withstanding this precaution, the 
Centurion drove the next evening, 
and brought both cables ahead, and 
we were in no small danger of driving 
foul of the Prince Frederick, a seventy- 
gun ship, moored at a small distance 
under our stern, which we happily 
escaped, by her driving at the same 
time, and so preserving our distance ; 
nor did we think ourselves secure till 
we at last let go the sheet anchor, 
which fortunately brought us up. 

However, on the 9th of September 
wo were in some degree relieved from 
this lingering vexatious situation by 
an order which Mr Anson received 
from the Lords Justices, to put to sea 
the first opportunity with his own 
squadron only if Lord Cathcart should 
not be ready. Being thus freed from 
the troublesome company of so large 
a fleet, our Commodore resolved to 
weigh and tide it down Channel as 
soon as the weather should become 
sufficiently moderate ; and this might 
easily have been done with our own 
squadron alone full two months 
sooner had the orders of the Admir- 
alty for supplying us with seamen 
been punctually complied with, and 
had we met with none of those other 
delays mentioned in this narration. 
It is true, our hopes of a speedy depar- 
ture were even now somewhat damped 
by a subsequent order which Mr An- 
son received on the 12th of Septem- 
ber, for by that he was required to 
take under his convoy the St A 1 bans, 
with the Turkey fleet, and to join 
the Dragon and the Winchester, with 
the Straits and the American trade, 1 
at Torbay or Plymouth, and to pro- 
ceed with them to sea as far as their 



1 That is, the merchant vessels pro- 
ceeding to the Mediterranean through 
the Straits of Gibraltar and to the 
American colonies ; the collective word 
" trade " being aptly enough used to 
denote the gathering of all the ships 
bound for the one or the other desti- 
nation, under the care of their armed 
convovs. 



1740.] 



DEPARTURE FROM ST HELENS. 



way and ours lay together. This 
encumbrance of a convoy gave us some 
uneasiness, as we feared it might prove 
the means of lengthening our passage 
to Madeira. However, Mr Anson, 
now having the command himself, 
resolved to adhere to his former de- 
termination, and to tide it down the 
Channel with the first moderate 
weather ; and that the junction of his 
convoy might occasion as little loss of 
time as possible, he immediately sent 
directions to Torbay that the fleets 
he was there to take under his care 
might be in readiness to join him in- 
stantly on his approach. And at 
last, on the 18th of September, he 
weighed from St Helens ; and though 
the wind was at first contrary, had 
the good fortune to get clear of the 
Channel in four days, as will be more 
particularly related in the ensuing 
Chapter. 

Having thus gone through the re- 
spective steps taken in the equipment 
of this squadron, it is sufficiently 
obvious how different an aspect this 
expedition bore at its first appoint- 
ment in the beginning of January 
from what it had in the latter end of 
September when it left the Channel j 
and how much its numbers, its 
strength, and the probability of its 
success, were diminished by the vari- 
ous incidents which took place in that 
interval. For instead of having all 
our old and ordinary seamen exchanged 
for such as were young and able (which 
the Commodore was at first promised), 
and having our numbers completed 
to their full complement, we were 
obliged to retain our first crews, which 
were very indifferent ; and a deficiency 
of 300 men in our numbers was no 
otherwise made up to us than by send- 
ing us on board 170 men, the greatest 
part composed of such as were dis- 
charged from hospitals, or new-raised 
marines who had never been at sea 
before. And in the land forces allot- 
ted us the change was still more dis- 
advantageous, for there, instead of 
three independent companies of 100 
men each, and Bland's regiment of 
foot, which was an old one, we had 
only 470 invalids and marines one 



part of them incapable for action by 
age and infirmities, and the other 
part useless by their ignorance of 
their duty. But the diminishing the 
strength of the squadron was not the 
greatest inconvenience which attended 
these alterations, for the contests, re- 
presentations, and difficulties which 
they continually produced (as we have 
above seen, that in these cases the 
authority of the Admiralty was not 
always submitted to), occasioned a 
delay and waste of time which in its 
consequences was the source of all the 
disasters to which this enterprise was 
afterwards exposed. For by this means 
we were obliged to make our passage 
round Cape Horn in the most tempes- 
tuous season of the year, whence pro- 
ceeded the separation of our squadron, 
the loss of numbers of our men, and 
the imminent hazard of our total de- 
struction. And by this delay, too, 
the enemy had been so well informed 
of our designs that a person who had 
been employed in the South Sea Com- 
pany's service, and arrived from Pan- 
ama three or four days before we left 
Portsmouth, was al6le to relate to Mr 
Anson most of the particulars of the 
destination and strength of our squad- 
ron from what he had learned amongst 
the Spaniards before he left them. 
And this was afterwards confirmed by 
a more extraordinary circumstance; 
for we shall find that when the Span- 
iards (fully satisfied that our expedi- 
tion was intended for the South Seas) 
had fitted out a squadron to oppose 
us, which had so far got the start of 
us as to arrive before us off the Island 
of Madeira, the commander of this 
squadron was so well instructed in the 
form and make of Mr Anson's broad 
pennant, and had imitated it so ex- 
actly that he thereby decoyed the 
Pearl, one of our squadron, within 
gun-shot of him before the captain of 
the Pearl was able to discover his 
mistake. 



CHAPTER II. 

ON the 18th of September 1740, the 
squadron, as we have observed in the 
B 



18 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.CH.II. 



preceding Chapter, weighed from St 
Helens with a contrary wind, the 
Commodore proposing to tide it down 
the Channel, as he dreaded less the 
inconveniences he should thereby have 
to struggle with than the risk he 
should run of mining the enterprise 
by an uncertain and in all probability 
a tedious attendance for a fair wind. 

The squadron allotted to this ser- 
vice consisted of five men-of-war, 
a sloop-of-war, and two victualling 
ships. They were the Centurion, of 
60 guns, 400 men, George Anson, 
Esq., commander ; the Gloucester, of 
50 guns, 300 men, Richard Norris, 
commander ; the Severn, of 50 guns, 
300 men, the Honourable Edward 
Legg, commander ; the Pearl, of 40 
guns, 250 men, Matthew Mitchel, 
commander ; the Wager, of 28 guns, 
160 men, Dandy Kidd, commander ; 
and the Trial sloop, of 8 guns, 100 
men, the Honourable John Murray, 
commander. The two victuallers were 
pinks, 1 the largest about 400 and the 
other about 200 tons burthen ; these 
were to attend us till the provisions 
we had taken on board were so far 
consumed as to make room for the 
additional quantity they carried with 
them, which when w r e had taken 
into our ships they were to be dis- 
charged. Besides the complement of 
men borne by the above-mentioned 
ships as their crews, there were em- 
barked on board the squadron about 
470 invalids and marines, under the 
denomination of land forces, as has 
been particularly mentioned in the 
preceding Chapter, which were com- 
manded by Lieutenant-Colonel Crach- 
erode. With this squadron, together 
with the St Albans and the Lark, and 
the [Turkey] trade under their con- 
voy, Mr Anson, after weighing from 
St Helens, tided it down the Channel 
for the first forty- eight hours ; and on 
the 20th, in the morning, we dis- 
covered off the Ram Head the Dragon, 
Winchester, South Sea Castle, and 

1 French, "Pinqice;" originally ap- 
plied to sailing ships of small size 
available for reconnoitring, spying, 
or sounding purposes. 



Rye, with a number of merchantmen 2 
under their convoy. These we joined 
about noon the same day, our Com- 
modore having orders to see them (to- 
gether with the [convoy of the] St 
Albans and Lark) as far into the sea 
as their course and ours lay together. 
When we came in sight of this last- 
mentioned fleet, Mr Anson first hoisted 
his broad pennant, and was saluted 
by all the men-of-war in company. 

When we had joined this last con- 
voy, we made up eleven men-of-war, 
about 150 sail of merchantmen, con- 
sisting of the Turkey, the Straits, and 
the American trade. Mr Anson, the 
same day, made a signal for all the 
captains of the men-of-war to come 011 
board him, where he delivered them 
their fighting and sailing instructions ; 
and then, with a fair wind, we all 
stood towards the south-west ; and 
the next day at noon, being the 21st, 
we had run forty leagues from the 
Ram Head ; and being now clear of 
the land, our Commodore, to render 
our view more extensive, ordered Cap- 
tain Mitchel, in the Pearl, to make 
sail two leagues ahead of the fleet 
every morning, and to repair to his 
station every evening. Thus we pro- 
ceeded till the 25th, when the Win- 
chester and the American convoy 
made the concerted signal for leave to 
separate, which being answered by 
the Commodore, they left us, as the 
St Albans and the Dragon, with the 
Turkey and Straits convoy, did on the 
29th. After which separation, there 
remained in company only our own 
squadron and our two victuallers, with 
which we kept on our course for the 
Island of Madeira. But the winds 
were so contrary, that we had the mor- 
tification to be forty days in our pass- 
age thither from St Helens, though 
it is known to be often done in ten 
or twelve. This delay was a most 
unpleasing circumstance, productive 



2 Nearly 200, according to Mr 
Parcoe Thomas, the mathematical 
master on board the Centurion, who 
wrote an account of the voyage, from 
which many notes in this edition are 
derived. 



1740.] THE ISLAND 

of much discontent and ill-humour 
amongst our people, of which those 
only can have a tolerable idea who 
have had the experience of a like 
situation. And besides the peevish- 
ness and despondency which foul and 
contrary winds, and a lingering voy- 
age, never fail to create on all occa- 
sions, we in particular had very sub- 
stantial reasons to be greatly alarmed 
at this unexpected impediment. For 
as we had departed from England 
much later than we ought to have 
done, we had placed almost all our 
hopes of success in the chance of re- 
trieving in some measure at sea the 
time we had so unhappily wasted at 
Spithead and St Helens. 1 However, 
at last, on Monday, October the 25th, 
at five in the morning, we, to our 
great joy, made the land, and in the 
afternoon came to an anchor in Ma- 
deira Road in forty fathoms water 
the Brazen-Head bearing from us E. 
by S. f the Loo NNW., and the Great 
Church NNE. We had hardly let go 
our anchor when an English privateer 
sloop ran under our stern and saluted 
the Commodore with nine guns, which 
we returned with five ; and the next 
day, the [English] Consul of the 
island coming to visit the Commo- 
dore, we saluted him with nine guns 
on his coming on board. 

This Island of Madeira, where we 
are now arrived, is famous through all 
our American settlements for its ex- 
cellent wines, which seem to be de- 
signed by Providence for the refresh- 
ment of the inhabitants of the torrid 
zone. It is situated in a fine climate, 
in the Latitude of 32 27' 1ST. ; and in 



1 Thomas mentions, that on the 13th 
of October the first man lost on the 
voyage died a common sailor, named 
Philip Meritt; and that next day, 
by an order from the Commodore, the 
ship's company went on short allow- 
ance that is, one-third of the allow- 
ance granted by Government was kept 
back, to make the provisions hold 
out the longer. Anson was evidently 
disquieted and stimulated to foresight 
by the unpromising commencement of 
his voyage. 



OF MADEIRA. 19 

the Longitude from London of, by our 
different reckonings, from 18 30' to 19 
30' W., though laid down in the charts 
in 17. 2 It is composed of one con- 
tinued hill, of a considerable height, 
extending itself from east to west, the 
declivity of which, on the south side, 
is cultivated and interspersed with 
vineyards ; and in the midst of this 
slope the merchants have fixed their 
country seats, which help to form an 
agreeable prospect. There is but one 
considerable town in the whole island, 
it is named Fonchiale [Funchal], and 
is seated on the south part of the 
island, at the bottom of a large bay. 
This is the only place of trade, and 
indeed the only one where it is pos- 
sible for a boat to land. Fonchiale, 
towards the sea, is defended by a high 
wall, with a battery of cannon, besides 
a castle on the Loo, which is a rock 
standing in the water at a small dis- 
tance from the shore. Even here the 
beach is covered with large stones, 
and a violent surf continually beats 
upon it : so that the Commodore did 
not care to venture the ships' long- 
boats to fetch the water off, as there 
was so much danger of their being 
lost ; and therefore ordered the cap- 
tains of the squadron to employ Por- 
tuguese boats on that service. 

We continued about a week at this 
island, watering our ships, and pro- 
viding the squadron with wine and 
other refreshments. And, on the 3d 
of November, Captain Richard Norris 
having signified by a letter to the 
Commodore his desire to quit his 
command on board the Gloucester, 
in order to return to England for the 
recovery of his health, the Commodore 
complied with his request ; and there- 
upon was pleased to appoint Captain 
Matthew Mitchel to command the 
Gloucester in his room, and to remove 
Captain Kidd from the Wager to the 
Pearl, and Captain Murray from the 
Trial sloop to the Wager, giving the 
command of the Trial to Lieutenant 
Cheap. These promotions being 



2 The charts, however, are right; 
the best most modern maps placing 
Madeira in 17. 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.Cii.II. 



20 

settled, with other changes in the 
lieutenancies, the Commodore, on the 
following day, gave to the captains 
their orders, appointing St Jago, one 
of the Cape Verd Islands, to be the 
first place of rendezvous in case of 
separation ; and directing them, if 
they did not meet the Centurion 
there, to make the best of their way 
to the Island of St Catherine's on the 
coast of Brazil. The water for the 
squadron being the same day com- 
pleted, and each ship supplied with 
as much wine and other refreshments 
as they could take in, we weighed 
anchor in the afternoon, and took 
our leave of the Island of Madeira. 
But, before I go on with the narra- 
tion of our own transactions, I think 
it necessary to give some account of 
the proceedings of the enemy, and of 
the measures they had taken to ren- 
der all our designs abortive. 

When Mr Anson visited the Gover- 
nor of Madeira, he received informa- 
tion from him, that for three or four 
days in the latter end of October 
there had appeared, to the westward 
of that island, seven or eight ships 
of the line, and a patache, which last 
was sent every day close in to make 
the land. The Governor assured the 
Commodore, upon his honour, that 
none upon the island had either 
given them intelligence, or had in 
any sort communicated with them ; 
but that he believed them to be either 
French or Spanish, but was rather 
inclined to think them Spanish. On 
this intelligence, Mr Anson sent an 
officer in a clean sloop 2 eight leagues 
to the westward, to reconnoitre them, 
and, if possible, to discover what 
they were. But the officer returned 
without being able to get a sight of 
them, so that we still remained in 
uncertainty. However, we could not 



2 Thomas, who put the suspicious 
squadron at sixteen or eighteen sail, 
and supposes that they were a junc- 
tion of French and Spanish ships of 
war, says that Anson sent out " an 
English privateer which lay in the 
road. " 



but conjecture that this fleet was in- 
tended to put a stop to our expedition ; 
which, had they cruised to the east- 
ward of the island instead of the west- 
ward, they could not but have executed 
with great facility. For as, in that 
case, they must have certainly fallen 
in with us, we should have been 
obliged to throw overboard vast quan- 
tities of provision to clear our ships 
for an engagement ; and this alone, 
without any regard to the event of 
the action, would have effectually 
prevented our progress. This was so 
obvious a measure, that we could not 
help imagining reasons which might 
have prevented them from pursuing 
it. And we therefore supposed, that 
this French or Spanish squadron was 
sent out upon advice of our sailing 
in company with Admiral Balchen 
and Lord Cathcart's expedition : and 
thence, from an apprehension of 
being overmatched, they might not 
think it advisable to meet with us 
till we had parted company, which 
they might judge would not happen 
before our arrival at this island. 
These were our speculations at that 
time ; and from hence we had reason 
to suppose, that we might still fall 
in with them in our way to the Cape 
Verd Islands. And afterwards, in 
the course of our expedition, we were 
many of us persuaded that this was 
the Spanish squadron commanded by 
Don Joseph Pizarro, which was sent 
out purposely to traverse the views 
and enterprises of our squadron, to 
which in strength they were greatly 
superior. As this Spanish armament 
then, was so nearly connected with 
our expedition, and as the catastrophe 
it underwent, though not effected by 
our force, was yet a considerable ad- 
vantage to this nation produced in 
consequence of our equipment, I have, 
in the following Chapter, given a 
summary account of their proceed- 
ings, from their first setting out from 
Spain in the year 1740, till the Asia, 
the only ship which returned to 
Europe of the whole squadron, ar- 
rived at the Groyne [Corunna] in the 
beginning of the year 1746. 



1740.] 



CHAPTER III. 



THE SPANISH SQUADRON-. 21 

nado, at the mouth of that river, 
their Admiral, Pizarro, sent immedi- 



THE squadron fitted out "by the Court 
of Spain to attend our motions, and 
traverse our projects, we supposed to 
have been the ships seen off Madeira, 
as mentioned in the preceding Chap- 
ter. And as this force was sent out 
particularly against our expedition, 
I cannot but imagine that the follow- 
ing history of the casualties it met 
with, as far as by intercepted letters 
and other information the same has 
come to my knowledge, is a very 
essential part of the present work. 
For by this it will appear we were 
the occasion that a considerable part 
of the naval power of Spain was 
diverted from the prosecution of the 
ambitious views of that Court in 
Europe ; and the men and ships lost 
by the enemy in this undertaking 
were lost in consequence of the pre- 
cautions they took to secure them- 
selves against our enterprises. This 
squadron (besides two ships intended 
for the West Indies, which did not 
part company till after they had left 
Madeira) was composed of the follow- 
ing men-of-war, commanded by Don 
Joseph Pizarro : 

The Asia, of 66 guns, and 700 men : 
this was the Admiral's ship. 

The Guipuscoa, of 74 guns, and 700 
men. 

The Hermiona, of 54 guns, and 500 
men. 

The Esperanza, of 50 guns, and 450 
men. 

The St Estevan, of 40 guns, and 
350 men. 

And a patache of 20 guns. 

These ships, over and above their 
complement of sailors and marines, 
had on board an old Spanish regiment 
of foot, intended to reinforce the gar- 
risons on the coast of the South Seas. 
When this fleet had cruised for some 
days to the leeward of Madeira, as is 
mentioned in the preceding Chapter, 
they left that station in the beginning 
of November, and steered for the 
River of Plate, where they arrived 
the 5th of January, O.S. ; and com- 
ing to an anchor in the Bay of Maldo- 



ately to Buenos Ayres for a supply 
of provisions ; for they had departed 
from Spain with only fcmr months' 
provisions on board. While they lay 
here expecting this supply, they re- 
ceived intelligence, by the treachery 
of the Portuguese Governor of St 
Catherine's, of Mr Anson's having 
arrived at that island on the 21st of 
December preceding, and of his pre- 
paring to put to sea again witli the 
utmost expedition. Pizarro, notwith- 
standing his superior force, had his 
reasons (and as some say his orders 
likewise) for avoiding our squadron 
anywhere short of the South Seas. 
He was, besides, extremely desirous 
of getting round Cape Horn before 
us, as he imagined that step alone 
would effectually baffle all our de- 
signs ; and therefore, on hearing that 
we were in his neighbourhood, and 
that we should soon be ready to pro- 
ceed for Cape Horn, he weighed 
anchor with the five large ships (the 
patache being disabled and condemn- 
ed, and the men taken out of her), 
after a stay of seventeen days only, 
and got under sail without his pro- 
visions, which arrived at Maldonado 
within a day or two after his depar- 
ture. But notwithstanding the pre- 
cipitation with which he departed, we 
put to sea from St Catherine's four 
days before him; and in some part 
of our passage to Cape Horn the two 
squadrons were so near together, that 
the Pearl, one of our ships, being 
separated from the rest, fell in with 
the Spanish Fleet, and mistaking the 
Asia for the Centurion, had got with- 
in gun-shot of Pizarro before she 
discovered her error, and narrowly 
escaped being taken. 

It being the 22d of January when 
the Spaniards weighed from Maldo- 
nado, they could not expect to get 
into the latitude of Cape Horn be- 
fore the equinox ; and as they had 
reason to apprehend very tempestuous 
weather in doubling it at that season, 
and as the Spanish sailors, being for 
the most part accustomed to a fair- 
weather country, might be expected 



22 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I. OH. III. 



to be very averse to so dangerous and 
fatiguing a navigation, the better to 
encourage them, some part of their 
pay was advanced to them in Euro- 
pean goods, which they were to be 
permitted to dispose of in the South 
Seas ; that so the hopes of the great 
profit each man was to make on his 
small venture might animate him in 
his duty, and render him less disposed 
to repine at the labour, the hardships, 
and the perils he would in all pro- 
bability meet with before his arrival 
on the coast of Peru. 

Pizarro with his squadron having, 
towards the latter end of February, 
run the length of Cape Horn, he then 
stood to the westward in order to 
double it ; but in the night of the 
last day of February, O.S., while with 
this view they were turned to wind- 
ward, the Guipuscoa, the Hermiona, 
and the Esperanza were separated 
from the Admiral. On the 6th of 
March following, the Guipuscoa was 
separated from the other two ; and on 
the 7th (being the day after we had 
passed Straits le Maire) there came 
on a most furious storm at NW., 
which, in despite of all their efforts, 
drove the whole squadron to the 
eastward, and obliged them, after 
several fruitless attempts, to bear 
away for the River of Plate, where 
Pizarro in the Asia arrived about the 
middle of May, and a few days after 
him the Esperanza and the St Este- 
van. The Hermiona was supposed to 
founder at sea, for she was never 
heard of more ; and the Guipuscoa 
was run ashore and sunk on the coast 
of Brazil. The calamities of all kinds 
which this squadron underwent in 
this unsuccessful navigation can only 
be paralleled by what we ourselves 
experienced in the same climate when 
buifeted by the same storms. There 
was indeed some diversity in our dis- 
tresses, which rendered it difficult to 
decide whose situation was most 
worthy of commiseration. For to 
all the misfortunes we had in common 
with each other, as shattered rigging, 
leaky ships, and the fatigues and de- 
spondency which necessarily attend 
these disasters, there was superadded 



on board our squadron the ravage of 
a most destructive and incurable dis- 
ease, and on board the Spanish squad- 
ron the devastation of famine. 

For this squadron, either from the 
hurry of their outset, 1 their presump- 
tion of a supply at Buenos Ayres, or 
from other less obvious motives, de- 
parted from Spain, as has been al- 
ready observed, with no more than 
four months' provision, and even 
that, as it is said, at short allowance 
only ; so that, when by the storms 
they met with off Cape Horn their 
continuance at sea was prolonged a 
month or more beyond their expecta- 
tion, they were thereby reduced to 
such infinite distress, that rats, when 
they could be caught, were sold for 
four dollars a-piece ; and a sailor, who 
died on board, had his death concealed 
for some days by his brother, who 
during that time lay in the same 
hammock with the corpse, only to 
receive the dead man's allowance of 
provisions. In this dreadful situation 
they were alarmed (if their horrors 
were capable of augmentation) by the 
discovery of a conspiracy among tha 
marines on board the Asia, the Ad- 
miral's ship. This had taken its rise 
chiefly from the miseries they en- 
dured. For though no less was 
proposed by the conspirators than 
the massacring the officers and the 
whole crew, yet their motive for 
this bloody resolution seemed to be 
no more than their desire of relieving 
their hunger, by appropriating the 
whole ship's provisions to themselves. 
But their designs were prevented, 
when just upoii the point of execu- 
tion, by means of one of their con- 
fessors, and three of their ringleaders 
were immediately put to death. How- 
ever, though the conspiracy was sup- 
pressed, their other calamities ad- 
mitted of no alleviation, but grew 
each day more and more destructive ; 
so that by the complicated distress of 
fatigue, sickness, and hunger, the 
three ships which escaped lost the 
greatest part of their men. The 
Asia, their Admiral's ship, arrived 

1 Ei. 1776: "Outfit." 



1741-45]. 



THE FATE OF PIZARRO'S SQUADRON. 



it Monte Video in the River of Plate, 
with half her crew only; the St Es- 
tevan had lost in like manner half 
her hands when she anchored in the 
Bay of Barragan. The Esperanza, a 
fifty-gun ship, was still more unfor- 
tunate, for of 450 hands which she 
brought from Spain, only fifty-eight 
remained alive ; and the whole regi- 
ment of foot perished except sixty 
men. 1 . . . 

The Asia having considerably suf- 
fered in this second unfortunate ex- 
pedition (see Note 1), the Esperanza, 
which had been left behind at Monte 
Video, was ordered to be refitted, the 
command of her being given to Min- 
dinuetta, who was captain of the 
Guipuscoa when she was lost. He, 
in the November of the succeeding 
year, that is, in November 1742, 
sailed from the River of Plate for the 
South Seas, and arrived safe on the 
coast of Chili, where his Commodore, 
Pizarro, passing overland from Buenos 
Ayres, met him. There were great 
animosities and contests between these 
two gentlemen at their meeting, oc- 
casioned principally by the claim of 
Pizarro to command the Esperanza, 
which Mindinuetta had brought 



1 The fate of the Guipuscoa was 
little better. On being separated 
from the Hermiona and Esperanza in 
a fog on March 6th, they met with a 
severe storm while SE. from Staten 
Island. They were driven out of 
their course, and did not reach the 
shore on the coast of Brazil till 24th 
April, when those on board were re- 
duced to one ounce and a half of 
biscuit a man per day. Many died 
through the hardships of the voyage ; 
the remainder of the crew, to the 
number of 400, got safely to land, 
when the vessel sank shortly after- 
wards. The three remaining ships of 
the squadron which got into the River 
Plate sent an advice boat to Rio Jan- 
eiro for provisions and help, and an 
express across the Continent to Sant- 
iago. An attempt was made to round 
Cape Horn, in the Asia, in October 
following, but they were driven back 
to the River Plate in great distress. 



rouaid ; for Mindinuetta refused to 
deliver her up to him, insisting that 
as he came into the South Seas alone, 
and under no superior, it was not now 
in the power of Pizarro to resume that 
authority which he had once parted 
with. However, the President of Chili 
interposing, and declaring for Pizarro, 
Mindinuetta, after a long and obstinate 
struggle, was obliged to submit. 

But Pizarro had not yet completed 
the series of his adventures ; for when 
he and Mindinuetta came back by 
land from Chili to Buenos Ayres, in 
the year 1745, they found at Monte 
Video the Asia, which near three 
years before they had left there. 
This ship they resolved, if possible, 
to carry to Europe, and with this 
view they refitted her in the best 
manner they could ; but their great 
difficulty was to procure a sufficient 
number of hands to navigate her, for 
all the remaining sailors of the squad- 
ron to be met with in the neighbour- 
hood of Buenos Ayres did not amount 
to 100 men. They endeavoured 
to supply this defect by pressing 
many of the inhabitants of Buenos 
Ayres, and putting on board besides 
all the English prisoners then in their 
custody, together with a number of 
Portuguese smugglers whom they had 
taken at different times, and some of 
the Indians of the country. Among 
these last there was a chief and ten 
of his followers, who had been sur- 
prised by a party of Spanish soldiers 
about three months before. The name 
of this chief was Orellana : he belonged 
to a very powerful tribe, which had 
committed great ravages in the neigh- 
bourhood of Buenos Ayres. With 
this motley .crew (all of them, except 
the European Spaniards, extremely 
averse to the voyage) Pizarro set sail 
from Monte Video in the River of 
Plate, about the beginning of No- 
vember 1745; and the native Span- 
iards, being no strangers to the dis- 
satisfaction of their forced men, treated 
both those, the English prisoners and 
the Indians, with great insolence and 
barbarity, but more particularly the 
Indians; for it was common for the 
meanest officers in the shin to beat 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.Cii.IIT. 



24 

them most cruelly on the slightest 
pretences, and oftentimes only to 
exert their superiority. Orellana and 
his followers, though in appearance 
sufficiently patient and submissive, 
meditated a severe revenge for all 
these inhumanities. As he conversed 
very well in Spanish (these Indians 
having in time of peace a great inter- 
course with Buenos Ayres), he affected 1 
to talk with such of the English as 
understood that language, and seemed 
very desirous of being informed how 
many Englishmen there were on board, 
and which they were. As he knew 
that the English were as much ene- 
mies to the Spaniards as himself, he 
had doubtless an intention of disclos- 
ing his purposes to them, and making 
them partners in the scheme he had 
projected for revenging his wrongs 
and recovering his liberty ; but having 
sounded them at a distance, and not 
finding them so precipitate and vin- 
dictive as he expected, he proceeded 
no further with them, but resolved to 
trust alone to the resolution of his 
ten faithful followers. These, it should 
seem, readily engaged to observe his 
directions, and to execute whatever 
commands he gave them ; and having 
agreed on the measures necessary to 
be taken, they first furnished them- 
selves with Dutch knives sharp at the 
point, which, being the common knives 
used in the ship, they found no diffi- 
culty in procuring. Besides this, 
they employed their leisure in secretly 
cutting out thongs from raw hides, of 
which there were great numbers on 
board, and in fixing to each end of 
these thongs the double-headed shot 
of the small quarter-deck guns : this, 
when swung round their heads ac- 
cording to the practice of their country, 
was a most mischievous weapon, in the 
use of which the Indians about Buenos 
Ayres are trained from their infancy, 
and consequently are extremely ex- 
pert. These particulars being in good 
forwardness, the execution of their 

1 " Affect" is here used, not in the 
sense of making an ostentatious pre- 
tence or show, but in that of preferring 
or making a practice of something. 



scheme was perhaps precipitated by 
a particular outrage committed on 
Orellana himself. For one of the 
officers, who was a very brutal fellow, 
ordered Orellana aloft ; which being 
what he was incapable of performing, 
the officer, under pretence of his dis- 
obedience, beat him with such violence 
that he left him bleeding on the deck, 
and stupefied for some time with his 
bruises and wounds. This usage un- 
doubtedly heightened his thirst for 
revenge, and made him eager and 
impatient till the means of executing 
it were in his power ; so that within 
a day or two after this incident he 
and his followers opened 2 their des- 
perate resolves in the ensuing manner. 
It was about nine in the evening, 
when many of the principal officers 
were on the quarter-deck indulging 
in the freshness of the night air; the 
waist of the ship was filled with live 
cattle, and the forecastle was manned 
with its customary watch. Orellana 
and his companions, under cover of 
the night, having prepared their 
weapons, and thrown off their trousers 
and the more cumbrous part of their 
dress, came all together on the quarter- 
deck, and drew towards the door of 
the great cabin. The boatswain im- 
mediately reprimanded them, and 
ordered them to be gone. On this 
Orellana spoke to his followers in his 
native language, when four of them 
drew off, two towards each gangway, 
and the chief and the six remaining 
Indians seemed to be slowly quitting 
the quarter-deck. When the de- 
tached Indians had taken possession 
of the gangways, Orellana placed his 
hands hollow to his mouth, and bel- 
lowed out the war-cry used by those 
savages, which is said to be the harshest 
and most terrifying sound known in 
nature. This hideous yell was the 
signal for beginning the massacre : 
for on this the [Indians] all drew 
their knives, and brandished their 
prepared double-headed shot, and the 
six, with their chief, who remained 
on the quarter-deck, immediately fell 
on the Spaniards who were inter- 



2 Ed. 1776 : " Began to execute." 



17-15.1 

mingled with them, and laid near 
forty of them at their feet, of whom 
above twenty were killed on the spot, 
and the rest disabled. Many of the 
officers, in the beginning of the tu- 
mult, pushed into the great cabin, 
where they put out the lights, and 
barricaded the door. And of the 
others, who had avoided the first fury 
of the Indians, some endeavoured to 
escape along the gangways into the 
forecastle ; but the Indians placed 
there on purpose stabbed the greatest 
part of them as they attempted to 
pass by, or forced them off the gang- 
ways into the waist. Others threw 
themselves voluntarily over the barri- 
cades into the waist, and thought 
themselves happy to lie concealed 
amongst the cattle ; but the greatest 
part escaped up the main-shrouds, 
and sheltered themselves either in 
the tops or rigging. And though the 
Indians attacked only the quarter- 
deck, yet the watch in the forecastle 
finding their communication cut off, 
and being terrified by the wounds of 
the few who, not being killed on the 
spot, had strength sufficient to force 
their passage along the gangways, 
and not knowing either who their 
enemies were or what were their num- 
bers, they likewise gave all over for 
lost, and in great confusion ran up 
into the rigging of the foremast and 
bowsprit. 

Thus these eleven Indians, with a 
resolution perhaps without example, 
possessed themselves almost in an 
instant of the quarter-deck of a ship 
mounting sixty-six guns, with a crew 
of nearly 500 men, and continued in 
peaceable possession of this post a 
considerable time : for the officers in 
the great cabin (amongst whom were 
Pizarro and Mindinuetta), the crew 
between decks, and those who had 
escaped into the tops and rigging, 
were only anxious for their own safety, 
and were for a long time incapable of 
forming any project for suppressing 
the insurrection and recovering the 
possession of the ship. It is true, 
the yells of the Indians, the groans 
of the wounded, and the confused 
clamours of the crew, all heightened 



THE MUTINY OF ORELLANA. 



by the obscurity of the night, had at 
first greatly magnified their danger, 
and had filled them with the imagi- 
nary terrors which darkness, disorder, 
and an ignorance of the real strength 
of an enemy never fail to produce. 
For as the Spaniards were sensible 
of the disaffection of their pressed 
hands, and were also conscious of 
their barbarity to their prisoners, 
they imagined the conspiracy was 
general, and considered their own 
destruction as infallible ; so that, it is 
said, some of them had once taken the 
resolution of leaping into the sea, but 
were prevented by their companions. 
However, when the Indians had 
entirely cleared the quarter-deck, the 
tumult in a great measure subsided ; 
for those who had escaped were kept 
silent by their fears, and the Indians 
were incapable of pursuing them to 
renew the disorder. Orellana, when 
he saw himself master of the quarter- 
deck, broke open the arm chest, 
which, on a slight suspicion of mu- 
tiny, had been ordered there a few 
days before, as to a place of the 
greatest security. Here, he took it 
for granted, he should find cutlasses 
sufficient for himself and his com- 
panions, in the use of which weapon 
they were all extremely skilful, and 
with these, it was imagined, they 
proposed to have forced the great 
cabin; but on opening the chest 
there appeared nothing but fire-arms, 
which to them w r ere of no use. There 
were indeed cutlasses in the chest, 
but they were hid by the fire-arms 
being laid over them. This was a 
sensible disappointment to them, and 
by this time Pizarro and his com- 
panions in the great cabin were cap- 
able of conversing aloud, through the 
cabin windows and port-holes, with 
those in the gun-room and between 
decks ; and from hence they learned 
that the English (whom they princi- 
pally suspected) were all safe below, and 
had not intermeddled in this mutiny ; 
and by other particulars they at last 
discovered that none were concerned 
in it but Orellana and his people. On 
this Pizarro and the officers resolved 
to attack them on the quarter-deck, 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.Cn.IV. 



26 

before any of the discontented on 
board should so far recover their first 
surprise as to reflect on the facility 
and certainty of seizing the ship by a 
junction with the Indians in the pre- 
sent emergency. "With this view 
Pizarro got together what arms were 
in the cabin, and distributed them to 
those who were with him ; but there 
were no other fire-arms to be met with 
but pistols, and for these they had 
neither powder nor ball. However, 
having now settled a correspondence 
with the gun-room, they lowered 
down a bucket out of the cabin win- 
dow, into which the gunner, out of 
one of the gun-room ports, put a 
quantity of pistol cartridges. When 
they had thus procured ammunition, 
and had loaded their pistols, they set 
the cabin-door partly open, and fired 
some shot amongst the Indians on 
the quarter-deck, at first without 
effect. But at last Mindinuetta, 
whom we have often mentioned, had 
the good fortune to shoot Orellana 
dead on the spot ; on which his 
faithful companions, abandoning all 
thoughts of further resistance, in- 
stantly leaped into the sea, where 
they every man perished. Thus was 
this insurrection quelled, and the 
possession of the quarter-deck re- 
gained, after it had been full two 
hours in the power of this great and 
daring chief and his gallant and un- 
happy countrymen. 

Pizarro, having escaped this immi- 
nent peril, steered for Europe, and 
arrived safe on the coast of Gallicia 
in the beginning of the year 1746, 
after having been absent between four 
and five years, and having, by his 
attendance on our expedition, dimin- 
ished the naval power of Spain by 
above 3000 hands (the flower of their 
sailors) and by four considerable ships 
of war and a patache. For we have 
seen that the Hermiona foundered 
at sea ; the Guipuscoa was stranded 
and sunk on the coast of Brazil ; the 
StEstevan was condemned and broken 
up in the River of Plate ; and the 
Esperanza, being left in the South 
Seas, is doubtless by this time incap- 
able of returning to Spain. So that 



the Asia only, with less than 100 
hands, may be considered as all the 
remains of that squadron with which 
Pizarro first put to sea. And who- 
ever attends to the very large propor- 
tion which this squadron bore to the 
whole navy of Spain, will, I believe, 
confess that had our undertaking 
been attended with no other advan- 
tages than that of ruining so great a 
part of the sea force of so dangerous 
an enemy, this alone would be a suf- 
ficient equivalent for our equipment, 
and an incontestable proof of the ser- 
vice which the nation has thence re- 
ceived. Having thus concluded this 
summary of Pizarro's adventures, I 
shall now return again to the narra- 
tion of our own transactions. 



CHAPTER IV. 

I HAVE already mentioned, that on 
the 3d of November we weighed from 
Madeira, after orders had been given 
to the captains to rendezvous at Sant- 
iago, one of the Cape Verd Islands, 
in case the squadron was separated. 
But the next day, when we were got 
to sea, the Commodore, considering 
that the season was far advanced, 
and that touching at Santiago would 
create a new delay, he for this reason 
thought proper to alter his rendez- 
vous, and to appoint the Island of St 
Catherine's, on the coast of Brazil, to 
be the first place to which the ships 
of the squadron were to repair in case 
of separation. In our passage to the 
Island of St Catherine's, we found the 
direction of the trade-winds to differ 
considerably from what we had reason 
to expect, both from the general his- 
tories given of these winds, and the 
experience of former navigators. 1 

On the 16th of November, one of 
our victuallers made a signal to speak 
with the Commodore, and we short- 
ened sail for her to come up with us. 
The master came on board, and ac- 



1 Omission is here made of some 
technieal and obsolete observations 
on the trade -winds. 



1740.] 



THE INDUSTRY PINK DISBANDED. 



'27 



quainted Mr Anson that 'ie had com- 
plied with the terms of his charter- 
party, and desired to be unloaded 
and dismissed. Mr Anson, on con- 
sulting the captains of the squadron, 
found all the ships had still such 
quantities of provision between their 
decks, and were withal so deep, that 
they could not without great difficulty 
take in their several proportions of 
brandy from the Industry pink, one 
of the victuallers only ; and conse- 
quently he was obliged to continue 
the other of them, the Anna pink, in 
the service of attending the squadron. 
And the next day the Commodore 
made a signal for the ships to bring 
to, and to take on board their shares 
of the brandy from the Industry pink ; 
and in this the long-boats of the 
squadron were employed the three 
following days, that is, till the 19th 
in the evening, when the pink being 
unloaded, she parted company with 
us, being bound for Barbadoes, there 
to take in a freight for England. 
Most of the officers of the squadron 
took the opportunity of writing to 
their friends at home by this ship ; 
but she was afterwards, as I have 
been since informed, unhappily taken 
by the Spaniards. 

On the 20th of November, the cap- 
tains of the squadron represented to 
the Commodore that their ships' com- 
panies were very sickly, and that it 
was their own opinion as well as their 
surgeons' that it would tend to the 
preservation of the men to let in more 
air between decks ; but that their 
ships were so deep they could not 
possibly open their lower ports. On 
this representation the Commodore 
ordered six air-scuttles to be cut in 
each ship, in such places where they 
would least weaken it. ... 

We crossed the Equinoctial, with a 
fine fresh gale at SE., on Friday the 
28th of November, at four in the 
morning, being then in the Longitude 
of 27 59' W. from London. And on 
the 2d of December, in the morning, 
we saw a sail in the NW. quarter, 
and made the Gloucester's and Trial's 
signals to chase ; and half-an-hour 
after we let [out] our reefs and chased 



with the squadron ; and about nooii 
a signal was made for the Wager to 
take our remaining victuallar, the 
Anna pink, in tow. But at seven in 
the evening, finding we did not near 
the chase, and that the Wager was 
very far astern, we shortened sail, 
and made a signal for the cruisers to 
join the squadron. The next day 
but one we again discovered a sail, 
which, on the nearer approach, we 
judged to be the same vessel. We 
chased her the whole day, and though 
we rather gained upon her, yet night 
came on before we could overtake her, 
and obliged us to give over the chase, 
to collect our scattered squadron. We 
were much chagrined at the escape of 
this vessel, as we then apprehended 
her to be an advice boat sent from Old 
Spain to Buenos Ayres with notice of our 
expedition. But we have since learned 
that we were deceived in this conjecture, 
and that it was our East India Com- 
pany's packet bound to St Helena. 

On the 10th of December, being by 
our accounts in the Latitude of 20 S., 
and 36 30' Longitude W. from London, 
the Trial fired a gun to denote soundings. 
We immediately sounded, and found 
sixty fathoms water, the bottom coarse 
ground with broken shells. The Trial, 
being ahead of us, had at one time thirty- 
seven fathoms, which afterwards in- 
creased to ninety : and then she found 
no bottom, which happened to us too 
at our second trial, though we sounded 
with 150 fathoms of line. This is the 
shoal which is laid down in most 
charts by the name of the Abrollos ; * 
and it appeared we were upon the very 
edge of it ; perhaps farther in it may 
be extremely dangerous. We were 
then, by our different accounts, from 
ninety to sixty leagues east of the coast 
of Brazil. The next day but one we 
spoke with a Portuguese brigantine 
from Rio Janeiro, bound to Bahia de 
todos los Santos, who informed us that 
we were sixty-four leagues from Cape 
St Thomas, and forty leagues from 
Cape Frio, which last bore from us 

1 The Abrolhos ; a small group of 
islets or reefs off the coast of Brazil, 
in about Lat. 18 S., Long. 39 W. 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I. On. IV. 



28 

WS W. By our accounts we were near 
eighty leagues from Ca,pe Frio ; and 
though, on the information of this 
brigantine, we altered our course and 
stood more to the southward, yet by 
our coming in with the land afterwards 
we were fully convinced that our 
reckoning was much corrector than 
our Portuguese intelligence. We 
found a considerable current setting 
to the southward after we had passed 
the Latitude of 16 S. And the same 
took place all along the coast of Brazil, 
and even to the southward of the River 
of Plate, it amounting sometimes to 
thirty miles in twenty-four hours, and 
once to above forty miles. . . . 

We now began to grow impatient 
for a sight of land, both for the re- 
covery of our sick, and for the refresh- 
ment and security of those who as yet 
continued healthier. When we de- 
parted from St Helens, we were in so 
good a condition, that we lost but two 
men on board the Centurion in our 
long passage to Madeira. But in 
this present run between Madeira and 
St Catherine's we have been very 
sickly, so that many died, and great 
numbers were confined to their ham- 
mocks, both in our own ship and in 
the rest of the squadron ; and several 
of these past all hopes of recovery. 
The disorders they in general labour 
under are such as are common to the 
hot climates, and what most ships 
bound to the southward experience 
in a greater or less degree. These 
are those kind of fevers which they 
usually call calentures : a disease 
which was not only terrible in its 
first instance, but even the remains 
of it often proved fatal to those who 
considered themselves as recovered 
from it. For it always left them in 
a very weak and helpless condition, 
and usually afflicted with fluxes and 
tenesmuscs. And by our continuance 
at sea all our complaints were every 
day increasing, so that it was with 
great joy that we discovered the coast 
of Brazil on the 18th of December, at 
seven in the morning. 

The coast of Brazil appeared high 
and mountainous land, extending 
from W. to WSW., and when we 



first saw it, it was about seventeen 
leagues distant. At noon we per- 
ceived a low double land bearing 
WSW., about ten leagues distant, 
which we took to be the Island of St 
Catherine's. That afternoon and the 
next morning, the wind being NNW., 
we gained very little to windward, 
and were apprehensive of being driven 
to the leeward of the island; but a 
little before noon the next day the 
wind came about to the southward, 
and enabled us to steer in between the 
north point of St Catherine's and the 
neighbouring Island of Alvoredo. As 
we stood in for the land, we had regu- 
lar soundings, gradually decreasing 
from thirty-six to twelve fathoms, all 
muddy ground. In this last depth 
of water we let go our anchor at 5 
o'clock in the evening of the 19th, 
the north-west point of the Island of 
St Catherine's bearing SSW. distant 
three miles ; and the Island Alvoredo 
NNE. distant two leagues. Here we 
found the tide to set SSE. and NNW., 
at the rate of two knots, the tide of 
flood coming from the southward. 
We could from our ships observe two 
fortifications at a considerable distance 
within us, which seemed designed to 
prevent the passage of an enemy be- 
tween the Island of St Catherine's 
and the main. And we could soon 
perceive that our squadron had alarmed 
the coast, for we saw the two forts 
hoist their colours, and fire several 
guns, which we supposed to be in- 
tended for assembling the inhabitants. 
To prevent any confusion, the Com- 
modore immediately sent a boat with 
an officer on shore, to compliment 
the Governor, and to desire a pilot to 
carry us into the road. The Governor 
returned a very civil answer, and 
ordered us a pilot. On the morning 
of the 20th we weighed and stood in, 
and towards noon the pilot came on 
board us, who the same afternoon 
brought us to an anchor in five fathoms 
and a half, in a large commodious bay 
on the continent side, called by the 
French Bon Port. In standing from 
our last anchorage to this place, we 
everywhere found an oozy bottom, 
with a depth of water first regularly 



1710.) 



AT ANCHOR ON ST CATHERINE'S ISLAND. 



29 



Decreasing to five fathoms, and then 
increasing to seven, after which we 
had six and five fathoms alternately. 
The next morning we weighed again 
with the squadron, in order to run 
above the two fortifications we have 
mentioned, which are called the castles 
of Santa Cruz and St Juan. And 
now the soundings between the island 
and the main were four, five, and six 
fathoms, with muddy ground. As 
we passed by the castle of Santa Cruz, 
we saluted it with eleven guns, and 
were answered by an equal number ; 
and at one in the afternoon the squad- 
ron came to an anchor in five fathoms 
and a half, the Governor's Island bear- 
ing NNW., St Juan's castle NE. half 
E., and the Island of St Antonio S. 
In this position we moored at the 
Island of St Catherine's on Sunday 
the 21st of December, the whole 
squadron being, as I have already 
mentioned, sickly and in great want 
of refreshments : both which incon- 
veniencies we hoped to have soon 
removed at this settlement, celebrated 
by former navigators for its healthi- 
ness and its [abundance of] provisions, 
and for the freedom, indulgence, and 
friendly assistance there given to the 
ships of all European nations in 
amity with the Crown of Portugal. 



CHAPTER V. 1 

OTJR first care, after having moored 
our ships, was to send our sick men 
on shore, each ship being ordered by 
the Commodore to erect two tents for 
that purpose ; one of them for the re- 
ception of the diseased, and the other 
for the accommodation of the surgeon 
and his assistants. "We sent about 
eighty sick from the Centurion, and 
the other ships I believe sent nearly 
as many in proportion to the number 
of their hands. As soon as we had 



1 The description of the island, ex- 
cept one passage of political interest, 
and the account of Brazil, is here 
omitted, as needlessly hindering the 
course of the narrative. 



performed this necessary duty, we 
scraped our decks, and gave our ship 
a thorough cleansing ; then smoked it 
between decks, and after all washed 
every part well with vinegar. These 
operations were extremely necessary 
for correcting the noisome stench on 
board, and destroying the vermin : 
for from the number of our men, and 
the heat of the climate, both these 
nuisances had increased upon us to a 
very loathsome degree, and, besides 
being most intolerably offensive, they 
were doubtless in some sort productive 
of the sickness we had laboured under 
for a considerable time before our 
arrival at this island. Our next em- 
ployment was wooding and watering 
our squadron, calking our ships' sides 
and decks, overhauling our rigging, 
and securing our mast against the 
tempestuous weather we were, in all 
probability, to meet with in our pass- 
age round Cape Horn in so advanced 
and inconvenient a season. . . . 

When we first arrived at St Cather- 
ine's we were employed in refreshing 
our sick on shore, in wooding and 
watering the squadron, cleansing our 
ships, and examining and securing 
our masts and rigging, as I have al- 
ready observed in the foregoing Chap- 
ter. At the same time, Mr Anson 
gave directions that the ships' com- 
panies should be supplied with fresh 
meat, and that they should be victu- 
alled with whole allowance of all 
kinds, of provision. In consequence 
of these orders, we had fresh beef 
sent on board us continually for our 
daily expense, 2 and what was wanting 
to make up our allowance we received 
from our victualler, the Anna pink, 
in order to preserve the provisions on 
board our squadron entire for our 
future service. 3 The season of the 



2 Consumption. 

3 Thomas says that "the agents 
for victualling, of which we had two 
with us, were ordered to procure what 
fresh provisions we could expend dur- 
ing our stay here, which they accord- 
ingly did ; but though their meat, 
which is altogether beef, was both 
cheap and plenty, it was for the 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.Cn.V. 



30 

year growing each day less favourable 
for our passage round Cape Horn, Mr 
Anson was very desirous of leaving 
this place as soon as possible ; and 
we were at first in hopes that our 
whole business would be done, and 
we should be in readiness to sail in 
about a fortnight from our arrival ; 
but, on examining the Trial's masts, 
we, to our no small vexation, found 
inevitable employment for twice that 
time. For, on a survey, it was found 
that the mainmast was sprung at the 
upper woulding, 1 though it was 
thought capable of being secured by 
a couple of fishes ; but the foremast 
was reported to be unfit for service, 
and thereupon the carpenters were 
sent into the woods to endeavour to 
find a stick proper for a foremast. 
But after a search of four days they 
returned without having been able 
to meet with any tree fit for the pur- 
pose. This obliged them to come to 
a second consultation about the old 
foremast, when it was agreed to en- 
deavour to secure it by casing it with 
three fishes ; and in this work the 
carpenters were employed till within 
a day or two of our sailing. In the 
meantime, the Commodore, thinking 
it necessary to have a clean vessel on 
our arrival in the South Seas, ordered 
the Trial to be hove down, as this 
would not occasion any loss of time, 
but might be completed while the 
carpenters were refitting her masts, 
which was done on shore. 



greatest part miserably bad, and 
scarce fit to be eaten. The men 
throughout the whole squadron began 
now to drop off apace with fevers and 
fluxes, occasioned, I believe, by the 
violent heat of the climate, and the 
bad air ; the country being so very 
woody that the air must thereby be 
stagnated, and rendered unhealthful. " 
1 Or "woolding;" explained in 
Bailey " The winding of ropes hard 
about a yard or mast of a ship, after 
it hath been strengthened by some 
piece of timber nailed thereto." 
Young's "Nautical Dictionary," sw6 
voce, also suggests the idea of previ- 
ous "fishing" or repair. 



On the 27th of December we dis- 
covered a sail in the offing ; and not 
knowing but she might be a Spaniard, 
the eighteen-oared boat was maimed 
and armed, and sent under the com- 
mand of our second lieutenant to ex- 
amine her before she arrived within the 
protection of the forts. She proved to 
be a Portuguese brigantine from Rio 
Grande. And though our officer, as 
it appeared on inquiry, had behaved 
with the utmost civility to the mas- 
ter, and had refused to accept a calf 
which the master would have forced 
on him as a present, yet the Governor 
took great offence at our sending our 
boat, and talked of it in a high strain, 
as a violation of the peace subsisting 
between the Crowns of Gr^at Britain 
and Portugal. "We at first imputed 
this ridiculous blustering to no deeper 
a cause than Don Jose's insolence; 
but as we found he proceeded so far 
as to charge our officer with behaving 
rudely and opening letters, and par- 
ticularly with an attempt to take out 
of the vessel by violence the very calf 
which we knew he had refused to re- 
ceive as a present (a circumstance 
which we were satisfied the Governor 
was well acquainted with), we had 
hence reason to suspect that he pur- 
posely sought this quarrel, and had 
more important motives for engaging 
in it than the mere captious bias of 
his temper. "What these motives 
were, it was not so easy for us to de- 
termine at that time ; but as we after- 
wards found, by letters which fell into 
our hands in the South Seas, that he 
had despatched an express to Buenos 
Ayres, where Pizarro then lay, with 
an account of our squadron's arrival 
at St Catherine's, together with the 
most ample and circumstantial intelli- 
gence of our force and condition, we 
thence conjectured that Don Jose had 
raised this groundless clamour only to 
prevent our visiting the brigantiue 
when she should put to sea again, lest 
we might there find proofs of his perfi- 
dious behaviour, and perhaps at the 
same time discover the secret of his 
smuggling correspondence with his 
neighbouring Governors, and the 
Spaniards at Buenos Ayres. 



1741.] FROM ST CATHERINE'S TO THE BAY OF ST JULIAN. 31 



It was near a month before the 
Trial was refitted ; for not only her 
lower masts were defective, as has 
been already mentioned, but her 
main-topmast and foreyard were like- 
wise decayed and rotten. While this 
work was carrying on, the other ships 
of the squadron fixed new standing 
rigging, and set up a sufficient num- 
ber of preventer shrouds to each mast 
to secure them in the most effectual 
manner. And in order to render the 
ships stiffer, and to enable them to 
carry more sail abroad, and to prevent 
their labouring in hard gales of wind, 
each captain had orders given him to 
strike down some of their great guns 
into the hold. These precautions be- 
ing complied with, and each ship hav- 
ing taken in as much wood and water 
as there was room for, the Trial was at 
last completed, and the whole squad- 
ron was ready for the sea ; on which 
the tents on shore were struck, and all 
the sick were received on board. And 
*iere we had a melancholy proof how 
much the healthiness of this place had 
been overrated by former writers, for we 
found that though the Centurion alone 
had buried no less than twenty-eight 
men since our arrival, yet the number 
of our sick was in the same interval 
increased from eighty to ninety-six. 

And now our crews being embarked, 
and everything prepared for our de- 
parture, the Commodore made a signal 
for all captains, and delivered them 
their orders, containing the succes- 
sive places of rendezvous from hence 
to the coast of China. 1 And then 
on the next day, being the 18th of 
January 1741, the signal was made 
for weighing, and the squadron put 
to sea, leaving without regret this 
Island of St Catherine's, where we 
had been so extremely disappointed 
in our refreshments, in our accommo- 
dations, and in the humane and 
friendly offices which we had been 
taught to expect in a place which has 
been so much celebrated for its hospi- 
tality, freedom, and conveniency. 



1 Ed. 1776: "Chili;" an obvious 
blunder, as the opening paragraph of 
Chapter VI. shows. 



CHAPTER VI. 

IN leaving St Catherine's, we left the 
last amicable port we proposed to touch 
at, and were now proceeding to an 
hostile, or at best a desert and inhos- 
pitable coast. And as we were to 
expect a more boisterous climate to 
the southward than any we had yet 
experienced, not only our danger of 
separation would by this means be 
much greater than it had been hither- 
to, but other accidents of a more per- 
nicious nature were likewise to be ap- 
prehended, and as much as possible 
to be provided against. And there- 
fore Mr Anson, in appointing the 
various stations at which the ships of 
the squadron were to rendezvous, had 
considered that it was possible his 
own ship might be disabled from get- 
ting round Cape Horn, or might be 
lost ; and had given proper directions 
that even in that case the expedition 
should not be abandoned. For the 
orders delivered to the captains the 
day before we sailed from St Cather- 
ine's, were, that in case of separation 
which they were with the utmost 
care to endeavour to avoid the first 
place of rendezvous should be the Bay 
of Port St Julian, describing the place 
from Sir John Narborough's account 
of it. There they were to supply 
themselves with as much salt as they 
could take in, both for their own use 
and the use of the squadron ; and if, 
after a stay there 01 ten days, they 
were not joined by the Commodore, 
they were then to proceed through 
Straits le Maire round Cape Horn into 
the South Seas, where the next place 
of rendezvous was to be the Island of 
Nuestra Sefiora del Socoro, 2 in the 
Latitude of 45 S., and Longitude 
from the Lizard, 71 12' W. They 
were to bring this island to bear ENE., 
and to cruise from five to twelve 
leagues distance from it, as long as 
their store of wood and water would 
permit, both which they were to ex- 

2 One of the smaller outer islands 
of the Chonos Archipelago, on the 
western coast of Patagonia. 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.C'H.VI. 



32 

pend with, the utmost frugality. And 
when they were under an absolute 
necessity of a fresh supply, they were 
to stand in, and endeavour to find 
out an anchoring-place; and in case 
they could not, and the weather made 
it dangerous to supply their ships by 
standing off and on, they were then to 
make the best of their way to the 
Island of Juan Fernandez, in the Lati- 
tude of 33 37' S. And as soon as 
they had recruited their wood and 
water, they were to continue cruising 
off the anchoring-place of that island 
for fifty-six days, in which time, if 
they were not joined by the Commo- 
dore, they might conclude that some 
accident had befallen him ; and they 
were forthwith to put themselves 
under the command of the senior 
officer, who was to use his utmost 
endeavours to annoy the enemy both 
by sea and land. That with these 
views their new Commodore was to 
continue in those seas as long as his 
provisions lasted, or as long as they 
were recruited by what he should take 
from the enemy, reserving only a suf- 
ficient quantity to carry him and the 
ships under his command to Macao 
at the entrance of the River Tigris, 
near Canton on the coast of China, 
where, having supplied himself with 
a new stock of provisions, he was 
thence without delay to make the best 
of his way to England. And as it 
was found impossible as yet to unload 
our victualler, the Anna pink, the 
Commodore gave the master of her the 
same rendezvous, and the same orders 
to put himself under the command of 
the remaining senior officer. 

Under these orders the squadron 
sailed from St Catherine's on Sunday 
the 18th of January, as has been 
already mentioned in the preceding 
Chapter. The next day we had very 
squally weather, attended with rain, 
lightning, and thunder ; but it soon 
became fair again, with light breezes, 
and continued thus till Wednesday 
evening, when it blew fresh again; 
and increasing all night, by eight the 
next morning it became a most vio- 
lent storm, and we had with it so thick 
a fog that it was impossible to see at 



the distance of two ships' lengths, so 
that the whole squadron disappeared. 1 
On this a signal was made by firing 
guns, to bring to with the larboard 
tacks, the wind being then due east. 
We ourselves immediately handed the 
topsails, bunted the mainsail, and 
lay to under a reefed mizzen till noon, 
when the fog dispersed ; and we soon 
discovered all the ships of the squad- 
ron, except the Pearl, which did not 
join us till near a month afterwards. 
The Trial sloop was a great way to 
leeward, having lost her mainmast in 
this squall, and having been obliged, 
for fear of bilging, to cut away the 
raft. 2 We bore down with the 
squadron to her relief, and the Glou- 
cester was ordered to take her in tow, 
for the weather did not entirely abate 
till the day after, and even then a 
great swell continued from the east- 
ward in consequence of the preceding 
storm. After this accident we stood 
to the southward with little interrup- 
tion, and here we experienced the 
same setting of the current which we 
had observed before our arrival at St 
Catherine's, that is, we generally found 
ourselves to the southward of our 
reckoning by about twenty miles each 
day. This error continued, with a 
little variation, till we had passed 
the Latitude of the River of Plate ; 
and even then we found that the same 
current, however difficult to be ac- 
counted for, did yet undoubtedly take 
place, for we were not satisfied in de- 
ducing it from the error in our reck- 
oning, but we actually tried it more 
than once when a calm made it prac- 
ticable. 

When we had passed the Latitude 
of the River of Plate we had sound- 
ings all along the coast of Patagonia, 
These soundings, when well ascertain- 
ed, being of great use in determining 
the position of the ship, and we having 
tried them more frequently in greater 
depths, and with more attention than 
I believe had been done before us, I 



1 That is, was lost sight of by the 
Centurion, oc board of which the 
Narrator sailed. 

8 Ed. 1776: "The wreck." 



1711.] THE COAST OF 

shall recite our observations as suc- 
cinctly as I can. In the Latitude of 
3(5 52' \ve had sixty fathoms of water, 
with a bottom of fine black and grey 
sand; from thence to 39" 55' we 
varied our depths from fifty to eighty 
fathoms, though we had constantly 
the same bottom as before ; between 
the last-mentioned Latitude and 43 
16' we had only fine grey sand, with 
the same variation of depths, except 
that we once or twice lessened our 
water to forty fathoms. After this 
we continued in forty fathoms for 
about half a degree, having a bottom 
of coarse sand and broken shells, at 
which time we were in sight of land, 
and not above seven leagues from it. 
As we edged from the land we met 
with variety of soundings ; first black 
sand, then muddy, and soon after 
rough ground with stones ; but then 
increasing our water to forty-eight 
fathoms we had a muddy bottom to 
the Latitude of 46 10'. We then re- 
turned again into thirty-six fathoms, 
and kept shoaling our water, till at 
length we came into twelve fathoms, 
having constantly small stones and 
pebbles at the bottom. Part of this 
time we had a view of Cape Blanco, 
which lies in about the Latitude of 
46 52', and Longitude W. from Lon- 
don 66 43'. This is the most remark- 
able land upon the coast. Steering 
from hence S. by E. nearly, we, in a 
run of about thirty leagues, deepened 
our water to fifty fathoms without 
once altering the bottom ; and then 
drawing towards the shore with a 
S\V. course, varying rather to the 
westward, we had everywhere a sandy 
bottom, till our coming into thirty 
fathoms, where we had again a sight 
of land distant from us about eight 
leagues, lying in the Latitude of 48 
31'. We made this land on the 17th 
of February, and at five in the after- 
noon we came to an anchor upon the 
same bottom in the Latitude of 48 
58', the southernmost land then in 
view bearing SSW., the northernmost 
N. half E., a small island NW., and 
the westernmost hummock WSW. In 
this station we found the tide to set 
S. by W. 



PATAGONIA. S3 

Weighing again at five the next 
morning, we an hour afterwards dis- 
covered a sail, upon which the Severn 
and Gloucester were both directed to 
give chase ; but we soon perceived it 
to be the Pearl, which separated from 
us a few days after we left St Cather- 
ine's ; and on this we made a signal 
for the Severn to rejoin the squadron, 
leaving the Gloucester alone in the pur- 
suit. And now we were surprised to 
see that, on the Gloucester's approach, 
the people on board the Pearl increased 
their sail and stood from her. How- 
ever, the Gloucester came up with 
them, but found them with their ham- 
mocks in their nettings, and every- 
thing ready for an engagement. At 
two in the afternoon the Pearl joined 
us, and running up under our stern, 
Lieutenant Salt hailed the Commo- 
dore, and acquainted him that Cap- 
tain Kidd died on the 31st of January. 
He likewise informed him that he had 
seen five large ships on the 10th in- 
stant, which he for some time ima- 
gined to be our squadron : that he 
suffered the commanding ship, which 
wore a red broad pennant exactly re- 
sembling that of the Commodore, at the 
main-topmast head, to come within 
gun-shot of him before he discovered 
his mistake ; but then, finding it not 
to be the Centurion, he hauled close 
upon the wind, and crowded from 
them with all his sail, and standing 
across a rippling, 1 where they hesi- 
tated to follow him, he happily escaped. 
He made them [out] to be five Spanish 
men-of-war, one of them exceedingly 
like the Gloucester, which was the 
occasion of his apprehensions when 
the Gloucester chased him. By their 
appearance he thought they consisted 
of two ships of 70 guns, two of 50, 
and one of 40 guns. The whole squad- 
ron continued in chase of him all that 
day, but at night, finding they could 
not get near him, they gave over the 
chase, and directed their course to the 
southward. 

And now, had it not been for the 



1 A broken piece of water, due to a 
current, a violent tide, or some other 
perturbing cause. 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.CH.VI. 



34 

necessity we were under of refitting 
the Trial, this piece of intelligence 
would have prevented our making any 
stay at St Julian ; but as it was impos- 
sible for that sloop to proceed round 
the Cape in her present condition, 
some stay there was inevitable ; and 
therefore the same evening we came to 
an anchor again in twenty-five fathoms 
water, the bottom a mixture of mud 
and sand, and the high hummock 
bearing SW. by W. And weighing 
at nine in the morning, we soon after 
sent the two cutters belonging to the 
Centurion and Severn in shore to dis- 
cover the harbour of St Julian, while 
the ships kept standing along the 
coast at about the distance of a league 
from the land. At 6 o'clock we 
anchored in the Bay of St Julian, 1 in 
nineteen fathoms, the bottom muddy 
ground with sand, the northernmost 
land in sight bearing K and by E. , 
the southernmost S. half E., and the 
high hummock to which Sir John 
Narborough formerly gave the name 
of Wood's Mount WS W. Soon after 
the cutters returned on board, having 
discovered the harbour, which did 
not appear to us in our situation, the 
northernmost point shutting in upon 
the southernmost, and in appearance 
closing the entrance. 

Being come to an anchor in this 
bay of St Julian, principally with a 
view of refitting the Trial, the car- 
penters were immediately employed 
in that business, and continued so 
during our whole stay at the place. 
The Trial's mainmast having been 
carried away about twelve feet below 
the cap, they contrived to make the 
remaining part of the mast serve 
again ; and the Wager was ordered 
to supply her with a spare main-top- 
mast, which the carpenters converted 
into a new foremast. And I cannot 
help observing, that this accident to 
the Trial's mast, which gave us so 

1 So called by Drake. It was the 
scene of Doughty' s trial and execu- 
tion ; "whence," Thomas says, "a 
small island within the harbour is to 
this day called the Island of True 
Justice." 



much uneasiness at that time on ac- 
count of the delay it occasioned, was 
in all probability the means of pre- 
serving the sloop and all her crew: 
for before this her masts, how well 
soever proportioned to a better cli- 
mate, were much too lofty for these 
high southern latitudes ; so that had 
they weathered the preceding storm, 
it would have been impossible for 
them to have stood against those seas 
and tempests we afterwards encoun- 
tered in passing round Cape Horn; 
and the loss of masts in that boister- 
ous climate would scarcely have been 
attended with less than the loss of 
the vessel and of every man on board 
her, since it would have been imprac- 
ticable for the other ships to have 
given them any relief during the con- 
tinuance of those impetuous storms. 

While we stayed at this place, the 
Commodore appointed the Honour- 
able Captain Murray to succeed to 
the Pearl, and Captain Cheap to the 
Wager ; and he promoted Mr Charles 
Saunders, his first lieutenant, to the 
command of the Trial sloop. But 
Captain Saunders lying dangerously 
ill of a fever on board the Centurion, 
and it being the opinion of the sur- 
geons that the removing him on board 
his own ship in his present condition 
might tend to the hazard of his life, 
Mr Anson gave an order to Mr Sau- 
marez, first lieutenant of the Cen- 
turion, to act as master and com- 
mander of the Trial during the illness 
of Captain Saunders. Here the Com- 
modore, too, in order to ease the ex- 
pedition of all unnecessary expense, 
held a further consultation with his 
captains about unloading and dis- 
charging the Anna pink ; but they 
represented to him that they were so 
far from being in a condition of taking 
any part of her loading on board, that 
they had still great quantities of pro- 
visions in the .way of their guns be- 
tween decks, and that their ships 
were withal so very deep 2 that they 
were not fit for action without being 
cleared. This put the Commodore 
under a necessity of retaining the 



2 Ed. 1776 : " And so lumbered." 



1741.] 1ST THE BAY 

pink in the service ; and as it was 
apprehended we should certainly meet 
with the Spanish squadron in passing 
the Cape, Mr Anson thought it ad- 
visable to give orders to the captains 
to put all their provisions which were 
in the way of their guns on board the 
Anna pink, and to remount such of 
their guns as had formerly, for the 
ease of their ships, been ordered into 
the hold. 1 . . . 

We, on our first arrival [at St 
Julian 2 ] sent an officer on shore to a 
salt pond, in order to procure a quan- 
tity of salt for the use of the squadron ; 
Sir John Narborough having observed, 
when he was here, that the salt pro- 
duced in that place was very white 
and good, and that in February there 
was enough of it to fill a thousand 
ships. But our officer returned with 
a sample which was very bad, and he 
told us that even of this there was 
but little to be got; I suppose the 



OF ST JULIAN. 35 

weather had been more rainy than 
ordinary, and had destroyed it. 3 



1 Thomas naively remarks with re- 
ference to their stay in the Bay of St 
Julian: "Sir John Narborough and 
some others write that they have often 
seen and conversed with the inhabi- 
tants in this and other parts of Pata- 
gonia, and have given wonderful de- 
scriptions of them; but as we saw 
none of them, I have nothing to say 
of that sort, nor indeed do I think 
there is anything in this wild part of 
the world worthy of the least notice." 

2 The district round Port St Julian 
is described as destitute of wood, Sir 
John ISTarborough, in the time of 
Charles the Second, making the 
sweeping assertion that he never saw 
a stick of wood in the country large 
enough to make the handle of a 
hatchet. It is, however, good pas- 
ture land, feeding immense herds of 
cattle, of which many thousands are 
annually slain by the hunters there 
for the hides and tallow alone. The 
method of taking them alive is by 
the lasso, in the use of which the 
native Indians and Spaniards are 
very dexterous. The plains also 
abound with wild horses and Peru- 
vian sheep. The lengthy account of 
the above is here omitted. 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE Trial being nearly refitted, which 
was our principal occupation at this 
Bay of St Julian, and the sole occa- 
sion of our stay, the Commodore 
thought it necessary, as we were now 
directly bound for the South Seas and 
the enemy's coasts, to regulate the 
plan of his future operations. And 
therefore, on the 24th of February, a 
signal was made for all captains, and 
a council of war was held on board 
the Centurion, at which were present 
the Honourable Edward Legg, Captain 
Matthew Mitchel, the Honourable 
George Murray, Captain David Cheap, 
together with Colonel Mordaunt Cra- 
cherode, commander of the land forces. 
At this council Mr Anson proposed 
that their first attempt, after their 
arrival in the South Seas, should be 
the attack of the town and harbour of 
Baldivia, the principal frontier [place] 
of the district of Chili ; Mr Anson 
informing them, at the same time, 4 



3 Ed. 1776 : " Or prevented its fer- 
mentation." Thomas adds some par- 
ticulars of interest with regard to the 
doings at St Julian: "Having lost 
the hopes of a supply of water here, 
we were put to the allowance of one 
quart a man for one day, and three 
pints for another, alternately ; but, 
considering our passage had hitherto 
proved extremely stormy and cold, 
and a dead time of the year coming 
on very fast, it was thought proper, 
in order to keep the people in as good 
heart as possible, to give them whole 
allowance of all other provisions, 
which was ordered accordingly. Here 
we further secured our lower deck 
guns, by nailing quoins under the 
trucks, in case the tackles, breechings, 
or iron -work, might give way, or fail 
in the stormy weather which we had 
much reason to expect." 

4 Ed. 1776: "As an inducement 
for this enterprise." 



ANSON'S VOYAGE HOUND THE WORLD. [13. 1. CH. VII. 



that it was an article contained in his 
Majesty's instructions to him, to en- 
deavour to secure some port in the 
South Seas where the ships of the 
squadron might be careened and re- 
fitted. To this proposition made by 
the Commodore, the council unani- 
mously and readily agreed ; and in 
consequence of this resolution new 
instructions were given to the captains 
of the squadron, by which, though 
they were still directed, in case of 
separation, to make the best of their 
way to the Island of Nuestra Senora 
del Socoro, yet (notwithstanding the 
orders they had formerly given them 
at St Catherine's) they were to cruise 
off that island only ten days ; from 
whence, if not joined by the Commo- 
dore, they were to proceed and cruise 
off the harbour of Baldivia, making 
the land between the Latitudes of 40 J 
and 40 30', and taking care to keep 
to the southward of the port ; and if 
in fourteen days they were not joined 
by the rest of the squadron, they were 
then to quit this station, and to direct 
their course to the Island of Juan 
Fernandez, after which they were to 
regulate their further proceedings by 
their former orders. The same direc- 
tions were also given to the master of 
the Anna pink, and he was particu- 
larly instructed to be very careful in 
answering the signals made by any 
ship of the squadron, and likewise to 
destroy his papers and orders if he 
should be so unfortunate as to fall 
into the hands of the enemy. And 
as the separation of the squadron 
might prove of the utmost prejudice 
to his Majesty's service, each captain 
was ordered to give it in charge to 
the respective officers of the watch 
not to keep their ship at a greater 
distance from the Centurion than two 
miles, as they would answer it at 
their peril ; and if any captain should 
find his ship beyond the distance 
specified, he was to acquaint the 
Commodore with the name of the 
officer who had thus neglected his 
duty. 

These necessary regulations being 
established, and the Trial sloop com- 
pleted, the squadron weighed on Fri- 



day the 27th of February, at seven in 
the morning, and stood to sea ; the 
Gloucester indeed found a difficulty 
in purchasing her anchor, and was 
left a considerable wa3>- astern, so that 
in the night we fired several guns as 
a signal to her captain to make sail, 
but he did not come up to us till the 
next morning, when we found that 
they had been obliged to cut their 
cable and leave their best bower be- 
hind them. At ten in the morning, 
the day after our departure, "Wood's 
Mount, the high land over St Julian, 
bore from us N. by "W., distant ten 
leagues, and we had fifty-two fathoms 
of water. And now, standing to the 
southward, we had great expectation 
of falling in with Pizarro's squadron ; 
for during our stay at Port St Julian 
there had generally been hard gales 
between the WNW. and SW., so 
that we had reason to conclude the 
Spaniards had gained no ground upon 
us in that interval. And it was the 
prospect of meeting with them that 
had occasioned our Commodore to be 
so very solicitous to prevent the sepa- 
ration of our ships ; for had we been 
solely intent on getting round Cape 
Horn in the shortest time, the proper- 
est method for this purpose would 
have been to have ordered each ship 
to have made the best of her way to 
the rendezvous, without waiting for 
the rest. 

From our departure from St Julian 
to the 4th of March we had little 
wind, with thick, hazy weather and 
some rain ; and our soundings were 
generally from forty to fifty fathoms, 
with a bottom of black and grey sand, 
sometimes intermixed with pebble 
stones. On the 4th of March we 
were in sight of Cape Virgin Mary, 
and not more than six or seven leagues 
distant from it. This is the northern 
cape of the Straits of Magellan ; it 
lies in the Latitude of 52 21' S., and 
Longitude from London 71 44' W., 
and seems to be a low, flat land, end- 
ing in a point. Off this cape our 
depth of water was from thirty-five 
to forty-eight fathoms. The after- 
noon of this day was very bright and 
clear, with small breezes of wind, in- 



1741.] 



ENTRANCE TO STRAITS LE MAIRE. 



37 



clinable to a calm ; and most of the 
captains took the opportunity of this 
favourable weather to pay a visit to 
the Commodore ; but while they were 
in company together, they were all 
greatly alarmed by a sudden flame, 
which burst out on board the Glou- 
cester, and which was succeeded by a 
cloud of smoke. . However, they were 
soon relieved from their apprehensions 
by receiving information that the blast 
was occasioned by a spark of fire from 
the forge, lighting on some gunpow- 
der and other combustibles which an 
officer on board was preparing for use 
in case we should fall in with the 
Spanish fleet ; and that it had been 
extinguished without any damage to 
the ship. 

We here found, what was constantly 
verified by all our observations in 
these high [southern] latitudes, that 
fair weather was always of an exceed- 
ing short duration, and that when it 
was remarkably fine it was a certain 
presage of a succeeding storm ; for 
the calm and sunshine of our after- 
noon ended in a most turbulent night, 
the wind freshening from the SW. as 
the night came on, and increasing its 
violence continually till nine in the 
morning the next day, when it blew 
so hard that we were obliged to bring 
to with the squadron, and to continue 
under a reefed mizzen till eleven at 
night, having in that time from forty- 
three to fifty-seven fathoms water, 
with black sand and gravel ; and by 
an observation we had at noon, we 
concluded a current had set us twelve 
miles to the southward of our reckon- 
ing. Towards midnight, the wind 
abating, we made sail again ; and 
steering south, we discovered in the 
morning for the first time the land 
called Tierra del Fuego, stretching 
from the S. by W. to the SE. half E. 
This indeed afforded us but a very 
uncomfortable prospect, it appearing 
of a stupendous height, covered every- 
where with snow. 1 We steered along 

1 " So that the whole, " says Thomas, 
"may not improperly be termed the 
Land of Desolation ; and I much 
question whether a more dreary aspect 



this shore 2 all day, having soundings 
from forty to fifty fathoms, with stones 
and gravel. And as we intended to 
pass through Straits Le Maire next 
day, we lay to at night that we might 
not overshoot them, and took this 
opportunity to prepare ourselves for 
the tempestuous climate we were 
soon to be engaged in ; with which 
view we employed ourselves good part 
of the night in bending an entire new 
suit of sails to the yards. At four 
the next morning, being the 7th of 
March, we made sail, and at eight 
saw the land ; and soon after we be- 
gan to open the straits, at which time 
Cape St James bore from us ESE., 
Cape St Vincent SE. half E., the 
middlemost of the Three Brothers 
S. by W., Montegorda S., and Cape St 
Bartholomew, which is the southern- 
most point of Staten Land, ESE. 
Though Tierra del Fuego had an 
aspect extremely barren and desolate, 
yet this Island of Staten Land far 
surpasses it in the wildness and horror 
of its appearance ; it seeming to be 
entirely composed of inaccessible 
rocks, without the least mixture of 
earth or mould between them. These 
rocks terminate in a vast number of 
ragged points, which spire up to a 
prodigious height, and are all of them 
covered with everlasting snow ; the 
points themselves are on every side 
surrounded with frightful precipices, 
and often overhang in a most aston- 
ishing manner ; and the hills which 
bear them are generally separated 
from each other by narrow clefts, 
which appear as if the country had 
been rent by earthquakes ; for these 
chasms are nearly perpendicular, and 
extend through the substance of the 
main rocks, almost to their very 
bottoms ; so that nothing can be 
imagined more savage and gloomy 
than the whole aspect of this coast. 

I have above mentioned, that on 
the 7th of March, in the morning, we 
opened Straits Le Maire ; and soon 



is to be seen in any other part of the 
habitable earth. " 

2 Ed. 1776 : " This imcoutJ* and 
rugged coast. " 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.Cn.YIIT. 



38 

after, or about 10 o'clock, the Pearl 
and the Trial being ordered to keep 
ahead of the squadron, we entered 
them with fair weather and a brisk 
gale, and were hurried through by 
the rapidity of the tide in about two 
hours though they are between seven 
and eight leagues in length. As these 
Straits are often considered as the 
boundary between the Atlantic and 
Pacific Oceans, and as we presumed 
we had nothing now before us but 
an open sea, till we arrived on those 
opulent coasts where all our hopes 
and wishes centred, we could not 
help flattering ourselves that the 
greatest difficulty of our passage was 
now at an end, and that our most 
sanguine dreams were upon the point 
of being realised ; and hence we in- 
dulged our imaginations in those 
romantic schemes which the fancied 
possession of the Chilian gold and 
Peruvian silver might be conceived 
to inspire. These joyous ideas were 
heightened by the brightness of the 
sky, and the serenity of the weather, 
which was indeed most remarkably 
pleasing ; for though the winter was 
now advancing apace, yet the morn- 
ing of this day, in its brilliancy and 
mildness, gave place to none we had 
seen since our departure from Eng- 
land. Thus animated by these delu- 
sions, we traversed these memorable 
Straits, ignorant of the dreadful 
calamities that were then impending, 
and just ready to break upon us ; 
ignorant that the time drew near 
when the squadron would be sepa- 
rated never to unite again ; and that 
this day of our passage was the last 
cheerful day that the greatest part of 
us would ever live to enjoy. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

WE had scarcely reached the southern 
extremity of the Straits of Le Maire, 
when our flattering hopes were in- 
stantly lost in the apprehensions of 
immediate destruction. For before 
the sternmost ships of the squad- 
ron were clear of the Straits, the 



serenity of the sky was suddenly 
changed, and gave us all the presages 
of an impending storm ; and imme- 
diately the wind shifted to the south- 
ward, and blew in such violent squalls, 
that we were obliged to hand our top- 
sails and reef our mainsail. The tide, 
too, Avliich had hitherto favoured us, 
now turned against us, 1 and drove us 
to the eastward with prodigious rapid- 
ity, so that we were in great anxiety 
for the Wager and the Anna pink, th*> 
two sternmost vessels, fearing they 
would be dashed to pieces against the 
shore of Staten Land. Nor were our 
apprehensions without foundation, for 
it was with the utmost difficulty they 
escaped. And now the whole squad- 
ron, instead of pursuing their intended 
course to the SW., were driven to the 
eastward by the united force of the 
storm and of the currents j so that 
next day in the morning we found 
ourselves near seven leagues to the 
eastward of Staten Land, which then 
bore from us NW. The violence of 
the current, which had set us with so 
much precipitation to the eastward, 
together with the force and constancy 
of the westerly winds, soon taught us 
to consider the doubling of Cape Horn 
as an enterprise that might prove too 
mighty for our efforts ; though some 
amongst us had lately treated the 
difficulties which former voyagers were 
said to have met with in this under- 
taking as little better than chimerical, 
and had supposed them to arise rather 
from timidity and unskilfulness than 
from the real embarrassments of the 
winds and seas. But we were severely 
convinced that these censures were rash 
and ill-grounded : for the distresses 
with which we struggled during the 
three succeeding months will not 
easily be paralleled in the relation of 
any former naval expedition. This 
will, I doubt not, be readily allowed 
by those who shall carefully peruse 
the ensuing narration. 

From the storm which came on 
before we had well got clear of Straits 
Le Maire, we had a continual succes- 



1 Ed. 1776 : " Turned furiously ad- 
verse. " 



1741.1 

sion of such, tempestuous weather as 
surprised the oldest and most experi- 
enced mariners on board, and obliged 
them to confess, that what they had 
hitherto called storms were inconsid- 
erable gales compared with the vio- 
lence of these winds, which raised 
such short and at the same time such 
mountainous waves as greatly sur- 
passed in danger all seas known in 
any other part of the globe. And it 
was not without great reason that this 
unusual appearance filled us with con- 
tinual terror ; for had any one ofithese 
waves broke fairly over us, it must 
in all probability have sent us to the 
bottom. Nor did we escape with 
terror only ; for the ship, rolling in- 
cessantly gunwale-to, gave us such 
quick and violent motions, that the 
men were in perpetual danger of being 
dashed to pieces against the decks or 



sides of the ship. And though we 
were extremely careful to' secure our- 
selves from these shocks by grasping 
some fixed body, yet many of our 
people were forced from their hold, 
some of whom were killed, and others 
greatly injured ; in particular, one of 
our best seamen was canted overboard 
and drowned, another dislocated his 
neck, a third was thrown into the 
mainhold and broke his thigh, and 
one of our boatswain's mates broke 
his collar-bone twice ; not to men- 
tion many other accidents of the same 
kind. 

It was on the 7th of March, as has 
been already observed, that we passed 
Straits Le Maire, and were immedi- 
ately afterwards driven to the east- 
ward by a violent storm and the force 
of the current which set that way. 
For the four or five succeeding days 
we had hard gales of wind from the 
same quarter, with a most prodigious 
swell ; so that though we stood, dur- 
ing all that time, towards the SW., 
yet we had no reason to imagine we 
had made any way to the westward. 
In this interval we had frequent squalls 
of r^in and snow, and shipped great 
quantities of water ; after which for 
three or four days, though the seas 
ran mountains high, yet the weather 
was rather more moderate. But, on 



A VIOLENT STORM. 39 

the 18th, we had again strong gales 
of wind with extreme cold, and at 
midnight the main-topsail split, and 
one of the straps of the main dead- 
eyes broke. From hence to the 23d 
the weather was more favourable, 
though often intermixed with rain 
and sleet, and some hard gales : but 
as the waves did not subside, the ship, 
by labouring in this lofty sea, was now 
grown so loose in her upper works 
that she let in the water at every 
seam ; so that every part within board 
was constantly exposed to the sea- 
water, and scarcely any of the officers 
ever lay in dry beds. Indeed it was 
very rare that two nights ever passed 
without many of them being driven 
from their beds by the deluge of water 
that came upon them. 

On the 23d we had a most violent 
storm of wind, hail, and rain, with a 



very great sea ; and though we handed 
the main-topsail before the height of 
the squall, yet we found the yard 
sprung ; and soon after, the foot-rope 
of the mainsail breaking, the mainsail 
itself split instantly to rags, and in 
spite of our endeavours to save it, 
much the greater part of it was blown 
overboard. On this the Commodore 
made the signal for the squadron to 
bring to ; and, the storm at length 
flattening to a calm, we had an oppor- 
tunity of getting down our main- top- 
sail yard to put the carpenters at work 
upon it, and of repairing our rigging ; 
after which, having bent a new main- 
sail, we got under sail again with a 
moderate breeze. But in less than 
twenty-four hours we were attacked by 
another storm still more furious than 
the former ; for it proved a perfect hur- 
ricane, and reduced us to the necessity 
of lying to under our bare poles. As 
our ship kept the wind better than any 
of the rest, we were obliged in the 
afternoon to wear ship, in order to 
join the squadron to the leeward, 
which otherwise we should have been 
in danger of losing in the night ; and 
as we dared not venture any sail 
abroad, we were obliged to make use 
of an expedient which answered our 
purpose ; this was putting the helm a- 
weather, and manning the fore -shrouds. 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WOULD. [B.LCii.VIH. 



40 

But though tliis method proved suc- 
cessful for the end intended, yet in 
the execution of it one of our ablest 
seamen was canted overboard ; and 
notwithstanding the prodigious agita- 
tion of the waves, we perceived that lie 
swam very strong, and it was with the 
utmost concern that we found our- 
selves incapable of assisting him ; and 
we were the more grieved at his un- 
happy fate, since we lost sight of him 
struggling with the waves, and con- 
ceived from the manner in which he 
swam that he might continue sen- 
sible for a considerable time longer of 
the horror attending his irretrievable 
situation. 1 

Before this last -mentioned storm 
was quite abated, we found two of our 
main shrouds and one mizzen-shroud 
broken, all which we knotted and set 
up immediately ; and from hence we 
had an interval of three or four days 
less tempestuous than usual, but ac- 
companied with a thick fog, in which 
we were obliged to fire guns almost 
every half hour, to keep our squadron 
together. On the 31st we were alarmed 
by a gun fired from the Gloucester, 
and a signal made by her to speak 
with the Commodore. "We immedi- 
ately bore down to her, and were pre- 
pared to hear of some terrible disaster ; 
but we were apprised of it before we 
joined her, for we saw that her main- 
yard was broke in the slings. This 
was a grievous misfortune to us all at 
this juncture ; as it was obvious it 
would prove an hindrance to our sail- 
ing, and would detain us the longer 
in these inhospitable latitudes. But 
our future success and safety were not 
to be promoted by repining, but by 
resolution and activity ; and therefore, 
that this unlucky incident might delay 
us as little as possible, the Commodore 



1 With reference to this affecting 
circumstance, Cowper composed his 
verses on "The Castaway." One is 
as follows : 

"lie long survives, who lives an hour 

In ocean, self-upheld : 
And so long he, with unspent power, 

His destiny repell'd : 
Ami ever, as the minutes flew, 
Entreated help, or cried ' Adieu.'" 



ordered several carpenters to be put on 
board the Gloucester from the other 
ships of the squadron, in order to 
repair her damage with the utmost 
expedition. And the captain of the 
Trial complaining at the same time 
that his pumps were so bad, and the 
sloop made so great a quantity of 
water, that he was scarcely able to 
keep her free, the Commodore ordered 
him a pump ready fitted from his own 
ship. It was very fortunate for the 
Gloucester and the Trial that the 
weather proved more favourable this 
day than for many days both before 
and after ; since by this means they 
were enabled to receive the assistance 
which seemed essential to their preser- 
vation, and which they could scarcely 
have had at any other time, as it would 
have been extremely hazardous to have 
ventured a boat on board. 2 

The next day, that is, on the 1st of 
April, the weather returned again to 
its customary bias, the sky looked dark 
and gloomy, and the wind began to 



2 Under this date, March 31st, An- 
son's Official Report of his voyage 
makes the first mention of the scurvy : 
"Men falling down every day with 
scorbutic complaints." Thomas also 
now notes, with some graphic details, 
the outbreak of the scurvy, which Mr 
Walter, with a sad want of dramatic 
instinct, defers to a period of compara- 
tively trivial elemental peril : "And 
now, as it were to add the finishing 
stroke to our misfortunes, our people 
began to be universally afflicted with 
that most terrible, obstinate, and, at 
sea, incurable disease, the scurvy, which 
quickly made a most dreadful havoc 
among us, beginning at first to carry 
off two or three a day, but soon in- 
creasing, and at last carrying off eight 
or ten ; an-I as most of the living were 
very ill of the same distemper, and the 
little remainder who preserved their 
healths better, in a manner quite worn 
out with incessant labour, I have some- 
times seen four or five dead bodies, 
some sewn up in their hammocks, 
others not, washing about the decks, 
for want of help to bury them in the 
sea." 



1741.] 



DISTRESS OF THE SQUADRON. 



41 



freshen and to blow in squalls ; how- 
ever, it was not yet so boisterous as 
to prevent our carrying our topsails 
close reefed ; but its appearance was 
such as plainly prognosticated that a 
still sevea-er tempest was at hand. 
And accordingly, on the 3d of April, 
there came on a storm which both in 
its violence and continuation (for it 
lasted three days) exceeded all that 
we had hitherto encountered. In its 
first onset, we received a furious shock 
from the sea which broke upon our 
larboard quarter, where it stove in the 
quarter gallery, and rushed into the 
ship like a deluge ; our rigging, too, 
suffered extremely, for one of the straps 
of the main dead-eyes was broke, as 
was also a mainshroud and futtock- 
shroud, so that to ease the stress upon 
the masts and shrouds we lowered both 
our main and fore yards, and furled 
all our sails, and in this posture we 
lay to for three days, when, the storm 
somewhat abating, we ventured to 
make sail under our courses only. But 
even this we could not do long, for 
the next day, which was the 7th, we 
had another hard gale of wind, with 
lightning and rain, which obliged us 
to lie to again all night. It was won- 
derful that, notwithstanding the hard 
weather we had endured, no extraor- 
dinary accident had happened to any 
of the squadron since the breaking of 
the Gloucester's main yard : but this 
wonder soon ceased ; l for at three the 
next morning several guns were fired 
to leeward as signals of distress. And 
the Commodore making a signal for 
the squadron to bring to, we at day- 
break saw the Wager a considerable 
way to leeward of any of the other 
ships; and we soon perceived that 
she had lost her mizzenmast and main- 
topsail yard. We immediately bore 
down to her, and found this disaster 
had arisen from the badness of her 
ironwork ; for all the chain-plates to 
windward had given way upon the 
ship's fetching a deep roll. This proved 
the more unfortunate to the Wager, as 
her carpenter had been on board the 

1 Ed. 1776 : " This good fortune now 
no longer attended us. " 



Gloucester ever since the Slstof March, 
and the weather was now too severe to 
permit him to return. Nor was the 
Wager the only ship of the squadron 
that had suffered in the late tempest ; 
for the next day a signal of distress 
was made by the Anna pink, and, 
upon speaking with the master, we 
learned that they had broken their fore- 
stay and the gammon of the bowsprit, 
and were in no small danger of having 
all the masts come by the board ; so 
that we were obliged to bear away un- 
til they had made all fast, after which 
we hauled upon a wind again. . . . 
By the latitude of the land we [next] 
fell in with, it was agreed to be a part 
of Tierra del Fuego, near the southern 
outlet described in Frazier's chart of 
the Straits of Magellan, and was 
supposed to be that point called bj 
him Cape Noir. It was indeed mot 
wonderful that the currents should 
have driven us to the eastward with 
such strength ; for the whole squadron 
esteemed themselves upwards of ten 
degrees more westerly than this land, 
so that in running down, by our ac- 
count, about nineteen degrees of lon- 
gitude, we had not really advanced 
above half that distance. And now, 
instead of having our labours and 
anxieties relieved by approaching a 
warmer climate and more tranquil 
seas, we were [forced] to steer again 
to the southward, and again to com- 
bat those western blasts which had so 
often terrified tis ; and this, too, when 
we were weakened by our men falling 
sick and dying apace, and when our 
spirits, dejected by a long conti 
a, and b our late disaoinl 



at sea, an y 

were much less capable of su 



ippointment, 
ipable of supporting 
us in the various difficulties which we 
could not but expect in this new [and 
arduous] undertaking. Add to all 
this, too, the discouragement we re- 
ceived by the diminution of the strength 
of the squadron ; for three days before 
this we lost sight of the Severn and 
the Pearl in the morning ; and though 
we spread our ships, and beat about 
for some time, yet we never saw them 
more ; whence we had apprehensions 
that they too might have fallen in 
with this land in the night, and, being 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.Cn.IX.X. 



42 

less favoured by the wind and the moon 
than we were, might have run on shore 
and have perished. Full of these de- 
jected thoughts and gloomy presages, 
we stood away to the SW., prepared 
by our late disaster to suspect, that 
how large soever an allowance we made 
in our westing for the drift of the 
eastern current, we might still upon a 
second trial perhaps find it insufficient. 



CHAPTER IX. 1 

THE improper season of the year in 
which we attempted to double Cape 
Horn, and to which is to be imputed 
the disappointment recited in the 
foregoing Chapter in falling in with 
Tierra del Fuego, when we reckoned 
ourselves at least a hundred leagues 
to the westward of that whole coast, 
and consequently well advanced into 
the Pacific Ocean ; this unseasonable 
navigation, I say, to which we were 
necessitated by our too late departure 
from England, was the fatal source of 
all the misfortunes we afterwards en- 
countered. For from hence proceeded 
the separation of our ships, the de- 
struction of our people, the ruin of 
our project on Baldivia and of all our 
other views on the Spanish places, 
and the reduction of our squadron 
from the formidable condition in 
which it passed Straits Le Maire to a 
couple of shattered, half -manned 
cruisers, and a sloop, so far disabled 
that in many climates they scarcely 
durst have put to sea. 

1 This Chapter, of twenty pages in 
the original, is almost entirely devoted 
to " Observations and Directions for 
facilitating the Passage of our Future 
Cruisers round Cape Horn." But as 
its matter is purely technical, and, 
however curious as casting light on 
the state of nautical science a century 
and a quarter ago, possesses not the 
smallest popular interest now-a-days, 
the Chapter is omitted, with the ex- 
ception of one or two introductory 
sentences which bear on the actual 
narrative. 



CHAPTER X. 

AFTER the mortifying disappointment 
of falling in with the coast of Tierra 
del Fuego, when we esteemed ourselves 
ten degrees to the westward of it ; 
after this disappointment, I say, re- 
cited in the eighth Chapter, we stood 
away to the SW. till the 22d of April, 
when we were in upwards of 60 S. , and 
by our account near six degrees to the 
westward of Cape Noir. And in this 
run we had a series of as favourable 
weather as could well be expected in 
that part of the world, even in a 
better season ; so that this interval, 
setting the inquietude of our thoughts 
aside, was by far the most eligible of 
any we enjoyed from Straits Le Maire 
to the west coast of America. This 
moderate weather continued with 
little variation till the 24th ; but on 
the 24th in the evening the wind 
began to blow fresh, and soon in- 
creased to a prodigious storm ; and 
the weather being extremely thick, 
about midnight we lost sight of ^tha 
other ships of the squadron, which, 
notwithstanding the violence of the 
preceding storms, had hitherto kept 
in company with us. Nor was this 
our sole misfortune ; for the next 
morning, endeavouring to hand the 
topsails, the clewlines and buntlines 
broke, and, the sheets being half- 
flown, every seam in the topsails was 
soon split from top to bottom, and 
the main-topsail shook so strongly in 
the wind, that it carried away the 
top lantern, and endangered the head 
of the mast. However, at length some 
of the most daring of our men ven- 
tured upon the yard, and cut the sail 
away close to the reefs, though with 
the utmost hazard of their lives. At 
the same time, the foretopsail beat 
about the yard with so much fury, 
that it was soon blown to pieces ; and 
that we might have full employment, 
the mainsail blew loose, which obliged 
us to lower down the yard to secure 
the sail; and the fore -yard being 
likewise lowered, we lay to under a 
mizzen. And besides the loss of our 
topsails, we had much of our other 



1741.] 



DEATHS FROM SCURVY ON BOARD. 



rigging broke, and lost a main stud- 
ding-sail boom out of the chains. 

On the 25th, about noon, the weather 
became more moderate, which enabled 
us to sway up our yards, and to repair, 
in the best manner we could, our 
shattered rigging ; but still we had 
no sight of the rest of our squadron, 
nor indeed were we joined by any of 
them again till after our arrival at 
Juan Fernandez, nor did any two of 
them, as we have since learned, con- 
tinue in company together. And this 
total separation was the more wonder- 
ful, as we had hitherto kept together 
for seven weeks, through all the re- 
iterated tempests of this turbulent 
climate. It must indeed be owned 
that this separation gave us room to 
expect that we might make oi:r pas- 
sage in a shorter time than if we had 
continued together, because we could 
now make the best of our way without 
being retarded by the misfortunes of 
the other ships ; but then we had 
the melancholy reflection that we 
ourselves were hereby deprived of the 
assistance of others, and our safety 
would depend upon our single ship. 
So that, if a plank started, or any 
other accident of the same nature 
should take place, we must all irre- 
coverably perish ; or, should we be 
driven on shore, we had the uncom- 
fortable prospect of ending our days 
on some desolate coast, without any 
reasonable hope of ever getting away ; 
whereas, with another ship in com- 
pany, all these calamities are much 
less formidable, since in every kind 
of danger there would be some proba- 
bility that one ship at least might 
escape, and might be capable of pre- 
serving or relieving the crew of the 
other. 

The remaining part of this month 
of April we had generally hard gales, 
although we had been every day since 
the 22d edging to the northward; 
however, on the last day of the month 
we nattered ourselves with the hopes 
of soon terminating all our sufferings, 
for we that day found ourselves in 
the Latitude of 52 13', which, being 
to the northward of the Straits of 
Magellan, we were assured that we 



had completed our passage, and had 
arrived in the confines of the Southern 
Ocean ; and this Ocean being nomi- 
nated Pacific, from the equability of 
the seasons which are said to prevail 
there, and the facility and security 
with which navigation is there carried 
on, we doubted not but we should be 
speedily cheered with the moderate 
gales, the smooth water, and the 
temperate air, for which that tract of 
the globe has been so renowned. And 
under the influence of these pleasing 
circumstances we hoped to experience 
some kind of compensation for the 
complicated miseries which had so 
constantly attended us for the last 
eight weeks. But here we were again 
disappointed ; for in the succeeding 
month of May our sufferings rose to 
a much higher pitch than they had 
ever yet done, whether we consider 
the violence of the storms, the shat- 
tering of our sails and rigging, or the 
diminishing and weakening of our 
crew by deaths and sickness, and the 
probable prospect of our total destruc- 
tion. All this will be sufficiently 
evident from the following circum- 
stantial account of our diversified 
misfortunes. 

Soon after our passing Straits Le 
Maire, the scurvy began to make its 
appearance amongst us ; and our long 
continuance at sea, the fatigue we 
underwent, and the various disap- 
pointments we met with, had occa- 
sioned its spreading to such a degree, 
that at the latter end of April there 
were but few on board who were not 
in some degree afflicted with it ; and 
in that month no less than forty- three 
died of it on board the Centurion. 
But though we thought that the dis- 
temper had then risen to an extra- 
ordinary height, and were willing 
to hope that as we advanced to the 
northward its malignity would abate ; 
yet we found, on the contrary, that 
in the month of May we lost nearly 
double that number. And as we did 
not get to land till the middle of 
June, the mortality went on increas- 
ing, and the disease extended itself so 
prodigiously, that after the loss of 
above 200 men we could not at last 



AXSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I.Cir.X. 



44 

muster more than six foremast men 
in a watch capable of duty. 

This disease, so frequently attend- 
ing all long voyages, and so particu- 
larly destructive to us, is surely the 
most singular and unaccountable of 
any that affects the human body. For 
its symptoms are inconstant and in- 
numerable, and its progress and effects 
extremely irregular ; for scarcely any 
two persons have the same complaints, 
and where there has been found some 
conformity in the symptoms the order 
of their appearance has been totally 
different. However, though it fre- 
quently puts on the form, of many 
other diseases, and is therefore not 
to be described by any exclusive and 
infallible criterions ; yet there are 
some symptoms which are more gene- 
ral than the rest, and, therefore, 
occurring the oftenest, deserve a more 
particular enumeration. These com- 
mon appearances are large discoloured 
spots dispersed over the whole surface 
of the body, swelled legs, putrid gums, 
and above all, an extraordinary lassi- 
tude of the whole body, especially 
after any exercise however inconsider- 
able ; and this lassitude at last de- 
generates into a proneness to swoon 1 
on the least exertion of strength, or 
even on the least motion. This 
disease is likewise usually attended 
with a strange dejection of the spirits, 
and with shiverings, tremblings, and 
a disposition to be seized with the 
most dreadful terrors on the slightest 
accident. I ndeed it was most remark- 
able, in all our reiterated experience 
of this malady, that whatever dis- 
couraged our people, or at any time 
damped their hopes, never failed to 
add new vigour to the distemper ; for 
it usually killed those who were in 
the last stage of it, and confined those 
to their hammocks who were before 
capable of some kind of duty ; so that 
,it seemed as if alacrity of mind and 
sanguine thoughts were no contempt- 
ible preservatives from its fatal malig- 
nity. 

But it is not easy to complete the 
long roll of the various concomitants 

1 Ed. 1776 : "And even to die." 



of this disease ; for it often produced 
putrid fevers, pleurisies, the jaundice, 
and viojent rheumatic pains, and 
sometimes it occasioned an obstinate 
costiveness, which was generally at- 
tended with a difficulty of breathing ; 
and this was esteemed the most deadly 
of all the scorbutic symptoms. At 
other times the whole body, but mora 
especially the legs, were subject to 
ulcers of the worst kind, attended with 
rotten bones, and such a luxuriance 
of fungus flesh, as yielded to no 
remedy. But a most extraordinary 
circumstance, and what would be 
scarcely credible upon any single evi- 
dence, is, that the scars of wounds 
which had been for many years healed 
were forced open again by this viru- 
lent distemper. Of this there was a 
remarkable instance in one of the 
invalids on board the Centurion, who 
had been wounded above fifty years 
before at the battle of the Boyne ; for 
though he was cured soon after, and 
had continued well for a great number 
of years past, yet, on his being at- 
tacked by the scurvy, his wounds, in 
the progress of his disease, broke out 
afresh, and appeared as if they had 
never been healed. Nay, what is 
still more astonishing, the callus of a 
broken bone, which had been com- 
pletely formed for a long time, was 
found to be hereby dissolved, and the 
fracture seemed as if it had never been 
consolidated. Indeed, the effects of 
this disease were in almost every in- 
stance wonderful ; for many of our 
people, though confined to their ham- 
mocks, appeared to have no incon- 
siderable share of health, for they 
ate and drank heartily, were cheerful, 
and talked with much seeming vigour 
and with a loud, strong tone of voice ; 
and yet on their being the least moved, 
though it was only from one part of 
the ship to the other, and that in 
their hammocks, they have imme- 
diately expired ; and others who have 
confided in their seeming strength, 
and have resolved to get out of their 
hammocks, have died before they 
could well reach the deck ; and it 
was no uncommon thing for those 
who were able to walk the deck, ami 



1741.] 



GLOOMY PROSPECTS. 



45 



to do some kind of duty, to drop down 
dead in an instant, on any endeavours 
to act with their utmost vigour, many 
of our people having perished in this 
manner during the course of this 
voyage. 

With this terrible disease we strug- 
gled the greatest part of the time of 
our beating round Cape Horn ; and 
though it did not then rage with its 
utmost violence, yet we buried no 
less than forty-three men on board 
the Centurion in the month of April, 
as has been already observed. We 
still entertained hopes, that when we 
should have once secured our passage 
round the Cape, we should put a 
period to this and all the other evils 
which had so constantly pursued us. 
But it was our misfortune to find, 
that the Pacific Ocean was to us less 
hospitable than the turbulent neigh- 
bourhood of Tierra del Fuego and 
Cape Horn j 1 for being arrived, on 

1 Thomas dwells far more im- 
pressively on this disappointment : 
"Friday, May 8, at seven in the 
morning, saw the main land of Pata- 
gonia appearing in high mountains 
covered mostly with snow. We like- 
wise saw several islands, one of which 
we took to be the Island del Soccoro, 
so called by Sir John Narborough, in 
his account of his voyage into those 
parts ; and from the fine description 
this gentleman had given of this island 
(having been there in the very height 
of summer), this place was appointed 
for our first general rendezvous in the 
South Seas. An unhappy appoint- 
ment it was in its consequences ; for 
when the people, already reduced to 
the last extremity, found this to be 
the place of rendezvous, where they 
had hoped to meet the rest of their 
companions with joy, and what a 
miserable part of the world it ap- 
peared to be, their grief gave way to 
despair ; they saw no end of their 
sufferings, nor any door open to their 
safety. Those who had hitherto been 
well and in heart, now full of despon- 
dency, fell down, sickened, and died ; 
and, to sum up this melancholy part, 
I verily believe, that our touching on 



the 8th of May, off the Island of 
Socoro, which was the first rendez- 
vous appointed for the squadron, and 
where we hoped to have met with 
some of our companions, we cruised 
for them in that station several days. 
And here we were not only disap- 
pointed in our hopes of being joined 
by our friends, and thereby induced to 
favour the gloomy suggestions of their 
having all perished ; but we were 
likewise perpetually alarmed with the 
fears of being driven on shore upon 
this coast, which appeared too craggy 
and irregular to give us the least hopes 
that in such a case any of us could 
possibly escape immediate destruc- 
tion. For the land had indeed a 
most tremendous aspect ; the most 
distant part of it, and which appeared 
far within the country, being the 
mountains usually called the Andes 
or Cordilleras, was extremely high, 
and covered with snow ; and the 
coast itself seemed quite rocky and 
barren, and the water's edge skirted 
with precipices. In some places, in- 
deed, there appeared several deep bays 
running into the land, but the en- 
trance into them was generally blocked 
up by numbers of little islands ; and 
though it was not improbable but 
there might be convenient shelter in 
some of those bays, and proper chan- 
nels leading thereto ; yet, as we were 
utterly ignorant of the coast, had we 
been driven ashore by the western 
winds which blew almost constantly 
there, we did not expect to have 
avoided the loss of our ship and of 
our lives. 
And this continued peril, which 



this coast, the long stay we made here, 
and our hindrance by cross winds, 
which we should have avoided in a 
direct course to Juan Fernandez, lost 
us at least sixty or seventy of as stout 
and able men as any in the navy. 
This unspeakable distress was still 
aggravated by the difficulties we found 
in working the ship, as the scurvy 
had by this time destroyed no less 
than 200 of our men, and had in 
some degree affected almost the whole 
crew." 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. I. Cn. X. 



46 

lasted for above a fortnight, was 
greatly aggravated by the difficulties 
we found in Avorking the ship ; as the 
scurvy had by this time destroyed so 
great a part of our hands, and had in 
some degree affected almost the whole 
crew. 1 Nor did we, as we hoped, 
find the winds less violent as we ad- 
vanced to the northward ; for we had 
often prodigious squalls, which split 
our sails, greatly damaged our rigging, 
and endangered our masts. Indeed, 
during the greatest part of the time 
we were upon this coast, the wind 
blew so hard, that in another situa- 
tion where we had sufficient sea-room 
we should certainly have lain to ; but 
in the present exigency we were ne- 
cessitated to carry both our courses 
and topsails, in order to keep clear of 
this lee-shore. In one of these squalls, 
which was attended by several violent 
claps of thunder, a sudden flash of 
fire darted along our decks, which, 
dividing, exploded with a report like 
that of several pistols, and wounded 
many of our men and officers as it 
passed, marking them in different 
parts of the body. This flame was 
attended with a strong sulphurous 
stench, and was doubtless of the same 
nature with the larger and more vio- 
lent blasts of lightning which then 
filled the air. 

It were endless to recite minutely 
the various disasters, fatigues, and 
terrors which we encountered on this 
coast ; all these went on increasing 
till the 22d of May, at which time the 
fury of all the storms which we had 
hitherto encountered seemed to be 
combined, and to have conspired our 
destruction. In this hurricane almost 
all our sails were split, and great part 
of our standing rigging broken ; and, 
about eight in the evening, a moun- 
tainous overgrown sea took us upon 
our starboard quarter, and gave us so 

1 Alison himself writes in his Offi- 
cial Report, under date May 8th, that 
he "had not men able to keep the 
deck sufficient to take in a topsail, 
all being violently afflicted with the 
scurvy, and every day lessening our 
number by six, eight, or ten." 



prodigious a shock, that several of our 
shrouds broke with the jerk, by which 
our masts were greatly endangered ; 
our ballast and stores, too, were so 
strangely shifted, that the ship heeled 
afterwards two streaks to port. Indeed, 
it was a most tremendous blow, and 
we were thrown into the utmost con- 
sternation from the apprehension of 
instantly foundering ; and though the 
wind abated in a few hours, yet, as wo 
had no more sails left in a condition 
to bend to our yards, the ship laboured 
very much in a hollow sea, rolling 
gunwale-to, for want of sail to steady 
her : so that we expected our masts, 
which were now very slenderly sup- 
ported, to come by the board every 
moment. However, we exerted our- 
selves the best we could to stirrup our 
shrouds, to reeve new halyards, and 
to mend our sails ; but while these 
necessary operations were carrying on, 
we ran great risk of being driven on 
shore on the Island of Chiloe, which 
was not far distant from us ; but in 
the midst of our peril the wind happily 
shifted to the southward, and we 
steered off the land with the mainsail 
only, the master and myself undertak- 
ing the management of the helm, while 
every one else on board was busied in 
securing the masts, and bending the 
sails as fast as they could be repaired. 
This was the last effort of that stormy 
climate ; for in a day or two after we 
got clear of the land, and found the 
weather more moderate than we had 
yet experienced since our passing 
Straits Le Maire. And now having 
cruised in vain for more than a fort- 
night in quest of the other ships of 
the squadron, it was resolved to tako 
advantage of the present favourable 
season, and the offing we had made from 
this terrible coast, and to make the 
best of our way for the Island .of Juan 
Fernandez. For though our next ren- 
dezvous was appointed off the harbour 
of Baldivia, yet as we had hitherto 
seen none of our companions at this 
first rendezvous, it was not to be sup- 
posed that any of them would be found 
at the second ; indeed, we had the 
greatest reason to suspect that all but 
ourselves had perished. Besides, we 



1711.] 



EXTREME DISTRESS OF THE CREW. 



were by this time reduced to so low a 
condition, that, instead of attempting 
to attack the places of the enemy, our 
utmost hopes could only suggest to us 
the possibility of saving the ship, and 
some part of the remaining enfeebled 
crew, by our speedy arrival at Juan 
Fernandez ; for this was the only road 
in that part of the world where there 
was any probability of our recovering 
our sick, or refitting our vessel, and 
consequently our getting thither was 
the only chance we had left to avoid 
perishing at sea. 

Our deplorable situation, then, al- 
lowing no room for deliberation, we 
stood for the Island of Juan Fernandez : 
and to save time, which was now ex- 
tremely precious (our men dying four, 
five, and six in a day), and likewise 
to avoid being engaged again with a 
lee-shore, we resolved if possible to 
hit the island upon a meridian. And 
on the 28th of May, being nearly in 
the parallel upon which it is laid 
down, we had great expectations of see- 
ing it ; but not finding it in the posi- 
tion in which the charts had taught 
us to expect it, we began to fear that 
we had got too far to the westward ; 
and therefore, though the Commodore 
himself was strongly persuaded that 
he saw it on the morning of the 28th, 
yet his officers believing it to be only 
a cloud, to which opinion the haziness 
of the weather gave some kind of coun- 
tenance, it was on a consultation re- 
solved to stand to the eastward in the 
parallel of the island ; as it was cer- 
tain that by this course we should 
either fall in with the island, if we 
were already to the westward of it, 
or should at least make the mainland 
of Chili, whence we might take a new 
departure, and assure ourselves, by 
running to the westward afterwards, 
of not missing the island a second 
time. 

On the 30th of May we had a view 
of tlie continent of Chili, distant about 
twelve or thirteen leagues ; the land 
made exceeding high and uneven, and 
appeared quite white ; what we saw 



being doubtless a part of the Cordil- 
leras, which are always covered with 
snow. Though by this view of the 
land we ascertained our position, yet 
it gave us great uneasiness to find that 
we had so needlessly altered our course 
when we were, in all probability, just 
upon the point of making the island ; 
for the mortality amongst us was now 
increased to a most dreadful degree, 
and those who remained alive were 
utterly dispirited by this new disap- 
pointment and the prospect of their 
longer continuance at sea. Our water, 
too, began to grow scarce, so that a 
general dejection prevailed amongst 
us, which added much to the virulence 
of the disease, and destroyed numbers 
of our best men ; and to all these 
calamities there was added this vexa- 
tious circumstance, that when, after 
having got a sight of the main, we 
tacked and stood to the westward in 
quest of the island, we were so much 
delayed by calms and contrary winds, 
that it cost us nine days to regain the 
westing which, when we stood to the 
eastward, we ran down in two. In 
this desponding condition, with a crazy 
ship, a great scarcity of fresh water, 
and a crew so universally diseased that 
there were not above ten foremast men 
in a watch capable of doing duty, and 
even some of these lame, and unable 
to go aloft : under these disheartening 
circumstances, I say, we stood to the 
westward ; and, on the 9th of June, 
at daybreak, we at last discovered the 
long-wished-for Island of Juan Fer- 
nandez. And with this discovery I 
shall close this Chapter, and the First 
Book, after observing (which will fur- 
nish a very strong image of our un- 
paralleled distresses) that by our sus- 
pecting ourselves to be to the westward 
of the island on the 28th of May, and, 
in consequence of this, standing in for 
the main, we lost between seventy and 
eighty of our men, whom we should 
doubtless have saved had we made the 
island that day, which, had we kept 
on our course for a few hours longer, 
we could not have failed to have done. 



48 



ANSON'S VOYAGE HOUND THK WOULD. [B.U.Cii.L 



BOOK II. 



CHAPTER I. 

ON the 9th. of June, at daybreak, as 
is mentioned in the preceding Chap- 
ter, we first descried the Island of 
Juan Fernandez, bearing N. by E. 
half E., at eleven -or twelve leagues' 
distance. And though, on this view, 
it appeared to be a mountainous place, 
extremely ragged and irregular ; yet, 
as it was land, and the land we sought 
for, it was to us a most agreeable 
sight. For at this place only we 
could hope to put a period to those 
terrible calamities we had so long 
struggled with, which had already 
swept away above half our crew, and 
which, had we continued a few days 
longer at sea, would inevitably have 
completed our destruction. For we 
were by this time reduced to so help- 
less a condition, that out of 200 and 
odd men who remained alive, we could 
not, taking all our watches together, 
muster hands enough to work the 
ship on an emergency, though we in- 
cluded the officers, their servants, and 
the boys. 

The wind being northerly when we 
first made the island, we kept plying 
all that day, and the next night, in 
order to get in with the land ; and 
wearing the ship in the middle watch, 
we had a melancholy instance of the 
almost incredible debility of our 
people ; for the lieutenant could mus- 
ter no more than two quarter-masters 
and six foremast men capable of 
working ; so that without the assist- 
ance of the officers, servants, and 
boys, it might have proved impos- 
sible for r.s to have reached the island 
after we had got sight of it ; and even 
with this assistance they were two 
hours in trimming the sails. To so 
wretched a condition^ was a sixty- 
gun ship reduced, which had passed 
Straits Le Maire but three months 
before, with between 400 and 500 men, 
almost all of them in health and 
vigour. 



However, on the 10th, in the after- 
noon, we got under the lee of the 
island, and kept ranging along it at 
about two miles' distance, in order 
to look out for the proper anchorage, 
which was described to be in a bay on 
the north side. And now, being 
nearer in with the shore, we could 
discover that the broken craggy pre- 
cipices, which had appeared so unpro- 
mising at a distance, were far from 
barren, being in most places covered 
with woods ; and that between them 
there were everywhere interspersed 
the finest valleys, clothed with a most 
beautiful verdure, and watered with 
numerous streams and cascades ; no 
valley, of any extent, being unpro- 
vided of its proper rill. The water, 
too, as we afterwards found, was not 
inferior to any we had ever tasted, 
and was constantly clear ; so that the 
aspect of this country would at all 
times have been extremely delightful, 
but in our distressed situation, lan- 
guishing as we were for the land and 
its vegetable productions (an inclina- 
tion constantly attending every stage 
of the sea - scurvy), it is scarcely 
credible with what eagerness and 
transport we viewed the shore, and 
with how much impatience we longed 
for the greens and other refreshments 
which were then in sight ; and par- 
ticularly for the water, for of this wo 
had been confined to a veiy sparing 
allowance for a considerable time, and 
had then but five tons remaining on 
board. Those only Avho have en- 
dured a long series of thirst, and who 
can readily recall the desire and agita- 
tion which the ideas alone of springs 
and brooks have at that time raised 
in them, can judge of the emotion 
with which we eyed a large cascade of 
the most transparent water, which 
poured itself from a rock near 100 
feet high into the sea, at a small 
distance from the ship. Even those 
amongst the diseased, who were not 
in the very last stages of the distemper, 



1741.] 



ARRIVAL AT JUAN FERNANDEZ. 



49 



though they had long "been confined 
to their hammocks, exerted the small 
remains of strength that were left 
them, and crawled up to the deck to 
feast themselves with this reviving 
prospect. Thus we coasted the shore, 
fully employed in the contemplation 
of this diversified landscape, which 
still improved upon us the farther we 
advanced. But at last the night 
closed upon us before we had satisfied 
ourselves which was the proper bay 
to anchor in ; and therefore we re- 
solved to keep in soundings all night 
(we having then from sixty -four 
to seventy fathoms), and to send our 
boat next morning to discover the 
road. However, the current shifted 
in the night, and set us so near the 
land, that we were obliged to let go 
the best bower in fifty-six fathoms, 
not half-a-mile from the shore. At 
four in the morning the cutter was 
despatched with our third lieutenant 
to find out the bay we were in search 
of, who returned again at noon with 
the boat laden with seals and grass ; 
for though the island abounded with 
better vegetables, yet the boat's crew, 
in their short stay, had not met with 
them ; and they well knew that even 
grass would prove a dainty, and, in- 
deed, it was all soon and eagerly de- 
voured. The seals, too, were con- 
sidered as fresh provision ; but as yet 
were not much admired, though they 
grew afterwards into more repute ; 
for what rendered them less valuable 
at this juncture was the prodigious 
quantity of excellent fish which the 
people on board had taken during 
the absence of the boat. 

The cutter, in this expedition, had 
discovered the bay where we intended 
to anchor, which we found was to 
the westward of our present station ; 
and the next morning, the weather 
proving favourable, we endeavoured 
to weigh, in order to proceed thither. 
But though, on this occasion, we 
mustered all the strength we could, 
obliging even the sick, who were 
scarce able to keep on their legs, to 
assist us, yet the capstan was so 
weakly manned, that it was near four 
hours before we hove the cable right 



up and down ; after which, with our 
utmost efforts, and with many surges 
and some purchases we made use of 
to increase our power, we found our- 
selves incapable of starting the anchor 
from the ground. However, at noon, 
as a fresh gale blew towards the bay, 
we were induced to set the sails, which 
fortunately tripped the anchor ; on 
which we steered along shore till we 
came abreast of the point that forms 
the eastern part of the bay. On 
opening the bay, the wind, that had 
befriended us thus far, shifted, and 
blew from thence in squalls ; but by 
means of the headway we had got, 
we luffed close in, till the anchor 
brought us up in fifty-six fathoms. 1 
Soon after we had thus got to our new 
berth, we discovered a sail, which we 
made no doubt was one of our squad- 
ron ; and on its nearer approach, we 
found it to be the Trial sloop. We 
immediately sent some of our hands 
on board her, by whose assistance she 
was brought to an anchor between us 
and the land. We soon found that 
the sloop had not been exempted from 
those calamities which we had so 
severely felt ; for her commander, 
Captain Saunders, waiting on the 
Commodore, informed him, that out 
of his small complement he had buried 
thirty-four of his men ; and those 
that remained were so universally 
afflicted with the scurvy, that only 
himself, his lieutenant, and three 
of his men, were able to stand by 
the sails. 

The Trial came to an anchor within 
us on the 12th about noon, and we 
carried our hawsers on board her, in 
order to moor ourselves nearer in 
shore ; but the wind, coming off the 
land in violent gusts, prevented our 
mooring in the berth we intended, 
especially as our principal attention 
was now employed on business rather 
of more importance. For we were 

1 "To our inexpressible joy," sa3 r s 
Thomas, "having been from St 
Catherine's, in the Brazils, to this 
place 148 days, on such a dreadful 
and fatal a passage, as, I believe, very 
few persons ever experienced." 

D 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.CH.I. 



50 

now extremely occupied in sending 
on shore materials to raise tents for 
the reception of the sick, who died 
apace on board; and doubtless the 
distemperwas considerably augmented 
by the stench and filthiness in which 
they lay ; for the number of the dis- 
eased was so great, and so few could 
be spared from the necessary duty of 
the sails to look after them, that it 
was impossible to avoid a great re- 
laxation in the article of cleanliness, 
which had rendered the ship extremely 
loathsome between decks. But not-- 
withstanding our desire of freeing the 
sick from their hateful situation, and 
their own extreme impatience to get 
on shore, we had not hands enough 
to prepare the tents for their reception 
before the 16th ; but on that and the 
two following days we sent them all 
on shore, amounting to 167 persons, 
besides at least a dozen who died in 
the boats on their being exposed to 
the fresh air. The greatest part of 
our sick were so infirm, that we were 
obliged to carry them out of the ship 
in their hammocks, and to convey 
them afterwards in the same manner 
from the water-side to their tents, 
over a stony beach. This was a 
work of considerable fatigue to the 
few who were healthy ; and therefore 
the Commodore, with his accustomed 
humanity, not only assisted herein 
with his own labour, but obliged 
his officers, without distinction, to 
give their helping hand. The ex- 
treme weakness of our sick may in 
some measure be collected from the 
numbers who died after they had got 
on shore; for it had generally been 
found that the land, and the refresh- 
ments it produces, very soon recover 
most stages of the sea-scurvy ; and 
we flattered ourselves that those who 
had not perished on this first exposure 
to the open air, but had lived to be 
placed in their tents, would have 
been speedily restored to their health 
and vigour. But, to our great mor- 
tification, it was near twenty days 
after their landing before the mor- 
tality was tolerably ceased; and for 
the first ten or twelve days we buried 
rarely less than six each day, and 



many of those who survived recovered 
by very slow and insensible degrees. 
Indeed, those who were well enough, 
at their first getting on shore, to creep 
out of their tents and crawl about, 
were soon relieved, and recovered 
their health and strength in a very 
short time ; but in the rest the disease 
seemed to have acquired a degree of 
inveteracy which was altogether with- 
out example. 1 

The excellence of the climate and 
the looseness of the soil render this 
place extremely proper for all kinds 
of vegetation; for if the ground be 
anywhere accidentally turned up it is 
immediately overgrown with turnips 
and Sicilian radishes; and therefore 
Mr Anson having with him garden 
seeds of all kinds, and stones of dif- 
ferent sorts of fruits, he, for the better 
accommodation of his countrymen 
who should hereafter touch here, 
sowed both lettuces, carrots, and other 
garden plants, and set in the woods a 
great variety of plum, apricot, and 
peach stones. And these last, he has 
been informed, have since thriven to 
a very remarkable degree; for some 
gentlemen, who in their passage from 
Lima to Old Spain were taken and 
brought to England, having procured 
leave to wait upon Mr Anson to thank 
him for his generosity and humanity 
to his prisoners, some of whom were 
their relations, they in casual dis- 
course with him about his transac- 
tions in the South Seas, particularly 
asked him if he had not planted a 
great number of fruit-stones on the 
Island of Juan Fernandez; for they 
told him their late navigators had 
discovered there numbers of peach 
trees and apricot trees, which being 
fruits before unobserved in that place, 



1 The Narrator here goes into a long 
and minute description of Juan Fer- 
nandez, for the advantage of future 
British cruisers in those seas; but 
the island has been described in 
Dampier's Voyage (page 158), and the 
Editor has omitted those parts of Mr 
Walter's account which do not bear 
on the actual proceedings of the 
squadron. 



1741.] THE STAY ON 

they concluded them to be produced 
from kernels set by him. 

The spot where the Commodore 
pitched his tent, and which he made 
choice of for his own residence, was 
a small lawn that lay on a little as- 
cent, at the distance of about half-a- 
mile from the sea. 1 In the front of 
his tent there was a large avenue cut 
through the woods to the seaside, 
which sloping to the water, with a 
gentle descent, opened a prospect of 
the bay and the ships at anchor. 
This lawn was screened behind by a 
tall wood of myrtle sweeping round 
it in the form of a theatre, the ground 
on which the wood stood rising with 
a much sharper ascent than the lawn 
itself, though not so much but that 
the hills and precipices within land 
towered up considerably above the 
tops of the trees, and added to the 
grandeur of the view. There were, 
besides, two streams of crystal water 
which ran on the right and left of 
the tent, within 100 yards' distance, 
and were shaded by the trees which 
skirted the lawn on either side, 
and completed the symmetry of the 
whole. 

It remains now only that we speak 
of the animals and provisions which 
we met with at this place. Former 
writers have related that this island 
abounded with vast numbers of goats ; 
and their accounts are not to be 
questioned, this place being the usual 
haunt of the buccaneers and privateers 
who formerly frequented those seas. 
And there are two instances one of 
a Mosquito Indian, and the other of 



1 And was probably, as Thomas 
suggests, the very spot on which 
Shelvocke pitched his tent after his 
shipwreck on the island in May 1720. 
Shelvocke, as quoted in Kerr's Collec- 
tion of Voyages, Part L, Book IV., 
chap. 12, sec. 22, says: "I now took 
some pains to find out a convenient 
place in which to set up my tent, and 
at length found a commodious spot of 
ground not half-a-mile from the sea, 
having a fine stream of water on each 
side, with trees close at hand for 
firing, and building our huts. " 



THE ISLAND. 51 

Alexander Selkirk, a Scotchman, who 
were left by ^their respective ships, 
and lived alone upon this island for 
some years, and consequently were 
no strangers to its produce. Selkirk, 
who was the last, after a stay of be- 
tween four and five years, was taken 
off the place by the Duke and Duchess 
privateers, of Bristol, as may be seen 
at large in the journal of their voyage. 
His manner of life during his solitude 
was in most particulars very remark- 
able ; but there is one circumstance 
he relates which was so strangely 
verified by our own observation, that 
I cannot help reciting it. He tells 
us, among other things, as he often 
caught more goats than he wanted, 
he sometimes marked their ears and 
let them go. This was about thirty- 
two years before our arrival at the 
island. Now it happened that the 
first goat that was killed by our people 
at their landing had his ears slit; 
whence we concluded that he had 
doubtless been formerly under the 
power of Selkirk. This was indeed 
an animal of a most venerable aspect, 
dignified with an exceeding majestic 
beard, and with many other symptoms 
of antiquity. During our stay on the 
island we met with others marked in 
the same manner, all the males being 
distinguished by an exuberance of 
beard, and every other characteristic 
of extreme age. 

I remember we had once an oppor- 
tunity of observing a remarkable dis- 
pute betwixt a herd of these animals 
and a number of dogs, for going in our 
boat into the eastern bay, we saw 
some dogs running very eagerly upon 
the foot, and being willing to discover 
what game they were after, we lay 
upon our oars some time to view them ; 
and at last we saw them take to a hill, 
and looking a little farther we ob- 
served upon the ridge of it a herd of 
goats which seemed drawn up for their 
reception ; there was a very narrow 
path, skirted on each side by preci- 
pices, on which the master of the herd 
posted himself fronting the enemy, 
the rest of the goats being all behind 
him, where the ground was more 
open. As this spot was inaccessible 



ANSON'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cn.I. 



52 

by any other path excepting where 
this champion had placed himself, the 
dogs, though they ran up-hill with 
great alacrity, yet when they came 
within about twenty yards of him 
durst not encounter him (for he would 
infallibly have driven them down the 
precipice), but gave over the chase, 
and quietly laid themselves down, 
panting at a great rate. The dogs, 
which, as I have mentioned, are mas- 
ters of all the accessible parts of the 
island, are of various kinds, but some 
of them very large, and are multiplied 
to a prodigious degree. They some- 
times came down to our habitations at 
night and stole our provision, and 
once or twice they set upon single 
persons, but assistance being at hand, 
they were driven off without doing 
any mischief. As at present it is rare 
for goats to fall in their way, we con- 
ceived that they lived principally upon 
young seals ; and indeed some of our 
people had the curiosity to kill dogs 
sometimes and dress them, and they 
seemed to agree that they had a fishy 
taste* 

Goats' flesh, as I have mentioned, 
being scarce, we rarely being able to 
kill above one a day, and our people 
growing tired of fish (which abounds 
at this place), they at last condescend- 
ed to eat seals, which by degrees they 
came to relish, and called it lamb. 
The seal, numbers of which haunt 
this island, has been so often described 
by former writers that it is unneces- 
sary to say anything particular about 
them in this place. But there is an- 
other amphibious creature to be met 
with here, called a sea-lion, that bears 
some resemblance to a seal, though it 
is much larger. This, too, we ate, 
under the denomination of beef. They 
are in size, when arrived at their full 
growth, from twelve to twenty feet in 
length, and from eight to fifteen in cir- 
cumference ; they are extremely fat, so 
that after having cut through the skin, 
which is about an inch in thickness, 
there is at least a foot of fat before you 
can come at either lean or bones; and 
we experienced more than once that 
the fat of some of the largest afforded 
us a butt of oil. They are likewise 



very full of blood, for if they are 
deeply wounded in a dozen places, 
there will instantly gush out as many 
fountains of blood, spouting to a con- 
siderable distance ; and to try what 
quantity of blood they contained, we 
shot one first, and then cut its throat ; 
and measuring the blood that came 
from him, we found that, besides what 
remained in the vessels which, to be 
sure, was considerable we got at 
least two hogsheads. . . . We 
killed many of them for food, particu- 
larly for their hearts and tongues, 
which we esteemed exceeding good 
eating, and preferable even to those of 
bullocks. And in general there was 
no difficulty in killing them, for they 
were incapable either of escaping or 
resisting, their motion being the most 
unwieldy that can be conceived, their 
blubber, all the time they are moving, 
being agitated in large waves under 
their skins. However, a sailor one 
day being carelessly employed in skin- 
ning a young sea-lion, the female 
from which he had taken it came 
upon him unperceived, and getting 
his head in her mouth, she with her 
teeth scored his skull in notches in 
many places, and thereby wounded 
him so desperately that, though all 
possible care was taken of him, he 
died in a few days. 

But that which furnished us with 
the most delicious repasts at this 
island remains still to be described. 
This was the fish with which the 
whole bay was most plentifully stored, 
and with the greatest variety. For 
we found here cod of a prodigious 
size ; and by the report of some of our 
crew, who had been formerly employed 
in the Newfoundland fishery, not in 
less plenty than is to be met with on 
the banks of that island. We caught 
also cavillies, gropers, large breams, 
maids, silver-fish, congers of a peculiar 
kind, and above all, a black fish which 
we most esteemed, called by some a 
chimney-sweeper, in shape resembling 
a carp. Indeed the beach is every- 
where so full of rocks and loose stones 
that there is no possibility of hauling 
the seyne ; but with hooks and lines 
we caught what numbers we pleased, 



1742.1 



PRODUCE OF JUAN FERNANDEZ. 



53 



so that a boat with two or three lines 
would return loaded with fish in about 
two or three hours' time. The only 
interruption we ever met with arose 
from great quantities of dog-fish and 
large sharks, which sometimes attend- 
ed our boats and prevented our sport. 
Besides the fish we have already men- 
tioned, we found here one delicacy in 
greater perfection, both as to size, 
flavour, and quantity, than is perhaps 
to be met with in any other part of the 
world. This was sea craw-fish ; they 
generally weighed eight or nine pounds 
a-piece, were of an excellent taste, and 
lay in such abundance near the water's 
edge that the boat-hooks often struck 
into them in putting the boat to and 
from the shore. 

These are the most material articles 
relating to the accommodations, soil, 
vegetables, animals, and other produc- 
tions of the Island of Juan Fernan- 
dez. 1 By which it must appear how 



1 Thomas adds, in somewhat enthu- 
siastic terms, another and a pleasant 
feature of the island : " It is astonish- 
ing, that among all the voyagers who 
have visited this fortunate island be- 
fore us, and who have obliged the 
world with descriptions of it, none of 
them have mentioned a charming little 
bird that, with its wild, various, and 
irregular notes, enchants the ear, and 
makes the woods resound with its 
melody. This untutored chorister is 
somewhat less in size than the gold- 
finch, its plumage beautifully inter- 
mixed with red and othervivid colours, 
and the golden crown upon its head 
so bright and glowing when seen in 
the full light of the sun that it sur- 
passes all description. These little 
birds are far from being uncommon or 
unfamiliar, for they perched upon the 
branches of the myrtle-trees so near 
us, and sung so cheerfully, as if they 
had been conscious we were strangers, 
and came to give us welcome. There 
is, besides the above, another little 
bird unnoticed by any former writer, 
and which seems likewise peculiar to 
the island, and consequently without 
a name ; it is still less than the former 
in size, but not inferior in beauty, 



properly that place was adapted for 
recovering us from the deplorable 
situation to which our tedious and 
unfortunate navigation round Cape 
Horn had reduced us. And having 
thus given the reader some idea of the 
site and circumstances of this place, 
which was to be our residence for three 
months, I shall now proceed in the 
next Chapter to relate all that occurred 
to us in that interval, resuming my 
narration from the 18th day of June, 
being the day on which the Trial 
sloop, having by a squall been driven 
out to sea three days before, came 
again to her moorings, the day in 
which we finished the sending our 
sick on shore, and about eight days 
after our first anchoring at this island. 



CHAPTER II. 

THE arrival of the Trial sloop at this 
island, so soon after we came there 
ourselves [in the Centurion], gave us 
great hopes of being speedily joined 
by the rest of the squadron ; and we 
were for some days continually look- 
ing out, in expectation of their com- 
ing in sight. But near a fortnight 
being elapsed without any of them 
having appeared, we began to despair 
of ever meeting them again ; as we 
knew that, had our ship continued so 
much longer at sea, we should every 
man of us have perished, and the 
vessel, occupied by dead bodies only, 
would have been left to the caprice of 
the winds and waves : and this we 
had great reason to fear was the fate 
of our consorts, as each hour added 
to the probability of these desponding 
suggestions. 

But, on the 21st of June, some of 
our people, from an eminence on 
shore, discerned a ship to leeward, 



though not so musical ; the back, 
wings, and head, are of a lively green, 
intermixed with fine shining golden 
spots, and the belly a snow-white 
ground, with ebony-coloured spots, 
so elegantly varied as no art can 
imitate." ' 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.CH.II. 



54 

with her courses even with the hori- 
zon ; and they at the same time par- 
ticularly observed, that she had no 
sail abroad except her courses and 
her main-topsail. This circumstance 
rnade^them conclude that it was one 
of our squadron, which had probably 
suffered in her sails and rigging as 
severely as we had done : but they 
were prevented from forming more 
definite conjectures about her ; for, 
after viewing her for a short time, the 
weather grew thick and hazy, and 
they lost sight of her. On this report, 
and no ship appearing for some days, 
we were all under the greatest con- 
cern, suspecting that her people were 
in the utmost distress for want of 
water, and so diminished and weak- 
ened by sickness as not to be able to 
ply up to windward ; so that we feared 
that, after having been in sight of the 
island, her whole crew would notwith- 
standing perish at sea. However, on 
the 26th, towards noon, we discerned 
a sail in the NE. quarter, which we 
conceived to be the very same ship 
that had been seen before, and our 
conjectures proved true ; and about 
1 o'clock she approached so near 
that we could distinguish her to be 
the Gloucester. As we had no doubt 
of her being in great distress, the 
Commodore immediately ordered his 
boat to her assistance, laden with 
fresh water, fish, and vegetables, 
which was a very seasonable relief to 
them : for our apprehensions of their 
calamities appeared to be but too well 
grounded, as perhaps there never was 
a crew in a more distressed situation. 
They had already thrown overboard 
two-thirds of their complement, and 
of those that remained alive scarcely 
any were capable of doing duty, ex- 
cept the officers and their servants. 
They had been a considerable time at 
the small allowance of a pint of fresh 
water to each man for twenty-four 
hours ; and yet they had so little left, 
that, had it not been for the supply 
we sent them, they must soon have 
died of thirst. 

The ship plied in within three miles 
of the bay ; but, the winds and cur- 
rents being contrary, she could not 



reach the road. However, she con- 
tinued in the offing the next day, but 
had no chance of corning to an anchor 
unless the wind and current shifted ; 
and therefore the Commodore repeat- 
ed his assistance, sending to her the 
Trial's boat manned with the Centur- 
ion's people, and a further supply of 
water and other refreshments. Captain 
Mitchel, the captain of the Gloucester, 
was under a necessity of detaining 
both this boat and that sent the pre- 
ceding day ; for without the help of 
their crews he had no longer strength 
enough to navigate the ship. In this 
tantalising situation the Gloucester 
continued for near a fortnight, with- 
out being able to fetch the road, 
though frequently attempting it, and 
at sometimes bidding very fair for it. 
On the 9th of July we observed her 
stretching away to the eastward at a 
considerable distance, which we sup- 
posed was with a design to get to the 
southward of the island ; but as we 
soon lost sight of her, and she did 
not appear for near a week, we were 
prodigiously concerned, knowing that 
she must be again in extreme distress 
for want of water. After great impa- 
tience about her, we discovered her 
again on the 16th, endeavouring to 
come round the eastern point of the 
island ; but the wind, still blowing 
directly from the bay, prevented her 
getting nearer than within four leagues 
of the land. On this Captain Mitchel 
made signals of distress ; and our 
long-boat was sent to him with a store 
of water, and plenty of fish and other 
refreshments. And the long-boat 
being not to be spared, the cockswain 
had positive orders from the Commo- 
dore to return again immediately : 
but the weather proving stormy the 
next day, and the boat not appearing, 
we much feared she was lost, which 
would have proved an irretrievable 
misfortune to us all. But, the third 
day after, wo were relieved from this 
anxiety by the joyful sight of the 
long-boat's sails upon the water ; and 
we sent the cutter immediately to her 
assistance, which towed her alongside 
in a few hours. The crew of our 
long-boat had taken in six of the 



1741.1 



ARRIVAL OF THE GLOUCESTER. 



Gloucester's sick men to bring ^ them 
on shore, two of whom had died in 
the boat. And now we learned that 
the Gloucester was in a most dreadful 
condition, having scarcely a man in 
health on board, except those they 
received from us ; and numbers of 
their sick dying daily, we found that, 
had it not been for the last supply 
sent by our long-boat, both the healthy 
and diseased must have all perished 
together for want of water. And 
these calamities were the more terrify- 
ing, as they appeared to be without 
remedy : for the Gloucester had already 
spent a month in her endeavours to 
fetch the bay, and she was now no 
farther advanced than at the first 
moment she made the island ; on the 
contrary, the people on board her had 
worn out all their hopes of ever suc- 
ceeding in it, by the many experi- 
ments they had made of its difficulty. 
Indeed, the same day her situation 
grew more desperate than ever ; for 
after she had received our last supply 
of refreshments, we again lost sight of 
her ; so that we in general despaired 
of her ever coming to an anchor. 

Thus was this unhappy vessel ban- 
died about within a few leagues of her 
intended harbour, whilst the neigh- 
bourhood of that place, and of those 
circumstances which could alone put 
an end to the calamities they laboured 
under, served only to aggravate their 
distress, by torturing them with a view 
of the relief it was not in their power 
to reach. But she was at last deliv- 
ered from this dreadful situation, at a 
time when we least expected it ; for, 
after having lost sight of her for several 
days, we were pleasingly surprised, on 
the morning of the 23d of July, to see 
her oy-en the NW. point of the bay with 
a flowing sail ; when we immediately 
despatched what boats we had to her 
assistance, and in an hour's time from 
our first perceiving her she anchored 
safe within us in the bay. And now 
we were more particularly convinced 
of the importance of the assistance 
and refreshments we so often sent 
them, and how impossible it would 
have beea for a man of them to have 
survived had we given less attention 



to their wants ; for notwithstanding 
the water, the greens, and fresh provi- 
sions which we supplied them with, 
and the hands we sent them to navi- 
gate the ship, by which the fatigue of 
their own people was diminished, their 
sick relieved, and the mortality abated: 
notwithstanding this indulgent care of 
the Commodore, they yet buried three- 
fourths of their crew, and a very small 
proportion of the remainder were cap- 
able of assisting in the duty of the 
ship. On their coming to an anchor, 
our first care was to assist them in 
mooring, and our next to send the 
sick on shore. These were now reduced 
by deaths to less than fourscore, of 
which we expected to lose the greatest 
part ; but whether it was that those 
farthest advanced in the distemper 
were all dead, or that the greens and 
fresh provisions we had sent on board 
had prepared those who remained for 
a more speedy recovery, it happened, 
contrary to our expectations, that their 
sick were in general relieved and re- 
stored to their strength in a much 
shorter time than our own had been 
when we first came to the island, and 
very few of them died on shore. 

I have thus given an account of the 
principal events relating to the arrival 
of the Gloucester, in one continued 
narration ; I shall only add, that we 
never were joined by any other of 
our ships, except our victualler, the 
Anna pink, which came in about the 
middle of August, and whose history 
I shall more particularly relate here- 
after. 1 . . . 

1 The sick were put ashore here and 
the Centurion was cleansed from the 
effects of the recent distress on board, 
and the water was filled. In addition 
to supplies of vegetables and fresh fish, 
new bread was also baked in order to 
revive the health of the crew. As 
soon as the health of the men was 
tolerably recovered, the strongest of 
them were employed in cutting down 
trees, and splitting them into billets ; 
while the smiths had their forge sent 
ashore to mend the chain plates and 
other broken and decayed iron-work. 
A large tent was also set up on the 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cii.II. 



56 

The occupations of cleaning and 
watering the ship (which was by this 
time pretty well completed), the at- 
tendance on our sick, and the frequent 
relief sent to the Gloucester, were the 
principal transactions of our infirm 
crew till the arrival of the Gloucester 
at an anchor in the bay. And then 
Captain Mitchel, waiting on the Com- 
modore, informed him, that he had 
been forced by the winds, in his last 
absence, as far as the small island 
called Mas-a-fuera, lying about twenty- 
two leagues to the westward of Juan 
Fernandez ; and that he endeavoured 
to send his boat on shore at this place 
for water, of which he could observe 
several streams, but the wind blew so 
strong upon the shore, and occasioned 
such a surf, that it was impossible for 
the boat to land ; though the attempt 
was not altogether useless, as they 
returned with a boat-load of fish. This 
island had been represented by former 
navigators as a barren rock ; but Cap- 
tain Mitchel assured the Commodore 
that it was almost everywhere covered 
with trees and verdure, and was near 
four miles in length ; and added that it 
appeared to him far from impossible but 
some small bay might be found on it, 
which might afford sufficient shelter for 
any ship desirous of refreshing there. 

As four ships of our squadron were 
missing, this description of the Island 
of Mas-a-fuera gave rise to a conjecture 
that some of them might possibly have 
fallen in with that island, and have 
mistaken it for the true place of our 
rendezvous ; and this suspicion was 
the more plausible, as we had no 
draught of either island that could be 
relied on. In consequence of this 
reasoning, Mr Anson determined to 
send tie Trial sloop thither, as soon 
as she could be fitted for the sea, in 
order to examine all its bays and 
creeks, that we might be satisfied 
whether any of our missing ships were 
there or not. For this purpose, some 
of our best hands were sent on board 
the Trial the next morning, to over- 
haul and fix her rigging ; and our 

beach for the use of the sail-makers in 
their repairs of the sails and rigging. 



long-boat was employed in complet- 
ing her water ; and Avhatever stores 
and necessaries she wanted were im- 
mediately supplied either from the 
Centurion or the Gloucester. But it 
was the 4th of August before the Trial 
was in readiness to sail, when having 
weighed, it soon after fell calm, and 
the tide set her very near the eastern 
shore. Captain Saunders hung out 
lights, and fired several guns to ac- 
quaint us with his danger ; upon which 
all the boats were sent to his relief, 
who towed the sloop into the bay ; 
where she anchored until the next 
morning, and then weighing again pro- 
ceeded on her cruise with a fair breeze. 

And now after the Gloucester's 
arrival we were employed in earnest 
in examining and repairing our rig- 
ging ; but in stripping our foremast 
we were alarmed by discovering it was 
sprung just above the partners of the 
upper deck. The spring was two 
inches in depth and twelve in circum- 
ference ; but the carpenters, inspect- 
ing it, gave it as their opinion that 
fishing it with two leaves of an anchor- 
stock would render it as secure as ever. 
But our greatest difficulty in refitting 
was the want of cordage and canvas ; 
for though we had taken to sea much 
greater quantities of both than had 
ever been done before, yet the con- 
tinued bad weather we met with had 
occasioned such a consumption of these 
stores, that we were driven to great 
straits. For after working up all oui 
junk and old shrouds, to make twice 
laid cordage, we were at last obligee 1 
to unlay a cable to work into running 
rigging ; and with all the canvas, and 
remnants of old sails, that could be 
mustered, we could only make up one 
complete suit. 

Towards the middle of August, our 
men being indifferently recovered, they 
were permitted to quit their sick tents, 
and to build separate huts for them- 
selves ; as it was imagined that by 
living apart they would be much clean- 
lier, and consequently likely to recover 
their strength the sooner ; but at the 
same time particular orders were given, 
that on the firing of a gun from the 
ship they should instantly repair to 



1741.] 



ARRIVAL OF THE ANNA PINK. 



57 



the waterside. Tlieir employment on 
shore was now either the procuring of 
refreshments, the cutting of wood, or 
the making of oil from the blubber of 
the sea-lions. This oil served us for 
several uses, as burning in lamps, or 
mixing with pitch to pay the ship's 
sides, or, when mixed with wood-ashes, 
to supply the use of tallow, of which 
we had none left, to give the ship 
boot-hose tops. 1 Some of the men, 
too, were occupied in salting cod ; 
for there being two Newfoundland 
fishermen in the Centurion, the Com- 
modore made use of them in laying in a 
considerable quantity of salted cod fora 
sea-store ; but very little of it was made 
use of, as it was afterwards thought to 
be as productive of the scurvy as any 
other kind of salt provisions. 

I have before mentioned that we 
had a copper oven on shore to bake 
bread for the sick; but it happened 
that the greatest part of the flour for 
the use of the squadron was embarked 
on board our victualler, the Anna 
pink. And I should have mentioned 
that the Trial sloop, at her arrival, 
had informed us that on the 9th of 
May she had fallen in with our vic- 
tualler not far distant from the con- 
tinent of Chili, and had kept com- 
pany with her for four days, when 
they were parted in a hard gale of 
wind. This gave us some room to 
hope that she was safe, and that she 
might soon join us ; but all June and 
July being past without any news of 
her, we suspected she was lost; and 
at the end of July the Commodore 
ordered all the ships to a short allow- 
ance of bread. And it was not in 
our bread only that we feared a de- 
ficiency ; for since our arrival at this 
island we discovered that our former 
purser had neglected to take on board 
large quantities of several kinds of 
provisions which the Commodore had 



1 Boot-topping in those days denot- 
ed the scraping of a ship's bottom, 
or that part of its side near the sur- 
face of the water, and paying it over 
with a mixture of tallow, sulphur, 
resin, &c., as a temporary protection 
to the plank from worms. 



expressly ordered him to receive ; so 
that the supposed loss of our vic- 
tualler was on all accounts a mortify- 
ing consideration. However, on Sun- 
day the 16th of August, about noon, 
we espied a sail in the northern 
quarter, and a gun was immediately 
fired from the Centurion to call off 
the people from shore, who readily 
obeyed the summons, and repaired to 
the beach, where the boats waited to 
carry them on board. And now being 
prepared for the reception of this ship 
in view, whether friend or enemy, 
we had various speculations about 
her. At first many imagined it to be 
the Trial sloop returned from her 
cruise; but as she drew nearer this 
opinion was confuted by observing 
she was a vessel with three masts. 
And then other conjectures were 
eagerly canvassed, some judging it 
to be the Severn, others the Pearl, 
and several affirming that it did not 
belong to our squadron. But about 
three in the afternoon our disputes 
were ended by an unanimous per- 
suasion that it was our victualler, 
the Anna pink. This ship, though, 
like the Gloucester, she had fallen in 
to the northward of the island, had 
yet the good fortune to come to an 
anchor in the bay at five in the after- 
noon. Her arrival gave ^us all the 
sincerest joy ; for each ship's company 
was now restored to its full allowance 
of bread, and we were now freed from 
the apprehensions of our provisions 
falling short before we could reach 
some amicable port a calamity which 
in these seas is of all others the most 
irretrievable. This was the last ship 
that joined us ; and the dangers she 
encountered, and the good fortune 
which she afterwards met with, being 
matters worthy of a separate narra- 
tion, I shall refer them, together with 
a short account of the other ships of 
the squadron, to the ensuing Chapter. 



CHAPTER III. 

ON the first appearance of the Anna 
pink it seemed wonderful to us how 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. II. CH. III. 



58 

the crew of a vessel which came to 
this rendezvous two months after ns 
should be capable of working their 
ship in the manner they did, with so 
little appearance of debility and dis- 
tress. But this difficulty was soon 
solved when she came to an anchor ; 
for we then found that they had been 
in harbour since the middle of May, 
which was near a month before we 
arrived at Juan Fernandez: so that 
their sufferings (the risk they had 
run of shipwreck only excepted) were 
greatly short of what had been under- 
gone by the rest of the squadron. It 
seems, on the 16th of May, they fell 
in with the land, which was then but 
four leagues distant, in the Latitude 
of 45 15' S. On the first sight of 
it they wore ship and stood to the 
southward ; but their foretopsail split- 
ting, and the wind being WSW., 
they drove towards the shore ; and 
the captain at last, either unable to 
clear the land, or, as others say, re- 
solved to keep the sea no longer, 
steered for the coast with a view of 
discovering some shelter amongst the 
many islands which then appeared in 
sight. And about four hours after 
the first view of the land, the pink 
had the good fortune to come to an 
anchor to the eastward of the Island 
of Inchin; but as they did not run 
sufficiently near to the east shore of 
that island, and had not hands to 
veer away the cable briskly, they 
were soon driven to the eastward, 
deepening their water from twenty- 
five fathoms to thirty- five, and still 
continuing to drive, they, the next 
day, the 17th of May, let go their 
sheet anchor; which though it brought 
them up for a short time, yet on the 
18th they drove again, till they came 
into sixty-five fathoms water, and 
were now within a mile of the land, 
and expected to be forced on shore 
every moment, in a place where the 
coast was so very high and steep, 
that there was not the least prospect 
of saving the ship or cargo. And 
their boats being very leaky, and 
there being no appearance of a land- 
ing-place, the whole crew, consisting 
of sixteen men and boys, gave them- 



selves over for lost ; for they appre- 
hended that if any of them by some 
extraordinary chance should get on 
shore, they would in all probability 
be massacred by the savages on the 
coast : for these knowing no other 
Europeans but Spaniards, it might be 
expected they would treat all stran- 
gers with the same cruelty which they 
had so often and so signally exerted 
against their Spanish neighbours. 
Under these terrifying circumstances 
the pink drove nearer and nearer to 
the rocks which formed the shore ; 
but at last, when the crew expected 
each instant to strike, they perceived 
a small opening in the land, which 
raised their hopes; and immediately 
cutting away their two anchors, they 
steered for it, and found it to be a 
small channel betwixt an island and 
the main, which led them into a most 
excellent harbour, which, for its se- 
curity against all winds and swells, 
and the smoothness of its waters, may 
perhaps compare with any in the 
known world. And this place being 
scarcely two miles distant from the 
spot where they deemed their destruc- 
tion inevitable, the horrors of ship- 
wreck and of immediate death which 
had so long and so strongly possessed 
them vanished almost instantane- 
ously, and gave place to the more 
joyous ideas of security, repose, and 
refreshment. In this harbour, dis- 
covered in this almost miraculous 
manner, the pink came to an anchor 
in twenty-five fathoms water, with 
only a hawser and a small anchor of 
about three hundred-weight ; and here 
she continued for near two months, 
refreshing her people, who were many 
of them ill of the scurvy, but were 
soon restored to perfect health by the 
fresh provisions of which they pro- 
cured good store, and the excellent 
water with which the adjacent shore 
abounded. 1 , 



1 Anna Pink Bay is laid down in 
modern maps to the extreme north of 
the peninsula of Tres Montes, between 
that land and the southernmost island 
of the Chonos Archipelago, oft' th 
western coast of Patagonia. 



1741.] NAREATIVE OF WHAT BEFELL THE ANNA PINK. 



It may be expected that I should 
relate the discoveries made by the 
[Anna's] crew on the adjacent coast, 
and the principal incidents during 
their stay there. But here I must 
observe, that being only a few in 
number, they did not dare to detach 
any of their people on distant dis- 
coveries ; for they were perpetually 
terrified with the apprehension that 
they should be attacked either by the 
Spaniards or the Indians ; so that 
their excursions were generally con- 
fined to that tract of land which sur- 
rounded the port, and where they 
were never out of view of the ship. 
But even had they at first known how 
little foundation there was for these 
fears, yet the country in the neigh- 
bourhood was so grown up with wood, 
and traversed with mountains, that it 
appeared impracticable to penetrate 
it ; so that no account of the inland 
parts could be expected from them. 
Indeed, they were able to disprove the 
relations given by Spanish writers, 
who had represented this coast as in- 
habited by a fierce and powerful 
people ; for they were certain that 
no such inhabitants were there to be 
found, at least during the winter sea- 
son ; since all the time they continued 
there they saw no more than one In- 
dian family, which came into the 
harbour in a periagua about a month 
after the arrival of the pink, and con- 
sisted of an Indian near forty years 
old, his wife, and two children, one 
three years of age and the other still 
at the breast. They seemed to have 
with them all their property, which 
was a dog, a cat, a fishing-net, a 
hatchet, a knife, a cradle, some bark 
of trees intended for covering a hut, 
a reel, some worsted, a flint and steel, 
and a few roots of a yellow hue and a 
very disagreeable taste, which served 
them for bread. The master of the 
pink, as soon as he perceived them, 
sent his yawl, which brought them on 
board ; and fearing lest they might 
discover him if they were permitted 
to go away, he took, as he conceived, 
proper precautions for securing them, 
but without any mixture of ill-usage 
or violence. For in the day-time 



59 

they were permitted to go where they 
pleased about the ship, but at night 
were locked up in the forecastle. As 
they were fed in the same manner 
with the rest of the crew, and were 
often indulged with brandy, which 
they seemed greatly to relish, it did 
not at first appear that they were 
much dissatisfied with their situa- 
tion ; especially as the master took 
the Indian on shore when he went 
a-shooting (who always seemed ex- 
tremely delighted when the master 
killed his game), and as all the crew 
treated them with great humanity. 
But it was soon perceived, that though 
the woman continued easy and cheer- 
ful, yet the man grew pensive and 
restless at his confinement. He 
seemed to be a person of good natural 
parts ; and, though not capable of 
conversing with the pink's people 
otherwise than by signs, was yet very 
curious and inquisitive, and showed 
great dexterity in the manner of mak- 
ing himself understood. In particu- 
lar, seeing so few people on board 
such a large ship, he let them know 
that he supposed they were once more 
numerous ; and to represent to them 
what he imagined was become of their 
companions, he laid himself down on 
the deck, closing his eyes, and stretch- 
ing himself out motionless, to imitate 
the appearance of a dead body. But 
the strongest proof of his sagacity was 
the manner of his getting away ; for 
after being in custody on board the 
pink eight days, the scuttle of the 
forecastle, where he and his family 
were locked up every night, happened 
to be [left] unnailed, and the follow- 
ing night being extremely dark and 
stormy, he contrived to convey his 
wife and children through the un- 
nailed scuttle, and then over the 
ship's side into the yawl ; and, to 
prevent being pursued, he cut away 
the long-boat and his own periagua, 
which were towing astern, and imme- 
diately rowed ashore. All this he 
conducted with so much diligence 
and secrecy, that though there was a 
watch on the quarter-deck with loaded 
arms," yet he was not discovered by 
them till the noise of his oars in the 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cn.III. 



60 

water, after lie had put off from tlie 
ship, gave them notice of his escape ; 
and then it was too late either to pre- 
vent him or pursue him, for their 
boats being all adrift, it was a con- 
siderable time before they could con- 
trive the means of getting on shore 
themselves to search for their boats. 
The Indian, too, by this effort, besides 
the recovery of his liberty, was in 
some sort revenged on those who had 
confined him, both by the perplexity 
they were involved in from the loss of 
their boats, and by the terror he threw 
them into at his departure ; for on 
the first alarm of the watch, who 
cried out " The Indians !" the whole 
ship was in the utmost confusion, be- 
lieving themselves to be boarded by 
a fleet of armed periaguas. 

The resolution and sagacity with 
which the Indian behaved upon this 
occasion, had they been exerted on a 
more extensive object than retrieving 
the freedom of a single family, might 
perhaps have immortalised the ex- 
ploit, and have given him a rank 
amongst the illustrious names of an- 
tiquity. Indeed, his late masters did 
so much justice to his merit as to own 
that it was a most gallant enterprise, 
and that they were grieved they had 
ever been necessitated, by their atten- 
tion to their own safety, to abridge the 
liberty of a person of whose prudence 
and courage they had now such a 
distinguished proof. And as it was 
supposed by some of them that he 
still continued in the woods in the 
neighbourhood of the port, where it 
was feared he might suffer for want 
of provisions, they easily prevailed 
upon the master to leave a quantity 
of such food as they thought would 
be most agreeable to him, in a parti- 
cular part where they imagined he 
would be likely to find it ; and there 
was reason to conjecture that this 
piece of humanity was not altogether 
useless to him, for on visiting the 
place some time after, it was found 
that the provision was gone, and in 
a manner that made them conclude 
it had fallen into his hands. 

But, however, though many of 
them were satisfied that this Indian 



still continued near them, yet others 
would needs conclude that he was 
gone to the Island of Chiloe, where 
they feared he would alarm the Span- 
iards, and would soon return with a 
force sufficient to surprise the pink. 
And on this occasion the master of 
the pink was prevailed on .to omit 
firing the evening gun ; for it must 
be remembered (and there is a parti- 
cular reason hereafter for attending 
to this circumstance) that the master, 
from an ostentatious imitation of the 
practice of men-of-war, had hitherto 
fired a gun every evening at the set- 
ting of the watch. This, he pretended, 
was to awe the enemy, if there was 
any within hearing, and to convince 
them that the pink was always on her 
guard ; but it being now represented 
to him that his great security was his 
concealment, and that the evening- 
gun might possibly discover him and 
serve to guide the enemy to him, he 
was prevailed on, as has been men- 
tioned, to omit it for the future. And 
his crew being now well refreshed, 
and their wood and water sufficiently 
replenished, he, in a few days after 
the escape of the Indian, put to sea, 
and had a fortunate passage to the 
rendezvous at the Island of Juan Fer- 
nandez, where he arrived on the 16th 
of August, as has been already men- 
tioned in the preceding Chapter. 

This vessel, the Anna pink, was, as 
I have observed, the last that joined 
the Commodore at Juan Fernandez. 
The remaining ships of the squadron 
were the Severn, the Pearl, and the 
Wager store-ship. The Severn and 
Pearl parted company with the squad- 
ron off Cape Noir, and, as we after- 
wards learned, put back to the Brazils ; 
so that of all the ships which came 
into the South Seas the Wager, Cap- 
tain Cheap, was the only one that 
was missing. This ship had on board 
some field-pieces mounted for land 
service, together with some cohorn 
mortars, and several kinds of artil- 
lery, stores, and tools, intended for 
the operations on shore. And, there- 
fore, as the enterprise on Baldivia had 
been resolved on for the first under- 
taking of the squadron, Captain Cheap 



1741.] 

was extremely solicitous that these 
materials, which were in his custody, 
might be ready before Baldivia ; that 
if the squadron should possibly ren- 
dezvous there (as he knew not the 
condition they were then reduced to) 
no delay nor disappointment might 
be imputed to him. 

But whilst the Wager, with these 
views, was making the best of her 
way to her first rendezvous off the 
Island of Socoro, whence (as there 
was little probability of meeting any 
of the squadron there) she proposed 
to steer directly for Baldivia, she 
made the land on the 14th of May, 
about the Latitude of 47 S. ; and 
the captain exerting himself on this 
occasion, in order to get clear of it, 
he had the misfortune to fall down 
the after-ladder, and thereby dislo- 
cated his shoulder, which rendered 
him incapable of acting. This acci- 
dent, together with the crazy condi- 
tion of the ship, which was little 
better than a wreck, prevented her 
from getting off to sea, and entangled 
her more and more with the land ; so 
that the next morning, at daybreak, 
she struck on a sunken rock, and soon 
after bilged, and grounded between 
two small islands, at about a musket- 
shot from the shore. In this situa- 
tion the ship continued entire a long 
time, so that all the crew had it in 
their power to get safe on shore ; but 
a general confusion taking place, num- 
bers of them, instead of consulting their 
safety, or reflecting on their calamit- 
ous condition, fell to pillaging the 
ship, arming themselves with the 
first weapons that came to hand, and 
threatening to murder all who should 
oppose them. This frenzy was greatly 
heightened by the liquors they found 
on board, with which they got so ex- 
tremely drunk, that some of them 
tumbling down between decks, were 
drowned as the water flowed in, being 
incapable of getting up and retreating 
to other places where the water had 
not yet entered. And the captain, 
having done his utmost to get the 
whole crew on shore, was at last 
obliged to leave these mutineers be- 
hind him, and to follow his officers 



THE LOSS OF THE WAGER. 



61 



and such as he had been able to pre- 
vail on ; but he did not fail to send 
back the boats to persuade those who 
remained to have some regard to their 
preservation, though all his efforts 
were for some time without success. 
However, the weather next day prov- 
ing stormy, and there being great 
danger of the ship's parting, they 1 
began to be alarmed with the fears of 
perishing, and were desirous of get- 
ting to land ; but it seems their mad- 
ness had not yet left them, for the 
boat not appearing to fetch them off 
so soon as they expected, they at 
last pointed a four-pounder, which 
was on the quarter-deck, against the 
hut where they knew the captain re- 
sided on shore, and fired two shots, 
which passed but just over it. 

From this specimen of the behavi- 
our of part of the crew, it will not be 
difficult to frame some conjecture of 
the disorder and anarchy which took 
place when they at last got all on 
shore. For the men conceived that 
by the loss of the ship the authority 
of the officers was at an end ; and, 
they being now on a desolate coast, 
where scarcely any other provisions 
could be got except what should be 
saved out of the wreck, this was an- 
other insurmountable source of dis- 
cord. For as the working upon the 
wreck, and the securing the provi- 
sions, so that they might be preserved 
for future exigencies as much as pos- 
sible, and the taking care that what 
was necessary for immediate subsist- 
ence might be sparingly and equally 
distributed, were matters not to be 
brought about but by discipline and 
subordination ; the mutinous disposi- 
tion of the people, stimulated by the 
impulses of immediate hunger, ren- 
dered every regulation made for this 
purpose ineffectual. So that there 
were continual concealments, frauds, 
and thefts, which animated each man 
against his fellow, and produced in- 
finite feuds and contests. And hence 
there was constantly kept on foot a 
perverse and malevolent turn of tern- 



1 Ed. 1776 : " The refractory part 
of the crew. " 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. II. CH. III. 



62 

per, which rendered them utterly un- 
governable. 1 

But besides these heart-burnings, 
occasioned by petulance and hunger, 
there was another important point, 
which set the greatest part of the 
people at variance with the captain. 
This was their differing with him in 
opinion on the measures to be pur- 
sued in the present exigency ; for the 
captain was determined, if possible, 
to fit up the boats in the best manner 
he could, and to proceed with them 
to the northward. For having with 
him above 100 2 men in health, and hav- 
ing got some fire-arms and ammuni- 
tion from the wreck, he did not doubt 
but they could master any Spanish 
vessel they should meet with in those 
seas ; and he thought he could not 
fail of meeting with one in the neigh- 
bourhood of Chiloe or Baldivia, in 
which, when he had taken her, he 
intended to proceed to the rendezvous 
at Juan Fernandez ; and he further 
insisted, that should they meet with 
no prize by the way, yet the boats 
alone would easily carry them there. 
But this was a scheme that, however 
prudent, was no ways relished by the 
generality of his people ; for, being 
quite jaded with the [fatigues,] dis- 
tresses, and dangers they had already 
run through, they could not think of 
prosecuting an enterprise further which 
had hitherto proved so disastrous ; 
and therefore the common resolution 
was to lengthen the long-boat, and 
with that and the rest of the boats, 
to steer to the southward, to pass 

1 Sir John Barrow, in his "Life of 
Anson," states that " it was in conse- 
quence of the mutinous and bad con- 
duct of the shipwrecked seamen of the 
Wager, that Anson, in 1748, when he 
had the management of the Admiral ty, 
in the absence of the Duke of Bed- 
ford and Lord Sandwich, got an Act 
passed (21 George II.) for extending 
the discipline of the navy to the 
crews of His Majesty's ships, wrecked, 
lost, or taken, and continuing to 
them their wages upon certain condi- 
tions." 

2 Ed. 1776: " Above 200." 



through the Straits of Magellan, and 
to range along the east side of South 
America, till they should arrive at 
Brazil, where they doubted not to be 
well received, and to procure a pass- 
age to Great Britain. This project 
was at first sight infinitely more hazard- 
ous and tedious than what was pro- 
posed by the captain ; but as it had 
the air of returning home, and flatter- 
ed them with the hopes of bringing 
themonce moreto their native country, 
this circumstance alone rendered them 
inattentive to all its inconveniences, 
and made them adhere to it with in- 
surmountable obstinacy ; so that the 
captain himself, though he never 
changed his opinion, was yet obliged 
to give way to the torrent, and in ap- 
pearance to acquiesce in this resolu- 
tion, whilst he endeavoured under- 
hand to give it all the obstruction he 
could, particularly in the lengthen- 
ing of the long-boat, which he con- 
trived should be of such a size, that 
though it might serve to carry them 
to Juan Fernandez, would yet, he 
hoped, appear incapable of so long a 
navigation as that to the coast of 
Brazil. 

But the captain, by his steady op- 
position at first to this favourite pro- 
ject, had much embittered the people 
against him ; to which, likewise, the 
following unhappy accident greatly 
contributed. There was a midship- 
man, whose name was Cozens, who had 
appeared the foremost in all the refrac- 
tory proceedings of the crew. He 
had involved himself in brawls with 
most of the officers who had adhered 
to the captain's authority, and had 
even treated the captain himself with 
great abuse and insolence. As his 
turbulence and brutality grew every 
day more and more intolerable, it 
was not in the least doubted but there 
were some violent measures in agita- 
tion in which Cozens was engaged as 
the ringleader ; for which reason the 
captain, and those about him, con- 
stantly kept themselves on thcirguard. 
But at last the purser, having, by the 
captain's order, stopped the allowance 
of a fellow who would not work, 
Cozens, though the man did not com- 



1741.] 



MUTINY OF THE CREW OF THE WAGER. 



plain to him, intermeddled in the 
affair with great eagerness ; and 
grossly insulting the purser, who was 
then delivering our provisions just 
by the captain's tent, and was him- 
self sufficiently violent, the purser, 
enraged by his scurrility, and per- 
haps piqued by former quarrels, cried 
out ' ' A mutiny ! ' ' adding ' ' that the 
dog had pistols," and then himself 
fired a shot at Cozens, which, how- 
ever, missed him. But the captain, 
on this outcry and the report of the 
pistol, rushed out of his tent ; and, 
not doubting but it had been fired by 
Cozens as the commencement of a 
mutiny, he immediately shot him in 
the head without further deliberation, 
and though he did not kill him on 
the spot, yet the wound proved mor- 
tal, and he died about fourteen days 
after. 

This incident, however displeasing 
to the people, did yet for a consider- 
able time awe them to their duty, and 
rendered them more submissive to the 
captain's authority. But at last, 
when towards the middle of October 
the long-boat was nearly completed, 
and they were preparing to put to 
sea, the additional provocation he 
gave them by covertly traversing 
their project of proceeding through 
the Straits of Magellan, and their 
fears that he might at length engage 
a party sufficient to overturn this 
favourite measure, made them resolve 
to make use of the death of Cozens 
as a reason for depriving him of his 
command, under pretence of carrying 
him a prisoner to England to be tried 
for murder ; and he was accordingly 
confined under a guard. But they 
never intended to carry him with 
them, as they too well knew what 
they had to apprehend on their re- 
turn to England if their commander 
should be present to confront them ; 
and therefore, when they were just 
ready to put to sea, they set him at 
liberty, leaving him, and the few who 
chose to take their fortunes with him, 
no other embarkation but the yawl ; 
to which the barge was afterwards 
added by the people on board her 
being prevailed on to return back. 



When the ship was wrecked, there 
remained alive on board the Wager 
near 130 persons; of these, above 
thirty died during their stay upon the 
place, and near eighty went off in the 
long-boat and the cutter to the south- 
ward : so that there remained with 
the captain, after their departure, no 
more than nineteen persons, which, 
however, was as many as the barge 
and the yawl the only embarkations 
left them could well carry off. It 
was on the 13th of October, five 
months after the shipwreck, that the 
long-boat, converted into a schooner, 
weighed and stood to the southward, 
giving the captain, who, with Lieu- 
tenant Hamilton of the land forces, 
and the surgeon, was then on the 
beach, three cheers at their departure. 
It was the 29th of January following 
before they arrived at Rio Grande on 
the coast of Brazil ; and having, by 
various accidents, left about twenty 
of their people on shore at the dif- 
ferent places they touched at ; and a 
greater number having perished by 
hunger during the course of their na- 
vigation, there were no more than 
thirty of them left when they arrived 
in that port. Indeed the undertaking 
of itself was a most extraordinary one, 
for, not to mention the length of the 
run, the vessel was scarcely able to 
contain the number that first put to 
sea in her ; and their stock of provi- 
sions (being only what they had saved 
out of the ship) was extremely slender ; 
and the cutter, the only boat they 
had with them, soon broke away from 
the stern and was staved to pieces ; so 
that when their provision and their 
water failed them, they had frequently 
no means of getting on shore to search 
for a fresh supply. 

When the long-boat and cutter were 
gone, the captain and those who were 
left with him proposed to pass to the 
northward in the barge and yawl ; 
but the weather was so bad, and the 
difficulty of subsisting so great, that 
it was two months after the departure 
of the long-boat before he was able to 
put to sea. It seems the place where 
the Wager was cast away was not a 
part of the continent, as was first 



ANSON'S VOYAGE EOUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cii.III. 



61 

imagined, but an island at some dis- 
tance from the main, which afforded 
no other sorts of provision but shell- 
fish and a few herbs ; and as the 
greatest part of what they had got 
from the ship was carried off in the 
long-boat, the captain and his people 
were often in great necessity, especi- 
ally as they chose to preserve what 
little sea-provisions remained for their 
store when they should go to the 
northward. During their residence 
at this island, which was by the sea- 
men denominated "Wager Island, 1 
they had now and then a straggling 
canoe or two of the Indians, which 
came and bartered their fish and other 
provisions with our people. This was 
indeed some little succour, and at an- 
other season might perhaps have been 
greater ; for as there were several 
Indian huts on the shore, it was sup- 
posed that in some years, during the 
height of summer, many of these sav- 
ages might resort thither to fish. And, 
from what has been related in the ac- 
count of the Anna pink, it should 
seem to be the general practice of 
those Indians to frequent this coast 
in the summer time for the benefit of 
fishing, and to retire in the winter 
into a better climate more to the north- 
ward. And on this mention of the 
Anna pink, I cannot but observe how 
much it is to be lamented that the 
"Wager's people had no knowledge of 
her being so near them on the coast ; 
for as she was not above thirty leagues 
distant from them, and came into 
their neighbourhood about the same 
time the Wager was lost, and was a 
fine roomy ship, she could easily have 
taken them all on board and have 
carried them to Juan Fernandez. In- 
deed, I suspect she was still nearer to 
them than what is here estimated, for 
several of the Wager's people, at dif- 
ferent times, heard the report of a 
cannon, which I conceive could be no 
other than the evening gun fired from 



1 A small island just north of Wel- 
lington Island on the western coast of 
Patagonia, and divided from the pen- 
insula of Tres Montes, lying to the 
northward still, by the Gulf of Penas. 



the Anna pink, especially as what 
was heard at Wager Island was about 
the same time of the day. But to 
return to Captain Cheap. 

Upon the 14th of December the 
captain and his people embarked in 
the barge and the yawl in order to 
proceed to the northward, taking on 
board with them all the provisions 
they could amass from the wreck of 
the ship ; but they had scarcely been 
an hour at sea when the wind began 
to blow hard, and the sea ran so high 
that they were obliged to throw the 
greatest part of their provisions over- 
board to avoid immediate destruction. 
This was a terrible misfortune in a 
part of the world where food is so dif- 
ficult to be got ; however, they still 
persisted in their design, putting on 
shore as often as they could to seek 
subsistence. But, about a fortnight 
after, another dreadful accident befell 
them, for the yawl sank at an anchor, 
and one of the men in herwas drowned ; 
and as the barge was incapable of car- 
rying the whole company, they were 
now reduced to the hard necessity of 
leaving four marines behind them on 
that desolate shore. But they still 
kept on their course to the northward, 
struggling with their disasters, and 
greatly delayed by the perverseness 
of the winds and the frequent inter- 
ruptions which their search after food 
occasioned ; till at last, about the end 
of January, having made three unsuc- 
cessful attempts to double a headland 
which they supposed to be what the 
Spaniards called Cape Tres Montes, it 
was unanimously resolved to give over 
this expedition, the difficulties of which 
appeared insuperable, and to return 
again to Wager Island, where they 
got back about the middle of Febru- 
ary, quite disheartened and dejected 
wit li their reiterated disappointments, 
and almost perishing with hunger and 
fatigue. 

However, on their return they had 
the good luck to meet Avitb. several 
pieces of beef which had been washed 
out of the ship, and were swimming 
in the sea. This was a most season- 
able relief to them after the hardships 
they had endured ; and, to complete 



1741.] 



FATE OF THE CREW. 



tlieir good fortune, tli^re came in a 
short time two canoes of Indians, 
amongst whom was a native of Chiloe 
who spoke a little Spanish ; and the 
surgeon who was with Captain Cheap 
understanding that language, he made 
a bargain with the Indian, that if he 
would carry the captain and his people 
to Chiloe in the barge he should have 
her, and all that belonged to her, for 
his pains. Accordingly, on the 6th 
of March, the eleven persons, to which 
the company was now reduced, em- 
barked in the barge on this new ex- 
pedition ; but after having proceeded 
for a few days, the captain and four of 
his principal officers being on shore, 
the six, who together with an Indian 
remained in the barge, put off with 
her to sea and did not return. 

By this means there were left on 
shore Captain Cheap, Mr Hamilton, 
lieutenant of marines ; the Honour- 
able Mr Byron 1 and Mr Campbell, 
midshipmen ; and Mr Elliot, the sur- 
geon. One would have thought their 
distresses had long before this time 
been incapable of augmentation, but 
they found, on reflection, that their 
present situation was much more dis- 
maying than anything they had yet 
gone through, being left on a desolate 
coast without any provision, or the 
means of procuring any, for their 
arms, ammunition, and every conveni- 
ency they were masters of, except the 
tattered habits they had on, were all 
carried away in the barge. But when 
they had sufficiently revolved in their 
own minds the various circumstances 
of this unexpected calamity, and were 
persuaded that they had no relief to 
hope for, they perceived a canoe at a 
distance, which proved to be that of 

1 The Honourable John Byron, who 
left a well-written narrative of his 
sufferings and adventures; as Com- 
modore, he commanded an expedition 
of discovery to the southern parts of 
South America in 1764-1766, and cir- 
cumnavigated the globe partly in the 
same track as his former commander. 
He afterwards rose to the rank of Ad- 
miral, and survived till 1798. Lord 
Byron, the poet, was his grandson. 



the Indian who had undertaken to 
carry them to Chiloe, he and his family 
being then on board it. He made no 
difficulty of coming to them, for it 
seems he had left Captain Cheap and 
his people a little before to go a-fish- 
ing, and had in the meantime com- 
mitted them to the care of the other 
Indian, whom the sailors had carried 
to sea in the barge. But when he 
came on shore and found the barge 
gone and his companion missing, he 
was extremely concerned, and could 
with difficulty be persuaded that the 
other Indian was not murdered ; but 
being at last satisfied with the account 
that was given him, he still under- 
took to carry them to the Spanish 
settlements, and (as the Indians are 
well skilled in fishing and fowling) 
to procure them provisions by the 
way. 

About the middle of March, Cap- 
tain Cheap and the four who were left 
with him set out for Chiloe, the Indian 
having procured a number of canoes, 
and got many of his neighbours to- 
gether for that purpose. Soon after 
they embarked, Mr Elliot the surgeon 
died, so that there now remained only 
four of the whole company. At last, 
after a very complicated passage by 
land and water, Captain Cheap, Mr 
Byron, and Mr Campbell, arrived in 
the beginning of June at the Island of 
Chiloe, where they were received by 
the Spaniards with great humanity ; 
but, on account of some quarrel among 
the Indians, Mr Hamilton did not get 
thither till two months after. Thus, 
above a twelvemonth after the loss of 
the "Wager, ended this fatiguing pere- 
grination, which by a variety of 
misfortunes had diminished the com- 
pany from twenty to no more than four, 
and those too, brought so low, that 
had their distresses continued but a 
few days longer, in all probability 
none of them would have survived. 
For the captain himself was with 
difficulty recovered ; and the rest were 
so reduced by the severity of the 
weather, their labour, and their want 
of all kinds of necessaries, that it was 
wonderful how they supported them- 
selves so long. After some stay at 
E 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. II. On. IV. 



Chiloe, the captain and the three who 
were with Mm were sent to Valparaiso, 
and thence to Santiago, the capital of 
Chili, where they continued above a 
year : but on the advice of a cartel 
being settled betwixt Great Britain and 
Spain, Captain Cheap, Mr Byron, and 
Mr Hamilton were permitted to return 
to Europe on board a French ship. 
The other midshipman, Mr Campbell, 
having changed his religion whilst at 
Santiago, chose to go back [overland] 
to Buenos Ayres with Pizarro and his 
officers, with whom he went afterwards 
to Spain on board the Asia ; and there 
having failed in his endeavours to pro- 
cure a commission from the Court of 
Spain, he returned to England, and 
attempted to get reinstated in the 
British navy ; and has since publish- 
ed a narration of his adventures, in 
which he complains of the injustice 
that had been done him, and strong- 
ly disavows his ever being in the 
Spanish service. But as the change 
of his religion, and his offering him- 
self to the Court of Spain (though not 
accepted), are matters which, he is 
conscious, are capable of being incon- 
testably proved ; on these two heads 
he has been entirely silent. And now, 
after this account of the accidents 
which befell the Anna pink, and the 
catastrophe of the "Wager, I shall 
again resume the thread of our own 
story. 



CHAPTER IV. 

ABOUT a week after the arrival of our 
victualler, the Trial sloop, that had 
been sent to the Island of Mas-a-fuera, 
returned to an anchor at Juan Fer- 
nandez, after having been round that 
island without meeting any part of 
our squadron. . . . 

The latter part of the month of 
August was spent in unloading the 
provisions from the Anna pink ; and 
here we had the mortification to find 
that great quantities of our provisions, 
as bread, rice, groats, &c., were decay- 
ed and unfit for use. This was OAving 
to the water the pink had made by 



her working and straining in bad 
weather; for thereby several of her 
casks had rotted, and her bags were 
soaked through. 1 .... The 
thorough refitting of the Anna pink, 
proposed by the carpenters, was, in 
our present situation, impossible to be 
complied with, as all the plank and 
iron in the squadron was insufficient 
for that purpose. And now the master, 
finding his own sentiments confirmed 
by the opinion of all the carpenters, 
offered a petition to the Commodore 
in behalf of his owners, desiring that, 
since it appeared he was incapable of 
leaving the island, Mr Anson would 
please to purchase the hull and furni- 
ture of the pink for the use of the 
squadron, Hereupon the Commodore 
ordered an inventory to be taken of 
every particular belonging to the pink, 
with its just value; and as by this inven- 
tory it appeared that there were many 
stores which would be useful in refit- 
ting the other ships, and which were 
at present very scarce in the squadron 
by reason of the great quantities that 
had been already expended, he agreed 
with Mr Gerard to purchase the whole 
together for 300. The pink being 
thus broken up, Mr Gerard, with the 
hands belonging to the pink, were sent 
on board the Gloucester ; as that ship 
had buried the greatest number of 
men in proportion to her complement. 
But afterwards one or two of them 
were received on board the Centurion 
on their own petition, they being ex- 
tremely averse to sailing in the same 
ship with their old master, on account 
of some particular ill-usage they con- 
ceived they had suffered from him. 

This transaction brought us down 
to the beginning of September, [and our 
people by this time were so far re- 
covered of the scurvy that there was 
little danger of burying any more at 
present; and therefore I shall now 
sum up the total of our loss since our 
departure from England, the better to 
convey some idea of our past suffer- 



1 The Anna pink was here dis- 
charged from the service of the squad- 
ron, and on examination was found 
to be on-seaworthy. 



1741.] DEATHS IN THE SQUADRON DURING THE VOYAGE. 67 



ings and of our present strength. We 
had buried on board the Centurion 
since our leaving St Helens 292, and 
had now remaining on board 214. 
This will doubtless appear a most 
extraordinary mortality ; but yet on 
board the Gloucester it had been much 
greater, for out of a much smaller 
crew than ours they had buried the 
same number, and had only eighty- 
two remaining alive. It might be 
expected that on board the Trial the 
slaughter would have been the most 
terrible, as her decks were almost con- 
stantly knee-deep in water ; but it hap- 
pened otherwise, for she escaped more 
favourably than the rest, since she only 
buried forty -two, and had now thirty- 
nine remaining alive. The havoc of 
this disease had fallen still severer on 
the invalids and marines than on the 
sailors ; for on board the Centurion, 
out of fifty invalids and seventy-nine 
marines there remained only four 
invalids, including officers, and eleven 
marines ; and on board the Gloucester 
every invalid perished, and out of 
forty-eight marines only two escaped. 
From this account it appears that the 
three ships together departed from 
England with 961 men on board, of 
whom 626 were dead before this time ; 
so that the whole of our remaining 
crews, which were now to be distri- 
buted amongst three ships, amounted 
to no more than 335 men and boys, 
a number greatly insufficient for man- 
ning the Centurion alone, and barely 
capable of navigating all the three 
with the utmost exertion of their 
strength and vigour. This prodigious 
reduction of our men was still the 
more terrifying as we were hitherto 
uncertain of the fate of Pizarro's squad- 
ron, and had reason to suppose that 
some part of it at least had got round 
into these seas. Indeed we were satis- 
fied from our own experience that 
they must have suffered greatly in 
their passage j but then every port in 
the South Seas was open to them, and 
the whole power of Chili and Peru 
would doubtless be united in refresh- 
ing and refitting them, and recruiting 
the numbers they had lost. Besides, 
we had some obscure knowledge of a 



force to be fitted out from Callao ; 
and, however contemptible the ships 
and sailors of this part of the world 
may have been generally esteemed, it 
was scarcely possible for anything 
bearing the name of a ship of force to 
be feebler or less considerable than 
ourselves. And had there been no- 
thing to be apprehended from the 
naval power of the Spaniards in this 
part of the world, yet our enfeebled 
condition would nevertheless give us 
the greatest uneasiness, as we were 
incapable of attempting any of their 
considerable places ; for the risking of 
twenty men, weak as we then were, 
was risking the safety of the whole. 
So that we conceived we should be 
necessitated to content ourselves with 
what few prizes we could pick up at 
sea before we were discovered, after 
which we should in all probability be 
obliged to depart with precipitation, 
and esteem ourselves fortunate to re- 
gain our native country, leaving our 
enemies to triumph on the incon- 
siderable mischief they had received 
from a squadron whose equipment 
had filled them with such dreadful 
apprehensions. This was a subject 
on which we had reason to imagine 
the Spanish ostentation would remark- 
ably exert itself; though the causes 
of our disappointment and their secu- 
rity were neither to be sought for in 
their valour nor our misconduct. Such 
were the desponding reflections which 
at that time arose on the review and 
comparison of our remaining strength 
with our original numbers. Indeed 
our fears were far from being ground- 
less or disproportioned to our feeble 
and almost desperate situation. It is 
true the final event proved more hon- 
ourable than we had foreboded ; but 
the intermediate calamitiesdidlikewise 
greatly surpass our most gloomy ap- 
prehensions, and could they have been 
predicted to us at this Island of Juan 
Fernandez, they would doubtless have 
appeared insurmountable. 

In the beginning of September, as 
has been already mentioned, our men 
were tolerably well recovered ; and 
now the time of navigation in this 
climate drawing near, we exerted 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WOULD. .[B.II.Ce.IV. 



68 

f.nrselves in getting our ships in 
readiness for the sea. We converted 
the foremast of the victualler into a 
mainmast for the Trial sloop ; and, 
still flattering ourselves with the pos- 
sibility of the arrival of some other 
ships of our squadron, we intended 
to leave the mainmast of the victualler 
to make a mizzenmast for the Wager. 
Thus all hands being employed in 
forwarding our departure, we on the 
8th, about eleven in the morning, 
espied a sail to the NE., which con- 
tinued to approach us till her courses 
appeared even with the horizon. In 
this interval we all had hopes she 
might prove one of our own squadron ; 
but at length, finding she steered 
away to the eastward, without haul- 
ing in for the island, we concluded 
she must be a Spaniard. And now 
great disputes were set on foot about 
the possibility of her having dis- 
covered our tents on shore, some of 
us strongly insisting that she had 
doubtless been near enough to have 
perceived something that had given 
her a jealousy of an enemy, which 
had occasioned her standing to the 
eastward without hauling in ; but, 
leaving these contests to be settled 
afterwards, it was resolved to pursue 
her ; and the Centurion being in the 
greatest forwardness, we immediately 
got all our hands on board, set up 
our rigging, bent our sails, and by 
five in the afternoon got under sail. 
We had at this time very little wind, 
so that all the boats were employed 
to tow us out of the bay ; and even 
what wind there was lasted only long 
enough to give us an offing of two or 
three leagues, when it flattened to a 
calm. The night coming on, we lost 
sight of the chase, and were extremely 
impatient for the return of daylight, 
in hopes to find that she had been 
becalmed as well as we; though I 
must confess that her greater distance 
from the land was a reasonable ground 
for suspecting the contrary, as we in- 
deed found in the morning, to our 
great mortification ; for though the 
weather continued perfectly clear, we 
had no sight of the ship from the 
mast-head. But as we were now 



satisfied that it was an enemy, and 
the first we had seen in these seas, 
we resolved not to give over the search 
lightly ; and a small breeze springing 
up from the WNW., we got up our 
top-gallant masts and yards, set all 
the sails, and steered to the SE,, in 
hopes of retrieving our chase, which 
we imagined to be bound to Valpar- 
aiso. We continued on this course 
all that day and the next ; and then, 
not getting sight of our chase, we 
gave over the pursuit, conceiving that 
by that time she must in all proba- 
bility have reached her port. 

And now we prepared to return to 
Juan Fernandez, and hauled up to 
the SW. with that view, having but 
very little wind till the 12th, when, 
at three in the morning, there sprang 
up a fresh gale from the WSW., and 
we tacked and stood to the NW. ; 
and at daybreak we were agreeably 
surprised with the sight of a sail on 
our weather-bow, between four and 
five leagues distant. On this we 
crowded all the sail we could, and 
stood after her, and soon perceived it 
not to be the same ship we originally 
gave chase to. She at first bore down 
upon us, showing Spanish colours, 
and making a signal as to her con- 
sort; but observing that we did not 
answer her signal, she instantly luffed 
close to the wind and stood to the 
southward. Our people were now all 
in spirits, and put the ship about 
with great alacrity ; and as the chase 
appeared to be a large ship, and had 
mistaken us for her consort, we con- 
ceived that she was a man-of-war, 
and probably one of Pizarro's squad- 
ron. This induced the Commodore 
to order all the officers' cabins to be 
knocked down and thrown overboard, 
with several casks of water and pro- 
visions which stood between the guns ; 
so that we had soon a clear ship, ready 
for an engagement. About 9 o'clock 
we had thick, hazy weather, and a 
shower of rain, during which we lost 
sight of the chase ; and we were ap- 
prehensive, if the weather should 
continue, that by going upon the 
other tack, or by some other artifice, 
she might escape us ; but it clearing 



1741.] 



CAPTURE OF A SPANISH MERCHANTMAN. 



up in less than an Lour, we found 
that we had both weathered and fore- 
reached upon her considerably, and 
now we were near enough to discover 
that she was only a merchantman, 
without so much as a single tier of 
guns. About half -an -hour after 
twelve, being then within a reason- 
able distance of her, we fired four 
shot amongst her rigging ; on which 
they lowered their topsails and bore 
down to us, but in very great con- 
fusion, their top-gallant-sails and stay- 
sails all fluttering in the wind. This 
was owing to their having let run 
their sheets and halyards just as we 
fired at them ; after which not a man 
amongst them had courage enough to 
venture aloft (for there the shot had 
passed but just before) to take tliem in. 
As soon as the vessel came within 
hail of us, the Commodore ordered 
them to bring to under his lee-quarter, 
and then hoisted out the boat and sent 
Mr Saumarez, his first lieutenant, to 
take possession of the prize, with 
directions to send all the prisoners on 
board the Centurion, but first the 
officers and passengers. When Mr 
Saumarez came on board them, they 
received him at the side with the 
strongest tokens of the most abject 
submission ; for they were all of them 
(especially the passengers, who were 
twenty-five in number) extremely ter- 
rified, and under the greatest appre- 
hensions of meeting with very severe 
and cruel usage. But the lieutenant 
endeavoured, with great courtesy, to 
dissipate their fright, assuring them 
that their fears were altogetherground- 
less, and that they would find a gener- 
ous enemy in the Commodore, who 
was not less remarkable for his lenity 
and humanity than for his resolution 
and courage. The prisoners who were 
first sent on board the Centurion in- 
formed us that our prize was called 
Nuestra Seflora del Monte Carmelo, 
and was commanded by Don Manuel 
Zamorra. Her cargo consisted chiefly 
of sugar, and great quantities of blue 
cloth made in the province of Quito, 
somewhat resembling our English 
coarse broad-cloths, but inferior to 
them. They had, besides, several 



bales of a coarser sort of cloth, of 
different colours, somewhat like Col- 
chester baize, called by them Pannia 
da Tierra, with a few bales of cotton, 
and tobacco, which though strong 
was not ill flavoured. These were 
the principal goods on board her ; but 
we found, besides, what was to us 
much more valuable than the rest 
of the cargo. This was some trunks 
of wrought plate, and twenty -three 
serons l of dollars, each weighing up- 
wards of 200 Ibs. avoirdupois. The 
ship's burthen was about 450 tons; 
she had fifty-three sailors on board, 
both whites and blacks. She came 
from Callao, and had been twenty- 
seven days at sea before she fell into 
our hands. She was bound to the 
port of Valparaiso, in the kingdom of 
Chili, 2 and proposed to have returned 
thence loaded with corn and Chili 
wine, some gold, dried beef, and small 
cordage, which at Callao they convert 
into larger rope. Our prize had been 
built upwards of thirty years ; yet as 
they lie in harbour all the winter 
months, and the climate is favour- 
able, they esteemed it no very great 
age. Her rigging was very indifferent, 
as were likewise her sails, which were 
made of cotton. She had only three 
4 -pounders, which were altogether 
unserviceable, their carriages being 
scarcely able to support them ; and 



1 A seron or seroon is a species of 
packet made and used in Spanish 
America, consisting of a piece of raw 
bullock's hide, with the hair on, 
formed while wet into the shape of a 
small trunk, and sewed together. In 
Kerr's Collection of Voyages, the 
quantity of dollars taken on this oc- 
casion is estimated at between 70,000 
and 80,000. 

2 Thomas says that those ships 
annually trade to Valparaiso, ex- 
changing silver in return for gold 
and coin, the latter being very scarce 
in Peru. Some of the prisoners said 
that if the ship had been taken on 
the return from Chili to Peru, the 
captors would have found in her as 
much gold as they had now found 
silver. 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.CH.IY. 



70 

there were no small arms on board, 
except a i3W pistols belonging to the 
passengers. The prisoners informed 
us that they left Callao in company 
with two other ships, which they had 
parted with some days before, and 
that at first they conceived us to be 
one of their company; and by the 
description we gave them of the ship 
we had chased from Juan Fernandez, 
they assured us she was of their num- 
ber, but that the coming in sight of 
that island was directly repugnant to 
the merchants' instructions, who had 
expressly forbid it, as knowing that 
if any English squadron was in those 
seas, the Island of Fernandez was most 
probably the place of their rendezvous. 
And now, after this short account 
of the ship and her cargo, it is neces- 
sary that I should relate the important 
intelligence which we met with on 
board her, partly from the informa- 
tion of the prisoners, and partly from 
the letters and papers which fell into 
our hands. We here first learned 
with certainty the force and destina- 
tion of that squadron which cruised 
off Madeira at our arrival there, and 
afterwards chased the Pearl in our 
passage to Port St Julian. This we 
now knew was a squadron composed 
of five large Spanish ships, command- 
ed by Admiral Pizarro, and purposely 
fitted out to traverse our designs, as 
has been already more amply related 
in the Third Chapter of the First 
Book. And we had, at the same 
time, the satisfaction to find that 
Pizarro, after his utmost endeavours 
to gain his passage into these seas, 
had been forced back again into the 
River of Plate, with the loss of two of 
his largest ships ; and besides this 
disappointment of Pizarro, which, 
considering our great debility, was 
no unacceptable intelligence, we fur- 
ther learned that an embargo had 
been laid upon all shipping in these 
seas by the Viceroy of Peru, in the 
month of May preceding, on a suppo- 
sition that about that time we might 
arrive upon the coast. But on the 
account sent overland by Pizarro of 
his own distresses, part of which they 
knew we must have encountered, as 



we were at sea during the same time, 
and on their having no news of us in 
eight months after we were known to 
set sail from St Catherine's, they were 
fully persuaded that we were either 
shipwrecked, or had perished at sea, 
or at least had been obliged to put 
back again ; for it was conceived im- 
possible for any ships to continue at 
sea during so long an interval : and 
therefore, on the application of the 
merchants, and the firm persuasion ot 
our having miscarried, the embargo 
had been lately taken off. k 

This last article made us flatter 
ourselves that, as the enemy was still 
a stranger to our having got round 
Cape Horn, and the navigation of 

1 Thomas makes a curiously differ- 
ent report of Pizarro' s despatch, and 
one much more flattering to English 
pride. Pizarro, he says, told the Vice- 
roy of Peru " that, though he himself 
had been forced back in such a miser- 
able condition, not having above 80 
or 100 of his men living, and his 
ships in so ill a state, that, till suffi- 
cient reinforcements could come to him 
from Old Spain, he could not possibly 
come into those seas, yet as the Eng- 
lish were a stubborn and resolute peo- 
ple, and daring enough to persist 
obstinately in the most desperate un- 
dertakings, he did believe some of us 
might possibly get round ; but as he 
experimentally knew what of necessity 
we must have suffered in that dreadful 
passage, he made no doubt but we 
should be in a very weak and defence- 
less condition ; he therefore advised 
the Viceroy to fit out all the strength 
of shipping he could, and send them 
to cruise at the Island of Juan Fer- 
nandez, where we must of necessity 
touch to refresh our people, and to 
repair our ships ; and further advised, 
that, in case of meeting us, they should 
not stand to fight or cannonade at a 
distance, in which possibly we might 
have the advantage, or make our 
escape, but should board us at once 
sword in hand ; which must, if well 
executed, in our weak condition, in- 
fallibly prove the means of taking 
us." 



1741.] 



INTELLIGENCE OF SPANISH MOVEMENTS. 



71 



these S eas was restored, we might 
1110 et with some considerable captures, 
and might thereby indemnify our- 
selves for the incapacity we were now 
under of attempting any of their con- 
siderable settlements on shore. And 
thus much we were certain of, from 
the information of our prisoners, that 
whatever our success might be as to 
the prizes we might light on, we had 
nothing to fear, weak as we were, from 
the Spanish force in this part of the 
world ; though we discovered that we 
had been in most imminent peril from 
the enemy when we least apprehended 
it, and when our other distresses were 
at the greatest height. For we learn- 
ed from the letters on board, that 
Pizarro, in the express he despatched 
to the Viceroy of Peru after his return 
to the Eiver of Plate, had intimated 
to him that it was possible some part 
at least of the English squadron might 
get round ; but that, as he was cer- 
tain from his own experience that if 
they did arrive in those seas it must 
be in a very weak and defenceless 
condition, he advised the Viceroy, in 
order to be secure at all events, to fit 
out what ships of force he had, and 
send them to the southward, where 
in all probability they would intercept 
us singly and before we had an oppor- 
tunity of touching anywhere for re- 
freshment ; in which case he doubted 
not but we should prove an easy con- 
quest. The Viceroy of Peru approved 
of this advice, and immediately fitted 
out four ships of force from Callao ; 
one of 50 guns, two of 40 guns, and 
one of 24 guns. Three of them were 
stationed off the Port of Conception, 
and one of them at the Island of Juan 
Fernandez ; and in these stations they 
continued cruising for us till the 6th 
of June, when, not seeing anything of 
us, and conceiving it to be impossible 
that we could have kept the seas so 
long, they quitted their cruise and re- 
turned to Callao, fully satisfied that 
we had either perished or at least had 
been driven back. As the time of 
their quitting their station was but a 
few days before our arrival at the 
Island of Fernandez, it is evident that 
had we made that island on our first 



search for it, without hauling in for 
the main to secure our easting (a cir- 
cumstance which at that time we con- 
sidered as very unfortunate to us, on 
account of the numbers which we lost 
by our longer continuance at sea), had 
we, I say, made the island on the 28th 
of May, when we first expected to see 
it, and were in reality very near it, we 
had doubtless fallen in with some part 
of the Spanish squadron ; and in the 
distressed condition we were then in, 
the meeting with a healthy, well-pro- 
vided enemy was an incident that could 
not but have been perplexing, and 
might perhaps have proved fatal, not 
only to us [in the Centurion], but to 
the Trial, the Gloucester, and the 
Anna pink, which separately joined us, 
and which were each of them less cap- 
able than we were of making any con- 
siderable resistance. I shall only add, 
that these Spanish ships sent out to in- 
tercept us had been greatly shattered 
by a storm during their cruise ; and 
that, after their arrival at Callao, they 
had been laid up. And our prisoners 
assured us, that whenever intelligence 
was received at Lima of our being in 
these seas, it would be at least two 
months before this armament could bo 
again fitted out. 

The whole of this intelligence was 
as favourable as we in our reduced 
circumstances could wish for. And 
now we were fully satisfied as to the 
broken jars, ashes, and fish-bones, 
which we had observed at our first 
landing at Juan Fernandez; these 
things being doubtless the relics of the 
cruisers stationed off that port. Hav- 
ing thus satisfied ourselves in the 
material articles, and having got on 
board the Centurion most of the pri- 
soners and all the silver, we at eight 
in the same evening made sail to the 
northward, in company with our prize, 
and at six the next morning discovered 
the Island of Juan Fernandez, where 
the next day both we and our prize 
came to an anchor. And here I can- 
not omit one remarkable incident 
which occurred when the prize and 
her crew came into the bay, where the 
rest of the squadron lay. The Span- 
iards in the Carmelo had been sufii. 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cn.V, 



72 

ciently informed of the distresses \ve 
had gone through, and were greatly 
surprised that we had ever surmounted 
them : but when they saw the Trial 
sloop at anchor, they were still more 
astonished that, after all our fatigues, 
we had the industry (besides refitting 
our other ships) to complete such a 
vessel in so short a time, they taking 
it for granted that she had been built 
upon the spot. And it was with great 
difficulty they were prevailed on to 
believe that she came from England 
with the rest of the squadron ; they 
at first insisting that it was impossible 
such a bauble as that could pass round 
Cape Horn, when the best ships of 
Spain were obliged to put back. 

By the time we arrived at Juan 
Fernandez, the letters found on board 
our prize were more minutely exam- 
ined ; and it appearing from them 
and from the accounts of our pri- 
soners that several other merchant- 
men were bound from Callao to Val- 
paraiso, Mr Anson despatched the 
Trial sloop the very next morning 
to cruise off the last-mentioned port, 
reinforcing her with ten hands from 
on board his own ship. Mr Anson 
likewise resolved, on the intelligence 
recited above, to separate the ships 
under his command, and employ them 
in distinct cruises, as he thought that 
by this means we should not only 
increase our chance for prizes, but 
that we should likewise run less risk 
of alarming the coast and of being 
discovered. And now, the spirits of 
our people being greatly raised, and 
their despondency dissipated by this 
earnest of success, they forgot all their 
past distresses, and resumed their 
wonted alacrity, and laboured inde- 
fatigably in completing our water, 
receiving our lumber, and preparing 
to take our farewell of the island. 
But as these occupations took us up 
four or five days, with all our indus- 
try, the Commodore in that interval 
directed that the guns belonging to 
the Anna pink, being four 6-pounclers, 
four 4-pounders, and two swivels, 
should be mounted on board the 
Cnnnelo, our prize. And having sent 
on board the Gloucester six passen- ! 



gers and twenty -three seamen 1 to 
assist in navigating the ship, he 
directed Captain Mitchel to leave the 
island as soon as possible, the service 
requiring the utmost despatch, order- 
ing him to proceed to the Latitude of 
5 S., and there to cruise off the high 
land of Paita, 2 at such a distance 
from shore as should prevent hia 
being discovered. On this station he 
was to continue till he should be 
joined by the Commodore, which 
would be whenever it should be known 
that the Viceroy had fitted out the 
ships at Callao, or on Mr Anson's 
receiving any other intelligence that 
should make it necessary to unite our 
strength. These orders being deliv- 
ered to the captain of the Gloucester, 
and all our business completed, we on 
the Saturday following, being the 
19th of September, weighed our an- 
chor, in company with our prize, and 
got out of the bay, taking our last 
leave of the Island of Juan Fernandez, 
and steering to the eastward, with an 
intention of joining the Trial sloop in 
her station off Valparaiso. 



CHAPTER V. 

ALTHOUGH the Centurion, with her 
prize the Carmelo, weighed from the 
Bay of Juan Fernandez on the 19th 
of September, leaving the Gloucester 
at anchor behind her, yet, by the 
irregularity and fluctuation of the 
winds in the offing, it was the 22d of 
the same month, in the evening, be- 
fore we lost sight of the island ; after 
which we continued our course to the 
eastward, in order to reach our station 
and to join the Trial off Valparaiso. 
The next night the weather proved 
squally, and we split our main-top- 
sail, which wo handed for the pre- 



1 Selected from among the prisoners 
for their strength or their knowledge 
of seamanship. 

2 Where the vessels trading bet ween 
Lima and Panama generally touched 
to deliver part of their cargoes for disper- 
sion through the inland parts of Peru. 



3741.] 



CAPTURE OF THE ARRANZAZU. 



sent, but got it repaired, and set it 
again the next morning. And now, 
on the 24th, a little before sunset, we 
saw two sail to the eastward, on which 
our prize stood directly from us, to 
avoid giving any suspicion of our be- 
ing cruisers ; whilst we in the mean- 
time made ourselves ready for an 
engagement, and steered towards the 
two ships we had discovered, with all 
our canvas. We soon perceived that 
one of these, which had the appear- 
ance of being a veiy stout ship, made 
directly for us, whilst the other kept 
at a very great distance. By 7 o'clock 
we were within pistol-shot of the 
nearest, and had a broadside ready to 
pour into her, the gunners having 
their matches in their hands, and only 
waiting for orders to fire ; but as we 
knew it was now impossible for her to 
escape us, Mr Anson, before he per- 
mitted them to fire, ordered the 
master to hail the ship in Spanish ; 
on which the commanding officer on 
board her, who proved to be Mr 
Hughes, lieutenant of the Trial, an- 
swered us in English, and informed 
us that she was a prize taken by the 
Trial a few days before, and that the 
other sail at a distance was the Trial 
herself, disabled in her masts. "We 
were soon after joined by the Trial, 
and Captain Saunders, her com- 
mander, came on board the Centurion. 
He informed the Commodore that he 
had taken this ship the 18th instant; 
that she was a prime sailer, and had 
cost him thirty-six hours' chase before 
he could come up with her ; that for 
some time he gained so little upon 
her that he began to despair of taking 
her ; and the Spaniards, though alarm- 
ed at first with seeing nothing but a 
cloud of sail in pursuit of them, the 
Trial's hull being so low in the water 
that no part of it appeared, yet know- 
ing the goodness of their ship, and 
finding how little the Trial neared 
them, they at length laid aside their 
fears, and recommending themselves 
to the blessed Virgin for protection, 
began to think themselves secure. 
And indeed their success was very 
near doing honour to their Ave Marias; 
tor altering their course in the night, 



and shutting up their windows to 
prevent any of their lights from being 
seen, they had some chance of escap- 
ing. But a small crevice in one of 
the shutters rendered all their invoca- 
tions ineffectual ; for through this 
crevice the people on board the Trial 
perceived a light, which they chased 
till they arrived within gunshot ; and 
then Captain Saunders alarmed them 
unexpectedly with a broadside, when 
they flattered themselves they were 
got out of his reach. However, for 
some time after they still kept the 
same sail abroad, and it was not ob- 
served that this first salute had made 
any impression on them ; but just as 
the Trial was preparing to repeat her 
broadside, the Spaniards crept from 
their holes, lowered their sails, and 
submitted without any opposition. 
She was one of the largest merchant- 
men employed in those seas, being 
about 600 tons burthen, and was 
called the [Nuestra Sefiora de] Arran- 
zazu. She was bound from Callao to 
Valparaiso, and had much the same 
cargo with the Carmelo we had taken 
before, except that her silver amounted 
only to about 5000 sterling. 

But to balance this success, we had 
the misfortune to find that the Trial 
had sprung her mainmast, and that 
her main -topmast had come by the 
board ; and as we were all of us stand- 
ing to the eastward the next morning, 
with a fresh gale at S., she had the 
additional ill-luck to spring her fore- 
mast ; so that now she had not a 
mast left on which she could carry 
sail. These unhappy incidents were 
still [further] aggravated by the im- 
possibility we were just then under 
of assisting her ; for the wind blew 
so hard, and raised such a hollow sea 
that we could not venture to hoist 
out our boat, and consequently could 
have no communication with her ; so 
that we were obliged to lie to for the 
greatest part of forty-eight hours to 
attend her, as we could have no 
thought of leaving her to herself in 
her present unhappy situation. And 
as an accumulation to our misfor- 
tunes, we were all the while driving 
to the leeward of our station, at the 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cn.V, 

Besides, had a port and proper re- 
quisites for this purpose been in our 
possession, yet it would have been 



74 

very time when, by our intelligence, 
we had reason to expect several of the 
enemy's ships would appear upon the 



coast, who would now gain the port 
of Valparaiso without obstruction. 
And I am verily persuaded that the 
embarrassment we received from the 
dismasting of the Trial, and our ab- 
sence from our intended station occa- 
sioned thereby, deprived us of some 
very considerable captures. 1 

The weather proving somewhat 
more moderate on the 27th, we sent 
our boat for the captain of the Trial, 
who, when he came on board us, pro- 
duced an instrument, signed by him- 
self and all his officers, representing 
that the sloop, besides being dis- 
masted, was so very leaky in her 
hull, that even in moderate weather 
it was necessary to keep the pumps 
constantly at work, and that they 
were then scarcely sufficient to keep 
her free ; so that in the late gale, 
though they had all been engaged at 
the pumps by turns, yet the water 
had increased upon them. ; and, upon 
the whole, they apprehended her to be 
at present so very defective, that if they 
met with much bad weather they must 
all inevitably perish, and therefore 
they petitioned the Commodore to take 
some measures for their future safety. 
But the refitting of the Trial, and the 
repairing of her defects, was an under- 
taking that in the present conjunc- 
ture greatly exceeded his power ; for 
we had no masts to spare her, we had 
no stores to complete her rigging, nor 
had we any port where she might be 
hove down and her bottom examined. 



1 Thomas, with regard to the dis- 
abled condition of the Trial, says : 
"This was a great destruction, for 
now we had intelligence by the Trial's 
prize that there were many ships at 
sea richly laden, and that they had 
no apprehensions of being attacked 
by us, having received intelligence 
that our squadron was either put 
back or destroyed. In the course, 
therefore, of the forty- eight hours we 
were detained in waiting upon the 
Trial, I am persuaded we missed the 
taking many valuable prizes." 



extreme imprudence, in so critical 
conjuncture, to have loitered away so 
much time as would have been neces- 
sary for these operations. The Com- 
modore therefore had no choice left 
him but that of taking out her people 
and destroying her ; but at the same 
time, as he conceived it necessary for 
his Majesty's service to keep up the 
appearance of our force, he appointed 
the Trial's prize (which had been 
often employed by the Viceroy of 
Peru as a man-of-war) to be a frigate 
in his Majesty's service, manning her 
with the Trial's crew, and giving new 
commissions to the captain and all 
the inferior officers accordingly. This 
new frigate, when in the Spanish ser- 
vice, had mounted 32 guns ; but she 
was now to have only 20, which were 
the 12 that were on board the Trial, 
and 8 that had belonged to the Anna 
pink. When this affair was thus far 
regulated, Mr Anson gave orders to 
Captain Sounders to put it in execu- 
tion, directing him to take out of the 
sloop the arms, stores, ammunition, 
and everything that could be of any 
use to the other ships, and then to 
scuttle her and sink her. And after 
Captain Saunders had seen her de- 
stroyed, he was to proceed with his 
new frigate (to be called the Trial's 
prize) and to cruise off the high land 
of Valparaiso, keeping it from him 
NNW., at the distance of twelve^or 
fourteen leagues. For as all ships 
bound from Valparaiso to the north- 
ward steer that course, Mr Anson 
proposed by this means to stop any 
intelligence that might be despatched 
to Callao of two of their ships being 
missing, which might give them ap- 
prehensions of the English squadron 
being in their neighbourhood. The 
Trial's prize was to continue on this 
station twenty-four days, and if not 
joined by the Commodore at the ex- 
piration of that term, she was then 
to proceed down the coast to Pisco, 
or Nasca, 1 where she would be certain 



Pisco town and bay are about ] 20 



1741.] CRUISING OFF 

to meet with Mr Anson. The Com- 
modore likewise ordered Lieutenant 
Saumarez, who commanded the Cen- 
turion's prize, to keep company with 
Captain Saunders, both to assist him in 
unloading the sloop, and also that, by 
spreading in their cruise, there might 
be less danger of any of the enemy's 
ships slipping by unobserved. These 
orders being despatched, the Cen- 
turion parted from them at eleven in 
the evening on the 27th of September, 
directing her course to the southward, 
with a view of cruising for some days 
to the windward of Valparaiso. 

And now by this disposition of our 
ships we nattered ourselves that we 
hod taken all the advantages of the 
enemy that we possibly could with 
our small force, since our disposition 
was doubtless the most prudent that 
could be projected. For as we might 
suppose the Gloucester by this time 
to be drawing near her station off the 
high land of Paita, we were enabled 
by our separate stations, to intercept 
all vessels employed either betwixt 
Peru and Chili to the southward, or 
betwixt Panama and Peru to the 
northward. Since the principal trade 
from Peru to Chili being carried on 
to the port of Valparaiso, the Cen- 
turion cruising to the windward of 
Valparaiso would in all probability 
meet with them, as it is the constant 
practice of those ships to fall in with 
the coast to the windward of that port. 
And the Gloucester would, in like 
manner, be in the way of the trade 
bound from Panama or the northward 
to any part of Peru ; since the high 
land off which she was stationed is 
constantly made by all ships in that 
voyage. And whilst the Centurion 
and Gloucester were thus situated for 
interrupting the enemy's trade, the 
Trial's prize and Centurion's prize 
were as conveniently stationed for 
preventing all intelligence, by inter- 
cepting all ships bound from Valpa- 
raiso to the northward ; for it was on 
board these vessels that it was to be 



VALPARAISO. 



75 



or 130 miles south-east from Lima ; 
Kasca Point is about 100 miles in the 
same direction from Pisco. 



feared some account of us might pos- 
sibly be sent to Peru. 

But the most prudent dispositions 
carry with them only a probability of 
success, and can never ensure its cer- 
tainty ; since those chances, which it 
was reasonable to overlook in delibera- 
tions, are sometimes of most powerful 
influence in execution. Thus, in the 
present case, the distress of the Trial, 
and the quitting our station to assist 
her (events which no degree of pru- 
dence could either foresee or obviate) 
gave an opportunity to all the ships 
bound to Valparaiso to reach that 
port without molestation during this 
unlucky interval ; so that though, 
after leaving Captain Saunders, we 
were very expeditious in regaining 
our station, where we got the 29th at 
noon, 1 yet in plying on and off till 
the 6th of October we had not the 
good fortune to discover a sail of any 
sort. 2 And then, having lost all hopes 



1 Thomas, who frequently differs 
in date from Mr Walter, says that 
" on the 30th we saw the main land 
of Chili. This day we began to exer- 
cise our people with small arms, which 
was the first time we had done it 
since we came into those seas, and 
which we continued at all proper op- 
portunities during the voyage." 

2 Thomas here notices a dissension 
among the ships' companies, of which 
Mr Walter, with an obvious official 
bias, says not a word : "On the 5th, 
the Commodore being informed that 
there were nmrmurings amongst the 
people, because the prize-money was 
not immediately divided, ordered the 
articles of war to be read ; and after 
that remonstrated to them on the 
danger of mutiny, and said he had 
heard the reason of their discontent, 
but assured them their properties 
were secured by act of parliament as 
firmly as any one's own inheritance, 
and that the money, plate, &c. , were 
weighed and marked in public ; so 
that any capable person, if he pleased, 
might take an inventory of the whole. 
He then read an account of the parti- 
culars, and told them they might (if 
they pleased) make choice of any per- 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WOULD. [B.II.Cn.V. 



7(3 

of making any advantage by a longer 
stay, vie made sail to the leeward of 
the port, in order to join our prizes ; 
but when we arrived on the station 
appointed for them, we did not meet 
with them, though we continued there 
four or five days. "We supposed that 
some chase had occasioned their leav- 
ing their station, and therefore we 
proceeded down the coast to the high 
land of Nasca, where Captain Saun- 
ders was directed to join us. Here 
we avrived on the 21st, and were in 
great expectation of meeting with 
some of the enemy's ships on the 
coast, as both the accounts of former 
voyages and the information of our 
prisoners assured us that all ships 
bound to Callao constantly make this 
land, to prevent the danger of running 
to the leeward of the port. But not- 
withstanding the advantages of thfe 
station we saw no sail till the 2d of 
November, when two ships appeared in 
sight together ; we immediately gave 
them chase, but soon perceived that 
they were the Trial's and Centurion's 
prizes. As they had the wind of us, 
we brought to and waited their com- 
ing up, when Captain Saunders came 
on board us, and acquainted the Com- 
modore that he had cleared the Trial 
pursuant to his orders, and having 
scuttled her he remained by her till 
she sank, but that it was the 4th of 
October before this was effected ; for 
there ran so large and hollow a sea, 
that the sloop, having neither masts 
nor sails to steady her, rolled and 
pitched so violently that it was im- 
possible for a boat to lie alongside of 
her for the greatest part of the time. 
And during this attendance on the 
sloop they were all driven so far to 
the northwest, that they were after- 
wards obliged to stretch a long way 
to the westward to regain the ground 
they had lost, which was the reason 
that Ave had not met with them on 
their station as we expected. We 
found they had not been more fortu- 
nate in their cruise than we were, for 



son to take an inventory for them, or 
buy their parts. This spread a visible 
joy, and gave content to every one." 



they had seen no vessel since they 
separated from us. 

The little success we all had, and 
our certainty that had any ships been 
stirring in these seas for some time 
past we must have met with them, 
made us believe that the enemy at 
Valparaiso, on missing the two ships 
we had taken, had suspected us to be 
in the neighbourhood/ and had conse- 
quently laid an embargo on all the 
trade in the southern ports. We like- 
wise apprehended that they might by 
this time be fitting out the men-of-war 
at Callao , for we knew that it was no 
uncommon thing for an express from 
Valparaiso to reach Lima in twenty- 
nine or thirty days, and it was now 
more than fifty since we had taken 
our first prize. These apprehensions 
of an embargo along the coast, and of 
the equipment of the Spanish squad- 
ron at Callao, determined the Com- 
modore to hasten down to the leeward 
of Callao, and to join Captain Mitchel 
(who was stationed off Paita) as soon 
as possible, that, our strength being 
united, we might be prepared to give 
the ships from Callao a warm reception 
if they dared to put to sea. With this 
view we bore away the same afternoon, 
taking particular care to keep at such 
a distance from the shore that there 
might be no danger of our being dis- 
covered from thence ; for we knew 
that all the country ships were com- 
manded, under the severest penalty, 
not to sail by the port of Callao with- 
out stopping ; and as this order was 
constantly complied with, we should 
undoubtedly be known for enemies if 
we were seen to act contrary to it. In 
this new navigation, not being cer- 
tain whether we might not meet the 
Spanish squadron in our route, the 
Commodore took on board the Cen- 
turion part of his crew with whiih he 
had formerly manned the Carmelo. 
And now, standing to the northward, 
we, before night came on, had a view 
of the small island called St Gallan, 1 
which bore from us NNE. half E., 

1 Just to the southward of the well- 
known Chincha Islands, in the open- 
ing of Pisco Bay. 



17-11.1 CAPTURE OF THE SANTA TERESA DE JESUS. 



77 



about seven leagues distant. This 
island lies in the Latitude of about 
14 S., and about five miles to the 
northward of a high land called Mono 
Viejo, or the Old Man's Head. I 
mention this island and the high land 
near it more particularly, because be- 
tween them is the most eligible station 
on that coast for cruising upon the 
enemy, as all ships bound to Callao, 
whether from the northward or the 
southward, run well in with the land 
in this part. By the 5th of Novem- 
ber, at three in the afternoon, we 
were advanced within view of the 
high land of Barranca, lying in the 
Latitude of 10 36' S., bearing from 
us NE. by E., distant eight or nine 
leagues ; and an hour and a half 
afterwards we had the satisfaction we 
had so long wished for, of seeing a 
sail. She first appeared to leeward, 
and we all immediately gave her 
chase ; but the Centurion so much 
outsailed the two prizes, that we soon 
ran them out of sight, and gained 
considerably on the chase. However, 
night coming on before we came up 
with her, we about 7 o'clock lost 
sight of her, and were in some per- 
plexity what course to steer ; but at 
last Mr Anson resolved, as we were 
then before the wind, to keep all his 
sails set, and not to change his course. 
For though we had no doubt but the 
chase would alter her course in the 
night ; yet, as it was uncertain what 
tack she would go upon, it was thought 
more prudent to keep on our course, 
as we must by this means unavoid- 
ably near her, than to change it on 
conjecture, when if we should mis- 
take we must infallibly lose her. 
Thus, then, we continued the chase 
about an hour and half in the dark, 
some one or other on board us con- 
stantly imagining they discerned her 
sails right ahead of us ; but at last 
Mr Brett, then our second lieutenant, 
did really discover her about four 
points on the larboard-bow, steering 
off to the seaward. We immediately 
clapped the helm a- weather, and stood 
for her, and in less than an hour came 
up with her ; and having fired four- 
teen shots at her, she struck. Our 



third lieutenant, Mr Dennis, was sent 
in the boat with sixteen men to take 
possession of the prize, and to return 
the prisoners to our ship. This ship 
was named the Santa Teresa de Jesus, 
built at Guayaquil, of about 300 tons 
burthen, and was commanded by Bar- 
tolome Urrunaga, a Biscayer. She 
was bound from Guayaquil to Callao ; 
her loading consisted of timber, cacao, 
cocoa-nuts, tobacco, hides, Pito thread 
(which is very strong, and is made of 
a species of grass), Quito cloth, wax, 
&c. The specie on board her was in- 
considerable, being principally small 
silver money, and not amounting to 
more than 170 sterling. It is true, 
her cargo was of great value, could 
we have disposed of it ; but the Span- 
iards having strict orders never to 
ransom their ships, all the goods that 
we took in these seas, except what 
little we had occasion for ourselves, 
were of no advantage to us. Indeed, 
though we could make no profit there- 
by ourselves, it was some satisfaction 
to us to consider that it was so much 
really lost to the enemy, and that the 
despoiling them was no contemptible 
branch of that service in which we 
were now employed by our country. 1 



1 Thomas gives a quaint and amus- 
ing account of the use the squadron 
made of those stores so much despised 
by the Chaplain : " The 7th, we were 
employed in getting aboard several 
necessary stores, as planks, cordage, 
and the like, for the use of our squad- 
ron. The 9th, we brought from on 
board the Teresa ten serons of cocoa, 
one of wax, and 180 fathom of three 
and a half rope. The 10th, we 
brought from on board our first prize, 
the Carmelo, the following goods, 
viz., cloth, two bales ; baize, five 
ditto; sugar, 182 loaves; straw mats, 
two; tar, one skin; raisins, three 
bales ; indigo, four serons ; cotton 
cloth, one bale ; hats, two cases and 
twenty-five loose ones : skins, one 
parcel ; chocolate, one bag ; camlet, 
one bale and two parcels ; silks, one 
box ; lead, four pigs ; and combs, 
one small parcel." After such an 
enumeration, one is better able to 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cn.V. 



Besides our prize's crew, which 
amounted to forty-five hands, there 
were on board her ten passengers, con- 
sisting of four men and three women, 
who were natives of the country, born 
of Spanish parents, and three black 
female slaves that attended them. 
The women were a mother and her two 
daughters, the eldest about twenty- 
one, and the youngest about fourteen. 
It is not to be wondered at that 
women of these years should be exces- 
sively alarmed at falling into the hands 
of an enemy whom, from the former 
outrages of the Buccaneers, and by 
the artful insinuations of their priests, 
they had been taught to consider as 
the most terrible and brutal of all 
mankind. These apprehensions, too, 
were in the present instance exagger- 
ated by the singular beauty of the 
youngest of the women, and the riot- 
ous disposition which they might well 
expect to find in a set of sailors that 
had not seen a woman for near a twelve- 
month. Full of these terrors, the 
women all hid themselves when our 
officer went on board ; and, when 
they were found out, it was with 
great difficulty that he could persuade 
them to approach the light. How- 
ever, he soon satisfied them, by the 
humanity of his conduct and his 
assurances of their future security and 
honourable treatment, that they had 
nothing to fear ; and the Commodore 
being informed of the matter, sent 
directions that they should be con- 
tinued on board their own ship, with 
the use of the same apartments, and 
with all the other conveniences they 
had enjoyed before, giving strict 
orders that they should receive no 
kind of inquietude or molestation 
whatever. And that they might be 
the more certain of having these 
orders complied with, or of complain- 
ing if they were not, the Commodore 
permitted the pilot, who in Spanish 
ships is generally the second person 
on board, to stay with them as their 

understand how ships in those days 
could keep at sea for years without 
their crews losing the habits aui sem- 
blance of civilisation. 



guardian and protector. He was par- 
ticularly chosen for this purpose by Mr 
Anson, as he seemed to be extremely 
interested in all that concerned the 
women, and had at first declared that 
he was married to the youngest of 
them ; though it afterwards appeared, 
both from the information of the rest of 
the prisoners and other circumstances, 
that he had asserted this with a view 
the better to secure them from the 
insults they expected on their first 
falling into our hands. By this com- 
passionate and indulgent behaviour of 
the Commodore, the consternation of 
our female prisoners entirely subsided, 
and they continued easy and cheer- 
ful during the whole time they were 
with us, as I shall have occasion to 
mention more particularly hereafter. 
I have before observed, that at the 
beginning of this chase the Centurion 
ran her two consorts out of sight, for 
which reason we lay by all the night, 
after we had taken the prize, for Cap- 
tain Saunders and Lieutenant Saum- 
arez to join us, firing guns and making 
false fires every half hour, to prevent 
their passing us unobserved ; but they 
were so far astern that they neither 
heard nor saw any of our signals, and 
were not able to come up with us till 
broad daylight. When they had 
joined us, we proceeded together to 
the northward, being now four sail 
in company. We here found the sea, 
for many miles round us, of a beauti- 
ful red colour : this, upon examina- 
tion, we imputed to an immense 
quantity of spawn spread upon its 
surface ; and taking up some of the 
water in a wine-glass, it soon changed 
from a dirty aspect to a clear crystal, 
with only some red globules of a slimy 
nature floating on the top. And now, 
having a supply of timber on board 
our new prize, the Commodore ordered 
our boats to be repaired, and a swivel 
gun-stock to be fixed in the bow, both 
of the barge and pinnace, in order to 
increase their force, in case we should 
be obliged to have recourse to them 
for boarding ships or for any attempts 
on shore. As we stood from hence 
to the northward nothing remarkable 
occurred for two or three days, though 



1741.] CAPTURE OF THE NUESTRA SENORA DEL CARMEN. 79 



we spread our ships in such a manner 
that it was not probable any vessel of 
the enemy could escape us. In our 
run along this coast we generally ob- 
served that there was a current which 
set us to the northward at the rate 
of ten or twelve miles each day. 
And now, being in about 8 of S. 
Latitude, we began to be attended 
with vast numbers of flying fish and 
bonitos, which were the first we saw 
after our departure from the coast of 
Brazil. But it is remarkable, that on 
the east side of South America they 
extended to a much higher latitude 
than they do on the west side ; for 
we did not lose them on the coast of 
Brazil till we approached the southern 
tropic. The reason for this diversity 
is doubtless the different degrees of 
heat obtaining in the same latitude 
on different sides of that continent. 1 

On the 10th of November we were 
three leagues south of the southern- 
most Island of Lobos, lying in the Lat. 
of 60 27' S. There are two islands 
of this name : this, called Lobos de 
la Mar; and another, which lies to 
the northward of it, very much re- 
sembling it in shape and appearance, 
and often mistaken for it, called 
Lobos de Tierra. We were now 
drawing near to the station appointed 
to the Gloucester ; for which reason, 
fearing to miss her, we made an easy 
sail all night. The next morning, 
at daybreak, we saw a ship in shore, 
and to windward, plying up to the 
coast. She had passed by us with 
the favour of the night, and we, soon 
perceiving her not to be the Gloucester, 
got our tacks on board and gave her 
chase ; but it proving very little wind, 
so that neither of us could make 
much way, the Commodore ordered 
the barge, his pinnace, and the Trial's 
pinnace, to be manned and armed, 
and to pursue the chase and board 

1 Here we omit a long digression 
"on the heat and cold of different 
climates, and on the varieties which 
occur in the same place in different 
parts of the year, and in different 
places lying in the same degrees of 
latitude." 



her. Lieutenant Brett, who com- 
manded the barge, came up with her 
first, about 9 o'clock, and running 
alongside of her, he fired a volley of 
small shot between the masts, just 
over the heads of the people on 
board, and then instantly entered 
with the greatest part of his men ; 
but the enemy made no resistance, 
being sufficiently frightened by the 
dazzling of the cutlasses, and the 
volley they had just received. Lieu- 
tenant Brett ordered the sails to be 
trimmed, and bore down to the Com- 
modore, taking up in his way the two 
pinnaces. When he was arrived 
within about four miles of us, he put 
off in the barge, bringing with him a 
number of the prisoners, who had given 
him some material intelligence which 
he was desirous the Commodore should 
be acquainted 'with as soon as pos- 
sible. On his arrival we learned that 
the prize was called Nuestra Sefiora 
del Carmen, of about 270 tons burthen ; 
she was commanded by Marcos Mo- 
rena, 2 a native of Venice, and had on 
board forty-three mariners. She was 
deep laden with steel, iron, wax, 
pepper, cedar, plank, snuff, rosaries, 
European bale goods, powder-blue, 
cinnamon, Romish indulgences, and 
other species of merchandise. And 
though this cargo, in our present 
circumstances, was but of little value 
to us, yet with respect to the Span- 
iards it was the most considerable 
capture that fell into our hands in 
this part of the world ; for it amounted 
to upwards of 400,000 dollars prime 
cost at Panama. This ship was 
bound to Callao, and had stopped at 
Paita in her passage to take in a re- 
cruit of water and provisions, and 
had not left that place above twenty- 
four hours before she fell into our 
hands. 

I have mentioned that Mr Brett 
had received some important intelli- 
gence from the prisoners, which he 
endeavoured to acquaint the Commo- 
dore with immediately. The first 
person he received it from (though 
upon further examination it was con- 



2 Or Marco Marina. 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. II. CH. VI. 





finned by the other prisoners) was one 
John Williams, an Irishman, whom 
he found on board the Spanish vessel. 
Williams was a Papist, who worked 
his passage from Cadiz, and had 
travelled over all the kingdom of 
Mexico as a pedlar. He pretended 
that by this business he had got 4000 
or 5000 dollars ; but that he was em- 
barrassed by the priests, who knew he 
had money, and was at last stripped 
of all he had. He was, indeed, at 
present all in rags, being but just got 
out of Paita gaol, where he had been 
confined for some misdemeanour ; he 
expressed great joy upon seeing his 
countrymen, and immediately in- 
formed them, that a few days before 
a vessel came into Paita, where the 
master of her informed the Governor 
that he had been chased in the offing 
by a very large ship, which, from her 
size, and the colour of her sails, he 
was persuaded must be one of the 
English squadron. This we then 
conjectured to have been the Glouces- 
ter, as we afterwards found it was. 
The Governor, upon examining the 
master, was fully satisfied of his re- 
lation, and immediately sent away 
an express to Lima to acquaint the 
Viceroy therewith ; and the royal 
officer residing at Paita, being appre- 
hensive of a visit from the English, 
was busily employed in removing the 
King's treasure, and his own, to Piura, 
a town within land about fourteen 
leagues distant. We further learned 
from our prisoners, that there was a 
very considerable sum of money, 1 be- 
longing to some merchants at Lima, 
that was now lodged at the custom- 
house at Paita ; and that this was in- 
tended to be shipped on board a vessel 
which was then in the port of Paita, 
and was preparing to sail with the 
utmost expedition, being bound for 
the Bay of Sonsonnate, on the coast 
of Mexico, in order to purchase a part 
of the cargo of the Manilla ship. 
This vessel at Paita was esteemed a 
prime sailer, and had just received a 
new coat of tallow on her bottom ; 

1 According to Thomas's account, 
400,000 dollars. 



and, in the opinion of the prisoners, 
she might be able to sail the succeed- 
ing morning. 

The character they gave us of this 
vessel, on which the money was to 
be shipped, left us little reason to 
believe that our ship, which had been 
in the water near two years, could 
have any chance of coming up with 
her, if we once suffered her to escape 
out of the port. And therefore, as 
we were now discovered, and the 
coast would be soon alarmed, and as 
our cruising in these parts any longer 
would answer no purpose, the Com- 
modore resolved to surprise the place, 
having first minutely informed him- 
self 2 of its strength and condition, 
and being fully satisfied that there 
was little danger of losing many of 
our men in the attempt. This sur- 
prise of Paita, besides the treasure it 
promised us, and its being the only 
enterprise it was in our power to 
undertake, had these other advan- 
tages attending it, that we should in 
all probability supply ourselves with 
great quantities of live provision, of 
which we were at this time in want. 
And we should likewise have an op- 
portunity of setting our prisoners on 
shore, who were now very numerous, 
and made a greater consumption of 
our food than our stock that remained 
was capable of furnishing long. In 
all these lights, the attempt was a 
most eligible one, and what our neces- 
sities, our situation, and every pru- 
dential consideration prompted us to. 
How it succeeded, and how far it an- 
swered our expectations, shall be the 
subject of the following Chapter. 



CHAPTER VI. 

THE town of Paita is situated in the 
Latitude of 50 12' S., in a most bar- 
ren soil, composed only of sand and 
slate ; the extent of it is but small, 
containing in all less than 200 fami- 
lies. The houses are only ground- 
floors, the walls built of split cane and 

2 By examining the prisoners. 



1741.] PREPARATION MADE 

mud, and the roofs thatched with 
leaves. These edifices, though ex- 
tremely slight, are abundantly suffi- 
cient for a climate where rain is con- 
sidered as a prodigy, and is not seen 
in many years ; so that it is said that 
a small quantity of rain falling in this 
country in the year 1728, it ruined a 
great number of buildings, which 
mouldered away, and, as it were, 
melted before it. The inhabitants of 
Paitaare principally Indians and black 
slaves, or at least a mixed breed, the 
whites being very few. The port of 
Paita, though in reality little more 
than a bay, is esteemed the best on 
that part of the coast, and is indeed a 
veiy secure and commodious anchor- 
age. It is greatly frequented by all 
vessels coming from the north, since 
it is here only that the ships from 
Acapulco, Sonsonnate, Realejo, and 
Panama can touch and refresh in their 
passage to Callao ; and the length of 
these voyages (the wind for the greatest 
part of the year being full against 
them) renders it impossible to perform 
them without calling upon the coast 
for a recruit of fresh water. It is 
true, Paita is situated on so parched 
a spot that it does not itself furnish a 
drop of fresh water, or any kind of 
greens or provisions, except fish and 
a few goats ; but there is an Indian 
town called Golan, about two or three 
leagues distant to the northward, 
whence water, maize, greens, fowls, 
&c., are brought to Paita on balsas, or 
floats, for the convenience of the ships 
that touch here ; and cattle are some- 
times brought from Piura, a town which 
lies about fourteen leagues up in the 
country. The water brought from 
Colan is whitish, and of a disagree- 
able appearance, but is said to be very 
wholesome ; for it is pretended by the 
inhabitants that it runs through large 
woods of sarsaparilla, and that it is 
sensibly impregnated therewith. This 
port of Paita, besides furnishing the 
northern trade bound to Callao with 
water and necessaries, is the usual 
place where passengers from Acapulco 
or Panama, bound to Lima, disembark ; 
for as it is 200 leagues from hence to 
Callao, the port of Lima, and as the 



TO ATTACK PAYTA. 81 

wind is generally contrary, the passage 
by sea is very tedious and fatiguing : 
but by land there is a tolerably good 
road parallel to the coast, with many 
stations and villages for the accommo- 
dation of travellers. The town of 
Paita is itself an open place ; its sole 
protection and defence is [a small fort 
or redoubt near the shore of the bay]. 
It was of consequence to us to be well 
informed of the fabric and strength of 
this fort ; and by the examination of 
our prisoners we found that there were 
eight pieces of cannon mounted in it, 
but that it had neither ditch nor out- 
work, being only surrounded by a 
plain brick wall ; and that the garri- 
son consisted of only one weak com- 
pany, but the town itself might pos- 
sibly arm 300 men more. 

Mr Anson, having informed himself 
of the strength of the place, resolved 
to attempt it that very night. 1 "We 
were then about twelve leagues distant 
from the shore, far enough to prevent 
our being discovered, yet not so far 
but that, by making all the sail we 
could, we might arrive in the bay 
with our ships in the night. How- 
ever, the Commodore prudently con- 
sidered that this would be an impro- 
per method of proceeding, as our ships, 
being such large bodies, might be 
easily discovered at a distance even in 
the night, and might thereby alarm 
the inhabitants and give them an op- 
portunity of removing their valuable 
effects. He therefore, as the strength 
of the place did not require our whole 
force, resolved to attempt it with our 
boats only, ordering the eighteen- 
oared barge, and our own and the 
Trial's pinnaces, on that service ; and 
having picked out fifty-eight men to 
man them, well provided with arms 
and ammunition, he gave the com- 
mand of the expedition to Lieutenant 
Brett, and gave him his necessary 
orders. And the better to prevent 
the disappointment and confusion 
Avhich might arise from the dark- 
ness of the night, and the ignorance 
of the streets and passages of the 
place; two of the Spanish pilots 

* The 12th of November 1741. 
F 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.CH.V1. 



were ordered to attend the lieuten- 
ant, and to conduct him to the 
most convenient landing-place, and 
were afterwards to be his guides on 
shore. And that we might have the 
greater security for their faithful be- 
haviour on this occasion, the Commo- 
dore took care to assure all our pri- 
soners, that if the pilots acted properly 
they should all of them be released 
and set on shore at this place ; but in 
case of any misconduct or treachery, 
he threatened them that the pilots 
should be instantly shot, and that he 
would carry all the rest of the Span- 
iards who were on board him prisoners 
to England. So that the prisoners 
themselves were interested in our suc- 
cess ; and therefore we had no reason 
to suspect our conductors either of 
negligence or perfidy. And on this 
occasion I cannot but remark a singu- 
lar circumstance of one of the pilots 
employed by us in this business. It 
seems (as we afterwards learned) he 
had been taken by Captain Clipperton 
above twenty years before, and had 
been forced to lead Clipperton and 
his people to the surprise of Truxillo, 
a town within land to the southward 
of Paita, where, however, he contrived 
to alarm his countrymen, and to save 
them, though the place was taken. 
Now that the only two attempts on 
shore, which were made at so long an 
interval from each other, should be 
guided by the same person, and he, 
too, a prisoner both times, and forced 
upon the employ contrary to his in- 
clination, is an incident so very extra- 
ordinary that I could not help taking 
notice of it. 

During our preparations, the ships 
themselves stood towards the port 
with all the sail they could make, 
being secure that we were yet at too 
great a distance to be seen. But 
about 10 o'clock at night, the ships 
being then within five leagues of tho 
place, Lieutenant Brett, with the 
boats under his command, put off, 
and arrived at the mouth of the bay 
without being discovered ; but no 
sooner had he entered it than some 
of the people on board a vessel riding 
at anchor there perceived him, who 



instantly put off in their boat, row- 
ing towards the fort, shouting and 
crying, "The English! The English 
dogs ! " by which the whole town was 
suddenly alarmed ; and our people 
soon observed several lights hurrying 
backwards and forwards in the fort, 
and other marks of the inhabitants 
being in great motion. Lieutenant 
Brett on this encouraged his men to 
pull briskly up to the shore that they 
might give the enemy as little time 
as possible to prepare for their defence. 
However, before our boats could reacli 
the shore, the people in the fort had 
got ready some of their cannon, and 
pointed them towards the landing- 
place ; and though in the darkness of 
the night it might be well supposed 
that chance had a greater share than 
skill in their direction, yet the first 
shot passed extremely near one of the 
boats, whistling just over the heads 
of the crew. This made our people 
redouble their efforts, so that they 
had readied the shore, and were in 
part disembarked, by the time the 
second gun fired. As soon as our 
men landed, they were conducted by 
one of the Spanish pilots to the en- 
trance of a narrow street, not above 
fifty yards distant from the beach, 
where they were covered from the fire 
of the fort ; and being formed in the 
best manner the shortness of the time 
would allow, they immediately march- 
ed for the parade, which was a large 
square at the end of this street, the 
fort being one side of the square and 
the Governor's house another. In 
this march (though performed with 
tolerable regularity) the shouts and 
clamours of threescore sailors who 
had been confined so long on ship- 
board, and were now for the first time 
on shore in an enemy's country joy- 
ous as they always are when they land, 
and animated besides in the present 
case with the hopes of an immense 
pillage the huzzas, I say, of this 
spirited detachment, joined with the 
noise of their drums, and favoured by 
the night, had augmented their num- 
bers, in the opinion of the enemy, to 
at least 300 : by which persuasion tho 
inhabitants were so greatly intimi- 



1741.] FLIGHT OF THE GOVEKNOK OF PAYTA. 

dated that they were much more soli- 
citous about the means of their flight 
than of their resistance. So that 



83 



though upon entering the parade our 
people received a volley from the mer- 
chants who owned the treasure then 
in the town, and who, with a few 
others, had ranged themselves in a 
gallery that ran round the Governor's 
house, yet that post was immediately 
abandoned upon the first fire made by 
our people, who were thereby left in 
quiet possession of the parade. 

On this success Lieutenant Brett 
divided his men into two parties, 
ordering one of them to surround the 
Governor's house, and if possible to 
secure the Governor, whilst he himself 
with the other marched to the fort 
with an intent to force it. But, con- 
trary to his expectation, he entered it 
without opposition; 1 for the enemy, 
on his approach, abandoned it, and 
made their escape over the walls. By 
this means the whole place was mas- 
tered in less than a quarter of an 
hour's time from the first landing, 
with no other loss than that of one 
man killed on the spot, and two 
wounded ; 2 one of whom was the Span- 
ish pilot of the Teresa, who received a 



1 " On our getting possession of the 
castle, " says Thomas, ' ' our command- 
ing officer very inconsiderately ordered 
the guns to be thrown over the walls, 
which accordingly was executed ; but 
some time after, reflecting on the ill- 
consequence which might attend that 
proceeding, he ordered two of them to 
be got up and remounted. " 

2 In Thomas's narrative we are told 
more particularly : "We lost one man, 
Peter Obrian the Commodore's steward, 
who was shot through the breast by a 
musket ball ; and had two wounded, 
to wit, Arthur Lusk, a quarter-master, 
and the Spanish pilot of the Teresa, 
whom we had made use of as a guide ; 
and I have had it reported from seve- 
ral officers then on shore, that our 
men ran to the attack, and fired in so 
irregular a manner, that it was, and 
still remains a doubt, whether those 
were not shot by our people rather 
than by the enemy." 



slight bruise by a ball which grazed dlL. 
his wrist. Indeed, another of the 
company, the Honourable Mr Keppel, 



VUUJ.U*U,Tj *-* v J~A.U.UVIUC*|JUV JJAA iXt/ULJClj 

son to the Earl of Albemarle, had a 
very narrow escape ; for having on a 
jockey cap, one side of the peak was 
shaved off close to his temple by a 
ball, which, however, did him no other 
injury. And now Lieutenant Brett, 
after this success, placed a guard at 
the fort, and another at the Governor's 
house, and appointed sentinels at all 
the avenues of the town, both to pre- 
vent any surprise from the enemy, 
and to secure the effects in the place 
from being embezzled. And this be- 
ing done, his next care was to seize on 
the custom-house where the treasure 
lay, and to examine if any of the in- 
habitants remained in the town, that 
he might know what further precau- 
tions it was necessary to take. But 
he soon found that the numbers left 
behind were no ways formidable : for 
the greatest part of them (being in bed 
when the place was surprised) had run 
away with so much precipitation, that 
they had not given themselves time 
to put on their clothes. 3 And in this 
precipitate rout the Governor was not 
the last to secure himself, for he fled 
betimes, half-naked, leaving his wife, 
a 
o 

but three or four days, behind him 
though she too was afterwards carried 
off in her shift by a couple of sentinels, 
just as the detachment ordered to in- 
vest the house arrived before it. This 
escape of the Governor was an unpleas- 
ing circumstance, as Mr Anson had 
particularly recommended it to Lieu- 
tenant Brett to secure his person if 
possible, in hopes that by that means 

3 " These people, " says Thomas con- 
temptuously enough, "having enjoyed 
a long peace, and being enervated by 
the luxury so customary in those parts, 
their arms in a bad condition, and no 
person of experience or courage to 
head them, it is no wonder that they 
made so small a resistance, and were 
all driven out of the town in less 
than half-an-hour by only forty-nine 
men. " 



young lady of about seventeen years 
f age to whom he had been married 



84 ANSON'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. [B.II.CH.VI. 

that interval. I must observe, that 
after the boats were gone off we lay 
by till 1 o'clock in the morning, and 



we might be able to treat for the ran- 
som of the place ; but it seems his 
alertness rendered it impossible to 
seize him. The few inhabitants who 
remained were confined in one of the 
churches under a guard, except some 
stout Negroes who were found in the 
place ; these, instead of being shut up, 
were employed the remaining part of 
the night to assist in carrying the 
treasure from the custom-house and 
other places to the fort : however, 
there was care taken that they should 
be always attended by a file of mus- 
keteers. 

The transporting the treasure from 
the custom-house to the fort was the 
principal occupation of Mr Brett's 
people after he had got possession of 
the place. But the sailors, while 
they were thus employed, could not 
be prevented from entering the houses 
which lay near them, in search of pri- 
vate pillage. And, the first things 
which occurred to them being the 
clothes which the Spaniards in their 
flight had left behind them, and which, 
according to the custom of the country, 
were most of them either embroidered 
or laced, our people eagerly seized 
these glittering habits, and put them 
on over their own dirty trousers and 
jackets ; not forgetting, at the same 
time, the tie or bag-wig, and laced 
hat, which were generally found with 
the clothes. When this practice was 
once begun, there was no preventing 
the whole detachment from imitating 
it ; and those who came latest into 
the fashion, not finding men's clothes 
sufficient to equip themselves, were 
obliged to take up with women'sgowns 
and petticoats, which (provided there 
was finery enough) they made no 
scruple of putting on and blending 
with their own greasy dress. So that, 
when a party of them thus ridiculously 
metamorphosed first appeared before 
Mr Brett, he was extremely surprised 
at their appearance, and could not 
immediately be satisfied they were his 
own people. 

These were the transactions of our 
detachment on shore at Paita the first 
night : and now to return to what 
was done on board the Centurion in 



then, supposing our detachment to be 
near landing, we made an easy sail for 
the bay. About seven in the morning 
we began to open the bay, and soon 
after we had a view of the town ; and 
though we had no reason to doubt of 
the success of the enterprise, yet it 
was with great joy that we first dis- 
covered an infallible signal of the cer- 
tainty of our hopes : this was by 
means of our perspectives, for through 
them we saw an English flag hoisted 
on the flagstaff of the fort, which to 
us was an incontestible proof that our 
people had got possession of the town. 
We plied into the bay with as much 
expedition as the wind, which then 
blew off shore, would permit us, and 
at eleven the Trial's boat came on 
board us, laden with dollars arid 
church-plate ; and the o nicer who 
commanded her informed us of the 
preceding night's transactions, such as 
we have already related them. About 
two in the afternoon we came to an 
anchor in ten fathoms and a half, at 
a mile and a half distance from the 
town, and were consequently near 
enough to have a more immediate 
intercourse with those on shore. And 
now we found that Mr Brett had 
hitherto gone on in collecting and 
removing the treasure without inter- 
ruption ; but that the enemy had 
rendezvoused from all parts of the 
country on a hill at the back of the 
town, where they made no inconsider- 
able appearance : for, amongst the 
rest of their force, there were 200 
horse seemingly very well armed and 
mounted, and, as we conceived, pro- 
perly trained and regimented, being 
furnished with trumpets, drums, and 
standards. These troops paraded 
about the hill with great ostentation, 
sounding their military music, and 
practising every art to intimidate us 
(as our numbers on shore were by this 
time not unknown to them), in hopes 
that we might be induced by our fears 
to abandon the place before the pillage 
was completed. But we were not so 
ignorant as to believe that this body 



1741.1 



PAYTA TAKEN. 



85 



of liorse, which seemed to be what the 
enemy principally depended on, would 
dare to venture in streets and among 
houses, even had their numbers been 
three times as great ; and therefore, 
notwithstanding their menaces, we 
went on, as long as the daylight last- 
ed, calmly, in sen ding off the treasure, 
and in employing the boats to carry 
on board the refreshments, such as 
hogs, fowls, &c., which we found here 
in great abundance. But at night, to 
prevent any surprise, the Commodore 
sent on shore a reinforcement, who 
posted themselves in all the streets 
leading to the parade ; and for their 
greater security they traversed the 
streets with barricades six feet high : 
and the enemy continuing quiet all 
night, we at daybreak returned again 
to our labour of loading the boats and 
sending them off. 

By this time we were convinced of 
what consequence it would have been 
to us had fortune seconded the pru- 
dent views of the Commodore, by per- 
mitting us to have secured the Gover- 
nor. For we found in the place many 
storehouses full of valuable effects, 
which were useless to us at present, 
and such as we could not find room 
for on board. But had the Governor 
been in our power, lie would in all 
probability have treated for a ransom, 
which would have been extremely 
advantageous both to him and us ; 
Whereas he being now at liberty, and 
having collected all the force of the 
country for many leagues round, and 
Laving even got a body of militia from 
Piura, he was so elated with his num- 
bers, and so fond of his new military 
command, that he seemed not to trouble 
himself about the fate of his govern- 
ment. So that though Mr Anson sent 
several messages to him by the inha- 
bitants who were in our power, desir- 
ing him to enter into a treaty for the 
ransom of the town and goods, giving 
him at the same time an intimation 
that he should be far from insisting 
on a rigorous equivalent, but perhaps 
might be satisfied with some live cattle 
and a few necessaries for the use of the 
squadron, and assuring him too, that 
if he would not condescend at least J;o 



treat, he would set fire to the town 
and all the warehouses : yet the gover- 
nor was so imprudent and arrogant, 
that he despised all these reiterated 
applications, and did not deign even 
to return the least answer to them. 

On the second day of our being in 
possession of the place, several Negro 
slaves deserted from the enemy on the 
hill, and, coming into the town, 
voluntarily entered into our service. 
One of these was well known to a 
gentleman on board, who remembered 
him formerly at Panama. And the 
Spaniards without the town being in 
extreme want of water, many of their 
slaves crept into the place by stealth, 
and carried away several jars of water 
to their masters on the hill ; and 
though some of them were seized by 
our men in the attempt, yet the thirst 
amongst the enemy was so pressing, 1 
that they continued this practice till 
we left the place. And now, on this 
second day, we were assured both by 
the deserters and by these prisoners 
we took, that the Spaniards on the 
hill, who were by this time increased 
to a formidable number, had resolved 
to storm the town and fort the suc- 
ceeding night ; and that one Gordon, 
a Scotch Papist, and captain of a ship 
in those seas, was to have the com- 
mand of this enterprise. But we, 
notwithstanding, continued sending 
off our boats, and prosecuted our work 
without the least hurry or precipita- 
tion till the evening; and then a 
reinforcement was again sent on shore 
by the Commodore, and Lieutenant 
Brett doubled his guards at each of 
the barricades ; and our posts being 



1 Thomas says : "The country there- 
abouts being for many miles round 
quite barren and sandy, without either 
water or any other thing necessary for 
life, and the nearest town to them, 
named as I think Santa Cruz, whence 
relief might be got, being a day and 
a half or two days' journey off, the 
people who had left the town were in 
a starving condition, and we had 
melancholy accounts of several dying 
among them for want chiefly of water 
during our small stay. " 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. B.II.CH.TI. 



connected by means of sentinels placed 
within call of each other, and the 
whole being visited by frequent rounds, 
attended with a drum, these marks of 
our vigilance, which the enemy could 
not be ignorant of, as they could 
doubtless hear the drum, if not the 
calls of the sentinels ; these marks, I 
say, of our vigilance and of our readi- 
ness to receive them, cooled their re- 
solution, and made them forget the 
vaunts of the preceding day ; so that 
we passed the second night with as 
little molestation as we had done the 
first. 

"We had finished sending the treasure 
on board the Centurion the evening 
before ; so that the third morning, 
being the 15th of November, the boats 
were employed in carrying off the 
most valuable part of the effects that 
remained in the town. l And the Com- 
modore intending to sail this day, he 
about 10 o'clock, pursuant to his pro- 
mise, sent all his prisoners, amount- 
ing to eighty-eight, on shore, giving 
orders to Lieutenant Brett to secure 
them in one of the churches under a 
strict guard till he was ready to embark 
his men. Mr Brett was at the same 
time ordered to set the whole town on 
fire, 2 except the two churches (which 



1 " Which," by Thomas's account, 
" chiefly consisted of rich brocades, 
laced cloths, bales of fine linens and 
woollens, britannias, stays, and the 
like ; together with a great number 
of hogs, some sheep and fowls, cases 
of Spanish brandies and wines, a great 
quantity of onions, olives, sweet-meats, 
and many other things too tedious to 
name, all which the sailors hoped 
would have been equally divided among 
the ships' companions, but they fcmnd 
themselves disappointed." 

2 The burning of Paita, inflicting 
cruel injury not on the Spanish Gov- 
ernment but on an unoffending and 
industrious community, has been gene- 
rally censured as a violation of the 
laws of civilised warfare. Earl Stan- 
hope, usually slow to blame, says the 
act "has imprinted a deep blot on 
the glory of Lord Anson's expedi- 
tion." 



by good fortune stood at some distance 
from the other houses), and then he 
was to abandon the place and to come 
on board. These orders were punctu- 
ally complied with ; for Mr Brett 
immediately set his men to work to 
distribute pitch, tar, and other com- 
bustibles (of which great quantities 
were found here) into houses situated 
in different streets of the town ; so 
that, the place being fired in many 
quarters at the same time, the destruc- 
tion might be more violent and sud- 
den, and the enemy, after our depar- 
ture, might not be able to extinguish 
it. These preparations being made, 
he in the next place ordered the can- 
non which he found in the fort, to be 
nailed up ; 3 and then, setting fire to 
those houses which were most wind- 
ward, he collected his men, and 
marched towards the beach, where 
the boats waited to carry them off. 
And the part of the beach where he 
intended to embark being an open 
place without the town, the Spaniards 
on the hill, perceiving he was retreat- 
ing, resolved to try if they could not 
precipitate his departure, and thereby 
lay some foundation for their future 
boasting. And for this purpose a 
small squadron of their horse, consist- 
ing of about sixt} T , picked out as I 
suppose for this service, marched 
down the hill with much seeming 
resolution ; so that, had we not been 
prepossessed with a juster opinion of 
their prowess, we might have sus- 
pected that, now we were on the open 
brash with no advantage of situation, 
they would certainly have charged us. 
But we presumed (and we were not 
mistaken) that this was mere ostenta- 
tion ; for, notwithstanding the pomp 
and parade they advanced with, Mr 
Brett had no sooner ordered his men 
to halt and face about, but the enemy 
stopped their career, and never dared 
to advance a step farther. 

When our people were arrived at 
their boats, and were ready to go on 
board, they were for some time de- 
layed by missing one of their number ; 
but being unablo^ by their mutual 



Spiked. 



1741.] 



THE BURNING OF PAYTA. 



87 



inquiries amongst each other, to in- 
form themselves where he was left, or 
by what accident he was detained, 
they, after considerable delay, re- 
solved to get into their boats and to 
put off without him. And the last 
man was actually embarked, and the 
boats just putting off, when they 
heard [him calling to them to take 
him in. The town was by this time 
so thoroughly on fire, and the smoke 
covered the beach so effectually, that 
they could scarcely see him, though 
they heard his voice. The lieuten- 
ant instantly ordered one of the boats 
to his relief, which found him up to 
the chin in water, for he had waded 
as far as he durst, being extremely 
frightened with the apprehensions of 
falling into the hands of an enemy, 
enraged, as they doubtless were, with 
the pillage and destruction of their 
town. On inquiring into the cause 
of his staying behind, it was found 
that he had taken that morning too 
large a dose of brandy, which had 
thrown him into so sound a sleep, 
that he did not awake till the fire 
came near enough to scorch him. He 
was strangely amazed on first opening 
his eyes, to see the place all on a blaze 
on one side, and several Spaniards and 
Indians not far from him on the other. 
The greatness and suddenness of his 
fright instantly reduced him to a state 
of sobriety, and gave him sufficient 
presence of mind to push through the 
thickest of the smoke, as the like- 
liest means to escape the enemy ; 
and making the best of his way to 
the beach, he ran as far into the 
water as he durst (for he could not 
swim) before he ventured to look 
back. . . . 

By the time our people had taken 
their comrade out of the water, and 
were making the best of their way for 
the squadron, the flames had taken 
possession of every part of the town, 
and had got such hold, both by means 
of combustibles that had been distri- 
buted for that purpose, and by the 
slightness of the materials of which 
the hoiises were composed and their 
aptitude to take fire, that it was 
sufficiently apparent no efforts of the 



enemy (though they flocked down in 
great numbers) could possibly put a 
stop to it, or prevent the entire de- 
struction of the place, and all the 
merchandise contained therein. 

Our detachment under Lieutenant 
Brett having safely joined the squad- 
ron, the Commodore prepared to leave 
the place the same evening. He 
found, when he first came into the 
bay, six vessels of the enemy at 
anchor ; one of which was the ship 
which, according to our intelligence, 
was to have sailed with the treasure 
to the coast of Mexico, and which, 
as we were persuaded she was a good 
sailer, we resolved to take with us. 
The others were two snows, a bark, 
and two row -galleys of thirty -six 
oars a-piece ; these last, as we were 
afterwards informed, with many others 
of the same kind built at different 
ports, were intended to prevent our 
landing in the neighbourhood of 
Callao ; for the Spaniards, on the 
first intelligence of our squadron 
and its force, expected that we 
would attempt the city of Lima. 
The Commodore, having no occasion 
for these other vessels, had ordered 
the masts of all five of them to be cut 
away on his first arrival ; and now, 
at his leaving the place, they were 
towed out of the harbour, and scuttled 
and sunk ; and the command of the 
remaining ship, called the Solidad, 
being given to Mr Hughes, the lieu- 
tenant of the Trial, who had with 
him a crew of ten men to navigate 
her, the squadron towards midnight 
weighed anchor and sailed out of the 
bay, being now augmented to six sail, 
that is, the Centurion, and the Trial 
prize, together with the Cannelo, the 
Teresa, the Carmen, and our last 
acquired vessel, the Solidad. 

And now, before I entirely quit 
the account of our transactions at this 
place, it may not, perhaps, be impro- 
per to give a succinct relation of the 
booty we made here, and of the loss 
the Spaniards sustained. I have be- 
fore observed that there were^ great 
quantities of valuable effects in the 
town; but, as the greatest part of 
them were what we could neither 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. II. OH. VI. 



dispose of nor carry away, the total 
amount of this merchandise can only 
be rudely guessed at. But the Span- 
iards, in the representations they made 
to the Court of Madrid (as we were 
afterwards assured), estimated their 
whole loss at a million and a half of 
dollars ; and when it is considered 
that no small part of the goods we 
burned there were of the richest and 
most expensive species, as broad- 
cloths, silks, cambrics, velvets, &c.J 
I cannot but think their valuation 
sufficiently moderate. As to our 
part, our acquisition, though incon- 
siderable in comparison of what we 
destroyed, was yet in itself far from 
despicable ; for the wrought plate, 
dollars, and other coin which fell into 
our hands, amounted to upwards of 
30,000 sterling, besides several rings, 
bracelets, and jewels, whose intrinsic 
value we could not then determine ; 
and over and above all this, the plun- 
der which became the property of the 
immediate captors was very great ; so 
that upon the whole it was by much 
the most important booty we made 
upon that coast. 

There remains, before I take leave 
of this place, another particularity to 
be mentioned, which, on account of 
the great honour which our national 
character in those parts has thence 
received, and the reputation which 
our Commodore in particular has 
thereby acquired, merits a distinct 
and circumstantial discussion. It 
has been already related that all the 
prisoners taken by us in our preced- 
ing prizes were put on shore and dis- 
charged at this place ; amongst which 
there were some persons of consider- 
able distinction, particularly a youth 
of about seventeen years of age, son of 
the Vice-President of the Council of 
Chili. As the barbarity of the Buccan- 
eers, and the artful use the [Spanish] 
ecclesiastics had made of it, had filled 
the natives of those countries with the 
most terrible ideas of the English cru- 
elty, we always found our prisoners, at 
their first coming on board us, to be ex- 
tremely dejected and under great hor- 
ror and anxiety. In particular, this 
youth, whom I last mentioned, having 



never been from home before, lamented 
his captivity in the most moving 
manner, regretting in very plaintive 
terms his parents, his brothers, his 
sisters, andjiis native country, of all 
which he was fully persuaded he had 
taken his last farewell, believing that 
he was now devoted for the remaining 
part of his life to an abject and cruel 
servitude ; nor was he singular in his 
fears, for his companions on board, 
and indeed all the Spaniards that 
came into our power, had the same 
desponding opinion of their situation. 
Mr Anson constantly exerted his 
utmost endeavours to efface these in- 
human impressions they had received 
of us ; always taking care that as 
many of the principal people among 
them as there was room for should 
dine at his table by turns ; and giving 
the strictest orders, too, that they 
should at all times, and in every cir- 
cumstance, be treated with the utmost 
decency and humanity. But, not- 
withstanding this precaution, it was 
generally observed that for the first 
day or two they did not quit their 
fears, but suspected the gentleness of 
their usage to be only preparatory to 
some unthought-of calamity. How- 
ever, being confirmed by time, they 
grew perfectly easy in their situation, 
and remarkably cheerful, so that it was 
often disputable whether or no they 
considered their being detained by us 
as a misfortune. For the youth I 
have above mentioned, who was near 
two months on board us, had at last 
so far conquered his melancholy sur- 
mises, and had taken such an affec- 
tion to Mr Anson, and seemed so 
much pleased with the manner of life, 
totally different from all he had ever 
seen before, that it is doubtful to me 
whether, if his own opinion had been 
taken, he would not have preferred a 
voyage to England in the Centurion to 
the being set on shore at Paita, where 
he was at liberty to return to his 
country and his friends. 

This conduct of the Commodore to 
his prisoners, which was continued 
without interruption or deviation, 
gave them all the highest idea of his 
humanity and benevolence, and in- 



1741.] 



GENEROUS TREATMENT OF PRISONERS. 



duced them likewise (as mankind are 
fond of forming general opinions) to 
entertain very favourable thoughts of 
the whole English nation. But what- 
ever they might be disposed to think 
of Mr Anson before the taking of the 
Teresa, their veneration for him was 
prodigiously increased by his conduct 
towards those women whom (as I 
have already mentioned) lie took in 
that vessel. For the leaving them 
in the possession of their apartments, 
the strict orders given to prevent all 
his people on board from approaching 
them, and the permitting the pilot to 
stay with them as their guardian, were 
measures that seemed so different from 
what might be expected from an ene- 
my and an heretic, that the Spaniards 
on board, though they had themselves 
experienced his beneficence, were sur- 
prised at this new instance of it ; and 
the more so, as all this was done with- 
out his ever having seen the women, 
though the two daughters were both 
esteemed handsome, and the youngest 
was celebrated for her uncommon 
beauty. The women themselves, too, 
were so sensible of the obligations 
they owed him for the care and atten- 
tion with which he had protected 
them, that they absolutely refused to 
go on shore at Paita till they had 
been permitted to wait on him on 
board the Centurion, to return him 
thanks in person. Indeed, all the 
prisoners left us with the strongest 
assurances of their grateful remem- 
brance of his uncommon treatment. 
A Jesuit, in particular, whom the 
Commodore had -taken, and who was 
an ecclesiastic of some distinction, 
could not help expressing himself with 
great thankfulness for the civilities 
he and his countrymen had found on 
board, declaring that he should con- 
sider it as his duty to do Mr Anson 
justice at all times ; adding, that his 
usage of the men prisoners was such 
as could never be forgotten, and such 
as he could never fail to acknowledge 
and recite upon all occasions ; but that 
his behaviour to the women was so 
extraordinary, and so extremely hon- 
ourable, that he doubted all the regard 
due to his own ecclesiastical character 



would be scarcely sufficient to render 
it credible. And, indeed, we were 
afterwards informed that both he and 
the rest of our prisoners had not been 
silent on this head, but had, both at 
Lima and other places, given the 
greatest encomiums to our Commo- 
dore ; the Jesuit in particular, as we 
were told, having on his account in- 
terpreted in a lax and hypothetical 
sense that article of his Church which 
asserts the impossibility of heretics 
being saved. 

And let it not be imagined that the 
impression which the Spaniards hence 
received to our advantage is a matter 
of small import ; for, not to mention 
several of our countrymen who have 
already felt the good effects of these 
prepossessions, the Spaniards are a 
nation whose good opinion of us is 
doubtless of more consequence than 
that of all the world besides. Not 
only as the commerce we have former- 
ly carried on with them, and perhaps 
may again hereafter, is so extremely 
valuable, but also as the transacting 
it does so immediately depend on the 
honour and good faith of those who 
are entrusted with its management. 
But, however, [even] had no national 
conveniencies attended it, the Com- 
modore's equity and good temper 
would not less have deterred him 
from all tyranny and cruelty to those 
whom the fortune of war had put into 
his hands. I shall only add, that 
by his constant attachment to these 
humane and prudent maxims he has 
acquired a distinguished reputation 
amongst the Creole Spaniards which 
is not confined merely to the coast 
of the South Seas, but is extended 
through all the Spanish settlements 
in America : so that his name is fre- 
quently to be met with in the mouths 
of 1 most of the Spanish inhabitants of 
that prodigious empire. 2 



t J Ed. 1776 : "Was universally men- 
tioned with honour and applause by." 
2 Byron, who met, during his resi- 
dence as a prisoner on parole in Chili, 
some of the released captives, says : 
" They all spoke in the highest terms 
of the kind treatment they had re- 



WHEN we got under sail from the 
road of Paita (which, as I have already 
observed, was about midnight on the 
16th of November) we stood to the 
westward ; and in the morning the 
Commodore gave orders that the whole 
squadron should spread themselves, 
in order to look out for the Glouces- 
ter ; for we now drew near to the 
station where Captain Mitchel had 
been directed to cruise, and hourly 
expected to get sight of him, but the 
whole day passed without seeing him. 

And now a jealousy which had 
taken its rise at Paita, between those 
who had been ordered on shore for the 
attack and those who had continued 
on board, grew to such a height, that 
the Commodore, being made acquaint- 
ed with it, thought it necessary to 
interpose his authority to appease it. 1 

The ground of this animosity was 



90 ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WOULD. [B.II. CH.VII. 

the plunder gotten at Paita, which 

CHAPTER VII. those who had acted on shore had 

appropriated to themselves, and con- 
sidered it as a reward for the risks 
they had run and the resolution they 
had shown in that service. But those 
who had remained on board considered 
this as a very partial and unjust pro- 
cedure, urging that, had it been left 
to their choice, they should have pre- 
ferred the acting on shore to the con- 
tinuing on board ; that their duty, 
while their comrades were on shore, 
was extremely fatiguing, for besides 
the labour of the day they were con- 
stantly under arms all night to secure 
the prisoners, whose numbers exceeded 
their own, and of whom it was then 
necessary to be extremely watchful, 
to prevent any attempts they might 
have formed in that critical conjunc- 
ture ; that upon the whole it could 
not be denied but that the presence 
of a sufficient force on board was as 
necessary to the success of the enter- 
prise, as the action of the others on 
shore ; and therefore those who had 
continued on board insisted that they 
could not be deprived of their share 
of the plunder, without manifest in- 
justice. These were the contests 
amongst our men, which were carried 
on with great heat on both sides; and 
though the plunder in question was a 
very trifle in comparison of the trea- 
sure taken in the place (in which there 
was no doubt but those on board had 
an equal right), yet as the obstinacy 
of sailors is not always regulated by 
the importance of the matter in dis- 
pute, the Commodore thought it neces- 
sary to put a stop to this ferment be- 
times. And accordingly, the morn- 
ing after our leaving Paita, he ordered 
all hands upon the quarter-deck, 
where, addressing himself to those 
who had been detached on shore, he 
commended their behaviour, and 
thanked them for their services on 
that occasion ; but then, representing 
to them the reasons urged by those 
who had continued on board for an 
equal distribution of the plunder, he 
told them that he thought these rea- 
sons very conclusive, and that the 
expectations of their comrades were 



ceived ; and some of them told us 
they were so happy on board the Cen- 
turion, that they would not have been 
sorry if the Commodore had taken 
them with him to England." Still 
more remarkable, however, is Captain 
Basil Hall's testimony, in his "South 
America:" "Lord Anson's proceed- 
ings are still traditionally known at 
Paita ; and it is curious to observe 
that the kindness with which that 
sagacious officer invariably treated his 
Spanisli prisoners is, at the distance 
of eighty years, better known and 
more dwelt upon by the inhabitants 
of Paita than the capture and wanton 
destruction of the town." 

1 Thomas tells a very different 
story about this division of the spoil : 
"The 22d, a division was made of 
the plunder of Paita, and the Com- 
modore not appearing in that affair, 
it was done at the pleasure, and to 
the entire satisfaction of five or six 
(no doubt) very disinterested officers ; 
and, indeed, most things of this na- 
ture, during the course of the voyage 
being managed with the same discre- 
tion and honour, no room was left for 
complaining of portion! ar partialities, " 



1741.] 



THE PRIZE TAKEN BY THE GLOUCESTER. 



91 



justly founded ; and therefore he or- 
dered, that not only the men, but all 
the officers likewise, who had been 
employed in taking the place, should 
produce the whole of their plunder 
immediately upon the quarter-deck ; 
and that it should be impartially 
divided amongst the whole crew, in 
proportion to each man's rank and 
commission. And to prevent those 
who had been in possession of the 
plunder from murmuring at this dimi- 
nution of their share, the Commodore 
added, that as an encouragement to 
others who might be hereafter em- 
ployed on like services, he would give 
his entire share to be distributed 
amongst those who had been detached 
for the attack of the place. Thus 
this troublesome affair, which, if per- 
mitted to have gone on, might perhaps 
have been attended with mischievous 
consequences, was by the Commo- 
dore's prudence soon appeased, to the 
general satisfaction of the ship's com- 
pany ; not but there were some few 
whose selfish dispositions were unin- 
fluenced by the justice of this pro- 
cedure, and who were incapable of 
discerning the force of equity, however 
glaring, when it tended to deprive 
them of any part of what they had 
once got into their hands. 

This important business employed 
the best part of the day after we came 
from Paita. And now at night, hav- 
ing no sight of the Gloucester, the 
Commodore ordered the squadron to 
bring to, that we might not pass her 
in the dark. The next morning we 
again looked out for her, and at ten 
we saw a sail, to which we gave chase ; 
and at two in the afternoon we came 
near enough to her to discover her to 
be the Gloucester, with a small vessel 
in tow. About an hour after we were 
joined by them, and then we learned 
that Captain Mitchel, in the whole 
time of his cruise, had only taken 
two prizes, one of them being a small 
snow, 1 whose cargo consisted chiefly 
of wine, brandy, and olives in jars, 
with about 7000 in specie ; 2 and the 

1 Called the Del Oro. 

8 Thomas says: "On board this 



other a large boat or launch which the 
Gloucester's barge came up with near 
the shore. The prisoners on board 
this vessel alleged that they were very 
poor, and that their loading consisted 
only of cotton, though the circum- 
stances in which the barge surprised 
them seemed to insinuate that they 
were more opulent than they pretend- 
ed to be, for the Gloucester's people 
found them at dinner upon pigeon- 
pie served up in silver dishes. How- 
ever, the officer who commanded the 
barge having opened several of the 
jars on board to satisfy his curiosity, 
and finding nothing in them but cot- 
ton, he was inclined to believe the 
account the prisoners gave him ; but 
the cargo being taken into the Glouces- 
ter, and there examined more strictly, 
they were agreeably surprised to find 
that the whole was a very extraordin- 
ary piece of false package, and that 
there was concealed amongst the cot- 
ton, in every jar, a considerable quan- 
tity of double doubloons and dollars 
to the amount, in the whole, of near 
12,000. This treasure was going to 
Paita, and belonged to the same mer- 
chants who were the proprietors of 
the greatest part of the money we had 
taken there ; so that, had this boat 
escaped the Gloucester, it is probable 
her cargo would have fallen into our 
hands. Besides these two prizes which 
we have mentioned, the Gloucester's 
people told us that they had been in 
sight of two or three other ships of 
the enemy, which had escaped them ; 
and one of them we had reason to be- 
lieve, from some of our intelligence, 
was of an immense value. 

Being now joined by the Gloucester 
and her prize, it was resolved that we 



prize of the Gloucester were two horses, 
which being, I suppose, fat, and pro- 
bably better food than their salt beef 
or pork, they killed and eat them ; 
and this, I imagine, gave ground to 
that fiction which one of the spurious 
accounts of our voyage has given, of 
our eagerly hunting and eating wild 
horses, whereas in reality we never 
saw nor heard of a wild horse during 
our voyage. " 



92 ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 

should stand to the northwards, and 
make the best of our way either to 
Cape St Lucas, in California, or to 
Cape Corrientes on the coast of Mexico. 
Indeed the Commodore, when at Juan 
Fernandez, had determined with him- 
self to touch in the neighbourhood of 
Panama, and to endeavour to get 
some correspondence overland with 
the fleet imder the command of Ad- 
miral Vernon. For, when we de- 
parted from England, we left a large 
force at Portsmouth, which was in- 
tended to be sent to the AVest Indies, 
there to be employed in an expedition 
against some of the Spanish settle- 
ments. 1 And Mr Anson taking it for 
granted that this enterprise had suc- 
ceeded, and that Porto Bello perhaps 
might be then garrisoned by British 
troops, he hoped that on his arrival 
at the Isthmus he should easily pro- 
cure an intercourse with our country- 
men on the other side, either by the 
Indians, who were greatly disposed in 
our favour, or even by the Spaniards 
themselves, some of whom, for proper 
rewards, might be induced to carry 
on this intelligence, which, after it 
was once begun, might be continued 
with very little difficulty. So that 
Mr Anson flattered himself that he 
might by this means have received a 
reinforcement of men from the other 
side, and that, by settling a prudent 
plan of operations with our command- 
ers in the West Indies, he might 
have taken even Panama itself, which 
would have given to the British na- 
tion the possession of that Isthmus, 
whereby we should have been in effect 
masters of all the treasures of Peru, 
and should have had in our hands an 
equivalent for any demands, however 
extraordinary, which we might have 
been induced to have made on either 
of the branches of the House of Bour- 
bon. Such were the projects which the 
Commodore resolved in his thoughts 
at the Island of Juan Fernandez, not- 
withstanding the feeble condition to 
which he was then reduced. And 
indeed, had the success of our force in 
the West Indies been answerable to 



See Note 3, page 15. 



[B.II.CH.VIL 

the general expectation, it cannot be 
denied but these views would have 
been the most prudent that could have 
been thought of. But in examining 
the papers which were found on board 
the Carmelo, the first prize we took, 
we learned (though I then omitted to 
mention it) that our attempt against 
Carthagena had failed, and that there 
was no probability that our fleet in 
that part of the world would engage 
in any new enterprise that would at 
all facilitate this plan. And therefore 
Mr Anson gave over all hopes of being 
reinforced across the Isthmus, and 
consequently had no inducement at 
present to proceed to Panama, as he 
was incapable of attacking the place ; 
and there was great reason to believe 
that by this time there was a general 
embargo on all the coast. 

The only feasible measure, then, 
which was left us, was to get as soon 
as possible to the southern parts of 
California, or to the adjacent coast of 
Mexico, there to cruise for the Manilla 
galleon, which we knew was now at 
sea, bound to the port of Acapulco. 
And we doubted not to get on that 
station time enough to intercept her, 
for this ship does not [usually J arrive 
at Acapulco till towards the middle ot 
January, and we were now but in the 
middle of November, and did not con- 
ceive that our passage thither would 
cost us above a month or five weeks ; 
so that we imagined we had near twice 
as much time as was necessary for our 
purpose. . . . 

Having determined to go to Quibo, 
we directed our course to the north- 
ward, being eight sail in company, 
and consequently having the appear- 
ance of a very formidable fleet ; and 
on the 19th, at day break, we discovered 
Cape Blanco, bearing SSE. half E., 
seven miles distant. This cape lies 
in the Latitude of 4 15' S.,_and is 
always made by ships bound either to 
windward or to leeward, so that off 
this cape is a most excellent station 
to cruise upon the enemy. By thi? 
time we found that our last prize, the 
Solidad, was far from answering the 
character given her of a good sailer ; 
and she and the Santa Teresa delay- 



1741.] THE ISLAND 

ing us consideiably, tie Commodore 
ordered them both to "be cleared of 
everything that might prove useful 
to the rest of the ships, and then to 
"be burned. Having given proper in- 
structions, and a rendezvous to the 
Gloucester and the other prizes, we 
proceeded m our course for Quibo ; 
and on the 22d, in the morning, saw 
the Island of Plata, 1 bearing E., dis- 
tant four leagues. Here one of our 
prizes was ordered to stand close in 
with it, both to discover if there were 
any ships between that island and the 
continent, and likewise to look out for 
a stream of fresh water which was re- 
ported to be there, and which would 
have saved us the trouble of going to 
Quibo ; but she returned without hav- 
ing seen any ship or finding any 
water. At three in the afternoon, 
Point Manta bore SE. by E., seven 
miles distant ; and there being a town 
of the same name in the neighbour- 
hood, Captain Mitchel took this op- 
portunity of sending away several of 
his prisoners from the Gloucester in 
the Spanish launch. The boats were 
now daily employed in distributing 
provisions on board the Trial and 
other prizes to complete their stock 
for six months ; and that the Cen- 
turion might be the better prepared 
to give the Manilla ship (one of which 
we were told was of an immense size) 
a warm reception, the carpenters were 
ordered to fix eight stocks in the 
main and fore tops, which were pro- 
perly fitted for the mounting of swivel 
guns. 

On the 25th we had a sight of the 
Island of Gallo, bearing ESE. half E., 
four leagues distant ; and hence we 
crossed the Bay of Panama with a N W. 
course, hoping that this would have 
carried us in a direct line to the Island 
of Quibo. But we afterwards found 
that we ought to have stood more to 
the westward ; for the winds in a short 
time began to incline to that quarter, 
and made it difficult for us to gain 
the island. 



1 So called, it is said, because here 
Sir Francis Drake divided the treasure 
Ue had captured in the South Seas. 



OF QUIBO. 93 

On the 27th, Captain Mitchel hav- 
ing finished the clearing of his largest 
prize, she was scuttled and set on fire ; 
but we still consisted of five ships 
and were fortunate enough to find 
them all good sailers, so that w 
never occasioned any delay to each 
other. Being now in a rainy climate, 
which we had been long disused to, 
we found it necessary to calk the 
sides of the Centurion, to prevent the 
rain-water from running into her. 
On the 3d of December we had a view 
of the Island of Quibo ; the east end 
of which then bore from us NNW., 
four leagues distant, and the Island 
of Quicara WNW., at about the same 
distance. Here we struck ground 
with sixty-five fathoms of line, and 
found the bottom to consist of grey 
sand with black specks. "When we 
had thus got sight of the land, we 
found the wind to hang westerly ; and 
therefore, night coming on, we thought 
it advisable to stand oiF till morning, 
as there are said to be some shoals in 
the entrance of the channel. At six 
the next morning, Point Mariato bore 
NE. half N., three or four leagues 
distant. In weathering this point all 
the squadron, except the Centurion, 
were very near it ; and the Gloucester, 
being the leewardmost ship, was forced 
to tack and stand to the southward, 
so that we lost sight of her. At nine, 
the Island Sebaco bore NW. by N., 
four leagues distant ; but the wind 
still proving unfavourable, we were 
obliged to ply on and off for the suc- 
ceeding twenty-four hours, and were 
frequently taken aback. However, 
at eleven the next morning the wind 
happily settled in the SSW., and we 
bore away for the SSE. end of the is- 
land, and about three in the afternoon 
entered Canal Bueno, passing round 
a shoal which stretches off about two 
miles from the south point of the 
island. This Canal Bueno, or Good 
Channel, is at least six miles in 
breadth ; and as we had the wind 
large, we kept in a good depth of 
water, generally from twenty-eight to 
thirty- three fathoms, and came not 
within a mile and a half distance of 
the breakers ; though in all proba- 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. IT. CH. VIII. 



bility, if it bad been necesscary, we 
might have ventured much nearer 
without incurring the least danger. 
At seven in the evening we came to 
an anchor in thirty-three fathoms 
muddy ground ; the south point of 
the island bearing SE. by S., a re- 
markable high part of the Island W. 
by N., and the Island Sebaco E. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

THE next morning, after our coining 
to an anchor, an officer was despatched 
on shore to discover the watering- 
place, who having found it, returned 
before noon ; and then we sent the 
long-boat for a load of water, and at 
the same time we weighed and stood 
farther in with our ships. At two 
we came again to an anchor in twenty- 
two fathoms, with a bottom of rough 
gravel intermixed with broken shells, 
the watering-place now bearing from 
us NW. half N. , only three quarters 
of a mile distant. This Island of 
Quibo is extremely convenient for 
wooding and watering ; for the trees 
grow close to the high-water mark, 
and a large rapid stream of fresh 
water runs over the sandy beach into 
the sea : so that we were little more 
than two days in laying in all the 
wood and water we wanted. . . . 
Whilst the ship continued here at 
anchor, the Commodore, attended by 
some of his officers, went in a boat to 
examine a bay which lay to the north- 
ward ; and they afterwards ranged all 
along the eastern side of the island. 
And in the places where they put on 
shore in the course of his expedition, 
they generally found the soil to be ex- 
tremely rich, andmetwith great plenty 
of excellent water. In particular, near 
the NE. point of the island they dis- 
covered a natural cascade which sur- 
passed, as they conceived, everything 
of this kind which human art or 
industry has hitherto produced. It 
was a river of transparent water, about 
forty yards wide, which ran down a 
declivity of near 150 yards in length. 



The channel it ran in was very irreg- 
ular ; for it was entirely formed of 
rock, both its sides and bottom being 
made up of large detached blocks ; 
and by these the course of the water 
was frequently interrupted : for in 
some places it ran sloping with a 
rapid but uniform motion, while in 
other parts it tumbled over the ledges 
of rocks with a perpendicular descent. 
All the neighbourhood of this stream 
was a fine wood ; and even the huge 
masses of rock which overhung the 
water, and which, by their various 
projections, formed the inequalities 
of the channel, were covered with 
lofty forest trees. Whilst the Com- 
modore, and those who were with 
him, were attentively viewing this 
place, and remarking the different 
blendings of the water, the rocks, and 
the wood, there came in sight (as it 
were with an intent still to heighten 
and animate the prospect) a prodigious 
flight of macaws, which, hovering 
over this spot, and often wheeling and 
playing on the wing about it, afforded 
a most brilliant appearance by the 
glittering of the sun on their varie- 
gated plumage ; so that some of the 
spectators cannot refrain from a kind 
of transport when they recount the 
complicated beauties which occurred 
in this extraordinary water-fall. 

In this expedition, which the boat 
made along the eastern side of the 
island, though they met with no in- 
habitants, yet they saw many huts 
upon the shore, and great heaps of 
shells of fine mother-of-pearl scattered 
up and down in different places. 
These were the remains left by the 
pearl fishers from Panama, who often 
frequent this place in the summer 
season ; for the pearl oysters, which 
are to be met with everywhere in the 
Bay of Panama, are so plenty at 
Quibo, that by advancing a very little 
way into the sea, you might stoop 
down and reach them from the bottom. 
They are usually very large, and out 
of curiosity we opened some of them 
with a view of tasting them, but we 
found them extremely tough and un- 
palatable. . . . 

Though the pearl oyster was in- 



1741.] 



FROM QTJIBO TO THE COAST OF MEXICO. 



capable of being eaten, yet the sea at 
this place furnished us with another 
dainty in the greatest plenty and per- 
fection. This was the turtle, of which 
we took here what quantity we pleased. 
There are generally reckoned four 
species of turtle, that is, the trunk 
turtle, the loggerhead, the hawksbill, 
and the green turtle. The two first 
are rank and unwholesome ; the 
hawksbill (which furnishes the tor- 
toise-shell) is but indifferent food, 
though better than the other two ; 
but the green turtle is generally 
esteemed, by the greatest part of those 
who are acquainted with its taste, to 
be the most delicious of all eatables ; 
and that it is a most wholesome food 
we are amply convinced by our own 
experience. For we fed on this last 
species, or the green turtle, for near 
four months, and consequently, had 
it been in any degree noxious, its ill 
effects could not possibly have escaped 
us. ... 

In three days' time we had com- 
pleted our business at this place, and 
were extremely impatient to put to sea, 
that we might arrive in time enough 
on the coast of Mexico to intercept 
the Manilla galleon. But the wind 
being contrary detained us a night, 
and the next day, when we got into 
the ofh'ng (which we did through the 
same channel by which we entered) 
we were obliged to keep hovering 
about the island in hopes of getting 
sight of the Gloucester, which, as I 
have in the last Chapter mentioned, 
was separated from us on our first 
arrival. It was the 9th of December, 
in the morning, when we put to sea ; 
and continuing to the southward of 
the island, looking out for the Glou- 
cester, we, on the 10th, at five in the 
afternoon, discerned a small sail to 
the northward of us, to which we 
gave chase, and coming up with her 
took her. She proved to be a bark 
from Panama, bound to Cheripe, an 
inconsiderable village on the contin- 
ent, and was called the Jesu Nazer- 
eno. She had nothing on board but 
some oakum, about a ton of rock salt, 
and between 30 and 40 in specie, 
most of it consisting of small silver 



95 

money intended for purchasing a car- 
go of provisions at Cheripe. 

On the 1 2th of December we were 
at last relieved from the perplexity 
we had suffered by the separation of 
the Gloucester ; for on that day she 
joined us, and informed us that in 
tacking to the southward, on our first 
arrival, she had sprung her fore-top- 
mast, which had disabled her from 
working to windward, and prevented 
her from joining us sooner. And now 
we scuttled and sunk the Jesu Nazar- 
eno, the prize we took last ; and hav- 
ing the greatest impatience to get into 
a proper station for the galleon, we 
stood all together to the westward, 
leaving the Island of Quibo (notwith- 
standing all the impediments we met 
with) in about nine days after our 
first coming in sight of it. 



CHAPTER IX. 

ON the 12th of December we stood 
from Quibo to the westward ; and the 
same day the Commodore delivered 
fresh instructions to the captains of 
the men-of-war, and the commanders 
of our prizes, appointing them the 
rendezvous they were to make, and 
the courses they were to steer in case 
of a separation. And first they were 
directed to use all possible despatch 
in getting to the northward of the 
harbour of Acapulco, where they were 
to endeavour to fall in with the land 
between the Latitudes of 18 and 19; 
thence they were to beat up the coast, 
at eight or ten leagues' distance from 
the shore, till they came abreast of 
Cape Corrientes, in the Latitude of 
20 20'. "When they arrived there, 
they were to continue cruising on that 
station till the 14th of February ; 
and then they were to proceed to the 
middle island of the Tres Marias, in 
the Latitude of 21 25', bearing from 
Cape Corrientes NW. by N., twenty- 
five leagues distant. And if at this 
island they did not meet the Com- 
modore, they were there to recruit 
their wood and water, and then to 
make the best of their way to the 



ARSON'S VOYAGE HOUND THE WORLD. [B. II. On. IX. 



Island of Macao, on the coast of 
China. These orders being distri- 
buted to all the ships, we had little 
doubt of arriving soon upon our in- 
tended station, as we expected, upon 
increasing our offing from Quibo, to 
fall in with the regular trade- wind. 
But, to our extreme vexation, we 
were baffled for near a month, either 
with tempestuous weather from the 
western quarter, or Avith dead calms 
and heavy rains, attended with a 
sultry air ; so that it was the 25th of 
December before we got a sight of the 
Island of Cocos, which, by our reck- 
oning was only 100 leagues from the 
continent ; and we had the mortifica- 
tion to make so little way that we did 
not lose sight of it again in five days. 
This island we found to be in the 
Latitude of 5 20' N. It has a high 
hummock towards the western part, 
which descends gradually, and at last 
terminates in a low point to the east- 
ward. From the Island of Cocos we 
stood W. by N., and were till the 
9th of January in running 100 leagues 
more. We had at first flattered our- 
selves that the uncertain weather and 
western gales we met with were owing 
.to the neighbourhood of the continent, 
from which, as we got more distant, 
we expected every day to be relieved 
by falling in with the eastern trade- 
wind. But as our hopes were so long 
baffled, and our patience quite ex- 
hausted, we began at length to de- 
spair of succeeding in the great 
purpose we had in view, that of 
intercepting the Manilla galleon ; 
and this produced a general dejection 
amongst us, as we had at first con- 
sidered this project as almost infal- 
lible, and had indulged ourselves in 
the most boundless hopes of the 
advantages we should thence receive. 
However, our despondency was at 
last somewhat alleviated by a favour- 
able change of the wind ; for on the 
9th of January a gale for the first 
time sprung up from the NE., and on 
this wo took the Carmelo in tow, as 
the Gloucester did the Carmen, making 
all the sail we could to improve the 
advantage, for we still suspected that 
it was only a temporary gale, which 



would not last long ; but the next 
day we had the satisfaction to find 
that the wind did not only continue 
in the same quarter, but blew with so 
much briskness and steadiness, that 
we now no longer doubted of its be- 
ing the true trade-wind. And as we 
advanced apace towards our station, 
our hopes began to revive, and our 
former despair by degrees gave place 
to more sanguine prejudices ; for 
though the customary season of the 
arrival of the galleon at Acapulco was 
already elapsed, yet we were by this 
time unreasonable enough to flatter 
ourselves that some accidental delay 
might, for our advantage, lengthen out 
her passage beyond its usual limits. 

When we got into the trade-wind, 
we found no alteration in it till the 
17th of January, when we were ad- 
vanced to the Latitude of 12 50' ; but 
on that day it shifted to the west- 
ward of N. This change Ave imputed 
to our having hauled up too soon, 
though Ave then esteemed ourselves 
full seventy leagues from the coast, 
which plainly shows that the trade- 
Avind does not take place but at a 
considerable distance from the con- 
tinent. After this the Avind Avas not 
so favourable to us as it had been ; 
however, Ave still continued to ad- 
vance, and on the 26th of January, 
being then to the northward of Aca- 
pulco, Ave tacked and stood to the 
eastward, with a view of making the 
land. In the preceding fortnight we 
caught some turtle on the surface 
of the water, and several dolphins, 
bonitos, and albicores. One day, as 
one of the sail-makers' mates was 
fishing from the end of the jib-boom, 
he lost his hold, and dropped into the 
sea ; and the ship, which was then 
going at the rate of six or seven knots, 
Avent directly over him. But, as Ave 
had the Carmelo in tow, AVC instantly 
called out to the people on board her, 
Avho threw him over several ends of 
ropes, one of Avhich ho fortunately 
caught hold of, and tAvisting it round 
his arm, they hauled him into the 
ship Avithout his having received any 
other injury than a wrench in his 
arm, of Avhich he soon recovered. 



1742.] 



MISLED BY A LIGHT ON SHORE. 



When, on the 26th of January, we 
stood to the eastward, we expected by 
our reckonings to have fallen in with 
the land on the 28th ; but though the 
weather was perfectly clear, we had no 
sight of it at sunset, and therefore we 
continued on our course, not doubting 
but we should see it by the next morn- 
ing. About ten at night we discov- 
ered a light on the larboard - bow, 
bearing from us NNE. The Trial's 
prize, too, which was about a mile 
ahead of us, made a signal at the 
same time for seeing a sail ; and as 
we had none of us any doubt but 
what we saw was a ship's light, we 
were all extremely animated with a 
firm persuasion that it was the Manilla 
galleon, which had been so long the 
object of our wishes. And what added 
to our alacrity was our expectation of 
meeting with two of them instead of 
one, for we took it for granted that 
the light in view was carried in the 
top of one ship for a direction to her 
consort. We immediately cast off the 
Carmelo, and pressed forward with all 
our canvas, making a signal for the 
Gloucester to do the same. Thus we 
chased the light, keeping all our hands 
at their respective quarters, under an 
expectation of engaging in the next 
half hour, as we sometimes conceived 
the chase to be about a mile distant, 
and at other times to be within reach 
of our guns ; and some on board us 
positively averred that besides the 
light they could plainly discern her 
sails. The Commodore himself was so 
fully persuaded that we should be soon 
alongside of her, that he sent for his 
first lieutenant, who commanded be- 
tween decks, and directed him to see all 
the great guns loaded with two round- 
shot for the first broadside, and afterthat 
with one round-shot and one grape ; 
strictly charging him, at the same time, 
not to suffer a gun to be fired till he, the 
Commodore, should give orders, which 
he informed the lieutenant would not 
be till we arrived within pistol-shot 
of the enemy. In this constant and 
eager attention we continued all night, 
always presuming that another quarter 
of an hour would bring us up with 
this Manilla ship, whose wealth, with 



hat of her supposed consort, we now 
sstimated by round millions. But 
when the morning broke, and day- 
ight came on, we were most strangely 
and vexatiously disappointed by find- 
ing that the light which had occasioned 
all this bustle and expectancy was 
only a fire on the shore. Indeed, the 
circumstances of this deception are so 
extraordinary as to be scarcely cred- 
ible ; for by our run during the night, 
and the distance of the land in the 
morning, there was no doubt to bo 
made but this fire, when we first dis- 
sovered it, was about twenty-five 
Leagues from us : and yet I believe 
there was no person on board who 
doubted of its being a ship's light, or 
of its being near at hand. It was, 
indeed, upon a very high mountain, 
and continued burning for sevei'al days 
afterwards ; it was not a volcano, but 
rather, as I suppose, stubble or heath set 
on fire for some purpose of agriculture. 
At sun-rising, after this mortifying 
delusion, we found ourselves about 
nine leagues off the land, which ex- 
tended from the NW. to E. half N. 
On this land we observed two remark- 
able hummocks, such as are usually 
called paps, which bore N. from us ; 
these a Spanish pilot and two Indians, 
who were the only persons amongst us 
that pretended to have traded in this 
part of the world, affirmed to be over 
the harbour of Acapulco. Indeed, we 
very much doubted their knowledge 
of the coast ; for we found these paps 
to be in the Latitude of 17 56', where- 
as those over Acapulco are said to be 
in 17 only ; and we afterwards found 
our suspicions of their skill to be well- 
grounded. 1 However, they were very 
confident, and assured us that the 
height of the mountains was itself an 
infallible mark of the harbour ; the 
coast, as they pretended (though falsely) 
being generally low to the eastward 
and westward of it. 

And now, being in the track of the 
Manilla galleon, it was a great doubt 
with us (as it was near the end of 
January) whether she was or was not 

1 See Dampier's description of the 
place, Chapter IX. 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cn.IX. 



98 

arrived. But, examining our prisoners 
about it, they assured us that she was 
sometimes known to come in after the 
middle of February ; and they endea- 
voured to persuade us that the fire we 
had seen on shore was a proof that she 
was as yet at sea, it being customary, 
as they said, to make use of these fires 
as signals for her direction when she 
continued longer out than ordinary. 
On this information, strengthened by 
our propensity to believe them in a 
matter which so pleasingly nattered 
our wishes, we resolved to cruise for 
her for some days ; and we accordingly 
spread our ships at the distance of 
twelve leagues from the coast, in such 
a manner that it was impossible she 
should pass us unobserved. However, 
not seeing her soon, we were at inter- 
vals inclined to suspect that she had 
gained her port already ; and as we 
now began to want a harbour to refresh 
our people, the uncertainty of our pre- 
sent situation gave us great uneasi- 
ness, and we were very solicitous to get 
some positive intelligence, which might 
either set us at liberty to consult our 
necessities, if the galleon was arrived, 
or might animate us to continue on 
our present cruise with cheerfulness, 
if she was not. With this view the 
Commodore, after examining our pri- 
soners very particularly, resolved to 
send a boat, under colour of the night, 
into the harbour of Acapulco, to see 
if the Manilla ship was there or not, 
one of the Indians being very positive 
that this might be done without the 
boat itself being discovered. To exe- 
cute this project, the barge was de- 
spatched the 6th of February, with a 
sufficient crew and two officers, who 
took with them a Spanish pilot, and 
the Indian who had insisted on the 
practicability of this measure, and had 
undertaken to conduct it. Our barge 
did not return to us again till the llth, 
when the officers acquainted Mr Anson 
that, agreeable to our suspicion, there 
was nothing like a harbour in the place 
where the Spanish pilots had at first 
asserted Acapulco to lie ; that, when 
they had satisfied themselves in this 
particular, they steered to the east- 
ward in hopes of discovering it, and 



had coasted along shore thirty-two 
leagues ; that in this whole range 
they met chiefly with sandy beaches 
of a great length, over which the sea 
broke Avith so much violence that it 
was impossible for a boat to land ; that 
at the end of their run they could just 
discover two paps at a very great dis- 
tance to the eastward, which from 
their appearance and their latitude 
they concluded to be those in the 
neighbourhood of Acapulco ; but that, 
not having a sufficient quantity of 
fresh water and provision for their 
passage thither and back again, they 
were obliged to return to the Commo- 
dore, to acquaint him with their dis- 
appointment. On this intelligence we 
all made sail to the eastward, in order 
to get into the neighbourhood of that 
port ; the Commodore resolving to 
send the barge a second time upon the 
same enterprise when we were arrived 
within a moderate distance. And the 
next day, which was the 12th of Feb- 
ruary, we being by that time consider- 
ably advanced, the barge was again 
despatched, and particular instructions 
given to the officers to preserve them- 
selves from being seen from the shore. 
On the 13th, we espied a high land to 
the eastward, which we first imagined 
to be that over the harbour of Acapulco; 
but we afterwards found that it was 
the high land of Seguateneo, 1 where 
there is a small harbour of which we 
shall have occasion to make more 
ample mention hereafter. And now, 
having waited six days without any 
news of our barge, we began to be 
uneasy for her safety ; but on the 
seventh day, that is, on the 19th of 
February, she returned. The officers 
informed the Commodore that they had 
discovered the harbour of Acapulco, 
which they esteemed to bear from us 
ESE. at least fifty leagues distant; that 
on the 17th, about two in the morn- 
ing, they were got within the island 
that lies at the mouth of the harbour, 
and yet neither the Spanish pilot nor 
the Indian who were with them could 
give them any information where they 

1 Chequetan ; see Chapter XII. 



1742.] 



NEWS OF THE MANILLA GALLEON. 



then were ; but that, while they were, 
lying upon their oars in suspense what 
to do, being ignorant that they were 
then at the very place they sought for, 
they discerned a small light upon the 
surface of the water, on which they 
instantly plied their paddles, and 
moving as silently as possible towards 
it, they found it to be in a fishing 
canoe, which they surprised, with 
three Negroes that belonged to it. It 
seems the Negroes at first attempted 
to jump overboard, and being so near 
the land, they would easily have 
swam on shore ; but they were pre- 
vented by presenting a piece at them, 
on which they readily submitted, and 
were taken into the barge. The officers 
further added, that they had imme- 
diately turned the canoe adrift against 
the face of a rock, where it would 
inevitably be dashed to pieces by the 
fury of the sea ; this they did to de- 
ceive those who perhaps might be sent 
from the town to search after the 
canoe ; for, upon seeing several pieces 
of a wreck, they would immediately 
conclude that the people on board her 
had been drowned, and would have 
no suspicion of their having fallen into 
our hands. When the crew of the 
barge had taken this precaution, they 
exerted their utmost strength in pull- 
ing out to sea, and by dawn of day 
had gained such an offing as rendered 
it impossible for them to be seen from 
the coast. 

And now having got the three 
Negroes in our possession, who were 
not ignorant of the transactions at 
Acapulco, we were soon satisfied about 
the most material points which had 
long kept us in suspense. And on 
examination we found that we were 
indeed disappointed in our expecta- 
tion of intercepting the galleon be- 
fore her arrival at Acapulco ; but we 
learned other circumstances which 
still revived our hopes, and which, 
we then conceived, would* more than 
balance the opportunity we had already 
lost. For though our Negro pri- 
soners informed us that the galleon 
arrived at Acapulco on our 9th of 
January, which was about twenty days 
before we fell in with this coast, yet 



they at the same time told us that the 
galleon had delivered her cargo and 
was taking in water and provisions 
for her return, and that the Viceroy 
of Mexico had by proclamation fixed 
her departure from Acapulco to the 
14th of March, N.S. This last news 
was most joyfully received by us, as 
we had no doubt but she must cer- 
tainly fall into our hands, and as it 
was much more eligible to seize her 
on her return than it would have been 
to have taken her before her arrival, 
as the specie for which she had sold 
her cargo, and which she would now 
have on board, would be prodigiously 
more to be esteemed by us than the 
cargo itself, great part of which would 
have perished on our hands ; and no part 
of it could have been disposed of by us 
at so advantageous a mart as Acapulco. 
Thus we were a second time en- 
gaged in an eager expectation of meet- 
ing with this Manilla ship, which, by 
the fame of its wealth, we had been 
taught to consider as the most desir- 
able prize that was to be met with in 
any part of the globe. As all our 
future projects will be in some sort 
regulated with a view to the possession 
of this celebrated galleon, and as the 
commerce which is carried on by 
means of these vessels between the 
city of Manilla and the port of Aca- 
pulco is perhaps the most valuable, in 
proportion to its quantity, of any[in 
the known world, I shall endeavour 
in the ensuing Chapter to give as dis- 
tinct an account as I can of all the 
particulars relating thereto ; both as 
it is a matter in which I conceive the 
public to be in some degree interested, 
and as I flatter myself that, from the 
materials which have fallen into my 
hands, I am enabled to describe it 
with more distinctness than has hith- 
erto been done, at least in our lan- 
guage. 



CHAPTER X. 1 

THOUGH Spain did not [by the voyage 
of Magellan] acquire the property of 

1 The historical portion of this 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. II. Cir. X. 



100 

auy of the Spice Islands, yet the dis- 
covery made, in his expedition, of the 
Philippine Islands, was thought too 
considerable to be neglected, for these 
were not far distant from those places 
which produced spices, and were very 
well situated for the Chinese trade, 
and for the commerce of other parts 
of India ; and therefore a communica- 
tion was soon established and care- 
fully supported between these islands 
and the Spanish colonies on the coast 
of Peru. So that the city of Manilla 
(which was built on the Island of 
Luconia, the chief of the Philippines) 
soon became the mart for all Indian 
commodities, which were brought up 
by the inhabitants, and were an- 
nually sent to the South Seas to 
be there vended on their account; 
and the returns of this commerce to 
Manilla being principally made in 
silver, the place by degrees grew 
extremely opulent and considerable, 
and its trade so far increased as to 
engage the attention of the Court 
of Spain, and to be frequently 
controlled and regulated by royal 
edicts. 

In the infancy of this trade, it was 
carried on from the port of Callao to 
the city of Manilla, in which voyage 
the trade-wind continually favoured 
them ; so that, notwithstanding these 
places were distant between three and 
four thousand leagues, yet the voyage 
was often made in little more than 
two months. But then the return 
from Manilla was extremely trouble- 
some and tedious, and is said to have 
sometimes taken them up above a 
twelvemonth, which, if they pretended 
to ply up within the limits of the 
trade-wind, is not at all to be won- 
dered at ; and it is asserted that in 
their first voyages they were so im- 
prudent and unskilful as to attempt 
this course. However, that route was 
soon laid aside by the advice, as it is 
said, of a Jesuit, who persuaded them 

Chapter, relating to the old feud be- 
tween the Spanish and Portuguese on 
the score of their discoveries, and to 
the origin of the trade, has been left 
out. 



to steer to the northward till they got 
clear of the trade-winds, and then, by 
the favour of the westerly winds, 
which generally prevail in high lati- 
tudes, to stretch away for the coast of 
California. This has been the prac- 
tice for at least 160 years past ; for 
Sir Thomas Cavendish, in the year 
1586, engaged off the south end of 
California a vessel bound from Manilla 
to the American coast. 1 And it was 
in compliance with this new plan of 
navigation, and to shorten the run 
both backwards and forwards, that 
the staple 2 of this commerce to and 
from Manilla was removed from Callao, 
on the coast of Peru, to the port of 
Acapulco, on the coast of Mexico, 
where it continues fixed at this time. 
The trade carried on from Manilla 
to China, and different parts of India, 
is principally for such commodities 
as are intended to supply the king- 
doms of Mexico and Peru. These are, 
spices ; all sorts of Chinese silks and 
manufactures, particularly silk stock- 
ings, of which I have heard that no 
less than 50,000 pairs were the usual 
number shipped on board the annual 
ship ; vast quantities of Indian stuffs 
as calicoes and chintzes, which are 
much worn in America ; together with 
other minuter articles as goldsmiths' 
work, &c. , which is principally done 
at the city of Manilla itself by the 
Chinese; for it is said there are at 
least 20,000 Chinese who constantly 
reside there, either as servants, manu- 
facturers, or brokers. All these dif- 
ferent commodities are collected at 
Manilla, thence to be transported an- 
nually in one or more ships to the 
port of Acapulco. But this trade to 
Acapulco is not laid open to all the 
inhabitants of Manilla, but is confined 
by very particular regulations, some- 
what analogous to those by which the 



1 The Santa Anna, of 700 tons, the 
Admiral of the South Seas, bearing a 
cargo valued at 122,000 pesos. From 
Cape St Lucas, after capturing the 
Manilla ship, Cavendish sailed to the 
Ladroncs in forty-five days. 

2 The place of trade established by 
decree or ordinance. 






1742.] THE TRACK OF THE 

trade of the register ships from Cadiz 
to the West Indies is restrained. The 
ships employed herein are found by 
the King of Spain, who pays the offi- 
cers and crew; and the tonnage is 
divided into a certain number of bales, 
all of the same size. These are dis- 
tributed amongst the convents at Man- 
illa, but principally to the Jesuits, as 
a donation for the support of their 
missions for the propagation of the 
Catholic faith ; and these convents 
have hereby a right to embark such a 
quantity of goods on board the Manilla 
ship as the tonnage of their bales 
amounts to ; or, if they choose not to 
be concerned in trade themselves, they 
have the power of selling this privi- 
lege to others. And as the merchants 
to whom they grant their shares are 
often unprovided of a stock, it is usual 
for the convents to lend them consi- 
derable sums of money on bottomry. 
The trade is by the royal edicts limited 
to a certain value, which the annual 
cargo ought not to exceed. Some 
Spanish manuscripts I have seen men- 
tion this limitation to be 600,000 dol- 
lars ; but the annual cargo does cer- 
tainly surpass this sum ; and though 
it may be difficult to fix its exact 
value, yet from many comparisons I 
conclude that the return cannot be 
greatly short of 3,000,000 dollars. 

This trade from Manilla to Acapulco 
and back again is usually carried on 
in one or at most two annual ships, 
which set sail from Manilla about July, 
arrive at Acapulco in the December, 
January, or February following, and, 
having there disposed of their effects, 
return for Manilla some time in March, 
where they generally arrive in June ; 
so that the whole voyage takes up 
very near an entire year. For this 
reason, though there is often no more 
than one ship employed at a time, yet 
there is always one ready for the sea 
when the other arrives ; and therefore 
the commerce at Manilla are provided 
with three or four stout ships, that, 
in case of any accident, the trade may 
not be suspended. The largest of 
these ships, whose name I have not 
learned, is described as little less than 
one of our first-rate men-of-war, and 



MANILLA GALLEON. 101 

indeed she must bo of an enormous 
size, for it is known, that when she 
was employed with other ships from 
the same port to cruise for our China 
trade, she had no less than 1200 men 
on board. Their other ships, though 
far inferior in bulk to this, are yet 
stout, large vessels, of the burthen of 
1200 tons and upwards, and usually 
carry from 350 to 600 hands, passen- 
gers included, with fifty odd guns. 
As these are all King's ships, com- 
missioned and paid by him, there is 
usually one of the captains who is 
styled the General, and who carries 
the royal standard of Spain at the 
main -topgallant masthead. 

The ship having received her cargo 
on board, and being fitted for the sea, 
generally weighs from the mole of 
Cabite 1 about L the middle of July, 
taking the advantage of the westerly 
monsoon, which then sets in, to carry 
them to sea. The getting through 
the Boccadero 2 to the eastward must 
be a troublesome navigation ; and, in 
fact, it is sometimes the end of August 
before they get clear of the land. 
When they have got through this pass- 
age, and are clear of the islands, they 
stand to the northward of the east, 
in order to get into the Latitude of 
thirty odd degrees, when they expect 
to meet with westerly winds, before 
which they run away for the coast of 
California. 3 It is most remarkable, 
that by the concurrent testimony of 
all the Spanish navigators, there is 
not) one port, nor even a tolerable 
road, as yet found out betwixt the 
Philippine Islands and the coast of 
California and Mexico ; so that from 
the time the Manilla ship first loses 



1 The port of Manilla, about two 
leagues to the southward of the city. 

2 Luzon, or Luconia, is separated 
from Mindoro by the strait of that 
name, about five miles broad ; and 
from Samar by the "Embocadero de 
San Bernardino," the common passage 
for vessels navigating the Pacific on 
their way to China. 

3 Compare Dampier's account of 
the navigation in Chapter IX. 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.ILCu.X. 



102 

sight of land, she never lets go her 
anchor till she arrives on the coast of 
California, and very often not till she 
gets to its southernmost extremity. 
And therefore, as this voyage is rarely 
of less than six months' continuance, 
and the ship is deep laden with mer- 
chandise and crowded with people, it 
may appear wonderful how they can 
be supplied with a stock of fresh water 
for so long a time ; and indeed their 
method of procuring it is extremely 
singular. 1 . . . 

The Manilla ship, having stood so 
far to the northward as to meet with 
a westerly wind, stretches away nearly 
in the same latitude for the coast of 
California ; and when she has run 
into the Longitude of 96 from Cape 
Espiritu Santo, she generally meets 
with a plant floating on the sea, which, 
being called porra? by the Spaniards, 
is, I presume, a species of sea-leek. 
On the sight of this plant they esteem 
themselves sufficiently near the Cali- 
fornian shore, and immediately stand 
to the southward ; and they rely so 
much on this circumstance, that on 
the first discovery of the plant the 
whole ship's company chant a solemn 
Te Deum, esteeming the difficulties 
and hazards of their passage to be 
now at an end ; and they constantly 
correct their longitude thereby, with- 
out ever coming within sight of land. 
After falling in with these signs, as 



1 In allusion to the custom of the 
Spaniards in the South Seas carrying 
a great quantity of water jars hung on 
the shrouds and stays of the vessel, 
and in this way conserving the water 
during the voyage. They depended 
for a fresh supply on the rains which 
fell, and whicli they caught in mats 
hung all over the deck, from which 
it was led into the jars by means of 
split bamboos. 

* " Puerro " is the Spanish for 
leek; but "porra" is a word, though 
generally used in a tropical sense, 
sufficiently near the other to have 
been quite honestly used in Anson's 
time to serve the same meaning ; and 
"porreta" signifies the green leaf of 
onions or gaiiick. 



they denominate them, they steer to 
the southward, without endeavouring 
to fall in with the coast till they have 
run into lower latitude ; for as there 
are many islands and some shoals 
adjacent to California, the extreme 
caution of the Spanish navigators 
makes them very apprehensive of be- 
ing engaged with the land. However, 
when they draw near its southern ex- 
tremity, they venture to haul in, both 
for the sake of making Cape St Lucas 
to ascertain their reckoning, and also 
to receive intelligence from the Indian 
inhabitants whether or no there are 
any enemies on the coast ; and this 
last circumstance, which is a par- 
ticular article in the captain's in- 
structions, makes it necessaiy to 
mention the late proceedings of 
the Jesuits amongst the Californian 
Indians. 

Since the first discovery of Cali- 
fornia there have been various wan- 
dering missionaries who have visited 
it at different times, though to little 
purpose ; but of late years the Jesuits, 
encouraged and supported by a large 
donation from the Marquis da Yalero, 
a most munificent bigot, have fixed 
themselves upon the place and have 
established a very considerable mis- 
sion. Their principal settlement lies 
just within Cape St Lucas, where 
they have collected a great number 
of savages, and have endeavoured to 
inure them to agriculture and other 
mechanic arts. And their efforts 
have not been altogether ineffectual ; 
for they have planted vines at their 
settlements with very good success, 
so that they already make a consider- 
able quantity of wine, resembling in 
flavour the inferior sorts of Madeira, 
which begins to be esteemed in the 
neighbouring kingdom of Mexico. The 
Jesuits, then, being thus firmly rooted 
on California, they have already ex- 
tended their jurisdiction quite across 
the country from sea to sea, and are 
endeavouring to spread their influence 
farther to the northward, with which 
view they have made several expedi- 
tions up the gulf between California 
and Mexico, in order to discover the 
nature of the adjacent countries, ali 



1742.] TREASURE CONVEYED 
which, they hope hereafter to bring 
under their power. And being thus 
occupied in advancing the interests of 
their Society, it is no wonder if some 
share of attention is engaged about 
the security of the Manilla ship, in 
which their convents at Manilla are 
so deeply concerned. For this pur- 
pose there are refreshments, as fruits, 
wine, water, &c., constantly kept in 
readiness for her ; and there is besides 
care taken at Cape St Lucas to look 
out for any ship of the enemy which 
might be cruising there to intercept 
her; this being a station where she 
is constantly expected, and where she 
has been often waited for and fought 
with, though generally with little 
success. In consequence, then, of 
the measures mutually settled between 
the Jesuits of Manilla and their 
brethren at California, the captain of 
the galleon is ordered to fall in with 
the land to the northward of Cape 
St Lucas, where the inhabitants are 
directed, on sight of the vessel, to 
make the proper signals with fires ; 
and on discovering these fires the cap- 
tain is to send his launch on shore 
with twenty men, well-armed, who 
are to carry with them the letters 
from the convents at Manilla to the 
Californian missionaries, and are to 
bring back the refreshments which 
will be prepared for them, and like- 
wise intelligence whether or no there 
are any enemies on the coast. And 
if the captain finds, from the account 
which is sent him, that he has no- 
thing to fear, he is directed to proceed 
for Cape St Lucas, and thence to Cape 
Corrientes ; after which he is to coast 
it along for the port of Acapulco. 

The most usual time of the arrival 
of the galleon at Acapulco is towards 
the middle of January ; but this 
navigation is so uncertain that she 
sometimes gets in a month sooner, 
and at other times has been detained 
at sea above a month longer. The 
port of Acapulco is by much the 
securest and finest in all the north- 
ern parts of the Pacific Ocean ; being, 
as it were, a basin surrounded with 
very high mountains : but the town 
is a most wretched place, and ex- 



BY MANILLA GALLEON. 103 
tremely unhealthy, for the air about 
it is so pent up by the hills, 
that it has scarcely any circulation. 
The place is, besides, destitute of 
fresh water, except what is brought 
from a considerable distance ; and is 
in all respects so inconvenient, that 
except at the time of the mart, whilst 
the Manilla galleon is in the port, it 
is almost deserted. When the galleon 
arrives in this port, she is generally 
moored on its western side, and her 
cargo is delivered with all possible 
expedition. And now the town of 
Acapulco, from almost a solitude, is 
immediately thronged with merchants 
from all parts of the kingdom of 
Mexico. The cargo being landed and 
disposed of, the silver and the goods 
intended for Manilla are taken on 
board, together with provisions and 
water, and the ship prepares to put 
to sea with the utmost expedition. 
There is indeed no time to be lost ; 
for it is an express order to the cap- 
tain to be out of the port of Acapulco, 
on his return, before the first day of 
April, N.S. 

And having mentioned the goods 
intended for Manilla, I must observe 
that the principal return is always 
made in silver, and consequently the 
rest of the cargo is but of little ac- 
count ; the other articles, besides the 
silver, being some cochineal, and a 
few sweetmeats, the produce of the 
American settlements, together with 
European millinery ware for the wo- 
men at Manilla, and some Spanish 
wines, such as tent and sherry, which 
are intended for the use of their 
priests in the administration of the 
sacrament. And this difference in 
the cargo of the ship to and from 
Manilla occasions a very remarkable 
variety in the manner of equipping 
the ship for these two different voy- 
ages. For the galleon, when she sets 
sail from Manilla, being deep laden 
with a variety of bulky goods, has 
not the conveniency of mounting her 
lower tier of guns, but carries them 
in her hold till she draws near Cape 
St Lucas, and is apprehensive of an 
enemy. Her hands, too, are as few 
as is consistent with the safety of the 



ANSON'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cn.X. 



104 

ship, that she may bo less pestered 
with the stowage of provisions. But, 
oil her return from Acapulco, as her 
cargo lies in less room, her lower tier 
is (or ought to be) always mounted 
before she leaves the port ; and her 
crew is augmented with a supply of 
sailors, and with one or two com- 
panies of foot, which are intended to 
reinforce the garrison at Manilla. 
And there being, besides, many mer- 
chants who take their passage to 
Manilla on board the galleon, her 
whole number of hands on her return 
is usually little short of six hundred, 
all which are easily provided for by 
reason of the small stowage necessary 
for the silver. 

The galleon being thus fitted for 
her return, the captain, on leaving 
the port of Acapulco, steers for the 
Latitude of 13 or 14, and runs on 
that parallel till he gets sight of the 
Island of Guam, one of the Ladrones. 
In this run the captain is particularly 
directed to be careful of the shoals of 
St Bartholomew, and of the Island of 
Gasparico. 1 He is also told in his 
instructions that, to prevent his pass- 
ing the Ladrones in the dark, there 
are orders given that through all the 
month of June fires shall be lighted 
every night on the highest part of 
Guam and Rota, and kept in till the 
morning. At Guam there is a small 
Spanish garrison, (as will be more par- 
ticularly mentioned hereafter) pur- 
posely intended to secure that place 
for the refreshment of the galleon, and 

1 In Anson's Chart San Bartolomeo 
is laid down as a considerable island, 
in about Latitude 13 N., Longitude 
159 E. The position nearly corre- 
sponds with that of some of the smaller 
islands, north of Torres, belonging to 
the Caroline group. Gaspar Rico, 
not shown in Anson's Chart, is in 
about Latitude 12 30' N., Longitude 
171 30' E. But the two islands 
specially signalled out for caution 
are no more than a speck among the 
hundreds of isles which for fully thirty 
degrees of longitude the Centurion 
passed to the northward in her voyage 
to the Ladrones. 



to yield her all the assistance in their 
power. However, the danger of the 
road at Guam is so great, that though 
the galleon is ordered to call there, 
yet she rarely stays above a day or 
two ; but getting her water and re- 
freshments on board as soon as pos- 
sible, she steers away directly for Cape 
Espiritu Santo, on the Island of 
Samal. 2 Here the captain is again 
ordered to look out for signals ; and 
he is told that sentinels will be posted 
not only on that cape, but likewise 
in Catanduanas, Butusan, Birribor- 
ongo, and on the Island of Batan. 
These sentinels are instructed to make 
a fire when they discover the ship, 
whicli the captain is carefully to ob- 
serve. For if, after this first fire is 
extinguished, he perceives that four 
or more are lighted up again, he is 
then to conclude that there are enemies 
on the coast ; and on this he is im- 
mediately to endeavour to speak with 
the sentinel on shore, and to procure 
from him more particular intelligence 
of their force, and of the station they 
cruise in ; pursuant to which he is to 
regulate his conduct, and to endea- 
vour to gain some secure port amongst 
those islands, without coming in sight 
of the enemy ; and in case he should 
be discovered when in port, and should 
be apprehensive of an attack, he is 
then to land his treasure, and to take 
some of his artillery on shore for its 
defence, not neglecting to send fre- 
quent and particular accounts to the 
city of Manilla of all that passes. 
But if, after the first fire on shore, 
the captain observes that two others 
only are made by the sentinels, he is 
then to conclude that there is nothing 
to fear ; and he is to pursue his course 
without interruption, and to make the 
best of his way to the port of Cabite, 
\\hich is the port to the city of Man- 
illa, and the constant station for all 
the ships employed in this commerce 
to Acapulco. 

2 Or Samar ; an island of consi- 
derable size, lying to the north of 
Mindanao, about the centre of the 
Archipelago, with its point farthest 
advanced towards the east. 



1742.] 



I HAVE 



RETURN OF ffHE BARGE FROM ACAPULCO. 1 05 

order of it was thus : The Centurion 



CHAPTER XI. 



tlie 



already mentioned in 
ninth Chapter, that the return of our 
barge from the port of Acapulco, 
where she had surprised three Negro 
fishermen, gave us inexpressible satis- 
faction; as we learned from our pri- 
soners that the galleon was then pre- 
paring to put to sea, and that her 
departure was fixed, by an edict of 
the Viceroy of Mexico, to the 14th of 
March N.S., that is, to the 3d of 
March according to our reckoning. 
What related to this Manilla ship 
being the matter to which we were 
most attentive, it was necessarily the 
first article of our examination ; but 
having satisfied ourselves upon this 
head, we then indulged our curiosity 
in inquiring after other news ; when 
the prisoners informed us, that they 
had received intelligence at Acapulco 
of our having plundered and burned 
the town of Paita ; and that on this 
occasion the Governor of Acapulco had 
augmented the fortifications of the 
place, and had taken several precau- 
tions to prevent us from forcing our 
way into the harbour ; that in par- 
ticular he had placed a guard on the 
island which lies at the harbour's 
mouth, and that this guard had been 
withdrawn but two nights before the 
arrival of our barge : so that had the 
barge succeeded in her first attempt, 
or had she arrived at the port the 
second time two days sooner, she 
could scarcely have avoided being 
seized on, or if she had escaped it 
must have been with the loss of the 
greatest part of her crew, as she would 
have been under the fire of the guard 
before she had known her danger. 

And now, on the 1st of March, we 
made the high lands usually called 
the paps, over Acapulco, and got with 
all possible expedition into the situa- 
tion prescribed by the Commodore's 
orders. The distribution of our squad 
ron on this occasion, both for the in- 
tercepting the galleon and for the 
avoiding a discovery from the shore, 
was so very judicious that it wel" 
merits to be distinctly described. The 



>rought the paps over the harbour to 
>ear NNE., at fifteen leagues' distance, 
.vhich was a sufficient offing to pre- 
sent our being seen by the enemy. 
To the westward of the Centurion there 
vas stationed the Carmelo, and to the 
eastward were the Trial prize, the Glou- 
cester, and the Carmen. These were 
all ranged in a circular line, and each 
ship was three leagues distant from 
;he next ; so that the Carmelo and 
;he Carmen, which were the two ex- 
tremes, were twelve leagues distant 
irorn each other. And as the galleon 
ould without doubt be discerned at 
six leagues' distance from either ex- 
tremity, the whole sweep of our squad- 
ron, within which nothing could pass 
undiscovered, was at least twenty-four 
Leagues in extent ; and yet we were 
so connected by our signals as to 
be easily and speedily informed of 
what was seen in any part of the line. 
And to render this disposition still 
more complete, and to prevent even 
the possibility of the galleon's escap- 
ing us in the night, the two cutters 
belonging to the Centurion and the 
Gloucester were both manned and sent 
in-shore, and were ordered to lie all day 
at the distance of four or five leagues 
from the entrance of the port, where, 
by reason of their smallness, they 
could not possibly be discovered ; but 
in the night they were directed to 
stand nearer to the harbour's mouth, 
and, as the light of the morning came 
on, they were to return back again to 
their day posts. When the cutters 
should first discover the Manilla ship 
one of them was ordered to return to 
the squadron, and to make a signal 
whether the galleon stood to the east- 
ward or to the westward ; whilst the 
other was to follow the galleon at a 
distance, and, if it grew dark, was to 
direct the squadron in their chase by 
showing false fires. 

Besides the care we had taken to 
prevent the galleon from passing by 
us unobserved, we had not been in- 
attentive to the means of engaging 
her to advantage when we came up 
with her ; for, considering the thin- 
ness of our hands, and the vaunting 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.CH.Xf. 



106 

accounts given by the Spaniards of 
her size, her guns, and her strength, 
this was a consideration not to be 
neglected. As we supposed that none 
of our ships but the Centurion and 
the Gloucester were capable of lying 
alongside of her, we took on board 
the Centurion all the hands belonging 
to the Carmelo and the Carmen, ex- 
cept what were just sufficient to navi- 
gate those ships ; and Captain Saun- 
ders was ordered to send from the 
Trial prize ten Englishmen and as 
many Negroes to reinforce the crew of 
the Gloucester. And for the encour- 
agement of our Negroes, of whom we 
had a considerable number on board, 
we promised them that on their good 
behaviour they should all have their 
freedom; and as they had been almost 
every day trained to the management 
of the great guns for the two preced- 
ing months, they were very well quali- 
fied to be of service to us ; and from 
their hopes of liberty, and in return 
for the usage they had met with 
amongst us, they seemed disposed to 
exert themselves to the utmost of their 
power. 

And now, being thus prepared for 
the reception of the galleon, we ex- 
pected with the utmost impatience 
the so of ten -mentioned 3d of March, 
the day fixed for her departure, And 
on that day we were all of us most 
eagerly engaged in looking out towards 
Acapulco : and we were so strangely 
prepossessed with the certainty of our 
intelligence, and with an assurance of 
her corning out of port, that some or 
other on board us were constantly 
imagining that they discovered one of 
our cutters returning with a signal. 
But to our extreme vexation both this 
day anu. the succeeding night passed 
over without any news of the galleon. 
However, we did not yet despair, but 
were all heartily disposed to flatter 
ourselves that some unforeseen acci- 
dent had intervened which might have 
put off her departure for a few days ; 
and suggestions of this kind occurred 
in plenty, as we knew that the time 
fixed by the Viceroy for her sailing 
was often prolonged on the petition 
of the merchants of Mexico, Thus 



we kept up our hopes, and did no* 
abate of our vigilance ; and as tho 
7th of March was Sunday, the begin- 
ning of Passion Week, which is ob- 
served by the Papists with great strict- 
ness and a total cessation from all 
kinds of labour, so that no ship is 
permitted to stir out of port during 
the whole week, this quieted our ap- 
prehensions for some days, and dis- 
posed us not to expect the galleon till 
the week following. On the Friday 
in this week our cutters returned to 
us, and the officers on board them 
were very confident that the galleon 
was still in port, for that she could 
not possibly have come out but they 
must have seen her. On the Monday 
morning succeeding Passion Week 
that is, on the 15th of March the 
cutters were again despatched to their 
old station, and our hopes were once 
more indulged in as sanguine prepos- 
sessions as before ; but in a week's 
time our eagerness was greatly abated, 
and a general dejection and despon- 
dency took place in its room. It is 
true there were some few amongst us 
who still kept up their spirits, and 
were very ingenious in finding out 
reasons to satisfy themselves that the 
disappointment we had hitherto met 
with had only been occasioned by a 
casual delay of the galleon, which a 
few days would remove, and not by 
a total suspension of her departure for 
the whole season. But these specula- 
tions were not relished by the gener- 
ality of our people ; for they were 
persuaded that the enemy had by 
some accident discovered our being 
upon the coast, and had therefore laid 
an embargo on the galleon till the 
next year. And indeed this persua- 
sion was but too well founded ; for 
we afterwards learned that our barge, 
when sent on the discovery of the port 
of Acapulco, had been seen from the 
shore, and that this circumstance (no 
embarkations but canoes ever fre- 
quenting that coast) was to them a 
sufficient proof of the neighbourhood 
of our squadron ; on which they stop- 
ped the galleon till the succeeding 
year. . . . 
When we had taken up the cutters, 



1742.] IN THE HARBOUR 

all the ships being joined, the Com- 
modore made a signal to speak with 
their commanders ; and upon inquiry 
into the stock of fresh water remain- 
ing on board the squadron, it was 
found to be so very slender, that we 
were under a necessity of quitting our 
station to procure a fresh supply. 
And consulting what place was the 
properest for this purpose, it was 
agreed that the harbour of Seguataneo 
or Chequetan, being the nearest to us, 
was on that account the most eligible ; 
and it was therefore immediately re- 
solved to make the best of our way 
thither. And that, even while we 
were recruiting our water, we might 
not totally abandon our views upon 
the galleon, which perhaps, upon cer- 
tain intelligence of our being employed 
at Chequetan, might venture to slip 
out to sea, our cutter, under the com- 
mand of Mr Hughes, the lieutenant 
of the Trial prize, was ordered to 
cruise off the port of Acapulco for 
twenty-four days; that, if the gal- 
leon should set sail in that inter- 
val, we might be speedily informed 
of it. In pursuance of these resolu- 
tions, we endeavoured to ply to the 
westward, to gain our intended port, 
but were often interrupted in our pro- 
gress by calms and adverse currents. 
In these intervals we employed our- 
selves in taking out the most valuable 
part of the cargoes of the Carmelo and 
Carmen prizes, which two ships we 
intended to destroy as soon as we had 
tolerably cleared them. By the 1st 
of April we were so far advanced 
towards Seguataneo, that we thought 
it expedient to send out two boats, 
that they might range along the coast, 
and discover the watering-place. They 
were gone some days, and, our water 
being now very short, it was a parti- 
cular felicity to us that we met with 
daily supplies of turtle ; for had we been 
entirely confined to salt provisions we 
must have suffered extremely in so 
warm a climate. Indeed, our present 
circumstances were sufficiently alarm- 
ing, and gave the most considerate 
amongst us as much concern as any 
of the numerous perils we had hitherto 
encountered ; for our boats, as we 



OF CHEQUETAN. 107 

conceived by their not returning, had 
not as yet discovered a place proper 
to water at, and by the leakage of 
our casks and other accidents we had 
not ten days' water on board the whole 
^uadron; so that, from the known 
difficulty of procuring water on this 
coast, and the little reliance we had 
on the Buccaneer writers (the only 
guides we had to trust to), we were 
apprehensive of being soon exposed 
to a calamity, the most terrible of any 
in the long, disheartening catalogue of 
the distresses of a sea-faring life. 

But these gloomy suggestions were 
soon happily ended ; for our boats 
returned on the 5th of April, having 
discovered a place proper for our 
purpose about seven miles to the 
westward of the rocks of Seguataneo, 
which, by the description they gave 
of it, appeared to be the port called by 
Dampier the harbour of Chequetan. 
The success of our boats was highly 
agreeable to us ; and they were or- 
dered out again the next day to sound 
the harbour and its entrance, which 
they had represented as very narrow. 
At their return they reported the 
place to be free from any danger ; so 
that on the 7th we stood in, and that 
evening came to an anchor in eleven 
fathoms. The Gloucester came to an 
anchor at the same time with us ; but 
the Carmelo and the Carmen having 
fallen to leeward, the Trial prize was 
ordered to join them, and to bring 
them in, which in two or three days 
she effected. Thus, after a four 
months' continuance at sea from the 
leaving of Quibo, and having but six 
days' water on board, we arrived in 
the harbour of Chequetan. 



CHAPTER XII. 

THE harbour of Chequetan lies in the 
Latitude of 17 36' K, and is about 
thirty leagues to the westward of Aca- 
pulco. It is easy to be discovered by 
any ship that will keep well in with 
the land, especially by such as range 
down coast from Acapulco, and will 
attend to the following particulars. 



108 ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cii.XIII. 



There is a beach of sand, which ex- 
tends eighteen leagues from the har- 
bour of Acapulco to the westward, 
against which the sea breaks with 
such violence that it is impossible to 
land in any part of it ; but yet the 
ground is so clean, that ships, in the 
fair season, may anchor in great safety 
at the distance of a mile or two from 
the shore. The land adjacent to this 
beach is generally low, full of villages, 
and planted with a great number of 
trees ; and on the tops of some small 
eminences there are several look-out 
towers, so that the face of the country 
affords a very agreeable prospect. . . . 
And on this occasion I cannot help 
mentioning another adventure which 
happened to some of our people in 
the Bay of Petaplan, as it may help 
to give the reader a just idea of the 
temper of the inhabitants of this part 
of the world. Some time after our 
arrival atChequetan, Lieutenant Brett 
was sent by the Commodore, with 
two of our boats under his command, 
to examine the coast to the eastward, 
particularly to make observations on 
the bay and watering-place of Peta- 
plan. As Mr Brett, with one of 
the boats, was preparing to go on 
shore towards the hill of Petaplan, 
he, accidentally looking across the 
bay, perceived on the opposite strand 
three small squadrons of horse par- 
ading upon the beach, and seeming 
to advance towards the place where 
he proposed to land. On sight of 
this, he immediately put off the boat, 
though he had but sixteen men with 
him, and stood over the bay towards 
them ; and he soon came near enough 
to perceive that they were mounted on 
very sightly horses, and were armed 
with carbines and lances. On seeing 
him make towards them, they formed 
upon the beach, and seemed resolved 
to dispute his landing, firing several 
distant shots at him as he drew near ; 
till at last, the boat being arrived 
within a reasonable distance of the 
most advanced squadron, Mr Brett 
ordered his people to fire, upon which 
this resolute cavalry instantly ran in 
groat confusion into the wood through 
a small opening. In this precipitate 



flight one of their horses fell down and 
threw his rider ; but whether he was 
wounded or not we could not learn, 
for both man and horse soon got up 
again and followed the rest into tho 
wood. In the meantime the other 
two squadrons, who were drawn up 
at a great distance behind, out of the 
reach of our shot, were calm specta- 
tors of the rout of their comrades, for 
they had halted on our first approach, 
and never advanced afterwards. It 
was doubtless fortunate for our people 
that the enemy acted with so little 
prudence, and exerted so little spirit ; 
for had they concealed themselves till 
our men had landed, it is scarcely 
possible but the whole boat's crew 
must have fallen into their hands, since 
the Spaniards were not much short 
of 200, and the whole number with 
Mr Brett only amounted to sixteen. 
However, the discovery of so consi- 
derable a force collected in this Bay 
of Petaplan obliged us constantly to 
keep a boat or two before it ; for w( 
were apprehensive that the cutter, 
which we had left to cruise off Aca- 
pulco, might on her return be sur- 
prised by the enemy, if she did not 
receive timely information of her 
danger. . . . 



CHAPTER XIII. 

THE next morning after our coming 
to an anchor in the harbour of Che- 
qtietan, we sent about ninety of our 
men well armed on shore, forty of 
whom were ordered to march into the 
country, as has been mentioned, and 
the remaining fifty were employed to 
cover the watering-place and to pre- 
vent any interruption from the natives. 
Here we completed the unloading of 
the Carmelo and Carmen, which we had 
begun at sea at least we took out of 
them the indigo, cacao, and cochineal, 
with some iron for ballast, which were 
all the goods we intended to preserve, 
though they did not amount to a 
tenth of their cargoes. Here, too, it 
was agreed after a mature consultation 
to destroy the Trial's prize, as well as 



1742.] 



A FRENCHMAN SEIZED BY INDIANS. 



109 



the Carmelo and Carmen, whose fate 
had been before resolved on. Indeed 
the ship was in good repair and fit for 
the sea ; but as the whole numbers on 
board our squadron did not amount 
to the complement of a fourth-rate 
man-of-war, we found it was impos- 
sible to divide them into three ships 
without rendering them incapable of 
navigating in safety in the tempestuous 
weather we had reason to expect on 
the coast of China, where we supposed 
we should arrive about the time of the 
change of the monsoons. These con- 
siderations determined the Commodore 
to destroy the Trial prize, and to re- 
inforce the Gloucester with the greatest 
part of her crew. And in consequence 
of this resolve, all the stores en board 
the Trial prize were removed into the 
other ships; and the prize herself, 
with the Carmelo and Carmen, were 
prepared for scuttling with all the ex- 
pedition we were masters of. But the 
great difficulties we were under in lay- 
ing in a store of water (which have 
been already touched on), together 
with the necessary repairs of our rig- 
ging and other unavoidable occupa- 
tions, took us up so much time, and 
found us such unexpected employment, 
that it was near the end of April be- 
fore we were in a condition to leave 
the place. 

During our stay here there hap- 
pened an incident which, as it proved 
the means of convincing our friends 
in England of our safety, which for 
some time they had despaired of and 
were then in doubt about, I shall beg 
leave particularly to recite. I have 
observed in the preceding Chapter 
that from this harbour of Chequetan 
there was but one pathway, which led 
through the woods into the country. 
This we found much beaten, and were 
thence convinced that it was well 
known to the inhabitants. As it passed 
by the spring-head, and was the only 
avenue by which the Spaniards could 
approach us, we, at some distance be- 
yond the spring-head, felled several 
large trees, and laid them, one upon 
the other across the path ; and at this 
barricade we constantly kept a guard ; 
and we, besides, ordered our men em- 



ployed in watering to have their arms 
ready, and, in case of any alarm, to 
march instantly to this spot. And 
though our principal intention was to 
prevent our being disturbed by any 
sudden attack of the enemy's horse, 
yet it answered another purpose which 
was not in itself less important this 
was to hinder our own. people from 
straggling singly into the country, 
where we had reason to believe they 
would be surprised by the Spaniards, 
who would doubtless be extremely 
solicitous to pick up some of them 
in hopes of getting intelligence of our 
future designs. To avoid this incon- 
venience, the strictest orders were 
given to the sentinels to let no person 
whatever pass beyond their post. But, 
notwithstanding this precaution, we 
missed one Lewis Leger, who was the 
Commodore's cook ; and as he was a 
Frenchman, and suspected to be a 
Papist, it was by some imagined that 
he had deserted with a view of betray- 
ing all that he knew to the enemy ; 
but this appeared by the event to be 
an ill-grounded surmise, for it was 
afterwards known that he had been 
taken by some Indians, who carried 
him prisoner to Acapulco, whence he 
was transferred to Mexico, and then 
to Veru Cruz, where he was shipped 
on board a vessel bound to Old Spain. 
And the vessel being obliged by some 
accident to put into Lisbon, Leger 
escaped on shore, and was by the 
British Consul sent thence to Eng- 
land, where he brought the first au- 
thentic account of the safety of the 
Commodore, and of what he had done 
in the South Seas. The relation he 
gave of his own seizure was, that he 
had rambled into the woods at some 
distance from the barricade where he 
had first attempted to pass, but had 
been stopped and threatened to be 
punished that his principal view was 
to get a quantity of limes for his mas- 
ter's store ; and that in this occupa- 
tion he was surprised unawares by 
four Indians, who stripped him naked, 
and carried him in that condition to 
Acapulco, exposed to the scorching 
heat of the sun, which at that time 
of the year shone with its greatest 



110 ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.Cii.XIII. 



violence. And afterwards at Mexico, 
his treatment in prison was sufficiently 
severe, and the whole course of his 
captivity was a continued instance of 
the hatred which the Spaniards bear 
to all those who endeavour to disturb 
them in the peaceable possession of 
the coasts of the South Seas. Indeed, 
Leger's fortune was, upon the whole, 
extremely singular; for after the 
hazards he had run in the Commo- 
dore's squadron, and the severities he 
had suffered in his long confinement 
amongst the enemy, a more fatal dis- 
aster attended him on his return to 
England. For though, when he ar- 
rived in London, some of Mr Anson's 
friends interested themselves in re- 
lieving him from the poverty to which 
his captivity had reduced him, yet he 
did not long enjoy the benefit of their 
humanity, for he was killed in an in- 
significant night brawl, the cause of 
which could scarcely be discovered. 

And here I must observe that 
though the enemy never appeared in 
sight during our stay in this harbour, 
yet we perceived that there were large 
parties of them encamped in the woods 
about us ; for we could see their smokes, 
and could thence determine that they 
were posted in a circular line surround- 
ing us at a distance ; and just before 
our coming away they seemed, by the 
increase of their fires, to have received 
a considerable reinforcement. 

Towards the latter end of April, the 
unloading of our three prizes, our 
wooding and watering, and, in short, 
all our proposed employments at the 
harbour of Chequetan were completed ; 
so that on the 27th the Trial's prize, 
the Carmelo and the Carmen all 
which we here intended to destroy 
were towed on shore and scuttled, and 
a quantity of combustible materials 
were distributed in their upper works ; 
and next morning the Centurion and 
the Gloucester weighed anchor, but as 
there was but little wind, and that not 
in their favour, they were obliged to 
warp out of the harbour. When they 
had reached the offing, one of the 
boats was despatched back again to 
set fire to our prize, which was ac- 
cordingly executed. And a canoe was 



left fixed to a grapnel in the middle 
of the harbour, with a bottle in it 
well corked, enclosing a letter to Mr 
Hughes, who commanded the cutter 
which was ordered to cruise before the 
port of Acapulco when we came off 
that station. And on this occasion I 
must mention more particularly than 
I have yet done the views of the 
Commodore in leaving the cutter be- 
fore that port. 

When we were necessitated to make 
for Chequetan to take in our water, 
Mr Anson considered that our being 
in that harbour would soon be known 
at Acapulco ; and therefore he hoped, 
that on the intelligence of our being 
employed in port, the galleon might 
put to sea, especially as Chequetan 
is so very remote from the course 
generally steered by the galleon. He 
therefore ordered the cutter to cruise 
twenty-four days off the port of Aca- 
pulco; and her commander was di- 
rected, on perceiving the galleon under 
sail, to make the best of his way to 
the Commodore at Chequetan. As 
the Centurion was doubtless a much 
better sailer than the galleon, Mr 
Anson, in this case, resolved to have 
got to sea as soon as possible, and to 
have pursued the galleon across the 
Pacific Ocean ; and supposing he 
should not have met with her in his 
passage (which, considering that he 
would have kept nearly the same 
parallel, was not very improbable) yet 
he was certain of arriving off Cape 
Espiritu Santo, on the Island of Samal, 
before her ; and that being the first 
land she makes on her return to th 
Philippines, we could not have failed 
to have fallen in with her by cruising 
a few days in that station. But the 
Viceroy of Mexico ruined this project 
by keeping the galleon in the port of 
Acapulco all that year. 

The letter left in the canoe for Mr 
Hughes, the commander of the cutter 
(the time of whose return was now 
considerably elapsed), directed him to 
go back immediately to his former 
station before Acapulco, where he 
would find Mr Anson, who resolved 
to cruise for him there for a certain 
number of days ; after which it was 



1742.] 



DISAPPEARANCE OF A CUTTER. 



Ill 



added, that the Commodore would 
return to the southward to join the 
rest of the squadron. This last 
article was inserted to deceive the 
Spaniards, if they got possession of 
the canoe (as we afterwards learned 
they did), but could not impose on 
Mr Hughes, who well knew that the 
Commodore had no squadron to join, 
nor any intention of steering back to 
Peru. 

Being now in the offing of Cheque- 
tan, bound across the vast Pacific 
Ocean in our way to China, we were 
impatient to run off the coast as soon 
as possible ; for as the stormy season 
was approaching apace, and as we 
had no further views in the American 
seas, we had hoped that nothing 
would have prevented us from stand- 
ing to the westward the moment we 
got out of the harbour of Chequetan. 
And it was no small mortification to 
us that our necessary employment 
there had detained us so much longer 
than we expected ; and now we were 
further detained by the absence of 
the cutter, and the standing towards 
Acapulco in search of her. Indeed, 
is the time of her cruise had been 
jxpired for near a fortnight, we sus- 
pected that she had been discovered 
from the shore, and that the Gover- 
nor of Acapulco had thereupon sent 
out a force to seize her, which, as 
she carried but six hands, was no 
very difficult enterprise. However, 
this being only conjecture, the Com- 
modore as soon as he was got clear of 
the harbour of Chequetan, stood 
along the coast to the eastward in 
search of her. And to prevent her 
from passing by us in the dark, we 
brought to every night, and the Glou- 
cester, whose station was a league 
within us towards the shore, carried 
a light, which the cutter could not 
but perceive if she kept along shore, 
as we supposed she would do ; and 
as a further security, the Centurion 
and the Gloucester alternately showed 
two false fires every half -hour. 

By Sunday, the 2d of May, we were 
advanced within three leagues of 
Acapulco ; and having seen nothing 
of our boat, we gave her over for lost, 



which, besides the compassionate con- 
cern for our shipmates, and for what 
it was apprehended they might have 
suffered, was in itself a misfortune 
which in our present scarcity of hands 
we were all greatly interested in. 
For^the crew of the cutter, consisting 
of six men and the lieutenant, were 
the very flower of our people, pur- 
posely picked out for this service, 
and known to be, every one of them, 
of tried and approved resolution, and 
as skilful seamen as ever trod a deck. 
However, as it was the general belief 
among us that they were taken and 
carried into Acapulco, the Commo- 
dore's prudence suggested a project 
which we hoped would recover them. 
This was founded on our having 
many Spanish and Indian prisoners 
in our possession, and a number of 
sick Negroes, who could be of no ser- 
vice to us in the navigating of the 
ship. The Commodore therefore 
wrote a letter the same day to the 
Governor of Acapulco, telling him 
that he would release them all, pro- 
vided ^ the Governor returned the 
cutter's crew j and the letter was de- 
spatched the same afternoon by a 
Spanish officer, of whose honour we 
had a good opinion, and whc vas 
furnished with a launch belonging to 
one of our prizes, and a crew of six 
other prisoners, who all gave their 
parole for their return. The officer, 
too, besides the Commodore's letter, 
carried with him a joint petition 
signed by all the rest of the prisoners, 
beseeching his Excellency to acquiesce 
in the terms proposed for their liberty. 
From a consideration of the number 
of our prisoners, and the quality of 
some of them, we did not doubt but 
the Governor would readily comply 
with Mr Anson's proposal ; and there- 
fore we kept plying on and off the 
whole night, intending to keep well 
in^with the land, that we might re- 
ceive an answer at the limited time, 
which was the next day, being 
Monday. But both on the Monday 
and Tuesday we were driven so far 
off shore that we could not hope to 
receive any answer ; and on the "Wed- 
nesday morning we found ourselves 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.II.CH.XIII. 



112 

fourteen leagues from the harbour of 
Acapulco ; but, as the wind was now 
favourable, we pressed forwards with 
all our sail, and did not doubt of 
getting in with the land in a few 
hours. 

Whilst we were thus standing in, 
the man at the mast-head called out 
that he saw a boat under sail at a 
considerable distance to the south- 
eastward. This we took for granted 
was the answer of the Governor to 
the Commodore's message, and we 
instantly edged towards it ; but when 
we drew nearer we found to our un- 
speakable joy that it was our own 
cutter. While she was still at a 
distance, we imagined that she had 
been discharged out of the port of 
Acapulco by the Governor ; but 
when she drew nearer, the wan and 
meagre countenances of the crew, the 
length of their beards, and the feeble 
and hollow tone of their voices, con- 
vinced us that they had suffered 
much greater hardships than could 
be expected from even the severities 
of a Spanish prison. They were 
obliged to be helped into the ship, 
and were immediately put to bed ; 
and with rest, and nourishing diet, 
which they were plentifully supplied 
with from the Commodore's table, 
they recovered their health and 
vigour apace. And now we learned 
that they had kept the sea the whole 
time of their absence, which was 
above six weeks ; that when they 
finished their cruise before Acapulco, 
and had just begun to ply to the 
westward in order to join the squad- 
ron, a strong adverse current had 
forced them down the coast to the 
eastward in spite of all their efforts ; 
that at length, their water being all 
expended, they were obliged to search 
the coast farther on to the eastward, 
in quest of some convenient landing- 
place, where they might get a fresh 
supply ; that in this distress they 
ran upwards of eighty leagues to lee- 
ward, and found everywhere so large 
a surf, that there was not the least 
possibility of their landing ; that they 
days in this dreadful 



no other means left them to allay 
their thirst than sucking the blood 
of the turtle which they caught ; and 
at last, giving up all hopes of relief, 
the heat of the climate, too, aug- 
menting their necessities, and render- 
ing their sufferings insupportable, 
they abandoned themselves to despair, 
fully persuaded that they should 
perish by the most terrible of all 
deaths. But they were soon after 
happily relieved by a most unex- 
pected incident, for there fell so 
heavy a rain, that by spreading their 
sails horizontally, and by putting 
bullets in the centre of them to draw 
them to a point, they caught as much 
water as filled all their casks ; imme- 
diately upon this fortunate supply, 
they stood to the westward in quest 
of the Commodore ; and, being now 
luckily favoured by a strong current, 
they joined us in less than fifty hours 
from the time they stood to the west- 
ward, after having been absent from 
us full forty-three days. Those who 
have an idea of the inconsiderable 
size of a cutter belonging to a sixty- 
gun ship (being only an open boat 
about twenty-two feet in length), and 
who will attend to the various acci- 
dents to which she was exposed dur- 
ing a six weeks' continuance alone in 
the open ocean, on so impracticable 
and dangerous a coast, will readily 
own that her return to us at last, 
after all the difficulties whicli she 
actually experienced, and the hazards 
to which she was each hour exposed, 
may be considered as little short of 
miraculous. I cannot finish the 
article of this cutter without remark- 
ing how little reliance navigators 
ought to have on the accounts of the 
Buccaneer writers. For though, in 
this run of hers eighty leagues to the 
eastward of Acapulco, she found no 
place where it was possible for a boat 
to land, yet those writers have not been 
ashamed to feign harbours and con- 
venient watering-places within these 
limits, thereby exposing such as 
should confide in their relations to 
the risk of being destroyed by thirst. 
And now, having received our cut- 
situation, without wate 1 :, and having j ter, the sole object of our coming a 



1742.] RELEASE OF 

second time before Acapulco, the 
Commodore resolved not to lose a 
moment's time longer, but to run off 
the coast with the utmost expedition ; 
both as the stormy season on the 
coast of Mexico was now approaching 
apace, and as we were apprehensive 
of having the westerly monsoon to 
struggle with when we came upon 
the coast of China. And therefore 
he no longer stood towards Acapulco, 
as he now wanted no answer from the 
Governor ; but yet he resolved not to 
deprive his prisoners of the liberty 
which he had promised them, so that 
they were all immediately embarked 
in two launches which belonged to 
our prizes, those from the Centurion 
in one launch, and those from the 
Gloucester in the other. The launches 
were well equipped with masts, 
sails, and oars ; and, lest the wind 
might prove unfavourable, they had 
a stock of water and provisions 
put on board them sufficient for four- 
teen days. There were discharged 
thirty-nine persons from on board the 
Centurion, and eighteen from the 
Gloucester, the greatest part of them 
Spaniards, the rest Indians and sick 
Negroes ; but as our crews were very 
weak, we kept the Mulattoes and 
some of the stoutest of the Negroes, 
with a few Indians, to assist us, but 
we dismissed every Spanish prisoner 
whatever. 1 We have since learned 
that these two launches arrived safe at 
Acapulco, where the prisoners could 
not enough extol the humanity with 
which they had been treated ; and 
that the Governor, before their arrival, 
had returned a very obliging answer 
to the Commodore's letter, and had 
attended it with a present of two 
boats laden with the choicest refresh- 
ments and provisions which were to 
be got at Acapulco ; but that these 
boats, not having found our ships, 
were at length obliged to put back 
again after having thrown all their 



PRISONERS. 



113 



1 "About four in the evening they 
left us," says Thomas, " having first, 
though enemies, observed the custom 
of seafaring people at parting, and 
wished us a prosperous voyage." 



provisions overboard in a storm which 
threatened their destruction. 

The sending away our prisoners was 
our last transaction on the American 
coast, for no sooner had we parted 
with them than we and the Gloucester 
made sail to the SW., proposing to 
get a good offing from the land, where 
we hoped in a few days to meet with 
the regular trade- wind, which the ac- 
counts of former navigators had re- 
presented as much brisker and steadier 
in this ocean than in any other part 
of the globe. For it has been es- 
teemed no uncommon passage to 
run from hence to the easternmost 
parts of Asia in two months, and 
we flattered ourselves that we were 
as capable of making an expedi- 
tious passage as any ships that had 
ever run this course before us ; so 
that we hoped soon to gain the coast 
of China-, for which we were now 
bound. And conformable to the gene- 
ral idea of this navigation given by 
former voyagers, we considered it as 
free from all kinds of embarrassment 
of bad weather, fatigue, or sickness : 
and consequently we undertook it with 
alacrity, especially as it was no con- 
temptible step towards our arrival at 
our native country, for which many 
of us by this time began to have great 
longings. Thus, on the 6th of May, 
we for the last time lost sight of the 
mountains of Mexico, persuaded that 
in a few weeks we should arrive at the 
River of Canton in China, where we 
expected to meet with many English 
ships and numbers of our countrymen, 
and hoped to enjoy the advantages of 
an amicable, well-frequented port, in- 
habited by a polished people, and 
abounding with the conveniences and 
indulgences of a civilised life, bless- 
ings which now for near twenty 
months had never been once in our 
power. 2 

2 In the original, a Fourteenth 
Chapter of Book II. is devoted to a 
disquisition, entitled "Abrief Account 
of what might have been expected 
from our squadron had it arrived in 
the South Seas in good time;" b^^ 
apart from the unprofitablene^^-i; our 



1U 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.Cii.I. 



BOOK III. 



CHAPTER I. 

WHEN, on the 6tli of May 1742, we 
left the coast of America, we stood to 
the SW. with a view of meeting with 
the NE. trade- wind, which the accounts 
of former writers made us expect at 
seventy or eighty leagues' distance 
from the land. We had, besides, an- 
other reason for standing to the south- 
ward, which was the getting into the 
Latitude of 13 or 14 N., that being 
the parallel where the Pacific Ocean 
is most usually crossed, and conse- 
quently where the navigation is esteem- 
ed the safest. This last purpose we 
had soon answered, being in a day or 
two sufficiently advanced to the south. 
At the same time, we were also farther 
from the shore than we had presumed 
was necessary for falling in with the 
trade-wind ; but in this particular we 
were most grievously disappointed, for 
the wind still continued to the west- 
ward, or at best variable. As the 
getting into the NE. trade was to us 
a matter of the last consequence, we 
stood more to the southward, and 
made many experiments to meet with 
it ; but all our efforts were for a long 
time unsuccessful, so that it was seven 
weeks from our leaving the coast be- 
fore we got into the true trade-wind. 
This was an interval in which we be- 
lieved we should well nigh have reach- 
ed the easternmost parts of Asia ; but 
we were so baffled with the contrary 
and variable winds which for all that 
time perplexed us, that we were not 
as yet advanced above a fourth part of 
the way. The delay alone would have 
been a sufficient mortification, but 

cussing a probability subject to so 
many "conditions that the Narrator 
could not contemplate, it will appear 
to the reader that quite enough has 
been said, both in the opening Chap- 
ter and throughout the whole narra- 
tive, to show wherein and how the 
situulron came short of its intents. 



there were other circumstances attend- 
ing it which rendered this situation 
not less terrible, and our apprehen- 
sions perhaps still greater, than in any 
of our past distresses. For our two 
ships were by this time extremely 
crazy ; and many days had not passed 
before we discovered a spring in the 
foremast of the Centurion, which 
rounded about twenty-six inches of 
its circumference, and which was 
judged to be at least four inches 
deep. And no sooner had our car- 
penters secured this with fishing it, 
but the Gloucester made a signal 
of distress ; and we learned that she 
had a dangerous spring in her main- 
mast twelve feet below the trussel- 
trees, 1 so that she could not carry 
any sail upon it. Our carpenters, 
on a strict examination of this mast, 
found it so very rotten and decayed 
that they judged it necessary to 
cut it down as low as it appeared to 
have been injured, and by this it was 
reduced to nothing but a stump, 
which served only as a step to the 
topmast. These accidents augmented 
our delay and occasioned us great 
anxiety about our future security, for 
on our leaving the coast of Mexico the 
sciirvy had begun to make its appear- 
ance again amongst our people, though 
from our departure from Juan Fernan- 
dez we had till then enjoyed a most 
uninterrupted state of health. We 
too well knew the effects of this dis- 
ease from our former fatal experience, 
to suppose that anything but a speedy 
passage could secure the greater part 
of our crew from perishing by it ; and 
as, after being seven weeks at sea, 
there did not appear any reasons that 
could persuade us we were nearer the 



1 Or trestle-trees ; " two strong 
pieces of timber placed horizontally 
and fore-and-aft on opposite sides of a 
mast-head, to support the cross-trees 
and top, and also for the fid of tho 
mast above to rest on." 



1742.] APPEARANCE OF SCURVY AMONGST THE CREW. 115 



trade- wind than when we first set out, 
there was no ground for us to suppose 
but our passage would prove at least 
three times as long as we at first ex- 
pected ; and consequently we had the 
melancholy prospect either of dying 
by the scurvy or perishing with the 
ship for want of hands to navigate 
her. Indeed some amongst us were 
at first willing to believe that in this 
warm climate, so different from what 
we felt in passing round Cape Horn, 
the violence of this disease and its 
fatality might be in some degree miti- 
gated, as it had not been unusual to 
suppose that its particular virulence 
in that passage was in a great measure 
owing to the severity of the weather. 
But the havoc of the distemper in our 
present circumstances soon convinced 
us of the falsity of this speculation, 
as it likewise exploded some other 
opinions which usually pass current 
about the cause and nature of this 
disease. 1 Our surgeon 2 (who, during 
our passage round Cape Horn, had 
ascribed the mortality we suffered to 
the severity of the climate) exerted 
himself in the present run to the 
utmost, and at last declared that all 
his measures were totally ineffectual, 

1 Some observations on the general 
medical treatment of the disease, and 
on the effect of certain specifics tried 
on some of the crew, have been here 
omitted. Speaking of the scurvy, 
Thomas strives to remove the prevalent 
notion that it attacks none but the 
lazy ; whereas experience in the voy- 
age proved the direct contrary, the 
most laborious, active, stirring per- 
sons being oftenest seized with the 
disease, and the continuance of their 
labour, instead of curing, only helped 
to kill them the sooner. Nor, he 
adds, does the scurvy generally in- 
cline people to indolence till it has 
come to such a height that at the 
least motion the sufferer is ready to 
faint. 

2 Mr Henry Ettrick, originally of 
the Wager ; he succeeded Mr Thomas 
Walter, the first surgeon of the Cen- 
turion, who died off the coast of 
Brazil. 



and did not in the least avail his 
patients. 3 

When we reached the trade- wind, 
and it settled between the north and 
the east, yet it seldom blew with so 
much strength but the Centurion 
might have carried all her small sails 
abroad with the greatest safety ; so 
that now, had we been a single ship, 
we might have run down our longi- 
tude apace, and have reached the La- 
drones soon enough to have recovered 
great numbers of our men who after- 
wards perished. But the Gloucester, 
by the loss of her mainmast, sailed so 
very heavily that we had seldom any 
more than our topsails set, and yet 
were frequently obliged to lie to for 
her ; and, I conceive, that in the 
whole we lost little less than a month 
by our attendance upon her, in con- 
sequence of the various mischances 
she encountered. In all this run, it 
was remarkable that we were rarely 
many days together without seeing 
great numbers of birds, which is a 
proof that there are many islands, or 
at least rocks, scattered all along at 
no very considerable distance from 
our track. 4 Some indeed there are 



3 About the middle of June, Thomas 
remarks that abundance of scorbutic 
symptoms, such as blackness in the 
skin, hard nodes in the flesh, short- 
ness of breath, and a general lassitude 
and weakness of all the parts, began 
to prevail almost universally among 
the people. Towards the end of July 
he writes: "About this time our 
people began to die very fast, and I 
believe above five parts out of six of 
the ship's company were ill and ex- 
pected to follow in a short time. 
Those whose breath was anyways af- 
fected, dropped off immediately ; but 
those who were attacked first in the 
more remote parts of the body, lan- 
guished generally a month or six 
weeks, the distemper advancing in the 
meantime towards the lungs by a very 
regular and sensible approach." 

4 More recent discoveries have fully 
borne out this sagacious conjecture. 
Thomas records, early in July : "We 
had, not only now, but for almost our 



116 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.Cu.I. 



marked in Spanish charts ; but the 
frequency of the birds seems to evince 
that there are many more than have 
been hitherto discovered ; for the 
greatest part of the birds, we ob- 
served, were such as are known to 
roost on shore ; and the manner of 
their appearance sufficiently made out 
that they came from some distant 
haunt every morning, and returned 
thither again in the evening ; for we 
never saw them early or late, and the 
hour of their arrival and departure 
gradually varied, which we supposed 
was occasioned by our running nearer 
their haunts or getting farther from 
them. 

The trade-wind continued to favour 
us without any fluctuation from the 
end of June till towards the end of 
July. But on the 26th of July, 



whole passage, abundance of birds of 
prey, also flying fish, which are their 
proper food, and vast quantities of 
skip-jacks, albicores, &c., whereof we 
took a great number, which contri- 
buted much to our refreshment after 
the loss of the tortoises, that gene- 
rally leave all ships about twenty or 
thirty leagues off the land. I think 
this the more worthy of notice, be- 
cause Dampier, Rogers, Cook, Cowley, 
and most other voyagers, some of 
whom have been not only once, but 
several times on this voyage, have 
reported that they never saw a fish 
or fowl in this whole run. For my 
part, I readily believe and conclude, 
that this difference in our observa- 
tions and accounts is really occasioned 
by the different seasons of the year in 
which we happened to perform this 
passage ; it being a known truth, and 
confirmed by the experience of thou- 
sands in all ages, that most fish have 
their different seasons for their differ- 
ent rendezvouses. The 10th, we saw 
three gannets, or, as they call them 
in Scotland, solan geese, being, by 
what I can learn from the most in- 
telligent of that nation whom I have 
conversed with, and who often have 
opportunity to observe them in several 
different parts, of one and the same 
species." 



being then, as we esteemed, about 
300 leagues distant from the La- 
drones, we met with a westerly wind, 
which did not come about again to 
the eastward in four days' time. This 
was a most dispiriting incident, as it 
at once damped all our hopes of speedy 
relief, especially, too, as it was at- 
tended with a vexatious accident to 
the Gloucester ; for in one part of 
these four days the wind flattened to 
a calm, and the ships rolled very deep, 
by which means the Gloucester's fore- 
cap split, and her topmast came by 
the board and broke her foreyard 
direcjtly in the slings. 1 As she was 
hereby rendered incapable of mak- 
ing any sail for some time, we were 
obliged, as soon as a gale sprung up, to 
take her in tow ; and near twenty of 
the healthiest and ablest of our seamen 
were taken from the business of our 
own ship, and were employed for eight 
or ten days together on board the Glou- 
cester in repairing her damages. But 
these things, mortifying as we thought 
them, were but the beginning of our 
disasters ; for scarce had our people 
finished their business in the Glouces- 
ter, before we met with a most violent 
storm in the western board, which 
obliged us to lie to. In the begin- 
ning of this storm our ship sprung a 
leak, and let in so much water, that 
all our people, officers included, were 
employed continually in working the 
pumps. And the next day we had 
the vexation to see the Gloucester 



1 Anson records in his Official Re- 
port : "On the 15th of June the 
Gloucester found her mainmast sprung 
at the head, which, upon examina- 
tion, was discovered to be entirely 
rotten. On the 29th of July the 
Gloucester carried away her foretop- 
mast and foreyard. My ship's com- 
pany are now miserably afflicted with 
the scurvy, the ship very leaky, the 
men and officers that were well being 
only able to make one spell at the 
pump." "This is all," observes Sir 
John Barrow, "that Anson says of 
the second attack of this afflicting 
malady ; but, coming from the Com- 
modore, it speaks volumes!" 



1742.] 

with her topmast once more by the 
board ; and whilst we were viewing 
her with great concern for this new 
distress, we saw her maintop-mast, 
which had hitherto served as a jury 
mainmast, share the same fate. This 
completed our misfortunes, and ren- 
dered them without resource ; for we 
knew the Gloucester's crew were so 
few and feeble that without our assist- 



DISTRESS OF THE GLOUCESTER. 117 

a leak by the sternpost being loose 
and working with every roll of the 
ship, and by two beams amidships 
being broken in the orlop, no part of 
which the carpenters reported was 
possible to be repaired at sea ; that 
both officers and men had worked 
twenty -four hours at the pump with- 
out intermission, and were at length 
so fatigued that they could continue 



ance they could not be relieved ; and 
our sick were now so far increased, 
and those that remained in health so 
continually fatigued with the addi- 
tional duty of our pumps, that it was 
impossible for us to lend them any 
aid. Indeed we were not as yet fully 
apprised of the deplorable situation 
of the Gloucester's crew ; for when 
the storm abated (which during its 
continuance prevented all communi- 
cation with them) the Gloucester bore 
up under our stern, and Captain 
Mitchel informed the Commodore 
that besides the loss of his masts, 
which was all that had appeared to 
us, the ship had then no less than 
seven feet of water in her hold, al- 
though his officers and men had been 
kept constantly at the pump for the 
last twenty-four hours. 

This last circumstance was indeed 
a most terrible accumulation to the 
other extraordinary distresses of the 
Gloucester, and required, if possible, 
the most speedy and vigorous assist- 
ance, which Captain Mitchel begged 
the Commodore to send him. But 
the debility of our people, and our 
own immediate preservation, rendered 
it impossible for the Commodore to 
comply with his request. All that 
could be done was to send our boat 
on board for a more particular condi- 
tion of the ship ; and it was soon sus- 
pected that the taking her people on 
board us, and then destroying her, 
was the only measure that could be 
prosecuted in the present emergency, 
Doth for the security of their lives 
and of our own. Our boat soon re- 
turned with a representation of the 
state of the Gloucester, and of her 
several defects, signed by Captain 
Mitchel and all his officers ; by 
which it appeared that *Le had sprang 



their labour no longer, but had been 
forced to desist, with seven feet of 
water in the hold, which covered their 
casks, so that they could neither come 
at fresh water nor provision ; that 
they had no mast standing except the 
foremast, the mizzenmast, and the 
mizzentop-mast, nor had they any 
spare masts to get up in the room of 
those they had lost ; that the ship 
was besides extremely decayed in 
every part, for her knees and clamps 
were all worked quite loose, and her 
upper works in general were so loose 
that the quarter-deck was ready to 
drop down ; and that her crew was 
greatly reduced, for there remained 
alive on board her no more than 
seventy -seven men, eighteen boys, 
and two prisoners, officers included ; 
and that of this whole number only 
sixteen men and eleven boys were cap- 
able of keeping the deck, and several 
of these very infirm. 

The Commodore, on the perusal of 
this melancholy representation, pre- 
sently ordered them a supply of water 
and provisions, of which they seemed 
to be in immediate want, and at the 
same time sent his own carpenter on 
board them to examine into the truth 
of every particular ; and it being 
found, on the strictest inquiry, that 
the preceding account was in no in- 
stance exaggerated, it plainly appeared 
that there was no possibility of pre- 
serving the Gloucester any longer, as 
her leaks were irreparable, and the 
united hands on board both ships, cap- 
able of working, would not be able to 
free her, even if our own ship should 
not employ any part of them. What 
then could be resolved on, when it 
was the utmost we ourselves could do 
to manage our own pumps ? Indeed, 
there was no room for deliberation ; 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.Cn.L 



118 

the only step to be taken was the saving 
the lives of the few that remained on 
board the Gloucester, and getting out 
of her as much as was possible before 
she was destroyed. And therefore the 
Commodore immediately sent an order 
to Captain Mitchel, as the weather 
was now calm and favourable, to send 
his people on board the Centurion as 
expeditiously as he could, and to take 
out such stores as he could get at 
whilst the ship could be kept above 
water. And as our leak required 
less attention whilst the present easy 
weather continued, we sent our boats, 
with as many men as we could spare, 
to Captain Mitchel's assistance. 

The removing the Gloucester's 
people on board us, and the getting 
out such stores as could most easily 
be come at, gave us full employment 
for two days. Mr Anson was ex- 
tremely desirous to have got two of 
her cables and an anchor, but the ship 
rolled so much, and the men were so 
excessively fatigued, that they were 
incapable of effecting it ; nay, it was 
even with the greatest difficulty that 
the prize-money which the Gloucester 
had taken in the South Seas was se- 
cured and sent on board the Centurion. 
However, the prize-goods on board 
her, which amounted to several thou- 
sand pounds in value, and were prin- 
cipally the Centurion's property, were 
entirely lost ; nor could any more 
provision be got out than five casks 
of flour, three of which were spoiled 
by the salt water. Their sick men, 
amounting to near seventy, were re- 
moved into boats with as much care 
as the circumstances of that time 
would permit ; but three or four of 
them expired as they were hoisting 
them into the Centurion. 

It was the 15th of August, in the 
evening, before the Gloucester was 
cleared of everything that was pro- 
posed to be removed ; and though the 
hold was now almost full of water, 
yet as the carpenters were of opinion 
that she might still swim for some 
time if the calm should continue and 
the water become smooth, she was set 
on fire ; for we knew not how near we 
might now be to the Island of Guam, 



which was in the possession of our 
enemies, and the wreck of such a ship 
would have been to them no con- 
temptible acquisition. When she was 
set on fire, Captain Mitchel and his 
officers left her, and came on board 
the Centurion ; and we immediately 
stood from the wreck, not without 
some apprehensions (as we had now 
only a light breeze) that, if she blew 
up soon, the concussion of the air 
might damage our rigging ; but she 
fortunately burned, though very 
fiercely, the whole night, her guns fir- 
ing successively as the flames reached 
them. And it was six in the morn- 
ing, when we were about four leagues 
distant, before she blew up ; the report 
she made upon this occasion was but 
a small one, but there was an exceed- 
ing black pillar of smoke, which shot 
up into the air to a very considerable 
height. Thus perished his Majesty's 
ship the Gloucester. . . . 

The 23d, at daybreak, we were 
cheered with the discovery of two 
islands in the western board. This 
gave us all great joy, and raised our 
drooping spirits ; for before this a 
universal dejection had seized us, and 
we almost despaired of ever seeing 
land again. The nearest of these 
islands we afterwards found to be 
Anatacan. We judged it to be full 
fifteen leagues from us, and it seemed 
to be high land, though of an indiffer- 
ent length. The other was the Island 
of Serigan, and had rather the appear- 
ance of a high rock than a place we 
could hope to anchor at. We were 
extremely impatient to get in with 
the nearest island, where we expected 
to meet with anchoring ground, and 
an opportunity of refreshing our sick; 
but the wind proved so variable all 
day, and there was so little of it, that 
we advanced towards it but slowly. 
However, by the next morning we 
were got so far to the westward that 
we were in view of a third island, 
which was that of Paxaros, though 
marked in the chart only as a rock. 
This was small and very low land, 
and we had passed within less than a 
mile of it in the night without seeing 
it. And now at noon, being within 



1742.] ISLAND OF 

four miles of the Island of Anatacan, 
the boat was sent away to examine 
the anchoring ground and the produce 
of the place ; and we were not a little 
solicitous for her return, as we then 
conceived our fate to depend upon 
the report we should receive ; for the 
other two islands were obviously 
enough incapable of furnishing us 
with any assistance, and we knew not 
then that there were any others which 
we could reach. In the evening the 
boat came back, and the crew informed 
us that there was no place for a ship 
to anchor, the bottom being every- 
where foul ground, and all, except 
one small spot, not less than fifty 
fathoms in depth ; that on that spot 
there was thirty fathoms, though not 
above half-a-mile from the shore ; and 
that the bank was steep and could not 
be depended on. They further told 
us that they had landed on the island, 
but with some difficulty, on account 
of the greatness of the swell ; that 
they found the ground was everywhere 
covered with a kind of cane or rush ; 
but that they met with no water, and 
did not believe the place to be in- 
habited, though the soil was good, 
and abounded with groves of cocoa- 
nut trees. 

This account of the impossibility of 
anchoring at this island occasioned a 
general melancholy on board, for we 
considered it as little less than the 
prelude to our destruction ; and our 
despondency was increased by a dis- 
appointment we met with the suc- 
ceeding night ; for, as we were plying 
under topsails, with an intention of 
getting nearer to the island and of 
sending our boat on shore to load with 
cocoa-nuts for the refreshment of our 
sick, the wind proved squally, and 
blew so strong off shore that we were 
driven so far to the southward that 
we dared not to send off our boat. 
And now the only possible circum- 
stance that could secure the few that 
remained alive from perishing was the 
accidental falling in with some other 
of the Ladrone Islands better pre- 
pared for our accommodation ; and 
as our knowledge of these islands was 
extremely imperfect, we were to trust 



ANATACAN. 119 

entirely to chance for our guidance ; 
only, as they are all of them usually 
laid down near the same meridian, 
and we had conceived those we had 
already seen to be part of them, we 
concluded to stand to the southward 
as the most probable means of falling 
in with the next. Thus, with the 
most gloomy persuasion of our ap- 
proaching destruction, we stood from 
the Island of Anatacan, having all of 
us the strongest apprehensions (and 
those not ill founded) either of dying 
of the scurvy or of perishing with the 
ship, which, for want of hands to 
work her pumps, might in a short 
time be expected to founder. 



CHAPTER II. 

IT was the 26th of August 1742, in 
the morning, when we lost sight of 
Anatacau. The next morning we dis- 
covered three other islands to the 
eastward, which were from ten to 
fourteen leagues from us. These were, 
as we afterwards learned, the islands 
of Saypan, Tinian, and Aguigan. We 
immediately steered towards Tinian, 
which was the middlemost of the 
three ; but had so much of calms and 
light airs, that though we were helped 
forwards by the currents, yet next 
day at daybreak we were at least five 
leagues distant from it. However, 
we kept on our course, and about ten 
in the morning we perceived a proa 
under sail to the southward, between 
Tinian and Aguigan. As we imagined 
from hence that these islands were 
inhabited, and knew that the Span- 
iards had always a force at Guam, we 
took the necessary precautions for our 
own security and for preventing the 
enemy from taking advantage of our pre- 
sent wretched circumstances, of which 
they would be sufficiently informed by 
the manner of our working the ship. We 
therefore mustered all our hands who 
were capable of standing to their arms, 
and loaded our upper and quarter deck 
guns with grape shot ; and that we 
might the more readily procure some 
intelligence of the state of these islands, 



120 AKSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.I1I.CH.II. 

we showed Spanish colours and hoisted | here, the Spaniards at Guam made 



a red flag at the foretop-mast head, to 
give our ship the appearance of the 
Manilla galleon, hoping thereby to 
decoy some of the inhabitants on board 
us. Thus preparing ourselves, and 
standing towards the land, we were 
near enough at three in the afternoon 
to send the cutter in-shore to find out 
a proper berth for the ship ; and we 
soon perceived that a proa came off 
the shore to meet the cutter, fully 
persuaded, as we afterwards found, 
that we were the Manilla ship. As 
we saw the cutter returning back with 
the proa in tow, we immediately sent 
the pinnace to receive the proa and 
the prisoners, and to bring them on 
board, that the cutter might proceed 
on her errand. The pinnace came 
back with a Spaniard and four In- 
dians, 1 who were the people taken in 
the proa. The Spaniard was imme- 
diately examined as to the produce 
and circumstances of this Island of 
Tinian, and his account of it surpassed 
even our most sanguine hopes ; for he 
informed us that it was uninhabited, 
which, in our present defenceless con- 
dition, was an advantage not to be 
despised, especially as it wanted but 
few of the conveniences that could be 
expected in the most cultivated coun- 
trv ; for he assured us that there was 
great plenty of very good water, and 
that there were an incredible number 
of cattle, hogs, and poultry running 
wild on the island, all of them excel- 
lent in their kind ; that the woods 
produced sweet and sour oranges, 
limes, lemons, and cocoa-nuts in great 
plenty, besides a fruit peculiar to these 
islands (called by Dampier bread- 
fruit 2 ) ; that, from the quantity and 
goodness of the provisions produced 



1 Thomas says : " One of those In- 
dians was a carpenter by trade, and 
his father was one of the principal 
builders at Manilla. This young man 
having been ill used by the Governor 
at Guam, voluntarily entered with us, 
and became one of our carpenter's 
crew, and proved a very useful handy 
fellow." 

In Chapter X. 



use of it as a store for supplying the 
garrison ; that he himself was a ser- 
geant of that garrison, and was sent 
here with twenty-two Indians to jerk 
beef, which he was to load for Guam 
on board a small bark of about fifteen 
tons, which lay at anchor near the 
shore. 

This account was received by us 
with inexpressible joy. Part of it we 
were ourselves able to verify on the 
spot, as we were by this time near 
enough to discover several numerous 
herds of cattle feeding in different 
places of the island ; and we did not 
anyways doubt the rest of his rela- 
tion, as the appearance of the shore 
prejudiced us greatly in its favour, 
and made us hope that not only our 
necessities might be there fully re- 
lieved and our diseased recovered, but 
that, amidst those pleasing scenes 
which were then in view, we might 
procure ourselves some amusement 
and relaxation after the numerous 
fatigues we had undergone. For the 
prospect of the country did by no 
means resemble that of an uninhabit- 
ed arid uncultivated place, but had 
much more the air of a magnificent 
plantation, where large lawns and 
stately woods had been laid out to- 
gether with great skill, and where the 
whole had been so artfully combined, 
and so judiciously adapted to the 
slopes of the hills and the inequalities 
of the ground, as to produce a most 
striking effect, and to do honour to 
the invention of the contriver. Thus 
(an. event not unlike what we had 
already seen) we were forced upon the 
most desirable and salutary measures 
by accidents which at first sight we 
considered as the greatest of misfor- 
tunes ; for had we not been driven by 
the contrary winds and currents to 
the northward of our course (a circum- 
stance which at that time gave us the 
most terrible apprehensions), woshould 
probability never have arrived 
at this delightful island, and conse- 
quently we should have missed that 
place where alone all our wants could 
be most amply relieved, our sick re- 
covered, and our enfeebled crew once 



1742.] 



THE ISLAND OF 



121 



more refreshed and enabled to put 
again to sea. 

The Spanish sergeant, from whom 
we received the account of the island, 
having informed us that there were 
some Indians on shore under his com- 
mand employed in jerking beef, and 
that there was a bark at anchor to 
take it on board, we were desirous if 
possible to prevent the Indians from 
escaping, who doubtless would have 
given the Governor of Guam intelli- 
gence of our arrival ; and we therefore 
immediately despatched the pinnace 
to secure the bark, which the ser- 
geant told us was the only embarka- 
tion on the place. And then, about 
eight in the evening, we let go our 
anchor, in twenty-two fathoms, and 
though it was almost calm, and what- 
ever vigour and spirit was to be found 
on board was doubtless exerted to the 
utmost onthispleasingoccasion, when, 
after having kept the sea for some 
months, we were going to take posses- 
sion of this little paradise, yet we were 
full five hours in furling our sails. It 
is true, we were somewhat weakened 
by the crews of the cutter and pin- 
nace which were sent on shore ; but 
it is not less true that, including those 
absent with the boats and some Negro 
and Indian prisoners, all the hands 
we could muster capable of standing 
at a gun amounted to no more than 
seventy-one, most of which number 
too were incapable of duty ; but on the 
greatest emergencies this was all the 
force we could collect, in our present 
enfeebled condition, from the united 
crews of the Centurion, the Glouces- 
ter, and the Trial, which, when we 
departed from England, consisted al- 
together of near 1000 hands. 

When we had furled our sails, the 
remaining part of the night was allow- 
ed to our people for their repose, to 
recover them from the fatigue they 
had undergone ; and in the morning 
a party was sent on shore well-armed, 
of which I myself was one, to make 
ourselves masters of the landing-place, 
as we were not certain what opposition 
might be made by the Indians on the 
island. We landed without difficulty, 
*gr the Indians having perceived, by 



our seizure of the bark the night before, 
that we were enemies, they immedi- 
ately fled into the woody parts of the 
island. We found on shore many huts 
which they had inhabited, and which 
saved us both the time and trouble of 
erecting tents. One of these huts, 
which the Indians made use of for a 
store-house, was very large, being 
twenty yards long and fifteen broad ; 
this we immediately cleared of some 
bales of jerked beef which we found 
in it, and converted it into an hospital 
for our sick, who, as soon as the place 
was ready to receive them, were brought 
on shore, being in all 128. Numbers 
of these were so very helpless, that 
we were obliged to carry them from 
the boats to the hospital upon our 
shoulders, in which humane employ- 
ment (as before at Juan Fernandez) 
the Commodore himself and every one 
of his officers were engaged without 
distinction ; l and, notwithstanding the 
great debility and other dying aspects 
of the greatest part of our sick, it is 
almost incredible how; soon they began 
to feel the salutary influence of the 
land. For though we buried twenty- 
one men on this and the preceding 
day, (yet we did not lose above ten men 
more during our whole two months' 
stay here ; and in general our diseased 
received so much benefit from the 
fruits of the island, particularly the 
fruits of the acid kind, that in a week's 
time there were but few who were not 
so far recovered as to be able to move 
about without help. 

This island [of Tinian] lies in Lati- 
tude 50 8' N., and Longitude from 
Acapulco 114 50' W. Its length is 
about twelve miles, and its breadth 
about half as much ; it extending 
from the SSW. to NNE. The soil 
is everywhere dry and healthy, and 
somewhat sandy, which, being less 
disposed than other soils to a rank 

1 "And indeed," says Thomas, 
"they were almost the only persons 
on board capable of performing this 
service ; the healthiest seamen being 
so much enfeebled, that they had 
but just strength enough left to help 
themselves." 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.Cii.11. 



122 

and over-luxuriant vegetation, occa- 
sions the meadows and the bottoms 
of the woods to be much neater and 
smoother than is customary in hot 
climates. The land rises by easy 
slopes, from the very beach where we 
watered, to the middle of the island ; 
though the general course of its ascent 
is often interrupted and traversed by 
gentle descents and valleys ; and the 
inequalities that are formed by the 
different combinations of these grad- 
ual swellings of the ground are most 
beautifully diversified with large lawns, 
which are covered with a very fine 
trefoil, intermixed with a variety of 
flowers, and are skirted by woods of 
tall and well-spread trees, most of 
them celebrated either for their aspect 
or their fruit. The turf of the lawns 
is quite clean and even, and the bot- 
toms of the woods in many places clear 
of all bushes and underwoods ; and 
the woods themselves usually termi- 
nate on the lawns with a regular out- 
line, not broken nor confused with 
straggling trees, but appearing as 
uniform as if laid out by art. . . . 
I must now observe that all these 
advantages were greatly enhanced by 
the healthiness of its climate, by the 
almost constant breezes which prevail 
there, and by the frequent showers 
which fall, and which, though of a 
very short and almost momentary 
duration, are extremely grateful and 
refreshing, and are perhaps one cause 
of the salubrity of the air and of the 
extraordinary influence it was ob- 
served to have upon us in increasing 
and invigorating our appetites and 
digestion. This was so remarkable, 
that those amongst our officers who 
were at all other times spare and 
temperate eaters, who besides a slight 
breakfast made but one moderate re- 
past a-day, were here in appearance 
transformed into gluttons ; for instead 
of one reasonable flesh-meal, they were 
now scarcely satisfied with three, and 
each of them so prodigious in quan- 
tity as would at another time have 
produced a fever or a surfeit. And 
yet our digestion so well corresponded 
with the keenness ^of our appetites, 
that we were neither disordered nor 



even loaded by this repletion; for 
after having, according to the custom 
of the island, made a large beef break- 
fast, it was not long before we began 
to consider the approach of dinner as 
a very desirable though somewhat 
tardy incident. . . . 

Our first undertaking after our 
arrival was the removal of our sick 
on shore, as has been mentioned. 
Whilst we were thus employed, four 
of the Indians on shore, being part of 
the Spanish sergeant's detachment, 
came and surrendered themselves to 
us ; so that with those we took in the 
proa, we had now eight of them in 
our custody. One of the four who 
submitted undertook to show us the 
most convenient place for killing 
cattle, and two of our men were or- 
dered to attend him on that service ; 
but one of them unwarily trusting 
the Indian with his firelock and pis- 
tol, the Indian escaped with them 
into the woods. His countrymen, 
who remained behind, were apprehen- 
sive of suffering for this perfidy of 
their comrade, and therefore begged 
leave to send one of their own party 
into the country, who they engaged 
should both bring back the arms and 
persuade the whole detachment from 
Guam to"submit to us. The Commo- 
dore granted their request, and one 
of them was despatched on this er- 
rand, who returned next day and 
brought back the firelock and pistol, 
but assured us he had met with them 
in a pathway in the wood, and pro- 
tested that he had not been able to 
meet with any one of his countrymen. 
This report had so little the air of 
truth, that we suspected there was 
some treachery carrying on; and there- 
fore, to prevent any future communi- 
cation amongst them, we immediately 
ordered all the Indians who were in 
our power on board the ship, and did 
not permit them to return any more 
on shore. 

Towards the middle of September 
several of our sick were tolerably re- 
covered b) T their residence on shore ; 
and, on the 12th of September aJl 
those who were so far relieved since 
their arrival as to be capable of doing 



1742.] 



A VIOLENT STORM. 



123 



duty were sent on board the ship. 
And then the Commodore, who was 
himself ill of the scurvy, had a tent 
erected for him on shore, where he 
went with the view of staying a few 
days for the recovery of his health; 
being convinced, by the general ex- 
perience of his people, that no other 
method but living on the land was to 
be trusted to for the removal of this 
dreadful malady. The place where 
his tent was pitched on this occasion, 
was near the well whence we got all 
our water, and was indeed a most 
elegant spot. As the crew on board 
were now reinforced by the recovered 
hands returned from the island, we 
began to send our casks on shore to 
be fitted up, which till now could not 
be done, for the coopers were not well 
enough to work. "We likewise weighed 
our anchors, that we might examine 
our cables, which we suspected had 
by this time received considerable 
damage. And as the new moon was 
now approaching, when we appre- 
hended violent gales, the Commodore, 
for our greater security, ordered that 
part of the cables next to the anchors 
to be armed with the chains of the 
fire-grapnels ; and they were besides 
cackled twenty fathoms from the 
anchors, and seven fathoms from the 
service, with a good rounding of a 
4 ^-incn hawser ; and to all these pre- 
cautions we added that of lowering 
the main and fore yards close down, 
that in case of blowing weather the 
wind might have less power upon the 
ship to make her ride a-straiu. 

Thus effectually prepared, as we 
conceived, we expected the new moon, 
which was the 18th of September; 
and riding safe that and the three 
succeeding days (though the weather 
proved very squally and uncertain), 
we flattered ourselves (for I was then 
on board) that the prudence of our 
measures had secured us from all ac- 
cidents. But on the 22d the wind 
blew from the eastward with such 
fury that we soon despaired of riding 
out the storm ; and therefore we should 
have been extremely glad that the 
Commodore and the rest of our people 
on shore, which were the greatest part 



of our hands, had been on board with 
us, since our only hopes of safety 
seemed to depend on our putting im- 
mediately to sea. But all communi- 
cation with the shore was now effec- 
tually cut off, for there was no possi- 
bility that a boat could live, so that 
we were necessitated to ride it out 
till our cables parted. Indeed it was 
not long before this happened, for the 
small bower parted at five in the 
afternoon, and the ship swung off to 
the best bower ; and as the night 
came on, the violence of the wind still 
increased. But, notwithstanding its 
inexpressible fury, the tide ran with 
so much rapidity as to prevail over 
it ; for the tide, having set to the 
northward in the beginning of the 
storm, turned suddenly to the south- 
ward about six in the evening, and 
forced the ship before it in despite of 
the storm, which blew upon the beam . 
And now the sea broke most surpris- 
ingly all around us, and a large 
tumbling swell threatened to poop 
us ; the long-boat, which was at this 
time moored astern, was on a sudden 
canted so high that it broke the tran- 
som of the Commodore's gallery, whose 
cabin was on the quarter-deck, and 
would doubtless have risen as high as 
the taffrail had it not been for this 
stroke which stove the boat all to 
pieces ; but the poor boat-keeper, 
though extremely bruised, was saved 
almost by miracle. About eight the 
tide slackened, but the wind did not 
abate ; so that at eleven the best 
bower cable, by which alone we rode, 
parted. Our sheet anchor, which was 
the only one we had left, was in- 
stantly cut from the bow ; but before 
it could reach the bottom we were 
driven from twenty-two into thirty- 
five fathoms ; and after we had veered 
away one whole cable, and two -thirds 
of another, we could not find ground 
with sixty fathoms of line. This was 
a plain indication that the anchor lay 
near the edge of the bank, and could 
not hold us [long]. 

In this pressing danger, Mr Sau- 
marez, our first lieutenant, who now 
commanded on board, ordered several 
guns to be fired and lights to be 



124 ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 

of no other vessel 



shown, as a signal to the Commodore 
of our distress ; and in a short time 
after, it being then about 1 o'clock, 
and the night excessively dark, a 
strong gust, attended with rain and 
lightning, drove us off the bank and 
forced us out to sea, leaving behind 
us on the island Mr Anson, with 
many more of our officers, and great 
part of our crew, amounting in the 
whole to 113 persons. Thus were we 
all, both at sea and on shore, reduced 
to the utmost despair by this cata- 
strophe ; those on shore conceiving 
they had no means left them ever to 
leave the island, and we on board 
utterly unprepared to struggle with 
the fury of the seas and winds we 
were now exposed to, and expecting 
each moment to be our last. 



CHAPTER III. 

THE storm which drove the Centurion 
to sea blew with too much turbulence 
to permit either the Commodore or 
any of the people on shore from hear- 
ing the guns which she fired as sig- 
nals of distress, and the frequent 
glare of the lightning had prevented 
the explosions from being observed : 
so that when at daybreak it was per- 
ceived from the shore that the ship 
was missing, there was the utmost 
consternation amongst them. For 
much the greatest part of them im- 
mediately concluded that she was 
lost, and entreated the Commodore 
that the boat might be sent round the 
island to look for the wreck ; and those 
who believed her safe had scarcely 
any expectation that she would ever 
be able to make the island again ; for 
the wind continued to blow strong 
at east, and they knew how poorly 
she was manned and provided for 
struggling with so tempestuous a gale. 
And if the Centurion was lost, or 
should be incapable of returning, 
there appeared in either case no pos- 
sibility of their ever getting off the 
island ; for they were at least 600 
leagues from Macao, which was their 
nearest port ; and they were masters 



[B.m.ciUii. 

than the small 
Spanish bark, of about fifteen tons, 
which they seized at their first arrival, 
and which would riot even hold a 
fourth part of their number. And 
the chance of their being taken off 
the island by the casual arrival of 
any other ship was altogether desper- 
ate, as perhaps no European ship had 
ever anchored here before, and it were 
madness to expect that like incidents 
should send another here in 100 ages 
to come ; so that their desponding 
thoughts could only suggest to them 
the melancholy prospect of spending 
the remainder of their days on this 
island, and bidding adieu for ever to 
their country, their friends, their fami- 
lies, and all their domestic endear- 
ments. Nor was this the worst they 
had to fear : for they had reason to 
expect that the Governor of Guam, 
when he should be informed of their 
situation, might send a force sufficient 
to overpower them and to remove 
them to that island ; and then the 
most favourable treatment they could 
hope for would be to be detained 
prisoners for life ; since, from the 
known policy and cruelty of the 
Spaniards in their distant settle- 
ments, it was rather to be expected 
that the Governor, if he once had 
them in his power, would make their 
want of commissions (all of them being 
on board the Centurion) a pretext for 
treating them as pirates, and for de- 
priving them of their lives with in- 
famy. 1 

In the midst of these gloomy re- 
flections Mr Anson had doubtless his 
share of disquietude, but he always 
kept up his usual composure and 
steadiness ; and having soon projected 



1 As in 1575, John Oxenham, or 
Oxnam, who had accompanied Drake 
in his expedition to the West Indies, 
was put to death by the Governor of 
Panama, with all his companions, 
because he had undertaken a daring 
but ultimately calamitous privateer- 
ing expedition without any commis- 
sion from his sovereign. Oxenham 
was the first Englishman who ever 
navigated the Pacific Ocean, 



1742.] 



THE CENTURION DRIVEN SEAWARD. 



125 



a scheme for extricating himself and 
his men from their present anxious 
situation, he first communicated it 
to some of the most intelligent per- 
sons about him ; and having satisfied 
himself that it was practicable, he 
then endeavoured to animate his 
people to a speedy and vigorous pro- 
secution of it. With this view he 
represented to them how little foun- 
dation there was for their apprehen- 
sions of the Centurion's being lost ; 
that he should have hoped they had 
been all of them better acquainted 
with sea affairs than to give way to 
the impression of so chimerical a 
fright, and that he doubted not but, 
if they would seriously consider what 
such a ship was capable of enduring, 
they would confess that there was not 
the least probability of her having 
perished ; that he was not without 
hopes that she might return in a few 
days, but if she did not, the worst 
that could be supposed was that she 
was driven so far to the leeward of 
the island that she could not regain 
it, and that she would consequently 
be obliged to bear away for Macao on 
the coast of China; that, as it was 
necessary to be prepared against all 
events, he had, in this case, con- 
sidered of a method of carrying them 
off the island, and joining their old 
ship the Centurion again at Macao ; 
that this method was to haul the 
Spanish bark on shore, to saw her 
asunder, and to lengthen her twelve 
feet, which would enlarge her to near 
forty tons burthen, and would enable 
her to carry them all to China ; that 
he had consulted the carpenters, and 
they had agreed that this proposal 
was very feasible, and that nothing 
was wanting to execute it but the 
united resolution and industry of the 
whole body. He added that for his 
own part he would share the fatigue 
and labour Avith them, and would 
expect no more from any man than 
what he, the Commodore himself, 
was ready to submit to ; and con- 
cluded with representing to them the 
importance of saving time, and that, 
in order to be the better prepared for 
all events, it was necessary to set to 



work immediately and to take it for 
granted that the Centurion would not 
be able to put back (which was indeed 
the Commodore's secret opinion) ; 
since, if she did return, they should 
only throw away a few days' applica- 
tion j but, if she did not, their situa- 
tion, and the season of the year, re- 
quired their utmost despatch. 

These remonstrances, though not 
without effect, did not immediately 
operate so powerfully as Mr Anson 
could have wished. He indeed raised 
their spirits by showing them the 
possibility of their getting away, of 
which they had before despaired ; but 
then, from their confidence of this 
resource ; they grew less apprehensive 
of their situation, gave a greater scope 
to their hopes, and flattered themselves 
that the Centurion would return and 
prevent the execution of the Commo- 
dore's scheme, which they could easily 
foresee would be a work of consider- 
able labour. By this means it was 
some days before they were all of them 
heartily engaged in the project ; but 
at last, being in general convinced of 
the impossibility of the ship's return, 
they set themselves zealously to the 
different tasks allotted them, and were 
as industrious and as eager as their 
commander could desire, 1 punctually 
assembling at daybreak at the rendez- 
vous, whence they were distributed to 
their different employments, which 
they followed with unusual vigour till 
night came on. 

And here I must interrupt the 
course of this transaction for a moment 
to relate an incident which for some 
time gave Mr Anson more concern 
than all the preceding disasters. A 
few days after the ship was driven off, 
some of the people on shore cried out, 
"A sail ! " This spread a general joy, 
every one supposing that it was the 
ship returning ; but presently a second 
sail was descried, which quite de- 



1 And the Commodore, Thomas 
says, encouraged their diligence by 
his example ; for being always at work 
by daybreak himself, it was thought a 
disgrace to be idle when their "chief 
was employed. 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. III. On. III. 



126 

stroyed their conjecture, and made it 
difficult to guess what they were. 
The Commodore eagerly turned his 
glass towards them, and saw they 
were two boats ; on which it imme- 
diately occurred to him that the Cen- 
turion was gone to the bottom, and 
that these were her two boats coming 
back with the remains of her people; 
and this sudden and unexpected sug- 
gestion wrought on him so powerfully 
that, to conceal his emotion, he was 
obliged (without speaking to any one) 
instantly to retire to his tent, where 
he passed some bitter moments in the 
firm belief that the ship was lost, and 
that now all his views of further 
distressing the enemy, and of still 
signalising his expedition by some 
important exploit, were at an end. 
But he was soon relieved from these 
disturbing thoughts by discovering 
that the two boats in the offing were 
Indian proas ; and perceiving that 
they stood towards the shore, he di- 
rected every appearance that could 
give them any suspicion to be removed, 
and concealed his people in the adja- 
cent thickets, prepared to secure the 
Indians when they should land. But 
after the proas had stood in within a 
quarter of a mile of the land, they 
suddenly stopped short, and, remain- 
ing there motionless fornear two hours, 
they then made sail again and stood 
to the southward. 

But to return to the projected en- 
largement of the bark. If we examine 
how they were prepared for going 
through with this undertaking, on 
which their safety depended, we shall 
find that, independent of other matters 
which were of as much importance, 
the lengthening of the bark alone was 
attended with great difficulty. In- 
deed, in a proper place, where all the 
necessary materials and tools were to 
be had, the embarrassment would have 
been much less ; but some of these 
tools were to be made, and many of 
the materials were wanting ; and it 
required no small degree of invention 
to supply all these deficiencies. And 
when the hull of the bark should be 
completed, this was but one article ; 
and there were many others of equal 



weight, which were to be well consi- 
dered. These were the rigging it, the 
victualling it, and lastly, the navigat- 
ing it for the space of six or seven 
hundred leagues, through unknown 
seas, where no one of the company had 
ever passed before. In some of these 
particulars such obstacles occurred, 
that without the intervention of very 
extraordinary and unexpected acci- 
dents the possibility of the whole enter- 
prise would have fallen to the ground, 
and their utmost industry and efforts 
must have been fruitless. 1 . . . 

And now, all these obstacles being 
in some degree removed (which were 
always as much as possible concealed 
from the vulgar, 2 that they might not 
grow remiss with the apprehension of 
labouring to no purpose), the work 
proceeded very successfully and vig- 
orously. The necessary ironwork was 
in great forwardness, and the timbers 
and planks (which, though not the 
most exquisite performances of the 
sawyer's art, were yet sufficient for the 
purpose) were all prepared ; so that on 
the 6th of October, being the four- 
teenth day from the departure of the 
ship, they hauled the bark on shore, 
and, onthetwosucceedingdays she was 
sawn asunder (though with great care 
not to cut her planks), and her two 
parts were separated the proper dis- 
tance from each other ; and, the ma- 



1 Both carpenters and smiths were 
here hard at work in the enlargement 
of the bark, Anson himself lending a 
hand in the sawing of trees into plank. 
When the equipment of the vessel wag 
being proceeded with, they made the 
disheartening discovery that they were 
without a compass by which to steer, 
but in about eight days from the de- 
parture of the Centurion, they were 
relieved from their perplexity, by the 
discovery of a small one in a chest be- 
longing to the Spanish bark. 

2 From the general knowledge of 
the company on shore. Thomas says, 
' ' The alacrity with which the business 
was carried on left no room for reflec- 
tion amongthe common sailors, though 
their superiors were not without their 
fears." 



1742.] 



RETURN OF THE CENTURION. 



127 



terials being all ready beforehand, 
they the next day, being the 9th of 
October, went on with great des- 
patch in their proposed enlargement of 
her. And by this time they had all 
their future operations so fairly in 
view, and were so much masters of 
them, that they were able to determine 
when the whole would be finished, 
and had accordingly fixed the 5th of 
November for the day of their putting 
to sea. But their projects and labours 
were now drawing to a speedier and 
happier conclusion ; for on the llth 
of October, in the afternoon, one of, 
the Gloucester's men, being upon a 
hill in the middle of the island, per- 
ceived the Centurion at a distance, and 
running down with his utmost speed 
towards the landing-place, he in the 
way saw some of his comrades, to 
whom he hallooed out with great 
ecstasy, "The ship! The ship!" This 
being heard by Mr Gordon, a lieuten- 
ant of marines, who was convinced by 
the fellow's transport that his report 
was true, Mr Gordon ran towards the 
place where the Commodore and his 
people were at work, and being fresh 
and in breath easily outstripped the 
Gloucester's man, and got before him 
to the Commodore ; who, on hearing 
this happy and unexpected news, 
threw down his axe with which he 
was then at work, and by his joy 
broke through for the first time the 
equable and unvaried character which 
he had hitherto preserved. The others 
who were with him instantly ran down 
to the seaside in a kind of frenzy, 
eager to feast themselves with a sight 
they had so ardently wished for, and 
of which they had now for a consider- 
able time despaired. By five in the 
evening the Centurion was visible in 
the offing to them all ; and, a boat 
being sent off with eighteen men to 
reinforce her, and with fresh meat and 
fruits for the refreshment of her crew, 
she the next afternoon happily came to 
an anchor in the road, where the Com- 
modore immediately came on board 
her, and was received by us with the 
sincerest and heartiest acclamations. 
For from the following short recital 
of the fears, the dangers, and fatigues 



we in the ship underwent during our 
nineteen days' absence from Tinian, it 
maybe easily conceived that a harbour, 
refreshments, repose, and the joining 
of our Commander and shipmates, 
were not less pleasing to UK than our 
return was to them. 



CHAPTER IV. 

Tim Centurion being now once more 
safely arrived at Tinian, to the 
mutual respite of the labours of our 
divided crew, it is high time that the 
reader, after the relation already 
given of the projects and employment 
of those left on shore, should be ap- 
prised of the fatigues and distresses 
to which we, who were driven off to 
sea, were exposed during the long in- 
terval of nineteen days that we were 
absent from the island. 

It has been already mentioned, 
that it was the 22d of September, 
about 1 o'clock in an extreme dark 
night, when by the united violence 
of a prodigious storm, and an exceed- 
ing rapid tide, we were driven from 
our anchors and forced to sea. Our 
condition then was truly deplorable ; 
we were in a leaky ship, with three 
cables in our hawses, to one of which 
hung our only remaining anchor ; we 
had not a gun on board lashed, nor 
a port barred in ; our shrouds were 
loose, and our topmasts unrigged, 
and we had struck our fore and main 
yards close down before the storm 
came on, so that there were no sails we 
could set except our mizzen. In this 
dreadful extremity we could muster no 
more strength on board to navigate 
the ship than 108 hands, several 
Negroes and Indians included. This 
was scarcely the fourth part of our 
complement ; and of these the greater 
number were either boys, or such as, 
being lately recovered from the scurvy, 
had not yet arrived at half their for- 
mer vigour. No sooner were we at 
sea, but by the violence of the storm, 
and the working of the ship, we made 
a great quantity of water through 
our hawse-holes, ports, and scuppers, 



12S 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. IlI.Cn. IV. 



which, added to the constant effect of 
our leak, rendered our pumps alone a 
sufficient employment for us all. But 
though this leakage, by being a short 
time neglected, would inevitably end 
in our destruction, yet we had other 
dangers then impending, which occa- 
sioned this to be regarded as a second- 
ary consideration only. For we all ima- 
gined that we were driving directly on 
the neighbouring island of Aguigan, 
which was about two leagues distant ; 
and as we had lowered our main and 
fore yards close down, we had no sails 
we could set but the mizzen, which 
was altogether insufficient to carry us 
clear of this instant peril. "We there- 
fore immediately applied ourselves to 
work, endeavouring by the utmost of 
our efforts to heave up the main and 
fore yards, in hopes that, if we could 
but be enabled to make use of our 
lower canvas, we might possibly 
weather the island, and thereby save 
ourselves from this impending ship- 
wreck. But after full three hours' 
ineffectual labour the jeers broke, and 
the men being quite jaded, we were 
obliged by mere debility to desist, 
and quietly to expect our fate, which 
we then conceived to be unavoidable. 
For we imagined ourselves by this 
time to be driven just upon the shore, 
and the night was so extremely dark, 
that we expected to discover the 
island no otherwise than by striking 
upon it ; so that the belief of our de- 
struction, and the uncertainty of the 
point of time when it would take 
place, occasioned us to pass several 
hours under the most serious appre- 
hensions, that each succeeding mo- 
ment would send us to the bottom. 
Nor did these continued terrors of in- 
stantly striking and sinking end but 
with the daybreak ; when we with 
great transport perceived that the 
island we had thus dreaded was at a 
considerable distance, and that a 
strong northern current had been the 
cause of our preservation. 

The turbulent \reather which forced 
ns from Tinian did not begin to abate 
till three days after ; and then we 
swayed up the foreyard, and began 
to heave up the mainyard, but the 



jeers broke and killed one of our 
men, and prevented us at that time 
from proceeding. The next day, being 
the 26th of September, was a day of 
most severe fatigue to us all ; for it 
must be remembered that in these 
exigencies no rank or office exempted 
any person from the manual applica- 
tion and bodily labour of a common 
sailor. The business of this day was 
no less than an attempt to heave up 
the sheet-anchor, which we had 
hitherto dragged at our bows with 
two cables an end. This was a work 
of great importance to our future pre- 
servation ; for, not to mention the 
impediment to our navigation, and 
the hazard it would be to our ship if 
we attempted to make sail with the 
anchor in its present situation, we 
had this most interesting considera- 
tion to animate us, that it was the 
only anchor we had left, and, with- 
out securing it, we should be under 
the utmost difficulties and hazards 
whenever we made the land again ; 
and therefore, being all of us fully 
apprised of the consequence of this 
enterprise, we laboured at it with the 
severest application for full twelve 
hours, when we had indeed made a 
considerable progress, having brought 
the anchor in sight. But it then 
growing dark, and we being exces- 
sively fatigued, we were obliged to 
desist, and to leave the work un- 
finished till the next morning, when, 
by the benefit of a night's rest, we 
completed it, and hung the anchor at 
our bow. 

It was the 27th of September, in 
the morning, that is, five days after 
our departure, when we thus secured 
our anchor ; and the same day we got 
up our mainyard. And having now 
conquered in some degree the distress 
and disorder which we were neces- 
sarily involved in at our first driving 
out to sea, and being enabled to make 
use of our canvas, we set our courses, 
and for the first time stood to the 
eastward, in hopes of regaining the 
Island of Tinian, and joining our 
Commodore in a few days ; for we 
were then, by our accounts, only 
forty-seven leagues to the south-west 



1742.] 



EMPLOYMENT AT TINIAN. 



129 



of Tinian, so that on the 1st day of 
October, having then run the dis- 
tance necessary for making the island 
according to our reckoning, we were 
in full expectation of seeing it ; but 
we were unhappily disappointed, and 
were thereby convinced that a cur- 
rent had driven us to the westward. 
And as we could not judge how much 
we might hereby have deviated, and 
consequently how long we might still 
expect to be at sea, we had great 
apprehensions that our stock of 
water might prove deficient ; for we 
were doubtful about the quantity we 
had on board, and found many of our 
casks so decayed as to be half leaked 
out. However, we were delivered from 
our uncertainty the next day, by 
having a sight of the Island of Guam, 
by which we discovered that the 
currents had driven us forty-four 
leagues to the westward of our ac- 
counts. This sight of land having 
satisfied us of our situation, we kept 
plying to the eastward, though with 
excessive labour ; for the wind con- 
tinuing fixed in the eastern board, we 
were obliged to tack often, and our 
crew were so weak, that without the 
assistance of every man on board, it 
was not in our power to put the ship 
about. This severe employment 
lasted till the llth of r k October, being 
the nineteenth day from our depar- 
ture, when, arriving in the offing of 
Tinian, we were reinforced from the 
shore, as has been already mentioned ; 
and on the evening of the same day 
we, to our inexpressible joy, came to 
an anchor in the road, thereby pro- 
curing to our shipmates on shore, 
as well as to ourselves, a cessation 
from the fatigues and apprehensions 
which this disastrous incident had 
given rise to. 



CHAPTER V. 

WHEN the Commodore came on board 
the Centurion on her return to Tinian, 
as already mentioned, he resolved to 
btay no longer at the island than was 
absolutely necessary to complete our 



stock of water, a work which we im- 
mediately set ourselves about. But 
the loss of our long-boat, which was 
staved against our poop when we were 
driven out to sea, put us to great in- 
conveniences in getting our water on 
board, for we were obliged to raft off 
all our casks, and the tide ran so 
strong that, besides the frequent de- 
lays and difficulties it occasioned, we 
more than once lost the whole raft. 
Nor was this our only misfortune, for 
on the 14th of October, being but the 
third day after our arrival, a sudden 
gust of wind brought home our anchor, 
forced us off the bank, and drove the 
ship out to sea a second time. The 
Commodore, it is true, and the prin- 
cipal officers, were now on board ; but 
we had near seventy men on shore 
who had been employed in filling 
our water and procuring provisions. 
These had with them our two cutters, 
but as they were too many for the 
cutters to bring off at once, we sent 
the eighteen-oared barge to assist 
them, and at the same time made a 
signal for all that could to embark. 
The two cutters soon came off to us 
full of men, but forty of the company 
who were employed in killing cattle 
in the wood and in bringing them 
down to the landing-place were left 
behind; and though the eighteen- 
oared barge was left for their convey- 
ance, yet, as the ship soon drove to a 
considerable distance, it was not in 
their power to join us. However, as 
the weather was favourable, and our 
crew was now stronger than when we 
were first driven out, we in about five 
days' time returned again to an anchor 
at Tinian, and relieved those we had 
left behind us from their second fears 
of being deserted by their ship. 

On our arrival wo found that the 
Spanish bark, the old object of their 
hopes, had undergone a new metamor- 
phosis. For those we had left on 
shore began to despair of our return, 
and conceiving that the lengthening 
the bark as formerly proposed was 
both a toilsome and unnecessary mea- 
sure, considering the small number 
they consisted of, they had resolved 
to join her again and to restore her to 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.CH.V. 



130 

her first state ; and in this scheme 
they had made some progress, for they 
had brought the two parts together, 
and would have soon completed her 
had not our coming back put a period 
to their labours and disquietudes. 
These people we had left behind in- 
formed us that, just before we were 
seen in the offing, two proas had stood 
in very near the shore, and had con- 
tinued there for some time ; but on 
the appearance of our ship they 
crowded away, and were presently 
out of sight. And on this occasion I 
must mention an incident which, 
though it happened during the first 
absence of the ship, was then omitted 
to avoid interrupting the course of the 
narration. 

It has been already observed that a 
part of the detachment sent to this 
island under the command of the 
Spanish sergeant lay concealed in the 
woods, and we were the less solicitous 
to find them out as our prisoners all 
assured us that it was impossible for 
them to get off, and consequently that 
it was impossible for them to send any 
intelligence about us to Guam. But 
when the Centurion drove out to sea 
and left the Commodore on shore, he 
one day, attended by some of his 
officers, endeavoured to make the tour 
of the island. In this expedition, 
being on a rising ground, they per- 
ceived in the valley beneath them the 
appearance of a small thicket which, 
by observing more nicely, they found 
had a progressive motion ; this at first 
surprised them, but they soon dis- 
covered that it was no more than 
several large cocoa bushes which were 
dragged along the ground by persons 
concealed beneath them. They im- 
mediately concluded that these were 
some of the sergeant's party (which 
was indeed true), and therefore the 
Commodore and his people made after 
them in hopes of finding out their re- 
treat. The Indians soon perceived 
they were discovered, and hurried 
. away with precipitation ; but Mr An- 
son was so near them that he did not 
lose eight of them till they arrived at 
their cell, which he and his officers 
entering found to be abandoned, there 



being a passage from it down a preci- 
pice contrived for the convenience of 
flight. They found here an old fire- 
lock or two, but no other arms. How- 
ever, there was a great quantity of 
provisions, particularly salted spare- 
ribs of pork, which were excellent ; 
and from what our people saw here, 
they concluded that the extraordinary 
appetite which they had found at this 
island was not confined to themselves 
alone ; for it being about noon, the In- 
dians had laid out a very plentiful re- 
past, considering their numbers, and 
had -their bread-fruit and cocoa-nuts 
prepared ready for eating, and in a man- 
ner which plainly evinced that with 
them too a good meal was neither an 
uncommon nor an unheeded article. 
The Commodore having in vain en- 
deavoured to discover the path by 
which the Indians had escaped, he 
and his officers contented themselves 
with sitting down to the dinner which 
was thus luckily fitted to their present 
appetites ; after which they returned 
back to their old habitation, displeased 
at missing the Indians, as they hoped 
to have engaged them in our service 
if they could have had any conference 
with them. But, notwithstanding 
what our prisoners had asserted, we 
were afterwards assured that these 
Indians were carried off to Guam long 
before we left the place. 

On our coming to an anchor again, 
after our second driving off to sea, we 
laboured indefatigably in getting in 
our water; 1 and having by the 20th 
of October completed it to fifty tuns, 
which we supposed would be sufficient 
for our passage to Macao, we on the 
next day sent one of each mess on 
shore to gather as large a quantity of 
oranges, lemons, cocoa-nuts, and other 

1 "In which service," says the use- 
ful Thomas, "two of our men em- 
ployed in the well unfortunately per- 
ished ; for the sides of the well being 
loose earth, by the carelessness of 
those above in not properly attending 
the filling, the bank gave way by the 
weight of a heavy cask, and both that 
and the bank fell in upon them to- 
gether." 



J742.J 



FROM TINIAN TO MACAO. 



131 



fruits of the island, as they possibly 
could for trie use of themselves and 
messmates when at sea. And these 
purveyors returning 011 board us on 
the evening of the same day, we then 
set fire to the bark and proa, hoisted 
in our boats, and got under sail, 
steering away for the south end of the 
Island of Formosa, and taking our 
leave for the third and last time of the 
Island of Tinian, an island which, 
whether we consider the excellence of 
its productions, the beauty of its ap- 
pearance, the elegance of its woods 
and lawns, the healthiness of its air, 
or the adventures it gave rise to, may 
in all these views be truly styled 
romantic. 1 



CHAPTER VI. 

I HAVE already mentioned that on 
the 21st of October, in the evening, 
we took our leave of the Island of 
Tinian, steering the proper course for 
Macao in China. The eastern mon- 
soon was now, we reckoned, fairly 
settled ; and we had a constant gale 
blowing right upon our stern ; so that 
we generally ran from forty to fifty 
leagues a day. But we had a large 
hollow sea pursuing us, which occa- 
sioned the ship to labour much ; 
whence we received great damage 
in our rigging, which was grown 
very rotten, and our leak was aug- 
mented ; but happily for us our 
people were now in full health, so 
that there were no complaints of 
fatigue, but all went through their 
attendance on the pumps, and every 
other duty of the ship, with ease and 
cheerfulness. 

Having now no other but our sheet- 
anchor left, except our prize anchors, 
which were stowed in the hold, and 
were too light to be depended on, we 

1 A description of the Ladrones, 
and of the wonderfully fast-sailing 
proas of the inhabitants, is omitted. 
Dampier gives an interesting account 
of Guam and of the proas in his Tenth 
Chapter. 



were under great concern how we 
should manage on the coast of China, 
where we were all entire strangers, 
and where we should doubtless be fre- 
quently under the necessity of coming 
to an anchor. Our sheet-anchor being 
obviously much too heavy for a coast- 
ing anchor, it was at length resolved 
to fix two of our largest prize an- 
chors into one stock, and to place 
between their shanks two guns, four- 
pounders, which was accordingly exe- 
cuted, and it was to serve as a best 
bower. And a third prize-anchor 
being in like manner joined with our 
stream-anchor, with guns between 
them, we thereby made a small bower, 
so that, besides our sheet-anchor, we 
had again two others at our bows, 
one of which weighed 3900 and the 
other 2900 pounds. 

The 3d of November, about three 
in the afternoon, we saw an island, 
which at first we imagined to be the 
Island of Botel Tobago Xima, but on 
our nearer approach we found it to be 
much smaller than that is usually re- 
presented ; and about an hour after 
we saw another island five or six miles 
farther to the westward. As no chart, 
nor any journal we had seen, took 
notice of any other island to the east- 
ward of Formosa than Botel Tobago 
Xima ; and as we had no observation 
of our latitude at noon, we were in 
some perplexity, being apprehensive 
that an extraordinary current had 
driven us into the neighbourhood of 
the Bashee Islands ; and therefore 
when night came on we brought to, 
and continued in this posture till the 
next morning, which, proving dark 
and cloudy, for some time prolonged 
our uncertainty ; but it cleared up 
about nine o'clock, when we again 
discerned the two islands above men- 
tioned ; we then pressed forwards to 
the westward, and by eleven got a 
sight of the southern part of the Is- 
land of Formosa. This satisfied us 
that the second island we saw was 
Botel Tobago Xima, and the first a 
small island or rock lying five or six 
miles due east from it, which not 
being mentioned by any of our books 
or charts, was the occasion of our 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. .[B.III.Cii. VI. 



132 

fears. While we were passing by 
these rocks of Vele Rete, there was 
an outcry of fire on the forecastle ; 
this occasioned a general alarm, and 
the whole crew instantly nocked to- 
gether in the utmost confusion, so 
that the officers found it difficult for 
some time to appease the uproar. But 
having at last reduced the people to 
order, it was perceived that the fire 
proceeded from the furnace ; and pull- 
ing down the brick-work, it was ex- 
tinguished with great facility, for it 
had taken its rise from the bricks, 
which, being overheated, had begun 
to communicate the fire to the adja- 
cent weod-work. In the evening we 
were surprised with a view of what 
we at first sight conceived to have 
been breakers, but on a stricter exa- 
mination we found them to be only a 
freat number of fires on the Island of 
'ormosa. These, we imagined, were 
intended by the inhabitants of that 
island as signals for us to touch there ; 
lut that suited not our views, we being 
impatient to reach the port of Macao 
as soon as possible. From Formosa 
*ve steered WNW., and sometimes 
still more northerly, proposing to fall 
in with the coast of China to the east- 
ward of Pedro Blanco ; for the rock so 
called is usually esteemed an excellent 
direction for ships bound to Macao. 
We continued this course till the fol- 
lowing night, and then frequently 
brought to, to try if we were in 
soundings ; but it was the 5th of 
November, at nine in the morning, 
before we struck ground, and then we 
had forty-two fathoms, and a bottom 
of grey sand mixed Avith shells. When 
we had got about twenty miles farther 
WNW., we had thirty-five fathoms, 
and the same bottom, from whence our 
soundings gradually decreased from 
thidy-nve to twenty-five fathoms ; 
but soon after, to our great surprise, 
they jumped back again to thirty 
fathoms. This was an alteration we 
could not very well account for, 1 since 
all the charts laid down regular sound- 

1 In recent maps a sandbank is laid 
down at this part of the Centurion's 
course, 



ings everywhere to the northward of 
Pedro Blanco ; and for this reason we 
kept a very careful look-out, and 
altered our course to NNW., and hav- 
ing run thirty-five miles in this direc- 
tion our soundings again gradually 
diminished to twenty-two fathoms, 
and we at last, about midnight, got 
sight of the mainland of China, bear- 
ing N. by W., four leagues distant. 

We then brought the ship to, with 
her head to the sea, proposing to wait 
for the morning ; and before sunriso 
we were surprised to find ourselves in 
the midst of an incredible number of 
fishing-boats, Avhich seemed to cover 
the surface of the sea as far as the 
eye_ could reach. I may well style 
their number incredible, since I can- 
not believe, upon the lowest estimate, 
that there were so few as 6000 ; most 
of them manned with five hands, and 
none with less than three. Nor was 
this swarm of fishing vessels peculiar 
to this spot ; for, as we ran on to the 
westward, we found them as abundant 
on every part of the coast. We at 
first doubted not but we should pro- 
cure a pilot from them to carry us to 
Macao ; but though many of them 
came close to the ship, and we endea- 
voured to tempt them by showing 
them a number of dollars, a most 
alluring bait for Chinese of all ranks 
and professions, yet we could not en- 
tice them on board us ; though I pre- 
sume the only difficulty was their not 
comprehending what we wanted them 
to do, for we could have no commu- 
nication with them but by signs. 
Indeed we often pronounced the word 
Macao ; but this we had reason to 
suppose they understood in a different 
sense ; for in return they sometimes 
held up fish to us, and we afterwards 
learned that the Chinese name for fish 
is of a somewhat similar sound. But 
what surprised us most was the in- 
attention and want of curiosity which 
we observed in this herd of fishermen. 
A ship like ours had doubtless never 
been in those seas before ; perhaps 
there might not be one amongst all 
the Chinese employed in this fishery 
Avho had ever seen any European 
vessel ; so that we might reasonably 



1742.] 



A FLEET OF CHINESE FISHING-BOATS. 



133 



have expected to have been considered 
by them as a very uncommon and ex- 
traordinary object. But though many 
of their vessels came close to the ship, 
yet they did not appear to be at all 
interested about us, nor did they 
deviate in the least from their course 
to regard us ; which insensibility, 
especially in maritime persons, about 
a matter in their own profession, is 
scarcely to be credited, did not the 
general behaviour of the Chinese in 
other instances furnish us with con- 
tinual proofs of a similar turn of mind. 
It may perhaps be doubted whether 
this cast of temper be the effect of 
nature or education ; but in either 
case it is an incontestible symptom of 
a mean and contemptible disposition, 
and is alone a sufficient confutation 
of the extravagant panegyrics which 
many hypothetical writers have be- 
stowed on the ingenuity and capacity 
of this nation. 1 Not being able to 
procure any information from the 
Chinese fishermen about our proper 
course to Macao, it was necessary for 
us to rely entirely on our own judg- 
ment ; and concluding from our lati- 
tude, which was 22 42' N., and from 
our soundings, which were only seven- 
teen or eighteen fathoms, that we were 
yet to the eastward of Pedro Blanco, 
we stood to the westward. 

It was on the 5th of November at 
midnight when we first made the 
coast of China ; and the next day 
about 2 o'clock, as we were standing 
to the westward within two leagues 
of the coast, and still surrounded by 
fishing-vessels in as great numbers as 
at first, we perceived that a boat ahead 
of us waved a red flag, and blew a 
horn. This we considered as a signal 
made to us either to warn us of some 



1 Mr "Walter evidently was strongly 
prejudiced against the Chinese ; but 
he knew too little about them to trace 
the conduct of the fishermen to what 
was probably its true source the con- 
tempt of the people for everything 
foreign, and the exclusive policy of 
the authorities, under whose vigilant 
control the fishermen obviously plied 
their trade. 



shoal or to inform us that they would 
supply us with a pilot, and in this 
belief we immediately sent our cutter 
to the boat to know their intentions ; 
but we were soon made sensible of 
our mistake, and found that this 
boat was the commodore of the whole 
fishery, and that the signal she had 
made was to order them all to leave 
off fishing and to return in shore, 
which we saw them instantly obey. 
On this disappointment we kept on 
our course, and soon after passed by 
two very small rocks which lay four 
or five miles distant from the shore ; 
but night came on before we got sight 
of Pedro Blanco, and we therefore 
brought to till the morning, when we 
had the satisfaction to discover it. 
It is a rock of a small circumference, 
but of a moderate height, and both in 
shape and colour resembles a sugar- 
loaf, and is about seven or eight miles 
from the shore. "We passed within a 
mile and a half of it, and left it be- 
tween us and the land, still keeping 
on to the westward ; and the next 
day, being the 7th, we were abreast 
of a chain of islands which stretched 
from east to west. These, as we after- 
wards found, were called the Islands 
of Lema ; the) r are rocky and barren, 
and are in all, small and great, fifteen 
or sixteen ; and there are besides a 
great number of other islands between 
them and the mainland of China. 
These islands we left on the starboard 
side, passing within four miles of them, 
where we had twenty-four fathoms 
water. We were still surrounded by 
fishing-boats ; and we once more sent 
the cutter on board one of them to 
endeavour to procure a pilot, but could 
not prevail ; however, one of the 
Chinese directed us by signs to sail 
round the westernmost of the islands 
or rocks of Lema, and then to haul 
up. "We followed this direction, and 
in the evening came to an anchor in 
eighteen fathoms. 

After having continued at anchor 
all night, we on the 9th, at four in 
the morning, sent our cutter to sound 
the channel where we proposed to 
pass; but before the return of the 
cutter a Chinese pilot put on board 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.IILCn. VII. 



134 

us, and told us in broken Portuguese 
he would carry us to Macao for thirty 
dollars. These were immediately paid 
him, and we then weighed and made 
sail ; and soon after several other 
pilots came on board us, who, to re- 
commend themselves, produced certi- 
ficates from the captains of several 
ships they had piloted in; but we 
continued the ship under the man- 
agement of the Chinese who came first 
on board. By this time we learned 
that we were not far distant from 
Macao, and that there were in the 
River of Canton, at the mouth of 
which Macao lies, eleven European 
ships, of which four were English. 
Our pilot carried us between the 
Islands of Bamboo and Cabouce ; but 
the winds hanging in the northern 
board, and the tides often setting 
strongly against iis, we were obliged 
to come frequently to an anchor, so 
that we did not get through between 
the two islands till the 12th of No- 
vember at two in the morning. In 
passing through, our depth of water 
was from twelve to fourteen fathoms, 
and as we still steered onNW. half W. , 
between a number of other islands, 
our soundings underwent little or 
no variation till towards the even- 
ing, when they increased to seventeen 
fathoms, in which depth (the wind 
dying away) we anchored not far from 
the Island of Lantoon, which is the 
largest of all this range of islands. 
At seven in the morning we weighed 
again, and steering WSW. and SW. 
by W., we at 10 o'clock happily an- 
chored in Macao road, in five fathoms 
water, the city of Macao bearing W. 
by N., three leagues distant; the 
peak of Lantoon E. by N., and the 
Grand Ladrone S. by E., each of 
them about five leagues distant. Thus, 
after a fatiguing cruise of above two 
years' continuance, we once more 
arrived in an amicable port in a 
civilised country, where the conveni- 
ences of life were in great plenty; 
where the naval stores, which we 
now extremely wanted, could be in 
some degree procured ; where we ex- 
pected the inexpressible satisfaction 
of receiving letters from our rela- 



tions and friends ; and where our 
countrymen who were lately arrived 
from England would be capable of 
answering the numerous inquiries wo 
were prepared to make both about 
public and private occurrences, and 
to relate to us many particulars which, 
whether of importance or not, would 
be listened to by us with the utmost 
attention, after the long suspension 
of our correspondence with our coun- 
try to which the nature of our under- 
taking had hitherto subjected us. 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE city of Macao, in the road of 
which we came to an anchor on the 1 2th 
of November, is a Portuguese settle- 
ment situated in an island at the mouth 
of the River of Canton. It was for- 
merly a very rich and populous city, 
and capable of defending itself against 
the power of the adjacent Chinese 
Governors, but at present it is much 
fallen from its ancient splendour ; for 
though it is inhabited by Portuguese, 
and has a Governor nominated by 
the King of Portugal, yet it subsists 
merely by the sufferance of the Chinese, 
who can starve the place and dispos- 
sess the Portuguese whenever they 
please. This obliges the Governor of 
Macao to behave with great circum- 
spection, and carefully to avoid every 
circumstance that may give offence to 
the Chinese. The River of Canton, 
at the mouth of which this city lies, 
is the only Chinese port frequented 
by European ships ; and this river is 
indeed a more commodious harbour 
on many accounts than Macao. But 
the peculiar customs of the Chinese, 
only adapted to the entertainment of 
trading ships, and the apprehensions 
of the Commodore lest he should 
embroil the East India Company with 
the Regency of Canton if he should 
insist on being treated upon a differ- 
ent footing than the merchantmen, 
made him resolve to go first to Macao 
before he ventured into the port of 
Canton. Indeed, had not this reason 
prevailed with him, he himself had 



1742.] 



PROCEEDINGS AT MACAO. 



135 



nothing to fear ; for it is certain that 
he might have entered the port of 
Canton, and might have continued 
there as long as he pleased, and after- 
wards have left it again, although 
the whole power of the Chinese em- 
pire had been brought together to 
oppose him. 

The Commodore, not to depart from 
his usual prudence, no sooner came 
to an anchor in Macao road than he 
despatched an officer with his compli- 
ments to the Portuguese Governor of 
Macao, requesting Ms Excellency by 
the same officer to advise him in what 
manner it would be proper to act to 
avoid offending the Chinese, which, 
as there were then four of our ships 
in their power at Canton, was a mat- 
ter worthy of attention. The difficulty 
which the Commodore principally ap- 
prehended related to the duty usually 
paid by all ships in the Eiver of Can- 
ton, according to their tonnage. For 
as men-of-war are exempted in every 
foreign harbour from all manner of 
port charges, the Commodore thought 
it would be derogatory to the honour 
of his country to submit to this duty 
in China; and therefore he desired 
the advice of the Governor of Macao, 
who, being a European, could not be 
ignorant of the privileges claimed by a 
British man-of-war, and consequently 
might be expected to give us the best 
lights for avoiding this perplexity. 
Our boat returned in the evening with 
two officers sent by the Governor, who 
informed the Commodore that it was 
the Governor's opinion that if the 
Centurion ventured into the River of 
Canton, the duty would certainly be 
demanded ; and therefore, if the 
Commodore approved of it, he would 
send him a pilot who should conduct 
us into another safe harbour, called 
the Typa, 1 which was everyway com- 
modious for careening the ship (an 
operation we were resolved to begin 
iipon as soon as possible), and where 
the above-mentioned duty would in 
all probability be never asked for. 

1 The Island of Typa, directly to the 
south of Macao, at the mouth of the 



This proposal the Commodore agreed 
to, and in the morning we weighed 
anchor, and, under the direction of 
the Portuguese pilot, steered for the 
intended harbour. As we entered 
two islands, which form the eastern 
passage to it, we found our soundings 
decreased to three fathoms and a half. 
But the pilot assuring us that this 
was the least depth we should meet 
with, we continued our course, till at 
length the ship stuck fast in the mud, 
with only eighteen feet water abaft ; 
and, the tide of ebb making, the 
water sewed 2 to sixteen feet, but the 
ship remained perfectly upright. We 
then sounded all round us, and finding 
the water deepened to the northward, 
we carried out our small bower with 
two hawsers an-end, and at the re- 
turn of the tide of flood hove the ship 
afloat ; and a small breeze springing 
up at the same instant, we set the 
fore-topsail, and slipping the hawser 
ran into the harbour, where we 
moored in about five fathoms water. 
This harbour of the Typa is formed 
by a number of islands, and is about 
six miles distant from Macao. Here 
we saluted the Castle of Macao with 
eleven guns, which were returned by 
an equal number. 

The next day the Commodore paid 
a visit in person to the Governor, and 
was saluted at his landing by eleven 
guns, which were returned by the 
Centurion. Mr Anson's business in 
this visit was to solicit the Governor 

and 

stores as were 
necessary to refit the ship. The Go- 
vernor seemed really inclined to do 
us all the service he could, and assured 
the Commodore, in a friendly man- 
ner, that he would privately give us 
all the assistance in his power ; but 
he, at the same time, frankly owned 
that he dared not openly furnish us 
with anything we demanded, unless 
we first procured an order for it from 
the Viceroy of Canton ; > for that lie 
neither received provisions for his 
garrison, nor any other necessaries, 



to grant us a supply of provisions, 
to furnish us with such stores as 



2 Sank away from the ship with the 
out-going tide. 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.IlI.Cfl. VII. 



136 

but by permission from the Chinese 
Government ; and as they took care 
only to furnish him from day to day, 
he was indeed no other than their 
vassal, whom they could at all times 
compel to submit to their own terms, 
only by laying an embargo on kis 
provisions. 

On this declaration of the Governor, 
Mr Anson resolved himself to go to 
Canton to procure a license from the 
Viceroy, and he accordingly hired a 
Chinese boat for himself and his at- 
tendants ; but just as he was ready 
to embark, the "hoppo," or Chinese 
custom-house officer at Macao, refused 
to grant a permit to the boat, and or- 
dered the watermen not to proceed at 
their peril. The Commodore at first en- 
deavoured to prevail with the "hoppo" 
to withdraw his injunction and to 
grant a permit ; and the Governor of 
Macao employed his interest with the 
" hoppo " to the same purpose. Mr 
Anson, seeing the officer inflexible, 
told him the next day, that if he 
longer refused to grant the permit, 
he would man and arm his own boats 
to carry him thither; asking the 
" hoppo," at the same time, who he 
imagined would dare to oppose him. 
This threat immediately brought 
about what his entreaties had laboured 
for in vain ; the permit was granted, 
and Mr Anson went to Canton. On 
his arrival there, he consulted with 
the supercargoes and officers of the 
English ships how to procure an 
order from the Viceroy for the neces- 
saries he wanted ; but in this he had 
reason to suppose that the advice 
they gave him, though doubtless well 
intended, was yet not the most pru- 
dent ; for as it is the custom with 
these gentlemen never to apply to 
the supreme magistrate himself, what- 
ever difficulties they labour under, 
but to transact all matters relating to 
the Government by the mediation, of 
the principal Chinese merchants, Mr 
Anson was advised to follow the same 
method upon this occasion ; the Eng- 
lish promising (in which they were 
doubtless sincere) to exert all their 
interest to engage the merchants in 
his favour. And when the Chin we 



merchants were applied to, they readily 
undertook the management of it, and 
promised to answer for its success ; 
but after near a month's delay, and re- 
iterated excuses, during which interval 
they pretended to be often upon the 
point of completing the business, they 
at last (being pressed, and measures 
being taken for delivering a letter to 
the Viceroy) threw off the mask, and 
declared they neither had applied to 
the Viceroy, nor could they, for he 
was too great a man, they said, for 
them to approach on any occasion. 
And not contented Vith having them- 
selves thus grossly deceived the Com- 
modore, they now used all their per- 
suasion with the English at Canton 
to prevent them from intermeddling 
with anything that regarded him, re- 
presenting to them that it would in 
all probability embroil them with the 
Government, and occasion them a 
great deal of unnecessary trouble ; 
which groundless insinuations had, 
indeed, but too much weight with 
those they were applied to. 

It may be difficult to assign a 
reason for this perfidious conduct of 
the Chinese merchants. Interest, 
indeed, is known to exert a boundless 
influence over the inhabitants of that 
empire ; but how their interest could 
be affected in the present case is not 
easy to discover, unless they appre- 
hended that the presence of a ship of 
force might damp their Manilla trade, 
and therefore acted in this manner 
with a view of forcing the Commo- 
dore to Batavia ; but it might be as 
natural in this light to suppose that 
they would have been eager to have 
got him despatched. I therefore 
rather impute their behaviour to the 
unparalleled pusillanimity of the 
nation, and to the awe they are 
under of the Government ; for as 
such a ship as the Centurion, fitted 
for war only, had never been seen in 
those parts before, she was the horror 
of these dastards, and the merchants 
were in some degree terrified even 
with the idea of her, and could not 
think ^ of applying to the Viceroy 
(who is doubtless fond of all oppor- 
tunities of fleecing them) without re- 



1742.] 



DIFFICULTY OF OBTAINING SUPPLIES. 



137 



presenting to themselves the pre- 
tences which a hungry and tyrannical 
magistrate might possibly find for 
censuring their intermeddling in so 
unusual a transaction, in which he 
might pretend the interest of the 
State was immediately concerned. 
However, be this as it may, the Com- 
modore was satisfied that nothing 
was to be done by the interposition 
of the merchants," as it was on his 
pressing them to deliver a letter to the 
Viceroy that they had declared they 
durst not intermeddle, and had con- 
fessed that notwithstanding all their 
pretences of serving him, they had 
not yet taken one step towards it. 
Mr Anson therefore told them that he 
would ^ proceed to Batavia and refit 
his ship there ; but informed them, 
at the same time, that this was im- 
possible to be done unless he was 
supplied with a stock of provisions 
sufficient for his passage. The mer- 
chants on this undertook to procure 
him provisions, but assured him that 
it was what they durst not engage in 
openly, but proposed to manage it in 
a clandestine manner, by putting a 
quantity of bread, flour, and other 
provision on board the English ships, 
which were now ready to sail ; and 
these were to stop at the mouth of 
the Typa, where the Centurion's boats 
were to receive it. This article, which 
the merchants represented as a matter 
of great favour, being settled, the 
Commodore, on the 16th of Decem- 
ber, returned from Canton to the 
ship, seemingly resolved to proceed 
to Batavia to refit as soon as he 
should get his supplies of provision 
on board. 

But Mr Anson (who never intended 
going to Batavia) found, on his re- 
turn to the Centurion, that her main- 
mast was sprung in two places, and 
that the leak was considerably in- 
creased ; so that, upon the whole, he 
was fully satisfied that though he 
should lay in a sufficient stock of pro- 
visions, yet it would be impossible 
for him to put to sea without refitting. 
For, if he left the port with his ship 
in her present condition, she woukV 
be in the utmost danger of founder- 



ing ; and therefore, notwithstanding 
the difficulties he had met with, he re- 
solved at all events to have her hove 
down before he left Macao. He was 
fully convinced, by what he had ob- 
served at Canton, that his great 
caution not to injure the East India 
Company's affairs, and the regard he 
had shown to the advice of their 
officers, had occasioned all his em- 
barrassments. For he now saw clearly, 
that if he had at first carried his ship 
into the River of Canton, and had 
immediately applied himself to the 
mandarins, who are the chief officers 
of State, instead of employing the 
merchants to apply for him, he would 
in all probability have had all his re- 
quests granted, and would have been 
soon despatched. He had already 
lost a month by the wrong measures 
he had been put upon, but he re- 
solved to lose as little more time as 
possible ; and therefore, the 17th of 
December, being the next day after 
his return from Canton, he wrote a 
letter to the Viceroy of that place, 
acquainting him that he was com- 
mander-in-chief of a squadron of his 
Britannic Majesty's ships of war, which 
had been cruising for two years past 
in the South Seas against the Span- 
iards, who were at war with the King 
his master ; that, in his way back to 
England, he had put into the port of 
Macao, having a considerable leak in 
his ship, and being in great want of 
provisions, so that it was impossible 
for him to proceed on his voyage till 
his ship was repaired, and he was 
supplied with the necessaries he 
wanted ; that he had been at Canton 
in hopes of being admitted to a per- 
sonal audience of his Excellency, but, 
being a stranger to the customs of 
the country, he had not been able to 
inform himself what steps were neces- 
sary to be taken to procure such an 
audience ; and therefore was obliged 
to apply to him in this manner, to 
desire his Excellency to give orders 
for his being permitted to employ 
carpenters and proper workmen to 
refit his ship, and to furnish himself 
with provisions and stores, thereby 
j to enable him to pursue his voyage to 



138 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. III. On. VII. 



Great Britain with this monsoon ; 
hoping at the same time that these 
orders would he issued with as little 
delay as possible, lest it might occa- 
sion his loss of the season, and he 
might be prevented from departing 
till the next winter. 

This letter was translated into the 
Chinese language, and the Commodore 
delivered it himself to the "hoppo " 
or chief officer of the Emperor's cus- 
toms at Macao, desiring him to for- 
ward it to the Viceroy of Canton with 
as much expedition as he could. The 
officer at first seemed unwilling to take 
charge of it, and raised many diffi- 
culties about it, so that Mr Anson 
suspected him of being in league with 
the merchants of Canton, who had 
always shown a great apprehension of 
the Commodore's having any imme- 
diate intercourse with the Viceroy or 
mandarins ; and therefore the Com- 
modore, with some resentment, took 
back his letter from the "hoppo," 
and told him he would immediately 
send an officer with it to Canton in 
his own boat, and would give him 
positive orders not to return without 
an answer from the Viceroy. The 
" hoppo " perceiving the Commodore 
to be in earnest, and fearing to be 
called to an account for his refusal, 
begged to be entrusted with the letter, 
and promised to deliver it and to pro- 
cure an answer as soon as possible. 
And now it was soori*seen how justly 
Mr Anson had at last judged of the 
proper manner of dealing with the 
Chinese ; for this letter was written 
but the 17th of December, as has been 
already observed, and on the 19th in 
the morning a mandarin of the first 
rank, who was Governor of the city of 
Janson, together with two mandarins 
of an inferior class, and a great retinue 
of officers and servants, having with 
them eighteen half-galleys decorated 
with a great number of streamers, and 
furnished with music, and full of men, 
came to grapnel ahead of the Centur- 
ion ; whence the mandarin sent a 
message to the Commodore, telling 
him that he (the mandarin) was order- 
ed by the Viceroy of Canton, to ex- 
amine the condition of the ship, and 



desiring the ship's boat might be sent 
to fetch him on board. The Centur- 
ion's boat was immediately despatched, 
and preparations were made for receiv- 
ing him ; for a hundred of the most 
sightly of the crew were uniformly 
dressed in the regimentals of the mar- 
ines, and were drawn up under arms 
on the main-deck, against his arrival. 
When he entered the ship he was 
saluted by the drums, and what other 
military music there was on board ; 
and passing by the new-formed guard, 
he was met by the Commodore on the 
quarter-deck, who conducted him to 
the great cabin. Here the mandarin 
explained his commission, declaring 
that his business was to examine all 
the particulars mentioned in the Com- 
modore's letter to the Viceroy, and to 
confront them with the representation 
that had been given of them ; that he 
was particularly instructed to inspect 
the leak, and had for that purpose 
brought with him two Chinese car- 
penters ; and that, for the greater 
regularity and despatch of his busi- 
ness, he had every head of inquiry 
separately written down on a sheet of 
paper, with a void space opposite to 
it where he was to insert such infor- 
mation and remarks thereon as he 
could procure by his own observation. 
This mandarin appeared to be a 
person of very considerable parts, and 
endowed with more frankness and 
honesty than is to be found in the 
generality of the Chinese. After the 
proper inquiries had been made, par- 
ticularly about the leak, which the 
Chinese carpenters reported to be as 
dangerous as it had been represented, 
and consequently that it was impos- 
sible for the Centurion to proceed to 
sea without being refitted, the man- 
darin expressed himself satisfied with 
the account given in the Commodore's 
letter. And this magistrate, as he 
was more intelligent than any other 
person of his nation that came to our 
knowledge, so likewise was he more 
curious and inquisitive, viewing each 
part of the ship with particular atten- 
tion, and appearing greatly surprised 
at the largeness of the lower-deck 
guns, and at the weight and size of 



1742.1 



INTERVIEW WITH A MANDARIN. 



139 



the shot. The Commodore, observing 
his astonishment, thought this a pro- 
per opportunity to convince the Chinese 
of the prudence of granting him a 
speedy and ample supply of all he 
wanted. With this view he told the 
mandarin, and those who were with 
him, that besides the demands he 
made for a general supply, he had a 
particular complaint against the pro- 
ceedings of the custom-house of Macao ; 
that at his first arrival the Chinese boats 
had brought onboard plenty of greens, 
and variety of fresh provisions for daily 
use, for which they had always been 
paid to their full satisfaction, but that 
the custom-house officers at Macao 
had soon forbid them, by which means 
he was deprived of those refreshments 
which were of the utmost consequence 
to the health of his men after their 
long and sickly voyage ; that as they, 
the mandarins, had informed them- 
selves of his wants, and were eyewit- 
nesses of the force and strength of his 
ship, they might be satisfied it was 
not for want of power to supply him- 
self that he desired the permission of 
the Government to purchase what 
provisions he stood in need of ; that 
they must be convinced that the 
Centurion alone was capable of de- 
stroying the whole navigation of the 
port of Canton, or of any other port 
in China, without running the least 
risk from all the force the Chinese 
could collect ; that it was true this 
was not the manner of proceeding be- 
tween nations in friendship with each 
other, but it was likewise true that 
it was not customary for any nation 
to permit the ships of their friends to 
starve and sink in their ports, when 
those friends had money to supply 
their wants, and only desired liberty 
to lay it out ; that they must confess 
he and his people had hitherto behaved 
with great modesty and reserve, but 
that, as his wants were each day in- 
creasing, hunger would at last prove 
too strong for any restraint, and 
necessity was acknowledged in all 
countries to be superior to every other 
law, and therefore it could not be ex- 
pected that his crew would long con- 
tinue to starve in the midst of that 



plenty to which their eyes were every 
day witnesses. To this the Commo- 
dore added (though perhaps with a 
less serious air) that if by the delay of 
supplying him with fresh provisions 
his men should be reduced to the ne- 
cessity of turning cannibals, and prey- 
ing upon their own species, it was 
easy to be foreseen that, independent 
of their friendship to their comrades, 
they would in point of luxury prefer 
the plump, well-fed Chinese to their 
own emaciated shipmates. The first 
mandarin acquiesced in the justness 
of this reasoning, and told the Com- 
modore that he should that night 
proceed for Canton ; that on his 
arrival a council of mandarins would 
be summoned, of which he himself 
was a member, and that by being 
employed in the present commission 
he was of course the Commodore's 
advocate ; that, as he was fully con- 
vinced of the urgency of Mr Anson's 
necessity, he did not doubt but on hia 
representation the council would be of 
the same opinion, and that all that 
was demanded would be amply and 
speedily granted. And with regard 
to the Commodore's complaint of the 
custom-house of Macao, he undertook 
to rectify that immediately by his own 
authority ; for, desiring a list to be 
given him of the quantity of provision 
necessary for the expense of the ship 
for a day, he wrote a permit under it, 
and delivered it to one of his attend- 
ants, directing him to see that quantity 
sent on board early every morning ; 
and this order from that time forward 
was punctually complied with. 

When this weighty affair was thus 
in some degree regulated, the Com- 
modore invited him and his two at- 
tendant mandarins to dinner, telling 
them at the same time that if his pro- 
vision, either in kind or quantity, 
was not what they might expect, they 
must thank themselves for having 
confined him to so hard an allowance. 
One of his dishes was beef, which 
the Chinese all dislike, though Mr 
Anson was not apprised of it ; this 
seems to be derived from the Indian 
superstition, which for some ages past 
has made a great progress in China. 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.Cn. VII. 



140 

However, his guests did not entirely 
fast ; for the three mandarins com- 
pletely finished the white part of four 
large fowls. But they were extremely 
embarrassed with their knives and 
forks, and were quite incapable of mak- 
ing use of them ; so that, after some 
fruitless attempts to help themselves, 
which were sufficiently awkward, one 
of the attendants was obliged to cut 
their meat in small pieces for them. 
But whatever difficulty they might 
have in complying with the European 
manner of eating, they seemed not to 
be novices in drinking. The Commo- 
dore excused himself in this part of 
the entertainment, under the pretence 
of illness ; but there being another 
gentleman present, of a florid and jov- 
ial complexion, the chief mandarin 
clapped him on the shoulder, and told 
him by the interpreter that certainly 
he could not plead sickness, and there- 
fore insisted on his bearing him com- 
pany ; and that gentleman perceiving 
that after they had despatched four or 
five bottles of Frontiniac, the mandarin 
still continued unruffled, he ordered a 
bottle of citron-water to be brought 
up, which the Chinese seemed much 
to relish ; and this being near finished 
they arose from table, in appearance 
cool and uninfluenced by Avhat they 
had drunk. And the Commodore hav- 
ing, according to custom, made the 
mandarin a present, they all departed 
in the same vessels that brought them. 
After their departure the Commo- 
dore with great impatience expected 
the resolution of the council, and the 
necessary licenses for his refitment. 
For it must be observed, as has already 
appeared from the preceding narra- 
tion, that he could neither purchase 
stores nor necessaries with his money, 
nor did any kind of workmen dare to 
engage themselves to work for him, 
without the permission of the Govern- 
ment first obtained. And in the exe- 
cution of these particular injunctions 
the magistrates never fail of exercising 
great severity, they, notwithstanding 
the fustian eulogiums bestowed upon 
them by the Catholic missionaries 
and their European copiers, being 
composed of the same fragile materials 



with the rest of mankind, and often 
making use of the authority of the 
law not to suppress crimes, but to 
enrich themselves by the pillage of 
those who commit them. For capital 
punishments are rare in China, the 
effeminate genius of the nation, and 
their strong attachment to lucre, dis- 
posing them rather to make use of 
fines ; and hence arises no inconsider- 
able profit to those who compose their 
tribunals. Consequently prohibitions 
of all kinds, particularly such as the 
alluring prospect of great profit may 
often tempt the subject to infringe, 
cannot but be favourite institutions in 
such a government. 

Some time before this, Captain 
Saunders took his passage to England 
on board a Swedish ship, and was 
charged with despatches from the 
Commodore ; and soon after, in the 
month of December, Captain Mitchel, 
Colonel Cracherode, and Mr Tassel, 
one of the agent-victuallers, with his 
nephew, Mr Charles Harriot, em- 
barked on board some of our Com- 
pany's ships ; and I, having obtained 
the Commodore's leave to return home, 
embarked with them. I must ob- 
serve, too (having omitted it before), 
that whilst we lay here at Macao we 
were informed by some of the officers 
of our Indiamen that the Severn and 
Pearl, the two ships of our squadron 
which had separated from us off Cape 
Noir, were safely arri ved at Eio Janeiro, 
on the coast of Brazil ; and it was with 
great joy we received the news, after 
the strong persuasion which had so 
long prevailed amongst us, of their 
having both perished. 

Notwithstanding the favourable 
disposition of the mandarin Gover- 
nor of Janson at his leaving Mr 
Anson, several days were elapsed be- 
fore he had any advice from him, and 
Mr Anson was privately informed 
there were great debates in council 
upon his affair ; partly, perhaps, ow- 
ing to its being so unusual a case, and 
in part to the influence, as I suppose, 
of the intrigues of the French at Can- 
ton. For they had a countryman and 
fast friend residing on the spot, who 
spoke the language very well, and 



1742-3.", 



THE CENTURION REFITTED. 



141 



was not unacquainted with the venal- 
it} 7 of the Government, nor with the 
persons of several of the magistrates, 
and consequently could not be at a 
loss for means of traversing the assist- 
ance desired by Mr Anson. And this 
opposition by the French was not 
merely the effect of national prejudice 
or contrariety of political interests, 
but was in good measure owing to 
their vanity, a motive of much more 
weight with the generality of mankind 
than any attachment to the public 
service of their community. For the 
French pretending their Indiamen to 
be men-of-war, their officers were 
apprehensive that any distinction 
granted to Mr Anson, on account of 
his bearing the King's commission, 
would render them less considerable 
in the eyes of the Chinese, and would 
establish a prepossession at Canton in 
favour of ships of war, by which they, 
as trading vessels, would suffer in their 
importance ; and I wish the affecta- 
tion of endeavouring to pass for men- 
of-war, and the fear of sinking in 
the estimation of the Chinese if the 
Centurion was treated in a different 
manner from themselves, had been 
confined to the officers of the French 
ships only. 1 However, notwithstand- 
ing all these obstacles, it should seem 
that the representation of the Com- 
modore to the mandarins of the facility 
with which he could right himself, if 
justice were denied him, had at last 
its effect ; for on the 6th of January, 
in the morning, the Governor of Jan- 
son, the Commodore's advocate, sent 
down the Viceroy of Canton's warrant 
for the refitment of the Centurion, 
and for supplying her people with all 
they wanted ; and next day a number 
of Chinese smiths and carpenters went 
on board to agree for all the work by 
the great. 2 They demanded at first 
to the amount of 1000 sterling for 
the necessary repairs of the ship, the 
boats, and the masts. This the Com- 
modore seemed to think an unreason- 
able sum, and endeavoured to persuade 



1 Glancing, apparently, at the jeal- 
ousies of the English merchants. 
3 In the lump, or for the whole job. 



them to work by the day ; but that 
proposal they would not hearken to, 
so it was at last agreed that the car- 
penters should have to the amount of 
aboat 600 for their work, and that 
the smiths should be paid for their 
iron work by weight, allowing them 
at the rate of 3 a hundred nearly 
for the small work, and 46s. for the 
large. . . . 

It was the beginning of April before 
they had new -rigged the ship, stowed 
their provisions and water on board, 
and fitted her for the sea ; and before 
this time the Chinese grew very un- 
easy, and extremely desirous that she 
should be gone ; either not knowing, 
or pretending not to believe, that this 
was a point the Commodore was as 
eagerly set on as they could be. On 
the 8d of April two mandarin boats 
came on board from Macao to urge 
his departure ; and this having been 
often done before, though there had 
been no pretence to suspect Mr Anson 
of any affected delaj^s, he at this last 
message answered them in a deter- 
mined tone, desiring them to give him 
no further trouble, for he would go 
when he thought proper and not be- 
fore. On this rebuke the Chinese 
(though it was not in their power to 
compel him to be gone) immediately 
prohibited all provisions from being 
carried on board him, and took such 
care that their injunctions should be 
complied with, that from that time 
forwards nothing could be purchased 
at ft-ny rate whatever. 

On the 6th of April the Centurion 
weighed from the Typa, and warped 
to the southward, and by the 15th 
she was got into Macao road, com- 
pleting h&r water as she passed along, 
so that there remained now very few 
articles more to attend to ; and her 
whole business being finished by the 
19th, she at three in the afternoon of 
that day weighed and made sail, and 
stood to sea. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

Tni2 Commodore was now got to sea, 
with his ship very well refitted, his 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. III. CH. VIII. 



142 

stores replenished, and an additional 
stock of provisions on board. His 
crew, too, was somewhat reinforced ; 
for he had entered twenty-three men 
during his stay at Macao, the greatest 
part of which were Lascars or Indian 
sailors, and some few Dutch. 1 He 
gave out at Macao that he was bound 
to Batavia, and thence to England ; 
and though the western monsoon was 
now set in, when that passage is con- 
sidered as impracticable, yet by the 
confidence he had expressed in the 
strength of his ship and the dexterity 
of his people he had persuaded not only 
his own crew, but the people at Macao 
likewise, that he proposed to try this 
unusual experiment ; so that there 
were many letters put on board him 
by the inhabitants of Canton and 
Macao for their friends at Batavia. 

But his real design was of a very 
different nature ; for he knew that 
instead of one annual ship from Aca- 
pulco to Manilla there would be this 
year, in all probability, two, since by 
being before Acapulco, he had pre- 
vented one of them from putting to 
sea the preceding season. He there- 
fore resolved to cruise for these return- 
ing vessels off Cape Espiritu Santo, 011 
the Island of Samal, which is the 
first land they always make in the 
Philippine Islands. And as June is 
generally the month in which they 
arrive there, he doubted not but he 
should get to his intended station in 
time enough to intercept them. It is 
true, they were said to be stout vessels, 
mounting 44 guns a-piece, and carry- 
ing above 500 hands, and might be 
expected to return in company ; and 
he himself had but 227 hands on 
board, of which near thirty were boys. 



1 Yet the ship's company was de- 
plorably far short of her requirements ; 
for Anson says in his Official Report : 
"The number of men I have now 
borne is 201, amongst which are in- 
cluded all the officers and boys which 
I had out of the Gloucester, Trial 
prize, and Anna pink, so that I have 
not before the mast more than forty- 
five able seamen. " 



But this disproportion of strength did 
not deter him, as he knew his ship tobe 
much better fitted for a sea engagement 
than theirs, and as he had reason to 
expect that his men would exert them- 
selves in the most extraordinary man- 
ner when they had in view the immense 
wealth of these Manilla galleons. 

This project the Commodore had 
resolved on in his own thoughts ever 
since his leaving the coast of Mexico ; 
and the greatest mortification which 
he received from the various delays 
he had met with in China was his ap- 
prehension lest he might be thereby 
so long retarded as to let the galleons 
escape him. Indeed at Macao it was 
incumbent on him to keep these views 
extremely secret, for there being a great 
intercourse and a mutual connection 
of interests between that port and 
Manilla, he had reason to fear that if 
his designs were discovered, intelli- 
gence would be immediately sent to 
Manilla, and measures would be taken 
to prevent the galleons from falling 
into his hands. But being now at 
sea, and entirely clear of the coast, he 
summoned all his people on the quar- 
ter-deck, and informed them of his 
resolution to cruise for the two Man- 
illa ships, of whose wealth they were 
not ignorant. He told them he should 
choose a station where he could not 
fail of meeting with them ; and though 
they were stout ships, and full -manned, 
yet, if his own people behaved with 
their accustomed spirit, he was cer- 
tain he should prove too hard for them 
both, and that one of them at least 
could not fail of becoming his prize. 
He further added, that many ridicul- 
ous talcs had been propagated about 
the strength of the sides of these 
ships, and their being impenetrable 
to cannon-shot ; that these fictions 
had been principally invented to pal- 
liate the cowardice of those who had 
formerly engaged them ; but he hoped 
there were none of those present weak 
enough to give credit to so absurd a 
story. For his own part, he did as- 
sure them upon his word that, when- 
ever he met with them, he would 
fight them so near that they should 
find his bullets, instead of being stop- 



1743.] 



DESIGNS OF THE COMMODORE. 



143 



ped by one of their sides, should go 
through them both. 

This speech of the Commodore's 
was received by his people with great 
joy, for no sooner had he ended than 
they expressed their approbation, ac- 
cording to naval custom, by three 
strenuous cheers, and all declared 
their determination to succeed or per- 
ish whenever the opportunity pre- 
sented itself. And now their hopes, 
which since their departure from the 
coast of Mexico had entirely subsided, 
were again revived ; and they all per- 
suaded themselves that, notwithstand- 
ing the various casualties and disap- 
pointments they had hitherto met 
with, they should yet be repaid the 
price of their fatigues, and should at 
last return home enriched with the 
spoils of the enemy. For, firmly re- 
lying on the assurances of the Com- 
modore that they should certainly 
meet with the vessels, they were all 
of them too sanguine to doubt a mo- 
ment of mastering them ; so that they 
considered themselves as having them 
already in their possession. And this 
confidence was so universally spread 
through the whole ship's company 
that, the Commodore having taken 
some Chinese sheep to sea with him 
for his own provision, and one day 
inquiring of his butcher why for some 
time past he had seen no mutton at 
his table, asking him if all the sheep 
were killed, the butcher very seriously 
replied that there were indeed two 
sheep left ; but that if his honour 
would give him leave, he proposed to 
keep those for the entertainment of 
the General of the galleons. 

When the Centurion left the port 
of Macao she stood for some days to 
the westward ; and on the 1st of May 
they saw part of the Island of For- 
mosa, and, standing thence to the 
southward, they on the 4th of May 
were in the latitude of the Bashee 
Islands, as laid down by Dampier ; 
but they suspected his account of in- 
accuracy, as they found that he had 
been considerably mistaken in the 
latitude of the south end of Formosa. 
For this reason they kept a good look- 
out, and about seven in the evening 



discovered from the -masthead five 
small islands, which were judged to 
be the Bashees, and they had after- 
wards a sight of Botel Tobago Xima. 
By this means they had an opportunity 
of correcting the position of the Bashee 
Islands, which had been hitherto laid 
down twenty-five leagues too far to 
the westward ; for by their observa- 
tions they esteemed the middle of 
these Islands to be in 21 4' N., and to 
bear from Botel Tobago Xima SSE., 
twenty leagues distant, that island 
itself being in 21 57' N. After get- 
ting a sight of the Bashee Islands they 
stood between the S. and SW. for 
Cape Espiritu Santo, and the 20th of 
May at noon they first discovered that 
cape, which, ^ about 4 o'clock, they 
brought to bear SSW., about eleven 
leagues distant. It appeared to be of 
a moderate height, with several round 
hummocks on it. As it was known 
that there were sentinels placed upon 
this cape to make signals to the Aca- 
pulco ship when she first falls in with 
the land, the Commodore immediately 
tacked, and ordered the top-gallant 
sails to be taken in to prevent being 
discovered ; and this being the sta- 
tion in which it was resolved to cruise 
for the galleons, they kept the cape 
between the S. and W., and endea- 
voured to confine themselves between 
the Latitude of 12 50' and 13 5', the 
cape itself lying, by their observations 
in 12 40' N. and 4 of E. Longitude 
from Botel Tobago Xima. 

It was the last of May, by the foreign 
style, 1 when they arrived off this Cape ; 
and the month of June, by the same 
style, being that in which the Manilla 
ships are usually expected, the Cen- 
turion's people were now waiting each 
hour with the utmost impatience for 
the happy crisis which was to balance 
the account of all their past calami- 
ties. As from this time there was but 
small employment for the crew, the 
Commodore ordered them almost every 
day to be exercised in the manage- 
ment of the great guns, and in the 
use of their small arms. This had 
been his practice, more or less, at all 



New Style. 



144 ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. III. Cn. VIII. 



convenient seasons during the whole 
course of his voyage ; and the advan- 
tages which he received from it in his 
engagement with the galleon were an 
ample recompense for all his care and 
attention. [The men] were taught 
the shortest method of loading with 
cartridges, and were constantly trained 
to fire at a mark, which was usually 
hung at the yard-arm, and some little 
reward was given to the most expert. 
The whole crew, by this manage- 
ment, were rendered extremely skilful, 
quick in loading, all of them good 
marksmen, and some of them most 
extraordinary ones ; so that I doubt 
not but, in the use of small arms, 
they were more than a match for 
double their number who had not 
been habituated to the same kind of 
exercise. 

It was the last of May, N.S., as has 
Deen already said, when the Centurion 
arrived off Cape Espiritu Santo, and 
consequently the next day began the 
month in which the galleons were to 
be expected. The Commodore there- 
fore made all necessary preparations 
for receiving them, having hoisted out 
his long-boat, and lashed her along- 
side, that the ship might be ready for 
engaging if they fell in with the gal- 
leons in the night. All this time, 
too, he was very solicitous to keep at 
such a distance from the cape as not 
to be discovered ; but it has been 
since learned that, notwithstanding 
his care, he was seen from the land ; 
and advice of him was sent to Manilla, 
where it was at first disbelieved ; but 
on reiterated intelligence (for it seems 
he was seen more than once) the mer- 
chants were alarmed, and the Governor 
was applied to, who undertook (the 
commerce 1 supplying the necessary 
sums) to fit out a force consisting of 
two ships of 32 guns, one of 20 guns, 
and two sloops of 10 guns each, to 
attack the Centurion on her station. 
And some of these vessels did actually 



1 That is, the commercial com- 
munity collectively; as "trade" is 
used, early in the narrative, to sig- 
nify the collection of merchant ships 
sailing under convoy. 



weigh with this view ; but the prin- 
cipal ship not being ready, and the 
monsoon being against them, the 
commerce and the Government dis- 
agreed, and the enterprise was laid 
aside. This frequent discovery of the 
Centurion from the shore was some- 
what extraordinary, for the pitch of 
the cape is not high, and she usually 
kept from ten to fifteen leagues dis- 
tant ; though once, indeed, by an in- 
draught of the tide as was supposed, 
they found themselves in the morning 
within seven leagues of the land. 

As the month of June advanced, 
the expectancy and impatience of the 
Commodore's people each day increas- 
ed. And I think no better idea can 
be given of their great eagerness on 
this occasion than by copying a few 
paragraphs from the journal of an 
officer who was then on board, as it 
will, I presume, be a more natural 
picture of the full attachment of their 
thoughts to the business of their cruise 
than can be given by any other means. 
The paragraphs I have selected, as 
they occur in order of time, are as 
follow : 

" May 31. Exercising our men at 
their quarters, in great expectation of 
meeting with the galleons very soon ; 
this being the llth of June their 
style. 

"June 3. Keeping in our stations 
and looking out for the galleons. 

"June 5. Begin now to be in 
great expectations, this being the 
middle of June their style. 

"June 11. Begin to grow impa- 
tient at not seeing the galleons. 

"June 13. The wind having blown 
fresh easterly for the forty-eight hours 
past gives us great expectations of see- 
ing the galleons soon. 

"June 15. Cruising on and off, 
and looking out strictly. 

" June 19. This being the last day 
of June, N.S., the galleons, if they 
arrive at all, must appear soon." 

From these samples it is sufficiently 
evident, how completely the treasure 
of the galleons had engrossed their 
imagination, and how anxiously they 
passed the latter part of their cruise, 
when the certainty of the arrival of 



1743.] 



PREPARED TO MEET THE GALLEON. 



145 



these vessels was dwindled down to 
probability only, and that probability 
became each hour more and more 
doubtful. However, on the 20th of 
June, O.S., being just a month from 
their arrival on their station, they 
were relieved from this state of uncer- 
tainty when, at sunrise, they discov- 
ered a sail from the masthead in the 
SE. quarter. 1 On this a general joy 
spread through the whole ship ; for 
they had no doubt but this was one 
of the galleons, and they expected 
soon to see the other. The Commo- 
dore instantly stood towards her, and 
at half-an-hour after seven they were 
near enough to see her from the Cen- 
turion's deck ; at which- time the gal- 
leon fired a gun, and took in her top- 
gallant sails, which was supposed to 
be a signal to her consort to hasten 
her up ; and therefore the Centurion 
fired a gun to leeward, to amuse her. 
The Commodore was surprised to find 
that in all this time the galleon did 
not change her course, but continued 
to bear down upon him ; for he hardly 
believed, what afterwards appeared to 
be the case, that she knew his ship 
to be the Centurion and resolved to 
fight him. 

About noon the Commodore was 
little more than a league distant from 
the galleon, and could fetch her wake, 
so that she could not now escape ; 
and, no second ship appearing, it 
was concluded that she had been 
separated from her consort. Soon 
after, the galleon hauled up her fore- 
sail, and brought to under topsails, 
with her head to the northward, 
hoisting Spanish colours, and having 
the standard of Spain flying at the top- 
gallant-masthead. Mr Anson in the 
meantime had prepared all things for 
an engagement on board the Centur- 
ion, and had taken all possible care 
both for the most effectual exertion of 
his small strength, and for avoiding 
the confusion and tumult too frequent 

1 Thomas commemorates the name 
of Mr Charles Proby, midshipman, 
as having been the first on board to 
discover the long-looked-for treasure- 



in actions of this kind. He picked 
out about thirty of his choicest hands 
and best marksmen, whom he distri- 
buted into his tops, and who fully 
answered his expectation by the sig- 
nal services they performed. As he 
had not hands enough remaining to 
quarter a sufficient number to each 
great gun in the customary manner, 
he therefore, on his lower tier, fixed 
only two men to each gun, who were 
to be solely employed in loading it, 
whilst the rest of his people were 
divided into different gangs of ten or 
twelve men each, who were constantly 
moving about the decks, to run out 
and fire such guns as were loaded. 
By this management he was enabled 
to make use of all his guns ; and, 
instead of firing broadsides with in- 
tervals between them, he kept up a 
constant fire without intermission, 
whence he doubted not to procure 
very signal advantages. For it is 
common with the Spaniards to fall 
down upon the decks when they see 
a broadside preparing, and to continue 
in that posture till it is given ; after 
which they rise again, and, presuming 
the danger to be for some time over, 
work their guns, and fire with great 
briskness, till another broadside is 
ready : but the firing gun by gun, in 
the manner directed by the Commo- 
dore, rendered this practice of theirs 
impossible. 

The Centurion being thus prepared, 
and nearing the galleon apace, there 
happened, a little after noon, several 
squalls of wind and rain, which often 
obscured the galleon from their sight ; 
but whenever it cleared up they ob- 
served her resolutely lying to ; and, 
towards 1 o'clock, the Centurion 
hoisted her broad pendant and colours, 
she being then within gun-shot of the 
enemy. And the Commodore observ- 
ing the Spaniards to have neglected 
clearing their ship till that time, as 
he then saw them throwing overboard 
cattle and lumber, he gave orders to 
fire upon them with the chase guns, 
to embarrass them in their work, and 
prevent them from completing it, 
though his general directions had 
been not to engage till they were 
K 



146 ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. III. CH. VIII. 



within pistol-shot. The galleon re- 
turned the fire with two of her stern- 
chasers ; l and the Centurion getting 
her spritsail-yard fore and aft, that if 
necessary she might be ready for 
boarding, the Spaniards in a bravado 
rigged their spritsail-yard fore and 
aft likewise. Soon after, the Centur- 
ion came abreast of the enemy within 
pistol-shot, keeping to the leeward, 
with a view of preventing them from 
putting before the wind and gaining 
the port of Jalapay, from which they 
were about seven leagues distant. And 
now the engagement began in earnest, 
and for the first half-hour Mr Anson 
overreached the galleon, and lay on 
her bow; where by the great wide- 
ness of his ports he could traverse 
almost all his guns upon the enemy, 
whilst the galleon could only bring a 
part of hers to bear. Immediately on 
the commencement of the action, the 
mats with which the galleon had 
stuffed her netting took fire, and 
burned violently, blazing up half as 
high as the mizzentop. This accident 
(supposed to be caused by the Cen- 
turion's wads) threw the enemy into 
great confusion, and at the same time 
alarmed the Commodore, for he feared 
lest the galleon should be burned, and 
lest he himself too might suffer by 
her driving on board him. But the 
Spaniards at last freed themselves 
from the fire, by cutting away the 
netting, and tumbling the whole mass 
which was in flames into the sea. But 
still the Centurion kept her first ad- 
vantageous position, firing her can- 
non with "great regularity and brisk- 
ness, whilst at the same time the 
galleon's decks lay open to her top- 
men, who having at their first volley 
driven the Spaniards from their tops, 
made prodigious havoc with their 
small arms, killing or wounding every 
officer but one that ever appeared on 
the quarter-deck, and wounding in 
particular the General of the galleon 
himself. And though the Centurion, 
after the first half-hour, lost her origi- 

1 "One of which," Thomas records, 
" carried away one of our fore shrouds 
and our forestay tackle." 



nal situation, and was close alongside 
the galleon, and the enemy continued 
to fire briskly for near an hour longer, 
yet at last the Commodore's grape-shot 
swept their decks so effectually, and 
the number of their slain and wound- 
ed was so considerable, that they began 
to fall into great disorder ; especially 
as the General, who was the life of the 
action, was no longer capabie'of exert 
ing himself. Their embarrassment 
was visible from on board the Com- 
modore. For the ships were so near, 
that some of the Spanish officers were 
seen running about with great assi- 
duity to prevent the desertion of their 
men from their : quarters. But all 
their endeavours were in vain, for 
after having, as a last effort, fired five 
or six guns with more judgment than 
usual, they gave up the contest ; and, 
the galleon's colours being singed off 
the ensign staff in the beginning of the 
engagement, she struck the standard 
at her maintop-gallant masthead, the 
person who was employed to do it 
having been in imminent peril of 
being killed, had not the Commodore, 
who perceived what he was about, 
given express orders to his people to 
desist from firing. 

Thus was the Centurion possessed of 
this rich prize, amounting in value to 
near a million and a half of dollars. 
She was called the Nuestra Sefiora de 
Cabadonga, and was commanded by 
the General Don Jeronimode Montero, 
a Portuguese by birth, and the most 
approved officer for skill and courage 
of any employed in that service. The 
galleon was much larger than the 
Centurion, had 550 men and 36 guns 
mounted for action, besides twenty - 
eight pidreroes in her gunwale, quar- 
ters, and tops, each of which carried 
a four-pound ball. She was very well 
furnished with small arms, and was 
particularly provided against board- 
ing, both by her close quarters, and 
by a strong net-work of two inch rope 
which was laced over her waist and 
was defended by half pikes. 3 Sho 



3 Placed in the manner of chevaux 
dc frise. 



1743.] 



THE GALLEON TAKEN. 



147 



had sixty-seven killed in the action 
and eighty-four wounded ; whilst the 
Centurion had only two killed, and a 
lieutenant and sixteen wounded, all 
of whom but one recovered : of so 
little consequence are the most de- 
structive arms in untutored and un- 
practised hands. 1 

The treasure thus taken by the 
Centurion having been for at least 
eighteen months the great object of 
their hopes, it is impossible to describe 
the transport on board when, after all 
their reiterated disappointments, they 
at last saw their wishes accomplished. 
But their joy was near being suddenly 
damped by a most tremendous inci- 
dent : for no sooner had the galleon 
struck, than one of the lieutenants, 
coming to Mr Anson to congratulate 
him on his prize, whispered him at 
the same time that the Centurion was 
dangerously on fire near the powder- 
room. The Commodore received this 
dreadful news without any apparent 
emotion, and, taking care not to 
alarm his people, gave the necessary 
orders for extinguishing it, which was 
happily done in a short time, though 
its appearance at first was extremely 
terrible. It seems some cartridges 
had been blown up by accident be- 
tween decks, whereby a quantity of 
oakum in the after hatchway, near the 
after powder-room, was set on fire ; 
and the great smother and smoke of 
the oakum occasioned the apprehen- 
sion of a more extended and mischiev- 
ous fire. At the same instant, too, 
the galleon fell on board the Centurion 
on the starboard quarter, but she was 
cleared without doing or receiving any 
considerable damage. 



1 Thomas, who was one of the party 
sent on board as prize crew, says : " I 
had heard we had killed them sixty 
men, and wounded as many more, 
and expected to have seen the horrid 
spectacle of mangled limbs, dead car- 
casses, and decks covered with blood ; 
but no such spectacle appeared ; a 
oned, 
wash 

away the blood, and to throw the 
dead overboard. 



party having been properly station 
during the time of action, to w 



The Commodore made his first 
lieutenant, Mr Saumarez, captain of 
this prize, appointing her a post-ship 
in his Majesty's service. Captain 
Saumarez, before night, sent on board 
the Centurion all the Spanish prison- 
ers but such as were thought the most 
proper to be retained to assist in na- 
vigating the galleon. And now the 
Commodore learned from some of 
these prisoners that the other ship, 
which he had kept in the port of 
Acapulco the preceding year, instead 
of returning in company with the 
present prize, as was expected, had 
set sail from Acapulco alone much 
sooner than usual, and had in all 
t into the port of Man- 



fore the Centurion arrived 
off Cape Espiritu Santo ; so that Mr 
Anson, notwithstanding his present 
success, had great reason to regret 
his loss of time at Macao, which pre- 
vented him from taking two rich 
prizes instead of one. 1 

The Commodore, when the action 
was ended, resolved to make the best 
of his way with his prize for the 
River of Canton, being in the mean- 
time fully employed in securing his 
prisoners, and in removing the trea- 
sure from on board the galleon into 
the Centurion. The last of these 
operations was too important to be 
postponed ; for as the navigation to 
Canton was through seas but little 
known, and where, from the season 
of the year, much bad weather might 
be expected, it was of great conse- 



2 Among the prisoners, we are told 
by Thomas, was "an old gentleman, 
Governor of Guam, who was going to 
Manilla to renew his commission, and 
who had scarce mounted the Cen- 
turion's side before he was received 
with open arms by Mr Crooden, cap- 
tain of marines, who thirty-six years 
before, at the battle of Almanza, had 
been his prisoner, and honourably 
used by him. These two renewed 
their old acquaintance, and Captain 
Crooden had a long-wished-for oppor- 
tunity of returning the favours he 
had formerly received, and which he 
gratefully remembered." 



148 ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B. III. da. VIII. 



quence that the treasure should be 
sent on board the Centurion ; which 
ship, by the presence of the Com- 
mander-in-chief, the greater number 
of her hands, and her other advan- 
tages, was doubtless much safer against 
all the casualties of winds and seas 
than the galleon. And the securing 
the prisoners was a matter of still 
more consequence, as not only the 
possession of the treasure, but the 
lives of the captors depended thereon. 
This was indeed an article which gave 
the Commodore much trouble and 
disquietude, for they were above 
double the number of his own people ; 
and some of them, when they were 
brought on board the Centurion, and 
had observed how slenderly she was 
manned, and the large proportion 
which the striplings bore to the rest, 
could not help expressing themselves 
with great indignation to be thus 
beaten by a handful of boys. The 
method which was taken to hinder 
them from rising was by placing all 
but the officers and the wounded in 
the hold, where, to give them as much 
air as possible, two hatchways were 
left open ; but then (to avoid all 
danger whilst the Centurion's people 
should be employed upon the deck) 
there was a square partition of thick 
planks, made in the shape of a funnel, 
which inclosed each hatchway on the 
lower deck, and reached to that di- 
rectly over it on the upper deck. 
These funnels served to communicate 
the air to the hold better than could 
have been done without them, and, 
at the same time, added greatly to 
the security of the ship ; for they 
being seven or eight feet high, it 
would have been extremely difficult 
for the Spaniards to have clambered 
up ; and, still to augment that diffi- 
culty, four swivel-guns loaded with 
musket-bullets were planted at the 
mouth of each funnel, and a sen- 
tinel with lighted match constantly 
attended, prepared to fire into the 
hold amongst them in case of any 
disturbance. Their officers, who 
amounted to seventeen or eighteen, 
were all lodged in the first lieuten- 
cabin, under a constant guard of 



six men ; and the General, as he was 
wounded, lay in the Commodore's 
cabin with a sentinel always with 
him ; and they were all informed 
that any violence or disturbance 
would be punished with instant 
death. And that the Centurion's 
people might be at all times prepared, 
if notwithstanding these regulations 
any tumult should arise, the small 
arms were constantly kept loaded in 
a proper place, whilst all the men 
went armed with cutlasses and pis- 
tols ; and no officer ever pulled off 
his clothes, and when he slept had 
always his arms lying ready by 
him. 

These measures were obviously ne- 
cessary, considering the hazards to 
which the Commodore and his people 
would have been exposed had they 
been less careful. Indeed the suffer- 
ings of the poor prisoners, though 
impossible to be alleviated, were much 
to be commiserated ; for the weather 
was extremely hot, the stench of the 
hold loathsome beyond all conception, 
and their allowance of water but just 
sufficient to keep them alive, it not 
being practicable to spare them more 
than at the rate of a pint a-day for 
each, the crew themselves having 
only an allowance of a pint and a 
half. All this considered, it was 
wonderful that not a man of them 
died during their long confinement, 
except three of the wounded, who 
died the same night they were taken ; 
though it must be confessed that the 
greatest part of them were strangely 
metamorphosed by the heat of the 
hold. For when they were first taken 
they w r ere sightly, robust fellows ; but 
when, after above a month's im- 
prisonment, they were discharged in 
the River of Canton, they were re- 
duced to mere skeletons, and their 
air and looks corresponded much more 
to the conception formed of ghosts 
and spectres than to the figure and 
appearance of real men. 

Thus employed in securing the 
treasure and the prisoners, the Com- 
modore, as has been said, stood for 
the Rivor of Canton, and on the 30th 
of June, at six in the evening, got 



1743.] TREASURE FOUND 

sight of Cape Delangano, 1 which then 
bore W. ten leagues distant ; and the 
next day he made the Bashee Islands, 
and the wind being so far to the 
northward that it was difficult to 
weather them, it was resolved to 
stand through between Grafton and 
Monmouth Islands, where the passage 
seemed to be clear ; but in getting 
through, the sea had a very dangerous 
aspect, for it rippled and foamed as if 
it had been full of breakers, which 
was still more terrible, as it was then 
night. But the ships got through 
very safe (the prize always keeping 
a-head), and it was found that the 
appearance which had alarmed them 
had been occasioned only by a strong 
tide. I must here observe, that though 
the Bashee Islands are usually reck- 
oned to be no more than five, yet 
there are many more lying about 
them to the westward, which, as the 
channels amongst them are not at all 
known, makes it advisable for ships 
rather to pass to the northward or 
southward than through them; and 
indeed the Commodore proposed to 
have gone to the northward, between 
them and Formosa, had it been pos- 
sible for him to have weathered them. 
From hence the Centurion steering 
the proper course for the River of 
Canton, she, on the 8th of July, dis- 
covered the Island of Supata, the 
westernmost of the Lema Islands. 
This island they made to be 139 
leagues distant from Grafton Island, 
and to bear from it N. 82, 37 W. ; 
and on the llth, having taken on 
board two Chinese pilots, one for the 
Centurion and the other for the prize, 
they came to an anchor off the city of 
Macao. 

By this time the particulars of the 
cargo of the galleon were well ascer- 
tained, and it was found that she had 
on board 1,313,843 pieces of eight, 
and 35,682 oz. of virgin silver, be- 
sides some cochineal and a few other 
commodities, which however were but 
of small account in comparison of the 

1 Cape Engano, near the north- 
western extremity of the Island of 
Luconia or Luzon. 



THE GALLEON. 



149 



specie. And this being the Commo- 
dore's last prize, it hence appears 
that all the treasure taken by the 
Centurion was not much short of 
400,000, independent of the ships 
and merchandise which she either 
burnt or destroyed, and which by 
the most reasonable estimation could 
not amount to so little as 600,000 
more; so that the whole loss of the 
enemy by our squadron did doubtless 
exceed a million sterling. To which 
if there be added the great expense of 
the Court of Spain in fitting out 
Pizarro, and in paying the additional 
charges in America incurred on our 
account, together with the loss of 
their men-of-war, the total of all these 
articles will be a most exorbitant sum, 
and is the strongest conviction of the 
utility of this expedition, which, with 
all its numerous disadvantages, did 
yet prove so extremely prejudicial to 
the enemy. . . . 



CHAPTER IX. 

THE Commodore, having taken pilots 
on board, proceeded with his prize for 
the River of Canton, and on the 14th 
of July came to an anchor short of 
the Bocca Tigris, which is a narrow 
passage forming the mouth of that 
river. This entrance he proposed to 
stand through the next day, and to 
run up as far as Tiger Island, which 
is a very safe road, secured from all 
winds. But whilst the Centurion and 
her prize were thus at anchor, a boat 
with an officer came off from the man- 
darin commanding the forts at Bocca 
Tigris, to examine what the ships were 
arid whence they came. Mr Anson 
informed the officer that his ship was 
a ship of war belonging to the King 
of Great Britain, and that the other 
in company with him was a prize he 
had taken ; that he was going into 
Canton River to shelter himself against 
the hurricanes which were then coming 
on ; and that as soon as the monsoon 
shifted he should proceed for England. 
The officer then desired an account 
of what men, guns, and ammunition 



150 



ANSON'S VOYAGE BOUND THE WORLD. [B. III. On. IX. 



were on board, a list of all which, lie 
said, was to be sent to the Government 
of Canton. But when these articles 
were repeated to him, particularly 
when he was told that there were in 
the Centurion 400 firelocks and be- 
tween 300 and 400 barrels of powder, 
he shrugged up his shoulders and 
seemed to be terrified with the bare 
recital, saying that no ships ever came 
into Canton River armed in that man- 
ner ; adding, that he durst not set 
down the whole of this force, lest it 
should too much alarm the Regency. 
After he had finished his inquiries, 
and was preparing to depart, he de- 
sired to leave the two custom-house 
officers behind him ; on which the 
Commodore told him, that though as 
a man-of-war he was prohibited from 
trading, and had nothing to do with 
customs or duties of any kind, yet for 
the satisfaction of the Chinese he 
would permit two of their people to 
be left on board, who might them- 
selves be witnesses how punctually he 
should comply with his instructions. 
The officer seemed amazed when Mr 
Anson mentioned being exempted 
from all duties, and told him that the 
Emperor's duty must bo paid by all 
ships that came into his ports. And 
it is supposed that on this occasion 
private directions were given by him 
to the Chinese pilot not to carry the 
Commodore through the Bocca Tigris, 
which makes it necessary more parti- 
cularly to describe that entrance. . . . 
On the 16th of July the Commodore 
sent his second lieutenant to Canton 
with a letter to the Viceroy, informing 
him of the reason of the Centurion's 
putting into that port ; and that the 
Commodore himself soon proposed to 
repair to Canton to pay a visit to the 
Viceroy. The lieutenant was very 
civilly received, and was promised 
that an answer should be sent to the 
Commodore the next day. In the 
meantime Mr Anson gave leave to 
several of the officers of the galleon to 
go to Canton, they engaging their 
parole to return in two days. When 
these prisoners got to Canton, the 
Regency sent for them and examined 
them, inquiring particularly by what 



means they had fallen into Mr Anson's 
power. And on this occasion the pri- 
soners were honest enough to declare 
that, as the Kings of Great Britain 
and Spain were at war, they had pro- 
posed to themselves the taking of the 
Centurion, and had bore down upon 
her with that view, but that the event 
had been contrary to their hopes ; 
however, they acknowledged that they 
had been treated by the Commodore 
much better than they believed they 
should have treated him had he fallen 
into their hands. This confession 
from an enemy had great weight with 
the Chinese, who till then, though 
they had revered the Commodore's 
power, had yet suspected his morals, 
and had considered him rather as a 
lawless freebooter than as one commis- 
sioned by the State for the revenge of 
public injuries. But they now changed 
their opinion, and regarded him as a 
more important person, to -which per- 
haps the vast treasure of his prize 
might not a little contribute, the ac- 
quisition of wealth being a matter 
greatly adapted to the estimation and 
reverence of the Chinese nation. 

In this examination of the Spanish 
prisoners, thougli the Chinese had no 
reason in the main to doubt the ac- 
count which was given them, yet there 
were two circumstances which appear- 
ed to them so singular as to deserve a 
more ample explanation. One of them 
was, the great disproportion of men 
between the Centurion and the gal- 
leon ; the other was the humanity 
with which the people of the galleon 
were treated after they were taken. 
The mandarins therefore asked the 
Spaniards how they came to be over- 
powered by so inferior a force, and 
how it happened, since the two na- 
tions were at war, that they were not 
put to death when they came into the 
hands of the English. To the first of 
these inquiries the Spaniards replied, 
that though they had more hands than 
the Centurion, yet she, being intended 
solely for war, had a great superiority 
in the size of her guns, and in many 
other articles, over the galleon, which 
was a vessel fitted out principally for 
traffic. And as to the second question, 



1743.] 



SPANISH PRISONERS SENT ASHORE. 



151 



they told the Chinese that amongst 
the nations of Europe it was not cus- 
tomary to put to death those who sub- 
mitted, though they readily owned 
that the Commodore, from the natural 
bias of his temper, had treated both 
them, and their countrymen who had 
formerly been in his power, with very 
unusual courtesy, much beyond what 
they could have expected, or than was 
required by the customs established 
between nations at war with each 
other. These replies fully satisfied 
the Chinese, and at the same time 
wrought very powerfully in the Com- 
modore's favour. 

On the 20th of July, in the morn- 
ing, three mandarins, with a great 
number of boats and a vast retinue, 
came on board the Centurion, and de- 
livered to the Commodore the Viceroy 
of Canton's order for a daily supply of 
provisions, and for pilots to carry the 
ships up the river as far as the second 
bar j and at the same time they de- 
livered him a message from the Vice- 
roy in answer to the letter sent to 
Canton. The substance of the mes- 
sage was, that the Viceroy desired to 
be excused from receiving the Commo- 
dore's visit during the then excessive 
hot weather, because the assembling 
the mandarins and soldiers necessary 
to that ceremony would prove ex- 
tremely inconvenient and fatiguing ; 
but that in September, when the 
weather would be more temperate, he 
should be glad to see both the Com- 
modore himself and the English cap- 
tain of the other ship that was with 
him. As Mr Anson knew that an ex- 
press had been despatched to the 
Court at Pekin with an account of the 
Centurion and her prize being arrived 
in the River of Canton, he had no 
doubt but the principal motive for 
putting off this visit was, that the 
Regency at Canton might gain time to 
receive the Emperor's instructions 
about their behaviour on this unusual 
affair. 

When the mandarins had delivered 
their message, they began to talk to 
the Commodore about the duties to 
be paid by his ships ; but he imme- 
diately told them that he would 



never submit to any demand of that 
kind; that as he neither brought 
any merchandise thither, nor in- 
tended to carry any away, he could 
not be reasonably deemed to be with- 
in the meaning of the Emperor's 
orders, which were doubtless calcu- 
lated for trading vessels only ; adding 
that no duties were ever demanded of 
men-of-war by nations accustomed to 
their reception, and that his master's 
orders expressly forbade him from 
paying any acknowledgment for his 
ships anchoring in any port what- 
ever. The mandarins being thus cut 
short on the subject of the duty, they 
said they had another matter to men- 
tion, which was the only remaining 
one they had in charge ; this was a 
request to the Commodore, that he 
would release the prisoners he had 
taken on board the galleon ; for that 
the Viceroy of Canton apprehended 
the Emperor, his master, might be 
displeased if he should be informed 
that persons who were his allies, and 
carried on a great commerce with his 
subjects, were under confinement in 
his dominions. Mr Anson was him- 
self extremely desirous to get rid of 
the Spaniards, having on his first 
arrival sent about 100 of them to 
Macao, and those who remained, 
which were near 400 more, were on 
many accounts a great encumbrance 
to him. However, to enhance the 
favour, he at first raised some diffi- 
culties ; but, permitting himself to 
be prevailed on, he at last told the 
mandarins, that to show his readiness 
to oblige the Viceroy, he would re- 
lease the prisoners, whenever they, 
the Chinese, would send boats to 
fetch them off. This matter being 
adjusted, the mandarins departed ; 
and on the 28th of July, two Chinese 
junks were sent from Canton to take 
on board the prisoners, and to carry 
them to Macao. And the Commodore, 
agreeable to his promise, dismissed 
them all, and ordered his purser to 
send with them eight days' provision 
for their subsistence during their 
sailing down the river. 1 This being 

1 Thomas, who was one of the prize 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.CH.1X. 



152 

despatched; the Centurion and her 
prize came to her moorings above the 
second bar, where they proposed to 
continue till the monsoon shifted. 

Though the ships, in consequence 
of the Viceroy's permit, found no 
difficulty in purchasing provisions 
for their daily consumption, yet it 
was impossible for the Commodore to 
proceed to England without laying in 
a large quantity both of provisions 



crew, tells a somewhat ugly story of 
the Spanish "General" now set at 
liberty. He was not only allowed the 
use of his own cabin till he should be 
recovered of his wound, but obtained 
the services of an English surgeon ; 
Anson, at the same time, sending an 
officer to demand his commission. 
The General made the officer look in 
a box in the locker of his private 
cabin, where he said the commission 
would be found, along with a sword- 
belt studded with diamonds of great 
value ; and when the box was found 
empty, the Spaniard averred that 
some of the English, rummaging in 
his cabin, must have stolen and 
secreted the contents. Despite the 
non-production of his commission, 
the General received the most humane 
and liberal treatment, being allowed at 
his departure to carry off several chests 
and trunks unsearched which he claim- 
ed as his private property, though he 
had many valuable ventures concealed 
which should have been given up as 
fair and lawful prize. Persisting to 
the last in the theft of his commission 
and sword-belt, he brought down on 
the prize crew a heavy and undeserved 
punishment ; for Anson, on their 
arrival in the Canton River, abso- 
lutely prohibited their intercourse 
with the natives, that the thief might 
have no chance of parting with his 
booty undiscovered. Thomas, how- 
ever, was afterwards told at Macao by 
tin Irish priest, that the General had 
both his commission and his sword- 
belt ; that he had made no secret of 
his fraud ; and that he had offered the 
diamonds which were made up in the 
belt only by way of a blind among 
the merchants at Macao for sale. 



and stores for his use during the 
voyage. -The procuring this supply 
was attended with 'much embarrass- 
ment ; for there were people at Can- 
ton who had undertaken to furnish 
him with biscuit and whatever else 
he wanted ; and his linguist, 1 towards 
the middle of September, had assured 
him from day to day that all was 
ready, and would be sent on board 
him immediately. But a fortnight 
being elapsed, and nothing being 
brought, the Commodore sent to Can- 
ton to inquire more particularly into 
the reasons of this disappointment, 
and he had soon the vexation to be 
informed that the whole was an illu- 
sion ; that no order had been pro- 
cured from the Viceroy to furnish 
him with his sea stores, as had been 
pretended ; that there was no biscuit 
baked, nor any one of the articles in 
readiness which had been promised 
him ; nor did it appear that the con- 
tractors had taken the least step to 
comply with their agreement. This 
was most disagreeable news, and 
made it suspected that the furnishing 
the Centurion for her return to Great 
Britain might prove a more trouble- 
some matter than had been hitherto 
imagined ; especially, too, as the 
month of September was nearly 
elapsed without Mr Anson's having 
received any message from the Vice- 
roy of Canton. 

And here, perhaps, it might be ex- 
pected that some satisfactory account 
should be given of the motives' of the 
Chinese for this faithless procedure. 
But as I have already in a former 
Chapter 2 made some kind of conjec- 
tures about a similar event, I shall 
not repeat them again in this place, 
but shall observe that, after all, it 
may, perhaps, be impossible for a 
European, ignorant of the customs 
and manners of that nation, to be 
fully apprised of the real incitements 
to this behaviour. 3 Indeed, thus much 
may undoubtedly be asserted, that in ar- 



1 Interpreter. 

2 Chapter VII. of this Book, page 
136. 

3 Thomas says: "We could no 



1743.] 



CHINESE TRICKS IN TRADE. 



tifice, falsehood, and an attachment to 
all kinds of lucre, many of the Chinese 
are difficult to be paralleled by any other 
people ; but then the combination of 
these talents, and the manner in 
which they are applied in particular 
emergencies, are often beyond the 
reach of a foreigner's penetration ; so 
that though it may be falsely con- 
cluded that the Chinese had some in- 
terest in thus amusing the Commo- 
dore, yet it may not be easy to assign 
the individual views by which they 
were influenced. . . . 

It were endless to recount all the 
artifices, extortions, and frauds which 
were practised on the Commodore and 
his people by this interested race. 
The method of buying all things in' 
China being by weight, the tricks 
made use of by the Chinese to increase 
the weight of the pro vision they sold to 
the Centurion were almost incredible. 
One time, a large quantity of fowls and 
ducks being bought for the ships' use, 
the greatest part of them presently died. 
This alarmed the people on board with 
the apprehension that they had been 
killed by poison ; but on examination 
it appeared that it was only owing 
to their being crammed with stones 
and gravel to increase their weight, 
the q\iantity thus forced into most of 
the ducks being found to amount to 
ten ounces in each. The hogs, too, 
which were bought ready killed of 
the. Chinese butchers, had water in- 
jected into them for the same pur- 
pose, so that a carcase hung up all 
night for the water to drain from it, 
lias lost above a stone of its weight ; 
and when, to avoid this cheat, the 
Logs were bought alive, it was found 
that the Chinese gave them salt to 
increase [their thirst, and having by 
this means excited them to drink 
great quantities of water, they then 
took measures to prevent them from 

otherwise account for this faithless 
procedure of the Chinese, than by 
supposing they meant to starve us 
into a compliance with their accus- 
tomed demands for port charges, 
with which the Commodore was de- 
termined never to acquiesce." 



discharging it again by urine, and 
sold the tortured animal in this in- 
flated state. When the Commodore 
first put to sea from Macao, they 
practised an artifice of another kind ; 
for as the Chinese never object to the 
eating of any food that dies of itself, 
they took care, by some secret prac- 
tices, that great part of his live sea- 
store should die in a short time after 
it was put on board, hoping to make 
a second profit of the dead carcases, 
which they expected would be thrown 
overboard ; and two-thirds of the 
hogs dying before the Centurion was 
out of sight of land, many of the 
Chinese boats followed her only to 
pick up the carrion. These instances 
may serve as a specimen of the manners 
of this celebrated nation, which is 
often recommended to the rest of the 
world as a pattern of all kinds of laud- 
able qualities. 

The Commodore, towards the end 
of September, having found out (as 
has been said) that those who had 
contracted to supply him with sea- 
provisions and stores had deceived 
him, and that the Viceroy had not 
sent to him according to his promise, 
he saw it would be impossible for him 
to surmount the embarrassment he 
was under without going himself to 
Canton and visiting the Viceroj''. 
And therefore, on the 27th of Sep- 
tember, he sent a message to the man- 
darin who attended the Centurion, to 
inform him that he, the Commodore, 
intended on the 1st of October to pro- 
ceed in his boat to Canton ; adding, 
that the day after he got there he 
should notify his arrival to the Vice- 
roy, and should desire him to fix a 
time for his audience ; to which the 
mandarin returned no other answer 
than that he would acquaint the 
Viceroy with the Commodore's inten- 
tions. In the meantime all things 
were prepared for this expedition, and 
the boat's crew in particular, which 
Mr Anson proposed to take with him, 
were clothed in a uniform dress, re- 
sembling that of the watermen on 
the Thames. They were in number 
eighteen and a coxswain ; they had 
scarlet jackets and blue silk waist- 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.CH.IX. 



154 

coats, the whole trimmed with silver 
buttons, and with silver badges on 
their jackets and caps. As it was appre- 
hended, and even asserted, that the pay- 
ment of the customary duties for the 
Centurion and her prize would be de- 
manded by the Regency of Canton, and 
would be insisted on previous to the 
granting a permission for victualling 
the ship for her future voyage, the Com- 
modore, who was resolved never to es- 
tablish so dishonourable a precedent, 
took all possible precautions to prevent 
the Chinese from facilitating the suc- 
cess of their unreasonable pretensions 
by having him in their power at Can- 
ton. And therefore, for the security 
of his ship and the great treasure 
on board her, he appointed his first 
lieutenant, Mr Brett, 1 to be captain 
of the Centurion under him, giving 
him proper instructions for his con- 
duct ; directing him particularly, if 
he, the Commodore, should be de- 
tained at Canton on account of the 
duties in dispute, to take out the men 
from the Centurion's prize and to 
destroy her ; and then to proceed 
down the river through the Bocca 
Tigris, with the Centurion alone, and 
to remain without that entrance till 
he received further orders from Mr 
Anson. 

These necessary steps being taken, 
which were not unknown to the 
Chinese, it should seem as if their 
deliberations were in some sort em- 
barrassed thereby. It is reasonable 
to imagine that they were in general 
very desirous of getting the duties to 
be paid them ; not perhaps solely in 
consideration of the amount of those 
dues, but to keep up their reputation 
for address and subtlety, and to avoid 
the imputation of receding from claims 
on which they had already so fre- 
quently insisted. However, as they 
now foresaw that they had no other 
method of succeeding than by vio- 
lence, and that even against this the 
Commodore was prepared, they were 
at last disposed, I conceive, to let 
the affair drop, rather than entangle 
themselves in a hostile measure which 

1 Afterwards Sir Percy Brett. 



they found would only expose them 
to the risk of having the whole navi- 
gation of their port destroyed, without 
any certain prospect of gaining their 
favourite point thereby. However, 
though there is reason to imagine that 
these were their thoughts at that time, 
yet they could not depart at once from 
the evasive conduct to which they 
had hitherto adhered. For when the 
Commodore, on the morning of the 
1st of October, was preparing to set 
out for Canton, his linguist came to 
him from the mandarin who attended 
his ship, to tell him that a letter had 
been received from the Viceroy of 
Canton, desiring the Commodore to 
put off his going thither for two or 
three days. But, in the afternoon of 
the same day, another linguist came 
on board, who with much seeming 
fright, told Mr Anson that the Vice- 
roy had expected him up that day, 
that the council was assembled, and 
the troops had been under arms to 
receive him; and that the Viceroy 
was highly offended at the disappoint- 
ment, and had sent the Commodore's 
linguist to prison chained, supposing 
that the whole had been owing to the 
linguist's negligence. This plausible 
tale gave the Commodore great con- 
cern, and made him apprehend that 
there was some treachery designed 
him, which he could not yet fathom ; 
and though it afterwards appeared 
that the whole was a fiction, not one 
article of it having the least founda- 
tion, yet (for reasons best known to 
themselves) this falsehood was so well 
supported by the artifices of the Chin- 
ese merchants at Canton, that three 
days afterwards the Commodore re- 
ceived a letter signed by all the super- 
cargoes of the English ships then at 
that place, expressing their great un- 
easiness at what had happened, and 
intimating their fears that some insult 
would be offered to his boat if ho 
came thither before the Viceroy was. 
fully satisfied about the mistake. To 
this letter Mr Anson replied that he 
did not believe there had been any 
mistake, but was persuaded it was a 
forgery of the Chinese to prevent his. 
visiting the Viceroy ; that therefore- 



1743.] 



ANSON'S ARRIVAL AT CANTON. 



155 



he would certainly come up to Canton 
on the 13th of October, confident that 
the Chinese would not dare to offer 
him an insult, as well knowing it 
would be properly returned. 

On the 13th of October, the Commo- 
dore continuing firm to his resolution, 
all the supercargoes of the English, 
Danish, and Swedish ships came on 
board the Centurion, to accompany 
him to Canton, for which place he set 
out in his barge the same day, attended 
by his own boats and by those of the 
trading ships, which on this occasion 
came to form his retinue ; and as he 
passed by Wampo, 1 where the Euro- 
pean vessels lay, he was saluted by 
all of them but the French ; and in 
the eveninghe arrived safely at Canton. 



CHAPTER X. 

WHEN the Commodore arrived at 
Canton he was visited by the princi- 
pal Chinese merchants, who affected to 
appear very much pleased that he had 
met with no obstruction in getting 
thither, and who thence pretended to 
conclude that the Viceroy was satis- 
fied about the former mistake, the 
reality of which they still insisted 
on ; they added that as soon as the 
Viceroy should be informed that Mr 
Ansou was at Canton (which they 
promised should be done the next 
morning), they were persuaded a day 
would be immediately appointed for 
the visit which was the principal busi- 
ness that had brought the Commodore 
thither. 

The next day the merchants re- 
turned to Mr Anson, and told him 
that the Viceroy was then so fully 
employed in preparing his despatches 
for Pekin, that there was no getting 
admittance to him for some days ; but 
that they had engaged one of the offi- 
cers of his court to give them infor- 
mation as soon as he should be at 
leisure, when they proposed to notify 
Mr Anson's arrival, and to endeavour 
to fix the day of audience. The Com- 

1 Whampoa. 



modoro was by this time too well 
acquainted with their artifices not to 
perceive that this was a falsehood ; and 
had he consulted only his own judg- 
ment he would have applied directly 
to the Viceroy by other hands. But 
the Chinese merchants had so far pre- 
possessed the supercargoes of our ships 
with chimerical fears, that they were 
extremely apprehensive of being em- 
broiled with the Government, and of 
suffering in their interest, if those 
measures were taken which appeared 
to Mr Anson at that time to be the 
most prudential ; and therefore, lest 
the malice and double-dealing of the 
Chinese might have given rise to some 
sinister incident which would be after- 
wards laid at his door, he resolved to 
continue passive as long as it should 
appear that he lost no time by thus 
suspending his own opinion. With 
this view he promised not to take any 
immediate step himself for getting 
admittance to the Viceroy, provided 
the Chinese with whom he contracted 
for provisions would let him see that 
his bread was baked, his meat salted, 
and his stores prepared with the ut- 
most despatch. But if, by the time 
when all was in readiness to be shipped 
off (which it was supposed would be 
in about forty days), the merchants 
should not have procured the Vice- 
roy's permission, then the Commo- 
dore proposed to apply for it himself. 
These were the terms Mr Anson 
thought proper to offer to quiet the 
uneasiness of the supercargoes ; and 
notwithstanding the apparent equity 
of the conditions, many difficulties 
and objections were urged, nor would 
the Chinese agree to them till the 
Commodore had consented to pay for 
every article he bespoke before it was 
put in hand. However, at last the 
contract being passed, it was some 
satisfaction to the Commodore to be 
certain that his preparations were now 
going on ; and, being himself on the 
spot, he took care to hasten them as 
much as possible. 

During this interval, in which the 
stores and provisions were getting 
ready, the merchants continually en- 
tertained Mr Anson with accounts of 



which time, 



ARSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.III.Cii.X. 
(except in this single instance) to 
carry on the vast transactions of the 
port of Canton either by the ridi- 
culous jargon of broken English 
which some few of the Chinese have 
learned, or by the suspected inter- 
pretation of the linguists of other 
nations. 

Two days after the sending tho 
above-mentioned letter, a fire broke 
out in the suburbs of Canton. On 
the first alarm, Mr An son went thither 



lot) 

their various endeavours to get a 
license from the Viceroy, and their 
frequent disappointments, Avhich to 
him was now a matter of amusement, 
as he was fully satisfied there was not 
one word of truth in anything they 
said. But when all was completed, 
and wanted only to be shipped, which 
was about the 24th of November, at 



the 1TE. 



was set in, he then resolved to apply 
himself to the Viceroy to demand an 
audience, as he was persuaded that 
without this ceremony the procuring 
a permission to send his stores on 
board would meet with great difficulty. 
On the 24th of November, therefore, 
Mr Anson sent one of his officers to 
the mandarin who commanded the 
guard of the principal gate of the city 
of Canton with a letter directed to the 
Viceroy. When this letter was de- 
livered to the mandarin, he received 
the officer who brought it very civilly, 
and took down the contents of it in 
Chinese, and promised that the Vice- 
roy should be immediately acquainted 
with it ; but told the officer it was not 
necessary for him to wait for an an- 
swer, because a message would be sent 
to the Commodore himself. On this 
occasion Mr Anson. had been under 
great difficulties about a proper inter- 
preter to send with his officer, as he 
was well aware that none of the 
Chinese usually employed as linguists 
could be relied on ; but he at last pre- 
vailed with Mr Flint, an English 
gentleman belonging to the factory, 
who spoke Chinese perfectly well, to 
accompany his oflicer. This person, 
who upon this occasion and many 
others was of singular service to the 
Commodore, had been left at Canton, 
when a youth, by the late Captain 
lligby. The leaving him there to 
learn the Chinese language was a step 
taken by that captain merely from his 
own persuasion of the great advantages 
which the East India Company might 
one day receive from an English inter- 
preter ; and though the utility of this 
measure has greatly exceeded all that 
was expected from it, yet I have not 
heard that it has been to this day im- 
i*ated, but we imprudcntlv choose 



with his ofiicers and his boats' crew 
to assist the Chinese. When he came 
there, he found that it had begun in 
a sailor's shed, and that by the slight- 
ness of the buildings and the awk- 
wardness of the Chinese it was getting 
head apace. But he perceived that 
by pulling down some of the adjacent 
sheds it might easily be extinguished ; 
and particularly observing that it was 
running along a wooden cornice which 
would soon communicate it to a great 
distance, he ordered his people to be- 
gin with tearing away that cornice. 
This was presently attempted, and 
would have been soon executed, but 
in the meantime he was told, that as 
there was no mandarin there to direct 
what was to be done, the Chinese 
would make him (the Commodore) 
answerable for whatever should be 
pulled down by his orders. On this 
his people desisted, and he sent them 
to the English factory to assist in se- 
curing the Company's treasure and 
effects, as it was easy to foresee that 
no distance was a protection against 
the rage of such a fire, where so little 
was done to put a stop to it ; for all 
this time the Chinese contented them- 
selves \vith viewing it, and now and 
then holding one of their idols near 
it, which they seemed to expect should 
check its progrees. However, at last 
a mandarin came out of the city, at- 
tended by four or five hundred fire- 
men ; these made some feeble efforts 
to pull down the neighbouring houses, 
but by this time the fire had greatly 
extended itself, and was got amongst 
the merchants' warehouses ; and the 
Chinese firemen, wanting both skill 
and spirit, were incapable of checking 
its violence, so that its fury increased 



1743.T 



DESTRUCTIVE FIRE IN CANTON. 



157 



upon them, and it was feared the whole 
city would be destroyed. In this 
general confusion the Viceroy himself 
came thither, and the Commodore was 
sent to and was entreated to afford his 
assistance, being told that he might 
take any measures he should think 
most prudent in the present emer- 
gency. And now he went thither a 
second time, carrying with him about 
forty of his people, who upon this 
occasion exerted themselves in such a 
manner as in that country was alto- 
gether without example. 1 For they 
were rather animated than deterred 
by the flames and falling buildings 
amongst which they wrought ; so that 
it was not uncommon to see the most 
forward of them tumble to the ground 
on the roofs and amidst the ruins of 
houses which their own efforts brought 
down with them. By their boldness 
and activity the fire was soon extin- 
guished, to the amazement of the 
Chinese ; and the building being all 
on one floor, and the materials slight, 
the seamen, notwithstanding their 
daring behaviour, happily escaped 
with no other injuries than some con- 
siderable bruises. The fire, though 
at last thus luckily extinguished, did 
great mischief during the time it con- 
tinued ; for it consumed an hundred 
shops and eleven streets full of ware- 
houses, so that the damage amounted 
to an immense sum ; and one of the 
Chinese merchants, well known to the 
English, whose name was Succoy, was 
supposed for his own share to have 
lost near 200, 000 sterling. It raged, 
indeed, with unusual violence, for in 
many of the warehouses there were 
large quantities of camphor, which 
greatly added to its fury, and produced 
a column of exceeding white flame, 
which shot up into the air to such a 
prodigious height that the flame itself 
was plainly seen on board the Cen- 

1 Thomas enthusiastically says, that 
" they in sight of the whole city per- 
formed such daring, and, to the people 
who beheld them, such astonishing 
feats, that they looked upon them 
as salamanders, and cried out that 
they could live in fire." 



turion, though she was thirty miles 
distant. 

Whilst the Commodore and his 
people were labouring at the fire, and 
the terror of its becoming general still 
possessed the whole city, several of 
the most considerable Chinese mer- 
chants came to Mr Anson to desire 
that he would let each of them have 
one of his soldiers (for such they styled 
his boat's crew from the uniformity of 
their dress) to guard their warehouses 
and dwelling-houses, which, from the 
known dishonesty of the populace, they 
feared would be pillaged in the tumult. 
Mr Anson granted them this request ; 
and all the men that he thus furnished 
to the Chinese behaved greatly to the 
satisfaction of their employers, who 
afterwards highly applauded their 
great diligence and fidelity. By this 
means the resolution of the English 
at the fire, and their trustiness and 
punctuality elsewhere, was the sub- 
ject of general conversation amongst 
the Chinese ; and the next morning, 
many of the principal inhabitants 
waited on the Commodore to thank 
him for his assistance, frankly owning 
to him that they could never have ex- 
tinguished the fire of themselves, and 
rhat he had saved their city from being 
totally consumed. And soon after a 
message came to the Commodore from 
the Viceroy, appointing the 30th of 
November for his audience, which 
sudden resolution of the Viceroy, in a 
matter that had been so long agitated 
in vain, was also owing to the signal 
services performed by Mr Anson and 
his people at the fire, of which the 
Viceroy himself had been in some 
measure an eye-witness. The fixing 
this business of the audience was, on 
all accounts, a circumstance which Mr 
Anson was much pleased with, as he 
was satisfied that the Chinese Go- 
vernment would not have determined 
this point without having agreed 
among themselves to give up their 
pretensions to the duties they claimed, 
and to grant him all he could reason- 
ably ask ; for, as they well knew the 
Commodore's sentiments, it would 
have been a piece of imprudence not 
consistent with the refined cunning of 



158 



ANSON'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. [B.lII.Cn.X. 



the Chinese to have admitted him to 
an audience only to have contested 
with him. And, therefore, being him- 
self perfectly easy about the result of 
his visit, he made all necessary pre- 
parations against the day, and en- 
gaged Mr Flint, whom I have men- 
tioned before, to act as interpreter in 
the conference, who in this affair, as 
in all others, acquitted himself much 
to the Commodore's satisfaction, re- 
peating with great boldness, and, 
doubtless, with exactness, all that 
was given in charge, a part which no 
Chinese linguist would ever have per- 
formed with any tolerable fidelity. 

At 10 o'clock in the morning, on 
the day appointed, a mandarin came 
to the Commodore to let him know 
that the Viceroy was ready to receive 
him, on which the Commodore and 
his retinue immediately set out. 
And as soon as he entered the outer 
gate of the city, he found a guard of 
200 soldiers drawn up ready to attend 
him ; these conducted him to the great 
parade before the Emperor's palace, 
where the Viceroy then resided. In 
this parade a body of troops, to the 
numberof 10,000, were drawn up under 
arms, and made a very fine appear- 
ance, being all of them new clothed 
for this ceremony ; and Mr Anson 
and his retinue having passed through 
the middle of them, he was then con- 
ducted to the great hall of audience, 
where he found the Viceroy seated 
under a rich canopy in the Emperor's 
chair of state, with all his Council of 
Mandarins attending. Here there 
was a vacant seat prepared for the 
Commodore, in which he was placed 
on his arrival. He was ranked the 
third in order from the Viceroy, there 
being above him only the head of the 
law and of the treasury, who in the 
Chinese Government take place of all 
military officers. When the Com- 
modore was seated, he addressed him- 
self to the Viceroy by his interpreter, 
and began with reciting the various 
methods he had formerly taken to get 
an audience ; adding, that he im- 
puted the delays he had met with to 
the insincerity of those he had em- 
ployed, and that he had therefore no 



other means left than to send, as ho 
had done, his own officer with a letter 
to the gate. On the mention of this, 
the Viceroy stopped the interpreter, 
and bid him assure Mr Anson that 
the first knowledge they had of his 
being at Canton was from that letter. 
Mr Anson then proceeded, and told 
him that the subjects of the King ot 
Great Britain trading to China, had 
complained to him (the Commodore) of 
the vexatious impositions both of the 
merchants and inferior custom-house 
officers, to which they were frequently 
necessitated to submit, by reason of 
the difficulty of getting access to the 
mandarins, who alone could grant 
them redress ; that it was his (Mr 
Anson's) duty, as an officer of the 
King of Great Britain, to lay before 
the Viceroy these grievances of the 
British subjects, which he hoped the 
Viceroy Avould take into considera- 
tion, and would give orders that for 
the future there should be no just 
reason for complaint. Here Mr An- 
son paused, and waited some time in 
expectation of an answer, but nothing 
being said, he asked his . interpreter 
if he was certain the Viceroy under- 
stood what he had urged ; the inter- 
preter told him he was certain it was 
understood, but he believed no reply 
would be made to it. Mr Anson then 
represented to the Viceroy the case of 
the ship Haslingfield, which, having 
been dismasted on the coast of China, 
had arrived in the River of Canton 
but a few days before. The people 
on board this vessel had been great 
sufferers by the fire ; the captain in 
particular had all his goods burned, 
and had lost besides, in the confusion, 
a chest of treasure of 4500 tads, 
which was supposed to be stolen ^by 
the Chinese boatmen. Mr Anson 
therefore desired that the captain 
might have the assistance of the Go- 
vernment, as it was apprehended the 
money could never be recovered with- 
out the interposition of the man- 
darins ; and to this request the Vice- 
roy made answer, that in settling the 
Emperor's customs for that ship, 
some abatement should be made in 
consideration of her losses. 



1743.] LICENSE GRANTED 

And now, the Commodore having 
despatched the business with which 
the officers of the East India Company 
had entrusted him, he entered on his 
own affairs ; acquainting the Vice- 
roy that the proper season was now 
set in for returning to Europe, and 
that he waited only for a license to 
ship off nis provisions and stores, 
which were all ready ; and that, as 
soon as this should be granted to him, 
and he should have got his neces- 
saries on board, he intended to leave 
the River of Canton, and to make th* 
best of his way for England. TLe 
Viceroy replied to this, that the 
license should be immediately issued, 
and that everything should be ordered 
on board the following day. And 
finding that Mr Anson had nothing 
further to insist on, the Viceroy con- 
tinued the conversation for some time, 
acknowledging in very civil terms 
how much the Chinese were obliged 
to him for his signal services at the 
fire, and owning that he had saved 
the city from being destroyed ; and 
then, observing that the Centurion 
had been a good while on their coast, 
he closed his discourse by wishing 
the Commodore a good voyage to 
Europe. After which, the Commo- 
dore, thanking him for his civility 
and assistance, took his leave. 

As soon as the Commodore was out 
of the hall of audience, he was much 
pressed to go into a neighbouring 
apartment, where there was an enter- 
tainment provided ; but finding on 
inquiry that the Viceroy himself was 
not to be present, he declined the in- 
vitation, and departed, attended in 
the same manner as at his arrival ; 
only at his leaving the city he was 
saluted by three guns, which are as 
many as in that country are ever 
fired on any ceremony. Thus the 
Commodore, to his great joy, at last 
finished this troublesome affair, which 
for the preceding four months had 
given him great disquietude. In- 
deed, he was highly pleased with pro- 
curing a license for the shipping of 
his stores and provisions ; for there- 
by he was enabled to return to Great 
Britain with the first of the monsoon, 



BY THE VICEROY. 



159 



and to prevent all intelligence of his 
being expected. But this, though a 
very important point, was not the 
circumstance which gave him the 
greatest satisfaction ; for he was more 
particularly attentive to the authentic 
precedent established on this occasion, 
by which his Majesty's ships of war 
are for the future exempted from all 
demands of duty in any of the ports 
of China. 

In pursuance of the promises of the 
Viceroy, the provisions were begun to 
be sent on board the day after the 
audience, and four days after, the 
Commodore embarked at Canton for 
the Centurion ; and on the 7th of 
December, the Centurion and her 
prize unmoored, and stood down the 
river, passing through the Bocca 
Tigris on the 10th. And on this 
occasion I must observe, that the 
Chinese had taken care to man the 
two forts on each side of that passage 
with as many men as they could well 
contain, the greatest part of them 
armed with pikes and matchlock 
muskets. These garrisons affected 
to show themselves as much as pos- 
sible to the ships, and were doubtless 
intended to induce Mr Anson to think 
more reverently than he had hitherto 
done of the Chinese military power. 
For this purpose they were equipped 
with much parade, having a great 
number of colours exposed to view ; 
and on the castle in particular there 
were laid considerable heaps of large 
stones, and a soldier of unusual size, 
dressed in very sightly armour, stalked 
about on the parapet with a battle- 
axe in his hand endeavouring to put 
on as important and martial an air as 
possible, though some of the observers 
on board the Centurion shrewdly 
suspected, from the appearance of his 
armour, that instead of steel, it was 
composed only of a particular kind of 
glittering paper. 1 



1 We omit Mr Walter's strictures 
on the merely imitative genius, the 
bad government, and the pusillani- 
mity and military weakness of the 
Chinese; strictures founded admit- 
tedly on very partial information, and 



160 ANSON 'S VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD. 



The Commodore, on the 12th of 
December, anchored before the town 
of Macao. Whilst the ships lay 
here, the merchants of Macao finished 
their agreement for the galleon, for 
which they had offered 6000 dollars ; 
this was much short of her value, 
but the impatience of the Commo- 
dore to get to sea, to which the mer- 
chants were no strangers, prompted 
them to insist on so unequal a bar- 
gain. Mr Anson had learned enough 
from the English at Canton to con- 
jecture, that the war betwixt Great 
Britain and Spain was still continued, 
and that probably the French might 
engage in the assistance of Spain be- 
fore he could arrive in Great Britain ; 
and therefore, knowing that no intel- 
ligence could get to Europe of the 
prize he had taken, and the treasure 
he had on board, till the return of the 
merchantmen from Canton, he was 
resolved to make all possible expedi- 
tion in getting back, that he might 
be himself the first messenger of his 
own good fortune, and might thereby 
prevent the enemy from forming any 
projects to intercept him. For these 
reasons, he to avoid all delay accepted 
of the sum offered for the galleon ; 
and she being delivered to the mer- 
chants the 15th of December 1743, 
the Centurion the same day got under 
sail on her return to England. And 
on the 3d of January she came to an 
anchor at Prince's Island in the Straits 
of Sunda, and continued there wood- 
ing and watering till the 8th ; when 
she weighed and stood for the Cape 
of Good Hope, where on the llth of 
March she anchored in Table Bay. 

Here the Commodore continued till 
the beginning of April, highly delight- 



stamped with an almost venomous 
spirit of prejudice. 



[B.III.CH.X. 
ed with the place, which by its extra- 
ordinary accommodations, the healthi- 
ness of its air, and the picturesque 
appearance of the country, all enliv- 
ened by the addition of a civilised 
colony, was not disgraced in an im- 
aginary comparison with the valleys 
of Juan Fernandez and the lawns of 
Tinian. During his stay he entered 
about forty new men ; and having, 
by the 3d of April 1744, completed 
his water and provison, he on that 
day weighed and put to sea. The 
19th of the same month they saw the 
Island of St Helena, which, however, 
they did not touch at, but stood on 
their way ; and on the 10th of June, 
being then in soundings, they spoke 
with an English ship from Amster- 
dam bound for Philadelphia, whence 
they received the first intelligence of 
a French war. The 12th they got 
sight of the Lizard ; and the 15th in 
the evening, to their infinite joy, they 
came safe to an anchor at Spithead. 
But that., the signal perils which had 
so often threatened them in the pre- 
ceding part of the enterprise might 
pursue them to the very last, Mr 
Anson learned on his arrival that 
there was a French fleet of consider- 
able force cruising in the Chops of the 
Channel ; which, by the account of 
their position, he found the Centurion 
had run through, and had been all the 
time concealed by a fog. Thus was 
this expedition finished, when it had 
lasted three years and nine months ; 
after having, by its event, strongly 
evinced this important truth : That 
though prudence, intrepidity, and 
perseverance united are not exempted 
from the blows of adverse fortune, 
yet in a long scries of transactions 
they usually rise superior to its power, 
and in the end rarely fail of proving 
successful. 



OF ANSON 8 VOTAGF. 



PLEASE DO NOT REMOVE 
CARDS OR SLIPS FROM THIS POCKET 

UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY