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HISTORY 


O  F 


o 

THE      BUCCANEERS 


OF 


AMERICA. 


BY  JAMES  BURNEY,  F.R.S. 

CAPTAIN      IN      THE      ROYAL      NAVY. 


Printed  by  Luke  Hansard  $  Sans,  near  Lincoln' 's-lnn  Fields ; 

FOR    PAYNE    AND    F  O  S  S,    PALL-MALL. 


1816. 
\ 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

Considerations  on  the  Rights  acquired   by   the    Discovery   of  Unknown 
Lands,  and  on  the  Claims  advanced  by  the  Spaniards. 


CHAP.     II. 

Review  of  the  Dominion  of  the  Spaniards  in  Hay  ti  or  Hispaniola. 


Page 

Hayti,   or  Hispaniola,    the  Land   on 
which  the  Spaniards  first  settled  in 
America                                    -  7 
Government  of  Columbus  9 
Dogs  made  use  of  against  the  Indians  10 
Massacre  of  the  Natives,  and  Subjuga- 
tion of  the  Island  -                            -  1 1 
Heavy  Tribute  imposed     -         -  12 
City     of    Nueva    Ysabel,   or    Santo 

Domingo       -  14 

Beginning  of  the  Repartimientos        -  16 

Government  of  Bovadilla  -                  -  ib. 
The  Natives  compelled  to  work  the 

Mines                     -  17 

Nicolas  Ovando,  Governor                  -  ib. 

Working  the  Mines  discontinued        -  18 

The  Natives  again  forced  to  the  Mines  19 


Page 

Insurrection  in  Higuey  20 

Encomiendas  established  -  •-  ib, 

Africans  carried  to  the  West  Indies  -  21 

Massacre  of  the  People  of  Xaragua  -  22 

Death  of  Queen  Ysabel  -  23 

Desperate  condition  of  the  Natives  -  24 

The  Grand  Antilles  -  26 

Small  Antilles,  or  Caribbee  Islands  -  ib. 

Lucayas,  or  Bahama  Islands  -  -  ib. 
The  Natives  of  the  Lucayas  betrayed  to 

the  Mines  -  27 

Fate  of  the  Natives  of  Porto  Rico  -  28 

D.  Diego  Columbus,  Governor  -  -  ib. 

Increase  of  Cattle  in  Hayti.  Cuba  -  29 
De  las  Casas  and  Cardinal  Ximenes 

endeavour  to  serve  the  Indians  30 

Cacique  Henriquez  -  ib 


CHAP.    III. 

Ships  of  different  European  Nations  frequent  the  West  Indies.  Opposition 
experienced  by  them  from  the  Spaniards.  Hunting  of  Cattle  in 
Hispaniola. 

Page 

Adventure  of  an  English  Ship  32 

The  French  and  other  Europeans  resort 

to  10%  West  Indies  -  33 

Regulation  proposed  in  Hispaniola,  for 

protection  against  Pirates       -        -      ib. 


Hunting  of  Cattle  in  Hispaniola 

Matadores 

Guarda  Costas 

Brethren  of  the  Coast         -        • 


Page 

34 
ib. 

35 
36 


A  2 


IV 


CONTENTS. 


C  H  A  P.    IV. 

Iniquitous  Settlement  of  the  Island  Saint  Christopher  by  the  English  and 
French.  Tortuga  seized  by  the  Hunters.  Origin  of  the  name  Bucca- 
neer. The  name  Flibustier.  Customs  attributed  to  the  Buccaneers. 


Page 
The   English    and  French    settle  on 

Saint  Christopher  -       38 

Are  driven  away  by  the  Spaniards       -       40 
They  return      -  -41 


Tortuga  seized  by  the  Hunters  - 
Whence  the  Name  Buccaneer    - 
-     -      the  Name  Flibustier     - 
Customs  attributed  to  the  Buccaneers 


Page 

41 
42 
43 
45 


CHAP.     V. 

Treaty  made  by  the  Spaniards  with  Don  Henriquez.  Increase  of  English 
and  French  in  the  West  Indies.  Tortuga  surprised  by  the  Spaniards. 
Policy  of  the  English  and  French  Government?  with  respect  to  the 
Buccaneers.  Mansvelt,  his  attempt  to  form  an  independent  Buccaneer 
Establishment.  French  West-India  Company.  Morgan  succeeds  Mans- 
velt as  Chief  of  the  Buccaneers. 


Page 

Cultivation  in  Tortuga  -  48 
Increase  of  the  English  and  French 

Settlements  in  the  West  Indies  ib. 

Tortuga  surprised  by  the  Spaniards  -  49 
Is  taken  possession  of  for  the  Crown 

of  France  -  -  51 
Policy  of  the  English  and  French 

Governments    with   respect  to    the 

Buccaneers  -  52 

The  Buccaneers  plunder  New  Segovia  53 

The  Spaniards  retake  Tortuga  -  -  ib. 
With  the  assistance  of  the  Buccaneers 

the  English  take  Jamaica  -  54 

The  French  retake  Tortuga  -  -  ib. 

Pierre  le  Grand,  a  French  Buccaneer  -  ib. 

Alexandre  -  55 

Montbars,  surnamed  the  Exterminator  ib. 

Bartolouieo  Portuguez  -  ib. 


L'Olonnois,   and    Michel   le   Basque, 

take  Maracaibo  and  Gibraltar 

Outrages  committed  by  L'Olonnois     - 

Mansvelt,  a  Buccaneer  Chief,  attempts 

to  form  a  Buccaneer  Establishment  - 

Island    Su    Katalina,   or    Providence ; 

since  named  Old  Providence  - 
Death  of  Mansvelt    -  - 

French  West-India  Company    - 
The  French  Settlers  dispute  their  au- 
thority ... 
Morgan  succeeds  Mansvelt;  plunders 

Puerto  del  Principe 
Maracaibo  again  pillaged   - 
Morgan  takes  Porto  Bello  :  his  Cruelty 
He  plunders  Maracaibo  and  Gibraltar 
His  Contrivances  to  effect  his  RetreJP 


Page 

55 
ib. 


ib. 

57 
ib. 

58 

ib. 

59 
ib. 
60 
61 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.  VI. 

Treaty  of  America.  Expedition  of  the  Buccaneers  against  Panama. 
Exquemelin's  History  of  the  American  Sea  Rovers.  Misconduct  of  the 
European  Governors  in  the  West  Indies. 


Treaty  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain 
Expedition  of  the  Buccaneers  against 

Panama 

They  take  the  Island  Su  Katalina 
Attack  of  the  Castle  at  the  RiverChagre 
Their  March  across  the  Isthmus 
The  City  of  Panama  taken 


Page 
63 

64 


ib. 
66 

67 


And  burnt 

The  Buccaneers  depart  from  Panama  - 

Exqueinelin's  History  of  the  Bucca- 
neers of  America  - 

Flibustkrs  shipwrecked  at  Porto  Rico; 
and  put  to  death  by  the  Spaniards  - 


Page 
68 
69 

71 
73 


CHAP.     VII. 

Thomas  Peche.  Attempt  of  La  Sound  to  cross  the  Isthmus  of  America. 
Voyage  of  Antonio  de  Vea  to  the  Strait  of  Magalhanes.  Various 
Adventures  of  the  Buccaneers,  in  the  West  Indies,  to  the  year  1679. 


Page 

Thomas  Peche  -  ~75 

La  Sound  attempts  to  cross  the  Isthmus       ib. 
Voyage  of  Ant.  de  Vea      -  76 

Massacre  of  the  French  in  Samana     -       77 


Page 

French  Fleet  wrecked  on  Aves  -      77 

Granmont  -       ib. 

Darien  Indians  -       79 

Porto  Bello  surprised  by  the  Buccaneers     ib. 


CHAP.     VIII. 

Meeting  of  Buccaneers  at  the  Samballas,  and  Golden  Island.  Party 
formed  by  the  English  Buccaneers  to  cross  the  Isthmus.  Some  Account 
of  the  Native  Inhabitants  of  the  Mosquito  Shore. 


Golden  Island  - 


Page 
81 


Account  of  the  Mosquito  Indians 


Page 
83 


CHAP.    IX. 

Journey  of  the  Buccaneers  across  the  Isthmus  of  America. 


Buccaneers  commence  their  March     - 
Fort  of  S«a  Maria  taken     - 


» 
91 

95 


John  Coxon  chosen  Commander 
They  arrive  at  the  South  Sea     - 


Page 

96 
97 


VI 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.     X. 

First  Buccaneer  Expedition  in  the  South  Sea. 


In  the  Bay  of  Panama 

Island  Chepillo 

Battle  with  a  small  Spanish  Armament 

Richard  Sawkins       - 

Panama,  the  new  City 

Coxon  returns  to  the  West  Indies 

Richard  Sawkins  chosen  Commander 

Taboga;  Otoque 

Attack  of  Pueblo  Nuevo    - 

Captain  Sawkins  is  killed  - 

Imposition  practised  by  Sharp    - 

Sharp  chosen  Commander 

Some  return  to  the  West  Indies 

The  Anchorage  at  Quibo  - 

Island  Gorgona         - 

Island  Plata      - 

Adventure  of  Seven  Buccaneers 

Ho   -  - 

Shoals  of  Anchovies  - 

La  Serena  plundered  and  burnt  - 

Attempt  of  the  Spaniards  to  burn  the 

Ship  of  the  Buccaneers 
Island  Juan  Fernandez       - 


Page 

98 
ib. 
ib. 

99 
100 

101 

ib. 

1O2 
103 

ib. 
104 
105 

ib. 

ib. 
106 
107 

ib. 
109 

ib. 

ib. 

ib. 
no 


Page 

Sharp  deposed  from  the  Command      -  1 1 1 

Watling  elected  Commander     -        -  ib. 
William,  a  Mosquito  Indian,  left  on  the 

Island  Juan  Fernandez  -                   -  112 

Island  Yqueque ;  Rio  de  Camarones  -  113 

They  attack  Arica      -                            -  ib. 

Are  repulsed;  Watling  killed    -        -  114 

Sharp  again  chosen  Commander          -  115 

Huasco ;  Ylo  -                                    -  ib. 

The  Buccaneers  separate  -                  -  116 

Proceedings  of  Sharp  and  his  Followers  ib. 

They  enter  a  Gulf     -                            -  118 

Shergall's  Harbour     -                            -  1 19 

Another  Harbour      -                           -  ib, 

The  Gulf  is  named  the  English  Gulf  -  ib. 

Duke  of  York's  Islands      -                  -  120 

A  Native  killed  by  the  Buccaneers      -  121 

Native  of  Patagonia  carried  away        -  ib. 

Passage  round  Cape  Horn                    -  122 

Appearance  like  Land,  in  57"  50'  S.    -  ib. 

Ice  Islands                  -                           -  ib. 

Arrive  in  the  West  Indies                     -  123 

Sharp,  and  others,  tried  for  Piracy      -  ib. 


CHAP.     XL 

Disputes  between  the  French  Government  and  their  West-India  Colonies. 
Morgan  becomes  Deputy  Governor  of  Jamaica.  La  Vera  Cruz  sur- 
prised by  the  Fiibustiers.  Other  of  their  Enterprises. 


Page 

Prohibitions  against  Piracy  disregard- 
ed by  the  French  Buccaneers  -  125-6 

Sir  Henry  Morgan,  Deputy  Governor 
of  Jamaica  -  -  j  26 

His  Severity  to  the  Buccaneers  -       ib. 

Van  Horn,  Granmont,  and  De  Graaf, 
go  against  La  Vera  Cruz  -  127 


They  surprise  the  Town  by  Stratagem 

Story  of  Granmont  and  an  English  Ship 

Disputes  of  the  French  Governors  with 

the  Fiibustiers  of  Saint  Domingo     - 


Page 

127 
128 


130 


CONTENTS. 


vu 


CHAP.    XII. 

Circumstances  which  preceded  the  Second  Irruption  of  the  Buccaneers  into 
the  South  Sea.  Buccaneers  under  John  Cook  sail  from  Virginia;  stop 
at  the  Cape  de  Verde  Islands;  at  Sierra  Leone.  Origin  and  History 
of  the  Report  concerning  the  supposed  Discovery  of  Pejrys  Island. 


Page 

Circumstances  preceding  the  Second 
Irruption  of  the  Buccaneers  into  the 

South  Sea      -                                    -  132 

Buccaneers  under  John  Cook    -         -  134 

Cape  de  Verde  Islands        -  135 

Ambergris ;  The  Flamingo                   -  ib. 

Coast  of  Guinea        -                           -  136 


Page 

Sherborough  River    -         -  137 

John  Davis's  Islands           -  ib. 
History  of  the  Report  of  a  Discovery 

named  Pepys  Island       -                   -  ib. 

Shoals  of  small  red  Lobsters        -         -  140 

Passage  round  Cape  Home                 -  ib. 


CHAP.     XIII. 

Buccaneers  under  John  Cook  arrive  at  Juan  Fernandez.    Account  of 
William,  a  Mosquito  Indian,  who  had  lived  there  three  years.    They  sail 
to  the  Galapagos  Islands;  thence  to  the  Coast  of  New  Spain.    John 
Cook  dies.    Edward  Davis  chosen  Commander. 

Page 
The  Buccaneers  under  Cook  joined  by 

the  Nicholas  of  London,  John  Eaton  141 
At  Juan  Fernandez  -  -  142 

William  the  Mosquito  Indian  -  -  ib. 
Juan  Fernandez  first  stocked  with  Goats 

by  its  .Discoverer  -  -  143 

Appearance  of  the  Andes  -  -  ib. 

Islands  Lobos  de  la  Mar  -  -  ib. 

At  the  Galapagos  Islands  -  145 

Duke  of  Norfolk's  Island  -  -  -  ib. 


Cowley's  Chart  of  the  Galapagos        -     146 
King  James's  Island  -     ib. 

Mistake  by  the  Editor  of  Dampier     -       ib. 
Concerning  Fresh  Water  and  Herbage 

at  the  Galapagos     -  -  ib.Sc,  147 

Land  and  Sea  Turtle  -     148 

Mammee  Tree  -       ib. 

Coast  of  New  Spain ;  Cape  Blanco    - 
John  Cook,  BuccaneerCommander,  dies 
Edward  Davis  chosen  Commander 


M9 
ib. 
ib. 


CHAP.     XIV. 


Edward  Davis  Commander.  On  the  Coast  of  New  Spain  and  Peru. 
Algatrane,  a  bituminous  earth.  Davis  is  joined  by  other  Buccaneers. 
Eaton  sails  to  the  East  Indies.  Guayaquil  attempted.  Rivers  of 
St.  Jago,  and  Tomaco.  In  the  Bay  of  Panama.  Arrivals  of  nume- 
rous parties  of  Buccaneers  across  the  Isthmusynwz  the  West  Indies. 


Caldera  Bay 

V clean  Viejo     - 

Ria-lexa  Harbour 

Bay  of  Amapalla 

Davis  and  Eaton  part  company 


Page 


ib. 

152 
154 


Tornadoes  near  the  Coast  of  New  Spain 

Cape  San  Francisco  - 

Eaton's  Description  of  Coeos  Island 

Point  Sta  Elena 

Algatrane,  a  bituminous  Earth   - 


Page 

155 
ib. 
ib. 

.156 
ib. 

Rich 


via 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.  xiv.  —  continued. 
Rich  Ship  wrecked  on  Point  Sto  Elena 
Manta;  Rocks  near  it,  and  Shoal        - 
Davis  is  joined  by  other  Buccaneers   - 
The  Cygnet,  Captain  Swan  - 

At  Isle  de  la  Plata    -  - 

Cape  Blanco,  near  Guayaquil  ;  difficult 

to  weather    -  - 

Payta  burnt      -  - 

Part  of  the  Peruvian  Coast  where  it 

never  rains     -  - 

Lobos  de  Tierra,  and  Lobos  de  la  Mar 
Eaton  at  the  Ladrones        -  - 

Nutmeg  Island,  North  of  Luconia       - 
Davis  on  the  Coast  of  Peru  - 

Slave  Ships  captured  -         - 

The  Harbour  of  Guayaquil  - 


157 
ib. 
ib. 
ib. 

1  59 

ib. 

160 

ib. 

ib. 
161 
163 

ib. 

ib. 
164 


Island  Sta  Clara :  Shoals  near  it 

Cat  Fish  - 

The  Cotton  Tree  and  Cabbage  Tree    - 

River  of  St.  Jago      - 

Island  Gallo ;  River  Tomaco      - 

Island  Gorgona 

Pearl  Oysters    - 

Galeralsle  - 

The  Pearl  Islands      - 

Arrival  of  fresh  bodies  of  Buccaneers 

from  the  West  Indies     - 
Grogniet  and  L'Escuyer    - 
Townley  and  his  Crew 
Pisco  Wine 

Port  de  Pinas ;  Taboga 
Chepo      ------ 


Page 
164 
165 
166 

ib. 
167 

ib. 
168 

ib. 
169 

170 

ib. 

171 

172 

173 
174 


CHAP.     XV. 


Edward  Davis  Commander.  Meeting  of  the  Spanish  and  Buccaneer  Fleets 
in  the  Bay  of  Panama.  They  separate  without  fighting.  The  Bucca- 
neers sail  to  the  Island  Quibo.  The  English  and  French  separate. 
Expedition  against  the  City  of  Leon.  That  City  and  Ria  Lexa  burnt. 
Farther  dispersion  of  the  Buccaneers. 

Page 

The  French  separate  from  the  English 
Knight,  a  Buccaneer,  joins  Davis 
Expedition  against  the  City  of  Leon  - 
Leon  burnt  by  the  Buccaneers    - 


The  Lima  Fleet  arrives  at  Panama 

Meeting  of  the  two  Fleets 

They  separate  - 

Keys  of  Quibo  :  The  Island  Quibo 

Rock  near  the  Anchorage  - 

Serpents;  The  Serpent  Berry 

Disagreements  among  the  Buccaneers 


176 
177 
180 
181 

ib. 
182 

ib. 


Town  of  Ria  Lexa  burnt   - 

Farther  Separation  of  the  Buccaneers 


183 
ib. 
184 
186 
187 
ib. 


CHAP.     XVI. 

\ 

Buccaneers  under  Edward  Davis.  At  Amapalla  Bay ;  Cocos  Island; 
The  Galapagos  Islands  ;  Coast  of  Peru.  Peruvian  Wine.  Knight 
quits  the  South  Sea.  Bezoar  Stones.  Marine  Productions  on  Moun- 
tains. Vermejo.  Davis  joins  the  French  Buccaneers  at  Guayaquil. 
Long  Sea  Engagement. 

Page 


Amapalla  Bay  - 
A  hot  River 
Cocos  Island     - 


Page 

-  188 

-  ib. 

-  189 


Effect  of  Excess  in  drinking  the  Milk 

of  the  Cocoa- nut   -  -     1 90 

At  the  Galapagos  Islands  -  -       ib. 

On 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.  xvi. — continued.  Page 
On  the  Coast  of  Peru  -  -  -  191 
Peruvian  Wine  like  Madeira  -  -  ib. 
At  Juan  Fernandez  -  -  192 
Knight  quits  the  South  Sea  -  ib. 
Davis  returns  to  the  Coast  of  Peru  -  ib. 
Bezoar  Stones  -  -  193 
Marine  Productions  found  on  Moun- 
tains; Vermejo  -  ib. 


Page 
Davis  joins  the  French  Buccaneers  at 

Guayaquil  -  -  195 
They  meet  Spanish  Ships  of  War  -  196 
A  Sea  Engagement  of  seven  days  -  ib. 
At  the  Island  de  la  Plata  -  -  198 
Division  of  Plunder  -  199 
They  separate,  to  return  home  by  dif- 
ferent Routes  -  200 


CHAP.    XVII. 

Edward  Davis ;  his  Third  visit  to  the  Galapagos.  One  of  those  Islands, 
named  Santa  Maria  de  1'Aguada  by  the  Spaniards,  a  Careening  Place 
of  the  Buccaneers.  Sailing  thence  Southward  they  discover  Land. 
Question,  whether  Edward  Davis's  Discovery  is  the  Land  which  was 
afterwards  named  Easter  Island  ?  Davis  and  his  Crew  arrive  in  the 
West  Indies. 

Page 

Davis  sails  to  the  Galapagos  Islands  -     201 
King  James's  Island  -     202 

The  Island  Sto  Maria  de  1'Aguada       -     803 
Davis  sails  from  the  Galapagos  to  the 
Southward    -  -     205 


Page 

Island  discovered  by  Edward  Davis     -     206 
Question  whether  Edward  Davis's  Land 

and  Easter  Island  are  the  same  Land  207 
At  the  Island  Juan  Fernandez  -  -  210 
Davis  sails  to  the  West  Indies  -  -  211 


CHAP.     XVIII. 

Adventures  of  Swan  and  Townley  on  the  Coast  of  New  Spain,  until 

their.  Separation. 


Page 

Bad  Water,  and  unhealthiness  of  Ria 

Lexa    -  -  213 

Island  Tangola          -  -  214 

Guatulco;  El  Buffadore    -  -  215 

Vinello,  or  Vanilla,  a  Plant       -  -  216 

Island  Sacrificio                  -  ib. 

Port  de  Angeles                 -  -  ib. 

Adventure  in  a  Lagune       -         -  -217 

Alcatraz  Rock ;  White  Cliffs   -  -  218 

River  to  the  West  of  the  Cliffs  -  -  ib. 

Snook,  a  Fish  -  -  ib. 

High  Land  of  Acapulco     -  -  219 

Sandy  Beach,  West  of  Acapulco  -  ib. 


Hill  of  Petaplan 

Chequetan        - 

Estapa      ---.._ 

HillofThelupan 

Volcano  and  Valley  of  Colima  - 

Salagua    -  - 

Report  of  a  great  City  named  Oarrah 

Coronada  Hills          -  - 

Cape  Corrientes 

Keys  or  Islands  of  Chametly  form  a 

convenient  Port     - 
Bay  and  Valley  de  Vanderas 
Swan  and  Townley  part  company 


Page 

220 
ib. 
ib. 

221 

ib. 

222 

ib. 

223 

ib. 

ib. 

225 
226 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.     XIX. 

The  Cygnet  and  her  Crew  on  the  Coast  of  Nueva  Galicia,  and  at  the 

Tres  Marias  Islands. 


Coast  of  Nueva  Gal  tcia     - 

Point  Ponteque         -  - 

White  Rock,  21°  51'  N     - 

Chatnetlan  Isles,  23°  11'  N 

The  Penguin  Fruit    - 

Rio  de  Sal,   and  Salt-water  Lagune 

The  Mexican,  a  copious  Language     - 

Mazatlan 

Rosario,  an  Indian  Town ;  River  Rosa- 
no  ;  Sugar-loaf  Hill ;  Caput  Cavalli ; 
Maxentelbo  Rock ;  Hill  of  Xalisco 


Page 
227 

ib. 
228 

ib. 

ib. 

ib. 
229 

ib. 


230 


River  of  Santiago  - 
Town  of  Sta  Pecaque 
Buccaneers  defeated  and  slain  by  the 

Spaniards      - 
At  the  Tres  Marias 
A  Root  used  as  Food         - 
A  Dropsy  cured  by  a  Sand  Bath 
Bay  of  Vanderas 


Page 
230 
231 

233 
234 
235 
ib. 
236 


CHAP.    XX. 

The  Cygnet     Her  Passage  across  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

At  Mindanao. 


At  the  Ladrones. 


Page 

The  Cygnet  quits  the  American  Coast  237 

Large  flight  of  Birds                   -        -  ib. 

Shoals  and  Breakers  near  Guahan      -  ib. 

Bank  de  Santa  Rosa           -                   -  238 

At  Guahan       -                                      -  ib. 

Flying  Proe,  or  Sailing  Canoe   -         -  239 

Bread  Fruit      -        -        -        -        -  241 


Eastern  side  of  Mindanao,   and   the 

Island  St.  John 

Sarangan  and  Candigar      -        -        - 
Harbour  or  Sound  on  the  South  Coast 

of  Mindanao          -         -        -        - 
River  of  Mindanao    - 
City  of  Mindanao      - 


Page 

241 

243 

ib. 
244 
ib. 


CHAP.     XXI. 

The  Cygnet  departs  from  Mindanao.  At  the  Ponghou  Isles.  At  the 
Five  Islands.  Dampier's  Account  of  the  Five  Islands.  They  are 
named  the  Bashee  Islands. 

Page 

Ponghou  Isles  -        -        -        -        -     250 
The  Five  Islands        -  ib. 

Dampier's  Description  of  them  -  250 — 256 


South  Coast  of  Mindanao 
Among  the  Philippine  Islands    - 
Pulo  Condore  - 
la  the  China  Seas 


Page 

349 
ib. 
ib. 

250 


CONTENTS. 


XI 


CHAP.     XXII. 

The  Cygnet.    At  the  Philippines,  Celebrs,  and  Timor.    On  the  Coast 
o/"New  Holland.     End  of  the  Cygnet. 


Island  near  the  SE  end  of  Mindanao  - 
Candigar,  a  convenient  Cove  there  - 
Low  Island  and  Shoal,  SbW  from  the 

West  end  of  Timor 
NW  Coast  of  New  Holland 


Page 

257 
ib. 


258 
ib. 


Bay  on  the  Coast  of  New  Holland 
Natives    - 

An  Island  in  Latitude  10°  .20'  S  - 
End  of  the  Cygnet    - 


Page 

-  258 

-  259 

-  261 

-  ib. 


CHAP.    XXIII. 

French  Buccaneers  under  Francois  Grogniet    and    Le  Picard,    to  the 

Death  of  Grogniet. 


Page 

Point  de  Burica;  Chiriquit*       -         -  263 

Unsuccessful  attempt  at  Pueblo  Nuevo  265 

Grogniet  is  joined  by  Townley  -         -  ib. 

Expedition  against  theCity  of  Granada  266 

At  Ilia  Lexa     -  269 

Grogniet  and  Townley  part  company  -  ib. 

Buccaneers  under  Townley                   -  ib. 

Lavelia  taken,  and  set  ou  fire     -        -  270 


Page 

Battle  with  Spanish  armed  Ships         -  374 

Death  of  Townley     -        -        -  '      -  277 

Groguiet  rejoins  company          -         -  278 

They  divide,  meet  again,  and  reunite  279 

Attack  on  Guayaquil                             -  280 

At  the  Island  Puna    -                            -  282 

Grogniet  dies    ~         -----  ib. 

Edward  Davis  joins  Le  Picard    -        -  283 


CHAP.    XXIV. 

Retreat  of  the  French  Buccaneers  across  New  Spain  to  the  West  Indies. 
All  the  Buccaneers  quit  the  South  Sea. 


In  Amapalla  Bay 

Chiloteca ;  Massacre  of  Prisoners 

The  Buccaneers  burn  their  Vessels 

They  begin  their  march  over  land 

Town  of  New  Segovia 

Rio  de  Yare,  or  Cape  River 


Page 

286 

ib. 

287 
288 
289 
291 


LaPava;  Straiton ;  Le  Sage  - 
Small  Crew  of  Buccaneers  at  the  Tres 

Marias.  Their  Adventures  - 
Story  related  by  Le  Sieur  Froger 
Buccaneers  who  lived  three  years  on 

the  Island  J  uan  Fernandez      -        -     296 


Page 

294 

295 
ib. 


Xll 


CONTENTS. 


CHAP.    XXV. 

Steps  taken  towards  reducing  the  Buccaneers  and  Flibustiers  under 
subordination  to  the  regular  Governments.  War  of  the  Grand  Alliance 
against  France.  Neutrality  of  the  Island  St.  Christopher  broken. 


Page 

Reform  attempted  in  the  West  Indies     298 
Campeachy  burnt     -  -        -      ib. 

Danish  Factory  robbed      -  300 


Page 

The  English  driven  from  St.  Christopher    30 1 
The  English  retake  St.  Christopher    -    302 


CHAP.    XXVI. 

Siege  and  Plunder  of  the  City  of  Carthagena  on  the  Terra  Firma,  by 
an  Armament  from  France  in  conjunction  with  the  Flibustiers  of 
Saint  Domingo. 

Page 


Page 

Armament  under  M.  de  Pointis  -  -  303 
His  Character  of  the  Buccaneers  -  304 
Siege  of  Carthagena  by  the  French  -  307 


The  City  capitulates 
Value  of  the  Plunder 


-    313 


CHAP.    XXVII. 

Second  Plunder  of  Carthagena.     Peace  of  Ryswick,  in  1697.     Entire 
Suppression  of  the  Buccaneers  and  Flibustiers. 

Page 

The  Buccaneers  return  to  Carthagena  316 
Meet  an  English  and  Dutch  Squadron  319 
Peace  of  Ryswick  -  -  320 

Causes  which  led  to  the  Suppression  of 
the  Buccaneers      -        -        -        -      ib. 


Providence  Island 
CONCLUSION  - 


Page 

-  322 

-  323 


HISTORY 


OF 


THE    BUCCANEERS 


OF 


AMERICA. 


CHAPTER  I. 

Considerations  on  the  Rights  acquired  by  the  Discovery  of  Unknown 
Lands,  and  on  the  Claims  advanced  by  the  Spaniards. 

nr1  H  E  Accounts  given  by  the  Buccaneers  who  extended  their   CHAP.  i. 

enterprises  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  are  the  best  authenticated 
of  any  which  have  been  published  by  that  class  of  Adven- 
turers. They  are  interspersed  with  nautical  and  geographical 
descriptions,  corroborative  of  the  events  related,  and  more 
worth  being  preserved  than  the  memory  of  what  was  performed. 
The  materials  for  this  portion  of  Buccaneer  history,  which  it 
was  necessary  should  be  included  in  a  History  of  South  Sea 
Navigations,  could  not  be  collected  without  bringing  other 
parts  into  view ;  whence  it  appeared,  that  with  a  moderate 
increase  of  labour,  and  without  much  enlarging  the  bulk  of 
narrative,  a  regular  history  might  be  formed  of  their  career, 
from  their  first  rise,  to  their  suppression ;  and  that  such  a 
work  would  not  be  without  its  use. 

B  No 


2  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP,  i.  No  practice  is  more  common  in  literature,  than  for  an 
author  to  endeavour  to  clear  the  ground  before  him,  by  mowing 
down  the  labours  of  his  predecessors  on  the  same  subject. 
To  do  this,  where  the  labour  they  have  bestowed  is  of  good 
tendency,  or  even  to  treat  with  harshness  the  commission  of 
error  where  no  bad  intention  is  manifest,  is  in  no  small  degree 
illiberal.  But  all  the  Buccaneer  histories  that  hitherto  have 
appeared,  and  the  number  is  not  small,  are  boastful  com- 
positions, which  have  delighted  in  exaggeration  :  and,  what  is 
most  mischievous,  they  have  lavished  commendation  on  acts 
which  demanded  reprobation,  and  have  endeavoured  to  raise 
miscreants,  notorious  for  their  want  of  humanity,  to  the  rank 
of  heroes,  lessening  thereby  the  stain  upon  robbery,  and  the 
abhorrence  naturally  conceived  against  cruelty. 

There  is  some  excuse  for  the  Buccaneer,  who  tells  his  own 
story.  Vanity,  and  his  prejudices,  without  any  intention  to 
deceive,  lead  him  to  magnify  his  own  exploits ;  and  the  reader 
naturally  makes  allowances. 

The  rnen  whose  enterprises  are  to  be  related,  were  natives  of 
different  European  nations,  but  chiefly  of  Great  Britain  and 
France,  and  most  of  them  seafaring  people,  who  being  dis- 
appointed, by  accidents  or  the  enmity  of  the  Spaniards,  in  their 
more  sober  pursuits  in  the  West  Indies,  and  also  instigated  by 
thirst  for  plunder  as  much  as  by  desire  for  vengeance,  em- 
bodied themselves,  under  different  leaders  of  their  own  choosing, 
to  make  predatory  war  upon  the  Spaniards.  These  men 
the  Spaniards  naturally  treated  as  pirates ;  but  some  peculiar 
circumstances  which  provoked  their  first  enterprises,  and  a 
general  feeling  of  enmity  against  that  nation  on  account  of 
their  American  conquests,  procured  them  the  connivance  of 
the  rest  of  the  maritime  states  of  Europe,  and  to  be  distin- 
guished first  by  the  softened  appellations  of  Freebooters  and 

Adventurers,  and  afterwards  by  that  of  Buccaneers. 

Spain, 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA.  3 

Spain,  or,    more  strictly  speaking,  Castile,  on  the   merit  of  CHAP,  i. 


a  first  discovery,  claimed  an  exclusive  right  to  the  possession 
of  the  Avhole  of  America,  with  the  exception  of  the  Brasils, 
which  were  conceded  to  the  Portuguese.  These  claims,  and 
this  division,  the  Pope  sanctioned  by  an  instrument,  entitled  a 
Bull  of  Donation,  which  was  granted  at  a  time  when  all  the 
maritime  powers  of  Europe  were  under  the  spiritual  dominion 
of  the  See  of  Rome.  The  Spaniards,  however,  did  not  flatter 
themselves  that  they  should  be  left  in  the  sole  and  undisputed 
enjoyment  of  so  large  a  portion  of  the  newly-discovered  coun- 
tries ;  but  they  were  principally  anxious  to  preserve  wholly  to 
themselves  the  West  Indies :  and,  such  was  the  monopolising 
spirit  of  the  Castilians,  that  during  the  life  of  the  Queen  Ysabel 
of  Castile,  who  was  regarded  as  the  patroness  of  Columbus's 
discovery,  it  was  difficult  even  for  Spaniards,  not  subjects  born 
of  the  crown  of  Castite,  to  gain  access  to  this  New  World, 
prohibitions  being  repeatedly  published  against  the  admisskm 
of  all  other  persons  into  the  ships  bound  thither.  Ferdinand* 
King  of  Arragon,  the  husband  of  Ysabel,  had  refused  to 
contribute  towards  the  outfit  of  Columbus's  first  voyage, 
having  no  opinion  of  the  probability  that  it  would  produce  him 
an  adequate  return  ;  and  the  undertaking  being  at  the  expence 
of  Castile,  the  countries  discovered  were  considered  as  appen- 
dages to  the  crown  of  Castile. 

If  such  jealousy  was  entertained  by  the  Spaniards  of  each 
other,  what  must  not  have  been  their  feelings  respecting  other 
European  nations?  '  Whoever,'  says  Hakluyt,  '  is  conversant 

*  with  the  Portugal  and  Spanish  writers,   shall  find  that  they 
'  account   all  other   nations  for  pirates,  rovers,  and    thieves, 

*  which  visit  any  heathen  coast  that  they  have  sailed  by  or 

*  looked  on.' 

Spain  considered  the  New  World  as  what  in  our  law  books 

B  2  is 


4  HISTORY   OF   THE 

CHAP.  i.  is  called  Treasure-trove,  of  which  she  became  lawfully  and 
exclusively  entitled  to  take  possession,  as  fully  as  if  it  had  been 
found  without  any  owner  or  proprietor.  Spain  has  not  been 
singular  in  her  maxims  respecting  the  rights  of  discoverers. 
Our  books  of  Voyages  abound  in  instances  of  the  same  dis- 
regard shewn  to  the  rights  of  the  native  inhabitants,  the  only 
rightful  proprietors,  by  the  navigators  of  other  European 
nations,  who,  with  a  solemnity  due  only  to  offices  of  a  religious 
nature,  have  continually  put  in  practice  the  form  of  taking 
possession  of  Countries  which  to  them  were  new  discoveries, 
their  being  inhabited  or  desert  making  no  difference.  Not 
unfrequently  has  the  ceremony  been  performed  in  the  presence, 
but  not  within  the  understanding,  of  the  wondering  natives; 
and  on  this  formality  is  grounded  a  claim  to  usurp  the  actual 
possession,  in  preference  to  other  Europeans. 

Nothing  can  be  more  opposed  to  common  sense,  than  that 
strangers  should  pretend  to  acquire  by  discovery,  a  title  to 
countries  they  find  with  inhabitants  ;  as  if  in  those  very  inha- 
bitants the  right  of  prior  discovery  was  not  inherent.  On 
some  occasions,  however,  Europeans  have  thought  it  expedient 
to  acknowledge  the  rights  of  the  natives,  as  when,  in  disputing 
each  other's  claims,  a  title  by  gift  from  the  natives  has  been 
pretended. 

In  uninhabited  lands,  a  right  of  occupancy  results  from 
the  discovery;  but  actual  and  bond  fide  possession  is  requisite 
to  perfect  appropriation.  If  real  possession  be  not  taken,  or 
if  taken  shall  not  be  retained,  the  right  acquired  by  the  mere 
discovery  is  not  indefinite  and  a  perpetual  bar  of  exclusion  to 
all  others ;  for  that  would  amount  to  discovery  giving  a  right 
equivalent  to  annihilation.  Moveable  effects  may  be  hoarded 
and  kept  out  of  use,  or  be  destroyed,  and  it  will  not  always  be 
easy  to  prove  whether  with  injury  or  benefit  to  mankind  :  but 

the 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  5 

the  necessities  of  human  life  will  not  admit,  unless  under  the   CHAP.  i. 
strong  hand  of  power,   that  a  right  should  be  pretended    to 
keep  extensive  and  fertile  countries  waste  and  secluded  from 
their  use,  without  other  reason  than  the  will  of  a  proprietor  or- 
claimant. 

Particular  local  circumstances  have  created  objections  to 
the  occupancy  of  territory:  for  instance,  between  the  confines 
of  the  Russian  and  Chinese  Empires,  large  tracts  of  country 
are  left  waste,  it  being  held,  that  their  being  occupied  by  the 
subjects  of  either  Empire  would  affect  the  security  of  the 
other.  Several  similar  instances  might  be  mentioned. 

There  is  in  many  cases  difficulty  to  settle  what  constitues 
occupancy.  On  a  small  Island,  any  first  settlement  is  acknow- 
ledged an  occupancy  of  the  whole;  and  sometimes,  the 
occupancy  of  a  single  Island  of  a  group  is  supposed  to  com- 
prehend an  exclusive  title  to  the  possession  of  the  remainder 
of  the  group.  In  the  West  Indies,  the  Spaniards  regarded 
their  making  settlements  on  a  few  Islands,  to  be  an  actual 
taking  possession  of  the  whole,  as  far  as  European  pretensions 
were  concerned. 

The  first  discovery  of  Columbus  set  in  activity  the  curiosity 
and  speculative  dispositions  of"  all  the  European  maritime 
Powers.  King  Henry  the  Vllth,  of  England,  as  soon  as  he 
was  certified  of  the  existence  of  countries  in  the  Western 
hemisphere,  sent  ships  thither,  whereby  Newfoundland,  and 
parts  of  the  continent  of  North  America,  were  first  discovered. 
South  America  was  also  visited  very  early,  both  by  the  English 
and  the  French ;  '  which  nations,'  the  Historian  of  Erasil 
remarks,  '  had  neglected  to  ask  a  share  of  the  undiscovered 

*  World,  when  Pope  Alexander  the  Vlth  partitioned  it,  who 
<  would  as  willingly  have  drawn  two  lines  as  one ;  and,  because 

*  they  derived  no  advantage  from  that  partition,  refused  to 

*  admit 


6  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  i.  '  admit  its  validity.'  The  West  Indies,  however,  which  doubtless 
was  the  part  most  coveted  by  all,  seem  to  have  been  considered 
as  more  particularly  the  discovery  and  right  of  the  Spaniards ; 
and,  either  from  respect  to  their  pretensions,  or  from  the 
opinion  entertained  of  their  force  in  those  parts,  they  remained 
many  years  undisturbed  by  intruders  in  the  West  Indian  Seas. 
But  their  homeward-bound  ships,  and  also  those  of  the 
Portuguese  from  the  East  Indies,  did  not  escape  being  molested 
by  pirates ;  sometimes  by  those  of  their  own,  as  well  as  of 
other  nations. 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA. 


CHAP.     II. 

Review  of  the  Dominion  of  the  Spaniards  in  Hayti  or 

Hispaniola. 

HP  II  E  first  settlement  formed  by  the  Castilians  in  their  newly   CHAP.  2. 
discovered  world,  was  on  the  Island  by  the  native  inha-      1492-3. 
bitants  named  Hayti ;  but  to   which  the  Spaniards  gave  the    Hayti,  or 
name  of  Espanola  or  Hispaniola.     And  in   process  of  time  it     ^  ^"It  *' 
came  to  pass,  that  this  same  Island  became  the  great  place  of  Settlement 
resort,   and   nursery,  of  the   European  adventurers,  who  have    Spaniards 
been  so  conspicuous  under  the  denomination  of  the  Buccaneers  iu  America. 
of  America. 

The  native  inhabitants  found  in  Hayti,  have  been  described 
a  people  of  gentle,  compassionate  dispositions,  of  too  frail  a 
constitution,  both  of  body  and  mind,  either  to  resist  oppression, 
or  to  support  themselves  under  its  weight ;  and  to  the  indolence, 
luxury,  and  avarice  of  the  discoverers,  their  freedom  and 
happiness  in  the  first  instance,  and  finally  their  existence,  fell 
a  sacrifice. 

Queen  Ysabel,  the  patroness  of  the  discovery,  believed  it 
her  duty,  and  was  earnestly  disposed,  to  be  their  protectress; 
but  she  wanted  resolution  to  second  her  inclination.  The 
Island  abounded  in  gold  mines.  The  natives  were  tasked  to 
work  them,  heavier  and  heavier  by  degrees;  and  it  was  the 
great  misfortune  of  Columbus,  after  achieving  an  enterprise, 
the  glory  of  which  was  not  exceeded  by  any  action  of  his 
contemporaries,  to  make  an  ungrateful  use  of  the  success 
Heaven  had  favoured  him  with,  and  to  be  the  foremost  in  the 
destruction  of  the  nations  his  discovery  first  made  known  to 
Europe. 

The 


8  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 

CHAP.  2^  The  population  of  Hayti,  according  to  the  lowest  estima- 
Review  tion  made,  amounted  to  a  million  of  souls.  The  first  visit 
of  the  of  Columbus  was  passed  in  a  continual  reciprocation  of  kind 

Dominion 

ofthe      offices  between  them  and  the  Spaniards.     One  of  the  Spanish 

C  A 

1  ships  was  wrecked  upon  the  coast,  and  the  natives  gave  every 
Hispauiola.  assistance  in  their  power  towards  saving  the  crew,  and  their 
effects  to  them.  When  Columbus  departed  to  return  to  Europe, 
he  left  behind  him  thirty-eight  Spaniards,  with  the  consent  of 
the  Chief  or  Sovereign  of  the  part  of  the  Island  where  he  had 
been  so  hospitably  received.  He  had  erected  a  fort  for  their 
security,  and  the  declared  purpose  of  their  remaining  Avas  to 
protect  the  Chief  against  all  his  enemies.  Several  of  the 
native  Islanders  voluntarily  embarked  in  the  ships  to  go  to 
Spain,  among  Avhom  was  a  relation  of  the  Hayti  Chief;  and 
with  them  were  taken  gold,  and  various  samples  ofthe  produc- 
tions of  the  New  World. 

Columbus,  on  his  return,  was  received  by  the  Court  of  Spain 
with  the  honours  due  to  his  heroic  achievement,  indeed  with 
honours  little  short  of  adoration  :  he  was  declared  Admiral, 
Governor,  and  Viceroy  of  the  Countries  that  he  had  disco- 
vered, and  also  of  those  which  he  should  afterwards  discover; 
he  was  ordered  to  assume  the  style  and  title  of  nobility;  and 
was  furnished  with  a  larger  fleet  to  prosecute  farther  the  disco- 
vcrv,  and  to  make  conquest  of  the  new  lands.  The  Instructions 
for  his  second  expedition  contained  the  following  direction : 

*  Forasmuch  as  you,  Christopher  Columbus,  are  going  by  our 

*  command,   with  our  vessels  and  our  men,  to   discover  and 

*  subdue  certain  Islands  and  Continent,  our  will  is,  that  you 

*  shall  be  our  Admiral,  Viceroy,  and  Governor  in  them.'    This 
was  the  first  step  in  the  iniquitous  usurpations  which  the  more 
cultivated    nations  of  the   world   have   practised    upon   their 
weaker  brethren,  the  natives  of  America. 

Thus 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  9 

Thus  provided  and  instructed,  Columbus  sailed  on  his  second   CHAP.  <*. 
voyage.     On   arriving  at  Hayti,  the  first  news  he  learnt  was,       14Q3. 

that  the  -natives  had  demolished  the  fort  which  he  had  built,    Govern- 

,     ,      ,  ment  of 

and  destroyed  the  garrison,  who,  it  appeared,  had  given  great  Columbus. 

provocation,  by  their  rapacity  and  licentious  conduct.  War  did 
not  immediately  follow.  Columbus  accepted  presents  of  gold, 
from  the  Chief;  he  landed  a  number  of  colonist?,  and  built  a  town 
on  the  North  side  of  Hayti,  which  he  named  after  the  patroness, 
Ysdbel,  and  fortified.  A  second  fort  was  soon  built;  new  1494. 
Spaniards  arrived ;  and  the  natives  began  to  understand  that  it 
was  the  intention  of  their  visitors  to  stay,  and  be  lords  of  the 
country.  The  Chiefs  held  meetings,  to  confer  on  the  means  to 
rid  themselves  of  such  unwelcome  guests,  and  there  was  appear- 
ance of  preparation  making  to  that  end.  The  Spaniards  had 
as  yet  no  farther  asserted  dominion,  than  in  taking  land  for 
their  town  and  forts,  and  helping  themselves  to  provisions 
when  the  natives  neglected  to  bring  supplies  voluntarily.  The 
histories  of  these  transactions  affect  a  tone  of  apprehension  on 
account  of  the  extreme  danger  in  which  the  Spaniards  were, 
from  the  multitude  of  the  heathen  inhabitants  ;  but  all  the 
facts  shew  that  they  perfectly  understood  the  helpless  character 
of  the  natives.  A  Spanish  officer,  named  Pedro  Margarit,  was 
blamed,  not  altogether  reasonably,  for  disorderly  conduct  to 
the  natives,  which  happened  in  the  following  manner.  He  was 
ordered,  with  a  large  body  of  troops,  to  make  a  progress  through 
the  Island  in  different  parts,  and  was  strictly  enjoined  to  re- 
strain his  men  from  committing  any  violence  against  the  natives, 
or  from  giving  them  any  cause  for  complaint.  But  the  troops 
•were  sent  on  their  journey  without  provisions,  and  the  natives 
were  not  disposed  to  furnish  them.  The  troops  recurred  to 
violence,  which  they  did  not  limit  to  the  obtaining  food.  If 
Columbus  could  spare  a  detachment  strong  enough  to  makg 

C  such 


10  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 

CHAT.  2.  such  a  visitation  through  the  land,  he  could  have  entertained 
no  doubt  of  his  ability  to  subdue  it.  But  before  he  risked 
engaging  in  open  war  with  the  natives,  he  thought  it  prudent 
to  weaken  their  means  of  resisting  by  what  he  called  stratagem. 
Hayti  was  divided  into  five  provinces,  or  small  kingdoms, 
under  the  separate  dominion  of  as  many  Princes  or  Caciques. 
One  of  these,  Coanabo,  the  Cacique  of  Magiiana,  Columbus 
believed  to  be  more  resolute,  and  more  dangerous  to  his  pur- 
pose, than  any  other  of  the  chiefs.  To  Coanabo,  therefore*,  he 
sent  an  Officer,  to  propose  an  accommodation  on  terms  which 
appeared  so  reasonable,  that  the  Indian  Chief  assented  to  them. 
Afterwards,  relying  on  the  good  faith  of  the  Spaniards,  not,  as 
some  authors  have  meanly  represented,  through  credulous  and 
childish  simplicity,  but  with  the  natural  confidence  which 
generalhy  prevails,  and  which  ought  to  prevail,  among  mankind 
in  their  mutual  engagements,  he  gave  opportunity  for  Columbus 
to  get  possession  of  his  person,  who  caused  him  to  be  seized, 
and  embarked  in  a  ship  then  ready  to  sail  for  Spain.  The  ship 
foundered  in  the  passage.  The  story  of  Coanabo,  and  the 
contempt  with  which  he  treated  Columbus  for  his  treachery, 
form  one  of  the  most  striking  circumstances  in  the  history  of 
1405.  the  perfidious  dealings  of  the  Spaniards  in  America.  On  the 

Dogs  used  seizure  of  this  Chief,  the  Islanders  rose  in  arms.     Columbus 

in  Battle     took  the   field   with  two  hundred  foot  armed  with  musketry 
against  the 
Indians,     and  cross-bows,  with  twenty  troopers  mounted  on  horses,  and 

with  twenty  large  dogs  *  ! 

It  is  not  to  be  urged  in  exculpation  of  the  Spaniards,  that 
the  natives  were  the  aggressors,  by  their  killing  the  garrison  left 
at  Hayti.  Columbus  had  terminated  his  first  visit  in  friendship; 
and,  without  the  knowledge  that  any  breach  had  happened 
between  the  Spaniards  left  behind,  and  the  natives,  sentence 

.of 

*  Lebreles  de  pressa. 


IN    HISPANIOLA.  11 

of  subjugation  had  been  pronounced  against  them.     This  was   CHAP.  2. 
not  to  av-enge  injury,  for  the  Spaniards  knew  not  of  any  com-      1495. 
mitted.    Columbus  was  commissioned  to  execute  this  sentence, 
and  for   that  end,   besides  a   force   of  armed    men,  he  took 
with  him  from  Spain  a  number  of  blood-hounds,   to  prosecute 
a  most  unrighteous  purpose  by  the  most  inhuman  means* 

Many  things  are  justifiable  in  defence,  which  in  offensive 
war  are  regarded  by  the  generality  of  mankind  with  detestation. 
All  are  agreed  in  the  use  of  dogs,  as  faithful  guards  to  our 
persons  as  well  as  to  our  dwellings;  but  to  hunt  men  with  dogs 
seems  to  have  been  till  then  unheard  of,  and  is  nothing  less 
offensive  to  humanity  than  cannibalism  or  feasting  on  our 
enemies.  Neither  jagged  shot,  poisoned  darts,  springing  of 
mines,  nor  any  species  of  destruction,  can  be  objected  to,  if  this 
is  allowed  in  honourable  war,  or  admitted  not  to  be  a  disgraceful 
practice  in  any  war. 

It  was  scarcely  possible  for  the  Indians,  or  indeed  for  any 
people  naked  and  undisciplined,  however  numerous,  to  stand 
their  ground  against  a  force  so  calculated  to  excite  dread.  The 
Islanders  were  naturally  a  timid  people,  and  they  regarded 
fire-arms  as  engines  of  more  than  mortal  contrivance.  Don 
Ferdinand,  the  son  of  Columbus,  who  wrote  a  History  of  his 
father's  actions,  relates  an  instance,  which  happened  before  the 
war,  of  above  400  Indians  running  away  from  a  single  Spanish 
horseman.  So  little  was  attack,  or  valiant  opposition,  appre- 
hended from  the  natives,  that  Columbus  divided  his  force  into 
several  squadrons,  to  charge  them  at  different  points.  *  These  Massacreof 
*  faint-hearted  creatures,'  says  Don  Ferdinand,  «  fled  at  the 


'  first  onset;  and  our  men,  pursuing  and  killing  them,  made  jugation  of 
*  such  havock,  that  in  a  short  time  they  obtained  a  complete 
'  victory.'      The  policy  adopted  by  Columbus  was,  to  confirm 
the  natives  in  their  dread  of  European  arms,  by  a  terrible 

c  2  execution. 


12  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 


CHAP.   2. 


execution.  The  victors,  both  dogs  and  men,  used  their  ascen- 
*495-  dancy  like  furies.  The  dogs  flew  at  the  throats  of  the  Indians, 
and  strangled  or  tore  them  in  pieces ;  whilst  the  Spaniards, 
with  the  eagerness  of  hunters,  pursued  and  mowed  down  the 
unresisting  fugitives.  Some  thousands  of  the  Islanders  were 
slaughtered,  and  those  taken  prisoners  were  consigned  to  ser- 
vitude. If  the  fact  were  not  extant,  it  would  not  be  conceivable 
that  any  one  could  be  so  blind  to  the  infamy  of  such  a  pro- 
ceeding, as  to  extol  the  courage  of  the  Spaniards  on  this 
occasion,  instead  of  execrating  their  cruelty.  Three  hundred 
of  the  natives  were  shipped  for  Spain  as  slaves,  and  the  whole 
Island,  with  the  exception  of  a  small  part  towards  the  Western 
coast,  which  has  since  been  named  the  Cul  de  Sac,  was  subdued. 
Tribute  Columbus  made  a  leisurely  progress  through  the  Island,  which 
imposed,  occupied  him  nine  or  ten  months,  and  imposed  a  tribute 
generally  upon  all  the  natives  above  the  age  of  fourteen, 
requiring  each  of  them  to  pay  quarterly  a  certain  quantity  of 
gold,  or  25lbs.  of  cotton.  Those  natives  who  were  discovered  to 
have  been  active  against  the  Spaniards,  were  taxed  higher.  To 
prevent  evasion,  rings  or  tokens,  to  be  produced  in  the  nature  of 
receipts,  were  given  to  the  Islanders  on  their  paying  the  tribute, 
and  any  Islander  found  without  such  a  mark  in  his  possession, 
was  deemed  not  to  have  paid,  and  proceeded  against. 

Queen  Ysabel  shewed  her  disapprobation  of  Columbia's 
proceed  ings,  by  liberating  and  sending  back  the  captive  Islanders 
.to  their  own  country  ;  and  she  moreover  added  her  positive 
commands,  that  none  of  the  natives  should  be  made  slaves. 
This  order  was  accompanied  with  others  intended  for  their 
protection;  but  the  Spanish  Colonists,  following  the  example 
of  their  Governor,  contrived  means  to  evade  them. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Islanders  could  not  furnish  the 
tribute,  and  Columbus  was  rigorous  in  the  collection.  It  is 

said 


IN    HISPANIOLA.  13 

said   in  palliation,  that  he  was   embarrassed   in    consequence  . CHAP.  2. 

of  the  magnificent  descriptions  he  had  given  to  Ferdinand  and       1495- 

Ysabel,  of  the  riches   of  Hispaniola,  by  which  he  had  taught 

them  to  expect  much  ;  and  that  the  fear  of  disappointing  them 

and  losing  their  favour,  prompted  him  to  act  more  oppressively 

to  the  Indians  than  his  disposition  otherwise  inclined  him  to 

do.    Distresses  of  this  kind  press  upon  all  men  ;  but  only  in 

very  ordinary  minds  do  they  outweigh  solemn   considerations. 

Setting   aside    the   dictates    of  religion   and    moral    duty,    as 

doubtless  was  done,  and  looking  only  to  worldly  advantages, 

if  Columbus  had  properly  estimated  his  situation,   he  would 

have  been  resolute  not  to  descend  from  the  eminence  he  had 

attained.     The  dilemma  in  which  he  was  placed,  was  simply, 

whether  he  would  risk  some  diminution  of  the  favour  he  was  in 

at  Court,  by  being  the  protector  of  these  Islanders,  who,  by 

circumstances    peculiarly   calculated    to    engage   his   interest, 

were  entitled  in  an  especial  manner  to  have  been  regarded  as 

his  clients;  or,  to   preserve  that  favour,  would  oppress  them. 

to  their  destruction,  and  to  the  ruin  of  his  own  fame. 

The  Islanders,  finding  their  inability  to  oppose  the  invaders,  Despair  of 
took  the  desperate  resolution  to  desist  from  the  cultivation  of  the  Natives. 
their  lands,  to  abandon  their  houses,  and  to  withdraw  them- 
selves to  the  mountains;  hoping  thereby  that  want  of  subsistence 
would  force  their  oppressors  to  quit  the  Island.  The  Spaniards 
had  many  resources ;  the  sea-coast  supplied  them  with  fish,  and 
their  vessels  brought  provisions  from  other  islands.  As  to  the 
natives  of  Hayti,  one  third  part  of  them,  it  is  said,  perished  in 
the  course  of  a  few  months,  by  famine  and  by  suicide.  The 
rest  returned  to  their  dwellings,  and  submitted.  All  these  events 
took  place  within  three  years  after  the  discovery;  so  active 
is  rapacity. 

Some  among  the  Spaniards  (authors  of  that  time  say,  the 

enemies 


14 


DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 


1495- 


1496. 


CHAP.  2.  enemies  of  Columbus,  as  if  sentiments  of  humanity  were  not 
capable  of  such  an  effort)  wrote  Memorials  to  their  Catholic 
Majesties,  representing  the  disastrous  condition  to  which  the 
natives  Avere  reduced.  Commissioners  were  sent  to  examine 
into  the  fact,  and  Columbus  found  it  necessary  to  go  to  Spain 
to  defend  his  administration. 

So  great  was  the  veneration  and  respect  entertained  for  him, 
that  on  his  arrival  at  Court,  accusation  was  not  allowed  to  be 
produced  against  him:  and,  without  instituting  enquiry,  it  was 
arranged,  that  he  should  return  to  his  government  with  a  large 
reinforcement  of  Spaniards,  and  with  authority  to  grant  lands 
to  whomsoever  he  chose  to  think  capable  of  cultivating  them. 
Various  accidents  delayed  his  departure  from  Spain  on  his 
third  voyage,  till  1498. 

He  had  left  two  of  his  brothers  to  govern  in  Hispaniola  during 
his  absence;  the  eldest,  Bartolome,  with  the  title  of  Adelantado; 
in  whose  time  (A.D.  1496)  was  traced,  on  the  South  side  of  the 
Island,  the  plan  of  a  new  town  intended  for  the  capital,   the 
land  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  town  of  Ysabel,  before  built, 
being  poor  and  little  productive.     The  name  first  given  to  the 
Its  name    m;w  *own  was  Nueva  Ysabel;  this  in  a  short  time  gave  place 
changed  to  to  that  of  Santo  Domingo,  a  name  which  was  not  imposed  b 
Domin«o.   authority,  but    adopted   and  became  in  time   established   by 
common  usage,  of  which  the  original  cause  is  not  now  known*. 
Under  the  Adelantado's  government,  the  parts  of  the  Island 
which  till  then  had  held   out  in   their  refusal  to  receive   the 
Spanish  yoke,  were  reduced  to  subjection;  and  the  conqueror 
gratified  his  vanity  with  the  public  execution  of  one  of  the 

Hayti  Kings. 

Columbus 

*  The  name  Saint  Domingo  was  afterwards  applied  to  the  whole  Island  by 
the  French,  who,  whilst  they  contested  the  possession  with  the  Spaniards,  were 
desirous  to  supersede  the  use  of  the  name  Espanola  or  Hispaniola. 


City  of 

^i  ueva 

Ysabel 

founded, 

1496. 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  15 

Columbus  whilst  he  was  in  Spain  received  mortification  in  CHAP,  a. 
two  instances,  of  neither  of  which  he  had  any  right  to  com-  14gg< 
plain.  In  October  1496,  three  hundred  natives  of  Hayti  (made 
prisoners  by  the  Adelantado)  were  landed  at  Cadiz,  being  sent 
to  Spain  as  slaves.  At  this  act  of  disobedience,  the  King  and 
Queen  strongly  expressed  their  displeasure,  and  said,  if  the 
Islanders  made  war  against  the  Castilians,  they  must  have 
been  constrained  to  do  it  by  hard  treatment.  Columbus 
thought  proper  to  blame,  and  to  disavow  what  his  brother  had 
done.  The  other  instance  of  his  receiving  mortification,  was  an 
act  of  kindness  done  him,  and  so  intended  ;  and  it  was  the 
only  shadow  of  any  thing  like  reproof  offered  to  him.  In  the 
instructions  which  he  now  received,  it  was  earnestly  recom- 
mended to  him  to  prefer  conciliation  to  severity  on  all  occasions 
•which  would  admit  it  without  prejudice  to  justice  or  to  his 
honour. 

It  was  in  the  third  voyage  of  Columbus  that  he  first  saw  the      1498. 
Continent  of  South  America,  in  August  1498,  which  he  then 
took  to   be  an  Island,  and  named  Isla  Santa.     lie  arrived  on 
the  22d  of  the  same  month  at  the  City  of  San  Domingo. 

The  short  remainder  of  Columbus's  government  in  Hayti  was 
occupied  with  disputes  among  the  Spaniards  themselves.  A 
strong  party  was  in  a  state  of  revolt  against  the  government  of 
the  Colunnbuses,  and  accommodation  was  kept  at  a  distance, 
by  neither  party  daring  to  place  trust  in  the  other.  Columbus 
would  have  had  recourse  to  arms  to  recover  his  authority,  but 
some  of  his  troops  deserted  to  the  disaffected,  arid  others  re-  1498-9. 
fused  to  be  employed  against  their  countrymen.  In  this  state, 
the  parties  engaged  in  a  treaty  on  some  points,  and  each  sent 
Memorials  to  the  Court.  The  Admiral  in  his  dispatches  re- 
presented, that  necessity  had  made  him  consent  to  certain 
conditions,  to  avoid  endangering  the  Colony ;  but  that  it  would 

be 


16  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 


CHAP. 


be  highly  prejudicial  to  the  interests  of  their  Majesties  to  ratify 
1498-9.  the  treaty  he  had  been  forced  to  subscribe. 
Beginning  The  Admiral  now  made  grants  of  lands  to  Spanish  colonists, 
and  accompanied  them  with  requisitions  to  the  neighbouring 
Caciques,  to  furnish  the  new  proprietors  with  labourers  to 
cultivate  the  soil.  This  was  the  beginning  of  the  Repartimientos, 
or  distributions  of  the  Indians,  which  confirmed  them  slaves, 
and  contributed,  more  than  all  former  oppressions,  to  their 
extermination.  Notwithstanding  the  earnest  and  express  order 
of  the  King  and  Queen  to  the  contrary,  the  practice  of  trans- 
porting the  natives  of  Hayti  to  Spain  as  slaves,  was  connived 
at  and  continued ;  and  this  being  discovered,  lost  Columbus 
the  confidence,  but  not  wholly  the  support,  of  Queen  Ysabel. 
1500.  The  dissensions  in  the  Colony  increased,  as  did  the  unpopu- 
Govern-  larity  of  the  Admiral ;  and  in  the  year  1500,  a  new  Governor 
Bovadilla.  General  of  the  Indies,  Francisco  de  Bovadilla,  was  sent  from 
Spain,  with  a  commission  empowering  him  to  examine  into  the 
accusations  against  the  Admiral ;  and  he  was  particularly 
enjoined  by  the  Queen,  to  declare  all  the  native  inhabitants 
free,  and  to  take  measures  to  secure  to  them  that  they  should 
be  treated  as  a  free  people.  How  a  man  so  grossly  ignorant 
and  intemperate  as  Bovadilla,  should  have  been  chosen  to  an 
office  of  such  high  trust,  is  not  a  little  extraordinary.  His  first 
display  of  authority  was  to  send  the  Columbuses  home  prisoners, 
with  the  indignity  to  their  persons  of  confining  them  in  chains. 
He  courted  popularity  in  his  government  by  shewing  favour 
to  all  who  had  been  disaffected  to  the  government  or  measures 
of  the  Admiral  and  his  brothers,  the  natives  excepted,  for  whose 
relief  he  had  been  especially  appointed  Governor.  To  encourage 
the  Spaniards  to  work  the  mines,  he  reduced  the  duties  payable 
to  ihe  Crown  on  the  produce,  and  trusted  to  an  increase  in  the 
quantity  of  gold  extracted,  for  preserving  the  revenue  from 

diminution. 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  17 

diminution.     This  was  to  be  effected  by  increasing  the  labour   CHAP.  2. 
of  the  natives ;   and  that  these  miserable  people  might  not       1500 
evade  their  servitude,  he  caused  muster-rolls  to  be  made  of  all     jJJJ.^ 
the  inhabitants,  divided   them  into  classes,  and  made  distri-   compelled 
bution  of  them  according  to  the  value  of  the  mines,  or  to  his  to  jj°*s*e 
desire   to  gratify   particular  persons.    The  Spanish  Colonists 
believed   that  the  same   facilities  to  enrich  themselves  would 
not  last  long,  and  made  all  the  haste  in  their  power  to  profit 
by  the  present  opportunity. 

Bj'  these  means,  Bovadilla  drew  from  the  mines  in  a  few 
months  so  great  a  quantity  of  gold,  that  one  fleet  which  he  sent 
home,  carried  a  freight  more  than  sufficient  to  reimburse  Spain 
all  the  expences  which  had-  been  incurred  in  the  discovery  and 
conquest.  The  procuring  these  riches  was  attended  with  so 
great  a  mortality  among  the  natives  as  to  threaten  their  utter 
extinction. 

Nothing  could  exceed  the  surprise  and  indignation  of  the 
Queen,  on  receiving  information  of  these  proceedings.  The 
bad  government  of  Bovadilla  was  a  kind  of  palliation  which 
had  the  effect  of  lessening  the  reproach  upon  the  preceding 
government,  and,  joined  to  the  disgraceful  manner  in  which 
Columbus  had  been  sent  home,  produced  a  revolution  of  sen- 
timent in  his  favour.  The  good  Queen  Ysabel  wished  to  com- 
pensate him  for  the  hard  treatment  he  had  received,  at  the 
same  time  that  she  had  the  sincerity  to  make  him  understand 
she  would  not  again  commit  the  Indian  natives  to  his  care. 
All  his  other  offices  and  dignities  were  restored  to  him. 

For   a  successor  to    Bovadilla   in   the   office   of   Governor     3501-2. 
General,    Don    Nicolas  Ovando,  a  Cavalero  of  the  Order  of    Ovamfo 
Alcantara,  was  chosen;  a  man  esteemed  capable  and  just,  and   Governor, 
who  entered  on  his  government  with  apparent  mildness  and 
consideration.  But  in  a  short  time  he  proved  the  most  execrable 

D  of 


18  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 

CHAP.  «.  of  all  the   tyrants,  'as   if,'  says  an  historian,  *  tyranny    was 
1-2-     *  inherent  and  contagious  in  the  office,  so  as  to  change  good 

*  men   to    bad,    for    the    destruction    of    these    unfortunate 

*  Indians.' 

In  obedience  to  his  instructions,  Ovando,  on  arriving  at  his 
government,  called  a  General  Assembly  of  all  the  Caciques  or 
principal  persons  among  the  natives,  to  whom  he  declared, 
that  their  Catholic  Majesties  took  the  Islanders  under  their 
royal  protection  ;  that  no  exaction  should  be  made  on  them, 
other  than  the  tribute  which  had  been  heretofore  imposed  ;  and 
that  no  person  should  be  employed  to  work  in  the  mines, 
except  on  the  footing  of  voluntary  labourers  for  wages. 
1(;o2i  On  the  promulgation  of  the  royal  pleasure,  all  working  in 

Working    the  mines  immediately  ceased.     The  impression  made  by  their 
Past  sufferings  was  too  strong  for  any  offer  of  pay  or  reward  to 


tinuedby  prevail  on  them  to  continue  in  that  work.  [The  same  thing 
Spain,  happened,  many  years  afterwards,  between  the  Chilese  and  the 
Spaniards.]  A  few  mines  had  been  allowed  to  remain  in 
possession  of  some  of  the  Caciques  of  Jlayti,  on  the  condition 
of  rendering  up  half  the  produce;  but  now,  instead  of  working 
them,  they  sold  their  implements.  In  consequence  of  this 
defection,  it  was  judged  expedient  to  lower  the  royal  duties 
on  the  produce  of  the  mines,  which  produced  some  effect. 

Ovando,  however,  was  intent  on  procuring  the  mines  to  be 
worked  as  heretofore,  but  proceeded  with  caution.  In  his 
dispatches  to  the  Council  of  the  Indies,  he  represented  in 
strong  colours  the  natural  levity  and  inconstancy  of  the 
Indians,  and  their  idle  and  disorderly  manner  of  living  ;  on 
which  account,  he  said,  it  would  be  for  their  improvement 
and  benefit  to  find  them  occupation  in  moderate  labour  ;  that 
there  would  be  no  injustice  in  so  doing,  as  they  would  receive 
•wages  for  their  work,  and  they  would  thereby  be  enabled  to 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  19 

pay  the  tribute,  which  otherwise,  from  their  habitual  idleness,   CHAP.  a. 
many  Would  not  be  able  to  satisfy.     He  added  moreover,  that      1502. 
the  Indians,  being  left  entirely  their  own  masters,  kept  at  a 
distance  from  the  Spanish  habitations,  which  rendered  it  im- 
possible to  instruct  them  in  the  principles  of  Christianity. 

This  reasoning,  and  the  proposal  to  furnish  the  natives  with 
employment,  were  approved  by  the  Council  of  the  Indies ;  and 
the  Court,  from  the  opinion  entertained  of  the  justice  and 
moderation  of  Ovando,  acquiesced  so  far  as  to  trust  making 
the  experiment  to  his  discretion.  In  reply  to  his  representa- 
tions, he  received  instructions  recommending,  '  That  if  it  was 
'  necessary  to  oblige  the  Indians  to  work,  it  should  be  done 

*  in  the  most  gentle  and  moderate  manner ;  that  the  Caciques 

*  should  be  invited  to  send  their  people  in  regular  turns ;  and 
'  that  the  employers  should  treat   them  well,  and  pay  them 

*  wages,  according  to  the  quality  of  the  person  and  nature  of 

*  the   labour  ;    that    care   should    be   taken  for  their  regular 

*  attendance  at  religious  service  and  instruction ;  and   that  it 

*  should   be    remembered    they    were    a  free   people,    to    be 

*  governed  with  mildness,  and  on  no  account  to  be  treated  as 

*  slaves.' 

These  directions,  notwithstanding  the  expressions  of  care  for     1502-3. 
the  natives  contained  in  them,  released  the  Governor  General 
from  all  restriction.     This  man  had  recently  been   appointed      to  the 
Grand  Master  of  the  order  ofCalatrava,  and  thenceforward  he 
was  most  generally  distinguished  by  the  appellation  or  title  of 
the  Grand  Commander. 

A  transaction  of  a  shocking  nature,  which  took  place  during 
Bovadilla's  government,  caused  an  insurrection  of  the  natives; 
but  which  did  not  break  out  till  after  the  removal  of  Bovadilla. 
A  Spanish  vessel  had  put  into  a  port  of  the  province  of  Higuey 
(the  most  Eastern  part  of  Hayti)  to  procure  a  lading  of  cassavay 

D  2  a  root 


so  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 


CHAP.    2. 


a  root  which  is  used  as  bread.     The  Spaniards  landed,  having 
1502-3.     with  them  a  large  dog  held   by  a  cord.     Whilst  the  natives 
were  helping  them  to  what  they  wanted,   one  of  the  Spaniards 
in  wanton  insolence  pointed  to  a  Cacique,  and  called  to  the 
dog  in  manner  of  setting  him  on.     The  Spaniard  who  held  the 
cord,  it  is  doubtful  whether  purposely  or  by  accident,  suffered 
it  to  slip  out  of  his  hand,  and  the  dog  instantly  tore  out  the 
unfortunate  Cacique's   entrails.    The  people  of  Higuey  sent  a 
deputation,  to  complain    to  Bovadilla;    but  those    who  went 
could   not  obtain    attention.     In   the  beginning   of  Ovando's 
government,  some  other  Spaniards  landed  at  the  same  port  of 
Higuey,  and  the  natives,  in  revenge  for  what  had  happened,  fell 
upon  them,  and  killed  them ;  after  which  they  took  to  arms. 
Severities   This  insurrection  was  quelled  with  so  great  a  slaughter,  that 
t^people  the  province,  from  having  been  well  peopled,  was  rendered 
of  Higuey.  almOst  a  desert. 

Ovando,  on  obtaining  his  new  instructions,  followed  the  model 

set  by  his  predecessors.     He  enrolled  and  classed  the  natives  in 

divisions,  called  Repartimientos  :  from  these  he  assigned  to  the 

1503.      Spanish  proprietors  a  specified  number  of  labourers,  by  grants, 

Encomiendas  wnich     with    most    detestable  hypocrisy,    were    denominated 
established.   _  . Jt 

Encomiendas.     j  he  word  Lncomienaa  signifies  recommendation, 

and  the  employer  to  whom  the  Indian  was  consigned,  was  to 
have  the  reputation  of  being  his  patron.  The  Encomienda  was 
conceived  in  the  following  terms  : — '  I  recommend  to  A.  B. 
'  such  and  such  Indians  (listed  by  name)  the  subjects  of  such 
*  Cacique ;  and  he  is  to  take  care  to  have  them  instructed  in  the 
'  principles  of  our  holy  faith.' 

.  Under  the  enforcement  of  the  encomiendas,  the  natives  were 
again  dragged  to  the  mines;  and  many  of  these  unfortunate 
wretches  were  kept  by  their  hard  employers  under  ground  for 
six  months  together.  With  the  labour,  and  grief  at  being 


again 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  21 

again  doomed  to  slavery,  they  sunk  so  rapidly,  that  it  suggested  ^c  H  A  p.  2. 
to  the  murderous  proprietors  of  the  mines  the  having  recourse    ~ 


to  Africa  for  slaves.     Ovando,  after  small  experience  of  this     African 
practice,  endeavoured  to  oppose  it  as  dangerous,  the  Africans    carried  to 
frequently  escaping  from  their  masters,  and  finding  concealment    tlle  West 
among    the    natives,    in    whom    they  excited    some    spirit  of 
resistance. 

The  ill  use  made  by  the  Grand  Commander  of  the  powers 
with  which  he  had  been  trusted,  appears  to  have  reached  the 
Court  early,  for,  in  1503,  he  received  fresh  orders,  enjoining 
him  not-to  allow,  on  any  pretext,  the  natives  to  be  employed  in 
labour  against  their  own  will,  either  in  the  mines  or  elsewhere. 
Ovando,  however,  trusted  to  being  supported  by  the  Spanish 
proprietors  of  the  mines  within  his  government,  who  grew  rich 
by  the  encomiendas,  and  with  their  assistance  he  found  pre- 
tences for  not  restraining  himself  to  the  orders  of  the  Court. 

In  parts  of  the  Island,  the  Caciques  still  enjoyed  a  degree 
of  authority  over  the  natives,  which  rested  almost  Avholly  on 
habitual  custom  and  voluntary  attachment.  To  loosen  this 
band,  Ovando,  assuming  the  character  of  a  protector,  published 
ordonnances  to  release  the  lower  classes  from  -the  oppressions 
of  the  Caciques;  but  from  those  of  their  European  taskmasters 
he  gave  them  no  relief. 

Some  of  the  principal  among  the  native  inhabitants  of 
Xaragtta,  the  South-western  province  of  Hayti,  had  the 
hardiness  openly  to  express  their  discontent  at  the  tyranny 
exercised  by  the  Spaniards  established  in  that  province.  The 
person  at  this  time  regarded  as  Cacique  or  Chief  of  Xaragua 
was  a  female,  sister  to  the  last  Cacique,  who  had  died  without 
issue.  The  Spanish  histories  call  her  Queen  of  Xaragua.  This 
Princess  had  shewn  symptoms  of  something  like  abhorrence 
of  the  Spaniards  near  her,  and  they  did  not  fail  to  send  repre- 

sentations 


22  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 

c  H  A  P.  2.   sentations  to  the  Grand  Commander,  with  the  addition,  that  there 
1503       appeared  indications  of  an  intention  in  the  Xaraguans  to  revolt. 
On  receiving  this  notice,    Ovando  determined  that  Xaragua, 
as  Higuey  had  before,  should  feel  the  weight  of  his  displeasure. 
Putting  himself  at  the  head  of  370  Spanish  troops,  part  of  them 
cavalry,  he  departed  from  the  city  of  San  Domingo  for  the 
devoted  province,  giving  out  publicly,  that  his  intention  was 
to  make  a  progress  into  the  West,  to  collect  the  tribute,  and  to 
visit  the  Queen  of  Xaragua.     He  was  received  by  the  Princess 
and  her  people  with  honours,  feastings,  and  all  the  demon- 
strations of  joy  usually  acted  by  terrified  people  with  the  hopes 
of  soothing  tyranny  ;  and  the  troops  were  regaled  with  profusion 
1503-4.     of  victuals,  with  dancing,  and  shows.     After  some  days  thus 
spent,  Ovando  invited  the  Princess,  her  friends  and  attendants, 
to  an  entertainment  which  he  promised  them,  after  the  manner 
of  Spain.     A  large  open  public  building  was  the  chosen  place 
for  holding  this  festival,  and  all  the  Spanish  settlers  in   the 
province   were   required    to    attend.     A   great   concourse   of 
Indians,  besides  the  bidden  guests,  crowded  round,  to  enjoy 
the  spectacle.     As  the  appointed  time  approached,  the  Spanish 
infantry   gradually   appeared,  and  took  possession  of  all  the 
avenues;  which  being  secured,  this  Grand  Commander  himself 
Massacre    appeared,  mounted   at  the  head  of  his  cavalry;   and  on  his 
of  the      making  a  signal,  which  had  been  previously  concerted,  which 
aragua.    was  laying  his  hand  on  the  Cross  of  his  Order,   the  whole  of 
these  diabolical  conquerors  fell  upon  the  defenceless  multitude, 
who  were  so  hemmed  in,  that  thousands  were  slaughtered,  and 
it  was  scarcely  possible  for  any  to  escape  unwounded.     Some 
of  the  principal  Indians  or  Caciques,  it  is  said,  were  by  the 
Commander's  order  fastened  to  the  pillars  of  the  building,  where 
they   were    questioned,   and  made   to   confess   themselves   in 
a  conspiracy   against  the   Spanish  government;    after  which 

confession 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  23 

confession  the-building  was  set  on  fire,  and  they  perished  in  the  CHAP.  2. 
flames.  The  massacre  did  not  stop  here.  Detachments  of  troops, 
with  dogs,  were  sent  to  hunt  and  destroy  the  natives  in  different 
parts  of  the  province,  and  some  were  pursued  over  to  the 
Island  Gonave.  The  Princess  was  carried  bound  to  the  city 
of  San  Domingo,  and  with  the  forms  of  law  was  tried,  con- 
demned, and  put  to  death. 

The  purposes,  besides  that  of  gratifying  his  revenge  for  the 
hatred  shewn  to  his  government,  which  were  sufficient  to  move 
Ovando  to  this  bloody  act,  were,  the  plunder  of  the  province, 
and  the  reduction  of  the  Islanders  to  a  more  manageable 

3 

number,  and  to  the  most  unlimited  submission.  Some  of  the 
Indians  fled  to  the  mountains.  *  But/  say  the  Spanish  Chro-  1504. 
nicies  of  these  events,  '  in  a  short  time  their  Chiefs  were  taken 
'  and  punished,  and  at  the  end  of  six  months  there  was  not  a 
'  native  living  on  the  Island  who  had  not  submitted  to  the 
*  dominion  of  the  Spaniards.' 

Queen  Ysabel  died   in  November  1504,  much  and  univer-    Death  of 
sally   lamented.      This    Princess    bore   a   large   share   in    the     Ybel 
usurpations  practised  in  the  New  World;  but  it  is  evident  she 
was  carried  away,  contrary  to  her  real  principles  and  disposition, 
which  were  just  and  benevolent,  and  to  lier  own  happiness,  by 
the  powerful  stream  of  general  opinion. 

In  Europe,  political  principles,  or  maxims  of  policy,'  have 
been  in  continual  change,  fashioned  by  the  nature  of  the  pass- 
ing events,  no  less  than  dress  has  been  by  caprice  ;  causes  which 
have  led  one  to  deviate  from  plain  rectitude,  as  the  other  from 
convenience.  One  principle,  covetousness  of  the  attainment  of 
power,  has  nevertheless  constantly  predominated,  and  has  derided 
and  endeavoured  to  stigmatize  as  weakness  and  imbecility,  the 
stopping  short  of  great  acquisitions,  territorial  especially,  for 
moral  considerations.  Queen  Ysabel  lived  surrounded  by  a 

world 


24  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 

CHAP.  2.  world  of  such  politicians,  who  were  moreover  stimulated  to 
1504.  avarice  by  the  prospect  of  American  gold;  a  passion  which 
yet  more  than  ambition  is  apt  to  steel  the  heart  of  man  against 
the  calls  of  justice  and  the  distresses  of  his  fellow  creatures. 
If  Ysabel  had  been  endued  with  more  than  mortal  fortitude, 
she  might  have  refused  her  sanction  to  the  usurpations,  but 
could  not  have  prevented  them.  On  her  death  bed  she  earnestly 
recommended  to  King  Ferdinand  to  recal  Ovando.  Ovando, 
however,  sent  home  much  gold,  and  Ferdinand  referred  to  a 
distant  time  the  fulfilment  of  her  dying  request. 

Upon  news  of  the  death  of  Queen  Ysabel,  the  small  wages 
which  had  been  paid  the  Indians  for  their  labour,  amounting 
to  about  half  a  piastre  per  month,  were  withheld,  as  being  too 
grievous  a  burthen  on  the  Spanish  Colonists  ;  and  the  hours  of 
labour  were  no  longer  limited.  In  the  province  of  Higuey, 
the  tyranny  and  licentiousness  of  the  military  again  threw  the 
poor  natives  into  a  frenzy  of  rage  and  despair,  and  they  once 
1506.  more  revolted,  burnt  the  fort,  and  killed  the  soldiers.  Ovando 
resolved  to  put  it  out  of  the  power  of  the  people  of  Higucy 
ever  again  to  be  troublesome.  A  strong  body  of  troops  was 
marched  into  the  province,  the  Cacique  of  Higuey  (the  last  of 
the  Hayti  Kings)  was  taken  prisoner  and  executed,  and  the 
province  pacified. 

The    pecuniary   value     of    grants    of  land    in    Hayti    with 

encomiendas,  became  so  considerable  as   to  cause  them   to   be 

coveted    and   solicited   for*   by    many   of    the    grandees    and 

favourites  of  the  Court  in  Spain,  who,  on  obtaining  them,  sent 

^  -  out  agents  to  turn  them  to  account.     The  agent  was  to  make 

condition    his  own  fortune  by  his   employment,  and  to   satisfy  his  prin- 

Natives.    cipal.     In  no   instance  were  the  natives  spared  through  any 

interference  of  the  Grand  Commander.     It  was  a  maxim  with 

this  bad  man,  always  to  keep  well  with  the  powerful ;  and  every 

thing 


IN    HISPANIOLA.  25 

thing  respecting  the  natives  was  yielded  to  their  accommo-  ^CHAP.  2.^ 
dation.     Care,  however,  was  taken  that  the  Indians  should  be      1506. 
baptised,  and  that  a  head  tax  should  be  paid  to  the  Crown; 
and  these  particulars  being  complied  with,  the  rest  was  left  to 
the   patron  of  the  encomienda.     Punishments  and  tortures  of 
every  kind  were  practised,  to  wring  labour  out  of  men  who 
were  dying  through  despair.    Some  of  the  accounts,  which  are 
corroborated  by  circumstances,  relate,  that  the  natives  were 
frequently  coupled  and  harnessed  like  cattle,  and  driven  with 
whips.     If  they  fell  under  their  load,  they  were   flogged    up. 
To  prevent  their    taking  refuge  in   the  woods  or  mountains, 
an  officer,  under  the  title  of  Alguazil  del  Campo,  was  constantly 
on  the  watch   with  a  pack  of  hounds ;  and  many  Indians,  in 
endeavouring  to  escape,  were  torn  in  pieces.     The  settlers  on 
the  Island,  the  great  men  at  home,  their  agents,  and  the  royal 
revenue,  were  all  to  be  enriched  at  the  expence  of  the  de- 
struction of  the  natives.    It  was  as  if  the  discovery  of  America 
had  changed   the  religion  of  the  Spaniards  from  Christianity 
to  the  worship  of  gold  with  human   sacrifices.     If  power  were 
entitled  to  dominion  between  man  and  man,  as  between  man 
and  other  animals,  the  Spaniards  would  remain  chargeable  with 
the  most  outrageous  abuse  of  their  advantages.     In  enslaving 
the    inhabitants    of  Hayti,  if  they  had    been    satisfied  with 
reducing   them  to   the   state  of  cattle,    it  would   have    been 
merciful,  comparatively  with  what  was  done.     The  labour  im- 
posed by  mankind  upon  their  cattle,  is  in  general  so  regulated 
as  not  to  exceed  what  is  compatible  with  their  full  enjoyment 
of  health  ;  but  the  main  consideration  with  the  Spanish  pro- 
prietors was,  by  what  means  they  should  obtain  the  greatest 
quantity  of  gold  from  the  labour  of  the  natives  in  the  shortest 
time.    By  an  enumeration  made  in  the  year  1507,  the  number 
pf  the  natives   in   the    whole  Island  Haytl  was  reckoned  at 

E  60,000, 


26  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 

CHAP.  2.  60,000,  the  remains  of  a  population  which  fifteen  years  before 

j  "6>      exceeded  a  million.    The  insatiate  colonists  did  not  stop :  many 

of  the  mines  lay  unproductive  for  want  of  labourers,  and  they 

bent  their  efforts  to  the  supplying  this  defect. 

The  Grand      The  Islands  of-  the  West  Indies  have  been  classed  into  three 

Antilles,  divisions,  which  chiefly  regard  their  situations ;  but  they  are 
distinguished  also  by  other  peculiar  circumstances.  The  four 
largest  Islands,  Cuba,  Hayti,  Jamaica,  and  Porto  Rico,  have  been 
called  the  Grand  Antilles.  When  first  discovered  by  Europeans, 
they  were  inhabited  by  people  whose  similarity  of  language,  of 
customs,  and  character,  bespoke  them  the  offspring  of  one 
Small  common  stock.  The  second  division  is  a  chain  of  small  Islands 
Eastward  of  these,  and  extending  South  to  the  coast  of  Paria 

Islands,  on  the  Continent  of  South  America.  They  have  been  called  some- 
times the  Small  Antilles;  sometimes  after  the  native  inhabitants, 
the  Caribbee  Islands;  and  not  less  frequently  by  a  subdivision, 
the  Windward  and  Leeward  Islands.  The  inhabitants  on  these 
Islands  were  a  different  race  from  the  inhabitants  of  the 
Grand  Antilles.  They  spoke  a  different  language,  were  robust 
in  person  ;  and  in  disposition  fierce,  active,  and  warlike.  Some 
have  conjectured  them  to  be  of  Tartar  extraction,  which  cor- 
responds with  the  belief  that  they  emigrated  from  North  America 
to  the  West  Indies.  It  is  supposed  they  drove  out  the  original 
inhabitants  from  the  Small  Antilles,  to  establish  themselves 
there ;  but  they  had  not  gained  footing  in  the  large  Islands. 

Lucayas,  The  third  division  of  the  Islands  is  the  cluster  which  are 
situated  to  the  North  of  Cuba,  and  near  East  Florida,  and  are 
called  the  Lucayas,  of  whose  inhabitants  mention  will  shortly 
be  made. 

The  Spanish  Government  participated  largely  in  the  wicked- 
ness practised  to  procure  labourers  for  the  mines  of  Hispaniola. 
Pretending  great  concern  for  the  cause  of  humanity,  they 

declared 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  27 

declared  it  legal,  and  gave  general  license,  for  any  individual  CHAP.  2. 
to  make  war  against,  and  enslave,  people  who  were  cannibals; 
under  which  pretext  every  nation,  both  of  the  American 
Continent  and  of  the  Islands,  was  exposed  to  their  enterprises. 
Spanish  adventurers  made  attempts  to  take  people  from  the 
small  Antilles,  sometimes  with  success ;  but  they  were  not 
obtained  without  danger,  and  in  several  expeditions  of  the 
kind,  the  Spaniards  were  repulsed  with  loss.  This  made  them 
turn  their  attention  to  the  Lucayas  Islands. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  Lucayas^  an  unsuspicious  and  credulous 
people,  did  not  escape  the  snares  laid  for  them.  Ovando,  iu 
his  dispatches  to  Spain,  represented  the  benefit  it  would  be  to 
the  holy  faith,  to  have  the  inhabitants  of  the  Lucayas  instructed 
in  the  Christian  religion  ;  for  which  purpose,  he  said,  '  it  would 

*  be  necessary  they  should   be   transported   to  Hispaniola,  as 
'  Missionaries  could  not  be  spared  to  every  place,  and  there 

*  was  no  other  way  in  which  this  abandoned  people  could  be 

'  converted/     King  Ferdinand  and  the  Council  of  the  Indies       The 
were  themselves  so  abandoned  and  destitute  of  all  goodness,  as      ^f^s 
to  pretend  to  give  credit  to  Ovando's  representation,  and  lent     Lucayas 
him  their  authority  to  sacrifice  the  Lucayans,  under  the  pretext  theMiae?; 
of  advancing  religion.     Spanish  ships  were  sent  to  the  Islands 
on   this   business,  and  the  natives  were  at  first  inveigled  on 
board  by  the  foulest  hypocrisy  and   treachery.      Among  the 
artifices  used  by  the  Spaniards,  they  pretended  that  they  came 
from  a  delicious  country,  where  rested  the  souls  of  the  deceased 
fathers,  kinsmen,  and  friends,  of  the  Lucayans,  who  had  sent 
to  invite  them.     The  innocent  Islanders  so  seduced  to  follow 
the  Spaniards,  when,  on  arriving  at  Hispaniola^  they  found  how 
much  they  had  been  abused,  died  in  great  numbers  of  chagrin 
and  grief.     Afterwards,  when  these  impious  pretences  of  the     and  the 
Spaniards  were   no  longer  believed,   they   dragged  away  the     wholhr 

E  2  natives  unpeopled. 


28  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 

CHAP.  2^  natives    by  force,  as   long  as  any  could  be  found,  till  they 

1508.  wholly  unpeopled  the  Lucayas   Islands.     The    Buccaneers  of 
America,  whose  adventures  and  misdeeds  are  about  to  be  re- 
lated, may  be  esteemed   saints   in  comparison  with  the  men 
whose  names  have  been  celebrated  as  the  Conquerors  of  the 
NEW  WORLD. 

In  the  same  manner  as  at  the  Lucayas,  other  Islands  of  the 
West  Indies,  and  different  parts  of  the  Continent,  were  resorted  to 
for  recruits.  A  pearl  fishery  was  established,  in  which  the  Indian* 
were  not  more  spared  as  divers,  than  on  the  land  as  miners. 

Porto   Rico  was   conquered    at  this    time.     Ore  had    been 
brought  thence,  which  was  not  so  pure  as  that  of  Hayti;  but 
it  was  of  sufficient  value  to  determine  Ovando  to  the  conquest 
Fate  of  the  of  the  Island.     The  Islanders  were  terrified  by  the  carnage 
Inhabitants  which  the  Spaniards  with  their  dogs  made  in  the  commencement 
of        of  the  war,  and,  from  the  fear  of  irritating  them  by  further 
'  resistance,  they  yielded  wholly  at  discretion,  and  Avere  imme- 
diately sent   to    the    mines,    where   in   a  short  time  they  all 
perished.     In  the  same  year  with  Porto  Rico,  the  Island  of 
Jamaica  was  taken  possession  of  by  the  Spaniards. 

1509.  Ovando  was  at  length  recalled,  and  was  succeeded  in  the 
Coiumbus    government  of  Hispaniola  by  Don  Diego  Columbus,  the  eldest 

Governor   son  and  inheritor   of   the  rights   and    titles   of  the  Admiral 
Hispaniola.  Christopher.     To  conclude  with  Ovando,  it  is  related  that  he 
was  regretted  by  his  countrymen  in   the  Indies,  and  was  well 
received  at  Court. 

Don  Diego  did  not  make  any  alteration  in  the  reparti~ 
mientos,  except  that  some  of  them  changed  hands  in  favour 
of  his  o\vn  adherents.  During  his  government,  some  fathers 
of  the  Dominican  Order  had  the  courage  to  inveigh  from 
the  pulpit  against  the  enormity  of  the  repartimientos,  and 
were  so  persevering  in  their  representations,  that  the  Court  of 

Spain 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  29 

Spain  found  it  necessary,  to  avoid  scandal,  to  order  an  enquiry   CHAP.  2. 
into   the  condition  of  the  Indians.     In   this  enquiry   it   was 
seriously  disputed,  whether  it  was  just  or  unjust  to  make  them 
slaves. 

The  Histories  of  Hispaniola  first  notice  about  this   time  a       J511- 

great  increase  in  the  number  of  cattle  in  the  Island.     As  the     ^crease 

or 
human  race  disappeared,  less  and  less  land  was  occupied  in      Cattle 

husbandry,  till  almost  the  whole    country  became  pasturage    in  Haytl- 
for  cattle,  by  far  the  greater  part  of  which  were  wild.     An 
ordonnance,  issued  in  the  year  1511,  specified,  that  as  beasts 
of  burthen  were  so  much  multiplied,  the  Indians  should  not 
be  made  to  carry  or  drag  heavy  loads. 

In  1511,  the  conquest  of  Cuba  was  undertaken  and  com-  Cuba. 
pleted.  The  terror  conceived  of  the  Spaniards  is  not  to  be 
expressed.  The  story  of  the  conquest  is  related  in  a  Spanish 
history  in  the  following  terms  :  '  A  leader  was  chosen,  who 
'  had  acquitted  himself  in  high  employments  with  fortune  and 
'  good  conduct.  He  had  in  other  respects  amiable  qualities, 
'  and  was  esteemed  a  man  of  honour  and  rectitude.  He  went 
*  from  S.  Domingo  with  regular  troops  and  above  300  volun- 
'  teers.  He  landed  in  Cuba,  not  without  opposition  from  the 
'  natives.  In  a  few  days,  he  surprised  and  took  the  principal 
'  Cacique,  named  Hatuey,  prisoner,  and  made  him  expiate  in 
'  the  flames  the  fault  he  had  been  guilty  of  in  not  submitting  with 
'  a  good  grace  to  the  conqueror.'  This  Cacique,  "when  at  the 
stake,  being  importuned  by  a  Spanish  priest  to  become  a 
Christian,  that  he  might  go  to  Heaven,  replied,  that  if 
any  Spaniard  was  to  be  met  in  Heaven,  he  hoped  not  to 
go  there. 

The  Reader  will  be  detained  a  very  little  longer  with  these      1514. 
irksome   scenes.      In  1514,    the    number   of   the   inhabitants 
of  Hayti  was  reckoned  1  i,000.     A  distributor  of  Indians  was 

appointed, 


30  DOMINION  OF  THE  SPANIARDS 

CHAP. 2.  appointed,  with  powers  independent  of  the  Governor,  with 
intention  to  save  the  few  remaining  natives  of  Hai/ti.  The 
new  distributor  began  the  exercise  of  his  office  by  a  general 
revocation  of  all  the  ejicomiendas,  except  those  which  had  been 
granted  by  the  King;  and  almost  immediately  afterwards,  in 
the  most  open  and  shameless  manner,  he  made  new  grants,  and 
1515.  sold  them  to  the  highest  bidder.  He  was  speedily  recalled; 
and  another  (the  Licentiate  Ybarra)  was  sent  to  supply  his 
place,  who  had  a  high  character  for  probity  and  resolution; 
but  he  died  immediately  on  his  arrival  at  Santo  Domingo,  and 
not  without  suspicion  that  he  was  poisoned. 

The  endeavours  of  the  Dominican  Friars  in  behalf  of  the 

Bart,  de  las  natives  were  seconded  by  the  Licentiate  Bartolomeo  de  las 

Cardinal1    Casas,    and    by    Cardinal  Ximenes    when   he    became  Prime 

Ximenes;   Minister  of  Spain;  and,  to  their  great  honour,  they  were  both 

their  ,     . 

endeavours  resolute   to   exert  all   their  power  to  preserve  the  natives  of 

to  serve     America.     The  Cardinal  sent  Commissioners,  and    with    them 

the  Indians. 

The       las  Casas,  with  the  title  of  Protector  of  the  Indians.    But  the 
,  Cardinal    Cardinal  died  in  1 5 1 7 ;  after  which  all  the  exertions  of  las  Casas 

and  the  Dominicans  could  not  shake  the  repartimientos. 
1519.          At  length,  among  the  native  Islanders  there  sprung  up  one 
who  had  the  courage  to  put  himself  at  the  head  of  a  number 
of  his  countrymen,  and   the  address  to  withdraw  with  them 
from  the  gripe  of  the  Spaniards,  and  to  find  refuge  among  the 
mountains.     This  man  was  the  son,  and,  according  to  the  laws 
of  inheritance,  should  have  been  the  successor,  of  one  of  the 
Cacique    principal  Caciques.     He  had  been  christened  by  the  name  of 
Henriquez.  Henriquez,  and,  in  consequence  of  a  regulation  made  by  the 
late  Queen  Ysabel  of  Castile,   he  had  been  educated,  on  ac- 
count of  his  former  rank,  in  a  Convent  of  the  Franciscans.     He 
defended  his  retreat  in  the  mountains  by  skilful  management 
and  resolute  conduct,  and  had  the  good  fortune  in  the  com- 
mencement 


IN   HISPANIOLA.  31 

mencement  to  defeat  some  parties  of  Spanish  troops  sent  CHAP.  2. 
against  him,  which  encouraged  more  of  his  countrymen,  and  "" 
as  many  of  the  Africans  as  could  escape,  to  flock  to  him;  and 
under  his  government,  as  of  a  sovereign  prince,  they  withstood 
the  attempts  of  the  Spaniards  to  subdue  them.  Fortunately 
for  Henriquez  and  his  followers,  the  conquest  and  settlement 
of  Cuba,  and  the  invasion  of  Mexico,  which  was  begun  at  this 
time,  lessened  the  strength  of  the  Spaniards  in  Hispaniola,  and 
enabled  the  insurgents  for  many  years  to  keep  all  the  Spanish 
settlements  in  the  Island  in  continual  alarm,  and  to  maintain 
their  own  independence. 

During  this  time,  the  question  of  the  propriety  of  keeping 
the  Islanders  in  slavey,  underwent  grave  examinations.  It  is 
related  that  the  experiment  was  tried,  of  allowing  a  number 
of  the  natives  to  build  themselves  two  villages,  to  live  in  them 
according  to  their  own  customs  and  liking;  and  that  the  result 
was,  they  were  found  to  be  so  improvident,  and  so  utterly 
unable  to  take  care  of  themselves,  that  the  encomiendas  were 
pronounced  to  be  necessary  for  their  preservation.  Such  an 
experiment  is  a  mockery.  Before  the  conquest,  and  now  under 
Don  Henriquez,  the  people  of  Hayti  shewed  they  wanted  not 
the  Spaniards  to  take  care  of  them. 


32  HISTORY    OF    THE 


CHAP.    III. 

Ships  of  different  European  Nations  frequent  the  West  Indies. 
Opposition  experienced  by  them  from  the  Spaniards.  Hunting 
of  Cattle  in  Hispaniola. 

CHAP.  3.   TN    the   year  1517  or  1518,   some  Spaniards   in  a  caravela 

•  going  from   St.  Domingo  to  the  Island  Porto  Rico,  to  take 

in  a  lading  of  cassava,  were  surprised  at  seeing  a  ship  there 

151g.      of  about  250  tons,  armed  with  cannon,  which  did  not  appear 

Adventure  fo  belong  to  the  Spanish  nation;  and  on  sending  a  boat  to 
English  make  enquiry,  she  was  found  to  be  English.  The  account 
slllP-  given  by  the  English  Commander  was,  that  two  ships  had 
sailed  from  England  in  company,  with  the  intention  to  discover 
the  country  of  the  Great  Cham ;  that  they  were  soon  separated 
from  each  other  by  a  tempest,  and  that  this  ship  was  afterwards 
in  a  sea  almost  covered  with  ice;  that  thence  she  had  sailed 
southward  to  Brasil,  and,  after  various  adventures,  had  found 
the  way  to  Porto  Rico.  This  same  English  ship,  being  provided 
with  merchandise,  went  afterwards  to  Hispaniola,  and  anchored 
near  ihe  entrance  of  the  port  of  San  Domingo,  where  the 
Captain  sent  on  shore  to  demand  leave  to  sell  their  goods. 
The  demand  was  forwarded  to  the  Audiencia,  or  superior 
court  in  San  Domingo;  but  the  Castellana,  or  Governor  of  the 
Castle,  Francisco  de  Tapia,  could  not  endure  with  patience 
to  see  a  ship  of  another  nation  in  that  part  of  the  world,  and, 
without  waiting  for  the  determination  of  the  Audiencia,  ordered 
the  cannon  of  the  fort  to  be  fired  against  her;  on  which  she 
took  up  her  anchor  and  returned  to  Porto  Rico,  where  she 
purchased  provisions,  paying  for  what  she  got  with  wrought 

iron, 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA.  S3 

iron,  and  afterwards  departed  for  Europe*.     When  this  visit  ^CHAP-  3- 
of  an  English  ship  to  the   West  Indies  was  known   in   Spain,      1518. 
it  caused   there  great  inquietude;   and  the  Governor  of  the 
Castle  of  San  Domingo,  it  is  said,  was  much  blamed,  because 
he  had  not,  instead  of  forcing  the  ship  to  depart  by  firing  his 
cannon,    contrived  to  seize  her,  so  that  no   one  might  have 
returned   to  teach   others   of  their   nation    the   route  to  the 
Spanish  Indies. 

The  English  were  not  the  only  people  of  whom  the  Spaniards 
had  cause  to  be  jealous,  nor  those  from  whom  the  most  mis- 
chief was  to  be  apprehended.    The  French,  as  already  noticed,  The  French 
had  very  early  made  expeditions  to  Brasil,  and  they  now  began   gnd  ° 
to  look  at  the  West  Indies;  so  that  in  a  short  time  the  sight  of    resort  to 
other  European  ships  than  those  of  Spain  became  no  novelty      indies'- 
there.     Hakluyt  mentions  a  Thomas  Tyson,   an   Englishman, 
who  went  to  the  West  Indies  in  1526,  as  factor  to  some  English 

merchants.     When  the  Spaniards  met  any  of  these  intruders,  if         j, 

regarded  as 

able  to  master  them,  they  made  prisoners  of  them,  and  many  Interlopers 
they  treated  as  pirates.  The  new  comers  soon  began  to  retaliate.  Spaniards 
In  1529,  the  Governor  and  Council  at  San  Domingo  drew  up       1529. 
the  plan  of  a  regulation  for  the  security  of  their  ships  against  Re&lllltl0* 
the  increasing  dangers  from  pirates  in  the  West  Indies.    In  this,  by  the  Go- 
they  recommended,  that  a  central  port  of  commerce  should  be  jfispanlola1 
established  in  the  West  Indies,  to  which  every  ship  from  Spain  forprotec- 
should  be  obliged  to  go  first,  as  to  a  general  rendezvous,  and     Pirates?8' 
thence   be  dispatched,    as   might   suit   circumstances,  to   her 
farther  destination  ;  also,  that  all  their  ships  homeward  bound, 
from  whatsoever  part  of  the  West  Indies,  should  first  rendezvous 
at  the  same  port;  by  which  regulation  their  ships,  both  outward 

and 

*  Historta  General  de  las  Indicts,  por    Go/if.   Hernandez   de  Oviedo,  lib.  19. 
cap.  !•>..     Also  Hukluyt,  vol.  iii.  p.  490,  edit.  1600. 

F 


34  HISTORY  OF   THE 

CHAP.  3.  and  homeward  bound,  would  form  escorts  to  each  other,  and 
have  the  benefit  of  mutual  support;  and  they  proposed  that 
some  port  in  Hispaniola  should  be  appointed  for  the  purpose, 
as  most  conveniently  situated.  This  plan  appears  to  have  been 
approved  by  the  Council  of  the  Indies;  but,  from  indolence, 
or  some  other  cause,  no  farther  measures  were  taken  for  its 
adoption. 

The  attention  of  the  Spaniards  was  at  this  time  almost  wholly 
engrossed  by  the  conquest  and  plunder  of  the  American  Conti- 
nent, which  it  might  have  been  supposed  would  have  sufficed 
them,  according  to  the  opinion  of  Francisco  Preciado,  a  Spanish 
discoverer,  who  observed,  that  there  was  country  enough  to  conquer 
for  a  thousand  years.     The  continental  pursuits  caused  much 
diminution  in  the  importance  of  the  West  India  Islands  to  the 
Spaniards.     The  mines  of  the  Islands  were  not  comparable  in 
richness  with  those  of  the  Continent,  and,  for  Avant  of  labourers, 
many  were  left  unworked.  The  colonists  in  Hispaniola,  however, 
had  applied  themselves  to  the  cultivation  of  the  sugar-cane,  and 
Hunting  of  to  manufacture  sugar ;  also  to  hunting  cattle,  which  was  found 
a  Pr°fita^e   employment,   the  skins  and   the  suet  turning  to 
good    account.      The    Spaniards   denominated    their    hunters 
Matadores.  Matadores,  which  in  the  Spanish  language  signifies  killers  or 
slaughterers. 

That  the  English,  French,  and  Hollanders,  in  their  early 
voyages  to  the  West  Indies,  went  in  expectation  of  meeting 
hostility  from  the  Spaniards,  and  with  a  determination  there- 
fore to  commit  hostility  if  they  could  with  advantage,  appears 
by  an  ingenious  phrase  of  the  French  adventurers,  who,  if 
the  first  opportunity  was  in  their  favour,  termed  their  profiting 
by  it  '  se  dedomager  par  avance.' 

Much  of  Hispaniola  had  become  desert.  There  were  long 
ranges  of  coast,  with  good  ports,  that  were  unfrequented  by 

any 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  35 

any  inhabitant  whatever,  and  the  land  in  every  part  abounded  CHAP.  3. 
•with  cattle.  These  were  such  great  conveniencies  to  the  ships 
of  the  interlopers,  that  the  Western  coast,  which  was  the  most 
distant  part  from  the  Spanish  capital,  became  a  place  of  com- 
mon resort  to  them  when  in  want  of  provisions.  Another 
great  attraction  to  them  was  the  encouragement  they  received 
from  Spanish  settlers  along  the  coast;  who,  from  the  con- 
tracted and  monopolizing  spirit  of  their  government  in  the 
management  of  their  colonies,  have  at  all  times  been  eager  to 
have  communication  with  foreigners,  that  they  might  obtain 
supplies  of  European  goods  on  terms  less  exorbitant  than  those 
which  the  royal  regulations  of  Spain  imposed.  The  government 
at  San  Domingo  employed  armed  ships  to  prevent  clandestine 
trade,  and  to  clear  the  coasts  of  Hispaniola  of  interlopers, 
which  ships  were  called  guarda  costas ;  and  it  is  said  their  Guarda- 
commanders  Avere  instructed  not  to  take  prisoners.  On  the  Costas. 
other  band,  the  intruders  formed  combinations,  came  in  col- 
lected numbers,  and  made  descents  on  different  parts  of  the 
coast,  ravaging  the  Spanish  towns  and  settlements. 

In  the  customary  course,  such  transactions  would  have  come 
under  the  cognizance  of  the  governments  in  Europe ;  but 
matters  here  took  a  different  turn.  The  Spaniards,  when  they 
had  the  upper  hand,  did  not  fail  to  deal  out  their  own  pleasure 
for  law  ;  and  in  like  manner,  the  English,  French,  and  Dutch, 
when  masters,  determined  their  own  measure  of  retaliation. 
The  different  European  governments  were  glad  to  avoid  being 
involved  in  the  settlement  of  disorders  they  had  no  inclination 
to  repress.  In  answer  to  representations  made  by  Spaint 
they  said,  '  that  the  people  complained  against  had  acted 

*  entirely  on  their  own  authority,  not  as  the  subjects  of  any 
'  prince,  and  that  the  King  of  Spain  was  at  liberty  to  proceed 

*  against    them    according    to    his    own    pleasure.'      Queen 

F  2  Elizabeth 


36  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CHAP.  3.  Elizabeth  of  England,  with  more  open  asperity  answered 
a  complaint  made  by  the  Spanish  ambassador,  of  Spanish 
ships  being  plundered  by  the  English  in  the  West  Indies,  *  That 

*  the  Spaniards  had  drawn  these  ihconveniencies  upon  them- 

*  selves,  by  their  severe  and  unjust  dealings  in  their  American 
'  commerce ;  for  she  did  not  understand  why  either  her  sub- 
'  jects,  or  those  of  any  other    European  prince,    should   be 
1  debarred  from  traffic  in   the  Indies.     That    as  she  did  not 
'  acknowledge  the  Spaniards  to  have  any  title  by  the  donation 
'  of  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  so  she  knew  no  right  they  had  to 
'  any  places  other  than  those  they  were  in  actual  possession 
'  of;  for  that  their  having  touched  only  here  and  there  upon 
'  a  coast,  and  given    names    to  a  few  rivers  «or  capes,  were 
'  such  insignificant    things  as  could  no   ways  entitle  them  to 

*  a  propriety  further    than   in  the  parts  where  they  actually 

*  settled,  and  continued  to  inhabit*.'     A    warfare    was  thus 
established  between  Europeans  in  the  West  Indies,  local  and 
confined,    which  had    no    dependence   upon    transactions    in 
Europe.     All  Europeans  not  Spaniards,  whether  it  was  war  or 
peace  between  their  'nations  in  Europe,  on  their  meeting  in  the 
West  Indies,  regarded  each  other  as  friends  and  allies,  knowing 

Brethren    then   no  other  enemy  than  the  Spaniards ;  and,  as  a  kind   of 
?f     e      public  avowal  of  this    confederation,  they  called    themselves 
Brethren  of  the  Coast. 

The  first  European  intruders  upon  the  Spaniards  in  the 
West  Indies  were  accordingly  mariners,  the  greater  number  of 
whom,  it  is  supposed,  were  French,  and  next  to  them  the 
English.  Their  first  hunting  of  cattle  in  Hayti,  was  for  pro- 
visioning their  ships.  The  time  they  began  to  form  factories  or 
establishments,  to  hunt  cattle  for  the  skins,  and  to  cure  the 
flesh  as  an  article  of  traffic,  is  not  certain;  but  it  may  be 

concluded 

*  Camden's  Elizabeth,  A.  r>.  1680. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  37 

concluded  that  these  occupations  were  began  by  the  crews  of  CHAP.  3. 
wrecked  vessels,  or  by  seamen  who  had  disagreed  with  their 
commander;  and  that  the  ease,  plenty,  and  freedom  from  all 
command  and  subordination,  enjoyed  in  such  a  life,  soon  drew 
others  to  quit  their  ships,  and  join  in  the  same  occupations. 
The  ships  that  touched  on  the  coast  supplied  the  hunters  with 
European  commodities,  for  which  they  received  in  return  hides, 
tallow,  and  cured  meat.  The  appellation  of  Boucanier  or 
Buccaneer  was  not  invented,  or  at  least  not  applied  to  these 
adventurers,  till  long  after  their  first  footing  in  Hayti.  At  the 
time  of  Oxnam's  expedition  across  the  Isthmus  of  America  to  the 
South  Sea,  A.D.  1575,  it  does  not  appear  to  have  been  known. 

There  is  no  particular  account  of  the  events  which  took 
place  on  the  coasts  of  Hispaniola  in  the  early  part  of  the 
contest  between  the  Spaniards  and  the  new  settlers.  It  is 
however  certain,  that  it  was  a  war  of  the  severest  retaliation ; 
and  in  this  disorderly  state  was  continued  the  intercourse  of  the  • 
English,  French,  and  Dutch  with  the  West  Indies,  carried  on 
by  individuals  neither  authorized  nor  controlled  by  their  govern- 
ments, for  more  than  a  century. 

In  1586,  the  English  Captain,  Francis  Drake,  plundered  the 
city  of  San  Domingo ;  and  the  numbers  of  the  English  and 
French  in  the  West  Indies  increased  so  much,  that  shortly  after- 
wards the  Spaniards  found  themselves  necessitated  to  abandon 
all  the  Western  and  North-western  parts  of  Hispaniola. 


38  HISTORY   OF  THE 


CHAP.     IV. 

Iniquitous  Settlement  of  the  Island  Saint  Christopher  by  the 
English  and  French.  Tortuga  seized  by  the  Hunters.  Origin 
of  the  name  Buccaneer.  The  name  Flibustier.  Customs 
attributed  to  the  Buccaneers. 


CHAP.  4.  n^HE  increase  of  trade  of  the  English  and  French  to  the 
West  Indies,  and  the  growing  importance  of  the  freebooters 
or  adventurers  concerned  in  it,  who,  unassisted  but  by  each 
other,  had  begun  to  acquire  territory  and  to  form  establish- 
jnents  in  spite  of  all  opposition  from  the  Spaniards,  attracted 
the  attention  of  the  British  and  French  governments,  and 
suggested  to  them  a  scheme  of  confederacy,  in  which  some  of 
the  principal  adventurers  were  consulted.  The  project  adopted 
by  them  was,  to  plant  a  royal  colony  of  ea,"h  nation,  on 
some  one  island,  and  at  the  same  time  ;  by  which  a  constant 
mutual  support  would  be  secured.  In  as  far  as  regarded  the 
concerns  of  Europeans  with  each  other,  this  plan  was  un- 
impeachable. 

The  Island  chosen  by  the  projectors,  as  the  best  suited  to 
their  purpose,  was  one  of  the  Small  Antilles  or  Caribbee  Islands, 
known  by  the  name  of  St.  Christopher,  which  is  in  length  about 
seven  leagues,  and  in  breadth  two  and  a  half. 

Thus  the  governments  of  Great  Britain  and   France,  like 

friendly  fellow-travellers,  and  not  like  rivals  who  were  to  con- 

1625.      tend    in   a    race,    began    their    West-Indian    career   by  joint 

The  Island  consent  at  the  same  point  both  in  time  and  place.     In  the 

Saint  r 

Christopher  year  1625,  and  on  the  same  day,  a  colony  of  British  and  a 
tb^English  colony  of  French,  in  the  names  and  on  the  behalf  of  their 
and  French.  respective 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  39 

respective  nations,  landed  on  this  small  island,  the  division  of  CHAP.  4. 
which  had  been  settled  by  previous  agreement. 

The  Island  St.  Christopher  was  at  that  time  inhabited  by  1625. 
Caribbe  Indians.  The  Spaniards  had  never  possessed  a  settle- 
ment on  it,  but  their  ships  had  been  accustomed  to  stop  there, 
to  traffic  for  provisions  and  refreshments.  The  French  and 
English  who  came  to  take  possession,  landed  without  obtaining 
the  consent  of  the  native  Caribbe  inhabitants;  and,  because 
danger  was  apprehended  from  their  discontent,  under  pretence 
that  the  Caribbs  were  friends  to  the  Spaniards,  these  new 
colonists  fell  upon  them  by  surprise  in  the  night,  killed  their 
principal  leaders,  and  forced  the  rest  to  quit  the  Island  and 
seek  another  home.  De  Rochefort,  in  his  Histoire  Morale  dcs 
Isles  Antilles  (p.  284.)  mentions  the  English  and  French  killing 
the  Caribb  Chiefs,  in  the  following  terms :  '  Us  se  defirent  en 
vne  nuit  de  tons  les  plus  factieux  de  cette  nation!'  Thus  in 
usurpation  and  barbarity  was  founded  the  first  colony  esta- 
blished under  the  authority  of  the  British  and  French  govern- 
ments in  the  West  Indies  ;  which  colony  was  the  parent  of  our 
African  slave  trade.  When  accounts  of  the  conquest  and  of 
the  proceedings  at  Saint  Christopher  were  transmitted  to  Europe, 
they  were  approved ;  West-India  companies  were  established, 
and  licences  granted  to  take  out  colonists.  De  Rochefort  has 
oddly  enough  remarked,  that  the  French,  English,  and  Dutch, 
in  their  first  establishments  in  the  West  Indies,  did  not  follow 
the  cruel  maxims  of  the  Spaniards.  .  True  it  is,  however,  that 
they  only  copied  in  part.  In  their  usurpations  their  aim  went 
no  farther  than  to  dispossess,  and  they  did  not  seek  to  make 
slaves  of  the  people  whom  they  deprived  of  their  land. 

The  English  and  French  in  a  short  time  had  disagreements, 
and  began  to  make  complaints  of  each  other.  The  English 
took  possession  of  the  small  Island  Nevis,  which  is  separated 

only 


40  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CHAP.  4.  only  by  a  narrow  channel  from  the  South  end  of  St.  Christopher. 
P.  Charlevoix  says,  *  the  ambition  of  the  English  disturbed  the 

*  good  understanding  between  the  colonists  of  the  two  nations; 
1629.      *  but  M.  de  Cusac  arriving  with  a  squadron  of  the  French  King's 

*  ships,  by  taking  and  sinking  some  British  ships  lying  there, 

*  brought  the  English  Governor  to  reason,  and  to  confine  him- 
'  self  to  the  treaty  of  Partition/     After  effecting  this  amicable 
adjustment,    De  Cusac  sailed   from  St.  Christopher;  and  was 
scarcely  clear  of  the  Island  when  a  powerful  fleet,  consisting  of 
thirty-nine  large  ships,  arrived  from  Spain,  and  anchored  in  the 

The  Road.  Almost  without  opposition  the  Spaniards  became  masters 
and'French  of  the  Isla»d>  although  the  English  and  French,  if  they  had 
driven  from  cordially  joined,  could  have  mustered  a  force  of  twelve  hundred 
Christopher  men.  Intelligence  that  the  Spaniards  intended  this  attack,  had 

by  the      been  timely  received  in  France;  and  M.  de  Cusac's  squadron 
Spaniards.    ...  T  i  ... 

had  in  consequence  been  dispatched  to  assist  in  the  defence  of 

St.  Christopher;  but  the  Spaniards  being  slow  in  their  prepara- 
tions, their  fleet  did  not  arrive  at  the  time  expected,  and  De 
Cusac,  hearing  no  news  of  them,  presumed  that  they  had  given 
up  their  design  against  St.  Christopher.  Without  strengthening 
the  joint  colony,  he  gave  the  English  a  lesson  on  moderation, 
little  calculated  to  incline  them  to  co-operate  heartily  with  the 
French  in  defence  of  the  Island,  and  sailed  on  a  cruise  to  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico.  Shortly  after  his  departure,  towards  the  end  of 
the  year  1629,  the  Spanish  fleet  arrived.  The  colonists  almost 
immediately  despaired  of  being  able  to  oppose  so  great  a  force. 
JVJany  of  the  French  embarked  in  their  ships  in  time  to  effect 
their  escape,  and  to  take  refuge  among  the  islands  northward. 
The  remainder,  with  the  English,  lay  at  the  disposal  of  the 
Spanish  commander,  Don  Frederic  de  Toledo.  At  this  time 
Spam  was  at  war  with  England,  France,  and  Holland;  and  this 
armament  was  designed  ultimately  to  act  against  the  Hollanders 

in 


BUCCANEERS    OF    AMERICA.  41 

in  Brasil,  but  was  ordered  by  the  way  to  drive  the  English  and  CHAP. 4. 
the  French  from  the  Island  of  Saint  Christopher.  Don  Frederic  1629. 
would  not  weaken  his  force  by  leaving  a  garrison  there, 
and  was  in  haste  to  prosecute  his  voyage  to  Brasil.  As 
the  settlement  of  Saint  Christopher  had  been  established  on 
regular  government  authorities,  the  settlers  were  treated  as 
prisoners  of  war.  To  clear  the  Island  in  the  most  speedy 
manner,  Don  Frederic  took  many  of  the  English  on  board  his 
own  fleet,  and  made  as  many  of  the  other  colonists  embark 
as  could  be  crowded  in  any  vessels  which  could  be  found  for 
them.  He  saw  them  get  under  sail,  and  leave  the  Island;  and 
from  those  who  remained,  he  required  their  parole,  that  they 
would  depart  by  the  earliest  opportunity  which  should  present 
itself,  warning  them,  at  the  same  time,  that  if,  on  his  return 
from  Brasil,  he  found  any  Englishmen  or  Frenchmen  at  Saint 
Christopher,  they  should  be  put  to  the  sword.  After  this,  he 
sailed  for  Brasil.  As  soon,  however,  as  it  was  known  that  the  1630. 

r|-it 

Spanish  fleet  had  left  the  West-Indian  sea,  the  colonists,  both     retnrn. 
English  and  French,  returned  to  Saint  Christopher,  and  repos- 
sessed themselves  of  their  old  quarters. 

The  settlement  of  the  Island  Saint  Christopher  gave  great 
encouragement  to  the  hunters  on  the  West  coast  of  Hispaniola. 
Their  manufactories  for  the  curing  of  meat,  and  for  drying  the 
skins,  multiplied ;  and  as  the  value  of  them  increased,  they 
began  to  think  it  of  consequence  to  provide  for  their  security. 
To  this  end  they  took  possession  of  the  small  Island  Tortuga,  The  Island 
near  the  North-west  end  of  Hispaniola,  where  the  Spaniards  had  Tortuga 

seized  by 

placed  a  garrison,  but  which  was  too  small  to  make  opposition,  the  English 
There  was  a  road  for  shipping,  with  good  anchorage,  at  Tortuga  ; 
and  its  separation  from  the  main  land  of  Hispaniola  seemed  to  be 
a  good  guarantee  from  sudden  and  unexpected  attack.    They 
built  magazines  there,  for  the  lodgement  of  their  goods,  and 

G  regarded 


42  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CHAP.  4.  regarded  this  Island  as  their  head  quarters,  or  place  of  general 
rendezvous  to  which  to  repair  in  times  of  danger.  They  elected 
no  chief,  erected  no  fortification,  set  up  no  authorities,  nor 
fettered  themselves  by  any  engagement.  All  Avas  voluntary  ; 
and  they  were  negligently  contented  at  having  done  so  much 
towards  their  security. 

Whence        About  the  time  of  their  taking  possession  of  Tortuga,  they 
^the  Name   Degan   to  be  known    by  the  name  of  Buccaneers,  of  which 
appellation  it  will  be  proper  to  speak  at  some  length. 

The  flesh  of  the  cattle  killed  by  the  hunters,  was  cured  to 
keep  good  for  use,  after  a  manner  learnt  from  the  Caribbe 
Indians,  which  was  as  follows :  The  meat  was  laid  to  be  dried 
upon  a  wooden  grate  or  hurdle  (grille  de  bois)  which  the  Indians 
called  barbecu,  placed  at  a  good  distance  over  a  slow  fire. 
The  meat  when  cured  was  called  boucan,  and  the  same  name 
was  given  to  the  place  of  their  cookery.  Pere  Labat  describes 
Viande  boucannte  to  be,  Viande  seche  a  petit  ft  it  et  a  la  fumce. 
The  Caribbes  are  said  to  have  sometimes  served  their  prisoners 
after  this  fashion,  '  Us  les  mangent  apres  les  avoir  bien  boucannee., 
c'est  a  dire,  rotis  bien  sec*.'  The  boucan  was  a  very  favourite 
method  of  cooking  among  these  Indians.  A  Caribbe  has  been 
known,  on  returning  home  from  fishing,  fatigued  and  pressed 
•with  hunger,  to  have  had  the  patience  to  wait  the  roasting  of 
a  fish  on  a  wooden  grate  fixed  two  feet  above  the  ground,  over  a 
fire  so  small  as  sdmetimes  to  require  the  whole  day  to  dress  it-f-. 

The  flesh  of  the  cattle  was  in  general  dried  in  the  smoke, 
•without  being  salted.  The  Dictionnaire  de  Trevoux  explains 
Boucaner  to  be  '  faire  sorer  sans  sel,'  to  dry  red  without  salt.  But 
the  flesh  of  wild  hogs,  and  also  of  the  beeves  when  intended 

for 

*  Hist,  des  Antilles,  par  P.  du  Tertre.     Paris,  1667.    Tome  I.  p.  415. 
•f-  La  Rochefort,  sur  le  Repas  des  Carribes. 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  43 

for  keeping  a  length  of  time,  was  first  salted.  The  same  thing  CHAP.  4. 
was  practised  among  the  Brasilians.  It  was  remarked  in  one 
of  the  earliest  visits  of  the  Portuguese  to  Brasil,  that  the  natives 
(who  were  cannibals)  kept  human  flesh  salted  and  'smoked, 
hanging  up  in  their  houses  *.  The  meat  cured  by  the  Bucca- 
neers to  sell  to  shipping  for  sea-store,  it  is  probable  was  all 
salted.  The  process  is  thus  described  :  '  The  bones  being  taken 

*  out,  the  flesh  was  cut  into  convenient  pieces  and  salted,  and 

*  the  next  day  was  taken  to  the  boucan.'    Sometimes,  to  give 
a  peculiar  relish  to  the  meat,  the  skin  of  the  animal  was  cast 
into  the  fire  under  it.     The  meat  thus  cured  was  of  a  fine  red 
colour,  and  of  excellent  flavour;    but  in  six  months  after  it 
was  boucanned,  it  had   little  taste   left,  except  of  salt.     The 
boucanned  hog's  flesh  continued  good  a  much  longer  time  than 
the  flesh  of  the  beeves,  if  kept  in  dry  places. 

From  adopting  the  boucan  of  the  Caribbes,  the  hunters 
in  Hispaniola,  the  Spaniards  excepted,  came  to  be  called 
Boucaniers,  but  afterwards,  according  to  a  pronunciation  more 
in  favour  with  the  English,  Buccaneers -f-.  Many  of  the  French 
hunters  were  natives  of  Normandy ;  whence  it  became  proverbial 
in  some  of  the  sea-ports  of  Normandy  to  say  of  a  smoky  house, 
c'est  un  vrai  Boucan. 

The  French  Buccaneers  and  Adventurers  were  also  called  The  name 
Flibustiers,  and  more  frequently  by  that  than  by  any  other  Fllbustier- 
name.     The  word  Flibustier  is  merely  the  French  mariner's 
mode  of  pronouncing  the  English  word  Freebooter,  a  name 
which   long   preceded   that   of  Boucanier  or   Buccaneer,   as 

the 

*  History  of  Brasil,   by  Robert  Southey,  p.  17. 

t  In  some  of  the  English  accounts  the  name  is  written  Bucanier;  but  unifor- 
mity in  spelling  was  not  much  attended  to  at  that  time.  Dampier  wrote 
Buccaneer,  which  agrees  with  the  present  manner  of  pronouncing  the  word,  and 
is  to  be  esteemed  the  best  authority. 

G    2 


.44  HISTORY    OF  THE 

CHAP.  4.  the  occupation  of  cruising  against  the  Spaniards  preceded 
that  of  hunting  and  curing  meat.  Some  authors  have  given 
a  derivation  to  the  name  Flibustier  from  the  word  Fly  boat, 
because,  say  they,  the  French  hunters  in  Hispaniola  bought 
vessels  of  the  Dutch,  called  Flyboats,  to  cruise  upon  the 
Spaniards.  There  are  two  objections  to  this  derivation.  First, 
the  word  jlyboat,  is  only  an  English  translation  of  the  Dutch 
word  fiuyt,  which  is  the  proper  denomination  of  the  vessel 
intended  by  it.  Secondly,  it  would  not  very  readily  occur 
to  any  one  to  purchase  Dutch  fluyts,  or  flyboats,  for 
chasing  vessels. 

Some  have  understood  the  Boucanier  and  Flibustier  to  be 
distinct  both  in  person  and  character*.  This  was  probably  the 
case  with  a  few,  after  the  settlement  of  Tortuga ;  but  before,  and 
very  generally  afterwards,  the  occupations  were  joined,  making 
one  of  amphibious  character.  Ships  from  all  parts  of  the  West 
Indies  frequented  Tortuga,  and  it  continually  happened  that 
some  among  the  crews  quitted  their  ships  to  turn  Buccaneers ; 
whilst,  among  the  Buccaneers  some  would  be  desirous  to  quit 
their  hunting  employment,  to  go  on  a  cruise,  to  make  a  voyage, 
or  to  return  to  Europe.  The  two  occupations  of  hunting  and 
cruising  being  so  common  to  the  same  person,  caused  the 
names  Flibustier  and  Buccaneer  to  be  esteemed  synonimous, 
sio-nifying  always  and  principally  the  being  at  war  with  the 
Spaniards.  The  Buccaneer  and  Flibustier  therefore,  as  long  as 
they  continued  in  a  state  of  independence,  are  to  be  consi- 
dered as  the  same  character,  exercising  sometimes  one,  some- 
times 

*  The  French  account  says,  that  after  taking  possession  of  Tortuga,  the 
Adventurers  divided  into  three  classes:  that  those  who  occupied  themselves  in 
the  chase,  took  the  name  of  Boucaniers;  those  who  went  on  cruises,  the  name 
of  Flibustiers ;  and  a  third  class,  who  cultivated  the  soil,  called  themselves 
Habitans  (I  nhabitants.)  See  Histoire  des  Avanturiers  qui  se  sont  signales  dam  let 
bides.  Par.  Alex.  Ol.  Oexmelin.  Paris  1688,  vol.  i.  p.  22. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  45 

times  the  other  employment  ;  and  either  name  was  taken  by  CHAP.  4^ 
them  indifferently,  whether  they  were  employed  on  the  sea  or 
on  the  land.  But  a  fanciful  kind  of  inversion  took  place, 
through  the  different  caprices  of  the  French  and  English 
adventurers.  The  greater  part  of  the  first  cattle  hunters  were 
French,  and  the  greater  number  of  the  first  cruisers  againt  the 
Spaniards  were  English.  The  French  adventurers,  nevertheless, 
had  a  partiality  for  the  name  of  Flibustier  ;  whilst  the  English 
shewed  a  like  preference  for  the  name  of  Buccaneer,  which,  as 
will  be  seen,  was  assumed  by  many  hundred  seamen  of  their 
nation,  who  were  never  employed  either  in  hunting  or  in  the 
bou can. 

A  propensity  to  make  things  which  are  extraordinary  appear    Customs 

more  so,  has  caused  many  peculiar  customs  to  be  attributed  to   attribute<l 

.        *  to  the 

the  Buccaneers,  which,  it  is  pretended,  were  observed  as  strictly  Buccaneers, 
•as  jf  they  had  been  established  laws.  It  is  said  that  every  Buc- 
caneer had  his  chosen  and  declared  comrade,  between  whom 
property  was  in  common,  and  if  one  died,  the  survivor  was 
inheritor  of  the  whole.  This  was  called  by  the  French  Mate- 
lotage.  It  is  however  acknowledged  that  the  Matelotage  was 
not  a  compulsatory  regulation ;  and  that  the  Buccaneers  some- 
times bequeathed  by  will.  A  general  right  of  participation  in 
some  things,  among  which  was  meat  for  present  consumption, 
was  acknowledged  among  them ;  and  it  is  said,  that  bolts, 
locks,  and  every  species  of  fastening,  were  prohibited,  it  being 
held  that  the  use  of  such  securities  would  have  impeached  the 
honour  of  their  vocation.  Yet  on  commencing  Buccaneer,  it 
was  customary  with  those  who  were  of  respectable  lineage, 
to  relinquish  their  family  name,  and  assume  some  other,  as 
a  nom  de  guerre.  Their  dress,  which  was  uniformly  slovenly 
when  engaged  in  the  business  of  hunting  or  of  the  boucau, 
is  mentioned  as  a  prescribed  costume,  but  which  doubtless 

was 


46  HISTORY   OF   THE 

• 

c  H  A  P.  4.  was  prescribed  only  by  their  own  negligence  and  indo- 
lence; in  particular,  that  they  wore  an  unwashed  shirt  and 
pantaloons  dyed  in  the  blood  of  the  animals  they  had 
killed.  Other  distinctions,  equally  capricious,  and  to  little 
purpose,  are  related,  which  have  no  connexion  with  their 
history.  Some  curious  anecdotes  are  produced,  to  shew  the 
.  great  respect  some  among  them  entertained  for  religion  and 
for  morality.  A  certain  Flibustier  captain,  named  Daniel, 
shot  one  of  his  crew  in  the  church,  for  behaving  irreverently 
during  the  performance  of  mass.  Raveneau  de  Lussan  (whose 
adventures  will  be  frequently  mentioned)  took  the  occupation 
of  a  Buccaneer,  because  he  was  in  debt,  and  wished,  as  every 
honest  man  should  do,  to  have  wherewithal  to  satisfy  his 
creditors. 

In  their  sea  enterprises,  they  followed  most  of  the  customs 
which  are  generally  observed  in  private  ships  of  war;  and  some- 
times were  held  together  by  a  subscribed  written  agreement, 
by  the  English  called  Charter-party ;  by  the  French  Chasse- 
partie,  which  might  in  this  case  be  construed  a  Chasing  agree- 
ment. Whenever  it  happened  that  Spain  was  at  open  and 
declared  war^with  any  of  the  maritime  nations  of  Europe,  the 
Buccaneers  who  were  natives  of  the  country  at  war  with  her, 
obtained  commissions,  which  rendered  the  vessels  in  which 
they  cruised,  regular  privateers. 

The  English  adventurers  sometimes,  as  is  seen  in  Dampier, 
called  themselves  Privateers,  applying  the  term  to  persons  in 
the  same  manner  we  now  apply  it  to  private  ships  of  war. 
The  Dutch,  whose  terms  are  generally  faithful  to  the  meaning 
intended,  called  the  adventurers  Zee  Roovers ;  the  word  roover 
in  the  Dutch  language  comprising  the  joint  sense  of  the  two 
English  words  rover  and  robber. 


BUCCANEERS  OF  AMERICA.  47 


CHAP.    V. 

• 

Treaty  made  by  the  Spaniards  with  Don  Henriquez.  Increase  of 
English  and  French  in  the  West  Indies.  Tortuga  surprised 
by  the  Spaniards.  Policy  of  the  English  and  French  Govern- 
ments with  respect  to  the  Buccaneers.  Mansvelt,  his  attempt 
to  form  an  independent  Buccaneer  Establishment.  French  West- 
India  Company.  Morgan  succeeds  Mansvelt  as  Chief  of  the 
Buccaneers. 


'T^HE   Spanish  Government  at   length    began    to   think    it  CHAP.  5. 

necessary  to   relax  from  their  large  pretensions,  and  in    ~~^QOQ 
the  year    1630    entered    into    treaties    with    other    European 
nations,  for  mutual  security  of  their  West-India  possessions. 
In  a  Treaty  concluded  that  year  with  Great  Britain,  it  was 
declared,  that  peace,  amity,  and  friendship,  should  be  observed- 
between  their   respective  subjects   in  all  parts  of  the  world. 
But  this  general  specification   was  not  sufficient  to  produce 
effect  in  the  West  Indies. 

In  Hispaniola,  in  the  year  1633,  the  Government  at  San  1633. 
Domingo  concluded  a  treaty  with  Don  Henriquez  ;  which  was 
the  more  readily  accorded  to  him,  because  it  was  apprehended 
the  revolted  natives  would  league  with  the  Brethren  of  the  Coast. 
By  this  treaty  all  the  followers  of  Don  Henriquez  who  could 
claim  descent  from  the  original  natives,  in  number  four  thou- 
sapd  persons,  were  declared  free  and  under  his  protection,  and 
lands  were  marked  out  for  them.  But,  what  is  revolting  to  all 
generous  hopes  of  human  nature,  the  negroes  were  abandoned 
to  the  Spaniards.  Magnanimity  was  not  to  be  expected  of  the 

natives 


48  HISTORY   OF  THE 

CHAP.  5.  natives  of  Hayti ;  yet  they  had  shewn  themselves  capable  of 
1633.  exertion  for  their  own  relief;  and  a  small  degree  more  of  firmness 
would  have  included  these,  their  most  able  champions,  in  the 
treaty.  This  weak  and  wicked  defection  from  friends,  confe- 
derated with  them  in  one  common  and  righteous  cause,  seems 
to  have  wrought  its  own  punishment.  The  vigilance  and  vigour 
of  mind  of  the  negro  might  have  guarded  against  encroach- 
ments upon  the  independence  obtained  ;  instead  of  which,  the 
wretched  Haytians  in  a  short  time  fell  again  wholly  into  the 
grinding  hands  of  the  Spaniards :  and  in  the  early  part  of 
the  eighteenth  centurj',  it  was  reckoned  that  the  whole  number 
living,  of  the  descendants  of  the  party  of  Don  Henriquez,  did 
not  quite  amount  to  one  hundred  persons. 

The  settlement  of  the  Buccaneers  at  Tortuga  drew  many 

Europeans  there,  as  well  settlers   as  others,  to  join  in    their 

Cultivation  adventures  and  occupations.     They  began  to  clear  and  culti- 

in  Tortuga.  vate  ^ie  grouncis,  which  were  before  overgrown  with  woods, 

and   made   plantations   of  tobacco,  which   proved    to    be   of 

extraordinary  good  quality. 

Increase  of       More  Europeans,  not  Spaniards,  consequently  allies  of  the 
the  English  Buccaneers,  continued  to  pour  into  the  West  Indies,  and  formed 

and  French 

Settlements  settlements  on  their  own  accounts,  on  some  of  the  islands  of  the 
West  Indies,  small  Antilles.  These  settlements  were  not  composed  of  mix- 
tures of  different  people,  but  were  most  of  them  all  English  or 
all  French  ;  and  as  they  grew  into  prosperity,  they  were  taken 
possession  of  for  the  crowns  of  England  or  of  France  by  the 
respective  governments.  Under  the  government  authorities  new 
colonists  were  sent  out,  royal  governors  were  appointed,  and 
codes  of  law  established,  which  combined,  Avith  the  security  gf 
the  colony,  the  interests  of  the  mother-country.  But  at  the  same 
time  these  benefits  were  conferred,  grants  of  lands  were  made 
under  royal  authority,  which  dispossessed  many  persons,  who,  by 

labour 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  49 

labour  and  perilous  adventure,  and  some  who  at  considerable  CHAP.  5. 
expence,  had  achieved  establishments  for  themselves,  in  favour 
of  men  till  then  no  way  concerned  in  any  of  the  undertakings. 
In  some  cases,  grants  of  whole  islands  were  obtained  by  pur- 
chase or  favour;  and  the  first  settlers,  who  had  long  before  gained 
possession,  and  who  had  cleared  and  brought  the  ground  into  a 
state  for  cultivation,  were  rendered  dependent  upon  the  new 
proprietary  governors,  to  whose  terms  they  were  obliged  to 
submit,  or  to  relinquish  their  tenure.  Such  were  the  hard 
accompaniments  to  the  protection  afforded  by  the  governments 
of  France  and  Great  Britain  to  colonies,  which,  before  they  were 
acknowledged  legitimate  offsprings  of  the  mother-country,  had 
grown  into  consideration  through  their  own  exertions ;  and  only 
because  they  were  found  worth  adopting,  were  now  received 
into  the  parent  family.  The  discontents  created  by  this  rapa- 
cious conduct  of  the  governments,  and  the  disregard  shewn  to 
the  claims  of  the  first  settlers,  instigated  some  to  resistance  and 
rebellion,  and  caused  many  to  join  the  Buccaneers.  The 
Caribbe  inhabitants  were  driven  from  their  lands  also  with  as 
little  ceremony. 

The  Buccaneer  colony  at  Tortuga  had  not  been  beheld  with 
indifference  by  the  Spaniards.     The  Buccaneers,  with  the  care- 
lessness natural  to  men  in  their  loose  condition  of  life,  under 
neither   command  nor  guidance,    continued    to    trust  to  the 
supineness  of  the  enemy  for  their  safety,  and  neglected  all  pre- 
caution.    In  the  year  i638,  Ihe  Spaniards  with  a  large  force      1638. 
fell   unexpectedly  upon  Tortnga,  at  a  time  when  the  greater    Tortuga 
number  of  the  settlers  were  absent  in  Hispaniola  on  the  chace ;    ^y  "he 
and  those  who  were  on  the  Island,  having  neither  fortress  nor  Spaniards, 
government,  became  an  easy  prey  to  the  Spaniards,  who  made 
a  general  massacre  of  all  who  fell  into  their  hands,  not  only  of 
those  they  surprised  in  the  beginning,  but  many  who  afterwards 

H  came 


50  HISTORY   OF    THE 

CHAP.  5.  came  jn  from  the  woods  to  implore  their  lives  on  condition  of 
1638.      returning  to  Europe,  they  hanged.    A  few  kept  themselves  con- 
cealed, till  they  found  an  opportunity  to  cross  over  to  their 
brethren  in  Hispaniola. 

It  happened  not  to  suit  the  convenience  of  the  Spaniards 
to  keep  a  garrison  at  Tortuga,  and  they  M'ere  persuaded  the 
Buccaneers  would  not  speedily  again  expose  themselves  to  a 
repetition  of  such  treatment  as  they  had  just  experienced; 
therefore  they  contented  themselves  with  destroying  the  build- 
ings, and  as  much  as  they  could  of  the  plantations ;  after  which 
they  returned  to  San  Domingo.  In  a  short  time  after  their 
departure,  the  remnant  of  the  Hunters  collected  to  the  number 
of  three  hundred,  again  fixed  themselves  at  Tortuga,  and,  for 
the  first  time,  elected  a  commander. 

As  the  hostility  of  the  Buccaneers  had  constantly  and  solely 
been  directed  against  the  Spaniards,  all  other  Europeans  in 
the  West  Indies  regarded  them  as  champions  in  the  common 
cause,  and  the  severities  which  had  been  exercised  against 
them  created  less  of  dread  than  of  a  spirit  of  vengeance.  The 
numbers  of  the  Buccaneers  were  quickly  recruited  by  volun- 
teers of  English,  French,  and  Dutch,  from  all  parts  ;  and 
both  the  occupations  of  hunting  and  cruising  were  pursued, 
with  more  than  usual  eagerness.  The  French  and  English 
Governors  in  the  West  Indies,  influenced  by  the  like  feelings, 
either  openly,  or  by  connivance,  gave  constant  encouragement 
to  the  Buccaneers.  The  French  Governor  at  St.  Christopher, 
who  was  also  Governor  General  for  the  French  West-India 
Islands,  was  most  ready  to  send  assistance  to  the  Buccaneers. 
This  Governor,  Monsieur  de  Poincy,  an  enterprising  and  capable 
man,  had  formed  a  design  to  take  possession  of  the  Island 
Tortuga  for  the  crown  of  France ;  which  he  managed  to  put  in 
execution  three  years  after,  having  by  that  time  predisposed 

some 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA.  51 

some  of  the  principal  French  Buccaneers  to  receive  a  garrison  CHAP.  5. 
of  the  French  king's  troops.     This  appropriation  was  made  in       Xg41 

1641  ;  and  De  Poincy,  thinking  his  acquisition  would  be  more  Tortuga 

secure  to  France  by  the  absence  of  the  English,  forced  all  the  ^^P  °sf~ 


English  Buccaneers  to  quit   the  Island.     The  French  writers     for  the 
say,  that  before  the  interposition  of  the  French  Governor,  the     France. 
English    Buccaneers   took    advantage   of  their   numbers,  and 
domineered  in  Tortuga.     The  English   Governors  in  the  West 
Indies  could  not  at  this  time  shew  the  same  tender  regard  for 
the  English   Buccaneers,  as  the  support  they   received  from 
home  was  very  precarious,  owing  to  the  disputes  which  then 
subsisted   in  England  between  King  Charles  and  the  English 
Parliament,  which  engrossed  so  much  of  the  public  attention 
as  to  leave  little  to  colonial  concerns. 

The  French  Commander  de  Poincy  pushed  his  success*  In 
his  appointment  of  a  Governor  to  Tortuga,  he  added  the  title 
of  Governor  of  the  West  coast  of  Hispaniola,  and  by  degrees  he 
introduced  French  garrisons.  This  was  the  first  footing 
obtained  by  the  Government  of  France  in  Hispaniola.  The  same 
policy  Avas  observed  there  respecting  the  English  as  at  Tortuga, 
by  which  means  was  effected  a  separation  of  the  English 
Buccaneers  from  the  French.  After  this  time,  it  was  only 
occasionally,  and  from  accidental  circumstances,  or  by  special 
agreement,  that  they  acted  in  concert.  The  English  adven- 
turers, thus  elbowed  out  of  Hispaniola  and  Tortuga,  lost  the 
occupation  of  hunting  cattle  and  of  the  boucan,  but  they 
continued  to  be  distinguished  by  the  appellation  of  Bucca- 
neers, and,  when  not  cruising,  most  generally  harboured  at 
the  Islands  possessed  by  the  British. 

Hitherto,  it  had  rested  in  the  power  of  the  Buccaneers  to  have 
formed  themselves  into  an  independent  state.  Being  composed 
of  people  of  different  nations,  the  admission  of  a  Governor 

H  2  from 


52  HISTORY    OF   THE 

c  H  A  P.  5.  from  any  one,  might  easily  have  been  resisted.     Now,   they 
1641.      were  considered  in  a  kind  of  middle  state,  between   that  of 
Buccaneers  and  of  men  returned  to  their  native  allegiance.    It 
seemed  now  in  the  power  of  the  English  and  French  Govern- 
ments to  put  a  stop  to  their  cruisings,  and  to  furnish  them  with 
more   honest   employment ;  but   politics   of   a  different    cast 
prevailed.     The  Buccaneers  were  regarded  as  profitable  to  the 
Colonies,  on  account  of  the  prizes  they  brought  in  ;  and  even 
vanity  had  a  share  in  their  being  countenanced.     The  French 
authors  call  them  nos  braves,  and  the  English   speak  of  their 
Policy  of   *  unparalleled   exploits.'     The  policy  both  of  England  and  of 
and  French  France  with  respect  to  the  Buccaneers,  seems  to  have  been  well 

Govern-    described   in    the    following   sentence :     On    laissoit  faire    des 
mentswith  .  ,  .  -77 

respect     Avantuners,  qu  on  pouvoit  toujours  desavouer,  mais  dont  les  succes 

to  the      pouvoient  etre  utiles:  i.e.  '  they  connived  at  the  actions  of  these 
.Buccaneers.  " 

Adventurers,  which  could  always  be  disavowed,  and  whose 
successes  might  be  serviceable.'  This  was  not  esteemed 
friponnerie,  but  a  maxim  of  sound  state  policy.  In  the  cha- 
racter given  of  a  good  French  West-India  governor,  he  is 
praised,  for  that,  '  besides  encouraging  the  cultivation  of  lands, 

*  he  never  neglected  to  encourage  the  Flibustiers.     It  was  a 
'  certain  means  of  improving  the  Colony,  by  attracting  thither 

*  the  young  and  enterprising.     He  would  scarcely  receive  a 
'  slight  portion  of  what  he  was  entitled  to  from  his  right  of 
'  bestowing    commissions   in    time  of  war  *.     And   Avhen  -we 

*  were  at  peace,  and  our  Flibustiers,  for  want  of  other  einploy- 
'  ment,  would  go  cruising,  and  would   carry  their  prizes  to  the 

*  English    Islands,   he  was  at   the   pains    of  procuring  them 
'  commissions  from  Portugal,  which  country  was  then  at  war 
'  with  Spain ;  in  virtue  of  which  our  Flibustiers  continued  to 

'  make 

*  The  Governor  or  Admiral,  who  granted  the  commisson,  claimed  one  tenth  of 
all  prizes  made  under  its  authority. 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA.  53 

*  make  themselves  redoubtable  to  the  Spaniards,  and  to  spread   CHAP.  5.. 
'  riches  and  abundance  in  our  Colonies.'     This  panegyric  was 
bestowed   by  Pere  Labat ;  who  seems  to  have   had  more  of 
national  than  of  moral  or  religious  feeling  on  this  head. 

It  was  a  powerful  consideration  with  the  French  and  English 
Governments,  to  have  at  their  occasional  disposal,  without 
trouble  or  expence,  a  well  trained  military  force,  always  at 
hand,  and  willing  to  be  emplo}red  upon  emergency ;  who 
required  no  pay  nor  other  recompense  for  their  services  and 
constant  readiness,  than  their  share  of  plunder,  and  that  their 
piracies  upon  the  Spaniards  should  pass  unnoticed. 

Towards  the  end  of  1644,  a  new  Governor  General  for  the  1644. 
French  West-India  possessions  was  appointed  by  the  French 
Regency  (during  the  minority  of  Louis  xiv.) ;  but  the  Com- 
mander de  Poincy  did  not  choose  to  resign,  and  the  colonists 
were  inclined  to  support  him.  Great  discontents  prevailed  in  the 
French  Colonies,  which  rendered  them  liable  to  being  shaken 
by  civil  wars;  and  the  apprehensions  of  the  Regency  on  this 
head  enabled  De  Poincy  to  stand  his  ground.  He  remained 
Governor  General  over  the  French  Colonies  not  only  for  the 
time,  but  was  continued  in  that  office,  by  succeeding  adminis- 
trations, many  years.  jg54> 

About  the  year  1654, -a  large  party  of  Buccaneers,  French        The 
and  English,  joined  in  an  expedition  on  the  Continent.     They  Bu<~ca"eeri 
ascended  a  river  of  the  Mosquito  shore,  a  small  distance  on  the       New 
South  side  of  Cape  Graciasa'Dios,  in  canoes;  and  after  labouring 
nearly  a  month  against  a  strong  stream  and   waterfalls,  they 
left  their  canoes,  and  marched  to  the  town  of  Nueva  Segovia, 
which  they  plundered,  and  then  returned  down  the  river.  f^e 

In   the   same   year,  the  Spaniards  took  Tortuga  from  the    Spaniards 

-r,          ,  retake 

French.  Tortuga. 

In 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


C'H  A  P.    5. 

»._,_  _< 

1655. 

With  the 
assistance 

of  the 

Buccaneers, 
the  English 

take 
Jamaica : 

1660  ; 

And  the 
French 
retake 

Tortuga. 


Pierre  le 

Grand, 

a  French 

Buccaneer. 


In  the  year  following,  1655,  England  being  at  war  with  Spain, 
a  large  force  was  sent  from  England  to  attempt  the  conquest 
of  the  Island  Hispaniola.  In  this  attempt  they  failed ;  hut 
afterwards  fell  upon  Jamaica,  of  which  Island  they  made 
themselves  masters,  and  kept  possession.  In  the  conquest 
of  Jamaica,  the  English  were  greatly  assisted  by  the  Buccaneers; 
and  a  few  years  after,  with  their  assistance  also,  the  French 
regained  possession  of  Tortuga. 

On  the  recovery  of  Tortuga,  the  French  Buccaneers  greatly 
increased  in  the  Northern  and  Western  parts  of  Hispaniola. 
Spain  also  sent  large  reinforcements  from  Europe ;  and  for 
some  years  war  was  carried  on  with  great  spirit  and  animosity 
on  both  sides.  During  the  heat  of  this  contest,  the  French 
Buccaneers  followed  more  the  occupation  of  hunting,  and 
less  that  of  cruising,  than  at  any  other  period  of  their  history. 

The  Spaniards  finding  they  could  not  expel  the  French  from 
Hispaniola,  determined  to  join  their  efforts  to  those  of  the 
French  hunters,  for  the  destruction  of  the  cattle  and  wild  hogs 
on  the  Island,  so  as  to  render  the  business  of  hunting  unpro- 
ductive. But  the  French  had  begun  to  plant;  and  the  depriving 
them  of  the  employment  of  hunting,  drove  them  to  other 
occupations  not  less  contrary  to  the  interest  and  wishes  of  the 
Spaniards.  The  less  profit  they  found  in  the  chace,  the  more 
they  became  cultivators  and  cruisers. 

The  Buccaneer  Histories  of  this  period  abound  with  relations 
of  daring  actions  performed  by  them  ;  but  many  of  which  are 
chiefly  remarkable  for  the  ferocious  cruelty  of  the  leaders  by 
whom  they  were  conducted.  Pierre,  a  native  of  Dieppe,  for 
his  success  received  to  his  name  the  addition  of  le  grand,  and 
is  mentioned  as  one  of  the  first  Flibustiers  who  obtained  much 
notoriety.  In  a  boat,  with  a  crew  of  twenty-eight  men,  he 

surprised 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  55 

surprised  and  took  the  Ship  of  the  Vice- Admiral  of  the  Spanish   CHAP.  5. 

galeons,    as   she    was   sailing    homeward-bound    with   a   rich 

freight.     He  set  the  Spanish   crew  on  shore  at  Cape  Tiburon, 

the  West  end  of  Hispaniola,  and  sailed   in  his  prize  to  France. 

A  Frenchman,  named  Alexandre,  also  in  a  small  vessel,  took  a  .Alexandra. 

Spanish  ship  of  war. 

It  is  related   of  another  Frenchman,  a  native  of  Languedoc,   Montbars, 
named  Montbars,  that  on  reading  a  history  of  the  cruelty  of  t^i^ter- 
the  Spaniards  to  the  Americans,   he  conceived  such  an   im-    minator. 
placable   hatred  against  the  Spaniards,  that  he  determined  on 
going  to  the  West  Indies  to  join  the   Buccaneers ;  and  that  he 
there    pursued    his   vengeance    with   so    much    ardour   as    to 
acquire  the  surname  of  the  Exterminator. 

One  Buccaneer  of  some  note  was  a  native  of  Portugal,  known  Bartolomeo 
by  the  name  of  Bartolomeo  Portuguez ;   who,  however,  was 
more  renowned  for  his  wonderful  escapes,  both  in  battle,  and 
from  the  gallows,  than  for  his  other  actions. 

But  no  one  of  the  Buccaneers  hitherto  named,  arrived  at  so  L'Olonnois, 
great  a  degree  of  notoriety,  as  a  Frenchman,  called  Francois    a  French 
L'Olonnois,  a  native  of  part  of  the  French  coast  which  is  near 
the  sands  of  Olonne,  but  whose  real  name  is  not  known.     This 
man,   and  Michelle  Basque,  both  Buccaneer  commanders,  at  And  Michel 
the    head    of   650    men,    took    the    towns  of  Maracaibo  and   ]e,  Basjue> 

take  Mara- 

Gibraltur  in  the  Gulf  of  Venezuela,  on  the  Tierra  Fir  ma.     The    caibo-and 
booty   they   obtained    by   the  plunder    and    ransom    of  these  ar' 

places,   was   estimated   at  400,000  crowns.     The    barbarities    Outrages 
practised  on  the  prisoners  could  not  be  exceeded.     Olonnois  committed 
was  possessed  with  an  ambition  to  make  himself  renowned  for  L'Olonnois. 
being  terrible.     At  one  time,  it  is  said,  he  put  the  whole  crew 
of  a  Spanish  ship,  ninety  men,  to  dealh,  performing  himself 
the  office  of  executioner,  by  beheading  them.     He  caused  the 
crews  of  four  other  vessels  to  be  thrown  into  the  sea;  and  more 

than 


56  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  5.  than  once,  in  his  frenzies,  he  tore  out  the  hearts  of  his  victims, 
and  devoured  them.  Yet  this  man  had  his  encomiasts  ;  so 
much  will  loose  notions  concerning  glory,  aided  by  a  little 
partiality,  mislead  even  sensible  men.  Fere  Charlevoix  says, 
Celui  de  tons,  dont  les  grandes  actions  illustrerent  davantage  les 
premieres  annees  dit  gouvernement  de  M.  d'0geron,fut  I'Olonnois. 
Ses  premiers  sitcces  furent  suivis  de  quelqucs  malheurs,  qui  ne 
servirent  qu'd  dormer  un  nouveau  lustre  &  sa  gloire.  The  career 
of  this  savage  was  terminated  by  the  Indians  of  the  coast  of 
Darien,  on  which  he  had  landed. 

The  Buccaneers  now  went  in  such  formidable  numbers,  that 
several  Spanish  towns,  both  on  the  Continent  and  among  the 
Islands  of  the  West  Indies,  submitted  to  pay  them  contribution. 
Mansvelt,  a  And  at  this  time,  a  Buccaneer  commander,  named  Mansvelt, 
"6    more  provident  and  more  ambitious  in  his  views  than  any  who 


his  Plan  for  preceded  him,  formed  a  project  for  founding  an  independent 

forming  a  ,.  '  „  . 

Buccaneer    Buccaneer   establishment.      Of    what   country  Mansvelt   was 
Establish-    na^jve    joes  not  appear;  but  he  was  so  popular  among  the 

ment.  ® 

1664.       Buccaneers,  that  both  French  and  English  were  glad  to  have 

him  for  their  leader.     The  greater  number  of  his  followers  in 

his  attempt  to  form  a  settlement  were  probably  English,  as  he 

fitted  out  in  Jamaica.     A  Welshman,  named  Henry  Morgan, 

who  had  made  some  successful  cruises  as  a  Buccaneer,  went 

Island      with  him  as  second  in  command.     The  place  designed  by  them 

S^Katalma,   for  their  establishment,  was  an  Island  named   Sta  Katalina,  or 

Providence;  Providence,  situated   in  latitude   13°24'N,    about  40   leagues 

1CQJjn11     to  the  Eastward  of  the  Mosquito  shore.     This  Island  is  scarcely 

Providence.  more  than  two  leagues  in  its  greatest  extent,  but  has  a  harbour 

capable  of  being  easily  fortified  against  an  enemy  ;  and  very 

near  to  its  North  end  is  a  much  smaller  Island.    The  late  Charts 

assign  the  name  of  S"  Katalina  to  the  small  Island,  and  give  to 

the  larger  Island  that  of  Old  Providence,  the  epithet  Old  having 

been 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA. 


5,7 


been  added  to  distinguish  this  from  the  Providence  of  the  Bahama  ,CHAr- 
Islands.    At  the  time  Mansvelt  undertook  his  scheme  of  settle-      1664. 
ment,  this  Sta  Katalina,  or  Providence  Island,  was  occupied  by 
the  Spaniards,  who  had  a  fort  and  good  garrison  there.    Some 
time  in  or  near  the  year  1664,  Mansvelt  sailed  thither  from 
Jamaica,  with  fifteen  vessels  and  500  men.    He  assaulted  and 
took  the  fort,  which  he  garrisoned  with  one  hundred  Buccaneers 
and  all  the  slaves  he  had  taken,  and  left  the  command  to  a 
Frenchman,  named  Le  Sieur  Simon.    At  the  end  of  his  cruise, 
he  returned  to  Jamaica,  intending  to  procure  there  recruits  for 
his  Settlement  of  Sta  Katalina;  but  the  Governor  of  Jamaica, 
however  friendly  to  the  Buccaneers  whilst  they  made  Jamaica 
their  home,  saw  many  reasons  for  disliking  Mansvelt's  plan, 
and  would  not  consent  to  his  raising  men. 

Not  being  able  to  overcome  the  Governor's  unwillingness, 
Mansvelt  sailed  for  Tortuga,  to  try  what  assistance  he  could  pro- 
cure there;  but  in  the  passage  he  was  suddenly  taken  ill,  and 
died.  For  a  length  of  time  after,  Simon  remained  at  Sta  Katalina 
with  his  garrison,  in  continual  expectation  of  seeing  or  hearing 
from  Mansvelt;  instead  of  which,  a  large  Spanish  force  arrived 
and  besieged  his  fort,  when,  learning  of  Mansvelt's  death,  and 
seeing  no  prospect  of  receiving  reinforcement  or  relief,  he  found 
himself  obliged  to  surrender. 

.  The  government  in  France  had  appointed  commissioners  on  French 
behalf  of  the  French  West-India  Company,  to  take  all  the 
Islands  called  the  French  Antilles,  out  of  the  hands  of  indi- 
viduals, subjects  of  France,  who  had  before  obtained  possession, 
and  to  put  them  into  the  possession  of  the  said  Company,  to 
be  governed  according  to  such  provisions  as  they  should  think 
proper.  In  February  1  665,  M.  d'Ogeron  was  appointed  Governor  1665. 
of  Tortuga,  and  of  the  French  settlements  in  Hispaniola,  or 
St.  Domingo,  as  the  Island  was  now  more  commonly  called.  On 

I  his 


Death  of 


58 


HISTORY    OF    THE 


CHAP.    5. 
l665. 

The  French 
settlers 
dispute 

their 
authority. 


1665-7. 


Morgan 

succeeds 

Mansvelt ; 

plunders 

Puerto  del 

Principe. 


his  arrival  at  Tortuga,  the  French  adventurers,  both  there  and 
in  Hispaniola,  declared  that  if  he  came  to  govern  in  the  name 
of  the  King  of  France,  he  should  find  faithful  and  obedient 
subjects ;  but  they  would  not  submit  themselves  to  any  Com- 
pany ;  and  in  no  case  would  they  consent  to  the  prohibiting 
their  trade  with  the  Hollanders,  *  with  whom,'  said  the  Buc- 
caneers, '  we  have  been  in  the  constant  habit  of  trading,  and 
*  were  so  before  it  was  known  in  France  that  there  was  a  single 
'  Frenchman  in  Tortuga,  or  on  the  coast  of  St.  Domingo.' 

M.  d'Ogeron  ha3  recourse  to  dissimulation  to  allay  these 
discontents.  He  yielded  consent  to  the  condition  respecting 
the  commerce  with  the  Dutch,  fully  resolved  not  to  observe  it 
longer  than  till  his  authority  should  be  sufficiently  established 
for  him  to  break  it  with  safety;  and  to  secure  the  commerce 
within  his  government  exclusively  to  the  French  West-India 
Company,  who,  when  rid  of  all  competitors,  would  be  able  to 
fix  their  own  prices.  It  was  not  long  before  M.  d'Ogeron  judged 
the  opportunity  was  arrived  for  effecting  this  revocation  without 
danger;  but  it  caused  a  revolt  of  the  French  settlers  in 
St.  Domingo,  which  did  not  terminate  without  bloodshed  and  an 
execution;  and  so  partial  as  well  as  defective  in  principle  were 
the  historians  who  have  related  the  fact,  that  they  have  at  the 
same  time  commended  M.  d'Ogeron  for  his  probity  and  simple 
manners.  In  the  end,  he  prevailed  in  establishing  a  monopoly 
for  the  Company,  to  the  injury  of  his  old  companions  the  French 
Buccaneers,  with  whom  he  had  at  a  former  period  associated, 
and  who  had  been  his  benefactors  in  a  time  of  his  distress. 

On/  the-  death  of  Mansvelt,  Morgan  was  regarded  as  the 
most  capable  and  most  fortunate  leader  of  any  of  the  Jamaica 
Buccaneers.  With  a  body  of  several  hundred  men,  who  placed 
themselves  under  his  command,  he  took  and  plundered  the 
town  of  Puerto  del  Principe  in  Cuba.  A  quarrel  happened  at 

this 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA. 


this  place  among  the  Buccaneers,  .in  which  a  Frenchman  was 
treacherously  slain  by  an  Englishman.  The  French  took  to 
arms,  to  revenge  the  death  of  their  countryman  ;  but  Morgan 
pacified  them  by  putting  the  murderer  in  irons,  and  promising 
he  should  be  delivered  up  to  justice  on  their  return  to  Jamaica  ; 
which  was  done,  and  the  criminal  was  hanged.  But  in  some 
other  respects,  the  French  were  not  so  well  satisfied  with 
Morgan  for  their  commander,  as  they  had  been  with  Mansvelt. 
Morgan  was  a  great  rogue,  and  little  respected  the  old  proverb 
of,  Honour  among  Thieves  :  this  had  been  made  manifest  to 
the  French,  and  almost  all  of  them  separated  from  him. 

Maracaibo  was  now  a  second  time  pillaged  by  the  French 
Buccaneers,  under  Michel  le  Basque. 

Morgan's  next  undertaking  was  against  Porto  Bello,  one  of 
the  principal  and  best  fortified  ports  belonging  to  the  Spaniards 
in  the  West  Indies.  He  had  under  his  command  only  460  men  ; 
but  not  having  revealed  his  design  to  any  person,  he  cam'e  on 
the  town  by  surprise,  and  found  it  unprepared.  Shocking 
cruelties  are  related  to  have  been  committed  in  tin's  expedition. 
Among  many  others,  that  a  castle  having  made  more  resistance 
than  had  been  expected,  Morgan,  after  its  surrendering,  shut 
up  the  garrison  in.  it,  and  caused  fire  to  be  set  to  the  magazine, 
destroying  thereby  the  castle  and  the  garrison  together.  In 
the  attack  of  another  fort,  he  compelled  a  number  of  reli- 
gious persons,  both  male  and  female,  whom  he  had  taken 
prisoners,  to  carry  and  plant  scaling  ladders  against  the  walls; 
and  many  of  them  were  killed  by  those  who  defended  the  fort. 
The  Buccaneers  in  the  end  became  masters  of  the  place,  and 
the  use  they  made  of  their  victory  corresponded  with  their 
actions  in  obtaining  it.  Many  prisoners  died  under  tortures 
inflicted  on  them  to  make  them  discover  concealed  treasures, 
whether  they  knew  of  any  or  not.  A  large  ransom  was  also 
extorted  for  the  town  and  prisoners. 

I  2  This 


CHAP.  5. 
1665-7. 


1667. 

Maracaibo 

again 
pillaged. 

1668. 
Morgan 

takes 
PortoBello: 


Exercises 

great 
Cruelty. 


60  HISTORY    OF   THE 

c  H  A  P.  5.       This  success  attracted  other  Buccaneers,  among  them  the 

1668.  French  again,  to  join  Morgan  ;  and  by  a  kind  of  circular  notice 
they  rendezvoused  in  large  force  under  his  command  at  the 
Isla  de  la  Vaca  (by  the  French  called  Isle  Avache)  near  the 
SW  part  of  Hispaniola. 

A  large  French  Buccaneer  ship  was  lying  at  la  Vaca,  which 
was  not  of  this  combination,  the  commander  and  crew  of 
which  refused  to  join  with  Morgan,  though  much  solicited. 
Morgan  was  angry,  but  dissembled,  and  with  a  show  of  cor- 
diality invited  the  French  captain  and  his  officers  to  an  enter- 
tainment on  board  his  own  ship.  When  they  were  his  guests, 
they  found  themselves  his  prisoners;  and  their  ship,  being  left 
without  officers,  was  taken  without  resistance.  The  men  put 
by  Morgan  in  charge  of  the  ship,  fell  to  drinking;  and,  whether 
from  their  drunkenness  and  negligence,  or  from  the  revenge 
of  any  of  the  prisoners,  cannot  be  known,  she  suddenly  blew 
up,  by  which  350  English  Buccaneers,  and  all  the  Frenchmen 
on  board  her,  perished.  The  History  of  the  Buccaneers  of 
America,  in  which  the  event  is  related,  adds  by  way  of  remark, 
'  Thus  was  this  unjust  action  of  Captain  Morgan's  soon  fol- 
'  lowed  by  divine  justice;  for  this  ship,  the  largest  in  his  fleet, 
*  was  blown  up  in  the  air,  with  350  Englishmen  and  all  the 
'  French  prisoners/  This  comment  seems  to  have  suggested 
to  Voltaire  the  ridicule  he  has  thrown  on  the  indiscriminate 
manner  in  which  men  sometimes  pronounce  misfortune  to  be 
a  peculiar  judgment  of  God,  in  the  dialogue  he  put  into  the 
mouths  of  Candide  and  Martin,  on  the  wicked  Dutch  skipper 
being  drowned. 

1669.  From  Isla  de  la  Vaca  Morgan  sailed  with  his  fleet  to  Maracaibo 
Maracaibo   and  Gibraltar ;    which  unfortunate  towns   were   again  sacked. 

Gibraltar    lfc  was  a  frequent  practice  with  these  desperadoes  to  secure 

plundered   their  prisoners  by  shutting  them  up  in  churches,  where  it  was 

easy  to  keep  guard  over  them.     This  was  done  by  Morgan  at 

Maracaibo 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  61 

Maracaibo  and   Gibraltar,    and  with    so   little  care    for   their   CHAP.  5. 


subsistence,  that  many  of  the  prisoners  were  actually  starved  to      1669. 
death,  whilst  their  merciless  victors  were  rioting  in  the  plunder 
of  their  houses. 

Morgan  remained  so  long  at  Gibraltar,  that  the  Spaniards 
had  time  to  repair  and  put  in  order  a  castle  at  the  entrance  of 
the  Lagune  of  Maracaibo ;  and  three  large  Spanish  ships  of  war 
arrived  and  took  stations  near  the  castle,  by  which  they  hoped 
to  cut  off  the  retreat  of  the  pirates.  The  Buccaneer  Histories  His  Con- 
give  Morgan  much  credit  here,  for  his  management  in  extri-  "'Jffec^ng11 
eating  his  fleet  and  prizes  from  their  difficult  situation,  which  is  his  Retreat, 
related  to  have  been  in  the  following  manner.  He  converted 
one  of  his  vessels  into  a  fire-ship,  but  so  fitted  up  as  to  pre- 
serve the  appearance  of  a  ship  intended  for  fighting,  and  clumps 
of  wood  were  stuck  up  in  her,  dressed  with  hats  on,  to  resemble 
men.  By  means  of  this  ship,  the  rest  of  his  fleet  following 
close  at  hand,  he  took  one  of  the  Spanish  ships,  and  destroyed 
the  two  others.  Still  there  remained  the  castle  to  be  passed  ; 
which  he  effected  without  loss,  by  a  stratagem  which  deceived 
the  Spaniards  from  their  guard.  During  the  day,  and  in  sight 
of  the  castle,  he  filled  his  boats  with  armed  men,  and  they 
rowed  from  the  ships  to  a  part  of  the  shore  which  was  well 
concealed  by  thickets.  After  waiting  as  long  as  might  be  sup- 
posed to  be  occupied  in  the  landing,  all  the  men  lay  down 
close  in  the  bottom  of  the  boats,  except  two  in  each,  who  rowed 
them  back,  going  to  the  sides  of  the  ships  which  were  farthest 
from  the  castle.  This  being  repeated  several  times,  caused  the 
Spaniards  to  believe  that  the  Buccaneers  intended  an  assault 
by  land  with  their  whole  force;  and  they  made  disposition 
with  their  cannon  accordingly,  leaving  the  side  of  the  castle 
towards  the  sea  unprovided.  When  it  was  night,  and  the  ebb 
tide  began  to  make,  Morgan's  fleet  took  up  their  anchors,  and, 

without 


62  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  5.  without  setting  sail,  it  being  moonlight,  they  fell  down  the 
1669.  river,  unperceived,  till  they  were  nigh  the  castle.  They  then 
set  their  sails,  and  fired  upon  the  castle,  and  before  the 
Spaniards  could  bring  their  guns  back  to  return  the  fire,  the 
ships  were  past.  The  value  of  the  booty  made  in  this  expe- 
dition was  250,000  pieces  of  eight. 

Some  minor  actions  of  the  Buccaneers  are  omitted  here,  not 
being  of  sufficient  consequence  to  excuse  detaining  the  Reader, 
to  whom  will  next  be  related  one  of  their  most  remarkable 
exploits. 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  63 

CHAP.     VI. 

" 
Treaty  of  America.  Expedition  of  the  Buccaneers  against  Panama. 

Exquemelin's  History  of  the  American  Sea  Hovers.     Misconduct 
of  the  European  Governors  in  the  W'est  Indies. 

TN  July  1670,  was  concluded  a  Treaty  between  Great  Britain    CHAP.  6. 

and  Spain,  made  expressly  with  the  intention  of  terminating 
the  Buccaneer  war,  and  of  settling  all  disputes  between  the 
subjects  of  the  two  countries  in  America.  It  has  been  with  this 
especial  signification  entitled  the  Treaty  of  America,  and  is  the 
first  which  appears  to  have  been  dictated  by  a  mutual  dispo- 
sition to  establish  peace  in  the  West  Indies.  The  articles  par- 
ticularly directed  to  this  end  are  the  following: — 

Art.  II.  There  shall  be  an  universal  peace  and  sincere  friend-      Treaty 
ship,  as  well  in  America,  as  in  other  parts,  between  the  Kings       Great" 
of  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  their  heirs  and  successors,  their  Britain  and 
kingdoms,  plantations,  &c.  calied"the 

III.  That  all  hostilities,  depredations,  &c.  shall  cease  between    Treaty  of 

America, 
the  subjects  of  the  said  Kings. 

IV.  The  two  Kings  shall  take  care  that  their  subjects  forbear 
all  acts  of  hostility,  and  shall  call  in  all  commissions,  letters  of 
marque  and  reprises,  and  punish  all  offenders,  obliging  them 
to  make  reparation. 

VII.  All  past  injuries,   on   both   sides,   shall  be  buried   in 
oblivion. 

VIII.  The  King  of  Great  Britain  shall  hold  and  enjoy  all  the 
lands,  countries,  &c.  he  is  now  possessed  of  in  America. 

IX.  The  subjects  on  each  side  shall  forbear  trading  or  sailing 
to  any  places  whatsoever  under   the   dominion  of  the   other, 

without  particular  licence. 

XIV.  Par- 


64  HISTORY    OF    THE 

c H AT.  6.       XIV.  Particular  offences  shall  be  repaired  in   the  common 
1670.      course   of  justice,   and    no   reprisals   made    unless  justice  be 
denied,  or  unreasonably  retarded. 

When  notice  of  this  Treaty  was  received  in  the  West  Indies, 
the  Buccaneers,  immediately  as  of  one  accord,  resolved  to 
undertake  some  grand  expedition.  Many  occurrences  had 
given  rise  to  jealousies  between  the  English  and  the  French  in 
the  West  Indies  ;  but  Morgan's  reputation  as  a  commander  was 
so  high,  that  adventurers  from  all  parts  signified  their  readiness 
to  join  him,  and  he  appointed  Cape  Tiburon  on  the  West  of 
Hispaniola  for  the  place  of  general  rendezvous.  In  consequence 
of  this  summons,  1n  the  beginning  of  December  1670,  a  fleet 
was  there  collected  under  his  command,  consisting  of  no  less 
than  thirty-seven  vessels  of  different  sizes,  and  above  2000  men. 
Having  so  large  a  force,  he  held  council  with  the  principal 
commanders,  and  proposed  for  their  determination,  which  they 
should  attempt  of  the  three  places,  Carthctgena,  Vera  Cruz,  and 
Panama.  Panama  was  believed  to  be  the  richest,  and  on  that 
City  the  lot  fell. 

A  century  before,  when  the  name  of  Buccaneer  was  not 
known,  roving  adventurers  had  crossed  the  Isthmus  of  America 
from  the  West  Indies  to  the  South  Sea ;  but  the  fate  of  Oxnam 
and  his  companions  deterred  others  from  the  like  attempt,  until 
the  time  of  the  Buccaneers,  who,  as  they  increased  in  numbers, 
extended  their  enterprises,  urged  by  a  kiricl  of  necessity,  the 
West  Indies  not  furnishing  plunder  sufficient  to  satisfy  so  many 
men,  whose  modes  of  expenditure  were  not  less  profligate  than 
their  means  of  obtaining  were  violent  and  iniquitous. 
Expedition  The  rendezvous  appointed  by  Morgan  for  meeting  his  confe- 
Buccaneers  derates  was  distant  from  any  authority  which  could  prevent  or 

against     impede  their  operations  ;  and  whilst  they  remained  on  the  coast 
Panama.  .   ,-     I 

of  Hispaniola,  he  employed  men  to  hunt  cattle,  and  cure  meat. 

He 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  65 

He  also  sent  vessels  to  collect  maize,  at  the  settlements  on  the    CHAP.  6. 

i v i 

Tierra  Firma.    Specific  articles  of  agreement  were  drawn  up       ^-Q 
and  subscribed  to,  for  the  distribution  of  plunder.     Morgan,  Expedition 
as    commander    in    chief,     was    to    receive    one    hundredth    p^^fa. 
part ;  each  captain  was  to  have  eight  shares ;    provision  was 
stipulated   for    the  maimed   and    wounded,    and   rewards  for 
those  who  should  particularly    distinguish  themselves.    These 
matters  being  settled,  on  December  the  16th,  the  whole  fleet  December, 
sailed   from  Cape  Tiburon ;    on  the  2()th,  they  arrived  at  the    They  take 
Island  Sta  Katalina,  then  occupied  by  the  Spaniards,  who  had  suKatSa. 
garrisoned  it  chiefly  with  criminals  sentenced  to  serve  there  by 
way   of   punishment.     Morgan    had    fully    entered    into    the 
project  of  Mansvelt  for  forming  an  establishment  at  Sta  Katalina, 
and  he  was  not  the  less  inclined  to  it  now  that  he  considered 
himself  as  the  head  of  the  Buccaneers.    The  Island  surrendered 
upon   summons.     It  is    related,    that   at   the   request   of   the 
Governor,  in  which  Morgan  indulged  him,  a  military  farce  was 
perfomed ;  Morgan  causing  cannon  charged  only  with  powder 
to  be  fired  at  the  fort,  which  returned  the  like  fire  for  a  decent 
time,  and  then  lowered  their  flag. 

Morgan  judged  it  would  contribute  to  the  success  of  the 
proposed  expedition  against  Panama,  to  make  himself  master 
of  the  fort  or  castle  of  San  Lorenzo  at  the  entrance  of  the  River 
Chagre.  For  this  purpose  he  sent  a  detachment  of  400  men 
•under  the  command  of  an  old  Buccaneer  named  Brodely,  and 
in  the  mean  time  remained  himself  with  the  main  body  of  his 
forces  at  S'a  Katalina,  to  avoid  giving  the  Spaniards  cause  to 
suspect  his  further  designs. 

The  Castle  of  Chagre  was  strong,  both  in  its  works  and  in    Attack  of 

situation,  being  built  on  the  summit  of  a  steep  hill.     It  was    th!  C£stle 

at  the  Kiver 
valiantly  assaulted,  and  no  less  valiantly  defended.    The  Buc-      Chagre. 

cancers   were  once  forced  to  retreat.    They  returned   to   the 
attack,  and   were  nearly  a  second  time  driven  back,  when  a 

K  powder 


66  HISTORY    OF    THE 

.CHAP.  6.    powder  magazine  in  the  fort  blew  up,  and  the  mischief  and 

1670.       confusion  thereby  occasioned  gave  the  Buccaneers  opportunity 

Expedition  to  force  entrance  through  the  breaches  they  had  made.    The 

Panama.    Governor  of  the  castle  refused  to  take  quarter  which  was  offered 

him  by  the  Buccaneers,  as  did  also  some  of  the  Spanish  soldiers. 

More  than  200  men  of  314  which  composed  the  garrison  were 

killed.     The  loss  on  the  side  of  the  Buccaneers  was  above  1 00 

9 

men  killed  outright,  and  70  wounded. 

On  receiving  intelligence  of  the  castle  being  taken,  Morgan 

repaired  with  the  rest  of  his  men  from  Sta  Katalina,     He  set 

the  prisoners  to  work  to  repair  the  Castle  of  San  Lorenzo,  in 

which  he  stationed  a  garrison  of  500  men;  he  also  appointed 

l671-       150  men  to  take  care  of  the  ships ;  and  on  the  18th  of  January 

January.      Ig71  ^  j]e  get  forwar(j  at  tne  head  of  1200  men  for  Panama, 

March  of      _  •  i  -n  i       i      i    • 

the        One  party  with  artillery   and  stores  embarked  in   canoes,   to 
Buccaneers  mount  the  River  Chaere,  the  course  of  which  is  extremely  ser- 

across  the 

Isthmus,  pentiue.  At  the  end  of  the  second  day,  however,  they  quitted 
the  canoes,  on  account  of  the  many  obstructions  from  trees 
which  had  fallen  in  the  river,  and  because  the  river  was  at  this 
time  in  many  places  almost  dry;  but  the  way  by  land  was  also 
found  so  difficult  for  the  carriage  of  stores,  that  the  canoes 
were  again  resorted  to.  On  the  sixth  day,  when  they  had 
expended  great  part  of  their  travelling  store  of  provisions, 
they  had  the  good  fortune  to  discover  a  barn  full  of  maize. 
They  saw  many  native  Indians,  who  all  kept  at  a  distance,- 
and  it  was  in  vain  endeavoured  to  overtake  some. 

On  the  seventh  day  they  came  to  a  village  called  Cruz,  the 
inhabitants  of  which  had  set  fire  to  their  houses,  and  fled. 

TheJ 

*  It  is  proper  to  mention,  that  an  erroneously  printed  date,  in  the  English 
edition  of  the  Buccaneers  of  America,  occasioned  a  mistake  to  be  made  in  the 
account  given  of  Narbrough's  Voyage,  respecting  the  time  the  Buccaneers  kept 
possession  of  Panama,  See  Vol.  111.  of  Voyages  and  Discoveries  in  the  South 
Sea,  p.  374. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  67 

They  found  there,  however,  fifteen  jars  of  Peruvian  wine,  and  a   CHAP.  6. 
sack  of  bread.    The  village  of  Cruz  is  at  the  highest  part  of      1671. 
the  River  Chagre  to  which  boats  or  canoes  can  arrive.    It  was    January. 

reckoned  to  be  eight  leagues  distant  from  Panama.  Expedition. 

against 
On  the  ninth  day  of  their  journey,  they  came  in  sight  of  the    Panama. 

South  Sea  ;  and  here  they  were  among  fields  in  which  cattle 
grazed.  Towards  evening,  they  had  sight  of  the  steeples  of 
Panama.  In  the  course  of  their  march  thus  far  from  the  Castle 
of  Chagre,  they  lost,  by  being  fired  at  from  concealed  places, 
ten  men  killed  ;  and  as  many  more  were  wounded. 

Panama  had  not  the  defence  of  regular  fortifications.  Some 
works  had  been  raised,  but  in  parts  the  city  lay  open,  and  was 
to  be  won  or  defended  by  plain  fighting.  According  to  the 
Buccaneer  account,  the  Spaniards  had  about  2000  infantry 
and  400  horse  ;  which  force,  it  is  to  be  supposed,  was  in  part 
composed  of  inhabitants  and  slaves. 

January  the  27th,  early  in  the  morning,  the   Buccaneers      27tn- 


resumed  their  march  towards  the  city.    The  Spaniards  came 


out  to  meet  them.  In  this  battle,  the  Spaniards  made  use  of  taken. 
wild  bulls,  which  they  drove  upon  the  Buccaneers  to  disorder 
their  ranks  ;  but  it  does  not  appear  to  have  had  much  effect. 
In  the  end,  the  Spaniards  gave  way,  and  before  night,  the 
Buccaneers  were  masters  of  the  city.  All  that  day,  the 
Buccaneers  gave  no  quarter,  either  during  the  battle,  or 
afterwards.  Six  hundred  Spaniards  fell.  The  Buccaneers  lost 
many  men,  but  the  number  is  not  specified. 

One  of  the  first  precautions  taken  by  Morgan  after  his 
victory,  was  to  prevent  drunkenness  among  his  men  :  to  which 
end,  he  procured  to  have  it  reported  to  him  that  all  the  wine 
in  the  city  had  been  poisoned  by  the  inhabitants  ;  and  on  the 
ground  of  this  intelligence,  he  strictly  prohibited  every  one, 
under  severe  penalties,  from  tasting  wine.  Before  they  had  well 

K  2  fixed 


68  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CHAP.  6.  fixe(j  their  quarters  jn  Panama,  several  parts  of  the  city  burst 
1671.      out  in  flames,  which  spread  so  rapidly,  that  in  a  short  time 

Expedition  many  magnificent  edifices  built  with  cedar,  and  a  great  part  of 
Panama,    the  city,  were  burnt  to  the  ground.    Whether  this  was  done 
.         .       designedly,  or  happened  accidentally,  owing  to  the  consternation 
burnt.      °f  the   inhabitants    during   the    assault,    has    been    disputed. 
Morgan  is  accused  of  having  directed  some  of  his  people  to 
commit  this  mischief,  but  no   motive  is   assigned  that  could 
induce   him   to  an  act  which  cut  off  his  future   prospect  of 
ransom.    Morgan  charged   it  upon  the  Spaniards ;  and  it  is 
acknowledged  the  Buccaneers  gave  all  the  assistance  they  were 
able  to  those  of  the  inhabitants  who  endeavoured  to  stop  the 
progress  of  the  fire,   which  nevertheless  continued  to  burn  near 
four  weeks  before  it  was  quite  extinguished.    Among  the  build- 
ings destroyed,  was  a  factory-house  belonging  to  the  Genoese, 
who    then   carried   on  the  trade  of  supplying   the  Spaniards 
with  slaves  from  Africa. 

The  rapacity,  licentiousness,  and  cruelty,  of  the  Buccaneers, 
in  their  pillage  of  Panama,  had  no  bounds.  '  They  spared/ 
says  the  narrative  of  a  Buccaneer  named  Exquemelin,  '  in 
'  these  their  cruelties  no  sex  nor  condition  whatsoever.  As  to 
*  religious  persons  and  priests,  they  granted  them  less  quarter 
'  than  others,  unless  they  procured  a  considerable  sum  of  money 
'  for  their  ransom/  Morgan  sent  detachments  to  scour  the 
country  for  plunder,  and  to  bring  in  prisoners  from  whom 
ransom  might  be  extorted.  Many  of  the  inhabitants  escaped 
with  their  effects  by  sea,  and  went  for  shelter  to  the  Islands 
in  the  Bay  of  Panama.  Morgan  found  a  large  boat  lying  aground 
in  the  Port,  which  he  caused  to  be  lanched,  and  manned  with 
a  numerous  crew,  and  sent  her  to  cruise  among  the  Islands. 
A  galeon,  on  board  which  the  women  of  a  convent  had  taken 
refuge,  and  in  which  money,  plate,  and  other  valuable  effects, 

had 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  69 

had    been  lodged,  very    narrowly    escaped    falling  into    their   CHAP.  6. 
hands.    They  made  prize  of  several  vessels,  one  of  which  was       1671. 
well  adapted  for  cruising.    This  opened  a  new  prospect ;  and  Expedition 
some  of  the  Buccaneers  began  to  consult  how  they  might  quit    p^'ma. 
Morgan,  and  seek  their  fortunes  on  the  South  Sea,  whence  they 
proposed  to  sail,  with  the  plunder  they  should  obtain,  by  the 
East  Indies  to  Europe.    But  Morgan  received  notice  of  their 
design  before  it  could   be  put  in  execution,  and  to  prevent 
such  a  diminution  of  his  force,  he  ordered  the  masts   of  the 
ship    to   be  cut  away,  and  all    the  boats  or  vessels  lying  at 
Panama  which  could  suit  their  purpose,  to  be  burnt. 

The  old  city  of  Panama  is  said  to  have  contained  7000  houses,  Feb.  24th. 
many  of  which  were  magnificent  edifices  built  with  cedar.  The 
On  the  £4th  of  February,  Morgan  and  his  men  departed  from  dep 
its  ruins,  taking  with  them  175  mules  laden  with  spoil,  and  Panama. 
600  prisoners,  some  of  them  carrying  burthens,  and  others  for 
whose  release  ransom  was  expected.  Among  the  latter  were 
many  women  and  children.  These  poor  creatures  were 
designedly  caused  to  suffer  extreme  hunger  and  thirst,  and 
kept  under  apprehensions  of  being  carried  to  Jamaica  to  be 
sold  as  slaves,  that  they  might  the  more  earnestly  endeavour  to 
procure  money  to  be  brought  for  their  ransom.  When  some  of 
the  women,  upon  their  knees  and  in  tears,  begged  of  Morgan 
to  let  them  return  to  their  families,  his  answer  to  them  was", 

9 

that  '  he  came  not  there  to  listen  to  cries  and  lamentations, 
but  to  seek  money.'  Morgan's  thirst  for  money  Avas  not 
restrained  to  seeking  it  among  his  foes.  He  had  a  hand 
equally  ready  for  that  of  his  friends.  Neither  did  he  think 
his  friends  people  to  be  trusted  ;  for  in  the  middle  ot  the 
march  back  to  Cliagre,  he  drew  up  his  men  and  caused  them 
to  be  sworn,  that  they  had  not  reserved  or  concealed  any 
plunder,  but  had  delivered  all  fairly  into  the  common  stock. 

This 


70  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CHAP.  6.  This  ceremony,  it  seems,  was  not  uncustomary.   '  But  Captain 

1671.      '  Morgan    having   had    experience    that    those   loose    fellows 

'  would  not  much  stickle  to  swear  falsely  in  such  a  case,  he 

*  commanded  every  one  to  be  searched ;  and  that  it  might  not 
'  be  esteemed  an    affront,  he   permitted   himself  to    be   first 

*  searched,  even  to  the  very  soles  of  his  shoes.    The  French 
'  Buccaneers  who  had  engaged  on  this  expedition  with  Morgan, 

*  were  not  well  satisfied  with  this  new  custom  of  searching  ;  but 
'  their  number  being  less  than  that  of  the  English,  they  were 

*  forced   to  submit/     On    arriving  at  Chagre,  a  division  was 
made.    The  narrative  says,  '  every  person  received  his  portion, 

*  or  rather  what   part  thereof  Captain   Morgan  was   pleased 

*  to  give  him.    For  so  it  was,  that  his  companions,  even  those 
'  of  his  own  nation,  complained  of  his  proceedings;  for  they 
'  judged  it  impossible  that,  of  so  many  valuable  robberies,  no 

*  greater  share  should  belong  to  them  than  £00  pieces  of  eight 
'  per  head.    But  Captain  Morgan  was  deaf  to  these,  and  to 

*  many  other  complaints  of  the  same  kind/ 

As  Morgan  was  not  disposed  to  allay  the  discontents  of  his 
men  by  coming  to  a  more  open  reckoning  with  them,  to  avoid 
having  the  matter  pressed  upon  him,  he  determined  to  with- 
draw from  his  command,  '  which  he  did  without  calling  any 
'  council,  or  bidding  any  one  adieu  ;  but  went  secretly  on 

*  board  his  own  ship,  and  put  out  to  sea  without  giving  notice, 

*  being  followed  only  by  three  or  four  vessels  of  the  whole  fleet, 

*  who  h  is  believed  went  shares  with  him  in  the  greatest  part  of 

*  the  spoil/ 

The  rest  of  the  Buccaneer  vessels  soon  separated.  Morgan 
went  to  Jamaica,  and  had  begun  to  levy  men  to  go  with  him  to 
the  Island  8"  Katalina,  which  he  purposed  to  hold  as  his  own, 
and  to  make  it  a  common  place  of  refuge  for  pirates  ;  when  the 
arrival  of  anew  Governor  at  Jamaica,  Lord  John  Yaughan,  with 

orders 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  71 

orders  to  enforce  the  late  treaty  with  Spain,  obliged  him  to    cnAp.6.^ 
relinquish  his  plan. 

The  foregoing  account  of  the  destruction  of  Panama  by 
Morgan,  is  taken  from  a  History  of  the  Buccaneers  of  America, 
written  originally  in  the  Dutch  language  by  a  Buccaneer  named  Buccaneers 
Exquemelin,  and  published  at  Amsterdam  in  1678,  with  the 
title  of  De  Americaensche  Zee  Hoovers.  Exquemeiin's  book 
contains  only  partial  accounts  of  the  actions  of  some  of  the 
principal  among  the  Buccaneers.  He  has  set  forth  the  valour 
displayed  by  them  in  the  most  advantageous  light ;  but 
generally,  what  he  has  related  is  credible.  His  history  has 
been  translated  into  all  the  European  languages,  but  with 
various  additions  and  alterations  by  the  translators,  each  of 
whom  has  inclined  to  maintain  the  military  reputation  of  his 
own  nation.  The  Spanish  translation  is  entitled  Piratas,  and 
has  the  following  short  complimentary  Poem  prefixed,  addressed 
to  the  Spanish  editor  and  ernendator  : — 

De  Agamenon  cant&  la  vida  Homero 
Y  Virgilio  de  Eneas  lo  piadoso 
Camoes  de  Gama  el  curso  presurosso 
Gongora  el  brio  de  Colon  Velero. 

Tu,  O  Alonso !  mas  docto  y  verdadoro, 
Descrives  del  America  ingenioso 
Lo  que  assalta  el  Pirata  codicioso  : 
Lo  que  defiende  el  Espanol  Guerrero. 

The  French  translation  is  entitled  Les  Avanturiers  qui  se  sont 
signalez  duns  les  Indes,  and  contains  actions  of  the  French  Fli- 
bustiers  which  are  not  in  Exquemelin.  The  like  has  been  done 
in  the  English  translation,  which  has  for  title  The  Bucaniers  of 
America.  The  English  translator,  speaking  of  the  sacking  of 
Panama,  has  expressed  himself  with  a  strange  mixture  of 
boasting  and  compunctious  feeling.  This  account,  he  says, 
contains  the  unparalleled  and  bold  exploits  of  Sir  Henry 

Morgan, 


72  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  6.    Morgan,  written  by  one  of  the  Buccaneers  who  was  present  at 
those  tragedies. 

It  has  been  remarked,  that  the  treaty  of  America  furnishes  an 
apology  for  the  enterprises  of  the  Buccaneers  previous  to  its 
notification  ;  it  being  so  worded  as  to  admit  an  inference  that 
the  English  and  Spaniards  were  antecedently  engaged  in  a 
continual  war  in  America. 

1671.  The  new  Governor  of  Jamaica  was  authorized  and  instructed 
to  proclaim  a  general  pardon,  and  indemnity  from  prosecution, 
for  all  piratical  offences  committed  to  that  time ;  and  to  grant 
35   acres  of  land  to  every  Buccaneer  who  should  claim  the 
benefit  of  the  proclamation,  and  would  promise  to  apply  himself 
to  planting ;  a  measure  from  which  the  most  beneficial  effects 
might  have  been  expected,  not  to  the  British  colonists  only, 
but  to  all  around,  in   turning  a   number  of  able    men  from 
destructive  occupations  to  useful  and  productive  pursuits,  if  it 
had  not  been  made  subservient  to  sordid  views.    The  author  of 
the  History  of  Jamaica  says,  '  This  offer  was  intended  as  a  lure  to 

*  engage  the  Buccaneers  to  come  into  port  with  their  effects, 

*  that  the  Governor  might,  and  which  he  was  directed  to  do, 

*  take  from  them  the  tenths  and  fifteenths  of  their  booty  as  the 
'  dues  of  the  Crown  [and  of  the  Colonial  Government]  for 
'  granting   them   commissions.'    Those  who  had  neglected   to 
obtain  commissions  would  of  course  have  to  make  their  peace 
by  an  increased  composition.  In  consequence  of  this  scandalous 
procedure,  the  Jamaica  Buccaneers,  to  avoid  being  so  taxed, 
kept  aloof  from  Jamaica,  and  were  provoked  to  continue  their 
old  occupations.    Most  of  them  joined  the  French  Flibustiers 
at  Tortuga.    Some   were  afterwards  apprehended  at  Jamaica, 
where  they  were  brought  to  trial,  condemned  as  pirates,  and 
executed. 

1672.  A  war  which  was  entered  into  by  Great  Britain  and  France 

against 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA.  73 

against   Holland,  furnished   for   a  time   employment  for   the   CHAP.  6.^ 
Buccaneers  and    Flibustiers,   and  procured  the    Spaniards    a 
short  respite. 
In  1673,  the  French  made  an  attempt  to  take  the  Island       1673. 

of  Curacao  from   the   Dutch,  and  failed.     M.  d'Ogeron,  the  Flibustiers 

shipwreck- 
Governor  of  Tortuga,  intended  to  have  joined  in   this  expe-       ed  at 

dition,  for  which  purpose  he  sailed  in  a  ship  named  FEcueil,  co; 

manned  with  300  Flibustiers;  but  in  the  night  of  the  25th 
of  February,  she  ran  aground  among  some  small  islands  and 
rocks,  near  the  North  side  of  the  Island  Porto  Rico.  The 
people  got  safe  to  land,  but  were  made  close  prisoners  by  the 
Spaniaids.  After  some  months  imprisonment,  M.  d'Ogeron, 
with  three  others,  made  their  escape  in  a  canoe,  and  got  back 
to  Tortuga.  The  Governor  General  over  the  French  West- 
India  Islands  at  that  time,  was  a  M.  de  Baas,  who  sent  to 
Porto  Rico  to  demand  the  deliverance  of  the  French  detained 
there  prisoners.  The  Spanish  Governor  of  Porto  Rico  required 
3000  pieces  of  eight  to  be  paid  for  expences  incurred. 
De  Baas  was  unwilling  to  comply  with  the  demand,  and  sent  an 
agent  to  negociate  for  an  abatement  in  the  sum ;  but  they  came 
to  no  agreement.  M.  d'Ogeron  in  the  mean  time  collected  five 
hundred  men  in  Tortuga  and  Hispaniola,  with  whom  he 
embarked  in  a  number  of  small  vessels  to  pass  over  to  Porto 
Rico,  to  endeavour  the  release  of  his  shipwrecked  companions ; 
but  by  repeated  tempests,  several  of  his  flotilla  were  forced  back, 
and  he  reached  Porto  Rico  with  only  three  hundred  men. 

On  their  landing,  the  Spanish  Governor  put  to  death  all  his  And  put  to 
French  prisoners,  except  seventeen  of  the  officers.    Afterwards      b^the 
in  an  engagement  with  the  Spaniards,  D'Ogeron  lost  seventeen    Spaniards. 
men,  and  found  his  strength  not  sufficient  to  force  the  Spaniards 
to  terms ;  upon  which  he  withdrew  from  Porto  Rico,  and  returned 
to  Tortuga.    The  seventeen  French  officers  that  were  spared  in 

L  the 


74  HISTORY    OF   THE 

o  H  A  P.  6^  the  massacre  of  the  prisoners,  the  Governor  of  Porto  Rico  put 
1673.  on  board  a  vessel  bound  for  the  Tierra  Firma,  with  the  intention 
of  transporting  them  to  Peru ;  but  from  that  fate  they  were 
delivered  by  meeting  at  sea  with  an  English  Buccaneer  cruiser. 
Thus,  by  the  French  Governor  General  disputing  about  a 
trifling  balance,  three  hundred  of  the  French  Buccaneers,  whilst 
employed  for  the  French  king's  service  under  one  of  his 
officers,  were  sacrificed. 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA. 


CHAP.    VII. 

Thomas  Peche.  Attempt  of  La  Sound  to  cross  the  Isthmus 
of  America.  Voyage  of  Antonio  de  Vea  to  the  Strait  of 
Magalhanes.  Various  Adventures  of  the  Buccaneers,  in  the 
West  Indies,  to  the  year  1679. 

TN   1673,  Thomas  Peche,  an  Englishman,  fitted  out  a  ship    CHAP.  7. 

in  England  for  a  piratical  voyage  to  the  South  Sea  against       loVvT 
the  Spaniards.     Previous  to  this,  Peche  had  been  many  years     Thomas 
a  Buccaneer  in  the  West  Indies,  and  therefore  his  voyage  to  the     P60"6- 
South  Sea  is  mentioned  as  a  Buccaneer  expedition;  but  it  was 
in  no  manner  connected  with  any  enterprise  in  or  from  the 
West  Indies.    The  only  information  we  have  of  Peche's  voyage 
is  from  a  Spanish  author,  Seixas  y  Lovera;  and  by  that  it  may 
be  conjectured  that  Peche  sailed  to  the  Aleutian  Isles.* 

About    this    time    the    French  West-India   Company    was       1675. 
suppressed  ;  but  another  Company  was  at  the  same  time  erected 
in  its  stead,  and  under  the    unpromising   title    of   Compagnic 
des  Fenniers  du  domaine  d'Occident. 

Since  the  plundering  of  Panama,  the  imaginations  of  the 
Buccaneers  had  been  continually  running  on  expeditions  to  the 
South  Sea.  This  was  well  known  to  the  Spaniards,  and  produced 
many  forebodings  and  prophecies,  in  Spain  as  well  as  in  Peru,  of 
great  invasions  both  by  sea  and  land.  The  alarm  was  increased 
by  an  attempt  of  a  French  Buccaneer,  named  La  Sound,  with  La  Sound 
a  small  body  of  men,  to  cross  over  land  to  the  South  Sea.  acroTsPthe° 

Isthmus. 


*  Theatro  Naval  Ilydrographico.  Cap.  xi.     See  also  of  Peche,  in  Vol.  HI.  of 
South  Sea  Voyages  and  Discoveries,  p.  392. 

L  2 


76  HISTORY    OF   THE 

,CHAF-  7-.  La  Sound  got  no  farther  than  the  town  of  Cheapo,  and  was 
1675. '     driven  back.    Dampier  relates,  '  Before  my  going  to  the  South 

*  Seas,  I  being  then  on  board  a  privateer  off  Portobel,  we  took 
'  a  packet  from  Carthagena.    We  opened  a  great  many  of  the 
'  merchants'  letters,  several  of  which  informed   their   corres- 
'  pendents  of  a  certain  prophecy  that  went  about  Spain  that 

*  year,  the  tenor  of  which  was,  That  the  English  privateers  in 
'  the  West  Indies  would  that  year  open  a  door  into  the  South  Seas.' 

In  1675,  it  was  reported  and  believed  in  Peru,  that  strange 
ships,  supposed  to  be  Pirates,  had  been  seen  on  the  coast  of 
Chili,  and  it  was  apprehended  that  they  designed  to  form  an 
Voyage  of  establishment  there.  In  consequence  of  this  information  or 
AntodthJea  rumour»  tne  Viceroy  sent  a  ship  from  Peru,  under  the  command 
Strait  of  of  Don  Antonio  de  Vea,  accompanied  with  small  barks  as 
tenders,  to  reconnoitre  the  Gulf  de  la  Santissima  Trinidada, 
and  to  proceed  thence  to  the  West  entrance  of  the  Strait 
of  Magalhanes.  De  Vea  made  examination  at  those  places,  and 
was  convinced,  from  the  poverty  of  the  land,  that  no  settle- 
ment of  Europeans  could  be  maintained  there.  One  of  the 
Spanish  barks,  with  a  crew  of  sixteen  men,  was  wrecked  on  the 
small  Islands  called  Evangelists,  at  the  West  entrance  of  the 
Strait.  De  Vea  returned  to  Callao  in  April  1676*. 
1676.  The  cattle  in  Hispaniola  had  again  multiplied  so  much  as  to 
revive  the  business  of  hunting  and  the  boucan.  In  1676,  some 
French  who  had  habitations  in  the  Peninsula  of  Samana  (the 
NE  part  of  Hispaniola)  made  incursions  on  the  Spaniards,  and 
plundered  one  of  their  villages.  Not  long  afterwards,  the 
Spaniards  learnt  that  in  Samana  there  were  only  women  f)nd 
children,  the  men  being  all  absent  on  the  chace ;  and  that  it 
would  be  easy  to  surprise  not  only  the  habitations,  but  the 
hunters  also,  who  had  a  boucan  at  a  place  called'  the  Round 

Mountain. 
*  Not,  de  las  Exp.  Magal.  p.  268,  of  Ult.  Viage  al  Estrecho. 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA. 


77 


Mountain.  This  the  Spaniards  executed,  and  with  such  full 
indulgence  to  their  wish  to  extirpate  the  French  in  Hispaniola, 
that  they  put  to  the  sword  every  one  they  found  at  both 
the  places.  The  French,  in  consequence  of  this  misfortune, 
strengthened  their  fortifications  at  Cape  Francois,  and  made  it 
their  principal  establishment  in  the  Island. 

In  1678,  the  French  again  undertook  an  expedition  against 
the  Dutch  Island  Curasao,  with  a  large  fleet  of  the  French 
king's  ships,  under  the  command  of  Admiral  the  Count  d'Etrees. 
The  French  Court  were  so  earnest  for  the  conquest  of  Curasao, 
to  wipe  off  the  disgrace  of  the  former  failure,  that  the  Governor 
ofTortuga  was  ordered  to  raise  1200  men  to  join  the  Admiral 
d'Etrees.  The  king's  troops  within  his  government  did  not 
exceed  300  men;  nevertheless,  the  Governor  collected  the  num- 
ber required,  the  Flibustiers  willingly  engaging  in  the  expe- 
dition. Part  of  them  embarked  on  board  the  king's  ships, 
and  part  in  their  own  cruising  vessels.  By  mistake  in  the 
navigation,  d'Etrees  ran  ashore  in  the  middle  of  the  night  on 
some  small  Isles  to  the  East  of  Curasao,  called  de  Aves,  which 
are  surrounded  with  breakers,  and  eighteen  of  his  ships,  besides 
some  of  the  Flibustier  vessels,  were  wrecked.  The  crews  were 
saved,  excepting  about  300  men. 

The  Curasao  expedition  being  thus  terminated,  the  Flibustiers 
who  had  engaged  in  it,  after  saving  as  much  as  they  could  of 
the  wrecks,  went  on  expeditions  of  their  own  planning,  to 
seek  compensation  for  their  disappointment  and  loss.  Some 
landed  on  Cuba,  and  pillaged  Puerto  del  Principe.  One  party, 
under  Granmont,  a  leader  noted  for  the  success  of  his  enter- 
prises, went  to  the  Gulf  of  Venezuela,  and  the  ill-fated  towns 
Maracaibo  and  Gibraltar  were  again  plundered  ;  but  what  the 
Buccaneers  obtained  was  not  of  much  value.  In  August  this 
year,  France  concluded  a  treaty  of  peace  with  Spain  and 
Holland. 

The 


CHAP.    7. 
1676. 

Massacre 

of  the 
French  iu 

Samaria. 


1678. 


French 
Fleet 

wrecked  on 
the  Isles 
de  Aves. 


Granmont. 


78  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP. 7.  The  Government  in  Jamaica  had  by  this  time  relapsed  to  its 
1678.  former  propensities,  and  again  encouraged  the  Buccaneers,  and 
shared  in  their  gains.  One  crew  of  Buccaneers  carried  there  a 
vessel  taken  from  the  Spaniards,  the  cargo  of  which  produced 
for  each  man's  share  to  the  value  of  400  /.  After  disposing  of 
the  cargo,  they  burnt  the  vessel ;  and  '  having  paid  the 

*  Governor  his  duties,  they  embarked  for    England,  where/ 
added  the  author,  '  some  of  them  live  in  good  reputation  to 
'  this  day  *.' 

As  long  as  the  war  had  lasted  between  France  and  Spain,  the 
French  Buccaneers  had  the  advantage  of  being  lawful  pri- 
vateers. An  English  Buccaneer  relates,  '  We  met  a  French 

*  private  ship  of  war,  mounting  eight  guns,  who  kept  in  our 
'  company    some  days.    Her  commission  was  only  for  three 

*  months.  We  shewed  him  our  commission,  which  was  for  three 

*  years  to  come.  This  we  had  purchased  at  a  cheap  rate,  having 

*  given   for  it  only   ten  pieces  of  eight;  but  the  truth  of  the 
'  thing  was,  that  our  commission  was  made  out  at  first  only 

*  for  three  months,  the  same  date  as  the  Frenchman's,  whereas 
'  among  ourselves  we  contrived  to  make  it  that  it  should  serve 

*  for  three  years,  for  with  this  we  were  resolved   to  seek  our 
'  fortunes/    Whenever  Spain  was  at  war  with   another  Euro- 
pean Power,  adventurers  of  any  country  found  no  difficulty  in 
the  West  Indies  in  procuring  commissions  to  war  against  the 
Spaniards;  with  which  commission,  and  carrying  aloft  the  flag 
of  the  nation  hostile  to  Spain,  they  assumed  that  they  were 
lawful   enemies.     Such  pretensions  did    them  small  service  if 
they  fell  into  the   hands  of  the  Spaniards ;    but   they    were 
allowed    in  the  ports  of  neutral  nations,  which  benefited  by 
being  made  the  mart  of  the  Buccaneer  prize  goods ;  and  the 
Buccaneers  thought  themselves  well  recompensed  in  having  a 
ready  market,  and  the  security  of  the  port. 

The 

*  buccaneers  of  America,  Part  111.    Ch.  xi. 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  79 

The  enterprises  of  the  Buccaneers  on  the  Tierra  Firma  and  CHAP.  7^ 
other  parts  of  the  American  Continent,  brought  them  into  ^g. 
frequent  intercourse  with  the  natives  of  those  parts,  and  Darien 
produced  friendships,  and  sometimes  alliances  against  the  Spa-  lnclians- 
niards,  with  whom  each  were  alike  at  constant  enmity.  But 
there  sometimes  happened  disagreements  between  them  and 
the  natives.  The  Buccaneers,  if  they  wanted  provisions  or 
assistance  from  the  Indians,  had  no  objection  to  pay  for  it 
when  they  had  the  means  ;  nor  had  the  natives  objection  to 
supply  them  on  that  condition,  and  occasionally  out  of  pure 
good  will.  The  Buccaneers  nevertheless,  did  not  always  refrain 
from  helping  themselves,  with  no  other  leave  than  their  own. 
Sometime  before  Morgan's  expedition  to  Panama,  they  had  given 
the  Indians  of  Darien  much  offence;  but  shortly  after  that  expe- 
dition, they  were  reconciled,  in  consequence  of  which,  the 
Darien  Indians  had  assisted  La  Sound.  In  1678,  they  gave 
assistance  to  another  party  of  Flibustiers  which  went  against 
Cheapo,  under  a  French  Captain  named  Bournano,  and  offered 
to  conduct  them  to  a  place  called  Tocamoro,  where  they  said  the 
Spaniards  had  much  gold.  Bournano  did  not  think  his  force 
sufficient  to  take  advantage  of  their  offer,  but  promised  he 
would  come  again  and  be  better  provided. 

In  16?9,  three  Buccaneer  vessels  (two  of  them  English,  and      1679. 
one  French)    joined  in  an  attempt  to   plunder  Porto   Bella.  Porto  Be'10 

SUrDl'lSGCi 

They  landed  200  men  at  such  a  distance  from  the  town,  that  it     by  the 
occupied  them  three  nights  in  travelling,  for  during  the  day  they  Buccaneers- 
lay  concealed  in  the  woods,  before  they  reached  it.  Just  as  they 
came  to  the  town,   they  were  discovered  by  a  negro,  who  ran 
before  to  give  intelligence  of  their  coming  ;  but  the  Buccaneers 
were  so  quickly  after  him,  that  they  got  possession  of  the  town 
before  the  inhabitants  could  take  any  step  for  their  defence, 

and, 


80  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  7.  and,  being  unacquainted  with  the  strength  of  the  enemy,  they 
1679.  all  fled.  The  Buccaneers  remained  in  the  town  collecting 
plunder  two  days  and  two  nights,  all  the  time  in  apprehension 
that  the  Spaniards  would  *  pour  in  the  country'  upon  their  small 
force,  or  intercept  their  retreat.  They  got  back  however  to  their 
ships  unmolested,  and,  on  a  division  of  the  booty,  shared  160 
pieces  of  eight  to  each  man. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  si 


CHAP.    VIII. 

Meeting  of  Buccaneers  at  the  Samballas,  and  Golden  Island. 
Parti/  formed  by  the  English  Buccaneers  to  cross  the  Isthmus. 
Some  account  of  the  Native  Inhabitants  of  the  Mosquito  Shore. 

TM  MEDIATELY  after  the  plundering  of  Porto  Bella,  a  CHAP.  8. 

number  of  Buccaneer  vessels,  both  English  and  French,  on 
the  report  winch  had  been  made  by  Captain  Bournano, 
assembled  at  the  Samballas,  or  Isles  of  San  Bias,  near  the  coast 
ofDarien.  One  of  these  vessels  was  commanded  by  Bournano. 
The  Indians  of  Darien  received  them  as  friends  and  allies, 
but  they  now  disapproved  the  project  of  going  to  Tocamoro. 
The  way  thither,  they  said,  was  mountainous,  and  through  a 
long  tract  of  uninhabited  country,  in  which  it  would  be  difficult 
to  find  subsistence ;  and  instead  of  Tocamoro,  they  advised  going 
against  the  city  of  Panama.  Their  representation  caused  the 
design  upon  Tocamoro  to  be  given  up.  The  English  Buccaneers  1680. 
were  for  attacking  Panama ;  but  the  French  objected  to  the 
length  of  the  march  ;  and  on  this  difference,  the  English  and 
French  separated,  the  English  Buccaneers  going  to  an  Island 
called  by  them  Golden  Island,  which  is  the  most  eastern  of  the  Golden 
Samballas,  if  not  more  properly  to  be  said  to  the  eastward  of 
all  the  Samballas. 

Without  the  assistance  of  the  French,  Panama  was  too  great 
an  undertaking.  They  were  bent,  however,  on  crossing  the 
Isthmus;  and  at  the  recommendation  of  their  Darien  friends, 
they  determined  to  visit  a  Spanish  town  named  Santa  Maria, 
situated  on  the  banks  of  a  river  that  ran  into  the  South  Sea. 
The  Spaniards  kept  a  good  garrison  at  Santa  Maria,  on 
account  of  gold  which  was  collected  from  mountains  in  its 
neighbourhood. 

M  The 


82  HISTORY    OF    THE 

c  H  A  P.  8.       The  Buccaneers  who  engaged  in  this  expedition  were  the 
1680.      crews  of  seven  vessels,  offeree  as  in  the  following  list: 

Guns        Men 
A  vessel  of    8  and  97  commanded  by  John  Coxon. 

25-107  -     -     -     -  Peter  Harris. 

1     "     35  -     -     -     -  Richard  Sawkins. 

3-40  -     -     -     -  Bart.  Sharp, 

o    -     43  -    -    -     -  Edmonc]  Cook. 

0-24  -     -     -     -  Robert  Alleston. 

—  0-20  ----  Macket. 

It  was  settled  that  Alleston  and  Macket,  with  35  men,  them- 
selves included,  should  be  left  to  guard  the  vessels  during  the 
absence  of  those  who  went  on  the  expedition,  which  was  not 
expected  to  be  of  long  continuance.  These  matters  were  arranged 
at  Golden  Island,  and  agreement  made  with  the  Darien  Indians 
to  furnish  them  with  subsistence  during  the  march. 

William  Dampier,  a  seaman  at  that  time  of  no  celebrity, 
but  of  good  observation  and    experience,    was    among  these 
Buccaneers,  and  of  the  party  to  cross  the    Isthmus;  as  was 
Lionel    Wafer,    since    well   known   for  his   Description   of  the 
Isthmus  of  Darien,  who  had  engaged  with  them  as  surgeon. 
Account        In  this  party  of  Buccaneers  were  also   some  native  Ame- 
MoVuho   ricans'  °f  a  small  tribe  called  Mosquito   Indians,  who  inha- 
Indians.    bited   the   sea  coast   on  each   side  of  Cape    Gracias  a  Dios, 
one  way  towards  the  river  San  Juan  de  Nicaragua,  the  other 
towards  the  Gulf  of  Honduras,  which  is   called  the  Mosquito 
Shore.     If  Europeans    had    any  plea  in  justification  of  their 
hostility  against  the  Spaniards  in  the  West  Indies,  much  more 
had  the  native  Americans.    The  Mosquito  Indians,  moreover, 
had   long  been,  and  were  at  the  time  of  these  occurrences, 
in  an  extraordinary  degree  attached  to  the  English,  insomuch 
that  voluntarily  of  their  own  choice  they   acknowledged  the 
King  of  Great  Britain  for  their  sovereign.    They  were  an  ex- 
tremely ingenious  people,  and  were  greatly  esteemed  by  the 
European  seamen  in  the  West  Indies,  on  account  of  their  great 

expertness 


BUCCANEERS   OF    AMERICA.  S3 

expertness  in  the  use  of  the  harpoon,  and  in  taking  turtle.  The   CHAP.  8. 
following  character  of  them  is   given  by  Dampier:    'These     ofthe 

'  Mosquito  Indians,'  he  says,  '  are  tall,  well  made,  strong,  and    Mosquito 

Indians. 
'  nimble  of  foot ;  long  visaged,  lank  black  hair,  look  stern,  and 

*  are  of  a  dark   copper  complexion.    They  are   but  a  small 

*  nation  or  family.    They  are  very  ingenious  in  throwing  the 
'  lance,  or  harpoon.    They  have  extraordinary  good  eyes,  and 
'  will  descry  a  sail  at  sea,  farther  than  we.    For  these  things, 

*  they  are  esteemed  and  coveted  by  all  privateers  ;   for  one  or 
.'  two  of  them  in  a  ship,  will  sometimes  maintain  a  hundred  men. 

*  When  they  come  among  privateers,  they  learn  the  use  of  guns, 
'  and  prove  very  good  marksmen.    They  behave    themselves 

*  bold  in  fight,  and  are  never  seen  to  flinch,  or  hang  back  ;  for 

*  they   think  that  the  white  men  with  whom  they  are,  always 
'  know  better  than  they  do,  when  it  is  best  to  fight ;  and  be 
'  the  disadvantage  never  so  great,  they  do  not  give  back  while 
'  any  of  their  party  stand.   These  Mosquito  men  are  in  general 
'  very  kind  to  the  English,  of  whom  they  receive  a  great  deal 
'  of  respect,  both  on  board  their  ships,  and  on  shore,  either  in 
'  Jamaica,  or  elsewhere.  We  always  humour  them,  letting  them 

*  go  any  where  as  they  will,  and  return  to  their  country  in  any 
'  vessel  bound  that  way.  if  they  please.    They  will  have  the 

*  management  of  themselves  in  their  striking  fish,  and  will  go  in 
'  their  own  little  canoe,  nor  will  they  then  let  any  white  man 

*  come  in  their  canoe ;  all  which  we  allow  them.    For  should  we 
-*  cross  them,  though  they  should  see  shoals  of  fish,  or  turtle,  or 
'  the  like,  they  will  purposely  strike  their  harpoons  and  turtle- 

*  irons  aside,   or  so  glance  them  as  to  kill  nothing.    They  ac- 

*  knowledge  the  King  of  England  for   their  sovereign,  learn 
'  our  language,  and  take  the  Governor  of  Jamaica  to  be  one  of 

*  the  greatest  princes  in  the  world.    While  they  are  among  the 
•*  English,  they  wear  good  cloaths,  and  take  delight  to  go  neat 

*  and  tight ;  but  when  they  return  to  their  own  country,  they 

M   2  *    put 


- 


84  HISTORY    OF    THE 


put  by  all   their   cloaths,  and  go  after   their  own  country 


CHAP.  8.     < 

Of  the      '  fashion/ 

Indians?  -^n  Dampier's  time,  it  was  the  custom  among  the  Mosquito 
Indians,  when  their  Chief  died,  for  his  successor  to  obtain  a 
commission,  appointing  him  Chief,  from  the  Governor  of 
Jamaica;  and  till  he  received  his  commission  he  was  not  ac- 
knowledged in  form  by  his  countrymen*. 

How  would  Dampier  have  been  grieved,  if  he  could  have 
foreseen  that  this  simple  and  honest  people,  whilst  their  attach- 
ment to  the  English  had  suffered  no  diminution,  would  be 
delivered  by  the  British  Government  into  the  hands  of  the  Spa- 
niards; which,  from  all  experience  of  what  had  happened,  was 
delivering  them  to  certain  destruction. 

Before  this  unhappy  transaction  took  place,  and  after  the 
time  Dampier  wrote,  the  British  Government  took  actual  pos- 
session of  the  Mosquito  Country,  by  erecting  a  fort,  and  sta- 
tioning there  a  garrison  of  British  troops.  British  merchants 
settled  among  the  Mosquito  natives,  and  magistrates  were  ap- 
pointed with  authority  to  administer  justice.  Mosquito  men 
were  taken  into  British  pay  to  serve  as  soldiers,  of  which  the 
following  story  is  related  in  Long's  History  of  Jamaica.  '  In 
'  the  year  1 738,  the  Government  of  Jamaica  took  into  their  pay 
*  two  hundred  Mosquito  Indians,  to  assist  in  the  suppression  of 
'  the  Maroons  or  Wild  Negroes.  During  a  inarch  on  this  ser- 

*  vice, 

*  '  They  never  forfeit  their  word.  The  King  has  his  commission  from  the 
'  Governor  of  Jamaica,  and  at  every  new  Governor's  arrival,  they  come  over  to 
'  know  his  pleasure.  The  King  of  the  Mosquitos  was  received  by  his  Grace  the 
'  Duke  of  Portland  (Governor  of  Jamaica,  A.D.  1722-3)  with  that  courtesy  which 
'  was  natural  to  him,  arid  with  more  ceremony  than  seemed  to  be  due  to  a 
'  Monarch  who  held  his  sovereignty  by  commission.' — '  The  Mosquito  Indians 
'  had  a  victory  over  the  Spanish  Indians  about  go  years  ago,  and  cut  off'  a  number ; 
'  but  gave  a  Negro  who  was  with  them,  his  life  purely  on  account  of  his  speaking 
'  English.'  History  of  Jamaica.  London  1774.  Book  i.  Ch,  12.  And  British 
Empire  in  America,  Vol.  II.  pp.  367  8t  371. 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  S5 

*  vice,  one  of  their  white  conductors  shot  a  wild  hog.    The    CHAP.  8. 

*  Mosquito  men  told  him,  t'hat  was  not  the  way  to  surprise  the      of  the 

'  negroes,  but  to  put  them  on  their  guard  ;  and  if  he  wanted    Mosquito 
•  •  -11  11"     t  i  Indians. 

'  provisions,  they  would  kill  the  game  equally  well  with  their 

*  arrows.    They  effected  considerable  service  on  this  occasion, 

*  and  were  well  rewarded  for  their  good  conduct ;  and  when 
'  a  pacification  took  place  with  the  Maroons,  they  were  sent 
'  well  satisfied  to  their  own  country.' 

In  the  year  1770,  there  resided  in  the  Mosquito  Country  of 
British  settlers,  between  two  and  three  hundred  whites,  as 
many  of  mixed  blood,  and  900  slaves.  On  the  breaking  out 
of  the  war  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  in  1779,  when  the 
Spaniards  drove  the  British  logwood  cutters  from  their  settle- 
ments in  the  Bay  of  Honduras,  the  Mosquito  men  armed  and 
assisted  the  British  troops  of  the  line  in  the  recovery  of  the 
logwood  settlements.  They  behaved  on  that  occasion,  and  on 
others  in  which  they  served  against  the  Spaniards,  with  their 
accustomed  fidelity.  An  English  officer,  who  was  in  the  West 
Indies  during  that  war,  has  given  a  description  of  the  Mosquito 
men,  which  exactly  agrees  with  whatDampier  has  said;  and  all 
that  is  related  of  them  whilst  with  the  Buccaneers,  gives  the 
most  favourable  impression  of  their  dispositions  and  character. 
It  was  natural  to  the  Spaniards  to  be  eagerly  desirous  to  get  the 
Mosquito  Country  and  people  into  their  power  ;  but  it  was  not 
natural  that  such  a  proposition  should  be  listened  to  by  the 
British.  Nevertheless,  the  matter  did  so  happen. 

When  notice  was  received  in  the  West  Indies,  that  a  nego- 
ciation  was  on  foot  for  the  delivery  of  the  Mosquito  Shore  to 
Spain,  the  Council  at  Jamaica  drew  up  a  Report  and  Remon- 
strance against  it;  in  which  was  stated,  that  '  the  number  of 
'  the  Mosquito  Indians,  so  justly  remarkable  for  their  fixed 
'  hereditary  hatred  to  the  Spaniards,  and  attachment  to  us,  were 

*  from  seven  to  ten  thousand/   Afterwards,  in  continuation,  the 

Memorial 


86  HISTORY    OF    THE 

c  H  A  P.  8.  Memorial  says,  «  We  beg  leave  to  state  the  nature  of  His 

Of  the     '  Majesty's  territorial  right,  perceiving  with  alarm,  from  papers 

Mosquito  4  submitted  to  our  inspection,  that  endeavours  have  been  made 

Indians. 

'  to  create  doubts  as  to  His  Majesty's  just  claims  to  the 
'  sovereignty  of  this  valuable  and  delightful  country.  The 
'  native  Indians  of  this  country  have  never  submitted  to 
'  the  Spanish  Government.  The  Spaniards  never  had  any 

*  settlement   amongst  them.     During  the  course  of  150  years 

*  they  have  maintained  a  strict  and  uninterrupted  alliance  with 
'  the  subjects  of  Great  Britain.    They  made  a  free  and  formal 

*  cession  of  the  dominion   of  their  country   to  His  Majesty's 
'  predecessors,  acknowledging  the  King  of  Great  Britain  for 
'  their  sovereign,  long  before  the  American  Treaty  concluded 

*  at  Madrid  in  1670  ;  and  consequently,  by  the  eighth  Article  of 

*  that  Treaty,  our  right  was  declared*.'     In  one  Memorial  and 
Remonstrance  which  was  presented  to  the  British  Ministry  on 
the  final  ratification  (in   1786)  of  the  Treaty,  it  is  complained, 
that  thereby  his  Majesty  had  given  up  to  the  King  of  Spain 

*  the  Indian  people,  and  country  of  the  Mosquito  Shore,  which 

*  formed  the  most  secure  West-Indian  Province  possessed  by 

*  Great  Britain,  and  which  we  held   by    the   most  pure  and 
'  perfect  title  of  sovereignty.'     Much  of  this  is  digression  ;  but 
the  subject  unavoidably  came  into  notice,  and  could  not  be 
hastily  quitted. 

Some  mercantile  arrangement,  said  to  be  advantageous  to 
Great  Britain,  but  which  has  been  disputed,  was  the  publicly 
assigned  motive  to  this  act.  It  has  been  conjectured  that  a 
desire  to  shew  civility  to  the  Prime  Minister  of  Spain  was  the 
real  motive.  Only  blindness  or  want  of  information  could  give 
either  of  these  considerations  such  fatal  influence. 

The  making  over,  or  transferring,  inhabited  territory  from 

the 

*  Case  of  His  Majesty's  Subjects  upon  the  Mosquito  Shore,  most  humbly  sub- 
mitted, &c.  London,  1789. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  B7 

the  dominion  and  jurisdiction  of  one  state  to  that  of  another,  ^  H  A  p-  ?>\ 
has  been  practised  not  always  with  regard  for  propriety.    It  has      Of  the 
been  done  sometimes  unavoidably,  sometimes  justly,  and  some-    Mosquito 
times   inexecusably.    Unavoidably,    when    a   weaker   state   is 
necessitated  to  submit  to  the  exactions  of  a  stronger.    Justly, 
when  the  inhabitants  of  the  territory  it  is  proposed  to  transfer, 
are  consulted,  and  give  their  consent.    Also  it  may  be  reckoned 
just  to  exercise  the  power  of  transferring  a  conquered  terri- 
tory,   the  inhabitants  of  which  have  not  been  received  ami 
adopted    as   fellow   subjects   with    the    subjects  of  the    state 
under  whose  power  it  had  fallen. 

The  inhabitants  of  a  territory  who  Avith  their  lands  are 
transferred  to  the  dominion  of  a  new  state  without  their 
inclinations  being  consulted,  are  placed  in  the  condition  of 
a  conquered  people. 

The  connexion  of  the  Mosquito  people  with  Great  Britain 
was  formed  in  friendship,  and  was  on  each  side  a  voluntary 
engagement.  That  it  was  an  engagement,  should  be  no  question. 
In  equity  and  honour,  whoever  permits  it  to  be  believed  that 
he  has  entered  into  an  engagement,  thereby  becomes  engaged. 
The  Mosquito  people  were  known  to  believe,  and  had  been 
allowed  to  continue  in  the  belief,  that  they  were  permanently 
united  to  the  British.  The  Governors  of  Jamaica  giving  com- 
missions for  the  instalment  of  their  chief,  the  building  a  fort, 

*  O  ' 

and  placing  a  garrison  in  the  country,  shew  both  acceptance  of 
their  submission  and  exercise  of  sovereignty. 

Vattel  has  decribed  this  case.    He  says,  '  When  a  nation  has 

*  not  sufficient  strength  of  itself,  and  is  not  in  a  condition  to 
'  resist  its  enemies,  it  may  lawfully  submit  to  a  more  powerful 

*  nation  on  certain  conditions  upon  which  they  shall  come  to 

*  an  agreement ;  and  the  pact  or  treaty  of  submission  will  be 
'  afterwards  the  measure  and  rule  of  the  rights  of  each.  For 

'  that 


88  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAF.  8.    «  that  which  submits,,  resigning  a  right  it  possessed,  and  con- 
Of  the      '  veying  it   to  another,  has  an  absolute  power  to  make  this 

Mosquito  i  conveyance  upon  what  conditions  it  pleases ;  and  the  other,  by 
'  accepting  the  submission  on  this  footing,  engages  to  observe 
*  religiously  all  the  clauses  in  the  treaty. 

'  When  a  nation  has  placed  itself  under  the  protection  of 
'  another  that  is  more  powerful,  or  has  submitted  to  it  with  a 
'  view  of  protection  ;  if  this  last  does  not  effectually  grant  its 
*•  protection  when  wanted,  it  is  manifest  that  by  failing  in  its 
'  engagements  it  loses  the  rights  it  had  acquired.' 

The  rights  lost  or  relinquished  by  Great  Britain  might 
possibly  be  of  small  import  to  her;  but  the  loss  of  our  pro- 
tection was  of  infinite  consequence  to  the  Mosquito  people. 
Advantages  supposed  or  real  gained  to  Great  Britain,,  is  not  to 
be  pleaded  in  excuse  or  palliaiion  for  withdrawing  her  pro- 
tection;  for  that  would  seem  to  imply  that  an  engagement 
is  more  or  less  binding  according  to  the  greater  or  less  interest 
there  may  be  in  observing  it.  But  if  there  had  been  no 
engagement,  the  length  and  steadiness  of  their  attachment  to 
Great  Britain  would  have  entitled  them  to  her  protection,  and 
the  nature  of  the  case  rendered  the  obligation  sacred ;  for 
be  it  repeated,  that  experience  had  shewn  the  delivering  them 
up  to  the  dominion  of  the  Spaniards,  was  delivering  them  to 
certain  slavery  and  death.  These  considerations  possibly  might 
not  occur,  for  there  seems  to  have  been  a  want  of  information 
on  the  subject  in  the  British  Ministry,  and  also  a  want  of 
attention  to  the  remonstrances  made.  The  Mosquito  Country, 
and  the  native  inhabitants,  the  best  affected  and  most  constant 
of  all  the  friends  the  British  ever  had,  were  abandoned  in  the 
summer  of  1787,  to  the  Spaniards,  the  known  exterminators  of 
millions  of  the  native  Americans,  and  who  were  moreover 
jncensed  against  the  Mosquito  men,  for  the  part  they  had 

always 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA.  89 

always   taken   with   the   British,   by    whom   they    were   thus   CHAP.  & 
forsaken.    The  British  settlers  in  that  country  found  it  necessary     of  the 
to  withdraw  as  speedily  as  they  had  opportunity,  with  their   Mosquito 
effects. 

If  the  business  had  been  fully  understood,  and  the  safety  of 
Great  Britain  had  depended  upon  abandoning  the  Mosquito 
people  to  their  merciless  enemies,  it  would  have  been  thought 
disgraceful  by  the  nation  to  have  done  it ;  but  the  national 
interest  being  trivial,  and  the  public  in  general  being  un- 
informed in  the  matter,  the  transaction  took  place  without 
attracting  much  notice.  A  motion,  however,  was  made  in  the 
British  House  of  Lords,  '  that  the  terms  of  the  Convention 
'  with  Spain,  signed  in  July  1786,  did  not  meet  the  favourable 
'  opinion  of  this  House ;'  and  the  noble  Mover  objected  to 
that  part  of  the  Convention  which  related  to  the  surrender  of 
the  British  possessions  on  the  Mosquito  Shore,  that  it  was  a 
humiliation,  and  derogating  from  the  rights  of  Great  Britain. 
The  first  Article  of  the  Treaty  of  1786  says,  'His  Britannic 
'  Majesty's  subjects,  and  the  other  Colonists,  who  have  hitherto 
'  enjoyed  l.he  protection  of  England,  shall  evacuate  the  Country 
'  of  the  Mosquitos,  as  well  as  the  Continent  in  general,  and  the 
'  Islands  adjacent,  without  exception,  situated  beyond  the  line 
'  hereafter  described,  as  what  ought  to  be  the  .extent  of  terri- 
'  tory  granted  by  his  Catholic  Majesty  to  the  English/ 

In  the  debate,  rights  were  asserted  for  Spain,  not  only  to 
what  she  then  possessed  on  the  Continent  of  America,  but  to 
parts  she  had  never  possessed.  Was  this  want  of  information, 
or  want  of  consideration  ?  The  word  '  granted'  was  improperly 
introduced.  In  truth  and  justice,  the  claims  of  Spain  to  America 
are  not  to  be  acknowledged  rights.  They  were  founded  in 
usurpation,  and  prosecuted  by  the  extermination  of  the  lawful 
and  natural  proprietors.  It  is  an  offence  to  morality  and  to 

N  humanity 


<K>  HISTORY   OF   THE 

.CHAP.  8-.  humanity  to  pretend  that  Spain  had  so  clear  and  just  a  title  to 
Of  the  any  part  of  her  possessions  on  the  Continent  of  America,  as 
Great  Britain  had  to  tlie  Mosquito  Country.  The  rights  of  the 
Mosquito  people,  and  their  claims  to  the  friendship  of  Great 
Britain,  were  not  sufficiently  made  known  ;  and  the  motion 
was  negatived.  It  might  have  been  of  service  in  this  debate  to 
have  quoted  Dampier. 

In  conclusion,  the  case  of  the  Mosquito  people  deserves, 
and  demands  the  reconsideration  of  Great  Britain.  If,  on 
examination,  it  shall  be  proved  that  they  have  been  unge- 
nerously and  unjustly  treated,  it  may  not  be  too  late  to  seek 
to  make  reparation,  which  ought  to  be  done  as  far  as  circum- 
stances will  yet  admit.  The  first  step  towards  this  would  be,  to 
institute  enquiry  if  there  are  living  any  of  our  forsaken  friends, 
or  of  their  posterity,  and  what  is  their  present  condition.  If 
the  Mosquito  people  have  been  humanely  and  justly  governed 
since  their  separation  from  Great  Britain,  the  enquiry  will  give 
the  Spaniards  cause  for  triumph,  and  the  British  cause  to 
rejoice  that  evil  has  not  resulted  from  their  act.  On  the  other 
hand,  should  it  be  found  that  they  have  shared  in  the  common 
calamities  heaped  upon  the  natives  of  America  by  the  Spaniards, 
then,  if  there  yet  exist  enough  of  their  tribe  to  form  a  nation,  it 
would  be  right  to  restore  them,  if  practicable,  to  the  country 
and  situation  of  which  their  fathers  were  deprived,  or  to  find 
them  an  equivalent;  and  at  any  price  or  pains,  to  deliver  them 
from  oppression.  If  only  few  remain,  those  few  should  be 
freed  from  their  bondage,  and  be  liberally  provided  with  lands 
and  maintenance  in  our  own  West-India  Islands. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  91 


CHAP.     IX. 

Journey  of  the  Buccaneers  across  the  Isthmus  of  America. 

/^\N  the  5th  of  April,  1680,  three  hundred  and  thirty-one   CHAP.  9. 

Buccaneers,  most   of  them    English,   passed    over   from       jg^ 
Golden  Island,  and  landed  in  Darien,  f  each  man  provided  with   April  sth, 

*  four  cakes  of  bread  called  dough-boys,  with  a  fusil,  a  pistol,  Bu<jcane<jrs 

*  and  a  hanger/    They  began  their  journey  marshalled  in  divi-     Isthmus, 
sions,  with  distinguishing  flags,  under  their  several  commanders, 
Bartholomew  Sharp    and    his    men   taking   the   lead.     Many 
Darien  Indians  kept  them  company  as  their  confederates,  and 
supplied  them  with  plantains,  fruit,  and  venison,  for  which  pay- 
ment was  made  in  axes,  hatqhets,  knives,   needles,  beads,  and 
trinkets ;  all   which  the  Buccaneers  had  taken  care  to  come 

well  provided  Avith.  Among  the  Darien  Indians  in  company 
were  two  Chiefs,  who  went  by  the  names  of  Captain  Andreas 
and  Captain  Antonio. 

The  commencement  of  their  march  was  through  the  skirt  of  a    The  First 

!)•    ' 

wood, which  having  passed,  they  proceeded  about  a  league  by  the  March, 
side  of  a  bay,  and  afterwards  about  two  leagues  directly  up  a 
woody  valley,  where  was  an  Indian  house  and  plantation  by  the 
side  of  a  river.  Here  they  took  up  their  lodging  for  the  night, 
those  who  could  not  be  received  in  the  house,  building  huts. 
The  Indians  were  earnest  in  cautioning  them  against  sleeping 
in  the  grass,  on  account  of  adders.  This  first  day's  journey  dis- 
couraged four  of  the  Buccaneers,  and  they  returned  to  the  ships. 
Stones  were  found  in  the  river,  which  on  being  broken,  shone 
>yith  sparks  of  gold.  These  stones,  they  were  told,  were  driven 

N  2  down 


92  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  p.  9^  down  from  the  neighbouring  mountains  by  torrents  during  the 
1680.      rainy  season  *. 

April.          The    next  morning,    at   sunrise,    they    proceeded    in    their 
sj:cond    journey,  labouring    up  a  steep   hill,    which  they  surmounted 

udy  s 

Journey,  about  three  in  the  afternoon ;  and  at  the  foot  on  the  other 
side,  they  rested  on  the  bank  of  a  river,  which  Captain  Andreas 
told  them  ran  into  the  South  Sea,  and  was  the  same  by  which 
the  town  of  Santa  Maria  was  situated.  They  marched  after- 
wards about  six  miles  farther,  over  another  steep  hill,  where  the 
path  was  so  narrow  that  seldom  more  than  one  man  could  pass 
at  a  time.  At  night,  they  took  up  their  lodging  by  the  side  of 
the  river,  having  marched  this  day,  according  to  their  compu- 
tation, eighteen  miles. 
7th.  The  next  day,  April  the  7th,  the  march  was  continued  by  the 

Journey! §  riyer>  the  course  of  which  was  so  serpentine,  that  they  had  to 
cross  it  almost  at  every  half  mile,  sometimes  up  to  their 
knees,  sometimes  to  their  middlf,  and  running  with  a  very 
swift  current.  About  noon  they  arrived  at  some  large  Indian 
houses,  neatly  built,  the  sides  of  wood  of  the  cabbage-tree,  and 
the  roofs  of  cane  thatched  over  with  palmito  leaves.  The 
interior  had  divisions  into  rooms,  but  no  upper  story  ;  and 
before  each  house  was  a  large  plantain  walk.  Continuing  their 
journey,  at  five  in  the  afternoon,  they  came  to  a  house  belonging 
to  a  son  of  Captain  Andreas,  who  wore  a  wreath  of  gold 
about  his  head,  for  which  he  was  honoured  by  the  Buccaneers 
with  the  title  of  King  Golden  Cap.  They  found  their  enter- 
tainment at  King  Golden  Cap's  house  so  good,  that  they 
Sth.  rested  there  the  whole  of  the  following  day.  Bartholomew 
Sharp,  who  published  a  Journal  of  his  expedition,  says  here, 

*  The  inhabitants  of  Darien  are  for  the  most  part  very  hand- 

*  some,  especially  the  female  sex,    who   are   also    exceeding 


'  loving 


Narrative  by  Basil  llingrose,  p.  5. 


ON    THE    ISTHMUS.  93 

» 

*  loving   and    free  to    the  embraces  of  strangers.'     This  was   CHAP.  9. 
calumny.    Basil  Ringrose,  another  Buccaneer,  whose  Journal    ~^8o~ 
has  been  published,  and   who  is  more  entitled  to  credit  than      April. 
Sharp,  as  will  be    seen,  says   of  the    Darien   women,   *  they     Journey 

*  are  generally  well  featured,  very  free,  airy,  and  brisk;    yet    isvthmus. 

*  withal  very   modest/     Lionel  Wafer  also,  who    lived  many 
months  among  the  Indians  of  the  Isthmus,  speaks    highly  of 
the  modesty,  kindness  of  disposition,   and  innocency,  of  the 
Darien  women. 

On  the  9th,    after   breakfast,    they  pursued  their  journey,        9th. 
accompanied  by  the  Darien  Chiefs,  and  about  200  Indians,     F°urth 
who    were   armed    with   bows   and   lances.    They    descended    Journey, 
along   the  river,    which   they  had   to  wade  through   between 
fifty  and  sixty  times,  and  they  came  to  a  house  *  only  here 
and  there/    At  most  of  these  houses,  the  owner,  who  had  been 
apprised  of  the  march  of  the  Buccaneers,  stood  at  the  door, 
and  as  they  passed,  gave  to  each  man  a  ripe  plantain,  or  some 
sweet  cassava  root.    If  the  Buccaneer  desired  more,  he  was 
expected    to  purchase.     Some  of  the  Indians,   to  count   the 
number   of  the    Buccaneers,    for   every   man    that   went   by 
dropped  a  grain  of  corn.    That  night  they  lodged  at  three  large 
houses,  where  they  found  entertainment   provided,    and    also 
canoes  for  them  to  descend  the  river,   which  began   here  to 
be  navigable. 

The  next  morning,  as  they  were  preparing  to  depart,  two       ioth. 

of  the  Buccaneer  Commanders,  John  Coxon  and  Peter  Harris,  Fifth  Day  s 

Journey. 

had  some  disagreement,  and  Coxon  fired  his  musket  at 
Harris,  who  was  about  to  fire  in  return,  but  other  Buccaneers 
interposed,  and  effected  a  reconciliation.  Seventy  of  the 
Buccaneers  embarked  in  fourteen  canoes,  in  each  of  which  two 
Indians  also  went,  who  best  knew  how  to  manage  and  guide 
them  down  the  stream:  the  rest  prosecuted  their  march  by 

land. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


nth. 

Sixth  Day's 
Journey. 


CHAP.  9.  land.     The  men  in  the  canoes  found  that  mode  of  travelling 

1680.      quite  as  wearisome  as  marching,  for  at  almost  every  furlong 

April.       they  were  constrained   to  quit  their  boats  to  lanch  them  over 

rocks,  or  over  trees  that  had  fallen  athwart    the   river,   and 

sometimes  over  necks  of  land.     At  night,  they  stopped  and 

made  themselves  huts  on  a  green  bank  by  the  river's  side. 

Here  they  shot  wild-fowl. 

The  next  day,  the  canoes  continued  to  descend  the  river, 
having  the  same  kind  of  impediments  to  overcome  as  on  the 
preceding  day  ;  and  at  night,  they  lodged  again  on  the  green 
bank  of  the  river.  The  land  party  had  not  kept  up  with  them. 
Bartholomew  Sharp  says,  '  Our  supper  entertainment  was  a 
*  very  good  sort  of  a  wild  beast  called  a  Warre,  which  is  much 
'  like  to  our  English  hog,  and  altogether  as  good.  There  are 
'  store  of  them  in  this  part  of  the  world :  I  observed  that 
'  the  navels  of  these  animals  grew  upon  their  backs.'  Wafer 
calls  this  species  of  the  wild  hog,  Pecary  *.  In  the  night  a  small 
tiger  came,  and  after  looking  at  them  some  time,  went  away. 
The  Buccaneers  did  not  fire  at  him,  lest  the  noise  of  their 
muskets  should  give  alarm  to  the  Spaniards  at  S'a  Maria. 

The  next  day,  the  water  party  again  embarked,  but  under 
.some  anxiety  at  being  so  long  without  having  any  communi- 
cation with  the  party  marching  by  land.  Captain  Andreas 
perceiving  their  uneasiness,  sent  a  canoe  back  up  the  river, 
which  returned  before  sunset  with  some  of  the  land  party, 
and  intelligence  that  the  rest  were  near  at  hand. 
i3th.  Tuesday  the  13th,  early  in  the  day,  the  Buccaneers  arrived 

at  a  beachy  point  of  land,  where  another  stream  from  the 
uplands  joined  the  river.  This  place  had  sometimes  been  the 
rendezvous  of  the  Darien  Indians,  when  they  collected  for 

attack 

*  De  Roclifort  describes  ihis  animal  under  the  name  Javaris.  Hist.  Nat.  de$ 
Isles  Antilles,  p.  138,  edit.  1665.  It  is  also  described  by  Pennant,  in  his  Synopsis 
of  Quadrupeds,  Art.  Mexican  Wild  Hog. 


12th. 
Seventh 

Day's 
Journey. 


ON    THE    ISTHMUS. 


attack  or  defence  against  the  Spaniards ;  and  here  the  whole 
party  now  made  a  halt,  to  rest  themselves,  and  to  clean  and 
prepare  their  arms.  They  also  made  paddles  and  oars  to  row 
with  ;  for  thus  far  down  the  river,  the  canoes  had  been  carried 
by  the  stream,  and  guided  with  poles :  but  here  the  river  was 
broad  and  deep. 

On  the  14th,  the  whole  party,  Buccaneers  and  Indians, 
making  nearly  600  men,  embarked  in  68  canoes,  which  the 
Indians  had  provided.  At  midnight,  they  put  to  land,  within 
half  a  mile  of  the  town  of  S"  Maria.  In  the  morning  at  the 
break  of  day,  they  heard  muskets  fired  by  the  guard  in  the 
town,  and  a  '  drum  beating  d  trav ailler  *.'  The  Buccaneers  put 
themselves  in  motion,  and  by  seven  in  the  morning  came  to 
the  open  ground  before  the  Fort,  when  the  Spaniards  began 
firing  upon  them.  The  Fort  was  formed  simply  with  palisadoes, 
without  brickwork,  so  that  after  pulling  down  two  or  three  of  the 
palisadoes,  the  Buccaneers  entered  without  farther  opposition, 
and  without  the  loss  of  a  man  ;  nevertheless,  they  acted  with 
so  little  moderation  or  mercy,  that  twenty-six  Spaniards  were 
killed,  and  sixteen  wounded.  After  the  surrender,  the  Indians 
took  many  of  the  Spaniards  into  the  adjoining  woods,  where 
they  killed  them  with  lances ;  and  if  they  had  not  been  dis- 
covered in  their  amusement,  and  prevented,  not  a  Spaniard 
would  have  been  left  alive.  It  is  said  in  a  Buccaneer  account, 
that  they  found  here  the  eldest  daughter  of  the  King  of  Darien, 
Captain  Andreas,  who  had  been  forced  from  her  father's  house 
by  qne  of  the  garrison,  and  was  with  child  by  him ;  which 

greatly  incensed   the   father   against  the  Spaniards. 

i  ne 

*  Ringrose.  Buccaneers  of  America,  Part  IV.  p.  10.  The  early  morning  drum 
lias,  in  our  time,  been  called  the  Reveiller.  Either  that  or  a  travailter  seems 
applicable;  for  according  to  Buyer,  travailler  signifies  to  trouble,  or  disturb,  as 
well  as  to  work ;  and  it  is  probable,  from  the  age  of  the  authority  above  cited, 
that  the  original  term  was  a  travailler , 


CHAP.  9. 

1680. 
April. 

On  the 

Isthmus. 


14th. 


Fort  of 
u  Maria 
taken. 


96  BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  9^       The  Buccaneers  were  much  disappointed  in  their  expecta- 

1680.      tions   of  plunder,   for   the    Spaniards    had    by    some    means 

April,      received  notice  of  their  intended   visit  in   time  to  send  away 

almost  all  that  was  of  value.    A  Buccaneer  says,  '  though  we 

examined   our  prisoners  severely,    the    whole   that    we  could 

pillage,  either  in  the  town  or  fort,  amounted  only  to  twenty 

pounds  weight  of  gold,  and  a  small  quantity  of  silver;  whereas 

three  days  sooner,  we  should  have  found  three  hundred  pounds 

weight  in  go'ld  in  the  Fort.' 

johnCoxon  The  majority  of  the  Buccaneers  were  desirous  to  proceed  in 
Commander,  their  canoes  to  the  South  Sea,  to  seek  compensation  for  their 
disappointment  at  S'a  Maria.  John  Coxon  and  his  followers 
were  for  returning  ;  on  which  account,  and  not  from  an  opinion 
of  his  capability,  those  who  were  for  the  South  Sea,  offered 
Coxon  the  post  of  General,  provided  he  and  his  men  would 
join  in  their  scheme,  which  offer  was  accepted. 

It  was  then  determined  to  descend  with  the  stream  of  the 
river  to  the  Gulf  de  San  Miguel,  which  is  on  the  East  side  of  the 
Bay  of  Panama.  The  greater  part  of  the  Darien  Indians,  how- 
ever, separated  from  them  at  S'a  Maria,  and  returned  to  their 
homes.  The  Darien  Chief  Andreas,  and  his  son  Golden  Cap, 
with  some  followers,  continued  with  the  Buccaneers. 

Among  the  people  of  Darien  were  remarked  some  white, 
'  fairer  than  any  people  in  Europe,  who  had  hair  like  unto  the 
*  finest  flax ;  and  it  was  reported  of  them  that  they  could  see 
'  farther  in  the  dark  than  in  the  li»ht  *.' 

o 

The  River  of  Sl"  Maria  is  the  largest  of  several  rivers  which 
fall  into  the  Gulf  de  San  Miguel.  Abreast  where  the  town 
stood,  it  was  reckoned  to  be  twice  as  broad  as  the  River  Thames 
is  at  London.  The  rise  and  fall  of  the  tide  there  was  two 
fathoms  and  a  half  -j- . 

April 
*  Narrative  by  Basil  Ringrose,  p.  3.  "t  Ringrose,  p.n. 


ON    THE    ISTHMUS.  97 

.April  the  17tb,  the  Buccaneers  and  their  remaining  allies  c  H  A  p.  9. 
embarked  from  S'a  Maria,  in  canoes  and  a  small  bark  which       ^80. 
was  found  at  anchor  before  the  town.    About  thirty  Spaniards  April  i;th. 
who  had  been  made  prisoners,  earnestly  entreated  that  they 
should  not  be  left  behind  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  Indians. 

*  We  had  much  ado,'  say  the  Buccaneers,  '  to  find  boats  enough 
'  for  ourselves :  the  Spaniards,  however,  found  or  made  bark 
'  logs,  and  it  being  for  their  lives,  made  shift  to  come  along 

*  with  us/    At  ten  that  night  it  was   low   water,    and   they       i8th, 
stopped  on  account  of  the  flood  tide.    The  next  morning  they  They  arrive 

,     ,     .  ,  at  the 

pursued  their  course  to  the  sea.  South  Sea. 


O 


98  BUCCANEER   EXPEDITION 


CHAP.  1O. 


CHAP.    X. 

First  Buccaneer  Expedition  in  the  South  Sea. 

I"  the  19th  of  April,  the  Buccaneers,  under  the  command 
1680.  of  John    Coxon,   entered   the  Bay  of  Panama;  and  the 

April  ipth.  same  day,  at  one  of  the  Islands  in   the  Bay,  they  captured  a 
In  the  Bay  Spanish  vessel  of  30  tons,  on  board  of  which  130  of  the  Buc- 
'  cancers  immediately  placed  themselves,  glad  to  be  relieved 
from  the  cramped  and  crowded  state  they  had  endured  in  the 
canoes.    The  next   day   another  small  bark  was  taken.    The 
pursuit  of  these  vessels,  and  seeking  among  the  Islands  for  pro- 
visions, had  separated  the  Buccaneers  ;  but  they  had  agreed  to 
rendezvous  at  the  Island  Chepillo,  near  the  entrance  of  the 
River  Cheapo.    Sharp,  however,  and  some  others,  wanting  fresh 
22d.       water,  went  to  the  Pearl  Islands.   The  rest  got  to  Chepillo  on 
the  22d,  where  they  found  good  provision  of  plantains,  fresh 
water*,  and  hogs ;  and  at  four  o'clock  that  same  afternoon,  they 
rowed  from  the  Island  towards  Panama. 

By  this  time,  intelligence  of  their  being  in  the  Bay  had 
reached  the  city.  Eight  vessels  were  lying  in  the  road,  three  of 
which  the  Spaniards  hastily  equipped,  manning  them  with  the 
crews  of  all  the  vessels,  and  the  addition  of  men  from  the 
shore ;  the  whole,  according  to  the  Buccaneer  accounts,  not 
exceeding  £30  men,  and  not  more  than  one-third  of  them 
being  Europeans;  the  rest  were  mulattoes  and  negroes. 
23d.  On  the  23d,  before  sunrise,  the  Buccaneers  came  in  sight  of 

Battle  with  ^ne  city  ;  and  as  soon  as  they  were  descried,  the  three  armed 

a    c  |T)  •ill 

Spanish     Spanish  ships  got  under  sail,  and  stood  towards  them.    The 
Armament.  conflict  Was  severe,  and  lasted  the  greater  part  of  the  day,  when 

it 


TO   THE    SOUTH   SEA. 


it  terminated  in  the  defeat  of  the  Spaniards,  two  of  their 
vessels  being  carried  by  boarding,  and  the  third  obliged  to 
save  herself  by  flight.  The  Spanish  Commander  fell,  with  many 
of  his  people.  Of  the  Buccaneers,  18  were  killed,  and  above 
30  wounded.  Peter  Harris,  one  of  their  Captains,  was  among 
the  wounded,  and  died  two  days  after. 

One  Buccaneer  account  says,  '  we  were  in  all  68  men  that 
'  were  engaged  in  the  fight  of  that  day/  Another  Buccaneer 
relates,  '  we  had  sent  away  the  Spanish  bark  to  seek  fresh 
'  water,  and  had  put  on  board  her  above  one  hundred  of  our 
*  best  men  ;  so  that  we  had  only  canoes  for  this  fight,  and  in 
'  them  not  above  200  fighting  men/  The  Spanish  ships  fought 
with  great  bravery,  but  were  overmatched,  being  manned  with 
motley  and  untaught  crews  ;  whereas  the  Buccaneers  had  been 
in  constant  training  to  the  use  of  their  arms ;  and  their  being  in 
canoes  was  no  great  disadvantage,  as  they  had  a  smooth  sea  to 
fight  in.  The  valour  of  Richard  Sawkins,  who,  after  being 
three  times  repulsed,  succeeded  in  boarding  and  capturing  one 
of  the  Spanish  ships,  was  principally  instrumental  in  gaining 
the  victory  to  the  Buccaneers.  It  gained  him  also  their  con- 
fidence, and  the  more  fully  as  some  among  them  were  thought 
to  have  shewn  backwardness,  of  which  number  John  Coxon, 
their  elected  Commander,  appears  to  have  been.  The  Darien 
Chiefs  were  in  the  heat  of  the  battle. 

Immediately  after  the  victory,  the  Buccaneers  stood  towards 
Panama,  then  a  new  city,  and  on  a  different  site  from  the  old, 
being  four  miles  Westward  of  the  ruins  of  the  city  burnt  by 
Morgan.  The  old  city  had  yet  some  inhabitants.  The  present 
adventurers  did  not  judge  their  strength  sufficient  for  landing, 
and  they  contented  themselves  with  capturing  the  vessels  that 
were  at  anchor  near  the  small  Islands  of  Perico,  in  the  road 
before  the  city.  One  of  these  vessels  was  a  ship  named  the 

O  2  Trinidad, 


CHAP.  1O. 
l68o. 

April. 
The 

Buccaneers 
victorious. 


Richard 
Sawkins. 


The  New 
City  of 
Panama, 
four  miles 
Westward 

of  the 
Old  City. 

The 

Buccaneers 

take  several 

1'rizes. 


ioo  BUCCANEERS    OF    AMERICA 

c  H  A  P.  10.  Trinidad,  of  400  tons  burthen,  in  good  condition,  a  fast  sailer, 
1680.  and  had  on  board  a  cargo  principally  consisting  of  wine,  sugar, 
April.  and  sweetmeats  ;  and  moreover  a  considerable  sum  of  money. 

In  the  Bay    fhe  Spanish  crew,  before  they  left  her,  had  both  scuttled  and 
of  Panama. 

set  her  on  fire,  but  the  Buccaneers  took  possession  in  tune  to 

extinguish  the  flames,  and  to  stop  the  leaks.  In  the  other 
prizes  they  found  flour  and  ammunition  ;  and  two  of  them, 
besides  the  Trinidad,  they  fitted  up  for  cruising.  Two  prize 
vessels,  and  a  quantity  of  goods  which  were  of  no  use  to  them, 
as  iron,  skins,  and  soap,  which  the  Spaniards  at  Panama  refused 
to  ransom,  they  destroyed.  Besides  these,  they  captured  among 
the  Islands  some  small  vessels  laden  with  poultry.  Thus  in  less 
than  a  week  after  their  arrival  across  the  Isthmus  to  the  coast 
of  the  South  Sea,  they  were  provided  with  a  small  fleet,  not  ill 
equipped;  and  with  which  they  now  formed  an  actual,  and 
close  blockade  by  sea,  of  Panama,  stationing  themselves  at 
anchor  in  front  of  the  city. 

Panama,  This  new  city  was  already  considerably  larger  than  old 
City W  Panama  had  ever  been,  its  extent  being  in  length  full  a  mile 
and  a  half,  and  in  breadth  above  a  mile.  The  churches  (eight 
in  number)  were  not  yet  finished.  The  cathedral  church  at  the 
Old  Town  was  still  in  use,  '  the  beautiful  building  whereof/ 
says  Ringrose,  '  maketh  a  fair  show  at  a  distance,  like  unto  the 
'  church  of  St.  Paul's  at  London.  Round  the  city  for  the  space 
'  of  seven  leagues,  more  or  less,  all  the  adjacent  country  is 
'  what  they  call  in  the  Spanish  language,  Savana,  that  is  to  say, 
'  plain  and  level  ground,  as  smooth  as  a  sheet ;  only  here  and 

*  there  is  to  be  seen  a  small  spot  of  woody  land.    And  every 

*  where,  this  level  ground  is  full  of  vacadas,  where  whole  droves 

*  of  cows  and  oxen  are  kept.     But  the  ground  whereon  the 

*  city  staudeth,  is  damp  and  moist,  and  of  bad   repute  for 

*  health.    The  sea  is  also  very  full  of  worms,  much  prejudicial 

'  to 


' 


IN  THE   SOUTH   SEA.  101 

*  to  shipping,  for  which  reason  the  king's  ships  are  always  kept  CHAP.  10. 
1  near  Lima.     We  found  here  in  one  night  after  our  arrival,      It380. 
'  worms  of  three  quarters  of  an  inch  in   length,  both  in  our      April. 

In  the  Bay 

!  bed-cloaths  and  other  apparel.  of  Panama. 

Within  two  or  three  days  after  the  battle  with  the  Spanish  Coxon  and 
Armadilla,  discord  broke  out   among  the  Buccaneers.     The  ^^n^the 
reflections  made  upon  the  behaviour  of  Coxon  and  some  of  his  West  indies. 
followers,  determined  him  and  seventy  men  to  return  by  the 
River  of  S"  Maria  over  the  Isthmus  to  the  North  Sea.  Two  of 
the  small  prize  vessels  were  given  them  for  this  purpose,  and 
at  the  same  time,   the  Darien  Chiefs,   Captain  Andreas  and 
Captain    Antonio,   with    most   of   their    people,    departed    to 
return  to  their  homes.  Andreas  shewed  his  goodwill  towards  the 
Buccaneers  who  remained   in  the  South  Sea,  by  leaving  with 
them  a  son  and  one  of  his  nephews. 

On  the  departure  of  Coxon,  Richard  Sawkins  was  chosen     Richard 
General   or    Chief  Commander.  They  continued    ten  days  in     Si»vkins 

c  T>  chosen 

the  road  before  Panama,  at  the  end  of  which  they  retired  Commander. 
to  an  Island  named  Taboga,  more  distant,  but  whence  they 
could  see  vessels  going  to,  or  coming  from,  Panama.  At  M™ 
Taboga  they  stopped  nearly  a  fortnight,  having  had  notice 
that  a  rich  ship  from  Lima  was  shortly  expected  ;  but  she 
came  not  Avithin  that  time.  Some  other  vessels  however  fell 
into  their  hands,  by  which  they  obtained  in  specie  between 
fifty  and  sixty  thousand  dollars,  1200  packs  of  flour,  2000 
jars  of  wine,  a  quantity  of  brandy,  sugar,  sweetmeats,  poultry, 
and  other  provisions,  some  gunpowder  and  shot,  besides 
various  other  articles  of  merchandise.  Among  their  prisoners, 
were  a  number  of  negro  slaves,  which  was  a  temptation  to 
the  merchants  of  Panama,  to  go  to  the  ships  whilst  they  lay 
at  Taboga,  who  purchased  part  of  the  prize  goods,  and  as  many 
of  the  negroes  as  the  Buccaneers  would  part  with,  giving 
for  a  negro  two  hundred  pieces  of  eight ;  and  they  also  sold 

to 


102  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

10.  to  the  Buccaneers  such  stores  and  commodities  as  they  were 


1680.      in  need  of.     Ringrose  relates,  that  in  the  course  of  this  corn- 

May.       munication,  a  message  was  delivered  to  their  Chief  from  the 

of  PanamJ.  Governor  of  Panama,  demanding,  "  why,  during  a  time  of  peace 

"  betwen  England  and  Spain,  Englishmen  should  come  into 

"  those  seas,  to  commit   injury  ?    and  from  whom  they  had 

"  their  commission  so   to  do  ?  "  To  which  message,   Sawkins 

returned  answer,  *  that  he  and  his  companions  came  to  assist 

'  their  friend  the  King  of  Darien,  who  was  the  rightful  Lord  of 

'  Panama,  and  all  the  country  thereabouts.    That  as  they  had 

*  come  so   far,  it  was   reasonable    they  should  receive  some 
'  satisfaction  for  their  trouble  ;  and  if  the  Governor  would  send 
'  to  them  .iOO  pieces  of  eight  for  each  man,  and  1000  for  each 
'  commander,  and  would  promise  not  any  farther  to  annoy  the 

*  Darien  Indians,  their  allies,  that  then  the  Buccaneers  would 
'  desist  from  hostilities,  and  go  quietly  about  their  business.' 

By  the  Spaniards  who  traded  with  them,  Sawkins  learnt  that 
the  Bishop  of  Panama  was  a  person  whom  he  had  formerly  taken 
prisoner  in  the  West  Indies,  and  sent  him  a  small  present  as  a 
token  of  regard  ;  the  Bishop  sent  a  gold  ring  in  return. 

Sawkins  would  have  waited  longer  for  the  rich  ship  expected 

from  Peru  ;  but  all  the  live  stock  within  reach  had  been  con- 

sumed, and  his  men   became  impatient  for   fresh  provisions. 

Island      «  This  Taboga,'  says  Sharp,   '  is  an  exceeding  pleasant  island, 

*  abounding  in  fruits,  such   as  pine-apples,  oranges,  lemons, 
'  pears,  mammees,  cocoa-nuts,  and  others  ;  with  a  small,  but 

*  brave  commodious  fresh  river  running  in  it.    The  anchorage 

*  is  also  clear  and  good.' 

15th-  On  the  15th  of  May,  they  sailed  to  the  Island  Otoque,  afc 

Otoque.    which  place  they  found  hogs  and  poultry  ;  and,  the  same  day, 

or  the  day    following,  they  departed    with    three    ships    and 

two  small  barks,  from  the  Bay  of  Panama,  steering  Westward 

for  a  Spanish  town  named  Pueblo  Nuevo. 

In 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA. 


103 


In  this  short  distance  they  had  much  blowing  weather  and 
contrary  winds,  by  which  both  the  small  barks,  one  with  fifteen 
men,  the  other  with  seven  men,  were  separated  from  the  ships, 
and  did  not  join  them  again.  The  crew  of  one  of  these  barks 
returned  over  the  Isthmus  with  Coxon's  party.  The  other  bark 
was  taken  by  the  Spaniards. 

About  the  21st,  the  ships  anchored  near  the  Island  Quilo ; 
from  the  North  part  of  which,  to  the  town  of  Pueblo  Nitevo  on 
the  main  land,  was  reckoned  eight  leagues.  Sawkins,  with 
sixty  men,  embarked  on  board  the  smallest  ship,  and  sailed  to 
the  entrance  of  a  river  which  leads  to  the  town.  He  there  left 
the  ship  with  a  few  men  to  follow  him,  and  proceeded  with  the 
rest  in  canoes  up  the  river  by  night,  having  a  negro  prisoner  for 
pilot.  Those  left  with  the  care  of  the  ship,  '  entered  the  river, 
'  keeping  close  by  the  East  shore,  on  which  there  is  a  round 
'  hill.  Within  two  stones  cast  of  the  shore  there  was  four 

*  fathoms  depth ;  and  within  the  point  a  very  fine  and  large 
'  river  opens.     But  being  strangers  to  the  place,  the  ship  was 
'  run  aground  nigh  a  rock  which  lieth  by  the  Westward  shore ; 

*  for  the  true  channel  of  this  river  is  nearer  to  the  East  than  to 
'  the  West  shore.   The  Island  Quibo  is  SSE  from  the  mouth  of 

*  this  river*/ 

The  canoes  met  with  much  obstruction  from  trees  which  the 
Spaniards  had  felled  across  the  river ;  but  they*  arrived  before 
the  town  during  the  night.  The  Spaniards  had  erected  some 
works,  on  which  account  the  Buccaneers  waited  in  their  canoes 
till  daylight,  and  then  landed  ;  when  Richard  Sawkins,  ad- 
vancing with  the  foremost  of  his  men  towards  a  breastwork, 
was  killed,  as  were  two  of  his  followers.  Sharp  was  the  next 
in  command,  but  he  was  disheartened  by  so  unfortunate  a 

beginning, 


CHA  P.  1O. 

1680. 

May. 


At  Quibo. 


Attack  of 
Pueblo 
Nuevo. 


Captain 

Sawkins 

is   killed, 

and  the 

Buccaneers 

retreat. 


*  Ringrose,  Chap.  ix. 


104  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  10.  beginning,  and   ordered   a  retreat.     Three   Buccaneers   were 
1680.      wounded  in  the  re-embarkation. 

In  the  narrative  which  Sharp  himself  published,  he  says, 
'  we  landed  at  a  stockado  built  by  the  Spaniards,  where  we  had 

*  a  small  rencounter  with  the  enemy,  who  killed  us  three  men, 

*  whereof  the  brave  Captain  Sawkins  was  one,  and  wounded 
'  four  or  five  more ;  besides  which  we  got  nothing,  so  that  we 
'  found  it  our  best  way  to  retreat  down  the  river  again.' 

The  death  of  Sawkins  was  a  great  misfortune  to  the  Bucca- 
neers, and  was  felt  by  them  as  such.    One  Buccaneer  relates, 

*  Captain  Sawkins  landing  at  Pueblo  Nuevo  before  the  rest,  as 
'  being  a  man  of  undaunted  courage,  and  running  up  with  a 
'  small  party  to  a  breastwork,  was  unfortunately  killed.     And 

*  this  disaster  occasioned  a  mutiny  amongst  our  men  ;  for  our 
'  Commanders  were  not   thought  to  be   leaders  fit  for  such 

*  hard  enterprises.    Now  Captain  Sharp  was  left  in  chief,  and 
'  he  was   censured  by  manyr  and  the    contest  grew  to  that 
1  degree  that  they  divided  into  parties,  and  about  70  of  our 
'  men  fell  off  from  us.' 

Imposition       Ringrose  was  not  in  England  when  his  Narrative  was  pub- 

Sharp,      lished  ;  and  advantage  was  taken  of  his  absence,  to  interpolate 

in  it  some   impudent  passages  in  commendation  of  Sharp's 

valour.    In  the  printed  Narrative  attributed  to  Ringrose,  he 

is  made  to  say,  *  Captain  Sawkins  in  running  up  to  the  breast- 

*  work  at  the  head  of  a  few  men  was  killed  ;  a  man  as  valiant 

*  and   courageous  as  any  could   be,  and,  next  unto  Captain 

*  Sharp,  the  best  beloved  of  all  our  company,  or  the  most  part 

*  thereof.' 

Ringrose's  manuscript  Journal  has  been   preserved  in    the 
Sloaue    Collection,    at   the    British  Museum    (No.  3820*  of 

Ayscough's 

*  No.  48  in  the  same  collection  is  a  manuscript  copy  of  Ringrose's  Journal, 
but  varied  in  the  same  manner  from  the  Original  as  the  printed  Narrative. 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA.  105 

Ayscough's   Catalogue)    wherein,    with   natural  expression    of  CHAP.  10. 
affection  and  regard,  he  says,  '  Captain  Sawkins  was  a  valiant       !680. 
'  and  generous  spirited  man,  and  beloved  above  any  other  we 
'  ever  had  among  us,  which  he  well  deserved.' 

In  their  retreat  down  the  river  of  Pueblo  Nuevo,  the  Bucca-      May. 
neers  took  a  ship  laden  with  indigo,   butter,  and  pitch  ;  and 
burnt  two  other  vessels.    When  returned  to  Quibo,  they  could 
not  agree  in  the  choice  of  a  commander.    Bartholomew  Sharp      Sharp 
had  a  greater  number  of  voices  than  any  other  pretender,  which  Commander. 
he  obtained   by  boasting  that  he  would  take  them    a  cruise 
whereby  he  did  not  at  all  doubt  they  would  return  home  with 
not  less  than  a  thousand   pounds  to  each  man.     Sharp  was 
elected  by  but  a  small   majority.     Between  60   and   70  men       Some 
who  had  remained  after  Coxon   quitted  the  command,  from    a 


attachment  to  Captain  Sawkins,  would  not  stay  to  be  com-  to  the 
manded  by  Sharp,  and  departed  from  Quibo  in  one  of  the  prize 
vessels  to  return  over  the  Isthmus  to  the  West  Indies ;  where 
they  safely  arrived.  All  the  Darien  Indians  also  returned  to  the 
Isthmus.  One  hundred  and  forty-six  Buccaneers  remained 
with  Bartholomew  Sharp. 

'  On  the  SE  side  of  the  Island  Quibo  is  a  shoal,  or  spit  of       The 

*  sand,  which  stretches  out  a  quarter  of  a  league  into  the  sea*.' 
Just  within  this  shoal,  in   14  fathoms   depth,    the   Buccaneer 
ships  lay  at  anchor.    The  Island  abounded  in  fresh  rivers,  this 
being    the  rainy    season.    They   caught   red  deer,   turtle,    and 
oysters.    Ringrose   says,  '  here  were  oysters  so  large  that  we 

*  were  forced  to  cut  them  into  four  pieces,  each  quarter  being 

*  a  good  mouthful.'    Here  were  also   oysters  of  a  smaller  kind, 
from  which  the  Spaniards  collected  pearls.  They  killed  alligators 
at  Quibo,  some  above  20  feet  in  length  ;  '  they  were  very  fearful, 

'  and 

*  Ringrose,  p.  44. 
P 


106  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  10.  <  an(j  trieci  to  escape  from  those  who  hunted  them/    Ringrosc 

1680.      relates,  that  he  stood  under  a  manchineal  tree  to  shelter  himself 

May.       from  the  rain,  but  some  drops  fell  on  his  skin  from  the  tree, 

which  caused  him  to  break  out  all  over  in  red  spots,  and  he 

was  not  well  for  a  week  afterwards. 

June.  June  the  6th,  Sharp  and  his  followers,  in  two  ships,  sailed 

from  Quibo  Southward  for  the  coast  of  Peru,  intending  to  stop 

by  the  way  at  the  Galapagos  Islands  ;  but  the  winds  prevented 

them.     On  the  17th,  they  anchored  on  the  South  side  of  the 

Island      Island  Gorgona,  near  the  mouth  of  a  river.    '  Gorgona  is  a  high 

*  mountainous  Island,   about   four   leagues  in  circuit,   and  is 
'  distant  about  four  leagues  from  the  Continent.  The  anchorage 
'  is  within  a  pistol-shot  of  the  shore,  in  depth  from  15   to  £0 

*  fathoms.    At  the  SW  of  Gorgona  is  a  smaller   Island,  and 

*  without  the   same  stands  a  small    rock  */    There    were    at 
this  time  streams  of  fresh  water  on  every  side  of  the  Island. 

Gorgona  being  uninhabited,  was  thought  to  be  a  good  place 
of  concealment.  The  Island  supplied  rabbits,  monkeys,  turtle, 
oysters,  and  birds ;  which  provision  was  inducement  to  the  Buc- 
caneers, notwithstanding  the  rains,  to  remain  there,  indulging 
in  idleness,  till  near  the  end  of  July,  when  the  weather  began  to 
be  dry.  They  killed  a  snake  at  Gorgona,  eleven  feet  long,  and 
fourteen  inches  in  circumference. 

July.  July  the  25th,   they  put  to  sea.     Sharp  had  expressed   an 

intention  to  attack  Guayaquil;  but  he  was  now  of  opinion 
that  their  long  stay  at  Gorgona  must  have  occasioned  their 
being  discovered  by  the  Spaniards,  '  notwithstanding  that  he 

*  himself  had  persuaded  them  to  stay;'  their  plan  was  there- 
fore changed  for  the  attack  of  places  more  Southward,  where 
they    would    be    less    expected.    The   winds   were    from    the 

Southward, 

*  Ringrose  and  Sharp. 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA.  107 

Southward,  and    it  was  not    till  August   the  13th,  that  they   CHAP.  10. 
got  as  far  as  the  Island  Plata.  1680 

The  only  landing  at  Plata  at  this  time,  was  on  the  NE  side,     August. 
near  a  deep  valley,  where  the  ships  anchored  in  12  fathoms.      Island 
Goats  were  on  this  Island  in  such  numbers,  thai  they  killed 
above  a  hundred  in  a  day  with  little  labour,  and  salted  what 
they  did  not  want  for  present  use.    Turtle  and  fish  were  ia 
plenty.     They    found    only  one  small  spring  of   fresh  water, 
which  was  near  the  landing  place,  and  did  not  yield  them  more 
than  20  gallons  in  the  24  hours.    There  were  no  trees  on  any 
part  of  the  Island. 

From  Plata   they    proceeded   Southward.    The    25th,  near      On  the 


Cape  St.  Elena,  they  met  a  Spanish  ship  from  Guayaquil  bound 


to  Panama,  which  they  took  after  a  short  action  in  which  one 
Buccaneer  was  killed,  and  two  others  were  wounded,  In  this 
prize  they  found  3000  dollars.  They  learnt  from  their  pri- 
soners, that  one  of  the  small  buccaneer  tenders,  which  had  been 
separated  from  Sawkins  in  sailing  from  the  Bay  of  Panama,  had 
been  taken  by  the  Spaniards,  after  losing  six  men  out  of  seven 
which  composed  her  crew.  Their  adventure  was  as  follows.  Adventure 

«»  II 

Not  being  able  to  join  their  Commander  Sawkins  at  Quibo,  they  'crew'of 
sailed  to  the  Island  Gallo  near  the  Continent  (in  about  2°  N.)  Buccaneers 
where  they  found  a  party  of  Spaniards,  from  whom  they  took 
three  white  women.  A  few  days  afterwards,  they  put  in  at 
another  small  Island,  four  leagues  distant  from  Gallo,  where 
they  proposed  to  remain  on  the  lookout,  in  hopes  of  seeing 
some  of  their  friends  come  that  way,  as  Sawkins  had  declared 
it  his  intention  to  go  to  the  coast  of  Peru.  Whilst  they  were 
waiting  in  this  expectation,  a  Spaniard  whom  they  had  kept 
prisoner,  made  his  escape  from  them,  and  got  over  to  the  main 
land.  This  small  buccaneer  crew  had  the  imprudence  never- 
theless to  remain  in  the  same  quarters  long  enough  to  give  time 
for  a  party  of  Spaniards  to  pass  over  from  the  main  land,  which 

P  2  they 


108  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  1O 


they  did  without    being  perceived,   and  placed  themselves  in 
1680.      ambuscade  with   so  much  advantage,  that  at  one  volley  they 
August,     killed  six  Buccaneers  out  of  the  seven :    the  one  remaining 

On  the     became  their  prisoner. 
Coast  of 
Peru.          Sharp  and  his  men  divided  the  small  sum  of  money  taken  in 

their  last   prize,    and    sunk    her.     Ringrose   relates,  '  we  also 

*  punished  a  Friar  and  shot  him  upon  the  deck,  casting  him 

*  overboard  while  he  was  yet  alive.     I  abhorred  such  cruelties, 

*  yet  was  forced  to    hold  my  tongue.'  It  is  not  said  in    what 
manner  the  Friar  had  offended,  and  Sharp  does  not  mention 
the  circumstance  in  his  Journal. 

.  One  of  the  two  vessels  in  which  the  Buccaneers  cruised, 
sailed  badly,  on  which  account  she  was  abandoned,  and  they 
all  embarked  in  the  ship  named  the  Trinidad. 

September.  On  the  4th  of  September  they  took  a  vessel  from  Guayaquil 
bound  for  Lima,  with  a  lading  of  timber,  chocolate,  raw  silk, 
Indian  cloth,  and  thread  stockings.  It  appears  here  to  have 
been  a  custom  among  the  Buccaneers,  for  the  first  who  boarded 
an  enemy,  or  captured  vessel,  to  be  allowed  some  extra 
privilege  of  plunder.  Ringrose  says,  '  we  cast  dice  for  the 
'  first  entrance,  and  the  lot  fell  to  the  larboard  watch,  so 

*  twenty   men  belonging    to  that   watch,  entered  her.'    They 
took  out  of  this  vessel  as  much  of  the  cargo  as  they  chose, 
and  put  some  of  their  prisoners  in  her;  after  which  they  dis- 
missed her  with  only  one  mast  standing  and  one  sail,  that  she 

October,  should  not  be  able  to  prosecute  her  voyage  Southward.  Sharp 
passed  Callao  at  a  distance  from  land,  being  apprehensive 
there  might  be  ships  of  war  in  the  road.  October  the  26th,  he 
was  near  the  town  of  Arica,  when  the  boats  manned  with  a 
large  party  of  Buccaneers  departed  from  the  ship  with  intention 
to  attack  the  town;  but,  on  coming  near  the  shore,  they  found 
the  surf  high,  and  the  whole  country  appeared  to  be  in  arms. 

They 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  109 

They  returned  to  the  ship,  and  it   was  agreed  to  bear  away  CHAP.  10. 
for  I/o,  a  small  town  on  the  coast,  in  latitude  about  17°  40'  S.       ^So. 

Their  stock  of  fresh  water  was  by  this  time  so  reduced,  that  October, 
they  had  come  to    an  allowance    of   only    half  a   pint  for  a     Pntbe.. 

Coast  of 

man  for  the  day  ;   and  it  is  related  that  a  pint  of  water  was      peru. 
sold  in  the  ship  for  30  dollars.    They  succeeded  however  in       28th, 
landing  at  I/o,  and  obtained  there  fresh  water,  wine,  fruits, 
flour,  oil,  chocolate,  sugar,  and  other  provisions.  The  Spaniards 
would  give  neither  money  nor  cattle  to  have  their  buildings  and 
plantations  spared,  and  the  Buccaneers  committed  all  the  mis- 
chief they  could. 

From  I/o  they  proceeded  Southward.    December  the  1st,  in  December, 
the  night,  being  in  latitude  about  31°,  they  found  themselves  in 
white  water,  like  banks  or  breakers,  which  extended  a  mile  or 
more  in  length  ;  but  they  were  relieved  from  their  alarm  by    Shoals  of 
discovering  that  what  they  had  apprehended  to  be  rocks  and 
breakers  was  a  large  shoal  of  anchovies. 

December  the  3d,  they  landed   at  the  town  of  La  Serena,   La  Serena 
which  they  entered  without  opposition.  Some  Spaniards  came  to    Pandered 
negociate  with  them  to  ransom  the  town  from  being  burnt,  for 
which  they  agreed  to  pay  95,000  pieces  of  eight ;  but  the  money 
came  not  at  the  time  appointed,  and  the  Buccaneers  had  reason 
to  suspect  the  Spaniards  intended  to  deceive  them.    Ringrose    .Attempt 
relates,  that  a  man  ventured  to  come  in   the  night  from  the    c      .    , 

Spaniards 

shore,  on  a  float  made  of  a  horse's  hide  blown  up  like  a  bladder,  to  bum  the 

Ql  ' 

'  He  being  arrived  at  the  ship,  went  under  the  stern  and 
1  crammed  oakum  and  brimstone  and  other  combustible  matter 
'  between  the  rudder  and  the  stern-post.  Having  done  this,  he 
'  fired  it  with  a  match,  so  that  in  a  small  time  our  rudder  was 
'  on  fire,  and  all  the  ship  in  a  smoke.  Our  men,  both  alarmed 
'  and  amazed  with  this  smoke,  ran  up  and  down  the  ship, 
'  suspecting  the  prisoners  to  have  fired  the  vessel,  thereby  to  get 

'  their 


110 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA 


CHAP.   1O.    * 


l68o. 

December. 

On  the 

Coast  of 

Peru. 


Island 

Juan 

Fernandez. 


1681. 
January. 


their  liberty  and  seek  our  destruction.  At  last  they  found  out 
;  where  the  fire  was,  and  had  the  good  fortune  to  quench  it 
'  before  its  going  too  far.  After  which  we  sent  the  boat  ashore, 
'  and  found  both  the  hide  afore-mentioned,  and  the  match 
'  burning  at  both  ends,  whereby  we  became  acquainted  with 
'  the  whole  matter.' 

By  the  La  Serena  expedition  they  obtained  five  hundred 
pounds  weight  of  silver.  One  of  the  crew  died  in  consequence 
of  hard  drinking  whilst  on  shore.  They  released  all  their 
prisoners  here,  except  a  pilot ;  after  which,  they  stood  from  the 
Continent  for  Juan  Fernandez.  In  their  approach  to  that 
Island,  it  is  remarked  by  Ringrose,  that  they  saw  neither  bird, 
nor  fish ;  and  this  being  noticed  to  the  pilot,  he  made  answer, 
that  he  had  many  times  sailed  by  Juan  Fernandez,  and  had  never 
seen  either  fish  or  fowl  whilst  at  sea  in  sight  of  the  Island. 

On  Christmas  clay,  they  anchored  in  a  Bay  at  the  South  part 
of  Juan  Fernandez ;  but  finding  the  winds  SE  and  Southerly, 
they  quitted  that  anchorage,  and  went  to  a  Bay  on  the  North 
side  of  the  Island,  where  they  cast  anchor  in  14  fathoms,  so 
near  to  the  shore  that  they  fastened  the  end  of  another  cable 
from  the  ship  to  the  trees  ;  being  sheltered  by  the  land  from 
ESE  round  by  the  South  and  West,  and  as  far  as  N  b  W  *. 
Their  fastenings,  however,  did  not  hold  the  ship  against  the 
strong  flurries  that  blew  from  the  land,  and  she  was  twice  forced 
to  sea;  but  each  time  recovered  the  anchorage  without  much 
difficulty. 

The  shore  of  this  bay  was  covered  with  seals  and  sea  lions, 
whose  noise  and  company  were  very  troublesome  to  the  men 
employed  in  filling  fresh  water.  The  seals  coveted  to  lie  where 
streams  of  fresh  water  ran  into  the  sea,  which  made  it  necessary 
to  keep  people  constantly  employed  to  beat  them  off.  Fish 

were 


Sharp's  Journal,  p.  72. 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA.  ill 

were  in  the  greatest  plenty;  and  innumerable  sea  birds  had    CHAP.  10. 
their  nests  near  the  shore,  which  makes  the  remark  of  Ringrose       ^Si. 
on  approaching  the  Island  the  more  extraordinary.    Craw-fish    January. 

and  lobsters  were  in  abundance  ;  and  on  the  Island  itself  scats     At  Juan 

,     .     Fernandez, 
were  in  such  plenty,  that,  besides  what  they  eat  during  their 

stay,  they  killed  about  a  hundred  for  salting,  and  took  away 
as  many  alive. 

Here  new  disagreements  broke  out  among  the  Buccaneers.       Sharp 
Some  wished  to  sail  immediately  homeward  by   the  Strait  of    fr0m  the 
Magalhanes;  others  desired  to  try  their  fortune  longer  in  the   Command- 
South  Sect.     Sharp  was  of  the  party  for  returning  home;  but  in 
the  end  the  majority  deposed  him  from  the  command,  and 
elected  for  his  successor  John  Watling,  *  an  old  privateer,  and     Watling 

elected 

*  esteemed  a  stout  seaman/    Articles  were  drawn  up  in  writing  Commander. 
between  Watling  and  the  crew,  and  subscribed. 

One  Narrative  says,  *  the  true  occasion  of  the  grudge  against 

*  Sharp    was,  that  he  had  got  by  these  adventures  almost  a 

*  thousand   pounds,  whereas  many  of  our   men  were  scarce 

*  worth  a  groat ;  and  good  reason  there   was  for  their  poverty, 

*  for  at  the  Isle  of  Plate  and  other  places,  they  had  lost  all 

*  their    money    to  their  fellow  Buccaneers   at  dice ;  so    that 
'  some  had  a  great  deal,  and  others,  just  nothing.    Those  who 

*  were  thrifty  sided  with  Captain   Sharp,  but  the  others,  being 
'  the  greatest  number,  turned  Sharp  out  of  his  command  ;  and 

*  Sharp's  party  were  persuaded  to  have  patience,  seeing  they 
'  were  the  fewest,  and  had  money  to  lose,  which  the  other  party 
'  had  not.'    Dampier   says  Sharp   was   displaced   by  general 
consent,  the  company  not  being  satisfied  either  with  his  courage 
or  his  conduct. 

Watling  began  his  command  by  ordering  the  observance  of 
the  Sabbath.    '  This  day,  January  the  9th,'  says  Ringrose,  '  was 

*  the  first  Sunday  that  ever  we  kept  by  command  since  the  loss 

'  and 


112  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  10.  «  and  death  of  our  valiant  Commander  Captain  Sawkins,  who 
i58i.      '  once  threw  the  dice  overboard,  finding  them  -in  use  on  the 

January.      *   said  day.' 

nth.          The  llth,  two  boats  were  sent  from  the  ship  to  a  distant 
i2th.      part  of  the  Island  to  catch  goats.     On.  the  following  morning, 

They  sail    the  boats  were  seen  returning  in  great  haste,  and  firing  muskets 
from  J  uan  .  .  .  ° 

Fernandez,   to  give'  alarm.    When  arrived  on  board,  they  gave  information 

that  three  sail.,  which  they  believed  to  be  Spanish  ships  of  war, 
were  in  sight  of  the  Island,  and  were  making  for  the  anchorage. 
In  half  an  hour  after  this  notice,  the  strange  ships  were  seen 
from  the  Bay;  upon  which,  all  the  men  employed  on  shore  in 
watering,  hunting,  and  other  occupations,  were  called  on  board 
with  the  utmost  speed;  and  not  to  lose  time,  the  cable  was 
slipped,  and  the  ship  put  to  sea.  It  happened  in  this  hurry  of 
quitting  the  Island,  that  one  of  the  Mosquito  Indians  who  had 
William,  con)e  with  the  Buccaneers,  and  was  by  them  called  William,  was 

a  Mosquito 

Indian,  absent  in  the  woods  hunting  goats,  and  heard  nothing  of  the 
Island  alarm.  No  time  could  be  spared  for  search,  and  the  ship  sailed 
without  him.  This  it  seems  was  not  the  first  instance  of  a  solitary 
individual  being  left  to  inhabit  Juan  Fernandez.  Their  Spanish 
pilot  affirmed  to  them,  ^that  '  many  years  before,  a  ship  had 
'  been  cast  away  there,  and  onty  one  man  saved,  who  lived 
'  alone  upon  the  Island  five  years,  when  another  ship  coming 
*  that  way,  took  him  off.' 

The  three  vessels  whose  appearance  caused  them  in  such  haste 
to  quit  their  anchorage,  were  armed  Spanish  ships.  They  re- 
mained in  sight  of  the  Buccaneer  ship  two  days,  but  no  incli- 
nation appeared  on  either  side  to  try  the  event  of  a  battle. 
The  Buccaneers  had  not  a  single  great  gun  in  their  ship,  and 
must  have  trusted  to  their  musketry  and  to  boarding. 
i3th.  On  the  evening  of  the  13th  after  dark,  they  resigned  the 

honour  of  the  field  to  the   Spaniards,  and  made  sail  Eastward 

for 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  113 

for  the  American   coast,  with  design  to  attack  Arica,   which  CHAP.  10. 
place  they  had  been  informed  contained  great  riches.  l68l 

The  26th,  they  were  close  to  the  small  Island  named  Yqueque,    January 
about  25  leagues  to  the  South  of  Arica,  where  they  plundered      j  j    ' 
a  small  Indian  village  of  provisions,  and  took  two  old  Spaniards    Yqueque. 
and  two  Indians   prisoners.  This  Island  was  destitute  of  fresh 
water,  and  the  inhabitants  were  obliged  to  supply  themselves 
from  the  Continent,  at  a  river  named  De  Camarones,  1 1  Spanish    River  de 
leagues  to  the  North  of  Yqueque.  -  The  people  on  Yqueque  were 
the  servants  and  slaves  of  the  Governor  of  Arica,  and  were 
employed  by  him  to  catch  and  dry  fish,  which  were  disposed  of 
lo  great  profit  among  the  inland  towns  of  the  Continent.     The 
Indians  here  eat  much  and  often  of  certain  leaves  '  which  were 
in  taste  much  like  to  the  bay  leaves  in  England,  by  the  con- 
tinual use  of  which  their  teeth  were  dyed  of  a  green  colour/ 

The  2?th,  Watling  examined  one  of  the  old  Spaniards  con-      2;th. 
cerning  the  force  at  Arica ;  and  being  offended  at  his  answers, 
ordered  him  to  be   shot,  which  was  done.    The  same  morning 
they  took  a  small  bark  from  the  River  Camarones,  laden  with 
fresh  water. 

In  the  night  of  the  28th,  Watling  with  one  hundred  men 
departed  from  t  he  ship  in  the  small  prize  bark  and  boats  for 
Arica.  They  put  ashore  on  the  mainland  about  five  leagues  to 
the  South  of  Arica,  before  it  vas  light,  and  remained  concealed 
among  rocks  all  day.  At  night,  they  again  proceeded,,  and  at 
daylight  (on  the  30th)  Watling  .landed  with  92  men,  four  miles  soth. 
from  the  town;  to  which  they  marched,  and  gained  entrance, 
with  the  loss  of  three  men  killed,  and  two  wounded.  There  was 
a  castle  or  fort,  which  for  their  own  security  they  ought 
immediately  to  have  attacked  ;  but  Watling  was  only  intent  on 
making  prisoners,  until  he  was  incommoded  with  more  than 
could  be  well  guarded.  This  gave  the  inhabitants  who  had 

Q  fled, 


114 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  IO, 
l68l. 

January. 

On  the 

Coast  of 

Peru. 

Are 
Repulsed. 


Watling 
killed. 


fled,  time  to  recover  from  their  alarm,  and  they  collected  in  the 
Fort.  To  complete  the  mistake,  Watling  at  length  advanced  to 
attack  the  fort,  where  he  found  resistance  more  than  he  expected. 
Watling  put  in  practice  the  expedient  of  placing  his  prisoners 
in  front  of  his  own  men  ;  but  the  defenders  of  the  fort  were  not 
a  whit  deterred  thereby  from  firing  on  the  Buccaneers,  who 
were  twice  repulsed.  The  Spaniards  without,  in  the  mean  time, 
began  to  make  head  from  all  parts ;  and  in  a  little  time  the 
Buccaneers,  from  being  the  assailants,  found  themselves  obliged 
to  look  to  their  defence.  Watling  their  chief  was  killed,  as 
were  two  quarter-masters,  the  boatswain,  and  some  others  of 
their  best  men;  and  the  rest  thought  it  necessary  to  retreat 'to 
their  boats,  which,  though  harassed  the  whole  way  by  a  distant 
firing  from  the  Spaniards,  they  effected  in  tolerable  order,  and 
embarked. 

In  this  attack,  the  Buccaneers  lost  in  killed,  and  taken 
prisoners  by  the  Spaniards,  28  men  ;  and  of  those  who  got  back 
to  the  ship,  eighteen  were  wounded.  Among  the  men  taken 
by  the  Spaniards  were  two  surgeons,  to  whose  care  the  wounded 
had  been  committed.  '  We  could  have  brought  off  our 

*  doctors/  says  Ringrose,  '  but  they  got  to  drinking  whilst  we 

*  were  assaulting  the  fort,  and  when  we  called  to  them,  they 

*  would  not  come  with  us.'    The  Spaniards  gave  quarter  to  the 
surgeons,  '  they  being  able  to  do  them  good  service  in  that 

*  country :  but  as  to  the  wounded  men  taken  prisoners,  they 

*  were  all  knocked  on  the  head.' 

The  whole  party  that  landed  at  Arica  narrowly  escaped 
destruction  ;  for  the  Spaniards  learnt  from  the  prisoners  they 
took,  the  signals  which  had  been  agreed  upon  with  the  men  left 
in  charge  of  the  boats ;  of  which  information  they  made  such 
use,  that  the  boats  had  quitted  their  station,  and  set  sail  to  run 
down  to  the  town  ;  but  some  Buccaneers  who  hud  been  most 

speedy 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  115 

speedy  in  the  retreat,  arrived  at  the  sea  side  just  in  time  to  call  CHAP.  10. 
them  back.  1681. 

This  miscarriage  so  much  disheartened  the  whole  Buccaneer    January, 
crew,  that  they  made  no  attempt  -to  take  three  ships  which  were     On  the 
at  anchor  in  the  road  before  Arica.  Sharp  was  reinstated  in  the      peru 
command,  because  he  was  esteemed  a  leader  of  safer  conduct  Sharpagaia 
than  any  other;  and  every  one  was  willing  to  quit  the  South  Co^   ^er 
Sea,   but  which   it    was    now   proposed    they    should    do    by 
re-crossing  the  Isthmus.  /They  did  not,  however,  immediately 
steer  Northward ;  but  continued  to  beat  up  against  the  wind  to 
the  Southward,  till  the    10th  of  March,  when   they  landed  at     March. 
Guasco  or  Huasco  (in  lat.  about  £8^°)  from  which  place   they    Huasco. 
carried  off  120    sheep,    80  goats,  200   bushels    of  corn,   and 
filled  their  jars  with  fresh  water. 

From  Huasco  they  stood  to  the  North.  On  the  27th,  they 
passed  Arica.  The  Narrative  remarks,  '  our  former  entertain- 
'  ment  had  been  so  very  bad,  that  we  were  no  ways  encouraged 
'  to  stop  there  again.'  They  landed  at  Ylo,  of  which  Wafer  Ylo. 
says,  '  the  River  Ylo  is  situated  in  a  valley  which  is  the  finest 
*  I  have  seen  in  all  the  coast  of  Peru,  and  furnished  with  a 
'  multitude  of  vegetables.  A  great  dew  falls  here  every  night.' 

April  the  16th,  they  were  near  the  Island  Plata.  By  this  time  April, 
new  opinions  and  new  projects  had  been  formed.  Many  of  the 
crew  were  again  willing  to  try  their  fortune  longer  in  the  South 
Sea  ;  but  one  party  would  not  continue  under  the  command  of 
Sharp,  and  others  would  not  consent  to  choosing  a  new  com- 
mander. As  neither  party  would  yield,  it  was  determined  to 
separate,  and  agreed  upon  by  all  hands,  '  that  which  party  soever 
'  upon  polling  should  be  found  to  have  the  majority,  should 
'  keep  the  ship.'  The  other  party  was  to  have  the  long-boat  and 
the  canoes.  On  coming  to  a  division,  Sharp's  party  proved  the 
most  numerous.  The  minority  consisted  of  forty-four  Euro- 

Q  2  pean?, 


116  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  10.  peans,  two  Mosquito  Indians,  and  a  Spanish  Indian.    On  the 

1681.      forenoon  of  the  17th,  the  party  in  the  boats  separated  from  the 

April.      ship,  and  proceeded  for  the  Gulf  de  San  Miguel,  where  they 

Another     landed,  and  returned  over  the  Isthmus  back  to  the  West  Indies.  In 

Party  of  the 

Buccaneers  this  party  were  William  Dampier,  and  Lionel  Wafer  the  surgeon. 

acrossuhe    Dampier  afterwards  published  a  brief  sketch  of  the  expedition, 
Isthmus,     and  an  account  of  his  return  across  the  Isthmus,  both  of  which 
are  in  the  1st  volume  of  his  Voyages.  Wafer  met  with  an  acci- 
dental hurt  whilst  on  the  Isthmus,  which  disabled    him  from 
travelling  with  his  countrymen,  and  he  remained  some  months 
living  with  the  Darien   Indians,  of  whom  he  afterwards  pub- 
lished   an    entertaining  description,  with    a   Narrative  of   his 
own  adventures  among  them. 
Further         Sharp  and  his  diminished  crew  sailed  in  their  ship  from  the 

P**jgj|jjjf"  Island  Plata  Northward  to  the  Gulf  of  Nicoya,  where  they  met 
and  his     with  no  booty,  nor  with  any  adventure  worth  mentioning. 

Followers.  They  returned  Southward  to  the  Island  Plata,  and  in  the  way 
took  three  prizes  :  the  first,  a  ship  named  the  San  Pedro,  from 
Guayaquil  bound  for  Panama,  with  a  lading  of  cocoa-nuts,  and 
21,000  pieces  of  eight  in  chests,  and  16,000  in  bags,  besides 
plate.  The  money  in  bags  and  all  the  loose  plunder  was 
divided,  each  man  receiving  for  his  share  234  pieces  of  eight; 
whence  it  may  be  inferred  that  their  number  was  reduced  to 
about  70  men.  The  rest  of  the  money  was  reserved  for  a  future 
division.  Their  second  prize  was  a  packet  from  Panama  bound 
for  Callao,  by  which  they  learnt  that  in  Panama  it  was  believed 
all  the  Buccaneers  had  returned  overland  to  the  West  Indies. 
The  third  was  a  ship  named  the  San  Rosario,  which  did  not 
submit  to  them  without  resistance,  nor  till  her  Captain  was 
killed.  She  was  from  Callao,  laden  with  wine,  brandy,  oil,  and 
fruit,  and  had  in  her  as  much  money  as  yielded  to  each  Buc- 
caneer 94  dollars.  One  Narrative  says  a  much  greater  booty 

was 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  117 

was  missed  through  ignorance.     'Besides  the  lading  already   CHAP.  10. 

'  mentioned,  we  found  in  the  San  Rosario  700  pigs  of  plate,       ^gi. 

'  which  we  supposed  to  be  tin,  and  under  this  mistake,  they       July. 

*  were  slighted  by  us  all,  especially  by  the  Captain,  who  would      On  the 
4  not  by  persuasions  used  by  some  few  be  induced  to  take      Peru. 
'  them  into  our  ship,  as  we  did  most  of  the  other  things.    Thus 

*  we  left  them  in  the  Rosario,  which  we  turned  away  loose  into 
'  the    sea.    This,  it  should    seern,  was  plate,   not  thoroughly, 

*  refined  and  fitted  for  coin,  which   occasioned  our  being  de- 
'  ceived.    We  took  only  one  pig  of  the  seven  hundred  into  our 
'  ship,  thinking  to  make  bullets  of  it ;  and  to  this  effect,  or  what 
'  else  our  seamen  pleased,  the  greatest  part  of  it  was  melted  and 

*  squandered  away.    Afterwards,  when  we  arrived   at  Antigua, 
'  we   gave   the   remaining  part  (which    was  'about   one-third 
'  thereof)  to  a  Bristol  man,  who  knew  presently  what  it  was; 
'  who  brought  it  to  England,  and  sold  it  there  for  75  L  sterling. 
'  Thus  we  parted  with  the  richest  booty  we  got  in  the  whole 
'  voyage,  through  our  own  ignorance  and  laziness*.' 

The  same  Narrative  relates,  that  they  took  out  of  the  Rosario 
'  a  great  book  full  of  sea  charts  and  maps,  containing  an  accu- 

*  rate  and  exact  description  of  all  the  ports,  soundings,  rivers, 
'  capes,   and  coasts,  of  the  South   Sea,  and  all    the  navigation 
'  usually  performed  by  the  Spaniards  in  that  ocean.  This  book 
'  was  for  its  novelty  and  curiosity  presented  unto  His  Majesty 

*  on  the  return  of  some  of  the  Buccaneers  to  England,  and 
'  wras  translated  into  English  by  His  Majesty's  order -f-.' 

August 

*   Jjucauieers  of  America,  Part  1 11,  p.  So. 

•f-  Nos.  239.  and  44.  in  the  Sloaiie  Collection  of  Manuscripts  in  the  British 
Museum,  are  probably  the  charts  and  translation  spoken  of  above.  No.  230.  is  a 
book  of  Spanish  charts  of  the  sea-coast  of  New  Spain,  Peru,  and  Chili,  each  chart 
containing  a  small  portion  of  coast,  on  which  is  drawn  a  rude  likenrss  of  the 
apppearance  of  the  land,  making  it  at  the  same  time  both  landscape  and  chart. 
They  are  generally  without  compass,  latitude,  or  divisions  of  any  kind  by  lines, 

and 


ns 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


c  H  A  r.  10. 

1681. 
August, 


October. 
By  the 

Western 

Coast  of 


50   50 


They  enter 
aGulf. 


August  the  12th,  they  anchored  at  the  Island  Plata,  whence 
they  departed  on  the  i6th,  bound  Southward,  intending  to 
return  by  the  Strait  of  Magalhanes  or  Strait  le  Maire,  to  the 
West  Indies. 

The  28th,  they  looked  in  atPa*Va;  but  finding  the  place 
prepared  for  defence,  they  stood  off  from  the  coast,  and  pursued 
their  course  Southward,  without  again  corning  in  sight  of  land, 
and  without  the  occurrence  of  any  thing  remarkable,  till  they 
passed  the  50th  degree  of  latitude. 

October  the  llth,  they  were  in  latitude  49°  5$'  S,  and 
estimated  their  distance  from  the  American  coast  to  be 
1  20  leagues.  The  wind  blew  strong  from  the  SW,  and  they 
stood  to  the  South  East.  On  the  morning  of  the  12th,  two 
hours  before  day,  being  in  latitude  by  account  50°  50'  S,  they 
suddenly  found  themselves  close  to  land.  The  ship  was  ill 
prepared  for  such  an  event,  the  fore  yard  having  been  lowered 
to  ease  her,  on  account  of  the  strength  of  the  wind.  '  The  land 
'  was  high  and  towering  ;  and  here  appeared  many  Islands 
*  scattered  up  and  down/  They  were  so  near,  and  so  entangled, 
that  there  was  no  possibility  of  standing  off  to  sea,  and,  with 
such  light  as  they  had,  they  steered,  as  cautiously  as  they  could, 
in  between  some  Islands,  and  along  an  extensive  coast,  which, 
whether  it  was  a  larger  Island,  or  part  of  the  Continent,  they 
could  not  know.  As  the  day  advanced,  the  land  was  seen  to  be 
mountainous  and  craggy,  and  the  tops  covered  with  snow. 
Sharp  says,  '  we  bore  up  for  a  harbour,  and  steered  in  North- 
t  ward  about  five  leagues.  On  the  North  side  there  are  plenty 
'  of  harbours  *.'  At  1  1  in  the  forenoon  they  came  to  an  anchor 
'  in  a  harbour,  in  45  fathoms,  within  a  stone's  cast  of  the  shore, 

*  where 

and  with  no  appearance  of  correctness,  but  apparently  with  knowledge  of  the 
coast.  —  No.  44.  is  a  copy  of  the  same,  or  of  similar  Spanish  charts  of  the  same 
coast,  and  is  dedicated  to  King  Charles  11.  by  Bartholomew  Sharp. 

*  Sharp's  Manuscript  Journal,  Brit.  Mits. 


IN    THE    SOUTH    SEA. 


119 


*  where  the  ship  was  landlocked,  and  in  smooth  water.    As  the 
'  ship  went  in,  one  of  the  crew,  named  Henry  Shergall,  fell 
'  overboard  as  he  was  going  into  the  spritsail  top,  and  was 

*  drowned ;    on   which    account    this    was    named   Shergall's 

*  Harbour.' 

The  bottom  was  rocky  where  the  ship  had  anchored  ;  a  boat 
was  therefore  sent  to  look  for  better  anchorage.  They  did  not 
however  shift  their  birth  that  day ;  and  during  the  night,  strong 
flurries  of  wind  from  the  hills,  joined  with  the  sharpness  of  the 
rocks  at  the  bottom,  cut  their  cable  hi  two,  and  they  were 
obliged  to  set  sail.  They  ran  about  a  mile  to  another  bay, 
where  they  let  go  another  anchor,  and  moored  the  ship  with  a 
fastening  to  a  tree  on  shore. 

They  shot  geese,  and  other  wild-fowl.  On  the  shores  they 
found  large  muscles,  cockles  like  those  in  England,  and  limpets  : 
here  were  also  penguins,  which  were  shy  and  not  taken  without 
pursuit ;  '  they  padded  on  the  water  with  their  wings  very  fast, 

*  but   their   bodies    were    too  heavy    to   be    carried    by    the. 

*  said  wings/ 

The  first  part  of  the  time  they  lay  in  this  harbour,  they  had 
almost  continual  rain.  On  the  night,  of  the  15th,  in  a  high 
North  wind,  the  tree  to  which  their  cable  was  fastened  gave 
way,  and  came  up  by  the  root,  in  consequence  of  which,  the 
stern  of  the  ship  took  the  ground  and  damaged  the  rudder. 
They  secured  the  ship  afresh  by  fastening  the  cable  to  other 
trees ;  but  were  obliged  to  unhang  the  rudder  to  repair. 

The  18th  was  a  day  of  clear  weather.  The  latitude  was 
observed  50"  40'  S.  The  difference  of  the  rise  and  fall  of  the 
tide  was  seven  feet  perpendicular :  the  time  of  high  water  is  not 
noted.  The  arm  of  the  sea,  or  gulf,  in  which  they  were,  they 
named  the  English  Gulf;  and  the  land  forming  the  harbour, 
the  Duke  of  York's  Island;  '  more  by  guess  than  any  thing  else; 

*  for 


CHAP.  10. 
l68l. 

October. 

Shergall's 
Harbour. 


Another 
Harbour. 


15th. 


i8th. 


The  Gulf 

is  namecf 

the  English 

Gulf'. 


120  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  10.  '  for  whether  it  were  an  Island  or  Continent  was  not  discovered.' 
Ringrose  says,  '  I  am  persuaded  that  the  place  where  we  now 


October.  '  are,  is  not  so  great  an  Island  as  some  Hydrographers  do  lay 
'  it  down,  but  rather  an  archipelago  of  smaller  Islands.  Our 

Duke  of    *  Captain  gave  to  them  the  name  of  the  Duke  of  York's  Islands. 

iriand*  '  ^ur  boat  which  went  Eastward,  found  several  good  bays  and 
'  harbours,  with  deep  water  close  to  the  shore  ;  but  there  lay 
'  in  them  several  sunken  rocks,  as  there  did  also  in  the  harbour 
*  where  the  ship  lay.  These  rocks  are  less  dangerous  to  shipping, 
'  by  reason  they  have  weeds  lying  about  them.' 

Sharp's         From  all  the  preceding  description,   it  appears,  that  they 


were  at  the  South  part  of  the  Island  named  Madre  de  Dios  in 
Gulf,  the 

Brazo  de  la  the  Spanish  Atlas,  which   Island  is  South  of  the  Channel,  or 
ConcepSion  Arm  of  the  g^  named   the  Gulf  de  /a  g».  Trinidada  ;  and 

Sarmiento.  that  Sharp's  English  Gulf  is  the  Brazo  de  la  Conception  of 
Sarmiento. 

Ringrose  has  drawn  a  sketch  of  the  Duke  of  York's  Islands,  and 
one  of  the  English  Gulf;  but  which  are  not  worth  copying,  as 
they  have  neither  compass,  meridian  line,  scale,  nor  soundings. 
He  has  given  other  plans  in  the  same  defective  manner,  on 
which  account  they  can  be  of  little  use.  It  is  necessary  however 
to  remark  a  difference  in  the  plan  which  has  been  printed  of  the 
English  Gulf,  from  the  plan  in  the  manuscript.  In  the  printed 
copy,  the  shore  of  the  Gulf  is  drawn  as  one  continued  line,  ad- 
mitting no  thoroughfare;  whereas,  in  the  manuscript  plan,  there 
are  clear  openings  leaving  a  prospect  of  channels  through. 

Towards  the  end  of  October,  the  weather  settled  fair.  Hitherto 
they  had  seen  no  inhabitants  ;  but  on  the  27th,  a  party  went  from 
the  ship  in  a  boat,  on  an  excursion  in  search  of  provisions,  and 
Natives,  unhappily  caught  sight  of  a  small  boat  belonging  to  the  natives 
of  the  land.  The  ship's  boat  rowed  in  pursuit,  and  the  natives, 
a  man,  a  woman,  and  a  boy,  finding  their  boat  would  be  over- 

taken, 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  121 

taken,  all    leapt   overboard    and    swam    towards  shore.    This    CHAP.  ao. 
villainous  crew  of  Buccaneers  had  the   barbarity  to  shoot  at       1681. 
them  in  the  water,  and   they  shot  the  man  dead;  the   woman    October, 
made  her  escape  to  land  ;  the  boy,   a  stout  lad  about  eighteen      One  of 
years  of  age,  was  taken,  and  with  the  Indian  boat,  was  carried      by  the 
to  the  ship.  Buccaneers. 

The  poor  lad  thus  made  prisoner  had  only  a  small  covering 
of  seal  skin.  '  He  was  squint-eyed,  and  his  hair  was  cut  short. 

*  The  dorce,  or  boat,  in  which  he  and  the  other  Indians  were, 

*  was   built    sharp   at    each   end  and    flat    bottomed :  in    the 
'  middle  they  had  a  fire  burning  for  dressing  victuals,  or  other 
'  use.    They  had  a  net  to  catch  penguins,  a  club  like  to  our 
'  bandies,  and  wooden  darts.    This  young  Indian  appeared  by 
'  his  actions  to  be  very  innocent  and  foolish.    He  could  open 
'  large  muscles  with  his   fingers,  which  our  Buccaneers  could 
'  scarcely  manage  with   their  knives.    He  was  very  wild,  and 

*  would  eat  raw  flesh/ 

By  the  beginning  of  November  the  rudder  was  repaired  and  November, 
hung.    Ringrose   says,    '  we  could   perceive,   now    the  stormy 

*  weather  was  blown   over,   much   small  fry  of  fish  about  the 
'  ship,  whereof  before   we  saw  none.    The  weather  began  to  be 
'  warm,  or  rather  hot,  and  the  birds,  as  thrushes  and  blackbirds, 

*  to  sing  as  sweetly  as  those  in  England/ 

On  the  5th  of  November,  they  sailed  out  of  the  English  •Native of 
Gulf,  taking  Avith  them  their  young  Indian  prisoner,  to  whom  earned'* 
they  gave  the  name  of  Orson.  As  they  departed,  the  natives 
on  some  of  the  lands  to  the  Eastward  made  great  fires.  At  six 
in  the  evening  the  ship  was  without  the  mouth  of  the  Gulf: 
the  wind  blew  fresh  from  NW,  and  they  stood  out  SWbW,  to 
keep  clear  of  breakers  which  lie  four  leagues  without  the 
entrance  of  the  Gulf  to  the  South  and  SSE.  Many  reefs  and 
rocks  were  seen  hereabouts,  on  account  of  \\hich,  they  kept  close 
to  the  wind  till  they  were  a  good  distance  clear  of  the  land. 

R  Their 


ifi2  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CH  \r.  10.      Their  navigation  from  here  to  the  Atlantic  was,  more  than 

1681.  could  have  been  imagined,  like  the  journey  of  travellers  by 
November,  night  in  a  strange  country  without  a  guide.    The  weather  was 

stormy,  and  they  would  not  venture  to  steer  in  for  the  Strait  of 
Magalhanes,  which  they  had  purposed  to  do  for  the  benefit  of 
the  provision  which  the  shores  of  the  Strait  afford  of  fresh  water, 
fish,  vegetables,  and  wood.  They  ran  to  the  South  to  go  round 
the  Tierra  del  Fuego,  having  the  wind  from  the  NW,  which  was 
the  most  favourable  for  this  navigation  ;  but  they  frequently  lay 
Passage  to,  because  the  weather  was  thick.  On  the  12th,  they  had  not 

Cap^Horn.  Passe(^  the  Tierra  del  Fuego.  The  latitude  according  to  obser- 
vation that  day  was  5!>°  25',  and  the  course  they  steered  was 
i4th.  SSE.  On  the  14th,  Ringrose  says,  'the  latitude  was  observed 
T  '  57*  50/  S,  and  on  this  day  we  could  perceive  land,  from  which 
Latitude  «  at  noon  we  were  due  West.'  They  steered  EbS,  and  expected 
57°5c/S.'  that  at  daylight  the  next  morning  they  should  be  close  in  with 
the  land  ;  but  the  weather  became  cloudy  with  much  fall  of 
snow,  and  nothing  more  of  it  was  seen.  No  longitude  or 
meridian  distance  is  noticed,  and  it  must  remain  doubtful 
whether  what  they  took  for  land  was  floating  ice ;  or  their 
observation  for  the  latitude  erroneous,  and  that  they  saw  the 
Isles  of  Diego  Ramirez. 

Ice  Islands.  Three  days  afterwards,  in  latitude  58°  30'  S,  they  fell  in  with 
Ice  Islands,  one  of  which  they  reckoned  to  be  two  leagues 
in  circumference.  A  strong  current  set  here  Southward.  They 
held  on  their  course  Eastward  so  far  that  when  at  length  they 
did  sail  Northward,  they  saw  neither  the  Tierra  del  Fuego  nor 
Slaten  Island. 

December.  December  the  5th,  they  divided  the  plunder  which  had  been 
reserved,  each  man's  share  of  which  amounted  to  328  pieces  of 
eight.  Their  course  was  now  bent  for  the  West  Indies. 

1682.  January  the  l  ,1th,  died  William  Stephens,  a  seaman,  whose 
January,    death  was   attributed  to   his  having   eaten  three  manchineal 

apples 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  123 

apples   six   months  before,  when  on  the  coast  of  New  Spain,  CHAP.  10. 
'  from  which  time  he  wasted  away  till  he  became  a  perfect      1682?" 
'   skeleton/  January. 

January  the  28th,  1682,  they  made  the  Island  of  Barbadoes,  Arrive 
but  learnt  that  the  Richmond,  a  British  frigate,  was  lying  in  the  yvest  iVdles 
road.  Ringrose  and  his  fellow  journalists  say,  '  we  having  acted 
'  in  all  our  voyage  without  a  commission,  dared  not  be  so  bold 
*  as  to  put  in,  lest  the  said  frigate  should  seize  us  for  pyrateering, 
'  and  strip  us  of  all  we  had  got  in  the  whole  voyage/  They  next 
sailed  to  Antigua ;  but  the  Governor  at  that  Island,  Colonel 
Codrington,  would  not  give  them  leave  to  enter  the  harbour, 
though  they  endeavoured  to  soften  him  by  sending  a  present 
of  jewels  to  his  lady,  which,  however,  were  not  accepted.  Sharp 
and  his  crew  grew  impatient  at  their  uneasy  situation,  and  came 
to  a  determination  to  separate.  Some  of  them  landed  at  Antigua; 
Sharp  and  others  landed  at  Nevis,  whence  they  got  passage  to 
England.  Their  ship,  which  was  the  Trinidad  captured  in  the 
Bay  of  Panama,  was  left  to  seven  men  of  the  company  who 
had  lost  their  money  by  gaming.  The  Buccaneer  journals  say 
nothing  of  their  Patagonian  captive  Orson  after  the  ship  sailed 
from  his  country ;  and  what  became  of  the  ship  after  Sharp 
quitted  her  does  not  appear. 

Bartholomew  Sharp,  and   a  few  others,  on   their  arrival  in  Bart.  Sharp 
England,  were  apprehended,  and  a  Court  of  Admiralty  was  held  (^"his^en 
at  the  Marshalsea  in   Southwark,  where,  at  the  instance  of  the     tried  for 
Spanish  Ambassador,    they  were   tried    for   committing    acts 
of  piracy  in  the  South    Sea ;    but  from  the  defectiveness  of 
the  evidence  produced,  they  escaped  conviction.    One  of  the 
principal  charges  against  them  was  for  taking  the  Spanish  ship 
Rosario,  and  killing  the  Captain  and  another  man  belonging 
to  her;  '  but  it  was  proved/  says  the  author  of  the  anonymous 
Narrative,  who  was  one  of  the  men  brought  to  trial,  '  that  the 

R  2  *  Spaniards 


124  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  10.  <  Spaniards  fired  at  us  first,  and  it  was  judged  that  we  ought 
1682.  '  to  defend  ourselves/  Three  Buccaneers  of  Sharp's  crew  were 
also  tried  at  Jamaica,  one  of  whom  was  condemned  and 
hanged,  '  who,'  the  narrator  says,  '  was  wheedled  into  an  open 
'  confession  :  the  other  two  stood  it  out,  and  escaped  for  want 
'  of  witnesses  to  prove  the  fact  against  them.'  Thus  terminated 
•what  may  be  called  the  First  Expedition  of  the  Buccaneers  in 
the  South  Sea  ;  the  boat  excursion  by  Morgan's  men  in  the 
Bny  of  Panama  being  of  too  little  consequence  to  be  so  reckoned. 
They  had  now  made  successful  experiment  of  the  route  both 
by  sea  and  land ;  and  the  Spaniards  in  the  South  Sea  had 
reason  to  apprehend  a  speedy  renewal  of  their  visits. 

Carlos  Enriquez  Clerck,  who  went  from  England  with 
Captain  Narbrough,  was  at  this  time  executed  at  Lima,  on  a 
charge  of  holding  correspondence  with  the  English  of  Jamaica; 
which  act  of  severity  probably  is  attributable  more  to  the 
alarm  which  prevailed  in  the  Government  of  Peru,  than  to  any 
guilty  practices  of  Clerck. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  125 


CHAP.     XI. 

Disputes  between  the  French  Government  and  their  West -India 
Colonies.  Morgan  _  becomes  Deputy  Governor  of  Jamaica. 
La  Vera  Cruz  surprised  by  the  Flibustiers.  Other  of  their 
Enterprises. 


CHAP.  11. 


\\T  HILST  so  many  of  the  English  Buccaneers  were  seeking 

plunder  in  the  South  Sea,  the  French  Flibustiers  had  not  1680. 

been  inactive  in  the  West  Indies,  notwithstanding  that  the  French  Proceed-- 

government,  after  the  conclusion  of  the  war  with  Spain,  issued  Buccaneers 

orders  prohibiting;  the  subjects  of  France  in  the  West  Indies  from  „,  **.** 

J  West  Indies. 

cruising  against  the  Spaniards.      A  short  time  before  this  order  pn>hii>itions~ 
arrived,  a  cruising  commission  had  been  given   to  Granmonr,     against 

Piracy  by 

who  had  thereupon  collected  men,  and  made  preparation  for  an  the  French 
expedition  to  the  Tierra  Firma;  and  they  did  not  choose  that  Governuient; 
so  much  pains  should  be  taken  to  no  purpose.  The  French 
settlers  generally,  were  at  this  time  much  dissatisfied  on  account 
of  some  regulations  imposed  upon  them  by  the  Company  of 
Farmers,  whose  privileges  and  authority  extended  to  fixing  the 
price  upon  growth,  the  produce  of  the  soil ;  and  which  they 
exercised  upon  tobacco,  the  article  then  most  cultivated  by 
the  French  in  Hispaniola,  rigorously  requiring  the  planters  to 
deliver  it  to  the  Company  at  the  price  so  prescribed.  Many 
of  the  inhabitants,  ill  brooking  to  live  under  such  a  system  of 
robbery,  made  preparations  to  withdraw  to  the  English  and 
Dutch  settlements ;  but  their  discontent  on  this  account  was 
much  allayed  by  the  Governor  writing  a  remonstrance  to  the 
French  Minister,  and  promising  them  his  influence  towards 
obtaining  a  suppression  of  the  farming  tobacco.  Fresh  cause 
of  discontent  soon  occurred,  by  a  monopoly  of  the  French 

African 


136  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CHAP,  ii.  African  Slave  Trade  being  put  into  the  hands  of  a  new  com- 

1680.       pany,  Avhich  was  named  the  Senegal  Company. 
Disregard-       Granmont  and  the  Flibusticrs  engaged  with  him,  went  to  the 
8    coast  of  Cum  ana,  where  they  did  considerable  mischief  to  the 


Buccaneers.  Spaniards,  with  some  loss,  and  little  profit,  to  themselves. 
1680-1.         In  the  autumn  of  this  same  year,  the  Earl  of  Carlisle,  who 
was  Governor  of  Jamaica,  finding  the  climate  did  not  agree 
with  his   constitution,   returned    to  England,   and   left   as   his 

Sir  Henry    Deputy  to  govern  in  Jamaica,  Morgan,  the  plunderer  of  Panama, 
but  who  was  now  Sir  Henry  Morgan.   This  man  had  found  favour. 


Goveraorof  wfth  King  Charles  ii.  or  with  his  Ministers,  had  been  knighted, 

and  appointed  a  Commissioner   of  the    Admiralty    Court   in 

HisSeverity  Jamaica.  On  becoming  Deputy  Governor,  his  administration  was 

to  the       j-'ar  from  being  favourable  to  his  old  associates,  some  of  whom 
.Buccaneers. 

suffered  the  extreme  hardship  of  being  tried  and  hanged  under 

his  authority  ;  and  one  crew  of  Buccaneers,  most  of  them 
Englishmen,  who  fell  into  his  hands,  he  sent  to  be  delivered  up 
(it  may  be  presumed  that  he  sold  them)  to  the  Spaniards  at 
Carthagena.  Morgan's  authority  as  Governor  was  terminated  the 
following  year,  by  the  arrival  of  a  Governor  from  England  *. 

The  impositions  on  planting  and  commerce  in  the  French 
settlements,  in  the  same  degree  that  they  discouraged  cultivation, 
encouraged  cruising,  and  the  Flibustier  party  so  much  in- 
creased, as  to  have  little  danger  to  apprehend  from  any 
1683.  Governor's  authority.  The  matter  however  did  not  come  to 
issue,  for  in  1683,  war  again  broke  out  between  France  and 
Spain.  But  before  the  intelligence  arrived  in  the  West  Indies, 
1  200  French  Flibustiers  had  assembled  under  Van  Horn  (a  native 

of 

*  Morgan  continued  in  office  at  Jamaica  during  the  remainder  of  the  reign  of 
King  Charles  the  lid.;  but  was  suspected  by  the  Spaniards  of  connivance  with 
the  Buccaneers,  and  in  the  next  reign,  the  Court  of  Spain  had  influence  to  pro- 
cure his  being  sent  home  prisoner  from  the  West  Indies.  He  was  kept  three  years 
in  prison  ;  but  without  charge  being  brought  forward  against  him. 


BUCCANEERS   OF    AMERICA.  1ST 

),  Granmont,  and   another   noted  Flibustier  named    CHAP.  IK 
Laurent  de  Graaf,  to  make  an  expedition  against  the  Spaniards.        1683. 

Van  Horn  had  been  a  notorious  pirate,  and  for  a  number  of  Van  Horn, 
years  had  plundered  generally,  without  shewing  partiality  or  Gra^ont' 
favour  to  ships  of  one  nation  more  than  to  those  of  another,    de  Graaf, 
After  amassing  great  riches,  he  began  to  think  plain  piracy  too  gLa^era 
dangerous  an    occupation,  and  determined   to   reform,  which      Cruz, 
he   did    by  making  his  peace   with  the  French  Governor  in. 
Hispaniola,   and  turning   Buccaneer  or  Flibustier,    into    which 
fraternity  he  was  admitted  on  paying  entrance. 

The  expedition  which  he  undertook  in  conjunction  with 
Granmont  and  de  Graaf,  was  against  La  Vera  Cruz  in  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  a  town  which  might  be  considered  as  the 
magazine  for  all  the  merchandise  which  passed  between  New 
Spain  and  Old  Spain,  and  was  defended  by  a  fort,  said  to  be 
impregnable.  The  Flibustiers  sailed  for  this  place  with  a  fleet 
of  ten  ships.  They  had  information  that  two  large  Spanish 
ships,  with  cargoes  of  cacao,  were  expected  at  La  Vera  Cruz 
from  the  Caraccas ;  and  upon  this- intelligence,  they  put  in 
practice  the  following  expedient.  They  embarked  the  greater  They  snr- 
number  of  their  men  on  board  two  of  their  largest  ships,  which,  -f"^,1^. 
on  arriving  near  La  Vera  Cruz,  put  aloft  Spanish  colours,  and  Stratagem. 
ran,  with  all  sail  set,  directly  for  the  port  like  ships  chased,  the 
rest  of  ihc  Buccaneer  ships  appearing  at  a  distance  behind, 
crowding  sail  after  them.  The  inhabitants  of  La  Vera  Cruz 
believed  the  two  headmost  ships  to  be  those  which  were 
expected  from  the  Caraccas;  and,  as  the  Flibustiers  had  con- 
trived that  they  should  not  reach  the  port  till  after  dark, 
suffered  them  to  enter  vithout  offering  them  molestation,  and 
to  anchor  close  to  the  town,  which  they  did  without  being 
suspected  to  be  enemies.  In  the  middle  of  the  night,  the 
.Flibustiers  landed,  and  surprised  the  fort,  which  made  them 

masters 


128  HISTORY    OF    THE 


CHAP.   II, 


masters  of  the  town.  The  Spaniards  of  the  garrison,  and  all 
1683.  the  inhabitants  who  fell  into  their  hands,  they  shut  up  in  the 
churches,  where  they  were  kept  three  days,  and  with  so  little 
care  for  their  subsistence  that  several  died  from  thirst,  and 
some  by  drinking  immoderately  when  water  was  at  length 
given  to  them.  With  the  plunder,  and  what  was  obtained  for 
ransom  of  the  town,  it  is  said  the  Flibustiers  carried  away  a 
million  of  piastres,  besides- a  number  of  slaves  and  prisoners. 

Van  Horn  shortly  after  died  of  a  wound  received  in  a  quarrel 
with  De  Graaf.  The  ship  he  had  commanded,  which  mounted 
fifty  guns,  was  bequeathed  by  him  to  Granmont,  who  a  short 
time  before  had  lost  a  ship  of  nearly  the  same  force  in  a  gale 
of  wind. 

Some  quarrels  happened  at  this  time  between  the  French  Fli- 
bustiers and  the  English  Buccaneers,  which  are  differently  related 
by  the  English  and  the  French  writers.  The  French  account  says, 
that  in  a  Spanish  ship  captured  by  the  Flibustiers,  was  found  a 
letter  from  the  Governor  of  Jamaica  addressed  to  the  Governor 
of  the  Havannah,  proposing  a  union  of  their  force  to  drive  the 
Story  of  French  from  Hispaniola.  Also,  that  an  English  ship  of  30  guns 
and^n"  came  cruising  near  Tortuga,  and  when  the  Governor  of  Tortuga 
English  Sont  a  sloop  to  demand  of  the  English  Captain  his  business  there, 
the  Englishman  insolently  replied,  that  the  sea  was  alike  free  to 
all,  and  he  had  no  account  to  render  to  any  one.  For  this  answer, 
the1  Governor  sent  out  a  ship  to  take  the  English  ship,  but  the 
Governor's  ship  was  roughly  treated,  and  obliged  to  retire  into 
port.  Granmont  had  just  returned  from  the  La  Vera  Cruz 
expedition,  and  the  Governor  applied  to  him,  to  go  with  his 
fifty  gun  ship  to  revenge  the  affront  put  upon  their  nation. 
'  Granmont/  says  the  Narrator,  '  accepted  the  commission 
'  jo)!'ully.  Three  hundred  Flibustiers  embarked  with  him  in 
*  his  ship  ;  he  found  the  Englishman  proud  of  his  late  victory  ; 

'  he 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  12$ 

'  he  immediately  grappled  with  him  and   put  all  the  English    CHAP.U. 
'  crew  to  the  sword,  saving  only  the  Captain,  who  he  carried       1683. 
'  prisoner  to  Cape  Francois'    On  the  merit  of  this  service,  his 
disobedience  to  the  royal  prohibitory    order  in  attacking  La 
Vera  Cruz  was  to  pass  with  impunity.  The  English  were  not  yet 
sufficiently  punished;  the  account  proceeds,  *  Our  Flibustiers 
'  would  no  longer  receive  them  as  partakers  in  their  enterprises, 
'  and  even  confiscated  the  share  they  were  entitled  to  receive 
*  for  the  La  Vera  Cruz  expedition.'   Thus  the  French  account. 

If  the  story  of  demolishing  the  English  crew  is  true,  the  fact 
is  not  more  absurd  than  the  being  vain  of  such  an  exploit.  If 
a  fifty  sun  ship  will  determine  to  sink  a  thirty  gun  ship,  the 
thirty  gun  ship  must  in  all  probability  be  sunk.  The  affront 
given,  if  it  deserves  to  be  called  an  affront,  was  not  worthy 
being  revenged  with  a  massacre.  The  story  is  found  only  in 
the  French  histories,  the  writers  of  which  it  may  be  suspected 
were  moved  to  make  Granmont  deal  so  unmercifully  with  the 
English  crew,  by  the  kind  of  feeling  which  so  generally  pre- 
vails between  nations  who  are  near  neighbours.  To  this  it  may 
be  attributed  that  Pere  Charlevoix,  both  a  good  historian  and 
good  critic;  has  adopted  the  story;  but  had  it  been  believed 
by  him,  he  would  have  related  it  in  a  more  rational  manner, 
and  not  with  exultation. 

English  writers  mention  a  disagrfement  which  happened 
about  this  time  between  Granmont  and  the  English  Buccaneers, 
on  account  of  his  taking  a  sloop  belonging  to  Jamaica,  and 
forcing  the  crew  to  serve  under  him;  but  which  crew  found 
opportunity  to  take  advantage  of  some  disorder  in  his  ship, 
and  to  escape  in  the  night*.  This  seems  to  have  been  the 
whole  fact;  for  an  outrage  such  as  is  affirmed  by  the  French 

writers, 

*  British  tiinpiie  in  Amenta,  Vol.  li.  p.  319. 

s 


130  HISTORY    OF    THE 

c  H  A  P.  1 1 .  writers,  could  not  have  been  committed  and  have  been  boasted 
1684.       of  by  one  side,  without  incurring  reproach  from  the  other. 

The  French  Government  was  highly  offended  at  the  insu- 
bordination and  unrnanageableness  of  the  Flibustiers  in  H'tspa- 
niola,  and  no  one  was  more  so  than  the  French  King; 
Louis  xiv.  Towards  reducing  them  to  a  more  orderly  state, 
instructions  were  sent  to  the  Governors  in  the  West  Indies  to  be 
strict  in  making  them  observe  Port  regulations;  the  principal 
of  which  were;  that  all  vessels  should  register  their  crew  and 
lading  before  their  departure,  and  also  at  their  return  into  port; 
that  they  should  abstain  from  cruising  in  times  of  peace,  and 
should  take  out  regular  commissions  in  times  of  war;  and  that 
they  should  pay  the  dues  of  the  crown,  one  item  of  which  was  a 
tenth  of  all  prizes  and  plunder. 

Disputes  of      The  number  of  the  French  Flibustiers  in  1684,  was  estimated 

Governors  to,  be  3000.  The  French  Government  desired  to  convert  them 
with  the  jn{0  settlers.  A  letter  written  in  that  year  from  the  French 
of  Saint  Minister  to  the  Governor  General  of  the  French  West-India 

Domingo.  js|anc)s,  has  this  remarkable  expression  :  '  His  Majesty  esteems 
'  nothing  more  important  than  to  render  these  vagabonds  good 
*  inhabitants  of  Saint  Domingo.'  Such  being  the  disposition  of 
the  French  Government,  it  was  an  oversight  that  they  did  not 
contribute  towards  so  desirable  a  purpose  by  making  some 
abatement  in  the  impositions  which  oppressed  and  retarded 
cultivation,  which  would  have  conciliated  the  Colonists,  and 
have  been  encouragement  to  the  Flibustiers  to  become  planters. 
But  the  Colonists  still  had  to  struggle  against  farming  the 
tobacco*  which  they  had  in  vain  attempted  to  get  commuted 
for  some  other  burthen,  and  many  cultivators  of  that  plant 
were  reduced  to  indigence.  The  greediness  of  the  French 
chartered  companies  appears  in  the  Senegal  Company  making 
it  a  subject  of  complaint,  that  the  Flibustiers  sold  the  negroes 

they 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  131 

they  took  from  the  Spaniards  to  whomsoever  they  pleased,  CHAP.  11 
to  the  prejudice  of  the  interest  of  the  Company.  It  was  1684. 
unreasonable  to  expect  the  Flibustiers  would  give  up  their 
long  accustomed  modes  of  gain,  sanctioned  as  they  had 
hitherto  been  by  the  acquiescence  and  countenance  of  the 
French  Government,  and  turn  planters,  under  circumstances 
discouraging  to  industry.  Their  number  likewise  rendered  it 
necessary  to  observe  mildness  and  forbearance  in  the  endeavour 
to  reform  them ;  but  both  the  encouragement  and  the  for- 
bearance were  neglected ;  and  in  consequence  of  their  being 
made  to  apprehend  rigorous  treatment  in  their  own  settle- 
ments, many  removed  to  the  British  and  Dutch  Islands. 

The  French  Flibustiers  were  unsuccessful  at  this  time  in 
some  enterprises  they  undertook  in  the  Bay  of  Campeachy, 
where  they  lost  many  men :  on  the  other  hand,  three  of  their 
ships,  commanded  by  De  Graaf,  Michel  le  Basque,  and 
another  Flibustier  named  Jonque,  engaged  and  took  three 
Spanish  ships  which  were  sent  purposely  against  them  out  of 
CartJiagena. 


s  2 


102  BUCCANEER   EXPEDITION 


CHAP.    XII. 

Circumstances  which  preceded  the  Second  Irruption  of  the  Buccaneers 
into  the  South  Sea.  Buccaneers  under  John  Cook  sail  from 
Virginia ;  stop  at  the  Cape  de  Verde  Islands ;  at  Sierra 
Leone.  Origin  and  History  of  the  Report  concerning  the 
supposed  Discovery  o/Pepys  Island. 

CHAP,  is.  nPHE  Prohibitions  being  enforced,  determined  many,  both 
of  the  English  Buccaneers  and  of  the  French  Flibustiers, 
to  seek  their  fortunes  in  the  South  Sea,  where  they  would  be  at 
a  distance  from  the  control  of  any  established  authority.  This 
determination  was  not  a  matter  generally  concerted.  The  first 
example  was  speedily  followed,  and  a  trip  to  the  South  Sea  in 
a  short  time  became  a  prevailing  fashion  among  them.  Expe- 
ditions were  undertaken  by  different  bodies  of  men  uncon- 
nected with  each  other,  except  when  accident,  or  the  similarity 
of  their  pursuits,  brought  them  together. 

Circurn-        Among   the  Buccaneers   in  the  expedition  of  1680  to  the 

ceding  the   South  Sea,  who  from  dislike  to  Sharp's  command  returned  across 

Second     ^ne  lsffimils  Of  Darien  at  the  same  time  with  Dampier,  was  one 

of  the      John  Cook,  who  on  arriving  again  in  the  West  Indies,  entered 

Buccaneers  on  board  a  vessel    commanded  by  a  Dutchman  of  the  name  of 

into  the  v 

South  Sea.  Yanky,  which  was  fitted  up  as  a  privateer,  and  provided  with 
a  French  commission  to  cruise  against  the  Spaniards.  Cook, 
being  esteemed  a  capable  seaman,  was  made  Quarter-Master, 
by  which  title,  in  privateers  as  well  as  in  buccaneer  vessels,  the 
officer  next  in  command  to  the  Captain  was  called.  Cook 
continued  Quarter-Master  with  Yanky  till  they  took  a  Spanish 
ship  which  was  thought  well  adapted  for  a  cruiser.  Cook 

claimed 


TO   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  133 

claimed  to  have  the  command  of  this  ship,   and,  according  to   CHAP.  12. 

the  usage  among  privateers  in  such  cases,  she  was  allotted   to 

him,  with  a  crew  composed  of  men  who  volunteered  to  sail 

with  him.    Dampier  was  of  the  number,  as  were  several  others 

who  had  returned  from   the  South  Sea  ;  division  was  made  of 

the  prize  goods,  and  Cook  entered  on  his  new  command. 

This  arrangement  took  place  at  Isla  Vaca,  or  Isle  a  Vache, 
a  small  Island  near  the  South  coast  of  Hispaniola^  which  was 
then  much  resorted  to  by  both  privateers  and  Buccaneers.  It 
happened  at  this  time,  that  besides  Yanky's  ship,  some  French 
privateers  having  legal  commissions,  were  lying  at  Avache,  and 
their  Commanders  did  not  contentedly  behold  men  without  a 
commission,  and  who  were  but  Buccaneers,  in  the  possession  of 
a  finer  ship  than  any  belonging  to  themselves  who  cruised 
under  lawful  authority.  The  occasion  being  so  fair,  and  remem- 
bering what  Morgan  had  done  in  a  case  something  similar,  after 
short  counsel,  they  joined  together,  and  seized  the  buccaneer 
ship,  goods,  and  arms,  and  turned  the  crew  ashore.  A  fellow- 
feeling  that  still  existed  between  the  privateers  and  Buccaneers, 
and  probably  a  want  of  hands,  induced  a  Captain  Tristian, 
who  commanded  one  of  the  privateers,  to  receive  into  his  ship 
ten  of  the  Buccaneers  to  be  part  of  his  crew.  Among  these 
were  Cook,  and  a  Buccaneer  afterwards  of  greater  note,  named 
Edward  Davis.  Tristian  sailed  to  Petit  Guaves,  where  the  ship 
had  not  been  long  at  anchor,  before  himself  and  the  greatest 
part  of  his  men  went  on  shore.  Cook  and  his  companions 
thought  this  also  a  fair  occasion*,  and  accordingly  they  made 
themselves  masters  of  the  ship.  Those  of  Tristian's  men  who 
were  on  board,  they  turned  ashore,  and  immediately  taking  up 
the  anchors,  sailed  back  close  in  to  the  Isle  a  Vache,  where, 
before  notice  of  their  exploit  reached  the  Governor,  they 
collected  and  took  on  board  the  remainder  of  their  old  com- 
pany, 


134-  BUCCANEER   EXPEDITION 

CHAP.  12.  pany,  and  sailed  away.  They  bad  scarcely  left  the  Isle  a  Vache, 

1683.      when  they  met  and  captured  two  vessels,  one  of  which  was  a 

ship  from    France   laden   with    wines.    Thinking  it  unsafe   to 

continue  longer  in  the  West  Indies,  they  directed  their  course  for 

Virginia,  where  they  arrived  with  their  prizes  in  April  1683. 

In  Virginia  they  disposed  of  their  prize  goods,  and  two 
vessels,  keeping  one  with  which  they  proposed  to  make  a  voyage 
to  the  South  Sea,  and  which  they  named  the  Revenge.  She 
mounted  1  8  guns,  and  the  number  of  adventurers  who  embarked 
in  her,  were  about  seventy,  the  major  part  of  them  old  Bucca- 
August.  neers?  some  of  whose  names  have  since  been  much  noted,  as 
William  Dampier,  Edward  Davis,  Lionel  Wafer,  Ambrose 


John  Cook  Cowley,  and  John  Cook  their  Captain.    August  the  23d,  1683, 

SouthSea.  they  sailed^  from  the  Chesapeak. 

Dampier  and  Cowley  have  both  related  their  piratical  adven- 
tures, but  with  some  degree  of  caution,  to  prevent  bringing  upon 
themselves  a  charge  of  piracy.  Cowley  pretended  that  he  was 
engaged  to  sail  in  the  Revenge  to  navigate  her,  but  was  kept 
in  ignorance  of  the  design  of  the  voyage,  and  made  to  believe 
they  were  bound  for  the  Island  Hispaniola  ;  and  that  it  was  not 
revealed  to  him  till  after  they  got  out  to  sea,  that  instead  of 
to  the  West  Indies,  they  were  bound  to  the  coast  of  Guinea, 
there  to  seek  for  a  better  ship,  in  which  they  might  sail  to  the 
Great  South  Sea.  William  Dampier,  who  always  shews  respect 
for  truth,  would  not  stoop  to  dissimulation  ;  but  he  forbears  being 
circumstantial  concerning  the  outset  of  this  voyage,  and  the 
.  particulars  of  their  proceedings  whilst  in  the  Atlantic;  supply- 
ing the  chasm  in  the  following  general  terms  ;  "  August  the 
"  23d,  1683,  we  sailed  from  Virginia  under  the  command  of 
"  Captain  Cook,  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." 

Whilst 


TO    THE   SOUTH    SEA.  135 

Whilst  near  the  coast  of  Virginia  they  met  a  Dutch  ship,  out    CHAP.  12. 
of  which  they   took  six  casks  of  wine,  and  other  provisions  ;       1683. 
also  two  Dutch  seamen,  who  voluntarily  entered   with  them. 
Some  time  in  September  they  anchored  at  the  Isle  of  Sal,  where  September, 
they  procured  fish  and  a  few  goats,  but  neither  fruits  nor  good       CaPe 
fresh  water.    Only  five  men  lived  on  the  Island,  who  were  ,all     islands. 
black  ;  but  they   called  themselves  Portuguese,  and  one  was 
styled  the  Governor.    These  Portuguese  exchanged  a  lump  of 
ambergris,    or    what  was  supposed    to    be    ambergris,  for  old 
clothes.  Dampier  says,  '  not  a  man  in  the  ship  knew  ambergris,  Ambergris. 
'  but  I  have  since  seen  it  in  other  places,  and  am  certain  this 

*  was  not  the  right ;  it  was  of  a  dark  colour,  like  sheep's  dung, 

*  very  soft,  but  of  no   smell ;  and  possibly  was   goat's  dung. 
'  Some  1  afterward^  saw  sold  at  the  Nicobars  in  the  East  Indies, 
'  was  of  lighter  colour,  and   very  hard,  neither  had  that  any 
'  smell,  and  I  suppose  was  also  a  cheat.     Mr.  Hill,  a  surgeon, 
'  once  shewed  me  a  piece  of  ambergris,  and  related  to  me,  that 
'  one  Mr.  Benjamin    Barker,  a    man   I  have   been  long  well 
'  acquainted  with,  and   know  to  be  a  very  sober  and   credible 
'  person,  told  this  Mr.  Hill,  that  being  in  the  Bay  of  Honduras, 
'  he  found  in  a  sandy  bay  upon  the  shore  of  an  Island,  a  lump 

*  of  ambergris  so  large,  that  when  carried  to  Jamaica,  it  was 

*  found  to  weigh  upwards  of  100  Ibs.    When  he  found  it,  it  lay 
'  dry  above  the  mark  of  the  sea  at  high  water,  and  in  it   were 
«  a  great  multitude  of  beetles.  It  was  of  a  dusky  colour,  towards 
'  black,  about  the  hardness  of  mellow  cheese,  and  of  a  very 
'  fragrant  smell.    What  Mr.  Hill  shewed   me  was  some  of  it, 
'  which  Mr.  Barker  had  given  him  *.' 

There  were  wild-fowl  at  Sal;  and  Flamingos,  of  which,  and     ,  The 

•  -i  i-  •  T-k          •  •  Flamingo. 

their   manner  or  building  their   nests,    Dampier    has  given  a 

description.    The  flesh  of  the  Flamingo  is  lean  and  black,  yet 

good 

*  Dampier,  Vol.  I,  p.  73. 


136 


BUCCANEER   EXPEDITION 


1683. 

Cape 

de  Verde 

Islands. 


November. 
Coast  of 
Guinea. 


CHAP.  12.  good  meat,  'tasting  neither  fishy  nor  any  way  unsavory.  A 
'  dish  of  Flamingos'  tongues  is  fit  for  a  Prince's  table :  they  are 
'  large,  and  have  a  knob  of  fat  at  the  root  which  is  an  excellent 
'  bit.  When  many  of  them  stand  together,  at  a  distance  they 
'  appear  like  a  brick  wall ;  for  their  feathers  are  of  the  colour 
'  of  new  red  brick,  and,  except  when  feeding,  they  commonly 
'  stand  upright,  exactly  in  a  row  close  by  each  other.' 

From  the  Isle  of  Sal  they  went  to  other  of  the  Cape  de  Verde 
Islands.  At  St.  Nicholas  they  watered  the  ship  by  digging 
wells,  and  at  Mayo  they  procured  some  provisions.  They 
afterwards  sailed  to  the  Island  St.  Jago,  but  a  Dutch  ship  was 
lying  at  anchor  in  Port  Praya,  which  fired  her  guns  at  them  as 
soon  as  they  came  within  reach  of  shot,  and  the  Buccaneers 
thought  it  prudent  to  stand  out  again  to  sea. 

They  next  sailed  to  the  coast  of  Guinea,  which  they  made  in 
the  beginning  of  November,  near  Sierra  Leone.  A  large  ship 
was  at  anchor  in  the  road,  which  proved  to  be  a  Dane.  On 
sight  of  her,  and  all  the  time  they  were  standing  into  the 
road,  all  the  Buccaneer  crew,  except  a  few  men  to  manage 
the  sails,  kept  under  deck  ;  which  gave  their  ship  the  appear- 
ance of  being  a  weakly  manned  merchant-vessel.  When  they 
drew  near  the  Danish  ship,  which  they  did  with  intention  to 
board  her,  the  Buccaneer  Commander,  to  prevent  suspicion, 
gave  direction  in  a  loud  voice  to  the  steersman  to  put  the  helm 
one  way  ;  and,  according  to  the  plan  preconcerted,  the  steers- 
man put  it  the  contrary,  so  that  their  vessel  seemed  to  fall 
on  board  the  Dane  through  mistake.  By  this  stratagem,  they 
surprised,  and,  with  the  loss  of  five  men,  became  masters  of  a 
ship  mounting  36  guns,  which  was  victualled  and  stored  for  a 
long  voyage.  This  achievement  is  related  circumstantially  in 
Cowley's  manuscript  Journal  *  ;  but  in  his  published  account  he 

only 

*  In  the  Sloane  Collection,  Brit.  Mus. 


TO    THE    SOUTH    SEA.  137 

only  says,   '  near  Cape  Sierra  Leone,  we  alighted  on  a  new  ship   CHAP,  12. 
'  of  40  guns,  which  we  boarded  and  carried  her  away/  ,683 

They  went  with  their  prize  to  a  river  South  of  the  Sierra  November. 
Leone,  called  the  Sherborough,  to  which  they  were  safely  piloted  Coast  of 
through  channels  among  shoals,  by  one  of  the  crew  who  had  „ 

Sherborougk 

been  there  before.  At  the  River  Sherborough  there  was  then  an  River. 
English  factory,  but  distant  from  where  they  anchored.  Near 
them  was  a  large  town  inhabited  by  negroes,  who  traded 
freely,  selling  them  rice,  fowls,  plantains,  sugar-canes,  palm- 
wine,  and  honey.  The  town  was  skreened  from  shipping  by  a 
grove  of  trees. 

The  Buccaneers  embarked  here  all  in  their  new  ship,  and 
named  her  the  Batchelor's  Delight.  Their  old  ship  they  burnt, 
'  that  she  might  tell  no  tales,'  and  set  their  prisoners  on 
shore,  to  shift  as  well  as  they  could  for  themselves. 

They  sailed   from   the   coast  of  Guinea  in    the   middle  of 
November,  directing  their  course  across  the  Atlantic  towards  the 
Strait  of  Magalhanes.     On  January  the  £8th,  1684,  they  had       1684. 
sight  of  the  Northernmost  of  the  Islands  discovered  by  Captain  T  January. 

•f  John  Davis  s 

John  Davis  in  1592,  (since,  among  other  appellations,  called  Islands. 
the  Sebald  de  Weert  Islands.)  From  the  circumstance  of  their 
falling  in  with  this  land,  originated  the  extraordinary  report  of 
an  Island  being  discovered  in  the  Southern  Atlantic  Ocean  in 
lat.  47°  S,  and  by  Covvley  named  Pepys  Island;  which  was  long 
believed  to  exist,  and  has  been  sought  after  by  navigators  of  dif- 
ferent European  nations,  even  within  our  own  time.  The  fol- 
lowing are  the  particulars  which  caused  so  great  a  deception. 

Cowley   says,   in  his  manuscript  Journal,  'January   1683:     History 
'  This  month  we  were  in  latitude  47°  40',  where  we  espied  arr  Report  of  a 


Island  bearing  West  of  us,  and  bore  away  for  it,  but  being  too 

named 

late  we  lay  by  all  night.    The  Island  seemed  very  pleasant  to      Pepys 
the  eye,  with  many  woods.     I  may  say  the  whole  Island  was 

T  '  woods, 


138  BUCCANEER    EXPEDITION 


A  p-  1  -• 


woods,  there  being  a  rock  above  water  to  the  Eastward  of  it 
1684.      '  with  innumerable  fowls.    I  sailed  along  that    Island  to  the 
Of  the     '  Southward,  and  about  the  SW  side  of  the  Island  there  seemed 
concerning  '  to  me  to   De  a  good  place  for  ships  to  ride.    The  wind  blew 
Pepys      '  fresh,  and  they  would  not  put  the  boat  out.     Sailing  a  little 
'  further,  having  26  and  27  fathoms  water,  we  came  to  a  place 
'  where  we  saw  the  weeds  ride,  and  found  only  seven  fathoms 

*  water  and  all  rocky  ground,  therefore  we  put  the  ship  about: 
'  but  the  harbour  seemed  a  good  place  for  ships  to  ride  in. 
'  There  seemed  to  me  harbour  for   500  sail  of  shipping,  the 

*  going  in  but   narrow,  and   the  North  side  of  the  entrance 
4  shallow  that  I  could  see:  but  I  think  there  is  water  enough 

*  on  the  South  side.    I  would   have  had   them  stand   upon  a 

*  wind  all  night  ;  but  they  told  me  they  did  not  come  out  to  go 

*  upon  discovery.    We   saw   likewise  another  Island    by  this, 
'  which  made  me  to  think  them  the  Sibble  D'zvards*.' 

The  latitude  given  by  Cowley  is  to  be  attributed  to  his  igno- 
rance, and  to  this  part  of  his  narrative  being  composed  from 
memory,  which  he  acknowledges,  though  it  is  not  so  stated  in 
the  printed  Narrative.  His  describing  the  land  to  be  covered 
with  wood,  is  sufficiently  accounted  for  by  the  appearance  it 
makes  at  a  distance,  which  in  the  same  manner  has  deceived 
other  voyagers.  Pernety,  in  his  Introduction  to  M.  de  Bou- 
gainville's Voyage  to  the  Malouines  (by  which  name  the  French 
Voyagers  have  chosen  to  call  John  Davis  s  Islands)  says,  '  As  to 

*  wood,  we  were  deceived  by  appearances  in  running  along  the 

*  coast  of  the  Malouines:  we  thought  we  saw    some,  but  on 

*  landing,  these  appearances  were  discovered  to  be  only  tall  bul- 

*  rushes  with  large  flat  leaves,  such  as  are  called  corn  flags  -j-/ 
The   Editor   of  Cowley's    Journal,    William    Hack,    might 

possibly 

*  Corclet/s  MS.  Journal.  Sloane  Collection,  No.  54. 

f  See  also  Pernety'  s  Journal,  p.  179,  English  translation. 


TO   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  139 


CHAP.  12. 


possibly  believe  from  the  latitude  mentioned  by  Cowley,  that 
the  land  seen  by  him  was  a  new  discovery.    To  give  it  a  less       1684? 
doubtful  appearance,  he  dropped  the  40  minutes  of  latitude,      Of  the 
and  also  Cowley 's  conjecture  that  the  land  was  the  Sebald  de  concemin 
Weerts;  and  with  this  falsification  of  the  Journal,  he  took  occa-      Pepys 
sion  to  compliment  the  Honourable  Mr.  Pepys,  who  was  then 
Secretary  of  the  Admiralty,  by  putting  his  name  to  the  land, 
giving  as  Cowley 's  words,  '  In  the  latitude  of  47°,  we  saw  land, 
'  the  same  being  an  Island  not  before  known.    I  gave  it  the 

*  name  of  Pepys  Island'    Hack  embellished  this  account  with  a 
drawing  of  Pepys  Island,  in  which  is  introduced  an  Admiralty 
Bay,  and  Secretary's  Point. 

The  account  which  Dam  pier  has  given  of  their  falling  in  with 
this  land,  would  have  cleared  up  the  whole  matter,  but  for  a 
circumstance  which  is  far  more  extraordinary  than  any  yet 
mentioned,  which  is,  that  it  long  escaped  notice,  and  seems 
never  to  have  been  generally  understood,  that  Dampier  and 
Cowley  were  at  this  time  in  the  same  ship,  and  their  voyage 
thus  far  the  same. 

Dampier   says,  'January   the  28th  (1683-4)   we  made  the 

*  Sebald  de  Weerts.    They  are  three  rocky  barren  Islands  with- 
'  out  any  tree,  only  some  bushes  growing  on  them.    The  two 
'  Northernmost  lie  in  51°  S,  the  other  in  51°  20'  S.    We  could 
'  not  come  near  the  two  Northern  Islands,  but  we  came  close 

*  by  the  Southern  ;  but  we  could  not  obtain  soundings  till  within 
'  two  cables'  length  of  the  shore,  and  there  found  the   bottom 

*  to  be  foul  rocky  ground*.'  In  consequence  of  the  inattention, 
or  oversight,  in  not  perceiving  that  Dampier  and  Cowley  were 
speaking  of  the  same  land,  Hack's  ingenious  adulation  of  the 
Secretary  of  the  Admiralty  flourished  a  full  century  undetected  ; 

a  Pepys  Island  being  all  the  time  admitted  in  the  charts. 

Near 

*  Dampier's  Manuscript  Journal,  No.  3236,  Sloane  Collection,  British  Museum. 

T  2 


140  BUCCANEER    EXPEDITION 


CHAP.  12. 


Near  these  Islands  the  variation  was  observed  23°  1 0'  Easterly. 
1684.      They  passed  through  great  shoals  of  small  red  lobsters,  '  no 
January.    «  bigger  than  the  top  of  a  man's  little  finger,  yet  all  their  claws, 
Shoals  of   '  both  great  and  small,  were  like  a  lobster.    I  never  saw/  says 
Lobsters.    Dampier,  .'  any  of  this  sort  of  fish  naturally  red,  except  here.' 

The  winds  blew  hard  from  the  Westward,  and  they  could  riot 

February,  fetch   the  Strait  of  Magalhanes.    On  February  the  6th,  they 

were  at  the  entrance  of  Strait  leMaire,  when  it  fell  calm,  and  a 

strong  tide  set  out  of  the  Strait  Northward,  which  made  a  short 

irregular  sea,  as  in  a  race,  or  place  where  two  tides  meet,  and 

broke  over  the  waist  of  ,the  ship,  *  which  was  tossed  about  like 

They  sail    an  egg-shell.'     A  breeze  springing  up  from  the  WNW,  they 

East  end    bore  away  Eastward,  and  passed  round  the  East  end  of  Staten 

°Llan^n    Island ;  after  which  they  saw  no  other  land  till  they  came  into 

and  enter  the  South  Sea.    They  had  much  rain,  and  took  advantage  of  it 

the 

South  Sea.  to  fill  23  casks  with  fresh  water. 

March.         March  the  17th,  they  were  in  latitude  36°  S,  standing  for  the 
Island  Juan  Fernandez.    Variation  8°  East. 


TO   THE   SOUTH   SEA. 


141 


CHAP.  13. 


March 


CHAP.    XIII. 

Buccaneers  tinder  John  Cook  arrive  at  Juan  Fernandez.  Account 
of  William,  a  Mosquito  Indian,  who  had  lived  there  three  years. 
They  sail  to  the  Galapagos  Islands;  thence  -to  the  Coast  of 
New  Spain.  John  Cook  dies.  Edward  Davis  chosen  Com- 
mander. 

/CONTINUING  their  course  for  Juan  Fernandez,  on  the 
^^  19th  in  the  morning,  a  strange  ship  was  seen  to  the  South- 
ward,  standing  after  them  under  all  her  sail.  The  Buccaneers 
were  in  hopes  she  would  prove  to  be  a  Spaniard,  and  brought 
to,  to  wait  her  coming  up.  The  people  on  board  the  strange 
vessel  entertained  similar  expectations,  for  they  also  were 
English,  and  were  come  to  the  South  Sea  to  pick  up  what  they 
could.  This  ship  was  named  the  Nicholas;  her  Commander 
John  Eaton  ;  she  fitted  out  in  the  River  Thames  under  pretence 
of  a  trading,  but  in  reality  with  the  intention  of  making  a 
piratical  voyage. 

The  two  ships  soon  joined,  and  on  its  being  found  that  they    Joined  by 
had   come  on  the  same   errand  to  the  South  Sea,  Cook  and 
Eaton  and  their  men  agreed  to  keep  company  together. 

It  was  learnt  from  Eaton  that  another  English  ship,  named 
the  Cygnet,  commanded  by  a  Captain  Swan,  had  sailed  from 
London  for  the  South  Sea  ;  but  fitted  out  by  reputable  mer- 
chants, and  provided  with  a  cargo  for  a  trading  voyage,  having 
a  licence  from  the  Duke  of  York,  then  Lord  High  Admiral  of 
England.  The  Cygnet  and  the  Nicholas  had  met  at  the 
entrance  of  the  Strait  of  Magalhanes,  and  they  entered  the 
South  Sea  in  company,  but  had  since  been  separated  by  bad 

weather. 

March 


of 


London, 


142  BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA 

CHAP.  13.      March  the  22d,  the  Batchelor's  Delight  and  the  Nicholas 

1684.      came  in  sight  of  the  Island  Juan  Fernandez. 

March  sad.      The  reader  may  remember  that  when  the  Buccaneers  under 
Fernandez.   Watling  were  at  Juan  Fernandez  in  January  1681,  the  appear- 
ance of  three  Spanish  ships  made  them  quit  the  Island  in  great 
William    haste,  and  they  left  behind  a  Mosquito  Indian  named  William, 
Mosquito    who  was  in  the  woods  hunting  for  goats.    Several  of  the  Bucca- 
Jndian.     neers  wjlo  were  then  with  Watling  were  now  with  Cook,  and, 
eager  to  discover  if  any  traces   could  be  found  which   would 
enable  them  to  conjecture  what  was  become  of  their  former 
companion,  but  with  small  hope  of  finding  him  still  here,  as 
soon  as  they  were  near  enough  for  a  boat  to  be  sent  from  the 
ship,  they  hastened  to  the  shore.    Dampier  was  in  this  first  boat, 
as  was  also  a  Mosquito   Indian   named  Robin ;  and   as  they 
drew  near  the  land,  they  had  the  satisfaction  to  see  William  at 
the  sea-side  waiting  to  receive  them.    Dampier  has  given  the 
following   affecting    account   of  their   meeting.    '  Robin,    his 

*  countryman,  was  the  first  who  leaped  ashore  from  the  boats, 

*  and  running  to  his  brother  Moskito  man,  threw  himself  flat  on 
'  his  face  at  his  feet,  who  helping  him  up  and  embracing  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,  tenderness,  and  solemnity  of  this  interview,  which 

*  was  exceedingly  affectionate  on  both  sides :  and  when  their 
'  ceremonies  were  over,  \ve  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  Robin;   which  names  were  given  them  by  the 
'  English,  for  they  have  no  names  among  themselves,  and  they 
'  take  it  as  a  favour  to  be  named  by  us,  and  will  complain  if  we 

*  do  not  appoint  them  some  name  when  they  are  with  us.' 

William 


IN    THE    SOUTH    SEA.  143 

William  bad  lived  in  solitude  on  Juan  Fernandez  above  three  ^CH  AT.  13. 
years.    The  Spaniards  knew  of  his   being  on  the  Island,  and       1684. 
Spanish  ships  had  stopped  there,  the  people  belonging  to  which      March. 

had  made  keen  search  after  him  ;  but  he  kept  himself  concealed,  ,    Jua" 

Fernandez. 

and  the}7  could  never  discover  his  retreat.  At  the  time  Wat- 
ling  sailed  from  the  Island,  he  had  a  musket,  a  knife,  a  small 
horn  of  powder,  and  a  few  shot.  '  When  his  ammunition  was 
'  expended,  he  contrived  by  notching  his  knife,  to  saw  the 

*  barrel  of  his  gun  into  small  pieces,  wherewith  he   made  har- 

*  poons,  lances,  hooks,  and  a  long  knife,   heating  the  pieces  of 
«  iron  first  in   the  fire,  and   then   hammering  them  out  as  he 
'  pleased    with  stones.    This   may  seem  strange  .to   those  not 
'  acquainted   with   the  sagacity  of  the   Indians;   but.  it  is    no 
'  more  than  what  the  Moskito  men  were  accustomed  to  in  their 
4  own  country/    He  had  worn  out  the  clothes  with  which  he 
landed,    and   was  no  otherwise  clad    than   with  a  skin  about 
his  waist.    He  made  fishing  lines  of  the  skins  of  seals  cut  into 
thongs.     '  He  had  built  himself  a    hut,  half  a  mile  from  the 
'  sea-shore,  which  he  lined   with  goats'  skins,  and  slept  on  his 
'  couch  or  barbecu  of  sticks  raised  about  two  feet  from  the 
'  ground,  and  spread  with  goats' skins.'    He  saw  the  two  ships 
commanded  by  Cook  and  Eaton  the  day  before  they  anchored, 
and  from  their  manoeuvring  believing  them  to  be  English,  he 
killed  three  goats,  which  he  drest  with  vegetables ;  thus,  pre- 
paring a  treat  for  his  friends  on  their  landing ;  and  there  has 
seldom  been  a  more  fair  and  joyful  occasion  for  festivity. 

Dampier  reckoned  two  bays  in  Juan  Fernandez  proper  for 
ships  to  anchor  in ;  '  both  at  the  East  end,  and  in  each  there  is 
a  rivulet  of  good  fresh  water/  He  mentions  (it  may  be  supposed     stocked 
on  the  authority  of  Spanish  information)  that  this  Island   was  with  Goats 
stocked  with  goats  by  Juan  Fernandez,  its  discoverer,  who,  in  Discoverer. 
a  second  voyage  to  it,  landed  three  or  four  of  these  animals, 

and 


144 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  13. 
1684. 

March. 

Juan 
Fernandez. 


April. 

Coast  of 
Peru. 

May. 


Appearance 
of  the 
Andes. 


Islands 
Lobos  de  la 

Mar. 


and  they  quickly  multiplied.  Also,  that  Juan  Fernandez  had 
formed  a  plan  of  settling  here,  if  he  could  have  obtained  a 
patent  or  royal  grant  of  the  Island  ;  which  was  refused  him  *. 

The  Buccaneers  found  here  a  good  supply  of  provisions  in 
goats,  wild  vegetables,  seals,  sea-lions,  and  fish.  Dampier  says, 
'  the  seals  at  Juan  Fernandez  are  as  big  as  calves,  and  have  a 
'  fine  thick  short  fur,  the  like  I  have  not  taken  notice  of  any 

*  where  but  in  these  seas.    The  teeth  of  the  sea-lion  are    the 
'  bigness  of  a  man's  thumb  :  in  Captain  Sharp's  time,  some  of 
'  the  Buccaneers  made  dice  of  them.  Both  the  sea-lion  and  the 

*  seal  eat  fish,  which  I  believe  is  their  common  food.' 

April  the  8th,  the  Batchelor's  Delight  and  Nicholas  sailed 
from  Juan  Fernandez  for  the  American  coast,  which  they  made 
in  latitude  24°  S,  and  sailed  Northward,  keeping  sight  of  the 
land,  but  at  a  good  distance.  On  May  the  3d,  in  latitude 
9°  40'  S,  they  took  a  Spanish  ship  laden  with  timber. 

Dampier  remarks  that '  from  the  latitude  of  24°  S  to  17%  and 
'  from  14°  to  10°  S,  the  land  within  the  coast  is  of  a  prodigious 

*  height.    It  lies  generally  in  ridges  parallel  to  the  shore,  one 
'  within    another,  each  surpassing  the  other  in  height,  those 
'  inland   being  the  highest.    They   always  appear  blue  when 

*  seen  from  sea,  and  are  seldom  obscured  by  clouds  or  fogs. 
'  These  mountains  far  surpass  the  Peak  ofTeneriffe,  or  the  land 
«  of  Santa  Martha.' 

On  the  9th,  they  anchored  at  the  Islands  Lobos  de  la  Mar. 
'  This  Lobos  consists  of  two  little  Islands  each  about  a  mile 
'  round,  of  indifferent  height,  with  a  channel  between  fit  only 
'  for  boats.  Several  rocks  lie  on  the  North  side  of  the  Islands. 
'  There  is  a  small  cove,  or  sandy  bay,  sheltered  from  the  winds, 
'  at  the  West  end  of  the  Easternmost  Island,  where  ships  may 


careen. 


*  The  writer  of  Commodore  Alison's  Voyage  informs  us  that  Juan  Fernandez 
resided  some  time  on  the  Island,  and  afterwards  abandoned  it. 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  145 

s  careen.    There  is  good  riding  between  the  Easternmost  Island    CHAP.  13. 
'  and   the  rocks,  in   10,   12,  or  14  fathoms;    for  the  wind  is       i6g4. 
4  commonly  at  S,  or  SSE,    and  the  Easternmost  Island  lying       May. 
'  East  and  West,  shelters   that  road.     Both    the  Islands  are 
'  barren,  without  fresh  water,  tree,  shrub,  grass,  or  herb  ;  but 
*  sea-fowls,  seals,  and  sea-lions  were  here  in  multitudes*/ 

On  a  review  of  their  strength,  they  mustered  in  the  two  ships 
108  men-  fit  for  service,  besides  their  sick.  They  remained 
at  the  Lobos  de  la  Mar  Isles  till  the  17th,  when  three  vessels 
coming  in  sight,  they  took  up  their  anchors  and  gave  chace. 
They  captured  all  the  three,  which  were  laden  with  provisions, 
principally  flour,  and  bound  for  Panama.  They  learnt  from  the 
prisoners  that  the  English  ship  Cygnet  had  been  at  Baldivia, 
and  that  the  Viceroy  on  information  of  strange  ships  having 
entered  the  South  Sea,  had  ordered  treasure  which  had  been 

shipped  for  Panama  to  be  re-landed.    The  Buccaneers,  finding    They  sail 

.  to  the 

they  were  expected  on  the  coast,  determined  to  go  with  their   Galapagos 


prizes  first  to  the  Galapagos  Islands,  and  afterwards  to  the  coast 
of  New  Spain. 

They  arrived  in  sight  of  the  Galapagos  on  the  31st;  but  were 
not  enough  to  the  Southward  to  fetch  the  Southern  Islands, 
the  wind  being  from  SbE,  which  Dampier  remarks  is  the 
common  trade-wind  in  this  part  of  the  Pacific.  Many  instances 
occur  in  South  Sea  navigations  which  shew  the  disadvantage  of 
not  keeping  well  to  the  South  in  going  to  the  Galapagos. 

The  two  ships  anchored  near  the  North  East  part  of  one  of    Duke  of 
the  Easternmost  Islands,  in  16  fathoms,  the  bottom  white  hard  s 

sand,  a  mile  distant  from  the  shore. 

It  was  during  this  visit  of  the  Buccaneers  to  the  Galapagos, 
that    the   chart  of  these   Islands  which  was    published   with 

Cowley's 

*  Dampier's  Voyages,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  5. 

u 


146  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  13.  Cowley's  voyage  was  made.    Considering  the  small  opportunity 

jgsT"     for   surveying   which  was  afforded  by  their  track,  it  may  be 

At  the      reckoned  a  good  chart,  and  has  the  merit  both  of  being  the 

Galapagos   eariiest  survey  known  of  these  Islands,  and  of  having  continued 

in  use  to  this  day ;  the  latest  charts  we  have  of  the  Galapagos 

being  founded  upon  this  original,  and  (setting  aside  the  additions) 

varying  little  from  it  in  the  general  outlines. 

Where  Cook  and  Eaton  first  anchored,  appears  to  be  the 
Duke  of  Norfolk's  Island  of  Cowley's  chart.  They  found  there 
sea  turtle  and  land  turtle,  but  could  stop  only  one  night,  on 
account  of  two  of  their  prizes,  which  being  deeply  laden  had 
fallen  too  far  to  leeward  to  fetch  the  same  anchorage. 
June.  The  day  following,  they  sailed  on  to  the  next  Island  West- 

King  James's  wani  (marked  Kins;  James's  Island  in  the  chart)  and  anchored  at 
Island.  v  ' 

its  North  end,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  distant  from  the  shore,  in 

15  fathoms.  Dampier  observed  the  latitude  of  the  North  part 
of  this  second  Island,  0°  28'  N,  which  is  considerably  more 
North  than  it  is  placed  in  Cowley's  chart.  The  riding  here  was 
very  uncertain,  '  the  bottom  being  so  steep  that  if  an  anchor 
*  starts,  it  never  holds  again/ 

Mistake         An  error   has   been  committed  in  the  printed  Narrative  of 

"Editofof    Dampier,  which  it  may   be  useful  to  notice.  It  is  there   said, 

Dampier's    <  The  Island  at  which  we  first  anchored  hath  water  on  the  North 

'  end,  falling  down  in  a  stream  from  high  steep  rocks  upon  the 

'  sandy  bay,  where  it  may  be  taken  up.'  Concerning  so  essential 

an  article  to  mariners  as  fresh  water,  no  information  can  be 

Concerning  too  minute  to  deserve  attention.    In  the  manuscript  Journal, 

"VV^iter at    Dampier    says   of  the   first   Island   at  which  they    anchored, 

King  James's  «  \ve  found   there  the  largest  land  turtle  I  ever  saw;  but  the 

'  Island   is    rocky    and    barren,  without  wood  or  water.'     At 

the  next  Island  at  which  they   anchored,'  both   Dampier  and 

Cowley  mention  fresh  water  being  found.     Cowley  sa^s,  '  this 

'  Bay 


IN    THE    SOUTH    SEA.  147 

*  Bay   I   called  Albany  Bay,  and  another  place  York  Road.  JTH  AJ-^S 


*  Here  is  excellent  sweet  water/     Dam  pier  also  in  the  margin       1684. 
of  his  written  Journal  where  the  second  anchorage  is  mentioned,       June. 
has  inserted  the  note  following  :   '  At  the  North  end  of  the     At  the 

*  Island   we  saw  water   running  down  from   the  rocks/    The     islands. 
editor  or  corrector  of  the  press  has  mistakenly  applied  this  to 

the  first  anchorage. 

Cowley,   after  assigning  names  to  the  different  Islands,  adds, 

*  We  could  find  no  good  water  on  any  of  these  places,  save  on 

*  the  Duke  of  York's  [i.  e.  King  James's]  Island.    But  at  the  Herbage  on 

*  North  end  of  Albemarle  Island  there  were  green  leaves  of  a      ena  Of 

*  thick  substance  which  we  chewed  to  quench  our  thirst:  and  Albemarle 

Island. 
'  there  were  abundance  of  fowls  in  this  Island  which  could  not 

*  live  without  water,  though  we  could  not  find  it*/ 

Animal  food  was  furnished  by  the  Galapagos  Islands  in  pro- 
fusion, and  of  the  most  delicate  kind  ;  of  vegetables  nothing  of 
use  was  found  except  the  mammee,  the  leaves  just  noticed  and 
berries.  The  name  Galapagos  which  has  been  assigned  to 
these  Islands,  signifies  Turtle  in  the  Spanish  language,  and  was 
given  to  them  on  account  of  the  great  numbers  of  those  animals, 
both  of  the  sea  and  land  kind,  found  there.  Guanoes,  an 
amphibious  animal  well  known  in  the  West  Indies,  fish,  flamin- 
goes, and  turtle-doves  so  tame  that  they  would  alight  upon  the 

men's 

*  The  latter  part  of  the  above  extract  is  from  Cowley's  Manuscript.—  Captain 
Colnet  when  at  the  Galapagos  made  a  similar  remark.  He  says,  '  I  was  perplexed 
'  to  form  a  conjecture  how  the  small  birds  which  appeared  to  remain  in  one  spot, 
'  supported  themselves  without  water  ;  but  some  of  our  men  informed  me  that  as 
'  they  were  reposing  beneath  a  prickly  pear-tree,  they  observed  an  old  bird  in  the 
'  act  of  supplying  three  young  ones  with  drink,  by  squeezing  the  berry  of  a  tree 
'  into  their  mouths.  It  was  about  the  size  of  a  pea,  and  contained  a  watery  juice 
'  of  an  acid  and  not  unpleasant  taste.  The  bark  of  the  tree  yields  moisture,  and 
'  being  eaten  allays  the  thirst.  The  land  tortoise  gnaw  and  suck  it.  The  leaf  of 
'  this  tree  is  like  that  of  the  bay-tree,  the  fruit  grows  like  cherries  ;  the  juice  of  the 
f  bark  dies  the  flesh  of  a  deep  purple.'  Colnet's  Voyage  to  the  South  Sea,  p.  53. 

u  2 


148  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  P.  1-3.  men's  heads,  were  all  in  great  abundance;  and  convenient  for 
1684.      preserving  meat,  salt  was  plentiful  at  the  Galapagos.    Some 
June.      green  snakes  were  the  only  other  animals  seen  there^ 
At  the          The  full-grown  land  turtle  were  from  1 50  to  ^00  Ibs.  in  weight. 

tralapagos 

Islands.    Dampier  says,  '  so  sweet  that  no  pullet  can  eat  more  plea- 
Land       <  santly.   They  are  very  fat ;  the  oil  saved  from  them  was  kept 
'  in  jars,  and  used  instead  of  butter  to  eat  with  dough-boys  or 
'  dumplings/ — '  We  lay  here  feeding  sometimes  on  land  turtle, 
'  sometimes  on  sea  turtle,  there  being   plenty  of  either  sort'; 

*  but  the  land  turtle,  as  they  exceed  in  sweetness,  so  do  they  in 
'  numbers  :  it  is  incredible  to  report  how  numerous  they  are/ 

Sea  The  sea  turtle  at   the  Galapagos  are  of  the  larger  kind  of 

Turtle,     those  called  the    Green  Turtle.    Dampier  thought  their  flesh 
not  so  good  as  the  green  turtle  of  the  West  Indies. 

Dampier  describes  the  Galapagos  Isles  to  be  generally  of  good 
height :  '  four  or  five  of  the  Easternmost  Islands  are  rocky, 
'  billy,  and  barren,  producing  neither  tree,  herb,  nor  grass;  but 

*  only  a  green  prickly  shrub  that  grows  10  or  12  feet  high,  as 

*  big  as  a  man's  leg,  and  is  full  of  sharp  prickles  in  thick  rows 
'  from  top  to  bottom,  without  leaf  or  fruit.    In  some  places  by 
'  the  sea  side  grow  bushes  of  Burton  wood  (a  sort  of  wood 
'  which  grows   in   the  West  Indies}  which  is  good  firing.    Some 
'  of  the  Westernmost  of  these  Islands  are  nine  or  ten  leagues 
'  long,  have  fertile  land  with  mold  deep  and  black  ;  and  these 
'  produce  trees  of  various  kinds,  some  of  great  and  tall  bodies, 

Mammee    «  especially  the  Mammee.    The  heat  is  not  so  violent  here  as 
'  in  many  other  places  under  the  Equator.    The  time  of  year 

*  for  the  rains,  is  in  November,  December,  and  January/ 

At  Albany  Bat/,  and  at  other  of  the  Islands,  the  Buccaneers 
built  storehouses,  in  which  they  lodged  5000  packs  of  their 
prize  flour,  and  a  quantity  of  sweetmeats,  to  remain  as  a 
reserved  store  to  which  they  might  have  recourse  on  any 
future  occasion.  Part  of  this  provision  was  landed  at  the 

Islands 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  U9 

Islands  Northward  of  King  James's  Inland,  to  which  they  went  vCHA1>-  *3; 
in  search  of  fresh  water,  but  did  not  find  any.    They  endea-       1684. 
voured  to  sail  back  to  the  Duke  of  York's  Island,  Cowley  says,       June. 
'  there  to  have  watered,'  but  a  current  setting  Northward  pre-      A,1  the 

Galapagos 

vented  them.  Islands. 

On  June  the   12th,  they  sailed  from  the  Galapagos  Islands       isth. 
for  the  Island  Cocos,  where  they  proposed  to  water.    The  wind    fl.^  ^'e 
at  this  time  was  South  ;  but  they  expected  they  should  find,  as  Galapagos. 
they  went  Northward,  the  general  trade-wind  blowing  from  the 
East ;  and  in  that  persuasion  they  steered  more  Easterly  than  the 
line  of  direction  in  which  Cocos  lay  from  them,   imagining  that 
when  they  came  to  the  latitude  of  the  Island,  they  would  have 
to  bear  down  upon   it   before  the  wind.    Contrary  however  to 
this  expectation,  as  they  advanced  Northward  they  found  the 
wind  more  Westerly,  till  it  settled  at  SVVbS,  and  they  got  so 
far  Eastward,  that  they  crossed  the  parallel  of  Cows  without 
being  able  to  come  in  sight  of  it. 

Missing  Cocos,  they  sailed  on  Northward  for  the  coast    of 
New  Spain.    In  the  beginning  of  July,    they  made  the  West       July. 
Cape  of  the  Gulf  of  Nicoya.  '  This  Cape  is  about  the  height  of  ^g  ^ 
'  Beachy  Head,  and   was    named  Blanco,  on   account   of  two       ^a 
*  white  rocks  lying  about  half  a  mile  from  it,  which  to  those      Blanco. 
'  who  are  far  off  at  sea,  appear  as  part  of  the  mainland ;  but 
'  on  coming  nearer,  they  appear  like  two  ships  under  sail*.' 

The  day  on  which  they  made  this  land,  the  Buccaneer  Com-   Buccaneer' 
niandcr,  John  Cook,  who  had  been  some  time  ill,  died.  Edward  Commander> 

dies. 

Davis,  the  Quarter-Master,  was  unanimously  elected   by   the  EdwardDavis 
company  to  succeed  in  the  command.  chosen 

Commander. 
*  Dampier,  Vol.  I.  p.  112. 


150  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


C  H  A  P.     XIV. 

Edward  Davis  Commander.  On  the  coast  of  New  Spain  and 
Peru.  Algatrane,  a  bituminous  earth.  Davis  is  joined  by  other 
Buccaneers.  Eaton  sails  to  the  East  Indies.  Guayaquil  at- 
tempted. Rivers  of  St.  Jago,  and  Tomaco.  In  the  Bay  of 
Panama.  Arrivals  of  numerous  parties  of  Buccaneers  across 
the  Isthmus  from  the  West  Indies. 

CHAP.  14.  y^v  A  M  P I  E  R  describes  the  coast  of  New  Spain  immediately 
1684.       ^~^  westward  of  the  Cape  Blanco  last  mentioned,  to  fall  in 
to  the  NE  about  four  leagues,   making  a  small  bay,  which 
*s  ky   tne   Spaniards    called  Caldera*.    Within    the   entrance 
P  y         of  this  bay,  a  league  from  Cape  Blanco,  was  a  small  brook  of 
Bay.       very  good  water  running  into  the  sea.    The  land  here  is  low, 
making  a  saddle  between  two  small  hills.    The  ships  anchored 
near  the  brook,  in  good  depth,  on  a  bottom  of  clean  hard  sand ; 
and  at  this  place,  their  deceased  Commander  was  taken  on 
shore  and  buried. 

The  country  appeared  thin  of  inhabitants,  and  the  few  seen 
were  shy  of  coming  near  strangers.  Two  Indians  however  were 
caught.  Some  cattle  were  .seen  grazing  near  the  shore,  at  a 
Beef  Estancian  or  Farm,  three  miles  distant  from  where  the 
ships  lay.  Two  boats  were  sent  thither  to  bring  cattle,  having 
with  them  one  of  the  Indians  for  a  guide.  They  arrived  at  the 
farm  towards  evening,  and  some  of  the  Buccaneers  proposed 
that  they  should  remain  quiet  till  daylight  next  morning,  when 
they  might  surround  the  cattle  and  drive  a  number  of  them 

into 

*  Dumpier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  5.  This  description  does  not  agree  with  the  Spanish 
Charts;  but  no  complete  regular  survey  appears  yet  to  have  been  made  of  the 
Coast  of  New  Spain. 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA. 


151 


into  a  pen  or  inclosure  ;  others  of  the  party  disliked  this 
plan,  and  one  of  the  boats  returned  to  the  ships.  Twelve 
men,  with  the  other  boat,  remained,  who  hauled  their  boat  dry 
up  on  the  beach,  and  went  and  took  their  lodgings  for  the  night 
by  the  farm.  When  the  morning  arrived,  they  found  the  people 
of  the  country  had  collected,  and  saw  about  40  armed  men 
preparing  to  attack  them.  The  Buccaneers  hastened  as  speedily 
as  they  could  to  the  sea-side  where  they  had  left  their  boat, 
and  found  her  in  flames.  '  The  Spaniards  now  thought  they 

*  had   them   secure,  and  some  called  to  them  to  ask  if  they 
'  would  be  pleased  to  walk  to  their  plantations  ;  to  which  never 

*  a  word  was  answered.'    Fortunately   for  the    Buccaneers,  a 
rock  appeared  just  above  water  at  some  distance  from  the  shore, 
and  the  way  to  it  being  fordable,   they  waded  thither.    This 
served  as  a  place  of  protection  against  the  enemy,  '  who  only 
'  now  and  then  whistled  a  shot  among  them/    It  was  at  about 
half  ebb  tide  when  they  took  to  the  rock  for  refuge  ;  on  the 
return  of  the  flood,  the  rock  became  gradually  covered.    They 
had  been  in  this  situation  seven  hours,  when   a  boat  arrived, 
sent  from  the  ships  in  search  of  them.    The  rise  and  fall  of  the 
tide  here  was  eight  feet  perpendicular,  and  the  tide  was  still 
rising  at  the  time  the  boat  came  to  their  relief;  so  that  their 
peril  from  the  sea  when  on  the  rock  was  not  less  than  it  had 
been  from  the  Spaniards  when  they  were  on  shore. 

.From  Caldera  Bay,  they  sailed  for  Ria-lexa.  The  coast  near 
Ria-lexa  is  rendered  remarkable  by  a  high  peaked  mountain 
called  Volcan  Viejo  (the  Old  Volcano.)  '  When  the  mountain 

*  bears  NE,  ships  may  steer  directly  in  for  it,  which  course  will 
'  bring  them  to  the  harbour.    Those  that  go  thither  must  take 
'  the  sea  wind,  which  is  from  the  SSW,  for  there  is  no  going  in 
4  with  the  land  wind.    The   harbour   is  made  by  a  low  flat 
'  Island  about  a  mile  long  and  a  quarter  of  a  mile  broad,  which 

*  lies 


CHAP.  14, 


Coast  of 
New  Spain. 


Volcan 
Viejo. 


Ria-lexa 
Harbour. 


BUCCANEERS  OF  AMERICA 


CHAP.  14. 
1684. 

July. 

Coast  of 
New  Spain. 


Bay  of 
Amapalla. 


'  lies  about  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  main-land.    There  is  a 

*  channel  at  each  end  of  the  Island  :  the  West  channel  is  the 

*  widest  and  safest,  yet  at  the  NW  point  of  the  Island  there  is 
'  a  shoal  of  which  ships  must  take  heed,  and  when  past  the 
'  shoal  must  keep  close  to  the  Island  on  account  of  a  sandy 
'  point  which  strikes  over  from  the  main-land.    This  harbour  is 
'  capable  of  receiving  200  sail  of  ships.    The  best  riding  is  near 
'  the  main-land,  where  the  depth  is  seven   or  eight  fathoms, 
'  clean  hard  sand.    Two  creeks  lead  up  to  the  to\vn*ofRia-lexa, 
'  which  is  two  leagues  distant  from  the  harbour*.' 

The  Spaniards  had  erected  breastworks  and  made  other  pre- 
paration in  expectation  of  such  a  visit  as  the  present.  The 
Buccaneers  therefore  changed  their  intention,  which  had  been 
to  attack  the  town  ;  and  sailed  on  for  the  Gulf  of  Amapalla. 

*  The  Bay  or  Gulf  of  Amapalla  runs  eight  or  ten  leagues  into 
'  the  country.  On  the  South  side  of  its  entrance  is  Point 
'  Casivina,  in  latitude  12°  40'  N ;  and  on  the  NW  side  is  Mount 
'  San  Miguel.  There  are  many  Islands  in  this  Gulf,  all  low 
'  except  two,  named  Amapalla  and  Mangera,  which  are  both 
'  high  land.  These  are  two  miles  asunder,  and  between  them  is 
'  the  best  channel  into  the  Gulf  -f-/ 

The  ships  sailed  into  the  Gulf  through  the  channel  between 
Point  Casivina  and  the  Island  Mangera.  Davis  went  with  two 
canoes  before  the  ships,  and  landed  at  a  village  on  the  Island 
Mangera.  The  inhabitants  kept  at  a  distance,  but  a  Spanish 
Friar  and  some  Indians  were  taken,  from  whom  the  Buc- 
caneers learnt  that  there  were  two  Indian  towns  or  villages  on 
the  Island  Amapalla;  upon  which  information  they  hastened  to 
their  canoes,  and  made  for  that  Island.  On  coming  near,  some 
among  the  inhabitants  called  out  to  demand  who  they  were,  and 
what  they  came  for.  Davis  answered  by  an  interpreter,  that 

he 


*  Dampier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  5. 


f  Ibid. 


• 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  153 

lie  and  his  men  were  Biscayners  sent  by  the  King  of  Spain  to   CHAP.  14. 
clear  the  sea  of  Pirates  ;  and   that  their  business  in  Amapalla 
Bay,  was  to  careen.    No  oilier  Spaniard  than  the  Padre  dwelt 
among  these  Indians,  and  only  one  among  the  Indians  could     Coast  of 
speak  the  Spanish  language,  who  served  as  a  kind  of  Secre-     ew   F 
tary   to  the   Padre.    The   account    the   Buccaneers  gave    of  Amapalla 
themselves  satisfied  the  natives,  and  the  Secretary  said  they          y' 
were  welcome.    The  principal  town  or  village   of  the  Island 
Amapalla  stood  on  the  top  of  a  hill,  and  Davis  and  his  men,  with 
the  Friar  at  their  head,  marched  thither. 

At  each  of  the  towns  on  Amapalla,  and  also  on  Mangera,  was 
a  handsome  built  church.  The  Spanish  Padre  officiated  at  all 
three,  and  gave  religious  instruction  to  the  natives  in  their  own 
language.  The  Islands  were  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the 
Governor  of  the  Town  of  San  Miguel,  which  was  at  the  foot  of 
the  Mount.  '  I  observed,'  says  Dampier,  '  in  all  the  Indian 
'  towns  under  the  Spanish  Government,  that  the  Images  of 

*  the  Virgin  Mary,  and  of  other  Saints  with  which  all  their 

*  churches  are  filled,  are  painted  of  an  Indian  complexion,  and 

*  partly  in  an  Indian  dress  :  but  in  the  towns  which  are  inha- 

*  bited  chiefly  by  Spaniards,  the  Saints  conform  to  the  Spanish 
'  garb  and  complexion.' 

The  ships  anchored  near  the  East  side  of  the  Island  Amapalla, 
which  is  the  largest  of  the  Islands,  in  10  fathoms  depth,  clean 
hard  sand.  On  other  Islands  in  the  Bay  were  plantations  of 
maize,  with  cattle,  fowls,  plantains,  and  abundance  of  a  plum- 
tree  common  in  Jamaica,  the  fruit  of  which  Dampier  calls  the 
large  hog  plum.  This  fruit  is  oval,  with  a  large  stone  and  little 
substance  about  it ;  pleasant  enough  in  taste,  but  he  says  he 
never  saw  one  of  these  plums  ripe  that  had  not  a  maggot  or 
two  in  it. 

The  Buccaneers  helped  themselves  to  cattle  from  an  Island 
in  the  Bay  which  was  largely  stocked,  and  which  they  were 

X  informed 


154  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  14.  informed  belonged  to  a  Nunnery.  The  natives  willingly  assisted 

1684.      them  to  take  the  cattle,  and  were  content  on  receiving  small 

Coast  of    presents  for  their  labour.    The  Buccaneers  had  no  other  service 

"\T          ti        * 

to  desire  of  these  natives,  and  therefore  it  must  have  been  from 

In 

Amapalla  levity  and  an  ambition  to  give  a  specimen  of  their  vocation, 
more  than  for  any  advantage  expected,  that  they  planned  to 
take  the  opportunity  when  the  inhabitants  should  be  assembled 
in  their  church,  to  shut  the  church  doors  upon  them,  the  Buc- 
caneers themselves  say,  '  to  let  the  Indians  know  who  we 
*  were,  and  to  make  a  bargain  with  them.'  In  executing  this 
project,  one  of  the  buccaneers  being  impatient  at  the  leisurely 
movements  of  the  inhabitants,  pushed  one  of  them  rather 
rudely,  to  hasten  him  into  the  church  ;  but  the  contrary  effect 
was  produced,  for  the  native  being  frightened,  ran  away,  and 
all  the  rest  taking  alarm  '  sprang  out  of  the  church  like  deer.' 
As  they  fled,  some  of  Davis's  men  fired  at  them  as  at  an 
enemy,  and  among  other  injury  committed,  the  Indian  Secre- 
tary was  killed. 

Cowley  relates  their  exploits  here  very  briefly,  but  in  the 
style  of  an  accomplished  Gazette  writer.  He  says,  *  We  set 
'  sail  from  Realejo  to  the  Gulf  of  St.  Miguel,  where  we  took 
'  two  Islands ;  one  was  inhabited  by  Indians,  and  the  other 
*  was  well  stored  with  cattle/ 
September.  Davis  and  Eaton  here  broke  off  consortship.  The  cause  of 

Davis  and    their  separating  was  an  unreasonable  claim  of  Davis's  crew, 

Eaton  part       ,       ,        .          , 

Company,  who  having  the  stouter  and  better  ship,  would  not  agree  that 
Eaton's  men  should  share  equally  with  themselves  in  the  prizes 
taken.  Cowley  at  this  time  quitted  Davis's  ship,  and  entered 
with  Eaton,  who  sailed  from  the  Bay  of  Amnpalla  for  the  Peru- 
vian coast.  Davis  also  sailed  the  same  way  on  the  day  following 
(September  the  3d),  first  releasing  the  Priest  of  Amapalla;  and 
with  a  feeling  of  remorse  something  foreign  to  his  profession, 
by  way  of  atonement  to  the  inhabitants  for  the  annoyance  and 

mischief 


IN   THE    SOUTH   SEA. 


155 


mischief  they  had  sustained  from  the  Buccaneers,  he  left  them 
one  of  the  prize  vessels,  with  half  a  cargo  of  flour. 

Davis  sailed  out  of  the  Gulf  by  the  passage  between  the 
Islands  Amapalla  and  Mangera.  In  the  navigation  towards  the 
coast  of  Peru,  they  had  the  wind  from  the  NNW  and  West, 
except  during  tornadoes,  of  which  they  had  one  or  more  every 
day,  and  whilst  they  lasted  the  wind  generally  blew  from  the 
South  East  ;  but  as  soon  as  they  were  over,  the  wind  settled  again 
in  the  NW.  Tornadoes  are  common  near  the  Bay  of  Panama 
from  June  to  November,  and  at  this  time  were  accompanied 
with  much  thunder,  lightning,  and  rain. 

When  they  came  to  Cape  San  Francisco,  they  found  settled 
fair  weather,  and  the  wind  at  South.  On  the  <20th,  they 
anchored  by  the  East  side  of  the  Island  Plata.  The  2  1st, 
Eaton's  ship  anchored  near  them.  Eaton  had  been  at  the  Island 
Cocos,  and  had  lodged  on  shore  there  200  packages  of  flour. 

According  to  Eaton's  description,  Cocos  Island  is  encompassed 
with  rocks,  '  which  make  it  almost  inaccessible  except  at  the 

*  NE  end,  where  there  is  a  small  but  secure  harbour  ;  and  a  fine 

*  brook  of  fresh  water  runs  there  into  the  sea.    The  middle  of 

*  the  Island  is  pretty  high,  and  destitute  of  trees,  but  looks 

*  green  and  pleasant  with  an  herb  by  the  Spaniards  called 

*  GramadieL    All    round   the   Island  by  the  sea,  the  land  is 

*  low,  and  there  cocoa-nut  trees  grow  in  great  groves.' 

At  La  Plata  they  found  only  one  small  run  of  fresh  water, 
which  Avas  on  the  East  side  of  the  Island,  and  trickled  slowly 
down  from  the  rocks.  The  Spaniards  had  recently  destroyed 
the  goats  here,  that  they  might  not  serve  as  provision  for  the 
pirates.  Small  sea  turtle  however  were  plentiful,  as  were  men- 
of-war  birds  and  boobies.  The  tide  was  remarked  to  run 
strong  at  this  part  of  the  coast,  the  flood  to  the  South. 

Eaton  and  his  crew  would  willingly  have  joined  company 
again  with  Davis,  but  Davis's  men  persisted  in  their  unsociable 

x  2  claim 


CHAP.  14. 

1684. 
September. 


Tornadoes 

Coast  of 
New  sPam- 


Cape  San 


Eaton's 


Island. 


Coast  of 


156  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  P.  14.  claim  to  larger  shares  :  the  two  ships  therefore,    though  de- 
1684.       signing  alike  to  cruise  on  the  coast  of  Pent,  sailed  singly  and 
September,  separately,  Eaton  on  the  £'2d,  and  Davis  on  the  day  following. 

Coast  of        Davis  went  to  Point  S!a  Elena.   On  its  West  side  is  deep  water 
Peru* 
Point      anc^  no  ancnorage-    In  the  bay  on  the  North  side  of  the  Point 

S*  Elena,  is  good  anchorage,  and  about  a  mile  within  the  Point  was  a  small 
Indian  village,  the  inhabitants  of  which  carried  on  a  trade  with 
pitch,  and  salt  made  there.  The  Point  S'a  Elena  is  tolerably 
high,  and  overgrown  with  thistles ;  but  the  land  near  it  is  sandy, 
low,  and  in  parts  overflowed,  without  tree  or  grass,  and  without 
fresh  water ;  but  water-melons  grew  there,  large  and  very  sweet. 
When  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  wanted  fresh  water,  they 
were  obliged  to  fetch  it  from  a  river  called  the  Colanche,  which 
is  at  the  innermost  part  of  the  bay,  four  leagues  distant  from 
their  habitations.  The  buccaneers  landed,  and  took  some 
natives  prisoners.  A  small  bark  was  lying  in  the  bay  at  anchor, 
the  crew  of  which  set  fire  to  and  abandoned  her;  but  the 
buccaneers  boarded  her  in  time  to  extinguish  the  fire.  A 
general  order  had  been  given  by  the  Viceroy  of  Peru  to  all 
ship-masters,  that  if  they  should  be  in  danger  of  being  taken 
by  pirates,  they  should  set  fire  to  their  vessels  and  betake  them- 
selves to  their  boats. 

Algatrane,a  The  pitch,  which  was  the  principal  commodity  produced  at 
^"  ^enat  was  supplied  from  a  hot  spring,  of  which  Dampier 
gives  the  following  account.  '  Not  far  from  the  Indian  village, 
'  and  about  five  paces  within  high-water  mark,  a  bituminous 
'  matter  boils  out  of  a  little  hole  in  the  earth.  It  is  like  thin  tar  ; 
'  the  Spaniards  call  it  Algatrane.  By  much  boiling,  it  becomes 
'  hard  like  pitch,  and  is  used  by  the  Spaniards  instead  of  pitch. 

*  It  boils  up  most  at  high  water,  and  the  inhabitants  save  it 

*  in  jars  *.' 

A  report  was  current  here  among  the  Spaniards,  '  that  many 

•  years 
*  Dumpier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  6. 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  157 

*  years  before,  a  rich  Spanish  ship  was  driven  ashore  at  Point   CHAP.  14. 
'  S"*  Elena,  for  want  of  wind  to  work  her;  that  immediately     .1684. 

'  after  she  struck,  she  heeled  off  to  seaward,  and  sunk  in  seven  September. 
'  or  eight  fathoms  water ;  and  that  no  one  ever  attempted  to    famed  'P 
'  fish  for  her,  because  there  falls  in  here  a  great  high  sea*.'          wrecked  on 
Davis  landed  at  a  village  named  Mania,  on  the  main-land   su  Elena. 
about  three  leagues  Eastward   of  Cape  San  Lorenzo,  and  due     Manta. 
North  of  a  high  conical  mountain  called  Monte  Christ o.    The 
village  was  on  a  small  ascent,  and  between  it  and  the  sea  was  a 
spring  of  good  water.  '  About  a  mile  and  a  half  from  the  shore,     Sunken 
'  right  opposite  the  village,  is  a  rock  which  is  very  dangerous, 

*  because  it  never  appears  above  water,  neither  does  the  sea 
'  break  upon  it.    A  mile  within  the  rock  is  good  anchorage  in 
'  six,  eight  or  ten  fathoms,  hard   sand   and  clear  ground.     A 

*  mile  from   the  road  on   the  West  side  is  a  shoal  which  runs  And  Shoal. 
'  out  a  mile  into  the  sea-j-/ 

The  only  booty  made  by  landing  at  Manta,  was  the  taking 
two  old  women  prisoners.  From  them  however,  the  Buccaneers 
obtained  intelligence  that  many  of  their  fraternity  had  lately 
crossed  the  Isthmus  from  the  West  Indies,  and  were  at  this  time 
on  the  South  Sea,  without  ships,  cruising  about  in  canoes  ; 
and  that  it  was  on  this  account  the  Viceroy  had  given  orders 
for  the  destruction  of  the  goats  at  the  Island  Plata. 

Whilst  Davis  and  his  rnen,  in  the  Batchelor's  Delight,  were    October, 
lying  at  the  Island  Plata,  unsettled  in  their  plans  by  the  news    .Pav's,ls 

*  J  joined  by 

they  had  received,  they  were,  on  October  the  <2d,  joined  by       other 
the  Cygnet,  Captain  Swan>  and  by  a  small  bark  manned  with  Buccaueers- 
a  crew  of  buccaneers,  both  of  which  anchored  in  the  road. 

The  Cygnet,  as  before  noticed,  was  fitted  out  from  London       -j^e 
for  the  purpose  of  trade.    She  had  put  in  at  Baldivia,   where     cysnet» 

Captain 
bwan,       swan. 

*  Dumpier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  6.  To  search  for  this  wreck  with  a  view  to  recover 
the  treasure  in  her,  was  one  of  the  objects  of  an  expedition  from  England  to  the 
South  Sea,  which  was  made  a  few  years  subsequent  to  this  Buccaneer  expedition. 

•f  Da»tpie>;  Vol.  I,  Chap.  6. 


158  BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 

14.  Swan,  seeing  the  Spaniards  suspicious  of  the  visits  of  strangers, 


1684.      gave  out  that  he  was  bound  to  the  East  Indies,  and  that  he  had 

October,    endeavoured  to  go  by  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  ;  but  that  meeting 

Cperu°f    tnere  w'tn  storms  and  unfavourable  winds,  and  not  being  able 

to  beat  round  that  Cape,  he  had  changed  his  course  and  ran  for 

the  Strait  of  Magalhanes,  to  sail  by  the  Pacific  Ocean  to  India. 

This  story  was  too  improbable  to  gain  credit.  Instead  of  finding 

a  market  at  Baldivia,  the  Spaniards  there  treated  him  and  his 

people  as   enemies,    by    which    he    lost    two    men    and   had 

several  wounded.     He  afterwards  tried  the  disposition  of  the 

Spaniards  to   trade  with  him  at  other  places,  both    in    Chili 

and  Peru,  but  no  where  met  encouragement.    He  proceeded 

Northward  for  New  Spain  still  with  the  same  view;  but  near 

the   Gulf  of  Nicoya   he   fell   in  with    some   buccaneers    who 

had  come  over  the  Isthmus  and  were  in  canoes  ;  and  his  men 

(Dampier  says)  forced  him  to  receive  them  into  his  ship,  and 

he  was  afterwards  prevailed  on  to  join  in  their  pursuits.     Swan 

had  to  plead  in  his  excuse,  the  hostility  of  the  Spaniards  to- 

wards him  at   Baldivia.    These  buccaneers  with  whom   Swan 

associated,  had  for  their  commander  Peter  Harris,  a  nephew 

of  the  Peter    Harris  who  was  killed  in   battle  with  the  Spa- 

niards in  the  Bay  of  Panama,  in   1680,  when  the  Buccaneers 

were   commanded    by  Sawkins  and  Coxon.     Swan    stipulated 

with  them  that  ten  shares  of  every   prize  should  be  set   apart 

for  the  benefit  of  his  owners,  and  articles  to  that  purport  were 

drawn  up  and    signed.    Swan  retained   the  command  of  the 

Cygnet,  with  a  crew  increased  by  a  number  of  the  new  comers, 

for    whose  accommodation   a   large  quantity  of  bulky   goods 

belonging  to  the  merchants  was  thrown  into  the  sea.     Harris 

with  others  of  the  buccaneers  established  themselves  in  a  small 

bark  they  had  taken. 

On  their  meeling  with  Davis,  there  was  much  joy  and  con- 
gratulation on  all  sides.    They  immediately  agreed  to   keep 

together, 


IN  THE    SOUTH   SEA.  159 

together,  and  the  separation   of  Eaton's  ship  was  now  much  CHAP.  14. 
regretted.    They  were  still  incommoded  in  Swan's  ship  for  want       1684" 
of  room,  therefore  (the  supercargoes  giving  consent)  whatever    October, 
part  of  the  cargo  any   of  the  crews  desired  to  purchase,  it    Coast  of 
was  sold  to  them   upon   trust ;   and  more  bulky  goods  were      .   Is]'e 
thrown  overboard.    Iron,   of  which  there  was  a  large  quan-  de  la  Plata. 
tity,   was   kept   for    ballast ;    and   the    finer  goods,    as    silks, 
muslins,  stockings,  &c.   were  saved.     Whilst   they  continued 
at   La  Plata,  Davis   kept  a  small  bark  out  cruising,  which 
brought  in  a   ship    from    Guayaquil,  laden   with   timber,    the 
master  of  which  reported  that  great  preparations  were  making 
at   Callao  to    attack    the  pirates.    This    information    made   a 
re-union  with  Eaton  more  earnestly  desired,  and  a  small  bark 
manned  with  20  men  was  dispatched  to  search  along  the  coast 
Southward  as  far  as  to  the  Lobos  Isles,  with  an  invitation  to 
him  to  join  them  again.    The  ships  in  the  mean  time  followed 
leisurely  in  the  same  direction. 

On  the  30th,  they  were  offtheCflpe  Blanco  which  is  between  cape  Bianco, 
Payta  and  the  Bay  of  Guayaquil,  Southerly  winds  prevail  along  _   near  .. 
the  coast  of  Peru  and  Chili  much  the  greater  part  of  the  year;   ^fl^,.  to 
and  Dampier  remarks  of  this  Cape  Blanco,  that  it  was  reckoned    weather. 
the  most  difficult  to  weather  of  any  headland  along  the  coast, 
the  wind  generally  blowing  strong  from  SSW  or  S  bW,  without 
being  altered,  as  at  other  parts  of  the  coast,  by  the  land  winds. 
Yet  it  was  held  necessary  here  to  beat  up  close  in  with  the  shore, 
because  (according  to  the  accounts  of  Spanish  seamen)  '  on 
'  standing  out  to  sea,  a  current  is  found  setting  NW,  which 
'  will  carry  a  ship  farther  off  shore  in  two  hours,  than  she  can 
*  run  in  again  in  five.' 

November  the  3d,  the  Buccaneers  landed  at  Payta  without  November, 
opposition,  the  town  being  abandoned  to  them.    They  found 
nothing  of  value,  'not  so  much  as  a  meal   of  victuals  being 

left 


160  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP,  j 4-  left  them/    The  Governor  would  not  pay  ransom  for  the  town, 
l6"84>      though  he  fed   the  Buccaneers  with  hopes  till  the  sixth  day, 
November,  when  they  set  it  on  fire. 

Payta  At  most  of  the  towns  on  the  coast  of  Peru,  the  houses  are 
built  with  bricks  made  of  earth  and  straw  kneaded  together 
and  dried  in  the  sun ;  many  houses  have  no  roof  other  than 
mats  laid  upon  rafters,  for  it  never  rains,  and  they  endeavour 
to  fence  only  from  the  sun.  From  the  want  of  moisture,  great 
part  of  the  country  near  the  coast  will  not  produce  timber, 
and  most  of  the  stone  they  have,  '  is  so  brittle  that  any  one 
may  rub  it  into  sand  with  their  finger/ 

Payta  had  neither  wood  nor  water,  except  what  was  carried 

thither.     The  water   was    procured    from    a  river   about  two 

leagues  NNE  of  the  town,  where  was  a  small  Indian  village 

Part  of  the  called  Colan.    Dampier  says,    '  this  dry   country   commences 

PCoa!tn    '  Northward  about  Cape  Blanco  (in  about  4°  S  latitude)  whence 

where  it    «  it  reaches  to  latitude  30°  S,  in  which  extent  they  have  no 

''  '  rain  that  I  could  ever  observe  or  hear  of.'    In  the  Southern 

part  of  this  tract  however  (according  to  Wafer)  they  have  great 

dews  in  the  night,  by  which  the  vallies  are  rendered  fertile,  and 

are  well  furnished  with  vegetables. 

Eaton  had  been  at  Payta,  where  he  burnt  a  large  ship  in  the 
road,  but  did  not  land.  He  put  on  shore  there  all  his  pri- 
soners ;  from  which  circumstance  it  was  conjectured  that  he 
purposed  to  sail  immediately  for  the  East  Indies;  and  such 
proved  to  be  the  fact. 

The  vessel   commanded  by  Harris,   sailed  badly,  and   was 

therefore  quitted  and  burnt.    On  the  1 4th,  the  other  Buccaneer 

Lobos  de    vessels,  under  Davis,  anchored  near  the  NK,  end  of  Lobos  de 

ia>      Ticrra,  in   four   fathoms    depth.    They    took   here  penguins, 

Lobos  de  la  boobies,  and  seals.    On  the  19th,  they  were  at  Lobos  de  la  Mar, 

where  they  found  a  letter  left  by  the  bark  sent  in  search  of 

Eaton, 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  161 

Eaton,  which  gave  information  that  he  had  entirely  departed  CHAP.  14. 
from  the  American  coast.    The  bark  had  sailed  for  the  Island       1684. 
Plata  expecting  to  rejoin  the  ships  there. 

Eaton  in  his  route  to  the  East  Indies  stopped  at  Guahan,  one  Eaton  sails 
of  the  Ladrone  Islands,  where  himself  and  his  crew  acted  towards 


the  native  Islanders  with  the  utmost  barbarity,  which  Cowley  Stops  at  the 
relates  as  a  subject  of  merriment. 

On  their  first  arrival  at  Guahan,  Eaton  sent  a  boat  on  shore 
to  procure  refreshments  ;  but  the  natives  kept  at  a  distance, 
believing  his  ship  to  be  one  of  the  Manila  galeons,  and  his 
people  Spaniards.  Eaton's  men  served  themselves  with  cocoa- 
nuts,  but  finding  difficulty  in  climbing,  they  cut  the  trees  down 
to  get  at  the  fruit.  The  next  time  their  boat  went  to  the  shore, 
the  Islanders  attacked  her,  but  were  easily  repulsed,  and  a 
number  of  them  killed.  By  this  time  the  Spanish  Governor 
was  arrived  at  the  part  of  the  Island  near  which  the  ship  had 
anchored,  and  sent  a  letter  addressed  to  her  Commander, 
written  in  four  different  languages,  to  wit,  in  Spanish,  French, 
Dutch,  and  Latin,  to  demand  of  what  country  she  was,  and 
whence  she  came.  Cowley  says,  '  Our  Captain,  thinking  the 

*  French    would   be    welcomer   than   the    English,   returned 
'  answer  we  were  French,  fitted  out  by  private  merchants  to 

*  make  fuller  discovery  of  the  world.    The  Governor  on  this, 

*  invited  the  Captain  to  the  shore,  and  at  their  first  conference, 

*  the  Captain  told  him  that  the  Indians  had  fallen  upon  his  men, 

*  and  that  we  had  killed  some  of  them.    He  wished  we  had 

*  killed  them  all,  and  told  us  of  their  rebellion,  that  they  had 
'  killed  eight  Fathers,  of  sixteen  which  were  in  a  convent.     He 
'  gave  us  leave  to  kill  and  take  whatever  we  could  find  on  one 
«  half  of  the  Island  where  the  rebels  lived.  We  then  made  wars 
'  with  these  infidels,  and  went  on  shore  every  day,  fetching  pro- 
'  visions,  and  firing  upon  them  wherever  we  saw  them,  so  that 

Y  *  the 


162  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

14.  «  the  greatest  part  of  them  left  the  Island.    The  Indians  sent 


4684,      *  two  of  their  captains  to  us  to  treat  of  peace,  but  we  would 

*  not   treat    with    them*.'—4  The    whole    land   is    a   garden. 
'  The   Governor  was    the  same  man   who  detained  Sir  John 
'  Narbrough's  Lieutenant  at  Baldivia.     Our  Captain  supplied 

*  him  with  four  barrels  of  gunpowder,  and  arms/ 

Josef  de  Quiroga  was  at  this  time  Governor  at  G-uahan, 
who  afterwards  conquered  and  unpeopled  all  the  Northern 
Islands  of  the  Ladrones.  Eaton's  crew  took  some  of  the 
Islanders  prisoners  :  three  of  them  jumped  overboard  to  en- 
deavour to  escape.  It  was  easy  to  retake  them,  as  they  had 
been  bound  with  their  hands  behind  them  ;  but  Eaton's  men 
pursued  them  with  the  determined  purpose  to  kill  them, 
which  they  did  in  mere  wantonness  of  sport  if.  At  another 
time,  when  they  had  so  far  come  to  an  accommodation  with 
the  Islanders  as  to  admit  of  their  approach,  the  ship's  boat 
being  on  shore  fishing  with  the  seine,  some  natives  in  canoes 
near  her  were  suspected  of  intending  mischief.  Cowley  relates, 

*  our   people    that   were  in  the  boat   let  go   in   amongst  the 

*  thickest  of  them,  and  killed  a  great  many  of  their  number.'  It 
is   possible   that  thus  much  might  have    been  necessary    for 
safety  ;  but  Cowley  proceeds,  '  the  others,  seeing  their  mates 

*  fall,  ran  away.    Our  other  men  which  were  on  shore,  meeting 
'  them,  saluted  them  also  by  making  holes  in  their  hides.' 

From  the  Ladrones  Eaton  sailed  to  the  North  of  Luconia,  and 
passed  through  among  the  Islands  which  were  afterwards  named 
by  Dampier  the  Bashee  Islands.  The  account  given  by  Cowley 
is  as  follows  :  '  There  being  half  a  point  East  variation,  till  we 
«  came  to  latitude  20°  30'  N,  where  we  fell  in  with  a  parcel  of 

*  Islands  lying  to  the  Northward  of  Luconia.    On  the  23d  day 

«  of 

*  Manuscript  Journal  in  the  Sloane  Co/lection. 

•f  See  Cowley's  Voyage,  p.  34.    Also,.  Vol.  III.  of  South  Sea  Discoveries,  p.  305. 


IN   THE   SOUTH  SEA.  16s 

*  of  April,  we  sailed  through   between  the   second  and  third  QHAP.  14. 

*  of  the  Northernmost  of  them.    We  met  with  a  very  strong  !684. 

*  current,  like  the    Race  of  Portland.    At    the   third   of  the  Nutmeg 

*  Northernmost  Islands,  we  sent  our  boat  on  shore,  where  they  North  of 


'  found  abundance  of  nutmegs  growing,  but  no  people.   They 

*  observed  abundance  of  rocks  and  foul  ground  near  the  .shore, 

*  and  saw  many  goats  upon  the  Island/ 

Cowley  concludes  the  narrative  of  his  voyage  with  saying 
that  he  arrived  home  safe  to  England  through  the  infinite 
mercy  of  God. 

To  return  to  Edward  Davis:  At  Lobos  de  la  Mar,  the  Mosquit<>    Coast  of 
Indians  struck  as  much  turtle  as  served  all  the  crews.    Shortly      rfT* 

Davis 

after,  Davis   made  an  attempt  to  surprise   Guayaquil,  which    attempts 

miscarried  through  the  cowardice  of  one  of  his  wren,  and  the  Guaya<l-ul1- 

coldness  of  Swan  to  the  enterprise.    In  the  Bay  of  Guayaquil 

they  captured  four  vessels  ;  one  of  them  laden  with  woollen. 

cloth  of  Quito  manufacture  ;  the  other  three  were  ships  coming  Slave  Ships 

out  of  the  River  of  Guayaquil  with  cargoes  of  Negroes.  captured. 

The  number  of  Negroes  in  these  vessels  was  a  thousand,  from 
among  which  Davis  and  Swan  chose  each  about  fifteen,  and 
let  the  vessels  go.  Dampier  entertained  on  this  occasion  .dif- 
ferent views  from  his  companions.  '  Never,'  says  he,  '  was  put 

*  into  the  hands  of  men  a  greater  opportunity  to  enrich  them- 
'  selves.   We  had  1000  Negroes,  all   lusty  young   men   and 
'  women,  and  we  had   200    tons  of  flour   stored    up  at   the 

*  Galapagos  Islands.   With  these  Negroes  we  might  have  gone 
'  and  settled  at  Santa  Maria  on  the  Isthmus  of  Darien,  and 

*  have  employed  them  in  getting  gold  out  of  the  mines  there. 

*  All  the  Indians  living  in  that  neighbourhood    were  mortal 

*  enemies  to  the  Spaniards,  were  flushed  by   successes  against 
'  them,  and  for  several  years  had  been  the  fast  friends  of  the 

*  privateers.    Add  to  which,  we  should  have  had  the  North 

Y  2  «  Sea 


164  BUCCANEERS    OF    AMERICA 

CHAP.  14.   '  Sea  open  to  us,  and  in  a  short  time  should  have  received 
1684.       *  assistance  from  all  parts  of  the  West  Indies.    Many  thousands 

December.    '  of  Buccaneers  from  Jamaica  and  the  French  Islands  would 
Coast  of     «  have  flocked  to  us ;  and  we  should  have  been  an  overmatch 
'  for  all  the  force  the  Spaniards  could  have  brought  out  of 
'  Peru  against  us.' 

The  proposal  to  employ  slaves  in  the  mines  leaves  no  cause 
to  regret  that  Dampier's  plan  was  not  adopted ;  but  that  was 
probably  not  an  objection  with  his  companions.  They  natu- 
rally shrunk  from  an  attempt  which  in  the  execution  would 
have  required  a  regularity  and  order  to  which  they  were  unac- 
customed, and  not  at  all  affected. 

Description       The  Harbour  of  Guayaquil  is  the  best  formed  port  in  Peru. 

Harbour  of   ^n  tne  "ver»  tnree  or  f°ur  miles  short  of  the  town,  stands  a  low 

Guayaquil.  Island  about  a  mile  long,  on  either  side  of  which  is  a  fair 
channel  to  pass  up  or  down.  The  Western  Channel  is  the 
widest :  the  other  is  as  deep.  *  From  the  upper  part  of  the 
'  Island  to  the  town  is  about  a  league,  and  it  is  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  near  that  part  of  the  land  on  which  the 

*  town  stands.    The  country  here  is  subject  to  great  rains  and 

*  thick  fogs,  which  render  it  very  unwholesome  and  sickly,  in 

*  the  vallies  especially  ;  Guayaquil  however  is  not  so  unhealthy 

*  as  Quito  and  other  towns  inland ;  but  the  Northern  part  of 

*  Peru  pays  for  the  dry  weather  which  they  have  about  Lima 
'  and  to  the  Southward.' 

Island  *  Ships  bound  into  the  river  of  Guayaquil  pass  on  the  South 

^ShoaiT     *  s^e  °f  t^ie  Islan(l  Santa  Clara  to  avoid  shoals  which  are  on 

near  its     «  the  North  side,  whereon  formerly  ships  have  been  wrecked. 

*  A  rich  wreck  la}7  on  the  North  side  of  Santa  Clara  not  far  from 

*  the  Island,  and  some  plate  which  was  in  her  was  taken  up : 

*  more 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  165 

more  might  have  been  saved  but  for  the  cat-fish  which  swarm   c  HAP.  14 
hereabouts. 


«  The  Cat-fish  is  much  like  a  whiting  ;  but  the  head  is  flatter  December. 

*  and  bigger.    It  has  a  wide  mouth,  and  certain  small   strings     C£ast  of 

*  pointing  out  on  each  side  of  it  like  cats'  whiskers.    It  hath    cat  Fish. 

*  three  fins  ;  one  on  the  back,  and  one  on  either  side.  Each  of 

*  these  fins  hath  a  sharp  bone  which  is  very  venemous  if  it 

*  strikes  into  a  man's  flesh.    Some  of  the  Indians  that  adven- 

*  tured  to  search  this  wreck  lost  their  lives,  and  others  the  use 

*  of  their  limbs,  by  these  fins.   Some  of  the  cat-fish  weigh  seven 

*  or  eight  pounds  ;  and  in  some  places  there  are  cat-fish  which 

*  are  none  of  them  bigger  than  a  man's  thumb  ;  but  their  fins 
'  are   all   alike   venemous.    They    are   most  generally  at   the 

*  mouths  of  rivers  (in  the  hot  latitudes)  or  where  there  is  much 

*  mud  and  ooze.    The  bones  in  their  bodies  are  not  venemous, 

*  and  we  never  perceived  any  bad  effect  in  eating  the  fish, 
'  which  is  very  sweet  and  wholesome  meat*.' 

The  1  3th,  Davis  and  Swan  with  their  prizes  sailed  from  the 
Bay  of  Guayaquil  to  the  Island  Plata,  and  found  there  the  bark 
which  had  been  in  quest  of  Eaton's  ship. 

From  Plata,  they  sailed  Northward  towards  the  Bay  of 
Panama,  landing  at  the  villages  along  the  coast  to  seek  provi- 
sions. They  were  ill  provided  with  boats,  which  exposed  them 
to  danger  in  making  descents,  by  their  not  being  able  to  land 
or  bring  off  many  men  at  one  time  ;  and  they  judged  that  the 
best  places  for  getting  their  wants  in  this  respect  supplied  would 
be  in  rivers  of  the  Continent,  in  which  the  Spaniards  had  no 
settlement,  where  from  the  native  inhabitants  they  might 
obtain  canoes  by  traffic  or  purchase,  if  not  otherwise.  Dampier 
remarks  that  there  were  many  such  unfrequented  rivers  in  the 
Continent  to  the  Northward  of  the  Isle  de  la  Plata  ;  and  that 

from 

*  Dampier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  6. 


166 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CH  A  t.  14. 

1684. 
December. 

Coast  of 
Peru. 


The  Land 
Northward 
of  Cape  San 

Francisco. 

The  Cotton 

Tree  and 

Cabbage 

Tree. 


River  of 
St.  Jago. 


from  the  Equinoctial  to  the  Gulf  de  San  Miguel  in  the  Bay  of 
Panama,  which  is  above  eight  degrees  of  latitude,  the  coast  was 
not  inhabited  by  the  Spaniards,  nor  were  the  Indians  M  ho  lived 
there  in  any  manner  under  their  subjection,  except  at  owe  part 
near  the  Island  Gallo,  *  where  on  the  banks  of  a  Gold  River 
'  or  two,  some  Spaniards  had  settled  to  find  gold.' 

The  land  by  the  sea-coast  to  the  North  of  Cape  San  Francisco 
is  tow  and  extremely  woody ;  the  trees  are  of  extraordinary 
height  and  bigness ;  and  in  this  part  of  the  coast  are  large  and 
navigable  rivers.  The  white  cotton-tree,  which  bears  a  very 
fine  sort  of  cotton,  called  silk  cotton,  is  the  largest  tree  in  these 
woods ;  and  the  cabbage-tree  is  the  tallest.  Dampier  has 
given  full  descriptions  of  both.  He  measured  a  cabbage-tree 
1 20  feet  in  length,  and  some  were  longer.  '  It  has  no  limbs  nor 

*  boughs  except  at  the  head,  where  there  are  branches  some* 
'  thing  bigger  than  a  man's  arm.    The  cabbage-fruit  shoots  out 

*  in  the  midst  of  these  branches,  invested  or  folded  in  leaves, 
'  and  is  as  big  as  the  small  of  a  man's  leg,  and  a  foot  long.    It 
'  is  white  as  milk,  and  sweet  as  a  nut  if  eaten  raw,  and  is  very 
'  sweet  and  wholesome  if  boiled.' 

The  Buccaneers  entered  a  river  with  their  boats,  in  or  near 
latitude  2°  N,  which  Dampier,  from  some  Spanish  pilot-book, 
calls  the  River  of  St.  Jago.  It  was  navigable  some  leagues 
within  the  entrance,  and  seems  to  be  the  river  marked  with  the 
name  Patio,  in  the  late  Spanish  charts,  a  name  which  has  allu- 
sion to  spreading  branches. 

Davis's  men  went  six  leagues  up  the  river  without  seeing 
habitation  or  people.  They  then  came  in  sight  of  two  small 
huts,  the  inhabitants  of  which  hurried  into  canoes  with  their 
household-stuff,  and  paddled  upwards  against  the  stream  faster 
than  they  could  be  pursued.  More  houses  were  seen  higher  up ; 
but  the  stream  ran  here  so  swift,  that  the  Buccaneers  would  not 

be 


IN    THE   SOUTH    SEA.  167 

be  at  the  labour  of  proceeding.  They  found  in  the  two  deserted  c  H  A  p.  14. 
huts,  a  hog,  some  fowls  and  plantains,  which  they  dressed  on       j6s4. 
the  spot,  and  after  their  meal  returned  to  the  ships,  which  were  December, 
at  the  Island  Gallo.  C^srtu°f 

'  The  Island  Gallo  is  clothed  with  timber,  and  here  was  a     island 

*  spring  of  good  water  at  the  NE  end,  with  good  landing  in  a     Gall°- 

*  small  sandy  bay,  and  secure  riding  in  six  or  seven  fathoms 
«  depth*.' 

They  entered  with  their  boats  another  large  river,  called  the      River 
Tomaco,  the  entrance  of  which  is  but  three  leagues  from  the    Tomaco. 
Island  Gallo.  This  river  was  shoal  at  the  mouth,  and  navigable 
for  small    vessels   only.    A  little   within,  was  a  village  called 
Tomaco,  some  of  the  inhabitants  of  which  they  took  prisoners, 
and  carried  off  a  dozen  jars  of  good  wine. 

On  the  1st  of  January,  they  took  a  packet-boat  bound  for      1685. 
Limat  which  the  President  of  Panama  had  dispatched  to  hasten    JanuarJ- 
the  sailing  of  the  Plate  Fleet  from  Callao ;  the  treasure  sent 
from  Peru  and  Chili  to  Old  Spain  being  usually  first  collected 
at  Panama,  and  thence   transported   on  mules  to  Portobello. 
The  Buccaneers  judged  that  the  Pearl  Islands  in  the  Bay  of- 
Panama  would  be  the  best  station  they  could  occupy  for  inter- 
cepting ships  from  Lima. 

On  the  7th,  they  left  Gallo,  and  pursued  their  course  North- 
ward. An  example  occurs  here  of  Buccaneer  order  and  disci- 
pline. '  We  weighed,'  says  Dampicr,  '  before  day,  and  all  got 
'  out  of  the  road  except  Captain  Swan's  tender,  which  never 

*  budged ;  for  the  men  were  all  asleep  when  we  went  out,  and 
'  the  tide  of  Mood  coming  on  before  they  awoke,  we  were  forced 

*  to  stay  for  them  till  the  following  tide.' 

On  the  8th,  they  took  a  vessel  laden  with  flour.    The  next     Island 
<lay  they  anchored  on  the  West  side  of  the  Island  Gorgona,  in 

38  fathoms 
*  Dampier, 


168 


BUCCANEERS    OF  AMERICA 


-CHA  P.  14. 


l685. 

January. 


Pearl 
Oysters. 


38  fathoms  depth  clear  ground,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the 
shore.  Gorgona  was  uninhabited  ;  and  like  Gallo  covered  with 
trees.  It  is  pretty  high,  and  remarkable  by  two  saddles,  or 
risings  and  fallings  on  the  top.  It  is  about  two  leagues  long, 
one  broad,  and  is  four  leagues  distant  from  the  mainland.  It 
was  well  watered  at  this  time  with  small  brooks  issuing  from 
the  high  land.  At  its  West  end  is  another  small  Island.  The 
tide  rises  and  falls  seven  or  eight  feet;  and  at  low  water  shell- 
fish, as  periwinkles,  muscles,  and  oysters,  may  be  taken.  At 
Gorgona  were  small  black  monkeys.  '  When  the  tide  was  out, 

*  the  monkeys  would  come  down  to  the  sea-shore  for  shell- 

*  fish.    Their  way  was  to  take   up  an  oyster  and  lay  it  upon  a 
'  stone,  and  with  another  stone  to  keep  beating  of  it  till  they 

*  broke  the  shell  *.'   The  pearl  oyster  was  here  in  great  plenty  : 
they  are  flatter  than  other  oysters,  are  slimy,  and  taste  cop- 
perish  if  eaten  raw,  but  were  thought  good  when  boiled.  The 
Indians  and  Spaniards  hang  the  meat  of  them  on  strings  to 
dry.    '  The  pearl  is  found  at  the  head  of  the  oyster,  between 

*  the  meat  and  the  shell.    Some  have    20  or  30  small  seed- 

*  pearl,  some  none  at  all,  and  some  one  or  two  pretty  large 

*  pearls.    The  inside  of  the   shell  is  more  glorious  than  the 

*  pearl  itself -f-.' 

They  put  some  of  their  prisoners  on  shore  at  Gorgona,  and 
sailed  thence  on  the  13th,  being  six  sail  in  company  ;  that  is  to 
say,  Davis's  ship,  Swan's  ship,  three  tenders,  and  their  last  prize. 
The  21st,  they  arrived  in  the  Bay  of  Panama,  and  anchored  at 
Galera  Isle,  a  small  low  and  barren  Island  named  Galera. 

On  the  25th,  they  went  from  Galera  to  one  of  the  Southern 
Pearl  Islands,  where  they  lay  the  ships  aground  to  clean,  the 
rise  and  fall  of  the  sea  at  the  spring  tides  being  ten  feet  per- 
pendicular. The  small  barks  were  kept  out  cruising,  and  on 

the 


Bay  of 
Panama. 


Wafers  Voyages,  p.  196. 


Dumpier,  Vol.  1,  Chap.  7. 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA.  169 

the  31st,   they  brought  in    a  vessel  bound  for  Panama  from    CHAP.  14. 
Lavelia,  a  town    on   the  West    side  of  the  Bay,  laden  with       1685. 
Indian  corn,  salt  beef,  and  fowls.  January. 

Notwithstanding  it  had  been  long  reported  that  a  fleet  was  Bay  of 
fitting  out  in  Peru  to  clear  the  South  Sea  of  pirates,  the  small 
force  under  Davis,  Swan,  and  Harris,  amounting  to  little  more 
than  250  men,  remained  several  weeks  in  uninterrupted  pos- 
session of  the  Bay  of  Panama,  blocking  up  access  to  the  city  by 
sea,  supplying  themselves  with  provisions  from  the  Islands,  and 
plundering  whatsoever  came  in  their  way. 

The  Pearl  Islands  are  woody,  and  the  soil  rich.  They  are  cul-   The  Pearl 
tivated  with  plantations  of  rice,  plantains,  and  bananas,  for  the     Islands- 
support  of  the  City  of  Panama.    Dampier  says,  '  Why  they 
'  are  called  the  Pearl  Islands  I  cannot  imagine,  for  I  did  never 
1  see  one  pearl  oyster  about  them,  but  of  other  oysters  many. 
'  It  is  very  pleasant  sailing  here,  having  the  mainland  on  one 
'  side,  which  appears  in  divers  forms,  beautified  with  small  hills 
'  clothed  with  woods  always  green  and  flourishing ;  and  on  the 
'  other  side,  the  Pearl  Islands,  which  also  make  a  lovely  pros- 
*  pect  as  you  sail  by  them/ 

The  Buccaneers  went  daily  in  their  canoes  among  the  dif- 
ferent Islands,  to  fish,  fowl,  or  hunt  for  guanoes.  One  man 
so  employed  and  straggling  from  his  party,  was  surprised  by 
the  Spaniards,  and  carried  to  Panama. 

In  the  middle  of  February,  Davis,  who  appears  to  have  February, 
always  directed  their  movements  as  the  chief  in  command, 
went  with  his  ships  and  anchored  near  the  City  of  Panama. 
He  negociated  with  the  Governor  an  exchange  of  prisoners,  and 
was  glad  by  the  release  of  forty  Spaniards  to  obtain  the  deli- 
verance of  two  Buccaneers ;  one  of  them  the  straggler  just 
mentioned  ;  the  other,  one  of  Harris's  men. 

A  short  time  after  this  exchange,  as  the  Buccaneer  ships 

Z  were 


170 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  14. 

1685. 
March. 

Bay  of 
Panama. 


Arrival  of 
fresh 

bodies  of 
Buccaneers 

from  the 
West  Indies. 


Grogniet 

and 
L'Escuyer. 


were  at  anchor  near  the  Island  Taboga,  which  is  about  four 
leagues  to  the  South  of  Panama,  they  were  visited  by  a  Spaniard 
in  a  canoe,  who  pretended  he  was  a  merchant  and  wanted  to 
traffic  with  them  privately.  He  proposed  to  come  off  to  the  ships 
in  the  night  with  a  small  vessel  laden  with  such  goods  as  the 
Buccaneers  desired  to  purchase.  This  was  agreed  to,  and  he 
came  with  his  vessel  when  it  was  dark  ;  but  instead  of  a  cargo 
of  goods,  she  was  fitted  up  as  a  fire-ship  with  combustibles. 
The  Buccaneers  had  suspected  his  intention  and  were  on  their 
guard;  but  to  ward  off  the  mischief,  were  obliged  to  cut  from 
their  anchors  and  set  sail. 

In  the  morning  they  returned  to  their  anchorage,  which  they 
had  scarcely  regained  when  a  fresh  cause  of  alarm  occurred. 
Dampier  relates,  '  We  were  striving  to  recover  the  anchors  we 
'  had  parted  from,  but  the  buoy-ropes,  being  rotten,  broke, 

*  and  whilst  we  were  puzzling  about  our  anchors,  we  saw  a 

*  great  many  canoes  full   of  men    pass    between  the    Island 

*  Taboga  and  another  Island,  which  at  first  put  us  into  a  new 

*  consternation.    We  lay  still  some  time,  till  we  saw  they  made 

*  directly    towards  us ;  upon   which   we    weighed    and    stood 
'  towards  them.  When  we  came  within  hail,  we  found  that  they 
'  were  English  and  French  privateers  just  come  from  the  North 

*  Sea  over  the  Isthmus  of  Darien.    We  presently  came  to  an 

*  anchor  again,  and  all  the  canoes  came  on  board.' 

This  new  arrival  of  Buccaneers  to  the  South  Sea  consisted  of 
200  Frenchmen  and  80  Englishmen,  commanded  by  two  French- 
men named  Grogniet  and  L'Escuyer.  Grogniet  had  a  com- 
mission to  war  on  the  Spaniards  from  a  French  West-India 
Governor.  The  Englishmen  of  this  party  upon  joining  Davis, 
were  received  into  the  ships  of  their  countrymen,  and  the 
largest  of  the  prize  vessels,  which  was  a  ship  named  the 
San  Rosario,  was  given  to  the  Frenchmen. 

From 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA. 


171 


From  these  new  confederates  it  was  learnt,  that  another 
party,  consisting  of  180  Buccaneers,  commanded  by  an 
Englishman  named  Townley,  had  crossed  the  Isthmus,  and 
were  building  canoes  in  the  Gulf  de  San  Miguel;  on  which 
intelligence,  it  was  determined  to  sail  to  that  Gulf,  that  the 
whole  buccaneer  force  in  this  sea  might  be  joined.  Grognietin 
return  for  the  ship  given  to  the  French  Buccaneers,  otfered  to 
Davis  and  Swan  new  commissions  from  the  Governor  of  Petit 
Goave,  by  whom  he  had  been  furnished  with  spare  commissions 
with  blanks,  to  be  filled  up  and  disposed  of  at  his  own  discre- 
tion. Davis  accepted  Grogniet's  present,  '  having  before  only 

*  an  old  commission  which  had  belonged  to  Captain  Tristian> 

*  and  which,  being  found  in  Tristian's  ship  when  she  was  car- 
4  ried  off  by  Cook,  had  devolved  as  an  inheritance  to  Davis/ 
The  commissions  which,  by  whatever  means,  the  Buccaneers 
procured,    were   not   much   protection   in   the  event  of  their 
falling  into   the  hands  of  the  Spaniards,  unless   the  nation   of 
which  the  Buccaneer  was  a  native  happened  to  be  then  at 
war  with  Spain.     Instances  were  not  uncommon  in  the  West 
Indies  of  the  Spaniards  hanging  up  their  buccaneer  prisoners 
with  their  commissions  about  their  necks.    But  the  commis'- 
sions  were  allowed  to  be  valid   in  the  ports  of  other  powers. 
Swan   however  refused    the   one  offered   him,  and  rested  his 
justification  on  the  orders  he  had  received  from  the  Duke  of 
York ;  in  which  he  was  directed,  neither  to  give  offence  to  the 
Spaniards,  nor  to  submit  to  receive  affront  from  them  :  they  had 
done  him  injury  in  killing  his  men  at  Baldwin^  and  he  held  his 
orders  to  be  a  lawful  commission  to  do  himself  right. 

On  the  3d  of  March,  as  they  approached  the  Gulf  de 
San  Miguel  to  meet  the  Buccaneers  under  Townley,  they 
were  again  surprised  by  seeing  two  ships  standing  towards 
them.  These  proved  to  be  Townley  and  his  men,  in  two  prizes 

z  2  they 


CHAP.  14 
l685. 

February. 

Bay  of 
Panama. 


March. 

Townley 

and  his 

Crew. 


17S  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

,CHAI>-  *4:  they  had  already  taken,  one  laden  with  flour,  the  other  with 

1685.       wine,  brandy,  and  sugar ;  both  designed  for  Panama.  The  wine 

March,     came  from  Pisco,  '  which  place  is  famous  for  wine,  and  was 

Panama     '  contained  in  jars  of  seven  or  eight  gallons  each.    Ships  which 

Pisco       '  ^af^e  a*-  Pisc°  stow  the  jars  one  tier  on  the  top  of  another,  so 

Wine.      '  artificially  that  we  could  hardly  do  the  like  without  breaking 

*  them  :  yet  they  often  carry  in  this  manner  1500  or  2000,  or 

'  more,  in  a  ship,  and  seldom  break  one.' 

On  this  junction  of  the  Buccaneers,  they  went  altogether  to 
the  Pearl  Islands  to  make  arrangements,  and  to  fit  their  prize* 
vessels  as  well  as  circumstances  would  admit,  for  their  new 
occupation.  Among  the  preparations  necessary  to  their  equip- 
ment, it  was  not  the  last  which  occurred,  that  the  jars  from 
Pisco  were  wanted  to  contain  their  sea  stock  of  fresh  water ;  for 
which  service  they  were  in  a  short  time  rendered  competent. 

The  10th,  they  took  a  small  bark  in  ballast,  from  Guayaquil. 
On  the  12th,  some  Indians  in  a  canoe  came  out  of  the  River 
Santa  Maria,  purposely  to  inform  them  that  a  large  body  of 
English  and  French  Buccaneers  were  then  on  their  march  over 
the  Isthmus  from  the  North  Sea.  This  was  not  all ;  for  on  the 
1 5th,  one  of  the  small  barks  which  were  kept  out  cruising,  fell  in 
with  a  vessel  in  which  were  six  Englishmen,  who  were  part  of 
a  crew  of  Buccaneers  that  had  been  six  months  in  the  South 
Sea,  under  the  command  of  a  William  Knight.  These  six  men 
had  been  sent  in  a  canoe  in  chase  of  a  vessel,  which  they 
came  up  with  and  took;  but  they  had  chased  out  of  sight 
of  their  own  ship,  and  could  not  afterwards  find  her.  Davis 
gave  the  command  of  this  vessel  to  Harris,  who  took  possession 
of  her  with  a  crew  of  his  own  followers,  and  he  was  sent  to  the 
River  Santa  Maria  to  look  for  the  buccaneers,  of  whose  coming 
the  Indians  had  given  information. 

This  was  the  latter  part  of  the  dry  season  in  the  Bay  of 

Panama. 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA. 


173 


Panama.  Hitherto  fresh  water  had  been  found  in  plenty  at 
the  Pearl  Islands ;  but  the  springs  and  rivulets  were  now 
dried  up.  The  Buccaneers  examined  within  Point  Garachina, 
but  found  no  fresh  water.  They  searched  along  the  coast 
Southward,  and  on  the  25th,  at  a  narrow  opening  in  the  main^ 
land  with  two  small  rocky  Islands  before  it,  about  seven  leagues 
distant  from  Point  Garachina,  which  Dampier  supposed  to  be 
Port  de  Pinas,  they  found  a  stream  of  good  water  which  ran 
into  the  sea ;  but  the  harbour  was  open  to  the  SW,  and  a  swell 
set  in,  which  rendered  watering  there  difficult  and  hazardous : 
the  fleet  (for  they  were  nine  sail  in  company)  therefore  stood 
for  the  Island  Taboga,  '  where/  says  Dampier,  '  we  were  sure 
'  to  find  a  supply.' 

Their  boats  being  sent  before  the  ships,  came  unexpectedly 
upon  some  of  the  inhabitants  of  Panama  who  were  loading  a 
canoe  with  plantains,  and  took  them  prisoners.  One  among 
these,  a  Mulatto,  had  the  imprudence  to  say  he  was  in  the  fire- 
ship  which  had  been  sent  in  the  night  to  burn  the  Buccaneer 
ships  ;  upon  which,  the  Buccaneers  immediately  hanged  him. 

They  had  chocolate,  but  no  sugar ;  and  all  the  kettles  they 
possessed,  constantly  kept  boiling,  were  not  sufficient  to  dress 
victuals  for  so  many  men.  Whilst  the  ships  lay  at  Taboga,  a 
detachment  was  sent  to  a  sugar-work  on  the  mainland,  from 
which  they  returned  with  sugar  and  three  coppers. 

On  the  1 1  th  of  April,  they  went  from  Tabogo  to  the  Pearl 
Islands,  and  were  there  joined  by  the  Flibustiers  and  Bucca- 
neers of  whose  coming  they  had  been  last  apprised,  consisting 
of  264  men,  commanded  by  Frenchmen  named  Rose,  Le 
Picard,  and  Des-marais.  Le  Picard  was  a  veteran  who  had 
served  under  Lolonois  and  Morgan.  In  this  party  came 
Raveneau  de  Lussan,  whose  Journal  is  said  to  be  the  only  one 
kept  by  an}r  of  the  French  who  were  in  this  expedition. 

Lussan's 


CHAP.   14. 
l685. 

March, 

Bay  of 
Panama. 


Port  de 
Pinas. 

25th. 


Taboga 
Isle. 

April. 


More 

Buccaneers 
arrive. 


174 


BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA 


1685. 

April. 

Bay  of 
Panama. 


CHAP.  14.  Lussan's  Narrative  is  written  with  much  misplaced  gaiety, 
which  comes  early  into  notice,  and  shews  him  to  have  been, 
even  whilst  young  and  unpractised  in  the  occupation  of  a  Buc- 
caneer, of  a  disposition  delighting  in  cruelty.  In  the  account 
of  his  journey  overland  from  the  West  Indies,  he  relates 
instances  which  he  witnessed  of  the  great  dexterity  of  the 
monkeys  which  inhabited  the  forests,  and  among  others  the 
following:  '  Je  ne  puis  me  souvenir  sans  rire  de  faction  queje  -vis 

*  faire  a  tin  de  ces  animaux,  auquel  apres  avoir  tirS  plusieurs  coups 
'  de  fusil  qui  lui  emportoient  une  par  tie  du  -venire,  en  sorte  que 
'  toutes  ses  tripes  sortoient ;  je  le  vis  se  tenir  d'une  de  ses  pates,  ou 
'  mains  si  Von  veut,  a  une  branche  d'arbre,  tandis  que  de  I'autre  il 

*  ramassoit  ses  intestins  qu'il  se  refouroit  dans  ce  qui  lui  restoit  de 
'  ventre  */ 

Ambrose  Cowley  and  Raveneau  de  Lussan  are  well  matched 
for  comparison,  alike  not  only  in  their  dispositions,  but  in 
their  conceptions,  which  made  them  imagine  the  recital  of 
such  actions  would  be  read  with  delight. 

The  Buccaneers  in  the  Bay  of  Panama  were  now  nearly  a  thou- 
sand strong,  and  they  held  a  consultation  whether  or  not  they 
should  attack  the  city.  They  had  just  before  learnt  from  an 
intercepted  packet  that  the  Lima  Fleet  was  at  sea,  richly  charged 
with  treasure;  and  that  it  was  composed  of  all  the  naval  force 
the  Spaniards  in  Pern  had  been  able  to  collect :  it  was  therefore 
agreed  not  to  attempt  the  city  at  the  present,  but  to  wait 
patiently  the  arrival  of  the  Spanish  fleet,  and  give  it  battle. 
The  only  enterprise  they  undertook  on  the  main-land  in  the 
mean  time,  was  against  the  town  of  Chepo,  where  they  found 
neither  opposition  nor  plunder. 

The  small  Island  Chepillo  near  the  mouth  of  the  river  which 
leads  to  Chepo.  Dampier  reckoned  the  most  pleasant  of  all  the 

Islands 

*  Journal  du  Voyage  an  Mer  du  Sud,par  Rat.  de  Lussan,  p.  25. 


Chepo. 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  175 

Islands  in  the  Bay  of  Panama.    'It  is  low  on  the  North  side,    CHAP.  14. 
'  and  rises  by  a  small  ascent  towards  the  South  side.    The  soil      ^s^. 
'  is  yellow,  a  kind  of  clay.    The  low  land  is  planted  with  all      April. 
'  sorts  of  delicate  fruits/   The  Islands  in  the  Bay  being  occu-     Bay  of 
pied  by  the  Buccaneers,  caused  great    scarcity  of  provision 
and  distress  at  Panama,  much  of  the  consumption   in  that  city 
having  usually  been  supplied  from  the  Islands,  which  on  that 
account  and   for  their  pleasantness  were  called   the  Gardens 
of  Panama. 

In  this  situation  things  remained  till  near  the  end  of  May, 
the  Buccaneers  in  daily  expectation  of  seeing  the  fleet  from 
Lima,  of  Avhich  it  is  now  time  to  speak. 


176  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.      XV. 

Edward  Davis  Commander.  Meeting  of  the  Spanish  and  Bucca- 
neer Fleets  in  the  Bay  of  Panama.  They  separate  without 
fighting.  The  Buccaneers  sail  to  the  Island  Quibo.  The  English 
and  French  separate.  Expedition  against  the  City  of  Leon. 
That  City  and  Ria  Lexa  burnt.  Farther  dispersion  of  the 
Buccaneers. 


CHA 


p.  15.  n  "'HE  Viceroy  of  Peru  judged  the  Fleet  lie  had  collected,  to 
1685"  De  strong  enough  to  encounter  the  Buccaneers,  and  did 

May.      not  fear  to  trust  the  treasure  to  its  protection;  but  he  gave 
Bay  of     directions   to  the   Commander   of  the  Fleet  to  endeavour  to 
avoid  a  meeting  with  them  until  after  the  treasure  should  be 
safely  landed.   In  pursuance  of  this  plan,  the  Spanish  Admiral, 
as  he  drew  near  the  Bay  of  Panama,  kept  more  Westward  than 
the  usual  course,  and  fell  in  with  the  coast  of  Veragua  to  the 
The        West  of  the  Punta  Mala.    Afterwards,  he  entered  the  Bay  with 
Lima  Fleet  m'g  Qeej-  keeping;  close  to  the  West  shore ;  and  to  place  the 

arrives  at 

Panama,  treasure  out  of  danger  as  soon  as  possible,  he  landed  it  at 
Lavelia,  thinking  it  most  probable  his  fleet  would  be  descried 
by  the  enemy  before  he  could  reach  Panama,  which  must  have 
happened  if  the  weather  had  not  been  thick,  or  if  the  Bucca- 
neers had  kept  a  sharper  look-out  by  stationing  tenders  across 
the  entrance  of  the  Bay.  In  consequence  of  this  being  neglected, 
the  Spanish  fleet  arrived  and  anchored  before  the  city  of 
Panama  without  having  been  perceived  by  them,  and  imme- 
diately on  their  arrival,  the  crews  of  the  ships  were  reinforced 
with  a  number  of  European  seamen  who  had  purposely  been 
sent  over  land  from  Porto  Bello.  Thus  strengthened,  and  the 

treasure 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  177 

treasure  being  placed  out  of  danger,  the  Spanish  Admiral  took    CHAP.  15^ 
up  his  anchors,  and  stood  from  the  road  before  Panama  towards       1685. 
the  middle  of  the  Bay,  in  quest  of  the  Buccaneers.  May- 

May  the  28th,  the  morning  was  rainy  :  the  Buccaneer  fleet    p^^I 
was  lying  at  anchor  near  the  Island  Pacheca,  the  Northernmost      28th. 
of  the  Pearl  Islands.    At  eleven  o'clock  in   the   forenoon,  the 
weather  cleared  up,  when  the  Spanish  fleet  appeared  in  sight 
about  three  leagues  distant  from  them  to  the  WNW.    The  wind 
was  light  from  the  Southward,  and  they  were  standing  sharp 
trimmed  towards  the  Buccaneers. 

Lussan  dates  this  their  meeting  with  the  Spanish  Fleet,  to  be  Meeting  of 
on  June  the  7th.     Ten  days  alteration  of  the  style  had  taken     j^eis0 
place  in  France  three  years  before,  and  no  alteration  of  style 
had  yet  been  adopted  in  England. 

The  Buccaneer  fleet  was  composed  of  ten  sail  of  vessels,  of  Force  of 
different  sizes,  manned  with  960  men,  almost  all  Europeans ;  Buccaneer* 
but,  excepting  the  Batchelor's  Delight  and  the  Cygnet,  none  of 
their  vessels  had  cannon.  Edward  Davis  was  regarded  as  the 
Admiral.  His  ship  mounted  36  guns,  and  had  a  crew  of  156 
men,  most  of  them  English ;  but  as  he  was  furnished  with  a 
French  commission,  and  France  was  still  at  war  with  Spain,  he 
carried  aloft  a  white  flag,  in  which  was  painted  a  hand  and  sword. 
Swan's  ship  had  16  guns,  with  a  crew  of  140  men,  all  English, 
and  carried  a  Saint  George's  flag  at  her  main-topmast  head. 
The  rest  of  their  fleet  was  well  provided  with  small-arms,  and 
the  crews  were  dexterous  in  the  use  of  them.  Grogniet's  ship 
was  the  most  powerful,  except  in  cannon,  her  crew  consisting 
of  308  men. 

The  Spanish  fleet  numbered  fourteen  sail,  six  of  which  were  Force  of  the 
provided   with    cannon  ;    six    others  with  musketry  only,  and     " 
two  were  fitted  up  as  fire-ships.  The  buccaneer  accounts  say  the 
Spanish  Admiral  had  48  guns  mounted,  and  450  men  ;  the  Vice- 

A  A  Admiral 


178  BUCCANEERS  OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  15.  Admiral  40  guns,  and  men  in  proportion  ;  the  Rear-Admiral 
1685.  36  guns,  one  of  the  other  ships  £4,  one  18,  and  one  8  guns  ; 
May.  and  that  the  number  of  men  in  their  fleet  was  above  2500  ; 


of     fjU£  more  than  one  half  of  them  Indians  or  slaves. 
.Panama. 

When  the  two  fleets  first  had  sight  of  each  other,  Grogniet's 

ship  lay  at  anchor  a  mile  to  leeward  of  his  confederates,  on 
which  account  he  weighed  anchor,  and  stood  close  upon  a 
wind  to  the  Eastward,  intending  to  turn  up  to  the  other  ships; 
but  in  endeavouring  to  tack,  he  missed  stays  twice,  which  kept 
him  at  a  distance  all  the  fore  part  of  the  day.  From  the  supe- 
riority of  the  Spaniards  in  cannon,  and  of  the  buccaneer  crews 
in  musketry,  it  was  evident  that  distant  fighting  was  most  to 
the  advantage  of  the  Spaniards  ;  and  that  the  Buccaneers  had 
to  rest  their  hopes  of  success  on  close  fighting  and  boarding. 
Davis  was  fully  of  this  opinion,  and  at  three  o'clock  in  the 
afternoon,  the  enemy's  fleet  being  directly  to  leeward  and  not 
far  distant,  he  got  his  vessels  under  sail  and  bore  right  down 
upon  them,  making  a  signal  at  the  same  time  to  Grogniet 
to  board  the  Spanish  Vice-Admiral,  who  was  some  distance 
separate  from  the  other  ships  of  his  fleet. 

Here  may  be  contemplated  the  Buccaneers  at  the  highest 
pitch  of  elevation  to  which  they  at  any  time  attained.  If  they 
obtained  the  victory,  it  would  give  them  the  sole  dominion  of 
the  South  Sea  ;  and  Davis,  the  buccaneer  Commander,  aimed 
at  no  less;  but  he  was  ill  seconded,  and  was  not  possessed  of 
authority  to  enforce  obedience  to  his  commands. 

The  order  given  to  Grogniet  was  not  put  in  execution,  and 
when  Davis  had  arrived  with  his  ship  within  cannon-shot  of  the 
Spaniards,  Swan  shortened  sail  and  lowered  his  ensign,  to 
signify  he  was  of  opinion  that  it  would  be  best  to  postpone 
fighting  till  the  next  day.  Davis  wanting  the  support  of  two 
of  the  most  able  ships  of  his  fleet,  was  obliged  to  forego  his 
•  intention, 


IN  THE   SOUTH   SEA.  179 

intention,  and  no  act  of  hostility  passed  during  the  afternoon  «HAP.  15. 
and  evening  except  the  exchange  of  some  shot  between  his  own       ^g- 
ship  and  that  of  the  Spanish  Vice- Admiral.  May. 

When  it  was  dark,  the  Spanish  fleet  anchored,  and  at  the  same     Ba7  of 
time,  the  Spanish  Admiral  took  in  his  light,  and  ordered  a  light 
to  be  shewn  from  one  of  his  small  vessels,  which  he  sent  to  lee- 
ward.   The  Buccaneers  were  deceived  by  this  artifice,  believing 
the  light  they  saw  to  be  that  of  the  Spanish  Admiral,  and  they 
continued  under  sail,  thinking  themselves  secure  of  the  weather- 
gage.     At    daylight    the  next   morning    the    Spaniards   were      29th. 
seen  well  collected,    whilst  the    buccaneer  vessels  were  much 
dispersed.     Grogniet  and  Townley  were  to   windward  of  the 
Spaniards ;  but  all  the  rest,  contrary  to  what  they  had  expected, 
were    to   leeward.     At    sunrise,   the  Spanish    fleet  got  under 
sail    and   bore   down   towards   the   leeward  buccaneer    ships. 
The  Buccaneers   thought  it  not  prudent  to  fight  under  such 
disadvantages,  and  did  not  wait  to  receive  them.    They  were 
near  the  small  Island  Pacheca,  on  the  South  side  of  which 
are  some  Islands  yet  smaller.     Among  these  Islands,  Dampier 
says,  is  a  narrow  channel  in  one  part  not   forty  feet  wide. 
Townley,   being  pressed  by  the  Spaniards  and  in  danger  of 
being  intercepted,  pushed  for  this  passage  without  any  pre- 
vious examination  of  the  depth  of  water,  and  got  safe  through. 
Davis  and  Swan,  whose  ships  were  the  fastest  sailing  in  either 
fleet,   had  the  credit  of  affording    protection    to  their  flying 
companions,  by  waiting  to  repulse  the  most  advanced  of  the 
Spaniards.     Dampier,  who  was  in  Davis's  ship,  says,  she  was 
pressed   upon   by   the  whole    Spanish   force.     '  The   Spanish 
'  Admiral  and  the  rest  of  his  sqadron  began  to  play  at  us  and 
'  we  at  them  as  fast  as  we  could :  yet  they  kept  at  distant, 

*  cannonading.  They  might  have  laid  us  aboard  if  they  would, 

*  but  they  came  not  within  small-arms  shot,  intending  to  maul 

A   A  2  *    US 


180 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  15, 

l685. 

May. 

Bay  of 
Panama. 

30th. 


• 


The  two 

Fleets 

separate. 


:  us  in  pieces  with  their  great  guns/  After  a  circuitous  chace 
and  running  fight,  which  lasted  till  the  evening,  the  Buccaneers, 
Harris's  ship  excepted,  which  had  been  forced  to  make  off  in  a 
different  direction,  anchored  by  the  Island  Pacheca,  nearly  in 
the  same  spot  whence  they  had  set  out  in  the  morning. 

On  the  30th,  at  daylight,  the  Spanish  fleet  was  seen  at  anchor 
three  leagues  to  leeward.  The  breeze  was  faint,  and  both  fleetslay 
quiet  till  ten  o'clock  in  the  forenoon.  The  wind  then  freshened 
a  little  from  the  South,  and  the  Spaniards  took  up  their 
anchors;  but  instead  of  making  towards  the  Buccaneers,  they 
sailed  away  in  a  disgraceful  manner  for  Panama.  Whether  they 
sustained  any  loss  in  this  skirmishing  does  not  appear.  The 
Buccaneers  had  only  one  man  killed  outright.  In  Davis's  ship, 
six  men  were  wounded,  and  half  of  her  rudder  was  shot  away. 

It  might  seem  to  those  little  acquainted  with  the  management 
of  ships  that  it  could  make  no  material  difference  whether 
the  Spaniards  bore  down  to  engage  the  Buccaneers,  or  the 
Buccaneers  bore  down  to  engage  the  Spaniards ;  for  that 
in  either  case  when  the  fleets  were  closed,  the  Buccaneers 
might  have  tried  the  event  of  boarding.  But  the  difference 
'here  was,  that  if  the  Buccaneers  had  the  weather-gage,  it 
enabled  them  to  close  with  the  enemy  in  the  most  speedy 
manner,  which  was  of  much  consequence  where  the  disparity  in 
the  number  of  cannon  was  so  great.  When  the  Spaniards  had  the 
weather-gage,  they  would  press  the  approach  only  near  enough 
to  give  effect  to  their  cannon,  and  not  near  enough  for  musketry 
to  do  them  mischief.  With  this  view,  they  could  choose  their 
distance  when  to.  stop  and  bring  their  broadsides  to  bear,  and 
leave  to  the  Buccaneers  the  trouble  of  making  nearer  approach, 
against  the  wind  and  a  heavy  cannonade.  Dampicr,  who  has 
related  the  transactions  of  the  28th  and  29th  very  briefly,  speaks 
of  the  weather-gage  here  as  a  decisive  advantage.  He  says, 

"  In 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA. 


J81 


1685. 
May. 

Bay  of 

Panama. 


June. 


c<  In  the  morning  (of  the  29th)  therefore,  when  we  found  the    CHAP.  15. 
"  enemy  had  got  the   weather-gage  of  us,   and  were  coming 
"  upon  us  with  full  sail,  we  ran  for  it." 

On  this  occasion  there  is  no  room  for  commendation  on  the 
valour  of  either  party.  The  Buccaneers,  however,  knew,  by  the 
Spanish  fleet  coming  to  them  from  Panama,  that  the  treasure 
must  have  been  landed,  and  therefore  they  could  have  had  little 
motive  for  enterprise.  The  meeting  was  faintly  sought  by  both 
sides,  and  no  battle  was  fought,  except  a  little  cannonading 
during  the  retreat  of  the  Buccaneers,  which  on  their  side  was 
almost  wholly  confined  to  the  ship  of  their  Commander.  Both 
Dampier  and  Lussan  acknowledge  that  Edward  Davis  brought 
the  whole  of  the  buccaneer  fleet  off  safe  from  the  Spaniards 
by  his  courage  and  good  management. 

On  June  the  1st.  the  Buccaneers  sailed  out  of  the  Bay  of 
Panama  for  the  Island  Quibo.  They  had  to  beat  up  against 
SW  winds,  and  had  much  wet  weather.  In  the  middle  of  June, 
they  anchored  on  the  East  side  of  Quibo,  where  they  were 
joined  by  Harris. 

Quibo  and  the  smaller  Islands  near  it,  Dampier  calls  collec- 
tively, the  Keys  of  Quibo.  They  are  all  woody.  Good  fresh 
water  was  found  on  the  great  Island,  which  would  naturally  be 
the  case  with  the  wet  weather  ;  and  here  were  deer,  guanoes,  and 
large  black  monkeys,  whose  flesh  was  esteemed  by  the  Bucca- 
neers to  be  sweet  and  wholesome  food. 

A  shoal  which  runs  out  from  the  SE  point  of  Quibo  half  a 
mile  into  the  sea,  has  been  already  noticed  :  a  league  to  the 
North  of  this  shoal,  and  a  mile  distant  from  the  shore,  is  a 
rock  which  appears  above  water  only  at  the  last  quarter  ebb. 
Except  the  shoal,  and  this  rock,  there  is  no  other  danger;  and 
ships  may  anchor  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  shore,  in 
from  six  to  twelve  fathoms  clear  sand  and  ooze  *. 

They 

*  Dumpier,  Vol.  1,  Chap.  8. 


Keys  of 
Quibo. 
Island 


near 
the 

Anchorage. 


182  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  15.      They  stopped  at  Quibo  to  make  themselves  canoes,  the  trees 

a685.      there  being  well  suited  for  the  purpose,  and  some  so  large  that 

June.      a  single  trunk  hollowed  and  wrought  into  shape,  would  carry 

At  the      forty  or  fifty  men.    Whilst  this  work  was  performing,  a  strong 

Quibo.     party  was  sent  to  the  main-land  against  Pueblo  Nieevo,  which 

town  was  now  entered   without  opposition  ;    but   no  plunder 

was  obtained. 

Serpents.        Lussan  relates  that  two  of  the  Buccaneers  were  killed  by 
serpents  at  Quibo.  He  says,  '  here  are  serpents  whose  bite  is  so 

*  venemous  that    speedy   death    inevitably  ensues,   unless  the 
'  patient  can  have  immediate  recourse  to  a  certain  fruit,  which 

The       <  must  be  chewed  and  applied  to  the  part  bitten.  The  tree  which 

Beny!      *  bears  this  fruit  grows  here,  and  in  other  parts  of  America.    It 

'  resembles   the   almond-tree   in   France  in  height  and  in  its 

'  leaves.    The  fruit  is  like  the  sea  chesnut  (Chataines  de  Mer) 

'  but  is  of  a  grey  colour,  rather  bitter  in  taste,  and  contains 

*  in  its  middle  a  whitish  almond.    The  whole  is   to  be  chewed 

*  together  befere  it  is  applied.    It  is  called  (Graine  d  Serpent)      • 
'  the  Serpent  Berry.' 

July-  The  dissatisfaction  caused  by  their  being  foiled  in  the  Bay  of 

rnents°~  Ponama,  broke  out  in  reproaches,  and  produced  great  disagree- 
among  the  mcnts  among  the  Buccaneers.  Many  blamed  Grogniet  for  not 
coming  into  battle  the  first  da}'.  On  the  other  hand,  Lussan 
blames  the  behaviour  of  the  English,  who,  he  says,  being  the 
greater  number,  lorded  it  over  the  French  ;  that  Townley, 
liking  Grogniet's  ship  better  than  his  own,  would  have  insisted 
on  a  change,  if  the  French  had  not  shewn  a  determination  to 
resist  such  an  imposition.  Another  cause  of  complaint  against 
the  English  was,  the  indecent  and  irreverent  manner  in  which 
they  shewed  their  haired  to  the  Roman  Catholic  religion. 
Lussan  says,  '  When  they  entered  the  Spanish  churches,  it  was 

*  their  diversion  to  hack  and  mutilate  every  thing  with  their 
'  cutlasses,  and  to  fire  their  muskets  and  pistols  at  the  images 

«  of 


IN    THE    SOUTH    SEA.  183 

'  of  the  Saints/    In  consequence  of  these  disagreements,  330  of  CHAP.  15. 
the  French  joined  together  under  Grogniet,  and  separated  from       1685. 
the  English.  The  French 

SG  DcH'tltf 

Before  either  of  the  parties  had  left  Quibo,  William  Knight,  a    flom  the 
Buccaneer  already  mentioned,  arrived  there  in  a  ship  manned     Engllsh- 
with  40  Englishmen   and  1 1    Frenchmen.    This  small  crew  of  Buccaneer 
Buccaneers  had  crossed  the  Isthmus  about  nine  months  before ; 
they  had  been  cruising  both  on  the  coast  of  New  Spain  and  on 
the  coast  of  Peru  ;  and  the  sum  of  their  successes  amounted  to 
their  being  provided  with  a  good  vessel  and  a  good  stock  of 
provisions.    They  had   latterly  been  to  the  Southward,  where 
they  learnt  that  the  Lima  fleet  had  sailed  against  the  Bucca- 
neers before  Panama,  which  was  the  first  notice  they  received 
of  other  Buccaneers  than  themselves  being  in   the  South  Sea. 
On   the  intelligence,  they  immediately  sailed  for  the  Bat/  of 
Panama,  that  they  might  be  present  and  share  in  the  capture 
of  the  Spaniards,  which  they  believed  would  inevitably  be  the 
result  of  a  meeting.    On  arriving  in  the  "Bay  of  Panama,  they 
learnt  what  really  had  happened  :  nevertheless,  they  proceeded 
toQuibo  in  search  of  their  friends.    The  Frenchmen  in  Knight's 
ship  left  her  to  join  their  countrymen  :  Knight  and  the  rest  of 
the  crew,  put  themselves  under  the  command  of  Davis. 

The  ship  commanded  by  Harris,  was  found  to  be  in  a 
decayed  state  and  untenantable.  Another  vessel  was  given  to 
him  and  his  crew ;  but  the  whole  company  were  so  much 
crowded  for  want  of  ship  room,  that  a  number  remained 
constantly  in  canoes.  One  of  the  canoes  which  they  built  at 
Quibo  measured  36  feet  in  length,  and  between  5  and  6  feet 
in  width. 

Davis  and  the  English  party,  having  determined  to  attack 
the  city  of  Leon  in  the  province  of  Nicaragua,  sent  an  invita- 
tion to  the  French  Buccaneers  to  rejoin  them.  The  French 

had 


184 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  15, 
l685. 

July. 

At  the 
Island 
Quibo. 


Proceed- 
ings of 
Edward 
Davis. 


August. 

Expedition 
against 

the  City  of 
Leon. 


had  only  one  ship,  which  was  far  from  sufficient  to  contain 
their  whole  number,  and  they  demanded,  as  a  condition  of 
their  uniting  again  with  the  English,  that  another  vessel  should 
be  given  to  themselves.  The  English  could  ill  spare  a  ship,  and 
would  not  agree  to  the  proposition  ;  the  separation  therefore 
was  final.  Jean  Rose,  a  Frenchman,  with  fourteen  of  his  coun- 
trymen, in  a  new  canoe  they  had  built  for  themselves,  left 
Grogniet  to  try  their  fortunes  under  Davis. 

In  this,  and  in  other  separations  which  subsequently  took 
place  among  the  Buccaneers,  it  has  been  thought  the  most  clear 
and  convenient  arrangement  of  narrative,  to  follow  the  fortunes 
of  the  buccaneer  Commander  Edward  Davis  and  his  ad- 
herents, without  interruption,  to  the  conclusion  of  their  adven- 
tures in  the  South  Sea ;  and  afterwards  to  resume  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  other  adventurers. 

On  the  20th  of  July,  Davis  with  eight  vessels  and  640  men, 
departed  from  the  Island  Quibo  for  Ria  Lexa,  sailing  through 
the  channel  between  Quibo  and  the  main-land,  and  along  the 
coast  of  the  latter,  which  was  low  and  overgrown  with  thick 
woods,  and  appeared  thin  of  inhabitants.  August  the  9th,  at 
eight  in  the  morning,  the  ships  being  then  so  far  out  in  the 
offing  that  they  could  not  be  descried  from  the  shore,  Davis  with 
520  men  went  away  in  31  canoes  for  the  harbour  of  Ria  Lcxa. 
They  set  out  with  fair  weather  ;  but  at  two  in  the  afternoon,  a 
tornado  came  from  the  land,  with  thunder,  lightning,  and 
rain,  and  with  such  violent  gusts  of  wind  that  the  canoes  were 
all  obliged  to  put  right  before  it,  to  avoid  being  overwhelmed 
by  the  billows.  Dampier  remarks  generally  of  the  hot  latitudes, 
as  Lussan  does  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  that  the  sea  there  is  soon 
raised  by  the  wind,  and  when  the  wind  abates  is  soon  down 
again.  Up  Wind  Up  Sea,  Down  Wind  Down  Sea,  is  proverbial 
between  the  tropics  among  seamen.  The  fierceness  of  the 

tornado 


IN   THE    SOUTH   SEA.  185 

tornado  continued  about  half  an  hour,  after  which  the  wind    c  H  A  p.  15. 
gradually  abated,  and  the  canoes  again  made  towards  the  land.       l6g5> 
At  seven  in  the  evening  it  was  calm,  and  the  sea  quite  smooth.     August. 
During  the  night,  the  Buccaneers,  having   the  direction  of  a    Proceed-. 
Spanish  pilot,  entered  a  narrow  creek  which  led  towards  Leon',  Edw?Davis. 
but  the  pilot  could  not  undertake  to  proceed  up  till  daylight, 
lest  he  should   mistake,   there   being   several  creeks  commu- 
nicating with  each  other. 

The  city  of  Leon  bordered  on  the  Lake  of  Nicaragua,  and  Leon, 
was  reckoned  twenty  miles  within  the  sea  coast.  They  went 
only  a  part  of  this  distance  by  the  river,  when  Davis,  leaving 
sixty  men  to  guard  the  canoes,  landed  with  the  rest  and 
marched  towards  the  city,  two  miles  short  of  which  they 
passed  through  an  Indian  town.  Leon  had  a  cathedral  and 
three  other  churches.  It  was  not  fortified,  and  the  Spaniards, 
though  they  drew  up  their  force  in  the  Great  Square  or 
Parade,  did  not  think  themselves  strong  enough  to  defend  the 
place.  About  three  in  the  afternoon,  the  Buccaneers  entered, 
and  the  Spaniards  retired. 

All  the  Buccaneers  who  landed  did  not  arrive  at  Leon  that 
same  day.  According  to  their  ability  for  the  march,  Davis  had 
disposed  his  men  into  divisions.  The  foremost  wa1!  composed 
of  all  the  most  active,  who  marched  without  delay  for  the  town, 
the  other  divisions  following  as  speedily  as  they  were  able.  The 
rear  division  being  of  course  composed  of  the  worst  travellers, 
some  of  them  could  not  keep  pace  even  with  their  own  divi- 
sion. They  all  came  in  afterwards  except  two,  one  of  whom  was 
killed,  and  the  other  taken  prisoner.  The  man  killed  was  a 
stout  grey-headed  old  man  of  the  name  of  Swan,  aged  about 
84  years,  who  had  served  under  Cromwell,  and  had  ever  since 
made  privateering  or  buccaneering  his  occupation.  This  veteran 
would  not  be  dissuaded  from  going  on  the  enterprise  against 

B  B  Leon ; 


186  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  15.  Leon ;  but  his  strength  failed  in  the  march ;  and  after  being 

1685.  left  in  the  road,  he  was  found  by  the  Spaniards,  who  endeavoured 

August,  to  make  him  their  prisoner ;  but  he  refused  to  surrender,  and 

Proceed-  f]re(j  jjjs  niusket  amongst  them,  having  in  reserve  a  pistol  still 

ings  of 

Edw.  Davis,  charged  ;  on  which  he  was  shot  dead. 

The  houses  in  Leon  were  large,  built  of  stone,  but  not  high, 
with  gardens  about  them.    '  Some  have  recommended  Leon  as 

*  the  most  pleasant  place  in  all  America ;  and  for  health  and 

*  pleasure  it  does  surpass  most  places.    The  country  round  is  of 

*  a  sandy  soil,  which  soon  drinks  up  the  rains  to  which  these 
'  parts  are  much  subject  *.' 

Leon  burnt  The  Buccaneers  being  masters  of  the  city,  the  Governor 
Buccaneers  sen^  a  ^aS  °^  truce  to  treat  for  its  ransom.  They  demanded 
300,000  dollars,  and  as  much  provision  as  would  subsist  1000 
men  four  months:  also  that  the  Buccaneer  taken  prisoner  should 
be  exchanged.  These  demands  it  is  probable  the  Spaniards  never 
intended  to  comply  with ;  however  they  prolonged  the  nego- 
ciation,  till  the  Buccaneers  suspected  it  was  for  the  purpose  of 
collecting  force.  Therefore,  on  the  14th,  they  set  fire  to  the 
city,  and  returned  to  the  coast.  The  town  of  Jim  Leva  under- 
went a  similar  fate,  contrary  to  the  intention  of  the  Buccaneer 
Commander. 

Ria  Lexa.  Ria  Lexa  is  unwholesomely  situated  in  a  plain  among  creeks 
and  swamps,  '  and  is  never  free  from  a  noisome  smell.'  The 
soil  is  a  strong  yellow  clay ;  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  town 
were  many  sugar-works  and  beef-farms  ;  pitch,  tar,  and  cordage 
were  made  here;  with  all  which  commodities  the  inhabitants 
carried  on  a  good  trade.  The  Buccaneers  supplied  themselves 
with  as  much  as  they  wanted  of  these  articles,  besides  which, 
they  received  at  Ria  Lexa  150  head  of  cattle  from  a  Spanish 
gentleman,  who  had  been  released  upon  his  parole,  and  pro- 
mise 
*  Dumpier, 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  187 

mise  of  making  such  payment  for  his  ransom  ;  their  own  man   CHAP.  15. 
who  had  been  made  prisoner  was  redeemed  in  exchange  for  a       1685. 
Spanish  lady,  and  they  found  in  the  town  500  packs  of  flour;     August. 
which  circumstances  might  have  put  the  Buccaneers  in  good 
temper  and  have  induced  them  to  spare  the  town;  '  but,'  says    Town  of 
Dampier,  '  some  of  our  destructive  crew,  I  know  not  by  whose      burnt*' 
'  order,  set  fire  to  the  houses,  and  we  marched  away  and  left 
*.  them  burning.' 

After  the  Leon  expedition,  no  object  of  enterprise  occurred  Farther 
to  them  of  sufficient  magnitude  to  induce  or  to  enable  them  to  ^ 
keep  together  in  such  large  force.  Dispersed  in  small  bodies,  Buccaneers 
they  expected  a  better  chance  of  procuring  both  subsistence 
and  plunder.  By  general  consent  therefore,  the  confederacy 
which  had  been  preserved  of  the  English  Buccaneers  was 
relinquished,  and  they  formed  into  new  parties  according  to 
their  several  inclinations.  Swan  proposed  to  cruise  along  the 
coast  of  New  Spain,  and  NW-ward,  as  far  as  to  the  entrance  of 
the  Gulf  of  California,  and  thence  to  take  his  departure  for  the 
East  Indies.  Townley  and  his  followers  agreed  to  try  their 
fortunes  with  Swan  as  long  as  he  remained  on  the  coast  of  New 
Spain;  after  which  they  proposed  to  return  to  the  Isthmus.  In 
the  course  of  settling  these  arrangements,  William  Dampier, 
being  desirous  of  going  to  the  East  Indies,  look  leave  of  his 
commander,  Edward  Davis,  and  embarked  with  Swan.  Of  these, 
an  account  will  be  given  hereafter. 


r.  B  2" 


188  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.     XVI. 

Buccaneers  under  Edward  Davis.  At  Amapalla  Bay ;  Cocoa 
Island',  The  Galapagos  Islands;  Coast  of  Peru.  Peruvian 
Wine.  Knight  quits  the  South  Sea.  Bezoar  Stones.  Marine 
productions  on  Mountains.  Vermejo.  Davis  joins  the  French 
Buccaneers  at  Guayaquil.  Long  Sea  Engagement. 

CHAP.  16.  "\}|7ITH  Davis   there  remained  the  vessels  of  Knight  and 


w 


1685.  Harris,  with  a  tender,  making  in  all  four  sail.    August 

August,     the  27th,  they  sailed  from   the  harbour  of  Ria  Lexa,  and  as 

they  departed  Swan  saluted  them  with  fifteen  guns,  to  which 

Davis  returned  eleven. 
Proceed-        A  sickness  had  broken  out  among  Daris's  people,  which  was 

•  £          I  A  A 

Buccaneers  Attributed    to    the  unwholesomeness  of  the    air,    or    the    bad 

under      water,  at  Ria  Lexa.    After  leaving  the  place,  the  disorder  in- 
Edw. Davis.  ,  ,  .    .  _      .         .,    ,  _    . 

creased,  on  which  account  Davis  sailed  to  the  Bay  oj  Amapalla, 

Bay.  where  on  his  arrival  he  built  huts  on  one  of  the  Islands  in  the 
Bay  for  the  accommodation  of  his  sick  men,  and  landed  them. 
Above  ]  30  of  the  Buccaneers  were  ill  with  a  spotted  fever, 
and  several  died. 

Lionel  Wafer  was  surgeon  with  Davis,  and  has  given  a  brief 

account  of  his  proceedings.    Wafer,  with  some  others,  went  on 

shore  to  the  main  land  on  the  South  side  of  Amapalla  Bay,  to 

seek  for  provisions.    They  walked  to  a  beef  farm  which  was 

A  hot       about  three  miles  from  their  landing.    In  the  way  they  crossed 

er<      a  hot  river  in  an  open  savannah,  or  plairi,  which  they  forded 

with  some  difficulty  on  account  of  its  heat.    This  river  issued 

from  under  a  hill   which  was  not  a  volcano,  though  along  the 

coast  there  xvere  several.    '  I  had  the  curiosity,'  says  Wafer,  '  to 

*  wade 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  isy 

*  wade  up  the  stream  as  far  as  I  had  daylight  to  guide  me.    CHAP,  a 6. 
'  The  water  was  clear  and  shallow,   but  the  steams  were  like       ^85. 

'  those  of  a  boiling  pot,  and  my  hair  was  wet  with  them.    The    Amapalla 

*  jj 

*  river  reeked  without  the  hill  a  great  way.     Some  of  our  men 

*  who  had  the  itch,  bathed   themselves  here,  and  growing  well 
'  soon  after,  their  cure  was  imputed  to  the  sulphureousness  or 

*  other  virtue  of  this  water.'    Here   were   many    wolves,  who 
approached  so  near  and  so  boldly  to  some  who  had  straggled 
from  the  rest  of  their  party,  as  to  give  them  great  alarm,  and 
they  did  not  dare  to  fire,  lest  the  noise  of  their  guns  should 
bring  more  wolves  about  them. 

Davis  remained  some  weeks  at  Amapalla  Bay,  and  departed 
thence  for  the  Peruvian  coast,  with  the  crews  of  his  ships  reco- 
vered. In  their  way  Southward  they  made  Cocos  Island,  and  Cocos 
anchored  in  the  harbour  at  the  NE  part,  where  they  supplied 
themselves  with  excellent  fresh  water  and  cocoa-nuts.  Wafer 
has  given  the  description  following  :  '  The  middle  of  Cocos 
'  Island  is  a  steep  hill,  surrounded  with  a  plain  declining  to  the 

*  sea.    This  plain  is  thick  set  with  cocoa-nut  trees  :  but  what 
'  contributes  greatly    to  the  pleasure  of  the  place  is,  that  a 

*  great  many  springs  of  clear  and  sweet  water  rising  to  the  top 
'  of  the  hill,  are  there  gathered  as  in  a  deep  large  bason  or 

*  pond,  and  the  water  having  no  channel,  it  overflows  the  verge- 
'  of  its  bason  in  several  places,  and   runs  trickling  down  in- 
'  pleasant   streams.     In    some   places  of  its   overflowing,  the 

*  rocky  side  of  the  hill  being  more  than  perpendicular,  and 
'  hanging  over  the  plain  beneath,  the  water  pours  down  in  a 
'  cataract,  so  as  to  leave  a  dry  space  under  the  spout,  and 
'  form   a   kind  of  arch   of  water.    The   freshness   which  the 
'  falling  water  gives  the  air  in  this  hot  climate  makes  this  a 

*  delightful  place.    We  did    not  spare  the   cocoa-nuts.    One 

*  day,   some  of  our  men  being  minded  to  make   themselves 

'  merry, 


190 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


5  HAP.  16.  ' 

1685.       ' 
Cocos      * 

' 

reflect  of 

Excess  in    * 

Milk  'of  the  * 
Cocoa-nut.   * 


At  the 
alaP  a?0 


merry,  went  ashore  and  cut  down  a  great  many  cocoa-nut  trees, 
from  which  they  gathered  the  fruit,  and  drew  about  twenty 
gallons  of  the  milk.  They  then  sat  down  and  drank  healths 
to  the  King  and  Queen,  and  drank  an  excessive  quantity; 
yet  it  did  not  end  in  drunkenness  :  but  this  liquor  so  chilled 
anc^  benumbed  their  nerves  that  they  could  neither  go  nor 
stand.  Nor  could  they  return  on  board  without  the  help  of 
'  those  who  had  not  been  partakers  of  the  frolick,  nor  did  they 
'  recover  under  four  or  five  days'  time  */ 

.  Here  Peter  Harris  broke  off  consortship,  and  departed  for 
the  East  Indies.  The  tender  sailed  at  the  same  time,  probably 
following  the  same  route. 

Davis  and  Knight  continued  to  associate,  and  sailed  together 
from  Cocos  Island  to  the  Galapagos.  At  one  of  these  Islands 
they  found  fresh  water;  the  buccaneer  Journals  do  not  specify 
which  Island,  nor  any  thing  that  can  be  depended  upon  as 
certain  of  its  situation.  Wafer  only  says,  '  From  Cocos  we  came 
'  to  one  of  the  Galapagos  Islands.  At  this  Island  there  was  but 
'  one  watering-place,  and  there  we  careened  our  ship/  Dampier 
was  not  with  them  at  this  time;  but  in  describing  the  Galapagos 
Isles,  he  makes  the  following  mention  of  Davis's  careening 
place.  *  Part  of  what  I  say  of  these  Islands  I  had  from  Captain 
'  Davis,  who  was  there  afterwards,  and  careened  his  ship  at 
'  neither  of  the  Islands  that  we  were  at  in  1684,  but  went  to 
'  other  Islands  more  to  the  Westward,  which  he  found  to  be 

*  good   habitable   Islands,  having  a  deep  fat  soil  capable  of 

*  producing  any  thing  that  grows  in  those  climates  :  they  are 

*  well    watered,    and  have   plenty   of  good    timber.     Captain 
'  Harris  came  hither  likewise,  and  found  some  Islands  that  had 
'  plenty  of  mammee-trees,  and  pretty  large  rivers.    They  have 
'  good  anchoring  in   many  places,  so  that  take  the  Galapagos 

'  Is/and^ 

*  Voyage  and  Description,  Sec.  by  Lionel  Wafer,  p.  191,  and  seq,    London,  i6qc). 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  191 

*  Islands  by  and  large,  they  are  extraordinary  good  places  for  CHAP.  16. 

*  ships  in  distress  to  seek  relief  at*/  i685> 
Wafer  has  not  given  the  date  of  this  visit,  which   was  the  At  the 

second  made   by  Davis   to  the  Galapagos;  but  as  he  stopped 


several  weeks  in  the  Gulf  of  Amnpalla  for  the  recovery  of  his 
sick,  and  afterwards  made  some  stay  at  Cocos  Island,  it  must 
have  been  late  in  the  year,  if  not  after  the  end,  when  he  arrived 
at  the  Galapagos,  and  it  is  probable,  during,  or  immediately 
after,  a  rainy  season. 

The  account  published  by  Wafer,  excepting  what  relates  to 
the  Isthmus  of  Daricn,  consists  of  short  notices  set  down  from 
recollection,  and  occupying  in  the  whole  not  above  fifty 
duodecimo  pages.  He  mentions  a  tree  at  the  Island  of  the 
Galapagos  where  they  careened,  like  a  pear-tree,  '  low  and  not 

*  shrubby,  very  sweet  in  smell,  and  full  of  very  sweet  gum.' 

Davis  and  Knight  took  on  board  their  ships  500  packs  or 
sacks  of  flour  from  the  stores  which  had  formerly  been  depovsited 
at  the  Galapagos.  The  birds  had  devoured  some,  in  consequence 
of  the  bags  having  been  left  exposed. 

From  the  Galapagos,  they  sailed  to  the  coast  of  Peru,  and       1686, 
cruised  in  company   till  near    the   end  of  1686.     They   cap-     Co"  slt  ^ 
tured  many  vessels,  which  they  released  after  plundering  ;  and       Peru. 
attacked  several  towns  along  the  coast.  They  had  sharp  engage- 
ments with  the  Spaniards  at  Guasco,  and  at  Pisco,  the  particulars 
of  which  are  not  related;  but  they  plundered   both  the  towns. 
They  landed  also  at  La  Nasca,  a  small  port  on  the  coast  of 
Peru  in  latitude  about    15°S,  at  which  place  they  furnished 
themselves  with  a  stock  of  wine.    Wafer  says,   *  This  is  a  rich    Peruvian 

*  strong  wine,   in  taste   much   like   Madeira.     It   is    brought    Madeira* 
'  down  out  of  the  country  to  be  shipped  for  Lima  and  Panama. 

*  Sometimes  it  is  kept  here  many  years  stopped  up  in  jars,  of 

*  about  eight  gallons  each:  the  jars  were  under  no  shelter,  but 

'  exposed 
*  Dumpier,     Manuscript  Journal, 


192 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


C'H  A  P.  l6 

1686. 

On  the 

Coast  of 

Peru. 


At  Juan 
Fernandez. 


Knight 

quits  the 

South  Sea. 

Davis 
returns  to 
the  Coast 
of  Peru. 


'  exposed  to  the  scorching  sun,  being  placed  along  the  bay 
'  and  between  the  rocks,  every  merchant  having  his  own  wine 
1  marked/  It  could  not  well  have  been  placed  more  con- 
veniently for  the  Buccaneers. 

They  landed  at  Coquimbo,  which  Wafer  describes   '  a  large 

*  town  with  nine  churches.'    What  they  did  there  is  not  said. 
Wafer  mentions  a  small  river  that  emptied   itself  in  a  bay, 
three  miles   from   the    town,    in    which,    up  the  country,  the 
Spaniards  get  gold.    '  The  sands  of  the  river  by  the  sea,  and 

*  round  the  whole  Bay,  are  all  bespangled  with  particles   of 

*  gold ;    insomuch    that  in    travelling   along   the  sandy  bays, 

*  our  people  were  covered  with  a  fine  gold-dust,  but  too  fine  for 
'  any  profit,  for  it  would  be  an  endless  work  to  pick  it  up.' 

Statistical  accounts  of  the  Viceroyalty  of  Peru,  which  during 
a  succession  of  years  were  printed  annually  at  the  end  of  the 
Lima  Almanack,  notice  the  towns  of  Santa  Maria  de  la  Perilla, 
Guasca,  Santiago  de  Mirajlores,  Canete,  Pisco,  Huara,  and 
Guayaquil,  being  sacked  and  in  part  destroyed  by  pirates,  in 
the  years  1685,  1686,  and  1687. 

Davis  and  Knight  having  made  much  booty  (Lussan  says  so 
much  that  the  share  of  each  man  amounted  to  5000  pieces  of 
eight),  they  went  to  the  Island  Juan  Fernandez  to  refit,  intending 
to  sail  thence  for  the  West  Indies :  but  before  they  had  recruited 
and  prepared  the  ships  for  the  voyage  round  the  South  of 
America,  Fortune  made  a  new  distribution  of  their  plunder. 
Many  lost  all  their  money  at  play,  and  they  could  not  endure, 
after  so  much  peril,  to  quit  the  South  Sea  empty  handed,  but 
resolved  to  revisit  the  coast  of  Peru.  The  more  fortunate  party 
embarked  with  Knight  for  the  West  Indies. 

The  luckless  residue,  consisting  of  sixty  Englishmen,  and 
twenty  Frenchmen,  with  Edward  Davis  at  their  head,  remained 
with  the  Batchelor's  Delight  to  begin  their  work  afresh.  They 
sailed  from  Juan  Fernandez  for  the  American  coast,  which  they 

made 


IN   THE    SOUTH   SEA.  193 

made  as  far  South  as  the  Island  Mocha.    By  traffic  with  the  CHAP.  16. 

inhabitants,  they  procured  among  other  provisions,  a  number  of  1687. 

the  Llama  or  Peruvian  sheep.    Wafer  relates,  that  out  of  the  Coast  of 

stomach  of  one  of  these  sheep  he  took  thirteen  Bezoar  stones  Be/oar 

of  several  forms,  '  some  resembling  coral,  some  round,  and  all  Stones. 
'  green  when  first  taken  out;  but  by  long  keeping  they  turned 

*  of  an  ash  colour/ 

In  latitude  26°  S,  wanting  fresh  water,  they  made  search  for     Marine 
the    River  Copiapo.    They  landed  and   ascended   the  hills  in    found  on 
hopes   of  discovering  it.    According  to  Wafer's   computation  Mountains- 
they  went  eight  miles  within  the  coast,  ascending  mountain 
beyotfd  mountain  till  they  were  a  full  mile  in  perpendicular 
height  above  the  level  of  the  sea.    They  found  the  ground  there 
covered  with  sand  and  sea-shells,  '  which/  says  Wafer,  '  I  the 

*  more  wondered  at,  because  there  were  no  shell-fish,  nor  could 

*  I  ever  find  any  shells,  on  any  part  of  the  sea-coast  hereabouts, 

*  though  I  have  looked  for  them  in  many  places.'  They  did  not 
discover  the  river  they  were  in  search  of;  but  shortly  afterwards, 
they  landed  at  Arica,  which  they  plundered  ;  and  at  the  River 
Ylo,  where  they  took  in  fresh  water.  At  Arica  was  a  house  full  of 
Jesuits'  bark.  Wafer  relates,  '  We  also  put  ashore  at  Vermejo,  in    Vermejo. 

*  10°  S  latitude.  I  was  one  of  those  who  landed  to  see  for  water. 
'  We  marched  about  four  miles  up  a  sandy  bay,  which  we  found 
'  covered  with  the  bodies  of  men,  women,  and  children.  These 
'  bodies  to  appearance,  seemed  as  if  they  had  not  been  above 
'  a  week  dead  ;  but  if  touched,  they  proved  dry  and  light  as  a 

*  sponge  or  piece  of  cork.    We  were  told  by  an  old  Spanish 
'  Indian  whom  we  met,  that  in  his  father's  time,  the  soil  there, 
'  which  now  yielded  nothing,  was  well  cultivated  and  fruitful : 
'  that  the  city  of  Wormia  had  been  so  numerously  inhabited 
'  with  Indians,  that  they  could  have  handed  a  fish  from  hand 
'  to  hand  until  it  had  come  to  the  Inca's   hand.    But  that 

C  c  *  when 


194  BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  P.  16.  «  when  the  Spaniards  came  and  laid  siege  to  their  city,  the 

1687.       '  Indians,  rather  than  yield   to  their  mercy,  dug  holes  in  the 

Coast  of    *  sand    and  buried  themselves  alive.    The  men   as  they  now 

'  lie,  have  by  them  their  broken  bows ;  and  the  women  their 

*  spinning-wheels  and  distaffs  with  cotton  yarn  upon  them.    Of 

*  these  dead  bodies  I  brought  on   board  a  boy  of  about  ten 

*  years  of  age  with  an  intent  to  bring  him  to  England;  but  was 

*  frustrated  of  my  purpose  by  the  sailors,  who  had  a  foolish 

*  conceit  that  the   compass  would    not  traverse   right   whilst 
'  there  was  a  dead  body  on  board,  so  they  threw  him  over- 
'  board  to  my  great  vexation  *.' 

April.  Near  this  part  of  the  coast  of  Peru,  in  April  1687,  Da*is  had 

a  severe  action  with  a  Spanish  frigate,  named  the  Katalina,  in 
which  the  drunkenness  of  his  crew  gave  opportunity  to  the 
Spanish  Commander,  who  had  made  a  stout  defence,  to  run 
his  ship  ashore  upon  the  coast.  They  fell  in  with  many  other 
Spanish  vessels,  which,  after  plundering,  they  dismissed. 

Shortly  after  the  engagement  with  the  Spanish  frigate 
Katalina,  Davis  made  a  descent  at  Payta,  to  seek  refreshments 
for  his  wounded  men,  and  surprised  there  a  courier  with  dis- 
patches from  the  Spanish  Commander  at  Guayaquil  to  the 
Viceroy  at  Lima,  by  which  he  learnt  that  a  large  body  of 
English  and  French  Buccaneers  had  attacked,  and  were  then 
in  possession  of,  the  town  of  Guayaquil.  The  Governor  had 
been  taken  prisoner  by  the  Buccaneers,  and  the  Deputy  or 
next  in  authority,  made  pressing  instances  for  speedy  succour, 
in  his  letter  to  the  Viceroy,  which,  according  to  Lussan,  con- 
tained the  following  passage :  '  The  time  has  expired  some  days 
'  which  was  appointed  for  the  ransom  of  our  prisoners.  I  amuse 

*  the  enemy  with  the  hopes  of  some  thousands  of  pieces  of  eight,  and 

*  they  have  sent  me  the  heads  of  four  of  our  prisoners :  but  if  they 

'  send 

*  Wafer's  Voyages,  p.  208. 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA,  195 

:  A  P.  16. 


4  send  me  fifty,  I  should  esteem  it  less  prejudicial  than  our  suffering 
'  these  ruffians  to  live.  If  your  Excellency  will  hasten  the  arma-  1687. 
'  ment  to  our  assistance,  here  will  be  a  fair  opportunity  to  rid  May. 
*  ourselves  of  them.' 

Upon  this  news,  and  the  farther  intelligence  that  Spanish      Davis 
ships  of  war  had  been  dispatched  from  Callao  to  the  relief  of 


Guayaquil,  Davis  sailed  for  that  place,  and,  on  May  the  14th,         at 
arrived  in  the  Bay  of  Guayaquil,  where  he  found  many  of  his 
old  confederates  ;  for  these  were  the  French  Buccaneers  who 
had  separated  from  him  under  Grogniet,  and  the  English  who 
had  gone  with  Townley.  Those  two  leaders  had  been  overtaken 
by  the  perils  of  their  vocation,  and  were  no  more.  But  whilst  in 
their  mortal  career,  and  after  their  separation  from  Davis,  though 
they  had  at  one  time  been  adverse  almost  to  hostility  against  each 
other,  they  had  met,  been  reconciled,  and  had  associated  toge- 
ther.   Townley  died  first,  of  a  wound  he  received  in  battle,  and 
was  succeeded  in  the  command  of  the  English  by  a  Buccaneer 
named   George  Hout  or  Hutt.    At  the  attack   of  Guayaquil, 
Grogniet  was  mortally  wounded;  and  Le  Picard  was  chosen  by 
the  French  to  succeed  him  in  the  command.    Guayaquil  was 
taken  on  the  20th  of  April ;  the  plunder  and  a  number  of  pri- 
soners had  been  conveyed  by  the  Buccaneers  to  their  ships, 
which  were  at  anchor  by  the  Island  Puna,  when  their  unwearied 
good  fortune  brought  Davis  to  join  them. 

The  taking  of  Guayaquil  by  the  Buccaneers  under  Grogniet 
and  Hutt  will  be  more  circumstantially  noticed  in  the  sequel, 
with  other  proceedings  of  the  same  crews.  When  Davis  joined 
them,  they  were  waiting  with  hopes,  nearly  worn  out,  of 
obtaining  a  large  ransom  which  had  been  promised  them  for  the 
town  of  Guayaquil,  and  for  their  prisoners. 
The  information  Davis  had  received  made  him  deem  it 

c  c  2  prudent, 


196 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  l6. 

1687. 

May. 

Near  the 
Island 
Puna. 


26th. 
Meeting 
between 
Spanish 
Ships  of 

War 

and  the 

Buccaneers. 


A  Sea 

Engage- 
ment of 
seven  days. 


prudent,  instead  of  going  to  anchor  at  Puna,  to  remain  with 
his  ship  on  the  look-out  in  the  offing ;  he  therefore  sent  a 
prize-vessel  into  the  road  to  acquaint  the  Buccaneers  there 
of  his  being  near  at  hand,  and  that  the  Spaniards  were  to  be 
expected  shortly. 

The  captors  of  Guayaquil  continued  many  days  after  this  to 
Avait  for  ransom.  They  had  some  hundreds  of  prisoners,  for 
whose  sakes  the  Spaniards  sent  daily  to  the  Buccaneers  large 
supplies  of  provisions,  of  which  the  prisoners  could  expect  to 
receive  only  the  surplus  after  the  Buccaneers  should  be  satis- 
fied. At  length,  the  Spaniards  sent  42,000  pieces  of  eight,  the 
most  part  in  gold,  and  eighty  packages  of  flour.  The  sum  was 
far  short  of  the  first  agreement,  and  the  Buccaneers  at  Puna,  to 
make  suitable  return,  released  only  a  part  of  the  prisoners, 
reserving  for  a  subsequent  settlement  those  of  the  most  con- 
sideration. 

On  the  26th,  they  quitted  the  road  of  Puna,  and  joined 
Davis.  In  the  evening  of  the  same  day,  two  large  Spanish 
ships  came  in  sight.  Davis's  ship  mounted  36  guns;  and  her 
crew,  which  had  been  much  diminished  by  different  engage- 
ments, was  immediately  reinforced  with  80  men  from  Le  Picard's 
party.  Besides  Davis's  ship,  the  Buccaneers  had  only  a  small 
ship  and  a  barca-longa  fit  to  come  into  action.  Their  prize 
vessels  which  could  do  no  service,  were  sent  for  security  into 
shallow  water. 

On  the  morning  of  the  27th,  the  Buccaneers  and  Spaniards 
were  both  without  the  Island  S"  Clara.  The  Spaniards  were 
the  farthest  out  at  sea,  and  had  the  sea-breeze  first,  with  which 
they  bore  down  till  about  noon,  when  being  just  within  the 
reach  of  cannon-shot,  they  hauled  upon  a  wind,  and  began  a 
distant  cannonade,  which  was  continued  till  evening:  the  two 

parties 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA.  197 

parties  then  drew  off  to  about  a  league  asunder,  and  anchored  CHAP.  16. 
for  the  night.    On  the  morning  of  the  28th,  they  took  up  their       1687!" 
anchors,  and  the  day  was  spent  in  distant  firing,  and  in  endea- 
vours to  gain  or  to  keep  the  wind  of  each  other.  The  same  kind 
of  mao3uvring  and  distant  firing  was  put  in  practice  on  each 
succeeding  day,  till  the  evening  of  the  2d  of  June,  which  com-      June, 
pleted    the  seventh   day   of  this  obstinate  engagement.    The 
Spanish  Commander,  being  then  satisfied  that  he  had  fought 
long  enough,   and   hopeless    of  prevailing  on  the   enemy   to       The 
yield,  withdrew  in   the  night.    On  the  morning  of  the  3d,  the 
Buccaneers  were  surprised,  and  not  displeased,  at  finding  no 
enemy  in  sight. 

During  all  this  fighting,  the  Buccaneers  indulged  their  vanity 
by  keeping  the  Governor  of  Guayaquil,  and  other  prisoners  of 
distinction,  upon  deck,  to  witness  the  superiority  of  their 
management  over  that  of  the  Spaniards.  It  was  not  indeed  a 
post  of  much  danger,  for  in  the  whole  seven  days  battle, 
not  one  Buccaneer  was  killed,  and  only  two  or  three  were 
wounded. 

It  may  be  some  apology  for  the  Spanish  Commander,  that  in 
consequence  of  Davis's  junction  with  the  captors  of  Guayaquil, 
he  found  a  much  greater  force  to  contend  with  than  he  had 
been  taught  to  expect.  Fortune  had  been  peculiarly  unfavour- 
able to  the  Spaniards  on  this  occasion.  Three  ships  of  force  had 
been  equipped  and  sent  in  company  against  the  Buccaneers  at 
Guayaquil.  One  of  them,  the  Katalina,  by  accident  was 
separated  from  the  others,  and  fell  in  with  Davis,  by  whom  she 
was  driven  on  the  coast,  where  she  stranded.  The  Spanish 
armament  thus  weakened  one-third,  on  arriving  in  the  Bay  of 
Guayaquil,  found  the  buccaneer  force  there  increased,  by  this 
same  Davis,  in  a  proportion  greater  than  their  own  had  been 

diminished. 


198  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  p-  l6;  diminished.  Davis  and  Le  Picard  left  the  choice  of  distance  to 


.1687.      the  Spaniards  in  this  meeting,  not  considering  it  their  business 

June.      to  come  to  serious  battle  unless  forced.    They  had  reason  to  be 

At  the      satisfied  with  having  defended  themselves  and  their  plunder  ; 

Island 

DelaPlata.  and  after  the  enemy  disappeared,  finding  the  coast  clear,  they 
sailed  to  the  Island  De  la  Plata,  where  they  stopped  to  repair 
damages,  and  to  hold  council. 

They  all  now  inclined  homewards.  The  booty  they  had 
made,  if  it  fell  short  of  the  expectations  of  some,  was  sufficient 
to  make  them  eager  to  be  where  they  could  use  or  expend  it  ; 
but  they  were  not  alike  provided  with  the  means  of  returning 
to  the  North  Sea.  Davis  had  a  stout  ship,  and  he  proposed  to 
go  the  Southern  passage  by  the  Strait  of  Magalhanes,  or  round 
Cape  Home.  No  other  of  the  vessels  in  the  possession  of  the 
Buccaneers  was  strong  enough  for  such  a  voyage.  All  the  French 
therefore,  and  many  of  the  English  Buccaneers,  bent  their 
thoughts  on  returning  overland,  an  undertaking  that  would 
inevitably  be  attended  with  much  difficulty,  encumbered  as 
they  were  with  their  plunder,  and  the  Darien  Indians  having 
become  hostile  to  them. 

Almost  all  the  Frenchmen  in  Davis's  ship,  left  her  to  join 
their  countrymen,  and  many  of  the  English  from  their  party 
embarked  with  Davis.  All  thoughts  of  farther  negociation 
with  the  Spaniards  for  the  ransom  of  prisoners,  were  relin- 
quished. Le  Picard  had  given  notice  on  quitting  the  Bay  of 
Guayaquil,  that  payment  would  be  expected  for  the  release 
of  the  remaining  prisoners,  and  that  the  Buccaneers  would 
wait  for  it  at  Cape  Santa  Elena;  but  they  had  passed  that 
Cape,  and  it  was  apprehended  that  if  they  returned  thither^ 
instead  of  receiving  ransom,  they  might  find  the  Spanish  ships 
of  war,  come  to  renew  the  attack  on  them  under  other  Com- 

manders. 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA.  199 

manders.    On   the   10th,  they    landed   their  prisoners  on  the    c  H  A  p.  16. 
Continent.  1687. 

The  next  day  they  shared  the  plunder  taken  at  Guayaquil.      June. 

The  jewels  and  ornaments  could  not  well  be  divided,  nor  could  Division  of 

Plunder, 
their  value  be  estimated  to  general  satisfaction  :  neither  could 

they  agree  upon  a  standard  proportion  between  the  value  of 
gold  and  silver.  Every  man  was  desirous  to  receive  for  his 
share  such  parts  of  the  spoil  as  were  most  portable,  and  this 
was  more  especially  of  importance  to  those  who  intended  to 
march  overland.  The  value  of  gold  was  so  much  enhanced  that 
an  ounce  of  gold  was  received  in  lieu  of  eighty  dollars,  and  a 
Spanish  pistole  went  for  fifteen  dollars ;  but  these  instances 
probably  took  place  in  settling  their  gaming  accounts.  In  the 
division  of  the  plunder  these  difficulties  were  obviated  by  a 
very  ingenious  and  unobjectionable  mode  of  distribution.  The 
silver  was  first  divided  :  the  other  articles  were  then  put  up  to 
auction,  and  bid  for  in  pieces  of  eight;  and  when  all  were  so 
disposed  of,  a  second  division  was  made  of  the  silver  produced 
by  the  sale. 

Davis  and  his  company  were  not  present  at  the  taking  of 
Guayaquil,  but  the  services" they  had  rendered,  had  saved  both 
the  plunder  and  the  plunderers,  and  gave  them  a  fair  claim  to 
share.  Neither  Wafer  nor  Lussan  speak  to  this  point,  from 
which  it  may  be  inferred  that  every  thing  relating  to  the  divi- 
sion was  settled  among  them  amicably,  and  that  Davis  and  his 
men  had  no  reason  to  be  dissatisfied.  Lussan  gives  a  loose 
statement  of  the  sum  total  and  of  the  single  shares.  '  Notwith- 

*  standing  that  these  things  were  sold  so  dearly,  we  shared  for 
'  the  taking  of  Guayaquil  only  400  pieces  of  eight  to  each 

*  man,  which  would   make  in  the  whole  about  fifteen  hundred 

*  thousand  livres.'   The  number  of  Buccaneers  with  Grogniet 

and 

i 


200  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  16.  and  Hutt  immediately  previous  to  the  attack  of  Guayaquil, 

]687.      was  304.    Davis's  crew  at  the  time  he  separated  from  Knight, 

June.      consisted    of  eighty    men.    He   had   afterwards   lost   men   in 

several   encounters,    and    it   is    probable   the    whole   number 

present  at  the  sharing  of  the  plunder  of  Guayaquil  was  short 

of  three  hundred  and  fifty.  Allowing  the  extra  shares  to  officers 

to  have  been  150,  making  the  whole  number  of  shares  500,  the 

They      amount  of  the  plunder  will  fall  short  of  Lussan's  estimate. 

separate  to      Qn  the  12th,  the  two  parties  finally  took  leave  of  each  other 

^"different  and  separated,  bound  by  different  routes  for  the  Atlantic, 
Routes. 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  201 


CHAP.    XVII. 

Edward  Davis;  his  Third  visit  to  the  Galapagos.  One  of  those 
Islands,  named  Santa  Maria  de  1'Aguada  by  the  Spaniards,  a 
Careening  Place  of  the  Buccaneers.  Sailing  thence  Southward 
they  discover  Land.  Question,  whether  Edward  Davis 's  Dis- 
covery is  the  Land  which  was  afterwards  named  Easter  Island  ? 
Davis  and  his  Crew  arrive  in  the  West  Indies. 

T~\AVIS  again  sailed  to  the  Galapagos  Islands,  to  victual    CHAP.  17. 
r*"*^  and  refit  his  ship.    Lionel  Wafer  was  still  with  him,  and       1687. 

appears  to  have  been  one  of  those  to  whom  fortune  had  been   Davis  sails 

to  the 
most  unpropitious.   Wafer  does  not  mention  either  the  joining  Galapagos 

company    with    the    French    Buccaneers,    or  the  plunder   of     Islands> 
Guayaquil;  and  particularises  few  of  his  adventures.    He  says, 

*  I  shall  not  pursue  all  my  coasting  along  the  shore  of  Peru 
'  with  Captain  Davis.    We  continued  rambling  about  to  little 
'  purpose,    sometimes  at    sea,   sometimes  ashore,   till   having 

*  spent  much  time  and  visited  many  places,  we  were  got  again 
'  to  the  Galapagos  ;  from  whence  we  were  determined  to  make 
'  the  best  of  our  way  out  of  these  seas/ 

At  the  Galapagos  they  again  careened;  and  there  they  vic- 
tualled the  ship,  taking  on  board  a  large  supply  of  flour, 
curing  fish,  salting  flesh  of  the  land  turtle  for  sea  store  ;  and 
they  saved  as  much  of  the  oil  of  the  land  turtle  as  filled  sixty 
jars  (of  eight  gallons  each)  which  proved  excellent,  and  was 
thought  not  inferior  to  fresh  butter. 

Captain  Colnet  was  at  the  Galapagos  Isles  in  the  years  1  793 
and  1794,  and  found  traces,  still  fresh,  which  marked  the  haunts 
of  the  Buccaneers.  He  says,  '  At  every  place  where  we  landed 

D  D  'on 


202  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

o  H  A  P.  17.  '  on  the  Western   side  of  King  James's  Isle,  we  might  have 

1687.      *  walked  for  miles  through  long  grass  and  beneath  groves  of 

At  the      '  trees.     It  only  wanted  a  stream  to  compose  a  very  charming 

IsUmdT'  *  ^andscape.     This  Isle  appears  to  have  been  a  favourite  resort 

King       *  of  the  Buccaneers,  as  we  found  seats  made  by  them  of  earth 

James's     <  ancj  stone,  and  a  considerable  number  of  broken  iars  scattered 

Islciud 

*  about,  and   some  whole,  in  which  the  Peruvian   wine  and 

*  liquors  of  the  country  are  preserved.    We  also  found  daggers, 
'  nails,  and    other   implements.     The  Avatering-place    of   the 

*  Buccaneers  was  at  this  time  (the  latter  part  of  April  or  begin- 
'  ning  of  May)  entirely  dried  up,  and  there  was  only  found  a 

*  small    rivulet  between   two  hills   running  into  the  sea;  the 
'  Northernmost  of  which  hills  forms  the  South  point  of  Fresh 

*  Water  Bay.    There  is  plenty  of  wood,  but  that  near  the  shore 

*  is  not  large  enough  for  other  use  than   fire-wood.    In  the 

*  mountains  the  trees    may   be   larger,    as    they  grow  to  the 
'  summits.     I  do  not  think  the  watering-place  we  saw  is  the 

*  only  one  on  the  Island,  and  I  have  no  doubt,  if  wells  were 

*  dug  any  where  beneath  the  hills,  and  not  near  the  lagoon 

*  behind  the  sand}r  beach,  that  fresh  water  would  be  found  in 
'  great  plenty  *.' 

Since  Captain  Colnet's  Voyage,  Captain  David  Porter  of  the 
American  United  States'  frigate  Essex,  has  seen  and  given 
descriptions  of  the  Galapagos  Islands.  He  relates  an  anecdote 
which  accords  with  Captain  Colnet's  opinion  of  there  being 
fresh  water  at  King  James's  Island.  He  landed,  on  its  West 
side,  four  goats  (one  male  and  three  female)  and  some  sheep, 
to  graze.  As  they  were  tame  and  of  their  own  accord  kept  near 
the  landing-place,  they  were  left  every  night  without  u  keeper, 
and  water  was  carried  to  them  in  the  morning. '  But  one  morning, 

*  after  they  had  been  on  the  Island  several  days  and  nights, 

«  the 

*  Colnet's  Voyage  to  the  Pacific,  pp.  156-7. 


IN    THE    SOUTH   SEA.  203 

'  the  person  who  attended  them  went  on  shore  as  usual  to  give  CHAP,  n. 
1  them  water,  but  no  goats  were  to  be  found  :  they  had  all  as       jgg- 
'  with  one  accord  disappeared.    Several  persons  were  sent  to      At  the 

'  search  after  them  for  two  or  three  days,  but  without  success.'  ff?**?08 

xsiciriQs* 

Captain  Porter  concluded  that  they  had  found  fresh  water  in 
the  interior  of  the  Island,  and  chose  to  remain  near  it.  '  One 
'  fact,'  he  says,  '  was  noticed  by  myself  and  many  others,  the 
'  day  preceding  their  departure,  which  must  lead  us  to  believe 
*  that  something  more  than  chance  directed  their  movements, 
'  which  is,  that  they  all  drank  an  unusual  quantity  of  water  on 
'  that  day,  as  though  they  had  determined  to  provide  themselves 
«  with  a  supply  to  enable  them  to  reach  the  mountains  *.' 

Davis  and  his  men  had  leisure  for  search  and  to  make  every 
kind  of  experiment  ;  but  no  one  of  his  party  has  given  any 
description  or  account  of  what  was  transacted  at  the  Galapagos 
in  this  his  third  visit.  Light,  however,  has  been  derived  from 
late  voyages. 

It  has  been  generally  believed,  but  not  till  lately  ascertained,  The  Island 
that  Davis  passed  most  of  the  time  he  was  amongst  the  Ga/a- 


pagos,  at  an  Island  which  the  Spaniards  have  designated  by  the 
name  of  S'a  Maria  de  I'Aguada,  concerning  the  situation  of  Buccaneers. 
which  the  Spaniards  as  well  as  geographers  of  other  countries 
have  disagreed.  A  Spanish  pilot  reported  to  Captain  Woodes 
Rogers  that  Sta  Maria  de  I'Aguada  lay  by  itself,  (i.  e.  was  not  one 
of  a  groupe  of  Islands)  in  latitude  1°  20'  or  1°  30'S,  was  a 
pleasant  Island,  well  stocked  with  wood,  and  witli  plenty  of  fresh 
water  -j-.  Moll,  DeVaugondy,  and  others,  combining  the  accounts 

given 

*  Journal  of  a  Cruize  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  by  Captain  David  Porter,  in  the  years 
1812-13  &,  3814. 

f  Cruising  Voyage  round  the  World,  by  Captain  Woodes  Rogers,  in  the  yearn 
1708  to  1711,  pp.  211  and  265,  ad  edition.  London,  1718. 

D  D  2 


204  BUCCANEERS   OF    AMERICA 

-  17:  given  by  Dampier  and  Woodes  Rogers,  have  placed  a  5''"  Maria 


StaMariade  de  I'Aguada  several  degrees  to  the  Westward  of  the  whole  of 
Cowley's  groupe.  Don  Antonio  de  Ulloa,  on  the  contrary,  has 
laid  it  down  as  one  of  the  Galapagos  Isles,  but  among  the 
most  South-eastern  of  the  whole  groupe.  More  consonant  with 
recent  information,  Pascoe  Thomas,  who  sailed  round  the  world 
with  Commodore  Anson,  has  given  from  a  Spanish  manuscript 
the  situations  of  different  Islands  of  the  Galapagos,  and  among 
them  that  of  Sta  Maria  de  I'Aguada.  The  most  Western  in  the 
Spanish  list  published  by  Thomas  is  named  Sta  Margarita,  and 
is  the  same  with  the  Albemarle  Island  in  Cowley's  chart.  The 
S'a  Maria  de  I'Aguada  is  set  down  in  the  same  Spanish  list  in  lati- 
tude 1°  10'S,  and  19  minutes  in  longitude  more  East  than  the 
longitude  given  of  S"  Margarita,  which  situation  is  due  South 
of  Cowley's  King  James's  Island. 

Captain  Colnet  saw  land  due  South  of  King  James's  Island, 
which  he  did  not  anchor  at  or  examine,  and  appears  to  have 
mistaken  for  the  King  Charles's  Island  of  Cowley's  chart.  On  com- 
paring Captain  Colnet's  chart  with  Cowley's,  it  is  evident  that 
Captain  Colnet  has  given  the  name  of  Lord  Chatham's  Isle  to 
Cowley's  King  Charles's  Island,  the  bearings  and  distance  from 
the  South  end  of  Albemarle  Island  being  the  same  in  both, 
i.  e.  due  East  about  20  leagues.  It  follows  that  the  Charles 
Island  of  Colnet's  chart  was  not  seen  by  Cowley,  and  that  it  is 
the  Sla  Maria  de  I'  Aguada  of  the  Spaniards.  It  has  lately  been 
frequented  by  English  and  by  American  vessels  employed  in  the 
South  Sea  Whale  Fishery,  who  have  found  a  good  harbour  on 
its  North  side,  with  wood  and  fresh  water;  and  marks  are  yet 
discoverable  that  it  was  formerly  a  careening  place  of  the 
buccaneers.  Mr.  Arrowsmith  has  added  this  harbour  to  Captain 
Colnet's  chart,  on  the  authority  of  information  communicated 
by  the  master  of  a  South  Sea  whaler. 

From 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  205 

From  Captain  David  Porter's  Journal,  it  appears  that  the  CHAP.  17. 
watering-place  at  S'a  Maria  de  I'Aguada  is  three  miles  distant  staMariade 
from  any  part  of  the  sea-shore  ;  and  that  the  supply  it  yields  is 
not  constant.  On  arriving  a  second  time  at  the  Galapagos,  in 
the  latter  part  of  August,  Captain  Porter  sent  a  boat  on  shore 
to  this  Island.  Captain  Porter  relates,  '  I  gave  directions  that 
*  our  former  watering-places  there  should  be  examined,  but 
'  was  informed  that  they  were  entirely  dried  up.' 

Cowley's  chart,  being  original,  a  buccaneer  performance, 
and  not  wholly  out  of  use,  is  annexed  to  this  account;  with  the 
insertion,  in  unshaded  outline,  of  the  S  Maria  de  I'Aguada, 
according  to  its  situation  with  respect  to  Albemarle  Island,  as 
laid  down  in  the  last  edition  of  Captain  Colnet's  chart,  pub- 
lished by  Mr.  Arrowsmith.  This  unavoidably  makes  a  difference 
in  the  latitude  equal  to  the  difference  between  Cowley's  and 
Captain  Colnet's  latitude  of  the  South  end  of  Albemarle  Island. 
In  Captain  Colnet's  chart,  the  North  end  of  S'a  Maria  de  I'Aguada 
is  laid  down  in  1°  15'  S. 

The  voyage  of  the  Essex  gives  reasonable  expectation  of  an 
improved  chart  of  the  Galapagos  Isles,  the  Rev.  Mr.  Adams, 
who  sailed  as  Chaplain  in  that  expedition,  having  employed 
himself  actively  in  surveying  them. 

When  the  season  approached  for  making  the  passage  round       l687- 
Cape  Home,  Davis  and  his  company  quitted  their  retreat.  The 


date  of  their  sailing  is  not  given.    Wafer  relates,  '  From  the   Galapagos 

*  Galapagos  Islands  we  went  again  for  the  Southward,  intending  Southward. 
'  to  touch  no  where  till  we  came  to  the  Island  Juan  Fernandez. 

'  In  our  way  thither,  being  in  the  latitude  of  12°  30'  S,  and 
'  about  150  leagues  from  the  main  of  America,  about  four 
'  o'clock  in  the  morning,  our  ship  felt  a  terrible  shock,  so 
'  sudden  and  violent  that  we  took  it  for  granted  she  had  struck 

*  upon  a  rock.    When  the  amazement  was  a  little  over,  we 

'  cast 


206  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  17.  «  cast  the  lead  and  sounded,  but  found  no  ground,  so  we  con- 
1687.      '  eluded  it  must  certainly  be  some  earthquake.  The  sea,  which 

*  ordinarily  looks  green,  seemed  then  of  a  whitish  colour;  and 

*  the  water   which  we  took  up  in  the  buckets  for  the  ship's 

*  use,  we  found  to  be  a  little  mixed  with  sand.    Some  time 

*  after,  we  heard  that  at  that  very  time,  there  was  an  earth- 

*  quake  at  Callao,  which  did  mischief  both  there  and  at  Lima.' 
Island          «  Having  recovered  our  fright,  we  kept  on  to  the  Southward. 

bv  '     *  We  steered  SbEl  Easterly,  until  we  came  to  the  latitude 
Edw.Davis.  t  of  27°  QQ'  g}  when  about  two  hours  before  day,  we  fell  in  with 

*  a  small  low  sandy  Island,  and  heard  a  great  roaring  noise, 

*  like  that  of  the  sea  beating  upon  the  shore,  right  ahead  of 

*  the  ship.    Whereupon,   fearing    to  fall  foul  upon  the  shore 

*  before  day,  the  ship  was  put  about.    So  we  plied  off  till  day, 

*  and  then  stood  in  again  with  the  land,  which  proved  to  be  a 

*  small  flat  Island,  without  the  guard  of  any  rocks.    We  stood 

*  in  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  shore,  and  could  see  it 
'  plainly,  for  it  was  a  clear  morning.    To  the  Westward,  about 

*  twelve  leagues  by  judgement,  we  saw  a  range  of  high  land, 

*  which  we  took  to  be  Islands,  for  there  were  several  partitions 

*  in  the  prospect.    This  land   seemed   to  reach  about   14  or 

*  16  leagues  in  a  range,  and  there  came  thence  great  flocks  of 

*  fowls.    I,  and  many  of  our  men  would  have  made  this  land, 
'  and  have  gone  ashore  at  it,  but  the  Captain  would  not  permit 

*  us.    The   small  Island  bears   from  Copiapo  almost  due  East 
'  [West  was  intended]   500  leagues,  and  from  the  Galapagos 
'  under  the  line  is  distant  600  leagues  *:' 

Dampier  was  not  present  at  this  discovery ;  but  he  met  his 
old  Commander  afterwards,  and  relates  information  he  received 
concerning  it  in  the  following  words.  '  Captain  Davis  told  me 

*  lately,  that  after  his  departing  from  us  at  Ria  Leva,  he  went, 

'  after 

*   Wafer's  Foyages,  p.  214  &  seq. 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA.  207 

'  after  several  traverses,  to  the  Galapagos,  and   that  standing  CHAP.  17. 

'  thence  Southward  for  wind  to  bring  him  about  the  Tierra.  del  xgs;. 

'  Fuego,  in  the  latitude  of  27°  S,  about  500  leagues  from  Copayapo  Island 

'  on  the  coast  of  Chili,  he  saw  a  small  sandy  Island  just  by  IS(j£Ter 

*  him  j  and  that  they  saw  to  the  Westward  of  it  a  long  tract  Edw.Davis. 

*  of  pretty   high    land,    tending   away    toward    the    NW  out 
'  of  sight  *.' 

The   two   preceding  paragraphs  contain  the    whole   which    Question 
either  in  Wafer  or  Dampier  is  said  concerning  this  land.    The 


apprehension  of  being  late  in  the  season  for  the  passage  round 

.       Land  and 
Lape  Home  seems  to  have  deterred  Davis  from  making  exami-      Easter 

nation  of  his  discovery.    The  latitude  and  specified  distance   Tf1*""1  are 

*  .  .  the  same 

from  Copiapo  were  particulars  sufficient  to  direct  future  search  ;    Land,  or 

A  '  flr*  *• 

and  twenty-five  years  afterwards,  Jacob  Roggewein,  a  Dutch. 
navigator,  guided  by  those  marks,  found  land  ;  but  it  being 
more  distant  from  the  American  Continent  than  stated  by 
Davis  or  Wafer,  lloggewein  claimed  it  as  a  new  discovery.  A 
more  convenient  place  for  discussing  this  point,  which  has  been 
a  lasting  subject  of  dispute  among  geographers,  would  be  in  an 
account  of  Roggewein's  voyage  ;  but  a  few  remarks  here  may 
be  satisfactory. 

Wafer  kept  neither  journal  nor  reckoning,  his  profession  not 
being  that  of  a  mariner  ;  and  from  circumstances  which  occur 
in  Davis's  navigation  to  the  Atlantic,  it  may  reasonably  be 
.doubted  whether  a  regular  reckoning  or  journal  was  kept  by 
any  person  on  board  ;  and  whether  the  500  leagues  distance 
of  the  small  Island  from  the  American  coast  mentioned  by 
Davis  and  Wafer,  was  other  than  a  conjectured  distance.  They 
had  no  superior  by  whom  a  journal  of  their  proceedings  would 
be  required  or  expected.  If  a  regular  journal  had  really  been 
kept,  it  would  most  probably  have  found  its  way  to  the  press. 

Jacob 

*  Dampier,  Vol.  I.  Chap.  13,  p.  352. 


208  BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA 

p  "  A r.  17.      Jacob  Roggewein,  the  Dutch  Admiral,  was  more  than  any 

Question    other  navigator,  willing  to  give  himself  the  credit  of  making  new 

C°Dav?s'sS   discoveries,  as  the  following  extracts  from  the  Journal  of  his 

Land  and   expedition  will  evince.   '  We  looked  for  Hawkins's  Maiden  Land, 

Island!     *  but   could   not    find    it;  but  we    discovered  an  Island  200 

'  leagues  in  circuit,  in  latitude  52°  S,  about  200  leagues  distant 

*  to  the  East  of  the  coast  of  South  America,  which  we  named 
'  Belgia  Austral.'    That  is  as  much  as  to  say,  Admiral  Rogge- 
wein could  not  find  Hawkins's  Maiden  Land ;  but  he  discovered 
land  on  the  same  spot,  which  he  named  Belgia  Austral.    After- 
wards, proceeding  in  the  same  disposition,  the  Journal  relates, 
'  We  directed  our  course  from  Juan  Fernandez  towards  Davis's 

'*  Land,  but  to  the  great  astonishment  of  the  Admiral  (Rogge- 
'  wein)  it  was  not  seen.  I  think  we  either  missed  it,  or  that 
'  there  is  no  such  land.  We  went  on  towards  the  West,  and  on 

*  the  anniversary  of  the  Resurrection  of  our  Saviour,  we  came 
'  in  sight  of  an  Island.  We  named  it  Paaschen  or  Oster  Eylandt 

*  (i.  e.  Easter  Island).' 

Paaschen  or  Easter  Island  according  to  modern  charts  and 
observations,  is  nearly  690  leagues  distant  from  Copiapo,  which 
is  in  the  same  parallel  on  the  Continent  of  America.  The  state- 
ment of  Davis  and  Wafer  makes  the  distance  only  512  leagues, 
which  is  a  difference  of  1 78  leagues.  It  is  not  probable  that 
Davis  could  have  had  good  information  of  the  longitudes  of  the 
Galapagos  Islands  andCopiapo;  but  with  every  allowance,  so  large 
an  error  as  1 78  leagues  in  a  run  of  600  leagues  might  be  thought 
incredible,  if  its  possibility  had  not  been  demonstrated  by  a  much 
greater  being  made  by  the  same  persons  in  this  same  homeward 
passage ;  as  will  be  related.  In  the  latitude  and  appearance  of  the 
land,  the  descriptions  of  Davis  and  Wafer  are  correct,  Easter 
Island  being  a  mountainous  land,  which  will  make  partitions  in 
the  distant  prospect  and  appear  like  a  number  of  Islands. 

Rogcewein's 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  209 

Roggewein's  claim   to  Paaschen  or  Easter  Island  as  a  new    CHAP.  17. 
discovery  has  had  countenance  and  support  from  geographers,  Concerning 

some   of  the  first   eminence,    but  has  been  made   a   subject      Davis's 

,,.,  f.    .  •    i     •  ••  -,  r-    Land  and 

or  jealous    contest,  and   not   or    impartial    investigation.     If      Easter 

Rogsewein   discovered  an   Island   farther  to  the  West  of  the      Island- 

^-C3 

American  coast  than  Davis's  Land,  it  must  follow  that  Davis's 
land  lies  between  his  discovery  and  the  Continent ;  but  that  part 
of  the  South  Sea  has  been  so  much  explored,  that  if  any  high 
land  had  existed  between  Easter  Island  and  the  American 
coast,  it  could  not  have  escaped  being  known.  There  is  not 
the  least  improbability  that  ships,  in  making  a  passage  from 
the  Galapagos  Isles  through  the  South  East  trade-wind,  shall 
come  into  the  neighbourhood  of  Easter  Island. 

Edward  Davis  has  generally  been  thought  a  native  of 
England,  but  according  to  Lussan,  and  nothing  appears  to  the 
contrary,  he  was  a  native  of  Holland.  The  majority  of  the 
Buccaneers  in  the  ship,  however,  were  British.  How  far  to  that 
source  may  be  traced  the  disposition  to  refuse  the  Buccaneers 
the  credit  of  the  discovery,  and  how  much  national  partialities 
have  contributed  to  the  dispute,  may  be  judged  from  this  cir- 
cumstance, that  Easter  Island  being  Davis's  Land  has  never  been 
doubted  by  British  geographers,  and  has  been  questioned  only 
by  those  of  other  nations. 

The  merit  of  the  discovery  is  nothing,  for  the  Buccaneers 
were  not  in  search  of  land,  but  came  without  design  in  sight  of 
it,  and  would  not  look  at  what  they  had  accidentally  found. 
And  whether  the  discovery  is  to  be  attributed  to  Edward  Davis 
or  to  his  crew,  ought  to  be  esteemed  of  little  concern  to  the 
nations  of  which  they  were  natives,  seeing  the  discoverers  were 
men  outlawed,  and  whose  acts  were  disowned  by  the  govern- 
ments of  their  countries. 

E  E  Passing 


210  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  17.      Passing  froro  considerations  of  claims  to  consideration  of  the 
Concerning  fact ; — there  is  not  thev  smallest  plea  for  questioning,  nor  has  any 

Davis  s     one  questioned  the  truth  of  the  Buccaneers  having  discovered 
Land  and  ,   ' 

Easter      a  high  Island  West  of  the  American  coast,  in  or  near  the  lati- 

T  1       A 

tude  of  27°  S.  If  different  from  Easter  Island,  it  must  be 
supposed  to  be  situated  between  that  and  the  Continent.  But 
however  much  it  has  been  insisted  or  argued  that  Easter  Island 
is  not  Davis's  Land,  no  chart  has  yet  pretended  to  shew  two 
separate  Islands,  one  for  Edward  Davis's  discovery,  and  one  for 
Roggewein's.  The  one  Island  known  has  been  in  constant  requi- 
sition for  double  duty;  and  must  continue  so  until  another 
Island  of  the  same  description  shall  be  found. 

1687.          Davis -arrived  at  Juan  Fernandez  '  at  the  latter  end  of  the  year,' 
At  the     ancl  careened   there.     Since  the  Buccaneers  were  last  at  the 
Juan      Island,  the  Spaniards  had  put  dogs  on  shore,  for  the  purpose  of 
Fernandez.  ki]ijng  tne  goats.    Many,  however,  found  places  among  preci- 
pices, where  the  dogs  could  not  get  at  them,  and  the  Bucca- 
neers shot  as  many  as  served  for  their  daily  consumption.  Here 
again,  five  men  of  Davis's  crew,  who  had  gamed  away  their 
money,  '  and  were  unwilling  to  return  out  of  these  seas  as  poor 
as  they  came  in,'  determined  on  staying  at  Juan  Fernandez,  to 
take  the   chance  of  some  other  buccaneer  ship,  or  privateer, 
touching  at  the  Island.  A  canoe,  arms,  ammunition,  and  various 
implements    were   given   to    them,  with    a  stock  of  maize   for 
planting,  and  some  for  their  immediate  subsistence  ;  and  each  of 
these  gentlemen  had  a  negro  attendant  landed  with  him. 

From  Juan  Fernandez,  Davis  sailed  to  the  Islands  Mocha  and 
Santa  Maria,  near  the  Continent,  where  he  expected  to  have 
procured  provisions,  but  he  found  both  those  Islands  deserted 
and  laid  waste,  the  Spaniards  having  obliged  the  inhabitants 
to  remove,  that  the  Buccaneers  might  not  obtain  supply  there. 

The 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  311 

The   season  was  advanced,  therefore  without  expending  more   CHAP.  17. 

time  in  searching  for  provisions,  they  bent  their  course  South-       tg88_ 

ward.  They  passed  round  Cape  Home  without  seeing  land,  but 

fell  in  with  many  Islands  of  ice,  and  ran  so  far  Eastward  before 

they  ventured  to  steer  a  Northerly  course,  that  afterwards,  when, 

in  the  parallel  of  the  River  de  la  Plata,  they  steered  Westward  to 

make  the  American  coast,  which  they  believed  to  be  only  one 

hundred  leagues   distant,  they  sailed  '  four  hundred  and  fifty 

'  leagues  to  the  West  in  the  same  latitude,'  before  they  came  in 

sight  of  land  ;  whence  many  began  to  apprehend  they  were  still 

in  the  South  Sea  *,  and  this  belief  would  have  gained  ground,  if  a 

flight  of  locusts  had   not  alighted  on  the  ship,  which  a  strong 

flurry  of  wind  had  blown  off  from  the  American  coast. 

They  arrived  in  the  West  Indies  in  the  spring  of  the  year  1688,   Davis  sails 
at  a  time   when    a  proclamation    had   recently  been  issued,  west  indies, 
offering  the  King's   pardon  to  all  Buccaneers  who  would  quit 
that  way  of  life,  and  claim  the  benefit  of  the  proclamation. 

It  was  not  the  least  of  fortune's  favours  to  this  crew  of  Buc- 
caneers, that  they  should  find  it  in  their  power,  without  any 
care  or  forethought  of  their  own,  to  terminate  a  long  course  of 
piratical  adventures  in  quietness  and  security.  Edward  Davis 
was  afterwards  in  England,  as  appears  by  the  notice  given  of  his 
discovery  by  "William  Dampier,  who  mentions  him  always  with 
peculiar  respect.  Though  a  Buccaneer,  he  was  a  man  of  much 
sterling  worth;  being  an  excellent  Commander,  courageous, 
never  rash,  and  endued  in  a  superior  degree  with  prudence, 
moderation,  and  steadiness ;  qualities  in  which  the  Buccaneers 
generally  have  been  most  deficient.  His  character  is  not  stained 
with  acts  of  cruelty ;  on  the  contrary,  wherever  he  com- 
manded, he  restrained  the  ferocity  of  his  companions.  It  is 

no 

*  Wafer's  Voyages,  p.  220. 
E  E  2 


212  BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  17.  no  small  testimony  of  his  abilities  that  the  whole  of  the  Bucca- 
1688.  neers  in  the  South  Sea  during  his  time,  in  every  enterprise 
wherein  he  bore  part,  voluntarily  placed  themselves  under  his 
guidance,  and  paid  him  obedience  as  their  leader ;  and  no 
symptom  occurs  of  their  having  at  any  time  wavered  in  this 
respect,  or  shewn  inclination  to  set  up  a  rival  authority.  It 
may  almost  be  said,  that  the  only  matter  in  which  they  were 
not  capricious  was  their  confidence  in  his  management ;  and  in 
it  they  found  their  advantage,  if  not  their  preservation. 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA. 


213 


Swan 

and 

Townley. 


1685. 
August. 


CHAP.    XVIII. 

Adventures  of  Swan  and  Townley  on  the  Coast  of  New  Spain, 

until  their  Separation. 

HHHE  South  Sea  adventures  of  the  buccaneer  Chief  Davis   CHAP.  18. 

being  brought  to  a  conclusion,  the  next  related  will  be 
those  of  Swan  and  his  crew  in  the  Cygnet,  they  being  the  first 
of  the  Buccaneers  who  after  the  battle  in  the  Bay  of  Panama 
left  the  South  Sea.  William  Dampier  who  was  in  Swan's  ship, 
kept  a  Journal  of  their  proceedings,  which  is  published,  and  the 
manuscript  also  has  been  preserved. 

Swan  and  Townley,  the  reader  may  recollect,  were  left  by 
Edward  Davis  in  the  harbour  of  Ria  Lexa,  in  the  latter  part  of 
August  1685,  and  had  agreed  to  keep  company  together  West- 
ward towards  the  entrance  of  the  Gulf  of  California. 

They  remained  at  Ria  Lexa  some  days  longer  to  take  in  fresh  Bad  Water, 
water,  '  such  as  it  was/  and  they  experienced  from  it  the  same 
bad  effects  which  it  had  on  Davis's  men  ;  for,  joined  to  the 
unwholesomeness  of  the  place,  it  produced  a  malignant  fever, 
by  which  several  were  carried  off. 

On  September  the  3d,  they  put  to  sea,  four  sail  in  company,  September. 

i.  e.  the  Cygnet,  Townley  's  ship,  and  two  tenders  ;    the  total  of     On  tne 
.  Coast  of 

the  crews  being  340  men.  New  Spain. 

The  season  was  not  favourable  for  getting  Westward  along 
this  coast.  Westerly  winds  were  prevalent,  and  scarcely  a  day 
passed  without  one  or  two  violent  tornadoes,  which  were  ac-  Tornadoes. 
companied  with  frightful  flashes  of  lightning,  and  claps  of 
thunder,  '  the  like/  says  Dampier,  '  I  did  never  meet  with 
*  before  nor  since/  These  tornadoes  generally  came  out  of 

the 


Lexa- 


2U  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


c  H  A^P.  1  8.  tiie  NE,  very  fierce,  and  did  not  last  long.    When  the  tornado 

1685.       was  passed,  the  wind  again  settled  Westward.    On  account  of 

September,  these  storms,  Swan   and   Townley   kept  a    large   offing;  but 

On  the     towards   the  end  of  the  month,  the  weather  became  settled. 
Coast  of 

New  Spain.  On  the  24th,  Townley,  and  106  men  in  nine  canoes,  went 
on  Westward,  whilst  the  ships  lay  by  two  days  with  furled  sails, 
to  give  them  time  to  get  well  forward,  by  which  they  would 
come  the  more  unexpectedly  upon  any  place  along  the  coast. 
October.  Townley  proceeded,  without  finding  harbour  or  inlet,  to  the 
Bay  of  Tecuantepeque,  where  putting  ashore  at  a  sandy  beach, 
the  canoes  were  all  overset  by  the  surf,  one  man  drowned,  and 
some  muskets  lost.  Townley  however  drew  the  canoes  up  dry, 
and  marched  into  the  country  ;  but  notwithstanding  that  they 
had  not  discovered  any  inlet  on  the  coast,  they  found  the  country 
intersected  with  great  creeks  not  fordable,  and  were  forced 
to  return  to  their  canoes.  A  body  of  Spaniards  and  Indians 
came  to  reconnoitre  them,  from  the  town  of  Tecuantepeque,  to 
seek  which  place  was  the  chief  purpose  of  the  Buccaneers  when 
they  landed.  '  The  Spanish  books/  says  Dampier,  '  mention 
'  a  large  river  there,  but  whether  it  was  run  away  at  this  time, 
'  or  rather  that  Captain  Townley  and  his  men  were  shortsighted, 
*  I  know  not  ;  but  they  did  not  find  it/ 

October  the  2d,  the  canoes  returned  to  the  ships.    The  wind 

was  fresh  and  fair  from  the  ENE,  and  they   sailed  Westward, 

keeping  within   short  distance  of  the  shore,  but  found  neither 

harbour  nor  opening.    They  had  soundings  all  the  way,  the 

depth  being  21  fathoms,  a  coarse  sandy  bottom,  at  eight  miles 

distance  from  the  land.     Having  run  about  20  leagues  along 

Island      the  coast,  they  came  to  a  small  high  Island  called  Tangola,  on 

Tangola.    wnjcn  £ney  founcl  wood  and  water;  and  near  it,  good  anchorage. 

'  This  Island  is  about  a  league  distant  from  the  main,  which 

'  is  pretty  high,  and  savannah  land  by  the  sea;  but  within  land 

'  it 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  215 

c  it  is  higher  and  woody.' 'We  coasted   a  league  farther,   CHAP.  18. 

*  and  came  to  Guatulco,  in  latitude  15°  30',  which  is  one  of  the       1685. 

*  best  ports  in  this  Kingdom  of  Mexico.    Near  a  mile  from  the    October. 

*  mouth  of  the  harbour,  on  the  East  side>  is  a  little  Island  close    Guatulco. 
'  by  the  main-land.    On  the  West  side  of  the  mouth  of  the  EI  Buffadore, 
'  harbour,  is  a  great  hollow  rock,  which  by  the  continual  work-  a  i^k"^ 

*  ing  of  the  sea  in  and  out,  makes  a  great  noise,  and  may  be 
'  heard  a  great   way ;  every   surge  that  comes  in,  forces  the 
'  water  out  at  a  little  hole  at  the  top,  as  out  of  a  pipe,  from 
'  whence  it  flies  out  just  like  the  blowing  of  a  whale,  to  which 

*  the  Spaniards  liken  it,  and  call  it  El  Buffadore.    Even  at  the 
'  calmest  seasons,  the  beating  of  the  sea  makes  the  waterspout 
'  out  at  the  hole,  so  that  this  is  always  a  good  mark  to  find 

'  the  harbour  of  Guatulco  by.    The  harbour  runs  in  NW,  is       The 
'  about  three  miles  deep,  and  one  mile  broad.   The  West  side    Guatulco. 
'  of  the  harbour  is  the  best  for  small  ships  to  ride   in :  any 
c  where  eke  you  are  open  to  SW  winds,  which  often  blow  here. 

*  There  is  clean  ground  any  where,  and  good  gradual  soundings 
'  from  16  to  6  fathoms :  it  is  bounded  by  a  smooth  sandy  shore, 
'  good  for  landing ;  and  at  the  bottom  of  the  harbour  is  a  fine 

*  brook   of  fresh   water  running  into  the  sea.     The  country 
'  is  extraordinary    pleasant   and   delightful  to    behold    at    a 
'  distance  *.' 

There  appeared  to  be  so  few  inhabitants  at  this  part  of  the 
coast,  that  the  Buccaneers  were  not  afraid  to  land  their  sick. 
A  party  of  men  went  Eastward  to  seek  for  houses  and  inha- 
bitants, and  at  a  league  distance  from  Guatulco  they  found  a  river, 
named  by  the  Spaniards  El  Capalita,  which  had  a  swift  current, 
and  was  deep  at  the  entrance.  They  took  a  few  Indians  prisoners, 
but  learnt  nothing  of  the  country  from  them.  On  the  6th,Townley 
with  140  men  marched  fourteen  miles  inland,  and  in  all  that  way 

found 

*  Dumpier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  8. 


si6  BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA 

CHAP.  18.  found  only  one  small  Indian  village,  the  inhabitants  of  which 

1685.      cultivated  and  cured  a  plant  called  Vinetto,  which  grows  on 

October,     a  vine,  and   is    used    to   perfume    chocolate,    and    sometimes 

Vinello,      tnK{ir™ 
or  Vanilla,    ' 
a  Plant.         The  10th,  the  canoes  were  sent  Westward  ;  and  on  the  12th, 

the  ships  followed,  the  crews  being  well  recovered  of  the  Rio,  Lexa 

fever.    '  The  coast  (from  Guatulco}  lies  along  West  and  a  little 

'  Southerly  for  £0  or  30  leagues*/  On  account  of  a  current 

which  set  Eastward,  they  anchored  near  a  small  green  Island 

Island      named  Sacrificio,  about  a  league  to  the  West  of  Guatulco,  and 

Sacrificio.  half  a  mile  from  the  main.    In  the  channel  between,  was  five 

or  six  fathoms  depth,  and  the  tide  ran  there  very  swift. 

Port  They  advanced  Westward;    but  slowly.    The    canoes   were 

de  Angeles.  agajn  overset  in  attempting  to  land  near  Port  de  Angeles,  at  a 

place  where   cattle   were  seen   feeding,  and  another  man  was 

drowned.     Dampier  says,  *  We  were  at  this  time  abreast  of 

*  Port  de  Angeles,  but  those  who  had  gone  in  the  canoes  did 

*  not  know  it,  because  the    Spaniards    describe   it    to    be  as 
'  good  a  harbour  as  Guatulco.     It  is  a  broad  open  bay  with 

*  two  or  three  rocks  at  the  West  side.  There  is  good  anchorage 

*  all  over  the  bay  in  depth  from  30  to  12  fathoms,  but  you  are 
'  open  to  all  winds  till  you  come  into  12  fathoms,  and  then  you 

*  are  sheltered  from  the  WSW,  which  is  here  the  common  trade- 
'  wind.     Here  always  is  a  great  swell,  and  landing  is  bad.  The 
'  place  of  landing  is  close   by  the  West  side,   behind  a  few 

*  rocks.    Latitude  15°  N.  The  tide  rises  about  five  feet.    The 
'  land  round  Port  de  Angeles  is  pretty   high,  the  earth  sandy 
'  and  yellow,  in  some  places  red/    The  Buccaneers  landed  at 
Port  de  Angeles,   and   supplied   themselves  with   cattle,  hogs, 
poultry,  maize,  and  salt ;   and  a  large  party  of  them  remained 
feasting   three  days  at  a  farm-house.    The  27th,   they  sailed 
on  Westward. 

Some 

*  Dampier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  9. 


IN    THE    SOUTH    SEA.  217 

Some  of  their  canoes  in  seeking  Port  de  Angeles  had  been  as    m  *f- 18. 
far  Westward  as  Acapulco.     In  their  way  back,  they  found  a       ,685. 
river,  into  which  they  went,  and  filled  fresh  water.  Afterwards,    October, 
they  entered  a  lagune  or  lake  of  salt  water,  where  fishermen 
had  cured,  and  stored  up  fish,  of  which  the  Buccaneers  took 
away  a  quantity. 

On  the  evening  of  the  27th,  Swan  and  Townley  anchored  in  Adventure 
16  fathoms  depth,  near  a  small  rocky  Island,  six  leagues  West-     t  in  a 
ward  of  Port  de  Angeles,  and  about  half  a  mile  distant  from  the 
main  land.    The  next  day  they  sailed  on,  and  in  the  night  of 
the  28th,  being  abreast  the  lagune  above  mentioned,  a  canoe 
manned  with  twelve  men  was  sent  to  bring  off  more  of  the 
fish.    The  entrance  into  the  lagune  was  not  more  than  pistol- 
shot  wide,  and  on  each  side  were  rocks,  high  enough  and  con- 
venient to  skreen    or   conceal    men.     The   Spaniards  having 
more  expectation  of  this  second  visit  than  they  had  of  the  first, 
a  party  of  them,  provided  with  muskets,  took  station  behind 
these  rocks.    They  waited  patiently   till  the  canoe  of  the  Buc- 
caneers was  fairly  within  the  lagune,  and  then  fired  their  volley, 
and  wounded  five  men.   The  buccaneer  crew  were  not  a  little 
surprised,  yet  returned  the  fire;  but  not  daring  to  repass  the 
narrow  entrance,   they  rowed   to  the  middle  of  the   lagune, 
where  they  lay  out  of  the  reach  of  shot.  There  was  no  other  pas- 
sage out  but  the  one  by  which  they  had  entered,  which  besides 
being  so  narrow  was  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  length,  and  it  was 
too  desperate   an  undertaking  to  attempt  to  repass  it.    Not 
knowing  what  else  to  do,  they  lay  still  two  whole  days  and 
three  nights  in  hopes  of  relief  from  the  ships. 

It  was  not  an  uncommon  circumstance  among  the  Bucca- 
neers, for  parties  sent  away  on  any  particular  design,  to  un- 
dertake some  new  adventure  ;  the  long  absence  of  the  canoe 
therefore  created  little  surprise  in  the  ships,  which  lay  off  at  sea 

F  p  waiting 


218  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  18.  waiting  without  solicitude  for  her  return  ;  till  Townley's  ship 
1685.       happening  to  stand  nearer  to  the  shore  than  the  rest,  heard 
November,   muskets  fired  in  the  lagune.    He  then  sent  a  strong  party  in  his 
^Coastof    canoes,  which  obliged  the  Spaniards  to  retreat  from  the  rocks, 
and  leave  the  passage  free  for  the  hitherto   penned-up  Bucca- 
neers.    Dampier  gives  the   latitude    of   this    lagune,    «  about 
16°40'N.' 
Akatraz         They  coasted  on  Westward,  with  fair  weather,  and  a  current 

"t?        I 

setting  to  the  West.    On  November  the  2d,  they  passed  a  rock 

called  by  the  Spaniards  the  Alcatraz  (Pelican.)   'Five  or  six 

White      '  miles  to  the  West  of  the  rock  are  seven  or  eight  white  cliffs, 

'  which  are  remarkable,  because  there  are  none  other  so  white 

*  and  so  thick  together  on  all  the  coast.    A  dangerous  shoal 
'  lies  S  bW  from  these  cliffs,  four  or  five  miles  off  at  sea.    Two 

River  to  the  *  leagues  to  the  West  of  these  cliffs  is  a  pretty  large  river,  which 

We^,ifff     '  forms  a  small  Island  at  its  mouth.    The  channel  on  the  East 
the  CJms. 

'  side  is  shoal  and  sandy  ;  the  West  channel  is  deep  enough  for 
'  canoes  to  enter.'  The  Spaniards  had  raised  a  breastwork  on 
the  banks  of  this  channel,  and  they  made  a  show  of  resisting 
the  Buccaneers ;  but  seeing  they  were  determined  on  landing, 
they  quitted  the  place;  on  which  Dampier  honestly  remarks, 
'  One  chief  reason  why  the  Spaniards  are  so  frequently  routed 

*  by  us,  though  much  our  superiors  in  number,  is,  their  want  of 

*  fire-arms;   for   they    have  but  few    unless    near   their  large 


garrisons. 


Snook,  A  large  quantity  of  salt  intended  for  salting  the  fish  caught 
a  Fish.  jn  ^  JagUllCj  was  taken  here.  Dampier  says,  'The  fish  in 
'  these  lagunes  were  of  a  kind  called  Snooks,  which  are  neither 
'  sea-fish  nor  fresh-water  fish ;  it  is  about  a  foot  long,  round,  and 
'  as  thick  as  the  small  of  a  man's  leg,  has  a  pretty  long  head, 
'  whitish  scales,  and  is  good  meat.' 

A  Mulatto  whom  they  took  prisoner  told  them  that  a  ship 

of 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  219 

of  twenty   guns  had  lately   arrived   at   Acapulco   from  Lima.    CHAP.  18. 
Townley  and  his  crew  had  long  been  dissatisfied  with  their  ship ;       1685. 
and  in  hopes  of  getting  a  better,  they  stood  towards  the  har-  November. 

bour  of  Acapulco.    On  the  7th,  they  made  the  high  land  over  ,..  7*. 

*  •'••»'.'         H'S"1  Land 

Acapulco,    '  which    is   remarkable    by  a  round    hill   standing         Of 

«  between    two   other  hills,   both  higher,  the  Westernmost  of  AcaPulco- 
'  which  is"  the  biggest  and  the  highest,  and  has  two  hillocks 
'  like  two  paps  at  the  top.'   Darnpier.  gives  the  latitude   of 
Acapulco  1 7°  N  *. 

This  was  not  near  the  usual  time  either  of  the  departure  or 
of  the  arrival  of  the  Manila  ships,  and  except  at  those  times, 
Acapulco  is  almost  deserted  on  account  of  the  situation  being 
unhealthy.  Acapulco  is  described  hot,  unwholesome,  pestered 
with  gnats,  and  having  nothing  good  but  the  harbour.  Mer- 
chants depart  from  it  as  soon  as  they  have  transacted  their 
business.  Townley  accordingly  expected  to  bring  off  the  Lima 
ship  quietly,  and  with  little  trouble.  In  the  evening  of  the  7th, 
the  ships  being  then  so  far  from  land  that  they  could  not  be 
descried,  Townley  with  140  men  departed  in  twelve  canoes  for 
the  harbour  of  Acapulco.  They  did  not  reach  Port  Marques  till 
the  second  night ;  and  on  the  third  night  they  rowed  softly  and 
unperceived  by  the  Spaniards  into  Acapulco  Harbour.  They 
found  the  Lima  ship  moored  close  to  the  castle,  and,  after 
reconnoitring,  thought  it  would  not  be  in  their  power  to  bring 
her  off;  so  they  paddled  back  quietly  out  of  the  harbour,  and 
returned  to  their  ships,  tired  and  disappointed. 

Westward  from  the  Port  of  Acapulco,  they  passed  a  sandy      Sandy 
bay  or  beach  above  twenty  leagues  in  length,  the  sea  all  the     West  of 

way   AcaPulco- 

*  Late  Observations  place  Acapulco  in  latitude  16°  50'  41"  N,  and  longitude 
100°  o'  West  of  Greenwich. 

F  F  2 


220 


BUCCANEERS  OF  AMERICA 


CHAP.  l8. 


1685. 

November. 

Hill  of 
Petaplan. 


way  beating  with  such  force  on  the  shore  that  a  boat  could  not 
approach  with  safety.  *  There  was  clean  anchoring  ground  at 
'  a  mile  or  two  from  the  shore.  At  the  West  end  of  this  Bay, 
'  in  1 7°  30'  N,  is  the  Hill  of  Petaplan,  which  is  a  round  point 
*  stretching  out  into  the  sea,  and  at  a  distance  seems  an  Island  *.' 
This  was  reckoned  twenty-five  leagues  from  Acapulco.  A  little 
to  the  West  of  the  hill  are  several  round  white  rocks.  They 
sailed  within  the  rocks,  having  1 1  fathoms  depth,  and  anchored 
on  the  NW  side  of  the  hill.  Their  Mosquito  men  took  here 
some  small  turtle  and  small  jew-fish. 

They  landed,  and  at  an  Indian  village  took  a  Mulatto 
w.oman  and  her  children,  whom  they  carried  on  board.  They 
learnt  from  her  that  a  caravan  drawn  by  mules  was  going  with 
flour  and  other  goods  to  Acapulco,  but  that  the  carrier  had 
stopped  on  the  road  from  apprehension  of  the  Buccaneers. 
Chequetan.  The  ships  weighed  their  anchors,  and  ran  about  two  leagues 
farther  Westward,  to  a  place  called  Chequetan,  which  Dampier 
thus  describes  :  *  A  mile  and  a  half  from  the  shore  is  a  small 

*  Key  (or  Island)  and  within  it  is  a  very  good  harbour,  where 

*  ships  may  careen :  here  is  also  a  small  river  of  fresh  water, 
'  and  wood  enough.' 

On  the  14th,  in  the  morning,  about  a  hundred  Buccaneers  set 
off  in  search  of  the  carrier,  taking  the  woman  prisoner  for  a 
guide.  They  landed  a  league  to  the  West  of  Chequetan,  at  a 
place  called  Estapa,  and  their  conductress  led  them  through  a 
wood,  by  the  side  of  a  river,  about  a  league,  which  brought 
them  to  a  savannah  full  of  cattle ;  and  here  at  a  farm-house 
the  carrier  and  his  mules  were  lodged.  He  had  40  packs  of 
flour,  some  chocolate,  small  cheeses,  and  earthenware.  The 
eatables,  with  the  addition  of  eighteen  beeves  which  they 

killed, 
*  Dampier. 


i4th. 


Estapa. 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA. 


221 


killed,  the  Buccaneers  laid  on  the  backs  of  above  fifty  mules 
which  were  at  hand,  and  drove  them  to  their  boats.  A  present 
of  clothes  was  made  to  the  woman,  and  she,  with  two  of  her 
children,  were  set  at  liberty;  but  the  other  child,  a  boy  seven 
or  eight  years  old,  Swan  kept,  against  the  earnest  intreaties.of 
the  mother.  Dampier  says,  '  Captain  Swan  promised  her  to 

*  make  much  of  him,  and  was  as  good  as  his  word.    He  proved 
'  afterwards  a  fine  boy  for  wit,  courage,  and  dexterity/ 

They  proceeded  Westward  along  the  coast,  which  was  high 
land  full  of  ragged  hills,  but  with  pleasant  and  fruitful  vallies 
between.  The  25th,  they  were  abreast  a  hill,  '  which  towered 

*  above  his  fellows,  and  was  divided  in  the  top,  making  two 

*  small  parts.    It  is  in  latitude   18°  8' N.    The  Spaniards  men- 

*  tion  a  town  called  Thelupan  near  this  hill/ 

The  26th,  the  Captains  Swan  and  Townley  went  in  the 
canoes  with  200  men,  to  seek  the  city  of  Colima,  which  was 
reported  to  be  a  rich  place :  but  their  search  was  fruitless. 
They  rowed  20  leagues  along  shore,  and  found  no  good  place 
for  landing  ;  neither  did  they  see  house  or  inhabitant,  although 
they  passed  by  a  fine  valley,  called  the  Valley  of  Maguella, 
except  that  towards  the  end  of  their  expedition,  they  saw 
a  horseman,  who  they  supposed  had  been  stationed  as  a 
sentinel,  for  he  rode  off  immediately  on  their  appearance. 
They  landed  with  difficulty,  and  followed  the  track  of  the  horse 
on  the  sand,  but  lost  it  in  the  woods. 

On  the  28th,  they  saw  the  Volcano  ofColima,  which  is  in  about 
18°  36'  N  latitude,  five  or  six  leagues  from  the  sea,  and  appears 
with  two  sharp  points,  from  each  of  which  issued  flames  or 
smoke.  The  Valley  of  Colima  is  ten  or  twelve  leagues  wide  by 
the  sea  :  it  abounds  in  cacao-gardens,  fields  of  corn,  and  plan- 
tain walks.  The  coast  is  a  sandy  shore,  on  which  the  waves 
beat  with  violence.  Eastward  of  the  Valley  the  land  is  woody. 

A  river 


CHAP.  l8. 

1685. 

November. 

Coast  of 
New  Spain. 


2 1st. 

Hill  of 
Thelupan. 


28th. 

Volcano  of 
Colima. 

Valley  of 
Colima. 


222  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  18.  A  river  ran  here  into  the  sea,  with  a  shoal  or  bar  at  its  entrance, 
1685.       which  boats  could  not  pass.    On  the  West  side  of  the  river  was 
December,    savannah  land. 

Salagua.         December  the  1st,  they  were  near  the  Port  ofSalagua,  which 
Dampier  reckoned  in  latitude   18°  52'  N.    He  says,  '  it  is  only 

*  a  pretty  deep  bay,  divided  in  the  middle  with  a  rocky  point, 

*  which  makes,  as   it  were,  two  harbours*.    Ships   may  ride 
'  secure  in  either,  but  the  West  harbour  is  the  best :  the  depth 

*  of  water  is  1 0  or  1 2  fathom,  and  a  brook  of  fresh  water  runs 
'  into  the  sea  there/ 

Report  of  Two  hundred  Buccaneers  landed  at  Salagua,  and  finding  a 
City  named  broad  fO'dd  which  led  inland,  they  followed  it  about  four  leagues, 
Oarrah.  over  a  dry  stony  country,  much  overgrown  with  short  wood, 
without  seeing  habitation  or  inhabitant ;  but  in  their  return,  they 
met  and  took  prisoners  two  Mulattoes,  who  informed  them  that 
the  road  they  had  been  travelling  led  to  a  great  city  called 
Oarrah,  which  was  distant  as  far  as  a  horse  will  travel  in  four 
days ;  and  that  there  was  no  place  of  consequence  nearer.  The 
same  prisoner  said  the  Manila  ship  was  daily  expected  to  stop 
at  this  part  of  the  coast  to  land  passengers;  for  that  the  arrival 
of  the  ships  at  Acapulco  from  the  Philippines  commonly  hap- 
pened about  Christmas,  and  scarcely  ever  more  than  eight  or 
ten  days  before  or  after. 

Swan  and  Townley  sailed  on   for  Cape  Corrientes.     Many 

among  the  crews  were  at  this  time  taken  ill  with  a  fever  and 

ague,  which  left  the  patients  dropsical.  Dampier  says,  the  dropsy 

is  a  disease  very  common  on  this  coast.    He  was  one  of  the 

sufferers,  and  continued  ill  a  long  time  ;  and  several  died  of  it. 

The  Land        The   coast   Southward    of  Cape  Corrientes,   is  of  moderate 

near  Cape    nejght}  and  full  of  white  cliffs.    The  inland  country  is  high  and 

barren,  with  sharp  peaked  hills.  Northward  of  this  rugged  land, 

is 
*  See  Chart  in  Spilbergen's  Voyage. 


IN  THE   SOUTH   SEA.  2S3 

is  a  chain  of  mountains  which  terminates  Eastward  with  a  high   CHAP.  18. 
steep  mountain,  which  lias  three  sharp  peaks  and  resembles  a       1685"."" 
crown  ;  and  is  therefore  called  by  the  Spaniards  Coronada.  On  December. 
the  1  1th  they  came  in  sight  of  Cape  Corrientes.  When  the  Cape    Q***^** 
bore  NbW,  the  Coronada  mountain  bore  ENE  *.  Hills. 

On  arriving  off  Cape  Corrientes,  the  buccaneer  vessels  spread,      Cape 
for  the  advantage  of  enlarging  their  lookout,  the  Cygnet  taking  Comentes- 
the  outer  station  at  about  ten  leagues  distance  from  the  Cape. 
Provisions    however  soon   became  scarce,  on   which  account 
Townley's  tender  and  some  of  the  canoes  were  sent  to  the  land 
to  seek  a  supply.    The  canoes  rowed  up  along  shore  against 
a  Northerly  wind  to  the  Bay  de  Vanderas  ;  but  the  bark  could 
not  get  round  Cape   Corrientes.  On  the   18th,  Townley    com-       i8th. 
plained  he  wanted  fresh  water,  whereupon   the  ships  quitted 
their  station  near  the  Cape,  and  sailed  to  some  small  Islands 
called  the  Keys  of  Chametly,  which  are  situated  to  the  SE  of 
Cape  Corrientes,  to  take  in  fresh  water. 

The  descriptions  of  the  coast  of  New  Spain  given  by  Dampier, 
in  his  account  of  his  voyage  with  the  Buccaneers,  contain 
many  particulars  of  importance  which  are  not  to  be  found  in 
any  other  publication.  Dampier's  manuscript  and  the  printed 
Narrative  frequently  differ,  and  it  is  sometimes  apparent  that 
the  difference  is  not  the  effect  of  inadvertence,  or  mistake  in 
the  press,  but  that  it  was  intended  as  a  correction  from  a 
reconsideration  of  the  subject.  The  printed  Narrative  says  at  Keys 
this  part,  «  These  Keys  or  Islands  of  Chametly  are  about  16  or 
'  18  leagues  to  the  Eastward  of  Cape  Corrientes.  They  are 
'  small,  low,  woody,  and  environed  with  rocks.  There  are 
'  five  of  them  lying  in  the  form  of  a  half  moon,  not  a  mile  from 
'  the  shore  of  the  main,  and  between  them  and  the  main  land 

«  is 

_______  _  »  _  _____  _ 

• 

*  Dampier's   Manuscript   Journal- 


or 


224  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  p.  1 8. '  is  very  good  riding  secure  from  any  wind  *.'  In  the  manu- 
j5jj5>      script  it  is  said,    *  the  Islands  Chametly  make  a  secure  port. 
December.   '  They  lie  eight  or  nine  leagues  from  Port  Navidad.' 
Keys  or         j^  js  necessary  to  explain  that  Dampier,  in    describing  his 

Islands  of  .  ° 

Chametly  ;  navigation  along  the  coast  of  New  Spam,  uses  the  terms  East- 
ward and  Westward,  not  according  to  the  precise  meaning  of 
the  words,  but  to  signify  being  more  or  less  advanced  along  the 
coast  from  the  Bay  of  Panama.  By  Westward,  he  invariably 
means  more  advanced  towards  the  Gulf  of  California ;  by 
Eastward,  the  contrary. 
Form  a  The  ships  entered  within  the  Chametly  Islands  by  the-  channel 

C°  Port16"1  at  ^ie  SE  end>  and  anchored  in  five  fathoms  depth,  on  a  bottom 
of  clean  sand.  They  found  there  good  fresh  water  and  wood, 
and  caught  plenty  of  rock-fish  with  hook  and  line.  No  inha- 
bitants were  seen,  but  there  were  huts,  made  for  the  temporary 
convenience  of  fishermen  who  occasionally  went  there  to  fish 
for  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  of  La  Purification.  These  Islands, 
forming  a  commodious  port  affording  fresh  water  and  other 
conveniencies,  from  the  smallness  of  their  size  are  not  made 
visible  in  the  Spanish  charts  of  the  coast  of  New  Spain  in 
present  use-f-.  Whilst  the  ships  watered  at  the  Keys  or  Isles  of 
Chametly,  a  party  was  sent  to  forage  on  the  main  land,  whence 
they  carried  off  about  40  bushels  of  maize. 

On  the  22d,  they  left  the  Keys  of  Chametly,  and  returned  to 
their  cruising  station  off  Cape  Corrientes,  where  they  were 
rejoined  by  the  canoes  which  had  been  to  the  Bay  de  Vanderas. 
Thirty-seven  men  had  landed  there  from  the  canoes,  who  went 
three  miles  into  the  country,  where  they  encountered  a  body  of 
Spaniards,  consisting  both  of  horse  and  foot.  The  Buccaneers 

took 

*  Dumpier,  Vol.  I,  p,  257. 

•\  In  some  old  manuscript  Spanish  Charts,  the  Chametly  Isles  are  laid  down 
SEJS  about  12  leagues  distant  from  Cape  Corrientes. 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  225 

took  benefit  of  a  small  wood  for  shelter  against  the  attack  of  CHAP.  18. 
the    horse,  yet  the  Spaniards    rode  in  among  them  ;  but  the       l6'8 
Spanish  Captain  and  some  of  their  foremost  men  being  killed,  December, 
the  rest  retreated.    Four  .of  the  Buccaneers  were  killed,  and 
t\vo  desperately  wounded.    The   Spanish  infantry  were  more 
numerous  than  the  horse,  but  they  did  not  join  in  the  attack, 
because  they  were  armed  only  with  lances  and  swords  ;  *  never- 
theless/ says  Dampier,  '  if  they  had  come  in,  they  would  cer- 
'  tainly  have  destroyed  all  our  men.'  The  Buccaneers  conveyed 
their  two  wounded  men  to  the  water  side  on  horses,  one  of 
which,  when  they  arrived  at  their  canoes,  they  killed  and  drest ; 
not  daring  to  venture  into  the  savannah  for  a  bullock,  though 
they  saw  many  grazing. 

Swan  and  Townley  preserved  their  station  off  Cape  Corrientes      1686. 
only  till  the  1st  of  January,   1686,  when  their  crews  became    J^1auar(fe' 
impatient   for   fresh  meat,  and   they  stood  into  the  Bay   de    Vanderas. 
Vanderas,  to  hunt  for  beef.    The  depth  of  water  in  this  Bay  is 
very  great,  and  the  ships  were  obliged  to  anchor  in  60  fathoms. 

'  The  Valley  of  Vanderas  is  about  three  leagues  wide,  with  a    Valley  of 

*  sandy  bay  against  the   sea,    and  smooth  landing.     In    th£ 

*  midst  of  this  bay  (or  beach)  is  a  fine  river,  into  which  boats 
'  may  enter ;   but  it  is  brackish  at  the  latter  part  of  the  dry 

*  season,  which  is  in  March,  and  part  of  April.    The  Valley  is 
'  enriched  with  fruitful  savannahs,  mi^ed  with  groves  of  trees 

*  fit  for  any  use  ;  and  fruit-trees  grow  wild  in  such  plenty  as  if 

*  nature  designed  this  place  only  for  a  garden.   The  savannahs 

*  are  full   of  fat  bulls  and  cows,  and  horses ;    but  no  house 

*  was  in  sight.' 

Here  they  remained  hunting  beeves,  till  the  7th  of  the  month. 
Two  hundred  and  forty  men  landed  every  day,  sixty  of  whom 
were  stationed  as  a  guard,  whilst  the  rest  pursued  the  cattle  ; 
the  Spaniards  all  the  time  appearing  in  large  companies  on 

G  G  the 


226  BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  18.  the  nearest  hills.  The  Buccaneers  killed  and  salted  meat  suffi- 
1686.  cient  to  serve  them  two  months,  which  expended  all  their  salt. 

January.    Whilst  they   were  thus   occupied  in   the  pleasant  valley    of 

Valley  of  Vanderas,  the  galeon  from  Manila  sailed  past  Cape  Corrientes, 
and  pursued  her  course  in  safety  to  Acapulco.  This  they  learnt 
afterwards  from  prisoners ;  but  it  was  by  no  means  unexpected : 
on  the  contrary,  they  were  in  general  so  fully  persuaded  it 
•would  be  the  consequence  of  their  going  into  the  Bay  de 
Vanderas,  that  the}r  gave  up  all  intention  of  cruising  for  her 
afterwards. 

Swan  and  The  main  object  for  which  Townley  had  gone  thus  far 
°part6y  Northward  being  disposed  of,  he  and  his  crew  resolved  to 

company,  return  Southward.  Some  Darien  Indians  had  remained  to 
this  time  with  Swan  :  they  were  now  committed  to  the  care 
of  Townley,  and  the  two  ships  broke  off  consortship,  and  parted 
company. 


IN   THE    SOUTH   SEA. 


227 


CHAP.    XIX. 

The  Cygnet  and  her  Crew  on  the  Coast  of  Nueva  Galicia,  and 
at  the  Tres  Marias  Islands. 


1686. 
January. 

Coast  of 
Nuevo 
Galicia. 

Point 
Ponteque. 


OWAN  and  his  crew  determined  before  they  quitted  the    CHAP.  19 

American  coast,  to  visit  some  Spanish  towns  farther 
North,  in  the  neighbourhood  of  rich  mines,  where  they  hoped 
to  find  good  plunder,  and  to  increase  their  stock  of  provisions 
for  the  passage  across  the  Pacific  to  India. 

January  the  7th,  the  Cygnet  and  her  tender  sailed  from  the 
Valley  of  Vanderas,  and  before  night,  passed  Point  Ponteque,  the 
•  Northern  point  of  the  Vanderas  Bay.  Point  Ponteque  is  high, 
round,  rocky,  and  barren :  at  a  distance  it  makes  like  an 
Island.  Dampier  reckoned  it  10  leagues  distant,  in  a  direction 
N  20"  W,  from  Cape  Corrientes  ;  the  variation  of  the  compass 
observed  near  the  Cape  being  4°  28'  Easterly*. 

A  league  West  from  Point  Ponteque  are  two  small  barren 
Islands,  round  which  lie  scattered  several  high,  sharp,  white 
rocks.  The  Cygnet  passed  on  the  East  side  of  the  two  Islands, 
the  channel  between  them  and  Point  Ponteque  appearing  clear 
of  danger.  *  The  sea^-coast  beyond  Point  Ponteque  runs  in  NE, 
'  all  ragged  land,  and  afterwards  out  again  NNW,  making 

*  many  ragged   points,  with  small  sandy  bays  between.    The 

*  land  by  the  sea  is  low  and  woody ;  but  the  inland  country  is 

*  full  of  high,  sharp,  rugged,  and  barren  hills.' 

Along  this  coast  they  had  light  sea  and  land  breezes,  and 
fair  weather.    They  anchored  every  evening,  and  got  under  sail 

in 

*  According  to  Captain  Vancouver,  Point  Ponteque  and  Cape   Corrientes  are 
nearly  North  and  South  of  each  other.     Dampier  was  nearest  in-shore. 

G  G  2 


BUCCANEERS    OF  AMERICA 

^cHAF.io.  in  the  morning  with  the  land-wind.  On  the  14th,  they  had  sight 

1686.      of  a  small  white  rock,  which  had  resemblance  to  a  ship  under 

January,    sail.    Dampier  gives  its  latitude  21"  51'  N,  and   its  distance 

i4th.      from  Cape  Corrientes  34  leagues.    It  is  three  leagues  from  the 

White      niain,  with  depth  in  the  channel,  near  the  Island,  twelve  or 

riock, 

21°  51'  N.  fourteen  fathoms. 

15th.  The  15th,  at  noon,  the  latitude  was  22°  1 1'  N.  The  coast 
l6th  here  lay  in  a  NNW  direction.  The  16th,  they  steered  '  NNW 
as  the  land  runs.'  At  noon  the  latitude  was  22°  41' N.  The 
coast  was  sandy  and  shelving,  with  soundings  at  six  fathoms 
depth  a  league  distant.  The  sea  set  heavy  on  the  shore.  They 
caught  here  many  cat-fish. 

soth.  On  the  20th,  they  anchored  a  league  to  the  East  of  a  small 

Chametlan  groupe  of  Isles,  named  the  Chametlan  Isles,  after   the    name 
123°  II''N.  of  the  District  or  Captainship  (Alcaldia  mayor)  in  the  province  • 
of  Culiacan,  opposite  to  which  they  are  situated.    Dampier  calls 
them  the  Isles  ofChametlij,  '  different  from  the  Isles  or  Keys  of 
1  Chametly  at  which  we  had  before  anchored.    These  are  six 
'  small  Islands  in  latitude  23°  1 1'  N,  about  three  leagues  distant 
'  from  the  main-land  *,  where  a  salt  lake  has  its  outlet  into 
'  the  sea.    Their  meridian   distance   from  Cape  Corrientes  is 
4  23  leagues  [West.]    The  coast  here,  and  for  about  ten  leagues 
'  before  coming  abreast  these  Islands,  lies  NW  and  SE.' 
The  On  the  Chametlan  Isles  they  found  guanoes,  and  seals  ;  and 

Fruit.  a  fruit  of  a  sharp  pleasant  taste,  by  Dampier  called  the  Pen- 
guin fruit,  '  of  a  kind  which  grows  so  abundantly  in  the  Bay 
of  Campeachy  that  there  is  no  passing  for  their  high  prickly 
leaves.' 

Rio  de  Sal,      In  the  main-land,  six  or  seven  leagues  NNW  from  the  Isles 
Salt-water    °f  Chametlan,  is  a  narrow  opening  into  a  lagune,  with  depth  of 

Lagune,    water  sufficient  for  boats  to  enter.    This  lagune  extends  along 

23'30'N. 

the 

*  The  Manuscript  says,  the  farthest   of  the  Chametlan  Isles  from  the  main-land 
is  not  more  than  four  miles  distant. 


IN   THE   SOUTH    SEA. 


229 


the  back  of  the  sea-beach-  about  1 2  leagues,  and  makes  many 
low  Mangrove  Islands.  The  latitude  given  of  the  entrance 
above-mentioned  is  23°  3CX  N,  and  it  is  called  by  the  Spaniards 
Rio  de  Sal. 

Half  a  degree  Northward  of  Rio  de  Sal  was  said  to  be  the 
River  Culiacan,  with  a  rich  Spanish  town  of  the  same  name. 
Swan  went  with  the  canoes  in  search  of  it,  and  followed  the 
coast  30  leagues  from  abreast  the  Chametlan  Isles,  without  find- 

O 

ing  any  river  to  the  North  of  the  Rio  de  Sal.  All  the  coast  was 
low  and  sandy,  and  the  sea  beat  high  on  the  shore.  The  ships 
did  not  go  farther  within  the  Gulf  than  to  23°  45'  N,  in  which 
latitude,  on  the  30th,  they  anchored  in  eight  fathoms  depth, 
three  miles  distant  from  the  main-land;  the  meridian  distance 
from  Cape  Corrientes  being  34  leagues  West,  by  Dampier's 
reckoning. 

In  their  return  Southward,  Swan  with  the  canoes,  entered 
the  Rio  de  Sal  Lagune,  and  at  an  estancian  on  the  Western  side, 
they  took  the  owner  prisoner.  They  found  in  his  house  a  few 
bushels  of  maize ;  but  the  cattle  had  been  driven  out  of  their 
reach.  Dampier  relates,  *  The  old  Spanish  gentleman  who  was 

*  taken  at  the  Estancian  near  the  Rio  de  Sal  was  a  very  intel- 

*  ligent  person.    He  had  been  a  great  traveller  in  the  kingdom 

*  of  Mexico,  and  spoke  the  Mexican  language  very  well.    He 

*  said   it  is  a  copious  language,  and  much  esteemed  by  the 
'  Spanish  gentry  in  those  parts,  and  of  great  use  all  over  the 
'  kingdom  ;  and    that  many  Indian  languages  had  some  cle- 
'  pendency  on  it.3 

The  town  ofMazatlan  was  within  5  leagues  of  the  NE  part  of 
the  lagune,  and  Swan  with  150  men  went  thither.  The  inhabitants 
wounded  some  of  the  Buccaneers  with  arrows,  but  could  make 
no  effectual  resistance.  There  were  rich  mines  near  Mazatlan, 
and  the  Spaniards  of  Compostdla,  which  is  the  chief  town  in  this 

district, 


CHAP.  lq. 

1686. 
January. 

Coast  of 
Nueva 
Galicia. 


30th. 


The 

Mexican, 

a  copious 

Language. 


Mazatlan. 


230  BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  19.  district,  kept  slaves  at  work  in  them.    The  Buccaneers  however 

1686.      found  no  gold  here,  but  carried  off  some  Indian  corn. 
February        February  the  2d,   the  canoes  went  to  an  Indian  town  called 
Rosario     Rosario,  situated  on  the  banks  of  a  river  and  nine  miles  within 
an  Indian   its  entrance.    *  Rosario  was  a  fine  little  town  of  60  or  70  houses, 
with  a   good  church/    The  river  produced    gold,  and    mines 
were  in  the  neighbourhood  ;  but  here,  as  at  Mazatlan,  they  got 
no  other  booty  than  Indian  corn,  of  which  they  conveyed  to 
their  ships  between  80  and  90  bushels. 

3d.  On  the  3d,  the  ships  anchored  near  the  River  Rosario  in  seven 

River      fathoms  oozy  ground,  a  league  from  the  shore ;  the  latitude  of 

22"  51'  N.  the  entrance  of  the  river  22°  5 1'  N.    A  small  distance  within  the 

Sugar-loaf  coast  and   bearing  NEb  N  from  the  ship,  was  a  round  hill  like 

"^       a  sugar-loaf;  and  North  Westward  of  that  hill,  was  another 

CavallV     '  Pretty  long  hill,'  called  Caput  Cavalli,  or  the  Horses  Head. 

8th.  On  the  8th,  the  canoes  were  sent  to  search  for  a  river  npmed 

the  Oleta,  which  was  understood  to  lie  in  latitude  92°  27'  N ; 

but  the  weather  proving  foggy  they  could  not  find  it. 

nth.          On  the  llth,  they  anchored   abreast  the  South  point  of  the 

entrance   of  a  river  called    the   River  de  Santiago,   in    seven 

fathoms  soft  oozy  bottom,  about  two  miles  from  the  shore ;  a 

Maxenteibo  high  \vhite  rock,  called  Maxentelbo,  bore  from  their  anchorage 

WNW,  distant  about  three   leagues,  and  a  high  hill  in  the 

Hill  of     country,  with   a  saddle  or   bending,  called   the   Hill  Xalisco, 

bore  SE.     'The  River  St.  logo  is  in  latitude  22°  15'N,  the 

Santiago,    '  entrance  lies  East  and  West  with  the  Rock  Maxenidbo.     It  is 


f  one  of  tiie  principal  rivers  on  this  coast:  there  is  ten  feet 

*  water  on  the  bar  at  low  water ;  but  how  much  the  tide  rises 

*  and  falls,  was  not  observed.  The  mouth  of  the  river  is  nearly 

*  half  a  mile  broad,  with  very  smooth  entering.    Within  the 
'  entrance  it  widens,  for  three  or  four  rivers  meet  there,  and  issue 
'  all  out  together.     The  water  is  brackish  a  great  way  up;  but 

'  fresh 


IN  THE   SOOTH   SEA. 


231 


February. 

Coast  of 
Nueva 
Galicia. 

River  of 


*  fresh  water  is  to  be  had  by  digging  two  or  three  feet  deep  in  CHAP.  19 
'  a  sandy  bay  just  at  the  mouth  of  the  river.  Northward  of  the    ~~ 

*  entrance,  and  NEbE  from  Maxentelbo,  is  a  round  white  rock.' 

*  Between  the  latitudes  22°  41'  and  22°  10'  N,  which  includes 
'  the  River  de  Santiago,  the  coast  lies  NNW  and  SSE  *.' 

No  inhabitants  were  seen  near  the  entrance  of  the  River 
St.  logo,  but  the  country  had  a  fruitful  appearance,  and  Swan  sent  SaatiaS0- 
seventy  men  in  four  canoes  up  the  river,  to  seek  for  some  town 
or  village.  After  two  days  spent  in  examining  different  creeks 
and  rivers,  they  came  to  a  field  of  maize  which  was  nearly  ripe, 
and  immediately  began  to  gather;  but  whilst  they  were  loading 
the  canoes,  they  saw  an  Indian,  whom  they  caught,  and  from 
him  they  learnt  that  at  four  leagues  distance  from  them  was  a 
tosvn  named  S"  Pecaque.  With  this  information  they  returned 
to  the  ship ;  and  the  same  evening,  Swan  with  eight  canoes  and 
140  men,  set  off  for  Sta  Pecaque,  taking  the  Indian  for  a  guide. 
This  was  on  the  15th  of  the  month. 

They  rowed  during  the  night  about  five  leagues  up  the  river, 
and  at  six  o'clock  in  the  morning,  landed  at  a  place  where  it 
•was  about  a  pistol-shot  wide,  with  pretty  high  banks  on  each 
side,  the  country  plain  and  even.  Twenty  men  were  left  with 
the  canoes,  and  Swan  with  the  rest  marched  towards  the  town, 
by  a  road  which  led  partly  through  woodland,  and  partly 
through  savannas  well  stocked  with  cattle.  They  arrived  at 
the  town  by  ten  in  the  forenoon,  and  entered  without  oppo- 
sition, the  inhabitants  having  quitted  it  on  their  approach. 

The  town  of  Santa  Pecaque  was  small,  regularly  built  after 
the  Spanish  mode,  with  a  Parade  in  the  middle,  and  balconies 
to  the  houses  which  fronted  the  parade.  It  had  two  churches. 
The  inhabitants  were  mostly  Spaniards,  and  their  principal 
occupation  was  husbandry.  It  is  distant  from  Compostella 
about  2 1  leagues.  Compostella  itself  was  at  that  time  reckoned 

not 


i6th. 


Town  of 
S"Pecaque. 


*  Dumpier,  Vol.  J,  Chap.  9. 


232  BUCCANEE&S   OF   AMERICA 

-CHAP.  19.  not  to  contain  more  than  seventy  white  families,  which  made 

i68<5.      about  one-eighth  part  of  its  inhabitants. 

February.     "There  were  large  storehouses,  with  maize,  salt-fish,  salt,  and 
Coast  of    SUgar,  at  Santa  Pecarjue,  provisions  being  kept  there  for   the 
Galicia.     subsistence  of  some  hundreds  of  slaves  who  worked  in  silver 
At         mines  not  far  distant.    The  chief  purpose  for  which  the  Cygnet 
aque'  had  come  so  far  North  on  this  coast  was  to  get  provisions,  and 
here  Avas  more  than  sufficient  to  supply  her  wants.  For  trans- 
porting it  to   their  canoes,  Swan  divided  the  men  into  two 
parties,  which  it  was  agreed  should  go  alternately,  one  party 
constantly  to  remain  to  guard  the  stores  in    the  town.    The 
afternoon  of  the  first  day  was  passed  in  taking  rest  and  refresh- 
ijth.      ment,  and  in  collecting  horses.   The  next  morning,  fifty -seven 
men,  with  a  number  of  horses  laden  with  maize,  each  man  also 
carrying  a  small  quantity,  set  out  for  the  canoes,  to  which  they 
arrived,  and  safely  deposited  their  burthens.    The  Spaniards 
had  given  some  disturbance   to    the    men  who  guarded    the 
canoes,  and  had  wounded  one,  on  which  account  they   were 
reinforced  with  seven  men  from  the  carrying  party  ;  and  in  the 
afternoon,  the  fifty  returned  to  Santa  Pecaque.    Only  one  trip 
was  made  in  the  covirse  of  the  day. 

i8th.  On  the  morning  of  the  18\h,  the  party  which  had  guarded 
the  town  the  day  before,  took  their  turn  for  carrying.  They 
loaded  24  horses,  and  every  man  had  his  burthen.  This  day 
they  took  a  prisoner,  who  told  them,  that  nearly  a  thousand 
men,  of  all  colours,  Spaniards,  Indians,  Negroes,  and  Mulattoes, 
were  assembled  at  the  town  of  Santiago,  which  was  only  three 
leagues  distant  from  Santa  Pecaque.  This  information  made 
Captain  Swan  of  opinion,  that  separating  his  men  was  attended 
with  much  danger ;  and  he  determined  that  the  next  morning  he 
would  quit  the  town  with  the  whole  party.  In  the  mean  time 
he  employed  his  men  to  catch  as  many  horses  as  thejr  could, 
that  when  they  departed  they  might  carry  off  a  good  load. 

On 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA. 


233 


On  the  1 9th,  Swan  called  his  men  out  early,  and  gave  order 
to  prepare  for  marching ;  but  the  greater  number  refused  to 
alter  the  mode  they  had  first  adopted,  and  said  they  would  not 
abandon  the  town  until  all  the  provision  in  it  was  conveyed  to 
the  canoes.  Swan  was  forced  to  acquiesce,  and  to  allow  one- 
half  of  the  company  to  go  as  before.  They  had  fifty-four 
horses  laden ;  Swan  advised  them  to  tie  the  horses  one  to 
another,  and  the  men  to  keep  in  two  bodies,  twenty-five  before, 
and  the  same  number  behind.  His  directions  however  were  not 
followed :  *  the  men  would  go  their  own  way,  every  man 
leading  his  horse.'  The  Spaniards  had  before  observed  their 
careless  manner  of  marching,  and  had  prepared  their  plan  of 
attack  for  this  morning,  making  choice  of  the  ground  they 
thought  most  for  their  advantage,  and  placing  men  there  in 
ambush.  The  Buccaneer  convoy  had  not  been  gone  above  a 
quarter  of  an  hour  when  those  who  kept  guard  in  the  town, 
heard  the  report  of  guns.  Captain  Swan  called  on  them  to 
march  out  to  the  assistance  of  their  companions ;  but  some 
even  then  opposed  him,  and  spoke  with  contempt  of  the 
danger  and  their  enemies,  till  two  horses,  saddled,  with  holsters, 
and  without  riders,  came  galloping  into  the  town  frightened, 
and  one  had  at  its  side  a  carabine  newly  discharged.  On  this 
additional  sign  that  some  event  had  taken  place  which  it  im- 
ported them  to  know,  Swan  immediately  marched  out  of  the 
town,  and  all  his  men  followed  him.  When  they  came  to  the 
place  where  the  engagement  had  happened,  they  beheld  their 
companions  that  had  gone  forth  from  the  town  that  morning, 
every  man  lying  dead  in  the  road,  stripped,  and  so  mangled 
that  scarcely  any  one  could  be  known.  This  was  the  most 
severe  defeat  the  Buccaneers  suffered  in  all  their  South  Sea 
enterprises. 

The  party  living  very  little  exceeded  the  number  of  those 

H  H  who 


CHAP.  19. 

1686. 

February 


.At  Santa 
Pecaque. 


Buccaneers 

defeated 

arid  slain 

by  the 

Spaniards. 


234 


BUCCANEERS    OF    AMERICA 


CH  A  P.  19. 

1686. 

February. 

Coast  of 
Nueva 
Galicia. 

At  Santa 
Pecaque. 


March. 
At  the 
Middle 
Island 
of  the 
Tres  Marias 


who  lay  dead  before  them,  yet  the  Spaniards  made  no  endea- 
vour to  interrupt  their  retreat,  either  in  their  march  to  the 
canoes,  or  in  their  falling  down  the  river,  but  kept  at  a  distance. 

*  It  is  probable,'  says  Dampier,  '  the  Spaniards  did  not  cut  off 
'  so  many  of  our  men  without  loss  of  many  of  their  own.    We 
'  lost   this   day  fifty-four   Englishmen   and  nine   blacks ;  and 
'  among  the  slain  was  my  ingenious  friend  Mr.  Ringrose,  who 

*  wrote  that  part  of  the  History  of  the  Buccaneers  which  relates 

*  to  Captain  Sharp.    He  had  engaged  in  this  voyage  as  super- 
'  cargo  of   Captain  Swan's  ship.' — '  Captain  Swan  had    been 

*  forewarned  by  his  astrologer  of  the  great  danger  they  were  in ; 

*  and    several  of  the  men    who  went  in  the    first  party  had 

*  opposed  the  division  of  their  force  :  some  of  them  foreboded 

*  their  misfortune,  and  heard  as  they  lay  down  in  the  church 
'  in   the   night,    grievous   groanings    which  kept   them    from 
'  sleeping*.' 

Swan  and  his  surviving  crew  were  discouraged  from  attempting 
any  thing  more  on  the  coast  of  New  Galicia,  although  they  had 
laid  up  but  a  small  stock  of  provisions.  On  the  21st,  they 
sailed  from  the  River  of  St.  Jago  for  the  South  Cape  of  Cali- 
fornia, where  it  was  their  intention  to  careen  the  ship;  but  the 
wind  had  settled  in  the  NW  quarter,  and  after  struggling  against 
it  a  fortnight,  on  the  7th  of  March,  they  anchored  in  a  bay 
at  the  East  end  of  the  middle  of  the  Tres  Marias  Islands,  in 
eight  fathoms  clean  sand.  The  next  day,  they  took  a  birth 
within  a  quarter  of  a  mile  of  the  shore,  the  outer  points  of  the 
bay  bearing  ENE  and  SSW. 

None  of  the  Tres  Marias  Islands  were  inhabited.  Swan  named 
the  one  at  which  he  had  anchored,  Prince  George's  Island. 
Dampier  describes  them  of  moderate  height,  and  the  Western- 
most Island  to  be  the  largest  of  the  three.  '  The  soil  is  stony 

'  and 


*  Manuscript  Journal. 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  5235 

'  and  dry,  producing  much  of  a  shrubby  kind  of  wood,  trouble-  CHAP.  19. 

*  some  to  pass;  but  in  some  parts  grow  plenty  of  straight  large      1686. 

*  cedars.    The  sea-shore  is  sandy,  and  there,  a  green  prickly      March. 

'  plant  grows,  whose  leaves  are  much  like  the  penguin  leaf;  -pres^iarias 

*  the  root  is  like  the  root  of  the  Sempervive,   but  larger,  and     A  Root 
'  when  baked  in  an  oven  is  reckoned  good  to  eat.  The  Indians     "jFoodT 
'  of  California  are  said  to  have  great  part  of  their  subsistence 

*  from  these  roots.    We  baked  some,  but  none  of  us  greatly 
'  cared  for  them.    They  taste  exactly   like  the   roots   of  our 
'  English  Burdock  boiled/ 

At  this  Island  were  guanoes,  raccoons,  rabbits,  pigeons,-doves, 
fish,  turtle,  and  seal.  They  careened  here,  and  made  a  division 
of  the  store  of  provisions,  two-thirds  to  the  Cygnet  and  one- 
third  to  the  Tender,  '  there  being  one  hundred  eaters  in  the 
'  ship,  and  fifty  on  board  the  tender.'  The  maize  they  had 
saved  measured  120  bushels. 

Dampier  relates  the  following  anecdote  of  himself  at  this  A  Dropsy 
place.    '  I  had  been. a  long  time  sick  of  a  dropsy,  a  distemper  Sand  Rath. 
'  whereof  many  of  our  men  died  ;  so  here  I  was  laid  and  covered 

*  all  but  my  head  in  the  hot  sand.    I  endured  it  near  half  an 
1  hour,  and  then  was  taken  out.    I  sweated  exceedingly  while 

*  I  was  in  the  sand,  and  I  believe  it  did  me  much  good,  for  I 
'  grew  well  soon  after.' 

This  was  the  dry  season,  and  they  could  not  find  here  a  suffi- 
cient supply  of  fresh  water,  which  made  it  necessary  for  them 
to  return  to  the  Continent.  Before  sailing,  Swan  landed  a 
number  of  prisoners,  Spaniards  and  Indians,  which  would  have 
been  necessary  on  many  accounts  besides  that  of  the  scanti- 
ness of  provisions,  if  it  had  been  his  design  to  have  proceeded 
forthwith  Westward  for  the  East  Indies ;  but  as  he  was  going 
again  to  the  American  coast,  which  was  close  at  hand,  the 
turning  his  prisoners  ashore  on  a  desolate  Island,  appears  to 

H  ii  2  have 


236 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 


1686. 

March. 

Bay  of 

Vanderas. 


CHAP.  19.  have  been  in  revenge  for  the  disastrous  defeat  sustained  at 
S"  Pecaque,  and  for  the  Spaniards  having  given  no  quarter  on 
that  occasion. 

They  sailed  on  the  26th,  and  two  days  after,  anchored  in 
the  Bay  of  Vanderas  near  the  river  at  the  bottom  of  the  bay ; 
but  the  water  of  this  river  was  now  brackish.  Search  was 
made  along  the  South  shore  of  the  bay,  and  two  or  three 
leagues  towards  Cape  Corrientes,  a  small  brook  of  good  fresh 
water  was  found ;  and  good  anchorage  near  to  a  small  round 
Island  which  lies  half  a  mile  from  the  main,  and  about  four 
leagues  NEastward  of  the  Cape.  Just  within  this  Island  they 
brought  the  ships  to  anchor,  in  25  fathoms  depth,  the  brook 
bearing  from  them  E  £  N  half  a  mile  distant,  and  Point  Ponteque 
NWbN  six  leagues. 

The  Mosquito  men  struck  here  nine  or  ten  jew-fish,  the 
heads  and  finny  pieces  of  which  served  for  present  consumption, 
and  the  rest  was  salted  for  sea-store.  The  maize  and  salted 
fish  composed  the  whole  of  their  stock  of  eatables  for  their 
passage  across  the  Pacific,  and  at  a  very  straitened  allowance 
would  scarcely  be  sufficient  to  hold  out  sixty  days. 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  237 


C  H  A  P.      XX. 

The  Cygnet.     Her  Passage  across  the  Pacific  Ocean.     At  the 
Ladrones.     At  Mindanao. 

IV/TARCH  the  31st,  they  sailed  from  the  American  coast,  CHAP.  20. 

steering  at  first  SW,  and  afterwards  more  Westerly  till    ~^^6. 
they  were  in  latitude  1 3°  N,  in  which  parallel  they  kept.  *  The      March. 

*  kettle  was  boiled  but  once  a  day,'  says  Dampier,  '  and  there  The  Cygnet 

ui  .  ,  quits  the 

;  was  no  occasion  to  call  the  men  to  victuals.    All  hands  came    American 

*  up  to  see  the  Quarter-master  share  it,  and  he  had  need  to  be      Coast- 

*  exact.    We  had  two  dogs  and  two  cats  on   board,  and  they 
'  likewise  had  a  small  allowance  given  them,  and  they  waited 
'  with  as  much  eagerness  to  see  it  shared  as  we  did.'     In  this 
passage  they  saw  neither  fish  nor  fowl  of  any  kind,  except  at 
one  time,  when  by  Dampier's  reckoning  they  were  4975  miles 

West  from  Cope  Corrientes,  and  then,  numbers  of  the  sea-birds  Large  flight 
called  boobies  were  flying  near  the  ships,  which  were  supposed  L°*  ^'^ 
to  come  from  some  rocks  not  far  distant.    Their  longitude  at  Long.  180°. 
this  time  may   be  estimated  at  about   180  degrees  from   the 
meridian  of  Greenwich  *. 

Fortunately,  they  had  a  fresh  trade-wind,  and  made  great 
runs  every  day.  *  On  May  the  20th,  which,'  says  Dampier,  '  we       May 
'  begin  to  call  the  3!st,   we  were   in  latitude   12°50'N,   and       21st< 

*  steering  West.  At  two  p.  m.  the  bark  tender  being  two  leagues  shoals  and 
'  ahead  of  the  Cygnet,  came  into  shoal  water,  and  those  on  board    ict'w'iW 

'  plainly  saw  rocks  under  her,  but  no  land  was  in  sight.    They     1001*11 

'  hauled     from  The 

— — ' S  end  of 

*  Dampier's  Reckoning  made  the  difference  of  longitude  between  Cape  Cor-     Guahaa. 
rientes  .aid  the  Island  Giuihan,  125  degrees;  which  is  16  degrees  more  thaa    it 
has  been  found  by  modern  observations. 


238  BUCCANEEHS   OF  AMERICA 

^CHAP.  20.  <  hauled  on  a  wind  to  the  South  ward,  and  hove  the  lead,  and  found 
1686.  *  but  four  fathoms  water.  They  saw  breakers  to  the  Westward. 
May.  '  They  then  wore  round,  and  got  their  starboard  tacks  on  board 

*  and  stood  Northward.  The  Cygnet  in  getting  up  to  the  bark, 
Bankde     '  ran  over  <a  shoal  bank,  where  the  bottom  was  seen,  and  fish 

osa'  *  among  the  rocks  ;  but  the  ship  ran  past  it  before  we  could 
'  heave  the  lead.  Both  vessels  stood  to  the  Northward,  keep- 
'  ing  upon  a  wind,  and  sailed  directly  North,  having  the  wind 
'  at  ENE,  till  five  in  the  afternoon,  having  at  that  time  run 
'  eight  miles  and  increased  our  latitude  so  many  minutes.  We 
'  then  saw  the  Island  Guam  [Guahan]  bearing  NNE,  distant 
'  from  us  about  eight  leagues,  which  gives  the  latitude  of  the 
'  Island  (its  South  end)  13°  20'  N.  We  did  not  observe  the 

*  variation   of  the  compass  at  Guam.    At  Cape  Corrientes  we 
'  found  it  4°  28'  Easterly,  and  an  observation  we  made  when 
'  we  had  gone  about  a  third  of  the  passage,  shewed  it  to  be 
'  the  same.    I  am  inclined  to  think  it  was  less  at  Guam  *.' 

The  shoal  above  mentioned  is  called  by  the  Spaniards  the 
Banco  de  Santa  Rosa,  and  the  part  over  which  the  Cygnet 
passed,  according  to  the  extract  from  Dampier,  is  about 
SbWfW  from  the  South  end  of  Guahan,  distant  ten  or 
eleven  leagues. 

At  Guahan.  An  hour  before  midnight,  they  anchored  on  the  West  side  of 
Guahan,  a  mile  from  the  shore.  The  Spaniards  'had  here  a. 
small  Fort,  and  a  garrison  of  thirty  soldiers ;  but  the  Spanish 
Governor  resided  at  another  part  of  thej[sland.  As  the  ships 
anchored,  a  Spanish  priest  in  a  canoe  went  on  board,  believing 
them  to  be  Spaniards  from  Acapulco.  He  was  treated  with 
civility,  but  detained  as  a  kind  of  hostage,  to  facilitate  any 
negociation  necessary  for  obtaining  provisions ;  and  Swan  sent 
a  present  to  the  Spanish  Governor  by  the  Indians  of  the  canoe. 

No 

*  Dampier.    Manuscript  Journal,  and  Vol.  I,  Chap.  10.  of  his  printed  Voyages. 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  239 

No  difficulty  was  experienced  on  this  head.  Both  Spaniards,   CHAP.  20. 
and  the  few  natives  seen  here,  were  glad  to  dispose  of  their      ^ge. 
provisions  to  so  good  a  market  as  the  buccaneer  ships.    Dam-      M«y. 
pier  conjectured  the  number  of  the   natives  at  this  time  on     -A*  the. 
Guahan  not  to  exceed  a  hundred.    In  the  last  insurrection,    Guahan. 
which  was  a  short  time  before  Eaton  stopped  at  the  Ladroms, 
the   natives,  finding  they  could  not  prevail  against  the  Spa- 
niards, destroyed  their  plantations,  and  went  to  other  Islands. 
*•  Those  of  the  natives  who  remained  in  Guahan,'  says  Dampier, 

*  if  they  were  not  actually  concerned  in  that  broil,  their  hearts 

*  were  bent  against  the  Spaniards ;  for  they  offered  to  carry  us 

*  to  the  Fort  and  assist  us  to  conquer  the  Island*.' 

Whilst  Swan  lay  at  Guahan,  the  Spanish  Acapulco  ship 
came  in  sight  of  the  Island.  The  Governor  immediately  sent 
off  notice  to  her  of  the  Buccaneer  ships  being  in  the  road, 
on  which  she  altered  her  course  towards  the  South,  and 
by  so  doing  got  among  the  shoals,  where  she  struck  off.  her 
rudder,  and  did  not  get  clear  for  three  days.  The  natives  at 
Guahan  told  the  Buccaneers  that  the  Acapulco  ship  was  in 
sight  of  the  Island,  '  which,'  says  Dampier,  '  put  our  men  in 
'  a  great  heat  to  go  out  after  her,  but  Captain  Swan  per- 

*  suaded  them  out  of  that  humour/ 

Dampier  praises  the  ingenuity  of  the  natives  of  the  Ladwne     Flying 
Islands,  and  particularly  in  the  construction  of  their   sailing   or  §^\\n« 
canoes,  or,  as  they  are  sometimes  called,  their  flying  proes,  of     Canoe. 
which  he  has  given  the  following  description.    '  Their  Proe  or 

*  Sailing  Canoe  is  sharp  at  both  ends  ;  the  bottom  is  of  one 

*  piece,  of  good  substance  neatly  hollowed,  and  is  about  28  feet 

*  long ;  the  under  or  keel  part  is  made  round,  but  inclining 

*  to   a  wedge  ;  the  upper  part  is  almost   flat,  having  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 


€40  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  2O. 


narrow  plank,  and  each  end  of  the  boat  turns  up  round  very 
1686.       '  prettily.    But  what  is  very  singular,  one  side  of  the  boat  is 
May.      *  made   perpendicular  like   a  wall,   while   the    other   side   is 
Guahan.    <  rounding  as  other  vessels  are,  with  a  pretty  full  belly.    The 
Pro"8      *  dried    husks    of  the   cocoa-nuts   serve    for    oakum.    At  the 
'  middle  of  the  vessel  the  breadth  aloft  is  four  or  five  feet,  or 
'  more,  according  to  the  length  of  the  boat.    The  mast  stands 

*  exactly  in  the  middle,  with  a  long  yard  that  peeps  up  and 

*  down  like  a  ship's  mizen  yard  ;  one  end  of  it  reaches  down  to 

*  the  head  of  the  boat,  where  it  is  placed  in  a  notch   made 

*  purposely   to  keep  it   fast :    the  other   end  hangs  over  the 
'  stern.    To  this  yard  the  sail  is  fastened,  and  at  the  foot  of 

*  the  sail  is  another  small  yard  to  keep  the  sail  out  square,  or 

*  to   roll    the   sail    upon    when  it   blows   hard ;    for  it   serves 
'  instead  of  a  reef  to  take  up   the  sail  to  what  degree  they 
'  please.    Along  the  belly  side  of  the  boat,  parallel  with  it,  at 
'  about  seven  feet  distance,  lies  another  boat  or  canoe  very 
'  small,  being  a  log  of  very  light  wood,  almost  as  long  as  the 

*  great  boat,  but  not  above  a  foot  and  a  half  wide  at  the  upper 

*  part,  and  sharp  like  a  wedge  at  each  end.    The  little  boat  is 
'  fixed  firm  to  the  other  by  two  bamboos  placed  across  the 

*  great  boat,  one  near  each  end,  and  its  use  is  to  keep  the 

*  great  boat   upright   from   oversetting.    They   keep  the  flat 
'  side  of  the  great  boat  against  the  wind,  and  the  belly  side, 
'  consequently,  with  its  little  boat,  is  upon  the  lee*.    The  vessel 
«  has  a  head  at  each  end  so  as  to  be  able  to  sail-  with  either 

*  foremost: 


*  The  Ladrone  flying  proa  described  in  Commodore  Anson's  voyage,  sailed 
with  the  belly  or  rounded  side  and  its  smal|  canoe  to  windward;  by  which  it 
appears  that  these  proas  were  occasionally  managed  either  way,  probably  accord- 
ing to  the  strength  of  the  wind  ;  the  little  parallel  boat  or  canoe  preserving  the 
large  one  upright  by  its  weight  when  to  windward,  and  by  its  buoyancy  when 
to  leeward. 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA. 


241 


*  foremost :  they  need  not  tack  as  our  vessels  do,  but  when 

*  they  ply  to  windward  and  are  minded  to  make  a  board  the 

*  other  way,  they  only  alter  the  setting  of  the  sail   by  shifting 

*  the  end  of  the  yard,  and  they  take  the  broad  paddle  with  which 
'  they  steer  instead  of  a  rudder,  to  the  other  end  of  the  vessel. 

*  I  have  been  particular  in  describing  these  their  sailing  canoes, 

*  because   I   believe   they    sail  the  best  of  any    boats  in  the 

*  world.    I  tried  the  swiftness  of  one  of  them  with  our  log:  we 
'  had  twelve  knots  on  our  reel,  and  she  ran  it  all  out  before  the 

*  half-minute  glass  was  half  out.    I  believe  she  would  run  24 
'  miles  in  an  hour.    It  was  very  pleasant  to  see  the  little  boat 

*  running  so  swift  by  the  other's  side.    I  was  told  that  one 

*  of  these  proes  being  sent  express  from   Guakan  to  Manila, 
'  [a   distance   above  480   leagues]  performed   the   voyage  in 
1  four  days/ 

Dampier  has  described  the  Bread-fruit,  which  is  among  the 
productions  of  the  Ladrone  Islands.  He  had  never  seen  nor 
heard  of  it  any  where  but  at  these  Islands.  Provisions  were 
obtained  in  such  plenty  at  Guahan,  that  in  the  two  vessels  they 
salted  above  fifty  hogs  for  sea  use.  The  friar  was  released, 
with  presents  in  return  for  his  good  offices,  and  to  compensate 
for  his  confinement. 

June  the  2d,  they  sailed  from  Guahan  for  the  Island  Min- 
danao. The  weather  was  uncertain :  '  the  Westerly  winds  were 
'  not  as  yet  in  strength,  and  the  Easterly  winds  commonly 

*  over-mastered  them  and  brought  the  ships  on  their  way  to 

*  Mindanao.' 

There  is  much  difference  between  the  manuscript  Journal  of 
Dampier  and  the  published  Narrative,  concerning  the  geography 
of  the  East  side  of  Mindanao.  The  Manuscript  says,  *  We 

*  arrived  off  Mindanao  the  2 1st  da/  of  June;  but  being  come 

*  in  with  the  land,  knew  not  what  part  of  the  Island  the  city 

I  i  *  was 


CHAP.  20. 
1686. 

May. 

At  the 

Island 

Guahan. 


Bread 

Fruit. 


June. 


Eastern 
side  of 

Mindanao, 
and  the 
Island 

St.  John. 


242  THE    CYGNET 

CHAP.  20.  <  was  in,  therefore  we  run  down  to  the  Northward,  between 


'  Mindanao  and  St.  John,  and  came  to  an   anchor  in  a  bay 
June.      *  which  lieth  in  six  degrees  North  latitude.' 
Mindanao         jn  the  printed  Narrative  it  is  said,  '  The  %  1st  day  of  June,  we 
St.  John.    *  arrived  at  the  Island  St.  John,  which  is  on  the  East  side  of 

*  Mindanao,  and  distant  from  it  3  or  4  leagues.    It  is  in  latitude 

*  about  7°  or  8°  North.  This  Island  is  in  length  about  38  leagues, 
'  stretching  NNW  and  SSE,  and  is  in  breadth  about  24  leagues 

*  in    the   middle    of  the  Island.     The    Northernmost    end  is 
'  broader,  and  the  Southern  narrower.    This  Island  is  of  good 

*  height,  and  is  full  of  small  hills.    The  land  at  the  SE  end 

*  (where  I  was  ashore)  is  of  a  black  fat  mould  ;  and  the  whole 
'  Island  seems  to  partake  of  the  same,  by  the  vast  number  of 

*  large  trees   that  it  produceth,  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,  and  one  of  our  boats 

*  went  after  to  have  spoken  with  her,  but  she  ran  to  the  shore, 
'  and  the  people  leaving  her,  fled  to  the  woods.    We  saw  no 

*  more  people  here,  nor  sign  of  inhabitant  at  this  end.    When 

*  we  came  aboard  our  ship  again,  we  steered  away   for   the 
'  Island  Mindanao,   which  was   fair  in    sight    of  us,  it  being 

*  about  10  leagues  distant  from  this  part  of  St.  John's.    The 

*  2£d    day,   \\e   came    within   a   league  of  the    East  side   of 
'  Mindanao,  and  having  the  wind  at  SE,  we  steered  towards 

•  '  the  North  end,  keeping  on  the  East  side  till  we  came  into 
'  the  latitude  of  7°  40'  N,  and  there  we  anchored  in  a  small 
'  bay,  a  mile  from  the  shore,  in  10  fathoms,  rocky  foul  ground. 
'  Mindanao  being  guarded  on  the  East  side  by  St.  John's  Island, 

*  we  might  as  reasonably  have  expected  to  find  the  harbour 

*  and  city  on  this  side  as  any  where  else  ;  but  coming  into  the 

*  latitude  in  which  we  judged  the  city  might  be,  we  found  no 
'  canoes  or  people  that  indicated  a  city  or  place  of  trade  being 

*  near 


AT    MINDANAO.  243 

*  near  at  hand,   though  AVG   coasted  within   a  league  of  the  ^H  A  p.  20. 
'  shore*.'  a686. 

This  difference  between  the  manuscript  and  printed  Journal      June, 
cannot  well  be  accounted  for.     The  most  remarkable  parti-  Mmdana°- 
cular  of  disagreement  is  in  the  latitude  of  the  bay  wherein  they 
anchored.     At    this    bay  they  had  communication    with  the 
inhabitants,  and  learnt  that    the  Mindanao  City  was   to  the 
Westward.   They  could  not  prevail  on  any  Mindanao  man  to 
pilot  them  ;  the  next  day,  however,  they  weighed  anchor,  and 
sailed  back  Southward,  till  they  came  to  a  part  they  supposed 
to  be  the  SE  end  of  Mindanao,  and  saw  two  small  Islands  about 
three  leagues  distant  from  it. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  two  small  Islands  here  Sarangan 
noticed  were  Sarangan  and  Candigar ;  according  to  which, 
Dampier's  Island  St.  John  will  be  the  land  named  Cape  San 
Augustin  in  the  present  charts.  And  hence  arises  a  doubt 
whether  the  land  of  Cape  San  August  in  is  not  an  Island  separate 
from  Mindanao.  Dampier's  navigation  between  them  does  not 
appear  to  have  been  far  enough  to  the  Northward  to  ascertain 
whether  he  was  in  a  Strait  or  a  Gulf. 

The  wind  blew  constant  and  fresh  from  the  Westward,  and       July, 
it  took  them  till  the  4lh  of  July  to  get  into  a  harbour  or  sound  Harbour  or 
a  few  leagues  to  the  NW  from  the  two  small  Islands.    This    the  Soulh 

harbour  or  sound  ran  deep  into  the  land  ;  at  the  entrance  it  is  ,£oz!st  of 

.  Mindanao, 

only  two  miles  across,  but  within  it  is  three  leagues  wide,  with 

seven  fathoms  depth,  and  there  is  good  depth  for  shipping  four 
or  five  leagues  up,  but  with  some  rocky  foul  ground.  On  the 
East  side  of  this  Bay  are  small  rivers  and  brooks  of  fresh  water. 
The  country  on  the  West  side  was  uncultivated  land,  woody, 
and  well  stocked  with  wild  deer,  which  had  been  used  to  live 

there 

*  Dampier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  11. 


244  THE    CYGNET 

c  H  A  P.  20.  there  unmolested,  no  people  inhabiting  on  that  side  of  the 
1686.  bay.  Near  the  shore  was  a  border  of  savanna  or  meadow  land 
July.  which  abounded  in  long  grass.  Dampier  says,  « the  adjacent 

•At        <  woods  are  a  covert  for  the  deer  in  the  heat  of  the  day  :  but 
Mindanao.  .  .  -•'.•• 

1  mornings  and  evenings  they  feed  in  the  open  plains,  as  thick 

'  as  in  our  parks  in  England.     I  never  saw  any  where  such 

*  plenty  of  wild  deer.  We  found  no  hindrance  to  our  killing  as 

*  many  as  we  pleased,  and  the  crews  of  both  the  ships  were 

*  fed  with  venison  all  the  time  we  remained  here/ 

They  quitted  this  commodious  Port  on  the  12th;  the  weather 
had  become  moderate,  and  they  proceeded  Westward  for  the 
River  and  City  of  Mindanao.  The  Southern  part  of  the  Island 
appeared  better  peopled  than  the  Eastern  part ;  they  passed 
many  fishing  boats,  '  and  now  and  then  a  small  village/ 
River  of  On  the  18th,  they  anchored  before  the  River  of  Mindanao,  in 

Mindanao.  J5  fat[loms  c]epth,  the  bottom  hard  sand,  about  two  miles 
distant  from  the  shore,  and  three  or  four  miles  from  a  small 
Island  which  was  without  them  to  the  Southward.  The  river 
is  small,  and  had  not  more  than  ten  or  eleven  feet  depth  over 
the  bar  at  spring  tides.  Dumpier  gives  the  latitude  of  the 
entrance  6°  22'  N. 
City  of  The  buccaneer  ships  on  anchoring  saluted  with  seven  guns, 

Mindanao.  uncjer  English  colours,  and  the  salute  was  returned  with  three 
guns  from  the  shore.  '  The  City  of  Mindanao  is  about    two 

*  miles  from  the  sea.    It  is  a  mile  long,  of  no  great  breadth, 
'  winding  with  the  banks  of  the  river  on  the  right  hand  goino- 

*  up,  yet  it  has  many  houses  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  river/ 
The  houses  were  built  upon  posts,  and  at  this  time,  as  also 
during  a  great  part  of  the  succeeding  month,  the  weather  was 
rainy,  and  *  the  city  seemed  to  stand  as  in  a  pond,  so  that  there 
'  was  no  passing  from  one  house  to  another  but  in  canoes/ 

The  Island  Mindanao  was  divided  into  a  number  of  small 

states. 


AT    MINDANAO.  245 

states.  The  port  at  which  the  Cygnet  and  her  tender  now  CHAP.  20. 
anchored,  with  a  large  district  of  country  adjacent,  was  under  ^Q 
the  dominion  of  a  Sultan  or  Prince,  who  appears  to  have  been  July. 
one  of  the  most  powerful  in  the  Island.  The  Spaniards  had  not  At 
established  their  dominion  over  all  the  Philippine  Islands,  and 
the  inhabitants  of  this  place  were  more  apprehensive  of  the 
Hollanders  than  of  any  other  Europeans  ;  and  on  that  account 
expressed  some  discontent  when  they  understood  the  Cygnet 
was  not  come  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  settlement.  On  the 
afternoon  of  their  arrival,  Swan  sent  an  officer  with  a  present  to 
the  Sultan,  consisting  of  scarlet  cloth,  gold  lace,  a  scymitar,  and 
a  pair  of  pistols  ;  and  likewise  a  present  to  another  great  man 
who  was  called  the  General,  of  scarlet  cloth  and  three  yards 
of  silver  lace.  The  next  da}7,  Captain  Swan  went  on  shore  and 
was  admitted  to  an  audience  in  form.  The  Sultan  shewed  him 
two  letters  from  English  merchants,  expressing  their  wishes  to 
establish  a  factory  at  Mindanao,  to  do  which  he  said  the  Eng- 
lish should  be  welcome.  A  few  days  after  this  audience,  the 
Cygnet  and  tender  went  into  the  river,  the  former  being 
lightened  first  to  get  her  over  the  bar.  Here,  similar  to  the 
custom  in  the  ports  of  China,  an  officer  belonging  to  the  Sultan 
went  on  board  and  measured  the  ships. 

Voyagers  or  travellers  who  visit  strange  countries,  generally 
find,  or  think,  it  necessary  to  be  wary  and  circumspect:  mercan- 
tile voyagers  are  on  the  watch  for  occasions  of  profit,  and  the 
i;  quisitiveness  of  men  of  observation  will  be  regarded  with 
suspicion ;  all  which,  however  familiarity  of  manners  may  be 
assumed,  keeps  cordiality  at  a  distance,  and  causes  them  to  con- 
tinue strangers.  The  present  visitors  were  differently  circum- 
stanced and  of  different  character :  their  pursuits  at  Mindanao 
were  neither  to  profit  by  trade  nor  to  make  observation.  Long 
confined  with  pockets  full  of  money  which  they  were  impatient 

to 


246  THE    CYGNET 

» 

CHAP.  20.  to  exchange  for  enjoyment,  with  minds  little  troubled  by  con- 

1686.      siderations  of  economy,  they  at    once  entered   into  familiar 

At        intercourse  with  the  natives,  who  were  gained  almost  as  much 

Mindanao,  by  the  freedom  of  their  manners  as  by  their  presents,  and  with 
whom  they  immediately  became  intimates  and  inmates.  The 
same  happened  to  Drake  and  his  companions,  when,  returning 
enriched  with  spoil  from  the  South  Sea,  they  stopped  at  the 
Island  Java;  and  we  read  no  instance  of  Europeans  arriving  at 
such  sociable  and  friendly  intercourse  with  any  of  the  natives 
of  India,  as  they  became  with  the  people  of  Java  during  the 
short  time  they  remained  there,  except  in  the  similarly  circum- 
stanced instance  of  the  crew  of  the  Cygnet  among  the 
Mindanayans. 

By  the  length  of  their  stay  at  Mindanao,  Dampier  was  enabled 
to  enter  largely  into  descriptions  of  the  natives,  and  of  the 
country,  and  he  has  related  many  entertaining  particulars  con- 
cerning them.  Those  only  in  which  the  Buccaneers  were 
interested  will  be  noticed  here. 

The  Buccaneers  were  at  first  prodigal  in  their  gifts.  When 
any  of  them  went  on  shore,  they  were  welcomed  and  invited  to 
the  houses,  and  were  courted  to  form  particular  attachments. 
Among  many  nations  of  the  East  a  custom  has  been  found  to 
prevail,  according  to  which,  a  stranger  is  expected  to  choose 
some  individual  native  to  be  his  friend  or  comrade;  and  a  con- 
nexion so  formed,  and  confirmed  with  presents,  is  regarded,  if 
not  as  sacred,  with  such  high  respect,  that  it  is  held  most  dis- 
honourable to  break  it.  The  visitor  is  at  all  times  afterwards 
welcome  to  his  comrade's  house.  The  tayoship,  with  the  cere- 
mony of  exchanging  names,  among  the  South  Sea  islanders,  is  a 
bond  of  fellowship  of  the  same  nature.  The  people  of  Mindanao 
enlarged  and  refined  upon  this  custom,  and  allowed  to  the 
stranger  a  pagally,  or  platonic  friend  of  the  other  sex.  The 

wives 


AT    MINDANAO.  247 

wives  of  the  richest  men  may  be  chosen,  and  she  is  permitted   c  H  A  p.  »o. 
to  converse  with  her  pagally  in  public.     '  In  a  short  time,'  says       1686. 
Dampier,  '  several   of  our  men,  such  as  had  good  clothes  and         At 

*  store  of  gold,  had  a  comrade  or  two,  and  as  many  pagallies.' 
Some  of  the  crew  hired,  and  some  purchased,  houses,  in   which 
they  lived  with  their  comrades  and  pagallies,  and  with  a  train 
of  servants,  as  long  as  their  means  held  out.    '  Many  of  our 

*  Squires,'  continues  Dampier,  '  were  in  no  long   time  eased 

*  of  the    trouble  of  counting    their   money.     This  created  a 
c  division  of  the   crew   into    two  parties,    that  is   to   say,  of 

*  those   who  had  money,  and   those   who  had  none.    As   the 
'  latter  party  increased,  they  became  dissatisfied  and   unruly 

*  for  want  of  action,  and  continually  urged  the  Captain  to  go 

*  to  sea  ;  which  not  being  speedily  complied  with,  they  sold  the 

*  ship's  stores  and   the  merchants'  goods  to   procure  arrack.' 
Those  whose  money  held  out,  were  not  without  their  troubles. 
The  Mindanayans  were  a  people  deadly  in  their  resentments. 
Whilst  the  Cygnet  lay  at  Mindanao,  sixteen  Buccaneers  were 
buried,  most  of  whom,  Dampier  says,  died  by  poison.    '  The* 
'  people  of  Mindanao  are  expert  at  poisoning,  and  will  do  it 

'  upon  small  occasions.    Nor  did   our    men   want    for  .giving 
'  offence  either    by    rogueries,  or    by   familiarities   with  their 

*  women,  even  before  their  husbands'  faces.  They  have  poisons 

*  which  are  slow  and  lingering;  for  some  who  were  poisoned 
'  at  Mindanao,  did  not  die  till  many*months  after.' 

Towards  the  end  of  the  year  they  began  to  make  prepa- 
ration for  sailing.  It  was  then  discovered  that  the  bottom 
of  the  tender  was  eaten  through  by  worms  in  such  a  manner 
that  she  would  scarcely  swim  longer  in  port,  and  could  not 
possibly  be  made  fit  for  sea.  The  Cygnet  was  protected  by 
a  sheathing  which  covered  her  bottom,  the  worms  not  being 

able 


248  THE    CYGNET 


CHAP.  2O. 


able  to  penetrate  farther  than  to  the  hair  which  was  between" 
1687.      the  sheathing  and  the  main  plank. 

January.  In  the  beginning  of  January  (1687),  the  Cygnet  was  removed 
to  without  the  bar  of  the  river.  Whilst  she  lay  there,  and  when 
Captain  Swan  was  on  shore,  his  Journal  was  accidentally  left  out, 
and  thereby  liable  to  the  inspection  of  the  crew,  some  of  whom 
had  the  curiosity  to  look  in  it,  and  found  there  the  misconduct 
of  several  individuals  on  board,  noted  down  in  a  manner  that 
seemed  to  threaten  an  after-reckoning.  This  discovery  increased 
the  discontents  against  Swan  to  such  a  degree,  that  when 
he  heard  of  it  he  did  not  dare  to  trust  himself  on  board, 
and  the  discontented  party  took  advantage  of  his  absence 
and  got  the  ship  under  sail.  Captain  Swan  sent  on  board 
Mr.  Harthope,  one  of  the  Supercargoes,  to  see  if  he  could 
effect  a  reconciliation.  The  principal  mutineers  shewed  to 
Mr.  Harthope  the  Captain's  Journal,  '  and  repeated  to  him  all 

*  his  ill  actions,  and  they  desired  that  he  would  take  the  com- 
'  mand  of  the  ship;  but  he  refused,  and  desired  them  to  tarry 

*  a  little  longer  whilst  he  went  on  shore  and  communed  with 
'  the  Captain,  and  he  did  not  question  but   all   differences 

*  would  be  reconciled.    They  said  they  would  wait  till  two 
'  o'clock ;  but  at  four  o'clock,  Mr.  Harthope  not  having  re- 
'  turned,  and  no  boat  being  seen  coming  from  the  shore,  they 

*  made  sail  and  put  to  sea  with  the  ship,  leaving  their  Com- 

*  mander   and    36    of  the*  crew  at  Mindanao.'    Dampier  was 
among  those  who  went  in  the  ship ;    but  he  disclaims  having 
had  any  share  in  the  mutiny. 


FROM    MINDANAO.  349 


CHAP.    XXI. 

The  Cygnet  departs  from  Mindanao.  At  the  Ponghou  Isles. 
At  the  Five  Islands.  Dampier's  Account  of  the  Five  Islands. 
They  are  named  the  Bashee  Islands. 

T  T  was  on  the  14th  of  January  the  Cygnet  sailed  from  before  CHAP.  21. 

the  River  Mindanao.   The  crew  chose  one  John    Reed,  a  ~^T~ 

Jamaica  man,  for  their  Captain.    They  steered  Westward  along  january> 
the  coast  of  the  South  side  of  the  Island,  *  which  here  tends      South 

*  W  b  S,  the  land  of  a  good  height,  with  high  hills  in  the  coun-  ,£°jSt  of 

Mindanao. 

*  try.'    The  15th,  they  were  abreast  a  town  named  Chambongo 
[in  the  charts  Samboangan\  which  Dampier  reckoned  to  be  30 
leagues  distant  from  the  River  of  Mindanao.  The  Spaniards  had 
formerly  a  fort  there,  and  it  is  said  to  be  a  good  harbour.  '  At 
the  distance  of  two  or  three  leagues  from  the  coast,  are  many 
small  low  Islands  or  Keys  ;  and  two  or  three  leagues  to  the 
Southward  of  these  Keys  is  a  long  Island  stretching  NE  and 
SW  about  twelve  leagues  *.' 

When  they  were  past  the  SW  part  of  Mindanao,  they  sailed  Among  the 
Northward  towards  Manila,  plundering  the  country  vessels  that     jsj^g11' 
came  in  their  way.    What  was  seen  here  of  the  coasts  is  noticed 
slightly  and  with  uncertainty.    They  met  two  Mindanao  vessels 
laden  with  silks  and  calicoes;  and  near  Manila  they  took  some 
Spanish  vessels,  one  of  which  had  a  cargo  of  rice. 

From  the  Philippine  Islands  they  went  to  the  Island  Pulo     March. 

Condore, 


n 
Condore. 


*  Dampier,  Vol.  I,  Chap.  14.  The  long  Island  is  named  Basseelan  in  the 
charts;  hut  the  shape  there  given  it  does  not  agree  well  with  Dampier's 
description. 

KK 


250  THE    CYGNET 

CHAP.  21.  Condore,  where   two  of  the  men  who  had  been  poisoned  at 
1687.      Mindanao,  died.    '  They  were  opened  by  the  surgeon,  in  corn- 
March.     «  pliance  with  their  dying  request,  and  their  livers  were  found 
ChinVseas  '  ^ack'  light,  and  dry,  like  pieces  of  cork/ 

From  Pulo  Condore  they  went  cruising  to  the  Gulf  of  Siam, 
and  to  different  parts  of  the  China  Seas.  What  their  success 
was,  Dampier  did  not  think  proper  to  tell,  for  it  would  not 
admit  of  being  palliated  under  the  term  Buccaneering.  Among 
their  better  projects  and  contrivances,  one,  which  could  only 
have  been  undertaken  by  men  confident  in  their  own  seaman- 
ship and  dexterity,  was  to  search  at  the  Praia  Island  and  Shoal, 
for  treasure  which  had  been  wrecked  there,  the  recovery  of 
which  no  one  had  ever  before  ventured  to  attempt.  In  pur- 
suit of  this  scheme,  they  unluckily  fell  too  far  to  leeward,  and 
were  unable  to  beat  up  against  the  wind. 

July.  In  July  they  went  to  the  Ponghou  Islands,  expecting  to  find 

Ponghou    there  a  port  which  would  be  a  safe  retreat.    On  the  20th  of 

Teliae 

that  month,  they  anchored  at  one  of  the  Islands,  where  they 
found  a  large  town,  and  a  Tartar  garrison.  This  was  not  a 
place  where  they  could  rest  with  ease  and  security.  Having 
the  wind  at  SW,  they  again  got  under  sail,  and  directed  their 
course  to  look  for  some  Islands  which  in  the  charts  were  laid 
down  between  Formosa  and  Luconia,  without  any  name,  but 

The  Five  marked  with  the  figure  5  to  denote  their  number.  These  Buc- 
caneers, or  rather  pirates,  had  no  other  information  concerning 
the  Five  Islands  than  seeing  them  on  the  charts,  and  hoped  to 
find  them  without  inhabitants. 

Dampier's  account  of  the  Five  Islands  would  lose  in  many 
respects  if  given  in  any  other  than  his  own  words,  which  there- 
fore are  here  transcribed. 

.Dampier's       «  August  the  6th,  We  made  the  Inlands ;  the  wind  was  at 

?fethePFive  '  South,  and  we  fetched  in  with  the  Westernmost,  which  is  the 

Islands.  '  largest, 


AT  THE   FIVE   ISLANDS.  ssi 

largest,  on  which  we  saw  goats,  but  could  not  get  anchor-  ,° H  A  p-  2 *: 
ground,  therefore  we  stood  over  to  others  about  three  leagues       1687. 
from  this,  and  the  next  forenoon  anchored  in  a  small  Bay  on     August 

the  East  side  of  the  Easternmost  Island  in  fifteen  fathoms,  a     ,       .  , 

Dam  piers 
cable's   length    from    the  shore;    and  before  our  sails  were    Account 

furled  we  had  a  hundred  small  boats  aboard,  with  three,  four,  Fiv° 
and  some  with  six  men  in  them.  There  were  three  large 
towns  on  the  shore  within  the  distance  of  a  league.  Most 
of  our  people  being  aloft  (for  we  had  been  forced  to  turn  in 
close  with  all  sail  abroad,  and  when  we  anchored,  furled  all 
at  once)  and  our  deck  being  soon  full  of  Indian  natives,  we 
were  at  first  alarmed,  and  began  to  get  our  small-arms  ready ; 
but  they  were  very  quiet,  only  they  picked  up  such  old 
iron  as  they  found  upon  our  deck.  At  last,  one  of  our  men 
perceived  one  of  them  taking  an  iron  pin  out  of  a  gun- 
carriage,  and  laid  hold  of  him,  upon  which  he  bawled  out, 
and  the  rest  leaped  into  their  boats  or  overboard,  and  they 
all  made  away  for  the  shore.  But  when  we  perceived  their 
fright,  we  made  much  of  him  we  had  in  hold,  and  gave  him 
a  small  piece  of  iron,  with  which  we  let  him  go,  and  he 
immediately  leaped  overboard  and  swam  to  his  consorts,  who 
hovered  near  the  ship  to  see  the  issue.  Some  of  the  boats 
came  presently  aboard  again,  and  they  were  always  after- 
ward very  honest  and  civil.  We  presently  after  this,  sent  our 
canoe  on  shore,  and  they  made  the  crew  welcome  with  a 
drink  they  call  Bashee,  and  they  sold  us  some  hogs.  We 
bought  a  fat  goat  for  an  old  iron  hoop,  a  hog  of  70  or  80  Ibs. 
weight  for  two  or  three  pounds  of  iron,  and  their  bashee 
drink  and  roots  for  old  nails  or  bullets.  Their  hogs  were 
very  sweet,  but  many  were  meazled.  We  filled  fresh  water 
here  at  a  curious  brook  close  by  the  ship. 
*  We  lay  here  till  the  l£th,  when  we  weighed  to  seek  for  a 

K  K  2  *  better 


252 


THE    CYGNET 


CHAP.  21. 

1687. 

August. 

Dam  pier's 

Account 

of  the 

Five  Islands. 


Names 

given  to  the 

Islands. 


better  anchoring  place.  We  plied  to  windward,  and  passed 
between  the  South  end  of  this  Island  and  the  North  end  of 
another  Island  South  of  this.  These  Islands  were  both  full 
of  inhabitants,  but  there  was  no  good  riding.  We  stopped 
a  tide  under  the  Southern  Island.  The  tide  runs  there  very 
strong,  the  flood  to  the  North,  and  it  rises  and  falls  eight 
feet.  It  was  the  15th  day  of  the  month  before  we  found  a 
place  we  might  anchor  at  and  careen,  which  was  at  another 
Island  not  so  big  as  either  of  the  former. 


Monmouth 
Isle 


'  We  anchored  near  the  North  East  part  of  this  smaller 
Island,  against  a  small  sandy  bay,  in  seven  fathoms  clean 
hard  sand,  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  shore.  We  presently 
set  up  a  tent  on  shore,  and  every  day  some  of  us  went  to  the 
towns  of  the  natives,  and  were  kindly  entertained  by  them. 
Their  boats  also  came  on  board  to  traffic  with  us  every  day ; 
so  that  besides  provision  for  present  use,  we  bought  and 
salted  70  or  80  good  fat  hogs,  and  laid  up  a  good  stock  of 
potatoes  and  yams. 

'  These  Islands  lie  in  20°  20'  N.*  As  they  are  laid  down  in 

'  the 

*  M.  de  Surville  in  1/69,  and  much  more  lately  Captain  A.  Murray  of  the 
English  E.  I.  Company's  Service,  found  the  South  end  of  Monmouth  Island  to  be 
in  20°  if  N. 


AT  THE   BASHEE   ISLANDS.  253 

the  charts  marked  only  with  a  figure  of  5,  we  gave  them  what    CHAP.  21. 
names    we  pleased.    The  Dutchmen  who    were    among  us       1687. 
named  the  Westernmost,  which  is  the  largest,  the  Prince  of     Orange 
Orange's  Island.    It  is  seven  or  eight  leagues  long,  about  two 
leagues    wide,    and   lies  almost  North   and   South.    Orange 
Island  was  not  inhabited.     It  is  high  land,  flat  and   even  at 
the  top,  with  steep  cliffs  against  the  sea  ;  for  which  reason  we 
could  not  go  ashore  there,  as  we  did  on  all  the  rest. 

*  The  Island  where  we  first  anchored,  we  called  the  Duke  of    Grafton 
Grafton's  Isle,  having  married  my  wife  out  of  his  Dutchess's      jsland- 
family,  and  leaving  her  at  Arlington   House   at  my   going 
abroad.    Grafton  Isle  is  about  four  leagues  long,  stretching 
North  and  South,  and  one  and  a  half  wide. 

'  The  other  great   Island    our  seamen  called    the  Duke  of  Monmouth 
Monmouth's  Island.     It  is  about  three  leagues  long,   and  a      Jsland- 
league  wide. 

*  The  two  smaller  Islands,  which  lie  between  Monmouth,  and       Goat 
the  South  end  of  Orange  Island;  the  Westernmost,  which  is      Isjand- 
the  smallest,  we  called  Goat  Island,  from  the  number  of  goats 

we  saw  there.    The  Easternmost,  at  which  we  careened,  our     Bashee 

men  unanimously  called  Bashee  Island,  because  of  the  plen-      I^and. 

tiful  quantity  of  that  liquor  which  we  drank  there  every  day. 

This  drink  called  Bashee,  the  natives  make  with  the  juice  of  The  Drink 

the  sugar-cane,  to  which  they  put  some  small  black  berries.      called 

It  is  well    boiled,  and   then   put  into  great  jars,  in  which  it 

stands  three  or  four  days  to  ferment.    Then  it  settles  clear, 

and   is  presently   fit  to  drink.    This  is  an   excellent  liquor, 

strong,  and  I  believe  wholesome,  and  much  like  our  English 

beer  both  in   colour  and  tasle.    Our  men  drank  briskly  of  it 

during  several  weeks,  and  were  frequently    drunk    with    it,  The  whole 

and  never  sick  in  consequence.    The  natives  sold  it   to  us. 

very  cheap,  and  from  the   plentiful  use  of  it,  our  men  called 


all  tuese  Islands  the  Bashee  Islands. 

'  To 


254 


THE    CYGNET 


C  HA  P.  21. 

1687. 

Rocks  or 

small 

Islands 

North  of 

the 
Five  Islands. 

Natives 
described. 


'  To  the  Northward  of  the  Five  Islands  are  two  high  rocks.' 
[These  rocks  are  not  inserted  in  Dampier's  manuscript  Chart, 
and  only  one  of  them  in  the  published  Chart ;  whence  is  to  be 
inferred,  that  the  other  was  beyond  the  limit  of  the  Chart.] 

*  These  Islanders  are  short,  squat,  people,  generally  round 

*  visaged  with  thick  eyebrows ;  their  eyes  of  a  hazel  colour, 

*  small,  yet  bigger  than  those  of  the  Chinese;  they  have  short 

*  low  noses,  their  teeth  white;  their  hair  black,  thick,  and  lank, 
'  which    they  wear   short :  their  skins  are  of  a  dark    copper 

*  colour.    They  wear  neither  hat,  cap,  nor  turban  to  keep  off 

*  the  sun.    The  men  had  a  cloth  about  their  waist,  and  the 
'  women  wore  short  cotton  petticoats  which  reached  below  the 
'  knee.    These  people  had  iron  ;  but  whence  it  came  we  knew 
'  not.    The  boats  thev  build  are  much  after  the  fashion  of  our 

•I 

4  Deal  yawls,  but  smaller,  and  every  man  has  a  boat,,  which  he 
'  builds  himself.  They  have  also  large  boats,  which  will  carry 

*  40  or  50  men  each. 

'  They  are  neat  and  cleanly  in  their  persons,  and  are  withal 
'  the  quietest  and  civilest  people  I  ever  met  with.  I  could 

*  never  perceive  them  to  be  angry  one  with  another.    1  have 

*  admired  to  see  20  or  30  boats  aboard  our  ship  at  a  time,  all 

*  quiet  and  endeavouring  to  help  each  other  on  occasion ;  and 

*  if  cross  accidents  happened,  they  caused  no  noise  norappear- 
'  ance  of  distaste.  When  any  of  us  came  to  their  houses,  they 
'  would  entertain  us  with  such  things  as  their  houses  or  planta- 

*  tions  would  afford  ;  and  if  they  had  no  bashee  at  home,  would 
c  buy  of  their  neighbours,  and  sit  down  and  drink  freely  with 

*  us ;  yet  neither  then  nor  sober  could  I  ever  perceive  them 

*  to  be  out  of  humour. 

'  I  never  observed  them  to  worship  any  thing;  they  had  no 

*  idols;  neither  did  I  perceive  that  one  man  was  of  greater 
'  power  than  another :  they  seemed  to  be  all  equal,  only  every 

*  man 


AT   THE    BASHEE   ISLANDS.  255 

man  ruling  in  his  own  house,  and  children  respecting  and  CHAP,  ai. 
honouring  their  parents.  Yet  it  is  probable  they  have  some  law  ^87. 
or  custom  by  which  they  are  governed ;  for  whilst  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.  One  woman 
particularly  made  great  lamentations,  and  took  off  the  con- 
demned person's  ear-rings.  We  supposed  her  to  be  his  mother. 
After  he  had  taken  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. 

*  Monmouth   and    Graf  ton    Isles   are  very  hilly  with    steep    Situations 
precipices;    and  whether   from   fear  of  pirates,   of  foreign      of  then 
enemies,  or  factions  among  their  own  clans,  their  towns  and 
villages  are  built  on  the  most  steep  and  inaccessible  of  these 
precipices,  and  on  the  sides  of  rocky  hills ;  so  that  in  some  of 

their  towns,  three  or  four  rows  of  houses  stand  one  above 
another,  in  places  so  steep  that  they  go  up  to  the  first  row 
with  a  ladder,  and  in  the  same  manner  ascend  to  every  street 
upwards.  Graf  ton  and  Monmouth  Islands  are  very  thick  set 
with  these  hills  and  towns.  The  two  small  Islands  are  flat 
and  even,  except  that  on  Bashee  Island  there  is  one  steep 
craggy  hill.  The  reason  why  Orange  Island  has  no  inhabitants, 
though  the  largest  and  as  fertile  as  any  of  these  Islands,  I  take 
to  be,  because  it  is  level  and  exposed  to  attack ;  and  for  the 
same  reason,  Goat  Island,  being  low  and  even,  hath  no  inha- 
bitants. We  saw  no  houses  built  on  any  open  plain  ground. 
Their  houses  are  but  small  and  low,  the  roofs  about  eight 
feet  high. 

*  The  vallies  are  well  watered  with  brooks  of  fresh  water.  The 

*  fruits 


256  THE    CYGNET 

CHAP.  21.  '  fruits  of  these  Islands  are  plantains,  bananas,  pine-apples, 

1687.       *  pumpkins,  yams  and  other  roots,  and  sugar-canes,  which  last 

Bashee     '  they  use  mostly  for  their  bashee  drink.    Here  are  plenty  of 

Islands.     <  goats,  and  hogs;  and  but  a  few  fowls.    They  had  no  grain  of 

'  any  kind. 

September.       '  On  the  26th  of  September,  our  ship  was  driven  to  sea,  by  a 

26th.       <  strong  gale  atNbW,  which  made  her  drag  her  anchors.    Six 

'  of  the  crew  were  onshore,  who  could  not  get  on  board.    The 

October.    ,'  weather  continued  stormy  till  the  29th.    The  1st  of  October, 

*  we  recovered  the  anchorage  from  which  we  had  been  driven, 
'  and  immediately  the  natives  brought  on  board  our  six  seamen, 

*  who  related  that  after  the  ship  \vas  out  of  sight,  the  natives 
'  were  more  kind  to  them  than  they  had  been  before,  and  tried 
'  to  persuade  them  to  cut  their  hair  short,  as  was  the  custom 

*  among  themselves,  offering  to  each  of  them  if  they  would,  a 
'  young  woman  to  wife,  a  piece  of  land,  and  utensils  fit  for  a 

*  planter.   These  offers  were^ declined,  but  the  natives  were  not 
'  the  less  kind ;  on   which  account  we  made  them  a  present 

*  of  three  whole  bars  of  iron.' 

Two  days  after  this  reciprocation  of  kindness,  the  Buccaneers 
bid  farewell  to  these  friendly  Islanders. 


FROM  THE   BASHEE   ISLANDS.  257 

CHAP.    XXII. 

The  Cygnet.    At  the  Philippines,  Celebes,  and  Timor.   On  the 
Coast  of  New  Holland.     End  of  the  Cygnet. 

"C*ROM  the  Bashee  Islands,  the  Cygnet  steered  at  first  SSW,    CHAP.  « 
with  the  wind  at  West,  and  on  that  course  passed  '  close 


*  to  the  Eastward  of  certain  small  Islands  that  lie  just  by  the    October. 

*  North  end  of  the  Island  Luconia.' 

They  went   on  Southward   by   the  East  of  the  Philippine      island 
Islands.    On  the  14th,  they  were  near  a  small  low  woody  Island,'  s^ar  j,hef 
which  Dampier  reckoned  to  lie  East  20  leagues  from  the  SE  Mindanao, 
end   of  Mindanao.     The    16th,    they   anchored  between   the 
small  Islands  Candigar  and  Sarangan ;  but  afterwards  found  at  Candigar, 
the  NW  end  of  the  Eastern  of  the  two  Islands,  a  good  and 
convenient  small  cove,  into  which  they  went,  and  careened  the 
ship.    They  heard  here  that  Captain  Swan  and  those  of  the 
crew  left  with  him,  were  still  at  the  City  of  Mindanao. 

The    Cygnet   and    her   restless   crew   continued   wandering 
about  the  Eastern  Seas,  among  the  Philippine  Islands,  to  Celebes, 
and  to  Timor.    December  the  27th,  steering  a  Southerly  course,   December, 
they  passed  by  the  West  side  of  Rotte,  and  by  another  small    N27thV 
Island,  near  the  SW  end  of  Timor.  Dampier  says,  *  Being  now  SW  end  of 
'  clear  of  all  the   Islands,  and  having  the  wind  at  West  and 

*  W  b  N,  we  steered  away  SSW,  *  intending  to  touch  at  New 
'  Holland,  to  see  what  that  country  would  afford  us.' 

The    wind    blew   fresh,    and    kept    them    under    low    sail; 
sometimes  with    only    their  courses  set,  and  sometimes  with 
reefed  topsails.    The  3 1st  at  noon,  their  latitude  was  13*  20'  S.       3ist. 
About   ten  o'clock  at  night,  they  tacked   and   stood    to  (he 
Northward  for  fear  of  a  shoal,  which  their  charts  laid  down 

in 

*   Manuscript  Journal. 

LL 


258  THE    CYGNET 

CHAP.  22.  in  the  track  they  were  sailing,  and  in  latitude  13°  50'  S.  At  three 

!688.       in  the  morning,  they  tacked  again  and  stood  SbW  and  SSW. 

January.    As  soon  as  it  was  light,  they  perceived  a  low  Island  and  shoal 


L°ri  sf1^  "S^t  ahead.     This  shoal,  by  their  reckoning,    is   in  latitude 
SbW  from   13°  50',  and  lies  SbW  from  the  West  end  of  Timor*    «  It  is 


'  a  sma^  spit  °f  sand  appearing  just  above  the  water's  edge, 
Timor.  '  with  several  rocks  about  it  eight  or  ten  feet  high  above 
'  water.  It  lies  in  a  triangular  form,  each  side  in  extent  about 
*  a  league  and  a  half.  We  could  not  weather  it,  so  bore  away 
'  round  the  East  end,  and  stood  again  to  the  Southward, 
'  passing  close  by  it  and  sounding,  but  found  no  ground.  This 
'  shoal  is  laid  down  in  our  drafts  not  above  16  or  20  leagues 

NW  Coast  '  from  New  Holland  ;  but  we  ran  afterwards  60  leagues  making 

Holland     '  a  course  due  South,  before  we  fell  in  with  the  coast  of  New 

'  Holland,   which    we    did    on    January   the   4th,  in  latitude 

'  16°  50'  S.'    Dampier  remarks  here,  that  unless  they  were  set 

Westward  by  a  current,  the  coast  of  New  Holland  must  have 

been   laid    down    too  far  Westward  in    the  charts  ;    but   he 

thought  it  not  probable  that  they  were  deceived  by  currents, 

because  the  tides  on  that   part  of  the  coast  were  found  very 

regular  ;    the  flood  setting  towards  the  NE. 

In  a  Bay        The  coast  here  was   low  and   level,  with   sand-banks.  The 

NW  'coast  Cygnet  sailed  along  the  shore  NE  b  E  12  leagues,  when  she 

of  New     came  to  a    point   of  land,  with  an  Island  so    near  it    that 

she  could  not  pass  between.    A  league  before  coming  to  this 

point,  that  is  to  say,  Westward  of  the  point,  was  a  shoal  which 

ran  out  from  the  main-land  a  league.    Beyond  the  point,  the 

coast  ran   East,  and  East  Southerly,  making  a  deep  bay  with 

man}' 

*  In  the  printed  Voyage,  the  shoal  is  mistakenly  said  to  lie  SbW  from  the  East 
end  of  Timor.  The  Manuscript  Journal,  and  the  track  of  the  ship  ns  marked  in 
the  charts  to  the  1st  volume  of  D  ampler'  s  Voyages,  agree  in  making  the  place  of 
the  shoal  SbW  from  the  West  end  of  Timor;  whence  they  had  last  taken  their 
departure,  and  from  which  their  reckoning  \vas  kept. 


AT   NEW   HOLLAND. 


259 


—- 


1688. 


many  Islands  in  it.  On  the  5th,  they  anchored  in  this  bay, 
about  two  miles  from  the  shore,  in  29  fathoms.  The  6th,  they 
ran  nearer  in  and  anchored  about  four  miles  Eastward  of  the 
point  before  mentioned,  and  a  mile  distant  from  the  nearest  a 

on  the 

shore,  in  18  fathoms  depth,  the  bottom  clean  sand.  NW  Coast 

People  were  seen  on  the  land,  and  a  boat  was  sent  to  endea-  Holland! 
vour  to  make  acquaintance  with  them  ;  but  the  natives  did  not 
wait.  Their  habitations  were  sought  for,  but  none  were  found. 
The  soil  here  was  dry  and  sandy,  yet  fresh  water  was  found  by 
digging  for  it.  They  warped  the  ship  into  a  small  sandy  cove,  at 
a  spring  tide,  as  far  as  she  would  float,  and  at  low  water  she  was 
high  aground,  the  sand  being  dry  without  her  half  a  mile  ;  for 
the  sea  rose  and  fell  here  about  five  fathoms  perpendicularly. 
During  the  neap  tides,  the  ship  lay  wholly  aground,  the  sea 
not  approaching  nearer  than  within  a  hundred  yards  of  her. 
Turtle  and  manatee  were  struck  here,  as  much  every  day  as 
served  the  whole  crew. 

Boats  went  from  the  ship  to  different  parts  of  the  bay  in 
search  of  provisions.    For  a  considerable  time  they.  met  with 
no   inhabitants  ;  but  at  length,  a  party  going  to  one  of  the 
Islands,  saw  there  about  forty  natives,  men,  women,  and   chil-     Natives. 
dren.    *  The  Island  was  too  small  for  them  to  conceal  them- 

*  selves.     The   men   at  first  made   threatening  motions  with 

*  lances  and  wooden  swords,  but  a  musket  was  fired  to  scare 
'  them,  and  they  stood  still.    The  women  snatched   up  their 
'  infants  and  ran   away  howling,  their  other  children  running 

*  after  squeaking  and   bawling.    Some  invalids  who  could  not 
'  get  away  lay  by  the  fire  making  a  doleful  noise  ;  but  after  a 

*  short  time  they  grew  sensible  that  no  mischief  was  intended 
'  them,  and  they   became  quiet'    Those  who  had  fled,  soon 
returned,  and  some  presents  made,  succeeded  in  rendering  them 
familiar.    Dampier  relates,  '  we  filled  some  of  our  barrels  with 
'  water  at  wells,  which  had   been  dug  by  the  natives,  but  it 

L  L  2  '  being 


260  THE    CYGNET 

CHAP.  22.  «  being  troublesome  to  get  to  our  boats,  we  thought  to  have 

jggs.      '  made  these  men  help  us,  to  which  end  we  put  on  them  some 

January.     *  old  ragged  clothes,  thinking  this  finery  would  make  them 

In  a  Bay    <  willing  to  be  employed.  We  then  brought  our  new  servants  to 

NW  Coast  '  the  wells,  and  put  a  barrel  on  the  shoulders  of  each ;    but 

°f ®e™     '  all  the  signs  we  could  make  were  to  no  purpose,  for  they 

*  stood  like  statues,  staring  at  one  another  and  grinning  like  so 
'  many  monkies.    These  poor  creatures  seem  not  accustomed 

*  to  carry  burthens,  and  I  believe  one  of  our  ship-boys  of  ten 
'  years  old  would  carry  as    much  as    one  of  their  men.     So 

*  we  were  forced   to  carry  our  water  ourselves,  and  they  very 

*  fairly  put  off  the  clothes  again  and  laid  them  down.    They 

*  had.no  great  liking  to  them  at  first,  neither  did  they  seem 

*  to  admire  any  thing  that  we  had.' 

'  The  inhabitants  of  this  country  are  the  most    miserable 
'  people  in  the  world.    The  Hottentots  compared  with  them 

*  are  gentlemen.    They  have  no  houses,  animals,  or  poultry. 
'  Their  persons  are  tall,  straight-bodied,  thin,  with  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,  for  they  are  so   troublesome  here  that  no  fanning 
'  will  keep  them  from  one's  face,  so  that  from  their  infancy 

*  they  never  open  their  eyes  as  other  people  do,  and  therefore 

*  they  cannot  see  far,  unless  they  hold  up  their  heads  as  if 

*  they  were  looking  at  something  over  them.    They  have  great 
'  bottle  noses,  full  lips,  wide  mouths  :  the  two  fore-teeth  of  their 

*  upper  jaw  are  wanting  in  all  of  them:  neither  have  they  any 

*  beards.    Their  hair  is  black,  short,  and  curled,  and  their  skins 

*  coal  black  like  that  of  the  negroes  in  Guinea.  Their  only  food 

*  is  fish,  and  they  constantly  search  for  them  at  low  water, 

*  and  they  make  little  weirs  or  dams  with  stones  across  little 
'  coves  of  the  sea.     At  one  time,  our  boat  being  among  the 

*  Islands  seeking  for  game,  espied  a  drove  of  these  people 

'  swimming 


AT   NEW   HOLLAND.  261 

*  swimming  from  one  Island  to  another;  for  they  have  neither  CHAP.  22^ 
'  boats,   canoes,  nor  bark -logs.    We  always  gave  them  victuals       a688. 

*  when  we  met  any  of  them.    But  after  the  first  time  of  our      March. 

*  being  among  them,  they  did  not  stir  for  our  coming.'  *"  a  ^aJ 

It  deserves  to  be  remarked  to  the  credit  of  human  nature,  NW  Coast 

P  TVT 

that  these  poor  people,  in  description  the  most  wretched  of    H0uan^ 
mankind   in  all  respects,  that  we  read  of,  stood  their  ground 
for  the  defence  of  their  women  and  children,  against  the  shock 
and  first  surprise  at  hearing  the  report  of  fire-arms. 

The  Cygnet  remained  at  this  part  of  New  Holland  till 
the  12th  of  March,  and  then  sailed  Westward,  for  the  West 
coast  of  Sumatra. 

On  the  28th,  they  fell  in  with  a  small  woody  uninhabited       28th> 
Island,  in  latitude  1 0°  20' S,  and,  by  Darnpier's  reckoning,  12*6'      in  Lat. 
of  longitude  from  the  part  of  New  Holland  at  which  they  had    10° 20  s> 
been.    There  was  too  great  depth  of  water  every  where  round 
the  Island  for  anchorage.    A  landing-place   was  found  near 
the  SW  point,  and  on  the  Island  a  small  brook  of  fresh  water ; 
but  the  surf  would  not  admit  of  any  to  betaken  off  to  the 
ship.    Large  craw-fish,  boobies,  and  men-of-war  birds,  were 
caught,  as  many  as  served  for  a  meal  for  the  whole  crew. 

April  the  7th,  they  made  the  coast  of  Sumatra.  Shortly  after,       April. 
at  the  Nicobar  Islands,  Dampier  and  some  others  quitted  the  En<J°fthe 
Cygnet.    Read,  the  Captain,  and  those  who  yet  remained  with 
him,  continued  their  piratical   cruising  in  the  Indian  Seas,  till, 
after  a  variety  of  adventures,  and  changes  of  commanders,  they 
put  into  Saint  Augustine's  Bay  in  the  Island  of  Madagascar,  by 
which  time  the  ship  was  in  so  crazy  a  condition,  that  the  crew 
abandoned  her,  and  she  sunk  at  her  anchors.    Some  of  the  men 
embarked  on  board   European  ships,  and  some  engaged  them- 
selves in  the  service  of  the  petty  princes  of  that  Island. 

Dampier  returned  to  England  in  1 69 1  • 


5262  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 


C  H  A  P.    XXIII. 

French  Buccaneers  under  Francois  Grogniet    and    Le  Picard, 
to  the  Death  of  Grogniet. 


CHAP. 


23.  TTAVING  accompanied  the  Cygnet  to  her  end,  the  History 


The  French  must  again    be  taken   back   to  the  breaking  up  of  the 

Buccaneers,  general   confederacy  of  Buccaneers  which  took  place  at  the 

July  1685.  Island  Quibo,  to  give  a  connected  narrative  of  the  proceedings 

of  the  French  adventurers  from  that  period   to  their  quitting 

the  South  Sea. 

Three  hundred  and   forty-one  French  Buccaneers  (or  to  give 
them  their  due,  privateers,  war  then  existing  between  France 
and   Spain")   separated     from    Edward  Davis    in   July   1685, 
Under      choosing  for  their  leader  Captain  Francois  Grogniet. 

They  had  a   small  ship,  two  small  barks,   and   some  large 
canoes,  which  were  insufficient  to  prevent  their  being  incom- 
moded for  want  of  room,  and  the  ship  was  so  ill  provided  with 
sails  as  to  be  disqualified  for  cruising  at  sea.    They  were  like- 
wise scantily  furnished  with  provisions,  and  necessity  for  a  long 
time  confined  their  enterprises  to  the  places  on  the  coast  of 
New  Spain  in  the  neighbourhood   of  Quibo.     The  towns    of 
Pueblo  Nuevo,  Ria  Leva,  Nicoya,   and   others,  were  plundered 
by  them,  some  more  than  once,  by  which  they  obtained  provi- 
sions, and  little  of  other  plunder,  except  prisoners,  from  whom 
they  extorted  ransom  either  in  provisions  or  money. 
November.       In  November,  they  attacked  the  town  of  Ria  Lexa.  Whilst  in 
the  port,  a  Spanish  Officer  delivered  to  them  a  letter  from  the 
Vicar-General  of  the  province  of  Costa  Rica,  written  to  inform 
them   that   a   truce  for    twenty    years    had    been  concluded 

between 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  263 

between   France  and  Spain.    The  Vicar-General  therefore  re-   <•  n  A  p.  23. 
quired   of  them    to  forbear  committing  farther 'hostility,  and       1685. 
offered  to  give  them  safe  conduct  over  land  to  the  North  Sea,  November. 

t  l» 

and  a  passage  to  Europe  in  the  galeons  of  his  Catholic  Majesty  BUCcaneers 
to  as  many  as  should  desire  it.     This  offer  not  according  with      under 
the  inclinations  of  the  adventurers,  they  declined  accepting  it,      On  the  ' 

and,  without  entering  into  enquiry,  professed  to  disbelieve  the  ,TCoa*to.f 

New  Spain, 
intelligence. 

November  the  14th,  they  were  near  the  Point  Burica.  Lussan    Point  de 
says,  '  we  admired  the  pleasant  appearance  of  the  land,  and      Blinca- 
'  among  other  things,  a  Avalk  or  avenue,  formed  by  five  rows 
'  of  cocoa-nut  trees,  which  extended  in  continuation  along  the 
'  coast  15  leagues,  with  as  much  regularity  as  if  they  had  been 
'  planted  by  line/ 

In  the  beginning  of  January  1686,  two  hundred  and  thirty  of      1686. 
these  Buccaneers  went  in  canoes  from  Quibo  against  Chiriyuita,    January. 
a  small  Spanish  town  on  the  Continent,  between  Point  Burica  ^ulululta- 
and    the  Island  Quibo.    Chiriquita  is  situated  up  a  navigable 
river,  and  at  some  distance  from  the  sea-coast.    '  Before  this 

*  river   are  eight  or  ten   Islands,    and    shoals  on    which  the 
'  sea  breaks  at  low  water;  but  there   are  channels  between 

*  them  through  which  ships  may  pass*.' 

The  Buccaneers  arrived  in  the  night  at  the  entrance  of  the 
river,  unperceived  by  the  Spaniards;  but  being  without  guides, 
and  in  the  dark,  they  mistook  and  landed  on  the  wrong  side 
of  the  river.  They  were  two  days  occupied  in  discovering  the 
right  way,  but  were  so  well  concealed  by  the  woods,  that 
at  daylight  on  the  morning  of  the  third  day  they  came 
upon  the  town  and  surprised  the  whole  of  the  inhabitants,  who, 
says  Lussan,  had  been  occupied  the  last  two  days  in  disputing 

which  of  them  should  keep  watch,  and  go  the  rounds. 

Lussan 

*  A  Voyage  by  Edward  Cooke,  Vol.  I,  p.  371.     London,  JJI2. 


264  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  p.  23.       Lussan  relates  here,  that  himself  and  five  others  were  decoyed 

1686.      to  pursue  a  few  Spaniards  to  a  distance  from  the  town,  where 

January,     they  were  suddenly  attacked  by  one  hundred  and  twenty  men. 

He  and  his  companions  however,  he  says,  played  their  parts  an 

Coast  of    hour  and    a  half  '  en  vrai  Flibustiers,'  and  laid  thirty  of  the 

"XT  C        '  ~ 

''  enemy  on  the  ground,  by  which  time  they  were  relieved  by  the 
arrival  of  some  of  their  friends.  They  set  fire  to  the  town,  and 
got  ransom  for  their  prisoners :  in  what  the  ransom  consisted, 
Lussan  has  not  said. 

At  Quibo.  Their  continuance  in  one  station,  at  length  prevailed  on  the 
Spaniards  to  collect  and  send  a  force  against  them.  They  had 
taken  some  pains  to  instil  into  the  Spaniards  a  belief  that  they 
intended  to  erect  fortifications  and  establish  themselves  at  Quibo. 
Their  view  in  this  it  is  not  easy  to  conjecture,  unless  it  was  to 
discourage  their  prisoners  from  pleading  poverty ;  for  they 
obliged  those  from  whom  they  could  not  get  money,  to  labour, 
and  to  procure  bricks  and  materials  for  building  to  be  sent 
for  their  ransom.  On  the  27th  of  January,  a  small  fleet  of 
Spanish  vessels  approached  the  Island  Quibo.  The  buccaneer 
ship  was  without  cannon,  and  lay  near  the  entrance  of  a 
river  which  had  only  depth  sufficient  for  their  small  vessels. 
The  Buccaneers  therefore  took  out  of  the  ship  all  that  could 
be  of  use,  and  ran  her  aground  ;  and  with  their  small  barks  and 
canoes  took  a  station  in  the  river.  The  Spaniards  set  fire  to 
the  abandoned  ship,  and  remained  by  her  to  collect  the  iron- 
work ;  but  they  shewed  no  disposition  to  attack  the  French  in 

February,   the  river;  and  on  the   1st  of  February,  they  departed  from 
the  Island. 

The  Buccaneers  having  lost  their  ship,  set  hard  to   work  to 
build   themselves  small  vessels.    In  this  month  of  February, 
fourteen  of  their  number  died  by  sickness  and  accidents. 
March.         They  had  projected  an  attack  upon  Granada,  but  want  of 

present 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  365 

present  subsistence  obliged   them  to  seek  supply  nearer,  and  a    CHAP.  23. 
detachment  was  sent  with  that  view    to  the  river  of  Pueblo       1686. 
Nuevo.    Some  vessels  of  the  Spanish  flotilla  which  had  lately      March, 
been  at  Quibo,  were  lying  at  anchor  in  the  river,  which  the  Unsuccess- 

rii'i  •  •  i      r-  r-1-ni-i-r.  T        fill  attempt 

rlibustiers  mistook  tor  a  party  or  the  English  Buccaneers.    In    at  Pueblo 
this  belief  they  went  within  pistol-shot,  and  hailed,  and  were     Nuevo- 
then  undeceived  by  receiving  for  answer  a  volley  of  musketry. 
They  fired  on  the  Spaniards  in  return,   but  were  obliged  to 
retreat,  and  in  this  affair  they  lost  four  men  killed  outright,  and 
between  30  and  40  were  wounded. 

Preparatory  to  their  intended  expedition  against  Granada, 
they  agreed  upon  some  regulations  for  preserving  discipline 
and  order,  the  principal  articles  of  which  were,  that  cowardice, 
theft,  drunkenness,  or  disobedience,  should  be  punished  with 
forfeiture  of  all  share  of  booty  taken. 

On    the  evening  of  the  2£d,  they  were   near  the  entrance 
of  the  Gulf  of  Nicoya,  in  a  litlle  fleet,  consisting  of  two  small 
barks,  a  row-galley,  and  nine  large  canoes.    A  tornado  came 
on  in  the  night  which  dispersed  them  a  good  deal.    At  day- 
light they  were  surprised  at  counting  thirteen  sail  in  company, 
and  before  they  discovered  which  was  the  strange  vessel,  five 
more  sail  came  in  sight.    They  soon  joined  each  other,  and  the    Gro«*niet 
strangers  proved  to  be  a  party  of  the  Buccaneers  of  whom  lsjoined  bJ 
Townley  was  the  head. 

Townley  had  parted  company  from  Swan  not  quite  two 
months  before.  His  company  consisted  of  1 1 5  men,  embarked 
in  a  ship  and  five  large  canoes.  Townley  had  advanced  with  his 
canoes  along  the  coast  before  his  ship  to  seek  provisions,  he 
and  his  men  being  no  better  off  in  that  respect  than  Grogniet 
and  his  followers.  On  their  meeting  as  above  related,  the  French 
did  not  forget  Townley 's  former  overbearing  conduct  towards 
them :  they,  however,  limited  their  vengeance  to  a  short 

M  M  triumph. 


266  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  03.  triumph.    Lussaii  says,  '  we  now  finding  ourselves  the  strongest, 

i&86~    '  called  to  mind  the  ill  offices  he  had  done  us,  and  to  shew  him 

Grogniet    '  our  resentment,  we  made    him  and  his  men  in  the  canoes 

Town!        '  w't^1    *"m    our    prisoners-     ^c    tnen    boarded    his    ship,    of 

*  which  we  made  ourselves  masters,  and  pretended  that  we 

*  would  keep   her.     We   let   them  remain  some  time   under 
'  this  apprehension,  after   which  we  made  them  see  that  we 
'  were  more  honest  and  civilized  people  than  they  were,  and 
'  that  v;e  would  not  profit    of   our  advantage  over    them  to 

*  revenge  ourselves;    for  after  keeping  possession  about  four 
'  or  five  hours,  we  returned  to  them  their  ship  and  all  that  had 
'  been  taken  from  them.'    The   English  shewed  their  sense  of 
this  moderation  by  offering  to  join  in  the  attack  on  Granada, 
which  offer  was  immediately  accepted. 

April.          The  city  of  Granada  is  situated  in  a  valley  bordering  on  the 


Expedition  jr^j^  of  Nicaragua,  and  is  about  16  leagues  distant  from  Leon. 

against  the  .,,.,. 

City  of  The  Buccaneers  were  provided  with  guides,  and  to  avoid  giving 

Granada.  Spaniartjs  suspicion  of  their  design,  Townley's  ship  and  the 


two  .barks  were  left  at  anchor  near  Cape  Blanco,  whilst  the  force 
destined  to   be  employed  against  Granada  proceeded  in  the 
canoes  to  the  place  at  which  it  was  proposed  to  land,  directions 
being  left  with  the  ship  and  barks  to  follow  in  due  time. 
7tb.  The  7th  of  April,  345   Buccaneers  landed   from  the  canoes, 

about  twenty  leagues  NW-ward  of  Cape  Blanco,  and  began 
their  march,  conducted  by  the  guides,  who  led  them  through 
woods  and  unfrequented  ways.  They  travelled  night  and  day 
till  the  9th,  in  hopes  to  reach  the  city  before  they  were  disco- 
vered by  the  inhabitants,  or  their  having  landed  should  be 
known  by  the  Spaniards. 

The  province  of  Nicaragua,  in  which  Granada  stands,  is- 
reckoned  one  of  the  most  fertile  in  New  Spain.  The  distance 
from  where  the  Buccaneers  landed,  to  the  city,  may  be  esti- 

mated 


IN   THE    SOUTH   SEA.  267 

mated  about   60   miles.    Yet  they  expected  to  come  upon   it   CHAP.  23. 
by  surprise ;  and  in  fact  they  did  travel  the  greater  part  of  the       1686. 
way  without  being  seen  by  any  inhabitant.  Such  a  mark  of  the      April, 
state  of  the  population,  corresponds  with  all  the  accounts  given    Grogniet 
of  the  wretched  tyranny  exercised  by  the  Spaniards  over  the    Townley. 
nations  they  have  conquered. 

The  Buccaneers  however  were  discovered  in  their  second 
day's  march,  by  people  who  were  fishing  in  a  river,  some  of 
whom  immediately  posted  off  with  the  intelligence.  The  Spa- 
niards had  some  time  before  been  advertised  by  a  deserter  that 
the  Buccaneers  designed  to  attack  Granada;  but  they  were 
known  to  entertain  designs  upon  so  many  places,  and  to  be  so 
fluctuating  in  their  plans,  that  the  Spaniards  could  only  judge 
from  certain  intelligence  where  most  to  guard  against  their 
attempts. 

On  the  night  of  the  9th,  fatigue  and  hunger  obliged  the       gth. 
Buccaneers  to  halt  at  a  sugar  plantation  four  leagues  distant 
from  the  city.    One  man,  unable,  to  keep  up  with  the  rest,  had 
been  taken  prisoner.    The  morning  of  the  l  Oth,  they  marched      ioth. 
on,  and  from  an  eminence  over  which  they  passed,  had  a  view 
of  the  Lake,  of  Nicaragua,  on  which  were  seen  two  vessels  sail- 
ing from  the  city.    These  vessels  the   Buccaneers  afterwards 
learnt,  were  freighted  with  the  richest  moveables  that  at  short 

'  O 

notice  the  inhabitants  had  been  able  to  embark,  to  be  con- 
veyed for  security  to  an  Island  in  the  Lake  which  was  two 
leagues  distant  from  the  city. 

Granada  was  large  and  spacious,  with  magnificent  churches 
and  well-built  houses.  The  ground  is  destitute  of  water,  and 
the  town  is  supplied  from  the  Lake ;  nevertheless  there  were 
many  large  sugar  plantations  in  the  neighbourhood,  some  of 
which  were  like  small  towns,  and  had  handsome  churches. 
Granada  was  not  regularly  fortified,  but  had  a  place  of  arms  sur- 
rounded with  a  wall,  in  the  nature  of  a  citadel,  and  furnished 

M  M  2  with 


268  BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA 

c  H  AJ>.  23.  with  cannon.    The  great  church  was  within  this  inclosed  part  of 
1686.      the  town.    The  Buccaneers  arrived  about  two  o'clock  in  the 
April.      afternoon,  and  immediately  assaulted  the  place  of  arms,  which 
TheCity    tney    carried    with    the   loss    of   four   men    killed,    and   eight 
Granada     wounded,  most  of  them  mortally.    The  first  act  of  the  victors, 
a  en;      according  to  Lussan,  was  to  sing  Te  Deum  in  the  great  church; 
and  the  next,  to  plunder.    Provisions,  military  stores,  and  a 
quantity  of  merchandise,  were  found  in  the  town,  the  latter  of 
nth.      which  was  of  little  or  no  value  to  the  captors.    The  next  day 
they  sent  to  enquire  if  the  Spaniards  would  ransom  the  town, 
and  the  merchandise.   It  had  been  rumoured  that  the  Bucca- 
neers would  be  unwilling  to  destroy  Granada,  because  they  pro- 
posed at  some  future  period  to  make  it  their  baiting  place,  in 
returning  to  the  North  Sea,  and  the  Spaniards  scarcely  con- 
And  Burnt,  descended  to  make  answer  to  the  demand  for  ransom.   The 
Buccaneers  in  revenge  set  fire  to  the  houses.  '  If  we  could  have 
'  found  boats,'  says  Lussan,  '  to  have  gone  on  the  lake,  and 
'  could  have  taken  the  two  vessels  laden  with    the  riches  of 
'  Granada,  we  should  have  thought  this  a  favourable  oppor- 
'  tunity  for  returning  to  the  West  Indies.' 

i5th.  On  the  15th,   they  left  Granada  to  return   to   the  coast, 

which  journey  they  performed  in  the  most  leisurely  manner. 
They  took  with  them  a  large  cannon,  with  oxen  to  draw  it,  and 
some  smaller  guns  which  the}'  laid  upon  mules.  The  weather 
was  hot  and  dry,  and  the  road  so  clouded  with  dust,  as  almost 
to  stifle  both  men  and  beasts.  Sufficient  provision  of  water 
had  not  been  made  for  the  journey,  and  the  oxen  all  died. 
The  cannon  was  of  course  left  on  the  road.  Towards  the  latter 
part  of  the  journey,  water  and  refreshments  were  procured  at 
some  villages  and  houses,  the  inhabitants  of  which  furnished 
supplies  as  a  condition  that  their  dwellings  should  be  spared. 

On  the  26th,  they  arrived  at  the  sea  and  embarked  in  their 
vessels,  taking  on  board  with  them  a  Spanish  priest  whom  the 

Spaniards 


IN  THE   SOUTH   SEA. 

Spaniards  would  not  redeem  by  delivering  up  their  buccaneer 
prisoner.  Most  of  the  men  wounded  in  the  Granada  expedition 
died  of  cramps. 

The  28th,  they  came  upon  Ria  Lexa  unexpectedly,  and  made 
one  hundred  of  the  inhabitants  prisoners.  By  such  means, 
little  could  be  gained  more  than  present  subsistence,  and  that 
was  rendered  very  precarious  by  the  Spaniards  removing  their 
cattle  from  the  coast.  It  was  therefore  determined  to  put  an  end 
to  their  unprofitable  continuance  in  one  place  ;  but  they  could 
not  agree  where  next  to  go.  All  the  English,  and  one  half  of 
the  French,  were  for  sailing  to  the  Bay  of  Panama.  The  other 
half  of  the  French,  148  in  number,  with  Grogniet  at  their  head, 
declared  for  trying  their  fortunes  North-westward.  Division 
was  made  of  the  vessels  and  provisions.  The  whole  money 
which  the  French  had  acquired  by  their  depredations  amounted 
to  little  more  than  7000  dollars,  and  this  sum  they  generously 
distributed  among  those  of  their  countrymen  who  had  been 
lamed  or  disabled. 

May  the  19th,  they  parted  company.  Those  bound  for  the 
Bay  of  Panama,  of  whom  Townley  appears  to  have  been 
regarded  the  head,  had  a  ship,  a  bark,  and  some  large  canoes. 
Townley  proposed  an  attack  on  the  town  of  Lavelia  or  La  Villia, 
at  which  place  the  treasure  from  the  Lima  ships  had  been 
landed  in  the  preceding  year,  and  this  proposal  was  approved. 

Tornadoes  and  heavy  rains  kept  them  among  the  Keys 
of  Qtiibo  till  the  middle  of  June.  On  the  20th  of  that  month, 
they  arrived  off  the  Punt  a  Mala,  and  during  the  day,  they 
lay  at  a  distance  from  the  land  with  sails  furled.  At  night 
the  principal  part  of  their  force  made  for  the  land  in  the 
canoes  ;  but  they  had  been  deceived  in  the  distance.  Finding 
that  they  could  not  reach  the  river  which  leads  to  Lavelia 
before  day,  they  took  down  the  sails  and  masts,  and  went 

to 


269 

CHAP.  23. 
1686. 

April. 

28th, 

At 

Ria  Lexa. 


May. 


Grogniet 

and 
Townley 

part 
Company. 

Buccaneers 

under 
Townley. 

June. 


270 


BUCCANEERS  OF   AMERICA 


CHAP.  23. 
1686. 

June. 

Buccaneers 

under 
Townley. 

23(1. 

Ltwelia 
taken. 


to  three  leagues  distance  from  the  land,  where  they  lay  all 
the  day  of  the  21st.  Lussan,  who  was  of  this  party  of  Buc- 
caneers, says  that  they  were  obliged  to  practise  the  same 
manoeuvre  on  the  day  following.  In  the  middle  of  the  night  of 
the  22d,  160  Buccaneers  landed  from  the  canoes  at  the  entrance 
of  the  river.  They  were  some  hours  in  marching  to  Lavelia, 
yet  the  town  was  surprised,  and  above  300  of  the  inhabitants 
made  prisoners.  This  was  in  admirable  conformity  with  the  rest 
of  the  management  of  the  Spaniards.  The  fleet  from  Lima, 
laden  with  treasure  intended  for  Panama,  had,  more  than  a  year 
before,  landed  the  treasure  and  rich  merchandise  at  Lavelia,  as 
a  temporary  measure  of  security  against  the  Buccaneers,  suited 
to  the  occasion.  The  Government  at  Panama,  and  the  other 
proprietors,  would  not  be  at  the  trouble  of  getting  it  removed 
to  Panama,  except  in  such  portions  as  might  be  required  bj 
some  present  convenience ;  and  allowed  a  great  part  to  remain 
in  Lavelia,  a  place  of  no  defence,  although  during  the  whole 
time  Buccaneers  had  been  on  the  coast  of  Veragua,  or  Nica- 
ragua, to  whom  it  now  became  an  easy  prey,  through  indo- 
lence and  a  total  want  of  vigilance,  as  well  in  the  proprietors 
as  in  those  whom  they  employed  to  guard  it. 

Three  Spanish  barks  were  riding  in  the  river,  one  of  which 
the  crews  sunk,  and  so  dismantled  the  others  that  no  use  could 
be  made  of  them  ;  but  the  Buccaneers  found  two  boats  in 
serviceable  condition  at  a  landing-place  a  quarter  of  a  league 
below  the  town.  The  riches  they  now  saw  in  their  possession 
equalled  their  most  sanguine  expectations,  and  if  secured,  they 
thought  would  compensate  for  all  former  disappointments. 
The  merchandise  in  Lavelia  was  estimated  in  value  at  a  million 
and  a  half  of  piastres.  The  gold  and  silver  found  there  amounted 
only  to  15,000  piastres. 

The  first  day  of  being  masters  of  Lavelia,  was  occupied  by 

the 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  271 

the  Buccaneers  in  making  assortments  of  the  most  valuable    CHAP.  23 
articles  of  the   merchandise.    The  next  morning,  they   loaded       1686. 
80  horses  with  bales,  and  a  guard  of  80  men  went  with  them       June. 

to  the  landing-place  where  the  two  boats  above  mentioned  were       ?4tb> 

At  Lavelia. 

lying.  In  the  way,  one  man  of  this  escort  was  taken  by  the 
Spaniards.  The  two  prize  boats  were  by  no  means  large  enough 
to  carry  all  the  goods  which  the  Buccanejers  proposed  to  take 
from  Lavelia ;  and  on  that  account  directions  had  been  dis- 
patched to  the  people  in  the  canoes  at  the  entrance  of  the  river 
to  advance  up  towards  the  town.  These  directions  they  attempted 
to  execute  ;  but  the  land  bordering  the  river  was  woody,  which 
exposed  the  canoes  to  the  fire  of  a  concealed  enemy,  and  after 
losing  one  man,  they  desisted  from  advancing.  For  the  same 
cause,  it  was  thought  proper  not  to  send  off  the  two  loaded 
boats  without  a  strong  guard,  and  they  did  not  move  during 
this  day.  The  Buccaneers  sent  a  letter  to  the  Spanish  Alcalde, 
to  demand  if  he  would  ransom  the  town,  the  merchandise,  and 
the  prisoners ;  but  the  Alcalde  refused  to  treat  with  them.  In 
the  afternoon  therefore,  they  set  fire  to  the  town,  and  marched  The  Town 
to  the  landing-place  where  the  two  boats  lay,  and  there  rested  setonfire- 
for  the  night. 

The  river  of  Lavelia  is  broad, -but  shallow.    Vessels  of  forty     River  of 
tons  can  go  a  league  and  a  half  within   the   entrance.    The     Lavel»a. 
landing-place  is  yet  a  league  and  a  half  farther  up,  and   the 
town  is  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the  landing-place*. 

On  the  morning  of  the  25th,  the  two  boats,  laden  as  deep  as  25th, 
was  safe,  began  to  fall  down  the  river,  having  on  board  nine 
men  to  conduct  them.  The  main  body  of  the  Buccaneers  at 
the  same  time  marched  along  the  bank  on  one  side  of  the 
river  for  their  protection.  A  body  of  Spaniards  skreened  by 
the  woods,  and  unseen  by  the  Buccaneers,  kept  pace  with 

them 
*  Raveaeau  de  Lussan,  p.  117. 


272  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  P.  23.  them  on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  at  a  small  distance  within 
1686.  the  bank.  The  Buccaneers  had  marched  about  a  league,  and 
the  boats  had  descended  as  far,  when  they  came  to  a  point  of 
ia"  land  on  which  the  trees  and  underwood  grew  so  thick  as  not 
to  be  penetrated  without  some  labour  and  expence  of  time,  to 
which  they  did  not  choose  to  submit,  but  preferred  making  a 
circuit  which  took  them  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  from  the 
river.  The  Spaniards  on  the  opposite  side  were  on  the  watch, 
and  not  slow  in  taking  advantage  of  their  absence.  They  came 
to  the  bank,  whence  they  fired  upon  the  men  in  the  laden 
boats,  four  of  whom  they  killed,  and  wounded  one ;  the  other 
four  abandoned  the  boats  and  escaped  into  the  thicket.  The 
Spaniards  took  possession  of  the  boats,  and  finding  there  the 
wounded  Buccaneer,  they  cut  off  his  head  and  fixed  it  on  a  stake 
which  they  set  up  by  the  side  of  the  river  at  a  place  by  which 
the  rest  of  the  Buccaneers  would  necessarily  have  to  pass. 

The  main  body  of  the  Buccaneers  regained  the  side  of  the 
river  in  ignorance  of  what  had  happened ;  and  not  seeing  the 
boats,  were  for  a  time  in  doubt  whether  they  were  gone  for- 
ward, or  were  still  behind.  The  first  notice  they  received  of 
their  loss  was  from  the  men  who  had  escaped  from  the  boats, 
who  made  their  way  through  the  thicket  and  joined  them. 

Thus  did  this  crew  of  Buccaneers,  within  a  short  space  of 
time,  win  by  circumspection  and  adroitness,  and  lose  by  negli- 
gence, the  richest  booty  they  had  ever  made.  If  quitting  the 
bank  of  the  river  had  been  a  matter  of  necessity,  and  unavoid- 
able, there  was  nothing  but  idleness  to  prevent  their  conveying 
their  plunder  the  remainder  of  the  distance  to  their  boats 
by  land. 

In  making  their  way  through  the  woods?  they  found  the 
rudder,  sails,  and  other  furniture  of  the  Spanish  barks  in  the 
river;  the  barks  themselves  were  near  at  hand,  and  the 

Buccaneers 


IN    THE    SOUTH    SEA.  273 

Buccaneers   embarked  in  them  ;  but  the  flood   tide  making,  CHAP.  23.^ 
they  came  to  an  anchor,  and  lay  still  for  the  night. 


The  next  morning,  as  they  descended  the  river,  they  saw  the  June. 
boats  which  they  had  so  richly  freighted,  now  cleared  of  their 
lading  and  broken  to  pieces  ;  and  near  to  their  wreck,  was  the 
head  which  the  Spaniards  had  stuck  up.  This  spectacle,  added 
to  the  mortifying  loss  of  their  booty,  threw  the  Buccaneers  into 
a  frenzy,  and  they  forthwith  cut  off  the  heads  of  four  prisoners, 
and  set  them  on  poles  in  the  same  place.  In  the  passage  down 
the  river,  four  more  of  the  Buccaneers  were  killed  by  the  firing 
of  the  Spaniards  from  the  banks. 

The    day    after  their    retreat   from   the   river   of  Lavelia,  a       27111. 

• 

Spaniard  went  off  to  them  to  treat  for  the  release  of  the  prisoners, 
and  they  came  to  an  agreement  that  10,000  pieces  of  eight 
should  be  paid  for  their  ransom.  Some  among  them  who  had 
wives  were  permitted  to  go  on  shore  that  they  might  assist  in 
procuring  the  money  ;  but  on  the  29th,  the  same  messenger  again 
went  off  and  acquainted  them  that  the  Alcalde  Major  would  not 
only  not  suffer  the  relations  of  the  prisoners  to  send  money  for 
their  ransom,  but  that  he  had  arrested  some  of  those  whom  the 
Buccaneers  had  allowed  to  land.  On  receiving  this  report,  these 
savages  without  hesitation  cut  off  the  heads  of  two  of  their 
prisoners,  and  delivered  them  to  the  messenger,  to  be  carried 
to  the  Alcalde,  with  their  assurance  that  if  the  ransom  did  not 
speedily  arrive,  the  rest  of  the  prisoners  would  be  treated  in 
the  same  manner.  The  next  day  the  ransom  was  settled  for 
the  remaining  prisoners,  and  for  one  of  the  captured  barks  ; 
the  Spaniards  paying  partly  with  money,  partly  with  provisions 
and  necessaries,  and  with  the  release  of  the  Buccaneer  they  had 
taken.  In^the  agreement  for  the  bark,  the  Spaniards  required 
a  note  specifying  that  if  the  Buccaneers  again  met  her,  they 
should  make  prize  only  of  the  cargo,  and  not  of  the  vessel. 
After  the  destruction  of  Lavelia,  it  might  be  supposed  that 

N  N  the 


274  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  P.  23.  the  perpetrators  of  so  much  mischief  would  not  be  allowed 
1686.  with  impunity  to  remain  in  the  Bay  of  Panama;  but  such  was 
July.  the  weakness  or  negligence  of  the  Spaniards,  that  this  small 

In  the  Bay  body  of  freebooters   continued    several  months  in    this  same 
or  .Panama. 

neighbourhood,  and  at  times  under  the  very  walls  of  the  City. 

On  another  point,  however,  the  Spaniards  were  more  active, 
and  with  success;  for  they  concluded  a  treaty  of  peace  and 
alliance  with  the  Indians  of  the  Isthmus,  in  consequence  of 
which,  the  passage  overland  through  the  Darien  country  was 
no  longer  open  to  the  Buccaneers;  and  some  small  parties 
of  them  who  attempted  to  travel  across,  were  intercepted  and 
cut  off  by  the  Spaniards,  with  the  assistance  of  the  natives. 

The  Spaniards  had  at  Panama  a  military  corps  distinguished 
by  the  appellation  of  Greeks,  which  was  composed  of  Europeans 
of  different  nations,  not  natives  of  Spain.  Among  the  atroci- 
ties committed  by  the  crew  under  Townley,  they  put  to  death 
one  of  these  Greeks,  who  was  also  Commander  of  a  Spanish 
vessel,  because  on  examining  him  for  intelligence,  they  thought 
he  endeavoured  to  deceive  them  ;  and  in  aggravation  of  the 
deed,  Lussan  relates  the  circumstance  in  the  usual  manner 
of  his  pleasantries,  '  we  paid  him  for  his  treachery  by  sending 
'  him  to  the  other  world.' 

August.         On  the  20th  of  August,  as  the}'  were  at  anchor  within  sight 

of  the  city  of  Panama,  they  observed  boats  passing  and  repass- 

ing  between   some  vessels  and  the  shore,  and  a  kind  of  bustle 

Battle  with  which  had  the  appearance  of  an  equipment.  The  next  day,  the 

armed      Buccaneers  anchored  near  the  Island  Taboga;  and  there,  on  the 

Ships,      morning  of  the  22d,  they  were  attacked  by  three  armed  vessels 

from  Panama.   The  Spaniards  were  provided  with  cannon,  and 

the  battle  lasted  half  the   day,  when,  owing  to  an  explosion 

of  gunpowder  in.  one  of  the  Spanish  vessels,  the  victory  was 

decided  in  favour  of  the  Buccaneers.  Two  of  the  three  Spanish 

vessels  were  taken,  as  was  also  one  other,  which  during  the 

fight 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  275 

fight  arrived   from  Panama  as   a   reinforcement.    In  the  last  CHAP.  23. 
mentioned  prize,  cords  were  found  prepared  for  binding  their      1686. 
prisoners  in  the  event  of  their  being  victorious ;  and  this,  the     August. 
Buccaneers  deemed  provocation  sufficient  for  them  to  slaughter  In  the  BaJ 

Or    x^'Lll till! *l 

the  whole  crew.  This  battle,  so  fatal  to  the  Spaniards,  cost  the 
Buccaneers  only  one  man  killed  outright,  and  22  wounded. 
Townley  was  among  the  wounded. 

Two  of  the  prizes  were  immediately  manned  from  the  canoes, 
the  largest  under  the  command  of  Le  Picard,  who  was  the 
chief  among  the  French  of  this  party. 

They  had  many  prisoners ;  and  one  was  sent  with  a  letter  to 
the  President  of  Panama,  to  demand  ransom  for  them ;  also 
medicines  and  dressings  for  the  wounded,  and  the  release  of 
five  Buccaneers  who  they  learnt  were  prisoners  to  the  Spaniards. 
The  medicines  were  sent,  but  the  President  would  not  treat 
either  of  ransom,  or  of  the  release  of  the  buccaneer  prisoners. 
The  Buccaneers  dispatched  a  second  message  to  the  President, 
in  which  they  threatened  that  if  the  five  Buccaneers  were  not 
immediately  delivered  to  them,  the  heads  of  all  the  Spaniards 
in  their  possession,  should  be  sent  to  him.  The  President  paid 
little  attention  to  this  message,  not  believing  that  such  a  threat 
would  be  executed ;  but  the  Bishop  of  Panama,  regarding 
what  had  recently  happened  at  Lavelia  as  an  earnest  of  what 
the  Buccaneers  were  capable,  was  seriously  alarmed.  He  wrote 
a  letter  to  them  which  he  sent  by  a  special  messenger,  in  which 
he  exhorted  them  in  the  mildest  terms  not  to  shed  the  blood 
of  innocent  men,  and  promised  if  they  would  have  patience, 
to  exert  his  influence  to  procure  the  release  of  the  buccaneer 
prisoners.  His  letter  concluded  with  the  following  remarkable 
paragraph,  which  shews  the  great  hopes  entertained  by  the 
Roman  Catholics  respecting  Great  Britain  during  the  Reign 
of  King  James  the  lid.  '  I  have  information,'  says  the  Bishop, 

N  N  2  *  to 


276  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

CHAP-  23:  «  to  give  you,  that  the  English  are  all  become  Roman  Catholics, 

\686.      '  and  that  there  is  now  a  Catholic  Church  at  Jamaica.' 
August.         The  good  Prelate's  letter  was  pronounced  by  the  Buccaneers 

In  the  Bay  £O  j-,e  y^  of  truth  and  sincerity,  and  an  insult  to  their  under- 
of  Panama. 

standing.    They  had  already  received  the  price  of  blood,  shed 

not  in  battle  nor  in  their  own  defence ;  and  now,  devoting 
themselves  to  their  thirst  for  gain,  they  would  not  be  diverted 
from  their  sanguinary  purpose,  but  came  to  the  resolution  of 
sending  the  heads  of  twenty  Spaniards  to  the  President,  and 
with  them  a  message  purporting  that  if  they  did  not  receive  a 
satisfactory  answer  to  all  their  demands  by  the  28th  of  the 
month,  the  heads  of  the  remaining  prisoners  should  answer  for 
it.  Lussan  says,  '  the  President's  refusal  obliged  us,  though 
'  with  some  reluctance,  to  take  the  resolution  to  send  him 

*  twenty  heads  of  his  people  in  a  canoe.     This  method  was 
'  indeed  a  little  violent,  but  it  was  the  only  way  to  bring  the 

*  Spaniards  to  reason*.' 

What  they  had  resolved  they  put  into  immediate  execution. 
The  President  of  Panama  was  entirely  overcome  by  their  in- 
human proceedings,  and  in  the  first  shock  and  surprise,  he 
yielded  without  stipulation  to  all  they  had  demanded.  On 
the  28th,  the  buccaneer  prisoners  (four  Englishmen  and  one 
Frenchman)  were  delivered  to  them,  with  a  letter  from  the 
President,  who  said  he  left  to  their  own  conscience  the  disposal 
of  the  Spanish  prisoners  yet  remaining  in  their  hands. 

To  render  the  triumph  of  cruelty  and  ferocity  more  complete, 
the  Buccaneers,  in  an  answer  to  the  President,  charged  the 
whole  blame  of  what  they  had  done  to  his  obstinacy ;  in  ex- 
change for  the  five  Buccaneers,  they  sent  only  twelve  of  their 
Spanish  prisoners ;  and  they  demanded  20,000  pieces  of  eight 

as 

'  Ce  moyen  etoit  a  la  verite  un  peu  violent,  mais  c'etoit  I' unique  pour  mettre  las 
'  Espagnols  a  la  raison. 


IN   THE    SOUTH    SEA.  277 

as  ransom   of  the  remainder,  which   demand   however,  they   c  H  A  p.  23. 
afterwards  mitigated  to  half  that  sum  and  a  supply  of  refresh-    "TessT" 
ments.     On  the  4th  of  September,  the  ransom  was  paid,  and  September, 
the  prisoners  were  released.  Oj?  p^nai^a 

September  the  9th,    the  buccaneer  commander,    Townley,    Death  of 
died  of  the  wound  he  received  in  the  last  battle.     The  English    Townl«T- 
and  French  Buccaneers  were  faithful  associates,  but  did  not 
mix  well  as  comrades.     In  a  short  time  after  Townley's  death, 
the  English  desired  that  a  division  should  be  made  of  the  prize 
vessels,  artillery,  and  stores,  and   that   those  of  their   nation 
should  keep  together  in  the  same  vessels :  and   this  was  done, 
without  other  separation  taking  place  at  the  time. 

In  November,  they  left  the  Bay  of  Panama,  and  sailed  West-  November, 
ward  to  their  old  station  near  the  Point  de  Burica,  where,  by      On  tlle,. 

J      Coast  of 

surprising  small  towns,  villages,  and  farms,  a  business  at  which  New  Spain. 
they  had  become  extremely  expert,  they  procured  provisions ; 
and  by  the  ransom  of  prisoners,  some  money. 

In  January  (1687)  they  intercepted  a  letter  from  the  Spanish  1687. 
Commandant  at  Somonnate  addressed  to  the  President  of  January. 
Panama,  by  which  they  learnt  that  Grogniet  had  been  in 
Amapalla  Bay,  and  that  three  of  his  men  had  been  taken 
prisoners.  The  Commandant  remarked  in  his  letter,  that  the 
peace  made  with  the  Darien  Indians,  having  cut  off  the  retreat 
of  the  Buccaneers,  would  drive  them  to  desperation,  and 
render  them  like  so  many  mad  dogs;  he  advised  therefore  that 
some  means  should  be  adopted  to  facilitate  their  retreat,  that 
the  Spaniards  in  the  South  Sea  might  again  enjoy  repose.  '  They 
'  have  landed,'  he  says,  '  in  these  parts  ten  or  twelve  times,  with- 
'  out  knowing  what  they  were  seeking ;  but  wheresoever  they  come, 
t  they  spoil  and  lay  waste  every  thing.' 

A  few  days  after  intercepting  this  letter,  they  took  prisoner 
a  Spanish  horseman.    Lussan  says,  '  We  interrogated  him  with 

'  the 


£78  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  P.  23.  «  the  usual  ceremonies,  that  is  to  say,  we  gave  him  the  torture, 
1687.  '  to  make  him  tell  us  what  we  wanted  to  know.' 

January.  Many  such  villanies  were  undoubtedly  committed  by  these 

On  the  banditti,  more  than  appear  in  their  Narratives,  or  than  they 

New  Spain,  dared  to  make  known.  Lussan,  who  writes  a  history  of  his 
voyage,  not  before  the  end  of  the  second  year  of  his  adventures 
in  the  South  Sea,  relates  that  they  put  a  prisoner  to  the  torture  ; 
and  it  would  have  appeared  as  an  individual  instance,  if  he  had 
not,  probably  through  inadvertence,  acknowledged  it  to  have 
been  their  established  practice.  Lussan  on  his  return  to  his 
native  land,  pretended  to  reputation  and  character ;  and  he 
found  countenance  and  favour  from  his  superiors ;  it  is  there- 
fore to  be  presumed,  that  he  would  suppress  every  transac- 
tion in  which  he  was  a  participator,  which  he  thought  of  too 
deep  a  nature  to  be  received  by  his  patrons  with  indulgence. 
A  circumstance  which  tended  to  make  this  set  of  Buccaneers 
worse  than  any  that  had  preceded  them,  was,  its  being  com- 
posed of  men  of  two  nations  between  which  there  has  existed 
a  constant  jealousy  and  emulation.  They  were  each  ambitious 
to  outdo  the  other  in  acts  of  daringness,  and  were  thereby 
instigated  to  every  kind  of  excess. 

Grogniet  On  the  £0th,  near  Caldera  Bay,  they  met  Grogniet  with 
Them!  sixty  French  Buccaneers  in  three  canoes.  Grogniet  had  parted 
from  Townley  at  the  head  of  148  men.  They  had  made  several 
descents  on  the  coast.  At  the  Bay  ofAmapalla,  they  marched 
14  leagues  within  the  coast  to  a  gold-mine,  where  they  took 
many  prisoners,  and  a  small  quantity  of  gold.  Grogniet  wished 
to  return  overland  to  the  West-Indian  Sea,  but  the  majority 
of  his  companions  were  differently  inclined,  and  85  quitted 
him,  and  went  to  try  their  fortunes  towards  California.  Grogniet 
nevertheless  persevered  in  the  design  with  the  remainder  of  his 
crew,  to  seek  some  part  of  the  coast  of  A'esy  Spain,  thin  of 

inhabitants, 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA. 


279 


inhabitants,  where  they  might  land  unknown  to  the  Spaniards, 
and  march  without  obstruction  through  the  country  to  the 
shore  of  the  Atlantic,  without  other  guide  than  a  compass.  The 
party  they  now  met  with,  prevailed  on  them  to  defer  the 
execution  of  this  project  to  a  season  of  the  year  more  favour- 
able, and  in  the  mean  time  to  unite  with  them.- 

In  February,  they  set  fire  to  the  town  of  Nicoya.  Their 
gains  by  these  descents  were  so  small,  that  they  agreed  to 
leave  the  coast  of  New  Spain  and  to  go  against  Guayaquil',  but 
on  coming  to  this  determination,  the  English  and  the  French 
fell  into  high  dispute  for  the  priority  of  choice  in  the  prize 
vessels  which  they  expected  to  take,  insomuch  that  upon  this 
difference  they  broke  off  partnership.  Grogniet  however,  and 
about  fifty  of  the  French,  remained  with  the  English,  which 
made  the  whole  number  of  that  party  142  men,  and  they  all 
embarked  in  one  ship,  the  canoes  not  being  safe  for  an  open 
sea  navigation.  The  other  party  numbered  162  men,  all 
French,  and  embarked  in  a  small  ship  and  a  Barca  longa.  The 
most  curious  circumstance  attending  this  separation  was,  that 
both  parties  persevered  in  the  design  upon  Guayaquil,  without 
any  proposal  being  made  by  either  to  act  in  concert.  They 
sailed  from  the  coast  of  New  Spain  near  the  end  of  February, 
not  in  company,  but  each  using  all  their  exertions  to  arrive 
first  at  the  place  of  destination.  They  crossed  the  Equinoctial 
line  separately,  but  afterwards  at  sea  accidentally  fell  in  com- 
pany with  each  other  again,  and  at  this  meeting  they  accom- 
modated their  differences,  and  renewed  their  partnership. 

April  the  13th,  they  were  near  Point  Santa  Elena,  on  the 
coast  of  Peru,  and  met  there  a.  prize  vessel  belonging  to  their 
old  Commander  Edward  Davis  and  his  Company,  but  which 
had  been  separated  from  him.  She  was  laden  with  corn  and 
wine,  and  eight  of  Davis's  men  had  the  care  of  her.  They  had 

been 


CHAP.  23. 
1687. 


February. 
They" 
divide. 


Both 

Parties 

sail  for  the 

Coast  of 

Peru. 


They   meet 

again,  and 

reunite. 


April. 


280  .BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA 

CHAP.  23.  been  directed  in  case  of  separation,  to  rendezvous  at  the  Island 

1687.       Plata ;  but  the  uncertainty  of  meeting  Davis  there,  and  the 

April.       danger  they  should  incur  if  they  missed  him,  made  them  glad  to 

join  in  the  expedition  against  Guayaquil,  and  the    provisions 

with  which  the  vessel  was  laden,  made  them  welcome  associates 

to  the  Buccaneers  engaged  in  it. 

Attack  on  Their  approach  to  the  City  of  Guayaquil  was  conducted  with 
uayaqui .  ^e  mosj.  practised  circumspection  and  vigilance.  On  first 
getting  sight  of  Point  Santa  Elena,  they  took  in  their  sails  and 
lay  with  them  furled  as  long  as  there  was  daylight.  In  the 
night  they  pursued  their  course,  keeping  at  a  good  distance 
from  the  land,  till  they  were  to  the  Southward  of  the  Island 
15th-  Santa  Clara.  Two  hundred  and  sixty  men  then  (April  the  15th) 
departed  from  the  ships  in  canoes.  They  landed  at  Santa  Clara, 
which  was  uninhabited,  and  at  a  part  of  the  Island  Puna  dis- 
tant from  any  habitation,  proceeding  only  during  the  night 
time,  and  lying  in  concealment  during  the  day. 

In  the  night  of  the  1 7th,  they  approached  the  River  Guaya- 

i8th.       quit:  At  daylight,  they  were  perceived  by  a  guard  on  watch 

near   the    entrance,    who  lighted  a  fire  as  a  signal  to  other 

guards   stationed   farther  on ;   by   whom,  however,  the   signal 

was  not  observed.    The  Buccaneers  put  as  speedily   as  they 

could  to  the  nearest  land,  and  a  party  of  the  most  alert  made 

a  circuit  through  the  woods,  and   surprised   the  guard  at  the 

first  signal  station,  before  the  alarm  had  spread  farther.    They 

ipth.      stopped  near  the  entrance  till  night.    All  day  of  the  19th,  they 

rested  at  an  Island  in  the  river,  and  at  night  advanced  again. 

Their  intention  was  to  have  passed  the   town  in  their  canoes, 

and   to  have  landed  above  it,  where  they  would  be  the  least 

expected  ;  but  the  tide  of  flood  with  which  they  ascended  the 

river  did   not  serve  long  enough  for  their  purpose,  and  on  the 

aoth.       SOth,  two  hours  before  day,  they  landed  a  short  distance  below 

the 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA.  «8i 

the  town,  towards  which  they  began  to  march ;  but  the  ground    CHAP.  23. 
was  marshy  and    overgrown  with   brushwood.     Thus  far  they       1687. 
had  proceeded  undiscovered;  when  one  of  the  Buccaneers  left      April, 
to  guard  the  canoes  struck  a  light  to  smoke  tobacco,  which 
was  perceived  by  a  Spanish  sentinel  on  the  shore  opposite,  who 
immediately  fired  his  piece,  and  gave  alarm  to  the  Fort  and 
Town.    This  discovery  and  the  badness  of  the  road  caused  the 
Buccaneers    to  defer   the  attack  till  daylight.    The   town   of 
Guayaquil  is  built  round  a  mountain,  on  which  were  three  forts 
which  overlooked  the  town.    The  Spaniards  made  a  tolerable    The  City 
defence,  but  by  the  middle  of  the  day  they  were  driven  from 
all    their  forts,    and    the    town   was   left   to   the   Buccaneers, 
detachments  of  whom    were  sent  to  endeavour  to  bring  in 
prisoners,  whilst  a  chosen  party  went  to  the  Great  Church  to 
chant  Te  De.um. 

Nine  Buccaneers  were  killed  and  twelve  wounded  in  the 
attack.  The  booty  found  in  the  town  was  considerable  in 
jewels,  merchandise,  and  silver,  particularly  in  church  plate, 
besides  92,000  dollars  in  money,  and  they  took  seven  hundred 
prisoners,  among  whom  were  the  Governor  and  his  family. 
Fourteen  vessels  lay  at  anchor  in  the  Port,  and  two  ships  were 
on  the  stocks  nearly  fit  for  launching. 

On  the  evening  of  the  day  that  the  city  was  taken,  the 
Governor  (being  a  prisoner)  entered  into  treaty  with  the  Buc- 
caneers, for  the  City,  Fort,  Shipping,  himself,  and  all  the 
prisoners,  to  be  redee'med  for  a  million  pieces  of  eight,  to  be 
paid  in  gold,  and  400  packages  of  flour;  and  to  hasten  the 
procurement  of  the  money,  which  was  to  be  brought,  fmm 
Quito,  the  Vicar  General  of  the  district,  who  was  also  a  prisoner, 
was  released. 

The  2 1st,  in  the  night,  by  the  carelessness  of  a  Buccaneer,       sist. 
one  of   the   houses    took  fire,  which  communicated  to  other 

O  o  houses 


282  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

e  H  A  P.  33.  houses  with  such  rapidity,  that  one  third  of  the  city  was  de- 
1687.  stroyed  before  its  progress  was  stopped.  It  had  been  specified 
April.  in  the  treaty,  that  the  Buccaneers  should  not  set  fire  to  the 
town  '  *  therefore,'  says  Lussan,  « lest  in  consequence  of  this 
'  accident,  the  Spaniards  should  refuse  to  pay  the  ransom, 
'  we  pretended  to  believe  it  was  their  doing.' 

Many    bodies   of   the   Spaniards   killed    in    the   assault  of 
the  town,  remained  unburied  where  they  had  fallen,  and  the 
Buccaneers  were  apprehensive  that  some  infectious  disorder 
24th.      would  thereby  be  produced.    They  hastened  therefore  to  em- 
bark on  board  the  vessels  in  the  port,  their  plunder  and  500  of 
their  prisoners,  with  which,  on  the  £5th,  they  fell  down  the 
At  the     River  to  the  Island  Puna,  where  they   proposed  to  wait  for 
Puanad      the  ransom. 

May.  On  the  2d  of  May,  Captain  Grogniet  died  of  a  wound  he 

received  at  Guayaquil.    Le  Picard    was  afterwards  the  chief 
among  the  French  Buccaneers. 

The  5th  of  May  had  been  named  for  the  payment  of  the 
ransom,  from  which  time  the  money  was  daily  and  with 
increasing  impatience  expected  by  the  Buccaneers.  It  was 
known  that  Spanish  ships  of  war  were  equipping  at  Callao 
purposely  to  attack  them ;  and  also  that  their  former  Com- 
mander, Edward  Davis,  with  a  good  ship,  was  near  this  part 
of  the  coast.  They  were  anxious  to  have  his  company,  and  on 
the  4th,  dispatched  a  galley  to  seek  him  at  the  Island  Plata, 
the  place  of  rendezvous  he  had  appointed  for  his  prize. 

The  5th  passed  without  any  appearance  of  ransom  money ; 
as  did  many  following  days.  The  Spaniards,  however,  regularly 
sent  provisions  to  the  ships  at  Puna  every  day,  otherwise  the 
prisoners  would  have  starved  ;  but  in  lieu  of  money  they  sub- 
stituted nothing  better  than  promises.  The  Buccaneers  would 
have  felt  it  humiliation  to  appear  less  ferocious  than  on  former 

occasions, 


IN   THE   SOUTH. SEA.  283 

occasions,  and  they  recurred  to  their  old  mode  of  .intimida-  CHAP.  23. 
tion.     They  made  the  prisoners  throw  dice  to  determine  which       1687. 
of  them  should  die,  and  the  heads  of  four  on  whom  the  lot  fell       May. 

Mere  delivered  to  a  Spanish  officer  in  answer  to  excuses  for     £t  thf 

Island 
delay  which  he  had  brought  from  the  Lieutenant  Governor  of      Puna. 

Guayaquil,  with  an  intimation  that  at  the  end  of  four  days 
more  five  hundred  heads  should  follow,  if  the  ransom  did 
not  arrive. 

On  the  14th,  their  galley  which  had  been  sent  in  search  of      i4th. 
Davis  returned,  not  having  found  him  at  the  Island  Plata ;  but 
she  brought  notice  of  two  strange  sail  being  near  the  -Cape 
Santa  Elena.    These  proved  to  be  Edward  Davis's  ship,  and  a 
prize.     Davis  had  received  intelligence,  as  already  mentioned,     Edward 
of  the  Buccaneers  having  captured  Guayaquil,  and  was  now 
come  purposely  to  join  them.    He  sent  his  prize  to  the  Bueca-  Le  Picaid. 
neers  at  Puna,  and  remained  with  his  own  ship  in  the  offing  on 
the  look-out. 

The  four  days  allowed  for  the  payment  of  the  ransom  expired, 
and  no  ransom  was  sent;  neither  did  the  Buccaneers  execute 
their  sanguinary  threat.  It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  intreaty 
or  intercession  made  to  this  set  of  Buccaneers,  so  far  from  ob- 
taining remission  or  favour,  at  all  times  produced  the  opposite 
effect,  as  if  reminding  them  of  their  power,  instigated  them 
to  an  imperious  display  of  it.  The  Lieutenant  Governor  of 
Guayaquil  was  in  no  haste  to  fulfil  the  terms  of  the  treaty  made 
by  the  Governor,  nor  did  he  importune  them  with  solicitations, 
and  the  whole  business  for  a  time  lay  at  rest.  The  forbearance 
of  the  Buccaneers  may  not  unjustly  be  attributed  to  Davis 
having  joined  them. 

On  the  23d,  the  Spaniards  paid  to  the  Buccaneers  as  much       23d. 
gold  as  amounted  in  value  to  20,000  pieces  of  eight,  and  eighty 
packages  of  flour,  as  part  of  the  ransom.    The  day  following, 

O  o  2  the 


£84  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c  H  A  P.  23.  the  Lieutenant  Governor  sent  word,   that  they  might  receive 

1687.       22,000  pieces  of  eight  more  for  the  release  of  the  prisoners,  and 

May.       if  that  sum  would  not  satisfy  them,  they  might  do  their  worst, 

At  the      for  that  no  greater  would  be  paid  them.    Upon  this  message, 

Puna.       the  Buccaneers  held  a  consultation,  whether  they  should  cut 

off  the  heads  of  all  the  prisoners,  or  take  the  22,000  pieces  of 

eight,    and   it    was   determined,  not  unanimously,  but  by   a 

majority  of  voices,  that  it  was  better  to  take  a  little  money  than 

to  cut  off  many  heads. 

Lussan,  his  own  biographer  and  a  young  man,  boasts  of  the 
pleasant  manner  in  which  he  passed  his  time  at  Puna.  '  We 
'  made  good  cheer,  being  daily  supplied  with  refreshments 

*  from  Guayaquil.    We  had  concerts  of  music;  we  had  the  best 

*  performers  of  the  city  among  our  prisoners.    Some  among  us 
(  engaged  in  friendships  with  our  women  prisoners,  who  were 

*  not  hard  hearted.'    This  is  said  by  way  of  prelude  to  a  history 
which  he  gives  of  his  own  good  fortune ;  all  which,  whether 
true  or  otherwise,  serves  to  shew,  that  among  this  abandoned 
crew  the  prisoners  of  both  sexes  were  equally  unprotected. 

26th.  On  the  26th,  the  22,000  pieces  of  eight  were  paid  to  the 

Buccaneers,  who  selected  a  hundred  prisoners  of  the  most  con- 
sideration to  retain,  and  released  the  rest.  The  same  day,  they 
quitted  their  anchorage  at  Puna,  intending  to  anchor  again  at 
Point  Santa  Elena,  and  there  to  enter  afresh  into  negociation 
for  ransom  of  prisoners :  but  in  the  evening,  two  Spanish  Ships 
of  War  came  in  sight. 

The  engagement  which  ensued,  and  other  proceedings  of  the 

Buccaneers,  until  Edward  Davis   parted  company  to  return 

See  pp.ipe  homeward  by  the  South  of  America,  has  been  related.    It  rc- 

o  200.      mains  to  give  an  account  of  the  French  Buccaneers  after  the 

separation,  to  their  finally  quitting  the  South  Sea. 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA,  285 


CHAP.     XXIV. 

Retreat  of  the  French  Buccaneers  across  New  Spain  to  the 
West  Indies.    All  the  Buccaneers  quit  the  South  Sea. 


nPHE  party  left  by  Davis  consisted  of  250  Buccaneers,  the   CHAP.  24. 
greater  number  of  whom    were   French,    the    rest   were  ~ 


English,  and  their  leaders  Le  Picard  and  George  Hout.    They      june. 
had  determined  to  quit  the  South  Sea,  and  with  that  view  to    Le  Picard 
sail  to  the  coast  of  New  Spain,  whence  they  proposed  to  march    and  Hout- 
over  land  to  the  shore  of  the  Caribbean  Sea. 

About  the  end  of  July,  they  anchored  in  the  Bay  ofAmapalla,      July. 
and   were  joined  there  by  thirty  French  Buccaneers.    These      °n  the 
thirty  were  part  of  a  crew  which  had  formerly  quitted  Grogniet  New  Spain. 
to  cruise  towards  California.    Others  of  that  party  were  still  on 
the  coast  to  the  North-West,  and  the  Buccaneers  in  Amapalla 
Bay  put  to  sea  in  search  of  them,  that  all  of  their  fraternity  in 
the  South  Sea  might  be  collected,  and  depart  together. 

In  the  search  after  their  former  companions,  they  landed  at 
different  places  on  the  coast  of  New  Spain.  Among  their 
adventures  here,  they  took,  and  remained  four  days  in  posses- 
sion of,  the  Town  of  Tecoantepeque,  but  without  any  profit  to 
themselves.  At  Guatulco,  they  plundered  some  plantations, 
and  obtained  provisions  in  ransom  for  prisoners.  Whilst  they 
lay  there  at  anchor,  they  saw  a  vessel  in  the  offing,  which 
from  her  appearance,  and  manner  of  working  her  sails,  they 
believed  to  contain  the  people  they  were  seeking;  but  the 
wind  and  sea  set  so  strong  on  the  shore  at  the  time,  that  neither 
their  vessels  nor  boats  could  go  out  to  ascertain  what  she  was; 
and  after  that  clay,  they  did  not  see  her  again. 

In 


286  BUCCANEERS   OF  AMERICA 

c  H AJP.  24.      In  the  middle  of  December  they  returned  to  the  Bay  of 
1687.      Amapalla,  which  they  had  fixed  upon  for  the  place  of  their 

December,  departure  from  the  shores  of  the  South  Sea.  Their  plan  was,  to 
|™  march  by  the  town  of  Nueva  'Segovia,  which  had  before  been 
Bay.  visited  by  Buccaneers,  and  they  now  expected  would  furnish 
them  with  provisions.  According  to  Lussan's  information,  the 
distance  they  would  have  to  travel  by  land  from  Amapalla  Bay, 
was  about  60  leagues,  when  they  would  come  to  the  source  of 
a  river,  by  which  they  could  descend  to  the  Caribbean  Sea, 
near  to  Cape  Gracias  a  Dios. 

Whilst  they  made  preparation  for  their  march,  they  were 
anxious  to  obtain  intelligence  what  force  the  Spaniards  hud  in 
their  proposed  route,  but  the  natives  kept  at  a  distance.  On 
the  1 8th,  seventy  Buccaneers  landed  and  marched  into  the 
country,  of  which  adventure  Lussan  gives  the  account  follow- 
ing. They  travelled  the  whole  day  without  meeting  an  inha- 
bitant. They  rested  for  the  night,  and  next  morning  proceeded 
in  their  journey,  but  all  seemed  a  desert,  and  about  noon,  the 
majority  were  dissatisfied  and  turned  back.  Twenty  went  on  ; 
and  soon  after  came  to  a  beaten  road,  on  which  they  perceived 
three  horsemen  riding  towards  them,  whom  they  way-laid  so 
effectually  as  to  take  them  all.  By  these  men  they  learnt  the 

Chiloteca.  way  to  a  small  town  named  Chiloteca,  to  which  they  went  and 
there  made  fifty  of  the  inhabitants  prisoners.  They  took  up 
their  quarters  in  the  church,  where  they  also  lodged  their 
prisoners,  and  intended  to  have  rested  during  the  night;  but 
after  dark,  they  heard  much  bustle  in  the  town,  which  made 
them  apprehensive  the  Spaniards  were  preparing  to  attack 
them,  and  the  noise  caused  in  the  prisoners  the  appearance  of 

Massacreofa  disposition  to  rise;  upon  which,  the  Buccaneers  slew  them 
all  except  four,  whom  they  carried  away  with  them,  and 


reached  the  vessels  without  being  molested  in  their  retreat. 


The 


IN   THE   SOUTH   SEA. 


287 


The  prisoners  were  interrogated  ;  and  the  accounts  they  gave 
confirmed  the  Buccaneers  in  the  opinion  that  they  had  no 
better  chance  of  transporting  themselves  and  their  plunder  to 
the  North  Sea,  than  by  immediately  setting  about  the  execution 
of  the  plan  they  had  formed.  To  settle  the  order  of  the  march, 
they-  landed  their  riches  and  the  stores  necessary  for  their 
journey,  on  one  of  the  Islands  in  the  Bay;  and  that  their 
number  might  not  suffer  diminution  by  the  defection  of  any,  it 
was  agreed  to  destroy  the  vessels,  which  was  executed  forthwith, 
with  the  reserve  of  one  galley  and  the  canoes,  which  were 
necessary  for  the  transport  of  themselves  and  their  effects  to 
the  main  land.  They  made  a  muster  of  their  force,  which  they 
divided  into  four  companies,  each  consisting  of  seventy  men, 
and  every  man  having  his  arms  and  accoutrements.  Whilst 
these  matters  were  arranging,  a  detachment  of  100  men  were 
sent  to  the  main  land  to  endeavour  to  get  horses. 

They  had  destroyed  their  vessels,  and  had  not  removed  from 
the  Island,  when  a  large  Spanish  armed  ship  anchored  in 
Amapalla  Bay  ;  but  she  was  not  able  to  give  them  annoyance, 
nor  in  the  least  to  impede  their  operations.  On  the  1st  of 
January,  1688,  they  passed  over,  with  their  effects,  to  the 
main  land,  and  the  same  day,  the  party  which  had  gone  in 
search  of  horses,  returned,  bringing  with  them  sixty-eight, 
which  were  divided  equally  among  the  four  companies,  to  be 
employed  in  carrying  stores  and  provisions,  as  were  eighty 
prisoners,  who  besides  being  carriers  of  stores,  were  made  to 
carry  the  sick  and  wounded.  Every  Buccaneer  had  his  pai> 
ticular  sack,  or  package,  which  it  was  required  should  contain 
his1  ammunition ;  what  else,  was  at  his  own  discretion. 

Many  of  these  Buccaneers  had  more  silver  than  themselves 
were  able  to  carry.  There  were  also  many  who  had  neither 
silver  nor  gold,  and  were  little  encumbered  with  effects  of  their 

own : 


CHAP.  24. 
l687. 

December. 

In 

Amapalla 
Bay. 


The 

Buccaneers 

burn  their 

Vessels. 


1688. 
January. 


288  BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA 

c H A^F.  24.  own:  these  light  freighted  gentry  were  glad  to   be  hired  as 

1688.      porters  to  the  rich,  and  the  contract  for  carrying  silver,  on  this 

January,     occasion,  was  one  half;  that  is  to  say,  that  on  arriving  at  the 

.    In        North  Sea,    there  should  be  an  equal   division  between    the 

AmapalJa 

Bay.       employer  and  the  carrier.    Carriage  of  gold  or  other  valuables 

was  according  to  particular  agreement.    Lussan,  who  no  doubt 

was  as  sharp  a  rogue  as  any  among  his  companions,  relates  of 

himself,    that  he  had  been  fortunate    at  play,    and   that  his 

winnings  added  to  his  share  of  plunder,  amounted  to  30,000 

pieces  of  eight,  the  whole  of  which  he  had  converted  into  gold 

and  jewels ;  and  that  whilst  they  were  making  ready  for  their 

march,  he  received  warning  from  a  friend  that  a  gang  had  been 

formed  by  about  twenty  of  the  poorer  Buccaneers,  with   the 

intention  to  waylay  and  strip  those  of  their  brethren,  who  had 

been  most  fortunate.    On  considering  the  danger   and  great 

difficulty  of  having  to  guard  against  the  machinations  of  hungry 

conspirators  who   were  to    be  his  fellow-travellers  in  a  long 

journey,    and   might  have   opportunities    to    perpetrate   their 

mischievous   intentions   during  any  fight  with   the  Spaniards, 

Lussan  came  to  the  resolution  of  making  a  sacrifice  of  part  of 

his  riches   to   insure    the    remaining   part,  and    to   lessen  the 

temptation  to  any  individual  to  seek  his  death.    To  this  end  he 

divided  his  treasure  into  a  number  of  small  parcels,  which  he 

confided  to  the  care  of  so  many  of  his  companions,  making 

agreement  with  each  for  the  carriage. 

Retreat         January  the  2d,  in  the  morning,  they  began  their  march,  an 

Buccaneers  advanced  guard  being  established  to  consist  of  ten  men  from 
overland  each  company,  who  were  to  be  relieved  every  morning  by  ten 

Indian  Sea.  others.    At  night  they  rested  at  four  leagues  distance,  according 
to  their  estimation,  from  the  border  of  the  sea. 

The  first  part  of  Lussan's  account  of  this  journey  has  little 
of  adventure  or  description.     The  difficulties  experienced  were 

what 


ON    THE    ISTHMUS.  289 

what  had  been  foreseen,  such  as  the  inhabitants  driving  away  CHAP.  24. 

cattle  and  removing  provisions,  setting   fire  to  the  dry  grass  1688. 

when  it  could  annoy  them  in  their  march;  and  sometimes  the  January. 

Buccaneers  were  fired  at  by  unseen  shooters.    They  rested  at  Retreat 

J  .  of  the 

villages  and  farms  when  they  found  any  in  their  route,  where,  Buccaneers 
and  also  by  making  prisoners,  they  obtained  provisions.   When   ovtej t^ 
no   habitations   or    buildings    were   at   hand,    they    generally  West  indies. 
encamped  at  night  on  a  hill,  or  in  open  ground.    Very  early  in 
their  march  they  were  attended  by  a  body  of  Spanish  troops 
at  a  small  distance,  the  music  of  whose  trumpets  afforded  them 
entertainment  every  morning  and  evening;  '  but,'  says  Lussan, 

*  it  was  like  the  music  of  the  enchanted   palace  of  Psyche, 
'  which  was  heard  without  the  musicians  being  visible/ 

On  the  forenoon  of  the  9th,  notwithstanding  their  vigilance, 
the  Buccaneers  were  saluted  with  an  unexpected  volley  of 
musketry  which  kilted  two  men ;  and  this  was  the  only  mis- 
chance that  befel  them  in  their  inarch  from  the  Western  Sea  to 
Segovia,  which  town  they  entered  on  the  llth  of  January, 
without  hindrance,  and  found  it  without  inhabitants,  and 
cleared  of  every  kind  of  provisions. 

*  The  town  of  Segovia  is  situated   in  a  vale,  and  is  so  sur-    Town  of 
'  rounded  with  mountains  that  it  seems  to  be  a  prisoner  there.    Se  Qevvja 
'  The  churches   are  ill  built.    The  place  of  arms,  or  parade, 

*  is  large   and  handsome,  as  are  many  of  the  houses.    It  is 
'  distant  from  the  shore  of  the  South  Sea  forty   leagues  :  The 
'  road  is  difficult,  the  country  being  extremely  mountainous.' 

On  the  12th,  they  left  Segovia  and  without  injuring  the 
houses,  a  forbearance  to  which  they  had  little  accustomed 
themselves  ;  but  present  circumstances  brought  to  their  con- 
sideration that  if  it  should  be  their  evil  fortune  to  be  called  to 
account,  it  might  be  quite  as  well  for  them  not  to  add  the 
burning  of  Segovia  to  the  reckoning. 

P  p  The 


290 


ON    THE    ISTHMUS 


Retreat 
over  land. 


CHAT.  24.      The  13th,  an  hour  before  sunset,  they  ascended  a  hill,  which 
1688.      appeared  a  good  station  to  occupy  for  the  night.    When  they 

January,  arrived  at  the  summit,  they  perceived  on  the  slope  of  the  next 
mountain  before  them,  a  great  number  of  horses  grazing  (Lussan 
says  between  twelve  and  fifteen  hundred),  which  at  the  first 
sight  they  mistook  for  horned  cattle,  and  congratulated  each 
other  on  the  near  prospect  of  a  good  meal ;  but  it  was  soon 
discovered  they  were  horses,  and  that  a  number  of  them  were 
saddled :  intrenchments  also  were  discerned  near  the  same 
place,  and  finally,  troops.  This  part  of  the  country  was  a  thick 
forest,  with  deep  gullies,  and  not  intersected  with  any  path 
excepting  the  road  they  were  travelling,  which  led  across  the 
mountain  where  the  Spaniards  were  intrenched.  On.  recon- 
noitring the  position  of  the  Spaniards,  the  road  beyond  them 
was  seen  to  the  right  of  the  intrenchments.  The  Buccaneers 
on  short  consultation,  determined  that  ihey  would  endeavour 
under  cover  of  the  night  to  penetrate  the  wood  to  their  right, 
so  as  to  arrive  at  the  road  beyond  the  Spanish  camp,  and  come 
on  it  by  surprise. 

This  plan  was  similar  to  that  which  they  had  projected  at 
Guayaquil,  and  was  a  business  exactly  suited  to  the  habits  and 
inclinations  of  these  adventurers,  who  more  than  any  other  of 
their  calling,  or  perhaps  than  the  native  tribes  of  North  America, 
were  practised  and  expert  in  veiling  their  purpose  so  as  not  to 
awaken  suspicion  ;  in  concealing  themselves  by  day  and  making 
silent  advances  by  night,  and  in  all  the  arts  by  which  even  the 
most  wary  may  be  ensnared.  Here,  immediately  after  fixing 
their  plan,  they  began  to  intrench  and  fortify  the  ground  they 
occupied,  and  made  all  the  dispositions  which  troops  usually 
do  who  halt  for  the  night.  This  encampment,  besides  impress- 
ing the  Spaniards  with  the  belief  that  they  intended  to  pass  the 

night 


OF    AMERICA. 


591 


night  in  repose,  was  necessary  to  the  securing  their  baggage 
and  prisoners. 

Rest  seemed  necessary  and  due  to  the  Buccaneers  after  a 
toilsome  day's  march,  and  so  it  was  thought  by  the  Spanish 
Commander,  who  seeing  them  fortify  their  quarters,  doubted 
not  that  they  meant  to  do  themselves  justice;  but  an  hour  after 
the  close  of  day,  two  hundred  Buccaneers  departed  from  their 
camp.  The  moon  shone  out  bright,  which  gave  them  light  to 
penetrate  the  woods,  whilst  the  woods  gave  them  concealment 
from  the  Spaniards,  and  the  Spaniards  kept  small  lookout. 
Before  midnight,  they  were  near  enough  to  hear  the  Spaniards 
chanting  Litanies,  and  long  before  daylight  Avere  in  the  road 
beyond  the  Spanish  encampment.  They  waited  till  the  day 
broke,  and  then  pushed  for  the  camp,  which,  as  had  been  con- 
jectured, was  entirely  open  on  this  side.  Two  Spanish  sentinels 
discovered  the  approach  of  the  enemy,  and  gave  alarm  ;  but 
the  Buccaneers  were  immediately  after  in  the  camp,  and  the 
Spanish  troops  disturbed  from  their  sleep  had  neither  time  nor 
recollection  for  any  other  measure  than  to  save  themselves  by 
flight.  They  abandoned  all  the  intrenchments,  and  the  Bucca- 
neers being  masters  of  the  pass,  were  soon  joined  by  the  party 
who  had  charge  of  the  baggage  and  prisoners.  In  this  affair, 
the  loss  of  the  Buccaneers  was  only  two  men  killed,  and  four 
wounded. 

In  the  remaining  part  of  their  journey,  they  met  no  serious 
obstruction,  and  were  not  at  any  time  distressed  by  a  scarcity 
of  provisions.  Lussan  says  they  led  from  the  Spanish  encamp- 
ment 900  horses,  which  served  them  for  carriage,  for  present 
food,  and  to  salt  for  future  provision  when  they  should  arrive 
at  the  sea  shore. 

On  the  1  7th  of  January,  which  was  the  1  6th  of  their  journey, 
they  came  to  the  banks  of  a  river  by  which  they  were  to 

p  P  2  descend 


f  H  A  F-  24; 

1688. 

January. 

Retreat 


Rio  de 


292'  ON    THE    ISTHMUS 

c  H  A  P.  24.  descend  to  the  Caribbean  Sea.    This  river  has  its  source  among 

1688.      the  mountains  of  Nueva  Segovia,  and  falls  into  the  sea  to  the 

January.     South  of  Cape  Gracias  a  Dios  about  14  leagues,  according  to 

Retreat     D'Anville's  Map,  in  which  it  is  called  Rio  de  Fare.     Dampier 
across  the  .  _ 

Isthmus     makes  it.  fall  into  the  sea  something  more  to  the  Southward, 

to  the  West  and  names  it  the  Cape  River. 
Indian  bea. 

The  country  here  was  not  occupied  nor  frequented  by  the 

Spaniards,  and  was  inhabited  only  in  a  few  places  by  small 
tribes  of  native  Americans.  The  Buccaneers  cut  down  trees,  and 
made  rafts  or  catamarans  for  the  conveyance  of  themselves  and 
their  effects  down  the  stream.  On  account  of  the  falls,  the 
rafts  were  constructed  each  to  carry  no  more  than  two  persons 
with  their  luggage,  and  every  man  went  provided  with  a  pole 
to  guide  the  raft  clear  of  rocks  and  shallows. 

In  the  commencement  of  this  fresh-water  navigation,  their 
maritime  experience,  with  all  the  pains  they  could  take,  did 
not  prevent  their  getting  into  whirlpools,  where  the  rafts  were 
overturned,  with  danger  to  the  men  and  frequently  with  the 
loss  of  part  of  the  lading.  When  they  came  to  a  fall  which 
appeared  more  than  usually  dangerous,  they  put  ashore,  took 
their  rafts  to  pieces,  and  carried  all  below  the  fall,  where  they 
re-accommodated  matters  and  embarked  again.  The  rapidity 
of  the  stream  meeting  many  obstructions,  raised  a  foam  and 
spray  that  kept  every  thing  on  the  rafts  constantly  wet;  the 
salted  horse  flesh  was  in  a  short  time  entirely  spoilt,  and  their 
ammunition  in  a  state  not  to  be  of  service  in  supplying  them 
with  game.  Fortunately  for  them  the  banks  of  the  river 
abounded  in  banana-trees,  both  wild  and  in  plantations. 

When  they  first  embarked  on  the  river,  the  rafts  went 
in  close  company ;  but  the  irregularity  and  violence  of  the 
stream,  continually  entangled  and  drove  them  against  each 
other,  on  which  account  the  method  was  changed,  and  distances 

preserved. 


OF    AMERICA.  293 

preserved.    This  gave  opportunity  to  the  desperadoes  who  had   CHAP.  24. 
conspired  against  their  companions  to  commence  their  opera-       1688. 
tions,  which  they  directed  against  five  Englishmen,  whom  they      Retreat 

,  .„  .,  /     across  the 

killed  and  despoiled,     I  he  murderers  absconded  in  the  woods     Isthmus 
with  their  prey,  and  were  not  afterwards  seen  by  the  company. 

The   20th   of  February  they   had   passed  all  the  falls,  and    February. 
were  at  a  broad  deep  and  smooth  part  of  the  river,  where  they 
found  no  other  obstruction  than  trees  and  drift-wood  floating. 

•  O 

As  they  were  near  the  sea,  many  stopped  and  began  to  build 
canoes.    Some  English  Buccaneers  who  went  lower  down  the 
river,  found  at  anchor  an  English  vessel  belonging  to  Jamaica, 
from  which  they  learnt  that  the  French  Government  had  just 
proclaimed  an  amnesty  in  favour  of  those  who  since  the  Peace 
made  with  Spain  had  committed  acts  of  piracy,  upon  condition 
of  their  claiming   the   benefit   of  the  Proclamation  within   a 
specified  time.    A  similar  proclamation  had  been  issued  in  the 
year  1687  by  the  English  Government;  but  as  it  was  not  clear 
from  the  report  made  by  the  crew  of  the  Jamaica  vessel,  whether 
it  yet  operated,  the  English  Buccaneers  would  not  embark  for 
Jamaica.    They  sent  by  two  Mosquito  Indians,  an  account  of 
the  news  the}1  had  heard  to  the  French  Buccaneers,  with  notice 
that  there  was  a  vessel  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  capable  of 
accommodating  not  more  than  forty  persons.    Immediately  on 
receiving  the  intelligence,  above  a  hundred  of  the  French  set 
off  in  all  haste  for  the  vessel,  every  one  of  whom  pretended  to 
be  of  the  forty.    Those  who  first  arrived  on  board,  took  up  the 
anchor  as  speedily  as  they  could,  and  set  sail,  whilst  those  who 
were  behind  called  loudly  for  a  decision  by  lot  or  dice;  but 
the  first  comers  were  content  to  rest  their  title  on  possession. 

The  English  Buccaneers  remained  for  the  present  with  the 
Mosquito  Indians  near  Cape  Gracias  a  Dios,  '  who/  says 
Lussan,  '  have  an  affection  for  the  English,  on  account  of  the 

*  many 


294  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  24.  <  many  little  commodities  which  they  bring  them  from  the 
1688.  '  Island  of  Jamaica'  The  greater  part  of  the  French  Bucca- 
neers went  to  the  French  settlements;  but  seventy-five  of  them 
who  went  to  Jamaica,  were  apprehended  and  detained  prisoners 
by  the  Duke  of  Albemarle,  who  was  then  Governor,  and  their 
effects  sequestrated.  They  remained  in  prison  until  the  death 
of  the  Duke,  which  happened  in  the  following  year,  when  they 
were  released ;  but  neither  their  arms  nor  plunder  were  returned 
to  them. 

The  South  Sea  was  now  cleared  of  the  main  body  of  the 
Buccaneers.  A  few  stragglers  remained,  concerning  whom 
some  scattered  notices  are  found,  of  which  the  following  are 
the  heads. 

La  Pava.  Seixas  mentions  an  English  frigate  named  La  Pava,  being 
wrecked  in  the  Strait  ofMagalhanes  in  the  year  1687 ;  and  that 
her  loss  was  occasioned  by  currents*.  By  the  name  being 
Spanish  (signifying  the  Hen)  this  vessel  must  have  been  a  prize 
to  the  Buccaneers. 

In  the  Narrative  of  the  loss  of  the  Wager,  by  Bulkeley  and 
Cummins,  it  is  mentioned  that  they  found  at  Port  Desire 

Captain     cut  on  a  brick,  in  very  legible  characters,  "  Captain  Straiton, 

Straiton.  lg  cannon?  1687."  Most  probably  this  was  meant  of  a  Bucca- 
neer vessel. 

Le  Sage.  At  the  time  that  the  English  and  French  Buccaneers  were 
crossing  the  Isthmus  in  great  numbers  from  the  West  Indies  to 
the  South  Sea,  two  hundred  French  Buccaneers  departed  from 
Hispaniola  in  a  ship  commanded  by  a  Captain  Le  Sage,  intending 
to  go  to  the  South  Sea  by  the  Strait  ofMagalhanes ;  but  having 
chosen  a  wrong  season  of  the  year  for  that  passage,  and  rinding 
the  winds  unfavourable,  they  stood  over  to  the  coast  of  Africa, 
where  they  continued  cruising  two  years,  and  returned  to  the 

West 

*  Theatre  Naval,  fol.  61,1. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  295 

West  Indies  with  great  booty,  obtained  at  the  expence  of  the    c  H  A  p.  24. 
Hollanders. 

The  small  crew  of  French  Buccaneers  in  the  South  Sea  who  Small  Crew 
were  a  part  of  those  who  had  separated  from  Grogniet  to  cruise  B,,cc^neers 
near  California,  and  for  whom  Le  Picard  had  sought  in  vain  on  at  the 

-,  o  -II  r>  Tres  Marias. 

the  coast  or  New  ftpom,  were  necessitated  by  the  smallness  or 
their  force,  and  the  bad  state  of  their  vessel,  to  shelter  them- 
selves at  the  Tres  Marias  Islands  in  the  entrance  of  the  Gulf  of 
California.    It  is  said  that    they  remained   four  years  among 
those  Islands,  at    the   end    of  which  time,  they  determined, 
rather  than  to  pass  the  rest  of  their  lives  in  so  desolate  a  place, 
to  sail  Southward,  though  with  little  other  prospect  or  hope 
than  that  they  should  meet  some  of  their  former  comrades; 
instead  of  which,  on  looking  in  at  Arica  on  the  coast  of  Peru,       Their 
they  found  at  anchor  in  the  road  a  Spanish  ship,  which  they  Adventures, 
took,  and  in  her  a  large  quantity  of  treasure.    The  Buccaneers       to  the 
embarked    in   their  prize,  and   proceeded  Southward   for  the 
Atlantic,  but  were  cast  ashore  in    the  Strait  of  Magalhanes. 
Part  of  the  treasure,  and  as  much  of  the  wreck  of  the  vessel  as 
served  to  construct  two  sloops,  were  saved,  with  which,  after 
so  many  perils,  they  arrived  safe  in  the  West  Indies. 

Le  Sieur  Froger,  in  his  account  of  the  Voyage  of  M.  de       Story 
Gennes,  has  introduced  a  narrative  of  a  party  of  French  Buc-    ^^Sieur' 
cancers  or  Flibustiers  going  from  Saint  Domingo  to  the  South      Froger. 
Sea,  in  the  year  1686;  which  is  evidently  a  romance  fabricated 
from  the  descriptions  which  had  been  given  of  their  general 
courses  and  habits.    These  proteges  of  Le  Sieur  Froger,  like 
the  Buccaneer  crew   from  the  Tres  Marias  Islands  just  men- 
tioned, were  reduced  to  great  distress, — took  a  rich  prize  after- 
wards on  the  coast  of  Peru, — were  returning  to  the  Atlantic, 
and  lost  their  ship  in  the  Strait  of  Magalhanes.    They  were  ten 

months 


296  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  24.  months  in  the  Strait  building  a  bark,  which  they  loaded  with 
the  best  of  what  they  had  saved  of  the  cargo  of  their  ship,  and 
in  the  end  arrived  safe  at  Cayenne*.  Funnel  also  mentions  a 
report  which  he  heard,  of  a  small  crew  of  French  Buccaneers, 
not  more  than  twenty,  whose  adventures  were  of  the  same 
cast ;  and  who  probably  were  the  Tres  Marias  Buccaneers. 

It  has  been  related  that  five  Buccaneers  who  had  gamed 
away  their  money,  unwilling  to  return  poor  out  of  the  South 
Sea,  landed  at  the  Island  Juan  Fernandez  from  Edward  Davis's 
ship,  about  the  end  of  the  year  1687,  and  were  left  there.  In 
1690,  the  English  ship  Welfare,  commanded  by  Captain  John 
Strong,  anchored  at  Juan  Fernandez;  of  which  voyage  two 
journals  have  been  preserved  among  the  MSS  in  the  Sloane 
Collection  in  the  British  Museum,  from  which  the  following 
account  is  taken. 

The  Farewell  arrived  off  the  Island  on  the  evening  of  October 
the  llth,  1690.  In  the  night,  those  on  board  were  surprised  at 
seeing  a  fire  on  an  elevated  part  of  the  land.  Early  next 
morning,  a  boat  was  sent  on  shore,  which  soon  returned,  bring- 
ing off  from  the  Island  two  Englishmen.  These  were  part  of 
the  five  who  had  landed  from  Davis's  ship.  They  piloted  the 
Welfare  to  a  good  anchoring  place. 
Buccaneers  In  the  three  years  that  they  had  lived  on  Juan  Fernandez, 

\\      V      A 

time  years  tnej  n&d  not»  unt^  ^e  arrival  of  the  Welfare,  seen  any  other 
on  the      ships  than  Spaniards,  which  was  a  great  disappointment  to  them. 

Island  Juan       , 

pemandez.  Ihe  Spaniards  had  landed  and  had  endeavoured  to  take  them, 
but  they  had  found  concealment  in  the  woods ;  one  excepted, 
who  deserted  from  his  companions,  and  delivered  himself  up  to 
the  Spaniards.  The  four  remaining,  when  they  learnt  that  the 
Buccaneers  had  entirely  quitted  the  South  Sea,  willingly 

embarked 
*  Relation  du  Voyage  de  M.  de  Gennes,  p.  106.     Paris,  1698. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  297 

embarked  with  Captain  Strong,  and  with  them  four  servants  or  CHAP.  24. 
slaves.  Nothing  is  said  of  the  manner  in  which  they  employed 
themselves  whilst  on  the  Island,  except  of  their  contriving 
subterraneous  places  of  concealment  that  the  Spaniards  should 
not  find  them,  and  of  their  taming  a  great  number  of  goats,  so 
that  at  one  time  they  had  a  tame  stock  of  300. 


298  HISTORY    OF    THE 


CHAP.    XXV. 

Steps  taken  towards  reducing  the  Buccaneers  and  Flibustiers 
under  subordination  to  the  regular  Governments.  War  of  the 
Grand  Alliance  against  France.  The  Neutrality  of  the  Island 
Saint  Christopher  broken. 

CHAP.  25.  T7T7HILST  these  matters  were  passing  in  the  Pacific  Ocean, 
small  progress  was  made  in  the  reform  which  had  been 
begun  in  the  West  Indies.  The  English  Governors  by  a  few 
examples  of  severity  restrained  the  English  Buccaneers  from 
undertaking  any  enterprise  of  magnitude.  With  the  French, 
the  case  was  different.  The  number  of  the  Flibustiers  who 
absented  themselves  from  Hispaniola,  to  go  to  the  South  Sea, 
alarmed  the  French  Government  for  the  safety  of  their  colonies, 
and  especially  of  their  settlements  in  Hispaniola,  the  security 
and  defence  of  which  against  the  Spaniards  they  had  almost 
wholly  rested  on  its  being  the  place  of  residence  and  the  home 
of  those  adventurers.  To  persist  in  a  rigorous  police  against 
their  cruising,  it  was  apprehended  would  make  the  rest  of  them 
quit  Hispaniola,  for  which  reason  it  was  judged  prudent  to  relax 
in  the  enforcement  of  the  prohibitions ;  the  Flibustiers  accord- 
ingly continued  their  courses  as  usual. 

!686.  In  1686,  Granmont  and  De  Graaf  prepared  an  armament 
against  Campeachy.  M.  de  Cussy,  who  was  Governor  ofTortuga 
and  the  French  part  of  Hispaniola,  applied  personally  to  them 
to  relinquish  their  design ;  but  as  the  force  was  collected,  and 
all  preparation  made,  neither  the  Flibustiers  nor  their  Com- 
manders would  be  dissuaded  from  the  undertaking,  and  De 

Campeachy  Cussy  submitted.    Campeachy  was  plundered  and  burnt. 
burnt-  "  A  measure 


BUCCANEERS    OF    AMERICA.  299 

A  measure  was  adopted  by  the  French  Government  which   CHAP. 25. 
certainly  trenched  on  the  honour  of  the  regular  military  esta-      ^gg. 
blishments  of  France,  but  was  attended  with  success  in  bringing 
the  FHbustiers  more  under  control  and  rendering  them  more 
manageable.    This  was,  the  taking  into  the  King's  service  some 
of  the  principal  leaders  of  the  FHbustiers,  and  giving  them 
commissions  of  advanced  rank,  either  in  the  land  service  or  in 
the  French  marine.    A  commission  was  made  out  for  Gran-  Granmont. 
mont,  appointing   him  Commandant  on  the  South   coast   of 
Saint  Domingo,  with  the  rank  of  Lieutenant  du  Roy.    But  of 
Granmont  as  a  Buccaneer,  it  might  be  said  in  the  language  of 
sportsmen,  that  he  was  game,  to  the  last.    Before  the  commis- 
sion arrived,  he  received  information  of  the  honour  intended 
him,  and  whilst  yet  in  his  state   of  liberty,  was  seized  with  the 
wish  to  make  one  more  cruise.    He  armed  a  ship,  and,  with  a 
crew  of  180  Flibustiers  in  her,  put  to  sea.    This  was  near  the 
end  of  the  year  1686  ;  and  what  afterwards  became  of  him  and 
his  followers  is  not  known,  for  they  were  not  again  seen  or 
heard  of. 

In  the  beginning  of  1687,  a  commission  arrived  from  France,  1687. 
appointing  De  Graaf  Major  in  the  King's  army  in  the  West 
Indies.  He  was  then  with  a  crew  of  Flibustiers  near  Carthagena. 
In  this  cruise,  twenty-five  of  his  men  who  landed  in  the  Gulf 
of  Darien,  were  cut  off  by  the  Darien  Indians.  De  Graaf  on 
his  return  into  port  accepted  his  commission,  and  when  trans- 
formed to  an  officer  in  the  King's  army,  became,  like  Morgan, 
a  great  scourge  to  the  Flibustiers  and  Forbans. 

In  consequence  of  complaints  made  by   the  Spaniards,  a  Proclama 
Proclamation  was  issued  at  this  time,  by  the  King  of  Great 
Britain,  James  the  lid,  specified  in  the  title  to  be  *  for  the 

*  more  effectual  reducing  and  suppressing  of  Pirates  and  Priva- 

*  teers  in  America,  as  well  on  the  sea  as  on  the  land,  who  in 

Q  Q  2  '  great 


300  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  25.  <  great  numbers  have  committed  frequent  robberies,  which  hath 
1688.      *  occasioned  .great   prejudice  and  obstruction   to  Trade  and 
'  Commerce.' 

A  twenty  years  truce  had,  in  the  year  1686,  been  agreed 
upon  between  France  and  Spam,  but  scarcely  a  twentieth  part 
of  that  time  was  suffered  to  elapse  before  it  was  broken  in  the 
West  Indies.  The  Fli bustiers  of  Hispaniola  did  not  content 
Danish  themselves  with  their  customary  practice:  in  1688  they  plun- 
dered  the  Danish  Factory  at  the  Island  St.  Thomas,  which  is 
the  one  of  the  small  Islands  called  the  Virgins,  near  the  East  end  of 
Porto  Rico.  This  was  an  aggression  beyond  the  limits  which 
they  had  professed  to  prescribe  to  their  depredatory  system, 
and  it  is  not  shewn  that  they  had  received  injury  at  the  hands 
of  the  Danes.  Nevertheless,  the  French  West-India  histories 
say,  'Our  Flibustiers  (?ws  Flibustiers),  in  1688,  surprised  the 

*  Danish  Factory  at  St.  Thomas.    The  pillage  was  considerable, 
'  and  would  have  been  more  if  they  had  known  that  the  chief 
'  part  of  the  cash  was  kept  in  a  vault  under  the  hall,  which  was 

*  known  to  very  few  of  the  house.    They  forgot  on  this  occa- 
'  sion  their  ordinary  practice,  which  is  to  put  their  prisoners  to 

*  the  torture  to  make  them  declare  where  the  money  is.    It  is 
'  certain  that  if  they  had  so  done,  the  hiding-place  would  have 

*  been  revealed  to  them,  in  which  it  was  believed  there  was 

*  more  than  500,000  livres.'    Such  remarks   shew  the  strong 
prepossession  which  existed  in  favour  of  the  Buccaneers,  and 
an  eagerness  undistinguishing  and   determined  after  the  extra- 
ordinary.   Qualities  the  most  common  to  the  whole  of  mankind 
were  received  as  wonderful  when  related  of  the  Buccaneers. 
One  of  our  Encyclopedias,  under  the  article  Buccaneer,  says, 

*  they  were  transported  with  an  astonishing  degree  of  enthu- 
'  siasm  whenever  they  saw  a  sail.' 

In  this  same  year,  1688,  war  broke  out  in  Europe  between 

the 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  sot 

the  French  and  Spaniards,  and  in  a  short  time  the  English   CHAP.  25. 
joined  against  the  French.  1689. 

England  and  France  had  at  no  period  since  the  Norman  con-      July. 

quest  been  longer  without  serious  quarrel.    On  the  accession  TheEnglish 

driven  from 
of  William  the  Hid.  to  the  crowns  of  Great  Britain,  it  was   St.  Chris- 

generally  believed  that  a  war  with  France  would  ensue.  The  toPher- 
French  in  the  West  Indies  did  not  wait  for  its  being  declared, 
but  attacked  the  English  parr,  of  St.  Christopher,  the  Island  on 
which  by  joint  agreement  had  been  made  the  original  and  con- 
federated first  settlements  of  the  two  Nations  in  the  West  Indies,  See  p.  38. 
The  English  inhabitants  were  driven  from  their  possessions  and 
obliged  to  retire  to  the  Island  Nevis,  which  terminated  the 
longest  preserved  union  which  history  can  shew  between  the 
English  and  French  as  subjects  of  different  nations.  In  the 
commencement  it  was  strongly  cemented  by  the  mutual  want 
of  support  against  a  powerful  enemy ;  that  motive  for  their 
adherence  to  each  other  had  ceased  to  exist:  yet  in  the  reigns 
of  Charles  the  lid.  and  James  the  lid.  of  England,  an  agree- 
ment had  been  made  between  England  and  France,  that  if  war 
should  at  any  time  break  out  between  them,  a  neutrality  should 
be  observed  by  their  subjects  in  the  West  Indies. 

This  war  continued  nearly  to  the  end  of  King  William's 
reign,  and  during  that  time  the  English  and  French  Buccaneers 
were  engaged  on  opposite  sides,  as  auxiliaries  to  the  regular 
forces  of  their  respective  nations,  which  completely  separated 
them  ;  and  it  never  afterwards  happened  that  they  again  con- 
federated in  any  buccaneer  cause.  They  became  more  generally 
distinguished  by  different  appellations,  not  consonant  to  their 
present  situations  and  habits;  for  the  French  adventurers,  who 
were  frequently  occupied  in  hunting  and  at  the  boucan,  were 
called  the  Flibustiers  of  St.  Domingo,  and  the  English  adventurers, 

who 


302  HISTORY    OF   THE 

?  HA  P.  25;  who  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  boucan,  were  called  the  Buc- 
1690.      cancers  of  Jamaica. 
July.  The  French  had  not  kept  possession  of  St.  Christopher  quite 

ThiSish  a  year'  when  Jt  was  taken  from  them  by  the  English-    This 

St.  Chris-   was  an  unfortunate  year  for  the  French,  who  in  it  suffered  a 

topaer.     great  defeat  from  the  Spaniards  in  Hispaniola.    Their  Governor 

De  Cussy,  and  500  Frenchmen,  fell  in  battle,  and  the  Town 

of  Cape  Francois  was  demolished. 

The  French  Flibustiers  at  this  time  greatly  annoyed  Jamaica, 
making  descents,  in  which  they  carried  off  such  a  number  of 
negroes,  that  in  derision  they  nicknamed  Jamaica '  Little  Guinea.' 
The  principal  transactions  in  the  West  Indies,  were,  the  attempts 
made  by  each  party  on  the  possessions  of  the  other.  In  the 
course  of  these  services,  De  Graaf  was  accused  of  misconduct, 
tried,  and  deprived  of  his  commission  in  the  army;  but  though 
judged  unfit  for  command  in  land  service,  out  of  respect  to  his 
maritime  experience  he  was  appointed  Captain  of  a  Frigate. 

No  one  among  the  Flibustiers  was  more  distinguished  for 
courage  and  enterprise  in  tiiis  war  than  Jean  Montauban,  who 
commanded  a  ship  of  between  30  and  40  guns.  He  sailed  from 
the  West  Indies.lo  Bourdeaux  in  1694.  In  February  of  the  year 
following,  he  departed  from  Bourdeaux  for  the  coast  of  Guinea, 
where  in  battle  with  an  English  ship  of  force,  both  the  ships 
were  blown  up.  Montauban  and  a  few  others  escaped  with 
their  lives.  This  affair  is  not  to  be  ranked  among  buccaneer 
exploits,  Great  Britain  and  France  being  at  open  War,  and 
Montauban  having  a  regular  commission. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  303 


CHAP.     XXVI. 

» 

Seige  and  Plunder  of  the  City  of  Carthagena  on  the  Terra  Firma, 
by  an  Armament  from  France  in  conjunction  with  the  Flibustiers 
of  Saint  Domingo. 

I  N  1697,  at  the  suggestion  of  M.  le  Baron  de  Pointis,  an  c  n  A  ?.  26. 

officer  of  high  rank  in  the  French  Marine,  a  large  armament  ^^ 
was  fitted  out  in  France,  jointly  at  fhe  expence  of  the  Crown, 
and  of  private  contributors,  for  an  expedition  against  the 
Spaniards  in  the  West  Indies.  The  chief  command  was  given 
to  M.  de  Pointis,  and  orders  were  sent  out  to  the  Governor 
of  the  French  Settlements  in  Hispaniola  (M.  du  Casse)  to  raise 
1200  men  in  Tortuga  and  Hispaniola  to  assist  in  the  expedition. 
The  king's  regular  force  in  M.  du  Casse's  government  was 
small,  and  the  men  demanded  were  to  be  supplied  principally 
from  the  Flibustiers.  The  dispatches  containing  the  above 
orders  arrived  in  January.  It  was  thought  necessary  to  specify 
to  the  Flibustiers  a  limitation  of  time ;  and  they  were  desired 
to  keep  from  dispersing  till  the  15th  of  February,  it  being  cal- 
culated that  M.  de  Pointis  would  then,  or  before,  certainly  be 
at  Hispaniola.  De  Pointis,  however,  did  not  arrive  till  the 
beginning  of  March,  when  he  made  Cape  Francois,  but  did  not  March, 
anchor  there;  preferring  the  Western  part  of  Hispaniola,  '  fresh 
water  being  better  and  more  easy  to  be  got  at  Cope  Tiburon 
than  at  any  other  part/  M.  du  Casse  had,  with  some  difficulty, 
kept  the  Flibustiers  together  beyond  the  time  specified,  and 
they  were  soon  dissatisfied  with  the  deportment  of  the  Baron  de 
Pointis,  which  was  more  imperious  than  they  had  been  accus- 
tomed to  from  any  Commander. 

M.  de 


804  HISTORY   OF   THE 

c  H  A  P.  26.       M.  de  Pointis  published  a  history  of  his  expedition,  in  which 

1697.       he  relates  that  at  the  first  meeting  between  him  and  M.  du  Casse, 

Character   he  expressed  himself  dissatisfied  at  the  small  number  of  men 

Buccaneers  provided;  '  but,'  says  he,  '  M.  du  Casse  assured  me  that  the 

byM.de    «  Buccaneers  were  at  this  time  collected,  and  would  every  man 

Pointis.  T      .        ,  ,    ,,  />     11      T 

'  of  them  perform  wonders.    It  is  the  good  fortune  of  all  the 
'  pirates  in  these  parts  to  be  called   Buccaneers.    These  free- 

*  booters  are,  for  the  most  part,  composed  of  those  that  desert 

*  from  ships  that  come  upon  the  coast:  the  advantage  they 

*  bring  to  the  Governors,  protects  them  against  the  prosecu- 

*  tion  of  the  law.    All  who  are  apprehended  as  vagabonds  in 

*  France,  and  can  give  no  account  of  themselves,  are  sent  to 

*  these  Islands,  where  they  are  obliged  to  serve  for  three  years. 

*  The  first  that  gets  them,  obliges  them  to  work  in  the  planta- 
'  tions ;  at  the  end  of  the  term  of  servitude,  somebody  lends 
'  them  a  gun,  and  to  sea  they  go  a  buccaneering/    It  is  proper 
to  hint  here,  that  when  M.  de  Pointis  published  his  Narrative, 
he  was  at  enmity  with  the  Buccaneers,   and  had  a  personal 
interest  in  bringing  the   buccaneer  character   into   disrepute. 
Many  of  his  remarks  upon  them,  nevertheless,  are  not  less  just 
than  characteristic.    He  continues  his  description ;  '  They  were 
'  formerly  altogether  independent.    Of  late  years  they  have  been 

*  reduced  under  the  government  of  the  coast  of  St.  Domingo : 
'  they  have  commissions  given  them,  for  which  they  pay  the 

*  tenth  of  all  prizes,  and  are  now  called  the  King's  subjects. 

*  The  Governors  of  our  settlements  in  Saint  Domingo  being 
'  enriched  by  them,  do  mightily  extol  them  for  the  damages 

*  they  do  to  the  Spaniards.    This  infamous  profession  which  an 

*  impunity  for  all  sorts  of  crimes  renders  so  much  beloved,  has 

*  within  a  few  years  lost  us  above  six  thousand  men,  who  might 

*  have  improved  and  peopled  the  colony.    At  present  they  are 

*  pleased  to  be  called  the  King's  subjects;  yet  it  is  with  so 

much 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  305 

'  much  arrogance,  as  obliges  all  who  are  desirous  to  make  use  CHAP.  26. 

*  of  them,  to  court  them  in  the  most  flattering  terms.    This       ^97. 

*  was  not  agreeable  to  my  disposition,  and  considering  them  as 
'  his  Majesty's  subjects  which  the  Governor  was   ordered  to 
'  deliver  to  me,  I  plainly   told    them    that   they   should  find 

*  me  a  Commander  to  lead  them  on,  but  not  as  a  companion 
'  to  them.' 

The  expedition,  though  it  was  not  yet  made  known,  or  even 
yet  pretended  to  be  determined,  against  what  place  it  should 
be  directed,  was  expected  to  yield  both  honour  and  profit.  The 
Buccaneers  would  not  quarrel  with  a  promising  enterprise  under 
a  spirited  and  experienced  commander,  for  a  little  haughtiness 
in  his  demeanour  towards  them ;  but  they  demanded  to  have 
clearly  specified  the  share  of  the  prize  money  and  plunder  to 
which  they  should  be  entitled,  and  it  was  stipulated  by  mutual 
agreement  '  that  the  Flibustiers  and  Colonists  should,  man  for 
'  man,  have  the  same  shares  of  booty  that  were  allowed  to  the 
'  men  on  board  the  King's  ships.'  As  so  many  men  were  to 
embark  from  M.  du  Casse's  government,  he  proposed  to  go  at 
their  head,  and  desired  to  know  of  M.  de  Pointis  what  rank 
would  be  allowed  him.  M.  du  Casse  was  a  mariner  by  pro- 
fession, and  had  the  rank  of  Captain  in  the  French  Navy. 
De  Pointis  told  him  that  the  highest  character  he  knew  him  in, 
was  that  which  he  derived  from  his  commission  as  Capitaine  de 
Vaisseau,  and  that  if  he  embarked  in  the  expedition,  he  must 
be  content  to  serve  in  that  quality  according  to  his  seniority. 

M.  du  Casse  nevertheless  chose  to  go,  though  it  was  generally 
thought  he  was  not  allowed  the  honours  and  consideration  which 
were  his  due  as  Governor  of  the  French  Colonies  at  St.  Domingo, 
and  Commander  of  so  large  a  portion  of  the  men  engaged  in  the 
expedition.  It  was  settled,  that  the  Flibustiers  should  embark 
partly  in  their  own  cruising  vessels,  and  partly  on  board  the 

R  B  ships 


306  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CHAP.  26.  ships  Of  M.  de  Pointis'  squadron,  and  should  be  furnished 
1607.  with  six  weeks  provisions.  A  review  was  made,  to  prevent 
any  but  able  men  of  the  Colony  being  taken;  negroes  who 
served,  if  free,  were  to  be  allowed  shares  like  other  men;  if 
slaves  and  they  were  killed,  their  masters  were  to  be  paid 
for  them. 

Two  copies  of  the  agreement  respecting  the  sharing  of  booty 
were  posted  up  in  public  places  at  Petit  Goave,  and  a  copy  was 
delivered  to  M.  du  Casse,  the  Governor.  M.  de  Pointis  con- 
sulted with  M.  du  Casse  what  enterprise  they  should  undertake, 
but  the  determination  wholly  rested  with  M.  de  Pointis. 

*  There  was  added,'  M.  de  Pointis  says,  '  without  my  know- 

*  ledge,  to  the  directions  sent  to  Governor  du  Casse,  that  he 
'  was  to  give  assistance  to  our  undertaking,  without  damage  to, 
'  or  endangering,  his  Colony.    This  restriction   did   in  some 

*  measure  deprive  me  of  the  power  of  commanding  his  forces, 

*  seeing  he  had  an  opportunity  of  pretending  to  keep  them  for 

*  the  preservation  of  the  Colon)7. '    M.  du  Casse  made  no  pre- 
tences to  withhold,  but  gave  all  the  assistance  in  his  power. 
He  was  an  advocate  for  attacking  the  City  of  San  Domingo. 
This  was  the  wish  of  most  of  the  colonists,  and  perhaps  was 
what  would  have  been  of  more  advantage  to  France  than  any 
other  expedition  they  could  have  undertaken.     But  the  arma- 
ment having  been  prepared  principally  at  private  expence,  it 
was  reasonable  for  the  contributors  to  look  to  their  own  reim- 
bursement.   To  attack  the  City  of  San  Domingo  was  not  ap- 
proved ;  other  plans  were  proposed,  but  Carthugena  seems  to 
have  been  the  original  object  of  the  projectors  of  the  expedition, 
and  the  attack  of  that  city  was  determined  upon.    Before  the 
Flibustiers  and  other  colonists  embarked,  a  disagreement  hap- 
pened which  had  nearly  made  them  refuse  altogether  to  join  in 
the  expedition.    The  officers  of  De  Pointis'  fleet  had  imbibed 

the 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  sor 

the  sentiments  of  their  Commander  respecting  the  Flibustiers   c  H  A  p.  26. 

or  Buccaneers,  and  followed  the  example  of  his  manners  towards       1697. 

them.    The  fleet  was  lying  at  Petit  Goave,  and  M.  de  Pointis, 

giving  to  himself  the  title  of  General  of  the  Armies  of  France 

by  Sea  and  by  Land  in  America,  had  placed  a  guard  in  a  Fort 

there.    M.  du  Casse,  as  he  had  received  no  orders  from  Europe 

to  acknowledge  any  superior  within  his  government,  might  have 

considered  such  an  exercise  of  power  to  be  an  encroachment  on 

his  authority  which  it  became  him  to  resist ;  but  he  acted  in 

this,  and  in  other  instances,  like  a  man  overawed.    The  officer 

of  M.  de  Pointis  who  commanded  the  guard  on  shore,  arrested 

a  Flibustier  for  disorderly  behaviour,  and  held  him  prisoner  in 

the  fort.    The  Flibustiers  surrounded  the  fort  in  a  tumultuous 

manner  to  demand  his  release,  and  the  officer  commanded  his 

men  to  fire  upon  them,  by  which  three  of  the  Flibustiers  were 

killed.    It  required  some  address  and  civility  on  the  part  of 

M.  de  Pointis  himself,  as  well  as  the  assistance  of  M.  du  Casse, 

to  appease  the  Flibustiers ;  and  the  officer  who  had  committed 

the  offence  was  sent  on  board  under  arrest. 

The  force  furnished  from  M.  du  Casse's  government,  consisted 
of  nearly  700  Flibustiers,  1 70  soldiers  from  the  garrisons,  and 
as  many  volunteer  inhabitants  and  negroes  as  made  up  about 
1200  men.  The  whole  armament  consisted  of  seven  large  ships, 
and  eleven  frigates,  besides  store  ships  and  smaller  vessels; 
and,  reckoning  persons  of  all  classes,  6000  men. 

The  Fleet  arrived  off  Carthagena  on  April  the  13th,  and  the     April. 
landing  was  effected  on  the  15th.    It  is  not  necessary  to  relate     Siege  of 

Cj8.i*tVi"iP*pnft 

all  the  particulars  of  this  siege,  in  which  the  Buccaneers  bore     by  the 
only  a  part.    That  part  however  was  of  essential  importance. 

M.  de  Pointis,  in  the  commencement,  appointed  the  whole 
of  the  Flibustiers,  without  any  mixture  of  the  King's  troops, 
to  a  service  of  great  danger,  which  raised  a  suspicion  of  par- 

B  R  2  tiality 


308  HISTORY    OF   THE 

CHAP.  26.  tiality  and  of  an  intention  to  save  the  men  he  brought  with 
1697.  him  from  Europe,  as  regarding  them  to  be  more  peculiarly  his 
own  men.  An  eminence  about  a  mile  to  the  Eastward  of  the 
City  of  Carthagena,  on  which  was  a  church  named  Nuestra 
Senora  de  la  Poupa,  commands  all  the  avenues  and  approaches 
on  the  land  side  to  the  city.  '  I  had  been  assured,'  says  M.  de 
Pointis,  '  that  if  we  did  not  seize  the  hill  de  la  Poupa  imme- 
'  diately  on  our  arrival,  all  the  treasure  would  be  carried  off. 
'  To  get  possession  of  this  post,  I  resolved  to  land  the  Bucca- 
*  neers  in  the  night  of  the  same  day  on  which  we  came  to 
'  anchor,  they  being  proper  for  such  an  attempt,  as  being 
'  accustomed  to  marching  and  subsisting  in  the  woods/  M.  de 
Pointis  takes  this  occasion  to  accuse  the  Buccaneers  of  behaving 
less  heroically  than  M.  du  Casse  had  boasted  they  would,  and 
that  it  was  not  without  murmuring  that  they  embarked  in  the 
boats  in  order  to  their  landing.  It  is  however  due  to  them  on 
the  score  of  courage  and  exertion,  to  remark,  though  in  some 
degree  it  is  anticipation,  that  no  part  of  the  force  under  M.  de 
Pointis  shewed  more  readiness  or  performed  better  service  in 
the  siege  than  the  Buccaneers. 

There  was  uncertainty  about  the  most  proper  place  for  land- 
ing, and  M.  de  Pointis  went  himself  in  a  boat  to  examine  near 
the  shore  to  the  North  of  the  city.  The  surf  rolled  in  heavy, 
by  which  his  boat  was  filled,  and  was  with  difficulty  saved  from 
being  stranded  on  a  rock.  The  proposed  landing  was  given  up 
as  impracticable,  and  M.  de  Pointis  became  of  opinion  that 
Carthagena  was  approachable  only  by  the  lake  which  makes  the 
harbour,  the  entrance  to  which,  on  account  of  its  narrowness, 
was  called  the  Bocca-chica,  and  was  defended  by  a  strong  fort. 

The  Fleet  sailed  for  the  Bocca-chica,  and  on  the  15th  some  of 
the  ships  began  to  cannonade  the  Fort.  The  first  landing  was 
effected  at  the  same  time  by  a  corps  of  eighty  negroes,  without 

any 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  309 

• 

any  mixture  of  the  King's  troops.    This  was  a  second  marked  c  H  A  t».  26. 
instance  of  the  Commander's  partial  attention  to  the  preserva-      ^97. 
tion  of  the  men  he  brought  from  France.  M.  de  Pointis  despised       April, 
the   Flibustiers,  and    probably   regarded   negroes   as   next  to  carthfgena. 
nothing.    He  was  glad  however  to  receive  them   as  his  com- 
panions in  arms,  and  it  was  in   honour  due  from  him  to  all 
under  his  command,  as  far  as  circumstances  would  admit  with- 
out injury  to  service,  to  share  the  dangers  equally,  or  at  least 
without  partiality. 

The  16th,  which  was  the  day  next  after  the  landing,  the 
Castle  of  Bocca-chica  surrendered.  This  was  a  piece  of  good 
fortune  much  beyond  expectation,  and  was  obtained  principally 
by  the  dexterous  management  of  a  small  party  of  the  Bucca- 
neers ;  which  drew  commendation  even  from  M.  de  Pointis. 
'  Among  the  chiefs  of  these  Buccaneers,'  he  says,  *  there  may 
'  be  about  twenty  men  who  deserve  to  be  distinguished  for 
*  their  courage;  it  not  being  my  intention  to  comprehend  them 
'  in  the  descriptions  which  I  make  of  the  others/ 

De  Pointis  conducted  the  siege  with  diligence  and  spirit. 
The  Nuestra  Senora  de  la  Poupa  was  taken  possession  of  on  the  May. 

17th ;  and  on  the  3d  of  May,  the  City  capitulated.    The  terms    The  P? 

capitulates. 

of  the  Capitulation  were, 

That  all  public  effects  and  office  accounts  should  be  delivered 
to  the  captors. 

That  merchants  should  produce  their  books  of  accounts,  and 
deliver  up  all  money  and  effects  held  by  them  for  their  cor- 
respondents. 

That  every  inhabitant  should  be  free  to  leave  the  city,  or  to 
remain  in  his  dwelling.  That  those  who  retired  from  the  city 
should  first  deliver  up  all  their  property  there  to  the  captors. 
That  those  who  chose  to  remain,  should  declare  faithfully, 
under  penalty  of  entire  confiscation,  the  gold,  silver,  and 

jewels, 


310  HISTORY    OF    THE 

c  H  A  P.  26.  jewels,  in  their  possession ;  on  which  condition,  and  delivering 
1697.       UP  one  half,  they  should  be  permitted  to  retain  the  other  half, 
May.       and  afterwards  be  regarded  as  subjects  of  France. 
At  That    the   churches  and  religious  houses  should  be  spared 

Carthagena. 

and  protected. 

The  French  General  on  entering  the  Town  with  his  troops, 
went  first  to  the  cathedral  to  attend  the  Te  Deum.  He  next 
sent  for  the  Superiors  of  the  convents  and  religious  houses, 
to  whom  he  explained  the  meaning  of  the  article  of  the  capitu- 
lation promising  them  protection,  which  was,  that  their  houses 
should  not  be  destroyed  ;  but  that  it  had  no  relation  to  money  in 
their  possession,  which  they  were  required  to  deliver  Up.  Other- 
wise, he  observed,  it  would  be  in  their  power  to  collect  in  their 
houses  all  the  riches  of  the  city.  He  caused  it  to  be  publicly 
rumoured  that  he  was  directed  by  the  Court  to  keep  possession 
of  Carthagena,  and  that  it  would  be  made  a  French  Colony. 
To  give  colour  to  this  report,  he  appointed  M.  du  Casse  to  be 
Governor  of  the  City.  He  strictly  prohibited  the  troops  from 
entering  any  house  until  it  had  undergone  the  visitation  of 
officers  appointed  by  himself,  some  of  which  officers  it  was 
supposed,  embezzled  not  less  than  100,000  crowns  each.  A 
reward  was  proclaimed  for  informers  of  concealed  treasure,  of 
one-tenth  of  all  treasure  discovered  by  them.  '  The  hope  of 
*  securing  a  part,  with  the  fear  of  bad  neighbours  and  false 
'  friends,  induced  the  inhabitants  to  be  forward  in  disclosing 
'  their  riches,  and  Tilleul  who  was  charged  with  receiving  the 
'  treasure,  was  not  able  to  weigh  the  specie  fast  enough/ 

M.  du  Casse,  in  the  exercise  of  what  he  conceived  to  be  the 
duties  of  his  new  office  of  Governor  of  Carthagena,  had  begun 
to  take  cognizance  of  the  money  which  the  inhabitants  brought 
in  according  to  the  capitulation ;  but  M.  de  Pointis  was 
desirous  that  he  should  not  be  at  any  trouble  on  that  head. 

High 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  311 

High  words  passed  between   them,  in  consequence  of  which,    CHAP.  26 
Du  Casse  declined  further  interference  in  what  was  transacting,       1697. 
and  retired   to  a  house  in  the  suburbs.    This  was  quitting  the      May. 
field  to  an  antagonist  who  would  not  fail  to  make  his  advantage        At 
of  it;    whose  refusal  to  admit  other  witnesses  to  the  receipt  of 
money  than  those  of  his  own  appointment,  was  a  strong  indi- 
cation, whatever  contempt  he  might  profess  or  really  feel  for 
the  Flibustiers,  that  he  was  himself  of  as  stanch  Flibustier  prin- 
ciples as   any  one  of  the   gentry  of  the  coast.     Some    time 
afterwards,  however,  M.  du  Casse  thought  proper  to  send  a 
formal  representation  to  the  General,  that  it  was  nothing  more 
than  just  that  some  person  of  the  colony  should  be  present  at 
the  receipt  of  the  money.    The  General  returned  answer,  that 
what  M.  du  Casse  proposed,  was  in  itself  a  matter  perfectly  in- 
different ;  but  that  it  would  be  an  insult  to  his  own  dignity, 
and  therefore  he  could  not  permit  it. 

The  public  collection  of  plunder  by  authority  did  not  save 
the  city  from  private  pillage.  In  a  short  time  all  the  plate  dis- 
appeared from  the  churches.  Houses  were  forcibly  entered 
by  the  troops,  and  as  much  violence  committed  as  if  no  capi- 
tulation had  been  granted.  M.  de  Pointis,  when  complained 
to  by  the  aggrieved  inhabitants,  gave  orders  for  the  prevention 
of  outrage,  but  was  at  no  pains  to  make  them  observed.  It 
appears  that  the  Flibustiers  were  most  implicated  in  these 
disorders.  Many  of  the  inhabitants  who  had  complied  with 
the  terms  of  the  capitulation,  seeing  the  violences  every  where 
committed,  hired  Flibustiers  to  be  guards  in  their  houses, 
hoping  that  by  being  well  paid  they  would  be  satisfied  and 
protect  them  against  others.  Some  observed  this  compact  and 
were  faithful  guardians ;  but  the  greater  number  robbed  those 
they  undertook  to  defend.  For  this  among  other  reasons, 
De  Pointis  resolved  to  rid  the  city  of  them.  On  a  report, 

which 


312  HISTORY    OF    THE 

CHAP.  a6.  which  it  is  said  himself  caused  to  be  spread,  that  an  arm}' 
1697.  of  10,000  Indians  were  approaching  Carthagena,  he  ordered 
May.  the  Flibustiers  out  to  meet  them.  Without  suspecting  any 

Carthtgena.  decePtion>  tneJ  went  fortn>  and  were  some  days  absent  seeking 
the  reported  enemy.  As  they  were  on  the  return,  a  message 
met  them  from  the  General,  purporting,  that  he  apprehended 
their  presence  in  the  city  would  occasion  some  disturbance,  and 
he  therefore  desired  them  to  stop  without  the  gates.  On  receiving 
this  message,  they  broke  out  into  imprecations,  and  resolved 
not  to  delay  their  return  to  the  city,  nor  to  be  kept  longer  in 
ignorance  of  what  was  passing  there.  When  they  arrived  at  the 
gates  they  found  them  shut  and  guarded  by  the  King's  troops. 
Whilst  they  deliberated  on  what  they  should  next  do,  another 
message,  more  conciliating  in  language  than  the  former,  came 
to  them  from  M.  de  Pointis,  in  which  he  said  that  it  was  by  no 
means  his  intention  to  interdict  them  from  entering  Carthagena ; 
'that  he  only  wished  they  would  not  enter  so  soon,  nor  all  at 
one  time,  for  fear  of  frightening  the  inhabitants,  who  greatly 
dreaded  their  presence.  The  Flibustiers  knew  not  how  to  help 
themselves,  and  were  necessitated  to  take  up  their  quarters 
without  the  city  walls,  where  they  were  kept  fifteen  days,  by 
which  time  the  collection  of  treasure  from  the  inhabitants  was 
completed,  the  money  weighed,  secured  in  chests,  arid  great 
part  embarked.  De  Pointis  says,  '  as  fast  as  the  money  was 
brought  in,  it  was  immediately  carried  on  board  the  King's 
ships.'  The  uneasiness  and  impatience  of  the  Flibustiers  for 
distribution  of  the  booty  may  easily  be  imagined.  On  their 
^re-admission  to  the  city,  the  merchandise  was  put  up  to  sale 
by  auction,  and  the  produce  joined  to  the  former  collection; 
but  no  distribution  took  place,  and  the  Flibustiers  were  loud  in 
their  importunities.  M.  de  Pointis  assigned  as  a  reason  for  the 
delay,  that  the  clerks  employed  in  the  business  had  not  made 

up 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  313 

up  the  accounts.    He  says  in  his  Narrative,  '  I  was  not  so  ill  CHAP. 26. 
*  served  by  my  spies  as  not  to  be  informed  of  the  seditious      1697. 
'  discourses  held  by  some  wholly   abandoned    to   their   own      May. 
'  interest,  upon  the  money  being  carried  on  board  the  King's        At 
'  ships.'    To  allay  the  ferment,  he  ordered  considerable  gratifi- 
cations to  be  paid  to  the  Buccaneer  captains,  also  compensa- 
tions to  the  Buccaneers  who  had  been  maimed  or  wounded, 
and  rewards  to  be  given  to  some  who  had  most  distinguished 
themselves  during  the   siege; — and  he  spoke   with   so   much 
appearance  of  frankness  of  his  intention,  as  soon  as  ever  he 
should  receive  the  account  of  the  whole,  to  make  a  division 
which  should  be  satisfactory  to  all  parties,  that  the  Buccaneers 
were  persuaded  to  remain  quiet. 

The  value  of  the  plunder  is  variously  reported.    Much  of 
the  riches  of  the  city  had  been  carried  away  on  the  first  alarm 
of  the  approach  of  an  enemy.    De  Pointis  says  110  mules  laden 
with  gold  went  out  in  the  course  of  four  days.    *  Nevertheless, 
'  the  honour  acquired  to  his  Majesty's  arms,  besides  near  eight    Value  of 
'  or  nine  millions  that  could  not  escape  us,  consoled  us  for  the  thepjunder- 
*  rest.'    Whether  these  eight  or  nine  millions  were  crowns  or 
livres  M.  de  Pointis'  account  does  not  specify.    It  is  not  im- 
probable he  meant  it  should  be  understood  as  livres.    Many 
were  of  opinion  that  the  value  of  the  booty  was  not  less  than 
forty  millions  of  livres;  M.  du  Casse  estimated  it  at  above 
twenty  millions,  besides  merchandise. 

M.  de  Pointis  now  made  known  that  on  account  of  the 
unhealthiness  of  the  situation,  he  had  changed  his  intention 
of  leaving  a  garrison  and  keeping  Carthagena,  for  that  already 
more  Frenchmen  had  died  there  by  sickness  than  he  had 
lost  in  the  siege.  He  ordered  the  cannon  of  the  Bocca-chica 
Castle  to  be  taken  on  board  the  ships,  and  the  Castle  to  be 
demolished.  On  the  25th  of  May,  orders  were  issued  for  the 

S  s  troops 


314  HISTORY    OF    THE 

<>  HA  P.  26.  troops  to  embark ;  and  at  the  same  time  he  embarked  himself 

1607.       without  having  given   any  previous  notice  of  his  intention  so 

May.       to  do  to  M.  du  Casse,  from  whom  he  had   parted   but  a  few- 

At        minutes  before.    The  ships  of  the  King's  fleet  began  to  take  up 

ageDa'  their  anchors  to  move  towards  the  entrance  of  the  harbour,  and 

M.  de  Pointis  sent  an  order  to  M.  du  Casse  for  the  Buccaneers 

and  the  people  of  the  Colony  to  embark  on  board  their  own 

vessels. 

M.  du  Casse  sent  two  of  his  principal  officers  to  the  General 
to  demand  that  justice  should  be  done  to  the  Colonists.  Still 
the  accounts  were  said  not  to  be  ready ;  but  on  the  £9th,  the 
King's  fleet  being  ready  for  sea,  M.  du  Pointis  sent  to  M.  du 
Casse  the  Commissary's  account,  which  stated  the  share  of  the 
booty  due  to  the  Colonists,  including  the  Governor  and  the 
Buccaneers,  to  be  40,000  crowns. 

What  the  customary  manner  of  dividing  prize  money  in  the 
French  navy  was  at  that  time,  is  not  to  be  understood  from  the 
statement  given  by  De  Pointis,  which  says,  '  that  the  King  had 
'  been  pleased  to  allow  to  the  several  ships  companies,  a  tenth 
*  of  the  first  million,  and  a  thirtieth  part  of  all  the  rest/  Here 
it  is  not  specified  whether  the  million  of  which  the  ships  com- 
panies were  to  be  allowed  one-tenth,  is  to  be  understood  a 
million  of  Louis,  a  million  crowns,  or  a  million  livres.  The 
difference  of  construction  in  a  large  capture  would  be  nearly  as 
three  to  one.  It  requires  explanation  likewise  what  persons  are 
meant  to  be  included  in  the  term '  ships  companies.'  Sometimes 
it  is  used  to  signify  the  common  seamen,  without  including  the 
officers;  and  for  them,  the  one-tenth  is  certainly  not  too  large 
a  share.  That  in  any  military  service,  public  or  private,  one- 
tenth  of  captures  or  of  plunder  should  be  deemed  adequate 
gratification  for  the  services  of  all  the  captors,  officers  included, 
seems  scarcely  credible.  In  the  Carthagena  expedition  it  is 

also 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  315 

also  to  be  observed,  that  the  dues  of  the  crown  were  in  some  c  H  A  p.  26. 
measure  compromised  by  the  admission  of  private  contribu-       ^7. 
tions  towards  defraying  the  expence.    The  Flibustiers  had  con-      May. 
tributed  by  furnishing  their  own  vessels  to  the  service.  At 

,  ,  , .  .  "  ,.  Carthagena. 

Du  Casse  when  he  saw  the  account,  did  not  immediately 
communicate  it  to  his  Colonists,  deterred  at  first  probably  by 
something  like  shame,  and  an  apprehension  that  they  would 
reproach  him  with  weakness  for  having  yielded  so  much  as  he 
had  all  along  done  to  the  insulting  and  imperious  pretensions  of 
J)e  Pointis.  Afterwards  through  discretion  he  delayed  making 
the  matter  public  until  the  Colonists  had  all  embarked  and  their 
vessels  had  sailed  from  the  city.  He  then  sent  for  the  Captains, 
and  acquainted  them  with  the  distribution  intended  by  M.  de 
Pointis,  and  they  informed  their  crews. 


S  s  2 


316  HISTORY    OF. THE 


CHAP.     XXVII. 

Second  Plunder  of  Carthagena.    Peace  of  Ryswick,  in   1697. 
Entire  Suppression  of  the  Buccaneers  and  Flibustiers. 

.CHA/-27;  HPHE  share  which  M.  de  Pointis  had  allotted  of  the  plunder 
1697.  of  Carthagena  to  the  Buccaneers,  fell  so  short  of  their  cal- 

May-  culations,  and  was  felt  as  so  great  an  aggravation  of  the  con- 
temptuous treatment  they  had  before  received,  that  their  rage 
was  excessive,  and  in  their  first  transports  they  proposed  to  board 
the  Sceptre,  a  ship  of  84  guns,  on  board  which  M.  de  Pointis 
carried  his  flag.  This  was  too  desperate  a  scheme  to  be  perse- 
vered in.  After  much  deliberation,  one  among  them  exclaimed, 

*  It  is  useless  to  trouble  ourselves  any  farther  about  such  a 

*  villain  as  De  Pointis  ;  let  him  go  with  what  he  has  got ;  he 
'  has  left  us  our  share  at  Carthagena,  and   thither  we   must 

*  return  to  seek  it.5    The  proposition  was  received  with  general 
applause  by  these  remorseless  robbers,  whose  desire   for  ven- 
geance on  De  Pointis  was  all  at  once  obliterated  by  the  mention 
of  an  object  that  awakened  their  greediness  for  plunder.  They 
got  their  vessels  under  sail,  and  stood  back  to  the  devoted 
city,  doomed  by  them  to  pay  the  forfeit  for  the  dishonesty  of 
their  countryman. 

The  matter  was  consulted  and  determined  upon  without 
M.  du  Casse  being  present,  and  the  ship  in  which  he  had  em- 
barked was  left  by  the  rest  without  company.  When  he  per- 
ceived what  they  were  bent  upon,  he  sent  orders  to  them 
to  desist,  which  he  accompanied  with  a  promise  to  de- 
mand redress  for  them  in  France;  but  neither  the  doubtful 
prospect  of  distant  redress  held  out,  nor  respect  for  his  orders, 

had 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  317 

bad  any  effect  in  restraining  them.  M.  du  Casse  sent,  an  CHAP.  27. 
officer  to  M.  de  Pointis,  who  had  not  yet  sailed  from  the  ig97. 
entrance  of  Carthagena  Harbour,  to  inform  him  that  the  Buc- 
caneers, in  defiance  of  all  order  and  in  breach  of  the  capitula- 
tion which  had  been  granted  to  the  city,  were  returning  thither 
to  plunder  it  again  ;  but  M.  de  Pointis  in  sending  the  Com- 
missary's account  had  closed  his  intercourse  with  the  Bucca- 
neers and  with  the  Colonists,  at  least  for  the  remainder  of  his 
expedition.  M.  du  Casse's  officer  was  told  that  the  General 
was  so  ill  that  he  could  not  be  spoken  with.  The  Officer  went 
to  the  next  senior  Captain  in  command  of  the  fleet,  who,  on 
being  informed  of  the  matter,  said,  '  the  Buccaneers  were 
great  rogues,  and  ought  to  be  hanged ;'  but  as  no  step  could  be 
taken  to  prevent  the  mischief,  without  delaying  the  sailing  of 
the  fleet,  the  chief  commanders  of  which  were  impatient  to 
see  their  booty  in  a  place  of  greater  security,  none  was  taken, 
and  on  the  1st  of  June  the  King's  fleet  sailed  for  France,  June, 
leaving  Carthagena  to  the  discretion  of  the  Buccaneers.  M.  de 
Pointis  claims  being  ignorant  of  what  was  transacting.  '  On 
*  the  30th  of  May/  he  says,  '  I  was  taken  so  ilf,  that  all 
'  I  could  do,  before  I  fell  into  a  condition  that  deprived  me  of 
'  my  intellect,  was  to  acquaint  Captain  Levi  that  I  committed 
'  the  care  of  the  squadron  to  him.' 

If  M.  de  Pointis  acted  fairly  by  the  people  who  came  from 
France  and  returned  with  him,  it  must  be  supposed  that  in  his 
sense  of  right  and  wrong  he  held  the  belief,  that  '  to  rob  a 
rogue  is  no  breach  of  honesty.'  But  it  was  said  of  him,  '// 
1  etoit  capable  de  former  un  grand  dessein,  et  de  rien  epargner 
'  pour  le  faire  reussir ; '  the  English  phrase  for  which  is,  '  he 
would  stick  at  nothing/ 

On  the  1st  of  June,  M.  du  Casse  also  sailed  from  Carthagena 
to  return  to  St.  Domingo.  Thus  were  the  Flibustiers  abandoned 

to 


318  HISTORY    OF    THE 

.CHAP.  27;  to  their  own  will  by  all  the  authorities  whose  duty  it  was  to 

i697.       have  restrained  them. 

June.  The  inhabitants  of  Carthagena  seeing  the  buccaneer  ships 

•A*  returning  to  the  city,  waited  in  the  most  anxious  suspense 
to  learn  the  cause.  The  Flibustiers  on  landing,  seized  on  all 
the  male  inhabitants  they  could  lay  hold  of,  and  shut  them  up 
in  the  great  church.  They  posted  up  a  kind  of  manifesto  in 
different  parts  of  the  city,  setting  forth  the  justice  of  their 
second  invasion  of  Carthagena,  which  they  grounded  on  the 
perfidy  of  the  French  General  De  Pointis  ('  que  nous  vous 
f  permettons  de  charger  de  toutes  les  maledictions  imaginables,' ) 
and  on  their  own  necessities.  Finally,  they  demanded  five 
millions  of  livres  as  the  price  of  their  departing  again  without 
committing  disorder.  It  seems  strange  that  the  Buccaneers 
could  expect  to  raise  so  much  money  in  a  place  so  recently 
plundered.  Nevertheless,  by  terrifying  their  prisoners,  putting 
some  to  the  torture,  ransacking  the  tornbs,  and  other  means 
equally  abhorrent,  in  four  days  time  they  had  nearly  made  up 
the  proposed  sum.  It  happened  that  two  Flibustiers  killed  two 
women  of  Carthagena  in  some  manner,  or  under  some  circum- 
stances, that  gave  general  offence,  and  raised  indignation  in  the 
rest  of  the  Flibustiers,  who  held  a  kind  of  trial  and  condemned 
them  to  be  shot,  which  was  done  in  presence  of  many  of  the 
inhabitants.  The  Buccaneer  histories  praise  this  as  an  act  of 
extraordinary  justice,  and  a  set-off  against  their  cruelties  and 
robberies,  such  as  gained  them  the  esteem  even  of  the  Spa- 
niards. The  punishment,  however  merited,  was  a  matter  of 
caprice.  It  is  no  where  pretended  that  they  ever  made  a  law 
to  themselves  to  forbid  their  murdering  their  prisoners ;  in 
very  many  instances  they  had  not  refrained,  and  in  no  former 
instance  had  it  been  attended  with  punishment.  The  putting, 
these  two  murderers  to  death  therefore,  as  it  related  to  them- 
selves, 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  319 

selves,   was  an  arbitrary  and  lawless  act.    If  the  women  had  CHAP.  27. 
been  murdered  for  the  purpose  of  coming  at  their  money,  it       1697. 
could  not  have  incurred  blame  from   the  rest.    These  remarks      June. 
are  not  intended  in  disapprobation  of  the  act,  which  was  very        At 

rr  Carthagena. 

well ;  but  too  highly  extolled. 

Having  almost  completed  their  collection,  they  began  to 
dispute  about  the  division,  the  Flibustiers  pretending  that  the 
more  regular  settlers  of  the  colony  (being  but  landsmen)  were 
not  entitled  to  an  equal  share  with  themselves,  when  a  bark 
arrived  from  Martimco  which  was  sent  expressly  to  give  them 
notice  that  a  fleet  of  English  and  Dutch  ships  of  war  had  just 
arrived  in  the  West  Indies.  This  news  made  them  hasten  their 
departure,  and  shortened  or  put  an  end  to  their  disputes  ;  for 
previous  to  sailing,  they  made  a  division  of  the  gold  and 
silver,  in  which  each  man  shared  nearly  a  thousand  crowns ; 
the  merchandise  and  negroes  being  reserved  for  future  division, 
and  which  it  was  expected  would  produce  much  more. 

The  Commanders  of  the  English  and  Dutch  squadrons,  on 
arriving  at  Barbadoes,  learnt  that  the  French  had  taken  Car- 
thagena. They  sailed  on  for  that  place,  and  had  almost  reached 
it,  when  they  got  sight  of  De  Pointis'  squadron,  to  which  they 
gave  chase,  but  which  escaped  from  them  by  superior  sailing. 

On  the  3d  or  4th  of  June,  the  Flibustiers  sailed  from  Cartha-  An  English 
gena  in  nine  vessels,  and  had  proceeded  thirty  leagues  of  their   Squadron 
route    towards   Hispaniola,  when  they  came   in  sight   of  the      (a11  in 
English  and  Dutch  fleet.    They  dispersed,  every  one  using  his  Buccaneers. 
best  endeavours  to   save  himself  by   flight.    The  two  richest 
ships  were  taken  ;  two  were  driven  on  shore  and  wrecked,  one 
of  them  near  Carthagena,  and  her  crew  fell  into  the  hands  of 
the  Spaniards,  who   would  have  been  justified  in  treating  them 
as  pirates ;  but  they  were  only  made  to  work  on  the  fortifica- 
tions.   The   five   others   had    the   good   fortune  to    reach  Isle 

Avache, 


320  HISTORY    OF   THE 

^AP-27;  Avachc.  To  conclude  the  history  of  the  Carthagena  expedition, 
1697.  a  suit  was  instituted  in  France  against  M.  de  Pointis  and  the 
armateurs,  in  behalf  of  the  Colonists  and  Flibustiers,  and  a 
decree  was  obtained  in  their  favour  for  1,400,000  livres  ;  but 
the  greater  part  of  the  sum  was  swallowed  up  by  the  expenses 
of  the  suit,  and  the  embezzlements  of  agents. 

The  Carthagena  expedition  was  the  last  transaction  in  which 
the  Flibustiers  or  Buccaneers  made  a  conspicuous  figure.  It 
turned  out  to  their  disadvantage  in  many  respects;  but  chiefly 
in  striPPing  them  of  public  favour.  In  September  1697,  an  end 
Ryswick.  was  put  to  the  war,  by  a  Treaty  signed  at  Ryswick.  By  this 
treaty,  the  part  of  the  Island  St.  Christopher  which  had  be- 
longed to  the  French  was  restored  to  them. 

In  earlier  times,  peace,  by  releasing  the  Buccaneers  from 
public  demands  on  their  services,  left  them  free  to  pursue  their 
own  projects,  with  an  understood  license  or  privilege  to  cruise 
or  form  any  other  enterprise   against  the  Spaniards,  without 
danger  of  being  subjected  to  enquiry  ;  but  the  aspect  of  affairs 
Causes      in  this  respect  was  now  greatly  altered.    The  Treaty  of  1670 
W 10°  the      between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  with  the  late  alliance  of  those 
suppression  powers  against   France,  had  put   an   end  to  buccaneering  in 
Buccaneers.  Jamaica  ;  the  scandal  of  the  second  plunder  of  Carthagena  lay 
heavy  on  the  Flibustiers  of  St.  Domingo ;  and  a  circumstance 
in  which  both  Great  Britain  and  France  were  deeply  interested, 
went   yet   more    strongly    to   the    entire   suppression    of  the 
cruisings  of  the  Buccaneers,  and    to  the  dissolution   of  their 
piratical  union ;  which  was,  the  King  of  Spam,  Charles  the  lid. 
being  in  a  weak  state  of  health,   without  issue,  and  the  suc- 
cession to  the  crown  of  Spain  believed  to  depend  upon  his  will. 
On  this  last  account,  the  kings  of  Great  Britain  and  France 
were  earnest  in  their  endeavours  to  give  satisfaction  to  Spain. 
xiv.  sent  back   from  France   to  Carthagena  the  silver 

ornaments 


BUCCANEERS  OF  AMERICA.  321 

ornaments  of  which  the  churches  there  had  been  stripped  ;  and  CHAP.  27. 
distinction  was  no  longer  admitted  in  the  French  Settlements  1697. 
between  Flibustier  and  Pirate.  The  Flibustiers  themselves  had 
grown  tired  of  preserving  the  distinction ;  for  after  the  Peace 
of  Ryszvick  had  been  fully  notified  in  the  West  Indies,  they  con- 
tinued to  seize  and  plunder  the  ships  of  the  English  and  Dutch, 
till  complaint  was  made  to  the  French  Governor  of  Saint 
Domingo,  M.  du  Casse,  who  thought  proper  to  make  indem- 
nification to  the  sufferers.  Fresh  prohibitions  and  proclamations 
were  issued,  and  encouragement  was  given  to  the  adventurers 
to  become  planters.  The  French  were  desirous  to  obtain  per- 
mission to  trade  in  the  Spanish  ports  of  the  Terra  Firma. 
Charlevoix  says,  '  the  Spaniards  were  charmed  by  the  sending 
'  back  the  ornaments  taken  from  the  churches  at  Carthagena, 

*  and  it  was  hoped  to  gain  them  entirely  by  putting  a  stop  to 
'  the  cruisings  of  the  Flibustiers.    The  commands  of  the  King 

*  were  strict  and  precise  on  this  head ;  that  the  Governor  should 

*  persuade  the  Flibustiers  to  make  themselves  inhabitants,  and 
'  in  default  of  prevailing  by  persuasion,  to  use  force.' 

Many  Flibustiers  and  Buccaneers  did  turn  planters,  or  fol- 
lowed their  profession  of  mariner  in  the  ships  of  merchants. 
Attachment  to  old  habits,  difficulties  in  finding  employment, 
and  being  provided  with  vessels  fit  for  cruising,  made  many 
persist  in  their  former  courses.  The  evil  most  grievously  felt 
by  them  was  their  proscribed  state,  which  left  them  noplace  in 
the  West  Indies  where  they  might  riot  with  safety  and  to  their 
liking,  in  the  expenditure  of  their  booty.  Not  having  the  same 
inducement  as  formerly  to  limit  themselves  to  the  plundering 
one  people,  they  extended  their  scope  of  action,  and  robbed 
vessels  of  all  nations.  Most  of  those  who  were  in  good  vessels, 
quitted  the  West  Indian  Seas,  and  went  roving  to  different  parts 
of  the  world.  Mention  is  made  of  pirates  or  buccaneers  being 
jn  the  South  Sea  in  the  year  1697,  but  their  particular  deeds 

T  T  are 


322  HISTORY    OF   THE 

27-  are  not  related  ;    and   Robert  Drury,   who   was  shipwrecked 


1697.  at  Madagascar  in  the  year  1702,  relates,  «  King  Samuel's 
messenger  then  desired  to  know  what  they  demanded  for  me  ? 
To  which,  Deaan  Crindo  sent  word  that  they  required  two 
buccaneer  guns/ 

At  the  time  of  the  Peace  of  Ryswick,  the  Darien  Indians, 
having  quarrelled  with  the  Spaniards,  had  become  reconciled 
to  the  Fhbustiers,  and  several  of  the  old  Flibustiers  afterwards 
settled  on  the  Isthmus  and  married  Darien  women. 

Providence  One  of  the  Lucayas,  or  Bahama  Islands,  had  been  settled  by 
the  English,  under  the  name  of  Providence  Island.  It  afforded 
good  anchorage,  and  the  strength  of  the  settlement  was  small, 
which  were  conveniences  to  pirates  that  induced  them  to  fre- 
quent it;  and,  according  to  the  proverbial  effect  of  evil  com- 
munication, the  inhabitants  were  tempted  to  partake  of  their 
plunder,  and  assist  in  their  robberies,  by  purchasing  their  prize 
goods,  and  supplying  them  with  all  kinds  of  stores  and  neces- 
saries. This  was  for  several  years  so  gainful  a  business  to  the 
Settlement,  as  to  cause  it  to  be  proverbial  in  the  West  Indies, 
that  '  Shipwrecks  and  Pirates  were  the  only  hopes  of  the  Island 
Providence.' 

1700-1.         In  three  years  after  the  Peace  of  Ryswick,  Charles  the  lid  of 

Accession    Spain  died,  and  a  Prince  of  the  House  of  Bourbon  mounted 

Philip  Vth.   the  Spanish  Throne,  v/hich  produced  a  close  union  of  interests 

Thr      of  k^ween  France  and  Spain.    The  ports  of  Spanish  America, 

Spain,      both  in  the  West  Indies  and  in  the  South  Sea,  were  laid  open  to 

the  merchants  of  France.    The  Noticia  de  las  Expediciones  al 

Magalhanes  notices  the  great  resort  of  the  French  to  the  Pacific 

Ocean,  '  who  in  an  extraordinary  manner  enriched  themselves 

during  the  war  of  the   Spanish  succession.'    In    the   French 

Settlements  in  the  West  Indies  the  name  of  Flibustier,  because 

it  implied  enmity  to  the  Spaniards,  was  no  longer  tolerated. 

On  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  between  Great  Britain  and 

France 


BUCCANEERS    OF   AMERICA.  328 

France  which  followed  the  Spanish    succession,  the  English  ^CHAP.  27. 

drove   the  French    out   of  St.   Christopher,    and    it  has    since 

remained  wholly  to  Great  Britain.    M.  le  Comte  de  Gennes, 

a  Commander  in  the  French  Navy,  who  a  few  years  before 

had  made  an  unsuccessful  voyage  to  the  Strait  of  Magalhanes, 

was  the  Governor  of  the  French  part  of  the  Island  at  the  time 

of  the  surrender*. 

During  this  war,  the  Governors  of  Providence  exercised  their 
authority  in  granting  commissions,  or  letters  of  reprisal;  and 
created  Admiralty  Courts,  for  the  condemnation  of  captured 
vessels :  for  under  some  of  the  Governors  no  vessels  brought  to 
the  adjudication  of  the  Court  escaped  that  sentence.  These 
were  indirect  acts  of  piracy. 

The  last  achievement  related  of  the  Flibustiers,  happened  in 
1702,  when  a  party  of  Englishmen,  having  commission  from 
the  Governor  of  Jamaica,  landed  on  the  Isthmus  near  the  Sam- 
lallas  Isles,  where  they  were  joined  by  some  of  the  old  Flibus- 
tiers who  lived  among  the  Darien  Indians,  and  also  by  300  of 
the  Indians.  They  inarched  to  some  mines  from  which  they 
drove  the  Spaniards,  and  took  70  negroes.  They  kept  the 
negroes  at  work  in  the  mines  twenty-one  days ;  but  in  all  this 
exploit  they  obtained  no  more  than  about  eighty  pounds  weight 
of  gold. 

Here   then    terminates  the  History   of  the   Buccaneers  of 
America.    Their  distinctive    mark,   which   they  undeviatingly 

preserved 

*  Pere  Labat  relates  a  story  of  a  ridiculous  effort  in  mechanical  ingenuity,  in 
which  M.  de  Gennes  succeeded  whilst  he  was  Governor  at  Saint  Christopher.  He 
made  an  Automaton  in  the  likeness  of  a  soldier,  which  marched  and  performed 
sundry  actions.  It  was  jocosely  said  that  M.  de  Gennes  might  have  defended 
his  government  with  troops  of  his  own  making.  His  automaton  soldier  eat 
victuals  placed  before  it,  which  he  digested,  by  means  of  a  dissolvent,— P.  Labat, 
Vol.  V.  p.  349. 

T  T  2 


324  HISTORY   OF    THE 

c  TI  A^P.  27.  preserved  nearly  two  centuries,  was,  their  waging  constant  war 
against  the  Spaniards,  and  against  them  only.  Many  peculi- 
arities have  been  attributed  to  the  Buccaneers  in  other  respects, 
some  of  which  can  apply  only  to  their  situation  as  hunters  of 
cattle,  and  some  existed  rather  in  the  writer's  fancy  than  in 
reality.  Mariners  are  generally  credited  for  being  more  eccen- 
tric in  their  caprices  than  other  men;  which,  if  true,  is  to  be 
accounted  for  by  the  circumstances  of  their  profession ;  and  it 
happens  that  they  are  most  subjected  to  observation  at  the  times 
when  they  are  fresh  in  the  possession  of  liberty  and  money, 
earned  by  long  confinement  and  labour. 

It  may  be  said  of  the  Buccaneers  that  they  were,  in  general, 
courageous  according  to  the  character  of  their  leader;  often 
rash,  alternately  negligent  and  vigilant,  and  always  addicted  to 
pleasure  and  idleness.  It  will  help  to  illustrate  the  manners 
and  qualifications  of  the  Buccaneers  in  the  South  Sea,  to  give 
an  extract  from  the  concluding  part  of  Dampier's  manuscript 
journal  of  his  Voyage  round  the  World  with  the  Buccaneers, 
and  will  also  establish  a  fact  which  has  been  mentioned  before 
only  as  a  matter  surmised*.  Dampier  says, 

Extract  '  September  the  20th,  1691,  arrived  in  the  Downs  to  my 
from  4  great  joy  and  satisfaction,  having  in  my  voyage  ran  clear 
'  round  the  Globe. — I  might  have  been  master  of  the  ship  we 
'  first  sailed  in  if  I  would  have  accepted  it,  for  it  was  known 
'  to  most  men  on  board  that  I  kept  a  Journal,  and  all  that 
'  knew  me  did  ever  judge  my  accounts  were  kept  as  correct 

*  as  any  man's.    Besides,  that  most,  if  not  all  others  who  kept 

*  journals  in  the  voyage,  lost  them  before  they  got  to  Europe, 

*  whereas  I  preserved  my  writing.    Yet  I  see  that  some  men 
'  are  not  so  well  pleased  with  my  account  as  if  it  came  from 
'  any  of  the  Commanders  that  were  in  the  South  Sea,  though 

'  most 

*  See  p.  207,  near,  the  bottom. 


BUCCANEERS   OF   AMERICA.  325 

*  most  of  them,  I  think  all  but  Captain  Swan,  were  incapable   CHAP.  27. 
'  of  keeping  a  sea  journal,  and  took  no  account  of  any  action, 

*  neither  did  they  make  any  observations.    But  I  am  only  to 

*  answer  for  myself,  and  if  I  have  not  given  satisfaction  to  my 

*  friends  in  what  I  have  written,  the  fault  is  in  the  meanness  of 

*  my  information,  and  not  in  me  who  have  been  faithful  as  to 

*  what  came  to  my  knowledge.' 

Countenanced  as  the  Buccaneers  were,  it  is  not  in  the  least 
surprising  that  they  became  so  numerous.  With  the  same 
degree  of  encouragement  at  the  present  time,  the  Seas  would 
be  filled  with  such  adventurers.  It  was  fortunate  for  the 
Spaniards,  and  perhaps  for  the  other  maritime  Nations  of 
Europe,  that  the  Buccaneers  did  not  make  conquest  and 
settlement  so  much  their  object  as  they  did  plunder ;  and  that 
they  took  no  step  towards  making  themselves  independent, 
whilst  it  was  in  their  power.  Among  their  Chiefs  were  some 
of  good  capacity;  but  only  two  of  them,  Mansvelt  and  Morgan, 
appear  to  have  contemplated  any  scheme  of  regular  settlement 
independent  of  the  European  Governments,  and  the  time  was 
then  gone  by.  Before  Tortuga  was  taken  possession  of  for  the 
Crown  of  France,  such  a  project  might  have  been  undertaken 
with  great  advantage.  The  English  and  French  Buccaneers 
were  then  united;  England  was  deeply  engaged  and  fully  occu- 
pied by  a  civil  war;  and  the  jealousy  which  the  Spaniards 
entertained  of  the  encroachments  of  the  French  in  the  West 
Indies,  kept  at  a  distance  all  probability  of  their  coalescing  to 
suppress  the  Buccaneers.  If  they  had  chosen  at  that  time  to 
have  formed  for  themselves  any  regular  mode  of  government, 
it  appears  not  very  improbable  that  they  might  have  become  a 
powerful  independent  State. 

In  the  history  of  so  much  robbery  and  outrage,  the  rapacity 
shewn  in  some  instances  by  the  European  Governments  in  their 

West- 


326  HISTORY  OF  THE   BUCCANEERS. 

CHAP. 27.  West-India  transactions,  and  by  Governors  of  their  appoint- 
ment, appears  in  a  worse  light  than  that  of  the  Buccaneers, 
from  whom,  they  being  professed  ruffians,  nothing  better 
was  expected.  The  superior  attainments  of  Europeans,  though 
they  have  done  much  towards  their  own  civilization,  chiefly 
in  humanising  their  institutions,  have,  in  their  dealings  with.the 
inhabitants  of  the  rest  of  the  globe,  with  few  exceptions,  been 
made  the  instruments  of  usurpation  and  extortion. 

After  the  suppression  of  the  Buccaneers,  and  partly  from 
their  relicks,  arose  a  race  of  pirates  of  a  more  desperate  cast, 
so  rendered  by  the  increased  danger  of  their  occupation,  who 
for  a  number  of  years  preyed  upon  the  commerce  of  all 
nations,  till  they  were  hunted  down,  and,  it  may  be  said, 
exterminated.  Of  one  crew  of  pirates  who  were  brought 
before  a  Court  of  Justice,  fifty-two  men  were  condemned  and 
executed  at  one  time,  in  the  year  1722. 


FINIS. 


GAJLLAPAGO8  ISLANDS  , 

85  84 


Ambrose  Cowley  in  1684. 


f.<'n,r//rt<tr  fl'eff    84  from,  the  Lizard 


X.H    7}^<-  Ifltimf  •  lit/tftr  Miiriii  iff  I .  lijiuitla,  itcccrfttrttf  tf>  its  .rtfitii/tcn  triirn  Jlbrmarlr  J.flnntl , 
frcin  tjir  t^iiirt  put>lubt>tj 


E