immediately weighed, and entered the river of Canton, where, finding the
Bonita and Hastings, two English country-ships, I anchored, and sent off
an officer, to desire them to instruct us how to behave ourselves in
this port, and to acquaint me with the customs of it. To this they
answered, that, since the Cadogan and Frances, two European English
ships were lying at Wampo, they would advise me to send up to their
factories at Canton, to acquaint them of our arrival, and with the
reasons which obliged me to come into that river, which I accordingly
did the next day. I now thought I was going to rest a little from my
labours; but, to my misfortune, I suffered as much here, all
circumstances considered, as I had in any former part of my voyage; for
the evening we anchored at Wampo, where the English ships commonly lie,
there happened an accident which gave occasion to much trouble. One of
my men, being in a hurry to remove his effects on board the Bonita, in
order to go in her to Fort St. George, the Bonita’s boat was, in her way
to their ship, pursued by a Hoppo, or custom-house boat, who wanted to
search her. The fellow, being in liquor, and fearing they would take
away the silver he had with him, fired a musquet at the pursuers, and
killed the officer. Early the next morning, the corpse was laid at the
door of one of the English houses or factories, where Chinese officers,
appointed for that purpose, waited for the first considerable Englishman
that should come out, without any regard to whom this act of violence
and murder was to be imputed. It happened that the Supercargo belonging
to the Bonita, was the first that came out; on him they seized, put him
in chains, and led him, by way of example, about the suburbs of Canton.
All that could be said or done by the most considerable of the Chinese
merchants who were in commerce with the English, availed nothing; till
my man, who committed the fact, was delivered to them, and then the
Bonita’s Supercargo was soon after released.
It is the custom in China, at least at Canton, to exact a certain sum of
money from all ships that come there, according to their measurement,
which is divided into rates or portions of first, second, and third. I
therefore every day expected the Hoppo to come to measure my ship, but
was given to understand, that I must go up to Canton before that could
be done, though even at the hazard of my life. I accordingly went, and
staid two days at the Cadogan’s factory, during which time I was hourly
alarmed by such stories as made me fear that I should, indisposed as I
was, be dragged away from my bed, and put in irons: but at the end of
two days, I was obliged to go down again to the ship, to be present at
the measurement; and a day afterwards the Hoppo came with a numerous
retinue, and seemed to do his business very quietly, but would not let
me know what was the sum he intended to exact. This gave me much
trouble, for I began to think the Chinese, through a false report of our
great riches, had an intention to gratify their love of money by a heavy
imposition; and in this I was not mistaken.
I had not been here many days before I was deserted by all my officers
and ship’s company, who were continually employed in removing their
effects from on board my ship to some of the Europeans, without my
knowledge, as I was all the time confined to my bed. My officers were
engaging the Indian gentlemen in their interest, and had left me and my
son, with a few negroes, to look after the ship. In short, my ship’s
company had so many ways of disposing of their effects, that it was
impossible to oblige them to do what I should have thought justice to
the gentlemen in England and to myself. In a word, they were all soon
recovered of their illness by the assistance they met with here, and
were become their own masters. The gentlemen who presided over the
trade, so little considered our case, that they had half a mind to
refuse me a passage in one of their ships; and, in effect, I was treated
by them almost as one enemy might treat another in a neutral port.
The Captains Hill and Newsham, when they first came to see me, were
astonished at the ruinous appearance of my ship; and when I had given
then a short history of my voyage, and desired they would receive me
with my effects, they answered, that, since they plainly saw my ship was
in no condition to stir any farther, upon paying our passage, they would
entertain us as soon as we pleased. This I depended upon, and expected
to have no farther trouble than to remove ourselves at any time; but, on
the contrary, I found that I had ignorantly applied to the wrong
persons, and that my address should have been to the Supercargoes, by
which means I was left neglected, while the English Captains were
ordered to fall down with their ships five or six miles below us. Thus
was I left destitute in the company of five foreign ships, who,
perceiving my own countrymen to be so careless of me, were so kind as to
offer me their service, and assisted me with what they could; and, had
it not been for them, I don’t know what I might have suffered; for I was
under perpetual alarms that the Chinese had a design to chop my ship,
that is, to seize her.
Having found out my error in applying to the Captains, and not to the
Supercargoes, I sent up a letter to them, not to desire, but to demand a
passage for me, my officers, and ship’s company, which I was sensible
they could not refuse, and indeed they did not; but their condescension
was accompanied with a charge to the English Captains, not to receive
any thing belonging to us, except it was consigned to the India Company
in England. This was an article which my people utterly rejected, vowing
they would as soon throw what they had into the sea, as comply with such
a demand; for my part, it gave me no concern, being conscious to myself
that I had infringed none of their privileges. At the same time that I
was acquainted with this intention of receiving us as passengers, I was
also informed of the Hoppo’s demand for anchorage in the river, which
was no less than 6000 tahel; and, to quicken me in the payment of this
exorbitant sum, there was a penalty annexed to this extortion of 500
additional tahel for every day we failed in the payment of it. In short,
there was no means by which I could evade this unconscionable
imposition; and as it was a day before I could possibly send the 6000
tahel up to Canton, they required 500 tahel more for neglect of payment;
so that they received from me, upon this extraordinary occasion, the
full sum of 6500 tahel, equal to 2166l. 13s. 4d. English money. This
was, as is apprehended, about six times as much as the Cadogan paid,
which was the largest English ship there, and measured a third more than
mine. It was now high time to get out of my ship; but before I quitted
her, I sold her for 2000 tahel, which money, and the rest of my effects,
were consigned to the India Company.
Towards the latter end of December, 1722, I sailed in the Cadogan,
commanded by Captain John Hill, in company with the Frances, Captain
Newsham, who, sailing better than we, left us as soon as we were out at
sea. Captain Hill, finding his ship very tender, put into Batavia, where
we continued about 10 days, and were informed there were several pirates
in those seas; we, therefore, when we departed from Batavia, joined the
Dutch homeward-bound fleet in Bantam-bay. The Dutch Commodore promised
to assist us in wooding and watering at Mew-island, the water at Batavia
being very bad; but on our joining Capt. Newsham in the straits of
Sunda, the Dutch made that a pretence to leave us before we got the
length of Mew-island; and Capt. Newsham also deserted us the same
evening, so that we were left to ourselves.
We continued at Mew-island six or seven days, during which time several
boats came to us from Princes-island, and brought us turtle, cocoa-nuts,
pine-apples, and other fruits.
Some of the people having seen wild cattle grazing near the strand, went
on shore with design to kill them; but before they had advanced near
enough, they discovered a small tyger, and saw the track of an old one,
upon which they retired to the boat. At this place some of the gentlemen
belonging to this ship, in their outward-bound passage, saw a
rhinoceros.
From Mew-island we had a very pleasant passage to and about the Cape of
Good Hope, which, in my opinion, was greatly owing to Captain Hill’s
good conduct, in coming in with the land betimes, I mean upon the
easternmost part of the bank, and keeping a moderate distance from the
land. I cannot be positive, but I think we never exceeded a degree in
distance from it, generally less, and some times even made the land
itself.
In this course, I do not remember that we took in our top-sails above
twice; once for a squall, which was over in an hour’s time: and, another
time, being threatened by the appearance of bad weather, Capt. Hill made
all the requisite preparations to receive it, which done, he stood in
for the land; and, in a few hours, we had fair weather, a favourable
gale, and all our small sails set, at the same time that there remained
great appearance of foul weather to the southward of us, which continued
for several days afterwards.
I have observed before, that the Frances and the Dutch ships had seven
days the advantage of us, by leaving us in the straits of Sunda,
notwithstanding which, we gained the Cape about as many days before the
Frances, although she sailed so much better than we: and, as to the
Dutch ships, there was no appearance at all of their arrival when we
left the Cape.
The officers of our ship, by comparing their accounts with those of some
of the gentlemen belonging to the Frances, found that she had suffered a
great deal of bad weather; whilst we, who were 10 leagues, or
thereabout, to the northward of them, or nearer the shore, enjoyed fine
pleasant weather and fair wind continually, till we arrived in the
Table-bay, which we did the latter end of March. This I should think of
sufficient weight for any other to pursue the same track. Here we found
Governor Boon, in the London East Indiaman, and others, bound for
England.
Whilst we lay at the Cape of Good Hope, nothing remarkable occurred, and
it has been so often described, that I can say nothing of it that has
not been said by most who have been there before.
From the Cape of Good Hope we had an agreeable passage to the island of
St. Helena, and from thence to England.
We made the Land’s-end in the latter end of July; and, being come into
the British Channel, met with brisk gales from the western quarter, with
thick foggy weather.
On July the 30th, in the evening, we anchored under Dungeness, and the
same night some of the Supercargoes and passengers, and amongst the rest
myself, hired a small vessel to carry us to Dover, where we arrived
early the next morning, and the same day proceeded towards London, where
we arrived on the first of August.
Thus ended a long and unfortunate voyage of three years, seven months,
and some days; after having sailed very considerably more than round the
circumference of the earth, and having gone through a great variety of
dangers and distresses, both on sea and shore.
COMMODORE ANSON’S
VOYAGE
ROUND THE WORLD.
When, in the year 1739, the Spanish depredations had roused the national
resentment, and the pacific ministry who then were entrusted with the
administration of affairs, found it impossible any longer to prevent a
war with Spain, several projects were proposed, and several plans
formed, for distressing the enemy in the most effectual manner, by
cutting off the resources by which alone they were encouraged to
continue their insults, and by which alone they could be enabled to
support a war.
Among the rest, two expeditions were planned by Sir Charles Wager, then
at the head of the admiralty, and two gentlemen named by him for
carrying them into execution; which were no sooner laid before the privy
council to be examined than they were unanimously approved.
Captain Anson, who was nominated to command the one, being out upon a
cruise, a vessel was dispatched to order him to return with his ship,
the Centurion, to Portsmouth; and Mr. Cornwall, who was appointed to
command the other, was acquainted with the honour conferred upon him,
and directed to prepare accordingly.
There are not to be found in the annals of Britain two expeditions,
remote in the destination, yet having a connection one with the other,
that promised equal advantages with these to the nation, equal honour to
the promoters, or equal wealth and glory to the commanders: but by what
fatality these expeditions were changed, or by what state-craft one came
to be laid aside, and the other delayed,--who were the traitors that
betrayed the secret of their destination, or who the demon of seduction
was that perverted the grand design to the pitiful purpose of one single
pilfering project,--remains at present among those secrets, which,
perhaps, a second Dalrymple, in some remote period of time, may
discover; when it will probably appear how much the influence of Chilian
gold had operated in defeating the most formidable project for the
humiliation of Spain that ever was devised; and how easy it is for a
prime minister of England, in the plenitude of power, to defeat the
best-concerted measures, backed and supported by the King in his
council, when either pride, envy, avarice, or emulation, may prompt him
to opposition.
The project, as first intended, was to consist of two strong squadrons;
one under Captain Anson was to take on board three independent companies
of 100 men each, and Bland’s regiment of foot (who was himself to
command the land-forces), and was to sail with all possible expedition
by the Cape of Good Hope to the city of Manilla, in the island of
Luconia, of which city and island frequent mention has already been made
in the course of this work; while that commanded by Captain Cornwall, of
equal force, was to proceed round Cape Horn into the South Seas, there
to range the coasts of Chili, Peru, and Mexico; and when the Commander
in Chief had made himself master of the royal treasures in that quarter,
he was then to direct his course to the Philippines, and join the
squadron of Captain Anson. This done, they were to act in conjunction,
as circumstances should arise, or to wait for fresh orders from
Government to proceed on fresh enterprizes. The reader will perceive, at
first view, the vast importance of this noble undertaking, calculated at
once to enrich the nation, and to determine the war without the effusion
of much blood; for the places intended to be attacked were at that time
incapable of resistance; and as they were in possession of the royal
treasures, any failure in the return of which must of necessity oblige
Spain to sue for peace, that haughty nation must thus have been subdued
without a battle. But posterity will stand amazed when they are told the
issue of this project, on which Sir Charles Wager was so intent, that,
tho’ it was the 10th of September before Captain Anson arrived in town,
yet by the 18th he had received orders to take under his command the
Argyle, Severn, Pearl, Wager, and Trial sloop, and to proceed to victual
the same with the utmost expedition. Before the end of December such
dispatch had been made by that vigilant officer, that the ships were in
readiness to take the troops on board; but in January, when Captain
Anson attended the Board to receive further orders, he was told by Sir
Charles, that the Manilla expedition was laid aside, for what reasons he
knew not, but that the expedition to the South Seas was still intended;
and that he and his squadron, as their first destination was now
countermanded, should be employed in that service.
Accordingly on the 10th of January, 1740, he received his commission as
Commodore; yet it was not till the 10th of June that he obtained from
the Duke of Newcastle his Majesty’s instructions; and even then so many
obstacles were thrown in the way, so many difficulties started, and so
many delays contrived, that, before he was permitted to sail, which was
not till the latter end of September, the Spaniards were so well
informed of his designs, that a person who had been employed in the
South-Sea Company’s service, arrived from Panama, and was able to relate
to the Commodore most of the particulars of his strength and
destination, from what he had learnt among the merchants before he left
the South-Seas: but a still more extraordinary proof of their early and
perfect intelligence was discovered afterwards, in the course of the
voyage, when the Pearl, being separated from the rest of the squadron,
in a storm, on the coast of Brasil, fell in with the Spanish fleet,
that, during the unprecedented delay, had been purposely fitted out to
ruin the expedition, and found Admiral Pisarro so well instructed in the
form and make of Com. Anson’s broad pendant, and those he employed had
imitated it so exactly, that Capt. Mitchell, who commanded the Pearl,
was decoyed by it within gun-shot, before he was able to discover his
mistake.
All delays being at length overcome, the squadron, consisting of five
men of war, a sloop of war, and two victualling ships, namely, the
Centurion, of 60 guns, 400 men, commanded by Captain Anson, as
Commodore; the Gloucester, of 50 guns, 300 men, of which Richard Norris,
Esq; was Commander; the Severn, of 50 guns, 300 men, the Hon. Edward
Legg, Esq; Commander; the Pearl, of 40 guns, 250 men, Matthew Mitchell,
Esq; Commander; the Wager, of 28 guns, 160 men, the Hon. John Murray,
Commander; two victuallers, the Industry and Ann pinks, the largest of
about 400, and the other about 200 tons burthen; were ordered to take
the troops on board at St. Helen’s. But how much the numbers, strength,
and probability of success, of this squadron, were diminished by the
various incidents that took place in near a twelvemonth’s
procrastination, may fully be conceived by what has already been said.
Had the honourable Board from whence the first idea of the expedition
originated been permitted to direct, all the old and ordinary seamen on
board the ships would have been exchanged for such as were young and
able; the full complement of each ship would have been made up; and the
salt provisions which had been so long on board in the Channel would
have been remanded on shore, and fresh provisions replaced in their
room: but, instead of these necessary precautions, the Captains were
glad to retain their old crews; the deficiency in the numbers of which,
amounting to more than 300 men, was no otherwise made up than by sending
on board about 100 cripples from the hospitals, and a party of raw
marines who had never been at sea before: nor were they more fortunate
in the change that was made in the land-forces; for, instead of three
independent companies, of 100 men each, and Bland’s regiment of foot, as
first promised, they had only 400 invalids from Chelsea allotted them,
one part of whom was incapable of action by their age and infirmities,
and the other part useless by their ignorance of their duty. But this
diminution of strength was not the greatest misfortune that attended
these measures; the importance of the time which was wilfully wasted was
in its consequences the source of all those calamities to which the
enterprize was afterwards exposed, by obliging the Commodore to make his
passage round the Cape in the most tempestuous season, when, as it was
foreseen, almost all the invalids, to a man, perished long before they
arrived at the place of action, expiring in a most lamentable condition
when they came to be attacked with the scurvy, with their wounds
bleeding afresh, which had been healed some of them 20, some 30, and
some 40 years before.
But to proceed: Of this voyage there are two very authentic and
well-written accounts; one by Pasco Thomas, the mathematical master on
board the Centurion, who sailed in her out of the British Channel, and
returned with her in safety when she arrived at Portsmouth, and was an
eye-witness and careful observer of all that passed: the other by the
Rev. Mr. Richard Walters, Chaplain to the above ship, who received his
materials, and every other assistance necessary to authenticate his
narration, from the Commander in Chief.
We have chosen to follow the former in the narrative of facts, as most
exact and least liable to imposition; but, in the explanatory part, we
shall copy the latter; because, though Mr. Thomas suffered nothing
material that passed to escape his notice, there were many things
transacted, the motives for which he could only guess at; but these
motives Mr. Walters has, by means of the Commodore’s assistance, been
able to explain.
“Being quite ready about the beginning of September, 1740, we put to sea
three different times, but were as often put back to the road of St.
Helen’s, by contrary winds and stormy weather. At last, on Thursday,
Sept. 18, we sailed in company with the Lark and St. Alban’s, two of his
Majesty’s ships, and several merchant-ships, besides our own squadron;
and Saturday evening saw some men-of-war, and a large fleet of
merchantmen, waiting for us at Torbay. At one in the afternoon we joined
them; and the Commodore hoisted his broad pendant, which was saluted by
all his Majesty’s ships in the fleet with 13 guns each. The King’s ships
which joined us here were, the Dragon, Chatham, Winchester, and
South-Sea-Castle, and near 200 sail of merchantmen under convoy, some of
whom were bound to the Mediterranean, and others to several parts of
North America. We had at present the command of the whole fleet; and
this same afternoon, seeing a ship to the south-west, we made the Dragon
a signal for chasing her; but she proved one of our own ships, too far
a-head of her station. At four this afternoon, the Start Point bore from
us E. by N. at the distance of eight leagues.
Monday the 22d, we saw two sail to the westward, and sent the Trial
sloop to speak with them. They were Dutch ships bound to Curasoe, with
soldiers for their garrisons there.
Thursday the 25th, the Winchester and South-Sea-Castle, with the
merchant-ships under their convoy for Virginia, and other parts of
North-America, parted from us, and proceeded on their respective
voyages. And Monday the 29th, the Dragon, Chatham, St. Alban’s, and
Lark, with the merchant-ships in their charge for the Mediterranean, did
the like; and we had now no ships left in company but our own proper
squadron.
Tuesday the 30th, we spoke with a Dutch man-of-war, who came from Malta,
bound for Amsterdam.
Friday, October the 3d, we spoke with two English merchant-ships from
Lisbon for New-York, and the 8th we spoke with a French sloop from
Rochelle. The 13th, one Philip Merrit, a common sailor, died, which I
mention because he was the first man we lost on the voyage. The next
day, by an order from the Commodore, we went to short allowance; that
is, one third of the allowance granted by government is kept back, in
order to make our provisions hold out the longer. The 23d, we spoke with
a ship from Liverpool, and the next day with another from Glasgow, for
the Cape de Verde islands; as also with a small brigantine from Falmouth
for Madeira, who kept us company thither. The next day we spoke with a
Dutch ship from Surinam for Holland. The 26th, at six o’clock in the
morning, we saw the land bearing W. N. W. distance six leagues, and at
four in the evening anchored in Fonchale road, in forty fathom water,
a-breast the town of Fonchale, and about a mile and a half from it.
During this whole passage, we had almost continually contrary winds, and
boisterous uncertain weather; by which means, a passage which is very
commonly made in 10 or 12 days, took us up 38.
Our business in this place was only to water, and take in wine, and some
private stocks: but, soon after our arrival, we were informed, that they
had seen from the island, to the westward, about 16 or 18 sail of ships
for several days together, which were supposed to be a junction of
French and Spanish ships of war; and as we had reason to imagine that
our expedition had long been known, there was little room to doubt, but
that those ships were designed to intercept and destroy us before we
could attempt any thing to the prejudice of Spain. On this news the
Commodore sent out an English privateer which lay in the road, with one
of his own officers, to see if they could discover them at sea, and what
they were; but she returned the next day, having made no discovery.
Nov. 2, Captain Norris, at his own request, being in an ill state of
health, with the consent of the Commodore quitted the command of the
Gloucester, in order to return to England. The Gloucester was hereupon
given to Captain Mitchell, the Pearl to Captain Kidd, the Wager to the
Hon. Captain Murray, and the Trial sloop to David Cheap, our First
Lieutenant; and as one of the Lieutenants of the Gloucester had quitted
with Captain Norris, our two mates, who had long depended on the
Commodore, were preferred to be Lieutenants on this occasion.
The 4th, at four in the afternoon, we weighed and put to sea, with all
the squadron under our command. An English sloop, which lay in the road,
saluted us at our departure with nine guns, to which we returned five.
The 6th, at four o’clock in the evening, we saw the island of Palma, one
of the Canary islands, in the latitude of 29 degrees north, and
longitude from the meridian of London 19 degrees 44 minutes west. The
same day we spoke with a French ship from Marseilles bound to Martinico,
and the next morning with a Dutch ship from Amsterdam bound to Batavia,
the metropolis of the Dutch settlements in the East-Indies.
The 11th, about four in the morning, we crossed the Northern Tropic for
the first time in this voyage, in long. 24 deg. 24 min. west from
London.
The 16th, being in the latitude of about 12 deg. 20 min. and the
contract with our victuallers expiring in that latitude, the Anne pink
fired a gun, and hoisted a red flag at her fore-top-mast head, to give
us notice of it.