_Being on Board he descants on his ensuing misery; yet draws
comfort to himself from the sufferings of others. He
relateth how he was freed from his intended banishment
by a double Shipwrack; the manner thereof he amply
declareth._
The Ship that was to transport me lay at _Wollidge_: about the latter
end of _Aug. 1650_. I was conveyed aboard a lusty Ship, a
_Virginia_-Merchantman, and was instantly clapt under hatches; but I
knew they would quickly call me aloft, if there was any fighting work;
as such a thing might easily be, since the Sea was no where free from
such as would make a prize of what Vessels were too weak to contend with
them. Having pen, ink, and paper about me, I busied my thoughts and pen
in contriving consolation for my disquieted and disconsolate mind, thus:
_Why should not I with patience suffer? some
Have kist what brought them to their Martyrdom.
Many a Saint hath suffer’d on a Cross;
And our good King endur’d three Kingdoms loss.
Shall I (fool) then at any cross take grief?
_Tyburn’s_ the way to heaven for many a Thief.
But must I now to Sea? well, ’tis no matter;
Fortune now frowns, though heretofore did flatter.
Let not my soul despond, since ’tis my hap,
I’ll scorn that _Whore_, and trust to _Thetis_ lap:
Though she may foam with anger, and the wind
May aggravate her passion, I may find
Her calm again, and set me on that shore,
Where I may Moor, and put to sea no more.
_Neptune_ may shake his _Trident_, and each wave,
Or tumbling billow may become my _grave_.
A thundring Cannon may pronounce my death,
Or a small shot bereave me of my breath:
All which may throng together in full crowds,
To make m’a _winding-sheet_ of _tatter’d shrowds_.
The winds shall sing my _requiem_, and my knell
Shall be a peal of Ordnance, they shall tell
My angry fates I’m dead, and the Sea must
Intomb without the form of _dust to dust_.
But I hope better things, and do believe,
My good events will make the _furies_ grieve._
About the beginning of _September_ following, we set sail for the
_Downs_. As soon as we had weighed Anchor, a thick melancholy cloud
encompassed my thoughts, and so much sadness seized my spirits, as if I
had been not so much taking my leave of my dearly beloved Country, as
leaving the world. Though my soul could not foresee the least danger,
nor be troubled at the apprehension of what slavery I was to undergo in
my exilement; yet certainly I found this strange anguish and propassion
to be ominous, proceeding from something divine, which is able to
unriddle the Apocrypha of nature, and made my soul sensible of some
approaching mischief. Having been about 5 days at Sea, one morning, just
as the Sun began to gild our Hemisphere with his Golden rays, the
Boatswain made us all turn out, & commanded all hands upon deck: coming
aloft, I could not see a man in whose face there was not written the
pale characters of fear and amazement; which were the infallible marks
of some sudden and ensuing danger. Upon my first coming on board, I
could discern a great many red nos’d fellows (a drunkards truest
_indicium_) but the apprehension of present danger had now extinguisht
all those flaming torches of their faces, without the help of water: The
faces indeed of the stoutest amongst us, were so altered by this
affrightment, that we knew not almost one another; losing our natural
complexions through the extremity of passion. One was at his prayers,
that never till then knew what a prayer was; another shedding of _briny
tears_, to make room for more _salt waters_: for my own part, I found my
self not much moved, having lately made my self acquainted with death.
By this time I understood what had past; that is, our Ship had sprung a
leak, and was ready to sink. Seeing every man in that posture, and that
there required means, as well as prayers for our preservation; Come
(said I) Gentlemen, let us not thus cry out, and never lend our
assisting hand; let us to the pump, and let every one be imployed in
this grand concern. Whereupon we all unanimously fell to work: but as it
is usual in such extreams, we were all busie about doing of nothing:
what we began we left imperfect, and fell to another, and so perfected
nothing to our safety. Some were sent down into the Hold, who quickly
returned to us with the symptoms of death in their countenances; for
they all with hesitations and quivering of tongue, with words abruptly
or half spoken, signified to us, that our Ships wound was incurable,
that the leak could not be stopt, but that we must inevitably perish
within some minutes. These words I received as from a Deaths-head, which
I never heard speak before; and truly his very looks would have
sufficiently declared what message he was about to deliver, _viz._ ruine
and immediate destruction. Our inexpressible fears bereaved us of the
power of counselling one another; neither did we know what was best to
be done. Our Master commanded our Long-boat to be cast out, and withal,
ordered some eight Guns to be fir’d, which methought resembled so many
toles of my _Passing-bell_, when I was design’d to pass by St.
_Sepulchres Church_ in a Cart, guarded by fellows whose visages were the
true resemblance of the _Saracens-head_ on _Snow-hill_, for terror,
horror, and merciless proceeding; as to all which, these _Cannibals_
will outvie that inhumane and bloody Nation. Every man indeavoured to
shift for himself, and I amongst the rest (being loath to be drowned
alone) leapt short of the boat, and fell into the Sea in _Charontis
Cymba_; but necessity then forcing me to use treble diligence to recover
my self, with much difficulty I got into the boat: I was no sooner
there, but another leapt down upon me, and had like to have beaten the
rest of my breath out of my body: which I took kindly enough: for I
would have been content to have born them all on my back, nay, boat and
all, so that I might have escaped with life. We were constrained to
leave many of our friends behind us, and committed our selves to the
Sea, driving us we knew not whither. Now were all our hopes _dashed_, as
well as our selves, by the waves; for we were almost in despair of
humane help: for we were left in the wide Ocean, which did not at that
time wear a smooth brow, but contending with the wind, swell’d into
prodigious mountains, which every moment threatned our overwhelming. How
could we expect safety in an open Shaloup, when so stately a Castle of
wood, which we but now lost, could not defend it self, nor preserve us
from the insolency of the imperious waves? We were many leagues from any
shore, having neither Compass to guide us, nor provision to sustain us,
being as well starv’d with cold as hunger. Several bags of mony we had
with us; but what good could that do us, where there is no exchange? We
could neither eat nor drink it; neither would it keep us warm, nor
purchase our deliverance. Therefore we may justly esteem of money in its
own nature, as an impotent creature, a very cripple, _inutile pondus_,
an useless burden. I could not now imagine anything could preserve us,
less than a miracle: and as we were all sinful creatures, especially my
self, we could not expect that nature should go out of her ordinary way
to save us. The waves indeed carried us up to Heaven,
_Jam jam tacturos sidera summa putes._
_Neptune_ sure at this time was very _gamesome_, for he play’d at
_Tennis_ with us poor mortals, making a _wave_ his _Racket_ to bandie us
up and down like _Balls_: Sometimes he seem’d so proud and _lofty_,
being raised so _high_, as if he had been about to _scale Heaven_; which
the incensed Deity perceiving, seemed again to throw us down headlong to
Hell, for too much ambition & presumption: yet I could not see, but that
the extremity of our condition pleaded for us, crying aloud for pity and
compassion. I was now silent, committing my self into the hands of
providence; yet verily believing, that the inversion of the old Proverb
appertained to me, that being not born to be hang’d, I should be
drown’d. Commonly we are not so much mov’d with a clamourous and
importunate beggar, who hunts after our Alms with open mouth, and makes
_Hue_ and _Cry_ after our Charity (as if we had rob’d him who begs of
us) as with the silence of impotent and diseased _Lazaro’s_: their sores
speak loudest to our affections; _Quot vulnera, tot ora_; each wound is
a gaping mouth strenuously imploring mercy; the sight whereof, cannot
but melt the most obdurate spectator into a charitable compassion. This
was our case, our misery was louder than our prayers, and our deplorable
condition, certainly was more prevalent then our imperfect devotions. In
this moment of death, when we were without the least expectation of any
deliverance, the wind chopt about, and drove back one Ship that had
over-run us: this was unquestionably _Digitus Dei_. This Ship made
towards us, and we, what in us lay, towards it: The wind blew hard, and
the insulting Sea, that will not admit of pity, rose high upon us: so
that we were forced to lave the water out of the boat with our hats. It
was my chance to sit on the weather side; fain would I have exchanged my
place, but such complements are useless in a storm; so that I was
constrained to endure patiently the indignation of my raging enemy. But
now began another despair; for with all our endeavours we could not
reach the Ship, nor she us, although she hung on the Lee to retard her
course. Thus our pregnant hopes brought forth nothing but wind and water
(for the Ship rode on furiously before the wind, and we came after in
pursuit of her, as slowly as if an hedg-hog had been running with a
Race-horse;) so that we which before flattered our selves with an
assurance of safety, were as much confounded with a certainty of
perishing. In my opinion it is better to have no hopes at all, than be
disappointed in them: doubtless it did redouble the punishment of
_Tantalus_, to touch what he could not taste. That Mariner, who seeing a
fatal necessity for it, is contented to die in a tempest, would be
exceedingly troubled to perish in a Haven, _In Portu perire_. In this
very condition were we, having a Ship near us, but could not board her
for stress of weather; so that ruine attended us, though all the while
we lookt safety in the face. Now did it grow dark, whereby we could not
see which way to row: though this was an evil in its own nature, yet
accidentally it became our benefit: for not seeing our danger, we
understood it not; but redoubling our strength, we brake through the
waves, and by the assistance of a light, which was in the Ship, we
directed our course truly; and now did we find we were very near her. As
soon as we toucht her on the Lee-side, the Sea-men, with the rest in the
boat, being more dexterous in the art of climbing than my self, never
regarding their _exil’d Prisoner_ (whom they ought to have taken charge
of) got all up into the Ship in a moment, leaving me alone in the boat.
By good hap they threw me out a Cope, which once had like to have
deprived me of my life, but was now the preserver: which I held fast, to
keep the Boat from staving off. Our Boat was half full of water, and the
waves dashed it so violently against the Ship-side, that every such
stroke struck me down, so that I had like to have been drowned (and did
much fear it) in that epitome of the Sea. It would have vexed a man in
my condition, to escape by swimming over a large _River_, and coming
ashore, to be drowned in a _washbowle_. At last with much difficulty I
got aboard too. The Master, Merchants, _&c._ having sav’d their lives
(even miraculously) one would have thought they should not have been so
pensive as they were for the loss of their goods. Those which lost much
took it very heavily; those which lost less, their affliction was
greater, having lost all: I was the most glad, joy riding in triumph in
my chearful countenance, having lost nothing, neither could I any thing,
but my life. Having escapt so miraculously, it was unchristian-like to
murmur at any loss; and as ridiculous, as if a man being restored to
life, should complain that his winding-sheet had sustained some damage
by lying in the grave. The Ship wherein we were, was bound for the
_Canaries_, the wind blowing very faire for that coast. The second night
after our deliverance, about ten a’clock, having set our Watch, we laid
our selves down to rest, with the thoughts of much safety and security,
but it was otherwise decreed; for about one a’clock we were forced to
use all hands _aloft_, a most terrible storm beginning to arise, and the
wind blew so furiously, that before morning we lost our Bow-sprit and
Mizon: we durst not bear the least sayl, but let the Ship drive whither
the winde and waves pleased; and before the next night, we could not
indure our remaining Masts standing, but were necessitated to cut them
by the board. Thus we were tumbled up and down for four days, and as
many nights, contending with the waves in a _Pitcht-battel_, not knowing
where we were, till our Ship struck so violently against a Rock, that
the horrid noise thereof would have even made a dead man startle; to
which, add the hideous cries of the Sea-men, bearing a part with the
whistling winds and roaring Sea; all which together, seemed to me to be
the truest Representation of the Day of Judgement. The Ship stuck fast
so long between two Rocks, as that we had time enough, all of us, to
leap out; the only means left us for our safety. We all got upon a Rock,
and the Morning-star having drawn the Curtain of the night, we found
that we were a very little distance from the shore; getting thereon, and
ranging to and fro, we at last espied a small house, the sight whereof
made us direct our foot-steps thither, steering our course solely by the
compass of our eyes: being come to the house, the Master thereof stood
at the door; we addrest our selves to him in _English_, but his
replications were in _Spanish_, which we understood not: wherefore I
spake to him in Latine, in which language he answered me, _Tam compte,
tam prompte_, both quaintly and readily. In that tongue I made a shift
to tell him the sad Iliades of our misfortunes. This noble _Spaniard_
understood it better by our looks, than my relations; which made such a
deep impression in his soul, that his _gravity_ could not forbear the
shedding of some few tears, so that one would have thought he suffered
Shipwrack as well as we. He desired us to come into his house, and
refresh our selves: what little meat he had, stew’d in a horse-load of
herbs, with some pottage onely seasoned by a piece of Bacon, that had
serv’d for that purpose at least a dozen times) he ordered to be set
before us; being no ways sparing of his wine, better than any I ever yet
could taste in Taverns; this good man being not acquainted with
_dashings_, _dulcifyings_, &c. Seeing us eat so heartily, he caused
another dish to be provided, which was composed of such variety of
creatures, that I thought he had served us in as a _Mess, the first
Chapter of Genesis_: This _Ola-podrida_ was so _cookt_, that the
distinction of each creature was _fauc’d_ out of our knowledge. Having
satisfied our hungry stomachs, he dismist all excepting my self,
desiring me to accept of what kindness he could do me, for he confest he
took much pleasure in my society and discourse. I was very well
contented to entertain his proffer: in some few days he told me he was
to go to Sea, being Captain of a Vessel that lay in _Perimbana_, a small
Sea-faring Town near the place of our Shipwrack; and asking me whether I
would go with him to the _Indies_ (whither he was bound) I readily
consented, and in some few days after we did sail from thence, to
perfect our intended Voyage.