_The =Cygnet=. Her Passage across the =Pacific Ocean=. At the
=Ladrones=. At =Mindanao=._
[Sidenote: 1686. March. The Cygnet quits the American Coast.] March the
31st, they sailed from the American coast, steering at first SW, and
afterwards more Westerly till they were in latitude 13 deg. N, in which
parallel they kept. 'The kettle was boiled but once a day,' says Dampier,
'and there was no occasion to call the men to victuals. All hands came up
to see the Quarter-master share it, and he had need to be 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.' [Sidenote: Large flight of Birds. Lat. 13 deg. N. Long. 180 deg.] 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 _Cape
Corrientes_, and then, numbers of the sea-birds called boobies were flying
near the ships, which were supposed to come from some rocks not far
distant. Their longitude at this time may be estimated at about 180
degrees from the meridian of Greenwich[77].
[Sidenote: May 21st.] Fortunately, they had a fresh trade-wind, and made
great runs every day. 'On May the 20th, which,' says Dampier, 'we begin to
call the 21st, we were in latitude 12 deg. 50' N, and steering West.
[Sidenote: Shoals and Breakers SbW-1/2W 10 or 11 leagues from the S end of
Guahan. Bank de Santa Rosa.] At two p. m. the bark tender being two
leagues ahead of the Cygnet, came into shoal water, and those on board
plainly saw rocks under her, but no land was in sight. They hauled on a
wind to the Southward, and hove the lead, and found but four fathoms
water. They saw breakers to the Westward. They then wore round, and got
their starboard tacks on board and stood Northward. The Cygnet in getting
up to the bark, ran over a shoal bank, where the bottom was seen, and fish
among the rocks; but the ship ran past it before we could heave the lead.
Both vessels stood to the Northward, keeping 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 deg. 20' N. We did not observe the variation of the compass at _Guam_.
At _Cape Corrientes_ we found it 4 deg. 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_[78].'
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 SbW-1/2W from the South end of _Guahan_, distant
ten or eleven leagues.
[Sidenote: 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 the Island. 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 difficulty was experienced on this head. Both Spaniards, and the few
natives seen here, were glad to dispose of their provisions to so good a
market as the buccaneer ships. Dampier conjectured the number of the
natives at this time on _Guahan_ not to exceed a hundred. In the last
insurrection, which was a short time before Eaton stopped at the
_Ladrones_, the natives, finding they could not prevail against the
Spaniards, 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 persuaded them out of that humour.'
[Sidenote: Flying Proe, or Sailing Canoe.] Dampier praises the ingenuity
of the natives of the _Ladrone Islands_, and particularly in the
construction of their sailing canoes, or, as they are sometimes called,
their flying proes, of 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 plank, and each end of the boat turns up round very
prettily. But what is very singular, one side of the boat is made
perpendicular like a wall, while the other side is rounding as other
vessels are, with a pretty full belly. The 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[79]. The vessel has a head at each
end so as to be able to sail with either 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 _Guahan_ to _Manila_, [a distance above 480 leagues]
performed the voyage in four days.'
[Sidenote: Bread Fruit.] 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.
[Sidenote: June.] June the 2d, they sailed from _Guahan_ for the Island
_Mindanao_. 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_.'
[Sidenote: Eastern side of Mindanao, and the Island St. John.] 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 21st day
of June; but being come in with the land, knew not what part of the Island
the city was in, therefore we run down to the Northward, between
_Mindanao_ and _St. John_, and came to an anchor in a bay which lieth in
six degrees North latitude.'
In the printed Narrative it is said, 'The 21st day of June, we 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 deg. or 8 deg. 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 22d day, we 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 deg. 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 hand, though we coasted within a league of the shore[80].'
This difference between the manuscript and printed Journal cannot well be
accounted for. The most remarkable particular 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.
[Sidenote: Sarangan and Candigar.] There is reason to believe that the two
small Islands here 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 Augustin_ 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.
[Sidenote: July. Harbour or Sound on the South Coast of Mindanao.] The
wind blew constant and fresh from the Westward, and it took them till the
4th of July to get into a harbour or sound a few leagues to the NW from
the two small Islands. This harbour or sound ran deep into the land; at
the entrance it is 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 unmolested, no people inhabiting on
that side of the bay. Near the shore was a border of savanna or meadow
land which abounded in long grass. Dampier says, 'the adjacent woods are a
covert for the deer in the heat of the day; but mornings and evenings they
feed in the open plains, as thick as in our parks in England. I never saw
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.'
[Sidenote: River of Mindanao.] On the 18th, they anchored before the
_River of Mindanao_, in 15 fathoms depth, 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. Dampier
gives the latitude of the entrance 6 deg. 22' N.
[Sidenote: City of Mindanao.] The buccaneer ships on anchoring saluted
with seven guns, under 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 going 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. The port
at which the Cygnet and her tender now anchored, with a large district of
country adjacent, was under the dominion of a Sultan or Prince, who
appears to have been one of the most powerful in the Island. The Spaniards
had not 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 day, 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
English 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: mercantile voyagers are on
the watch for occasions of profit, and the inquisitiveness 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 continue strangers. The present visitors were differently
circumstanced 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 exchange for
enjoyment, with minds little troubled by considerations of economy, they
at once entered into familiar intercourse with the natives, who were
gained almost as much 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 circumstanced, 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 concerning 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 connexion so formed, and confirmed with presents, is regarded, if not as
sacred, with such high respect, that it is held most dishonourable to
break it. The visitor is at all times afterwards welcome to his comrade's
house. The _tayoship_, with the ceremony 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
of the richest men may be chosen, and she is permitted to converse with
her pagally in public. 'In a short time,' says Dampier, 'several of our
men, such as had good clothes and 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 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 preparation 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 to penetrate
farther than to the hair which was between the sheathing and the main
plank.
[Sidenote: January, 1687.] 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 command
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
returned, and no boat being seen coming from the shore, they made sail and
put to sea with the ship, leaving their Commander 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.