with all possible respect to the captain, besought his honour, as he
called him, that he would give leave to some more of them to go on
shore, and die with their companions, or, if possible, to assist them
to resist the barbarians. The captain, rather provoked than cowed with
this, came to the barricade of the quarter-deck, and speaking very
prudently to the men (for had he spoken roughly, two-thirds of them
would have left the ship, if not all of them), he told them, it was
for their safety as well as his own that he had been obliged to that
severity; that mutiny on board a ship was the same thing as treason in a
king's palace, and he could not answer it to his owners and employers
to trust the ship and goods committed to his charge with men who had
entertained thoughts of the worst and blackest nature; that he wished
heartily that it had been anywhere else that they had been set on shore,
where they might have been in less hazard from the savages; that, if he
had designed they should be destroyed, he could as well have executed
them on board as the other two; that he wished it had been in some other
part of the world, where he might have delivered them up to the civil
justice, or might have left them among Christians; but it was better
their lives were put in hazard than his life, and the safety of the
ship; and that though he did not know that he had deserved so ill of any
of them as that they should leave the ship rather than do their duty,
yet if any of them were resolved to do so unless he would consent to
take a gang of traitors on board, who, as he had proved before them
all, had conspired to murder him, he would not hinder them, nor for the
present would he resent their importunity; but, if there was nobody left
in the ship but himself, he would never consent to take them on board.
This discourse was delivered so well, was in itself so reasonable, was
managed with so much temper, yet so boldly concluded with a negative,
that the greatest part of the men were satisfied for the present.
However, as it put the men into juntos and cabals, they were not
composed for some hours; the wind also slackening towards night, the
captain ordered not to weigh till next morning.
The same night twenty-three of the men, among whom was the gunner's
mate, the surgeon's assistant, and two carpenters, applying to the chief
mate told him, that as the captain had given them leave to go on shore
to their comrades, they begged that he would speak to the captain not to
take it ill that they were desirous to go and die with their companions;
and that they thought they could do no less in such an extremity than
go to them; because, if there was any way to save their lives, it was
by adding to their numbers, and making them strong enough to assist one
another in defending themselves against the savages, till perhaps they
might one time or other find means to make their escape, and get to
their own country again.
The mate told them, in so many words, that he durst not speak to the
captain upon any such design, and was very sorry they had no more
respect for him than to desire him to go upon such an errand; but, if
they were resolved upon such an enterprise, he would advise them to take
the long-boat in the morning betimes, and go off, seeing the captain had
given them leave, and leave a civil letter behind them to the captain,
and to desire him to send his men on shore for the boat, which should be
delivered very honestly, and he promised to keep their counsel so long.
Accordingly, an hour before day, those twenty-three men, with every
man a firelock and a cutlass, with some pistols, three halberds or
half-pikes, and good store of powder and ball, without any provision but
about half a hundred of bread, but with all their chests and clothes,
tools, instruments, books, &c., embarked themselves so silently, that
the captain got no notice of it till they were gotten half the way on
shore.
As soon as the captain heard of it he called for the gunner's mate, the
chief gunner being at the time sick in his cabin, and ordered to fire at
them; but, to his great mortification, the gunner's mate was one of the
number, and was gone with them; and indeed it was by this means they got
so many arms and so much ammunition. When the captain found how it was,
and that there was no help for it, he began to be a little appeased, and
made light of it, and called up the men, and spoke kindly to them, and
told them he was very well satisfied in the fidelity and ability of
those that were now left, and that he would give to them, for their
encouragement, to be divided among them, the wages which were due to the
men that were gone, and that it was a great satisfaction to him that the
ship was free from such a mutinous rabble, who had not the least reason
for their discontent.
The men seemed very well satisfied, and particularly the promise of the
wages of those who were gone went a great way with them. After this, the
letter which was left by the men was given to the captain by his boy,
with whom, it seems, the men had left it. The letter was much to the
same purpose of what they had said to the mate, and which he declined to
say for them, only that at the end of their letter they told the captain
that, as they had no dishonest design, so they had taken nothing away
with them which was not their own, except some arms and ammunition, such
as were absolutely necessary to them, as well for their defence against
the savages as to kill fowls or beasts for their food, that they might
not perish; and as there were considerable sums due to them for wages,
they hoped he would allow the arms and ammunition upon their accounts.
They told him that, as to the ship's longboat, which they had taken to
bring them on shore, they knew it was necessary to him, and they were
very willing to restore it to him, and if he pleased to send for it, it
should be very honestly delivered to his men, and not the least injury
offered to any of those who came for it, nor the least persuasion or
invitation made use of to any of them to stay with them; and, at the
bottom of the letter, they very humbly besought him that, for their
defence, and for the safety of their lives, he would be pleased to send
them a barrel of powder and some ammunition, and give them leave to keep
the mast and sail of the boat, that if it was possible for them to make
themselves a boat of any kind, they might shift off to sea, to save
themselves in such part of the world as their fate should direct them
to.
Upon this the captain, who had won much upon the rest of his men by what
he had said to them, and was very easy as to the general peace (for it
was very true that the most mutinous of the men were gone), came out
to the quarter-deck, and, calling the men together, let them know the
substance of the letter, and told the men that, however they had not
deserved such civility from him, yet he was not willing to expose them
more than they were willing to expose themselves; he was inclined to
send them some ammunition, and as they had desired but one barrel of
powder, he would send them two barrels, and shot, or lead and moulds to
make shot, in proportion; and, to let them see that he was civiller to
them than they deserved, he ordered a cask of arrack and a great bag
of bread to be sent them for subsistence till they should be able to
furnish themselves.
The rest of the men applauded the captain's generosity, and every one
of them sent us something or other, and about three in the afternoon the
pinnace came on shore, and brought us all these things, which we were
very glad of, and returned the long-boat accordingly; and as to the men
that came with the pinnace, as the captain had singled out such men as
he knew would not come over to us, so they had positive orders not to
bring any one of us on board again, upon pain of death; and indeed both
were so true to our points, that we neither asked them to stay, nor they
us to go.
We were now a good troop, being in all twenty-seven men, very well
armed, and provided with everything but victuals; we had two carpenters
among us, a gunner, and, which was worth all the rest, a surgeon or
doctor; that is to say, he was an assistant to a surgeon at Goa, and was
entertained as a supernumerary with us. The carpenters had brought all
their tools, the doctor all his instruments and medicines, and indeed we
had a great deal of baggage, that is to say, on the whole, for some of
us had little more than the clothes on our backs, of whom I was one;
but I had one thing which none of them had, viz., I had the twenty-two
moidores of gold which I had stole at the Brazils, and two pieces of
eight. The two pieces of eight I showed, and one moidore, and none of
them ever suspected that I had any more money in the world, having been
known to be only a poor boy taken up in charity, as you have heard,
and used like a slave, and in the worst manner of a slave, by my cruel
master the pilot.
It will be easy to imagine we four that were left at first were joyful,
nay, even surprised with joy at the coming of the rest, though at first
we were frighted, and thought they came to fetch us back to hang us;
but they took ways quickly to satisfy us that they were in the same
condition with us, only with this additional circumstance, theirs was
voluntary, and ours by force.
The first piece of news they told us after the short history of their
coming away was, that our companion was on board, but how he got
thither we could not imagine, for he had given us the slip, and we never
imagined he could swim so well as to venture off to the ship, which lay
at so great a distance; nay, we did not so much as know that he could
swim at all, and not thinking anything of what really happened, we
thought he must have wandered into the woods and was devoured, or
was fallen into the hands of the natives, and was murdered; and these
thoughts filled us with fears enough, and of several kinds, about its
being some time or other our lot to fall into their hands also. But
hearing how he had with much difficulty been received on board the ship
again and pardoned, we were much better satisfied than before.
Being now, as I have said, a considerable number of us, and in condition
to defend ourselves, the first thing we did was to give every one his
hand that we would not separate from one another upon any occasion
whatsoever, but that we would live and die together; that we would kill
no food, but that we would distribute it in public; and that we would
be in all things guided by the majority, and not insist upon our own
resolutions in anything if the majority were against it; that we would
appoint a captain among us to be our governor or leader during pleasure;
that while he was in office we would obey him without reserve, on pain
of death; and that every one should take turn, but the captain was not
to act in any particular thing without advice of the rest, and by the
majority.
Having established these rules, we resolved to enter into some measures
for our food, and for conversing with the inhabitants or natives of the
island for our supply. As for food, they were at first very useful to
us, but we soon grew weary of them, being an ignorant, ravenous, brutish
sort of people, even worse than the natives of any other country that we
had seen; and we soon found that the principal part of our subsistence
was to be had by our guns, shooting of deer and other creatures, and
fowls of all other sorts, of which there is abundance.
We found the natives did not disturb or concern themselves much about
us; nor did they inquire, or perhaps know, whether we stayed among them
or not, much less that our ship was gone quite away, and had cast us
off, as was our case; for the next morning, after we had sent back the
long-boat, the ship stood away to the south-east, and in four hours'
time was out of our sight.
The next day two of us went out into the country one way, and two
another, to see what kind of a land we were in; and we soon found the
country was very pleasant and fruitful, and a convenient place enough
to live in; but, as before, inhabited by a parcel of creatures scarce
human, or capable of being made social on any account whatsoever.
We found the place full of cattle and provisions; but whether we might
venture to take them where we could find them or not, we did not know;
and though we were under a necessity to get provisions, yet we were loth
to bring down a whole nation of devils upon us at once, and therefore
some of our company agreed to try to speak with some of the country,
if we could, that we might see what course was to be taken with them.
Eleven of our men went on this errand, well armed and furnished for
defence. They brought word that they had seen some of the natives, who
appeared very civil to them, but very shy and afraid, seeing their guns,
for it was easy to perceive that the natives knew what their guns were,
and what use they were of.
They made signs to the natives for some food, and they went and fetched
several herbs and roots, and some milk; but it was evident they did not
design to give it away, but to sell it, making signs to know what our
men would give them.
Our men were perplexed at this, for they had nothing to barter; however,
one of the men pulled out a knife and showed them, and they were so fond
of it that they were ready to go together by the ears for the knife. The
seaman seeing that, was willing to make a good market of his knife, and
keeping them chaffering about it a good while, some offered him roots,
and others milk; at last one offered him a goat for it, which he took.
Then another of our men showed them another knife, but they had nothing
good enough for that, whereupon one of them made signs that he would
go and fetch something; so our men stayed three hours for their return,
when they came back and brought him a small-sized, thick, short cow,
very fat and good meat, and gave him for his knife.
This was a good market, but our misfortune was we had no merchandise;
for our knives were as needful to us as to them, and but that we were in
distress for food, and must of necessity have some, these men would not
have parted with their knives.
However, in a little time more we found that the woods were full of
living creatures, which we might kill for our food, and that without
giving offence to them; so that our men went daily out a-hunting, and
never failed in killing something or other; for, as to the natives, we
had no goods to barter; and for money, all the stock among us would not
have subsisted us long. However, we called a general council to see what
money we had, and to bring it all together, that it might go as far as
possible; and when it came to my turn, I pulled out a moidore and the
two dollars I spoke of before.
This moidore I ventured to show, that they might not despise me too much
for adding too little to the store, and that they might not pretend to
search me; and they were very civil to me, upon the presumption that I
had been so faithful to them as not to conceal anything from them.
But our money did us little service, for the people neither knew
the value or the use of it, nor could they justly rate the gold in
proportion with the silver; so that all our money, which was not much
when it was all put together, would go but a little way with us, that is
to say, to buy us provisions.
Our next consideration was to get away from this cursed place, and
whither to go. When my opinion came to be asked, I told them I would
leave that all to them, and I told them I had rather they would let me
go into the woods to get them some provisions, than consult with me, for
I would agree to whatever they did; but they would not agree to that,
for they would not consent that any of us should go into the woods
alone; for though we had yet seen no lions or tigers in the woods, we
were assured there were many in the island, besides other creatures
as dangerous, and perhaps worse, as we afterwards found by our own
experience.
We had many adventures in the woods, for our provisions, and often met
with wild and terrible beasts, which we could not call by their names;
but as they were, like us, seeking their prey, but were themselves good
for nothing, so we disturbed them as little as possible.
Our consultations concerning our escape from this place, which, as I
have said, we were now upon, ended in this only, that as we had two
carpenters among us, and that they had tools almost of all sorts with
them, we should try to build us a boat to go off to sea with, and that
then, perhaps, we might find our way back to Goa, or land on some more
proper place to make our escape. The counsels of this assembly were
not of great moment, yet as they seem to be introductory of many more
remarkable adventures which happened under my conduct hereabouts many
years after, I think this miniature of my future enterprises may not be
unpleasant to relate.
To the building of a boat I made no objection, and away they went to
work immediately; but as they went on, great difficulties occurred,
such as the want of saws to cut our plank; nails, bolts, and spikes, to
fasten the timbers; hemp, pitch, and tar, to caulk and pay her seams,
and the like. At length, one of the company proposed that, instead of
building a bark or sloop, or shallop, or whatever they would call
it, which they found was so difficult, they would rather make a large
periagua, or canoe, which might be done with great ease.
It was presently objected, that we could never make a canoe large enough
to pass the great ocean, which we were to go over to get to the coast
of Malabar; that it not only would not bear the sea, but it would never
bear the burden, for we were not only twenty-seven men of us, but had
a great deal of luggage with us, and must, for our provision, take in a
great deal more.
I never proposed to speak in their general consultations before, but
finding they were at some loss about what kind of vessel they should
make, and how to make it, and what would be fit for our use, and what
not, I told them I found they were at a full stop in their counsels of
every kind; that it was true we could never pretend to go over to Goa on
the coast of Malabar in a canoe, which though we could all get into
it, and that it would bear the sea well enough, yet would not hold our
provisions, and especially we could not put fresh water enough into it
for the voyage; and to make such an adventure would be nothing but mere
running into certain destruction, and yet that nevertheless I was for
making a canoe.
They answered, that they understood all I had said before well enough,
but what I meant by telling them first how dangerous and impossible
it was to make our escape in a canoe, and yet then to advise making a
canoe, that they could not understand.
To this I answered, that I conceived our business was not to attempt our
escape in a canoe, but that, as there were other vessels at sea besides
our ship, and that there were few nations that lived on the sea-shore
that were so barbarous, but that they went to sea in some boats or
other, our business was to cruise along the coast of the island, which
was very long, and to seize upon the first we could get that was better
than our own, and so from that to another, till perhaps we might at last
get a good ship to carry us wherever we pleased to go.
"Excellent advice," says one of them. "Admirable advice," says another.
"Yes, yes," says the third (which was the gunner), "the English dog has
given excellent advice; but it is just the way to bring us all to
the gallows. The rogue has given us devilish advice, indeed, to go
a-thieving, till from a little vessel we came to a great ship, and so we
shall turn downright pirates, the end of which is to be hanged."
"You may call us pirates," says another, "if you will, and if we fall
into bad hands, we may be used like pirates; but I care not for that,
I'll be a pirate, or anything, nay, I'll be hanged for a pirate rather
than starve here, therefore I think the advice is very good." And so
they cried all, "Let us have a canoe." The gunner, over-ruled by the
rest, submitted; but as we broke up the council, he came to me, takes
me by the hand, and, looking into the palm of my hand, and into my face
too, very gravely, "My lad," says he, "thou art born to do a world of
mischief; thou hast commenced pirate very young; but have a care of
the gallows, young man; have a care, I say, for thou wilt be an eminent
thief."
I laughed at him, and told him I did not know what I might come to
hereafter, but as our case was now, I should make no scruple to take the
first ship I came at to get our liberty; I only wished we could see one,
and come at her. Just while we were talking, one of our men that was at
the door of our hut, told us that the carpenter, who it seems was upon a
hill at a distance, cried out, "A sail! a sail!"
We all turned out immediately; but, though it was very clear weather,
we could see nothing; but the carpenter continuing to halloo to us, "A
sail! a sail!" away we run up the hill, and there we saw a ship plainly;
but it was at a very great distance, too far for us to make any signal
to her. However, we made a fire upon the hill, with all the wood we
could get together, and made as much smoke as possible. The wind was
down, and it was almost calm; but as we thought, by a perspective glass
which the gunner had in his pocket, her sails were full, and she stood
away large with the wind at E.N.E., taking no notice of our signal, but
making for the Cape de Bona Speranza; so we had no comfort from her.
We went, therefore, immediately to work about our intended canoe; and,
having singled out a very large tree to our minds, we fell to work with
her; and having three good axes among us, we got it down, but it was
four days' time first, though we worked very hard too. I do not remember
what wood it was, or exactly what dimensions, but I remember that it was
a very large one, and we were as much encouraged when we launched it,
and found it swam upright and steady, as we would have been at another
time if we had had a good man-of-war at our command.
She was so very large, that she carried us all very, very easily, and
would have carried two or three tons of baggage with us; so that we
began to consult about going to sea directly to Goa; but many other
considerations checked that thought, especially when we came to look
nearer into it; such as want of provisions, and no casks for fresh
water; no compass to steer by; no shelter from the breach of the high
sea, which would certainly founder us; no defence from the heat of the
weather, and the like; so that they all came readily into my project, to
cruise about where we were, and see what might offer.
Accordingly, to gratify our fancy, we went one day all out to sea in her
together, and we were in a very fair way to have had enough of it;
for when she had us all on board, and that we were gotten about half
a league to sea, there happening to be a pretty high swell of the sea,
though little or no wind, yet she wallowed so in the sea, that we all of
us thought she would at last wallow herself bottom up; so we set all
to work to get her in nearer the shore, and giving her fresh way in the
sea, she swam more steady, and with some hard work we got her under the
land again.
We were now at a great loss; the natives were civil enough to us, and
came often to discourse with us; one time they brought one whom they
showed respect to as a king with them, and they set up a long pole
between them and us, with a great tassel of hair hanging, not on the
top, but something above the middle of it, adorned with little chains,
shells, bits of brass, and the like; and this, we understood afterwards,
was a token of amity and friendship; and they brought down to us
victuals in abundance, cattle, fowls, herbs, and roots; but we were in
the utmost confusion on our side; for we had nothing to buy with, or
exchange for; and as to giving us things for nothing they had no notion
of that again. As to our money, it was mere trash to them, they had no
value for it; so that we were in a fair way to be starved. Had we had
but some toys and trinkets, brass chains, baubles, glass beads, or, in
a word, the veriest trifles that a shipload of would not have been worth
the freight, we might have bought cattle and provisions enough for an
army, or to victual a fleet of men-of-war; but for gold or silver we
could get nothing.
Upon this we were in a strange consternation. I was but a young fellow,
but I was for falling upon them with our firearms, and taking all the
cattle from them, and send them to the devil to stop their hunger,
rather than be starved ourselves; but I did not consider that this might
have brought ten thousand of them down upon us the next day; and though
we might have killed a vast number of them, and perhaps have frighted
the rest, yet their own desperation, and our small number, would have
animated them so that, one time or other, they would have destroyed us
all.
In the middle of our consultation, one of our men who had been a kind
of a cutler, or worker in iron, started up and asked the carpenter if,
among all his tools, he could not help him to a file. "Yes," says the
carpenter, "I can, but it is a small one." "The smaller the better,"
says the other. Upon this he goes to work, and first by heating a piece
of an old broken chisel in the fire, and then with the help of his file,
he made himself several kinds of tools for his work. Then he takes three
or four pieces of eight, and beats them out with a hammer upon a stone,
till they were very broad and thin; then he cuts them out into the shape
of birds and beasts; he made little chains of them for bracelets and
necklaces, and turned them into so many devices of his own head, that it
is hardly to be expressed.