+Source.+--Bishop Burnet's _History of His Own Times_, vol. iv., p.
395. (Oxford: 1833.)
... The company in Scotland, this year, set out a fleet, with a colony,
on design to settle in America: the secret was better kept than could
have been well expected, considering the many hands in which it was
lodged; it appeared at last, that the true design had been guessed, from
the first motion of it: they landed at Darien, which, by the report that
they sent over, was capable of being made a strong place, with a good
port. It was no wonder that the Spaniards complained loudly of this; it
lay so near Porto Bello and Panama on the one side, and Carthagena on
the other, that they could not think they were safe, when such a
neighbour came so near the centre of their Empire in America: the King
of France complained also of this, as an invasion of the Spanish
dominions, and offered the court of Madrid a fleet to dislodge them. The
Spaniards pressed the King hard upon this: they said, they were once
possessed of that place; and though they found it too unhealthy to
settle there, yet the right to it belonged still to them: so this was a
breach of treaties, and a violent possession of their country. In answer
to this, the Scotch pretended, that the natives of Darien were never
conquered by the Spaniards, and were by consequence a free people; they
said, they had purchased of them leave to possess themselves of that
place, and that the Spaniards abandoned the country, because they could
not reduce the natives: so the pretension of the first discovery was
made void, when they went off from it, not being able to hold it; and
then the natives being left to themselves, it was lawful for the Scots
to treat with them: it was given out, that there was much gold in the
country. Certainly, the nation was so full of hopes from this project,
that they raised a fund for carrying it on, greater than, as was
thought, that kingdom could stretch to; four hundred thousand pounds
sterling was subscribed, and a fourth part was paid down, and
afterwards, seventy thousand pounds more was brought in, and a national
fury seemed to have transported the whole kingdom, upon this project.
... Our English plantations grew ... very jealous of this new colony:
they feared, that the double prospect of finding gold and of robbing the
Spaniards, would draw many planters from them into this new settlement;
and that the buccaneers might run into them: for by the Scotch act, this
place was to be made a free port; and if it was not ruined before it was
well formed, they reckoned it would become a seat of piracy and another
Algiers in those parts. Upon these grounds, the English nation inclined
to declare against this, and the King seemed convinced, that it was an
infraction of his treaties with Spain: so orders were sent, but very
secretly, to the English plantations, particularly to Jamaica and the
Leeward islands, to forbid all commerce with the Scots at Darien. The
Spaniards made some faint attempts on them, but without success. This
was a very great difficulty on the King; he saw how much he was like to
be pressed on both hands, and he apprehended what ill consequences were
like to follow, on his declaring himself either way.