[The company sicke and dismayed.]
Having stood to the westwards some hundreth leagues and more, and the
wind continuing with us contrarie, and the sicknesse so fervent, that
every day there dyed more or lesse,--my companie in generall began to
dismay, and to desire to returne homewards, which I laboured to hinder
by good reasons and perswasions; as that to the West Indies we had not
above eight hundreth leagues, to the ilands of Azores little lesse, and
before we came to the ilands of Cape de Verde, that we should meete with
the breze; for every night we might see the reach goe contrary to the
winde which wee sayled by; verifying the old proverbe amongst
mariners,--that he hath need of a long mast, that will sayle by the
reach: and that the neerest land and speediest refreshing we could look
for, was the coast of Brasill; and that standing towards it with the
wind we had, we shortned our way for the Indies; and that to put all the
sicke men together in one shippe, and to send her home, was to make her
their grave. For we could spare but few sound men, who were also subject
to fall sicke, and the misery, notwithstanding, remedilesse. With which
they were convinced, and remayned satisfied. So leaving all to their
choyse, with the consideration of what I perswaded, they resolved, with
me, to continue our course, till that God was pleased to looke upon us
with his Fatherly eyes of mercie.
[Brasill.]
As we approached neerer and neerer the coast of Brasill, the wind began
to vere to the east-wardes; and about the middle of October, to be
large and good for us; and about [Cape S. Augustine.] the 18th
of October, we were thwart of Cape Saint Augustine, which lyeth in sixe
degrees to the southwards of the [Farnambuca.] lyne; and the
twenty-one in the height of Farnambuca, but some fourscore leagues from
the coast; the twentie foure in the height of Bayea de Todos Santos;
neere the end of October, betwixt seventeen and eighteen degrees, we
were in sixteen fathomes, sounding of the great sholes, which lye
alongst the coast, betwixt the bay of Todos [Todos Santos.
Pura de Vitoria.] Santos, and the port of Santos, alias Pura Senora de
Vitoria; which are very perilous.[78]
But the divine Providence hath ordayned great flockes of small birds,
like snytes,[79] to live upon the rockes and broken lands of these
sholes, and are met with ordinarily twentie leagues before a man come in
danger of them.
It shall not be amisse here to recount the accidents which befell us
during this contrary winde, and the curiosities to be observed in all
this time. Day and night we had continually a fayre gale of winde, and a
smooth sea, without any alteration; one day, the carpenters having
[Dangers of fire.] calked the decke of our shippe, which the
sunne with his extreame heate had opened, craved licence to heate a
little pitch in the cook-roome; which I would not consent unto
[By heating of pitch.] by any meanes; for that my cooke-roomes
were under the decke, knowing the danger; until the master undertooke
that no danger should come thereof. But he recommended the charge to
another, who had a better name then experience. He suffered the pitch to
rise, and to runne into the fire, which caused so furious a flame as
amazed him, and forced all to flie his heate. One of my company, with a
double payre of gloves, tooke off the pitch-pot, but the fire forced him
to let slip his hold-fast, before he could set it on the hearth, and so
overturned it, and as the pitch began to runne, so the fire to enlarge
it selfe, that in a moment a great part of the shippe was on a light
fire. I being in my cabin, presently imagined what the matter was, and
for all the hast I could make, before I came the fire was above the
decke: for remedie whereof, I commanded all my companie to cast their
rugge-gownes into the sea, with ropes fastened unto them. These I had
provided for my people to watch in; for in many hott countries the
nights are fresh and colde; and devided one gowne to two men, a
starboord and a larboord man; so that he which watched had ever the
gowne: for they which watched not, were either in their cabins, or under
the decke, and so needed them not. The gownes being well soked, every
man that could, tooke one, and assaulted the fire; and although some
were singed, others scalded, and many burned, God was pleased that the
fire was quenched, which I thought impossible; and doubtlesse, I never
saw my selfe in greater perill in all the dayes of my life. Let all men
take example by us, not to suffer, in any case, pitch to be heate in the
ship, except it be with a shotte heate in the fire, which cannot breed
daunger; nor to permit fire to be kindled, but upon meere necessitie;
for the inconvenience thereof is for the most part remedilesse.[80]
[By taking tobacco.]
With drinking of tobacco it is said, that the _Roebucke_ was burned in
the range of Dartmouth.
The _Primrose_, of London, was fired with a candle, at Tilbery-hope, and
nothing saved but her kele.
And another ship bound for Barbary, at Wapping.
The _Jesus of Lubecke_ had her gunner-roome set on fire with a match,
and had beene burnt without redemption, if that my father, Sir John
Hawkins, knight, then generall [By hooping and scutling of
caske.] in her, had not commaunded her sloppers[81] to be stopt, and the
men to come to the pumpes, wherof shee had two which went with chaynes;
and plying them, in a moment there was three or foure inches of water
upon the decke, which with scoopes, swabbles,[82] and platters, they
threw upon the fire, and so quenched it, and delivered both ship and men
out of no small danger.
Great care is to be had also in cleaving of wood, in hooping or
scuttling[83] of caske, and in any businesse where violence is to be
used with instruments of iron, steele, or stone: and especially in
opening of powder, these are not to be used, but mallets of wood; for
many mischances happen beyond all expectation.
I have beene credibly enformed by divers persons, that comming out of
the Indies, with scuttling a butt of water, the water hath taken fire,
and flamed up, and put all in hazard. And a servant of mine, Thomas
Gray, told me, that in the shippe wherein he came out of the Indies,
anno 1600, there happened the like; and that if with mantles they had
not smothered the fire, they had bin all burned with a pipe of water,
which in scutling tooke fire.
Master John Hazlelocke reported, that in the arsenall of Venice happened
the like, he being present. For mine [By nature of waters.]
own part, I am of opinion, that some waters have this propertie, and
especially such as have their passage by mines of brimstone, or other
mineralls, which, as all men know, give extraordinary properties unto
the waters by which they runne. Or it may be that the water being in
wine caske, and kept close, may retayne an extraordinary propertie of
the wine.[84] Yea, I have drunke fountaine and river waters many times,
which have had a savour as that of brimstone.
Three leagues from Bayon, in France, I have proved of a fountaine that
hath this savour, and is medicinable for many diseases. In the South
sea, in a river some five leagues from Cape Saint Francisco, in one
degree and a halfe to the northwardes of the lyne, in the bay of
Atacames, is a river of fresh water, which hath the like savour. Of this
I shall have occasion to speake in another place, treating of the divers
properties of fountaines and rivers; and therefore to our purpose.