Having now the command of the Morning Star, Cornelius kept on the coast,
and made several prizes, both English and Portuguese. The former he
always discharged, after he had taken what he thought fit, but the
latter he commonly burnt.
While he was thus ravaging the coast, two English ships, which had
slaved at Whidaw, one of 56 guns, and the other 12, which fought close,
were ready to sail; and having notice of a pirate, who had done great
mischief, resolved to keep company together for their defence. The
captain of the small ship lay sick in his cabin, and she was left to the
care of the mates. When they had got under sail, 200 negroes jumped
overboard from the larger ship, which obliged her to bring to and get
out her boats. The mate of the other went into the cabin, told the
accident, and advised lying by, and sending their boats to assist their
consort; but the captain being ill, and willing to get off the coast,
bid him keep on his way, for it would be dangerous; having 400 slaves on
board; and being but weakly manned, when the boats were gone they might
rise upon him. The mate urged the danger of the pirates, should they
leave their consort. The captain answered, the seas were wide, and he
would not bring to; accordingly they kept on their way with a fresh
gale.
Two days after, the mate, about 8 in the morning, ordered a man to the
mast-head, who spied a sail, which made them prepare for an engagement.
There was on board one Robert Williams, who had served the African
company three years on the Guinea coast, who spoke the negro tongue very
well. He told the slaves he had picked out, to the number of 50, that
the ship in sight he believed would fight them, and if they got the
better, would certainly, as they were cannibals, kill and eat them all;
and therefore it behoved them to fight for their lives. They had lances
and small arms given them.
About 10, Cornelius came up with them, and being hailed, answered he was
a man of war, in search of pirates, and bid them send their boat on
board; but they refusing to trust him, though he had English colours and
pendant flying, the pirate fired a broadside, and they began a running
fight of about 10 hours, in-which time the negroes discharged their arms
so smartly, that Cornelius never durst attempt to board. About 8 at
night the ship blew up abaft. They immediately cut the lashings of the
long-boat, but the ship going down, they had not time to get her out,
and barely enough to launch the yawl, which lay on the forecastle. The
ship went down on one side, and Robert Williams running on the other,
was hooked by the mizen-truss, and was carried down with her; but having
his knife in his hand, and a great presence of mind, he cut the
waistband of his trowsers, where he was caught, got clear, and swam
after the boat, into which about 16 had gotten, and either knocked those
on the head, or cut off their hands, who laid hold on it; however, with
much entreaty, he was permitted to lay one hand on to ease him. They
made to the pirate, who refused to receive them, without they would
enter with him: which, to save their lives, they all agreed to, and were
then civilly received, and dry clothes given them. These and one negro
were all the souls saved.
In a little time after this he took two Portuguese ships, which he
plundered and kept with him; and one foggy morning, hearing the firing
of guns, which by the distance of time, he judged to be minute guns, as
they really were, for the death of an English commander, he called his
men on board from the prizes, sent them about their business, and
directed his course by the report of the cannon he had heard. In about
two hours he spied the ship that had fired, came up with her very soon,
and took her without resistance. The officers of the ship which blew up,
finding this prize English, and that the pirate did not intend to detain
her begged to be discharged, as they had all large families, which must
perish without their support. Cornelius, taking them into
considerations, discharged Mr. Powis of Limehouse, who has since been a
commander, and raised a fortune. The then chief mate, Mr. George
Forelong, the boatswain, carpenter, and other married men, he set on
board the prize, and was very generous to them out of the plunder of the
Portuguese ships, because they had made a broken voyage; but Robert
Williams and the other bachelors he detained, and forced some out of the
prize, which he let go.
After this he took three Portuguese ships at an anchor, which he
plundered and burnt, after he had hove down by one of them. He continued
some time longer on the coast, did a great deal of mischief to the
trade, and forced a great many men. These he put to do all the slavery
of the ship, and they were beat about the decks, without daring to
resent it. I shall take notice of an instance of this kind, to show how
far revenge will carry a man. One Robert Bland was at the helm, and
called Robert Williams to take whipstaff, till he went to play. Williams
refused it; upon which Bland drubbed him with the lanyard of the
whipstaff very severely. Williams, that he might revenge himself, and
have liberty to fight Bland, went that instant and entered himself a
volunteer in the ship’s books, and asked leave to fight Bland, which was
allowed him, but with no other weapons than his fists. He, however,
challenged his antagonist, who was too hard for him; so he turned pirate
to be heartily thrashed.
Cornelius, thinking they had been long enough on the Guinea coast,
doubled the Cape, off which he spied the Lizard, and two more men of
war, under the command of Commodore Littleton. Cornelius was for giving
chase, but finding his men unwilling there being, as they gave for
reason, 70 forced men on board, and these ships being, as they
suspected, men of war, he made the best of his way for Madagascar, went
up the river Methelage, or the west side, and anchored against
Pombotoque, a small village of blacks.
The quarter-master went ashore, and the black governor examined him, for
several of these blacks speak English. He told the governor they were
come for provision and to trade; upon which he sent a couple of oxen on
board, and then ordered some of the inhabitants to go up with the
quarter-master to the king. The boat’s crew seeing a number of blacks
come down to the strand without the quarter-master, apprehended some
mischief had befallen him; but were eased of their fears, when they saw
two oxen given them, and were told the white man, who was gone to the
king, would be back next day, it not being above 20 miles from the
shore.
When the quarter-master, who carried up a blunderbuss, a fine gun, and a
pair of pistols, for a present to the king, told him they wanted
provisions, he asked where they were bound? To which he answered, to
seek their fortunes, for at present they were very poor. _Look ye_,
replied the king, _I require nothing of you; all white men I look upon
as my children; they helped me to conquer this country, and all the
cattle in it are at their service. I will send down provisions enough,
and when that is spent, you shall have more._ He accordingly sent 1000
head of cattle, out of which he bid them choose what they would, and
they salted 100 fat oxen.
Besides the present of oxen, the king sent 100 blacks laden with rice.
Cornelius sent him a present of two barrels of powder, and would have
given him more, with small arms in return, but he sent them word he
would have no more, nor any of their arms, not being in want of either.
On the contrary, if they wanted, he would send them ten barrels of
powder, as they were his children; bade them proceed on their voyage,
and if they were richer when they came back, and would send him any
present, he would accept it, but not now, they were so poor.
Here Cornelius lost 70 men by their excesses. Having been long without
fresh provisions, the eating immoderately, and drinking _toke_ (a liquor
made of honey) to excess, threw them into violent fevers, which carried
them off.
The blacks having given Cornelius an account of the Speaker’s having
sailed from Methelage about three months before for the East-Indies, he,
having taken in his provisions, steered the same course, in hopes to
join in consort with her; but the Speaker lying off the Red Sea, and the
Morning Star going into the Gulf of Persia, they never met. They run up
a pretty way in the gulf, and lay under Antelope Island, where they kept
a look out, and whence they made their excursions, and took a number of
prizes.
Here they designed to heave down and clean, and they had got a good part
of their goods and water casks ashore, when the look-out discovered two
lofty ships, one of them wearing a flag at the fore-top-mast-head. This
put them into great confusion: they got what casks and necessaries they
could on board, and lay till the ships came abreast of them Then they
got under sail at once, their sails being furled with rope yarns, and
came close alongside the larger ship, which was a Portuguese of 70 guns,
as the other was of 26. They exchanged a broadside with her, and the
smaller ship engaged so close, that they threw hand grenades into each
other; but Cornelius’ business was to run, and the great ship put in
stays twice to follow him, but missing, was obliged to ware, which gave
the pirate a great advantage. The small ship, in staying, tailed
aground: she, however, gave chase till she had run a good way ahead of
her consort, which the pirate seeing, brought to, and stayed for her, as
did the Portuguese for her consort, not caring to engage him singly.
When it was quite dark, Cornelius ran up the other shore, passed the
Portuguese ships (which kept down the gulf) and came again to anchor at
his old station, where he found his enemies had been ashore in their
boats and staved his casks. He here cleaned, and finding no money to be
got out of any prizes made, and bale goods being of little value to
them, they from hence went away to the island of Johanna, where it was
designed to maroon the blacks, who were the greater number and all bred
among the English. Robert Williams, fearing they would next maroon the
English, who were not above a third of the whites, gave the negroes
notice of the design, who secured all the arms of the ship, and gave
Williams the command till they should get to Madagascar, keeping a good
guard on the French and Dutch. When they came to Methelage they gave the
ship to the king, her bottom being eaten so much with the worms that she
was no longer fit for service; and they all went and lived with the
king. About five months after they broke up, Cornelius died, and was
buried with the usual ceremony.