MORE CAPTURES--ALARM OF THE COAST--PAITA.
DISAPPOINTMENT.
Though, after leaving Captain Saunders, we were very expeditious in
regaining our station, where we got the 29th at noon, yet in plying on
and off till the 6th of October we had not the good fortune to discover a
sail of any sort, and then, having lost all hopes of making any advantage
by a longer stay, we made sail to the leeward of the port in order to
join our prizes; but when we arrived on the station appointed for them we
did not meet with them, though we continued there four or five days. We
supposed that some chase had occasioned their leaving the station, and
therefore we proceeded down the coast to the high land of Nasca, where
Captain Saunders was directed to join us. Here we arrived on the 21st,
and were in great expectation of meeting with some of the enemy's ships
on the coast, as both the accounts of former voyages and the information
of our prisoners assured us that all ships bound to Callao constantly
make this land, to prevent the danger of running to the leeward of the
port. But notwithstanding the advantages of this station we saw no sail
till the 2nd of November, when two ships appeared in sight together. We
immediately gave them chase, but soon perceived that they were the
Trial's and Centurion's prizes. We found they had not been more fortunate
in their cruise than we were, for they had seen no vessel since they
separated from us.
We bore away the same afternoon, taking particular care to keep at such a
distance from the shore that there might be no danger of our being
discovered from thence.
By the 5th of November, at three in the afternoon, we were advanced
within view of the high land of Barranca, and an hour and a half
afterwards we had the satisfaction we had so long wished for, of seeing a
sail. She first appeared to leeward, and we all immediately gave her
chase; but the Centurion so much out sailed the two prizes that we soon
ran them out of sight, and gained considerably on the chase. However,
night coming on before we came up to her, we about seven o'clock lost
sight of her, and were in some perplexity what course to steer; but at
last Mr. Anson resolved, as we were then before the wind, to keep all his
sails set and not to change his course. For though we had no doubt but
the chase would alter her course in the night, yet, as it was uncertain
what tack she would go upon, it was thought more prudent to keep on our
course, as we must by this means unavoidably near her, than to change it
on conjecture, when, if we should mistake, we must infallibly lose her.
Thus, then, we continued the chase about an hour and a half in the dark,
someone or other on board us constantly imagining they discerned her
sails right ahead of us; but at last Mr. Brett, then our second
lieutenant, did really discover her about four points on the
larboard-bow, steering off to the seaward. We immediately clapped the
helm a-weather and stood for her, and in less than an hour came up with
her, and having fired fourteen shots at her, she struck. Our third
lieutenant, Mr. Dennis, was sent in the boat with sixteen men to take
possession of the prize and to return the prisoners to our ship. This
ship was named the "Santa Teresa de Jesus", built at Guayaquil, of about
three hundred tons burthen, and was commanded by Bartolome Urrunaga, a
Biscayer. She was bound from Guayaquil to Callao; her loading consisted
of timber, cacao, cocoa-nuts, tobacco, hides, Pito thread (which is very
strong and is made of a species of grass) Quito cloth, wax, etc. The
specie on board her was inconsiderable, being principally small silver
money and not amounting to more than 170 pounds sterling. It is true her
cargo was of great value, could we have disposed of it, but the Spaniards
having strict orders never to ransom their ships, all the goods that we
took in these seas, except what little we had occasion for ourselves,
were of no advantage to us. Indeed, though we could make no profit
thereby ourselves, it was some satisfaction to us to consider that it was
so much really lost to the enemy, and that the despoiling them was no
contemptible branch of that service in which we were now employed by our
country.
I have before observed that at the beginning of this chase the Centurion
ran her two consorts out of sight, for which reason we lay by all the
night, after we had taken the prize, for Captain Saunders and Lieutenant
Suamarez to join us, firing guns and making false fires every half-hour
to prevent their passing us unobserved; but they were so far astern that
they neither heard nor saw any of our signals and were not able to come
up with us till broad daylight. When they had joined us we proceeded
together to the northward, being now four sail in company.
DESPOILING THE SPANIARDS.
On the 10th of November we were three leagues south of the southernmost
island of Lobos, lying in the latitude of 6 degrees 27 minutes south. We
were now drawing near to the station appointed to the Gloucester, for
which reason, fearing to miss her, we made an easy sail all night. The
next morning at daybreak, we saw a ship in shore, and to windward, plying
up to the coast. She had passed by us with the favour of the night, and
we, soon perceiving her not to be the Gloucester, gave her chase; but it
proving very little wind, so that neither of us could make much way, the
Commodore ordered the barge, his pinnace, and the Trial's pinnace to be
manned and armed, and to pursue the chase and board her. Lieutenant
Brett, who commanded the barge, came up with her first, about nine
o'clock, and running alongside of her, he fired a volley of small shot
between the masts, just over the heads of the people on board, and then
instantly entered with the greatest part of his men; but the enemy made
no resistance, being sufficiently frightened by the dazzling of the
cutlasses, and the volley they had just received. Lieutenant Brett
ordered the sails to be trimmed, and bore down to the Commodore, taking
up in his way the two pinnaces. When he was arrived within about four
miles of us, he put off in the barge, bringing with him a number of
prisoners who had given him some material intelligence, which he was
desirous the Commodore should be acquainted with as soon as possible. On
his arrival we learned that the prize was called "Nuestra Senora del
Carmen", of about two hundred and seventy tons burthen; she was commanded
by Marcos Morena, a native of Venice, and had on board forty-three
mariners. She was deep laden with steel, iron, wax, pepper, cedar, plank,
snuff, rosaries, European bale goods, powder-blue, cinnamon, Romish
indulgences, and other species of merchandise. And though this cargo, in
our present circumstances was but of little value to us, yet with respect
to the Spaniards it was the most considerable capture that fell into our
hands in this part of the world; for it amounted to upwards of 400,000
dollars prime cost at Panama. This ship was bound to Callao, and had
stopped at Paita in her passage to take in a recruit of water and
provisions, and had not left that place above twenty-four hours before
she fell into our hands.
IMPORTANT INTELLIGENCE.
I have mentioned that Mr. Brett had received some important intelligence
from the prisoners, which he endeavoured to acquaint the Commodore with
immediately. The first person he received it from (though upon further
examination it was confirmed by the other prisoners) was one John
Williams, an Irishman, whom he found on board the Spanish vessel.
Williams was a Papist, who worked his passage from Cadiz, and had
travelled over all the kingdom of Mexico as a pedlar. He pretended that
by this business he got 4,000 or 5,000 dollars; but that he was
embarrassed by the priests, who knew he had money, and was at last
stripped of all he had. He was, indeed, at present all in rags, being but
just got out of Paita gaol, where he had been confined for some
misdemeanour; he expressed great joy upon seeing his countrymen, and
immediately informed them that a few days before a vessel came into
Paita, where the master of her informed the Governor that he had been
chased in the offing by a very large ship, which, from her size and the
colour of her sails, he was persuaded must be one of the English
squadron. This we then conjectured to have been the Gloucester, as we
afterwards found it was. The Governor, upon examining the master, was
fully satisfied of his relation, and immediately sent away an express to
Lima to acquaint the Viceroy therewith; and the royal officer residing at
Paita, being apprehensive of a visit from the English, was busily
employed in removing the King's treasure and his own to Piura, a town
within land about fourteen leagues distant. We further learned from our
prisoners that there was a very considerable sum of money, belonging to
some merchants at Lima, that was now lodged at the custom-house at Paita;
and that this was intended to be shipped on board a vessel which was then
in the port of Paita, and was preparing to sail with the utmost
expedition, being bound for the Bay of Sonsonnate, on the coast of
Mexico, in order to purchase a part of the cargo of the Manila ship.*
This vessel at Paita was esteemed a prime sailer, and had just received a
new coat of tallow on her bottom; and, in the opinion of the prisoners,
she might be able to sail the succeeding morning.
(*Note. A full account of the Manila ship will be found in Chapter 22
below.)
The character they gave us of this vessel, on which the money was to be
shipped, left us little reason to believe that our ship, which had been
in the water near two years, could have any chance of coming up with her,
if we once suffered her to escape out of the port. And therefore, as we
were now discovered, and the coast would be soon alarmed, and as our
cruising in these parts any longer would answer no purpose, the Commodore
resolved to surprise the place, having first minutely informed himself of
its strength and condition, and being fully satisfied that there was
little danger of losing many of our men in the attempt.