Chapter XII: Part 12

This island was no less fortunate to us in its vegetable than its animal productions; more particularly abounding in such fruits and plants as were best adapted to the cure of that disease by which we had been so dreadfully debilitated. In the woods cocoa-nuts were to be gathered without number; and, what is remarkable, cabbages grew on the same trees. There were, besides, guavas, limes, sweet and sour oranges, and, what is common to all the Tropical islands, bread-fruit. In the plains we found water-melons, dandelion, creeping-purslain, mint, scurvy-grass, and sorrel; all which, together with the fresh-meats of the place, were such salutary refreshments, that the sick, who were at death’s-door when they landed, before they had been a week on shore, put on very different countenances, and with their new complexions received a fresh recruit of spirits.

Amidst such a variety of provisions as the land furnished, it was thought unnecessary to indulge ourselves in those offered us by the sea. From fish, therefore, we wholly refrained; and the rather, as some we caught at our first arrival surfeited those who eat of them. This, however, was not regretted, as beef, pork, poultry, and wild-fowl, were in such plenty, that, except the trouble of bringing them from a considerable distance sometimes, there was no difficulty attending their procurement. It were, indeed, an endless task to recount all the excellencies and delicacies we met with in this delightful island: nor is it easy to say which to prefer where every thing is worthy of admiration; the neatness of its lawns, the stateliness, freshness, and fragrance of its woods, the happy inequality of its surface, and the variety and elegance of the views it afforded,--all these conspired to charm the sight, while at the same time the excellency of its productions could not fail to gratify the appetite. And these advantages were greatly enhanced by the healthiness of the climate, by the almost constant cool breezes that prevailed, and by the frequent gentle showers that seemed to fall just to refresh the earth, and add to its fertility; for these, instead of the long-continued rains that in other countries fill the air with noxious vapours, and overflow the earth with wasteful inundations, seemed just enough to purify the air, and to refresh the soil; which was observable enough by the effect it had in increasing our appetites, and promoting our digestion. This effect was, indeed, remarkable, since those amongst our officers, who were at all other times spare and temperate eaters, were here in appearance transformed into gluttons; for instead of one reasonable flesh-meal a day, they were scarcely satisfied with three: and yet our digestion so well corresponded to the keenness of our appetites, that we were neither disordered nor even loaded by this uncommon repletion; for, after having made a large beef breakfast, it was not long before we began to consider the approach of dinner as a very desirable, and even somewhat tardy event.

The principal inconveniences that attended our residence upon this island arose from the vast number of musketos and other troublesome flies, by which we were perpetually teized; there was likewise a venomous little insect, that, like the sheep-ticks in England, would bury its head in the skin, and, if not instantly removed, would cause an inflammation.

Running water there was none in the island; but that defect was supplied by a large lake, or lagoon, almost in the center of it, to which the cattle, in times of drought, generally resorted; but the freshness of their pasture, and the copious dews and gentle showers that often moistened it, rendered that resource almost unnecessary. There were, besides, springs of excellent water, and near the surface wells might every where be dug, whose waters, in any other place, would not have been complained of.

But the great danger we had to dread remains to be told. During four months in the year, that is, from the middle of June to the middle of October, when the western monsoons prevail, the winds, about the full and change of the moon, are variable, and blow with such fury, that the stoutest cables afford no security to ships riding at anchor in the road: and what adds to the danger is the rapidity of the tide, which sets to the S. E. and occasions such a hollow and over-grown sea as is not to be conceived; insomuch that, though we were in a sixty-gun ship, we were under the dreadful apprehension of being pooped by it. During the rest of the year the weather is constantly settled, and ships have nothing to fear, if their cables are well armed, which otherwise will suffer from the foulness of the ground.

From the 29th of August, when our sick were all put on shore, to the 12th of September, when the Commodore himself landed, those who remained on board were chiefly employed in mooring and securing the ship, in shifting her guns to come at her leaks, and in cackling the cables, to prevent their being galled by the friction against the rocky bottom. At the same time an anchor and cable were put on board the Spanish bark, her own being only a heavy log of wood, and a rope made of bass; and some barrels of powder to be dried and recovered, which by long keeping was become moist.

From the 12th to the 18th, the hands were continually shifting, those who were so well recovered as to be capable of duty were sent on board, and those who had born the burden of the labour were relieved and sent on shore.

On the 19th, the weather began to alter, and to threaten a storm: on that day, the next, and the 21st, it blew hard; however, we rode it out, and flattered ourselves that the prudence of our measures had secured us from accidents. On the 22d, the hurricane came on, and our only hope of safety seemed to depend on our putting out to sea; but the Commodore was on shore, and all communication with the land absolutely cut off. At five in the afternoon, the small bower parted, and the ship sprung off to the best bower. As night approached, the violence of the storm increased; yet, notwithstanding its inexpressible fury, the rapidity of the tide was such as to prevail over it, and to force the ship before it, as it were, in despight of its utmost rage. It was now that the sea broke all round us in a most tremendous manner; and that a large tumbling swell threatened to ingulph us in its bosom: the long-boat, which was moored a-stern, was on a sudden canted so high that it broke the transum of the Commodore’s gallery, and would, doubtless, have risen as high as the tafferel, had it not been for the stroke, which stove the boat to pieces; but yet the poor boat-keeper, though much bruised, was saved almost by miracle. About eight, the tide slackened; but, the wind not abating, the best bower cable, by which alone we rode, parted at eleven. In this extremity, Mr. Saumarez, our First Lieutenant, who commanded in the absence of the Commodore, ordered guns to be fired, and lights to be shewn, as signals of distress; and, in a short time after, the night being excessively dark, the storm raging, the thunder roaring, and nothing to be seen but the blue lightning flashing through the rain, we were driven to sea, and, by this catastrophe, the whole crew, both by sea and land, reduced to a state of despair; those on shore concluding they had now no means left them ever to get home; whilst those on board, being utterly unprepared to struggle with the fury of such seas and winds, expected each moment to be their last. In this state of despondency, while those on board were every moment in expectation of being dashed against the rocks of Aiguigan, an island at about three leagues from Tinian, those on shore were persuaded the ship could not survive the storm, the whole channel between the two islands appearing from the land like one continued breach, the sea swelling, breaking, and roaring, like mountains rolling over mountains, and forming the most awful and terrifying sight that the mind of man can possibly conceive. Indeed, the condition of those on board was truly pitiable; they were in a leaky ship, with three cables in their hawses, to one of which hung their only remaining anchor; they had not a gun on board lashed; nor a port barred in; their shrouds were loose; and their fore-top-mast unrigged; and they had struck their fore and main yards down before the hurricane came on, so that there was no sail they could set except the mizzen: to add to their misfortunes, they were no sooner at sea, than, by the labouring of the ship, whole floods of water rushed in through the hawse-holes, ports, and scuppers; which, with the usual leakage, kept the pumps constantly at work. Persuaded that their destruction was inevitable, sinking, however, was only their secondary concern; they judged, by the driving of the ship, that they were making towards the land, and that, in the darkness of the night, they should no otherwise perceive it than by striking upon it; but day-light relieved them from that uneasy apprehensions, and shewed them that the island they so much dreaded was at a considerable distance, and that a strong northern current had proved the means of their preservation. It was not, however, till after three days that the turbulent weather that had driven them from Tinian began to abate; when every man in the ship was so worn out with fatigue, that they found it impossible to man the pumps, and hand the sails at the same time. They had twice attempted to heave up the main and fore yards, in which they had as often miscarried by the breaking of the jeers, and in the last effort one of their best men perished. During all this time the ship was driving to leeward, and dragging her sheet anchor, the only one she had left, with two cables an end at her bows. This was a circumstance of the greatest consequence, and required a speedy remedy; for, though upon a third exertion of their whole force, they had replaced their yards, they durst not, while the anchor continued in that situation, venture to spread their canvas. Some rest and refreshment became necessary before a work of such labour could be proposed to a feeble and diminished crew, who hardly consisted of 100 men. It was, therefore, five days after their departure before they could secure their anchor; and now they set their courses, and, for the first time, stood to the eastward, in hopes of soon regaining the island, and rejoining their Commander and the rest of their company: but in this they were unhappily disappointed; for having run, as they thought, the distance necessary for making the island, and being in full expectation of seeing it, they found themselves bewildered by the irregularity of the currents, and knew not what course to steer, till, after several days uncertainty, they came at last in sight of Guam, from whence they directed their course with infinite labour to Tinian, the wind being constantly against them, and the tide variable. This severe employment held till the 11th of October, when, after nineteen days absence, they appeared again in the offing, and were reinforced from the shore, to the inexpressible joy of the whole crew.

A few days after the ship was driven off, some of the people on shore cried out, _A sail!_ and this spread a general joy, supposing it to be the Centurion returning; but presently a second sail was decried, which wholly destroyed the first conjecture, and made it difficult to guess who they were. The Commodore turning his glass towards them, saw they were two boats; and instantly concluding that the Centurion was gone to the bottom, and that those were her boats returning with the remains of her people, this sudden suggestion wrought so powerfully upon him, that, to conceal his emotion, he was obliged to retire to his tent, where he past some bitter moments in the firm persuasion that all his hopes were now at an end, and that, instead of distressing the enemy, he must himself with his people fall a prey to their relentless cruelty. He was, however, soon relieved from this mortifying thought, they appearing, upon their nearer approach, to be Indian proas directing their course towards the bay, with a view, as was supposed, to relieve their countrymen, or to take on board their provisions. On this intelligence, the Commodore ordered his people to conceal themselves; but the proas, after advancing within a quarter of a mile of the shore, lay by for the space of a few hours, and probably observing some change in the appearance of the place, which might raise their suspicion that an enemy lay in ambush, they got again under sail, and steered to the southward.

After this incident an opinion began generally to prevail, that the Centurion would never more appear at this island; and that she was either lost, or forced upon the coast of China, from whence, in her crazy condition, it would be impossible for her ever to return. Though the Commodore did not apparently give into this opinion, yet he was not without his fears; and, therefore, to provide against the worst, he proposed cutting asunder the Indian bark which they took on their first arrival, and lengthening her in such a manner as to be capable of taking on board all who were then upon the island, and following the ship, if peradventure she should be driven to Mocao. After some hesitation, owing to the difficulty attending the execution, the men were at length prevailed upon to engage in the work, and the Commodore by his example encouraged their diligence; for, being always at work by day-break himself, it was thought a disgrace to be idle when their Chief was employed. It fortunately happened, that the carpenters both of the Gloucester and Trial were on shore, and that they had brought for safety their chests of tools with them. The smith, too, was on shore with his forge, but his bellows was still in the ship. This defect occasioned some delay; but was soon supplied by the ingenuity of his shipmates, one or other of them never being at a loss for expedients on such occasions: they limed a fresh hide for leather, the carpenters shaped out a wooden frame, and a gun barrel served for a nozel. The smith being now in readiness to prepare the iron-work, some were employed in cutting down trees, and sawing them into plank, whilst the main-body were busied in digging out a draw-dock to receive the bark, and in laying of ways to heave her up and down. All, in short, were variously employed; and the work went on successfully for 16 days, in which time the bark was sawn asunder, her two parts separated, and placed at the proper distance from each other; and, the materials being all in readiness before-hand, they proceeded with no small dispatch in the enlargement, insomuch that they fixed the 5th of November as the day when they should be ready to depart. The alacrity with which this business was carried on, left no room for reflection among the common sailors, though their superiors were not without their fears. They had no sea-provisions, except some jerked beef, which the Indians had prepared and abandoned when they fled, and they had a run of 600 leagues before they could presume upon a supply; they had no bread, and the bread-fruit on the island could not be preserved at sea; they wanted salt; and, what was still a more necessary article in their present situation, they wanted ammunition for their defence, in case of an attack from the enemy; for, upon the strictest search, no more than 90 charges of powder could be collected, which was short of one round a-piece for each of the company; they were, too, in an unknown sea, and wanted instruments to direct their course: in short, though the common men had no other thought but how they should get on board, the officers foresaw a thousand difficulties, which were almost insurmountable to human apprehension, but which they carefully concealed, that the main business might not be retarded.

But, in the midst of these gloomy apprehensions, which, the nearer the time of their departure approached, still became the more serious, and when all hope of seeing the Centurion at Tinian had subsided, one of the Gloucester’s men, being upon a hill at a distance looking out for cattle, perceived, as he fancied, something like a ship in the clouds, which, on steadily observing it, seemed to move slowly towards the land. It was not long before he was sensible of its approach, and persuading himself it was the Centurion, he in an extasy ran towards the landing-place, crying to his comrades, _The ship! The ship!_ This being heard by the nearest, was echoed from mouth to mouth till it reached the spot where the Commodore was at work, who, on hearing the joyful news, threw down his axe, and joined in the general transport. In a few hours the Centurion appeared in the offing, and a boat with 18 men was sent off to reinforce her, and to carry fresh meats, fruits, and refreshments, for the crew. In the afternoon of the 11th of October she happily cast anchor, the Commodore went instantly aboard, and the joy and congratulations on that occasion were equally sincere and mutual.

The labour of the artificers was now at an end, and another kind of employment succeeded, which was that of laying in water for the remainder of the voyage. Now also hunting, shooting, setting, and every device that could be contrived to catch live cattle, hogs, and poultry, for stores, took place; while, at the same time, the Commodore and Officers amused themselves with traversing the island, and examining more minutely its several parts. In one of these excursions, being on a rising ground, they observed, in a valley beneath them, the appearance of a small thicket, which, by attending to it, seemed to have a progressive motion, as indeed it had; but was no other than a parcel of cocoa-bushes trailed upon the ground by persons concealed beneath them. From this uncommon circumstance, it was immediately concluded, that the Indians, whose boat they had surprized upon their first arrival, must be the persons who were dragging the bushes, and that it could not be far to the place of their concealment; they therefore kept their eye upon them, and traced them to their cell; but, to their surprize, when they came to enter it, they found it abandoned, though all things were ready prepared for dinner, and stood smoaking hot on a table of turf. The officers, having in vain endeavoured to track them, returned, and, with an appetite increased by the keenness of the pursuit, sat down to that meal which the poor hungry savages had abandoned. It consisted of salted spareribs, cocoa-nuts, and bread-fruit; all which they found ready drest, and in quantity as much as they all could eat.

On the third day after the second arrival of the ship, the Commodore being on board, a sudden gust of wind arose, and again brought home our anchor, and drove us out to sea. Our chief officers were now all on board; and only about 70 of our men, with a midshipman or two to command them, were employed on shore in filling water and catching cattle. Of these about 30 came off to us in the cutter, and the eighteen-oared barge was sent for the rest; but they not being in readiness, and the ship quickly driving out of sight, it was no longer in their power to join us. However, as the weather soon proved favourable, and we were now stronger and healthier than at our first disaster, in about five days we regained the road, and anchored safe in our former station. On our return we found the Spanish bark restored to her old dimensions, and the parts brought together, and in good forwardness to be compleated; for the few remaining people, despairing of the return of the ship, had determined to follow her to her destined port. We now laboured indefatigably to get in our water, in order to sail, in which service two of our men employed in the well unfortunately perished; for the sides of the well being loose earth, by the carelessness of those above, in not properly attending the filling, the bank gave way by the weight of a heavy cask, and both that and the bank fell in upon them together. Some other misfortunes happened through haste in rafting the casks to the ship; yet, notwithstanding, being such as are generally accounted trifling on board a man of war, our watering went on so successfully, that by the 20th of October it was compleated; and on that day leave was given for a man from each mess to go ashore, and gather as many oranges, lemons, cocoa-nuts, and other fruits of the island, as should be sufficient for us all while at sea. This being accomplished, the Spanish bark set on fire, the men returned on board, and the boats hoisted in, on the 21st we set sail; and the wind being fair, and the weather moderate, nothing remarkable happened till we arrived on the coasts of China, except that while we were passing by the rocks of Vele Rete, near the south end of the island Formosa, we were alarmed by a cry of fire on the forecastle, which brought the whole crew together in the utmost confusion, so that it was difficult for some time to reduce them to order; but, as soon as discipline took place, and a proper examination could be made, it was found to proceed from the furnace, where the bricks, being over-heated, had begun to communicate the fire to the wood-work, which, had it not been timely discovered, might have been of the most dreadful consequence; but, as it fell out, it was extinguished with the greatest facility, and the brick-work so secured, that no accident of the like kind could again happen.

From the island of Formosa we directed our course so as to fall in with the coast of China, to the eastward of Pedro Blanco, as that rock is generally esteemed the best direction for ships bound to Mocao; and, on the 6th of November we fell in with it, when we were presently surrounded by an incredible number of fishing-boats, which covered the surface of the sea as far as the eye could reach. Nor was this swarm of fishing vessels peculiar to that place; for, as we ran on to the westward, we found them as abundant on every other part of the coast. From among these we had no sort of doubt of procuring a pilot to Mocao; but, when we thought ourselves near it, though we tempted them with shewing them bags of Spanish dollars, for which, it is said, a Chinese would sell his father, yet not one of them would venture to come on board us, nor give us the least intelligence; neither did our ship, the like of which, so armed and fitted, had never before appeared upon their coasts, seem to excite in them any curiosity: they continued their fishing with the same apparent indifference as if any trading ship had been passing by; and, when we made them signals, they disregarded them as much, though they certainly understood them, as if we had been only in sport. The next day, however, about two in the afternoon, as we were standing to the westward within two leagues of the shore, still surrounded as before, we observed that a boat a-head of us waved a red flag, and blew a horn. This we apprehended was a signal for us, and accordingly we hoisted out our cutter, and sent to know the meaning of it; when we presently discovered our mistake, and that it was only the usual notice to leave off fishing, which the whole fleet instantly obeyed. Being thus disappointed, we kept on our cruise till we came to a group of islands, round the westernmost of which we were directed to pass, and then to haul up. While we were thus employed, a Chinese pilot came on board, and in broken Portuguese undertook to pilot us into harbour for 30 dollars, and on the 12th of November anchored us safe in Mocao-road; where the first thing we did was to salute the fort, and to send to the Portuguese Governor to advise with his Excellency in what manner to behave to avoid giving offence to the Chinese. The difficulty the Commodore principally apprehended related to the port charges usually paid by ships in the river Canton, from which charges men-of-war are exempted in every port of Europe, and which the Commodore was determined not to be forced to pay in this. In the evening the boat returned with two officers, who delivered it as the Governor’s opinion, that, if the Centurion ventured into the river of Canton, the duty would most certainly be expected; and, therefore, if the Commodore approved of it, he would send a pilot to conduct the ship into another harbour, called the Typa, where it was probable the port charges would never be demanded. To this proposal the Commodore agreed, the pilot was sent, and the ship safely moored.

Next day the Commodore paid a visit in person to the Governor, to solicit a supply of provisions, and of naval stores to refit the ship. The Governor very frankly acquainted the Commodore, that he durst not openly furnish either the one or the other; for that he himself neither received provisions for his garrison but from day to day, by permission from the Chinese government, nor any thing else but what his present necessities required: however, he assured the Commodore in a friendly manner, that he would give him all the assistance in his power. On this declaration, the Commodore determined to go to Canton himself, to procure a licence from the Viceroy to purchase a supply, and, with this view, hired a Chinese boat for himself and his attendants to carry them into port: but just as they were ready to embark, the Hoppo refused to grant them a permit; nor would he, notwithstanding all the interest the Commodore could make, withdraw the prohibition, till he was threatened to be compelled to it by force. This operated when fair means had failed; a permit was next day sent on board, and the Commodore proceeded to the English factory to consult with the principal officers there about the cautions that were to be used, lest the factory should suffer by violent measures, which he was solicitous to avoid. They advised him to transact the business by the mediation of the Chinese merchants, who at first undertook to accomplish it; but, after trifling with him more than a month, they declared they durst not interfere in it. The merchants then undertook to procure him provisions clandestinely; but that would not suffice. Upon his return, he found the ship so much out of repair, that she could not proceed without being hove down; he, therefore, next day wrote a letter to the Viceroy, acquainting him, that he was Commodore of a squadron of his Britannic Majesty’s ships that had been cruising in the South Seas against the Spaniards, who were at war with his nation; that his ship was leaky; that his people were in want of provisions; that he had put into Mocao, a friendly port, for a supply, but that, being a stranger to the customs of the country, he had been unable to succeed; and, therefore, requested, that he might be permitted to employ workmen to repair his ship, and that he might be supplied with provisions at the accustomed rates at which the articles he stood in need of were generally sold. Another difficulty was now started as to the delivery of this letter, the Hoppo at first refusing to intermeddle with it; but, on the Commodore’s expressing some resentment, and threatening to convey it to Canton by his own messengers, he at length undertook not only to deliver it, but to procure an answer: accordingly, though the letter was only dated on the 17th of December, on the 19th a Mandarine of the first rank, together with two others of an inferior class, and their attendants, having in their retinue 18 half gallies, decorated with streamers, and furnished with bands of music, came to a grapple a-head of the Centurion, whence the Mandarine sent in form to acquaint the Commodore, that he came by order of the Viceroy to examine the condition of the ship, and to report the same as it should appear to him upon a just survey. On this message, preparations were instantly made to receive him; in particular, a hundred of the most sightly men on board, uniformly dressed in the regimentals of the marines, were drawn up under arms on the main-deck against his arrival. When he entered the ship, he was saluted by the drums and military music, and conducted by some of the principal officers to the quarter-deck, where he was received in state by the Commodore, and then introduced to the great cabbin, where he explained his commission, and presented the persons he had brought with him to take the survey. The Mandarine appeared to be a person of superior abilities, and endowed with a frankness and honesty not usually to be met with among the ordinary ranks of Chinese officers; and, being an eye-witness of the dangerous state of the leaks, and of the necessity there was for a thorough repair, he expressed his entire acquiescence in the report that had been given, and promised to lay the same immediately before the council upon his return. He was exceeding curious in inspecting the ship, in examining her guns, and poising her great shot. He exprest his astonishment at her strength and her magnitude; and the Commodore, to increase his wonder, and shew his own power, let him know how easy it would be for him to destroy the whole navigable force of China, and lay the city of Canton in ruins; but, nevertheless, he assured him, that not the least violence should be offered, provided his wants were supplied upon reasonable terms.

At the same time the Commodore complained of the behaviour of the officers at Mocao, who had prohibited the country people from selling provisions to his company, though they had paid for what they purchased in sterling silver. The Mandarine heard the complaint without emotion, but said it should be remedied for the future. After the business was over, dinner was ordered, and the Commodore apologised for the meanness of the fare from the difficulty he had to procure better: but the two inferior Mandarines, who were the only persons of their retinue permitted to sit at table with them, shewed no dislike to any thing set before them, except the beef, to which they have the same dislike as the Jews have to pork, from an early prejudice derived from their ancestors; of this the Commodore was not apprized, nor were they offended at its being set before them. They were, indeed, very aukward at the use of knives and forks, and it was found necessary to introduce their own servants to carve for them, before they could make an end of their dinners. But if they were deficient in their manner of eating, they were no novices in putting about the glasses; for there was not an officer at table that durst engage with them. Seeing they were fond of Frontiniac, and that they presently emptied four or five bottles of it without any effect, the Commodore ordered a bottle of Citron water to be brought up, which, on tasting, they liked, and, the Commodore excusing himself on account of an illness he had not yet recovered, they clapped a ruddy-faced officer on the shoulder, and desired him to pledge them, saying, by their interpreter, they were sure he could not plead illness for declining his glass. When the bottle was out, they all rose from table, without appearing to be in the least disordered, and, after the usual ceremonies, departed, very well pleased with their entertainment.

The Commodore now impatiently expected the licence he had requested; but it was several days before it passed the necessary forms, chiefly owing to the intrigues of a Frenchman, who, having the advantage of speaking the language fluently, was at no loss in traversing the measures of the friendly Mandarine in favour of Mr. Anson; but a repetition of the threats already referred to, produced, at last, the desired effect. On the 6th of January, the licence was received, and the carpenters were set to work; but, previous to this, the prohibition was taken off, and provisions were every day brought to the ship in plenty.

It was, however, the beginning of April before the repairs could be compleated, and the Chinese began to be very uneasy at their long stay. They had frequently sent messages to the Commodore to hasten his departure, not knowing or believing that he was no less in earnest to be gone, than they were to be freed from the dread of his stay. At length, on the 3d of April, two Mandarines came on board from Mocao, with a peremptory command addressed to the Commodore, requiring him to depart; to which he made answer, in a determined tone, that he would go when he thought proper, and not when they presumed to command him. After this rebuke, however, all communication was forbidden, and no more provisions were suffered to go on board; and so strictly were those injunctions carried into execution, that from thenceforwards nothing could be purchased at any rate whatever. On the 6th of April, the Centurion weighed, and warped to the southward; and, by the 15th, she was safe in Mocao road, having compleated her water as she passed along. On the 19th, she again weighed anchor, and put to sea.

But long before this, that is, some time in November, Captain Saunders, Commander of the Tryal’s prize, took passage on board a Swedish ship with dispatches from the Commodore to the government. And soon after, that is, about the middle of December, Captain Mitchell, Col. Crackerode, Mr. Taswell, with his nephew Mr. Charles Herriot, and the Rev. Mr. Walter, embarked on board the company’s ships on their return home. About this time we received the first news of the safe arrival of the Severn and Pearl (the two ships of our squadron that parted from us in doubling Cape Horn) at Rio Janeiro, on the coast of Brazil. The Severn had been remarkable for the extraordinary sickness that had been more fatal on board her than on board of any other in the whole squadron, insomuch that her hands had been twice recruited from the Centurion during her voyage to the straits of Le Maire; and yet when she parted company she wanted hands to navigate her in a storm, which was the reason of her return. It was from the knowledge of this uncommon mortality that prevailed among the crew, that the Commodore concluded the Severn to be lost. The news, therefore, of her and the Pearl’s safety was received with the greater pleasure, as we had long entertained an opinion that both of them had perished. But to return from this digression:

From the 1st to the 15th of April, we had stormy weather, with heavy rains and such amazing and terrifying claps of thunder and flashes of lightning as nothing of the kind I had ever seen or heard bore any proportion to. This was upon the breaking-up of the easterly monsoon, when such storms are usual in the country, accompanied sometimes with dreadful gusts of wind, called here by the name of Tuffoons, of the effects of which the Chinese relate very wonderful stories.

While we were warping out of the harbour, the Commodore went on shore to Mocao, to take leave of the Portuguese Governor, who had, to the utmost of his power, behaved in a very friendly manner; and, at his coming from the fort, he was saluted with 15 guns.

During our stay we had entered about 20 fresh hands, being chiefly Lascars, Persians, and Dutchmen; so that our whole complement, when we sailed, amounted to 224 men and boys, among whom were some of all nations, languages, and religions.

Being now at sea, we were some time in a state of uncertainty what course the Commodore intended to steer. He gave out at Mocao, that he was bound to Batavia, and thence to England; but his real design was very different. The project the Commodore had resolved upon in his own mind, was, to cruise for the annual ship from Acapulco to Manilla; and, not discouraged by his former disasters, he determined again to risque the casualties of the Pacific Ocean, and to take his station off Cape Spirito Santo on the island of Jamal, being the first land the Acapulco ships always make in approaching the Philippines.

Being now at sea, it was no longer necessary to conceal this project; he, therefore, summoned all his people on the quarter-deck, and in a short, but spirited speech, informed them of his design; which was received by them with the most expressive tokens of general approbation: and such a confidence of succeeding diffused itself through all the ship’s company, that the Commodore, who had taken some Chinese sheep to sea with him for his own provision, enquiring one day of his butcher, why he had lately seen no mutton at his table? the man replied dryly, that in truth there were only two sheep left, and these, with his honour’s leave, he proposed to reserve for the entertainment of the General of the galleons.

When the Centurion left the port of Mocao, she stood for some days to the westward; and, on the first of May, passed the island of Formosa; and, steering to the southward, on the 4th in the evening they came in sight of the Bashee Islands, which they suspected to be wrong laid down by Dampier, and from observation found them 25 leagues too far to the westward. On the 20th of May, they came in sight of Espirito Santo. As it was known there were centinels placed upon the Cape to make signals to the Acapulco ships, the Commodore immediately tacked, and ordered the top-gallant-sails to be taken in, to prevent a discovery: and this being the station in which he proposed to cruise, he fixed the limits between the latitude of 12 deg. 50 min. N. and 13 deg. 5 min. the Cape itself lying in 12 deg. 40 min. N. and in 4 deg. of east longitude from Psotel Tobago Xima. It was now the time when the Manilla ship was every hour expected; for they seldom or never fail of making land in the month of June, and sometimes sooner, and it was now the last day of May, according to their stile, when the Commodore took his station.

It were tedious to entertain the reader with the various conjectures, surmises, doubts, and anxieties, that agitated the minds of the people on board, from the day they came in sight of the Cape till the day that Mr. Charles Proby, a midshipman, called out from the mast-head, _A sail!_ This was on the 20th of June, just one month after their arrival at the Cape. There did not remain a doubt but that it was one of the galleons (for two were expected this year, as none had been permitted to sail the year preceding); and the Commodore accordingly stood towards her. At half after seven in the morning, they could see her from the deck, at which time she fired a gun to leeward, and took in her top-gallant-sails, as a signal, as it was then supposed, to her consort; but in reality, as a signal to her own people to prepare for action. The Commodore was surprized to see her steadily pursue her course, and was now in no fear of losing sight of her, as at noon he could fetch her wake. Her consort not appearing, it was concluded they had parted company; and it now became visible, that the galleon did not intend to fly, but to fight. Every preparation had been previously made on board the Centurion, and all hands properly instructed; so that every man on board repaired to his post with as much regularity and unconcern as if preparing for a review. Thirty of the best marksmen lined the tops; two men placed themselves at a gun to load them; and gangs of ten men each were appointed to go from gun to gun, to run them out, and fire them as fast as they were loaded. A constant running fire was by this means kept up, and no interval allowed for the enemy to stand to their guns in safety, as is common when whole broadsides are discharged at once.

About one in the afternoon, the galleon hauled up her fore-sail, and brought to under top-sails, with her head to the northward, hoisting Spanish colours, and having the standard of Spain flying at the top-gallant mast-head. About the same time the Centurion hoisted her broad pendant and colours, being within gun-shot of the enemy; and the Commodore, seeing them clearing their decks of their cattle and lumber, gave orders to fire the chace-guns, to disturb them in their work. The galleon returned the fire with two of her stern guns, one of which carried away one of our fore-shrouds, and our forestay tackle, which could not have been done by an ordinary ball. The Centurion setting her sprit-sail fore and aft for boarding, the galleon, out of a bravado, did the same. Soon after, the Centurion shot a-breast of the enemy within pistol shot, and now the engagement became hot. For the first half hour the Centurion over-reached the galleon, and lay on her bow, and, by the wideness of her ports, could traverse almost all her guns upon the enemy, whilst the galleon could only bring a part of hers to bear upon the Centurion in return. In the heat of the action, the mats with which the galleon had stuffed her netting took fire, and burnt violently, blazing up near as high as the mizzen-top. This accident threw the enemy into the utmost terror, and also alarmed the Commodore, for fear the galleon should be burnt, and for fear he himself might suffer by being closely grappled by her. Happily, however, that danger was averted, and the fire extinguished, by cutting away the netting, and letting the whole tumble into the sea. All this while the Commodore kept his first advantageous position, firing with great regularity and briskness; while at the same time the galleon’s decks lay open to our top-men, who, having at their first volley driven the Spaniards from their tops, made prodigious havock with their small arms, killing or wounding every officer but one that appeared upon the quarter-deck, and wounding in particular the General of the galleon himself. Thus the action continued for more than half an hour; but then the Centurion lost the superiority of her situation, and came close alongside of the galleon, when the enemy continued their fire with great activity for near an hour longer; yet, even in this position, the Commodore’s grape-shot swept their decks so effectually, and the number of the dead and wounded became so considerable, that they began to fall into great confusion, especially as the General, who was the life of the action, was no longer able to exert himself. The disorder was so great, that their officers were seen from the Centurion running about to prevent the desertion of their men from their posts: but all their endeavours were in vain; for, after having, as a last effort, fired five or six guns with more judgment than usual, they yielded up the contest; and, the galleon’s colours being singed off the ensign-staff at the beginning of the engagement, she struck the standard at the main top-gallant-mast-head; but even this office would have been at the peril of the man’s life, had not the Commodore, observing what he was about, given express orders to leave off firing.

The Commodore, when the action was ended, resolved to make the best of his way with his prize to the river Canton, being in the mean time fully employed in securing his prisoners, and in removing the treasure from on board the galleon into the Centurion. His first business was to commission the ship, and put her under the command of proper officers: Lieut. Saumarez was appointed Captain, and was immediately ordered on board to take possession of his charge.

But, just as the galleon had struck, the officer who commanded between decks came up, seemingly to congratulate the Commodore on his conquest, but at the same time privately whispered to him, that the Centurion was dangerously on fire near the powder-room. It seems one of the lads, called powder-monkies, being heedless, a cartridge that he was carrying blew up in his hands; this fired another, and that three of the lower-deck guns on the off side of the ship, which being happily loaded and laid down for service, and the ports hauled up to vent the smoke, they did not occasion the least mischief; however, the cartridges and guns together raised such a smother, that it was at first doubtful whether it proceeded from the explosion, or from a part of the ship being on fire. In fact, upon examination, it was found to proceed from both; for, part of a cartridge having fallen between the planks of the cieling, close aft by the scuttle of the Chaplain’s cabbin, not only a considerable smoke issued out, but a very sensible heat, and, had it not been immediately extinguished, the consequence would have been dreadful: to be brief, a few pails of water seasonably applied did more than all the water of the ocean could have effected after an hour’s delay.

This alarm being thus happily subsided, we draughted out 50 of our people (of whom myself was one) to board and man the prize. I had heard we had killed them 60 men, and wounded as many more, and expected to have seen the horrid spectacle of mangled limbs, dead carcasses, and decks covered with blood; but no such spectacle appeared; a party having been properly stationed, during the time of action, to wash away the blood, and to throw the dead over-board. We found, however, many desperately wounded, and among them the General, who had received a musket-ball in his breast, and was so ill, or pretended to be so ill, that it was judged unsafe to move him from his cabbin; but all the other officers, together with the passengers of note, were sent on board the Centurion. Among the latter was an old gentleman, Governor of Guam, who was going to Manilla to renew his commission, and who had scarce mounted the Centurion’s side before he was received with open arms by Mr. Crooden, Captain of marines, who 36 years before, at the battle of Almanza, had been his prisoner, and honourably used by him. These two renewed their old acquaintance, and Captain Crooden had a long-wished-for opportunity of returning the favours he had formerly received, and which he gratefully remembered.

The ship, upon examination, was found to contain to the value of more than a million and a half of dollars, was called the Nuestra Signora de Cabadonga, Don Jeronimo de Montero Commander, by nation a Portuguese, and accounted the most intrepid officer employed in the Spanish mercantile service: and, indeed, in my opinion, he was more brave than prudent; for, surely, no wise man, intrusted with such a cargo, six leagues to the windward of a man-of-war purposely stationed to intercept him, would have borne down upon his enemy, and braved him to his teeth, when, with the advantage of the wind, he might have gone safe to port, from whence he was not more than 10 or 12 leagues distant, and where he might then have set his pursuer at defiance.

His galleon was indeed larger than the man-of-war, was pierced for 64 guns, but had only 36 mounted, most of them 12 pounders, and 17 of them brass: she had, besides, 28 peteraroes, in her gunwale, quarters, and tops, carrying each a 4 lb. ball; and, before the engagement, she mustered 640 men capable of bearing arms, officers and passengers included. She was, besides, well furnished with small arms, and was particularly provided against boarding, both by her close quarters, and by a strong network of two-inch rope laced over her waste, and fortified with half-pikes placed in the manner of cheveaux de frize; but, notwithstanding all her defences, she had 64 men killed, and 84 wounded, whilst the Centurion had only two men killed, and a Lieutenant and 16 men wounded, all of whom recovered, one man only excepted.

And how the Commodore learnt from some of the prisoners, that the other ship, which he had kept in the port of Acapulco the year before, instead of returning in company with this, as was expected, had sailed earlier in the season than usual, and was probably got into Manilla before the Centurion set sail from Mocao; so that, notwithstanding our present success, we had reason to regret the loss of time occasioned by the delays of the Chinese, which prevented our taking two rich prizes instead of one; though, to say the truth, it would not have been an easy talk to dispose of the prisoners, which, even as it fell out, was a matter that gave the Commodore no small disquietude; for they were above double the number of our own people; and some of them observed, when they were brought aboard, how slenderly we were manned; and the General himself could not help expressing his indignation to be thus beaten by a handful of boys. It was therefore necessary for our own preservation to prevent their rising; and that could not be securely effected without exercising a degree of severity which in any other circumstances could not have been justified on the principles of humanity; for there was no method practicable but that of stowing the men in the holds of the two ships; and as for the officers, 17 in number, they were confined in the First Lieutenant’s cabbin, under a guard of six men, first depriving them of their arms, and then keeping a strict watch on all their motions. Indeed, the sufferings of the common men, such of them in particular who were not employed in navigating the ship, were much to be pitied; for, the weather being extremely hot, the stench of the holds loathsome beyond conception, and their allowance of water but just sufficient to keep them alive, being only a pint a day for each man, it was next to a miracle that not a man of them died during their confinement, except five of the wounded, who expired the very night they were brought aboard the Centurion. Thus circumstanced, the motives of humanity, as well as interest, strongly urged the Commodore to hasten his return to China; and the prize being much damaged, both in her hull and rigging, it was found necessary to take her in tow for the quicker dispatch.

On the 21st of June it blew a storm, which continued till the 25th, when the sea ran mountains high: in this storm the Centurion lost her long-boat, and the prize a launch.

On the 2d of July we passed between the Bashee Islands, though the rippling of the sea seemed to indicate breakers or rocky ground; but the wind being so far to the northward as to render it difficult to weather them, we risqued the danger to shorten the voyage. On the 8th of July we made the coast of China, and on she 11th came to an anchor off the city of Mocao; from thence we proceeded to the river of Canton, where we met with the usual obstructions from the custom-house officers, and where the Commodore was again obliged, as it were, resolutely to force his way to his intended station. The officer who came to take the dimensions of his ships, in the usual manner, seemed astonished when he talked of being exempted from the accustomed rates, and gave him to understand that the Emperor’s duty must be paid by every ship that came into his ports; and the pilot had private instructions not to carry the ships through the Bocca Tygris, or narrow pass that forms the entrance into the river of Canton, till security was given for the accustomed charges.