It was just at the top of high water when these people came on sh.o.r.e, and while, partly they stood parleying with the prisoners they brought, and partly while they rambled about to see what kind of place they were in, they had carelessly staid till the tide was spent, and the water was ebbed considerably away, leaving their boat aground.

They had left two men in the boat, who, as I found afterwards, having drank a little too much brandy, fell asleep; however, one of them waking sooner than the other, and finding the boat too fast aground for him to stir it, hallooed for the rest who were straggling about, upon which they all soon came to the boat but it was past all their strength to launch her, the boat being very heavy, and the sh.o.r.e on that side being a soft oozy sand, almost like a quicksand.

In this condition, like true seamen, who are, perhaps, the least of all mankind given to fore-thought, they gave it over, and away they strolled about the country again; and I heard one of them say aloud to another, (calling them off from the boat) "Why, let her alone, Jack, can't ye?

she'll float next tide." By which I was fully confirmed in the main inquiry, of what countrymen they were.

All this while I kept myself close, not once daring to stir out of my castle, any further than to my place of observation, near the top of the hill; and very glad I was, to think how well it was fortified. I know it was no less then ten hours before the boat could be on float again, and by that time it would be dark and I might be more at liberty to see their motions, and to hear their discourse, if they had any.

In the meantime I fitted myself up for a battle, as before, though with more caution, knowing I had to do with another kind of enemy than I had at first: I ordered Friday also, whom I had made an excellent marksman with his gun, to load himself with arms: I took myself two fowling-pieces, and I gave him three muskets. My figure, indeed, was very fierce; I had my formidable goat-skin coat on, with the great cap I mentioned, a naked sword, two pistols in my belt, and a gun upon each shoulder.

It was my design, as I said above, not to have made any attempt till it was dark; but about two o'clock, being the heat of the day, I found that in short they were all gone straggling into the woods, and, as I thought, were all laid down to sleep. The three poor distressed men, too anxious for their condition to get any sleep, were however set down under the shelter of a great tree, at about a quarter of a mile from me, and, as I thought, out of sight of any of the rest.

Upon this I resolved to discover myself to them, and learn something of their condition. Immediately I marched in the figure above, my man Friday at a good distance behind me, as formidable for his arms as I, but not making quite so staring a spectre-like figure as I did.

I came as near them undiscovered as I could, and then before any of them saw me, I called aloud to them in Spanish, What are ye gentlemen?

They started up at the noise, but were ten times more confounded when they saw me, and the uncouth figure that I made. They made no answer at all, but I thought I perceived them just going to fly from me, when I spoke to them in English, gentlemen, said I, do not be surprized at me; perhaps you may have a friend near you when you did not expect it. He must be sent directly from Heaven then, said one of them very gravely to me, and pulling off his hat at the same time to me, for our condition is past the help of man. All help is from Heaven, sir, said I. But can you put a stranger in the way how to help you, for you seem to me to be in some great distress? I saw you when you landed, and when you seemed to make applications to the brutes that came with you, I saw one of them lift up his sword to kill you.

The poor man with tears running down his face, and trembling, looking like one astonished, returned, am I talking to G.o.d, or man! Is it a real man, or an angel! Be in no fear about that, sir, said I, if G.o.d had sent an angel to relieve you, he would have come better cloathed, and armed after another manner than you see me in; pray lay aside your fears, I am a man, an Englishman, and disposed to a.s.sist you, you see; I have one servant only; we have arms and ammunition; tell us freely, can we serve you?--What is your case?

Our case, said he, sir, is too long to tell you, while our murtherers are so near; but in short, sir, I was commander of that ship, my men have mutinied against me; they have been hardly prevailed on not to murther me, and at last have set me on sh.o.r.e in this desolate place, with these two men with me; one my mate, the other a pa.s.senger, where we expected to perish, believing the place to be uninhabited, and know not yet what to think of it.

Where are those brutes, your enemies, said I, do you know where they are gone? There they lye, sir, said he, pointing to a thicket of trees; my heart trembles, for fear they have seen us, and heard you speak, if they have, they will certainly murther us all.

Have they any fire-arms, said I, he answered they had only two pieces, and one which they left in the boat. Well then, said I, leave the rest to me; I see they are all asleep, it is an easy thing to kill them all; but shall we rather take them prisoners? He told me there were two desperate villains among them, that it was scarce safe to shew any mercy to; but if they were secured, he believed all the rest would return to their duty. I asked him, which they were? He told me he could not at that distance describe them; but he would obey my orders in any thing I would direct. Well, says I, let us retreat out of their view or hearing, least they awake, and we will resolve further; so they willingly went back with me, till the woods covered us from them.

Look you, sir, said I, if I venture upon your deliverance, are you willing to make two conditions with me? he antic.i.p.ated my proposals, by telling me, that both he and the ship, if recovered, should be wholly directed and commanded by me in every thing; and if the ship was not recovered, he would live and dye with me in what part of the world soever I would send him; and the two other men said the same.

Well, says I, my conditions are but two. 1. That while you stay on this island with me, you will not pretend to any authority here; and if I put arms into your hands, you will upon all occasions give them up to me, and do no prejudice to me or mine, upon this island, and in the mean time be governed by my orders.

"2. That if the ship is or may be recovered, you will carry me and my man to England, pa.s.sage free."

He gave me all the a.s.surance that the invention and faith of a man could devise, that he would comply with these most reasonable demands, and besides would owe his life to me, and acknowledge it upon all occasions as long as he lived.

"Well then," said I, "here are three muskets for you, with powder and ball; tell me next what you think is proper to be done." He shewed all the testimony of his grat.i.tude that he was able; but offered to be wholly guided by me: I told him, I thought it was hard venturing any thing, but the best method I could think of, was to fire upon them at once, as they lay; and if any were not killed at the first volley, and offered to submit, we might save them, and so put it wholly upon G.o.d's providence to direct the shot.

He said, very modestly, that he was loath to kill them, if he could help it; but that those two were incorrigible villains, and had been the authors of all the mutiny in the ship; and if they escaped, we should be undone still; for they would go on board, and bring the whole ship's company, and destroy us all. "Well then," said I, "necessity legitimates my advice; for it is the only way to save our lives." However, seeing him still cautious of shedding blood, I told him, they should go themselves, and manage as they found convenient.

In the middle of this discourse we heard some of them awake, and soon after we saw two of them on their feet. I asked him, if either of them were the men who he had said were the heads of the mutiny? He said, No.

"Well then," said I, "you may let them escape, and Providence seems to have wakened them on purpose to save themselves."--"Now," said I, "if the rest escape you, it is your fault."

Animated with this, he took the musket I had given him in his hand, and pistol in his belt, and his two comrades with him, with each man a piece in his hand: the two men, who were with him, going first, made some noise, at which one of the seamen, who was awake, turned about, and seeing them coming, cried out to the rest; but it was too late then; for the moment he cried out, they fired, I mean the two men, the captain wisely reserving his own piece: they had so well aimed their shot at the men they knew, that one of them was killed on the spot, and the other very much wounded; but not being dead he started up on his feet, and called eagerly for help to the other; but the captain, stepping to him, told him it was too late to cry for help; he should call upon G.o.d to forgive his villany; and with that word knocked him down with the stock of his musket, so that he never spoke more: there were three more in the company, and one of them was also slightly wounded. By this time I was come; and when they saw their danger, and that it was in vain to resist, they begged for mercy. The captain told them, he would spare their lives, if they would give him any a.s.surance of their abhorrence of the treachery they had been guilty of, and would swear to be faithful to him in recovering the ship, and afterwards in carrying her back to Jamaica, from whence they came. They gave him all the protestations of their sincerity that could be desired, and he was willing to believe them, and spare their lives, which I was not against; only I obliged him to keep them bound hand and foot while they were upon the island.

While this was doing, I sent Friday with the captain's mate to the boat, with orders to secure her, and bring away the oars and sail, which they did; and by and by, three straggling men, that were (happily for them) parted from the rest, came back upon hearing the guns fired; and seeing their captain, who before was their prisoner, now their conqueror, they submitted to be bound also; and so our victory was complete.

It now remained, that the captain and I should inquire into one another's circ.u.mstances: I began first, and told him my whole history, which he heard with an attention even to amazement, and particularly at the wonderful manner of my being furnished with provisions and ammunition; and indeed, as my story is a whole collection of wonders, it affected him deeply; but when he reflected from thence upon himself, and how I seemed to have been preserved there on purpose to save his life, the tears ran down his face, and he could not speak a word more.

After this communication was at an end, I carried him and his two men into my apartments, leading them in just where I came out, viz. at the top of the house; where I refreshed them with such provisions as I had, and shewed them all the contrivances I had made during my long, long inhabiting that place.

All I shewed them, all I said to them, was perfectly amazing; but, above all, the captain admired my fortification; and how perfectly I had concealed my retreat with a grove of trees, which, having now been planted near twenty years, and the trees growing much faster than in England, was become a little wood, and so thick, that it was impa.s.sable in any part of it, but at that one side where I had reserved my little winding pa.s.sage into it: this I told him was my castle, and my residence; but that I had a seat in the country, as most princes have, whither I could retreat upon occasion, and I would shew him that too another time; but at present our business was to consider how to recover the ship. He agreed with me as to that; but told me, he was perfectly at a loss what measure to take; for that there were still six-and-twenty hands on board, who having entered into a cursed conspiracy, by which they had all forfeited their lives to the law, would be hardened in it now by desperation; and would carry it on, knowing that, if they were reduced, they should be brought to the gallows as soon as they came to England, or to any of the English colonies; and that therefore there would be no attacking them with so small a number as we were.

I mused for some time upon what he had said, and found it was a very rational conclusion, and that therefore something was to be resolved on very speedily, as well to draw the men on board into some snare for their surprise, as to prevent their landing upon us, and destroying us.

Upon this it presently occurred to me, that in a little while the ship's crew, wondering what was become of their comrades, and of the boat, would certainly come on sh.o.r.e in their other boat to see for them; and that then perhaps they might come armed, and be too strong for us: this he allowed was rational.

Upon this I told him, the first thing we had to do was to stave the boat, which lay upon the beach, so that they might not carry her off; and taking every thing out of her, leaving her so far useless as not to be fit to swim; accordingly we went on board, took the arms which were left on board out of her, and whatever else we found there, which was a bottle of brandy, and another of rum, a few biscuit cakes, an horn of powder, and a great lump of sugar in a piece of canvas; the sugar was five or six pounds; all which was very welcome to me, especially the brandy and sugar, of which I had had none left for many years.

When we had carried all these things on sh.o.r.e, (the oars, mast, sail, and rudder of the boat were carried before as above,) we knocked a great hole in her bottom, that if they had come strong enough to master us, yet they could not carry off the boat.

Indeed it was not much in my thoughts, that we could be capable to recover the ship; but my view was, that if they went away without the boat, I did not much question to make her fit again to carry us away to the Leeward Islands, and call upon our friends the Spaniards in my way, for I had them still in my thoughts.

While we were thus preparing our designs, and had first by main strength heaved the boat up upon the beach, so high that the tide would not float her off at high water mark; and, besides, had broken a hole in her bottom too big to be quickly stopped, and were sat down musing what we should do; we heard the ship fire a gun, and saw her make a waft with her ancient, as a signal for the boat to come on board; but no boat stirred; and they fired several times, making other signals for the boat.

At last, when all their signals and firings proved fruitless, and they found the boat did not stir, we saw them (by the help of our gla.s.ses) hoist another boat out, and row towards the sh.o.r.e; and we found, as they approached, that there were no less than ten men in her, and that they had fire-arms with them.

As the ship lay almost two leagues from the sh.o.r.e, we had a full view of them as they came, and a plain sight of the men, even of their faces; because the tide having set them a little to the east of the other boat, they rowed up under sh.o.r.e, to come to the same place where the other had landed, and where the boat lay.

By this means, I say, we had a full view of them, and the captain knew the persons and characters of all the men in the boat; of whom he said that there were three very honest fellows, who he was sure were led into this conspiracy by the rest, being overpowered and frighted: but that for the boatswain, who, it seems, was the chief officer among them, and all the rest, they were as outrageous as any of the ship's crew; and were, no doubt, made desperate in their new enterprise; and terribly apprehensive he was, that they would be too powerful for us.

I smiled at him, and told him, that men in our circ.u.mstances were past the operations of fear: that seeing almost every condition that could be was better than that we were supposed to be in, we ought to expect that the consequence, whether death or life, would be sure to be a deliverance: I asked him, what he thought of the circ.u.mstances of my life, and whether a deliverance were not worth venturing for? "And where, Sir," said I, "is your belief of my being preserved here on purpose to save your life, which elevated you a little while ago? For my part," said I, "there seems to be but one thing amiss in all the prospect of it."--"What's that?" says he. "Why," said I, "'tis that as you say, there are three or four honest fellows among them, which should be spared; had they been all of the wicked part of the crew, I should have thought G.o.d's providence had singled them out to deliver them into your hands; for, depend upon it, every man of them that comes ash.o.r.e, are our own, and shall die or live as they behave to us."

As I spoke this with a raised voice and cheerful countenance, I found it greatly encouraged him; so we set vigorously to our business. We had, upon the first appearance of the boat's coming from the ship, considered of separating our prisoners, and had indeed secured them effectually.

Two of them, of whom the captain was less a.s.sured than ordinary, I sent with Friday, and one of the three (delivered men) to my cave, where they were remote enough, and out of danger of being heard or discovered, or of finding their way out of the woods, if they could have delivered themselves; here they left them bound, but gave them provisions, and promised them, if they continued there quietly, to give them their liberty in a day or two; but that if they attempted their escape, they should be put to death without mercy. They promised faithfully to bear their confinement with patience, and were very thankful that they had such good usage as to have provisions and a light left them; for Friday gave them candles (such as we made ourselves) for their comfort; and they did not know but that he stood centinel over them at the entrance.

The other prisoners had better usage; two of them were kept pinioned indeed, because the captain was not free to trust them; but the other two were taken into my service upon their captain's recommendation, and upon their solemnly engaging to live and die with us; so, with them and the three honest men, we were seven men well armed; and I made no doubt we should be able to deal well enough with the ten that were a-coming, considering that the captain had said, there were three or four honest men among them also.

As soon as they got to the place where their other boat lay, they ran their boat into the beach, and came all on sh.o.r.e, hauling the boat up after them, which I was glad to see; for I was afraid they would rather have left the boat at an anchor, some distance from the sh.o.r.e, with some hands in her to guard her; and so we should not be able to seize the boat.

Being on sh.o.r.e, the first thing they did, they ran all to the other boat; and it was easy to see they were under a great surprise to find her stripped as above, of all that was in her, and a great hole in her bottom.

After they had mused awhile upon this, they set up two or three great shouts, hallooing with all their might, to try if they could make their companions hear; but all was to no purpose: then they came all close in a ring, and fired a volley of their small arms, which indeed we heard, and the echoes made the woods ring; but it was all one: those in the cave, we were sure, could not hear; and those in our keeping, though they heard it well enough, yet durst give no answer to them.

They were so astonished at the surprise of this, that, as they told us afterwards, they resolved to go all on board again to their ship, and let them know there, that the men were all murdered, and the long-boat staved; accordingly, they immediately launched the boat again, and got all of them on board.

The captain was terribly amazed, and even confounded at this, believing they would go on board the ship again and set sail, giving their comrades up for lost, and so he should still lose the ship, which he was in hopes we should have recovered; but he was quickly as much frighted the other way.

They had not been long put off with the boat, but we perceived them all coming on sh.o.r.e again; but with this new measure in their conduct, which it seems they consulted together upon; viz. to leave three men in the boat, and the rest to go on sh.o.r.e, and go up into the country to look for their fellows.

This was a great disappointment to us; for now we were at a loss what to do; for our seizing those seven men on sh.o.r.e would be no advantage to us if we let the boat escape, because they would then row away to the ship; and then the rest of them would be sure to weigh, and set sail, and so our recovering the ship would be lost.

However, we had no remedy but to wait and see what the issue of things might present. The seven men came on sh.o.r.e, and the three who remained in the boat put her off to a good distance from the sh.o.r.e, and came to an anchor to wait for them; so that it was impossible for us to come at them in the boat.

Those that came on sh.o.r.e kept close together, marching towards the top of the little hill, under which my habitation lay; and we could see them plainly, though they could not perceive us; we could have been very glad they would have come nearer to us, so that we might have fired at them; or that they would have gone farther off, that we might have come abroad.

But when they were come to the brow of the hill, where they could see a great way in the valley and woods, which lay towards the north-east part, and where the island lay lowest, they shouted and hallooed till they were weary; and not caring, it seems, to venture far from the sh.o.r.e, nor far from one another, they sat down together under a tree, to consider of it: had they thought fit to have gone to sleep there, as the other party of them had done, they had done the job for us; but they were too full of apprehensions of danger, to venture to go to sleep, though they could not tell what the danger was they had to fear neither.

The captain made a very just proposal to me upon this consultation of theirs; viz. that perhaps they would all fire a volley again, to endeavour to make their fellows hear, and that we should all sally upon them, just at the juncture when their pieces were all discharged, and they would certainly yield, and we should have them without bloodshed: I liked the proposal, provided it was done while we heard, when they were presently stopped by the creek, where the water being up, they could not get over, and called for the boat to come up, and set them over, as indeed I expected.