A New Voyage Round the World by a Course Never Sailed Before

They made pitiful signs of fear, lest they should all be punished for his crime, and particularly when they saw the man whom he had wounded brought in; then they expected nothing but death, and they made a sad lamentation and howling, as if they were all to die immediately.

It was not without a great deal of difficulty that I found ways to satisfy them, that nobody was to be punished but the man that had committed the fact; and then I caused him to be brought to the gears, with a halter about his neck, and be soundly whipped; and indeed, our people did scourge him severely from head to foot; and, I believe, if I had not run myself to put an end to it, they would have whipped him to death.

When this punishment was over, they put him into their boat, and let them all go on shore. But no sooner were they on shore, but they raised a terrible outcry in all the villages and towns near them, and they were not a few, the country being very populous; and great numbers came down to the shore, staring at us, and making confused ugly noises, and abundance of arrows they shot at the ship, but we rode too far from the shore for them to do us any hurt.

While this was doing, another fray happened on shore, where two of our men, bargaining with an islander and his wife for some fowls, they took their money and gave them part of the fowls, and pretended the woman should go and fetch the rest. While the woman was gone, three or four fellows came to the man who was left; when talking a while together, and seeing our men were but two, they began to take hold of the fowls which had been sold, and would take them away again; when one of our men stepped up to the fellow who had taken them, and went to lay hold of him, but he was too nimble for him, and ran away, and carried off the fowls and the money too. The seamen were so enraged to be so served, that they took up their pieces, for they had both fire-arms with them, and fired immediately after him, and aimed their shot so well, that though the fellow flew like the wind, he shot him through the head, and he dropped down dead upon the spot.

The rest of them, though terribly frightened, yet, seeing our men were but two, and the noise bringing twenty or thirty more immediately to them, attacked our men with their lances, and bows and arrows; and in a moment there was a pitched battle of two men only against twenty or thirty, and their number increasing too.

In short, our men spent their shot freely among them as long as it lasted, and killed six or seven, besides wounding ten or eleven more, and this cooled their courage, and they seemed to give over the battle; and our men, whose ammunition was almost spent, began to think of retreating to their boat, which was near a mile off, for they were very unhappily gotten from their boat so far up the country.

They made their retreat pretty well for about half the way, when, on a sudden, they saw they were not pursued only, but surrounded, and that some of their enemies were before them. This made them double their pace, and, seeing no remedy, they resolved to break through those that were before them, who were about eleven or twelve. Accordingly, as soon as they came within pistol shot of them, one of our men having, for want of shot, put almost a handful of gravel and small stones into his piece, fired among them, and the gravel and stones scattering, wounded almost all of them; for they being naked from the waist upwards, the least grain of sand scratched and hurt them, and made them bleed if it only entered the skin.

Being thus completely scared, and indeed more afraid than hurt, they all ran away, except two, who were really wounded with the shot or stones, and lay upon the ground. Our men let them lie, and made the best of their way to their boat; where, at last, they got safe, but with a great number of the people at their heels. Our men did not stay to fire from the boat, but put off with all the speed they could, for fear of poisoned arrows, and the country people poured so many of their arrows into the boat after them, and aimed them also so truly, that two of our men were hurt with them; but, whether they were poisoned or not, our surgeons cured them both.

We had enough of Ceylon; and having no business to make such a kind of war as this must have been, in which we might have lost but could get nothing, we weighed, and stood away to the East. What became of the fellow that was lashed we knew not; but, as he had but little flesh left on his back, which was not mangled and torn with our whipping him, and we supposed they were but indifferent surgeons, our people said the fellow could not live; and the reason they gave for it was, because they did not pickle him after it. Truly, they said, that they would not be so kind to him as to pickle him: for though pickling, that is to say, throwing salt and vinegar on the back after the whipping, is cruel enough as to the pain it is to the patient, yet it is certainly the way to prevent mortification, and causes it to heal again with more ease.

We stood over from Ceylon east-south-east cross the great Bay of Bengal, leaving all the coast of Coromandel, and standing directly for Achen, on the north point of the great island of Sumatra, and in the latitude of 6° 81' north.

Here we spread our French colours, and, coming to an anchor, suffered none of our men to go on shore but Captain Merlotte and his Frenchmen; and, having nothing to do there, or anywhere else in the Indian seas, but to take in provisions and fresh water, we stayed but five days; in which time we supplied ourselves with what the place would afford; and, pretending to be bound for China, we went on to the south through the straits of Malacca, between the island of Sumatra and the main or isthmus of Malacca.

We had here a very difficult passage, though we took two pilots on board at Achen, who pretended to know the straits perfectly well; twice we were in very great danger of being lost, and once our Madagascar ship was so entangled among rocks and currents, that we gave her up for lost, and twice she struck upon the rocks, but she did but touch, and went clear.

We went several times on shore among the Malayans, as well on the shore of Malacca itself, as on the side of Sumatra. They are as fierce, cruel, treacherous, and merciless a crew of human devils as any I have met with on the face of the whole earth; and we had some skirmishes with them, but not of any consequence. We made no stay anywhere in this strait but just for fresh water, and what other fresh provisions we could get, such as roots, greens, hogs, and fowls, of which they have plenty and a great variety: but nothing to be had but for ready money; which our men took so unkindly, and especially their offering two or three times to cheat them, and once to murder them, that afterwards they made no scruple to go on shore a hundred or more at a time, and plunder and burn what they could not carry off; till at last we began to be such a terror to them, that they fled from us wherever we came.

On the 5th of March we made the southernmost part of the Isthmus of Malacca, and the island and straits of Sincapora, famous for its being the great outlet into the Chinese sea, and lying in the latitude of 1° 15' north latitude.

We had good weather through these straits, which was very much to our comfort; the different currents and number of little islands making it otherwise very dangerous, especially to strangers. We got, by very good luck, a Dutch pilot to carry us through this strait, who was a very useful, skilful fellow, but withal so impertinent and inquisitive, that we knew not what to say to him nor what to do with him; at last he grew saucy and insolent, and told our chief mate that he did not know but we might be pirates, or at least enemies to his countrymen the Dutch; and if we would not tell him who we were and whither we were bound, he would not pilot us any farther.

This I thought very insolent, to a degree beyond what was sufferable; and bade the boatswain put a halter about the fellow's neck, and tell him that, the moment he omitted to direct the steerage as a pilot, or the moment the ship come to any misfortune, or struck upon any rock, he should be hung up.

The boatswain, a rugged fellow, provided himself with a halter, and coming up to the pilot, asked him what it was he wanted to be satisfied in?

The pilot said he desired to have a true account whither we were going.

Why, says the boatswain, we are agoing to the devil, and I shall send you before to tell him we are coming; and with that he pulled the halter out of his pocket and put it over his head, and taking the other end in his hand, Come, says the boatswain, come along with me; do you think we can't go through the strait of Sincapora without your help? I warrant you, says he, we will do without you.

By this time it may be supposed the Dutchman was in a mortal fright, and half choked too with being dragged by the throat with the halter, and, full heartily he begged for his life: at length the boatswain, who had pulled him along a good way, stopped and the Dutchman fell down on his knees; but the boatswain said, he had the captain's orders to hang him, and hang him he would, unless the captain recalled his orders; but that he would stay so long, if anybody would go up to the captain and tell him what the Dutchman said, and bring back an answer.

I had no design to hang the poor fellow, it is true, and the boatswain knew that well enough. However, I was resolved to humble him effectually, so I sent back two men to the boatswain, the first was to tell the boatswain aloud that the captain was resolved to have the fellow hanged, for having been so impudent to threaten to run the ship aground; but then the second, who was to stay a little behind, was to call out, as if he came since the first from me, and that I had been prevailed with to pardon him, on his promises of better behaviour. This was all acted to admiration; for the first messenger called aloud to the boatswain, that the captain said he would have the Dutchman hanged for a warning to all pilots, and to teach them not to insult men when they are in difficulties, as the midwives do whores in labour, and will not deliver them till they confess who is the father.

The boatswain had the end of the halter in his hand all the while; I told you so, says he, before. Come, come along Mynheer, I shall quickly do your work, and put you out of your pain; and then he dragged the poor fellow along to the main-mast. By this time the second messenger came in, and delivered his part of the errand, and so the poor Dutchman was put out of his fright, and they gave him a dram to restore him a little, and he did his business very honestly afterwards.

And now we were at liberty again, being in the open sea, which was what we were very impatient for before. We made a long run over that part which we call the sea of Borneo, and the upper part of the Indian Arches, called so from its being full of islands, like the Archipelago of the Levant. It was a long run, but, as we were to the north of the islands, we had the more sea-room; so we steered east half a point, one way or other, for the Manillas, or Philippine Islands, which was the true design of our voyage; and, perhaps, we were the first ship that ever came to those islands, freighted from Europe, since the Portuguese lost their footing there.

We put in on the north coast of Borneo for fresh water, and were civilly used by the inhabitants of the place, who brought us roots and fruits of several kinds, and some goats, which we were glad of: we paid them in trifles, such as knives, scissors, toys, and several sorts of wrought iron, hatchets, hammers, glass-work, looking-glasses, and drinking-glasses; and from hence we went away, as I said, for the Philippine Islands.

We saw several islands in our way, but made no stop, except once for water, and arrived at Manilla the 22nd of May, all our vessels in very good condition, our men healthy, and our ships sound; having met with very few contrary winds, and not one storm in the whole voyage from Madagascar. We had now been seventeen months and two days on our voyage from England.

When we arrived, we saluted the Spanish flag, and came to an anchor, carrying French colours. Captain Merlotte, who now acted as commander, sent his boat on shore the next day to the governor, with a respectful letter in French; telling him that, having the King of France's commission, and being come into those seas, he hoped that, for the friendship which was between their most Christian and catholic majesties, he should be allowed the freedom of commerce and the use of the port; the like having been granted to his most Christian majesty's subjects in all the ports of new Spain, as well in the southern as in the northern seas.

The Spanish governor returned a very civil and obliging answer, and immediately permitted us to buy what provisions we pleased for our supply, or anything else for our use; but added, that, as for allowing any exchange of merchandises, or giving leave for European goods to be brought on shore there, he was not empowered to grant.

We made it appear as if this answer was satisfactory; and the next morning Captain Merlotte sent his boat on shore with all French sailors and a French midshipman, with a handsome present to the governor, consisting of some bottles of French wines, some brandy, two pieces of fine Holland, two pieces of English black baize, one piece of fine French drugget, and five yards of scarlet woollen-cloth.

This was too considerable a present for a Spaniard to refuse; and yet these were all European goods, which he seemed not to allow to come on shore. The governor let the captain know that he accepted his present; and the men who brought it were very handsomely entertained by the governor's order, and had every one a small piece of gold; and the officer who went at their head had five pieces of gold given him: what coin it was I could not tell, but I think it was a Japan coin, and the value something less than a pistole.

The next day the governor sent a gentleman with a large boat, and in it a present to our captain, consisting of two cows, ten sheep, or goats, for they were between both; a number of fowls of several sorts, and twelve great boxes of sweetmeats and conserves; all of which were indeed very acceptable; and invited the captain and any of his attendants on shore, offering to send hostages on board for our safe return; and concluding with his word of honour for our safety, and free going back to our ships.

The captain received the present with very great respect, and indeed it was a very noble present; for at the same time a boat was sent to both the other ships with provisions and sweetmeats, in proportion to the size of the vessels. Our captain caused the gentleman who came with this present, to have a fine piece of crimson English cloth given him, sufficient to make a waistcoat and breeches of their fashion, with a very good hat, two pair of silk stockings, and two pair of gloves: and all his people had a piece of drugget given them sufficient to make the like suit of clothes; the persons who went to the other ship, and to the brigantine, had presents in proportion.

This, in short, was neither more nor less than trading and bartering, though, from supercilious punctilio, we had in a manner been denied it.

The next day the captain went on shore to visit the governor, and with him several of our officers; and the captain of the Madagascar ship, formerly my second mate, and the captain of the brigantine. I did not go myself for that time, nor the supercargo, because, whatever might happen, I would be reserved on board; besides, I did not care to appear in this part of the business.

The captain went on shore like a captain, attended with his two trumpeters, and the ship firing eleven guns at his going off. The governor received him like himself, with prodigious state and formality; sending five gentlemen and a guard of soldiers to receive him and his men at their landing, and to conduct them to his palace.

When they came there they were entertained with the utmost profusion and magnificence, after the Spanish manner; and they all had the honour to dine with his excellence; that is to say, all the officers. At the same time the men were entertained very handsomely in another house, and had very good cheer; but it was observed that they had but very little wine, except such as we had sent them, which the governor apologised for, by saying his store, which he had yearly from New Spain, was nearly spent. This deficiency we supplied the next day by sending him a quarter cask of very good Canary, and half a hogshead of Madeira; which was a present so acceptable, that, in short, after this, we might do just as we pleased with him and all his men.

While they were thus conversing together after dinner, Captain Merlotte was made to understand, that though the governor could not admit an open avowed trade, yet that the merchants would not be forbid coming on board our ship, and trading with us in such manner as we should be very well satisfied with; after which, we should be at no hazard of getting the goods we should sell put on shore; and we had an experiment of this made in a few days, as follows:

When Captain Merlotte took his leave of the governor, he invited his excellence to come on board our ship, with such of his attendants as he pleased to bring with him, and in like manner offered hostages for his return. The governor accepted the invitation, and with the same generosity, said he would take his parole of honour given, as he was the King of France's captain, and would come on board.

The governor did not come to the shore side with our people; but stood in the window of the palace, and gave them the compliment of his hat and leg at their going into their boats, and made a signal to the platform, to fire eleven guns at their boats putting off.

These were unusual and unexpected honours to us, who, but for this stratagem of the French commission, had been declared enemies. It was suggested to me here, that I might with great ease surprise the whole island, nay, all the islands, the governor putting such confidence in us, that we might go on shore in the very fort unsuspected. But though this was true, and that we did play them a trick at the Rio de la Plata, I could not bear the thoughts of it here; besides, I had quite another game to play, which would turn out more advantageous to us and to our voyage, than an enterprise of so much treachery could be to England, which also we might not be able to support from thence, before the Spaniards might beat us out again from Acapulco, and then we might pass our time ill enough.

Upon the whole, I resolved to keep every punctilio with the governor very justly, and we found our account in it presently.

About three days afterwards we had notice that the governor would pay us a visit, and we prepared to entertain his excellence with as much state as possible. By the way, we had private notice that the governor would bring with him some merchants, who, perhaps, might lay out some money, and buy some of our cargo; nor was it without a secret intimation that even the governor himself was concerned in the market that should be made.

Upon this intelligence, our supercargo caused several bales of English and French goods to be brought up and opened, and laid so in the steerage and upon the quarter-deck of the ship, that the governor and his attendants should see them of course as they passed by.

When the boats came off from the shore, which we knew by their fort firing eleven guns, our ship appeared as fine as we could make her, having the French flag at the main-top, as admiral, and streamers and pendants at the yard-arms, waste cloths out, and a very fine awning over the quarter-deck. When his excellency entered the ship, we fired one-and-twenty guns, the Madagascar ship fired the like number, and the brigantine fifteen, having loaded her guns nimbly enough to fire twice.

As the governor's entertainment to us was more meat than liquor, so we gave him more liquor than meat; for, as we had several sorts of very good wines on board, we spared nothing to let him see he was very welcome. After dinner we brought a large bowl of punch upon the table, a liquor he was a stranger to: however, to do him justice, he drank very moderately, and so did most of those that were with him. As to the men that belonged to his retinue, I mean servants and attendants, and the crews of the boats, we made some of them drunk enough.

While this was doing, two gentlemen of the governor's company took occasion to leave the rest and walk about the ship; and, in so doing, they seemed, as it were by chance, to cast their eyes upon our bales of cloth and stuffs, baize, linen, silks, &c., and our supercargo and they began to make bargains apace, for he found they had not only money enough, but had abundance of other things which we were as willing to take as money, and of which they had brought specimens with them; as particularly spices, such as cloves and nutmegs; also China ware, tea, japanned ware, wrought silks, raw silk, and the like.

However, our supercargo dealt with them at present for nothing but ready money, and they paid all in gold: the price he made here, was to us indeed extravagant, though to them moderate, seeing they had been used to buy these goods from the Acapulco ships, which came in yearly, from whom to be sure they bought them dear enough. They bought as many goods at this time as they paid the value of fifteen thousand pieces of eight for, but all in gold by weight.

As for carrying our goods on shore, the governor, being present, no officer had anything to say to them; so they were carried on shore as presents, made by us to the governor and his retinue.

The next day three Spanish merchants came on board us, early in the morning, before it was light, and desired to see the supercargo. They brought with them a box of diamonds and some pearl, and a great quantity of gold, and to work they went with our cargo, and I thought once they would have bought the whole ship's loading; but they contented themselves to buy about the value of two-and-twenty thousand pieces of eight, which did not cost, in England, one-sixth part of the money.

We had some difficulty about the diamonds, because we did not understand the worth of them, but our supercargo ventured upon them at ten thousand pieces of eight, and took the rest in gold. They desired to stay on board till the next night, when, soon after it was dark, a small sloop came on board and took in all their goods, and, as we were told, carried them away to some other island.

The same day, and before these merchants were gone, came a large shallop on board with a square sail, towing after her a great heavy boat, which had a deck, but seemed to have been a large ship's long-boat, built into a kind of yacht, but ill masted, and sailed heavily. In these two boats they brought seven tons of cloves in mats, some chests of China ware, some pieces of China silks, of several sorts, and a great sum of money also.

In short, the merchants sold so cheap and bought so dear, that our supercargo declared he would sell the whole cargo for goods, if they would bring them, for, by his calculation, he had disposed of as many goods as he received the value of one hundred thousand pieces of eight for, all which, by his accounts, did not amount to, first cost, above three thousand pounds sterling in England.

Our ship was now an open fair; for, two or three days after, came the vessel back which went away in the night, and with them a Chinese junk, and seven or eight Chinese or Japanners; strange, ugly, ill-looking fellows they were, but brought a Spaniard to be their interpreter, and they came to trade also, bringing with them seventy great chests of China ware exceeding fine, twelve chests of China silks of several sorts, and some lackered cabinets, very fine. We dealt with them for all those, for our supercargo left nothing, he took everything they brought. Our traders were more difficult to please than we: for as for baize and druggets, and such goods, they would not meddle with them; but our fine cloths and some bales of linen they bought very freely. So we unloaded their vessel and put our goods on board. We took a good sum of money of them besides; but whither they went we knew not, for they both came and went in the night too, as the other did.

This trade held a good while, and we found that our customers came more from other islands than from the island where the governor resided; the reason of which, as we understood afterwards, was, because, as the governor had not openly granted a freedom of commerce, but privately winked at it, so they were not willing to carry it on openly before his face, or, as we say, under his nose; whereas, in other islands, they could convey their goods on shore with very little hazard, agreeing with the custom-house officer for a small matter.

These boats came and went thus several times, till, in short, we had disposed almost of the whole cargo; and now our men began to be convinced that we had laid out our voyage very right, for never was cargo better sold; and, as we resolved to pursue our voyage for New Spain, we had taken in a cargo very proper to sell there, and so, perhaps, to double the advantage we had already made.

In the mean time, all our hands were at work to store ourselves anew, with such provisions as could be had here for so long a run as we knew we were to have next; namely, over the vast Pacific Ocean, or South Sea, a voyage where we might expect to see no land for four months, except we touched at the Ladrones, as it might happen; and our greatest anxiety was for want of water, which our whole ship could scarce be able to stow sufficient for our use; and our want of casks was still as bad as the want of water, for we really knew not what to put water in when we had it.

The Spaniards had helped us to some casks, but not many; those that they could spare were but small, and at last we were obliged to make use of about two hundred large earthen jars, which were of singular use to us. We got a large quantity of good rice here, which we bought of a Chinese merchant, who came in here with a large China vessel to trade, who bought of us also several of our European goods.

Just as we were ready to sail, a boat came from the town of Manilla, and brought a new merchant, who wanted more English goods, but we had but few left; he brought with him thirty chests of calicoes, muslins, wrought silks, some of them admirably fine indeed, with fifteen bales of romals, and twelve tons of nutmegs. We sold him what goods we had left, and gave him money for the rest, but had them at a price so cheap, as was sufficient to let us know that it was always well worth while for ships to trade from Europe to the East Indies; from whence they are sure to make five or six of one. Had more of these merchants come on board, we were resolved to have laid out all the gold and silver we had, which was a very considerable quantity.

The last merchant who came on board us was a Spaniard; but I found that he spoke very good French, and some English; that he had been in England some years before, and understood English woollen manufactures very well. He told me he had all his present goods from Acapulco, but that they were then excessively dear. He had considerable dealings with the Chinese, and some with the coast of Coromandel and Bengal, and kept a vessel or two of his own to go to Bengal, which generally went twice in a year.

I found be had great business with New Spain, and that he generally had one of the Acapulco ships chiefly consigned to him; so that he was full of all such goods as those ships generally carried away from the Manillas, and, had we traded with him sooner, we should have had more calicoes and muslins than we now had; however, we were exceedingly well stored with goods of all sorts, suitable for a market in Peru, whither I resolved to go.

We continued chaffering after this manner about nine weeks, during which time we careened our ships, cleaned their bottoms, rummaged our gold, and repacked some of our provisions; endeavouring, as much as possible, to keep all our men as fully employed as we could, to preserve them in health, and yet not to overwork them, considering the heat of the climate.

Some time before we were ready to sail, I called all the warrant officers together, and told them, that as we were come to a country where abundance of small things were to be bought, and going to a country where we might possibly have an opportunity to sell them again to advantage, I would advance to every officer a hundred dollars, upon account of their pay, that they might lay it out here, and dispose of it again on the coast of New Spain to advantage. This was very acceptable to them, and they acknowledged it; and here, besides this, by the consent of all our superior officers, I gave a largess or bounty of five dollars a man, to all our foremast men; most of which I believe they laid out in arrack and sugar, to cheer them up in the rest of the voyage, which they all knew would be long enough.

We went away from Manilla, in the island of Luconia, the 15th of August, 1714; and, sailing awhile to the southward, passed the Straits between that island and Mindora, another of the Philippines, where we met with little extraordinary, except extraordinary lightning and thunders, such as we never heard or saw before, though, it seems, it is very familiar in that climate; till, after sixteen days' sailing, we saw the isle of Guam, one of the Ladrones, or Islands of Thieves, for so much the word imports; here we came to an anchor, Sept. 3, under the lee of a steep shore, on the north side of the isle of Guam; but, as we wanted no trade here, we did not at first inquire after the chief port, or Spanish governor, or anything of that kind; but we changed our situation the next day, and went through the passage to the east side of the island, and came to an anchor near the town.