LINSCHOTEN'S LARGE TESTIMONY a.d. 



1589-91. 

 maine tops, but none of them shewed to be above 60 

 tunnes in greatnes. About Evening they followed after 

 us, and all night bore lanternes with candles burning 

 in them at their sternes, although the Moone shined. 

 The same night passing hard by the Island of Fayal, the 

 next day being betweene the Island of S. George that 

 lay on our right hand, and the small Island called 

 Graciosa on our left hand, we espied the 3 English ships 

 still following us y l tooke counsell together, whereof one 

 sailed backwards, thinking that some other ship had come 

 after us without company, & for a time was out of sight, 

 but it was not long before it came again to ye other two, 

 wherwith they tooke counsel & came all 3 together 

 against our ship, because we lay in the lee of al our ships, 

 & had ye Island of S. George on the one side in stead 

 of a sconce, thinking to deale so with us, that in ye end 

 we should be constrained to run upon the shore, whereof 

 we wanted not much, and in that manner with their [II. ii. 179.] 

 fiagges openly displayed, came lustily towardes us, sound- 

 ing their Trumpets, and sayled at the least three times 

 about us, beating us with Musket and Caliver, and some 

 great pieces, and did us no hurt in the body of our 

 shippe, but spoyled all our sayles and ropes, and to 

 conclude, wee were so plagued by them, that no man 

 durst put foorth his head, and when wee shot off a peece, 

 wee had at the least an houres worke to lade it againe, 

 whereby wee had so great a noise and crie in the shippe, 

 as if we had all bene cast away, whereat the English men 

 themselves beganne to mocke us, and with a thousand 

 jesting words called unto us. In the meane time the 

 other shippes hoised all their sayles, and did the best 

 they could to saile to the Island of Tercera, not looking 

 once behinde them to helpe us, doubting they should 

 come too late thither, not caring for us, but thinking 

 themselves to have done sufficiently so they saved their 

 owne stakes, whereby it may easily be seene what company 

 they keepe one with the other, and what order is among 

 them. In the ende the English men perceiving small 



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