U SIR ANTHONY SHERLEY a.d. 



1596. 

 prosecuted their assault, not giving us time either to 

 sleepe or eate, so that we were in exceeding extremitie ; 

 for their forces did dayly increase to the number of three 

 thousand persons : but we dayly lost of our poore number. 

 Whilest we were thus keeping the towne, our ships came 

 about unto us, who received many dangerous shot from 

 the upper castle. Our Generall finding himselfe thus 

 streighted, & discreetely looking into the policie and 

 strength of the enemy, and scarse able to defend any one 

 assault more, sent to the forts and to his ships that 

 about ten of the clocke in the darke of the night 

 they should shoote at the upper fort with all possible 

 diligence, and send all the boates ashore, which was 

 accordingly perfourmed. And wee likewise keeping a 

 tumult in the towne, the enemie supposing that our pur- 

 pose was to assault the upper fort, (which God knowes was 

 most impregnable for us) retyred from their plotted purpose 

 for the defence thereof. So we in a souldierlike order 

 with very good safety departed the towne, although the 

 Portugals having espied our Generals policie came very 

 furiously upon the backe of us, after we had kept 

 it two dayes and two nights. 



In the rode of S. lago we tooke a ship with wine 

 and cloth, which did greatly refresh our men. From 

 hence we sayled to an Isle called Fuego, being a very hladelFuego. 

 small Isle, with a very high hill in the midst of it, 

 which continually burneth : this Isle is invincible by 

 nature, high cliffed round about, yet by diligent search 

 we found a small path where wee landed our men with 

 exceeding much difficulty, and so were masters of the Isle 

 the eleventh of September, where wee tooke in water, but 

 the Isle yeelded us nothing but miserable infection. One 

 night wee had a showre of ashes which fell so thicke into 

 our ships from that burning hill of Fuego, that you 

 might write your name with your finger upon the 

 upper decke. 



Departing from this place the twentieth of Septem- 

 ber, we shaped our course for Dominica an Isle in the 



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