8ETAGH's account* op PERU. 



*S 



particularly the Englifli and Dutch, at a very large expence every year. Add to this, 

 that, under pretence of furnifhing them with negroes, there is a clandelline trade con- 

 tinually carried on from one end to die other of their coafl, upon the North Sea. 



But, in the South Seas, they were pretty fafe from every thing, but the depredations 

 of pirates, till the lafl: general war on account of the fuccefllon to the crown of Spain ; 

 which created a new kind of contraband trade, unknown to former times, I mean, 

 that of the French interlopers, who carried vaft quantities of goods direftly from Europe, 

 into the South Seas, which, till then, fcarce any other nation had attempted. This was 

 always looked upon with an evil eye by the court of Madrid, as being diredly repug 

 nant to the interefl: of Spain, and the maxims of their government ; but, as there were 

 many circumftances at that time which rendered this a kind of neceifary evil, the Spaniards 

 were forced to fubmit to it, I mean by Spaniards the inhabitants of Old Spain ; for, as to 

 the Creolians, if they had European goods, and at a cheaper rate, it would not give 

 them much concern who took their money for them. The hiftory of thefe French inter- 

 lopers is, in itfelf, fo important as well as curious, and is, at the fame time, fo very little 

 known in England, that there is good reafon to believe it will prove acceptable, and 

 be well received ; the rather becaufe it is compofed of fuch remarks, as fell immediately 

 within my own fphere of obfervation, and as to the truth of which I am myfelf a compe- 

 tent witnefs : fo that every thing may be taken for certain, that I advance. I may have 

 leave alfo to put the reader in mind, that, having a great intimacy with mofl of the 

 officers I mention, this enabled me to come at many particulars, which another man, 

 in my fituation, would have been abfolutely unacquainted with. But to come to 

 matters of faft: 



The town of St. Malo has always been noted for good privateers : they annoyed the 

 Englifh and Dutch very much in their trade during the whole reign of King William, and 

 part ofQueenAnne ; and though fome religious-headed people fancy, that money got by 

 privareering will not profper, yet I may venture to fay, the St. Malo-men arc as rich 

 and flourifhing as any people in France. It has thriven fo well with them, that all 

 their South Sea trade is owing to their privateering; and, in the late war, they were 

 fo generous, that they made feveral free gifts to Lewis XIV. And though our Englifh 

 admiralty always kept a flout fquadron cruifing in the Atlantic Ocean, yet we never 

 took one of their South Sea-men : and my reafon for it is this ; they kept their fhipg 

 extremely clean, having ports to careen at, which we did not think of; for, in the year 

 1709, when I belonged to Her Majefty's fliip the Loo, being one of the convoys that 

 year to Newfoundland, we faw upon the coafl a fifty-gun fhip, which we chafed, and 

 foon difcovered fhe was French built; hut fhe crowded fail, and left us in a very little 

 time. She had juft been cleaned at Placentia: and we might well wonder to find fuch a 

 fhip in that part of the world ; but were afterwards informed by the French prifoners, 

 that flie was a Frenchman, and bound to St. Malo, with two or three millions of 

 dollars aboard; and was then fo trim, that fhe trufted to her heels, and valued nobody. 

 By their going fo far to weitward, and northward withal, they had the advantage of 

 weflerly winds, which feldom failed of fending them into foundings at one fpirt, if not 

 quite home. But fmce Placentia has been yielded to Great Britain, they now make 

 ufe of St. Catherina, the illand Grande on the coafl of Brafil, and Martinico in the 

 "Wefl Indies. 



This trade fucceeded fo well, that they all fell into it, fending every year to the 

 number of twenty lail of flnps. I faw myfelf eleven fail together on the coafl of Chili 

 in the year 1721, among which were feveral of fifty guns, and one that could mount 

 feventy, called the Fiower-de-Luce, formerly a msan of war. This being contrary 



VOL. XIY. * £ w 



