S44 NIEUHOFF S BRAZIL. 



of the ground, and to gnaw them with incredible eagernefs ; neither was the want of 

 frefh water lefs infupportable, by reafon of the heat of the climate, and the conflant 

 ufe of fait meats, ail fprings that were dug being brackifh. The poor flaves, who had 

 the leaft (hare of what was left, looked fo ghaflly and wild, with their eyes and jaws 

 funk, as appeared terrible to the mod undaunted of men. At laft (not with (landing 

 all the care taken by the council) things came to that pafs, that the allowance of one 

 pound of bread per week was fain to be taken away from the inhabitants, and allotted 

 the foldiers ; who, by the enticements of the Portuguefe beginning to defert apace, 

 had two pounds of bread allowed them, as long as there was any left ; but when all 

 was fpent, and no remedy was to be found againfl: this lingering evil, it was propofed 

 by the council, and unanimoufly refolved, rather to die bravely than ftarve, and to 

 fight their way through the enemy. The foldiers were to lead the van, the women,, 

 children, fick, and other unable people to keep in the middle, and the members of 

 the great council, with the inhabitants, to defend the rear. The Jews were above all 

 the reft in a, defperate condition, and therefore refolved rather to die with fword in 

 hand than be burnt alive, which is their doom in Portugal; 



But when we were juft reduced to the lail gafp, all horfes, cats, dogs, and rats, 

 being confumed, and a few quarterns of farinha fold at the rate of betwixt eighty or 

 ninety gilders per quartern, which however could not fuffice for above two days longer, 

 on the 2 2d of June (a day never to be forgotten) we faw two veffels with Dutch 

 colours making all the fail they could towards the Receif ; they had no fooner cad: 

 their anchors, and given us the fignal by the difcharge of^ three guns each, that they 

 came from Holland, but you might have read in all our faces the fudden joy we con- 

 ceived at this relief in our lafl extremity ; there was nobody that could ftand upon 

 his legs for want of bread, but did crawl to the harbour, where you might hear the 

 cries of the people weeping for joy at a great diftance. Thefe two fhips,. called the 

 Falcon and Elizabeth, \^ere freighted for the chamber of Amfterdam, and had left 

 the Texel the 26th of April ; they brought us the welcome news, that we might hourly 

 expect the whole convoy. The captain of the Elizabeth told me himfelf, that having 

 a very fair wind one day, he faid to his crew, " I am fure they are in great extremity 

 at the Receif, God fend us fair wind and weather to relieve them in time,*' which 

 happened thus accordingly. The captains were each prefented with a gold medal, with 

 the following infcription j " The Falcon and Elizabeth did relieve the Receif." 



The 23d of June, Mr. Bas, a member of the council, was fent to Itamarika, to aflift 

 in the defence of the fort ; by his letters of the 28th he advifed that the enemy, 

 continued ftill in his poft on the hill, and that he had fent abroad fome fpies to get 

 intelligence. The 7th of July, the faid Mr. Bas returned to the Receif with the com- 

 panies commanded by Captain Bluecock and Conrad Held, leaving the two companies 

 of Reinard Sikkema and. Digniis Byflerman there in garrifon. The enemy had fome 

 days before, after having blown up the fort on the hill, and fet fire to their camp,, 

 left the illand, carrying along with them all the cannon, and among them two brafs 

 ones. For when they faw that we were reinforced with feveral fhips from Holland, 

 they did not think fit to abide there till we fhould flop thdr paifage back by our 

 veffels ; neither were they infenfible, that without being mafters of the fort Orange, 

 they could not promife themfelves the pofleffion of the ifland, the fouth entrance being 

 commanded by the faid fort, and the north paffage by our yachts. 



The 29th of June, the council received advice from our head quarter at the houfe 

 of John Leflan, in Rio Grande, that two fons of king John Duwy, with twenty-three 

 Tapoyers, were fent thither by their father, to aiTure our people of his good inclination 



and. 



