REPAIRING FOR THE PRIZE. 



431 



appearance, the elegance of its woods and lawns, the healthiness 

 of its air, and the adventures it gave rise to, may in all these 

 views be justly styled romantic." After a smooth run of twenty 

 days, the Centurion came to an anchor on the 12th of Novem- 

 ber, in the roads of Macao, — thus, after a fatiguing cruise of two 

 years, arriving at an amicable port and in a civilized country, 

 where naval stores could be procured with ease, and, above all, 

 where the crew expected the inexpressible satisfaction of receiv- 

 ing letters from their friends and families. 



The Centurion remained more than five months at Macao, 

 where she was careened, thoroughly overhauled, and refitted. 

 The crew was reinforced by entering twenty-three men, some of 

 them being Lascars, or Indian sailors, and some of them Dutch. 

 On the 19th of April, the admiral got to sea, having announced 

 that he was bound to Batavia and from thence to England, 

 and, in order to confirm this delusion, having taken letters on 

 board at Canton and Macao directed to dear friends in Batavia. 

 But his real design was to cruise off the Philippine Isles for the 

 returning Manilla galleon. Indeed, as he had the year before 

 prevented the sailing of the annual ship, he had good reason to 

 believe that there would this year be two. He therefore made 

 all haste to reach Cape Espiritu Santo, the first land the gal- 

 leons were accustomed to make. They were said to be stout 

 vessels, mounting forty-four guns and carrying five hundred 

 hands ; while he himself had but two hundred and twenty-seven 

 hands, thirty of whom were boys. But he had reason to expect 

 that his men would exert themselves to the utmost in view of 

 the fabulous wealth to be obtained. 



The Centurion made Cape Espiritu Santo late in May, and 

 from that moment forward her people waited in the utmost im- 

 patience for the happy crisis which was to balance the account 

 of their past calamities. They were drilled every day in the 

 working of the guns and in the use of their small-arms. The 

 vessel kept at a distance from the cape, in order not to be dis- 



