Chap. I. 
Captain Cowley; 
of the Englijh Commander to fpare him fome Powder, the 
Indians being 'then in Rebellion, and he about to employ all 
his Force, in order to reduce them. Captain Eaton enter- 
tained thefe Meffengers very elegantly, ipared them four 
Barrels of Powder, and offered them four fmall Pieces of 
Cannon. They accepted of the former, and thanked the 
Captain for the Offer of the latter 5 which, however, they 
declined, and, at the fame time, prefented a Box, in which 
was to the Value of 1400 Pieces of Eight in Gold and Sil- 
ver, defiring him to take whatever he thought fit ; but the 
Captain abfolutely refufed to take a Farthing 5 and fo they 
carried their Box on fhore again. But, the next Morning, 
the Governor fent the Captain a Diamond Ring worth fifty 
Pounds. On the 19th, they fent out their Boat to cruife 1 
and they forced an Indian Canoe on fhore, which her Crew 
quitted, and they kept to land their Men in. On the 2 2d, 
there came a new Deputation from the Governor, with a 
French Jefuit at the Flead of it, who brought them Cocoa- 
nuts, Potatoes, and a confiderable Quantity of Chocolate, a 
Silver Pot to make it in, and half a Dozen China Difhes. 
Thefe People taught the Englijh Sailors how to make a 
pleafant kind of Milk, by fcraping the inner Shell of the 
Cocoa-nut, which not only gives Water the Colour, but 
allb a very fweet agreeable Tafte, very little, if at all, infe- 
rior to Milk. The Governor fent them thenceforward 
every Day fome kind of Provifion or other ; while Captain 
Cowley , doubting whether he fhould meet with the like Con- 
veniencies elfewhere, refolved to heel and fcrape his Ship ; 
which he performed with great Eafe, by the Affiftance of 
the Indians , as well as the Spaniards. Towards the End 
of the Month of March , when it was vifible, that the Ship 
would not remain long in the Road, the Governor fent them 
for their Sea Stores thirty Hogs, with a proportionable 
Quantity of Rice and Potatoes. The Indians alfo feemed 
to have forgotten what happened at their firft: Arrival ; but 
Captain Cowley kept it always in his Head, and never fuf- 
fered his Men to ftir, on any Pretence, without Arms ; 
which Precaution of his faved upwards of twenty of them, 
whom the Indians had invited to go a fifhing with them ; 
and, when they faw one half of them on fhore to draw the 
Net, they attempted to feize thofe that were left in the 
Boat : But they paid dearly for it, receiving a general Dif- 
charge of the fmall Arms, both from thofe in the Boat, and 
thofe on Land ; fo that few or none efcaped of them, that 
were concerned in this Projed. But, before Captain Eaton 
failed, they played off a Stratagem of another Kind : They 
fent two Indians , who were Natives of Manilla , on board, 
to fell Rice and Fruits, who, after fome Converfation with 
the Captain, told him the State of their Affairs ; that they 
had taken Arms againft the Governor •, and that the belt 
Part of the Indians were retired from Guam to another 
Eland not far off ; that they were determined never to fub- 
mit themfelves to the Spaniards ; and that, if he would 
affift them, it would be very eafy to reduce the Ifland ; 
that, for their Parts, they delired nothing but Freedom as 
the Reward of their Affiftance ; and that the Englijh might 
reap a prodigious Benefit from this Expedition, fince the 
Spaniards were immenfely rich. But the Captain treated 
the Propofal as it deferved, with the higheft Indignation ; 
and thenceforward admitted but two or three of the Indians 
at a time to come on board. On April 1 . they failed from 
the Bay, and anchored before the Fort, the Place of the 
Governor’s Habitation ; which they faluted with three Guns, 
and were anfwered by the fame Number. On the 3d, the 
Governor fent his Captain, with a Prefent, to take his Leave 
of Captain Eaton, and to teftify his Senfe of the Honour 
and Generality, with which he had behaved towards him. 
In the Afternoon they failed with a fair Wind, fleering South 
by Weft. 
11. The Ifland of Iguana , Guana , or Guan , is in the La- 
titude of 1 3 0 30' North, and is about fourteen Leagues in 
Length, and about fix in Breadth. The Valleys are very 
pleafant. It is interfperfed with fine fruitful Meadows, 
plentifully watered by many Rivulets from the Hills. The 
Soil in thefe Valleys is black, and very rich, producing 
Plenty of Cocoas, Potatoes, Yams, Papas, Plantains, Mo^ 
nanoes, Sour-fops, Oranges and Lemons, and fome Ho- 
ney. The Climate is very hot ; but, by means of the con- 
ftant Trade-wind, is, notwithftanding that, very wholfome. 
Numb. 6 , 
SI 
The Indian Inhabitants are Very large, well-itiade^ a6live* 
and vigorous, fome of them being feven Feet and an half 
high. Moll of them go ftark-naked, both Men and Wo- 
men. They never bury their Dead 5 but let theiil lie in 
the Sun to putrefy and rot. They have no Arms, but Lances 
and Slings. The ffiarp End of their Lances are made with 
dead Mens Bones ; for, upon the Deceafe of a Perfcn, his 
Bones make eight Lances, of his Leg-bones two, of hisThighs 
as many, and his Arms afford four ; which being cut like 
a Scoop, and jagged like the Teeth of a Saw, or Eel-fpear * 
if a Man happens to be wounded with one of them, and be 
not cured in feven Days, he is a dead Man. “ We took, 
“ fays Captain Cowley , four of thofe Infidels Prifoners, and 
“ brought them on board, binding their Hands behind 
Cl them *, but they had not been long there, before three of 
<£ them leaped overboard into the Sea, fwimming away 
“ from the Ship with their Hands tied behind them, How- 
“ ever, we fent the Boat after them, and found a ftrong 
“ Man, at the firft: Blow, could not penetrate their Skins 
“ with a Cutlafs. One of them had received, in my Judg-. 
“ ment, forty Shots in his Body before he died ; and the 
“ laft of the three that was killed, had fwam a good Eng - 
cc lijh Mile firft, not only with his Hands behind him, as 
“ before, but alfo with his Arms pinioned.” It is certain* 
that the great Manilla Ship, that goes annually from thence 
to Acapulco , touches there for Refreffiments, both going 
and coming ; and the Indians Hand in great Dread of her. 
They reported, that they had fometimes eight Ships in a 
Year from the Eajl Indies. The Spaniards , who were on 
hoard Captain Eaton, faid, that* in 1684, they had built 
in that Bland a Ship of 1 60 Ton, to trade to Manilla 5 
and they likewife told him, that the Spanijh Garifon confift- 
ed, at that time, of 600 Men ; and that the Indian Inhabit- 
ants were moft of them in Rebellion. Captain Cooke, who was 
here in 1710, finds great Fault with Captain Cowley's De- 
fcription of this Bland, which, he is pleafed to fay, is fhlfe ; 
but, I apprehend, without any juft: Grounds. He mentions 
but two Inftances : The firft is as to the Length of the 
Ifland, which he affirms to be but ten Leagues ; whereas 
Captain Cowley fays it is fourteen : But, as both fpeak by 
Conjecture, I cannot fay which is in the right ; but Cap- 
tain IV lodes Rogers , under whofe Command Cooke made the 
Voyage, and who was, to the full, as accurate a Writer, 
fixes the Circumference at forty Leagues ; which, confider- 
ing the Shape of the Ifland, agrees very well with what 
Captain Cowley fays. The other Miftake he charges him 
with, is as to the Number of the Garifon, which, when 
Cooke was there, did not exceed 100 Men. In order to 
make out this Miftake, he afferts a direCl Falffiood ; for he 
fays, that Captain Cowley makes it 600 Men ; whereas 
Captain Cowley only fays, the Spaniards told him fo ; and 
feems to doubt it. In other Circumftances they agree tole- 
rably well. 
12. On April 4. they failed Weft by South, and, the 
Day after. Weft, when they reckoned their Diftance from 
that Ifland 206 Miles. From that time they kept no cer- 
tain Account, becaufe of Calms, till they came into 20° 
30' North Latitude, where they fell in with a Clufter of 
Hands to the Northward of Luconia , which is the biggeft 
of the Philippines. The 23 d, they met with a very ftrong 
Current, like the Race of Portland , at the Diftance, as they 
computed, from Guam of 560 Leagues. On the Norther- 
moft of thefe Illands they fent their Boat affiore, to get 
fome Fiffi, and to difcover the Ifland, on which they found 
vaft: Plenty of Nutmegs growing ; but faw no People, 
and, as Night was drawing on, they durfl: not venture far 
within Land. This Ifland they called Nutmeg IJland , and 
the Bay, in which they anchored, Englijh Bay. They ob- 
served allb Abundance of Rocks, Sands, and foul Ground 
near the Shore, and faw a great many Goats upon the 
Ifland ; but brought very few on board. After they got 
through thefe Straights, they continued their Courfe South- 
weft tor Luconia. April 2 6 . they were off Cape Baj adore, 
and, foon after, came up with Cape Mindato , where they 
met with a South-weft: Monfoon, which made them fleer 
North- weft: for Canton in China , where they arrived fafely, 
and fitted their Ship. They had an Opportunity here of 
making themfelves as rich as they could defire ; but they 
would not embrace it. There came into this Port thirteen 
T ' Sail 
