202 The VOYAGES of Book L 
for I was heaving up my Anchor, with Defign to fall be- 
low the Road that Night, that I might be in Readinefs the 
next Morning : But, miffing them at the Place they were 
fent to, they thought fit. to go up to the Portuguefe Planta- 
tions, which were two Leagues farther. It being Midnight, 
the Inhabitants were apprehenfive it was Hatley , who was 
come to take his Leave of them in the Manner he had 
threatened. However, they fuffered them to go up to 
their Dwellings, to fearch for thofe they wanted ; but my 
Men, finding a different Reception from what they ufed to 
meet with, fufpeded fome Malice againft them, and there- 
fore made their Way to the Boat. In the mean time, fome 
of the Portuguefe had placed themfelves in Ambufcade, to 
deftroy them as they returned to the Water-fide. No fooner 
had they got into the Boat, than they heard them rufhing 
from the Woods, crying. Kill the Bogs l kill all the Englifh 
Bogs! This Outcry was followed by a Volley of Small- 
arms ; which wounded three, two through their Thighs, 
and another through the Arm. After this, they difcharged 
feveral times; but did no further Damage. The Wounded 
fyflained a great Lofs of Blood, being fo long before they 
got aboard ; for they were above three Leagues diflant from 
the Ship. This Accident obliged me to weigh again the 
next Morning, and return into the Road, to try to punifh 
thofe, who had been concerned in this Barbarity. With 
this View, I fent a Letter by Hatley to the Captain of the 
Portuguefe Man of War ; but, at his Entrance into the 
Ship,, he was furioufly affaulted by Emanuel Manfa , the 
Captain of the Eland, crying out, That this was the Rogue, 
who had committed fo many Infolences towards them ; who 
had burnt one of their Houfes, and had made it a common 
Practice to reproach him with the Name of Querno , i. e. 
Cuckold. Upon his Exclamations, the Ship’s Company 
fided with Manfa , and mobbed Hatley, and would have cer- 
tainly ufed both him, and his Boat’s Crew, very fcurvily, 
had not the Captain, and his Officers, with much Difficulty, 
prevented it ; for they were exafperated to that outrageous 
Height, that it is more than likely they would have mur- 
dered him, had they not been hindered. The Portuguefe 
Captain wrote me a Letter, to excufe what had happened, 
and to defire, that I would come aboard ; which 1 did, and 
was very kindly entertained, receiving eleven Guns at part- 
ing. The next Morning, M. la Riviere came aboard, with 
his chief Officers, to break faff with me, and fell a Tide’s 
Work down the River with us. At his going away, I could 
give him but three Guns, having only four mounted, the 
reft being ftruck down into the Hold, to eafe the Ship, and 
make her ftiff when we came to Sea. W e were now ready 
to depart, and I had made the Ship perfectly fit to go thro* 
the tempeftuous Navigation we were to expebt in failing to 
the Southward. I had made our Stern as firm as poffible, 
covering it intirely with thick Plank ; and had only left two 
fmali Shuttles to give Light into the great Cabin, and had 
furnifhed ourfelves with Plank to build an Awning ; but 
chofe rather to fet it up at Sea, than make a longer Stay 
here. 
It is proper to take notice, that Captain Betagh , in 
his Account, gives a very different Turn to every one of 
thefe Fads ; for he afferts, that Captain la Jonquiere could 
not fpeak one Word of Englifh ; and that they had not five 
People in the Ship who could fpeak French : So that, had 
he really harangued the Company of the Speedwel , his Elo- 
quence had been all thrown away. He afferts, that all the 
Bufinefs of Matthew Stewart the Mate was the Captain’s 
own Contrivance. He charges him likewife with breaking 
or reducing many of the Officers ; denied, that he purchafed 
a third Part of the Provifions he m lotions ; and pofitively 
affirms, that it was Lieutenant Randal , and not Hatley, 
who burnt the Houfe on St. Catharine's , and thereby exa- 
fperated the Portuguefe to fuch a Degree, that they would 
have been glad of any Opportunity to have cut off his Peo- 
ple as they went afhore. But the worft of all is the Story 
he tells us of the Money, which purchafed thofe Provifions 
at St. Catharine' s, which, as it refts intirely on the Credit 
of Mr. Betagh , I ffiall give it you in his own Words, tho’ 
I do not mean to perplex my Reader with many fuch Anec- 
dotes : A Creolian Spaniard , fays he, belonging to one of 
Captain Jonquiere's Lieutenants, having robbed his Mafter of 
ioo Quadruples, each of which is four Pifloles, abfconded 
into the Woods, defigning to take his Paffage with us round 
Cap t Horne to his own Country again. La Jonquiere, and 
his Lieutenant, applied to Shelvocke , defiring, that, in cafe 
he fhould be found, and the Money upon him, he would 
fecure him, and take it from him, giving Shelvocke Direc- 
tions how to remit the Money to France , on his Arrival in 
Europe: All which he faithfully promifed to perform. As 
foon as the Ruby failed, the Fellow appeared to our Men at 
the Watering-place, with one Moiety of the Money in his 
Pocket, defigning, I fuppofe, to pay for his Paffage with 
it ; but Shelvocke , not content, ordered him to be feized to 
the Geers, where he was: whipped and pickled ; which was 
repeated every Monday for a Month. But the Fellow, who 
had run theRifque of hanging for it, and knew the Value 
of Money as well as the Captain, flood the Laffi, without 
confeffmg he had any more : So he remained on board, and 
had his Paffage. He attributes the Civilities of M. la Jon- 
quiere to his having a great Sum of Money for the King on 
board a Ship, which w'as crouded likewife with twenty 
Priefts ; and, out of 400 Seamen, he had not fixty that 
were able to walk the Deck : Which was owing to his 
doubling Cape Horne in the Winter, and being furnifhed 
with but indifferent Provifion, becaufe the Spaniards know 
not either how to cure, or to pack it. 
5 . On Auguft 9 . we took our Departure from the North- 
ermoft Point of St. Catharine's in the Latitude of 27° 20' 
South, 50° Longitude W eft from the Lizard. From thence 
to the 19th, we had fhowery foul Weather. I kept the 
Lead conftantly going on the Coaft of Patagonia , and met 
with regular Soundings; and, from the Latitude of 40° to 
that of 50° 30' South, we frequently faw Shoals of Seels 
and Penguins, and were conftantly attended with Pintado- 
birds, about the Bignefs of a Pigeon. The French call them 
Banners , becaufe their Feathers, being black and white, are 
difpofed in fuch a Manner, as to make their Backs and 
Wings appear chequered, like a Draught-board. Thefe 
were accompanied with Albitroffes, the largeft fort of Sea- 
fowls, fome of them extending their Wings twelve or thir- 
teen Feet: And, whilft we had the River of Plate open, 
the Sea thereabouts was covered with prodigious Quanti- 
ties of large Sea-weed, which often incommoded us, it being 
impoffible to avoid running fometimes amongft it ; which 
gave us much Trouble to clear ourfelves of it, and at the 
fame time deadened our Way : But, as we went Southward, 
we were freed from this Inconveniency ; after which, we 
had, on the Surface of the Water, abundance of Things, 
like white Snakes. We took fome of them up ; but could 
not perceive there was any Life in them, nor were they form- 
ed into the Shape of any kind of Animal, being only a long 
Cylinder of a white fort of Jelly, and may probably be the 
Spawn of fome of the large kind of Fiffi. As we advanced 
to the Southward, I obferved, that moft of my People’s 
Stomachs increafed; which was to be attributed to the 
Sharpnefs of the Cold, and was a Circumftance that had been 
obferved before. This occafioned Difputes in all Quarters- 
of the Ship, and even at my own Table, where Captain 
Betagh of the Marines infilled on an Augmentation of Pro- 
vifions in fuch coarfe Terms, and with fuch Circumflances 
of Difrefpedl, that I thought it necefiary to confine him, 
till he wrote me a fubmiffive Letter ; and then I reftored 
him. But, however, this Squabble occafioned my being 
obliged to grant the People an extraordinary Meal every 
Day, either of Flour or Calavances ; which at once reduced 
our Stocks of Provifions, Wood, and Water, which, as I 
then forefaw, proved afterwards a great Inconvenience. 
But to return to our Voyage, and fuch Occurrences as were 
remarkable therein : I think, tho’ it has not hitherto been 
noted, it is a Matter not altogether unworthy of our Ob- 
fervation and Reflection, that the Whales, Grampufes, and 
other Fifh of a monftrous Bulk, are in fuch Numbers on 
the Coaft of Patago?iia , that they were really offenfive to 
us very often ; for they would come fo clofe to us, as almoft 
to ftifie us with their Stench when they blew ; and would lie 
fo near to us, that I have thought it impoffible to efcape 
ftriking upon them on every Scud of a Sea. I am a Stran- 
ger to the Greenland Fiffiery ; therefore cannot fay, whether 
a Trade might not be carried on here. I may venture to 
affirm, that it is a fafer Navigation ; and I am apt to be- 
lieve, that there is a greater Certainty of fucceeding. On 
2 September 
