her Broadside, and therewith made her sheer off, and, which was worse, shot her Main-mast thro’, tho’ it did not come presently by the Board.
During this Time, the Sloop having many Hands, had stopp’d the Leak, was brought to rights again, and came up again to the Engagement, and at the first Broadside had the good Luck to bring the Ship’s Foremast by the Board, and thereby disabled her; but could not for all that lay her athwart, or carry her by Boarding, so that the Case began to be very doubtful; at which, the Captain of the Sloop, finding the Merchant Ship was disabled, and could not get away from them, resolv’d to leave her a while and assist the Fregate; which he did, and running a Longside our Fregate, he fairly laid the Man of War on Board just thwart his Hawser; and besides firing into her with his great Shot, he very fairly set her on Fire; and it was a great Chance but that they had been all three burnt together, but our Men helpt the Spaniards themselves to put out the Fire, and after some Time master’d it: But the Spaniards were in such a terrible Fright at the Apprehension of the Fire, that they made little Resistance afterwards, and in short, in about an Hour’s Fight more, the Spanish Man of War struck, and was taken; and after that the Merchant Ship also, with all the Wealth that was in her: And thus their Victory was as compleat as it was unexpected.
The Captain of the Spanish Man of War was kill’d in the Fight, and about 36 of his Men, and most of the rest wounded, which it seems happen’d upon the Sloop’s lying athwart her. This Man of War was a new Ship, and with some Alteration
in her upper Work, made a very good Fregate for them, and they afterwards quitted their own Ship, and went all on Board the Spanish Ship, taking out the Main-mast of their own Ship, and making a new Fore-mast for the Spanish Ship, because her Fore-mast was also weaken’d with some Shot in her; this, however, cost them a great deal of Labour and Difficulty, and also some Time, when they came to a certain Creek, where they all went on Shore, and refresh’d themselves a while.
But if the taking the Man of War was an unexpected Victory to them, the Wealth of the Prize was much more so; for they found an amazing Treasure on Board her, both in Silver and Gold; and the Account they gave me was but imperfect, but I think they calculated the Pieces of Eight to be about 13 Tun in Weight, besides that they had 5 small Chests of Gold, some Emeralds, and, in a Word, a prodigious Booty.
They were not, however, so modest in their Prosperity as we were; for they never knew when to have done, but they must Cruise again to the Northward for more Booty, when to their great Surprize, they fell in with the Flotilla or Squadron of Men of War, which they had so studiously avoided before, and were so surrounded by them, that there was no Remedy but they must fight, and that in a Kind of Desperation, having no Prospect now but to sell their Lives as dear as they could.
This unlucky Accident befel them before they had chang’d their ship, so that they had now the Sloop and both the Men of War in Company, but they were but thinly mann’d; and as for the
Booty, the greater Part of it was on Board the Sloop, that is to say, all the Gold and Emeralds, and near half the Silver.
When they saw the Necessity of fighting, they order’d the Sloop, if possible, to keep to Windward, that so she might as Night come on, make the best of her Way, and escape; but a Spanish Fregate of 18 Guns tended her so close, and sail’d so well, that the Sloop could by no Means get away from the rest; so she made up close to the Buccaneers Fregate, and maintain’d a Fight as well as she could, till in the Dusk of the Evening the Spaniards boarded and took her, but most of her Men gat away in her Boat, and some by swimming on Board the other Ship: They only left in her five wounded Englishmen, and six Spanish Negroes. The five English the barbarous Spaniards hang’d up immediately, wounded as they were.
This was good Notice to the other Men to tell them what they were to expect, and made them fight like desperate Men till Night, and kill’d the Spaniards a great many Men. It prov’d a very dark rainy Night, so that the Spaniards were oblig’d by Necessity to give over the Fight till the next Day, endeavouring, in the mean time, to keep as near them as they could: But the Buccaneers concerting their Measures where they should meet, resolv’d to make Use of the Darkness of the Night to get off if they could; and the Wind springing up a fresh Gale at S. S. W. they chang’d their Course, and, with all the Sail they could make, stood away to the N. N. W. slanting it to Seawards as nigh the Wind as they could; and getting clear away from the Spaniards, who they never saw more, they made no Stay