Upon this they appeared very thankful, and I accordingly set them at liberty, and bade them retire into the woods, to the place whence they came, and I would leave them some fire-arms, some ammunition, and some directions how they should live very well, if they thought fit.
Upon this, I prepared to go on board the ship; but told the captain, that I would stay that night to prepare my things; and desired him to go on board in the meantime, and keep all right in the ship, and send the boat on shore the next day for me; ordering him in the meantime to cause the new captain who was killed, to be hanged at the yard-arm, that these men might see him.
When the captain was gone, I sent for the men up to me to my apartment, and entered seriously into discourse with them of their circumstances: I told them, I thought they had made a right choice; that if the captain carried them away, they would certainly be hanged: I shewed them their captain hanging at the yard-arm of the ship, and told them they had nothing less to expect.
When they had all declared their willingness to stay, I then told them, I would let them into the story of my living there, and put them into the way of making it easy to them: accordingly I gave them the whole history of the place, and of my coming to it: shewed them my fortifications, the way I made my bread, planted my corn, cured my grapes; and, in a word, all that was necessary to make them easy. I told them the story of the sixteen Spaniards that were to be expected; for whom I left a letter, and made them promise to treat them in common with themselves.
I left them my fire-arms; viz. five muskets, three fowling-pieces, and three swords: I had about a barrel of powder left; for after the first year or two I used but little, and wasted none. I gave them a description of the way I managed the goats, and directions to milk and fatten them, to make both butter and cheese.
In a word, I gave them every part of my own story; and I told them, I would prevail with the captain to leave them two barrels of gunpowder more, and some garden-seed, which I told them I would have been very glad of; also I gave them the bag of peas which the captain had brought me to eat, and bade them be sure to sow and increase them.
Having done all this, I left them the next day, and went on board the ship: we prepared immediately to sail, but did not weigh that night: the next morning early, two of the five men came swimming to the ship’s side, and making a most lamentable complaint of the other three, begged to be taken into the ship for God’s sake, for they should be murdered; and begged the captain to take them on board though he hanged them immediately.
Upon this the captain pretended to have no power without me; but after some difficulty, and after their solemn promises of amendment, they were taken on board, and were some time after soundly whipped and pickled; after which they proved very honest and quiet fellows.
Some time after this, I went with the boat on shore, the tide being up, with the things promised to the men, to which the captain, at my intercession, caused their chests and clothes to be added, which they took, and were very thankful for: I also encouraged them, by telling them, that if it lay in my way to send a vessel to take them in, I would not forget them.
When I took leave of this island, I carried on board for relics the great goat-skin cap I had made, my umbrella, and one of my parrots; also I forgot not to take the money I formerly mentioned, which had lain by me so long useless that it was grown rusty or tarnished, and could hardly pass for silver, till it had been a little rubbed and handled; and also the money I found in the wreck of the Spanish ship.