Captain Straiton. In the Narrative of the loss of the Wager, by Bulkeley and Cummins, it is mentioned that they found at Port Desire cut on a brick, in very legible characters, "Captain Straiton, 16 cannon, 1687." Most probably this was meant of a Buccaneer vessel.
Le Sage. At the time that the English and French Buccaneers were crossing the Isthmus in great numbers from the West Indies to the South Sea, two hundred French Buccaneers departed from Hispaniola in a ship commanded by a Captain Le Sage, intending to go to the South Sea by the Strait of Magalhanes; but having chosen a wrong season of the year for that passage, and finding the winds unfavourable, they stood over to the coast of Africa, where they continued cruising two years, and returned to the
West Indies with great booty, obtained at the expence of the Hollanders.
Small Crew of Buccaneers at the Tres Marias. The small crew of French Buccaneers in the South Sea who were a part of those who had separated from Grogniet to cruise near California, and for whom Le Picard had sought in vain on the coast of New Spain, were necessitated by the smallness of their force, and the bad state of their vessel, to shelter themselves at the Tres Marias Islands in the entrance of the Gulf of California. Their Adventures, and Return to the West Indies. It is said that they remained four years among those Islands, at the end of which time, they determined, rather than to pass the rest of their lives in so desolate a place, to sail Southward, though with little other prospect or hope than that they should meet some of their former comrades; instead of which, on looking in at Arica on the coast of Peru, they found at anchor in the road a Spanish ship, which they took, and in her a large quantity of treasure. The Buccaneers embarked in their prize, and proceeded Southward for the Atlantic, but were cast ashore in the Strait of Magalhanes. Part of the treasure, and as much of the wreck of the vessel as served to construct two sloops, were saved, with which, after so many perils, they arrived safe in the West Indies.
Story related by Le Sieur Froger. Le Sieur Froger, in his account of the Voyage of M. de Gennes, has introduced a narrative of a party of French Buccaneers or Flibustiers going from Saint Domingo to the South Sea, in the year 1686; which is evidently a romance fabricated from the descriptions which had been given of their general courses and habits. These protegés of Le Sieur Froger, like the Buccaneer crew from the Tres Marias Islands just mentioned, were reduced to great distress,—took a rich prize afterwards on the coast of Peru,—were returning to the Atlantic, and lost their ship in the Strait of Magalhanes. They were ten
months in the Strait building a bark, which they loaded with the best of what they had saved of the cargo of their ship, and in the end arrived safe at Cayenne[89]. Funnel also mentions a report which he heard, of a small crew of French Buccaneers, not more than twenty, whose adventures were of the same cast; and who probably were the Tres Marias Buccaneers.
It has been related that five Buccaneers who had gamed away their money, unwilling to return poor out of the South Sea, landed at the Island Juan Fernandez from Edward Davis's ship, about the end of the year 1687, and were left there. In 1690, the English ship Welfare, commanded by Captain John Strong, anchored at Juan Fernandez; of which voyage two journals have been preserved among the MSS in the Sloane Collection in the British Museum, from which the following account is taken.
The Farewell arrived off the Island on the evening of October the 11th, 1690. In the night, those on board were surprised at seeing a fire on an elevated part of the land. Early next morning, a boat was sent on shore, which soon returned, bringing off from the Island two Englishmen. These were part of the five who had landed from Davis's ship. They piloted the Welfare to a good anchoring place.
Buccaneers who lived three years on the Island Juan Fernandez. In the three years that they had lived on Juan Fernandez, they had not, until the arrival of the Welfare, seen any other ships than Spaniards, which was a great disappointment to them. The Spaniards had landed and had endeavoured to take them, but they had found concealment in the woods; one excepted, who deserted from his companions, and delivered himself up to the Spaniards. The four remaining, when they learnt that the Buccaneers had entirely quitted the South Sea, willingly
embarked with Captain Strong, and with them four servants or slaves. Nothing is said of the manner in which they employed themselves whilst on the Island, except of their contriving subterraneous places of concealment that the Spaniards should not find them, and of their taming a great number of goats, so that at one time they had a tame stock of 300.