[Footnote 116: This officer, as his title implies, which ought to be written Shah-bander, is lord of the port or harbour.--E.]
We went on with our trade, so that by the 10th February, 1603, our ships were fully laden and ready to depart. In the mean time, Mr John Middleton, captain of the Hector, fell sick on board his ship in the road. For, from the very first of our voyage, the general made it an invariable rule, if he were ashore, that the vice-admiral must be on board, and vice versa, that both might not be at one time from their charge. Hearing of his sickness, the general went aboard to visit him, and found him much weaker than he himself felt or suspected, which experience in these hot climates had taught our general to know; for, although Captain Middleton was then walking about the deck, he died about two o'clock next morning.
The general now proceeded to put every thing in order for our speedy departure, and appointed a pinnace of about 40 tons, which we had, to be laden with commodities, putting into her twelve mariners with certain merchants, whom he sent to the Moluccas, to trade there and settle a factory, against the arrival of the next ships from England. He likewise left eight men and three factors in Bantam, Mr William Starkie being head factor; whom he appointed to sell such commodities as were left, and to provide loading for the next ships. Every thing being arranged, the general went to court to take his leave of the king, from whom he received a letter for Queen Elizabeth, with a present of some fine bezoar stones. To the general he gave a handsome Java dagger, which is much esteemed there, a good bezoar stone, and some other things. After this the general took leave of the king, with many courteous expressions on both sides.
SECTION 6. Departure for England, and Occurrences in the Voyage.
We all embarked on the 20th February, 1603, shot off our ordnance, and set sail for England, giving thanks to God with joyful hearts for his merciful protection. We were in the straits of Sunda on the 22d and 23d of that month, and on the 26th we got clear of all the islands in these straits and of the land, shaping our course S.W. so that on the 28th we were in lat. 8° 40' S. On Sunday the 13th March, we were past the tropic of Capricorn, holding our course mostly S.W. with a stiff gale at S.E. The 14th April we were in lat. 34° S. judging the great island of Madagascar to be north of us. We had a great and furious storm on the 28th, which forced us to take in all our sails. This storm continued a day and night, during which the sea so raged that none of us expected our ships to live; but God, in his infinite mercy, calmed the violence of the storm, and gave us opportunity to repair the losses and injuries we had received; but our ships were so shaken by the violence of the wind and waves, that they continued leaky all the rest of the voyage.
We had another great storm on the 3d May, which continued all night, and did so beat on the quarter of our ship that it shook all the iron work of our rudder, which broke clean off next morning from our stern, and instantly sunk. This misfortune filled all our hearts with fear, so that the best and most experienced among us knew not what to do, especially seeing ourselves in so tempestuous a sea, and a so stormy place, so that I think there be few worse in the world. Our ship now drove about at the mercy of the winds and waves like a wreck, so that we were sometimes within a few leagues of the Cape of Good Hope, when a contrary wind came and drove us almost into 40° S. among hail, snow, and sleety cold weather. This was a great misery to us, and pinched us sore with cold, having been long used to hot weather. All this while the Hector carefully kept by us, which was some comfort, and many times the master of the Hector came aboard our ship to consult upon what could be done. At length it was concluded to put our mizen-mast out at a stern port, to endeavour to steer our ship into some place where we might make and hang a new rudder to carry us home. This device, was however to little purpose; for, when we had fitted it and put it out into the sea, it did so lift up with the strength of the waves, and so shook the stem of our ship, as to put us in great danger, so that we were glad to use all convenient haste to get the mast again into the ship.
We were now apparently without hope or remedy, unless we made a new rudder, and could contrive to hang it at sea, which may easily be judged was no easy matter, in so dangerous a sea, and our ship being of seven or eight hundred tons.[117] But necessity compelled us to try all possible means. The general ordered our carpenters to make a new rudder of the mizen-mast; but there was this great obstacle, that we had lost all our rudder-irons along with the old rudder: Yet we proceeded with all expedition; One of our men dived, to search what might remain of our rudder-irons on the stern port, who found but two, and another that was broken. Yet, with God's help, finding a fair day, we made fast our new rudder, and were able to make sail homewards. Within three or four hours, the sea took it off again, and we had great difficulty to save it, losing another of our irons, so that only two now remained to hang it by, and our men began to propose quitting the ship and going on board the Hector to save themselves. "Nay," said the general, "we will abide God's leisure, and see what mercy he will shew us; for I do not yet despair to save ourselves, the ship, and the goods, by some means which God will appoint." With that, he went into his cabin, and wrote a letter for England, proposing to send it by the Hector, commanding her to continue her voyage and leave us; but not one of our ship's company knew of this command. The tenor of the letter was as follows, little more or less, addressed to the Governor and Company:
RIGHT WORSHIPFUL,
What hath passed in this voyage, and what trades I have settled for the company, and what other events have befallen us, you shall understand by the bearers hereof, to whom (as occasion has fallen) I must refer you, I shall strive with all diligence to save my ship and her goods, as you may perceive by the course I take in venturing my own life, and those that are with me. I cannot tell where you should look for me, if you send any pinnace to seek me; because I live at the devotion of the winds and seas. And that, fare you well, praying God to send us a merry meeting in this world, if it be his good will and pleasure.
The passage to the East India lieth in 62 1/2 degrees, by the north-west on the America side.[118]