The 2d April we got in the morning into the bay of Brinjan, where we anchored in fourteen fathoms, within half a league of the town, a high peaked hill, like a sugar-loaf; bearing N.E. by E. by the compass, which is the best mark to know this place by, when the weather is clear. This is a good place for refreshments, having hens, cocoa-nuts, and goats in abundance, and plenty offish, together with excellent water springing from the rock; but we had to pay seventy dollars, a cloth vest, a fowling-piece, a mirror, and a sword, for leave to provide ourselves with water, and all too little to satisfy the governor, who, after receiving our money and giving us leave, came down with seven or eight hundred men, demanding more money, and if we had not kept a strong guard at the spring, would have put us from it after our money was paid. The 5th, the wind being fair off shore, we weighed anchor and departed, and in the evening were abreast of a headland eight leagues S.E. by E. from Brinjan, from which to Cape Comorin it is seven leagues E. two-thirds S. At six in the evening of the 7th, we had Cape Comorin N.N.E. one-third N. five leagues off, and had soundings in thirty fathoms. And on the 19th June we were in Bantam roads, when Captain Ball and Mr Pickham came on board.
On the 24th I visited the pangran, to accommodate matters for Captain Ball, who had arrested a Chinese junk for certain debts they owed our factory, making offer to restore the junk, if the pangran would give us justice, which he gave me his word to do. I went to him again on 6th July, accompanied by Mr Ball, Mr Rich, Mr Pickham, and several other merchants, when he was so inveterate against Mr Ball, that he refused to see him. On which I sent him word, that Mr Ball had brought the bills of our debt due by the Chinese, and was the only person among us who could explain the transactions between our factory and the Chinese, of which I was entirely ignorant. The messenger returned, saying that Mr Ball could not be received, on which we all left the court.
The 1st September, having the wind off the land, we weighed in the morning, and stood for point Ayre, keeping in seven fathoms till within three miles of the point, where one cast we had a quarter less seven, and the next cast only three fathoms. Some supposed we here touched, but it was not perceived by me. Off this point there is a shoal almost even with the surface of the water, but having seven fathoms within two cables length of its edge. This afternoon, while standing towards three Dutch ships that rode right in the fair-way, and when within a mile of them, our ship grounded; but, God be praised, we got her off again without any hurt, and so into the bay, where we again fell in with a shoal, of which we came within two cables length, which lies one and a half league from the Flemish islands. We got safely into the road of Jacatra, [now Batavia road] in the afternoon of the 2d September, having been providentially delivered from three several dangers the day before, of which may we be ever thankful.
The 19th, the Angel, a Dutch ship of 500 tons, came in from Amboina, laden with nutmegs and cloves, and departed again on the 25th. Early in the morning of the 26th, I went to visit the king, and found him in a good humour, and conferring with him upon some former business, we came to a conclusion before I left him, to the following purpose: That he was to give us a convenient piece of ground for building upon, for which we were to pay 1500 dollars, and were to be free from all customs on exports and imports on payment of 800 dollars yearly.
S.2. Dutch Injustice, and Sea-fight between them and Sir Thomas Dale.
The 27th of September, Mr Bishop arrived from Jappara in the roads in a proa, in which was a Cogee, bringing a letter from the Matron to Captain Ball, wherefore I sent him away to Bantam that night. He left two English behind him at Jappara, one of whom had fled from the Dutch. He likewise brought letters from several of our people who were prisoners in the Moluccas, and one of these was directed to me, from Mr Richard Tatten, in which he complained much of the gross usage of the Dutch, who would hardly allow them a sufficiency of rice to subsist upon, and who constantly clapped them in irons, on every idle rumour of the coming of our ships.
On the evening of the 30th October, Cornelius Marthen, who commanded the French ship taken by the Dutch, came into the roads, and came aboard my ship that same night. After some discourse, he told me we had six ships coming from England for these seas, commanded by Sir Thomas Dale, for some special business at the Moluccas, whither he was bound with the Stathouder, the Neptune, and this French prize, to wait the coming of good friends. The 27th, in the evening, we had four feet and a half water in our hold, which we freed in two hours with both our pumps, and kept under afterwards with one pump, till next morning about ten o'clock, when we let down a sail wadded with oakum, which fortunately stopped our leak. The 31st, I found an excellent place for putting our ship on the careen, on a small island within Taniam point, in the bay of Bantam, on which we made all preparations to remove to that place.
The Rose arrived from Tecoo on the 15th of November, bringing news that the Hollanders had established a Factory there soon after ours was dissolved. The 19th, the Moon, Clove, Samson, and Peppercorn arrived from England, and anchored between Vium point and Pulo Paniang. Perceiving the Clove to be admiral, I went first on board her, taking such fresh victuals as we could spare. I here found Sir Thomas Dale admiral, and Mr Jordain president, and learnt that they had lost company of the Globe to the westward of the Cape, and, what was far worse, they had left the Sun, the flag ship, in great danger of being cast away on the isle of Engano, the whole fleet having much difficulty to double that island. They had afterwards waited two days for the Sun, but she had been bilged on the rocks, as we afterwards learnt, to our great regret. In the morning of the 22d, these ships sailed into Bantam roads, and on passing the island where our ship lay, we saluted them with fifteen guns we had planted on the shore, and struck my flag in compliment to Sir Thomas Dale, who was admiral of that fleet.
Two boats arrived on the 28th from Engano, with sixty-eight men belonging to the Sun, bringing the lamentable news of the loss of that ship, with many of her company, on, that island. The 29th, the Globe arrived in the morning, and this day our leak broke out afresh, but was quickly stopped by removing the bonnet.[262] The 30th, our ship being entirely cleared from stem to stem, the carpenters went below to search for the leak; and as they passed forwards, removing the lining as they went, they found an auger hole left open in the middle of the keel, in the foremost room save one, which hole was four inches and three quarters about, and, had it sprung upon us while at sea and alone, would have tired out our whole company in twenty-four hours. In this the great mercy of God was manifest, that it never broke out upon us but when we had a fleet along with us for our aid.
[Footnote 262: Perhaps this means by shifting the wadded sail.--E.]