This ship was named the Sacra Familia, of 300 tons, six guns, and seventy men, having a great many small arms, shot, and hand-granades. She had arrived some time before from Calao, with wine and brandy; but had now nothing on board except fifty jars of gunpowder, a small quantity of rusk, and some jerked beef; so that she was hardly worth the risk and trouble of capture. But as she had the character of sailing better, and was much better fitted than our ship, I resolved to exchange ships, and we all went aboard the prize, which had been fitted out in warlike manner, and commissioned, for the express purpose of taking us, if we chanced to fall in her way. To do justice to my people, our small arms were handled with much dexterity on this occasion; but, having been chiefly directed at the powder-jars, the only person killed on board the prize was the boatswain, and one person slightly wounded; while on our side no damage was sustained. A merchant, made prisoner at this time, seemed inclined to purchase the Jesu Maria, which we had quitted; and hearing her cargo consisted of pitch, tar, and copper, he consented to my demands, and went ashore to raise the sum agreed upon. We had so few provisions, that we could not afford to keep any prisoners, and therefore dismissed all the whites, Indians, and others, except some negroes, whom we detained to assist in working the ship: and, that we might lose as little time as possible, we set immediately to work, overhauling our sails and rigging, that we might get our new ship ready for sea.
While thus employed, I received a letter from the governor of the place, which none of us could understand; but learnt by the messenger, that it intimated some account of a truce concluded between the crowns of Britain and Spain, and that the governor requested me to stay five days, that he might satisfy me by shewing me the articles of accommodation. I thought this odd, telling the Spanish gentleman I had not met with a friendly or peaceable reception; asking him why they had thus armed themselves in so desperate a manner, and why the governor had not rather sent me a flag of truce in the morning before we engaged, giving me this intimation? Saying also, if this story were true, we ought to have found the alleged intelligence on board the prize, as she came from Lima, whence they pretended the news came. It was likewise extraordinary, that none of the officers in the prize should know any thing of the matter: yet I had so great a regard for even the name of peace, that I would wait fifteen days, if the governor would supply us with provisions and water, otherwise I would not consent to stay twenty-four hours. I sent also a short answer to the governor, excusing our imperfect knowledge of the Spanish language. In this letter I stated if peace were actually concluded between our sovereigns, that I was ready to act as he desired, on due proof; and hoped, as we were now friends, that he would allow us to have refreshments from his port. On receipt of this, the governor expressed great satisfaction, and seemed to make no difficulty in complying with my request. Our boats went therefore ashore every morning, under a flag of truce, and we received for the first four days eight small jars of water daily. On the fifth day they reduced us to five jars, and during the whole time only one small cow was sent us.
On this occasion a boat came off full of men, among whom were two priests, who brought with them a paper in Spanish, which they called the articles of peace; but so wretchedly written and blotted, that we should have been puzzled to read it, had it even been in English. I therefore desired the priests to translate it into Latin, which they promised to do, and took the paper with them. They also told me, that the governor meant to send for some Englishmen who lived at Guatimala, if I would continue three days longer in the road; to which I answered, that he might take his own time. Two days after, on our boat going ashore as usual, the governor ordered her and her crew to be seized. I was all day in suspence, not imagining the governor would make such a breach of the law of nations; but in the evening two of the boat's crew came off in an old leaky canoe, bringing a letter from the governor, and another from Mr Brooks, my first lieutenant, who was one of the prisoners. The governor required me to deliver up the Sacra Familia, and that we should all surrender, otherwise he would declare us pirates; and Mr Brooks told me he believed the governor meant to bully me. The governor proposed two ways for conveying us from the Spanish dominions, one of which was by Vera Cruz overland, and the other by sea to Lima. But I liked neither of these, not chusing a journey of 1300 miles at least through a country inhabited by a barbarous people, nor yet a voyage to Lima under their guidance. My two men told me, that Frederick Mackenzie had let the governor into the secret of our necessities, and of my design of procuring water at the island of Tigers, in the gulf of Amapala, which he said he would take care to prevent, and believed he now had us safe enough, knowing our only boat remaining was a small canoe. My two men who brought these letters offering their service, and a third volunteering to accompany them, to bale out the water from their wretched canoe, I sent a letter in French to the governor, offering, if I could be assured of a safe conduct for ourselves and effects to Panama, and thence by way of Portobello to one of the British colonies, we would enter into a farther treaty, which he might signify, if he meant to comply, by firing two guns, and by sending off my people with the usual supply; otherwise necessity would compel us to sail that night. Receiving no reply whatever, I weighed before day next morning, and made sail, leaving the Jesu Maria behind, a much more valuable ship than the one I took away.
On going to sea, we reduced ourselves to a pint of-water in the twenty-four hours, and directed our course for the gulf of Amapala, about thirty-five leagues S.S.E. [274] meaning to water there on the island of Tigers. The loss of my officer and boat's crew sensibly diminished the number of white faces among us, and so lessened our strength, that we should never have been able to manage this great ship, with her heavy cotton sails, but for our negro prisoners, who proved to be very good sailors. The loss of our boat was a great inconvenience to us; but as I meant only to provide water enough to serve us to Panama, where we were determined to surrender ourselves, if it were really peace, I thought we might contrive to get such a quantity of water as might suffice, in two or three days, by means of our canoe. The winds being favourable, we reached the gulf in ten days, but we could find no water, after an anxious and hazardous search. Surrounded on all sides with the most discouraging difficulties, we weighed anchor again on the 13th of April, when I brought our people to a resolution not to surrender on any account, let the consequence be what it might. We had not now forty gallons of water in the ship, and no other liquids, when we came to an allowance of half a pint each for twenty-four hours, even this being too large, considering we could get none nearer than the island of Quibo, which was about 160 leagues from the gulf of Amapala, and we were forty-three in number, including our negroes.
[Footnote 274: About forty-two marine leagues E.S.E.]
We accordingly steered for Quibo, having very uncertain winds and variable weather, and were thirteen days on this short allowance. No one who has not experienced it can conceive our sufferings in this sultry climate, by the perpetual extremity of thirst, which would not permit us to eat an ounce of victuals in a day. We even drank our urine, which moistened our mouths indeed, but excited our thirst the more. Some even drank large draughts of sea-water, which had like to have killed them. [275] On the 25th April we came to the island of Cano, in lat. 8° 47' N. which, by the verdure, promised to yield us water, if our canoe could get on shore. In this hope we came to anchor off the north-west side of this island, when it was as much as we could do to hand our sails, stop our cable, and execute the other necessary labours, so greatly were we reduced. We imagined we could see a run of water, yet dreaded the dangerous surf which broke all round those parts of the island we could see. Mr Randal was sent with some jars, to try what could be done; and as he did not appear again when very late at night, I became apprehensive he was either lost, or, not finding water on the island, had gone in search of it to the continent. At length he came back, with his jars filled, and any one may guess our unspeakable joy on being thus opportunely delivered from the jaws of death. He did not bring above sixty or seventy gallons, and I was at great pains to restrain my men from using it immoderately, allowing only a quart to be distributed immediately to each man. What made me the more strict on this occasion was, that Mr Randal assured me we should hardly get any more, the breakers were so very dangerous. That very night we chanced to have a shower of rain, on which we used every expedient for catching it, in sheets, blankets, and sails. During our long thirst we had continually wished for rainy weather, and had often good reason to expect it, by seeing many louring black clouds, which seemed every minute ready to discharge their burdens, yet never did before to any purpose. Next day I sent our boatswain to make another essay; but after going round the whole island, and wasting the entire day in search of a smooth beach, he could not see a single spot where he might venture on shore. Thinking we had a sufficient stock to carry us to Quibo, we weighed next day; and while ranging near the island, we saw a smooth beach, on which I sent our canoe again, which brought back nine jars full of water.
[Footnote 275: It may not be improper to state, that in such extremity for want of water, great relief has been experienced by remaining immersed for some time in the sea; the lymphatics of the skin absorbing water to supply and relieve the system very materially.--E.]
We now pursued our course to the S.E. and arrived in a few days at Quibo, anchoring at the same place where we had been formerly. We pursued our business of wooding and watering at this island with tolerable chearfulness, yet without any great hurry; chiefly because we were now within eighty leagues of Panama, and it was requisite for us to deliberate very seriously on our scheme of surrendering to the Spaniards. We considered Panama as well calculated for treating on this subject, not being any way strong towards the sea; and as we had a good ship, we thought it no difficult matter to settle the terms of our surrender, before giving ourselves into their hands. We also reckoned on some assistance from the factors of the South Sea company, resident there, who, in case a peace were actually concluded in Europe, might intercede for us, and procure us a passage for Europe. Yet as there was something extremely disagreeable in the idea of a surrender, especially to such enemies as the Spaniards, we were in no great hurry, particularly as we were here somewhat at our ease, enjoying many conveniences to which we had long been strangers. The free use we made of the excellent fruits growing on this island brought the flux among us, which weakened us very much, and interrupted our work for some days, yet in the main did us little hurt, or rather tended to preserve us from the scurvy. We deliberated and consulted as to our future conduct; but our views were so discordant, and our minds so distracted, that we could come to no resolution, except that of continuing here, in hopes of something happening to our advantage.
The island of Quibo or Coibo is almost in the same parallel with Panama, [276] being about twenty-four English miles from N. to S. and twelve from E. to W. It is of moderate height, covered all over with inaccessible woods, always green; and, though never inhabited, abounds with papaws and limes, and some other fruits I never saw before, which are nearly as good, though wholly neglected, as those that are most carefully attended to in other islands in similar latitudes, whence it may be inferred that the soil is fertile; and, if ever inhabited and cleared, it promises to be as productive as the best of our West-India islands. The pearl-fishers, not being able to follow their occupation during the vandevals, or black stormy months, from the beginning of June to the end of November, have a few scattered huts in several parts of this island and of Quivetta, used by the divers during their season, in which they sleep and open their oysters, so that the sandy beach is covered with fine mother-of-pearl shells. In wading only to the middle, we could reach large pearl oysters with our hands, which at first pleased us much; but we found them as tough as leather, and quite unpalatable. Having no seyne, I can say little about other kinds of fish. We occasionally observed a large kind of flat fish, which often sprung a great way out of the water, which are said to be very destructive to the divers; for, when these return to the surface, unless they take great care, these fish wrap themselves round the divers, and hold them fast till drowned. To guard against this, the divers always carry a sharp-pointed knife, and on seeing any of these fish above them, present the point over their heads, and stick it into the fish's belly. They are also subject to great danger from alligators, which swarm in this part of the sea; and some of us fancied we saw one swimming below the surface near Mariato Point, only a few leagues from hence. This island has a great variety of birds, also great numbers of black monkeys and guanoes, which last mostly frequent the streams of fresh water. Some of these guanoes are of extraordinary size, being of a grey colour with black streaks, those about the head being brown. Quibo is a most convenient place for procuring wood and water, as the wood grows in abundance within twenty yards of the sea, and there are several streams of fresh water crossing the beach.
[Footnote 276: This is a material error. Panama is in lat. 9° N. long. 80° 21' W. while the centre of Quibo is in lat. 7° 28' N. and long. 82° 17' W. from Greenwich.--E.]