Narrative of a Voyage to the West Indies and Mexico in the Years 1599-1602

by Samuel de Champlain

From the above Porto Platte we proceeded to the port of Mancenilla, at which port we learned that the aforesaid two vessels were at the port of Mosquittes, near La Tortue, which is a little island thus named, opposite the entrance of the said port, where, arriving the next day about three o'clock in the afternoon, we perceived the above two ships, which were putting to sea to avoid us, but too late; seeing which, and that there were no means of escape, the crew of one of the vessels, which was fully a league at sea, abandoned their ship, and having thrown themselves into their boat, escaped to land. The other ship ran aground and broke to pieces, at the same time the crew escaped to land like the other, and there only remained one mariner in it, who, being lame and somewhat ill, could not fly. He told us that the vessels which were lost were from Dieppe.

There is a very good entrance to the port of Mosquittes, of more than two thousand paces in width, and there is a hidden sand-bank, so that it is necessary to keep near to the land on the east side in entering the said port, in which there is good anchorage; there is an island inside where there is shelter from the north wind, which strikes directly into the harbour. This place is tolerably pleasant from the number of trees which grow there; the land is rather high; but there are such quantities of small flies, like chesans, or gnats, which sting in so strange a fashion, that if a man were to go to sleep and should be stung in the face, puffy swellings of a red colour, enough to disfigure him, would rise from the sting.

Having learned from the lame mariner who was taken in the French vessel, that there were thirteen great ships, French, English, and Flemish, half armed for war, half with merchandise, our admiral resolved to go and take them at the port of St. Nicolas where they were, and for that purpose prepared three galleons of the burthen of five hundred tons each, and four pataches. We proceeded in the evening to cast anchor in a bay called Monte Christo, which is very good and sheltered from the south-east and from the west, and is remarkable for a mountain which is straight above the harbour, so high that it can be discerned from fifteen leagues at sea. The said mountain is very white and shining in the sun.

For two leagues round the said harbour the land is rather low, covered with a quantity of wood, and there is a very good fishery, and a good port under the mountain.

The following morning we proceeded to Cape St. Nicolas to seek the aforesaid ships, and about three o'clock arrived in the bay of the said Cape, and cast anchor as near as it was possible, the wind being adverse to our entering.

Having anchored, we perceived the vessels of the above mentioned merchants, at which our admiral rejoiced greatly, being assured of taking them. All the night we did all that was possible to endeavour to enter the harbour, and when morning came, the admiral took counsel of the captains and pilots as to what was to be done. They told him that the worst they had to think of was what the enemies might do to escape; that it was impossible for them to fly, saving under favour of the night, having the wind fair; that, in fact they would not hazard it in the day-time, seeing their seven armed ships; also that if they wished to make resistance, they would place their vessels at the entrance of the harbour, anchored stem and stern, with all their guns on one side, and their tops well fenced with cables and hides, and that if they saw that they were getting the worst, they would abandon their ships, and throw themselves on land. To prevent this, the admiral should advance his ships as near to the harbour as possible, batter the enemies with his cannon, and land one hundred of his best soldiers to prevent their so escaping. This plan was resolved on, but the enemies did not do as it had been expected; for they made their preparations during the night, and when the morning came they set sail and came straight towards our ships, by which they must of necessity pass, in order to get the wind of us. This resolution changed the courage of the Spaniards, and softened their rhodomontades. It was then for us to lift anchor, and with such promptitude, that in the admiral's ship they cut the cable at the hawse-hole, not having time to raise the anchor. So we also set sail, giving and receiving cannonades. At last they gained the wind on us, and we pursued them all day and the following night until the morning, when we saw them four leagues from us, which our admiral perceiving, he abandoned the pursuit to continue our route; but it is very certain that if he had wished he could have taken them, having better ships, more men and munitions of war. The foreign vessels were only preserved by default of courage of the Spaniards.

A HARBOUR IN ST DOMINGO.

During this chase, there happened a laughable thing which deserves to be related. A patache of four or five tons was seen mingled with our ships. It was hailed frequently, as to whence it came, with orders to lower the sails, but there was no reply: and although some guns were fired at it, it continued to go before the wind, which moved our admiral to have it chased by two of our pataches, which, in less than two hours, overtook and approached it, calling out always for the sails to be lowered, without any answer; nor would the soldiers board it; although no one was seen at the helm, so that the commander of the pataches said that it was steered by a devil, and forced the soldiers, as many as twenty, by menaces, to go on board, who found nothing; they only brought away the sails, and left the hull to the mercy of the sea.

A report being made of this to the admiral, and of the fright that the soldiers had shewn, it gave matter for laughter to all.