Chapter XXXVI: Section III (2)

The river _Chepo_, or _Cheapo_, rises in the mountains near the north side of the isthmus, being inclosed between a northern and southern range, between which it makes its way to the S.W. after which it describes nearly a semicircle, and runs gently into the sea about seven leagues E. from Panama, in lat. 9° 3' N. long. 79° 51' W. Its mouth is very deep, and a quarter of a mile broad, but is so obstructed at the entrance by sands as only to be navigable by barks. About six leagues from the sea stands the city of _Cheapo_, on the _left_ bunk of the river.[175] This place stands in a champaign country, affording a very pleasant prospect, as it has various hills in the neighbourhood covered with wood, though most of the adjacent lands are pasture-grounds to the north of the river, but the country south from the river is covered with wood for many miles.

[Footnote 175: In modern maps the town of Chepo is placed on the _right_ bank of the river, as descending the stream, and only about five miles up the river.--E.]

Our men returned from Cheapo on the 24th, having taken that town without opposition, but found nothing there worth mention. The 25th we were joined by Captain Harris, and arrived at Taboga on the 28th, when, finding ourselves nearly a thousand strong, we meditated an attack on Panama; but, being informed by our prisoners that the Spaniards there had received considerable reinforcements from Porto Bello, that design was laid aside. The 25th May we had intelligence from some prisoners that the Lima fleet was daily expected, whereupon we anchored in a narrow channel, a mile long and not above seven paces wide, formed by two or three small islands on the south side of the island of _Pacheque_. Our fleet now consisted of ten sail, only two of which were ships of war, that commanded by Captain Davis having 36 guns and 156, while Captain Swan's carried 16 guns and 140 men. The rest were only provided with small arms, and our whole force amounted to 960 men. We had also a fire-ship.

Hitherto we had the wind at N.N.E. with fair weather, but on the 28th of May the rainy season began. On that day, about 11 a.m. it began to clear up, and we discovered the Spanish fleet three leagues W.N.W. from the island of Pacheque, standing to the east, we being then at anchor a league S.E. from that isle, between it and the continent. We set sail about three p.m. bearing down upon the Spaniards right before the wind, while they kept close upon a wind to meet us. Night coming on, we only exchanged a few shots at that time. As soon as it began to be dark, the Spanish admiral shewed a light at his top, as a signal for his fleet to anchor. In half an hour this was taken down; but soon after a light appeared as before, which went to leewards, which we followed under sail, supposing it to be still the admiral; but this was a stratagem of the Spaniards to deceive as, being at the top-mast head of one of their barks, and effectually succeeded, as we found in the morning they had gained the weather-gage of us. They now bore down upon us under full sail, so that we were forced to make a running fight all next day, almost quite round the bay of Panama, and came at length to anchor over against the island of Pacheque. As Captain Townley was hard pressed by the Spaniards, he was forced to make a bold run through the before-mentioned narrow channel, between Pacheque and the three small islands; and Captain Harris was obliged to separate from us during the fight. Thus our long-projected design vanished into smoke.

According to the report of some prisoners taken afterwards, the Spanish fleet consisted of fourteen sail, besides _periagoes_, or large boats of twelve or fourteen oars each, and among these there were eight ships of good force, mounting from eight to forty-eight guns, with two fire-ships, and computed to contain 3000 men. In the morning of the 30th we saw the Spanish fleet at anchor, three leagues from us to leeward, and by ten a.m. they were under sail with an easy gale from the S. making the best of their way to Panama. In this affair we had but one man slain, but never knew the loss sustained by the Spaniards. Captain Gronet and his Frenchmen never joined us in this fight, laying the fault upon his men, wherefore he was ordered in a consultation to leave us; after which we resolved to sail for the islands of Quibo, or Cobaya, in quest of Captain Harris.

We sailed on the 1st June, 1685, with the wind at S.S.W. passing between Cape Carachina and _Islas del Rey_. The 10th we came in sight of _Moro de Puercos_, a high round hill on the coast of Lavelia, in lat. 7° 12' N. round which the coast makes a turn northwards to the isles of Quibo. On this part of the coast there are many rivers and creeks, but not near so large as those on the east side of the bay of Panama. Near the sea this western coast of the bay is partly hilly and partly low land, with many thick woods, but in the interior there are extensive savannahs or fruitful plains, well stored with cattle. Some of the rivers on this side produce gold, but not in such abundance as on the other side; and there are hardly any Spanish settlements on this side, except along the rivers leading to Lavelia and Nata, which are the only places I know of between Panama and _Pueblo nova_. From Panama there is good travelling all over Mexico, through savannahs or plains; but towards Peru there is no passage by land beyond the river Chepo, by reason of thick woods and many rivers and mountains.

We arrived at the isle of _Quibo_ on the 15th June, where we found Captain Harris. This isle is in lat 7° 26' N. and long. 82° 13' W. It is near seven leagues long by four broad, being all low land, except at its N.E. end, on which side, and also to the east, there is excellent water. It abounds in many kinds of trees, among which are great numbers of deer and black monkeys, the flesh of which is reckoned very wholesome; and it has some guanas and snakes. A sand-bank runs out half a mile into the sea from the S.E. end of this island, and on its east side, a league to the north of this, there is a rock a mile from the shore, which is seen above water at last quarter of the ebb. In all other places there is safe anchorage a quarter of a mile from the shore, in six, eight, ten, and twelve fathoms, on clean sand and ooze. The isle of _Quicarra_, to the south of Quibo, is pretty large; and to the north of it is a small isle named Ranchina, which produces great plenty of certain trees called _Palma-Maria_. These are straight, tough, and of good length, and are consequently fit for masts, the grain of the wood having a gradual twist or spiral direction; but, notwithstanding the name, they have no resemblance to palms. To the N.E. of Quibo are the small islands of _Canales_ and _Cantarras_, in the channels between which there is good anchorage. These islands have plenty of wood and water, and appear at a distance as if part of the continent; and as the island of Quibo is the most considerable, these isles are generally named collectively the Quibo islands.

Having failed in our designs at sea, it was agreed to try our fortune on land, and the city of Leon, near the coast of Nicaragua in Mexico, was pitched upon, as being nearest us. Being in want of canoes for landing our men, we cut down trees to make as many as we had occasion for, and in the mean time 150 men were detached to take _Puebla nova_, a town on the continent, near the Quibo island,[176] in hopes of getting some provisions. They easily took that town, but got nothing there except an empty bark, and returned to us on the 26th June. Captain Knight came back to us on the 5th July, having been farther to the west, but meeting with no prize, he had gone south to the bay of Guayaquil, where he took two _barco-longas_, with wine, oil, brandy, sugar, soap, and other commodities. Knight learnt from his prisoners that certain merchant ships, designed to have accompanied the Spanish fleet to Panama, remained behind at Payta, which he might easily have taken if he had been provided with a stronger force.

[Footnote 176: The only place in modern geography resembling the name, and agreeing with the description in the text, is San Pablo on the S. coast of Veragua, in lat. 8° 9' N. and long. 83° W. from Greenwich.--E.]

Our canoes being all ready, we sailed from Quibo on the 20th July towards Realejo, a port a small way to the N.W. of Leon, being now 640 men, with eight ships, three tenders, and a fire-ship. Coasting along to the N.W. we passed the gulfs of Dulce and Nicoya, and the _Isla del Cano_, the land along the coast being low and covered with wood, but almost destitute of inhabitants. August 8th, in lat. 11° 20' N. we got sight of _Volcano viejo_, or Old Volcano, the sea-mark for Realejo, bearing from us N.E. by N. when we made ready to land next day. Accordingly, we sent 520 men on the 9th in thirty-one canoes to attack the harbour of Realejo. The weather was fair and the wind favourable till two p.m. when a tempest arose, attended by thunder and lightning, which almost overwhelmed us in the sea. It subsided, however, in half an hoar, as did the agitation of the waves; it being observable in these hot climates that the waves soon rise and soon fall. It became calm about seven p.m. but as we could not get ready to land that night before day, being then five leagues from shore, we remained nearly in the same place till next evening, that we might not be discovered.

About three next morning another tornado had nearly put an end to us and our enterprise, but it did not last long, and we entered the creek, on the S.E. side of the harbour, leading to Realejo in the night, but durst not proceed further till day-break. We then rowed deeper into the creek, which is very narrow, the land on both sides being very marshy and full of mangrove trees, through among which it is impossible to pass, and beyond these, where the ground is firm, the Spaniards had cast up a small entrenchment. We rowed as fast as we could and landed 470 men, the remainder, among whom I was, being left to guard the canoes.

The city of Leon stands twenty miles up the country in a sandy plain, near a peaked burning mountain, called _El Rico_, or the Volcano of Leon, the way to that city from where our people landed being through a champaign country covered with long grass. Between the landing place and the city were several sugar works, and about midway a beautiful river, but fordable. Two miles before coming to the city there was an Indian town, whence a pleasant sandy road led to the city. The houses in Leon were large and built of stone, but low and roofed with tiles, having many gardens among them, with a cathedral and three other churches. It stands in an extensive sandy plain or savannah, which absorbs all the rain, and being entirely free from wood, it has free access to the breezes on all sides. These circumstances render it a healthy and pleasant place, but not of much commerce, all the wealth of its inhabitants consisting in cattle and sugar works.

Our people began their march for Leon at eight a.m. the van consisting of eighty of the briskest men, being led by Captain Townly. He was followed by Captain Swan with 100 men, and Captain Davis, assisted by Captain Knight, brought up the rear with 170 men.[177] Captain Townley, being two miles in advance of the rest, and having repulsed a body of seventy horse about four miles short of Leon, pushed forwards with his vanguard, and entered the city without farther resistance at three p.m. He was then opposed by 500 foot and 200 horse, first in a broad street, and afterwards in the great market-place; but the horse soon galloped off, and were followed by the foot, leaving the city to the mercy of our people. Captain Swan reached the city at four p.m. Davis about five, and Knight with the remainder at six. The Spaniards only killed one of our men, who was very old and had loitered behind, refusing to accept quarter, and took another named Smith. The governor sent word next day, offering to ransom the town; on which our officers demanded 30,000 pieces of eight, or Spanish dollars, together with provisions for 1000 men for four months, which terms being refused, our people set the city on fire on the 14th of August, and rejoined the canoes next morning. Smith was exchanged for a gentlewoman, and a gentleman who had been made prisoner was released, on promise to deliver 150 oxen for his ransom at Realejo, the place we intended next to attack.

[Footnote 177: Only 350 men are here accounted for, though 470 are said to have marched on this enterprise, leaving a difference of 120 men: perhaps these made a separate corps under Knight, as he seems to have fallen considerably in the rear of Davis.--E.]

In the afternoon of the 16th we came to the harbour of Realejo in our canoes, our ships having come there to anchor. The creek leading to Realejo extends north from the N.W. part of the harbour, being nearly two leagues from the island at the mouth of the harbour to the town. The first two-thirds of this distance the creek is broad, after which it closes into a deep narrow channel, lined on both sides by many cocoa-trees. A mile from the entrance the creek winds towards the west, and here the Spaniards had thrown up an entrenchment, fronting the entrance of the creek, and defended by 100 soldiers and twenty guns, having a boom of trees thrown across the creek, so that they might easily have beaten off 1000 men, but they wanted courage to defend their excellent post; for on our firing two guns they all ran away, leaving us at liberty to cut the boom. We then landed and marched to the town of Realejo, a fine borough about a mile from thence, seated in a plain on a small river. It had three churches and an hospital, but is seated among fens and marshes, which send forth a noisome scent, and render it very unhealthy. The country round has many sugar works and cattle pens, and great quantities of pitch, tar, and cordage are made by the people. It also abounds in melons, pine-apples, guavas, and prickly pears.

The shrub which produces the _guava_ has long small boughs, with a white smooth bark, and leaves like our hazel. The fruit resembles a pear, with a thin rind, and has many hard seeds. It may be safely eaten while green, which is not the case with most other fruits in the East or West Indies. Before being ripe it is astringent, but is afterwards loosening. When ripe it is soft, yellow, and well tasted, and may either be baked like pears, or coddled like apples. There are several sorts, distinguished by their shape, taste, and colour, some being red and others yellow in the pulp. The _prickly-pear_ grows on a shrub about five feet high, and is common in many parts of the West Indies, thriving best on sandy grounds near the sea. Each branch has two or three round fleshy leaves, about the breadth of the hand, somewhat like those of the house-leek, edged all round with spines or sharp prickles an inch long. At the outer extremity of each leaf the fruit is produced, about the size of a large plum, small towards the leaf and thicker at the other end, where it opens like a medlar. The fruit, which is also covered by small prickles, is green at first, but becomes red as it ripens, having a red pulp of the consistence of a thick syrup, with small black seeds, pleasant and cooling to the taste. I have often observed, on eating twenty or more of these at a time, that the urine becomes as red as blood, but without producing any evil consequence.

We found nothing of value in Realejo, except 500 sacks of flour, with some pitch, tar, and cordage. We also received here the 150 oxen promised by the gentleman who was released at Leon; which, together with sugar, and other cattle we procured in the country, were very welcome and useful to us. We remained in Realejo from the 17th to the 24th of August, when we re-embarked. On the 25th Captains Davis and Swan agreed to separate, the former being inclined to return to the coast of Peru, and the latter to proceed farther to the north-west; and as I was curious to become better acquainted with the north-western parts of Mexico, I left Captain Davis and joined Captain Swan. Captain Townley joined us with his two barks, but Captains Harris and Knight went along with Swan. On the 27th Davis went out of the harbour with his ship, but we staid behind for some time, to provide ourselves with wood and water. By this time our men began to be much afflicted with fevers, which we attributed to the remains of a contagious distemper that lately raged at Realejo, as the men belonging to Captain Davis were similarly infected.

We sailed from Realejo on the 3d September, steering to the north-west along the coast, having tornadoes from the N.W. accompanied with much thunder and lightning, which obliged us to keep out to sea, so that we saw no land till the 14th, when we were in lat. 13° 51' N. We then came in sight of the volcano of Guatimala. This presents a double peak like two sugar-loaves, between which fire and smoke sometimes burst forth, especially before bad weather. The city of Guatimala stands near the foot of this high mountain, eight leagues from the South Sea, and forty or fifty from the gulf of Amatique, at the bottom of the bay of Honduras.[178] This city is reputed to be rich, as the country around abounds in several commodities peculiar to it, especially four noted dyes, indigo, otta or anotto, cochineal, and silvestre.[179] Having in vain endeavoured to land on this part of the coast, we proceeded to the small isle of _Tangola_. a league from the continent, where we found good anchorage, with plenty of wood and water.

[Footnote 178: This description agrees with the situation of St Jago de Guatemala, in lat. 14° 25' N. long. 31° 18' W., which is about thirty statute miles from the South Sea. The modern city of Guatemala, standing nine miles to the S.E., is only about sixteen miles from the sea at the head of a bay of the same name.--E]

[Footnote 179: This last is an inferior species of cochineal, gathered from the uncultivated opuntia, while the true cochineal is carefully attended to in regular plantations. Both are the bodies of certain insects gathered by the Indians and dried for preservation, constituting the most valuable scarlet dye.--E]

A league from thence is the port of _Guataico_, in lat. 15° 52' N. long. 36° 20' W. one of the best in Mexico. On the east side of the entrance, and about a mile from it, there is a small isle near the shore, and on the west side a great hollow rock, open at top, through which the waves force a passage with a great noise to a great height even in the calmest weather, which affords an excellent mark for seamen. This port runs into the land about three miles in a N.W. direction, and is about one mile broad. The west side affords the securest anchorage, the other being exposed to S.W. winds, which are frequent on this coast. We landed here to the number of 140 men, of whom I was one, on the 8th September, and marched about fourteen miles to an Indian village, where we found nothing but _vanillas_ drying in the sun. The _vanilla_ grows on a small vine, or bindwood shrub, which winds about the stems of trees, producing a yellow flower, which changes to a pod of four or five inches long, about the the size of a tobacco-pipe stem. This is at first green, but becomes yellow when ripe, having black seeds. When gathered they are laid in the sun, which makes them soft and of a chesnut colour, when they are squeezed flat by the Indians. The Spaniards buy this commodity at a cheap rate from the Indians, and afterwards preserve it in oil.

The 10th we sent four of our canoes to wait for us at the port of _Angelos_, about ten miles W. from Guataico, and on the 12th we sailed from Guataico. The 23d we landed 100 men at Angelos, where they got salt beef, maize, salt, hogs, and poultry but could bring little on board, being at a distance from the shore. Hearing of a stout ship lately arrived at Acapulco from Lima, and as Captain Townley was much in need of a better ship, it was agreed to endeavour to cut that ship out of the harbour. _Acapulco_ is a town and harbour in lat. 16° 50' N. long. 99° 44' W. on the western coast of New Spain, and belonging to the city of Mexico, being the only place of commerce on this coast, and yet there are only three ships that come to it annually. Two of these go every year between this port and Manilla in Luconia, one of the Philippines, and the third goes once a year to and from Lima in Peru. This last comes to Acapulco about Christmas, laden with quicksilver, cacao, and dollars, and waits the arrival of the Manilla ships, from which she takes in a cargo of spices, calicos, muslins, and other goods of India and China, and then returns to Lima. This is only a vessel of moderate size; but the two Manilla ships are each of about 1000 tons burden.

These Manilla ships arrange their voyages in such a way that one or the other is always at Manilla. One of them sails from Acapulco about the beginning of April; and after sixty days passage across the Pacific Ocean, touches at Guam, one of the Ladrones, to procure refreshments. She remains here only three days, and pursues her voyage for Manilla, where she arrives in the mouth of June. The other ship, being ready laden at Manilla with India commodities, sets sail soon after for Acapulco. From Manilla she steers a course to the latitude of 36° or 40° N. before she can fall in with a wind to carry her to America, and falls in first with the coast of California, and then is sure of a wind to carry her down the coast to Acapulco. After making Cape Lucas, the S. point of California, she runs over to Cape _Corientes_, in lat. 20° 26' N. whence she proceeds along the coast to _Selagua_, where the passengers for Mexico are landed, and then continues along the coast to Acapulco, where she usually arrives about Christmas.

This port of Acapulco is very safe and convenient, and of sufficient capacity to contain some hundred ships without danger. There is a low island across the entrance, stretching from E. to W. about a mile and a half long by a mile in breadth, having a deep channel at each end, through either of which ships may enter or go out, providing they go in with the sea-breeze, and out with the land-wind, which regularly blow at stated times of the day and night. The channel at the west end of the isle is narrow, but so deep as to have no anchorage, and through this the Manilla ship comes in; but the Lima ship takes the other channel. The harbour runs eight miles into the land to the north, when it closes up and becomes narrow, after which it stretches a mile to the west. At the entrance of this channel, and on the N.W. side, close to the shore, stands the town of Acapulco, near which is a platform or battery with a good number of guns; and on the east side of the channel, opposite the town, there is a strong castle, having not less than forty pieces of large cannon, and the ships usually ride at the bottom of the harbour, under the guns of this castle.

Captain Townley went with 140 men in twelve canoes to endeavour to cut out the Lima ship; but finding her at anchor within 100 yards of both the castle and platform, found it impossible to effect his purpose, so that he was obliged to return much dissatisfied. We accordingly sailed on the 11th November along the coast to the N.W. between Acapulco and Petaplan, where we found every where good anchorage two miles from shore, but the surf beat with such violence on the coast that there was no safe landing. Near the sea the country was low, and abounding in trees, especially spreading palm-trees, some of which were twenty or thirty feet high in the stem, but of no great size. This part of the country was intermixed with many small hills, mostly barren, but the vallies seemed fertile. The hill of Petaplan, or Petatlan, sends out a round point into the sea, called Cape _Jequena_, in lat. 17° 27' N. which appears from sea like an island, and a little farther west there is a knot of round hills, having an intervening bay, in which we anchored in eleven fathoms. We here landed 170 men, who marched fourteen miles into the country, when they reached a wretched Indian village, deserted by the inhabitants, so that we only found one mulatto-woman and four young children.

Proceeding on the 18th about two leagues farther to the N.W. we came to a pretty good harbour named _Chequetan_, having the convenience of a good fresh-wafer river and plenty of wood. On the 19th we landed ninety-five men, having the mulatto-woman for their guide, at _Estapa_,[180] a league west from Chequetan. The guide now conducted them through a pathless wood along a river, and coming to a farm-house in a plain, they found a caravan of sixty mules, laden with flour, chocolate, cheese, and earthenware, intended for Acapulco, and of which this woman had given them intelligence. All this they carried off, except the earthenware, and brought aboard in their canoes, together with some beeves they killed in the plain. Captain Swan went afterwards on shore, and killed other eighteen beeves, without any opposition. We found the country woody but fertile, and watered by many rivers and rivulets.

[Footnote 180: Istapha is to the eastward of Petatlan, but Chequetan is not delineated in modern maps, neither are any rivers noticed for a great way either N.W. or S.E. from Petatlan.--E.]

Sailing on the 21st to the N.W. the land appeared full of rugged hills, with frightful intervening vallies. On the 25th we passed a high hill having several peaks, in lat. 18° 8' N. near which there is a town named _Cupan_,[181] but we could not find the way to it. The 26th, 200 men were sent to find out the way to _Colima_, said to be a rich place, but after rowing twenty leagues along shore they could not find any place fit for landing, and saw not the least sign of any inhabitants, so that they returned to the ships on the 28th. Soon after we got sight of the volcano of Colima, remarkable for its height, six leagues from the sea, in lat. 19° 5' N. It shewed two peaks or summits, both of which always emit either fire or smoke. The valley at the foot of this mountain is said to be fertile and delightful, abounding in cacao, corn, and plantains, and is said to be ten or twelve leagues wide towards the sea, and to reach far into the country. It is watered by a deep river named Colima, but which is so obstructed by a sand-bank at its mouth, as not even to allow admission to canoes; but there is no landing on this part of the coast, owing to the impetuosity of the surf. The town of Colima is the chief place of this part of the country.

[Footnote 181: Probably Texupan, in lat. 18° 17' N. is here meant.--E.]

The 29th, 200 men were sent in canoes to attempt to land, and if possible to find a road to the town of _Selagua_, seated, as we were told by the Spaniards, at the N.W. end of the vale of Colima, but they were unable to land, owing to the violence of the waves. We came in sight of the port of _Selagua_ on the 1st December. This is a bay in lat. 19° 8' N. parted in the middle by a rocky point, so that it appears like two havens, in either of which there is safe anchorage in ten or twelve fathoms, though the western harbour is the best, and has besides the advantage of a fresh-water rivulet. We saw a considerable number of armed Spaniards on the land, to whom we made a visit next morning with 200 men, but they soon fled. In the pursuit our people found a broad road, leading through a wooded and rocky country, which they followed for four leagues, but found not the least appearance of any inhabitants, and therefore turned back. On their return they took two straggling mulattoes, who said the broad road led to the city of _Oarrah_,[182] four long days journey into the country, and that these men came from that city to protect the Manilla ship, which was expected to set her passengers ashore at this place. The Spanish maps place a town called Selagua hereabouts, but we could not find any appearance of it.

[Footnote 182: Guadalaxara, the latter part of which is pronounced _achara_, is probably here meant. It is 160 miles inland from the port of Selagua.--E.]

We pursued our voyage on the 6th December towards Cape Corientes, in hopes of meeting the Manilla ship. The land on the coast was moderately high, sprinkled with many rugged points, and full of wood, having several apparently good ports between Selagua and Cape Corientes, but we did not touch at any of them. Cape Corientes, of which we came in sight on the 11th, in lat. 20° 28' N. is pretty high, being very steep and rocky towards the sea, but flat on the top. I found its longitude from the Lizard in England, by our reckoning, 121° 41' W.[183] As the Manilla ship is obliged to make this point on her voyage to Acapulco, we took up a station here with our four ships in such a manner that we judged she could hardly escape us; but as we were in want of provisions, fifty or sixty men were sent in a bark beyond the cape to endeavour to get some. They returned, however, on the 17th, not having been able to double the cape, but left forty-six men in four canoes, who intended to attempt to get beyond by rowing.

[Footnote 183: It is only in long. 105° 88' W. from Greenwich; that in the text, from computation or dead reckoning, being considerably erroneous in excess.--E.]

The 18th December we sailed to the isles of _Chametly_, eighteen leagues to the east of Cape Corientes. These are five small low and woody islands, surrounded with rocks, and lying in form of a half-moon a mile from the shore, having safe anchorage in the intermediate space. These isles are inhabited by fishers, who are servants to some of the inhabitants of _Purification_, a considerable town or city fourteen leagues up the country.[184] We anchored at these isles on the 20th, and here provided ourselves with wood and water, and caught great abundance of rock-fish. Next day sixty of our men were sent under Captain Townley to surprise an Indian village, seven or eight leagues to the N.W.

[Footnote 184: Villa de la Purificacion is considerably to the S.E. of Cape Corientes, but the isles of Chametly are omitted in modern maps. Puerto de Navidad, in lat. 19° 20' N. seems the haven belonging to Purificacion.--E.]

On the 24th the four canoes left by Captain Townley's bark returned to the ships. They had got beyond the cape by means of rowing to the valley of _Valderas_, or _Val d' Iris_, the valley of flags, at the bottom of a deep bay, inclosed between Cape Corientes on the S.E. and point _Pontique_ on the N.W. In this delightful valley they landed thirty-seven men, who advanced three miles into the country, and were attacked by 150 Spaniards, horse and foot. Our men retreated into an adjoining wood, whence they kept up a heavy fire on the Spaniards, killing their leader and fourteen troopers, besides wounding a great many, while four of our men were slain and two wounded. Owing to this loss the Spaniards took to flight, and our people were enabled to re-embark. This valley is about three leagues broad, and is bounded towards the inland country by an easy ascent, affording a delightful prospect of extensive pastures well stored with cattle, interspersed with pleasant groves of guavas, orange-trees, and lime-trees. The sandy bay affords a safe landing, and has a fresh-water river, navigable by boats, but becomes brackish in the end of the dry season, which is in February, March, and April.

We continued cruizing off Cape Corientes till the 1st January, 1686, when we sailed for the valley of _Valderas_, proposing to provide ourselves with some beef, of which we were in great need. At night we anchored in sixty fathoms, a mile from shore. On the 7th we landed 240 men, fifty of whom were kept together in a body to watch the motions of the Spaniards, while the rest were employed in providing cattle. We killed and salted as much beef as would serve us for two months, and might have procured a great deal more if we had not run out of salt. By this time our hopes of meeting the Manilla ship were entirely vanished, as we concluded she had got past us to the S.E. while we were employed in procuring provisions, which we afterwards learnt had been the case, by the information of several prisoners. The loss of this rich prize was chiefly owing to Captain Townley, who insisted on taking the Lima ship in the harbour of Acapulco, when we ought to have provided ourselves with beef and maize, as we might then have done, instead of being now forced to procure provisions at the critical time of her coming on the coast. We were likewise deceived by the hope of falling in with rich towns and mines on this coast, not then knowing that all the wealth of this country is in the interior. Seeing that we were now entirely disappointed in our hopes, we parted company, Captain Townley going back to the S.E. while we in Captain Swan's ship went to the west.

The 7th January we passed point Pontique in lat. 20° 38' N. ten leagues from Cape Corientes, being the N.W. point of this bay of the valley of Valderas. A league beyond this point to the W. there are two little isles called the _Pontiques_, and beyond these to the north the shore is rugged for eighteen leagues. The 14th we came to anchor in a channel between the continent and a small white rocky isle, in lat. 21° 15'. The 20th we anchored a league short of the isles of _Chametly_, different from those formerly mentioned under the same name, being six small isles in lat 28° 11' N. three leagues from the continent.[185] One or two of these isles have some sandy creeks, and they produce a certain fruit called _penguins_. These are of two sorts, one red and the other yellow. The plant producing the latter is as thick in the stem as a man's arm, with leaves six inches long and an inch broad, edged with prickles. The fruit grows in clusters at the top of the stem, being round and as large as an egg, having a thick rind, inclosing a pulp full of black seeds, of a delightful taste. The red penguin grows directly out of the ground, without any stalk, sometimes sixty or seventy in a cluster, no bigger than onions, but the shape of nine-pins, the cluster being surrounded with prickly leaves eighteen inches or two feet long.

[Footnote 185: In modern maps these are called the isles of _Mazatlan_, and are placed in lat. 28° 15' N. The name given in the text appears taken from a town on this coast called Charmela, in lat 22° 50' N. but improperly.--E.]

Captain Swan went with 100 men in canoes to the north, to find out the river _Culiacan_, supposed to be in lat. 24° N.[186] and said to have a fair and rich town of the same name on its banks; but after rowing thirty leagues he could not find the river, neither was there any safe landing place on the coast. Seven leagues N.N.W. from the Chametla or Mazatlan isles, our men landed in a small lake or river, having a narrow entrance, called _Rio de Sal_ by the Spaniards, in lat. 23° 30' N.[187] They here procured some maize at an adjacent farm; and learnt at another landing place of an Indian town five leagues distant, to which they marched. Coming near the place we were encountered by a good number of Spaniards and Indians, who were soon beat off. On entering the place we only found two or three wounded Indians, who told us the town was named _Mazatlan_, and that there were two rich gold-mines at the distance of five leagues.

[Footnote 186: The mouth of the river of Cullacan is in 24° 45' N. and the town of that name is about eighty-five or ninety statute miles up the river, supposed to have been an ancient seat of the Mexican nation, before their removal to the vale and lake of Mexico.--E.]

[Footnote 187: The Rio Rastla de Panuco, in 23° 45' N. is certainly here meant.--E.]

On the 2d February 80 men were landed in the river _Rosario_.[188] We came to a pretty little town of the same name, a considerable way up that river, where we were assured by some prisoners that the gold-mines were not above two leagues from thence; but as we had present occasion for provisions, we carried about ninety bushels of maize on board from this place, without searching for the mines. As this small supply was insufficient for our necessities, we resolved to return to the S.E. to the _Rio San Jago_,[189] where we anchored on the 11th. This is one of the most considerable rivers on the west coast of New Spain. The country having a good appearance, Captain Swan sent seventy men to look for a town. After rowing up and down for two days, they landed in a corn field, and, while busy in gathering maize, they seized an Indian, who told them of a town called _Santa Pecaque_, four leagues farther.

[Footnote 188: The mouth of this river is in lat. 28° N. about fifty miles S.E. from Cape Mazatlan, where Dampier seems to have been then at anchor among the Mazatlan isles.--E.]

[Footnote 189: So called by Dampier from the town of St Jago on its banks. Its proper name is the _Rio Grande_, or river of _Tololotlan_. The mouth of this river forms a large bay, in lat 21° 30' N. in which is the considerable island of St Blas.--E.]

Returning to the ship with this intelligence, Captain Swan went with 140 men in eight canoes, and landed five leagues up the river, which was there about a pistol shot across with high banks. He marched from thence through fertile plains and woods for three or four hours, and on approaching St Pecaque the Spaniards evacuated the place, so that we entered unopposed. This town is situated in a spacious plain on the side of a wood, being neatly built, with a market-place in the middle, but not large, and has two churches. There are silver-mines five or six leagues from this town, the ore from which is carried on mules to Compostella to be refined. _Compostella_, the capital of this part of Mexico, is twenty-one leagues from _Pecaque_, being inhabited by seventy families of Spaniards, and by five or six hundred mulattoes and Indians. Finding great plenty of maize, sugar, salt, and salt fish at this place, Captain Swan divided his men into two parts, one of which kept possession of the place, while the other half were employed to carry these articles to the canoes, which was done turn and turn about, with the assistance of some horses. We continued this work for two days; but on the 19th Captain Swan learnt from a prisoner that 1000 men had marched from St Jago, a rich town three leagues from Pecaque on the river, for the purpose of attacking us. On this Captain Swan wanted our people to march altogether with what provisions we could carry; but they refused to obey him till all the provisions should be carried on board, and he was forced to allow half of them to go on with fifty-four loaded horses. They had not gone a mile from Pecaque when they were attacked by the Spaniards from an ambush, and were all slain on the spot. Captain Swan marched to their relief, but came too late, finding the whole party slain and stripped naked; yet the Spaniards never once attempted to engage him, having certainly paid dear for their victory.

Returning on board with the rest of his men, and what provisions had been carried off, Captain Swan resolved to sail for Cape Lucas in California, in hopes of trafficking with the Indians there and in the _lake_ or gulf of California. We accordingly sailed on the 21st with the wind at N.W. and W.N.W. and anchored at the islands of _Santa Maria_, in eight fathoms on clean sand. There are three islands, usually called the _Three Marias_,[190] stretching fourteen leagues from S.E. to N.W. of moderate height, stony, barren, and uninhabited, in lat 21° 30' N. [long. 106° 15' W.] from which Cape St Lucas in California is forty leagues W.N.W. and Cape Corientes twenty leagues E.S.E. We anchored off the east end of the middle island, which we called Prince George's island. These islands produce some cedars, and we found near the sea a green prickly plant, with leaves like those of the _penguin_ plant, and roots like those of the _sempervivum_, but much longer, the Indians of California subsisting mostly on these roots. We baked and eat some of these roots, which tasted like boiled burdock roots. I had been long afflicted with dropsy, and was here buried in the sand for half an hour, covered up to the neck, which brought on a profuse sweat, and I believe with good effect, for I began to recover soon after. We careened here; but as there is no fresh water to be had at this place in the dry season, we had to return to the valley of Valderas, but finding the river brackish we sailed three leagues nearer Cape Corientes, and anchored beside a small round isle four leagues north of that cape, and half a mile from the shore, opposite to a rivulet on the continent, where we filled our water casks.

[Footnote 190: In reality _four_, the fourth or most northwesterly, being named St Juanica.--E.]

Being now sufficiently convinced of our mistaken notion of the riches of this coast, founded on an erroneous idea that the commerce of this country was carried on by sea, whereas it is entirely conducted by land on mules, we now resolved to try our fortune in the East Indies. With this view we sailed from Cape Corientes on the 31st March, and next noon, being thirty leagues from the cape, clear of the land-winds, we had the wind at E.N.E. in which direction it continued till we were within forty leagues of Guam. In all this long passage across the Pacific, nearly in the lat. of 13° N. we saw neither fish nor fowl except once, when by my reckoning we were 5975 miles west from Cape Corientes in Mexico, and then we saw a vast number of _boobies_, supposed to come from some rocks not far off, which are laid down in some hydrographical charts, but we saw them not.

May 20th, at four p.m. being in lat. 12° 55' N. and steering W. we discovered, to our great joy, the island of Guam, eight leagues off, having now only three-days provisions left. _Guam_ is one of the Ladrones, in lat. 13° 15' N. and long. 216° 50' W. consequently its meridional distance from Cape Corientes on the coast of Mexico is 111° 14', or about 7730 English miles. It is twelve leagues long by four broad, extending north and south, and is defended by a small fort mounted by six guns, and a garrison of thirty men with a Spanish governor, for the convenience of the Manilla ships, which touch here for refreshments on their voyage from Acapulco to Manilla. The soil is tolerably fertile, producing rice, pine-apples, water and musk melons, oranges, limes, cocoa-nuts, and bread-fruit. This last grows on a tree as big as our apple-trees, with dark green leaves. The fruit is round and as large as a good penny-loaf,[191] growing on the boughs like apples. When ripe it turns yellow, with a soft and sweet pulp; but the natives pull it green, and bake it in an oven till the rind grows black. They scrape off the rind, and the inside is soft and white, like the crumb of new-baked bread, having neither seed nor stone; but it grows harsh if kept twenty-four hours. As this fruit is in season for eight months in the year, the natives use no other bread in all that time, and they told us there was plenty of it in all the other Ladrone islands.

[Footnote 191: This vague description may now safely be changed to the size of a three-penny, or even four-penny loaf--E.]

On the 31st May we came to anchor near the middle of the west side of this isle, a mile from shore, as there is no anchoring on its east side on account of the trade-winds, which force the waves with great violence against that side. The natives are of a copper-colour, strong-limbed, with long black hair, small eyes, high noses, thick lips, white teeth, and stern countenances, yet were very affable to us. They are very ingenious in building a certain kind of boats, called _proas_, used all over the East Indies. These are about twenty-six or twenty-eight feet long, and five or six feet high from the keel, which is made of the trunk of a tree like a canoe, sharp at both ends. They manage these boats with a paddle instead of a rudder, and use a square sail, and they sail with incredible swiftness, twenty or even twenty-four miles in an hoar. One side of these boats is quite flat and upright like a wall from end to end, but the other side is rounded and full-bellied like other vessels. Along this side, parallel with the boat, at the distance of six or seven feet, a log of light wood, a foot and a half wide, and sharp at both ends, is fastened by means of two bamboos eight or ten feet long, projecting from each end of the main boat, and this log prevents the boat from oversetting. The English call this an out-lier, or out-rigger, and the Dutch _Oytlager_. The air of this island is accounted exceedingly healthy, except in the wet season between June and October. The Indians inhabit small villages on the west side of this island near the shore, and have priests among them to instruct them in the Christian religion. By means of a civil letter from Captain Swan to the Spanish governor, accompanied by some presents, we obtained a good supply of hogs, cocoa-nuts, rice, biscuits, and other refreshments, together with fifty pounds of Manilla tobacco.

Learning from one of the friars that the island of _Mindanao_, inhabited by Mahometans, abounded in provisions, we set sail from Guam on the 2d June with a strong E. wind, and arrived on the 21st at the Isle of St John, one of the _Philippines_. These are a range of large islands reaching from about the latitude of 5° to about 19° N. and from long. 120° to 126° 30' E. The principal island of the group is _Luzon_, or Luçonia, in which Magellan was slain by a poisoned arrow, and which is now entirely subject to the Spaniards. Their capital city of Manilla is in this island, being a large town and sea-port, seated at the south-west end, opposite to the island of Mindora, and is a place of great strength and much trade, especially occasioned by the Acapulco ships, which procure here vast quantities of India commodities, brought hither by the Chinese and Portuguese, and sometimes also by stealth by the English from fort St George or Madras; for the Spaniards allow of no regular trade here to the English and Dutch, lest they should discover their weakness, and the riches of these islands, which abound in gold. To the south of Luzon there are twelve or fourteen large islands, besides a great number of small isles, all inhabited by, or subject to, the Spaniards. But the two most southerly, Mindanao and St John, are not subjected by the Spaniards.

The Island of St John, or _San Juan_, is about the lat. of 9° N. on the east side of Mindanao, and about four leagues from that island, being about thirty-eight leagues in length from N.N.W. to S.S.E. and about twenty-four leagues broad in the middle, having a very rich and fertile soil. _Mindanao_, next to Luzon, is the largest of the Philippines, being sixty leagues long by forty or fifty leagues broad. Its southern end is in lat. 5° 30' N. the N.W. extremity reaching to 9° 40' N. The soil is generally fertile, and its stony hills produce many kinds of trees, most of which are unknown to Europeans. The vallies are supplied with brooks and rivulets, and stored with various sorts of ever-green trees, and with rice, water-melons, plantains, bananas, guavas, nutmegs, cloves, betel-nuts, _durians, jacks_, or _jackas_, cocoa-nuts, oranges, &c.; but, above all, by a species of tree called _libby_ by the natives, which produces sago, and grows in groves several miles in length. The poorer people feed on sago instead of bread for several months of the year. This tree resembles the cabbage-tree, having a strong bark and hard wood, the heart of which is full of a white pith, like that of the elder. They cut down the tree and split it open, taking out the pith, which they stamp or beat well in a mortar, after which, putting it into a cloth, and pouring in water, they stir it well, till the water carries all the farinaceous substance through the cloth into a trough. After the farinaceous matter has settled to the bottom, the water is poured off, and the sago is baked into cakes, which they use as bread. The sago, which is carried from hence to other parts of the East Indies, is dried into small grains, and is used with milk of almonds as a remedy against fluxes, being of an astringent quality.