Chapter LVI: Section III: Residence on the Island of Juan Fernandez

Having all got on shore in the evening, my officers gathered around me to bear me company, and to devise measures for procuring necessaries out of the wreck; and having lighted a fire, wrapped themselves up in what they could get, and slept very soundly, notwithstanding the coldness of the weather, and our hopeless situation. I would have set the people to work that very night, in endeavouring to save what we could from the wreck, but they were so dispersed that we could not gather them together, and all opportunity was lost of saving any thing, except some of our fire-arms. But while the people were employed in building tents, and making other preparations for their residence on the island, the wreck was entirely destroyed, and every thing in her was lost, except one cask of beef and one of _farina de pao_, which were washed on shore. Thus all our provisions were gone, and every thing else that might have been useful. I had saved 1100 dollars belonging to the owners, which happened to be in my chest in the great cabin, all the rest of their treasure being in the bottom of the bread-room for security, which consequently could not be come at.

I now took some pains to find out a convenient place in which to set up my tent, and at length found a commodious spot of ground not half a mile from the sea, having a fine stream of water on each side, with trees close at hand for firing, and building our huts. The people settled around me as well as they could, and as the cold season was coming on, some thatched their huts, while others covered theirs with the skins of seals and sea-lions. Others again satisfied themselves with water-butts, in which they slept under cover of trees. Having thus secured ourselves from the weather, we used to pass our time in the evenings around a great fire before my tent, where my officers usually assembled, employing themselves in roasting cray-fish in the embers; sometimes bewailing our unhappy fate, and sinking into despondency; and at other times feeding ourselves with hopes that something might yet be done to set us again afloat. On this subject I first consulted with the carpenter, who answered, that he could not make bricks without straw, and then walked from me in a surly humour. From him I went to the armourer, and asked what he could do for us in his way that might contribute to build a small vessel. To this he answered, that he hoped he could do all the iron work, as he had fortunately saved his bellows from the wreck, with four or five _spadoes_ or Spanish swords, which would afford him steel, and there could be no want of iron along shore; besides, that we should doubtless find many useful things when we came to work in good earnest. He desired therefore, that I would get some charcoal made for him, while he set up his forge.

Upon this encouragement, I called all hands together, and explained to them the great probability there was of our being able to build a vessel sufficient to transport us from this island; but that it would be a laborious task, and must require their united best endeavours. To this they all consented, and promised to work with great diligence, begging me to give them directions how to proceed. I then ordered the men who had axes on shore, before the wreck, to cut wood for making charcoal, while the rest went down to the wreck to get the boltsprit ashore, of which I proposed to make the keel of our intended vessel; and I prevailed on the carpenter to go with me, to fix upon the properest place for building. The people found a great many useful materials about the wreck; and among the rest the topmast, which had been washed on shore, and was of the greatest importance.

We laid the blocks for building upon on the 8th June, and had the boltsprit ready at hand to lay down as the keel; when the carpenter turned short round upon me, and swore an oath that he would not strike another stroke on the work, for he would be slave to nobody, and thought himself now on a footing with myself. I was at first angry, but came at length to an agreement with him, to give him a four-pistole piece as soon as the stern and stern-posts were up, and 100 dollars when the bark was finished, and the money to be committed to the keeping of any one he chose to name. This being settled, he went to work upon the keel, which was to be thirty feet long; the breadth of our bark, by the beam, sixteen feet, and her hold seven feet deep. In two months we made a tolerable shew, owing in a great measure to the ingenuity of Poppleston, our armourer, who never lost a minute in working with his hands, or contriving in his head. He made us a small double-headed maul, hammers, chisels, and a sort of gimblets or wimbles, which performed very well. He even made a bullet-mould, and an instrument to bore cartouch-boxes, which he made from the trucks of our gun-carriages, covering them with seal-skins, and contrived to make them not only convenient, but neat. He contrived to execute any iron-work wanted by the carpenter, and even finished a large serviceable boat, of which we stood much in need.

In the beginning of this great work the people behaved themselves very well, half of them working regularly one day, and the other half the next, seeming every day to grow easier under our misfortunes. They treated me with as much respect as I could wish, and even in a body thanked me for the prospect of their deliverance; while I never failed to encourage them by telling them stories of the great things that had been accomplished by the united efforts of men in similar distresses. I always pressed them to stick close to the work, that we might get our bark ready in time; and told them that we fortunately had three of the best ports in Chili within 120 leagues of us. This inspired them with life and vigour, and they often declared that they would exert their utmost endeavours to finish her with all expedition. At last, however, we became a prey to faction, so that it was a miracle we ever got off from this place. For, after completing the most laborious part of the work, they entirely neglected it; and many of my officers, deserting my society, herded with the meanest of the ship's company. I was now convinced in a suspicion I had long entertained, that some black design was in embryo; for when I met any of my officers, and asked what they were about, and the reason of their acting so contrary to their duty, by diverting the people from their work, some used even to tell me they knew not whether they would leave the island or not, when my bundle of sticks was ready; that they cared not how matters went, for they could shift for themselves as well as the rest. When I spoke with the common men, some were surly, and others said they would be slaves no longer, but would do as the rest did. In the midst of these confusions, I ordered my son to secure my commission in some dry place among the woods or rocks, remembering how Captain Dampier had been served in these seas.

At length, I one afternoon missed all the people, except Mr Adamson the surgeon, Mr Hendric the agent, my son, and Mr Dodd, lieutenant of marines, which last feigned lunacy, for some reason best known to himself. I learnt at night that they had been all day assembled at the great tree, in deep consultation, and had framed a new set of regulations and articles, by which the owners in England were excluded from any share in what we might take for the future, divested me of all authority as captain, and regulated themselves according to the _Jamaica discipline_.[269] Even the chief officers, among the rest, had concurred in electing one Morphew to be their champion and speaker, who addressed the assembly to the following purport: "That they were now their own masters, and servants to none: and as Mr Shelvocke, their former captain, took upon him still to command, he ought to be informed, that whoever was now to be their commander, must be so through their own courtesy. However, that Mr Shelvocke might have the first offer of the command, if the majority thought fit, but not otherwise. That Mr Shelvocke carried himself too lofty and arbitrarily for the command of a privateer, and ought to have continued in men-of-war, where the people were obliged to bear all hardships quietly, whether right or wrong."

[Footnote 269: This expression is not explained, but seems to have been, according to the model of the Buccaneers, all prizes to be divided among the captors.--E.]

Some persons present, who had a regard for me, represented, "That they had never seen or known me treat any one unjustly or severely; and that however strict I might be, they had no one else to depend upon, and that they ought all to consider how many difficulties I had already brought them through. That, although they were not now in the hands of our enemies, no one could tell how soon others might come upon them: and, if they ever looked to get back to England, there was no other way but by going round the world, for which there was no one capable of undertaking the charge except Captain Shelvocke. They ought also to consider his commission, and the respect due to him on that account; besides the protection that would afford them, should they happen to fall into the hands of the Spaniards."

This remonstrance had some effect on the common men, but they were diverted from the thoughts of returning to obedience by no less a person than my first lieutenant, Mr Brooks, who had made Morphew his confidant even on board ship: for having served before the mast before he was made my lieutenant, he had contracted a liking for forecastle conversation. They were also supported and encouraged by Mr Randal, my second lieutenant, who was brother-in-law to Brooks, and by others. The first remarkable outrage committed by this gang of levellers was to Mr La Porte, my third lieutenant, whom Morphew knocked down on the beach, while Brooks stood by and witnessed this brutality. This affair came soon after to be fully explained; for the men framed a new set of articles, putting themselves upon the Jamaica discipline, and declaring, as I had been their captain, I might be so still; and that they were willing to allow me six shares, as a mark of their regard, though I ought only to have four, according to the Jamaica articles. Most of the officers were reduced, according to the same plan: for instance, Mr La Porte, Mr Dodu, and Mr Hendrie were declared midshipmen; and as the superior officers consented to this scheme, it could not be prevented from being carried into execution. Mr Coldsea the master was the only person who preserved a kind of neutrality, neither promoting nor opposing their designs. In this distressed emergency, I thought it lawful, and even necessary, to submit to their demands, and therefore signed their articles, in conjunction with the rest of my officers.

I now thought to have got them to work on our bark; but, instead of listening to me, they demanded what little money I had saved belonging to the owners, with which I was obliged to comply, being 750 dollars in virgin silver, a silver dish weighing 75 ounces, and 250 dollars in coin. Even after this I was treated worse than ever, having only the refuse of the fish allowed me, after they had chosen the best, being glad, after a hard day's work, to dine upon seal; while Morphew and his associates feasted on the best fish the sea afforded. They next took the arms out of my custody, of which hitherto I had taken great care; because, having only one flint to each musket, and very little ammunition, I foresaw that we would be undone if this were wasted. I represented all this to them, yet they squandered away the small remainder of powder and bullets in killing cats, or any thing else they could get to fire at.--This is a concise history of our transactions in the island of Juan Fernandez, from the 24th May to the 15th August, during which no person could suffer more than I did, or have a more uncomfortable prospect.

On the 15th of August we were put into great confusion by the sight of a large ship, on which, before she crossed the bay, I ordered all the fires to be put out, and the negroes and Indians to be confined, lest the ship might be becalmed under the land, and any of them should attempt to swim off to her, as I conceived she might possibly be a man-of-war come to seek us, having received advice of our shipwreck; yet I knew, if she discovered what we were about, we should soon have the whole force of the kingdom of Chili upon us. Our apprehensions were soon over, as the ship bore away large, and kept at too great a distance to see any thing of us. On this occasion I got most of our people under arms, and was glad to see them in some measure obedient to command; telling them that I was pleased to see their arms in such good order, I was impertinently answered, that this was for their own sakes. Before they dispersed, I represented to them the necessity of using their best endeavour to get our bark afloat, instead of caballing against their captain, which, in the end, might be very prejudicial to them all; as, if discovered by the Spaniards, we might expect to be all made slaves in the mines. I told them we still had a great deal of work to do, and had never above ten of the most considerate to labour, and seldom above six or seven; while they knew I was always one of the number, to shew a good example. But the more I tried to reclaim them, the more obstinately they ran into confusion, interrupting every thing that tended to do them service.

Next day they divided among themselves on a new scheme, being no less than to burn our bark, and to build two large shallops, or pinnaces, in lieu of her. Morphew and his friend Brooks were the favourers of this new design, aiming doubtless at a separation by this means: but as this must be determined by a majority, they assembled to debate this matter in front of my tent, carrying on their deliberations with much clamour on both sides. In order to put them off this ruinous plan, I represented to them the impracticability of building the boats, as our tools and other materials were already worn out and expended. The workmen, and a considerable majority of the rest, sided with me: but at night the carpenter sent me word, if I did not pay him the money agreed upon at first, I should never see his face again; wherefore, although his terms had not been implemented, I was obliged to raise the money for him. The most provoking part of this proposal about the boats was, that the fellows who chiefly promoted it were those who had never done an hour's work since we were cast away. Not gaining this point, they openly declared I should not be their captain, and that none but Brooks should command them, which was probably what that young man aspired to from the commencement of the mutiny; and had undoubtedly succeeded, had it not been for the people in the boatswain's tent, who still refused their consent to my being left on the island, though fond of thinking themselves their own masters, and of refusing to submit to regular command.

To complete our confusion, there arose a third party, who resolved to have nothing to do with the rest, proposing to remain on the island. There were twelve of these, who separated from the rest, and never made their appearance except at night, when they used to come about the tents to steal powder, lead, and axes, and any thing else they could lay their hands, on. But in a little time I found means to manage them, and took from them all their arms, ammunition, axes, and other plunder, and threatened to have them treated as enemies, if they came within musket-shot of our tents. These divisions so weakened the whole body, that they began to listen to me, so that I got most of them into a working humour. Even Brooks came to me with a feigned submission, desiring to eat with me again, yet in the main did not lessen his esteem for Morphew. His dissimulation, however, proved of infinite service in contributing to the finishing of our bark, which required the united efforts of all our heads and hands. For, when we came to plank the bottom, we had very vexatious difficulties to encounter, as our only plank consisted in pieces from the deck of our wreck, which was so dry and stubborn that fire and water had hardly any effect in making it pliable, as it rent, split, and flew in pieces like glass; so that I now began to fear that all our labour was in vain, and we must quietly wait to be taken off by some Spanish ship, and be led quietly to prison after all our troubles.

By constant labour, and using a variety of contrivances, we at length finished our bark, but in such a manner that I may safely assert, a similar bottom never before swam on the sea. Our boat also was launched on the 9th September; and our bark being now in a fair way of being completed, it remained to consider what provisions we could get to support us during our voyage, all our stock being one cask of beef, five or six bushels of _farina de poa_, or cassada flour, and four or five live hogs. I made several experiments to preserve both fish and seal, but found that this could not be done without salt. At length we fell upon a contrivance for curing conger eels, by splitting them, taking out their backbones, dipping them in sea-water, and then drying them in a great smoke; but as no other fish could be cured in a similar manner, our fishers were directed to catch as many congers as they could. At this time several of our people who had not hitherto done any work, began to repent of their folly, as they grew weary of living on this island, and now offered their services to go a-fishing, making some idle excuses for being so long idle, asking my pardon, and promising not to lose a moment in future. The new boat was sent to try her fortune, and returned at night with a great parcel of various kinds of fish, among which were about 200 congers, which was a good beginning, and which were divided among the tents to be cured. Our boat was carefully hauled on shore every night, and strictly guarded, to prevent any of our people from stealing her, and making their escape. By her means also, Mr Brooks, our only diver, tried what could be recovered from that part of the wreck which had not been drifted on shore; but could only weigh one small gun, and two pieces of a large church candlestick, belonging to our owners.

Our boat was daily employed in fishing, for which purpose the armourer supplied hooks; and our men made abundance of lines of twisted ribbons, a great quantity of which had been driven on shore. Others of the men were employed in making twine stuff for rigging, patching up old canvass for sails, and a variety of other necessary contrivances to enable us to put to sea; and our cooper put our casks in order; and at length we set up our masts, which were tolerably well rigged, and our bark made a decent figure. My spirits were however much damped, by the extreme difficulty of caulking her tight, as her seams were bad, our tools wretched, and our artists very indifferent. When this was done, so as we could, our bark was put into the water to try her fitness, on which there was an outcry of, A sieve! a sieve! Every one now seemed melancholy and dispirited, insomuch that I was afraid they would use no farther means; but in a little time, by incessant labour, we brought her into a tolerable condition. Having repaired the ship's pumps, and fitted them to the bark, the people exclaimed that this was only a poor dependence; but I exhorted them to have patience, and continue their assistance in doing every thing that could be thought of for her security. The cooper also made a set of buckets, one for every man, to serve to bale her, in case of necessity. Next spring-tide, which was on the 5th October, 1720, we put her again into the water, naming her the _Recovery_, when she answered tolerably well, when we resolved to run the hazard of going to sea in her, and made all possible dispatch in getting our things on board. Yet, after all, a dozen of our people chose to remain on shore, together with as many negroes and Indians.

Our sea-stock, besides the small quantity of beef and cassada flour formerly mentioned, consisted of 2300 eels cured in smoke, weighing one with another about a pound each, together with about sixty gallons of seal-oil, in which to fry them. On our first landing, as the weather was then too coarse for fishing, we had to live on seals, the entrails of which are tolerable food; but the constant and prodigious slaughter we made among them, frightened them from our side of the island. Some of the people eat cats, which I could not bring myself to, and declared they were sweet nourishing food. When the weather allowed us to fish, we were delivered from these hardships; but some of our mischievous crew set the boat a-drift, so that she was lost: after which we contrived wicker boats, covered with sea-lions skins, which did well enough near shore, but we durst not venture in them out into the bay, and consequently were worse provided with fish than we might otherwise have been. We fried our fish in seal-oil, and eat it without bread or salt, or any other relish, except some wild sorrel. Our habitations were very wretched, being only covered by boughs of trees, with the skins of seals and sea-lions, which were often torn off in the night, by sudden flaws of wind from the mountains.

The island of Juan Fernandez is in lat 33° 40' S. and long. 79° W. being at the distance of about 150 marine leagues, or 7° 30' from the coast of Chili. It is about fifteen English miles long from E. to W. and five miles at the broadest, from N to S. entirely composed of mountains and valleys, so that there is no walking a quarter of a mile on a flat. The anchoring place is on the north side of the island, and is distinguished by a little mountain, with a high peak on each side. It is not safe to anchor in less than forty fathoms, and even there, ships are very much exposed to sharp gales from the north, which blow frequently. There cannot well be a more unpleasant place to anchor in, as the bay is surrounded by high mountains, and is subject to alternate dead calms and sudden stormy gusts of wind. This island enjoys a fine wholesome air, insomuch that out of seventy of us, who remained here five months and eleven days, not one among us had an hour's sickness, though we fed upon such foul diet, without bread or salt; so that we had no complaints among us, except an incessant craving appetite, and the want of our former strength and vigour. As for myself, from being corpulent, and almost crippled by the gout, I lost much of my flesh, but became one of the strongest and most active men on the island, walking much about, working hard, and never in the least afflicted with that distemper. The soil is fertile, and abounds with many large and beautiful trees, most of them aromatic. The names of such as we knew were the _Pimento_, which bears a leaf like a myrtle, but somewhat larger, with a blue blossom, the trunks being short and thick, and the heads bushy and round, as if trained by art. There is another tree, much larger, which I think resembles that which produces the jesuit bark. There are plains on the tops of some of the mountains, on which are groves of the _Indian laurel_, mentioned by Frezier in his description of Chili. These have a straight slender body, from which sprout small irregular branches all the way from the root to the top, bearing leaves like the laurel, but smaller. _Palm-trees_ are found in most parts of the island, growing in smooth joints, like canes, some thirty and some forty feet high. Their heads resemble the cocoa-nut tree, except that their leaves are of a paler green, and bear large bunches of red berries, bigger than sloes, which taste like haws, and have stones as large as those of heart-cherries. That which we call the _palm-cabbage_ is the very substance of the head of the tree; which being cut off and divested of its great spreading leaves, and all that is hard and tough, consists of a white and tender young shoot or head, having its leaves and berries perfectly formed, and ready to replace the old one. When in search of these, we were forced to cut down a lofty tree for each individual cabbage.

One good property of the woods which cover this island is, that they are every where of easy access, as there is no undergrowth, except in some of the deepest valleys, where the fern grows exceedingly high, and of which there are very large trees, with trunks of considerable solidity.[270] Some of the English who had been formerly here, had sowed turnips, which have spread much, as have also two or three plantations of small pompions; but my men never had patience to let any of these come to maturity. We found also plenty of water-cresses and wild sorrel. Some of the hills are remarkable for a fine red earth, which I take to be the same with that of which the inhabitants of Chili make their earthenware, which is almost as beautiful as the red porcelain of China. The northern part of the island is well watered by a great many streams which flow down the narrow valleys; and we found the water to keep well at sea, and to be as good as any in the world. Down the western peak, contiguous to the Table Mountain, there fall two cascades from a perpendicular height of not less than 500 feet. These are close together, and about 12 feet broad. What with the rapid descent of these streams, and the numerous palm-trees growing close beside them, adorned with vast clusters of red berries, the prospect is really beautiful. We should have had no want of goats, could we have conveniently followed them in the mountains. The Spaniards, before they settled in Chili, left a breed of goats here, and have since endeavoured to destroy them, by leaving a breed of dogs, but without effect. Cats are also very numerous, exactly resembling our household cats in size and colour; and those of our men who eat of them, assured me they found more substantial relief from one meal of their flesh, than from four or five of seal or fish; and, to their great satisfaction, we had a small bitch, which, could catch almost any number they wanted in an hour. There are not many sorts of birds; but the sea on the coast abounds with a greater variety of fish than almost any place I was ever in.

[Footnote 270: These must have been some species of palm, having palmatad leaves resembling ferns.--E.]

Seals and sea-lions also abound; called _lobos de la mar_ by the Spaniards, from their resemblance to wolves. They have a fine iron-grey fur, and when full grown are as big as a large mastiff. They are naturally surly, and snarl at the approach of any one. Instead of tails, they have two fins behind, with which they make shift to get on much faster than the sea-lions, which are large unwieldy creatures, and prodigiously full of oil.