Captain Singleton

by Daniel Defoe

Here we took up our Station, cruising off and on, to see if we could meet any

  Ships going to, or coming from the Buenos Ayres, or the Rio de la Plata; but we

  met with nothing worth Notice. However, we employed our selves in things

  necessary for our going off to Sea; for we filled all our Water Casks, and got

  some Fish for our present Use, to spare as much as possible our Ship's Stores.

  William in the mean time went away to the North, and made the Land about the

  Cape de St. Thomas, and betwixt that and the Isles de Tuberon, he found Means to

  trade with the Planters for all his Negroes, as well the Women as the Men, and

  at a very good Price too; for William, who spoke Portuguese pretty well, told

  them a fair Story enough, that the Ship was in Scarcity of Provisions, that they

  were driven a great Way out of their Way, and indeed, as we say, out of their

  Knowledge, and that they must go up to the Northward as far as Jamaica, or sell

  there upon the Coast. This was a very plausible Tale, and was easily believed;

  and if you observe the Manner of the Negroes Sailing, and what happened in their

  Voyage, was every Word of it true.

  By this Method, and being true to one another, William past for what he was; I

  mean, for a very honest Fellow, and by Assistance of one Planter, who sent to

  some of his Neighbour Planters, and managed the Trade among themselves, he got a

  quick Market; for in less than five Weeks, William sold all his Negroes, and at

  last sold the Ship it self, and shipp'd himself and his twenty Men, and two

  Negroe Boys whom he had left, in a Sloop, one of those which the Planters used

  to send on board for the Negroes. With this Sloop Captain William, as we then

  called him, came away, and found us at Port St. Pedro, in the Latitude of 32

  Degrees, 30 Minutes South.

  Nothing was more surprizing to us, than to see a Sloop come along the Coast,

  carrying Portugueze Colours, and come in directly to us, after we were assured

  he had discovered both our Ships. We fired a Gun upon her nearer Approach, to

  bring her to an Anchor, but immediately she fired five Guns by Way of Salute,

  and spread her English Antient: Then we began to guess it was Friend William,

  but wondered what was the Meaning of his being in a Sloop, whereas we sent him

  away in a Ship of near 300 Tuns; but he soon let us into the whole History of

  his Management, with which we had a great deal of Reason to be very well

  satisfy'd. As soon as he had brought the Sloop to an Anchor, he came aboard of

  my Ship, and there he gave us an Account how he began to trade, by the Help of a

  Portugueze Planter, who lived near the Sea-side; how he went on Shore, and went

  up to the first House he could see, and asked the Man of the House to sell him

  some Hoggs, pretending at first he only stood in upon the Coast to take in fresh

  Water, and buy some Provisions; and the Man not only sold him seven fat Hoggs,

  but invited him in, and gave him and five Men he had with him, a very good

  Dinner, and he invited the Planter on board his Ship, and in Return for his

  Kindness, gave him a Negroe Girl for his Wife.

  This so obliged the Planter, that the next Morning he sent him on board, in a

  great Luggage Boat, a Cow and two Sheep, with a Chest of Sweet-meats, and some

  Sugar, and a great Bag of Tobacco, and invited Captain William on Shore again:

  That after this, they grew from one Kindness to another, that they began to talk

  about Trading for some Negroes; and William pretending it was to do him Service,

  consented to sell him thirty Negroes for his private Use in his Plantation, for

  which he gave William ready Money in Gold, at the Rate of five and thirty

  Moydores per Head; but the Planter was obliged to use great Caution in the

  bringing them on Shore: For which Purpose, he made William weigh and stand out

  to Sea, and put in again, above fifty Miles farther North, where at a little

  Creek he took the Negroes on Shore at another Plantation, being a Friend's of

  his whom it seems he could trust.

  This Remove brought William into a farther Intimacy, not only with the first

  Planter, but also with his Friends, who desired to have some of the Negroes

  also; so that from one to another, they bought so many, till one over-grown

  Planter took 100 Negroes, which was all William had left, and sharing them with

  another Planter, that other Planter chaffer'd with William for Ship and all,

  giving him in Exchange a very clean, large, well-built Sloop of near sixty Tons,

  very well furnish'd, carrying six Guns, but we made her afterwards carry twelve

  Guns. William had 300 Moydores of Gold, besides the Sloop, in Payment for the

  Ship, and with this Money, he stored the Sloop as full as she could hold with

  Provisions, especially Bread, some Pork, and about sixty Hoggs alive: Among the

  rest, William got eighty Barrels of good Gunpowder, which was very much for our

  Purpose, and all the Provisions which were in the French Ship he took out also.

  This was a very agreeable Account to us, especially when we saw, that William

  had received in Gold coin'd, or by Weight, and some Spanish Silver, 60000 Pieces

  of Eight, besides a new Sloop, and a vast Quantity of Provisions.

  We were very glad of the Sloop in particular, and began to consult what we

  should do, whether we had not best turn off our great Portuguese Ship, and stick

  to our first Ship and the Sloop, seeing we had scarce Men enough for all three,

  and that the biggest Ship was thought too big for our Business; however, another

  Dispute which was now decided, brought the first to a Conclusion. The first

  Dispute was, whither we should go? My Comrade, as I called him now, that is to

  say, he that was my Captain before we took this Portuguese Man of War, was for

  going to the South Seas, and coasting up the West Side of America, where we

  could not fail of making several good Prizes upon the Spaniards and that then if

  Occasion required, we might come home by the South-Seas to the East-Indies and

  so go round the Globe as others had done before us.

  But my Head lay another Way, I had been in the East-Indies, and had entertained

  a Notion ever since that, that if we went thither we could not fail of making

  good Work of it, and that we might have a safe Retreat, and good Beef to Victual

  our Ship, among my old Friends the Natives of Zamguebar, on the Coast of

  Mozambique, or the Island of St. Laurence: I say, my Thoughts lay this Way and I

  read so many Lectures to them all, of the Advantages they would certainly make

  of their Strength, by the Prizes they would take in the Gulph of Mocha or the

  Red-Sea, and on the Coast of Malabar or the Bay of Bengal, that I amaz'd them.

  With these Arguments I prevailed on them, and we all resolved to steer away S.

  E. for the Cape of Good Hope; and in Consequence of this Resolution, we

  concluded to keep the Sloop, and sail with all three, not doubting, as I assured

  them, but we should find Men there to make up the Number wanting, and if not, we

  might cast any of them off when we pleased.

  We could do no less than make our Friend William Captain of the Sloop, which

  with such good Management he had brought us. He told us, tho' with much good
r />   Manners, he would not command her as a Fregat, but if we would give her to him

  for his Share of the Guinea Ship, which we came very honestly by, he would keep

  us Company as a Victualler, if we commanded him, as long as he was under the

  same Force that took him away.

  We understood him, so we gave him the Sloop, but upon Condition that he should

  not go from us, and should be entirely under our Command: However, William was

  not so easy as before; and indeed, as we afterwards wanted the Sloop, to cruise

  for Purchase, and a Right thorow-paced Pyrate in her; so I was in such Pain for

  William, that I could not be without him, for he was my Privy-Counsellour and

  Companion upon all Occasions; so I put a Scotsman, a bold enterprizing gallant

  Fellow into her, named Gordon, and made her carry 12 Guns, and four Paterero's,

  though indeed we wanted Men, for we were none of us Mann'd in Proportion to our

  Force.

  We sailed away for the Cape of Good Hope, the Beginning of October 1706, and

  passed by in Sight of the Cape, the 12 of November following, having met with a

  great deal of bad Weather: We saw several Merchant Ships in the Road there, as

  well English as Dutch, whether outward bound or homeward we could not tell; be

  it what it would, we did not think fit to come to an Anchor, not knowing what

  they might be, or what they might attempt against us, when they knew what we

  were: However, as we wanted fresh Water, we sent the two Boats belonging to the

  Portuguese Man of War, with all Portuguese Seamen or Negroes in them, to the

  Watering Place, to take in Water: And in the mean time we hung out a Portuguese

  Antient at Sea, and lay by all that Night. They knew not what we was, but it

  seems we past for any thing but really what we was.

  Our Boats returning the third time loaden, about five a Clock next Morning, we

  thought our selves sufficiently water'd, and stood away to the Eastward; but

  before our Men returned the last time, the Wind blowing an easy Gale at West, we

  perceived a Boat in the Grey of the Morning, under Sail, crowding to come up

  with us, as if they were afraid we should be gone. We soon found it was an

  English Long-Boat, and that it was pretty full of Men; we could not imagine what

  the Meaning of it should be; but as it was but a Boat, we thought there could be

  no great Harm in it to let them come on board: And if it appeared they came only

  to enquire who we were, we would give them a full Account of our Business, by

  taking them along with us, seeing we wanted Men as much as any thing; but they

  saved us the Labour of being in doubt how to dispose of them, for it seems our

  Portuguese Seamen who went for Water, had not been so silent at the Watering

  Place, as we thought they would have been. But the Case, in short was this.

  Captain �, I forbear his Name at present, for a particular Reason, Captain of an

  East India Merchant Ship, bound afterwards for China, had found some Reason to

  be very severe with his Men, and had handled some of them very roughly at St.

  Helena ; insomuch, that they threaten'd among themselves to leave the Ship the

  first Opportunity, and had long wish'd for that Opportunity: Some of these Men,

  it seems, had met with our Boat at the Watering Place, and enquiring of one

  another who we were, and upon what Account; whether the Portuguese Seamen, by

  faultring in their Account, made them suspect that we were out upon the Cruise,

  or whether they told it in plain English, or no (for they all spoke English

  enough to be understood) but so it was, that as soon as ever the Men carried the

  News on board, that the Ships which lay by to the Eastward were English, and

  that they were going upon the Account, which by the Way was a Sea Term for a

  Pyrate; I say, as soon as ever they heard it, they went to work, and getting all

  things ready in the Night, their Chests and Clothes, and whatever else they

  could, they came away before it was Day, and came up with us about seven a

  Clock.

  When they came by the Ship's Side which I commanded, we hailed them in the usual

  Manner, to know what and who they were, and what their Business? They answered,

  they were Englishmen, and desired to come aboard: We told them they might lay

  the Ship on board, but ordered they should let only one Man enter the Ship, till

  the Captain knew their Business, and that he should come without any Arms: They

  said Ay, with all their Hearts.

  We presently found their Business, and that they desired to go with us; and as

  for their Arms, they desired we would send Men on board the Boat, and that they

  would deliver them all to us, which was done. The Fellow that came up to me,

  told me how they had been used by their Captain, how he had starved the Men, and

  used them like Dogs; and that if the rest of the Men knew they should be

  admitted, he was satisfied two Thirds of them would leave the Ship. We found the

  Fellows were very hearty in their Resolution, and jolly brisk Sailors they were;

  so I told them I would do nothing without our Admiral, that was, the Captain of

  the other Ship: So I sent my Pinnace on board Captain Wilmot, to desire him to

  come on board; but he was indisposed, and being to Leeward, excused his coming,

  but left it all to me: But before my Boat was returned, Captain Wilmot called to

  me by his Speaking Trumpet, which all the Men might hear as well as I, thus,

  calling me by my Name, I hear they are honest Fellows, pray tell them they are

  all welcome, and make them a Bowl of Punch.

  As the Men heard it as well as I, there was no need to tell them what the

  Captain said; and as soon as the Trumpet had done, they set up a Huzza that

  shewed us they were very hearty in their coming to us; but we bound them to us

  by a stronger Obligation still, after this: For when we came to Madagascar,

  Captain Wilmot, with Consent of all the Ship's Company, ordered that these Men

  should have as much Money given them out of the Stock, as was due to them for

  their Pay in the Ship they had left; and after that, we allowed them Twenty

  Pieces of Eight a Man Bounty Money: And thus we entred them upon Shares, as we

  were all, and brave stout Fellows they were, being Eighteen in Number, whereof

  two were Midship-Men, and one a Carpenter.

  It was the 28th of November, when having had some bad Weather, we came to an

  Anchor in the Road off of St. Augustine Bay, at the South West End of my old

  Acquaintance the Isle of Madagascar: We lay here a while, and traffick'd with

  the Natives for some good Beef, tho' the Weather was so hot, that we could not

  promise our selves to salt any of it up to keep; but I shewed them the Way which

  we practised before, to salt it first with Salt-Petre, then cure it, by drying

  it in the Sun, which made it eat very agreeably, tho' not so wholesome for our

  Men, that not agreeing with our Way of Cooking, viz. Boiling with Pudding,

  Brewes, &c. and particularly this Way would be too salt, and the Fat of the Meat

  be resty, or dry'd away, so as not to be eaten.

  This however we could not help, and made our selves amends by feeding heartily

  on the fresh Beef while we were there, which was excellent good and fat, every


  Way as tender, and as well relished as in England, and thought to be much better

  to us who had not tasted any in England for so long a Time.

  Having now for some time remained here, we began to consider that this was not a

  Place for our Business; and I that had some Views, a particular Way of my own,

  told them, that this was not a Station for those that look'd for Purchase; that

  there were two Parts of the Island which were particularly proper for our

  Purposes; first the Bay on the East Side of the Island, and from thence to the

  Island Mauritius, which was the usual Way which Ships that came from the Malabar

  Coast, or the Coast of Coromandel, Fort St. George, &c. used to take, and where,

  if we waited for them, we ought to take our Station.

  But on the other Hand, as we did not resolve to fall upon the European Traders,

  who were generally Ships of Force, and well Manned, and where Blows must be

  looked for; so I had another Prospect, which I promised my self would yield

  equal Profit, or perhaps greater, without any of the Hazard and Difficulty of

  the former, and this was the Gulph of Mocha or the Red Sea.

  I told them that the Trade here was great, the Ships rich, and the Streight of

  Babelmandel narrow; so that there was no doubt but we might cruise so as to let

  nothing slip our Hands, having the Seas open from the Red Sea along the Coast of

  Arabia, to the Persian Gulph, and the Malabar Side of the Indies.

  I told them, what I had observed when I failed round the Island, in my former

  Progress, how that on the Northmost Point of the Island were several very good

  Harbours, and Roads for our Ships: That the Natives were even more civil, and

  tractable, if possible, than those where we were, not having been so often ill

  treated by European Sailors, as those had in the South and East Sides; and that

  we might always be sure of a Retreat, if we were driven to put in by any

  Necessity, either of Enemies or of Weather.

  They were easily convinced of the Reasonableness of my Scheme, and Captain

  Wilmot, whom I now called our Admiral, tho' he was at first of the Mind to go

  and lye at the Island Mauritius, and wait for some of the European Merchant

  Ships from the Road of Coromandel, or the Bay of Bengal, was now of my Mind. It

  is true, we were strong enough to have attacked an English East India Ship of

  the greatest Force, though some of them were said to carry fifty Guns; but I

  represented to him, that we were sure to have Blows, and Blood if we took them,

  and after we had done, their Loading was not of equal Value to us, because we

  had no room to dispose of their Merchandize: And as our Circumstances stood, we

  had rather have taken one outward bound East India Ship, with her ready Cash on

  board, perhaps to the Value of forty or fifty Thousand Pound, than three

  homeward bound, though their Loading would at London be worth three times the

  Money; because, we knew not whither to go to dispose of the Cargo; whereas the

  Ships from London had Abundance of things we knew how to make use of, besides

  their Money; such as their Stores of Provisions, and Liquors, and great

  Quantities of the like sent to the Governours and Factories at the English

  Settlements, for their Use: So that if we resolved to look for our own Country

  Ships, it should be those that were outward bound, not the London Ships

  homeward.

  All these things considered, brought the Admiral to be of my Mind entirely; so

  after taking in Water, and some fresh Provisions where we lay, which was near

  Cape St. Mary, on the South-West Corner of the Island, we weighed, and stood

  away South, and afterwards S. S. E. to round the Island, and in about six Days

  Sail, got out of the Wake of the Island, and steer'd away North, till we came

  off of Port Dauphin, and then North by East, to the Latitude of 13 Degrees, 40

  Minutes, which was, in short, just at the farthest Part of the Island; and the