alive to kill, they boldly fet out in a canoe for a voyage over the sea, where it was at least forty miles

broad.

The boat was indeed a large one, and would have very well carried 15 or 20 men; and therefore was rather too big for them to manage; but as they had a fair breeze and the flood-tide with them, they did well enough: they had made a maft of a long pole, and a fail of four large goat-fkins dried, which they had fowed or laced together; and away they went merrily enough: the Spaniards called after them, Bon Veajo; and no man ever thought of feeing them any more.

The Spaniards would often fay to one another, and the two honeft Englishmen who remained behind, how quietly and comfortably they lived, now thofe three turbulent fellows were gone; as for their ever coming again, that was the remoteft thing from their thoughts could be imagined; when, behold, after twenty two days abfence, one of the Englishmen being abroad upon his planting-work, fees three ftrange men coming towards him at a diftance, two of them with guns upon their fhoulders.

Away runs the Englishman, as if he was bewitched, and became frighted and amazed, to the governor Spaniard, and tells him they were all undone, for there were firangers landed upon the island, he could not tell who the Spaniard paufing a while, fays to him, How do you mean, you cannot tell who? They are favages to be fure. No, no, fays the Englishman, they are men in clothes, with arms: Nay then, fays the Spaniard, why are you concerned? If they are not favages, they must be friends; for there is no

Chriftian

Christian nation upon earth, but will do us good rather than harm.

While they were debating thus, came the three Englifhmen, and, ftanding without the wood which was new planted, hallooed to them; they prefently knew their voices, and fo all the wonder of that kind ceased. But now the admiration was turned upon another queftion, viz. What could be the matter, and what made them come back again?

It was not long before they brought the men in; and enquiring where they had been, and what they had been doing? They gave them a full account of their voyage in a few words, viz. That they reached the land in two days, or fomething lefs; but finding the people alarmed at their coming, and preparing with bows and arrows to fight them, they durft not go on fhore, but failed on to the northward fix or feven hours, till they came to a great opening, by which they perceived that the land they faw from our island was not the main, but an island: that entering that opening of the fea, they faw another island on the right hand north, and feveral more weft; and being refolved to land fomewhere, they put over to one of the islands which lay weft, and went boldly on fhore; that they found the people were courteous and friendly to them, and they gave them several roots, and fome dried fish, and appeared very fociable; and the women, as well as the men, were very forward to fupply them with any thing they could get for them to eat, and brought it to them a great way upon their heads.

They continued here four days, and enquired, as well as they could of them by figns, what nations VOL. II.

G

were

were this way, and that way; and were told of feveral fierce and terrible people, that lived almost every way; who, as they made known by figns to them, used to eat men; but as for themfelves, they faid, that they never eat men or women, except only fuch as they took in the wars; and then they owned, that they made a great feast, and eat their prifoners.

The Englishmen enquired, when they had a feaft of that kind; and they told them two moons ago, pointing to the moon, and then to two fingers; and that their great king had two hundred prisoners now, which he had taken in his war; and they were feeding them to make them fat for the next feast. The Englishmen feemed mighty defirous to fee those prisoners; but the others mistaking them, thought they were defirous to have fome of them to carry away for their own eating. So they beckoned to them, pointing to the fetting of the fun, and then to the rifing; which was to fignify, that the next morning, at fun-rifing, they would bring fome for them; and accordingly, the next morning, they brought down five women, and eleven men; and gave them to the Englishmen, to carry with them on their voyage, juft as we would bring fo many cows and oxen down to a fea-port town, to victual a fhip.

As brutish and barbarous as thefe fellows were at home, their ftomachs turned at this fight, and they did not know what to do; to refufe the prifoners would have been the highest affront to the favage gentry that offered them; and what to do with them they knew not: however, upon fome de

bate,

bate, they refolved to accept of them; and, in return, they gave the favages that brought them one of their hatchets, an old key, a knife, and fix or feven of their bullets, which, though they did not understand, they feemed extremely pleafed with : and then, tying the poor creatures hands behind them, they (the people) dragged the prifoners into the boat for our men.

The Englishmen were obliged to come away as foon as they had them, or else they that gave them. this noble prefent, would certainly have expected that they should have gone to work with them, have killed two or three of them the next morning, and perhaps have invited the donors to dinner.

But, having taken their leave with all the respect and thanks that could well pafs between people, where, on either fide, they understood not one word they could fay, they put off with their boat, and came back towards the first island, where, when they arrived, they fet eight of their prisoners at liberty, there being too many of them for their occafion.

In their voyage they endeavoured to have fome communication with their prisoners, but it was impoffible to make them understand any thing; nothing they could fay to them, or give them, or do for them, but was looked upon as going about to murder them: they first of all unbound them; but the poor creatures fcreamed at that, especially the women, as if they had juft felt the knife at their throats; for they immediately concluded they were unbound on purpose to be killed.

If they gave them any thing to eat, it was the fame thing; then they concluded it was for fear they fhould fink in flefh, and fo not be fat enough to kill: if they looked at one of them more particularly, the party presently concluded, it was to fee whether he or she was fatteft and fitteft to kill firft; nay, after they had brought them quite over, and began to use them kindly, and treat them well, ftill they expected every day to make a dinner or fupper for their new mafters.

When the three wanderers had given this unaccountable history or journal of their voyage, the Spaniard asked them, where their new family was? And being told that they had brought them on fhore, and put them into one of their huts, and were come to beg fome victuals for them; they (the Spaniards) and the other two Englishmen, that is to fay, the whole colony, refolved to go all down to the place, and fee them, and did so, and Friday's father with them.

When they came into the hut, there they fat all bound: for when they had brought them on fhore, they bound their hands, that they might not take the boat and make their efcape; there, I fay, they fat, all of them ftark-naked: first, there were three men, lufty, comely fellows, well fhaped, ftrait and fair limbs, about 30 or 35 years of age, and five women, whereof two might be from 30 to 40, two more not above 24 or 25, and the fifth, a tall, comely maiden, about 16 or 17: the women were well favoured agreeable persons, both in shape and features, only tawny; and two of them, had they been per

fect