the former day, when immediately he was feized by the Moors; and the crew, obferving great numbers to ftart up from behind the rock with weapons in their hands, found it madness to attempt his refcue, and therefore provided for their own fecurity by returning to the ship.

Fry was immediately carried to the king, who, being then in continual expectation of an invasion from Portugal, fufpected that these ships were fent only to ob serve the coast, and discover a proper harbour for the main fleet; but being informed who they were, and whither they were bound, not only difmiffed his captive, but made large offers of friendship and assistance, which Drake, however, did not stay to receive, but being disgusted at this breach of the laws of commerce, and afraid of farther violence, after having spent some days in fearching for his man, in which he met with no resistance, left the coaft on December 31, fome time before Fry's return, who, being obliged by this accident to fomewhat a longer refidence among the Moors, was afterwards fent home in a merchant's fhip.

On January 16, they arrived at Cape Blanc, having in their paffage taken feveral Spanish veffels. Here while Drake was employing his men in catching fish, of which this coaft affords great plenty, and various kinds, the inhabitants came down to the fea-fide with their aliforges, or leather-bottles, to traffick for water, which they were willing to purchase with ambergrife and other gums. But Drake, compaffionating the misery of their condition, gave them water whenever they asked for it, and left them their commodities to traffick with, when they fhould be again reduced to the fame diftrefs, without finding the fame generofity to

relieve them.

VOL. IV.

Ee

Here

Here having discharged fome Spanish ships which they had taken, they fet fail towards the ifles of Cape Verd, and on January 28 came to anchor before Mayo, hoping to furnish themselves with fresh water; but, having landed, they found the town by the water's fide entirely deferted, and, marching farther up the country, faw the vallies extremely fruitful, and abounding with ripe figs, cocoes, and plantains, but could by no means prevail upon the inhabitants to converfe or traffick with them however, they were fuffered by them to range. the country without moleftation, but found no water, except at fuch a distance from the fea that the labour of conveying it to their fhips was greater than it was at that time neceffary for them to undergo. Salt, had they wanted it, might have been obtained with lefs trouble, being left by the fea upon the fand, and hardened by the fun during the ebb, in fuch quantities, that the chief traffick of their ifland is carried on with it.

January 31, they paffed by St. Jago, an island at that time divided between the natives and the Portuguese, who, firft entering thefe iflands under the show of traffick, by degrees established themfelves, claimed a fuperiority over the original inhabitants, and harraffed them with fuch cruelty, that they obliged them either to fly to the woods and mountains, and perifh with hunger, or to take arms against their oppreffors, and, under the infuperable difadvantages with which they contended, to die almoft without a battle in defence of their natural rights, and ancient poffeflions.

- Such treatment had the natives of St. Jago received, which had driven them into the rocky parts of the ifland, from whence they made incurfions into the plantations of the Portuguefe, fometimes with lofs, but generally with that fuccefs which defperation naturally

procures;

procures; so that the Portuguese were in continual alarms, and lived with the natural confequences of guilt, terror and anxiety. They were wealthy, but' not happy, and poffeffed the island, but not enjoyed it.

They then failed on within fight of Fogo, an ifland fo called from a mountain, about the middle of it, continually burning, and like the rest inhabited by the Portuguese, two leagues to the fouth of which lies Brava, which has received its name from its fertility, abounding, though uninhabited, with all kinds of fruits, and watered with great pumbers of fprings and brooks, which would easily invite the poffeffors of the adjacent islands to fettle in it, but that it affords neither harbour nor anchorage. Drake, after having fent out his boats with plummets, was not able to find any ground about it; and it is reported, that many experiments have been made with the fame fuccefs: however, he took in water fufficient, and on the 2d of February set fail for the Straits of Magellan.

On February 17, they paffed the equator, and continued their voyage with fometimes calms, and fometimes contrary winds, but without any memorable accident, to March 28, when one of their veffels, with twenty-eight men, and the greatest part of their fresh water on board, was, to their great difcouragement, separated from them; but their perplexity lafted not long, for on the next day they discovered and rejoined their affociates.

In their long courfe, which gave them opportunities of obferving feveral animals, both in the air and water, at that time very little known, nothing entertained, or furprized them more, than the Flying Fish, which is near of the fame fize with a herring, and has E e 2

fins

fins of the length of his whole body, by the help of which, when he is pursued by the bonito, or great mackerel, as foon as he finds himself upon the point of being taken, he fprings up into the air, and flies forward as long as his wings continue wet, moisture being, as it feems, neceffary to make them pliant and moveable; and when they become dry and stiff, he falls down into the water, unless some bark or ship intercept him, and dips them again for a fecond flight. This unhappy animal is not only pursued by fishes in his natural element, but attacked in the air, where he hopes for fecurity, by the don, or sparkite, a great bird that preys upon fish; and their species muft furely be destroyed, were not their increase so great, that the young fry, in one part of the year, covers the fea.

There is another fish, named the cuttil, of which whole fhoals will fometimes rife at once out of the water, and of which a great multitude fell into their faip.

At length, having failed without fight of land for fixty-three days, they arrived, April 5, at the coast of Brafil, where, on the 7th, the Chriftopher was separated again from them by a ftorm; after which they failed near the land to the fouthward, and on the 14th anchored under a cape, which they afterwards called Cape Joy, because in two days the veffel which they had loft returned to them.

Having spent a fortnight in the river of Plate, to refresh his men after their long voyage, and then standing out to fea, he was again furprized by a fudden ftorm, in which they loft fight of the Swan. This accident determined Drake to contract the number of his fleet, that he might not only avoid the inconvenience

2

of

of fuch frequent feparations, but ease the labour of his men, by having more hands in each veffel.

For this purpose he failed along the coaft in queft of a commodious harbour, and, on May 13, difcovered a bay, which feemed not improper for their purpose, but which they durft not enter till it was examined ; an employment in which Drake never trufted any, whatever might be his confidence in his followers on other occafions. He well knew how fatal one moment's inattention might be, and how eafily almost every man fuffers himself to be furprized by indolence and fecurity. He knew the fame credulity, that might prevail upon him to trust another, might induce another to commit the fame office to a third; and it must be, at length, that fome of them would be deceived. He therefore, as at other times, ordered the boat to be hoifted out, and, taking the line into his hand, went on founding the paffage till he was three leagues from his fhip; when, on a fudden, the weather changed, the fkies blackened, the winds whistled, and all the ufual forerunners of a storm began to threaten them : nothing was now defired but to return to the ship, but the thickness of the fog intercepting it from their fight, made the attempt little other than defperate. By fo many unforeseen accidents is prudence itself liable to be embarraffed! So difficult is it fometimes for the quickest fagacity, and most enlightened experience, to judge what measures ought to be taken! To truft another to found an unknown coaft, appeared to Drake folly and prefumption; to be abfent from his fleet, though but for an hour, proved nothing less than to hazard the fuccefs of all their labours, hardships, and dangers.