the middle of the way, were fuddenly attacked by the Indians, and immediately flain. Nor were the rest of the company out of danger; for behind the rocks was lodged an ambush of five hundred men, who, ftarting up from their retreat, difcharged their arrows into the boat with fuch dexterity, that every one of the crew was wounded by them, the fea being then high, and hindering them from either retiring or making use of their weapons. Drake himself received an arrow under his eye, which pierced him almost to the brain, and another in his head. The danger of these wounds was much increased by the abfence of their furgeon, who was in the vice-admiral, fo that they had none to affift them but a boy, whofe age did not admit of much experience or fkill; yet fo much were they favoured by Providence, that they all recovered.

No reafon could be affigned for which the Indians fhould attack them with fo furious a fpirit of malignity, but that they mistook them for Spaniards, whose cruelties might very reasonably incite them to revenge, whom they had driven by inceffant perfecution from their country, wafting immense tracks of land by maffacre and devastation.

On the afternoon of the fame day, they fet fail, and on the 30th of November dropped anchor in Philips bay, where their boat having been fent out to dif cover the country, returned with an Indian in his canoe, whom they had intercepted. He was of a graceful ftature, dreffed in a white coat or gown, reaching almoft to his knees, very mild, humble, and docile, fuch as perhaps were all the Indians, till the Spaniards taught them revenge, treachery, and cruelty.

This Indian, having been kindly treated, was difmiffed with prefents, and informed, as far as the English could make him understand, what they chiefly wanted, and what they were willing to give in return; Drake ordering his boat to attend him in his canoe, and to fet him fafe on the land,

When he was afhore, he directed them to wait till his return, and, meeting fome of his countrymen, gave them fuch an account of his reception, that, within a few hours, feveral of them repaired with him to the boat, with fowls, eggs, and a hog, and with them one of their captains, who willingly came into the boat, and defired to be conveyed by the English to their fhip.

By this man Drake was informed, that no fupplies were to be expected here; but that fouthward, in a place to which he offered to be his pilot, there was great plenty. This propofal was accepted, and on the 5th of December, under the direction of the good-natured Indian, they came to anchor in the harbour called, by the Spaniards, Valperizo, near the town of St. James of Chiuli, where they met not only with fufficient ftores of provifion, and with ftorehoufes full of the wines of Chili, but with a fhip called the Captain of Morial, richly laden, having, together with large quantities of the fame wines, fome of the fine gold of Baldivia, and a great cross of gold fet with emeralds.

Having spent three days in storing their fhips with all kinds of provifion in the utmost plenty, they departed, and landed their Indian pilot where they first received him, after having rewarded him much above his expectations or defires.

They

They had now little other anxiety than for their friends who had been feparated from them, and whom they now determined to feek; but confidering that, by entering every creek and harbour with their fhip, they expofed themselves to unneceffary dangers, and that their boat would not contain fuch a number as might defend themselves against the Spaniards, they determined to station their fhip at fome place, where they might commodioufly build a pinnace, which, being of light burthen, might eafily fail where the fhip was in danger of being stranded, and at the fame time might carry a fufficient force to refift the enemy, and afford better accommodation than could be expected in the boat.

To this end, on the 19th of December, they entered a bay near Cippo, a town inhabited by Spaniards, who, difcovering them, immediately iffued out, to the number of an hundred horfemen, with about two hundred naked Indians running by their fides. The English, obferving their approach, retired to their boat without any lofs, except of one man, whom no perfuafions or entreaties could move to retire with the reft, and who, therefore, was fhot by the Spaniards, who, exulting at the victory, commanded the Indians to draw the dead carcafe from the rock on which he fell, and in the fight of the English beheaded it, then cut off the right hand, and tore out the heart, which they carried away, having first commanded the Indians to shoot their arrows all over the body. The arrows of the Indians were made of green wood, for the immediate fervice of the day; the Spaniards, with the fear that always harraffes oppreffors, forbidding them to

have any weapons, when they do not want their prefent affiftance.

Leaving this place, they foon found a harbour more fecure and convenient, where they built their pinnace, in which Drake went to feek his companions, but, finding the wind contrary, he was obliged to return in two days.

Leaving this place foon after, they failed along the coaft in search of fresh water, and landing at Turapaca, they found a Spaniard asleep, with filver bars lying by him to the value of three thousand ducats; not all the infults which they had received from his countrymen could provoke them to offer any violence to his perfon, and therefore they carried away his treasure, without doing him any farther harm.

Landing in another place, they found a Spaniard driving eight Peruvian fheep, which are the beafts of burthen in that country, each laden with an hundred pounds weight of filver, which they feized likewise, and drove to their boats.

Further along the coaft lay fome Indian towns, from which the inhabitants repaired to the fhip, on floats made of feal-fkins, blown full of wind, two of which they faften together, and fitting between them row with great fwiftnefs, and carry confiderable burthens. They very readily traded for glass, and fuch trifles, with which the old and the young feemed equally delighted.

Arriving at Mormorena on the 26th of January, Drake invited the Spaniards to traffick with him, which they agreed to, and fupplied him with neceffaries, felling to him, among other provifions, fome of thofe

thofe fheep which have been mentioned, whose bulk is equal to that of a cow, and whofe ftrength is fuch, that one of them can carry three tall men upon his back, their necks are like a camel's, and their heads like thofe of our sheep, They are the most useful animals of this country, not only affording excellent fleeces, and wholesome flesh, but ferving as carriages over rocks and mountains where no other beast can travel, for their foot is of a peculiar form, which enables them to tread firm in the most steep and flippery places.

On all this coaft, the whole foil is fo impregnated with filver, that five ounces may be feparated from an hundred pound weight of common earth.

Still coafting in hopes of meeting their friends, they anchored on the 7th of February before Aria, where they took two barks with about eight hundred pound weight of filver, and, purfuing their course, feized another veffel laden with linens.

On the 15th of February, 1578, they arrived at Lima, and entered the harbour without resistance, though thirty fhips were ftationed there, of which feventeen were equipped for their voyage, and many of them are represented in the narrative as veffels of confiderable force; fo that their fecurity seems to have confifted not in their strength, but in their reputation, which had fo intimidated the Spaniards, that the fight of their own fuperiority could not roufe them to oppofition. Inftances of fuch panick terrors are to be met with in other relations; but as they are, for the most part, quickly diffipated by reason and reflection, a wife commander will rarely found his hopes of fuccefs on them; and, perhaps, on this occafion, the Spaniards fcarcely deferve a feverer cenfure for their cowardice, than Drake for his temerity.