- E.]
[Footnote 290: Jones says they fell in with the coast of Diu about eight
leagues to the eastward of that place, and steering seven leagues more
along the coast, came to anchor at a head-land, where they sent the
skiff ashore, and bought sheep and other things, and were here offered a
pilot to Surat for seven dollars. Fifteen leagues east from Diu would
bring them to near Wagnagur, almost directly west from Surat river, on
the opposite coast of the Gulf of Cambay. Moa was probably a village
on the coast. - E.]
The 29th [August?] we proceeded, thinking to hit the channel for the bar
of Surat, getting first from ten fathoms into seven, and afterwards into
six and a half. We now tacked westwards, and deepened our water to
fifteen fathoms; but the next tack brought us into five. When some of
the company asked the master where he proposed going? he answered, the
vessel must go over the height. The ship immediately struck, which I
told him of. On hearing this he cried out, who dares to say the ship has
struck and had scarcely spoken these words when she struck again with
such violence that the rudder broke off and was lost.[291] We then came
to anchor, and rode there for two days; after which our skiff was split
in pieces, so that we now only had our long-boat to help us in our
utmost need. But our people made a shift to get the pieces of the skiff
into the ship, which our carpenter contrived to bind together with
waldings, so that, in the extremity of our distress, she brought sixteen
people on shore.
[Footnote 291: According to Jones they attempted the shoals of Surat
river at the last quarter of the ebb; whereas if they had taken the
first quarter of the flood tide, they would have had sufficient water to
carry them clear over the shoals. - E.]
The 2d September, about six p.m. the ship again struck and began to
founder, having presently two feet water in the well. We plied our pumps
till eleven; but the water increased so fast that we could continue no
longer on board, and took to our boats. About L10,000 in money lay
between the main-mast and steerage, of which the general desired the
people to take what they would; and I think they took among them about
L3000; some having L50, some L40, and others more or less. We now
quitted our ill-fated and ill-managed ship, without taking a morsel of
meat or a single drop of drink along with us; putting off for the shore,
which lay about twenty leagues to the eastward, between midnight and one
in the morning. We sailed and rowed all night and next day till five or
six in the evening, without any sustenance, when we reached a small
island on the bar. But just then, a sudden squall of wind broke the
middle thwart of our long-boat, in which were fifty-five persons. But we
saved our mast, and when the gust ceased we got over the bar into the
river of Gundewee.[292]
[Footnote 292: Gundavee, a small river, on which is a town of the same
name, five leagues south from the river of Surat. - E.]
When the people of the country saw so many men in two boats, they beat
their drums and ran to arms, taking us for Portuguese coming to plunder
some of their towns. Observing their alarm, and having a native of
Guzerat among us, we set him on shore to undeceive the inhabitants; and
as soon as they knew who we were, they directed us to the city of
Gundavee, of which a great man was governor, who seemed sorry for our
misfortunes, and gave us a kind welcome; and here ended our unfortunate
voyage.
Sec.2. Supplement to the foregoing Narrative, from the Account of the same
unfortunate Voyage, by Thomas Jones.[293]
Thus was our tall ship lost, to the great detriment of the worshipful
company, and the utter ruin of all us poor mariners, our voyage being
altogether overthrown, with the loss of all the treasure and goods both
of the merchants and all of us, who were now far from our native
country. We took to our boats on the night of the 5th September, it
being almost miraculous that in two so small boats so many men should be
saved, being at the least eighteen leagues from the shore.[294] We
remained at sea in our boats till about four p.m. of the 6th, when we
discovered land, which we made towards by all the means in our power,
endeavouring to get into the river of Surat. But Providence, which had
already saved us from the shipwreck, would not now suffer us to fall
into the hands of our enemies the Portuguese, who then lay off the bar
of Surat with five frigates to take us and our boats, as they had
intelligence of the intended coming of our ill-fated ship; for, contrary
to our wish and intention, we fell in with the river of Gundavee, about
five leagues to the southward of the bar of Surat, where we were kindly
entertained by the governor of the town. We here learnt that our pinnace
had come into the same river, and had been taken possession of by the
Portugueze, but all her men got ashore, and were gone by land to Surat.
[Footnote 293: Purch. Pilgr. I.228. Astl. I.344. We have here given only
so much of the narrative of Jones as supplies additional circumstances
after the end of that by Coverte. - E.]
[Footnote 294: This surely is a gross error, as they could hardly exceed
the distance of a league or two from shore, though the shore is said in
the former narrative to have been twenty leagues from where the ship was
lost.
