At
This Time Guotalco Was The Nearest Port; But, As We Were Standing In
For It, We Saw A Sail
A considerable way to leeward, which we considered
more proper for us to endeavour to capture than to venture on
Shore, for
which purpose we bore down upon her, which proved to be the Success.
When sufficiently near, I made the private signal formerly concerted
between us, but Captain Clipperton hauled his wind, and did not lie by a
moment for us to get up with him. We were now so for to leeward of
Guatalco, that it was in vain to beat up for that port, especially on an
uncertainty. We were now reduced to a small daily allowance of
calavances, which not being sufficient to keep us alive, we had recourse
to the remainder of our smoked congers which had been neglected for some
months, and had been soaking and rotting in the bilge-water, so that
they were now as disgusting food as could be. Under these calamitous
circumstances, we again met the Success near port Angels, in lat. 15 deg.
50' N. long. 96 deg. 25' W. Having exchanged signals, we stood so near each
other that a biscuit might have been chucked aboard, yet did not
exchange a word, as Clipperton had ordered his officers and ship's
company to take no notice of us: Yet was Captain Clipperton so sensible
of the difficulties and hazards we had to encounter in our design of
going for India, that he said the child just born would be grey-haired
before we should arrive there. We were now in a most miserable
situation, wandering upon an inhospitable coast in want of every thing,
and all the land we had seen was so wild and open to the sea, that it
would have been impossible for us to have landed any where, and nothing
could have urged us to make the attempt but the extreme want we were now
in.
On the 12th March, being off the port of Acapulco towards evening, we
saw a ship between us and the shore, which turned out to be the Success,
when Clipperton not only answered my private signal, but also that for
speaking with me. After his late inhumane behaviour, I would hardly have
trusted him, had we not been so near Acapulco, where I thought he meant
to cruize for the Manilla ships, and now wished to have our assistance,
wherefore I bore down alongside. He now sent his second lieutenant,
Captain Cooke, with a very obliging letter to me, stating that he was
cruizing for the homeward-bound Manilla ships, and desired me to assist
him in the enterprise, with which view he desired me to come on board
next morning, to consult on the best plan of attacking her, and proposed
an union of the two companies. I was well pleased at this offer, and
returned an answer that I should be with him early. I then read his
letter to my people, who all expressed their readiness to join in the
enterprise; but, as Clipperton had used us so unhandsomely, they desired
me to have some security for their shares, signed by Clipperton, Godfrey
the agent, and the rest of the officers in the Success.
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