In This Action Our Consort
Only Fired Ten Or Twelve Guns At The Commencement, When She Dropt
Astern, And Never Again Came Up During The Whole Fight, In Which We Had
Nine Men Slain And Several Wounded.
We were desirous to have had another
trial with the Frenchman, knowing it would be of bad consequences to
Let
him go, as he would discover our being in these seas to the Spaniards;
but our captain opposed this, saying, he knew where he could get to the
value of 500,000l. at any time. So we concluded to return to Juan
Fernandez, to get our anchors, long boats, and several tons of water
already casked, together with a ton of sea-lion oil, which we had left
there. Captain Stradling also had left five of his men, who were gone to
the west part of the island, and knew nothing of our going away after
the enemy. He had also left all his sails, besides those at the yards,
and a great many other stores.
We had then the wind at S. directly off Juan Fernandez, so that it was
difficult to go there; and while beating up we saw two sail, to which
the Cinque-ports was very near, and they fired several shots at her, but
she rowed away to us, and reported them to be two French ships of about
36 guns each; on which the two captains thought it convenient to bear
away for the coast of Peru, leaving Captain Stradling's five men, with
his other stores, which he could ill spare, and now we had neither of us
any boats.
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