A Friendly Intercourse Was However Established Between
The English And The Natives, And Trade Took Place With Them Till The
17th, When The Natives Attacked The English Suddenly, But Were Beat Off
With Heavy Loss, While None Of The English Were Hurt.
[Footnote 157:
Gorgona is in long. 78 deg. 33' Guam in 216 deg. 40', both W.
from Greenwich. The difference of longitude is 138 deg. 07', which gives
9530 statute miles, or 2762 marine leagues, so that the computation in
the text is considerably too short. - E.]
On the 19th the Spanish governor of the island came to a point of land
not far from the ship, whence he sent his boat on board with three
copies of the same letter, in Spanish, French, and Dutch, desiring to
know who they were, whence they came, and whither they were bound.
Captain Eaton answered in French, saying that they had been fitted out
by some gentlemen in France to make discoveries, and were come in quest
of provisions. In reply the governor invited Captain Eaton on shore, who
landed with a guard of twenty men doubly armed, and was politely
received. On the 18th the governor sent ten hogs on board, together with
a prodigious quantity of potatoes, plantains, oranges, papaws, and red
pepper, in return for which Captain Eaton sent a diamond ring to the
governor worth twenty pounds, and gave swords to several Spanish
gentlemen who came off with the provisions. Next day the governor sent
to procure some powder, of which he was in want, as the natives were in
rebellion, and Captain Eaton gave him two barrels, for which to the
value of 1400 dollars were offered in gold and silver, but Eaton refused
to accept the money, in consequence of which the governor sent him a
diamond ring, worth fifty pounds. Every day after this the governor sent
them some kind of provisions, and about the end of March, when about to
sail, the governor sent them thirty hogs for sea store, with a large
supply of rice and potatoes.
On one occasion the Indians attacked a party of the English, who were on
shore to draw the sein, but were beaten off with much loss; yet they
afterwards endeavoured to prevail on Captain Eaton to join them in
driving out the Spaniards, which he positively refused. On the 1st
April, leaving the bay in which they had hitherto remained, the Nicholas
anchored before the Spanish fort; and after several civilities on both
sides, set sail in the afternoon of the 3d April with a fair wind.
This island of Guam is about fourteen leagues long by six broad, and
contains several very pleasant vallies, interspersed with fine fertile
meadows, watered by many rivulets from the hills. The soil in these
vallies is black and very rich, producing plenty of cocoas, potatoes,
yams, papaws, plantains, monanoes, sour-sops, oranges, and lemons,
together with some honey. The climate is naturally very hot, yet is
wholesome, as constantly refreshed by the trade-wind. The Indian
natives are large made, well proportioned, active and vigorous, some
being seven feet and a half high, and go mostly naked, both men and
women. They never bury their dead, but lay them in the sun to putrefy.
Their only arms are slings and lances, the heads of these being made of
human bones; and on the decease of any one his bones make eight lances,
four from his legs and thighs, and as many from his arms. These lance
heads are formed like a scoop, and jagged at the edges like a saw or
eel-spear; so that a person wounded by them dies, if not cured in seven
days.
The great annual ship between Manilla and Acapulco touches here for
refreshments, and the Spaniards said there were sometimes eight ships in
one year at this place from the East Indies. They said also, that they
had built a ship here, in 1684, of 160 tons, to trade with Manilla, and
pretended to have a garrison here of 600 men, most of the Indians being
in rebellion.
The Nicholas sailed from Guam W. by S. and on computing that they were
206 leagues from that island, they changed to due W. The 23d, when they
reckoned themselves 560 leagues west of Guam, they met with a very
strong current, resembling the race of Portland, and fell in with a
cluster of islands in lat. 20 deg. 30' N. to the north of Luconia, [the
Bashee Islands.] They sent their boat ashore on the northermost of
these islands, in order to get some fish, and to examine the island, on
which they found vast quantities of nutmegs growing, but saw no people,
and as night was drawing on they did not venture to go any distance from
the shore. To this island they gave the name of Nutmeg Island, and
called the bay in which they anchored English Bay. They observed many
rocks, shoals, and foul ground near the shore, and saw a great many
goats on the island, but brought off very few.
On the 26th of April they were off Cape Bojadore, the N.W. point of
Luconia, and came soon after to Cipe Mindato, where they met the S.W.
monsoon, on which they bore away for Canton in China, where they arrived
in safety and refitted their ship. They had here an opportunity of
making themselves as rich as they could desire, but would not embrace
it; as there came into the port thirteen sail of Tartar vessels, laden
with Chinese plunder, consisting of the richest productions of the East.
The men, however, would have nothing to do with any thing but gold and
silver, and Captain Eaton could not prevail upon them to fight for
silks, as they alleged that would degrade them into pedlars. The Tartars
therefore quietly pursued their affairs at Canton, unconscious of their
danger.
Having repaired the ship, Captain Easton sailed for Manilla, intending
to wait for a Tartar ship of which they had information, bound from that
port, and half laden with silver.
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