They Spent All The
19th In Examining The Rest Of The Prisoners, And In Confronting Them
With Those Who Escaped From The Massacre.
On the 20th they sent several kinds of refreshments to Weybhays's
company, and carried a good quantity of water from the isle.
There
was something very singular in finding this water; the people who
were on shore there had subsisted near three weeks on rainwater, and
what lodged in the clefts of the rocks, without thinking that the
water of two wells which were on the island could be of any use,
because they saw them constantly rise and fall with the tide, from
whence they fancied they had a communication within the sea, and
consequently that the water must be brackish; but upon trial they
found it to be very good, and so did the ship's company, who filled
their casks with it.
On the 21st the tide was so low, and an east-south-east wind blew so
hard, that during the whole day the boat could not get out. On the
22nd they attempted to fish upon the wreck, but the weather was so
bad that even those who could swim very well durst not approach it.
On the 25th the master and the pilot, the weather being fair, went
off again to the wreck, and those who were left on shore, observing
that they wanted hands to get anything out of her, sent off some to
assist them. The captain went also himself to encourage the men,
who soon weighed one chest of silver, and some time after another.
As soon as these were safe ashore they returned to their work, but
the weather grew so bad that they were quickly obliged to desist,
though some of their divers from Guzarat assured them they had found
six more, which might easily be weighed. On the 26th, in the
afternoon, the weather being fair, and the tide low, the master
returned to the place where the chests lay, and weighed three of
them, leaving an anchor with a gun tied to it, and a buoy, to mark
the place where the fourth lay, which, notwithstanding their utmost
efforts, they were not able to recover.
On the 27th, the south wind blew very cold. On the 28th the same
wind blew stronger than the day before; and as there was no
possibility of fishing in the wreck for the present, Captain Pelsart
held a council to consider what they should do with the prisoners:
that is to say, whether it would be best to try them there upon the
spot, or to carry them to Batavia, in order to their being tried by
the Company's officers. After mature deliberation, reflecting on
the number of prisoners, and the temptation that might arise from
the vast quantity of silver on board the frigate, they at last came
to a resolution to try and execute them there, which was accordingly
done; and they embarked immediately afterwards for Batavia.
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