We Prepared
Therefore To Return On Board, On Seeing Which Some Negroes Came Running
Down And Waved Us Back With A White Flag, So We Anchored Again And They
Made Us To Understand By Signs That The Chief Would Soon Come Down.
In
the meantime we saw a sail pass by us, but being small we regarded it
not.
As the sun was high, we made a tilt with our oars and sails. There
now came off to us a canoe with five men, who brought back our bottle,
and gave me a hen, making signs by the sun that within two hours the
merchants of the country would come and buy all we had. I gave them six
_manillios_ to present to their captain; and as they signified by signs
that they would leave a man with us if we gave them a pledge, we put one
of our men into their boat; but as they would not give us one of their
men, we took back our man again, and remained in expectation of the
merchants. Shortly afterwards there came down one of the natives to the
shore, arrayed like their captain, attended by a numerous train, who
saluted us in a friendly manner, and then sat down under a tree where
the captain used to sit in the former year. Soon afterwards we perceived
a great number of natives standing at the end of a hollow way, and
behind them the Portuguese had planted a base, which they suddenly
discharged, but its ball overshot us, though we were very near. Before
we could ship our oars to get away, they shot at us again, but did us no
harm; the negroes came to the rocks close beside us, whence they
discharged calivers at us, and the Portuguese shot off their base twice
more. On this our ship made some shots at them, but they were protected
by the rocks and hills.
We now went on board to leave this place, as the negroes were bent
against us, because in the former year Robert Gainsh had taken away the
captains son from this place, with three others, and all their gold and
every thing else they had about them; owing to which they had become
friends to the Portuguese, whom they hated before, as appeared in the
former year when the Trinity was there; when the chief came on board
and brought them to his town, trading with them largely, and offering
them ground on which to build a fort[253]. The 14th we plied back to
meet the Hind, which we met in the morning, and then both ships sailed
eastwards to try what could be done at the place where the Trinity sold
her friezes in the preceding year. The day after we parted, the Hind had
taken eighteen and a half ounces of gold from some negroes in exchange
for wares. This day, about one P.M. we saw some canoes on the coast,
with men standing beside them, and going to them with merchandise, we
took three ounces of gold for eighteen _fuffs_ of cloth, each _fuffe_
being three and a half yards, at the rate of one angel twelve grains the
_fuffe_. These people made us understand by signs that if we waited till
next day we might have plenty of gold.
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