We Invited That Spanish Pilot To Supper With Us, And The
Englishmen Likewise, When He Related To Us The Particulars Of The Fight,
Much Commending The Order And Manner In Which The English Fought, As
Also Their Courteous Behaviour To Him:
But, in the end, the English
merchant stole away in a French ship, without paying any ransom.
In January 1590, there arrived one ship alone at Tercera from the
Spanish West Indies, bringing news that a fleet of an hundred sail,
which had set out from the Indies, were driven by a storm on the coast
of Florida, where they were all cast away, vast riches and many men
being lost, and she alone had escaped with the news. Thus by account, of
200 ships which were certainly known to have sailed out of New Spain,
San Domingo, Havannah, Cabo Verde, Brazil, Guinea, &c. in the year
1589, for Spain and Portugal, not above 14 or 15 of them arrived safe,
all the rest having either been foundered, cast away, or taken. In the
same month of January, there came to Tercera from Seville, 15 or 16
ships, mostly fliboats of the Low Countries, and some ships of Britanny,
that were arrested in Spain. These came out full of soldiers and well
provided with guns and ammunition, to lade home the silver that lay in
Tercera, and to bring home Alvaro Flores into Spain, by order of the
king. As at this time of the year there are always great storms about
these islands, the above-mentioned ships durst not enter the road of
Tercera, for it then blew so great a storm that some of the ships, which
had entered the road, had been forced to cut away their masts, and were
in much danger of being lost, and among these a ship of Biscay was
actually driven upon the coast and dashed to pieces, but all the men
were saved. The other ships were obliged to keep to sea and to separate
from each other, allowing themselves to drive at the mercy of the winds
and waves till the 15th of March, as in all that time they had not one
day of good weather in which to anchor, so that they endured much
distress, heartily cursing both the silver and the island.
When this storm was passed, they fell in with an English ship of about
40 tons, which by reason of the heavy wind could not hoist all her
sails, so that they took her. Hoisting her English ensign on the stern
of their admiral, the ships came now as proudly into the road-stead of
Tercera as if they had defeated the whole navy of England: But, just as
their admiral was entering the road, trickt out with the English flag on
his stern, there came by chance two English ships past the island, which
paid her so well for her bravity, that she had to cry out
_misericordia_. Had she been a mile farther out, the English ships
doubtless would have taken her; but getting under the guns of the
fortress, which began to play upon the English ships, they were forced
to leave her and put farther out to sea, after having slain five or six
of the Spaniards.
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