A New Voyage Round the World by a Course Never Sailed Before

We gave them, however, a good large pack of European goods, to make agreeable presents where they received favours; such as black baize, pieces of say, serge, calamanco, drugget, hats and stockings; not forgetting another pack of hatchets, knives, scissors, beads, toys, and such things, to please the natives of the plain country, if they should meet with any.

They desired a few hand granadoes, and we gave them about a dozen; but, as they were heavy, it would have been very troublesome to have carried more.

The Spaniard stayed till all this was done, and till the men were ready to march, and then told us privately, that it would not be proper for him to march along with them, or to appear openly to countenance the enterprise; that my two lieutenants knew the way perfectly well; and that he would go before to his own house, and they should hear of him by the way.

All the mules and horses which he had lent us to bring us back he left with them to carry their baggage, and our new captain had bought six more privately in the country.

The last instructions I gave to our men were, that they should make the best of their way over the country beyond the mountains; that they should take the exact distances of places, and keep a journal of their march, set up crosses and marks at all proper stations; and that they should steer their course as near as they could between the latitude of 40°, where they would enter the country, and the latitude of 45° south, so that they would go an east-south-east course most of the way, and that wherever they made the shore they should seek for a creek or port where the ships might come to an anchor, and look out night and day for the ships; the signals also were agreed on, and they had two dozen of rockets to throw up if they discovered us at sea; they had all necessary instruments for observation also, and perspective glasses, pocket compasses, &c., and thus they set out, October 24th, 1715.

We stayed five days after they began their march, by agreement, that if any opposition should be offered them in the country, or any umbrage taken at their design, so that it could not be executed, we might have notice. But as the Spaniards in the country, who are the most supinely negligent people in the world, had not the least shadow of intelligence, and took them only to be French seamen belonging to the two French ships (such we past for) who had lain there so long, they knew nothing when they went away, much less whither; but, no question, they believed that they were all gone aboard again.

We stayed three days longer than we appointed, and hearing nothing amiss from them, we were satisfied that all was right with them; so we put to sea, standing off to the west, till we were out of sight of the shore, and then we stood away due south, with a fresh gale at north-west-by-west, and fair weather, though the wind chopped about soon after, and we had calms and hot weather that did us no good, but made our men sick and lazy.

The supposed journey of our travellers, their march, and the adventures they should meet with by the way, were, indeed, sufficient diversion, and employed us all with discourse, as well in the great cabin and roundhouse as afore the mast, and wagers were very rife among us, who should come first to the shore of Patagonia, for so we called it.

As for the place, neither they nor we could make any guess at what part of the country they should make the sea; but, as for us, we resolved to make the port St. Julian our first place to put in at, which is in the latitude of 50° 5' and that then, as wind and weather would permit, we would keep the coast as near as we could, till we came to Punta de St. Helena, where we would ride for some time, and, if possible, till we heard of them.

We had but a cross voyage to the mouth of the Straits of Magellan, having contrary winds, as I have said, and sometimes bad weather; so that it was the 13th of December when we made an observation, and found ourselves in the latitude of 52° 30', which is just the height of Cape Victoria, at the mouth of the passage.

Some of our officers were very much for passing the Straits, and not going about by Cape Horn; but the uncertainty of the winds in the passage, the danger of the currents, &c., made it by no means advisable, so we resolved to keep good sea-room.

The 25th of December, we found ourselves in the latitude of 62° 30', and being Christmas-day, I feasted the men, and drank the health of our travellers. Our course was south-east-by-south, the wind south-west; then we changed our course, and went east for eight days, and having changed our course, stood away, without observation, east-north-east, and in two days more, made the land, on the east of the Strait de la Mare, so that we were obliged to stand away east-south-east to take more sea-room, when the wind veering to the south-by-east, a fresh gale, we stood boldly away due north, and running large, soon found that we were entered into the North Sea on Twelfth Day; for joy of which, and to celebrate the day, I gave every mess a piece of English beef, and a piece of Chilian pork, and made a great bowl of punch afore the mast, as well as in the great cabin, which made our men very cheerful, and instead of a twelfth cake, I gave the cook order to make every mess a good plum-pudding, which pleased them all as well.

But while we were at our liquor and merry, the wind came about to the north-east and blew very hard, threatening us with a storm, and as the shore lay on our leeward quarter, we were not without apprehensions of being driven on some dangerous places, where we could have no shelter; I immediately therefore altered my course, and ran away east all night, to have as much sea-room as possible.

The next day the wind abated, and hauling away to the east, we stood northward again, and then north-west in three days more, and we made land, which appeared to be the head island of Port St. Julian, on the north side of the port, where we ran in, and about an hour before sunset came to an anchor in eleven fathom good holding ground, latitude 49° 18'.

We wanted fresh water, otherwise we would not have made any stay here, for we knew we were a little too far to the south; however, we were obliged to fill fresh water here for three days together, the watering-place being a good way up the river, and the swell of the sea running very high.

During this interval, Captain Merlotte and I went on shore with about thirty men, and marched up the country near twenty miles, getting up to the top of the hills, where we made fires, and at the farthest hill we encamped all night, and threw up five rockets, which was our signal; but we saw nothing to answer it, nor any sign either of English people or natives in all the country.

We saw a noble champaign country, the plains all smooth, and covered with grass like Salisbury Plain; very little wood to be seen anywhere, insomuch that we could not get any thing but grass to make a smoke with, which was another of our signals.

We shot some fowls here, and five or six hares; the hares are as large as an English fox, and burrow in the earth like a rabbit. The fowls we shot were duck and mallard, teal and widgeon, the same as in England in shape and size, only the colour generally grey, with white in the breast, and green heads; the flesh the same as ours, and very good.

We saw wild geese and wild swans, but shot none; we saw also guinacoes, or Peruvian sheep, as big as small mules, but could not get at them; for as soon as we stepped toward them, they would call to one another, to give notice of us, and then troop altogether and be gone.

This is an excellent country for feeding and breeding of sheep and horses, the grass being short, but very sweet and good on the plains, and very long and rich near the fresh rivers, and were it cultivated and stocked with cattle, would without doubt produce excellent kinds of all sorts of cattle; nor could it fail producing excellent corn, as well wheat as barley and oats; and as for peas, they grow wild all over the country, and nourish an infinite number of birds resembling pigeons, which fly in flights so great, that they seem in the air like clouds at a great distance.

As for the soil, that of the hills is gravel, and some stony; but that of the plains is a light black mould, and in some places a rich loam, and some marl, all of which are tokens of fruitfulness, such as indeed never fail.

The 14th of January (the weather being hot, and days long, for this was their July), we weighed and stood northerly along the shore, the coast running from Port St. Julian north-north-east, until we arrived at the famous islands called Penguin Islands; and here we came to an anchor again, in the same round bay which Sir John Narborough called Port Desire, it being the 17th of January.

Here we found a post or cross, erected by Sir John Narborough, with a plate of copper nailed to it, and an inscription, signifying that he had taken possession of that country in the name of Charles the Second.

Our men raised a shout for joy that they were in their own king's dominions, or as they said, in their own country; and indeed, excepting that it was not inhabited by Englishmen, and cultivated, planted, and enclosed after the English manner, I never saw a country so much like England.

Here we victualled our ships with a new kind of food, for we loaded ourselves with seals, of which here are an infinite number, and which we salted and ate, and our men liked them wonderfully for awhile, but they soon began to grow weary of them; also the penguins are a very wholesome diet, and very pleasant, especially when a little salted; and as for salt, we could have loaded our ships with it, being very good and white, made by the sun, and found in standing ponds of salt water, near the shore.

The penguins are so easily killed, and are found in such vast multitudes on that island (which for that reason is so called), that our men loaded the long-boat with them twice in one day, and we reckoned there were no less than seven thousand in the boat each time.

Here we travelled up into the country in search of our men, and made our signals, but had no answer to them, nor heard any intelligence of them. We saw some people here at a distance, scattering about; but they were but few, nor would they be brought by any means to converse with us, or come near us.

We spread ourselves over the country far and wide; and here we shot hares and wild-fowl again in abundance, the country being much the same as before, but something more bushy, and here and there a few trees, but they were a great way off. There is a large river which empties itself into this bay.

Finding no news here of our men, I ordered the Madagascar ship to weigh and stand farther north, keeping as near the shore as he might with safety, and causing his men to look out for the signals, which, if they discovered, they should give us notice by firing three guns.

They sailed the height of Cape Blanco, where the land falling back, makes a deep bay, and the sea receives into it a great river at several mouths, some of them twenty leagues from the other, all farther north. Here they stood into the bay until they made the land again; for at the first opening of the bay they could not see the bottom of it, the land lying very low.

The captain was doubtful what he should do upon the appearance of so large a bay, and was loath to stand farther in, lest the land, pushing out into the sea again afterwards, and a gale springing up from the seaward, they might be shut into a bay where they had no knowledge of the ground; and upon this caution, they resolved among themselves to come to an anchor for that evening, and to put farther out to sea the next morning.

Accordingly the next morning he weighed and stood off to sea; but the weather being very fine, and the little wind that blew being south-west-by-south, he ventured to stand in for the shore, where he found two or three small creeks, and one large river; and sending in his shallop to sound, and find out a good place to ride in, upon their making the signal to him that they had found such a place, he stood in, and came to an anchor in eleven fathom good ground, half a league from the shore, and well defended from the northerly and easterly winds, which were the winds we had any reason to fear.

Having thus brought his ship to an anchor, he sent his shallop along the shore to give me an account of it, and desire me to come up to him, which accordingly we did; and here we resolved to ride for some time, in hopes to hear from our little army.

We went on shore, some or other of us, every day, and especially when five of our men, going on shore on the north side of the river, had shot three Peruvian sheep and a black wild bull; for after that they ranged the country far and near to find more, but could never come within shot of them, except three bulls and a cow, which they killed after a long and tedious chase.

We lay here till the 16th of February, without any news of our travellers, as I called them. All the hopes we had was, that five of our men asking my leave to travel, swore to me they would go quite up to the Andes but they would find them; nay, they would go to the Spanish gentleman himself, if they did not hear of them; and obliged me to stay twenty days for them, and no longer. This I readily promised, and giving them everything they asked, and two Peruvian sheep to carry their ammunition, with two dozen of rockets for signals, a speaking trumpet, and a good perspective glass, away they went; and from them we had yet heard no news, so that was our present hope.

They travelled, as they afterwards gave an account, one hundred and twenty miles up the country, till they were at last forced to resolve to kill one of their guinacoes, or sheep, to satisfy their hunger, which was a great grief to them, for their luggage was heavy to carry; but, I say, they only resolved on it, for just as they were going to do it, one of them roused a deer with a fawn, and, by great good luck shot them both; for, having killed the doe, the fawn stood still by her till he had loaded his piece again, and shot that also.

This supplied them for four or five days plentifully, and the last day one of my men being by the bank of the river (for they kept as near the river as they could, in hopes to hear of them that way), saw something black come driving down the stream; he could not reach it, but calling one of his fellows, their curiosity was such, that the other, being a good swimmer, stripped and put off to it, and, when he came to it, he found it was a man's hat; this made them conclude their fellows were not far off, and that they were coming by water.

Upon this, they made to the first rising ground they could come at, and there they encamped, and at night fired some rockets, and after the third rocket was fired, they, to their great joy, saw two rockets rise up from the westward, and soon after that a third; and in two days more they all joyfully met.

We had been here, as I have said, impatiently expecting them a great while; but, at last, the man at the main-top, who was ordered to look out, called aloud to us below, that he saw a flash of fire; and immediately, the men looking to landward, they saw two rockets rise up in the air at a great distance, which we answered by firing three rockets again, and they returned by one rocket, to signify that they saw our men's signal.

This was a joyful exchange of distant language to both sides; but I was not there, for, being impatient, I had put out and sailed about ten leagues farther; but our ship fired three guns to give me notice, which, however, we heard not, and yet we knew they fired too; for, it being in the night, our men, who were very attentive with their eyes, as well as ears, saw plainly the three flashes of the guns, though they could not hear the report, the wind being contrary.

This was such certain intelligence to me, and I was so impatient to know how things went, that, having also a small gale of wind, I weighed immediately, and stood back again to our other ship; it was not, however, till the second day after we weighed that we came up to them, having little or no wind all the first day; the next day in the morning they spied us, and fired the three guns again, being the signal that they had got news of our friends.

Nothing could be more to my satisfaction than to hear that they had got news, and it was as much to their satisfaction as to ours to be sure, I mean our little army; for if any disaster had happened to us, they had been in a very odd condition; and though they might have found means to subsist, yet they would have been out of all hope of ever returning to their own country.

Upon the signal I stood into the bay, and came to an anchor at about a league to the northward of our other ship, and as far from the shore, and, as it were, in the mouth of the river, waiting for another signal from our men, by which, we might judge which side of the river to go ashore at, and might take some proper measures to come at them.

About five o'clock in the evening, our eyes being all up in the air, and towards the hills, for the appointed signals, beheld, to our great surprise, a canoe come rowing to us out of the mouth of the river. Immediately we went to work with our perspective glasses; one said it was one thing, and one said it was another, until I fetched a large telescope out of the cabin, and with that I could easily see they were my own men, and it was to our inexpressible satisfaction that they soon after came directly on board.

It might very well take up another volume to give a farther account of the particulars of their journey, or, rather, their journey and voyage.

How they got through the hills, and were entertained by the generous Spaniard, and afterwards by the wealthy Chilian; how the men, greedy for gold, were hardly brought away from the mountains; and how, once, they had much ado to persuade them not to rob the honest Chilian who had used them so well, till my lieutenant, then their captain, by a stratagem, seized on their weapons, and threatened to speak to the Spaniard to raise the Chilians in the mountains, and have all their throats cut; and yet even this did not suffice, till the two midshipmen, then their lieutenants, assured them that at the first opening of the hills, and in the rivers beyond, they would have plenty of gold; and one of the midshipmen told them, that if he did not see them have so much gold that they would not stoop to take up any more, they should have all his share to be divided among them, and should leave him behind in the first desolate place they could find.

How this appeased them till they came to the outer edge of the mountains, where I had been, and where my patron, the Spaniard, left them, having supplied them with sixteen mules to carry their baggage, and some guinacoes, or sheep of Peru, which would carry burdens, and afterwards be good to eat also.

Also, how here they mutinied again, and would not be drawn away, being insatiable in their thirst after gold, till about twenty, more reasonable than the rest, were content to move forward; and, after some time, the rest followed, though not till they were assured that the picking up of gold continued all along the river, which began at the bottom of the mountains, and that it was likely to continue a great way farther.

How they worked their way down these streams, with still an insatiable avarice and thirst after the gold, to the lake called the Golden Lake, and how here they were astonished at the quantity they found; how, after this, they had great difficulty to furnish themselves with provisions, and greater still in carrying it along with them until they found more.

I say, all these accounts might suffice to make another volume as large as this. How, at the farther end of the lake, they found that it evacuated itself into a large river, which, running away with a strong current to the south-south-east, and afterwards to the south-by-east, encouraged them to build canoes, in which they embarked, and which river brought them down to the very bay where we found them; but that they met with many difficulties, sank and staved their canoes several times, by which they lost some of their baggage, and, in one disaster, lost a great parcel of their gold, to their great surprise and mortification. How at one place, they split two of their canoes, where they could find no timber to build new ones, and the many hardships they were put to before they got other canoes. But I shall give a brief account of it all, and bring it into as narrow a compass as I can.

They set out, as I have said, with mules and horses to carry their baggage, and the Spaniard gave them a servant with them for a guide, who, carrying them by-ways, and unfrequented, so that they might give no alarm at the town of Villa Rica, or anywhere else, they came to the mouth of the entrance into the mountains, and there they pitched their tent.

N.B. – The lieutenant who kept their journal, giving an account of this, merrily, in his sea language, expresses it thus: "Being all come safe into the opening, that is, in the entrance of the mountains, and being there free from the observation of the country, we called it our first port, so we brought to, and came to an anchor."

Here the generous Spaniard, who at his own request was gone before, sent his gentleman and one of his sons to them, and sent them plenty of provisions, as also caused their mules to be changed for others that were fresh, and had not been fatigued with any of the other part of the journey.

These things being done, the Spaniard's gentleman caused them to decamp, and march two days farther into the mountains, and then they encamped again, where the Spaniard himself came incognito to them, and, with the utmost kindness and generosity, was their guide himself, and their purveyor also, though two or three times the fellows were so rude, so ungovernable and unbounded in their hunting after gold, that the Spaniard was almost frighted at them, and told the captain of it. Nor, indeed, was it altogether without cause, for the dogs were so ungrateful, that they robbed two of the houses of the Chilians, and took what gold they had, which was not much, indeed, but it hazarded so much the alarming the country, and raising all the mountaineers upon them, that the Spaniard was upon the point of flying from them, in spite of all their fire-arms and courage.

But the captain begged him to stay one night more, and promised to have the fellows punished, and satisfaction to be made; and so he brought all his men together and talked to them, and inquired who it was? but never was such a piece of work in the world. When the new captain came to talk of who did it, and of punishment, they cried, they all did it, and they did not value all the Spaniards or Indians in the country; they would have all the gold in the whole mountains, ay, that they would, and swore to it; and, if the Spaniard offered to speak a word to them, they would chop his head off, and put a stop to his farther jawing.

However, a little reasoning with them brought some of the men to their senses; and the captain, who was a man of sense and of a smooth tongue, managed so well, that he brought about twenty-two of the men, and the two lieutenants and surgeons, to declare for his opinion, and that they would act better for the future; and, with these, he stepped in between the other fellows, and separated about eighteen of them from their arms, for they had run scattering among the rocks to hunt for gold, and, when they were called to this parley, had not their weapons with them. By this stratagem, he seized eleven of the thieves, and made them prisoners; and then he told the rest, in so many words, that if they would not comply to keep order, and obey the rules they were at first sworn to, and had promised, he would force them to it, for he would deliver them, bound hand and foot, to the Spaniards, and they should do the poor Chilians justice upon them; for that, in short, he would not have the rest murdered for them; upon this, he ordered his men to draw up, to show them he would be as good as his word, when, after some consideration, they submitted.

But the Spaniard had taken a wiser course than this, or, perhaps, they had been all murdered; for he ran to the two Chilian houses which the rogues had plundered, and where, in short, there was a kind of tumult about it, and, with good words, promising to give them as much gold as they lost, and the price of some other things that were taken away, he appeased the people; and so our men were not ruined, as they would certainly have been if the mountaineers had taken the alarm.