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1767. and the darkness was fo thick that we could not fee November. from one part of the ship to the other, we fuddenly discovered, by a flash of lightning, a large veffel clofe aboard of us. The steerfnian inftantly put the helm a-lee, and the fhip answering her rudder, we juft cleared each other. This was the first ship we had seen fince we parted with the Swallow; and it blew fo hard, that not being able to understand any thing that was faid, we could not learn to what nation fhe belonged.

Thurf. 19.

Friday 20.

Satur. 21.

At fix, the weather having cleared up, we faw a fail at anchor in the E. S. E. and at noon, we faw land in the W. N. W. which proved to be Pulo Taya, Pulo Toté bearing S. 359 E. Pulo Wefte S. 139 E. At fix in the evening we anchored in fifteen fathoms, with fandy ground; and obferved a current running E. N. E. at the rate of five fathoms an hour.

At fix in the morning we weighed and made fail, and foon after faw two veffels a-head; but at fix in the evening, finding that we loft much ground, we came again to an anchor in fifteen fathoms, with a fine fandy bottom,

At fix o'clock the next morning, the current being flack, we hove short on the small bower, which foon after parted at a third from the clench. We immedidately took in the cable, and perceived that, although we had founded with great care before we anchored, and found the bottom clear, it had been cut through by the rocks. After fome time, the current becoming strong, a fresh gale fpringing up, and the ship being a great way to the leeward, I made fail, in hopes to get up and recover the anchor; but I found at last that it was impoffible, without anchoring again; and being afraid of the confequences of doing that in foul ground, I determined to ftand on, especially as the weather was become fqually.

We were, however, able to make very little way till the next day, when about three in the afternoon, we faw Monopin Hill bearing S. E. and advancing very little, faw the coaft of Sumatra at half an hour Sund. 22. after fix the next morning. We continued to fuffer great delay by currents and calms, but on Monday Monday 30, the 30th of November, we anchored in Batavia Road, CHAP,

С НА Р. XII.

Tranfactions at Batavia, and an Account of the Passage from thence to the Cape of Good Hope.

WE

1767.

E found here fourteen fail of Dutch East-India ships, a great number of fmall veffels, and his December. Majesty's fhip the Falmouth, lying upon the mud in a rotten condition..

I fent an officer on fhore, to acquaint the Governor of our arrival, to obtain his permiffion to purchase refreshments, and to tell him that I would falute him, if he would engage to return an equal number of guns. The Governor readily agreed; and at fun-rife, on Tuesday the 1st of December, I faluted him with thir-Tuefd. . teen guns, which he returned with fourteen from the fort. Soon after the Purser sent off fome fresh beef, and plenty of vegetables, which I ordered to be ferved immediately; at the fame time I called the fhip's company together, and told them that I would not fuffer any liquor to come on board, and would feverely punish those who should attempt to bring any and I took fome pains to reconcile them to this regulation, by affuring them that in this country intemperance would inevitably destroy them. As a further prefervative, I fuffered not a man to go on fhore, except those who were upon duty; and took care that none even of thefe ftraggled into the town.

On the 2d I fent the Boatswain and the Carpenter, Wedn. 2. with the Carpenter of the Falmouth, to look at fuch of her stores as had been landed at Onruft, with orders, that if any were fit for our ufe they fhould be bought. At their return, they informed me that all the ftores they had feen were rotten, and unfit for ufe, except one pair of tacks, which they brought with them: the masts, yards, and cables were all dropping to pieces, and even the iron work was fo rufty that it was worth nothing. They alfo went on board the Falmouth to examine her hulk, and found her in fo fhattered a condition, that in their opinion fhe could not be kept together during the next monfoon. Many of her ports were washed into one, the stern- poft was quite decay

ed,

December.

1767 ed, and there was no place in her where a man could be sheltered from the weather. The few people who belonged to her were in as bad a ftate as their veffel, being quite broken and worn down, and expecting to be drowned as soon as the monsoon should fet in.

Saturday 5.

Among other neceffaries, we were in want of an anchor, having loft two, and of three inch rope for rounding the cables; but the officers, whom I had fent to procure thefe articles, reported, that the price which had been demanded for them was fo exorbitant, that they had not agreed to give it. On Saturday the 5th, therefore, I went on fhore myself, for the first time, and visited the different ftorehouses and arfenals, but found it impoffible to make a better bargain than my officers. I fufpected that the dealers took advantage of our apparent neceffity, and fuppofing that we could not fail without what we had offered to purchase, determined to extort from us more than four times its value. I was, however, refolved to make any shift rather than fubmit to what I thought a fhameful impofition, and therefore told them that I fhould certainly fail on the next Tuesday; that if they would agree to my terms in the mean time, I would take the things I had treated for; if not, that I would fail without them.

Soon after I returned on board, I received a petition from the Warrant-Officers of the Falmouth, reprefenting, that there was nothing for them to look after : that the Gunner had been long dead, and his ftores froiled, particularly the powder, which, by order of the Dutch, had been thrown into the fea that the Boatswain, by vexation and diftrefs, had loft his fenfes, and was then a deplorable object in a Dutch hofpital that all his ftores had been long fpoiled and rotten, the roof of the ftorehouse having fallen in during a wet monfoon, and left them expofed many months, all endeavours to procure another place to put them in being ineffectua!: that the Carpenter was in a dying condition, and the Cook a wounded cripple. For thefe reafons, they requested that I would take them home, or at least difmifs them from their charge. It was with the greatest regret and compaffion that I told thefe unhappy people it was not in my power to relieve

them,

them, and that as they had received charge of ftores, they must wait orders from home. They replied, that they had never received a fingle order from England fince they had been left here, and earnestly intreated that I would make their distress known, that it might be relieved. They had, they faid, ten years pay due, in the expectation of which they were grown old, and which now they would be content to forfeit, and go home fweepers, rather than continue to fuffer the miseries of their prefent fituation, which were indeed very great. They were not fuffered to spend a single night on fhore, whatever was their condition, and when they were fick, no one vifited them on board; they were, befides, robbed by the Malays, and in perpetual dread of being destroyed by them, as they had a fhort time before burned the Siam prize. I affured them that I would do my utmoft to procure them relief, and they left me with tears in their eyes.

1767.

December,

As I heard nothing more of the anchor and rope for which I had been in treaty, I made all ready for fea. The ship's company had continued healthy and fober, and been served with fresh beef every day, from the time of our first coming to an anchor in the road; we had alfo fome beef, and a live ox, to carry out with us. We had now only one man upon the fick lift, except a feaman, who had been afflicted with rheu matic pains ever fince our leaving the Streight of Magellan and at fix o'clock in the morning of Tuefday Tuesday 8. the 8th of December, after a stay of just one week, we set fail.

On the 11th at noon, we were off a fmall island Friday 11. called the Cap, between the coafts of Sumatra and Java, and feveral of our people fell down with colds

and fluxes. The next day, a Dutch boat came on Saturday 12. board and fold us fome turtle, which was ferved to the fhip's company. At night, being at the diftance of about two miles from the Java fhore, we faw an incredible number of lights upon the beach, which we fuppofed were intended to draw the fish near them, as we had seen the fame appearance at other places.

On Monday the 14th, we anchored off Prince's Mond. 14. Island, and began to take in wood and water. The

next morning, the natives came in with turtle, poultry, Tuesday 15.

and

1767. and hog-deer, which we bought at a reasonable price. We continued here, fitting the fhip for the fea, till Saturday 19. the 19th, during which time many of the people be

December,

gan to complain of intermitting diforders, fomething Sunday zo. like an ague. At fix o'clock the next morning, having completed our wood, and taken on board seventy-fix tons of water, we made fail.

toes broken.

While we lay here, one of the feamen fell from the main-yard into the barge, which lay along-side the fhip. His body was dreadfully bruised, and many of his bones were broken: it happened alfo, that in his fall he ftruck two other men, one of whom was fo Thurf. 24. much hurt that he continued fpeechlefs till the 24th, and then died, though the other had only one of his We had now no less than fixteen upon January. the fick lift, and by the first of January, the number Friday 1. was increased to forty; we had buried three, among whom was the Quarter-Master, George Lewis, who was a diligent, fober man, and the more useful, as he spoke both the Spanish and Portuguese languages. The difeafes by which we fuffered, were fluxes, and fevers of the putrid kind, which are always contagious, and, for that reafon alone, would be more fatal on board a ship than any other. The Surgeon's mate was very foon laid up, and those who were appointed to attend the sick, were always taken ill in a day or two after they had been upon that fervice. To remedy this evil, as much as it was in my power, I made a very large birth for the fick, by removing a great number of people from below to the half deck, which I hung with painted canvafs, keeping it constantly clean, and directing it to be washed with vinegar, and fumigated, once or twice a day. Our water was well tafted, and was kept constantly ventilated; a large piece of iron alfo, used for the melting of tar, and called a loggerhead, was heated red hot, and quenched in it before it was given out to be drank. The fick had alfo wine instead of grog, and falep or fago every morning for breakfast: two days in a week they had mutton broth, and had a fowl or two given them on the intermediate days; they had, befides, plenty of rice and fugar, and frequently malt meshed; fo that perhaps people in a fickly fhip had never so many re

freshments

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