it was now so much in our choice to make the old man carry us
whither we would, that I began to talk to him about carrying us to
the Gulf of Nankin, which is the most northern part of the coast of
China. The old man said he knew the Gulf of Nankin very well; but
smiling, asked us what we would do there? I told him we would sell
our cargo and purchase China wares, calicoes, raw silks, tea,
wrought silks, &c.; and so we would return by the same course we
came. He told us our best port would have been to put in at Macao,
where we could not have failed of a market for our opium to our
satisfaction, and might for our money have purchased all sorts of
China goods as cheap as we could at Nankin.
Not being able to put the old man out of his talk, of which he was
very opinionated or conceited, I told him we were gentlemen as well
as merchants, and that we had a mind to go and see the great city
of Pekin, and the famous court of the monarch of China. “Why,
then,” says the old man, “you should go to Ningpo, where, by the
river which runs into the sea there, you may go up within five
leagues of the great canal. This canal is a navigable stream,
which goes through the heart of that vast empire of China, crosses
all the rivers, passes some considerable hills by the help of
sluices and gates, and goes up to the city of Pekin, being in
length near two hundred and seventy leagues.” – “Well,” said I,
“Seignior Portuguese, but that is not our business now; the great
question is, if you can carry us up to the city of Nankin, from
whence we can travel to Pekin afterwards?” He said he could do so
very well, and that there was a great Dutch ship gone up that way
just before. This gave me a little shock, for a Dutch ship was now
our terror, and we had much rather have met the devil, at least if
he had not come in too frightful a figure; and we depended upon it
that a Dutch ship would be our destruction, for we were in no
condition to fight them; all the ships they trade with into those
parts being of great burden, and of much greater force than we
were.
The old man found me a little confused, and under some concern when
he named a Dutch ship, and said to me, “Sir, you need be under no
apprehensions of the Dutch; I suppose they are not now at war with
your nation?” – “No,” said I, “that’s true; but I know not what
liberties men may take when they are out of the reach of the laws
of their own country.” – “Why,” says he, “you are no pirates; what
need you fear? They will not meddle with peaceable merchants,
sure.” These words put me into the greatest disorder and confusion
imaginable; nor was it possible for me to conceal it so, but the
old man easily perceived it.
“Sir,” says he, “I find you are in some disorder in your thoughts
at my talk: pray be pleased to go which way you think fit, and
depend upon it, I’ll do you all the service I can.” Upon this we
fell into further discourse, in which, to my alarm and amazement,
he spoke of the villainous doings of a certain pirate ship that had
long been the talk of mariners in those seas; no other, in a word,
than the very ship he was now on board of, and which we had so
unluckily purchased. I presently saw there was no help for it but
to tell him the plain truth, and explain all the danger and trouble
we had suffered through this misadventure, and, in particular, our
earnest wish to be speedily quit of the ship altogether; for which
reason we had resolved to carry her up to Nankin.
The old man was amazed at this relation, and told us we were in the
right to go away to the north; and that, if he might advise us, it