they accepted the offer; and having baked bread enough to serve
them a month given them, and as much goats’ flesh as they could eat
while it was sweet, with a great basket of dried grapes, a pot of
fresh water, and a young kid alive, they boldly set out in the
canoe for a voyage over the sea, where it was at least forty miles
broad. The boat, indeed, was a large one, and would very well have
carried fifteen or twenty men, and therefore was rather too big for
them to manage; but as they had a fair breeze and flood-tide with
them, they did well enough. They had made a mast of a long pole,
and a sail of four large goat-skins dried, which they had sewed or
laced together; and away they went merrily together. The Spaniards
called after them “BON VOYAJO;” and no man ever thought of seeing
them any more.
The Spaniards were often saying to one another, and to the two
honest Englishmen who remained behind, how quietly and comfortably
they lived, now these three turbulent fellows were gone. As for
their coming again, that was the remotest thing from their thoughts
that could be imagined; when, behold, after two-and-twenty days’
absence, one of the Englishmen being abroad upon his planting work,
sees three strange men coming towards him at a distance, with guns
upon their shoulders.
Away runs the Englishman, frightened and amazed, as if he was
bewitched, to the governor Spaniard, and tells him they were all
undone, for there were strangers upon the island, but he could not
tell who they were. The Spaniard, pausing a while, says to him,
“How do you mean – you cannot tell who? They are the savages, to
be sure.” “No, no,” says the Englishman, “they are men in clothes,
with arms.” “Nay, then,” says the Spaniard, “why are you so
concerned! If they are not savages they must be friends; for there
is no Christian nation upon earth but will do us good rather than
harm.” While they were debating thus, came up the three
Englishmen, and standing without the wood, which was new planted,
hallooed to them. They presently knew their voices, and so all the
wonder ceased. But now the admiration was turned upon another
question – What could be the matter, and what made them come back
again?
It was not long before they brought the men in, and inquiring where
they had been, and what they had been doing, they gave them a full
account of their voyage in a few words: that they reached the land
in less than two days, but finding the people alarmed at their
coming, and preparing with bows and arrows to fight them, they
durst not go on, shore, but sailed on to the northward six or seven
hours, till they came to a great opening, by which they perceived
that the land they saw from our island was not the main, but an
island: that upon entering that opening of the sea they saw
another island on the right hand north, and several more west; and
being resolved to land somewhere, they put over to one of the
islands which lay west, and went boldly on shore; that they found
the people very courteous and friendly to them; and they gave them
several roots and some dried fish, and appeared very sociable; and
that the women, as well as the men, were very forward to supply
them with anything they could get for them to eat, and brought it
to them a great way, on their heads. They continued here for four
days, and inquired as well as they could of them by signs, what
nations were this way, and that way, and were told of several
fierce and terrible people that lived almost every way, who, as
they made known by signs to them, used to eat men; but, as for
themselves, they said they never ate men or women, except only such
as they took in the wars; and then they owned they made a great
feast, and ate their prisoners.
The Englishmen inquired when they had had a feast of that kind; and