a certain very honest fellow, a Brazil planter of his acquaintance,
who had fallen into the displeasure of the Church. “I know not
what the matter is with him,” says he, “but, on my conscience, I
think he is a heretic in his heart, and he has been obliged to
conceal himself for fear of the Inquisition.” He then told me that
he would be very glad of such an opportunity to make his escape,
with his wife and two daughters; and if I would let them go to my
island, and allot them a plantation, he would give them a small
stock to begin with – for the officers of the Inquisition had
seized all his effects and estate, and he had nothing left but a
little household stuff and two slaves; “and,” adds he, “though I
hate his principles, yet I would not have him fall into their
hands, for he will be assuredly burned alive if he does.” I
granted this presently, and joined my Englishman with them: and we
concealed the man, and his wife and daughters, on board our ship,
till the sloop put out to go to sea; and then having put all their
goods on board some time before, we put them on board the sloop
after she was got out of the bay. Our seaman was mightily pleased
with this new partner; and their stocks, indeed, were much alike,
rich in tools, in preparations, and a farm – but nothing to begin
with, except as above: however, they carried over with them what
was worth all the rest, some materials for planting sugar-canes,
with some plants of canes, which he, I mean the Brazil planter,
understood very well.
Among the rest of the supplies sent to my tenants in the island, I
sent them by the sloop three milch cows and five calves; about
twenty-two hogs, among them three sows; two mares, and a stone-
horse. For my Spaniards, according to my promise, I engaged three
Brazil women to go, and recommended it to them to marry them, and
use them kindly. I could have procured more women, but I
remembered that the poor persecuted man had two daughters, and that
there were but five of the Spaniards that wanted partners; the rest
had wives of their own, though in another country. All this cargo
arrived safe, and, as you may easily suppose, was very welcome to
my old inhabitants, who were now, with this addition, between sixty
and seventy people, besides little children, of which there were a
great many. I found letters at London from them all, by way of
Lisbon, when I came back to England.
I have now done with the island, and all manner of discourse about
it: and whoever reads the rest of my memorandums would do well to
turn his thoughts entirely from it, and expect to read of the
follies of an old man, not warned by his own harms, much less by
those of other men, to beware; not cooled by almost forty years’
miseries and disappointments – not satisfied with prosperity beyond
expectation, nor made cautious by afflictions and distress beyond
example.
CHAPTER IX – DREADFUL OCCURRENCES IN MADAGASCAR
I HAD no more business to go to the East Indies than a man at full
liberty has to go to the turnkey at Newgate, and desire him to lock
him up among the prisoners there, and starve him. Had I taken a
small vessel from England and gone directly to the island; had I
loaded her, as I did the other vessel, with all the necessaries for
the plantation and for my people; taken a patent from the
government here to have secured my property, in subjection only to
that of England; had I carried over cannon and ammunition, servants
and people to plant, and taken possession of the place, fortified
and strengthened it in the name of England, and increased it with
people, as I might easily have done; had I then settled myself
there, and sent the ship back laden with good rice, as I might also
have done in six months’ time, and ordered my friends to have
fitted her out again for our supply – had I done this, and stayed