We Coasted Along Shore To The Northward, And Passed The Port Of Capaipo On The 14th, Said To Be A Very Good Harbour, Fenced From Almost All Winds.

The land is here inhabited by Indians, who make good wines; and it is said to abound in good meat, corn, and other provisions, and from this port they export wine, money, and other goods for Coquimbo.

We would willingly have gone ashore for refreshments, but could not for want of boats.

[Footnote 208: There must be a material error here, as they afterwards, in sailing along the coast to the northwards, passed Copaipo, which is in lat. 27 deg. 13' S. and they consequently must have fallen in with the coast of Chili, improperly named Peru in the text, considerably farther south. - E.]

Continuing along the coast, which is the highest and most mountainous I ever saw, we were surprised, on the 19th of March, to see the waves changed to a red colour for seven or eight leagues, though on sounding we had no ground at 170 fathoms; but on drawing up some of the water, we found the colour owing to a vast quantity of fish-spawn, swimming on the surface. We were now in lat. 16 deg. 11' S. having passed the three famous ports of Arica, Ylo, and Arequipa. The 22d March we were off the harbour of Callao de Lima, when we saw two ships steering for that port, to which we gave chase, and soon came up with the sternmost, which proved to be the ship we had fought with off the island of Juan Fernandez. We were very eager to stop her from going in, to prevent the Spaniards from having intelligence of us, and hindering their merchant ships from putting to sea, and did not question our taking her, being all now in health; whereas on the former occasion, between twenty and thirty of our men were very sick and weak. But Captain Dampier was averse to attack her; and while the matter was disputing, both ships got into the port of Lima, from whence twenty ships such as ours could not have forced them out. This proceeding gave great offence to most of the crew, and might have proved of bad consequence, had we not taken two very considerable prizes a few days afterwards, one of 150 and the other of 200 tons. We took out of these every thing that we thought useful, and then dismissed them.

The 5th of April, we began to prepare for the great exploit our captain meditated, of landing on the coast and plundering some rich city; for which purpose our carpenters were ordered to fit up the launches or long boats we had taken from our prizes, so as to land our men in safety, and to fit two swivels in each launch. On the 11th we took a bark of fifty tons, laden with plank and cordage, as if sent on purpose for our present service.

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