His Dissimulation, However, Proved Of Infinite Service In Contributing To The Finishing Of Our Bark, Which Required The United Efforts Of All Our Heads And Hands.

For, when we came to plank the bottom, we had very vexatious difficulties to encounter, as our only plank

Consisted in pieces from the deck of our wreck, which was so dry and stubborn that fire and water had hardly any effect in making it pliable, as it rent, split, and flew in pieces like glass; so that I now began to fear that all our labour was in vain, and we must quietly wait to be taken off by some Spanish ship, and be led quietly to prison after all our troubles.

By constant labour, and using a variety of contrivances, we at length finished our bark, but in such a manner that I may safely assert, a similar bottom never before swam on the sea. Our boat also was launched on the 9th September; and our bark being now in a fair way of being completed, it remained to consider what provisions we could get to support us during our voyage, all our stock being one cask of beef, five or six bushels of farina de poa, or cassada flour, and four or five live hogs. I made several experiments to preserve both fish and seal, but found that this could not be done without salt. At length we fell upon a contrivance for curing conger eels, by splitting them, taking out their backbones, dipping them in sea-water, and then drying them in a great smoke; but as no other fish could be cured in a similar manner, our fishers were directed to catch as many congers as they could.

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