Sailing Thence To The Island Of Gracioso,
Westward Of Tercera, We Descried A Sail To Which We Gave Chase, And
Found Her To Be A Spaniard.
But at the first, not much respecting whom
we took, so that we might enrich ourselves, which was the
Object of our
expedition, and not willing it should be known what we were, we
displayed a white silk ensign in our maintop, which made them believe
that we were of the Spanish navy laying in wait for English cruizers;
but when we got within shot, we hauled down our white flag, and hoisted
the St Georges ensign, on which they fled as fast as they were able, but
all in vain, as our ships sailed faster than they; wherefore they threw
overboard all their ordnance and shot, with many letters and the chart
of the straits of Magellan, which lead into the south sea, immediately
after which we took her, finding on board a Spanish gentleman named
Pedro Sarmiento, who was governor of the straits of Magellan, whom we
brought home to England, and presented to the queen our sovereign.
[Footnote 336: Hakluyt; II. 606. Astley, I. 196. The command of this
expedition is attributed by the editor of Astley's Collection to captain
Whiddon, on the authority of the concluding sentence. - E.]
After this, while plying off and on about the islands, we espied another
sail to which we gave chase, during which our admiral sprung his
main-mast; yet in the night our vice-admiral got up with and captured
the chase, which we found was laden with fish from Cape Blanco on which
we let her go for want of hands to bring her home.
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