Privateering and Piracy in the Colonial Period. Various
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target="_blank" rel="nofollow" href="#ulink_074a1538-ec60-52fd-bc37-9fa2732fa7ca">[4] Henrietta lay some sixty miles southwest of Providence.
[5] A very exceptional grant of power, including the right to grant letters of marque. R.G. Marsden, "Early Prize Jurisdiction and Prize Law in England," in English Historical Review, XXV. 257.
[6] Than.
[7] The signers are as follows. Henry Darley, deputy treasurer, a Yorkshire squire, was a conspicuous Puritan and an intimate friend of Pym. Robert Rich (1587–1658), second earl of Warwick, afterward a chief leader of the Puritans in the Civil War, and lord high admiral under Parliament, had before this been conspicuous in privateering and colonial ventures, and president of the Council for New England. Viscount Saye and Sele (1582–1662) and Lord Brooke (1608–1643), eminent Puritan and Parliamentarian lords, are best known in American history as patentees of the Saybrook colony, but were much more deeply interested in the Providence Island venture. Edward viscount Mandeville (courtesy title borne until his father's death in 1642) is better known as the second earl of Manchester (1602–1671), the celebrated Parliamentarian general. John Pym needs no identification. John Gourdon or Gurdon was an East Anglian squire, neighbor of John Winthrop of Groton.
2. Governor Nathaniel Butler, “Diary of my Present Employment”. February-March, 1639. [1]
[February] 13. Wee hadd an alarme this morneinge, and in regard that the sayle that wee made came to an Anchor close without our Rocks called the Breakers, wee sone found that she was a stranger and in perill: wherupon I sent out two shalopes well manned and followed myself in the thirde: and by the waye wee mett with her bote being only a Canow in which all of her men wer come off from her and left her alone; But wee tooke two of her men backe with us to the shypp; and sent two of my Botes to bring her into the Harbour;[2] the which was done: Wee founde her to be a Spanish Frigate, taken by a man of Warre of Flushinge off of Cuba. she was laden with mantega de Porco,[3] Hides and tallowe; their resolution was to have carried her to St. Christophers,[4] and ther to have sold her Goods, but being not able to fetch itt, she was forced to beare up for our Iland; and but for us had wracked upon our rocks; shee was manned with eight men; and the man of warre that tooke her haveinge dispatched her as he thought for St. Christophers, remained upon the Coast of Hispaniola to looke out for more purchase:[5] and in the meantime, little knows what is become of his Prize.
14. I dined at Captain Morgan's. After dinner the Councell of Warre wer assembled at my house; wher some propositions wer considered off touchinge the new come Dutche; as alsoe about some redresses in respect of wronngs pretended to be offred by our Pillageinge seamen.
15. I was att Warwicke Fort[6] this morneinge, wher I called a Counsell of warre; and the new come in Dutche presented a coppy of their Commission signed by the Prince of Orange and the Dutche West India Company. After dinner being newly returned home, wee hadd an alarme, upon the discovery of a sayle; and I went presently out in my shalope and sent Captaine Axe out in his shalope to make a discoverye upon her; she proved to be another smale man of warre of Holland which had bin long upon the coast of the terra firma;[7] and hadd gotten nothinge; towards the eveninge she came to an Anchor in our Harbour. This vessell comeinge to the Ronchadores (it being only a desolate barren rocky sande twentie leagues to the eastwards of Providence, which is the nearest land unto itt)[8] found ther an Englishman the which with some others being in a smale frigate wer shypwracked upon itt, some of them gott awaye upon two rafts of which the one of them was never hearde off; Thoes upon the other raft wer driven upon the maine-land of the West-Indies, and soe att last gott home. This man with some others remained upon the sande and rocks; wher att last all of them died save this man only; who after he hadd remained ther two yeares and a halfe of which for ten monethes space, after the deathe of all the rest, he lived solitarily and all alone, being only fedd with such sea foules as resorted to the place, and sometimes some fish, he was thus taken and brought home unto us in good healthe and very lusty.
16. I went very early this mornenige to the greate Baye, wher my worcks went forwards well and almost to my wish. In the afternoone being returned home, I spent some houres in the hearinge of divers controversies amongst the Inhabitants. Towards night the Commander of the Dutche Vessel that came into our Harbour the daye before presented himself unto me and shewed me his Commission signed by the Prince of Aurenge:[9] His errand hither was to find and stoppe a leake; haveinge bin foure or five monethes upon the coast, and gotten noethinge. This morneing also, another of the new Companyes was in their Armes, upon the great Baye; and exercised by Captain Carter[10] in my presence, and did well.
17. Upon this Lorde's daye I was in the morneinge and eveninge at Mr. Sherrard's Churche,[11] who preached unto us, at both times. After the afternoone's sermon, the poore man that was soe hapely recovered from the Ronchadores, was introduced by Mr. Sherrarde to make a publicke thanksgiveinge to God for his deliverance with a confession in generall tearmes of his former vicious life, and a promise of future amendment. An act very commendable in itselfe, and a Course fully approvable: Though itt now brought to every man's minde and observation, that whereas the apparent evidence of God's mercye in as highe or higher a nature hadd been manifested towards Captain Axe and his company in his escape from the enemie, to thoes five persons that came safe unto us, in an extreme leakinge bote, from St. Christophers; And towards the fortie nine persons that arrived safely with us from the Barbadoes;[12] And all this done within the space of foure monethes; that none of all this should have bin remembered by Mr. Sherrard, in the same kinde; as if the safe-being of this one only man, had either bin of more remarkableness in itselfe, or of more acceptableness with him than all the others putt togither. …
21. Early this morneinge I went out in my shalope to Darlies Fort[13] to looke out for the vessells that wer made the eveninge before and by sunne riseinge wee againe made them five leagues out to sea standeinge in with our Harbour; and by ten of the clocke they came ther to an Anchor: and one of them proved to be the Pinnace called the Queene of Bohemia[14] that I had sent out about five weekes before to looke out for Purchase upon the coasts of the maine; the other was a Spanish Frigate which she hadd made her Prize. I dined this daye at a weddinge.
22. The Captaine of our last arrived Pinnace came unto me and certified me concerneinge his voiage, and the takeinge of his Prize; and I gave him some Advices about the orderinge of every man's shares: And upon this daye all the montega de Porco, and the Tallow that came in the first Dutche was sold to the people att reasonable rates. …
25. One of our new Companys was exercised upon this daye, by Captaine Hunt;[15] I went aborde our new prize, to sett downe orders, upon the Breakeinge of Bulke; And the Prize Goods began this morneinge to be unshypped, into our Store House. I hadd many Bussinesses brought afore me this daye, and found trouble ynough in decideinge of them.
26.