Chap. XXI

They take another Spanish ship richly laden under the Æquinoctial. They make several Dividends of their booty among themselves. They arrive at the Isle of Plate, where they are in danger of being all Massacred by their Slaves and Prisoners. Their departure from thence for the Port and Bay of Paita, with design to plunder the said place.

On July 29, 1681, probably the most important incident in the whole voyage occurred—an incident that was to lead directly to the publishing of this book. Sharp's journal starts the story: "29th Fryday. In the morning about 7 of the clock we espied a sayle in the offing. She boare NW, per judgement 4 miles. Wee gave chase and came up with her" (J6 , 96). Cox's printed version continues: "the Spaniard began to fire some small Arms at us, but our way being to come Board and Board [close alongside, with the ships touching], and never to fire a Shot at randome, when we came up close with her, we warmed their Decks so that they soon struck, and called for Quarter" (JP1 , 88). Ringrose amplifies the story: "They fired 3 or 4 guns first at us but wee answered them with a continuall volley soe that they ran down into the hole [sic ]. Wee kild there Capt: and a Seaman & wounded the Boateswane so they calld quarter: soe our Capt: and 12 of us entered her. I saw the finest woman I have seen in the South Sea. There capts name was Don Diego Lopez. Wee found 40 men onboarde" (J4 , f. 106v). The ship's name was El Santo Rosario ("The Holy Rosary"), and she was bound for Panama from Callao.

It is interesting that three minor events of this incident are mentioned in only some of the accounts. The first was referred to only by Sharp and Ringrose: "In this Vessel we took also a Prize of the Lady call'd Donna Joanna Constanta , about 18 Years of age, Wife to Don John, and the beautifullest Creature that my Eyes beheld in the South Seas" (JP6 , 52). The second concerns a prize of silver (unhappily, not recognized as such)

mentioned by Dick, Cox, and the unknown narrator but not by Sharp or Ringrose; the best account was Dick's:

In this Ship, besides the lading above-mentioned we found also almost 700 Pigs of Plate, but we took them to be some other Metal, especially Tin: and under this mistake they were slighted by us all, especially the Captain, and Seamen, who by no perswasions used by some few, who were for having them rummaged, could not be induced to take them into our Ship, as we did most of the other things. Thus we left them on board the Rosario , and not knowing what to do with the bottom, in that scarcity of men we were under, we turned her away loose unto the Sea: being very glad we had got such good Belly-timber out of her, and thinking little what quantity of rich Metal we left behind. It should seem this Plate was not yet thorowly refined and fitted for to coyn; and this was the occasion that deceived us all. One only Pig of Plate, out of the whole number of almost seven hundred, we took into our Ship, thinking to make Bullets of it: and to this effect, or what else, our Seamen pleased, the greatest part of it was melted or squandred away. Afterwards, when we arrived at Antego , we gave the remaining part of it, which was yet about one third thereof, unto a Bristol man, who knew presently what it was, (though he dissembled with us) brought it for England, and sold it there for seventy five pound sterling, as he confessed himself afterwards to some of our men. Thus we parted with the richest Booty we had gotten in the whole Voyage, through our own ignorance and laziness.
(JP2 , 3:80)

The third event is that which gave rise to this book—the capturing of the Spanish charts and sailing directions. Dick tells us the circumstances, following immediately from the last quotation:

In this ship the Rosario we took also a great Book full of Sea-Charts and Maps, containing a very accurate and exact description of all the Ports, Soundings, Creeks, Rivers, Capes, and Coasts belonging to the South Sea, and all the Navigations usually performed by the Spaniards in that Ocean. This Book, it seemeth, serveth them for an entire and compleat Wagenaer , in those Parts, and for its novelty and curiosity, was presented unto his Majesty after our return into England . It hath been since translated into English, as I hear, by his Majesties Order, and the Copy of the Translation, made by a Jew, I have seen at Wapping ; but withal, the Printing thereof is severely prohibited, lest other Nations should get into those Seas and make use thereof, which is wished may be reserved only for England against its due time. The Seaman, who at first laid hold on it, on board the Rosario , told us, the Spaniards were going to cast this Book over-board, but that he prevented them, which notwithstanding we scarce did give entire credit unto, as knowing in what confusion they all were. Had the Captain himself been alive at that time, this his Story would have deserved more belief; yet, howsoever, if the Spaniards did not attempt to throw this Book into the Sea, at least they ought to have done it for the reasons that are obvious to every mans understanding and are hinted at before.
(JP2 , 3:81-82)

These documents were extremely valuable in terms of military intelligence. Whether there was any official attempt to suppress the fact that they had been captured we do not know, but the only account ever printed was that of Dick, in the earliest published account of the voyage in i684 (JP2 ). No early manuscript version of the various journals mentioned the capture of the documents, and the first manuscript reference outside State Papers occurred in the version of Sharp's journal prepared for the Admiralty after 1686,^[7] where the entry for July 29, 1681 (J11 ), states:

In this prize I took a Spanish manuscript of prodigious vallue. It describes all the ports, roads, harbours, bayes, sands, rocks & riseing of the land & instructions how to work a ship into any port or harbour between the Latt. of 17°.15' N°[Acapulco] and 57° S° Latt. [Cape Horn]. They were goeing to throw it over board but by good luck I saved it. The Spaniards cried when I gott the book. (farwell South Sea now) allso I took in this a nother jewell viz^t a young Lady about 18 years of age. Her name was Dona Jowna Constanta a very comely creature. Her husbands name was Don Juan &^a . The ship was call'd the Rosario.

Otherwise, the capture of the documents is mentioned only in the very last known copy of Sharp's journal (J13 ).

The next day, the buccaneers took their prize inshore and anchored her under Cape Pasado (Pasao), just 23 minutes south of the equator. There they "rummaged" her, removing jars of wine and brandy—the number varying between 400 and 650 according to the account—together with much plate, oil, fruit, and some ready money, but ignoring the pigs of "tin." They then cut down the Rosario 's masts, leaving only the foremast standing, and, on July 31, set her adrift with all the prisoners—including the comely Donna Joanna—except "Francisco , who was a Biscainer , by reason he reported himself to be the best Pilot of those Seas" (JP3 , 163), and a 15-year-old, Simón Calderón, who became Sharp's servant.

They stayed at anchor under Cape Pasado for four days, during which time they stripped and then scuttled the bark they had captured at Nicoya. Weighing anchor on August 2 and standing south-southeast, the buccaneers shared out the ready money taken in the Rosario —amounting to ninety-four pieces of eight per man—at sea. On the 12th they anchored off the Isle of

[7] The Admiralty copy of Sharp's journal (J11/A5) was prepared by William Hack (he signed two of the sketches) and incorporated into a single volume together with a copy of the "Waggoner Appendix" (part of the captured "great Book" from the Rosario ) and a copy of Ambrose Cowley's journal of that voyage ended in October 1686—hence the dating of after 1686.

Plate once again, going ashore for goat meat. For some unspecified reason, the quartermaster, James Chappel, fought a duel with Ringrose, who neglects to give us the result, but in any case, Ringrose survived. Later there was another mutiny, this time by the slaves, which was quickly and brutally suppressed by Sharp. While at the island, the Trinity was given "a pair of boots and tops" (the hull was painted near the waterline—"between wind and water"—with tallow, etc.; the term boot-topping is still used for the equivalent operation today), and the crew meanwhile got very merry sampling the wine and brandy taken from the Rosario .

With throbbing heads, they sailed on the 16th, making what progress they could southward against contrary winds. It had been generally agreed that the time had come to make tracks for home, with a stop on the way in Paita, some 150 miles south of Guayaquil, to provide themselves with necessaries.