Drake was already acquainted, but to what extent we know not, with the West Indies and the coast of the Caribbean Sea; for in the Preface to the Voyage (called his Third), revised, as we shall see, by Drake himself, and published by his nephew, he speaks of the wrong he suffered with Captain John Lovell, in the years 1565 and 1566, at Rio da Hacha. Of this voyage no particulars appear to have been at any time published; it was no doubt based on mercantile speculation; and perhaps among other things, in the traffic for slaves, as an outward-bound cargo: and doubtless the knowledge he then acquired was of important advantage to Captain Hawkins in his present undertaking.

The expedition consisted of one of the Queen's ships, which, as the strongest proof of her approbation of the voyage, she lent to Hawkins. It was called the Jesus of Lubeck, and was of 700 tons burden. It was commanded by Hawkins as Admiral— or General; the latter being the title given in those days to the commander of a naval expedition. To the Jesus was added the Minion, Captain John Hampton; the William and John, Captain Thomas Bolton; and the Judith, Captain Francis Drake, he being then, as it is stated, in the twenty-third year of his age, or, if the inscription on the Buckland Abbey picture be correct, in his twenty-sixth. There were besides two other very small vessels, the Angel and the Swallow.

On the 2nd of October, 1567, they set sail from Plymouth, but met with a violent storm off Cape Finisterre, which lasted four days: the ships separated, the boats were all lost, and the Jesus suffered so much as to be nearly disabled. The storm ceasing, however, they were enabled to re-assemble the ships and to pursue their course; and having reached the Cape de Verde, Hawkins landed about 150 of his men, in the hope of obtaining a supply of negroes. Here, however, they got but few, and those with great hurt and damage to their men, chiefly caused by the envenomed arrows of the negroes: and "although," says Hakluyt, "in the beginning they seemed to be but small hurts, yet there hardly escaped any, that had blood drawn of them, but died in strange sort, with their mouthes shutte some tenne dayes before they died, and after their wounds were whole;" "when I myself," says Hawkins, "had one of the greatest wounds, yet, thanks be to God, escaped."

They next proceeded down the coast of Guinea, and after

many difficulties, and the loss of several men, they succeeded in obtaining about 200 negro slaves more; and departed with this cargo of human beings on their voyage for the Spanish Islands of the West Indies, to sell them to the Spaniards, as Hawkins had done before, under the conditions of the treaty above mentioned.

Hawkins, however, before he proceeded with his cargo to the West Indies, went farther down the coast to St. Jorge da Mina, where he was to obtain gold for his merchandise, fitted, no doubt, for the slave-market. At this place a negro king came to ask his assistance against a neighbouring king, promising him all the negroes that should be taken. An offer so tempting was not to be rejected; and 150 men were selected and sent to assist this black warrior. They assaulted a town containing 8000 inhabitants, strongly paled round, and fenced after their manner, and so well defended that Hawkins' people had six slain and forty wounded. More help was called for:

"Whereupon," says Hawkins, "considering that the good success of this enterprise might highly further the commodity of our voyage, I went myself; and with the help of the king of our side, assaulted the town both by land and sea; and very hardly, with fire (their houses being covered with palmleaves), obtained the town and put the inhabitants to flight; where we took 250 persons, men, women, and children; and by our friend, the king on our side, there were taken 600 prisoners, whereof we hoped to have our choice; but the negro (in which nation is never or seldom found truth) meant nothing less; for that night he removed his camp and prisoners, so that we were fain to content us with those few that we had gotten ourselves."

On the 27th of March they came in sight of Dominica, coasted Margarita, Cape de la Vela, and other places, "carrying on, and without obstruction, a tolerable good trade," that is, of course, selling their negroes for silver. But at Rio da Hacha all commerce with the inhabitants was strictly prohibited. Hawkins, deeming this to be an infraction of the treaty, and an unauthorized and illegal proceeding, determined to attack the place: and having landed 200 men, the town was taken by storm with the loss of two men only; and no hurt is said to have been done to the Spaniards; because, after their volley was discharged, they all fled. They soon, however, returned; and then secret trade was carried on during the night; and the Spaniards bought 200 negroes; and at all other places the inhabitants traded willingly.

In proceeding from hence toward Cartagena they were caught in a terrible storm; which continued four days, and so shattered the Jesus, that they cut down her upper works: her rudder was also shaken, and she sprang a leak. Proceeding toward Florida, they encountered another storm; and were driven into the bay of Mexico, and entered into the port of San Juan d'Ulloa: in searching for which they took on their way three ships, which carried passengers to the number of one hundred.

"I found in this port," says Hawkins, "twelve ships, which had in them by report, 200,000l. in gold and silver; all which being in my possession, with the King's Island, and also the passengers, before in my way thither ward stayed, I set at liberty without taking from them the weight of a groat."

;

The Spaniards mistook the English ships for a fleet from Spain, which was daily expected; and the chief officers came on board but being soon undeceived, were in great alarm: when, however, they found that victuals only were demanded, they took courage and furnished them in abundance.

To prevent any misunderstanding, Hawkins sent to Mexico, representing to the viceroy that he had put into this port in consequence of stress of weather; that he was in want of victuals, and his ships in great need of repair; and, as Englishmen and friends to Spain, he requested that they might be supplied with what they wanted, on proper payment being made.

"On the morrow," says Hawkins, "we saw open of the haven thirteen great ships, and understanding them to be the fleet of Spain, I sent immediately to advertise the general of the fleet of my being there; giving him to understand, that before I would suffer them to enter the port, there should be some order of conditions pass between us, for our safe-being there, and maintenance of peace."

It is not easy to comprehend how a commander of three ships, two of them of no strength, should presume to dictate to thirteen great ships, not to mention the twelve others already in port, and that port belonging to the Spaniards, and guarded by a battery of brass guns; or that he should be bold enough to talk of making conditions, before he would suffer them to enter their own harbour. It marks the wide difference between an English sea commander and a Spanish one, in those days, as indeed in many subsequent periods.

Hawkins, however, felt that he had gone too far, and that his audacity was likely to get him into a scrape:

"And here," he says, "I began to bewail that which after followed, for now, said I, I am in two dangers, and forced to receive the one of them. That was, either I must have kept out the fleet from entering the port, the which with God's help I was able to do, or else suffer them to enter in with their accustomed treason, which they never fail to execute, where they may have opportunitie to compass it by any means; if I had kept them out, then had there been present shipwreck of all the fleet, which amounted in value to six millions, which was, in value of our money, 1,800,000l., which I considered I was not able to answer, fearing the Queen's Majesty's indignation in so weighty a matter. Thus with myself revolving the doubts, I thought rather better to abide the jutt of the uncertainty than the certainty; the uncertain doubt, I account, was their treason, which, by good policy, I hoped might be prevented; and therefore, as choosing the least mischief, I proceeded to conditions."

The fact was, as he more clearly admits in another place, that besides the risk he ran of an unequal combat, he was afraid to take upon himself the responsibility of plundering from the king of Spain so immense a sum of money, which could not fail to bring her Majesty into collision with that sovereign.

The General therefore resolved not to commit any act of hostility, nor do anything that could be construed into a breach of the treaty. All that he required of the Spaniards was the assurance of security for himself and his people, and all that belonged to him; that provisions should be supplied to them for money, and that they should have liberty to trade: moreover that, during his abode there, he should keep possession of the island and the eleven pieces of brass cannon that were planted upon it.

In the fleet was a new viceroy from Mexico, Don Martin Henriquez; who, although he disliked these conditions and made some demur, at last agreed to them, and gave a writing to that effect signed and sealed by himself; each party giving and exchanging ten hostages for the due performance of the stipulations.

"At the end of three days," says Hawkins, "the Spanish fleete entered the port, the ships saluting one another, as the manner of the sea doth require; the morrow after, being Friday, we laboured on all sides, in placing the English ships by themselves, and the Spanish ships by themselves, the captains and inferior persons of either part offering and showing great courtesie one to another, and promising great amitie on all sides."

This amity on the part of the Spaniards was, however, soon discovered to be fallacious: they were observed to be placing additional guns on the fortifications of the island, and increasing

the crews of their ships. The viceroy sanctioned this treachery, inasmuch as he took no steps to prevent it; although he assured Hawkins that "he would be their defence against all villainies." As the master of the Jesus spoke Spanish, Hawkins sent him to the viceroy to inquire if his suspicions were correct: immediately the master was seized, the trumpet sounded, the English were taken by surprise, and the Spaniards most perfidiously falling upon them, killed a great number of men, seized, plundered, and burnt three of their ships, made their crews prisoners, and obliged the remainder, in the smaller ships, to retreat without provisions, and in so miserable a plight, that scarcely a sixth part survived to reach England.

The English, however, did not come away wholly unrevenged;

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'For," says Hawkins, "no sooner were the Jesus and the Minion got about two ships' length from the Spanish fleet, than the fight began to be so warm on all sides, that, in less than an hour, the Spanish Admiral was supposed to be sunk, the Vice-Admiral burnt, and another of their chief ships believed to be sunk, so that their ships were little able to annoy us."

The cannon on the island being now in possession of the Spaniards, they turned them upon the English, and the masts, yards, and rigging of the Jesus were soon so shattered that no hopes were left of carrying her off: it was with these cannon, also, that the small ships of the English were destroyed. The English then resolved to place the Jesus between the fort and the Minion, and at night to tranship all the provisions and necessaries from the former into the latter, and to leave the Jesus behind. But the Spaniards set fire to two of their large ships, and let them drive down upon those of the English.

"Upon this," says Hawkins, "the men on board the Minion, without either the captain's or master's consent, set sail in such a hurry and confusion, that it was not without great difficulty I was received on board."

Miles Philips, one of the unfortunate on shore, gives a more detailed account.

men who had been put He says,

"The Minion, which had somewhat before prepared herself to avoid the danger, hauled away, and abode the first brunt of the 300 men that were in the great hulke; then they sought to fall on board the Jesus, where was a cruel fight, and many of our men slain; but yet our men defended themselves and kept them out; for the Jesus also got loose, and joyning with the