with his wicked
course of life, that he did not choose to keep a book which condemned
him in his lawless career.

With these two commissions he sailed out of Plymouth in May, 1696, in
the Adventure galley, of 30 guns, and 80 men; the place he first
designed for was New-York; in his voyage thither, he took a French
banker, but this was no act of piracy, he having a commission for that
purpose, as we have just observed.

When he arrived at New-York, he put up articles for engaging more hands,
it being necessary to his ship's crew, since he proposed to deal with a
desperate enemy. The terms he offered, were, that every man should have
a share of what was taken, reserving for himself and owners forty
shares. Upon which encouragement he soon increased his company to 155
men.

[Illustration _Captain Kidd burying his Bible._]

With this company he sailed first for Madeira, where he took in wine and
some other necessaries; from thence he proceeded to Bonavista, one of
the Cape de Verd Islands, to furnish the ship with salt, and from thence
went immediately to St. Jago, another of the Cape de Verd Islands, in
order to stock himself with provisions. When all this was done, he bent
his course to Madagascar, the known rendezvous of pirates. In his way he
fell in with Capt. Warren, commodore of three men of war; he acquainted
him with his design, kept them company two or three days, and then
leaving them, made the best of his way for Madagascar, where he arrived
in February, 1696, just nine months from his departure from Plymouth.

It happened that at this time the pirate ships were most of them out in
search of prey; so that according to the best intelligence Capt. Kidd
could get, there was not one of them at that time about the island;
wherefore, having spent some time in watering his ship and taking in
more provisions, he thought of trying his fortune on the coast of
Malabar, where he arrived in the month of June following, four months
from his reaching Madagascar. Hereabouts he made an unsuccessful cruise,
touching sometimes at the island of Mohila, and sometimes at that of
Johanna, between Malabar and Madagascar. His provisions were every day
wasting, and his ship began to want repair; wherefore, when he was at
Johanna, he found means of borrowing a sum of money from some Frenchmen
who had lost their ship, but saved their effects, and with this he
purchased materials for putting his ship in good repair.

It does not app