Englishman, the Viceroy came on board next morning, was made
prisoner, and obliged to pay two thousand dollars as a ransom for
himself and the other prisoners. After this he was sent ashore, with an
express engagement to leave a ship to convey him and his companions to
another port.

Meanwhile, the pirates received intelligence that a vessel was to the
leeward of the island, which they pursued and captured. But instead of
performing their promise to the Viceroy, which they could easily have
done, they sent the Ostender along with some of their men to Madagascar,
to inform their friends of their success, with instructions to prepare
masts for the prize; and they soon followed, carrying two thousand
negroes in the Portuguese vessel.

Madagascar is an island larger than Great Britain, situated upon the
eastern coast of Africa, abounding with all sorts of provisions, such as
oxen, goats, sheep, poultry, fish, citrons, oranges, tamarinds, dates,
cocoa-nuts, bananas, wax, honey, rice, cotton, indigo, and all other
fruits common in that quarter of the globe; ebony of which lances are
made, gums of several kinds, and many other valuable productions. Here,
in St. Augustine's bay, the ships sometimes stop to take in water, when
they make the inner passage to India, and do not intend to stop at
Johanna.

When the Portuguese ship arrived there, they received intelligence that
the Ostender had taken advantage of an hour when the men were
intoxicated, had risen upon them, and carried the ship to Mozambique,
from whence the governor ordered her to Goa.

The pirates now divided their plunder, receiving forty-two diamonds per
man, or in smaller proportion according to their magnitude. A foolish
jocular fellow, who had received a large diamond of the value of
forty-two, was highly displeased, and so went and broke it in pieces,
exclaiming, that he had many more shares than either of them. Some,
contended with their treasure, and unwilling to run the risk of losing
what they possessed, and perhaps their lives also, resolved to remain
with their friends at Madagascar, under the stipulation that the longest
livers should enjoy all the booty. The number of adventurers being now
lessened, they burned the Viceroy, cleaned the Cassandra, and the
remainder went on board her under the command of Taylor, whom we must
leave for a little while, in order to give an account of the squadron
which arrived in India in 1721.

When the commodore arri