'"
(to a town which he designed attacking). In Nicaragua he was taken by
the Indians, who, being entirely on the Spanish side, tore him to pieces
and burned him. Thus we really must not be deluded by the professions of
Mr. Kingsley's sentimental buccaneer, with his pity for "the Indian folk
of old."

Except Denis Scott, a worthy bandit in his day, Captain Henry Morgan is
the first renowned British buccaneer. He was a young Welshman, who,
after having been sold as a slave in Barbadoes, became a sailor of
fortune. With about four hundred men he assailed Puerto Bello. "If our
number is small," he said, "our hearts are great," and so he assailed the
third city and place of arms which Spain then possessed in the West
Indies. The entrance of the harbour was protected by two strong castles,
judged as "almost impregnable," while Morgan had no artillery of any
avail against fortresses. Morgan had the luck to capture a Spanish
soldier, whom he compelled to parley with the garrison of the castle.
This he stormed and blew up, massacring all its defenders, while with its
guns he disarmed the sister fortress. When all but defeated in a new
assault, the sight of the English colours animated him afresh. He made
the captive monks and nuns carry the scaling ladders; in this unwonted
exploit the poor religious folk lost many of their numbers. The wall was
mounted, the soldiers were defeated, though the Governor fought like a
Spaniard of the old school, slew many pirates with his own hand, and
pistolled some of his own men for cowardice. He died at his post,
refusing quarter, and falling like a gentleman of Spain. Morgan, too,
was not wanting in fortitude: he extorted 100,000 pieces-of-eight from
the Governor of Panama, and sent him a pistol as a sample of the gun
wherewith he took so great a city. He added that he would return and
take this pistol out of Panama; nor was he less good than his word. In
Cuba he divided 250,000 pieces-of-eight, and a great booty in other
treasure. A few weeks saw it all in the hands of the tavern-keepers and
women of the place.

Morgan's next performance was a new sack of Maracaibo, now much stronger
than L'Olonnois had found it. After the most appalling cruelties, not
fit to be told, he returned, passing the castles at the mouth of the port
by an ingenious stratagem. Running boatload after boatload of men to the
land side, he brought them back by stealth, leading the garrison to
expect an