in her bottom and upper works. Questioning them, I
understood they were pirates, who had been making pillage on the coast
of China and Cambodia, and had lost their own ship on the shoals of
Borneo, as already related. We rode by them at anchor under a small
island near the isle of Bintang for two days, giving them good usage,
and not taking any thing out of them, thinking to have gathered from
them the place and passage of certain ships from the coast of China, so
as to have made something of our voyage: But these rogues, being
desperate in minds and fortunes, and hopeless of ever being able to
return to their own country in that paltry junk, had resolved among
themselves either to gain my ship or lose their own lives.

During mutual courtesy and feastings, sometimes five or six and twenty
of the principal persons among them came aboard my ship, of whom I would
never allow more than six to have weapons; but there never was so many
of our men on board their junk at one time. I wished Captain John Davis,
in the morning, to possess himself of their weapons, putting the company
before the mast, and to leave a guard over their weapons, while they
searched among the rice; doubting that by searching, and perhaps finding
something that might displease them, they might suddenly set upon my men
and put them to the sword, as actually happened in the sequel. But,
beguiled by their pretended humility, Captain Davis would not take
possession of their weapons, though I sent two messages to him from my
ship, expressly to desire him. During the whole day my men were
searching among the rice, and the Japanese looking on. After a long
search, nothing was found except a little storax and benzoin. At
sun-set, seeking opportunity, and talking to their comrades who were in
my ship, which was very near, they agreed to set upon us in both ships
at once, on a concerted signal. This being given, they suddenly killed
and drove overboard all of my men that were in their ship. At the same
time, those who were on board my ship sallied out of my cabin, with such
weapons as they could find, meeting with some targets there, and other
things which they used as weapons. Being then aloft on the deck, and
seeing what was likely to follow, I leapt into the waste, where, with
the boatswains, carpenter, and some few more, we kept them under the
half-deck. At first coming from the cabin, they met Captain Davis coming
out of the gun-room, whom they pulled into t