ad obtained the information he desired he
directed his course straight for the Bay of Santo Blaso, where he might
lie safely within the cape of that name without any danger of discovery
(that part of the mainland being entirely uninhabited) and yet be within
twenty or twenty-five leagues of Porto Bello.

Having come safely to this anchorage, he at once declared his intentions
to his companions, which were as follows:

That it was entirely impossible for them to hope to sail their vessel
into the harbor of Porto Bello, and to attack the Spanish vice admiral
where he lay in the midst of the armed flota; wherefore, if anything was
to be accomplished, it must be undertaken by some subtle design rather
than by open-handed boldness. Having so prefaced what he had to say, he
now declared that it was his purpose to take one of the ship's boats and
to go in that to Porto Bello, trusting for some opportunity to occur to
aid him either in the accomplishment of his aims or in the gaining of
some further information. Having thus delivered himself, he invited any
who dared to do so to volunteer for the expedition, telling them plainly
that he would constrain no man to go against his will, for that at best
it was a desperate enterprise, possessing only the recommendation that
in its achievement the few who undertook it would gain great renown, and
perhaps a very considerable booty.

And such was the incredible influence of this bold man over his
companions, and such was their confidence in his skill and cunning, that
not above a dozen of all those aboard hung back from the undertaking,
but nearly every man desired to be taken.

Of these volunteers Captain Morgan chose twenty--among others our Master
Harry--and having arranged with his lieutenant that if nothing was heard
from the expedition at the end of three days he should sail for Jamaica
to await news, he embarked upon that enterprise, which, though never
heretofore published, was perhaps the boldest and the most desperate of
all those that have since made his name so famous. For what could be a
more unparalleled undertaking than for a little open boat, containing
but twenty men, to enter the harbor of the third strongest fortress of
the Spanish mainland with the intention of cutting out the Spanish vice
admiral from the midst of a whole fleet of powerfully armed vessels, and
how many men in all the world do you suppose would venture such a thing?

But there is this to be said