This
Captain Anson, answering that she was a man-of-war, and that he had not
come to trade, refused to pay. He at last dispatched a letter to the
Viceroy, insisting that his various demands should at once be complied
with.

He, with some of his officers and a boat's crew, had gone up to Canton,
when a fire broke out in the town, which threatened to burn down the
whole place. Chiefly by his and his men's exertions the fire was got
under, although not until a large amount of damage had been done. It
consumed a hundred shops and eleven streets full of warehouses. When
the fire was subdued, many Chinese merchants came to Captain Anson and
requested him that he would allow each of them one of his "soldiers," as
they called his boat's crew, to guard their warehouses and
dwelling-houses, which they feared might be pillaged, should any tumult
arise. He granted their request, and had the satisfaction of finding
that his men had behaved themselves with great diligence and fidelity.

Next morning many of the inhabitants waited on the commodore to thank
him for his assistance, frankly owning that they could never of
themselves have extinguished the fire. Captain Anson's conduct on this
occasion greatly assisted him in his subsequent proceedings with the
timid and treacherous Chinese.

His great object was now to sail for England before the enemy should
gain intelligence of the wealth carried in the _Centurion_. Having
disposed of the galleon for six thousand dollars, much below her real
value, Captain Anson set sail from Macao on the 15th of December, 1743.
Having touched at Prince's Island in the Straits of Sunda, he anchored
in Table Bay, at the Cape of Good Hope, where he remained until the 3rd
of April, 1744, when he sailed for England.

Speaking a ship on the way, he learned that war had broken out between
the English and French.

A careful look-out was kept to avoid the enemy, and on the 15th of June,
to the infinite joy of all on board, the ship came safely to an anchor
at Spithead. Captain Anson there learned that a French fleet was
cruising in the chops of the Channel, and, from the account of their
position, he found that the _Centurion_ had run right through it, but
had, during the time, been concealed by a thick fog.

The return of the expedition, although with sadly-diminished numbers,
caused general joy throughout the country. The treasure taken from the
galleon was carried through the streets to the