d if not, some
other ship bound to China might have information of us from them, and
pursue us with the same vigour.

I must confess I was now very uneasy, and thought myself, including the
late escape from the longboats, to have been in the most dangerous
condition that ever I was in through my past life; for whatever ill
circumstances I had been in, I was never pursued for a thief before; nor
had I ever done anything that merited the name of dishonest or
fraudulent, much less thievish. I had chiefly been my own enemy, or, as
I may rightly say, I had been nobody's enemy but my own; but now I was
woefully embarrassed: for though I was perfectly innocent, I was in no
condition to make that innocence appear; and if I had been taken, it had
been under a supposed guilt of the worst kind. This made me very anxious
to make an escape, though which way to do it I knew not, or what port or
place we could go to. My partner endeavoured to encourage me by
describing the several ports of that coast, and told me he would put in
on the coast of Cochin China, or the bay of Tonquin, intending afterwards
to go to Macao, where a great many European families resided, and
particularly the missionary priests, who usually went thither in order to
their going forward to China.

Hither then we resolved to go; and, accordingly, though after a tedious
course, and very much straitened for provisions, we came within sight of
the coast very early in the morning; and upon reflection on the past
circumstances of danger we were in, we resolved to put into a small
river, which, however, had depth enough of water for us, and to see if we
could, either overland or by the ship's pinnace, come to know what ships
were in any port thereabouts. This happy step was, indeed, our
deliverance: for though we did not immediately see any European ships in
the bay of Tonquin, yet the next morning there came into the bay two
Dutch ships; and a third without any colours spread out, but which we
believed to be a Dutchman, passed by at about two leagues' distance,
steering for the coast of China; and in the afternoon went by two English
ships steering the same course; and thus we thought we saw ourselves
beset with enemies both one way and the other. The place we were in was
wild and barbarous, the people thieves by occupation; and though it is
true we had not much to seek of them, and, except getting a few
provisions, cared not how little we had to do with them, ye