sions
since, and had shewed himself so faithful to, and concerned for the
general interest of them all, that they had forgotten all that was past,
and thought he merited as much to be trusted with arms, and supplied
with necessaries, as any of them; and that they had testified their
satisfaction in him, by committing the command to him, next to the
governor himself; and as they had an entire confidence in him and all
his countrymen, so they acknowledged they had merited that confidence by
all the methods that honest men could merit to be valued and trusted;
and they most heartily embraced the occasion of giving me this
assurance, that they would never have any interest separate from
one another.

Upon these frank and open declarations of friendship, we appointed the
next day to dine all together, and indeed we made a splendid feast. I
caused the ship's cook and his mate to come on shore and dress our
dinner, and the old cook's mate we had on shore assisted. We brought on
shore six pieces of good beef, and four pieces of pork, out of the
ship's provision, with our punch-bowl, and materials to fill it; and, in
particular, I gave them ten bottles of French claret, and ten bottles of
English beer, things that neither the Spaniards nor the Englishmen had
tasted for many years; and which it may be supposed they were
exceeding glad of.

The Spaniards added to our feast five whole kids, which the cooks
roasted; and three of them were sent, covered up close, on board our
ship to the seamen, that they might feast on fresh meat from on shore,
as we did with their salt meal from on board.

After this feast, at which we were very innocently merry, I brought out
my cargo of goods, wherein, that there might be no dispute about
dividing, I shewed them that there was sufficient for them all; and
desired that they might all take an equal quantity of the goods that
were for wearing; that is to say, equal when made up. As first, I
distributed linen sufficient to make every one of them four shirts; and,
at the Spaniards' request, afterwards made them up six; these were
exceeding comfortable to them, having been what, as I may say, they had
long since forgot the use of, or what it was to wear them.

I allotted the thin English stuffs, which I mentioned before, to make
every one a light coat like a frock, which I judged fittest for the heat
of the season, cool and loose; and ordered, that whenever they decayed,
they should make more, as