nds.
With them he carried "the best of our Doctors and Medicines," and the
hearty ill will of the other buccaneers. Old King Golden Cap accompanied
these deserters, leaving behind him his son and a nephew, desiring them
to be "not less vigorous" than he had been in harrying the Spanish.
Just before Coxon set sail, he asked Bartholomew Sharp to accompany him.
But that proven soul "could not hear of so dirty and inhuman an Action
without detestation." So Coxon sailed without ally, "which will not much
redound to his Honour," leaving all his wounded on the deck of the
captured galleon. The fleet, it may be added, had by this time returned
to the anchorage at Perico.

They lay there ten days in all, "debating what were best to be done." In
that time they took a frigate laden with fowls. They took the poultry
for their own use, and dismissed some of "the meanest of the prisoners"
in the empty ship. They then shifted their anchorage to the island of
Taboga, where there were a few houses, which some drunken pirates set on
fire. While they lay at this island the merchants of Panama came off to
them "and sold us what commodities we needed, buying also of us much of
the goods we had taken in their own vessels." The pirates also sold them
a number of negroes they had captured, receiving "two hundred pieces of
eight for each negro we could spare." "And here we took likewise several
barks that were laden with fowls." After Coxon's defection, Richard
Sawkins was re-elected admiral, and continued in that command till his
death some days later.

Before they left Taboga, Captain Sharp went cruising to an island some
miles distant to pick up some straggling drunkards who belonged to his
ship. While he lay at anchor, in a dead calm, waiting for a breeze to
blow, a great Spanish merchant ship hove in sight, bound from Lima (or
Truxillo) to Panama. Sharp ran his canoas alongside, and bade her dowse
her colours, at the same time sending a gang of pirates over her rail,
to throw the crew under hatches. "He had no Arms to defend himself with,
save only Rapiers," so her captain made no battle, but struck
incontinently. She proved to be a very splendid prize, for in her hold
were nearly 2000 jars of wine and brandy, 100 jars of good vinegar, and
a quantity of powder and shot, "which came very luckily." In addition to
these goods there were 51,000 pieces of eight, "247 pieces of eight a
man," a pile of silver sent to pay the Panama soldiery; and