p of
theirs of nine hundred tons, which ship rode hard by the Minion, he
sent again to the Viceroy Robert Barret, the master of the Jesus--a man
that could speak the Spanish tongue very well, and required that those
men might be unshipped again which were in that great hulk. The
Viceroy then perceiving that their treason was thoroughly espied,
stayed our master and sounded the trumpet, and gave order that his
people should upon all sides charge upon our men which warded on shore
and elsewhere, which struck such a maze and sudden fear among us, that
many gave place and sought to recover our ships for the safety of
themselves. The Spaniards, which secretly were hid in ambush on land,
were quickly conveyed over to the island in their long boats, and so
coming to the island they slew all our men that they could meet with
without any mercy. The Minion--which had somewhat before prepared
herself to avoid the danger--hailed away, and abode the first brunt of
the three hundred men that were in the great hulk; then they sought to
fall aboard the Jesus, where was a cruel fight, and many of our men
slain; but yet our men defended themselves, and kept them out: so the
Jesus also got loose, and, joining with the Minion, the fight waxed hot
upon all sides; but they having won and got our ordnance on shore, did
greatly annoy us. In this fight there were two great ships of the
Spaniards sunk and one burnt, so that with their ships they were not
able to harm us; but from the shore they beat us cruelly with our own
ordnance in such sort that the Jesus was very sore spoiled, and
suddenly the Spaniards, having fired two great ships of their own, came
directly against us; which bred among our men a marvellous fear.
Howbeit, the Minion, which had made her sails ready, shifted for
herself without consent of the General, captain, or master, so that
very hardly our General could be received into the Minion; the most of
our men that were in the Jesus shifted for themselves, and followed the
Minion in the boat, and those which that small boat was not able to
receive were most cruelly slain by the Spaniards. Of our ships none
escaped save the Minion and the Judith, and all such of our men as were
not in them were enforced to abide the tyrannous cruelty of the
Spaniards. For it is a certain truth, that whereas they had taken
certain of our men at shore, they took and hung them up by the arms
upon high posts until the blood burst out of their