tured, and also two large armed
ships, all laden with plate, within the port of Campeachy, which they
boldly entered for that purpose, and sailed with them in triumph to
Tortuga. Such rich returns greatly augmented the wealth of the island;
and every additional capture enabled them to increase their marine,
until at the end of two years from the last achievement of Pierre Le
Grande, the pirates had a navy, very well manned and equipped, of more
than twenty ships of different sizes. With such a force, composed of men
of the most desperate fortunes and dauntless courage, the commerce of
Spain with her colonies in Central and South America was in a few years
almost entirely destroyed. The ships bound from Europe for the colonies
were rarely molested by the pirates, who chose to fall upon them when
laden with the precious metals, which Spain, in her avarice, was
transporting home--not foreseeing that by that very process she was
gradually working her own national ruin. Sometimes a fleet of galleons,
when under strong convoy, succeeded in the return voyage; but a single
ship, of whatever strength or force, seldom escaped the vigilance of the
pirates. They followed such fleets as they judged it unsafe to attack,
and a slow sailer or a straggler was inevitably captured. So daring were
these robbers, that even before they were enabled to obtain a smaller
craft, a crew of fifty-five of them in one of the large canoes sailed
into the Southern Ocean, and proceeded along the coast of the continent
as far north as California. On their return, they entered one of the
ports of Peru, and captured a ship, the cargo of which was valued at
several millions. Their canoe was then exchanged for the noble prize, in
which they returned in triumph.

Preparations for their expeditions were made with the utmost care, and
articles of agreement were always carefully written out and signed; and
the dealings of the robbers among each other were usually characterized
by the most scrupulous honor. In regard to their provisions, the rations
were distributed twice a day--the officers, from the highest to the
lowest, faring no better than the common sailor. It was stipulated
exactly what sums of money or what proportionate sums each person
engaged in a voyage should receive, with the understanding, of course,
_no prey_, _no pay_. The commanders of the ships were frequently the
owners. Sometimes they belonged to a company of adventurers on board. In
other