e recovery of his health. The commodore
complied with this request, and was pleased to appoint Captain Matthew
Mitchell to command the Gloucester in his room, to remove Captain Kidd
from the Wager to the Pearl, and Captain Murray from the Tryal sloop
to the Wager, giving the command of the Tryal to Lieutenant
Cheap. These promotions being settled, with other changes in the
lieutenancies, the commodore, on the 4th November, gave to the
captains their orders, appointing St Jago, one of the Cape Verd
islands, to be the first place of rendezvous in case of separation;
and, if they did not meet the Centurion there, directing them to make
the best of their way to the island of St Catharine on the coast of
Brazil. The water for the squadron being that day completed, and each
ship supplied with as much wine and other refreshments as they
could take in, we weighed anchor in the afternoon, and took leave of
Madeira. But, before continuing the narrative of our transactions,
I think it necessary to give some account of the proceedings of the
enemy, and of the measures they had taken to render all our designs
abortive.

On visiting the governor of Madeira, Mr Anson was informed by him,
that for three or four days in the latter end of October, there had
appeared to the westward of the island seven or eight ships of the
line and a _patache_, which last was sent close in with the land every
day. The governor assured our commodore, upon his honour, that no
person on the island had either given them intelligence, or had any
sort of communication with them. He believed them to be either French
or Spanish, but was rather inclined to suppose the latter. On this
intelligence, Mr Anson sent an officer in a clean sloop eight leagues
to the westwards, to reconnoitre them, and, if possible, to discover
what they were: But the officer returned without having seen them, so
that we still remained in uncertainty; yet we could not but conjecture
that this fleet was intended to put a stop, if possible, to our
expedition; and, had they cruized to the eastward of the island,
instead of the westward, they could not have failed in doing so: for,
as in that case they must infallibly have fallen in with us, we should
have been under the necessity of throwing overboard vast quantities of
provisions, to clear our ships for action; and this alone, independent
of the event of the action, would have effectually prevented our
progress. This was so obvious a meas