d 700
men; the Hermiona of 54 guns and 500 men; the Esperanza of 50 guns and
450 men; the St Estevan of 40 guns and 350 men; and a patache of 20
guns.

Over and above their complements of sailors and marines, these ships
had on board an old Spanish regiment of foot, intended to reinforce
the garrisons on the coast of the South-Sea. Having cruised some days
to leeward of Madeira, as formerly mentioned, they left that station
in the beginning of November, and steered for the Rio de la Plata,
where they arrived on the 5th of January O.S. and coming to anchor in
the bay of Maldonado, at the mouth of that river, their admiral sent
immediately to Buenos Ayres for a supply of provisions, having left
Spain with only four months provisions on board. While waiting this
supply, they received intelligence, by the treachery of the Portuguese
governor of St Catharines, of Mr Anson having arrived at that island
on the 21st December preceding, and that he was preparing to put to
sea again with the utmost expedition. Notwithstanding his superior
force, Pizarro had his reasons, and some say his orders, for avoiding
our squadron any where short of the South-Sea. He was, besides,
extremely desirous of getting round Cape Horn before us, imagining
that alone would effectually baffle all our designs; wherefore,
hearing that we were in his neighbourhood, and that we should be soon
ready to proceed for Cape Horn, he weighed anchor with his five large
ships, the Patache being disabled and condemned, and the men taken
out of her; and, after a stay of seventeen days only, got under sail
without his provisions, which arrived at Maldonado within a day or two
after his departure. Notwithstanding this precipitation, we put to sea
from St Catharines four days before he did from Maldonado; and at one
part of our passage to Cape Horn the two squadrons were so near, that
the Pearl, one of our ships, being separated from the rest, fell in
with the Spanish fleet, and, mistaking the Asia for the Centurion,
got within gun-shot of the Asia before the mistake was discovered, and
narrowly escaped being taken.

As it was the 22d January when the Spaniards weighed from Maldonado,
they could not expect to get into the latitude of Cape Horn before the
equinox; and, as they had reason to apprehend very tempestuous weather
in doubling it at that season, while the Spanish sailors, for the most
part accustomed to a fair-weather country, might be supposed averse
from