thority of the captain. But at last, towards
the middle of October, when, the long-boat was finished, and they were
preparing to put to sea, the additional provocation given them, by
covertly traversing their project of proceeding through the Straits of
Magellan, and their fears that he might at length engage a sufficient
party to overturn this favourite measure, made them resolve to take
advantage of the death of Cozens as a reason for depriving him of his
command, under pretence of carrying him a prisoner to England to be
tried for murder, and he was accordingly confined under a guard. Yet
they never meant to carry him with them, as they too well knew what
they might expect on their return to England, if their commander
should be present to confront them; and therefore, when just ready to
depart, they set him at liberty, leaving him, and the few who chose to
take their fortunes along with him, no other embarkation but the yawl,
to which the barge was afterwards added, by the people on board her
being prevailed upon to turn back.

When the ship was wrecked, there were about one hundred and thirty
persons alive on board; above thirty of whom died on the place where
they landed, and nearly eight went off in the long-boat and cutter
to the southward; after whose departure, there remained no more than
nineteen persons along with the captain, which were as many,
however, as the barge and yawl could well carry, these being the only
embarkations left them. It was on the 13th of October, five months
after the shipwreck, that the long-boat, converted into a schooner,
weighed and sailed to the southwards, giving three cheers at their
departure to the captain and Lieutenant Hamilton of the land-forces,
and the surgeon, who were then standing on the beach. On the 29th of
January, 1742, they arrived at Rio Grande, on the coast of Brazil;
but having, by various accidents, left about twenty of their people on
shore at the different places where they touched, and a still greater
number having perished of famine in the course of their navigation,
there were not more than thirty of them remaining, when they arrived
at that port. This undertaking was certainly most extraordinary in
itself; for, not to mention the great length of the voyage, the vessel
was scarcely able to contain the number that first put to sea in her;
and their stock of provisions, being only what they saved from the
ship, diminished by five months expenditure on shore