e enemy at anchor, one
of which was the ship, that was to have sailed with the treasure to
the coast of Mexico; and, as she was supposed to be a good sailer,
the commodore resolved to take her along with us. The others were
two snows, a bark, and two row gallies of thirty-six oars each. These
last, as we afterwards learnt, with many others of the same kind built
at different ports, were intended to prevent us from landing in the
neighbourhood of Callao; as the Spaniards, on the first intelligence
of our squadron being destined for the South seas, and learning its
force, expected that we would attempt the city of Lima. Having no
occasion for these five vessels, the commodore ordered all their masts
to be cut by the board at our first arrival; and on leaving the place,
they were all towed out into deep water, scuttled, and sunk. The
command of the remaining ship, called the Solidad, was given to Mr
Hughes, lieutenant of the Tryal, with a crew of ten men. Towards
midnight the squadron weighed anchor and sailed out of the bay,
now consisting of six ships, the Centurion, Tryal's prize, Carmelo,
Teresa, Carmin, and Solidad.

Before proceeding to narrate our subsequent transactions, it may be
proper to give a succinct account of the booty we acquired at Payta,
and the losses there sustained by the Spaniards. It has been already
observed, that there were great quantities of valuable effects at this
place, but most of them were of a nature that we could neither dispose
of nor carry away, and their value, therefore, can only be guessed at.
In their representations to the court of Madrid, as we were afterward
assured, the Spaniards estimated their loss at a million and a half of
dollars; and as no small portion of the goods we there burnt were
of the richest and most expensive kinds, as broad cloths, silks,
cambrics, velvets, and the like, perhaps that valuation might be
sufficiently moderate. The acquisition we made, though inconsiderable
in comparison to what we destroyed, was yet far from despicable, as,
in wrought plate, dollars, and other coin, there was to the value of
more than 30,000l. sterling, besides several rings, bracelets, and
other jewels, the value of which could not then be ascertained;
and besides the very great plunder which became the property of the
immediate captors.

It has been already observed, that all the prisoners we had taken
in our preceding prizes were here discharged. Among these were some
person