LIFE OF COLON, BY HIS SON. 29
fi(h, and faw abundance of weeds; and about evening there came aboard three land-fowls finging, but at break of day they flew away, which was fome comfort to them ;confidering that the other fowls being large, and ufed to the water, might better go-far from land, but that thefe little ones could not come from any far diftant country.Three hours after they Taw another alcatraz, that came from the weft-north-weft, andthe next day afternoon they faw another rabo de junco and an alcatraz, and thereappeared more weeds than before, towards the north, as far as they could fee; whichthings fometimes were a comfort to them, believing they might come from fome nearland, and fometimes they caufed dread, becaufe they were fo thick that in fomemeafure they flayed the /hips, and fear making things worfe than they are, theyapprehended that might befall them which is fabuloufly reported of St. Amaro in thefrozen fea, who is faid not to fuffer fhips to ftir backwards or forwards, and thereforethey fleered away from thofe fhoals of weeds, as much as they could. But to returnto the tokens : the next day they faw a whale, and on Saturday following, being the22d of September, fome fmall birds ; and the wind thofe days blew at fouth-weft, fome-times more and fometimes lefs weft, which, though contrary to their voyage, the admiraLfaid he looked upon as very good, and a help to them ; becaufe the men continually mut-tering, among other things that increafed their fear, faid this was one; that fince the windwas always right a-ftern, they fhould never in thofe feas have a gale to carry them back;and though fometimes they found the contrary, they alleged that it was no fettledwind, and that not being ftrong enough to fwell the fea, it would never carry themback fo far as they had to fail. Whatsoever the admiral could fay, telling them thatthe reafon was the lands being now near, which did not fuffer the waves to rife, andufing the beft argument he could, yet he affirms he flood in need of God ’s particularaffiftance, as Moles did when he led the Ifraelites out of Egypt , who forbore layingviolent hands upon him, becaufe of the prodigies God wrought by his means. So,faid the admiral it happened to him in that voyage; for upon Sunday following, thewind ftarted up at weft-north-weft, with a rolling fea as the men vvifhed; and threehours before noon they faw a turtle fly over the /hip, and about evening an alcatraz,a river fowl, and other white birds, and fome crabs among the weeds ; and the nextday they fpied another alcatraz, and feveral fmall birds that came from the weft, andfmall fifties, whereof the men of the other veffels ftuck fome with harping, irons,becaufe they would not bite at the hook.
CHAP. XX. — How the Men mutinied to turn back , and feeing other Signs and Tokens
of Land , went on well enough fatisfed:
THE more the aforefaid tokens were found vain, the more they took occafion to ap-prehend and mutter; caballing together, and faying the admiral, out of a fdolifh fancyof his own, had defigned to make himfelf a great lord at the expence of their livesand danger; and fince they had done their duty in trying their fortune, and had gonefarther from land and any fuccour than any others had done, they ought not to deftroythemfelves, nor proceed in that voyage, fince if they did, they fhould have caufe to re-pent ; for provifions would fall fhort, and the fhips fail, which they knew were alreadyfo faulty, that it would be hard to get back fo far as they were gone, and that nonewould condemn them for fo doing, but they would rather be looked upon as verybrave men for going upon fuch a defign and venturing fo far ; and that the admiralbeing a foreigner, and having no favour at court, and fo many wife and learned men
having,