i 56 Eliz, Naval Expeditions, &c of the Englisti^ Book Jl

i$j2. ic impossible for them to r betray his Ar-rival.

Drake ad- They now disposed every Thing to•vanees with get thither, with all the Speed and Se-his Pinnaces creC y possible. Captain DraÆr, having

Nombre de left the Command of the three Ships,Dios. and the Caravel, to Captain Rawfe, chose

himself to command the three Pinnaces,and Captain Rawse's Shallop, takingtwenty Men of his Company to threeand fifty of his own. The _ eight andtwentieth, they arrived, in this Manner,at the Island of Cattivas, where theylanded. And the Captain, having train-ed his Men, gave them their severalArms (which ’till then had not been un-packed) in the following Manner. SixTargets, Six Fire-pikes, twelve Pikes,four and twenty Muskets and Calli vers,sixteen Bows, and six Partizans, withtwo Drums, and two Trumpets.

The fame Afternoon, they fetSail forNombre de Dios , and, before Sun-set,Anchors at reached Rio Francisco. They kept hardRio Fran- aboard the Shoar, that they might notclsco ' be discovered by the Watch-House.

Being come within two Leagues of thePoint of the Bay, they there rode atAnchor, ’till it was dark Night. Theythen weighed again, and set Sail, row-ing still hard aboard the Shoar, with asmuch Silence as they could, ’till theyrecovered the Point of the Harbour,under the High-Land. There theylay quiet, purposing to attempt theTown, at Day-break, after having re-posed a while: But the Captain, withsome others of his best Men, findingthat their Company began to discourseof the Largeness and Strength of theTown, fearing their Courage and Eager-ness, which they had ’till then shewn,might cool, took the Opportunity of theRising of the Moon, to persuade them itwas Day-break. They, therefore, ar-rived at the Town about three in theMorning: At which Time it happened,Arrives in that a Spanish Ship, of sixty Tuns, load-the Bay of ec j vv |th C anary-Wines, and other Com-Nombre de ^odities, which was but lately come in-to the Bay, and had not yet furled herSprit-Sail, feing the four Pinnaces, withan unusual Number of Oars, sent off herGondeloe , to give Intelligence to theTown ; But Drake, cutting betwixt herand the Place, forced her to go to theother Side of the Bay. They then land-ded, without any Opposition, tho theyfound a Gunner upon the Plat-form, inLands near the ^sry Place where they landed,the ’Town. being a sandy Bay, without any ixey,

not above twenty Yards from the T i7PHouses.

There they found six large BrassCannons, mounted upon their Carri-ages, some Demi, some whole Culve-rins. They immediately dismountedthem; And, the Gunner escaping, theTown took Alarm, as they perceived,not only by the Noise and Cries ofthe People ; But by the Bell ringing,and the Drums running up and downthe Town.

The Captain, according to the Di-rections which he had given the Nightbefore, to such as he had made Choiceof, for the Purpose, left twelve Mento keep the Pinnaces, that, in Cafe ofany Miscarriage, they might be sure ofa Retreat. Having secured the Plat-form, before he entered the Town,he thought fit to view the Mount, onthe East-side of the Town, where hewas informed, the Year before, theydesigned to plant some Cannon, to scourround about the Town. Drake , find-ing no Cannon there, ordered his Bro-ther, with John Oxenham , (of whom Ishall speak farther below) and sixteenmore of his Men, to go about, be-hind the King’s Treasure-House, andenter near the East-End of the Mar-ket-Place ; Whilst he, with the Rest,marched, with Sound of Drum andTrumpet, up the broad Street, whichled thither.

The Fire-pikes, which served aswell to fright the Enemy, as to giveLight to his own Men, he divided e-qually between the two Companies.

The Inhabitants stood amazed at sostrange a Sight, and hearing the Soundof Drums and Trumpets, in more thanone Place, imagined them to be farmore numerous than they were. By thisTime, some Soldiers, which were inthe Place, and some of the Inhabitantshad put themselves in Arms, at theSouth-East-End of the Market-place,near the Governour’s House, and notfar from the Gate of the Town. .

Upon DrakeH approaching them,

W1 'th his Company, they discharged awhole Volley of Shot at them. TheEnglish, having returned it, as wellwith their Fire-Arms, as their Arrows,came immediately to a close Fight,and did great Execution with theirPikes, Swords, and But-ends of theirMuskets j And the Captain’s Brother,coming in the Instant, with the otherCompany, the Spaniards threw down

their