A New Voyage Round the World by a Course Never Sailed Before

by Daniel Defoe

however, this apparent encouragement, that as the contrivance wasyet but two days' old, for it was but two days since they had any noticeof our intentions to go, they would be some days caballing and formingan interest among the men, to make up a party strong enough to make anyattempt; and that, as I had a trusty set of men, who would be asdiligent the other way, they would be contriving every method to get themen over to their opinion, so that at least it would be some time beforethey could make their party up.

  The affair was rightly conjectured, and the three men who had madethemselves the head of the mutineers, went on apace, and my menincreased too, as much as could be desired for the time; but the Fridayafter, which was about five days from the first discovery, one of themidshipmen came, and desired to speak with me, and begged it might not,if possible, be known that he was with me. I asked him if he desired tobe alone; he said no, I might appoint whom I thought convenient that Icould trust, but that what he had to say was of the last importance toall our lives, and that therefore, he hoped I would be very sure ofthose in whom I confided.

  Upon this, I told him, I would name the chief mate, the French captain,and the supercargo, and in the mean time, I bade him not be too muchsurprised, for that I had already some warning of the scheme which Ibelieved he had to tell me of, and that I was preparing all things todisappoint it: that, however, I should not value his fidelity the less,and that he might speak freely his mind before those men, for they wereall in the secret already, and he might be sure both of protection andreward.

  Accordingly, I bade him go out upon the quarter-deck, and walk there,and that, when the chief mate went off into the roundhouse, he should godown between decks as if he was going into his cabin to sleep, and that,when he heard the chief mate call the cabin boy, a black of mine, whosename was Spartivento, he should take that for a signal that the steeragewas clear, and he might come up, and should be let into the great cabin;all which was so managed, and in so short a time, that he was with us inthe great cabin in a quarter of an hour after the first conference, andnone of the men perceived it.

  Here he let me into the whole secret, and a wicked scheme it was; viz.,that the second mate, the gunner, three midshipmen, the cockswain, andabout six-and-thirty of the men, had resolved to mutiny, and seize uponall us who were in the new project, as they called it; and to confine usfirst, then to set us on shore, either there where we were, orsomewhere else, and so carry the ship away to the South Seas, and thento do as they found convenient; that is to say, in a word, to seize uponme, the other captain, the French captain, the supercargo, the chiefmate, doctor, and carpenter, with some others, and run away with theship.

  He told me, that they had not fully concluded on all their measures, norgained so many of the men as they intended; that they were to sound somemore of the men the next morning, and, as soon as they had made theirnumber up fifty, they were resolved to make the attempt, which they didnot question would be by Thursday, and this was Monday morning; andthat, if they were then ready, they would make the onset at changing thewatch the same evening. He added, that, as they were to go on shore thenext morning for fresh water, I should know the truth of it by this;that the second mate would come to me, and tell me that they wanted morewater, and to know if I pleased the boats should go on shore, and that,if I chose it, he would go with them, or any else whom I pleased toappoint; and that, upon supposition that I would leave it to him, totake those he thought fit to go with him, he would then take occasion tochoose the principal conspirators, that they might, when they were onshore, conclude upon the measures they intended to pursue.

  I had all that day (Monday) to order my preparations, and upon thisplain intelligence, I determined to lose no time, nor was it long beforeI resolved what to do; for as their design was desperate, so I hadnothing but desperate remedies to provide. Having therefore settled mymeasures, I called for the cockswain, and bade him man the pinnace, forthat I was to go on shore, and I appointed only the supercargo, and thesurgeon, and the French captain, to go with me.

  There were no English ships in the road, but there were about five Dutchvessels homeward-bound, waiting for more, and three outward-bound. As Ipassed by one of the outward-bound East India ships, the French captain,as we had agreed before, pretended to know the ship, and that thecommander was his old acquaintance, and asked me to give him leave tovisit him, and told me he was sure he would make us all welcome. Iseemed unwilling at first, telling him I intended to go on shore andpay my respects to the governor, and, as was usual, to ask him leave tobuy some provisions, and that the governor would take it very ill if Idid not go. However, upon his alleging that we would not stay, and thatthe Dutch captain, upon his going on board, would, he was sure, give usa letter of recommendation to the governor, by which we should haveeverything granted that we could desire, I consented to his importunity,and we went on board.

  Captain Merlotte, who spoke Dutch very well, hailed the ship, asked thecaptain's name, and then asked if he was on board; they answered, Yes;then he bade them tell him the captain of the English ship was come tovisit him; upon which, immediately their chief mate bade them man theside, and stood at the side to receive us, and, before we could get up,the Dutch captain came upon the quarter-deck, and with great civilityinvited us into his cabin; and, while we were there, the chief mate, bythe captain's order, entertained the boat's crew with like civility.

  When we were in the cabin, Captain Merlotte told the Dutch captain thatwe came indeed to him in the form of a visit, but that our business wasof the greatest importance, and desired we might speak to him of it inthe hearing of none but such as he could trust. The captain told us withthe greatest open-heartedness imaginable, that though we were strangersto him, yet we looked like honest men, and he would grant our request;we should speak it in the hearing of none but those we could trust, forthere should be nobody by but ourselves.

  We made him fully sensible that we knew how obliging that complimentwas, but begged he would admit any whom he thought worthy to be trustedwith a secret of the last importance. He then carried it as far theother way, and told us, that then he must call in the whole ship'scompany, for that there was not a man in the ship but he could trust hislife in his hands. However, upon the whole, he sent everybody out of thecabin but us three and himself, and then desired we would speak ourminds freely.

  Captain Merlotte, who spoke Dutch, began, but the Dutch captaininterrupted him, and asked if the English captain, meaning me, spokeDutch; he said no; upon which he asked Captain Merlotte if he spokeEnglish, and he said yes, upon which he let me know that he understoodEnglish, and desired I would speak to him in English.

  I was heartily glad of this, and began immediately with the story, forwe had time little enough, I told him that he was particularly happy inhaving it in his power to say he could put his life in the hand of anyman, the meanest in his ship; that my men were unhappily the reverse ofhis; and, then beginning at the first of the story, I gave him a fullaccount of the whole, as related above.

  He was extremely affected with it, and asked me what he could do toserve me, and assured me that he would not only do what in him lay, butwould engage all the ships in the road to do the like, and the governoralso on shore. I thanked him very sincerely, and told him what atpresent was the circumstance I thought lay before me, was this, viz.,that the chief conspirators would be on shore on the morrow, with one,or perhaps two, of our boats, to fetch water and get some freshprovisions, and I should be very glad to have them seized upon bysurprise, when they were on shore, and that then I thought I couldmaster the rest on board well enough.

  Leave that to me, says he, I will give the governor notice this evening,and as soon as they come on shore they shall be all seized; But, sayshe, if you think they may incline to make any resistance, I will write aline to the governor, and give it you now; then, when your men go onshore, order two of the principal rogues to go and wait on the governorwith the letter from you, and when he receives it, he shall secure themthere; so they will be divided, and ta
ken with the more ease.

  In the mean time, added he, while this is doing on shore, I will come onboard your ship, with my long boat and pinnace, and as many men as youplease, to repay you the compliment of this visit, and assist you inreducing the rest.

  This was so kind, and so completely what I desired, that I could haveasked nothing more; and I accepted his visit in his barge, which Ithought would be enough, but was afraid that, if more came, our menmight be alarmed, and take arms before I was ready; so we agreed uponthat, and, if I desired more help, I should hang out a signal, viz., ared ancient, on the mizen top.

  All things being thus consulted, I returned on board, pretending to ourmen that I had spent so much time on board the Dutch ship, that I couldnot go on shore; and indeed some of my men were so drunk, that theycould scarce sit to their oars; and the coxswain was so very far gone,that I took occasion to ask publicly, to leave him on board till thenext day, giving the Dutch captain also a hint