Drakes Great Armada | Page 9

of the people and country his best way were to come and
present himself unto our noble and merciful governor, Sir Francis
Drake, whereby he might be assured to find favour, both for himself
and the inhabitants. Otherwise within three days we should march over
the land, and consume with fire all inhabited places, and put to the
sword all such living souls as we should chance upon. So thus much he
took for the conclusion of his answer. And departing, he promised to
return the next day; but we never heard more of him.
Upon the 24th of November, the General, accompanied with the
Lieutenant-General and 600 men, marched forth to a village twelve
miles within the land, called Saint Domingo, where the governor and
the bishop, with all the better sort, were lodged; and by eight of the
clock we came to it, finding the place abandoned, and the people fled
into the mountains. So we made stand a while to ease ourselves, and
partly to see if any would come to speak to us. After we had well rested
ourselves, the General commanded the troops to march away
homewards. In which retreat the enemy shewed themselves, both horse

and foot, though not such force as durst encounter us; and so in passing
some time at the gaze with them, it waxed late and towards night before
we could recover home to Santiago.
On Monday, the 26th of November, the General commanded all the
pinnaces with the boats to use all diligence to embark the army into
such ships as every man belonged. The Lieutenant-General in like sort
commanded Captain Goring and Lieutenant Tucker, with one hundred
shot, to make a stand in the marketplace until our forces were wholly
embarked; the Vice-Admiral making stay with his pinnace and certain
boats in the harbour, to bring the said last company abroad the ships.
Also the General willed forthwith the galley with two pinnaces to take
into them the company of Captain Barton, and the company of Captain
Biggs, under the leading of Captain Sampson, to seek out such
munition as was hidden in the ground, at the town of Praya, or Playa,
having been promised to be shewed it by a prisoner which was taken
the day before.
The captains aforesaid coming to the Playa, landed their men; and
having placed the troop in their best strength, Captain Sampson took
the prisoner, and willed him to show that he had promised. The which
he could not, or at least would not; but they searching all suspected
places, found two pieces of ordnance, one of iron, another of brass. In
the afternoon the General anchored with the rest of the fleet before the
Playa, coming himself ashore, willing us to burn the town and make all
haste aboard; the which was done by six of the clock the same day, and
ourselves embarked again the same night. And so we put off to sea
south-west.
But before our departure from the town of Santiago, we established
orders for the better government of the army. Every man mustered to
his captain, and oaths were ministered, to acknowledge her Majesty
supreme Governor, as also every man to do his utter-most endeavour to
advance the service of the action, and to yield due obedience unto the
directions of the General and his officers. By this provident counsel,
and laying down this good foundation beforehand, all things went
forward in a due course, to the achieving of our happy enterprise.
In all the time of our being here, neither the governor for the said King
of Spain, which is a Portugal, neither the bishop, whose authority is
great, neither the inhabitants of the town, or island, ever came at us;

which we expected they should have done, to entreat us to leave them
some part of their needful provisions, or at the least to spare the ruining
of their town at our going away. The cause of this their unreasonable
distrust, as I do take it, was the fresh remembrance of the great wrongs
that they had done to old Master William Hawkins, of Plymouth, in the
voyage he made four or five years before, whenas they did both break
their promise, and murdered many of his men; whereof I judge you
have understood, and therefore it is needless to be repeated. But since
they came not at us, we left written in sundry places, as also in the
Spital House (which building was only appointed to be spared), the
great discontentment and scorn we took at this their refraining to come
unto us, as also at the rude manner of killing, and savage kind of
handling the dead body of one of our boys found by them straggling all
alone, from whom they had