Early Australian Voyages | Page 5

been lost upon the coast. But this
story did not satisfy the inquisitive, because not attended with
circumstances necessary to establish its credit; and therefore they
suggested that, instead of taking away the obscurity by relating the
truth, this story was invented in order to hide it more effectually. This
suspicion gained ground the more when it was known that the Dutch
East India Company from Batavia had made some attempts to conquer
a part of the Southern continent, and had been repulsed with loss, of
which, however, we have no distinct or perfect relation, and all that
hath hitherto been collected in reference to this subject, may be reduced
to two voyages. All that we know concerning the following piece is,
that it was collected from the Dutch journal of the voyage, and having
said thus much by way of introduction, we now proceed to the
translation of this short history.
The directors of the East India Company, animated by the return of five
ships, under General Carpenter, richly laden, caused, the very same
year, 1628, eleven vessels to be equipped for the same voyage; amongst
which there was one ship called the Batavia, commanded by Captain

Francis Pelsart. They sailed out of the Texel on the 28th of October,
1628; and as it would be tedious and troublesome to the reader to set
down a long account of things perfectly well known, I shall say nothing
of the occurrences that happened in their passage to the Cape of Good
Hope; but content myself with observing that on the 4th of June, in the
following year 1629, this vessel, the Batavia, being separated from the
fleet in a storm, was driven on the Abrollos or shoals, which lie in the
latitude of 28 degrees south, and which have been since called by the
Dutch, the Abrollos of Frederic Houtman. Captain Pelsart, who was
sick in bed when this accident happened, perceiving that his ship had
struck, ran immediately upon deck. It was night indeed; but the weather
was fair, and the moon shone very bright; the sails were up; the course
they steered was north-east by north, and the sea appeared as far as they
could behold it covered with a white froth. The captain called up the
master and charged him with the loss of the ship, who excused himself
by saying he had taken all the care he could; and that having discerned
this froth at a distance, he asked the steersman what he thought of it,
who told him that the sea appeared white by its reflecting the rays of
the moon. The captain then asked him what was to be done, and in
what part of the world he thought they were. The master replied, that
God only knew that; and that the ship was fast on a bank hitherto
undiscovered. Upon this they began to throw the lead, and found that
they had forty-eight feet of water before, and much less behind the
vessel. The crew immediately agreed to throw their cannon overboard,
in hopes that when the ship was lightened she might be brought to float
again. They let fall an anchor however; and while they were thus
employed, a most dreadful storm arose of wind and rain; which soon
convinced them of the danger they were in; for being surrounded with
rocks and shoals, the ship was continually striking.
They then resolved to cut away the main-mast, which they did, and this
augmented the shock, neither could they get clear of it, though they cut
it close by the board, because it was much entangled within the rigging;
they could see no land except an island which was about the distance of
three leagues, and two smaller islands, or rather rocks, which lay nearer.
They immediately sent the master to examine them, who returned about
nine in the morning, and reported that the sea at high water did not
cover them, but that the coast was so rocky and full of shoals that it

would be very difficult to land upon them; they resolved, however, to
run the risk, and to send most of their company on shore to pacify the
women, children, sick people, and such as were out of their wits with
fear, whose cries and noise served only to disturb them. About ten
o'clock they embarked these in their shallop and skiff, and, perceiving
their vessel began to break, they doubled their diligence; they likewise
endeavoured to get their bread up, but they did not take the same care
of the water, not reflecting in their fright that they might be much
distressed for want of it on shore; and what hindered them most of all
was the brutal behaviour of some of the crew that made themselves
drunk with wine,