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826 RALEGH’S REPORT OF AN ENGAGEMENT.
Which Middleton, being in a very good failor, had kept them company: three days be-
fore, of good purpofe, both to: difcover their forces the more, as alfo ‘to give advice
to my Lord Thomas of their approach: He had’ no fooner delivered the news, but
the fleet was in fight: many of our fhips’ companies were on fhore’ in’ the’ifland, fome
providing ballaft for their fhips; others filling of water and refrefhing themfelves frony
the land with fuch things as they could either for money or by force recover: ’ ‘By rea-
fon whereof our fhips being all peftered, and romaging ‘every thing out of order,
very light for want -of ballaft, and that which was moft to our difadvantage,’ the one
half part of the men of every fhip fick, and utterly unferviceable; for in the Reven;
there were ninety difeafed; in the Bonaventure, not fo many in health as could’ handle
her main-fail, For had not twenty men been taken out of a bark of fir George Ca-
rey’s, his being commanded to be funk, and thofe appointed to her, fhe had’ hardly
ever recovered England. ‘The reft, for the moft part, were in little better ftate. The
names of her majelty’s fhips were thefe, as followeth: the Defiance, which was admi-
ral, the Revenge vice-admiral, the Bonaventure, commanded by captain Croffe, the
Lion by George Fenner, the Forefight by M. Thomas Vavafour, and the Crane by
Dufild. The Forefight and the Crane being but {mall fhips; only the other were
of the middle fize; the reft, befides the bark Ralegh, eommanded by captain ‘Thin,
were victuallers, and of {mall force or none. ‘The Spanifh fleet having fhrouded their
approach by reafon of the ifland, were now fo foon at hand, ‘as our fhips had ‘fcarce
time to weigh their anchors, but fome of them were driven to let flip their cables and
fet fail. Sir Richard Grenvill was the laft that weighed, to recover the men that were
upon the ifland, which otherwife had been loft. The lord Thomas with the reft very
hardly recovered the wind, which fir Richard Grenvill not being able to do, was’ per-
fuaded by the matter and others to cut his main-fail, and caft about, and to truft to
the failing of the fhip; for the fquadron of Sivil were on his weather-bow. But fir
Richard utterly refuled to turn from the enemy, alledging that he would rather choofé
to die, than to difhonour himfelf, his country, and her majefty’s fhip, perfuading his
company that he would pafs through the two fquadrons in defpight of them, and en-
force thofe of Sivil to give him way. Which he performed upon divers of the fore:
moft, who, as the mariners term it, fprang their luff, and fell under the lee of the
Revenge. But the other courfe had been the better, and might right well have
been anfwered in fo great an impoflibility of prevailing. Notwithftanding out of the
greatnefs of his mind he could not be perftaded. In the mean while as he attended
thofe which were neareft him, the great San Philip being in the wind of him, and com-
ing towards him, becalmed his fails in fuch fort, asthe fhip could neither make way,
nor feel the helm: fo huge and high carged was the Spanith fhip, being of a thoufand
and five hundred tons; who after laid the Revenge aboard. When he was thus be-
reft of his fails, the fhips that were under his lee luffing up, alfo laid him aboard ; of
which the next was the admiral of the Bifcaines, a very mighty and puiffant fhip, com-
manded by Brittandona. ‘The faid Philip carried three tier of ordnance on a fide, and
eleven pieces in every tier. She fhot eight forth right out of her chafe, ‘befides thofe of
her ftern ports, F
After the Revenge was entangled with this Philip, four other boarded her; two on
her larboard, and two on her ftarboard. The fight thus beginning at three o’clock in
the afternoon, continued very terrible all’ that evening. But the great San Philip hav-
ing received the lower tier of the ‘Revenge, difcharged ‘with crofl-bar-fhot, {hifted
herlelf with all diligence from her fides, utterly mifliking her firft entertainment. Some
fay that ‘the fhip foundered, burwe ¢annot report it for truth, unlefs we’were ore
ne
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