PART by the deftruction of their town, and the burnII. ing of profufe quantities of the richest and most

expenfive fpecies, as broad cloth, filks, cam1741. bricks, velvets, and other very valuable effects; for, by a reprefentation tranfmitted to the court of Madrid, the whole lofs was estimated at one million and a half of dollars; and this at no extravagant valuation.

THE Commodore, on his entrance into the bay, found fix Spanish veffels at anchor; one whereof, called the Solidad, was the ship, which according to their intelligence, was to have failed with the treasure to the coaft of Mexico, and being a good failor, the commodore refolved to add this veffel to the fquadron, and ordered a crew of ten men to navigate her, under the command of Lieutenant Hughes of the Tryal; the other five veffels were, two fnows, a bark, and two row-gallies, which the Spaniards, with many others, had built at different ports, to prevent any defcent from the commodore in the neighbourhood of Callao, as they were fufpicious he would attack the city of Lima; but the commodore having no occafion for thefe veffels, ordered them to be fcuttled and funk.

BEING fafely joined by the detachment under Lieutenant Brett, the commodore prepared to leave the place the fame evening; and being augmented to fix fail, towards midnight weighed anchor and failed out of the bay, with the Centurion and Tryal's prize, together with the Carmelo, Terefa, Carmin, and Solidad prizes; and standing to the weftward, on the 16th of November in the morning, the commodore gave orders For the whole fquadron to spread them"felves in queft of the Gloucefter;" whom they discovered and came up with the next

morning,

morning, and found fhe had taken a fmall fnow, CHAP. laden with wine, brandy, and olives, with 7,000l. II. in fpecie; and alfo a barge, with double doub-m loons and dollars on board, to the amount of 1741. 12,000/ As the commodore, on infpecting the papers found on board the Carmelo, was apprized that an unfuccefsful attempt had been made against Carthagena; and finding there was no probability of facilitating his plan against Panama, as he was incapable of attacking the place himself, with fuch an inconfiderable force, he dropt all thoughts of fuch an undertaking.

THE Commodore being joined by the Gloucester and one of her prizes, came to a determination, "To fteer as foon as poffible, to the "fouthern parts of California, or to the adja"cent coaft of Mexico, to cruife for the Ma"nila galleon; which he knew was at fea, "bound to the port of Acapulco, and would "not arrive there till towards the middle of

પ

January;" before which time, the commodore imagined he could be on a proper station to intercept that valuable ship: and on imparting his project, the whole crew indulged themfelves in the most unlimitted hopes of the advantages they thought infallibly to receive. But, as there was a neceffity of recruiting their water, he proceeded, for that purpose, to the island of Quibo, fituated at the mouth of the bay of Panama, in the latitude of 7 deg. 20 min. north; where, after burning the Solidad and Terefa in their paffage, as they had given great delay, all the fquadron, except the Gloucester, arrived on the 6th of December, and in two days completed their wood and water. On the 9th they put to fea, and kept hovering round the inland, in hopes of seeing the Gloucefter; the next day

they

PART they took a fmall bark from Panama, which II. they afterwards fcuttled and funk, and on the

66

12th were joined by the Gloucester, who had 1741. fprung her fore-top maft, which had difabled her from working to windward, and prevented her from getting up fooner with the fquadron. The whole fquadron now ftood to the weftward, and the commodore delivered fresh inftructions to the captains of the men of war and commanders of the prizes, directing them "To use all poffible difpatch in getting to the northward "of the harbour of Acapulco; where they "were to endeavour to fall in with the land, "between the latitude of 18 and 19 deg. from "whence they were to beat up the coaft, at "eight or ten leagues diftance from the fhore, "till they came abreast of cape Corientes, in "the latitude of 20 deg. 20 min. and to cruise "on that ftation till the 14th of February; "when they were to depart for the middle "ifland of the Tres Marias, in the latitude of "21 deg. 25 min. bearing from cape Corientes "N. W. by N. 25 leagues diftant; and if, at "this ifland, they did not meet the commodore, "after recruiting their wood and water, they "were then immediately to proceed for the "ifland of Macao, on the coaft of China." These orders being diftributed to the respective fhips, they had little doubt of arriving foon on their intended station; but by the unfavourable irregularity of the wind, they were protracted from obtaining fo defirable an end till the 28th of January, when they found themselves near the harbour of Acapulco, in the latitude of 17 deg. 56 min.

BEING now in the track of the Manila galleon, their arrival was too late to yield them any

pro

II.

probability of meeting with this veffel, which CHAP. they were taught to confider as the moft opulent capture that was to be made on any part of the ocean: this excited great uneafinefs, as they 1741. were but too apprehenfive of their disappointment, neither were their hopes diffipated nor their fears abated, till the 19th of February; when, on the return of the Centurion's barge which had been dispatched to discover the harbour of Acapulco, the commodore, from the information he received by fome negroes the barge had furprized in a canoe near the harbour, was fatisfied that the galleon had made her arrival, at Acapulco, on the 9th of January, which was about twenty days before the fquadron fell in with the coaft: yet, from them, he was able to collect other circumftances fufficient to revive his men from their dull defpondency, to a more fanguine and joyful expectation than they had hitherto retained: this was, that the galleon had delivered her cargoe, and was taking in water and provifions in order to return; and that the Vice Roy of Mexico had, by proclamation, fixed her departure from Acapulco to the 3d of March. This news was most chearfully received by the whole fquadron; fince it was much more eligible to feize her in her return, than it would have been before her arrival; as the fpeices for which fhe had fold her cargoe would be on board, and was of much more estimation than the actual cargoe; and, as they were certain fhe would fall into their hands, all the crews were animated with the higheft fpirits and fluctuation of joy, on fo prof perous an event; which afterwards happily anwered their wishes.

PART

II.

DURING the time the British commodore had been encountering all the rigours and severities of the boisterous winds and tempeftuous feas, in 1741. this remote part of the world, from the island of St Catherine's round Cape Horn, through the South Seas to the weft of Acapulco; the Spanish squadron, in pursuing him, underwent ftill a more diftreffed and unfortunate fate: for arriving at the river of Plate in South America, on the 5th of January 1740, and anchoring in the bay of Maldonado at the mouth of that riyer, their admiral, Pizarro, fent immediately to Buenos Ayres for a fupply of provifions. While they lay here, expecting this fupply, they received advice, by the treachery of the Portuguefe governor of St Catherine's, of the British commodore being arrived at that island on the 21st of December, and of his preparing to put to fea again with the utmost expedition. Pizarro, notwithstanding his fuperior force, had his reafon, perhaps even orders, for avoiding the Britifh fquadron any where fhort of the South Seas: however he precipitately put to fea on the 22d of January, without his expected fupply of provifions, in hopes of getting round Cape Horn before the British commodore, leaving the Patache behind him, as unfit for fo difficult a fervice. But, notwithstanding his vigilant haste, the British fquadron had got the start of him by four days from St Catherine's; though, in fome part of their paffage to Cape Horn, the two fquadrons were fo near together, that the Pearl, one of the Britifh fhips, approached very near to the Afia, in which was the Spanish admiral. The Spanish fquadron, having run the length of Cape Horn, towards the latter end of Febru ary, ftoad to the weftward, in order to double