Page 390 - for-the-term-of-his-natural-life

and a twelve-gun battery under our lee. I now divided
among the men the sum of six pounds ten shillings that I
had found in Captain Frere’s cabin, and made another and
more equal distribution of the clothing. There were also two
watches, one of which I gave to Lesly, and kept the other
for myself. It was resolved among us to say that we were
part crew of the brig Julia, bound for China and wrecked in
the South Seas. Upon landing at the battery, we were heart-
ily entertained, though we did not understand one word
of what they said. Next morning it was agreed that Lesly,
Barker, Shiers, and Russen should pay for a canoe to convey
them to the town, which was nine miles up the river; and on
the morning of the 6th March they took their departure. On
the 9th March, a boat, commanded by a lieutenant, came
down with orders that the rest of us should be conveyed to
town; and we accordingly launched the boat under convoy
of the soldiers, and reached the town the same evening, in
some trepidation. I feared lest the Spaniards had obtained
a clue as to our real character, and was not deceived—the
surviving soldier having betrayed us. This fellow was thus
doubly a traitor—first, in deserting his officer, and then in
betraying his comrades.
‘We were immediately escorted to prison, where we
found our four companions. Some of them were for brazen-
ing out the story of shipwreck, but knowing how confused
must necessarily be our accounts, were we examined sepa-
rately, I persuaded them that open confession would be our
best chance of safety. On the 14th we were taken before the
Intendente or Governor, who informed us that we were free,