The captain was terribly amazed, and even confounded, at this,
believing they would go on board the ship again and set sail,
giving their comrades over for lost, and so he should still lose
the ship, which he was in hopes we should have recovered; but he
was quickly as much frightened the other way.
They had not been long put off with the boat, when we perceived
them all coming on shore again; but with this new measure in their
conduct, which it seems they consulted together upon, viz. to leave
three men in the boat, and the rest to go on shore, and go up into
the country to look for their fellows. This was a great
disappointment to us, for now we were at a loss what to do, as our
seizing those seven men on shore would be no advantage to us if we
let the boat escape; because they would row away to the ship, and
then the rest of them would be sure to weigh and set sail, and so
our recovering the ship would be lost. However we had no remedy
but to wait and see what the issue of things might present. The
seven men came on shore, and the three who remained in the boat put
her off to a good distance from the shore, and came to an anchor to
wait for them; so that it was impossible for us to come at them in
the boat.
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