of
water upon the woman's head, he said, "_Mary_, I baptize thee in the
name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost;" so that none
could know of what religion he was. After this he pronounced the
benediction in Latin. Thus the woman being made a Christian, he married
her to Will Atkins; which being finished, he affectionately exhorted him
to lead a holy life for the future; and since the Almighty, for the
convictions of his conscience, had honoured him to be the instrument or
his wife's conversion, he should not dishonor the grace of God, that
while the savage was converted, the instrument should be cast away. Thus
ended a ceremony, to me the most pleasant and agreeable I ever passed
in my life.

The affairs of the island being settled, I was preparing to go on board,
when the young man (whose mother was starved) came to me, saying, that
as he understood I had a clergyman with me, who had married the
Englishmen with savages, he had a match to make between two Christians,
which he desired might be finished before I departed. Thinking that it
was he himself that had courted his mother's maid, I persuaded him not
to do any thing rashly upon the account of his solitary circumstances;
that the maid was an unequal match for him, both in respect to substance
and years; and that it was very probable he would live to return to his
own country, where he might have a far better choice. At these words,
smiling, he interrupted me, thanking me for my good-advice; that as he
had nothing to beg of me but a small settlement, with a servant or two,
or some new necessaries, so he hoped I would not be unmindful of him
when I returned to England, but give his letter to his friends; and that
when he was redeemed, the plantation, and all its improvements, however
valuable, should be returned to me again. But as for the marriage he
proposed, that it was not himself, but that it was between my
Jack-of-all-trades and the maid Susan.

I was indeed agreeably surprised at the mentioning this match, which
seemed very suitable, the one being a very ingenious fellow, and the
other an excellent, dexterous, and sensible housewife, fit to be
governess of the whole island; so we married them the same day; and as I
was her father, and gave her away, so I gave her a handsome portion,
appointing her and her husband a convenient large space of ground for
their plantation. The sharing out of the land I left to Will Atkins, who
really divided if