se wealth; and, hitherto, nobody had thought of the possibility of
recovering any part of it from the deep sea, which was rolling and tossing
it about. But though it was now an old story, and the most aged people had
almost forgotten that such a vessel had been wrecked. William Phips
resolved that the sunken treasure should again be brought to light.

He went to London, and obtained admittance to King James, who had not yet
been driven from his throne. He told the king of the vast wealth that was
lying at the bottom of the sea. King James listened with attention, and
thought this a fine opportunity to fill his treasury with Spanish gold. He
appointed William Phips to be captain of a vessel, called the Rose Algier,
carrying eighteen guns and ninety-five men. So now he was Captain Phips of
the English navy.

Captain Phips sailed from England in the Rose Algier, and cruised for
nearly two years in the West Indies, endeavoring to find the wreck of the
Spanish ship. But the sea is so wide and deep, that it is no easy matter
to discover the exact spot where a sunken vessel lies. The prospect of
success seemed very small; and most people would have thought that Captain
Phips was as far from having money enough to build a "fair brick house,"
as he was while he tended sheep.

The seamen of the Rose Algier became discouraged, and gave up all hope of
making their fortunes by discovering the Spanish wreck. They wanted to
compel Captain Phips to turn pirate. There was a much better prospect,
they thought, of growing rich by plundering vessels, which still sailed
the sea, than by seeking for a ship that had lain beneath the waves full
half a century. They broke out in open mutiny, but were finally mastered
by Phips, and compelled to obey his orders. It would have been dangerous,
however, to continue much longer at sea with such a crew of mutinous
sailors; and, besides, the Rose Algier was leaky and unseaworthy. So
Captain Phips judged it best to return to England.

Before leaving the West Indies, he met with a Spaniard, an old man, who
remembered the wreck of the Spanish ship, and gave him directions how to
find the very spot. It was on a reef of rocks a few leagues from Porto de
la Plata.

On his arrival in England, therefore, Captain Phips solicited the king to
let him have another vessel, and send him back again to the West Indies.
But King James, who had probably expected that the Rose Algier would
return laden with gold, ref