olen diamonds.
Thinking England would be a better place for this transaction, he went
there, and settled at Bideford in Devon. Here he lived very quietly under
a false name, and through a friend communicated with certain merchants in
Bristol. These came to see him, accepted his diamonds and some gold cups,
giving him a few pounds for his immediate wants, and took the valuables to
Bristol to sell, promising to send him the money procured for them. Time
dragged on, but nothing came from the Bristol merchants, and at last it
began to dawn on Avery that there were pirates on land as well as at sea.
His frequent letters to the merchants brought at the most but a few
occasional shillings, which were immediately swallowed up by the payment
of his debts for the bare necessities of life at Bideford. At length, when
matters were becoming desperate, Avery was taken ill and died "not being
worth as much as would buy him a coffin." Thus ended Avery, "the Grand
Pirate," whose name was known all over Europe, and who was supposed to be
reigning as a king in Madagascar when all the while he was hiding and
starving in a cottage at Bideford.

AYLETT, CAPTAIN.

This buccaneer was killed by an explosion of gunpowder on board the
_Oxford_ during a banquet of Morgan's captains off Hispaniola in 1669.

BAILY, JOB, or BAYLEY.

Of London.

One of Major Stede Bonnet's crew. Hanged at Charleston in 1718.

BAKER, CAPTAIN.

One of Gasparilla's gang up to 1822, when they were broken up by the
United States Navy. His favourite hunting-ground was the Gulf of Mexico.

BALL, ROGER.

One of Captain Bartholomew's crew in the _Royal Fortune_. Captured by
H.M.S. _Swallow_ off the West Coast of Africa. He had been terribly burnt
by an explosion of a barrel of gunpowder, and while seated "in a private
corner, with a look as sullen as winter," a surgeon of the king's ship
came up and asked him how he came to be blown up in that frightful manner.
"Why," says he, "John Morris fired a pistol into the powder, and if he had
not done it, I would." The surgeon, with great kindness, offered to dress
the prisoner's wounds, but Ball, although in terrible pain, refused to
allow them to be touched. He died the same night.

BALLET, JOHN. Buccaneer.

Third mate on board Woodes Rogers's ship, the _Duke_, but was by
profession a surgeon, in which latter capacity he had sailed on a previous
voyage with Dampier.

BALTIZAR, CAPTAIN.

A terror to all s