wever rich, had I contracted fresh
acquaintance; and though I had sold my estate in the Brazils, yet I could
not keep that country out of my head, and had a great mind to be upon the
wing again; especially I could not resist the strong inclination I had to
see my island, and to know if the poor Spaniards were in being there. My
true friend, the widow, earnestly dissuaded me from it, and so far
prevailed with me, that for almost seven years she prevented my running
abroad, during which time I took my two nephews, the children of one of
my brothers, into my care; the eldest, having something of his own, I
bred up as a gentleman, and gave him a settlement of some addition to his
estate after my decease. The other I placed with the captain of a ship;
and after five years, finding him a sensible, bold, enterprising young
fellow, I put him into a good ship, and sent him to sea; and this young
fellow afterwards drew me in, as old as I was, to further adventures
myself.

In the meantime, I in part settled myself here; for, first of all, I
married, and that not either to my disadvantage or dissatisfaction, and
had three children, two sons and one daughter; but my wife dying, and my
nephew coming home with good success from a voyage to Spain, my
inclination to go abroad, and his importunity, prevailed, and engaged me
to go in his ship as a private trader to the East Indies; this was in the
year 1694.

In this voyage I visited my new colony in the island, saw my successors
the Spaniards, had the old story of their lives and of the villains I
left there; how at first they insulted the poor Spaniards, how they
afterwards agreed, disagreed, united, separated, and how at last the
Spaniards were obliged to use violence with them; how they were subjected
to the Spaniards, how honestly the Spaniards used them--a history, if it
were entered into, as full of variety and wonderful accidents as my own
part--particularly, also, as to their battles with the Caribbeans, who
landed several times upon the island, and as to the improvement they made
upon the island itself, and how five of them made an attempt upon the
mainland, and brought away eleven men and five women prisoners, by which,
at my coming, I found about twenty young children on the island.

Here I stayed about twenty days, left them supplies of all necessary
things, and particularly of arms, powder, shot, clothes, tools, and two
workmen, which I had brought from England with me,