nd I suppose the governments gained, by having a fleet of vessels
doing their fighting, for which they needn't pay," commented the boy.

"Exactly. In a way, this was fair enough. The privateer took his
chance, and, whether he won or lost, he was, at least, fighting for his
country. But there were other men, unable to secure ships, and who could
not obtain letters-of-marque from their governments, to whom loot and
plunder seemed an easy way of gaining riches. Some of these were men
from the crews of privateers that had disbanded, some were buccaneers.
They claimed the same rights as privateers but differed in this--that
they would attack any ship or settlement and plunder it at will. At
first they confined themselves to small Spanish settlements only, but,
later, their desires increased, and neutral ships and inoffensive
villages were attacked.

"In order to put a stop to the raids of the buccaneering hunters, the
Spaniards planned an organized destruction of all the wild cattle on
Hispaniola, hoping thus to drive the ravagers away. It was a false move.
The result of it was to turn the buccaneers into sea-rovers on an
independent basis, ready for plunder and murder anywhere and everywhere.
At this period they were called Filibusters, but, a little later, the
word 'buccaneer' came to be used for the whole group of privateers,
filibusters and hunters.

"The fury of both sides increased. So numerous and powerful did these
sea-rovers become that all trade was cut off. Neutral vessels, even if
in fleets, were endangered. With the cutting off of trade by sea, there
was no longer any plunder for the rovers and from this cause came about
the famous land expeditions, such as the sack of Maracaibo by Lolonnois
the Cruel, and the historic capture of Panama by Morgan. Large cities
were taken and held to ransom. Organized raids were made, accompanied by
murder and rapine. The gallantry of privateering was degenerating into
the bloody brutality of piracy.

"In 1632, a small group of French buccaneer hunters had left St. Kitts
and, seeking a base nearer to Hispaniola, had attacked the little island
of Tortugas, on which the Spanish had left a garrison of only
twenty-five men. Every one of the Spaniards were killed. The buccaneers
took possession, found the harbor to be excellent, and the soil of the
island exceedingly fertile. As a buccaneer base, it was ideal.
Filibusters saw the value of a base so close to Spanish holdings,
reali