perhaps natural, even at that date, in a
Central-American town. These were at once killed, and eaten half raw,
"with great appetite." Before they were despatched, a pirate lighted on
a treasure in a recess of the King's stables. He found there a stock of
wine, some fifteen or sixteen jars, or demijohns, of good Peruvian wine,
"and a leather sack full of bread." "But no sooner had they begun to
drink of the said wine when they fell sick, almost every man." Several
hundreds had had a cup or two of the drink, and these now judged
themselves poisoned, and "irrecoverably lost." They were not poisoned,
as it happened, but they had gone hungry for several days, living on
"manifold sorts of trash." The sudden use of wine and bread caused a
very natural sickness, such as comes to all who eat or drink greedily
after a bout of starving. The sickness upset them for the day, so that
the force remained there, at bivouac in the village, until the next
morning. During the halt Morgan landed all his men ("though never so
weak") from the canoas. He retained only one boat, which he hid, for
use as an advice boat, "to carry intelligence" to those down the river.
The rest of the canoas were sent downstream to the anchorage at Bueno
Cedro, where the chatas lay moored under a guard. He gave strict orders
to the rest of the pirates that they were not to leave the village save
in companies of 100 together. "One party of English soldiers stickled
not to contravene these commands, being tempted with the desire of
finding victuals." While they straggled in the tilled ground outside
Venta Cruz they were attacked "with great fury" by a number of Spaniards
and Indians, "who snatched up" one of them, and carried him off. What
was done to this one so snatched up we are not told. Probably he was
tortured to give information of the pirates' strength, and then hanged
up to a tree.

On the eighth day, in the early morning, the sick men being recovered,
Morgan thought they might proceed. He chose out an advance-guard of 200
of the strongest of his men, and sent them forward, with their matches
lighted, to clear the road. The road was a very narrow one, but paved
with cobble stones, and easy to the feet after the quagmires of the
previous week. The men went forward at a good pace, beating the thickets
on each side of the road. When they had marched some seven or eight
miles they were shot at from some Indian ambush. A shower of arrows fell
among them, but th