t of which we knew not. In
1709, when I belonged to her majesty's ship the Loo, being one of the
convoy that year to Newfoundland, we saw and chased upon that coast
a ship of fifty guns, which we soon perceived to be French-built; but
she crowded sail and soon left us. She had just careened at Placentia,
and we wondered much to find such a ship in that part of the world. We
afterwards learnt, from some French prisoners, that she was a French
ship bound to St Malo, having two or three millions of dollars on
board, and was then so trim that she trusted to her heels, and valued
nobody. They went thus far to the north and west on purpose to have
the advantage of a westerly wind, which seldom failed of sending them
into soundings at one spirt, if not quite home. Since Placentia
has been yielded to Great Britain, they now use St Catherine and
Islagrande, on the coast of Brasil, and Martinico in the West Indies.

This trade succeeded so well, that all the merchants of St Malo
engaged in it, sending every year to the number of twenty sail of
ships. In 1721, I saw eleven sail of these together at one time on the
coast of Chili, among which were several of fifty guns, and one called
the _Fleur-de-luce_, which could mount seventy, formerly a man-of-war.
As this trade was contrary to the _Assiento_ treaty between Great
Britain and Spain, memorials were frequently presented against it
at Madrid by the court of London; and the king of Spain, willing to
fulfil his engagements to the king of England, resolved to destroy
this contraband French trade. As there was no other way to accomplish
this but by sending a squadron of men-of-war into the South Sea, and
as few of the Spaniards were acquainted with the navigation of Cape
Horn, or could bear the extreme rigour of the climate, the court of
Spain was obliged to use foreigners on this expedition, and the
four ships sent oat were both manned and commanded by Frenchmen. The
squadron consisted of the _Gloucester_, of 50 guns, and 400 men, the
_Ruby_, of 50 guns, and 330 men, both of these formerly English ships
of war, the _Leon Franco_, of 60 guns, and 450 men, and a frigate
of 40 guns, and 200 men. Monsieur _Martinet_, a French officer, was
commodore of this squadron, and commanded the _Pembroke_,[1] and
Monsieur _La Jonquiere_ the Ruby. The French conducted the navigation
round the cape very well, though in the middle of winter; but the last
ship of the four, which was manned with Spania