ns made of clay filled with glowing embers, and
with these they perfumed us. They also gave us to understand, by signs,
that we should leave their country before the bundles of reeds, which
had been brought and were going to be set fire to, should be consumed,
otherwise they would attack and kill us every man.

Upon this they ordered the bundles to be lighted, and as soon as they
began to burn, all were silent, nor did they utter another syllable.
Those, on the contrary, who had ranged themselves in order of battle,
began to play on their pipes, blow their twisted shells, and beat their
drums. When we saw what their real intentions were, and how confident
they appeared, it of course reminded us that our wounds which we had
received at Cape Cotoche were not yet healed; that two of our men had
died of the consequences, whom we had been obliged to throw overboard.
As the number of Indians continued to increase, we became alarmed, and
resolved to retreat to the shore in the best order we could. In this way
we marched along the coast until we arrived at that spot where our boats
and the small vessels lay with the water-casks. Not far distant from
this place stood a rock in the midst of the sea; for, on account of the
vast numbers of Indians, we durst not venture to re-embark where we had
at first landed, as they would no doubt have fallen upon us while we
were getting into our boats.

After we had thus managed to get our water safe on board and re-embark
at the small harbour which the bay here forms, we continued our course
for six days and six nights without interruption, the weather being very
fine. But now the wind suddenly veered round to the north and brought
stormy weather, as is always the case with a north wind on this coast.
The storm lasted twenty-four hours, and indeed we had nearly all of us
met with a watery grave, so boisterous was the sea. In order to save
ourselves from total destruction we cast anchor near the shore. The
safety of our ship now depended upon two ropes, and had they given way
we should have been cast on shore. Oh, in what a perilous situation we
were then placed! had we been torn away from our anchors we must have
been wrecked off the coast! But it was the will of Providence that our
old ropes and cables should preserve us. When the storm had abated we
continued our course along the coast and kept in as much as possible,
that we might take in water when required. For, as I have before stated,