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colony, and assisting in the recovery of his stranded ship ; she
had, however, drifted off, and sunk near Bahia; and all his
boats were destroyed. Still Sarmiento persevered in his zealous
efforts to succour his friends in the Strait; and succeeded in
pi’ocuring a vessel of fifty or sixty tons, which, loaded with arms
and whatever he considered useful, sailed, and reached Bio de
Janeiro a month after the departure of the first vessel (January
1585). He followed, but in the latitude of 39° met with a
furious gale, which drove him back to Bio de Janeiro, where
the vessel that had preceded him had returned in distress.
Disappointed in his attempts to carry succour to the colony,
he determined to go to Spain ; but on his voyage thither, to
complete the catalogue of his misfortunes, his ship was captured
by three English vessels, and taken to England, after which
the ill-fated colony in the Strait was neglected, if not entirely
forgotten.
Two months after Sarmiento’s departure from the Strait o f
Magalhaens, in the month of August, the middle of the winter
of that region, the party belonging to the first establishment at
Jesus set off by land, and joined that at San Felipe, with the
unwelcome tidings of their deserted state. But as the provisions
at San Felipe were insufficient to support all the people,
Andres de Viedma, who, after Sarmiento’s departure, had
assumed the command, detached two hundred soldiers, under
the command of Juan Iniguez, back to Jesus, for the purpose
of communicating with any ship that might make her appearance,
and awaiting the expected return of Sarmiento ; but the
winter and following summer passed by without any relief.
In this unhappy state, the colonists were obliged to think
only of providing for their safety, and built two boats ; in
which fifty people embarked,' besides Viedma, Suarez, a
Franciscan friar named Antonio, and five Spanish women.
They had not proceeded farther than Point Santa Brigida,*
• From Sarmiento’s description of the coast, P o in t Santa Brigida is
the outward point of Nassau Island.(rt) See Sarmiento’s Voyage, p. 220.
(it) By Nassau Island is meant the land forming the south sliore of the
Second Narrow.—R. F.
33
when one of the boats struck upon a reef, and was lost, but
the people were saved. The loss of this boat caused them to
give up every hope of saving themselves in that way; and
Viedma, with Suarez, the friar, and twenty soldiers, returned
in the remaining boat to San Felipe, leaving the rest of the
party, consisting of thirty men and five women, to support
themselves through the approaching winter as they could. After
that season had passed, Viedma sent to collect the wanderers ;
but fifteen men, and three women only, could be found; the
rest having died of hunger and disease. The survivors then
determined upon going to the first establishment at Jesus;
on their way to which they passed by the skeletons of the two
hundred who had been first detached. Travelling onwards,
they observed three ships entering the strait, which anchored
at a distance to the southward.
During the night, Viedma and his companions kept up
large fires, supposing that the ships belonged to their own
nation. Next morning a boat was despatched from them ;
and three of Viedma’s party obtained permission to go and
reconnoitre her. Having approached near enough, a signal
was made; upon which, the people in the boat pulled towards
the beach, and said they were from England, hound
to Peru, and that if the Spaniards wanted a passage, they had
better embark. After some hesitation, arising from the fear
of trusting themselves in the power of heretics, they consented ;
and one was permitted to get in, but the other two were
left on the beach. In the boat was the enterprizing Cavendish*
himself, who, on hearing the particulars of their story, sent
the other two soldiers to Viedma, offering to take him and the
residue of his people on board. Cavendish returned to his ship;
hut, without further delay, sailed on to the Isla dos Patos
(Santa Magdalena Island), where he leisurely salted down six
casks of penguins; and then proceeded to San Felipe, for wood
and water ; he remained there four days (during which time he
destroyed the houses of the Spaniards, and embarked six
guns); and thence continued his voyage. The person saved
* Formerly .spelled ‘ Candish.’
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