His character for bravery and seamanship being now established, he soon found a sufficient number of persons willing to adventure a part of their fortunes in a privateering voyage which he proposed. He accordingly sailed from Plymouth on the 24th May, 1572, in the Pasco, a ship only of seventy tons, having for his consort the Swan of 250 tons, commanded by his brother John Drake, with seventy-three men and boys, and provisions for a year. Such were the mighty preparations he had made for attacking the power of Spain in the West Indies, in which he considered himself justified, in order to make reprisals for the losses he had formerly sustained from the Spaniards. In this voyage he surprised and plundered the famous town of Nombre de Dios; and soon afterwards had a distant view of the South Sea from the top of a high tree, which inflamed him with the desire of conducting an English ship thither, which attempt he had perhaps never thought of but for that circumstance. In this expedition he acquired immense riches for his owners, and considerable wealth for himself; and being of an honourable and generous disposition, he scorned to avail himself of advantages, which most other men would have considered as their right. Of this we have the following remarkable instance. Having presented a cutlass to a captain or caçique of the free Indians inhabiting the isthmus of Darien, the caçique gave him in return four large ingots of gold, which he immediately threw into the common stock, saying, "My owners gave me that cutlass, and it is just they should receive their share of its produce." His return to England from this successful expedition was equally fortunate, as he sailed in twenty-three days from Cape Florida to the Scilly islands. Arriving at Plymouth on Sunday, the 9th August, 1573, during divine service, the news of his return was carried to church, on which few persons remained with the preacher, all the congregation running out to welcome the adventurous Drake, who had been absent fourteen months and sixteen days in this voyage.