There was no reason to send us in the very mouths of the _Spaniards_, with so few men, unfurnish’d (as he thought) with ammunition, to a place where only danger could be expected, if it was not with secret hopes to have us cut off: For _Dodd_ and I being two of those who were a check upon him, he did not want above half his number of men to carry on his separate views and base designs. And tho’ he says _Hatley_ commanded the boat, I seriously aver that _Hatley_ was not among us: but it was the pinnace, and no soul with us but the marines, who rowed her ashore and off again, by eleven a clock the same morning, tho’ he says I was left all night. But fully to prove that _Shelvocke_ never kept any journal at all; I do own that about five weeks after this time, I being ashore on one of the two islands on the other side the bay to keep a guard at the watering-place, where was no body but our own men; captain _Hatley_ came in the evening for a longboat load of wood and water, when it began to blow fresh, and a great swell to tumble in, which obliged him to hawl the longboat further out to her grapling, to prevent her thumping against the rocks; so that the men were forced to wade middle high to carry in their burthens of wood: the swell still increasing, I did not care to be sowsed over head and ears, and desired captain _Hatley_ to go off without me, which he did; and lieutenant _Brook_ came in an hour’s time afterwards and carried me and my guard off. This is the plain short truth: and the reader by this time may ghess what a fine life we had of it, under the arbitrary direction of a captain, who had neither principles to act honestly, nor conscience to speak truth. At the close of this tale he endeavours to be witty, by saying that the men refused to carry me to the boat; for that they would not load themselves with the weight of one who was neither seaman nor soldier. Whether they said so, or no, I shall not inquire, for wit and truth may be as far distant as the poles. It’s the only place in all his book where he aims to be witty, and the singularity of it makes me take this notice of it: though I can see no reason for his giving it that turn here; because bringing a boat off shore could not require a man to be much of a soldier or sailor: but if he means want of courage or conduct, I allow he has always been witty enough not to tell me so since we came home.