The resolution and sagacity with which the Indian behaved upon this occasion, had it been exerted on a more extensive object than the retrieving the freedom of a single family, might perhaps have immortalized the exploit, and have given him a rank amongst the illustrious names of antiquity. Indeed his late masters did so much justice to his merit as to own that it was a most gallant enterprize, and that they were grieved they had ever been necessitated, by their attention to their own safety, to abridge the liberty of a person of whose prudence and courage they had now such a distinguished proof. As it was supposed by some of them that he still continued in the woods in the neighbourhood of the port, where it was feared he might suffer for want of provisions, they easily prevailed upon the master to leave a quantity of such food as they thought would be most agreeable to him in a particular part where they imagined he would be likely to find it, and there was reason to conjecture that this piece of humanity was not altogether useless to him, for, on visiting the place some time after, it was found that the provision was gone, and in a manner that made them conclude it had fallen into his hands. But, however, though many of them were satisfied that {138} this Indian still continued near them, yet others would needs conclude that he was gone to the island of Chiloe, where they feared he would alarm the Spaniards, and would soon return with a force sufficient to surprize the pink. On this occasion the master of the pink was prevailed on to omit firing the evening gun; for it must be remembered (and there is a particular reason hereafter for attending to this circumstance) that the master, from an ostentatious imitation of the practice of men-of-war, had hitherto fired a gun every evening at the setting of the watch. This he pretended was to awe the enemy, if there was any within hearing, and to convince them that the pink was always on her guard, but it being now represented to him that his great security was his concealment, and that the evening gun might possibly discover him and serve to guide the enemy to him, he was prevailed on to omit it for the future; and his crew being now well refreshed, and their wood and water sufficiently replenished, he, in a few days after the escape of the Indian, put to sea, and had a fortunate passage to the rendezvous at the island of Juan Fernandes, where he arrived on the 16th of August, as hath been already mentioned in the preceding chapter.