Devonshire Characters and Strange EventsBaring-Gould, S. (Sabine)
History
Devonshire Characters and Strange Events
Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine)
Devon (England) -- Biography; Devon (England) -- History
out of my Hand, and I, fearing what in all likelyhood would follow, I
put my right Hand before my Head as a Guard, although three Hands had
hold of that Arm; for I concluded he would knock me on the Head with
it;--but, through God’s Providence it fell out of his Hand and so close
to the Ship’s side that he could not reach it again without letting go
his other Hand from mine, so he took hold of my Arm with the other Hand
again.
“At this time the Almighty God gave me strength enough to take one Man
in one Hand, and throw at the other’s Head. Then it pleased God to put
me in mind of my Knife in my Pocket, and although two of the Men had
hold of my right Arm, yet God Almighty strengthened me so that I put my
right Hand into my Pocket, and took out my Knife and Sheath, holding
it behind my Hand that they should not see it; but I could not draw
it out of the Sheath with my left Hand, because the Man that I struck
on the Head with the Marlin-Speek had still hold of it, with his Back
to my Breast; so I put it between my Legs, and drew it out, and then
cut the Man’s Throat with it, that had his Back to my Breast, and he
immediately dropt down, and scarce ever stirr’d after. Then with my
left Arm I gave both the Men a Push from me, and hawl’d my right Arm
with a jerk to me, and so clear’d it of both of them; and fetching a
strike with intent to cut both their Throats at once, they immediately
apprehended the Danger they were in, put their Hands together and held
them up, crying, _Corte, corte_ (i.e. Quarter), _Mounseer, moy allay
par Angleterre si vou plea_. With that I stopt my Hand, and said Good
Quarter you shall have. _Alle a pro_ (Go to the Fore), and then I put
up my Knife into the Sheath again.
“Then I made fast the Steeridg Door, and ordered the Boy to stand by
it, and to keep it fast, and to look through the Blunderbuss Holes, and
if he did see any Man coming towards the Door, he should tell me of it,
and come into the Cabbin for the Blunderbuss and Amunition which I had
hid away before we were taken.
“After that I had loaden, I came out with it into the Steeridg and
look’t forward, out of the Companion, to see if any Man did lye over
the Steeridg Door--but seeing no Man there, I went out upon Deck and
look’t up to the Maintop, for fear the two wounded Men were there and
should throw down anything upon my Head; but seeing no Man there, I
asked the Boy if he could tell what was become of the two wounded Men
that came to themselves and went out upon the Deck whilst I was engaged
with the three Men in the Steeridg. The Boy told me they had scrambled
over-board. But I thought it very strange that they should be accessary
to their own deaths. Then I ordered the Boy to stand by the Steeridg
Door to see if that Man betwixt Decks did come up, and if he did, to
tell me.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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