You may be sure that we were anxious enough to get away from these mad revellers, who, after the foolish fashion of too many sailors, both abroad and at home, were spending, in a few hours or days of insane debauchery, the money which they had risked their lives for months to obtain. At first, they were not willing to let us go, insisting that since we had paid for the additional keg of wine, we should bide the drinking of it out; but upon our telling them that we were busily engaged in fitting out a privateer, and that the Blue Peter would speedily be hoisted at the fore, they consented to let us depart—first drinking success to our cruise in great bumpers, with cheering and firing of pistols, and almost every man shouting out some advice, as to whither we ought to proceed. Here was one bawling out in favour of the Mosquito Coast; and there another screaming that most booty would be found to the eastward of the Gulf of Venezuela. At length, we got free, and devoted ourselves for some days to preparing the schooner, internally, for the accommodation of a larger crew than she had ever before carried. There was no lack of hands, for Captain Jem was known as a commander, and as soon as we hoisted the Blue Peter, seamen came off in great numbers and applied to ship with us. Captain Jem personally examined all claimants, and when they passed his scrutiny successfully, it was for those who already formed the crew to receive or reject them. In this way, in a couple of days we were well manned by thirty-six stout seamen, including our original party. Except two Frenchmen and one Dutchman, all the new part of the crew was English. Our boatswain was a short, square-shouldered, powerful man, who had once commanded a ship, and was a good West-Indian pilot. His name was John Clink. We had also a good carpenter, and what was of almost as great importance, a surgeon, esteemed very skilful, a young Scotsman, like myself, bred in the University of Glasgow, and very eager in prosecuting researches into the natural history and productions of the teeming islands and continents of the West. The surgeon’s name was Wood. Meantime, Old Pratt had come on board, and after inspecting the schooner, presently sent four guns, with a great quantity of ammunition, and near sixty stand of musketry, with boarding-pikes, cutlasses, and hangers in proportion. We also carried a great boat which took up almost all the space between the masts, and we slightly altered the rigging of the schooner, setting up square foretopsails and foresails, so as to make her handier going before the wind. Our victualling being now completed, and all things ready for sea, we had, as is usual among Buccaneers, a general meeting of the crew to determine and sign articles. A paper of indenture was drawn up by Mr. Pratt, and to it we all affixed our names, or our marks. First, the indenture stipulated that the terms upon which the voyage was