A little research into the book's history shows us that it is consistent throughout, and that it is a "piracy," in the publisher's sense of the word, of a much larger and more pretentious work by Captain Charles Johnson, entitled, "A General History of the Pyrates from their first Rise and Settlement in the Island of Providence to the Present Time; With the Remarkable Actions and Adventures of the two Female Pyrates Mary Read and Anne Bonny." This was published in London, in 8vo., by Charles Rivington in 1724. A second edition, considerably augmented, was issued later in the same year, a third edition in the year following, and a fourth edition--in two volumes, as considerable additions in the form of extra "Lives," and an appendix necessitated a further volume--in 1725. This two-volume edition contained the history of the following Pirates: Avery, Martel, Teach, Bonnet, England, Vane, Rackham, Davis, Roberts, Anstis, Morley, Lowther, Low, Evans, Phillips, Spriggs, Smith, Misson, Bowen, Kid, Tew, Halsey, White, Condent, Bellamy, Fly, Howard, Lewis, Cornelius, Williams, Burgess, and North, together with a short abstract on the Statute and Civil Law in relation to "Pyracy," and an appendix, completing the Lives in the first volume, and correcting some mistakes. The work evidently enjoyed a great vogue, for it was translated into Dutch by Robert Hannebo, of Amsterdam, in 1727, and issued there, with several "new illustrations," in 12mo. A German version by Joachim Meyer was printed at Gosslar in the following year, while in France it saw the light as an appendix to an edition of Esquemeling's "Histoire des Avanturiers," 1726. But little is known of the author, Captain Charles Johnson, excepting that he flourished from 1724 to 1736, and it is more than probable that the name by which we know him is an assumed one. It is possible that his knowledge of Pirates and Piracy was of such a nature to have justified awkward investigations on the part of His Majesty's Government. There is one thing that we do know for certain about him, and that is that the worthy Captain's spelling, according to the pirated version of his book, was indefinite even for his own day. He was one of those inspired folk who would be quite capable of spelling "schooner" with three variations in as many lines. In this edition the spelling has been more or less modernized. Lastly, it is to be remembered that the ships of this period, according to our modern ideas, would be the veriest cockle-shells, and so that we should know what manner of vessel he refers to in these pages, I had recourse to a friend of mine whose knowledge of things nautical is extensive enough to have gained for him the coveted "Extra Master's Certificate," and who was kind enough to supply me with the following definitions: [Illustration: SLOOP. A vessel rigged as a cutter, but with one head-sail only set on a very short bowsprit.] [Illustration: SCHOONER. TOPSAIL SCHOONER.