Gillon renamed his frigate the “South Carolina,” and mounted her with twenty-eight 32’s and twelve 12’s. Numerous delays ensued in getting to sea. Owing to shallow water and the heavy draught of the “South Carolina,” she was from July to November, 1780, moving from Amsterdam to the Texel. She spent the winter of 1780-1781 in a small creek near the Texel. These delays caused much expense, and in order to pay off some of his bills, Gillon, in the spring of 1781, sold to Colonel John Laurens for Congress military supplies, which he had recently purchased for South Carolina, to the amount of £10,000. Laurens now engaged Gillon to take these supplies together with others to Philadelphia. Gillon had been given full power to man and officer his vessel, having carried over with him fifteen commissions and thirty warrants in blank. In March, 1781, he wrote that he had about two hundred men on board, and that he expected two hundred and eighty from Dunkirk which the Chevalier Luxembourg had raised for the state.[579] The “South Carolina” finally got to sea about the first of August, 1781, leaving behind the convoy which had expected to accompany her. Gillon’s movements and dealings abroad are not at all points clear. He aroused suspicions as to his honesty, and made a number of enemies. Exactly why he did not at once proceed to Philadelphia with the supplies for Congress which he had on board is not certain. On sailing he cruised for a month in the North Sea, and for a time near the English Channel, and then, about the first of October, he put into Coruña, Spain. Gillon said that he had been detained by contrary winds, and had returned for fresh provisions before sailing for America.[580] On January 12, 1782, Gillon arrived at Havana with five valuable Jamaicamen, loaded with rum and sugar, and said to be worth $150,000. Here he found the Spaniards planning a descent on the Bahama Islands, and he now agreed to take command of the sea-forces consisting of fifty-nine Spanish and American vessels—probably chiefly Spanish. General Cadrigal commanded the troops. The expedition left Havana on April 22, and on May 8 the Bahamas surrendered without firing a shot. Gillon not very modestly attributed the success of the enterprise to the “great attention which the captains and officers of the American vessels of war paid in conveying such a fleet through so difficult and so unfrequented a passage, with a beating wind all the way, whereby we disappointed any plans the enemy might have formed of attacking us in our way through the gulph of Florida.” The island surrendered, not to the joint American and Spanish forces, but to the Spaniards alone.[581] It was reported that the Spaniards and Gillon captured three hundred troops and ninety sail of vessels.[582]