Yorkshire Oddities, Incidents, and Strange EventsBaring-Gould, S. (Sabine)
History
Yorkshire Oddities, Incidents, and Strange Events
Baring-Gould, S. (Sabine)
Legends -- England -- Yorkshire; Yorkshire (England) -- Miscellanea
"We reached Corunna in one day, and then approached the shore: the
numerous carcases of dead horses, all floating in the bay, showed us the
toil our army had suffered. We could plainly see the French and English
camps from our ships, each occupying a hill very near the other. We made
every exertion to get close in, to cover the embarkation of our troops,
who were sadly annoyed by the fire from the French artillery on the
heights. Our ships replied to the French as well as the heavy sea then
setting would allow. By great exertion the whole embarkation was
completed. They then directed their batteries against our transports,
who had to slip their cables, and stand out of the reach of their guns.
During this scene of confusion and terror several boats were sunk by the
fire of the enemy and some by the violence of the sea. Our vessels
presented an awful spectacle, from the number and condition of the
wounded, who occupied our cockpit, cable tier, and every spare place on
board, and whose misery was rendered greater by the tempest which
arose, and prevented that attention being paid to them which their
situation required: a great number perished solely on this account.
During the gale five transports were lost, from which only few lives
could be saved, owing to the state of the weather and the rocky nature
of the coast."
Having landed the wounded men in England, the ship on board which Martin
was sailed for Lisbon. Of his adventures at sea Martin tells several
remarkable incidents; but they are many of them connected with dreams,
and if not wilful falsehoods, are most probably misrepresentations. Of
such probably is what he relates as occurring whilst he was at Lisbon.
He says that whilst in the Tagus the whole crew went on shore except
himself, a young negro, and the captain's wife and daughter. The black,
knowing the captain had a quantity of gold in his chest, proposed to
Martin to murder the ladies, and take a boat and escape with it--to
India, Martin says. To this he refused to accede, and ultimately
succeeded in persuading the Indian (African?) to abandon his dreadful
intention. About this time, he says--
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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