Page:Early English adventurers in the East (1917).djvu/124

 could not die in a better cause "than in behalf of so worthy a country as we have, the Commonwealth of our land. 'For death,' saith he, 'is the passing to heaven.' He showed a saying of David in his sixteenth Psalm, towards the latter end, 'I will set God always before me, for He is on my right hand; therefore I shall not fall.' "Then, turning his discourse to mundane affairs. Best promised that in the event of any of them falling in the fight or being grievously wounded, the Company would do their duty by their relatives or by them. Finally, the commander "took a cup of wine and drunk to our master (the commander of the Osiander) and to the Company, and desired God to give us His blessing and so returned aboard his own ship to sermon."

It now devolved upon Best to decide the important question of how he should engage the Portuguese. Should he remain at the anchorage in the confined and shallow roads at Swally and allow himself to be attacked, or should he go out to meet the enemy? There was a good deal to be said for both plans, but as may be supposed the bolder course appealed to the dour fighting instinct of the commander. Nor did he show any hesitation when he actually got into the fight as to the direction of the attack. As the four great galleons, with their attendant flotilla, came up with the wind, making a very imposing display, he singled out the vice-admiral's ship, and when two cables' length from it "began to play upon it with great and small shot (so) that by an hour we had well peppered him with some fiftie-six great shot."

On the enemy's side the fire was very ineffective, and when night closed on the ships the only serious damage which had been done was the destruction of the Dragon's