Page:History of India Vol 7.djvu/48

 26 THE "SEPAKATE VOYAGES" OF THE COMPANY sels. Best saw that the Portuguese admiral and vice- admiral were separated by the tide and shoals from the rest. He promptly bore down on the two great ships in the Red Dragon, but the Hosiander could not get clear of her anchors, and the single English ship had to fight the desperate battle alone. He steered straight at the enemy, calmly reserving his fire till he got between the admiral and vice-admiral, and then delivered such a cannonade on either side that " by an hour we had well peppered " them " with some 56 great shot." The Red Dragon had her mainmast struck and her longboat sunk by cannon-balls, but she anchored in sight of the Portuguese for the night. Early next morn- ing (November 30th) Best again steered into the enemy, now accompanied by the Hosiander, which had got clear of her anchors and " bravely redeemed the former day's doing nothing." The mouth of the Surat estuary was then encumbered (as it is now closed for ships) by silt banks, and rendered dangerous by strong currents. The silt of the Tapti River, near whose mouth Surat lay, together with the deposits from the obstructed sea currents, had formed a long shoal dry at high water, along the coast. Inside this shoal lay the Suwali an- chorage, seven miles long by one and one-half miles broad, with sandspits and bars on the shore side— an ideal battle-ground for the skilful handling of the Eng- lish ships against the superior numbers of the heavy Portuguese. Three of the galleons were driven on the sands, the