Page:The principal navigations, voyages, traffiques and discoveries of the English nation 15.djvu/170

 which their captaine Monsieur Laudonniere was, with certeine souldiers therein.

To whom our captaine sending to vnderstand of a watering place, where he might conueniently take it in, and to haue licence for the same, he straight, because there was no conuenient place but vp the riuer fiue leagues, where the water was fresh, did send him a pilot for the more expedition thereof, to bring in one of his barks, which going in with other boats prouided for the same purpose, ankered before the fort, into the which our captaine went; where hee was by the Generall, with other captaines and souldiers, very gently enterteined, who declared vnto him the time of their being there, which was fourteene moneths, with the extremity they were driuen to for want of victuals, hauing brought very little with them; in which place they being two hundred men at their first comming, had in short space eaten all the maiz they could buy of the inhabitants about them, and therefore were driuen certeine of them to serue a king of the Floridians against other his enemies, for mill and other victuals: which hauing gotten could not serue them, being so many, so long a time: but want came vpon them in such sort, that they were faine to gather acorns, which being stamped small, and often washed, to take away the bitternesse of them, they did vse for bread, eating with all sundry times, roots, whereof they found many good and holesome, and such as serue rather for medecines then for meates alone. But this hardnesse not contenting some of them, who would not take the paines so much as to fish in the riuer before their doores, but would haue all things put in their mouthes, they did rebell against the captaine, taking away first his armour, and afterward imprisoning him: and so to the number of fourescore of them, departed with a barke and a pinnesse, spoiling their store of victuall, and taking away a great part thereof with them, and so went to the Islands of Hispaniola and Iamaica a rouing, where they spoiled and pilled the Spanyards; and hauing taken two carauels laden with wine and casaui, which is a bread made of roots, and much other victuals and treasure, had not the grace to depart therewith, but were of such haughty stomacks, that they thought their force to be such that no man durst meddle with them, and so kept harborow in Iamaica, going dayly ashore at their pleasure. But God which would not suffer such euill doers vnpunished, did indurate their hearts in such sort, that they lingered the time so long, that a ship and galliasse being made