chase, when they came up to the first two. Thus delivered from imminent
danger, we changed our course to the eastward, quite out of the course
of all European ships.

Being now at sea, and inquiring more particularly of the two seamen, the
meaning of all this, the Dutchman at once let us into the secret. He
told us, that the fellow who sold us the ship was an errant thief, who
had run away with her; that the Captain was treacherously murdered on
the coast of Molucca by the natives there, with three of his men; that
he, the Dutchman, and four more, being obliged to have recourse to the
woods for their safety, at length escaped by means of a Dutch ship in
its way to China, which had sent their boat on shore for fresh water:
That, after this, he went to Batavia, where two of the seamen belonging
to the ship (who had deserted the rest in their travels) arrived, and
there gave an account that the fellow who ran away with the ship had
sold her at Bengal to a set of pirates, who went a cruising, and had
already taken one English and two Dutch ship, richly laden.

Now, tho' this was absolutely false, my partner truly said, that our
deliverance was to be esteemed so much the more, by reason, had we
fallen into their hands, we could have expected nothing from them but
immediate death, considering our accusers would have been our judges;
and, therefore, his opinion was to return directly to Bengal, where,
being known, we could prove how honestly we came by the ship, of whom we
bought her, and the like, and where we were sure of some justice; at
least would not be hanged first, and judged afterwards. I was at first
of my partner's opinion, but when I had more seriously considered of the
matter, I told him, we ran a great hazard in attempting to return, being
on the wrong side of the Straits of Molucca and that, if, upon alarm
given, we should be taken by the Dutch at Batavia, or English elsewhere,