EXTRAORDINARY ADVENTURES. 295
vlan repaft, they made {hift to haul the boat on lliore, and turn- ing it upfide down, they crept under it to fieep, being thus very well (heltered from the fun, and fecured againll the wild beafts. Thofe who know the irrefiftible power of deep, after long watch- ing and exceffive labour, will not conclude that their firft flumber was Ihort, becaule their_ fituation was incommodious or infecure ; they waked, however, before the next morning, and peeping under the edge of the boat, they could difcem the feet of feveral creatures, which by their claws they fuppof- ed to be tygers, pafs by them to and again. This was a fuffi- cient motive to remain in their refting-placetill the morning,when they looked out ag.iin, and faw the feet of a man. Upon this dif- coverv they came from under the boat, 'to the great allonilTiment of the poor fivage, and two other men and a boy, who were at fome diftance. When they h.id got all together, and were a little recover- ed from their furprife, ibey made figns to the failcrs to go away, which they endeavoured to do, though they were able to move but v^rv flowly. Before they had gone far from the boat, a conhder- able number of the natives ran down upon them with their launces. It happened that Rofenbury had picked up the m;ift of the boat and a piitol which had been waft- ed on Ihore, as he went along ; being thus armed, when the In- dians came down upon him, and being befides unable to run, he imprudently turned about, and ex- erting a'.l hi's rtrength, advanced to- wardsthemin a threaining manner, fuppofing they would have been feized with a panic and retreated
into the woods. It happened, hort' ever, that he was miftaken ; for inftead of running away they fur- rounded him, and began to whe: their launces. Taylor thought ic was now time to try what could be done by fuppHcation ; he there- fore threw himfelf on his knees, and in a piteous tone cried out for mer- cy; but Rofenbury took refuge ia the water. The favages immedi- ately came up to Taylor, and began to ilrip him; he fufFered them quietly to take his (hoes and his Ihirt, but when they attacked his trowfers he made fome refillance, and by his gellures, intreated they would not leave him quite naked, u pon which they thought fit todefift. They then made figns for Rofen- bury to come to them, who was all this while fwimming about in ihe f-a; but herefufed.and made figns that they would kill him._ They then pointed to Taylor, intimat- ing that they had not killed him : up'on this he came forward, and having lira thrown them his pillol, and all his cloathsbut his ftiirr, he ventured to put himfelf in their hands. When he came up they offered him no violence, only held the boat's mall and the pillol to him, by way of deriding the folly of his attempt to frighten them. Theyfeemed tobe very muchpleaf- ed with the cloaths, which they divided among them as far as they would go. Then ihey began to rifle the boat, and having taken all the rope they could find, and the hook by which the rudder hung to the llern-poa, they began to knock the ftern to pieces, for the iron which they faw about it. Next to knocking the poor wretches on the head, this was the worft thing they could do, and, rough as they were, ihcyburft into U 4 ^^^*"^
