Santa Martha taken. land thereabout) there standeth on the top of a cliffe a watch-*house: and a little within that a small Island: you may goe in betweene the maine and it, or to leeward if you lust: and hard within that is the rode and towne of Santa Martha which at 11 of the clocke we tooke, the people all being fled except a few Spaniards, Negros and Indians which in a brauado at our landing gaue vs some 30 or 40 shot, and so ran away.
That night their Lieutenant generall was taken and some little pillage brought in out of the woods: for in the town nothing was left but the houses swept clean. In all the main is not a richer place for gold: for the hops were mixt with the earth in euery place, and also in the sand a little to the leewards of the towne. In the bay wee had a bad rode by reason of a small moone, for euery small moone maketh foule weather all the maine along.
The 21, the Generall caused the towne to be burnt, and all the ships to wey, and stood out, many of the souldiers being imbarked where the Generall had appointed, in the small ships which rode neerest the shore. We lost that night the company of the Phenix, captaine Austin, Peter Lemond, and the Garlands pinnesse, which stood along the shore, and being chased off by gallies out of Carthagena Peter Lemond with nine of our men was taken, the rest came safe to our fleete.
The 26 we saw the Ilands some 12 leagues to the Eastward of Nombre de Dios standing in toward the shore, but toward night we stood to the offin vntill the next day.
Nombre de Dios taken. The 27 we came into the mouth of Nombre de Dios, and by one of the clocke tooke the towne, the people being all fled except some 100 Spaniards, which kept the Fort, and played vpon vs, hauing in the fort some 3 or 4 small pieces of ordinance, and one of them brake in discharging at vs. They gaue vs also a voley of small shot: but seeing our resolution in running vpon them they all fled and tooke the woods.
The towne was bigge, hauing large streetes, houses very hie, all built of timber, but one Church very faire and large, wrought all of timber likewise. Nothing was left in the towne of value: there was a shew in their shops of great store of marchandises that had bene there. There was a mill aboue the towne, and vpon the toppe of another hill in the woods stood a little watch-
