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Admiral, and the Sea Officers, were for sailing to Lisbon directly: in which if their advice had been taken, there is little reason to doubt but their enterprize would have succeeded, and Don Antonio been restored. Sir John Norris, indeed, marched by land to Lisbon, and Drake, very imprudently, promised to sail up the river with his whole fleet; but, when he saw the consequences which would attend the keeping his word, he chose rather to break his promise, than to hazard the Queen’s navy; for which he was grievously reproached by Norris, and the miscarriage of the whole affair was imputed to his failure of performing what he had undertaken. Yet Drake fully justified himself on his return.
Admiral Drake’s last public service was, the fatal expedition against the Spanish West-Indies, in 1595, in conjunction with Sir John Hawkins; in which service that valiant officer died. The same evening that Hawkins died, while the great Officers were at supper together, a cannon-shot, from Porto Rico, pierced the cabin, killed Sir Nicholas Clifford, wounded Captain Stratford, and Mr. Bute Browne, the latter mortally, and struck the stool from under Drake, who was drinking, without doing him the least hurt.
The day after the death of Hawkins, Drake made a desperate attack on the shipping in the harbour of Porto Rico. This was performed with all the courage imaginable, and with great loss to the Spaniards, but with little advantage to the English, who were obliged to sheer off.
Admiral Drake then steered for the main, and took the town of Rio de la Hacha, which he burnt to the ground, a church, and a house belonging to a Lady, only excepted.
