And thus I have given the first part of a life of fortune and adventure. A life of Providence's chequer-work and of a variety which the world will seldom be able to show the like of.
Any one would think in this state of complicated good fortune and woes I was past running any more hazards, and so indeed I had been, if other circumstances had concur'd. But I was inured to a wandering life, had no family, nor many relations. Nor, however rich, had I contracted much acquaintance. Tho’ I had sold my estate in the Brasils, yet I could not keep that country out of my head and had a great mind to be upon the wing again. Especially I could not resist a strong inclination I had to see my island again, and to know how the villains had fared, and if the poor Spaniards were in being there.
Dear Amaral dissuaded me from it, and so far prevailed with me, that, for almost seven years, he prevented my running abroad before he went peacefully to meet his maker. During which time I took my two nephews into my care, tho' they had not received our family blood from my widowed sister, e'en though she had a she-beast of her own. The eldest, Richard Marsh, having something of his own, I bred up as a gentleman, and gave him a settlement of some addition to his estate, after my decease. The other, Ezekiel Marsh, I put out to a captain of a ship. After five years finding him a sensible, bold, enterprising young fellow, I put him into a good ship and sent him to sea. This young fellow afterwards drew me in, as old as I was, to farther adventures myself.
In the mean time, I in part settled myself here. First of all, I married a good woman, Guinevere, and had by her three children, two sons and one daughter, Lawrence, David, and dearest Katherine. All of these three did take on the family blood, and many good nights were spent teaching them as my father had taught me. They became very familiar with the beast, and it treated them as if they were its own pups, which they were, upon a fashion.
But my wife dying of consumption and my nephew, Ezekiel, coming home with good success from a voyage to Spain, my inclination to go abroad prevailed and engaged me to go in his ship as a private trader to the East Indies. This was in the year 1697.
In this voyage I visited my former home, the Island of Despair, and was both surprised and pleased to see all the men had survived and a full colony in place. I saw my old friend Olegario and the Spaniards, had the whole story of their lives, and of the mutineers I left there. How at first, influenced by the island, they insulted the poor Spaniards, how they afterwards agreed, disagreed, united, separated, and how at last the Spaniards were oblig'd to use violence with them. It was a history, if it were entered into, as full of variety and wonderful accidents as my own part. Particularly also as to their battles with the savages, who landed several times upon the island to reclaim their dark church, and as to the improvement they made upon the island itself. How five of them made an attempt upon the main land and brought away eleven men and five women prisoners. At my coming, I found about twenty young children on the island, and all of them did have the dusky skin and dark eyes of their mothers.
Here I stayed about 20 days, and even the beast was pleased to run cross its hills and thru its savannahs again, tho' it staid clear of the dark church, which still stood and was avoided by all, or so I was oft told. I left Olegario and his people supplies of all necessary things and two workmen which I brought from England with me, a carpenter and a smith. And upon the shore of my old creek I did bury the wooden sword I had carried with me all these years, and shed more than a few tears for my dear man Friday, who I miss'd even more being here again.
Having settled all things with them, and engaged them not to leave the place, I left them there, 'tho the next few years of the island were filled with many adventures of much interest. All these things, with an account how 300 savages came and invaded for their dark church, and how they brought monstrous things with them, and how the dream god did extend his influence to my nephew's youngest child, and with some very surprising new adventures of my own, I shall give a farther account of in another volume.
END OF VOL.I.