THE SPANIARD’S STORY. 8938

arriving in the island, especially after they had the misfortune to
find that I was gone. He told me he could not but have some
satisfaction in my good fortune when he heard that I was gone
away in a good ship, and to my satisfaction; and that he had
oftentimes a strong persuasion that one time or other he should
see me again. But nothing that ever befell him in his life, he said,
was so surprising and afflicting to him at first as the disappoint-
ment he was under when he came back to the island and found I
was not there.

As to the three barbarians (so he called them) that were left
behind, and of whom he said he had a long story to tell me, the
Spaniards all thought themselves much better among the savages,
only that their number was so small. “And,” says he, “had
they been strong enough, we had been all long ago in purgatory aia
and with that he crossed himself on the breast. ‘‘ But, sir,” says
he, “ I hope you will not be displeased when I shall tell you how,
forced by necessity, we were obliged, for our own preservation, to
disarm them and make them our subjects, who would not be con-
tent with being moderately our masters, but would be our mur-
derers.” I answered I was heartily afraid of it when I left them
there; and nothing troubled me at my parting from the island
but that they were not come back, that I might have put them in
possession of everything first, and left the other in a state of sub-
jection, as they deserved. But if they had reduced them to it, I
was very glad, and should be very far from finding any fault with
it; for I knew they were a parcel of refractory, ungoverned villains,
and were fit for any manner of mischief.

While I was saying this, came the man whom he had sent back,
and with him eleven men more. In the distress they were in it
was impossible to guess what nation they were of; but he made

all clear both to them and to me. First, he turned to me, and
‘ pointing to them, said, “ These, sir, are some of the gentlemen
who owe their lives to you;” and then, turning to them, and
pointing to me, he let them know who I was; upon which they
all came up one by one, not as if they had been sailors and ordi-
nary fellows and I the like, but really as if they had been am:
bassadors of noblemen and I a monarch or a great conqueror.