Tuesday, 28th. About 5 A.M. spied a sail under our lee bow, bore down on her, and when in gunshot fired one of our bow chasers.  She immediately lowered all her sails, & went astern of us.  We then ordered the master to send his boat aboard, which he did, and came himself with one hand.  Upon examination, we found that she was a sloop belonging to some of the subjects of his Brittanick majesty, & was taken by a Spanish privateer.  The sloop had been taken off of Obricock,[G] near N. Carolina, and when taken by us was in Latitude 31 deg. 59’ N., Longitude 73 deg. 6’ W. The master, when he came aboard, brought three Spanish papers, which he declared to be, the first, a copy of his commission; the second, Instructions what signal to make when arrived at S’t Augustine, where she was to be condemned; and the third paper was to let him know what route he was to steer.  We sent our Lieu’t aboard, who reported that she was loaded with Pork, Beans, Live Hogs, &c., and a horse, & had on board 2 Englishmen; the Master, who is a Frenchman born, but turned Spaniard; 3 Spaniard slaves, & one negro.  Upon examination, John Evergin, one of the owners, declared that he had been taken some time in April last by Don Pedro Estrado, Cap’t of the privateer that had taken this sloop, & that he forced him to list with them, and to pilot their vessel on the coast of N. Carolina, and that then they took this sloop at Obricock, on July 5’th; also 2 more sloops and a ship loaded with lumber & bound to S’o Carolina; that the Cap’t of the privateer put him on board with the French master, and another Englishman, Saml Elderidge, to navigate the vessel to Augustine, and that they were making the best of their way to that place.  We sent our Master on board to fetch all the papers & bring the prisoners as above mentioned.  At 11 A.M. sent Jeremiah Harman & John Webb with four hands to take care of the prize, the first to be master & the other mate.  The Captain gave the master & mate the following orders, viz.,—­

[Footnote G:  Perhaps a misspelling of Occacoke, an island on the coast of North Carolina.]

On Board the Revenge,

July 28th, 1741.

You, Jeremiah Harman, being appointed Master, & you, John Webb, mate, of a sloop taken by a Spanish privateer some time ago, belonging to some of the subjects of his Brittanick Majesty, and retaken by me by virtue of a commission granted to me by the Hon’ble Ritchard Ward, Esq., Gov’r in chief over Rhode Island & Providence plantations, &c., in New England, I order, that you keep company with my sloop, the Revenge, as long as weather will permit, & if by the Providence of God, by stormy weather, or some unforeseen accident, we should part, I then order you to proceed directly to the island of Providence, one of the Bahamia islands, and there to wait my arrival, and not to embezzle, diminish, waste, sell, or unload any part of her cargo till I am there present, under the penalty of the articles already signed by you.  Upon your arrival at Providence, make a just report to his Hon’r the Gov’r of that place of the sloop & cargo, & what is on board, & how we came by her.  I am y’rs,