Captain Lewis was at an early age associated with pirates.  We first find him a boy in company with the pirate Banister, who was hanged at the yard arm of a man-of-war, in sight of Port Royal, Jamaica.  This Lewis and another boy were taken with him, and brought into the island hanging by the middle at the mizen peak.  He had a great aptitude for languages, and spoke perfectly well that of the Mosquil Indians, French, Spanish, and English.  I mention our own, because it is doubted whether he was French or English, for we cannot trace him back to his origin.  He sailed out of Jamaica till he was a lusty lad, and was then taken by the Spaniards at the Havana, where he tarried some time; but at length he and six more ran away with a small canoe, and surprised a Spanish periagua, out of which two men joined them, so that they were now nine in company.  With this periagua they surprised a turtling sloop, and forced some of the hands to take on with them; the others they sent away in the periagua.

He played at this small game, surprising and taking coasters and turtlers, till with forced men and volunteers he made up a company of 40 men.  With these he took a large pink built ship, bound from Jamaica to the bay of Campeachy, and after her, several others bound to the same place; and having intelligence that there lay in the bay a fine Bermuda built brigantine of 10 guns, commanded by Captain Tucker, he sent the captain of the pink to him with a letter, the purport of which was, that he wanted such a brigantine, and if he would part with her, he would pay him 10,000 pieces of eight; if he refused this, he would take care to lie in his way, for he was resolved, either by fair or foul means to have the vessel.  Captain Tucker, having read the letter, sent for the masters of vessels then lying in the bay, and told them, after he had shown the letter, that if they would make him up 54 men, (for there were about ten Bermuda sloops,) he would go out and fight the pirates.  They said no, they would not hazard their men, they depended on their sailing, and every one must take care of himself as well as he could.

[Illustration:  The Pirate Banister, hanging at the Yard Arm.]

However, they all put to sea together, and spied a sail under the land, which had a breeze while they lay becalmed.  Some said he was a turtler; others, the pirate, and so it proved; for it was honest Captain Lewis, who putting out his oars, got in among them.  Some of the sloops had four guns, some two, some none.  Joseph Dill had two, which he brought on one side, and fired smartly at the pirate, but unfortunately one of them split, and killed three men.  Tucker called to all the sloops to send him men, and he would fight Lewis, but to no purpose; nobody came on board him.  In the mean while a breeze sprung up, and Tucker, trimming his sails, left them, who all fell a prey to the pirate; into whom, however, he fired a broadside at going off.  One sloop, whose master