While at anchor near Tabogilla, we were in great danger from a pretended merchant, who brought a bark to us in the night, under pretence of being laden with merchandise to trade with us privately, but which was in reality a fire-ship fitted out for our destruction.  But on her approach, some of our men hailed her to come to anchor, and even fired upon her, which so terrified the men that they got into their canoes, having first set her on fire, on which we cut our cables and got out of her way.  This fire-ship was constructed and managed by one Bond, who formerly deserted from us to the Spaniards.  While busied next morning in recovering our anchors, we discovered a whole fleet of canoes full of men, passing between Tabogilla and another isle.  These proved to be French and English buccaneers, lately come from the North Sea across the isthmus of Darien, 200 of them being French and 80 English.  These last were divides between our two ships, under Captains Davis and Swan; and the Frenchmen were put into our prize, named the Flower, under the command of Captain Gronet, their countryman, in return for which he offered commissions to Captains Davis and Swan, from the governor of Petite Goave, as it is the custom of the French privateers to carry with them blank commissions.  Captain Davis accepted one, but Captain Swan had one already from the Duke of York.

Learning from these men that Captain Townley was coming across the isthmus of Darien with 180 Englishmen, we set sail on the 2d March for the gulf of San Miguel to meet Townley.  This gulf is on the east side of the great Bay of Panama, in lat. 8 deg. 15’ N. long. 79 deg. 10’ W. thirty leagues S.E. from Panama; from whence the passage lies between Isola del Rey and the main.  In this gulf many rivers discharge their waters.  Its southern point is Cape Carachina, in lat. 8 deg. 6’ N. and the northern, named Cape Gardo, is in lat. 8 deg. 18’ N. The most noted rivers which discharge themselves into this gulf, are named Santa Maria, Sambo, and Congo.  This last rises far within the country, and after being joined by many small streams on both sides of its course, falls into the north side of the gulf a league from Cape Gardo.  It is deep and navigable for several leagues into the country, but not broad, and is neglected by the Spaniards owing to its nearness to the river of Santa Maria, where they have gold mines. Santa Maria is the largest of the rivers in this gulf, being navigable for eight or nine leagues, as far as the tide flows, above which it divides into several branches fit only for canoes.  In this river the tide of flood rises eighteen feet.  About the year 1665, the Spaniards built the town of Santa Maria, near six leagues up this river,[173] to be near the gold mines.  I have been told, that, besides the gold usually procured out of the ore and sand, they sometimes find lumps wedged between the fissures of rocks as large as hens eggs or larger.  One of these was got by Mr Harris, who got here 120 pounds weight of gold, and in his lump there were several crevices full of earth and dust.