At day-break of the 22d December, 1709, we saw the chase about a league from us on our weather bow, the Duchess being a-head of her to leeward about half a league.  About six a.m. our boat came aboard, having kept very near the chase all night without receiving any damage, and told us that the Duchess passed the chase in the night, at which time the chase fired two shots at her, which were not returned.  Having no wind, we got out eight sweeps, with which we rowed for near an hour, when there sprung up a small breeze.  I ordered a large kettle of chocolate to be prepared for the ship’s company, having no spirituous liquor to give them, and then went to prayers; but were disturbed before these were finished, by the enemy firing at us.  To deter as from attempting to board, they had barrels hung at their yard arms, which resembled barrels of powder.  About eight a.m. we began to engage by ourselves, for the Duchess being still at leeward, had not been able to get up, as there was very little wind.  At first the enemy fired at us with their stern-chase guns, which we returned with those on our bows, till at length we got close on board each other, when we gave her several broadsides, plying our small arms very briskly; which last the enemy returned as thick for a time, but did not fire their great guns half so fast as we.  After some time, we shot a little a-head, laying the enemy athwart hawse close aboard, and plied her so warmly that she soon lowered her colours two-thirds down.  By this time the Duchess had got up, and fired about five guns with a volley of small arms; but as the enemy had submitted she made no return.

We now sent our pinnace on board the prize, and brought away the captain and other officers; from whom we learnt that a larger ship had come from Manilla along with them, having forty-six brass guns and as many swivels, but they had parted company with her about three months before, and supposed she had got to Acapulco by this time, as she sailed better than this ship.  Our prize had the following high-sounding name Nostra Senoria de la Incarnacion Disenganio, commanded by the Chevalier Jean Pichberty, a Frenchman.  She had twenty guns and twenty pattereroes, with 193 men, of whom nine were killed, ten wounded, and several sore scorched with gun-powder.  We engaged her three glasses, in which time only I and another were wounded.  I was shot through the left cheek, the bullet carrying away great part of my upper jaw and several of my teeth, part of which dropt on the deck, where I fell.  The other was William Powell, an Irish landman, who was slightly wounded in the buttock.  After my wound, I was forced to write my orders, both to prevent the loss of blood, and because speaking gave me great pain.  We received little damage in our rigging during the engagement, except that a shot disabled our mizen-mast.  On the 23d, after we had put our ship to rights, we stood in for the harbour where the Marquis was, distant about four