our guard.  The 24th we went again on shore to trade, and I invited the chief of the town to dinner.  While we were ashore on the 25th, our ships descried 5 sail of ships belonging to the king of Portugal, and fired several shots to recall us on board.  So we went to the ships, but by the time that every thing was in order and we had weighed anchor it was night, so that nothing could be done.  We set sail however and tried all night to gain the wind of the Portuguese, some of which were very near during the night.  One of them, which we judged was their admiral, fired a shot, as we supposed to call the others to come and speak with him.  The 26th we came in with the shore, and got sight of the Portuguese at anchor, on which we made sail towards them, giving all our men white scarfs, that the French and we might know each other in case of boarding:  But night coming on before we could fetch the Portuguese, we anchored within demi-culverine shot of them.

[Footnote 264:  Called Chama in modern maps, near the mouth of St Johns river, about 6 leagues east from Mina.—­E.]

In the morning of the 27th, both we and the Portuguese weighed anchor, and by 11 o’clock, A.M. we had gained the weather-gage, on which we went room with them[265]:  on this they bore away towards the shore, and we after them, and when they were near shore they put about again to seawards.  We put about likewise, and gained a head of them, on which we took in our topsails and waited for them.  The first that came up was a small bark, which sailed so well that she cared not for any of us, and had good ordnance.  As soon as she came up she discharged her guns at us and shot past with ease, after which she fired at the French admiral and struck his ship in several places; and as we were in our fighting sails, she soon got beyond our reach.  Then another caravel came up under our lee, discharging her ordnance at us and at the French admiral, wounding two of his men and shooting through his main-mast.  After him came up the Portuguese admiral also under our lee, but was not able to do us so much harm as the small ships had done, as he carried his ordnance higher than they; neither were we able to make a good shot at any of them, because our ship was so weak in the side that she laid all her ordnance in the sea[266].  We determined therefore to lay the Portuguese admiral on board; but on making the attempt, the French admiral fell to leeward and could not fetch him, after which he fell to leeward of two other caravels, and was unable to fetch any of them.  Being thus to leeward, the French admiral kept on towards the shore and left us.  We hoisted our topsails and gave chase to the enemy, but both the other French ships kept their wind and would not come near us, and our own consort was so much astern that she could not get up to our assistance.  When we had followed them to seaward about two hours, the enemy put about towards the land, thinking to pay us as they went past, and to gain the