At a meeting of merchant adventurers, held at the house of Sir William Gerard, on the 11th July 1564, for setting forth a voyage to Guinea, the following chief adventurers were present, Sir William Gerard, Sir William Chester, Sir Thomas Lodge, Anthony Hickman, and John Castelin.  It was then agreed that Francis Ashbie should be sent to Deptford for his letters to Peter Pet, to go about rigging of the Minion at the charges of the queens majesty, after which Francis Ashbie was to repair with these letters to Gillingham, with money to supply our charges there.

[Footnote 289:  Hakluyt, II. 531.  Astley, I. 134.]

It was also agreed that every one of the five partners shall forthwith call upon their partners to supply, towards this new rigging and victualling L.29, 10s. 6d., for every L.100 value.  Also that every one of the five partners shall forthwith bring in L.50, towards the furniture of the premises.  Likewise, if Mr Gonson give his consent that the Merlin shall be brought round from Bristol to Hampton, that a letter shall be drawn under his hand, before order be given in the same.

The ships employed in this voyage were, the Minion belonging to the queen, David Carlet, captain, the John Baptist of London, and the Merlin belonging to Mr Gonson.  The success of this voyage in part appears by certain brief relations extracted out of the second voyage of Sir John Hawkins to the West Indies, made in the year 1564, which I have thought good to set down for want of more direct information, which hitherto I have not been able to procure notwithstanding every possible endeavour[290].

[Footnote 290:  This is the substance of Hakluyt’s introduction to the following brief relation of the present voyage.—­E.]

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Sir John, then only Mr Hawkins, departed from Plymouth with a prosperous wind for the West Indies, on the 18th of October 1564, having under his command the Jesus of Lubec of 700 tons, the Salomon of 140 tons, a bark named the Tiger of 50 tons, and a pinnace called the Swallow of 30 tons, having in all 170 men, well supplied with ordnance and provisions for such a voyage.  While casting loose the foresail, one of the officers in the Jesus was killed by the fall of a block, giving a sorrowful beginning to the expedition.  After getting ten leagues out to sea, they fell in with the Minion, a ship belonging to the queen, of which David Carlet was captain, and her consort the John Baptist of London; which two ships were bound for Guinea.  The two squadrons, as they may be called, saluted each other with some pieces of ordnance, after the custom of the sea; after which the Minion parted company to seek her other consort the Merlin of London, which was out of sight astern, leaving the John Baptist in company with Hawkins.