In January 1590, there arrived one ship alone at Tercera from the Spanish West Indies, bringing news that a fleet of an hundred sail, which had set out from the Indies, were driven by a storm on the coast of Florida, where they were all cast away, vast riches and many men being lost, and she alone had escaped with the news.  Thus by account, of 200 ships which were certainly known to have sailed out of New Spain, San Domingo, Havannah, Cabo Verde, Brazil, Guinea, &c. in the year 1589, for Spain and Portugal, not above 14 or 15 of them arrived safe, all the rest having either been foundered, cast away, or taken.  In the same month of January, there came to Tercera from Seville, 15 or 16 ships, mostly fliboats of the Low Countries, and some ships of Britanny, that were arrested in Spain.  These came out full of soldiers and well provided with guns and ammunition, to lade home the silver that lay in Tercera, and to bring home Alvaro Flores into Spain, by order of the king.  As at this time of the year there are always great storms about these islands, the above-mentioned ships durst not enter the road of Tercera, for it then blew so great a storm that some of the ships, which had entered the road, had been forced to cut away their masts, and were in much danger of being lost, and among these a ship of Biscay was actually driven upon the coast and dashed to pieces, but all the men were saved.  The other ships were obliged to keep to sea and to separate from each other, allowing themselves to drive at the mercy of the winds and waves till the 15th of March, as in all that time they had not one day of good weather in which to anchor, so that they endured much distress, heartily cursing both the silver and the island.

When this storm was passed, they fell in with an English ship of about 40 tons, which by reason of the heavy wind could not hoist all her sails, so that they took her.  Hoisting her English ensign on the stern of their admiral, the ships came now as proudly into the road-stead of Tercera as if they had defeated the whole navy of England:  But, just as their admiral was entering the road, trickt out with the English flag on his stern, there came by chance two English ships past the island, which paid her so well for her bravity, that she had to cry out misericordia.  Had she been a mile farther out, the English ships doubtless would have taken her; but getting under the guns of the fortress, which began to play upon the English ships, they were forced to leave her and put farther out to sea, after having slain five or six of the Spaniards.

The Englishmen taken in the small ship were put under hatches, coupled together in irons; and, after they had been three or four days prisoners, a Spanish ensign in the ship, who had a brother slain in the armada that went against England, took a fancy to revenge his brothers death, and to shew his own manhood on these captives; whereupon, taking a poinard, he stabbed six of them to the heart as they sat below in irons.