of remark, on this occasion, as a singular circumstance, that one of these pilots, as we afterwards learnt, had been taken by Captain Clipperton above twenty years before, and had then been obliged to guide Captain Clipperton and his people to the surprizal of Truxillo, a town to the southward of Payta; where, however, he contrived to alarm and save his countrymen, though the place was carried and pillaged.  It is certainly an extraordinary incident, that the only two attempts on shore, and at so long an interval, should have been guided by the same person, a prisoner both times, and forced upon, the service contrary to his inclination.

During our preparation, the ships continued to stand for the port with all the sail they could carry, secure that we were still at too great a distance to be seen.  About ten at night, being then within five leagues of Payta, Lieutenant Brett put off with the boats under his command, and arrived at the mouth of the bay undiscovered.  He had no sooner entered the bay, than some of the people in a ship riding there at anchor perceived him, and getting instantly into their boat, rowed towards the fort, shouting and crying, The English! the English dogs! By this the whole town was suddenly alarmed, and our people soon observed several lights hurrying backwards and forwards in the fort, and other indications of the inhabitants being all in motion.  On this, Mr Brett encouraged his men to pull briskly, that they might give the enemy as little time as possible to prepare for defence.  Yet, before our boats could reach the shore, the people in the fort had got some of their cannons ready, and pointed them towards the landing-place; and though, in the darkness of the night, chance may be supposed to have had a greater share in their direction than skill, yet the first shot passed extremely near one of our boats, whistling just over the heads of the crew.  This made our people redouble their efforts, so that they had reached the shore, and were in part landed, by the time the second shot was fired.

As soon as our men were landed, they were conducted by one of the pilots to the entrance of a narrow street, not above fifty yards from the beach, where they were covered from the fire of the fort; and being here formed as well as the shortness of the time would allow, they marched immediately for the parade, a large square at the other end of this street, on one side of which stood the fort, while the governor’s house formed another side of the same square.  In this march, though performed with tolerable regularity, the shouts and clamours of nearly threescore sailors, who had been so long confined on ship board, and who were now for the first time on shore of an enemy’s country, joyous as seamen always are when they land, and animated on the present occasion with the hopes of immense pillage, joined with the noise of their drums, and favoured by the night, had augmented their numbers, in the opinion of the astonished enemy, to