The Book of Pirates and Highwaymen (8 page)

By this time Dun had become formidable both to the rich and the poor; but one melancholy circumstance attended the depredations of this man, that almost in every instance, except those above narrated, they were stained with blood. He continued his infamous course above twenty years, the vicinity of the river Ouse in Yorkshire being the usual scene of his exploits; and being attended by fifty armed men on horseback, the inhabitants of the country were afraid to seize him.

Nor was his last adventure less remarkable than those of his former life. His infamy daily increasing, the people of that district were determined no longer to suffer his depredations. Though Dun was informed of what was intended, yet he still continued his wicked career. The country rising at last against him, he and his gang were so closely pursued, that they were constrained to divide, each taking shelter where he possibly could, and Dun concealed himself in a small village; the general pursuit and search, however, continuing, he was discovered, and the house he was in surrounded. Two of the strongest posted themselves at the door; with irresistible courage Dun seized his dagger, laid them both dead, bridled his horse, and in the midst of the uproar, forced his way. To the number of a hundred and fifty, armed with clubs, pitchforks, rakes, and whatever rustic weapons they could find, pursued him, drove him from his horse, but to the astonishment of all, he again mounted, and, with his sword, cut his way through the crowd.

Multitudes flocking from all quarters, the pursuit was renewed. He was, a second time, dismounted, and now employed his feet: he ran for the space of two miles; but when he halted to breathe a little, three hundred men were ready to oppose him. His courage and strength, however, still remaining unsubdued, he burst through them, fled over a valley, threw off his clothes, seized his sword in his teeth, and plunged into a river in order to gain the opposite bank.

To his sad surprise, however, he perceived it covered with new opponents: he swam down the river, was pursued by several boats, until he took refuge on a small island. Determined to give him no time to recover from his fatigue, they attacked him there. Thus closely pursued, he plunged again into the river with his sword in his teeth; he was pursued by the boats, repeatedly struck with their oars; and having received several strokes on the head, was at last vanquished.

He was conducted to a surgeon to have his wounds dressed, then led before a magistrate, who sent him to Bedford jail under a strong guard. Remaining there two weeks, until he was considerably recovered, a scaffold was erected in the market place, and, without a formal trial, he was led forth to execution. When the two executioners approached him, he warned them of their danger if they should lay hands on him; he accordingly grasped both, and nine times overthrew them upon the stage before his strength was exhausted, so that they could not perform their duty. His hands were first chopped off at the wrist; then his arms at the elbow; next, about an inch from the shoulders; his feet below the ankles; his legs at the knee; and his thighs about five inches from his trunk; a horrible scene was closed by severing his head from the body, and consuming it to ashes; the other parts of his body were fixed up in the principle places of Bedfordshire, as a warning to his companions. The quantity of blood that was shed during his wicked career, restrains even the tear of pity upon his miserable fate.

Adventures of Morgan, Prince of Free-Booters: Torture and Horrors!

Morgan continued at Maracäibo three weeks, and then advanced towards Gibraltar, whither he was persuaded all the opulent fugitives had fled. It was now three years since Olonois with his free-booters had appeared there. Peter the Picard, who accompanied him then, and who served as a guide to the present expedition, recollecting the bloody obstacles he had to surmount, prepared his comrades not to expect an easy victory. They were agreeably deceived. Some resistance, indeed, was at first made; but the inhabitants shortly saved themselves by flight into the woods, where they intrenched themselves behind the trees.

Thus was Gibraltar a second time taken: that city which had been reduced to ashes by the freebooters, had been rebuilt since their departure, and again became the theatre of new horrors. The scenes so familiar to these covetous brigands, were again repeated: they hunted the fugitives, pillaged to a great distance, exercised tortures, and put in practice every horror that could dishonour victory. The pirates seemed now even to improve upon their accustomed ferocity: two hundred and fifty inhabitants were brought to them, chained and trembling. Never was their cruelty more terribly ingenious than in the inventions to which they resorted. Some of these wretched victims were fastened naked to crosses, and tortured with burning fire-brands; many others were hung up by their arms, while stones of a prodigious weight were attached to them, and consequently by this horrible extension the muscles were torn out from their sockets or fastenings, and the bones from their joints. There were some (shame and humility make one tremble with horror), who were suspended in a posture most disgusting, till their horribly mutilated bodies fell down from their own weight. In this manner, the unfortunate wretches languished four or five days under the most dreadful sufferings, unless some robber, from an impulse of compassion, terminated their woes by putting them to death.

The ever execrable authors of these atrocities exercised them indiscriminately on all their victims, whatever their age, condition, or colour might be. Women, decorated with all the graces of their sex.–children, who were protected by their innocence,–aged persons, whose weakness was their protection,–whites, mulattos, negroes,–all were involved in the same fate.

The slaves who betrayed their masters were for the most part rewarded with their liberty; though there were few who were willing to purchase it at that price. Some there were, who, out of revenge, wickedness, or inveterate hatred, denounced their masters, notwithstanding they had nothing to disclose. One of these false informations furnished the ferocious Morgan with an opportunity to disguise his cruelty under the mask of justice. A slave, who having denounced his master as being opulent, and who had thereby drawn upon him the most cruel tortures, was contradicted by the fact. For this atrocious falsehood the Spanish prisoners in a body demanded revenge: he was immediately abandoned by Morgan to the discretion of his master; who having refused that offer, and referred to that chieftain the care of pronouncing the wretch’s fate, Morgan caused him to be instantly cut to pieces.

After six weeks’ residence at Gibraltar, he demanded a ransom for the city, which he threatened to commit to the flames, and carried away several prisoners with him as hostages. Some of them who could not bear the idea of seeing their city, which had been so recently rebuilt, again become a heap of ruins, conjured him to allow them to go through the woods, that they might make an effort to raise the sums required. Morgan granted them a delay of eight days, commanding them to bring him the result of their inquiries at Maracäibo, whether he conducted their companions.

On his arrival at that city, he for the first time perhaps experienced a sensation of terror; nor could all the freebooters, who were in other respects so intrepid, dissemble their consternation. The first news they received was that three Spanish ships of war had already been dispatched in pursuit of them, and had already moored at the entrance of the lake. The fort of La Barra, which the pirates had deserted, had again been put into a state of defence. The largest vessel they had carried only fourteen small cannons; while one of the three Spanish men of war carried forty, another thirty-eight, and the other twenty-four pieces of cannon. To escape such superior force was utterly impossible: for the Spaniards had so disposed themselves, as to leave only a narrow and very dangerous passage between the ships of war on one side, and the fort on the other, by which the freebooters could not go out. These robbers considered themselves lost without resource: Morgan alone, who soon recovered himself from his first terror, still retained some hope, and displayed his usual courage.

His first operation was to send out one of his ships to the mouth of the river, to acquire exact information as to the position of the Spaniards, as well as concerning the number and strength of their ships. The reports which were in consequence made to him were not the most consolatory. They confirmed the first news, with this addition,– that the Spanish crews were very considerable, and were labouring with great activity to repair the fort, on which their flag was hoisted. However embarrassing this situation was, Morgan thought that, in order to maintain the character of the freebooters, he ought to oppose a bravado to such imminent danger. He therefore sent one of his prisoners to the Spanish admiral, to demand twenty thousand piasters for the ransom of Maracäibo, which was in his possession. In case of a refusal, he should proceed to burn that city and cut all his prisoners to pieces.

Such unexpected insolence disconcerted the Spaniards; whose commander, Don Alphonso del Campo y Espinola, sent him a formal answer, in which he frankly told Morgan that he had been sent to chastise the freebooters;– that the moment was now arrived when he (Morgan) saw it was impossible for him to escape with his fleet, – that nevertheless, if he would restore all the plunder he had taken, both in gold, silver, jewels, and merchandise, and would surrender up all his prisoners, including the slaves, he would allow him to retire peaceably; but that, in case of a refusal, all the freebooters should be exterminated; and that his fate was so much the more inevitable, as his brave soldiers were desirous of nothing more than to avenge the cruelties which the corsairs had inflicted on their countrymen. With regard to the article of ransom, Don Alphonso verbally replied as follows, by means of the messenger: ‘Tell Morgan, that I will pay him the ransom he demands only with shot; and that I charge myself with the bringing of that kind of currency.’

Such an answer had been expected by Morgan, who had formed his determination in consequence. As soon as the messenger returned, he convened his comrades in the square of Maracäibo, to whom he communicated the commander’s letter and verbal reply, and then asked them,– ‘Will you purchase your liberty by the sacrifice of all your plunder? Or would you rather fight in defence of it?’ They all unanimously declared that they would fight to the very last drop of their blood, rather than give up, in such a cowardly manner, what had cost them so many dangers. But when they had reflected fasting upon their situation, and had coolly compared their strength with the forces of their adversaries, this effusion of enthusiasm subsided a little. Never before had any company or body of freebooters been placed in such critical circumstances, in which their courage was paralysed, and in which they could neither foresee nor expect a favourable conclusion. On the following day, therefore, they authorized their captain to submit these proposals to the Spanish admiral:– ‘The freebooters offer to evacuate the Maracäibo, without committing any damage to the city, and without insisting further on the ransom; and at the same time to set at liberty all the prisoners, half the slaves, and the hostages they had brought from Gibraltar as securities for the contributions promised.’

These proposals were contemptuously rejected by Don Alphonso, who left the pirates only two days to accept his first capitulation. If they persisted in refusing it, they should experience all his power: it only remained for the pirates to make their choice between a shameful retreat, preceded by the restitution of all their booty, and a mortal engagement.

From this moment Morgan excited all his brave companions in arms to the most persevering activity. He ordered all his hostages, prisoners, and slaves to be secured, and carefully watched: next he ordered all the pitch, tar, and sulphur he had, to be collected together, as well as all the gunpowder he could spare, in order to convert one of his largest vessels into a fire-ship; whither he directed all his combustibles to be conveyed. He formed various masses of pitch and sulphur, mixed with tar and powder, and proper to be shot; and took every possible measure to give the greatest effect to these extraordinary expedients. The side planks of the ships were prepared on the inside in such a manner that they would burst and shiver to pieces: there was not a single stratagem that he did not conceive, in order to conceal both the nature and extent of his defensive resources. Upon deck were placed blocks of wood dressed like men, with hats, arms, and coloured clothes; so that these figures might at a distance be taken for soldiers. In the body of the vessel were made several port holes, in which were placed pieces of painted wood, rounded in the shape of cannons. On her helm was hoisted a large English flag, that nothing might even seem to be wanting, in order to give her the appearance of a large English ship of war. This vessel was to open the way, and the other barks of various sizes were to follow her in a line one after the other. In one of them were contained all the male prisoners; in another were all the women, together with all the valuable effects, consisting of silver and diamonds; while the remainder of the plunder was distributed on board the other ships. But previously to setting sail, every freebooter was obliged to swear, between Morgan’s hands, that they would fight without asking quarter, until their very last gasp.