The Pirates Own Book (15 page)

This vessel was fashioned, at the will of avarice, for the aid of
cruelty and injustice; it was an African slaver—the schooner Panda. She
was commanded by Don Pedro Gilbert, a native of Catalonia, in Spain, and
son of a grandee; a man thirty-six years of age, and exceeding handsome,
having a round face, pearly teeth, round forehead, and full black eyes,
with beautiful raven hair, and a great favorite with the ladies. He
united great energy, coolness and decision, with superior knowledge in
mercantile transactions, and the Guinea trade; having made several
voyages after slaves. The mate and owner of the Panda was Don Bernardo
De Soto, a native of Corunna, Spain, and son, of Isidore De Soto,
manager of the royal revenue in said city; he was now twenty-five years
of age, and from the time he was fourteen had cultivated the art of
navigation, and at the age of twenty-two had obtained the degree of
captain in the India service. After a regular examination the
correspondent diploma was awarded him. He was married to Donna Petrona
Pereyra, daughter of Don Benito Pereyra, a merchant of Corunna. She was
at this time just fifteen, and ripening into that slight fullness of
form, and roundness of limb, which in that climate mark the early
passing from girl into woman. Her complexion was the dark olive tinge of
Spain; her eyes jet black, large and lustrous. She had great sweetness
of disposition and ingenuousness.

To the strictest discipline De Soto united the practical knowledge of a
thorough seaman. But "the master spirit of the whole," was Francisco
Ruiz, the carpenter of the Panda. This individual was of the middle
size, but muscular, with a short neck. His hair was black and abundant,
and projected from his forehead, so that he appeared to look out from
under it, like a bonnet. His eyes were dark chestnut, but always
restless; his features were well defined; his eye-lashes, jet black. He
was familiar with all the out-of-the-way places of the Havana, and
entered into any of the dark abodes without ceremony. From report his
had been a wild and lawless career. The crew were chiefly Spaniards,
with a few Portuguese, South Americans, and half castes. The cook was a
young Guinea negro, with a pleasant countenance, and good humored, with
a sleek glossy skin, and tatooed on the face; and although entered in
the schooner's books as free, yet was a slave. In all there were about
forty men. Her cargo was an assorted one, consisting in part of barrels
of rum, and gunpowder, muskets, cloth, and numerous articles, with which
to purchase slaves.

The Panda sailed from the Havana on the night of the 20th of August; and
upon passing the Moro Castle, she was hailed, and asked, "where bound?"
She replied, St. Thomas. The schooner now steered through the Bahama
channel, on the usual route towards the coast of Guinea; a man was
constantly kept at the mast head, on the lookout; they spoke a corvette,
and on the morning of the 20th Sept., before light, and during the
second mate's watch, a brig was discovered heading to the southward.
Capt. Gilbert was asleep at the time, but got up shortly after she was
seen, and ordered the Panda to go about and stand for the brig. A
consultation was held between the captain, mate and carpenter, when the
latter proposed to board her, and if she had any specie to rob her,
confine the men below, and burn her. This proposition was instantly
acceded to, and a musket was fired to make her heave to.

This vessel was the American brig Mexican, Capt. Butman. She had left
the pleasant harbor of Salem, Mass., on the last Wednesday of August,
and was quietly pursuing her voyage towards Rio Janeiro. Nothing
remarkable had happened on board, says Captain B., until half past two
o'clock, in the morning of September 20th, in lat. 38, 0, N., lon. 24,
30, W. The attention of the watch on deck was forcibly arrested by the
appearance of a vessel which passed across our stern about half a mile
from us. At 4 A.M. saw her again passing across our bow, so near that
we could perceive that it was a schooner with a fore top sail and top
gallant sail. As it was somewhat dark she was soon out of sight. At
daylight saw her about five miles off the weather quarter standing on
the wind on the same tack we were on, the wind was light at SSW and we
were standing about S.E. At 8 A.M. she was about two miles right to
windward of us; could perceive a large number of men upon her deck, and
one man on the fore top gallant yard looking out; was very suspicious of
her, but knew not how to avoid her. Soon after saw a brig on our weather
bow steering to the N.E. By this time the schooner was about three miles
from us and four points forward of the beam. Expecting that she would
keep on for the brig ahead of us, we tacked to the westward, keeping a
little off from the wind to make good way through the water, to get
clear of her if possible. She kept on to the eastward about ten or
fifteen minutes after we had tacked, then wore round, set square sail,
steering directly for us, came down upon us very fast, and was soon
within gun shot of us, fired a gun and hoisted patriot colors and backed
main topsail. She ran along to windward of us, hailed us to know where
we were from, where bound, &c. then ordered me to come on board in my
boat. Seeing that she was too powerful for us to resist, I accordingly
went, and soon as I got along-side of the schooner, five ruffians
instantly jumped into my boat, each of them being armed with a large
knife, and told me to go on board the brig again; when they got on board
they insisted that we had got money, and drew their knives, threatening
us with instant death and demanding to know where it was. As soon as
they found out where it was they obliged my crew to get it up out of the
run upon deck, beating and threatening them at the same time because
they did not do it quicker. When they had got it all upon deck, and
hailed the schooner, they got out their launch and came and took it on
board the schooner, viz: ten boxes containing twenty thousand dollars;
then returned to the brig again, drove all the crew into the forecastle,
ransacked the cabin, overhauling all the chests, trunks, &c. and rifled
my pockets, taking my watch, and three doubloons which I had previously
put there for safety; robbed the mate of his watch and two hundred
dollars in specie, still insisting that there was more money in the
hold. Being answered in the negative, they beat me severely over the
back, said they knew that there was more, that they should search for
it, and if they found any they would cut all our throats. They continued
searching about in every part of the vessel for some time longer, but
not finding any more specie, they took two coils of rigging, a side of
leather, and some other articles, and went on board the schooner,
probably to consult what to do with us; for, in eight or ten minutes
they came back, apparently in great haste, shut us all below, fastened
up the companion way, fore-scuttle and after hatchway, stove our
compasses to pieces in the binnacles, cut away tiller-ropes, halliards,
braces, and most of our running rigging, cut our sails to pieces badly;
took a tub of tarred rope-yarn and what combustibles they could find
about deck, put them in the caboose house and set them on fire; then
left us, taking with them our boat and colors. When they got alongside
of the schooner they scuttled our boat, took in their own, and made
sail, steering to the eastward.

As soon as they left us, we got up out of the cabin scuttle, which they
had neglected to secure, and extinguished the fire, which if it had been
left a few minutes, would have caught the mainsail and set our masts on
fire. Soon after we saw a ship to leeward of us steering to the S.E. the
schooner being in pursuit of her did not overtake her whilst she was in
sight of us.

It was doubtless their intention to burn us up altogether, but seeing
the ship, and being eager for more plunder they did not stop fully to
accomplish their design. She was a low strait schooner of about one
hundred and fifty tons, painted black with a narrow white streak, a
large head with the horn of plenty painted white, large maintopmast but
no yards or sail on it. Mast raked very much, mainsail very square at
the head, sails made with split cloth and all new; had two long brass
twelve pounders and a large gun on a pivot amidships, and about seventy
men, who appeared to be chiefly Spaniards and mulattoes.

The object of the voyage being frustrated by the loss of the specie,
nothing now remained but for the Mexican to make the best of her way
back to Salem, which she reached in safety. The government of the United
States struck with the audacity of this piracy, despatched a cruiser in
pursuit of them. After a fruitless voyage in which every exertion was
made, and many places visited on the coast of Africa, where it was
supposed the rascals might be lurking, the chase was abandoned as
hopeless, no clue being found to their "whereabouts."

The Panda after robbing the Mexican, pursued her course across the
Atlantic, and made Cape Monte; from this she coasted south, and after
passing Cape Palmas entered the Gulf of Guinea, and steered for Cape
Lopez which she reached in the first part of November. Cape Lopez de
Gonzalves, in lat. 0 deg. 36' 2" south, long. 80 deg. 40' 4" east, is
so called from its first discoverer. It is covered with wood but low
and swampy, as is also the neighboring country. The extensive bay formed
by this cape is fourteen miles in depth, and has several small creeks
and rivers running into it. The largest is the river Nazareth on the left
point of which is situated King Gula's town the only assemblage of huts
in the bay. Here the cargo of the Panda was unloaded, the greater part was
entrusted to the king, and with the rest Capt. Gilbert opened a factory
and commenced buying various articles of commerce, as tortoise shell,
gum, ivory, palm oil, fine straw carpeting, and slaves. After remaining
here a short time the crew became sickly and Capt. Gilbert sailed for
Prince's Island to recover the health of his crew. Whilst at Prince's
Island news arrived of the robbery of the Mexican. And the pirate left
with the utmost precipitation for Cape Lopez, and the better to evade
pursuit, a pilot was procured; and the vessel carried several miles up
the river Nazareth. Soon after the Panda left Prince's Island, the
British brig of war, Curlew, Capt. Trotter arrived, and from the
description given of the vessel then said to be lying in the Nazareth,
Capt. Trotter knew she must be the one, that robbed the Mexican; and he
instantly sailed in pursuit. On nearing the coast, she was discovered
lying up the river; three boats containing forty men and commanded by
Capt. Trotter, started up the river with the sea breeze and flood tide,
and colors flying to take the desperadoes; the boats kept in near the
shore until rounding a point they were seen from the Panda. The pirates
immediately took to their boats, except Francisco Ruiz who seizing a
fire brand from the camboose went into the magazine and set some
combustibles on fire with the laudable purpose of blowing up the
assailants, and then paddled ashore in a canoe. Capt. Trotter chased
them with his boats, but could not come up with them, and then boarded
the schooner which he found on fire. The first thing he did was to put
out the fire which was in the magazine, below the cabin floor; here was
found a quantity of cotton and brimstone burning and a slow match
ignited and communicating with the magazine, which contained sixteen
casks of powder.

The Panda was now warped out of the river and anchored off the negro
town of Cape Lopez. Negociations were now entered into for the surrender
of the pirates. An officer was accordingly sent on shore to have an
interview with the king. He was met on the beach by an ebony chief
calling himself duke. "We followed the duke through the extensive and
straggling place, frequently buried up to the ankles in sand, from which
the vegetation was worn by the constant passing and repassing of the
inhabitants. We arrived at a large folding door placed in a high bamboo
and palm tree fence, which inclosed the king's establishment, ornamented
on our right by two old honeycombed guns, which, although dismounted,
were probably, according to the practice of the coast, occasionally
fired to attract the attention of passing vessels, and to imply that
slaves were to be procured. On the left of the enclosure was a shed,
with a large ship's bell suspended beneath, serving as an alarum bell in
case of danger, while the remainder was occupied with neatly built huts,
inhabited by the numerous wives of the king.

"We sent in to notify him of our arrival; he sent word out that we might
remain outside until it suited his convenience. But as such an
arrangement did not suit ours, we immediately entered, and found sitting
at a table the king. He was a tall, muscular, ugly looking negro, about
fifty years of age. We explained the object of our visit, which was to
demand the surrender of the white men, who were now concealed in the
town, and for permission to pass up the river in pursuit of those who
had gone up that way. He now expressed the most violent indignation at
our presumption in demanding the pirates, and the interview was broken
off by his refusing to deliver up a single man."

We will now return to the pirates. While at Prince's Island, Capt.
Gilbert bought a magnificent dressing case worth nearly a thousand
dollars and a patent lever watch, and a quantity of tobacco, and
provisions, and two valuable cloth coats, some Guinea cloth and black
and green paint. The paint, cloth and coats were intended as presents
for the African king at Cape Lopez. These articles were all bought with
the money taken from the Mexican. After arriving at the Nazareth, $4000
were taken from the trunk, and buried in the yard of a negro prince.
Four of the pirates then went to Cape Lopez for $11,000, which had been
buried there. Boyga, Castillo, Guzman, and the "State's Evidence,"
Ferez, were the ones who went. Ferez took the bags out, and the others
counted the money; great haste was made as the musquitoes were biting
intolerably. $5000 were buried for the captain in canvas bags about two
feet deep, part of the money was carried to Nazareth, and from there
carried into the mountains and there buried. A consultation was held by
Capt. Gilbert, De Soto, and Ruiz, and the latter said, if the money was
not divided, "there would be the devil to pay." The money was now
divided in a dark room and a lantern used; Capt. Gilbert sat on the
floor with the money at his side. He gave the mate about $3000, and the
other officers $1000, each; and the crew from $300 to $500, each. The
third mate having fled, the captain sent him $1000, and Ruiz carried it
to him. When the money was first taken from the Mexican, it was spread
out on the companion way and examined to see if there was any gold
amongst it; and then put into bags made of dark coarse linen; the boxes
were then thrown overboard. After the division of the money the pirates
secreted themselves in the woods behind Cape Lopez. Perez and four
others procured a boat, and started for Fernando Po; they put their
money in the bottom of the boat for ballast, but was thrown overboard,
near a rock and afterwards recovered by divers; this was done to prevent
detection. The captain, mate, and carpenter had a conversation
respecting the attempt of the latter, to blow her up, who could not
account for the circumstance, that an explosion had not taken place;
they told him he ought to have burst a barrel of powder over the deck
and down the stairs to the magazine, loaded a gun, tied a fish line to
the lock and pulled it when he came off in the canoe.