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Some time after this we
saw some very large fish, which I afterwards found were called
grampusses. They looked to me extremely terrible, and made their
appearance just at dusk; and were so near as to blow the water on the
ship's deck. I believed them to be the rulers of the sea; and, as the
white people did not make any offerings at any time, I thought they
were angry with them: and, at last, what confirmed my belief was, the
wind just then died away, and a calm ensued, and in consequence of it
the ship stopped going. I supposed that the fish had performed this,
and I hid myself in the fore part of the ship, through fear of being
offered up to appease them, every minute peeping and quaking: but my
good friend Dick came shortly towards me, and I took an opportunity to
ask him, as well as I could, what these fish were. Not being able to
talk much English, I could but just make him understand my question;
and not at all, when I asked him if any offerings were to be made to
them: however, he told me these fish would swallow any body; which
sufficiently alarmed me. Here he was called away by the captain, who
was leaning over the quarter-deck railing and looking at the fish; and
most of the people were busied in getting a barrel of pitch to light,
for them to play with. The captain now called me to him, having
learned some of my apprehensions from Dick; and having diverted
himself and others for some time with my fears, which appeared
ludicrous enough in my crying and trembling, he dismissed me. The
barrel of pitch was now lighted and put over the side into the water:
by this time it was just dark, and the fish went after it; and, to my
great joy, I saw them no more.
However, all my alarms began to subside when we got sight of land; and
at last the ship arrived at Falmouth, after a passage of thirteen
weeks. Every heart on board seemed gladdened on our reaching the
shore, and none more than mine. The captain immediately went on shore,
and sent on board some fresh provisions, which we wanted very much:
we made good use of them, and our famine was soon turned into
feasting, almost without ending. It was about the beginning of the
spring 1757 when I arrived in England, and I was near twelve years of
age at that time. I was very much struck with the buildings and the
pavement of the streets in Falmouth; and, indeed, any object I saw
filled me with new surprise. One morning, when I got upon deck, I saw
it covered all over with the snow that fell over-night: as I had never
seen any thing of the kind before, I thought it was salt; so I
immediately ran down to the mate and desired him, as well as I could,
to come and see how somebody in the night had thrown salt all over the
deck. He, knowing what it was, desired me to bring some of it down to
him: accordingly I took up a handful of it, which I found very cold
indeed; and when I brought it to him he desired me to taste it.
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