The poor Englishmen being now twice ruined, and all their improvements destroyed, the rest all agreed to come and help them to rebuild, and to assist them with needful supplies.  Their three countrymen, who were not yet noted for having the least inclination to do any thing good, yet, as soon as they heard of it (for they, living remote, knew nothing till all was over), came and offered their help and assistance, and did very friendly work for several days to restore their habitations and make necessaries for them; and thus in a little time they were set upon their legs again.

About two days after this they had the farther satisfaction of seeing three of the savages’ canoes come driving onshore, and at some distance from them, with two drowned men; by which they had reason to believe that they had met with a storm at sea, which had overset some of them, for it blew very hard the night after they went off.

However, as some might miscarry, so on the other hand enough of them escaped to inform the rest, as well of what they had done, as of what happened to them; and to whet them on to another enterprise of the same nature, which they, it seems, resolved to attempt, with sufficient force to carry all before them; for except what the first man told them of inhabitants, they could say little to it of their own knowledge; for they never saw one man, and the fellow being killed that had affirmed it, they had no other witness to confirm it to them.

It was five or six months after this before they heard any more of the savages, in which time our men were in hopes they had not forgot their former bad luck, or had given over the hopes of better; when on a sudden they were invaded with a most formidable fleet of no less than twenty-eight canoes, full of savages, armed with bows and arrows, great clubs, wooden swords, and such-like engines of war; and they brought such numbers with them, that in short it put all our people into the utmost consternation.

As they came on shore in the evening, and at the easternmost side of the island, our men had that night to consult and consider what to do; and in the first place, knowing that their being entirely concealed was their only safety before, and would much more be so now, while the number of their enemies was so great, they therefore resolved, first of all, to take down the huts which were built for the two Englishmen, and drive away their goats to the old cave; because they supposed the savages would go directly thither as soon as it was day, to play the old game over again, though they did not now land within two leagues of it.

In the next place, they drove away all the flock of goats they had at the old bower, as I called it, which belonged to the Spaniards; and, in short, left as little appearance of inhabitants any where as possible; and the next morning early they posted themselves with all their force at the plantation of the two men, waiting for their coming.  As they guessed, so it happened:  these new invaders, leaving their canoes at the east end of the island, came ranging along the shore, directly towards the place, to the number of two hundred and fifty, as near as our men could judge.  Our army was but small indeed; but that which was worse, they had not arms for all their number neither:  the whole account, it seems, stood thus:—­first, as to men: