Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
West Indies. The great, ponderous beasts fascinated Dampier and he
carefully noted many facts about them.
It is reported of these creatures that they are nine days engender-
ing, and in the water, the male on the female's back. It is observable,
that the males, while engendering, do not easily forsake their female.
For I have gone and taken hold of the male, when engendering, and a
very bad striker may strike them then, for the male is not shy at all.
But the female, seeing a boat when they rise to blow, would make her
escape, but that the male grasps her with his two fore fins and holds
her fast. When they are thus coupled, it is best to strike the female first,
then you are sure of the male also
.
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It has to be said that many of Dampier's observations about
turtles are concerned with culinary practicalities. These animals and
their eggs were great delicacies for mariners. It is, therefore, not at
all surprising that several species have become extinct since Dampi-
er's day.
The pirates continued northwards looking for victims. In July,
off the coast of Mexico, Captain Cook died. He had been ill some
time, presumably of ship's fever, although Dampier gives no details.
His body was carried ashore for burial and his place was taken by
the quartermaster, Edward Davis, 'by consent of all the company, for
it was his place by succession'. The buccaneer bands had no rules
but they did have their own constitutional practices, which usually
amounted to a combination of tyranny and democracy. A captain
held sway by the force of his personality and by sheer brutality. If
he died or failed to command majority support, his crew often split
into factions, and either a successor was elected or they divided in-
to two bands. The pirate companies were in a constant state of frag-
mentation and coalescence which, not infrequently, degenerated in-
to open warfare. In this case Edward Davis had general approval but
