I had two elder brothers. One of them went to the army, despite of my father’s prohibitions, and was killed at the battle near Dunkirk. What became of the second brother we never knew, he was missing.
From my childhood I dreamed about the adventures and pirates. I would be satisfied with nothing but going to sea.
Being the third son of my family, I wasn’t a high-educated person. My father had given me house-education and country free school that was enough to be a lawyer[4].
When I grew up, my childish dreams of the sea turned into the real wish of becoming a captain, or a sailor at least. Oh, how the sea haunted my dreams that days!
My father, being a wise and grave man, guessed my intentions[5]. One morning he called me into his chamber. He asked me very warmly not to leave father’s home and not to repeat the fate of my elder brothers in a search of adventures. “You don’t have to earn your bread”, he said, “I’ll give you enough money to stay at your native country, become a lawyer, and get married. You are only eighteen, and I don’t want to lose my third son, when he is so young”. But I didn’t listen to him. He promised me a life of ease and pleasure, but I was going to a life of risky adventures and trying the fortune.
However, I was sincerely[6] affected with my father’s discourse, and decided to wait with the final decision of my future life. I resolved not to think of going abroad one year more, but to settle at home, according to my father’s desire. That was a time when I was trying myself in the different fields of learning, trying to find a profession that would be close to me. But my searches had been unsuccessful. It turned out, that I had no abilities to any crafts[7]. After that, I had finally decided to link my future life with[8] the sea. However, I could not leave my parent’s home without their approval[9].
One day, when my mother was in a good mood, I asked her for the help.
“Oh, mother, I’ll soon be nineteen years old, and it is too late to become a lawyer or a clerk. I have no abilities to any crafts. I see no ways to make living, but go to sea. Please, speak to my father to let me go abroad and become a mariner!”
This put my mother into a great passion[10]. She wondered how I could think this way after the discourse I had had with my father, and such a kind and tender expression that she knew my father had used on me.
“Neither I, nor your father will bless you. If you don’t obey our advice, we will not take part in your future,” she said.
But for that moment, my decision was strong enough, and adrift, my wishes turned into the real life.
Being one day at the Hull, where I went casually, I met one of my companions. He was about to sail to London on his father’s ship. He prompted me to go with him, promising that it would cost me nothing for my passage[11]. I consulted neither father nor mother about this voyage, even not so much as sent them a letter of it.
In an ill hour[12], God knows, on the 1st of September 1651, I went on board a ship bound for London.
The ship was no sooner out of the Humber than the wind began to blow and the sea to rise. I had never been at sea before, so it seemed to me, that the ship was caught in a heavy storm and will drown in a minute. The pitching[13] was so strong, that I could barely stand on my feet, the nausea stepped up to the throat[14]. I thought that those were the last minutes of my life. And only then I realized what I’ve done: all the good counsels of my parents, my father’s tears and my mother’s entreaties[15], came fresh into my mind.
I swore to myself that if I could stay alive, I’ll come back to my parents in repentance[16] and spend my entire life near them in my family home. At that moment in my mind has already appeared the picture from the biblical story “Return of the prodigal son”[17].
These wise and sober[18] thoughts continued all the while the storm lasted, and indeed some time after; but the next day the wind has abated, and the sea calmed down. However, I was very grave for all that day, being also a little sea-sick still; but towards night the weather cleared up, the wind was quite over, and a charming fine evening followed. The sun went down perfectly clear, and rose so next morning; and having little or no wind, and a smooth sea, the sun shining upon it, the sight was, as I thought, the most delightful that I ever saw.
I had slept well at night, and was now no more sea-sick, but very cheerful, looking with wonder upon the sea that was so rough and terrible the day before, and could be so calm and so pleasant in so little a time after. And now, lest my good resolutions should continue, my companion comes to me: “Well, Rob,” says he, clapping me upon the shoulder[19], “how do you do after it? Were you freighted, last night, when it blew a capful of wind?” “A capful do you call it?” said I, “That was a terrible storm!” “A storm?!” replied he, “You call that a storm? Why? It was nothing at all; give us a good ship and sea-room[20], and we think nothing of such a squall of wind as that; but you are a fresh-water sailor, Rob. Come, let us make a bowl of punch, and we’ll forget all that! Do you see what charming weather it is now?”
To make short this sad part of my story, we went the way of all sailors; the punch was made and I was made half-drunk with it: and in that one night’s wickedness I drowned all my repentance, all my reflections upon my past conduct, all my resolutions for the future.
The sixth day of our being at sea we came into Yarmouth Roads. These Roads are the common harbor, where the ships might wait the tailwind[21]. Here we came to an anchor[22] for seven or eight days. During this time many ships from Newcastle came into the same Roads.
After we had lain four or five days, the wind still blew very hard. However, the crew of our ship was absolutely calm: the Yarmouth Roads are known as the safest place; there is no more danger there, than in any other harbor. Moreover, our ship had the good anchor, and our ground-tackle[23] was very strong. So, our men spent all the time in rest and mirth, after the manner of the sea.
But on the eighth day, in the morning, the wind increased, and we had all hands at work to strike our topmasts[24], and make everything close, so that the ship might ride as easy as possible.
By noon the sea went very high. Once or twice we thought that our anchor had come home; upon which our master ordered out the sheet-anchor[25], so that we rode with two anchors