THough this following Relati­on contains matter of very great Wonder and Amaze­ment; nevertheless it comes to our Hands, confirm'd by that suffitient Te­stimony, that we offer it to the Reader as a Narrative of unquestion'd Truth and Reputation.

By a Letter from Barbadoes, of the 23d. of July last, written by a Person of Worth and Credit, in that Island, we have this Relation, viz. That the Margaret from Boston, the 21th. of December 95 bound to Ber­badoes, [Page 3]in their Passage one of the Saylers at the Helm call'd to the Ma­ster of the Vessel, and told him, That he could steer no longer. The Master asking the reason, he replyed, That he was not well; and for that cause quitted his Post; the Master taking the Helm, the said Sailor further de­clared, That there stood a Spirit by the Binnacle, that accus'd him of kil­ling a Woman; a Fault which the Spirit had falsly charg'd him with; for he never committed any such un­manly Crime in his Life. The Spi­rit, he said, further told him, That all the Ships Company had sign'd an Agreement with the Divel, which was us'd as an Argument for him to do the same.

The next day the Fellow fell into strange Deliriums, and talk'd of wonderful Accidents that would be­fal the Ship; which were look'd up­on [Page 4]as nothing but the wild Notions of his crazed Senses, the Chimera's of Frenzy. Particularly he said, That the Spirit had brought a Boat to fetch him away; with other ridiculous idle Discourse of the same Nature.

Upon the 17th. of January in the Latitude of 19 about 9 at Night, a small white Cloud arose, without a­ny Rain, or extraordinary Wind, which presently falling upon the ship pressed her down with that strange and indeed supernatural Weight and force that the Hatches flew out, and the whole Ship was under Water, by which unhappy Accident, the Boy was wash'd off and drowned.

But here to begin the more Mira­culous Part of my Narrative, the Ship continued under Water for E­leven Weeks; a thing that struck (as may be well imagined) an ex­traordinary [Page 5]Consternation and Con­fusion through the Marriners, from several strange Arguments of their Astonishment. First, That the Ship should be wholly immerged under Water, and yet not sunk downright to the bottom. Secondly, That tho' they were apparently thus intirely under Water, yet the Ship was not wholly filled with Water, but that they had Air enough to breath in, by which means they continued a­live; feeding all this while, upon raw meat, and fresh Fish which came swimming over the Vessel, and seve­ral of which they Caught and Eat. Their Lodging was on Boards pla­ced athwart the Rail near the Taffrel covered with a Sail. The men were always wet which, in so long a time, made that Impression upon them that their Flesh on their Bodies was gal­led and raw.

But what was the most dismal part of all, Six of the Ship's Crew upon the sinking of the Vessel under wa­ter, were frighted with Infernal Spi­rits; and about 12 the first Night were carried away invisibly, leaving no more then 4 Persons alive behind them; which indeed gave some lit­tle Credit to what the fore mentio­ned Sailor at the Helm had declared in his Deliriums.

After this 11 Weeks Immurement these wondrous watry Walls, for so I may justly call it, the Ship recove­red it self above Water again; and the first Land they could discover was the Island Dissiado, which, with so few Hands left, they could not fetch up, by reason of a strong Nor­thern Current that bore against 'em. The next was Grand-Terra, where they met with the same Disapoint­ment: [Page 7]But on the 5th. of April they run themselves on Shore upon Guar­delupo; where the French Treated them very kindly, not as Prisoners, but as Men in Distress.

The names of the Three Seamen left Alive are William Davis Master (a Man very well known in London amongst the Berbadoes Merchants) William Cadner, and William Bywater.

Not only the Original Letter, and the whole Relation, at large; is to be seen at Mr. Lloyd's Coffee-house in Lumbard-street, but likewise several Persons are to be heard of, and spoken withal upon the Exchange, in Attestation of the whole Truth herein decla­red.

The Reverend Mr. Baxter, in his Treatise of Spirits, says, That tho' Hurricanes and Tempests have Natu­ral Causes, yet there is great Reason to think they are managed by Spirits: In Confirmation whereof, he relates many notable Instances of his own, particular Deliverances from the Fu­ry of most Boysterous Whirlewinds; namely, when the Reapers in Eve­sham Vale, were Hurt, Writhen, and One Killed, some Friendly Pow­er (for so he expresses it) restrain'd the course of Gravally Sand, rais'd by a Whirlwind, as it met him in a narrow Lane.