The Natives Of Guam

The natives are strong-bodied, large-limbed, and well-shaped.

They are copper-coloured like other Indians. Their hair is black and long, their eyes meanly proportioned.

They have pretty high noses; their lips are pretty full and their teeth indifferent white.

They are long-visaged and stern of countenance; yet we found them to be affable and courteous.

Many of them troubled with a kind of leprosy which is very common at Mindanao.

The natives of Guam are otherwise very healthy, especially in the dry season. But in the wet season, which comes in in June and holds till October, the air is more thick and unwholesome; which occasions fevers: but the rains are not violent nor lasting.

For the island lies so far westerly from the Philippine Islands or any other land that the westerly winds do seldom blow so far; and when they do they do not last long:

But the easterly winds do constantly blow here, which are dry and healthy; and this island is found to be very healthful, as we were informed while we lay by it.

Their Proas, A Remarkable Sort Of Boats

The natives are very ingenious beyond any people in making boats, or proas, as they are called in the East Indies, and therein they take great delight.

These are built sharp at both ends; the bottom is of one piece, made like the bottom of a little canoe, very neatly dug, and left of a good substance.

This bottom part is instead of a keel.

It is about 26 or 28 foot long; the under-part of this keel is made round, but inclining to a wedge, and smooth; and the upper-part is almost flat, having a very gentle hollow, and is about a foot broad: from hence both sides of the boat are carried up to about five foot high with narrow plank, not above four or five inches broad, and each end of the boat turns up round, very prettily.

But, what is very singular, one side of the boat is made perpendicular, like a wall, while the other side is rounding, made as other vessels are, with a pretty full belly. Just in the middle it is about four or five foot broad aloft, or more, according to the length of the boat.

The mast stands exactly in the middle, with a long yard that peeps up and down like a mizzen-yard. One end of it reaches down to the end or head of the boat where it is placed in a notch that is made there purposely to receive it and keep it fast. The other end hangs over the stern: to this yard the sail is fastened.

At the foot of the sail there is another small yard to keep the sail out square and to roll up the sail on when it blows hard; for it serves instead of a reef to take up the sail to what degree they please according to the strength of the wind.

Along the belly-side of the boat, parallel with it, at about six or seven foot distance, lies another small boat, or canoe, being a log of very light wood, almost as long as the great boat but not so wide, being not above a foot and a half wide at the upper part, and very sharp like a wedge at each end.

There are 2 bamboos of about eight or 10 foot long and as big as one’s leg placed over the great boat’s side, one near each end of it and reaching about six or seven foot from the side of the boat: by the help of which, the little boat is made firm and contiguous to the other.

These are generally called by the Dutch, and by the English from them, outlayers. The use of them is to keep the great boat upright from oversetting; because the wind here being in a manner constantly east (or if it were at west it would be the same thing) and the range of these islands, where their business lies to and fro, being mostly north and south, they turn the flat side of the boat against the wind, upon which they sail, and the belly-side, consequently with its little boat, is upon the lee:

The vessel having a head at each end so as to sail with either of them foremost (indifferently) they need not tack or go about, as all our vessels do, but each end of the boat serves either for head or stern as they please. When they ply to windward and are minded to go about he that steers bears away a little from the wind, by which means the stern comes to the wind; which is now become the head, only by shifting the end of the yard.

This boat is steered with a broad paddle instead of a rudder.

I have been the more particular in describing these boats because I do believe they sail the best of any boats in the world. I did here for my own satisfaction try the swiftness of one of them; sailing by our log we had 12 knots on our reel, and she run it all out before the half minute-glass was half out; which, if it had been no more, is after the rate of 12 mile an hour; but I do believe she would have run 24 mile an hour. It was very pleasant to see the little boat running along so swift by the other’s side.

The native Indians are no less dextrous in managing than in building these boats. By report they will go from hence to another of the Ladrone Islands about 30 leagues off, and there do their business and return again in less than 12 hours.

I was told that one of these boats was sent express to Manila, which is above 400 leagues, and performed the voyage in 4 days’ time.

There are of these proas or boats used in many places of the East Indies but with a belly and a little boat on each side.

Only at Mindanao I saw one like these with the belly and a little boat only on one side and the other flat, but not so neatly built.

Guam And The Provisions There

The Indians of Guam have neat little houses, very handsomely thatched with palmetto-thatch.

They live together in villages built by the sea on the west side, and have Spanish priests to instruct them in the Christian religion.

The Spaniards have a small fort on the west side near the south end, with 6 guns in it.

There is a governor, and 20 or 30 Spanish soldiers. There are no more Spaniards on this island beside two or three priests.

Not long before we arrived here the natives rose on the Spaniards to destroy them and did kill many: but the governor with his soldiers at length prevailed and drove them out of the fort: so when they found themselves disappointed of their intent they destroyed the plantations and stock and then went away to other islands: there were then three or 400 Indians on this island; but now there are not above 100; for all that were in this conspiracy went away.

As for these who yet remain, if they were not actually concerned in that broil yet their hearts also are bent against the Spaniards: for they offered to carry us to the fort and assist us in the conquest of the island; but Captain Swan was not for molesting the Spaniards here.

Before we came to an anchor here one of the priests came aboard in the night with three Indians. They first hailed us to know from whence we came and what we were: to whom answer was made in Spanish that we were Spaniards and that we came from Acapulco.

It being dark they could not see the make of our ship nor very well discern what we were: therefore we came aboard but, perceiving the mistake they were in in taking us for a Spanish ship they endeavoured to get from us again, but we held their boat fast and made them come in.

Captain Swan received the priest with much civility and, conducting him into the great cabin, declared that the reason of our coming to this island was want of provision, and that he came not in any hostile manner but as a friend to purchase with his money what he wanted: and therefore desired the priest to write a letter to the governor to inform him what we were and on what account we came. For, having him now aboard, the captain was willing to detain him as an hostage till we had provision. The padre told Captain Swan that provision was now scarce on the island but he would engage that the governor would do his utmost to furnish us.

In the morning the Indians in whose boat or proa the friar came aboard were sent to the governor with two letters; one from the friar, and another very obliging one from Captain Swan, and a present of four yards of scarlet cloth and a piece of broad silver and gold lace. The governor lives near the south end of the island on the west side; which was about five leagues from the place where we were; therefore we did not expect an answer till the evening, not knowing then how nimble they were. Therefore when the Indian canoe was dispatched away to the governor we hoisted out two of our canoes, and sent one a-fishing and the other ashore for coconuts. Our fishing canoe got nothing; but the men that went ashore for coconuts came off laden.

About 11AM the governor of the island sent a letter to Captain Swan, complimenting him for his present and promising to support us with as much provision as he could possibly spare;

As a token of his gratitude he sent a present of six hogs, of a small sort, most excellent meat, the best I think, that ever I ate: they are fed with coconuts and their flesh is as hard as brisket-beef. They were doubtless of that breed in America which came originally from Spain. He sent also 12 musk-melons, larger than ours in England, and as many watermelons, both sorts here being a very excellent fruit; and sent an order to the Indians that lived in a village not far from our ship to bake every day as much of the bread-fruit as we did desire, and to assist us in getting as many dry coconuts as we would have; which they accordingly did, and brought off the bread-fruit every day hot, as much as we could eat.

After this the governor sent every day a canoe or two with hogs and fruit and desired for the same powder, shot, and arms; which were sent according to his request. We had a delicate large English dog which the governor did desire and had it given him very freely by the captain, though much against the grain of many of his men, who had a great value for that dog. Captain Swan endeavoured to get this governor’s letter of recommendation to some merchants at Manila, for he had then a design to go to Fort St. George, and from thence intended to trade to Manila: but this his design was concealed from the company.

While we lay here the Acapulco ship arrived in sight of the island but did not come in the sight of us; for the governor sent an Indian proa with advice of our being here. Therefore she stood off to the southward of the island and, coming foul of the same shoal that our bark had run over before, was in great danger of being lost there, for she struck off her rudder and with much ado got clear; but not till after three days’ labour. For though the shoal be so near the island and the Indians go off and fish there every day yet the master of the Acapulco ship, who should (one would think) know these parts, was utterly ignorant of it. This their striking on the shoal we heard afterward when we were on the coast of Manila; but these Indians of Guam did speak of her being in sight of the island while we lay there, which put our men in a great heat to go out after her but Captain Swan persuaded them out of that humour, for he was now wholly averse to any hostile action.

The 30th day of May the governor sent his last present which was some hogs, a jar of pickled mangoes, a jar of excellent pickled fish, and a jar of fine rusk, or bread of fine wheat-flour, baked like biscuit but not so hard. He sent besides six or seven packs of rice, desiring to be excused from sending any more provision to us, saying he had no more on the island that he could spare. He sent word also that the west monsoon was at hand, that therefore it behoved us to be jogging from hence unless we were resolved to return back to America again.

Captain Swan returned him thanks for his kindness and advice and took his leave; and the same day sent the friar ashore that was seized on at our first arrival, and gave him a large brass clock, an astrolabe, and a large telescope; for which present the friar sent us aboard six hogs and a roasting-pig, three or four bushels of potatoes, and 50 pound of Manila tobacco. Then we prepared to be gone, being pretty well furnished with provision to carry us to Mindanao, where we designed next to touch. We took aboard us as many coconuts as we could well stow, and we had a good stock of rice and about 50 hogs in salt.