E taken there; but when the savage escaping came thither, he made
nothing of it, tho the tide was then up; but, plunging in, swam through
in about thirty strokes, or thereabouts, landed and ran with exceeding
strength and swiftness. When the three persons came to the creek I found
that two of them could swim, but the third could not, and that, standing
on the other side, he looked at the others, but went no farther, and
soon after went softly back again; which, as it happened, was very well
for him in the end. I observed that the two who swam were yet more than
twice as long swimming over the creek than the fellow was that fled from
them. It came very warmly upon my thoughts, and indeed irresistibly,
that now was the time to get me a servant, and perhaps a companion or
assistant; and that I was plainly called by Providence to save this poor
creature's life. I immediately ran down the ladder with all possible
expedition, fetched my two guns, for they were both at the foot of the
ladder, as I observed before, and getting up again with the same haste
to the top of the hill, I crost toward the sea; and having a very short
cut, and all down hill, clap'd myself in the way between the pursuers
and the pursued, hallooing aloud to him that fled, who, looking back,
was at first perhaps as much frightened at me as at them; but I beckoned
with my hand to him to come back; and, in the mean time, I slowly
advanced toward the two that followed; then rushing at once upon the
foremost, I knocked him down with the stock of my piece. I was loath to
fire, because I would not have the rest hear; tho at that distance it
would not have been easily heard, and being out of sight of the smoke,
too, they would not have known what to make of it. Having k
