As for my party, we now began to plot, again, in order to get quit of
the ship. After a great deal of discussion, we came to the following
resolution:
About a dozen of us entered into the conspiracy. We contemplated no
piracy, no act of violence, that should not be rendered necessary in
self-defence, nor any robbery beyond what we conceived indispensable to
our object. As the ship passed the Straits of Sunda, we intended to lower
as many boats as should be necessary, arm ourselves, place provisions and
water in the boats, and abandon the ship. We felt confident that if most
of the men did not go with us, they would not oppose us. I can now see
that this was a desperate and unjustifiable scheme; but, for myself, I was
getting desperate on board the ship, and preferred risking my life to
remaining. I will not deny that I was a ringleader in this affair, though
I know I had no other motive than escape. This was a clear case of mutiny,
and the only one in which I was ever implicated. I have a thousand times
seen reason to rejoice that the attempt was never made, since, so deep was
the hostility of the crew to the officers,--the mates, in
particular,--that I feel persuaded a horrible scene of bloodshed must have
followed. I did not think of this at the time, making sure of getting off
unresisted; but, if we had, what would have been the fate of a parcel of
seamen who came into an English port in ship's boats? Tried for piracy,
probably, and the execution of some, if not all of us.
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