The Pirates' Who's Who Part 39

A West Indian pirate, who commanded a sloop, and, in company with a Captain Tuckerman in another sloop, came one day into Bennet's Key in Hispaniola. The two captains were but beginners at piracy, and finding the great Bartholomew Roberts in the bay, paid him a polite visit, hoping to pick up a few wrinkles from the "master." This scene is described by Captain Johnson, in his "Lives of the Pirates," when Porter and his friend "addressed the Pyrate, as the Queen of Sheba did Solomon, to wit, That having heard of his Fame and Achievements, they had put in there to learn his Art and Wisdom in the Business of pyrating, being Vessels on the same honourable Design with himself; and hoped with the Communication of his Knowledge, they should also receive his Charity, being in want of Necessaries for such Adventures. Roberts was won upon by the Peculiarity and Bluntness of these two Men and gave them Powder, Arms, and what ever else they had Occasion for, spent two or three merry Nights with them, and at parting, said, he hoped the L---- would Prosper their handy Works."

POUND, CAPTAIN THOMAS.

On August 8th, 1689, this pirate, with five men and a boy, sailed out of Boston Harbour as pa.s.sengers in a small vessel. When off Lovell's Island, five other armed men joined them. Pound now seized the craft and took command, and declared his intention of going on a piratical cruise. The first vessel they met with they decided to take. It was a fis.h.i.+ng boat.

Pound ran his craft alongside, but at the last moment his heart failed him, and he merely bought eight penn'o'th of mackerel from the surprised fishermen.

He then sailed to Falmouth, Maine, where the corporal and soldiers of the guard at the fort deserted in the night and sailed off with Pound and his crew. Fortified by this addition to his crew, the pirate attacked a sloop, the _Good Speed_, off Cape Cod, and a brigantine, the _Merrimack_, and several other prizes. By this time, the Governor at Boston had heard of Pound's escapades, and sent an armed sloop, the _Mary_, to search for him.

The pirate was discovered in Tarpaulin Cove, and a fierce and b.l.o.o.d.y fight took place before the pirates struck their "Red flagg." The prisoners were cast into Boston Gaol to await their trial. Pound had been wounded, being shot in the arm and side. The trial took place on January 13th, 1690.

Pound was found guilty, but reprieved, and was sent to England, but was later on liberated. Afterwards he got command of a s.h.i.+p. He died in England in 1703.

POWELL, THOMAS.

Of Connecticut, New England.

One of Captain Charles Harris's crew. Hanged at Newport, Rhode Island, on July 19th, 1723, at the age of 21.

POWER, JOHN.

Born in the West of England.

Served in a slave vessel, the _Polly_ (Captain Fox, commander), on a voyage to the coast of West Africa. While the captain was on sh.o.r.e, the crew ran away with the s.h.i.+p, turned pirates, called their vessel the _Bravo_, and elected Power to be captain and sailed to the West Indies.

Arrived there, he tried to sell his cargo of slaves, but being suspected of having stolen them, he thought it best to sail to New York. Here the pirates got ash.o.r.e, but the s.h.i.+p's surgeon informed the authorities, and Power was arrested and sent to England, where he was tried, and hanged at Execution Dock on March 10th, 1768.

PRICE, THOMAS.

Of Bristol.

Hanged at Charleston, South Carolina, on November 8th, 1718. One of Major Stede Bonnet's crew.

PRIMER, MATTHEW.

One of Captain Quelch's crew. Turned King's evidence at the trial for piracy held at the Star Tavern, Boston, in June, 1704.

PRINCE, CAPTAIN LAWRENCE.

In 1760 this buccaneer sacked the city of Granada in company with Captains Harris and Ludbury. Late in the same year, Prince, with the rank of Lieut.-Colonel, led the vanguard in the attack on Panama.

PRO, CAPTAIN.

This Dutch South Sea pirate owned a small plantation in Madagascar, and was joined there by the pirate Williams after he had escaped from slavery.

Both were taken prisoner by an English frigate. In a fight with the natives, the pirate crew was defeated, but Pro and Williams managed to escape and to reach some friendly natives. Procuring a boat, they sailed away to join some other pirates at Methulage in Madagascar.

PROWSE, CAPTAIN LAWRENCE.

A Devon man, a noted sea captain, and a terror to the Spaniards. Was imprisoned by King James I. at the instance of the King of Spain for piracy and was to have been executed, but English public feeling ran so high that Prowse was discharged.

PULLING, CAPTAIN JOHN.

Commanded the _Fame_, which set out in 1703 in company with Dampier in the _St. George_ on a plundering expedition to the South Seas. Their commissions were to attack only Spanish and French s.h.i.+ps. The two captains quarrelled at the very beginning of the voyage, while lying off the Downs, and Pulling slipped away by himself to go a-pirating amongst the Canary Islands.

PURSSER, CAPTAIN.

In the sixteenth century this pirate became notorious for his piracies off the coast of Wales, and with Calles and Clinton, two other pirates, "grew famous, till Queene Elizabeth of blessed memory, hanged them at Wapping."

QUELCH, CAPTAIN JOHN.

A native of Ma.s.sachusetts Colony.

In 1703 was one of the crew of the brigantine _Charles_, eighty tons, owned by some leading citizens of Boston, and fitted out to go privateering off the coasts of Arcadia and Newfoundland. On leaving Marblehead the crew mutinied, locked the captain in his cabin, and elected Quelch their commander. They sailed to the south, and shortly afterwards threw the captain overboard. They hoisted a flag, the "Old Roger,"

described as having "in the middle of it an Anatomy with an Hourglars in one hand and a dart in the Heart with three drops of Blood proceeding from it in the other." They took nine Portuguese vessels off the coast of Brazil, out of which they took plunder of very great value.

Quelch now had the audacity to sail back to Marblehead, where his crew landed and quickly scattered with their plunder. Within a week Quelch was in gaol, and was taken to Boston, where his trial began on June 17th, 1704, and he was found guilty. The days between the sentence and the execution must have, indeed, been trying for the prisoner. We read in a pamphlet published at the time: "The Ministers of the Town used more than ordinary Endeavours to Instruct the Prisoners and bring them to Repentance. There were Sermons Preached in their hearing Every Day, and Prayer daily made with them. And they were Catechised, and they had many occasional Exhortations. And nothing was left that could be done for their Good."

On Friday, June 30th, 1704, Quelch and his companions marched on foot through the town of Boston to Scarlil's Wharf with a strong armed guard of musketeers, accompanied by various officials and two ministers, while in front was carried a silver oar, the emblem of a pirate's execution. Before the last act the minister gave a long and fervent harangue to the wretched culprits, in all of whom were observed suitable signs of repentance except Quelch, who, stepping forward on the platform, his hat in his hand, and bowing left and right to the spectators, gave a short address, in which he warned them "They should take care how they brought Money into New England to be Hanged for it."

QUITTANCE, JOHN.

One of Captain Quelch's crew of the brigantine _Charles_. Tried with the rest of that crew at the Star Tavern at Boston in June, 1704.

RACKAM, CAPTAIN JOHN, _alias_ CALICO JACK.

Served as quartermaster in Captain Vane's company. On one occasion Vane refused to fight a big French s.h.i.+p, and in consequence was dismissed his s.h.i.+p and marooned on an uninhabited island off the coast of America, while the crew elected Rackam to be their captain in his place. This was on November 24th, 1718, and on the very first day of his command he had the good fortune to take and plunder several small vessels.

Off the Island of Jamaica they took a Madeira s.h.i.+p, and found an old friend on board as a pa.s.senger--a Mr. Hosea Tisdell, who kept a tavern in the island, and they treated him with great respect.

Christmas Day coming, the pirates landed on a small island to celebrate this festival in a thorough manner, carousing and drinking as long as the liquor lasted, when they sailed away to seek more. Their next prize was a strange one. On coming alongside a s.h.i.+p, she surrendered, and the pirates boarding her to examine her cargo, found it to consist of thieves from Newgate on their way to the plantations. Taking two more vessels, Rackam sailed to the Bahama Islands, but the Governor, Captain Woodes Rogers, sent a sloop, which took away their prizes.

Rackam now sailed his s.h.i.+p to a snug little cove he knew of in Cuba, where he had more than one lady acquaintance. Here the pirates were very happy until all their provisions and money was spent. Just as they were about to sail, in comes a Spanish Guarda del Costa with a small English sloop which they had recently taken. Rackam was now in a very awkward position, being unable to get past the Spaniard, and all he could do was to hide behind a small island. Night came on, and when it was dark Rackam put all his crew into a boat, rowed quietly up to the sloop, clambered aboard, threatening instant death to the Spanish guards if they cried out, then cut the cables and sailed out of the bay. As soon as it was light the Spanish s.h.i.+p commenced a furious bombardment of Rackam's empty vessel, thinking he was still aboard her.

In the summer of 1720 he took numbers of small vessels and fis.h.i.+ng boats, but nothing very rich, and was not above stealing the fishermen's nets and landing and taking cattle. In October Rackam was chased near Nigril Bay by a Government sloop commanded by a Captain Barret. After a short fight Rackam surrendered, and was carried a prisoner to Port Royal.

On November 16th Rackam and his crew were tried at St. Jago de la Vega, convicted and sentenced to death. Amongst the crew were two women dressed as men, Anne Bonny and Mary Read. The former was married, in pirate fas.h.i.+on, to Rackam.

On the morning of his execution Rackam was allowed, as a special favour, to visit his Anne, but all the comfort he got from her was "that she was sorry to see him there, but if he had fought like a man, he need not have been hanged like a Dog."

Rackam was hanged on November 17th, 1720, at Gallows Point, at Port Royal, Jamaica.