He was probably a native of Devonshire, for there he spent the laft years of his life; spent them too, in some fort of confideration, for Mr. T. (a very refpectable furgeon of Afhburton) loved to repeat to me, when I first grew into notice, that he had frequently hunted with his hounds.

My grandfather was on ill terms with him: I believe, not without fufficient reafon, for he was extravagant and diffipated. My father never mentioned his name, but my mother would fometimes tell me that he had ruined the family. That he fpent much, I know; but I am inclined to think that his undutiful conduct occafioned my great-grandfather to bequeath a part of his property from him.

My father, I fear, revenged in fome measure the cause of my great-grandfather. He was, as I have heard my mother fay, "a very wild young man, who could be kept to nothing," He was fent to the grammar-school at Exeter; from which he made his escape, and entered on board a man of war. He was foon reclaimed from his fituation by my grandfather, and left his school a fecond time, to wander in fome vagabond fociety.* He was now probably given up, for he was, on his return from this notable adventure, reduced to article himself to a plumber and glazier, with whom he luckily ftaid long enough to learn the business. I fuppofe his father was now dead, for he became poffeffed of two small eftates, married my mother,† (the daugh ter of a carpenter at Afhburton) and thought himself rich enough to fet up for himself; which he did with fome credit, at South Molton. Why he chofe to fix there I never inquired; but I learned from my mother, that after a refidence of four or five years he was again thoughtless enough to engage in a dangerous frolic, which drove him once more to fea. This was an attempt to excite a riot in a Methodist chapel; for which his companions were profecuted, and he fled, as I have mentioned.

My father was a good feaman, and was foon made fecond in command in the Lyon, a large armed tranfport in the fervice of government: while my mother (then with child of me) re

* He had gone with Bamfylde Moore Carew, then an old man.

+ Her maiden name was Elizabeth Cain. My father's christian name was Edward.

turned to her native place, Ashburton, where I was born, in April, 1757.

The resources of my mother were very fcanty. They arose from the rent of three or four fmall fields, which yet remained unfold. With thefe, however, fhe did what fhe could for me; and as foon as I was old enough to be trusted out of her fight, fent me to a school-mistress of the name of Parret, from whom I learned in due time to read. I cannot boast much of my acquifitions at this school; they confifted merely of the contents of the "Child's Spelling Book :" but from my mother, who had ftored up the literature of a country town, which, about half a century ago, amounted to little more than what was disseminated by itinerant ballad-fingers, or rather, readers, I had acquired much curious knowledge of Catfkin, and the Golden Bull, and the Bloody Gardener, and many other hiftories equally inftructive and amusing.

My father returned from fea, in 1764. He had been at the fiege of the Havannah; and though he received more than a hundred pounds for prize money, and his wages were confiderable; yet, as he had not acquired any strict habits of economy. he brought home but a trifling fum. The little property yet left was therefore turned into money; a trifle more was gotten by agreeing to renounce all future pretenfions to an estate at Totnefs;* and with this my father set up a second time as a glazier and house-painter. I was now about eight years old, and was put to the free-school (kept by Hugh Smerdon) to learn to read and write, and cipher. Here I continued about three years, making a moft wretched progrefs, when my father fell fick and died. He had not acquired wisdom from his misfortunes, but continued wafting his time in unprofitable pursuits, to the great detri ment of his business. He loved drink for the fake of fociety, and to this love he fell a martyr; dying of a decayed and ruined conftitution before he was forty. The town's people thought him a fhrewd and fenfible man, and regretted his death. As for me I never greatly loved him; I had not grown up with

This was a lot of small houses, which had been thoughtlessly fuffered to fall into decay, and of which the rents had been fo long unclaimed, that they could not now be recovered, unless by an expensive litigation. Vol. I. No. 2.

I

him; and he was too prone to repulfe my little advances to familiarity, with coldnefs, or anger. He had certainly fome reafon to be displeased with me, for I learned little at school, and nothing at home, though he would now and then attempt to give me fome infight into the business. As impreffions of any kind are not very strong at the age of eleven or twelve, I did not long feel his lofs; nor was it a fubject of much forrow to me, that my mother was doubtful of her ability to continue me at fchool, though I had by this time acquired a love for reading.

I never knew in what circumstances my mother was left: moft probably they were inadequate to her fupport, without fome kind of exertion, especially as fhe was now burthened with a fecond child about fix or eight months old. Unfortunately fhe determined to profecute my father's business; for which purpose fhe engaged a couple of journeymen, who, finding her ignorant of every part of it, wasted her property, and embezzled her money. What the confequence of this double fraud would have been, there was no opportunity of knowing, as, in fome-what lefs than a twelvemonth, my poor mother followed my father to the grave. She was an excellent woman, bore my father's infirmities with patience and good-humour, loved her children dearly, and died at last exhausted with anxiety and grief more on their account than on her own.

I was not quite thirteen, when this happened; my little brother was hardly two; and we had not a relation nor a friend in. the world. Every thing, that was left, was feized by a person of the name of C-, for money advanced to my mother. It may be fuppofed that I could not dispute the justice of his claims; and as no one else interfered, he was fuffered to do as he liked.. My little brother was fent to the alms-house, whither his nurfe followed him out of pure affection; and I was taken to the houfe of the perfon I have just mentioned, who was also my godfather. Refpect for the opinion of the town, (which, whether correct or not, was, that he had repaid himself by the fale of my mother's effects) induced him to fend me again to school, where I was more diligent than before, and more fuccessful. I grew fond of arithmetic, and my mafter began to distinguish me: but these golden days were over in less than three months. C- fickened at the expenfe; and, as the people were now

indifferent to my fate, he looked round for an opportunity of ridding himself of a useless charge. He had previously attempted to engage me in the drudgery of hufbandry. I drove the plough for one day to gratify him, but I left it with a firm refolution to do so no more, and in defpite of his threats and promifes, adhered to my determination. In this, I was guided no lefs by neceffity than will. During my father's life, in attempting to clamber up a table, I had fallen backward, and drawn it after me its edge fell upon my breaft, and I never recovered the effects of the blow; of which I was made extremely fenfible on any extraordinary exertion. Ploughing, therefore, was out of the question, and, as I have already faid, I utterly refused to follow it.

As I could write and cipher, (as the phrase is) C- next thought of fending me to Newfoundland, to affist in a storehouse. For this purpose he negotiated with a Mr. Holdefworthy of Dartmouth, who agreed to fit me out. I left Afhburton with little expectation of seeing it again, and indeed with little care, and rode with my godfather to the dwelling of Mr. Holdesworthy. On feeing me, this great man obferved with a look of pity and contempt, that I was too small," and fent me away fufficiently mortified. I expected to be very ill received by my godfather, but he said nothing. He did not however choose to take me back himself, but fent me in the paffage-boat to Totness, from whence I was to walk home. On the paffage, the boat was driven by a midnight storm on the rocks, and I escaped with life almoft by miracle.

My godfather had now humbler views for me, and I had little heart to refift any thing. He proposed to fend me on board one of the Torbay fishing boats; I ventured, however, to remonftrate against this, and the matter was compromised by my confenting to go on board a coafter. A coafter was speedily found for me at Brixham, and thither I went, when little more than thirteen.

My mafter, whose name was Full, though grofs and ignorant, was not an ill-natured man; at least not to me and my mistress used me with unvarying kindness; moved perhaps by my weakness and tender years. In return I did what I could to requite her, and my good-will was not overlooked.

Our veffel was not very large, nor our crew very numerous. On ordinary occafions, fuch as fhort trips to Dartmouth, Plymouth, &c. it confifted only of my mafter, an apprentice nearly out of his time, and myself: when we had to go farther, to Portsmouth for example, an additional hand was hired for the voyage.

In this veffel (the Two Brothers) I continued nearly a twelvemonth; and here I got acquainted with nautical terms, and contracted a love for the fea, which a lapfe of thirty years has but little diminished.

It will be easily conceived that my life was a life of hardship. I was not only a "fhip-boy on the high and giddy mast,” but alfo in the cabir., where every menial office fell to my lot: yet if I was reftlefs and difcontented, I can fafely fay, it was not fo much on account of this, as of my being precluded from all poffibility of reading; as my master did not possess, nor do I recollect feeing, during the whole time of my abode with him, a fingle book of any defcription, except the Coasting Pilot.

As my lot feemed to be caft, however, I was not negligent in feeking fuch information as promised to be ufeful; and I therefore frequented, at my leisure hours, fuch veffels as dropt into Torbay. On attempting to get on board one of these, which I did at midnight, I miffed my footing, and fell into the fea. The floating away of the boat alarmed the man on deck, who came to the flip's fide just in time to see me fink. He immediately threw out feveral ropes, one of which providentially (for I was unconscious of it) entangled itself about me, and I was drawn up to the surface till a boat could be got round. The ufual methods were taken to recover me, and I awoke in bed the next morning, remembering nothing but the horror I felt, when I first found myself unable to cry out for assistance.

This was not my only escape; but I forbear to speak of them. An escape of another kind was now preparing for me, which deferves all my notice, as it was decifive of my future fate.

On Christmas day (1770) I was furprised by a message from my godfather, faying that he had fent a man and horfe to bring me to Afhburton; and defiring me to fet out without delay. My mafter, as well as myfelf, fuppofed it was to fpend the holydays there; and he, therefore, made no objection to my going. We were, however, both mistaken.