Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Paul Cuffe, a Pequot Indian, During Thirty Years Spent at Sea, and in Travelling in Foreign Lands

A descendant of an Indian family, which formerly resided in the eastern part of Connecticut and constituted a part of that fierce and warlike tribe of Indians called Pequots, of whose exploits in the early Wars of New-England, the reader may become acquainted by perusing "Trumbull's History of the Indian Wars."

The subject of this narrative was born in the town of Westport, in the State of Massachusetts. His father, Paul Cuffe, was a sea-faring man, and had the command of a number of merchant vessels. It was with him that I made my first voyage, when a boy twelve years old. This was in the year 1808. On the morning of a pleasant day in the month of May, of that year, we hoisted sail and stood out for sea. There were 16 hands on board. This was new business to me, and with the novelty attending a sea voyage I was highly pleased. Nothing uncommon attended this voyage, which was made to Passamaquaddy, for Plaster of Paris. We made this voyage down in about 10 days. After loading our vessel, which took two weeks, we again set sail for Wilmington, in Delaware, at which port we safely arrived in 16 days, discharged our freight, took in ballast and 300 bushels of apples, and sailed for Savannah, in Georgia, where we arrived without any accident to mar the pleasure of the voyage, in about twenty days, where we again discharged our freight and reloaded our vessel with Cotton, Rice and Logwood. Here we lay three months in making preparation for sea again. From this place we made out into the broad Atlantic with all sails fluttering in the balmy breeze, and all hands full of hope and buoyant with expectation. This was a long, tedious voyage, as the reader will readily imagine when I inform him that we sailed a great number of days in a northward direction, until we made the Grand Banks; then we steered away for the northern coast of Scotland, which we reached in about fifty days. Thence we continued our course around the Orknies into the Northern Sea, and made the entrance to the Baltic through what is called the Sleeve; thence along the coast of Copenhagen northward to Gottenburgh, a flourishing town in West Gothland in Sweden. Here we lay six weeks, sold our lading, and took in a load of iron, steel and hemp. From thence we sailed for Elsinore, a seaport of Denmark, where we took in a number of passengers for Philadelphia, at which place we arrived after a long passage, sometime in the month of September, 1809. During this voyage we had much rough weather; so much so, that we were compelled to throw overboard fifty tons of iron while on the Grand Banks. During this gale we lost our fore-top-mast, jib-boom and long boat.

At this port we sold our load; after which my father put me to a high school in Williams' Alley, where I remained two years. This was an excellent school, taught by a Friend Quaker, a very worthy man, whom I shall ever have cause to respect for his many acts of kindness towards me.

After the close of my term at school, I returned home to Westport, after an absence of three years and five months. If the reader has ever been a long while absent from home, he can easily imagine my feelings on my arrival at the dear paternal mansion. Here I again saw my father and mother, brothers and sisters, where I remained but three weeks before I again left the fire side of my dear parents to launch out upon the broad Atlantic's briny bosom. At the expiration of the above term, I shipped aboard of the brig Traveller, Capt. Thomas Wainer, for Kennebec, state of Maine. On our passage to this place, our vessel capsized about 10 o'clock at night, which caused us much trouble to get her righted again; but after four hours' struggle, and by the aid of our Great Father, we got the ship to rights, and went on our passage, which we finished in about seven days from this event. Here we sold our loading and took in a load of pine lumber. At this place we were detained but about ten days, when we again hoisted sail for Westport, where we arrived in ten days thereafter. Here I tarried with my family but four weeks before I again shipped aboard of the last named vessel for Lisbon, in Portugal, where we arrived after a rough passage of forty-five days. Our lading was 525 barrels of whale oil, which we sold at Lisbon. While at this place we heard the roar of the cannon in an engagement between a division of the army of the Great Napoleon and the English and Portuguese troops, and the night after this battle the writer saw five hundred wounded soldiers brought into Lisbon to have their wounds dressed. In this engagement the English and Portuguese repelled the army of Napoleon, and caused them to fall back a number of miles.

Here we tarried about four months, and took in one hundred and eighty merino sheep, being the second load ever taken to the United States. Besides these we took in Salt and Wine. Our passage back to Westport was made in thirty-five days. Here we tarried but one week, and again after taking in ballast, proceeded to sea, and steered away for Edenton, North Carolina; at which port we arrived in 16 days. Here we were detained about six weeks. After loading our brig with shingles and herring, we again stood out for sea, and made for St. Domingo, an Island of the West Indies, peopled by free blacks, having a republican form of government.

During this passage we encountered heavy gales of wind, and came very near being shipwrecked, but we were all preserved, and in 16 days from the time we set sail, we made Port Au Prince. This is a large sea port town, situated between two high mountains. This place is the residence of the chief magistrate of the nation. Robert Boyer was then clothed with the presidential power. This personage was of commanding aspect, and appeared to be a mulatto. He used every day to call out his body guard, who were a fine looking set of fellows as I had ever seen. They appeared to understand military tactics to perfection. They were elegantly dressed in red frocks and trowsers, faced with blue and green. On the whole, they might be called first rate soldiers. Boyer was most superbly dressed and equipped, and on horseback made an elegant appearance.

This is an unhealthy place for strangers, our crew being mostly sick while there. We stopped at this place about three weeks, during which time we took in a cargo of Coffee and Sugar. From this port we sailed sometime in October 1812. At this time the government of my native country and Great Britain were at war. During this voyage, which was made to New-York, we were chased by a British man-of-war for more than four hours, while off Bermuda; but we out-sailed her and made our escape. When off Cape Hatteras, we lost our fore top-sail during a heavy squall of wind. We reached the quarantine at New-York, after a passage of 13 days. Here we had to lay to for 3 days, for the purpose of being examined by the health officer; after which we went up to the city, where we discharged our freight which took about one week, when we again sailed for Westport, the place of my nativity. Here I saw my father and mother, with whom I stayed but 5 weeks before I again left my peaceful home and all the many little endearments which always surround the paternal mansion, for New Bedford, a sea port town in the south-eastern part of Massachusetts, where I shipped aboard the Atlas, a whaleman, bound to the Brazil banks. We hoisted sail just at night, and steered away in an east northeast direction until we crossed the Grand banks, and then stood away for the Azores, where, after 20 days' sail, we made the Island of Carvo, one of that group of Islands. Here we stopped a few days and took in 500 bushels of potatoes and 100 bushels of onions. There was no harbor in this place; so we were obliged to go ashore in our boats. The people brought down the above articles on their backs. Men, women and children were all engaged in supplying us with the above articles. We paid them in oil, of which they were very fond. What they do with it I know not. They were a very kind people to strangers, but poor. From this place we sailed for the Cape De Verds, on the coast of Africa. We were forty-two days in sailing from the former to the latter island. We touched at the island of Buenavista, one of this group, where we took in thirty-two hogs, for which we paid corn, meal and bread. These people are of a very dark hue, and speak the Portuguese language. Here we stopped but four days, when we set all sails and steered away a southwest course, for the Brazil Banks, where we arrived, after a sail of forty-two days.

Here we commenced fishing for whale, but for a time had bad luck, owing to the drunken habits of our Captain. We sunk twelve whales before we caught one. Then we caught six in the course of two weeks. I harpooned all these, and assisted in taking and towing them along side the ship. After we get a whale along side, we hitch our blubber hooks into the head, after severing it from the body, then, with our windlass, draw it aboard, and dip the oil out, which sometimes amounts to more than fifty barrels. After this, we commence cutting the whale in a circular manner with our spades; then we hitch the blubber hooks into the commencement next to where the head was taken off, and by pulling at the windlass, take off a large piece which will usually when tried and strained, produce ten barrels of oil. Before heaving on board this piece, another hook is fastened below the one to be taken off; when this is done with a cross blow from the spade, the first piece is separated from the rest of the whale. Then the cutting is continued in the same manner as before mentioned, and another piece torn off and swung aboard. This operation keeps the whale constantly rolling over until the mass of flesh is stripped from the carcass, which is then permitted to float off, or sink, and it becomes the sport of sharks, who feed upon the little flesh which remains after it has gone through the hands of the whalemen.

Here we stayed but six weeks before we took in 1600 barrels of oil. This was about 300 miles off the Brazil coast.--From this place we set sail with our cargo about the middle of June 1813, for New Bedford, where we arrived in fifty-seven days. When off Block Island we saw the keel of a brig, upon which were marked the names of a number of persons who undoubtedly belonged to her and had died upon the wreck.

We were about five days unloading ship, after which the hands were paid off and discharged. After this I went again to visit my parents at Westport, where I stayed but two weeks before I went to Philadelphia across land, and shipped aboard the Dorothea, a Letter of Marque brig, Captain Aaron Pitney, bound to St. Jago, loaded with flour and hoop-poles. This brig mounted ten guns. When out two days we fell in with an English brig of ten guns, to which we gave chase, and fought her for about two hours, when she got away from us, we being unable to gain upon her in consequence of having our rigging badly cut to pieces. In this action we lost two men killed and the Captain badly wounded.