Roebuck, in which he sailed from the Downs on 14 Jan. 1698–9. After touching at the Canaries, Cape Verd Islands, and Bahia, he made a long sweep round the Cape of Good Hope, and sighted the coast of Australia on 26 July. A few days later he anchored in Shark's Bay, and during August searched along the coast, finding no convenient harbour or river, and not being able to get any good water or fresh provisions. As scurvy was rapidly establishing itself among his ship's company, he crossed over to Timor in the beginning of September. Having refreshed his men and cleaned the ship's bottom, he sailed for the coast of New Guinea, on which he came 3 Dec.; then, ‘passing to the northward,’ he says, ‘I ranged along the coast to the easternmost part of New Guinea, which I found does not join to the mainland of New Guinea, but is an island, as I have described it in my map, and called it New Britain.’ Of the north, east, and south coasts of this island he made a fairly correct running survey, though it was left for Carteret [see Carteret, Philip] to discover that St. George's Bay was really St. George's Channel, dividing the island into two; and as Dampier did not visit the western side, he described the land as of much greater extent than it really is. He was prevented from doing more by the discontented state of his crew and the crazy condition of the ship. He anchored at Batavia on 4 July, and, having refitted and provisioned, sailed for England on 17 Oct. 1700. He refitted again at the Cape; but the ship was worn out, and on 21 Feb., when, fortunately, within sight of Ascension, she sprang a dangerous leak. On the morning of the 22nd she anchored in North West Bay, about half a mile from the shore; but after twenty-four hours' hard work all efforts to save her proved vain. She was therefore beached and abandoned, Dampier and the other officers staying on board till the 24th. Ascension was, at that time, an utterly desolate island. The shipwrecked party, however, discovered the remarkable spring of good water near the top of the mountain, and lived, comfortably enough, on goats and turtle, until 3 April, when they were relieved by a homeward-bound squadron of ships of war and East Indiamen.
Dampier, though an admirable observer and excellent hydrographer, was ignorant of discipline and quite unused to command. He had scarcely sailed from England before he quarrelled with his lieutenant, George Fisher, an old officer who had seen much service and was probably not quite pleased at being now put under the orders of an old pirate. The quarrel culminated in Dampier beating Fisher with a cane, putting him in irons till the ship arrived at Bahia, and handing him over as a prisoner to the governor, who clapped him into the common gaol till an opportunity occurred for sending him to Lisbon and England. There Fisher laid charges of cruelty and oppression against his captain, and at a court-martial held on 8 June 1702, Dampier was found ‘guilty of very hard and cruel usage towards Lieutenant Fisher;’ nor did it appear to the court ‘that there had been any grounds for this his ill-usage of Lieutenant Fisher.’ The court therefore adjudged ‘that Captain Dampier be fined all his pay to the chest at Chatham,’ and further pronounced the opinion ‘that Captain Dampier is not a fit person to be employed as commander of any of his majesty's ships’ (Minutes of the Court-martial). Yet on 16 April 1703 ‘Captain William Dampier, being prepared to depart on another voyage to the West Indies, had the honour to kiss her majesty's hand, being introduced by his royal highness the lord high admiral’ (London Gazette, No. 3906).
Dampier was not really bound to the West Indies, but to the south seas, in command of the St. George privateer of 26 guns and 126 men, having also under his orders the Cinque Ports of 16 guns and 63 men; and after many delays got finally to sea from Kinsale on 11 Sept. 1703. From Dampier himself we have no account of this voyage; that which has been published, in form similar to his other voyages, and often sold as a fourth volume, being by one Funnell, who calls himself ‘mate to Captain Dampier,’ but who, according to Dampier, was steward. The narrative is written in no very friendly spirit, and some of the statements were afterwards categorically denied by Dampier; especially those which referred to his frequent quarrels with his officers. Knowing however, the truth of his former behaviour, we are justified in believing that his conduct in this command was marked by the same want of self-control. He is charged with being frequently drunk, with habitually using foul and abusive language, with oppression, and with gross cowardice. That part of these charges was true, we know; and though it is difficult to believe in actual cowardice, it may well have been that, in the new position of command in a sea-fight against a superior force, he was too keenly sensible of the danger and the responsibility. It appears certain that of the lieutenants of the St. George one was virtually ‘marooned,’ and the other, who had been a mate in the Roebuck, deserted; that there were frequent mutinies and desertions among the men of both ships; that the two
