To this purpose I wrote to my old friend at Lisbon,who in return gave me notice that he could easily dispose of it there;but that if I thought fit to give him leave to offer it in my name to the two merchants,the survivors of my trustees,who lived in the Brazils,who must fully understand the value of it,who lived just upon the spot,and whom I knew were very rich,so that he believed they would be fond of buying it,he did not doubt but I should make 4000or 5000pieces of eight the more of it.
Accordingly I agreed,gave him order to offer it to them,and he did so;and in about eight months more,the ship being then returned,he sent me an account that they had accepted the offer,and had remitted 33,000pieces of eight to a correspondent of theirs at Lisbon to pay for it.
In return,I signed the instrument of sale in the form which they sent from Lisbon,and sent it to my old man,who sent me bills of exchange for 32,800pieces of eight to me,for the estate;reserving the payment of 100moidores a year to him,the old man,during his life,and 50moidores afterwards to his son for his life,which I had promised them,which the plantation was to make good as a rent charge.And thus I have given the first part of a life of fortune and adventure,a life of Providence's chequer work,and of a variety which the world will seldom be able to show the like of;beginning foolishly,but closing much more happily than any part of it ever gave me leave so much as to hope for.
Anyone would think that in this state of complicated good fortune I was past running any more hazards;and so indeed I had been,if other circumstances had concurred.But I was inured to a wandering life,had no family,not many relations,nor,however rich,had I contracted much acquaintance;and though I had sold my estate in the Brazils,yet I could not keep the country out of my head,and had a great mind to be upon the wing again;especially I could not resist the strong inclination I had to see my island,and to know if the poor Spaniards were in being there,and now the rogues I left there had used them.