mercie that his enimies did not triumph over him: What a mercie did I injoy when my enemies ware my Servants which leadeth mee to apply his words to my selfe Psal: 107, verse 1, 2, 3. O give thankes to the Lord for he is good for his mercie endureth for ever. Let the Redeemed of the Lord say so whome he hath redeemed from the hand of the Enemy, & gathered them out of the lands, from the East & from the West & from the North & from the South,' & from these words I put to my selfe two questions, first, wheather I am one of those Redeemed ones; if not, who they are. Secondly, wheather it was not onely God that Redeemed mee, or any other meanes or power.

În answer to the first: Surely my Soule thou art the Man in expresse words of the Psalme Redeemed from the hand of the Enemy: & gathered from a strange land' this hath thou seene fulled upon thy selfe, so that if thou be not a Redeemed one thare never was such a one upon earth.

Secondly. I saw all externall meanes faile, as the Intersession of the Dutch & English Nations in that behalfe that I might see the Clearer that my deliverance sprange onely from God, as in Proverbs 16, Chapt., 1, Verse. 'the preparation of the heart in man & the Answer of the Tongue is from the Lord,' & verse 9 a mans heart deviseth his way, but the Lord directeth his steps': & in Chapt 19 verse 21 'thare are many Devices in a mans heart neverthelesse the Counsel of the Lord that shall stand': & in Chapt 20, verse 24. Mans goeing are of the Lord, how can a man then understand his owne way & Chapt 21 & 30 verse 'thare is noe wisdome nor Counsell nor understanding against the Lord : & Chapt 16 ver. 33, 'the Lott is Cast into the lap but the whole disposing thareof is of the Lord;' these texts of Scripture I conte as proofs to my selfe that my Soule may say in thanksgiving it was onely the Lord God that Redeemed mee from all Adversities & this I put upon Record with full proofe to my Soule, as Josuah did to Israell in the like Case that I

may not forgitt my God that in a peculier manner hath redeemed mee & since Continewed his Carefull providence over mee that now I may Rightly apply Davids words in Psalme 30 & 11 & 12 verses to my selfe, Thou hath turned for mee my Morning into Danceing, thou hath put off my sackecloath & girded mee with gladnesse': 12 to the end that my Glory may singe prayse to thee & not be silent, O Lorde my God I will give thankes to thee for ever.' Amen.

Since in this Booke I have given some account of some passages of my life during the dayes of my Captivity, I will heere Add some what Concerning the dayes of my Minority before I was taken Captive one the Iland of Zelone.

In the time of my Childhood I was Cheiefely brought up under the education of my Mother, my Father generally being at Sea, a Commander of a ship that traded in the Medeteranian Seas. She was a woman of extraordinary Piety God was in all her thoughts, as appeered by her frequent discourses & Godly exhortations to us her Children to teach us the knowledge of God, & to love, feare & serve him in our youths. It was alwayes her practice while she with my Sister ware Kniting or Sowing, to set mee to read by them in the Bible, or some other Godly booke, alwayes earnestly exhorting us to the feare of God & not at noe time to omitt priviatt Morning & evening prayers, for which use she gave mee the Pracktise of Piety, & was in my pocket when taken thare.

I may say by Gods Blessing one my Mothers frequent Godly exhortations God spake to my Consiance in my Childhood for I well remember at the Reading Hebrew 12 & 8 verse but if ye be without Chastisement, whareof all are partakers, then are ye Bastards & not sonns' it troubled my mind that I had noe affliction, & lived without want: but his providence since hath remooved the Cause of that Doubte & brought me up in the schoole of Afflictions, & given me seasonable & nessesary stripes,

but so moderately as not to discourage but Correct me, & keepe me from Security, Wantonnesse, Stupidity & Contempt of holy things, & might spoyle all temptations to Ambition, worldlynesse, voluptiousnesse & fleshly lusts that now I can unfaignedly say with David, viz' 'it is good for mee that I have bin afflicted.'

When I was grown big enough I was sent to a bording schoole at Rohamton, to Dr James fleetwood (my father then dwelling at Wimbleton, in Surry) who since was Bishop of Worcester. An unhappie accident hapned by my hand, when I was aboute 9 years of age, one Christmasse Eve one of my fathers servants had bin a shooting small birds in the feild, & came whome & set up his gun against the house wall, Charged but not primed, for all his powder was spent, which was the Cause he came whome for more: whilds he was gone in to fill his horne with powder, I tooke up the Gun & presented it at the tame pegeons that sat one a low backe house. I understood to cocke the Gun: My Brother standing by me one the ground in the intremm the maid came to fetch in my brother, & tooke him up in her armes he being then aboute 2 or 3 years old & the gun longe & heavie that I could not well hold it up it went of & hit my brother right in his left eye. He was not then above 6 yards from the muzell of the gun, all the shot except very few fell directly into his eye, at which the same Servant was sent imediately to London to advise my father of what had hapned who that day came whome with a Surgion who by Gods blessing cured my Brother with onely the losse of the eye, that he lived to see me after my Captivity.

When I was aboute 14 years of Age my father had built him a new ship (the same I was taken in) & my inclination was strongly bent for the Seas, but my father much avarce to make me a Seaman it hapned some Sea Capts coming to see him, amounge other discourse, I standing by, asked my father if I was not to goe with him to Sea. Noe, saith my father, I intend my Sonn shall be a tradsman; they put the question to me, I answered to goe

to Sea was my whole desire, at which they soone turned my father saying this new ship, when you have done goeing to sea will be as good as a plentifull estate to your Sonn, & it is pitty to crosse his good inclination since commondly younge men doe best in that Calling they have most mind to be in, & one the 7 Decem' 1655 I went with my father from the Dounds bound for the East indies, first to fort St George, & thence to Bengall, & returned whome full laden to London in July Anno 1657.

At this time the old East india Company ware suncke & next to nothing that we ware a free ship. Without delay my father fitted his ship for a Second East India voiage but before we could gitt out to sea Cromwell had set up this Company, & forbid all others: the ship was then ready fitted for the east indies, therefore faint to lett her to serve the Company & we sailed out of the Downs the 21 Jan: 1657. This was that fatall voiage in which I lost my father & my selfe, & the prime of my time for buisnesse & preferment for 23 years tell Anno 1680, tell God in his mercy visitted mee, for the East india Company in whose Service 29 men ware taken, used noe other meanes (to save Charges I beleeve) then letters, & after my returne whome they gave mee for a gratuety twenty pounds, & ten pounds to Stephen that came with me, which stands as Gratuities upon Record, under our owne hands in the Companies Generall Receipt booke at the East India house in London, 1680.

When God brought me out of my Captivity, I had lesse then when I was in it for I left all behind mee & fled, so that I lived one the Charity of the Hollanders who ware exceedingly bountifull to me & Stephen my Companion although strangers to theire Nation that in truth I beleeve in Cloaths & monie (besides victuals) we had not lesse then fifty pounds starling in valew. The Cloaths they gave mee served me some years after & more they would have done for me but I was too fond of my Native Country & stood in my owne light. This I testifie under my owne hand in London the 19th day of June Anno 1696. Rob' Knox.