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As I am at a loss what complaints Mr. Colebrooke may make, I entreat your Lordships will please to allow me to refer you to my son who will have the honour to wait on your Lordships with this, and is instructed to give you such particular information, as you may desire to be apprised of, either with regard to Mr. Colebrooke, or anything else relating to this colony. I have also transmitted herewith transcripts of the Council and Assembly proceedings, and answers to your Lordships’ queries, together with an account of every family[82] on this island in as particular a manner as possible. … I hope soon to visit Columba alias Cat Island,[83] which being esteemed the most fertile of any in this government, I shall transmit to your Lordships a particular account thereof.

This was his last official despatch of any importance, and his death is recorded at Nassau on the 15th of July, 1732. His will, drawn up on the eve of departure from England, and dated 26th of May, 1729, was proved in London on the 24th of November, 1732. In it he bequeaths his property to his son William Whetstone Rogers,[84] and his daughter Sarah Rogers. The probate act describes him “as late of the parish of St. Margaret, Westminster, but dying at the Bahama Islands, a widower.”

And so, amid the tropical grandeur of his island home, with the surge of the broad Atlantic for his requiem, passed all that was mortal of Woodes Rogers. No tombstone stands to mark his last resting-place, but somewhere in Nassau we may be sure that his spirit looks out past the great statue of Columbus standing sentinel over Government House, to the shipping and harbour beyond. One wonders how many of the thousands of visitors who bask in the perpetual sunshine of a winter’s day in this “Queen of Coral Isles,” realise how much they owe to Woodes Rogers and his successors. A great seaman and splendid patriot he deserves well of his country. May this reprint of his “Cruising Voyage” be a fitting tribute to his memory!

This edition of Woodes Rogers’s “Cruising Voyage round the World,” is printed from the original and scarce edition of 1712. In the Introduction, I have attempted to tell the full story of the author’s life from the original documents in the Public Record Office and the British Museum. For the facilities offered me at both these institutions, and also at the London Library, I beg to tender my sincere thanks. I have also to acknowledge my indebtedness to Mr. A. G. H. Macpherson for his kindness in allowing me to reproduce three illustrations from his unique collection of Naval prints, and to the authorities at the National Portrait Gallery for their courtesy in granting me permission to reproduce the beautiful portrait of Captain William Dampier. Finally I have to thank Dr. Philip Gosse, whose enthusiasm for Woodes Rogers spurred me to complete this edition of one of the most interesting voyages in the English language.

G. E. MANWARING.