Chapter 4: The Resolution Sets Sail

It was a bright and clear August morning when Captain William Salt and his mate, Jim Spriggs, finally finished bringing on provisions for their voyage. They had a very small crew, made up of Spriggs' two nephews, George and Jacob. Usually they hired between six and ten hands, depending upon the trip, but the relatively small sloop could be managed by the four of them. In William and Spriggs’ minds, it seemed that the less people who knew their plans the better.

They had taken on a cargo of summer corn and West Indies rum, which they were going to sell in the Isles of Shoals. These were a small group of islands thirty miles northeast of Boston, about halfway between Narragansett Bay and Nova Scotia. North of these islands lay small scattered settlements all along the coast.

The northern settlements in Casco Bay, Machias, and Cape Elizabeth were remote, yet sometimes visited by fishermen, traders and a mix of privateers, pirates and lone warships. There was often trouble brewing between the French, English and Dutch colonies, and as a result some settlements changed hands numerous times. It was rumored that pirates often used the rocky islands in this lonely area for repairs, rest and at times to hide their treasure.

It was here that William’s map now pointed them, to the lonely island of Isle Haute. The stop at the Isles of Shoals would break up the trip and give them a reason to travel to the area. There were townspeople who looked at William strangely now that his deceased brother was revealed to have been a pirate. It was natural that his behavior might be questioned by nosy locals, so he made sure the voyage appeared to be a standard trading trip.

Spriggs and the two boys manned the small capstan and with a fair amount of noise managed to raise the anchor. The sails were unfurled and the ship began to glide out of the bay and towards the open water. All felt a sense of freedom and of excitement. Whether it was to fish or trade or seek out forbidden gold, the wind and salt air leant a sense of adventure to any voyage.

It took several days to travel out past Block Island, up through Vineyard Sound and then northeast past the shoals of Cape Cod. The weather was mild and calm. As they moved north past the busier shipping near Boston they saw a number of other sloops, pinks and brigs on the water. Nearing the Isles of Shoals they found one brig already anchored at Star Island, named so because of its shape. As they came into the port, which was peopled by New Englanders known to associate with both honest and questionable navigators alike, William uttered a low whistle to Spriggs.

“What’s the matter, Will?” asked Spriggs.

“I don’t like the looks of the men on that brig, Spriggs”

“Why not?”

“Well,” said William, cautiously, “they remind me of my brother…”