"The fight thus beginning at three of the clocke in the after noone,"
says Sir Walter Raleigh, "continued verie terrible all that evening."
Before long, the _San Philip_, having received the fire of _The
Revenge_ at close quarters, "shifted herself with all diligence,
utterly misliking her first entertainment".
The Spanish ships had a great number of soldiers on board, in some
cases two hundred, in others five, and in some even eight hundred;
whilst on _The Revenge_ there were in all only one hundred and ninety
persons, of whom ninety were sick.
After discharging their guns the Spanish ships endeavoured to board
_The Revenge_; but, notwithstanding the multitude of their armed men,
they were repulsed again and again, and driven back either into their
ships or into the sea.
After the battle had lasted well into the night many of the British
were slain or wounded, whilst two Spanish ships had been sunk. An hour
before midnight Sir Richard Grenville was shot in the body, and a
little later was wounded in the head, whilst the doctor who was
attending him was killed.
The company on board _The Revenge_ was gradually getting less and
less; the Spanish ships, meanwhile, as they received a sufficient
evidence of _The Revenge's_ powers of destruction, dropped off, and
their places were taken by others; and thus it happened that ere the
morning fifteen ships had been engaged, and all were so little pleased
with the entertainment provided that they were far more willing to
listen to proposals for an honourable arrangement than to make any
more assaults.
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