They have taken of our stores to themselves all our pitch, tar, canvas, twine, some provisions of all kinds, guns, ammunition, the chief of our copper, and many other articles that we were not acquainted with, all the officers being prisoners, some on board one vessel and some on board the other. We have great expectations that the vessel will be delivered up at San Blas. The commodore promises me, if she is, everything that he has taken to himself shall be replaced at that port; but there has been a number of things taken out of the vessel by theft that he knows nothing of. Nevertheless, if any, and the vessel is returned, they must undoubtedly make it good.
According to the same writer, Martinez tried to buy all of the copper on board, offering to give bills for the same, but it was refused on the ground that if his orders allowed him to capture the vessel they would undoubtedly allow him to capture the cargo also. The Spaniard, he says, wanted the copper to trade for furs, which he shipped to Macao by Captain Kendrick [of the American ship _Columbia_], who traded for him on shares. This is the way in which the man in command at the time spoke of what later accounts designate as plundering by the Spaniards.
That the promise of compensation was made in good faith is proved by the documents which Martinez submitted to the Viceroy. One is dated at San Lorenzo de Nootka, July 5, 1789, and is a “List of the provisions and other stores which have been taken at the expense of the royal treasury from the captured English packet boat _Argonaut_, for my subsistence in this port; all of which are to be restored to Capt. James Colnett from the royal treasure of the department of San Blas, in case the Most Excellent Señor Viceroy of New Spain releases the vessel.” An itemized statement carefully describing each article is given. Another document dated July 13 is a “List of the artillery, balls, and other armament found on board the captured English ship _Argonaut_, belonging to the free commercial company of London, which remain in my possession at the disposal of his excellency, awaiting his superior determination.” Inclosed with these is a “List of the names of the captain, officers, crew, and passengers which the _Argonaut_ carried.” Among the officers there were 12 Englishmen and 1 Spaniard; of the sailors, 4 were English, 7 Portuguese, and 3 Filipinos; the passengers were 29 Chinese; to these were added Colnett’s servant, who was a Sandwich Islander, and Duffin’s, who was a Bengalese. In all, there were 58 persons. Another list includes only the 16 Englishmen, and states that they are to be sent to San Blas on board the captured ship _Argonaut_. Still another list includes the Portuguese, the Filipinos, the Chinese, and the two servants, who were to be sent on the _Aranzazu_ and the other vessels that might come from San Blas. The one Spaniard had entered the service of Martinez.[133]