My men would fain have had me give them leave to fall upon them at once in the dark; but I was willing to take them at some advantage, so as to spare them, and kill as few of them as I could; and especially I was unwilling to hazard the killing of any of our men, knowing the others were very well armed.
Mis hombres estaban deseosos de que les diera la orden de atacarlos, aprovechando la oscuridad, pero yo quería esperar la ocasión más ventajosa, a fin de que muriera la menor cantidad de gente posible. En particular, quería proteger a mis hombres pues sabía que los marineros estaban bien armados.