De Ruyter located two skiffs  north east of Eyl, which split up when approached. One was stopped and detained by the De Ruyter, the other was apprehended by the Spanish frigate .
The passage describes a situation where Captain De Ruyter found two small boats near Eyl, and they split apart when he tried to stop them.  One boat was taken by De Ruyter, while the other was captured by a Spanish ship.