The Fortunes and Misfortunes of the Famous Moll Flanders

I told him in general, too, that as I had several relations in the

place where we were, and that I durst not now let myself be known to

them, because they would soon come into a knowledge of the occasion and

reason of my coming over, which would be to expose myself to the last

degree, so I had reason to believe that my mother, who died here, had

left me something, and perhaps considerable, which it might be very

well worth my while to inquire after; but that this too could not be

done without exposing us publicly, unless we went from hence; and then,

wherever we settled, I might come, as it were, to visit and to see my

brother and nephews, make myself known to them, claim and inquire after

what was my due, be received with respect, and at the same time have

justice done me with cheerfulness and good will; whereas, if I did it

now, I could expect nothing but with trouble, such as exacting it by

force, receiving it with curses and reluctance, and with all kinds of

affronts, which he would not perhaps bear to see; that in case of being

obliged to legal proofs of being really her daughter, I might be at

loss, be obliged to have recourse to England, and it may be to fail at

last, and so lose it, whatever it might be. With these arguments, and

having thus acquainted my husband with the whole secret so far as was

needful of him, we resolved to go and seek a settlement in some other

colony, and at first thoughts, Caroline was the place we pitched upon.

In order to this we began to make inquiry for vessels going to

Carolina, and in a very little while got information, that on the other

side the bay, as they call it, namely, in Maryland, there was a ship

which came from Carolina, laden with rice and other goods, and was

going back again thither, and from thence to Jamaica, with provisions.

On this news we hired a sloop to take in our goods, and taking, as it

were, a final farewell of Potomac River, we went with all our cargo

over to Maryland.

This was a long and unpleasant voyage, and my spouse said it was worse

to him than all the voyage from England, because the weather was but

indifferent, the water rough, and the vessel small and inconvenient.

In the next place, we were full a hundred miles up Potomac River, in a

part which they call Westmoreland County, and as that river is by far

the greatest in Virginia, and I have heard say it is the greatest river

in the world that falls into another river, and not directly into the

sea, so we had base weather in it, and were frequently in great danger;

for though we were in the middle, we could not see land on either side

for many leagues together. Then we had the great river or bay of

Chesapeake to cross, which is where the river Potomac falls into it,

near thirty miles broad, and we entered more great vast waters whose

names I know not, so that our voyage was full two hundred miles, in a

poor, sorry sloop, with all our treasure, and if any accident had

happened to us, we might at last have been very miserable; supposing we

had lost our goods and saved our lives only, and had then been left

naked and destitute, and in a wild, strange place not having one friend

or acquaintance in all that part of the world. The very thought of it

gives me some horror, even since the danger is past.