. . .tation for observing all ships going into or out of that sea. It was alleged at his trial by Palmer, one of the two men who became King’s evidence, that he said on one occasion to his men, whilst waiting here, “Come, boys, I will make money enough out of that fleet.” Little credence is to be attached to Palmer’s evidence, as will be seen hereafter. But assuming that Kidd made use of these words, they are susceptible of a perfectly innocent interpretation. Kidd was on the lookout not only for pirates but also for French[48] ships. It was not improbable that some of the vessels in the Mecca fleet would be ships belonging to Frenchmen, or sailing under French colours to the French factories in India, in which case he would have had a perfect right to seize them under his letters of marque. It was also by no means improbable that he might catch some of the Madagascar pirates in pursuit of, or possibly in possession of, the fleet or some part o. . . Read More