The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder

The shooting of Cozens nearly caused a mutiny to break out. Still, Cozens had survived the shooting. The ship surgeon Elliot was supposed to operate to remove the bullet from Cozens’s head, but never appeared. The rumor spread that Cheap prevented the surgeon from operating.

The surgeon’s mate Robert operated and managed to remove the main bullet. However, after a second operation by Robert to remove a remaining bullet fragment, Cozens died.

The ship’s carpenter Cummins devised a plan to recover and repair a longboat that had sunk with the ship. Bulkeley recruited the survivors exiled to the islet to help with the mission. Meanwhile, Cheap planned to try to reunite with the rest of the squad and carry out an assault on a town on the island of Chiloé off the coast of Chile. Inspired by Naval Officer John Narborough’s chronicle of exploring Patagonia, Bulkeley believed the survivors could take the Strait of Magellan that avoided the Drake Passage, and that this would be the safest route back to Britain.

Still, the strait was known for its williwaws, glacial blasts that could damage ships. Many of the survivors rallied around Bulkeley and his plan since Bulkeley “seemed far more composed and suited to command the men in their nightmarish circumstances” (152).