History of Aurangzib, Based on Original Sources v3.c42.s6.9

v3.c42.s6.9

"The sailors of the Bengal flotilla were inspired with such fear of the pirates that whenever a hundred war-boats of the former sighted only four of the latter, the Bengal crew thought themselves lucky if they could save their lives by flight;* and when the distance was too short to permit escape, they—rowers, sepoys, and gunners alike—threw themselves overboard, preferring drowning to captivity."