His position was not without danger, as there were many brutal fellows among the pirates.

England, who had a reputation for good treatment of prisoners, befriended him; but Taylor, whose influence was greatest among the most brutal of the rovers, insisted he should be made an end of.

In the midst of the quarrel, a fierce-looking fellow with a wooden leg and his belt full of pistols, intervened, asking with many oaths for Macrae, who thought his last moment had come.[3] He was pleasantly surprised when the ruffian took him by the hand, and swore with many oaths that he would make mince-meat of the first man that hurt him; and protested, with more oaths, that Macrae was an honest fellow, and he had formerly sailed with him.

So the dispute ended.

Taylor was plied with punch till he was prevailed on to consent that the _Fancy_, together with some of the _Cassandra's_ cargo, should be given to Macrae, and before he could recover from his carouse, Macrae had got safe to shore again.
As soon as the pirates had left the coast, in the _Victory_ and the _Cassandra_, Macrae set to work to patch up the much-battered _Fancy_, and in a few days sailed for Bombay, with forty-one of his ship's company, among whom were two passengers and twelve soldiers.