American biography: or, An historical account of those persons who have been distinguished in America, as adventurers, statesmen, philosophers, divines, warriors, authors, and other remarkable characters. Comprehending a recital of the events connected with their lives and actions. : Vol. I[-II]. / By Jeremy Belknap, D.D. ; [Five lines in Latin from Virgil] ; Published according to act of Congress.

AMERICAN BIOGRAPHY.

I. BIRON.

THE ancient inhabitants of Norway and Denmark, collectively taken, were diſtinguiſhed by the name of NORMANS. Their ſituation near the coaſt of the ſea, and the advantages which that element preſented to them beyond all which they could expect, from a rough ſoil, in a cold climate, led them at an early period to the ſcience and practice of navigation. They built their veſſels with the beſt of oak, and conſtructed them in ſuch a manner as to encounter the ſtorms and billows of the northern ocean. They covered them with decks and furniſhed them with high forecaſtles and ſterns. They made uſe of ſails as well as oars, and had learned to trim their ſails to the wind, in almoſt any direction. In theſe arts, of building ſhips and of navigation, they were ſuperior to the people bordering on the Mediterranean ſea, who depended chiefly on their oars, and uſed ſails only with a fair wind.

About the end of the eighth and beginning of the ninth century, the Normans made themſelves famous by their predatory excurſions. England, Scotland, Ireland, the Orkney and Shetland iſlands, were objects of their depredations; and, in one of their piratical expeditions, (A. D. 861) they diſcovered an iſland, which from its lofty mountains, covered with ice and ſnow, obtained the name of Iceland. In a few years after they planted a colony there, which was continually augmented by migrations from the neighbouring countries. Within the ſpace of thirty years (889) a new country, ſituate on the weſt, was diſcovered, and from its verdure during the ſummer months received the name of Greenland. This was deemed ſo important an acquiſition, that, under the conduct of ERIC RAUDE, or REDHEAD, a Daniſh chief, it was ſoon peopled.

The emigrants to theſe new regions were ſtill inflamed with the paſſion for adventure and diſcovery. An Icelander of the name HERIOLF and his ſon BIRONHis name is ſpelled by different authors BIRON, BIORN, BIOERN, and B ••• EN. made a voyage every year to different countries, for the ſake of traffic. About the beginning of the eleventh century (1001) their ſhips were ſeparated by a ſtorm. When Biron arrived in Norway, he heard that his father was gone to Greenland, and he reſolved to follow him; but another ſtorm drove him to the ſouthweſt, where he diſcovered a flat country, free from rocks, but covered with thick woods; and an iſland near the coaſt.

He made no longer ſtay at either of theſe places than till the ſtorm abated; when by a northeaſt courſe he haſted to Greenland. The diſcovery was no ſooner known there, than LEIF the ſon of Eric, who, like his father, had a ſtrong deſire to acquire glory by adventures, equipped a veſſel, carrying twenty five men; and, taking Biron for his pilot, ſailed (1002) in ſearch of the new country.

His courſe was ſouthweſt. On the firſt land which he ſaw, he found nothing but flat rocks and ice, without any verdure. He therefore gave it the name of Helleland, which ſignifies rocky. Afterward he came to a level ſhore, without any rocks, but overgrown with woods, and the ſand was remarkably white. This he named Markland, or woody. Two days after, he ſaw land again, and an iſland lying before the northern coaſt of it. Here he firſt landed; and thence ſailing weſtward, round a point of land, found a creek or river into which the ſhip entered.

On the banks of this river, were buſhes bearing ſweet berries; the air was mild, the ſoil fertile, and the river well ſtored with fiſh, among which were very fine ſalmon. At the head of this river was a lake, on the ſhore of which they reſolved to paſs the winter, and erected huts for their accommodation. One of their company, a German named Tyrker, having ſtraggled into the woods, found grapes; from which, he told them that in his country, they made wine. From this circumſtance Leif, the commander of the party, called the place Winland dat gode, the good wine country.

An intercourſe being thus opened between Greenland and Winland, ſeveral voyages were made, and the new country was further explored. Many iſlands were found near the coaſt, but not a human creature was ſeen till the third ſummer (1004) when three boats conſtructed with ribs of bone, faſtened with thongs or twigs and covered with ſkins, each boat containing three men, made their appearance. From the diminutive ſize of theſe people the Normans denominated them Skraelings, Cut ſticks, chips—Dwarfs. and inhumanly killed them all but one; who eſcaped and collected a larger number of his countrymen, to make an attack on their invaders. The Normans defended their ſhips with ſo much ſpirit, that the aſſailants were obliged to retire.

After this, a colony of Normans went and ſettled at Winland, carrying on a barter trade with the Skraelings for furs; but a controverſy aroſe in the colony, which induced ſome to return to Greenland. The others diſperſed and mixed with the Skraelings.

In the next century (1121) Eric, Biſhop of Greenland, went to Winland, with a benevolent deſign to recover and convert his countrymen who had degenerated into ſavages. This prelate never returned to Greenland; nor was any thing more heard of Winland, for ſeveral centuries.

This account of the diſcovery of Winland is taken from Pontoppidan's hiſtory of Norway, Crantz's hiſtory of Greenland, and a late hiſtory of northern voyages by Dr. John Reinhold Forſter. The facts are ſaid to have been collected from "a great number of Icelandic manuſcripts by Thormond Thorfoeus, Adam von Bremen, Arngrim Jonas and many other writers, ſo that it is hardly poſſible to entertain the leaſt doubt concerning the authenticity of the relation."

Pontoppidan ſays that "they could ſee the ſun full ſix hours in the ſhorteſt day;" but Crantz tells us that "the ſun roſe on the ſhorteſt day at eight of the clock," and Forſter that "the ſun was eight hours above the horizon," from which he concludes, that Winland muſt be found in the 49th degree of northern latitude; and from its being in a ſouthweſterly direction from Greenland, he ſuppoſes that it is either a part of Newfoundland or ſome place on the northern coaſt of the gulf of St. Lawrence; but whether grapes are found in either of thoſe countries he cannot ſay. However, he ſeems ſo fully perſuaded of the facts, that he gives it as his opinion, that the Normans were, ſtrictly ſpeaking, the firſt diſcoverers of America, nearly five centuries before Columbus.

From a careful peruſal of the firſt accounts of Newfoundland, preſerved by thoſe painful collectors Hakluyt and Purchas, and of other memoirs reſpecting that iſland and the coaſt of Labrador; and from inſpecting the moſt approved maps of thoſe regions, particularly one, in the American Atlas, delineated agreeably to the actual ſurveys of the late celebrated navigator Capt. James Cook, the following obſervations occur.

On the N. E. part of Newfoundland, which is moſt directly acceſſible from Greenland, there is a long range of coaſt, in which are two bays, the one called Gander Bay, and the other the Bay of Exploits. Before the mouth of the former, among many ſmaller, there lies one large iſland called Fogo; and before the mouth of the latter, another, called The New World. Either of theſe will ſufficiently anſwer to the ſituation deſcribed in the account of Biron's ſecond voyage. Into each of theſe bays, runs a river, which has its head in a lake, and both theſe lakes lie in the 49th degree of north latitude.

The earlieſt accounts of Newfoundland after its diſcovery and the eſtabliſhment of a fiſhery on its coaſts, have reſpect chiefly to the lands about Trinity and Conception bays, between the parallels of 48° and 49°. Theſe lands are repreſented as producing ſtrawberries, whortleberries, raſpberries, gooſeberries, pears, wild cherries, and hazle nuts, in very great plenty. The rivers are ſaid to have been well ſtored with ſalmon and trouts. The natives, who inhabited a bay lying to the northward of Trinity and came occaſionally thither in their canoes, are deſcribed as broad breaſted and upright, with black eyes, and without beards; the hair on their heads was of different colours; ſome had black, ſome brown and others yellow. In this variety they differed from the other ſavages of North America, who have uniformly black hair, unleſs it be grown grey with age.

The climate is repreſented as more mild in the winter than that of England; but much colder in the ſpring, by reaſon of the vaſt iſlands of ice which are driven into the bays or grounded on the banks.

On the north eaſtern coaſt of Labrador, between the latitudes of 53° and 56°, are many excellent harbours and iſlands. The ſeas are full of cod, the rivers abound with ſalmon; and the climate is ſaid to be more mild than in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Nothing is ſaid in any of theſe accounts of vines or grapes, excepting that ſome which were brought from England had thriven well. If any evidence can be drawn from a compariſon between the countries of Newfoundland and New-England it may be obſerved; that all the above mentioned fruits and berries are found in the northern and eaſtern parts of New-England as far as Nova Scotia, in the latitudes of 44° and 45°; and that grapes, (vitis vulpina, vitis labruſca) are known to grow wherever theſe fruits are found.

Du Monts in his voyage to Acadia, in 1608, ſpeaks of grapes in ſeveral places; and they were in ſuch plenty on the iſle of Orleans in lat. 47° that it was firſt called the iſland of Bacchus.It is alſo ſaid that Mr. Ellis met with the vine about the Engliſh ſettlements at Hudſon's Bay; and compares the fruit of it to the currants of the Levant. Morſe's Un. Geo. vol. i, p. 64. Though there is no direct and poſitive teſtimony of grapes in the iſland of Newfoundland, it is by no means to be concluded that there were none. Nor is it improbable that grapes, though once found there, might have been ſo ſcarce, as not to merit notice, in ſuch general deſcriptions, as were given by the firſt Engliſh adventurers.

The diſtance between Greenland and Newfoundland is not greater than between Iceland and Norway; and there could be no more difficulty in navigating the weſtern than the eaſtern parts of the northern Ocean, with ſuch veſſels as were then in uſe, and by ſuch ſeamen as the Normans are ſaid to have been; though they knew nothing of the magnetic needle.

Upon the whole, though we can come to no poſitive concluſion in a queſtion of ſuch remote antiquity; yet there are many circumſtances to confirm, and none to diſprove the relation given of the voyages of Biron.At my requeſt, Governor WENTWORTH, of Nova Scotia, has employed a proper perſon, to make inquiry into any veſtiges of this ancient colony, which may yet be ſubſiſting. I am ſorry that the reſult could not be had, before the publication of this volume; but when it comes to hand, it ſhall be communicated. But if it be allowed that he is entitled to the honour of having diſcovered America before Columbus, yet this diſcovery cannot in the leaſt detract from the merit of that celebrated navigator. For there is no reaſon to ſuppoſe that Columbus had any knowledge of the Norman diſcoveries; which long before his time were forgotten, and would perhaps never have been recollected, if he had not, by the aſtoniſhing exertions of his genius and his perſevering induſtry, effected a diſcovery of this continent, in a climate more friendly to the views of commercial adventurers.

Even Greenland itſelf, in the fifteenth century, was known to the Danes and Normans only by the name of loſt Greenland; and they did not recover their knowledge of it, till after the Engliſh had aſcertained its exiſtence by their voyages to diſcover a N. W. paſſage to the Pacific Ocean, and the Dutch had coaſted it in purſuit of whales.

II. MADOC

THIS perſon is ſuppoſed to have diſcovered America, and brought a colony of his countrymen hither, before the diſcovery made by Columbus. The ſtory of his emigration from Wales is thus related by Hakluyt, whoſe book was firſt publiſhed in 1589; and a ſecond edition of it in 1600.

"The voyage of Madoc, the ſon of Owen Gwynneth, Prince of North Wales, to the Weſt Indies in the year 1170; taken out of the hiſtory of Wales lately publiſhed by M. David Powel Doctor of Divinitie."

"After the death of Owen Gwynneth, his ſons fell at debate who ſhould inherit after him. For the eldeſt ſon born in matrimony Edward or Iorweth Drwydion was counted unmeet to govern, becauſe of the maime upon his face; and Howel, that took upon him all the rule, was a baſe ſon begotten of an Iriſh woman. Therefore David gathered all the power he could and came againſt Howel, and fighting with him, ſlew him; and afterward enjoyed quietly the whole land of North Wales, until his brother Iorweth's ſon came to age.

"MADOC, another of Owen Gwynneth his ſons left the land in contention between his brethren and prepared certain ſhips with men and munition, and ſought adventures by ſea, ſailing weſt, and leaving the coaſt of Ireland ſo far north that he came to a land unknown, where he ſaw many ſtrange things.

"This land muſt needs be ſome part of that country of which the Spaniards affirm themſelves to be the firſt finders, ſince Hanno's time. [The words included in crotchets [] are omitted in the ſecond edition of Hakluyt's voyages. For by reaſon and order of coſmographie, this land to the which Madoc came, muſt needs be ſome part of Nova Hiſpania or Florida.] Whereupon it is manifeſt that that country was long [before] by Brittains diſcovered, afore [either] Columbus [or Americus Veſputius] led any Spaniards thither.

"Of the voyage and return of that Madoc there be many fables feigned, as the common people do uſe, in diſtance of place and length of time, rather to augment than diminiſh, but ſure it is that there he was. And after he had returned home and declared the pleaſant and fruitful countries that he had ſeen without inhabitants; and upon the contrary part, for what wild and barren ground his brethren and nephews did murther one another, he prepared a number of ſhips and got with him ſuch men and women as were deſirous to live in quietneſs; and taking leave of his friends, took his journey thitherwards again.

"Therefore it is to be preſuppoſed, that he and his people inhabited part of thoſe countries; for it appeareth, by Francis Lopez de Gomara, that in Acuzamil, and other places, the people honoured the croſs. Whereby it may be gathered, that Chriſtians had been there before the coming of the Spaniards. But becauſe this people were not many, they followed the manners of the land they came to, and uſed the language they found there.

"This Madoc arriving in that weſtern country unto the which he came in the year 1170, left moſt of his people there, and returning back for more of his own nation, acquaintance and friends, to inhabit that fair and large country, went thither again, with ten ſails, as I find noted by Gutyn Owen. I am of opinion that the land whereto he came, was ſome part of [Mexico;In the ſecond Edition, the word Mexico is changed for the Weſt Indies; and the two following paragraphs are omitted. the cauſes which make me think ſo be theſe.

"1. The common report of the inhabitants of that country, which affirm that their rulers deſcended from a ſtrange nation, that came thither from a far country; which thing is confeſſed by Mutezuma King of that country, in an oration made for quieting of his people at his ſubmiſſion to the King of Caſtile; Hernando Cortez being then preſent, which is laid down in the Spaniſh chronicles of the conqueſt of the Weſt Indies.

"2. The Britiſh words and names of places uſed in that country even to this day do argue the ſame; as when they talk together, they uſe the word Gwrando, which is hearken or liſten. Alſo they have a certain bird with a white head, which they call penguin, that is white head. But the iſland of Corroeſo, the river of Guyndor, and the white rock of Penguyn, which be all Britiſh or Welch words, do manifeſtly ſhew that it was that country, which Madoc and his people inhabited."]

"Carmina Meredith filii Rheſi mentionem facientia de Madoco filio Oweni Gwynnedd et de ſua navigatione in terras incognitas. Vixit hic Meredith circiter annum Domini 1477.

Madoc wyf, mwyedie wedd Iawn geneu, Owen Guynned Ni fynnum dir, fy enaid oedd Na da mawr, ond y moroedd.

Theſe verſes I received of my learned friend, M. William Camden.

The ſame in Engliſh.

"Madoc I am the ſon of Owen Gwynnedd, With ſtature large and comely grace adorned. No lands at home, nor ſtore of wealth me pleaſe, My mind was whole to ſearch the Ocean ſeas."

In this extract from Hakluyt is contained all the original information which I have been able to find reſpecting the ſuppoſed diſcovery of America by the Welch. The account itſelf is confuſed and contradictory. The country diſcovered by Madoc is ſaid to be "without inhabitants;" and yet the people whom he carried thither "followed the manners of the land, and uſed the language they found there." Though the Welch emigrants loſt their language, yet the author attempts to prove the truth of his ſtory by the preſervation of ſeveral Welch words in the American tongues. Among theſe he is unfortunate in the choice of "penguin a bird with a white head;" all the birds of that name on the American ſhores having black or dark brown heads, and the name penguin is ſaid to have been originally pinguedine, from their exceſſive fatneſs.See the new Encyclopedia, under the article AMERICA.

Among the proofs which ſome late writers have adduced in ſupport of the diſcovery of America by Madoc is this, that a language reſembling the Welch was ſpoken by a tribe of Indians in North-Carolina, and that it is ſtill uſed by a nation ſituate on ſome of the weſtern waters of the Miſſiſippi. If that part of the account preſerved by Hakluyt be true, that the language was loſt, it is vain to offer an argument of this kind in ſupport of the truth of the ſtory; but a queſtion may here ariſe, How could any report of the loſs of their language have been tranſmitted to Europe at ſo early a period?

An attempt has lately been made to aſcertain the truth of this piece of hiſtory by Dr. John Williams. I have not ſeen the book itſelf, but if the Critical Reviewers may be credited,Critical Review for 1791, page 357. no new facts have been adduced. It is remarked by them, that "if Madoc once reached America, it is difficult to explain how he could return home, and it would be more improbable that he ſhould arrive in America a ſecond time; of which there is not the ſlighteſt evidence." They alſo obſerve, that "if Madoc ſailed weſtward from Wales, the currents would rather have carried him to Nova Scotia than to the ſouthward."

The mentioning of Nova Scotia reminds me of ſome words in the native language of that country which begin with two ſyllables reſembling the name of Madoc.See Gyles memoirs of his Captivity in 1689. A ſachem of the Penobſcot tribe who lived in the end of the laſt and in the beginning of the preſent century bore the name of Madokawando. A village on Penobſcot river was called Madawankee. One branch of the river St. John which runs into the bay of Funda is Medoctack and another is Medocſcenecaſis. The advocates of this opinion may avail themſelves as far as they can of this coincidence, but in my apprehenſion it is too precarious to be the baſis of any juſt concluſion.

After all that has been, or can be ſaid on the ſubject, we muſt obſerve with the Critical Reviewers, that, "if Madoc left Wales and diſcovered any other country it muſt always remain uncertain where that country is." Dr. Robertſon thinks, if he made any diſcovery at all, it might be Madeira or one of the Azores.Hiſt. Amer. vol. i, p. 374.

The book of Hakluyt, in which the original ſtory is preſerved, was written in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, and in the time of her controverſy with Spain. The deſign of his bringing forward the voyage of Madoc appears, from what he ſays of Columbus, to have been, the aſſerting of a diſcovery prior to his, and conſequently the right of the Crown of England to the ſovereignty of America; a point at that time warmly conteſted between the two nations. The remarks which the ſame author makes on ſeveral other voyages, evidently tend to the eſtabliſhment of that claim. But if the ſtory of Biron be true, which (though Hakluyt has ſaid nothing of it) is better authenticated than this of Madoc, the right of the Crown of Denmark is, on the principle of prior diſcovery, ſuperior to either of them.

Perhaps the whole myſtery may be unveiled, if we advert to this one circumſtance, the time when Hakluyt's book was firſt publiſhed. National prejudice might prevail even with ſo honeſt a writer, to convert a Welch fable into a political argument, to ſupport, againſt a powerful rival, the claim of his ſovereign to the dominion of this continent.

III. ZENO.

IT is well known that the Venetians were reckoned among the moſt expert and adventurous of the maritime nations. In that republic, the family of ZENO or ZENI is not only very ancient, and of high rank; but celebrated for illuſtrious achievements. Nicolo Zeno, having exhibited great valour in a war with the Genoeſe, conceived an ardent deſire, agreeably to the genius of his nation, to travel; that he might, by his acquaintance with foreign nations and languages, render himſelf more illuſtrious and more uſeful. With this view he equipped a veſſel at his own expenſe, and ſailed through the ſtraits of Gibraltar to the northward, [A. D. 1380] with an intention to viſit Britain and Flanders; but by a ſtorm which laſted many days, he was caſt away on the coaſt of Friſland.

The Prince of the country Zichmni (or as Purchas ſpells it Zichmui) finding Zeno an expert ſeaman, gave him the command of his fleet, conſiſting of thirteen veſſels, of which two only were rowed with oars; one was a ſhip, and the reſt were ſmall barks. With this fleet, he made conqueſts and depredations in Ledovo and Ilofo and other ſmall iſlands; ſeveral barks laden with fiſh being a part of his capture.

Nicolo wrote to his brother Antonio Zeno at Venice, inviting him to Friſland, whither he went, and being taken into the ſervice of Zichmni, continued with him fourteen years. The fleet ſailed on an expedition to Eſtland, where they committed great ravages; but hearing that the King of Norway was coming againſt them with a ſuperior fleet, they departed; and were driven by a ſtorm on ſhoals, where part of the fleet was wrecked, and the reſt were ſaved on Griſland, "a great iſland but not inhabited."

Zichmni then determined to attack Iceland, which belonged to the King of Norway; but finding it well fortified and defended, and his fleet being diminiſhed, he retired and built a fort in Breſs, one of ſeven ſmall iſlands, where he left Nicolo and returned to Friſland.

In the next ſpring Zeno, with three ſmall barks, ſailed to the northward on diſcovery, and arrived at Engroenland; where he found a monaſtery of Friars, and a Church dedicated to St. Thomas, ſituate near a volcano, and heated by warm ſprings flowing from the mountain.

After the death of Nicolo, which happened in about four years, Antonio ſucceeded him in the command of the fleet; and the prince Zichmni, aiming at the ſovereignty of the ſea, undertoook an expedition weſtward, becauſe that ſome fiſhermen had diſcovered rich and populous iſlands in that quarter.

The report of the fiſhermen was, that above a thouſand miles weſtward from Friſland, to which diſtance they had been driven by a tempeſt, there was an iſland call Eſtotiland, which they had diſcovered twenty ſix years before; that ſix men in one boat were driven upon the iſland, and being taken by the inhabitants were brought into a fair and populous city; that the King of the place ſent for many interpreters, but none was found who could underſtand the language of the fiſhermen, except one who could ſpeak Latin, and he had formerly been caſt aſhore on the iſland; that on his reporting their caſe to the King, he detained them five years, in which time they learned the language; that one of them viſited divers parts of the iſland, and reported, that it was a very rich country, abounding with all the commodities of the world; that it was leſs than Iceland, but far more fruitful, having in the middle a very high mountain, from which originated four rivers.

The inhabitants were deſcribed as very ingenious, having all mechanic arts. They had a peculiar kind of language and letters; and in the King's library were preſerved Latin books, which they did not underſtand. They had all kinds of metals (but eſpecially gold, with which they mightily abounded.This paſſage is in Hakluyt's tranſlation and the abridgment by Ortelius; but Dr. Forſter could not find it in the Italian original 〈…〉 . Northern voyages, p. 189. ) They held traffic with the people of Engroenland, from whence they brought furs, pitch and brimſtone. They had many great foreſts, which ſupplied them with timber for the building of ſhips, houſes and fortifications. The uſe of the loadſtone was not known; but theſe fiſhermen having the mariner's compaſs, were held in ſo high eſtimation, that the King ſent them with twelve barks to a country at the ſouthward, called Drogio; where the moſt of them were killed and devoured by cannibals; but one of them ſaved himſelf by ſhowing the ſavages a way of taking fiſh by nets, in much greater plenty than by any other mode before known among them. This fiſherman was in ſo great demand with the princes of the country, that they frequently made war on each other for the ſake of gaining him. In this manner he paſſed from one to another, till in the ſpace of thirteen years, he had lived with twenty five different princes; to whom he communicated his "miraculous" art of fiſhing with nets.

He thus became acquainted with every part of the country, which he deſcribed to be ſo extenſive as to merit the name of a new world. The people were rude and ignorant of the uſe of clothing, though their climate was cold, and afforded beaſts for the chace. In their hunting and wars they uſed the bow and the lance; but they knew not the uſe of metal.

Farther to the ſouthweſt the air was ſaid to be more temperate and the people more civil. They dwelt in cities, built temples, and worſhipped idols to whom they offered human victims; and they had plenty of gold and ſilver.

The fiſherman having become fully acquainted with the country meditated a return. Having fled through the woods to Drogio, after three years ſome boats arrived from Eſtotiland in one of which he embarked for that country; and having acquired conſiderable property he fitted out a bark of his own and returned to Friſland.

Such was the report of the fiſherman; upon hearing of which Zichmni reſolved to equip his fleet and go in ſearch of the new country; Antonio Zeno being the ſecond in command. But "the preparation for the voyage to Eſtotiland was begun in an evil hour; the fiſherman who was to have been the pilot died three days before their departure."

However, taking certain mariners who had ſailed with the fiſherman, Zichmni began the intended voyage. When he had ſailed a ſmall diſtance to the weſtward, he was overtaken by a ſtorm which laſted eight days, at the end of which they diſcovered land, which the natives called Icaria. They were numerous and formidable and would not permit him to come on ſhore. From this place they ſailed ſix days to the weſtward with a fair wind; but a heavy gale from the ſouthward drove them four days before it, when they diſcovered land, in which was a volcano. The air was mild and temperate, it being the height of ſummer. They took a great quantity of fiſh, of ſea fowl and their eggs. A party who penetrated the country as far as the foot of the volcano, found a ſpring, from which iſſued "a certain water, like pitch, which ran into the ſea." They diſcovered ſome of the inhabitants who were of ſmall ſtature and wild; and who, at the approach of the ſtrangers, hid themſelves in their caves. Having found a good harbour; Zichmni intended to make a ſettlement; but his people oppoſing it, he diſmiſſed part of the fleet under Zeno who returned to Friſland.

The particulars of this narrative were firſt written by Antonio Zeno, in letters to his brother Carlo, at Venice; from ſome fragments of which, a compilation was made by Franciſco Marcolini, and preſerved by Ramuſio. It was tranſlated by Richard Hakluyt, and printed in the third volume of the ſecond edition of his collections, page 121, &c. From it Ortelius has made an extract in his Theatrum orbis.

Dr. Forſter has taken much pains to examine the whole account, both geographically and hiſtorically. The reſult of his inquiry is, that Friſland is one of the Orkneys; that Porland is the cluſter of iſlands called Faro; and that Eſtland is Shetland.

At firſt indeed he was of opinion that "the countries deſcribed by the Zenos actually exiſted at that time, but had ſince been ſwallowed up by the ſea, in a great earthquake."Northern voyages, Dublin edition, p. 200. This opinion he founded on the probability that all the high iſlands in the middle of the ſea are of volcanic original; as is evident with reſpect to Iceland and the Faro iſlands in the North Sea; the Azores, Teneriffe, Madeira, the Cape de Verds, St. Helena and Aſcenſion in the Atlantic; the Society Iſlands, Otaheite, Eaſter, the Marqueſas, and other iſlands in the Pacific. This opinion he was induced to relinquiſh, partly becauſe "ſo great a revolution muſt have left behind it ſome hiſtorical veſtiges or traditions;" but, principally, becauſe his knowledge of the Runic language ſuggeſted to him a reſemblance between the names mentioned by Zeno and thoſe which are given to ſome of the iſlands of Orkney, Shetland, Faro and the Hebrides.

However preſumptuous it may appear to call in queſtion the opinion of ſo learned and diligent an inquirer, on a ſubject, which his philological and geographical knowledge muſt enable him to examine with the greateſt preciſion; yet, from the ſearch which I have had opportunity to make, it appears probable to me that his firſt opinion was right, as far as it reſpects Friſland, and perhaps Porland. My reaſons are theſe:

1. Dr. Forſter ſays that Friſland was "much larger than Iceland;"Page 181. and Hakluyt, in his account of Zeno's voyage, ſpeaks of it as "bigger than Ireland."Vol. iii, p. 122. Neither of theſe accounts can agree with the ſuppoſition of its being one of the Orkneys; for Iceland is 346 miles long and 200 wide. Ireland is 310 in length, and 184 in breadth; but Pomona, the mainland of the Orkneys, is but 22 miles long and 20 wide.

2. Friſland was ſeen by Martin Frobiſher in each of his three voyages to and from Greenland in the years 1576, 1577, and 1578.Hakluyt, vol. iii, p. 80, &c. In his firſt voyage he took his departure from Foula, the weſternmoſt of the Shetland Iſlands, in lat. 60° 30′, and after ſailing W. by N. fourteen days, he made the land of Friſland, "bearing W. N. W. diſtant 16 leagues, in lat. 61°." In his ſecond voyage he ſailed from the Orkneys W. N. W. twenty ſix days, before he came "within making of Friſland;" which he thus deſcribes.

"July 4th. We made land perfect, and knew it to be Friſland. Found ourſelves in lat. 60½° and were fallen in with the ſouthernmoſt part of this land. It is thought to be in bigneſs not inferior to England; and is called of ſome authors Weſt Friſland. I think it lieth more weſt than any part of Europe. It extendeth to the north very far, as ſeemed to us; and appeareth by a deſcription ſet out by two brethren Nicolo and Antonio Zeni; who being driven off from Ireland about 200 years ſince, were ſhipwrecked there. They have in their ſea charts deſcribed every part, and, for ſo much of the land as we have ſailed along, comparing their charts with the coaſt, we find it very agreeable. All along this coaſt the ice lieth as a continual bulwark, and ſo defendeth the country, that thoſe who would land there incur great danger."Hakluyt, vol. iii. p. •• In his third voyage he found means to land on the iſland. The inhabitants fled and hid themſelves. Their tents were made of ſkins and their boats were like thoſe of Greenland. From theſe well authenticated accounts of Friſland, and its ſituation ſo far weſtward of the Orkneys and Shetland, it ſeems impoſſible that Dr. Forſter's ſecond opinion can be right.

3. One of the reaſons which led the Doctor to give up his firſt opinion, that theſe lands once exiſted, but had diſappeared, was, that ſo great a revolution muſt have left ſome veſtige behind. If no perſon eſcaped to tell the news, what better veſtige can there be, than the exiſtence of ſhoals or rocks, in the places where theſe iſlands once were known to be? In a map prefixed to Crantz's hiſtory of Greenland, there is marked a very extenſive ſhoal between the latitudes of 59° and 60°, called "The ſunken land of Buſs." Its longitude is between Iceland and Greenland, and the author ſpeaks of it in theſe words, "Some are of opinion that Friſland was ſunk by an earthquake; and that it was ſituate in thoſe parts where the ſunken land of Buſs is marked in the maps; which the ſeamen cautiouſly avoid, becauſe of the ſhallow ground and turbulent waves."Vol. i, p. 273.

Reſpecting Buſs Iſland I have met with no other account than what is preſerved by PurchasVol. iv, p. 815, 822. in his abridgment of the journal of James Hall's voyages from Denmark to Greenland. In his firſt voyage [A. D. 1605] he remarks thus, "Being in the latitude of 59°½ we looked to have ſeen Buſſe Iſland; but I do verily ſuppoſe the ſame to be placed in a wrong latitude in the marine charts." In his ſecond voyage [1606] he ſaw land which he "ſuppoſed to be Buſſe Iſland lying more to the weſtward than it is placed in the marine charts," and the next day, viz. July 2d. he writes, "we were in a great current ſetting S. S. W. which I ſuppoſe to ſet between Buſſe Iſland and Friſland over toward America."

In a fourth voyage made in 1612 by the ſame James Hall, from England, for the diſcovery of a N. W. paſſage, of which there is a journal written by John Gatonbe and preſerved in Churchill's Collections,Vol. vi, p. 260, 268. they kept a good look out both in going and returning for the iſland of Friſland but could not ſee it. In a map prefixed to this voyage, Friſland is laid down between the latitude of 61° and 62°; and Buſs in the latitude of 57°. In Gatonbe's journal the diſtance between Shetland and Friſland is computed to be 260 leagues, the ſouthernmoſt part of Friſland and the northernmoſt part of Shetland are ſaid to be in the ſame latitude. There is alſo a particular map of Friſland preſerved by PurchasVol. iv, p. 625, in which are delineated ſeveral towns and cities; the two iſlands of Ilofo and Ledovo are laid down to the weſtward of it, and another called Stromio to the eaſtward.

In a map of the North Seas prefixed to an anonymous account of Greenland, in Churchill's CollectionVol. ii, p. 378. we find Friſland laid down in the latitude 62, between Iceland and Greenland.

We have then no reaſon to doubt the exiſtence of theſe iſlands as late as the beginning of the laſt century; at what time they diſappeared is uncertain, but that their place has ſince been occupied by a ſhoal, we have alſo credible teſtimony.

The appearance and diſappearance of iſlands in the northern ſea is no uncommon thing. Beſides former events of this kind there is one very recent. In the year 1783, by means of a volcanic eruption, two iſlands were produced in the ſea near the S. E. coaſt of Iceland. One was ſuppoſed to be ſo permanent, that the King of Denmark ſent and took formal poſſeſſion of it as part of his dominions; but the Ocean, paying no regard to the territorial claim of a mortal ſovereign, has ſince reabſorbed it in his watery boſom.See a new Geographical Grammar, by Society in Edinburgh▪ publiſhed by Alexander Kincaid. Vol. 1, p. 123.

Theſe reaſons incline me to believe that Dr. Forſter's firſt opinion was well founded, as far as it reſpects Friſland.

He ſuppoſes Porland to be the cluſter of iſlands called FaroNorthern Voyages, p. 207.. But Porland is ſaid to lie ſouth ibid, p. 180. of Friſland; whereas the Faro Iſlands lie northweſt of Orkney, which he ſuppoſes to be Friſland. The learned Doctor, who is in general very accurate, was not aware of this inconſiſtency.

In the account which Hakluyt has given of Martin Frobiſher's third voyage, we find that one of his ſhips, the Buſs of Bridgewater, in her return fell in with land, 50 leagues S. E. of Friſland "which (it is ſaid) was never found before" the ſouthernmoſt part of which lay in latitude 57°½. Along the coaſt of this land, which they judged to extend 25 leagues, they ſailed for three days.Hakluyt, vol. iii. p. 77, 93. The exiſtence of this land, Dr. Forſter ſeems to doubt; but yet allows that "if it was then really diſcovered it muſt have ſunk afterwards into the ſea, as it has never been ſeen again; or elſe theſe navigators muſt have been miſtaken in their reckoning."

If ſuch an iſland or cluſter of iſlands did exiſt in the ſituation deſcribed by Frobiſher, it might be the Porland of Zeno; for the ſouthernmoſt part of Friſland lay in the latitude of 60°½; the ſouthernmoſt part of this land in 57°½ in a direction S. E. from it. It was probably called Buſs, by the Engliſh, from the name of Frobiſher's veſſel which diſcovered it.

The only proof which can now be produced of this fact muſt be the actual exiſtence of rocks and ſhoals in or near the ſame place. Of this, it is happily in my power to produce the evidence of two experienced ſhipmaſters, of inconteſtible veracity, now living. The firſt is Iſaac Smith of Malden, near Boſton, from whoſe log book I have made the following extract. "In a voyage from Peterſburg to Boſton, in the ſhip Thomas and Sarah, belonging to Thomas Ruſſell, Eſq. of Boſton, Merchant, Thurſday, Auguſt 11, 1785, courſe W. N. W. wind W. S. W. At 4 A. M. diſcovered a large rock a head, which for ſome time we took to be a ſhip under cloſe reefed topſail. At 7, being within two miles, ſaw breakers under our lee, on which account wore ſhip. There are breakers in two places bearing S. E; one a mile, the other two miles from the rock. It lies in lat. 57° 38′; longitude Weſt from London 13° 36′; and may be diſcovered five leagues off. We ſounded and had 56 fathom. The rock appears to be about 100 yards in circumference and 50 feet above water. It makes like a hay ſtack, black below and white on the top." The other is Nathaniel Goodwin, of Boſton, who, in his homeward paſſage from Amſterdam, on the 15th of Auguſt 1793, ſaw the ſame rock. According to his obſervation, (which however on that day was a little dubious) it lies in lat. 57° 48′ and lon. 13° 46′. He paſſed within two miles of it to the ſouthward and ſaw breakers to the northward of it. Its appearance he deſcribes in the ſame manner with Smith.

From theſe authorities I am ſtrongly inclined to believe that the ſhoal denominated "the ſunken land of Buſs" is either a part of the ancient Friſland or of ſome iſland in its neighbourhood; and that the rock and ledges ſeen by Smith and Goodwin, belonged to the cluſter once called Porland. If theſe concluſions be admitted, there can be no ſuſpicion of fiction in the ſtory of Zeno, as far as it reſpects Prince Zichmni, and his expeditions. Shetland may then well enough agree with Eſtland, which is deſcribed by Hakluyt as lying "between Friſland and Norway."Vol. iii, p. 122.

The only place which in Zeno's relation is called by the ſame name, by which it is now known, is Iceland; though there can be no doubt that Engroenland, or Engroveland, is the ſame with Greenland; where, according to Crantz, there was once a church dedicated to St. Thomas, and ſituate near a volcano and a hot ſpring.Crantz's hiſt. of Greenland, vol. ii, p. 26 • . Purchas, vol. iv, p. 651.

But the queſtion is, where ſhall we find Eſtotiland? Dr. Forſter is poſitive that "it cannot be any other country, than Winland (diſcovered in 1001) where the Normans made a ſettlement." The Latin books ſeen there by the fiſherman, he ſuppoſes to have been the library of Eric, Biſhop of Greenland, who went thither in the twelfth century to convert his countrymen. He is alſo of opinion that this fiſherman had the uſe of the magnetic needle which began to be known in Europe about the year 1302, before the time of the Zenos. He alſo thinks that the country called Drogio is the ſame with Florida.

In ſome of the old maps, particularly in Sanſon's French Atlas, the name Eſtotiland is marked on the country of Labrador; but the pompous deſcription of it by the fiſherman, whether it be Labrador or Newfoundland, exceeds all the bounds of credibility, and abuſes even the licence of a traveller. The utmoſt extent of Zichmni's expedition, in conſequence of the fiſherman's report, could not be any farther weſtward than Greenland, to which his deſcription well agrees. The original inhabitants were ſhort of ſtature, half wild and lived in caverns; and between the years 1380 and 1384 they had extirpated the Normans and the monks of St. Thomas.

The diſcovery of Eſtotiland muſt therefore reſt on the report of the fiſherman; but the deſcription of it, of Drogio, and the Country S. W. of Drogio muſt be ranked in the fabulous hiſtory of America; and would probably have been long ſince forgotten, if Chriſtopher Columbus had not made his grand diſcovery; from the merit of which, his rivals and the enemies of the Spaniſh nation have uniformly endeavoured to detract.

IV. CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.

THE adventures which have been already ſpoken of were more the reſult of accident than deſign; we are now entering on one, founded in ſcience and conducted by judgment; an adventure, which whether we regard its conception, its execution, or its conſequences, will always reflect the higheſt honour on him, who projected it.

About the middle of the fifteenth century, when the Portugueſe under the conduct of Prince Henry, and afterward of King John II. were puſhing their diſcoveries along the weſtern ſhore of Africa, to find a paſſage by the ſouth to India; a genius aroſe, whoſe memory has been preſerved with veneration in the pages of hiſtory, as the inſtrument of enlarging the region of ſcience and commerce, beyond any of his predeceſſors. CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, a native of the Republic of Genoa, was born in the year 1447, and at the age of fourteen entered on a ſeafaring life, as the proper ſphere, in which his vigorous mind was deſtined to perform exploits which ſhould aſtoniſh mankind.Life of Columbus by his ſon Ferdinand, Chap. 4.—See vol. ii. of Churchill's Collection of Voyages. Herrera's Hiſt. Amer. vol. i. He was educated in the ſciences of Geometry and Aſtronomy, which form the baſis of navigation; and he was well verſed in Coſmography, Hiſtory and Philoſophy. His active and enterpriſing genius, though it enabled him to comprehend the old ſyſtems, yet would not ſuffer him to reſt in their deciſions, however ſanctified by time or by venerable names; but determined to examine them by actual experiment, he firſt viſited the ſeas within the polar circle, and afterward thoſe parts of Africa, which the Portugueſe had diſcovered, as far as the coaſt of Guinea; and by the time that he had attained the age of thirty ſeven, he had from his own experience received the fulleſt conviction, that the opinion of the ancients reſpecting the torrid and frigid zones was void of any juſt foundation.

When an old ſyſtem is found erroneous in one point, it is natural to ſuſpect it of farther imperfections; and when one difficulty is overcome, others appear leſs formidable. Such was the caſe with Columbus; and his views were accelerated by an incident, which threatened to put an end to his life. During one of his voyages, the ſhip in which he ſailed took fire, in an engagement with a Venetian galley, and the crew were obliged to leap into the ſea, to avoid periſhing in the flames. In this extremity, Columbus, by the help of a floating oar, ſwam upwards of two leagues to the coaſt of Portugal near Liſbon, and met with a welcome reception from many of his countrymen who were ſettled there.

At Liſbon, he married the daughter of Pereſtrello, an old ſeaman, who had been concerned in the diſcovery of Porto Santo and Madeira; from whoſe journals and charts, he received the higheſt entertainment. Purſuing his inquiries in Geography, and obſerving what ſlow progreſs the Portugueſe made in their attempts to find a way round Africa to India, "he began to reflect that as the Portugueſe travelled ſo far ſouthward, it were no leſs proper to ſail weſtward," and that it was reaſonable to expect to find the deſired land in that direction.

It muſt here be remembered, that India was in part known to the ancients, and that its rich and uſeful productions had for many centuries been conveyed into Europe, either by caravans through the deſarts of Syria and Arabia; or by the way of the Red Sea, through Egypt, into the Mediterranean.Robertſon's India. Bruce's Travels. This lucrative commerce had been ſucceſſively engroſſed by the Phenicians, the Hebrews, the Egyptians, the Aſſyrians, the Palmyrenes, the Arabians, the Genoeſe and the Venetians. The Portugueſe were then ſeeking it by attempting the circumnavigation of Africa; and their expectation of finding it in that direction was grounded on ancient hiſtorical traditions, that a voyage had been formerly made by the orders of Necho King of Egypt, from the Red Sea, round the ſouthern part of Africa to the ſtraits of Hercules; and that the ſame route had been traverſed by Hanno the Carthaginian, by Eudoxus the Egyptian, and others. The Portugueſe had conſumed about half a century in making various attemps, and had advanced no farther, on the weſtern coaſt of Africa, than juſt to croſs the Equator, when Columbus conceived his great deſign of finding India in the weſt.

The cauſes which led him to entertain this idea are diſtinguiſhed by his ſon, the writer of his life, into theſe three; "natural reaſon, the authority of writers, and the teſtimony of ſailors."

By the help of "reaſon," he argued in this manner: That the earth and ſea compoſed one globe or ſphere. This was known by obſerving the ſhadow of the earth in lunar eclipſes. Hence he concluded that it might be travelled over from eaſt to weſt, or from weſt to eaſt. It had been explored to the eaſt by ſome European travellers as far as Cipango, or Japan; and as far weſtward as the Azores or Weſtern Iſlands. The remaining ſpace, though now known to be more than half, he ſuppoſed to be but one third part of the circumference of the globe. If this ſpace were an open ſea, he imagined it might be eaſily ſailed over; and if there were any land extending eaſtwardly beyond the known limits of Aſia, he ſuppoſed that it muſt be nearer to Spain by the weſt, than by the eaſt. For, it was then a received opinion that the continent and iſlands of India extended over one third part of the circumference of the globe; that another third part was comprehended between India and the weſtern ſhore of Spain; therefore it was concluded, that the eaſtern part of India muſt be as near to Spain as the weſtern part. This opinion though now known to be erroneous, yet being then admitted as true, made it appear to Columbus very eaſy and practicable to diſcover India in the weſt. He hoped alſo that between Spain and India, in that direction, there might be found ſome iſlands; by the help of which, as reſting places in his voyage, he might the better purſue his main deſign. The probability of the exiſtence of land in that Ocean, he argued, partly from the opinion of philoſophers, that there was more land than ſea on the ſurface of the globe; and partly from the neceſſity of a counterpoiſe in the weſt, for the immenſe quantity of land which was known to be in the eaſt.

Another ſource, from which he drew his concluſion, was, "the authority of learned men," who had affirmed the poſſibility of ſailing from the weſtern coaſt of Spain, to the eaſtern bounds of India. Some of the ancient Geographers had admitted this for truth, and one of themPliny. had affirmed that forty days were ſufficient to perform this navigation. Theſe authorities fell in with the theory which Columbus had formed; and having, as early as 1474, communicated his ideas in writing, to Paul a learned phyſician of Florence, he received from him letters of that date, confirming his opinion and encouraging his deſign; accompanied with a chart, in which Paul had laid down the city of Quiſay (ſuppoſed to be the capital of China) but little more than two thouſand leagues weſtward from Liſbon, which in fact is but half the diſtance. Thus, by arguing from true principles, and by indulging conjectures partly well founded and partly erroneous, Columbus was led to the execution of a plan, bold in its conception, and, to his view, eaſily practicable; for great minds overlook intermediate obſtacles, which men of ſmaller views magnify into inſuperable difficulties.

The third ground on which he formed his idea was "the teſtimony of mariners;" a claſs of men who at that time, and in that imperfect ſtate of ſcience, were too prone to mix fable with fact; and were often miſled by appearances, which they could not ſolve. In the ſea, between Madcira and the Weſtern Iſlands, pieces of carved wood and large joints of cane had been diſcovered, which were ſuppoſed to be brought by weſterly winds. Branches of pine trees, a covered canoe, and two human bodies of a complexion different from the Europeans and Africans had been found on the ſhores of theſe iſlands. Some navigators had affirmed, that they had ſeen iſlands not more than an hundred leagues weſtward from the Azores. There was a tradition, that when Spain was conquered by the Moors in the eighth century, ſeven Biſhops, who were exiled from their country, had built ſeven cities and churches, on an iſland called Antilla; which was ſuppoſed to be not more than two hundred leagues weſt of the Canaries; and it was ſaid that a Portugueſe ſhip had once diſcovered this iſland, but could never find it again. Theſe ſtories, partly true and partly fabulous, had their effect on the mind of Columbus. He believed that iſlands were were to be found, weſtward of the Azores and Canaries; though according to his theory, they were at a greater diſtance than any of his contemporaries had imagined. His candour led him to adopt an opinion from Pliny reſpecting floating iſlands, by the help of which he accounted for the appearances related to him, by his marine brethren. It is not improbable that the large iſlands of floating ice, driven from the Polar Seas to the ſouthward; or the Fog Banks, which form many ſingular appearances reſembling land and trees, might have been the true foundation of this opinion and of theſe reports.

The following account of a curious deception, extracted from the Gentleman's Magazine, may elucidate the above obſervations.

"March 4, 1748—9, at two in the afternoon, made land which bore N. E. ſeven leagues diſtance by eſtimation: at five tacked, being about three leagues from ſaid iſland, wind E. S. E. latitude by obſervation 49° 40′; longitude 24° 30′, from the Lizard. This iſland ſtretches N. W. and S. E. about 5 leagues long, and 9 miles wide. On the ſouth ſide fine valleys and a great number of birds.

March 5, ſaid iſland bore N. three leagues, N. W. a reef of rocks three miles. This day a ſhip's maſt came along ſide. On the ſouth point of ſaid iſland is a ſmall marſhy iſland."

"A copy of my journal on board the ſnow St. Paul, of London, bound from South Carolina to London.

William Otton, Commander."

P. S. Captain Otton thought he ſaw a tent on the iſland, and would have gone aſhore, but had unfortunately ſtove his boat ſome time before.

"Commodore Rodney is commiſſioned to go in queſt of an iſland, which, according to the report of a maſter of a ſhip, and ſome others, on examination before the Lords of the Admiralty, lies about 50° N. and about 300 leagues weſt of England. Capt. Murdock Mackenzie, an excellent mathematician, and author of the ſea charts of the Orkney and Lewis iſlands, attends him in the Culloden ſloop, to bring back an account of what diſcoveries he may make. As this iſland lies out of the track of the trade to America, it is ſuppoſed to have been miſſed by navigators to our colonies, though marked in ſome Dutch maps. If the Commodore diſcovers it, he is to take poſſeſſion of it by the name of Rodney's iſland."

"Friday, April 10, 1752, Commodore Rodney arrived at Woolwich; he had been cruiſing ten days in queſt of an iſland, and the men at the top-maſt-head were more than once deceived with what the ſailors call fog-banks. About the 6th or 7th day the crew obſerved branches of trees with their leaves on, and ſlights of gulls, and pieces of ſhipwreck, which are generally regarded as certain ſigns of an adjacent ſhore, but could not diſcover any."

Gent. Mag. for 1751, p. 235. for 1752, p. 88, 189.

N. B. The iſland marked in the Dutch maps, could not have been miſtaken for this imaginary iſland, being but a ſingle rock. It is the ſame that is deſcribed in the life of Zeno.

Page 82.

It is not pretended that Columbus was the only perſon of his age who had acquired theſe ideas of the form, dimenſions and balancing of the globe; but he was one of the few who had begun to think for themſelves, and he had a genius of that kind, which makes uſe of ſpeculation and reaſoning only as excitements to action. He was not a cloſet projector, but an enterpriſing adventurer; and having eſtabliſhed his theory on principles, he was determined to exert himſelf to the utmoſt, to demonſtrate its truth by experiment. But deeming the enterpriſe too great to be undertaken by any but a ſovereign ſtate, he firſt applied (as it is ſaid) to the Republic of Genoa, by whom his project was treated as viſionary.This is ſaid on the authority of Herrera the royal Spaniſh hiſtorian; Ferdinando Columbus, in the life of his father, ſays nothing of it; but repreſents his application to the King of Portugal as the firſt, and gives this reaſon for it, "becauſe he lived under him." He then propoſed his plan to John II. King of Portugal, who, though a Prince of good underſtanding and of an enterpriſing diſpoſition, yet was ſo deeply engaged in proſecuting diſcoveries on the African coaſt, with a view to find a way to India round that continent; and had been at ſo vaſt an expenſe without any conſiderable ſucceſs, that he had no inclination to accept the terms which Columbus propoſed. Influenced however by the advice of Calzadilla, a favourite courtier, he privately gave orders to a ſhip, bound to the iſlands of Cape de Verd, to attempt a diſcovery in the weſt; but through ignorance and want of enterpriſe, the navigators, after wandering for ſome time in the ocean and making no diſcovery, reached their deſtined port and turned the project of Columbus into ridicule.

Diſguſted with this baſe artifice, he quitted Portugal, and went to Ferdinand, King of Spain, having previouſly ſent his brother to England to ſolicit the patronage of Henry VII. But being taken by pirates, and detained ſeveral years in captivity, Bartholomew had it not in his power to reveal his project to Henry, till Chriſtopher Columbus had ſucceeded in Spain. Before this could be accompliſhed, he had various obſtacles to ſurmount; and it was not till after ſeven years of painful ſolicitation that he obtained his requeſt.

The objections made to the propoſal of Columbus, by the moſt learned men in Spain, to whom the conſideration of it was referred, will give us ſome idea of the ſtate of geographical ſcience at that time. One objection was, How ſhould he know more than all the wiſe men and ſkilful ſailors who had exiſted ſince the creation? Another was the authority of Seneca, who had doubted whether it were poſſible to navigate the ocean at any great diſtance from the ſhore; but admitting that it were navigable, they imagined, that three years would be required to perform the voyage, which Columbus propoſed. A third was, that if a ſhip ſhould ſail weſtward on a round globe, ſhe would neceſſarily go down, on the oppoſite ſide, and then it would be impoſſible to return, becauſe it would be like climbing up a hill, which no ſhip could do with the ſtrongeſt wind. A fourth objection was grounded on a book of St. Auguſtine, in which he had expreſſed his doubt of the exiſtence of antipodes and the poſſibility of going from one hemiſphere to the other. As the writings of this Holy Father had received the ſanction of the Church, to contradict him was deemed hereſy.

For ſuch reaſons, and by ſuch reaſoners, the propoſal of Columbus was at firſt rejected; but by the influence of John Perez, a Spaniſh Prieſt, and Lewis Santangel, an officer of the King's houſhold, Queen Iſabella was perſuaded to liſten to his ſolicitation, and after he had been twice repulſed, to recal him to Court; when ſhe offered to pawn her jewels to defray the expenſe of the equipment, amounting to no more than 2500 crowns; which ſum was advanced by Santangel, and the Queen's jewels were ſaved. Thus, to the generous deciſion of a female mind, we owe the diſcovery of America.

The conditions ſtipulated between Ferdinand and Iſabella on the one part, and Columbus on the other part, were theſe: "That he, his heirs and ſucceſſors, ſhould hold the office of Admiral in all thoſe Iſlands and Continents which he ſhould diſcover; that he ſhould be Viceroy and Governor of the ſame▪ with power of nominating three aſſociates, of whom their majeſties ſhould appoint one. That he ſhould have one tenth part of the neat proceeds of all the gold, and ſilver, precious ſtones, ſpice and other merchandiſe which ſhould be found; that he, or a deputy of his own appointing, ſhould decide all controverſies reſpecting the trade; that he ſhould be at one eighth part of the expenſe of equipping the firſt fleet, and ſhould receive one eighth part of the profits."

The neceſſary preparations being made, and a year's proviſion laid in, on the 3d of Auguſt, 1492, Columbus ſailed from Palos, a port of Spain, on the Mediterranean, with three veſſels, one of which was called a carrack, and the other two, caravels; 〈…〉 veſſel with a deck; a caravel had 〈◊〉 . having on board, the whole, ninety men. Having paſſed through the ſtraits of Gibraltar, he arrived at the Canaries, on the 12th of the ſame month; where he was detained in refitting one of the caravels, and taking in wood and water, till the 6th of September, when he ſailed weſtward on his voyage of diſcovery.

This voyage, which now is conſidered as an eaſy and pleaſant run, between the latitudes of 20 and 30 degrees, with a trade wind, was then the boldeſt attempt which had ever been made, and filled the minds of the beſt ſeamen with apprehenſion. They were going directly from home, and from all hope of relief, if any accident ſhould befal them. No friendly port nor human being was known to be in that direction. Every bird which flew in the air, every fiſh which appeared in the ſea, and every weed which floated on its ſurface, was regarded with the moſt minute attention, as if the fate of the voyage depended on it. A phenomenon which had never before been obſerved ſtruck them with terror. The magnetic needle appeared to vary from the pole: They began to apprehend that their compaſs would prove an unfaithful guide; and the trade wind, which wafted them along with its friendly wings, they feared would obſtruct their return.

To be twenty days at ſea, without ſight of land, was what the boldeſt mariner had never before attempted. At the expiration of that time the impatient ſailors began to talk of throwing their commander into the ocean, and returning home. Their murmurs reached his ears; but his active mind was never at a loſs for expedients, even in the greateſt extremity. By ſoothing, flattery, and artifice, by inventing reaſons for every uncommon appearance, by promiſing rewards to the obedient, and a gratuity to him who ſhould firſt diſcover land, in addition to what the King had ordered; and by deceiving them in the ſhip's reckoning, he kept them on their courſe for ſixteen days longer. In the night of the 11th of October, he himſelf ſaw a light, which ſeemed to be on ſhore, and in the morning of the 12th, they had the joyful ſight of land, which proved to be the iſland of Guanahana, one of the cluſter called Bahamas, in the 25th degree of north latitude.

Thus in the ſpace of thirty ſix days, and in the 45th year of his age, Columbus completed a voyage which he had ſpent twenty years in projecting and executing; a voyage which opened to the Europeans a new world; which gave a new turn to their thoughts, to their ſpirit of enterpriſe and of commerce; which enlarged the empire of Spain, and ſtamped with immortality the name of Columbus.

After ſpending ſeveral months in ſailing from one iſland to another in that vaſt archipelago, which, from the miſtakes of the age received the name of the Weſt-Indies. Columbus returned to Spain with the two ſmaller veſſels, (the larger having been wrecked on the iſland of Hiſpaniola) leaving behind him a colony of thirty nine men, furniſhed with a year's proviſion, and lodged in a fort which had been built of the timber ſaved from the wreck. During his paſſage he met with a violent tempeſt which threatened him with deſtruction. In this extremity, he gave an admirable proof of his calmneſs and foreſight. He wrote on parchment an account of his diſcoveries, wrapped it in a piece of oiled cloth, and incloſed it in a cake of wax, which he put into a tight caſk and threw into the ſea. Another parchment, ſecured in the ſame manner, he placed on the ſtern, that if the ſhip ſhould ſink, the caſk might float, and poſſibly one or the other might be driven on ſhore, or taken up at ſea by ſome future navigator. But this precaution proved fruitleſs. He arrived ſafe in Spain, in March, 1493, and was received with the honours due to his merit.

The account which Columbus gave of his new diſcoveries, the ſpecimens of gold and other valuable productions, and the ſight of the natives which he carried from the Weſt-Indies to Spain, were ſo pleaſing that the court determined on another expedition. But firſt it was neceſſary to obtain the ſanction of the Pope, who readily granted it; and by an imaginary line, drawn from pole to pole, at the diſtance of one hundred leagues weſtward of the Azores, he divided between the crowns of Spain and Portugal, all the new countries already diſcovered or to be diſcovered; giving the weſtern part to the former, and the eaſtern to the latter. No proviſion however was made, in caſe that they ſhould meet, and their claims ſhould interfere on the oppoſite ſide of the globe. The bull, containing this famous but imperfect line of demarkation, was ſigned by Alexander VI. on the ſecond day of May, 1493; and on the 28th of the ſame month, the King and Queen of Spain, by a written inſtrument, explained and confirmed the privileges and powers which they had before granted to Columbus, making the office of Viceroy and Governor of the Indies hereditary in his family. On the 25th of September following, he ſailed from Cadiz, with a fleet of ſeventeen ſhips, great and ſmall, well furniſhed with all neceſſaries for the voyage; and having on board 1500 people, with horſes, cattle, and implements to eſtabliſh plantations.

On Sunday the third of November, he diſcovered an iſland, to which, in honour of the day, he gave the name of Dominica. Afterward he diſcovered in ſucceſſion other iſlands, which he called Marigalante, Guadaloupe, Montſerrat, Redonda, Antigua, St. Martin's, St. Urſula, and St. John. On the 12th of November he came to Navidad, on the North ſide of Hiſpaniola, where he had built his fort, and left his colony; but he had the mortification to find, that the people were all dead, and that the fort had been deſtroyed.

The account given by the natives, of the loſs of the colony, was, that they fell into diſcord among themſelves, on the uſual ſubjects of controverſy, women and gold; that having provoked a chief, whoſe name was Canaubo, he came againſt them with a ſuperior force, and deſtroyed them; that ſome of the natives, in attempting to defend them, had been killed, and others were then ill of their wounds; which, on inſpection, appeared to have been made with Indian weapons.

Columbus prudently forbore to make any critical inquiry into the matter; but haſted to eſtabliſh another colony, in a more eligible ſituation, to the eaſtward; which he called Iſabella, after his royal patroneſs. He had many difficulties to contend with, beſides thoſe which unavoidably attend undertakings of ſuch novelty and magnitude. Nature indeed was bountiful: the ſoil and climate produced vegetation, with a rapidity to which the Spaniards had not been accuſtomed. From wheat ſown at the end of January, full ears were gathered at the end of March. The ſtones of fruit, the ſlips of vines and the joints of ſugar cane ſprouted in ſeven days, and many other ſeeds in half the time. This was an encouraging proſpect; but the ſlow operations of agriculture did not meet the views of ſanguine adventurers. The numerous followers of Columbus, ſome of whom were of the beſt families in Spain, had conceived hopes of ſuddenly enriching themſelves, by the precious metals of thoſe new regions; and were not diſpoſed, to liſten to his recommendations of patience and induſtry, in cultivating the earth. The natives were diſpleaſed with the licentiouſneſs of their new neighbours; who endeavoured to keep them in awe by a diſplay of force. The exploſion of fire arms, and the ſight of men mounted on horſes, were at firſt, objects of terror; but uſe had rendered them leſs formidable. Columbus, overburdened with care and fatigue, fell ſick, and at his recovery, found a mutiny among his men; which, by a due mixture of reſolution and lenity, he had the addreſs to quell. He then endeavoured to eſtabliſh diſcipline among his own people, and to employ the natives in cutting roads through the woods. Whilſt he was preſent, and able to attend to buſineſs, things went on ſo proſperouſly, that he thought he might ſafely proceed on his diſcoveries.

In his former voyage he had viſited Cuba; but was uncertain whether it were an iſland or a part of ſome continent. He therefore paſſed over to its eaſtern extremity; and coaſted its ſouthern ſide, till he found himſelf entangled among a vaſt number of ſmall iſlands, which for their beauty and fertility he called the Garden of the Queen; but the dangerous rocks and ſhoals, which ſurrounded them, obliged him to ſtretch farther to the ſouthward; by which means, he diſcovered the iſland of Jamaica; where he found water and other refreſhments for his men, who were almoſt dead with famine. The hazard, fatigue and diſtreſs of this voyage, threw him into a lethargic diſorder, from which he had juſt recovered, when he returned to his colony and found it all in confuſion; from the ſame cauſes which had proved deſtructive to the firſt.

In his abſence, the licentiouſneſs of the Spaniards had provoked ſeveral of the chiefs; four of whom had united to deſtroy them, and had actually commenced hoſtilities, in which twenty Spaniards were killed. Columbus collected his people, put them into the beſt order, and by a judicious combination of force and ſtratagem gained a deciſive victory, to which the horſes and dogs did not a little contribute.

At his return to Hiſpaniola, he had the pleaſure of meeting his brother Bartholomew, whom he had not ſeen for ſeveral years, and whom he ſuppoſed to have been dead. Bartholomew was a man of equal knowledge, experience, bravery and prudence with himſelf. His patience had endured a ſevere trial in their long ſeparation. He had many obſtacles to ſurmount, before he could get to England and obtain acceſs to the King. He was at Paris when he heard of the ſucceſs of his brother's firſt enterprize; who had gone on the ſecond, before Bartholomew could get to Spain. On his arrival there, and being introduced to the court, he was appointed to the command of three ſhips, which were deſtined to convey ſupplies to the colony; and he arrived whilſt Chriſtopher was abſent on his voyage to Cuba and Jamaica. Columbus appointed his brother to command at Iſabella, whilſt he went into the interior part of the iſland, to perfect his conqueſt, and reduce the natives to ſubjection and tribute.

The Indians were ſo unuſed to collect gold duſt, in ſuch quantities as their conquerors demanded it, that they offered to plant the immenſe plains of Hiſpaniola, and pay an equivalent in corn. Columbus was ſtruck with the magnanimity of the propoſal; and in conſequence, moderated the tribute. This did not ſatisfy the avarice of his fellow adventurers, who found means to complain of him to the King's miniſters, for his negligence in acquiring the only commodity, which they thought deſerved the name of riches. The Indians then deſiſted from planting their uſual quantity of corn, and attempted to ſubſiſt chiefly on animal food. This experiment proved injurious to themſelves as well as to their conquerors; and it was computed, that within four years, from the firſt diſcovery of the iſland, one third part of its inhabitants periſhed.

The complaints againſt Columbus ſo wrought on the jealous mind of King Ferdinand, that John Aguado, who was ſent, in 1495, with ſupplies to the colony, had orders to act as a ſpy on his conduct. This man behaved with ſo little diſcretion, as to ſeek matter of accuſation, and give out threats againſt the Admiral. At the ſame time, the ſhips which he commanded, being deſtroyed by a hurricane, he had no means left to return; till Columbus, knowing that he had enemies at home and nothing to ſupport him but his own merit, reſolved to go to Spain, with two caravels; himſelf in one, and Aguado in the other. Having appointed proper perſons to command the ſeveral forts; his brother Bartholomew to ſuperintend the whole, and his brother James to be next in authority; he ſet ſail on the tenth of March 1496, and after a perilous and tedious voyage, in the tropical latitudes, arrived at Cadiz on the eleventh of June.

His preſence at Court, with the gold and other valuable articles which he carried home, removed, in ſome meaſure, the prejudices which had been excited againſt him. But his enemies, though ſilent, were not idle; and in a court, where phlegm and languor proved a clog to the ſpirit of enterprize, they found it not difficult to obſtruct his views; which, notwithſtanding all diſcouragements, were ſtill pointed to the diſcovery of a way to India by the weſt.

He now demanded eight ſhips, to carry ſupplies to his colony, and ſix to go on diſcovery. Theſe demands were complied with, and he began his third voyage on the thirtieth of May 1498. He kept a courſe ſo far to the ſouthward, that not only his men, but his proviſions and water ſuffered greatly from exceſſive heat. The firſt land he made after leaving the Iſles of Cape de Verd, was a large iſland which he named Trinidad, from its appearance in the form of three mountains. He then paſſed through a narrow ſtrait and whirlpool into the gulf of Paria; where, obſerving the tide to be rapid, and the water brackiſh, he conjectured, that the land, on the weſtern and ſouthern ſides of the gulf, was part of a continent; and that the freſh water proceeded from ſome great rivers.

The people on the coaſt of Paria were whiter than thoſe of the iſlands. They had about their necks plates of gold and ſtrings of pearl; which they readily exchanged for pieces of tin and braſs, and little bells; and when they were queſtioned whence they obtained the gold and pearls, they pointed to the weſt.

The Admiral's proviſion not allowing him to ſtay long in this place; he paſſed again, through that dangerous ſtrait, to which he gave the name of the Dragon's Mouth; and having ſatisfied himſelf, that the land on his left was a continent, he ſteered to the N. W; diſcovering Margarita and ſeveral other iſlands in his courſe; and on the thirtieth of Auguſt, arrived at the harbour of St. Domingo, in Hiſpaniola; to which place his brother had removed the colony in his abſence, in conſequence of a plan preconcerted between them.

Wearied with inceſſant care and watching, in this dangerous voyage, he hoped now to enjoy repoſe; inſtead of which he found his colony much reduced by deaths; many of the ſurvivors ſick, with a diſeaſe, the peculiar conſequence of their debauchery; and a large number of them in actual rebellion. They had formed themſelves into a body; they had gained over many of the Indians, under pretence of protecting them; and they had retired to a diſtant part of the iſland, which proved a reſort for the ſeditious and diſcontented. Their commander was Francis Roldan, who had been Chief Juſtice of the colony; and their number was ſo conſiderable, that Columbus could not command a force ſufficient to ſubdue them. He therefore entered into a negociation, by offering a pardon to thoſe who would ſubmit, and liberty of returning to Spain to thoſe who deſired it. Theſe offers, however impolitic, proved ſucceſsful. Roldan himſelf accepted them, and perſuaded others to do the ſame; then, being reſtored to his office, he tried and condemned the refractory, ſome of whom were put to death.

An account of this mutiny was ſent home to Spain by Columbus and another by Roldan. Each had their advocates at court, and the cauſe was heard by the King and Queen. Roldan and his men were accuſed of adultery, perjury, robbery, murder, and diſturbing the peace of the whole iſland; whilſt Columbus was charged with cruelty to individuals, aiming at independence, and engroſſing the tribute. It was inſinuated, that not being a native of Spain, he had no proper reſpect for the noble families, who had become adventurers; and that the debts due to them could not be recovered. It was ſuggeſted, that if ſome remedy were not ſpeedily applied, there was danger that he would revolt, and join with ſome other Prince; and that to compaſs this deſign, he had concealed the real wealth of the colony, and prevented the converſion of the Indians to the Catholic faith.

Theſe inſinuations prevailed on the jealouſy of Ferdinand, and even ſtaggered the conſtancy of Iſabella. They reſolved to appoint a judge, who ſhould examine facts on the ſpot; and if he ſhould find the Admiral guilty, to ſuperſede him. For this purpoſe they ſent Francis Bovadilla, a man of noble rank, but whoſe poverty alone recommended him to the office. Furniſhed with theſe powers, he arrived at St. Domingo, when Columbus was abſent; took lodgings in his houſe; invited accuſers to appear againſt him; ſeized on his effects, and finally ſent him and both his brothers to Spain in three different ſhips, but all loaded with irons.

The maſter of the ſhip in which the Admiral ſailed had ſo much reſpect for him, that, when he had got to ſea, he offered to take off his fetters; but Columbus nobly declared, that he would permit that honour to be done him, by none but his ſovereign. In this humiliating confinement, he was delivered to Fonſeca, Biſhop of Badajos, who had been the chief inſtigator of all theſe rigorous proceedings, and to whom had been committed the affairs of the Indies.

Not content with robbing Columbus of his liberty, this prejudiced eccleſiaſtic would have deprived him of his well earned reputation of having firſt diſcovered the new continent. With the accuſations which Columbus had ſent home againſt Roldan, he had tranſmitted an account of the diſcovery of the coaſt of Paria, which he juſtly ſuppoſed to be part of a continent. Ojeda, an active officer, who had ſailed with Columbus in his ſecond voyage, was at court when theſe diſpatches arrived, and ſaw the draught of the diſcovery, with the ſpecimens of gold and pearls, which the Admiral had ſent home. Being a favourite of Fonſeca, he eaſily obtained leave to purſue the diſcovery. Some merchants of Seville were prevailed upon to equip four ſhips; with which, in 1499, Ojeda followed the track of Columbus, and made land on the coaſt of Paria. Amerigo Veſpucci, a Florentine merchant, well ſkilled in geography and navigation, accompanied Ojeda in this voyage; and by publiſhing the firſt book and chart, deſcribing the new world, obtained the honour of having it called AMERICA. This however did not happen till after the death of Columbus. Several other adventurers followed the ſame track, and all ſuppoſed that the continent which they had ſeen, was part of India.

As ſoon as it was known, that Columbus was arrived at Cadiz, (Nov. 5, 1500) in the diſgraceful ſituation abovementioned, the King and Queen, aſhamed of the orders which they had given, commanded him to be releaſed, and invited him to court, where they apologized for the miſbehaviour of their new Governor, and not only promiſed to recal him, but to reſtore to the Admiral all his effects. Columbus could not forget the ignominy. He preſerved the fetters, hung them up in his apartment, and ordered them to be buried in his grave.

Inſtead of reinſtating him in his government according to the original contract, the King and Queen ſent Ovando, to Hiſpaniola, to ſuperſede Bovadilla; and only indulged Columbus in purſuing his darling project, the diſcovery of India by the weſt, which he ſtill hoped to accompliſh. He ſailed again from Cadiz, on the fourth of May, 1502; with four veſſels, carrying one hundred and forty men and boys; of which number were his brother Bartholomew and his ſon Ferdinand, the writer of his life.

In his paſſage to the Caribbee iſlands, he found his largeſt veſſel, of ſeventy tons, unfit for the ſervice; and therefore went to St. Domingo, in hope of exchanging it for a better, and to ſeek ſhelter from a ſtorm which he ſaw approaching. To his infinite ſurprize and mortification, Ovando would not admit him into the port. A fleet of thirty ſhips was then ready to ſail for Spain, on board of which Roldan and Bovadilla were priſoners. Columbus informed Ovando, of the prognoſtics which he had obſerved, which Ovando diſregarded, and the fleet ſailed. Columbus then laid three of his veſſels, under the lee of the ſhore; and, with great difficulty, rode out the tempeſt. His brother put to ſea; and by his great naval ſkill ſaved the ſhip in which he ſailed. Of the fleet bound to Spain, eighteen ſhips were loſt, and in them periſhed Roldan and Bovadilla.

The enemies of Columbus gave out that he had raiſed this ſtorm by the art of magic; and ſuch was the ignorance of the age, that the ſtory was believed: What contributed the more to its credit, was, that one of the worſt ſhips of the fleet, on board of which were all the effects which had been ſaved from the ruined fortune of Columbus, was the firſt which arrived in Spain. The amount of theſe effects was "four thouſand peſos of gold, each of the value of eight ſhillings." The remark which Ferdinando Columbus makes on this event, ſo deſtructive to the accuſers of his father, is, "I am ſatisfied, it was the hand of GOD, who was pleaſed to infatuate them; that they might not hearken to good advice; for had they arrived in Spain, they had never been puniſhed, as their crimes deſerved; but rather favoured and preferred as being the Biſhop's friends."Chap. 88.

After this ſtorm, and another which followed it, Columbus having collected his little ſquadron, ſailed on diſcovery toward the continent; and, ſteering to the ſouthweſt, came to an iſland called Guanania, twelve leagues from the coaſt of Honduras; where he met with a large covered canoe, having on board ſeveral pieces of cotton cloth of divers colours, which the people ſaid they had brought from the weſtward. The men were armed with ſwords of wood, in which ſharp flints were ſtrongly fixed. Their proviſion was maize and roots, and they uſed the berries of cocoa as money. When the Admiral inquired for gold, they pointed to the weſt, and when he aſked for a ſtrait by which he might paſs through the land, they pointed to the eaſt. From the ſpecimens of coloured cloth, he imagined, that they had come from India; and he hoped to paſs thither, by the ſtrait which they deſcribed. Purſuing his courſe to the eaſt and ſouth, he was led to the gulf of Darien; and viſited ſeveral harbours among which was one which he called Porto Bello; but he found no paſſage extending through the land. He then returned to the weſtward; and landed on the coaſt of Veragua; where the beauty and fertility of the country invited him to begin a plantation, which he called Belem; but the natives, a fierce and formidable race, deprived him of the honour of firſt eſtabliſhing a colony on the continent, by killing ſome of his people and obliging him to retire with the others.

At ſea, he met with tempeſtuous weather of long continuance; in which his ſhips were ſo ſhattered, that with the utmoſt difficulty he kept them above water, till he ran them aſhore on the iſland of Jamaica. By his extraordinary addreſs, he procured from the natives two of their largeſt canoes; in which two of his moſt faithful friends, Mendez and Fieſco, accompanied by ſome of his ſailors and a few Indians, embarked for Hiſpaniola. After encountering the greateſt difficulties, in their paſſage, they carried tidings of his misfortune to Ovando, and ſolicited his aid. The mercileſs wretch detained them eight months, without an anſwer; during which time, Columbus ſuffered the ſevereſt hardſhips, from the diſcontent of his company, and the want of proviſions. By the hoſpitality of the natives, he at firſt received ſuch ſupplies, as they were able to ſpare; but the long continuance of theſe gueſts had diminiſhed their ſtore, and the inſolence of the mutineers gave a check to their friendſhip. In this extremity, the fertile invention of Columbus ſuggeſted an expedient which proved ſucceſsful. He knew that a total eclipſe of the moon was at hand, which would be viſible in the evening. On the preceding day, he ſent for the principal Indians, to ſpeak with them, on a matter of the utmoſt importance. Being aſſembled, he directed his interpreter to tell them, that the GOD of heaven, whom he worſhipped, was angry with them, for witholding proviſion from him, and would puniſh them with famine and peſtilence; as a token of which, the moon would, in the evening, appear of an angry and bloody colour. Some of them received his ſpeech with terror, and others with indifference; but when the moon roſe, and the eclipſe increaſed as ſhe advanced from the horizon, they came in crowds, loaded with proviſion, and begged the Admiral to intercede with his GOD, for the removal of his anger. Columbus retired to his cabin; and when the eclipſe began to go off, he came out and told them, that he had prayed to his GOD, and had received this anſwer; that if they would be good for the future, and bring him proviſion as he ſhould want, GOD would forgive them; and as a token of it, the moon would put on her uſual brightneſs. They gave him thanks, and promiſed compliance; and whilſt he remained on the iſland there was no more want of proviſion.

At the end of eight months, Ovando ſent a ſmall veſſel to Jamaica, with a caſk of wine, two flitches of bacon, and a letter of compliment and excuſe, which the officer delivered; and without waiting for an anſwer, weighed his anchor the ſame evening and ſailed back to Hiſpaniola. The men who adhered to Columbus and were with him on board the wrecks, wondered at the ſudden departure of the veſſel, by which they expected deliverance. Columbus, never at a loſs for an evaſion, told them that the caravel was too ſmall to take the whole company, and he would not go without them. This fiction had the deſired effect; thoſe who adhered to him reſumed their patience; but the mutineers became ſo inſolent that it was neceſſary to ſubdue them by force. In the conteſt ten of them were killed. Porras, their leader, was made priſoner and the others eſcaped. Bartholomew Columbus and two others of the Admiral's party were wounded, of whom one died.

The fugitives, having loſt their leader, thought it beſt to ſubmit; and on the next day ſent a petition to the Admiral, confeſſing their fault, and promiſing fidelity. This promiſe they confirmed by an oath, of which the imprecation was ſingular; "they renounced, in caſe of failure, any abſolution from Prieſt, Biſhop, or Pope, at the time of their death; and all benefit from the ſacraments of the Church; conſenting to be buried like heathens and infidels in the open field." The Admiral received their ſubmiſſion, provided that Porras ſhould continue priſoner, and they would accept a commander of his appointment, as long as they ſhould remain on the iſland.

At length a veſſel, which Mendez had been permitted to buy, with the Admiral's money, at Hiſpaniola, came to Jamaica, and took them off. On their arrival at St. Domingo (Auguſt 13, 1504) Ovando affected great joy, and treated the Admiral with a ſhow of reſpect; but he liberated Porras, and threatened with puniſhment the faithful adherents of Columbus. As ſoon as the veſſel was refitted, the Admiral took leave of his treacherous hoſt, and, with his brother, ſon, and ſervants, embarked for Spain. After a long and diſtreſſing voyage, in which the ſhip loſt her maſts, he arrived at St. Lucar, in May 1505.

His patroneſs Iſabella had been dead about a year; and with her, had expired all the favour which he ever enjoyed in the Court of Ferdinand. Worn out with ſickneſs and fatigue, diſguſted with the inſincerity of his Sovereign, and the haughtineſs of his courtiers, Columbus lingered out a year in fruitleſs ſolicitation for his violated rights; till death relieved him from all his vexations. He died at Valadolid, on the twentieth of May, 1506, in the 59th year of his age; and was buried in the cathedral of Seville, with this inſcription on his Tomb.

A Caſtilla ya Leon, Nuevo Mundo dio Colon.

Tranſlated thus.

To Caſtile and Leon, Columbus gave a new World.

In the life of this remarkable man there is no deficiency of any quality which can conſtitute a truly great character.Some of theſe obſervations are taken from Dr. Campbell's account of European ſettlements in America, Vol. I. Chap. viii. His genius was penetrating, and his judgment ſolid. He had acquired as much knowledge of the ſciences as could be obtained at that day; and he corrected what he had learned, by his own obſervations. His conſtancy and patience were equal to the moſt hazardous undertakings. His fortitude ſurmounted many difficulties; and his invention extricated him out of many perplexities. His prudence enabled him to conceal or ſubdue his own infirmities; whilſt he took advantage of the paſſions of others, adjuſting his behaviour to his circumſtances; temporizing, or acting with vigour, as the occaſion required.

His fidelity to the ungrateful Prince, whom he ſerved, and whoſe dominions he enlarged, muſt render him forever conſpicuous as an example of juſtice; and his attachment to the Queen, by whoſe influence he was raiſed and ſupported, will always be a monument of his gratitude.

To his other excellent qualities may be added his piety. He always entertained, and on proper occaſions expreſſed, a reverence for the Deity, and a firm confidence in his care and protection. In his declining days, the conſolations of religion were his chief ſupport; and his laſt words were, "Into thy hands, O Lord, I commend my ſpirit."

The perſecution and injuſtice which he ſuffered, may be traced up to the contract, which he inſiſted on, before he engaged in the plan of diſcovery. That a foreigner ſhould attain ſo high a rank as to be Viceroy for life, and that the honour of an Admiral ſhould be hereditary in his family, to the excluſion of all the nobles of Spain, was more than their pride and jealouſy could endure; and they conſtantly endeavoured to depreciate his merit; the only foundation on which his honours were erected.

There is a ſtory recorded by Peter Martyr, a contemporary hiſtorian, which exemplifies their malice, and his ingenuity in riſing ſuperior to it. After the death of the Queen, the nobility affected to inſinuate, that his diſcoveries were more the reſult of accident and good fortune, than of any well concerted meaſures. One day at a public dinner, Columbus having borne much inſulting raillery on that head, at length called for an egg, and aſked whether any of them could ſet it upright on its little end. They all confeſſed it to be impoſſible. Columbus ſtriking it gently, flatted the ſhell till it ſtood upright on the table. The company, with a diſdainful ſneer, cryed out, "Any body might have done it."—"Yes (ſaid Columbus) but none of you thought of it; ſo I diſcovered the Indies, and now every pilot can ſteer the ſame courſe. Many things appear eaſy when once performed, though before, they were thought impoſſible. Remember the ſcoffs that were thrown at me, before I put my deſign in execution. Then it was a dream, a chimera, a deluſion; now it is what any body might have done as well as I." When this ſtory was told to Ferdinand, he could not but admire the grandeur of that ſpirit, which at the ſame time he was endeavouring to depreſs.

Writers of different countries have treated the character of Columbus according to their prejudices, either national or perſonal. It is ſurpriſing to obſerve, how theſe prejudices have deſcended; and that even at the diſtance of three centuries, there are ſome, who affect to deny him the virtues for which he was conſpicuous, and the merit of originating a diſcovery, which is an honour to human reaſon. His humanity has been called in queſtion, becauſe he carried dogs to the Weſt Indies, and employed them in extirpating the natives. The truth is, that in his ſecond expedition he was accompanied by a number of gentlemen of the beſt families in Spain; and many more would have gone if it had been poſſible to accommodate them. Theſe gentlemen carried with them "horſes, aſſes and other beaſts, which were of great uſe in a new plantation." The conflict which Columbus had with the natives was in conſequence of the diſorderly conduct of theſe Spaniards; who, in his abſence, had taken their goods, abuſed their women and committed other outrages, which the Indians could not endure, and therefore made war upon them. In this war he found his colony engaged, when he returned from his voyage to Cuba; and there was no way to end it, but by purſuing it with vigour. With two hundred Spaniards, of whom twenty were mounted on "horſes followed by as many dogs," he encountered a numerous body of Indians, eſtimated at one hundred thouſand, on a large plain. He divided his men into two parties, and attacked them on two ſides: the noiſe of the fire arms, ſoon diſperſed them, and the horſes and dogs prevented them from rallying; and thus a complete victory was obtained. In this inſtance alone, were the dogs uſed againſt the natives. They naturally followed their maſters into the field, and the horſes to which they were accuſtomed; but to ſuppoſe that Columbus tranſported them to the Weſt Indies, with a view to deſtroy the Indians, appears altogether idle, when it is conſidered that the number is reckoned only at twenty. Excepting in this inſtance, where he was driven by neceſſity, there is no evidence, that he made war on the natives of the Weſt Indies; on the contrary, he endeavoured as far as poſſible to treat them with juſtice and gentleneſs. The ſame cannot be ſaid of thoſe who ſucceeded him.

Attempts have alſo been made to detract from his merit, as an original diſcoverer of the New World. The moſt ſucceſsful candidate, who has been ſet up as a rival to him, is MARTIN BEHAIM of Nuremberg in Germany. His claim to a prior diſcovery has been ſo well conteſted, and the vanity of it ſo fully expoſed by the late Dr. Robertſon, that I ſhould not have thought of adding any thing to what he has written, had not a memoir appeared in the ſecond volume of the Tranſactions of the American Philoſophical SocietyNo. 35, p. 263 at Philadelphia, in which the pretenſions of Behaim are revived by M. OTTO; who has produced ſome authorities which he had obtained from Nuremberg, an imperial city of Germany, and which appear to him, "to eſtabliſh in the cleareſt manner a diſcovery of America anterior to that of Columbus."

It is conceded that Behaim was a man of learning and enterpriſe; that he was contemporary with Columbus, and was his friend; that he purſued the ſame ſtudies and drew the ſame concluſions; that he was employed by King John II. in making diſcoveries; and, that he met with deſerved honour for the important ſervices which he rendered to the crown of Portugal. But, there are ſuch difficulties attending the ſtory of his diſcovering America, as appear to me inſuperable. Theſe I ſhall ſtate; together with ſome remarks on the authorities produced by M. Otto.

The firſt of his authorities contains ſeveral aſſertions which are contradicted by other hiſtories; Memoirs of Philip de Comines. Mezeray's and Heanult's hiſtory of France. Collier's Dictionary. (1.) That Iſabella, daughter of John, King of Portugal, reigned after the death of Philip, Duke of Burgundy, ſurnamed the Good. (2.) That to this lady, when regent of the Dutchy of Burgundy and Flanders, Behaim paid a viſit in 1459. And (3.) that having informed her of his deſigns, he procured a veſſel in which he made the diſcovery of the iſland of Fayal, in 1460.

It is true that Philip. Duke of Burgundy and Flanders, ſurnamed the Good, married Iſabella the daughter of John I. King of Portugal; but Philip did not die till 1467, and was immediately ſucceeded by his ſon Charles, ſurnamed the Bold, then thirty four years of age. There could therefore have been no interregnum, nor female regent after the death of Philip; and if there had been, the time of Behaim's viſit will not correſpond with it; that being placed in 1459, eight years before the death of Philip. Such a miſtake, in point of fact, and of chronology, is ſufficient to induce a ſuſpicion that the "archives of Nuremberg" are too deficient in accuracy to be depended on as authorities.

With reſpect to the diſcovery of Fayal, in 1460, M. Otto acknowledges that it is "contrary to the received opinion;" and well he might; for the firſt of the Azores, St. Maria, was diſcovered in 1431; the ſecond, St. Michael, in 1444; the third, Terceira, in 1445; and before 1449, the iſlands, St. George, Gracioſa, Fayal and Pico, were known to the Portugueſe.Forſter's hiſtory of voyages and diſcoveries, p. 256, 257, Dublin edition. However true it may be that Behaim ſettled in the iſland of Fayal, and lived there twenty years; yet his claim to the diſcovery of it muſt have a better foundation than the "archives of Nuremberg," before it can be admitted.

The genuine account of the ſettlement of Fayal, and the intereſt which Behaim had in it, is thus related by Dr. Forſter, a German author of much learning and good credit.

"After the death of the infant Don Henry [which happened in 1463,] the iſland of Fayal was made a preſent of by [his ſiſter] Iſabella, Dutcheſs of Burgundy, to Jobſt von Hurter, a native of Nuremberg. Hurter went in 1466, with a colony of more than 2000 Flemings of both ſexes, to his property, the iſle of Fayal. The Dutcheſs had provided the Flemiſh emigrants with all neceſſaries for two years, and the colony ſoon increaſed. About the year 1486, Martin Behaim married a daughter of the Chevalier Jobſt von Hurter, and had a ſon by her named Martin.—Jobſt von Hurter, and Martin Behaim, both natives of Nuremberg, were Lords of Fayal and Pico."Forſter's hiſtory of voyages and diſcoveries, p. 257, 258, 259.

The date of the ſuppoſed diſcovery of America, by Behaim, is placed by M. Otto, in 1484, eight years before the celebrated voyage of Columbus. In the ſame year we are toldGarcilaſſo de la Vega's Royal commentaries. Preface. Purchas. vol. v, p. 1454. that Alonzo Sanchez de Huelva was driven by a ſtorm to the weſtward for twenty nine days; and ſaw an iſland, of which at his return he gave information to Columbus. From both theſe ſuppoſed diſcoveries this concluſion is drawn, "That Columbus would never have thought of this expedition to America, had not Behaim gone there before him." Whether it be ſuppoſed that Behaim and Sanchez ſailed in the ſame ſhip, or that they made a diſcovery of two different parts of America, in the ſame year, it is not eaſy to underſtand from the authorities produced; but what deſtroys the credibility of this plauſible tale, is, that Columbus had formed his theory, and projected his voyage, at leaſt ten years before; as appears by his correſpondence with Paul, a learned phyſician of Florence, which bears date in 1474.Life, chap. viii. It is uncertain at what time Columbus firſt made his application to the King of Portugal, to fit him out for a weſtern voyage; but it is certain that after a negociation with him on the ſubject, and after he had found out the ſecret and unſucceſsful attempt, which had been made to anticipate a diſcovery; he quitted that kingdom in diſguſt, and went into Spain, in the latter end of the year 1484. The authority of theſe facts is unqueſtioned; and from them it fully appears, that a prior diſcovery of America, by Behaim or Sanchez, made in 1484, could not have been the foundation of the enterpriſe of Columbus.

M. Otto ſpeaks of letters written by Behaim in 1486, in the German language, and preſerved in the "archives of Nuremberg" which ſupport this claim to a prior diſcovery. As theſe letters are not produced, no certain opinion can be formed concerning them; but from the date of the letters, and from the voyages which Behaim actually performed in the two preceding years, we may with great probability ſuppoſe, that they related to the diſcovery of Congo, in Africa; to which Behaim has an uncontroverted claim.

I will now ſtate the facts relative to this event, partly from the authorities cited by M. Otto; and partly from others.

Dr. Robertſon places the diſcovery of Congo and Benin in 1483, and with him Dr. Forſter agrees. The authors of the modern univerſal hiſtoryVol. xvi. p. 133, 135. ſpeak of two voyages to that coaſt; the firſt in 1484, the ſecond in 1485; both of which were made by Diego Cam,Diego is the Spaniſh name of James, in Latin Jacobus, and in Portugueſe, Jago. Cam is in Latin, Camus or Ca •• s, and in Spaniſh, Cano; theſe different names are found in different authors. who is ſaid to have been one of the moſt expert ſailors and of an enterpriſing genius. From the chronicle of Hartman Schedl, as quoted by M. Otto, we are informed, that Behaim ſailed with Cam, in theſe voyages, which are deſcribed in the following terms. "Theſe two, by the bounty of heaven, coaſting along the ſouthern ocean, and having croſſed the equator, got into the other hemiſphere; where, facing to the eaſtward, their ſhadows projected toward the ſouth, and right hand." No words could be more completely deſcriptive of a voyage from Portugal to Congo, as any perſon may be ſatisfied by inſpecting a map of Africa; but how could M. Otto imagine that the diſcovery of America was accompliſhed in ſuch a voyage as this? "Having finiſhed this cruize (continues Schedl) in the ſpace of 26 months, they returned to Portugal, with the loſs of many of their ſeamen, by the violence of the climate." This latter circumſtance alſo agrees very well with the climate of the African coaſt;See Brookes Gazetteer, Benin. but Schedl ſays not a word of the diſcovery of America.

M. Otto goes on to tell us "that the moſt poſitive proof of the great ſervices rendered to the crown of Portugal by Behaim, is the recompenſe beſtowed on him by King John II; who, in the moſt ſolemn manner, knighted him, in the preſence of all his court." Then follows a particular detail of the ceremony of inſtallation, as performed on the 18th of February, 1485, and M. Otto fairly owns that this was "a reward for the diſcovery of Congo." Now let us bring the detached parts of the ſtory together.

Behaim was knighted on the 18th of February, 1485, for the diſcovery of Congo, in which he had been employed 26 months preceding; having within that time made two voyages thither, in company with Diego Cam. It will follow then that the whole of the preceding years, 1484 and 1483, were taken up in theſe two voyages. This agrees very well with the accounts of the diſcovery of Congo, in Robertſon and Forſter, and does not diſagree with the modern univerſal hiſtory, as far as the year 1484 is concerned; which unfortunately is the year aſſigned for Behaim's diſcovery of "that part of America called Braſil, and his ſailing even to the ſtraits of Magellan."

The only thing in M. Otto's memoir which bears any reſemblance to a ſolution of this difficulty is this. "We may ſuppoſe that Behaim, engaged in an expedition to Congo, was driven by the winds to Fernambouc, and from thence by the currents toward the coaſt of Guiana." But ſuppoſitions without proof will avail little; and ſuppoſitions againſt proof will avail nothing. The two voyages to Congo are admitted. The courſe is deſcribed; and the time is determined; and both theſe are directly oppoſed to the ſuppoſition of his being driven by winds and currents to America. For if he had been driven out of his courſe and had ſpent "ſeveral years in examining the American iſlands, and diſcovering the ſtrait which bears the name of Magellan;" and if one of thoſe years was the year 1484, then he could not have ſpent 26 months preceding February, 1485, in the diſcovery of Congo; but of this we have full and ſatisfactory evidence; the diſcovery of America therefore muſt be given up.

There is one thing further in this memoir which deſerves a particular remark, and that is the reaſon aſſigned by M. Otto, for which the King of Portugal declined the propoſal of Columbus to ſail to India by the weſt. "The refuſal of John II. is a proof of the knowledge which that politic prince had already procured, of the exiſtence of a new continent, which offered him only barren lands, inhabited by unconquerable ſavages." This knowledge is ſuppoſed to have been derived from the diſcoveries made by Behaim. But, not to urge again the chronological difficulty with which this conjecture is embarraſſed, I will take notice of two circumſtances in the life of Columbus, which militate with this idea. The firſt is, that when Columbus had propoſed a weſtern voyage to King John, and he declined it, "The King, by the advice of one Doctor Calzadilla, reſolved to ſend a caravel privately, to attempt that which Columbus had propoſed to him; becauſe in caſe thoſe countries were ſo diſcovered, he thought himſelf not obliged to beſtow any great reward. Having ſpeedily equipped a caravel, which was to carry ſupplies to the iſlands of Cabo Verde, he ſent it that way which the Admiral propoſed to go. But thoſe whom he ſent wanted the knowledge, conſtancy and ſpirit of the Admiral. After wandering many days upon the ſea, they turned back to the iſlands of Cabo Verde, laughing at the undertaking, and ſaying it was impoſſible there ſhould he any land in thoſe ſeas."Life of Columbus, chap. xi.

Afterward, "the King being ſenſible how faulty they were whom he had ſent with the caravel, had a mind to reſtore the Admiral to his favour, and deſired that he ſhould renew the diſcourſe of his enterprize; but not being ſo diligent to put this in execution, as the Admiral was in getting away, he loſt that good opportunity; the Admiral, about the end of the year 1484, ſtole away privately out of Portugal for fear of being ſtopped by the King." This account does not agree with the ſuppoſition of a prior diſcovery.

The other circumſtance is an interview which Columbus had with the people of Liſbon, and the King of Portugal, on his return from his firſt voyage. For it ſo happened that Columbus on his return was by ſtreſs of weather obliged to take ſhelter in the port of Liſbon; and as ſoon as it was known that he had come from the Indies, "the people thronged to ſee the natives whom he had brought and hear the news; ſo that the caravel would not contain them. Some of them praiſing God for ſo great a happineſs; others ſtorming that they had loſt the diſcovery through their King's incredulity."

When the King ſent for Columbus, "he was doubtful what to do; but to take off all ſuſpicion that he came from his conqueſts, he conſented." At the interview, "the King offered him all that he ſtood in need of for the ſervice of their Catholic Majeſties, though he thought, that foraſmuch as he had been a Captain in Portugal, that conqueſt belonged to him. To which the Admiral anſwered, that he knew of no ſuch agreement, and that he had ſtrictly obſerved his orders, which were not to go to the mines of Portugal, [the gold coaſt] nor to Guinea."Life, chap. xli. Had John II. heard of Behaim's voyage to a weſtern continent, would he not have claimed it by priority of diſcovery, rather than by the commiſſion which Columbus had formerly borne in his ſervice? Had ſuch a prior diſcovery been made, could it have been concealed from the people of Liſbon? And would they have been angry that their King had loſt it by his incredulity? Theſe circumſtances appear to me to carry ſufficient evidence, that no diſcovery of America prior to that of Columbus had come to the knowledge of the King of Portugal.

In anſwer to the queſtion "Why are we ſearching the archives of an imperial city for the cauſes of an event, which took place in the weſtern extremity of Europe?" M. Otto gives us to underſtand, that "from the fourteenth to the ſixteenth centuries, the Germans were the beſt geographers, the beſt hiſtorians and the moſt enlightened politicians." Not to detract from the merit of the German literati of thoſe ages, I think we may give equal credit to a learned German author of the preſent age, Dr. John Reinhold Forſter; who appears to have a thorough underſtanding of the claims not only of his own countrymen, but of others. In his indefatigable reſearches into the diſcoveries which have been made by all nations, though he has given due credit to the adventures of Behaim in Congo and Fayal, yet he has not ſaid one word of his viſiting America; which he certainly would have done, if in his opinion there had been any foundation for it.

LETTERS from PAUL, a Phyſician of Florence, to CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, concerning the Diſcovery of the Indies.

LETTER I. To CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, PAUL the Phyſician wiſheth health.

I PERCEIVE your noble and earneſt deſire to ſail to thoſe parts where the ſpice is produced; and therefore in anſwer to a letter of yours, I ſend you another letter, which ſome days ſince I wrote to a friend of mine, and ſervant to the King of Portugal, before the wars of Caſtile, in anſwer to another he wrote to me by his highneſs's order, upon this ſame account; and I ſend you another ſea chart like that I ſent him, which will ſatisfy your demands. The copy of the letter is this.

To FERDINAND MARTINEZ, canon of Liſbon, PAUL the Phyſician wiſheth health.

I AM very glad to hear of the familiarity you have with your moſt ſerene and magnificent King; and though I have very often diſcourſed concerning the ſhort way there is from hence to the Indies, where the ſpice is produced, by ſea, which I look upon to be ſhorter than that you take by the coaſt of Guinea; yet you now tell me that his highneſs would have me make out and demonſtrate it, ſo as it may be underſtood and put in practice. Therefore, though I could better ſhow it him with a globe in my hand, and make him ſenſible of the figure of the world; yet I have reſolved to render it more eaſy and intelligible, to ſhow this way upon a chart, ſuch as are uſed in navigation; and therefore I ſend one to his majeſty, made and drawn with my own hand; wherein is ſet down the utmoſt bounds of the weſt, from Ireland in the north, to the fartheſt part of Guinea, with all the iſlands that lie in the way. Oppoſite to which weſtern coaſt is deſcribed the beginning of the Indies, with the iſlands and places whither you may go, and how far you may bend from the north pole toward the equinoctial, and for how long a time; that is, how many leagues you may ſail, before you come to thoſe places moſt fruitful in all ſorts of ſpice, jewels and precious ſtones. Do not wonder if I term that country, where the ſpice grows, weſt, that product being generally aſcribed to the eaſt; becauſe thoſe who ſhall ſail weſtward will always find thoſe places in the weſt; and they that travel by land eaſtward will ever find thoſe places in the eaſt. The ſtrait lines that lie lengthways in the chart, ſhew the diſtance there is from weſt to eaſt; the others croſs them, ſhew the diſtance from north to ſouth. I have alſo marked down in the ſaid chart, ſeveral places in India, where ſhips might put in upon any ſtorm, or contrary winds, or any other accident unforeſeen.

Moreover to give you full information of all thoſe places which you are very deſirous to know; you muſt underſtand, that none but traders live or reſide in all thoſe iſlands, and that there is as great number of ſhips and ſeafaring people with merchandiſe, as in any other part of the world; particularly in a moſt noble port called Zacton, where there are every year a hundred large ſhips of pepper, loaded and unloaded, beſides many other ſhips that take in other ſpice.

This country is mighty populous, and there are many provinces and kingdoms, and innumerable cities under the dominion of a prince called the Kham, which name ſignifies, King of Kings; who for the moſt part reſides in the Province of Cathay. His predeceſſors were very deſirous to have commerce and be in amity with Chriſtians; and 200 years ſince, ſent ambaſſadors to the Pope; deſiring him to ſend them many learned men and doctors to teach them our faith; but by reaſon of ſome obſtacles the ambaſſadors met with, they returned back, without coming to Rome.

Beſides, there came an ambaſſador to Pope Eugenius IV. who told him the great friendſhip there was between thoſe princes, their people, and the Chriſtians. I diſcourſed with him a long while upon the ſeveral matters of the grandeur of their royal ſtructures, and of the greatneſs, length and breadth of their rivers. He told me many wonderful things of the multitude of towns and cities founded along the banks of the rivers; and that there were 200 cities upon one river only, with marble bridges over it, of a great length and breadth, and adorned with abundance of pillars. This country deſerves as well as any other to be diſcovered; and there may not only be great profit made there, and many things of value found, but alſo gold, ſilver, all ſorts of precious ſtones, and ſpices in abundance, which are not brought into our parts. And it is certain, that many wiſe men, philoſophers, aſtrologers, and other perſons ſkilled in all arts, and very ingenious, govern that mighty province, and command their armies.

From Liſbon directly weſtward, there are in the chart 26 ſpaces, each of which contains 250 miles, to the moſt noble and vaſt city of Quiſay, which is 100 miles in compaſs, that is 35 leagues; in it there are ten marble bridges. The name ſignifies a heavenly city; of which, wonderful things are reported, as to the ingenuity of the people, the buildings and the revenues. This ſpace abovementioned is almoſt the third part of the globe. This city is in the province of Mango, bordering on that of Cathay, where the King for the moſt part reſides.

From the iſland Antilla, which you call the ſeven cities, and of which you have ſome knowledge, to the moſt noble iſland of Cipango are ten ſpaces, which make 2500 miles, or 225 leagues; which iſland abounds in gold, pearls and precious ſtones; and you muſt underſtand, they cover their temples and palaces with plates of pure gold. So that for want of knowing the way, all theſe things are hidden and concealed, and yet may be gone to with ſafety.

Much more might be ſaid, but having told you what is moſt material, and you being wiſe and judicious, I am ſatisfied there is nothing of it, but what you underſtand, and therefore I will not be more prolix. Thus much may ſerve to ſatisfy your curioſity, it being as much as the ſhortneſs of time and my buſineſs would permit me to ſay. So I remain moſt ready to ſatisfy and ſerve his highneſs to the utmoſt in all the commands he ſhall lay upon me.

Florence, June 25, 1474.

LETTER II. To CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, PAUL the Phyſician wiſheth health.

I RECEIVED your letters with the things you ſent me, which I ſhall take as a great favour, and commend your noble and ardent deſire of ſailing from eaſt to weſt, as it is marked out in the chart I ſent you, which would demonſtrate itſelf better in the form of a globe.

I am glad it is well underſtood, and that the voyage laid down is not only poſſible but true, certain, honourable, very advantageous and moſt glorious among all Chriſtians. You cannot be perfect in the knowledge of it, but by experience and practice, as I have had in great meaſure, and by the ſolid and true information of worthy and wiſe men, who have come from thoſe parts to this court of Rome; and from merchants who have traded long in thoſe parts and are perſons of good reputation. So that when the ſaid voyage is performed, it will be to powerful kingdoms, and to the moſt noble cities and provinces; rich and abounding in all things we ſtand in need of, particularly in all ſorts of ſpice in great quantities, and ſtore of jewels.

This will moreover be grateful to thoſe kings and princes, who are very deſirous to converſe and trade with Chriſtians of theſe our countries, whether it be for ſome of them to become Chriſtians, or elſe to have communication with the wiſe and ingenious men of theſe parts, as well in point of religion, as in all ſciences, becauſe of the extraordinary account they have of the kingdoms and government of theſe parts. For which reaſons, and many more that might be alleged, I do not at all admire, that you who have a great heart, and all the Portugueſe nation, which has ever had notable men in all undertakings, be eagerly bent upon performing this voyage.

V. JOHN CABOT AND SEBASTIAN CABOT.

THE economical diſpoſition of Henry VII, King of England, induced him to preſerve tranquillity in his dominions, which greatly contributed to the increaſe of commerce and manufactures; and to bring thither merchants from all parts of Europe. The Lombards and the Venetians were remarkably numerous; the former of whom had a ſtreet in London appropriated to them and called by their name.Forſter's northern Voyages, p. 2 • 6.

Among the Venetians reſident there at that time was JOHN CABOT, a man perfectly ſkilled in all the ſciences requiſite to form an accompliſhed mariner.Campbell's Lives of Admirals, i.336. He had three ſons, Lewis, SEBASTIAN and Sanctius,Hakluyt. III. all of whom he educated in the ſame manner. Lewis and Sanctius became eminent men, and ſettled, the one at Genoa, the other at Venice. Of Sebaſtian a farther account will be given.

The famous diſcovery made by Columbus cauſed great admiration and much diſcourſe, in the court of Henry, and among the merchants of England. To find a way to India by the weſt, had long been a problem with men of ſcience as well as a deſideratum in the mercantile intereſt. The way was then ſuppoſed to be opened; and the ſpecimens of gold, which Columbus had brought home, excited the warmeſt deſire of purſuing that diſcovery.

Cabot, by his knowledge of the globe, ſuppoſed that a ſhorter way might be found from England to India, by the northweſt. Having communicated his project to the King, it was favourably received; and on the fifth of March 1496, a commiſſion was granted to "John Cabot, and his three ſons, their heirs and deputies, giving them liberty to ſail to all parts of eaſt, weſt, and north, under the royal banners, and enſigns; to diſcover countries of the heathen, unknown to chriſtians; to ſet up the King's banners there; to occupy and poſſeſs as his ſubjects, ſuch places as they could ſubdue; giving them the rule and juriſdiction of the ſame, to be holden on condition of paying to the King, as often as they ſhould arrive at Briſtol, (at which place only they were permitted to arrive) in wares and merchandiſe, one fifth part of all their gains; with exemption from all cuſtoms and duties on ſuch merchandiſe as ſhould be brought from their diſcoveri •• ."

After the granting of this commiſſion, the King gave orders for fitting out two caravels for the purpoſe of the diſcovery. Theſe were victualled at the public expenſe; and freighted by the merchants of London and Briſtol, with coarſe cloths and other articles of traffic. The whole company conſiſted of three hundred men.

With this equipment, in the beginning of May 1497,There is no good account of this voyage written by any contemporary author. It is therefore collected from ſeveral who have ſet down facts without much order or preciſion. To reconcile their contradictions, and deduce concluſions from what they have related, requires much trouble; and leaves an uncertainty with reſpect to particular circumſtances; though the principal facts are well aſcertained. John Cabot and his ſon Sebaſtian ſailed from Briſtol towards the northweſt, till they reached the latitude of 58°; where meeting with floating ice, and the weather being ſeverely cold, they altered their courſe to the ſouthweſt; not expecting to find any land, till they ſhould arrive at Cathay, the northern part of China, from whence they intended to paſs ſouthward to India.

On the 24th of June, very early in the morning, they were ſurprized with the ſight of land; which, being the firſt that they had ſeen, they called Prima Viſta. The deſcription of it is given in theſe words. "The iſland which lieth out before the land, he called St. John, becauſe it was diſcovered on the day of St. John, the Baptiſt. The inhabitants of this iſland wear beaſts' ſkins. In their wars, they uſe bows, arrows, pikes, darts, wooden clubs, and ſlings. The ſoil is barren in ſome places and yieldeth little fruit; but is full of white bears and ſtags, far greater than ours. It yieldeth plenty of fiſh, and thoſe very great, as ſeals and ſalmons. There are ſoles above a yard in length; but eſpecially there is great abundance of that kind of fiſh which the ſavages call Bacalao. (Cod.) In the ſame iſland are hawks and eagles, as black as ravens; alſo partridges. The inhabitants had great plenty of copper."Hakluyt iii, 6. Purchas iv, 807.

This land is generally ſuppoſed to be ſome part of the iſland of Newfoundland; and Dr. Forſter thinks that the name, Prima Viſta, was afterward changed to Bona Viſta, now the northern cape of Trinity bay, in Latitude 48° 50.′ Peter Martyr's account is, that Cabot called the land, Bacalaos; and there is a ſmall iſland off the ſouth cape of Trinity bay, which bears that name. Mr. Prince, in his chronology, (citing Galvanus for an authority) ſays, that the land diſcovered by Cabot was in latitude 45°. If this were true, the firſt diſcovery was made on the peninſula of Nova Scotia; and as they coaſted the land northward, they muſt have gone into the gulf of St. Lawrence, in purſuit of their northweſt paſſage.

The beſt accounts of the voyage preſerved by Hakluyt and Purchas, ſay nothing of the latitude of Prima Viſta; but ſpeak of their ſailing northward after they had made the land, as far as 67°. Stowe, in his chronicle,Reign of Hen. vii. An. 14, p. 872. ſays it was on the "north ſide of Terra de Labrador." This courſe muſt have carried them far up the ſtrait which ſeparates Greenland from the continent of America.

Finding the land ſtill ſtretching to the northward, and the weather very cold in the month of July; the men became uneaſy, and the commanders found it neceſſary to return to Bacalaos. Having here refreſhed themſelves, they coaſted the land ſouthward, till they came into the ſame latitude with the ſtraits of Gibraltar 36°, or according to ſome, no farther than 38°, when their proviſions falling ſhort, they returned to England; bringing three of the Savages as a preſent to the King. "They were clothed with the ſkins of beaſts, and lived on raw fleſh; but after two years, were ſeen in the King's court clothed like Engliſhmen, and could not be diſcerned from Engliſhmen."Stowe Reign of Hen. vii, page 875, Anno Regni 18.

Nothing more is ſaid of John Cabot, the father; and ſome hiſtorians aſcribe the whole of this diſcovery to Sebaſtian only; but at the time of this voyage he could not have been more than twenty years old; when, though he might accompany his father, yet he was too young to undertake ſuch an expedition himſelf. The voyage having produced no ſpecimens of gold; and the King being engaged in a controverſy with Scotland, no farther encouragement was given to the ſpirit of diſcovery.

After the King's death, Sebaſtian Cabot was invited to Spain, and was received in a reſpectful manner by King Ferdinand and Queen Iſabella. In their ſervice he ſailed on a voyage of diſcovery to the ſouthern parts of the New Continent; and having viſited the coaſt of Braſil, entered a great river to which he gave the name of Rio de la Plata. He ſailed up this river one hundred and twenty leagues; and found it divided into many branches; the ſhores of which were inhabited by numerous people.

After this, he made other voyages, of which no particular memorials remain. He was honoured by Ferdinand, with a commiſſion of Grand Pilot; and was one of the council of the Indies. His reſidence was in the city of Seville. His character was gentle, friendly and ſocial. His employment was the drawing of charts; on which he delineated all the new diſcoveries made by himſelf and others. Peter Martyr ſpeaks of him as his friend, with whom he loved familiarly to converſe."Familiarem habeo domi CABOTUM ipſum, et interdum contubernalem." Decad. iii, chap. vi.

In his advanced age, he returned to England, and reſided at Briſtol. By the favour of the Duke of Somerſet, he was introduced to King Edward VI, who took great delight in his converſation, and ſettled on him a penſion of £166. 13ſ. 4d. per annum for life. He was appointed governor of a company of merchants, aſſociated for the purpoſe of making diſcoveries of unknown countries.Hakluyt I.268, III.10. This is a proof of the great eſteem, in which he was held as a man of knowledge and experience in his profeſſion. He had a ſtrong perſuaſion that a paſſage might be found to China, by the northeaſt, and warmly patroniſed the attempt made by Sir Hugh Willoughby in 1553 to explore the northern ſeas, for that purpoſe. There is ſtill extant a complete ſet of inſtructions drawn and ſubſcribed by Cabot, for the direction of the voyage to Cathay, which affords the cleareſt proof of his ſagacity and penetration.Ibid I.226. But though this, as well as all other attempts of the kind, proved ineffectual to the principal end in view, yet it was the means of opening a trade with Ruſſia, which proved very beneficial to the company.

The laſt account which we have of Sebaſtian is, that in 1556, when the company were ſending out a veſſel called the Search-thrift, under the command of Stephen Burrough, for diſcovery; the Governour made a viſit on board; which is thus related in the journal of the voyage as preſerved by Hakluyt.Vol. i, p. 274.

"The 27th of April, being Monday, the Right Worſhipful Sebaſtian Cabota came aboard our pinnace, at Graveſend; accompanied with divers gentlemen and gentlewomen; who, after they had viewed our pinnace, and taſted of ſuch cheer as we could make them, went aſhore, giving to our mariners right liberal rewards. The good old gentleman Maſter Cabota gave to the poor moſt liberal alms, wiſhing them to pray for the good fortune and proſperous ſucceſs of the Search-thrift, our pinnace. And then at the ſign of St. Chriſtopher, he and his friends banqueted; and made me and them that were in the company great cheer; and for very joy that he had to ſee the towardneſs of our intended diſcovery, he entered into the dance himſelf, among the reſt of the young and luſty company; which being ended, he and his friends departed, moſt gently commending us to the governance of Almighty GOD."

According to the calculation of his age by Dr. Campbell, he muſt at that time have been about eighty years old.

He was one of the moſt extraordinary men of the age in which he lived. By his ingenuity and induſtry, he enlarged the bounds of ſcience and promoted the intereſt of the Engliſh nation. Dr. Campbell ſuppoſes it was he who firſt took notice of the variation of the magnetic needle.Lives of Admirals, i.419. It had been obſerved in the firſt voyage of Columbus to the Weſt Indies; though probably Cabot might not have known it, till after he had made the ſame diſcovery.

VI. JAMES CARTIER.

THOUGH the Engliſh did not proſecute the diſcovery made by the Cabots, nor avail themſelves of the only advantages which it could have afforded them; yet their neighbours of Brittany,It is ſuppoſed that the iſland of Cape Breton took its name from the Bretons, the fiſhermen of Brittany. Normandy and Biſcay wiſely purſued the track of thoſe adventurers and took vaſt quantities of cod on the banks of Newfoundland.

In 1524, John Verazzani, a Florentine, in the ſervice of France, ranged the coaſt of the new continent from Florida to Newfoundland, and gave it the name of New France. In a ſubſequent voyage he was cut to pieces and devoured by the ſavages.

It is remarkable that the three great European kingdoms Spain, England and France, made uſe of three Italians to conduct their diſcoveries: Columbus, a Genoeſe; Cabot, a Venetian; and Verazzani, a Florentine. This is a proof that among the Italians there were at that time perſons ſuperior in maritime knowledge to the other nations of Europe; though the penurious ſpirit of thoſe republics, their mutual jealouſy and petty wars, made them overlook the benefits reſulting from extenſive enterpriſes, and leave the vaſt regions of the new world to be occupied by others.

The voyages of Verazzani having produced no addition to the revenue of France; all further attempts to perfect his diſcoveries were laid aſide; but the fiſhery being found conducive to the commercial intereſt, it was at length conceived, that a plantation in the neighbourhood of the banks might be advantageous. This being repreſented to King Francis I, by Chabot the Admiral, JAMES CARTIERHis name is ſometimes written Quartier. of St. Malo, was commiſſioned to explore the country, with a view to find a place for a colony.Forſter's northern voyages, p. 435.

On the 20th of April 1534, he ſailed from St. Malo with two ſhips of ſixty tons, and 122 men; and on the tenth of May came in ſight of Bonaviſta, on the iſland of Newfoundland. But the ice which lay along the ſhore obliged him to go ſouthward; and he entered a harbour to which he gave the name of St. Catharine;Called in ſome maps Catalina. where he waited for fair weather, and fitted his boats.

As ſoon as the ſeaſon would permit he ſailed northward, and examined ſeveral harbours and iſlands, on the coaſt of Newfoundland; in one of which he found ſuch a quantity of birds, that in half an hour, two boats were loaded with them; and after they had eaten as many as they could, five or ſix barrels full were ſalted for each ſhip. This place was called Bird Iſland.

Having paſſed Cape de Grat, the northern extremity of the land; he entered the ſtraits of Belliſle and viſited ſeveral harbours on the oppoſite coaſt of Labrador, one of which he called Cartier's Sound. The harbour is deſcribed as one of the beſt in the world; but the land is ſtigmatized as the place to which Cain was baniſhed; no vegetation being produced among the rocks, but thorns and moſs. Yet, bad as it was, there were inhabitants in it, who lived by catching ſeals, and ſeemed to be a wandering tribe.Hakluyt, vol. iii, p. 201—211.

In circumnavigating the great iſland of Newfoundland, they found the weather in general cold; but when they had croſſed the gulf in a ſouthweſterly direction to the continent, they came into a deep bay, where the climate was ſo warm, that they named it Baye de Chaleur, or the Bay of Heat. Here were ſeveral kinds of wild berries, roſes and meadows of graſs. In the freſh waters they caught ſalmon in great plenty.

Having ſearched in vain for a paſſage through the bay, they quitted it, and ſailed along the coaſt, eaſtward, till they came to the ſmaller bay of Gaſpè; where they ſought ſhelter from a tempeſt, and were detained twelve days in the month of July. In this place Cartier performed the ceremony of taking poſſeſſion for the King of France. A croſs of thirty feet high was erected on a point of land. On this croſs was ſuſpended a ſhield, with the arms of France and the words Vive le Roy de France. Before it, the people kneeled, uncovered; with their hands extended, and their eyes lifted toward heaven. The natives, who were preſent, beheld the ceremony at firſt with ſilent admiration; but after a while, an old man, clad in a bear's ſkin, made ſigns to them that the land was his, and that they ſhould not have it, without his leave. They then informed him by ſigns, that the croſs was intended only as a mark of direction, by which they might again find the port; and they promiſed to return the next year, and to bring iron and other commodities.

They thought it proper however to conciliate the old man's good will, by entertaining him on board the ſhip and making him ſeveral preſents; by which means, they ſo prevailed on him, that he permitted Cartier to carry two of his ſons, young men, to France, on the ſecurity of a promiſe that he would bring them back, at his return the next ſpring.

From Gaſpè, he ſailed ſo far into the Great River, afterward called St. Lawrence, as to diſcover land on the oppoſite ſide; but the weather being boiſterous, and the current ſetting againſt him, he thought it beſt to return to Newfoundland, and then to France; where he arrived ſafe in the harbour of St. Malo on the fifth of September.

The diſcoveries made in this voyage excited farther curioſity; and the Vice Admiral Melleraye repreſented Cartier's merits to the King, ſo favourably, as to procure for him a more ample equipment. Three ſhips, one of 120, one of 60 and one of 40 tons, were deſtined to perform another voyage, in the enſuing ſpring; and ſeveral young men of diſtinction entered as volunteers, to ſeek adventures in the new world. When they were ready to ſail, the whole company, after the example of Columbus, went in proceſſion to church, on Whitſunday, where the Biſhop of St. Malo pronounced his bleſſing on them. They ſailed on the 19th of May 1535. Meeting with tempeſtuous weather, the ſhips were ſeparated; and did not join again, till Cartier in the largeſt ſhip arrived at Bird Iſland; where he again filled his boats with fowls, and on the 26th of July was joined by the other veſſels.

From Bird Iſland they purſued the ſame courſe as in the preceding ſummer; and having come into the gulf on the weſtern ſide of Newfoundland, gave it the name of St. Lawrence. Here they ſaw abundance of whales. Paſſing between the iſland of Aſſumption (ſince called Anticoſti) and the northern ſhore, they ſailed up the great river, till they came to a branch on the northern ſide, which the young natives who were on board called Saguenay; the main river they told him would carry him to Hochelaga, the capital of the whole country.

After ſpending ſome time in exploring the northern coaſt, to find an opening to the northward; in the beginning of September, he ſailed up the river and diſcovered ſeveral iſlands; one of which, from the multitude of filberts, he called Coudres; and another, from the vaſt quantity of grapes, he named Bacchus, (now Orleans.) This iſland was full of inhabitants who ſubſiſted by fiſhing.

When the ſhips had come to anchor between the N. W. ſide of the iſland and the main, Cartier went on ſhore with his two young Savages. The people of the country were at firſt afraid of them; but hearing the youths ſpeak to them in their own language, they became ſociable, and brought eels and other fiſh, with a quantity of Indian corn in ears, for the refreſhment of their new gueſts; in return for which, they were preſented with ſuch European baubles as were pleaſing to them.

The next day, Donacona, the prince of the place, came to viſit them, attended by twelve boats; but keeping ten of them at a diſtance, he approached with two only, containing ſixteen men. In the true ſpirit of hoſpitality, he made a ſpeech, accompanied with ſignificant geſtures, welcoming the French to his country and offering his ſervice to them. The young ſavages, Taignoagni and Domagaia anſwered him, reporting all which they had ſeen in France, at which he appeared to be pleaſed. Then approaching the Captain, who held out his hand, he kiſſed it, and laid it round his own neck, in token of friendſhip. Cartier, on his part, entertained Donacona with bread and wine, and they parted mutually pleaſed.

The next day Cartier went up in his boat to find a harbour for his ſhips; the ſeaſon being ſo far advanced that it became neceſſary to ſecure them. At the weſt end of the iſle of Bacchus, he found "a goodly and pleaſant ſound, where is a little river and haven; about three fathom deep at high water." To this he gave the name of St. Croix, and determined there to lay up his ſhips.

Near this place was a village called Stadacona, of which Donacona was the Lord. It was environed with foreſt trees, ſome of which bore fruit; and under the trees, was a growth of wild hemp. As Cartier was returning to his ſhips, he had another ſpecimen of the hoſpitable manners of the natives. A company of people, of both ſexes, met him on the ſhore of the little river, ſinging and dancing up to their knees in water. In return for their courteſy, he gave them knives and beads; and they continued their muſic till he was beyond hearing it.

When Cartier had brought his ſhips to the harbour and ſecured them, he intimated his intention to paſs in his boats up the river to Hochelaga. Donacona was loth to part with him; and invented ſeveral artifices to prevent his going thither. Among others, he contrived to dreſs three of his men in black and white ſkins, with horns on their heads and their faces beſmeared with coal, to make them reſemble infernal ſpirits. They were put into a canoe and paſſed by the ſhips; brandiſhing their horns and making an unintelligible harrangue. Donacona, with his people, purſued and took them, on which they fell down as if dead. They were carried aſhore into the woods, and all the ſavages followed them. A long diſcourſe enſued, and the concluſion of the farce was, that theſe demons had brought news from the God of Hochelaga, that his country was ſo full of ſnow and ice, that whoever ſhould adventure thither would periſh with the cold. The artifice afforded diverſion to the French, but was too thin to deceive them. Cartier determined to proceed; and on the 19th of September, with his pinnace and two boats, began his voyage up the river to Hochelaga.

Among the woods on the margin of the river were many vines loaded with ripe grapes, than which nothing could be a more welcome ſight to Frenchmen, though the fruit was not ſo delicious as they had been uſed to taſte in their own country. Along the banks were many huts of the natives; who made ſigns of joy as they paſſed; preſented them with fiſh; piloted them through narrow channels; carried them aſhore on their backs, and helped them to get off their boats when aground. Some preſented their children to them, and ſuch as were of proper age were accepted.

The water at that time of the year being low, their paſſage was rendered difficult; but by the friendly aſſiſtance of the natives they ſurmounted the obſtructions. On the 28th of September they paſſed the rapids between the iſlands in the upper part of the lake Angolême, (now called St. Peters) and on the ſecond of October they arrived at the iſland of Hochelaga; where they had been expected, and preparations were made to give them a welcome reception. About a thouſand perſons came to meet them, ſinging and dancing, the men on one ſide, the women on the other, and the children in a diſtinct body. Preſents of fiſh and other victuals were brought, and in return were given knives, beads and other trinkets. The Frenchmen lodged the firſt night in their boats, and the natives watched on the ſhore, dancing round their fires during the whole night.

The next morning Cartier, with twenty five of his company, went to viſit the town, and were met on the way by a perſon of diſtinction, who bad them welcome. To him they gave two hatchets and two knives, and hung over his neck a croſs which they taught him to kiſs. As they proceeded, they paſſed through groves of oak, from which the acorns were fallen and lay thick on the ground. After this they came to fields of ripe corn, ſome of which was gathered. In the midſt of theſe fields was ſituate the town of Hochelaga.

It was of a round form, encompaſſed with three lines of paliſades, through which was one entrance, well ſecured with ſtakes and bars. On the inſide was a rampart of timber, to which were aſcents by ladders, and heaps of ſtones were laid in proper places for defence. In the town were about fifty long huts built with ſtakes and covered with bark. In the middle of each hut was a fire, round which were lodging places, floored with bark and covered with ſkins. In the upper part was a ſcaffold, on which they dried and preſerved their corn. To prepare it for eating, they pounded it in wooden mortars, and having mixed it with water, baked it on hot ſtones. Beſides corn they had beans, ſquaſhes and pumpkins. They dried their fiſh and preſerved them in troughs. Theſe people lived chiefly by tillage and fiſhing, and ſeldom went far from home. Thoſe on the lower parts of the river were more given to hunting, and conſidered the Lord of Hochelaga as their ſovereign, to whom they paid tribute.

When the new gueſts were conducted to an open ſquare in the centre of the town; the females came to them, rubbing their hands and faces, weeping with joy at their arrival, and bringing their children to be touched by the ſtrangers. They ſpread mats for them on the ground, whilſt the men ſeated themſelves in a large circle on the outſide. The King was then brought in a litter, on the ſhoulders of ten men, and placed on a mat next to the French Captain. He was about fifty years old, and had no mark of diſtinction but a coronet made of porcupine's quills dyed red; which he took off and gave to the Captain, requeſting him to rub his arms and legs which were trembling with a palſy. Several perſons, blind, lame, and withered with age, were alſo brought to be touched; as if they ſuppoſed that their new gueſts were meſſengers from heaven inveſted with a power of healing diſeaſes. Cartier gratified them as well as he could, by laying his hands on them and repeating ſome devotional paſſages from a ſervice book, which he had in his pocket; accompanying his ejaculations with ſignificant geſtures, and lifting up his eyes to heaven. The natives attentively obſerved and imitated all his motions.

Having performed this ceremony, he deſired the men, women and children to arrange themſelves in ſeparate bodies. To the men he gave hatchets, to the women beads, and to the children rings. He then ordered his drums and trumpets to ſound, which highly pleaſed the company and ſet them to dancing.

Being deſirous of aſcending the hill, under which the town was built, the natives conducted them to the ſummit; where they were entertained with a moſt extenſive and beautiful proſpect of mountains, woods, iſlands and waters. They obſerved the courſe of the river above, and ſome falls of water in it; and the natives informed them that they might ſail on it for three months; that it ran through two or three great lakes, beyond which was a ſea of freſh water, to which they knew of no bounds; and that on the other ſide of the mountains there was another river which ran in a contrary direction to the ſouthweſt, through a country full of delicious fruits and free from ſnow and ice; that there was found ſuch metal as the Captain's ſilver whiſtle and the haft of a dagger belonging to one of the company which was gilt with gold. Being ſhewn ſome copper, they pointed to the northward, and ſaid it came from Saguenay. To this hill Cartier gave the name of Montreal, which it has ever ſince retained.

The viſit being finiſhed, the natives accompanied the French to their boats, carrying ſuch as were weary on their ſhoulders. They were loth to part with their gueſts, and followed them along the ſhore of the river to a conſiderable diſtance.

On the fourth of October, Cartier and his company departed from Hochelaga. In paſſing down the river, they erected a croſs on the point of an iſland, which, with three others, lay in the mouth of a ſhallow river, on the north ſide, called Fouetz. On the eleventh they arrived at the Port de St. Croix, and found that their companions had encloſed the ſhips with a paliſade and rampart, on which they had mounted cannon.

The next day Donacona invited them to his reſidence, where they were entertained with the uſual feſtivity and made the cuſtomary preſents. They obſerved that theſe people uſed the leaves of an herb [tobacco] which they preſerved in pouches made of ſkins and ſmoked in ſtone pipes. It was very offenſive to the French; but the natives valued it as contributing much to the preſervation of their health. Their houſes appeared to be well ſupplied with proviſions. Among other things which were new to the French, they obſerved the ſcalps of five men, ſpread and dried like parchment. Theſe were taken from their enemies the Toudamani, who came from the ſouth, and were continually at war with them.

Being determined to ſpend the winter among theſe friendly people, they traded with them for the proviſions which they could ſpare, and the river ſupplied them with fiſh till it was hard frozen.

In December the ſcurvy began to make its appearance among the natives, and Cartier prohibited all intercourſe with them; but it was not long before his own men were taken with it. It raged with uncontroled violence for above two months, and by the middle of February, out of one hundred and ten perſons, fifty were ſick at once, and eight or ten had died.

In this extremity Cartier appointed a day of ſolemn humiliation and prayer. A crucifix was placed on a tree, and as many as were able to walk went in proceſſion, through the ice and ſnow, ſinging the ſeven penitential pſalms and performing other devotional exerciſes. At the cloſe of the ſolemnity Cartier made a vow, that "if it would pleaſe God to permit him to return to France, he would go in pilgrimage to our Lady of Roquemado." But it was neceſſary to watch as well as pray. To prevent the natives from knowing their weak and defenceleſs ſtate, he obliged all who were able, to make as much noiſe as poſſible with axes and hammers; and told the natives that his men were all buſily employed, and that he would not ſuffer any of them to go from the ſhips till their work was done. The ſhips were faſt frozen up from the middle of November to the middle of March; the ſnow was four feet deep, and higher than the ſides of the ſhips above the ice. The ſeverity of the winter exceeded all which they had ever experienced; the ſcurvy ſtill raged; twenty five men had fallen victims to it, and the others were ſo weak and low in ſpirits, that they deſpaired of ever ſeeing their native country.

In the depth of this diſtreſs and deſpondency, Cartier, who had eſcaped the diſeaſe, in walking one day on the ice, met ſome of the natives, among whom was Domagaia, one of the young men who had been with him to France and who then reſided with his countrymen at Stadacona. He had been ſick with the ſcurvy, his ſinews had been ſhrunk and his knees ſwollen, his teeth looſe, and his gums rotten; but he was then recovered, and told Cartier of a certain tree, the leaves and bark of which he had uſed as a remedy. Cartier expreſſed his wiſh to ſee the tree; telling him that one of his people had been affected with the ſame diſorder. Two women were immediately diſpatched, who brought ten or twelve branches, and ſhowed him how to prepare the decoction; which was thus, "to boil the bark and the leaves; to drink of the liquor every other day; and to put the dregs on the legs of the ſick."This tree was called by the natives Ameda or Haneda. Mr. Hakluyt ſuppoſes it to have been the Saſſafras; but as the leaves were uſed with the bark, in the winter, it muſt have been an evergreen. The dregs of the bark were alſo applied to the ſore legs of the patient. From theſe circumſtances I am inclined to think that it was the ſpruce pine (pinus canadenſis) which is uſed in the ſame manner by the Indians, and ſuch as have learned of them. Spruce beer is well known to be a powerful antiſcorbutic: and the bark of this and of the white pine ſerves as a cataplaſm for wounds and ſores.

This remedy preſently came into uſe, on board the ſhips; and its good effects were ſo ſurpriſing, that within one week they were completely healed of the ſcurvy; and ſome who had venereal complaints of long ſtanding were alſo cured by the ſame means.

The ſeverity of winter having continued four months without intermiſſion, at the return of the ſun, the ſeaſon became milder, and in April the ice began to break up. On the third of May, Cartier took poſſeſſion of the country by erecting a croſs, thirty five feet high, on which was hung a ſhield, bearing the arms of France, with this inſcription: FRANCISCUS primus, Dei gratiâ, FRANCORUM Rex, regnat.

The ſame day, being a day of feſtivity, the two young ſavages, Taignoagni and Domagaia, with Donacona the chief of the place, came on board the ſhips; and were partly prevailed on and partly conſtrained to accompany Cartier to France. A handſome preſent was made to the Family of Donacona, but it was with great reluctance that his friends parted with him; though Cartier promiſed to bring him again at the end of twelve months. On the ſixth of May they ſailed from the Port of St. Croix; and having touched at St. Peter's in Newfoundland, they arrived at St. Malo in France the ſixth of July 1536.

Whether Cartier performed his vow to God, the hiſtory does not tell us; certain it is, however, that he did not perform his promiſe to his paſſengers. The zeal for adventures of this kind began to abate. Neither gold nor ſilver were carried home. The advantages of the fur trade were not fully underſtood; and the proſpect of benefit from cultivation in the ſhort ſummer of that cold climate, was greatly overbalanced, by the length and ſeverity of a Canadian winter. The natives had been ſo often told of the neceſſity of baptiſm in order to ſalvation, that on their arrival in France, they were at their own requeſt baptized; but neither of them lived to ſee their native land again.

The report which Cartier brought home, of the fine country beyond the Lakes, had however made ſuch an impreſſion on the minds of ſome, that, at the end of four years, another expedition was projected. Francis de la Roche, Lord of Roberval, was commiſſioned by the King as his Lieutenant Governor in Canada and Hockelaga; and Cartier was appointed his pilot, with the command of five ſhips. When they were ready to ſail, Roberval had not finiſhed his preparations, and was therefore detained. The King's orders to Cartier being poſitive, he ſailed from St. Malo on the 23d of May 1540.

The winds were adverſe and the voyage tedious. The ſhips were ſcattered, and did not arrive at the place of their deſtination till the 23d of Auguſt; when they came to the port of St. Croix in the river of Canada.

The firſt inquiry made by the natives was for their countrymen who had been carried away. The anſwer was, that Donacona was dead, and that the others had become great Lords, were married in France, and refuſed to return. Neither ſorrow nor reſentment were ſhown on this occaſion; but a ſecret jealouſy, which had long been working, received ſtrength, from an anſwer ſo liable to ſuſpicion.

The hiſtory of this voyage being imperfect, it is not poſſible to ſay, in what particular manner this jealouſy operated. Cartier made another excurſion, up the river; and pitched on a place about four leagues above St. Croix to lay up three of his veſſels for the winter. The other two he ſent back to France, to inform the King of what they had done; and that Roberval had not arrived.

At the new harbour, which he had choſen for his ſhips, was a ſmall river, running in a ſerpentine courſe to the ſouth. On the eaſtern ſide of its entrance was a high and ſteep cliff; on the top of which, they built a fort and called it Charleburg. Below, the ſhips were drawn up and fortified, as they had been in the former winter which he ſpent here. Not far from the fort were ſome rocks containing chryſtals; which they denominated diamonds; and on the ſhore were picked up certain ſpecks of a yellow ſubſtance, which their imaginations refined into gold. Iron ore was found in abundance; and a kind of black ſlate, with veins of an apparent metallic ſubſtance.

In what manner they paſſed the winter, the defective accounts which we have do not inform us. In the ſpring of the following year, Cartier and his company having heard nothing of Roberval; and concluding that they were abandoned by their friends and expoſed to periſh in a climate the moſt ſevere, and among people whoſe conduct toward them, was totally changed, determined to return to France. Accordingly having ſet ſail, at the breaking up of the ice, they arrived in the harbour of St. John in Newfoundland, ſometime in June; where they met Roberval, who, with three ſhips and two hundred perſons, male and female, had ſailed from Rochelle in April; and were on their way to eſtabliſh a colony in Canada. Cartier went on board Roberval's ſhip, and ſhowed him the diamonds and gold which he had found; but told him that the hoſtile diſpoſition of the natives had obliged him to quit the country; which however he repreſented to him as capable of profitable cultivation. Roberval ordered him to return to Canada; but Cartier privately ſailed out of the harbour in the night and purſued his voyage to France.

Mortified and diſappointed, Roberval continued ſome time longer at St. John's before he proceeded, and about the end of July arrived at the place which Cartier had quitted. There he erected a fort on a commanding eminence, and another at its foot; in which were depoſited all the proviſion, ammunition, artillery, implements of huſbandry and other materials for the intended colony.

In September, two veſſels were ſent back to France, to carry ſpecimens of chryſtal, and fetch proviſions for the next year; the ſtores which they had brought being much reduced. By the help of the fiſh which they took in the river, and the game which they procured from the ſavages; and by well huſbanding their proviſions, they lingered out a tedious winter, having ſuffered much from the ſcurvy, of which about fifty of them died. In addition to this diſtreſs, Roberval exerciſed ſuch ſeverity in his government, that one man was hanged, ſeveral were laid in irons, and ſome of both ſexes underwent the diſcipline of the whip.

In April the ice began to break up; and on the fifth of June he proceeded up the river; leaving De Royeze, his Lieutenant, to command in his abſence, with orders to embark for France, if he ſhould not return by the middle of July.

As the account of the expedition ends here, we can only remark that the colony was broken up; and no farther attempt was made by the French to eſtabliſh themſelves in Canada, till after the expiration of half a century. The laſt account of Roberval is that, in 1549, he ſailed with his brother on ſome voyage of diſcovery, and never returned.

In this firſt viſit, which the natives of Canada received from the Europeans, we have a ſtriking inſtance of their primitive manners. Suſpecting no danger, and influenced by no fear, they embraced the ſtranger with unaffected joy. Their huts were open to receive him, their fires and furs to give warmth and reſt to his weary limbs; their food was ſhared with him or given in exchange for his trifles; they were ready with their ſimple medicines to heal his diſeaſes and his wounds; they would wade through rivers and climb rocks and mountains to guide him in his way, and they would remember and requite his kindneſs more than it deſerved.

Unhappily for them they ſet too high a value on their new gueſt. Imagining him to be of a heavenly origin, they were extravagant and unguarded in their firſt attachment, and from ſome ſpecimens of his ſuperiority, obvious to their ſenſes, they expected more than ought ever to be expected from beings of the ſame ſpecies. But when the miſtake was diſcovered, and the ſtranger whom they had adored, proved to be no more than human, having the ſame inferior deſires and paſſions with themſelves; eſpecially when they found their confidence miſplaced and their generous friendſhip ill requited; then the rage of jealouſy extinguiſhed the virtue of benevolence; and they ſtruggled to rid themſelves of him, as an enemy, whom they had received into their boſom as a friend.

On the other hand, it was too common for the European adventurer, to regard the man of nature as an inferior being; and whilſt he availed himſelf of his ſtrength and experience, to abuſe his confidence, and repay his kindneſs with inſult and injury; to ſtigmatize him as a heathen and a ſavage, and to beſtow on him the epithets of deceitful, treacherous, and cruel; though he himſelf had firſt ſet the example of theſe deteſtable vices.

VII. FERDINANDO DE SOTO.

THE travels and tranſactions of this adventurer are of ſo little importance in the hiſtory of America that I ſhould not have thought them worthy of much notice; had it not been, that ſome gentlemen of ingenuity and learning, have had recourſe to the expedition of this Spaniard as a means of ſolving the queſtion reſpecting the mounds and fortifications, of a regular conſtruction, which within a few years paſt have been diſcovered in the thickeſt ſhades of the American foreſt.If the reader wiſhes to ſee a particular inveſtigation of this hypotheſis, he may conſult the American Magazine, printed at New York, for December 1787, January and February 1788, and ſome ſubſequent numbers; compared with the Columbian Magazine, printed at Philadelphia, for September and November 1788. Though the opinion ſeems to have been candidly given up by one of the writers who attempted to defend it; yet, as what was publiſhed on the ſubject may have impreſſed ſome perſons with an idea that theſe works were of European fabric, I ſhall briefly relate the hiſtory of Soto's march; and the difficulties which attend the ſuppoſition that he was the builder of any of theſe fortifications.

After the conqueſt of Mexico and Peru, in the beginning of the ſixteenth century, the inextinguiſhable thirſt for gold, which had ſeized the Spaniſh adventurers, prompted them to ſearch for that bewitching metal wherever there could be any proſpect of finding it. Three unſucceſsful attempts had been made in Florida, by Ponce, Gomez, and Narvaez; but becauſe theſe adventurers did not penetrate the interior parts of the continent; FERDINANDO DE SOTO, Governour of Cuba, who had been a companion of the Pizarros in their Peruvian expedition, and had there amaſſed much wealth, projected a march into Florida, of which country he had the title of Adelantado, or Preſident. He ſailed from the Port of Havannah May 18, 1539, with nine veſſels, ſix hundred men,In Prince's Chronology it is ſaid that Soto had 900 men, but he quotes Purchas for his authority, in whoſe book the number is "ſix hundred." two hundred and thirteen horſes, and a heard of ſwine, and arrived on the 30th of the ſame month in the bay of Eſpiritu Santo, on the weſtern coaſt of the peninſula of Florida.

Being a ſoldier of fortune and determined on conqueſt, he immediately pitched his camp and ſecured it. A foraging party met with a few Indians who reſiſted them; two were killed, the others eſcaped, and reported to their countrymen that the warriors of fire had invaded their territories; upon which the ſmaller towns were deſerted and the natives hid in the woods.

Having met with a Spaniard of the party of Narvaez, who had been wrecked on the coaſt, and had been twelve years a captive with the Indians, Soto made uſe of him as a meſſenger to them to inquire for gold and ſilver; and wherever he could receive any information reſpecting theſe precious metals thither he directed his march.

His manner of marching was this: The horſemen carried bags of corn and other proviſions; the footmen marched by the ſide of the horſes, and the ſwine were driven before them. When they firſt landed they had thirteen female ſwine, which in two years increaſed to ſeveral hundreds; the warmth of the climate being favourable to their propagation, and the foreſts yielding them a plenty of food.

The firſt ſummer and winter were ſpent in the peninſula of Florida, not far from the bay of Apalache; and in the beginning of the following ſpring, having ſent back his veſſels to Cuba for ſupplies, and left a part of his men at the port, where he expected the ſhips to return, he marched toward the north and eaſt, in ſearch of a place called Yupaha, where he had been informed there was gold.

In this march he croſſed the river Altamaha and probably the Ogechee, and came, as he was informed, within two days journey of the bay of St. Helena, where the Spaniards had been ſeveral years before. In all this march he ſtaid not more than a week in any one place.

He then ſet his face northward, and having paſſed a hilly country, came to a diſtrict called Chalaque, which is ſuppoſed to be the country now called Cherokee, on the upper branches of the river Savannah. Thence he turned weſtward, in ſearch of a place called Chiaha, and in this route he croſſed the Allegany ridge, and came to Chiaha, where his horſes and men, being exceſſively fatigued, he reſted thirty days. The horſes fed in a meadow, and and the people lay under the trees, the weather being very hot, and the natives in peace. This was in the months of May and June. During their abode there they heard of a country called Chiſca, where was copper and another metal of the ſame colour. This country lay northward, and a party was ſent with Indian guides to view it. Their report was, that the mountains were impaſſable, and Soto did not attempt to proceed any farther in that direction.

From a careful inſpection of the maps in the American Atlas, I am inclined to think that the place where Soto croſſed the mountains was within the thirty fifth degree of latitude. In Deliſle's map, a village called Canaſaga, is laid down on the N. W. ſide of the Allegany (or as it is ſometimes called) the Apalachian ridge of mountains, in that latitude; and Chiaha is ſaid in Soto's journal to be five days weſtward from Canaſagua.

To aſcertain the ſituation of Chiaha we muſt obſerve that it is ſaid to be ſubject to the Lord of Coſa, which is ſituate on an eaſtern branch of the Mobille; and Soto's ſick men came down the river from Chiaha in boats. This river could be none but a branch of the Mobille; and his courſe was then turned toward the ſouth. In this march he paſſed through Alibama, Taliſe, Taſcaluſa, names which are ſtill known and marked on the maps, till he came to the town of Mavilla, which the French pronounced Mouville and Mabille. It was then a walled town, but the walls were of wood. The inhabitants had conceived a diſguſt to the Spaniards, which was augmented by an outrage committed on one of their Chiefs, and finally broke out in a ſevere conflict, in which two thouſand of the innocent natives were ſlain, and many of the Spaniards killed and wounded, and the town was burnt. This was in the latter end of October.

It is probable that Soto intended to paſs the winter in the neighbourhood of that village, if he could have kept on friendly terms with the Indians; for there he could have had a communication with Cuba. There he heard that the veſſels which he had ſent to Cuba for ſupplies were arrived at Ochus [Penſacola] where he had agreed to meet them; but he kept this information ſecret, becauſe he had not yet made any diſcoveries which his Spaniſh friends would think worthy of regard. The country about him was populous and hoſtile, and, being void of gold or ſilver, was not an object for him to poſſeſs at the riſque of loſing his army, of which above an hundred had already periſhed. He therefore, after ſtaying twenty eight days for the recovery of his wounded, determined on a retreat.

In this retreat it has been ſuppoſed that he penetrated northward, beyond the Ohio. The truth is, that he began his march from Mavilla, a village near the mouth of the Mobille, on the 18th of November, and on the 17th of December arrived at Chicaçca, an Indian village of twenty houſes, where they remained till the next April.

The diſtance, the time, the nature of the country, the courſe and manner of the march, and the name of the village, all concur to determine this winter ſtation of Soto to be a village of the Chickeſaw Indians, ſituate on the upper part of the Yaſou, a branch of the Miſſiſſippi, about eighty leagues northweſtward from Mobille, and not leſs than one hundred and forty leagues, ſouthweſtward from the Muſkingum, where the great fortifications, which gave riſe to this inquiry, are found. From Chicaça, in the ſpring, he went weſtward, and croſſed a river within the thirty fourth degree of latitude, which he called Rio Grande, and which is now known to be the Miſſiſſippi.

On the weſtern ſide of the Miſſiſſippi, after rambling all ſummer, he ſpent the next winter, at a place called Autiamque, where he encloſed his camp with a wall of timber, the work of three days only. Within this encloſure he lodged ſafely during three months; and, in the ſucceeding ſpring, the extreme fatigue and anxiety which he had ſuffered, threw him into a fever, of which he died, May 21, 1542, at Guacoya. To prevent his death from being known to the Indians, his body was ſunk in the middle of a river.

His Lieutenant, Louis de Moſcoſco, continued to ramble on the weſtern ſide of the Miſſiſſippi, till the next ſummer; when worn with fatigue, diſappointment, and loſs of men, he built ſeven boats, called brigantines, on the Miſſiſſippi, in which, the ſhattered remnants, conſiſting of three hundrd and eleven, returned to Cuba, in September 1543.Purchas, vol. v. p. 1532 to 1556.

The place where Soto died is ſaid to have been on the bank of the Red river, a weſtern branch of the Miſſiſſippi, in lat. 31°. The place where the remnant of his army built their veſſels and embarked for Cuba is called in the journal Minoya. They were ſeventeen days in ſailing down the river, and they computed the diſtance to be two hundred and fifty leagues.Mr. Prince, in his chronology, ſays 400, in figures; but Purchas, from whom he quotes, ſays "two hundred and fifty."

From this account, faithfully abridged from Purchas and compared with the beſt maps, I am fully perſuaded that the whole country through which Soto travelled on the eaſtern ſide of the Miſſiſſippi is comprehended within Florida, Georgia and South Carolina; and that he never went farther northward than the 35th degree of latitude, which is diſtant two degrees ſouthward from any part of the Ohio. The concluſion then is, that he could not have been the builder of thoſe fortifications, ſtill remaining in that part of the continent, which lies N. W. of the Ohio. Nor indeed can any works which he erected for the ſecurity of his camp be ſubſiſting at this time; for the beſt of them were made of wood, and were intended to cover his men; and protect his horſes and ſwine, only during one winter.

The works which have ſo much excited curioſity and conjecture, are far more numerous, extenſive and durable. They are found in various and diſtant places, in the interior part of the continent, on both ſides of the Miſſiſſippi; on the Ohio and its branches; on James and Potowmack rivers in Virginia; in the country of the Six Nations, and on the ſhores of lake Erie; where they are exceedingly numerous.

The moſt obvious mode of ſolving the queſtion reſpecting them, is by inquiry of the preſent natives. But the ſtructures are too ancient for their tradition; the oldeſt and wiſeſt men know nothing of their original. The form and materials of theſe works, indicate the exiſtence of a race of men ſuperior to the preſent race, in improvement, in deſign, and in that patience which muſt have accompanied the labour of erecting them.

Trees which have been found growing on them have been cut down, and, from indubitable marks, are known to have been upwards of three hundred years old; nor were theſe the firſt growth, upon them.

The mounds and ramparts are conſtructed of earth, and have acquired a firmneſs and ſolidity, which render it probable that they are the work of ſome remote age and ſome other people; who had different ideas of convenience and were better acquainted with the arts of defence; and in fact, were much more numerous than the anceſtry of thoſe natives, of whom we or our fathers have had any knowledge.

It is to be hoped that the perſons who now occupy and are cultivating the lands where theſe ſingular buildings are found, will preſerve, as far as they are able, ſome, at leaſt, of theſe monuments of unknown ages; that as they have long reſiſted the ravages of time, and may poſſibly baffle the reſearches of the preſent generation, they may ſubſiſt unimpaired as ſubjects of ſpeculation to our poſterity.

VIII. HUMPHREY GILBERT.

AFTER the diſcovery of Newfoundland by the Cabots, the paſſion for adventure, among the Engliſh, met with many ſevere checks. But whilſt one adventurer after another was returning home from an unſucceſsful voyage, intended to penetrate unknown ſeas to China; foreigners were reaping the benefit of their partial diſcoveries.

Within the firſt forty years, we have no account of any attempt made by the Engliſh to proſecute the diſcovery of the new continent, except, that in 1536, two veſſels containing one hundred and twenty perſons, of whom thirty were gentlemen of education and character, under the conduct of "Maſter Hore of London" made a voyage to Newfoundland;Hakluyt, vol. iii. p. 130. but they were ſo ill provided, and knew ſo little of the nature of the country, that they ſuffered the extremity of famine. For, notwithſtanding the immenſe quantities of fiſh and fowl to be found on thoſe coaſts; they were reduced ſo low as to watch the neſts of birds of prey and rob them of the fiſh which they brought to feed their young. To collect this ſcanty ſupply, with a mixture of roots and herbs, the men diſperſed themſelves in the woods, until ſeveral of them were miſſing. It was at firſt thought that they were devoured by wild beaſts; but it was found that they met with a more tragical fate; the ſtronger having killed the weaker and feaſted on their fleſh. In the midſt of this diſtreſs, a French ſhip arriving with a ſupply of proviſions, they took her by force, and returned to England; leaving to the Frenchmen their own ſmaller veſſels, and dividing the proviſion between them. Complaint of this act of piracy was made to King HENRY VIII: who, knowing the miſeries of the unfortunate crew, inſtead of puniſhing them, paid the damage out of his own coffers.

Within the ſucceeding forty years, the Engliſh had begun to make ſome advantage by the fiſhery; and in 1578, the ſtate of it is thus deſcribed.Letter of Anthony Parkhurſt to Richard Hakluyt, vol. iii, p. 132. "There are about one hundred ſail of Spaniards who come to take cod; who make it all wet, and dry it when they come home; beſides twenty or thirty more, who come from Biſcay to kill whales for train. Theſe be better appointed for ſhipping and furniture of munition than any other nation, ſave the Engliſh; who commonly are Lords of the harbours. As touching their tonnage, I think it may be near five or ſix thouſand. Of Portugals, there are not above fifty ſail, whoſe tonnage may amount to three thouſand, and they make all wet. Of the French nation are about one hundred and fifty ſail; the moſt of their ſhipping is very ſmall, not paſt forty tons; among which ſome are great and reaſonably well appointed; better than the Portugals, and not ſo well as the Spaniards; the burden of them may be about ſeven thouſand. The Engliſh veſſels have increaſed in four years from thirty to fifty ſail. The trade which our nation hath to Iceland, maketh, that the Engliſh are not there in ſuch numbers as other nations."

The next year [1579] Queen Elizabeth granted to Sir HUMPHREY GILBERT, a patent for the diſcovering, occupying and peopling of "ſuch remote, heathen and barbarous countries as were not actually poſſeſſed by any Chriſtian people."Hakluyt iii.135. Forſter, 292. In conſequence of this grant, many of his friends joined him, and preparations were made for an expedition, which promiſed to be highly advantageous. But before the fleet was ready, ſome declined and retracted their engagements. Gilbert, with a few companions, ſailed; but a violent ſtorm, in which one of the ſhips foundered, cauſed him to return. This misfortune involved him in debt; and he had no way to ſatisfy the demands of his creditors, but by grants of land in America. By ſuch means, the country was not likely to be peopled, nor the conditions of his patent fulfilled. He was obliged therefore to ſell his eſtate before he could make another attempt; and, after long ſolicitation, being aſſiſted by ſome friends, he ſet ſail from Plymouth with five ſhips, carrying two hundred and ſixty men, on the eleventh of June 1583; and on the eleventh of July arrived off the bay of St. John, on the eaſtern coaſt of Newfoundland.

Thirty ſix fiſhing veſſels were then in the harbour, who refuſed him admittance. He prepared to enter by force of arms; but previouſly ſent in his boat with his commiſſion from Queen Elizabeth; on ſight of which they ſubmitted, and he ſailed into the port.Stith's hiſtory of Virginia, page 6.

The intention of this voyage was to take formal poſſeſſion of the iſland, and of the fiſhery on its banks, for the crown of England. This was done in the following manner:Hakluyt iii, 151, 165.

On Monday the fifth of Auguſt, Admiral Gilbert had his tent pitched on ſhore, in ſight of all the ſhipping; and being attended by his own people, ſummoned the merchants and maſters of veſſels, both Engliſhmen and others, to be preſent at the ceremony. When they were all aſſembled, his commiſſion was read, and interpreted to the foreigners. Then a turf and a twig were delivered to him, which he received with a hazle wand. Immediately, proclamation was made, that by virtue of his commiſſion from the Queen, he took poſſeſſion, for the crown of England, of the harbour of St. John, and two hundred leagues every way round it.

He then publiſhed three laws, for the government of the territory. By the firſt, public worſhip was eſtabliſhed according to the mode of the church of England. By the ſecond, the attempting of any thing prejudicial to her Majeſty's title was declared treaſon, according to the laws of England. By the third, the uttering of words, to the diſhonour of her Majeſty, was to be puniſhed with the loſs of ears and the confiſcation of property.

The proclamation being finiſhed, aſſent and obedience were ſignified by loud acclamations. A pillar was erected, bearing a plate of lead, on which the Queen's arms were engraven; and ſeveral of the merchants took grants of land, in fee farm, on which they might cure their fiſh, as they had done before.

A tax of proviſion, by her Majeſty's authority, was levied on all the ſhips. This tax was readily paid; beſides which, the Admiral received preſents of wine, fruit, and other refreſhments, chiefly from the Portugueſe.

This formal poſſeſſion, taken by Sir Humphrey Gilbert, in conſequence of the diſcovery by the Cabots, is the foundation of the right and title of the crown of England to the territory of Newfoundland and to the fiſhery on its banks.

As far as the time would permit, a ſurvey was made of the country; one principal object of which was the diſcovery of mines and minerals. The mineralogiſt was a Saxon, who is characterized as "honeſt and religious." This man brought to the Admiral firſt a ſpecimen of iron, then a kind of ore, which, on the peril of his life, he proteſted to be ſilver. The Admiral enjoined ſecrecy, and ſent it on board; intending to have it aſſayed, when they ſhould get to ſea.

The company being diſperſed abroad, ſome were taken ſick and died; ſome hid themſelves in the woods, with an intention to go home, by the firſt opportunity; and others cut one of the veſſels out of the harbour and carried her off.

On the twentieth of Auguſt, the Admiral, having collected as many of his men as could be found, and ordered one of his veſſels to ſtay and take off the ſick, ſet ſail with three ſhips; the Delight, the Hind, and the Squirrel. He coaſted along the ſouthern part of the iſland, with a view to make Cape Breton and the Iſle of Sable; on which laſt, he had heard that cattle and ſwine had been landed by the Portugueſe, thirty years before.

Being entangled among ſhoals and involved in fogs, the Delight ſtruck on a ſand bank and was loſt. Fourteen men only ſaved themſelves in a boat; the loſs of the Saxon refiner was particularly noted, and nothing farther was heard of the ſilver ore. This misfortune determined the Admiral to return to England, without attempting to make any farther diſcoveries, or to take poſſeſſion of any other part of America. On his paſſage, he met with bad weather. The Squirrel frigate, in which Sir Humphrey ſailed, was overloaded on her deck; but he perſiſted in taking his paſſage in her, notwithſtanding the remonſtrances of his friends, in the Hind, who would have perſuaded him to ſail with them. From the circumſtance of his returning from his firſt voyage without accompliſhing its object, it had been reported that he was afraid of the ſea; had he yielded to the ſolicitation of his friends, the ſtigma might have been indelible.

When the wind abated, and the veſſels were near enough, the Admiral was ſeen conſtantly ſitting in the ſtern with a book in his hand. On the ninth of September, he was ſeen for the laſt time; and was heard by the people in the Hind to ſay, "We are as near heaven by ſea as by land." In the following night, the lights of his ſhip ſuddenly diſappeared. The people in the other veſſel kept a good look out for him, during the remainder of the voyage. On the twenty ſecond of September, they arrived, through much tempeſt and peril, at Falmouth. But nothing more was ſeen or heard of the Admiral.

Whilſt his zeal for the intereſt of the Crown, and the ſettlement of its American dominions, has been largely commended; he has been blamed for his temerity in laviſhing his own and other men's fortunes in the proſecution of his deſigns. This is not the only inſtance of a waſte of property in conſequence of ſanguine expectations; which, though ruinous to the firſt adventurers, has produced ſolid advantages to their ſucceſſors.

Dr. Forſter has a remark on one of the incidents of this voyage which is worthy of repetition and remembrance. "It is very clear (ſays he) in the inſtance of the Portugueſe having ſtocked the Iſle of Sable with domeſtic animals, that the diſcoverers of the new world were men of humanity; deſirous of providing for ſuch unfortunate people as might happen to be caſt away on thoſe coaſts. The falſe policy of modern times is callous and tyrannical, exporting dogs to devour them. Are theſe the happy conſequences of the ſo much boaſted enlightened ſtate of the preſent age, and refinement of manners peculiar to our time? Father of mercies, when will philanthropy again take up her abode in the breaſts of men, of Chriſtians and the rulers of this earth!"

IX. WALTER RALEIGH, AND RICHARD GRENVILLE.

THE diſtinguiſhed figure, which the life of Sir Walter Raleigh makes in the hiſtory of England, renders unneceſſary any other account of him here, than what reſpects his adventures in America; and particularly in Virginia; of which colony he is acknowledged to have been the unfortunate founder.

He was half brother, by the mother's ſide, to Sir Humphry Gilbert, and was at the expenſe of fitting out one of the ſhips of his ſquadron. Notwithſtanding the unhappy fate of his brother, he perſiſted in his deſign of making a ſettlement in America. Being a favourite in the court of Queen Elizabeth, he obtained a patent, bearing date the 25th of March 1584, for the diſcovering and planting of any lands and countries which were not poſſeſſed by any chriſtian prince, or nation.

About the ſame time the Queen granted him another patent, to licenſe the vending of wine, throughout the kingdom; that by the profits thence ariſing he might be able to bear the expenſe of his intended plan of colonization. Further to ſtrengthen his intereſt, he engaged the aſſiſtance of two wealthy kinſmen, Sir Richard Grenville and William Sanderſon.Stith's Hiſty. of Virginia, p. 7, 8. They provided two barks, and having well furniſhed them with men and proviſions, put them under the command of Philip Amadas and Arthur Barlow, who ſailed from the weſt of England, April 27, 1584.

They took the uſual route by the way of the Canaries and the Weſt Indies; the reaſon of which is thus expreſſed in the account of this voyage written by BarlowHakluyt, iii, 246., "becauſe we doubted that the current of the bay of Mexico between the cape of Florida and Havanna had been of greater force than we afterwards found it to be."

Taking advantage of the Gulf ſtream, they approached the coaſt of Florida; and on the ſecond of July came into ſhoal water; where the odoriferous ſmell of flowers indicated the land to be near, though not within ſight. On the fourth they ſaw land; along which they ſailed forty leagues before they found an entrance. At the firſt opening, they caſt anchor (July 13) and having devoutly given thanks to GOD, for their ſafe arrival on the coaſt, they went aſhore in their boats, and took poſſeſſion in the name of Queen Elizabeth.

The place where they landed was a ſandy iſland, called Wococon,This iſland is generally ſuppoſed to be one of thoſe which lie at the mouth of Albermarle ſound, on the coaſt of North Carolina. Barlow, in his letter to Sir W. Raleigh, preſerved by Hakluyt, ſays, that he, with ſeven others, went in a boat "twenty miles into the river Occam, and, the evening following, came to an iſland called Roanoke, diſtant from the harbour by which we entered, ſeven leagues; at the north end thereof was a village." Mr. Stith, who wrote the hiſtory of Virginia, and who acknowledges that he had not ſeen this letter in Engliſh but in a Latin tranſlation, ſuppoſes, that the iſland Wococon muſt lie between cape Hatteras and cape Fear, and that the diſtance might be 30 leagues. But it appears from Barlow's letter that the boat went in one day and came in the evening to the north end of Roanoke; the diſtance is twice mentioned, once in miles and once in leagues. I ſee no reaſon therefore to admit Stith's conjecture in oppoſition to Barlow. Stith however appears to have been a very cloſe and accurate inquirer, as far as his materials and opportunity permitted. about ſixteen miles in length and ſix in breadth, full of cedars, pines, cypreſs, ſaſſafras and other trees; among which were many vines loaded with grapes. In the woods they found deer and hares; and in the waters and marſhes, various kinds of fowl; but no human creature was ſeen, till the third day; when a canoe, with three men, came along by the ſhore. One of them landed; and, without any fear or precaution, met the Europeans and addreſſed them in a friendly manner, in his own language. They carried him on board one of their veſſels; gave him a ſhirt and ſome other trifles, and regaled him with meat and wine. He then returned to his canoe; and with his companions went a fiſhing. When the canoe was filled, they brought the fiſh on ſhore and divided them into two heaps; making ſigns, that each of the veſſels ſhould take one.

The next day, ſeveral canoes came; in which were forty or fifty people, and among them was Granganimeo, brother of Wingina King of the country; who was confined at home by the wounds, which he had received in battle, with a neighbouring Prince. The manner of his approach was fearleſs and reſpectful. He left his boats at a diſtance; and came along the ſhore, accompanied by all his people, till he was abreaſt of the ſhips. Then advancing with four men only, who ſpread a mat on the ground, he ſat down on one end; and the four men on the other. When the Engliſh went on ſhore, armed, he beckoned to them to come and ſit by him; which they did, and he made ſigns of joy and friendſhip, ſtriking with his hand on his head and breaſt, and then on theirs, to ſhew that they were all one. None of his people ſpoke a word; and when the Engliſh offered them preſents, he took them all into his own poſſeſſion; making ſigns that they were his ſervants, and that all which they had, belonged to him.

After this interview, the natives came in great numbers and brought ſkins, coral, and materials for dyes; but when Granganimeo was preſent, none were permitted to trade, but himſelf and thoſe who had a piece of copper on their heads. Nothing pleaſed him ſo much as a tin plate, in which he made a hole and hung it over his breaſt, as a piece of defenſive armour. He ſupplied them every day with veniſon, fiſh, and fruits, and invited them to viſit him at his village, on the north end of an iſland called Roanoke.

This village conſiſted of nine houſes, built of cedar, and fortified with ſharp paliſades. When the Engliſh arrived there in their boat, Granganimeo was abſent; but his wife entertained them with the kindeſt hoſpitality, waſhed their feet and their clothes, ordered their boat to be drawn aſhore and their oars to be ſecured; and then feaſted them with veniſon, fiſh, fruits, and homony.Homony is made of Indian corn beaten in a mortar and ſeparated from the bran; then boiled either by itſelf or in the broth of meat. Whilſt they were at ſupper, ſome of her men came in from hunting, with their bows and arrows in their hands; on which her gueſts began to miſtruſt danger; but ſhe ordered their bows to be taken from them, and their arrows to be broken; and then turned them out at the gate. The Engliſh however thought it moſt prudent to paſs the night in their boat, which they launched and laid at anchor. At this ſhe was much grieved; but, finding all her ſolicitations ineffectual, ſhe ordered the victuals in the pots to be put on board, with mats to cover the people from the rain; and appointed ſeveral perſons of both ſexes to keep guard on the beach during the whole night. Could there be a more engaging ſpecimen of generous hoſpitality?

Theſe people were characterized as "gentle, loving and faithful; void of guile and treachery; living after the manner of the golden age; caring only to feed themſelves, with ſuch food as the ſoil affordeth, and to defend themſelves from the cold, in their ſhort winter."

No farther diſcovery was made of the country by theſe adventurers. From the natives they obtained ſome uncertain account of its geography, and of a ſhip which had been wrecked on the coaſt between twenty and thirty years before. They carried away two of the natives, Wancheſe and Manteo; and arrived in the weſt of England about the middle of September.

The account of this diſcovery was ſo welcome to Queen Elizabeth, that ſhe named the country Virginia; either in memory of her own virginity, or becauſe it retained its virgin purity, and the people their primitive ſimplicity.

About this time Raleigh was elected knight of the ſhire, for his native county of Devon; and in the Parliament which was held in the ſucceeding winter, he cauſed a bill to be brought into the Houſe of Commons to confirm his patent for the diſcovery of foreign countries. After much debate, the bill was carried through both houſes, and received the royal aſſent. In addition to which, the Queen conferred on him the order of Knighthood.Stith, p. 11.

A ſecond expedition being reſolved on, Sir Richard Grenville himſelf took the command, and with ſeven veſſels, large and ſmall, ſailed from Plymouth, on the ninth of April, 1585.Hakluyt, iii.251. They went in the uſual courſe by the Canaries and the Weſt Indies; where they took two Spaniſh prizes; and, after narrowly eſcaping ſhipwreck on Cape Fear, arrived at Wococon the 26th of June.Mr. Stith miſtakes in ſaying May 26, and Sir William Keith, who copies from him, adopts the ſame miſtake.

The natives came, as before, to bid them welcome and to trade with them. Manteo, whom they had brought back, proved a faithful guide, and piloted them about from place to place. In an excurſion of eight days with their boats, they viſited ſeveral Indian villages, on the iſlands and on the main, adjoining to Albemarle Sound. At one place, called Aquaſcogok, an Indian ſtole from them a ſilver cup. Inquiry being made, the offender was detected and promiſed to reſtore it; but the promiſe being not ſpeedily performed, a haſty and ſevere revenge was taken, by the orders of Grenville; the town was burnt and the corn deſtroyed in the fields, (July 16) whilſt the affrighted people fled to the woods for ſafety. From this ill judged act of violence, may be dated the misfortunes and failure of this colony.

Leaving one hundred and eight perſons to attempt a ſettlement, Grenville proceeded with his fleet to the iſland of Hatteras; where he received a viſit from Granganimeo, and then ſailed for England. On the 18th of September he arrived at Plymouth; with a rich Spaniſh prize which he had taken on the paſſage.

Of the colony left in Virginia, Ralph Lane was appointed Governor. He was a military man, of conſiderable reputation in the ſea-ſervice. Philip Amadas, who had commanded in the firſt voyage, was Admiral. They choſe the iſland of Roanoke in the mouth of Albemarle Sound, as the place of their reſidence; and their chief employment was to explore and ſurvey the country, and deſcribe the perſons and manners of its inhabitants. For theſe purpoſes, Sir Walter Raleigh had ſent John Withe, an ingenious painter; and Thomas Heriot, a ſkilful mathematician, and a man of curious obſervation: both of whom performed their parts with fidelity and ſucceſs.

The drawings which Mr. Withe made were engraven and printed at Frankfort (1590,) by Theodore De Bry. They repreſent the perſons and habits of the natives, their employments, diverſions and ſuperſtitions. From theſe, the prints in Beverley's hiſtory of Virginia are copied.

Mr. Heriot wrote a topographical deſcription of the country and its natural hiſtory, which is preſerved in Hakluyt's collection vol. iii, 226. It was tranſlated into Latin, and publiſhed by De Bry in his collection of voyages. It has been ſuppoſed that Raleigh himſelf came to Virginia with this colony. This is a miſtake▪ grounded on a miſtranſlation of a paſſage in Heriot's narrative. It is thus expreſſed in Engliſh "The actions of thoſe who have been by Sir Walter Raleigh therein employed." Which is thus rendered in the Latin tranſlation, "qui generoſum D. Wal •• rum Ralegh, 〈…〉 comita •• ſunt."

Stith, p. • 2.

The fartheſt diſcovery which they made to the ſouthward of Roanoke was Secotan, an Indian town between the rivers of Pamptico and Neus, diſtant eighty leagues. To the northward they went about forty leagues, to a nation called Cheſepeags, on a ſmall river now called Eliſabeth, which falls into Cheſepeag Bay, below Norfolk. To the weſtward they went up Albemarle Sound and Chowan river, about forty leagues, to a nation called Chowanogs; whoſe King, Menatonona, amuſed them with a ſtory of a copper mine and a pearl fiſhery; in ſearch of which they ſpent much time and ſo exhauſted their proviſions, that they were glad to eat their dogs before they returned to Roanoke.

During this excurſion, their friend Granganimeo died; and his brother Wingina diſcovered his hoſtile diſpoſition toward the colony. The return of Mr. Lane and his party, from their excurſion, gave a check to his malice for a while; but he ſecretly laid a plot for their deſtruction; which being betrayed to the Engliſh, they ſeized all the boats on the iſland. This brought on a ſkirmiſh, in which five or ſix Indians were killed, and the reſt fled to the woods. After much jealouſy and diſſimulation on both ſides, Wingina was drawn into a ſnare; and with eight of his men, fell a ſacrifice to the reſentment of the Engliſh.

In a few days after Wingina's death, Sir Francis Drake, who had been cruiſing againſt the Spaniards in the Weſt Indies, and had received orders from the Queen to viſit this colony, arrived with his fleet on the coaſt; and by the unanimous deſire of the people, took them all off and carried them to England, where they arrived in July 1586.

Within a fortnight after the departure of this unfortunate colony, Sir Richard Grenville arrived with three ſhips for their relief. Finding their habitation abandoned, and being unable to gain any intelligence of them; he landed fifty men, on the iſland of Roanoke, plentifully ſupplied with proviſions for two years, and then returned to England.

The next year (1587) three ſhips were ſent, under the command of John White, who was appointed Governor of the colony, with twelve Counſellors. To them Raleigh gave a charter of incorporation for the city of Raleigh, which he ordered them to build on the river Cheſepeag, the northern extent of the diſcovery. After narrowly eſcaping ſhipwreck on Cape Fear, they arrived at Hatteras, on the 22d of July, and ſent a party to Roanoke to look for the ſecond colony of fifty men. They found no perſon living, and the bones of but one dead. The huts were ſtanding; but were overgrown with buſhes and weeds. In converſation with ſome of the natives, they were informed, that the colony had been deſtroyed by Wingina's people, in revenge of his death.

Mr. White endeavoured to renew a friendly intercourſe with thoſe natives; but their jealouſy rendered them implacable. He therefore went acroſs the water to the main with a party of twenty five men, and came ſuddenly on a company of friendly Indians, who were ſeated round a fire, one of whom they killed before they diſcovered the miſtake.

Two remarkable events are mentioned as happening at this time; one was the baptiſm of Manteo, the faithful Indian guide; the other was the birth of a female child, daughter of Ananias Dare, one of the Council; which, being the firſt child born in the colony, was named Virginia.

By this time (Auguſt 21) the ſhips had unloaded their ſtores and were preparing to return to England. It was evident that a farther ſupply was neceſſary, and that ſome perſon muſt go home to ſolicit it. A diſpute aroſe in the Council on this point, and after much altercation, it was determined, that the Governor was the moſt proper perſon, to be ſent on this errand. The whole colony joined in requeſting him to proceed, promiſing to take care of his intereſt in his abſence. With much reluctance he conſented, on their ſubſcribing a teſtimonial of his unwillingneſs to quit the plantation. He accordingly ſailed on the 27th of Auguſt, and arrived in England the following November. The nation was in a ſtate of alarm and apprehenſion on account of the war with Spain, and of the invincible armada, which had threatened it with an invaſion. Sir Walter Raleigh was one of the Queen's Council of war, as were alſo Sir Richard Grenville and Mr. Lane. Their time was wholly taken up with public conſultations, and Governor White was obliged to wait, till the plan of operations againſt the enemy could be adjuſted and carried into execution.

The next ſpring, Raleigh and Grenville, who had the command of the militia in Cornwall, and were training them for the defence of the kingdom; being ſtrongly ſolicited by White, provided two ſmall barks, which ſailed from Biddeford on the 22d of April 1588. Theſe veſſels had commiſſions as ſhips of war, and being more intent on gain to themſelves, than relief to the colony, went in chace of prizes, and were both driven back by ſhips of ſuperior force, to the great mortification of their patron, and the ruin of his colony.

Theſe diſappointments were a ſource of vexation to Raleigh. He had expended forty thouſand pounds, of his own and other men's money, in purſuit of his favourite object; and his gains were yet to come. He therefore made an aſſignment of his patent (March 7, 1589) to Thomas Smith, and other merchants and adventurers, among whom was Governor White; with a donation of one hundred pounds, for the propagation of the Chriſtian religon in Virginia. Being thus diſengaged from the buſineſs of colonization; he had full ſcope for his martial genius, in the war with Spain.

His aſſignees were not ſo zealous in the proſecution of their buſineſs. It was not till the ſpring of 1590, that Governor White could return to his colony. Then, with three ſhips, he ſailed from Plymouth, and paſſing through the Weſt Indies, in queſt of Spaniſh prizes, he arrived at Hatteras on the 15th of Auguſt. From this place they obſerved a ſmoke ariſing on the iſland of Roanoke; which gave them ſome hope that the colony was there ſubſiſting; on their coming to the place, they found old trees and graſs burning, of but no human being. On a poſt of one of the houſes they ſaw the word Croatan, which gave them ſome hope, that at the iſland of that name they ſhould find their friends. They ſailed for that iſland; which lay ſouthward of Hatteras; but a violent ſtorm ariſing, in which they loſt their anchors, they were obliged to quit the inhoſpitable coaſt and return home; nor was any thing afterward heard of the unfortunate colony.

The next year (1591) Sir Richard Grenville was mortally wounded in an engagement with a Spaniſh fleet; and died on board the Admiral's ſhip, where he was priſoner.

Raleigh, though diſengaged from the buſineſs of colonizing Virginia, ſent five times at his own expenſe to ſeek for and relieve his friends; but the perſons whom he employed, having more profitable buſineſs in the Weſt Indies, either went not to the place, or were forced from it by ſtreſs of weather; it being a tempeſtuous region, and without any ſafe harbour. The laſt attempt which he made, was in 1602; the year before his impriſonment; an event which gratified the malice of his enemies, and prepared the way for his death; which was much leſs ignominious to him than to his ſovereign, King James I, the Britiſh Solomon; ſucceſſor to Elizabeth, the Britiſh Deborah.

As a ſpecimen of the language of that time, let the reader take the following extract from Purchas.

"He [i. e. King James] is beyond compariſon a meer tranſcendent, beyond all his predeceſſors, princes of this realm; beyond the neigbouring princes of his own time; beyond the conceit of ſubjects dazzled with ſo much brightneſs; beyond our victorious Deborah, not in ſex alone, but as peace is more excellent than war, and Solomon than David; in this alſo that he 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 enjoy his preſent ſunſhine."

This unfortunate attempt to ſettle a colony in Virginia, was productive of one thing which will always render it memorable, the introduction of tobacco into England. Cartier, in his viſit to Canada, fifty years before, had obſerved that the natives uſed this weed fumigation, but it was an object of diſguſt to Frenchmen. Ralph Lane, at his return in 1586, brought it firſt into Europe; and Raleigh, who was a man of gaiety and faſhion, not only learned the uſe of it himſelf, but introduced it into the polite circles; and even the Queen herſelf gave encouragement to it. Some humourous ſtories reſpecting it are ſtill remembered. Raleigh laid a wager with the Queen, that he would determine exactly, the weight of ſmoke which iſſued from his pipe. This he did by firſt weighing the tobacco and then the aſhes. When the Queen paid the wager, ſhe pleaſantly obſerved, that many labourers had turned their gold into ſmoke; but that he was the firſt who had converted ſmoke into gold.

It is alſo related that a ſervant of Sir Walter, bringing a tankard of ale into his ſtudy as he was ſmoking his pipe, and reading, was ſo alarmed at the appearance of ſmoke, iſſuing out of his mouth, that he threw the ale into his face, and ran down to alarm the family, crying out that his maſter was on fire.

King James had ſo refined a taſte, that he not only held this Indian weed in great abhorrence himſelf, but endeavoured, by proclamations and otherwiſe, to prevent the uſe of it among his ſubjects. But all his zeal and authority could not ſuppreſs it. Since his time it has become an important article of commerce, by which individuals in Europe and America, as well as colonies and nations, have riſen to great opulence.

X. JOHN DE FUCA.

WHEN the exiſtence of a weſtern continent was known to the maritime nations of Europe, one great object of their inquiry was, to find, through ſome openings which appeared in it, a paſſage to India and China. For this purpoſe ſeveral expenſive and unſucceſsful voyages were made; and every hint which could throw any light on the ſubject was eagerly ſought and attended to, by thoſe who conſidered its importance.

JOHN DE FUCA was a Greek, born in the iſland of Cephalonia in the Adriatic gulf. He had been employed in the ſervice of Spain, in the Weſt Indies, as a mariner and pilot, above forty years. Having loſt his fortune, amounting (as he ſaid) to ſixty thouſand ducats, when the Acapulco ſhip was taken, by Captain Cavendiſh an Engliſhman; and being diſappointed of the recompenſe which he had expected from the court of Spain; he returned in diſguſt, to his native country, by the way of Italy; that he might ſpend the evening of his life, in peace and poverty, among his friends.

At Florence he met with John Douglas, an Engliſhman, and went with him to Venice. There, Douglas introduced him to Michael Lock, who had been Conſul of the Turkey company at Aleppo, and was then occaſionally reſident in Venice. (A. D. 1596.)

In converſation with Mr. Lock, De Fuca gave him the following account of his adventures.

"That he had been ſent by the Viceroy of Mexico, as pilot of three ſmall veſſels, to diſcover the ſtraits of Anian, on the weſtern coaſt of America; through which, it was conjectured that a paſſage might be found, into ſome of the deep bays on the eaſtern ſide of the continent. This voyage was fruſtrated, by the miſconduct of the commander, and the mutiny of the ſeamen.

"In 1592 the Viceroy ſent him again, with the command of a caravel and a pinnace, on the ſame enterprize. Between the latitudes of 47° and 48° N. he diſcovered an inlet, into which he entered and ſailed more than twenty days. At the entrance was a great headland, with an exceeding high pinnacle or ſpired rock, like a pillar. Within the ſtrait, the land ſtretched N.W. and N.E. and alſo E. and S.E. It was much wider within, than at the entrance, and contained many iſlands. The inhabitants were clad in the ſkins of beaſts. The land appeared to be fertile like that of New Spain, and was rich in gold and ſilver.

"Suppoſing that he had accompliſhed the intention of the voyage and penetrated into the North Sea; but not being ſtrong enough, to reſiſt the force of the numerous ſavages, who appeared on the ſhores; he returned to Acapulco, before the expiration of the year."

Such was the account given by De Fuca; and Mr. Lock was ſo impreſſed with the ſincerity of the relation and the advantages which his countrymen might derive from a knowledge of this ſtrait; that he earneſtly urged him to enter into the ſervice of Queen Elizabeth, and perfect the diſcovery. He ſucceeded ſo far, as to obtain a promiſe from the Greek, though ſixty years old; that if the Queen would furniſh him with one ſhip, of forty tons, and a pinnace, he would undertake the voyage. He was the more eaſily perſuaded to this, by a hope that the Queen would make him ſome recompence for the loſs of his fortune by Capt. Cavendiſh.

Mr. Lock wrote to the Lord Treaſurer Cecil, Sir Walter Raleigh and Mr. Hakluyt, requeſting that they would forward the ſcheme, and that one hundred pounds might be advanced to bring De Fuca to England. The ſcheme was approved; but the money was not advanced. Lock was ſo much engaged in it, that he would have ſent him to England at his own expenſe; but he was then endeavouring to recover at law, his demands from the Turkey company, and could not diſburſe the money. The pilot therefore returned to Cephalonia; and Lock kept up a correſpondence with him, till 1602, when he heard of his death.

Though this account, preſerved by Purchas,Lib. iv, chap. xx, p. 849. bears ſufficient marks of authenticity; yet it has been rejected as fabulous for nearly two centuries; and is treated ſo even by the very candid Dr. Forſter.Northern voyages, p. 4 •• . Recent voyages however, have eſtabliſhed the exiſtence of the ſtrait; and De Fuca is no longer to be conſidered as an impoſtor; though the gold and ſilver in his account were but conjectural.

The ſtrait which now bears his name is formed by land, which is ſuppoſed to be the continent of America on one ſide; and by a very extenſive cluſter of iſlands on the other. Its ſouthern entrance lies in lat. 48° 20′ N. long. 124° W. from Greenwich, and is about ſeven leagues wide. On the larboard ſide, which is compoſed of iſlands, the land is very mountainous; riſing abruptly in high and ſharp peaks. On the ſtarboard ſide, is a point of land terminating in a remarkably tall rock, called the pillar. Within the entrance, the paſſage grows wider, extending to the S. E. N. and N. W. and is full of iſlands. On the E. and N. E. at a great diſtance are ſeen the tops of mountains; ſuppoſed to be on the continent; but the ſhips trading for furs have not penetrated far to the eaſtward; the ſea otters being their principal object, and the land furs of ſmall conſideration. For this reaſon, the eaſtern boundary of the inland ſea is not yet fully explored. The ſtrait turns to the N. and N. W. encompaſſing a large cluſter of iſlands, among which is ſituate Nootka Sound, and comes into the Pacific ocean again in lat. 51° 15′, long. 128° 40′. This extremity of the ſtrait is called its northern entrance, and is wider than the ſouthern.

Another ſtrait has been lately ſeen which is ſuppoſed to be that of De Fonte, a Spaniſh Admiral, diſcovered in 1640; the exiſtence of which has alſo been treated as fabulous. The cluſter of iſlands, called by the Britiſh ſeamen Queen Charlotte's, and by the Americans, Waſhington's iſlands, are in the very ſpot where De Fonte placed the Archipelago of St. Lazarus.See the Critical Review, January, 1791. The entrance only of this ſtrait has been viſited by the fur ſhips. It lies in lat. 54° 35′ and long. 131° W.For this information I am indebted to Captain ROBERT GRAY; who has the laſt ſummer, (1793) returned from a ſecond circumnavigation of the globe in the ſhip Columbia of Boſton. He has ſailed quite through the ſtrait of De Fuca; and ſeen the entrance of that of De Fonte. The latitudes and longitudes of theſe places are taken from a very neat and accurate map of the N. W. coaſt of America, drawn by Mr. HASWELL, firſt Mate of the Columbia in her late voyage.

Theſe recent and well eſtabliſhed facts may induce us, to treat the relations of former voyages with decent reſpect. The circumnavigation of Africa by the ancient Phenicians, was for ſeveral ages deemed fabulous by the learned Greeks and Romans. But its credibility was fully eſtabliſhed by the Portugueſe diſcoveries in the fifteenth century. In like manner the diſcoveries of De Fuca and De Fonte which have long been ſtigmatized by geographers as pretended, and marked in their maps as imaginary, are now known to have been founded in truth, though from the imperfection of inſtruments or the inaccuracy of hiſtorians, the degrees and minutes of latitude and longitude were not preciſely marked, and though ſome circumſtances in their accounts are but conjectural. Farther diſcoveries may throw new light on the ſubject, and though perhaps a N. W. paſſage, by ſea, from the Atlantic into the Pacific may not exiſt; yet bays, rivers and lakes are ſo frequent in thoſe northern regions of our continent that an inland navigation may be practicable.

It has been ſuggeſted that the company of Engliſh merchants who enjoy an excluſive trade to Hudſon's Bay have, from intereſted motives, concealed their knowledge of its weſtern extremities. Whether there be any juſt foundation for this cenſure, I do not pretend to determine; but a ſurvey is ſaid to be now making, from which, it is hoped, that this long conteſted queſtion of a N. W. paſſage will receive a full ſolution.

XI. BARTHOLOMEW GOSNOLD.

THE unfortunate iſſue of Raleigh's attempt to make a ſettlement in America, together with the war with Spain, which continued for ſeveral years, gave a check to the ſpirit of colonizing. In the beginning of the ſeventeenth century it was revived by BARTHOLOMEW GOSNOLD, an intrepid mariner in the weſt of England. At whoſe expenſe he undertook his voyage, to the northern part of Virginia, does not appear; but, on the 26th of March 1602, he ſailed from Falmouth, in Cornwall, in a ſmall bark, with thirty two men. Inſtead of going by the way of the Canaries and the Weſt Indies, he kept as far north as the winds would permit, and was the firſt Engliſhman who came in a direct courſe to this part of America.

On the 14th of May they made the land, and met with a ſhallop of European fabric, in which were eight ſavages, one of whom was dreſſed in European clothes; from which they concluded that ſome unfortunate fiſhermen of Biſcay or Brittany, had been wrecked on the coaſt.

The next day they had again ſight of land, which appeared like an iſland, by reaſon of a large ſound which lay between it and the main. This ſound they called Shole Hope. Near this cape they took a great number of cod, from which circumſtance they named the land Cape Cod. It is deſcribed as a low ſandy ſhore in the latitude of 42°. The Captain went on ſhore and found the ſand very deep. A young Indian, with plates of copper hanging to his ears, and a bow and arrows in his hand, came to him, and in a friendly manner offered his ſervice.

On the 16th, they coaſted the land ſoutherly, and at the end of twelve leagues diſcovered a point, with breakers at a diſtance; and, in attempting to double it, came ſuddenly into ſhoal water. To this point of land they gave the name of Point Care; it is now called Sandy Point, and forms the ſoutheaſtern extremity of the county of Barnſtable, in Maſſachuſetts.

Finding themſelves ſurrounded by ſhoals and breakers, they lay at anchor till they had examined the coaſt and ſoundings in their boat; during which time ſome of the natives made them a viſit. One of them had a plate of copper over his breaſt, a foot in length and half a foot in breadth; the others had pendants of the ſame metal as their ears: they all had pipes and tobacco, of which they were very fond.

In ſurveying the coaſt they diſcovered breakers lying off a point of land, which they denominated Gilbert's Point; it is now called Point Gammon, and forms the eaſtern ſide of the harbour of Hyennes.

On the 19th they paſſed the breach of Gilbert's Point, in four and five fathoms of water, and anchored a league or more to the weſtward of it. Several hummocks and hills appeared, which at firſt were taken to be iſlands; theſe were the high lands of Barnſtable and Yarmouth.

To the weſtward of Gilbert's Point, appeared an opening, which Goſnold imagined to have a communication with the ſuppoſed ſound which he had ſeen weſtward of Cape Cod; he therefore gave it the ſame name Shole Hope; but finding the water to be no more than three fathoms deep, at the diſtance of a league, he did not attempt to enter it. From this opening, the land tended to the ſouthweſt; and, in coaſting it, they came to an iſland to which they gave the name of Martha's Vineyard. This iſland is deſcribed as "diſtant eight leagues from Shole Hope, five miles in circuit, and uninhabited; full of wood, vines and berries: here they ſaw deer and took abundance of cod."

From their ſtation off this iſland, where they rode in eight fathoms, they ſailed on the 24th; and doubled the cape of another iſland, next to it, which they called Dover cliff: this courſe brought them into a ſound, where they anchored for the night, and the next morning ſent their boat to examine another cape, which lay between them and the main, from which projected a ledge of rocks, a mile into the ſea, but all above water, and not dangerous. Having paſſed round them, they came to anchor again, in one of the fineſt ſounds, which they had ever ſeen; and to which they gave the name of Goſnold's Hope. On the northern ſide of it was the main; and on the ſouthern, parallel to it, at the diſtance of four leagues, was a large iſland which they called Elizabeth, in honor of their Queen. On this iſland they determined to take up their abode; and pitched upon a ſmall woody iſlet in the middle of a freſh pond, as a ſafe place to build their fort. A little to the northward of this large iſland lay a ſmall one half a mile in compaſs, and full of cedars. This they called Hill's Hap. On the oppoſite northern ſhore appeared another ſimilar elevation to which they gave the name of Hap's Hill.

By this deſcription of the coaſt it is evident that the ſound into which Goſnold entered was Buzzard's Bay. The iſland which he called Martha's Vineyard, was not that which now goes by that name, but a ſmall iſland, the eaſternmoſt of thoſe which are known by the name of Elizabeth's iſlands. It is called by the Indians Nenimiſſett; its preſent circumference is about four miles, but it has doubtleſs been diminiſhed ſince Goſnold's time, by the force of the tides which ſet into and out of the bay with great rapidity. Its natural productions and pleaſant ſituation anſwer well to his deſcription; and deer are frequently ſeen and hunted upon it: but none were ever known to have been on the great iſland, now called Martha's Vineyard; which is above twenty miles in length and was always full of inhabitants. For what reaſon and at what time the name was tranſferred from the one to the other, I have not yet learned.

The cliff named Dover is ſuppoſed to be the eaſtern head of a ſmall iſland which was called by the natives Onky Tonky, and is now corrupted into Uncle Timmy. The rocky ledge is called Rattleſnake Neck. Hill's Hap conſiſts now of two very ſmall iſlands called Wicpeckets. There is every appearance that theſe were formerly united; and there are now a few cedars on them. Hap's Hill, on the oppoſite part of the main, is a ſmall elevated iſland, of an oval form, near the mouth of a river which paſſes through the towns of Wareham and Rocheſter. It is a conſpicuous object to navigators.

The iſland on which Goſnold and his company took up their abode, is now called by its Indian name Nauſhaun, and is the property of the Honourable JAMES BOWDOIN, of Boſton, to whom I am indebted for theſe remarks on Goſnold's journal, which is extant at large in Purchas's collections.Vol. v, p. 1647.

Near the ſouthweſt end of Nauſhaun is a large freſh pond; ſuch an one as anſwers to Goſnold's deſcription, excepting that there is no iſlet in the middle of it. The ſhore is ſandy; but what revolution may have taken place within the ſpace of almoſt two centuries paſt, we cannot ſay.

Whilſt ſome of Goſnold's men laboured in building a fort and ſtore houſe on the ſmall iſland in the pond, and a flat boat to go to it; he croſſed the bay in his veſſel and diſcovered the mouths of two rivers: one was that near which lay Hap's Hill, and the other, that, on the ſhore of which the town of New-Bedford is now built.

After five days abſence, Goſnold returned to the iſland and was received by his people with great ceremony; on account of an Indian chief and fifty of his men who were there on a viſit. To this chief they preſented a ſtraw hat and two knives; the hat he little regarded; but the knives were highly valued. They feaſted theſe ſavages with fiſh and muſtard, and diverted themſelves with the effect of the muſtard on their noſes. One of them ſtole a target, but it was reſtored. They did not appear to be inhabitants, but occaſional viſitants at the iſland, for the ſake of gathering ſhellfiſh. Four of them remained, after the others were gone, and helped the Engliſh to dig the roots of ſaſſafras; with which, as well as the furs which they bought of the Indians, the veſſel was loaded.

After ſpending three weeks in preparing a ſtore houſe, when they came to divide their proviſion, there was not enough to victual the ſhip, and to ſubſiſt the planters till the ſhip's return. Some jealouſy alſo aroſe about the intentions of thoſe who were going back; and after five days conſultation they determined to give up their deſign of planting, and return to England. On the eighteenth of June they ſailed out of the bay through the ſame paſſage by which they had entered it; and on the twenty third of July they arrived at Exmouth, in the weſt of England.

Goſnold's intention was to have remained with a part of his men, and to have ſent Gilbert, the ſecond in command, to England, for farther ſupplies; but half of ſo ſmall a company would not have been a ſufficient number to reſiſt the ſavages, had they been diſpoſed to attack them.

After his return to England he was indefatigable in his endeavours to forward the ſetſettling of a colony in America, and was one of thoſe who embarked in the next expedition for Virginia, where he had the rank of a Counſellor, and where he died in the year 1607.

XII. JOHN SMITH.

THOUGH the early part of the life of this extraordinary man was ſpent in foreign travels and adventures which have no reference to America; yet the incidents of that period ſo ſtrongly mark his character, and give ſuch a tincture to his ſubſequent actions, and are withal ſo ſingular in themſelves, that no reader (it is preſumed) will cenſure the introduction of them here as impertinent.

He was born at Willoughby, in Lincolnſhire, in the year 1579.

This is determined by an inſcription annexed to his portrait on his map of New-England—"Aetat 37. Anno 1616."

This portrait repreſents him clad in armour and under it are theſe verſes: "Such are the lines that ſhew thy face; but thoſe That ſhew thy grace and glory brighter bee; Thy faire diſcoveries and fowle overthrowes Of ſalvages much civilized by thee, Beſt ſhew thy ſpirit, and to it glory win, So thou art braſſe without, but golde within."

From the firſt dawn of reaſon, he diſcovered a roving and romantic genius, and delighted in extravagant and daring actions among his ſchool fellows. When about thirteen years of age, he ſold his books and ſatchel, and his puerile trinkets, to raiſe money, with a view to convey himſelf privately to ſea; but the death of his father put a ſtop for the preſent to this attempt, and threw him into the hands of guardians, who endeavoured to check the ardour of his genius, by confining him to a compting houſe. Being put apprentice to a merchant at Lynn, at the age of fifteen, he at firſt conceived hopes that his maſter would ſend him to ſea in his ſervice, but this hope failing, he quitted his maſter, and with only ten ſhillings in his pocket, entered into the train of a young nobleman who was travelling to France. At Orleans he was diſcharged from his attendance on lord Bertie, and had money given him to return to England. With this money he viſited Paris, and proceeded to the Low Countries, where he enliſted as a ſoldier, and learned the rudiments of war, a ſcience peculiarly agreeable to his ardent and active genius. Meeting with a Scots gentleman abroad, he was perſuad-to paſs into Scotland, with the promiſe of being ſtrongly recommended to King James; but being baffled in this expectation, he returned to his native town, and finding no company there which ſuited his taſte, he built a booth in a wood, and betook himſelf to the ſtudy of military hiſtory and tactics, diverting himſelf at intervals with his horſe and lance; in which exerciſe he at length found a companion, an Italian gentleman, rider to the earl of Lincoln, who drew him from his ſylvan retirement to Tatterſal.

Having recovered a part of the eſtate which his father had left him, he put himſelf into a better condition than before, and ſet off again on his travels, in the winter of the year 1596, being then only ſeventeen years of age. His firſt ſtage was Flanders, where meeting with a Frenchman who pretended to be heir to a noble family, he, with his three attendants, prevailed upon Smith to go with them to France. In a dark night they arrived at St. Valery in Picardy, and, by the connivance of the ſhip maſter, the Frenchmen were carried aſhore with the trunks of our young traveller, whilſt he was left on board till the return of the boat. In the mean time they had conveyed the baggage out of his reach, and were not to be found. A ſailor on board, who knew the villains, generouſly undertook to conduct him to Mortaine where they lived, and ſupplied his wants till their arrival at the place. Here he found their friends, from whom he could gain no recompence; but the report of his ſufferings induced ſeveral perſons of diſtinction to invite him to their houſes.

Eager to purſue his travels, and not caring to receive favours which he was unable to requite, he left his new friends and went from port to port in ſearch of a ſhip of war. In one of theſe rambles, near Dinan, it was his chance to meet one of the villains who had robbed him. Without ſpeaking a word, they both drew; and Smith having wounded and diſarmed his antagoniſt, obliged him to confeſs his guilt before a number of perſons who had aſſembled on the occaſion. Satisfied with his victory, he retired to the ſeat of an acquaintance, the earl of Ployer, who had been brought up in England, and having received ſupplies from him, he travelled along the French coaſt to Bayonne, and from thence croſſed over to Marſeilles; viſiting and obſerving every thing in his way which had any reference to naval or military architecture.

At Marſeilles he embarked for Italy, in company with a rabble of pilgrims. The ſhip was forced by a tempeſt into the harbour of Toulon, and afterward was obliged by a contrary wind to anchor under the little iſland of St. Mary, off Nice, in Savoy. The bigotry of the pilgrims made them aſcribe their ill fortune to the preſence of a heretic on board. They devoutly curſed Smith, and his Queen Elizabeth, and in a fit of pious rage threw him into the ſea. He ſwam to the iſland, and the next day was taken on board a ſhip of St. Malo which had alſo put in there for ſhelter. The maſter of the ſhip, who was well known to his noble friend the earl of Ployer, entertained him kindly, and carried him to Alexandria in Egypt; from thence he coaſted the Levant; and on his return had the high ſatisfaction of a naval engagement with a Venetian ſhip, which they took and rifled of her rich cargo. Smith was ſet on ſhore at Antibes with a box of a thouſand chequins, (about 2000 dollars) by the help of which he made the tour of Italy, croſſed the Adriatic and travelled into Stiria, to the ſeat of Ferdinand, Archduke of Auſtria. Here he met with an Engliſh and an Iriſh Jeſuit who introduced him to lord Eberſpaught, baron Kizel and other officers of diſtinction, and here he found full ſcope for his genius; for the emperor being then at war with the Turks, he entered into his army as a volunteer.

He had communicated to Eberſpaught a method of converſing at a diſtance by ſignals made with torches, which being alternately ſhown and hidden a certain number of times, deſignated every letter of the alphabet. He had ſoon after an opportunity of making the experiment. Eberſpaught being beſieged by the Turks in the ſtrong town of Olimpach, was cut off from all intelligence and hope of ſuccour from his friends. Smith propoſed his method of communication to baron Kizel, who approved it, and allowed him to put it in practice.The method is this. Firſt, three torches are ſhown in a line equi-diſtant from each other, which are anſwered by three others in the ſame manner. Then the meſſage being written as briefly as poſſible, and the alphabet divided into two parts, the letters from A to L are ſignified by ſhowing and hiding one light, as often as there are letters from A to that letter, which you mean. The letters from M to Z by two lights in the ſame manner. The end of a word is ſignified by ſhowing three lights. At every letter, the light ſtands till the other party may write it down and anſwer by his ſignal, which is one light. He was conveyed by a guard to a hill within view of the town, and ſufficiently remote from the Turkiſh camp. At the diſplay of the ſignal, Eberſpaught knew and anſwered it, and Smith conveyed to him this intelligence, "Thurſday night, I will charge on the Eaſt; at the alarm ſally thou." The anſwer was "I will." Juſt before the attack, by Smith's advice, a great number of falſe fires were made on another quarter, which divided the attention of the enemy and gave advantage to the aſſailants; who, being aſſiſted by a ſally from the town, killed many of the Turks, drove others into the river, and threw ſuccours into the place, which obliged the enemy the next day to raiſe the ſiege. This well conducted exploit, produced to our young adventurer, the command of a company, conſiſting of two hundred and fifty horſemen in the regiment of count Meldrick, a nobleman of Tranſylvania.

The regiment in which he ſerved being engaged in ſeveral hazardous enterprizes, Smith was foremoſt in all dangers and diſtinguiſhed himſelf both by his ingenuity and by his valour; and when Meldrick left the Imperial army, and paſſed into the ſervice of his native prince, Smith followed him.

At the ſiege of Regal, the Ottomans derided the ſlow approaches of the Tranſylvanian army, and ſent a challenge, purporting that the lord Turbiſha, to divert the ladies, would fight any ſingle Captain of the Chriſtian troops. The honour of accepting this challenge, being determined by lot, fell on Captain Smith; who, meeting his antagoniſt on horſeback, within view of the ladies on the battlements, at the ſound of muſic began the encounter, and in a ſhort time killed him, and bore away his head in triumph to his general the lord Moyzes.

The death of the chief ſo irritated his friend Grualgo, that he ſent a particular challenge to the conqueror, who, meeting him with the ſame ceremonies, after a ſmart combat, took off his head alſo. Smith then in his turn ſent a meſſage into the town, informing the ladies, that if they wiſhed for more diverſion, they ſhould be welcome to his head, in caſe their third Champion could take it. This challenge was accepted by Bonamolgro, who unhorſed Smith and was near gaining the victory. But remounting in a critical moment, he gave the Turk a ſtroke with his faulchion which brought him to the ground, and his head was added to the number. For theſe ſingular exploits he was honoured with a military proceſſion, conſiſting of ſix thouſand men, three led horſes, and the Turks' heads on the points of three lances. With this ceremony Smith was conducted to the pavilion of his general, who, after embracing him, preſented him with a horſe richly furniſhed, a ſcymitar and belt worth three hundred ducats, and a commiſſion to be major in his regiment. The prince of Tranſylvania, after the capture of the place, made him a preſent of his picture ſet in gold, and a penſion of three hundred ducats per annum, and moreover granted him a coat of arms bearing three Turks' heads in a ſhield. The patent was admitted and recorded in the college of Heralds in England, by Sir Henry Segar, garter king at arms. Smith was always proud of this diſtinguiſhing honour, and theſe arms are accordingly blazoned in the frontiſpiece to his hiſtory, with this motto, "Vincere eſt vivere."

After this, the Tranſylvanian army was defeated by a body of Turks and Tartars near Rotenton, and many brave men were ſlain, among whom were nine Engliſh and Scots officers, who, after the faſhion of that day, had entered into this ſervice, from a religious zeal to drive the Turks out of Chriſtendom. Smith was wounded in this battle and lay among the dead. His habit diſcovered him to the victors as a perſon of conſequence; they uſed him well till his wounds were healed, and then ſold him to the Baſha Bogal, who ſent him as a preſent to his miſtreſs Tragabigzanda at Conſtantinople, accompanied with a meſſage, as full of vanity as void of truth, that he had conquered in battle a Bohemian nobleman, and preſented him to her as a ſlave.

The preſent proved more acceptable to the lady than her lord intended. She could ſpeak Italian; and Smith, in that language, not only informed her of his country and quality, but converſed with her in ſo pleaſing a manner as to gain her affections. The connexion proved ſo tender, that to ſecure him for herſelf and to prevent his being ill uſed or ſold again, ſhe ſent him to her brother the Baſha of Nalbraitz, in the country of the Cambrian Tartars, on the borders of the ſea of Aſoph. Her pretence was, that he ſhould there learn the manners and language as well as religion of the Tartars. By the terms in which ſhe wrote to her brother, he ſuſpected her deſign, and reſolved to diſappoint her. Within an hour after Smith's arrival he was ſtripped; his head and beard were ſhaven, an iron collar was put about his neck; he was clothed with a coat of hair-cloth, and driven to labour among other Chriſtian ſlaves. He had now no hope of redemption, but from the love of his miſtreſs, who was at a great diſtance, and not likely to be informed of his misfortune; the hopeleſs condition of his fellow ſlaves could not alleviate his deſpondency.

In the depth of his diſtreſs, an opportunity preſented for an eſcape, which to a perſon of a leſs courageous and adventrous ſpirit would have proved an aggravation of miſery. He was employed in threſhing, at a grange, in a large field about a league from the houſe of his tyrant, who in his daily viſits treated him with abuſive language, accompanied with blows and kicks. This was more than Smith could bear, wherefore watching an opportunity when no other perſon was preſent, he levelled a ſtroke at him with his threſhing inſtrument, which diſpatched him. Then hiding his body in the ſtraw and ſhutting the doors, he filled a bag with grain, mounted the Baſha's horſe, and betaking himſelf to the deſart, wandered for two or three days, ignorant of the way, and ſo fortunate as not to meet with a ſingle perſon who might give information of his flight. At length he came to a poſt erected in a croſs road, by the marks on which he found the way to Moſcovy, and in ſixteen days arrived at Exapolis on the river Don; where was a Ruſſian garriſon, the commander of which underſtanding that he was a Chriſtian, received him courteouſly; took off his iron collar, and gave him letters to the other governors in that region. Thus he travelled through part of Ruſſia and Poland, till he got back to his friends in Tranſylvania; receiving preſents in his way from many perſons of diſtinction, among whom he particularly mentions a charitable lady, Callamata, being always proud of his connexion with that ſex, and fond of acknowledging their favours. At Leipſic he met with his colonel, count Meldrick, and Sigiſmund, prince of Tranſylvania, who gave him 1500 ducats to repair his loſſes. With this money he was enabled to travel through Germany, France, and Spain, and having viſited the kingdom of Morocco, he returned by ſea to England; having in his paſſage enjoyed the pleaſure of another naval engagement. At his arrival in his native country he had a thouſand ducats in his purſe, which, with the intereſt he had remaining in England, he devoted to ſeek adventures and make diſcoveries in NORTH AMERICA.

Bartholomew Goſnold having conceived a favourable idea of America, had made it his buſineſs, on his return to England, to ſolicit aſſiſtance in proſecuting diſcoveries. Meeting with Captain Smith, he readily entered into his views, the employment being exactly ſuited to his enterprizing genius. Having engaged Edward Maria Wingfield, a merchant, Robert Hunt, a clergyman, and ſeveral others, they prevailed upon a number of noblemen, gentlemen, and merchants, to ſolicit a patent from the crown, by which the adventurers to Virginia became ſubject to legal direction, and had the ſupport and encouragement of a wealthy and reſpectable corporation; which was uſually ſtyled the South Virginia company, or the London company, in diſtinction from the Plymouth company, who ſuperintended the affairs of North Virginia. The date of their patent was April 10, 1606, and on the 19th of the following December, three ſhips, one of one hundred tons, another of forty, and one of twenty, fell down the river Thames for Virginia. The commander was Chriſtopher Newport, an experienced mariner. They had on board the neceſſary perſons and proviſions for a colony; and their orders for government were ſealed in a box, which was not to be opened till they ſhould arrive in Virginia.

The ſhips were kept in the Downs by bad weather ſix weeks, and afterward had a tempeſtuous voyage. They took the old route by the Canary and Caribbee iſlands, and did not make the entrance of Cheſapeak Bay till the 26th of April 1607. From the beginning of their embarkation, there was a jealouſy and diſſention among the company. Smith and Hunt were friends, and both were envied and ſuſpected by the others. Hunt was judicious and patient, his office ſecured him from inſult. Smith was ardent and induſtrious, courteous in his deportment, but liberal in his language. On ſome ſuggeſtions that he intended to uſurp the government, and that his confederates were diſperſed among the companies of each ſhip, he was made a priſoner from the time of their leaving the Canaries, and was under confinement when they arrived in the Cheſapeak. When the box was opened it was found that Bartholomew Goſnold, John Smith, Edward M. Wingfield, Chriſtopher Newport, John Ratcliff, John Martin, and George Kendal were named to be of the council; who were to chuſe a preſident from among themſelves for one year, and the government was veſted in them. Matters of moment were to be "examined by a jury, but determined by the major part of the council, in which the preſident had two voices." When the council was ſworn, Wingfield was choſen preſident, and a declaration was made of the reaſons for which Smith was not admitted and ſworn among the others.

Seventeen days from their arrival were ſpent in ſeeking a proper place for their firſt plantation. The ſouthern point of the bay was named Cape Henry, and the northern Cape Charles, in honour of the two ſons of King James. To the firſt great river which they diſcovered they gave the name of their ſovereign; and the northern point of its entrance was called Point Comfort, on account of the good channel and anchorage which they found there. On the flats they took plenty of oyſters, in ſome of which were pearls; and on the plain they found large and ripe ſtrawberries, which afforded them a delicious repaſt.

Having met with five of the natives, they invited them to their town, Kecoughtan, where Hampton is now built. Here they were feaſted with cakes made of Indian corn, and regaled with tobacco and a dance. In return they preſented the natives beads and other trinkets. Proceeding up the river, another company of Indians appeared in arms. Their chief, Apamatica, holding in one hand his bow and arrow, and in the other a pipe of tobacco, demanded the cauſe of their coming; they made ſigns of peace, and were hoſpitably received. On the 13th of May, they pitched upon a peninſula where the ſhips could lie in ſix fathom water, moored to the trees, as the place of their intended ſettlement. Here they were viſited by Paſpiha, another Indian chief, who being made acquainted with their deſign, offered them as much land as they wanted, and afterward ſent them a deer for their entertainment. On this ſpot they piched their tents, and gave it the name of James-town.

Every man was now employed either in digging and planting gardens, or making nets, or in cutting and riving timber to relade the ſhips. The preſident at firſt would admit of no martial exerciſe, nor allow any fortifications to be made excepting the boughs of trees thrown together in the form of a half moon. Captain Newport took Smith and twenty more with him to diſcover the head of James-river. In ſix days they arrived at the falls, and erecting a croſs, as they had at Cape Henry, took poſſeſſion of the country in the name of King James. In this route they viſited POWHATAN, the principal Indian chief, or emperor. His town conſiſted of twelve houſes pleaſantly ſituate on a hill; before which were three iſlands, a little below the ſpot where Richmond is now built. Captain Newport preſented a hatchet to this prince, which he gratefully received, and when ſome of his Indians murmured at the coming of the Engliſh among them, he ſilenced them by ſaying "why ſhould we be offended? they hurt us not, nor take any thing by force; they want only a little ground which we can eaſily ſpare." This appearance of friendſhip was not much relied on, when at their return to James-town, they found that the company had been ſurpriſed at their work by a party of Indians, who had killed one and wounded ſeventeen others. A double headed ſhot from one of the ſhips had cut off a bough of a tree, which falling among the Indians, terrified and diſperſed them. This incident obliged the Preſident to alter the plan of the fort, which was now a triangular paliſade with a lunette at each angle; and five pieces of artillery were mounted on the works, which were completed by the 15th of June. It was alſo found neceſſary to exerciſe the men at arms, to mount guard and be vigilant, for the Indians would ſurpriſe and moleſt ſtragglers, whilſt by their ſuperior agility they would eſcape unhurt.

The ſhips being almoſt ready to return, it was thought proper that ſome deciſion ſhould be had reſpecting the allegations againſt Smith. His accuſers affected commiſeration, and pretended to refer him to the cenſure of the company in England, rather than to expoſe him, to a legal proſecution which might injure his reputation or touch his life. Smith, who knew both their malice and their impotence, openly ſcorned their pretended pity and defied their reſentment. He had conducted himſelf ſo unexceptionably in every employment which had been allotted to him, that he had rendered himſelf very popular; and his accuſers had by a different conduct loſt the affections and confidence of the people. Thoſe who had been ſuborned to accuſe him acknowledged their fault, and diſcovered the ſecret arts which had been practiſed againſt him. He demanded a trial, and the iſſue was, that the Preſident was adjudged to pay him two hundred pounds; but when his property was ſeized in part of this ſatisfaction, Smith generouſly turned it into the common ſtore, for the benefit of the colony. Such an action could not but increaſe his popularity. Many other difficulties had ariſen among them, which, by the influence of Smith, and the exhortations of Hunt, their chaplain, were brought to a ſeemingly amicable concluſion. Smith was admitted to his ſeat in the council, and on the next Sunday they celebrated the communion. At the ſame time the Indians came in, and voluntarily deſired peace. With the good report of theſe tranſactions Newport ſailed for England on the 22d of June, promiſing to return in twenty weeks with freſh ſupplies.

The colony thus left in Virginia conſiſted of one hundred and four perſons, in very miſerable circumſtances, eſpecially on account of proviſions, to which calamity their long voyage did not a little contribute, both as it conſumed their ſtock, and deprived them of the opportunity of ſowing ſeaſonably in the ſpring. Whilſt the ſhips remained, they could barter with the ſailors for bread; but after their departure, each man's allowance was half a pint of damaged wheat, and as much barley, per day: the river, which at the flood was ſalt, and at the ebb was muddy, afforded them their only drink; it alſo ſupplied them with ſturgeon and ſhellfiſh. This kind of food, with their continual labour in the heat of ſummer, and their frequent watchings by night in all weathers, having only the bare ground to lie on with but a ſlight covering, produced diſeaſes among them; which by the month of September carried off fifty perſons, among whom was Captain Goſnold. Thoſe who remained were divided into three watches, of whom not more than five in each were capable of duty at once. All this time the Preſident, Wingfield, who had the key of the ſtores, monopolized the few refreſhments which remained, and was meditating to deſert the plantation privately in the pinnace, and remove to the Weſt Indies. Theſe things rendered him ſo hateful to the reſt, that they depoſed him and elected Ratcliffe in his room; they alſo removed Kendal from his place in the council, ſo that by the middle of September, three members only were left.

Ratcliffe, being a man of no reſolution nor activity, committed the management of affairs abroad to Smith, in whom his confidence was not miſplaced. At the ſame time the Indians in their neighbourhood brought in a plentiful ſupply of ſuch proviſions as they had, which revived their drooping ſpirits; and Smith ſeeing the neceſſity of exertion to ſecure themſelves, and provide for the approaching winter, partly by his animating ſpeeches, but more by his example, ſet them to work in mowing and binding thatch, and in building and covering houſes. In theſe exerciſes he bore a large ſhare, and in a ſhort time got a ſufficiency of houſes to make comfortable lodgings for all the people excepting himſelf. This being done, and the proviſions which the natives had brought in being expended, he picked a number of the beſt hands and embarked in a ſhallop which they had brought from England, to ſearch the country for another ſupply.

The party which accompanied Smith in this excurſion, conſiſted of ſix men, well armed, but ill provided with clothing and other neceſſaries. What was wanting in equipment was to be ſupplied by reſolution and addreſs; and Smith's genius was equal to the attempt. They proceeded down the river to Kecoughtan [Hampton] where the natives, knowing the needy ſtate of the colony, treated them with contempt, offering an ear of corn in exchange for a muſket, or a ſword, and in like proportion for their ſcant and tattered garments. Finding that courteſy and gentle treatment would not prevail, and that nothing was to be expected in the way of barter, and moreover provoked by their contempt, Smith ordered his boat to be drawn on ſhore and his men to fire at them. The affrighted natives fled to the woods, whilſt the party ſearched their houſes in which they found plenty of corn; but Smith did not permit his men to touch it; expecting that the Indians would return and attack them. They ſoon appeared to the number of ſixty or ſeventy, formed into a ſquare carrying their idol OKEE, compoſed of ſkins, ſtuffed with moſs and adorned with chains of copper. They were armed with clubs and targets, bows and arrows, and advanced, ſinging, to the charge. The party received them with a volley of ſhot, which brought ſeveral of them to the ground and their idol among them; the reſt fled again to the woods, from whence they ſent a deputation to offer peace and redeem their god. Smith, having in his hands ſo valuable a pledge, was able to bring them to his own terms; he ſtipulated that ſix of them ſhould come unarmed, and load his boat with corn, and on this condition he would be their friend and give them hatchets, beads and copper. Theſe ſtipulations were faithfully performed on both ſides; and the Indians in addition preſented them with veniſon, turkies, and other birds; and continued ſinging and dancing till their departure.

The ſucceſs of this attempt encouraged him to repeat his excurſions by land and water; in the courſe of which he diſcovered ſeveral branches of James-River, and particularly the Chickahamony, from whoſe fertile banks he hoped to ſupply the colony with proviſion. But induſtry abroad will not make a flouriſhing plantation without economy at home. What he had taken pains and riſqued his life to provide, was careleſsly and wantonly expended; the traffic with the natives being under no regulation, each perſon made his own bargain, and by out bidding each other they taught the Indians to ſet a higher value on their commodities, and to think themſelves cheated when they did not all get the ſame prices. This bred a jealouſy and ſowed the ſeeds of a quarrel with them, which the colony were in a poor condition to maintain, being at variance among themſelves.

The ſhallop being again fitted for a trading voyage, whilſt Smith was abroad on one of his uſual rambles, and the people being diſcontented with the indolence of Ratcliffe, their preſident, and the long ſickneſs of Martin; Wingfield and Kendal, who had been diſplaced, took advantage of Smith's abſence, and conſpired with ſome malcontents to run away with the veſſel and go to England. Smith returned unexpectedly, and the plot was diſcovered. To prevent its execution, recourſe was had to arms, and Kendal was killed. Another attempt of the ſame kind was made by Ratcliffe himſelf, aſſiſted by Archer; but Smith found means to defeat this alſo. He determined to keep poſſeſſion of the country, the value of which was daily riſing in his eſtimation; not only as a ſource of wealth to individuals, but as a grand national object; and he knew that great undertakings could not be accompliſhed without labour and perſeverance.

As the autumn advanced, the waters were covered with innumerable wild fowl; which with the addition of corn, beans, and pumpkins, procured from the Indians, changed hunger into luxury, and abated the rage for abandoning the country. Smith had been once up the river Chickahamony, but becauſe he had not penetrated to its ſource, exceptions were taken to his conduct as too dilatory. This imputation he determined to remove. In his next voyage, he went ſo high that he was obliged to cut the trees, which had fallen into the river, to make his way through as far as his boat could ſwim. He then left her in a ſafe place, ordering his men not to quit her until his return; then taking two of them, and two Indians for guides, he proceeded in one of their canoes to the meadows at the river's head; and leaving his two men with the canoe, he went with his Indian guides acroſs the meadows. A party of 300 Indians below, had watched the motions of the boat. They firſt ſurprized the ſtraggling crew, and made one of them priſoner, from whom they learned that Smith was above. They next found the two men, whom he had left with the canoe, aſleep by a fire, and killed them; then having diſcovered Smith, they wounded him in the thigh with an arrow. Finding himſelf thus aſſaulted, and wounded, he bound one of his Indian guides with his garters to his left arm, and made uſe of him as a ſhield, whilſt he diſpatched three of his enemies and wounded ſome others. He was retreating to his canoe, when regarding his enemies, more than his footſteps, he ſuddenly plunged with his guide into an oozy creek, and ſtuck faſt in the mud. The Indians aſtoniſhed at his bravery did not approach him, till almoſt dead with cold, he threw away his arms, and begged them to draw him out, which they did and led him to the fire, where his ſlain companions were lying. This ſight admoniſhed him what he was to expect. Being revived by their chafing his benumbed limbs, he called for their chief, Opechankanow, King of Pamaunkee, to whom he preſented his ivory compaſs and dial. The vibrations of the needle, and the fly under the glaſs, which they could ſee but not touch, afforded them much amuſement; and Smith, having learned ſomething of their language, partly by means of that, and partly by ſigns, entertained them with a deſcription of the nature and uſes of the inſtrument; and gave them ſuch a lecture on the motions of the heavens and earth, as amazed them, and ſuſpended for a time, the execution of their purpoſe. At length, curioſity being ſatiated, they faſtened him to a tree, and prepared to diſpatch him with their arrows. At this inſtant, the chief holding up the compaſs, which he eſteemed as a divinity, they laid aſide their arms, and forming a military proceſſion, led him in triumph to their village Orapaxe. The order of their march was thus: they ranged themſelves in a ſingle file, the King in the midſt, before him were borne the arms taken from Smith and his companions; next after the King, came the priſoner, held by three ſtout ſavages; and on each ſide a file of ſix. When they arrived at the village, the old men, women, and children, came out to receive them; after ſome manoeuvres, which had the appearance of regularity, they formed themſelves round the King and his priſoner, into a circle, dancing and ſinging, adorned with paint, furs, and feathers, brandiſhing their rattles, which were made of the tails of rattleſnakes. After three dances, they diſperſed, and Smith was conducted to a long hut, guarded by forty men. There he was ſo plentifully feaſted with bread and veniſon, that he ſuſpected their intention was to fatten and eat him. One of the Indians, to whom Smith had formerly given beads, brought him a garment of furs, to defend him from the cold. Another, whoſe ſon was then ſick and dying, attempted to kill him, but was prevented by the guard. Smith being conducted to the dying youth, told them that he had a medicine at James-town, which would cure him, if they would let him fetch it; but they had another deſign, which was to ſurprize the place, and make uſe of him as a guide. To induce him to perform this ſervice, they promiſed him his liberty, with as much land, and as many women, as would content him. Smith magnified the difficulty and danger of their attempt, from the ordnance, mines and other defences of the place, which exceedingly terrified them, and to convince them of the truth of what he told them, he wrote on a leaf of his pocket book, an inventory of what he wanted, with ſome directions to the people at the fort, how to affright the meſſengers who went to deliver the letter. They returned in three days, reporting the terror, into which they had been thrown, and when they produced the things for which he had written, the whole company were aſtoniſhed at the power of his divination by the ſpeaking leaf.

After this they carried him through ſeveral nations, inhabiting the banks of the Potowmack and Rapahanock, and at length brought him to Pamaunkee; where they performed a ſtrange ceremony, by which they intended to divine, whether his intentions toward them, were friendly or hoſtile. The manner of it was this: early in the morning a great fire was made in a long houſe, and a mat ſpread on each ſide, on one of which he was placed, and the guard retired. Preſently, an Indian prieſt, hideouſly painted, and dreſſed in furs and ſnake ſkins, came ſkipping in, and after a variety of uncouth noiſes and geſtures, drew a circle with meal round the fire. Then came in three more in the ſame frightful dreſs, and after they had performed their dance, three others. They all ſat oppoſite to him in a line, the chief prieſt in the midſt. After ſinging a ſong, accompanied with the muſic of their rattles, the chief prieſt laid down five grains of corn, and after a ſhort ſpeech three more; this was repeated till the fire was encircled. Then continuing the incantation, he laid ſticks between the diviſions of the corn. The whole day was ſpent in theſe ceremonies, with faſting; and at night a feaſt was prepared of the beaſt meats which they had. The ſame tricks were repeated the two following days. They told him that the circle of meal repreſented their country, the circle of corn the ſea ſhore, and the ſticks his country; they did not acquaint him, or he has not acquainted us with the reſult of the operation; but he obſerved that the gunpowder, which they had taken from him, was laid up among their corn, to be planted the next ſpring.

After theſe ceremonies, they brought him to the emperor POWHATAN, who received him in royal ſtate, clothed in a robe of racoon ſkins, ſeated on a kind of throne, elevated above the floor of a large hut, in the midſt of which was a fire; at each hand of the prince, ſat two beautiful girls, his daughters, and along each ſide of the houſe, a row of his counſellors, painted and adorned with feathers and ſhells. At Smith's entrance a great ſhout was made. The Queen of Apamatox, brought him water to waſh his hands, and another ſerved him with a bunch of feathers, inſtead of a towel. Having feaſted him after their manner, a long conſultation was held, which being ended, two large ſtones were brought in, on one of which his head was laid, and clubs were lifted up to beat out his brains. At this critical moment, POCAHONTAS, the King's favourite daughter, flew to him, took his head in her arms, and laid her own upon it. Her tender intreaties prevailed. The king conſented that Smith ſhould live, to make hatchets for him, and ornaments for her.

Two days after, Powhatan cauſed him to be brought to a diſtant houſe; where, after another threatening, he confirmed his promiſe, and told him he ſhould return to the fort, and ſend him two pieces of cannon, and a grindſtone; for which he would give him the country of Capahouſick, and forever eſteem him as his ſon. Twelve guides accompanied him, and he arrived at James-town, the next day. According to the ſtipulation, two guns and a large grindſtone were offered them. but having in vain tried to lift them, they were content to let them remain in their place. Smith, however, had the guns loaded, and diſcharged a volley of ſtones, at a tree covered with icicles. The report and effect confounded them; but being pacified with a few toys, they returned, carrying preſents to Powhatan and his daughter, of ſuch things as gave them entire ſatisfaction. After this adventure, the young princeſs, Pocahontas, frequently viſited the plantation, with her attendants, and the refreſhments which ſhe brought from time to time proved the means of ſaving many lives, which otherwiſe would have been loſt.

Smith's return happened at another critical juncture. The colony was divided into parties, and the malcontents, were again preparing to quit the country. His preſence a third time, defeated the project; in revenge for which they meditated to put him to death, under pretence that he had been the means of murdering the two men who went with him in the canoe; but by a proper application of valour and ſtrength, he put his accuſers under confinement, till an opportunity preſented for ſending them as priſoners to England.

The misfortunes and miſmanagements of this Virginian colony, during the period here related, ſeem to have originated partly in the tempers and qualifications of the men who were appointed to command, and partly in the nature and circumſtances of the adventure. There could be no choice of men for the ſervice, but among thoſe who offered themſelves; and theſe were previouſly ſtrangers to each other, as well as different in their education, qualities and habits. Some of them had been uſed to the command of ſhips, and partook of the roughneſs of the element on which they were bred. It is perhaps, no great compliment to Smith, to ſay that he was the beſt qualified of them, for command; ſince the event proved that none of them, who ſurvived the firſt ſickneſs, had the confidence of the people in any degree. It is certain that his reſolution prevented the abandonment of the place the firſt year; his enterprizing ſpirit led to an exploration of the country, and acquainted them with its many advantages; his captivity produced an intercourſe with the ſavages; and the ſupplies gained from them, chiefly by means of his addreſs, kept the people alive till the ſecond arrival of the ſhips from England. The Virginians, therefore, juſtly regard him, if not as the father, yet as the ſaviour of that infant plantation.

In the winter of 1607, Capt. Newport arrived from England in Virginia. The other ſhip, commanded by Capt. Nelſon, which ſailed at the ſame time, was diſmaſted on the American coaſt, and blown off to the Weſt-Indies. The ſupplies ſent by the company were received in Virginia with the moſt cordial avidity; but the general licenſe given to the ſailors, to trade with the ſavages, proved detrimental to the planters, as it raiſed the prices of their commodities ſo high, that a pound of copper would not purchaſe, what before could be bought for an ounce. Newport himſelf was not free from this ſpirit of profuſion, ſo common to ſeafaring men, which he manifeſted by ſending preſents of various kinds to Powhatan, intending thereby to give him an idea of the grandeur of the Engliſh nation. In a viſit which he made to this prince, under the conduct of Smith, he was received and entertained with an equal ſhow of magnificence; but in trading with the ſavage chief, he found himſelf outwitted. Powhatan, in a lofty ſtrain, ſpoke to him thus: "It is not agreeable to the greatneſs of ſuch men as we are, to trade like common people for trifles; lay down therefore at once, all your goods, and I will give you the full value for them." Smith perceived the ſnare, and warned Newport of it; but he, thinking to out brave the ſavage prince, diſplayed the whole of his ſtore. Powhatan then ſet ſuch a price on his corn, that not more than four buſhels could be procured; and the neceſſary ſupplies could not have been had, if Smith's genius, ever ready at invention, had not hit on an artifice which proved ſucceſsful. He had ſecreted ſome trifles, and among them a parcel of blue beads, which, ſeemingly in a careleſs way, he glanced in the eyes of Powhatan. The bait caught him; and he earneſtly deſired to purchaſe them. Smith, in his turn, raiſed the value of them, extolling them as the moſt precious jewels, reſembling the colour of the ſky, and proper only for the nobleſt ſovereigns in the univerſe. Powhatan's imagination was all on fire; he made large offers. Smith inſiſted on more, and at length ſuffered himſelf to be perſuaded to take between two and three hundred buſhels of corn for about two pounds of blue beads, and they parted in very good humour, each one being very much pleaſed with his bargain. In a ſubſequent viſit to Opecankanough, King of Pamaunkee, the company were entertained with the ſame kind of ſplendor and a ſimilar bargain cloſed the feſtivity; by which means, the blue beads grew into ſuch eſtimation, that none but the princes and their families were able to wear them.

Loaded with this acquiſition, they returned to James-town; where an unhappy fire had conſumed ſeveral of their houſes, with much of their proviſions and furniture. Mr. Hunt, the chaplain, loſt his apparel and library in this conflagration, and eſcaped from it with only the clothes on his back. This misfortune was ſeverely felt; the ſhip ſtaying in port fourteen weeks, and reſerving enough for the voyage home, ſo contracted their ſtock of proviſions, that before the winter was gone, they were reduced to great extremity, and many of them died. The cauſe of the ſhip's detention for ſo long a time was this: In ſearching for freſh water in the neighbourhood of James-town, they had diſcovered in a rivulet, ſome particles of a yellowiſh iſing-glaſs, which their ſanguine imaginations had refined into gold duſt. The zeal for this precious matter was ſo ſtrong, that in digging, waſhing and packing it to complete the lading of the ſhip, all other cares were abſorbed. This was a tedious interval to Capt. Smith; his judgment condemned their folly, his patience was exhauſted, and his paſſion irritated, and the only recompenſe which he had for this long vexation was, the pleaſure of ſending home Wingfield and Archer, when the ſhip departed.

The other ſhip arrived in the ſpring, and notwithſtanding a long and unavoidable detention in the Weſt-Indies, brought them a comfortable ſupply of proviſions. They took advantage of the opening ſeaſon, to rebuild their houſes and chapel, repair the paliſades, and plant corn for the enſuing ſummer, in all which works the example and authority of Smith, were of eminent ſervice. Every man of activity was fond of him, and thoſe of a contrary diſpoſition were afraid of him. It was propoſed that he ſhould go into the country of the Monacans, beyond the falls of James-river, that they might have ſome news of the interior parts to ſend home to the company; but a fray with the Indians detained him at James-town, till the ſhip ſailed for England, laden chiefly with cedar, but not without another ſpecimen of the yellow duſt, of which Martin was ſo fond, that he took charge of the packages himſelf and returned to England. An acceſſion of above one hundred men, among whom were ſeveral goldſmiths and refiners, had been made to the colony, by the two laſt ſhips, and a new member, Matthew Scrivener, was added to the council.

Having finiſhed the neceſſary buſineſs of the ſeaſon, and diſpatched the ſhip, another voyage of diſcovery was undertaken by Capt. Smith and fourteen others. They went down the river (June 10, 1608) in an open barge, in company with the ſhip, and having parted with her at Cape Henry, they croſſed the mouth of the bay, and fell in with a cluſter of iſlands without Cape Charles, to which they gave the name of Smith's Iſles, which they ſtill bear. Then re-entering the bay they landed on the eaſtern neck, and were kindly received by Acomack, the prince of that peninſula, a part of which ſtill bears his name. From thence they coaſted the eaſtern ſhore of the bay, and landed ſometimes on the main, and at other times on the low iſlands, of which they found many, but none fit for habitation. They proceeded up the bay to the northward and croſſed over to the weſtern ſhore, down which they coaſted to the ſouthward, and in this route diſcovered the mouths of the great rivers, which fall into the bay on that ſide. One in particular, attracted much of their attention, becauſe of a reddiſh earth which they found there, and from its reſemblance to bole-ammoniac, they gave it the name of Bolus-river, and it is ſo named in all the early maps of the country; but in the later, it bears the Indian name Patapſco; on the north ſide of which is now the flouriſhing town of Baltimore. They ſailed thirty miles up the Potowmack, without ſeeing any inhabitants; but on entering a creek found themſelves ſurrounded by Indians who threatened them. Smith prepared for an encounter; but on firing a few guns, the Indians, terrified at the noiſe, made ſigns of peace, and exchanged hoſtages. One of the company was by this means carried to the habitation of their prince, and the whole were kindly uſed. They learned that it was by direction of Powhatan that the Indians were in arms, and had attempted to ſurpriſe them; from this circumſtance they were led to ſuſpect that Powhatan, had been informed of this expedition, by the diſcontented part of the colony whom Smith had obliged to ſtay in the country when they would have deſerted it.

It was Smith's invariable cuſtom, when he met with the Indians, to put on a bold face, and if they appeared deſirous of peace to demand their arms, and ſome of their children as pledges of their ſincerity; if they complied, he conſidered them as friends; if not, as enemies. In the courſe of this voyage, he collected ſome furs, and diſcovered ſome coloured earths, which the ſavages uſed as paints, but found nothing of the mineral kind. At the mouth of the Rappahanock, the boat grounded, and whilſt they were waiting for the tide, they employed themſelves in ſticking with their ſwords the fiſhes which were left on the flats. Smith having ſtuck his ſword into a ſtingray, the fiſh raiſed its tail, and with its ſharp indented thorn, wounded him in the arm. The wound was extremely painful, and he preſently ſwelled to that degree, that they expected him to die, and he himſelf gave them orders to bury him on a neighbouring iſland. But the ſurgeon, Dr. Ruſſel, having probed the wound; by the help of a certain oil, ſo allayed the anguiſh and ſwelling, that Smith was able to eat part of the fiſh for his ſupper. From this occurrence, the place was diſtinguiſhed by the name of Stingray-Point, which it ſtill bears.

On the 21ſt of July, they returned to James-town. Having, with the coloured earths which they had found, diſguiſed their boat and ſtreamers, their old companions were alarmed at their approach, with the apprehenſion of an attack from the Spaniards; this was a trick of Smith's to frighten the old Preſident, who had rioted on the public ſtores, and was building a houſe in the woods, that he might ſeclude himſelf from the ſickly, diſcontented, quarrelſome company. On Smith's arrival, they ſignified their deſire of inveſting him with the government. Ratcliffe being depoſed, it fell to him of courſe; and having recommended Scrivener to preſide in his abſence, he entered on another voyage of diſcovery, being determined to ſpare no pains for a full exploration of the country.

From the 24th of July, to the 7th of September, with twelve men in an open barge, he ranged the bay of Cheſapeak, as far northward as the falls of Suſquehannah, entering all the rivers that flow into the bay, and examining their ſhores. In ſome places, the natives were friendly, and in others jealous. Their idea of the ſtrange viſitors, was, that they had come "from under the world to take their world from them." Smith's conſtant endeavour, was to preſerve peace with them; but when he could not obtain corn in the way of traffic, he never ſcrupled to uſe threats, and in ſome caſes, violence, and by one or the other method he prevailed ſo as to bring home a load of proviſions for his diſcontented companions, who without his efforts would not have been able to live. Sickneſs and death were very frequent, and the lateſt comers, were moſt affected by the diſorders of the climate.

Smith was now eſtabliſhed in the preſidency, by the election of the council and the requeſt of the company; but the commiſſion gave to a majority of the council the whole power. Newport, at his third arrival, brought over two new members, and Ratcliffe having ſtill a ſeat, though depoſed from the preſidency, Smith was obliged in ſome caſes to comply with their opinions, contrary to his own judgment, an inſtance of which will now be exhibited.

The Virginia company in London, deceived by falſe reports, and miſled by their own ſanguine imaginations, had conceived an expectation not only of finding precious metals in the country, but of diſcovering the South Sea, from the mountains at the head of James-river; and it was thought, that the journey thither, might be performed in eight or ten days. For the purpoſe of making this capital diſcovery, they put on board Newport's ſhip, a barge capable of being taken to pieces, and put together again at pleaſure. This barge was to make a voyage to the head of the river, then to be carried in pieces acroſs the mountains, and to deſcend the rivers which were ſuppoſed to run weſtward to the South Sea. To facilitate this plan, it was neceſſary to gain the favour of Powhatan, through whoſe country the paſſage muſt be made; and as means of winning him, a royal preſent was brought over, conſiſting of a baſon and ewer, a bed and furniture, a chair of ſtate, a ſuit of ſcarlet clothes, with a cloak and a crown, all which were to be preſented to him in due form; and the crown placed on his head, with as much ſolemnity as poſſible. To a perſon who knew the country and its inhabitants ſo well as Smith, this project appeared chimerical, and the means whereby it was to be carried on, dangerous. With a ſmall quantity of copper and a few beads, he could have kept Powhatan in good humour, and made an advantage of it for the colony, whereas a profuſion of preſents he knew would but increaſe his pride and inſolence. The project of travelling over unknown mountains with men already weakened by ſickneſs, and worn out with fatigue, in a hot climate, and in the midſt of enemies, who might eaſily cut off their retreat, was too romantic even for his ſanguine and adventrous ſpirit. His opinion upon the matter cannot be expreſſed in more pointed language, than he uſed in a letter to the company. "If the quartered boat was burned to aſhes, one might carry her in a bag, but as ſhe is, five hundred cannot, to a navigable place above the falls." His diſſent however was ineffectual, and when he found that the voice of the council was for executing it, he lent his aſſiſtance to effect as much of it as was practicable.

Previouſly to their ſetting out, he undertook, with four men only, to carry notice to Powhatan of the intended preſent, and invite him to come to James-town, that he might receive it there. Having travelled by land twelve miles to Werocomoco, on Pamunky (York) river, where he expected to meet Powhatan, and not finding him there, whilſt a meſſenger was diſpatched thirty miles for him; his daughter Pocahontas, entertained Smith and his company with a dance, which for its ſingularity, merits a particular deſcription.

In an open plain, a fire being made, the gentlemen were ſeated by it. Suddenly a noiſe was heard in the adjacent wood, which made them fly to their arms, and ſeize on two or three old men, as hoſtages for their own ſecurity, imagining that they were betrayed. Upon this the young princeſs came running to Smith, and paſſionately embracing him, offered herſelf to be killed, if any harm ſhould happen to him or his company. Her aſſurances, ſeconded by all the Indians preſent, removed their fears. The noiſe which had alarmed them, was made by thirty girls, who were preparing for the intended ceremony. Immediately they made their appearance, with no other covering than a girdle of green leaves and their ſkins painted, each one of a different colour. Their leader had a pair of buck's horns on her head, an otter's ſkin as her girdle, and another on one arm; a bow and arrow in the other hand, and a quiver at her back. The reſt of them had horns on their heads, and a wooden ſword or ſtaff in their hands. With ſhouting and ſinging, they formed a ring round the fire, and performed a circular dance for about an hour, after which they retired in the ſame order as they had advanced. The dance was followed by a feaſt, at which the ſavage nymphs were as eager with their careſſes as with their attendance; and this being ended, they conducted the gentlemen to their lodging by the light of fire brands.

The next day Powhatan arrived, and Smith delivered the meſſage from his father, Newport (as he always called him) to this effect. "That he had brought him from the King of England, a royal preſent, and wiſhed to ſee him at James-town, that he might deliver it to him; promiſing to aſſiſt him in proſecuting his revenge againſt the Monacans, whoſe country they would penetrate even to the ſea beyond the mountains." To which the ſavage prince with equal ſubtilty and haughtineſs, anſwered, "If your King has ſent me a preſent, I alſo am a King, and am on my own land. I will ſtay here eight days. Your father muſt come to me, I will not go to him, nor to your fort. As for the Monacans, I am able to revenge myſelf. If you have heard of ſalt water beyond the mountains, from any of my people, they have deceived you." Then with a ſtick he drew a plan of that region on the ground; and after many compliments the conference ended.

The preſent being put on board the boats, was carried down James-river and up the Pamunkee, whilſt Newport, with fifty men, went acroſs by land and met the boats, in which he paſſed the river, and held the propoſed interview. All things being prepared for the ceremony of coronation, the preſent was brought from the boats; the baſon and ewer were depoſited, the bed and chair were ſet up, the ſcarlet ſuit and cloak were put on, though not till Namontac (an Indian youth whom Newport had carried to England and brought back again) had aſſured him that theſe habiliments would do him no harm; but they had great difficulty in perſuading him to receive the crown, nor would he bend his knee, or incline his head in the leaſt degree. After many attempts, and with actual preſſing on his ſhoulders, they at laſt made him ſtoop a little and put it on. Inſtantly, a ſignal being given, the men in the boats fired a volley, at which the monarch ſtarted with horror, imagining that a deſign was forming to deſtroy him in the ſummit of his glory; but being aſſured that it was meant as a compliment, his fear ſubſided, and in return for the baubles of royalty received from King James, he deſired Newport to preſent him his old fur mantle and deer ſkin ſhoes, which in his eſtimation were doubtleſs a full equivalent; ſince all this finery could not prevail on the wary chief to allow them guides for the diſcovery of the inland country, or to approve their deſign of viſiting it. Thus diſappointed they returned to James-town, determined to proceed without his aſſiſtance.

Smith, who had no mind to go on ſuch a fruitleſs errand, tarried at the fort with eighty invalids to relade the ſhip, whilſt Newport with all the council, and one hundred and twenty of the healthieſt men, began their tranſmontane tour of diſcovery. They proceeded in their boats to the falls at the head of the river; from thence they travelled up the country two days and a half, and diſcovered two towns of the Monacans, the inhabitants of which ſeemed very indifferent toward them, and uſed them neither well nor ill. They took one of their petty princes and led him bound to guide them. Having performed this march, they grew weary and returned, taking with them in their way back certain portions of earth, in which their refiner pretended that he had ſeen ſigns of ſilver. This was all the ſucceſs of their expedition; for the Savages had concealed their corn, and they could neither perſuade them to ſell it, nor find it to take it by force. Thus they returned to James-town, tired, diſappointed, hungry and ſick, and had the additional mortification of being laughed at by Smith for their vain attempt.

The Virginia company had not only a view to the diſcovery of the South Sea, but alſo to eſtabliſh manufactures in their colony; and for this purpoſe had ſent over a number of workmen from Poland and Germany, who were ſkilled in the making pot aſhes and glaſs, as well as pitch and tar. Had the country been full of people, well cultivated and provided with all neceſſaries for carrying on theſe works, there might have been ſome proſpect of advantage; but, in a new region, the principal objects are ſubſiſtence and defence; theſe will neceſſarily occupy the firſt adventurers to the excluſion of all others. However, Smith was of ſo generous a diſpoſition, and ſo indefatigable in doing what he apprehended to be his duty, and in gratifying his employers, that as ſoon as Newport returned from his fruitleſs attempt to find the South Sea, he ſet all, who were able, to work, that he might, if poſſible, anſwer the expectation of the company. Thoſe who were ſkilled in the manufactures, he left under the care of the council, to carry on their works; whilſt he took thirty of the moſt active with him, about five miles down the river, to cut timber, and make clapboards; this being, as he well knew, an employment the moſt certain of ſucceſs. Among theſe were ſeveral young gentlemen, whoſe hands not having been uſed to labour, were bliſtered by the axes, and this occaſioned frequent expreſſions of impatience and profaneneſs. To puniſh them, Smith cauſed the number of every man's oaths to be taken down daily, and at night as many canns of water to be poured inſide his ſleeve. This diſcipline was no leſs ſingular than effectual; it ſo leſſened the number of oaths, that ſcarcely one was heard in a week, and withal it made them perfectly good humoured, and reconciled them to their labour. At his return to the fort, he found, not only that buſineſs had been neglected, but much proviſion conſumed, and that it was neceſſary for him to undertake another expedition for corn. He, therefore, went up the Chickahamony with two boats and eighteen men, and finding the Indians not in a humour for trading, but rather ſcornful and inſolent, he told them that he had come not ſo much for corn, as to revenge his impriſonment, and the murder of his two men, ſome time before. Putting his crew in a poſture of attack, the Indians fled, and preſently ſent meſſengers to treat of peace; for the obtaining which, he made them give him an hundred buſhels of corn, with a quantity of fiſh and fowls; and with this ſupply he kept the colony from ſtarving, and preſerved the ſhip's proviſions for her voyage to England. At her departure, ſhe carried ſuch ſpecimens as could be had of tar, pitch, turpentine, ſoap aſhes, clapboards, and wainſcot; and at Point Comfort, met with Scrivener, who had been up the Pamaunkee for corn, and had got a quantity of pocones, a red root, uſed in dying; theſe being taken on board, Capt. Newport returned to England the third time, leaving about two hundred perſons in Virginia.

The harveſt of 1608, had fallen ſhort both among the new planters and the natives; and the colony was indebted to the inventive genius and indefatigable perſeverance of Smith, for their ſubſiſtence during the ſucceeding winter. As long as the rivers were open, he kept the boats continually going among the natives, for ſuch ſupplies as could be obtained; and he never would return empty, if any thing were to be had by any means in his power. Whilſt abroad on theſe excurſions, he and his men were obliged frequently to lodge in the woods, when the ground was hard frozen and covered with ſnow; and their mode of accomodating themſelves was, firſt to dig away the ſnow and make a fire; when the ground was dried and warmed, they removed the fire to one ſide, and ſpread their mats over the warm ſpot for their bed, uſing another mat as a ſcreen from the wind; when the ground cooled, they ſhifted the fire again; by thus continually changing their poſition they kept themſelves tolerably warm through many cold nights; and it was obſerved, that thoſe who went on this ſervice and ſubmitted to theſe hardſhips, were robuſt and healthy, whilſt thoſe who ſtayed at home were always weak and ſickly.

The ſupplies procured by trading being inſufficient, and hunger very preſſing, Smith ventured on the dangerous project of ſurprizing Powhatan, and carrying off his whole ſtock of proviſions. This Indian prince, had formed a ſimilar deſign reſpecting Smith; and for the purpoſe of betraying him, had invited him to his ſeat, promiſing that if he would ſend men to build him a houſe, after the Engliſh mode, and give him ſome guns and ſwords, copper and beads, he would load his boat with corn. Smith ſent him three Dutch carpenters, who treacherouſly revealed to him the deſign which Smith had formed. On his arrival with forty ſix men, he found the prince, ſo much on his guard, that it was impoſſible to execute his deſign. Having ſpent the day in converſation (in the courſe of which Powhatan had in vain endeavoured to perſuade Smith to lay aſide his arms, as being there in perfect ſecurity) he retired in the evening and formed a deſign to ſurprize Smith, and his people at their ſupper; and had it not been for the affectionate friendſhip of Pocahontas, it would probably have been effected. This amiable girl, at the riſque of her life, ſtole from the ſide of her father, and paſſing in the dark through the woods, told Smith with tears in her eyes of the plot, and then as privately returned. When the Indians brought in the ſupper, Smith obliged them to taſte of every diſh; his arms were in readineſs, and his men vigilant; and though there came divers ſets of meſſengers one after another, during the night, under pretence of friendly inquiries, they found them ſo well prepared, that nothing was attempted, and the party returned in ſafety.

In a ſubſequent viſit to Opecancanough, by whom he formerly was taken priſoner, this prince put on the ſemblance of friendſhip, whilſt his men lay in ambuſh with their bows and arrows. The trick being diſcovered by one of Smith's party and communicated to him, he reſolutely ſeized the King by his hair, and holding a piſtol to his breaſt, led him trembling to the ambuſh, and there with a torrent of reproachful and menacing words, obliged him to order thoſe very people not only to lay down their arms, but to load him with proviſions. After this, they made an attempt to murder him in his ſleep, and to poiſon him, but both failed of ſucceſs. The chief of Paſpiha meeting him alone in the woods, armed only with a ſword, attempted to ſhoot him, but he cloſed with the ſavage, and in the ſtruggle both fell into the river; where, after having narrowly eſcaped drowning, Smith at laſt prevailed to gripe him by the throat, and would have cut off his head, but the intreaties of the poor victim prevailing on his humanity, he led him priſoner to James-town.

This intrepid behaviour ſtruck a dread into the ſavages, and they began to believe what he had often told them, that, "his God would protect him againſt all their power, whilſt he kept his promiſe; which was to preſerve peace with them as long as they ſhould refrain from hoſtilities, and continue to ſupply him with corn." An incident which occurred about the ſame time, confirmed their veneration for him. An Indian having ſtolen a piſtol from James-town, two brothers who were known to be his companions were ſeized, and one was held as hoſtage for the other, who was to return in twelve hours with the piſtol, or the priſoner was to be hanged. The weather being cold, a charcoal fire was kindled in the dungeon which was very cloſe, and the vapour had ſo ſuffocated the priſoner, that on the return of his brother at the appointed time, with the piſtol, he was taken out as dead. The faithful ſavage lamented his fate in the moſt diſtreſſing agony. Smith, to conſole him, promiſed, if they would ſteal no more, that he ſhould be recovered. On the application of ſpirits and vinegar, he ſhewed ſigns of life, but appeared delirious; this grieved the brother as much as his death. Smith undertook to cure him of this alſo, on the repetition of the promiſe to ſteal no more. The delirium being only the effect of the ſpirits which he had ſwallowed, was remedied by a few hours ſleep; and being diſmiſſed, with a preſent of copper, they went away, believing and reporting that Smith was able to bring the dead to life. The effect was, that not only many ſtolen things were recovered, and the thieves puniſhed, but that peace and friendly intercourſe were preſerved, and corn brought in as long as they had any, whilſt Smith remained in Virginia.

He was equally ſevere and reſolute with his own men, and finding many of them inclining to be idle, and this idleneſs in a great meaſure the cauſe of their frequent ſickneſſes and deaths, he made an order, "that he who would not work ſhould not eat, unleſs he were diſabled, by ſickneſs; and that every one who did not gather as much food in a day as he did himſelf, ſhould be baniſhed." A recent attempt having been made, to run away with the boats, he ordered that the next perſon who ſhould repeat this offence ſhould be hanged. By firmneſs in the execution of theſe laws, and by the concurrent force of his own example in labouring continually, and diſtributing his whole ſhare of European proviſions and refreſhments to the ſick, he kept the colony in ſuch order, that, though many of them murmured at his ſeverity, they all became very induſtrious; and withal ſo healthy, that, of two hundred perſons, there died that winter and the next ſpring no more than ſeven. In the ſpace of three months they had made a quantity of tar, pitch, and pot aſhes; had produced a ſample of glaſs; dug a well in the fort; built twenty new houſes; provided nets and wiers for fiſhing; erected a block houſe on the iſthmus of James-town; another on Hog Iſland; and had begun a fortreſs on a commanding eminence. As the ſpring came on, they paid ſuch attention to huſbandry, as to have thirty or forty acres cleared and fit for planting; and a detachment had been ſent to the ſouthward, to look for the long loſt colony of Sir Walter Raleigh, but without ſucceſs.

Such was the ſtate of the Virginia colony, when Captain Samuel Argal arrived on a trading voyage, and brought letters from the company in England, complaining of their diſappointment, and blaming Smith as the cauſe of it. They had conceived an ill opinion of him, from the perſons whom he had ſent home, who repreſented him as arbitrary and violent toward the coloniſts, cruel to the ſavages, and diſpoſed to traverſe the views of the adventurers, who expected to grow rich very ſuddenly.

There was this diſadvantage attending the buſineſs of colonization in North America, at that day, that the only precedents which could be had were thoſe of the Spaniards, who had treated the natives with extreme cruelty, and amaſſed vaſt ſums of gold and ſilver. Whilſt the Engliſh adventurers deteſted the means by which the Spaniards had acquired their riches, they ſtill expected that the ſame kind of riches might be acquired by other means; it was therefore thought politic, to be gentle in demeanor and laviſh of preſents toward the natives, as an inducement to them to diſcover the riches of their country. On theſe principles the orders of the Virginia company to their ſervants were framed. But experience had taught Smith, the moſt diſcerning and faithful of all whom they had employed, that the country of Virginia would not enrich the adventurers in the time and manner which they expected; yet he was far from abandoning it as worthleſs: his aim, was thoroughly to explore it; and by exploring, he had diſcovered what advantages might be derived from it; to produce which, time, patience, expenſe and labour, were abſolutely neceſſary. He had fairly repreſented theſe ideas to his employers, he had ſpent three years in their ſervice, and from his own obſervations had drawn and ſent them a map of the country; and he had conducted their affairs, as well as the nature of circumſtances would permit. He had had a diſorderly, factious, diſcontented, diſappointed ſet of men, to control, by the help of a few adherents; in the face of the native lords of the ſoil, formidable in their numbers and knowledge of the country, verſed in ſtratagem, tenacious of reſentment, and jealous of ſtrangers. To court them by preſents was to acknowledge their ſuperiority, and inflate their pride and inſolence. Though ſavages, they were men and not children. Though deſtitute of ſcience, they were poſſeſſed of reaſon, and a ſufficient degree of art. To know how to manage them, it was neceſſary to be perſonally acquainted with them; and it muſt be obvious, that a perſon who had reſided ſeveral years among them, and had been a priſoner with them, was a much better judge of the proper methods of treating them, than a company of gentlemen at ſeveral thouſand miles diſtance, and who could know them only by report. Smith had, certainly, the intereſt of the plantation at heart, and by toilſome experience, had juſt learned how to conduct it; when he found himſelf ſo obnoxious to his employers, that a plan was concerted to ſuperſede him, and reinſtate, with a ſhare of authority, thoſe whom he had diſmiſſed from the ſervice.

The Virginia Company had applied to the King to recal their patent and grant another; in virtue of which they appointed Thomas Lord de la Warre, general; Sir Thomas Gates, lieutenant general; Sir George Somers, admiral; Sir Thomas Dale, marſhal; Sir Ferdinando Wainman, general of horſe; and Captain Newport, (the only one of them who had ſeen the country) vice-admiral. The adventurers having, by the alteration of their patent, acquired a reinforcement both of dignity and property, equipped nine ſhips; in which were embarked five hundred perſons, men, women and children. Gates, Somers, and Newport, had each a commiſſion, inveſting either of them who might firſt arrive, with power to call in the old and ſet up the new commiſſion. The fleet ſailed from England in May 1609, and by ſome ſtrange policy the three commanders were embarked in one ſhip. This ſhip being ſeparated from the others in a ſtorm, was wrecked on the iſland of Bermuda; another foundered at ſea; and when the remaining ſeven arrived in Virginia, two of which were commanded by Ratcliffe and Archer, they found themſelves deſtitute of authority; though ſome of them were full enough of prejudice againſt Smith who was then in command. The ſhips had been greatly ſhattered in their paſſage, much of their proviſion was ſpoiled, many of their people were ſick; and the ſeaſon in which they arrived was not the moſt favourable to their recovery. A mutinous ſpirit ſoon broke out, and a ſcene of confuſion enſued; the new comers would not obey Smith, becauſe they ſuppoſed his commiſſion to be ſuperſeded; the new commiſſion was not arrived, and it was uncertain whether the ſhip which carried it would ever be ſeen or heard of. Smith would gladly have withdrawn and gone back to England, but his honor was concerned in maintaining his authority till he ſhould be regularly ſuperſeded; and his ſpirit would not ſuffer him to be trampled on by thoſe whom he deſpiſed. Upon due conſideration, he determined to maintain his authority as far as he was able; waiting ſome proper opportunity to retire. Some of the moſt inſolent of the new comers, "he laid by the heels." With the more moderate he conſulted what was beſt to be done; and, as a ſeparation ſeemed to be the beſt remedy, and it had been in contemplation to extend the ſettlements, ſome were induced to go up to the Falls, others to Nanſemond, and others to Point Comfort. Smith's year being almoſt expired, he offered to reſign to Martin, who had been one of the old council, but Martin would not accept the command; he, therefore, kept up the form; and, as much as he could, of the power of government; till an accident which had nearly proved fatal to his life, obliged him to return to England.

On his return from the new plantation at the Falls; ſleeping by night in his boat; a bag of gun powder took fire, and burnt him in a moſt terrible manner. Awaking in ſurpriſe, and finding himſelf wrapt in flames, he leaped into the water, and was almoſt drowned, before his companions could recover him. At his return to James-town, in this diſtreſſed condition, Ratcliffe and Archer conſpired to murder him in his bed; but the aſſaſſin, whom they employed, had not courage to fire a piſtol. Smith's old ſoldiers would have taken off their heads; but he thought it prudent to paſs by the offence, and take this opportunity, as there was no ſurgeon in the country, of returning to England. As ſoon as his intention was known, the council appointed Mr. Percie to preſide in his room; and detained the ſhip three weeks, till they could write letters, and frame complaints againſt him. He at length ſailed for England, about the latter end of September 1609; much regreted by his few friends, one of whom has left this character of him. "In all his proceedings he made juſtice his firſt guide, and experience his ſecond; hating baſeneſs, ſloth, pride, and indignity, more than any dangers. He never would allow more for himſelf than for his ſoldiers; and upon no danger would ſend them where he would not lead them himſelf. He would never ſee us want what he had, or could by any means get for us. He would rather want than borrow; or ſtarve, than not pay. He loved action more than words; and hated covetouſneſs and falſehood worſe than death. His adventures were our lives; and his loſs our deaths."

There needs no better teſtimony to the truth of this character, than what is related of the miſerable colony after he had quitted it. Without government, without prudence, careleſs, indolent, and factious, they became a prey to the inſolence of the natives, to the diſeaſes of the climate and to famine. Within ſix months, their number was reduced from five hundred to ſixty; and when the three commanders, who had been wrecked on Bermuda, arrived (1610) with one hundred and fifty men in two ſmall veſſels, which they had built out of the ruins of their ſhip, and the cedars which grew on the iſland; they found the remnant of the colony in ſuch a forlorn condition; that without heſitation, they determined to abandon the country, and were ſailing down the river; when they met a boat from the Lord De la Warre, who had come with a fleet to their relief. By his perſuaſion they reſumed the plantation, and to this fortunate incident, may be aſcribed the full eſtabliſhment of the colony of Virginia.

Such a genius as Smith's could not remain idle. He was well known in England, and the report of his valour, and his ſpirit of adventure, pointed him out to a number of merchants, who were engaged in the American fiſhery, as a proper perſon to make diſcoveries on the coaſt of North Virginia. In April 1614, he ſailed from London with two ſhips, and arrived at the iſland of Monahigon in latitude 43°½, as it was then computed, where he built ſeven boats. The deſign of the voyage was to take whales, to examine a mine of gold, and another of copper, which were ſaid to be there; and if either, or both of theſe ſhould fail, to make up the cargo with fiſh and furs. The mines proved a fiction, and by long chaſing the whales to no purpoſe, they loſt the beſt ſeaſon for fiſhing; but whilſt the ſeamen were engaged in theſe ſervices; Smith, in one of his boats, with eight men, ranged the coaſt, eaſt and weſt, from Penobſcot to Cape Cod; bartering with the natives for beaver and other furs, and making obſervations on the ſhores, iſlands, harbours, and head lands, which, at his return to England, he wrought into a map, and preſenting it to prince Charles, (afterward the royal martyr) with a requeſt that he would give the country a name, it was for the firſt time called New-England. The prince alſo made ſeveral alterations in the names which Smith had given to particular places. For inſtance, he had called the name of that promontory, which forms the eaſtern entrance of Maſſachuſetts bay, Tragabigzanda; after the name of the Turkiſh lady to whom he had been formerly a ſlave at Conſtantinople; and the three iſlands which lie off the Cape, the Turks Head, in memory of his victory over the three Turkiſh champions, in his Tranſylvanian adventures. The former, Charles, in filial reſpect to his mother, called Cape Anne, which name it has ever ſince retained; the name of the iſlands has long ſince been loſt; and another cluſter to which he gave his own name, Smith's Iſles, and which name the prince did not alter, are now, and have for more than a century been called the Iſles of Shoals; ſo that the moſt pointed marks of his diſcoveries on the coaſt of New-England, have, either by his own complaiſance to the ſon of his ſovereign, or by force of time and accidents become obſolete. When he ſailed for England in one of the ſhips, he left the other behind, to complete her lading, with orders to ſell the fiſh in Spain. The maſter, Thomas Hunt, decoyed twenty four of the natives on board, and ſold them in Spain for ſlaves. The memory of this baſe tranſaction was long preſerved among the Americans, and ſucceeding adventurers ſuffered on account of it.

At Smith's return to England he put in at Plymouth; where relating his adventures, and communicating his ſentiments to Sir Ferdinando Gorges, he was introduced to the Plymouth Company of adventurers to North Virginia, and engaged in their ſervice. At London he was invited by the South Virginia company to return to their ſervice; but made uſe of his engagement with the Plymouth adventurers as an excuſe for declining their invitation. From this circumſtance it ſeems, that they had been convinced of his former fidelity, notwithſtanding the letters and reports which they had formerly received to his diſadvantage.

During his ſtay in London, he had the very ſingular pleaſure of ſeeing his friend Pocahontas, the daughter of Powhatan. Having been made a priſoner in Virginia, ſhe was there married to Mr. John Rolfe, and by him was brought to England. She was then about twenty two years of age; her perſon was graceful, and her deportment gentle and pleaſing. She had been taught the Engliſh language and the Chriſtian religion, and baptized by the name of Rebecca. She had heard that Smith was dead, and knew nothing to the contrary, till ſhe arrived in England.

The fame of an Indian princeſs excited great curioſity in London; and Smith had the addreſs to write a handſome letter to the Queen, ſetting forth the merits of his friend, and the eminent ſervices ſhe had done to him and the colony of Virginia. She was introduced by the lady De la Warre; the Queen and royal family received her with much complacency, and ſhe proved herſelf worthy of their notice and reſpect. At her firſt interview with Smith ſhe called him father; and becauſe he did not immediately return the ſalutation and call her child, ſhe was ſo overcome with grief, that ſhe hid her face and would not ſpeak for ſometime. She was ignorant of the ridiculous affectation which reigned in the court of James; which forbad Smith aſſuming the title of father, to the daughter of a King; and when informed of it ſhe deſpiſed it; paſſionately declaring, that ſhe loved him as a father, and had treated him as ſuch in her own country, and would be his child wherever ſhe went. The ſame pedantic affectation cauſed her huſband to be looked upon as an offender, for having, though a ſubject, invaded the myſterious rights of royalty in marrying above his rank. This marriage, however, proved beneficial to the colony, as her father had thereby become a friend to them, and when ſhe came to England, he ſent with her Uttamaccomac, one of his truſty counſellors; whom he enjoined to inquire for Smith, and tell him whether he was alive. Another order which he gave him was, to bring him the number of people in England; accordingly, on his landing at Plymouth, the obedient ſavage began his account by cutting a notch on a long ſtick for every perſon whom he ſaw; but ſoon grew tired of his employment, and at his return told Powhatan that they exceeded the number of leaves on the trees. A third command from his prince was, to ſee the God of England, and the King, Queen, and Princes, of whom Smith had told him ſo much; and when he met with Smith, he deſired to be introduced to thoſe perſonages. He had before this ſeen the King, but would not believe it; becauſe the perſon whom they pointed out to him had not given him any thing. "You gave Powhatan (ſaid he to Smith) a white dog, but your King has given me nothing." Mr. Rolfe was preparing to return with his wife to Virginia, when ſhe was taken ill and died at Graveſend; leaving an infant ſon, Thomas Rolfe, from whom are deſcended ſeveral families of note in Virginia, who hold their lands by inheritance from her.

Smith had conceived ſuch an idea of the value and importance of the American continent, that he was fully bent on the buſineſs of plantation, rather than fiſhing and trading for furs. In this he agreed with his friend Sir Ferdinando Gorges, and the few other active members of the council of Plymouth, but it had become an unpopular theme. One colony had been driven home from Sagadahock by the ſeverity of the ſeaſon and the deaths of their leaders. Men who were fit for the buſineſs were not eaſily to be obtained, thoſe who had formerly been engaged were diſcouraged, and it required great ſtrength of mind as well as liberality of purſe, to ſet on foot another experiment. After much trouble in endeavouring to unite perſons of oppoſite intereſts, and ſtimulate thoſe who had ſuſtained former loſſes, to new attempts, he obtained one ſhip of two hundred tons, and another of fifty, with which he ſailed in 1615. Having proceeded about one hundred and twenty leagues, they were ſeparated in a ſtorm; the ſmaller one commanded by Capt. Thomas Dermer purſued her voyage; but Smith having loſt his maſts was obliged to put back under a jury maſt to Plymouth. There he put his ſtores on board a ſmall bark of ſixty tons, and thirty men, of whom ſixteen were to aſſiſt him in beginning a new colony.

Meeting with an Engliſh pirate, his men would have had him ſurrender; but though he had only four guns, and the pirate thirty ſix, he diſdained to yield. On ſpeaking with her, he found the commander and ſome of the crew to be his old ſhipmates, who had run away with the ſhip from Tunis, and were in diſtreſs for proviſions; they offered to put themſelves under his command, but he rejected the propoſal and went on his voyage. Near the Weſtern Iſlands he fell in with two French pirates; his men were again thrown into a panic, and would have ſtruck, but he threatened to blow up the ſhip, if they would not fight; and by firing a few running ſhot, he eſcaped them alſo. After this he was met by four French men of war, who had orders from their ſovereign to ſeize pirates. He ſhowed them his commiſſion under the great ſeal; but they prefidiouſly detained him whilſt they ſuffered his ſhip to eſcape in the night, and return to Plymouth. They knew his enterpriſing ſpirit, and were afraid of his making a ſettlement in New-England, ſo near to their colony of Acadia; and they ſuſpected, or at leaſt pretended to ſuſpect, that he was the perſon who hod broken up their fiſhery at Port Royal (which was really done by Captain Argal) the year before.

When their cruiſe was finiſhed, they carried him to Rochelle; and notwithſtanding their promiſes to allow him a ſhare of the prizes which they had taken whilſt he was with them, they kept him as a priſoner on board a ſhip at anchor. But a ſtorm ariſing, which drove all the people below, he took the boat, with an half pike for an oar, thinking to make his eſcape in the night. The current was ſo ſtrong that he drifted to ſea, and was near periſhing. By the turn of the tide he got aſhore, on a marſhy iſland, where ſome fowlers found him in the morning almoſt dead with cold and hunger. He gave them his boat to carry him to Rochelle, where he learned that the ſhip which had taken him, with one of her prizes, which was very rich, had been driven on ſhore in that ſtorm, and loſt, with her Captain and one half of the men.

Here he made his complaint to the judge of the Admiralty, and produced ſuch evidence in ſupport of his allegations, that he was treated with fair words; but it does not appear that he got any recompence. He met here and at Bourdeaux with many friends, both French and Engliſh, and at his return to England, publiſhed in a ſmall quarto, an account of his two laſt voyages, with the depoſitions of the men who were in the ſhip when he was taken by the French. To this book he prefixed his map of New-England; and in it gave a deſcription of the country, with its many advantages, and the proper methods of rendering it a valuable acquiſition to the Engliſh dominions. When it was printed, he went all over the weſt of England, giving copies of it to all perſons of note; and endeavouring to excite the nobility, gentry, and merchants, to engage with earneſtneſs in the buſineſs of colonizing America. He obtained from many of them fair promiſes, and was complimented by the Plymouth company with the title of Admiral of New-England. But the former ill ſucceſs of ſome too ſanguine adventurers, had made a deep impreſſion, and a variety of croſs incidents, baffled all his attempts.

However, his experience and advice were of eminent ſervice to others. The open frankneſs and generoſity of his mind led him to give all the encouragement which he could to the buſineſs of fiſhing and planting in New-England; for which purpoſe, in 1622, he publiſhed a book, entitled, "New-England's Tryals" ſome extracts from which are preſerved by Purchas.Vol. v, p. 1837. No man rejoiced more than himſelf in the eſtabliſhment of the colonies of Plymouth and Maſſachuſetts.

When the news of the maſſacre of the Virginian planters by the Indians, 1622, arrived in England, Smith was all on fire to go over to revenge the inſult. He made an offer to the company that if they would allow him one hundred ſoldiers and thirty ſailors, with the neceſſary proviſions and equipments, he would range the country, keep the natives in awe, protect the planters, and make diſcoveries, of the hitherto unknown parts of America; and for his own riſque and pains would deſire nothing but what he would "produce from the proper labour of the ſavages." On this propoſal the company was divided, but the puſillanimous and avaricious party prevailed; and gave him this anſwer, "that the charges would be be too great; that their ſtock was reduced; that the planters ought to defend themſelves; but, that if he would go at his own expenſe, they would give him leave, provided he would give them one half of the pillage." Such an anſwer could be received only with contempt.

When the King in 1624, inſtituted a commiſſion for the reformation of Virginia, Smith, by deſire of the commiſſioners, gave in a relation of his former proceedings in the colony, and his opinion and advice reſpecting the proper methods of remedying the defects in government, and carrying on the plantation with a proſpect of ſucceſs.Agreeably to Smith's advice to theſe commiſſioners, King Charles I. at his acceſſion diſſolved the company, in 1626, and reduced the colony under the immediate direction of the crown, appointing the governor and council, and ordering all patents and proceſſes to iſſue in his own name. Theſe with many other papers he collected and publiſhed, in 1627, in a thin folio, under the title of, "The General Hiſtory of Virginia, New-England, and the Somer Iſles." The narrative part is made up of journals and letters of thoſe who were concerned with him in the plantation, intermixed with his own obſervations. His intimate friend, Mr. Purchas, had publiſhed moſt of them two years before in his "Pilgrims."

In 1629, at the requeſt of Sir Robert Cotton, he publiſhed a hiſtory of the early part of his life, entitled, "The true Travels, Adventures and Obſervations of Capt. John Smith." This work is preſerved intire, in the ſecond volume of Churchill's collections, and from it, the former part of this account is compiled. In the concluſion he made ſome addition to the hiſtory of Virginia, Bermuda, New-England and the Weſt Indies, reſpecting things which had come to his knowledge, after the publication of his general hiſtory. He ſtated the inhabitants of Virginia in 1628 at five thouſand, and their cattle about the ſame number. Their produce was chiefly tobacco; but thoſe few who attended to their gardens had all ſorts of fruit and vegetables in great abundance and perfection. From New-England, they received ſalted fiſh; but of freſh fiſh their own rivers produced enough, beſide an infinite quantity of fowl; as their woods did of deer and other game. They had two brew houſes; but they cultivated the Indian corn, in preference to the European grain. Their plantations were ſcattered; ſome of their houſes were paliſaded; but they had no fortifications nor ordnance mounted.

His account of New-England is, that the country had been repreſented by adventurers from the weſt of England, as rocky, barren and deſolate; but that, ſince his account of it had been publiſhed, the credit of it was ſo raiſed, that forty or fifty ſail went thither annually on fiſhing and trading voyages. That nothing had been done to any purpoſe in eſtabliſhing a plantation, till "about an hundred Browniſts went to New-Plymouth; whoſe humorous ignorance cauſed them to endure a wonderful deal of miſery, with infinite patience."

He then recapitulates the hiſtory of his American adventures in the following terms. "Now to conclude the travels and adventures of Captain Smith: How firſt he planted Virginia, and was ſet aſhore with a hundred men in the wild woods; how he was taken priſoner by the ſavages, and by the King of Pamaunky tied to a tree to be ſhot to death; led up and down their country, to be ſhown for a wonder; fatted as he thought for a ſacrifice to their idol, before whom they conjured three days, with ſtrange dances and invocations; then brought before their Emperor Powhatan, who commanded him to be ſlain; how his daughter Pocahontas ſaved his life, returned him to James-town, relieved him and his famiſhed company, which was but eight and thirty, to poſſeſs thoſe large dominions; how he diſcovered all the ſeveral nations on the rivers falling into the bay of Cheſapeak; how he was ſtung almoſt to death by the poiſonous tail of a fiſh called a ſtingray; how he was blown up with gunpowder and returned to England to be cured.

"Alſo how he brought New England to the ſubjection of the kingdom of Great Brittain; his fights with the pirates, left alone among French men of war, and his ſhip ran from him; his ſea fights for the French againſt the Spaniards; their bad uſage of him; how in France, in a little boat, he eſcaped them; was adrift all ſuch a ſtormy night at ſea by himſelf, when thirteen French ſhips were ſplit or driven on ſhore by the iſle of Rhee, the General and moſt of his men drowned; when GOD, to whom be all honor and praiſe, brought him ſafe on ſhore to the admiration of all who eſcaped; you may read at large in his general hiſtory of Virginia, the Somer iſlands and New England."

This was probably his laſt publication, for he lived but two years after. By a note in Joſſelyn's voyage, it appears that he died in 1631, at London, in the fifty ſecond year of his age.

It would give ſingular pleaſure to the compiler of theſe memoirs, if he could learn from any credible teſtimony, that Smith ever received any recompence for his numerous ſervices and ſufferings. The ſenſe which he had of this matter, in 1627, ſhall be given in his own words. "I have ſpent five years, and more than five hundred pounds, in the ſervice of Virginia and New England, and in neither of them have I one foot of land, nor the very houſe I built, nor the ground I digged with my own hands; but I ſee thoſe countries ſhared before me by thoſe who know them only by my deſcriptions."

XIII. DE MONTS, POUTRIN COURT AND CHAMPLAIN.

AFTER the diſcovery of Canada, by Cartier, the French continued trading to that country for furs, and fiſhing on the banks of Newfoundland, Cape Breton and Acadia; where they found many excellent and convenient harbours, among which Canſeau was early diſtinguiſhed as a place extremely ſuitable for the fiſhery. One Savalet, an old mariner, who frequented that port, had before 1609 made no leſs than forty two voyages to thoſe parts.Purchas v. 1640.

Henry IV, King of France, perceived the advantages which might ariſe to his kingdom from a farther exploration of the northern parts of America; and therefore gave encouragement to thoſe who were deſirous of making adventures. In 1598, the Marquis DE LA ROCHE obtained a commiſſion of Lord Lieutenant, and undertook a voyage with a view to eſtabliſh a colony; conſiſting of convicts taken out of the priſons. Happening in the courſe of his voyage to fall in with the iſle of Sable, a low, ſandy iſland, lying about twenty five leagues ſouthward of Canſeau, he there landed forty of his miſerable crew, to ſubſiſt on the cattle and ſwine, with which the place had been ſtocked by the Portugueſe, for the relief of ſhipwrecked ſeamen. The reaſon given for chuſing this forlorn place, for the diſembarkation of his colony, was, that they would be out of all danger from the ſavages, till he ſhould find a better ſituation for them on the continent, when he promiſed to return and take them off. Whether he ever reached the continent is uncertain,Forſter ſays, that "he made in different parts of it, ſuch reſearches as he thought neceſſary, and then returned to France." p. 443. Purchas ſays that "it was his fortune, by reaſon of contrary wind, not to find the main land, but was blown back to France." Vol. v, p. 1807. but he never again ſaw the iſle of Sable. Returning to France, he engaged in the wars, was made a priſoner by the Duke of Merceur, and ſoon after died. The wretched exiles ſubſiſted on ſuch things as the place afforded, and clothed themſelves with the ſkins of ſeals. At the end of ſeven years,Purchas ſays twelve; this will bring it to the laſt year of Henry's life, 1610. King Henry, in compaſſion, ſent a fiſherman to bring them home. Twelve only were then alive. The fiſherman, concealing from them the generous intention of their ſovereign, took all the ſkins which they had collected as a recompence for his ſervices, ſome of which being black foxes were of great value. The King had them brought before him in their ſeal ſkin habits and long beards. He pardoned their former crimes, and made each of them a preſent of fifty crowns. When they diſcovered the fraud of the fiſherman, they inſtituted a proceſs againſt him at law, and recovered large damages; by means of which they acquired ſo much property as to enter into the ſame kind of traffic.

The King alſo granted to PONTGRAVE DE CHAUVIN, an excluſive privilege of trading at Tadouſac, the mouth of the river Saguenay; to which place he made two voyages, and was preparing for a third when he was prevented by death.

The next voyager of any note was SAMUEL CHAMPLAIN, of Brouage; a man of a noble family; who, in 1603, ſailed up the river of Canada, as far as Cartier had gone in 1535. He made many inquiries of the natives concerning their country, its rivers, falls, lakes, mountains and mines. The reſult of his inquiry was, that a communication was formed, by means of two lakes, with the country of the Iroquois toward the ſouth; that toward the weſt there were more and greater lakes of freſh water, to one of which they knew no limits; and that to the northward there was an inland ſea of ſalt water. In the courſe of this voyage, Champlain anchored at a place called Quebeck, which in the language of the country ſignified a ſtrait; and this was thought to be a proper ſituation for a fort and ſettlement. He heard of no mines but one of copper, far to the northward. With this information he returned to France, in the month of September.

On the eighth of November in the ſame year King Henry granted to the Sieur DE MONTS, a gentleman of his bed chamber, a patent conſtituting him Lieutenant General of all the territory of L'Acadia, from the fortieth to the forty ſixth degree of north latitude, with power to ſubdue the inhabitants and convert them to the Chriſtian faith.See the patent, in French, in Hazard's Collection, vol. i.45, and tranſlated into Engliſh, in Churchill's Collections, vol. viii, p. 796. This patent was publiſhed in all the maritime towns of France; and De Monts having equipped two veſſels ſailed for his new government on the ſeventh of March, 1604; taking with him the aforeſaid Samuel Champlain for a pilot, and Monſieur DE POUTRINCOURT who had been for a long time deſirous to viſit America.

On the 6th of May, they arrived at a harbour on the S. E. ſide of the peninſula of Acadia where they found one of their countrymen, Roſſignol, trading with the Indians without licence. They ſeized his ſhip and cargo; leaving him only the poor conſolation, of giving his name to the harbour where he was taken; the proviſions found in his ſhip were a ſeaſonable ſupply, and without them the enterprize muſt have been abandoned. This place is now called Liverpool.

From Port Roſſignol they coaſted the peninſula to the S. W. and having doubled Cape Sable came to anchor in the bay of St. Mary, where Aubry, a prieſt, going aſhore, was loſt in the woods, and a proteſtant was charged with having murdered him, becauſe they had ſometimes had warm diſputation on religious ſubjects. They waited for him ſeveral days, firing guns and ſounding trumpets, but in vain; the noiſe of the ſea was ſo great that no other ſound could be heard. Concluding that he was dead, they quitted the place after ſixteen days; intending to examine that extenſive bay on the weſt of the peninſula to which they gave the name of La Baye Francoiſe; but which is now called the Bay of Funda. The prieſt was afterward found alive, but almoſt ſtarved to death.

On the eaſtern ſide of this bay they diſcovered a narrow ſtrait, into which they entered, and ſoon found themſelves in a ſpacious baſon, invironed with hills, from which deſcended ſtreams of freſh water; and between the hills ran a fine navigable river, which they called L'Equille. It was bordered with fertile meadows, and full of delicate fiſh. Poutrincourt, charmed with the beauty of the place, determined here to take his reſidence, and having received a grant of it from De Monts, gave it the name of Port Royal. [Annapolis.]

From Port Royal, De Monts ſailed farther into the great bay, to viſit a copper mine. It was a high rock, on a promontory, between two bays. [Menis.] The copper, though mixed with ſtone, was very pure; reſembling that called Rozette copper. Among theſe ſtones they found chryſtals and a certain ſhining ſtone of a blue colour. Specimens of theſe ſtones were ſent to the King.

In farther examining the bay they came to a great river which they called St. John's; full of iſlands and ſwarming with fiſh. Up this river they ſailed fifty leagues, and were extremely delighted with the vaſt quantity of grapes which grew on its banks. By this river they imagined that a ſhorter communication might be had with the Baye de Chaleur and the port of Tadouſac, than by the ſea.

From the river St. John they coaſted the bay, ſouthweſterly, till they came to an iſland in the middle of a river which Champlain had previouſly explored. Finding its ſituation ſafe and convenient, De Monts reſolved there to build a fort and paſs the winter. To this iſland he gave the name of St. Croix;

This is a ſtation of much importance. It has given riſe to a controverſy, between the United States and the Britiſh government, which is not yet terminated. I ſhall therefore give a deſcription of this iſland and its ſurrounding waters, from a tranſlation of Mark Leſcarbot's hiſtory of the voyages of De Monts, in which he himſelf was engaged, and therefore had ſeen the place which he deſcribes. This tranſlation is to be found at large in Churchill's Collections, vol. viii, 796, and an abridgement of it in Purchas's Pilgrims, vol. v, 1619.

"Leaving St. John's river, they came, following the coaſt twenty leagues from that place, to a great river, which is properly ſea, [i. e. ſalt water] where they fortified themſelves in a little iſland ſeated in the midſt of this river, which the ſaid Champlain had been to diſcover and view. And, ſeeing it ſtrong by nature, and of eaſy defence and keeping; beſides that the ſeaſon began to ſlide away, and therefore it was behoveful to provide of lodging, without running any farther, they reſolved to make their abode there.

"Before we ſpeak of the ſhip's return to France, it is meet to tell you, how hard the iſle of St. Croix is to be found out, to them that were never there. For there are ſo many iſles and great bays to go by [from St. John's] before one be at it, that I wonder how one might ever pierce ſo far as to find it. There are three or four mountains, imminent above the others, on the ſides; but on the north ſide from whence the river runneth down, there is but a ſharp pointed one, above two leagues diſtant. The woods of the main land are fair and admirable high, and well grown, as in like manner is the graſs. There is right over againſt the iſland freſh water brooks, very pleaſant and agreeable; where divers of Monſ. De Monts men did their buſineſs, and builded there, certain cabbins. As for the nature of the ground it is moſt excellent, and moſt abundantly fruitful. For the ſaid Monſ. De Monts having cauſed there ſome piece of ground to be tilled, and the ſame ſowed with rye; he was not able to tarry for the maturity thereof to reap it; and notwithſtanding, the grain fallen hath grown and increaſed ſo wonderfully, that two years after, we reaped and did gather of it as fair, big and weighty as in France, which the ſoil hath brought forth without any tillage; and yet at this preſent [1609] it doth continue ſtill to multiply every year.

"The ſaid iſland containeth ſome half a league in circuit, and at the end of it, on the ſea ſide, there is a mount, or ſmall hill, which is, as it were, a little iſle, ſevered from the other, where Monſ. De Monts his cannon were placed. There is alſo a little chappel, built after the ſavage faſhion. At the foot of which chappel there is ſuch ſtore of muſcles as is wonderful, which may be gathered at low water, but they are ſmall.

"Now let us prepare and hoiſt up ſails. Monſ. de Poutrincourt made the voyage into theſe parts, with ſome men of good ſort, not to winter there; but as it were to ſeek out his ſeat, and find out a land that might like him. Which he having done, had no need to ſojourne there any longer. So then, the ſhips being ready for the return, he ſhipped himſelf, and thoſe of his company in one of them.

"During the foreſaid navigation, Monſ. De Monts his people, did work about the fort; which he ſeated at the end of the iſland, oppoſite to the place where he had lodged his cannon. Which was wiſely conſidered, to the end to command the river up and down. But there was an inconvenience; the ſaid fort did lie toward the north, and without any ſhelter, but of the trees that were on the iſle ſhore, which all about he commanded to be kept and not cut down.

"The moſt urgent things being done, and hoary ſnowy father being come, that is to ſay winter, then they were forced to keep within doors, and to live every one at his own home. During which time, our men had three ſpecial diſcommodities, in this iſland, want of wood, (for that which was in the ſaid iſle was ſpent in buildings) lack of freſh water, and the continual watch made by night, fearing ſome ſurprize from the ſavages, that had lodged themſelves, at the foot of the ſaid iſland, or ſome other enemy. For the malediction and rage of many chriſtians is ſuch, that one muſt take heed of them much more than of infidels. When they had need of water or wood, they were conſtrained to croſs over the river, which is thrice as broad of every ſide as the river of Seine."

By a gentleman who reſided ſeveral years in thoſe parts, I have been informed, that an iſland which anſwers to this deſcription, lies in the eaſtern part of the bay of Paſſamaquoddy; and there the river St. Croix was ſuppoſed to be, by the commiſſioners who negociated the peace in 1783, who had Mitchel's map before them; but, in a map of the coaſt of New England and Nova Scotia, publiſhed in London, 1787, by Robert Sayer, and ſaid to be drawn by Capt. Holland, the river St. Croix is laid down at the weſtern part of the bay; the breadth of which is about ſix or ſeven leagues.

becauſe that two leagues higher there were brooks which "came croſs-wiſe to fall within this large branch of the ſea."

The winter proved ſevere, and the people ſuffered ſo much by the ſcurvy, that thirty ſix of them died; the remaining forty, who were all ſick, lingered till the ſpring (1605) when they recovered by means of the freſh vegetation. The remedy which Cartier had found in Canada was here unknown.

As ſoon as his men were recovered, De Monts reſolved to ſeek a comfortable ſtation in a warmer climate. Having victualled and armed his pinnace he ſailed along the coaſt to Norombega, a name which had been given by ſome European adventurers to the bay of Penobſcot; from thence he ſailed to Kennebec, Caſco, Saco, and finally came to Malebarre, as Cape Cod was then called by the French. In ſome of the places which he had paſſed, the land was inviting; and particular notice was taken of the grapes; but the ſavages appeared numerous, unfriendly and thieviſh: De Monts' company being ſmall, he preferred ſafety to pleaſure, and returned firſt to St. Croix, and then to Port Royal; where he found Dupont, in a ſhip from France, with freſh ſupplies and a reinforcement of forty men. The ſtores which had been depoſited at St. Croix were removed acroſs the bay, but the buildings were left ſtanding. New houſes were erected at the mouth of the river, which runs into the baſon of Port Royal; there the ſtores and people were lodged; and De Monts having put his affairs in as good order as poſſible, in the month of September embarked for France; leaving Dupont as his lieutenant, with Champlain, and Champdore to perfect the ſettlement, and explore the country.

During the next winter they were plentifully ſupplied by the ſavages with veniſon, and a great trade was carried on for furs. Nothing is ſaid of the ſcurvy; but they had ſhort allowance of bread; not by reaſon of any ſcarcity of corn but becauſe they had no other mill to grind it than the hand mill, which required hard and continual labour. The ſavages were ſo averſe to this exerciſe, that they preferred hunger to the taſk of grinding corn, though they were offered half of it in payment. Six men only died in the courſe of this winter.

In the ſpring of 1606, Dupont attempted to find what De Monts had miſſed, in the preceding year, a more ſoutherly ſettlement. His bark was twice forced back with adverſe winds; and the third time was driven on rocks and bilged at the mouth of the port. The men and ſtores were ſaved; but the veſſel was loſt. Theſe fruitleſs attempts proved very diſcouraging; but Dupont employed his people, in building a bark and ſhallop; that they might employ themſelves in viſiting the ports, whither their countrymen reſort to dry their fiſh, till new ſupplies ſhould arrive.

De Monts and Poutrincourt were at that time in France, preparing, amidſt every diſcouragement, for another voyage. On the thirteenth of May, they ſailed from Rochelle, in a ſhip of one hundred and fifty tons; and on the 27th of July arrived at Port Royal, in the abſence of Dupont, who had left two men only to guard the fort. In a few days he arrived, having met with one of their boats which they had left at Canſeau, and great was the joy on both ſides at their meeting.

Poutrincourt now began his plantation; and having cleared a ſpot of ground, within fifteen days he ſowed European corn and ſeveral ſorts of garden vegetables. But notwithſtanding all the beauty and fertility of Port Royal, De Monts had ſtill a deſire to find a better place at the ſouthward. He therefore prevailed on Poutrincourt to make another voyage to Cape Malebarre; and ſo earneſt was he to have this matter accompliſhed, that he would not wait till the next ſpring, but prepared a bark to go to the the ſouthward as ſoon as the ſhip was ready to ſail.

On the 28th of Auguſt, the ſhip and the bark both ſailed from Port Royal. In the ſhip De Monts and Dupont returned to France; whilſt Poutrincourt, Champlain, Champdore and others croſſed the bay to St. Croix, and thence ſailed along the coaſt; touching at many harbours in their way till they arrived in ſight of the Cape, the object of their voyage. Being entangled among the ſhoals, their rudder was broken and they were obliged to come to anchor, at the diſtance of three leagues from the land. The boat was then ſent aſhore to find a harbour of freſh water; which by the information of one of the natives was accompliſhed. Fifteen days were ſpent in this place; during which time, a croſs was erected, and poſſeſſion taken, for the King of France; as De Monts had done two years before at Kenebeck. When the bark was repaired and ready to ſail, Poutrincourt took a walk into the country, whilſt his people were baking bread. In his abſence ſome of the natives viſited his people and ſtole a hatchet. Two guns were fired at them, and they fled. In his return he ſaw ſeveral parties of the ſavages, male and female, carrying away their children and their corn; and hiding themſelves, as he and his company paſſed. He was alarmed at this ſtrange appearance; but much more ſo, when early the next morning a ſhower of arrows came flying among his people, two of whom were killed and ſeveral others wounded. The ſavages having taken their revenge, fled; and it was in vain to purſue them. The dead were buried at the foot of the croſs; and whilſt the funeral ſervice was performing, the ſavages were dancing and yelling in mock concert, at a convenient diſtance, but within hearing. When the French retired on board their bark, the ſavages took down the croſs, dug up the bodies and ſtripped them of their grave clothes, which they carried off in triumph.

This unhappy quarrel gave Poutrincourt a bad idea of the natives. He attempted to paſs farther round the cape; but was prevented by contrary winds; and forced back to the ſame harbour, where the ſavages offering to trade, ſix or ſeven of them were ſeized and put to death.

The next day another attempt was made to ſail farther; but the wind came againſt them. At the diſtance of ſix or ſeven leagues they diſcovered an iſland; but the wind would not permit them to approach it; they therefore gave it the name of Douteuſe, or Doubtful. This was probably either Nantucket or Capawock, now called Martha's Vineyard; and if ſo, the conteſt with the Indians was on the ſouth ſhore of Cape Cod; where are ſeveral harbours and ſtreams of freſh water. To the harbour where he lay, he gave the name of Port Fortune.

It was now late in the ſeaſon and no proſpect appeared of obtaining any better place for a ſettlement; beſides, he had two wounded men whoſe lives were in danger. He therefore determined to return, which he did by the ſhorteſt and moſt direct courſe; and after a perilous voyage, in which the rudder was again broken, and the bark narrowly eſcaped ſhipwreck, he arrived at Port Royal on the 14th of November.

The manner in which they ſpent the third winter was ſocial and feſtive. At the principal table, to which fifteen perſons belonged, an order was eſtabliſhed, by the name of L'ordre de bon temps. Every one took his turn to be caterer and ſteward, for one day, during which he wore the collar of the order and a napkin, and carried a ſtaff. After ſupper he reſigned his accoutrements, with the ceremony of drinking a cup of wine, to the next in ſucceſſion. The advantage of this inſtitution was, that each one was emulous to be prepared for his day; by previouſly hunting or fiſhing, or purchaſing fiſh and game of the natives, who conſtantly reſided among them, and were extremely pleaſed with their manners.

Four only died in this winter; and it is remarked that theſe were "ſluggiſh and fretful." The winter was mild and fair. On a Sunday in the middle of January, after divine ſervice, they "ſported and had muſic on the river;" and in the ſame month they went two leagues, to ſee their corn field, and dined cheerfully in the ſunſhine.

At the firſt opening of the ſpring (1607) they began to prepare gardens; the produce of which was extremely grateful; as were alſo the numberleſs fiſh which came into the river. They alſo erected a water mill, which not only ſaved them much hard labour, at the hand mill; but gave them more time for fiſhing. The fiſh which they took were called herrings and pilchards; of which they pickled ſeveral hogſheads to be ſent home to France.

In April they began to build two barks, in which they might viſit the ports, frequented by the fiſhermen, and learn ſome news from their mother country, as well as get ſupplies for their ſubſiſtence. Having no pitch to pay the ſeams, they were obliged to cut pine trees and burn them in kilns, by which means they obtained a ſufficiency.

On Aſcenſion day, a veſſel arrived from France, deſtined to bring ſupplies; a large ſhare of which, the crew had ungenerouſly conſumed in their voyage. The letters brought by this veſſel informed them that the company of Merchants, aſſociated with De Monts, was dicouraged; and that their ſhip was to be employed in the fiſhery at Canſeau. The reaſon of this proceeding was, that contrary to the King's edict, the Hollanders had intruded themſelves into the fur trade, in the river of Canada; having been conducted by a treacherous Frenchman; in conſequence of which, the King had revoked the excluſive privilege which he had given to De Monts for ten years. The avarice of theſe Hollanders was ſo great, that they had opened the graves of the dead, and taken the beaverſkins in which the corpſes had been buried. This outrage was ſo highly reſented by the ſavages at Canſeau, that they killed the perſon, who had ſhown the places where the dead were laid. This news was extremely unwelcome, as it portended the deſtruction of the colony.

Poutrincourt however was ſo well pleaſed with his ſituation, that he determined to return to it, though none but his own family ſhould accompany him. He was very deſirous to ſee the iſſue of his attempt at agriculture, and therefore detained the veſſel, as long as he could; and employed his bark in ſmall voyages, about the bay, to trade for furs, and gather ſpecimens of iron and copper to be tranſported to France. When they were all ready to ſail, he tarried eleven days longer than the others, that he might carry home the firſt fruits of his harveſt. Leaving the buildings, and part of the proviſion with the ſtanding corn, as a preſent to the friendly natives, he finally ſailed from Port Royal, on the 11th of Auguſt, and joined the other veſſels at Canſeau; from which place, they proceeded to France, where they arrived in the latter end of September.

Specimens of the wheat, rye, barley, and oats were ſhown to the King; which, with other productions of the country, animal and mineral, were ſo highly acceptable, that he renewed and confirmed to De Monts the privilege of trading for beavers; that he might have it in his power to eſtabliſh a colony. In conſequence of which, the next ſpring ſeveral families were ſent to renew the plantation, who found that the ſavages had gathered ſeven barrels of the corn which had been left ſtanding; and had reſerved one for their friends whom they expected to return.

The revocation of the excluſive patent given to De Monts, was founded on complaints, made by the maſters of fiſhing veſſels, that the branch of commerce in which they were engaged would be ruined. When this patent was reſtored, it was limited to one year; and on this condition, that he ſhould make an eſtabliſhment in the river St. Lawrence. De Monts therefore quitted his connexion with Acadia, and the company of Merchants, with whom he had been connected, fitted out two ſhips for the port of Tadouſac, in 1608. The fur trade was of very conſiderable value, and the company made great profits; but De Monts finding their intereſts hurt by his connexion with them, withdrew from the aſſociation.

Poutrincourt reſolving to proſecute his plantation at Port Royal, the grant of which had been confirmed, to him by the King, ſent Biencourt, his ſon, to France, (1608) for a ſupply of men and proviſions. One condition of the grant was, that attempts ſhould be made convert the natives to the Catholic faith, it was therefore neceſſary to engage the aſſiſtance of ſome eccleſiaſtics. The firſt who embraced the propoſal were the Jeſuits, by whoſe zealous exertions a contribution was ſoon made for the purpoſe; and two of their order, Biard and Maſſe, embarked for the new plantation. It was not long before a controverſy aroſe between them and the proprietor, who ſaid "it was his part to rule them them on earth, and theirs only to guide him to heaven."Purchas v. 1808. After his departure for France, his ſon Biencourt, diſdaining to be controled by thoſe whom he had invited to reſide with him, threatened them with corporal puniſhment, in return for their ſpiritual anathemas. It became neceſſary then that they ſhould ſeparate. The Jeſuits removed to mount Deſart, where they planted gardens and entered on the buſineſs of their miſſion, which they continued till 1613 or 1614; when Sir Samuel Argal from Virginia broke up the French ſettlements in Acadia. In the encounter one of theſe Jeſuits was killed and the other was made priſoner. Of the other Frenchmen, ſome diſperſed themſelves in the woods and mixed with the ſavages; ſome went to the river St. Lawrence and ſtrengthened the ſettlement which Champlain had made there; and others returned to France.

Two advantages were expected to reſult from eſtabliſhing a colony in the river St. Lawrence: One was, an extenſion of the fur trade, and another was the hope of penetrating weſtward, though the lakes, to the Pacific Ocean, and finding a nearer communication with China. One of the veſſels ſent by the company of merchants, in 1608, to that river, was commanded by Champlain. In his former voyage he had marked the ſtrait above the Iſle of Orleans, as a proper ſituation for a fort; becauſe the river was there contracted in its breadth, and the northern ſhore was high and commanding. He arrived there in the beginning of July, and immediately began to clear the woods, to build houſes, and prepare fields and gardens. Here he ſpent the winter, and his company ſuffered much by the ſcurvy. The remedy which Cartier had uſed, was not to be found, or the ſavages knew nothing of it. It is ſuppoſed that the former inhabitants had been extirpated, and a new people held poſſeſſion.Purchas v, 1642.

In the ſpring of 1609, Champlain, with two other Frenchmen and a party of the natives, went up the river now called Sorel and entered the lakes, which lie toward the ſouth, and communicate with the country of the Iroquois. To the largeſt of theſe lakes Champlain gave his own name, which it has ever ſince retained. On the ſhore of another, which he called Lake Sacrament, now Lake George, they were diſcovered by a company of the Iroquois, with whom they had a ſkirmiſh. Champlain killed two of them with his muſquet. The ſcalps of fifty were taken and brought to Quebeck in triumph.

In the autumn, Champlain went to France, leaving Capt Pierre to command; and in 1610 he returned to Quebeck, to perfect the colony, of which he may conſidered as the founder.

After the death of Henry IV, he obtained of the Queen Regent, a commiſſion as Lieutenant of New-France, with very extenſive powers. This commiſſion was confirmed by Lewis XIII; and Champlain was continued in the Government of Canada.

The religious controverſies, which prevailed in France, augmented the number of coloniſts. A ſettlement was made at Trois Rivieres, and a briſk trade was carried on at Tadouſac. In 1626, Quebeck began to aſſume the face of a city, and the fortreſs was rebuilt with ſtone; but the people were divided in their religious principles and the Hugonot party prevailed.

In this divided ſtate, (1629) the colony was attacked by an armament from England under the conduct of Sir David Kirk. He ſailed up the river St. Lawrence and appeared before Quebeck, which was then ſo miſerably ſupplied, that they had but ſeven ounces of bread to a man for a day. A ſquadron from France, with proviſion for their relief, entered the river; but, after ſome reſiſtance, were taken by the Engliſh. This diſappointment increaſed the diſtreſs of the colony and obliged Champlain to capitulate. He was carried to France in an Engliſh ſhip; and there found the minds of the people divided, with regard to Canada; ſome thinking it not worth regaining, as it had coſt the government vaſt ſums, without bringing any return; others deeming the fiſhery and fur trade to be great national objects, eſpecially as they proved to be a nurſery for ſeamen. Theſe ſentiments, ſupported by the ſolicitation of Champlain, prevailed; and by the treaty of St. Germain's, in 1632, Canada, Acadia and Cape Breton were reſtored to France.

The next year Champlain reſumed his government, and the company of New France were reſtored to their former rights and privileges. A large recruit of inhabitants, with a competent ſupply of Jeſuits, arrived from France; and with ſome difficulty a miſſion was eſtabliſhed among the Hurons; and a ſeminary of the order was begun at Quebeck. In the midſt of this proſperity Champlain died, in the month of December, 1635; and was ſucceeded the next year by De Montmagny.

Champlain is characterized as a man of good ſenſe, ſtrong penetration and upright views; volatile, active, enterprizing, firm and valiant. He aided the Hurons in their wars with the Iroquois, and perſonally engaged in their battles; in one of which he was wounded. His zeal for the propagation of the Catholic religion was ſo great that it was a common ſaying with him, that "the ſalvation of one ſoul was of more value than the conqueſt of an empire."Charlevoix Hiſt. Nouvelle, France, Tom. i, p. 197, 410.

XIV. FERDINANDO GORGES. AND JOHN MASON.

WE know nothing concerning Gorges in the early part of his life.In Joſſelyn's voyage he is called "Sir F. G. of Aſhton Phillips, in Somerſet." p. 197. The firſt account we have of him, is the diſcovery which he made of a plot which the earl of Eſſex had laid to overthrow the government of Queen Elizabeth, the tragical iſſue of which is too well known to be here repeated. Gorges, who had been privy to the conſpiracy at firſt, communicated his knowledge of it to Sir Walter Raleigh, his intimate friend, but the enemy and rival of Eſſex.Hume.

There was not only an intimacy between Raleigh and Gorges, but a ſimilarity in their genius and employment; both were formed for intrigue and adventure; both were indefatigable in the proſecution of their ſanguine projects; and both were naval commanders.

During the war with Spain, which occupied the laſt years of Queen Elizabeth, Gorges, with other adventurous ſpirits, found full employment in the navy of their miſtreſs. When the peace, which her ſucceſſor, James I, made in 1604, put an end to their hopes of honor and fortune by military enterprizes, Sir Ferdinando was appointed Governor of Plymouth, in Devonſhire. This circumſtance, by which the ſpirit of adventure might ſeem to have been repreſſed, proved the occaſion of its breaking out with freſh ardour, though in a pacific and mercantile form, connected with the rage for foreign diſcoveries, which after ſome interruption, had again ſeized the Engliſh nation.

Lord Arundel, of Wardour, had employed a Captain Weymouth in ſearch of a northweſt paſſage to India. This navigator having miſtaken his courſe, fell in with a river on the coaſt of America, which, by his deſcription, muſt have been either Kenebeck, or Penobſcot. From thence he brought to England, five of the natives, and arrived in the month of July, 1605, in the harbour of Plymouth, where Gorges commanded, who immediately took three of them into his family. Their names were Manida, Sketwarroes and Taſquantum; they were all of one language, though not of the ſame tribe. This accident proved the occaſion, under God's providence, of preparing the way for a more perfect diſcovery than had yet been made of this part of North-America.

Having gained the affections of theſe ſavages by kind treatment, he found them very docile and intelligent; and from them he learned by inquiry, many particulars concerning their country, its rivers, harbours, iſlands, fiſh and other animals; the numbers, diſpoſition, manners and cuſtoms of the natives; their government, alliances, enemies, force and methods of war. The reſult of theſe inquiries ſerved to feed a ſanguine hope of indulging his genius and advancing his fortune by a more thorough diſcovery of the country.

His chief aſſociate in this plan of diſcovery, was Sir John Popham, Lord Chief Juſtice of the King's Bench, who, by his acquaintance with divers noblemen, and by their intereſt at court, obtained from King James a patent for making ſettlements in America, which was now divided into two diſtricts, and called North and South Virginia. The latter of theſe diſtricts was put under the care of certain noblemen, knights, and gentlemen, who were ſtyled the London Company; the former under the direction of others in Briſtol, Exeter and Plymouth, who were called the Plymouth Company, becauſe their meetings were uſually held there.

By the joint efforts of this company, of which Popham and Gorges were two of the moſt enterpriſing members; a ſhip, commanded by Henry Chalong, was fitted out, and ſailed in Auguſt, 1606, for the diſcovery of the country, from which the ſavages had been brought, and two of them were put on board. The orders given to the maſter, were to keep in as high a latitude as Cape Breton, till he ſhould diſcover the main land, and then to range the coaſt ſouthward, till he ſhould find the place from which the natives had been taken. Inſtead of obſerving theſe orders, the Captain falling ſick on the paſſage, made a ſouthern courſe, and firſt arrived at the iſland of Porto Rico, where he tarried ſome time for the recovery of his health; from thence coming northwardly, he fell in with a Spaniſh fleet from the Havannah, by whom the ſhip was ſeized and carried to Spain.

Captain Prynne, 〈◊〉 another ſhip, which ſailed from Briſtol, with orders to find Chalong, and join with him in a ſurvey of the coaſt, had better ſucceſs; for though he failed of meeting his conſort, yet he carried home a particular account of the coaſts, rivers, and harbours, with other information relative to the country, which made ſo deep an impreſſion on the minds of the company, as to ſtrengthen their reſolution of proſecuting their enterprize.

It was determined to ſend over a large number of people ſufficient to begin a colony. For this purpoſe George Popham was appointed preſident; Raleigh Gilbert, admiral; Edward Harlon, maſter of ordnance; Robert Davis, ſerjeant major; Elis Beſt, marſhal; Mr. Seaman, ſecretary; James Davis, commander of the fort; Gome Carew, ſearcher. All theſe were to be of the council; and beſides theſe, the colony conſiſted of 100 men, who were ſtyled planters. They ſailed from Plymouth in two ſhips (May 31, 1607) and having fallen in with the iſland of Monahigon (Auguſt 11,) landed at the mouth of Sagadahock, or Kenebeck river, on a peninſula, where they erected a ſtore houſe, and having fortified it as well as their circumſtances would admit, gave it the name of Fort St. George.

By means of two natives, whom they brought with them from England, viz. Sketwarroes, ſent by Gorges, and Dehamida, by Popham, they found a cordial welcome among the Indians, their ſachems offering to conduct and introduce them to the Baſhaba or great chief, whoſe reſidence was at Penobſcot, and to whom, it was expected, that all ſtrangers ſhould make their addreſs.The Baſhaba of Penobſcot, was a prince, ſuperior in rank to the ſachems of the ſeveral Tribes. All the ſachems, weſtward, as far as Naumkeeg [Salem] acknowledged ſubjection to him. He is frequently mentioned in the accounts of the firſt voyages to New-England; but was killed by the Tarrateens in 1615, before any effectual ſettlement was made in the country. We have no account of any other Indian chief in theſe northern parts of America, whoſe authority was ſo extenſive.

The Preſident having received ſeveral invitations, was preparing to comply with their requeſt, and had advanced ſome leagues on his way, but contrary winds, and bad weather, obliged him to return, to the great grief of the ſachems, who were to have attended him. The Baſhaba hearing of the diſappointment, ſent his ſon to viſit the Preſident, and ſettle a trade for furs.

The ſhips departed for England, in December, leaving behind them only 45 perſons of the new colony. The ſeaſon was too far advanced before their arrival to begin planting for that year, if there had been ground prepared for tillage. They had to ſubſiſt on the proviſions which they had brought from England, and the fiſh and game which the country afforded. The ſeverity of an American winter was new to them; and though it was obſerved, that the ſame winter was uncommonly ſevere in England, yet that circumſtance being unknown, could not alleviate their diſtreſs. By ſome accident, their ſtore houſe took fire, and was conſumed, with the greater part of their proviſions, in the middle of the winter; and in the ſpring (1608) they had the additional misfortune to loſe their Preſident, Captain Popham, by death. The ſhip, which their friends in England had by their united exertions ſent over with ſupplies, arrived a few days after, with the melancholy news of the death of Sir John Popham, which happened while ſhe lay waiting for a wind at Plymouth. The command of the colony now devolved on Gilbert, but the next ſhip brought an account of the death of his brother Sir John Gilbert, which obliged him to return to England, to take care of the eſtate to which he ſucceeded. Theſe repeated misfortunes and diſappointments, operating with the diſguſt which the new coloniſts had taken to the climate and ſoil, determined them to quit the place. Accordingly, having embarked with their Preſident, they returned to England, carrying with them, as the fruit of their labour, a ſmall veſſel, which they had built during their reſidence here, and thus the firſt colony, which was attempted in New England, began and ended in one year.

The country was now branded as intolerably cold, and the body of the adventurers relinquiſhed the deſign. Sir Francis Popham, indeed, employed a ſhip for ſome ſucceeding years in the fiſhing and fur trade; but he, at length, became content with his loſſes, and none of this company but Sir Ferdinando Gorges, had the reſolution to ſurmount all diſcouragements. Though he ſincerely lamented the loſs of his worthy friend, the Chief Juſtice, who had zealouſly joined with him, in theſe hitherto fruitleſs, but expenſive labours, yet, "as to the coldneſs of the clime (he ſays) he had too much experience in the world, to be frighted with ſuch a blaſt, as knowing many great kingdoms and large territories more northerly ſeated, and by many degrees colder, were plentifully inhabited, and divers of them ſtored with no better commodities than theſe parts afford, if like induſtry, art and labour, be uſed."

Such perſevering ardor in the face of ſo many diſcouragements, muſt be allowed to diſcover a mind formed for enterprize, and fully perſuaded of the practicability of the undertaking.

When he found that he could not be ſeconded in his attempts for a thorough diſcovery of the country, by others, he determined to carry it on by himſelf; and for this purpoſe he purchaſed a ſhip, and engaged with a maſter and crew to go to the coaſt of New England for the purpoſe of fiſhing and traffic, the only inducement which ſeafaring people could have to undertake ſuch a voyage. On board this ſhip he put RICHARD VINES, and ſeveral others of his own ſervants in whom he placed the fulleſt confidence and whom he hired at a great expenſe to ſtay in the country, over the winter, and purſue the diſcovery of it. Theſe perſons having left the ſhip's company to follow their uſual occupation on the coaſt, travelled into the land, and meeting with the ſavages, who had before returned to America, by their aſſiſtance became acquainted with ſuch particulars as Gorges wiſhed to know.

Mr. Vines and his companions were received by the Indians with great hoſpitality, though their reſidence among them was rendered hazardous; both by a war which raged among them, and by a peſtilence which accompanied or ſucceeded it.

This war and peſtilence are frequently ſpoken of by the hiſtorians of New England, as remarkable events, in the courſe of Providence, which prepared the way for the eſtabliſhment of an European colony. Concerning the war, we know nothing more than this; that it was begun by the Tarratenes, a nation who reſided eaſtward of Penobſcot. Theſe formidable people ſurprized the Baſhaba, or chief ſachem, at his head quarters, and deſtroyed him with all his family; upon which all the other ſachems who were ſubordinate to him, quarrelled among themſelves for the ſovereignty: and in theſe diſſenſions many of them as well as of their unhappy people periſhed. Of what particular kind the peſtilence was, we have no certainMr. Gookin ſays, that he "had diſcourſed with ſome old Indians who were then youths, who told him, that the bodies of the ſick were all over exceeding yellow, (which they deſcribed by pointing to a yellow garment) both before they died and afterward." See Collections of Hiſtorical Society for 1792. p. 148. information; but it ſeems to have been a diſorder peculiar to the Indians, for Mr. Vines, and his companions, who were intimately converſant with them, and frequently lodged in their wigwams, were not in the leaſt degree affected by it, though it ſwept off the Indians at ſuch a prodigious rate, that the living were not able to bury the dead, and their bones were found ſeveral years after, lying about the villages where they had reſided. The extent of this peſtilence was between Penobſcot in the eaſt, and Narraganſet in the weſt. Theſe two tribes eſcaped, whilſt the intermediate people were waſted and deſtroyed.

The information which Vines obtained for Sir Ferdinando, though ſatisfactory, in one view, produced no real advantage proportionate to the expenſe. Whilſt he was deliberating by what means he ſhould farther proſecute his plan of colonization, Capt. Henry Harley, who had been one of the unfortunate adventurers to Sagadahock, came to him, bringing a native of the Iſland Capawock, now called Martha's Vineyard, who had been treacherouſly taken from his own country by one of the fiſhing ſhips and ſhown in London as a ſight. Gorges received this ſavage, whoſe name was Epenow, with great pleaſure: and about the ſame time recovered Aſſacumet, one of thoſe who had been ſent in the unfortunate voyage of Captain Chalong. Theſe two Indians at firſt, ſcarcely underſtood each other; but, when they had grown better acquainted, Aſſacumet informed his old maſter of what he had learned from Epenow concerning his country. This artful fellow had invented a ſtory of a mine of gold in his native iſland which he ſuppoſed would induce ſome adventurer to employ him as a pilot, by which means he hoped to get home, and he was not diſappointed in his expectation.

Gorges had engaged the Earl of Southampton, then commander of the Iſle of Wight, to advance one hundred pounds, and Capt. Hobſon another hundred, and alſo to go on the diſcovery. With this aſſiſtance, Harley ſailed in June 1614, carrying with him ſeveral land ſoldiers and the two before mentioned Indians, with a third named Wanapé, who had been ſent to Gorges from the Iſle of Wight. On the arrival of the ſhip, ſhe was ſoon piloted to the iſland of Capawock, and to the harbour where Epenow was to perform his promiſe. The principal inhabitants of the place, with ſome of his own kinſmen, came on board, with whom he held a conference and contrived his eſcape. They departed, promiſing to return the next day with furs for traffick. Epenow had pretended that if it were known, that he had diſcovered the ſecrets of his country, his life would be in danger, but the company were careful to watch him; and to prevent his eſcape, had dreſſed him in long clothes, which could eaſily be laid hold of, if there ſhould be occaſion. His friends appeared the next morning in twenty canoes, and lying at a diſtance, the Captain called to them to come on board, which they declining, Epenow was ordered to renew the invitation. He, mounting the forecaſtle, hailed them as he was directed, and at the ſame inſtant, though one held him by the coat, yet being ſtrong and heavy, he jumped into the water. His countrymen then advanced to receive him, and ſent a ſhower of arrows into the ſhip, which ſo diſconcerted the crew, that the priſoner completely effected his eſcape. Thus the golden dream vaniſhed, and the ſhip returned without having performed any ſervices adequate to the expenſe of her equipment.

The Plymouth company were much diſcouraged by the ill ſucceſs of this adventure; but the ſpirit of emulation between them and the London company proved very ſerviceable to the cauſe in which they were jointly engaged. For theſe having ſent our four ſhips under the command of Michael Cooper, to South Virginia, [January, 1615] and Captain John Smith, who had been employed by that company, having returned to England, and engaged with the company at Plymouth, their hopes revived. Sir Ferdinando Gorges, in concert with Dr. Sutliffe, Dean of Exeter, and ſeveral others, equipped two veſſels, one of two hundred, the other of 50 tons, on board of which (beſides the compliment of ſeamen) were ſixteen men who were deſtined to begin a colony in New England. [March, 1615] When they had ſailed one hundred and twenty leagues, the large ſhip loſt her maſts, and ſprung a leak; which obliged them to put back under jury maſts to Plymouth. From thence Smith ſailed again [June 24] in a bark of ſixty tons, carrying the ſame ſixteen men; but on this ſecond voyage, was taken by four French men of war, and carried to France. The veſſel of fifty tons, which had been ſeparated from him, purſued her voyage, and returned in ſafety; but the main deſign of the voyage, which was to effect a ſettlement, was fruſtrated.

The ſame year (October) Sir Richard Hawkins, by authority of the Plymouth company, of which he was Preſident for that year, viſited the coaſt of New England, to try what ſervices he could do them in ſearching the country, and its commodities; but on his arrival, finding the natives engaged in war, he paſſed along the coaſt to Virginia, and from thence returned to England, by the way of Spain, where he diſpoſed of the fiſh, which he had taken in the voyage.

After this, ſhips were ſent every ſeaſon by the London and Plymouth Companies on voyages of profit; their fiſh and furs came to a good market in Europe, but all the attempts which were made to colonize North Virginia, by ſome unforeſeen accidents failed of ſucceſs. Gorges, however, had his mind ſtill invariably bent on his original plan, and every incident which ſeemed to favour his views, was eagerly improved for that purpoſe. Being poſſeſſed of the journals and letters of the ſeveral voyagers, and of all the information which could be had, and being always at hand, to attend the meetings of the Company, he contrived to keep alive their hopes, and was the prime mover in all their tranſactions.

About this time Captain Thomas Dermer, who had been employed in the American fiſhery, and had entered fully into the ſame views; offered his ſervice to aſſiſt in proſecuting the diſcovery of the country. He was at Newfoundland, and Gorges prevailed on the company, to ſend Captain Edward Rocraft, in a ſhip, to New England, with orders to wait there till he ſhould be joined by Dermer. Rocraft, on his arrival, met with a French interloper, which he ſeized, and then ſailed with his prize to South Virginia. In the mean time Dermer went to England, and having conferred with Gorges and the company, on the intended diſcovery, went out in a ſhip, which Gorges himſelf owned; hoping to meet with Rocraft, but was much perplexed at not finding him.

Having ranged and examined every part of the coaſt, and made many uſeful obſervations, which he tranſmitted to Gorges, he ſhaped his courſe for Virginia,It is ſaid that he was the firſt who paſſed the whole extent of Long Iſland Sound, and diſcovered that it was not connected with the continent. This was in 1619. where Rocraft had been killed in a quarrel, and his bark ſunk. Dermer being thus diſappointed of his conſort, and of his expected ſupplies, returned to the northward. At the iſland of Capawock, he met with Epenow, who knowing him to be employed by Gorges, and ſuſpecting that his errand was to bring him back to England, conſpired with his countrymen, to ſeize him and his companions, ſeveral of whom were killed in the fray: Dermer defended himſelf with his ſword, and eſcaped, though not without fourteen wounds, which obliged him to go again to Virginia, where he died. The loſs of this worthy man, was the moſt diſcouraging circumſtance which Gorges had met with, and as he himſelf expreſſes it, "made him almoſt reſolve never to intermeddle again in any of theſe courſes." But he had in fact ſo deeply engaged in them, and had ſo many perſons engaged with him, that he could not retreat with honour, whilſt any hope of ſucceſs remained. Soon after this, a proſpect began to open from a quarter, where it was leaſt expected.

The patent of 1606, which divided Virginia into two colonies, expreſsly provided that neither company ſhould begin any plantation within one hundred miles of the other. By this interdiction the middle region of North America was neglected, and a bait was laid to attract the attention of foreigners.

The adventurers to South Virginia had prohibited all who were not free of their company from planting or trading within their limits; the northern company had made no ſuch regulation; by this means it happened that the South Virginia ſhips could fiſh on the northern coaſt, whilſt the other company were excluded from all privileges in the ſouthern parts. The South Virginians had alſo made other regulations in the management of their buſineſs, which the northern company were deſirous to intimate. They thought the moſt effectual way to do this, was to procure an excluſive patent. With this view, Gorges, ever active to promote the intereſt which he had eſpouſed, ſolicited of the crown a new charter, which, by the intereſt of his friends in court, was after ſome delay obtained. By this inſtrument forty noblemen, knights and gentlemen, were incorporated by the ſtyle of "the council eſtabliſhed at Plymouth, in the county of Devon, for the planting, ruling and governing of New England in America." The date of the charter was November 3, 1620. The territory ſubject to their juriſdiction was from the 40th to the 48th degree of north latitude, and from ſea to ſea. This charter is the foundation of all the grants which were made of the country of New England.

Before this diviſion was made, a number of families, who were ſtyled Puritans, on account of their ſeeking a farther reformation of the Church of England, which they could not obtain, and who had retired into Holland to avoid the ſeverity of the penal laws againſt diſſenters, meditated a removal to America. The Dutch were fond of retaining them as their ſubjects, and made them large offers, if they would ſettle in ſome of their tranſmarine territories; but they choſe rather to reſide in the dominions of their native prince, if they could have liberty of conſcience. They had, by their agents, negociated with the South Virginia company, and obtained a permiſſion to tranſport themſelves to America within their limits; but as to the liberty of conſcience, though they could obtain no indulgence from the crown under hand and ſeal, yet it was declared, that "the King would connive at them, provided they behaved peaceably." As this was all the favour which the ſpirit of the times would allow, they determined to caſt themſelves on the care of Divine Providence and venture to America. After ſeveral diſaſters, they arrived at Cape Cod in the 42d degree of north latitude, a place remote from the object of their intention, which was Hudſon's river. The Dutch had their eye on that place and bribed their pilot not to carry them thither. It was late in the ſeaſon when they arrived; their permiſſion from the Virginia company was of no uſe here; and having neither authority nor form of government, they were obliged for the ſake of order, before they diſembarked, to form themſelves into a body politic, by a written inſtrument. This was the beginning of the colony of New-Plymouth; and this event happened (Nov. 11, 1620) a few days after King James had ſigned the patent for incorporating the council, Theſe circumſtances ſerved the intereſt of both, though then wholly unknown to each other. The council, being informed of the eſtabliſhment of a colony within their limits, were fond of taking them into their protection, and the colony were equally deſirous of receiving that protection as far as to obtain a grant of territory. An agent being diſpatched by the colony to England, Sir F. Gorges intereſted himſelf in the affair, and a grant was accordingly made (1623) to John Peirce, in truſt for the colony. This was their firſt patent; they afterwards (1629) had another made to William Bradford and his aſſociates.

One end which the council had in view, was, to prevent the acceſs of unauthorized adventurers to the coaſt of New-England. The crews of their ſhips, in their intercourſe with the natives, being far from any eſtabliſhed government, were guilty of great licentiouſneſs. Beſides drunkenneſs, and debauchery, ſome flagrant enormities had been committed, which not only injured the reputation of Europeans, but encouraged the natives to acts of hoſtility. To remedy theſe evils, the council thought proper to appoint an officer to exerciſe government on the coaſt. The firſt perſon who was ſent in this character, was Capt. Francis Weſt; who finding the fiſhermen too licentious and robuſt to be controled by him, ſoon gave up this ineffectual command. They next appointed Capt. Robert Gorges, a ſon of Sir Ferdinando. He was like his father, of an active and enterprizing genius, and had newly returned from the Venetian war. He obtained of the council a patent for a tract of land on the northeaſtern ſide of Maſſachuſetts Bay, containing thirty miles in length and ten in breadth, and by the influence of his father, and of his kinſman Lord Edward Gorges, he was diſpatched with a commiſſion to be "Lieutenant General and Governour of New England." They appointed for his council the aforeſaid Weſt, with Chriſtopher Levet, and the Governour of New Plymouth for the time being. Gorges came to Plymouth in 1623, publiſhed his commiſſion, and made ſome efforts to execute it. He brought over with him as a Chaplain, William Morrell, an Epiſcopal clergyman. This was the firſt eſſay for the eſtabliſhment of a General Government in New England, and Morrel was to have a ſuperintendence in eccleſiaſtical, as Gorges had in civil affairs; but he made no uſe of his commiſſion at Plymouth; and only mentioned it in his converſation about the time of his departure.

This Morrell appears to have been a diligent inquirer into the ſtate and circumſtances of the country, its natural productions and advantages, the manners, cuſtoms, and government of the natives; the reſult of his obſervations he wrought into a poem which he printed both in Latin and Engliſh. The Latin is by no means deſtitute of claſſical merit, of which the following lines may ſerve as an evidence.

"Eſt locus occiduo procul hinc ſpatioſus in orbe Plurima regna tenens, populiſque incognitus ipſis: Felix frugi • eris ſulcis, ſimul aequore felix, Praedis perdives variis, & flumine dives, Axe ſatis calidus, rigidoque a frigore tutus."

The deſcription itſelf is juſt and animated, and the Engliſh tranſlation (conſidering the date of it) is very tolerable. It is printed in the collections of the Hiſtorical Society, for 1792, page 125.

This general government was a darling object with the council of Plymouth, but was much dreaded by the planters of New England; however, all the attempts which were made to carry it into execution failed of ſucceſs. Gorges, after about a year's reſidence in the country, and holding one court at Plymouth, upon a Mr. Weſton, who had begun a plantation at Weſſaguſſet, [Weymouth] where Gorges himſelf intended a ſettlement, was recalled to England, the ſupplies which he expected to have received having failed. This failure was owing to one of thoſe croſs accidents which continually befel the Council of Plymouth. Though the erection of this board was really beneficial to the nation, and gave a proper direction to the ſpirit of colonizing, yet they had to ſtruggle with the oppoſing intereſts of various ſorts of perſons.

The company of South Virginia, and indeed the mercantile intereſt in general, finding themſelves excluded from the privilege of fiſhing and traffic, complained of this inſtitution as a monopoly. The commons of England were growing jealous of the royal prerogative; and wiſhing to reſtrain it; the granting charters of incorporation with excluſive advantages of commerce was deemed a uſurpation on the rights of the people. Complaints were firſt made to the King in council; but no diſpoſition appeared there to countenance them. It happened however, that a parliament was called for ſome other purpoſes (February 1624) in which Sir Edward Cook was choſen ſpeaker of the commons. He was well known as an advocate for the liberties of the people, and an enemy to projectors. The King was at firſt in a good humour with his parliament and advantage was taken of a demand for ſubſidies to bring in a bill againſt monopolies.

The houſe being reſolved into a committee, Sir Ferdinando Gorges was called to the bar, where the ſpeaker informed him, that the patent granted to the council of Plymouth was complained of as a grievance; that under colour of planting a colony, they were purſuing private gains: that though they reſpected him as a perſon of worth and honour, yet the public intereſt was to be regarded before all perſonal conſiderations; and therefore they required that the patent be delivered to the houſe. Gorges anſwered, that he was but one of the company, inferior in rank and abilities, to many others; that he had no power to deliver it, without their conſent, neither in fact, was it in his cuſtody. Being aſked where it was, he ſaid, it was for aught he knew, ſtill remaining in the crown-office, where it had been left for the amendment of ſome errors. As to the general charge he anſwered; that he knew not how it could be a public grievance; ſince it had been undertaken for the advancement of religion, the enlargement of the bounds of the nation, the increaſe of trade, and the employment of many thouſands of people; that it could not be a monopoly; for though a few only were intereſted in the buſineſs, it was becauſe many could not be induced to adventure where their loſſes at firſt were ſure, and their gains uncertain; and, indeed, ſo much loſs had been ſuſtained that moſt of the adventurers themſelves were weary; that as to the profit ariſing from the fiſhery it was never intended to be converted to private uſe, as might appear by the offers which they had made to all the maritime cities in the Weſt of England; that the grant of excluſive privileges made by the crown, was intended to regulate and ſettle plantations, by the profits ariſing from the trade, and was in effect no more than many gentlemen and lords of manors in England enjoyed without offence. He added, that he was glad of an opportunity for ſuch a parliamentary inquiry, and if they would take upon themſelves the buſineſs of colonization, he and his aſſociates would be their humble ſervants as far as lay in their power, without any retroſpect to the vaſt expenſe which they had already incurred in diſcovering and taking poſſeſſion of the country, and bringing matters to their then preſent ſituation. He alſo deſired, that if any thing further was to be inquired into, it might be given him in detail; with liberty of anſwering by his council.

A committee was appointed to examine the patent and make objections; which were delivered to Gorges; accompanied with a declaration from the ſpeaker that he ought to look upon this as a favour. Gorges having acknowledged the favour, employed council to draw up anſwers to the objections. His council were Mr. (afterwards Lord) Finch, and Mr. Caltrup, afterwards attorney general to the court of wards. Though in cauſes where the crown and parliament are concerned as parties, council are often afraid of wading deeper than they can ſafely return; yet Gorges was ſatisfied with the conduct of his council, who fully anſwered the objections, both in point of Law and Juſtice; theſe anſwers being read, the houſe aſked what further he had to ſay, upon which he added ſome obſervations in point of Policy, to the following effect:

That the adventurers had been at great coſt and pains to enlarge the King's dominions; to employ many ſeamen, handicraftsmen, and labourers; to ſettle a flouriſhing plantation, and advance religion in thoſe ſavage countries; matters of the higheſt conſequence to the nation, and far exceeding all the advantage which could be expected from a ſimple courſe of fiſhing, which muſt ſoon have been given over; for that ſo valuable a country, could not long remain unpoſſeſſed either by the French, Spaniards, or Dutch; ſo that if the plantations were to be given up, the fiſhery muſt inevitably be loſt, and the honour, as well as intereſt of the nation, greatly ſuffer; that the miſchief already done by the perſons who were foremoſt in their complaints was intolerable; for, in their diſorderly intercourſe with the ſavages, they had been guilty of the greateſt exceſſes of debauchery and knavery, and in addition to all theſe immoralities, they had furniſhed them with arms and ammunition; by which they were enabled to deſtroy the peaceable fiſhermen, and had become formidable enemies to the planters.

He further added, that he had, in zeal for the intereſt of his country, deeply engaged his own eſtate, and ſent one of his ſons to the American coaſt, beſides encouraging many of his friends to go thither; this he hoped would be an apology for his earneſtneſs in this plea, as if he had ſhewn leſs warmth it might have been conſtrued into negligence and ingratitude.

Theſe pleas however earneſt and rational, were to no purpoſe. The parliament preſented to the King the grievances of the 〈…〉 the patent for New-England was the firſt on the liſt. Gorges, however, had taken care that the King ſhould be previouſly acquainted with the objections and anſwers; and James was ſo jealous of his prerogative, that though he gave his aſſent to a declaratory act againſt monopolies in general, yet he would not recal the patent. However, in deference to the voice of the nation, the council thought fit to ſuſpend their operations. This proved for a while, diſcouraging to the ſpirit of adventure and occaſioned the recalling Robert Gorges from his government.

But the parliament having proceeded with more freedom and boldneſs in their complaints, than ſuited the feelings of James, he diſſolved them in haſte, before they could proceed to meaſures for remedying the diſorders in church and ſtate, which had been the ſubject of complaint; and ſome of the more liberal ſpeakers were committed to priſon. This ſerved to damp the ſpirit of reformation, and prepared the way for another colony of emigrants to New-England.

About the ſame time, the French ambaſſador put in a claim in behalf of his court to theſe territories, to which Gorges was ſummoned to anſwer before the King and council, which he did in ſo ample and convincing a manner, that the claim was for that time ſilenced. Gorges then, in the name of the Council of Plymouth, complained of the Dutch, as intruders on the Engliſh poſſeſſions in America, by making a ſettlement on Hudſon's river. To this, the States made anſwer, that if any ſuch things had been done, it was without their order, as they had only erected a company for the Weſt Indies. This anſwer, made the council reſolve to proſecute their buſineſs and remove theſe intruders.

Hitherto Gorges appears in the light of a zealous, indefatigable and unſucceſsful adventurer; but neither his labours, expenſe, nor ill ſucceſs were yet come to a concluſion.

To entertain a juſt view of Sir Ferdinando Gorges, we muſt conſider him both as a member of the Council of Plymouth, purſuing the general intereſt of American plantations; and at the ſame time as an adventurer, undertaking a ſettlement of his own, in a particular part of the territory which was ſubject to the juriſdiction of the council. Having formed an intimacy with Capt. John Maſon, Governour of Portſmouth, in the county of Hants, who was alſo a member of the council; and having (1622) jointly with him procured from the council, a grant of a large extent of country, which they called Laconia, extending from the river Merrimack to Sagadahock, and from the ocean to the lakes and river of Canada, they indulged ſanguine expectation of ſucceſs. From the accounts given of the country by ſome romantic travellers, they had conceived an idea of it as a kind of terreſtrial paradiſe, not merely capable of producing all the neceſſaries and conveniences of life but as already richly furniſhed by the bountiful hand of nature. The air was ſaid to be pure and ſalubrious; the country pleaſant and delightful, full of goodly foreſts, fair vallies, and fertile plains; abounding in vines, cheſnuts, walnuts, and many other ſorts of fruit; the rivers ſtored with fiſh and environed with goodly meadows full of timber trees. In the great lake,Lake Champlain. it was ſaid, were four iſlands, full of pleaſant woods and meadows, having great ſtore of ſtags, fallow deer, elks, roebucks, beavers and other game; and theſe iſlands were ſuppoſed to be commodiouſly ſituate for habitation and traffic, in the midſt of a fine lake, abounding with the moſt delicate fiſh. This lake was thought to be leſs than 100 miles diſtant from the ſea coaſt; and there was ſome ſecret expectation that mines and precious ſtones, would be the reward of their patient and diligent attention to the buſineſs of diſcovery. Such were the charms of Laconia!

It has been before obſerved that Gorges had ſent over Richard Vines, with ſome others, on a diſcovery, to prepare the way for a colony. The place which Vines pitched upon, was at the mouth of the river Saco. Some years after, another ſettlement was made on the river of Agamenticus, by Francis Norton, whom Gorges ſent over with a number of other people, having procured for them a patent of 12,000 acres on the eaſt ſide of the river, and 12,000 more on the weſt ſide; his ſon Ferdinando Gorges being named as one of the grantees; this was the beginning of the town of York. Norton was a Lieutenant Colonel, and had raiſed himſelf to that rank from a common ſoldier, by his own merit. In this company were ſeveral artificers, who were employed in building ſaw mills, and they were ſupplied with cattle and other neceſſaries for the buſineſs of getting lumber.

About the ſame time (viz. 1623) a ſettlement was begun at the river Piſcataqua, by Captain Maſon, and ſeveral other merchants, among whom Gorges had a ſhare. The principal deſign of theſe ſettlements was, to eſtabliſh a permanent fiſhery, to make ſalt, to trade with the natives, and to prepare lumber for exportation. Agriculture was but a ſecondary object, though in itſelf the true ſource of all opulence and all ſubſiſtence.

Theſe attempts proved very expenſive and yielded no adequate returns. The aſſociates were diſcouraged, and dropped off one after another, till none but Gorges and Maſon remained. Much patience was neceſſary, but in this caſe it could be grounded only on enthuſiaſm. It was not poſſible in the nature of things that their intereſt ſhould be advanced by the manner in which they conducted their buſineſs. Their coloniſts came over either as tenants or as hired ſervants. The produce of the plantation could not pay their wages, and they ſoon became their own maſters. The charge of making a ſettlement in ſuch a wilderneſs was more than the value of the lands when the improvements were made: overſeers were appointed, but they could not hold the tenants under command; nor prevent their changing places on every diſcontent: The proprietors themſelves never came in perſon to ſuperintend their intereſts, and no regular government was eſtabliſhed to puniſh offenders or preſerve order. For theſe reaſons though Gorges and Maſon expended from firſt to laſt more than twenty thouſand pounds each, yet they only opened the way for others to follow, and the money was loſt to them and their poſterity.See Hiſtory of New-Hampſhire, vol. i. Chap. i.ii.

Whilſt their private intereſt was thus ſinking in America, the reputation of the council of which were members lay under ſuch diſadvantage in England as tended to endanger their political exiſtence. As they had been incorporated for the purpoſe, not merely of granting lands, but of making actual plantations in America, they were fond of encouraging all attempts, from whatever quarter, which might realize their views and expectations.

The eccleſiaſtical government at this time allowed no liberty to ſcrupulous conſciences; for which reaſon many who had hitherto been peaceable members of the national church, and wiſhed to continue ſuch, finding that no indulgence could be granted, turned their thoughts toward America where ſome of their brethren had already made a ſettlement. They firſt purchaſed of the council of Plymouth a large territory, and afterward obtained of the crown a charter, by which they were conſtituted a body politic within the realm. In June 1630 they brought their charter to America, and began the colony of Maſſachuſetts. This proved an effectual ſettlement, and the reaſons which rendered it ſo were the the zeal and ardour which animated their exertions; the wealth which they poſſeſſed, and which they converted into materials for a new plantation; but principally the preſence of the adventurers themſelves, on the ſpot, where their fortunes were to be expended and their zeal exerted. The difference between a man's doing buſineſs by himſelf, and by his ſubſtitutes, was never more fairly exemplified than in the conduct of the Maſſachuſetts planters, compared with that of Sir Ferdinando Gorges: what the one had been labouring for, above twenty years without any ſucceſs, was realized by the others in two or three years; in five, they were ſo far advanced as to be able to ſend out a colony from themſelves to begin another at Connecticut; and in leſs than ten, they founded an Univerſity which has ever ſince produced an uninterrupted ſucceſſion of ſerviceable men in church and ſtate.

The great number of people who flocked to this new plantation, raiſed an alarm in England. As they had manifeſted their diſcontent with the eccleſiaſtical government, it it was ſuſpected that they aimed at independence, and would throw off their allegiance to the crown. This jealouſy was ſo ſtrong, that a royal order was made to reſtrain any from coming hither who ſhould not firſt take the oaths of allegiance and ſupremacy, and obtain a licence for their removal.

To refute this jealous cavil againſt the planters of New-England, we need only to obſerve, that at the time when they began their ſettlement, and for many years after, the lands which they occupied were objects of envy both to the Dutch and French. The Dutch claimed from Hudſon, as far as Connecticut river, where they had erected a trading houſe. The French claimed all the lands of New England; and the Governour of Port Royal, when he wrote to Governour Winthrop, directed his letters to him as Governour of the Engliſh at Boſton in Acadia. Had the New England planters thrown off their ſubjection to the crown of England they muſt have become a prey to one or the other of theſe rival powers. Of this they were well aware, and if they had entertained any idea of independency, which they certainly did not (nor did their ſucceſſors till driven to it by Britain herſelf) it would have been the moſt impolitic thing in the world to have avowed it, in the preſence of neighbours with whom they did not wiſh to be connected.

This jealouſy, however groundleſs, had an influence on the public councils of the nation, as well as on the ſentiments of individuals, and contributed to increaſe the prejudice which had been formed againſt all who were concerned in the colonization of New England. The merchants ſtill conſidered the Council of Plymouth, as monopolizing a lucrative branch of trade. The South Virginia company, diſreliſhed their excluſive charter, and ſpared no pains to get it revoked. The popular party in the commons regarded them as ſupporters of the prerogative, and under the royal influence.This manifeſtly appears from the grant which they were obliged to make to Sir William Alexander, of the country of Nova Scotia, by virtue of a meſſage from the King, which they conſidered as a command. This grant was confirmed to him by the King, and he ſold it to the French. The high church party were incenſed againſt them as enemies of prelacy, becauſe they had favoured the ſettlement of the Puritans within their territory: and the King himſelf ſuſpected that the colonies in New England had too much liberty to conſiſt with his notions of government. Gorges was looked upon as the author of all the miſchief; and being publicly called upon, declared, "that though he had earneſtly ſought the intereſt of the plantations, yet he could not anſwer for the evils which had happened by them." It was extremely mortifying to him to find that after all his exertions and expenſes in the ſervice of the nation, he had become a very unpopular character, and had enemies on all ſides.

To remedy theſe difficulties, he projected the reſignation of the charter to the crown; and the diviſion of the territory into twelve lordſhips, to be united under one General Governour. As the charter of Maſſachuſetts ſtood in the way of this project, he, in conjunction with Maſon, petitioned the crown for a revocation of it. This brought on him the ill will of thoſe coloniſts alſo, who from that time regarded him and Maſon as their enemies. Before the council ſurrendered their charter, they made grants to ſome of their own members, of twelve diſtricts, from Maryland to St. Croix, among which the diſtrict from Piſcataqua to Sagadahock, extending one hundred and twenty miles northward into the country, was aſſigned to Gorges. In June 1635, the council reſigned their charter, and petitioned the King and the lords of the privy council for a confirmation of the ſeveral proprietary grants, and the eſtabliſhment of a general government. Sir Ferdinando Gorges, then three ſcore years of age, was the perſon nominated to be the General Governor. About this time, Maſon, one of the principal actors in this affair, was removed by death: and a ſhip, which was intended for the ſervice of the new government, fell and broke in launching. A quo warranto was iſſued againſt the Maſſachuſetts charter, but the proceedings upon it were delayed, and never completed. An order of the King in council, was alſo iſſued in 1637, for the eſtabliſhment of the general government, and Gorges was therein appointed Governour; but the troubles in Scotland and England, at this time grew very ſerious and put a check to the buſineſs. Soon after, Archbiſhop Laud and ſome other lords of council, who were zealous in the affair, loſt their authority, and the whole project came to nothing.

Gorges however, obtained of the crown in 1639, a confirmation of his own grant, which was ſtyled the Province of Maine, and of which he was made Lord Palatine with the ſame powers and privileges as the biſhop of Durham in the County Palatine of Durham. In virtue of theſe powers, he conſtituted a government within his ſaid province, and incorporated the plantation at Agamenticus into a city, by the name of Gorgeana, of which his couſin, Thomas Gorges, was Mayor, who reſided there about two years, and then returned to England. The council for the adminiſtration of government were Sir Thomas Joſſelyn, Knight, Richard Vines, (Steward) Francis Champernoon (a nephew to Gorges,) Henry Joſſelyn, Richard Boniton, William Hooke, and Edward Godfrey.

The plan which he formed for the government of his province was this: It was to be divided into eight counties, and theſe into ſixteen hundreds, the hundreds were to be ſubdivided into pariſhes and tythings, as the people ſhould increaſe. In the abſence of the proprietor a lieutenant was to preſide. A chancellor was conſtituted for the deciſion of civil cauſes; a treaſurer to receive the revenue, a marſhal for managing the militia, and a marſhal's court, for criminal matters; an admiral, and admiral's court, for maritime cauſes; a maſter of ordnance and a ſecretary. Theſe officers were to be a ſtanding council. Eight deputies were to be elected, one from each county, by the inhabitants, to ſit in the ſame council; and all matters of moment were to be determined by the lieutenant with advice of the majority. This council were to appoint juſtices, to give licences for the ſale of lands ſubject to a rent of four pence or ſix pence per acre. When any law was to be enacted or repealed, or public money to be raiſed, they were to call on the counties to elect each two deputies, "to join with the council in the performance of the ſervice;" but nothing is ſaid of their voting as a ſeparate houſe. One lieutenant and eight juſtices were allowed to each county; two head conſtables to every hundred; one conſtable and four tythingmen to every pariſh; and in conformity to the inſtitutions of King Alfred, each tythingman was to give an account of the demeanor of the families within his tything, to the conſtable of the pariſh, who was to render the ſame to the head conſtables of the hundred, and they to the lieutenant and juſtices of the county; who were to take cognizance of all miſdemeanors; and from them an appeal might be made to the proprietor's lieutenant and council.

Forms of government, and plans of ſettlement, are much more eaſily drawn on paper, than carried into execution. Few people could be induced to become tenants in the neighbourhood of ſuch a colony as Maſſachuſetts, where all were freeholders. No proviſion was made for public inſtitutions; ſchools were unknown, and they had no miniſters, till in pity to their deplorable ſtate, two went thither from Boſton on a voluntary miſſion, and were well received by them. The city of Gorgeana, though a lofty name, was in fact but an inconſiderable village; and there were only a few houſes in ſome of the beſt places for navigation. The people were without order and morals, and it was ſaid of ſome of them, that "they had as many ſhares in a woman, as they had in a fiſhing boat."Hutchinſon's Collection of Papers, p. 424. Gorges himſelf complained of the prodigality of his ſervants, and had very little confidence in his own ſons, for whoſe aggrandizement he had been labouring to eſtabliſh a foundation. He had indeed erected ſaw mills and corn mills, and had received ſome acknowledgment in the way of rents, but lamented, that he had not reaped the "happy ſucceſs of thoſe who are their own ſtewards, and the diſpoſers of their own affairs."

How long Gorges continued in his office as Governour of Plymouth, does not appear from any materials within my reach. In 1625, he commanded a ſhip of war in a ſquadron under the Duke of Buckingham, which was ſent to the aſſiſtance of France, under pretence of being employed againſt the Genoeſe. But a ſuſpicion having ariſen that they were deſtined to aſſiſt Louis againſt his proteſtant ſubjects at Rochelle, as ſoon as they were arrived at Dieppe, and found that they had been deceived, Gorges was the firſt to break his orders and return with his ſhip to England. The others followed his example, and their zeal for the Proteſtant religion was much applauded.Hume.

When the civil diſſenſions in England broke out into a war, Gorges took the royal ſide; and, though then far advanced in years, engaged perſonally in the ſervice of the crown. He was in Prince Rupert's army at the ſiege of Briſtol in 1643; and when that city was retaken in 1645 by the parliament's forces, he was plundered and impriſoned.Joſſelyn ſays that he was ſeveral times plundered and impriſoned. p. 197. His political principles rendered him obnoxious to the ruling powers, and when it was neceſſary for him to appear before the commiſſioners for foreign plantations, he was ſeverely frowned upon, and conſequently diſcouraged.

The time of his death is uncertain; he is ſpoken of in the records of the Province of Maine as dead in June 1647. Upon his deceaſe, his eſtate fell to his eldeſt ſon, John Gorges, who, whether diſcouraged by his father's ill ſucceſs, or incapacitated by the ſeverity of the times, took no care of the province, nor do we find any thing memorable concerning him. Moſt of the commiſſioners who had been appointed to govern the province deſerted it; and the remaining inhabitants in 1649, were obliged to combine for their own ſecurity. In 1651, they petitioned the Council of State that they might be conſidered as part of the commonwealth of England. The next year, upon the requeſt of a great part of the inhabitants, the colony of Maſſachuſetts took them under their protection, being ſuppoſed to be within the limits of their charter; ſome oppoſition was made to this ſtep; but the majority ſubmitted or acquieſced; and conſidering the difficulties of the times, and the unſettled ſtate of affairs in England, this was the beſt expedient for their ſecurity.

On the death of John Gorges, the propriety deſcended to his ſon Ferdinando Gorges, of Weſtminſter, who ſeems to have been a man of information and activity. He printed a deſcription of New England in 1658, to which he annexed a narrative written by his grandfather; from which this account is chiefly compiled; but another piece which in ſome editions is tacked to theſe, entitled "Wonder working Providences," was unfairly aſcribed to Sir Ferdinando Gorges, though written by a Mr. Johnſon of Woburn in New England.

On the reſtoration of King Charles II. Gorges petitioned the crown, complaining of the Maſſachuſetts colony for uſurping the government of Maine, and extending their boundary lines. In 1664, commiſſioners were ſent to America, who finding the people in the Province of Maine divided in their opinions with reſpect to matters of government, appointed juſtices in the King's name to govern them; and about the ſame time the proprietor nominated thirteen commiſſioners and prepared a ſet of inſtructions which were entered on the records of the province. But upon the departure of the royal commiſſioners the colony reſumed its juriſdiction over them. Theſe two ſources of government kept alive two parties, each of whom were always ready to complain of the other and juſtify themſelves.

An inquiry into the conduct of Maſſachuſetts had been inſtituted in England, and the colony was ordered to ſend over agents to anſwer the complaints of Gorges, and Maſon, the proprietor of New Hampſhire, who had jointly propoſed to ſell their property to the crown to make a government for the Duke of Monmouth. This propoſal not being accepted, the colony themſelves took the hint, and thought the moſt effectual way of ſilencing the complaint would be, to make a purchaſe. The circumſtances of the Province of Maine were ſuch as to favour their views. The Indians had invaded it, moſt of the ſettlements were deſtroyed or deſerted, and the whole country was in trouble; the colony had afforded them all the aſſiſtance which was in their power, and they had no help from any other quarter. In the height of this calamity John Uſher, Eſq. was employed to negociate with Mr. Gorges for the purchaſe of the whole territory, which was effected in the year 1677. The ſum of twelve hundred and fifty pounds ſterling was paid for it, and it has ever ſince been a part of Maſſachuſetts. It is now formed into two counties, York and Cumberland; but the Diſtrict of Maine, as eſtabliſhed by the laws of the United States, comprehends alſo the counties of Lincoln, Waſhington, and Hancock; extending from Piſcataqua to St. Croix; a territory large enough, when fully peopled, to be formed into a diſtinct ſtate.

XV. HENRY HUDSON

NOTWITHSTANDING the fruitleſs attempts, which had been made, to find a paſſage to India, by the north, the idea was not given up; but it was ſuppoſed, that under the direction of ſome prudent, reſolute and experienced commander, the object might yet be attained. A ſociety of wealthy and ſanguine adventurers, in England, believed the practicability of the paſſage; and with a reſolution and liberality almoſt unexampled, raiſed the money to carry on this expenſive undertaking. They gave the command of the expedition, to HENRY HUDSON, a ſeaman of enlarged views and long experience; in whoſe knowledge and intrepidity they could ſafely confide; and whoſe enterprizing ſpirit was exceeded by none, and equalled by few of his contemporaries.Forſter's northern voyages p. 32 • .

When the ſhip, which they had deſtined for the voyage, was ready, Hudſon with his crew, according to the cuſtom of ſeamen in that day, went to church on April 19, 1607, and there partook of the Lord's Supper.Purchas iv.567. On the firſt of May, he ſailed from Graveſend; and on the 21ſt of June, diſcovered land, in lat. 73°, on the eaſtern coaſt of Greenland, which he called Hold with Hope.

His deſign was, to explore the whole coaſt of Greenland, which he ſuppoſed to be an iſland; and, if poſſible, to paſs round it, to the northweſt; or elſe directly under the pole. But having ſailed as far as the latitude of 82°, he found the ſea obſtructed by impenetrable ice; and was obliged to return to England; where he arrived on the 15th of September.

By this voyage, more of the eaſtern coaſt of Greenland was explored, than had ever before been known; and the iſland, afterward called Spitzbergen, was firſt diſcovered. It alſo opened the way to the Engliſh, and after them to the Dutch, to proſecute the whale fiſhery in thoſe northern ſeas.

The next year,Purchas iv, p. 574. the ſame company of adventurers reſolved to make another attempt, and ſent Hudſon again, to find a paſſage by the northeaſt. He ſailed on the 22d of April 1608. The higheſt latitude, to which he advanced in this voyage, was 75° 30′. After having made ſeveral attempts, to paſs between Spitzbergen and Nova Zembla, which he found impracticable; the ſeaſon was ſo far ſpent, and the winds ſo contrary, that he had not time to try the ſtrait of Waygats, nor Lumley's Inlet; and therefore thought it his "duty, to ſave victual, wages and tackle, by a ſpeedy return." He arrived at Graveſend on the 20th of Auguſt.In the journal of this voyage, written by Hudſon himſelf, is the following remark. "June 15, lat. 75° 7′, this morning one of our company looking overboard ſaw a mermaid, and calling up ſome of the company to ſee her, one more came up, and by that time, ſhe was come cloſe to the ſhip's ſide, looking earneſtly on the men. A little after, a ſea came and overturned her. From the navel upward, her back and breaſts were like a woman; (as they ſay that ſaw her) her body as big as one of us; her ſkin very white; and long hair hanging down behind, of colour black. In her going down, they ſaw her tail, which was like the tail of a porpoiſe, and ſpeckled like a mackarel. Their names that ſaw her were Thomas Hilles and Robert Rayner." Purchas iv.575.

After his return from his ſecond voyage, he went over to Holland and entered into the ſervice of the Dutch. Their Eaſt India company fitted out a ſhip for diſcovery, and put him into the command.This is ſaid on the authority of Dr. Forſter. The journal ſays nothing of it. It was written by Robert Juet, his mate. ibid. 581. He ſailed from Amſterdam on the 25th of March 1609.Smith, in his hiſtory of New York, following Oldmixon and other ſecond hand authorities, places this voyage in 1608. But as the journals of Hudſon's four voyages are extant in Purchas, I take all dates from him.

The higheſt latitude which he made in this voyage was 71° 46′; where he found the ſea in the neighbourhood of Nova Zembla ſo filled with ice, and covered with fogs, that it was impoſſible to paſs the ſtrait of Waygats to the eaſtward. He therefore tacked and ſteered weſterly, toward Greenland; intending to fall in with Buſs Iſland, which had been ſeen by one of Frobiſher's ſhips in 1578; but when he came into the latitude where it was laid down, he could not find it.

He then ſteered ſouthweſterly; paſſed the banks of Newfoundland among the French ſhips which were fiſhing, without ſpeaking with any of them; and ſailed along the coaſt of America. In this route he diſcovered Cape Cod and landed there; then purſued his courſe to the ſouth and weſt; making remarks on the ſoundings and currents, till he came to the entrance of Cheſapeak bay. Here he plied off and on for ſeveral days, and then turned again to the northward.

In his return along the coaſt, on the 28th of Auguſt he diſcovered the great bay, now called Delaware, in the latitude of 39° 5′. In this bay he examined the ſoundings and currents, and the appearance of the land; but did not go on ſhore.

From this bay, paſſing along a low marſhy coaſt ſkirted with broken iſlands, on the 2d of September he ſaw high hills to the northward; which I ſuppoſe were the Neverſinks in New Jerſey.

On the 4th of September, he came to anchor in "a very good harbour" in the latitude 40° 30′, which is the bay within Sandy Hook. On the 6th, the boat was ſent to ſurvey what appeared to be the mouth of a river, diſtant four leagues. This was the ſtreet called the Narrows, between Long Iſland and Staten Iſland; here was a good depth of water; and within was a large opening, and a narrow river, to the weſt; the channel between Bergen Neck and Staten Iſland. As the boat was returning, it was attacked by ſome of the natives, in two canoes. One man, John Colman, was killed; he was buried on a point of land, which, from that circumſtance, was called Colman's point. It is probably Sandy Hook, within which the ſhip lay.

On the 11th, they ſailed through the Narrows, and found a "good harbour ſecure from all winds." The next day, they turned againſt a N. W. wind, into the mouth of the river, which bears Hudſon's name; and came to anchor two leagues within it. On theſe two days, they were viſited by the natives, who brought corn, beans, oyſters and tobacco. They had pipes of copper, in which they ſmoked; and earthen pots, in which they dreſſed their meat. Hudſon would not ſuffer them to ſtay on board by night.

From the 12th to the 19th of September, he ſailed up the river; which he found about a mile wide and of a good depth, abounding with fiſh, among which were "great ſtore of ſalmons." As he advanced, the land on both ſides was high, till it became very mountainous. This "high land had many points, the channel was narrow, and there were many eddy winds."

From a careful enumeration of the computed diſtances, in each day's run, as ſet down in the journal, it appears that Hudſon ſailed fifty three leagues. To this diſtance, the river was navigable, for the ſhip; the boat went up eight or ten leagues farther; but found the bottom irregular, and the depth not more than ſeven feet. It is evident therefore that he penetrated this river, as far as where the city of Albany now ſtands.

The farther he went up the river, the more friendly and hoſpitable the natives appeared. They gave him ſkins in exchange for knives and other trifles. But as he came down, below the mountains, the ſavages were thieviſh and troubleſome, which occaſioned frequent quarrels, in which eight or nine of them were killed. The land on the eaſtern ſide of the river near its mouth, was called Manahata.

On the 4th of October he came out of the river; and without anchoring in the bay, ſtood out to ſea; and ſteering directly for Europe, on the 7th of November arrived "in the range of Dartmouth in Devonſhire." Here the journal ends.

The diſcoveries made by Hudſon, in this remarkable voyage, were of great mercantile conſequence to his employers. It has been ſaid, that he "ſold the country, or rather his right to it, to the Dutch."Smith's hiſtory of New York, p. 14. Carey's edition. This however is queſtionable. The ſovereigns of England and France laid equal claim to the country, and it is a matter which requires ſome diſcuſſion, whether the Hollanders were, at that time, ſo far admitted into the community of nations, as to derive rights which would be acknowledged by the other European powers.Chalmers' Annals. 568 However, whilſt they were ſtruggling for exiſtence among the nations, they were growing rich by their mercantile adventures; and this capital diſcovery, made at their expenſe, was a ſource of no ſmall advantage to them. They had, for ſome time before, caſt an eye on the fur trade; and had even bribed ſome Frenchmen, to admit them into the traffic at Acadia and St. Lawrence. The diſcovery of Hudſon's river, gave them at once, an entrance of above fifty leagues into the heart of the American continent; in a ſituation, where the beſt furs could be procured without any interruption from either the French or the Engliſh. The place indeed lay within the claim of both theſe nations: Acadia extended from the latitude of 40° to 48°; and Virginia from 34° to 45°; but the French had made ſeveral fruitleſs attempts to paſs ſouthward of Cape Cod; and had but juſt begun their plantations at Acadia and St. Lawrence. The Engliſh had made ſome efforts to eſtabliſh colonies in Virginia, one of which was ſtruggling for exiſtence, and others had failed, both in the ſouthern and northern diviſion. Beſides, King James, by a ſtroke of policy peculiar to himſelf, in dividing Virginia, between the North and South Companies, had interlocked each patent with the other; and at the ſame time interdicted the patentees from planting within one hundred miles of each other.See page 41, 42. See alſo Ha • a • d's Collection, vol. 1, page 50. This uncertainty, concurring with other cauſes, kept the adventurers at ſuch a diſtance, that the intermediate country, by far the moſt valuable, lay expoſed to the intruſions of foreigners; none of whom knew better than the Dutch, how to avail themſelves of the ignorance or inattention of their neighbours, in the purſuit of gain.

But whether it can, at this time, be determined or not, by what means the Hollanders acquired a title to the country; certain it is, that they underſtood and purſued the advantage which this diſcovery opened to them. Within four years, a fort and trading houſe were erected on the ſpot where Albany is now built; and another fort on the S. W. point of the iſland, where the city of New-York now ſtands; by a company of Merchants, who had procured from the States General a patent for an excluſive trade to Hudſon's river.

The tranſactions between Hudſon and his Dutch employers are not ſtated in the accounts of his voyages. Dr. Forſter ſays that he offered to undertake another voyage in their ſervice, but that they declined it, upon which he returned to England; and again entered into the ſervice of the Company, who had before employed him.

The former attempts for a northern paſſage having been made in very high latitudes, it was now determined, to ſeek for one, by paſſing to the weſtward of Greenland, and examining the inlets of the American continent. For this purpoſe a ſhip was fitted out, and the command was given to Hudſon; but, unhappily, the Company inſiſted that he ſhould take with him as an aſſiſtant, one Colburne, a very very able and experienced ſeaman. Their great confidence in Colburne's ſkill excited Hudſon's envy; and after the ſhip had fallen down the river, he put him on board a pink, bound up to London, with a letter to the owners, containing the reaſons of his conduct; and then proceeded on his voyage. [April 22, 1610.] This raſh ſtep gave the crew an example of diſobedience, which was ſo ſeverely retaliated on himſelf, as to prove the cauſe of his ruin.

He went round the north of Scotland, through the Orkney and Faro iſlands, and on the 11th of May made the eaſtern part of Iceland. Sailing along its ſouthern ſhore, in ſight of the volcanic mountain Hecla, he put into a harbour in the weſtern part of the iſland; where he met with a friendly reception from the inhabitants; but found great diſſenſions among his crew, which he could not appeaſe without much difficulty.

Having doubled the ſouthern promontory of Greenland, he ſteered N. W. for the American continent. In this paſſage he was ſo entangled with floating ice, that he almoſt deſpaired of getting clear. But at length, with much labour and peril, he forced his way through the ſtrait and into the bay which bear his name. The farther he advanced, the greater were the murmurings among his men. He removed his mate and boatſwain and put others into their places. This diſcipline not only rendered him more unpopular; but inflamed the diſplaced officers with bitter reſentment againſt him.

The whole ſummer having been ſpent, in examining the eaſtern and ſouthern extremities of the deep and extenſive bay, which he had diſcovered; in October it was too late to return; the diſcovery was yet incomplete, and he was loth to leave it. He had taken but half a year's proviſion from England. It was therefore neceſſary to huſband what was left, and procure more by hunting; which was done in great plenty, by reaſon of the numerous flights of fowl, which ſucceeded each other through the winter.

In November the ſhip was frozen up. Soon after the gunner died, and a controverſy took place about dividing his clothes. Hudſon was partial to Henry Green, a young man of a debauched character, whom he had taken on board; and whoſe name was not on the ſhip's books. This young man ungenerouſly took part with the diſcontented, and loſt Hudſon's favour.

They had to ſtruggle with a ſevere winter, and bad accommodations, which produced ſcorbutic and rheumatic complaints. Theſe were relieved by a decoction of the buds of a tree filled with a balſamic juice; the liquor was drank, and the buds applied to the ſwelled joints. This is ſuppoſed to have been the Populus balſamifera.

When the ſpring came on, the birds diſappeared, and their proviſions fell ſhort. To ſtill the clamour among the diſcontented, Hudſon injudiciouſly divided the remaining ſtores, into equal ſhares, and gave each man his portion; which ſome devoured at once and others preſerved.

The ſhip being afloat, he began to ſail toward the N. W. to purſue the object of his voyage; when, (June 21, 1611) a conſpiracy which had been ſometime in fermentation, broke out into open mutiny. The diſplaced mate and boatſwain, accompanied by the infamous Green and others, roſe and took command of the ſhip. They put Hudſon, his ſon, the carpenter, the mathematician, and five others, moſt of whom were ſick and lame, into the ſhallop; with a ſmall quantity of meal, one gun and ammunition, two or three ſpears and an iron pot; and then with the moſt ſavage inhumanity turned them adrift. This is the laſt account of Hudſon. Whether he, with his unhappy companions, periſhed by the ſea, by famine, or by the ſavages, is unknown.

The conſpirators put the ſhip about to the eaſtward and haſted to get out of the bay. Near Cape Digges, they met with ſeven canoes of the ſavages, by whom they were attacked. The perfidious Green was killed, and three others wounded, of whom two died in a few days. The miſerable remnant, purſued their courſe homeward, and ſuffered much by famine; but at length arrived in Ireland, and from thence got to England.

This account of the unfortunate end of Hudſon and the return of the ſhip, is taken from a narrative written by Abacuc Pricket,Purchas, iv, 597. whom the mutineers preſerved, in hope that by his connexion with Sir Dudley Digges, one of the owners, they ſhould obtain their pardon.

The moſt aſtoniſhing circumſtance in this horrid act of cruelty, is the oath, by which the conſpirators bound themſelves to execute their plot; the form of it is preſerved by Pricket, and is in theſe words.

"You ſhall ſwear truth, to GOD, your Prince and Country; you ſhall do nothing but to the Glory of GOD, and the good of the action in hand, and harm to no man." It is to be hoped, that the abſurdity, hypocriſy, and blaſphemy of this tranſaction will ever be unparalleled in the hiſtory of human depravity!