^^ ^- .0. 1 ' V r w NORTI /) :* V- ''■ ** ^ f •^ f'fKU '•' ' . VV , h ;.' .;•.«' !, t \i' ! • r ON i)f;u ' •> '•wm^^i^m iirjf iT-aWnaWjiB-a., !-t!>^mfif^- CABOT'S DISCOVERY OF NORTH AMERICA w G. E. WEARE AUTHOR OF " EDMUND BURKE'S CONNECTION WITH BRISTOL FROM ^77^ TILL ,780" "COLLECTANEA RELATING TO THE BRISTOL FRIARS' MINORS (CREV FRIARs) " ETC JOHN MACgUEEN HASTINGS HOUSE, NORFOLK STREET LONDON 1897 / PREFACE It would take up considerable space to enumerate all the punted books, pamphlets, etc., I have con- sulted in the course of completing this work I desire however, to say that I have derived verv considerable assistance from the several able works ot Mr. Henry Harnsse ; from Dr. Justin Winsor's Narr. and Ont. History of Ameyica, and his recent pamphlet on the Cabot controversies ; from Professor John Fiske's work, The Discovery of America ; Mr. H. F. Brownson's translation of l^raiicesco Tarducci's book, a work which deals with but leaves unsettled, several moot points in the history of John and of Sebastian Cabot • The Journal of Columbus, by Sir Clements R. Markham K.C.B., the president of the Royal Geographical bociety (to whom we are indebted for a further contribution to the Cabot literature contained in an address recently delivered at a meetino- of the society over which he presides) ; the very valuable monograph by Dr. S. E. Dawson, F.R.GS of Ottawa, published in 1894, together with a sequel thereto published last year; a contribution by i!i- 1. J •^^^'^^7' ^^ ^*- '^^^^'^' Newioundlancl, published m Collections of the Nova Scotia His- toncai Society, for the years 1893-95. VI Preface >< Among those who have given me advice and assistance are — the Right Hon. Professor Max Mtiller, of Oxford ; Sir Clements R. Markham, K.C.B., who has spared me much of his valuable time in interchanging ideas as to the doubtful points in the history of the two voyages of 1497 and 1498 ; Dr. R. Garnett, C.B., of the British Museum ; Dr. S. E. Dawson, of Ottawa, the most erudite of Canadian historians ; Dr. Moses Harvey, of Newfoundland ; Messrs. William George and John Latimer, both of Bristol, the two best author- ities on all matters of historical interest pertaining to Bristol, from both of whom I have received valuable help ; Mr. F. W. Coleman, the librarian of the Weston-super-Mare Free Library, who has kindly assisted me in the revision of the " Intro- duction " ; ]\Iiss E. j\I. AValford, of London ; Mr. C. W. Moule, Fellow and Librarian of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge ; Mr. Miller Christy, of Chelms- ford ; Mr. E. E. Baker, F.S.A., of AVeston -super- Mare ; Mr. Lorin A. Lathrop, the American Consul at Bristol ; and Mr. Frank George, of Park Street, Bristol. If I shall succeed in making plain to a few of my readers the facts relating to the important Cabotian discovery ; if I shall succeed in making a permanent addition — however slight it may be — to the ever-increasing common stock of reliable informa- tion, I shall regard my labours, which have occupied a considerable time, as not having been quite barren of result. G. E. WEARE. WESTON-SUrER-MARE, Matj 1897. CONTENTS Introduction' VP- 1-30 CHAPTER I The current belief (iu tlie lifteenth century) in tlie existence of i^l. 1 in the Atlantic Ocean called " St Brandon " " Bra " ' T^ f The Fortunate Islands" and "The Isles of the Blest" rI? cnces to the origin, etc., of "Brasil" and the o^her ~nh£l" islands Brandon Hill, Bristol, formerly known .^S . B a^ Hill, with a hermitage or chapel thereon-References to Wi In Wyrcestre, a fifteenth-century Chronicler, hi LTni J tc- ^ "^^n-rL^o'" ^rT.Hi'^' the Expedition^;.tard ':; ^ccho de A) alas reference to the Expedition from Bristol in search of the island of Brasil and tlie Seven Cities ^^ 31_59 CHAPTER TI References to the Papal Bull granted in the ^•eHr M93, which pur ported to divide all undiscovered lands between the Sn n sh tm the Portuguese-Translation of the Papal Bull-The ucclX STr. ^^'; ''''''' ^" ^'^ '''''''''' ^' Bristol, in la .lanthW 1 TV\ '{'''' ^^""^"^^ '' ^^^--tl^ Inierica-Th lanting of the English Hag on the continent bv Cabot-T le uiportance of Cabot's discovery- John Cabot's cl ai^cter T^i Jlucci's opinion of Cabot's adventure-Cabot's tleon 1/7'?;" the land found by him-To whom should the credit of [he dil- vii viii Contents covery of America be given ? — References to Columbus, Toscanelli, Prince Henry of Portugal — Rev. M. Harvey's references to the voyages of the Portuguese down the African coast — References to the struggle for the supremacy of the Mediterranean — The Italian Renaissance and its effect upon the European States — The citizens of Bristol and John Cabot's discovery . pp. 60-93 11 CHAPTER III The petition of John Cabot and his three sons to King Henry vil. — A transcript of the Letters-patent ipsissimis verbis from the original — A translation of the Letters-patent — References to the character of King Henry vii. — Concessions obtained for the merchants, whom the King ultimately fleeced — The up-break of exclusive trading begun in this reign — Cabot's plans probably understood and appreciated by the King — References to Christopher Columbus and his brother Bartholomew — Hakluyt's reference to the offer by Christopher Columbus to the King in the year 1488 — Cabot's connection with Bristol — References to William Canynges, of Bristol, merchant — Canynges's connection with the Church of St. Mary Redcliff, Bristol — The .Jay brasses in St. Mary Redcliff Church — The Will of John Jay — References to the whale's rib which is fixed to the wall of St. Mary Redcliff Church — The despatch of Ruy Gonzales de Puebla, the Spanish Ambassador, to their Catholic Majesties, in which he refers to the arrival of Cabot — Puebla calls Cabot a Genoese — Professor John Fiske's description of the sailing of the Matthew from the Bristol Channel — Mr. Sandford Fleming's reference thereto — Note as to the sailing of the Matthew in Barrett's History of Bristol — Ditto in a MS. Chronicle formerly in the possession of the Fust family ; certain excerpts taken therefrom, being in the possession of Mr. W. George, of Bristol , ... pp. 94-122 CHAPTER IV Dr. M. Harvey's notes as to the sailing of the Mrt^/iew— Confirma- tion of the date of the return of the Mattheic — John Cabot's journey to Westminster to apprise the King of his discovery— The King gives him £10 — References to the voyage by Am- 1)assadors and others — Cabot's negotiations with the King — The King grants Cabot an annuity of £20 per annum — Copy of the Contents IX document relating to Cabot's annuity — Copy of another document relating to the annuity— References to the Collectors of the King's Customs at Bristol — References to the documents relating to the voyages of 1497 and 1498, which have been found in the archives of foreign countries — Copy letter written by Lorenzo Pasqualigo — Copy despatch from Raimondo de Soncino — Copy of the second despatch of Raimondo de Soncino — Dr. S. E. Dawson's allusion to Soncino's despatches — Notes as to the second Cabotian voyage, and the documents relating thereto — Entries of payments by the King to Thirkill, Bradley, and Carter— Copy of John Cabot's petition for the grant of Letters-patent — Copy (in English) of the Letters-patent to John Cabot from the roll of the Privy Seals — Copy (in Latin) of the same Letters-patent — Extract from a des- patch from Dr. Puebla— Copy despatch from Pedro de Ayala — Extract from an anonymous Chronicle — References to the fate of Cabot and his Expedition — Tarducci's references to John Cabot pp. 123-166 CHAPTER V Entries made by foreign Historians and Chroniclers as to the discovery of the continent of North America — The account given by Pietro Martire (Peter Martyr) of Anghiera — References to Richard Eden, the translator and author— The facts relating to the dispute as to the birthplace of Sebastian Cabot, and as to the comparative agency of John and Sebastian Cabot in the work of discovery — The words used by Marc- Antonio Contarini — The accounts of the discovery given by Galvao, Gomara, and Ranuisio resjiectively — Peter Martyr's statement that some Spaniards had thrown doubt on the generally accepted statement that Sebastian Cabot was the discoverer of the region called Baccalaos — Statement made by the Drapers Company as to Sebastian Cabot . . pp. 167-209 CHAPTER VI Proposals by Sebastian Cabot to King Henry viii. for an Expedition to "the newe found Hand "—References to Sel)astian Cabot's intrigues with Venice — Tlie circumnavigation of the Globe by the Expedition fitted out by Magellan — The Correspondence re- lating to Sebastian's intrigue with the Council of Ten of Venice — Sebastian's offer to enter the English service accepted in the year X Contents 1547 — Sebastian returns to England — Grant of an annuity to Sebastian — The intrigues of Sebastian in the year 1550 with the Council of Ten of Venice pp. 210-243 CHAPTER VII Mr. Harrisse's references to the belief that Sebastian Cabot was the discoverer of the north continent of America — Richard Hakluyt'a first publication in the year 1582 — References to Hakliiyt and his works— References to a Chronicle in the Cottonian MSS. in the British Museum, to the Fabyan MS. Chronicle, and to the work of John Stow — Hakluyt's references to Sebastian Cabot — Notes by Harrisse and Tarducci — Richard Riddle's work published in 1831 — Discovery of theso-called Sebastian Cabot'splanisphere — References to the inscriptions on the planisphere — Notes by Major, Harrisse, d'Avezac, Kohl, Winsor, as to the map and its inscriptions — Summary of the important questions raised in the course of the discussion as to the genuineness of the map . . 2)p. 244-277 CHAPTER VIII As to the landfall of John Cabot in 1497 — Description of La Cosa's Map constructed in the year 1500 — Dr. Dawson's remarks as to the identification of Cape Race with Cavo de Ynglaterra — Report of the Canadian Committee as to the landfall — Mr. Henry Harrisse's theory — Dr. S. E. Dawson's theory — Sir Clements Markham's theory — The fate of John Cabot's Expedition of 1498 —The Cantino Map — The Quater-centenary Celebration in 1897 of John Cabot's great achievement . . . pp. 278-303 ArPENDix A— Plato's Story of the Lost Island of Atlantis pp. 305-326 Appendix B — The Latir of the Bull of Pope Alexander vi., dated the 4th day oi • ^493 . . . . pp. 321-^32 Appendix C— Account of the Collectors of the Bristol Customs pp. 333-336 Indkx pp. 337-343 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS CABOT DESCRIBING HIS DISCOVKRV TO KTvr itt..., ^ '''^'~'K« [After an old cnaraviny. Vonjectvra! ^'' "^^^"^' ''"• frontispiece BEHEM'S TERRESTRIAL GLOBE (I'ART OP) BRANDON HILL, MITH A VTFW nv -rur. TOSCANELLI'S MAP & Co. o/Uri ■' '"'^ ^'"'"■" '<■'" ''i/ -Messrs. Mack THE JAY BRASSES IN ST. MARY REDCLIFF CHURCH THE PENN MEMORIAL IN ST. MARY REDCLIFF CHURCH THE NORTH AMERICAN PORTION OF THF ^nr.rrv^r. MAPPEMONDE OF 1544 &0-CALLED CABOT JUAN DE LA COSVS MAP (a.D. 1500) THE CANTING MAP (a.D. 1502) 28-29 56-57 80-81 106-107 108-109 110-111 132-133 266-267 278-279 292-293 300-301 I( ■'*: I ( A I t a h INTRODUCTION If we desire to trace tlie histoiy of the science anr^ s'a^ tT.o1.Trr '""^ the'outset^tT^e et saiy to go back to Plioeinciaii and E^ryptian sonrr-o. iit;trtr t- *'" ■''""•"*>'. ">' "«; k"n : a miative b f%n '"" ""^'g^tions leaves us no mtcrnative but to pass ou to some of the imnortant events assoemted with the aueient Egyptian^ Among the important events in Eoyptkn n.vi tite*' Qu^ otef r^' " l""'^' e.p?ii£"X ; me yueen of Jigypt (nrca 1600 B.C.) equipned to the h.nd known as Punt, of which there isTw and very interesting account given on tiVw^lkll^ the temple at Dei?-el-Bahari." They seem to L got a ittle beyond Cape GuardafoT W^ are thu enabled to give some of the details of this eariv w/bf "''.'"" "^"^ *■'"* t'le early Enyptians Bpiees. There had been previous expeditions, w^,ich Cabot's Discovery of North America \\ had resulted in their o])tuiiiing the spices used in the making of incense for the temples, and the places whither they went in those earl}' times were known as Ophir^ and Punt.^ "The Ophir" was probably the coast of Somali, while Punt seems to have been the name given to the south and west coasts of Arabia. Queen Hatshepsu's fleet consisted of a number of vessels which were apparently of sufficient strength and construction to undergo wjiat must have l)een at that period a hazardous voyage. It is recorded that the vessels were manned by able seamen, probably Phoenicians.^ The expedition ultimatelv reached its destination. It is also recorded that they landed on the coast of " the incense mountain," which appeared to them to have been cut into terraces, in the vicinity of Cape Guardafui, the " Aromata Akron" of the Greek historians. The ships were filled for the return voyage with a most extraordinary collection of the products of this " divine earth," and included " thirty-one incense trees, well packed in tubs, [which] were dragged on board by the natives," also " difterent nut woods of the divine land, with heaps of the resin of incense . . . with ebony, * Columbus died in tlie full belief that the lands he had dis- covered wore portions of Asia. He, thinking Toscanelli's map to be correct, came to the conclusion that the island afterwards known as His])aniola was Ophir ! And even in the year 1525 we find that Sebastian Cabot held a belief that by sailing in the westward waters a way would be found to " las islas de Tarsis e Ofir al Catayo oriental — the islands of Tarsis and Ophir in Eastern Cathay." 2 The lirst expedition to Punt, the " Holy Land," was sent by Se-aukh-Ka-Ra about 2500 B.C., under Hannu, who has left an account of it. ^ Phaniician is only a translation of Kefa, or Kcphene, the peojile of the Palm Land, the name by which they were known to the ancient Egyptians. A Cabot's Discovery of North America o I seel in nd tbc !S were r" was iems to d west )iisisted iitly of TO wliat voyage, ned by pedition is also )f "the to have )f Cape : Greek ; return I of the ncluded n tubs, atives," d, with ebony, had dis- I's map to I'ds known find that ird waters I'o oriental U sent by in account [the people Ihe ancient objects in ivory inhiid with much gokl from tlie hand of the Amoo, with sweet woods, Khesit wood, with Ahem incense, with * holy resin,' and paint for the eyes, with dog-headed apes, with long-tailed monkeys and greyhounds, with leopard skins, and with natives of the country, together with their chihlrcn." The arrival of the expedition in Thebes appears to have created great excitement, and the celebration of such an important event seems to have been carried out on a scale of great magnificence. There is very little doubt that the early voyages of the Egyptians were carried out under tlic guidance of Phoenician sailors, who were consideral)ly in advance of the Egyptians in the art of navigation. The Eastern provinces of the Egyptian Empire were inhabited by foreigners, and it was due to the intercourse with the people of Char, who were descendants of the Phoenicians, that the Egyptians were indebted for much of their knowledge. Accord- ing to Herodotus, Sesostris (Rameses ii.) fitted out ships of war on the Red Sea, and was the first who went beyond the straits into the Indian Ocean. Dio- dorus says they amounted to no fewer than 400. Some of the vessels had twenty-two oars on a side. Herodotus has given particulars of an Egyptian voyage which proves that the supposed discovery of the Cape of Good Hope by de Gama, the Portu- guese explorer, had been anticipated by about 2100 years — " As for Libya ^ [Africa], we know it to be washed on all sides by the sea, except where it is attached to Asia. This discovery was first made by Necos, the Egyptian king, who, on desisting from the canal which he had begun between the » Book IV. 42. , II ill \ 4 Cabot's Discoxt.rv or NoRxn Amkrica Nile and tlic Arabian (;lulf, sent to sea a number of ships manned hy Phccnicians, with orders to make for the PiUars of Hercules/ and return to Egypt tlirough them and ))y the Mcditcrranoan. The Plianicians took their departure from Egypt hy way of tlie Erythraean Sea, and so sailed into the Southern Ocean. When autumn came they went asliore, wherever they might happen to be, and, having sown a tract of land with corn, waited until the grain was fit to cut. Having reaped it, they again set sail ; and thus it came to pass that two wjiole years went by, and it was not till the third year that they doubled the Pillars of Plereules, and made good their voyage home. On their return they declared — I, for my part [says Herodotus], do not believe them, but perhaps others may — that in sailing round Libya, they had the sun upon their right hand." In this way (says Herodotus) was the extent of Libya first discovered. There are records which go far to prove beyond doubt that the Phoenicians sent by Needs were not the only circumnavigators of Africa (Pliny, H. Q7 ; and Arrian). Necos, how- ever, has been given the credit of discovering the Cape and the form of Africa twenty -one centuries before Diaz and Vasco de Gama (Sir G. Wilkinson's Notes). Hanno, the Phoenician, sailed from Carthage about 500 B.C., and got as 1 Sir Gardner Wilkinson in a note says : " We may infer, from Necus ordering the Phoenicians to come round hy the 'Pillars of Hercules,' that the form of Africa was already lcnow7i, and that this was not the first expedition which had gone round it. The fact of their seeing the sun rise on their right as they returned northwards, which Herodotus douhtod, is the very proof of their haviny gone round the Caj)e and completed the circuit." 'ill [CA mbcr of ;o make ) Egypt . The ypt by uto the ly went 36, and, ed until it, they hat two lie third les, and ■ return tus], do -that in )n their stent of hich go micians ^igators )s, how- loverinc; 'it 1/ -one \ia (Sir (nician, got as r, from 'illars of this was of their Is, -whicli ound the Cabot's Discovery of North America 5 far south as the mouths of the Senegal and the Gambia. Al)out the same time liimiles reached the Court of Britain (Plin.). Pytheas of JMassilia, about 334 B.C., coasted N.-W. Europe. Polybius sailed along the West Coast of Africa. Tlie Car- thaginians also claimed (on the authority of Hero- dotus, Book IV. 43) that an expedition under Sataspos, son of Teaspes, sailed from Egypt, and having passed the Straits [of Gibraltar], doul)lcd tlie Libyan [African] headland known as Cape Soloeis [the modern Cape Spartel], and proceeded southward. Following this course for many months over a vast stretch of sea, and finding that more water than he had crossed still lay ever before him, he put a])Out and came back to Egypt. Herodotus was of opinion that Darius was tlie discoverer of the greater part of Asia. Wisliing to know wliore the Indus emptied itself into the sea, he sent a numl)or of men to sail down the rivei-. It appears that they sailed down the stream in an easterly direction to the sea. Here they turned westward, and after a voyage of thirty months reached the place from which Necos, the Egyptian king, sent the PI 103- nicians to sail round Libya [Africa]. " But," says Herodotus, " the boundaries of Europe arc quite unknown, and tliere is not a man who can say wliether any sea girds it round either or on the north or on the east." ..." For my part, I cannot conceive why three names, and women's names especially, should have been given to a tract which is in reality one, nor why the Egyptian Nile and the Colchian Phasis . . . should have been fixed upon for the boundary lines ; nor can I even say who gave the three tracts tlieir names, or whence tliey ; Hi! 6 Cauot's Discovery of North America took the epithets. According to the Greeks in general, Libya [Africa] was so called after a certain Libya, a native woman, and Asia after the wife of Prometheus, ... As for Europe, no one can say whether it is surrounded by the sea or not, neither is it known whence the name of Europe was derived, nor who gave it name, unless we say that Europe was so called after the Tyrian Europe, and before her time was nameless. But it is certain that Europd was an Asiatic, and never even set foot on the lands which the Greeks now call Europe, only sailing from Phoenicia to Crete, and from Crete to Lycia." The remarks of Herodotus as to the three names go to show that there was no certainty as to their origin. Andron of Ilalicarnassus made Libya, like Asia and Europe, a daughter of Oceanus (Fr. L). Others derived the three names from three men, Europus, Asius, and Libyus (Eustath. ad Dionys. Perieg. 270). Sir G. Wilkinson says : " The name of Europe is evidently taken from the Semitic w^ord ereh [the AYahic gharh), the 'western' land sought for and colonised from Phcenicia." h Eighteen centuries before Columbus, Aristotle appears to have come to the conclusion that the coasts of Spain were not very far distant from those of India. This was apparently an original idea of Aristotle, and was a deduction, based, it is true, upon an error of calculation, from his firm and un- shaken supposition as to the sphericity of the earth. The knowledge of geography acquired by Aristotle ultimately produced a great revolution in the general ideas with regard to the surface of the globe. Aristotle says : :cA Cahot's Discoverv ok North America eeks in certain wife of ;an say neither derived, Europe fore her Europd le lands ng from B names bo their ya, like Fr. I.). ;e men, Dionys. name of c word sought istotle lat the those dea of true, tid un- earth, istotle general globe. " As to the figure of tlie eaith, it must necessarily bo spherical.^ . . . And, moreover, from the viHil)le phenomena, for if it were not so the eclipses of the moon would not have such sections as they have. For in the configurations in the course of a month, the deficient part takes all ditierent shapes, — it is straight, and concave, and convex ; l)ut in eclijises it always has the line of division convex, wherefore, since the moon is eclipsed in conse(|uence of the interposition of the earth, the periphery of the earth nuist be the cause of this by having a spherical form. vVnd again, from the appearance of the stars, it is clear not only that the earth is round, but that its size is not very great ; for when we go a little distance to the south or to the north, the circle of the horizon becomes palpably difterent, so that the stars overhead under- go a o;reat chano-e, and are not the same to those that travel to the north and to the south. For some stars are seen in Egypt and at Cyprus, but are not seen in the countries north of them ; and the stars that in the north are visible, while they make a com- plete circuit there [that is, in Egypt and at Cyprus], undergo a setting. So that from this it is manifest, not only that the form of the earth is round. . . . Wherefore we may judge that those persons who connect the region in the neighbourhood of the Pillars of Hercules with that toward India, and who assert in tliis way the sea is one, do not assert tilings very improbable." It seems more thnn probable that the mind of Columbus was sensibly influenced by the ideas of ^ Tlie inathematicians who try to calculate the meaf?ure of the circumference make it amount to 400,000 stadia ; whence we infer that the earth is not only spherical, hut that it is not large compared with the magnitude of the other stars.— Dc Coelo, lib. II. cap. xiv. 'I 8 Cabot's Discovery of North America Aristotle. Columbus was in possession of a book known as the fmago Mundi which contains refer- ences to the views of Aristotle. In a letter written by Columbus while he was in Hispaniola in 1498, and sent to Ferdinand and Isabella, he quotes the views of Aristotle {Navarrette, torn. i. p. 261). Ferdinand Columbus distinctly and emphatically points out that the sentence in Aristotle which states " that there is but a narrow sea between the western points of Spain and the eastern border of India "' had exercised a considerable influence upon his father. Strabo, the geographer, who wrote about nineteen centviries ago, was possessed of the same idea which led Columbus towards his great discovery, and gave to the American islands the name of the West Indies. He (Strabo) argues that it is in accordance with natural philosophy to reckon the greatest dimension of the habitable earth from east to west, and that it ought to occupy a greater length from east to west than its breadth from north to south. " The tem- perate zone, which," says he, *' we have already designated as the longest zone, is that which the mathematicians denominate a continuous circle returning upon itself. So that if the extent of the Atlantic Ocean were not an obstacle,^ we might ^ The Atlantic Ocean was the Sea of Darkness (Mare Tenebrosum), or the Sea of the Dead (Mare Mortuiun). It was the Bahr-al-Zulnuit of the Arabs. In its waters, according to popular sajjerstition, lived fearful monsters which followed ships and with their sucker arms, which they were able to extend to the top-mast of a ship, drew the sailors and the ship under. The superstitions of the mariners, although founded upon popular oral traditions, were derived — at least iu part — from geographical absurdities which were dei)icted upon maps made by or under the authority of the ecclesiastics of various periods. The UCA Cabot's Discovery of North America a book s refer- written 1 1498, quotes 3. 261). atically which 3en the rder of ;e upon ineteen , which d gave Indies. e with ension that it "west e tem- ready h the circle f the might rosum), Zulniat 1, lived arms, !W the ;hough part — made The \ f easily go by sea from Iberia ^ to India, still keeping in the same parallel ; the remaining portion of which parallel, measured as above in stadia, occupies more than a third of the whole circle, since the parallel drawn through Athens, on which we have taken the distances from India to Iberia, does not contain in the whole 200,000 stadia." ^ Strabo also expressed a belief that if it w^re not for the vastness of the Atlantic Ocean it would be possible to find an ocean path from Iberia to India, and that " in the same temperate zone as we inhabit, and especially the parallel passing through Thinse and traversing the Atlantic, there may exist two in- habited countries, and pernaps even more than two." old charts contained representations of frightful looking creatures, who were supposed to reside in places situated either in the depths of the ocean or at some distant oceanic region in the western waters from whence it would not be possible for anj-^ luiman being to return. The sailors of the period immediately preceding Columbus— and perhaps we ought to include many of the contemporary and sub- sequent generations of those who ploughed the waves — believed that at a certain point in the westward waters they would descend into Cimmerian waters — into the homes of the Kraken, which were believed to be sea monsters of such a size that they were regarded as Heating islands ! Even Columbus, although he had abandoned many of the old superstitions, fully believed that the world was pear-shaped, and that towards the point which he delineated in the form of the stalk there existed the earthly paradise ; in some other part he believed there was chaos or Erebus. When the early voyarjeurs reached the vast oceanic fields of thickly grown weeds— the Sarj^ossa Sea or waters — they believed at first that they had arrived at the aliode of the fearful monsters of the deep, and they fully expected to see the uncanny forms emerging from the entangled vegetation. When Columbus set sail in 1498, on his third voyage of discovery, the sailors, on their approach to within live degrees of the equator, were reminded, by the effect of 'the stifling glow of the atmosphere, of an old fable of a torrid zone made uninhabitable by the parching heat of an immediately direct sun. 1 Spain. * The Geography of St mho, vol. i. p. 101, Bohn's edition. lo Cabot's Discovery of North America ii H ti i i \ Quite recently there has been revived a belief in the lost island of Atlantis mentioned by Plato. Some think Atlantis a synonym for America, while others suggest that it represents an island which in the distant past had an actual existence in a part of the Atlantic Ocean near to " the Pillars of Hercules," that is, the Straits of Gibraltar. A book which relates to this xnatteVy Atlantis : TJie Antediluvian World, written by Ignatius Donnelly, and containing 490 pages, has passed through no fewer than twenty- four editions. Inasmuch as at the period which immediately preceded the discovery of the " new world," every allusion by the ancient writers to the Atlantic Ocean beyond the Pillars of Hercules was eagerly discussed, it may be thought not quite irre- levant to reproduce Plato's allusions, and they will appear in Appendix A. Anyone requiring informa- tion as to the line of thought taken by Mr. Donnelly should read his work. Various opinions are held as to the value of the material which Plato had at his disposal when he wrote. Some critics contend that tlie whole story was concocted by Plato, and a learned professor speaks of it as " a noble lie"! It appears, if we may rely upon Plato's statement, that Solon visited Egypt ^ nearly 600 years B.C., and the priests of that country informed him, among other matters, of a tradition to the effect that in ancient times there existed a peopled island known as the Atlantic Island. " Beyond the strait [i.e. Gibraltar], which you in your language call the Pillars of Hercules, was an island larger than Libya [Africa] 1 It was popularly, and perhaps not erroneously, believed tliat the Egyptian priests were the custodians of nuich esoteric information, which they transmitted to their successors. This belief would Lave materially assisted towards an acceptation of Plato's revelation. 4 :1 ; ;i Cabot's Discovery of North America 1 1 the ther cient the ar], of rica] the ation, have aud Asia put together." We learn from Phito,^ who states that he derived his information from Solon's writings,^ that in the beginning the gods divided the wliole earth into large and small portions, and that " Poseidon [Neptune] received as his portion the Atlantic Island and begat children by a mortal woman and placed them on a part of the island." We are also told — and in matters of this kind the details are not devoid of interest — that Poseidon begjat ten male children and that he divided the island into ten portions, giving each child a portion over which he was to rule as a king. The eldest, who was made a principal king, or head ruler over the others, he called Atlas, after whom was named the Atlantic Island and the Atlantic Ocean. The Egyptian priests also told Solon that " nine thousand years ago " a w\ar was declared between the inhabi- tants of the land " outside the Pillars of Hercules " and the people living wdthin it. The disappearance of the Atlantic Island with its inhabitants is explained as follows : — *' But in a later age, by extraordinary earthquakes and deluges bringing destruction in a single day and night,* . . . the Atlantic Island was plunged ])c- ' Plato, who was probably born about 430 B.C., died about the year 348 B.C. ^ Plato's descent from Solon is said to have been through the female line. He asserted that the writings were formerly in the possession of his grandfather. ^ It was an early belief of the Hebrews — probably borrowed from either Persian or Egyptian sources — that there had been a destruction of men as a punishment for their wickedness. Thus, in Genesis, we find that Yaliveh repented His alleged act of the creation of man, and said, " I will exterminate man, whom I have created, from the surface of the ground." The Egyptian priests, in certain secret records, alleged that the god Ra, on a certain occasion, had summoned certain other gods to consult with him as to the conduct of the men whom he ! i 12 Cabot's Discovery of North America 1 iM » ■ ncatli the sea and concealed from view ; therefore that sea is, at present, neither passable nor to be traced out, being blocked up with a great depth of mud made by the sunken island." It is, of course, somewhat difficult to assert that Plato's narrations have at the bottom no truth whatever ; at the same time, persons acquainted to any extent with the ancient writers must know that the geological facts as to the floors and elevations of the sea which are now known to us were not at Plato's disposal. It is possible that Phoenician or other sailors may have got as far into the Atlantic as the region of marine vegetation known as the Sargossa Sea, which it has been estimated extends over an area six times as large as France. This area of water is covered with a mass of gulf seaweed which is growing upon the surface, and to mariners of Plato's period, if by any chance they ever ventured so far, it might have been accepted as evidence that there existed a mass of slime which would render the ocean impassable. A slioht knowledoe of the works of ancient writers will prove that they were given to romance in their descriptions of far-off regions, and more especially when they wrote of persons or of events appertain- ing to localities whose existence savoured of the mythical, or to lands which were so far distant that the truth or otlierwise could not be ascertained.^ had begotten, and, addressing liiinself to the eldest of tlie gods, said, " Thou, of whom I am s])rung, and you ancient gods, beholcl the men who have lieen l)ogotten by me ! They speak words against me. Tell me what you would do in this crisis. Behold, I have waited, and I have not destroyed them before having lieard your counsel." (A ciiapter of the so-called sacred books of Tahout.) ^ Before leaving the story of Poseidon, or Neptune, it may be here mentioned that from time to time coins of tlie very earliest times have Cabot's Discovery of North America •3 We have given some of the ancient ideas as to the Atlantic Ocean, It is now proposed to make refer- ence to certain matters which influenced the citizens of the maritime republics, particularly those of Venice and Genoa, in their desire to find a sea route to the lands of the Grand Khan, and which ultimately ended in the conception that it \vould l)e possible to reach the rich Asiatic kingdom by sailing towards the west in the unknown waters of the Atlantic Ocean. The rumours and conversational descriptions as to the vast wealth — the gold, the precious stones, the spices, and other valuable productions — of "the Golden East " seem to have made an impression at a very early period upon the imaginative Venetians, said, met) Tell knd I (A I here liave been discovered in various parts of the Bristol River. The immense number of coins found, together with the great age of many of them, have suggested to many minds the possibility that they came into the river, not by accident, but by design. Many persons believe, rightly or wrongly, that in ancient times there existed a custom among the sailors of casting a coin into the river either at the commencement or at the termination of a voyage. Rev. Father Grant, S.J., formerly of Bristol, during the time he remained in the city, made a very con- siderable collection of coins brought to him by men who from time to time were employed in the river, and from casual finds made by men and boys at the culvert in the Bristol harbour, where the dredging machines deposit the mud. Having regard to the unusual variety of these coins, and to the fact that so many of them belong to maritime nations, it certainly seems ditticult to believe that they originally got into the river as the result of accident. Father Urant seems inclined to conclude that the presence of the coins is due to a survival of a custom which existed in olden times of propitiating Neptune. The silly story of a certain person having been thrown into the sea, and afterwards found in a whale's belly, is considered by many to have had its origin in the ancient idea of the necessity of })ropitiating the spirit of the storm by some offering, whether of human life or other- wise. Father Grant, in the course of a lecture given by him in the year 1883, says : " Everything about the sea and sailors has a character of unchangeableness. When heathenism was abolished, the Church could not at once abolish old habits. . . . The feasts of Neptune were on the 23rd and 24th June. ... I cannot help thinking that the custom of two thousand years ago and more, of throwing money to hi ■ I I i i \ 14 Cabot's Discovery of North America to whom, in common with the other maritime States, the enterprise and the activity of the Phoenicians had descended. They were dazzled by the stories, pro- bably combinations of fiict and fiction, of the pomp and profusion at the Courts of Eastern potentates (more particularly that of the Great Kaan or Grand Caan, otherwise the "Grand Khan"), which had been gathered in the course of their intercourse with the people of Constantinople and with the travellers from far-off lands who came thither for the purposes of trading. But the difficulties connected with the long and tedious journeys to those distant territories were insuperable, so far as they would allow of a profitable intercourse. Still, the obvious fact that those who should be the first to establish direct Neptune for a good fortune, may have survived until even the days of ' The Merchant Venturers ' of this country. You may proscribe and abolish an Act, you cannot so easily eradicate a national habit. The people will have their customs in spite of Acts of Parliament, and in spite even of the Christian Church. . . . Neptune comes as a sailor dressed up as Nejrtune when vessels cross the line, and levies ' black- mail ' in a manner that would do honour to ' el Barbiere de Seviglia.' " Mr. A. T. Martin, F.S.A., of Bristol, in the course of a paper read by him, November 22, 1894, as to a large number of coins found in the mud dredged up in the Bristol River, which were then in the posses- sion of Mr. M'Currick, our docks engineer, says : " These coins are by no means the only ones that have been found in this way, as others have already passed into different hands. It will be noticed that the period covered by this list extends from the earliest to the present times, and that it includes examples of the coinage of various foreign countries, and affords a striking testimony to the antiquity and im- portance of the trade of our ancient city. The number and variety of the coins which have been from time to time found in our harbour is somewhat remarkable, and may possibly be accounted for by a habit, which I am told still prevails among sailors, of projiitiating the Fates by throwing a coin into the water at the beginning of the voyage. But whether these coins are offerings to Neptune, or whether their presence in the river is due only to the proverbial carelessness of :-ilors, we must at anyrate thank our kindly river niud, which has preserved them all these years and returned them to us again full of interest and importance." Cabot's Discovery of North America 15 Ivoyage. V their Iness of lich lias full of commercial relationships with the Tartarian countries would succeed in obtaining an enormous profit, caused the Venetians and others to endeavour to ascertain whether it \vould be possible to establish a quicker or more continuous caravan service, combined with greater facilities for the necessary carriage by water, at those points where water-carriage became a necessity. Going back to the eleventh century, we find that Venice had gained a high position among the nations of the world, owing to the wealth that had acicrued to her from the traffic with those remote Eastern parts, with which for a long period, and only by indirect means, her citizens had been brought into communication. After the conquest of Constantinople and the Greek provinces by the united forces of the French and the Venetians in the early part of the thirteenth century, a very large share of the con- quered territory came under the control and influence of the Republic of Venice. Prior to that conquest, Constantinople was superior to Venice in the world of commerce, and the desire to humiliate a rival was an important factor in the proceedings which led to the conquest, a record of which exploit may be seen by every visitor to Venice who glances at the four exquisite horses that are to be seen on the fa9ade of the magnificent Church of St. Mark.^ As a conse- quence of the victory, Venice was represented at Constantinople by a magistrate or regent, and be- tween the two places a very thriving and lucrative trade was established. And as a further consequence, ^ As it will appear hereafter that John Cabot placed the banner of St. Mark on the land found by him, it is perhaps desirable to men- tion that St. Mark was the patron saint of Venice. 1 \ I 1 6 Cabot's Discovery of North America on increasiijg trade was carried on between Constan- tinople and the distant eastern territories, vid Egypt and Syria, the greater share of the profits falling into Venetian hands. From this period may be traced that keen rivalry which subsequently ended in a racial struggle for maritime supremacy between Venice and Genoa. This struggle eventually became so fierce that it was no longer safe for the trading vessels of either of the two republics to proceed to sea without a convoy. Amongst the first to exhibit a curiosity to visit the Courts of the Tartarian potentates were two Venetians named Maffio Polo, a bachelor, and his brother, Nicolo, a married man. The Polos were a family of considerable importance in Venice. The father's name was Andrea Polo da S. Felice, and the family was believed to be of Dalmatian extraction. About the year 1254 (some say 1255) they set out upon a journey, and proceeded at first to Constan- tinople for the purpose of disposing of a large stock of merchandise which they took with them. As the wife of Nicolo was enceinte she was left behind. It will be seen hereafter why this fact is here men- tioned. At Constantinople, after disposing of their goods, they obtained information as to the existence of certain markets for the sale of some very valuable articles, which prompted them to proceed at first to the residence of Barkah, the brother or the son of Baatu, who was related to Jengiz-Khan, whose places of residence were Sarai and Bolghar, well known to the geographers of the Middle Ages. At this period occasional visits had been made by traders to the Courts of some of the princes of the race of Jengiz. Subsequently, after leaving the Cabot's Discovery of North America 17 ustan- Egypt falling ay be ended itween )ecame rading eed to o visit e two nd his were a . The ,nd the •action, et out nstan- stock As the d. It men- their Lstence duable irst to ison of places )wn to made of the ig the residence of Barkah, they journeyed vid Bokhara to the countries under the rule of the Grand Khan. They were favourably received by that great poten- tate, and after a long visit they got back to Venice in or al)out the year 1269, having been absent about fourteen or fifteen years. Upon their arrival, Nicolo Polo found tli.'it his wife had died after giving birth to a son, to whom she had given the name of Marco. In the year 1271 the two brothers, accompanied by Marco, the son of Nicolo, set forward for the purpose of paying another visit to the Grand Khan. After a long and tedious journey the travellers reached their destination. The Khan received them with great honour, and paying considerable attention to young Marco, he made him an officer of his house- hold. " In this situation Marco Polo had an oppor- tunity of displaying his abilities ; he adopted the dress and customs of the country, and made himself master of the four principal languages then in use, which were probably the Mongol, the Turkish, the Manchu of eastern Tartary, and the Chinese. By his talents and the variety of his accomplishments, he soon acquired a great degree of influence at Court, and was employed on missions to the most distant provinces of the empire." ^ To cut a long but very interesting story short, it is necessary to relate that the Poll remained so long away that they were thought to be dead, and therefore it is not surprising to learn that, upon their return to their native city in the year 1295, after an absence of about twenty-four years, they experienced some difficulty in convincing some of their relatives and friends of their identity. The next point of interest in the story is the * Geogra^yhy of the Middle Ajjcs : Travels of Marco Polo, i V. 1 8 Cabot's Discovery of North America capture of Marco Polo by the Genoese in a naval engagement in the year 129G.^ "From the scene of action he was conveyed to a prison in Genoa, where, his personal qualities and his surprising history becoming soon known, he was visited by all the principal inhabitants, who did everything in their power to soften the rigours of his captivity ; treating him with kindness as a friend, and liberally supplying him with everything necessary for his subsistence and accommodation. His rare adven- tures were, as in his own country, the subject of general curiosity, and the frequent necessity he was under of repeating the same story unavoidably became irksome to him. Pie was, in consequence, at length induced to follow the advice of those who recommended his committing it to writing." (Hie Travels of Marco Polo, the Venetian. The trans- lation of Marsden revised.) It is related that '"he was called on continually , . . to describe the Court of the Grand Khan." With the assistance of Marco Polo's notes, which had been sent from Venice, and from his verbal communications, an account of his travels were written down (so it is said) by Kusticien de Pise, " a well-known medical writer, who made a compilation in French of the romances of the cycle of ' In this decisive victory no fewer than sixty-five Venetian ships were burned, and eighteen, with seven thousand prisoners, captured. Among the latter was the Venetian admiral, Dandolo, who committed suicide by dashing his head against the side of his vessel. These battles were carried on with so much determination and energy, that it would not be wrong to say that each defeat served only to increase the energies of the defeated. As a consequence, the ships of each gradually became of larger frame and of more complicated gear, which neces- sitated greater skill and ingenuity in their navigation. It was in this and other ways that the seamanlike qualities of the men of the two republics became fjradually developed until they became national charac- teristics. ICA Cabot's Discovery of North America 19 a naval M he scene "S 1 Genoa, i'.t'y^m ui'prising 3cl by all ^■^ thing in 1 aptivity ; liljerally M ' for his e adven- a' Libject of i y he was ■a ivoidably 'i sequence, hose who r." (The he trans- that ''he \he Court of Marco nice, and it of his Rusticien ) made a 3 cycle of letian ships s, captured. committed hese battles lat it would iicrease tlie li gradually hich necos- was in this of the two mal charac- King Arthur." llie Travels of Marco Polo arc said to have l)een written, Jind the manuscript circulated, in 1298.^ For the purposes of tliis work the refer- ences to the ))Ook of Marco Polo are given just for what they arc worth. This is neither the time nor the place to criticise Polo's book ; many of his state- ments may have been made from hearsay, and from information of an unreliable kind ; his book may be founded partly on fact and partly on fiction ; it may contain arrant nonsense, gross exaggerations, and highly-coloured statements. It is certain, however, that it was one of the principal causes which excited tlie curiosity of Europeans, and eventually led to a general desire to find a sea-route to the countries (including the territories of the Grand Khan) de- scribed by Marco Polo. A writer tells us that " the finest of all the results due to the influence of Marco Polo is that of having stirred Columbus to the discovery of the new world. Columbus, jealous of Polo's laurels, spent his life in preparing to get to that Zipangu (Cipangu or Japan) of which the Venetian traveller had told such great things ; his desire was to reach China by sailin< westward, and in his way he fell in with America Another writer says : " Never before had the people of Europe heard of such extraordinary wealth and unlimited resources as existed in the far-ofl' countries visited by Marco Polo. His novel descrip- tions of stately, gold-covered palaces, of the royal magnificence of the entertainments of the Grand Khan, of the intoxicating fragrance of an endless ' The Travels of Marco Polo, the Venetian. The translation of Marsden revised. - // des Sciences Mathe'm, etc., ii. 150. 1 i I [( ll 20 Cabot's Discovery of North Amkrica profusion of rare flowers, of luscious fruits and sweet spicery, of heavily-laden argosies of valuable merchandise floating on noble rivers, and of vast collections of gold, silver, and precious stones, were read with the most exaggerated conceptions of their reality." Referring again to Polo's descriptions of the far-oif territories which he had visited, we are told, '* He was the first traveller to trace a route across the whole longitude of Asia, naming and descri])ing kingdom after kingdom which he had seen with his own eyes ; the flowering plateaux and wild gorges of Badakh-Shan, the jade-ljcaring rivers of Khotan, the Mongolian steppes. . . . The first traveller to reveal China in all its wealth and vastness, — its mighty rivers, its huge cities, its rich manufactures, its swarming population, the inconceivably vast fleets that quickened its seas and its inland waters ; to tell us of the nations on its borders, with all their eccentricities of manner and worship ; of Tibet, with its sordid devotees ; of Burma, with its golden pagodas and their tinkling crowns ; ... of India the Great, not as a dream-land of Alexandrian faldes, but as a country seen and partially explored, with its virtuous Brahmins, its obscene ascetics, its diamonds, and the strange tales of their acquisition." ^ In a description of the Khan's palace in or near to the city of Chandu, Polo's readers were told that it was a very fine marble palace, the rooms of which were all gilt, and painted with figures of men and beasts and ])irds, and with a variety of trees and flowers, all executed with such exquisite art that you regard them with delight and astonishment. ^ Yule'.s I'he Book of Ser Marco Polo, Iiitrod. p. cxxxi. ICA Cabot's Discovkry of North Amkrica 21 jita and valuable of vast 1C8, were 1 of their J of the are told, .te across escribing with his id gorges Khotan, veller to less, — its Lifactures, ibly vast d waters ; all their bet, with golden of India ixandrian explored, cetics, its isition." ^ 1 or near old that which tien and [•ees and art that ishment. •■'I Tlic palace enclosure was described to be " a compass of sixteen miles." There was a second palace built of cane, of wliicli he (Polo) gave a description. " It is gilt all over. ... It is stayed on gilt and lacquered columns, on each of which is a dragon all gilt, the tail of which is attached to the column, whilst the head supports the architrave, and the claws arc stretched out right and left to support the archi- trave." The (Jreat Khan was possessed of a stud of twenty thousand white horses and nuires, " and all pure white witliout a speck." The Khan had four wives, each of whom enjoyed the title of empress. . . . " And each has a special court of her own, very grand and ample ; no one of them having fewer than three hundred fair and charming damsels. They have also many pages and eunuchs, and a number of other attendants of both sexes. . . . When the emperor desires the S(.)ciety of one of these four consorts, he will sometimes send for the lady to his apartment, and sometimes visit her at her own. He has also a great number of concubines, and I will tell you how he obtains them. You must know that there is a tribe of Tartars called Ungrat who are noted for their beauty. Now, every year a hundred of the most beautiful nuiidens of this tribe are sent to the Great Khan, who commits them to the charge of certain elderly ladies dwelling in his palace. And these old ladies make the girls sleep with them, in order to ascertain if tliey have sweet breath and do not snore, and are sound in all their limbs. Then such of tliem as are of approved beauty, and are good and sound in all respects, are appointed to attend on the emperor by turns. Thus six of these damsels take their turn for three 2 2 Cabot's Discovery of North America days and nights, and wait on him when he is in his chamber. . . . At the end of the three days and niglits they are relieved by other six. And so throughout the year there arc reliefs of maidens by six and six, changing every three days and nights." . . . " Of the children by his lawful wives," Polo says, " there are seven who are kings of vast realms or provinces, and govern them well, being all able and gallant men, as might be expected. For the Great Khan their sire is, I tell you, the wisest and most acc(niiplished man, the greatest captain, the l)est to govern men and rule an* empire, as well as the most valiant that ever has existed among all the tribes of Tartars." ..." You must know that for three months of the year, to wit — December, January, and F' l)ruary, the Great Khan resides in the capital city of Cathay. ... In that city stands his great palace, and now I will tell you what it is like. It is enclosed all round by a great wall forming a square, each side of which is a mile in length ; that is to say, the whole compass thereof is four miles. This you may depend on ; it is also very thick, and a good ten paces in height, whitewashed and loop- holed all round. At each angle of the w^all there is a very fine and rich palace, in which the war-harness of the emperor is kept, such as bows and quivers, saddles and bridles, and bowstrings, and everything needful for an army. Also midway between every two of these corner palaces there is another of .the like, so that, taking the whole compass of the enclosure, you find eight vast palaces stored with the Great Lord's harness of war. And you must understand that each palace is assigned to only one Cabot's Discovery of North America kind of article ; thus one is stored with bows, n second with saddles, a third with bridles, and so on in succession right round. The great wall has five gates on its southern face, the middle one being the great gate, which is never opened on any occasion except when the Great Khan himself goes forth or enters. . . . You must know that it is the cjreatest palace that ever was. . . . The roof is very lofty, and the walla of the palace are all covered with gold and silver. They are also adorned with representa- tions of dragons [sculptured and gilt], l)easts and birds, knights and idols, and sundry other subjects. And on the ceiling, too, you see nothing but gold and silver and painting. On each of the four sides there is a great marble staircase leading to the top of the marble wall. . . . The buildinii; is altoijether so vast, so rich, and so beautiful, that no man on earth could design anything superior to it. The outside of the roof also is all covered with vermilion, and yellow, and green, and blue, and other hues, which are fixed with a varnish so fine and exquisite that they shine like crystal, and lend a resplendent lustre to the palace as seen for a great way round. . . . On the interior side of the palace are large buildings with halls and chambers, ... in whi(;h reside the ladies and concubines. There he occupies him- self at his own convenience, and no one else has access. " Of the City and great Haven of Zayton. " Now, when you quit Fuju and cross the river, you travel for five days south-east through a fine country, meeting with a constant succession of flourishing cities, towns, and villages, rich in every I 24 Cahot's Discovery of North America product. You travel by mountains, and valleys, and plains, and in some places by great forests in which are many of the trees that give camphor. There is plenty of game on the road, both of l)ir(l and beast. The people are all traders and craftsmen, subjects of the Great Kaan. . . When you have accomplished those five days' jo oy, you arrive at the very great and noble city o. Zayton. ... At this city, you must know, is the Haven of Zayton, frecjuented by all the ships of India, wdiich bring thither spicery and all other kinds of costly wares. It is the port also that is frequented by all the merchants of Manzi,^ for hither is imported the most astonishing quantity of goods, and of precious stones and pearls, and from this they are distributed all over Manzi. And I assure you, that for one shipload of pepper that goes to Alexandria or elsewhere, destined for Christendom, there come a hundred such, ay, and more too, to this Haven of Zayton ; for it is one of the two greatest havens in the world for commerce." " • ••••#• But the most important reference, so far as these references and descriptions of places have a bearing upon the discovery of the new world, is that which relates to the island of Cipango, or Chipangu, otherwise Zipangu. He says : " Chipangu ^ is an island towards the east in the high seas, 1500 miles distant from the Continent ; and a very great island it is. The people are white, civilised, and well-flavoured. They are idolaters, and are dependent on nobody. ' Infra, p. 82. = See the letter of Toscanelli, iufrn, p. 81. •'' Japan, infra, p. 82. 11 ICA Cabot's Discovery of North America 25 valleys, Drests in icamplior. of ])ir(l aftsmen, ou have arrive at . . . At Zayton, 3h bring y wares. all the rted the Drecious stributed for one idria or come a [aveii of havens las these bearincj It which ipangu, irds tlie fom the The Ivoured. lobody. ]fn, p. 81. And I can tell you, the quantity of gold they have is endless ; for they find it in their own islands, and the king docs not allow it to be exported. Moreover, few merchants visit the country, because it is so far from the mainland, and thus it comes to pass that their gold is abundant beyond all measure. I will tell you a wonderful thing about tlie palace of the lord of that island. You must know that he hath a great palace, which is entirely roofed with fine gold, just as our churches are roofed with lead, insomuch that it would be scarcely possible to estimate its value. Moreover, all the pavement of the palace, and the floors of its chambers, are entirely of gold, in plates like slabs of stones a good two fingers thick ; and the windows also are of gold, so that altogether the richness of this palace is past all bounds and all belief. They have also pearls in abundance, which are of a rose colour, but fine, big, and round, and quite as valuable as the white ones. They have also quantities of other precious stones." Tliere are descriptions of other kingdoms and other islands in which references are made to their numerous natural productions. Concerning one island, he declares that they find " ru])ies, and sapphires, and topazes, and amethysts, and many otlier stones of price. And the king of this island possesses a ruby which is the finest and biggest in the world. It is about a palm in length, and as thick as a man's arm ; to look at, it is the most resplendent object on earth ; it is quite free from flaw, and as red as fire. Its value is so great that a price for it in money could hardly ])e named at all. You must know that the Great Kaan sent an I ;ll 26 Cabot's Discovery of North America embassy and begged the king [of the island], as a favour greatly desired by him, to sell him this ruby, offering to give for it the ransom of a city, or, in fact, what the king would. But the king replied that on no account whatever would he sell it, for it had come to him from his ancestors." In a description of a kingdom called Locae, which he says was situated 500 miles beyond the island of Sondur, he mentions that ' ' the brazil ^ which we make use of grows in great plenty ; and they also have gold in incredible quantity." • • • • • • • In the interval of three-quarters of a century since Marco Polo's ^vork was made known, other incjuisitive explorers had made their way to Cathay. One of these explorers was Friar Odericus, of the order of Minorites, who, it is said, visited Hindustan, Sumatra, Java, Cochin China, the Chinese Empire, and Thibet. The success of Marco Polo's work, coupled with the information given by subsequent travellers, served to stimulate the desire for a greater knowlege of, and closer acquaintance with, the rich Asiatic territories. In the Journal of Friar Odericus additional stories, suitable for the popular fancies, as to the precious stones, pearls, ivory, marvellous palaces, and extraordinary wealth and luxury, were circulated. The journal of Oderi- cus was drawn upon, to some extent, at any rate, for the construction of a book of a most extra- ordinary description, which was entitled The voiage and travayle of Sir John Maundeville, Knight. There is very little doubt that the de- scriptions of places and of people contained in the > lafra, pp. 42, 43, 149. ! V Cabot's Discovery of North America 27 book were criblied from the works of others, and added to from the writer's facile brain. The work alleges that " Sir John Maundeville," the supposed author, was born at St. Albans, and that he set forth on his peregrinations in 1332, and spent no fewer than thirty-four years in wandering through the East. It is believed that this book, which is regarded as one of the most successful instances of plagiarism ever recorded, was written by an Englishman named Burgoyne, who had been com- pelled to leave England for some political offence. Burgoyne died at Liege about 1370. This book must have been well circulated, and in all probability was as well, if not better known than that of Marco Polo. It was by means of such publications, some of which abound with the most extraordinary and fascinating descriptions of the wealth of the Indies, together with exaogrerated stories of an extraordinary character as to the persons and animals which the travellers had either met with or heard about, that men's minds were gradually laid hold of, and furnished with an ever- increasing desire to find a more expeditious route to the lands of the Grand Khan. In course of time the works of the classical writers were ransacked for informatio'i or guidance as to the possibility of reaching the Indies by water. In addition to the passages which were to be found in Aristotle, Strabo, and others, Roger Bacon, a learned English Franciscan, or Gray friar, had made a collection of quotations from which he appears to have formed a belief that it would be possiljle to reach the eastern shore of Asia by sailing west- ward into the Atlantic Ocean, and that those shores 13 I ii ! 28 Cabot's Discovery of North America would 1)0 fouud at uo very great distance from Spain. In the early part of the fourteenth century the Imago Mundi was compiled by Pierre d'Ailly, popularly known as Petrus Alliacus, the latinised form of his name. A printed copy of this work, which contains all Bacon's arj^uments and deduc- tions. i^' 'o preserved in the Biblioteca Columbina, and it contains a number of marginal manuscript notes in the handwriting of Columbus. This was Columbus's own copy of the work. It will thns be seen that Columbus was well ac- quaintec' 'ita *"lie ideas of the ancients with regard to an occaiiii. r,.~'fige, by way of the Western Ocean, to the Oriental Ip-tk's. Subsequently the idea that it w< _:ld be possible ; H'kI Eastern lands by sailing towards the wf.'v.j'.i • ■ the Atlantic, took a per- manent hold in the rnintio cl many persons. Before Columbus had conceived that the difficulties and superstitious ideas as to the " Sea of Darkness " might be got rid of, considerable progress had been made in navigation, and the astrolabe had received many improvements. The first attempts to find a sea-route to the lands of the Grand Khan were made in accordance with a growing belief that the circumnavigation of Africa was possible, and that India might be reached by following the African coast. Prince Henry of Portugal, in whose early days the sailors had only the physical features of the land to guide them, had devoted himself to nautical studies, with the result that in course of time the various African capes were passed, and ultimately the science of navigation received such an impetus that the rounding of the Cape of Good Hope came within the range of practical ideas, RICA nee from a century } d'Ailly, latinised lis work, I deduc- lumbina, muscript This was :i- r^- well ae- h regard n Ocean, lea that Y sailing ^ a per- Before ;ies and rkness " id been 'eceived ' find a Q were hat the id that African 3 early ires of self to irse of i, and i such ' Good ideas, ^ — v. w \ . -" • \ I "i:- < l.v •" ■'\V\ ■■■•■ ^ .^. \ L 28 Cabot's Discovery of North America ill !■ • V \ ,,. ;. ■: ,Tit:i 1 '■ t. .•;unl^)M■ ,s. il;-. !j ac- I i m;iii'-;5 • in t'n- j'jih'ls of ?>iri\-; (u.r-.v. -t \ tuea^. ; -5 P'' if |: Cabot's Discovery of North America 29 There arc reasons for l)clieviiig that (Jolunilius's idea of finding the lands of the Grand Khan was strengthened, about the year 1471, by the discovery that the Guinea coast extended south of the equator. In the year 1474 the advice of the celebrated astronomer, Paul Toscanelli, was sought, and tlie preparation of the map or sailing-chart by Toscanelli seems to have supplied the necessary equipment for Columbus's daring and successful attempt in the year 1492 to explore the Western Ocean. A copy of Toscanelii's sailing-chart will be found at page 80. In the year 14'J2 Martin Behem, or Behaim, made a terrestrial globe which, as will be seen by a comparison with Toscanelli's sailing-chart, was founded upon Toscanelli's ideas. It has l)cen well said, that from tlie East streams the light focussed into science by the West (*' Ex Oriente lux, ex Occidcnte lex "). From Eastern sources came the incentive for the desire to reach the mysterious Opliir. From contact with Constanti- nople and its commerce, the Italian States received their knowledge of the stores of Eastern wealth. And from these Italian States came the men whose undaunted courage was due to that knowledge of their superiority which strengthens men for great enterprises. They were well aware that they had no rivals in maritime experience. At the opportune moment there arose a genius who was anxious to satisfy the cravings of men (quickened for discovery. Prince Henry of Portugal was well aware of the superiority of the seamen of the Italian States, and he took into his employ a number of Vene- tians, Genoese, and Florentines. The prince died in 14G3, at his favourite retreat at Sabres on ^ 30 Cabot's Discovery of North Amkrica Cape Vincent, without the Hatisfaction of seeing the circumnavigation of Africa. In tlie Italian republics it began to dawn upon the merchants and traders that the monopoly of their commercial intercourse with the East, which was the source of their supremacy as well as of their opulence, was now in real danger. And in the whirligig of events which then, as now, formed food for the cynic and the scoffer, it was perceived that the maritime republics were being drawn u})on for the materials which would, in all probability, 1>e the means of transferring their maritime supremacy to the growing powder of the Western nations. vVnd eventually Christopher Columbus, a Genoese, and John Cabot, " another Genoese, like Columbus," were the men whom fate had selected for those enter- prises which eventually destroyed the supremacy of the Italian republics. CHAPTER J In the fifteenth century, as the outgrowth of numerous traditions whicli appeared at intervals in various forms, and were frequently the suhjects of new variations, an idea had l)ecome fixed in the minds of all sorts and conditions of men in several of the kingdoms of Europe, that certain islands known as 8t. Brandon, otl' rwise " St. Brandan," or " St. Brendan," or " St. Brendon," or island of " San Boranden " ; " Brasil," other- wise "Brazil," or "O'Brasile"; " Antillia," or " Antilia," otherwise " The S''ven Cities," or " The Island of the Seven Ciiics," — that these and other islands,^ some with and some without 1 One of the pliantoni islands, which was called Satanaxio, or Satanatio, was supposed to be an island connected with the hand of Satan. The origin of the Ixdief has been atti'ibuted to an ancient Italian legend, to the effect that in a ])art of India a great hand rose every day from the sea and carried ott a certain number of persons to the depths of the ocean. The Arabians have, so it is said, a similar tradition. In all i)robability the story permeated through Euroi)e from some Eastern source. In the Ptolemy ma]) of 1482, published at Ulme, in the Sexta Tabula Asiie, there appears an island of Demons, " Insula Demonum." Later on this island was found a jdace in the newly- discovered American Waters. liiddle, in his Memoir, ])p. 250, 2o], .says: "Ortellius, on whose map the 'Insula Dcmnnum ' ligures with St. Brandon, etc., places it not very far from Hudson Strait. Ramusio, in his text, would give it a local habitation about half-\vay between that strait and Newfoundland, but in constructing the ma|> which accompanies his third volume he seems to have thought a great 31 ^frii- i n ' •i i 32 Cabot's Discovery of North America names, had an actual existence in the Atlantic Ocean. Some of these traditions may be traced back to a distant period of time. They were believed in alike by princes and paupers, philo- sophers and fools, landsmen and seamen, map makers and chart constructors, practical men and romantic women. Exaggerated unrealities had taken firm hold of the popular mind. It was possessed by a dream that these visionary Hesperian islands were situated in a delightful tropical region of perpetual summer ; ^ that they w^ere lands which contained untold gold, precious stones, and sparkling gems ; elysian fields, cool and refreshing groves, streams and fountains of water ^ which conferred perennial j^outli and vigour ; precious trees, arom- atic perfumes and spices, gracious beauties and exquisite felicities — a blissful mundane paradise ! gulf a nuich fitter place, and it therefore occupies a conspicuous station in the ' Golfo Quadrado,' or St. Lawrence. It i^ about five times as large as Newfoundland, from which it is di^'ided by a narrow strait. On it demons are seen, as well flying as on foot, with nothing to jtrotect them from a climate, so little suited to their former habits, but a pair of wings and a ridiculously short tail ; yet they are made, poor devils ! to appear happy, and even sportive." ^ " Where falls not hail, or rain, or any snow. Nor ever wind blows loudly ; but lies Deep-nieadow'd, happy, fair with orchard lawns Ancl bowery hollows crown'd with summer sea." - According to a popular tradition as to the " Garden of the Hes- perides," there existed a fountain of perjietual vouth the waters of which restored to bloom and vigour all who batlied therein, be they ever so old or wrinkled. It was the supposed existence of an island which contained a fountain, hij hathiug in Ihc u-aters oficliich perpetual youth would be accpiired, that promitted .Tuan Ponce de Leon, a Spanish cavalier, to set out in search of the imaginary island, with the result that he made what was then supjjosed to be the discovery, '.mi which in reality was there-discovery of a portion of territory to which he (Juan Ponce de Leon) gave the name of Florida, becau.se it was discovered at the time of the tioral feast of the Roman Catholic Church (Pascua Florida). tlantic traced T were pliilo- I, map 3n and s had It was sperian region 5 which )arkling groves, )nferred ,, arom- ies and aradise ! onspicuous )out five a narrow li nothing uer haViitt^, are made, the II cs- waters of ■n, be they contained would be ivalier, to ,t he made ality was Ponce de the time lorida). Cabot's Discovery of North America 2)i Herein may probably be discerned a trace of the influence which Marco Polo's revelations had exer- cised on the credulity of Europeans. He states that near to Khatai, "bounded by the Eastern Ocean," there existed a happy and blissful land " where strange men and women, who migrate thither, cease to grow old." The credulity of the period affords an object-lesson as to the great influ- ence which the development of a whimsical story — by additions of details and by reiterations — may have upon the popular mind. No truth was ever received with the avidity with which statements as to " islands " in the West were swallowed. Peter Martyr, the historian, says : " There is an island ... on which is a never-failing spring of running water, of such marvellous efficacy that when the water is drunk, perhaps with some atten- tion to diet, it makes old people young again ! " ^ And he adds, "not only all the common people, but also the educated and the wealthy believe it to be true." 2 It will hereafter appear that the men of Bristol placed so much confidence in the current stories regarding these islands, that in the year 1480 (twelve years before Columbus embarked upon his first voyage for the purpose of finding the lands of the " Great Khan ") an expedition went out from Bristol in quest of " the island of Brasylle,"^ and ^ The mythical Prester John knew of a fountain, the source of which '* is hardly three days' journey from Paradise, from which Adam was expelled. If any man drinks thrice of this spring, he will from that day feel no infirmity, and he will, as long as he lives, appear of the age of thirty." 2 De orho novo decades, dec. ii. cap. x. 2 Infra, pp. 58, 59. 34 Cabot's Discovery of North America that between 1480 and 1497 at least seven expedi- tions left Bristol, at the risk and expense of towns- men, " in search of the island of Brasil and the seven cities."^ Although these voyages have not commanded much attention, it cannot be denied that the outcome of such chimerical enterprise was an event than which, in the history of the world, there is none of greater interest to the human family. Poetic fancies and legendary lore suddenly became actual facts. The shores of a mysterious land, and a landscape of thrilling and absorbing interest, were presented to the gaze of those who had embarked upon a search for the phantom isles. The discovery of the continent of North America was the direct consequence of the persistent efforts of the townsmen of Bristol to find certain " islands " which, although actually named and marked in maps, had no real existence. Visions of Eldorado, of fabulous summer islands, and of delectable delights — and a new continent of vast extent was ultimately revealed ! It was the unveiling of a fairy scene on the stage of the world. It is necessary to state a few facts to explain the illusions which obtained with regard to the phantom isles. In the Geography of Straho,^ the author, Avriting with reference to Homer, says : " He portrays the happiness of the people of the West, and the salubrity of their climate, having no doubt heard of the abundance of Iberia,^ which had attracted the arms of Hercules, afterwards of the Phoenicians, who acquired there an extended rule, ^ Infra, pp. 58, 59. ^ Bolin's edition, vol. i. p. 3. 3 Spain. Gosselin remarks that in his opinion Strabo frequently attributes to Homer much information of which the great poet was entirely ignorant. to the )0,^ the says : of the r'mg no lich had of the Id rule, 3. requently poet wfts \ [ -A '! expedi- 1 towns- n nd the ve not denied ise was world, family, became I, and a it, were [ibarked LSCovery Ij le direct P| wnsmen dthough no real summer a new ivealed ! stage of explain Cabot's Discovery of North America 35 and finally of the Romans. There the airs of zephyr breathe, there the poet feigned the fields of Elysium, when he tells us Menelaus was sent thither by the gods — * Thee the gods Have destined to the blest Elysian isles, Earth's utmost boundaries. Rhadaiiiauthus there For ever reigns, and there the human kind Enjoy the easiest life ; no snow is there, No biting winter, and no drenching shower, But zephyr always gently from the sea Breathes on them, to refresh the happy race.' * Tlie Isles of the Blest are on the extreme west of Maurusia, near where its shore runs parallel to the opposite coast of Spain ; and it is clear he considered these regions also blest from the contiguity to the islands." Strabo was born e.g., and there is evi- dence that he was in existence during the first two decades of the Christian era, consequently we now know that the belief in the existence of the Isles of the Blest, which are synonymous with the Fortunate Islands referred to by other historians, existed as far back as nineteen centuries ago.^ Strabo's " Isles of the Blest " were prolmbly the Canary Islands.^ ^ " But the immortals will send you to the Elysian plain, and the boundaries of the earth, where is aul)urn-haired Rhadauianthus ; there of a truth is the most easy life for men. There is nor snow, nor long winter, nor even a shower, but every day the ocean sends forth the gently blowing breezes of the west wind to refresh men." — Odijsscii, iv. 563. ^ The Arabians held a belief in the existence of "F,-rtunafe Islands," and they were knt)wn to them by the name of C'haledat, or the Perpetual Islands. ^ Washington Irving states that exj)oditions would launch from the Canaries to explore tliis land of promise. " For a time its sim-gilt peaks and long shadowy promontories would remain distinctly visible, but in proportion as the voyagers approached, peak and promontory would gradually fade away until nothing would remain but blue sky above and deep blue water below." 36 Cabot's Discovery of North America i In due course the mythical attributes of the Isles of the Blest were extended to the Azores, and when those islands became well known, the happy islands became located still farther westward in the great and unknown sea. Down to a comparatively late period the Roman geographers had no precise knowledge of the islands in the Atlantic. Sertorius, during his exile in Spain, seems to have heard of two very fertile islands, in all probability two of the Canaries. About twenty years later Statius Sebosus made inquiries as to these islands. Pliny says : " Beyond the Fortunate Islands there are others." There are reasons for believing that some of the ancient geographers re- garded the most easterly of the group of the Canaries as the Hesperides, or Fortunate Isles. Humboldt^ refers to a very ancient belief: "A fanciful idea, raised up in the imagination, of Ely- sium the Islands of the Blessed, which were situated in the extreme limits of the ocean, and were warmed by the vicinity of the setting sun. It was supposed that in the farthest distance all the charms of life and the most precious productions of the earth existed. The ideal country, the geographical fable of Elysium, was moved farther westward, beyond the Pillars of Hercules, as soon as the acquaintance of the Greeks became more extended. The real knowledge of geography, and the earliest discoveries of the Phoenicians, concerning the dates of which no certain notice has been transmitted to us, probably did not give origin to those fables of the Blessed Islands, but the fables have been inter- preted in this way since. The geographical di«;- * Kosmos, vol. ii. p. 160. .1 CA le Isles d when islands 6 great Roman islands I Spain, mds, in twenty i as to rtunate ions for hers re- Janaries ief: "A of Ely- ituated w'ere It was charms of the 'aphical Istward, as the :ended. learliest le dates Itted to tbles of inter- x\ di^- Cabot's Discovery of North America Z7 i : covery has only given substance to the picture of the fancy, and furnished, as it were, a support for it." The old and floating traditions most probably date back to the time of the Egyptians. In tlie days of the Pharaohs the priests taught that the greatest perfection of happiness, after leaving a mundane sphere of existence in which toil and worry were the chief factors in the lives of men, would consist " in tilling the Elysian fields of the subterranean god Osiris, in feeding and herding his cattle, and navigating the breezy water of tlie other world in slender skiffs." But blended witli these traditions were visions of actual magnificence seen by travellers in the East, together with Eastern beliefs in a sensual paradise in a garden odorous with scented blossoms and perfumed surroundings, affluent in luscious fruit and luxurious repose. The fabled Elysian plains became in course of time a paradise, in which ijlooming nymphs and perennial youth, and an odour-hiden and buoyant atmosphere, were believed to be in actual existence. It was not an ** over-world," — an imaginary heaven beyond the clouds, — but a place of pure unalloyed happiness situated somewhere beyond the sea-horizon of the Western w\T,tei's. Durino- the Middle Ages, asjain, there existed a well-established belief as to the reality of certain islands known as the Ilesperides, otherwise tlie Fortunate Islands. In Cnrious Mytlis of the Middle Ages,^ it is stated that " the ancients had a floating tradition relative to a vast continent called Atlantis, in the far West, where lay Kronos asleep, guarded by Briarieus ; a land of rivers and woods and soft ' P. 524. -fiV ! 38 Cabot's Discovery of North America airs, occupying in their thoughts the position assumed in Christian behef by the earthly paradise. The fathers of the Cliurch waged war against this object of popular mythology, for scripture plainly indicated the position of the ' garden of Eden ' (Gen. ii. 8), but notwithstanding their attempts to drive the Western paradise from the minds of men, it held its ground, and was believed in throughout the Middle Ages.''^ The Chinese look towards the West for their paradise, and among the nations professing the re- ligion of Buddha the same idea holds. Many myths have passed from India and the East to Europe, and there is very little doubt that the belief in the exist- ence of a land of peace, tranquillity, and happiness came originally from the East. It was, in all prob- ability, due to some Eastern myth that the ancient geographers placed the Elysian Field of Homer, and the Happy Isles of Hesiod, in the Western Ocean. In Dr. Justin Winsor's work^ the author says : "Among the islands which prefigured the Azores' on fourteenth-century maps appears ' I. de Brazi ' on the Medicean portulano of 1351. . . . On the Pezigani map of 13G7 appear three islands with this name. Insula de Bracir, or Bracie, two not far from ' Columbus, wlio fully believed that the land he had discovered vas a remote part of Asia, indicated his belief in an earthly paradise in the following words: — "The saintly theologians were right when they fixed the site of tlie terrestrial paradise in the extreme Orient, because it is a most temperate clime ; and the lands which I have just discovered are the limits of the Orient." 2 Narr. arid frit. Hist, vol. i. p. 49. " The Azores are over 800 miles west of Portugal ; they lie in an ol)li Elton's Oriyins of English Hhtonj, pp. 282, 283 ; O'Cnrry, Ma, III. A nv. Irish, Mem. de I'Acad. Celtiqiw, v. p. 20i 'I 42 Cabot's Discovery of North America on the western coast of licland,' who are descended from the Northmen, l)elieve that from time to time they sec the shore of a happy island rise above the waves; and they say that Ireland was formerly united to that land, until, for the sins of its inhabitants, the greater part of it was engulfed in the ocean. ^ Jeremy Taylor, in the year 1GG7, refers to this ishind. The allusion to it appears in his introduc- tion to his Dissuasive from Popery, as follows : — " And I will not be asking any more odd questions, as why, . . . having so clearly demonstrated his religion by grounds firm as the land of Delos or O'Brasile, he should now ])e content to argue his cause at the bar of iirobability " (vol. vi. p. 318, Eden's edition). In 1674 was published in London The Western Wonder, or O'Brazeel, giving an account, somewhat in the style of De Foe, of a visit to the island. There was also published a pamphlet with the title, " 0. Brazile ; or the En- chanted Island : l»eing a perfect relation of the discovery and wonderful Disenchantment of an Island in the North of Ireland, etc. London, 1G75." With regard to the derivation of the name, " Brazil does not appear in the epic literature of Ireland, relating to the ocean voyages of 540 and 560, but it seems to belong to the same class of legends. The name is derived by Celtic scholars from hreas, large, and i, island" (Winsor, vol. i. p. 49). "The name of Brazil ^ has had a curious history. Etymologists ^ Reillv, Trans. Roy. Irish Acad., xv. 2 This is a probable survival of the story of Phato's lost Atlantis. "' In Marco Polo's book (Yule, vol. ii. chap, vii.), under the head- ing, " Wherein the Isles of Sondur and Condur are spoken of ; and the Kingdom of Locae," e.g., we lind the following : — " In this country the hru:.U which we make use of grows in great i)lenty." In chapter xi., [CA Cabot's Discovery of North America 4;^ sceiuled to time ove the i united ])itaiits, xn} to this itroduc- iows : — estions, ted his 'elos or gue his p. 318, London dng an e, of a ished a he En- of the Ishmd With il does lelating seems lame is and i, [me of llogists lantia. lie head- land tlie itry tlie |)ter xi., ji) refer it to the colour of l)raise or liot eoals, and its first application was to the dye-wood from the far East " (Yule's Book of Ser Marco Polo, vol. ii. ]>. 316). "The word ))razil is found in our literature as early as the reign of Edward i." (Tal])ot, EnfiUsh Etymologies, p. 451). French, braise; I'ortuguese, braza, live coals ; English, brasier. The vast country known as Brazil (South America) was '* so called from the discovery on its shores of a dye-wood which pro- duced the Brazil-colour, or colour of glowing coals " [Etymological Illustrations, by Isaac Taylor, M.A.). " The Isle of Seven Cities," otherwise Antillia,^ appears in several early maps. Toscanelli's map shows his l)elief in the existence of this island, and Toscanelli himself, in writing to Columbus with ex- planations of the map or chart which he had made out as a guide of " a shorter route to the places of spices by ocean navigation," speaks as follows : — " That city [Quinsay] is in the province of Mangi, or near the province of Cathay, in which land is the royal residence. Bnt from tJie island of Antilia, which you know, to the very splendid island of Cipango,^ there are ten spaces.^ For that island in speaking of the people of the kingdom of Lainbri and Tansur, we are tohl : " They also have plenty of l)razil. . . . This they sow, and when it is grown to the size of a small shoot they take it np and transplant it ; then they let it grow for three years, after which they tear it up l)y the root. You must know that Messcr Marco Polo aforesaid l)rought some seed of the hrazil, such as they sow, to Venice with him, and had it sown there, luit nevur a thing came uj). And I fancy it was because the climate was too cold." ' The word " Antilia," or " Antillia," is the origin of the name Antilles, which, since the lirst decade of the sixteenth century, has licen applied to the ^Vest India or American Islands. ^ Japan. Tliis and other names of places were taken by Toscanelli from Marco Polo's book. ^ Each space on Toscanelli's map was suppo-sed to contain two hundred ancl Hftv miles. I 44 Cahot's Discovery of N(jrth America Hl)omi(Is in gold, pcurls, iiud precious stones, and tlicy cover tlie temples and palaces with solid gold." The most ancient tradition as to the Isle of Seven Cities, otherwise Antillia, informs us that certain refu .11 •I ri /■ r^ UIOT At Ir il \\ i» j'r.JMrloil H ' I. .i..i 1 ■. .1 " I. ^ the t* j;:l!. l'r«».^i>V.iV I "A ) liis for HI.Vp* I JutF I'i* 1.1'. U ruarin '-'" r«l'!,sl',)l Wiliifi. ' V'» -'.ii c.-.tlVj a flit.'. ,,(|! , • r.. ».■;-' rt .• \\ I". • liilU'MU ..1 r , lUr. ::. . •''-AC. nil ■ .- ; ■ .'ilti^iKliii- ' * 1 i)/i!l!;s' ., i 111 A. ih>lt ■ > ' Ic ho .i •• :ch T, iUJlJ ;« •1 ( 1) i •t >'. i. •^ ^' V A ,/; ^.^^D^':t^. ■' ? fl! I! Cahot's Discovery of North America 57 arlum Willelmi dc Wovccdre,'^ Nasmith's edition, In the register of ^^illiam of ^^ ickliam, Bishop of Winchester, is the following particular of the chapel of 8t. Brendan: " Djidem 14 die Augusti 1403 doniinas concessit, etc., he granted to all benefactors to the chapel of St. Brendan nigh Bristol, and to Reginald Taillor, the poor hermit of it, forty days of indulgence by his letters for one year only to continue"; by which it appears there was an * William Wircestre, or Worcestro, jtopiiLvrly, l)Ut erroneously, known as "William of Worcester," who, us it will presently appear, was the chronicler of the first English attempt to sail in search of the island, was the son of a person of the same name, who was a worthy l)urgess of Bristol, and enf^a^ed in trade. He was horn at a house in a very ancient street, called St. James's Back, in 1415. His mother was Elizaheth Botoner, of an opulent family settled in Coventry. After having passed four years as a student of Hart Hall, in Oxford, he became a retainer to Sir John Falstalf, of Caistre Castle, in Norfolk, and, in process of time, his secretary, jdiysician, and finally was appointee! one of his executors. It appears that Wyrcestre occasion- ally assumed the designation of W. Botoner, otherwise Wyrcestre, jireferring his mother's name to that of his father. In the decline of life he estahlished himself v\ Bristol, having a hou.se and garden near St. Philip's churchyard gate. His chief amusement in his old age was most minutely to survey his Jiative town hy j)aces and measure- ments, committing the result of such investigation daily to his note- book. ... He died alujut the year 1484 (Dallaway's Antiiiititiex of llritftou'). The Worcestre family was for a long period connfcted with the ancient parish of St. James in Bristol. In the will of John iV(lewell, burgess, proved in the year 1:58.''), wh<» desired to lie buried in the cemetery of the parish church of St. James of Bristol, we tiud that "William Worcestre" was ap|iointed one of the executors, and Hichard, the ])rior of St. James, overseer of the will. In the will of llcurv Calf, burgess, proved in l.'i!)4, the testator appoiiiicd Hichard " Wircestre," prior of St. .fames of Bristol, to be overseer. J, 1420, William Worcesti'c exj)ressed a wish to be buried in the east corner of St. Jaiii.-s's cemetery at Bristol, beside Sir Richard, fornierly ]iarish chaplain of that church. J 1 I ■ 58 Cauot's Discovery of North Anferica lu'rniitagc licre, vvitli a chapel dedicated to St. Brendan, an Irish saint. In the year 1351, Lucy de Newchiiche repeatedly offered to the Bishop of Wor- cester, and desired leave to l)e shut up in the hermitage of St. Brendan of Bristol, and to (juit the world, wliich, after due incpiiry into her conduct and j)urity of life and necessary virtues for it, was granted her : as we find by tlie deed (E. Hegistris Wygornia), Thores])y, f. 21a. Barrett's History of Bristol, pp. (JO, Gl). Dr. Oeorge Sigerson, the author of Irish Liter- atinr, its Origin, etc., says that the [mythical] voyage of St. Brend.in " was influential in the discovery of America." He also says : " As you sail into Bristol, you must i)ass under a high hill which is known to this day as St. Brendan Hill. There was a little chapel of St. Brendan on its summit, because of the reverence which all seamen, whether Norse, Saxon, or Celt, professed for the sailor saint." It was in Bristol ships, and at the risk and expense of Bristol men, that the first jaactical attempt was made to sail from Kngland in ([ucst of the unknown lands which, according t"» ancient writers and con- temporary cosmogra pliers, txisted in the Western Sea. " In 1480, on July Ijth. the ship [of] . . . and ,lohn Jay, junior,' of the burthen of 80 tons . . . began a voyage from the }K>rt of Bristol ... in search of the is/taid of Jirasijile, to the west of Ireland. . . . Thlyde," the most scientific mariner in all England being the pilot, that news came to Bristol . . . on the 18th Septend)er, that the ships ' PioliiiMy ;i A:\\) lalled THnitv {infra, p. 109). Wyrcestre, the fhronii'lfr, had a sisti-r, Joan, wlio was imirrifd to .lolin .lay. - .Mr. Hanisse is of oiiiiiidii that "Thlyde" is tin- tMiuivalent of Thomas Llovde ; Professor Fiske puts after " Thlvde"— "[i.e. Th. Lyde= Lloyd]." * Cauot's Discovkkv of North America 59 it re, tlie iilent of i.e. Th. cruised altout the sea lor iil)out nine nioutlis* without finding tlie island, ])ut in consequence of tempests tliey returned to a port in Ireland for the repose of the sliips and the niarin(!rs." I" 1480 die 15 julii, navis . . . et .)nli|}i!in |is Jay junioris ponderis 80 (h)]i()runi in(M'perunt viagiuni apud portuni Bristolliju (\v Kyngrode- us(pie ad insuhini de Brasylle in occidentali parte Ilihernia), Suleando niaria per . . . et [?J Thiyde est niagister navis scientificus niarinarius tocius Anglia? ; et nara ir a huscar la isla del lirasil y las siete ciudadcs." | '' ' It seems jilinost cerljiiu lliat " iiinr iiioiillirt" slumlcl rciul "nine weeks," wliicli ('(trresixmils witli the duti-s ".Iiily '" ami " Se|)teiiilier." - Kingroad in oiilside llu' river Av(»ii, Imt tlic liuuiKlarv ol' tliu county of Bristol ineliide-. iju- watiMN calltMl Kiiigruud. ^ Sir Cleiueiits Markliain, who iiulities to the ojiinion lliat other voyages took place ut' which no record was maile. says : "It is clear that 'I .'iiKTuiis v(iya;,'es ot'di.-cov- y were dt'spalched while the I'orln- guese Were still creeping along the African coast, ami long liefore Culiota appeared on the seene." ,! H- I \ I r. I 111 CHAPTER II If any of the voyages from Bristol, prior to the year 1493/ in search of the imaoinary ishuids had resulted in the discovery of hind, whether continent or island, it would in all probability have necessitated an ap- plication ])y King Henry vii. to the pope for the grant of a papal bull, l)ecause we may readily ima- gine that the cautious monaich, fnmi motives alike of prudence and of policy, would have applied for a bull or dispensation to enable him to hold such newly- discovered territory against all persons whom- soever ; in other words, he would most certainly have availccl himself of the papal authority for the ]>uri)ose of strengthening and confirming his title. We may not be strictly detining the pope's ])osition at this period, according to the canons of the Church, when we say that he claimed power over the lands of all persons other than (christians; however, it is clear that )me of the Catlnjlic monarchs of Europe formally conceded to His Holiness the right to authorise them to take possession of all the lands of the " heathen and infidels," and to hold such lands against all other potentates. It was clearly in a deferential si)irit of submission to the authority, or alleged ;;utliority, of the papal chair that first * Tlic (Lite of till' i»iip.ii Imll l)v wliich iill untliscovei'f'"! lands were divided bet ween l*urtiig;d and Sjiain. (10 Is were Cahot's Discovery ok North America 6i Portugal, ami subsequently Spain, applied for a bull, with the result that the })ope divided al)out one half of the globe between these two countries. The claim of the Church over the lands of the "heathen and heretics " was founded upon, if not actually derived from, an edict concocted at Home about the middle of the eiohth century, under the title, "Edictum domini Constantini imp,, apud pseudo- Isidorus Decretalia," This forgery, which purported to be a donation from Constantine to Pope Sylvester I., was sometimes considered to be of doubtful origin, l)ut a vast majority of Catholics accepted it as a genuine production. Speaking broadly, the ec-lesiastical authorities claimed that the pope had certain powers over the whole of the world.' The popes claimed what was tantamount to universal allegiance. Dom Henrique of Portugal, surnamed the Navigator, see- ing that important discoveries were at hand, and knowinoj that, however exaggerated some of Marco Polo's statements might prove, there were lands in the far Enst to which he might find a sea-route, and bring thence treasures untold, applied to the pope, in or al)Out the year 1441, for a concession in perpe- tuity to the Portuguese crown of all lands to be discovered between Cape Bojador nnd the Indies, inclusi\'e ; re[)resenting, at the same time, that his ])rincipal object was the convci'sion of the natives of those lands to the Christian faitli. It must not be hastily accepted as a fact, that this representation was merely used as a device to obtain a safe charter and enable the Portuguese to hold their discoveries ' C(thiml)us fully lijlieved that nil jicrsoiis wliu wmiM ni)t acccjit tli«' tciK'liiiigs nf till' l\niiiau CiUlinlii' ])rii'sts wtTf not fiititlf") to any natural rights, ami that /iliudsl any steps might In- n'snrtcd lu for the jiurjiuso ui coiniK'Uing ]n.rsons to afcept those teachings. 1 I 62 Cahot's Discovery ok North America ■I \ 1 ': !M apjainst all comers. It may l»e uipealing to the avidity of the Portuguese, induced them to acquiesce in Dom Hen- rirjue's schemes of discovery, — which they had previ- ously opposed on account of their cost, — luit it filled all J^juropc with a desire to emhark undei' the flag of the Portuguese, in order to share in the benefits of this trade. A company of merchants at F^agos obtained from the prince, in 1443, a charter for the exclusive right of trading with the IMoors. . . . But instead of trading with the j\loors, they made a hostile attack ujton them, slew many, and brought off one hundred and fifty-five captives." ^ Subse(|uently l\)pe Nicholas v. granted to the King of IVu'tugal an exclusive rij-ht to all the lands that he might discover between Cape Non, on the west coast of Africa, and the continent of India. After I'm' return of (Vthhubus from his first voyage tilt -Spanish sovereigns applied to the pope for a chartct to hold the ncwly-discoN <'rcd islands, which they believed to be a part of the indies, pope Alexander VI., on the 4th of ^bly 14i)3, granted a bull, by virtui; of his apostolical .-nid ]>ontilic.il ])o\ver, by wliich he est-'dtlisluMl a line nf limitation, i-unning from the north to tlie south pole. diHtant one hundred l(agu(\'^ west of the Axores and the Cape \'erd Ishuxls, giving to Spain all the ' Til' }''•)•! iiijin:« ill liiiliii, li\ I'. ('. DiiliVCTs. Cabot's Discoverv of North America 6 territory, mainland or islands, which she had discovered, or nii^ht discover, to the west thereof, and which had not been taken possession of by any Christian monarch at riity tihie jyrecedimi Christmas 1492. To the Portuguese, in like manner, and subject to the same proviso, the pope granted all the terri- tory whi(di lay to the cast of the line of limitation. Thus the lands of the Portuguese became the I'^ast Indies. Some dissatisfaction having been occasioned as to the line of division, the cel(d)rated meeting of the commissioners of Spain and of Portugal took place at Tordesillas, in Spain, in 1494, and an agree- ment was arrived at, known as the " Treaty of Tordesillas," bv which the line of demarcation should be shifted to such a position that it should pass, north and south, three hundicd and seventy leagues west of the Cape \'erd Islands, — all to the west of that limitation to belong to Spain, and all to the east to Portugal.^ For obvious reasons, it was agreed that the new line should not apj)ly to islands or firm lands which might have been dis- covered before the 20th .lune 1494. A further agreement was come to that the treaty agreed upon between the two nations should be submitted to the })o})c for confirmation." ' All tliesi' jH'Dcet'dings aliordcd ,i diroct and woiidt'i'fid iiniu'tus towards the acfi'lfiatioii of tlit' knowledge of tlie sriciu'cs tn wliirh Tiavigatiini owes so iiiuoli. ll not only caustMl iiciniaiidit and useful ailditions lo lio made to nantitrononiv, Iml it indurt'd a closer study of llu- jtlii-nonit'iia of nature and of teirt'strial niagiictisiii. Tliu study of the results of the pojje's lino of deuianation most certainly led to an aciiui-ition of knowleclge as to the |iro]iei' lia-is for getting at tlie longituile, ete., wliiili, sjieaking coniiMralively, was not yet pro- jhmIv understood. - The ]ia]ial luill whiih conlirnuMl the treaty wa-^ not issued until the 2Uli .lune l.'.OG. n h 64 CAnor's Discovery or North Amkuica [Translation of thk Patal Bum.] ** AIcxuikUt Bishop, the .st'i'vaiit of the servants of God : — To our most dear l)eloved son in Christ, Kin<^ Ferdinand, And to our dear beloved daugliter in Christ, Elizalx'th, Queen of Castile, [.eg-ion, Aragon, Sicily and Oranada, most noljle Princes, Greeting and Apostolical henedietion. "Among other works acceptable to the divine majesty and according to our hearts desire, this certainly is the chief, that the Catholic; faith and Christian religion, especially in this our time, may in all places be exalted, amjdified and enlarged, whereby the healtli of souls may be procured, and the barbar- ous nations subdued and brought to the same. And therefore, whereas by the favour of God's clemency (although not with e(|ual deserts) we are called to this holy seat of i*eter, and understanding you to be true Catholic princes, as we have ever known you, and as ycjur noble and worthy deeds have declared in manner to the whole world, in that with all your study, diHgence, and industry, you have spared no travels, charges, or perils, adventuring even the shedding of your own blood, with a[)i>lying your whole minds and endeavours hereunto, as your noble exi)editions achieved in recovering the kingdom of Granada fi'om tlie tyranny of the Saracens in tliese our days, do ])lainly declare your deeds with great glory of the divine name. For the which, as wc think you worthy, so ought we of our own free will favourably to grant all things whereby you may daily with more fervent minds, to the honour of God and the enlarging of the Christian empire, prosecute you, glared your ctl uo the your noMo Dill of giciit as wc }e will nijiy )f Clod SCl'UtC Cauot's DiscoxEkv ok North Amkuk a 65 your devout and lauda])!^ purpose most acceptaljle to the iinnioital (jo<1. We are eredil>Iy int'ornied tliat, whereas of late you were deti-rinined to seek and I'nid cerlaiu islands and main lands far remote and unknown (and not ln'retofore lound liy any other), to tlie intent to hriiiir the inliahitants of the same to our Itcdeenier, and to profess the Catholic faith, you have iuthcrto been much occupied in the ox[)u<:nation and recovery of the kingdom of (Jianada, hy reason whereof you eould not bring your said laudable purpose to the end desired. ISevertheless, as it hath })lcased Almighty (Jod, the aforesaid king- dom being recovered, willing to accomplish your said desire, you have, no \vithout labour, [)erils, and charges, appointed our welbbeloved son, Christopher Columbus (a man well eonnnended as most worthy and apt for so great a matter), well furnished with men and ships and other necessaries, to seek (by the sea where hitherto no man hath sailed) such main lands and islands far remote and hitherto un- known. AVho (by God's help), making diligent search in the ocean sea, have found certain remote islands and main lands which were not heretofore found by any other. In the which, as is said, many nations inha))it, living ])eaceably and going naked, not necustomed to eat Hesh. And as far as your messengers can conjecture, the nations inhabiting the aforesaid lands and islands, believe that there is one God crcatUiC in heaven : and seem apt to be brouofht to the embracini!; of the Catholic faith and to be imbued with good manners : by reason whereof, we may hope that if they Ije well instructed, they may easily be induced to receive the name of our Saviour Jesus Christ. We are furtlier advertised Pi I 66 Cahot's DiscovKin oi North Amkkka i< I tliat the Ijc'fore-niuucd Clirisloplici' li;itli now built uiid oiectc*! a fortress with cfood munition in one of the filoresiiid |)rin('ipid islands, in tlie whirli he hath |tlac('(l a oarrison of certain of the (Jhiistian men (iuit went thither with liini : as well to the intent to defend (lie same, as also to search other isl.-inds and main lands far remote and yet unknown. We also understand, that in these lands and islands lately found, is fjjreat plenty of i>-old and s[)ices, with divers and many other precious things of sundry kinds and (pialities. Therefore all thinji;s diligently considered (especially the amplifying and eidarging of the Catholic faith, as it hehoveth Catholic princes fol- lowing the examples of your nohle j)rogenitors of famous nu'mory), whereas yuu are determined hy the favour of Almightv (Jod to suhdue and bring to the Catholic faith the inhabitants of the aforesaid lands and islands. We greatly commend this your godly and laudable purpose in our liord, and desirous to have th(^ same brought to a due end, and the name of our Saviour to ]>e known in these parts, do exhort you in our Lord, aiul by the re<'eiving of your holy ba})tism, whereby you are bound to Apostolical obedi- ence, and earnestly recjuire you by the bowels of mei'(ty of our Lord .Jesus Christ, that when you in- tend Ibi* the zeal of the Catholic faith to ])rosecute the said expedition to reduce the people of the afore- said lands and islands to the Christian religion, you shall .spare no labours at any tinu\ or be deterred with any perils, concerning firm hope and confidence that the omni[)otent (!oscfnte afoio- n, yon toircd idcnce 'OSS to >ed by ly the Mprise 01 of so great a matter, we of onr own motion, and not either at yonr re(]nest or at tlie instant petition of any other prrson, hut of our own mere lil)eranty and certain science, and hy the fulness of A[)o.stolical power, do give, grant, and assign to you, your heirs d ill th land.> d islands fouiul iU(;cesst»ri or to he found, discovered or to he discovered, to- ward the west and south, drawing a line from the Arctic pole to the Antarctic i)ole, that is, from the north to the soulh, Containing in this donation, whatsoever nmin lands or islands are found or to he found toward India, or toward any other jmrt what- soever it he, heing distant from, or without tlu^ aforesaid line drawn a hundred leagues toward the west and scnith from any of the islands which are commonly called l)e los Azores and Ca})e X'erde. All the islands therefore, and main lands, found and to he found, discovered aiul to he discovered, from the said line toward the west and south, such as have not actually heeu heretofore i)ossessed hy any other Christian King or Prince, until the day of tlu) nativity of our fiOrd .lesus Christ last past, from the which heginneth this present yeai-, heing the year of our Lord m.cccc.lxxxxiii., whensoever any shall he found hy your messengers and eaj)tains, \Ve hy the authority of Almighty (lod granted unto us in Saint JVter, and hy the oiHce whi<*h we hear on the earth in the stead of Jesus Christ, do foi- ever hv the tenour of these presents, give, giant, and assign unto \ou, your heirs and successors (the Kings of Castile and TiOgion), all these lands and islands, with their doniinic>ns, territories, cities, castles, towers, places, and villages, with all the right and jurisdiction thereunto pertaining : eonstituting, as- II I i 11 \ i IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I 1.25 '* IIIIM IM .. illlll_2 140 1= I ZO U III 1.6 V] <^ / /, e. ^^4 ^ # e- / / o / /A Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 (716) 872-4503 m V (V \ \ .^ ^ <6> #^. ^ ^'^ to" , Q^ w- C?r ^ 68 Caijot's Discovery of North America 't ,! :1 signing, and deputing you, your heirs and successors, the lords thereof, with full and free power, authority, and jurisdiction. Decreeing, nevertheless, by this our donation, grant, and assignation, that from no Christian Prince, who actually hath possessed the aforesaid islands and main lands unto the day of the nativity of our Lord aforesaid, their right obtained to be understood hereby to be taken away, or that it ought to be taken away. Furthermore we command you, in virtue of holy obedience (as you have pro- mised, and as we doubt not you will do upon mere devotion and princely magnanimity), to send to the said main lands and islands, honest, virtuous, and learned men, such as fear God and are able to in- struct the inhabitants in the Catholic faith and good manners, applying all their possible diligence in the premises. We furthermore inhibit all manner of persons, of what state, degree, order, or condition soever they be, although of Imperial and regal dignity, imdcr the 2^(^in of the seritence of excom- munication luhich they shall incur if they do to the contrary, that they in no case presume, without special licence of you, your heirs and successors, to travel for merchandise or for any other cause, to the said lands or islands, found or to be found, discovered or to be discovered, towards the west and south, drawing a line from the Arctic pole to the Antarctic pole, whether the main lands and islands found and to be found, be situate toward India or toward any other part, being distant from the line drawn a hundred leagues toward the west from any of the islands commonly called De los Azores and Cape Verde : Notwithstanding constitutions, decrees, and Apostolical ordinances whatsoever they are to the ' Cabot's Discovkry of North America 69 contrary : In Him from wliom empires, dominions, and all good things do proceed : Trusting that Al- mighty God directing your enterprises, if you follow your godly and laudable attempts, your la])ours and travels herein shall in a short time obtain a happy end with felicity and glory of all Christian people. But forasmuch as it should l)e a thinsjj ot oreat difficulty for those letters to be carried to all such places as should be expedient, we will, and of like motion and knowledge do decree that whithersoever the same shall be sent, or wheresoever they shall be received with the subscription of a common notary thereunto required, with the seal of any person constituted in ecclesiastical dignity, or such as are authorised by the ecclesiastical court, the same faith and credit to be given thereunto in judgment or elsewhere, as should be exhibited to these presents. " It shall therefore be lawful for no man to infringe or rashly to act contrary to this letter of our com- mendation, exhortation, request, donation, grant, assignation, constitution, deputation, decree, com- mandment, inhibition, and determination. And if any shall presume to attempt the same, he ought to know that he shall thereby incur the indignation of Almighty God and his holy apostles Peter and Paul. " Given at Rome, at Saint Peter's : In tlie year of the incarnation of our Lord m.cccc.lxxxxiii. The fourth day of the nones of J\lay, the first year of our pontificate." ^ In the year 1497 John Cabot (Giovanni Calwto), ' The Latin text will ho found in Appendix ]'. i '■ u ki ::i| R i "i id iJ "I 70 Cabot's Discovery of North America who was proba])ly of Genoese origin,^ but had become a naturalised Venetian ^ after fifteen years' residence in Venice, sailed from Bristol on a voyage of dis- covery, under the direct authority of Henry the Seventh of England.^ He had eighteen persons on board (most, if not all, of whom were men of Bristol),* and he succeeded in discovering the continent of North America, upon which he planted the flag of England.^ He thus took possession of the land he had discovered on behalf of the English Crown, and in total disregard of the papal partition between * There are no authentic proofs extant, so far as can be ascertained at present, as to John Caljot's birthi^lace. He is described by a contemporary writer as "anotlicr Genoese like Columbus." There arc reasons for inclining to the belief, but no juoof exists, that he married a Venetian woman. 2 The following coi>y of the entry in the Venetian archives gives the date of John Cabot's grant of citizenship : — " 1476, die 28 Martii, — Quod fiat privilegium civilitatis de intus et extra loani Caboto per habitationera annorum xv., iuxta consuetura. De parte 149 De non Non sinceri 0." " 1476, 28th day of March, — That a privilege of citizenship within and without be entered in favour of John Caboto, as usual, in conse- quence of a residence of fifteen years. Ayes Noes Neutrals ^ Infra, p]). 97, 98. * John ('abot also set up the flag of St. Mark, the patron saint of Venice {infra, p. 141). The citizenship [of Venice] was of two kinds, viz. : de intus and de extra, relating respectively to privileges within and without the dominions of the republic. These two sorts of privi- leges were frequently combined in the same individual, who was then a citizen de intus et extra. And as the citizenship de extra comprised the enjoyment of all tlie commercial rights which Venice possessed in foreign lands, together with the privilege of sailing under the Hag of St. Mark, dependent after 1472, so far as naturalised citizens were concerned, only on giving security to the State, applicants who were traders or seamen naturally sought to complete their naturalisation by Viecoming citizeas de extra as well as de intus, and for their pro- tection and development colonies ware at first planted. 149 0." * Infra, pp. 148, 149. Cabot's Discovery of North America 71 Portugal aiid Spain, the terms of which had been altered by the Treaty of Tordesillas. This voyage was undoubtedly the foundation of an empire, and is properly regarded as the derivation of the Englisli title to the continent of North America, and the basis of the English claim against the pretensions of Spain founded upon the papal bull. In the words of Mr. Lathrop, the American consul at Jiristol, this was " the event which pre-empted North America for the English-speaking race, and pro])ably settled for all time the question whether the Anglo-Saxon or the Spaniard should be the possessor of that great continent." Out of this achievement by John Cabot came the colonisation of portions of the territory by Englishmen. The Rev. M. Harvey ^ says : " England estaolished her claims to the sovereignty of a large portion of these northern lands. The fish wealth of the surroundino; seas soon attracted her fishermen." " The Ca])ot charter,^ and the voyages made pur- suant to it, were alwa}\s regarded as the rut the veil was but partially withdrawn, the picture only half-revealed. The series of scenes which w^ould show the ancient races inhabiting the continent, their modes of life, their customs, their warfare, their surroundings — these were reserved for the enraptured gaze of those who followed in the wake of Cabot and his brave and daring co-adventurers. Many years were des- tined to elapse ere even small portions of the North American continent yielded up their secrets to the view of the curious explorer. No record has been left of what took place on board when the magic moment arrived and the vistas of the long-wished- for shores were revealed. As yet more and more of the littoral and of the landscape gradually opened to their view, as the little vessel silently closed in the distance between her and the waters of the coast, as further developments of the natural scenery became more distinctly visible to their anxious eyes, — we are only faintly able to conceive the impressions of the beholders, and words can only feebly translate their emotions. AYere their dreams of the pleasant Western lands satisfied by the realities which they saw before them ? Little is told of wdiat they did. They went ashore, and realised that the land w\as inhabi^'xi from seeing certain snares which had been laid to catch animals,^ then they went back and embarked on their vessel. Not fear, but prudence, perhaps, caused their speedy return, — a prudent desire to make known ' Infra, p. 140. They merely secured an insignificant proof, in the shai)e of a snare, or snares, that there were men somewhere in the neighbourhood, whom the sight of the vessel may have scared away. Cabot's Discovery of North America 73 the the the discovery in Bristol. Whatever there was to be disclosed to view by an inland exploration was left for the future. The irony of fate destined genera- tions to elapse ere the importance of the discovery should be fully comprehended, either in its substan- tial reality or its fruitful possibility ; it was not realised until long afterward that the planting of the flag of England upon that coast was the event from which sliould be evolved the whole future history of Northern America. There is little doubt that John Cabot was one of those skilful and courageous mariners wdio, at a critical period of geographical awakening, when men's minds were burstino- through the shackles that had fettered them for ages, went forth from Italy, well skilled in navigation and cosmography, to seek the chance of j^erilous adventures. The following state- ment, which suggests that in it we have one incen- tive, at least, of his enterprise, would seem to indicate that Cabot was formerly a merchant or a trader. " And he [Cabot] says he was once at Mecca, where, from remote countries, spices are carried ])y caravans ; and that those carrying them, being asked where those spices grew, said they did not know, but that they came with other merchandise from remote countries to their home by other caravans, and that the same information was repeated by those wdio brought the spices in turn to them. And he argues that if the Oriental people tell to those of the south that these things are brought from places remote from them, and thus from hand to liand, pre- supposing the rotundity of the earth, it follows that the last carry to the northern, toward the west. ' Infra, p. 150. " 1 il ^ 1 f 1 !' 74 Cabot's Discovery of North America Here we have abundant testimony that he was a man capa])lc of working out a problem on original, though mistaken, lines of thought, and that he had been engaged in trying to discover how to reach the lands and islands from wdiich the spices came. And between the lines we may gather, as his reference to " the territory of the Grand Khan " ^ seems plainly to indicate, that he, an Italian of the Renaissance, had been influenced by either Marco Polo's book ^ or Toscanelli's map, or by the ideas and the specula- tions as to the trans- Atlantic lands which wxre then prevalent in Italy.^ Although the men of the Italian republics who went forth to other countries, for the purpose of engaging in voyages of discovery, were acquainted with many of the notions as to the " Sea of Darkness " contained in ancient writings and con- temporary maps, all their thoughts were bent upon the hope of a new oceanic path, by means of which the rich territories of the " Grand Khan " might be reached. Francesco Tarducci says : "To know Cabot's intention we must settle the order of his ideas in regard to the expedition he was undertak- ing. This is easy enough, for the history of Chris- topher Columbus ... is an exact mirror of what everybody thought. . . . Columbus left Spain wdth the expectation of reaching the territory of the Grand Khan ; he had touched land . . . with the conviction that he had come to the land of the Grand Khan ; he had returned to Europe with the announcement, never doubted by him or anyone else, that he had arrived at the land of the Grand Infra, pp. 138-140. Toscanelli's inspirations for his ma sources, including Ptolemy's geographical notions, Marco Polo's book, and the gossiping stories of Eastern trave 2 introd. 16-27. ) were drawn from several lerg. Cabot's Discovery of North America 75 (( Sea Khan. Could John Culjot think differently ? Cer- tainly not. Sailing, then, on an expedition of discovery beyond the Atlantic for the account of England, he did and could only look to reaching also the land of the Grand Khan, which at that time was the ultimate term of the desires and hopes of discoverers and traders." It is almost a certainty, therefore, that the townsmen of Bristol should have added to their mythical belief in the " islands of the West," the notions which John Cabot had brought with him from Italy, namely, that it could be possible to find the rich countries of the East — " the lands of the Grand Khan " — by sailing across the Western Ocean. It may be that John Cabot did not altogether accept, on his arrival in England, the well-circulated stories as to the islands of St. Brandon, of Brasil, of the Seven Cities ; yet neither is it prol)able that the enthusiastic and imaginative Italian should wholly reject the popular belief, seeing, besides, that the islands were marked upon the maps. It may be readily believed that these current stories would have been the means of increasing his faith in the success of his project, and of inflaming his desire to embark upon his perilous enterprise. Be it always remem- bered that his belief, that Cathay existed in the West, came from what to him was a source of knowledge almost inspired, and had bred in him the conviction that he should find Cipango in the course of his westward exploration. The fact, then, is that the fabled islands were still in existence in the popular fancy, and to this had been added the hazy kind of belief that they were synonymous with some of the islands or places descril)ed by Marco Polo. A f : 18; k \r \ I 76 Cahot's Discovery of North America contemporary writer tells us that Cahot, " who wont with a ship from Bristol to search for a new island, is returned, and says that seven hundred leagues from here [England] lie discovered firm land (terra firma), the territory of the Grand Khan.^ It was also ])elicved that he had " discovered the Seven Cities."^ "And they say that the land is fertile and temperate, and think that the red-wood (el brasilio) grows there." ^ "But Mr. John (Messer Joanne) has his thoughts directed to a greater undertakinsj, for he thinks of fjoinfj , . . alono; the coast toward the east until he is op]30site the island called Cipango [Japan], . . . where he believes all the spices of the world grow, and where there are also gems ; ... he hopes to make London a greater place for spices than Alexandria."* When Columlms dis- covered Cuba, he came to the conclusion that it was Cipango [-fapan]. And doubtless it was with some pardonable exultation in his own superior perspi- cacity, and in the full belief that his discovery of "Cipango" was the result of a well-worked-out theory of his own, that he announced his intention to sail to Quinsay, one of the principal places of the Grand Khan, for the purpose of handing to that long defunct potentate a letter of introduction addressed to him by their Catholic Majesties (Ferdinand and Isabella). The very earliest opportunity was to be taken to impart the highly interesting news to the Grand Khan that he (Columbus) had taken posses- sion of a portion of his territory on behalf of their Catholic Majesties of Spain ! " Alas ! poor Columbus, — unconscious prince of discoverers, — groping here in 1 Infra, p. 140. •' Infra, p. 149. - Infra, p. 144. ^ liifra, p. l.'iO. Cahot's Discovery oi- North Amkrica / / Cuban waters for a way to a city on the oflicr side of the fjlohe, aii;l to a sovereign wJiOse 7'cu'c had more than a eenturij sinee ])een driven from the throne, and expelled from the very soil of Cathay." ^ It would be unjust to the memory of John Cabot to suggest, in the absenec of proof, that he had merely copied the ideas of Columbus. All the evidence upon which we can place reliance goes to show that he had formed an opinion quite inde- pendent of Columbus, though possibly following the same line of thought. Both Columbus and Cabot saw fanciful resemblances l)etween tV ' lands siohted ])y them and the countries described Marco Polo ; both expressed an intention, after rinding land, to embark upon a fresh voyage in the direction, wdiither, as they erroneously supposed, the " Grand Khan " w^ould be found ; both fully believed that they were merely engaged in elaborating the know- ledge of the world as it was then known, — in other words, it was a fixed idea of both that the lands discovered l)y them were parts of Asia, When men have been long possessed by a conviction that they have arrived at a truthful solution of a theory, it 'so wholly engrosses their thoughts that they are fre- quently unable to see anything but that which tends to support their preconceived views of the matter. ^ Discovery of America, by John Fiske, vol. i, p. 434. Professor Fiske tells liis readers that Columbus interpreted the statements of the natives in such a way that he believed not only that Cuba was part of the Asiatic continent, Init that there was a king in the neigh- bourhood who was at war with tlie Grand Khan ! Coluinljus " sent two messengers to seek this refractory potentate. . . . These envoys found pleasant villages, with large houses, surrounded with fields of such unknown vegetables as maize, potatoes, and tobacco ; they saw men and women smoking cigars, and little dreamed that in that fragrant and soothing herb there was a richer source of revenue than the spices of the East." — Ibid. p. 435. II'.' i I Cahot's Discovery of North America : l! ' I III the circuinsttuiccs immediately preceding the discoveries, whether of Columhus or of Cnhot, not n single authentic fact, not an amhiguous i>lu'ase, not even a crude idea, has been revealed from which to find an indication that either Columhus or Cabot went in seanh of anything other than their ideal ; in an endeavour to find Cathay and Cipango and " the lands of the Grand Khan," so brilliantly pre- sented to their imagination by the l)ook of Marco Polo, they came to "a new heaven and a new earth." But neither Columbus nor Cabot compre- hended the importance of their discoveries, and they ])otli died, as far as we can find, without realising that they had met with an unknown continent. Having regard to this, and at the same time bearing in mind the previous attempts of the men of Bristol to find ideal islands of the West, we may fairly put the question — To whom is due the credit of the great discovery ? The real truth is that in this matter, as in others, no single person is entitled to the whole credit of the discovery. We should render to Columbus the just, the un(pialified praise that is his due. It is impossible to minimise his great w^ork, accomplished as it was amidst so many discouragements, and in spite of the difficulties thrown in his way l)y the common enemies of all new theories. The story which relates his sufferings and persecutions will never perish. Columbus had to pay the usual penalties for being ahead of his period. He had to encounter the ignorance and indifference of the masses, the machinations of the priestcraft,^ and the duplicity of the king's advisers ; ' They contended that there coiihl be no possibility of the return of the ships if Coliuubus should sail for any long distance in a direct return direct Cadot's Discovery ok North AMtiRir.v 79 liis funds liecaiiie exliaiistu*], Ihs crcditor.s scIzcmI liis l)elongiiig'8, incliidinu; liis inap.s and charts, and his liltcrty was threatened. At tlie same time, neitlier our a(hniration for liis infhnuitahle eourajic nor our symi)atliy for his misfortunes should make us tornet the services which were rendered to Culumlais hy Toscanelli.' AVashinjL!,'ton Irving, the great historian of Columbus's voyages, remarks : *' Columlms derived great support . . . from a letter which he received, in 1474, from Toseanelli, a learned Florentine, who was considered one of the ablest cosmograi)hcrs of the day. This letter w^as made up from the narra- tive of Marco Polo. . . . The work of Marco Polo is deserving of . . . particular mention, from being a key to many of the ideas and speculations of Columbus." The following extract from Toscanelli's letter speaks for itself: "Paul,- the physicist, to Chiis- toplier Columbus, greeting. I perceived your great line towards the West. They contended that, on account of the roundness of the earth, they wouhl go downward, and that it would not be possible to return. They (quoted from the teacliings of Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, who sa^s : " But as to the fable that there are antipodes — that is to say, men on the opposite side of the earth, where the sun rises whi'ii it sets to us — men who walk with their feet opposite ours, that is on no ground creditable ; ... it is too absurd to say that some men might hjive taken sliips and traversed the whole wide ocean, and crossed from this side of the world to the other, and that thus even the inhabitants at that distant region are descended from the first man." 1 Paok) Toseanelli was so greatly distinguished as an astronomer that Behaim's teacher, liegiomontanus, dedicated to him, in 1463, his work, De Quodratura Circidi, directed against the Cardinal Nicolaus de Cusa. He constructed the groat gnomon in the church of Santa Maria Novella at Florence, and died in 1482, at the age of eiglity-Hve, without having lived long enough to enjoy the pleasure of learning the discovery of the Cape of Good Hojie by Diaz, and of tlie trupical l)art of the new continent by Columbus. — Humljoldt, Cosihok, otte's trans., vol, ii. p. 641. '■* Paolo [Toseanelli]. ( ! So Carot's Discoverv of North America WitVi and noble desire to go to the place where the spices grow ; wherefore in reply to a letter of yours, I send you a copy of another letter, which I wrote a few days ago to a friend of mine, a gentleman of the household of the most gracious King of Portugal before the wars of Castile, in reply to another, which by command of his Highness he wrote me concerning that matter : and I send you another sailing-chart, similar to the one I sent him, by which your demands will be satisfied. The copy of that letter of mine is as follows : — ' Paul, the physicist, to Fernando Martinez, canon, at Lisbon, greetings. I was glad to hear of your intimacy and favour with your most noble and illustrious King. I have formerly s2:)oken with you about a shorter route to the places of spices by ocean navigation than that which you are pursuing by Guinea. The most gracious King now desires from me some statement, or rather an exhibition to the eye, so that even slightly educated persons can grasp and comprehend that route. AltliouQ;h I am well aware that this can be proved from the spherical shape of the earth, nevertheless, in order to make the point clearer and to fr'iilitate the enterprise, I have decided to exhibit that route ])y means of a sailing-chart. I therefore send to his Majesty a chart made by my own hands, upon which are laid down your coasts, and the islands from which you must begin to shape your course steadily westward, and the places at which you are bound to arrive, and how far from the pole or from the equator yuu ought to keep away, and through how much space or through how many miles you are to arrive at places most fertile in all sorts of spices and gems, and do not wonder at my M IICA le spices ?i, I send e a few I of the ^ortugal r, which icerning g-cliart, ih your t letter cist, to ngs. I ur with I have oute to 111 that 3 most ement, t even rehend his can earth, •er and ^xhiuit srefore hands, d the ! your which e pole r, and many in all it my .-^■•v .1- r*"' '■■■ y /'?»- Iv. , (■- ■-'■"• /i-. .'> .1 * i t t > 3 • ^ ; . ■s. -^^J" 4 ■^-'J' 1 - .•^rl - ;>-y:^ '; ill if, ^ i! ^ ^ r m IM . lf:\ % ,, NT^, A , „ 1 -en<] aa»l Jioble Jo*ir!rn.u, u, , i-» iri' ' ■aIui-): by coiniuuml "t Ins lli;;1n".i;'S i>: ■• ;■>{(■ .);• • ■•; .-ruing fh;\f/ n.;fittei : .um] I ,;(.iui \«»'.i ;tTw. ;,!;.■ -•• -■.( harr., 1 .. vour hniniUu- U' Uif; one I V'.l, ii'vi •ii-Tn-iM?].:) will. Ih' ^ !ii.->ri(;.L Tt.' <• :' >. 'iuv ieiter of mine i- as i'.'iiow- -' Pm*'. '• f iiv.^y ,,r, f,> Korn;'?.i''hr will t] 'l^;'-' ijoii ' r-. ' .(►■ '\ li)!'. ( h; a\o i-.ic j.i;*''^'- 't ^pif>Vi ';V 'X-'/UTi i\a^ -^.M'ion *i;'i'> that <••• ni'lioc !■■* iln'iii'.Mj li i';«' ■ ' t; -v-fj ,^}'i'ii':\ .■;.;.•:>(<■" p'-rM-i"- • 111 -M-- ;• '.:.' 'luiir'.hon-l :i ;: >•<» It • Ail! ••i^!! I irvi .-•.• 1 hwm'c tlui* ' '. ' cun •t [•r'\''i> i • ■ •'.:»! -I.;iTiu •'I' if V ■.rartb. VH •?io' ' f • i : it 'rr- ■^^(•ri> A ' I I Ao'.>. .1 vr.'if . '• ■ . an'i the ?; til! u> )»:■' tj[M.;i vvb.-t. !. oj' fi-o.., i'm ..,'1 you vMijj-). . .. <',.v,iv and v.luT.ujiii .*!*••■ .•(.: ii '• pj'.ce 'II . r.' - c^^ tow ai;.iny riiil'^? vot,' /"• • Jirii'n- !il phi--' « . • ^ ''{ilt \'i al! '••orii? of .^|,-'' -> '?;■ J Uvf.a':', ;tud • ... L , •• 5er al |jay •.'>. i'.*^ pole ling havo lUt^i to >' that most .1 'U Jo iiiy :i:tfi }'.)! ,^'! if? •i J it 1 I l^ii ,j •J If 1 m 1 Ik^ ' iiWi 1 41 Hi < Cabot's Discovery of North America 8i calling west the parts where the spices are, whereas they are commonly called east, l^ecause to persons sailing persistently westward those parts will be found by courses on the under side of the earth. For if [you go] by land and by routes on this upper side they will always lie found in the east. The straight lines drawn lengthwise upon the map indicate distances from east to west, while the trans- verse lines show distances from south to north. I have drawn upon the map various places upon which you may come, for the 1)etter information of the navigators in case of their arriving, whether through accident of wind or what not, at some different place from what they had expected ; but partly in order that they may show the inhabitants that they have some knowledge of their country, which is sure to l)e a pleasant thing. It is said that none but merchr *:« dwell in the islands.^ For so great there If immber of navigators with their merchandise tUat in all the rest of the world there are not so many as in one very splendid port called Zaiton.^ For they say that a hundred great ships of pepper unload in that port every year, l)esides other ships bringing other spices. That country is very populous and very rich, with a multitude of pro- vinces and kingdoms and cities without number, under one sovereign, who is called the Great Khan, which name signifies King of Kings, wliosc residence ' Toscanelli's theory as to the islands was founded, in ]iai-t at least, upon information derived from tlic liook of Marco Polo, uliicli proves, if an J* proof wore neces.sary, the extent of the inlhienco of that work in connection with the various circumstances which led up to the discovery of the Western Hemisphere, the outlying portions whereof were first discovered by Columbus. 2 Zayton, Zaitun, the great mcdi;(>val port of China. Now called Chang-chow. See ante, pp. 23, 24. 6 I \ >. \ ': ,' I, i 82 Cabot's Discovery of North America is for the most part in the province of Cathay. . . . This country is worth seeking by the Latins, not only because great treasures may be obtained from it — gold, silver, and all sorts of jewels and spices — but on account of its learned men, philosophers, and skilled astrologers. . . . This for some sort of answer to his request, so far as haste and my occupations have allowed, ready in future to make further response to his royal Majesty as much as he may wish. Given at Florence, 25th June 1474.' ^ " From the city of Lisbon, due west, there are twenty-six spaces marked on the map, each of which contain two hundred and fifty miles, as far as the very great and splendid city of Quinsay.^ For it is a hundred miles in circumference and has ten bridges, and its name means City of Heaven, and many wonderful things are told about it, and about the multitude of its arts and revenues. This space is almost a third part of the whole sphere. That city^ is in the province of Manzi, or near the province of Cathay, in which land is the royal residence. But from the island of Antilia,* which )'ou know, to the very splendid island of Cipango,^ there are ten spaces. For that island abounds in gold, pearls, and precious stones, and they cover the temples and palaces with solid gold. So through the unknown parts of the route the stretches of sea to be traversed are not great. Many things might perhaps have been stated more clearly, but * Here ends the copy letter enclosed in Toscanelli's letter to Coluinl)us. 2 Kinsay (Kingsse, or Capitul), I'.f. the city now called Hangchau-fu. •' See anfcy p. 24. * See ante, p. 31 ; also pp. 43-53, ^ See anti\ p. 24. Cabot's Discovery ok North America 33 the royal 'liicli s in the lings but tter to lau-fu. i3. one who duly considers what I have said will 1)g able to work out the rest for himself. Farewell, most esteemed one." Columbus also received another letter from Toscanelli, in which the latter says : "I have re- ceived your letters with the things which you sent me, for which I thank you very much. I regard as noble and grand your project of sailing from east to west, according to the indications furnished by the map which I sent you, and which would appear still more plainly upon a sphere. I am much pleased to see that I have been well understood, and that the voyage has become, not only possible, but certain, fraught with honour as it must be, and inestimal)le gain. . . . When that voyage shall be accomplished, it will be a voyage to powerful kingdoms, and to cities and provinces most wealthy and noble, abounding in all sorts of things most desired by us ; I mean with all kinds of spices and jewels in great abundance." . . . Mr. Henry Harrisse^ says : "A letter lately brouQ;ht to liolit shows that Toscanelli's notions were current in Italy, and that the news of the discovery achieved by Columbus was considered as a confirmation of the theories of the Florentine astronomer. It is a dispatch from Hercules d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, addressed to his ambassador at Florence, as follows : ' Messer JManfredo : In- tendendo Nuy, che il quondam INIastro Paulo dal Pozo a Thoscanella medico fece nota (juando il viveva de alcune Insule trovate in Ispagna, che pare siano quelle medcsime che al presente sono state ri trovate per aduisi che se hanuo de quelle 1 P. 44. %■ 84 Cabot's Discovery of North America ])ande, siamo venuti in desiderio de vedere dictc note, se lo e possibile. Et perb volemo, clie troviate incontinenti vno Mastro Ludovico, Nepote de esse quondam ]Mastro Paulo, al quale pare rimanesseno li libri suoi in bono parte ed maxime questi et che lo pregiati strectamente per nostra parte chel voglia e.ssere contento de darvi una nota a punctino de tuto quello chel se trova havere apresso lui de queste Insulc, perclie ne riceveremo piacere assai et ge ne restaremo obligati, et havuta che la haverite, ce la mandareti incontenenti. Ma vsati diligcntia per havere bene ogni cosa a compimento di quello lo ha sicome desideramo. Ferrarie, 2G Junis 1494.' — 'Mr. Manfredo : As we have just heard that the late Paul dal Pozzo Toscanelli, a physician, penned in his lifetime a note concerning several islands found in Spain (sic), which it seems are the same which have been rediscovered (accord- ing to news received from there), we desire, if possible, to see said notes. That is the reason why we want you to find immediately one Mr. Ludovico, who is a nephew of the late Mr. Paul, and who appears to have inherited most of his books, and particularly those notes. We also wish you to rei^uest him on our part to give you an exact list of all he has with him concerning those islands ; for we should be happy to obtain it, and shall l^e thankful for the favour. And do you, as soon as you are in possession of it, send the same at once. But do not fail to do everything in your power to get from him all that he has ; for such is our desire. — Fcrrara, June 2Gth, 1494.' " It will thus be seen that all the circumstances warrant our recognition of Toscanelli's theory — Cabot's Discovery or North Amkrica 85 20 for, after all, it was only a theory — as one of tlie most potent factors associated with the events that occurred during the lifetime of Columl)Us. Tos- canelli's support led Columbus to insist on the practicability of a voyage over the storm-tossed ocean, the paths of which were yet unknown. And, in like manner, it would be unfair entirely to ignore, in connection with the good work performed by John Cabot, the originator of the map or chart upon which were shown the oceanic paths — the parallels of latitude — which, if followed, Toscanelli asserted, would lead the explorers to the lands of the Grand Khan, " to cities and provinces most wealthy and noble, abounding . . . with all kinds of spices and jewels in great abundance," in other words, to the golden lands of their day-dreams. Again, in connection with the developments of evolutionary fancies and beliefs, and the practical application of the ideas which preceded and led up to the Great Discovery, we should not forget the marvellous work of that intelligent pioneer of the golden age of exploration. Prince Henry of Portugal, to whom nautical science owes so much, of whom his country is so justly proud. The Rev. M. Harvey, LL.D., of St. John's, Newfoundland, in a paper on the Cabot voyages, speaks as follows of this period : " The narrow strip of earth consisting of parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, on which history had hitherto transacted itself, was suspected not to be the whole. The Portuguese led the way in the new career of discovery. Away down the African coast their daring mariners crept, passing Cape Bojador," — the fearful outstretcher, as the name signifies, — " which had barred the way for twenty years, penc- .8; ■l! ! , Ul 1!^ m I 1 li It 86 Cahot's DisrovERv of North America trating the dreaded torrid zone, crossing the line, losing sight of the North Polar 8tar, and gazing in rapture on the Southern Cross and the luminaries of another hemis])here, till at length Bartholomew Diaz discovered^ the Cape of Good Hope in 1 18G, thus opening a new way to the shores of India. The earth was continually widening in man's view. What new discoveries might not the aljysses of ocean yet disclose ! " But, above all, in the past history of the Italian I'epublics, there appears an influence of paramount importance, among the many influences which directly or indirectly led to the discovery of the Western Hemisphere. This is the marvellous spread of learnino' which was due to the Italian renaissance.^ The great struggle for the supremacy of the Mediter- ranean, which had been waged for a long period of time, had been the means of j)roducing among the men of the maritime republics of Italy, some of the most intrepid sailors the world had ever seen. The wealth produced by the vast and increasing com- merce of Venice, of Genoa, and of Florence had gradually created a taste for classical learning, for the fine arts, for architectural splendour, and for eastern luxuries. The founders of the Italian renaissance ^ Histoiy Homev.'liat iei)eiiLs itself in tliis naiTiUion. This is roaiJy a record of a re-discorcru of llie ('ai)e l^aiid, now called "The Cape of Good Hope" (anti', pp. 3, 4). Bartholomew Colunilnis took part in the important and successful expedition of Diaz. 2 Tlie term " renaissance " or " renascence " lias been used in tlie sense that it denotes a period of time — a state of transition — during which an intellectual wave gradually spread over Europe, the first appearance of which can be traced to tlie Italian republics. In its truest sense the term contains a suggestion or metaphor of re-birth, as applied to the new growth of knowledge after a long jieriod of intellectual torpor ; in other words, we may use it to describe the re- juvenation of ancient art and of ancient learning. Gamut's Discovery of North America S; developed new instincts and roused men's minds from a long lethargy, which, in the end, not only led Italians of all classes towards a study of the works of ancient and contemporary writers, but also prompted them to inquire into and criticise the truths and theories contained in those works. It was a period of transition, somewhat difficult to be included between any given chronological dates. In the pagan past, Europe belicld a noble civilisation, first in republican, later in imperial, Rome, and prior to that an even nobler development when Greece was in her prime. Then came the fall of the Roman Empire, and the terrible story of Roman provinces overrun by hordes of men — Goths, Visi- goths, Vandals, and Iluns — who were merely in the upper status of barbarism. Ruin and desolation marked the progress of these destroyers of the grand and of the beautiful. The Roman territories were left in possession of men who were complete strangers to the arts and sciences which had been patronised by the Romans. It has })een truly said that from this period Europe may be described as having commenced a second inftmcy, and that a long period elapsed before any substantial intellectual advance was made. The buried seed of learning remained a long time underground ; tlic young sapling that came forth had to endure many hard- ships, many cold blasts, many checks to its growth ; the tree of knowledoe was slow in arrivino; at maturity. It was only natural that the revival of classical literature, in the middle of the fifteenth century, should spring up in modern Italy. The Italians of all classes had long been accustomed to view with wonder and ever-increasinof interest the i 88 Cauot's Discovery oi- North Amkrica numerous monuments of classical antujuity which had not been swept away by the waves of barbarism, l^rom the early part of the fifteenth century the signs of a considerable advance in learning may l)o clearly traced. The approach of more enlightened times was heralded in a variety of ways. One of the most important helps which culture received consisted in the recovery and preservation of many manuscript works of ancient Roman and Greek writers, some of which had been left to perish in out-of-the-way places. Among some of the works which were thus rescued was a copy of Quintilian, iu most excellent preservation ; the three first books, and part of the fourth, of the Argonantics of Valerius Flaccus ; and several of the orations of Cicero. Cardinal Giordano Orsini purchased of Nicholas of Treves, a German monk, a complete copy of Plautus. Various persons volunteered to go into other countries in quest of hidden literary treasures. In the year 1423, Auris})a, who had visited Constantinople and other places, arrived in Venice with no fewer than two hundred and thirty- eiglit manuscripts, including all the works of Plato, of Xenophon, the histories of l)io, and of Diodorus Siculus, the poems of Pindar, of Callimachus, of Oppian, of those attributed to Orpheus, the geo- graphy of Strabo, etc. In the year 1427 a further addition was made upon the return of Filelfo to Italy. From this period we are enabled to trace the oj'igin of some of the splendid Italian libraries with their vast stores of ancient literary works. ^ ^ Niccolo Niccoli, a learned man of this period, succeeded in making a large collection of ancient manuscripts, which included about eight hundred volumes of Roman, Greek, and Oriental writings. Cai'.ot's OiscovKkv oi' North Amkrua 89 Tlius wu.s gradually prodiued an ainl)ition to excel ly ill literaiy [)ur.suits. One ot" the results of a stu( of the historical past was the creation of a taste for the possession of the productions of the fine arts among the various classes. Trom ancient art they recjuisitioned the most precious remains for the purposes of ornamentation ; modern art, the out- come of the new learning, yielded pictures, statues, busts, vases, and artistic productions of every kind. A renewed accpiaintance with the great stores of Gieciau literatiirc was one of the most important factors which operated as an impetus to the advanced studies of the Italians, and opened the way for a variety of researches. In the year 1453, the Turks, under the command of Mahomet ir., succeeded in capturing Constantinople, till then the capital of the Eastern Empire and the home of Greek civilisation. The encouragement hitherto given to Greek pro- fessors to settle in Florence now induced a large number of learned Greeks to seek Italian hospitality. A kind of rivalry, of the better kind, sprang up between the Greek' and Italian professors. The facilities which the newly-discovered art of printing gave for the diffusion of knowledge, became a marvellous help to the cause of letters. The Italian printing-presses became very active. Niccoli died in 14.36, and by liis will btHjiioathed his library to the use of tlie pul)lic. Oni' of the curators of his will, ('osino de Medici, managed to obtain the sole direction of the manuscripts, which he deposited in the Dominican monastery of S. Marco, at Floreni'c. This collection was the origin of the celebrated Bibliotheca Marciana in Florence. ' Cardinal Bassarion, a Greek by Ijirtli, was one of the disputants on behalf of the doctrines of Plato. In the year 1468, Bassarion be- friended the cause of literature, by a magniticent gift of ancient (ireek and Latin manuscripts, which lie deposited in the church of S. Mark, in Venice, for the puldic use. Il 'I 90 Caijot's Discovery of North America I 1^ ;^ B ■ t I'^l .u . As against one hundred and forty-one books, the total number known to have becL printed in England before the end of the fifteenth century, there had been produced in Venice alone two thousand eight liundred and thirty-five. Jn the course of time new ideas, founded upon reason, became current, which had the effect of destroying old limitations as to the unrevealed secrets of nature — of the pliysical world ; and it destroyed many illusions and many super- stitions, founded upon theological fictions, as to the geography of the earth. The revival of learning had an important eflcct on navigation ; it gave an impulse to the sciences connected therewith ; it corrected many errors in a,ncieiit maps ; and it spread before the inipiisitive and incj^uiring minds of that period, the outlines of a new cosmography. The practical application of the compass to the navigation of vessels, and an improvement of the astrolabe,^ to- gether with an increase of astronomical knowledge, had enabled nautical men to extend their voyages to distant parts of the ocean. As the art of printing made progress, l)Ooks ])ecame more common through- out Europe. Latin classics slowly awakened tlie faculties of the better classes and of the most intelligent men of the principal European nation- alities ; an intellectual change of front eventually ^ "Astrolabes, designed for the determination of time and geo- grajilucal latitudes l)y meridian altitudes, and capable of being enipioyed at sea, underwent gradual improvement from the time that the astrolabuim of the Majoricau pilots was in use, which is described V>y Raymond Lully in 1295, in his Arte cle iiavccjar, till the invention of the instrument made by Martin Behaim in 1484, at Jiisbon, and which was, perhaps, only a simplification of the meteoroscope of his friend Regiomontanus." — Huniboklt, Cosmos, Otte's trans., vol. ii. pp. 630, 631. The arace and elegance of Greek and imaginative o Cabot's Discovery of North Amkrica 91 became an accomplished fact. Very slowly, however, did progress extend its influences ; prejudice, which is ever difficult to conquer, is both blind and deaf when any attemi)t is made to disturb existing and implicit ideas ; the vast majority of mankind in all countries and in all ages atl'ord no active sympathy with originality of thought, and rarely, if ever, lend a helping hand to seekers after truth. Gradually, notwithstandinct all obstructions, whether natural or artificial, the imperturbable march of progress acted upon the common mind, and men were im- perceptibly drawn towards fact instead of myth, one of the many results of recognising the necessity of searching for a higher knowledge. After a time sound views commenced to supplant some of the dogmatic subtleties of theology, and much of the darkness which had long envelo})cd men's visicm began to disperse. Then England, which, owing probably to her insular positiou, had remained in the rear of intellectual activity, came under the influence and the awakening power of the new learning. Thus the common mind was opened and enlarged, and prepared for the investigation of new hypotheses, and for the reception of new truths ; and eventually the eyes of all men were turned towards the Western Ocean with one common object in view, namely, the discovery of lands beyond the horizon. And herein, as in other nuitters, it was the unexpected that happcjied. • •••••• Never, perhaps, in the history of the deeds most pregnantfor humanity, has it happened that an achieve- ment like Cabot's has l)een relegated to comjiarative obscurity for several centuries. When we consider 92 Cabot's Discovery of North America the surpassing results and the wide-spreading con- sequences of Cabot's discovery, we cannot be surprised at the pride which every citizen of Bristol feels in the fact that Bristol sent the Genoese forth on his perilous enterprise. There cannot be a doubt that Bristol townsmen were the principals who supplied the means for the hazardous undertaking. The Bristol men who accompanied Cabot were described in a letter, written after the result of the voyage had become known, as " great mariners that now know where to go " {infra, p. 150) ; and this tells us plainly that some of them, at least, were men of great nautical intelligence. We find, moreover, that they had " placed their fortunes^ with him " [i.e. with Cabot] {infra, p. 148). Their share in the arduous undertaking cannot be overrated, and to their courage and devotion we should render unstinted praise. It must, therefore, be a source of unalloyed satisfaction to the citizens of Bristol to know that their towns- men in the reign of Henry the Seventh w^ere among the pioneers in the desire for discovery, which was one of the first-fruits of the Renaissance ; that the enterprise of the men of the period had made their town and port a formidable rival to London ; and that the adventurous spirit, which was so characteristic of the age, culminated in a suitable and appropriate triumph when land was first sighted from the deck of the little Matthew, and the continent of North America was first revealed to Europeans. And further, from distant climes the thoughts of men will be turned towards Bristol, in kindly sympathy with the eftbrts of the citizens to * This might mean their chances of surviving the risks of the voyage, It Cabot's Discovery of North America 93 suitably commemorate/ in June 1897, the quater- centenary of an event in which Bristol played such an important part— alike conspicuous and honourable — which has been aptly described as " Bristol's greatest achievement." And in honouring the memory of the worthy John Cabot, they will pass at the same time a well-deserved tribute of gratitude and respect to the zeal, courage, and perseverance of their own folk of the fifteenth century. At the same time, a famous exploit which forms a grand feature in one of the most important epochs of the world's history, cannot be treated as a merely local epi- sode ; it is an event of national and international importance. 1 The commemoration will be celebrated at Bristol by the erection on the summit of Brandon Hill of a 8(iiuire tower adapted from a well- known example in the Department of the Loire in France. At the stages of the balconies there will be arched openings which will form " look-outs." The floor of the upper balconv will lie 75 feet from the base, and an octagonal addition of 30 feet will make the total height about 105 feet. At the base provision will be made for tlie insertion of panels with bronze bas-reliefs. It is intended that suitable in- scriptions will be made, one of which will be fitted in 1)v Americans residing m England, and another bv the Peace Society. " • I i CHAPTER 111 The petition to King Henry vii. asking him to grant letters-patent unto John Cabot and his tliree sons "to seek out, discover, and find whatsoever islands, countries, regions, or provinces of the Heathens and Infidels, in whatsoever part of the world they be, which before this time have been unknown to all Christians," is, so far as we know up to the present time, the earliest document which in any way relates to the discovery of North America by John Caljot. !' ■• i / [Copy Petition] " To the Kyng our souvereigne lord, — " Please it your highnes of your most noble and haboiindant grace to graunt vnto John Cabotto Citizen of Venes [Venice], Lewes Sel)astyan and Sancto his sonnys your gracious letters-patentes vnder your grete scale in due forme to be made according to the tenour hereafter ensuying. And they shall during their lyves pray to God for the prosperous continuance of your most noble and royall astate long to enduer." The above very quaint petition, the original of which was written in English, has been slightly altered by the expansion of a few contracted words. 94 Cabot's Discovery of North America 95 The petition bears no date, but from the following entry in the Roll of the Privy Seal for March, 2 Henry vii., it will be seen that it was delivered to the chancellor to be acted upon on the 5th of March [1496]. '* M'^ qd quinto die Marcii Anno rr Henr septimi vndecimo ista billa delibat fuit (Jno Cane Angt apud Westiii exequend." 1^ The letters-patent granted by King Henry vii. to John Cabot and his three sons, in accordance \vith the prayer of the petition, were witnessed " by the King at Westminster, on the 5th day of March, in the eleventh year of his reign." Henry vii. ascended the throne " by just title of inheritance, and by the sure judgment of God, who had given him the victory over his enemy in the field " on the 22nd of August 1485 ; consequently the eleventh regnal year commenced on the 22nd of August 1495,^ and ended on the 21st of August 149G. The date of the letters-patent is therefore the 5th March 1495-G. A copy of the petition precedes the copy of the letters -patent in the lloll of the Privy Seal. The following is a copy of the king's grant of ' Tlieve is a curious historical incident in connection witli this (hue. Ininiediately after the king's accession to the tlirone he obtained from a servile Parliament authority to attaint a number of nobk'men and gentlemen for lieing guilty of higli treason, a conviction for wliich involved the confiscation of tlieir estates to tlie king. He wanted money : he was unscrupulous. None of the persons charged could possiljly be convicted of the oll'ence, having regard to the date of the king's accession. He therefore antedated his reign l)y one day, and the bills for attainder recited that "on the 21st day of August, the first year of the reign of our sovereign lord," certain persons did a certain act. The 21st of August was the eve of the luittle of Bosworth, at which time the crown was on tlie head of Kichard. i':ii (.)6 Cabot's Discovery of North America ifi: letters -patent for the discovery of hitherto un- known lands. Having regard to its great his- torical importance, it has been thought desirable to give it first in the exact words, and then in a translation : — 9: Oini])3 ad quos "ti sattm Notum sit It manifes- tum qd dedinr it concessim*^ ac p fJsentes dam'-^ l concedini*^ p nob it heredib3 firis dilcis nob Johi Cabotto Cui Venecia^ ac Ludouico Sebestiano 1 Sancto filiis dci Johis it eo^ ac cuiustt eo^ heredib3 1 deputatis plenam ac libam auctoritatem facultatem 1 potestatem nauigandi ad oiiies partes regiones 1 sinus maris Orientalis occidentalis it Scptemtrionalis sub banneriis vexillis it insigniis nris cum quinq, nauib^ siue nauigiis cuiuscumq^ portiture it quali- tatis existant 1 cum tot 1 tantis nautis ■> hoib^ quot It quantis in dcis nauib'; secum duce voluint suis T: eo^ ppriis sumptib^ 1 expensis ad inuenieiid" dis- cooperienct it inuestiganct quascumq., Insulas prias regiones siue puincias gentiliu it infideliu quo^cumq, in quacumq, parte mundi positas que xpianis omib^ ante hec tempora fuerunt incognite. Concessim*^ eciam ei.sden 1 eo^ cuitt eo^ q^ It cuiustt eo^ heredib5 It deputatis ac licenciam dedim*^ affigendi ^dcas ban- nerias nras 1 insignia in quacumq, villa oppido Castro Insula seu tra firma a se nouit inuentis et qd ^noiati Johes 1 filii eiusdem seu heredes It eo^dem deputati quascumq^ huiusmodi villas Castra Oppida't Insulas a se inuentas que subiugari occupari l possideri possint subiugare occupare it possidere valeant tanq"m vasalli nri "t Gubnatores locatenentes "H- deputati eaxdem itnium titulum "t iurisdiccoem eo^dem villa^ Castro^ Oppido^ Insula^ ac tre firme sic inuento^ nof) acquirendo Ita tame vt ex oiiiib^ fruetib3 pficuis 1 r tro^ nof) cuis Cabot's Discovery of North America 97 emolumentis comodis lucris 't obuencoib^ ex liuius- modi nauigacoe puenieiitib3 pfati Joties "t filii ac lieredes "t eo^ deputati teneant'" t sint obligati 110b p ouii viagio suo tociens quociens ad portum urm Bristrollie applicuerint ad quern omiuo applicare teneant'" "t sint astricti deductis omib3 sumptibj T; impensis necessariis p eosdem factis quintam partem tociiis capitalis kicri sui fci sine in nicib3 sine in pceuniis psolue dantes nos "t conccdentes eisdem suisq3 heredib5 "t deputatis vt ah omi sohicoe custuma^ oim 1 singido^ bono- ac niciu quas secum reportarint ab illis locis sic nouit inuentis libi sint "t Inimunes. Et insup dedim"^ "t concessim'^ eisdem ac siiis hercdil)^ ^i deputates qd tre omes firme Insule ville Oppida Castra "t loca quecumcj^ a se inuenta quotquot ab eis inuenire contigit non possint ab aliis quibusuis nris subditis frequentari sen visitari absq^ licencia ^dco^ Jotiis 1 eius filio^ suo^ q,, deputator^ sub pena amissionis tarn nauiii siue nauigio^ q"m bono^ oim quojjqumq, ad ea loca sic inuenta nauig-arc |)sumenciu volentes 1 strictissime mandantes omib^ 1 sinjjlis nris subditis tarn in tra q"m in mare constitutis vt pfato Joni it eius filiis ac deputatis bonam assistenciam faciant 1 tam marin- andis nauib^ sen nauigiis q'"'m in puisione 0metar 1 victualiu p sua pecunia emendo^ atq, alia^ oim rc^ s* puidendp dca nauigacoe sumend suos oiiics fauores 1 auxilia imparcianf In cuius '^c." [Translation] *' Tiie king, etc., to all to whom these presents shall come, greetinfr : " Let it be known and made manifest that we 7 98 Cabot's Discovery of North America have given and conceded, and by tliese presents do give and concede, for us and our heirs, to our well- beloved John Ca])ot, citizen of Venice, and to Lewis, Sebastian, and Sanctus, sons of the said John, and to the heirs and assiijns of them, and to the heirs and assigns of each of them and their deputies, full and free authority, faculty and power of navigating to all parts, countries, and seas of the east, west, and north, ^ under our banners, Hags, and ensigns, with five ships or vessels of what burden or quality soever they be, and with as many mariners or men as they will have with them in the said ships, upon their own proper costs and charges ; to seek out, discover, and find whatsoever islands, countries, regions, or provinces of the heathens or infidels, in whatever part of the world they be, which before this time have been unknown to all Christians. " We also concede to them and each of them, and to their heirs and assigns, and their deputies, and we give licence to fly the said our banners and ensigns on wdiatever towns, cities, camps, islands, or mainlands may be newly found by them. " And the before-named John and his sons, their heirs and assigns, may occupy and possess whatever towns, camps, cities, or islands may be discovered by them ; that they may be al)le to conquer, occupy, and possess, as our vassals and governors, lieutenants or deputies, acquiring for us the dominion, title, and ^ It should lie borne in mind, when we come to consider the northerly and westerly courses taken by Cabot, that he — and the King of England also — knew that both the S])auish and Portuguese aniV)assadors would be watching every detail of his voyage with the greatest interest. The southern seas, in whicli each of those powers had long since acquired the right to certain possessions by their occu- pation thereof, were, therefore, expressly excluded when this charter was drawn up. igiiese ;h the owers occu- larter Cabot's Discovkrv or North America 99 jurisdiction over these towns, camps, islands, und mainliuids so discovered. " Providing that the said Jolm and Ids sons, their heirs and assigns, and their deputies, sliall be bound and under obligation to us, from all the fruits, profits, emoluments, advantages, gains, and incomes acci'uing from this voyage, for every their voyage, as often as they shall arrive at our port of Bristol (at the which port they shall be bound and holden to arrive), to deduct a fifth part of the whole capital, whether in goods or in money, for our use. " We give and concede to them, their heirs and assigns and deputies, that they shall be free from all payments of customs on all and singular the goods i and merchandise that they may luring from those newly-discovered places. "And we further give and concede to them, their heirs and assigns, and their deputies, that all main- lands, islands, cities, towns, camps, and other places, whatsoever by them discovered, shall not be fre- quented or visited ])y any others of our subjects without the licence of the said John and his sons,^ or of their heirs and assigns, on pain of for- ' In the papal bull dated in 1493, the pope grants to the Spanii^h Crown all the regions and lands " found in tlie West Ocean Sea by the navigation of the Spaniards," "under the pain of the scntenci; of excommunication . . . tliat they [i.f. other persons] in no case presume, without si)ecial licence of you, your heirs and successors, « to travail for merchandise ... to the said lands or islands." The words in the papal bull, such as, for example, " lands and islands . . . hitherto unknown, . . . with their dominions, territories, cities, castles, rivers, places, and villages," bear a suspicious resemblance to some oi those used in the letters-patent. It is quite possible that the i)aj)al bull had been read by the scribe who drew up the letters-})atent, or a copy of it may have been actually before him for the jiurpose of gain- ing assistance therefrom. f. 100 Cabot's Discovery of North America feiting, as well the ships or vessels as all the goods whatsoever. " We further will and strictly command all and singular our subjects, as well by land as by sea, that they shall render good assistance to the afore- said John, his sons, their heirs and assigns ; and that they shall give them all favour and help, as well in arming their ships or vessels, as in supplying them with stores and victuals paid for by their money." The words in the petition, whi(;h suggest that the letters -patent should "be made according to the tenour hereafter ensuing," most certainly point to the conclusion that there had Ijcen negotiations between Cabot and the king as to the terms, and that the petition was drawn up at a time when the form of the letters-patent had been definitely settled. With all the frankness of conscious merit, w4th all the eloquence enthusiasm could bring to his assist- ance would the intrepid navigator place his proposals before the king, in the full hope that the monarch would treat him fairly and grant him favourable terms. But Cabot was dealing with an unscrupulous money-graljber.^ Henry the Seventh was a man of great ability, but so fond of money and so wholly devoted to its cares, so reserved in matters involving considerations of finance, that he never, or rarely, 1 The Milanese Envoy in London, Rainiondo de Soncino, in a letter dated September 4, 1497, addressed to Ludovic Sforza, Duke of Milan, refers to tlie accumulation of money bv King Henry vii. as follows : — " I am informed that he has upwards of six millions of gold, and it is said that he puts by annually five hundred thousand ducats, which is of easy accomplishment, for liis revenue is great and real ; . . . nor does he spend anything." i (i Cabot's Discovery of North America ioi )ds arrived at quick decisions ; lience it has been said of him, that only on very rare occasions was he able to convince his subordinates that he was acting in a straightforward manner. However, in a variety of ways he showed remarkable proofs of his al)ility and industry, and tenacity of purpose. On the one hand, he not only realised the importance of commerce and the necessity for keeping the navy in a sound condition, but did all in his power to obtain trading concessions from the kings and rulers of other countries, as the result of which the English merchants, particularly those of Bristol, derived great advantages. On the other hand, his avarice induced him to fleece his subjects, particularly the merchants, with the most unsparing rigour.^ The j^eriod was one of unwonted activity and enterprise in com- mercial adventures. It was gradually dawning on the minds of men that there was room for improvement in the system which allowed each towm or community the privilege of exclusive trading — of trading, that is, in which no *' outsider "^ might participate. It may be affirmed that in the reign of Henry the Seventh the upl^reak of exclusive trading was begun, 5:1 'iiig * 111 1498 Don Pedro de Ayala, the Spanish Ambassador, wrote to their Catholic Majesties, Ferdinand and Isabella, as follows : — " The custom-house revenues, as well as the land rents, diminish every day. As far as the customs are concerned, the reason of their decrease is to be sought in tlie decay of commerce, caused partly by the wars, but much more by the additional duties im])osed by the kin{T. There is, however, another reason for the decrease of trade, that is to say, the impoverislimeut of the people by the great taxes laid on Lhem. The king himself said to me that it is his intention to kcej) his subjects low, because riches would make them haughty." 2 By "outsider" was meant all persons not actually eitlier (y lis l)rotlicr, Bartholoincw, to ImioIuikI to niako an offer of his servi(!L'S to King Jlcnry. Ilakluyt ^ refors to the ofTer by C'lnistoplier Cohinilju.s to King Henry vii. in the year 1488 the 13 of Feliniary : " Witii tlie King's acceptance of the offer, and the eaune wherenpon lie was deprived of the same : recorded in the tliirteenth chaptei- of tlie his- tory of Don Fernan(h) Colunil)Us (;f the life and deeds of his father Christopher Columbns, Christopher Colnni])iis, fearing lest, if the King of Castile in like manner (as the King of Portugal had done) sliould not condescend unto liis enterprise, he should be inforced to offer the same again to some other prince ; and so much time should be spent therein, sent into Enghmd a certain brother of liis which he had with him, whose name was Bartholomew Columbus, who, albeit he had not the Latin tongue, yet nevertheless was a man of experience and skilful in sea causes, and could xQiy well make sea-cards and globes, and other instruments belonging to the profession, as he was instructed by his brother. Whereupon, after that, Bartholomew Columbus was departed for England, his luck was to fall into the hands of pirates, which spoiled him with the rest of them which were in the ship which he went in. Upon which occasion, and by reason of his povert}' and sicknesse which cruelly assaulted him in a country so far distant from his friends, he deferred his ambassage for a lono; while, until such time as he had gotten somewhat handsome about him with making of sea-cards. At lenoth he beo-an to deale with King Henry vii. unto whom he presented a mappe of the worlde, wherein these verses were 'Vol. iii., oditimi of IHOO. lOJ. Cadot's Discovery of North America ;il' I!' written, which I found among his papers, and I will here set them downe, rather for their antiquity than for their goodnesse — ' Tliou wliicli desirest easily tlie coast of land to know, This comely niap]ie right learnedly tlie same to thee will shew : Which Straho,^ Plinie, Ptoloiuey and Isodore maintaine : Yet for all that they do not all in one accord reniaine. Here also is set downe the late discovered burning zone By Portingals, nnto the world which whilom was unknown, Whereof the knowledge now at length thorow all the world is blown.'" In a recent English publication^ appear the following references to Columbus's offer to King Henry the Seventh : — " On his way to England ^ he [Bartholomew Columbus] was taken by pirates and made by them to labour as a slave, and when he escaped and reached London, he was first so ill and then so poor as to be unable to press his brother's (.esigns upon the King until 1488. In the interval he supported himself by making charts and globes, and, on being at length introduced to King Henry, 1 Here we have evidence that the views of the ancient writers had been closelv studied. 2 Traill's Social England, vol. ii. p. 495. ^ It apjK'ars that Bartholomew CoIuuiImis, who, having regard to his great nautical experience, is considered b}^ many to have been in no way inferior to his brother, sailed with the intention of landing in Bristol, on his way to London to interview King Henry vii. " It was natural enough that Bartholomew should first set out for Bristol, where old shipmates and acquaintances were sure to be found. . . . On the way he was captured Ijy pirates (Fiske, vol. i. p. 404). Some writers have come to the conclusion that it is extremely likely that some of the Bristol men of the ])eri()d had some personal knowleilge of Christopher himself, an idea w hich api)ears to have originated from a belief that in his voyage to Iceland, he (Christopher) either calletl at nr started from Bristol, or returned thither at the conclusion of his voyage. Sir Clements Markham says : " Canynge [a Bristol merchant] lost a vessel of 100 tons on the Iceland coast, and in 1477 Columbus himself learnt from English sailors uf Bristol the management of au ocean voyage, when he visited Ultima Thule." \i m Caijot's Discovery of North America 105 the d to |ou ill iig in "It istol, On oine that of )m a 1 at liis ant] ubus f an n he presented his majesty with a map of the world/ The King listened to Columlnis's plans, and readily promised to assist in carrying them out ; but delays supervened, and ere Bartholomew was in a posi- tion to carry a definite commission to his brother Christopher, the latter had not only obtained the co- o[)eration of Spain, but had actually accomplished his first voyage and made his great discovery. The news of this naturally created great stir in all the seaports of Europe, and induced Giovanni Caboto [John Cabot], . . . who had long been .settled at Bristol^ and who was already ftivourably known to Henry, to make application to the King for encouragement to attempt further discoveries to tlie westward, and espe- cially to look for a nortJi-west jxismge to India.'"^ With regard to the statement that John Cabot " had hniix been settled at Bristol and who was already known to Henry," the following extract from A History of Neivfoundland, by L. A. Anspach, p. 25, seems to show that it is not entirely without confirmation: — "The Venetians had factories in the different towns and cities of the northern kingdom, and agents wherever tliey deemed it advantageous to preserve an intercourse. John Gabota or Cabot, . . . was employed in that ' This would probably be a map which included information founded on the theory of Toscanolli {ante, p, 80). King Henry would, tlierefore, have been in possession of some knowledge of the subject prior to Cabot's aiijilication for the grant of the letters-])at<'nf. -This statement must be accepted witli caution and reserve. It may or may not l)e correct. la the absence of any written contem- jMirary rec(jrd, it is impossible to fix a ])recise date, either for liis arrival in England or for his first arrival in IJristol. •"'The popular and .miierally acci-pted idiM that .Tohn Cabot sailed from I'ristol for the purpose of tiiidiiig "a norlh-WL-st passage to India" rests on no foundation whatever. '^ M Hi'' -i»^ io6 Cabot's Discovery of North America , ! 1 ■ if !' iii % \.>, * ;l capacity at Bristol ; he had long resided in England, and a succesRful negocintion in which he had l)een em- ployed in the year 1495, with the Court of Denmark, respecting some interruptions which the merchants of Bristol had suffered in their trade to Scotland, had ])een the means of introducing him to Henry vii." j\Ir. Henry Harrisse, in ' splendid work on the Cabots (London, 189(5), sr . "Englishmen having killed the Governor of Iceland in a riot, King Christian i. embargoed four British vessels laden with valuable merchandise. As Edward iv. made no reply to the complaints of the Danish monarch, the latter allowed the cargoes to be sold. This bro light about an open war between the two nations. ... It is possible, therefore, that John Cabot may have been engaged by Bristol ship- owners to prosecute their claims in 1495." Of course this is a mere matter of detail which may not he capable of strict proof; but it is beyond doubt that immense wealth was accumulated by the merchants of Bristol in connection with the trade carried on 1>etween that port and Iceland and the Northern Seas. "In 1450, we find ])y a treaty with Christian, King of Denmark (Rymer, tom ii. p. 264), three places prohibited us [English] from trading to, namely, Iceland, ' Halgeoland,' and Finmark"; this treaty, however, was " disjiensed with in fsivour of Canynges (Foedera, torn xi. p. 277), the Danish King allowing Canynges in consideration of the great debt due to him [Canynges] from his [the king's] subjects of Iceland and Finmark, to lade certain English ships with mcrchnndize for those prohibited places, and there to lade tish and other ii ME RICA 11 England, d l)een em- * Denmark, merchants )tland, had iry VII." ork on the en having :-iot, King seLs laden IV. made monarch, old. This the two that John stol ship- ^95." Of hieh may is beyond ed by the the trade '. and the Christian, )4), three iding to, rk"; this ftivour of 3 Danish 1 of the his [the , to lade br those nd other 1'^ h !: \., I iii ' I I ! I DlS' r ,-*t IS'-OVl- : ^ I ■'■:C:n i:u\ *"l • !!* ■ ■nrx vj) /, . , , r '' '•■' ■ ' '■ ' ^ ^Vi..rk I!, lI:c ■'•1^ 'r'ult'f! in i>;*M ,;, ;■ I ."f 'j*.v !!■ , N ; . , t,T, ,..,1, ,,j I J-, 'I'M ;. 'MM;i'iM i ' . : '•i; n.t trMji^-' -i! '• -■!• r ji '• ''i'"'^ !.'t;i' Jo!mi, '- ''•• '^1^ ii 1)1,* y '■'. ^'o^|.,I 'rr '<:■: M ) » ll^tfMl'K. I U '""'- ' "*'■ '• I', ''?'• \ i, :.hT\ I- • .1 '' !•■; ni:i,.Mv Ills \'.'a l;;s irl^e I ■ . -(H, r«^ 'M.,'e A ui:kica vCfl (Mli- •i •rh 1'!. l\:c n , ;>,;rcl,, -t."i -hip- :'^. ■ Or '•H•i8^l..la, ;'. V'Kir of f.> ' 'M ' !,; ST. MAKV l;i:i>t I.ll I- r|ll.l;( II. |;|;|-,r()|, (NoKin vii:\V; |V7,,. Ill„-I,.tti.,„ ,- /„/,,„ /,■„,„ ,, /,7,„i- /,„„;/„ /, „, ,,„ M,.,,|, \n, 1^ ,^ ,.,, ^ ,,, ',;,,,,,,, I ( 1" I ) ' 1 ! ' ii ifi I Ii I i Cai?ot's Discovery of North America 107 goods in return : wherefore during his mayoralty of Bristol, l)ecauso Canyngcs had done good service unto the King ; he allowed the same to be done for two years to come in two ships " (Price's Canyngcs Family, pp. 100, 101). Altliough the evidence is not conclusive, there is yet a probability that the British merchants, in the reign of Henry vil., may have selected John Cabot for employment as their agent or factor abroad to look after their interests. It appears to be true that not only the Venetians, but the EuQ-lish also had recognised rijrents or factors abroad, for we find that King Henry vi. sent letters of commendation to the magistrates of Dantzic praying themto favour his factors established within their juris- diction, and to advance the interests of " his beloved eminent merchant of Bristol " [William Canynges].^ a ]ji'ist()l inorcliant, one of the richest Englisli and Edward iv. Duriii'' the ' AVilliam Canyn^'e^ niorcliaiit in the reigns of Henry vi. reign of Edward iv., William Canynges was comiielkd, as one of the rieliest nierchants, to lend the king 30U0 marks. According to Wyr- cestre, p. 09, "Canynge employed SOU men for eiglit years; and his ships included Le Murk CW /(//",'/, 400 tons ; Le Marie Rediiiv6, ^)Q0 )* Le Marie ((ml Joltan, SJUO,t which had cost him 4000 marks ; Lc Galhjnte, M; Le Katerinc, 140; Le Marie Baft, 220; Le Manjarct of Tylnay, 200 ; hesidc-f a nhip lust in Iceland of 160 tona burthen." Barrett t says : "On the Hoor of the chancel [of St. Mary Redclitf] * Named after the beautiful Church of St. Mary RedclifT, in Bristol. Canynge devoted a large portion of his wealth to the com- pletion of the Church of St. ^lary RedclifF, of which nolile edifice the architectural details were designeil upon a style of cathedral magnitude. The church is rich in tifteenth century associations, and among its monuments will be found one erected to the meuKU'v of .John Jay, whose family name is associated with the first recorded voyage in (piest of the island of Brasil, A nte, p. oS. t There is reason to believe that the actual burthen is not here rej>resented. It has been suggested that the measurements show the ;utual caVi'ying capacity as re]iresented liy "tuns" of Spanish wine. It is impijssilile, however, to come to auv certain conclusion. t Hi.'^forij of BriMol, ]>. .586. io8 Cabot's Discovery of North America VI \ ^j ^i The inevitable " fisli story" Imving cropped up in connection with tlie Cabot history, it may be as well to give it a little passing attention. In the church of St. Mary Redcliff, according to Britton, the historian, there " is an object of popular curi- osity, traditionally called a rib of the noted Dun- Cow, slain })y Guy, Earl of Warwick ; ])ut it is more likely to be tlie rib of a whale, or of some other monstrous fish ! " (sic). A variant of the story, told by many of the " old parishioners," described the *' curiosity " as a rib of the " Dun-Cow " — it is desir- able to be very precise in giving the details when matters of importance are involved — which supplied milk to the men who built the church. Another is a large black marble stone with brass curiously laid in, and engraved wil.h (be figures of a man and woman, witli six sons underneatb tbe man and eiglit daugbters under tbe woman, witb ibe following inscrip- tion : — 'Ilic jacet Jobannes Jay (luondam vicoconies istius villa', et Joanna uxor ejus ; qui quidem Jobannes, obiit die 15 mensis Mail, A.D. 1480, ([uorum animabus ])ropitietur Deus, Amen.' Tins Jobn Jay was a mercliant of great eminence, as ajtpears by ^Villiam of Wyrcester, p. 2G7, and Joanna was sister to William of Wyrcester." In tbe year 14r)(]-57, William Canynge avus mayor, W'illiam Daine was sberill", and Henry Cbester and Joliu Jay, senior, were bailitfs. In tbe year 1458-59 Jobn Jay, junior, was one of tbe bailills of Bristol, In tbe year 1472-73, Jobn Jay was sberilf. The Jay family appear to bave been connected witb tbe parisb of St. ilary Reddiir.* Jobn Jay, whose will, dated 13tb April 1468, was * This church is one of the favourite visiting places for American and Canadian visitors to England. It contains a memorial of Sir William Penu, knight, the father of William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania. Dr. Justin Winsor, the American historian, who visited tbe church many years since, made tbe following entry about the Pemis in the visitors' book : — " When Admiral Penu died, the English Ciovernment voted him a large sum for his service; and when this was paid to his heirs, and a grant of land was made to bis son, the Quaker William Penn, the latter, in settling in tbe country, named it, as he himself says, in memory of his father, Pennsylvania.— Justin Winsor, librarian of Harvard University." The admiral's armour and the tattered remains of some Dutch flags taken by him in a naval engage- ERICA 'opped up Qiay be as In the ) Britton, ulur curi- Dted Dun- it is more >me other tory, told ribed the t is desir- ails when L supplied Another I I i*r •♦a'- I '1 '(i ^^ , ,>^! ,nd engmved ilerneatli the ,ving inscrip- ius villas, et nen.sis Maii, liM John Jay f WyrcesLer, In the year I sherifl", and II the year itol. In the -lie parish of ril 1468, was U ¥ •Ml .<. --^ I.I h " ! h. ' ^ I II M, )r American orial of Sir founder of who visited ' about the the Englisli len this was the Quaker ed it, as he tin Winsor, ur and the ,val engii ige- 1 -m Mt ■p^» io8 ( vH';:i to t:^i' chun.'li r';ni. ' ■' ' } - i nuliti: (.-Viw, .-1,1 in fiv liktvlv t'» !t».. 'i'^ MiV^I I'l.W ol' a \vli.'i,i< ^il ■V.V" ■ ■■<' < nior!? f.n"^h. Ajk.' M"' 1. : ' i . ; ,. ■-.,(!; cri,! ^Vl,! ■ -, v\ it.l • '■'Hi. I''' Hy.y'.' ei'l- , '|i'' •ul'i-'Ji, ■ :' ■ '■ ■■ ■ ■■■■ -^ ':..- ' -: .,' ■. ■ . . ■ ;■, ,. .,. ■..-. kV Wm hlr..:. . ., , (■:Rr' \ r ' 'H T) .in- mi- ni'', otht orv toi () ■I Ih {"Sir- I v tl'*.' yen.' ■1 i' ^ !'..! ■Wi.-i (i il. rt.-i IHV :A -he '«"£,' m fi 1^1 1:( H 1 1 R!ii li Cabot's Discovi-.uv oi- Nc^rtii Amkkica 109 Viiriant, whicli u foviucr sexton implicitly liclicvod in and invarial)!)' re[)L'atcMl to tlu; visitors to the churcli, associated the "curiosity" with a cow which, in ancient times, supplied the whole of the jjarish with niilk. But in hite years it has been seriously related to visitors to the church that the " curiosity " is a relic of a Cabot voyage. In a recent issue of a Bristol newspaper it was stated that the tradition as to the rib of the Dun-Cow slain by Guy, Earl of Warwick, "has k»ng been exploded," and that a belief was now current that this "bone" belonged to " a bisr fish ! brought across the seas at the exact time of the discovery of the American continent." proved ut Bristol "before Roltort Jakys, mayor, ."uid .lolin Ilnper, sliurifr, oil Wednesday in the feast of St. Margaret \'irgin, 8 Edward IV.— (liat is, the 13tli July MG8— desired to lie luiried in tin; elioir of the jiarish church of St. Mary Hedclifl', to which churcli. I'oi' his Imrial, he gave xx^, and to the vicar for tithes, vi^ viii''." \niong the be- quests, his sons John and Henry to have his .share of the ship called " Triidte."* Testator a])pointetl his son John to be the executor, and one of the overseers of the will was testutui's brother John. It is exceedingly ditlicult to trace the pedigree of the Jay family, in con.se- (|uence of the name of John having been given '■) several members of the same family. In the " good old times," wlu in consenuence of the absence of projjer .sanitary arrangements, and the almost entire ignor- ance of medical science, life was a glorious uncertainty, it was a matter of fre([Ut;nt occurrence for persons who wished to perpetuate a parti- cular nanu', to give it to more than one child in the .same faiinly. nient may yet be seen in the church. The church is associated with the unfortunate Thomas Chatterton, whose father was the sextoTi. The boy had access to the muniment room, and a .study of the writing in the ancient deeds enabled him to concoct the Rowley forgeries. Rowley, described as a monk who, (Jhatterton alleged, was the intimate friend of C'anynge, was altogether an imaginary person. There are seven oltl chests yet remaining in the muniment room, but the MSS. have dis- appeared. The chests show traces of great antiquity, and are now in a state of decay. Chatterton described the church as "the piide of Rrystowe and the westerne lande." * "Item volot legoduobus tiliis meis Johanni t Henrico partem meam de naui que vocatur Trim'te " (.biy's will). This may have been the ship which made the attempt, in 148U, to find the mythical i.slaudof Brasil. - y 1 ' i •i! l!> M !■' yi 11 I lo Cahot's Discox'kky of North Amkrica In the Dictionarif of Bi'istol, p. 100, we find the following : " Dun-Cow, the rib in St. Mary Rcdclitf Church, on the left luind of the western entranee. It is a rilj of the cow-whale, which was placed in the church in 1497, and is sujoposed to have been pre- sented by Sebastian Cabot to the corporation as a trophy of his enterprise in discovering Newfoundland." The association of the whale's rib with the Cabot voyage is due to the appearance, in the Bristol Observer, February 8th, 1868, of an entry — which purported to have Ijeen taken from an old book — as follows: — " 1497. Pd for settynge upp ye bone of ye bigge fyshe and [writing illegible] liys w^orke brote over seas, vid. For two rings of iron, iiijd." ^ Search has been made for tlie purpose of verifying the statement, but the original entry has not as yet been discovered. It appears that on the 21st January 149G, forty days before the date of the grant of the letters- patent, the Spanish Ambassador in London made a communication as to John Cabot to their Catholic Majesties, Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. Searches have been made for this letter, but as yet no trace of it has been discovered. The following reply of their Catliolic JMajesties to their Ambassador, Ruy Gonzales de I'ucbhi, dated 28th of :March 149r),2 has been copied from the Jean et Sebastian Cabot of H. Harrisse, p. 315. " Quanto a lo que desis que alhi es yda uno como colon para poner al Rey de ynglaterra en otro * St. Mary Redd i IF Church is not mentioned in the entry. '■^ Tliia letter was aiiparently received about twcnty-lhree days after the grant of the letters-patont. ICA iiid the RcdclitF ice. It in the en pre- )n as a (Hand." ! Cabot Bristol —which )ok — as 3one of worke iiijd." ^ 3rifying : as yet / I 1^ ii I: G, forty letters- made a Catholic Searches lo trace 'cply of )r, Ruy 90,2 ijas hbot of '•^i', 'n: -*«''*,i^ 4 t ) 1 Gl' .'k [10 como ;n otro y. hviic (lavs I II; I In tb<; Die':. chuiTii ifj ( ':»7 -t';^ • ' -.^ .^K' a\ Kid ' ' ■ , • f. • ;..jf, . . ;. ■■- h!i" I vcnt'\ i.^ (t. 0>! I- :■. • ( . uf'cr M- ; I . iv; ) . ) . ii >^ -1 • V '^ ■•*, t ,• :' c t ' - \i: lil ' - MB 1; ! i'l ■ I'.-i,. f , : . iM''i llli: I'r.W MIM'iKlM. IN >1, M\|;Y IM.In 1,1 1 1 i II I ll' II •iB V- i » I s ■ 1 Cabot's Discovery of North America hi uegocio como el de las yiidias syn perjuysio tie espafui 111 di portogal sy asy le aciule a el como a nosotros lo de las yndias ])ien librado estara crehemos que esto sera echadiso del Key de fraiicia por poner en esto al Rey de ynglateira para le apartar de otros negocios mirad que procureis que en esto ny enlo semejante no ilesciba engafio el Rey de ynglaterra que por quantas partes pudieren trabajaran los franceses de gelo liazer y estos cosas semejantes son cosas muy ynciertas y tales que para agora no eonviene enteiider en ellas y tanbien mirad que aquellas^ . . . no se puedc entender en esto syn pcrguisio nuestro o del Rey de portogal. " Tortosa, a 28 de Marzo de 1496." [Translation] "You write that a person like Columl)us lias come to England for the purpose of persuading the king to enter into an undertakint"' similar to that of the Indies, without prejudice to Spain and Portugal. He is quite at liberty. But we believe that this undertaking was thrown in the way of the King of England by the King of France, with the premeditated intention of distracting him from his other business. Take care that the Kino; of Enojland be not deceived in this or in any other matter. The French^ will ' Simanciis, Estado ; CapitulacioneA von fiKildlirrajha^^. 2", f"l. ](!'■'. 2 In all probability the King of France had iutiniated his intention not to be bound by the papal bull. There is evidence that his suc- cessor, Francis i., asked by what right the kings of Sjiain and of I'or- tugal undertook to monopolise the earth? "Had our first father Adam made them his sole heirs?" And he naively suggested that it would be necessary to produce a rojjy of Adam's will ! Pending the production of this interesting document, "he should feel at liberty to seize ui>on all he could get," ;t1 m ir.i '( V 112 Cajjdt's Discovery ok North America try as hard as they can to lead him into such un- dertakings, but they are very unpleasant enterprises, and must not be gone into at present. Besides, they cannot be executed without prejudice to us and to the King of Portugal. ^ '' Tortosa, 28th of March UDG." • ••••*• Ruy Gonzales de Puebla was a doctor of laws, whom Ferdinand and Isabella sent to Henry vii., in 1488, to negotiate the marriage of Catherine of Aragon with Arthur, Prince of AVales, He came to England a second time about 1494, as Spanish Aml)assador, and represented not only Castile and Aragon, but also the pope and the emperor until 1509, when he died.- Puebla was well known to the Genoese residents in London, and it is recorded that he accepted bribes from some Genoese mer- chants for using his influence with Henry vii. in order to obtain a remission of certain fines that had been imposed.^ Puebla's knowledge of the Genoese resident in London should be borne in mind in giving consideration to the facts which go to prove 1 This is, of course, a reference to the claims of Portugal and Spain by virtue of the i)apal bulls, etc. 2 Harrisse, p. 14. 3 It may l)e worth while to mention here that, in cases of jiiracy by persons l)elonging to any of the Southern nations, which involved loss to English merchants or shipowners, the merciiants of the part i- cidar nationality by whose men the wrong had been inflicted, who ha})pened to be residing in London, were mulcted in penalties with a view to stoj) the jjractice of piracy. Thus, for example, the Genoese merchants of London were tini'd and committed to prison in conse- quence of the spoliation by (Jenoese of a large vessel belonging to Robert Sturmye, a merchant of Bristol (Fabyan's Clironiile). The Robert Sturmye who is referred to in the Chronicle is ])robably the merchant of that name who was shijnvrecked at Modon, on the Greek coast, in a ship of Bristol called the C(ipanisli lie and ii- until own to 3corded ic mer- VII. in lat had 'Genoese nd in prove v!i(l Spain of jTiracy involved tlie parli- ted, who s witli a (Jenouse ni consu- )nging to f). The •ably the I he Greek with IGO le;- that John Cabot was a Genoese by birth. In a sub- sequent despatch from Puebla to their Catholic Majesties/ he described Cabot as *' another Genoese like Columbus." It should be remembered also that Puebla was a Spaniard, and that his letter was written to the Spanish sovereigns. It is a fair in- ference that Puebla believed that John Cabot was a Genoese by birth, and it is not at all improbable that he derived his l)elief either from the king or his officials, or from Cabot himself, or, what is very likely, from the gossip of the Genoese colony. John Cabot's proceedings would naturally have become a topic of conversation both at Court and among the Italians resident in London. We have evidence as to Puebla's intercourse with the Genoese merchants ; it is also a well-established fact that he attended the C'ourt of King Henry vii. in his official capacity of Ambassador to their Catholic Majesties of Spain, and that he sometimes dined with the luim. It is clear that he frequently availed himself of his otHcial position to join the king's table. On one occasion King Henry " asked his courtiers if they knew the reason why De Puebla was coming. They answered, ' To eat,'" and the kino; lauo-hed." ^ Although the letters-patent of King Henry vii. Ijear date the 5tli March 1495-9G, for some inexplic- able reason the expedition was not embarked upon until the following year. Whether the delay arose in consequence of any diplomatic difficulty connected with the rights which, legally or ilh^gally, were ' Infra, p. 159. - He was regarded at Court as a man who wa> of a very par.^imo- nious disposition, so far as money was concerned. ^ Hf'port of LondoFio, Nos. 204, 207. 8 mi "Hi t ■I ; I*: '.' ■; I.?; liJ 114 Cabot's Discovery of North America claimed by the sovereigns of Spain and Portugal under the papal bull ; ^ or whether it was caused by unforeseen difticulties of a financial or other kind ; or whether it was merely that there was not sufficient time to make preparations for a voyage in 1495-96, — will in all probability ever remain unexplained. It should be borne in mind that an important factor in the calculation of those connected with the arduous undertaking would be the value and the possible loss of the ship or ships in which the in- trepid explorators were to navigate the " Sea of Darkness." Leaving these conjectural matters, we now come to the important reality, namely, tliat .lohn Cabot set sail in the Matthew (or Matlicw), of ' King Hi'iirv vir. was descended from a sou nf John of Claunt and Catherine Swynford. At a very early age lie was initiated into the mysteries of theology, and he soon realised the advan- tages which the spiritual teaching would afford him. He thus fully comprehended the effect which a pajial dispensation would have upon the popular mind. He made a pretence that he had conscientious scruples as to the lawfulness of his marriage with the Princess Elizabeth, eldest daughter of Edward iv., the authority for which had been given by the Bishop of Imola, papal legate, and asked the pope himself to personally confirm the dispensation. This the pope assented to, and, what is more, he, at the request of the king, confirmed the Act of Settlement jiassed l)y Parliament, and put an interpretation on that Act. According to the ])ai>al definition, the Act should read that if Queen Elizabeth should die without issue before the king, or if the issue should not outlive the king, then in that case the Crown should pass to Henry's children (if any) of a sub- se(|Uont marriage. Sentence of excommunication was to be given against any ])ersou who should dare to cpiestion the po])e's interpreta- tion. And the same sentence was thundered forth against all who should disobey the papal bull which dixided all the newly-found lands, etc., between Spain and Portugal. But the wily Henry was not in fear of the supposed damnation which, in the popular mind, would be the fate of a person who disobeyed a papal Inill. Accordingly, in- asmuch as there was a chance of getting money out of Cabot's proposal, he very suon saw his way to ignore the papal bull, under which any ])erson was to be excommunicated who interfered with the jiope's division of the newlv-found lands. Cabot's Discovery of North America 115 :ugal a by 1; or cient 3-96, lined, factor 1 the il the le iu- 5ea of rs, we , that nv), of )f (Jaunt initiated a aclvan- He thus n would lie liad with the lority for :fate, and m. This he king, put 040. A brlefe Chronycle conteyning tlie accompte of the Keynes of all the K}'nges in this realme of England, fnmi the entering of Brutus until this ])resent yeere (1595),''^ with the names of all the Mayors, Stcwardes, Baylilies, and Sheritfes of Biistow (by Maurice Toby). " Aut()gra})h Miinuscri[)t, from the library of Sir Francis Fust, folio. ' "Literature, and all tin- lilu'ral arts, had in Mr. Pigott a iimiiiti- cent jiatrun. No one ])aid with niDre jironipt lilii-ralily every variety of talent. Ho del'ghted to ]iatrnnize jiaiiiler.s, sculiitori^, engravers, and many other bi'anclies of art."— Bath ami ('htltenhain (Unettc. • A printer'- error for l^G'', I of P40. the lul, .'ere (les, '}')■ Sir Cabot's Discovery of North America 121 *^* "This most valualJe chronicle will enaljle any future Historian of Bristol to correct the errors of his predecessors. The Preface commences, ' Mau- rice Toby, Gent., the Author of this Chronicle, to the Reader.' A modern Collation of its statement of Facts, with the Histories of Barrett and Seyer, will be sold with this Volume." Mr. Thomas Kerslake, a well-known Bristol bookseller and antiquarian, became the purchaser of this lot. A copy of tlie catalogue of the sale is in the possession of Mr. Ernest E. Baker, F.S.A., of Weston-super-Mare, and against lot 2040, there is written in the margin in pencil (in the handwriting of the late Mr. Henry Bush of Bristol), "Kerslake, £11, 5s. Od." ; also the words "ends with Queen Mary, 15G5." Upon application being made to Messrs. Sotheby, Wilkinson, & Hodge, for corroboration of the anno- tation in Mr. Baker's catalogue as to the name of the purchaser of lot 2040, the following reply came : — " 13 Wellinc.ton Street, Strand, London, AV.C, Sep. 28, 189«. " Deak Sill, — All our cataloo-uos containinij: the record of our sales (except those of the last 10 years) are now at the British ]\fuseum : we regret, there- fore, that we are unable to give you the information you rerpiire. (Jur C;italogue can be seen there, or probably one of the OlUcials in the Library department w'ould give you the amount the lot realised, — Yours faithfully, " SoTHEBY, Wilkinson, & Hoimje." In response to an a})plication, Dr. R. (Jarnett, C.B., of the British Museum, has kindly sent the , 1 i .■ { - i 4 i ■5P""" u V* -I 122 Cabot's Discovery of North America following information : — '" The price and purchaser of the ]\I8. Chronicle, accorilinii; to the annotated copy of Messrs. iSotheby's catalogue in the Museum, are the same as those stated in Mr. Baker's copy of the catalogue — Kerslake, £11, 5s." The "Chronicle" was burnt in the disastrous fire which occured at Mr. Kerslake's shop in Park Street, Bristol, February 14, 18G0, when many rare and uni(|ue volumes and manuscripts then perished, but the excerpta or "collations" happily escaped. The following extracts have been taivcn from an account in the Bristol Time's ami FcUx Farley's Journal, of Saturday, February 18, 18G0, under the heading, " Destructive Fire in Park Street." "j\Ir. Kerslake's stock of books, JMSS., etc., is known to everyone almost as one of the most valualde and extensive in the country, out of London. . . . The door of the private r'umi in which were the accumulated treasures of Mr. Kers- lake's life had been ln-okcn open and a few of the treasures removed, but the devouring ek^ment soon seized upon the rest, and they became a heap of ashes." About ten vears after the fire, the volume of the excer)»ta or collations wa;; })urchascd of ]\Ir. Kerslake by J\lr. William George, of Bristol, and is still in his possession. CHAPTER IV i "Thus it came to pass tliat early in May 1407, a little vessel called the Matt/wiv, of the caravel class, most likely, sailed out of the port of Bristol and turned her prow towards the West. . . . Never was a voyage of discovery, the consequences of which were so far-reaching, entered upon with less pomp and circumstance. Without flourish of trum])ets or any outward demonstrations, Caljot and his English sailors sailed away into the ur.known waste of waters. What dangers they encountered ; through what storms they passed ; wliat fears and alarms they conquered ; wliat feelings gladdened their hearts at the close — of all these we know nothing. No diary of the voyage has been preserved." These words have been taken from Rev. M. Harvey's paper on the Cabot voyages, l)ecause they truly represent the scarcity of material whicli the historian lias t<> guide him in dealini!; with tliis mcmoraljle adventure. Referring to the two chronicles, the one known to Barrett, and the Fust ^18., Mr. Harvey remarks as follows: — *' Botli of these ancient records agree as to the date of the discovery of the land, and the name of the ship, and both ignore the discoverer whose genius and courage pointed tlie way which so many thousands have since followed. Such, too often, is fame among contemporaries. 12;{ After genera- I M if h ^g— BBf I if ::• 124 CAiior'b Discovery of North America tions recoti;nise the merits of orreat men, but too frequently the prophets arc stoned or treated with bitter contempt in their own day." In the MS. Fust or Toby Clironicle it is stated that the Matthew " came home again the Gth of August" [1497]. This date may be fairly received as the correct one, in the absence of any contra- dictory evidence to merit our attention. It receives some confirmation from an entry, dated 10th August [1497], in the Remembrancer's office, in connection with the privy ])urse ex[tenses of the king, in which it is recorded that the king on that day gave £10 " To hym that foundc the New Isle " (British .Museum, additional MSS., No. 7099, 12 Hen. VII. fol. 41). It may be assumed that after his arrival in Bristol, Cabot lost no time in making his way to the king's Court ^ with a view to ac([uaint the king with tlie result of his voyage, and tlierefore we naturally find him at Court four days after his return from his voyage. It appears from contem- porary evidence 2 that the king was greatly pleased with John Cabot's report of iiis discovery, and that negotiations were at once commenced for another expedition, to start early in the following year. John Cabot's arrival must have caused much pleasurable excitement, not only at the king's Court, but in all grades and classes of society — from tlie higliest to the lowest. To the king it would point to accessions, both of power and wealth ^ The king, (in August 10, ajti rs to Ii.iVf l>ot'n at Wo.stniin.• uf S«i,i' Arih- Sovidij, xxv. p. ii. !•. (>1. '^ In/ni, i>. 140. io- it itilth Cabot's Discovery ok North America 125 in the near future, for it was popularly believed that His Majesty had " gained a part of Asia without a stroke of the sword " ; ' by merchants and traders the adventure would be regarded as a harbinccr of voyages to the promised hinds, where gold and gems and aromatic .'^pices would be found, with an early i)rospect of making " London a greater place for spices than Alexandria " ; ^ to others, again, of his Majesty's subjects, it might seem that their day-dreams of those pleasant islands in the Western Ocean would soon be realised. Amijassadors and others became interested in the reports of the voyage. Raimondo de ►Soncino wrote to the Duke of Milan, with a lono" account of what he had been told by John Caljot, who is descriljed in the despatch as '•a po[)uhir Veneti.'in " ;^ and TiOrenzo Pasqualigo, a native of \'enice, in a letter to his brothers, informed them that great honour was paid to (Jabot, who " is called the great admiral ; . . . he dresses in silk, and these English run after him like insane peo])le." * Tarducci, writing with reference to Caljot after his arrival in England from his successful venture, says : *' John Cabot's return seems to have wonder- full}- stirred and warmed up the cold nature of the English. He returned with the announcement that he had landed in the (Irand Khan's empire, and was naturally believed l)y everyl»ody. This announce- ment meant that he had opened the treasures of all wealth to thoir ships and conmierce. . . . They called him ' High Admiral/ the king pi'cmiised him a fleet for a new expedition in the fine season, and the principal merchants of Jjristol vied to take part in it. p. 1 50. |.. 140. ;r M rl: m \ I 'I't. ! P 126 Cabot's Discovery of North America These honours seem to have gone a little to his head, for he put on showy garments of silk ; and in his confidenee that he had discovered extensive regions, he invited his companions and friends to share in his fortune, bestowing islands and lands on some. Those selected for his generosity rejoiced in the greatness of their future honour, and lie in their midst esteemed himself a prince. Still, in this cheap vanity there is a good and l)eautiful side; it is to see that liis heart was not shut up with pride in the sentiment of his grandeur, l)ut gladly opened to share his hapi)iness with others." From a perusal of the contemporary letters it may be thought by some that the king may have made Cabot small presents, in addition to the recorded gift of £10.^ In all probability some negotiation took place between the king and the successful voyageur, for a settlement of any claim to wliich the latter might reasonably believe he was entitled under the letters-patent. From a perusal of con- temporary documents, it seems almost certain that no claim could arise in respect of any " goods and merchandise that they [the adventurers] may bring from those newly-discovered places " ; '-^ and Cabot derived no benefit in this way, either directly or indirectly, because we find that he merely brought l)ack with him " certain snares which had been set to catch game, and a needle for making nets." Nor gold, nor precious stones, nor merchandise of any kind came home with the adventurers — there was nothing of any value to be dealt witli. We are, therefore, left to consider any claim that might arise under the clause of the letters-patent, which seems ' This Kiiin represoiits in pvescnt value uliout £'l:i(i. - Ante, p. Of), Cabot's Discovery of North America 127 11 S(.'t Nor any was are, arise ■eems 90. to point out that no English subject wouKl lie allowed to visit the lands that might be discovered without the licence of the discoverers.^ Considering the hazy notions that existed as to what Cabot had discovered — beyond a belief that it was a part of Asia — or as to what its value really was ; considering, too, the vagneness of the language that describes the concession granted l)y the letters- patent, a lawyer of that or of any other j)eriod would sorely have been puzzled to state what the legal claim of Cabot actually was. Ultimately the king agreed to grant an annuity to John Cabot of £20 per annum, payable half-yearly out of the customs and subsidies due to the king from goods and mer- chandises brought into the port of Bristol. The (piestion arises. Why did the king ** for certain considerations, us [the kingj specially moviiig," arrange to pay Cabot an annual sum, which repre- sents ab(jut .£*J40 per year in present value ? Bearing in mind the fact that the arrangements for the pay- ment of the annuity were followed by the grant of new letters-patent in the name of J(.hn Cabot only, it may fairly be assumed that a final settlement had been come to between the king and Cabot, as to the claims of the latter nnder the first letters- patent, wliH'h, ] (resuming they did not ex})ire on the ending of the voyage, were completely i»ut an end to by the grant of the annuity or ])ension. And, in passing, we might ask, J.)oes not the absence of the names of John Cabot's sons, whether in connection with the gift of £10 or in the grant of the jumuity, justify us in regarding this as an additional aigument, i)erh{ips of a negative character, ' A, iff, p. JtJ). Ml liii w S'' ; 1 i , ' ■ ; \ 1 128 Cabot's Discovkuy ok North America af^ainst the probability of the presence of any of these sons in the memorable voyage of the Matthew ? The following is a copy of the document, dated December 13, 1497, by which John Cabot became entitled to an annuity of £20 per annum. " Henry, by the grace of God king of England and of France, and lord of Ireland — To the most reverend fadre in God, John Cardinal archiebisshop of Cantrebury prymate of all England and of the apostolique see legato our chaunccllor greting. — Wc late you wite that We for certaine considcracions us specially moevyng have geven and granted unto Welbilouved John Calbot [sic] of the parties of Venice an annuitie or anuel rent of twenty pounds sterling. To be had and yerely perceyued from the feast of thanunciacion of or lady last passed [the Feast of the Annunciation of our Lady last past, i.e. the 25th of March 1497] during our pleasur of our custumes and subsidies comying and growing in our Poort of Bristowe by thands of our custums tlier for the tyme beyng at Michelmas and Estre [Easter] by even porcions. Wherfor we wol [will] and charge you that vnder [under] our grete seal ye do make heruppon our Icttres-patent in god and effectuall forme. — Ycuen vndre [Given under] our Pryue Seal at o"" paloys [palace] of Westminster the xiijth day of Decembre, the xiijtii yere of our Reigne. " HORWOOD." (Public Record OfHce, Privy Seal, Dec. 13, Henry vii., No. 40.) It appears from a perusal of the following docu- ment that Cabot experienced some difficulty in obtaining payment of his annuity. Carot's Discovkrv of Nokt!i America 129 -Wc day 13, ocu- in Copy Warrant from Heiiiy vii., dated 'J2iid Fclnuary 1498, for the payment of John Cabot's pension. " Ileniy, l)y the grace of God, king of England and of Friincc and lord of Ireland. — To the Tresonrer and Chaubrelaines of ourc Esche(|uier grcting. — Whereas wc by oure warrant under oure signet for certain eonsideracions have gevcn and graunted unto John Cabootc xx li. [£20j yerely during oure pleasure to be had and prayved by the hands of our custumers in our poorte of Bristowe, and as we be enformed the said John Cabootc is delaied of his payemcnt because the said custumers have no sufficient matier of discharge for their indempnitie to be yolden at their aecompt before the Barons of our Eschequicr. Wlierefore we wol [will] and charge you that ye our said Tresourer and Chaubrelaines that now be and hereafter shal be that ye unto suche tymes as ye shall have from us otherwise in comandemcnt do to be levied in due fourme II. several tailles ever^ of them conteignyng x li. [£I0] upon the customers of oure said poorte of Bristowe at of the yere whereof oon taill this time conteignyng x li. of the revenues ni two usual termes to be levied at the revenues of oure said poort upon Richard Meryk ^ and Arthure ' Richard Meryk or Merryk, otherwise A' Mervk or A' Merryeke, was elected Sheriff of Bristol in l.W.l. lie died during his year of office, and Robert Thome succeedeil him. He [Merrick] was a very wealthy ni.an and bought several estates in Somerset, amongst others, the manor of Ashton Philips, near Bristol. His daughter and heiress, Johanna or Joan, married John Brooke, of Bristol, sergeantat-arms, who resided in Kedcliff Street, and was buried in St. Mary RedclilF Church, where there are brasses to the memory of himself and hia wife. David Brooke, I'ecorder of Bristol (1541), was his .son. Meryk was a very common name in Bristol at that period. In a Cau^e Book 9 .. \ I' I 'I 130 Cadot's Discovery ok Nr)KTn Amkkica Kemys^ late (nistuniers of the same. And tlie same tuill or tallies in due and sufficient fouime levied ye delyver unto the said John Caboote to he had of our gift by way of rewarde without prest or any other charge to be sette upon hym or any of them for the same. And thes our lettres shal be youre sufficient warrant in that behalf. — Geven undre on re prive seal at oure JManor of 8hene the xxii. day of February the xiii. yerc of oure reign, " BOLMAN." (Warrants for Issues of the llUh of Ilenry vii.) An important entry, recently discovered in the account of the collectors of the customs and subsidies due to the king at the port of Bristol, has been transcribed, and the following c(>i)y thereof is now puhlished for tJw first time. of the ancient Tolzey Court of Bristol (now in tlie possession of AMfrnmn V. F. Fox, of Jhistcd), wliidi contains a laigf niinilier of conten»i>oriirv names, " Uicliard Meryk" apjiears twice. He is once styled a merchant; and " Richard ap Aleryk," with no trade, occurs thrice. 1 By an indenture of covenant, dated 2G Hen. vi., that is, 1449- 50, lietween John Kemya and William Arthur, arrangements were made for a marriage lietwein Roger, the son of the saiil John, and Alice, daughter of tlie saiil William. Arthur Kemys " of Bedminster," son of Rodger Kemys, by his wife Alici-, daughter and heire of William Arthur, of Bedminster, Bristol, apjjeavs in a list of names referred to in the Visitation of Somerset, 1591 (Harleian MS., No. 1559, in British Museum). Arthur Kemys (great-grandson of the Arthur of Bed- minster) appears to have been living at the dale of visitation (1591). There is a Kemys aisle in St. Philip's Chui'ch in which "oon John Kemys, Esipiier," founded a chantrv, but the date is not recorded. The name of John Kemys, son and heir of John Kemys, deceased, appears in a grant of wardship, dated 10th March 148G, in respect of hiTid which John Kemys, deceased, held of the king in capite. In the will of Joan Forde, the widow of John Forde, deceased, which wa-j proved in the parish church of St. Mary Redcliff, Nov. 16, 1464, "a legacy was bciiueathcd to Isabel, wife of William Kemys, mercer." — liristd Wills, No. 2^0. t Cahot's Discovery or North Ameuica 131 (.f 1449- were 111, fiiul iistor," illiani 'ivd to Lh-itish Be.l- 1591). John I'ded. leased, |)ect of In 1 which 16, enivs, |oi"( It is u voiy interesting entry, and it seems to prove conclusively that he received a proportion (»t* his annuity of XiiO up to and inclusive of the 25th of INIarch 1498; eonse<<'], a \'enetian, late of the said town of Bristol for his annuity of £20 a year, granted to him by the said lord the king, by his letters-patent, to be taken at two terms of the year out of the customs and subsidies forthcoming and growing in the said port of the town of Bristol, to wit, for th(j term of the annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary happening within the time of this view, by an ac(|uittance of the said .lohn to be shown thereof ui)on this view, and remaining in the pos- session of the said collectors. . . ." [Note. — A full translation of the account in which the entry as to the payment to Cabot appears will be found in Appendix C. The account for the half- year immediately ju'cceding this account, in which the })ayment of the first moiety of the annuity would probably be found, cannot be discovered. Diligent search has been made for the subsequent accounts, but, so far, without success. The next entry of the account of the Bristol customs is for the 19 lien. VII., that is, a.u. 1504.] The following account will show who Kemys and ERICA Tt of the es to the oms and tlie feast I year of Ih up to h dny of noiety of whereof for their l»y them the said a year, , by his the year ing and 'istol, to Blessed lis view, shown he pos- n which ars will he half- 1 which mniiity overed. sequent e next for the ys and i \. > I f f 71 v-V C.r. /^V,J '^^ ^,y/^, fH i 'i5 fl it 1 i, 11 '' ^ "Si"'. . ♦ i: . , I' '"I ...<■■ > } .' : , < 'l|V "it w ]h . , ' -'--:, I'- 1... '■1.:. "'■ !i •• vvnr • • I ' 15 ■■r 'j s tv ' I ! \ . J « < ' I ■ vr T) tin' r«.ij- lll V * ».»• I I i } < I ^ ' i . I ' , . i I •| \i,- i • \t nr ^ I, t. I A , .1. It 'J wi!l '"?' t fi^ !i; collfclors of rii.>i(iiii.s al Uri^lol, tlic j^'oods lu-iu^' tlu; joint jiropiTly of Jolin and William, contrary to the jirovi.-iious of an Ai'L of I'ailiaiMi-nt. ll was from tin- naiiu' of a niunilx-r of tliis family tliat (.'liatl'Mloti liorrowcil his " monk Howlcii-." -This arran^'emcnt was made in itumiianco of an order of Kini^ Henry vr., which recites that "very many ptjrsons, residents of tins town aforesaid, have pnt divers customaMe ^'oods and merdiaiidi/es in Hhips and lioats, liy ni^dit and hy day, upon the water of Avon, runnin;^' through the middle of the town, and do carry thu same to foreign jiarts, we being snlitilcly defrauded of the customs thereof to u.s I'eliingiiig." Not only were the jd ices for shi|)s lo take goods in delined, liut it was ordered that all < iistomalile gooils, on piiiu of forfi^iture, were to he carried out of the town " in the daytiniL', hetmra tlh ri.^iiui iiii'l llii: !ueen Kli/.aheih, after reciting an ewaciiut nt a" lo ihe lime tor loading and unloadinj;, it isstaleil ihal iheipn-eii, having hei'ti informed thai the i.irl of Uri-lol (inh-jpI al -jiring tide.-) was Very dangerous, and delici.-nt in dcjiiii of waler, and lliat no gicit ship or vessel, heing laden with wares and merchandise, was aide to njiproacli >rlthin four idHk : that the sea there ijuickly I'hhed and tlowe(l, and thai each llou ing did not continue aliove live or si\ hour>, and not more than -i\ in days of spring tide, auiliorii \ was i.'iant'd for load- ing ainl unloading "al any time lietv.eon tlf hour- of four in the niortiing and eight in the oveiiing." H HI f^J 134 Cabot's Discovery of North Amkrica ! ^il ! I other goods, laden in tlic town aforesaid, and to take into your Iiands, as forfeited to us, all eustom- able goods and merchandises which shall happen to be loaded into ships elsewhere than at the said key, or the said i)lacc called the liackc, or at any other time than between the risino; and settin<»; of the sun, contrary to the form of the ordinance aforesaid, and to keep ill safe custody the same for our use, so that to us, for the forfeitures aforesaid, you may answer at our excluMjuer" (IJol. Tat. 1(! Ileii. viT. })art i. m. 9). The kiiiLis of England were entitled to certain customs and sul>sidies in respect of certain towns, of which Bristol was one, which were royal demesnes.^ Kino- Kdwiird i., much jigainst liis will, being com- pelled to bend before the storm, confirmetl the cele- brated charters, together with the statute, " De Tallagio iion concedendo," and from that period it was illegal for the king to make a seizure of wools, ' TIic town of ]5i'is(i)l, tof^'cllicr with tlio casllc, tlio wall**, rot tagp?, stalls, tol'ls, mills, luTils, Iaui|i,Mli!i' tolls, jilcas of coiiit, fairs, ami markets, wciv friMjiu'iillv K-ascd liy llic king, for the time lieiiig, to the ma\or and coiiimoiialiy of liii.-tnl. As an i\aiii|ilc, King licnrv vi. " coniiiiitttMl to our wi'll-lnlovtil Hugh \\'vili\ ford, Mayor of (Uir town of i5ristol,an(l to the commonalty of the sami' town, and their suc- cessors, the same town, with the suhurhs of the same, t'tc. t'ti., . . . to have and to hold the same, to him and his succeHsors, from the feast of St. Mil! ;el the Archangid, next hajipening, unto the end of twenty years next I'ollowing. . . . And that tlie same mayor and commonalty, ajid thidr succe;->ors, during the term aforesaid, shall have the same jirivilege-, pmtits, etc., ... as fully and enlindy as we should have liad them, if we had retained the said town in our hands." The mayor HUtl ciimmoiialty hound tliemsidves to pay the following yearly sums !iury, in ( dnuci'ster-hire, ,L'I I, Ids., for tithes of the town ; In iIk' i'riur of St. .Fames's, of iirisio], fur the annual I'cnl of the town mill, I'iJ : to ihe t'onslalde of Hristol and his ollicers . . . and to the l''orestei of Kingswood, t'3!), Ms. Tlie king also granted certain customs of Hristol tor goods coming hy land or water, except ({•'/()/, Italhti' iiitil iroolf'Us. %i. Caiioi's Discovkrv of North America 135 to [\w vy VI. ii >\VI1 1' suc- r frast w I- Illy iiiilty, same llilVf iiiiyor sums ; to les of lit of antt'd skins, etc., or to take toll upon tlu'in witliout the assent of p.irliiinient. But, notwitlistanding the charters, etc., the parliaments were unable to re- strain the royal authority, and, at times, the kings resorted to various devices for the purpose of obtain- ing money. iLenry v. ohtnincd a gnint from the (tomnions of the tonntige and poundagt- for life. After the battle of Ji«)S\vorth, the }»;irliament, which was composed of servile tools of Jlenry vii., settled the tonnage and poundage on the king for life, adding a re(iuest or coudition that he should remedy his assum[)tion of the (trown by contracting a mar- riage with I'^lizabeth, the represent;. tive of the York familv. KiiiiX Henry vir., durino- the whole of his reign, was practically independent of parliamentary control, iuMsmuch as there never existed ;iny real restraint upon his conduct. Notwithstanding the existence of the limitations im[)oscd by the charters, etc., the exercise of the royal authority in matters of taxation was not properly safeguarded. The customs, or portions thei-eof, taken by the king at the ])ort of Bristol, were claimed to be a part of the iidieritancc of the crown, and conse(iuently were pnjbably re- garded as outside the sphere of parliamentary influ- ence. In the fourth year of his rciuii the kiny another connnission of same date, Arthur Kemuieys was a[)[)ointed collector of customs on tonnage and }»()undage in the port of the (own of Bristol, etc. h *i Withi'! a comparatively recent period the arch ives of foKign countries have heen found to contain some e.xec' lingly imj)ortant e\ idenee relating to the Voyages ot" I 11)7 and I41)S. The documents ha\e altered lln' whole coiin»lexion of .itlairs. in so far as (Ik'V lliiow li^hl upon I he services of .luhn iind ISehastian CmImiI in eoiiiK it ion with the two voyag«»s, and ;i-^ist us to foini an opinion as to the (onip;n'a- ' I'u'i. r diiti' Till .1 in 1 1H8, tliiT'' i-^ ;in entry i>f the pniiit nf a rt'waiil "f KM) m.irks to Artliiir Ki'iiiys. "in icrdinjicnpt' fur Iii losrcs in tile Kiii^"* vi> Niiiiiiis li.ittK's."'— I'fii. |>. 1. m. Ui ( 1 1). I Cafiot's Discovf.rv of North A^rF,RI^A 137 tivc n^ciiry of the father and tlie son. Ilcro and there among these writings we may detect a vcrl)iagc that makes it doubtful wliether John Cabot's own words arc exactly given by the authors ; we may detect language which merely ex[)resses some opinion or sonu' passing thought oi' the writer; yet, again, some of the details may have been derived from rumour or from gossip; but, on the wh(tie, having regard to the certainty that they are original and authentic documents, beyond the sus[)i('ion of forgery of any kind whatsoever, the contents must be accepted as absolutely iirst-class evi«lence of the events and circumstances to which they severally refer. Besides, the st}lc of the narrations of these contem]»orary writers is of a cluiracter so uni({ue, and the narrations siied a light .so clear on details of iMi[)ortancc which were formerly in a state of gi'eat obscurity, that we ought to be exceedingly grateful to the gentlemen whose exertions have brought the documents to light. The etlect of the ])ublie;ition of th(!se documents, couple(l with tiie production of additional information lately exhumed from original records contained in the varit)us rolls ke{)t at the Public KiMMtrd OHiee in London, is that at the present time no history of the voyages of 1 t!)7 and 1 4I)H, or of either of them, which was pub- lished prior to the date of the discovery of the documents now about to be transcribed, can ban his fleet. The king has also given him money with which he may anuise himself until that time, and he is now at Piristol with his wife, who is also a Venetian, and with his sons. His name is John (albot (•*»''''), anil he is called the great atlmiral. (Jrcat honour is paid him; he dresses in silk, and these I'^nglish run after him like insane people, so that he can enlist as many of them as he [)leases, and a number of our own rogues'- besides. The discoverer of these pliices planted on this newly-found land a large (tross, with one Hag of i^^iiglaud and another of St. iMark^ on account of his })eing a A'enetian, so that (»ur biinner has floated very far atield." i* I This despatch contains a decisive record which will dispel all doubt — if, in do so must of necessity end in con- jecture. There can be very little doubt that Cabot saw two islands, because tlie Milanese envo)'. ' Kiiylaml is pfrliajis mtaiil, Imt thu writer would hasc liud till." ]inrt of I'li.stiil ill liis mind'ri eye, « /»//«, p 1..J. '' Infra, \<\k •2U2, ■2U:]. / ;: IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) 1.0 I.I ^^lllliM IIIII25 1.8 1.25 1.4 1.6 ^ 6" — ► ^ V] #*. O a e. VI (TA ^ c*; w -> o /a 7 /A Photographic Sciences Corporation 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14580 (716) 872-4503 4. iP V :\ iV \ ^\^ o^ :i 4 i ?; M J'i ' iJ';' Hi * 1 I 'i.i A 1 •, I, \' I I I' ■ i 152 Cai'.ot's Discovery of North America obtaining the ussistunce of skilful piluts — men wliose scientific knowletlge luid been supplemented by actual experience. Dr. Samuel Edward Dawson in his monograph on the Cabot voyages (pp. 51), (10), says : " There resided in London at that time a most intelligent Italian, Raimondo di Soncino, envoy of the Duke of ]\Iilan, Liidovico Sforza, one of those despots of the Renaissance who almost atoned for their treachery and cruelty by their thirst for knowledge and love of arts. Him Soncino kept informed of all matters going on at London, and specially concerning matters of cosmography, to which the duke was much devoted. From his letters we are enabled to retrace the momentous voyage of the little Mattheiv of Bristol across the western ocean — not the sunny region of steady trade-winds, by whose favouring iniiuence Columbus was wafted to his destination, but the boisterous reaches of the northern Atlantic — over that "still vexed sea" which shares with one or two others the reputation of being the most storm-tossed reo'ion in the world of ocean. Rassino- Ireland, he first shaped his course north, then, turn- ing westwards and having the pole star on his right hand, he wandered for a long time, and at length lie hit upon land. The letter indicates that, after he changed his course, his wandering was continuously westwards, in the same general direction, as far as the regions of the Tanais. . . . The land was good and the climate temperate, and Cabot intended on his next voyage, after occupying that place, to pro- ceed further westwards until he should arrive at the longitude of Jnpan, which island he thought to be south of his landfall and nenr the Equator. Tt I ' Cabot's Discovkry of North Amkrica 153 should be carefully noted that in all the eireuni- stanees on record, which are indisputably referable to this first voyage, nothing has been said of ice,' or of any notable extension of daylight. ... if anything unusual had existed in the length of the day it would have been at its maximum on midsummer day, June 24, the day he (Cabot) made land." Note. — Dr. Dawson's remarks have been specially selected for insertion here, because they lead up to what is probably the most important point in the history of the Cabot voyages of 1497 and 1498. Dr. Dawson's reference to the existence of ice, the length of the day, etc., refer to what purports to bo an account of the first voyage of John Cabot, that is, the voyage referred to in the letter of Raimondo di Soncino, dated December 18th, 1497, as it is described in a book, De Orhc Nova Decades, Decade iii. Cap. vi., by Pietro IMartire (Peter Maityr) of Anghiera, written in 1515.- It is now proposed to set out certain entries and documents which relate exclusively to the second voyage of John Cabot, that is, an expedition con- ' He (Sel)astiaii Cabot) "directed his course so far toward the North Pole, that even in the month of Jalij lie found monstrous heaj^s of ice swimming on the sea" (Peter Martyr's account, published in 1515, infra, p. 172). He (Sebastian Cabot) "set sail in the spring of the year, and they sailed westward till they came in sight of land, in 45 degrees of latitude towards the north, and then went straifht northwards until they came into 60 degrees of latitude, where the day is eighteen hours long, and the night is very clear and briglit. There they found tlie air cold, and great islands of ice" (Gahao's account, published in 1550, infra, p. 191). " He (Sebastian Cabot) relates how that, in the month of July, it was so cold, and there were such great pieces (jf ice, that he could get no fart her " ^^^ lomara's account, published in 1552, infra, ])p. 193, 1!)1). - Infra, p. 107. if' m i I li i 111 :}:l. ':(: H U'l I H ,1 !: 1 !! 154 Cabot's Discovery of North America sistiiig of five vessels wliicli left Bristol in 1498. As to the exact date of tlie departure of tlie ex- pedition, tlie only definite information we have is that it must have been at some time after March 1498, because we find that Cabot was in Bristol for the purpose of receiving the half- yearly payment of his annuity up to the Feast of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin (■25th March). The voyage of 1497 was apparently carried out without the slightest assistance in the way of financial aid from the king. It appears, however, that the second expedition was aided by the king to the extent of makino; certain i^ifts or loans towards the expenditure. The following entries relate to payments made under the head of the king's private expenses " 13 lien. 7. March 22. £ s. Itm to Lanslot Thirkill of Lond apon a Prest for his Shi])p going towards the new Ilande . . . 20 d. Itm delivft to Launcelot Thirkill o-oinnr towards the new He in Prest .20 Apr. 1. Itm to Tliomes Bradley and Launcelot Thij'kill o-oiiig to the new lie . 30 I ii d. Cabot's Discovery of North America 155 Apr. 1. 'To Jii Carter going to the Ncwc lie in revv" . . . . , 40 " (British jMuaeum Add. MS. No. 7099, fo. 45.)^ It does not follow from the above entries that all or any of the persons named went with the expedition. From a perusal of the following copy of the letters-patent it will be seen that John Cabot only is named therein ; having regard to what has been already said as to the legal effect of the clauses in the letters-patent previously granted to John Cabot and his three sons, it may be safely assumed that all rio'hts thereunder were at an end wlien the letters- patent, which are hereafter transcribed, were granted. So for as we have proceeded with the narrative, the name of Sebastian C*abot appears only in the first grant of letters-patent, in common with those of his two brotliers ; it may perhaps be desirable to repeat here that if we are to assume that Sebastian sailed witli his father in 1497, simply because his name appears in the letters-patent, then we must assume that the three sons wei'e witli tlusir father in tlie \'oyage made by him in the Matt/tew. And if the presence of their names in the letters-] )atent is to be accepted as evidence of their presence in tlie first voyage, then, by parity of reasoning, the absence of the names in the second letters-patent must equally l)e conclusive of their absence in the se(;on(l expedition. But surely, so far as the evidence goes, the presence or the (d)sence of any of th(^ sons ' Tliese amoiints represent a present value of (at a low oalculatinn) two sums of £210 ]iaid to Tliirldll, ,L':?0O to llradley and Tliirkill, and £24 to Carter. Tlie amounts jmid to Tliirkill were jirobaMy for the conijiulsory ]iurcliase, in oilier words, for tlie imijra'niiii nt, of his vessel or vessels (" I'rest niouey "). I mt- yr II ,♦ ■If. I \i:. Ill ' ,1 III ' I- y 156 Cabot's Discovery of North America must be treated as pure conjecture.^ Hereafter, we shall come to a consideration of statements in which the name of Sebastian appears, either witli or with- out his ftither, in such a way that it is suggested that he (Sebastian) did take an active part in the enter]3rise of 1497. Copy of the Petition of John Cabot for the grant of Letters- Patent for his Second Voyage. " To the Kinge,— " Pleas it your highncsse of yo"" moste noble and habundant g*ce to graunte to John Kabbatto Vene- ciam y'' g"cious tres patente in due fourme to be made Accordyng to the tenor hereafter ensuying. And he shall contynually praye to god for the '^ pseruacion of your moste noble and Roiall astate longe to endure." In the Roll of the Privy Seals for February 13, Henry vii., the following entry appears : — " M"^ qd tcio die ifebruarii Anno rr Ilenr septimi xiij° ista billa delitiata fuit dno Cane Angt apud AVestni exequend." In this roll the entry of the petition is followed by the following entry (in English) of the grant of the letters-patent to John Cabot on the 3rd of February 1498 :— " Rex to all men to whom thies psentis shall come send gretyng knowe ye that we of o"" g'\'e espall and for dyuers causis vs movyng we have gevcn and graunten and by thies psentes geve and graunte ^ This is tlie view tfikeu by the host authovitios on the history of the Ciibutiiiii voyages, naiiicly,- Mr. fl. TTarrisse, Dr. Dawson, ami Sir Clements Markhani. of 1 Cabot's Discovery of Nortif America 157 to o*" welbcloved John Kabote Venician sufiiciente auctorite and power that he l)y hymn his Deputie or Deputies sufficient may take at his pleasure vj englisshe Shippes in any Porte or Porte or other place within this our Realme of England or Obeisaunce so that and if the shippes be of the bourdeyn of cc tonnes or vnder w* their apparaill requisite and ne- cessarie for the saucconduct of the said ShippC And theym conuey and lede to the londe and lies of late founde by the seid John in oure name and by o"" '^ comaundmente Paying for theym and euy of theym as and if we sliuld in or for o"" owen cause paye and noon otherwise And that the seid John by hym his Deputie or Deputies sufiiciente maye take and Re- ceyve into the seid shippes and euy of theym all suche Maisters ]\Iaryners pages and o"" Subiecte as of their owcn free wille woll goo and passe with hym in the same Shippes to the seid londe or lies w^oute any impedymente lett or pturl)aunce of any of o' Officers or Ministers or SubiectC whatsoeuir they be l)y theym to the seid John his Deputie or Deputies and all other our seid Subiecte or any of them passing w* the seid John in the seid Shippes to the seid londe or lies to be doon or suffer to be doon or attempted. Yeving in comaundement to all and euy our Officers Ministers and Subiecte seying or hcryng thies our tres patente withoute any ferther comaunde- ment by vs to theym or any of theym to be geven to pfourme and socour the seid John his Deputie and all our seid Subiecte so passyng with hym According to the tenur of thies o' tres patente Any statute Acte or orden'''nce to the cont^rve made or to be made in any wise notwithstanding " (Privy Seals, February 13, Henry vii.). i :>!!' ,'! ■;' "! ! ■ il; m m 158 Cabot's Discovery of North America (An entry of the letters-patent, in Latin, appears in another Roll.) Copy. D licencia Caboto. "1^ Oinibz ad quos 'tc sattm. Sciaiis cjd nos de gra lira spali ac ctis consideracr)ib5 nos spalit mouentib3 dedirn "t concessini ac p |)sentes dani "t eoncedim dilco not) Jolli Caboto Veniciario suffici- entem potestatem "t auctoritatem qd ipc p se dcputatum sen deputatos suos sufiicientes sex naucs huius regni Augt in quocumc],, portu seu portub^ sine aliis locis infra idem regnu nrm aut obedientiam nram sic qd dee naues sint portajii ducento^ dolio^ vel infra cum apparatib5 suis p saluo conductu ea^dem nauiu ad libitum suu capiendi 't puidendi neausq^ illas ad tram "t Insulas p ipm Johem nupime inuentas conducendi soiuendo p eisdem nauil)'z t ea^ quatt tantum quantum nos solueni' t non vlt" si p iiro negocio \ causa capte fuissent 't puise. Et qd idem Johes p se aut deputatum sine deputatos suos sufiicientes omcs \ singulos marinarios Magros pagettos ac subditos iiros quoscuq, qui ex co^ liba voluntate secum in dcis nauib^ vsus t vsq, tram T: Insulas pdcas t'nsire "t t"nsmeare voluint in naues huiusmodi "t ea^ quamtt cape 't recipe possit 't valeat absq^ impedimento imi)eticoe seu pturbacoe aliquoa Officiario^ Ministro^ sc 'bdito^ iiroz quo^cumcj;, p ipos seu eo^ aliquer. ;^ ...to Johi deputato sine deputatis suis aut aUis subditis iiris pdcis seu eo^ alicui in comitiua eiusdem Jotiis in nauib; pdcis ad tram 't Insulas 3dcas fnsenntibi inferend aut i. (-. c\ *~' attemptari pmittend Dam' vniiisis T: singulis oftici- de Cabot's Discovery of North America 159 ariis Ministris ^ subditis liris f)sentes tras iiras visuris 't audituris al)sq^ vltiori maiidatop iios eisdem siue eo^ aliciii faeiend tenore f)scntiu firmit in mandatis qd eidcm Johi ac dei^utatis suis j[)dcis aliisq^ iiris subditis secuni vt |)mittit'" t''nseuntib3 in pmissis faciend "t exequcnd fauentes sint consulcntes t auxiliantcs in omibz diligent. In cuius tc. T j^ apud Westiii tcio die fFebruarii. p ipm Rcgcm 't de dat ~tc." (Fr. Roll. 13 Hen. vii. No. 439, mcmb. (l) 6.) I n :i 'fM\ Extract from a Despatch from Dr. Puebla, the Senior Spanish Ambassador to England, to their Catholic Majesties, Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, written on or aljout the 2oth of July 1498. " El Rey de Ino-laterra embio cinco naos armadas con otro genove^ mo colono a buscar la Isla dc Brasil y las vi..xiidades,^ fueron proveydos por un alio. Dicen que seran venidos para al el Septiembre. Vista la derrota que llevan alio que lo que buscan es lo que Vuestras Altozas poseen. El rey me ha fablado alcunas veces sulnvUo espera haver muy gran interesse. Creo que no hay de aqui alia cccc leguas." (Jean et Sebastian Cabot, par Henry Harrise, p. 328.) [Translation] " The King of England sent five armed ships with another Genoese like Columbus to search for • Desimoni thinks that " vicinidadcs " should read "sei)tecitade3," that is, the seven cities {Intorno c Giovanni Cnhoto, I'ref. p. 15). Desi- moni's opinion is endorsed l)y Tai'dncci. .' .V t .:! 1 i >i :,:i hi! ■L f- p. I' I ) '?! 1 1 60 Carot's Discovery of North America the island of Brasil, and others near it. They were victualled for a year. They say that they will be back in September. By the direction they take, the land they seek must be the possession of your high- nesses.^ The king has sometimes spoken to me about it, and seems to take a very great interest in it. 1 believe that the distance from here is not four hundred leasjues." There is yet another document which has reached us from the Spanish archives. Copy Despatch from Pedro de Ayala to their Catholick Majesties, dated 25th July 1498. " Bien creo, Vuestras Altozas an vido, como el rcy de Ynglaterra ha feclio armada para descubrir ciertas islas y tierra firme que Ic liaii certificado hallaron ciertos que de Bristol armaron ano passado para lo mismo. Yo he visto la carta que ha fecho el inventador que es otro genoves como Colon que ha cstado en Sevilla y en Lisbona procurando haver quicii le ayudasse a csta invencion. Los de Bristol, ha siete anos que cada ano an armado dos, tres cuatro caravelas para ir a buscar la isla del Brasil y las siete ciudades con la fantasia deste Ginoves. El rey determino de enbiar porque el ano passado le truxo certenidad que havian hallado tierra. Del armada que hizo que fueron cinco naos fuercn avitallados por un ano. Ha venido nueva, la una en ^ It is important that this view of the Spanish ambassador as to the ownership of the land, more especially Avhen we consider the words used by their Catholic Majesties (cmte, p. 112), should not be lost sight of in considering the probabilities as to the fate of John Cabot's ex- pedition. c ha aver stol, trcs del estc ano rra. rcn en J as to Ivords I sight Vs ex- Cabot's Discovery ok North Amkrka i6i que iva iin otro Fai (sic pro Fray ?) Buil aporto cii Irlaiida con gran tormento rotto el navio. " El o'inoves tiro su camino. Yo, vista la dcrrota que llovan y la eantitad del camino hallo que es lo que han hallado o buscan lo que Vuestras Altezas poscen, porque es al cabo, que a Vuestras Altezas capo por la eonvencion con Portugal Sperase seran vcnidos para el Setiembre. Hago lo saber a Vuestras Altezas. El Key de Ynglaterra me ha fablado algunas vezes sobre ello. Spero a^'er muy gran in- teresse. Creo no ay quatro cientos leguas. Lo le dixe, creya eran las halladas por Vuestras Altezas, y aun le did la una razon, no lo (juerila. Porque creo, Vuestras Altezas ya tendran aviso de todo lo y as}'mismo al carta o mapa mundi que este ha feclio, yo no la enbio agora, que aqui la ay, y a mi ver bien falsa por dar a entender, no son de las islas diclias." (Simancas, Estado, Tratado con Inglaterra. Le- gaio 2.) [Translation] • ••••• " I think your Majesties have already heard that the King of England has equipped a fleet in order to discover certain islands and continents wliich he was informed some people from Bristol, who manned a few ships ^ for the same purpose last year, had 1 As to this statement, wo can come to no otlicr conclusion tlian that the writer had been niisinfunaed. Lorenzo Pasi^ualigo says : "The Venetian, our countrviiiati, who went with a ship troiu Bristol, is returned" {(infe, p. 13'J). JJaimondo di Soncino savs : " He (Caliot) departed in a little ship from the port of Bristol " {ante, p. 148). II I if' i.-i ] . 1 I I n i -/ i M V, I ! ir; I' ■if I ,; 162 Cabot's Discovery of North America found. I have seen the map which the discoverer has made, who is another Genoese, like Columbus, and who has been in Seville and in Lisbon, .'isking assistance for his discoveries. The people of Bristol have, for the last seven years, sent out every year two, three, or four light ships (caravelas), in search of the island of Brazil and the seven cities, according to the fancy of this Genoese. The king determined to send out (ships), because, the year before, they brought certain news that they had found land. His fleet consisted of five vessels, which carried provisions for one year. It is said that one of them, in which one Friar Buil^ went, has returned to Ireland in great distress, the ship being much damaged. The Genoese has continued his voyage. I have seen, on a chart, the direction which they took, and the distance they sailed ; and I think that what they have found, or what they are in search of, is what your Highnesses already possess. It is expected that they will be back in the month of September. I write this be- cause the King of England has often spoken to me on this subject, and he thinks your Highnesses will take great interest in it. I think it is not further distant than four hundred leagues. I told him that, in my opinion, the land was already in the possession of your Majesties ; but, though I gave him my reasons, he did not like them. I believe that your Highnesses are already informed of this matter, and I do not now undi which that man has send the map 1 Harrisse asks, with regard to the suggestion that this person is the same Friar Bail who -went with Columbus to evangelise the natives, " Might he not be the same ? " It is possible that he was brought from Spain by Cabot. Tarducci refers to " his (Friar Buil's) infamous con- duct towards Christoi)her Columl)us." — Tarducci's Life of Chrutoyher Columhvs, bk. i. ch. xxxi. m or pn IS pives, troiii I con- Cabot's Discovery of North America 163 made, and which, according to my opinion, is false, since it makes it appear as if the hind in question was not the said islands.^ (Calendar of State Papers, England and Spain. By G. A. Bergenroth, vol. i.", 1485-1509. No. 210, pp. 168-179.) London, 25th July. Indorsed: " To their Highnesses, 1498. Frorn Don Pedro Aycda, 25 Jidy '98." The greater portion of this letter is in cipher, iihich is deciphered hy Almazan, Fif'st Secretary of Sta te — Spanish. By the letters-patent, John Cabot was authorised to take at his pleasure six English ships. The words in the document seem to imply that Cal)ot was given power to take ships, not exceeding six, from any port in the kingdom, paying to the owners about the same amount that would be paid for them to the owners by the king had they l)een requisitioned directly by the king for his own use. It was clearly provided that the men who were to join him in the expedition were to act of " their own free will," which is an enactment directed against an exercise of a power of compulsorily manning the ships. But this clause would at that period be practically inoperative, so far as it teas thought necessary to have recourse to the prisons for many of the sailoi^s. We have seen that "in the spring. . . . his Majesty will arm some ships, and will give him all the criminals, so that he may ' This paragraph is so mucli curtailed in the (leciplierinfj made by Almazan, that it was necessary to decipher it again from the original despatch in cipher. ' '1 it • . ..« I V 1^ li^i 'IV M 164 Cabot's Discovery of North America go to this country and plant a colony there/ and also that "the kino-. . . at lii.-^ (Cahot's) iv([n('st, has conceded him all the prisoners, except those con- fined for hi^h treason, to man his fleet."^ It was probably thought undesirable to make the service compulsory, having regard to the fact that it was an exjjedition which was setting out, not for the arduous task of finding new lands, l»ut with the peaceful object of founding a colony. They were going "to the londe and lies of late founde by the seid John.""* Therefore, if recourse were had to the i)risons it would have been very unwise to make men cross the stormv ocean aoainst their will ; motives of prudence would dictate a free pardon, with a view to a willing ac(j^uicscence in a scheme of colonisation. Be this as it may, we know for certain that John Cabot sailed for the pur})ose of taking possession of the land he had previously discovered and taken over on behalf of the English Crown. Extract from an Anonymous Chronicle, part of Rol)ert Cotton's Collection in the British Museum : — " In anno 13 Henr. vii. This yerc the kyng, at the besy request and supplication of a straunger venisian, wicli by a Coeart made hymself expert in knowying of the worhl, caused the kyng to mannc a ship wt V3^taill and other nccessairies for to secke an iland wheryn the said straunger surmysed to be grete commodities ; w* which ship, by the kynges grace, so rygged, went 3 or 4 moo owte of Bristowe, 1 Ante, p. 150. ^ ^jj^^,^ p. 140. a jinfg^ p. 157, 1 at ^er in line •ke be ^es Kve, Cahot's Discovery of North Amkrica 165 the said stmunger beyng eonditui' of the said llete, wlicreyn diuers mereliantes as well of London as Bristow adventured goodes and sleight merchan- dises/ which departed from the west cuntrey in the begynning of somer, ]»ut to this present moneth came nevir knowledge of their exploit." — MS. Cott. Vitellius, A xiv., f. 173. From the date of the sailing of the expedition down to the present time the fate of John Cabot and of his co-adventurers has been enshrouded in mystery. Even his name does not appear as the discoverer of North America until (juite a late period. It is true that his name is found associated with that of his son, Sebastian, in connection with the discovery, but the accounts in the various his- torical works have merely served the purpose of glorifying the memory of the son. To (]Uote Dr. Dawson's expression: ''John Cabot had a narrow escape from complete suppression. It was the fortunate preservation of the Spanish, j\Iilanese, and Venetian correspondence which has given a firm basis to his reputation." Tarducci says as follows : " The American, Richard Biddle," the first to give to history a profoundly thought-out book on Sebastian Cfibot, wished to blot out completely the rest of that ^ In another MS. (.■lironiclu the t'oUuwing words are used : — ■ "Fraught witli sleight and grossL- niercliaiidiscs, as coarse ch)tli, caps, hices, prints, and otlier tritles.'' In tlie Corte l?eal voyages some evidences of the presence of .John Cal)ot's expedition were met witli. " A piece of a hroken sword, gilded," and "a native lioy had two silver rings in his ear, which, without douht, seem to have been manu- factured in Venice." - Injustice to Biddle, it should be stated that he wrote in 1831, long before the documents which prove the jwsition of John CHl>ot were known to be in existence. m ; .1 'I ' \ I '■I ! i! 1 66 Cahot's Discovery of North America figure wlii(!li uppearcd in tlio l)tu;kground of tlie pi(;tiu'c, ami coiicentnites the spectator's whole atten- tion on tlie figure of Sebastian, sparkling in the richness of the colouring and drawing. But his efforts were idle, for the more he la])oured to per- snade the beholder that tlie figure of Sel)astian rose all alone by itself, and had no support from another figure, no relation with it, the more the eye felt drawn to the mysterious figure there in the back- ground of the picture, and to the ear came more sensibly distinct liis question, 'And I then ?'" " In these last years the truth has finally triumphed, and the documents discovered, though few in number, yet sufficient for the purpose, have restored to John the light that was due to him, and drawn his figure out of the shade and placed it in full view. If the love of my subject docs not veil my judgment, it seems to me that one of the very first places in the history of discoveries belongs to John Ca])ot. For without any impulse or guidance from others, by the mere force of his will and strength of his enthusiasm, he raised himself above the common herd of navigators for commerce and wealth." CHAPTER V In passing from the contemporary records, consisting of letters-patent, amhassadin-s' despatches, etc., in which it is clearly set forth that John Cabot was the moving spirit, the organiser, and equipper in con- nection with the two "Cabot voyages" of 1497 and 1498 — in passing from these to entries made by foreign, that is, Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian historians and chroniclers, we must state here that nothing of importance is known al)out Sebastian Cabot, from the date of the entry of his name in the letters-patent of 149G until the year 1512, beyond the fact that he was a maker of maps and charts. In the year 1512 we find that he made a map of Gascony and Guyenne for the English Government, for which he was paid twenty shillings. "We shall presently see that in the same year (1512) Sebastian Cabot went to Spain, and subsequently settled at Seville, and accepted employment under the Spanish Government. There are several accounts which ascribe the discovery of America to Sebastian Cabot. Harrisse says : "The first is Peter Martyr's, written in 1515, in Spain, which, from his frequent intercourse and personal intimacy with Sebastian Cabot, we must 107 if? -f " ■ji^pii - 1:1 , )■ ; iiii w '■, ' I i H'J *'- .|:,i ! r 1 68 Cahot's Discovery of North America believe to have been derived from the latter's own lips." ^ This appears to be the reasonable and almost the only conclusion we can arrive at ; it should be borne in mind, however, that this view of the matter is not absolutely free from doubt, and therefore we should pause before arriving at an opinion hostile to Sebastian until we have had an opportunity of reviewing the whole of the evidence. Pietro Martire d'Anghiera, generally called Peter Martyr, who was born in 1455, belonged to a distinguished family in Milan. He went to Kome in 1477, and we lind that while he remained in that city he was much esteemed as a literary student by some of the mo6t distinguished men of that period. He went to Spain in 1487, as a member of the suite of the Spanish i^mbassador, and subsequently obtained the situation of instructor of the royal pages, which, while giving him a competence, also enabled him to apply himself to literary pursuits. He was after- wards called to more active duties, being sent on missions to Venice and Egypt. On his return he was elected prior of the Cathedral Church of Granada, which, with other posts, he held until his death, which took place in 1526. He was the author of several important works (Biographic Universalle, Ancienne et Moderne, etc., tome deuxieme). ^ " Furtliermore, it was published at Alecala, whilst Cabot was frequenting the Court." Martyr speaks of Sebastian as his "Con- curialis," the correct interpretation of which, according to d'Avezac, is that Cabot " is here with nie at Court " {Revue Critique (VHistoire et de Litterature, Premier Semestre, p. 265). Eden, in his translations, interpreted the \TOrd to mean that Seljastian Cabot was associated with Martyr as a menil)er of the " Supreme Council of the Indies." Herrera has given a complete list of the members of the Council, but the name of Cabot is not found therein. til ;ac, ! et 2ra bhe Cabot's Discovery of North America 169 Account given by Pietro Martire (Peter Martyr) of Angliiera. " Scrutatus est eas glaciales oras Sebastianus quidam Cabotus genere Venetus, sed a parentibus in Britanniam insulam tendentibus (uti moris est Veuet- orum, qui commereii causa terrarum omnium sunt liospites) transportatus pene infans. Duo is sibi navigia propria pecunia in Britannia ipsa instruxit, et primo tendons cum hominil)us tercentum ad septentrionem, donee etiam Julio mense vastas repererit glaciales moles pelago natantes, et lucem fere perpetuam, tellure tamen libera gelu liquefacto. Quare coactus fuit, uti ait, vela vertere et Occidentem sequi : tetenditque tamen ad meridiem, littore sese incurvante, ut Herculei freti latitudinis fere gradus equarit : ad Occidentemque profectus tantum est, ut Cubam insulam a leva, longitudine graduum pene parem, liabuerit. Is ea littora percurrens, quae Bacallaos appelavit, eosdem se reperisse aquarum, sed lenes, delapsus ad Occidentem, ait, quos Cas- tellani, meridionales suas regiones ad navigantes, inveniunt, ergo non niodo verisimilius, sed neces- sario concludcndu est, vastos inter vtranque ignotam hactenus tellurcra iacere hiatus, qui viam proebeant aquis ab Oriente cadentibus in Occidentem. Quns arbitror impulsu coelorum circulariter agi in gyrum circa terrse Q-lobum ; non autem Demoo'orojone anhel- ante vomi, absorbcriq, vt nonnulle senserunt : quod influxu & refiuxu forsan assentire daretur. Bacallaos Cabottus ipse terras illas appellavit, eo quod in eorum pelago tantam repererit magnorum quorumdam piscium, tinnos temulantium, sic voca- torum ab indignenis, multitudinem, ut etiam illi It 1 4 '^■ ■ f 4 'ft S ' ,1- li. "'A >\ i'.:'^ I 170 Cabot's Discovery of North America navigia interdum detardarent. Earum regionum homines pellibus tantum coopertos reperiebat, rationis liaudquaquaq expertes. Ursorum in esse regionibus copiam ingentem refert, qui et ipsi piscibus vescantur. Inter densa nanque piscium illorum agmina sese immcrgunt ursi, et singulos singuli complexes, un- quibusque inter squamas immissis in terram raptant et comedunt. Propterea minime noxios hominibus ursos esse ait. Oriehalcum in plgerisque locis se vid- isse apud incolas prsedicant. Familiarem habeo domi Cabotum ipsum et contubernalem interdum " (Petri Martyris ab Angleria, De Rebus Oceanicis et Orhe novo, dec. iii. lib. vi.). Peter Martyr's work was translated into English by Pichard Eden, and, inasmuch as this translation has been dealt with in various ways by various sub- sequent writers, it is desirable to give a few par- ticulars as to Eden and his works. Eichard Eden, translator, was born in Hereford- shire about 1521, and studied at Queen's College, Cambridge, 1535-44, under Sir Thomas Smith ; ^ held a position in the treasury 1544-46, and married in the following year. He was private secretary to Sir W. Cecil, 1552. He published, in 1553, a trans- lation of Minister's Cosmography. Next year he obtained a place in the English treasury of the Prince of Spain, and in 1555 published his great work. The Decades of the Newe Worlcle, or West India, a collection of travels of great interest, trans- lated from many sources, part of which, The Travels * Eden says, " that the ryght worshypfull and of singular learnynge in all sciences, Syr Thomas Smyth, in my tynie the Houre of the University of Cambridge, and some tyme my tutor." Cabot's Discovery of North America 171 brans- [avels of Lewes Vertomannus, 1503, is reprinted in Hak- luyt's Voyages {iv. 547, ed. 1811). Thereupon he was cited by Thomas Watson, Bishop of Lincoln, before Bishop Gardiner, for heresy, but escaped with the loss of his office. Eden died in 1576, having achieved great reputation as a scholar and man of science*^ The following translation of that portion of Peter Martyr's work, which purposes to relate to the Cabot voyage, is taken from — The Decades of the newe worlde of West India, conteynyng the nauigations and conquestes of the Spanyardes, with the particular description of the moste ryche and large landes and Ilandes lately founde in the AVest Ocean perteynyng to the in- heritaunce of the Kinges of Spayne. In the which the diligent reader may not only consyder what commoditie may hereby chaunce to the hole Chris- tian world in tyme to come, but also learne many secreates touchy nge the lande, the sea, and the starres, very necessary to be knowe to al such as shal attempte any navigation, or otherwise have delite to beholde the strange and woonderfull woorkes of God and nature. Written in the Latine tounge by Peter Martyr of Angleria, and translated into Englysshe by Richard Eden. Londini, In sedibus Guilhelmi Powell, Anno 1555. "These northe seas haue byn searched by one Sebastian Cabot, a Venetian borne,^ whom beingc yet but in maner an 1 Did. of Nat. Biorj., vol. xvi. pp. 359, .3G0. ^This statement must not be hastil}' accepted as one which ia entirely free from doubt. See infra, pp. 177-181. ill II f 1 ri> i:^ I III ^i-? li n ■; ', . 172 Cabot s Discovery of North America ! !■! ( i 1:1 infante, his parentes caryed with them into Enghincle, hauyng occasion to resorte thether for trade of marchandies, as is the maner of the Venetians too leaue no parte of the worlde unsearched to obteyne richesse. He therfore furnisshed two shippes in England at his owne charges : And fyrst with three hundreth men, directed his course so farre toward the north pole, that euen in the mooneth of July he founde monstrous heapes of Ise swimming on the sea, and in maner continuall day lyght. Yet sawe he the lande in that tracte, free from Ise, wliiche had byn molten by heate of the sunne. Thus seyng suclie heapes of Ise before hym he was enforced to tourne his sayles and folowe the weste, so coastynge styll by the shore, that he was thereby brought so farre into the southe by reason of the lande bendynge so muche southward that it was there almoste equall in latitude with the sea cauled Fretum Herculeum * hauynge the north pole eleuate in maner in the same degree. He sayled lykewise in this tracte so farre towarde the weste, that he had the Ilande of Cuba [on] his lefte hande in maner in the same degree of longitude. As he traueyled by the coastes of this grcate lande (which he named Baccallaos) he sayth that he found the like course of the waters toward the west, but the same to runne more softely and gentelly than the swifte waters whiche the Spanyardes found in their nauigations southeward. AVherefore, it is not onely more lykc to bee trewe, but ought also of necessitie to been concluded, that betwene both the landes hetherto vnknowen, there shulde bee certeyne great open places whereby the waters shulde thus continually passe from the Easte 1 The Straits of Gibraltar. Cabot's Discovery of North America ^73 ynge quail 3um* the e so e of ame lastes )he ters ;ely the rard. rewe, Ithat Ihere the Caste into the weste : which waters I suppose to bee ciryuen about the globe of the earthe by the vn- cessaunt mouynge and impulsion of the heauens : and not to bee swalowed vj) and cast owt agaync by the breathynge of Demogorgon ^ as sumc haue im- agined bycause they see the seas by increase and decrease, to flowe and reiiowe. Sebastian Cabot him selfe, named those landes Baccalaos, bycause that in the seas therabout he founde so great multitudes of certeyne bigge fysshes much lyke vnto tunics (whicli the inhabitantes caule Baccalaos) that they sumtymes stayed his shippes. He found also the people of those regions couered with beastcs skynnes : Yet not without thi use of reason. He saythe also that there is greate plentie of beares in those regions, w^hich vse to eate fysshe. For plungeinge theym seluces into the watcv where they perceu a multitude of these fysshes to lye, they fasten theyr clawcs in theyr scales, and so drawee them to lande and eate them. So that (as he saitli) the beares beinge thus satissfied with fysshe, are not noysom to men. He declareth further, that in many places of those regions, he sawe great plentie of laton amonge the inhabitantes. Cabot is my very frende, w-hom I vse famylierly, and delyte to haue hym sumtymes keepe mee company in myne owne house." In Peter Martyr's account of the alleged voyage of Sebastian Cabot, we have a part of the foundation for the statement made by successive historians, that he (Sebastian) was the discoverer of America, thus ignoring the name of John Cabot altogetber. And it may be safely asserted that this belief would never have been dispelled had the archives of foreign • The spirit or ruler of the waters. ■.?i 7 --W'i il-i [• ^^ k- Ul !> Ml i ii ill 1 I"' \ 174 Cabot's Discovery of North America countries never have yielded up evidence sufficient to disprove it. Let us review Martyr's statement from a rational point of view. What materials were at the historian's disposal ? He and Sebastian Cabot were on very familiar terms, and, according to Martyr's own statement, Cabot was a frequent visitor. It may be fairly assumed that they also met elsew^here and had many opportunities for conversation. And it should be remembered, that exactly at this period Martyr was engaged in writing and publishing the work in which the reference to the friendship which subsisted between himself and Sebastian is given. Tarducci aptly remarks that Martyr, " in his account, joins the information concerning Cabot with the fact that he has Cabot a guest in his house. Thus [says Tarducci] it is clear, natural, undoubtable, that he had his information from Sebastian's own mouth, for it cannot be supposed that with such opportunity as he had of learning the truth from the very lips of one who was at his side, at his table, at his con- versation, he, an historian, would fail to question him and learn the truth from himJ' The italics have been added to draw the reader's attention to the exact words that are used. It is not at all certain, supposing Sebastian did tell Martyr exactly what the former relates, that the statement recorded by Martyr is " the truth " ! It is now a matter placed beyond conjecture — that John Cabot was the discoverer of North America. Martyr and his friends apparently knew nothing of John. We now know that there were two early voyages in whi^h John acted the parts of organiser, [equipper, and leader ; Martyr knew of only one voyage ; acler's It is artyr ment now a Cabot and We es in pper, mage ; Cabot's Discovery of North America 175 and it seems also certain that the facts related by him apply to neither of the two voyages of John Cabot, that is, of 1497 and of 1498. At anyrate, it requires a great deal of "faith" to enable us to accept Martyr's description as being a true account of either voyage. Sebastian Cabot, either by actual statements of what purported to be fact or by suppremo veri, had led the Spaniards to regard him as the discoverer of the territory now known as the continent of North America. And further, we are justified in concluding that he took no steps to enlighten them as to the part his father took in the enterprise. As a soi-disant successful voyageur, he would be loersona grata to a man who was gathering information about the discovery of land in the Atlantic Ocean with a view to insert it in a book. And he who was regarded, rightly or wrongly, as the discoverer of an immense territory, would be received as a man of light and learning, a great navigator, an important personage. The popular mind would accept as positive evidence of the truth of his position as a discoverer, the fact — and a fact it undoubtedly was — that he was a highly -skilled constructor of charts and of maps. In all probability he was unusually clever in this particular direction. This is a circum- stance which should be borne in mind by those who wish to form an accurate judgment in matters relat- ing to the history of John and Sebastian Cabot. It was due to his knowledge of map-making — or at least that was probably the reason — that he was selected to join the army which King Henry viii. sent to Spain, and which landed at Passages, near San Sebastian, in June 1512. It is said that Henry viii. was anxious to obtain the title of " Most Christian King " from I i i- i; •.,' , r.i w w I |i!. I •iii 176 Cabot's Discovery of North America the pope, wliieli title had been annexed to the Crown of France, and that King Ferdinand of Spain, being in possession of the knowledge that Henry coveted the title, induced liim to join in a league against the King of France. Be that as it may, it is clear that the fitting out of the Englisli expedition had the effect of taking Sebastian Ca])ot to Spain in the year 1511, and that he thereupon made up his mind to settle in that country. In 1515 he was appointed a pilot to the King of Spain, under his Majesty's pilot -major. All these circumstances tend to show that Se1)astian would have been received everywhere with the greatest favour, and there existed no reason why anyone should have expressed the slightest distrust of the current story that he, and he alone, was the discoverer of a vast country. Peter Martyr knew of the fish which abounded in the seas adjacent to the territory of Baccalaos. Consequently we may readily conclude that he would have accepted all Sebastian Cabot's statements without the slightest idea that there was any necessity for further inquiry ; in all probability every hint from Sebastian was swallowed with avidity. No man at that time was better able to supply Peter Martyr's demand for materials for his proposed publication. If either a man or a book may be drawn upon in support of the subject a man is engaged upon, the tendency is to accept what is said without inquiring into the truth, and this applies more par- ticularly when the information adds either details or confirmation to some theory or preconceived idea of the author. History, in reality, frecjuently records the thouo'ht tendencies of the writer rather than the facts of the case ; once an idea obtains a firm impres- I Cabot's Discovery of North America 177 thout ! par- lils or ea of cords n tbe pres- sion on the mind, it is difficult to dislodge it, — in many cases it is useless to make the attempt. Peter Martyr, in good faith, would probably have recorded, without the slightest hesitation, whatever the sup- posed discoverer of America had vouchsafed to tell him. In 1515 Peter Martyr says: "Cabot is here with us, looking daily for ships to be furnished for him to discover this hid secret of nature," which evidently refers to an idea Sebastian had formed that there was a north-west passage, of which some account will be given later in ihe narrative. The historian must have implicitly believed that " this hid secret of nature" was something more than a conjecture, and, as a true son of mother church, he sent a com- munication on the subject to Rome. No ])lame is to be imputed to the historian ; he, in common with others, never grasped the idea that it is absolutely necessary for a recorder of events which are not either before his actual view, or brought within his own actual knowledge, to inquire carefully into the matter in all its bearings before placing it on record as a fact. We will now proceed to consider some of the state- ments contained in Peter Martyr's work. He speaks of Se])astian Galoot as " a Venetian borne, whom being yet but in maner an infante, his parentes caryed with them into Englande, hauyng occasion to resorte thether for trade of merchandies," etc.^ All the prol)abilities seem to point out that he was born in Venice, but there is no certainty that he was born there ; on the other hand, Richard Eden, in his translation of Ramusio's w^ork, opposite the words " a Venetian borne," has a marginal note as follows : — " Sebastian Cabote tould me that * Ricliard Eden's translalion. 12 it v^t' i' m :( il 'I 'm u I : I f '■ 178 Cabot's Discovery of North America he was Ijorne in Brystowe, and that at iiii. yeare ould he was carried with his father to Venice, and so returned agayne into England with liis father after certayne years, whereby he was thought to have been born in Venice." This statement is the sole authority for the allegation that Sebastian Cabot was born in Bristol. Other statements have been made to the effect that he was an Englishman, and these have been accepted as corroborating the communication which Eden says Sebastian made to him with regard to his birthplace. Tarducci supposes that Eden had the information from Cabot, " but from lack of attention or other cause he misunderstood his words, and gave tliem a meaning quite opposite to the true." " Let us [says Tarducci] compare the words of Eden with those of Peter Martyr, and we shall see that this supposition is well founded." And he goes on to suggest that if, in Eden's statement, " Venice " and " Bristol " are transposed, the two accounts agree. D'Avezac, a writer who has devoted much time to the subject, is not satisfied with Eden's statement, nay, he seems to hint that he has been guilty of intentional misrepresentation. He says : " Nous croyons raison- nable de soup^onner un qui pro quo dans I'esprit aventureux du compilateur, a qui probablemcnt Cabot avait dit en realite, comme a tons les autres, qu'il etait ne a Venise, et avait etc, des son jeune age (quattre ans exjDressement cette fois), amend a Bristol par son pere," — and he afterwards suggests that Eden wrote in bad faith, " II n'y aura qu'une falsification fantaisiste de plus a porter au compte de Eichard Eden." Dr. Justin Winsor, referring to the question as to where Sebastian was born, Cabot's Discovery of North America 179 says : " Tliere is a dispute over his birtliphicc more perplexing tlia]i that which concerns liis father's nativity. Sebastian tokl Eden that he was born in Bristol, England, whither his father had come not long before. On the other hand, he assured Contarini ^ that he was a native of Venice, — a statement now accepted by Deane, Tarducci, and most of the other authorities." Having regard to all the circumstances, it is a better and a safer course not to raise the (question as to the exact words he may have used in speaking to persons of his birthplace ; let us loyally accept the state- ments, — whether they name either Venice or Bristol, — and, without any attempt to bespatter those who have left us written records of what purports to be Sebastian's statements, let us apply to each the question : " /s this capable of proof f " It is as strange as it is true, that not one man in a thousand understands that it is necessary to be guided in historical matters by rules of evidence which are as clearly defined as are those of the courts of law. In this case it is certain that Eden knew Sebastian Cabot. And it is equally clear that Peter Martyr knew him, because he says : " Cabot is my very friend," and he also says that he " sometimes keeps me company in mine own house." Here we are brought face to face with the testimonies of two friends of the man whose birthplace is the subject of dispute, and each tells a different story.- Now it must l^e remembered I 1)1 ' mi , .■ll,^ [ring lorn, 1 Infra, p. 220. 2 Caspar Contarini, in the course of a couvorsation with Sebastian, was told by the hitter with regard to his birthplace as follows: — "I was liorn in A^enice, but was brought up in England." \l\ I , . I 1 80 Cabot's Discovery ok North Amkrica that in those diiy» there were no convenient registers to apply to for information in cases of necessity. Wc must conclude, then, that unless some evid- ence of an afiirmative character can be found in confirmation of either of the two .statements, we must reject both as matters which, at least for the present, are not capable of proof. These contradictory statements have produced a rather anomalous state of things. Two cities contend for the lionour of Sebastian Cabot's birth. It is solemnly recorded in Bristol that he was born in the city, and it is likewise recorded in Venice that he was born there. Neither record is of more than recent date, neither purports to be based upon any evidence other than that which was derived from Sebastian's uncorroborated statement. To the gentlemen of Bristol who have quite recently placed a tablet in a public position in that city, stating as a fact, not as a conjecture, that Sebastian was born in Bristol, it is desirable to point out that, until positive evidence is forthcoming to prove where Sebastian was born, the matter must be relegated to the realm of conjecture. If we are to accept Sebastian's own statement that he was born in Bristol, then it follows that we must accept his several statements that he was born in Venice. This is the reductio ad ahsurdum of the position taken up l)y those who are anxious to argue that we ought to accept the statement made by Sebastian to Eden. Sir Clements R. Markham, K.C.B., the President of the Royal Geographical Society, writing with reference to this disputed point, says : " His (Sebastian Cabot's), own words can count for nothing; under the circumstances." Cabot's Discovery of North Amkrica i.^i What is the value of a man's own unsupported evidence as to his birthphice ? The prudent man will say that it is not justiHal)le to state as a fact that a man was born in a certain place, when the proof rests solely on an unsupported statement of his own, it being well known that he has stated on other occasions, when it suited his purpose, that he was born elsewhere. What are the deductions to be drawn fiom Peter Martyr's statement that Sebastian Cabot " furnished two ships in England at his own charges, and sailed with 300 men," etc. ? We have abundant testimony to prove that in the first expedition of John Cabot, in 1497, he had one ship only, namely, the Matthew, of Bristol, and that the second expedition, in 1498, of whidi John Cabot was the organiser and leader, consisted of five vessels. Now, it should be remembered that it is possible that Sebastian Cabot may never have made the statements in the exact form in which they appear in Peter Martyr's book ; but, on the other hand, we shall subsequently meet with what appears to be a strong corroboration that Cabot did say that he was the leader of an expedition consisting of two ships. '* AVhen my father died in that time when news was ])rought that Don Christopher Colunil)Us, Genoese, had discovered the coasts of India, whereof was great talk in the Court of King Henry vii., who then reigned. ... I thereupon caused the King to be advertised of my device, who inmicdi- ately commanded two caravels to l)e furnished with all things," . . . etc. (Ramusio's Mantuan Gentle- man, infra p. 202). Eamusio, who says that he i .1 ii (,! 1 |l \ I H^ ,' 1 1 82 Cabot's Discovery of North America i m\ I I was in correspondence with Sebastian Cabot, states elsewhere as follows : — " Fu [Cal)oto] mcnato da suo padre in Inghilterra> da poi la morte del quale trouandosi ricchissimo, et di grande animo, deliberb si come hauea fatto Cristo- foro Colombo, voler anchor lui scoprire qualche nuoua parte del mondo, et a sue spese armo duoi nauili." " He was taken by his father to England, where, after the hitter's death, finding himself extremely rich, and being high-spirited, he determined, as Christopher Columbus had done, to discover some new part of the world, and at his own cost he equipped two ships" (Eamusio, Raccolta, 1565, vol. iii. p. 35). What deduction is to be drawn if we believe that Sebastian said that after his father had died the news came of the discovery by Columbus, and that he (Sebastian) approached the king (Henry VII. "i with a view to the fitting out of an expedi- tion ? Looking at all the circumstances, it is im- possible to come to any other conclusion than this, that he deliberatel)^ told a lie. From this position escape is almost impossible. In order to ascertain whether Sebastian was a man who would be guilty of duplicity, it will })e necessary to inquire into the truth of certain other matters — more particularly as to his intrigues with the Council of Ten of Venice ^ — with a A'iew to guide us to a just decision as to the possi])ility of his having wilfully misled both Peter ]\Iartyr and Eamusio. It may be as well to insert here the words used by ,Marc-Antonio Contarini, in a statement read before the Senate in Venice in 1536. "Sebastian Cabot, the son of a Venetian, wdio repaired to 1 Infra, p. 214. Cabot's Discovery of North America 183 England on galleys from Venice with the notion of going in search of countries, . . . obtained two ships from Henry, King of England, the fathei of the present Henry, who has become a Lutheran, and even worse, navigated with 300 men, until he found the sea frozen. ... He was obliged, therefore, to turn back without having accomplished his object, witli the intention, however, of renewing the attempt when the sea was not frozen. But upon his return he found the king dead, and his son caring little for such an enterprise" [Raccolta Colo7nhiana, pt. iii. vol. i. p. 137). This statement is useful in so ftir as it proves that the popular and unquestioned idea at that period was, that Sebastian Cabot, a Venetian,^ dis- covered the continent of North America, in an expe- dition of discovery in which two ships only were engaged. This helps us to form a conclusion that, whatever else in the way of voyages it may possiljly relate to, it certainly applies neither to the voyage in 1497, nor to the expedition of 1498. With regard to the course which it is alleged Se])astian covered during the voyage, the following referencie by Stevens, in his Ilistoriccd and Geo- f/raphical Notes (p. 35), is well worth eonsiderino'. Steven's says : " The remark of Peter ^lartyr, in ^ Hemy viii. So far as this statement may be considered to re- late to the voyages of John Cabot in 1497 and 1498, or to either, it is meaningk^ss. - There are reasons for believing that on his first arrival in Sjiain, in other words, at the i)eriod when he left the exjtedition which he had accompanied from England tor tlie purimse uf taking eniphjy- ment under the Spanisli Crown, he was regarded as an Englishman, which, in the truest sense, and putting aside the een restored in the transhition. Cabot's Discovery of North America 191 ate sessenta onde os diam sam de dezoj'to horas, et as noytes muy claras ct screiias. Avia a(|ui miiyta frialdade ct ilhas de nove (|ue luio aeliavam grandes regelos, do (|iic tambem se arrcceavam. E como da(|ui por diaiita tornassc a eosta ao levante, fizera- mose 11a oiitra volta ao longo deseoljiiiido toda a baya, rio, enseada, p'ra ver se passava da outra baiida, et foram assi diminuiiido n' altura ate triiita et oyto graos, donde sc tornaram a Iiiglaterra. Outros (^uerem dized (]ue cliegasse a poiita da Florida que csta em vintc cinco graos " (Edition of 15G3). [Translation] "111 the yeere 149G there was a Venetian in EngLind called Sebastian Cal)ot, who, having know- ledge of such a new discoveric as tliis was, and per- ceiving by the globe that the islands before spoken of stood about in the same latitude with his country, and much nearer to Enolnnd than to Portuo-al or to the Castile, he acquainted King Henry the Seventh, then Kinir of Enoland, with the same, wherewith the said king was greatly pleased, and furnished him out with two ships and three hundred men, which departed and set sail in the spring of the year, and they sailed westward till they came in sight of land, in forty-five degrees of latitude towards tlie north, and then went straight northwards till they came into sixty degrees of latitude, where the day is eighteen hours long, and the night is very clear and ])right. There they found the air cold, and great islands of ice, but no ground in seventy, eighty, or a hundred fathoms soundinu". but found much ice, which alarmed them : and so from thence, putting III'' i'.\ w ' » ■I- ill h 1? r k 1 ^ 192 Cabot's Discovery of North America about, finding tlie land to turn eastwards, they trended along by it, discovering all the bay and river named Deseado, to see if it passed on the other side ; then they sailed back again till they came to 38 degrees towards the equinoctial line, and from thence returned into England. There be others which say that he went as far as the Cape of Florida, which standeth in 25 decrees." [From the translation published by the Ilakluyt Society.] The writer may or may not have known Sebas- tian Cabot, and the information he gives may have been derived either from Sebastian personally or from Martyr's work. We have no reliable evidence to guide us. If the information was obtained from Peter Martyr, very little importance can be attached to it. Sir Clements Markham says : " Antonio Galvao was a native of Lisbon, born 1503, who went to India in 1527, and became governor of the Moluccas. He was a man of great talent and learning, an able and exceptionally humane adminis- trator. After his return to Portugal he devoted himself to the preparation of an account of all known voyages of discovery, DescohHmentos em divet'sos annos e tempos, quaformam os primer^os que navegarem. It is still a valuable comj)ilation. He died at Lisbon in 1557." In the Biographical Dictionary, p. 667 : " Galvam (or Galvao) Antonio (died 1557), surnamed * the Apostle of the Moluccas,' a Portuguese, who was in 1538 appointed governor of those islands. He maintained, by his military skill, the colonists against the Malays, whom he first subdued and afterwards conciliated. Refusing the sovereignty, he returned to Portugal in 1545, and Cabot's Discovukv of North America 193 :onio 3cas/ rnor itary first the and notwithstanding liis services, was left to die in poverty in an hospital." • • • t » t t Francisco Lopez de Gomara, in his Historia General de las Indias^ part i., BacaHaos," published in 1552, says- cap. ])e lo.s " Qui en mas noticia traxo desta tierra fue Sebastian Gaboto, Veneciano. El qual armo dos navios en Inglaterra do tratava desde pequeno, a costa del Rey Enrique Septimo, que desscava con- tratar en la especiera como hazia el rey de Portugal. Otros disen que a su costa, y' que prometio al rey Enrique de ir por el norte al Catayo y traer de alia especias en menos ticmpo que Portugueses por el sur. Y va tambien por saber que tierra eran las Indias para poblar. Llevo trecientos hombres y camino la buelta de Islandia sobre cabo del Labrador, hasta se poner en cinquenta y ocho grades. Aunque el dize mucho mas contando como avia por el mes de Julio tanto frio y peda90s de yelo que no oso passar mas adelante, y que los dios eran grandissimos y quasi sin noche y las noches muy claras. Es cierte que a sesenta grados son los dias de diez y ocho horas, Diendo pues Gabota la frialdad y cstrancza de la tierra, dio la buelta hazia poniente y rehazien- dose en los Baccalaos corrio la costa hasta treynta y ochos grados y tornose de alii a Inglaterra." [Translation] " He wlio obtained the most news of this land was Sebastian Gabot, a Venetian. He armed two vessels in England (where he had been brought up from a >3 .(J . !': 'I, ■ i I 1' 194 CAIiOT's OlSroXI-.RV OV NOKTII AmI'I'.U A child), at the cost of King Henry vji., wlio (h'sircd to trudo with the spico couutiy like the King of Portugid. Others say tluit it was at his own cost, and tiiat he promised the King of b^nghmd to go by the north to Catluiy, and to l»ring spic^es thence in a sliortcr time than the Portuguese hrouglit th< -' fi'om the south. He also went to ascertain wi hind of the Indies could be settled.' Jle took three hundred men, and went in the direction of Iceland to the Cape of Labrador, reaching 58°, although he says much more. 1 le relates how that, in the month of July, it was so cohl, and there were such great pieces of ice, that he eouhl get no further, that the days were very h)ng and almost without night, and that the nights were very clear. It is certain that in (U)° the days have eighteen hours. Consid(>ring the cold and the forbidding nature of the country, he turned to the south, and, passing the Baeealao he proceeded as far as {38°, returning thence England" (The Journal of Cliridopltcr Columhn.^ etc., by Sir Clements R. Markham, K.C.B., Presi- dent of the Ilakluyt Society, p. 215). It is highly probable that Gomara was personally acquainted with Sebastian Cabot, because, as Secre- tary ^ to Fernando Cortes, he was in the habit of visiting the Court of Charles i. of Spain. The words, *' although he says much more," may or may not indicate that the writer had been in personal communication with Cabot. They clearly indicate that Gomara was struck with Sebastian's statement. Zin^ i ira»rm i t» n mh .1 1 This cannot possibly relate to tlio voyage in 1497. 2 "Siendo su'capellan y criada [de Cortt's] despues de Mav([uos Cuando volvio la postrera vez a Espaua." — Las Caaas, Historia de las Indias, book iii. chap. cxiv. vol. iv. p. 4-18. Cauot's Discovkuv or Noktii Amkuk a iqs ir([iu'« de Ins Tt appciirs tliat tho ])riiitiiif( of tlic first iMliiioii of Goiiijii'ji'h work was liuislicd at, Sarai^ossa in Dccomlx-r 1552, and that a sccoiid cilitioii was jtriiitcd in Aui^nist 1553. In Aden's translations (Arl)(M''.s edition, [). ;M5), tiic following? notes as to " liaccalaos " appear: "'riie coaste of the land of Baeealaos is a pjreat track, and the jifreatest altitude tliere(jf is 48 dc^nrees and a half." • • ■ • • • t Anotlier historical record which contains a refer- ence to the proceedings of Sebastian Cabot is the Raccolta di Navujntionl e Vla(jf/i,^ a collection of voyages and travels written by CJiovanni IJattista Ramusio. This work was published in three volumes, of which the first was published in 1554. The author died in 1557. lie was born at Tevisa in 1485. He entered the V^cnctian Secretaryshi}» in the year 1505. In the year 1515 he was made Secretary of the Senate, an office which he occupied up to the 7th July 1533, when he was promoted to the high and res])onsiblc office of Secretary of the Council of Ten of Venice. In the third volume of his collection of voyages, which was written at Venice in 1553, but not printed until 1556, Ramusio, in the preliminary discourse to his work, says: "As many years past 1 was writteyi unto me by Signor Sebastian Gabotto, our Venetian ^ [countryman], a man of great experience, 1 Tliis work was regarded as one of the most copious and learned works on the history of navigations ever before puljlisiied, 2 There exists no reason for believing that llamusio ever pi;rsonall y met with Seltastian Cabot. ]5iit Raniusio would have known of I'eter Martyr's description of liim, and in all ])robability, as Secretary to the Council of Ten of Venice, he knew of Cabot's declaration of bis nationalitv to (Vmtarini. 1 11 " . I, R '' h i I 1 I I (I 'i ill 196 Cahot's Discovery of North America and very rare in the art of navigation and the knowledge of cosmography, who sailed along and beyond the land of New France, at the charges of King Henry vii. of England. And he advertised me, that having sailed a long time west by north, beyond those isLands unto the latitude of 67 degrees and a half, under the North Pole, and at the 1 1 day of June, finding still the open without any manner of impediment, he thought verily by that way to have passed on still the way to Cathay, which is the east, and would have done it, if the mutiny of the Ship- markers and Mariners had not hindered liim and made him to return homewards from that place." A literary warfare has been carried on with reference to Raniusio's statement, which some con- tend is utterly devoid of meaning so far as it relates to any voyage ever undertaken l)y Sel)astian Cabot ; on the other hand, ]\Ir. Harrisse, in reviewing all the liicts and possibilities, cannot even come to the conclusion that it relates — as has been suourested — to a voyage in or about the year 1517. But the most important account given by Kamusio purports to have been made by a person whose name is not disclosed. Tarducci says : "Kamusio relates that going with a friend to visit the celeliratcd Fracastoro at his villa of Caphi, he found him in tlie company of ' a gentleman who was a great philosopher and mathematician, whose name out of respect is not given.'' This plulosopher, as the conversation turned ui)cn the ' plan of going to find the Indies by way of the north-west wind,' made on this subject ' a long and admiral )le discourse, and amonc;st other thinos related a visit of his to Sebastian C^abot in Spain, and the accounts the to he Cabot's Discovery of North America 197 latter had given bim of his voyages and discoveries. Ramusio, who was then composing his great collec- tion of voyages and navigations, inserted in it this discourse of the gentleman, putting it in the person of Cabot himself, as the Anonymous had done. AVe are not told in what year Anonymous met Sebas- tian. D'Avezac supposes it was in 1544 or 1545 ; but as it is necessary to put Ramusio's visit to the villa of Caplii in 1547 or 1 548 (as D'Avezac admits), it does not seem to me that, at the distance of only three or four years. Anonymous could have said, ' finding myself many years ago in the city of Seville.' I therefore think the conversation witli Sebastian must have occurred some years earlier." It is exceedingly difficult to ascertain whether we ought to attach any, and if so, what, importance to this statement. No date is mven as to when the alleged conversation with Cal)ot took ])laco, but inasmuch as in one part of it Cabot, so it is alleged, refers to the Rio de la Plata, it is only reasona])le to infer that tlie conversation must ha\e taken place just before Cabot's final depaiturc from S})ain to England in or about the year 1548. Ramusio's account of the conversation with the Anonymous (generally designated tlie " JMantuan ^ gentleman ") — ' Tomaso Ouinti, who republished Ramurfin's work in 1013, jiliu'oa "Mantuau" after tlie name ol' llu' aiionyinuus gentleman. Marco Fo.scarini believed that the Mantuau gentleman was (uangiaeumo Bartolo. There seeing to be nr real evidence ti) guide us. As an example of the value of conjecture in matters of tliis kind, Richard iiden thought this was a good njijiortunit y ul' disclosing the name to ihe world. Eden gave his readers tlie name nf,i linlipgiiiv-e, ( iallcazzo IJottri- gari, tlie jiope's nuncio inSpaiu. L'nl'urtuiiati-ly I'nr Eden.-i rt|iiita'.ii)u for accuracv, it subsei|uently turned out that Rottrigari died in iOlS, ami was buried in the Churcli of .St. Francesco, in Liulogna. \ - i ■i ; T > 198 Cabot's Discovery of North America " Mi par convenevole di non lassare per modo alcuno, die io non racconti nn grade, et ammirabile rugionamento, che io udi questi mesi passati insieme coir excellcnte Architetto M. Michelc da S. Michele, neir ameno et dilettevole luogo dell' eccellente Messer Hieronimo Fracastora detto Caphi, posto nel Veronese. ... II qual ragionamento non mi basta I'animo di poter serivere cosi particolarmente com' io udi, perclio vi saria di bisogno altro ingegno, et altra nicnioria clic non la mia, pur mi sforzerb sommariamente, et come per capi di recitar quel che mi potro ricordare. In questo luogo di Caphi adunque essendo andati a visitar detto eccellente messer Hieronimo, Io trovammo accompagnato con un gentil' liuomo, grandissimo philosopho et mathe- matico, che allhora gli mostrava uno instrumento fatto sopra un moto dc cieli, trovato di nuovo, il nomc del quale per suoi rispetti non si dice, et avcndo tra loro disputato lungamente sopra questo stesso nuovo moto, per ricrearsi alquato I'animo feeero portare una balla grande molto particolare di tutto il mondo, sopra la quale questo gentil' huomo comincio a parlare dicendo. . . . Non saf)ete a questo proposito d'andare a trovar I'lndie pel vento di maestro, quel che fece gia un vostro cittadino Venctiano, cli'e cosi valente et practico delle cose pertinenti alia navigazione et alia cosraographia, cli'in S})agna al presente non v'e un suo pari, et la sua virtii I'ha fatto preporre a tutti li pilotti che navigano alle Indie occidentali, che senza sua licentia non possono far quell' essercitio, et per questo Io chiamano Pilotto maggiore, et ris- pondendo noi, che non Io sapevamo, continub, dicendo, che ritrovandosi gia alcuni anni nella I Cabot's Discovery of North America 199 citth, di Sivilia, et desidcraiido di saper qlle iiavi- gationi dc Castigliani, gli fut detto, che vera iin gra valent' Imonio Venetiano che havca '1 carico di quelle, nominate '1 Signer Sebastiano Ca])oto, il qual sapeva far carte marine di sua mano, et intendeva I'arte del navigare piii cli' alcun altro. Subito volsi essere col detto, et lo trovai una geni^lissima persona et cortcse, chi mi fece gran carezee, et mostrommi niolte cose, et fra I'altre un Mapamondo grande coUe naviga- tioni, particolari si di Portogliesi, come di Casti- gliani, et mi disse clie sendosi partito suo padre da Venetia sjia molti anni, et andato a stare i Inoliil- terra a far mercantie lo meno seco nella citta di Londra, cli' egli era assai giovane, non gia ])ero che non avesse imparato et lettere d'liumanita et la sphera. JMori il padre in quel tempo die venne nova che '1 signer Don Christoforo Colomljo Genovese havea scoperta la cesta dell' Indie, e se ne parlava grandemente per tutta hi corte del Ke Henrico vii., che allhora regnava, dieendosi che era stata cosa piuttosto divina die liumana I'haver trovata quella via mai piii saputa d'andare in Orionte, dove nascono le 8petie. Per il die mi iiacque un desiderio grande, anzi un ardor nel core di voler fare andiora io qualdie cosa segnalata, et sapendo per ragion ddla sphera, die s'io navigassi })er via del vento di maestro, haverei minor cammino a trovar 1' Indie, subito feci intendere qucsto mio pensiero alia IMaesta del Ke, il quale fu melto contento, et mi anno due caravelle di tutto ci5 che era di bisogno, ot ff (Jel I4i)G nel principio della State, et cominciai a navigare verso maestro, pensando di non trovar terra se non quella dov'e il Cataio, et di la ])oi voUare verso le Indie; ma in capo di alquanti giorni la aiscopersi che I I \\} 200 Cabot's Discovery of North America correva verso tramoiitana, clie mi fu d'iufinito dis- piacere, e pur andaudo dictro la costa pei vedere se io poteva trovare qualche golfo die voltasse, non vi fu mai ordine, che andato sino a gradi cinquantasei sotto il uostro polo, vedendo che quivi la costa voltava verso levante, disperato di trovarlo, me ne tornai a dietro a riconoscere ancora la dctta costa dalla parte verso I'equinoziale sempre con intenzione di trovar passaggio alle Indie, e venni sino a quella die chiamano al presente la Florida, et mancandomi gia la vettovagiia, presi partito di ritornarmene in Inghilterra, dove giunto trovai grandissimi tumulti di popoli soUevati et della guerra in Scotia : ne piii era in consideratione alcuna il navigare in questi parti, per il che me ne venni in Spagna al Re Catholic, et alia Regima Isabella " (Ramusio, Delle Navigazioni et Viaggi, Primo volume, Ediz. seconda, Giunta, 1554 ; pp. 414, 415). [Translation] " It would be inexcusable in me if I did not relate a high and admirable discourse which, some few months ago, it was my good fortune to hear in company with the excellent architect, Michael de S. Michael, in the sweet and romantic country seat of Hieronimo Fracastoro, named Caphi, situated near Verona, whilst we sat on the top of a hill commanding a view of the whole of the Laii'o di Garda. '* We found him, on our arrival, sitting in company with a certain gentleman, whose name, from motives of delicacy and respect, I conceal. He was, how- ever, a profound philosopher and mathematician. Cabot's Discovery of North America 201 "At this i^oint, after the stranger had made a pause of a few minutes, he turned to us and said : " ' Do you not know, regarding this project of going to India by the north-west, what was formerly achieved ])y your fellow-citizen, a Venetian, a most extraordinary man, and so deeply conversant in everything connected with navigation and the science of cosmography, that in those days he hath not his equal in Spain ; insomuch that for his ability he is preferred above all pilots that sail to the West Indies, who may not pass thither without his licence, on which account he is denominated Piloto-mayor, or Grand-Pilot ? ' " When to this question we replied that we knew him not, the stranger proceeded to tell us that, being some years ago in the city of Seville, he was desirous to gain an acquaintance with the navigation of the Spaniards, when he learned that there was in the city a valiant man, a Venetian horn, named Sebastian Cabot, who had the charge of those things, being an expert man in the science of navigation, and one who could make charts for the sea with his own hand. " ' Upon this report of him,' continued he, ' 1 sought his acquaintance and found him a pleasant and courteous person, who loaded me with kindness and showed inc maiiv thiniics ; amonji; the rest a large map of tlie workl, with the navigation of the Portuguese and Spaniards minutely laid down u[)on it; and in exhibiting this to me he informed me that his father, many years ago, having left A'enice to dwell in l^^ngland, to follow the trade of mer- chandises, had taken him to London, while he was yet very young, yet having, neveithele>.<, some r ih u i. f ill 202 Cabot's Discovery of North America knowledge of letters of humanity, and of the sphere. " And when my father died," said he, " in the time when news was brought that Don Christopher Colonus, Genoese, had discovered the coasts of Indies, whereof was gre«it talk in all the Court of King Henry vii., who then reigned, insomuch that all men, with great admiration, affirmed it to be a thing more divine than human, to sail by the West into the East, where spices grow, by a way that was never known before ; by this fame and report there increased in my heart a great flame of desire to attempt some notable tiling ; and understanding by the sphere that, if 1 should sail by way of the north- west, I should, by a shorter track, come into India, I imparted my ideas to the king, who immediately commanded two caravels to be furnished with all things necessary for the voyage, being much pleased therewith. This happened in 149G, in the early part of summer, and I began to sail towards the north-west,^ with the idea that the first land I should make would be Cathay, from which I intended afterwards to direct my course to the Indies ; but, after the lapse of several days, having discovered it, I found that the coast ran towards the north, to my great disappointment. From thence, sailing along it to ascertain if I could find any gulf to run into, I could discover none ; and thus, having proceeded as far as 5(3° under tlie pole, and seeing that here the • "In Riunusio's Collection of Voyacies an anonymous writer puts into the mouth of Sebastian Cabot more or less autobiographical narra- tive, in which there are almost as many blunders as lines. ... It is to Ramusio's narrative, moreover, that we owe the ridiculous state- ment — repeated by almost every historian from that day to this — that the purpose of the voyage of 140S was the discovery of a ' north-west passage to the coast of Asia'" (Fiske, vol. ii. pp. 8, i)). i' I Cabot's Discovery of North America 203 coast trended towards the East, I despaired of dis- covering any passage, and after tliis turned l)ack to examine the same coast in its direction towards the equinoctial, always wdth the same object of finding a passage to the Indies, and thus 1 reached the country at present named Florida, where, since my provisions began to fail me, 1 took the resolution of returning to England. " ' " On arriving in that country I found great tumults, occasioned by the rising of the common people and the war in Scotland ; nor was there any more talk of a voyage to these parts. For this reason I departed into Spain to their most Catholic Majesties, Ferdinand and Isabella," ' " etc. Inasmuch as the name of the person who is said to have related what he had heard from Sebastian Cabot is not given, this narrative is not entitled to be considered as above suspicion. A casual glance at the relation clearly points out that the details may have been slightly altered in transmission between the anonymous " Mantuan gentleman" and Ramusio. Several years must have elapsed between the date of the alleged interview between Sebastian and the " Mantuan gentleman." Then, again, it is not certain that Ramusio wrote down the statement at the time it was made. In all probability the memory of Ramusio served him ^'el•y well, but most persons know how difficult it is to remember the exact details of a conversation. " I do not pretend," says Ramusio, "to write his discourse with as full details as I heard it, for that would require other skill and memory than I possess ; still, I will try to give a summary, or, as it were, the heads of what I can remember." — '• II quale ragionamento, cgli dice, li P 204 Cabot's Discovery of North America ■ ii non mi Casta Tanimo di potere scriverc cosi parti- calarmente com'io lo ucli, perch^ vi sariadi bisogna altro ingcgno, et altra memoria, che nou 6 la mia, pur mi sforzer6 sommariamente c come per capi di recitar quel che mi potrb ricordare." Ramusio, in referring to another matter, acknowledges that his memory was not quite a perfect record. " With regard to the Mediterranean Sea, I seem to remem- ber that he touched upon 1 know not what voyage that might be made upon it with great profit, but to what place has entirely escaped my memory." — " A proposito del Mar Mediterranco mi par ricordare che toccasse anche di non so che viaggio che si potria fare in quello di grandissimo proposito, ma a che parte emmi al tutto fuggito dalla memoria." We cannot regard it as more than second-hand evidence of a very weak description. We find that the Anonymous says that Sebastian was looked upon as "a Venetian born," and that he corroborates JMartyr's statement as to having been taken to London when he was very young. Martyr. "Being yet but in manner an infant, his parents carried with them into England, having occa- sion to resort thither for trade of merchandise," etc. The " Mantuan Gentleman." " He informed me that his father, many j'ears ago, having left Venice to dwell in England, to follow the trade of merchandise, had taken him to London while he was yet very young." As to the number of ships, the Anonymous corro- borates Martyr. Martyr. "He (Cabot) therefore furnished two shippes in England at his own charges." Tlie " Mautiuin Gentleman," "I imparted myideas totheking, who immediately commanded two caravels to be furnished with all things necessary for the voyagp, being much pleased therewith.'' Cabot's Discovery of North America 205 his >rro- two II all But in the account given by the Anonymous we are told that this voyage took place in 1490, and that at that time his father (John Cabot) was actually dead. Under the circumstances, there seems to be no alternative but to dismiss this unintelligible story from a place in a serious history. These second-hand relations of events should be carefully studied, and placed in juxtaposition with the accounts of the voyages given by John Cabot to the various persons who placed his statements upon record. It is worthy of note that Peter Martyr records the fact that it was doubted by some Spaniards that Sebastian Cabot was the discoverer of the region called Baccalaos. "Ex Castelhinis non desunt, qui Cabothum primum finisse Baccalaorum, repertorem negent tantumque ad occidentem tetendisse minime assentientur." (Some of the Spaniards deny that Cabot was the first finder of the land of Baccalos, and afhrm that he went not so far westward.) And it is also worthy of note, when we come to consider all the evidence as to whether or not Sebastian was with his father in the vovasje of 1497, that the Drapers' Company, in 1521, in an address to the king, said that Sebastian Cabot " was never in that land himself," while ** he makes re})ort of many things as he hath heard his father and other men speak in times past." Dr. Samuel Edward Dawson, in some remarks as to the discovery in 1497 l>y the Matthew of Bristol, with a crew of eighteen men, says : " In considera- tion of this discovery made by John Cal»ot, Kinf? Henry vii. granted new letters - patent, drawn !i m i\ Ml 2o6 Cai'.ot's Discovery ok North America 1 ' solely to John C*abot, authori.sing a second expedition on a more extended scale and with fuller royal authority, which letters-patent were dated February 3rd, 1498. That this expedition sailed in tlie spring of 141)8, and had not returned in Octol)er . . . [are] points [which] are now fully supported by satisfactory evidence, mostly documentary and contemporary. As for John Cabot, Seljastian said he died, which is one of the few undisputed facts in the discussion ; but if Sebastian is correctly reported in Ramusio^ to have said that he died at the time when the news of Columbus's discoveries reached England, then Sebastian Cabot told an untruth, because the letters - patent of 1408 were addressed to John Caljot alone. The son had a gift of reticence concerving others, including his father and brothers, which in these latter days has been the cause of much wearisome research to scholars." Dr. Dawson also says : ** During the whole of the first voyage John Cabot was the commander ; on the second voyage he sailed in command, but who brought the expedition home, and when it returned, are not recorded. It is not know^n how or W'hen John Cabot died, and although the letters-patent for the second voyage were addressed to him alone, his son Sebastian, during forty-five years, took the whole credit in every subsequent mention of the discovery of America. This antithesis may throw light upon the suppression of his fiither's name in all the statements attributed to or made by Sebastian Cabot. . . . He was marvellously reticent aliout his father. The oidy mention whicli 1 "Discourse of the Anonviuoiis Guesl at the House of P'rascator Rainusio," Navigazioni et Viuijyi, vol. i. fol. 374r), .3rcl od., Venice. the on ; who irncd, when itent lone, the f tlie hrow le in lously Ivliich lartcator tt?. Cabot's Discovery ok North Amkrra 207 occurs is on the map, seen by Hukluyt, and on the mup of 1544, supposed, soniewluit rashly, to be a transcript of it. There ^ the discovery is attri- buted to John Cabot and to S('l)astian his son, and that has reference to the first voyage. . . . Sebastian manifested 110 concern for any person's reputation but liis own. He never once alluded to his two brothers wlio were associated in the first patent, and the preceding slight notice of his father is all that can be traced to liim," although contemporary records of unquestionable authority indicate John Cal)ot as the moving spirit, and do not mention the son. . . . AVhat we are concerned to solve is the historical problem : Who first discovered the mainhmd of America ? For that reason John Caljot and his little vessel, the Matthew of Bristol have to us a paramount interest. In this portion of my paper, then, Peter IVlartyr, Oomara, Kamusio, and Ilakluyt are of minor importance. I am to concern myself first with those Spanish and Italian envoys, whose letters and despatches from England in the same year are almost the only contemporary evidence we possess of John Cabot's achievement. As these were all written Ijefore the return of the second expedition, in studying them we are sure of having the only extant information concerning the first voyage absolutely free from any inter- * It may or rnay not be Sebastian Cabot's iiia]). The evidence as to the authorsbip is merely conjectural. There exists no autlientic proof that the inscriptions on the iiiaj) were placed tliereon by Sebastian Cabot. - Tliis certainly depends upun whether the authorship of the legends on the so-called Cabot niaj) can lie traced to Sebastian, in fairness, however, the inscription on the portrait of Seliastian should alao be mentioned, b i !H :: 1 \- \yi' i' I ... 1 1 ■ 1 'h h. I l^. 2o8 Cabot's Discovery oi North America ■■■ A li mixture with the details of the second." Dr. Dawson has shown, in his discussion of the various important points at issue in the Cabot liistory, that he possesses a singularly apt method of heading up to and offering a solution of the complicated questions, which, in consequence of what Sebastian Cabot said, or it may be what he left unsaid, have caused so much difficulty to those who arc desirous to get at the truth. Dr. Dawson's monograph, which was pul)lished in 1894, together with an article written by him which is included in a recently published pamphlet,^ entitled "The Discovery of America by John Caljot in 1497," etc., deserves the best attention of every student of American history. In concluding the notice of the accounts related by Peter Martyr, Oalvao, Gomara, and llamusio, the following questions are presented before us for our serious consideration. First, was Sebastian Cabot with his father, either in the vo}'age of 1497 or in that of 1498 ? Secondly, did he wilfully suppress the fact that it was his father who was the real discoverer? Thirdly, did he trade upon the imperfect knowledge he had gleaned as to the voyages of 1497 and 1498, or either of them, from his father ? These questions are put as the result of a very careful study by the questioner of all the docu- mentary evidence it is possible to obtain. The answers must be left to the readers of this ' who are advised to keep their minds op after they have read its last pa na decision should not be arrived at ui , the .dole 1 Ottawa, for sale by James Hope & Sous, K^iiC. „ It I poll the from pry pcu- Tlio Cahot's Discovery of North America 209 of the (litficultics and entanglements of the Cahot history have Ik'cii carefully examined, "tlreat surprise," says Biddlo, " lias been expressed that [Sebastian] Cabot should have left no account of his voyages, and this circumstance has ever been urged against him as a matter of reproach." Perhaps it is better to say that it is n great ])ity, both for the sake of Sebastian and the i)ublic, that, so far as the allegations as to the agency of Sebastian Cabot in the voyages of 1497 and 1498 are concerned, we are left to judge as to the truth or otherwise from statements made at second- hand. lii llf p.' II I ^ I Uii iiole H : $ T \m ^i CHAPTER VI In tlic year 1521 we find that Sebastian Cabot liad nindo terms with King Henry viii. for taking com- mand of an expedition. As a matter of fact, wc cannot tell for certain whether the expedition ever sailed ; it is certain, however, that if it actually siiilcd, Sebastian Cabot took no pnrt whatever in it. But the records of the proceedings connected with the negotiations tend to throw some very important sidedights on the history of Sebastian Cabot. Sir Robert Wyukfeld and Sir Wolston Brown, two members of the council of Jlenry viii., called upon tiie wardens of the various livery companies of London to furnish five vessels " for a viagc to be made into the newe found Hand," which was to be plnccd under the command of "one man callyd as understoud Sebastyan." It is certain that this means that arrangements of some kind — w hether of a com- plete nature or subject to sonic condition, must be left to conjecture — had been made with Seljastyan Cabot, whose surname was suppressed. At that time he was in the employ of Spain. The wardens of the drapers and of the mercers took exception to the proposed expedition on the giound, as (hey alleged, that the king and his council " were not duely and substancially enfonued in such manner as perfite knowledge myght be had bv credible reporte 210 lens |i to hoy I ll(3t as )rte Cabot's Discovery of North Amkrua 211 of niaistcrs ami mariners nahiral/i/ horn irith'm this Realm of Euyland,^ liavinu^ ox^n'rintce and cxcer- sidetl in and about the forsaid Hand." The report also says : " And we thynk it were too sore a venture to joj^erd V shipps with men and goods unto the said Hand uppon the singuh?r trust of one man, eallyd, as we understand, 8el)astyan, which Sehastyaii, as we here say, was never in that hmd hym self, all if he maks report of many things as he hath hard his father and other men speke in tymes past." The substance of Sebastian's negotiations with EnGjhiiid, at a time when he wjis receivinji; consirler- able })ay as pilot-major in Spain, seems to point to the fact that he was making capital out of his alleged knowledge, that some further important discovery was within the realm of fact. At this period he was certainly looked uji()n by some S[)aniards as a born Englishman, and, judging by his subsequent in- trigues with \ enice, wc must receive any represen- tation made by him regarding his birthplace with suspicion.'^ It is certain he was a man who would not hesitate to make any number of misrepresenta- tions when it suited his ])urpose to do so. We are much puzzled when we find that ln' did not take part in a projected ciitiM-prise, which was. in accord- ance with negotiations carried on with (ardin.d Wolsey and tlie king's c(Miucib in course of jtrcpaia- tion. Did he use the fact that the English were nejjot latins'' with him for his services for auv ulterior purpose? It is not at all improbable tliat it was only part of a plan to enhance the xabie uj" his ' This is cvidciitlv a liii at Sobastiaii Calmt .- -\i|)|M>.ri| natn'iialiiy. -' Of coui'.-o, tlit'V ma\ have hail no goixl (' U>y tl.i'if Ix-lict' that lie WIS not a natiiral-ljorii Kiij.'lishiiiaii. Mi if ii I ' ! a- 1 V: ill \ 1 ■ ! 'l I' ' I ! \ 212 Cabot's Discovery ok North America services in the eyes of the Spaiiisli Court. Wc are still further i)uzzlecl when we find, as a fact, that in 1522 he was intriguing with the Council of Ten of N'enicc to sell to the republic a piece of secret infor- mation. He represented that he was acquainted with a north-west passage to the Indies. In his negotiations with Venice it will be seen that he refers to liis English negotiations, and, in M. llarrisse's words, wc find that he represented that, " Cardinal Wolsey had made great efforts to induce him to take tiie command of an im])ortant expedition to discover new countries, 30,000 ducats having actually l»ecn ol)tained for equipping the fleet: ' Ilor ritrovandomi ja tre anni, salvo il vero, in Ingilterra, ipiel Reverendissimo Carrlinal mi volea far graiidi i)artiti chc io navigasse cum una sua armada per discoprir paesi novi la quale ora (piasi in ordine, et haveano preparati per spender in casa ducati 30 m.'" ' It strikes one as a most extraordinary coincidence that his idea of a passage to the Indies by the north- west was first disclosed at a time when the south- west route was actually suggested or delineated on a glol)o, and at a time, too, when ^Magellan's p>roposals for circumiuivigation were in actual existence.^ The ' C. I'ullo, La rent pntria dl, \\ 64, and Jean et Sebastian Cabot, Xicolo, (/('' ('i)iiti I' (U ('iii)vniiiii C(th(jfi\ doc. xxviii. ]i. 348 ; Sfiatj e Pociiiihiifl HJtiiHiijiti^ 1880. - Magellan retiinie-reatest feat of navigation that has ever been performed, and notliiiig can be imagined tiuit would surpjiss it except a journey to some other j)lanet. It lias not the uiii(|Ue histori(*al position of the iirst voyage of C'olinnbus, which brouiiht toi>ether two streams of human lil'c that had ])een disjoined since the Glacial i)eriod. But as an a<'hievement in ocean navigation, that voyage of Cokunbus sinks into insigniiicance by the side of it. . . . When we consider tlie frailness (d" the ships, the immeasurable extent of the unknown, the of iinv proposal for the discovcrv uf iuioiln'r route As a consciiui'iKi-, Aliigcllaii, a Portugut'se, vtTv ivliu'taiitly oUV'rcl h'xs wrvices {<> Spiin, and tlii'v wi'ri' acccjitcfl. ' ( Iiiillfiiianl's Sliiijtllait, ji. 2oi'. ■■' Vul. ii. p. 210. <; lU? ii' If 11 214 Cabot's Discovery of North America mutinies that were prevented or quelled, and the hardships tliat were endured, we can have no hesita- tion in speakin<( of Magellan as the prince of navi- gators." This little digression has been made for the purpose of pointing out that it was just at the period when the survivors of Magellan's expedition arrived in Spain that Seljastian Cabot oj)ened his negotiations as to the '* North-West Passage " with Venice. It is now proposed to give the corres})ondencc relatinn; to Sebastian Cabot's intrigue with Venice during the time he was in the employment of Spain. Despatch of the Council of Ten to Caspar Contarini, A'enotian Ambassador to Spain, 27tli September 1522. " Oratori nostro apud Ct\3saream et Cattolicam Maiestatem. " Zonzc I'altro giorno de qui uno Don hierolamo di Marin de Bucignoh) llhaguseo, quale venuto alia prcsentia delli Capi del Consiglio nostro di Dieci Disse esser sta niand-ito per uno Sebastian Cabotto," chc dice esser di questa citta nostra, et al presente iialtita in Sybilia, dove })ar habbi provvision da q'.ella Cesarea et Cattolica Maesta i)er suo pcdota major in le navigation del diseoprir terre nove. Et per nome di ([uello i-efcri (juanto per la insertia deposition sua vederete, d;illa (jumIc ancorchc ne ap})ari non poter prestare molta fcdo, pure per esser de la importantia le non havremmo dovuto retiutare la oblation ne fa epso Sebastian de poter veiiii" de (|ui alia prcsentia nostra, pei' dichiarirne (pirnto li va per mente in la materin pro])ostane. I'lui siamo sta contenti che el ditto ]lier«tlamo H nscrivi nel modo che per le sue Cabot's Discovery of North Amkrtca ita 11a in >mc sua iter tia fa tia la cl ue 215 inclusc vedert'te ; volemo adunque ct iioi tletli capi del consiglio nostro dei Dinci iie commettemo, die cun ogiii diligente ma cauta forma, provriasi di intcnder se il predctto Sabastiaii fusse in quella eortc aut per venirli de breve, nel qual caso faciano venirlo ad voi, et consignarli dettc lettere a lui directive, le quali per ogni bon rispecto liaveriamo fatto allegar ad altre indriciate al fidelissimo servitor vostro, chc pur staranno in le presenti. Ne in lui dimonstraretc saper alcuna cosa di tal materia, nisi in caso die el se scoprisse cun voi, nel qual, siamo ben contenti li didiiariate cl tuto, cun veder de sottrazcr quel piii potersi del sentimento suo, et quando vedesse d si movesse cun bon fondamento, et sensibile, lo con- forterete ad venir di qui, perclie non solum siamo volenti ch'el venga sicuramente, ma lo vederemo molto volentieri. Quando autem d non fusse di li in corte, et nunc per venirle, ma si ritrovasse in Syl)ilia, darete ogni opera di mandarli tuttc lettere per via oiie siate sicuro le gel capitino in mano propria. Demostrando a quello per cui le mandaste, die vi siano sta inviate da alcun vostro particolar de qui, et di ogni sucesso ne darete adviso ad detti Capi del Consiglio nostro di Dicci. Denium travendo nui ricevuto novamente lettere dal capitano general de 5 deir instante di Candia cun advisi de la (;ose da Rhode, vi mandiamo juxta il solito li summarij, accio li comunicbiate de more a quella Cesarea et Cattolica Maestd Magnifico Gnin Cuncdlier, Reverendo Epis- copo de Valenza, et altri che vi a])parorano. " (Lecta universo Collegio. ) " luLiANO Grandonico, C.C. >i* *' Andukus Mudesco, C.C. *i* " DoMINKTS CaVEIA), C.C. ►f" \ > I J • 1. > 1 I. lU ^ I i ,1 2i6 Cabot's Discovkky of North America " Le ultinui die lialjbijiino {in vui sono di 14 del prcsoiitc allc (jual noii dovrcte far alcuiia risposta^ (('api di'l ( V)iisio-]i() dei X. Lcttcro Sottoscritte, Filza N. 5, 15'22J:' [Transf^ation] - " L'7th Septembor 1522. ''To our Orator near tlic Cttsareau and Catholic ]\Iaje.sty. " Since the other day one Don Ilierolanio de ]Marin do Bueignolo, a Kai;usan, who came before tlie pre- sence of the chiefs of our Council of Ten, said that he was sent by one Sebastian Cabotto, who declares that he heloufjs to this our city,^ ami now resides in Seville, where lie has the appointment from that Caisarean and Catholic I\hijesty of his chief pilot for the discovery and navigation of new lands. And, in his name, lie referred to an accompanying disposition as his credential, touching which, although we do not see that we can place niucli trust in it, yet, as there may be some importance in it, we have not thought fit to reject the offer of the same Sel)astiaii to come to our presence to say what lie has in his mind respecting tliis matter. T fence we are content tliat the said Jlierolamo slujuld write to him accordino- to the tenor of what you will sec in the enclosed, ^\'e ' Rawdou Brown's Euglisli liMiisliUioii ha^, "Towliicli you will pei'lia])s roceivi' no furtliL-r reply.'' ^ This coru'siinniluuci; with llie VenHiun auiliassador in S]>fiiii is presorvud at Vonici'. It was printi'd liy -Mr. llarrisso, for his work on tho Cabots ; and it has lit'tii translated I'roni his text I'or tlit- Ilakliiyt Society, with his iH'riiiis.-idii, 3 Vonico. Cabot's Discovkrv of North Amlkica 217 therefore desire, niiJ I \ Miv 2i8 Cabot's Discoverv of North America " Recuttijwnse (jvanU'd to the RmjHsan. •* 1 51>2, Soptem])cr 27.— In tlie College of the Lords, the Heads of the most illustrious Council of Ten. "That it may be ordered to the Chamberlain of our Council of Ten, that from the moneys of their treasury there be disbursed a gift of 20 ducats to the Lord Ilieronimo de Marin, a Ragusan, for good cause." (The order given.) The declaration of Sebastian Cabot as to his birthplace is of the most emphatic character. He sent word to the Council of Ten of Venice, by the Ragusan, Don Hierolamo, that he was a native of Venice. If thi're were no other facts to jjjuide us to a conclusion, his statement would probably be deemed conclusive. Since the proposal rests (as Sebastian says) upon a desire to benefit his native land, and since the negotiation was secret and fraught with perilous consequences, it is difficult to believe that he was not at that time under the impression, whether rightly or wrongly, that he was born in Venice. To those who know anything of the history of Venice or of the history of the Council of Ten, with their machinations, their secret spies, and their marvellous methods of ol)taining information, it must immediately occur to them that Sebastian Cab(jt would have hesitated before making an attempt to deceive them. With regard to the value of the alleged secret of navigation, it will be seen that the Council of Ten attached no very great importance thereto, but, with charncter- Cabot's Discovery of North America 219 istic caution, they waited for furtlier information before comintt to a decision. Despatch of Gaspar Contarini to the Senate of Venice, 3 1st December 1522. " Serenissime Princepc ct Excellentissimc Do- mini, — " La terza vigilia di iiatalc cum la debita river- entia niia ricevi Ic lettere di Vostra Serenita date fino adi 27 septembrio per lo quali quella mi sig- nifica la expositione fatali da Hieronimo Ragusei per nome di Sebastian Caboto et commettemi chu cssendo qui a la Corte io li debba apresentar quella lettera et facendomi ]ui moto alcuno, che io li debba aprir il tuto et parendo le cose pro- poste da lui factibile che io lo exliorti a vcnir a li piedi di Vostra Serenita. Ilor per dar cxecu- tione a prefate lettere, feci dextramente inteiider se costui era a la Corte et inteso chel era ([ui, ct la stanti" sua, li maudai a dir che el secretario mio li haveva da dar una lettera inviatale da un suo amico et che volendo el se transferisse alio allogiamento mio. Costui inteso questo rispose a quel servitor mio che el veniria et cussi la vigilia di Natale venne al hora de disnar. lo ritiratomi con lui, li detti la letter.'i, lui la lessc et legiendola si mosse tutto di colore. Da poij letta, stete cussi un pocheto senza dirmi altro (|uasi sbigotito et dubio. Alhora io li dissi quando che el volesse risponder a dicte lettere over farme in tender quakhe cosa che el volesse che io scrivesse a clii me I'havca inviata che io era prompto a fai'li aver bon reca[)ito. Lui assecurato alhora me «lisse. Io gia parlai a lo ani- \ 1.1 % P i . . n 1 ■■1 'it Jl I II 220 Cabot's Disc(jvi:ry of N(jienefi<'iar la patria mia, io scrissi alia Macsta Cesarea die non me desse per niente licentia die servissc il Uc dc Engelterra perclie li saria dc danno grandc, immo clic subito mo rivocasse, ct cussi rivocato ct ritornato essendo in sibilla contraxi grande amicitia cum (jucsto Ragusco, il quale liora mi scrive, dicendomi lui die el dovea transferirse a Venetia, mi slargai cum lui et li comissi die questa cosa non la dovesse manifcstare ad altri die ali Capi di X. et cussi mi juro Sacramento. Io li rcspusi prima laudando grandemcnte raft'ecto suo verso la patria, poij li dissi did Kagusco era stato a li Excdlcntissimi Signori Capi, et die io da quel Magistrato liavea liabuto lettere supra quesia materia ct commissione die dovcse esscrc cum lui et intender il modo die lui se liavca immaginato ct signiticarlo a Sue Excdlentissime Signcnie ct die poij lui potria andarli in persona, ^la rispose die lui non era per manifestar il pensicr suo ad altri chc a li Excdlcntis- simi Signori C-api, et did era per transferirse a Venetia, richicsta prima licentia da Cesarc eiim questa II' >,» I » i^K' . ,.. ': k 222 Cabot's Discovery of North America cxcusntionc di la ricujjeratioiie di la dote di sua uiadiv, di la (|ual I'osa se faiia die lv» cpiscopo di Burt'os ct il inaii'iiiticio Caiiccllicr mn pailoriano et me iiistariano che io scrivessc in Ikvor suo a la Screiiita Vostra. Io li dissi che volendo vcnir lui a V^cnetia io laiidava (jucsto modo che il mi diccva di chieder licentia, etc. Quanto poij chcl lion mi volesse manifestar il pensier suo, che io noil poteva voler pul di quel che lui volea, ma die ben mi pareva di dirli queste parole et cussl dissi che in olea is- la {iiichora, i(j noii li volIcvji niodo, ni.ixiinc csscndn la (icrnumiji u la ohedicnta dol liiipuratinv. La via [toij (li rondure iiicrcL' da W'lictia (|Uclli iiavilij, ct da li navilij Ic s[)(.'.si(' ct ultie cosi^ a \ ciictia, io iioii li VL'ilova via aleuna, tiita volla |>oi'clic cssiiulo lui valeiitliiioiiio ill (juesta inalcria, io ini ii[)oitava a lui. Me rispose vuj avetc hou discor.so, ct ii) vuritji lie rum navilij lacti a Vcnetia no etiani per la via del ]Mar ro.sso io non vedo niodo aleuno. ^la ce altra via noii solum possihilc ma facile ct di far navilij ct dv eondur mcree da Venetia al porto, il da I porto a Venetia s[)etie, oro et altre cose die io s(» pcrclie io ho navij:;ato tutti (juelli })ae.si ct so hen il tuto, imnio vi dico clie nun vulsi tor il partircndcsseno suspecto, ct cus.si da uno nostro Veronese niio intrinseeo I'u n.'seripta et riformata la lettera. Lui ragionando cum me de molte cose di geographia fra le altre me dissc uno modo ehe I'liavea ohservato per la vi;i del hossolo di conosser la distantia fra due loelii da levante al ponente, molto hello ne mai piii ohscrvato da altri, come da lui veuendo Vostra Sercnita ])Otra intender. Poij ragionaiid<^ pur cum hii cjica la materia ])riiicip;d nostra et dextramente ri]>etendoli io le ditheulta me diase et I ' / I ■t 5 224 Carot's Discovkrv of North Amkrica io vi (lico (^lic la via ot il modo h i'jicilo. Ajidcrn a Veiietia a mio spese, mo uiidiiaiu) iic |»ia('cii(.l<»li el modo per mc cxcooitato, io mi ritornero pur ii mie spese, et fecemi instantia die io teuesse la cosa sccreta. Quosta e stata la executione die io ho facto. Vostra Sereuita la udira, ct cum la sapieiita sum far.\ quel iuditio die li })arera " ( Vallijolt'ti, Die ultimo, Deeeniln'is, 1522). [Translation I " Most Serene Prince and JMost Excellent Lords, — "On the third vi^il of the Nativity, with due reverence, I received the letter fi'om your liordship.v dated the 27th Septemher, l»y which is explain* < to me the proposal of llieroiiimo, the Ra^usan, in the !;ame nf Sehnstian Cahoto, and 1 am instructed, if he is at the Court, to uive him tliat letter, and to make certain j)roposals to liini^ opeiiinn' the whole husiness and exliortinsj; him to come to the feet of your Serenity. In order to execute these instruc- tions, I dexterously ascertained whether he wms at the Court, and. this being so, I sent to say tliit my secretary had to deliver a letter sent hy a friend of his, and that if he wished to receive it, lu^ should come to my lodo-inos. " lie understood this from my ser\aiit who went to him, and came on (.'hristmas Eve at the hour of dinner. I withdrew with him, and «;ave him the letter, which he read, and, in reading it, he lost all colour. Having read il he put it in his pocket without sjteaking to me, and looked friohtened and amazed, i then said to him that, when he should (h'sire to answer that letter, lie should tell nie what Caijot's Disc'ovkry of North Amf.rk a 22S ■lit .)f lie .-ill :vt 1)1.1 il.l lal he wished, and that I would write to those wlio hud sent it, for tliat I should be prompt in making the business end well. Having been reassured he spoke to me : 'I liad already spoken to the Ambassador of the most illustrious Seigueury in England, owing to the aii'ection I have for the fatherland, when those newly-found lands could be made ol" sueh great utility to my country ; and now, as regards what has been written to me, you ought to know all ; but I pray you that it may be kept secret, for it is a matter on which my life depends.' I then told him that 1 knew about it very well, and how the Kaij^usan was brought before the most excellent Chief Lords, and that I have received intelligence of all that was sent in that letter from the most secret mare coming to dine with me, it was not conxcnicnt to discuss the business further at that time. It would be better if he would return in the afternoon, when we might confer more fully. lie then went away and returned at night, when I received him alone in m"' room. He said to me : ' Lord Ahilmssudor, to tell ijot! all, 1 was horn i)i Venice, hut was l)roH(//it up in England, and afterwards entered the ,x*rvice of this Catholic King of S[)ain, and was made captain by King Ferdinand, with a salary of .JO m. niaravedis. I was then made Chief Pilot by this Kinu', with another 50 m. maravedis, and, to hel[» my expenses, was given 25 m. maravedis, nnii\ing in all 125 m. mara\edis, wliich may be reckoned al nearly .'iOO ducats. Jlaving returned to Kngl.ind threes years ago, that most reverend Cardinal wishecl that I would undertake the command of a fleet of his to discover countries, which Heet was nearly ready, lie »5 f 226 Cai'-ot's DiscovKkv OF North Amkrica ! > i: II \i l»eine useful to it ? " [ felt this in my heart at the time, and replied that I would think it over. Having returned to liini on the following day, I said that 1 had a way by which that city' might partici])ate in these voyages, and 1 showed him a way which would he of great utility. As by serving the King of England 1 should not he able to serre tnij count nj, I wrote to the (Cesarean Majesty, that he should not, on any account, give me per- mission to serve the King of Knghmd, because there would be great injury to his service, but that he should recall me. Having returned to Seville, 1 iormed a great friendship with this Ragusan who now writes to me, tilling me that 1 ought to transfer my services to \'eni<-e. I have opened myself to him, and I charged him that the aff'ai'- shouhl not be made known to anyone but the lf»ads of the Ten, and ho swore tliis Xti me on the sacrament.' / itiisivcrcd lihn first hi/ praisiiKj his a^'ec lion for his native, la) L(l,inu\ then said that the IJagusan had bee'i to the most excellent Chief Lords, that I had receive,.! letters on the subject, and that now they should be informed of the details of his [)lan, and that the time was eom.e for him to present himself before your most excellent Oliief Lords, and that he must there- ' Vfiiii'c ' I he 1 •ho er to he en, / his I'C- Carot's Discovery or North America 227 fore proceed to N'enice. He replied that it woidd first he necessary to o])taiii permissiou from the Emperor, on the pica that he wisJwil to recover the dowry of his mother, on whicli attair ho wonkl speak to the magni- ficent Clian(elU)r and the Bishop of liurgos, if 1 wouhl write in his favour to your Serenity. 1 answered that, as he wished to go to Venice, 1 commended the way in which he proposed to ohtain leave. As I did not wish to expose his sclieme, not wishing to do more than he desired, I thought it well to say this much, adding that in any deliberation he ou2fht to consider two tilings — one was, that the proposal should be useful ; and the other, that its utility could be se<'ured. But with regard to the possibility of such an issue 1 am doubtful ; for I have some slight knowledge of geogra})hy, and, considering the position of V^enii'C, 1 can see no way whate\er by which she can undertake these voyages. It woubl be necessary to sail in vessels built at Venice, or else they must be built outside the Strait. If they are built at Venice they will have to pass the Straits of Gibraltar to reacdi the ocean, which would not be possible in face of the opposition of the King of Portugal and the King of Spain. If they are not built at Venice, they can only be built on the shore of the western ocean, for they cannot be constructed in the Red Sea without infinite troul>k. First, it would be necessary to make an aorcement with the Turk ; and, secondly, the scarcity of timber would make it impossible to build ships. Even if they were built, the forts and armed vessels of the Portuguese would make it imj)ossible to continue that navigation. Nor can I see any possibility of building ships < n the western ocean, (Jermany beiii"' i! ; hi •'•»!f M ] 228 Caijot's Discovkky of North Amkrka w subject to the Emperor ; so that T c.'in perceive no way whatever l)y which merchaiHlise coiihl he brouf^lit to V^enice from those ships, or from the ships to Venice; l)ut, lie hcmg an expert person in such matters, J merely made these observations in deference to him. lie replied there was much in what I said, e built, and merchandise be carried from the ])oit of Venice, and from Venice to the port, as well as gold and other things. He added : * I know, because I have navigated to all those countries, and am familiar with all. \ told you I would not undertake the voyage for the King of England, because that enterprise would in no way benefit Venice.' 1 shrugged my shoulders, and, although the thing a])pcared to me to be impos- sible, I would not dissuade him further, so as not to discourage him from presenting himself to your Highnesses, and I con:^5idered that the possibilities are much moi'c am})lc than is often believed. This man has great renown, and so for the present we parted. On the evening of St. John's day he came to see me, to look a,, some words in tlu; letter of the Ragusan, doubting whether they might annise .suspicion, and so the lettt'r was rewritten and corrected. He then discussed many geographical points with mo, and told me of a method he had observed of finding the distance between two places east and west of each other, by means of the needle. It is a beautiful dis- covery, never observed by anyone else, as he will be able to cxpla'n when he comes before your Serenity. And reasoning with him on the jsrincipal business, Caiu)t's Discovkrv ok Nr)RTn Amkkica 229 1 (lexteroiiHly ivpcjitcd my ol)jcctions ; hut lio repeated that tlic way was oiisy. ' I will <>;() to Venice, at my expense,' he said ; ' they will hear and he pleased with the plan I have devised ; \ will return at my own expense,' and he urued me to kee[) the matter secret. Such is the arrangement that I have made. Your Serenity will lieiir, and your wisdom will decide on what shall apjx'ar best." •* Valladolul, 31 Derember 1522." It is quite i)ossil)le for persons, whether Italians or Emrlish, to attach too much importance to the question of Sebastian's birthplace. Those who are anxious to state as a fact that Sebastian was born in Bristol must be stafroered with the statement that their hero, in 1522, declared most positively that he " was born in \'enice, but was brought u[) in England." And this declaration follows his statement, previously forwarded to \'cnice by his agent, that he was a nativ(! of that city. It is bevond the iiossibilitv of doubt that he did re- present himself to be a Venetian, and his further explanation as to what ha. 320,321. - llriiry viii. > r \ !i I J 1^ I- 232 Cahot's Discovkuy ok North Amkkra to see liim, as his old muster. And 1 think therein. And that I may have an answer in tliis." ^ On the Gth January 1548-41), Edward vi. granted Cabot an annuity of illGG, 13s. 4d., " ])ut not the title or ottice of pilot-major of England, as is generally believed." - it appears that at the time Cabot was arran li era necessario anchor per tre mesi scorer, qual passati al tuto era per venir a li piedi di Vostra Cahot's Discovery ok North America 235 lllustriH.sima Sigiioria, prcgaudula clic interim la vogli Ki'iivoi' una lettera in la turma do laltra li fu maudata et solicitarlo a veiiir de li a Venctia per expcdir Ic cose sue a cio moiistiandola, dc (|ui li fuHse [>iii liberami.'iite conccsso liceiitia. Scrivo a Vestra Celsitudinc (juaiito che lui 8L'l)astiano mi hu dichiai'ito et riccrcatu, (piulla dispoiieia qiiantn li piaceril. " Valh'jok'ti, Die 7 Martij 1523." (Carte *J8U tcrgo. Lettere, Oontarini citate.) li >! : [Translation] " j\Iost serene Prince and most excellent TiOrds. *' That Sel)astian Cabot, with whom your Excel- lencies instructed me to speak on the sul)ject of the spice countries, and respecting whom I reported, has been to me several times, always giving me to under- stand that his wish is to come to \'enice, and to work in the interests of your Highnesses in that matter of the spiceries. At length, he sought me to say that he could not now seek permission to go, doubting whether it might not be suspected that lie wished to go to Enghmd, and that he would be absent throe months. After that, he would come to the feet of your most illustrious Lordships, praying that meanwhile a letter might be written in the form of the other that was sent, asking him to come to Venice to expedite his i)rivate ailairs. Thus leave would be more easily obtained. I write to your Highnesses to report what this Sebastian has said, respecting which steps will be taken as seems desiraljle. " Valladolid, 7th day of March 1523." m i !itV I ■ ,■ IMAGE EVALUATION TEST TARGET (MT-3) ^ // {•/ I .

" A /^ '/ /A Photographic Sciences Corporation ^ 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, NY. 14S80 (716) 872-4503 .<:. 1 r ^ 236 Cauot's Discovery of North America H Despatch of the Council of Ten to Gaspar Contarini.^ " 28 Aprile 1523. " Sor Casparo Contareno. " Oratori nostro apud Cesaream Maiestatem. ** Ricevessimo in questi giorni passati le vostre direttive a li Capi del Consiglio nostro dei Dieci, de ultimo Dicembre prossimo preterite, per le quali intendessomo tutto il colloquio liavuto cum Sel)astiane Cabotto ne la materia de la specie, nel die in vero cum summa prudentia, ct bon modo vi sete governato, et non potcmo, se non grandemente commendare il studio et diligenza vostra. Dapoi liabiamo riceputo altre vostre de 7 Marzo preterito, per le qual vedemo la risolutione in cli'era rimasto esso Sebastiano, de non poter venir qui fino a tre mesi ; et die poi al tuto I'era per vinir, recliiedendo cliel se li faci de qui scriver una lettera in la forma delle precedenti per le cose sue, acib die cum quella al tempo predicto possi licitamente partirsi de li. Unde per satisfactione sua liabiamo fatto far una altra lettera in nome di quello Hicronymo de Marino de Rhagusi, die qui vene ad fame la relatione di tal cose et mandovela qui inserta nel mazzo del Circunspecto Secretario vostro, si come fu facto ddlc precedenti, la qual consignarete al dito Caboto semotis arbitris, suadendolo die el se ne vengi qui, si come el vi ha promesso de far, perche sempre el sara ben veduto da noi : et cusi eseguirete dandone adviso a li capi antedicti, et se al zonzer de queste il prefacto Cabotta non se retrovasse de li in Corte, mandereteli la lettera sua dove d se ritrovera. Tutta via per mezo fido et securo si che la ge capiti in mano ; denotandovi che il dito Hieronimo Marino al presente J Brown, N. GOO, vol. iii. Cabot's Discovery of North America 23; non se retrova qui iii Venezia, ue sapemo dove el sii, ancor che le lettere de esso Hieronimo apparino date qui in Venezia. II clie dicemo per vostra instruc- tione. "Andreas Foscarenus, C.C. Xm. " Jacobus Michael, C.C. Xm. subscrip. " Andreas Fosculus, C.C. Xm. subsciip. " Lecta Dominis Sapientibus utriusque mauus semotis ceteris et etiam Dominis Consiliariis. " Lecta Dominis Capitibus." [Tkanslation] *'Lord Gasparo Contarini, our Orator near the Ca3sarean Majesty. 28tli April 1523. " We have received, a few days since, your des- patches addressed to the chiefs of our Council of Ten, dated the last of December, in which you report all the intercourse you have had with Sebastian Cabotto on the subject of the spices, and we cannot refrain from highly commending the prudence and judgment with which you have con- ducted the negotiation. We have also received your despatch of March 7th, from which we learn the resolution of the said Sebastian not to come here for three months ; and that he requests a letter may be wTitten on the subject of his own affairs, whereby leave may be more easily obtained. We have, therefore, caused another letter to be pre- pared in the name of that Hieronimo de j\Iarino from Ragusa, who came here to make the proposal ; and we have ordered that it be placed in the bundle of your circumspect secretary, like tlie last, ft \r «: d it*''' m u 238 Cabot's Discovery of North America to be delivered to the said Cabotto, tcHing him tliat he should come here in accordance with his promise, as he will always be welcome by us. Let the said Cabotto be informed of this, and, if he is not at Court, the letter should be forwarded to him. Take care that it reaches him. The said Hieronimo Marino is not now to be found here in Venice, noi' do ive hioiv tvhere he is, but the letters of this Hieronimo arrive here. Receive what we say as your instructions. "Andreas Foscarenus, C.C. "Jacobus Michael, C.C. "Andreas FoscuLus, C.C." LETTERiE Scripts nomine Hieronymi di Marino Rhagusor ad Sebastianum Caboto in Hispaniam existentem. " Spectabile Messer Sebastiano, — Za alcuni mesi zonto che io fui qui in Venetia vi scrissi quanto haveva operato per inquirir dove si trovano de li beni vostri, nel che io hebbi bone paroUe in cadauno loco, et mi fu dato bona speranza de recuperar la dote di vostra madre, et ameda, unde non dubito che si vui fosti venuto qui haveresti za conseguito quanto 6 il vostro desiderio ; et per tanto per Io amor vi porto, et per il beneficio, et utile ve sio exhortar ad non vi manchar a vui medesimo, ma transferirve qui a Venetia, dove non dubito impet- rarete il tutto, et non tarderete ad venir qui, perchd la ameda vostra e molto vecchia, et mancando lei, haveresti poi grandissma fatica a inquirir et recup- erar il vostro ; pero ve conforto ad mettervi in as Cabot's Discovery of North America 239 camiiio pin presto potete. Altro non vi dico per tora a viii mi offro per sempre. " Vostro HiERONIMO DE MaRINO. "Voietiis, die 28 Aprilis 1523." (Capi del Consiglio de'Dicci. Lettere sottoscritte, Filza, No. 6, 1523.) Translation of the Forged Letter from Jerome the Ragusan to Cabot. "Venice, April 28, 1523. " Respectable Master Sebastian, — "It is some months since I came to Venice, and I wrote to you an account of what I had done to inquire where your goods are to be found, that I received good words on all hands, and was given good hope that I should recover the dower of ^your mother,! so that I have no doubt, if you could come, you would obtain all your desires. For the love I bear you, and for your own welfare and benefit, I exhort you not to be false to yourself, but to come here to Venice, where I doubt not, you will obtain everything; so do not delay in coming here, for your amecla is very old, and failing her there will be very great trouble in recovering your property. Set out as soon as possible, so no more at present. I am, always yours, Hieronimo de Marino." Despatch of Gaspar Contarini to the Senate of Venice, 26th July 1523. " Serenissime Princeps et excellentissimi Domini, Cum la posta venuta de Italia per qui, come in le 1 " et ameda." (?) 1 I •:l .1 ii ; ,1 (,' I in 240 Camot's Discovery of North America comune facio inentione per via da Koma, ricevi cum la solita riverentia mia lettere sue tie 23 April per le qual Vostra Serenitii danclome adviso dil ricever de le mie scripteli circa la executione facta cum Sebastiano Caboto, etc., me subgionge che iterum la in via altre lettere a lui Sebastiano a nome di quel Hieronimo de Ragusi iuxta la ricliiesta sua et cussi ho ritrovato in le publiche esse lettere. La bona sorte volse, che essendo lui Sebastiano in Sibilia due giorni da poii il ricevir de le lettere, ritornb de qui al qual consignato le sue lo exortai a venirsene de li. Disseme che in altro non era il pensier suo et a questo fine era venuto de qui. Da poij mi ha parlato dicendo cliel procura cum quest! del con- siglio Cesareo di haver licentia di conferirse de li, et che etiam parlino a me in commendatione sua. Questo e quanto ho da lui, de quanto seguira Vostra SeRENItX NE SARA ADVISATA. " Vallijoleti, die 26 Julij 1523." (Carte 302, Lett. Contarini cit.) [Teanslation] " Most Serene Prince and most excellent Lords, — " By the post arrived from Italy coming by way of Rome, I received with due reverence your letter of April 23rd, in which your Serenity informed me of the receipt of my letters reporting the negotiation with Sebastian Cabot, and adding that other letters have been sent to Sebastian in the name of Hieronimo of Ragusa with reference to his request. By good luck Sebastian was in Seville when he received the letters, and he returned here on being exhorted to come. He told me he had no other thoughts, and with that '. ''fi of of the ith lat Cabot's Discovery of North America 241 object he had come ; adding that he had sought permission from the Csesarean Council to confer with me, and they have also spoken to me in his com- mendation. I will advise your Serenity of what may happen next. '• Valladolid, 2Qth day of July 1523." This correspondence gives us a delightful insight into the intricacies pursued by the wily Italian school of diplomacy of the period. The Venetian Council of Ten had at its disposal, and employed in the secret service of Venice, some of the most highly-educated men which the Renaissance had produced. Con- tarini, for example, wiio was born in Venice in 1483, was a man who was possessed of deep learning and of a variety of accomplishments. lie l)elonged to a patrician family that had grown rich through com- merce. He was an apt scholar, and his environments led him towards a practical application of the benefits he had received from a liberal education. In the Venetian Senate he was a marked success, and in consequence of his great abilities he was appointed Ambassador to Charles v. of Spain. A perusal of his despatches afford only slight evidence of his great ability. Peter Martyr d'Anghiera, the his- torian, had recourse to liim for the purpose of solving any questions of unusual difficulty in geographical or cosmographical matters.^ Contarini served the ^ A. Spanish ship arriving at one of the Moluccas found that it was Thursday, whereas the Spaniards' calcuhition showed that it ought to be Wednesday ; and they were all sure that there was no error in their calculation. From this tliey came to susjiect that the course of time from our shores to those regions must have caused the difference. Peter Martyr, having to relate this matter in his Decades, did not know what to think about it, and to put himself at ease he had re- course to the great learning of Contarini: " Quando ad (lorgones 16 !;| Mil HI 'n ■ t,.- 242 Cabot's Discovery of North America III Kcpublic of Venice as Ambassador to Pope Cle- ment VII. From another occupant of the papal jhair (Paul III.) he received such flattering assurances of the high respect in which he was held that he was offered, and ultimately induced to accept, a car- dinal's hat. He hesitated for a long time before entering the Church, and his objections were not satisfied until some pressure was brought to bear upon him by his own Venetian fellow-citizens. The offer was made to him at a period when a struggle — one of the most momentous importance — was being waged in Germany against the power of Rome. He worked indafatigably in endeavouring to bring about a reconciliation between the conflicting interests. In conjunction with several other Church dignitaries, notably Cardinals Pole, Sadolet, and others, he pro- pagated idens for the reform of the abuses of the Romish Church, with a view to conciliate the for- midable opposition which had arisen. So far as can be gathered from contemporary records, his great knowledge of the world prompted him to lean towards the reformers, and we have practical proof of the bent of his mind in his " Relation " to Paul iii. against the abuse of compositions, and the sale of spiritual favours. In the year 1541 he attended the Confer- ence of Ratisbon. His dij)lomatic knowledge was of little avail, however, against the great struggle which was then proceeding. The French Court navis lieoc regressa fuit, diein fuisse Mercurii arbitrabantur, Jovis esse repererunt. Unde diem uniim in eo discursu aiunt sibi ablatum, ea trium annorum intercaijedine. . . . Agitatns ea cura convent Gasparem Contarinum, oratorem apud ca'sareni pro sua illustri Republica Veneta, onini litteratum genere non mediocritev eruditum " {iJec. v. cap. 7). It is needless to say that I relate this anecdote merely as a proof of Contarini's learning, and of the estimation in which he was held on questions of cosmography. — Tarducci, pp. 290, 291. Cabot's Discovery of North America 243 threw all sorts of o]),stacles in the way of n reconcili- ation between the Catholics and the Protestants of Germany, not on religious grounds, hut because it was so apparent that the rap2')rochements of the contending parties would be the means of streno-th- eiiing the temporal power of Charles v. It was deemed advisable on the part of France to fan the flanies of religious fanaticism. Contarini's mission to Germany was a great strain upon his health. He was subsequently appointed by the pope as ambassador, just on the eve of the Council of Trent, but died shortly after his appointment. His death took place at Bologna in 1542. rirV' . i ; II ^il Ifr tu '. CHAPTER Vll Mr. Harrisse says : ^ "As the reader has seen, the letters-patent of 1496 were granted to John Cabot and his three sons ; but no documentary proof what- ever has yet been adduced to show that any of them accompanied their father in his first trans-athmtic voyage. The only circumstance which may be cited on the subject would rather prove the reverse. Pasqualigo, in describing John Cabot's return, says : * E ali dato danari fazi bona ziera fino a quel tempo e con su moier venitiana e con so fioli a Bristo : — And [the King] has given him money wherewith to amuse himself till then [the second expedition] ; and he is now at Bristol with his Venetian wife, and with his sons.' " With regard to the claim made on behalf of Sebastian Cabot, that he was the discoverer of the north continent of America in 1497, Mr. Harrisse says : " The belief rests exclusively upon statements from his own lips, made at a time, under circum- stances, in a form and with details, which render them very suspicious." The evidence seems to justify Mr. Harrisse's suggestion that "the belief" did originally arise from a statement made by Sebastian Cabot ; at the same time, every person should form an independent judgment as to the 1 P. 48. 244 by son the Cafjot's Discovkry ok North Amkuica 245 comparative agency of John and Se])astian Cal)Ot in the voyage of discovery in 1497. Bearing always in mind the important fact — which many persons regard as the key-note to all the diliiculties — that the evidence now before us, which has been ex- humed from foreign arcliives, was not known to the early historians, we will now refer to certain MS. English chronicles, maps, histories, etc., with a view to ascertain to what extent they throw light on those points of historical interest which yet remain unsettled or unsolved. In the Cottonian MSS., preserved in the British Museum, there is a chronicle bearing this title : " Chronicon regum Anglise et series maiorum et vice- comitum Civitatis London ab anno primo Henrici tertium ad annum primum. Hen. 8^'"^ " In Anno 13, Henry vii. ** This yere the King at the besy request and supplicacion of a straunger venisian, which by a caeart made hym self expert in knowyng of the world caused the Kyng to manne a ship w* vytaill and other necessairies for to seche an Ilande wheryn the said straunger surmysed to be grete commodities : w* which ship by the Kynge's grace so Rygged went 3 or 4 moo owte of Bristowe, the said straunger beying Conditor of the said Flete, whereyn dyuers Merchaunts as well of London as Bristow adven- tured goodes and sleight Merchandises, which de- parted from the West Cuntrey in the begynning of somer but to this present moneth came never knowlege of their exployts." This chronicle, which purports to refer to events which took place between the first year of Henry vii. 1 MS. Cott. Vitellius, A. xiv. f. 173. \: t v> 1 1 ^n ;,i ..* ll 246 Cap.ot's Discovkrv of North Amfkica and the first of Henry viii., speaks of an event which is said to have liappened in tlie thirteenth year of Henry vii. This entry is typical of the hopeless muddle which the history of the two voyages of John Cabot was in prior to the year 1831.^ Up to that date the chroniclers and his- torians, whether contemporary or subsequent, knew only of one voyage." In writing as to this chronicle, Mr. Henry Harrissc says : " Mr. Gairdner, of the Public Record Office, who kindly re-examined that manuscript at our request in 1881, and who is one of the highest authorities on such historical matters, reported that the Chronicon is a perfectly trust- worthy source of contemporaneous information, its earlier portion derived from a common source with several other London chronicles, such as Gregory's ; ^ whilst the latter part has something in common with Fabyan, but containing a good deal for the reign of Henry vii. not to be found anywhere else in print. So much for the intrinsic and paleographic proofs of its authenticity" (Harrisse, John Cahot, etc., London, 1896, p. 128). We should not accept too readily any statement which suggests that this chronicle is a contemporary record in the truest sense. It is an anonymous com- pilation, so far as we can ascertain, and it is im- possible for anyone to say within a score or so ' The date of the publication of Biddle's Memoir of Sebastian Cabot. 2 An exception to this statement may, perhaps, be made in favour of Hakluyt, who seems to have discovered the two grants of letters- patent by King Henry vii. But Hakluyt's information was not put t)efore his readers as clearly as it should have been. In justice to Hakluyt and other chroniclers, it should never be forgotten that access to the archives of foreign countries was completely barred, and that the English Rolls were practically inaccessible. ^ Published by M. Gairdner, in the collections of a London citizen. : I Cahot's Discovkry ov North Amkrica 247 : of years when the entries were first made. These entries may have been largely taken from a previous record. The information contained in it may or may not be strictly beyond suspicion. In all pro- bability it is a very honest production, — that is, a compilation made by a person who was desirous of honestly chronicling events of importance which, in the opinion of the chronicler, it was desirable should be handed on to succeeding' w'nerations. And we must always bear in mind, in connection with MS. chronicles, that they may contain entries of events, particulars whereof have been obtained from other persons, and therefore may record facts not strictly within the personal knowledge of the chronicler, A most casual glance at the entry in this chronicle will convince one that it was written by a person who probably knew of one voyage only, namely, that of the year 1498. The accurate infor- mation we possess as to the details of the two voyages leaves us no alternative but to say this. The name of Cabot is not referred to : and, as a matter of fact, his name is never mentioned by an English chronicler for at least half a century after the date of his voyage of discovery : outside the official rolls his name cannot be found. Campl)ell, in Lives of the Admirals, very properly says : " John Cabot was the real discoverer, of which honour he ought not to be despoiled, even by his son." We will now proceed to discuss an event, than which, in the evolutionary process through which the Cabot history has proceeded, none is of greater importance. In the year 1582 Richard Hakluyt published ) . II m ■• 1 It 248 Cahot's Discovery of Nort!i America the first edition of his celebrated work as to voyages relating to the discovery of America. It may be as well to here relate a few particulars of Hakluyt and of his publications. lie was born in, or about, the year 1552, and after an early education at West- minster School, was, in 1570, elected to a studentship at Christ Church, Oxford, where he graduated B.A., 19th February 1574, and M.A., 27th January 1577. In the year before mentioned (1582), he, as the re- sult of much study of the various chronicles and histories containing information to guide him, pub- lished Divers Voyages touching the Discover^y of America, full particulars whereof will be presently given. His next collection of information was described as A particular Discourse concerning Western Discoveries, written in 1584, but first printed in 1877, in the Collections of the Maine (America) Historical Society. A copy of this MS. work presented to the Queen, procured him the reversion of a prebendal stall at Bristol, to which he succeeded in 158G.^ In 1589 he published The 2)rincipal Navigations, Voyages, and Discoveries of the English Nation made hy Sea or over land to the mo^t remote and furthest distant quarters of the Earth, at any time ivithin the compass of these 1500 years. This volume was the germ, or, as it is commonly called, the first edition, of the much larger work which he published some ten years ^ Canon Ainger now occupies the stall in the Bristol Cathedral formerly in the possession of Richard Hakluyt. This information is given upon the authority of Mr. W. W. Hughes, the chapter-clerk, who is an active member of the Oabot Celebration Committee at Bristol. Hakluyt, who returned from a European journey in (^uest of geo- graphical information in 1584, exhibited in person before the Chapter of Bristol the Queen's mandate for the reversion of the Prebena on the 24th May 1585 (Encydoj). Brit. pp. 378, ,379). Cabot's Discovery of North America 249 \4 general ■ later, under a title almost identical in its statement, but differing in its details (3 vols. sm. fol. 1598-1600). It should be mentioned that Hakluyt, in April 1590, was appointed to the rectory of Wetteringsett, in Suffolk. In May 1602 he was appointed prebendary of Westminster, and archdeacon in the following year. He died in 1616 (Encyclopedia Britannica, pp. 378, 379). Hakluyt's first work, published in 1582, was dedicated to '* The Right Worshipful, and most virtuous gentleman, Master Philip Sydney, Esq." Zouch, in his Life of Sw Philip Sydney (p. 317), refers to Hakluyt as follows : — " His incomparable industry was remunerated with every possible en- couragement by Sir Francis Walsingham and Sir Philip Sydney. To the latter, as a most generous promoter of all ingenious and useful knowledge, he inscribed his first collection of voyages and discoveries, printed in 1582." The following description of the rare little work is given in one of Mr. Bernard Quaritch's crtalogues : — ' ' Hakluyt's voyages. The excessively rare original collection. Divers | voyages touching the discouerie of I America, and the Hands adjacent | vnto the same, made first of all by our | Englishmen, and afterwards by the French- | men and Britons : | And certaine notes of aduertisements for obserua- | tions. AVith two mappes annexed hereunto Imprinted at Lon- I don for Thomas Woodcocke, dwelling in panics Church-yard, at the sign of the blacke beare. 1582. " Small 4to., 60 leaves of letterpress and 2 folded woodcut ma'ps, one designed by Robert Thorne, the other by Michael Lok." . . . "\'A s! il I I i! I ■? n U' i! 1> 1. I Si. rr ii ( w. 250 Cabot's Discovery of North America This little collection of voyages — the first book published by Richard Hakluyt — was expanded seven years' later into a thick folio volume, and the result was to make it so rare that only two perfect copies are now in existence ^ (both in the British Museum) ; and only four which are not perfect. Of these four, the Bodleian copy has only Lok's map, the two in America have neither map (they are supplied in facsimile), and the present has the original Thome map, which is the more interesting of the two, as having been designed by himself in Seville in 1527, and sent in that year to Henry viii.'s ambassador in Spain for transmission to the king. " Collation and Contents : Title, 1 p. ; Names of the late writers of Geographic, 1 p. ; Names of certaine late trauailers, 1 p. ; A verie late and great pro- babilitie of a passage by the North-west, 1 p. ; Dedication of Sir Philip Sidney, 7 pp, ; 1 p. blank ; Letters, patents of Henry vii. to the Cabots, in Latin and English, 4 pp. ; Notes from Fabian and Ramusio, 3 pp. ; 1 p. blank ; Robert Thome's Declaration of the Indies, addressed to Henry viii. (1527), 5 pp. ; The Booke made by Thorne in 1527, 18 pp. ; 1 p. blank ; Verrazzano's Relation to Francis i., translated, 15 pp. ; The Discouerie made by the Zeno brothers, 18 pp. ; 1 p. blank; Ribault's Discouerie of Florida, translated by Thomas Hackitt, 20 pp. ; 2 pp. blank ; Notes given by a Gentleman to Pette and Jackman, sent for the discouerie of the north-east stray te, 12 pp. ; Notes to be given to one that prepared for a discouerie ... 6 pp. ; Names of certain com- modities growing in part of America, 3 pp. 1 The copy offered for sale by Mr. Quaritch has " the last two leaves and one of the maps in facsimile." 7 I Cap.ot's Discovery of North America 251 " Parts of this little volume were omitted in the larger publication. For instance, the curious notes concerning the contemporary ownership of Robert Thome's and Sebastian Cabot's papers ; also the accounts of Verrazzano, Zeno, and Ribault. The maps were also omitted. Price, £150." One of the entries in this volume is the following : — *' This much concerning Sebastian Cabot's dis- coverie may suffice for a present taste, but shortly, God willing, shall come out in print all his own mappes and discourses drawne and written by him- selfe, which are in the custodie of the worshipful Master William Worthington, one of her Majesty's pensioners, who (because so worthie monuments should not be buried in perpetual oblivion) is very willing to suffer them to be overseene, and published in as good order as may be to the encouragement and benefite of our countrymen." It will be observed that Hakluyt does not say he had actually seen the maps. The above statement is omitted from the subsequent additions of Hakluy t's work. Hakluy t's publication of 1582 includes the follow- ing reference to the discovery of North America by Cabot : — " A note of Sebastian Gabote's voyage of dis- coverie, taken out of an old Chronicle, written by Robert Fabian, some time alderman of London, which is in the custodie of John Stow, citizen, a diligent searcher and preserver of antiquities. " In the 13 yere of King Henrie the vii., 1498. " This yere the King (l)y means of a Venetian, whiche made himself very experte and cunning in knowledge of the circuit of the worlde, and Ilandes 'I V 41. M m $ jl I m .i V,' i 252 Cabot's Discovery of North America of the same as by a Carde, and other demonstratioriwS reasonable hee shewed), caused to man and victuall a sliippe at Bristowe to search for an llande, whiche hee saide hee knewe well was riche, and replenished with riche commodities. Which ship, thus manned and victualled at the King's cost, divers merchants of London ventured in her small stockes, being in her, as chief patrone, the said Venetian. And in the companie of the said shippe sailed also out of Bristowe, three or foure small ships, fraught with sleight and grosse merchandizes, as course cloth, caps, laces, points, and other trifles, and so departed from Bristowe in the beginning of May ; of whom in this Maior's^ time returned no tidings." The heading commences with Hakluyt's addition to some MS. chronicle, which chronicle, he says, was written by Fabyan, and was in the custody of John Stow. Inasmuch as Eden's work '^ was published in 1555, Hakluyt was acquainted with the particulars as to the Cabot voyage given by Peter Martyr ^ and Ramusio * respectively, and it is not improbable that his reference to *' Sebastian Gaboto's voyage of discoverie " was inserted in the full belief — honestly arrived at — that Sebastian was the real discoverer of America. Stow's collection was published in the year 1580,^ and his record of the event reads: " This yeare one Sebastian Gabato, a genoas sonne," etc. It will thus be seen that Hakluyt has taken Sebastir name from the body of the chronicle and ^^laced it in a heading, and has substituted for " a genoas sonne," " a Venetian." > " William Purchas. Maior of London" (1497-1498). '^ Ante, p. 1 10. 3 Ante, p. 169. * Ante, pp. 184, 185, 195. " The Chronicles of Enc/land, London, 4to, p. 862. Cabot's Discovery of North America 253 Why did not Hakluyt follow Stow? The remarkable similarity in the accounts given in the three chronicles seem to tempt one to say that they must have had a common origin. This, however, is not a matter of great importance. Hakluyt states, also, that he had obtained information " out of the latter part of Kobert Fabyan's chronicle, not hither- to printed, which is in the custody of Mr. John Stowe." And John Stow relates that he had "a continuation by Fabyan himself, as late as the third year of Henry viii.^ The most extraordinary part of this story is that Fabyan's Chronicle ^ contains no reference whatever to the event. In the second of his tvorJcs, Hakluyt makes the chronicle read as follows : — " In the 13 yeere of King Henrie the vii., by means of one John Cabot, a Venetian," and the same variation appears in his third book. By placing this last account in juxtaposition with that Stow, the striking alteration made by Ha? J L will at once appear. mi i ni ■ 'Hi! M iM'.' S 195. John Stow's Account (1580). In a book written by John Stow, and published in London in 1580, the following information is supposed to relate to a voyage undertaken in the 14th year of the reign of Henry vii. : — "This yeare one Sebastian Gabato, a genoas sonne, borne in Bristow, professing himselfe to be experte in knowledge of the circute of the worlde and Ilandes 1 Harleian MSS. 538, quoted by Biddle, p. 299. ^ Robert Fabyan was the author of the Chronicle of England and France, otherwise 2'he Concordance of Stories. He was born in London about the year 1450. He held several important positions in the Corporation of London. His death occurred in, or aljout, 1512. •ilfl ;• f II •! U' 254 Cabot's Discovery of North America of the same, as by his Charts and other reasonable demonstration he shewed, caused the king to man and victual a shippe at Bristow to search for an Ilaiide whiche he knewe to be replenished with rich commodities ; in the shippe diverse merchauntes of London adventured smal stockes, and in the company of this shippe, sayled out of Bristow three or foure smal shippes frought with slight and grosse wares, as course cloth, caps, laces, points" (IVie Chronicle of England, from Brute, vnto this present yeare of Christ, 1580.) Hakluyt's [Second] Account (1600). " A note of Sebastian Cabot's first discoverie of part of the Indies, taken out of the latter part of Kobert Fabyan's Chronicle, not hitherto printed, which is in the custodie of M. John Stow, a diligent preserver of antiquities.^ " In the 13 yeere of K. Henry the 7 (by means of one John Cabot, a Venetian, which made himselfe very expert and cunning in knowledge of the circuit of the world and islands of the same, as by a sea card and other demonstrations reasonable he shewed), the King caused to man and victuall a ship at Bristow to search for an island which he said he knew well was rich, and replenished with great commodities : which shippe, thus manned and victualled at the King's costs, divers merchants of London ventured in her small stocks, being in her, as chief Patron, the said Venetian. And in the company of the said ship sailed, also, out of Bristow, three or foure small ships, fraught with ' Hakluyt, vol. iii. p. 9. r he rrcat and of in in of with t Cahot's Discovery of North America 255 sleight and gross merchandizes, as course cloth, caps, laces, points, and other trifles, and so departed from Bristow in the beginning of May, of whom, in this Maior's time, returned no tidings " (Voyages, Navigation, etc., collected by Richard Hakluyt, preacher, and sometime student of Christ Church in Oxford . . . 1600). Quoting the words of the " Chronicon," yet preserved in the British Museum, as follows : — " This yere the Kyng, at the besy request and supplication of a Straunger venisian, which by a coeart made by hymself expert in kno\7ying of the world" . . . Harrisse says: "Hakluyt's first account (1582) is certainly more in a^icordance with the above text than is that of Stow, and as he expressly states that he took it from the copy of Fabyan, then in the possession of Stow, we are bound to infer that Stow's copy of Fabyan did not contain the w^ords, * Sebastian Gabato, a genoas Sonne,' and that these are an interpolation made by Stow himself." Francesco Tarducci says: "Stow's collection was also published after his death, and there we find the same narrative precisely as it is given by Hakluyt ; but in the single point where the two editions differ, . . . Stow's collection is at variance with both. ... It is clear that the original account of the old chronicle has been falsified. By whom? Before answering, let me briefly recall to the reader's memory who Hakluyt and Stow were, for a knowledge of their persons and characters may aid us to take a few steps in the obscurity of this question. *' Hakluyt ^ . . . was the greatest writer and * Dr. S. E. Dawson says : " Hakluyt is the pioneer of the litera- ture of English discovery and adventure — at once the recorder and •' ?i! m I Vii l« ■ K: P i 1 w iHi! W' R' 256 Cabot's Discovery of North America collector of memoirs relating to the voyages and navigations of discovery made by the English in the northern seas. ... As to his collection, it is still among the best, not of England only, but of the whole world. The appreciation of the English for this collection, especially of navigators and discoverers, is shown by the facts that in his lifetime Bylot, who had Baffin^ for his pilot, gave the name of Hakluyt to an island in Baffin's Bay. Hudson, whose name is borne by the great inland sea of North America, called a cape off Spitzberg after Hakluyt, whilst he was still living ; and finally, during his lifetime also, a river discovered by English navigators in IGll, near Petschora, was called by his name." He then goes on to say that Stow " was born of poor parents," that in pursuing his researches he was severely handicapped by his poverty. " Short of means, he made long journeys afoot to hunt over and ransack colleges and monas- teries, and no matter how worn and torn might be the rags of old papers which he found, he kept all, reviewing, connecting, copying, comparing, annotating with truly wonderful ability and good sense. Arrived at fourscore years, and no longer capable of earning a livelihood, he applied to the king, and James i., consenting to his petition, granted to the man who had saved treasures of memoirs for English history, the favour of wearing a beggar's garb and asking alms at church doors. inspirer of noble effort ; ... if discrepancies are met with in a collec- tion so voluminous, it is not surprising, and need not be ascribed to a set purpose ; for Hakluyt's sole object in life seems to have been to record all he knew or could ascertain of the maritime achievements of the age." 1 Hence " Baffin's " Bay. Cabot's Discovery of North America 257 *■> In this abject state, forgotten and despised, lie died two years later in 1605. Which of the two would be likely to lay his rash hands on the old chronicle attributed to Fabyan, the learned Ilakluyt, or the devoted Stow^ ? Both ; and each in good conscience according to the different point of view from which he regarded the matter." The real truth is that both writers had probably met with information which, in good faith, they turned to account ])y making a slight variation in the reading of the old chronicle. At that period the contemporary docu- ments were not known to be in existence — such as, for example, the despatches of the foreign ambas- sadors, which, since their comparatively recent pub- lication, have put it beyond doubt that John Cabot was the sole leader of the expedition which set out from Bristol and eventually discovered the north continent of America. The chroniclers were therefore restricted to the meagre material afforded by the letters-patent, MS. notes, etc., and possibly the im- pecunious Stow might not have been able to procure a view of the State papers, and may not have known of the existence of the two grants of letters-patent. On the other hand, we have evidence that Hakluyt had not only access to the rolls, but that he made copies of the letters-patent relating to the Cabot voyages. It is not unreasonable to assume, therefore, that so far as Hakluyt is concerned he thought he was perfectly justified in adding the n'\me of John Cabot to the entry found in the chronicle. It is extremely doubtful whether poor Stow ever had excess to the patent rolls. When Richard Biddle was compiling his Memoir, which was first published 17 4 m fll l<^ tw I I Pi I1 1 1 il '!l 258 Cai'.ot's Discovkry f)i' North Amkrica ill 1831/ he experienced the greatest difhculty in finding the doeiuncnt in wliich the name of Jolin Cabot appeared. At p. 78 of liis JNIemoir he says : — " The manner in which the precious document re- ferred to, and others of a simihir kind, arc kept, can- not l)e adverted to without an expression of regret. They are thrown loosely together, without reference even to the appropriate year, and are unnoticed in any index or calendar. It required a search of more than two weeks to find tliis patent of 3rd February, 1498, although the year and name of its date were furnished at tlie outset. . . . An extraordinary com- pensation is claimed at tlie Rolls Chapel on account of the trouble attending a search amidst such a con- fused mass. ¥ov findiiuf the documents, two guineas were demanded in addition to the cost of copies. The applicant is informed that the charge must be paid whether the document be discovered or not ; so that the officer has no motive to continue per- sevcringly the irksome pursuit." In Richard Biddle's work (p. 42) the following allusions to the chronicles are made : — " It happens that we can trace the progress of Ilakluyt's perversion. The communication from ►Stow first appears in the Divers Voyages to America, 1 Biddle's work was published in 1831, both in London and Phil- adelphia, and a second edition was published in Loudon in 1832. The title of the work is as follows : — A Memoir of Sebastian Cabot ; tcith a Review of the History of Maritime Discovery. Illustrated by Documents from the llolls, now first published. The work is unfitted as a guide to persons, other than students of the Cabot history, so far as it deals with John Cabot's discovery, because it does not contain copies of the despatches and other entries relating to the voyage of 1497, which have been since exhumed from foreign archives. But to Richard Biddle we must render our thanks for having been the first writer who explicitly and authoritatively pointed out that there were two early voyages from Bristol, namely, in 1497 and 1498. Caijot's Discovkry of Noutu Amkrica 259 etc., published in 1582. When given at that early period, ns derived from " Mr. John Stow, citizen," Hakluyt merely changes the words * a Genoa's son ' into 'a Venetian,' without giving any name. lie had not then heard of the 2^atent of February M, 1498, naming John Cabot exclusively, for the only document he (piotes is the original patent of March 1496, in which both father and son are mentioned, and which describes the father as a Venetian. He struck out, therefore, only what he then knew to l>e incorrect. Subsequently he received information of the second patent in favour of John Cabot, and in his enlarged work he not only furnishes a reference to that patent, but makes a further alteration of what he had received from Stow. Instead of ' a Venetian,' as in 1582, when he had the memorandum first before him, it becomes * one John Cabot, a Venetian,' thus effecting, at the two stages of alteration, a complete change of what he had received, — and yet for the statement as thus finally made Fabian and Stow continue to be cited. ^ " Hakluyt has, incautiously, suffered to lie about the evidence of his guilty deed, which should have been carefully buried. Thus there is retained ^ the original title of the passage : ' A note of Sebastian Cabot's first discovery of part of the Indies, taken out of the latter part of Robert Fabian's Chronicle, not hitherto printed, which is in the custody of Mr. John Stow, a diligent preserver of antiquities.' Now, it is highly probable that all this, with the 1 It was an unwarrantable liberty for Hakluyt to take in sucL a matter. It Is, however, a singularly apt illustration as to the way in which a perversion of a document is brought al)out. Hakluyt was a sinner with regard to his treatment of other documents. ^ Biddle is now alluding to the later edition. it! M i ) n i! I 1 yi> 31 n' ^HL IIm' Ib '' llH^! ^K^^WfiV 260 Cahot's Discoverv of North America cx(!epti(m of the compliincnt, whs the expluimtory memorandum iit the lioad of Stow's communication. It is incredible that llakhiyt himself shouhl prefix it to a passage wliich (U)es not contain tlie sliglitcst allusion to Sebastian Cabot. Tims we see that in indicating to the printer tlie alterations in the new edition, the pen of llakluyt, ])usied with amendment at the critical point, has sj)ared, inadvei'tently, what betrays him ))y its incumgruity with that which remains, and, like the titles of many acts of parlia- ment, serves to show the successful struggle for amendment after the original draft." The following note as to the patent of 1498 appears in llakluyt (vol. iii., edition of IGOO) : — [Billa signata anno 13 Hcnrici septimi.] '* Rex tertio die Fe})ruarij, anno 13, licentiam dedit louni Caboto, quod ipse, capcre possit sex naucs Anglicanas, in aliquo portii, siue portibus regni Anglise, ita quod sint deportagio 200 doliorum, vel subtus, cum apparatu requisito, & quod recipere possit in dictas naues omnes tales magistros, marinarios, & sub ditos regis, qui cum eo exires voluerint," etc. " The king, upon the third day of February, in the 13 yeere of his reigne, gave license to John Cabot to take five English ships in any haven or havens of the realme of England, being of the burden of 200 tunnes, or under, with all necessary furniture, and to take also into the said ships all such masters, mariners, and subjects of the king as willingly will go with him," etc. In the year 1844 the French Government pur- chased for 4000 francs a very remarkable plani- sphere, which had been found in the house of a regni pi pur- ani- of a Caiiot's Discovkrv or North Amkkica 261 Bnvaiiiiii clergymiin. This iimp is now jtrcserved, niid may bo Hccn in tlio geographical (lci)artnK'nt of the Paris National liil)rary. It pur[t()rts to iiavc been delineated in 1544 — " Plana figiira me dcline- avit, 1544" (Legend xvii.). It is desirable to give un exact account of the inscription which purports to relate to the discovery of North America on the Mappe-Monde said to have been published in 1544 by Sebastian Cabot. Mr. Harrisse ^ gives the original Spanish text of the inscription, and of the translation into Latin, as follows : — [In Spanish] " No. 8. Esta tierra fue descubierta por loan Caboto Veneciano y Sebastian Caboto su hijo, anno del nascimiento de nuestro Saluador lesu || Christo dc M.cccc.xciiii. a ucinte y quatro de lunio, por la mannaiui, ala qual pusieron nombre prima tierra uista, y a una isla grande que || esta par de la dicha tierra, le pusieron nombre sant loan, por auer sido descubierta el mismo dia la ffente della andan uestidos de pieles de animales, usan en sus guerras arcos, y flechas, lanyas, y dardos, y unas porras de palo, y hondas. Es tierra muy steril, ay en ella muchos orsos plancos, y cieruos muy grandes como cauallos y otras muchas animales y semeiantemente ay pescado infinito, sollos, salmones, leiiguados, muy grandes de uara enlargo y otras muchas diuersidades de pescados, y la mayor multitud dellos se dizen baccallaos, y asi mismo ayenta dicha tierra Halcones prietos como cueruos, Aguillas, Perdices, Pardillas, y otras muchas aues de diuersas maneras." » Pp. 432, 433. 1 ■ti s!i- Ml * U i ll 262 Cabot's Discovery of North America I, [In Latin] " No 8. Terrain liaiic olim nobis clausam, apernit loannes C*abotus Venetiis, neciion Sebastianus Ca])otus eius filius, anno ab orl)e reclcm = |1 pto 1494, die uero 24 JuHj [Sic^] bora 5. sub diliiculo, quan terrain primuni uisam appellarunt, & Insulam quandam magnam ei oppositam, Insulam diui lo j] annis nominarunt, quippe quae solenni die festo diui lo Ij annis aperta fuit. Huius terrtc incolse pellibus animalium induuntur, arcu in bello, sa = |1 gittis, hastis, spiculis, elauis, ligneis, & fundis utuntur: sterilis incultaque teUus fuit, leonibus, ursis albis, procerisque ceruis, pisci])us innume || ris lupis scilicet, salmonibus, & inoentibus soleis unius ulnae lonoi- tudiiie, alijsqujc diuersis piscium genei'il)us a])undat, horum autem maxima copia || est, quos uulgus Bacallios appellat, ad liaec insuut accipitres nigri coruorum similes, aquila3, perdices(]ue fusco colore, alia3que diuersa3 uolueres. || " It appears that Ilakluyt knew of an extract from a map, which was regarded as a " Map of Sebastian Cabot," which extract was " hung up in the privy gallery at Whitehall." Inasmuch as the "extract" is not, so fiir. as can l)e ascertained, at present in existence, we have to rely upon the particulars of the inscription which appear in Ilakluyt (vol. iii. p. 6). "Anno Domini, Joannes Cabotus Venetus, et 8e1)astianus illius filius cam terram feceruiit perviam, quam nullus priiis adire ausus fuit, die 24 Junii, circiter lioram quintain bene mane. Hanc autem appellavit Terram primiim visam, credo quod ex mari ' This discrci)ancy in the date is not a matter of importance. It is a pali)able error. Cabot's Discovery of North America 26 p. 6). us, et I'viam, Junii, nutem mari e. It in cam partem primiim oculos iiijecerat. Namcjuc ex adverso sita est insula, eam appeilavit insulam Divi Joannis, liac opinor rationc, quod aperta fuit eo qui die est sacer Diuo Joanni Baptista} : Hujus incolje pelles animalium exuviasque ferarum pro indumentis liabent, easque tanti faciunt, quanti nos vestes preciosissimas. Cum bellum gerunt, utuntur arcu, sagittis, hastis, spiculis, elavis ligneis et Hindis. Tellus sterilis est, neque ullos fructus affert, ex (juo fit, ut ursis albo colore, et cervis inusitata? apud nos magnitudinis referta sit : piscibus abundat, iisque sane magnis, (juales sunt lupi marini et (|uos sahiiones vulgus appellat ; solese autem reperiuntur tarn longse, et ulnae mensuram excedant. Imprimis autem magna est copia corum piscium, quos vulgari sermone vocant Bacallaos. Gignuntur in ea insula accipitres ita nigri, ut corvorum similitudinem mirum in modum exprimant perdices autem et aquilai sunt nigri coloris." Biddlc has severely criticised this portion of llakluyt's contribution to the Cabot history, more especially with regard to the English translation which he (Ilakluyt) added to the Latin text. • • • • • • • In a paper communicated to the Society of Antiquaries, by Mr R. H. Major, F.S.A., the par- ticulars of one of the legends whicli appeared upon a copy of a map, professing to be by Sebastian Cabot, are referred to as follows : — " As far back as the vear 1594, a German named Nathaniel Kochhaff, but better known by the name of ChytrsBUs, published at Herborn, in Nassau, a little work entitled Variorum in Europd Itinerum Deliciiv, in which he prints a large variety of legends which he met with in his travels. In the year 155G he saw I m h I m i , ii i ^ ti I f i . ■' I' I , I 1'4 ; I' ^ I ! 264 Cabot's Discovery of North America at Oxford a map professing to be by Sebastian Cabot, containing nineteen inscriptions, which he transcribed and printed. . . . The inscription numbered 8 is as follows : — "Terram banc olim nobis clausam aperuit Johannes Cabofcus Venetus, nee non Sebastianus Cabotus eius filius, anno ab orbe rederato 1594,^ die vero 24 lunii, liora 5, sub diluculo, quam terram primiim visam, & insulam quandam magnam ei appositam insulam D. Johannis nominarunt, quippe quae solemni die festo Diui Johannis aperta fuit. Huius terrse incolse pellibus animalium induuntur. Arco in bello, sagittis, spiculis, clauis ligneis & fandis vtuntur, sterilis incultaq, tellus est, leonibus, ursis albis, procerisq, ceruis, piscibus innumeris, lupis & salmonibus & iuQ-entibus soleis vnius vine longitudine, aliisque piscium diuersis abundat gener- i])us. Horum autem maxima copia est, quos vulgus Bacallios appellat, adhsec insunt accipitres nigri coruorum similes, acquila3, perdi cesque fusco colore, aliseque diuersse volucres." Mr. Harrisse translates the Latin text^ of the eighth legend into Enolish as follows : — " This land was discovered by John Cabot, a Venetian, and Sebastian, his son, the year of the redemption of the world, 1494, on the 24th of July [sic], at tlie fifth hour of daybreak, which [land] they called the first land seen, and a large island opposite the same, [they named] St. John, because it was discovered on the solemn festival of St. John. The * The figure " 5 " is probably either an error of the copyer of the description or of the printer. 2 Ante, p. 262. i of the Cabot's Discovery of North America 265 inhabitants of that country are dressed in the skins of animals. They use in war bows, arrows, darts, lances, wooden clubs, and slings. It is very sterile ; contains lions, white bears, stags of large size, innumerable fish, namely, seals [?], salmons, large soles an ell long, and abundance of other kinds of fish ; the greatest quantity is called by the common people ' bacallios.' There are hawks black like crows, eagles, dark partridges, and a variety of birds." Mr. Major also gives a portion of the inscription numbered 17, as follows : — ** Sebastianus Cabotus Dux k Archigubernius sacrse Csesarae Catholicse maiestatis, diui Caroli Imperatoris, huius nominis quinti, & regis His- panige, summam mihi manum imposuit, & ad formam hanc protrahens, plana figura me delineauit, anno ab orbe redempto, natiuitate Domini nostri Jesu Christi 1549, qui me iuxta graduum latitudinem ac longitudinem, veutorum situm, tam docte, tam fideliter, navigatorise chartae instar, descripsit, Geographi Ptolomaei authoritatem, peritiorumq^ Lusi- tanorum fidem secutus, nee non ex vsu atque industria longse nauigationis, integerrimi viri Joannis Caboti, natione Veneti, atque Sebastiani astrornm peritia, nauigandiq,, arte omnium doctissimi eius filii, auctorisq,, mei, qui aliquotam orbis pnrtem diu nos- tratibus clausam aperuerunt. ... At lisec Sebasti- anus Cabotus, mens autor, occidentalem Occnnum adnauigans, ad sequor quoddam deuenit, & plagam vbi quarta parte Scptentrionum iuxta ca3ciam ventum acus nauigatorite lilium illi rectissimb Arctum osten- deret. Quibus decausis & rationibus & tutissima uauigandi experientia apertissim^ constat, defectus ii Hi It I ,1 *i I. f i ; I ^. ' i n,i I'' i I ift' 266 Cabot's Discovery of North America & variationes aciis nauticse crebro fieri cum Arcti obseruatione." " Wliich," says Mr. INFajor, " I translate thus, without holding myself responsible for the bad con- struction of the languaore " : — " Sebastian Cabot, captain and pilot of his Sacred Imperial Catholic Majesty the Emperor Charles, fifth of that name and King of Spain, put upon me the finishing hand, and, projecting me after this form, delineated me in a plane figure, in the year of redemption and of the nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ, 1549 ;^ who has described me according to the latitude and longitude of degrees, the position of the winds, so learnedly and so faithfully in the fashion of a sailing chart, following the authority of the geographer Ptolemy and the belief of the more skilled Portuguese, and also from the experience and practice of long sea service of the most excellent John Cabot, a Venetian by nation, and of my author, Sebastian, his son, the most learned of all men in knowledge of the stars and the art of navigation, who have dis- covered a certain part of the globe for a long time hidden from our people. . . . Sebastian Cabot, sail- ing into the western ocean, reached a certain sea and region where the lily of the compass needle pointed due north at one quarter north-north-east. For which reasons, and by the safest nautical experi- ence, it is most clearly evident that defects and variations of the compass frequently occur with observation of the north." ^ The map seen by Kocliliaff {ante, p. 263) was probably a re-issue of the map which was originally published in 1544. The inscription reads " plana figura nie delineavit 1549." The inscription on the orginal issue is given at p. 2G1 {onfc). \\ Wiii w r^^.r^jrr i^f i.i k " ; •'■^•-'■-!irT*'VT'.rj>,;-;-7, : ' -• '-^ .--f-i i (. M ■ i — --^if ^L *„.. :.t. • j 5 »J..^jv"..'v ■"^''" *v .^s : T^ — r--tj>- ' ;. 'P --Ir-v > , 1—- ■' t' -^ 10" ... i ■e- ^ i: --, if <...: 1'1 ill II! f i '.1' 1 :! i I Ir :^ . i^f ,'VI 2t)f, (.\VH0TS l,>, w N 1 1* i I {KkUA ../ji .'Vrcti . ,. i r'uis. iini^ihiniif liiuui, ;;.ud, jiroioctiiif,' me atVi.r th!8 fona, iJelinoJvtt'd /u'V in u plan*', figuiv. in 'i:'"; )Ci\v of re-lfiiaptirui ainl »>f rlit' t;arivit\ f ••-r Lord Je^us Christ. 1 ■'' '" :^- v;-' '^^ii^ !' -^^ iiU" • eonl': " <(> Uj.'; latitiu.. ,t^-j;r»" - mm; po. •fthc A .-^iirirnii!; t'i(;n ^owiui; the nittlioj-itr of the geograplK'i l'i(<'c.r]!\ .uni. ihf' tx^hof of t-ip muve j; killed lN)rl';gi5«;f>e,aH-l iil;-;!* f'lvm the expenciiw iiinJ prarticc of long .Sl a S(.M•^•ic ' t.'f the; !iU)^^l CY'-' lli'i,; IoIm^. l';^'>'.>i» his • " * •> •.» ' ^-1 <.f 'I ,\ , ( em..''. obs., . .■■:c'' ■ ■ , eail- > t •■- iV.'jiU'nth^ Oi't-ar with .1 «•' i ]i': m.^rriplir)!! -jn the »^^-_ «IMMi mmcf- 'Ills, . .1 §■ » 1 ■l:i;; M 1r- ! \ W ' i i !'! , . ili! ^ Gabot's Discovery of North America 267 The date 1494 has been accepted by many persons as a true record of a voyage which was made in that year by John and Sebastian Cabot. But the Ijest authorities are now agreed that there is an almost entire absence of evidence to support this theory, and that the error is due to a printer's sHp in the numerals, which, instead of Mccccxciiii. (1494), should read mccccxcvii. (1497). ^I. d'Avezac is the most important writer who has taken this view. He says : "We know this time [1491], appositely, that there then co^nmcnced a series of consecutive explora- tions, which employed, each year, two, three, four caravels, proceeding from the port of Bristol to sail under the direction^ of John Cabot, the Genoese, for the discovery of the isle of Bresil and of the Seven Cities. This is what the Spanish ambassador, Pedro d'Ayala, sends ofticially to his Government in a despatch of the 25th of July 1498, on occasion of the departure of a great expedition confided to tins Genoese : ' Los de Bristol ha siete annos que cada anno han armado dos, tres, cuatro caravelas para ir h buscar la isla del Brasil, y las Siete Ciudades, con la fantasia deste Genoves.' ^ " At last, on the fourth voyage of this septennial series, in the month of June 1494, the search is no longer in vain : in one of the legends accompanying the great elliptical Mappe-Monde, published in 1554 by Sebastian Cabot,*'' then grand pilot of Spain, the following indisputable declaration is inscribed ])oth • This, with all due deference to M. d'Avezac, is not a literal definition of the position which d'Ayala ascribes to Jolin Cabot in connection with expeditions which sailed from Bristol prior to 1497. 2 According to the fancy of this Genoese. ^ This is the map which was found in 184.3. There exists not a tittle of evidence to prove that it was published by Sebastian Cabot. m *v»ii I ' I' n t m \ iHl!i cii' ' li»v 1W fliWi P ' - ^ H i 1 if '' l''K'^ 5 :i llini « 1- ' I i!: 26cS Cabot's Discovery of North America in Spanish and Latin, and is pointed out by an cxi)rcss reference [in the body of the map], for what rehites to Tierra de los Baeallaos : ' This laud was discovered by Joliu Cabot, a Venetian, and Sebastian Cabot, his son, in the year of tlie birtli of our Saviour Jesus Christ, Mccccxciiii (1494), the twenty-fourtli day of June (at five o'clock) in the morning ; to wliich land has been given the name of llie land first accn : and to a great island, which is very near the said land, the name of St. John has been given, on account of its having been discovered the same day.' "... The waiter goes on to say : " I assume it, tlien, as' a fact to he hereafter uncontested, as I have always regarded it as incon- testable, that the first discovery of Cabot was made on the 24th of June 1494. But, during the period of the successive attempts of this intrepid navigator to find a passage to the Indies l)y the west, the great fact of the Columbian discovery had been accomplished ; and in its train had followed the promulgation of the papal bull, adjudging the New World to Spain ; and, immediately after, the pro- testation of Portugal, and the establishment of a line of demarcation, and finally the Treaty of Torde- sillas of 7th June 1494. Accordingly, when John Cabot had, in his turn, discovered new countries, he was obliged to acknowledge that it could appertain only to a sovereign to declare them his own, and to confer the dominmm utile over them on the dis- coverer; and he had recourse to Henry vii., King of England, to escape from the exclusive pretensions of Spain and Portugal." Having presented this view of the case for perusal, it will be desirable to present other opinions on this so-called Cabot map. CaUOT's DlSCOVF.KY OF NoRTII AmKRICA 269 the e New pro- of a ^orde- Jolm les, he >ertain [ind to dis- lii a very vuliuiblc work, entitled A History of the Discovery of the East Coast of North America, particularly the Coast of Maine, by J. G. Kohl, of Bremen, there are some extremely important criti- cisms as to the Calmt map of 1544. Mr Kohl, in dealing vvitli the inscriptions upon tlie map, expresses an opinion that none of the inscrii)tions or legends of the map were composed by Sebastian Cabot, and he contends " that these inscriptions were pro])ably interpolated by the editor or publisher of the map, or some person emjiloyed by them." Referring to the inscription No. 17, which asserts that Cabot " hizo esta figura" (made this figure), he asks, " Does the inscription pretend that Cabot himself engraved the map ? . . . It is very probable that the inscription means nothing more than that the map was drawn and engraved after some original manuscript map, supposed to have been made by Sebastian Cabot." • ••••• • ** Oviedo, in the second part of his great work on the History of America, which he wrote several years after 1544, mentions the map of Ribero. made in 1529, and of Chaves, made in 153G ; but does not allude to a map of Sebastian Cabot as having been published in Spain. "The copy of the map of 1544, which I am examining, was found in Germany ; but several copies of maps ascribed to Sebastian Cabot formerly existed in England, and one is mentioned by Ortelius as having been seen by him in Belgium. These may have been copies, or perhaps different editions, of the map engraved in 1544, as they all have a general resemblance. But, though seen in 'J ■m X.: ' \\ .Il< ;' II P hI^ U. i i 2/0 CaP.OT's niSCOVERV OF NoUTH AmKKICA other countries, not a single eopy is known to have existed in Spain, or to have come from there. ** We therefore (;ome to tlie conclusion that the Cabot map was neither engraved nor pub- lished in Spain, but perhaps in Germany or Belgium." ** If it should appear probable . . . that this map was not published in Spain, but in some other country, as Belgium for instance, it is rendered extremely doubtful whether Cabot, who was then residing in Spain, had any agency in it. Is it to be supposed that he would direct the work from so distant a country as S2)ain, examine proof-sheets, correct errors, and do other necessary acts in the publication ? This doubt is confirmed by the con- tents of the map, such as the configuration of the countries, the orthography of the names attached to them, and other circumstances, which go to show that Cabot could not have prepared or inspected the wo\k." ^ • I • • • • « " Even Spain itself, and also Great Britain, the countries in which Sebastian Cabot passed the greater part of his life, are very carelessly represented ; as, for instance, Ireland is made as large as England and Scotland together. In Spain we find places like * Any unprejudiced person who will take the trouble to carefully sift all the evidence we have to guide us as to the birthplace of Sebastian Cabot, his early environments, his character and attainments, will probably come to the conclusion that the only matter connected with the controversy as to Sebastian, which is absolutely free from ambiguity and doubt, is the well-established fact that he was a skilful map-maker. If we regard Sebastian as the author of the map, we have no alternative but to admit that he must have been a very careless, if not untrustworthy, map-constructor. L ' J I JW Caiiot's Ui.sc(n i:rv ok Noktii Amf.rk a 2;i 'Oiuulolupe' mentioned, hut not the inqjoitant hiirhour of Corunna. In Grout Britain several .small places are indicated, l)Ut not Bristol — that com- mercial centre in which the Cahots lived, and from which their exploring expeditions proceeded. *' In connection with ]5ristol I may also observe, that this map gives to Iceland the longitude of the Shethmd Islands, and })hices it directly north instead of north-west of Scotlan >■ M hat the March, J of the 1 is now ^ed that id done Y given Museum for the t's copy sen read V were nulative made it Drs that ment in of the bot, as at year archives Soncino, printed English sion, by uestions map, its follow- Cal3ot's t to say prove affirmatively that it was ever issued with his .luthority ; he never said he was its author ; and it seems almost certain that he never had a hand in its revision. There is no certainty that he ever saw the planisphere of 1544. 2. There is a probability,'^ but no actual proof, that some portion of the contents of the map may have been originally derived, either from a map made by Sebastian, or from information supplied by him. 3. Until it is proved beyond doubt that Sebas- tian Cabot was with his ftither in the voyage of discovery in the year 1497, the map appears to have no bearing on the question at issue, that is, as to the comparative agency of John and Sebastian Cabot. 4. Having regard to the many admitted errors and absurdities which appear upon the map, coupled with the absence of any reliable evidence to prove the agency of Sebastian therewith, it is suggested that it would be unjust to connect him with the map, so far as it purports to be a publication by him, or one issued with his authority. ' Dr. Justin Winsor remarks, with reference to the legends on the map, *' These inscriptions are further enigmas ; for while Sebastian Cabot must necessarily have been tlip sou roe from which some of the statements are drawn, there are parts of the legends which it is impossible to believe represent such knowledge as he must be supposed to have had. These legends [in Latin and Spanish] are not all a part of the map itself, but most of them are printed on separate sheets of f)aper and pasted on its margin. A manuscript copy of them in the land of a learned Simniard, Dr. Grajales, was found by Harrisse in the Royal Library at Madrid, . . . there does not seem to be evidence that Grajales may not have copied them from another copy or from the printed sheets." (The Cabot Controversies, etc., pp. 12, 13.) ■1 f cU 1 ,n; I i :■ i) SMi ! li ',' liii '13 : ii; i CHAPTER VIII On what part of the continent of North America did John Cabot land in 1497 ? To what extent did he view the coast in the course of his first voyage ? It is certain that Cabot, who was a skilful cosmographer as well as an intrepid navi- <^..iCi'. set out the result of his voyage upon a map, {iu^ V;0 0i7 a globe/ Unfortunately, both the map ai*d the globe, so far as we know at present, ]:a\e, peri <1. But it is now conceded on all hands that ho h;^v itiful planisphere of Juan de la Cosa, constructvid. oy aim in 1500, the genuineness of which has never been impeached, includes the result of the voyage of 1497. Inasmuch as the Spanish Ambassadors were in possession of the information afforded by John Cabot's own map, it is more than probable that La Cosa had at his disposal the very best evidence obtainable. The map is drawn on an ox hide, 5 feet 9 inches long by 3 feet wide, on a scale of 15 Spanish leagues to a degree, and is now preserved in a glass case in the naval museum at Madrid. It is an exquisite production in colours, and is richly decorated in gold. It is probably the best designed map of the period. Its testimony is all the greater because it was a map made by a skilful cosmographer, from > Ante, p. 148. 878 America t extent his first ' was a id navi- L a map, otli the present, 1\ hands la Cosa, 3ness of lies the as the of the n map, at his The es long eagues iss case tquisite ited in of the ause it from WMwiwimwi -.*» '■ •»! .«J>!^.-yi«i.., I- ^:,: i I i i'l, HI A A I vn i 'I « W whrtt pnrt of the r< did John CabDl; larH) ir Jill he view the coaiit voyage? I; skilful •,>ij nmp and the gU.}»e, «ji hu^e }.»cn'dunl. \mi\\ is. that th"- buiHitifut plani'-j f^mstrueted by liim \v. whivU ha,' ru'«»'r ''e^ji t>y .. to J. i^-: in the : pro< ( : gi)hJ. U Wa::' nh'i.p ut (.'f JS'orth America 1.197? 'io what e.' iu ll :r;.^c of hia jirsl \\nX I. *iL>ot, ' a a« an iju.i<..^>i.a liavi-' ' • ''■ ii[>on M map, : M .,-.,. .V U', both the :i.r arf Ml', know at present, /low eonecdt'U on ail )innds phvre of ,)ii!iri df la Cosa, i .00. the V aesiA of iudv-'S the ! ,^i7. iiu.'-f.'suuuh .-u; the !■ <.f the >• u map, a .jad at his jtaiiinl'le. The l'-\ .'» 'vet 9 inehe.s h")n.G' . Spanmh leag\it:;> 'rserved in a jrUisa ease .Siadrid. it u uii exquisite !ul is ii.> hiy decorated In designed map of the ho p-eatcr beean.se it 1 cosroocrrapher, from Aiiierlcu :- nxlfiiit first . ii6 a (\ uavi-' oiup, M) the present, il h.'inds !a Cosa, ntsu of •■; the IS the '' the ••»• his The fts hjiig o ' li.site \ iii tJio -cr. it if- I „:l ■ If! '; 1'' t ji I Caisot's Discovkry ok North Amkrica 279 authentic information which, in all probability, was better known in Spain than in England. It is fairly certain that the map was kept secret, — at any- rate the details of the map did not appear in any subsequent Spanish map or chart. This map was discovered by Humboldt in the library of Baron Walckenaer in 1832. It was purchased by the Queen of Spain in the year 1853. The flags throughout the map are marked in the correct colours of the various nationalities. In the highest portion to the west is a small English flag, and an inscription, "Cauo [Cavo] de Ynglaterra " (Cape of England), which, accord- ing to some eminent authorities, represents Cape Race. But this is by no means a certainty, al- though there seems to be considerable evidence to support the conjecture. Dr. Dawson says : " The Cavo de Ynglaterra cannot be taken for any other than that characteristic headland of North-East America, which for almost four hundred years has appeared on the maps under one name in the various forms of Cape ilaz. Rase, Razzo, or Race, a name derived from the Latin rasus — smooth, shaven, or flat. That the name is ex- pressive and appropriate will be seen from the following engraving from a photograph taken for the Department of Marine of Canada, which has the care and maintenance of the lighthouse upon this historic landmark of the highway between the old and the new worlds." The termination of the point of the English discovery is marked on La Cosa's map by a legend as follows : " Mar descubierta por yngleses " (*' sea discovered by the English.") It will be seen by f i'\. • 1 1 ! 4 \r Hi: 28o Cahot's DisrovFRY OF North Amfrica [ li^' . ! a pjlinipse at the map that the hist inscription, read in y the English, is " Cauo [CavoJ, dcscuhicrto" ("the discovered Cape"). A olaiice at tlie map shows that the hind coasted by Cabot trends in an eastward direction from the le " r avo c " JMar descul)icrta por ingleses " to the Inglaterra." Tlie argument put forvvar> ,y mnny persons, founded upon this inscription, to the effect that the name ** Cavo descubicrta " indicates the Landfall of John Cabot, is well represented by the words used by Dr. Dawson in his summary of the various views put forward as to the landfall in 1497. "There was no other meaning to the name than the discovered cape ; and as this map of La Cosa's was, l)eyond reasonable doubt, based on John Cabot's own map which Pedro de Ayala, the Spanish ambassador, had from him and promised, in July 1498, to send to King Ferdinand, we have here J hn Cabot indicating his own landfall in a Spanish ti 'ation." ^ The dithcultics connected with any att-^. pt to fix the landfall at any particular spot are now pretty generally recognised. In a report of the Canadian Committee, appointed in May 1895, in relation to the commemoration in 1897 of the discovery of the mainland of North America by John Cabot, the fol- lowing, amongst other references, deals with the difficulties as regards the landfall : — " While the committee are of opinion that the greatly preponderating weight of evidence points to the easternmost cape of Cape Breton as the ^ The Discovery of America hij John Cnbot in 1497, being Extracts from the Proceedings of the Royal Society of Canada, relative to a Cabot Celebration in 1897, etc., p. 16. RlCA cription, •h shows " Cauo )e"). A ustt'd by mm tlie n tlVO ( le y mtvny be effect ites the [ by tlie y of the idfall in be name p of La on John Spanish ilyl498, ^n Cabot 'ation."^ pt to fix pretty Janadian ition to ■y of the the fol- ith the ;hat the points as the Extracts itive to a Cabot's Discovkrv of North America 28 i hindfall of John Cabot in 1497, they woukl observe that the commemoration now proposed will not commit the Royal Society of Canada, as a whole, to the definite acceptance of that theory. The alterna- tive theory of a landfall on Labrador excludes any possibility of a commemoration there ; l)ecause no locality on a coast extending over eight degrees of latitude has been s})ecially indicated, excepting Cape Chidley, which is unapproachable because of ice at the time of the landfall, and, if a lower latitude be assumed, the want of means of communication on the coast of Labrador renders it for such a purpose inaccessible. The event to be commemorated is the discovery of the continent of America on the 24th of June 1497 — an event of profound importance, the far-reaching consequences of which cannot be over- estimated. Such an ev-nt the Koyal Society of Canada cannot aflbrd to ignore. Nevertheless, although the Society may not definitely decide upon the locality of the landfall, it is fitting that the commemoration sh'udd take place upon the Atlantic coast of the Dominion ; for, beyond all question, it was along that coast that Cabot sailed, and he did not penetrate into any part of the gulf. ... It will be remembered that the council of the Royal Society, at the meeting in May last, suggested that a perma- nent memento of the great achievemen. of Cabot should be erected upon some point of the Nova Scotia coast. Your committee would remark that no place on the whole Atlantic coast seems so suitable as Sydney. On the brow of the hill over- looking the mouth of the harbour is an ideal spot for such a monument. Standing there, the spectator may look out eastward upon a stretch of ocean, unbroken i!^ * I Ill; i1 - j) III 1 1 1 ; !M i^ 'i|; 2S2 CaHOT's l^ISCOVKRY OK NoRTll AmKRK'A and uiiintcrniptcd, until it waslies tlio western shore of Brittany or extends into the English Channel. This spot is about twenty miles in a direet line from the easliu'nmost point of land in the province. At this remote period it is impossible to locate with eerlainty, within a few miles, the precise s})ot upon which the banner of St. George was first planted; and, while your committee believe that the landfall was at the easternmost point of Cape Breton, it is not probable that the exact ai)ex of that point was lighted ui>on after so long a voyage across an ocean of darkness. Sydney would then, in their opinion, seem to be sutliciently near the landfall, if the Cape Breton theory be adopted, and yet the Society will not be so absolutely bound to that theory as if they were to erect a monument on the Cai)e itself The Cape is an unfrequenteil and forgotten place. No one now hinds on a point which was the rendezvous of the iishing ileets of three hundrcil years ago, and one of two ]>oints fmind on all the maps from 1504 down to the present moment. There are many very well- informed men, even in the maritime provinces, who do not know of a real Cajie Breton, which gives its name to the Isle Royalc of old Louisbourg days. The overjoyed i-ourtier who, at an anxious period of the old French war. ran to tell Kinix Ceoro-e that Cape Breton^ was an island, was the prototype of a nund>er of excellent people who are discovering that the island is named alter a cai)e, next to Cape * Capi' l^votou Island is dividoil ivom tlio mainlaiul by the iStrail of Caiiso. It lii's liotwoou l.")" '21' and 47'' 41' north latitude. The inhabitants of Tapo Rieton Ishuul pi'0])oso to celebrate the Cabot disi'oven- in June 1S07 by builling a liiige cairn of stones upon Cape North. The distance between Ca^ie North and Cape Kay, Newfound- land, is about 60 miles, L» : •:kra ern shore Channel, line from nee. At jate with i])ot upon planted ; e landfall !ton, it is .)oint was an oeean opinion, the Cape eiety will s if they elf The No one HIS of the d one of lown to Well- es, who ives its e Sewt'ouud- Cahot's Discovery of North America 283 Race, the most aneient, and persistently known to mariners since the veil of the western ocean was lifted. Sydney is the easternmost settlement of any importnnce on the continent of America, and may, therefore, rightly claim the monument to Cabot." It will be ol)served that although the committee are favoural)ly inclined towards the Cape Breton theory, — the chief advocate of which is Dr. S. E. Dawson, a learned Canadian, — yet they have decided not to commit themselves to that theory. There is very little doubt that Dr. Dawson's researches have been conducted on the lines which should be the guide for all historians. In his theory of the landfall, it is probable that he has come nearer to the actual truth than the others who have pro- pounded theories thereon. At best, however, we are bound to say that the evidence before us is not suthciently reliable to enable us to point with any degree of certainty to the place where John Cal)ot planted the English flag in 1497. Having regard to the fact that other eminent authorities have placed the landfall elsewhere, it must be pretty generally recog- nised that the point is one which it is not easy to settle. As an example of the ditiiculties which students of the history of North America meet with in con- nection with the theories as to the landfi.dl of John Cabot, it is desirable to give some extracts from the work of ^Ir. Ilari'isse, who has devoted many of the best years of his life to an intelligent study of all tiiC documents, maps, etc., which could be brought to light, by a lavish expenditure of both time and money. These it is proposed to supple- ment by some remarks of Dr. Dawson, who possesses all the qualities which fit a man to engage in matters 1^ I 1:1 '.I m I if IhiII il, Bl ' h fi ( ! 284 Cauot's Discovery of North America involving researches among ancient records in order to the ekicidation of the truth. Mr. Harrisse says : " When the vessel had reached the west coast of Ireland, it sailed towards the north, then to the east (sic j^^^o west), when after a few days, the North Star was to the right : * Passato Ibernia piii occidentale, e poi alzatosi verso el septentrione, commencib ad navigare ale parte orientale, lassandosi (fra qiialche giorni) la tramon ana ad raano drita.' ^ After sailing for seven hundred (or only four hundred) leagues, they reached the mainland : ' Dice haver trovato lige 700 lontana de qui terra firma,* says Pasqualigo. ' Lontane de linsula de Ingilterra lege 400 per le cassino do pononte,' reports Soncino. " Technically speaking, all that geographers can infer from these details is that Cabot's landfall was north of 51° 15' north latitude; this being that of the southern extremity of Ireland. Ireland, how- ever, extends to 55° 15' lat. N. From what point between these two latitudes did he sail westward ? Supposing that it was Valencia, and that he con- tinued due west, he would have sighted Belle Isle or its vicinity. But Cabot is said positively to have altered his course and stood to the nortliward. How far and where did he again put his vessel on the western tack ? AVe are unable to answer this im- portant question, and can only put forward sup- positions based upon the following data : — " The place where he landed was the mainland : ' caphoe in terra firma.' ^ He then sailed along the coast, 300 leagues : ' andato per la eosta lige 300.' * 1 Soncino, fust despatch. - Soncino, second f'.espatch, " PiiS(|ualigo. Cabot's Discovery of North Americx\ 285 \l r g the KOO.'^ As to the country visited, we find it descriljed as being perfect and temperate : ' terra optima et temperata.' It is supposed to yield Brazil-wood and silk : ' estinianno ehe vi nasea el hrasilio e hi sete,' whilst tlie sea bathing its shores is filled with fishes : * quello mare e coperto de pessi.' ^ . . . Barring the gratuitous supposition about the exist- ence of dye-wood (unless it be sumach) and silk, and taking into consideration that the countrv was discovered in summer, Cabot's description could apply to the entire northern coast of America. The same may be said concerning the remark about slack tides. It was natural that John Cabot should have been surprised at seeing tides which rise only from two and three-quarters to four feet, whilst in the vicinity of Bristol they rise from thirty-six to forty feet ; but this is peculiar to the entire coast from Nova Scotia to Labrador. [Mr. Harrisse gives this statement upon the authority of jMr. Henry Mitchell, the author of the Survey of the Bays of Fundy and Miiias, for the United States Coast Survey.] There is another detail, however, which is of importance. Cabot, on his return, saw two islands to starl^oard : ' ale tornar aldreto a visto do ixole.' Those two islands were unknown before, and are very hirge and fertile : ' due insule nove grandissime et fructiffere.' The existence of islands in that vicinity is further confirmed by the fact that Cabot gave one to a native of Burgundy, who was his companion, and another to his barber : ' uno Borgognone compagno di mess. Zoanne. . . . li ha donato una isola ; et ne ha donato una altra ad sun barbero.' What were these large islands ? . . . ' La 6 terra optima et ' Sonciuo, second dL'si)atcli. lib !■ if '11 '^t 1 1 }., 1, 1 t ;!i !, K'M n\ I ^ 1' II '1! r 286 Cabot's Discovery of North America temperata.' The headlands, ^lad in the pale green of mosses and shrubs, may have conveyed at a dis- tance, to a casual observer, the idea of fertility. As to the climate, it was in June and July that Cabot visited those regions. Now, in Labrador, * summer is brief but lovely.' Pie did not see any inhabitants, and therefore we have no specific details enabling us to identify the race of men who inhabited the country. But the needle for making nets, and the snares for catching game, indicate the regular occu- pation of the Eskimo, whose proper home is from Cape Webeck to Cape Cimdleigh ; whilst the in- genuity which the making of such implements pre- supposes, agrees perfectly with the race said * to have been able, in the manufiicture of their tools, to develop mechanical skill far surpassing that of savages more favourably situated.' Nor should we forget * that, judging from the traditions, they must have maintained their present characteristic lan- ffuaoje and mode of life for at least one thousand years.' The Eskimos of Cabot's time may therefore be judged by those of to-day. But there is a cir- cumstance in John Cabot's conversation with the Milanese ambassador which is still more convincing. It is evident that the Venetian adventurer and his companion were greatly struck with the enormous quantity of fish which tliey found in that region. It surpassed anything of the kind they had ever seen, even in tlie Icelandic sea, where cod was then mar- vellously plentiful. He dwells at length, and with evident complacency, on that fortunate peculiarity : ' That sea is covered with fishes, which are taken not only with the net, but also with a basket, in which a stone is put so that the basket may plunge ICA e green : a dis- ty. As t Cabot summer bitants, nabling ted the ind the r occu- is from the in- its pre- aid * to ools, to liat of uld we jy must ic lan- ousand erefore a cir- 1 the incmg. nd his Drmous n. It seen, mar- with arity : taken et, in )lunge Cabot's Discovery of North America 287 into water. . . . They say that they will bring thence such a quantity of fish, that England will have no further need of Iceland, from which a very great commerce of fish, called stockfish, is brought.' " It is clear that the existence of vast quantities of cod is a circumstance which is applicable to the entire trans-Atlantic coast north of New England. Yet, however plentiful that species of fish may be on the banks of Newfoundland, the quantity is surpassed near the entrance of Hudson's Strait. Modern ex- plorers report that there cod and salmon ' form in many places a living mass, a vast ocean of living slime,' which accumulates on the banks of northern Labrador ; and the spot noted for its ' amazing quantity of fish' is the vicinity of Cape Chudleigh, which the above details and other reasons seem to indicate as the place visited by John Cabot in 1497." Referring to Mr. Harrisse's theory that the land- fall of John Cabot in 1497 was in Labrador, at or near Cape Chidley, Dr. S. E. Dawson says : ** I cannot sufHciently express my o])ligations to Mr. H^^rrisse, for he has made these studies possible to me by his industry and research, and })y re- publishing so many original documents. I have had all the advantages of ]\Ir. Harrisse's learning and labour ; but the adventitious circumstance of havinor been born among the localities under dis- cussion, and therefore familiar with them from boyhood, compels me to see that JNIr. Harrisse's judgment upon his materials is misled by the absence of a personal knowledge of the north-east coast of America. The monograph of 1894 pointed out some of the misconceptions which led him astray. This last book affords other instances. f '' if ill m ■ '\ ? r; • 1 ' ii ' '1^ ii J f :'! ; 1 1 1 i ■ ) i j:i- f 1 1 1 ' ' ' i n I It ii lit i; n [< 288 Cabot's Discovery of North America ... In going to Cape Chidley lie has fallen into a new set of errors. . . . Mr. Harrisse, in attempt- ing to disprove his earlier theory of the Cape Breton landfall, says that in June and July navigation all round Newfoundland and the Gulf of St. Lawrence is impeded by fogs, icebergs, and under-currents ; therefore Cabot could not have reached Cape Breton at the time stated. Addressing Canadians, it is not necessary to waste time on this astonishing error ; l)ut the more wonderful part of it is that therefore Mr. Harrisse thinks that northern Labra- dor was the landfall, as if, while the St. Lawrence was blocked, that coast was free from ice at that season ; whereas, while the ports of Quebec and Montreal are crowded with ocean vessels, there is there a procession of icebergs and field ice 1000 miles lono;, coming down the Arctic current from the north. This is so well known here that in 1886 the Minister of Marine did not send sailing in- structions to Captain Gordon until June 22nd, and the steamship Alert did not leave Halifax for Labrador until June 24th. He reported that the season was unusually early. He left Blanc Sablon, in the Strait of Belle Isle, on the 29th of June, and steamed along the coast. On the 30th he met large numbers of small icebergs ; on July Lst he passed a numlier of large bergs, one being 170 feet high. On July 2nd he got into field ice, and had to lie on the outer edge of it until the weather cleared. On that day he saw many more bergs, some very close to the ship. He was then sixty miles south of Cape Mugford, north of which point IMr. PLarrisse places Cabot's landfall in 1497. He found there heavy field ice, which extended all along the coast iMBeaa .ICA Cabot's Discovkry of North America 289 len into ittempt- }. Breton ition all .awrence urrents ; d Cape nadians, onishing is that I Labra- /awrence at that bcc and there is ce 1000 jnt from in 1886 ling in- 2nd, and ifax for hat the Sablon, f June, he met 1st he 70 feet had to cleared, he very Is south Flarrisse Ll there ic coast to Cape Chidley, packed tight for fifteen miles off the shore, with a ' bordage ' of slack ice ten miles farther out. That was an early season, and it was July 2nd ; but John Cabot told Soncino that ' the land he found was excellent and the climate temperate, suggesting that Brazil wood and silk grow there.' . . . Among the causes which Mr. Harrisse assigns as contributing to delay Cal)Ot's progress is the supposed fact that, ' in those days, particularly when coasting in unknown xCgions, anchor was cast at sundown, and sailing renewed again, only with daylight the next morning.' The impossibility of a vessel coasting along northern Labrador, and anchoring out every night on a const where field ice and enormous bergs are sweeping down with the Arctic current, is evident. No doubt vessels have to run into a harljour or under the lee of an island every night to get shelter, and sometimes they hnve to make fast to a piece of ice ; but this very necessity is another indication of where the landfall could not have been, for there is no trace of such expedients in the records of the first voyage. Another note of the landfall is John Cabot's statement to Pasqualigo, immediately after his return, that he saw Hvo islands ; whereas there the whole coast is fringed ])y an archipelago of barren and rocky islands, where trees do not grow. These are shown only on the large charts, and writers not conversant with the coast are misled ])y the small scale maps in atlases. The coast line is, moreover, 1000 to 4000 feet high, steep and pre- cipitous, with a swell which in calm weather breaks over islands 30 feet high. This formidable and rugged coast, ice-encumbered and frequently lashed »9 ( 3 'h H f 'i ' ^1 i I 'I' ■ I 'I 1M ' ;■ I 'I "ii ■■,i .i ' . 1, . (■ !i 1^1 1 ■ ■ • ^ 290 Cabot's Discovery of North America with the heiiviest seas known to sailors, cannot, in our view, be the land * with an excellent and temperate climate,' where silk and dye woods grow, as described by Cabot ; ^ but Mr. Harrisse dismisses the difficulty by quoting from the Enci/clopiedia Britannica the short but graphic phrase, * In Labrador summer is brief but lovely.' ** Mr. Harrisse has read books on Labrador, but the want of local knowledge still obscures his conclusions. He finds another proof of the Labra- dor landfall is the abundance of fish reported by Cabot. This leads him to remark that 'however plentiful codfish may be on the banks of Newfound- land, the quantity is surpassed near the entrance of Hudson's Strait. Modern explorers report that there cod and salmon form in many places a living mass, a vast ocean of living slime, which accumulates on the banks of Northern Labrador, and the spot noted for its amazing quantity of fish is the vicinity of Cape Chidley, which the above details and other reasons seem to indicate as the place visited by John Cabot in 1497. 1 Anfe, p. 149. There cannot be any doubt as to the meaning of these words, — But do thev necessarily refer to that part of the littoral upon which Cabot landed 1 A consideration of this question opens a flood of controversial matters. And the men who are most experienced in a knowledge of charts, winds, deviations, etc., are just as likely to go wrong as the most inexperienced in nautical knowledge. For example, it is not at all certain that Cabot did not make a pretence of going northward, rather than adopt a northerly course through force of circumstances, with a view to blind the Spanish Ambassador as to his real proceedings. It is clear that several writers have been in- fluenced to a great extent in the matter of the landfall by accepting too readily the idea that Cabot sailed on a noi-thcrly course for a consider- able distance before he selected a particular parallel of latitude. It might, perhai)s, be difficult to prove that Cabot ever had a desire to veil his real intentions ; on the other hand, it is not at all certain that the charac- teristic Italian dexterity for devising expedients was entirely absent. ^iimmmm UCA nnot, in mt and s grow, ismisses lopiedia se, * In dor, but ires his Labra- rted by [lowever wfound- jntrance 3rt til at a living mulates he spot Ivicinity d other )y John leaning of le littoral a opens a lerienced likely to ge. For etence of Ligli force dor as to been in- ting too onsider- t might, |1 his real charac- labsent. Cabot's Discovery of North America 291 " Table showing the approximate mean date of arrival of cod in North - Eastern Newfoundland, Southern and Northern liabrador. Lati- Locality. Mean Date tude. of Arrival. Newfoundlanu. 47-30 Conception Bay. 1st Juno. 48-20 Bonavista Bay. 10th June. 48-30 Notre Dame Bay. 20th June. 50- Cape St. John to Par Point. 20th June. 49-30 White Bay. 10th June. 61- Cajie Rouge Harbour. Cape Bauld to Cape Onion. 10th June. 51-30 20th June. (Over four degrees of latitude.) Southern Labradou. 52-0 Chateau Bay. 20th June. 53-24 Batteaux. 12th J ulv. 54-26 Indian Harbour. 15th July. 54-56 Cape Harrison. 18th July. (Over three degrees of latitude.) Northern Labrador. 55-14 Aillik. 20th July. 54-57 Kypokok, 20th July. 55-27 Hopedale. 20th July. 55-30 Double Island Harbour. 22nd J ulv. 55-52 Ukkasiksalik. 28th July. 56-33 Nain. 28th July. ' 57-30 Okak. 28th July. 58-30 Hebron. 15th August 58-46 Lampson. (Over three-and-a-half degrees 15th August of latitude.) u I 1 !l^ Cape Chidley is still farther north— in lat. 60" 30'. It is not included in the table, being too far north to have any practical bearing on the question before the Commissioners. If / i !( 292 Cahot's Discovery of North America « T This is a curious misconception. Mr. Harrise is doubtless alluding to Prof. Hind as * the modern explorer,' but neither Prof. Hind nor anyone who l)orrows his graphic phrase, applies the expression * living slime ' to the salmon and cod, but to the infusoria and other minute organisms with which the Arctic current abounds, and which constitute the food of the immense number of fish in these waters, and the attraction which draws them there. . . . Again, in dwelling upon the amazing quantity of codfish as a crucial indication of the true landfall, Mr. Harrisse has conclusively disproved his main thesis ; for the codfish do not arrive at Cape Chidley until August 15th, five days after John Cabot is known to have been in London. In fact, the codfish do not approach any part of Northern Labrador before July 20th." In an appendix to his very useful paper, Dr. Dawson gives full particulars of the arrival of the codfish^ at various points along the coast, taken from the evidence given by Prof. Hind before the Fishery Commission of the Treaty of Washington, which met at Halifax in 1877. Simultaneously with the establishment of a more decided oj^inion, that in the absence of precise infor- mation each person must be left to form his or her own opinion as to the exact spot for the landfall, it has lately been a matter of frequent remark that a consensus of opinion exists to the eff'ect that the greatest reliance should be placed upon the valuable map constructed by La Cosa. This famous map aff'ords positive proof — all suflicient, even if there were no written records in existence — that the land found by John Cabot was part of the continent of 1 Ante, p. 291. •i. t ERICA [*. Harrise e modern >^one who xpression it to the th which onstitute in these im there, quantity hindfall, Ills main Chidley Cabot is 3 codfish jabrador lis very t's of the oug the )f. Hind eaty of ' a more ie infor- or her dfall, it that a lat the aluable is map f there le land lent of c ■■-> 9 'h 1 < I n W w«»|fc. — -# 2' « I II •II r ! ,■1 .'( (.!' I, in (.Inv' ill' 'iilur ot fid 11 m r ■.!' '-lUl!.. 'iKiin . Ilrv ;,, the en<^firfh heforo Jniy hi ••!> np]"ii': us'^i'ul |»;;iK-i; J^'.". i '.lA.-un givo.« l"uU {)ji.rrnM>i.ii'- "T !,»•.• ;*niv;il ' ' ' • |n>iui> the ■ . i5;nU :v^y of I' ^ I' ( ■. ailotyL- p" \v< ■:*•.* •■.. v\". f.. Oi" Jicr :Ul< 1ml 1, it .1. 1 «v tJi tl mt, •Jlr ..bk 1 (It I »- oonriiiciit tn i:rM \ •ID ,% 1 " - l>lc ) ; I M Cr-" ^ -- ^ p i 2 p- ;/ ?. > 1 t i 1 •: ^ ^ - - ? « ; - — -- r !ii ■' ' • ' ?• > M o ^. £ 1. 1 r««.l.«. ^ X c '' "■*'S/._j,. o o 4 = ^ J i \ ; in i: ^ ^ """ I ^' "7 ~- _ ~ ■* Q 4 "r ' "^ i I JJJ'J ; Q- > = -- = 1 < 2 — ^ r ^ cn 5 •-'■--:" < — ■ - i- ? _H CO ; r ^ - ~ O ^ " •/ r -= O < ^ 3 ~' - - -J ----€. UJ ■^■^p N Q £ : .^ lis 2 < f- Z) \ o is » t - ri!- ~^-; -J,; jj ^■^. .^M 0-.T- o o o o ■ i C ^ O JL I i !'*«' Ilif i , l«!l ^ i ' 1 ■ ,« i V4 .'t < liliE •MMi iii;' Cabot's Discovery of North America 293 North America. La Cosa's map is headed as follows : " Juan de la Cosa la fizo en el puerto de S : ma" en ano de 1500: — Juan de la Cosa executed it at the Port of Sancta Maria in the year 1500." Upon the map is a quaint representation of St. Christopher carrying the Christ-child across the waters. " As St. Christopher is reported to have received that name because he carried Christ over the deep water with great danger to himself, whence came the name of Christopher, and as he carried over people whom no other would have carried, so Admiral Christophorus Colonus [Columbus], imploring the assistance of Christ in that dangerous voyage, went over safely himself and his company, that those Indian nations might become citizens and inhabitants of the Church triumphant in heaven." (Ilistovre del S. D. Fernando Colombo, cap. i.)^ Juan de la Cosa was born about the year 1460, at Santona, a seaport in the north of Spain. Christopher Columbus started upon his first voynge of discovery on August 3, 1492, and one of his three caravels, the Santa Maria or Capitana, was the pro- perty of Juan de la Cosa, who was a man of consider- able nautical experience. La Cosa commanded her, with an experienced navigator, Sancho Ruiz, as the pilot. Upon this caravel, which was the largest of tlie three, Columbus hoisted his flag. The otlier caravels were respectively named the Nina and the Pinta. ^ The legend as to St. Christopher states that after lie was l)aptized hy the Bishop of Antiodi he wi'ul to live in a desert. In the iiei<,di- hoiirhood was a dangerous stream, and he is said to have rendered great help to his fellow-men liy carrving them across the stream oji his back. One day ho proffered his services to a little child whom he carried across the water. It turned out that the little child was Christ! — henco the designat ion, Christojdiorus, the f!lirist-1iearer. The vignette was evidently iuteniiso de rations upon il)ango Cauot's Discovery of North Ami:rica 295 (Japan) hy Toscanelli in his chart might not, after all, be quite correct. Columbus never went far enough during this expedition to enable him to perceive that Cuba was an island ; he fully believed, to the end of his days, that it formed part of the mainland of Asia. The natives of Cuba intimated to Columbus that " the next country to the west of themselves was named ' Mangon,' and it was inhabited by people with tails, which they carefully hid by wearing loose robes of cloth. This informa- tion seemed decisive to Columbus. Evidently this Mangon was i\Iaiigi, the province in which was the city of Zaiton, the province just south of Cathay. And as for the tailed men, the book of Mandeville had a story of some naked savages in eastern Asia who spoke of their more civilised neighbours as wearing clothes in order to cover up sonic bodily i)ccu- liarity or defect. Could there be any dou])t that the Spanish caravels had come at length to the coast of opulent Mangi?" During this voyage Columbus procured a notarial declaration from all concerned in this expedition (including La Cosa), to the effect that they all fully believed that they had discovered a part of the coast of Asia, and that, if any of the adventurers should thereafter declare anything to the contrary, he shouhl have his tongue slit. Columbus returned to Spain from this expedition in June 149G. His third voyage com- menced on May 30, 1498, and he returned to Si)ain in 1500 as a prisoner, loaded with fetters of iron.' ' On his fourth and last voyage he set sail from Cadiz on the lltli May lf)02, and on the 7th Xovenilier ]r)04 he anclioiv 0^- \ ^. a1 / f I L h n l\ I' ,; I \\\ 'l ; I 'I A I ' ' t ' ■ It *i' U :■ , >5 ^ .),..-. J VfiV'.Tc niu 11 i.l.'.N ' '• !'■ 'Tfn.i, <' I :1 : ' Ifl 1 1, !' I t " 'r. u^ ii< : I wm Caiiot's Discovkkv or North Amiirk a 301 que titttges el desculjiir de« los Ingleses por JU|uella via." A grant of land was nnido to Ojeda, in <*on- .sideration j)i'o.s[)ei;tively of liis active exertions to |)rose«;ute diseoveries and to cheek those of the English (Navarette, toni. iii. p. 88.) "Para (|U0 lalu'CCH, 6 fa«jues lal)rar, 6 vos aprovecheis d i)odais aprovechar de alii, para lo (jue habecs de deseubrir 6 en la costa dc la tierra lirmc para el atajo de los Ingleses." Apart from these meagre and unsatisfactory references to the presence of the English, from which it seems pretty clear that the Cahot expedi- tion of 1498 reached some part of the mainland now called America, all authentic information on the subject comes abru})tly to an end. In all proba- ))ility the knowledge of the movements of the li^nglish had become known to I^a Cosa, and it may be that his map contains the result of the progress of the Cabot exi)cdition in 1498. But this is not absolutely certain. The map, however, is almost certain to contain information of a reliable cliaracter. Again, and yet again, we are irresistibly driven to ask — Did John Cabot and his expedition, or any persons connected tlierewith — otlier than the Friar and those associated witli him, who were driven back by stress of weather — ever return to Enghuid ? Numerous ideas have been hazarded.^ But is it not * " But wo do not know when they returned to England, nay, whether John Cabot survived the exneditioii, or where it went. Our only information is that Lancehtt Tlurkill, who owned or commanded one of the ships, was in London, .lune (5th, ir)()l. At that date he repaid a loan of £20 made to him hy Henry vii. Mr. Desimoni justly presumes that it may have heen the one of March 2nd, 1498, received from the King while fitting out a shij) for the voyage" (Harrisse, pp. 134, 135). The reference K i. (■ glV( •y !il> Ai ! M I 302 Cahot's Discovery of North America "' most probable that the absence of all iiifoniiation as to the retuiii of John C'al)ot's expeditions is clue to the fact that they all i)eiishc(l ? J*" Ojeda really met with them it is |»retty clear that he would have had very little doul)t as to the course to be adopted ; it may be considered certain that he would have felt justified in exttuininatinfj; men who, according to his view of the pnpal bull, were incurring the wrath of the Church, and had placed themselves in the position of excommunicated persons. Of cv/.:rse there may not be the slightest ground for sue) i suggestion, but it is not to be regarded as an ini' • sible solution of the mystery. Then, we must Iso remember, (pate apart from the possibility of Ojeda having met with the English adventurers, that the natives had a nasty habit of making short work of the intruders on their land. Here, again, we are meiely plunging ourselves into a mass of conjectures from which it is not possible to extract any real in forma - in wlik'li the aupposod entry oi repayment is given is im-orreet. The foHowing entry, wliieh is taken frun. the KM. Add. MS. 21,480, folio 70/', refers to two future i)ayuient.s for the livery [of Heisiu], that lit, tlie actual delivery of certain lands. These amounts have no con- nection whatever with the jtayments (atiti', pp. ir)4, ir).*)) to Thirkill hy Henry vii. ; in fact, it is not at all certain that the sums paid by the king were loans in the true meaning of the word. " Prest-monev" means a payment for iniitressment, and it is highly prohable, although it is not acertaintv, that the king impressed or recjtiisitioned Thirkill's ships. On the Glh Jujie \M\, " Lancelot Tliirkell Thomas Par Walt. Strickland and Thomas Mydelton ar Itoundr' in 1/ ohlig [ohligation] to pay at Whitsontyde next coming .\xli ;in;i our parents gave prizes for recitations, and the poems of several poets were recited by us boys, and many of us sung the poems of Solon, which were new at the time. One of our tribe, either because this was his real opinion, or because he thought that he would please Critias, said that, in his judgment, Solon was not only the wisest of men but tlie noblest of poets. Tlie ohl man, I well remember, brightened up at this, and said, smiling : ' Yes, Amynander, if Solon had only, like otlier poets, made poetry the business of his life, and liad completed the tale which he brought with him from Egypt, and had not been compelled, by reason of the factions and troubles which he found stirring in this country when he came home, to attend to other matters, — in my opinion he would have been as famous as Homer, or Ilesiod, or any poet.' " "And what was that poem about, Critias?" said the i)erson who addressed him. " About the greatest action which the Athenians ever did, and which outrht to have been most famous, but which, through the lapse of time and the destructions of the actors, has not come down A. " to us. '* Tell us," said the other, " the whole story, and Iiow and from wliom Solon heard this veritable tradition." lie rei)lied : "At the head of the Egyptian Delta, where the river Nile divides, there is a certain district which is called the district of Sais, and the great city of the district is also called Sais, and is the city from wliich Amasis the king was sprung. And the citizens have a deity who is their foundress : she is called in the Egyptian tongue •■'**► tFm.'A'mt':. Appendix A 307 nd the s boys, , which , either luse he rl that, isest of man, I d said, I only, ( of his brouglit II pel led, liich he ; home, ion he Ilcsiod, itias f hcnians most no and down •y, and :'ita])lc yptian certain id tlie ;ind is nrnng. eir th on guc Ncith, which is asserted by them to ])e the same whom the Hellenes called Athene. Now, the citizens of this city are great lovers of the Athenians, and say that they are in some way related to them. Thither eame Solon, who was received l)y them with great honour ; and he asked the priests, who were most skilled in such matters, about anticpiity, and made the discovery that neither he nor any other Hellene knew anything worth mentioning about the times of old. On one occasion, when he was drawing them on to speak of antiiputy, he began to tell about the most ancient things in our part of the world — about Phoronuus, who is called ' the first,' and al)Out Niobe ; and, after the Deluge, to tell of the lives of Deucalion and Pyrrha ; and he traced the genealogy of their descendants, and attempted to reckon how many years old were the events of which he was speaking, and to give the dates. Thereupon, one of the priests, who was of very great age, said : * Solon, Solon, — you Hi'llenes are but children, and there is never an old man who is an Hellene.' Solon, hearing this, said : ' What do you mean ? ' M mean to say,' he rei)lied, ' that in mind you are all young ; there is no old opinion handed down among you by ancient tnidition, nor any science which is hoary with age. And 1 will tell you the reason of this : there have been, and there will l)e again, many destructions of mankind arising out of many causes. Tliei'c is a story which even you have preserved, that once upon a time rhaethon,the son of Helios, having yoked the steeds in his father's chariot, because he was not al»l(' to drive them in the path of his father, burnt up all that was upon the earth, and was himself desti'oyed 3o8 ArrKNDix A J i hy a thunderbolt. Now, this has the form of a niytli, Imt really signifies a declination of the bodies moving around the earth and in the heavens, and a great conflagration of things upon the earth recurring at long intervals of time ; when this happens, those who live upon the mountains and in dry and lofty places are more liable to destruction than those who dwell by rivers or on the seashore ; and from this calamity the Nile, who is our never-failing saviour, saves and delivers us. When, on tlie other hand, the gods purge the earth with a deluge of water, among you herdsmen and sliepherds on the moun- tains are the survivors, whereas those of yoii who live in cities arc carried by the rivers into the sea ; but in this country neither at that time ncu* at any other does the water come from above on the fields, having always a tendency to come up from below, for which reason the things preserved here are said to be the oldest. The fact is, that wherever the extremity of winter frost or of sununer sun does not prevent, the human race is always increasing at times, and at other times diminishing in numbers. And whatever hap[)ened either in your country or in ours, or in any other regi(m of which we are in- formed — if any action which is nol)le or great, or in any (Mher way remarkable, has taken place, all that has been writteii down of old, and is preserved in our templ(\s ; whereas you and otlier nations are just l)eing j)rovidedwitli letters and the other things which States rcijuirc ; and then, at the usual period, the stream from heawn descends like a pestilence, and leaves oidy th(tse of you wh<» are destitute of letters and eni this saviour, V liand, water, moun- I^il wlio lie sea ; at any ) fields, below, ire said ver the n does sing at imbers. itiy or are in- or in lU tliat in our i IxMng I States Htream |]«\'vves I's and again hod in Api'I-noix a 309 ancient times, either among us or among yourselves. As for those genealogies of yours which yon have recounted to us, Solon, they are no better than the tales of children ; for, in the first place, you rcnicm- bcr one deluge only, whereas there were many of them ; and, in the next place, you do not know that there dwells in your land the fairest and noblest race of men which ever lived, of whom you and your whole city are but a seed or remnant. And this was uid^nown to you, because for many generations the survivors of that destruction died and made no sign. For there was a time, vSoh)n, before that great deluge of all, when the city which now is Athens was first in war, and was })re- eminent for the cx<'ellence (jf her laws, and is said to have performed the no])lest deeds, and to liave had the fairest constitution of any which tradition tells, under the face of heaven.' Solon marvelled at this, and earnestly re<[uesteje«'ted, and freely lilicrated all the ntheis who dwell within the limits of Jl'jracles. But afterwards there oecurred violent ('i'rthi(iialves and Moods, antl in a sin<»le day and night of rain all your warlike men in a body sank unto the earth, and the island of Atlantis in like manner disappeared, and was suidv 1 beneath the sea. And that is the reason why the sea in those parts is impassable and impenetraMc, because there is such a quantity of sliallow mud in the way ; and this was caused by the subsidence of the island.' . . . But in addition to the gods whom you have mentioned, I wouM s})ecially invoke AFnemosyne ; for all the important pai't of what I have to tell is dependent on her favour, and if I can recolleet and recite enough of what was said by the priests, and brought thither by Solon, I doubt not that 1 shall satisfy the requirements of this theatre. To that task, then, I will at once address myself. Let me begin by observing, first of all, that nine thousand was the sum of years which had elapsed since the war which v/as said to have taken place between all those who dwelt outside the Pillars of Heracles and those who dwelt within them : this war I am now to ii|. nient of hotli of thoni. Let us <;iv(' the preeedeiu^e to Athens. . . . Many ^rcjit deluju'es have taken place '^/ .? %' ^ (? / M Photographic Sciences Corporation s. 4? W^ N> .^ t' 6^ IV' ^ ^c %N ♦ '%"- 23 WEST MAIN STREET WEBSTER, N.Y. 14580 (716) 872-4503 ^^l'^^ ' ^^-p r^^' 3H Appendix A mm m 4m ^ meaning of the several names and retranslated them, and copied them out again in our language. My great-grandfather, Dropidas, had the original writing, which is still in my possession, and was carefully studied by me when I was a child. Therefore, if you hear names such as are used in this country, you must not be surprised, for I have told you the reason of them. The tale, which was of great length, began as follows: ' I have before remarked, in speaking of the allotments of the gods, that they distributed the whole earth into portions diftering in extent, and made themselves temples and sacrifices. And Poseidon, receiving for his lot the island of Atlantis, begat children ])y a mortal woman, and settled them in a part of the island which I will proceed to describe. On the one side toward the sea, and in the centre of the whole island, there was a plain, which is said to have been the fairest of all plains, and very fertile. Near the plain, again, and also in the centre of the island, at a distance of about fifty stadia, there was a mountain, not very high on any side. In this mountain there dwelt one of the earth-born primaeval men of that country, whose name was Evenor, and he had a wife Leucippe, and they had an only daughter, who was named Cleito. The maiden was growing up to womanhood when her fiither and mother died ; Poseidon fell in love with her, and had intercourse with her ; and, break- ing the ground, enclosed the hill in which she dwelt all round, making alternate zones of sea and land, larger and smaller, encircling one another ; there were two of land and three of w^ater, which he turned as with a lathe out of the centre of the island, equi-distant every way, so that no man could get to Bcl them, ge. My writing, carefully ■efore, if country, you the )f great irked, in at they ering in icrifices. iland of an, and 1 I will ard the ere was t of all tin, and f about gh on of the whose and Cleito. when Q love 3reak- dwelt land, there urned land, et to De Appendix A \ 315 the island, for ships and voyages were not yet heard of. He himself, as he was a god, found no difficulty in making special arrangements for the centre island, bringing two streams of water under the earth, whicli he caused to ascend as springs, one of warm water and the other of cold, and making every variety of food to spring up abundantly in the earth. He also begat and brought up five pairs of male children, dividing the island of Atlantis into ten portions : he gave to the first-born of the eldest pair his mother's dwelling and the surrounding allotment, w^iich was the largest and best, and made him king over the rest ; the others he made princes, and gave them rule over many men and a large territory. And he named them all : the eldest, who was king, he named Atlas, and from him the whole island and the ocean received the name of Atlantic. To his twin brother, who was born after him, and obtained as his lot the extremity of the island towards the Pillars of Heracles, as far as the country which is still called the region of Gades in that part of the w^orld, he gave the name which in the Hellenic language is Eumelus, in the language of the country which is named after him, Gadeirus. Of the second pair of twins, he called one Ampheres and the other Evsemon. To the third pair of twins he gave the name Mneseus to the elder, and Autochthon to the one who followed him. Of the fourth pair of twins, he called the elder Elasippus and the younger Mestor. And of the fifth pair, he gave to the elder the name of Azaes, and to the younger Diaprepes. All these and their descendants were the inhal^i- tants and rulers of divers islands in the open sea ; and also, as has been already said, they held 1 ' 3i6 ArPENDix A m sway in the other cUrection over the country within the Pillars as far as Egypt and Tyr- rhenia. Now Atlas had a numerous and honour- able family, and his eldest branch always retained the kingdom, which the eldest son handed on to his eldest for many generations ; and they had such an amount of wealth as was never before possessed by kings and potentates, and is not likely ever to be again ; and they were furnished with everything which they could have, both in city and country. For, because of the greatness of their empire, many things were brought to them from foreign countries, and the island itself provided much of what was required by them for the uses of life. In the first place, they dug out of the earth whatever was to be found there, mineral as well as metal, and that which is now only a name, and w^as then something more than a name— orichalcum — was dug out of the earth in many parts of the island, and, with the exception of gold, was esteemed the most precious of metals among the men of those days. There was an abundance of wood for carpenters' work, and sufficient maintenance for tame and wild animals. Moreover, there was a great number of elephants in the island ; and there was provision for animals of every kind, both for those which live in lakes and marshes and rivers, and also for those which live in mountains and on plains, and therefore for the animal which is the largest and most voracious of them. Also, whatever frao-rant thinjais there are in the earth — whether roots, or herbage, or woods, or distilling drops of flowers or fruits — grew and thrived in that land ; and again, the cultivated fruit of the earth, both Appendix A 317 the dry edible fruit and other species of food, which we call by the general name of legumes, and the fruits having a hard rind, affording drinks, and meats, and ointments, and good store of chestnuts, and the like, which may be used to play with, and are fruits which spoil with keeping — and the pleasant kinds of desert which console us after dinner, when we are full and tired of eating — all those that sacred island lying beneath the sun brought forth fair and wondrous in infinite abund- ance. All these things they received from the earth ; and they employed themselves in constructing their temples, and palaces, and harbours, and docks ; and they arranged the whole country in the following man- ner : — First of all, they bridged over the zones of sea which surrounded the ancient metropolis, and made a passage into and out of the royal palace ; and then they began to build the palace in tne habitation of the god and of their ancestors. This they continued to ornament in successive generations, every king surpassing the one who came before him to the utmost of his power, until they made the building a marvel to behold, for size and for beauty. And, beginning from the sea, they dug a canal three hundred feet in width and one hundred feet in depth, and fifty stadia in length, whicli they carried through to the outermost zone, making a passage from the sea up to this which l)ecame a harl)our, and leaving an opening sufficient to enable the largest vessels to find ingress. Moreover, they divided the zones of land which parted the zones of sea, constructing bridges of such a width as would leave passage for a single trireme to pass out of i! H a one into another, and roofed them over ; and there 3i8 Appendix A I • was a way underneath for the ships, for the banks of the zones were raised considerably above the water. Now the largest of the zones into which a passage was cut from the sea was three stadia in breadth, and the zone of land which came next of equal breadth ; but the next two, as well the zone of water as of land, were two stadia, and the one which surrounded the central island was a stadium only in width. The island in which the palace was situated had a diameter of five stadia. This, and the zones and the bridge, which was the sixth part of a stadium in width, they surrounded by a stone wall, on either side placing towers, and gates on the bridges where the sea passed in. The stone which was used in the v,ork they quarried from underneath the centre island and from under- neath the zones, on the outer as well as the inner side. One kind of stone was white, another black, and a third red ; and, as they quarried, they at the same time hollowed out docks double within, having roofs formed out of the native rock. Some of their buildings were simple, but in others they put to- gether different stones, which they intermingled for the sake of ornament, to be a natural source of delight. The entire circuit of the wall which went round the outermost one they covered with a coating of brass, and the circuit of the next \\ \\[ they coated with tin, and the third, which encompassed the citadel, flashed with the rich light of orichalcum. The j^al^ces in the interior of the citadel were constructed in this wise. In the centre was a holy temple dedicated to Cleito and Poseidon, which remained inaccessible, and was surrounded by an enclosure of gold ; this was the spot in which they Appendix A 3'9 origiually l)cgat the race of the ten princes, and thither they annually brought the fruits of the earth in their season from all the ten i:>ortions, and per- formed sacrifices to each of them. Here, too, was Poseidon's own temple, of a stadium in length and half a stadium in width, and of a proportionate height, having a sort of barbaric splendour. All the oatside of the temple, with the exception of the pinnacles, they covered with silver, and the pinnacles with gold. In the interior of the temple the roof was of ivory, adorned everywhere with gold and silver and orichalcum ; all the other parts of the walls and pillars and floor they lined with orichalcum. In the temple they placed statues of gold ; there was the god himself standing in a chariot — the charioteer of six-win sjed horses — and of such a size that he touched the roof of the building with his head ; around him there were a hundred Nereids riding on dolphins, for such was thought to be the number of them in that day. There were also in the interior of the temple other images which had been dedicated by private individuals. And around the temple on the outside were placed statues of gold of all the ten kings and of their wives ; and there were many other great offerings, both of kings and of private individuals, coming both from the city itself and tlie foreign cities over whicli they held sway. There was an altar, too, which in size and workmanship corresponded to the rest of the work, and there were palaces in like manner which answered to the greatness of the kingdom and the glory of the temple. " ' In the next place, they used fountains both of cold and hot springs ; these were very abundant. W H ' 111* 320 Appendix A and both kinds wonderfully adapted to use by reason of the sweetness and excellence of their waters. They constructed buildings about them, and planted suitable trees ; also cisterns, some open to the heaven, others, which they roofed over, to be used in winter as warm baths ; there were the king's baths, and the baths of private persons, which were kept apart ; also separate baths for women, and others again for horses and cattle, and to them they gave as much adornment as was suitable for them. '* * The water which ran off they carried, some to the grove of Poseidon, where werejgrowing all manner of trees of wonderful height and beauty, owing to the excellence of the soil ; the remainder was conveyed by aqueducts which passed over the bridges to the outer circles ; and there were many temples built and dedicated to many gods ; also gardens and places of exercise, some for men, and some set apart for horses, in both of the two islands formed by the zones ; and in the centre of the larger of the two there was a race-course of a stadium in width, and in length allowed to extend all round the island, for horses to race in. Also there were guard-houses at intervals for the bodyguard, the more trusted of whom had their duties appointed to them in the lesser zone, which was nearer the Acropolis ; while the most trusted of all had houses given them within the citadel, and about the person of the king. The docks were full of triremes and naval stores, and all things were quite ready for use. Enough of the plan of the royal palace. Crossing the outer harbours, which were three in number, vou would come to a wall which began at the sea and went all round ; this was everywhere distant fifty stadia from the largest zone Y reason waters. planted to the used ill s baths, ire kept I others ey gave some to manner g to the 3nveyed ; to the uilt and )laces of ' horses, s ; and was a length rses to tervals m had |r zone, most iin the docks things of the which la wall lis was It zone Appendix A 321 and harbour, and enclosed the whole, meeting at the mouth of the channel toward the sea. The entire area was densely crowded with habitations, and the canal and the largest of the harbours were full of vessels and merchants coming from all parts, who, from their numbers, kept up a multitudinous sound of human voices and din of all sorts night and day. I have repeated his description of the city and the parks about the ancient palace nearly as he gave them, and now I must endeavour to describe the nature and arrangement of the rest of the country. The whole country was described as being very lofty and precipitous on the side of the sea, but the country immediately about and surrounding the city was a level plain, itself surrounded by moun- tains which descended toward the sea ; it was smooth and even, but of an oblong shape, extending in one direction three thousand stadia, and going up the country from the sea through the centre of the island two thousand stadia ; the whole region of the island lies toward the south, and is sheltered from the north. The surrounding mountains he celebrated for their number, and size, and beauty, in which they exceeded all that are now to be seen anywhere ; having in them also many wealthy inhabited villages, and rivers, and lakes, and meadows supplying food enough for every animal, wild or tame, and wood of various sorts, abundant for every kind of work. I will now describe the plain, which had been culti- vated during many ages by many generations of kings. It was rectangular, and for the most part straight and oblong ; and w^hat it wanted of the straight line followed the line of the circular ditch. The depth, and width, and length of this ditch were (! 21 I ( ' m ] ma HI ■ ,; m i? II 322 Al'l'ENDIX A incredible, and gave the impression that such a work, in addition to so many other works, could hardly have been wrought by the hand of man. But 1 must say what I have heard. It was excavated to the depth of a hundred feet, and its breadth was a stadium everywhere; it was carried round the whole of the plain, and was ten thousand stadia in length. It received the streams which came down from the mountains, and winding round the plain, and touching the city at various points, was there let off' into the sea ; these canals were at intervals of a hundred stadia, and by them they brought down the wood from the moun- tains to the city, and conveyed the fruits of the earth in ships, cutting transverse passages from one canal into another, and to the city. Twice in the year they gathered the fruits of the earth — in winter having the benefit of the rains, and in summer intro- ducing the water of the canals. As to the popu- lation, each of the lots in the plain had an appointed chief of men who were fit for military service, and the size of the lot was to be a square of ten stadia each way, and the total number of all the lots was sixty thousand. *' ' And of the inhabitants of the mountains and of the rest of the country there was also a vast multi- tude having leaders, to whom they were assigned according to their dwellings and villages. The leader was required to furnish for the war the sixth portion of a war-chariot, so as to make up a total of ten thousand chariots ; also two horses and riders upon them, and a light chariot -without a seat, accompanied by a fighting man on foot carrying a small shield, and having a charioteer mounted to guide the horses ; also, he was bound to furnish two ■IHMi Appendix A 323 lioavy-armcd men, two archers, two slingers, tliree stoue-shootei's, and three javelin-men, who were skirmishers, and four sailors to make up a comple- ment of twelve hundred ships. Such was the order of war in the royal city ; that of the otlier nine governments was different in each of them, and would be wearisome to narrate. As to offices and honours, the following was the arrangement from the first : — Each of the ten kings, in his own division and in his own city, had the absolute control of the citizens, and in many cases of the laws, punishing and slaying whomsoever he would. " ' Now, the relations of their governments to one another were regulated by the injunctions of Poseidon, as the law had handed them down. These were inscribed by the first men on a column of orichalcum, which was situated in the middle of the island, at the temple of Poseidon, whither the people were gathered together every fifth and sixth year alternately, thus giving equal honour to the odd and to the even number. And when they were gathered together they consulted about public affairs, and inquired if anyone had transgressed in anything, and passed judgment on him accordingly ; and before they passed judgment they gave their pledges to one another in this wise : There were bulls which had the range of the temple of Poseidon ; and the ten who were left alone in the temple, after they had offered prayers to the gods that they might take the sacrifices which were acceptable to them, hunted the bulls without weapons, but with staves and nooses ; and the bull which they caught they led up to the column. The victim was then struck on the head by them, and slain over the sacred inscription. 324 Appendix A i! " ' Now, on the column, besides the law, there was inscrilied an oath invoking mighty curses on the disobedient. When, therefore, after offering sacrifice according to their customs, they had burned the limbs of the bull, they mingled a cup and cast in a clot of blood for each of them ; the rest of the victim they took to the fire, after having made a purification of the column all round. Then they drew from the cup in golden vessels, and, pouring a libation on the fire, they swore that they would judge according to the laws on the column, and would punish anyone who had previously transgressed ; and that for the future they would not, if they could help, transgress any of the inscriptions, and would not command or obey any ruler who commanded them to act other- wise than according to the laws of their father, Poseidon. This was the prayer which each of them off'ered up for himself and for his family, at the same time drinking, and dedicating the vessel in the temple of the god ; and, after spending some necessary time at supper, when darkness came on and the fire about the sacrifice was cool, all of them put on most beau- tiful azure robes, and, sitting on the ground at night near the embers of the sacrifices on which they had sworn, and extinguishing all the fire about the temple, they received and gave judgment, if any of them had any accusation to bring against anyone ; and, when they had given judgment, at daybreak they wrote down their sentences on a golden tablet, and deposited them as memorials with their robes. There were many special laws which the several kings had inscribed about the temples, but the most import- ant was the following : — That they were not to take up arms against one another, and they were all to Appendix A 325 night they It the my of ^yone ; break xiblet, Irobes. kings iport- take lall to come to the rescue if anyone in any city attempted to overthrow the royal house. Like their ancestors, they were to deliberate in common about war and other matters, giving the supremacy to the family of Atlas ; and the king was not to have the power of life and death over any of his kinsmen, unless he had the assent of the majority of the ten kings. " ' Such was the vast power which the god settled in the lost island of Atlantis ; and this he after- wards directed against our land on the following pretext, as traditions tell : — For many generations, as long as the divine nature lasted in them, they were obedient to the laws, and well-affectioned toward the gods, who were their kinsmen ; for they possessed true and in every way great spirits, preach- ing gentleness and wisdom in the various chances of life, and in their intercourse with one another. They despised everything but virtue, not caring for their present state of life, and thinking lightly on the possession of gold and other property, which seemed only a burden to them ; neither were they intoxicated with luxury, nor did w^ealth deprive them of their self-control, but they were sober, and saw clearly that all these goods are increased by virtuous friendship with one another, and that by excessive zeal for them, and honour of them, the good of them is lost, and friendship perishes with them. '"By such reflections, and by the continuance in them of a divine nature, all that which we have described, waxed, and increased in them : but when this divine portion began to fade away in them, and became diluted too often, and with too much of the mortal admixture, and the human nature got the 326 Appendix A upper-hand; then they, being unable to bear their fortune, became unseemly, and to him who had an eye to see, they began to appear base and had lost the fairest of their precious gifts ; but to those who had no eye to see the true happiness, they still appeared glorious and blessed at the very time when they were filled with unrighteous avarice and power. Zeus, the god of gods, who rules with law, and is able to sec into such things, perceiving that an honourable race was in a most wretched state, and wanting to inflict punishment on them, that they might be chastenecl and improved, collected all the gods into his most holy hcdntation, which, being placed in the centre of the world, sees all things that partake of generation, and when he had called them together he spake as follows : ' " — [Here Plato's story abruptly ends.] APPENDIX B The Latin Text of the Bull op Pope Alex- ander VL, dated 4th Day of May 1493. " Alexander, Episcopus, servus servorum Dei, Charissinio in Christo filio Ferdinando Regi, et Charissimre in Cliristo fili?e Elizabeth Regince Cas- telloe, Legioiiis, Aragoimm, Sicilioe, et Granatte, illus- tribus, salutem et Apostolicam benedictioncm. Inter caetera Divinte majestati beneplacita opera et cordis nostri desiderabilia illiid profecto potisimiim existit, ut fides Catliolica et Christiana reb'gio uostris proesertim temporibus exaltetur, ac ubilibet amplietur ac dilatetur, animariinq' salus procuretur, ac bar- barse nationes deprimantur, et ad fidem ipsam reducantur. Unde cum ad banc sacram Petri sedem, Divina favente dementia (meritis licet imparibus), evocati fueremus, cognoscentes vos tanquam veros Catholicos Reges et Principes, quales semper fuisse novimus, et a vobis prreclare gestu, toti poene orbi notissima demonstrant, nedum id exoptare, sed omni conatu, studio, et diligentia, nullis laboribus, nullis impensis, nuUisq' parcendo periculis, etiam proprium sanguinem effundendo efficere, ac omnem animum vestrum, omnesq' conatus ad hoc jam dudum dedicasse, quemadmodum recuperatio rogni Granatae a tyrannis de Sarracenorum hodiernis temporibus per S27 328 Appendix B Ml h- '"I- \h vos, cum tanta Divirii iiominis gloria facta, testatur. Digne ducimur non immerito et debemus ilia vobis etiam sponte, et favorabiliter conccdere, per quae hujusmodi sanctum ac laudabile ab immortali Deo acceptum propositum, in dies ferventiori animo ad ipsius Dei honorem et imperii Christiani propaga- tionem prosequi valeatis. " Sane accepimus quod vos dudum animum pro- posueratis aliquas insulas et terras firmas remotaa et incognitas, ac per alios ha6lenus non repertas quaerere et invenire, ut illarum incolas et habita- tores ad colendum redemptorem nostrum et fidem catholicam profitendum reduceretis, liaflenus in expugnatione et recuperatione ipsius regni Granatoe plurimum occupati, hujusmodi sairftum et laudabile propositum vestrum ad optatum finem perducere nequivistis ; Sed tamen, sicut Domino placuit, regno prsedi(5lo recuperato, volentes desiderium vestrum adimplere, dileftum filium Christoforum Colonum, virum utiq' dignum et plurimum commendatum ac tanto negotio aptum, cum navigiis et hominibus ad similia instru6lis, non sine maximis laboribus ac periculis, et expensis destinatis ut terras firmas et insulas remotas et incognitas, hujusmodi j^er mare, ubi hactenus navigatum non fuerat, diligenter in- quireret. " Qui tandem (Divino auxilio fa6la extrema dili- gentia in mare Oceano navigantes) certas insulas remotissimas et etiam terras firmas, quae per alios ha<5lenus repertse non fuerant, invenerunt. In quibus plurimae gentes pacifice viventes, et (ut asseritur) nudi incedentes, nee carnibus vescentes, inhabitant : Et ut praifati nuncii vestri possunt opinari, gentes ipsse in insulis et terris prsedidlis habitantes, credunt I Appendix B 329 unum Deum Creatorem in Coelis esse, ac ad fidem Catholicam amplexandum et bonis moribus imbu- endum satis apti videntur : Spesque habetur, quod si erudirentur, nomen Salvatoris Domini nostri Jesu Christi in terris et insulis praedi6lis facile induceretur. Ac prsefatus Christoforus in una ex principalibus insulis prsediftis, jam imam turrim satis munitam, in qua certos Christianos qui secum iuerant, in custodiam et ut alias insulas ac terras firmas remotas et incognitas inquirerent posuit, construi et sedificari fecit. " In quibus quidem Insulis et terris jam repertis aurum, aromata, et aliae quamplurimse res prseciosse diversi generis et diversse qualitatis reperiunter. " Unde omnibus diligenter et prsesertim fidei Catholicse exaltatione et dilatatione (proiit decet Cath- olicus Reges et Principes) consideratis, more pro- genitorum vestrorum claree memorise Regum, terras firmas et insulas preedictas, illarumq' incolas et liabi- tatores vobis Divina favente dementia subiieere et ad fidem Catholicam reducere proposuistis. Nos itaque hujusmodi vestrum sanctum et laudabile propositum plurimum in Domino commendantes, ac cupientes, ut illud ad debitum finem perducatur, et ipsum nomen Salvatoris nostri in partibus illis inducatur, hortamur vos quamplurimum in Domino, et per sacri lauacri susceptionem, qua mandatis Apostolicis obli- gati estis, et per viscera misericordife Domini nostri Jesu Christi attente requirimus, ut cum expeditionem hujusmodi omnino prosequi et assumere prona mente orthodoxse fidei zelo intendatis, populos, in hujusmodi insulis et terris degentes, ad Christianam religionem suscipiendum inducere velitis et debeatis, nee pericula nee labores ullo unquam tempore vos 330 Appendix B ^' ! |1 ".'si I 1 E deterreant, firma spe fiduciaq' conceptis, quod Deus omnipotens conatus vestros fceliciter prosequetur. " Et ut tanti negotij provintiam Apostolicse gratiae largitate donati, liberius ct audacius assumatis, motu proprio non ad vestram vcl alterius pro vobis super hoc nobis oblatse petitionis instantiam, sed de nostra mera liberalitate, et ex certa scientia, ac de Apostolicse potestatis plenitudine, omnes insulas et terras firmas inventas et invcnicndas, detectas et detegendas versus Occidentem et Miridiem, fabri- cando et construendo unam lineam a Polo Ar6lico, scilicet septemtrione, ad polo Antarcticum, scilicet Meridiem (sive terra;!; firma) et insulie inventse et invenienda) sint versus Indiam aut versus aliam quamcunq' partem), (|ua3 linea distet a qualibet insularum qua3 vulgariter nuncupantur dc los Azores et Cabo Verde, centum leucis versus Occidentem et Meridiem. Itaque omnes Insula? et terrse firma) repertse et reperiendse, detectae et detegendae a prasfata linea versis Occidentem et Miridiem qua? per alium Regeni aut Principem Christianum non fuerint a6lualiter possessse, usq' ad diem nativitatis Domini nostri Jesu Christi proxime pra^teritum, a quo incipit annus prsesens millesimus Quadringentessimus Nona- gessimus tercus, quando fuerunt per nuncios et capitaneos vestros inventa) aliqua) praediftarum In- sularum, Auctoritate omn^'potentis Dei nobis in beato Petro co' sa, ac vicariatus Jesu Christi qua fungimur in t^ "" ., cum omnibus illarum dominijs, civitatibus, castris, locis, et villis, iuribusque et juris- di6lionibus ac pertincntijs universis, vobis heredi- busque et si ccessoribus vestris (Castellae et Legionis regibus) in perpetuum tenore pra3sentium donamus, concedimus et assignamus : Vosque et hajredes ac sue- ' Appendix B 331 96 per erint lomiui iicipit Glia- ls et Li In- is in li qua jinijs, juris- redi- rioiiis (mus, suc- cessores prsefatos illarum Dominos cum plena, libera, et omnimocla potestate, autoritate, et jurisdiftione, facimus, constituimus, et deputamus. " Decernentes nihilo minus per hujusmodi dona- tionem, concessionem, et assignationem nostram, nullo Christiano Principi qui actualiter prsefatas Insulas et terras firmas possederit usq' ad prsediflum diem nativitatis Domini nostri Jesu Cliristi ius qusesitum, sublatum intelligi posse aut auferri debere. Et insuper mandamus vobis in virtutse sanctse obed- ientise (ut sicut pollicemini et non dubitamus pro vestra maxima devotione et regia magnanimitate vos esse facturos), ad terras firmas et Insulas prsediflas, viros probes et Deum timentes, do6los, peritos, et expertos ad instruendum incolas et habitatores prsefatos in fide Catliolica et bonis mor- ibus imbp' lum, destinare debeatis, onmem debitam diligen ^1 in prsemissis adhibentes. " Ac quibuscunq' personis, cuiuscunq' dignitatis, etiam imperialis et regalis, status, gradus, ordinis vel conditionis, sub excommunicationis latse sen- tentiae poena quam eo ipso, si contra fecerint, incurrant, distridius inhibemus ne ad Insulas et terras firmas inventas et inveniendas detectas et detegendas versus Occidentem et Meridiem, fabricando et construendo lineam a Polo Ar6lico ad polum Antarflicum, sive terrse firmse et Insulge inventse et inveniendae sint versus Indiam aut versus aliam quamcunq' partem, quae linea distet a qualibet Insularum quae vulgariter nun- cupantur de los Azores y Cabo Verde centum leucis versus Occidentem et Meridiem ut prasfertur, pro mercibus habendis, vel quavis alia causa accedere prsesumat absq' vestra ac heredum et 332 Appendix B Huccessorum vestrorum praedidorum licentia speci- al!. " Non obstantibus constitutionibus et ordina- tionibus Apostolicis, cseterisq' contrariis quibiscunq* : in illo, a quo imperia et dominationes ac bona cuncta procedunt : Confidentes, quod dirigente Domino a6lus vestros, si hujusmodi san6lum et laudabile propositum prosequamini, brevi tempore cum foelicitate et gloria totius populi Christiani, vestri labores et conatus exitum foelicissimum con- sequentur. " Verum quia difficile foret prgesentes literas ad singula quseque loca in quibus expediens fuerit deferri, volumus, ac motu et scientia similibus decerni- mus, quod illarum transsumptis manu publici Notarii inderogati subscriptis et sigillo alicuius personse in ecclesiastica dignitate eonstitutse, seu curiae ecclesiasticae munitis, ea prorsus fides in judicio, et extra ac alias ubilibet adhibeatur, quse prsesen- tibus adhiberetur, si essent exhibitse vel ostensse, NuUi ergo omnino bominum liceat banc paginam nostra© commendationis, liortationis, requisitionis, donationis, concessionis, assignatiouis, constitutionis, deputationis, decreti, maudati, inhibitionis et volun- tatis infringere, vel ei ausu temerario contraire. " Si quis autem hoc attentare prsesumpserit, indignationem, omnipotentis Dei, ac Beatorum Petri et Pauli Apostolorum ejus se noverit in cursurum. Datum Romse apud sanctum Petrum : Anno incarnationis dominicae millesimo quad- ringentesimo nonagesimo tertio, quarto nonas Maii : Pontificatus nostri anno primo." S speci- APPENDIX C "BRISTOL" " View of the account of Arthur Kemys aud Richarrl of the king m the port of the town of Bristol and w t ^f^"". '""'y"^' *? "'^ «'^'^' P-' 4 'cent to wit of such customs and subsidies of the kine here from the feast of St. Michael the Archangcf 13 Henry yii. until the feast of Easter happei5na on the 15th day of April then next foUowhiTtS Tbeio;;'"' "°"'^ "' ""^ y^^' -1 fift- tt .£55'I^^l's/^,M 'f'T '"'«"«<''^'^'' g^ti'* with Ai>54, 18s. 54d of the customs and subsidies of divers merchandises of divers merchants Jews Ind Ir; ''.r" ."r^ ''^■°"S'^* "^ ">« «"'' ports and places as those taken away from the same, and there customed (custumat) within the time of this view as contamed in 4 sections (quaternis) of parchment of the said collectors of particulars thereof shown thts^rXtorr *"^ ^^^"' *""' ^y '"^ -'" °^ "Sum of the receipts, £554, 18,s. 5id. ; whereof is respited to the said collectors, 72s. 4d.1 fc^. theTr fees tor the said time of this view, according to the rate ot 10 marks yearly between them, as is allowed in 334 Appendix C divers preceding accounts. And 1 00s. paid by them to Quintius (Quintino) Poulet, keeper of the king's library, for his fee of £iO a year, granted to liim by the king, that now is by letters-patent during his life, to be paid at two terms of the year, to be paid out of the customs and subsidies accruing to the king in the said port of Bristol, to wit, for the term of Easter happening within the time of this view, by an acquittance of the said Quintius thereof shown upon this view, and remaining in the possession of the said collectors. And £10 paid by them to George Herbert, for his annuity of £20 a year, granted to him by the king l)y letters-patent, to be paid at two terms of the year out of customs and subsidies forthcoming and growing in the said port of Bristol ; to wit, for the term of the Annunciation of the B. V. M. happening within the time of the said view, by an acquittance of the said George thereof shown upon this view and remaining in the possession of the said collectors. And £10 by them paid to John Calbot, a Venetian, late of the said town of Bristol, for his annuity of £20 a year, granted to him by the said lord the king by his letters-patent, to be taken at two terms of the year out of the customs and subsidies forthcoming and growing in the said port of the town of Bristol, to wit, for the term of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary happening within the time of this view, by an acquittance of the said John, to be shown thereof upon this view, and remaining in the possession of the said collectors. And £400, by them paid for two tallies, into the receipt of the exchequer of the lord the king, levied for the house- whereof one tally was levied on the *&> Appendix C 335 29th January, and the other on the 30th of January, in the said 13th year, each tally containing £200, shown upon this view, and remaining in the possession of the said collectors, " Sum of respites, £428, 12s. 4d. "And they owe £126, 6s. l.Jd. Whereof is respited to the said collectors, £9, 2s. 6d., paid by them to Robert Marleton one of the king's serjeants-at-arms, for the exercise and occupation of the said office, at 1 2d. a day, granted to him by the said king by letters-patent for the term of his life, to be taken yearly out of the customs and subsidies of the said port of Bristol by the hands of the customei's or collectors of the same, to wit, for the term of Easter happening within the time of this view, by an acquittance of the said Robert. And they owe £117, 3s. 7id., whereof is respited to the said collectors £6, 13s. 4d., by them paid to John Karre for his annuity of 20 marks l)y the year, granted to him by the said king, to hold and take yearly during the pleasure of the said king out of the customs and subsidies growing within his port of Bristol by the hands of the customers there for the time being, at the feasts of Easter and Michaelmas, by equal portions, to wit, for the said feast of Easter happening within the time of this view by an acquittance of the said John Karre, shown upon this view, and remaining in the possession of the said collectors. And 33s. 4d., l)y them paid to John Lawrence for his annuity of 66s. 8d. yearly, to him granted by the said king for the term of his life, out of the customs and subsidies of the town of Bristol and of Gadecombe, by the hands of the customers or other occupiers of the port of the said 336 Appendix C king for the time bein<;, to be paid at the feasts of Easter and Michaelmas by equal portions, to wit, for the said feast of Easter happening within the said time of this view, by an ac(]nittance of the said John Lawrence, shown upon this view and remain- ing in the possession of the said collectors. "And they owe £108, 16s. H^d." feasts of to wit, bhin the the said remain- INDEX Africa, 3, 4, 10. Africa, circumnavigation of 8, 4 30 A exander vi., Pope of fionie, 62 64' Alexandria, 76, 125. ' Alliacus. Petriis, 28. Alma, Don Fernando, 48-50 Almazan, 163. America, name of, 29" America, North, 34,70,71,92,116,257 American Islands, 8 Amerigo (Vespucci), [Americuis Yes- Pucius], the titular discoverer of America, 297. Amoo, land of the, 3 Arabian Gulf, 4 ^tnd?^'3f:"*^*'^^''^-^"-*« Aristotle, 6, 8, 27, 47. ^'J°|d,^Mattliew, lines on St. Bran- Aromata-Akron, 2. Arran Islands, 41. Ashehurst, Thomas, 184. Asia, 5, 6, 20, 127. Astrolabe, 90. Atlantic Island, 10, 11, 40. Atlantic Ocean, 8, 9-13 27 28 32 Atlantis, the island of, 10-12 ' ' Atlas, 11. " Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, 79. Avezac. See D'Avezac. Avon (Bristol), river, 59. Ayala, Pedro de, 59, 101 141 iki 160, 163, 267, 280,' 296' '"' Azores, 38, 46, 47, 67. ' 22 Baccalaos, 169, 172. 173 i7fi Tar 188, 193, 194,' 205 2 '-265' Backe, the, Bristol, i34 Bacon, Roger, 27, 28. iJaker, E. E., 121 122 Baffin's Bay, 2.06. ' Bahr-al-Zulmat, 8 Baldwin Street, Bristol, 133. Balsam Land. See Punt Barren's^ ffistonj of Bristol, lU, Bassai'ion, Cardinal, 89. Behnn, 41. Behaim, Martin, 29. Behaim's globe, 55 " Belle Isle, 285, 288. Belle Isie, Strait of, 288 Bergenroth, G. A., 163. Bid Jl". R*^",'' ^'^'^"ale, Paris, 276. iiiddle, Richard, 31, 298, 300. Bimini, 271. Blanc Sablon, 288. Blest Isles of the, 35, 36, 39. Bojador, Cape, 61, 85. Boranden, San. See Brandon, Saint Bos worth. Battle of, 134 Botoner,W. See Worcestre, W BoyI, Friar. See Buil. Braeie, Insula de, 38 Bradley, Thomas, 155. don^St.^'^^""^ of St. See Bran- ■ I 338 Index I Brandon, St., 31, 44, 54-58, 75. IJrnsil, 81, 30, 41-43, 55, 58, 69, 107, 109. Hmsil or O'Hnisil or O'Biti/.ilo. Sec Hnisil, Urasilti. Sec Hrasil. Brasillf. See Brusil. Bnizi, IhIo of, 38. Brazil or Brusil, origin of the name, 42, 43. Brazil wood, 4'2, 43. Brendan. See Brandon. Brendon. See Brandon. Breton, Cape, 180, 280, 282, 283. Breton, Cape, Island of, 282. Bristol, aucoimt of tho collectors of customs, 333-336. Bristol Bridge, 133. Bristol, Cabot's jiension payable out of the customs and subsidies of, 128, 12!t, 131. Bristol (KiiKlimd), 33, 34, .''.8, 60, 97, 99, 101, 106, 107, 134, 135, 139, 140, 146-ir.O, 160, 162, 178- 181, 184, 205, 207, 244, 245, 248, 252, 254, 267, 296. Bristol Harbour, 13. Bristol, History of. See Barrett. Bristol, men of, their belief in the ex- istence of the mythical islands, 33. Bristol, merchants of, discovery of North America by, 110. Bristol, port of, 128, 129, 133. Bristol, rise of the tide at, 140. Bristol River, 13, 14. Bristol, sailors of, on board the Matthew, 115. Bristowe. See Bristol. Brittia, Island of, 39. Brooke, family of (Bristol), 129, 130. Brown, Rawdon, 139, 143, 144. Brown, Sir Wolston, 210. Buil, Friar, 161, 162, 296. Bull, Papal, 60-69, 71, 99, 327-332. Burgundian, a, on board the Matthew, 147, 150, 285. Cabot, John, as to the flag of St. Mark, 15 ; reference to, 30 ; of Genoese origin, but a naturalised Venetian, 67, 70 ; copy entry of grant of citizenship of Venice, 70 ; sailed from Bristol in 1407, and succeeded ill discovering Nortli America, 70 ; tiie ellect of Cabot's discDvery referred to, 70, 71; references lo, 73, 74 ; as to his belief that he would liuil the lands of the (irand Khan, and the pro- baliility of his belief in tlie exist- eni;e of the mythical islands of "St. Brandon," of " Brasil," and of tho "Seven Cities," 74-78; Cabot's ideas conifiared with those of Columbus, 77, 73 ; as to Toscanelli's theory, 79 ; the relegation of Cabot's achievement to obscurity, 91 ; ])ride of tlie I citizens of Bristol in Caltot's I triumph, 92, 93 ; petition of Cabot and his three sons to King Henry vii. for a grant of letters- jiatent, 94 ; coi)y (in Latin) of letters-]iati nt, 96, 97 ; transla- I tion of letters-patent, 97-100; references to Cabot's negotiations I with the king, 100 ; reference to 1 Cabot's probable settlement in : Bristol, 105 ; reference to a su))- 1 posed relic of Cabot's voyage, 109, ' 110; reference by Ruy (ionzales do 1 Puebla to Cabot, 110. Ill ; refer- ence to the delay which elapsed between the grant of the letters- patent and Cabot's end)arkation, 113, 114; references to the sailing of .Tolin Cabot in the Matthew of Bristol, 115; references to Cabot's discovery, 115 ; references to a MS. Chronicle containing an entry as to Cabot's discovery, 115-122; Rev. M. Harvey's reference to Cabot's voyage, 123, 124; John Cabot's arrival at Court to an- nounce his discovery to the king, 124 ; Tarducci's reference thereto, 125, 126 ; references to the gift of £10 by tho king to Cabot, and of the grant of an annuity of £20 per annum, together with the present value of the gift and of the annuity, 126, 127 ; copy grant of £20 per year by King Henry vii. to Cabot, 128 ; copy waiTant for IXDEX 339 497, ftiul ft North ,(' Crtbofs 70. 71; [IS to his tho IhucIh tln! i>ro- tliu exist- sIiiikIh of iisil," and " 74-78; ed with , 73 ; as 79 ; the licvement e of tlie I Cabot's II of Cabot to King of letters- Latin) of transla- 97-100; 'gotiations 'fcrcnoe to (.■nicnt in to a sup- lyagc, 109, ronzales do 11 ; refer- :h elapsed IP k'ttcr.s- |tiarkation, he sailing Vittthctc of t> v m Elizabeth, Queen, 133. Elliot, Hugh, 184. Elysian isles, 35. Elysian plains or liehls, 35, 36, 38 Elysium, 36. Eigland, Cape oi; in La Cosa's map, Erythrrean Sea, 4. Estcviinico, 51, 52. Europe, 5, 6, 19. (-iALVAO, Antonio, 153, 190 (.ama, de, 3. I Oarnett, Dr. R., C.B., 121,122. (■aseony, 167. Genoa, 86. , Genoese, 29. ; Genoese merchants, 112 113 ; George, William, of Bristol, 122 j Gibraltar, Strait of, 10 I ^''j'J^;'^' i''i'ancisco, Lopez de, 153, j Gonzales, Joao, 184. j Gothic kings of Spain, 44. Goths, 87. 'Grand Khan, 13, 14, 17-24, 28, 33 _ 74-78, 138, 140, 141. ' ' *'Th K^'-.^'^''^''' ''^•'^ ^« ---oins found in the Bristol River, 13. j Greek provinces, 15. : Green, Isle of, 39. Guadalquavir, 213. Guardafui, Cape, 1. ; Guinea coast, 29. Guyenne, niaj) of, 167. ^^^f^'' Ri<^Ji'i'-d, 103, 246-263, Han no, 5. I 11^ 5 lilii m 342 Index Hannu, 2. Harrisse, Henry, of Paris, 83, 196, 212, 255, 261, 273, 283-287. Harvey, Rev. Dr. (of St. John's, Newfoundland), 71, 85, 123. Hebrews, early belief of, 11. Henry, Prince, of Portugal, 28, 48, 49, 61, 62, 84, 102, 107, 112-114. Henry vii., of England, 60, 70, 94- 97, 100-102, 104, 105, 112-114, 124-1.32, 135, 136, 140, 143, 144, 148, 154, 156, 158, 159, 161, 164, 176, 181, 191, 193, 202, 245, 251, 253, 254, 266. Henry viii.,ofEngland, 182,185,210. Hercules, Pillars of, 4, 10, 36. Herodotus, 3-6. Herrera, 297. Hesperian Islands, 32, 37. Hoby, Sir Philip, 232. Homer, 34. Hudson's Strait, 287, 290. Humboldt, Friedrich, 36, 79, 90, 272. Ibeuia, 9. Imago Mundi, 8. India, 6, 9, 62. Indian Ocean, 3. Indies, East, 63. Indies, West (American Islands), 294. Isle of Antilia. See Antilia. Isle of Brazil. See Brazil. Isle of the Blest. See Blest. Isle of Green. See Green. Isle of St. Brandon. See Brandon. Isle of San Borandon. See Brandon. Isle of Seven Cities. See Seven Cities. Japan, 19, 24, 43, 76. Jay, John, of Bristol, 58, 108, 109. Kefa, 2. Kemys, Arthur, 129-133, 136, 333. Kephene, 2. Khan, Grand. See Grand Khan. Khatai, 33. Kochhaff, Nathaniel, 263. Kohl, J. G., 268-278. Labrador, 292. Lathrop, L., 71. Leon, Juan Ponce de, 32, 294. Lok, Michael, 249. Ludovico, Mr., nephew of Toscanelli, 84. Lybia, 3. Lybius, 6. Magellan, the navigator, 212, 213, 216. Major, E. H., 263, 2(J5, 266, 276. Mantuan Gentleman, 181, 197-204. Manzi (or Maiigi), 24, 82. Mare Alortuum, 8. Mare Tenebrosum, 8. Marino, Hieronimo (the Ragusan), 214-240. Mark, St., Church of, at Venice, 15. Mark, St., Flag of, 15, 70. Mark, St., Patron of Venice, 15, 141. Markhani, Sir Clements R., K.C.B., 160, 192, 299. ^lartin, A. T., as to coins found in the Bristol river, 14. Martinez, Fernando, 80. Martyr, Peter, 33, 167-169, 171-182, 186, 188, 190, 195 204, 205, 207, 208, 241. MaMhew, the, a ship of Bristol, 71 92,114-116,123, 1 -24, 128, 155, 207. Maundeville, Sir John, 27. Mediterranean, 4, 86. Meryk, Richard (or A'Meryk), 129- 133, 136, 333. Xavarette, 8. Necos, King of Egypt, 3, 4. Neptune, 12-14. Newfoundland, 274. "Newfoundland," 184, 210. Nicholas v.. Pope of Rome, 62, 214. Nina, a ship, 293. Non, Cape, 62. North-west passage to the Indies, search after, 105, 185, 189, 202, 212, 216. Nova Scotia Coast, 273, 281. OCEANUS, 6. Odericus, Friar, 26. Ojeda, Alonzo de, 294, 297, 298, 300- 302. Ophir, 2, 29. , 294. f Toscanelli, r, 212, 213, 166, 276. , 197-204. Ragusan), Venice, 15. 3e, 15, 141, I, K.C.13., i found in ', 171-182, 205, 207, Bristol, 71 !, 155, 207. yk), 129- Index .0. 62, 214. 5 Indies, 189, 202, 98, 300- Papal, Bull. See Bull. Pasqualigo, Alvise and Francesco, Pasqualigo, Lorenzo, 138. 141 Peun, William, 108. ■rJiOBnicians, 1-4^ 14. Pinta, a ship, 293 piftfS?' '■ «•' '''-'''■ ^^^^J'^^t^^y^'" Atlantis, 10-12,305 Pliny," 36. Polo, Andrea, 16. Polo, Maffio, 16. Polo, Marco, 17-26, 39, 75. rolo, ^icolo, 16 Portugal, 212, 299. Portuguese, 3, 47 61 fi-^ er -,<,- „188r201,'298,299 ' ^' ^'' '''' Poseidon, 12. Prester John, 33. Procopius, 39. pS7Rnl'p^"''--/''^0^'265,266. rueijia, Kuy Gonzales, 110-1 T? Punt, 1, 2. QUARITCH, B., 249, Quinsay, City of, 82, 343 MeNJ?' '''' '''' '''' 216. 217, Solon, 10, 11. ^°S"iV^™°°'^°' ^°0' 125. 142- '^i;&if%^^^'^^jiH84, 212, 214, 268,' 269,' 2^0.' 'oo' '' Spaniards, 99, 201, 205, 211, Stow, John. 252-255, 257-260 Strabo, 9, 27, 34, 35. Race, Cape, 279. Rameses 11., 3. Ramusio, Giovanni Battista iot-I'ia'^^'''^'^^^"'"''^^''^^"«t°J). Red Sea, 3. Renaissance, period of the, 86-91 Roman Empire, 87. Rowley, John, 133. Rowley, William, 133. Rowhe, described by Chatterton, 109, Saores, 29. 't:,s,'29*'""«'*""°'' «"""'»■ Sargossa Sea, 9. I Satanaxio or Satanatio, 31 feesostris, 3. ' Seven Cities, Island of, 31, 43-53. ^?9r255'.^'"'"'''''' ^^2, 165,176, Thebes, 3. Thirkill, Lancelot, 154, 155. Ihomas, John, 184. Thorne, Nicholas, 184. Ihorne, Robert, 184, Times Newspaper 71 Toby Chronicle. ' Se'e Fust Chron- ^°o?^29,T3!). '' ^"^^°^' ^'' '00k Tordesillas, Treaty of, 63 268 Toscanelli, Paolo,'55,'79,'80-84. Venetians, 16. \erde. Cape de, 62, 63, 67 \espucci. See Amerigo Vincent, Cape, 30, Warde, Richard, 186, William of Worcester. See Wor eestre, William. ^^°^- Winsor, Justin, 275. Uorcestre Family, 57. A\ orccstre, Wi|]ia,„, 57. Wynkfeld, Sir Robert, 211. ^l'f'J'!'^''''y' ^''^ 'Edition of the book of Marco Polo, 20, Zaytox, 23, 24, 81,