60 DISCOVERIES OF 1535. 



of Newfoundland, from whence he brought back 

 to Paris one of the natives; but it does not ap- 

 pear that any further discovery was the object of 

 this voyage. Perhaps, however, the expedition of 

 Jacques Cartier in 1534, under the auspices of 

 Francis I., might be called a voyage of discovery, 

 undertaken with the view of finding a short route 

 to those countries, from which Spain derived so 

 much wealth. The discovery he actually made, or 

 at least claimed, was that of the gulf and river of 

 Saint Lawrence; though there can be little doubt 

 that Cortereal preceded him, and indeed it is gene- 

 rally supposed that even Velasco had been before 

 him. The etymology of the word Canada (already 

 noticed*) has even been ascribed to the visit of 

 Velasco, with as little accuracy perhaps as that 

 which had before been assigned by Cortereal. It 

 is stated that the former, disappointed in not finding 

 any of the precious metals, in hastening to return, 

 called out to his people Aca 7iada, " there is nothing 

 here," which words being repeated by the natives 

 to the next Europeans they saw^, it was concluded 

 that Canada was the name of the country ; but both 

 may probably be thought too forced and fanciful 

 to be real. Cartier, in the narrative of his second 

 voyage up the St. Lawrence in 1535, gives a more 

 probable derivation of the name, when he says 

 that an assemblage of houses or a town is called 



* Under Art. " Corlercal." 



