*.* THE ENGLISH VOYAGES 



1497. 



chandise, as is the maner of the Venetians to leave no part 

 of the world unsearched to obtaine riches. Hee therefore 

 furnished two ships in England at his owne charges, and 

 first with 300 men directed his course so farre towards 

 the North pole, that even in the moneth of July he 

 found monstrous heapes of ice swimming on the sea, and 

 in maner continuall day light, yet saw he the land in that 

 tract free from ice, which had bene molten by the heat 

 of the Sunne. Thus seeing such heapes of yce before 

 him, hee was enforced to turne his sailes and follow 

 the West, so coasting still by the shore, that he was 

 thereby brought so farre into the South, by reason of 

 the land bending so much Southwards, that it was there 

 almost equall in latitude, with the sea Fretum Herculeum, 

 having the Northpole elevate in maner in the same degree. 

 He sailed likewise in this tract so farre towards the West, 

 that hee had the Island of Cuba on his left hand, in 

 maner in the same degree of longitude. As hee traveiled 

 by the coastes of this great land, (which he named Bac- 

 4 current calaos) he saith that hee found the like course of the 

 waters toward the West, but the same to runne more 

 softly and gently then the swift waters which the Spaniards 

 found in their Navigations Southward. Wherfore it is 

 not onely more like to be true, but ought also of 

 necessitie to be concluded that betweene both the lands 

 hitherto unknowen, there should be certaine great open 

 places whereby the waters should thus continually passe 



The people of f r0 m the East unto the West: which waters I suppose 



Island say the ^ ^ about h j obe f h earth 1 h un _ 



Sea and ye . . & . c * , 



setteth also cessant moving and impulsion or the heavens, and not 



West. to bee swallowed up and cast up again e by the breathing 



Jonas Am- Q f Demogorgon, as some have imagined, because they 

 grtmus. see tbe seas ky j ncrease anc j decrease to ebbe and flowe. 



Sebastian Cabot himselfe named those lands Baccalaos, 

 because that in the Seas thereabout hee found so great 

 multitudes of certaine bigge fishes much like unto Tunies, 

 (which the inhabitants call Baccalaos) that they sometime 

 stayed his shippes. He found also the people of those 



West. 



