ad. THE ENGLISH VOYAGES 



1527. 



and I take licence to be prolixious, and shalbe perad- 

 venture tedious, but your Lordship knoweth that Nihil 

 ignorantia verbosius. 



In the yeere 1484 the king of Portingal minded to 

 arme certaine Carvels to discover this Spicerie. Then 

 forasmuch as he feared that being discovered, every 

 other prince woulde sende and trade thither, so that 

 the cost and perill of discovering should be his, and 

 the proflte common : wherefore first hee gave knowledge 

 of this his minde to all princes Christened, saying that 

 hee would seeke amongst the infidels newe possessions 

 of regions, and therefore would make a certaine armie : 

 and that if any of them would helpe in the cost of 

 the sayd armie, he should enjoy his part of the proflte 

 or honour that should come of it. And as then this 

 discovering was holden for a strange thing and uncertaine. 

 Nowe they say, that all the Princes of Christendome 

 answered, that they would be no part of such an armie, 

 nor yet of the profit that might come of it. After the 

 which he gave knowledge to the Pope of his purpose, and 

 of the answere of all the Princes, desiring him that 

 seeing that none would helpe in the costes, that he would 

 judge all that should bee found and discovered to be of 

 his jurisdiction, and commannd that none other princes 

 The Pope re- should intermeddle therewith. The Pope sayd not as 

 prehended. Christ saith, Quis me constituit judicem inter vos ? He 

 did not refuse, but making himselfe as Lord and Judge of 

 all, not onely granted that all that should be discovered 

 from Orient to Occident, should be the kings of Portin- 

 gal, but also, that upon great censures no other Prince 

 should discover but he. And if they did, all to bee the 

 kings of Portingal. So he armed a fleete, and in the 

 yeere 1497 were discovered the Islands of Calicut, from 

 whence is brought all the spice he hath. 



After this in the yere 1492 the king of Spaine willing 

 to discover lands toward the Occident without making 

 any such diligence, or taking licence of the king of Por- 

 tingal, armed certaine Carvels, and then discovered this 



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