NUNO DA SILVA ad. 



1578. 

 send to it with a harquebuse shot : and there they sawe 

 the land to bee inhabited with Indians, that were apparelled 

 with skinnes, with their legges from the knees downe- 

 ward, and their armes from the elbowes downeward 

 naked, all the rest of their bodies beeing clothed, with 

 bowes and arrowes in their handes, being subtill, great, 

 and well formed people, and strong and high of stature : 

 where sixe of the Englishmen went on land to fetch 

 fresh water, and before they leapt on land, foure of the 

 Indians came unto their boate, to whome the Englishmen 

 gave bread and wine : and when the Indians had well 

 eaten and drunke, they departed thence : and going 

 somewhat farre from them, one of the Indians cryed to 

 them, and sayde ; Magallanes, Esta he minha Terra, 

 that is, Magallanes, this is my countrey : and because the 

 Englishmen followed them, it seemed the Indians fledde 

 upward into the land, and beeing somewhat farre off, they 

 turned backe againe, and with their arrowes slewe two 

 of the English shippers, one being an Englishman, the 

 other a Netherlander : the rest came backe againe and 

 saved themselves in the boate, wherewith they presently 

 put off from the shore. Here they stayed till the 

 seventeenth of August, upon the which day they set 

 saile, running along by the coast about a league and a 

 halfe from the land, (for there it is all faire and good 

 ground, at twentie, and five and twentie fathome deepe) 

 and were about foure or five dayes before they came to 

 the mouth or entrie of the Streight : but because the 

 wind was contrary, they stayed till the 24 of August 

 before they entred. 



The entrie or mouth of the Streight is about a league The descr'ip- 

 broad, on both sides being bare and fiatte land : on the tionofThe 

 North side they sawe Indians making: P:reat fires, but on "^/^^^ ., 



D _ O . ^ ivl CISC i IQtl . 



the South side they saw no people stirring. The foure 

 and twentieth day aforesayd, they beganne to enter into 

 the Streight, with an Eastnortheast wind. This Streight 

 may bee about an hundred and tenne leagues long, and in 

 bredth a league. About the entry of the Streight, and 



135 



