AD. THE ENGLISH VOYAGES 



1572-87. 



a kinsman of his called Alvares de Mendanio, and 

 Pedro Sarmiento as lieutenant, and in the Viceadmirall 

 went Pedro de Ortega. This fleete departing forth of 

 the haven of Lima, and sayling 800 leagues Westward 

 [III. 802.] off the coast of Peru, found certaine Islands in eleven 

 degrees to the South of the Equinoctial inhabited with 

 a kind of people of a yellowish complexion, and all 

 naked, whose weapons are bowes and arrowes, and darts. 

 The beasts that they saw here were hogges and little 

 dogges, and they found some hennes. Here also they 

 Cloves^inger, found a muster of cloves, ginger, and sinamon, although 

 and sinamon. ^j^^ sinamon were not of the best ; and heere appeared 

 unto them likewise some shewe of golde. The first 

 Island that the Spaniards discovered, they named Santa 

 Izabella; and here they built a small pinnesse, with the 

 which and with their ships boate they found out betweene 

 nine and fifteene degrees of Southerly latitude eleven 

 great Islands being one with another of 80 leagues in 

 compasse. The greatest Island that they discovered 

 The Isle of ^as according unto the first finder called Guadalcanal, 

 Guadalcanal. ^^ ^.j^^ coast whereof they sayled 150 leagues, before 

 they could knowe whither it were an Island or part of 

 the maine land : and yet they know not perfectly what 

 to make of it, but thinke that it may be part of that 

 continent which stretcheth to the Streights of Magellan ; 

 for they coasted it to eighteene degrees and could not 

 find the ende thereof. The gold that they found was 

 upon this Island or maine land of Guadalcanal, whereas 

 they landed and tooke a towne, finding small graines of 

 golde hanged up in the houses thereof. But because 

 the Spaniards understood not the language of the 

 countrey, and also for that the Indians were very stout 

 men, and fought continually against them, they could 

 never learne from whence that gold came, nor yet 

 what store was in the land. 



These Indians use to goe to sea in great Canoas 

 that will Carrie 100 men a piece, wherein they have many- 

 conflicts one against another : howbeit unto the Christians 



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