[MACKENZIE] THE BARONETS OF NOVA SCOTIA 95 
panied him, subsequently extended the discoveries of France in Aca- 
dia. 
“Tn 1578 the number of fishing vessels upon the coast was 330; 
of these 100 were Spanish, 30 Biscayans, 150 French, and 50 Eng- 
lish. The latter had command of the harbours. Valuable furs were 
purchased from the savages for mere trinkets, and the teeth of the 
sea-horse brought high prices in the European markets. The interest- 
ing accounts given by those who had visited the country, had also 
much influence over the minds of the adventurers. The seas were re- 
presented as being alive with fish; the forests with black foxes, and 
other animals with rich furs, and the rocks with gold, silver and pre- 
cious stones. All these circumstances combined, produced a spirit of 
rivalry among the European Powers.” ™ 
The accession of Queen Elizabeth saw the spirit of maritime ad- 
venture once more shine forth in Englishmen, and attention was again 
directed towards the new world. 
In 1583, Sir Humphrey Gilbert, a man of great strength and sta- 
ture, celebrated for his courage, learning, and patriotism, set sail with 
four vessels, carrying two hundred and fifty emigrants. He arrived at 
Newfoundland, of which he took formal possession in the name of the 
Queen, and. set up a pillar ensigned with the Royal Arms of Eng- 
land in token thereof. The emigrants proved an unruly lot and the 
Governor found it necessary to crop the ears of the malcontents in or- 
der to maintain his authority. Sailing from Newfoundland on board 
his ship, the Squirrel, of ten tons burden, a violent storm arose when 
off the Azores, during which Sir Humphrey was seen by the mariners 
on board another ship, sitting, book in hand, and was heard to call out 
to his sailors: “We are as near Heaven by sea as by land.” During 
the night, the lights of Sir Humphrey’s ship were seen to suddenly dis- 
appear, as she went down with all on board. 
King Henry the Fourth of France, who proved himself a great 
patron of maritime enterprise, having given to the Marquis de la 
Roche a commission as his Lieutenant-Governor to colonize Acadia, the 
Marquis, in 1597, set sail, with a number of convicts; and with the 
idea of forming a settlement, landed them on the desolate Isle de 
Sable, the soil of which could produce nought but thorns and thistles. 
Several disasters having befallen him, the Marquis returned to France, 
leaving the convicts to shift for themselves on the almost barren is- 
land where they were soon reduced to great wretchedness. “ Their 
coats wearing out, they made clothes of seal skins, and in this miser- 
able condition they spent seven years; when the King ordered Cheto- 
del, who had been pilot to De la Roche, to bring them to France. 
