CXXII ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



the most authoritative account we have regarding time of departure and 

 course taken. There is no reason to doubt its correctness. Gomara's 

 assertion that lie took the way of Iceland is only approximately correct, 

 that is, he went to high latitudes. 



Bearing in mind what we have shown when treating of the previous 

 voyage, viz , that Cabot came out the Straits of Belle Isle, his reason 

 for taking a northwest course is apparent. He had certain knowledge 

 that the route to Cathay was barred against him up to the tifty -second 

 degree at least. But to make quite sure of avoiding this land, he would 

 naturalh'go high enough to escape jutting capes and smaller islands still 

 farther north. In Eamusio's narrative Sebastian Cabot is made to say 

 he hoped to find no land until he should reach Cathay, but adds, " to his 

 infinite disappointment," he came, after some daj'S, to land that trended 

 north : he followed along the coast, hoping to tind an opening through 

 which he might pass, but could not do so ; and having reached the tift}'- 

 sixth degree, seeing that the land trended towards the east, despairing of 

 success he turned back to reconnoitre the coast toward the south, always 

 with a view of finding a passage to the Indies. There can be no doubt 

 Ramusio's informant gave substantially the words of Sebastian Cabot. 

 We must observe, howev^er, that Ramusio distinctlj' tells us that whilst 

 he has written down the gist of his narrator's story, he does not jîrofess 

 to give his precise words. Quite likely Sebastian Cabot said something 

 about the fifty-sixth degree, and cither the narrator, or Eamusio, took 

 that to be the highest point attained. A very natural and jiardonable 

 mistake. But as the land does not trend eastwai-d at the fifty-sixth 

 degree on the Labrador coast, it cannot be the limit of the height reached. 

 In all other particulars we feel assured we are listening to Cabot's own 

 words, so direct and graphic are they, and so much in keeping with 

 what we know to have been his hopes and aspirations. 



All authorities agree that Cabot sailed far north on this voyage, and 

 then went back south, carefully insj)ecting the coast, to see if he could 

 find a channel or strait b}^ which he might pass to reach Cathay. Sebas- 

 tian Cabot tells us this himself in the foregoing quotation. Antonio 

 Galvao' tells how that Cabot turned south investigating, "or exploring 

 every bay and river and gulf to see if he could pass to the other side." 

 The original is " descrobindo toda a baya, rio, enseada, p'ra ver se passava 

 da outra banda." Ilakluyt translates it, '• discovering all the bay and 

 river named Deseado, to see if it passed on the other side." If this be the 

 correct rendering of Galvao's words, and Ilakluyt may have had reason 

 to know that " Enseada " was the name of a bay and river, then we have 

 the name given by Cabot to the Gulf of St. Lawrence and to our noble 

 Canadian river, for no other bay or river could be possibly meant. A 

 beautiful and appropriate name, in sooth, it is " The Desired," or " Do.sir- 



1 In a treatise on this voyage, published at Lisbon by Johann de Barriera, 1563. 



