122 : The Atlantic 



At the end of the fourteenth century they had extended their opera- 

 tions as far as the coast of Newfoundland and a little later than this 

 they were whaling in the waters between Greenland and Labrador. 



The Iceland fisheries had already been well developed and each 

 year attracted vessels from European coasts. English ships and Eng- 

 lish merchants, particularly those from the port of Bristol, served as 

 middlemen in trade that grew up between Portugal and Iceland. Ice- 

 landic records refer to these English vessels and also note that they 

 were seen passing beyond Iceland in the direction of Greenland. 

 Thus, by the middle of the fifteenth century the whaling vessels were 

 simply one element in a growing number of North Atlantic voyages 

 and the Norse voyages had already resulted in a number of products 

 from American waters annually entering European trade. 



It is sometimes stated and often assumed that there were long 

 periods after the Norse discoveries during which there was no inter- 

 est in the New World and no voyages were made. Now it is 

 true that there were periods, both before and after Columbus, when 

 there were no recorded crossings but this may well be because there 

 were no quarrels or disasters or because the Church and the princes 

 were otherwise occupied. It seems reasonable at least to assume that 

 once the trading, the fishing, the whaling were established, those 

 sturdy and unassuming fellows, the trader, the fisherman and the 

 whaler, went steadily about their business and kept out of the news. 



Nor were larger plans by more important people lacking. Several 

 such names and plans began before Columbus and carried through 

 afterward. Thus a Portuguese named Joao (John) Vaz Corte-Real 

 was working with the Danish government and it is believed that he 

 traveled to the Grand Banks on the American coast in 1 472-1 473. It 

 was the sons of this man who later carried out extensive expeditions 

 to the American coast. 



England also was pursuing an interest in the northern route. The 

 instigator in this case was Giovanni Caboto, a naturalized citizen of 

 Venice who moved to England in 1485 for the express purpose of 

 conducting voyages across the Atlantic to the northwest. He peti- 

 tioned the British government for patents and privileges in any lands 

 that he might discover during his voyages. This was some six years 

 before Columbus sailed on even his first voyage. It was natural that 

 Cabot should associate himself with the port of Bristol and also natu- 

 ral that it took some years for Cabot to establish himself in England 

 and to gain the support and privileges he required. In 1496, letters 

 patent were issued to him authorizing him to sail and to claim for 



