42 .7 'he ^(aturall and Morall 



many others which affirm? that our Peru is Ophir t 

 deriving one name from another, who beleeve^that 

 when as the booke ofParalipewenon was written, they 

 . called it Peru , grounding it vpon that which the holy 

 fcripture faith , that they brought from Ophir pure 

 gold , precious (tones, and wood which was rare and 

 goodly: which things abound in Peru y i$ they (ay . But 

 in my opinion, it is farre from the truth, that Pert* 

 fhould be ophir fo famous in the Bible . For although 

 in this Pcru y there be good ftore of gold , yet is there 

 notfuchaboundance, as it may be equalled with the 

 fame of the riches that was in auncient time at the 

 * Re***** Eaft fogies I ^ nc fc not that in Peru there are fuch pre- 

 *'** cious ftoncs, or fuch cxquifite woods, as the like have 

 not bend feene at Itruftkm. For although there be ex- 

 quifite Emeralds , and fome hard trees of Aromaticall 

 Wood , yet do I not finde any thing of fo great com 

 mendation as the fcripture giueth vnto Ophir . More 

 over, it feemes not likely that Solomon would leave the 

 Eaft Indies (mod rich and plentiful!,) to fend his fleetes 

 to this farther land : whether if they had come fb of 

 ten (as it is written,) we had furely found more figncs 

 andteftimonies thereof. Moreover, thefr>#0/0/>of 

 the name of Ophir^mA the change or reduction tfiere- 

 of to Peru, feemestomeoffmallconfideration, being 

 moft certaine that the name of Peru is not veiy aun 

 cient, nor common to all that countrie . It hath beenc 

 vfuall in the difcoverie of the new world 5 to give names 

 to lands and portesof the fea , according to the occa- 

 fionsprefented at their ariuall: and I beleeve that the 

 name of P era , hath bcnefo found out, and put in pra- 

 <5life : for we find heere that the name hath bcne given 

 to all the countrie of Pern , byreafon of a river focal- 

 led 



