A. D. 1360. 563 



of his difcoveries to King Edward *. [Hak/ujt's Voiages, V. h pp. 121, 

 122.] 



It was about the fume time, if we may depend upon the authenticity 

 of Zeno's voyage, with Dodor Forfter's expofition of the geography of 

 it, that fome filhermen belonging to the Orkney iflands were driven by 

 ftrefs of weather upon an ifland, iituated in the Weftern ocean, called 

 Eftotiland, which was apparently the country called Winland by the 

 Norwegian difcoverers. (See above, p. 279). The people of Eftotiland 

 were ingenious and fenfible ; they raifed corn ; their drink was ale ; they 

 pollefled the arts and handicrafts known in Europe f ; they had fhips, 

 with which they traded to Greenland and to the continent afterwards 

 called America; and they retained the intrepidity of their Norwegian 

 anceftors in croffing the tracklefs ocean, though ignorant of the com- 

 pafs ; but they immediately underftood the prodigious advantage the 

 Orkney-men enjoyed in poflefling that wonderful guide. From Green- 

 land they imported furs, brimftone, and pitch, and from the continent, 

 apparently, gold. The king of Eftotiland, confidering the Orkney-men 

 as fuperior in nautical fcience to his own fubjeds, gave them the charge 

 of a fleet of twelve vefTels for a voyage to the continent. Thofe veffels 

 were driven by a dreadful ftorm upon a part of the coaft occupied by 

 cannibals, who devoured the moft of the feamen : but the Orkney- men 

 faved themfelves from the fame fate by teaching the favages to catch 

 fifh with nets. The only one of them who returned to Orkney related, 

 that he lived thirteen years on the continent, traveling through a great 

 number of tribes, one of whom, Iituated in a mild climate to the fouth- 

 weft, was more civilized than any of the others whom he had known, 

 having gold and filver ; cities and temples ; that he afterwards got back 

 to Eftotiland, whence he made many voyages to the continent, and having 

 acquired wealth, had fitted out a veffel to return to his native country \. 



* Leland fays, that Nicolas wrote Canons of to Zeno, or the recorder of his voyage, or indeed 



tables, an elTay on the nature of the zodiak, and to any perfon in Italy, before books were render- 



another on the houfes ot the planets, which were ed common by printing. That the people of Ork- 



extant HI his own time. [_De fcriptoribus,p. ^^•].'\ iiey, a Norwegian colony, (hould be ignorant of 



But he has not a word of his voyages ; and, I be- the language of thofe of Eftotiland, apparently a 



lieve, they may be confidered as rather doubtful. colony from the fame parent ilock, may feem a 



-}• The king of Eftotiland had a library, where- circumftance unfavourable to the credit of the 



In there were fome Latin books, not underftood narrative. But, as all languages are continually 



ty him, which were probably carried thither by changing, we may well admit, that a feparation of 



Eric billiop of Greenland, who went to convert about five centuries fmce the fcttlement of Iceland 



the people of Winland to Chriftianity in the year would produce a difference in two dialefts of the 



1121, and feems to have died there. fame language fufficient to prevent them from be- 



J Zeno's voyage was confidered as a very doubt- ing wutualiy intelligible. Very little of the lan- 



ful ilory, or rather a mere fable, till Dodlor For- guage, fpoken in England five hundred years ago, 



fter's able rind ingenious expofition removed the can be underftood in the prefent day by thofe 



Tiiill, which overwhelmed it, and poured upon it a who have not ftudied it ; Chaucer's language is 



ilream of light, little inferior to hiftoric demon- difficult to ordinary readers; and many words even 



llration. It is fupported by, and it in return il- in Shakfpeare are obfcure, if not unknown, to 



luftrates, the hiftory of the difcovery of Winland the mpft zealous and diligent of his coaimcnta- 



about the year looo, an event probably notknovim ton* 



4. B 2 



