7IO A, D. 1487. 



by which it has ever fince been called. [Barros, Dec, i, L. iii, c. 4.— 

 Purchas, B. ii,/. 7.] 



1488 — While the Portuguefe were endeavouring to get to India by 

 an eaflern route, Chriflopher Colon (or Columbus) a Genoefe navigator, 

 whofe nautical knowlege was much enlarged by refiding amone the 

 Portuguefe, was induced by Ptolemy's geography, wherein the eaftern 

 parts of Afia are extended fo far into the oppofite hemifphere as to leave 

 only about one third of the circumference of the globe between them 

 and the weft parts of Europe, by the difcoveries of Marco Polo, and 

 accounts of land accidentally feen by feveral navigators in the Weflem 

 ocean, to believe that the eafieft accefs to India, mufi; be by failing to 

 the weflward *. Strongly imprefled with this idea, he applied for the 

 means of accompliftiing his difcovery to the king of Portugal, who, he 

 might well fuppofe, would gladly encourage a project for attaining his 

 grand objed, the trade of India, by a fhorter route than that which had 

 fo long baffled all the endeavours of his predeceflbrs. But the Portu- 

 guefe court very vmgeneroufly and unfairly kept him in fufpenfe till the 

 return of a carvel, which they fecretly fent out to make the difcovery 

 fuggefted by him ; and then, as their own vefFel had found no land, they 

 refufed to pay any attention to his fcheme. It is to the credit of Eng- 

 land, that Colon next turned his thoughts to that country, to which he 

 fent his brother Bartholomew, while he himfelf made application at the 

 court of Ferdinand and Ifabella, the fovercigns of Spain. In his paflage 

 to England Bartholomew was taken by pirates, plundered of his all, 

 and made a flave. Having at lafl efcaped from them, he arrived in 

 England, but in no condition to obtain accefs to the royal prefence. 

 Thus circumftanced he applied himfelf to drawing fea charts for a live- 

 lihood, and, as foon as he got himfelf decently clothed, he prefented a 

 map of the world to the king, and laid before him his brother's fcheme. 

 King Henry was fo far pleafed with the propofal, that he defned him to 

 bring his brother to England. But fo much time had been loft, that 

 when Bartholomew got to Paris in his way to Spain, he was informed 

 that his brother had failed upon his voyage, and was returned, having 

 accompliftied the difcovery, not of India or the fpice iflands, but of the 

 iflands of the Weft-Indies, \_HiJl. de Don Cbrijl. Colon por fu hijo Fer- 

 nando, cc. 6-9, II, 60.] 



The capture of Bartholomew Colon by pirates thus turned out, under 

 the direction of Providence, the means of preferving the Engliih from 

 lofing their induftry and commercial fpirit in the mines of Mexico and 

 Peru. 



• Tlic iifiial belief, tl.at Colon fct out with a geoginpliy, received from Plolcmy nnd oilier nil- 



view to difcovcr a tunv corilinn:!, in not warranted tient iiutliors, fcarecly left lliffielejit Ipacc iur fiicli 



hy any good iiiilorian, and is in dircft oppofition a continent as America in tlie lea between tlie tail 



to the Hlftciry of his life by his own fon, whole pait of Afia and the wcfl parts of Europe and 



authority muli certainly be preferred. His ideas of Africu. 



