CANNIBALISM. 121 



Dawbeney, a merchant, who was one of the adventurers on the Minion. Laying in a harbour 

 of Newfoundland, their provisions began to get very scarce, and "they found small relief e, 

 more than that they had from the nest of an osprey, that brought hourely to her yong great 

 plentie of divers sorts of fishes. But such was the famine that increased amongst them 

 from day to day, that they were forced to seek to relieve themselves off raw herbes and rootes 

 that they sought on the main; but the famine increasing, and the reliefe of herbes being 

 to little purpose to satisfie their insatiable hunger, in the fieldes and deserts here and there, 

 the fellow killed his mate while he stooped to take up a roote for his reliefe, and cutting 

 out pieces of his bodie whom he had murthered, broyled the same on the coles and greedily 

 devoured them. 



" By this meane the company decreased, and the officers knew not what had become of 

 them ; and it fortuned that one of the company, driven with hunger to seeke abroade for 

 reliefe, found out in the fieldes the savour of broyled flesh, and fell out with one for that he 

 would suffer him and his fellowes to sterve, enjoying plentie as he thought ; and this matter 

 growing to cruell speaches, he that had the broyled meate burst out into these wordes : 

 f If thou wouldest needes know, the broyled meat I had was a piece of such a man's buttocke/ 

 The report of this brought to the ship, the captaine found what had become of those that 

 were missing, and was perswaded that some of them were neither devoured with wilde beastes 

 nor yet destroyed with savages; and hereupon he stood up and made a notable oration, 

 containing howe much these dealings offended the Almightie, and vouched the Scriptures 

 from first to last what God had, in cases of distresse, done for them that called upon Him, 

 and told them that the power of the Almightie was then no lesse than in al former time 

 it had bene. And added, that if it had not pleased God to have holpen them in that 

 distresse, that it had been better to have perished in body, and to have lived everlastingly, 

 than to have relieved for a poore time their mortal bodyes, and to be condemned everlastingly 

 both body and soule to the unquenchable fire of hell. And thus having ended to that effect, 

 he began to exhort to repentance, and besought all the company to pray, that it might 

 please God to look upon their present miserable state, and for His owne mercie to relieve 

 the same/' The famine increasing, it was agreed that they should cast lots who should 

 be killed, but fortunately, that very night a French vessel arrived in that port, and the 

 chronicler coolly and amusingly adds, " such was the policie of the English that they became 

 masters of the same, and changing ships and vittailing them they set sayle to come into 

 England. " It is but just to the king to add that he afterwards recompensed the 

 Frenchmen. 



The return of Sebastian Cabot to England, after he had done good service to Spain in 

 -various maritime enterprises, was very much the cause of awakening the merchants of London 

 to renewed efforts for discovery. This great navigator was introduced by the Duke of 

 Somerset to Edward VI., soon after his succession to the throne, and the young king was so 

 charmed by his conversation and intelligence that he created him, by patent, Pilot Major, and 

 settled on him the large annual pension for those days of 166 13s. 4d., " in consideration 

 of the good and acceptable services done and to be done/* He was also constituted 

 " Governour of the mysterie and companie of the marohant adventurers for the discoverie of 

 regions, dominions, islands and places unknowen." By his suggestion a voyage was instituted 

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