A. D. 1542. 89 



years and a half after. And in default of his not re-entering thereon, 

 then any perfon, having a rent-charge on the preniifes, may re-enter, us 

 in the before-named cafe. And in default of him who has the rent- 

 charge, then the magiftrates of the refpecftive cities and towns may re- 

 enter. And. laftly, if they fail to re-enter and rebuild in three years 

 time, then the firfl owners might re-enter and poflefs them, as in their 

 former ftate. 



The Englifh merchants of Southampton and London, we find (by 

 Hakluyt) traded to Brafil in the years 1540 and 1542 ; and fo it feems 

 to have at thofe times been permitted, and until the year 1580, that 

 Spain got polTeffion of Portugal. 



The Portuguefe governor of Malacca having made a full difcovery of 

 the coafl: of China in the years 1540 and 1542, they were in 1542 

 driven by florm to make an accidental difcovery of the illands of Japan, 

 where they were at firfl: well received. 



By virtue of an aft of the Irifh parliament, King Henry now affura- 

 ed the title of king, inftead of lord, of Ireland ; whereupon Sir James 

 Ware, in his hiflorical relations, obferves, ' that albeit the kings of 

 ' England had been abfolute monarchs of Ireland before, though only 



* with the title of lords of it ; yet becaufe, in the vulgar conceit, the 



* name of king is higher than that of lord, aflurediy the alluming of 

 ' this title hath not a little raifed the fovereignty of the king of Eng- 



* land in the minds of this people.' Yet he at the fame time acknow- 

 leges, ' that although Sir Anthony St. Leger, then lord-deputy, took 

 ' feveral good meafures for the improvement of Ireland, all this while 

 ' the provinces of Connaught and Ulfter, with a good part of Leinfter, 

 ' were not reduced to- fhire-ground. And although Munfler was an- 

 ' tiently divided into counties, yet the people were become fo degene- 

 ' rate, that no juftice of affize durft execute his commiilion amongfl 

 ' them.' In fuch a flate of aftairs tb.ere could be no room for any 

 thing like a fettled commerce in Ireland : For the bulk of the old Eng- 

 lifli race Vvcre fo far degenerated as to lofe the vSe of the Engliili 

 tongue, and becoming mere Irifli.they aflumed Irifh names. 



The negligence and decay of the (eafl) coafl fiflnng towns of Eng- 

 land at this time is apparent from an ad of parliament, which defcribes 

 a bad cuftom of our people on that coaft, who, inftead of fifhing tliem- 

 felves, went in their boats half-feas over, and bought frefli fifh of the 

 Flemings, Zelanders, Picards, and Normans. It was therefor now 

 enaded, that whofoever Ihould buy any frefli fifh in that manner (flur- 

 geon, porpoife, and feal excepted), to put to lale to any perfon within 

 this realm, fliould forfeit for every time ten pounds j but this not to 

 extend to fifli bought in Iceland, Scotland, Orkney, Shetland, Ireland, 

 or Newfoundland, (then called Newland.) [23 Hen. VIII, c. 2.] 



1543 — We have now the title of the firfl: law ever made in England 

 Vol. II. M 



