330 THE DISCOVERY OF AUSTRALIA 



attention, with very high praise. "The mountains and 

 lower lands were pleasantly mixed with wood-land and 

 savannahs. The trees appeared very green and flourishing ; 

 and the savannahs seemed to be very smooth and even ; 

 no meadow in England appears more green in the Spring 

 than these. ... It is also very well inhabited with strong 

 well-limbed negroes, whom we found very daring and 

 bold at several places. ... It is very probable the island 

 may afford as many rich commodities as any in the world ; 

 and the natives may be easily brought to commerce." 

 Dampier had been right. Wealth existed " directly under 

 the sun." Here was the English Spice-island. 1 



The need to Dampier had meant to sail round New Holland, and, 

 according to this plan, should now have sought to round 

 the Eastern end of New Guinea, with a view to sailing 

 down the unknown Eastern coast of New Holland, and 

 then of coming round its South coast in the Summer. 

 Another plan had been to seek, somewhere to the South 

 of New Guinea, the Eastern entrance of the Channel 

 which, he believed, reached its Western entrance between 

 Rosemary Island and Roebuck Bay. But these plans 

 had become impossible. " The many difficulties I at 

 this time met with, the want of convenience to clean 

 my ship, the fewness of my men, their desire to hasten 

 home, and the danger of continuing in these circumstances 

 in seas where the shoals and coasts were utterly unknown, 

 and must be searched out with much caution and length 

 of time ; hindered me from prosecuting any further my 

 intended search." He sailed back along the North coast 

 of New Guinea to Timor. 



Shipwreck at He had intended to make for the coast of New Holland 



Ascension. m about 20, and to seek for the " Trial Rocks," for he 



believed that the discovery of them would be of great 



use to merchants trading to these parts. But he fell 



ill ; his men were " very negligent " when he was not on 



deck ; he could not trust them to navigate the ship ; 



and he thought it wisest to make for Batavia. Here 



he was allowed to buy provisions, and an attempt was 



1 See Dampier's map, p. 331. 



