390 Arctic and Antarctic Exploration [partii 
island after the great Queen, Cape Elizabeth, the Cape 
Horn of the Dutch. Twenty years afterwards another 
discovery-causing gale produced results. An expedition 
of four vessels and a small pinnace left Holland in 
June, 1598, under the command of Jacob Mahu, whose 
death placed it under Simon de Cordes. The object was 
to visit the coasts of Chile and Peru for plunder, and then 
cross the Pacific. After leaving the Strait of Magellan all 
the ships were scattered. The flag-ship Rope reached 
Japan in April, 1600, where the pilot, an Englishman 
named William Adams, was detained until his death, 
though he was able to send home very interesting letters. 
The little pinnace of 18 tons named Blijde Boodschap 
(Good News) was driven down to 64 0 S., where her Captain, 
Dirk Gerritsz, saw "high land with mountains covered 
with snow, like the land of Norway 1 /' M. Gerlache has 
named the islands which he discovered, and which, with 
Graham Land form the Gerlache channel — "Dirk Gerritsz 
Archipelago/' for his latitude shows that this was possibly 
the land he sighted. Returning northwards in search of 
his consorts, Dirk Gerritsz put into Valparaiso, where his 
ship was taken by the Spaniards and he was wounded. He 
was sent a prisoner to Lima, but news of his proceedings 
reached Holland, though not of his fate. 
On June 14th, 1615, an expedition left Holland ap- 
parently with the object of finding a way to the Pacific 
to the south of Magellan's Strait. Willem Cornelisz 
Schouten of Hoorn commanded the Eendracht of 220 tons, 
with Jacob le Maire, a son of the owner, as principal 
merchant. In January, 1616, Schouten discovered the 
strait between Tierra del Fuego and an island which he 
named Staaten Island. The strait was named after Le 
Maire. He thought the island was part of the Antarctic 
Continent. On the 29th the most southern land was 
sighted— the Cape Elizabeth of Drake — and named Cape 
Horn. When the Spanish Government heard of these 
proceedings they fitted out an expedition to verify the 
Dutch discoveries. It consisted of two caravels com- 
manded by two brothers named Nodal. They carried 
out their instructions with ability and success from 
September, 1618 to July, 1620, passing through the Strait 
1 Burney n, 198. 
