Chap. I. Sir Thomas 
tawny Complexion, like the reft of the Indians , and go' 
naked ; but their Women are of fomething a better Flue, 
and fhew more Modefty than the Men in the Ufe of Ap- 
parel. After this Relation of the Per fugue fe , having con- 
tented the Javans for the Victuals they had brought them, 
and received a Promife from them of good Entertainment 
whenever they came again, they took their Leaves of 
them, the Admiral making them aPrefent of Three great 
Pieces of Ordnance at parting. The next Day, viz. March 
16. they failed away for the Cape of Good Hope , and fpent 
all the reft of March , and the whole Month of April , in 
traverfing the vaft Ocean between Java and the Main of 
Africa , making many Obfervations as to the Appearance 
of the Stars, the Weather, the Winds and Tides, the 
Bearing and Pofition of Lands. 
23. May 11. one of the Company fpied Land, bearing 
North and North by Weft, and about Noon they law fome 
that bore Weft of them, which they believed to be the 
Cape of Good Hope , they being then about Forty or Fifty 
Leagues from it : But, by reafon they had a fcanty Wind, 
they flood off to the South-eaft till Midnight, and then 
the Wind coming fair, they hawl’d along Weftward. The 
12th and 13th Days t{iey were becalmed, and the Sky was 
thick and hazy •, but the 14th it cleared up, and they faw 
Land again, which proved to be Cape Falfo , which is 
Ihort of the Cape of Good Hope Forty or Fifty Leagues. 
This Cape Falfo is very eafy to be known ; for there lie 
right over it Three very high Hills, but a little Diftance 
from each other, the higheft of which is the middlemoft, 
and the Ground is much lower by the Sea Side ; befides, 
the Cape of Good Hope bears Weft and by South from this 
Cape Falfo. May 1 6. they difeovered the Cape of Good 
Hope , obferving the Head-land to be conftderably high, 
and, at the Wefterly Point, a little off the Main, Two 
Hammocks appearing, and Three others lying further off 
into the Sea, yet Low-land between them towards the Sea. 
This Cape of Good Hope is made in the P or fugue fe Sea 
Charts 2000 Leagues from Java , but, by their Reckon- 
ing, they found it to be 18 50 Leagues, which took them 
up juft Nine Weeks in their Run. 
24. June 8. by Break of Day they came within Seven 
or Eight Leagues of the Ifland of St. Helena, which they 
had juft a Glimpfe of ; but, having little or no Wind, 
they could not reach it that Day, but flood off and on 
all Night ; the next Day having a pretty good Wind, 
they flood in with the Shore, (the Boat being fe nt before to 
the Harbour) and came to an Anchor in Twelve Fathom 
Water, in a good Bay, under the North- weft Side of the 
Eland, Two or Three Cables Length from the Shore. 
This Ifland lies in the main Sea, as it were in the Midft 
between the main Land of Africa, and that of BraJil and 
the Coaft of Guiney. . It lies in 15 0 48 South Latitude, and 
between 5 and 600 Leagues from the Cape of Good Hope. 
Here they went afhore, and entered the Church, which 
had a fair Caufey leading to it •, a Frame with Two Bowls, 
and a Crofs of Free-ftone adjoining to it ; within, it was 
hung with painted Cloths, having an Altar, with the bleffed 
Virgin, and the Story of the Crucifixion, pidlured in a Ta- 
ble: The Valley where the Church ftands is extremely 
pleafant, fo full of fine Fruit-trees, and excellent Plants, 
that it appears like fome very fair and well cultivated Gar- 
den ; there are long Rows of Lemon, Orange, Citron, 
and Pomgranate, Date and Fig-trees, that prefent the 
Eye with Bloffoms, green Fruit and ripe all at once. The 
Trees are very nicely trimmed, and diftinguifhed bv feve- 
ral curious Walks, which have the Protection of their 
Boughs, and by them are made cool and fhady. There 
is, a fweet cryftal Spring rifing at a Diftance, that diffufes 
itfelf into many pretty Rivulets, all thro’ the Valley, water- 
ing the feveral Parts of it, and refrefhing every Plant and 
Tree : There is hardly any empty Space in this great Gar- 
den 1 for what Places Nature has left unoccupied. Art has 
P; : f r n C / J re 1 t0 m U P to fo ixie Advantage. The Hand 
itfelf affords great Store of Partridges and Pheafants, 
which are much larger and fairer than ours ; there are 
Turkeys too both black and white, with red Heads about 
as big as ours, and their Eggs much the fame, only quite 
white : There is alfo great Plenty of Cabritos, or wild 
Goats 1 they are as big as an Aft, have a Horfe’s Mane, 
Numb. 3. 
Cavendish. 29 
and a Beard that reaches down to the very Ground : They 
go fometimes together in a Flerd, that reaches a full 
Mile in Length. Llere are alfo vaft Flerds of wild Swine, 
that keep chiefly upon the Mountains, as the Cabritos do j 
they are fat, and fo very wild, that a Man can never come 
at them, except they be afleep, or rolling themielves upon 
their miry Beds. 
25. June 20. having taken in all Neceffaries here, they 
fet Sail for England , and hawled away North-weft and by 
Weft. 5 Tis to be obferved, that the Wind is commonly 
off the Shore at St. Helena. On Friday Augufk 23. thev 
failed Eafl and Eafl by South, for the Northermoft of the 
Azores. The 29th, at Four after Midnight, they fell in Sight 
of the Bland Flores and Corvo , lying in 39 0 30' North La- 
titude, and fo failed away North-eafl. September 3. they 
met with a Flemifh Veffel, that came from Lisbon , and told 
them the joyful News of the total Defeat of the Spanijh Ar- 
mada. September 9. havinghad the Winds Farewel in a inoft 
violent Storm, that carried away moll Part of their Sails, 
they arrived at the long defired Haven of Plymouth. As 
there never had been any Voyage of this Confequence at- 
tended with fuch an uninterrupted Series of Succefs, as 
appeared plainly from the Difference of Time in which it 
was performed, Magellan’ s Voyage having taken up Three 
Years and a Month, Sir Francis Drake upwards of Two 
Years and Ten Months, and this left than Two Years and 
Two Months, we need not wonder, that a young Gen- 
tleman like Mr. Candijh , whofe Soul v/as intirely poffeffed 
with an Appetite for Glory, ftiould adventure upon fome 
extraordinary Methods of dilplaying his good Fortune, 
Some Accounts, indeed, tell us, that he went fo far, as to 
bring his Ship into the Harbour of Plymouth under a Suit 
of Silken Sails, which, if true, I conceive may be thus ac- 
counted for. We are told by Mr. Candijh , in his own 
Relation, that, juft before his Arrival, he met with a vio- 
lent Storm, which tore all his Sails to Pieces ; in which 
Diftrefs, he might very probably make ufe of fome of 
thole he had taken in the South Seas, or in the Eafl Indies , 
but moft probably of the former, which being made of 
what is called Silk Grafs, having a very ftrong Glofs, and 
a moil beautiful Colour, might eafily deceive the Eyes cf 
the Vulgar, and paft upon them for Sails of Silk. This, 
however, is certain, that though he might be vain and 
expenfive in fuch Matters, yet all came fairly out of his 
own Pocket ; and thole who went abroad with him, from a 
Profpedl of railing their Fortunes, had not the leaft Rea- 
fon to complain, fince he came to a fair and full Diftribu- 
tion of the Value of the Prizes, which gained him univerfal 
Credit and Efteem ; of which we fhall quickly afford the 
Reader a remarkable and very convincing Inftance. 
26. To fhew, however, his Duty and Diligence, as 
well as to difeharge refpedtfully the Obligations he was un- 
der to his Patron, he wrote, the very fame Day that he 
arrived at Plymouth , to the Lord Hunfdon , then Lord 
Chamberlain, Queen Elizabeth's near Relation, and great 
Favourite ; which Letter, equally remarkable both for Style 
and Matter, the Reader will probably be well pleafed to 
fee, efpecially as it is very concife, and yet contains fome 
Particulars not to be found elfewhere. 
To the Right Honourable the Lord Hunfdon, &c. 
Right Honourable , 
<e A S your Favour heretofore hath been moft greatly 
“ JljL extended toward me, fo I humbly defire a Ccn- 
“ tinuance thereof ; and though there be no means in me 
<c to defervethe fame, yet the uttermoft of my Services fhall 
<c not be wanting, whenfoever it fhall pleafe your Honour 
£,t to dilpofe thereof. I am humbly to defire your Ho- 
“ nour to make known unto her Majefty the Defire I 
“ have had to do her Majefty Service in the Performance 
4{ of this Voyage ; and, as it hath pleafed God to give her 
the Victory over Part of her Enemies, lb I truft, ere 
“ long, to fee her overthrow them all : For the Places of their 
“ Wealth, whereby they have maintained and made their 
<c Wars, are now perfectly difeovered ; and if it pleafe 
“ her Majefty, with a very fmall Power, fhe may take 
the Spoil of them all. It hath pleafed the Almighty to 
I “ fuffer 
