p The V O Y 
Difcovery. Indeed feme Spanifh Writers have mentioned 
the fame Thing, and all agree, that, by this new Paffage, 
a Ship might come much fooner into the South Seas, than 
by that of Magellan . They place it, as well as he, about 
the Latitude of 54 0 ; and if the Reader is defirous of know- 
ing the true Reafon, why Admiral Spilhergen negle&ed this 
new Paffage, which might have been attended with fome 
Advantages, I believe it will not be difficult to affign it. 
The exclufive Privilege which the Dutch Eaft India Com- 
pany had lb lately obtained, and of which they were fo 
jealous, exprefly mentioned the Streight of Magellan , and 
the Paffage that W ay to the Eaji Indies ; and therefore, if 
the Admiral had made a Difcovery of another Streight, a 
Doubt might have arifen, whether this Paffage fell within 
the Defcription of their Charter ; and therefore his Mailers 
might very poffibly have thought the whole Merit of his 
Voyage cancelled by his making fuch a Difcovery public. 
I mull, for my own Part, confefs, that I very much doubt 
whether we ffiould have heard a Word of it, if le Mdire\ 
Voyage had not been foon after publifhed, -which made the 
concealing of it a Point of little Importance. To Ihew, 
however, that both he and the Spanifh Writers were per- 
fectly in the right as to Matter of FaCt ; and that the 
new Paffage of St. Barbara , fo much boalled of by the 
French , and faid to be dilcovered by them in the Year 1713. 
is this very Paffage •, I fhall cite a few Lines from Mr. 
Frezier’s Voyage into the South Sea, in which we have the 
whole Story at large. I mult firft obferve, that the St. 
Barbara was only a Tartan, commanded by one Marcanil , 
and went from France on a trading Voyage into the South 
Seas ; and now let our Author fpeak for himfelf. “ On 
44 April 15. 1713. about Six in the Morning, fays he , they 
44 failed from Elizabeth Bay, fleering South-weft and South- 
44 well by South, they took the common Chanel for that 
u of the River Majfacre , and were Handing to South-well 
44 on an Ifland, which they took for the Dauphins : Alfifted 
44 by the Currents, which favoured them, and a good Gale 
44 at North-eaH, they ran along that Ifland ; and, an Hour 
44 after they hadpaffedit, they found themfelves in a large 
44 Chanel, where, on the South Side, they faw no other 
44 Land, but a Number of fmall Illands among Breakers. 
44 Then perceiving they had miffed their Way, they fought 
44 for Anchorage, to gain Time to fend the Boat to dif- 
££ cover where they were ; they found a little Bay, where 
44 they anchored in Fourteen Fathom Water ; the Bottom 
44 grey Sand, and white Gravel. The next Day, being 
44 May 26. they made ready at Seven in the Morning, 
44 and after making fome Trips to get out of the Bay, 
££ which is open to the Eaft South-eall, they Hood South 
44 South and by Weft, and South South-weft, and at 
££ Noon were got in from between the Lands. They 
46 took an Obfervation with very fair Weather, and found 
46 54 0 34 ; Latitude. This Obfervation was confirmed by 
4£ that they took the next Day in Sight of a fmall Ifland, 
44 which bore Eaft from them : According to the Globe, 
44 they found 54 0 29b That little Ifland was to the 
44 Southward of a great one, the South-eall Point 
44 whereof was called Black Cape , becaufe it is of that Co- 
44 lour. The little Ifland here ipoken of, is a Rock fhaped 
44 like a Tower of an extraordinary Height ; clofe by 
44 which there is a fmaller, much of the fame Shape ; by 
44 which it appears, that it would be impoflible to mifs 
44 that Chanel, if it were fought after by its Latitude, upon 
44 fuch Angular Land-marks. The Ship’s Crew fay, that 
44 there is a good Bottom, and that great Ships may pafs 
£C there without any Danger, the fame being about Two 
Leagues broad. This Streight is perhaps the fame as 
44 that of Jelouchie , which Monfieur de Life has laid 
“ down in his laft Map of Chili : But as the Englijh Me- 
44 moirs, which he has been pleafed to ftiew me, feem to 
46 place it South of Cape Fr Quart, it may be fuppofed, 
44 that they, are Two different S freights.. ' Perhaps alfo it 
A G E S of Book I. 
44 is the fame through which the Squadron of Monfieur 
44 de Gennes paffed out in the Year 1696.” ' The Latitude 
in which both thefe Paffages are faid to lie, ftiew the hi very 
plainly to be the fame, and demonflrate, to every fenfible 
Reader, the Danger of granting too extenfive Powers to 
exclufive Companies. One thing more I ftiall remark on 
the Hiftory of this Expedition, and then proceed. The 
Defeat of the Spanifh Armada in the IFe/t Indies , by this 
Squadron of Dutch Adventurers, is the cleareft Proof of 
the great Superiority the free Spirit of a Republic will 
always have over the moll refined Politics of an arbitrary 
Court. No Prince knew better than the King of Spain, 
the Confequence of his American Plantations, or had the 
Support of them more at Heart than he 1 And yet we fee 
in how fhort a time the Subjects of the State of Holland, 
who, but very lately, were in a manner Slaves to the 
Crown of Spain, were able, on their own private Accounts* 
and without any other View than the Benefits that were to 
flow from the Courage and ConduCt of their Commanders, 
to fit out Squadrons capable of proceeding, in an hoftile 
Manner, to the W pi Indies , and of giving Battle to the 
greatefl Strength, that, upon fair Notice of their Arrival in 
thofe Seas, the Officers of the Crown of Spain could draw 
together. This, when attentively confidered, will appear 
to be a moil furprffmg thing ; inafmuch as that it makes 
it evident, there is nothing requifite to raife a maritime 
Power in any Country but Freedom, a wife and honefl 
Adminiftration of Government, and the People’s having 
a moral Certainty, that they fhall enjoy undiflurbed what 
by their Labours they acquire. This encourages them 
to exert their utmofl Force in fuch Armaments, to bear 
Difappointments with Patience, to repair them with Di- 
ligence, and to perfevere, with unffiaken Steadinefs, in 
the Profecution of what appears to be their own Intereff, 
at the fame time that it is acknowledged by the State to be 
the public Intereft alfo. We may likewife learn from 
hence, how very foon a Maritime Power is raffed, and 
how fuddenly naval Force declines, when the Spirit, ne- 
ceffary to fupport it, begins once to decay. At the End 
of the Sixteenth Century, the Dutch had fcarce learned the 
Way to the Weft Indies , and were obliged to have re- 
courfe to their Englifh Neighbours for Pilots fkilful enough 
to navigate their Ships ; but, in the Space of Twenty 
Years, we fee the fame People fending thither powerful 
Squadrons, aiming not at Plunder, but at Conquefl, de- 
fying and defeating that Maritime Power which had ac- 
quired fuch mighty Reputation by the Difcovery, and 
fuch a prodigious Strength by the Poffeffion, of both 
Indies. But Reputation will vaniffi, and Power inuft 
neceffarily decline, when Men grow wanton with Wealth, 
and employ the Gifts of Providence for other Purpofes 
than they were defigned. As the Spaniards and Portuguefe 
loft their Virtue, and flackened their Induftry, converting 
the Rewards of it to the Maintenance of an empty Mag- 
nificence, and effeminate Luxury, priding themfelves in 
being abfolute Mailers of other Nations ; inftead of being 
active and free, they funk alike in Credit and Dominion ; 
that Poverty and Diftrefs, for which they condemned the 
Dutch , proving the immediate Caufes of their own De- 
fer uftion, by the means of thofe whom they fo much 
defpifed. Thefe are Reflections which naturally arife from 
the reading fuch Relations, and happy are the People 
who make fuch Reflections in time. Luxury and Cor- 
ruption are equally fatal to all ; and, whenever we fee 
them prevail, efpecially in a Nation which owes its Safety, 
Profperity, and Grandeur, to Maritime Power, we may, 
without pretending to the Gift of Prophecy, venture to 
foretel, that fuch a Nation is not far from being undone. 
But it is time to quit Reflections, however juft, to purfue 
the Thread of our Hiftory, which leads us to another 
SubjeCt. 
SECTION 
