Chap. 1* Commodore It 
pence as this Voyage coft them, if they had not beeh per- 
feclly well fatisfied, that the Defign was rational in all re- 
jpebts, and practicable in its nature •, nor could they be at 
all difpleafed with the Report of this Voyage, which, tho* 
not very fuecefsful upon the Whole, yet was fo in Part-, and 
has given fuch new Light's, as render it fufficiently evident, 
that there wants nothing but Perfeverance to perfect all that 
was proposed'. How it fell out, that this Defign was aban- 
doned, notwithftanding thefe Probabilities ih its Favour, I 
cannot pretend to fay , but whoever reflects on the Advan- 
tages that are now derived from our Plantations, on the 
Difficulties that attended planting them, on the many Mif- 
carriages in planting them, and the plaufible Difcourfes 
made againfl planting them at all ; I fay, whoever reflects 
naturally upon this, will readily confefs, that no condufive 
Argument can be drawn from the Dutch IVeJi India Com- 
pany’s neglefting this Defign. It may, perhaps, be the 
Refult of a Timidity in the Directors, who are afraid to 
launch out Money on a Projedt that has once mifcarried ; 
for it is not in all Countries that Directors defpife the 
Opinion of their Conftituents, or of the World, and fol- 
low their own, and their own Intereft too fometimes, at 
other Peoples Expence. But I rather think the Eaji India 
Company have found Ways and Means to engage them to 
defift from what to them appeared fo dangerous to their 
Commerce. I mention this purely as a Conjecture, of 
Which I neither have, or pretend to have, the fmalleft 
Proofs. But when we confider, that, in fa£t, this is a Pro- 
ject for bringing the Commodities of the Indies into Europe 
by a new Route, we need not wonder, that every Eaji India 
Company is alarmed at it ; becaufe, for the very fame Reafons 
that the Venetians were beat out of the Eaji India Trade, 
by the Difcovery of a PafTage round the Cape of Good 
Hope , the prefent Companies muff lofe their Trade, if a 
better and more commodious PafTage can be found. It 
was the Senfe of this, that ftirred up all the Endeavours 
that have been made to difcover a PafTage by the North-eaft, 
and by the North-weft , and therefore, if it fhould once ap- 
pear that the PafTage already found by the South-weft will 
do as well, and that as great Returns may be made in fifteen, 
or at leaft in eighteen Months, as in three Years by the 
other, it muft certainly fall into Difufe. 
I know it may be objected, that the Hardffiips that have 
been lately fuftained in paffing Cape Horn , are fufficient to 
anfwer all I have faid , but I think, on the contrary, that 
I have much more Reafon to affert, that what I have faid 
ought to deftroy the Notion of thefe Hardffiips. I am 
Very far from denying the Matter of Fadt , but if People 
go at a wrong Seafon of the Year, embaraffed with Things 
that are not neceffary, and deftitute of thofe that are, they 
may well enough fall into fuch Diftreffes, and yet other 
People take the fame Route without feeling them. Let 
any Man read Frezier s Voyage, and I think he will be 
fatisfied, that it is very poffible to get into the South Seas 
without being deftroy ed by the Scurvy , for I don’t remem- 
ber, that he makes any great Complaints about the Matter. 
But, to put the Thing out of Difpute, let us but recoi- 
led!:, that Jaques le Maire paffed through the South Seas 
into the Eaji Indies , without fo much as lofing a Man , and 
we muft be convinced, that the fame is practicable now. 
I believe there are few Voyages, in which the Sailors met 
with more Hardffiips, than in that of which we are fpeak- 
ing : But from whence did they proceed ? Why, cur Author 
has very fairly and honeftly told us, from the private Views 
of the principal Officers, who were in an Hurry to get to 
the Eaji Indies -, for otherwife they might have met with 
Refreffiment enough : So that it was not the Profecution of 
the Difcovery that brought upon them fuch Hardfhips, 
but it was their own ill Condudt that defeated the Difco- 
very, and brought Difcredit on the Voyage. But if Mr. 
Roggewein* s Plan was to be executed in its full Extent, that 
is to fay, if the Ship employed for making this Difcovery 
iailed at the proper Seafon o! the Year, which appears to 
be about the Beginning or November, refrefhed at the Cape 
de Verde Hands, proceeded from them to the Eland of St. 
Latharme r, and fo double Cape Horn early in the Year, 
tney might reach Juan Fernandez in very tolerable Con- 
dition j much more, if proper Settlements were made with 
O G O E f E I N. 
a View fo this Difcovery ; ill which Cafe., I make no doubt 
but, in’twenty Years, all the Difficulties of this Navigation 
would be as much forgot, as thofe of the Cape of Good 
Hope are already. 
I muft confefs, that I have taken a great deal of Pains 
upon this Subjebl, from an earned: Defire, that this Scheme 
ot difcovering thefe Southern Indies , might appear in its 
true Light to the Brittfh Nation* and in order to fhew how 
poffible it is for us to reap the Benefit, not of the Difco- 
veries only, but of the Errors and Overfights of other Peo- 
ple. We are daily complaining, though I hope without 
Reafon, of the Decay of Trade : We are daily repining at 
the Reftribtions on our Trade, for which, without doubt, 
there is more Reafon , fince iris vifible, that the Commerce 
between our own Eland, and that of Barbadoes employs 
five times the Number of Ships that are in the Service of 
all our exclufive Companies put together : But Complaints 
are effeminate Things , we ought to behave like Men, and 
endeavour to find Remedies, if we really think ourfelves ag- 
grieved. If, as many People fay, molt Trades are oVer- 
ftocked ; or if, as moft People fay, the moft beneficial 
Branches of Trade are cramped by the before-mentioned 
Reftribtions , it is undoubtedly our Bufinefs to find out new 
Trades, if it be poffible , or, at leaft, it is worth our while 
to make fome Attempt, where, as in the prefent Cafe, 
there is a probable Profpebt of Succefs. For this Purpofe, 
there never was a Seafon more convenient than the prefent ; 
the War has deftroyed fome Branches of oul* Trade, and 
fufpends many others : Yet the War affords us fairer Op- 
portunities for undertaking any Expeditions like this, than 
we could have in a Time of profound Peace* 
_ V/e have now no Reafon to be complaifant to the Spa- 
niards, or to be afraid of the Refentment of our Neigh- 
bours, in cafe we fhould take Poffeffion of 'Juan Fernandez , 
and fettle it : In jffiort, we have nothing to fear, fcutall 
Things to hope, all Things to expebt, if we are not want- 
ing to ourfelves, and more inclined to complain of what we 
have not, than induftrious to acquire what we might have 
with very little Trouble. There may, indeed, beobjebled 
to all this, that the Difcoveries hitherto made confift but 
of fmall Elands, or of Continents not thoroughly examined : 
Yet this Objedlion proves nothing, if it be certain, that - 
fuch of thefe Elands as have been examined are well in- 
habited , and that the Continents not examined are fo fitu- 
ated, as to juftify the Obfervations made by our Author in 
this V oyage , becaufe, in this Cafe, the Objedfiori amounts 
to no more than this, that it is in vain to attempt to difco- 
ver Countries, where there is no Certainty of gaining great 
Advantages : And what is this but faying, in other Words, 
that we ought not to attempt Difcoveries at all ? 
If the World had been always of that Mind, both the 
Eaji and the Weji Indies had ftill remained undifcovered. 
What Prejudice would have refulted from thence to Eu- 
rope, may appear from the Confideration of the different 
Circumftances of Things fince the Difcovery of thofe 
Countries, which have undoubtedly occafioned not only 
a mighty Increafe of Shipping amongft the Nations pof- 
feffed of Plantations in thofe Parts, but alfo of domeftic 
Induftry •, and whatever increafes the Manufactures of a 
Country, increafes the Wealth of its Inhabitants ; or, take 
it in another Light, and it plainly increafes their Happi- 
nefs, by enabling them to purchale, by their Labour, the 
Neceffaries and the Conveniencies of Life, which other- 
wife (that is, without Trade) their Labour would not pro- 
cure. To be more effedtually convinced of this, we may 
compare the prefent State of thofe Countries, that adlually 
carry on a large Commerce in thofe Parts of the World, 
and the Countries which have no fuch Commerce. For 
Inftance, W hat is the Reafon, that Great Britain and Hol- 
land make fo much a greater Figure in Europe , and that 
their Subjects are fo much richer, than thofe of Sweden or 
Denmark ? Does it not plainly refult from the great Com- 
merce of the former, compared with that of the latter? Is 
not this the Opinion of the ableft Judges ? And is it not 
confeffed by the Swedes and Danes themfelves, who are 
now making great Efforts, in order to obtain a Share in 
the Commerce of the Eaji Indies , and have actually made 
fome Progrefs in their Defign ? Let us confider, therefore. 
that 
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