602 The Hisro R T of the Book I. 
« We then held a Council of War, in order to confider 
« what Courfe we fhould take. Don Padilla , the Lay- 
Jefuit, my Sub-Pilot, and myfelf, were of Opinion, that 
tc the w ifeft thing we could do was to fleer for the Eland 
66 of Panloque , the largeft of thefe Hies, and which was 
sc diftant from that we had quitted about fifty Leagues. It 
«<• was about nine o’Clock in the Morning of the i ith, that 
« we difcovered that Ifland ; at Noon we were in the La- 
44 titucle of 7 0 14 North, the Land being about a League 
84 off. At Four in the Afternoon came off four Boats, 
44 which kept at the Diftance of about half a Cable’s Length, 
*« an d were foon after followed by two other Boats ; at laft 
44 fome of the People jumped over-board into the Sea, and 
« fwam on Board of us, with Intent, as it appeared, to 
44 Heal any thing they could lay their Hands on. One of 
44 them laid hold of an Iron Chain, and pulled at it,, in 
84 hopes of breaking it •, another catched hold of a Ham- 
« mock that was hung out to dry, and a third was endea- 
44 vouring to get in at a Port- hole. Don Padilla confider- 
44 ing the Behaviour of thefe People, thought proper to 
84 put the Soldiers under Arms, there being at leaft four- 
44 fcore Men in thefe fix Boats, and at the fame time made 
* 4 a Sign to the Flanders to keep at a Diftance. 
44 Upon this they began to row towards the Shore; but 
44 at their going off, let fly a Shower of Arrows, four of 
44 which fell on Board our Ship. Don Padilla then thought 
64 fit to order a general Difcharge of our Fire-Arms ; upon 
44 which the Indians jumped over-board, leaving their Vef- 
44 fels, and fwimming towards the Shore at a prodigious 
44 Rate ; but when they found that we gave over firing, 
44 they returned to their Boats, reimbarqued, and made for 
44 the Land as faft as they were able. Thefe Indians were 
44 all of them naked, and fome had painted their Bodies 
44 of different Colours. Their Skin is generally of an 
44 Olive Colour ; but fome were darker fidnned than 
44 others ; they had nothing with them that we faw, but 
44 a few Cocoas. On the 12th we had little or no Wind, 
44 fo that it was as much as We could do to continue in our 
44 Station, which we did all that Day without approaching 
44 near the Land. About four in the Afternoon there came 
44 off two Boats, who made Signs, and fpoke to us ; but, 
44 as we had no Interpreter, we were not able to learn what 
44 they faid. About Nine at Night the Wind blew South- 
44 South-Eaft, and the Currents fetting ftrongly to the 
44 North, carried us away at a great Rate. I then thought 
44 the moft prudent thing I could do was to fail between 
44 two of thefe Hands, the Chanel being very open and 
46 fair, and about a League over. On the 13th, being to 
44 the Weft of thefe- two Elands, we held a Council, in 
44 order to confider what Meafures we were to take, and 
44 it was very foon refolved to bear away for Sonforol , in 
44 order to learn fome News of our Miflionaries, and of 
44 our Shallop. On the 1 Bth, I found myfelf abreaft of 
44 that Ifland. We lay there the whole Day without fo 
44 much as feeing a Boat, though we were within Cannon- 
44 fltot of the Shore. We coafted round the Weft Side of 
44 the Ifland till the 20th, when a high Guft of Wind 
45 from the South-Eaft drove us out to Sea. 
44 On the 21ft we again drew near the Coaft, and by 
44 Two in the Afternoon were within three Quarters of a 
« League of the Shore, without perceiving any Boat. In 
44 the Evening we were driven to Sea again by an Eaft- 
44 North-Eaft Wind, upon which we held another Coun- 
« cil, in which, after mature Deliberation on the Circum- 
44 fiances we were in, witnout a Shallop, in lome want of 
« Water, without knowing where to get any, it was re- 
.** folved to return to Manila , which we did with fome 
85 Difficulty, being forced to make the Tour of Mindanao , 
44 carrying nothing back but the melancholy News of the 
44 Lofs of the two worthy Fathers we carried out.” 
It appears clearly from this Relation, that it was penned 
by the Captain of the Veffel, though he has not thought fit 
to inform us of his Name. Better Evidence than this^ of 
there being fuch an Archipelago cannot be defired, tho at 
the fame time it muft be confeffed, that this Account gives 
us a very different Notion of thofe People from that fug- 
gefted by the former Narratives. In 171 1 another Attempt 
was made of this kind, which ended as unluckily, fome 
ef the Jefuits intended for the Million, dying at Sea, and 
others penfiling in thefe Elands, as very probably thofe did 
that are mentioned in the foregoing Voyages. 
25. It has been generally believed, that thefe' Elands of 
Palaos are near the Philippines , and the fame with thofe which 
were difcovered by a Spanijh Captain in the Year 168b, 
and who in Honour of Charles the Second of Spain , called 
them the Caroline Elands ; but I think thefe lay more to 
the South. On the 19th, and on the 21ft of June 1720, 
there arrived in the Ifland of Guam the largeft of the Archi- 
pelago called the Marianne Elands, two Boats full of In - 
dians, who faid they embarqued from an Ifland called 
Sarefslop, in order to go to another at a fmall Diftance from 
it called Uly , and were driven thither by a Storm. A 
Veffel was fitted out to carry them home, and from the 
Accounts given by thofe who were on Board that Veffel, 
it very clearly appeared, that the laft named Ifland was one 
of thofe called the Caroline Elands, lying in the Latitude of 
6° North. It is faid, that thefe Elands belong to a large 
Archipelago divided like the Maldives into five Provinces, 
and inhabited by various Nations of very different Colours: 
Some Negroes, fuppofed to be of the fame Race with the 
Inhabitants of New Guinea , others tawny, like the Indians 
in the Philippines , and a third fort perfectly white, fup- 
pofed to be the Defcendants of certain Spaniards , who in 
the Year 1566 were fet on Shore by their Commanders 
for Mutiny, in a Voyage from New Spain to the Philip- 
pines. , 
While thefe People were on Shore at Guam , they faw 
fome Silver Plate, and after confidering it attentively, de- 
clared that they had a great deal of that Metal in their 
Elands, which gave Occafion for the fitting out fome Ships 
from Guam , for the Difcovery of thofe Elands, in the 
Year 1722 ; but what the Fate of that Expedition was, is 
not come to our Knowledge. It is certain, that a very 
great Difcovery might be made on this Side, becaufe, from 
what is already known, it is very clear, that there is a 
continued Chain of Elands in the Longitude of about 160 0 * 
from the Line, or rather from the Continent of New Gui- 
nea, which lies in the Latitude of 8° S. to the Iflands, that 
make a Part of the Archiepelago of Japan , in the Lati- 
tude of 3 2 0 N. and as it is certain, that the Inhabitants of 
the laft mentioned Archiepelago acknowledge they receiv- 
ed great Quantities of Silver from an Ifland which lies to 
the Eaft of them, it is not at all improbable, that many- 
rich Metals might be found in fome of the many Iflands 
which form the Chain before mentioned. 
But this, however, is not the Difcovery that I mean, 
and therefore I fhall explain myfelf a little farther. If a 
.Settlement was made on any of thefe Iflands, or in any 
Ifland to the Eaft of them, it might afford an Opportu- 
nity of vifiting the great Continent, if in Truth there be 
any Continent between America and Afia, or, perhaps, it 
might lead to the Difcovery of fome confiderable Iflands 
between America and Afia, which, from their Situation, 
might well be expedited to abound in rich Commodities, 
but particularly in filver Mines, fince it is confeffed, that 
the richeft of thofe hitherto difcovered are in the Northern 
Parts of Japan and of America. If it fhould be objected, 
that the rich filver Mines of Potoji lie in South America , I 
anfwer to that, this makes rather for, than againft my 
Opinion, becaufe they are very near the fame Degree of 
South Latitude that the rich Mines of New Mexico are 
to the N. that is, a little within forty Degrees. But this 
is not all, for if any fuch Iflands could be difcovered, they 
would afford us an Opportunity of fearching with great 
Eafe for a Paffage either to the N. E. or N. W. which is 
a Point of very great Importance, and as fuch, has been 
treated very judicioufly by Mr. Dobbs , in fome of his late 
Pieces, which, fooner or later, may very probably pro- 
duce fome ftich Difcovery. 
We have now gone through all that we propofed with 
refpeft to this Part of our Subject, and the Lights given 
us by the Expeditions of the Portugueze and Spaniards on 
this Side. It next remains to fhew how that prodigious 
Power which thofe Nations had acquired in the Eaft, 
crumbled, and broke to Pieces, notwithftanding the many 
Advantages they had for preferring it ; and what ftill re- 
mains imthefe Indies under the Dominions of the Crown 
of Portugal : Which, when we have performed, the Rea- 
der 
f 
