THE PORTUGUESE AND THEIR FOLLOWERS. 35 
At Santiago fresli stores of meat, water, and wood were 
taken on board, and the ships were again put into good 
sailing order. 
They quitted the shore of Santa Maria on the 3rd 
of August. The voyage was accomplished without any 
remarkable incidents, and on the 4th of November 
anchors were dropped upon the African Coast in a bay 
which received the name of Santa-Ellena. Eight days 
were spent there in shipping wood, and in putting every¬ 
thing in order on board the vessels. It was there that 
they saw for the first time the Bushmen, a miserable 
and degraded race of people who fed upon the flesh of 
sea-wolves and whales, as well as upon roots. The 
Portuguese carried off some of these natives, and treated 
them with kindness. The savages knew nothing of the 
value of the merchandise which was offered to them, 
they saw the objects for the first time and were ignorant 
of their use. Copper was the only thing which they 
appeared to prize, wearing in their ears small chains of 
that metal. They understood well the use of the zagayes 
—a kind of javelin, of which the point is hardened in 
the fire—of which three or four of the sailors and even 
Gama himself had unpleasant experience, while endea¬ 
vouring to rescue from their hands a certain Velloso, a 
man who had imprudently ventured into the interior of 
the country. This incident has furnished Camoens with 
one of the most charming episodes of the ‘ Lusiad.’ 
On leaving Santa-Ellena, Pero de Alemquer, for¬ 
merly pilot to Diaz, declared his belief that they were 
then ninety miles from the Cape, but in the uncertainty 
the fleet stood off to sea ; on the 18th of November the 
Cape of Good Hope was seen, and the next day it was 
doubled by the fleet sailing before the wind. On the 
25th the vessels were moored in the Bay of Sam-Braz, 
where they remained thirteen days, during which time 
the boat which carried the stores was demolished, and 
her cargo divided amongst the three other vessels. 
During their stay the Portuguese gave the Bushmen 
some hawks’ bells and other objects, which, to their 
surprise, were accepted, for in the time of Diaz the 
D 2 
