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such coveted by all the eastern princes, who, though they have herds of them in their own dominions, do not spare to give considerable prices for these, which is a great enriching of the country. The islands of Sunda, or the Sound, are that great parcel lying south and south-east of Malaca, the principal whereof are Sumatra, Borneo, and Java; the two first directly under the line, Sumatra above three hundred leagues in length, lying north-west and south-east, and about sixty in breadth in the widest place; Borneo is almost round, and about six hundred in circumference; Java, the last of them, lies betwixt 7 and 10 degrees of south latitude, is about two hundred leagues in length from east to west, and not above forty in breadth in the widest place from north to south. There are many more, but all small in comparison of these, unless we reckon Celebes, lying under the line, near an hundred and eighty leagues in length, the longest way north-east and southwest, and about eighty in breadth in the broadest place from east to west: as also Gilolo, under the equator as well as the last, of an irregular shape, and not above one-fourth part of the bigness of Celebes. All these islands have a prodigious trade, being resorted to from all parts, not only of India, but even from Europe, Their wealth is incredible, for they produce whatsoever man can wish; but the principal commodities exported are ginger, pepper, camphor, agaric, cassia, wax, honey, silk, cotton; they have also mines of gold, tin, iron and sulphur, all sorts of cattle and fowl, but no vines nor olive-trees. In Sumatra the Dutch have some forts, and are very powerful, but much more in Java, where Batavia, a populous city, is the metropolis of their eastern dominions. The English had a great trade and factory at Bantam in the same island, but were expelled by the Dutch in the year 1682. After these follow the Molucco islands, which are five in number properly so called, viz. Ternate, Tidore, Machian, Moutil or Mousil, and Bachian: they lie along the west side of Gilolo, so near the equinoctial, that the last of them lies 24 or 25 minutes south, and the first of them about 50 minutes north of it. They are so small, that

all of them do not take up above 1 degree, and 10 or 15 minutes of latitude. Ternate is the northermost, and in order from it lie to the south Tidore, Moutil, Machian and Bachian. The whole product of these islands is cloves, which are scarce found elsewhere, and here little besides them; which is the reason why the Dutch have possessed themselves of them, expelling the Portuguese, who after long contests had bought out the Spaniards claim to them. With the Moluccos may be reckoned the islands of Amboina and Banda: the first of these produces cloves like the other, and was once much resorted to by the English, till the Dutch destroyed their factory, of which action there are particular printed accounts. Banda is a larger island than any of the others, and in five degrees of south latitude, possessed also by the Dutch, who have here all the trade of nutmegs and mace, which scarce grow any where but in this and two or three neighbouring islands. A vast multitude of other little islands are scattered about this sea, but those already mentioned are the most considerable; for though those of Chiram and Papous be large, there is very little of them known, by which it is natural to guess they are not of much value; for if they were, the same avarice that has carried so many European nations into their neighbourhood to destroy not only the natives, but one another, would have made them long since as familiar to us as the rest. Of Japan enough was said when first discovered by the Portuguese, and in captain Saris's voyage thither, where the reader may satisfy his curiosity. All that needs be added is, that it produces some gold, and great plenty of silver. For other commodities, here is abundance of hemp, excellent dyes, red, blue, and green, rice, brimstone, saltpetre, cotton, and the most excellent varnish in the world, commonly called Japan, whereof abundance of cabinets, tables, and many other things are brought into Europe. Thus are we come to Japan, the utmost of these eastern discoveries, omitting to say any thing of the Philippine islands, and those called De las Ladrones, though within this compass, because they were discovered from the West Indies; and there

fore they are left to be treated of among the American affairs, as are the isles of Solomon, whereof hitherto the world has had but a very imperfect account. This summary shows the improvement of navigation on this side the world since the discovery of the magnetical needle, or sea compass, it having made known to us as much of the coast of Afric and Asia, as running along only the greatest turnings and windings, amounts to about five thousand leagues; an incredible extent of land, were it not so universally known to be true, and so very demonstrable. The benefit we reap is so visible, it seems not to require any thing should be said of it. For now all Europe abounds in all such things as those vast, wealthy, exuberant eastern regions can afford; whereas before these discoveries it had nothing but what it received by retail, and at excessive rates, from the Venetians, who took in the precious drugs, rich spices, and other valuable commodities of the east in Egypt, or the coast of Turkey, whither it was brought from India, either by caravans or up the Red Sea; and they supplied all other countries with them at their own prices. But now the sea is open, every nation has the liberty of supplying itself from the fountain-head; and if some have encroached upon others, and confined them to a narrower trade in those parts, yet the returns from thence are yearly so great, that all those goods may be purchased here at the second-hand infinitely cheaper than they could when one nation had the supplying of all the rest, and that by so expensive a way, as being themselves served by caravans, and a few small ships on the Red Sea. To conclude; these parts, the discovery whereof has been the subject of this discourse, supply the christian world with all gums, drugs, spices, silks and cottons, precious stones, sulphur, gold, saltpetre, rice, tea, china-ware, coffee, japan varnished works, all sorts of dyes, of cordials, and perfumes, pearls, ivory, ostrich feathers, parrots, monkeys, and an endless number of necessaries, conveniences, curiosities, and other comforts and supports of human life, whereof enough has been said for the intended brevity of this discourse. It is now time to

proceed to a still greater part, greater in extent of land, as reaching from north to south, and its bounds not yet known, and greater in wealth, as containing the inexhaustible treasures of the silver mines of Peru and Mexico, and of the gold mines of Chile, and very many other parts. A fourth part of the world, not much inferior to the other three in extent, and no way yielding to them for all the blessings nature could bestow upon the earth. A world concealed from the rest for above five thousand years, and reserved by Providence to be made known three hundred years ago. A region yet not wholly known, the extent being so immense, that three hundred years have not been a sufficient time to lay it all open. A portion of the universe wonderful in all respects: 1. For that being so large it could lie so long hid. 2. For that being well inhabited, the wit of man cannot conclude which way those people could come thither, and that none others could find the way since. 3. For its endless sources of gold and silver, which supplying all parts, since their first discovery, are so far from being impoverished, that they only want more hands to draw out more. 4. For its mighty rivers, so far exceeding all others, that they look like little seas, compared with the greatest in other parts. 5. For its prodigious mountains, running many hundred leagues, and whose tops are almost inaccessible. 6. For the strange variety of seasons, and temperature of air to be found at very few leagues distance. And lastly, For its stupendous fertility of soil, producing all sorts of fruits and plants which the other parts of the world afford, in greater perfection than in their native land, besides an infinity of others which will not come to perfection elsewhere.

To come to the discovery of this fourth and greatest part of the earth, it was undertaken and performed by Christopher Columbus, a Genoese, excellently skilled in sea affairs, an able cosmographer, and well versed in all those parts of the mathematics, which might capacitate him for such an enterprise. This person being convinced by natural reason, that so great a part of the world as till then was unknown could not be all sea,

or created to no purpose; and believing that the earth being round, a shorter way might be found to India by the west, than by compassing all Afric to the southward, as the Portuguese were then attempting to do; he resolved to apply himself wholly to the discovery of those rich countries, which he positively concluded must extend, from what was known of the East Indies, still to the eastward one way, and to be the easier met with by sailing round to the westward. Having been long fully possessed with this notion, and provided to answer all objections that might be started against it, he thought the undertaking too great for any less than a sovereign prince, or state; and therefore, not to be unjust to his country, he first proposed it to the state of Genoa, where it was rather ridiculed than any way encouraged. This repulse made him have recourse to king John the second of Portugal, who having caused the matter to be examined by those that had the direction of the discoveries along the coast of Afric, by their advice he held him in hand till he had sent out a caravel with private orders to attempt this discovery. This caravel having wandered long in the wide ocean, and suffered much by storms, returned without finding any thing. Columbus understanding what had been done, resented it so highly, that in hatred to Portugal he resolved to go over to Castile and offer his service there; but for fear of any disappointment, at the same time he sent his brother Bartholomew Columbus into England, to make the same overture to king Henry the seventh. His brother had the ill fortune to be taken at sea by pirates, which much retarded his coming to the court of England; where when at last he came, being poor and destitute of friends, it was long before he could be heard, or at least be looked upon; so that in fine, Columbus was gone before he returned to Spain with his answer. Columbus in the meanwhile stole away out of Portugal, and coming to the court of Ferdinand and Isabel, king and queen of Castile and Aragon, he there spent eight years soliciting with little hopes, and many difficulties; till at last, when he had utterly despaired of success, he met with it, through the assistance of some few friends he had

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