Part 7

The coast from Santos to Cape Frio, lyeth west and by south, southerly. So we directed our course west south-west. The night comming on, and directions given to our other shippes, we sett the watch, having a fayre fresh gale of wind and large. My selfe with the master of our ship, having watched the night past, thought now to give nature that which shee had beene deprived of, and so recommended the care of steeridge to one of his mates;[112] who with the like travell past being drowsie, or [Unskilfulnesse of the masters mate.] with the confidence which he had of him at the helme, had not that watchfull care which was required; he at the helme steered west, and west and by south, and brought us in a little time close upon the shore;[113] doubtlesse he had cast us all away, had not God extraordinarily delivered us; for the master being in his dead sleepe, was suddenly [Providence of God, and the care of the master.] awaked, and with such a fright that he could not be in quiet: whereupon waking his youth, which ordinarily slept in his cabin by him, asked him how the watch went on; who answered, that it could not be above an houre since he layd himselfe to rest. He replyed, that his heart was so unquiet that he could not by any meanes sleepe, and so taking his gowne, came forth upon the deck, and presently discovered the land hard by us. And for that it was sandie and low, those who had their eyes continually fixed on it, were dazeled with the reflection of the starres, being a fayre night, and so were hindered from the true discovery thereof. But he comming out of the darke, had his sight more forcible, to discerne the difference of the sea, and the shore. So that forthwith he commaunded him at the helme, to put it close a starbourd, and tacking our ship, wee edged off; and sounding, found scant three fathome water, whereby we saw evidently the miraculous mercie of our God; that if he had not watched over us, as hee doth continually over his, doubtlesse we had perished without remedie. To whom be all glory, and prayse everlastingly, world without end.

Immediatly we shot off a peece, to give warning to our other shippes; who having kept their direct course, and far to wind-wards and sea-wards, because we carried no light, for that we were within sight of the shore, could not heare the report; and the next morning were out of sight.

SECTION XXIII.

[Care of steeridge,]

In this poynt of steeridge, the Spaniards and Portingalls doe exceede all that I have seene, I mean for their care, which is chiefest in navigation. And I wish in this, and in all their workes of discipline, wee should follow their examples; as also those of any other nation.

[exquisit in the Spanyards and Portingalls.]

In every ship of moment, upon the halfe decke, or quarter decke,[114] they have a chayre or seat; out of which whilst they navigate, the pilot, or his adjutants[115] (which are the same officers which in our shippes we terme the master and his mates), never depart, day nor night, from the sight of the compasse; and have another before them, whereby they see what they doe, and are ever witnesses of the good or bad steeridge of all men that take the helme. This I have seene neglected in our best shippes, yet nothing more necessary to be reformed. For a good helme-man may be overcome with an imagination, and so mis-take one poynt for another;[116] or the compasse may erre, which by another is discerned. The inconveniences which hereof may ensue, all experimented sea-men may easily conceive, and by us take warning to avoyd the like.

SECTION XXIV.

[Cape Blanco.]

The next day about tenne of the clocke, wee were thwart of Cape Blanco,[117] which is low sandie land, and perilous; for foure leagues into the sea (thwart it), lye banks of sand, which have little water on them; on a sudden we found our selves amongst them, in lesse then three fathome water; but with our boat and shalope we went sounding, and so got cleare of them.

[Saint James ilands, alias Saint Annes.]

The next day following, we discovered the ilands where wee purposed to refresh ourselves. They are two, and some call them Saint James, his ilands, and others, Saint Annes.[118] They lie in two and twenty degrees and a halfe to the south-wards of the lyne; and towards the evening (being the fifth of November) we anchored betwixt them and the mayne, in six fathome water, where wee found our other shippes.

All which being well moored, we presently began to set up tents and booths for our sicke men, to carry them a shore, and to use our best diligence to cure them. For which intent our three surgeans, with their servants and adherents, had two boates to wayte continually upon them, to fetch whatsoever was needfull from the shippes, to procure refreshing, and to fish, either with netts, or hookes and lynes. Of these implements wee had in aboundance, and it yeelded us some refreshing. For the first dayes, the most of those which had health, occupied themselves in romeging our ship; in bringing ashore of emptie caske; in filling of them, and in felling and cutting of wood: which being many workes, and few hands, went slowly forwards.

Neere these ilands, are two great rockes, or small ilands adjoyning. In them we found great store of young gannetts [Gannets.] in their nests, which we reserved for the sicke, and being boyled with pickled porke well watered,[119] and mingled with oatmeale, made reasonable pottage, and was good refreshing and sustenance for them. This provision fayled us not, till our departure from them.

Upon one of these rocks also, we found great store of [Sidenote: Purslane.] the hearbe purslane,[120] which boyled and made into sallets, with oyle and vineger, refreshed the sicke stomaches, and gave appetite.

With the ayre of the shore, and good cherishing, many recovered speedily. Some died away quickly, and others continued at a stand. We found here some store of fruits; [Cherries.] a kind of cherry that groweth upon a tree like a plum-tree, red of colour, with a stone in it, but different in making to ours, for it is not altogether round, and dented about: they have a pleasing taste.

[Palmitos.]

In one of the ilands, we found palmito trees, great and high, and in the toppe a certaine fruit like cocos, but no bigger then a wall-nut. We found also a fruit growing upon trees in codds, like beanes, both in the codd and the fruit. Some of my company proved of them,[121] and they [Purgatives.] caused vomits and purging, as any medicine taken out of the apothecaries shop, according to the quantitie received. They have hudds, as our beanes, which shaled off; the kernell parteth itselfe in two, and in the middle is a thin skinne, like that of an onion, said to be hurtfull, and to cause exceeding vomits, and therefore to be cast away.

Monardus writing of the nature and propertie of this fruit, as of others of the Indies, for that it is found in other [The use of _kavas purgativas_.] parts, also calleth them _kavas purgativas_, and sayth, that they are to be prepared by peeling them first, and then taking away the skinne in the middle, and after beaten into powder, to take the quantitie of five or six, either with wine or sugar. Thus they are good against fevers, and to purge grosse humors; against the collicke, and payne of the joynts; in taking them a man may not sleepe, but is to use the dyet usuall, as in a day of purging.

[Artechoques or prick-peares.]

One other fruit we found, very pleasant in taste, in fashion of an artechoque, but lesse; on the outside of colour redd, within white, and compassed about with prickles; our people called them pricke-pears;[122] no conserve is better. They grow upon the leaves of a certaine roote, that is like unto that which we call _semper viva_[122] and many are wont to hang them up in their houses; but their leaves are longer and narrower, and full of prickes on either side. The fruit groweth upon the side of the leafe, and is one of the best fruites that I have eaten in the Indies. In ripening, presently the birds or vermine are feeding on them; [A good note to take or refuse unknowne fruits.] a generall rule to know what fruit is wholesome and good in the Indies, and other parts. Finding them to be eaten of the beastes or fowles, a man may boldly eate of them.

The water of these ilands is not good: the one, for being a standing water, and full of venemous wormes and serpents, which is neare a butt-shot from the sea shore; where we found a great tree fallen, and in the roote of it the names of sundry Portingalls, Frenchmen, and others, and amongst them, Abraham Cockes; with the time of their being in this island.

[Contagious water.]

The other, though a running water, yet passing by the rootes of certaine trees, which have a smell as that of garlique, taketh a certaine contagious sent of them. Here two of our men dyed with swelling of their bellies. The accident we could not attribute to any other cause, then to this suspitious water. It is little, and falleth into the sand, and soketh through it into the sea; and therefore we made a well of a pipe, and placeth it under the rocke from which it falleth, and out of it filled our caske: but we could not fill above two tunnes in a night and day.

SECTION XXV.

So after our people began to gather their strength, wee manned our boates, and went over to the mayne, where presently we found a great ryver of fresh and sweete water, and a mightie marish countrie; which in the winter[123] seemeth to be continually over-flowne with this river, and others, which fall from the mountaynous country adjacent.

We rowed some leagues up the ryver, and found that the further up we went, the deeper was the river, but no fruit, more then the sweate of our bodies for the labour of our handes.

At our returne, wee loaded our boate with water, and afterwardes from hence wee made our store.

SECTION XXVI.

[Wast and losse of men.]

The sicknesse having wasted more then the one halfe of my people, we determined to take out the victualls of the _Hawke_, and to burne her; which wee put in execution. And being occupied in this worke, we saw a shippe turning to windwards, to succour her selfe of the ilands;[124] but having discryed us, put off to sea-wards.

Two dayes after, the wind changing, we saw her againe running alongst the coast, and the _Daintie_ not being in case to goe after her, for many reasons, we manned the _Fancie_, and sent her after her; who about the setting of the sunne fetched her up, and spake with her; when finding her to be a great fly-boat, of at least three or foure hundreth tunnes, with eighteen peeces of artillery, would have returned, but the wind freshing in, put her to leewards; and standing in to succour her selfe of the land, had sight of another small barke, which after a short chase shee tooke, but had nothing of moment in her, for that she had bin upon the great sholes of Abreoios,[125] in eighteen degrees, and there throwne all they had by the board, to save their lives.

This and the other chase were the cause that the _Fancie_ could not beat it up in many dayes: but before we had put all in a readinesse, the wind changing, shee came unto us, and made relation of that which had past; and how they had given the small barke to the Portingalls, and brought with them onely her pilot, and a marchant called Pedro de Escalante of Potosi.

SECTION XXVII.

[Industry of the Indians. They surprise the French.]

In this coast, the Portingalls, by industrie of the Indians, have wrought many feats. At Cape Frio they tooke a great French ship in the night, the most of her company being on the shore, with cannoas,[126] which they have in this coast so great, that they carry seventie and eightie men in one of them. And in Isla Grand, I saw one that was above threescore foote long, of one tree, as are all that I have seen in Brasill, with provisions in them for twentie or [San Sebastian.] thirtie days. At the iland of San-Sebastian, neere Saint Vincent, the Indians killed about eightie of Master Candish [Sidenote: Kill the English,] his men, and tooke his boat, which was the overthrow of his voyage.

There commeth not any ship upon this coast, whereof these cannoas give not notice presently to every place. And wee were certified in Isla Grand, that they had sent [and discover us.] an Indian from the river of Ienero, through all the mountaines and marishes, to take a view of us, and accordingly made a relation of our shippes, boates, and the number of men which we might have. But to prevent the like danger that might come upon us being carelesse and negligent, I determined one night, in the darkest and quietest of it, to see what watch our company kept on the shore; manned our light horsman, and boat, armed them with bowes and targetts, and got a shore some good distance from the places where were our boothes, and sought to come upon them undiscovered: we used all our best endevours to take them at unawares, yet comming within fortie paces, we were discovered; the whole and the sicke came forth to oppose themselves against us. Which we seeing, gave them the hubbub, after the manner of the Indians, and assaulted them, and they us; but being a close darke night, they could not discerne us presently upon the hubbub.[127]

From our shippe the gunner shott a peece of ordinance over our heads, according to the order given him, and thereof we tooke occasion to retyre unto our boates, and within a little space came to the boothes and landing places, as though wee came from our shippes to ayd them. They [The events of a good watch.] began to recount unto us, how that at the wester poynt of the iland, out of certaine cannoas, had landed a multitude of Indians, which with a great out-cry came upon them, and assaulted them fiercely; but finding better resistance then they looked for, and seeing themselves discovered by the shippes, tooke themselves to their heeles and returned to their cannoas, in which they imbarked themselves, and departed. One affirmed, he saw the cannoas; another, their long hayre; a third, their bowes; a fourth, that it could not be, but that some of them had their payments. And it was worth the sight, to behold those which had not moved out of their beds in many moneths, unlesse by the helpe of others, gotten some a bow-shoot off into the woods, others into the toppes of trees, and those which had any strength, joyned together to fight for their lives. In fine, the boothes and tents were left desolate.[128]

To colour our businesse the better, after we had spent some houres in seeking out and joyning the companie together, in comforting, animating, and commending them, I left them an extraordinary guard for that night, and so departed to our shippes, with such an opinion of the assault given by the Indians, that many so possessed, through all the voyage, would not be perswaded to the contrary. Which impression wrought such effect in most of my companie, that in all places where the Indians might annoy us, they were ever after most carefull and vigilant, as was convenient.[129]

In these ilands it heigheth and falleth some five or six foot water, and but once in two and twentie houres; as in all this coast, and in many parts of the West Indies; as also in the coast of Perew and Chely, saving where are great bayes or indraughts, and there the tydes keep their ordinary course of twice in foure and twentie houres.

[Palmito iland.]

In the lesser of these ilands, is a cave for a small ship to ryde in, land-lockt, and shee may moore her sele to the trees of either side. This we called Palmito iland, for the aboundance it hath of the greater sort of palmito trees; the other hath none at all. A man may goe betwixt the ilands with his ship, but the better course is out at one end.

In these ilands are many scorpions, snakes, and adders, with other venemous vermine. They have parrots, and a certaine kinde of fowle like unto pheasants, somewhat bigger, and seeme to be of their nature. Here we spent above a moneth in curing of our sicke men, supplying our wants of wood and water, and in other necessary workes. And the tenth of December, all things put in order, we set sayle for Cape Frio, having onely six men sicke, with purpose there to set ashore our two prisoners before named; and anchoring under the Cape, we sent our boat a shore, but they could not finde any convenient place to land them in, and so returned.[130] The wind being southerly, and not good to goe on our voyage, we succoured our selves within Isla Grand, which lyeth some dozen or fourteene leagues from the cape, betwixt the west, and by south and west south-west; the rather to set our prisoners a shore.

In the mid-way betwixt the Cape and this iland, lyeth [Sidenote: Ienero.] the river Ienero, a very good harbour, fortified with a garrison, and a place well peopled. The Isla Grand is some eight or ten leagues long, and causeth a goodly harbour for shipping. It is full of great sandie bayes, and in the most of them is store of good water; within this iland are many other smaller ilands, which cause divers sounds [Little iland.] and creekes; and amongst these little ilands, one, for the pleasant scituation and fertilitie thereof, called Placentia. This is peopled, all the rest desert: on this island our prisoners desired to be put a shore, and promised to send us some refreshing. Whereto we condescended, and sent them ashore, with two boates well man’d and armed, who found few inhabitants in the iland; for our people saw not above foure or five houses, notwithstanding our boats returned loaden with plantynes, pinias,[131] potatoes, sugar-canes, and some hennes. Amongst which they brought a kind of little plantyne, greene, and round, which were the best of any that I have seene.

With our people came a Portingall, who said, that the island was his; he seemed to be a Mistecho, who are those that are of a Spanish and an Indian brood, poorely apparelled and miserable; we feasted him, and gave him some trifles, and he, according to his abilitie, answered our courtesie with such as he had.

The wind continuing contrary, we emptied all the water wee could come by, which we had filled in Saint James his [Isla Grand.] iland, and filled our caske with the water of this Isla Grand. It is a wildernesse, covered with trees and shrubs so thicke, as it hath no passage through, except a man make it by force. And it was strange to heare the howling and cryes of wilde beastes in these woods day and night, which we could not come at to see by any meanes; some like lyons, others like beares, others like hoggs, and of such and so many diversities, as was admirable.

[Shells of mother of pearle.]

Heere our nets profited us much; for in the sandy bayes they tooke us store of fish. Upon the shore, at full seamark, we found in many places certaine shels, like those of mother of pearles, which are brought out of the East Indies, to make standing cups, called _caracoles_; of so great curiositie as might move all the beholders to magnifie the maker of them: and were it not for the brittlenes of them, by reason of their exceeding thinnes, doubtles they were to bee esteemed farre above the others; for, more excellent workemanship I have not seene in shels.[132]

The eighteenth of December, we set sayle, the wind at north-east, and directed our course for the Straites of Magalianes. The twenty two of this moneth, at the going too of the sunne, we descryed a Portingall ship, and gave her chase, and comming within hayling of her, shee rendred her selfe without any resistance; shee was of an hundred tuns, bound for Angola, to load negroes, to be carried and sold in the river of Plate. It is a trade of great profit, and much used, for that the negroes are carried from the head of the river of Plate, to Patosi, to labour in the mynes. It [Price of negroes.] is a bad negro, who is not worth there five or six hundreth peeces, every peece of tenne ryals, which they receive in ryals of plate,[133] for there is no other marchandize in those partes. Some have told me, that of late they have found out the trade and benefit of cochanillia, but the river suffereth not vessels of burthen; for if they drawe above eight or seaven foote water, they cannot goe further then the mouth of the river, and the first habitation is above a hundred and twenty leagues up, whereunto many barkes trade yearely, and carry all kinde of marchandize serving for Patosi and Paraquay; the money which is thence returned, is distributed in all the coast of Brasill.

[Cassavi meale.]

The loading of this ship was meale of cassavi, which the Portingals call _Farina de Paw_. It serveth for marchandize in Angola, for the Portingals foode in the ship, and to nourish the negroes which they should carry to the river of Plate. This meale is made of a certaine roote which the Indians call _yuca_, much like unto potatoes. Of it are two kindes: the one sweete and good to be eaten (either rosted or sodden) as potatoes, and the other of which they make their bread, called _cassavi_; deadly poyson, if the liquor or juyce bee not thoroughly pressed out. So prepared it is the bread of Brazill, and many parts of the Indies, which they make in this maner: first they pare the roote, and [The preparing thereof for food.] then upon a rough stone they grate it as small as they can, and after that it is grated small, they put it into a bag or poke, and betwixt two stones, with great waight, they presse out the juyce or poyson, and after keepe it in some bag, till it hath no juyce nor moysture left.[134] Of this they make two sorts of bread, the one finer and the other courser, but bake them after one maner. They place a great broad smooth stone upon other foure, which serve in steede of a trevet, and make a quicke fire under it, and so strawe the flower or meale a foote long, and halfe a foot broad. To make it to incorporate, they sprinkle now and then a little water, and then another rowe of meale, and another sprinkling, till it be to their minde; that which is to be spent presently, they make a finger thicke, and sometimes more thicke; but that which they make for store, is not above halfe a finger thicke, but so hard, that if it fall on the ground it will not breake easily. Being newly baked, it is reasonable good, but after fewe dayes it is not to be eaten, except it be soaked in water. In some partes they suffer the meale to become fenoed,[135] before they make it into bread, and hold it for the best, saying that it giveth it a better tast; but I am not of that opinion. In other parts they mingle it with a fruite called agnanapes, which are round, and being ripe are grey, and as big as an hazell nut, and grow in a cod like pease, but that it is all curiously wrought: first they parch them upon a stone, and after beate them into powder, and then mingle them with the fine flower of cassavi, and bake them into bread, these are their spice-cakes, which they call _xauxaw_.

[Agnanapes.]

The agnanapes are pleasant, give the bread a yellowish coulour, and an aromaticall savour in taste.[136] The finer of this bread, being well baked, keepeth long time, three or foure yeares. In Brazill, since the Portingalls taught the Indians the use of sugar, they eate this meale mingled with remels[137] of sugar, or malasses; and in this manner the Portingalls themselves feed of it.

But we found a better manner of dressing this farina, in making pancakes, and frying them with butter or oyle, and sometimes with _manteca de puerco_; when strewing a little sugar upon them, it was meate that our company desired above any that was in the shippe.

[And for beverage.]

The Indians also accustome to make their drinke of this meale, and in three severall manners.