ere driven to a distance from land distance from land, and came in
sight of an island far to the east, in lat. 32 deg. N. which they called Japan,
and which seems to be the isle of Zipangri, mentioned by Marco Polo the
Venetian, which in exceedingly rich in gold and silver, and other valuable
commodities.

In the same year, 1542, Don Antonio de Mendoca, the viceroy of New Spain,
sent certain sea captains and pilots to explore the Coast of Cape del
Engannon, where a fleet, sent by Cortes, had been before. They sailed as
far as the latitude 40 deg. N. when they came in sight of a range of mountains
covered in snow, which they name _Sierras Nevadas_, or the snowy mountains
in lat. 40 deg.N. They here met with certain merchant ships, which carried on
their stems the images of a kind of birds called _Aleutarsi_, and had
their yards gilded, and their bows laid over with silver. These seemed to
belong to the islands of Japan or to China, as the people said that their
country was within thirty days sail[101]. In the same year, the viceroy
Mendoca sent a fleet of six ships, with 400 Spanish soldiers, and as many
Mexicans, under the command of his brother-in-law, Rui Lopez de Villa
Lobos, a person in high estimation, to the Mindanao islands. They sailed
on the eve of All Saints, from the harbour of Natividad, in lat. 20 deg.N. and
shaping their course towards the west, they came in sight of the island of
St Thomas, which had been before discovered by Hernando de Girijalva; and
beyond that, in 17 deg.N, they got sight of another island, which they named
_La Nebulata_ or the Cloudy Island; and from thence, they came to another
island, which they named _Roca Partalia_, or the cloven rock. On the 3rd.
of December, they discovered certain shoals, having only six or seven
fathoms water. On the fifteenth of the same month, they had sight of the
islands which were discovered by Diego de Roca, Gomez de Sequieira, and
Alvaro de Saavedra, called _Los Reyes_ or islands of the kings, because
discovered on Twelfth day. And beyond these, they found a cluster of
islands, in 10 deg. of latitude, and came to an anchor in the midst of them,
where they took in wood and water. In January 1548 leaving these islands,
they came in sight of certain other islands, from which the natives came
off to them, in a kind of boats, bearing crosses in their hands, and they
saluted the mariners in the Spanish language, saying, _Buenos dias
Matelotes_, or, good day co