_Letter of_ FREDERIK DE HOUTMAN _to the Managers of the E.I.C., October
7, 1619._

Most Noble Wise Provident Very Discreet Gentlemn,

My last letter to Your Worships was dated May 20th from the Tafelbay...We
next sailed from the Tafelbay with the ships Dordrecht and Amsterdam on
June the 8th...

We ran on with a fair north-west wind as far as 36 deg. 30', in which
latitude we kept this steady breeze with us up to the 17th of July, when
we estimated ourselves to have sailed straight to eastward the space of a
thousand miles. We observed 16 deg. decreasing north-westerly variation of
the compass, and resolved to steer...on a north-east-by-north course,
{Page 15} we then being in 35 deg. 25' Southern Latitude. After keeping the
aforesaid course for about 60 miles, in the evening of the 19th we
suddenly saw land, which we steered away from. On the 20th we found it to
be a mainland coast extending South and North. We resolved to use our
utmost endeavours to obtain some knowledge of this coast, which seemed to
be a very good land, but could find no spot for conveniently landing
owing to the surf and the heavy seas. On the 23rd both the Amsterdam and
our ship lost an anchor each, since our cables were broken by the strong
gale. We kept near the coast till the 28th of July, but owing to the
violent storm could not effect a landing, so that we were forced to leave
the land aforesaid, not without imminent danger of being thrown on it by
the strong gale.

On the 28th we sighted a cape of the said coast, off which we sounded in
from 45 to 70 fathom, but shortly after we got no bottom, and in the
evening the land was out of sight.

On the 29th do. deeming ourselves to be in an open sea, we shaped our
course north-by-east. At noon we were in 29 deg. 32' S. Lat.; at night about
three hours before daybreak, we again unexpectedly came upon a low-lying
coast, a level, broken country with reefs all round it. We saw no high
land or mainland, so that this shoal is to be carefully avoided as very
dangerous to ships that wish to touch at this coast. It is fully ten
miles in length, lying in 28 deg. 46.

On the 2nd of August, the wind becoming contrary, we turned our course
eastward at noon we again sighted a long stretch of land in Lat. 27 deg. 40'
South. We are all assured that this is the land which the ship Eendracht
discovered and made in the year [*], and noways doubt that all the land
they saw in 22, 23, 25 degrees, and which we