searched by one Sebastian Cabot, a Venetian
borne, whom being yet but in maner an infant, his parents carried with them
into England, hauing occasion to resort thither for trade of marchandise,
as in the maner of the Venetians to leaue no part of the world vnsearched
to obtaine riches. Hee therefore furnished two ships in England at his owne
charges, and first with 300 men directed his course so farre towards the
North pole, that euen in the moneth of Iuly he found monstrous heapes of
ice swimming on the sea, and in maner continuall day light, yet saw he the
land in that tract free from ice, which had bene molten by the heat of the
Sunne. Thus seeing such heapes of yce before him, hee was enforced to turne
his sailes and follow the West, so coasting still by the shore, that hee
was thereby brought so farre into the South, by reason of the land bending
so much Southwards, that it was there almost equal in latitude, with the
sea Fretum Hercoleum, hauing the Northpole eleuate in maner in the same
degree. He sailed likewise in this tract so farre towards the West, that
hee had the Island of Cuba on his left hand, in maner in the same degree of
longitude. [Sidenote: A current toward the West.] As hee traueiled by the
coastes of this great land, (which he named Baccalaos) he saith that hee
found the like course of the waters toward the West, but the same to runne
more softly and gently then the swift waters which the Spaniards found in
their Nauigations Southwards. Wherefore it is not onely more like to be
true, but ought also of necessitie to be concluded that betweene both the
lands hitherto vnknown, there should be certaine great open places whereby
the waters should thus continually passe from the East vnto the West:
[Sidenote: The people of Island say the Sea and yce setteth also West.
(Ionas Arngrimus.)[16]] which waters I suppose to be driuen about the globe
of the earth by the uncessant mouing and impulsion of the heauens, and not
to bee swallowed vp and cast vp againe by the breathing of Demogorgon, as
some haue imagined, because they see the seas by increase and decrease to
ebbe and flowe. Sebastian Cabot himselfe named those lands Baccalaos,
because that in the Seas thereabout hee found so great multitudes of
certaine bigge fishes much like vnto Tunies, (which the inhabitants called
Baccalaos) that they sometimes stayed his shippes. He found also the people
of those regions couered with beastes skinnes, yet not withou