spent no lesse than thirty dayes, partly with contrary windes, partly with
calme. The thirtieth of May we passed the Equinoctiall with contentation,
directing our course as well as we could to passe the promontory, but in
all that gulfe, and in all the way beside, we found so often calmes, that
the expertest mariner wondred at it. And in places where there are alwayes
woont to be most horrible tempests, we found most quiet calmes which was
very troublesome to those ships which be the greatest of all other, and
cannot go without good windes. Insomuch, that when it is tempest almost
intollerable for other ships, and maketh them maine all their sailes, these
hoise vp, and saile excellent well, vnlesse the waters be too furious,
which seldome happened in our nauigation. You shall vnderstand, that being
passed the line, they cannot straightway go the next way to the promontory:
but according to the winde, they draw always as neere South as they can to
put themselues in the latitude of the point, which is 35 degrees and an
halfe, and then they take their course towards the East, and so compass the
point. But the winde serued vs so, that at 33 degrees we did direct our
course toward the point or promontory of Good hope.
You know that it is hard to saile from East to West, or contrary, because
there is no fixed point in all the skie, whereby they may direct their
course, wherefore I shall tell you what helps God prouided for these men.
There is not a fowle that appereth, or signe in the aire, or in the sea,
which they haue not written, which haue made the voyages heretofore.
[Sidenote: The variation of the compasse.] Wherfore, partly by their owne
experience, and pondering withall what space the ship was able to make with
such a winde, and such direction, and partly by the experience of others,
whose books and nauigations they haue, they gesse whereabouts they be,
touching degrees of longitude, for of latitude they be alwayes sure: but
the greatest and best industry of all is to marke the variation of the
needle or compasse, which in the Meridian of the Iland of S. Michael, which
is one of the Azores in the latitude of Lisbon, is iust North, and thence
swarueth towards the East so much, that betwixt the Meridian aforesayd, and
the point of Africa it carrieth three or foure quarters of 32. And againe
in the point of Afrike, a little beyond the point that is called Cape das
Agulias (in English the needles) it returneth againe vnt
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