ryners
chese, butter, befe, bacon, and candles, as beggers, and they give it to
them for feare they have of them, and so they goe from the shippes with
their walletts full of victualls. The master doth pay four ryalls of plate
for the barke that bringeth them aboorde to visite them. Thus is wilfull
perjurye permitted by the governours if they knowe it. Thus the covetous
marchante wilfully sendeth headlonge to hell from day to day the poore
subjectes of this realme. The marchant in England cometh here devoutly to
the communyon, and sendeth his sonne into Spaine to here masse. These
thinges are kepte secrete by the marchantes, and suche as depende upon the
trade of marchandize are lothe to utter the same.

Chap. III. That this westerne voyadge will yelde unto us all the
commodities of Europe, Affrica and Asia, as far as wee were wonte to
travell, and supplye the wantes of all our decayed trades.

The nexte thinge ys that nowe I declare unto you the comodities (M221) of
this newe westerne discoverie, and what marchandize are there to be had,
and from thence to be expected; wherein firste you are to have regarde
unto the scituation of the places which are left for us to be possessed.
The contries therefore of AMERICA where unto we have just title, as being
firste discovered by Sebastian Gabote, at the coste of that prudente
prince Kinge Henry the Seaventh, from Florida northewarde to 67.
degrees,(51) (and not yet in any Christian princes actuall possession,)
beinge aunswerable in clymate to Barbary, Egipte, Siria, Persia, Turky,
Greece, all the islandes of the Levant sea, Italie, Spaine, Portingale,
Fraunce, Flaunders, Highe Almayne, Denmarke, Estland, Poland, and
Muscovye, may presently or within a shorte space afforde unto us, for
little or nothinge, and with moche more safetie, eyther all or a greate
parte of the comodities which the aforesaid contries do yelde us at a very
dere hande and with manifolde daungers.

Firste, therefore, to begyn at the southe from 30. degrees, and to quote
unto you the leafe and page of the printed voyadges of those which
personally have with diligence searched and viewed these contries. John
Ribault writeth thus, in the firste leafe of his discourse, extant in
printe bothe in Frenche and Englishe:(52) Wee entred (saieth he) and
viewed the contrie which is the fairest, frutefullest, and pleasauntest of
all the worlde, aboundinge in honye, waxe, venison, wilde fowle,
fforrestes, woode