islands, until the dispute was ended by the judgment of Pope Eugenius IV. who awarded them to the king of Castile.  These islands, anciently called the Insulae Fortunatae, or Fortunate Islands, are seven in number, in lat. 28 deg.  N. where the longest day is thirteen hours, and the longest night the same.  They are 200 leagues distant from the coast of Spain, and 18 leagues from the coast of Africa.  The people were idolaters, and eat raw flesh for want of fire.  They had no iron, but raised or tilled the ground with the horns of oxen and goats, for want of better implements of husbandry.  Every island spoke a separate language, and many pagan customs prevailed among the natives; but now the Christian religion is planted among them.  The commodities of these islands are wheat, barley, sugar, wine, and Canary-birds, which are much esteemed for the sweetness and variety of their song.  In the island of Ferro they have no water but what proceeds in the night from a tree, encompassed by a cloud, whence water issues, and serves the whole inhabitants and cattle of the island[4].

In the year 1428, Don Pedro, the king’s eldest[5] son, who was a great traveller, went into England, France, and Germany, and thence into the Holy Land and other places, and came home by Italy, through Rome and Venice.  He is said to have brought a map of the world home with him, in which all parts of the earth were described, by which the enterprizes of Don Henry for discovery were much assisted.  In this map the Straits of Magellan are called the Dragons-tail, and the Cape of Good Hope the Front of Africa, and so of the rest[6].  I was informed by Francis de Sosa Tavares, that in the year 1528, Don Fernando, the king’s eldest son, shewed him a map which had been made 120 years before, and was found in the study of Alcobaza, which exhibited all the navigation of the East Indies, with the cape of Bona Speranca, as in our latter maps; by which it appears that there was as much discovered, or more, in ancient times as now[7].

Though attended with much trouble and expence, Don Henry was unwearied in prosecuting his plan of discoveries.  At length Gilianes, one of his servants, passed Cape Bojador, a place terrible to all former navigators, and brought word that it was by no means so dangerous as had been represented, he having landed on its farther side, where he set up a wooden cross in memorial of his discovery.

In the year 1433 died John king of Portugal, and was succeeded by his eldest son Duarte or Edward.  In 1434, Don Henry sent Alphonso Gonzales Balduja and Gillianes, who penetrated from Cape Bajador to another cape, where they found the country to be inhabited, and went forward to another point of land, whence they returned to Portugal.  In 1438 king Duarte died, and his son Alphonso being young, the kingdom was governed during his minority by his uncle Don Pedro.  In 1441, Don Henry sent out two ships under Tristan and Antonio Gonzales, who took a prize