[105] Gomar. H.G. IV. xiv.
In January of the year 1545, Ruy Lopez de Villa Lobos, formerly mentioned, came with his Spaniards to the isle of Moro [106], and the city of Camato , where he was well received by the kings of Gilolo and Tidore, and the people of the country; for I, Antonio Galvano, had then left the Moluccas; and they put the governor Don George de Castro to much trouble, and great expence. In the same year, 1545, Ruy Lopez de Villa Lobos, sent another ship from Tidore for New Spain, under the command of Ignatius Ortez de Rotha, and having Jaspar Rico as pilot, with orders to attempt the passage by the south side of the line. Ortez sailed to the coast of Papua, which he explored; and, as he knew not that Saavedra had been there formerly, he challenged the credit and honour of the discovery. Finding the natives of a black colour, with frizzled hair, he named the country on that account New Guinea. Thus, the memory of Saavedra was then almost lost, as every thing is apt to fall into oblivion, unless put upon record, and illustrated by writing.
[106] Probably Morty, the most north-easterly of the Moluccas.--E.
In June of this year, 1545, one Pedro Fidalgo, a Portuguese, sailed in a junk from the city of Borneo; but being driven to the north by contrary winds, he fell in with a large island, the south extremity of which lay in nine or ten degrees of north latitude, while it stretched to lat. 22° N. at its other end, which is called the island of Luçones, from the name of the nation by which it is inhabited. Perhaps it may have some other name, of which, as yet, we have not been informed. This island runs from the north for a great way directly south, and then takes a turn towards the south-east. It is said that Fidalgo sailed for 250 leagues along the coast of this island, which is in the midway-between Mindanao and China, and he reported that the land was fruitful, and well clothed with trees and verdure; and that the inhabitants will give two pezoes of gold for one of silver, although so near China, in which the relative value of these metals is so well understood.
In the year 1553, certain ships were sent out from England, which sailed to the northward, along the coast of Norway and Finmark, and from thence east, in seventy or eighty degrees of north latitude, till they came to Muscovy, to which country one of the ships penetrated; but I have not been able to learn what became of the rest. From the land of Muscovy, a ship may sail eastwards to Tartary, at the farthest extremity of which China is situated. It is reported that there is a wall above 200 leagues in length, between Tartary and China, in about lat. 50° N.
From all the preceding discoveries, it may be concluded, that, as the whole earth is 360 degrees, and the ancient writers allow 17–½ leagues for every degree, the entire circuit of the earth would thus be 6300 leagues; but as, in my opinion, each degree is exactly seventeen leagues, the circuit will then be only 6120 leagues. However this may be, the whole circuit of the globe has been discovered and sailed over, from east to west, even almost as it is encompassed and visited by the sun in its diurnal course. It is quite otherwise, however, in respect to the northern, and southern parts of the earth. For, towards the north pole, there has only been discovered hitherto to the latitude of 77° or 78°, which make an extent of 1347 leagues; and between the equinoctial and the south pole, there has only been discovered to the latitude of 52° or 53° south, or to the Straits of Magellan; which amounts to no more than 960 leagues. Now, adding these two together, their sum is just 2257 leagues: And, deducting this sum from 6300 leagues, there still remains to be discovered, in the north and south, 4043 leagues.
CHAPTER II.
The journey of Ambrose Contarini, ambassador from the republic of Venice to Uzun-hassan, king of Persia, in the years 1473, 4, 5, and. 6, written by himself.
INTRODUCTION.
This relation of a journey into Persia, between the years 1473 and 1477, is from a collection of voyages and travels, principally in Asia, made in the twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth , and fifteenth centuries , which was published at the Hague, in the French language, in 1735. That collection usually goes under the name of Bergeron , whose name appears on the title somewhat equivocally as the author; but who is mentioned in the advertisement as a writer belonging to the middle of the preceding century; and the only part of the work that can, be attributed to him, is a Treatise of Navigation, and of the Modern Voyages of Discovery and Conquest, especially those made by the French, &c. which serves as an introduction to this compilement. The editor of this collection gives no account of himself, or of the sources from whence he has derived his different articles; and only says, that the journal of Contarini was translated into French, that it might be published along with the other contents of his volume. From the Bibliotheque Universelle des Voyages , by G. Boucher de la Richarderie, a new work of great research, published at Paris in 1808, we learn that the journal of Contarini was published in Italian at Venice, in a duodecimo volume, in 1543. So far as is known to us, it now appears for the first time in an English translation. This article might have been more aptly placed towards the close of first part of the present collection, but escaped notice in proper time and it appears of too much importance, both in itself, and as an early document, to be omitted from punctilious attention to rigid systematic arrangement.
PREFACE OF THE AUTHOR.
"The illustrious republic of Venice, having done me the honour to appoint me ambassador to Uzun-Hassan, king of Persia, I accepted the employment with much pleasure, both that I might do acceptable service to my own country and for the general good of Christendom. I neither considered the difficulties nor the dangers of the journey, but placed my trust solely on the assistance of God; preferring the interests of my country, and of the Christian world, to my own ease and safety. On purpose to render my discoveries useful to the public, I have carefully and briefly recorded every circumstance deserving of attention, that occurred during my long and laborious journey; as relative to the provinces, cities, and places through which I travelled, and the manners and customs of the different nations among whom I sojourned. In short, I have omitted nothing deserving of notice, that occurred during my three years journey, having left Venice on the first day of Lent, in the year 1473, and having returned to my beloved country on the 24th of February in the year 1476[1]."
[1] In the latter part of this journey, the date of his return to Venice is the 10th of April.--E.
SECTION I.
The Ambassador, after passing through Germany, Poland, Russia, and the Tartarian Deserts, or Upper European Sarmatia, arrives at Caffa or Theodosia.
I left Venice on the 23d of February, in the year 1473, accompanied by the venerable priest Stephen Testa, who acted as my chaplain and secretary, and by Demetrius de Seze, my interpreter, together with two servants, Maffei de Bergamo, and John Ungaretti, all of us disguised in ordinary German dresses, our money being concealed in the clothes of Stephen Testa. We went by water in the first place to the church of St. Michael in Murano , where we heard mass, and received the benediction of the prior; after which, we mounted our horses, which were there in waiting, and reached Treviso[2] the same day. I anxiously wished to have procured some person to accompany us on the journey who knew the road, but could not meet with any, nor could I even procure a guide for hire. Leaving Treviso on the 24th, we arrived that day at Cogiensi, now called Cornegliano[3]; and knowing the dangers and difficulties we must experience during our long journey, we here confessed, and partook of the holy sacrament of the eucharist, after which we resumed our journey. We fortunately overtook a German, named Sebastian, who said he knew me and the object of my journey, and offered to keep us company to Nuremburgh. I gladly accepted of this person as a companion of our journey, inwardly thanking God for affording us a guide. We continued our journey to the frontiers