conjectures as learned men have offered to the world. The Romans by conquering Carthage, put a ftop to great part of the trade of diftant nations with one another, and because they thought only on war and conqueft, as their empire increased, commerce was difcouraged; till under the latter emperors, fhips feem to have been of little other use than to tranfport foldiers.

Navigation could not be carried to any great degree of certainty without the compafs, which was unknown to the ancients. The wonderful quality by which a needle, or finall bar of steel, touched with a loadstone or magnet, and turning freely by equilibration on a point, always preferves the meridian, and directs its two ends north and fouth, was dif covered according to the common opinion in 1299, by John Gola of Amalfi, a town in Italy.

From this time it is reasonable to fuppofe that navigation made continual, though flow improvements, which the confufion and barbarity of the times, and the want of communication between orders of men fo diftant as failors and monks, hindered from being diftinctly and fucceffively recorded.

It feems, however, that the failors ftill wanted either knowledge or courage, for they continued for two centuries to creep along the coaft, and confidered every headland as unpaffable, which ran far into the fea, and against which the waves broke with uncommon agitation.

The first who is known to have formed the defign of new difcoveries, or the first who had power to execute his purpofes, was Don Henry the fifth, fon of

Bb 4

John,

There was yet little progrefs made upon the fouthern coaft, and Henry's project was treated as chimerical by many of his countrymen. At last Gilianes, in 1433, paffed the dreadful cape, to which he gave the name of Bajador, and came back to the wonder of the nation.

In two voyages more, made in the two following years, they paffed forty-two leagues farther, and in the latter, two men with horfes being set on fhore, wandered over the country, and found nineteen men, whom, according to the favage manners of that age, they attacked; the natives having javelins, wounded one of the Portuguese, and received fome wounds from them. At the mouth of a river they found fea-wolves in great numbers, and brought home many of their fkins, which were much efteemed.

Antonio Gonzales, who had been one of the affociates of Gilianes, was fent again, in 1440, to bring back a cargo of the fkins of fea wolves. He was followed in another fhip by Nunno Triftam. They were now of ftrength fufficient to venture upon violence, they therefore landed, and without either right or provocation, made all whom they feized their prifoners, and brought them to Portugal, with great commendations both from the prince and the

nation.

Henry now began to pleafe himself with the fuccels of his projects, and as one of his purposes was the converfion of infidels, he thought it neceffary to impart his undertaking to the pope, and to obtain the fanction of ecclefiaftical authority. To this end Fernando Lopez d'Azevedo was difpatched to Rome,

who

who related to the pope and cardinals the great defigns of Henry, and magnified his zeal for the propagation of religion.. The pope was pleased with the narrative, and by a formal bull, conferred upon the crown of Portugal all the countries which fhould be discovered as far as India, together with India itself, and granted feveral privileges and indulgences to the churches which Henry had built in his new regions, and to the men engaged in the navigation for discovery. By this bull all other princes were forbidden to encroach upon the conquefts of the Portuguese, on pain of the cenfures incurred by the crime of ufurpation.

The approbation of the pope, the fight of men. whose manners and appearance were fo different from those of Europeans, and the hope of gain from golden regions, which has been always the great incentive to hazard and difcovery, now began to operate with full force. The defire of riches, and of dominion, which is yet more pleafing to the fancy, filled the courts of the Portuguese prince with innumerable adventurers from very diftant parts of Europe. Some wanted to be employed in the search after new countries, and fome to be settled in those which had been already found.

Communities now began to be animated by the fpirit of enterprise, and many affociations were formed for the equipment of fhips, and the acquifition of the riches of diftant regions, which perhaps were always fuppofed to be more wealthy, as more remote. Thefe undertakers agreed to pay the prince a fifth part of the profit, fometimes a greater

share,

fhare, and fent out the armament at their own expence.

The city of Legos was the first that carried on this defign by contribution. The inhabitants fitted out fix veffels, under the command of Lucarot, one of the prince's household, and foon after fourteen more were furnished for the fame purpose, under the fame commander; to thofe were added many belonging to private men, fo that in a fhort time twenty-fix fhips put to fea in queft of whatever fortune fhould prefent.

The fhips of Lagos were foon feparated by foul weather, and the reft, taking each its own course, ftopped at different parts of the African coaft, from Cape Blanco to Cape Verd. Some of them, in 1444, anchored at Gomera, one of the Canaries, where they were kindly treated by the inhabitants, who took them into their fervice against the people of the ifle of Palma, with whom they were at war; but the Portuguese at their return to Gomera, not being made fo rich as they expected, fell upon their friends, in contempt of all the laws of hofpitality and ftipulations of alliance, and, making feveral of them prifoners and flaves, fet fail for Lisbon.

The Canaries are fuppofed to have been known, however imperfectly, to the ancients; but in the confufion of the fubfequent ages they were loft and forgotten, till about the year 1340, the Bifcayners found Lucarot, and invading it (for to find a new country and invade it has always been the fame), brought away feventy captives, and fome commodities of the place. Louis de la Cerda, count of Clermont,

who related to the pope and cardinals the great defigns of Henry, and magnified his zeal for the propagation of religion.. The pope was pleafed with the narrative, and by a formal bull, conferred upon the crown of Portugal all the countries which fhould be discovered as far as India, together with India itself, and granted feveral privileges and indulgences to the churches which Henry had built in his new regions, and to the men engaged in the navigation for discovery. By this bull all other princes were forbidden to encroach upon the conquefts of the Portuguese, on pain of the cenfures incurred by the crime of ufurpation.

The approbation of the pope, the fight of men whose manners and appearance were fo different from thofe of Europeans, and the hope of gain from golden regions, which has been always the great incentive to hazard and difcovery, now began to operate with full force. The defire of riches, and of dominion, which is yet more pleafing to the fancy, filled the courts of the Portuguese prince with innumerable adventurers from very distant parts of Europe. Some wanted to be employed in the search after new countries, and fome to be fettled in those which had been already found.

Communities now began to be animated by the fpirit of enterprife, and many affociations were formed for the equipment of fhips, and the acquifition of the riches of diftant regions, which perhaps were always fuppofed to be more wealthy, as more remote. Thefe undertakers agreed to pay the prince a fifth part of the profit, fometimes a greater

fhare,