Sir Francis Drake's Famous Voyage Round the World by Francis Pretty
page 23 of 32 (71%)
page 23 of 32 (71%)
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At our departure hence our General set up a monument of our being there,
as also of her Majesty's right and title to the same; namely a plate, nailed upon a fair great post, whereupon was engraved her Majesty's name, the day and year of our arrival there, with the free giving up of the province and people into her Majesty's hands, together with her Highness' picture and arms, in a piece of six pence of current English money, under the plate, whereunder was also written the name of our General. It seemeth that the Spaniards hitherto had never been in this part of the country, neither did ever discover the land by many degrees to the southwards of this place. After we had set sail from hence, we continued without sight of land till the 13th day of October following, which day in the morning we fell with certain islands eight degrees to the northward of the line, from which islands came in a great number of _canoas_, having in some of them four, in some six, and in some also fourteen men, bringing with them cocos and other fruits. Their _canoas_ were hollow within and cut with great art and cunning, being very smooth within and without, and bearing a gloss as if it were a horn daintily burnished, having a prow and a stern of one sort, yielding inward circle-wise, being of a great height, and full of certain white shells for a bravery; and on each side of them lie out two pieces of timber about a yard and a half long, more or less, according to the smallness or bigness of the boat. These people have the nether part of their ears cut into a round circle, hanging down very low upon their cheeks, whereon they hang things of a reasonable weight. The nails of their hands are an inch long, their teeth are as black as pitch, and they renew them often, by eating of an herb with a kind of powder, which they always carry about them in a cane for the same |
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