Sir Humphrey Gilbert's Voyage to NewfoundlandHayes, Edward, active 1602
History
Sir Humphrey Gilbert's Voyage to Newfoundland
Hayes, Edward, active 1602
Gilbert, Humphrey, Sir, 1539?-1583; Newfoundland and Labrador -- History; Voyages and travels
These considerations may help to suppress all dreads rising of hard
events in attempts made this way by other nations, as also of the heavy
success and issue in the late enterprise made by a worthy gentleman
our countryman, Sir Humfrey Gilbert, Knight, who was the first of our
nations that carried people to erect an habitation and government in
those northerly countries of America. About which albeit he had consumed
much substance, and lost his life at last, his people also perishing for
the most part: yet the mystery thereof we must leave unto God, and judge
charitably both of the cause, which was just in all pretence, and of
the person, who was very zealous in prosecuting the same, deserving
honourable remembrance for his good mind and expense of life in so
virtuous an enterprise. Whereby nevertheless, lest any man should be
dismayed by example of other folks' calamity, and misdeem that God doth
resist all attempts intended that way, I thought good, so far as myself
was an eye-witness, to deliver the circumstance and manner of our
proceedings in that action; in which the gentleman was so unfortunately
encumbered with wants, and worse matched with many ill-disposed people,
that his rare judgment and regiment premeditated for those affairs was
subjected to tolerate abuses, and in sundry extremities to hold on a
course more to uphold credit than likely in his own conceit happily to
succeed.
The issue of such actions, being always miserable, not guided by God,
who abhorreth confusion and disorder, hath left this for admonition,
being the first attempt by our nation to plant, unto such as shall take
the same cause in hand hereafter, not to be discouraged from it; but to
make men well advised how they handle His so high and excellent
matters, as the carriage is of His word into those very mighty and
vast countries. An action doubtless not to be intermeddled with base
purposes, as many have made the same but a colour to shadow actions
otherwise scarce justifiable; which doth excite God's heavy judgments
in the end, to the terrifying of weak minds from the cause, without
pondering His just proceedings; and doth also incense foreign princes
against our attempts, how just soever, who cannot but deem the sequel
very dangerous unto their state (if in those parts we should grow to
strength), seeing the very beginnings are entered with spoil.
And with this admonition denounced upon zeal towards God's cause, also
towards those in whom appeareth disposition honourable unto this action
of planting Christian people and religion in those remote and barbarous
nations of America (unto whom I wish all happiness), I will now proceed
to make relations briefly, yet particularly, of our voyage undertaken
with Sir Humfrey Gilbert, begun, continued, and ended adversely.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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