The first voyage round the world, by Magellan : $b translated from the accounts of Pigafetta, and other contemporary writersPigafetta, Antonio
History
The first voyage round the world, by Magellan : $b translated from the accounts of Pigafetta, and other contemporary writers
Pigafetta, Antonio
Magalhães, Fernão de, -1521; Voyages around the world -- Early works to 1800
Wednesday, the 6th of November, having passed beyond these two islands,
we discovered four other rather high islands at a distance of fourteen
leagues towards the east. The pilot who had remained with us told us
those were the Maluco islands, for which we gave thanks to God, and to
comfort ourselves we discharged all our artillery. It need not cause
wonder that we were so much rejoiced, since we had passed twenty-seven
months less two days always in search of Maluco, wandering for that
object among the immense number of islands. But I must say that near
all these islands the least depth that we found was one hundred
fathoms, for which reason attention is not to be given to all that the
Portuguese have spread, according to whom the islands of Maluco are
situated in seas which cannot be navigated on account of the shoals,
and the dark and foggy atmosphere.
Friday, the 8th November of 1521, three hours before sunset, we
entered a port of the island called Tadore,[365] and having gone near
the shore, we cast anchor in twenty fathoms, and discharged all our
artillery. Next day the king came to the ships in a prahu, and went
round them. We went to meet him with a boat to show him honour, and
he made us enter his prahu, and sit near him. He was sitting under a
silk umbrella, which sheltered him. In front of him was his son with
the royal sceptre, there were also two men with gold vases to give him
water for his hands, and two others with gilt caskets full of betel.
The king gave us a welcome, and said that a long time back he had
dreamed that some ships were coming to Maluco from distant countries,
and that to assure himself with respect to this, he had examined the
moon, and he had seen that they were really coming, and that indeed
they were our ships. After that he came on board our ships, and we all
kissed his hand: we then conducted him to the poop, but he, in order to
avoid stooping, would not enter the cabin except by the upper opening.
We made him sit down on a chair of red velvet, and placed on him a
Turkish robe of yellow velvet. In order to do him more honour we sat
down before him on the ground. When he had heard who we were, and what
was the object of our voyage, he said that he and all his people were
well content to be the most faithful friends and vassals of the King
of Spain; that he received us in this island as his own sons; that we
might go on shore and remain there as in our own houses; and that his
island for the future should not be named Tadore, but Castile, in proof
of the great love he bore to the king our master. Then we presented to
him the chair on which he sat, and the robe which we had put on him, a
piece of fine linen, four ells of scarlet cloth, a robe of brocade, a
cloth of yellow damask, a piece of the whitest Cambay linen, two caps,
six strings of glass beads, twelve knives, three large mirrors, six
scissors, six combs, some gilt goblets, and other things. We gave to
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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