The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898—Volume 39 of 55, 1683-1690: Explorations by Early Navigators, Descriptions of the Islands and Their Peoples, Their History and Records of The Catholic Missions, As Related in Contemporaneous Books and Manuscripts, Showing the Political, Economic, Commercial and Religious Conditions of Those Islands from Their Earliest Relations with European Nations to the Close of the Nineteenth Century
History
The Philippine Islands, 1493-1898—Volume 39 of 55, 1683-1690: Explorations by Early Navigators, Descriptions of the Islands and Their Peoples, Their History and Records of The Catholic Missions, As Related in Contemporaneous Books and Manuscripts, Showing the Political, Economic, Commercial and Religious Conditions of Those Islands from Their Earliest Relations with European Nations to the Close of the Nineteenth Century
Demarcation line of Alexander VI; Missions -- Philippines; Philippines -- Discovery and exploration; Philippines -- History -- Sources
The N. East-end of the Island Luconia appears to be good Champion
Land, of an indifferent heighth, plain and even for many Leagues;
only it has some pretty high Hills standing upright by themselves in
these Plains; but no ridges of Hills, or chains of Mountains joyning
one to another. The Land on this side seems to be most Savannah,
or Pasture: The S.E. part is more Mountainous and Woody.
Leaving the Island Luconia, and with it our Golden Projects, we
sailed on to the Southward, passing on the East-side of the rest
of the Philippine Islands. These appear to be more Mountainous,
and less Woody, till we came in sight of the Island St. John; the
first of that name I mentioned: the other I spake of on the Coast of
China. This I have already described to be a very woody Island. Here
the Wind coming Southerly, forced us to keep farther from the Islands.
The 14 day of October we came close by a small low woody Island,
that lieth East from the S.E. end of Mindanao, distant from it about
20 Leagues. I do not find it set down in any Sea-Chart.
The 15th day we had the Wind at N.E. and we steered West for the Island
Mindanao, and arrived at the S.E. end again in the 16th day. There
we went in and anchored between two small Islands, which lie in
about 5 d. 10 m. North Lat. I mentioned them when we first came on
this Coast. Here we found a fine small Cove, on the N.W. end of the
Easternmost Island [i.e., Sarangani], fit to careen in, or hale ashore;
so we went in there, and presently unrigg'd our Ship, and provided to
hale our Ship ashore, to clean her bottom. These Islands are about 3
or 4 Leagues from the Island Mindanao; they are about 4 or 5 Leagues
in Circumference, and of a pretty good heighth. The Mold is black
and deep; and there are two small Brooks of fresh Water.
They are both plentifully stored with great high Trees; therefore
our Carpenters were sent ashore to cut down some of them for our
use; for here they made a new Boltsprit, which we did set here also,
our old one being very faulty. They made a new Fore-yard too, and a
Fore-top-mast: And our Pumps being faulty, and not serviceable, they
did cut a Tree to make a Pump. They first squared it, then sawed it in
the middle, and then hollowed each side exactly. The two hollow sides
were made big enough to contain a Pump-box in the midst of them both,
when they were joined together; and it required their utmost Skill to
close them exactly to the making a tight Cylinder for the Pump-box;
being unaccustomed to such work. We learnt this way of Pump-making
from the Spaniards; who make their Pumps that they use in their Ships
in the South-Seas after this manner; and I am confident that there
are no better Hand-pumps in the World than they have.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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