The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques, and Discoveries of The English Nation — Volume 12: America, Part IHakluyt, Richard
History
The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques, and Discoveries of The English Nation — Volume 12: America, Part I
Hakluyt, Richard
Discoveries in geography -- English; Voyages and travels
The reason alleadged for proofe of the contrary may be disproued after this
maner. And first it may be called in controuersie, whether any current
continually be forced by the motion of Primum mobile, round about the
world, or no: For learned men doe diuersly handle that question. [Sidenote:
Luc. lib. 1. Pharsal.] The naturall course of all waters is downeward,
wherefore of congruence they fall that way where they finde the earth most
lowe and deepe: in respect whereof, it was erst sayd, the seas doe strike
from the Northern landes Southerly. Violently the seas are tossed and
troubled diuers wayes with the windes, encreased and diminished by the
course of the Moone, hoised vp and downe through the sundry operations of
the Sunne and the starres: finally, some be of opinion, that the seas be
carried in part violently about the world, after the dayly motion of the
highest moueable heauen, in like maner as the elements of ayre and fire,
with the rest of the heauenly spheres, are from the East vnto the West.
[Sidenote: What the Easterne current is.] And this they doe call their
Easterne current, or leuant stream. Some such current may not be denied to
be of great force in the hot Zone, for the neerenesse thereof vnto the
centre of the Sunne, and blustering Easterne windes violently driuing the
seas Westwards: howbeit, in the temperate climes, the Sunne being further
off, and the windes more diuers, blowing as much from the North, the West
and South, as from the East, this rule doeth not effectually withholde vs
from trauailing Eastward, neither be we kept euer backe by the aforesaid
Leuant windes and streame. But in the Magellans streight wee are violently
driuen backe West: Ergo, through the Northwesterne straight or Annian
frette shall we not be able to returne Eastward? It followeth not. The
first, for that the northwesterne straight hath more sea roome at the least
by one hundreth English myles, than Magellans frette hath, the onely want
whereof causeth all narrow passages generally to be most violent. So would
I say in the Anian gulfe, if it were so narrow as Don Diego and Zalterius
haue painted it out, any returne that way to bee full of difficulties, in
respect of such streightnesse thereof, not for the neerenesse of the Sunne,
or Easterne windes violently forcing that way any leuant streame: But in
that place there is more sea roome by many degrees, if the Cardes of
Cabota, and Gemma Frisius, and that which Tramezine imprinted be true.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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