(M247) Nowe, to leave the Spaniardes and Frenche and to come to ourselves; seinge it hath pleased Almightie God at this instant to reveale unto her Majestie and the realme that once againe afreshe which was in part discovered by Sebastian Gabote and other this lande to her moste famous grandfather, Kinge Henry the Seaventh, was then lefte of and caste aside and not sufficiently regarded by occasion of the warres of Scotland, as Sebastian himself writes, and so hath bene intermitted for the space of aboute foure score and sixe yeares—if nowe the Queene, her Counsell, and other subjectes, shall never so little delaye the throughe managinge of the cause and enteringe effectually into the action, let them assure themselves that they will come to late, and a day after the faire; ffor as the wise man saieth, _Post est occasio calva_. (M248) For, to speake nothinge of the laste yeres preparation of the Marques de la Roche to inhabite and plante in those partes nowe discovered by oure men, which preparation was luckely overthrowne in respecte of us, by reason that his greatest shippe was cast away upon the trauers of Burwage, the men of St. John de Luze sente the laste yere to solicite the Frenche Kinge and his Counsell to plante there. And nowe our neighboures, the men of St Maloe in Brytaine, in the begynnynge of Auguste laste paste of this yere 1584. are come home with five shippes from Canada and the contries upp the Bay of St. Lawrence, and have brought twoo of the people of the contrie home, and have founde suche swete in that newe trade that they are preparinge tenne shippes to returne thither in January nexte, as one John de la Marche and Mr. Pryhouse of Garnesey affirme; which Mr. Pryhouse, beinge yet in London, was at St. Malowe within these weekes, and sawe the twoo savages, the five shippes, and the riche comodities, and understoode of the greate preparation, and lieth nowe at London, in Philpott lane, at the stone house there. And that it may be knowen that not onely the Frenche affecte this enterprise, but even the Duche longe since thoughte of yt, I can assure you that Abraham Ortelius, the great geographer, told me, at his laste beinge in England, 1577. that if the warres of Flaunders had not bene, they of the Lowe Contries had meant to have discovered those partes of America, and the north west straite, before this tyme. And yt semed that the chefe cause of his comynge to England was to no other ende, but to prye and looke into the secretes of Ffrobishers voyadge; for yt was even then, when Ffrobisher was preparinge for his first returne into the north west.