The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 07: England's Naval Exploits Against SpainHakluyt, Richard
History
The Principal Navigations, Voyages, Traffiques and Discoveries of the English Nation — Volume 07: England's Naval Exploits Against Spain
Hakluyt, Richard
Discoveries in geography -- English; Voyages and travels
If any man presume here so farre, as to enquire how it chanced, that the
Lords generall rested so long at Cadiz, and went no farther, and why Port
S. Mary being so faire a towne, and so neere to them, was forborne? and why
Sheres aliàs Xeres? And why Rotta and the like? And why this or that was
done? And why that or this left vndone? I will not answere him with our
common English prouerbe, as I might, which is: That one foole may aske moe
questions in one houre, then ten discrete men can wel answere in fiue
dayes.
But that graue auncient writer, Cornelius Tacitus, hath a wise, briefe,
pithy saying, and it is this: "Nemo tentauit inquirere in columnas
Herculis, sanctiúsque ac reuerentius habitum est de factis Deorum credere,
quàm scire." Which saying, in my fancy, fitteth marueilous well for this
purpose: and so much the rather, for that this Cadiz is that very place,
(at least by the common opinion) where those said pillers of Hercules were
thought to be placed: and, as some say, remaine as yet not farre off to be
seene. But to let that passe, the saying beareth this discrete meaning in
it, albeit in a prety kind of mystical maner vttered: That it befitteth not
inferiour persons to be curious, or too inquisitiue after Princes actions,
neither yet to be so sawcy and so malapert, as to seeke to diue into their
secrets, but rather alwayes to haue a right reuerend conceite and opinion
of them, and their doings: and thereon so resting our inward thoughts, to
seek to go no further, but so to remaine ready alwaies to arme our selues
with dutiful minds, and willing obedience, to perform and put in execution
that which in their deepe insight and heroicall designements, they shall
for our good, and the care of the common wealth determine vpon.
This, and much lesse to, might suffice to satisfie any honest minded man.
But yet if any will needs desire to be a little farther satisfied, albeit
it neede not, yet then, this much I dare say and affirme, that vpon my
knowledge, the chiefest cause why Port Saint Mary, and the rest were left
vntouched, was this: For that it was most certainly knowen, that they were
townes not woorth the saluting of such a royal companie, in which there was
no maner of wealth in the world left, more then bare houses of stone, and
standing walles, and might well haue serued rather as a stale, perchance,
to haue entrapped, then as a meanes to haue enriched. And it had bin more
then a suspicion of follie, for such an army as this, to haue sought to
fight with the aire, and to haue laboured with great paine and charges,
yea, and with some euident danger too, to haue ouerthrowen that, which
could very litle or nothing haue profited, being destroyed: and yet nowe,
can doe as little harme being left, as it is, vntouched.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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