Thomas Hariot, the Mathematician, the Philosopher and the Scholar — John Shaqi
Thomas Hariot, the Mathematician, the Philosopher and the ScholarStevens, Henry
Philosophy
Thomas Hariot, the Mathematician, the Philosopher and the Scholar
Stevens, Henry
Harriot, Thomas, 1560-1621; Hercules Club
Ribault, on leaving Port Royal, intended to explore up the coast to
40°, that is, to the present site of New York, but gives various
reasons for not doing so, one of which was ‘the declaration made vnto
vs of our pilots and some others that had before been at some of those
places where we purposed to sayle and have been already found by some
of the king’s subjects.’ This little colony of Port Royal, after nearly
a year of danger and privation, built a ship and put to sea, hoping to
reach France. After incredible sufferings, they were relieved by an
English ship, which, after putting the feeble on shore, carried the
rest to England, having on board a French sailor who had come home the
previous year with Ribault. These surviving colonists were all
presented to Queen Elizabeth, and attracted much attention and great
sympathy in England. Some found their way back to France, while others
entered the English service. Thus England became acquainted with the
aim, object, success, and failure of the first Florida (now South
Carolina) Protestant French colony. Thomas Hacket published in London
the 30th of May 1563, Ribault’s ‘True and last Discouerie of Florida,’
purporting to be a translation from the French; but no printed French
original is now known to exist.
The year of bigotry, 1563, in France having passed, a second expedition
of three vessels under Réné de Laudonnière, who had been an officer
under Ribault in 1562, sailed for Florida from Havre, April 22, 1564,
and arrived at the river of May the 25th of June. There were men of
courage and consequence in this company of adventurers, among whom was
Le Moyne, the painter and mathematician. The story of the sufferings of
this second colony has often been told, and need not be repeated here.
Suffice it to say that it was greatly relieved in July 1565, by Captain
John Hawkins on his return voyage from his second famous slave
expedition to Africa and the West Indies. Hawkins, after generously
relieving the French with food, general supplies, and friendly counsel,
returned to Devonshire, sailing up the coast to Newfoundland, and
thence home, bringing stores of gold, silver, pearls, and the usual
valuable merchandize of the Indies, but the store of information
respecting Florida and our Protestant friends, and especially the
geography of the American coast, was worth more to England than all his
vast store of merchandize.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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