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
The’ Brave’ and the ‘Roe’ with this slender equipment passed the bar of
Bideford the 22nd of April, just six months after the return of the
Governor, a small fleet with small hope. Had it been larger its going
forth would not have been permitted. The Governor remained behind,
thinking he could serve the Colony better in England. But the sailors
of the little ‘Brave’ and ‘Roe’ had caught the fighting mania before
they sailed, and instead of going with all speed to the relief of
Virginia, scoured the seas for rich prizes, and like two little
fighting cocks let loose attacked every sail they caught sight of,
friend or foe. The natural consequence was that before they reached
Madeira (they took the southern course for the sake of plunder) they
had been several times thoroughly whipped, and ‘all thinges spilled’ in
their fights. ‘By this occasion, God iustly punishing the theeuerie of
our euil disposed mariners, we were of force constrained to break of
our voyage intended for the reliefe of our Colony left the yere before
in Virginia, and the same night to set our course for England.’ In a
month from their departure they recrossed the bar of Bideford, their
voyage having been a disgraceful failure, yet the doings of these two
miniature corsairs are recorded in Hakluyt manifestly only as specimens
of English pluck, a British quality always admired, however much
misdirected. Meanwhile no tidings of the ‘Second colonie’ and worse
still, no tidings or help had the Second Colony received all this long
time from England. And even to this day the echo is ‘no tidings’ and no
help from home. This then may be called the first and great human
sacrifice that savage America required of civilized England before
yielding to her inevitable destiny.
And so it was that Virginia and the Armada Year shook the fortunes of
Raleigh and compelled him to assign a portion of his Patent and
privileges under it to divers gentlemen and merchants of London. This
document, in which are included and protected the charter rights of
White and others in the ‘City of Raleigh,’ bears date the 7th of March
1589. Matters being thus settled, with more capital and new life a
‘Fifth Expedition’ was fitted out in 1590 in which Governor White went
out to carry aid, and to reinforce his long neglected colony of 1587.
Not one survivor was found, and White returned the same year in every
way unsuccessful. He soon after retired to Raleigh’s estates in
Ireland, and the last heard of him is a long letter to his friend
Hakluyt ‘from my house at Newtowne in Kylmore the 4th of February
1593.’
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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