To the Honorable Sir Walter Raleigh, Knight, Captain of her Majesty's Guards, Lord Warden of the Stanneries, Lieutenant of Cornwall, and Governor of the Isle of Jersey.

Honorable Sir,-Being earnestly requested by a dear friend, to put down in writing, some true relation of our late performed voyage to the north parts of Virginia; at length I resolved to satisfy his request, who also emboldened me to direct the same to your honorable consideration; to whom indeed of duty it pertaineth.

May it please your Lordship therefore to understand, that upon the five-and-twentieth of March, 1602, being Friday, we went from Falmouth, being in all, two-and-thirty persons, in a small bark of Dartmouth, called The Concord, holding a course for the north part of Virginia: and although by chance the wind favored us not at first as we wished, but enforced us so far to the southward, as we fell in with Saint Mary, one of the islands of the Azores, (which was not much out of our way) but holding our course directly from thence, we made our journey shorter (than hitherto accustomed) by the better part of a thousand leagues, yet were we longer in our passage than we expected, which happened, for that our bark being weak, we were loth to press her with much sail; also, our sailors being few, and they none of the best, we bear (except in fair weather) but low sail; besides, our going upon an unknown coast, made us not over bold to stand in with the shore, but in open weather; which caused us to be certain days in sounding, before we discovered the coast, the weather being by chance, somewhat foggy. But on Friday, the fourteenth of May, early in the morning, we made the land, being full of fair trees, the land somewhat low, certain hammocks or hills lying into the land, the shore full of white sand, but very stony or rocky. And standing fair along by the shore, about twelve of the clock the same day, we came to an anchor, where eight Indians in a Basque-shallop with mast and sail, an iron grapple, and a kettle of copper, came boldly aboard us, one of them apparelled with a waistcoat and breeches of black serge, made after our sea-fashion, hose and shoes on his feet; all the rest (saving one that had 11

VOL. VIII.

a pair of breeches of blue cloth) were naked. These people are of tall stature, broad and grim visage, of a black swart complexion, their eyebrows painted white; their weapons are bows and arrows. It seemed by some words and signs they made, that some Basques or of St. John de Luz, have fished or traded in this place, being in the latitude of 43 degrees.

But riding here, in no very good harbor, and withal, doubting the weather, about three of the clock the same day in the afternoon we weighed, and standing southerly off into sea the rest of that day and the night following, with a fresh gale of wind, in the morning we found ourselves embayed with a mighty headland; but coming to an anchor about nine of the clock the same day, within a league of the shore, we hoisted out the one half of our shallop, and Captain Bartholomew Gosnold, myself and three others, went ashore, being a white sandy and very bold shore; and marching all that afternoon with our muskets on our necks, on the highest hills which we saw (the weather very hot,) at length we perceived this headland to be parcel of the main, and sundry islands lying almost round about it: so returning towards evening) to our shallop (for by that time the other part was brought ashore and set together) we espied an Indian, a young man, of proper stature, and of a pleasing countenance, and after some familiarity with him, we left him at the sea side, and returned to our ship; where in five or six hours' absence, we had pestered our ship so with codfish, that we threw numbers of them overboard again: and surely, I am persuaded that in the months of March, April, and May, there is upon this coast better fishing, and in as great plenty, as in Newfoundland: for the sculls of mackerel, herrings, cod, and other fish, that we daily saw as we went and came from the shore, were wonderful; and besides, the places where we took these cods (and might in a few days have laden our ship) were but in seven fathoms water, and within less than a league of the shore: where, in Newfoundland they fish in forty or fifty fathoms water, and far off.

From this place we sailed round about this headland, almost all the points of the compass, the shore very bold: but as no coast is free from dangers, so I am persuaded, this is as free as any. The land somewhat low, full of goodly

woods, but in some places plain. At length we were come amongst many fair islands, which we had partly discerned at our first landing; all lying within a league or two one of another, and the outermost not above five or seven leagues from the main but coming to an anchor under one of them,* which was about three or four leagues from the main, captain Gosnold, myself, and some others, went ashore, and going round about it, we found it to be four English miles in compass, without house or inhabitant, saving a little old house made of boughs, covered with bark, an old piece of a weare of the Indians to catch fish, and one or two places, where they had made fires. The chiefest trees of this island are beeches and cedars, the outward parts all overgrown with low bushy trees, three or four feet in height, which bear some kind of fruits, as appeared by their blossoms; strawberries, red and white, as sweet and much bigger than ours in England; raspberries, gooseberries, whortleberries, and such an incredible store of vines, as well in the woody part of the Island, where they run upon every tree, as on the outward parts, that we could not go for treading upon them; also, many springs of excellent sweet water, and a great standing lake of fresh water, near the sea-side, an English mile in compass, which is maintained with the springs running exceeding pleasantly through the woody grounds which are very rocky. Here are also in this island, great store of deer, which we saw, and other beasts, as appeared by their tracks; as also divers fowls, as cranes, hernshaws,, bitterns, geese, mallards, teals, and other fowls, in great plenty; also, great store of pease, which grow in certain plots all the island over. On the north side of this island we found many huge bones and ribs of whales. This island, as also all the rest of these islands are full of all sorts of stones fit for building; the sea sides all covered with stones, many of them glistening and shining like mineral stones, and very rocky: also, the rest of these islands are replenished with these commodities, and upon some of them, inhabitants; as upon an island to the northward, and within two leagues of this; yet we found no towns, nor many of their houses, although we saw many Indians, which are tall

* The first Island called Martha's Vineyard. Note in original.

big-boned men, all naked, saving they cover their private parts with a black towed skin, much like a blacksmiths apron, tied about their middle and between their legs behind: they gave us of their fish ready boiled, (which they carried in a basket made of twigs, not unlike our osier,) whereof we did eat, and judged them to be fresh water fish: they gave us also of their tobacco, which they drink green, but dried into powder, very strong and pleasant, and much better than any have tasted in England: the necks of their pipes are made of clay hard dried, (whereof in that island is great store both red and white,) the other part is a piece of hollow copper, very finely closed and cemented together. We gave unto them certain trifles, as knives, points, and such like, which they much esteemed.

From hence we went to another island, to the northwest of this, and within a league or two of the main, which we found to be greater than before we imagined, being sixteen English miles at the least in compass; for it containeth many pieces or necks of land, which differ nothing from several islands, saving that certain banks of small breadth do, like bridges, join them to this island. On the outsides of this island are many plain places of grass, abundance of strawberries and other berries before mentioned. In mid May we did sow in this island (for a trial) in sundry places, wheat, barley, oats, and pease, which in fourteen days were sprung up nine inches and more. The soil is fat and lusty, the upper crust of grey color; but a foot or less in depth, of the color of our hemplands in England; and being thus apt for these and the like grains; the sowing or setting (after the ground is closed) is no greater labor, than if you should set or sow in one of our best prepared gardens in England. *This island is full of high timbered oaks, their leaves thrice so broad as ours; cedars, straight and tall; beech, elm, holly, walnut trees in abundance, the fruit as big as ours, as appeared by those we found under the trees, which had lain all the year ungathered; hazle-nut trees, cherry trees, the leaf, bark and bigness not differing from ours in England, but the stalk beareth the blossoms or fruit at the end thereof, like a cluster of grapes, forty or fifty in a bunch; sassafras

Here begins the extract in Purchas.

trees, great plenty all the island over, a tree of high price and profit; also, divers other fruit trees, some of them with strange barks of an orange color, in feeling soft and smooth like velvet in the thickest parts of these woods, you may see a furlong or more round about. On the north-west side of this island, near to the sea-side, is a standing lake of fresh water, almost three English miles in compass, in the midst whereof stands a plot of woody ground, an acre in quantity or not above: this lake is full of small tortoises, and exceedingly frequented with all sorts of fowls before rehearsed, which breed, some low on the banks, and others on low trees about this lake in great abundance, whose young ones of all sorts we took and eat at our pleasure: but all these fowls are much bigger than ours in England. Also, in every island, and almost in every part of every island, are great store of ground-nuts, forty together on a string, some of them as big as hen's eggs; they grow not two inches under ground: the which nuts we found to be as good as potatoes. Also, divers sorts of shell-fish, as scollops, muscles, cockles, lobsters, crabs, oysters, and wilks, exceeding good and very great.

But not to cloy you with particular rehearsal of such things as God and nature hath bestowed on these places, in comparison whereof the most fertile part of England is (of itself) but barren we went in our light-horseman from this island to the main, right against this island some two leagues off, where coming ashore, we stood awhile like men ravished at the beauty and delicacy of this sweet soil; for besides divers clear lakes of fresh water, (whereof we saw no end) meadows very large and full of green grass; even the most woody places (I speak only of such as I saw,) do grow so distinct and apart, one tree from another, upon green grassy ground, somewhat higher than the plains, as if nature would show herself above her power, artificial. Hard by we espied seven Indians, and coming up to them, at first they expressed some fear; but being emboldened by our courteous usage, and some trifles which we gave them, they followed us to a neck of land, which we imagined had been severed from the main; but finding it otherwise, we perceived a broad harbor or river's mouth, which ran up into the main; and because the day was far spent, we were forced to return to