The Trauailes of an English man CONTAINING HIS SVNDRIE CAlamities indured by the space of twentie and odd yeres in his absence from his natiue Countrie wherein is truly decyphered the sundrie shapes of wilde Beasts Birds Fishes Foules rootes plants c. With the description of a man that appeared in the Sea and also of a huge Giant brought from China to the King of Spaine No lesse pleasant than approued By I. H. Published with authoritie Imprinted at London for William Wright and are to be solde at his shop neere vnto Pauls Schoole 1591. SEMPER EADEM TO THE MOST HIGH AND MIGHtie Princesse Elizabeth by the grace of God Queene of England France and Ireland defendres of the faith c. Your Highnes most humble subiect I. H. heartely praieth for the continuance of your Maiesties most prosperous raigne ABout xxiii yeeres past most gracious and renowmed Soueraigne being prest forth for one of the Gunners in your Maiesties ships for the West Indian voiage of which Sir Iohn Haukins was general such was our successe before his returne into England we were distrest through want of victuals nor could we obtaine anie for money by meanes whereof many of vs though vnto our Generals great griefe were constrained to be set on shoare in the West Indies amongst the wilde Indians Since which time most dread Soueraigne I haue passed sundrie perilles there in the wildernesses and escaped many dangers wherein my life stood often in hazard yet by the prouidence of the Almightie I was preserued And being now returned into to my natiue Countrie of England I doe in all humblenesse prostrate my selfe together with the discourse of my trauels at your Highnes feete humbly beseeching your Maiestie to accept the same at your subiects hands as our Sauiour Iesus Christ accepted the poore widowes mite And thus I humbly take my leaue praying for the prosperous raigne of your most excellent Maiestie The late and wonderfull Trauaile of an Englishman with his slauerie and miserie sustained for 23. yeeres space together NOt vntruly nor without cause said Iob the faithful seruant of God whome the sacred Scriptures tell vs to haue dwelt in the lande of Hus that man beeing borne of a woman liuing a short time â—s replenished with many miseries which some knowe by reading of histories many by the viewe of others calamities and I by experience in my selfe as this present Treatise insuing shall shew It is not vnknowne vnto many that I I. H. pouder-maker was borne at Bourne a Towne in Lincolnshire from my age of twelue yeeres brought vp in Redriffe neere London with M. Frauncis Lee who was the Queenes Maiesties powder-maker whome I serued vntill I was prest to goe on the voiage to the West Indies with the Right worshipful Sir Iohn Haukins who appointed mee to be one of the Gunners in her Maiesties shippe called the Iesus of Libbicke who set saile from Plimmouth in the moneth of October 1567. hauing with him an other shippe of her Maiesties called the Minion and foure shippes of his owne namely the Angell the Swallow the Iudith and the William and Iohn He directed his Vizeadmirall that if foule weather did separate them to meete at the Iland of Tennerif After which by the space of seuen daies and seuen nights we had such storms at Sea that we lost our long boates and a pinnisse with some men comming to the Tennerif there our Generall heard that his vizeadmirall with the Swallow and the William and Iohn were at the Iland called the Gomero where finding his vizeadmirall hee ancored tooke in fresh water and set saile for Cape Blanke where in the way we tooke a Portugall Caruill laden with fish called Mullets from thence to Cape de Verde In our course thither we met a Frenchman of Rochell called Captaine Bland who had taken a Portugall Caruill whome our vizeadmirall chafed and tooke Sir Frauncis Drake was made Master and Captaine of the Caruill and so weekept our way till wee came to Cape de Verde and there we ancored tooke our boates and set soldiers on shore Our Generall was the first that leapt on land with him Captain Dudley there we tooke certain Negros but not without damage to our selues for our General Captaine Dudley and eight other of our company were hurt with poysoned arrowes about nine daies after the eight that were wounded died Our Generall was taught by a Negro to draw the poyson out of his wound with a cloue of garlicke whereby he was cured FroÌ„ thence we went to Surroleon where be monstrous fishes called Sharkes which wil deuoure men I amongst others was sent in the Angell with two pinnaces into the riuer called the Calouses that were there trading with the Negros we tooke one of them with the Negroes brought them away In this riuer in the night time we had one of our pinnaces bulged by a sea-horse so that our men swimming about the riuer were all taken into the other pinnaces except two that tooke holde one of another and were carried awaie by the sea horse who hath the iust proportion of a horse sauing that his legs be short his teeth verie great and a span in length he vseth on the night to go on land into the woodes seeking at vnawares to deuour the Negros in their cabbins whom they by their vigilancie preuent and kill them in this manner The Negros keepe watch and diligently attend their comming and when they are gone into the woodes they forthwith laie a great tree ouerthwart the waie so that at their returne for that their legs be so short they cannot go ouer it then the Negroes set vppon them with their bowes arrowes and darts and so destroy them From thence we entered the riuer called the Causterus where there were other Caruelles trading with the Negros and them we tooke In this Iland betwixt the riuer and the maine Trees grow with their rootes vpwards and Oisters vpon them There grow Palmita trees which be as high as a ships maine mast on their tops grow nuts wine and oyle which they call Palmita wine and Palmita oyle The Plantine trees also grow in that countrie the tree is as big as a mans thigh and as high as a firre pole the leaues thereof be long broade and on the top grow the fruit which is called Plantaines they are crooked and a cubite long and as big as a mans wrist they grow on clusters when they be ripe they be verie good and daintie to eate Suger is not more delicate in tast than they be In this land bee Elyphants which the Negros kill in this manner they seke out their hants where they rest in the night which is against a tree that they saw three partes in sunder so that when the Elephant leaneth and stretch himselfe against it the tree falleth he with it then he roareth wherby the Negros know he is fallen then they come vpon him and kill him From thence with
the Angell the Iudith and the pinnaces wee failed to Surreleon where our Generall at that time was who with the Captaines and souldiers went vp into the riuer called the Faggarine to take a towne of the Negroes where he found three kings of that Countrie with fiftie thousand Negroes beseeging the same towne which they could not take in many yeeres before that they had warred with it Our Generall made a breach entered and valiantlie tooke the towne wherein were founde fiue Portugals which yeelded themselues to his mercie and hee saued their liues we tooke and carried thence for trafficke of the West Indies fiue hundred Negroes The three kings droue seuen thousand Negros into the sea at low water at the point of the land where they were all drowned in the oze for that they could not take their canowes to saue themselues Wee retourued backe againe in our pinnaces to the shippes and there tooke in fresh water and made readie sayle towards Reogrande At our comming thether we entred with the Angel the Iudith and the two pinnasses we found there seuen Portugall Caruils which made great fight with vs. In the end by Gods helpe wee won the victory and droue them to the shore from whence with the Negroes they fled we fetcht the caruils from the shore into the riuer The next morning sir Frances Drake with his Caruell the Swallow the William and Iohn came into the riuer with Captaine Dudley and his soldiers who landed being but a hundred souldiers and fought with seauen thousande Negroes burned the towne and returned to our Generall with the losse of one man In that place there be many muske cats which breed in hollow trees the Negroes take them in a net and put them in a cage and nourish them verie daintily take the muske from them with a spoone Heere we left the Ethyope land And tooke the Indian voiage in hand Heere by the way died Captaine Dudley In sayling towards the Indies the first land that wee escried was the Iland called Domineco where at our comming we ancored tooke in fresh water and wood for our prouision which done we sayled towardes the Iland called Margarita where our Generall in despite of the Spanyardes ancored landed and tooke in fresh victuals A mile off the Iland there is a rocke in the sea wherein do breede many fowles like vnto Barnacles in the night wee went out in our boates and with cudgels wee killed many of them and wee brought them with many of their egges abord with vs their egges be as bigge as Turkies egges and speckled like them wee did eate them and found them very good meat From thence wee sayled to Burborata which is in the maine lande of the West Indies there we came in mored our shippes and tarryed two moneths trimming and dressing our shippes and in the meane time trading with certaine Spanyards of that cuntry There our Generall sent vs vnto a Towne called Placentia which stood on a high hil to haue intreated a Bishop that dwelt there for his fauour and frendship in their lawes who hearing of our comming for feare forsoke the Towne wherevpon one of our companie made these English verses following Vnto the Bishop we were sent To craue his fauour in the lawes He knew not the good that we ment He fled for feare and not for cause We tooke such a iourney vp the hill That few or none haue done so ill In our way vp the hill to Placentia wee found a monstrous venemous worme with two heads his bodie was as bigge as a mans arme and a yard long our maister Robert Barret did cutte him in sunder with his swoord and it made it as blacke as if it were coloured with ynke Heere bee many Tygers monstrous and furious beasts which by subtletie deuoure and destroy many men they vse the traded waies and will shewe themselues twise or thrise to the trauellers and so depart secretly lurking till they be past then sodainly and at vnawares they leape vpon them and deuoure them they had so vsed two of our companie had not one of them looked behind Our Generall sent three ships vnto the Iland called Corussa to make prouision for the rest where they remained vntill his comming Hee sent from thence the Angell and the Iudith to Riuer de hache where we ancored before the towne The Spanyards shot three peeces at vs from the shore whome we requited with two of ours and shotte through the Gouernors house we wayed ancor ancored againe without shot of the towne where we rid fiue daies in despite of the Spanyards and their shot In the meane space there came a Caruil of aduise from S. Domingo whom with the Angell and the Iudith we chased and droue to the shore we fetcht him from thence spite of 200 Spanyards hargabush shot and ancored again before the towne and rid there with him till our Generals comming who ancored landed his men and valiantly tooke the Towne with the losse of one man whose name was Thomas Surgeon wee landed and planted on the shore for our safties our field ordināce wee droue the Spanyards vp into the country aboue two leagues wherby they were inforced to trade with our Generall to whō he sold most part of his Negros In this riuer we killed a monstrous Alagarta in this port at Sunne set seuen of vs went in the pinnice vp into the Riuer carrying with vs a dogge vnto whom with rope yarne wee bound a great hooke of steele with a chaine that had a swiuel which wee put vnder the dogs belly the point of the hooke cōming ouer his back fast bound as aforesaid we put him ouer bord vered out our rope by little little rowing away with our boate the Alagarta came and presently swallowed vp the dogge then did we rowe hard till we had choked him hee plunged and made a wonderfull sturre in the water we leapt on shore and haled him on lande he was 23 foote by the rule headed like a hogge in bodie like a serpent full of scales as broad as a sawcer his taile long and full of knots as bigge as a fawcon shotte he hath foure legges his feete haue long nailes like vnto a dragon we opened him tooke out his guttes flead him dried his skinne stuffed it with strawe meaning to haue brought it home had not the shippe been cast away This monster wil carrie away and deuoure both man and horse Nowe to S. Amart where wee landed traded and solde certaine Negros there two of our companie killed a monstrous adder going towards his caue with a cunnie in his mouth his bodie was as bigge as anie mans thigh and seuen foot long vpon his tayle he had sixteene knottes euerie one as bigge as a great walnut which they say do shew his age his colour was green and yellowe they opened him and found two cunnies in his bellie From thence to Cartagene where we went in mored our ships and would
haue traded with them but they durst not for feare of the king we brought vp the Minnion against the Castell and shotte at the Castell and Towne these we landed in an Iland where were many gardens there in a caue we found certain Buttesios of wine which wee brought away with vs in recompence whereof our Generall commaunded to bee set on shore woollen and linnen cloth to the value thereof From hence by foule weather wee were forced to seeke the port of S. Iohn de Lowe in our way twhart of Campeche wee met with a Spanyard a small ship who was bound for Santa Domingo he had in him a Spanyard called Augustine de villa noua that was he that betrayed all the Noble men in the Indies caused them to be beheaded wherefore he with two Friers with him fled to S. Domingo them wee tooke and brought with vs into the port of S. Iohn de Low Our Generall made a great account of him and vsed him like a Noble man in the ende he was one of them that betrayed vs when we had mored our shippes and landed we mounted the ordinance that wee found there in the Iland and for our safeties kept watch and ward Two daies after wee discouered the Spanish fleete wherof Lushon a Spanyard was Generall with him came a Spanyard called Don Martin Henerico whō the king of Spaine sent to bee his vize-king of the Indies He sent a pinnice with a flagge of truce vnto our Generall to know of what Countrie those ships were that rode there in the King of Spaines port who sayd they were the Q. of Englandes ships which came in there for victuals for their mony for the which if your Generall will come in here he shall giue me victualles and all other necessaries and I will go out on the one side of the port and he shall come in on the other side The Spaniard returned for answere that he was a vize king had a thousand men and therefore he would come in Our Generall sayd if he bee a vize king I represent my Queenes person I am a vize king as well as he and if he haue a thousand men my pouder and shot will take the better place Then the vize king after counsell among themselues yeelded to our Generals demaund swearing by his King and his Crowne by his commission and authoritie that hee had from his King that he would performe it and therevpon pledges were giuen on both parts Our Generall bearing a godly and Christian mind voide of fraud and deceite iudged the Spanyards to haue done the like deliuered to them six Gentlemen not doubting to haue receiued the like from them but the faithlesse Spanyardes in costly apparell gaue of the basest of their companie as afterwardes it was well knowne These things finished proclamation was made on both sides that on payne of death no occasion should be giuen whereby any quarrel should growe to the breach of the league and then they peaceably entered the port with great triumph on both sides The Spanyards presently brought a great Hulke a ship of nine hundred and mored her by the side of the Minion and they cut out ports in their other shippes planting their ordenance towards vs in the night they filled the Hulke with men to lay the Minion aboord as the sequel did shew which made our General doutfull of their dealinges wherefore for that hee could speake the Spanish toong hee sent Robert Barret aboord the vize-king to knowe his meaning in those dealings who willed him with his company to come in to him whome he commaunded presently to bee sette in the bilbowes and foorthwith a Cornet for a watchword among the false Spanyards was sounded for the enterprising of their pretended treason against our Generall whome Augustine de villa noua sitting at dinner with him should then presently haue killed with a poynado which hee had priuily in his sleeue which was espyed and preuented by one Iohn Chamberlaine who tooke the poynado out of his sleeue Our Generall hastily rose vp and commaunded him to bee put prisoner in the Steward roome and to bee kept with two men The faithlesse Spanyards thinking all things to their desire had beene finished sodainely sounded a Trumpet and therewith three hundred Spanyards entred the Minion whereat our Generall with a lowde and fierce voyce called vnto vs saying God and Saint George vpon those trayterous villaines and rescue the Minnion I trust in God the day shall bee ours and with that the Marriners and soldiers leapt out of th Iesus of Libbicke into the Minnion and beate out the Spanyardes and with a shotte out of her fiered the Spanyards vize-admirall where the most part of three hundred Spanyardes were spoyled and blowne ouer boord with powder Their Admiral also was on fier half an houre wee cutte our cables wound off our shippes and presently fought with them they came vpon vs on euery side and continued the fight from tenne of the clocke vntill it was night they kylled all our men that were on shore in the Iland sauing three which by swimming got aboord the Iesus of Libicke They sunke the Generals ship called the Angell and tooke the Swallow the Spanyards admiral had aboue threescore shot through her many of his men were spoyled foure other of their shippes were sunke there were in that fleete and that came from the shore to rescue them fifteene hundred we slew of them fiue hundred and fortie as wee were credebly infourmed by a note that came to Mexico In this fight the Iesus of Libicke had fiue shot through her maine mast her fore-mast was stroke in sunder vnder the hounds with a chaine shot and her hull was wonderfully pearced with shot therfore it was vnpossible to bring hir awaie They set two of their own ships on fire intending therwith to haue burnt the Iesus of Libbicke which wee preuented by cutting our cables in the halfe and winding off by our sternefast The Minion was forced to set saile stand off from vs and come to an ancor without shot of the Iland Our Generall couragiously cheered vp his soldiers and Gunners and called to Samuel his page for a cup of Beere who brought it him in a siluer cup and he drinking to al his men willed the Gunners to stand by their ordenance lustily like men He had no sooner set the cup out of his hand but a demy Culuerine shot stroke away the cup a Coopers plaine that stood by the maine mast ran out on the other side of the ship which nothing dismaied our Generall for hee ceased not to incourage vs saying feare nothing for God who hath preserued mee from this shot will also deliuer vs from these traytors and villaines Then captaine Bland meaning to haue turned out of the port had his main mast stroke ouer bord with a chainshot that came from the shore wherefore hee ancored fired his ship tooke his pinnice with all his men