Selected quad for the lemma: land_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A39220
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Eliana a new romance / formed by an English hand.
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1661
(1661)
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Wing E499; ESTC R31411
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400,303
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298
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fell to mending the tackle which had been shaken by the wind and to do their endeavours to return out of that incognitous sea Bearing for some dayes to the North-East a youth at last from the summit of the Mast discovered land which was no small joy to the weaâ—ied Mariners and affrighted Passengers Having attained to that shore we had seen we entred a large river which after many â—alls from the mountain embosom'd it self there into the Sea Clearing the mists of sadness from our eyes we went on shore where we found a sufficient shelter against the penetrating beams of the Sun falling almost perpendiculâ—r ore our heads in large and overgrown woods which were stor'd with the light-heel'd-harts and branched horn'd stags After we had stor'd our ship with Venison and with the crystal liquor of the river we left that land and the Pilot necessitated to make use of the utmost of his skill bore towards the West and being got into the main we tacked about setting our prow opposit to the Artick Pole we had but just then shaken off that fear which the impetuosity of the last storm â—â—d put us into when the wind saluting us with a whistling noise made us 〈◊〉 t was but the Praecursor of his Forces We soon found by reiteraâ—ed 〈◊〉 that he had given us that truce that he might overcome us with the moâ—â— glory His forces being augmented from playing with our streamers he began to toss our ship and contradict our passage with an impetuosity fâ—r greater than the former The storm still increasing made us reassume our â—eâ—â—s and many to deprecate those Deities which in safety they scarce thoughâ— of and who they would assoon forget after their dangâ—r This lasted thrice as long as the former and with an extraordinary swiftness drove us continually to the South as if it had purposed to have driven us to the utmost end of the earth At last the storm ceased but left us destitute of all knoâ—ledge where we were we saw nothing but waters which seemed yet to threaten us the world seem'd turn'd up side down for we had lost the sight of the North Hemisphere and then beheld a new heaven of stars which before we had never seen The Sun was North of us which had like to have deceived the Pilot for bearing towards the South we perceived by the sâ—ars and new face of the heaven that we had passed the Equinoxial We imagined our selves irrecoverably lost the Pilot professing his art at an end knew not which way to steer Sometimes we ran a hundred Leagues one way then as many another but espying no land we had no hopes of returning To augment our miseries our provision failed us our water was spent and what remained stunk and was corrupted so that many in the ship with the extremity of heat and lack of Victuals died Araterus indured these adversities with wonderfull patience and amongst all the imprecations that anguish wrung from the mouths of those distressed people there was not heard the least murmur fall from his At last in our greatest distress we espied land to the East of us which sight was extreamly welcome to us Having attained the land before we could disembarque we experienced that the torrid Zone contraâ—y to the opinion of Poets was inhabited for upon the shore we saw aâ—â—embled a great many people which continually wore Sables The Sun had with its excessive ardour imbu'd their skin with this innate black wearing nothing that might hinder the penetration of his beams so that their Children were born with the same nigerous hew their hair crisped and short seem'd just like wool their noses flat and something deformed their stature mean but their envie and malice implacable These people which at first sight seem'd like so many Daemons affrighted those in the ship who naming the place the land of Devils would rather have endured the miserie of starving than to expose themselves to the mercy of such Creatures Araterus wearied of the sea perswaded them to go on shore without fear telling them without doubt that those creatures were humane and of necessity they must perish or gain some sustenance at their hands At last he perswaded them to land which they did but were oppos'd by those blacks who at a distance shot at them arrows the points made sharp and hardened in the fire for they had not the use of Iron or Steel which wounded many and slew some But Araterus encouraged them and with great hazard to his person fell in amongst them who affrighted at us and our glittering weapons with a terrible howling and noise sled from us some of them we slew whereby the people of the ship were satisfied that they were poor simple naked people rejoycing that they were landed they quenched their thirsts with a river that we found and stopt their hunger with some wild fowl which we caught without any other cooking than rosting it against the Sun We had but just satisfied our selves with our late caught food when we perceived coming down the mountains an innumerable company of Negroes who being rear'd by those that sled from us came to repell us out of their Countrey We sought to retire to our ships when we perceived their subtilty had deprived us of all hopes of escaping for a whole troop of them getting between us and the ship oppos'd our passage I know not by what Gâ—nius's good direction it was but a little before I had brought Araterus's armour out of the ship which had saved his life in this Exigent He had hardly buckled it on before we were assaulted at a distance with a cloud of arrows which falling upon his armour rebounded back to the amazement of those that jaculated them But many of our companions ended their lives in the first brunt for although they were but slightly wounded yet those wounds being made with empoysoned arrows they immediately dyed Dispair oftentimes the mother of great exploits made our companions fight so vigorously that they obscured the earth with their dark bodies and made a kind of a sable and sanguine field But what avails valour and animosity when 't is over-powered strength may be mastered by a multitude and courage made effectless The power of these Monsters increased and the more we slew the stronger they were by the continual supplies that came It was a kind of miracle to behold how many lay breathing their last and slain by so small a company Indeed they were naked and almost weaponless their chiefest being empoysoned arrows and clubs to whose tops were made fast a kind of stones of a plumbeous substance but their numbers were so great that the weight of their very armes had been enough to have depressed us all to the earth Our companions slew so many of them and had bespread the whole face of the field with their carcases that had you seen them you would have judged by the Clades that it had been the depreliation
swarth complexion had something of handsomnesse and beauty Araterus although he longed to have returned into his own countrey and though our travells as all others were accompanied with danger and peril yet novelties breeding a desire and curiosity he past into the country finding a wonderfull pleasure in seeing the variety of places people conditions manners and climates Spatiating for some few dayes that region we past a large extent of land which like a tongue ran far into the sea Being arrived on the other side we espied another large sea into which Araterus would needs commit himself resolving now to visit the utmost limits of the earth Indeed we stayed very little in a place but were continually peregrines not knowing which way to return home Those seas were very dangerous at that time of the year in which we sailed them and in few dayes after our imbarquement we were incountered by so violent a storme that 't is past the skill of a better capacity than mine to describe it The end of it was our shipwrack almost within sight of land The blacks being almost halfe fishes and most expert swimmers scorned those helps we were glad to make use of and trusting to the strength of their armes and skill in swimming advanced before us towards the shore The gods I believe angry at their pâ—esumption tooke away their soules out of those darke Lanthornes the one before he was out of our sight was devoured by some great fish the other we afterwards found dead his braines having been beaten out against the rock and his body cast upon the sand where we at last were thrown by the beating of the waves with those pieces of the ship on which we saved our lives Having returned thanks to the Gods for our preservation and having bewailed our faithfull blacks and buried him we found dead on the sand we went into the country to know into what place this dire chance had cast us We presently found that we were in a rich soile fruitfull pleasant stored with all things fit for life and ornament not so hot as those countreys we had passed but we perceived we were very near the Orient The Land was full of Cityes of a vast greatnesse and Towns so stupendious that they exceeded the quantity of our ordinary Cityes besides very popolous and well stored with delicate woods and watered with abundance of rivers The people were extreamly civill courteous to strangers witty pleasant and very well favoured We found nothing of barbarisme or rudenesse there but all things in a kinde of Harmony and great politennesse Araterus was extreamly taken with the countrey being one of the pleasantest he had ever entred You are not to doubt said I to him but that the prophesie of the Druidae will be fulfilled seeing that the Gods with miracles have effected thus much of it we are now in the Orient from whence it seems we are like never to return but 't is no great matter seeing that you shall possesse so rich pleasant and fertill a Kingdom which will be great inducements for your forgetting your native countrey especially when you shall be joyned to so sublime a beauty as the prediction specified I am not replyed he so much in Love with my country as that I cannot live any where else if that I see the will and providence of the Gods so ordering it but yet were it now in my election I should rather choose my little estate in my native country than to enjoy the greatest monarchy here But yet I shall cede to the will of the Gods let them prepare what they will for me And indeed I do not flatter my selfe with the accomplishment of the Praediction although these occurrences might induce me to believe its verity We had travelled some few dayes from the sea side and entertaining our selves with such like discourses we came to the side of a very large river which rowling down with liquid-silvered waves made us suppose it another sea but that the clearnesse and freshnesse of the water contradicted that opinion We travelled up this river with wonderful delight viewing the ships and boats that continually sported upon its surface till we met one of the country who by the signes we made him to know the name of the river told us 't was called Ganges This man seeing we were strangers lokt upon us very wishly and finding I know not what pleasing air in the face of Aratreus he caused us to go with him to his house which was fituate hard by the river and encompassed with a wood 't was built flat on the top after the fashion of the countrey four square and of an indifferent bignesse 'T is impossible for you to imagin with what affection and love this man entertained Araterus and there wanted nothing but language to make their friendship compleat and though 't was in a mute language that he expressed himself yet love was perspicuously seen in every sign and gesture In few dayes Araterus had so won upon our entertainer with his sweet carriage that he would not permit him to depart but as we understood him by the signes he made desired us to continue with him and learn the language of the country Araterus being well content returned him by signes that he would obey him and give him thankes and service for his kindnesses Being setled in this resolution we spun out the thread of two yeares continually obliged to this man for his manifold courtesies and favours In this time we had both of us perfectly attain'd the language which sounded almost like the Arabick and our entertainer accounted himself sufficiently recompensed with the admirable discourses he heard from Araterus and the recitall of his life and fortune Araterus having often requested him to let him understand the condition of the country which he was in one day as we were in a house of pleasure on the famous Ganges he acquitted himself thus This country said he wherein you are is one of the fairest richest and pleasantest that the glorious star of Day sees in his perpetuall course If the Gods grant that you reside amongst us you will experience this verity and say that 't is worthy of all Eulogies and commendations I am perswaded that in the small time that you have been here and in the like experience you have had of us that you cannot but see we are no Scythians or Hyperborean inhabitants but that there is a certaine politenesse in our words and actions If it were handsome for me to praise my own countrey I might expatiate in the collaudation of its site fertility delectableness continuall verdure wholesomenesse richnesse and populosity Besides in the conditions of the people their formofity gentle nature virtuous actions and warlike spirit And lastly of its government and tranquillity in which it hath exceeded all the Kingdoms of the East But this a little time and experience will manifest to you better and fuller than the best of Rhetorick can