The same daye the sunne being south-west,[140] William Barents tooke the height thereof, and found it to be elevated above the horizon 35 degrees, his declination being 14 degrees and ¼, so yt as there wanted 55 degrees of 90, which 55 and 14 degrees and ¼ being both added together, made 69 degrees 15 minutes, which was the height of the Pole in that place, the wind being north-west; then they sailed 2 [8] miles more east-ward, and came to the islands called Matfloe and Delgoy,[141] and there in the morning they meet with the other shippes of their company, being of Zelandt and Enck-huysen,[142] that came out of Wey-gates the same day; there they shewed each other where they had bin, and how farre each of them had sailed, and discouered.
The ship of Enck-huysen had past the straights of Wey-gates, and said, that at the end of Wey-gates he had found a large sea,[143] and that they had sailed 50 [200] or 60 [240] miles further east-ward, and were of opinion that they had been about the riuer of Obi,[144] that commeth out of Tartaria, and that the land of Tartaria reacheth north-east-ward againe from thence, whereby they thought that they were not far [[37]]from Cape Tabin,[145] which is ye point[146] of Tartaria, that reacheth towards the kingdom of Chathai, north-east and then south-ward.[147] And so thinking that they had discouered inough for that time, and that it was too late in the yeare to saile any further, as also that their commission was to discouer the scituation, and to come home againe before winter, they turned againe towards the Wei-gates, and came to an island about 5 miles great, lying south-east from Wei-gates on the Tartarian side, and called it the States Island;[148] there they found many stones, that were of a cristale mountaine,[149] being a kind of diamont.
When they were met together (as I sayd before) they made signes of ioy, discharging some of their ordinance, and were merry, the other shippes thinking that William Barents had sailed round about Noua Zembla, and had come backe againe through the Wei-gates: and after they had shewed each other what they had done, and made signs of ioy for their meeting, they set their course to turne backe againe for Holland; and vpon the 16 of August they went vnder the islands of Matfloe and Delgoy, and put into the road, because the wind was north-west, and lay there till the 18 of August.
The 18 of August they set saile, and went forward west north-west, and almost west and by north, and so sailed 12 [48] miles; and then west and by south 6 [24] miles, and came to a sand of scarce 5 fadome deepe, with a north-west wind; and in the evening they wound northward, and sailed east north-east 7 [28] or 8 [32] miles, the wind being [[38]]northerly; and then they wound westward, and sailed till the 19 of August in the morning, west 2 [8] miles; then 2 [8] miles south-west, and after that 2 [8] miles south-east; there they wound west-ward againe, and sailed till evening with a calme, and after that had an east winde, and at first sailed west north-west, and north-west and by west 6 [24] or 7 [28] miles, and had ground at 12 fadome: then till the 20 of August in the morning, they sayled west north-west, and north-west and by west, 7 [28] miles with an easterly wind; and then againe sailed west north-west, and north-west and by west 7 [28] miles; then west north-west 4 [16] miles, and draue[150] forward till euening with a calme: after that they sailed west north-west and north-west and by west 7 [28] miles, and in the night time came to a sand of 3 fadome deepe right against the land, and so sailed along by it, first one mile north, then 3 [12] miles north north-west, and it was sandy hilly land, and many points:[151] and then sailed on forward with 9 or 10 fadome deepe, along by the land till noone, being the 21 of August, north-west 5 [20] miles; and the west point of the land, called Candinaes,[152] lay north-west[153] from them 4 [16] miles.
From thence they sailed 4 [16] miles north north-west, and then north-west and by north 4 [16] miles, and 3 [12] miles more north-west, and north-west and by north, and then north-west 4 [16] miles, til the 22 of August in the morning: and that morning they sailed north-west 7 [28] miles, and so till euening west north-west and north-west and by west 15 [60] miles, the wind being north; after that 8 [32] miles more, west north-west; and then till the 23 of August at noone, west north-west 11 [44] miles, the same day at noone the sunne was eleuated aboue the horizon 31 [[39]]degrees and ⅓ part, his declination was 11 degrees and ⅔ partes; so that it wanted 58 degrees and ⅔ of 90 degrees, and adding the declination being 11 degrees ⅔ to 58 degrees and ⅔ partes, then the height of the Pole was 70 degrees and ⅓ part: then they sailed north-west, and north-west and by west, till euening 8 [32] miles; and then north-west and by west, and west north-west 5 [20] miles; and then vntill the 24 of August in the morning, north-west and by west 6 [24] miles; after that west, and west south-west 3 [12] miles, and then passed close by the island of Ware-huysen[154] in the roade. From Ware-huysen hither-ward, because the way is well knowne, I neede not to write thereof, but that from thence they sailed altogether homeward, and kept company together till they came to the Texel, where the ship of Zelandt The end of this voyage past by, and William Barents with his pinnace came vpon a faire day,[155] being the 16 of September, before Amsterdam, and the ship of Enck-huysen to Enck-huysen, from whence they were set foorth. William Barents’ men brought a sea-horse to Amsterdam, being of a wonderfull greatnesse, which they tooke vpon a flake of ice, and killed it. [[40]]
[1] Namely, the United Provinces of the Netherlands. [↑]
[2] The Amsterdam Latin version of 1598 has “Columbus, Cortesius, et Magellanus”. But the emendation is unnecessary, since the author evidently intends Vasco Nuñez de Balboa, the discoverer of the Pacific. [↑]
[3] “Cicilia”, in the English original, can only be an error of the press. [↑]
[4] Deur ende weer deur de Linie—passing and repassing the Line. [↑]