[233] Estimation.
We have spoken wt some Catolicks that have bein at Geneve. The disciplin is very strick their yet. A Catholick if a craftsman they suffer him to excerce his trade 3 moneth: they'le let him stay no longer. If a man swear their, he'el be layd in prison, lay their 24 howers wtout meat or drink. A man cannot speak wt a woman on the Street wtout giving scandal. The Sabath is keipt as we do, nothing to be sold their on it, as thorow France its the greatest market day of the week, the peasants bringing in al they have to sell in abondance. Its the resort of al the banished Germans, Italians and other strangers that would enjoy the excercise of their Religion freely and purely.
In shaving a man, its impossible for a Frenchman to cut a man; they have such a net way of baging the flech: also it would do a man good to be washen wt their water, whiles rose water, whiles smelling of musck: tho their fingers stinkes whiles, the French dighting their staille[234] wt their fingers, thinking it prodigality to do it wt paper: yett ther Kings of old did so, to teach their peaple frugality: hence it is that the Frenchman wil not eat til he wash: wil not eat wt ye til ye wash: for my oune part I would not eat wt a Frenchman til he wash.
[234] Foundation, breech.
Fresch egges are wery dear wairs in France. At Paris they are 5 pence a peice, at Poictiers a shiling a dozen. They fry their egges differently from us: they break them first in a plate: in the meantym they fry a considerable lump of butter, then pours in the egges salting and spicing them. Their hens are not so fertile as ours.
Our speaking of egges mindes me of Christophorus Colomba Lusitanian, a experienced skiper, first discowrer of the new world, tho he had gotten some encouradgements and conclusions about it from on Vespucius Americus Florentin, from whom it gets its denomination of America. Colomba on a tyme walking on the harbory of Lisbon, a toune knowen for the emporium of the east, such a boystrous wind blow to him iust of the sea that he could not get his feet holden; on this he began to reason that the wind could not come of the Sea, but that of necessity their bit to[235] be land beyond that sea, tho unknoun, of whilk[236] that wind bit to[235] blow, for the vapors or exhalations drawen of the sea are not so grosse as thess that montes of the land: and be consequence cannot produce such boystrous vindes. This his opinion he imparted to sewerall: at lenth it came to Ferdinando'es ears, who at the persuasions of Isabella his queen, a woman of greater spirit and more action then hir husband, equippes Columba a fleet, wt which after he had born out many stormes he gained his point, returning wt some few of his shipes that ware left him loadened wt the gold of the country.
[235] Must.
[236] i.e. though unknown, off which.
The King accepted him wery kindly, as he had reason, but his courtiers out of that enwious nature of detracting from the merites of others, thinking that theirs no way of gaining themselfes credit unless they backhit at others, each most passe their seweral werdict on his attempt, al concluding that it was nothing, that any man might have done it. The honest, silly man hears them at this tyme patiently, when they have al done he calles for a egge: desires them al to try if the could make it stand on the end of it: they, not knowing his designe, try it all: it goes round about al the table, not one of them can make it stand so. Then he takes the egge, brakes the bottome of it, and so it standes upright, they being al most ashamed, else further he addes, As now after I have let you sie whow to do it, ye think nothing to make a egge stand upright: tho none of you could do it before: sikelike after I have found you the gate to the new world ye think nothing of it tho ye could not have done it yourselfes. They thought themselfes wery far out.
Horrid and unchristian was the outrages the Spaniards committed on the poor natives. They slow them like beasts. Further they carried over whole shipeful of mastives which they hunted the naked Indians with; and I know not how many millions ware torn this way.