Page:A general history of the pyrates, from their first rise and settlement in the Island of Providence, to the present time (1724).djvu/200



S the Portuguee were the great Improvers of Navigation, and the firt Europeans who traded too and ettled on the Coats of Africa, even round to India, and made thoe Dicoveries, which now turn o much to the Advantage of other Nations, it may not be amis, previouly to a Decription of thoe Ilands, to hint on that wonderful Property of the Loadtone, that a little before had been found out, and enabled them to purue uch new and daring Navigations.

The attractive Power of the Loadtone, was univerally known with the Ancients, as may be believed by its being a native Foil of the Grecians, (Magnes a Magneia) but its directive, or polar Virtue, has only been known to us within this 350 Years, and aid to be found out by John Goia of Malphi, in the Kingdom of Naples, ; tho’ others think, and aure us, it was tranported by Paulus Venetus from China to Italy, like the other famous Arts of modern Ue with us,  and the Ue of .

The other Properties of Improvements of the Magnet, viz. Variation, or its Defluction from an exact N. or S. Line, Variation of that Variation, and its Inclination, were the Inventions of Sebatian Cabot, Mr. Gellibrand, and Mr. Norman; the Inclination of the Needle, or that Property whereby it keeps an Elevation above the Horizon, in all Places but under the Equator, (where its Parallel) is as urprizing a Phænomenon as any, and was the Dicovery of our Countrymen; and could it be found regular, I imagine would very much help towards the Dicovery of Longitude, at leat would Rh