Page:The Life of George Washington, Volume 1.djvu/33

 inclined him to countenance the propositions which, soon after the return of Columbus, were made by his own subjects, for engaging in adventures similar to that which had already been so successful.

But England, whose ships now cover every ocean, and whose fleets triumph in every sea, did not then furnish a single individual well enough acquainted with navigation, to be trusted with the direction of such an expedition. The chief command of the armament destined to explore these unknown regions, was given to Giovanni Gaboto (John Cabot) a Venetian adventurer who had settled in Bristol. To him, and to his three sons, Lewis, Sebastian, and Sanctius, a commission was issued on the fifth of March 1496, less than two years after the return of Columbus from America, empowering them, or either of them, and their, and each of their heirs and deputies, to sail under the banner of England, towards the east, north, or west; in order to discover countries then unknown to all christian people. The terms of this commission strongly marked the genius and character of the monarch who gave it. The Cabots were indeed empowered to take possession of the countries they should discover, in the name of the king of England, and to carry on an exclusive trade with the inhabitants; but these discoveries were to be made at their own expense, and their commerce 2