Page:The principal navigations, voyages, traffiques and discoveries of the English nation 16.djvu/286

 borne, not for to say that his constellation was in the wars victorious, but in the ouercomming of kings by the arte of warfare, readines in resoluing, prudence in conseruing, and great loialtie and patience with many seruices vnto his king and master. In which of all these he had most contentation it cannot easily be determined. Wherefore your noble Grace may see, that this treatie and the others were made with sighes and afflictions which his inferiour will might haue raised vp in him against his superior reason. Neither was he willing to take for his remedie that which that great Turke Zelim sonne to the great Mahumet did, (for he tooke Constantinople and died in Rome) who vsed to make himselfe drunke, because he would not remember the great estate which he lost: nor yet would he giue eare vnto those things which many of his friends would tell him, wishing he would settle his mind out of the kingdome: (for otherwise he should neuer be able to liue:

whereunto he answered, that in this point he would rather be compared vnto the great Timocles the Athenian, then to be like the excellent Romane Coriolanus. Which is a goodly example of a true and faithfull Portugall. (Though it were not so as I doe say, yet I doe heare, that the hospitals be full of the most faithfull subiects to their prince and countrey.) Wherefore by all reason this treatie ought to be if your Grace fauoured, setting apart all ouersights, if there be any, in this worke of the author: I being not able to attaine vnto the vnderstanding of the contrary. God prosper your Grace with long life and increase of honour.

An excellent treatise of Antonie Galvano, Portugall, containing the most ancient and moderne discoveries of the world, especially by nauigation, according to the course of times from the flood vntill the yeere of grace 1555.

While I had a desire to gather together some olde and some new discoueries, which haue beene made by sea and by lande, with their iust times and situations; they seemed to be two things of so great difficultie, that being confused in the authors of them, I determined once to desist from any such purpose. For touching the course of time the Hebrewes declare, that from the beginning of the world to the flood were 1656 yeeres. The Seuentie Interpreters make mention of 2242. And S. Augustine