Page:Diuers voyages touching the discouerie of America - Hakluyt - 1582.djvu/52

with the good hap of her fortunate name wee were deliuered, and with a prosperous wind followed our course West & by North. And in other 25. dayes wee made aboue 400. leagues more, where wee discouered a newe land, neuer before seene of any man either auncient or moderne, and at the first sight it seemed somewhat lowe, but beeing within a quarter of a league of it, wee perceiued by the great fiers that wee sawe by the Sea coaste that it was inhabited: and saw that the lande stretched to the Southwards: in seeking some conuenient harborough whereby to come a lande, and haue knowledge of the place, wee sayled fiftie leagues in vaine, and seeing the lande to runn still to the Southwards wee resolued to returne backe againe towardes the North, where we found our selues troubled with the like difficulty: at length beeing in despaire to finde any port, wee caste anker vpon the coast, and sent our Boate to shore, where we sawe great store of people which came to the Sea side, and seeing vs to approache they fled away, and sometimes would stande still and looke backe, beholding vs with great admiration: but afterwardes beeing animated and assured with signes that wee made them, some of them came harde to the Sea side seeming to reioyce very muche at the sight of vs, and marueiling greatly at our apparell, shape and whitenes, shewed vs by sundry signes where wee might most commodiously come a land with our Boat, offering vs also of their victuals to eate. Nowe I will briefly declare to your Maiestie their life and manners, as farre as wee coulde haue notice thereof: These people goe altogeather naked except only that they couer their priuie partes with certaine skinnes of beastes like vnto Marterns, which they fasten vnto a narrowe girdle made of grasse verye artificially wrought, hanged about with tailes of diuers other beastes, which rounde about their bodies hang dangling downe to their knees. Some of them weare garlandes of byrdes feathers. The people are of colour russet, and not much vnlike the Saracens, their hayre blacke, thicke andnot