452 James, I. Naval Expeditions, &c. of the English, Book III,

1618. Conduct, in it, which may probably beacceptable to the Reader.

Mst. in Bibl. Cotton.

Vitel. C.XVII. ult. Sir Walter Raleighhapology, (a)

‘‘(13 EC A USE I know not whether-O " J shall live, to come before" the Lords, I have for His Majesty’s" Satisfaction here set down as much as" I can fay, either for my ownDefence," or against myself, as Things are now" constructed.)

( tf It is true, that tho’ I acquainted" His Majesty with my Intent to land<c in Guiana, yet I never made it) known" to His Majesty, that the Spaniards" had (any Footing there;) neither had" I any Authority, by my Patent, to

" remove them (from thence;)-

<c -And therefore His Majesty had

<c no Interest in the Attempt of St." Thomas, (by any Fore-) Knowledge" thereof, in His Majesty.

But knowing His Majesty’s Title" to the Country, to be the best and" most Christian; (Because) the natu-" nal Lords did most willingly acknow-tc ledge Queen Elizabeth to be their" Sovereign, (who by) me promised" to defend them from the Spanijh Cru-t( elty, I made no doubt but that (I" might) enter the said Land by Force," seing the Spaniards had no other Ti-tie but Force, the Pope's Donation ex-" cepted ; Considering also, that theyt( got a Possession there divers Years" since my Possession taken for the" Crown of England. For were not<c Guiana His Majesty’s; then might I" as well have been questioned for a" Thief, for taking of Gold out of the" King of Spain's Mines, as the Spa-" niards do now call me a Peace-" breaker. For, from any Territory" confessed to be the King of Spain’s ," it is no more lawful to take Gold," than lawful for the Spaniards to take" Tin out of Cor nival.

tc Now were this Poslession of theirs<c a sufficient Bar to His Majesty’s" Right, the Kings of Spain might as

" well call themselves Dukes of Brit- 161B." tain, because they held Bluetts, and" fortified there, and Kings of Ireland,

" because they possessed Smericke, andte fortified there, and so in other" Places.

" That His Majesty was well re-" solved of his Right there, I make no,

" Kind of Doubt, because the Englijh,

" both under Mr. Charles Leigh and" Mr. Harcourt, had Leave to plant" and inhabit the Country.

" Thus Oronoque itself had long e’er" this had five Thousand Englijh in it,

" I assure myself, had not my Employ-" ment at Cadiz, the next Year after" my Return from Guiana, and afterthat our Journy to the IJlands, hin-"" dered me for those two Years; Af-“ ter which Tyr-Oen’s Rebellion madec<r Her Majesty unwilling that any greatNumber of Ships or Men lhould" be taken out of England, ’till that" Rebellion were ended. And lastly,

" Her Majesty’s Death, and my long" Imprisonment, gave Time to the" Spaniards to set up a Town of Sticks,

" covered with Leaves of Trees, uponthe Banks of Oronoque, which they" called St. Thomas , but they have" neither reconciled, nor conqueredtc any of the Caciques, or natural Lords" of the Country, which Caciques arestill in Arms against them, as by the" Governour’s Letter to the King ofI s Spain may appear.

“ That by Landing in Guiana“ there can be any Breach of Peace,

“ I think it, under Favour, impossi-ft ble to break Peace, where there is" no Peace. It cannot be.

“ That the Spaniards give us no" Peace there, doth appear by the“ King’s Letters to his Governour, that" they shall put to Death all those Spa-" niards and Indians that trade Con los(e Englefes Enimigos ; with Englijh E-te nemies, yea, those very Spaniards ,

" which we encountered at St. Thomas's" did, of late Years, murder six and" thirty of Mr. Hall's Men of London ,

" and mine, who landed without Wea-“ ?vns, upon the Spanijh Faith to trade" with them. Mr. Thorn also, of Tow-<c er-Jlreet, in London, besides many o-

" ther

(a) Those Lines and Words which are enclos- and restored from a printed Copy in Raleigh's,ed in Parentheses, are defaced in the Manuscript, Essays.