Whereupon He Tooke His Voyage Directly North Along The Coast, Hauing Vpon His Steereboord Alwayes The Desert Land, And Vpon The Leereboord The Maine Ocean:

And continued his course for the space of 3.

Dayes. [Sidenote: The Place wither the whale hunters trauel.] In which space he was come as far towards the North, as commonly the whale hunters vse to trauell. Whence he proceeded in his course still towards the North so farre as he was able to saile in other 3. dayes. At the end whereof he perceiued that the coast turned towards the East, or els the sea opened with a maine gulfe into the land, he knew not how farre. Well he wist and remembred, that he was faine to stay till he had a Westerne winde, and somewhat Northerly: and thence he sailed plaine East along the coast still so far as he was able in the space of 4. dayes. At the end of which time he was compelled againe to stay till he had a full Northerly winde, forsomuch as the coast bowed thence directly towards the South, or at least wise the sea opened into the land he could not tell how farre: so that he sailed thence along the coast continually full South, so farre as he could trauaile in 5. dayes; and at the fifth dayes end he discouered a mightie riuer which opened very farre into the land. [Sidenote: The Riuer of Duina of likelihood.] At the entrie of which riuer he stayed his course, and conclusion turned back againe, for he durst not enter thereinto for feare of the inhabitants of the land; perceiuing that on the other side of the riuer the countrey was thorowly inhabited: which was the first peopled land that he had found since his departure from his owne dwelling: [Sidenote: A Desert countrey. Fynnes.] whereas continually thorowout all his voyage he had euermore on his steereboord, a wildernesse and desert countrey, except that in some places, he saw a few fishers, fowlers, and hunters, which were all Fynnes: and all the way vpon his leereboord was the maine ocean. [Sidenote: Biarmia.] The Biarmes had inhabited and tilled their countrey indifferent well, notwithstanding he was afrayed to go vpon shore. [Sidenote: Terfynnes.] But the countrey of the Terfynnes lay all waste, and not inhabited, except it were, as we haue sayd, whereas dwelled certeine hunters, fowlers, and fishers. The Biarmes tolde him a number of stories both of their owne countrey, and of the countreys adioyning. Howbeit, he knew not, nor could affirme any thing for certeine trueth; forsomuch as he was not vpon land, nor saw any himselfe. [Sidenote: The Fynnes and Biarmes speak one language.] This onely he iudged, that the Fynnes and Biarmes speake but one language. [Sidenote: Horsewhales teeth commended.] The principall purpose of his traueile this way, was to encrease the knowledge and discouerie of these coasts and countreyes, for the more commoditie of fishing of horsewhales, [Footnote: Or morses.] which haue in their teeth bones of great price and excellencie: whereof he brought some at his returne vnto the king. [Sidenote: Use of the morses skins for cables.] Their skinnes are also very good to make cables for shippes, and so vsed. This kinde of whale is much lesse in quantitie then other kindes, hauing not in length or aboue seuen elles. And as for the common kind of whales, the place of most and best hunting of them is in his owne countrey: whereof some be 48. elles of length, and some 50. of which sort he affirmed that he himselfe was one of the sixe, which in the space of 3. dayes killed threescore. He was a man of exceeding wealth in such riches, wherein the wealth of that countrey doth consist. [Sidenote: Sixe hundreth raine Deere.] At the same time that he came to the king, he had of his owne breed 600. tame Deere, of that kinde which they call Rane Deere: of the which number 6, were stall Rane Deere, a beast of great value, and maruellously esteemed among the Fynnes, for that with them they catch the wilde Rane Deere. He was among the chiefe men of his countrey one: and yet he, had but 20. kine, and 20. swine, and that little which he tilled, he tilled it all with horses. [Sidenote: The Fynnes trubute.] Their principall wealth consisteth in the tribute which the Fynnes pay them, which is all in skinnes of wilde beasts, feathers of birds, whale bones, and cables, and tacklings for shippes made of Whales or Seales skinnes. [Sidenote: Note. Cables of Whales and Seales skins.] Euery man payeth according to his abilities. The richest pay ordinarily 15. cases of Marterns, 5. Rane Deere skinnes, and one Beare, ten bushels of feathers, a coat of a Beares skinne, two cables threescore elles long a piece, the one made of Whales skin, the other Seales.

He sayd, that the countrey of Norway was very long and small. So much of it as either beareth any good pasture, or may be tilled, lieth vpon the Sea coast, which notwithstanding in some places is very rockie and stonie: [Sidenote: A description of Norway.] and all Eastward all along against the inhabited land, lie wilde and huge hilles and mountaines, which are in some places inhabited by the Fynnes. The inhabited land is broadest toward the South & the further it stretcheth towards the North, it groweth euermore smaller and smaller. Towards the South it is peraduenture threescore miles in bredth or broader in some places: about the middest, 30 miles or aboue, and towards the North where it is smallest, he affirmeth that it proueth not three miles from the Sea to the mountaines. [Sidenote: The bredth of the mountaines.] The mountaines be in breadth of such quantitie, as a man is able to traueile ouer in a fortnight, and in some places no more then may be trauailed in sixe dayes.

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