In The Neighbourhood Of This Island Schovten Also Met With An
Earthquake, Which Alarmed The Ship's Company Excessively, From An
Apprehension That They Had Struck Upon A Rock.
There are some other
islands in the neighbourhood of this, well peopled, and well
planted, abounding with excellent fruits, especially of the melon
kind.
These islands lie, as it were, on the confines of the
southern continent, and the East Indies, so that the inhabitants
enjoy all the advantages resulting from their own happy climate, and
from their traffic with their neighbours, especially with those of
Ternate and Amboyna, who come thither yearly to purchase their
commodities, and who are likewise visited at certain seasons by the
people of these islands in their turn.
CHAPTER XIX: ARRIVES SAFELY AT BATAVIA, JUNE 15, 1643.
On the 18th of May, in the latitude of 26 minutes south and in the
longitude of 147 degrees 55 minutes, we observed the variation to be
5 degrees 30 minutes east. We were now arrived at the western
extremity of New Guinea, which is a detached point or promontory
(though it is not marked so even in the latest maps); here we met
with calms, variable and contrary winds, with much rain; from thence
we steered for Ceram, leaving the Cape on the north, and arrived
safely on that island; by this time Captain Tasman had fairly
surrounded the continent he was instructed to discover, and had
therefore nothing now farther in view than to return to Batavia, in
order to report the discoveries he had made.
On the 27th of May we passed through the straits of Boura, or
Bouton, and continued our passage to Batavia, where we arrived on
the 15th of June, in the latitude of 6 degrees 12 minutes south, and
in the longitude of 127 degrees 18 minutes. This voyage was made in
the space of ten months. Such was the end of this expedition, which
has been always considered as the clearest and most exact that was
ever made for the discovery of the Terra Australis Incognita, from
whence that chart and map was laid down in the pavement of the
stadt-house at Amsterdam, as is before mentioned. We have now
nothing to do but to shut up this voyage and our history of
circumnavigators, with a few remarks, previous to which it will be
requisite to state clearly and succinctly the discoveries, either
made or confirmed by Captain Tasman's voyage, that the importance of
it may fully appear, as well as the probability of our conjectures
with regard to the motives that induced the Dutch East India Company
to be at so much pains about these discoveries.
CHAPTER XX: CONSEQUENCES OF CAPTAIN TASMAN'S DISCOVERIES.
In the first place, then, it is most evident, from Captain Tasman's
voyage, that New Guinea, Carpentaria, New Holland, Antony van
Diemen's Land, and the countries discovered by De Quiros, make all
one continent, from which New Zealand seems to be separated by a
strait; and, perhaps, is part of another continent, answering to
Africa, as this, of which we are now speaking, plainly does to
America. This continent reaches from the equinoctial to 44 degrees
of south latitude, and extends from 122 degrees to 188 degrees of
longitude, making indeed a very large country, but nothing like what
De Quiros imagined; which shows how dangerous a thing it is to trust
too much to conjecture in such points as these. It is, secondly,
observable, that as New Guinea, Carpentaria, and New Holland, had
been already pretty well examined, Captain Tasman fell directly to
the south of these; so that his first discovery was Van Diemen's
Land, the most southern part of the continent on this side the
globe, and then passing round by New Zealand, he plainly discovered
the opposite side of that country towards America, though he visited
the islands only, and never fell in again with the continent till he
arrived on the coast of New Britain, which he mistook for that of
New Guinea, as he very well might; that country having never been
suspected to be an island, till Dampier discovered it to be such in
the beginning of the present century. Thirdly, by this survey,
these countries are for ever marked out, so long as the map or
memory of this voyage, shall remain. The Dutch East India Company
have it always in their power to direct settlements, or new
discoveries, either in New Guinea, from the Moluccas, or in New
Holland, from Batavia directly. The prudence shown in the conduct
of this affair deserves the highest praise. To have attempted
heretofore, or even now, the establishing colonies in those
countries, would be impolitic, because it would be grasping more
than the East India Company, or than even the republic of Holland,
could manage; for, in the first place, to reduce a continent between
three and four thousand miles broad is a prodigious undertaking, and
to settle it by degrees would be to open to all the world the
importance of that country which, for anything we can tell, may be
much superior to any country yet known: the only choice, therefore,
that the Dutch had left, was to reserve this mighty discovery till
the season arrived, in which they should be either obliged by
necessity or invited by occasion to make use of it; but though this
country be reserved, it is no longer either unknown or neglected by
the Dutch, which is a point of very great consequence. To the other
nations of Europe, the southern continent is a chimera, a thing in
the clouds, or at least a country about which there are a thousand
doubts and suspicions, so that to talk of discovering or settling it
must be regarded as an idle and empty project: but, with respect to
them, it is a thing perfectly well known; its extent, its
boundaries, its situation, the genius of its several nations, and
the commodities of which they are possessed, are absolutely within
their cognisance, so that they are at liberty to take such measures
as appear to them best, for securing the eventual possession of this
country, whenever they think fit.
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