Our speaking of egges mindes me of Christophorus Colomba Lusitanian, a experienced skiper, first discowrer of the new world, tho he had gotten some encouradgements and conclusions about it from on Vespucius Americus Florentin, from whom it gets its denomination of America.  Colomba on a tyme walking on the harbory of Lisbon, a toune knowen for the emporium of the east, such a boystrous wind blow to him iust of the sea that he could not get his feet holden; on this he began to reason that the wind could not come of the Sea, but that of necessity their bit to[235] be land beyond that sea, tho unknoun, of whilk[236] that wind bit to[235] blow, for the vapors or exhalations drawen of the sea are not so grosse as thess that montes of the land:  and be consequence cannot produce such boystrous vindes.  This his opinion he imparted to sewerall:  at lenth it came to Ferdinando’es ears, who at the persuasions of Isabella his queen, a woman of greater spirit and more action then hir husband, equippes Columba a fleet, wt which after he had born out many stormes he gained his point, returning wt some few of his shipes that ware left him loadened wt the gold of the country.

    [235] Must.

    [236] i.e. though unknown, off which.

The King accepted him wery kindly, as he had reason, but his courtiers out of that enwious nature of detracting from the merites of others, thinking that theirs no way of gaining themselfes credit unless they backhit at others, each most passe their seweral werdict on his attempt, al concluding that it was nothing, that any man might have done it.  The honest, silly man hears them at this tyme patiently, when they have al done he calles for a egge:  desires them al to try if the could make it stand on the end of it:  they, not knowing his designe, try it all:  it goes round about al the table, not one of them can make it stand so.  Then he takes the egge, brakes the bottome of it, and so it standes upright, they being al most ashamed, else further he addes, As now after I have let you sie whow to do it, ye think nothing to make a egge stand upright:  tho none of you could do it before:  sikelike after I have found you the gate to the new world ye think nothing of it tho ye could not have done it yourselfes.  They thought themselfes wery far out.

Horrid and unchristian was the outrages the Spaniards committed on the poor natives.  They slow them like beasts.  Further they carried over whole shipeful of mastives which they hunted the naked Indians with; and I know not how many millions ware torn this way.

The sogers ware so beastly that they could not refrain from laying and abusing the Indian women, which gave them the verole picot or French pox, surely the just iudgement of god, wt a iudgement not knowen to former ages, punishing men wt shame in this world.  The Spaniards brought it from America to Naples, infected some Napolitan women wt it, whence called Morbus Napolitanus; thir women gave it to some French sogers who brought it unto France, whence called wt us French pox, now its become universall.  Philip of Spaine who died August 1665 was owergoon wt it, they say.