seventeenth century there is documentary evidence that its coasts were touched upon or explored by a considerable number of Dutch voyagers, but the documents immediately describing these voyages have not been found.
That, in so far as regards the Portuguese, this obscurity is mainly due to a jealous apprehension lest lands of large extent and great importance in the southern seas might fall into the hands of rival powers to their own displacement or prejudice, may not only be suspected, but seems to be affirmable from historical evidence.
It is stated by Humboldt (Histoire de la Geographie du Noiiveau Continent tom, iv, p. 70), upon the authority of the letters of Angelo Trevigiano, secretary to Domenico Pisani, ambassador from Venice to Spain, that the kings of Portugal forbad upon pain of death the exportation of any marine chart which showed the course to Calicut. We find also in Ramusio (Discorso sopra el lihro di Odoardo Barlosa, and the Sommario delle Indie Orieniali tom. i, p. 287. b) a similar prohibition implied. He says that these books "were for many years concealed and not allowed to be published, for convenient reasons that I must not now describe." He also speaks of the great difficulty he himself had in procuring a copy, and even that an imperfect one, from Lisbon. "Tanto possono," he says, "gli interessi del principe." Again, in tom. iii of the same collection, in the account of the "Discorso d'un gran Capitano del Mare Francese del luogo di Dieppa," etc., now known to be the voyage of Jean
