eneriffe, "of how Madeira was peopled, and the other
islands that are in that part, of how the caravel of Alvaro Dornellas
took certain of the Canarians, of how Gomes Pires went to the Rio d'Ouro
and of the Moors that he took, of the caravel that went to Meca (in
Marocco) and of the Moors that were taken, of how Antam Gonsalvez
received the island of Lancarote in the name of the Prince."

Only the chronicler's summary of results, up to the year 1446, the year
of Nuno Tristam's failure, is of wider interest. "Till then there had
been fifty-one caravels to those parts, which had gone 450 leagues (1350
miles) beyond the Cape (Boyador). And as it was found that the coast ran
southward with many points, the Prince ordered these to be added to the
sailing chart. And here it is to be noted, that what was clearly known
before of the coast of the great sea was 200 leagues (600 miles), which
have been increased by these 450. Also what had been laid down upon the
Mappa Mundi was not true but was by guess work, but now 't is all from
the survey by the eyes of our seamen. And now seeing that in this
history we have given account sufficient of the first four reasons which
brought our noble Prince to his attempt, it is time we said something of
the accomplishment of his fifth object, the conversion of the Heathen,
by the bringing of a number of infidel souls from their lands to this,
the which by count were nine hundred and twenty-seven, of whom the
greater part were turned into the true way of salvation. And what
capture of town or city could be more glorious than this."

CHAPTER XV.

THE AZORES.

1431-1460.

We have now come very nearly to the end of the voyages that are
described in the old _Chronicle of the Discovery and Conquest of
Guinea_, and setting aside the story of the famous Venetian Cadamosto,
this is also the end of the African mainland-coasting of Henry's seamen.
Though he did not die till 1460, and we have now only reached the year
1448, for Azurara's solemn catalogue of negroes brought to Europe is
reckoned only up to that year--"nine hundred and twenty-seven who had
been turned into the true path of salvation,"--yet there is no more
exploration in the last ten years of Henry's life worth noting, except
what falls into this and two of the following chapters.

The first of these is Cadamosto's own record of his two voyages along
the Guinea coast, in which he is supposed to have reached Cape Palmar,
some