THe first chapter, what thing the world is, how it is compounded of heauens and ele­ments, the number of the heauens are declared and there moouings.

THe world accor­ding to the Philosophers, is v­niuersall, for all things, it confes­neth therin, the heuens, y ^e stars, the earth, and the sea, with all the other elementes, and alltogether is called the worlde. For as Ptholo­mie sayth it is alwayes moouing and hath no time of rest: Seeing this vni­uersallitie whiche wee call worlde, is compounded and ordeined into twoo distinct regions (that is to say) the re­gion Celestiall, and the Region ele­mentall

The first which is the region celesti­al, is altogether shining, void, and free from al variation, alteration and cor­ruption. This according to the opinion of some auncient authors is diuided in­to niene heauens (that is to say) seauen of the planets, the eight is the firma­ment where the fixed starres are, the nienth the first moueable: of that opini­on was Ptholomie the great, and after him Thebit, Alfragano, Albategni, and o­thers which in astronomy did floorishe, more the late Astronomers (that is to say) the wise king Don Alonso, Iohn de Liueris, George Purbachio, Iohn de Mon­te Rey, and others do bring it very pro­bable.

[Page] That vppon the nienth sphere there is another tenth, whiche is the first moueable, it is alone, and they prooue that there are tenne heauens moueable by the moouinges of the eyght heauen. Hereof is written vppon the first chapter of the sphere, that y ^e late Astronomers saw fixed stars in y ^e hea­uen to haue three moouings, whiche were found in the eyght sphere, whiche are these folowing one is the first mo­ueable, that is to say of the tenth sphere which is the moouing of euery day, the which in foure and twentie houres maketh a reuolutiō from y ^e east to the west and this is made vpon the two poles of the worlde Articke and Antarticke.

It hath another moouing of the nienth sphere, and is called the second moueable, for it is alwayes according too the succession of the signes from the Weste into the Easte, a­gaynst the moouing of the first moue­able, which moouing is made vppon the poles of the Zodiacke, and this ac­cording as King Don Alonso sayeth, is called Auge of the fixed starres, the third moouing is of him selfe, and is called the moouing of tripidacion, or according to the saying of the sayde King the moouing of accesse and recesse of the eyghte Sphere, and is made vpon twoo little circles in the conca­uety of the nienth sphere, in the be­ginning of Aries and Libra equally di­scribed in such sorte that as to euery one of the heauens shoulde not bee geuen more then one moouing of it selfe, and the eyght heauen should haue three moouings.

Heereof it commeth that twoo of them are vnproper to him but are caused of other twoo superiour hea­uens, that is to say of the nienth and tenth, vpon these tenne heauens or mo­uable spheres wee put the eleuenth, which according to the learned is cal­led the imperiall heauen, that is by rea­son of his great brightnes, which al­wayes continueth firme in one man­ner of order, without any moouing, and of this there are some reasons, whereby wee are perswaded, where­of there are two thinges noted.

The first is, that any manner of thing that mooueth from a place modueth his place eyther in all, or in parte, so that whiche doeth mooue mooueth into some place, forotherwise it were immoueable, therefore any of the moueable heauens mooueth place eyther altogether in him selfe or his partes, therefore he is in some place but not in any inferiour sphere, for the place must compasse about that which is put into the place, therefore hee in a superiour sphere. And it is conue­nient that there bee some heauen sted­fast and greater, wherein it maye mooue.

The second reason, is that there is put a difference in the heauen, that is to saye, before and after, on the ryght side and on the lefe, not in re­spect of as muche as toucheth vs, but for the nature of the thinges, So the Philosopher sayeth in the seconde of the heauen and the worlde, this can­not bee preserued by the moueable spheres, the cause is that in the moue­able Spheres, the parte that nowe is at the ryght side, shall bee at the left. And the parte that is nowe aboue shall bee vnderneath, as experience sheweth, wherevppon it followeth, that it is conuenient there bee a fix­ed heauen, whiche in the behalfe of the thing, is founde the difference that is alleadged. This is the imperiall heauen, as it is sayde, whiche is higher then all other hea­uens. It hath greate dignitie, by reason of his brightnesse, clean­nesse, establitie, and purenesse, heere is the Celestiall Courte, where they dwell that are of good fortune, enioying of GOD, whereas the Apostle sayeth, nor eye hath seene, nor eare hath hearde, nor canne enter into the hearte of man, that whiche GOD hath made ready for such as loue him.

The second chapter wherein is declared, the three moouings which the eyght hea­uen hath and howe they are knowne.

I Haue sayd in the chap­ter before that in the eyght heauen are found three moouinges diffe­rent, and that some A­stronomers were of opi­nion, that there were onely niene sphers moueable and others had opinion of tenne, and because that in this the aun­cient authors, and the writers doe not agree, I will shewe you the reasons, that were of these opinions of y ^e which is to be vnderstood, the first, Astrono­mers mainteined that there were only eyght heauens. This they obteyned by the moouing of the stars. For the stars mooue not of themselues, but in theyr circles, so sayth the Philosopher in the second of the heauen and the worlde, that the starres are fixed in the circle, as the knot in y ^e table: so y ^t by their moo­uings the difference that is betweene the planets which mooue, and the fixed starres are knowne, these in their moo­uinges are knowne to be different [...] one from the other, in swiftnes and in [...]lownesse and by their place, but the fixed [...]ar [...]es are so many in num­ber that they cannot be toth prehended.

The long experience and obseruati­on of the Astronomers, attemed to the knowledge that [...]n doe mooue toge­ther in equall distance and neerenesse and continually the one doth keep with the other, so that their moouing is one so the Philosopher vnderstandeth in the first of the heauen and the worlde, therefore I say that these Astronomers vnderstood that in the eyght heauen was onely the continual moouing, that is from the East to the Wea [...], and that th [...] was the [...] moueable, it seemeth that the sayd Phylosopher did so vn­derstand it in the place before aleadged, where he sayth that all the fixed stares are [...] the first indueable, & for this rea­son, there are so man [...]e there, and in [...] one of the inferiours [...]d more but one.

There was other Astronomers, that were not content to put only eight sphers but they atteined to the nienth. And the reason was because they sawe the eyght heauen to haue two moo­uinges different, the one is as afore­sayd from the East to the Weast, and the other contrary to it: (that is to say) from the West into the East, and this motion is so slowe, that in A hundred yeeres it is scarsely to be per­ceiued.

This moouing Ptholomie decla­reth in the seauenth of the Almagesto, with most strong and certaine rea­sons, so that these twoo different moouinges beeing considered, they came to the knoweledge, that the eyght heauen was not the first mouea­ble, for the first mouable hath one only moouing of himself most simple, the late Astronomers by their large speculatiō, founde fyxed Starres whiche moo­ued sometimes from the Weast too the North, And to the South, and more swiftely to the Easte then too the Weast, and at other times more swiftely towardes the North then too the South, The whiche De­monstration, because with onely twoo [...] aforesayde it could not bee determined, they put ano­ther thirde: moouing, and this is one of him selfe whiche is made in twoo small cyrcles in the heade of Aries and Libra, So that as the tyght Sphere hath three moouings, it is not onely necessary to put the nienth, but also the tenth: the reason is be­cause one simple body, ought to haue but one only simple moouing, and that is vntoo him proper and natu­rall, so sayeth the Philosopher in the first of the heauen and the worlde, if they haue any more moouinges, they are improper to him.

And seeing that the eyght hea­uen is a simple bodie, as the Phy­losopher vnderstandeth it in the same place, it is conuenient that of these three moouinges, one of them be pro­per and naturall to him and the o­ther two improper. Likewise the moo­uing [Page] that is not proper to him, vnto another is proper and naturall. And seeing that it is not an inferiour sphere, it is conuenient to graunt, that vppon the eyght heauen are other twoo moo­uinges of whome is caused these twoo moouinges aforesayde, so that as the Philosopher saith, the eight heauē was the fyrst moueable. It is to bee vn­derstoode, that hee and the Astrono­mers of his time, beleeued that the eyght heauen had onely the moouing of euery day. And they came not too the knowledge of the others, because they were not determined vppon, but in a very long continuance of time.

The thyrde Chapter howe the heauen hath a rounde figure and of fiue rea­sons whereby it was conuenient [...] should be so.

THE wisdome of the e­uerlasting father which treated and di [...]sed all thinges, ordeined that the heauen shoulde bee rounde vp these reason [...] following.

The first by reason of the similietude.

The seconde, vp reason of the commoditie.

The thirde for necessitie, Unto the firste, touching similitude or like­nesse, because the sensible worlde, is made vntoo the [...]nesse of the worlde imaginat [...], wherein is no beginning nor ending, and for this cause the sensible worlde hath a fourme or figure, after the manne [...] of a sphere▪ in the whiche cannot bee. assigned or marked, beginning nor ending, For the second, of the commoditie or profit this is because in all bodies and Super, fimetros, the whiche are foure princi­pally Oual Piramidal, Colu [...]al, [...] the Sphere is of gra [...]ter body and of all figures the rounde fygure or fourme doeth co [...]teiue most, and see­ing that the rounde bodye is the grea­ter, it followeth that all thinges which haue that fourme or shape are profi­table in the world.

The thirde whiche is of necessitie, for if the world were of another fourme or shape then rounde, as like vn­to a Tryangle or Quadrangle or of another fourme it woulde followe that some place shoulde be [...]ptie, or some body without a place, therefore an empty place cannot be put according to nature, for nature it selfe doeth ab­horre it so muche, that more easily it consenteth that whiche is heauie too rise vp, or that which is light too des­cende, then too permitte an emptye place. So saith the maker of y ^e commē ­taries▪ rather the heauen will descende find the earth ascende, then nature to permitte any thing emptie,

A ristotle bringeth in other twoo rea­sons, to prooue that the heauen is round.

The first reason is, that vnto the firste and noble body is [...] the firste and moste noble Fygure or shape. The heauen is the moste noble and fyrstbodye and the rounde fygure is [...] perfect, therefore vnto the heauen is due the rounde houre [...] [...]ording too reason, for vnto euery one bodie nature gaue a fourme pro­percionably vntoo his woorke, euen as it appeareth in Beastes and in pla­nets.

Therefore the proper woorke of heauen is to [...] mooue it selfe conti­nually like to a circle. It was con­uenient that it shoulde haue a fygure or fourme [...] and [...] for suche a moouing, and that is rounde, wherefore this lacketh the [...] which doeth let the moouing.

[...] sayeth, if the worlde were plaine some parte of it woulde be more neere to be the [...] other [...] euen as that parte whiche is ouer our [...]ades, wherevppon the [...] that is there, shoulde bee more [...] too be then that whiche is in the Easte or in the Weste, then those thinges whiche are neerer too vs doe seeme greater [Page 3] to vs, so the Starre whiche is in the middest of heauen shall seeme greater to vs then that whiche is in the Easte or in the West, which we see contrary, For the Sunne or another Starre seemeth greater in the easte or in the Weste, then in the mid­dest of heauen, the cause of this is, not because the Sunne or the Starre is greater or lesser, nor that hee is father or neerer, But for some va­poures that riseth vppe and putteth them selues betweene our sight and the Sunne or the Starre, and as these Uapoures are thicke bodies they take awaye the Beames of the Sunne▪ or Starre from our sighte, in suche sorte, that the thing in his owne quantity [...] cannot bee compre­hended.

As it may bee likened to a peece of money cast into [...] water, that be­cause of the glystering of the Beames or strickes it seemeth to bee of greater quantitie then it is.

Euen so doeth the Sunne or starre, when the Uapoures are put betweene them and our sight.

The fourth Chapter, of the noblenesse of the Heauen, and of his cou­lour.

ARISTOTLE sayeth that the noblenesse of the heauen, is vnder­stoode and considered in the clearenesse of his shyning, in the round­nesse of his fourme, in the vnitie of his equallitie, in the vertue of his moouing, in the heyght of his scitua­tion, whiche is verye farre from the center of the earth, in the deminishing of his quantitye, whiche doeth o­uerreach the imagination and mea­sure of reason.

In nature nothing is like too it, neither comparable to it in vertue, The heauen is none of the elementes nor hath their qualities, nor is com­pounded of them, if it were it shoulde be corruptible, for all thing compoun­ded of the elementes, shall bee desolued and corrupted.

The heauen is ingenerable inaug­mentable, it cannot receiue straunge impressions, it is neyther light nor heauie, hote nor colde, drye nor moyst, formall or royall, but vertu­ous, for his vertue and influence doeth heate, so sayeth the Phylosopher in the fyrste of the Heauen and the Worlde, and so improperly it may bee sayde, it is not to bee broken nor penetrable, and likewise improper, thicke, or congealed, improperly it hath his coulor bright.

And for as muche as the coulour: which seemeth to vs it hath, is to bee vnderstoode, that our sen­ [...]es many times deceiueth vs, and the sight maye sooner deceiue vs their any other of our sences, for our eyes bee of so tender a composition, that any manner of fourme, sente of any visible thing, we feele griefe ther­of.

So sayeth Alacen in the prospectine; the thirtie niene rule.

And Aristotle in the booke of Qua­litate Visus, whereby I say that no­thing aboue the Moone can bee seene, But the Sunne, or the Starres, whiche Starres wee see by meanes of the light that they receiue of the Sunne.

But as touching the coulour of Heauen, It is to be noted, that it taketh coulour in one of twoo sortes, one is of it selfe. And so is the se­conde qualitie, caused of the fyrste, Euen as the whyte, the blacke, and other coulours, In this sorte the Celestiall bodies haue no coulours, But in another sorte it is taken, that is to saye, commonly by all that which y ^e sight doth shew, & extendeth it selfe to that which is bright and percing, and in that manner the heauen hath [Page] his colour, that is to say, shining.

The fifth chapter of the tenne [...] cal­led the first moueable and of his moo­uing.

SEeing there hath beene declared the number of the heauēs there shapes and qualities, I will speak perticularly of thē, and especially of that which serueth for our purpose, of the which I say it is manifest to our sight that the heauens mooue, and it is to be vnderstood, that a moouing is a pas­sing from one place to another, so that all thinges which mooue passeth from one place to another, or from one limet to another, this moouing may be in one of these three sortes, by meanes of a circle or straight waye or from aboue downward, and so contrary. The first of those three, which is the moouing in circle manner, mooueth not place accor­ding to all his quantitie, but according to his parts, as it appeareth in a whele vnles it be al mooued from one place to another y ^t they make it go roūd, so they mooue all his partes, such is the moo­uing of the heauen, so that, whiche is now in the east afterward shalbe in the west, and although the heauen moueth not place according to all the proporti­on which it hath, yet it is well mooued which in it is mooued. And this hath commonly been doubted, if the first mo­ueable of the heauens, were mooued by one only moouer or by many: And if by many howe manye there are, and in what sort they mooue it. Of the which it is to be noted that the heauens in the first moueable are moued of one mouer, and that they are not mooued of many, for one only is sufficient, & many would be superfluous, so saith the Philosopher or the first of his naturall phylosophie, that it is better to put one beginning then many, and a fewe rather then an infinite number, therfore it is better to put one onely moouer then manye who maketh this first moueable: there are diuerse opinions, one saieth God alone, bringing therefore that which Aristotle saith that the first moo­uer ought to be of an infinite strength­and seeing that God is of an infinite strength and hath created al thinges of a reasonable strength, it seemeth that God onely is he that mooueth the first moueable. Others there are that pro­ueth that the firste moouer is a cer­taine intellectiue whiche mooueth, the whiche they prooue in this man­ner. If the first moouer were God it would folow either that y ^e mouing of heauen were done at one instance, or the doings of God be measured with time.

Therefore it cannot be sayde that the heauen is mooued at one instant, seeing that all Astronomers holdeth and the sight sheweth it, that in foure and twentie houers there is one reuolution a [...]complished. N [...] the seconde can be. For the saide Philosopher in the fourth of the naturall philosophie sayth, the e­uerlasting is not in time nor his doo­ings are measured with time, but this is it which most commonly is vnder stoode, that an angell maketh the first moouing, and likewise al the other hea­uens haue intellectiue motion whiche mooueth them in their owne moouings and here by it appeareth howe orderly they mooue since the time that GOD made them, vntil the like moouing doe cease when his will shalbee.

Therefore I say that the first mo­ueable, of the first moouing which is of the tenth heauen according to that as hath been spoken of, geueth a turne once in foure and twenty houres round about the world, from the east into the west, & with this his mouing he catch­eth & carrieth with him al the other in­feriour heauens and maketh them giue a turne to the world in the time that hee geueth it. Although that their owne moouinges be contrary to this, this is shewed because we see that the starrs, the sunne, the moone▪ and the other pla­nets haue their first originall, and are created in the east. And by little & little they rise vp and assend vntill they come to the meridian and so with one accord they descende and come to the west, and [Page 4] alwayes they make this moouing in the same foure and twentie houres as the tenth heauen doeth, so that continuallye they obeye the moo­uinges of the first moueable.

And it is to be noted, that for as muche as it is saide of this forceable moouing or catching which the firste moueable doeth, vntoo the other inferiour heauens, it is to bee vnder­stoode that in the Celestiall bodies is no forceable moouing or violence, nor any resistance or contradiction, but all with one conformitie or ac­corde doe follows the fyrste moo­uing.

And so when it is sayde that the first moueable doeth catch the o­ther inferiour heauens it ought to be vnderstoode soundly as if he should say the inferiour or lower heauens are mooued of the higher by an accedent, e­uen so as the marriner mooueth the shippe moouing her selfe, wherin he sai­leth or as the water in a vessell, the ves­sel being mooued the water also moo­ueth so it is to be vnderstoode, that the inferiour heauens doe mooue them­selues by the moouing of the firste moueable, so by that aforesayde it see­meth that alwaies there may be a dout saying.

( A doubt:) how can it be that the tenth heauen moouing it selfe continu­ally without ceasing from the easte to the west, that the other inferiour hea­uens moouing them selues with him doe make their owne moouinges con­trary, so that in one selfe time there is made by one selfe body different moo­uinges.

A Declaration for the declaration of this, the present exāple is to be noted, if in y ^e wheele of a mil there were set a flee or an Aunt, although that the wheele doeth make his moouing very quicke and hastie yet the Aunt or Flee may be going at their leisure, and make their moouing contrary to that whiche the wheele doeth. As also if the wheele carrieth them rounde about and in a short space geueth a turne yet they may make an ende of their moouing at their leysure, so that in this sorte the moouing which the tenth heauen doth make which is in euery foure & twenty houres, the inferiour heauens al­though they are mooued of him they make their owne moouinges contrary, the whiche euerye one of them by him­selfe doeth make an ende in different times.

The sixthe chapter of the nienth hea­uen, called Christaline or heauen of water, it is declared howe there is a heauen of water, and of what qua­litie it is of.

THe nienth heauen called the seconde moueable, which first of all challen­geth the mouing from y ^e Weste into the Easte for his owne, because of the tenne moueable heauens. This is the first, and that most by leysure ma­keth his moouing from the West into Easte, this is called the Christaline Heauen or Heauen of water, of the whiche is written in Genesis the first Chapter. Where GOD sayde, let the Firmament bee made in the mid­dest of the waters, So that the wa­ters remayne diuided, some aboue the Firmament and others beneath, the whiche Firmamente is the eyght heauen. In suche sorte that of wa­ters which remayne aboue the Fir­mament is this nienth Heauen, Of this it seemeth there may bee a doubt, saying.

A Doubt, Howe canne there bee waters aboue the Heauen, seeing that naturally water is heauie, and all bodies whiche are heauie doe na­turallye descende, neither canne it bee saide that GOD hath them there, for any myracle, but by a naturall meanes.

A Declaration, to this Nicholas [Page] De Lyra, answereth in the glosse vppon y ^e sayd article the first of Genesis, where hee sayeth that these waters are ta­ken here in a double sence, for those wa­ters which are aboue the firmament be of a celestiall nature, that is to say, of the like qualitie that the heauens are of, and of their owne nature: And those which are vnder the firmament are of ellymentall nature. This heauen is cal­led the heauen of waters or christaline heauen, because it hath a pearcing light like to water, and cleere shining like to christal, of this nienth heauen, or of the tenth we haue no signe, nor there is a­ny in them: nor our sight doeth passe the eyght heauen where the fixed stars are.

The seauenth Chapter of the eyght heauen, which is the firmament or starry heauen, and of the light of the starres, and of their greatnes.

THe eyght heauen, which is the starrie heauen, is called the firmament by reason that in it are the fixed starres, in such sort as none by him selfe mo­ueth but altogether, of these it is to bee vnderstode, that although we see them bright, yet there is none of them that haue any light of them selues, but the Sunne giueth light vnto them all, for he onely hath light and no other bodie. This light God made the first day, as it is written in Genesis the first chap­ter. And the texte sayth that God saw the light and it was good. Saint Au­stine speaketh of the light that it is a corporall substance, souereigne and sim­ple, multiplied in vertue, and shy­ning with brightnes without resistance it is communicable and delightfull and therefore among all other bodies ther­is nothing so profitable, so quiet, so ver­tuous as the light: The light is sprink­led abrod from the heauen to the earth it is the beautie of all visible creatures, and is the cause wherewithal the other bodies or the world be praysed, seeing that I say that the stars haue no light of themselues, more then that which they receiue of the sunne. So Albertus Magnus writeth in the second of the heauen and the worlde, The sixt chapter, where he saith, al the stars of heauē are lightned of the sūne, as also the moone, but there is a difference in receiuing of their light, & so they differ in receiuing their vertu, as they differ in y ^e noblenes of nature in such sort as, some are most pure and most noble, & these, receiuing their light at one instant it doeth pene­trate them, from the superficie which is opposite to the sunne euen to the other superficie, so that all the starres remain cleane and full of light, others also are penetrated with the sunne, although that by their nature they decline to som colour, but howsoeuer it bee, the sunne doeth penetrate them at one instant, & filleth them full of light euen as a can­dle is lighted with fire, and heere it is to be noted that in this eyght heauen is the Zodiacke where the twelue signes are, or y ^e houses of the sun. These signes are cōpounded euery one of a certaine number of starres, & besids the signes, there are other 36. images, which are also compounded of starres, so that ther are in all. 48, and these starres, which doe compounde these signes and ima­ges are in number. 1021. of these spea­keth Alfragano in the third booke of the assembling of the stars, that the least of the fixed Starres to a notable sight is greater then all the earth. And if al the bodie of the earth were put into the place where the fixed Starres are, although it had light by reason of the great distance, it would bee so little that we should not see it, but this au­thoritie is not to be vnderstoode of the planets, for all of them bee not greater then the earth, nor it is to be vnderstod of all the fixed starres, therefore it is to be sayd of them that are most notable to the sight. For there are some fixed starres so little, that wee see them not, there be others also that although wee see them by reason they are little, they are not accounted of the Astronomers, but onely such as are great and these be not all of one greatnes or quantitie, but [Page 5] of diuerse quantities, and therfore they be diuided into sixe differences. So Ptholomy hath it in his Almagesto, and the king Don Alonso in his tables.

The eyght Chapter, howe it is vnderstoode, that the Sunne doth enter into the signes, and wherefore the signes haue the names of beastes.

IN the Chapter whiche goeth before, was sayde that in the eyght heauen is the Zodiack wher the twelue signes haue their place or houses of the Sunne, and of this it seemeth that two things may be douted. ( The first doubt) To the fyrst, seeing that these signes or starres are in the eight heauen and the Sunne in fourth, how can the sunne enter into the signes, seeing there is so great distance betweene the sunne and them, ( The second doubt) To the second, if euery one of the signes be compoun­ded of starrs wherfore doe we say that one signe is called Aries, whiche is as much to say a Ram, and another Tau­rus, which is asmuch to say a Bull. And likewise of others: seeing that in the heauen there is not any beastes. ( The first declaration) To the first, although it be true y ^t the signes be in the 8. heauē, & the Sunn in the fourth, it is to be vn­derstoode that the moouing which the Sunne maketh in all the yeere is, that he mooueth himselfe vnder the starres of the signes, and so when we say that the Sunne is in such a signe, it is vn­derstood that then he mooueth himself vnder the starres of that signe, as also any of vs may stande vnder any signe or vnder the Sunne, And the distance that is from the one to the other doeth not let it. (2. Declaration) To the se­cond, it is so, that in the heauen are no beastes, but these are so named by rea­son of the effectes whiche the Sunne worketh, being in euery one of y ^e signes which doe followe and answere by pro­pertie or likenesse to one of these beasts, and by demonstration of suche an effect, it cōpareth it self to the likenes of such a beaste, or to another thing that it is likened vnto, as in y ^e chapter folow­ing is declared, that the Sunn entring into euery one of these signes, doeth cause diuers effectes. Therefore it is to be noted, that of these twelue signes foure of them are moueable, foure fixed, foure common. The moueable are A­ries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorne, these signes are called moueable, for the sun entring into euery one of thē, it is said, that the disposition of the ayre doeth vary and not continue in one estate, and likewise the Sunne entring into Aries, it mooueth from winter into sommer, and entring into Cancer, it mooueth from Sommer into Estio, and entring into Libra it mooueth from Estio to O­tonno which is haruest time. And en­tring into Capricorne it mooueth frō O­tonno or haruest time into winter. The fixed signes are Gemini, Virgo, Sagitari­us and Pisces, they are called fired, for the Sunne entring into any of them, it is sayde, that the time and the disposition of the ayre doeth continue in his owne estate, They which are common, are Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, & Aquarius, they are called common signes, for there appertaineth to them some thing of the moueable and of the fixed, and so the common in parte is moueable, and in parte is fixed.

The nienth Chapter what a signe is, and what likenes it hath with that whervnto it is compared, and what day of the yeere the Sunne entreth into euery signe.

I Haue sayde, that the signes of the Zodiacke haue names of beastes, by reason that y ^e effects which the Sunne doth woorke by entring into euery one signe, they haue likenesse or property, with that beast or with that thing wherof the signe beareth name; And because I thought good to declare this at large. I will shewe what thing a signe is, and how many manner of wayes it is taken, and the likenesse that euery signe hath with that where­with [Page] it is compared, and in what daye of the yeere according to the common o­pinion, the Sunne entreth into-euery signe, For the first is to be noted, that a signe according to the saying of Sacro bu­sto, is a piramide of foure sides, whose seate is that superficie, whiche wee call signe, the sharpenesse therof is towards the center, the signes are those starres, y ^t the Astronomers were accustomed to contemplate on, loking on their light or brightnes, wherby they knewe what wether would come, and many were ac­customed to behold them, and thereby they foresaw the qualities of the sum­mer, winter, and other times of the yeere. For the principal starres in their risinges and in their setting, doe shewe the qualities of the times, A signe is al­so taken by one parte of the Zodiacke, the which the sunne doeth passe, after he hath gone thirtie degrees from his moouing. And because the sunne in one yeere doeth passe the zodiacke, whiche hath three hundreth and threescore de­grees, therefore the signes or houses of the sunne are twelue, so sayth Ptholomy in y ^e second Quadri Partiti, that the signs are twelue, answering to the twelue partes of the earth, therefore of these signes. The first is Aries, and the rea­son why this signe is first named before y ^e others, is because that some holdeth, that in the first degree of this signe, the sunne made his moouing the first day y ^t he began, & that day he was in the e­quinoctiall: and also for because the sun entring into this signe making heate, bringeth foorth moisture, by the which it is a liuely moouing of generation, This signe is called Aries, by similitude euen as a sheepe is weake in one parte of the bodie, and is strong in the other, so entring the sunne into this signe y ^e. 11. of Marche, in the first parte is a little hote, and in the last with greater strength his heate is felt.

The 2. signe is called Taurus, to vnder stande, that as the Bull is a strong beaste, so entring the Sunne into this signe the eleuenth of Aprill, it heateth with more strength then before.

The third signe is Gemini of this is vnderstood▪ that the sunne entring into him y ^e eleuenth of May, with his vertue of heating ingendreth.

The Iour [...]h signe is Cancer, into the which the sunne is entred the eleuenth of Iune, it is marked like a Crabbe.

The fifth signe is the figure or shape of a Lion, which is a strong beast, colle­ricke and full of anger, so that the Sunne entring into this signe the fourteenth of Iuly, it bringeth a strong heat.

The sixth signe is Virgo, by the whiche is noted, euen as the virgine is barren and doeth not engender, so the Sunne entring into this signe the fourteenth of August, the earth is barren and bringeth not foorth any thing by rea­son of the great heate.

The seauenth signe is Libra, marked by a payre of Ballance of like equalitie, to vnderstand, that the Sunne beeing entred into this signe the thirteenth of September, the day is equall with the night.

The eyght signe is marked with a Scorpion, which is a Beaste, that with the tongue he flattereth, and with the tayle he poysoneth, so when the Sunne is entred into this signe the fourteenth of October, the first part thereof is tem­perate, but the last is colde.

The nienth signe is Sagitarius which is a beast offenciue, so that the Sunne en­tring into this signe the thirteenth of Nouember, offendeth with colde and snowe.

The tenth is Capricorne, wherein is vnderstoode that euen as the Gote from the lower parte goeth vp to that which is high, so the Sunne entring in­to this signe the fourteenth of Decem­ber, from the lowest parte of our hemi­sperio beginneth to goe to that which is high.

The. 11. signe is Aquarius, marked by a man y ^t sheddeth water for to shewe, that entring the Sunne into this signe y ^e 11. of Ianuary, he sendeth to the earth water & moisture. The. 12. signe is Pis­ces, marked by 2. fishes in the water, which is cold & moist, to shew y ^t entring y ^e sun into this signe y ^e. 12. of feburary y ^e [Page 6] weather is colde and moist. Of the a­foresayde it may be knowne, the diuer­sitie of the effectes, that the sunne ma­keth in euery signe. But it is to bee noted that this doeth happen to such as doe dwell from the equinoctiall to­wardes the north or pole articke, for such as inhabite towardes the pole antartike, the sunne beeing gone foorth of the equinoctial, doeth make contra­ry effectes to them, so that when wee haue summer they haue winter, in such sorte that the order of the signes in the Zodiacke is not conformable or agree­able to all for if vnto vs commeth forth first Aries before Taurus, to them com­meth foorth first Taurus before Aries, & in like sort of the other signes as in the materiall sphere is plainely shewed.

The tenth Chapter, of the seauen heauens, of the planets, and their moouings, and how they haue impression, and cause generati­on and corruption in the inferiour bo­dies.

SEeing that y ^e eyght hea­uen hath bin treated of, and of the stars & signes that are in it. It is con­uenient to speake of thē seauen inferiour heauēs which are named by the planets, of the which it is to be vnderstoode that of the seauen heauens. The first is Saturn▪ the second is Iupiter, the third is Mars, the [...]ourth is Sol, the fifth is Venus, the sixth is Mercurie, & the seauenth Luna, more neere vnto vs, then any of the rest, these seauē planets are called stars, which are moueable not because they erre, but be­cause their mouings be not vniform nor agreable, these do moue y ^e elemēts & do corrupt the things that are corruptible they bring cloudie weather, and raiseth vp the waues of the sea, they mooue tempests, and causeth flowers to grow, and the heauēs & planets haue natural vertue to cause these effectes, the works of these planets are diuers according to y ^e variatiō of the countries & regions, & therby their impressions are printed in beastes, birds, and plantes, and in men they incline more to one then to other. But although they do to incline & moue, they doe not constraine nor binde by force, But rather as Ptholomie sayth, y ^e wise man is lord ouer the starres He is wise that followeth not sensualitie, but reason, euery of these planets haue a sphere of his owne, wherin he moueth in circle wise, And the superiour circle mooueth round about so nere to y ^e infe­riour, that betweene the one and the o­there is no space nor any thing emptie. so that these heauens do shut one with another, & they are nere together in such sort, that any thing how litle or smal so­euer it be, cannot put it self between the one and theother, as it appeareth in the elementes, that betweene the one and the other their is no place emptie: so y ^t we see betweene the water & the earth, or between the ayr and the water, or be­tweene the fire and the ayre, remain no place, y ^t any thing may be put between: more it is to be noted, that although the heauens are so ioyned together, & neer one to the other, that this ioyning together doe not let them of their moo­uing, so that they mooue very distinctly in differente times the one from the other, without any let of their moouing or standing still one onely pointe in such sorte, that the tenth heauen maketh his moouing in twentie and four houres, & the nienth heauen that is neere vnto him, in fortie niene thousand yeres, and likewise the eyght heauen doeth make his moouing in thirtie & sixe thousand yeeres, and another in seauen thousand, and the seauenth heauen which is next to him maketh an ende of his moouing in thirty yeres. These are things which doe teach vs the greatnes and power of the maister & maker of such workes, vnto whom the sayde woorkes giueth praise, so did the royal Prophet consi­der in the eyghteene Psalme where hee sayth, The heauens doe shewe and manifest the glorie of the Lorde, and in another place, Lorde the heauens shall confesse thy great maruelles, frō the beginning thou ma­dest the earth, & the heauens are the workes of thy handes. And it is to be noted that euery one of these heauens haue [Page] twoo moouinges one is the first moue­able, which is made from the east in­to the west, turning againe into the cast as it is declared: The other moouing which is proper to euery one, is made by a circle oblique, contrary to the first, that is to saye, from the west into the east: Of this is to bee noted, that according to the opinion of Frauncis Capuano, it was necessary that in the heauēs were twoo contrary moouinges, one in the first moueable, and another in the low­er spheres, and this for twoo reasons, The first is, because the first moueable doeth mooue so swift, and with so great hast, that scarsely his moouing can bee considered, seeing that in twentie and foure houres hee passeth all the space that he doeth occupie, whiche causeth, that he caryeth with him, all the lower heauens, and the fire, and the measu­red region of the ayre, as it is written, in the first of the Metheoros, so that if the eyght & nienth sphere and the hea­uens of the planets did not mooue vn­to the opposite parte, with a contrarie moouing, the sayd first moouing would not onely mooue vnto the Celestiall Spheres, and to the fire, but woulde mooue all the ayre, water, and earth rounde about, with his daily moouing, and there woulde remaine nothing quiet nor firme. The second reason is because the starres with their moouing doe cause influence in the inferiour, and so they make impressiō as they mooue, but if euery one did mooue, according to their onely moouing, that is to saye, from the Caste into the Weste, so that if they mooued altogether with one vni­formitie, they would bring foorth one e­quall and vniforme effecte, the which shoulde bee an inconuenience. For that onely generation is not sufficient, but it is conuenient, that there bee corrup­tion, and so it was conuenient, that all the Spheres, shoulde modue in their daylye moouing, rounde about the earth once in a naturall daye, be­cause all of them may communicate with vs their impressions: and like­wise that they mooue in the seconde moouing in the Zodiack, comming to­gether, and deuiding them selues one from another to make that the effectes shoulde be different. Aristotle sayeth, in the second of generation, that the moouing of the Starres in the circle, oblique, that is to say, in the Zodiacke is cause of the diuersitie of effectes, And so the Sunne in the summer com­ming nere vnto vs, causeth generatiō, & likewise in Otonno, or Haruest time, and in the winter going [...]rō vs causeth corruption.

The eleuenth Chapter, of the Region ele­mentall, and howe it is diuided into four elementes, and why it is not diuided in­to any more or lesse.

IN the Chapters before writtē hath bin declared the order of the heauēs, their nūber & mouings, therefore I will nowe speake of the elementes, howe they are ordained and deuided, of the which it is to be vnderstood, that the elementes are foure and no more, by reason, that first of all they haue foure qualities, and it maye bee sayde, that they Ioyne in sixe kinde of waies. Let vs see if all sixe be possible. One ioyning is hote and cold, another moist and drie, the thirde hote and drye, the fourth hote and moyst, the fifth moyste and colde, the sixth colde and dry. The twoo first be not possible, because there cannot bee twoo contraries in one subiect. The foure which remayne are possible, in the whiche the actiue one with the other ioyneth with y ^e passiue. These foure do constitute the four first essentias which are called elementes, And this is by reason of their fyrste simple bodies, euen as it seemeth in their quallities. That is to saye, in the fire, in the ayre, in the water, and in the earth, because we see that the fire is hot and drie, the ayre hote and moiste, the water colde and moyste, the earth colde and drye, by the which difference of qualities of the first bodies, they are parted in the same maner. All these ele­ments doe moone, by the higher moo­uing [Page 7] except the earth which is immo­ueable. So sayth Albertus the great in the first of his Metheoros, the fourth Chapter, it is necessarie that wee saye the moouing, which wee see from the inferiour, that is to say, the moo­uing of the elementes proceede of the superiour, euen as of his owne cause, but it must be vnderstoode of the superi­our elements the which in their conti­nuall moouing, they mooue in circle manner, onely the earth which is most Iowe, remayneth without moouing, not onely circuler neither yet straight.

The twelfth chapter howe the elementes, doe compasse about one another, and wherefore the water doeth not couer all the earth.

THese foure elementes, that before are spokē of ought to be vnderstoode that the one doeth com­passe about the other in this manner, the earth is in the middest of al, like to a poynte or Center of the worlde, neere vnto the which is the water, and vppon the wa­ter and the earth is the ayre, and vpon the ayre, the fire, and the element of the fire is vpon the ayre Albenruys proueth it in the fourth of the heauen and the worlde in his thirty two commentary: where he sayth, we see that all fire mo­ueth vpwarde and is eleuated vppon the ayre, therfore as his mouing is not infinite it is conue [...]ient that it come to one place where it is na [...]ral, and there it is conserued, whereupon it is conclu­ded that the fire is aboue the ayre, it is prooued by an example in this sort. If there be any that haue not seene the sea but seeth how all riuers goe to demain in one pla [...] as their moouinges the not infinite, it is necessarie to conclude and appoint some place, where the waters may ioyne, And this plate is the sea, so it is conuenient to graunt that vpon the ayre is a place in the hollowe parte of the roūdnes of the moone, where the [...] is gathered together. Therefore I say that these Elementes eyther of them doe compasse in roundnesse equal­ly from euery parte of the earth, sauing the water in that parte of the earth, which is discouered, for the breathing and life of all liuing creatures, of this it is to be noted according to the saying of Albertus the great, that the water did couer all the earth, and also he sayth in the second of the Metheoros the thirde treatie the seconde chapter, wee see the order of the elementes are in suche sorte, that alwayes the ioyning of the one is in the hollownes of the other, & this is by reason his roundnes doeth girde him therevnto, and because this is naturall, and sometimes it was so, y ^t at somtime the earth was couered with water, and all bodies naturally haue one proper place, whereby it is conueni­ent, that all be filled, for otherwise there woulde be some thing superfluous in nature, so it is euident, that the proper place of the waters is the superficie of the earth, for alwayes they mooue by that place.

Also when at any time two elements doe not agree in any quallitie, common­ly it is called simbol, wherewithall the one doeth ioyne with the other.

Therefore it is necessarie, that there bee some meane that they communicate and ioyn together, and seeing the earth and the ayre haue no simboll, it is con­uenient, that they ioyne together by meanes which is the water that hath a simboll with both, and so it is shewed that according to nature all the earth was couered with water: Of this may be asked what is the cause, why the roundnes of the elementes, fayled more in the water then in the others: it is an­sweared that GOD did make no­thing in vayne but alwaies woorketh for the best.

Therefore as God by his only grace and wil made man, and al other things, I leaue this part of the discouery of the earth, that man and Beastes might be conserued in their owne likenes.

Of this haue past many questions, this is certaine that GOD of his om­nipotencie made it. And so it is writ­ten in Genesis the first chapter, that [Page] God sayd lette the waters come toge­ther, that are aboue the heauen, and let the earth be seene drye.

The thirteenth Chapter, how the earth and the Water, both Elementes, make one round bodie.

IT is to bee noted, that these twoo Elementes, Earth and Water, both together doe make one rounde body, Of this speaketh Iohn de Sacro [...]usto in the first chapter of the Sphere, The earth is rounde, which is shewed by the signes and the other Starres, which rise not, nor goe downe equally to all men wheresoeuer they bee. But first of all they rise to them that bee in the east part, rather then to them that are in the west, and why they appeare to one rather then to the other, y ^e roundnesse of the earth is the cause thereof, & that to bee true, that the stars are seene to some rather then to others, it appea­reth by the eclipse, for one selfe eclipse of y ^e moone, which we see at the first houre of the night, they which are in the easte partes doe see them in the thirde houre of the night, whereby it seemeth, that it was first night, and the sunne was first set to them, before it was set to vs, the [...]ause is, the roundnes of the earth, & that the earth is rounde from the north vnto the south, and so contrarywise it sheweth it selfe, for vnto those which are towardes the north, appea­reth alwayes some starres, which are neere to the pole artick, & y ^e other stars which are neere to the pole antartik are neuer seene. But if any went from the north towardes the south or midday he might goe so farr, that the stars which he saw first might be layde vnder the horizon that he should not see them, and howe much more he came towards the south, so much lesse hee should see the starres of the north, and then he should see the starres of the south, that first he coulde not see, as contrariwise, it would happen to such as went from the south to the north, and the cause of this is the roundnes of the earth, likewise if the earth were plaine from the easte to the west, so sonne or equally, the stars would rise vnto those in the east partes as to those in the west, whereby it seemeth false, by the fyrst reason.

Item if the earth were plaine from the north to the south, or by the contra­ry, the stars that one should see should neuer be set from him wheresoeuer hee should goe, the which is false, by the se­cond reason, for if in any manner of wise the earth doe seem plain, vnto the sight of men, it is for the great quantitie that it containeth, in respect of our sight. And if any should say that the mountaines and valleis doe let the roundnes of the earth. To this is vnderstoode, that the mountaines haue not any proporti­on that should let the earth to be round And if there be any thing in that sorte they be as the nayles of a wheele, that very little or nothing doe let his round­nes, but note that in one of twoo man­ner of wayes a round thing may be spo­ken of, the one is by rule, that is to saye, when the lines which are straightly ca­ried from y ^e center to the circumference, be equall, in this sorte the earth is not perfectly round. In another sorte it is sayd to be round irreguler, that is, whē all partes are not of equall distance frō the middest, so is the roundnes of the earth. And seeing it hath beene declared how that the earth is rounde. I saye that the water is likewise round which is prooued by the reasons aforesayde.

Also it is prooued, that suche as sayle by the Sea, for to discouer the Lande, they alwayes goe vppe to the toppe of the Shippe, whiche is the highest parte, and happeneth to see the Lande from thence, and from no other place, And this is by rea­son of the roundenesse whiche the wa­ter hath.

The fourteenth chapter, Howe the earth is scituated in the middest of [...] worlde.

[Page 8] ALFRAGANO saith, in the fourth difference, if the earth were not in the middest of the world it would not be of equal distance from euery part of the heauen. But Euclides bringeth in the firste of the Elementes, that it standeth in the middest, and is equall in distance from all partes, and proo­ueth so, for if the earth were not in the middest, it woulde reache more to the Easte parte, or too the West. And for a similitude, when the Sunne or other Starre, were in that parte, it woulde reach more neere to the earth, then it it were in y ^e other part, & so they would seeme greater: Which is false, for wee see that all people whiche are vp [...] on the face of y ^e earth the stars seemeth to them of one selfe quantitie in what parte of the heauen soeuer they be, be it in the middle heauen, in the easte or in the west. And the cause of this is, by reason the earth is of equall di­stance from the Sarres, it followeth therefore that it is in the middest of the Firmament.

Item if the earth by any of his partes, were more neare to the hea­uen in one place then in another, he that were in that part vpon the face of the earth, which were neerer to the heauen, shoulde not see the halfe heauen.

This is against Ptholomie, and all the Philosophers, that doe saye, that wheresoeuer a man standeth there ri­seth alwayes with him sixe signes, and other sixe setteth with him, and the halfe heauen is seene of him, and the other halfe is hid from him, so that equally they are distant from the heauen.

Sacro busto sayeth, that by the selfe same signe or shewe is prooued, that the earth is but a poynte in respect of the Fyrmament, for if the earth were of any quantitie in respecte of the hea­uen, it woulde not happen that the half heauen shoulde bee seene.

And for the better vnderstanding thereof, Imagine this, if any plain superficie were put vppon the Center of the earth, the whiche shoulde diuide the earth into twoo equall partes. And also the firmament it selfe.

Then the eye of him that were in the Center of the earth, should see the mid­dest of the Fyrmament, And the selfe same eye standing vpon the face of the earth, shoulde also see the middest of the firmament, of this is gathered, that the quantitie of the earth is insencible in respect of the firmament.

The fiftenth Chapter, how the earth is quiet and mooueth not.

THAT the earth is vn­moueable and quiet, to is prooued by two rea­sons, the firste is, that beeing a hole naturall body and altogether heauie, it goeth to the place most lowe, whiche is the Center and middest of the Firmamēt, and there it remaineth. So sayth the Philosopher in the fourth of the naturall Philosophie and in the fyrst and fourth of the Heauen and the worlde.

The seconde reason is to consider, howe that the earth standeth in the middest, and if it shoulde mooue and departe from the middest, it woulde rise vppe, the which woulde happen to it naturally or violentlye, not natu­rallye, because his naturall moo­uing is to the middest, and so his moo­uing contrary to the middest is not na­turall to it, then it shoulde be with violence. But it cannot bee with vi­olence, because there is no body to be found that shoulde doe violence to so greate a body, in greatnesse and waight, where it is to bee concluded, that it is alwaies queit and mooueth not.

The same prooueth Albertus the great, in the seconde of the heauen and the Worlde, in the thyrde Treatie and the. 8, chapter where he saith, y ^e or­der of the starrs doe learn y ^e earth to be [Page] quiet, and placed in the middest, for as the moone is ordeined to be vnder the Sunne, if the earth were not in the middest and fixed, it would not happen [...] the parte of the circle of the signes, the Sunne and the moone to be opposite to the heade and tayle of the Dragon, and likewise the Astrolabios, and other in­strumentes of the Astronomers should be false, and by them woulde neuer bee found the courses and computations of the starres, as by the sayd iustruments our sences doe attaine vnto, for alwaies they woulde happen to bee diuerse and different, for from the earth the circles of the heauen should not be equally seen. All the which we haue prooued be Ge­omitrie and Astronomie. It is to bee considered that God made heauen and earth, and all that therein is, he put the earth fixed in the middest, because the heauen and the starres should compasse it about with their moouing, where the diuine power doeth sustaine it in the nuddest, euē as a point. Of this is writ­ten, The Lorde sayth, I haue hanged, the earth in one knot founded vpon his stabillitie.

The sixteenth Chapter of the center of the earth, and howe it may be sayd that the earth is the center of the world.

THE Center of the earth may bee vnderstoode in three manner of wayes, The first as touching the greatnes of the Center, The secōd of the waight of the center. And the third of the mase or assemblie of the center, the which as­sembly or mase is in the middest of the firmament, This beeing had, foure thinges are to bee noted. The first is, that in the land is not one selfe center of greatnes and of waight, for the earth is deformedly waighty, for that the one parte is couered with water, & the other part is discouered. The seconde, that the center of the waight of the earth is not in the middest of the firmament, for if you imagine to diuide the earth into 2. equal parts, thē the part that is coue­red with water woulde surmount the other. The third is that the Center of the greatnesse of the earth, and the Cen­ter of the firmament, are not one. For that the earth is not equally couered with water. Of the which there folow­eth, that in the earth we may imagine, three centers really distinct, The firste, is the cēter of the greatnes of the earth, The second the center of the waight, The third the midest of the firmament, The fourth reason that the, center or poynt of the mase or assembly of the water and earth is in the middest of the firmament. This is because the like as­semblie is a waightie body, and with­out lette, and so the center touching his wayght is in the middest of the worlde, for that he is weightie by nature, wher­by it may be sayde that the earth is in the middest of the firmament, for that it is a parte of the mase, which mase is in the middest of the world.

The first Chapter what thing the Sea is, and wherefore it is called Occean.

THe Sea is the proper place of the waters by reason of the si­militude of his forme. There the waters doe ingender & are sutained. And according as Albertus the great vnder­standeth it, the riuers come foorth of her and returne to her againe. So hee sayth in the third of his Metheoros the twelfth chapter, we see that all riuers runne into the Sea, and from the Sea they returne and come foorth, that they may runne agayne, wherby it seuieth, that the Sea is the end and beginning of the waters. It is called the Occean Sea, for the swift and continuall moo­uing where with it mooueth: for that, Oikis in Greeke is as much to say hasty or swift. The Greekes and Latinists doe name it by this name, and therefore this name hath continued common: or else it is called Occean Casi Cianeus, be­cause it girdeth or imbraceth the endes of y ^e earth, & by reason of y ^e diuersitie of the countries, it taketh diuers names, as the Indian sea or Percian sea. &c.

The Sea hath no colour, being looked vpon, when one is neere it: for our sight remaineth not vpon the superficies of y ^e water, but desendeth downe and being looked vpon a farre of it hath the colour of heauen, & being moued of the windes it hath the forme of diuers colours. And it is to be noted, that the Sea for seuen dayes riseth encreasing, and is that which we cal springtides, & other seuen she decreaseth. Of these flowings and ebbinges. Aristotle bringeth the causes to hee naturall, in the seconde of his Metheoro [...]: and besides that, Hipocrates, in his booke of ayre and wa­ter sayth that there is a proper cause in Astronomie, that is by the natural ver­tue of the moone, vpon the waters, so likewise we see that al shel fish with the encreasing of the moone doe encrease, & with y ^e decreasing do decrease: for as y ^e moone riseth aboue the Horizon and with his beames toucheth the sea, mo­ueth a stitring vp, whereby it causeth her flowing and ebbing and to cast out into her riuer or coast all dead bodies or vncleane thinges that are in her.

The 2. Chapter how the sea apperteineth to the perfection of the world, and without her the world woulde perish, and howe the water is ingendered in her.

THe sea apperteineth too the making of the world and to her perfection, & the world, should not be perfect without her: for if there were no begin­ning of the waters there shoulde be no simple waters. And if there were no simple waters there would be no mixt waters, and so there would be nothing of that which is ingendered of the wa­ter, and if there were no water there would be no bodies, as there are conti­nually, and thinges which cleeueth to­gether, whereof it followeth, that if the waters had not a beginning the gene­ration would be destroyed, And so con­sequently all the world. Also if there were no beginning of the waters there would not be a ioyning together of the contraries which are possible, and so nature woulde dye in that which were necessarie, and the woorke would cease in the act. Then it would happen, not hauing a beginning of the waters the woorke of nature would cease, and so the worlde woulde perish, where it con­cludeth, that the sea is necessary for the sustentation of the worlde. And Ari­stotle in the seconde of his Metheoros, sayth, that the waters in the sea doe in­gender [Page] in the North, which is as much to say, as the greatest parte of the wa­ter of the sea doth ingender in y ^e north. This Albertus the greate declareth in the second of his Metheoros, chapter sixe, saying that the sea runneth from y ^e North into the South, and the cause is that the north is higher then the south and the reason wherefore it is higher, is, because that with the colde of the north there is more water ingendred, then that which can containe in the di­stance and height of the riuers, and in the south the water consumeth and is wasted with the heate of the sunne, and for this cause in the north, one water pusheth out another, to the place which is lower then it selfe: And so accidently it mooueth, from the place of his gene­ration. For as it is moist, it runneth vn­till it come to be deteined in some drye place. The reason why the water is so consumed in the south parts is, because the sunne alwayes mooueth in his cir­cle, Excentrik so y ^t his center is not in one place of the earth, in such sort that if the Diameter of the circle of the Sunne were paste by both centers, that is to say, his owne, and that of the earth, the greater parte of the diameter shoulde be towardes the one parte, and the les­ser towardes the other, in respect of the center of the earth: And so it is shewed by reason of Geometrie, that the greater length of the diameter is neere vnto the twentie degrees of Gemini in this our time, and the lesser length is in the twē ­tie degrees of Sagitarius whiche is a signe opposite to Gemini, whereof it ap­peareth that the sunne commeth much neerer to the earth in the south partes then in the north partes. And so by rea­son of his neere comming, he heateth in such sorte, that he consumeth the wa­ter and burneth the earth, the which he doeth not in the north partes.

The third Chapter, wherfore the water of the Sea is salt, and wherefore it is most conuenient and better for the Nauiga­tion.

EXperience sheweth that the water of the Sea is salte, and so sayth Alber­tus the great, that it is called sea, by reason it is bitter or salte, And the Sea to be salts it seemeth to be against his naturall kinde, wherefore, seeing that the sea is the begin [...]ing of the wa­ters, and his owne place, and the wa­ters which ingender in her, and those which enter into her foorth of the riuers are fresh, it seemeth that with more rea­son the sea should be fresh, and not salt. Also as it is certaine that God made all things to y ^e best, it seemeth to be better, that the sea were freshe then salte. To this answereth Albertus the great in the second of his Metheoros, in the thirde treatie and fifteenth Chapter, where he sayth y ^t matter that causeth y ^e sea to bee salt is. According to the truth, there are twoo kindes of vapours, that is to say, hote and moyst, and hote and drie, and in the sea one of these doth rise from the superficies, & the other riseth from the bottome, This is by reason of the heate of the sunne, and of the starres, which are an efficient cause of these va­pours, and for the vapour of the water it is very subtile, betweene these two, and therefore being risen into the ayre is consumed of the sunne, and the vapour of the earth remaineth, or more proper­ly his exhalation dispersed, extended, & mingled in the water. As it appeareth by an example in the meate digested, that the thin substance thereof, is raised vppe and extended, into the mem­bers and is that which nourisheth, and the grosse substance remaineth, and also that which is vndigested: euen so doth the vapour of the earth remaine grosse, and extendeth into the substance of the water of the sea, and the coldnes of the water compassing it round about, ca­sting into it coldnes, and with the cold­nes it burneth, by reason they bee two contraries together, they are made stronger then before, for the heate of the salte exhalation, being come forth of the depth of the sea, by vertue of the Sunne fortifieth it selfe, with his contrary, [Page 10] which is the cold, and so ouercommeth the like heat which is y ^t as is required in the generation of a salt fast, as the Philosopher hath it in the second of his metheoros the first chapter speaking in this matter, of this there is a simili­tude, that if a freshwater were passed through ashes it would make it salte, the like is of the water of the sea, in the time it was made salt, and because that some say, there is a pure element in­substance, and the element of the wa­ter is in the sea, and that in the middest of the sea, the water is simple and with­out tast, wherefore hath it not there an obiection of contrarietie. This seemeth to me not to be so, for the heate of the Sunne, and the starres, are sufficient to make exhalations come forth of the bottome of the sea, which being ming­led with the coldnes and moisture of the water caused a salt tast in the high­est parte of the water: As well & with more reason they will make it in the middest or in the bottome of the sea, and so I hold with Aristotle, and with Con­stantine a great Astronomer, that there is now no element pure, & for as muche as y ^e water is salt, it is more conueniēt & better for y ^e nauigation, thē the fresh, that is because the salte water is more heauie and grosse then the freshe. And that it is so, Albertus the great saith in this manner, that y ^e salt water is more heauie and thick then the freshe, it is gathered by many experiences, of the which one is. If the freshe water be mingled, with salt and made a strong mixture in such sorte that all the salt be melted in the water, and in to it is cast an egge fresh layde, it will swimme a­boue the water, by reason of the thick­nes that the water hath which is done with the mixture of the salte, and if the sayd egge be put in freshe water it will sinke, it is sayd that it must bee a newe laid egge, for if it be old or crackt, it will sink. And by the same reason is shewed, that the shippes doe rather sinke in freshe water, then in that which is salt for the fresh rather deui­deth it selfe and riseth vp rather then that which is salt.

The fourth Chapter of the different moo­uinges which the Occean sea hath.

IT hath beene declared, in the. 2. chapter of this 2. booke, y ^t a great part of the water of the sea doeth ingender in the north, and from thence it runneth to the south, and this is one of the moouinges which the water of the sea hath: wee doe likewise see that the sea when it floweth mooueth tow­ardes one parte and when it ebbeth it moueth to the cōtrary, hauing such or­der, that where it began first to flowe▪ there it beginneth first to ebbe, where­by it seemeth that the water of the sea hath contrary moouings one from a­nother, and besides this wee see that the riuers runne to the sea, and also the sea commeth vp by them, and this seemeth meruellous in nature: for the water naturally goeth downwarde, as a body which is heauie, as it is, and if the riuers be higher then the sea, the sea should not goe vp into them, and if the Sea be higher then the riuers they woulde not runne into the sea, wherby with reason it may be doubted, saying. ( A Doubt,) what is the cause seeing that all the waters of the sea, being one bodie haue so many different and con­trary moouinges, so that some waters are moouing towardes one place, and some towards another, whereby it may be sayde eyther that the sea mooueth it selfe in these moouinges by chance, and without any order, or that shee is moo­ued by different moouinges or mouers ( A declaration,) To these doubtes Alber­tus magnus answereth, in the second of the Metheoros the sixth chapter of the third treatie where he sayth, absoluing all the difficulties, which are put, tou­ching these moouinges of the sea, wee say with Seneca that there is no other cause of the course of the waters, to one place or other, but the places which are high or low, (except that only mouing, whereby the sea ebbeth or floweth,) for in this it followeth the circle of the [Page] moone, as wee teach in another place: And that the saying of Seneca is true, it is prooued because the waters of the sea doe come flowing to all partes of the worlde, that is to say, to the east, and to the west, to the north & to the south. And▪ likewise they goe ebbing from all the sayde partes. And therefore the Sea hath no parte proper where his flowing and ebbing doeth beginne, so that by accedent the water mooueth it selfe from one place to another, vnlesse it be downe right, for because this moo­uing commeth not to it by any accedent but by proper essence, consequentlie to his forme.

The fyfth Chapter wherefore the Sea ne­uer ouerfloweth, nor is augmented nor made greater.

IT may be asked what is the cause, seeing that in the sea there is so muche water ingendred, and continually entreth into her so many riuers and fountaines, wherefore shee neuer ouer­floweth nor is augmented. To this is some cause the whiche Albertus th [...] great bringeth in the second of his me­theoros where hee saith, the sea recey­ueth no augmentation nor yet maketh it self greater, for because she is a natu­rall receiuer of all the waters, and is their quiet place. And the place cannot ouerflowe, with the comming in of the thing which by nature ought to bee in this place: for the place ought to be con­formable with that whiche it shutteth into it according to nature, so that the sea is able to receaue into it al y ^e riuers. And for the entrance of them neither to ouerflowe nor to augment it self. Like­wise it ouerfloweth not by reason that the Sea is so great that the riuers in the respect of her are nothing, for there is not any thing in them able to aug­mē it▪ The third reason is because the heate of the sunne and the blowing of the windes doe consume so great parte of the water, that although it ingender continually in the sea and continually the riuers enter into her: yet in such or­der God disposed it that it: neyther de­creaseth nor encreaseth. And so it may be sayde that which is written in Iob, Lorde thou diddest appoint her a pre­cinct, that she should not breake it. And it is to be noted, that in the floode of Noah. The holy scripture saith in Ge­ne [...]s the seauenth chapter, that the wa­ter did [...]ise vp fifteene cubites vpon y ^e most high mountaine that is vnder the heauen, so that all the earth was coue­ted with water. But although that this encreasing of the waters were so great, the sea did not ouerflowe nor did couer the earth, by going foorth of her limmet and precinct. But the great en­crease of waters came for two causes, one was that the windowes & cloudes of heauen were opened, and it raigned fortie dayes and fortie nights very lei­surly. The seconde was that the foun­taynes and riuers of freshe water did runne so much that all the earth was couered as it is sayde, so that all liuing things which were vpon the earth did perishe (except Noah and all that were in the arke) But the rayne being ceased, the sayde text saith, that God sent such great windes, that they consumed the water, & returned the earth to his own perfectnes.

The sixth Chapter of the excellencie of the Nau [...]gatiō, and of the antiquitie therof.

WIth reason it may bee sayde that the nauigati­on hath great excellency seeing that God was y ^e first that commanded to make a shippe or instru­ment to goe vppon the water: so it is written in Genesis the sixte chapter where is sayde that God commanded Noah to make a ship or arke of timber. This Arke had. 300. cubites in length. and 50. in bredth, and 30. in hight, of these cubites, there are diuerse opinions what length they were of, some say after the manner of Geometry, others say common, with more reason it see­meth they were in manner of Geome­trie, because they should be greater, for it was conuenient that in the arke there shoulde be [...] for that which shoulde be put there in.

S. Isidore writeth of the nauigation [Page 11] in the Ethimologias that the Lidians were those that first found out the ma­king of shippes, but these did not attain to more knowledge then to ioyne one timber with another, and were wel cal­ked and nayled, they sayled in them not departing farre from the lande, after that Epaminundas, the Greeke made an end to put shippes to sayl in perfection, and so in the warres of Peloponeso ther was founde that notable captaine, Bias with shippes, carrackes, and Gallies.

In the third of the kinges in the; 10. chapter is reade that Salomon king of Hierusalem sent two shippes to Tharsis. and euery three yeere they went and came from whence they brought golde siluer, woorkes of Iuorie, and apes.

Iulio Solino sayth that al the sea tow­ardes the south, which doeth compasse Affrica about behinde and from the In­dia to Spaine was sayled, and of this hee bringeth testimonie of the king of Inba for the confirmation & argument there­of he maketh mo [...]tion of Ilandes, and of a certaine people the manne [...]s and confines of y ^e places & the spaces of thē Plato in y ^e .32. booke, in the dialogue of Tim [...]o, sayth that from an Iland called y ^e colūnes or pillers of Hercules, which is at the mouth of a straight there was failing to a firme land, which contained greater then all Affrica & Asia; wherby it appeareth that before the time of Pla­to was sayling from the Iland of Ca­diz, which is at the mouth of the straite of Iebralter vnto the land of the Indias which we now haue.

Pliny writeth, that gouerning the thinges of the empire of Tiberius Caesar there did appeare in the coast of the sea of Arabia signes of ships that the Spa­niardes had lost. Cornelius Nepote ge­ueth knowledge that in his time one that was called E [...]do [...] [...] from the latine king sayling by the sea of Arabia, and likewise sayth that he saw one Ce­ [...] Antipatro that called with merchan­dise frō Spain Ehiopia. In the time of Augustus [...] most pa [...] y ^e north Occeā seas were sailed round about. Al [...] vnto the cape of the land of the [...]. Reyhold Seleuco and Anthioco saye that the riuers of the Caspian sea were sayled and known with the armies of those of Macedonia: As also they sailed all the north parts frō one place to another. Plinie himselfe vseth the testimony of Cornelius Nepote who affirmeth that the king of the Swe­uiās or Esquicaros gaue to Metello Celeri chiefe consull of Fraunce certain Indians y ^e which sailing frō y ^e India w ^t merchan­dise were driuē into Almain with tēpest of weather. Likewise it is read in Othō that in y ^e time of y ^e Iermain emperours certaine ambassadours of y ^e India were foūd in y ^e riuers of Almaine which were driuen thither with great windes, & if was not doubted y ^t they came from the regiō towards the cast, which could not be if it be as some doe think y ^t the north seas be frosen Pope Pio the 3. saith that in the booke he wrote of Geographie and reasō doth manifest, & shew y ^e the sea in old time was sailed seeing y ^t the men of old time did put names vnto the riuers of the O [...]cean sea, which doth cōpasse a­bout the farthest parts of the earth, of y ^e great nūber & multitude of ships y ^t was molde time some authors haue writtē. Homer. saith y ^t in the host of y ^e Greekes which came vnto Troy were 1180. ships, likewise Diodorus saith y ^t Xerxes king of y ^e Persians brought in his against Gre­tia, 700000. men of his owne, & 300000. of his friendes, and when became to the Sea called Pontico, hee made in the sea a bridge of ships whereby he past with his people so y ^t the ships being together, reached from the land of Asia vnto that of Europa, which is at y ^e least a league of sea.

The 7. chapter how by some signes of the sun & of the moone may be known whē stormes wil come.

MAny times there happeneth to be in the Sea tempests of winds & waters which doe cause greate stormes whereof followeth to such as are saylers death or losses of ships and goods or other great troubles: therfore here I mind to declare the signes as I find thē writtē by y ^e which the sayd tē ­pests or stormes may be known & being foreseen or known they may do les hurt. [Page] This pleased V [...]rgil greatly, who sayth, that many hurtfull battels of windes doe come vpon the ignorant: it is trade of Democrito the Philosopher, that a brother of his being reaping in time of great heat, who was called Damaso, the sayde Philosopher sayde vnto him, y ^t he should reape no more, but shoulde gather together that he had reaped, & keepe it, for shortly would come a great tempest of wind, that would carry it a­way from him, And so a fewe houres being past. It followed as y ^e Philoso­pher had said, after declaratiō made of signes or prognosticatiō of the tempests or stormes, there shall bee first noted, those which are shewed in the Sunne.

The eyght Chapter of the fires and lightes, which doe appeare in shippes that doe sayle when there is torment or tempest in the Sea.

IT happeneth to such as doe sayle when there is stormes in the sea when it seemeth that they should be lost y ^t al night they see vpon the maste or yarde or in some other parte of the shippe a certaine fire or clearenes, the which some saylers call, S. Ed­mund, which ought not to be so taken, seeing that it is not as they thinke, therfore I say that these fires or lightes are a certain impressiō in the ayr which the Greekes call Pili Deuces, & is so cal­led by meanes of the grosenes of y ^e hu­mor which goeth from the earth & fighteth with the coldnes of the might, & so it gathereth it selfe together and congea­leth in the first region of the ayre, and when his exhalation findeth any body wherunto to cleaue, it kindleth and holdeth it selfe fast to it vntill it be con­sumed and wasted. This fire burneth not.

And Plinie in his second booke of the naturall historie, the thirtie seauen chapter, saith that when these fires be two they be called Pollux & Castor and it is a good signe, and when it is but one it is called Hellena, and it is an euil signe.

These fires are also seene in the lande. And they haue beene seene in the campes vpon the pikes which the souldiers carry, and vpon the deade bo­dies.

And Plinie sayth also that they haue beene seene vppon the heades of men, and of beastes, And so did Vir­gil affirme that it appeared vpon the head of lulio Escanio: In the campes of the wars these fires doe appeare as wel because of the continuall fumes, as al­so because of the heate of many people: Jn the ships they ingender of y ^e fume of the said ship and of the heate of the peo­ple gathered together into little rome, and of the Marriners and people in the shippe, which in the stormes with the greate moouing they haue, doe in­gender heate: this is when there is disposition that the rising vp of the va­pour, shoulde make impression in the ayre, as before is sayde: And Plini [...] saide that one only fire is no good signe.

This is because when there are two it seemeth that in the ayre is abundance of grosse smoke and signifieth that it is sufficient to consume the matter of the tempest.

Peter de Castroboll, vpon the seconde of the Metheoros sayth, that whensoeuer these fires are seene in a tempest, it is a good signe, for it noteth faire weather. Likewise it happeneth, that there are great stormes, & none of these fires are seene, and in small stormes they see sometime one or twoo, so that the say­le [...]s shoulde haue no deuotion vnto these fires to beleeue that Sainte Ed­munde is there, for it is a naturall thing.

And therefore euery one with his deuotion ought to commende him­selfe too GOD, that hee keepe them, and bryng them foorth of that Storme, and putte them [Page] in the porte of saluation.

The nienth chapter of other certaine signes, wherein shall be knowne when stormes will come in the sea.

IN the seuenth chapter of this secōd booke I haue declared some signes of the sunne & the moone wherby may be knowne when stormes of winde and raine will come, as it is declared: and because these stormes are thinges, that vnto such as saile is very conuens­ent they shoulde knowe, and preuent: it seemed well to mee to adde this present chapter in the which, I will also declare other fiue signes or prognostications, which I finde written, that ought to be looked on and knowne of the saylers, which are these following.

The first is when in the high places or in the woodes there is heard a noyse of winde, and abrode it is not heard it signifieth stormes of winde.

The second when the waues of the scaswel and giue great falles or strokes in the bayes of the sea being with great noyse or ratling, signifieth stormes in the sea: of these 2. Plinie is the author in the eigteenth booke of the naturall hi­storie.

The thirde, if the sea being calme doeth make a nosse within it selfe signi­fieth great windes: of this speaketh Virgil in the tenth of Ac [...]eados and Lu­cano.

The fourth whē the Porpisses of the sea goe leaping vpon the sea, and shew them selues vppon the Waues is a signe of stormes, And that the wind will come frō that place that they come, This S. Isidore bringeth in the twelfth of the Etimologias.

Of the fifth, Virgil, saith, in the Geor­gians that when the Sea Meowes or Gulles doe leaue the sea and goe to the drye lande it signifieth stormes in the Sea.

The first chapter what thing the winde is, and what quallitie it is of, and howe it ingen­dreth.

FOR the declara­tion of the nature of the winde, for the diuersitie of the doubtes that are of it, some say it is the ayre and it moueth: others say that it is water: others that it is a vapour of the earth: and others, that it is some great celestiall body, or o­ther, that with great force and violence doth pushe forwarde the ayre.

And this cannot bee determined, if his nature bee not considered in that which principally it is. The which I say that the winde is a vapour of the earth that riseth vppe and stretcheth e­uen to the highest parte of the ayre and strongly thrusteth foorth the ayre.

This vapour is hote and dry, and by his subtiltie doth pearce the ayre: for as the winde is of a subtile vapour in his kinde, and being subtile and light, it is natural to rise vp & so it riseth vp, & of y ^e subtilt [...]e of y ^e vapour of y ^e earth, he is made, and frō thence he descendeth, & in his descending he sheweth that the va­pour mooueth it selfe vnto a high place & as he is come to that place is made winde, and so hee descendeth blowing. And it is to be vnderstoode, that the va­pour riseth not so high as the superiour parte of the ayre, which is called Estus, [Page] but riseth vp to the colde part, & there as Algazel saith with the colde, he wax­eth thicke and descendeth of the which it seemeth, that the vapour wherof the winde is made, is not congregated with the inwarde colde as some say, but with the outwarde cold of the place, by y ^e which as Algazel saith, he is letted that he come not to the superiour parte of the ayre. Likewise it is proued, that the vapour is raised vp with heate, and for this, if the heat of ayre round about doe helpe him, it heateth the more: for the [...]ner heat is holpen by y ^e outward heat, & so if it were not for the cold of the place, he would neither waxe thicke nor blowe.

The 2. Chapter, how the wind moueth not right from aboue downward: nor con­trarywise, but his mouing is in circle of water and earth.

FUrther for the mouing of the winde, it is to bee noted that it moueth not from aboue downward, nor frō beneath vpward but it moneth in circuler or round manner, of the water and the earth: so saith Albertus the great in the treatie of windes, chap. 12. all windes commonly moue their blast & mouing in circle manner, in such sort, that they moue not vp vnto that which is high nor descendeth to that which is lowe: but moueth by the round superficiall of the earth, and water in the ayre in cir­culer manner, as appeareth by the cloudes: that with the windes goe vp & descend down from the East, into the West: euen like to the moouing of the starres. Where it is to bee vnderstood, by the doctrine of the Astronomers, that there are some starres, which moue the winds, as lupiter, that moueth nor­therly winds: & the sunne moueth Ea­sterly winds: and Mars moueth y ^e blast of Southerly winds: & the Moone mo­ueth, Westerly windes. This is as it were a beginning, as euery manner of cause, by his owne meanes induceth to one effect, & therfore it is cōueniēt that the effect doe immitate the moouing of the cause. And seeing that the star [...]es doe moue in circuler māner, it is conue­nient that the wynd should moue like a bowe vpon his Horison. In like māner it is saide, when the signes doe cause winds to blowe, because there are three signes, which haue hotte and drie qua­lities, which are these, Aries, Leo and Sa­gitarius: and this is called the triplicitie of the fire. And these are called Easter­ly signes, because they moue the winds of the East part. There are other three signes, which haue cold and drie quali­ties. These are Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorne: and this is called triplicity of the earth, these signes are called Me­ridionales, because they moue the Sou­therly winds continually. There are o­ther 3. signes, which haue their quali­ties hot and moyst: these are Gemini, Li­bra, & Aquarius: & this is called the tripli­citie of the ayre. These are called occidē ­tall or Westerly signes, because they moue y ^e winds of the West part. There is another fourth triplicitie of the other 3. signes, which are Cancer, Scorpio, & Pisces, And this is called triplicity of y ^e water: for because his property is colde and moyst, and these signes doe moue y ^e Northerly winds, & that humor which they haue in his propertie, they cause to abounde in the times so attributed in those bodies, where they are ingendred. Of the aforesaide, it is concluded: that the winds do moue thēselues in r [...]ūd­nesse of the water and earth like to the mouing of the starres, and not right go­ing vpward nor descēding. For the va­pour is eleuated with the heate, and is expelled with the colde, which congea­leth him, and so it is conuenient, that the wynde descende not right downe, for the heate that riseth vp, but that it bee by one side in the circuite of water and earth. And this reason Aristo [...]le giueth.

The 3. Chapter, wherefore the wynde is not alwayes alike: but at sometime blow­eth harde, and at other times calme: and wherefore it moueth to his opposite.

[Page 14] WIth reason might be as­ked two doubtes con­cerning the wind, which are these: ( the first doubt.) What y ^e cause is wher­fore when the winde be­ginneth his blast, it is not equall, but sometimes harde, and other times more calme. And sometimes it ceaseth, and other times it turneth to blowe, so that it bloweth not cōtinuallye after one sort. ( the second doubt.) The second is, wherfore the winde mooueth to his op­posite, for so we cal it whē from the east he goeth to the west: And from the north to the south, and likewise contrary, of this it seemeth that there is no reason, because the Uapour whiche is the roote of the winde either followeth his moouing which is to bee eleuated be­cause he is hote, and according as it is straight so it ought to goe vpwarde, or follow his matter which is earthly, & at it is straight, ought to descēd. Like­wise what doth make the winde to mooue more to one side then to the o­ther, rather then to moue it self straight so that the east likewise should mooue it selfe towardes the north, or towardes the south, as towardes the west, and likewise of the other windes. Item all thinges whiche are ingendred in one place naturally mooue not vnto the place opposite: so that if the easterly winde be ingendered in the east, and the northerly wind in the north, they ought to mooue to their owne place, and not to the place opposite. By the which it is to be said that the windes mouing of them selues to their opposite is violent, and against nature, or the matter of the windes is maruellous & vnknowne to vs. ( The first declaration.) The first is to be vnderstoode that as y ^e matter of the winde, which is the va­pour of the earth, riseth vp by little & little, maketh a weake & little moouing: But as he is encreased in great quanti­tie: so with a great force hee descen­deth and maketh a strong winde. Also the winde bloweth not continually a­like because the matter which riseth vp is not alwayes equal nor is equally put forward, for the colde is more or lesse, & the vapour not equally congealed. And therfore the winde at one time bloweth hard, and at another time soft, ( The. 2 declaratiō.) The 2. is to be vnderstoode, that the wind to mooue to his opposite is for two causes. The 1. is as Alpetra­gio sayth, the stars doe mooue in circle manner; & so the wind doth immitate y ^e circle mouing, The 2. as Albertus saith, that it is more naturall, because the vapour is ingendred of heate, & is ex­pelled & thrust out of the cold, & the cold is behinde the heat, & therefore is thrust out to his opposite, so that he cannot go vpright for the cold y ^t is in the ayre nor can descend, for the heat that riseth vp, nor can returne backward for the colde which is behind him: and therfore it is necessary, that he moue in circle manner to his opposite, & as much as y ^t which is said that nothing moueth forth from the place of his generation it is to be no­ted, that which is of the nature of ayre, mooueth it selfe to the place of ayre, and the ayre hath place in all partes, and the vapour hath the nature of aire as much as apperteineth to his seldom mouing so that he moueth not forth of his place.

The 4. chapter, of the whirling of the winde, and how it is caused.

IT hath been spoken be­fore y ^t the mouing which y ^e winde maketh is mo­uing himself to his oppo­site by y ^e roundnes of the water & earth, & not go­ing vpright nor descending, as it hath been proued, & experience in the nauiga­tion doth shew it: and seeing that it is so it may be asked what is the cause that many times the winde maketh his mo­uing right from beneath vpward. This we see that the winde raiseth vp from the ground the dust and the straw, and carrieth them vpright one heigh which is commonly a whirlwind, and this is as well caused or done in the sea as in the Lande. And in the Sea it is made wel neere like a right sleeue, & by it the water riseth upwarde, as many [Page] times it is seen▪ Wherby it s [...]emeth y ^t y ^e wind hath likewise a straight mouing, y ^t is to say frō beneath vpward, as the mouing in roundnes before is decla­red. To this is to bee noted that this moouing, which the winde maketh is not naturall to it, but accidentall and violent: for because it is done by force, by meeting together in this manner: when one winde commeth from one part, and another frō another part con­trary, & y ^e strēgth of the one, doth meete with y ^t of the other as euery one of thē hath no free running, by the let of the winde he findeth contrary: then he that is strongest thrusteth forwarde the o­ther, and so they put themselues in­to roundnes, and make a whirle­winde vntill they be deuided. This ap­peareth by an example in the water when it runneth, that if it finde ano­ther body that doth make any resistāce, it maketh a whirling, moouing it in roundnes: euen so the winde as it fin­deth resistance of another winde or of some mountaine, or of any like thing, that doth resist his course, it cannot goe forward. Therefore hee maketh that round whirling. and this causeth in the Sea many times that shippes be sunke downe vnder the water, when they find thēselues vnder such a whirlwinde or spout: for the water which y ^e winde rai­seth, doth ouerwhelme & drown them. Likewise when there are moouinges of contrary windes, they cause to rise vp stormes in the Sea, which the saylers many times may know before hand con­sidering and beholding the moouing of the cloudes if they be contrary and dif­ferent to the winde that is beneath. For when it is so, it is a token that contrary windes doe runne abrode, of the which continually the superiour doth ouer­come: because he is of more strength & swiftnes then the inferiour.

The fifth chapter, of the windes, of the cardes of nauigation, of their number, & names.

AND seeing there hath byn treated of y ^e winds, what things they are, & how they are ingendred and mooue, In this I wil speake of the winds that are marked in the cardes of naui­gation, their number, & how they haue their names according to the [...]se of the saylers. Of the which it is to be vnder­stood y ^t the windes of the cardes which we cal courses, do shew forth 32. names of windes, which are practised in y ^e na­uigation, & no more nor lesse: & the rea­son wherefore this number is geuen, is because the roundnes of the worlde, is imagened to be deuided into 32. partes, & in euery one of these is assigned one wind, & is geuē to him a whole name, or halfe, or a quarter, according to the part where it seemeth to vs that he cōmeth; as hereafter shall be declared. And to vnderstād, this is to be noted, that this roundnes of the world hath 4. principal regions. These 4. partes are named and knowne by 4. windes, which are east, west, north, south. The east is also cal­led solan [...], it groweth vnder y ^e equinoc­tiall line, it is also called lecuāte, because the sunn [...] riseth there, and beginneth to appeare in the morning. This winde is called in the nauigation east. The se­cond principall winde riseth of the Oc­cident, vnder the equinoctiall line, it is called poniente, because the sun setteth there, or hideth himselfe in the evening. It is also called, fauonio, and in the na­uigation it is called west. The 3. princi­pall wind is called, Cierco and groweth vnder the pole artick, he is also called, Aquilonall, and Septemtrionall, Aquilonal because he groweth in the part of Aqui­lon Semptentrional by the 7. starres of y ^e Vrsa minor. This winde in the nauiga­tion is called north. The fourth winde is called Meridionall he commeth forth vnder y ^e pole antartike, he is called Me­ridional: for when he is come to the sun, there he maketh vnto vs the middest of the daye. And in the Nauigation this winde is called South. These Windes are marked in this man­ner.

[Page 14]

These foure windes haue other four Colaterales, and are compounded of the taking a name of halfe the name of e­uery one in this manner.

The 1. is marked betweene y ^e north and the east, and taketh name of both, and therfore is called northeast.

The second is between the east and the south, and is called southeast.

The third is between the south and the west, and is called southwest.

The fourth is betweene the west & the north, and is called northwest, and is marked in this manner.

These 8. windes are called in the na­uigation, whole winds or principalles, amōg the which there is to bee marked other 8. which are called halfe windes not because they haue lesse force thē the 1. but because they are described among those 8. winds afoesaid, the which also do take their names of y ^e 2. windes Colaterales and are called in this manner.

The first is described between the north and the northeast, and taking [...] of both of them is called North Northeast.

The [...] called east, northeast, be­cause he standeth between the east and the northeast.

The third is east southeast, because he is between the east & she southeast.

The [...] is south Southeast, be­cause he [...] betweene the south and the southeast.

The fifth is south southwest, because he is betweene the south and the southwest.

The sixt is west southwest, because he is between the west & the southwest.

The seuenth is west northwest, be­cause it is betweene the west and the northwest.

The eight north northwest, because it is betweene the north and the north west.

And they are ordained in this manner.

Among these xvi. courses of winds & half windes, are marked other sixteene which are named quarters, and they are put in this manner, euery one of the eyght principal windes hath two quar­ters, gathered foorth of them, and eue­ry one of them doth take the name of y ^e windes nearest to him, in this man­ner.

The north hath two quarters, which is by the part of the northeast, and is called North and by east, & that which is by the part of the northwest is called north and by west.

The northeast hath other 2. & y ^t which standeth towardes the north, is called [Page] northeast and by north, and that which standeth towardes the [...] is called northeast and by east.

The east hath other two that which is towardes the parte of the northeast is called east & by north, & th [...] whiche is towardes the [...] of the so [...]th is called east and by south▪

The southeast hath two quarters, that which is towardes the east part, is pac­led southeast and by east, & that whiche is towardes the south part, southeast & by south.

The south hath two quarters, that which is towardes the east, is called south and by east, and that whiche is towardes the West is called south and by west.

The southwest hath other 2. y ^e which is towardes the part of the south is cal­led southwest and by south, and y ^e which is towardes the west, is called south­west and by west.

The west hath two quarters, that which is towardes the southwest is called west and by south, & that whiche is towardes the part of northwest is called west and by north.

The northwest hath two quarters, that which is towardes the part of the west is called northwest and by west, & that which is towardes the parte of the north is called northwest and by north,

They are ordayned in the manner following.

The sixt chapter, how the windes of the cardes whereby the saylers doe sayle doe girde or compasse about the roundnesse of the worlde for to sayle by them.

SEeing there hath beene declared, the windes of the cards of nauigation, their names, & differen­ces: I wil speak in what manner and order these windes doe compasse about the round­nesse of the world, to know how to saile by thē. Of this is to be noted, that this round body of water and earth, hath in roundnesse three hundreth and three­score degrees. Therefore hee that is in any part or place, and woulde sayle to­wardes the North. All inconuenience being taken away, shall sayle with the winde at South, & with no other. It is to bee vnderstood, sayling before the winde. Although that hee not hauing the wind at South: But some other wind sayling by the bowling: may goe rising vp by other courses, making boords, one boord vnto one wind, & ano­ther boord vnto another: vntill he come to the place where he pretendeth to go. Likewise, he that wil sayle frō y ^e north to the south, must be with a Northerly winde, or in the manner aforesaide.

The nauigation of the east or west, is in this maner: a shippe departeth from the Islande of Saynt Thomas, or as they cal it Saynt Thome, which is vn­der the equinoctiall, and woulde goe roūd about y ^e world, if in case, y ^t it might be sailed: this ship if she shoulde saile to­ward the east, her way should be in this maner, frō y ^e said Island or place where she departed, she shall saile w ^t west, 180. degrees, & if frō thēce she wil returne to y ^e place frō whence she departed, by the same course y ^t she wēt, she shal returne w ^t east y ^e same way: but if she goe forward on her way, you shal vnderstād, then all y ^e roūdnes wil serue you, y ^e west wher­with you departed, vntil you come to y ^e point where you came forth, in such sort y ^t in a place where a man is, a circle be­yng imagined, which gyrdeth the worlde, all this circle is sayled with one winde, but if from the halfe circle, or be­fore or after he will returne by the way that he went, he shall returne with the winde contrary. For it is to bee vnder­stoode, that from the place that a man departeth vntill the halfe circle bee en­ded, he goeth departing from the place, from whence hee came, and the other half he returneth towards it againe, as the figure following sheweth it.

I say that one departeth from A. to goe towarde C. and goeth by B. in A. which is the place from whence hee de­parteth: the wynde beginneth, & being come to C. which is his opposite, if hee returne from thence to goe to the same B. the wind which is contrary, wil serue him. But if he goe sayling from C. to D. and from D. to A. you shal vnderstande that with the winde hee began to saile by, he shall goe al the roundnesse, vntill he returne, where he came foorth. The same accompt, shall be made, if you be­ginne to sayle towardes the West, and that which hath beene saide of the na­uigation by the equinoctial, the same must bee kept by any manner of circle, whatsoeuer.

And it is to bee noted, that onlie from the East and West, there are cir­cles or courses greater and lesser: the greater circle passeth by the Center, and the lesser passeth not by the Cen­ter. But all circles greater or lesser, haue three hundreth and sixtie de­grees of length, but in the leagues that euery degree hath, there is diffe­rence of more & lesse, euen as the circle stādeth neere to the equinoctial, or to the [Page] poles. But the windes which must serue the turne ought to be of the grea­ter circles and none of them of the les­ser circles. The nauigation by the o­ther windes is in this sorte. If one sayling towardes the northeast, gaue a turne about the worlde, going alwaies by the same course, he shall returne by y ^e southwest, from y ^e place where he de­parted: and the same will bee done by the contrary. And in the rest let the ac­count be kept as before hath beene de­clared. The same doe I say by the na­uigation towardes the southeast, that he shall returne by the northwest. And for an example of this, let it be asked: if two shippes bee in one port, and one departeth towardes the north and the other towardes the south, these shippes if they shall meete, and if they doe meet for to goe equall way how much shall e­uery one of them sayle? I say that these may meete, and that sayling by these courses, when euery one of them haue gone .180. degrees they shall be toge­ther. And in like manner, this acount is to be kept departing by other cour­ses. And so it is to be vnderstoode, that whensoeuer two shippes or more doe goe forth of one port, and do sayle by dif­ferent courses, when euery one of them haue gone 180. degrees, they shall re­turne and ioyne in the place opposite, from whence they departed: this is be­cause as it is sayde, y ^t all the windes of the nauigation bee of y ^e greater circles, for all of them doe passe by the center, & so euery one going the half circle which is the sayde. 180. degrees shal finde him selfe in the point opposite from whence he came forth.

The seuenth chapter, of the order of the Cardes of Nauigation.

AMong the instrumentes which are necessary for the nauigation, one is the carde: for without it good nauigation cannot be made, seeing that in it the Pilot or sayler doeth see the place where he is, and the place whether hee pretendeth to goe, & seeth y ^e height of de­grees that euery place hath, so that hee knoweth if he shall goe foorth right, or if he shall goe rising or descending: hee seeth also what winde or windes will serue him in his course, and where hee shall leaue one and take another: he al­so seeth the distance of the way which he shal goe, how many leagues it hath, and so he ordaineth in all thinges that which is best and conuenient for him. But it seemeth that with reason there may be had a doubt in the cardes wher­with the nauigation is made▪ And say that they be not certain nor true for this cause following. ( A doubt,) This being prooued that the worlde is a round bo­dy, and not onely the heauens, but also euery one of the elementes, so that the water whereby we sayle is round, and the winde wherewith it is sayled moo­ueth it selfe in roundnes & this being so we see that the cardes of nauigation be not made round but plaine: There­fore frō the round to the plaine is great difference, as appeareth by this present figure,

If two shippes should departe from A. vnto C. and the one of them went by B. and the other by D. so great differēce will be of the way that the one maketh to the other by how much the distance is from the B. vnto the D. & seeing that the way which by the sea is sayled is from the A. vnto C. by D. because the water is round, & the cardes doeth not shewe it to bee so, but it sheweth it in plaine manner which is from A. vnto C. [Page 17] by B. whereby it seemeth that the way which the ship maketh, is halfe more thē that which the card sheweth. See­yng the ship goeth it in circle manner, and the card sheweth it by diameter, & the diameter hath but only the thirde part and one seuenth part of the circum­ference. Likewise the aforesaid seemeth to be so: because the roūd bodie is grea­ter then all other bodies, and as the world is a round body, there is no o­ther figure so great, that may be compa­red to it: and so the card which is made in plaine, cannot bee equall with the round. Also the courses of the nauiga­tion, as they are put in the cardes in e­uery hundreth leagues: they departe one from the other twentie leagues, in such sort that from the place where the ship doth depart vnto the xc. degrees whiche doth amount to 1575. leagues. An these leagues they depart one ship from another, or one course from ano­ther 315. leagues. And seeing there are 32. courses, the world, that is to say, y ^e earth & y ^e water should haue in round­nesse, ten thousād & fourescore leagues: this is false, because this roundnesse hath 360. degrees of 17. leagues, and a halfe, euery degree, which doth a­mount to 6300. leagues and no more. Of all the aforesaid, it seemeth that the cardes of nauigation because they are made in plaine: should be false and vn­perfect. ( A declaration.) To this is to be noted▪ that the cardes of nauigation are true and altogether perfect: and the art wherwith they are made and ordai­ned, doth conteine all certeintie▪ And aunswearing to the first is: that the nauigation which the ship doth make in roundnesse, and the card doth shewe in playne: is to be vnderstood, that the same quantity or distaunce of way, that euery part hath in roundnesse, the selfe same is reckoned and giuen in playne: aswell in y ^e land, as in y ^e water, by mar­king in the leagues and degrees the distance that euery thing hath in roūd­nesse, without taking from it any thing. And this may wel be done, for although that one body be round, there may bee giuen to it the self same proportion and greatnesse in playne, as Ptholome set­teth it foorth in the playne sphere. And Iordan in the treatie which he made of the same matter. This seemeth to be by an example in an apple, that although it be rounde, the length & breadth that his roundnesse hath, may bee put in playne forme: euen so in the cardes of nauigation, although in their figure or shape they be not rounde, yet in the ac­counting of the way, they giue and hold in equalitie with the round: And the round body to be greater then another body. It is to be vnderstood, that those bodies being equall in circumference, for not beyng equal, another figure may wel be greater then the round. And for as much as I say, of the courses of the cardes. It is likewise to be vnderstood, that these be ordayned in Geometry, & because it is so singuler among y ^e Ma­thimaticals, they cānot be false as those Authours whiche I haue spoken of doe shewe. And if by a point of the card there are founde more Leagues in the courses then the world hath: This is not hurtfull to the carde, for this arte and shew of the courses, is not only for this number of sixe thousand and three hundreth Leagues which the worlde hath: but for any manner of number, so that although the world had a hundred thousand leagues, or had a thousande, the selfe same woulde serue those cour­ses in one number as in another: as it appeareth, that such as saile one hun­dreth leagues doe goe in their waye as well as those which goe vnto the East India, which sayle fiue thousande. And as Magalanes sailed, and suche as went with him in the yeere 1521. when the straight was discouered, which of Magalanes is named, that then sayling from Spayne, they gaue a turne about the world: of that as is said, it appea­reth plainely, that the cardes of naui­gation are so well ordayned, that theyr agreement and perfection is a thing maruellous: seeing a thing so great as the earth and the Sea is, beeing marked in so little roome as a Carde is, and doe so muche agree, that it doth not misse one [...]otte to sayle the [Page] whole world thereby.

The eight Chapter, of the account which the pilot ought to haue in his waye when hee sayleth with a winde different to his course.

SEeing there hath beene declared y ^e order which ought to bee vsed, if the roundnesse of the world were sayled: In this I will speake of shorter voiages or wa [...]es, and such as are more commonly sailed by sea frō one place to another. And howe y ^e pilots & saylers should know to keepe a good account, & giue reason of their nauigations, whe­ther soeuer they goe: for the which I saye, whensoeuer the pilot will saile, he ought principally to look vpō 3. things.

First of al, the place where he is, and the place whither he mindeth to goe, & to know the distance, that is frō the one place to the other.

The second, in what height of de­grees he findeth himselfe, and in what height the place is which hee mindeth to goe vnto.

The third is, to know the winde or winds that shall serue him in his naui­gation, al the which he may see & know in his carde.

And this beeyng knowne, let him looke if he haue a winde that is conue­nient for his nauigation, and hauing it let him proceede vppon his voyage as weather, & time will permitte him. And it is to bee noted, y ^t many times it hap­peneth that for the nauigation which should bee made, the wind serueth not according to the course, which the ship should goe: And therefore it is sayled with another wynde whiche is diffe­rent.

Likewise it happeneth, that as a ship goeth sayling, there commeth such wea­ther, that causeth her to goe foorth of her right way: and take her course by another, by the which how much more she goeth, so much the land y ^e they goe to seeke changeth it selfe into different courses of the cōpasse. This is because the shippe goeth not her right course to the place, whither she pretēdeth to goe: so that the selfe same place, varieth or changeth it selfe from one cour [...]e into another. And likewise sometimes it waxeth neere, and other times farre of.

And when it is so, that the pilot say­leth with a winde, different to that which is conuenient for his course, and sayling would knowe in what poynt or course, the land whither he mindeth to goe, lieth from him: and howe manye leagues hee hath from him to it, in the figures & accounts following, hee shall finde it: the which shall profite him to knowe the certayne place where hee is, and thereby hee shall knowe howe to choose the true course, (when weather serueth him) for to returne to the cer­taine place whither he mindeth to goe, which is to be vnderstood in this man­ner. I say that you will sayle to a land, which beeing seene in your carde, and the place marked where you are: You shall find y ^e it is from you towards the North or South, or any other course, and so sayling towardes one place, you runne towardes another: and put the case that the land whether you pretend to goe, be from you towards the North, so that you should sayle with the winde at South, & because this winde blow­eth not, you sayle with another winde: Therefore if the nauigation bee by the first course more neere to the winde it selfe, in the first figure you shall finde marked this first course, and neere to it the leagues which you shall goe for to get the land, whither you pretende to goe towards all the courses of the com­passe: as also how many Leagues the land is of from you, and in the manner that the nauigation is declared by this course, so all others are declared.

And when in sayling you haue not the proper winde which shoulde serue, marke by the winde which you haue, how many poynts it is of frō the proper wind, wherewith you should saile, and seeke it in one of the figures, that is here put, which shalbe one of thē mar­ked with the crosse, & nere to the figure where the like winde is, you shall finde three accountes, these accountes serue [Page 18] in this manner.

In the first account, you shall finde how many leagues you shall goe by the course where you sayle.

In the second account is the course where you haue the lande whether you pretend to goe, (I will say) that hauing gone those leagues which there are de­clared you shall come vnto the lande, which you seeke after by the course that is there marked: the which you shall knowe what course it is, by the number that he hath, seeking the same number in the figure that is nexte to it.

In the third account, you shall finde how many leagues you are distant of the same lande whether you goe, so that hauing gone the leagues of the first ac­count you shall haue the land whether you goe at the course which standeth in the second: And you shall be from the same land the leagues that are marked in the third account.

This being knowne, three thinges are to be noted.

The first, because heere cannot be put any rule for the number of the leagues that are from the place where you are vnto the place where you pretende to goe: because at one time there will be more distance then at another time.

Therefore this account is taken out for the number of a hundreth leagues, I will say that the place where you are vnto the place whether you wil goe, is a hundreth leagues of way. And it is to be noted, that although this accoūt, doe serue for this number of a hundreth leagues, it serueth likewise for any o­ther number of leagues, that the way hath, in this manner, if the waye be of 200 leagues you shall goe it twise as much as the numbers of the first account doe shewe: And then you shall haue the lande whether you goe in the course which is marked in the seconde account, and you shall be from the sayd land, twise as many leagues of them which are accounted in the thirde ac­count: and if the way be of 300 leagues you must goe thrise as much as the nū ­bers of the first account shewe so that of euery hūdreth leagues, which is en­creased of the way you shall geue as much more number of that which is in first and third account, & then you shall haue the lande at the same courses or pointes, which are marked in the secōd account, and if in the way bee fifties, or more or lesse you shall geue a halfe, a thirde, a fourth, or a fifth, or according as the number is.

The second is, that in the figures which are put here, the nauigation go­eth marked by the windes of the one parte of the compasse: and by the other parte of the course where you shall finde the lande.

This is to be noted that the same ac­count is when you shall faile by the parte where the courses goe, and so it serueth for all partes.

The thirde is, that towardes the wind that these figures doe shew forth right, shalbe geuen the name of the proper winde wherewith you shoulde sayle [...]

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AND for the better declaration of the rules aboue written, this pre­sent figure is to be noted in the whiche I say, that you finde your selfe, in the poynt, A. And the lande whither you will goe, you haue it, I put the case at the North, in the poynt B. and there is from you to it an hundreth leagues, so that your way should be from A. vnto B. that is to say, sayling from the south towardes the North, and because you haue not this winde, you sayle by the first course, and the account beeyng put in the first rule, doth teache you, that if you goe fiftie leagues by this first course: that the Lande, which you had first towardes the North, you shal haue it at North and by East (you sai­ling by the course of North, & bywest) and there shalbee from you to it fiftie Leagues, and if you goe by the same course sixtie seuen Leagues, then you shall finde it towards y ^e North North-East, and then it will be from you to it fortie leagues. And if you sayle seuen­tie sixe leagues, you shall haue it tow­ardes the Northeast and by north, and there will be frō you to it twentie eight Leagues. And so in the rest, this rule teacheth you how many leagues shuld be sailed for to get to the lande whether you goe to all these courses. The second figure and rule is, when you shall sayle by the seconde course distant from the proper winde: in the whiche you shall find the account that shalbe kept in that way. And the third for the third course, and so for all the rest: and it is to be no­ted, that to this winde at North, which was put for an example, shalbee giuen the proper name of the winde, whereby you should saile, and to the others the [Page] names of the windes, that are next to him.

Also it is to be noted, that alwayes it must be considered what distance is from the place where your are, vnto y ^e place whither you mind to goe, wher­by you may make the account, euen as before is declared.

The nienth Chapter, how the pilot shal cer­teinly knowe sayling by any manner of course where the Meridian is.

AND seeyng that in the rules before writtē hath beene declared howe the Pilot shall knowe wher­soeuer he shall sayle, and to what point or course of the compasse he hath the land whither he goeth, and how many Leagues the lande is from him. Here I will speake, that departing from one place for to sayle to another by anye manner of course, you shall knowe howe muche you depart frō that Meridian wherin you were, and knowe the Meridian, wherein you finde your selfe: for this is a thing most necessary in the nauigati­on, the height or altitude only ex­cepted. And because this rule of the Meridian, may bee the better vnder­stood, you shall note this example. I saye that eight shippes beeyng in one porte, and they goe foorth sayling, the one from the North to the South, the seconde by the first quarter, the third by the seconde: and so all the other by different windes, when euery one of these shippes haue gone one degree, or two, or more, being equal in degrees: they shalbe East and Weast all of them one with the other, although not equal in way, for the one hath gone muche more then the other, in such sorte, that that which hath sayled by the seconde course hath gone more waye, then that which sayled the first, & the thirde more then the second, and so of the rest: by how much they goe from the first, so much y ^e more way is to be gone to raise vp, or to descend a degree. This is cau­sed by reason of the obliquitie of y ^e cour­ses as more largely shalbee declared in the 14. Chapter of this third booke, and this being knowne (I say for to know) howe farre a man is from y ^e Meridian, from whence hee departed, imagine that his nauigation shoulde bee by the same Meridian: that is to say, from the North, to the South, or from the South to the North: and that hee saileth by the first, the seconde the third, or fourth course, or by any of the other: according as the course lieth whither you minde to sayle, to one place, or to an other. And this is to bee vnderstood in the fourteene courses colaterales, from y ^e North to y ^e South, or frō the South, to the North, according as in the first figures which are put heere doth ap­peare: for because for y ^e other 14. courses Colaterals, frō the East to the West, in the secōd figure or fable they are decla­red: therfore I say, when you shall sayle by any of the 14. courses heeretofore de­clared, two thinges must be considered. The first in what height of degrees you were, when you were in them, and in what height you doe presētly find your self in: and looke how many degrees of differēce are frō the one to y ^e other. The seconde is to looke by what course you haue come vnto y ^e place where you are, and this being knowne, looke into the account hereafter written in y ^e first ta­ble, and in it you shall finde how many Leagues you haue departed from the Meridian, which you had in place from whence you departed.

An example. I say, that you departed from the point of these first marked fi­gures following, & so you were in 20. degrees of height, & after that, taking your altitude, you found your self in 15. degrees, or in 25. in such sorte, that you found to haue raysed or destended fiue degrees, and this was sayling by the fourth course, whose name you shall know looking on y ^e fourth where he is marked in the figures which are heere put, & the course being knowne & agree­ed with y^ which you haue sailed, looke in y ^e table which is next in the 4. course at the fiue degrees, and you shall finde [Page 23] that you haue gone from the Meridian from whēce you departed 87. leagues. And for y ^e better vnderstanding of this rule, immagine that from this point of the twentie degrees, where you were, or from any other place from whence you departed, that when from thence you departed, there departed, likewise another shippe from the same point sai­ling by the same Meridian, and that when you had gone the fiue degrees she likewise had gone other fiue, in such sort that you haue her East and West with you, and so it is to be vnderstoode that these 87. leagues are of distance frō you to this shippe, because you are so farre distant of that Meridian, And so knowing the distance which you haue from the Meridian, where you depar­ted, foorthwith you shal know the Me­ridian wherin you are, and in this sorte immagine that any manner of course that you shall saile, by any of these that are marked heere vnder in the two first figures, you haue this shippe East and West with you, and this shall be your guide for to know how farr distant you be from the Meridian where you were, this is by seeing how many leagues you haue raised or descended, and the course wherby you haue sailed, and be­ing sought in the figures and table fol­lowing, by it you shall know the Me­ridian certaine wherin you are.

The tenth Chapter, wherein is declared, more of this rule before written.

FOR it is not onely neces­sary to knowe the naui­gation which is made from the north to the south, and so contrary: but also that which is made from the East to the West, or from the West to the East (that is to say) by these courses their Colaterales. There­fore I haue put the demonstrations & table before written, of the whiche is to bee noted the same order that is in the Nauigation from the North to the south, or from the south to the north as it hath been declared. (The whiche is) when you goe sailing you shall mark in howe many degrees of height you finde your selfe in, and after that when you turne to take the sayde altitude, you shall marke howe manye degrees you haue risen or descended from the place from whence you departed. And this being knowne looke vpon the figures before written, the course whereby you haue sailed, and if it be the first the se­cond or third, or any of the others, and y ^e course being knowne seeke it in y ^e ta­ble, & in y ^e same course looke y ^e number of y ^t degrees which you haue gone, and nere to the degrees, you shal finde the leagues which you haue sailed. I speak of an exāple, that taking your altitude you found your selfe in 30. degrees, and after that you found your selfe in thirtie two, or in thirtie eyght in such sorte you rose v p or descended two degrees, and you sailed by the third course.

Therfore looke in the table in y ^e third course at the second degree, and you shal finde that you haue gone fiftie two leagues, and in this order you shall know the rest.

And note that in these tables, there are not put more numbers thē vnto ten degrees. (The reason is) that whilest these be a sayling by any manner of course, there will be place to take the al­titude, and being taken, to marke the place, and from thence to begin the ac­count as well rising as descending, and in this sort you shal goe making a point in your carde, and knowe the certaine place where you are.

The eleuenth chapter, how the Pilot ought to choose the course which is conuenient according to the place hee mindeth to saile vnto.

THE Pilot or any other person that mindeth to sayle, before all thinges he ought to consider of the waye that hee min­deth to goe, and so to choose the course or courses which are necessary, according to the way whiche he mindeth to make, and for this put before you a certaine rule, and this in any manner of place where a man stan­deth, is a point or beginning where the courses or winds of the nauigation doe proceede and come foorth. Therefore the Pilot ought to looke in his card the place where he is, & the place whether he mindeth to goe vnto, and this being knowne, he ought to seeke for the course that maye goe moste right to it from whence he doth depart vnto the place whether he mindeth to goe, and if there be a course that will carry him straight from one place to the other, let him put the foreparte of his shippe into it as his compasse will shewe him, and by that course let him follow his way, as long as weather will serue him.

And when there is no course that go­eth the right way, let him seeke with the compasse the course that is most agree­able vnto him, which is it y ^t wil bring him least out of his way to the place whether he mindeth to goe, and by the saide course let him follow the degrees or leagues which are of distance, vntill he finde another that goeth more right to the place, and in this let the Pilot haue great care, to see how much waye euery course serueth him, and where he shall leaue that way and take another, and that he keepe a good reckoning & knowledge of the way that hee maketh as much as is possible, and at all times when neede requireth to make a point in his carde and mooue his course, let him doe it keeping alwaies a good reckoning of his waye, and this to [Page 26] continue vntill hee finde a course that may cary him directly to the place that he desireth. And the Pilot in the begin­ning ought not to keep himself towards the courses that are nearest adioyning to him where he is, but vnto those that are nearest to the place whether he go­eth. And it woulde doe well to pricke his carde often, and prouide diligently vpō his course: & let the Pilot note, that for to chose y ^e course y ^e right way as he ought to doe, he hath need to know pre­cisely the Meridian wherin he is: for not knowing it there may follow great er­rour, as by this example appeareth.

If one shippe goe sayling, the Pi­lot maketh her to be in the point. A. and would goe seeking for B, and in truth his point was the C. it is euident by reason he is ignorant & without know­ledge of the Meridian beleuing that he sayled from A. vnto B. his nauigation was from C. vnto D. And therefore it seemeth that so much as is erred in the knowledge of the place where the shipp is, as much more she is distant from the place that she goeth to seeke: and this is one of the causes, whereby the Pilots doe finde themselues in great errour in theire nauigatiō, and loose much time, and other inconuententies happen to them. Therfore let the Pilot take this for a good aduise, in long wayes to keepe for him selfe a booke of account of his nauigation, where he should be put in remembrance of the winde y ^t serueth him euery day, and in what sorte and so how much the singlenes may bee, that his shippe maketh, looking by his clocke how many leagues he may runne eue­ry houre: and you shal vnderstand, that the most which she can runne is foure leagues in an houre, and three leagues in an houre is a great tunne, and in one houre two leagues is reasonable, and and in an houre to runne a league and a halfe or sometime but a league. It must be well looked vnto, and great ad­uise must be had in this, for it will profit much to pricke the carde to knowe the Meridian, and therby to choose the true course as it is sayd.

The twelfth chapter, how you should prick your carde to know the place, wherein the shippe is.

ONE of the thinges that the Pilot ought to know perfectlie, is to pricke his carde very precisely, for it is verye necessarye for good nauigation. Ther­fore whē y ^e pilot wil prick his card for to knowe the place where hee is, he ought first of al to looke in his card, y ^e place frō whence he departed in what height of degrees it is in, according as hee shall finde by the graduation which the rard hath, and let him looke also in how ma­ny degrees of height he findeth himselfe in according as he tooke it, and this be­ing knowen let him take his two com­passes and put the pointe of one of them in the place from whence he departed, & the other pointe of the same compasse let him put in the course or winde which he hath had, and take the other compas and put the one pointe in the degrees of height which he hath found, seeking them in the graduation of the card, and the other pointe of this compasse in the winde East, and West that is neerest, and make these compas­ses to runne the one vnto the other not taking away y ^e two points which come vpō the winds, (that is to say) the one, is it which the ship hath gone, and the other the East or West and comming in this manner where ioyntly you shall ioyne the two pointes of both compas­ses, [Page] the one which was put in the place from whence the shippe departed, and y ^e other in the height or altitude where in ye found your selfe. In this point is the place wherin the ship is, & to knowe if this point be certeine make the proofe in this māner. Look in the point where you finde your selfe in, and from thence with the compasse measure how many leagues are frō it to y ^e place frō whence you departed, & this being known, looke into y ^e wind that brought you how ma­ny leagues is to be reckoned for a de­gree, according as you shall finde in the fifteeneth chapter of this third booke, & beeing seene howe many degrees you haue raised or descended from the place where you departed, vnto y ^e place wher you make your selfe to bee, you shall reckon the leagues that these degrees doe amount vnto, and if the leagues of the degrees bee iust with the leagues that you finde of your way, your recko­ning is good, and if the reckoning be not agreeable the one with the other, looke wherein the errour is, for because that these two summes or reckonings should come iust. And if the place where you finde your selfe be iust in altitude with the place from whence you departed, heere is no rule that can instruct you iustly that which you haue sayled, but by iudgement that which your shippe may goe, according to y ^e dayes & houres that she hath sailed, and according to y ^e weather she hath had, and so the recko­ning is made little more or lesse. But let the pilot [...]atke that [...] this account or reckoning of little more or lesse, ought to be considered the currents or tides that may be in your way, for y ^e many times the winde and tide are one way, & whē it is so the shipp runneth more way thē the Pilot thinketh: at other times the windes & tides are contrary in such sorte that as much as the winde carrieth so much the currēt or tide reteineth or kee­peth backe, & for this cause you ought to consider that if the winde doe cast y ^e ship to one parte & the currents to another, the race of the ship will be in that parte where is lesse strength or power, & if the winde & the currents be equall the race of her will be of y ^e side where the currēt is. Let the pilot cōsider the falling down or holding vp that the shipp may make, and so let him make the account that is conuenient. This aduise is to bee had whē he pricketh his card by squarenes or by fancie, which is by reckoning the singlenes that the ship hath made, and arbitrar or indg how much way it may be that shee hath gone in euery one, and by what course, of all these the Pilot must keepe a good reckoning in his na­uigation as much as in him lieth.

The 13. chapter, howe the Pilot ought to looke that his carde be iust & certeine that there be no errour in his nauigati­on.

IN the chapter before hath beene de­clared the manner y ^t the Pilot or say­ler should haue in the pricking of his card & know the place where he is, & be cause my intēt is to declare how y ^e sai­lers should know to make their nauiga­tiōs with out perill or danger, as well of the ignorance of the rules & instructi­ons of the nauigation, as also to knowe the defectes of the cards & instrumentes wherewith they gouerne thēselues by the sea.

I say let the Pilot or any other persō y ^t shall sayle, be well aduised that the card which he shal prick, and order his naui­gation by, be iust & true, as well in the courses as in the setting down of y ^e coast in such sort y ^t euery one thing bee in his proper place both true & certein as well in the course as in y ^e altitude. So that the errour or defect of the card be not oc­casion that in nauigation you erre, and you must note y ^t amōg the cards of na­uigatiō y ^t vntil now haue byn vsed in y ^e way of y ^e Indiās of his maiesty, there are many which haue 2 graduatiōs differēt one frō the other, in such sort that from one graduatiō to the other is more thē 3 degrees of difference, these cardes are false and in the nauigations that by thē are made may followe much hurte and greate incōuenience by reason of the differēce, that these 2. graduatiōs haue betweene them, because their difference doth cause that al the courses y ^t reache [Page 27] frō one graduatiō to the other are false, being seen frō y ^e place where they begin vnto y ^e place where they make an end. The reason is, y ^t as they begin in one graduatiō, and make an end in another, y ^t is different from that: so y ^e said cour­ses doe make the selfsame differēce, & so the way that is sayled by them, shalbe erred, & you shall not find the place that you doe seeke by it: seeing y ^t the ports, baies, Ilandes, & shooldes, & the other thinges of the cardes, where these said courses doe beginne, beeing looked on where they end, they bee foorth of their owne places & true altitude, making it equall with the altitude where the na­uigation began. Also looking in euerie course of the card, y ^e distance of leagues, that are from one place to another, or from one porte to another, I say, from the place where the course began, vnto the place where it endeth: and these Leagues beeyng taken with the com­passe, & the Leagues being seene which are reckoned for a degree in euerye course of the nauigatiō shalbe found, y ^t y ^e leagues of the courses be not agreable with those leagues, which are of the di­stance of the way. This is in the cour­ses that doe reach frō one graduatiō to another: the which is caused by reason of the difference that the two graduati­ons haue: so that by these saide cardes cānot be made any good nauigatiō, see­ing that they in themselues doe varie: likewise because they haue 2. equinocti­all lines, and many other errors, al the which I haue made declaration of be­fore. The Coūsel royall of the Indians, of his Maiestie, wherevpon it hath beene commaunded that the said cards be not vsed by reason they haue two different graduations, and therefore are false and erronious as it is said. Therefore I say, that the Pilot or sayler ought to looke well that the carde whereby hee doth sayle, be of one only graduation: I wil say if they haue two graduations or more: let them bee equall or vniforme and not different, the one frō the other. And likewise the other instruments, let them bee certayne and true, that they cause no errour, whereby may followe hurt and daunger, as it is most certeine that with false instrumentes it maye and doth oftentimes happen.

The fourteenth Chapter, of the number of the Leagues, which are reckoned for a de­gree in euery course of the nauigation.

FIrst, before I declare the nūber of y ^e leagues, that ought to bee giuen to euery degree in euery one of y ^e courses of naui­gation; it is conueniēt to speake here what is the cause wherfore to the roundnes of the worlde, from the East to the West, or from the North to the South, was giuen to euery degree, 17. leagues and a halfe, and no more. And in y ^e other courses, although they be equal: with these are reckoned more leagues for a degree then in them. To this is to be noted, what degree is ta­ken in one of two sortes, is to be vnder­stood a degree of the roundnesse of the world, or a degree of eleuatiō or height of the pole. For the first which is a de­gree of roundnesse, in this all the de­grees of the courses or winds be equal, for all the windes are as the greater circles in the sphere, & as it hath beene declared, they haue three hundreth and sixtie degrees of longitude, and for that cause is giuen to euery degree of roūd­nesse seuenteene leagues and a half: but in the secōd māner, which is the degrees of the eleuation of the pole, these are different vnto those of the roundnesse. For if in sayling towards the north go­ing 17. leagues & a half, the pole is rai­sed a degree, whē you saile towards the Northeast, although you goe these 17. & a halfe, you haue not raised y ^e pole [...] degree: but it is necessary that you goe by this course 24. Leagues and a halfe, for euery degree of eleuatiō of the pole, and like in all the rest of the courses, by howe muche euerie one is more straight from the pole vnto the Lyne: so manye more Leagues, or lesse shall be gone for euery degree of eleuation of the pole, so that the roūdnes wherwith the world is girded, is not to be looked on in all the courses of the nauigation. But do you also look how much should [Page] bee gone by euery course for to raise vp or to put down euery degree of y ^e height of y ^e pole, because this altitude of y ^e pole, is to bee reckoned from the halfe of the world, which is from the Equinoctiall line: for that from thence they begin to reckon the degrees, as well for the part of the North, as for that of the South, so that in the cardes of nauigation, are put the coastes and all the rest that are marked in it according to the degrees y ^t euery thing is distant of the sayd line: in such sort, that sailing by any manner of course, from what place a man is in, towards the Equinoctiall, or from the saide Equinoctiall or any other part, by as much as the course is more straight or crooked, by so much they shall reckon more or lesse leagues in euery degree in this manner.

The fifteenth Chapter, of number, and mea­sure, and of how many parts a degree is compounded.

IT is writtē in the book of wisedome, that God made all things in num­ber, waight, & measure, therfore without know­ledge of the numbers we can knowe nothing, of the time, of the houres, or of the moouinges, or other thinges, by the which it seemeth that without knowledge how to reckon we cannot know any thing.

There are two sortes of quantities, or numbers: one is continuall, another is deuided or discrete: The continuall is in 3. sorts, y ^t is to say, towardes the length only like to a line, and this is cal­led quantitie lineall: Another is conti­nued in length, & bredth, but not deepe, & this is called superficial: The third is cōtinued in length, bredth, & depth, & is called corporal, or set together. The quā titie deuided or discrete, is whē we say, one, two, three, &c: wherby it seemeth by the diuersitie of the nūbers are vnder­stood diuers meanings of writinges, & so he that knoweth them not, ought not to bee called a man. Plato saith, for this cause is man so wise a creature, because he knoweth the manner how to accoūt: for the which he had written at y ^e doore of his Academia, y ^t who could not make a reckoning or account, should not enter in, to heare him. The measures, & y ^e rea­sōs for thē & their properties haue sprōg of Geometry: for Geometry is a science of measure, the which doth containe lines, superficies, and bodies, as appea­reth in any circle three square, foure square, & other figures, of Geometrie: [Page] many Authors haue written, and prin­cipally Euclides, the father of Ypocras. Plurtarch saith, that Archimedes made an artificiall thing by Geometry, with the which, Marcellus a captayne of the Ro­maines, hauing besieged the citie of Sy­racula, in Sicilia with the saide artificiall thing Archimedes tooke out the ships of Marcellus, that were in the Sea, by rai­sing them vp into the aire, he put them within the Citie: this science is called Geometry, as Saint Isidore saith, for the distribution of landes and fieldes: Ge­ometry properly is of y ^e corporal things for that all corporall thinges haue their proper measure.

And of the spaces or distances that are frō one prouince or citie to another, which are measured by Escadios, miles, Leagues, & Degrees: And this measure whereby that all may be alike in equa­litie is ordayned in this manner.

Foure graines of Barley doe make one finger.

Foure fingers one hand.

Foure handes one foote.

Fiue foote maketh one pace.

An hundreth twentie fiue paces ma­keth one Escadio.

Eight Escadios which are a thousand paces, doe make a Mile.

Three Miles doe make a league.

Seuenteene leagues and a halfe doe make a degree.

Euery degree hath lx. minutes.

Euery minute 60. seconds.

Euery second 60. thirdes.

And so vnto tenthes.

The reason why this account is di­uided into this number of 60. more thē into any other. Ptholome declareth in the first of y ^e Almagesto, the nienth chap­ter: where he saith, that y ^t Astronomers, sought a number, that hath many num­bers in proportionall partes, which we call parts, Alicotas, and there cannot be giuē any other number vnder sixtie, for that this number may bee parted into many diuisions and numbers, as in two times thirtie, in three times twen­tie &c.

The first Chapter, wherein are declared 17. Fundamentall principles, which ought to be knowen in the Altitude of the Sunne.

ONe of the things most subtile and of greatest vn­derstanding cō ­teyned in y ^e Art of nauigation, is the altitude of the sunne: for it sheweth truely the way, that hee which sayleth, ma­keth, or shall make in suche sorte, that if hee hath made any errour in his voy­age: by this altitude hee knoweth it: and so by reason that it is a thing so ex­cellent and subtile, y ^e auncient writers in old time did highly esteeme of y ^e prac­tise therof, chiefly that great Ptholome, & other singuler authors, for the which they used diuers instruments as y ^e A­strolabio, & the 3. rules, and others.

This altitude is so effectuall for good nauigatiō, that those which doe saile to farre coūtries, cānot make their nauigations: if this should lacke. For among all the rules and aduises that I haue declared in this art, and will declare as wel touching the altitude of the North as of others which serue in the nauiga­tion: This altitude [...] the sunne hath excellency among all others, because he [Page] is as a proofe of Arithmeticke, that soeweth the errours whiche are in the numbers: so that by the altitude of the sunne, being precisely taken, the Pilot may know the want or lacke that hath beene in his nauigation. And because this altitude of the Sunne is a matter delicate and subtile as I haue sayd. In this fourth booke, I will treate therof as plainely as possible I can, shewing the rules by Text, and giuing thē their declaration & true vnderstanding, that they ought to haue. And likewise gi­uing to euery one an example and de­monstration that they may bee the bet­ter vnderstood, and for this shalbe no­ted 17. fundamētal beginnings, which are these following.

• Altitude.
• Degree.
• Horizon.
• Zodiake.
• Equinoctiall line.
• Declination.
• Circles.
• Tropikes.
• Part of the North.
• Part of the South.
• Longitude.
• Latitude.
• Parelius.
• Meridian.
• Hemisphera.
• Zenith.
• Centrum.

Altitude is the degrees which the sūne or the [...]ole doe raise themselues aboue the Horizon. Likewise an altitude is vnderstood by those degrees, that anie citie, port, Iland, &c, are distant from the Equinoctiall line. A degree is one part of three hundreth and sixtie: wherein the world is deuided, it hath seuēteene Leagues and a half of way, by the lon­gitude which is the length or bredth of the water and earth.

Horizon is a circle which wee doe i­magine vpon the vppermost part of the earth: in the whiche our sight is fixed, which is as farre as our sight cāreach, and by this circle half the heauen is de­uided which we see, from the other half which we see not.

Zodiake is a circle really scituated in the eight heauen, vnder the which the sunne mooueth it selfe in all the yeere. This Zodiake deuideth y ^e Equinoctiall line, into two equall partes: the one frō y ^e Equinoctial line by y ^e part of y ^e north, & the other by the part of the South, by euery part of these it hath 180. degrees, so that the Zodiake hath 360. degrees.

The Equinoctiall is a s [...]rcke or circle imagined by the halfe of the worlde frō the East into the West in equal distance from both the poles, so that from the Equinoctiall vnto euerye one of the poles are nientie degrees. It is called Equinoctiall, because the sunne passing by it causeth Equinoctio, whiche is as much to say, the day and the night to be equall.

Declination is the distance which the sunne by his owne mouing maketh frō the Equinoctial line, 6. monethes of the yeere to the North part, & 6. monethes to the South parte.

Circles are the waye whereby the poles of the Zodiake doe moue in round­nesse from the poles of the world. These doe take their names of the said poles: and so they are called circle Articke, and circle Antartike, these circles are distant of the saide poles of the worlde, 23. de­grees, and 33. minutes.

Tropicos or Tropikes are 2. circles where y ^e sunne last of all doth come once in a yeere. One vnto the parte of the North, and the other vnto the parte of the South. It is called the Tropike of Tropos which is a greeke name, and is as much to say as conuersion, for the sunne being come to euery one of these Tropickes conuerteth her selfe and tur­neth backe.

The parte of the North is taken for halfe the worlde, whiche is from the Equinoctiall line vnto the Pole ar­ticke.

The parte of the South is the other halfe of the roundnesse of the worlde, which is from the Equinoctial line vn­to the pole antartike.

Longitude or length, is vnderstood by the way from the East into the West, or from the West into the East, for that [Page 30] this is the length of the world.

Latitude or bredth is the way which is taken from the North to the South, which is frō one pole to y ^e other, for this is the bredth of the world.

Parelius is a way imagined to goe straight by the heauē, or by the Sea, or by▪ y ^e land, from the East into the West, or from the West into the East, with, ou­tcomming neere to the Equinoctiall line, or to the poles more in one parte then in another.

The Meridiā is a line, which is ima­gined frō one pole of the world to the o­ther, right ouer our heades, and when the sunne commeth to this line, it is the middest of the day vnto suche as inha­bite vnder it.

Hemisphera is as muche to say, the halfe sphere▪ and it is to be vnderstood, that alt the worlde is one Sphera Esphe­ra, and is taken for a rounde thing, and because the worlde is rounde, it is called Sphera, and seeing that in what place soeuer a man is, hee seeth the halfe of Heauen: This halfe of the Heauen, which wee see, we call He­misphera.

Zenith is apoynt imagined in y ^e hea­uen very precisely put ouer our head, & frō this point or Zenith to any manner of place of our Horizon are 90. degrees.

Center is a point in the middest of the sphere imagined, & so in the middest y ^t from it to the superficie, al the lines that frō foorth right shalbe layde, shalbe e­quall: and from any part of the superfi­cie to this point is to descend, and from it to the superficie is to rise vp.

The second Chapter, of the excellencies of the sunne, and of his moouings.

SAint Ambrose saieth▪ in the Exameron, that the sunne is the fountaine of light, the fairenesse of y ^e day, the ornamēt of hea­uen, the measure of time, the vertue and strength of all thinges which are borne, and according as the Philosopher saith, is cause of all gene­ration and corruption. It is of a ve­ry great quantitie, so much that Ptho­lome saith in the Almagesto and Alfraga­no, in the difference 22. that the sunne in an hundreth sixtie & sixe times grea­ter then the earth, his mouing is more swift then any arrow, and we doe not see him mooue by reason of his greate brightnesse which is of more strength to be seene, then our sight can see: And to our iudgement hee goeth by leasure. But the quātitie of y ^e way being know­en which he goeth, his lightnesse is in­numerable: so y ^t for the greate distance that is from vs to him, we cānot deter­mine his moouing. And it is to bee no­ted, that the sunne hath two moouings contrary, which are one forcible, and the other proper: the forcible mouing is it that we see that euery day he maketh a forcible going by the first moueable, & in euery 24. houres, hee goeth round about the world from the East into the West. The other mouing which is na­turall, with proper to himselfe, woorketh contrary to the first, that is to be vnder­stood from the West into y ^e East, in his circle Excentrico: the which moouing, he maketh in three hundreth sixtie and fiue dayes & sixe houres, & lesse a little quantity: And this mouing he maketh in this maner, from the eleuenth day of Marche, that the sunne passeth by the line Equinoctial vntil the eleuenth day of June, the sunne goeth rising vp, by the parte of the North, and so putting himselfe from the said line, the eleuenth day of June, he commeth to the tropike of Cancer, and in this rising vp that he maketh these three monethes hee de­parteth from the sayd line twenty three degrees and thirtie three minutes: which is his greatest declination, or distaunce that hee maketh from the fayde line; and from the twelfthe of June, vnto the thirteenth of Septem­ber, the sunne descendeth from the sayde Tropike vnto the line: and from the fourteenth of September, vnto the thirteenth of December: the sunne [Page] descendeth by the parte of the South from the line to the Tropike of Capri­corne, from whence he departeth other twentie three degrees, and thirtie three minutes, which is likewise his greatest declination of that parte: and from the fourteenth of December, vnto the tenth of Marche, the sunne goeth using vp from the Tropike of Capricorne vnto the line: so that of the twelf-monthes of the yeere, sixe of them, the sunne go­eth from the line to the parte of the North, and the other sixe to the parte of the South. And all the moouinge which the sunne maketh, is from one Tropike to another: in the whiche are 47. degrees, and 6. minutes. This is the latitude of the Zona, whiche the auncient Writers called Torrida, which is as muche to saye, tosted, because alwayes the sunne maketh his moo­uing by her within these Tropikes, without going worth of them at anye time.

And it is to bee vnderstood, that the time which the sunne goeth towarde the parte of the North, and the time hee goeth towarde the parte of the South, Is not equall, for the sunne goeth towarde the parte of the North, a hundreth eightie and seuen dayes, and hee goeth towardes the parte of the South, a hundreth sixtie and eight: where it appeareth that the sunne go­eth more time of the yeere vnto the parte of the North, then vnto the part of the South. The cause is, because this circle Excentrico: wherein the sunne maketh his moouing, is so shut into the Sphera, that of one parte hee commeth more neere to the firmament, then of the other, for the which cause be is described foorth of the Conter of the worlde.

The parte of this circle that com­meth more neere to the firmament, is called auxe, which is as much to say e­leuation, and this hee doth, when hee commeth to the tropike of Cancer, and that when he is most distant is called opposite of auxe, and this is when hee commeth to the Tropike of Capricorne: so that when the sunne is in Auxe, hee is more neere to the firmament; and when hee is in his opposite, hee is more neere to the earth, in suche sorte that in the Sommer the sunne goeth farre from the earth, and in the Win­ter, is more neere to the earth. This is to bee vnderstoode in respect of vs in the Winter [...] respect of suche as inhabite towardes the parts of the South in Sommer. The Cardinall Peter de Aliaco proueth, that aforesaid in the twelfth question, in the first article of the seconde notable, where hee sayeth that the sunne maketh his moo­uing, beeyng come to the ende of Go­mini, is in the Auxe: of his Excentrieo, and in the ende of Sagitarius is in the op­posite.

This seenteth by the demonstration that Ptholome putteth in the thirde distinction of the Almagesto. And seeing that the Center of the Excentrico of the sunne is distant from the Center of the worlde, by so muche when the sunne in his Auxe is more distaunt from the earth; and when hee is in the opposite, hee is more neere to it. And so it is prooued that the sunne is more neere to the earth in our Winter, then in Sommer.

The thirde Chapter, of the yeere called Solar, & other manner of yeeres, & how the leape yeere is reckoned.

THE yeere Solar is the time, wherein the sunne passeth y ^e twelue signes of the Zodiake, and re­turneth where hee begā. It is called a yeere, whiche is, as if one shoulde say, a ring, or circle, because the sunne hath gone his circle, he returneth to the same place where he began.

The Egyptians as S. Isidore saith, be­fore they had y ^e knowledge of learning, they accustomed to figure the yeere in a dragon, that bitt the taile, but since they [Page 31] had learning and account of the yeere, they began it in September, because they say that in that moueth the world was made. And the Arabians beginne in the same time, the Hebrues beginne in the moneth of March, because it was geuen to them by lawe, wee begin it in I [...]nuarie, because then did our [...] yeere begin, which was the birth of the sonne of iustice, Christ our God. And be­cause the sunne doth begin to come [...] vs, In the scripture I finde fiue sortes of yeeres. Anno Solet Anno Lun [...] Anno Emergence, Anno Grande, Anno Mundano. The yeere [...]ol [...] is it the ther­fore hath beene declared. The yeere Lunar is the time which doth containe twelue moones, of twentie niene daies and a halfe, which amounteth to th [...] hundreth fiftie foure d [...]es vnto the which is added the eleuen dayes of the concurrent, because the yeere Lunar which is of the moone may come with the Solar which is of the sunne. [...] yeere Emergente is when there happe­neth, a thing very not [...]le, and in the time following is speech thereof, euen as they talked in the time of Caesar▪ [...]od now of the birth of our Lorde Jesus Christ. Anno Grande is as much to far, as a great yeere, according as the mai­ster of the histories sayth, that it is a time of sixe hundred yeeres. Anno Mun­dano according to Macrobio, is when the Starres and all the Planets will come to the pointe of our degree where they began their first moouing. And this hee sayth shall bee in fifteene thousand yeres, likewise the other saith that it will come in fortie & niene thou­sand yeeres. But any manner of thing that the philosopher speaketh of in this matter, is according to his owne opi­nion, we ought to holde that the time and the moouing of the things and the end of them is in the hand of him that made them of nothing, and vnto men doth not appertaine to iudge nor deter­mine of the time or ending of the world. For y ^e most high prouidēce of y ^e father e­ternall did put it in his owne bosome, as our redemer Jesus Christ teacheth vs, answering to such as asked him the saide question, as it is written in the Actes of the Apostles the first chapter, Therefore I say that the yeere called [...] hath three hundreth sixtie fiue [...]yes and sixe houres lacking twelue minutes giuing to euery houre sixtie minutes and because in the yere are ac­counted sixe whole houres of this hath come although the quantitie bee little, that it is no more but one fifth parte of an houre ins euery one yere, in so many number of yeeres they haue not made eleuen dayes of difference in the time, so that these sixe houres which are accoū ­ted in the yeere besides these sayd daies from foure to foure yeres doth amount to twentie foure [...]oures which maketh & natural day, and so this fourth yeere bath three hundreth sixtie sixe dayes and this is called the leape yeere, it is also called Bissiesto by the minutes which are as called Bises the which mi­nutes the sun tarieth in euery one signe most then the thirty dayes Bissiesto is [...]oun [...] to say two times six, for because [...] of Bissiesto the day that is sixe dayes before the Kalendes of march is [...] so that in one onely let­ter of the Kalender there are two daies which are the twentie foure, and twen­tie [...] of Februarie, that is to saye the [...] which [...] the saide letter, and more the day whiche is encreased by the Bissiesto or leape yeere by the which the leape yeere in the moneth of Febru­ary hath twentie nine dayes and the other yeeres twentie eyght.

Therefore it is to be seene, when the altitude of the sunne is taken to knowe his declination if it be a leape yeere, or [...], the seconde, or the thirde after the leape yeere as is plainely to bee founde in the seuenteene Chapter, which treateth of the declination, and according to the yeere, so must the de­clination of the Sunne bee sought for.

The fourth Chapter, what thing a sha­dow is, & how the shadow which the sunne maketh ought to be looked on, for to take his altitude.

[Page] THe shadowes are caused when any darke body is opposite to the light, and so the shadow hath an apparance or shewe of a body, and it is none The shadowe flyeth away from such as fol­lowe it, and followeth such as flye from it. The shadow by how much the sunne is higher, by so muche it is lesser, and how much the lower, the greater: whereby the shadow of a man is grea­ter in the morning and in the euening, then at the middest of the day, and it is to be noted, y ^t the sun goeth alwaies is one of these 3 places, which is toward the part of the north, or in the equinoc­tiall, or towardes the part of the south: & in these three partes to such as inha­bit in the world it maketh 5 shadowes: (That is to saye,) a shadow at the east, a shadow at the west, a shadow at the north, a shadow at y ^e south, & a straight shadow. The shadow at the east, is when the sunne doth set. The shadowe at the west is when the sunne riseth.

The shadowe at north is when the sunne commeth to the middest of the day, and he that maketh the shadow is more towardes the north then the sun. And the shadow at south is when he that maketh the shadowe is more to­wardes the south then the sunne there is likewise a straight shadowe, when the sunne is in our Zen [...] Al these sha­dowes, such as dwel within y ^e tropikes haue. Those which inhabite vnder the tropikes, haue 4 shadowes, (that is to say) shadow at east shadow at west and those of y ^e tropike of Cancer, haue y ^e sha­dow at north and those of the tropike of Capricorne haue the shadowe at south: and once in the yere a straight shadow, which is when the sunne entreth into that tropike. Such as dwel without y ^e tropikes haue three shadowes, at east, and at west, and those of the parte of the north, haue shadowe at north, and those of the parte of the south, haue shadowe at south, and neuer any straight shadowe. But do you note, y ^t although the sunne doth make in the yeere fiue shadowes to such as dwell in the world not onely in fiue partes, but in xiii. diffe­rēces of parts, you may be with y ^e sunn and haue xiii. differences of shadowes, and no more, (that is to say) fiue when the sunne goeth towardes the parte of the north, and three when hee is in the line, and fiue when he is towardes y ^e part of the south, y ^e which by xiii. rules with their demonstratiōs shalbe noted in this manner.

The fifth chapter, wherein is declared what thing the height of the sunne is, and how it ought to bee taken to knowe the place where a man is.

SEing there hath beene declared the difference of shadowes which the sunne maketh, or maye make by all the yeere in any manner of place that a man is, y ^e which shadows are necessa­ry to be knowne. For to knowe precise­ly how to take the altitude of the sunne, I will speake, what thing the alti­tude of the sunne is, and the manner that must be had, for to take it well. For this is to bee noted, that Ptholo­mie saieth in the firste of Geographi­a, that wheresoeuer a man is, hee seeth halfe the heauen and the other halfe is hid from him, in such sort that of three hundreth and sixtie degrees that the heauen hath in roundnes wee alwaies see the hundreth and foure score which is the halfe wherein is contayned our Hemispherio, so that wheresouer a man is, and in any manner of time, from his heade or Cenith, vnto the horizon are ninetie degrees, and so from what place that a man is in euen vnto the sunne, when he riseth in the morning, that hee doe begin to appeare in the horizon are ninetie degrees, and how much more the day goeth forwarde, and the sunne goeth rising, so much more he commeth neerer towardes our Cenith. And this rising vp that the sunne maketh, is cal­led the altitude of the sunne, because he goeth rising, and going vp vppon the horizon, the which altitude he that shall take him at the middest of the day, let him vnderstande that the degrees that he shall finde in his Astrolabio, lesse then ninetie, those should be from him to the sunne, for that the sunne shall be so ma­ny distant from his Cenith, which is from the right of his heade. Therefore I say to know the altitude that y ^e sunne hath euery day vpon the horizon which the pilot or any otherpersō that would take it, ought, first of all to looke on syue thinges which are these following.

The first, that it be taken in the mid­dest of the day.

The second, that hee see to whiche parte of the line, the sunne goeth that day.

The third, to what part the shadows goe.

The fourth, what declination the sun hath.

The fifth, that he knowe how to applye the rule that is conuenient accor­ding to the time and place wherein he findeth himselfe. Vnto the first I say, y ^t the altitude of the sunne ought to be taken at the middest of the day iustly, this is because vntill the sunne com­meth to the Meridiā he goeth alwaies rising aboue the Horizon, and if hee bee taken before or after hee wil not bee so [Page] iustly taken, but although that in this be some difference of time being but a little thing before or after, it is no great inconuenience, because the most times it cannot be punctually knowne whē he commeth to the Meridian. Although you looke on the clock, the Astrolabio, or any other instrumēt, but alwaies doe you procure to take him at the houre a­foresaide.

To the second, it ought to bee seene at what parte of the line, the sunne go­eth, if it be at the north or at the south, considering that the time, which the sun goeth to the part of the north, is frō the eleuenth of March vnto the thirteenth of September, and from the fourteenth of September vnto the tēth of March hee goeth to the parte of the south.

Vnto the thirde, he that taketh the altitude ought to see to what parte the shadowes are from him, (that is to say) the shadow of his person, or of the maste of his ship, or of any other thing y ^t is put vpright. And so by the shadowe hee shall knowe at which parte of the line hee is, for being knowne to which parte the sunne goeth, it may be easily known by the sayde shadowe, towardes what parte he is of, as in the fourth chapter hath beene declared.

To the fourth, the yeere ought to be looked vnto, if it be a leape yeere, or the first, the second, or third yeere after the leape yeere, and according as the yeere is, let him looke on the moneth, and day wherein he is: and what de­clination the sunne hath towardes the parte where he goeth, that is how ma­ny degrees and minutes hee is distant from the sayde line.

To the fifth, y ^t hee apply euery rule of y ^e altitude in his proper time and place, and this the pilot ought alwais to pro­cure and knowe the rules of the al­titude, not onely the woordes but the meaning of them for he that onely kno­weth the rule, and doth not attaine to the reason or foundation thereof, as it ought to be vnderstoode, it procureth to him many harmes, and hee knoweth not of what they proceede, and finding him selfe in the errour he putteth faulte in the instrumentes and rules, the fault being in him selfe, because he vnderstan­deth them not.

And because these rules of the alti­tude of the sunne may bee well vnder­stoode, and that their shoulde be no ig­norance in any thing, here shal be put e­uery one with his declaration, figure, and example, in manner following.

The sixt chapter, wherefore the rules of the height of the sunne doe shewe the degrees that a man is distant of the equinoctiall line more then by any other parte.

IN the rules before written hath beene declared how that euery day that you wil take the altitude of the sunne, you shall knowe at what parte of the line you are, and how many degrees distant as wel of the one part as of the other.

[Page 41] Of this may be [...] what the cause is, wherefore all the rul [...]s of the [...] ­tude of the sunne, are made and ord [...] ­ned that a man should vnderstand how many degrees he is distant of the equi­noctiall line, more then from the pole, or from the other tropikes or from any o­ther parte.

To this is to bee answered, that the reason whereby onely we would know the distance, that is from the sayd line, more then from any other parte, is, be­cause the sayde equinoctiall line, as be­fore hath beene declared, is put and [...] ­tuated in the middest of the worlde, and all the cardes of nauigation whereby the pilots & sailers doe rule themselues by. In the card of nauigation a [...] or­dayned and put the portes, and bayes, riuers, capes, Ilandes, and shooldes, & all other thinges, which are marked in thē, according to the degrees that eue­ry thing is distant from the sayd equi­noctiall line, as wel towardes the part of the north, as of the south: and beeing knowne by the pilot or sayler, with the altitude which he taketh, howe many degreees he is distant of the sayde line, to one parte or to another, or if he bee in the sayde line, likewise he knoweth if he be equall in altitude with y ^e place which hee goeth to seeke according as in his carde he hath pricked, or if he ought to rise vp or goe downe, and how many degrees, vntill he put him selfe right of the place, and for this cause the line is more sought for, then any other parte.

The seuenth chapter, by what reason al rules of the altitude of the sunne are reduced to nienty degrees, more then to any other number.

IT may be asked by what reason all the rules of y ^e altitude of the sunne, as before hath beene decla­red goe reduced to this nūber of nientie degrees, more then to any other, for that it is so written, that the degrees of altitude are to be seene, wherein the sunne is taken in the Astrolabio, how many doe lacke, vnto nientie and in other rules is sayde that the altitude and declination is to be ioyned and seene if they amount to nientie degrees, or if they passe nien­tie degrees, or if they come not to nienty degrees, in such sorte, that all the rules are made and ordained to this number of nienty, therfore it ought to be known wherfore more to this number thē to a­ny other. For the vnderstanding of this doubt is to be immagined that where­soeuer a man standeth is the middest of the worlde, and he seeth half the hea­uen, in such sort, that as the roundnes of y ^e worlde hath three hundreth & six­tie degrees, the horizon discouereth y ^e half which are a hundreth and eyghtie, and they are vnderstoode in this man­ner▪ from any manner of part of the ho­rizō vnto y ^e Cenith are nienty degrees, and from my Cenith vnto the other part of the horizon other nientie. Which is to be vnderstoode in this manner, im­magine that in what place so euer a man is in, he is right in the middest of this circle, which circle is his horizon.

Therefore I saye that I am in the middest of the circle, and from the point A. which is the horizon vnto my heade are nientie degrees, and from my Cenith to the point C. other nientie, which are a hundreth and eyghtie, and from the point B. vnto my heade nientie, and from my heade vnto the pointe D. other nientie, and so there is nientie degrees from my heade to any parte of my hori­zon. Therefore declaring the doubt, I say that the reason why the rules of the [Page] altitude of the Sunne are reduced to this number of nientie, is because the Sunne cannot rise vp aboue the hori­zon, more then nientie degrees, which is vntill he come right ouer our heads, and so when we take him in nientie de­grees of Astrolabio, wee saye that wee haue the sunne right ouer our heades, & when we take him in lesse, that which is lesse then nientie is the sunne distant from vs: so that because the sunne can­not rise vp, vpon the horizon more then nientie degrees, with the which as I haue saide, he commeth vntill he be vp­on our heads: therefore the rules of his altitude goe reduced to this number, and not to any other.

The eight Chapter, wherein is declared wherefore we saie, that the man is distant of the sunne, the degrees that he taketh in the Astrolabio lesse then nientie.

OF the rules of the alti­tude of the Sunne be­fore written, hath been sayde, and declared, that at all tymes when the Altitude is taken, the degrees are to bee looked for which doe lacke in the Astrolabio of nien­tie, and that those same, the man is distante of the Sunne. And bee­cause it is conuenient and expedient that this rule bee well and throughly vnderstoode and knowne, I will most euidently declare it, in this manner fol­lowing.

It is to bee noted, when the Sunne doth beginne to appeare by our horizon which is, when he goeth foorth in the morning, then he hath no Altitude but from thence hee goeth rising vp, and howe much more hee ryseth, so much he goeth hauing more Altitude, vpon y ^e Horizon, in such sort that if one houre after he is come forth, hee hath raysed him selfe vp fiue degrees, in two houres hee shall haue raysed him selfe vp tenne or twelue, and in three houres [...] vp vn­ [...] the myddist the daye, and from of thence hee t [...]eth to desc [...] by the [...] order that hee went risy [...]g vp, vn­tyll hee put or hyde him selfe vnder the horizon. Of that which hath beene sayde, two thinges are to bee noted, the fyrst is, that from the time the Sunne [...] foorth, vntyl it be the middest of the day, he goeth alwayes rising vp, and aug [...]nting in his [...], vn­tyll hee come to [...], Meridian, and al­wayee the Meridian is in the middest of the bow, which the Sunne maketh, from the time that hee commeth foorth vntill hee is sette▪ This is because al­wayes the man is in the middest of the roundnes, which roundnes is his hori­zon.

The seconde is, that this Bowe which the Sunne maketh vppon our horizon, is not euery day equall, but at some times is greater then at other some, euen as the daye is great or litle, but although that the bowe bee great or little, alwayes the Sunne goeth ri­sing vp, vntill he come to the Meridi­an, and from thence hee descendeth. And it is to be noted, that alwayes the Sunne commeth forth, and setteth in equall distance from vs, but at the middest of the day, he is not alwaies in equal distance of vs, but at one time hee is neere, and at another time farre off, this is from the right of our heads, which is to be vnderstood in this man­ner. I put the case that I bee distant from the equinoctiall line tenne de­grees, and the Sunne hath of decli­nation the same daye the same tenne degrees, towards the part that I am, and beeing so, when the Sunne came foorth this daye, and beganne to ap­peare in the horizon, then hee was from mee nientie degrees, and from thence hee went rysing vp vntyll the middest of the day, and beeing come to my Me­ridian, hee shall bee precisely right ouer my head.

Insomuch that if a lyne be imagined▪ that rightly doth descende frō the Sun [Page 42] vnto the earth, this line woulde come vpon my head, and this woulde bee so at all times, when I were as distant of the line, as the declination is, which the sunne hath this day, because I am in that way where the Sunne that day doth make his moouing, by the which that day at the middest of the day, I shall haue it vpon my head: but if I be distant of the waye of the sunue, al­though that when he came foorth, hee was from me ninety degrees, it is to be vnderstood, that when it is the middest of the day, I shall not haue it right o­uer my head, but I shal haue it as farre of, as the distance is frō the place, where I am, to y ^e place of the way of the sūne, in such sort that if the distance, which is of the place or way, where I am, to the place or way where the Sunne came foorth, were fiue degrees, or tenne, or more, or lesse: Those same the Sunne shalbe at the middest of the day distant from y ^e right of my head, so that, if there were layd two straight lines or strekes, from the East into the West, the one by the place where the Sunne commeth foorth, and the other by the place where I am: the degrees of distance y ^t shoulde be from one line to the other, the selfe­same at the middest of the day, wilbe of distance of the Sunne to my Cenith. And doe you note, that in this distance, which the Sunne maketh from mee is not to bee looked, howe muche there is from mee to the Sunne, but doe you looke how much the Sunne is distant at the middest of the day, from the right of my head, for so much as this distance is, so muche will I say, that I am di­stant of the Sunne, to one parte or o­ther.

The nienth Chapter, wherein is declared, howe it is vnderstoode, that a man hath the Sunne right ouer his head.

IT hath beene declared in the Chapter going before, that when a man findeth himselfe in the course where y ^e sun maketh his way, that that day at the middest of the day, he shall haue him right ouer his heade, of this maye bee had a greate doubt, (whiche is this.)

The tenth Chapter, to knowe howe the alti­tude of the Sunne ought to be seen if it be leape yere, or what yere it is.

IN the sixth Chapter of this fourth booke, I said how it is necessary when the altitude of the sunne is taken to knowe the yere, if it be the leap yere, or the first or seconde, or thirde after the leap yere, because the dayes of one yere, with those of the other haue not the de­grees and minutes equall, and the rea­son is, because as in the third chapter of this fourth booke hath beene declared, that the yere called Solar, hath three hūdreth sixty fiue daies, & sixe houres, and that those sixe houres of euery one yeere, from foure to foure yeres, do make a natural day, and that such a yeere is called a leap yere, so that the first yere after the leape yeere, hath three hundreth sixtie fiue dayes and sixe houres. And the seconde yeere, three hundreth sixtie fiue dayes and twelue houres, the sixe of the first yeere, and sixe his owne, and the third yeere, three hundreth sixetie fiue daies and eighteene houres, the twelue of the two yeres the first and seconde, and the vi. his owne, and the fourth yeere three hundreth sixtie sixe dayes, so that in this fourth yere is shut vp the houres of al foure yeres, and the fourth yere being past, The first begin­eth, and so the other yeres successiuely as it is said, and for this cause they bee not equall in degrees and minutes all dayes one with another: Therefore it is conuenient, as it is before declared, when the altitude of the sunne is to bee taken, that it be seene what yere it is, and seeke what daye and moneth you are in, and there you shal finde the decli­nation, or distance which the sun hath, from the line, as in the tables folowing is conteined, therfore to knowe the yere that you are in, if it be a leape yere, or the first, second, or thirde after the leape yeere, looke ouer the two rules of the discourses folowing, for in them playne­ly is shewed, by reckoning the yere of our L [...]be, a thousande fiue hundreth fourtie fiue in the first house of the which is the first yere, and so successiuely in e­uery yere one house, & the house being ended of the last rule, returne to the be­ginning, and so this account is for euer.