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<TEMPHEAD>
<REVDESCR>
<CHANGE>
<DATE>2009-05-21</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Lauren Proux</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Checklist:
x Add TEMPHEAD, change DATE, validate
x Add DIV TYPEs, validate
x Review structure, use BODY or rarely GROUP
x Check PB placement and completeness, ensure sequence of N=""
x Proof title page(s)
x Check HEAD TRAILER ARGUMENT EPIGRAPH OPENER CLOSER SIGNED SALUTE BYLINE
x Check ^, oe, abq, italic I / J, _Initals, space between &amp;c.
x Check &num; # @ -- UNCLEAR LB FIGURE
x Check q; startq endq Q
x Correct illegibles from proofsheet
x Check illegible page, para, line, span, word, dollar signs
Final validate

Corrected [  ] illegible groups out of [  ].
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<EEBO>
<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="A86908">
<STC T="W">H3744</STC>
<STC T="T">E778_17</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99862734</BIBNO>
<VID>167339</VID>
</IDG>
<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>The I&s;land of ASSADA, Neere MADAGASCAR Impartially defined, being a &s;uccint, yet Plenary Di&s;cription of the Situation, Fertility and People therein Inhabiting.</P>
<P>Clearely demon&s;trating to the Adventurer or Planter, the right way for di&s;po&s;ing his Adventure to his mo&s;t Commodious advantage; Advi&s;ing people of all degrees, from the highe&s;t to the lowe&s;t, how &s;uddainly rai&s;e their E&s;tate and Fortunes.</P>
<P>By Lieutenant Colonell <HI>Robert Hunt,</HI> Governour thereof.</P>
<P><HI>Mercatura, &s;i tenuis, &s;ordida &s;i magna &s;plendida, quaerenda pecunia primum.</HI></P>
<P>Printed for <HI>Nicholas Bourne,</HI> at the South entrance of the Royall <HI>Exchange.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="declaration">
<PB REF="2">
<PB N="1" REF="2">
<HEAD><HI>A DECLARATION, SHEWING, The Grounds and Rea&s;ons, with the Motives that induced Lieut. Col.</HI> Robert Hunt, <HI>to undertake the Voyage and Adventure, for &s;etling a Plantation upon the I&s;land called</HI> A&s;&s;ada, <HI>neere</HI> Madaga&s;car; <HI>Publi&s;hed for &s;atisfaction of his Friends, who earne&s;tly de&s;ire the &s;ame.</HI></HEAD>
<P>_DEare Friends; It may &s;eeme strange to &s;ome of you, that I, who through the ble&s;&s;ing of God, had a comfortable provi|&s;ion for my out-ward &s;ub&s;i&s;tance in my owne Native Coun|try, &s;hould now travell &s;o farre abroad, and leave a Wife &s;o deare unto me, &s;o many neere Relations and Christian Friends, together with places of preferment which were offered me at home; But the truth is ever &s;ince I had the Honour to be imployed by tho&s;e Noble Lords, and other Adventurers, by providence as Governour there; In which voyage, having &s;eene sho&s;e Sou|therne Plantations, beholding the Sweetene&s;&s;e. Plea&s;antne&s;&s;e, and Profitablene&s;&s;e of them, as Nur&s;eries of Trade to <HI>England;</HI> And con&s;idering the onely end of my comming into the World was to glorifie God in my Generation, which ac|cording to the light of nature given me, I am per&s;waded that nothing more would conduce to that end, then endeavouring to make knowne God in the World, and to be u&s;efull and &s;erviceable to my Native Country, both which in this undertaking my Eye is fixed upon. For the Fir&s;t, I am per&s;waded the Lord hath a great worke by his Servants to make knowne the Lord Je&s;us
<PB N="2" REF="3">Chri&s;t, to the poore Heathen in the&s;e Ea&s;tern parts of the World, and I &s;hall much rejoyce if the Lord &s;hall plea&s;e by me to open a doore for that purpo&s;e. For the &s;econd, the &s;etling a Plantation in tho&s;e parts, is likely to be of great advantage to this Common-wealth, in the increa&s;e of Trade and Navigation, &s;ince the di&s;covery of this I&s;land of <HI>A&s;&s;ada</HI> to me; I had longing thoughts and earne&s;t de&s;ires of going thither, looking upon it as a worke of great concern|ment for the future to this Nation, and out of our fir&s;t attempt, I hope God in his due time will doe great things, therefore let none contemne the enterpri&s;e of &s;mall things; My purpo&s;e is by the ble&s;&s;ing of the Almighty to endeavour the Settlement of an hone&s;t and ju&s;t Government there, neare&s;t to ehe Lawes of this Land, for greate&s;t incouragement and &s;ecurily to Adventurers; and for the better carrying on this worke, my Intentions are to &s;ettle two or three Godly men as Agents, at the King of the North end of <HI>Madaga&s;cars</HI> Court, who&s;e worke &s;hall be to indeavour to informe him and his people in the know|ledge of the Go&s;pell of Je&s;us Chri&s;t and to keepe a loving and peaceable corre&s;|pondency with them.</P>
<DIV2 TYPE="part">
<P>FOr Information of &s;uch who de&s;ire to Adventure or Plant there, I &s;hall now lay downe a Di&s;cription of the Situati|on of the I&s;land of <HI>A&s;&s;ada</HI> (as pre&s;ented to me.) This I&s;land lyeth Thirteene degrees in the Latitude of <HI>Barbadoo's,</HI> and is a|bout that bigne&s;&s;e and goodne&s;&s;e, and reported by them who have beene upon it, to be good Land, and to afford large Sugar-Caines, Rice, Corne and Cattle upon it, with &s;tore of Fruits, Fi&s;h, &amp;c. and what&s;oever will grow upon <HI>Barbadoo's</HI> is likely to grow there, being all the yeare &s;ummer, and at one and the &s;ame time the Trees doe beare Buds, greene and ripe Fruits, it hath &s;mall hills and vallies, with fre&s;h running waters and ly|eth about nine miles from the great I&s;land of <HI>Madaga&s;car,</HI> and there are not above fifty or &s;ixty poore people upon the i&s;land, which the King left to tend Cattle, to Fi&s;h and Plant Sugar|Caines, which at time of the yeare they may carry to <HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word"> Bay,</HI> to &s;ell to the <HI>Arabians;</HI> about ten yeares &s;ince there <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word"> foure or five hundred people gotten from <HI>Madaga&s;car,</HI> and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="2 letters">|volted from the King, they made Warre with him divers <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word">
<PB N="3" REF="3">and pillaged the <HI>Arabian</HI> Junks, in which time an Engli&s;h Ship touching there, the King offered them, if they would helpe him to carry his men over to the I&s;land, he would give them the I&s;land, and halfe the people to be their &s;ervants: but they refu|&s;ing it, he having no Boats, but &s;ome few Canoes, which would carry not above 3. or 4. men at once in them, and not knowing how to get 40. men over to the I&s;land, made rafts of Timber and &s;o wafted them over to the I&s;land, &s;ubdued the re|volters, leaving but the number as afore&s;aid: &s;o that my inten|tions is to buy this I&s;land of the King for the Accompt of the Adventurers, and to give him full conrent and &s;atisfaction for it, He having fir&s;t freed and promi&s;ed it, or any other place in his Country to the Engli&s;h, we &s;hall de&s;ire to promote his Trade and benefit which he is de&s;irous of; And tho&s;e which have been with him a&s;&s;ures me, we need not que&s;tion a free &s;aile of our co~modities, at a rea&s;onable value: neere this I&s;land are di|vers &s;mall I&s;lands without any people inhabiting them, which may be u&s;efull to us.</P>
<P>This I&s;land for bigne&s;&s;e is reckoned 16. miles &s;quare, and hath a good Harbour, where we intend by Gods ble&s;&s;ing to build a Fort and Towne, and there to &s;et down our &s;elves: It is beleeved that this I&s;land would maintain neere a hundreth thou|&s;and people in way of Trade and Plantation, if once well plan|ted, having enough be&s;ides, for above 200. <HI>Sugar</HI> works, be|&s;ides other Commodities.</P>
<P>The Commodities we hope to rai&s;e, are <HI>Sugar, Indico, ginger, cot|ton wooll, Tobacco, Rice,</HI> and <HI>Pepper, &amp;c.</HI> And for provi&s;ions, <HI>Corne; Cattle, Hoggs, Poultry, Rice, Gravances, Potatoes, Oringes, Lem|mons,</HI> and <HI>Pines,</HI> with other fruits, very u&s;efull and at farre ea&s;ier Rates, then at <HI>Barbadoes,</HI> (as for in&s;tance,)
<TABLE>
<ROW>
<CELL>A Plantation of 300. Acres of Land to plant a large Sugar-work, will co&s;t at <HI>Barbadoes</HI></CELL>
<CELL>2000, pound.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20. Engli&s;h &s;ervants to tran&s;port with Provi&s;ion,</CELL>
<CELL>300. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>100. Negroes &s;ervants at 25. l. and 30. l, apiece,</CELL>
<CELL>2700. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Toole, Cloathing, and &s;everall nece&s;&s;aries,</CELL>
<CELL>300. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20. Cattle of &s;everall &s;orts,</CELL>
<CELL>700. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB N="4" REF="4">
<ROW>
<CELL>The like at <HI>A&s;&s;ada,</HI></CELL>
<CELL>6000. pound.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>300. Acres of Land purcha&s;ed at 12. d. the acre,</CELL>
<CELL>15. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20. Engli&s;h &s;ervants to tran&s;port and furni&s;h,</CELL>
<CELL>300. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>100. Negroes at 20. s.</CELL>
<CELL>100. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>Tooles cloathing, &amp;c.</CELL>
<CELL>200. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20 Cattell of &s;everall &s;orts,</CELL>
<CELL>25.. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>And for all manner of cloathing and Tooles may be had neare hand for the 3. part it co&s;t at <HI>Barbadoes,</HI></CELL>
<CELL>640. l.</CELL>
</ROW>
</TABLE></P>
<P>So that the proportion will hold for a greater or le&s;&s;er work of <HI>Sugar, Indico, Cotton, Ginger,</HI> and <HI>Tobacco, &amp;c.</HI> And whereas at <HI>Barbadoes</HI> they relate they plant 16. hund. or 20. hund. of Sugar, each &s;ervant, 160. l. or 200. l. of <HI>Indico,</HI> 1000. l. of <HI>Cotton-wooll,</HI> 20. hund, weight of <HI>Ginger,</HI> 1500. weight of <HI>Tobacco,</HI> in a yeare, its hopefull to rai&s;e tho&s;e Commodities farre Cheaper then at <HI>Barbadoes:</HI> we hope to build &s;mall Ve&s;&s;els, to trade to our Neighbouring Countries, and vend the &s;ame at as good rates as they are like to be worth at <HI>London</HI> for ready money, and other Commodities which are u&s;efull to vend in <HI>India:</HI> And by that meanes pre&s;erve the Coyne of this Nation, and in a &s;hort time, when once &s;etled, may inve&s;t our &s;elves at our Returnes with Ea&s;t <HI>India</HI> Commodities, bringing home thence as much com|modities as u&s;ually came to this Nation, and &s;ave the &s;ending out of a 1000 l. <HI>per annum</HI> of Silver, fully providing our &s;elves of men from <HI>Arabia Madaga&s;car, Africa,</HI> and <HI>India,</HI> to Plant &s;ome to be free men, others &s;ervants. One <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> man will go|verne ten of tho&s;e Nations: thus may Men, Women, and chil|dren be bred up in the knowledge of God, and in time this I&s;land lying &s;o well for Trade, may be a &s;cale of Trade to the <HI>Engli&s;h,</HI> for tho&s;e parts of the World, <HI>as Batavia</HI> is to the <HI>Dutch,</HI> and <HI>God</HI> to the <HI>Portingalls,</HI> who have 20, times their number of Strangers live among&s;t them, and under their Go|vernment.</P>
<P>The I&s;land of <HI>Madaga&s;car,</HI> which lyeth in &s;ight of this I&s;land of <HI>A&s;&s;ada,</HI> is 900 miles long, it hath &s;even Kings in it, the chief
<PB N="5" REF="4">lives at the North end, the Commoditie it affords, is <HI>R<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">i Ambergree&s;e, Iron, Tortle &s;hels, Landall-wood, Ibony wood, Druggs, &amp;c. Augu&s;tine Bay</HI> where our <HI>Engli&s;h</HI> u&s;ually touch to water and buy Cattell, is the wor&s;er part of the I&s;land, in regard there is u&s;ually no Trade with any other Nation: nor any Townes, nor provi&s;ions for Planting, their being but a &s;mall number of peo|ple which are Cow-keepers, &amp;c.</P>
<P>Whereas at <HI>A&s;&s;ada, Bay,</HI> an Engli&s;h Ship putting in there in her Voyage to <HI>India,</HI> found a &s;mall Towne called <HI>Anta&s;ia,</HI> where the <HI>Arabians</HI> lades divers Junks of <HI>Rice,</HI> yearly in exchange for <HI>Cullivers, Knives,</HI> and <HI>India</HI> Commodities, from thence our Engli&s;h travelling up to the Kings Town, about 20. miles up in the Land, pa&s;&s;ed through two Villages about a mile long, well inhabited with people, there being about them fields of <HI>Rice,</HI> and <HI>Sugar Caines,</HI> with hundreds of Cattell; their build|ings are of Timber two &s;tories high, open to walke in the hot weather, the upper Roomes to lodge in. The people naturally are very kinde and courteous, the North part for 2 hundred miles in length, is governed by a King, whom they went unto, to obtain licence to trade, he and his women dwelling in a Pal|lace about a quarter of a mile round, at the end of which is a &s;mall Towne, like a Parke in it, about 500. Oxen feeding, the people are generally his &s;laves, he u&s;eth our Engli&s;h court|eou&s;ly, &s;hewed them his Trea&s;ure, which was a Ma&s;&s;y Silver Staffe, &s;ome peeces of Eight, peeces of cloth of Gold, of Sattin and &s;ilke &s;tuffes, <HI>Arabian</HI> Coates, which the <HI>Arabians</HI> brought from <HI>India,</HI> being bought of them for <HI>Ambergree&s;e, Tortle-&s;hels,</HI> which are his owne Commodities.</P>
<P>He invited our men to come againe, and promi&s;ed all his Country &s;hould be at their command.</P>
<P>So that notwith&s;tanding the di&s;&s;olving of the Plantation at <HI>Auga&s;tines Bay,</HI> where tho&s;e that know it dare &s;ay, there is nei|ther good fre&s;h water, nor wood to build withall, nor Provi|&s;ion, nor Gardens for mans u&s;e: But it is a Mar&s;h ground, like <HI>Sandwitch <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter">ownes in Kent,</HI> not &s;it for Plantation, which is an en|couragemen<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 letter"> to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 word"> to proceed in this de&s;igne.</P>
<P>Thus you have heard in part what is related to me, by tho&s;e who have been neare 8. Mone<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="2 letters">e upon the place, men of hone&s;t
<PB N="6" REF="5">conver&s;ation, who <HI>I</HI> beleeve deales truly with me, and the &s;ame is confirmed in the generall in Print by Engli&s;h and Portugall writers, for tho&s;e fellow Souldiers, Country men and deare&s;t friends of mine, that re&s;olve to travell, I doe beleeve, by Gods ble&s;&s;ing, that not any part of the World is more advantagious for a Plantation, bring every way as well for plea&s;ure as well as profit, in my e&s;timation. And for tho&s;e that have either little or much to adventure, they may imploy it this way, and tho&s;e which have nothing, if they come over, for foure yeares as &s;er|vants to their Adventurers, they &s;hall have Meate Drinke and Apparell provided, and at the end of the terme in recompence of their &s;ervice, have as much Land to Plant on as they can im|ploy, with &s;ix Moneths provi&s;ions, and three <HI>Negros</HI> &s;ervants, which at <HI>Barbadoo's</HI> were worth a 100. pound, which if endu|&s;triou&s;ly imployed, may rai&s;e their Fortunes every yeare as much.</P>
<P><HI>And to my Honourable and worthy Adventurers, my humble &s;ute is, that you would take care of &s;ending me timely &s;upplyes of men, that I may be more enabled to goe on with tho&s;e de|&s;ignes propo&s;ed; which I forbeare to mention in publique, untill a more convenient time for the &s;ome,: And by the ble&s;&s;ing of God I doubt not of a good i&s;&s;ue.</HI></P>
</DIV2>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
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