Reference material and sources.
Emanuel Van Meteren, On Hudson's Voyage, 1610. In J. Franklin Jameson,ed., Narratives of New Netherland, 1609-1664 (Original Narratives ofEarly American History). NY: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1909.
We have observed in our last book that the Directors of the East IndiaCompany in Holland had sent out in March last, on purpose to seek apassage to China by northeast or northwest, a skilful English pilot,named Henry Hudson, in a Vlie boat, having a crew of eighteen or twentymen, partly English, partly Dutch, well provided.
This Henry Hudson left the Texel on the 6th of April, 1609, doubled theCape of Norway the 5th of May, and directed his course along thenorthern coasts towards Nova Zembia; but he there found the sea as fullof ice as he had found it in the preceding year, so that they lost thehope of effecting anything during the season. This circumstance, andthe cold, which some of his men, who had been in the East Indies, couldnot bear, caused quarrels among the crew, they being partly English,partly Dutch, upon which Captain Hudson laid before them twopropositions. The first of these was to go to the coast of America, tothe latitude of 40 degrees, moved thereto mostly by letters and mapswhich a certain Captain Smith had sent him from Virginia, and by whichhe indicated to him a sea leading into the western ocean, by the northof the southern English colony. Had this information been true(experience goes as yet to the contrary), it would have been of greatadvantage, as indicating a short way to India. The other propositionwas to direct their search through Davis's Straits. This meeting withgeneral approval, they sailed thitherward on the 14th of May, andarrived on the last day of May with a good wind at the Faroe Islands,where they stopped but twenty-four hours, to supply themselves withfresh water. After leaving these islands, they sailed on, till on the18th of July they reached the coast of Nova Francia, under 44 degrees,where they were obliged to run in, in order to get a new foremast,having lost theirs. They found one, and set it up. They found this agood place for cod-fishing, as also for traffic in good skins and furs,which were to be got there at a very low price. But the crew behavedbadly towards the people of the country, taking their property byforce, out of which there arose quarrels among themselves. TheEnglish, fearing that between the two they would be outnumbered andworsted, were therefore afraid to pursue the matter further. So theyleft that place on the 26th of July, and kept out at sea till the 3d ofAugust, when they came near the coast, in 42 degrees of latitude.Thence they sailed on, till on the 12th of August they again reachedthe shore, under 37 degrees 45'. Thence they sailed along the shoreuntil they reached 40 degrees 45', where they found a good entrance,between two headlands, and entered on the 12th of September into asfine a river as can be found, wide and deep, with good anchorin