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A briefe note concerning an ancient trade of the English Marchants to the Canarie-ilands, gathered out of an olde ligier booke of M. Nicolas Thorne the elder a worshipfull marchant of the city of Bristoll.

IT appeareth evidently out of a certaine note or letter of remembrance, in the custody of me Richard Hakluyt, written by M. Nicolas Thorne the elder a principall marchant of Bristoll, to his friend and factour Thomas Midnall, and his owne servant William Ballard at that time resident at S. Lucar in Andaluzia; that in the yeere of our Lord 1526 (and by all circumstances and probabilities long before) certaine English marchants, and among the rest himselfe with one Thomas Spacheford exercised usuall and ordinary trade of marchandise unto the Canarie Ilands. For by the sayd letter notice was given to Thomas Midnall and William Ballard aforesayd, that a certaine ship called The Christopher of Cadiz bound for the West Indies had taken in certaine fardels of cloth both course and fine, broad and narrow of divers sorts and colours, some arovas of packthreed, sixe cerons or bagges of sope with other goods of M. Nicolas Thorne, to be delivered at Santa Cruz the chiefe towne in Tenerifa one of the seven Canary-ilands. All which commodities the sayd Thomas and William were authorised by the owner in the letter before mentioned to barter & sell away at Santa Cruz. And in lieu of such mony as should arise of the sale of those goods they were appointed to returne backe into England good store of Orchell (which is a certaine kinde of mosse growing upon high rocks, in those dayes much used to die withall) some quantity of sugar, and certaine hundreds of kid-skinnes. For the procuring of which and of other commodities at the best and first hand the sayd Thomas and William were to make their abode at Santa Cruz, and to remaine there as factours for the abovesayd M. Nicolas Thorne.

And here also I thought good to signifie, that in the sayd letters mention is made of one Thomas Tison an English man, who before the foresayd yere 1526 had found the way to the West Indies, and was there resident, unto whom the sayd M. Nicolas Thorne sent certaine armour and other commodities specified in the letter aforesayd.

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Cadiz (Spain) (1)

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1526 AD (2)
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