Page 33 - Early English Adventurers in the Middle East_Neat

THE DAWN OF THE EMPIRE 33

dramatically than Drake and Cavendish’s voyages had
done, with far greater effect. The best markets were indi­
cated, the profits to be made there were set forth with the
precision of an expert, and, above all, the truth was em­
phasized that to the bold and strong there were great
possibilities in the regions in which the Portuguese and
the Spaniards and, as regards Persia and the nearer East,
the Venetians had previously exercised a practical mono-
poly.
Lancaster’s unfortunate voyage, which followed almost
immediately upon Fitch’s return, rather damped the ardour
of the mercantile classes for Eastern adventures, more
especially as an expedition sent out to China in 1596,
under the command of Captain Benjamin Wood, also ended
in disaster; but the setback was only temporary.
As time went by, interest was re-kindled by evidence
which came to hand, notably from the English ambassador
at the Spanish Court, of the splendid field which was ready
for the occupation of English merchants in the countries
of the Orient. A decisive turn was given to the arguments
in favour of a further effort to tap the Eastern markets
when the news reached England in 1597 of the remarkable
success of the voyage made to the East by a fleet of Dutch
ships under the command of Cornelius Houtman. This
expedition, which laid the foundation of Dutch power in
the Eastern Archipelago, carried a warning for England
which was not to be disregarded. On all hands it was
recognized that the time had come for English merchants
to secure a share of the Eastern trade if they were not to
be altogether supplanted by their energetic Dutch rivals.
The closing years of the sixteenth century were a period
of energetic preparation and eager anticipation in London
o