The existence of such a bay as Hudson's was described to be, induced the
merchants of England to believe that they had at length found out the
entrance to a passage which would lead them to the East Indies: many
voyages were therefore undertaken, in a very short time after this bay had
been discovered. The most important was that of Bylot and Baffin: they
advanced through Davis's Straits into an extensive sea, which they called
Baffin's Bay: they proceeded, according to their account, as far north as
the latitude 78 deg.. The nature and extent of this discovery was very much
doubted at the time, and subsequently, till the discoveries of Captains
Ross and Parry, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, proved that
Baffin was substantially accurate and faithful.
Baffin's voyage took place in the year 1616: after this there was no voyage
undertaken with the same object, till the year 1631, when Captain Fox
sailed from Deptford. He had been used to the sea from his youth, and had
employed his leisure time in collecting all the information he could
possibly obtain, respecting voyages, to the north. He was besides well
acquainted with some celebrated mathematicians and cosmographers,
particularly Thomas Herne, who had carefully collected all the journals and
charts of the former voyages, with a view to his business, which was that
of a maker of globes.
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