The Geographical Journal (Journal of the Royal Geographical Society): Volume XVI, No. 6 [‎362r] (76/232)

THE VOYAGES OF DIOGO CAO AND BARTHOLOMEU DIAS, 1482 88 . 649
December, 1488, after an absence of sixteen months and seventeen days,
he once more entered the Tagus. Dias had discovered 373 legoas or
1260 miles of coast; and his voyage, jointly with the reports re
ceived by that time from Pero de Covilha, had demonstrated the fact
that India might be reached by sea.
We are not aware that Dias ever received a reward for his great
achievement. It seems not, for between 1490 and 1495 ^ stiil
commanded the Christovao* and when King John had overruled the
objections of his advisers, who thought it unwise to expend, and possibly
exhaust, the resources of the kingdom in distant adventures, which,
even if successful, would raise against Portugal all those who now
profited, or who in the future hoped to profit, from the India trade, it
was not Dias who was placed at the head of the expedition which was
to crown the enterprise started by Prince Henry. Dias was mere y
employed to superintend the building and outfit of the vessels intended
for this expedition, the command of which was given by mg o n s
successor, King Manuel, to ^ asco da Gania-f
APPENDIX.
On the Maps illustrating the Voyages of Cao and Dias.
In writing the accounts of the voyages of Cao and Dias, we have largely
profited by a°few contemporary maps. These maps, unfortunately, are on a very
IsuLlI ThUoompeL their compilers to confine
among the place-names which they found upon the sailing charts
disposal, and this selection may not in all cases have been a J udlC10 " 8 one ' to
Another difficulty arises from the fact that 8UCCe881V %" e /^id e
identify the places already named by their predecessors, or ^ set “
the claims of priority. As a result, Benguella bay became succe^ively known
as Angra de S. Maria, Bahia da Torre, das Vaccas, and de j. nt ^ 10 ’
Saldanha’s name, instead of being attached to Table bay, is c P
bay which originally seems to have been dedicated to S. Lucia.
Of course, much of this confusion is due to the ut er failure of he e early
explorers to determine accurately the latitudes of the places ey •
Visinho, whom King John sent to the Guinea coast in 1484 or ^ ^ i
purpose of determining latitudes by observing the declination of the sun, repor ted
that the Los Wands were in 5° N„ when in reality they are in 9 30 N. , a
Bartholomeu Columbus, to whom we are indebted for tins information, adds that
» For an acquittance for 4,080,912 reals expended during these fire years, dated
February 27, 1498, see ‘ Alguns Documentos,’ p. 19. The Bart. Dias v, o commau
the Figa in 1497 was not the great navigator, as believed by H. Lo P^ 1 c cn 0 v
and the editor of ‘ Alguus Documentos,’ who publishes a facsimile, p. 5 o.
t Dias accompanied Vasco da Gama, in 1497, as far as the Cape Verde islands, and
thence sailed to the Gold Coast. He commanded a vessel in Cabral s fleet, and pens
off the Cape in 1501. His grandson, Paulo Dias de Novaes, won am
conquistador of Angola.