294                             DE   LAET's   DESCRIPTION
large and wide, and according to the description of Captain Block must be full nine miles in width; it has in the midst of it a number of islands, which one may pass on either side. It extends east-north-east about twenty-four miles, after which it is not more than two petard shots wide, and has generally seven, eight, nine, fi\ e, and four fathoms of water, except in a strait in the uppermost part of the bay, at a petard shot's distance from an island in that direction, where there is but nine feet water. Beyond this strait we have again three and a half fathoms of water; the land in this vicinity appears very fine, and the inhabitants seem strong of limb and of moderate size. They are somewhat shy, however, since they are not accustomed to trade with strangers, who would otherwise go there in quest of beaver and fox skins, &c, for which they resort to other places in that quarter.
From the westerly passage into this bay of Nassau to the most southerly entrance of Anchor bay, the distance is twenty-one miles, according to the statement of our skippers, and the course is south-east and north-west. Our countrymen have given two names to this bay, as it has an island in the centre and discharges into the sea by two mouths, the most easterly of which they call Anchor bay, and the most westerly Sloop bay.* The south-east shore of this bay runs north-east by north and north-north-east. In the lower part of the bay dwell the Wapenocks, a nation of savages like the rest. Capt. Adrian Block called the people who inhabit the west side of this bay Nahicans, and their sagamore Nathattow; another chief was named Cachaquant. Towards the north-west side there is a sandy point with a small island, bearing east and wesf, and bending so as to form a handsome bay with a sandy bottom. On the right of the sandy point there is more than two-fathoms water, and farther on three and three and a half fathoms, with a sharp bottom, where lies an island of a reddish appearance. From Sloop bay, or the most westerly passage, it is twenty-four miles to the Great Bay, [Long Island Sound,] which is situated between the main land and several islands,f that extend to the mouth of the Great River [Hudson]^ In this great bay are many islands both large and small, that have no particular names, so far as is known to us, except that on a chart of this quarter made some years since, several small islands are laid down at the entrance to this great bay, near what we should
• These names appear to have been given to the different entrances into Narraganset Bay.
f On the early Dutch maps, Long Island is laid down as a group of islands, into which it was supposed to be divided by the various inlets. The imperfect map accompanying the Latin edition of this work, (1633,) has this error among others.