(Illustrated Collector's Edition) The Navigator's Handbook of the Dutch Explorer

Author: Hendrik Willem van Loon
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-07-01
Features: This book tells a tragic story of failure. Those who prepared for these expeditions quietly died in the poorhouses. The sailors who participated in these voyages, though sacrificing their lives, rejoiced as if a new pipe of tobacco had been lit or a bottle of new wine had been opened. Some drowned, some died of thirst, some froze to death, some were roasted alive by the scorching sun, and many were tricked by dishonest recruiters with poor equipment, dying far from home and buried under lush coconut trees. Others were even pierced through the chest by cannibal tribes on Pacific islands, becoming a lavish feast for these starving savages. But what does it matter? It's just a common occurrence. Whether good or bad, or indifferent, these remarkable warriors faced everything with noble grace. Their gunpowder was always dry, and they did everything to the best of their ability, leaving the rest to the mysterious and unpredictable fate. Perhaps it knows better what ultimate good truly is.