Encovragements, for such as shall have intention to bee vnder-takers in the new plantation of Cape Briton, now New Galloway in America

Encovragements, for such as shall have intention to bee vnder-takers in the new…. by Lochinvar is a colonial promotional pamphlet written in the early 17th century. It seeks to rally Scottish support for a plantation on Cape Breton—renamed New Galloway in America—by blending religious zeal, service to crown and country, and promises of material gain. The likely topic is the case for settling and exploiting New Galloway, including its geography, resources, inhabitants, and the terms offered to prospective settlers. The text opens with an appeal to biblical and classical precedents for colonization, then sets out three motives: spreading the Gospel, enlarging the realm and disciplining idleness at home, and securing private profit. It defends the legality and morality of settlement and conversion, praises active nation-building, and counters fears about danger, climate, and soil. A detailed survey follows: the island’s location, harbors, rivers, temperate climate, and abundant resources—especially fisheries, but also timber, pitch and tar, sassafras, vines, dyes, furs, grains (maize, beans), tobacco, fruits, roots, game, and fowl—along with an “easy” Atlantic passage. The inhabitants are portrayed as few and lightly armed.

Encovragements, for such as shall have intention to bee vnder-takers in the new plantation of Cape Briton, now New Galloway in America, by Sir Robert Gordon. Republished by OpenStories from Project Gutenberg eBook #77440.