HUDSON, Henry, English navigator. (Some authorities gave his name as Hendrick). The time and place of his birth appear to be lost. We only know that he had earned, per haps by the time he was 40, sufficient reputa tion as a bold and skilful navigator to be placed in command of the ship Half Moon of Amsterdam. Early in 1609 he made a con tract with a party of Dutch merchants to act as captain of their private exploring expedi tion, and in the written agreement between them he was described as "Henry Hudson, Eng lishman." This settles the honor of his birth country, though nothing more. At that time the one great commercial demand was for a shorter and better, all-sea trade route to the Far East. It was known that there was land to the west of Europe and it was believed that a passage could be found through these lands directly westward to the East. It is clear that Hudson believed that the western route was the most promising and, no doubt, he suggested it to his employers, but they evidently had more faith in a sea passage north and then east, round Europe and Asia to China. Thus it happened this English sea captain sailed from the Dutch port of Amsterdam in the small ship Half Moon bound for China by the way of the North Cape. The ship's company of Dutch and Eng lish was fortunate in having as mate one Robert Juet (perhaps also of England), and the mate could read and write. Juet kept the ship's log, and in this to book on the first page are these words: "On Saturday, the five and twentieth of March, 1609, after the old account (style), we set sayl from Amsterdam, and by the seven and twentieth day we were down at the Texel ; and by twelve of the clock we were off the land, it being east of us two leages off." Once °off the land" the ship was free to go where the captain pleased and it certainly did not please the crew to face the arctic cold of the attempted voyage round Europe. Solid pack ice and the open mutiny of the crew de cided Hudson to turn back and he steered south — and west. It is evident that he felt
free to carry out his own plans and reach China by another route. His owners' plans had failed and, while his plan might fail, his success would justify his action. Hudson's decision was almost as bold as that of Colum bus for, while he had, no doubt, some knowl edge of the lands to the west, he evidently had no conception of the shape or size of North America nor of the width of the Pacific.
The Half Moon was a slow sailor, and four months passed before she made the land along the eastern coast of what is now the United States. The log book described the land as "low white sandy ground"— exactly describing all the shore line south of Sandy Hook. The book might also have described parts of Long Island or Cape Cod and it is clear it did not describe the coast of Maine, and it is more than probable the first land mentioned in the book was south of Sandy Hook for, on reaching the land and finding no passage westward, Hudson steered "northeast by north" until, about two weeks later, he came to a great bay. The log book which does not give the name of the month, and which must have been September, says, °And from that lake or bay the land lyeth north by east, and we had a great streame out of the bay.° The Half Moon had found the °great described by Verrazano, and with the flood tide sailed into New York Bay and headed for the Narrows and, as the log book says, "came to three great rivers." And it continues : "So we stood along to the north most, thinking to have gone into it." The Half Moon was off Manhattan. It was true Verrazano, in 1524, had entered New York Bay and left a record of a high hill and a great bay out of which flowed a large river, but Verrazano had not the courage to pass the Narrows, except in a small boat. Other explorers may have looked into the bay. The Half Moon was the first ship to pass up the "great stream" and to Hudson belonged the entire honor of discover ing and exploring the river that now bears his name.