Boies Penrose has devoted much of his leisure to the acquisition and study of books and maps relating to early geographical exploration. A few of these he has reprinted in private editions. The phase of the subject which has attracted him most recently concerns the struggle between Portugal, Holland, and England for the wealth of the Indies. The historical importance, the adventurous fascination, and the unusual approach through the contemporary news tracts, of the volume which has resulted from his researches, combine to justify issuing it for a wider public.