THE EXPANSION OF EUROPE	395
years it culminated in the tragedy of Ainboyna (1623) where
the infuriated Dutch murdered ten Englishmen and tortured
several others. Though this ' massacre' resulted in driving
the English out of the Archipelago, it proved a blessing
in disguise, for it gave them India. The quairel with the
Dutch nearer home led to the passing of the important Navi-
gation Act of 1651, which provided that all goods imported
into England must be carried either in English bottoms or
in the ships of the country which produced them. The
Dutch tried to defy this law and presumptuously sailed up
the Thames-with brooms attached to their mast-heads to
signify their determination to sweep the English from the
seas. Bat they were defeated all the same, and had -to accept
the Navigation Act confirmed by the Treaty of Westminster,
1654.
Another aspect of the contemporary scene which had mo-
mentous results may also be referred to here. The Spanish
and Portuguese successes in South America had aroused the
greed of the English, the Dutch, and the French, leading
to international conflicts, organised piracy, and the foundation
of colonies in the remaining parts of that continent. Emi-
gration from Europe was further stimulated by the religious
policies of monarchs during the Reformation period; the
victims of persecution sought refuge in exile in the New
World. The stream thus started was fed by a variety of
causes all of which contributed to the permanent occupation
of America by the Europeans. The details of the process
must be read elsewhere. For our present purpose a record
of the result alone should suffice.
The Portuguese had occupied Brazil and the Spaniards
Mexico and Peru. Out of this nucleus grew up the Republics
of South America. The Dutch were among the earliest
in the race for North America, but their main objectives being