By the year 1540 the main outlines of Central and South America and something of the interior had been made known by the Spanish adventurers within half a century of Columbus' first voyage.
Owing to the papal bull Portugal possessed Brazil, but all the rest of the huge stretch of country was claimed for Spain.

The Portuguese wisely treated Brazil as an outlet for their overflowing population, which settled there in large numbers and established plantations.

The Spaniards, on the other hand, only regarded their huge possessions as exclusive markets to be merely visited by them.
Rich mines of gold, silver, and mercury were discovered in Mexico and Peru, especially in the far-famed mines of Potosi, and these were exploited entirely in the interests of Spain, which acted as a sieve by which the precious metals were poured into Europe, raising prices throughout the Old World.

In return European merchandise was sent in the return voyages of the Spanish galleons to New Spain, which could only buy Flemish cloth, for example, through Spanish intermediaries, who raised its price to three times the original cost.

This short-sighted policy on the part of Spain naturally encouraged smuggling, and attracted the ships of all nations towards that pursuit.
We have already seen the first attempts of the French and English in the exploration of the north-east coast of North America; but during the sixteenth century very little was done to settle on such inhospitable shores, which did not offer anything like the rich prizes that Tropical America afforded.