THE LIFE AND VOYAGES
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS;
TOGETHER WITH
T H E V O Y A G E S OF HIS COMPANIONS.
THE LIFE AND VOYAGES
OF
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS;
TOGETHER WITII
T H E VOYAGES OF H I S COMPANIONS.
BY WASHINGTON IRVING.
Yemeni annis
Saecula seris, quibus, Oceanus
Vincula, rerum laxet, et ingens
Pateat tellus, Typhisque uovos
Detegat Orbes, nec sit tertis
Ultima Thule.
S E N E C A : Medea.
A NEW AND REVISED EDITION.
I N THREE VOLUMES.—VOL. £
LONDON :
J O H N M U R R A Y , A L B E M A R L E S T R E E T .
1849.
L O N D O N :
B R A D B U R Y A N D E V A N S , P R I N T E R S , W H I T E F R I A R S .
P R E F A C E .
BEING at Bordeaux, in the winter of 1825-6,I received a letter from Mr.
Alexander Everett, Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States at Mad
rid, informing me of a work then in the press, edited by Don Martin Fer
nandez de Navarrete, Secretary of the Royal Academy of History, & c ,
& c . , containing a collection of documents relative to the voyages of
Columbus, among which were many of a highly important nature, recently
discovered. M r . Everett, at the same time, expressed an opinion that a
version of the work into English, by one of our own country, would be
peculiarly desirable. I concurred with him in the opinion ; and, having
for some time intended a visit to Madrid, 1 shortly afterwards set off for
that capital, with an idea of undertaking, while there, the translation of
the work.
Soon after my arrival, the publication of M . Navarrete made its ap
pearance. I found it to contain many documents, hitherto unknown,
which threw additional lights on the discovery of the N e w W o r l d ; and
which reflected the greatest credit on the industry and activity of the
learned editor. Still the whole presented rather a mass of rich materials
for history, than a history itself. And invaluable as such stores may be
to the laborious inquirer, the sight of disconnected papers and official docu
ments is apt to be repulsive to the general reader, who seeks for clear and
continued narrative. These circumstances made me hesitate in my pro
posed undertaking; yet the subject was of so interesting and national a
kind, that I could not willingly abandon it.
On considering the matter more maturely, I perceived that, although
there were many books, in various languages, relative to Columbus, they
viii
P R E F A C E .
all contained limited and incomplete accounts of his life and voyages;
while numerous valuable tracts on the subject existed only in manuscript
or in the form of letters, journals, and public muniments. It appeared to
me that a history, faithfully digested from these various materials, was a
desideratum in literature, and would be a more satisfactory occupation to
myself, and a more acceptable work to my country, than the translation I
had contemplated.
I was encouraged to undertake such a work, by the great facilities
which I found within my reach at Madrid. I was resident under the roof
of the American Consul, O. Rich, Esq., one of the most indefatigable
bibliographers in Europe, who, for several years, had made particular
researches after every document relative to the early history of America.
In his extensive and curious library, I found one of the best collections
extant of Spanish colonial history, containing many documents for which
I might search elsewhere in vain. This he put at my absolute command,
with a frankness and unreserve seldom to be met with among the possess
ors of such rare and valuable works; and his library has been my main
resource throughout the whole of my labors.
I found also the Royal Library of Madrid, and the library of the Jesuits'
College of San Isidro, two noble and extensive collections, open to access,
and conducted with great order and liberality. From Don Martin Fernan
dez de Navarrete, who communicated various valuable and curious pieces
of information, discovered in the course of his researches, I received the
most obliging assistance; nor can I refrain from testifying my admiration
of the self-sustained zeal of that estimable man, one of the last veterans of
Spanish literature, who is almost alone, yet indefatigable in his labors, in
a country where, at present, literary exertion meets with but little excite
ment or reward.
I must acknowledge, also, the liberality of the Duke of Veraguas, the
descendant and representative of Columbus, who submitted the archives
of his family to my inspection, and took a personal interest in exhibiting
the treasures they contained. Nor, lastly, must I omit my deep obligations
to my excellent friend Don Antonio de Uguina, treasurer of the Prince
P R E F A C E .
i.\\
Francisco, a gentleman of talents and erudition, and particularly versed in
the history of his country and its dependencies. T o his unwearied inves-
tigations, and silent and unavowed contributions, the world is indebted for
much of the accurate information, recently imparted, on points of early
colonial history. In the possession of this gentleman are most of the
papers of his deceased friend, the late historian M u ñ o s , who was cut off
in the midst of his valuable labors. These, and various other documents,
have been imparted to me by Don Antonio, with a kindness and urbanity
which greatly increased, yet lightened the obligation.
W i t h these, and other aids incidentally afforded me by my local situa-
tion, I have endeavored, to the best of m y abilities, and making the most
of the time which I could allow myself during a sojourn in a foreign coun-
try, to construct this history. I have diligently collated all the works that
I could find relative to my subject, in print and manuscript; comparing
them, as far as in my power, with original documents, those sure lights
of historic research; endeavoring to ascertain the truth amid those con-
tradictions which will inevitably occur, where several persons have
recorded the same facts, viewing them from different points, and under the
influence of different interests and feelings.
In the execution of this work I have avoided indulging in mere specu-
lations or general reflections, excepting such as rose naturally out of the
subject, preferring to give a minute and circumstantial narrative, omitting
no particular that appeared characteristic of the persons, the events, or the
times; and endeavoring to place every fact in such a point of view, that
the reader might perceive its merits, and draw his own maxims and con-
clusions.
A s many points of the history required explanations, drawn from con-
temporary events and the literature of the times, I have preferred, instead
of incumbering the narrative, to give detached illustrations at the end of
the work. T h i s also enabled me to indulge in greater latitude of detail,
where the subject was of a curious or interesting nature, and the sources
of information such as not to be within the common course of reading.
After all, the work is presented to the public with extreme diffidence.
P R E F A C E .
x
All that I can safely claim is, an earnest desire to state the truth, an ab
sence from prejudices respecting the nations mentioned in my history, a
strong interest in my subject, and a zeal to make up by assiduity for many
deficiencies of which I am conscious.
W A S H I N G T O N IRVING.
Madrid, 1 8 2 7 .
P. S. I have been surprised at finding myself accused by some Ame
rican writer of not giving sufficient credit to Don Martin Fernandez de
Navarrete for the aid I had derived from his collection of documents. I
had thought I had sufficiently shown, in the preceding preface, which ap
peared with my first edition, that his collection first prompted my work
and subsequently furnished its principal materials; and that I had illus
trated this by citations at the foot of almost every page. In preparing this
revised edition, I have carefully and conscientiously examined into the
matter, but find nothing to add to the acknowledgments already made.
To show the feelings and opinions of M. Navarrete himself with re
spect to my work and myself, I subjoin an extract from a letter received
from that excellent man ; and a passage from the introduction to the third
volume of his collection. Nothing but the desire to vindicate myself on
this head would induce me to publish extracts so laudatory.
From a letter dated Madrid, April 1st, 1 8 3 1 .
I congratulate myself that the documents and notices which I pub
lished in my collection about the first occurrences in the history of
America, have fallen into hands so able to appreciate their authenticity, to
examine them critically, and to circulate them in all directions ; establish
ing fundamental truths which hitherto have been adulterated by partial or
systematic writers.
Yo me complazeo en que los documentos y noticias que publico en
mi coleccion sobre los primeros acontacimientos de la historia de America,
P R E F A C E .
xi
hayan recaido en manos tan habiles para apreciar su autenticidad, para
examinar las con critica y propagarlas por todos partes echando los funda-
mentos de la verdad que hasta ahora há sido tan adulterada par los escri-
tores parciales ò sistematicos.
In the introduction to the third volume of his Collection of Spanish
Voyages, M r . Navarrete cites various testimonials he has received since
the publication of his two first volumes, of the utility of his work to the
republic of letters.
“A signal proof of this," he continues, “is just given us by M r . W a s h -
ington Irving in the History of the Life and Voyages of Christopher
Columbus, which he has published with a success as general as it is well
merited. W e said in our introduction that w e did not propose to write
the history of the admiral, but to publish notes and materials that it might
be written with veracity ; and it is fortunate that the first person to profit
by them, should be a literary man, judicious and erudite, already known
in his own country and in Europe by other works of merit. Resident in
Madrid, exempt from the rivalries which have influenced some European
natives with respect to Columbus and his discoveries; having an oppor-
tunity to examine excellent books and precious manuscripts ; to converse
with persons instructed in these matters, and having always at hand the
authentic documents which we had just published, he has been enabled to
give to his history that fullness, impartiality, and exactness, which make
it much superior to those of the writers who preceded him. T o this he
adds his regular method, and convenient distribution; his style animated,
pure, and elegant; the notice of various personages who mingled in the
concerns of Columbus; and the examination of various questions, in
which always shine sound criticism, erudition, and good taste."
Insigne prueba de esto mismo acaba de darnos el Senor Washington
Irving en la Historia de la Vida y de los Viages de Cristóbal Colon que
ha publicado con una aceptacion tan general como bien merecida. Digi-
mos en nuestra introduccion (1 § 5 6 pag. lxxxii.) que no nos proponiamos
xii
P R E F A C E .
escribir la historia de aqual almirante, sino publicar noticias y materiales
para que se escribiese con veracidad, y es una fortuna que el primero que
se haya aprovechado de ellas sea un literato juicioso y erudito, conocido ya
en su patria y en Europa por otras obras apreciables. Colocado en Madrid,
exento de las rivalidades que han dominado entre algunas naciones Euro-
peas sobre Colon y sus descubrimientos; con la proporcion de examinar
excelentes libros y preciosos manuscritos, de tratar á personas instruidas
en estas materias, y teniendo siempre á la mano los autenticos docu-
mentos que acabamos de publicar, ha logrado dar á su historia aquella
extension imparcialidad y exactitud que la hacen muy superior á las de
los escritores que le precedieron. Agregate á esto su metodico arreglo y
conveniente distribution; su estilo animado, puro y elegante ; la noticia
de varios personages que intervenieron en los sucesos de Colon, y el
exámen de varias cuestiones en que luce siempre la mas sana critica, la
erudition y buen gusto.—Prologo to 3d volume.
C O N T E N T S .
PAGE
PREFACE • xiii
BOOK I.
INTRODUCTION . • • • . 1 9
CHAP. I.—Birth, Parentage, and Early Life of Columbu s
.
.
. 22
CHAP. II.—Early Voyages of Columbus 28
CHAP. III.—Progress of Discovery under Prince Henry of Portugal 34
CHAP. IV.—Residence of Columbus at Lisbon.—Ideas concerning Islands
in the Ocean 41
CHAP. V.—Grounds on which Columbus founded his Belief of the exist
ence of Undiscovered Lands in the West . . . . . . 4 8
CHAP. VI.—Correspondence of Columbus with Paulo Toscanelli.—Events
in Portugal relative to Discoveries.—Proposition of Columbus to the
Portuguese Court.—Departure from Portugal 57
BOOK II.
CHAP. I.—Proceedings of Columbus after leaving Portugal.—His Appli
cations in Spain.—Characters of Ferdinand and Isabella . . . 7 1
CHAP. II.—Columbus at the Court of Spain 79
CHAP. III.—Columbus before the Council at Salamanca . . . 8 4
CHAP. IV.—Further Applications at the Court of Castile.—Columbus fol
lows the Court in its Campaigns 93
CHAP. V.—Columbus at the Convent of La Rabid a
.
.
.
. 102
xiv C O N T E N T S .
CHAP. VI.—Application to the Court at the time of the Surrender of
Granada 1 0 7
CHAP. VII.—Arrangement with the Spanish Sovereigns.—Preparations
for the Expedition at the Port of Palos 1 1 4
CHAP. VIII.—Columbus at the Port of Palos Preparations for the Voy
age of Discovery . . . . . . . . . . 1 1 9
BOOK III.
CHAP. I.—Departure of Columbus on his First Voyag e .
.
.
. 1 2 5
CHAP. II.—Continuation of the Voyage.—First Notice of the Variation of
the Needle . . 1 3 1
CHAP. III.—Continuation of the Voyage.—Various Tenors of the Seamen 1 3 5
C H A P . IV.—Continuation of the Voyage.—Discovery of Land . . 1 4 3
BOOK IV.
CHAP. I.—First Landing of Columbus in the New World . . . 1 5 5
C H A P . II.—Cruise among the Bahama Islands . . . . . 1 6 4
CHAP. III.—Discovery and Coasting of Cuba . . . . . 1 7 2
CHAP. IV.—Further Coasting of Cuba 1 8 1
CHAP. V.—Search after the supposed Island of Babeque.—Desertion of
the Pinta 1 8 8
CHAP. VI.—Discovery of Hispaniol a .
.
.
.
.
.
. 1 9 3
CHAP. VII.—Coasting of Hispaniola . . . . . . . 2 0 1
CHAP. VIII.—Shipwreck . 2 0 7
CHAP. IX.—Transactions with the Natives . . . . . . 2 1 1
CHAP. X.—Building of the Fortress of La Navidad
.
.
.
. 2 1 8
CHAP. XI.—Regulation of the Fortress of La Navidad.—Departure of
Columbus for Spain 2 0 1
BOOK V .
C H A P . I.—Coasting towards the Eastern End of Hispaniola.—Meeting
with Pinzon.—Affair with the Natives at the Gulf of Samana . . 2 2 9
C O N T E N T S .
XV
CHAP. II.—Return Voyage.—Violent Storms.—Arrival at the Azores 238
CHAP. III.—Transactions at the Island of St. Mary's . . . . 2 4 6
CHAP. IV.—Arrival at Portugal.—Visit to the Court . . . . 2 5 0
CHAP. V.—Reception of Columbus at Palos 260
CHAP. VI.—Reception of Columbus by the Spanish Court at Barcelona . 265
CHAP. VII.—Sojourn of Columbus at Barcelona.—Attentions paid him by
the Sovereigns and Courtiers . 2 7 1
CHAP. VIII.—Papal Bull of Partition.—Preparations for a Second Voyage
of Columbus. 278
CHAP. IX.—Diplomatic Negotiations between the Courts of Spain and
Portugal with respect to the New Discoveries 287
CHAP. X.—Further preparations for the Second Voyage.—Character of
Alonso de Ojeda.—Difference of Columbus with Soria and Fonseca . 293
BOOK VI.
CHAP. I.—Departure of Columbus on his Second Voyage.—Discovery of
the Caribbee Islands . 3 0 1
CHAP. II.—Transactions at the Island of Guadaloup e
.
.
.
. 306
CHAP. III.—Cruise among the Caribbee Island s
.
.
.
.
. 313
CHAP. IV.—Arrival at the Harbor of La Navidad.—Disaster of the For
tress 314
CHAP. V.—Transactions with the Natives.—Suspicious Conduct of Gua-
canagari 330
CHAP. VI.—Founding of the City of Isabella.—Maladies of the Spaniards 337
CHAP. VII.—Expedition of Alonso de Ojeda to Explore the Interior of the
Island.—Dispatch of the Ships to Spain . 342
CHAP. VIII.—Discontents at Isabella.—Mutiny of Bernal Diaz de Pisa . 350
CHAP. IX.—Expedition of Columbus to the Mountains of Cibao . 355
CHAP. X.—Excursion of Juan de Luxan among the Mountains.—Customs
and Characteristics of the Natives.—Columbus Returns to Isabella 366
CHAP. XI.—Arrival of Columbus at Isabella.—Sickness of the Colony . 380
CHAP. XII.—Distribution of the Spanish Forces in the Interior.—Prepara
tions for a Voyage to Cuba 387
xvi C O N T E N T S .
BOOK VII.
CHAP. I.—Voyage to the East End of Cuba 393
CHAP. II.—Discovery of Jamaica 399
CHAP. III.—Return to Cuba.—Navigation among the Islands called the
Queen's Garden s
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
. 404
CHAP. IV.—Coasting of the Southern side of Cuba . . . . 410
CHAP. V.—Return of Columbus along the Southern Coast of Cuba . 420
CHAP. VI.—Coasting Voyage along the South side of Jamaica . 428
CHAP. VII.—Voyage along the South side of Hispaniola, and Return to
Isabella . . . . 433
T H E
LIFE AND VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS.
T H E
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S
O F
C O L U M B U S .
BOOK I,
W h e t h e r in old times, beyond the reach of history or tradition,
and in some remote period of civilization, when, as some imagine,
the arts may have flourished to a degree unknown to those whom
we term the Ancients, there existed an intercourse between the
opposite shores of the Atlantic; whether the Egyptian legend,
narrated by Plato, respecting the island of Atalantis was indeed
no fable, but the obscure tradition of some vast country, ingulfed
by one of those mighty convulsions of our globe, which have left
traces of the ocean on the summits of lofty mountains, must ever
remain matters of vague and visionary speculation. As far as
authenticated history extends, nothing was known of terra firma,
and the islands of the western hemisphere, until their discovery
towards the close of the fifteenth century. A wandering bark
may occasionally have lost sight of the landmarks of the old
V O L . I . B
20
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
continents, and been driven by tempests across the wilderness of
waters long before the invention of the compass, but never re
turned to reveal the secrets of the ocean. And though, from
time to time, some document has floated to the shores of the old
world, giving to its wondering inhabitants evidences of land far
beyond their watery horizon; yet no one ventured to spread a
sail, and seek that land enveloped in mystery and peril. Or if
the legends of the Scandinavian voyagers be correct, and their
mysterious Vinland was the coast of Labrador, or the shore of
Newfoundland, they had but transient glimpses of the new world,
leading to no certain or permanent knowledge, and in a little
time lost again to mankind.* Certain it is that at the beginning
of the fifteenth century, when the most inteligent minds were
seeking in every direction for the scattered lights of geographical
knowledge, a profound ignorance prevailed among the learned as
to the western regions of the Atlantic; its vast waters were re
garded with awe and wonder, seeming to bound the world as with
a chaos, into which conjecture could not penetrate, and enterprise
feared to adventure. We need no greater proofs of this than the
description given of the Atlantic by Xerif al Edrisi, surnamed
the Nubian, an eminent Arabian writer, whose countrymen were
the boldest navigators of the middle ages, and possessed al that
was then known of geography.
“ The ocean," he observes, “ encircles the ultimate bounds of
the inhabited earth, and al beyond it is unknown. No one has
been able to verify any thing concerning it, on account of its diffi
cult and perilous navigation, its great obscurity, its profound
* See Illustrations at the end of this work, article SCANDINAVIAN DIS
COVERIES.
INTROD.J
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
91
depth, and frequent tempests; through fear of its mighty fishes,
and its haughty winds; yet there are many islands in it, some
peopled, others uninhabited. There is no mariner who dares to
enter into its deep waters; or if any have done so, they have
merely kept along its coasts, fearful of departing from them.
The waves of this ocean, although they roll as high as mountains,
yet maintain themselves without breaking; for if they broke, it
would be impossible for ship to plough them."*
It is the object of the following work, to relate the deeds and
fortunes of the mariner who first had the judgment to divine, and
the intrepidity to brave the mysteries of this perilous deep; and
who, by his hardy genius, his inflexible constancy, and his heroic
courage, brought the ends of the earth into communication with
each other. The narrative of his troubled life is the link which
connects the history of the old world with that of the new.
* Description of Spain, by Xerif al Edrisi; Conde's Spanish translation,
Madrid, 1799.
B 2
22
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
C H A P T E R I.
BIRTH, PARENTAGE AND EARLY LIFE OP COLUMBUS.
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS, or Colombo, as the name is written in
Italian,* was born in the city of Genoa, about the year 1435.
He was the son of Dominico Colombo, a wool comber, and Susan
nah Fontanarossa, his wife, and it would seem that his ancestors
had followed the same handicraft for several generations in Genoa.
Attempts have been made to prove him of illustrious descent, and
several noble houses have laid claim to him since his name has
become so renowned as to confer rather than receive distinction.
It is possible some of them may be in the right, for the feuds in
Italy in those ages had broken down and scattered many of the
noblest families, and while some branches remained in the lordly
heritage of castles and domains, others were confounded with the
humblest population of the cities. The fact, however, is not mate-
* Columbus latinized his name in his letters according to the usage of the
time, when Latin was the language of learned correspondence. In subsequent
life when in Spain he recurred to what was supposed to be the original Roman
name of the family, Colonus, which he abbreviated to Colon, to adapt it to the
Castilian tongue. Hence he is known in Spanish history as Christoval
Colon. In the present work the name will be written Columbus, being the one
by which he is most known throughout the world.
CHAP. I. J
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
23
rial to his fame; and it is a higher proof of merit to be the object
of contention among various noble families, than to be able to sub
stantiate the most illustrious lineage. His son Fernando had a
true feeling on the subject. “ I am of opinion," says he, “ that I
should derive less dignity from any nobility of ancestry, than from
being the son of such a father."*
Columbus was the oldest of four children; having two brothers,
Bartholomew and Giacomo, or James (written Diego in Spanish),
and one sister, of whom nothing is known but that she was mar
ried to a person in obscure life called Giacomo Bavarello. At a
very early age Columbus evinced a decided inclination for the
sea; his education, therefore, was mainly directed to fit him for
maritime life, but was as general as the narrow means of his father
would permit. Besides the ordinary branches of reading, writing,
grammar and arithmetic, he was instructed in the Latin tongue,
and made some proficiency in drawing and design. For a short
time, also, he was sent to the university of Pavia, where he
studied geometry, geography, astronomy and navigation. He then
returned to Genoa, where, according to a contemporary historian,
he assisted his father in his trade of wool combing.† This asser
tion is indignantly contradicted by his son Fernando, though there
is nothing in it improbable, and he gives us no information of his
father's occupation to supply its place. He could not, however,
have remained long in this employment, as, according to his own
* The reader will find the vexed questions about the age, birthplace and
lineage of Columbus severally discussed in the Appendix.
† Agostino Giustiniani, Ann. de Genova. His assertion has been echoed
by other historians, viz., Anton Gallo de Navigatione Colombi, & c , Muratori,
tom. 23, Barta Senaraga, de rebus Genuensibus, Muratori, tom. 24.
2 1
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[Book 1.
account, he entered upon a nautical life when but fourteen years
of age.*
In tracing the early history of a man like Columbus, whose
actions have had a vast effect on human affairs, it is interesting to
notice how much has been owing to external influences, how much
to an inborn propensity of the genius. In the latter part of his
life, when, impressed with the sublime events brought about
through his agency, Columbus looked back upon his career with a
solemn and superstitious feeling, he attributed his early and irre
sistible inclination for the sea, and his passion for geographical
studies, to an impulse from the Deity preparing him for the high
decrees he was chosen to accomplish.†
The nautical propensity, however, evinced by Columbus in
early life, is common to boys of enterprising spirit and lively ima
gination brought up in maritime cities; to whom the sea is the
high road to adventure and the region of romance. Genoa, too,
walled in and straitened on the land side by rugged mountains,
yielded but little scope for enterprise on shore, while an opulent
and widely extended commerce, visiting every country, and a
roving marine, battling in every sea, naturally led forth her chil
dren upon the waves, as their propitious element. Many, too,
were induced to emigrate by the violent factions which raged
within the bosom of the city, and often dyed its streets with blood.
A historian of Genoa laments this proneness of its youth to wan
der. They go, said he, with the intention of returning when they
shall have acquired the means of living comfortably and honora
bly in their native place; but we know from long experience, that
* Hist. del Almirante, cap 4 .
t Letter to the Castilian Sovereigns, 1 5 0 1 .
CHAP. I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
25
of twenty who thus depart scarce two return; either dying abroad,
or taking to themselves foreign wives, or being loth to expose
themselves to the tempest of civil discords which distract the
republic*
The strong passion for geographical knowledge, also, felt by
Columbus in early life, and which inspired his after career, was
incident to the age in which he lived. Geographical discovery
was the brilliant path of light which was forever to distinguish
the fifteenth century. During a long night of monkish bigotry
and false learning, geography, with the other sciences, had been
lost to the European nations. Fortunately it had not been lost
to mankind: it had taken refuge in the bosom of Africa. While
the pedantic schoolmen of the cloisters were wasting time and
talent, and confounding erudition by idle reveries and sophistical
dialectics, the Arabian sages, assembled at Senaar, were taking
the measurement of a degree of latitude, and calculating the cir
cumference of the earth, on the vast plains of Mesopotamia.
True knowledge, thus happily preserved, was now making its
way back to Europe. The revival of science accompanied the
revival of letters. Among the various authors which the awaken
ing zeal for ancient literature had once more brought into notice,
were Pliny, Pomponius Mela, and Strabo. From these was
regained a fund of geographical knowledge, which had long faded
from the public mind. Curiosity was aroused to pursue this
forgotten path, thus suddenly reopened. A translation of the
work of Ptolemy had been made into Latin, at the commencement
of the century, by Emanuel Chrysoleras, a noble and learned
Greek, and had thus been rendered more familiar to the Italian
* Foglieta, Istoria de Genova, lib. ii.
26
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK 1.
students. Another translation had followed, by James Angel de
Scarpiaria, of which fair and beautiful copies became common in
the Italian libraries.* The writings also began to be sought after
of Averroes, Alfraganus, and other Arabian sages, who had kept
the sacred fire of science alive, during the interval of European
darkness.
The knowledge thus reviving was limited and imperfect; yet,
like the return of morning light, it seemed to call a new creation
into existence, and broke, with all the charm of wonder, upon
imaginative minds. They were surprised at their own ignorance
of the world around them. Every step was discovery, for every
region beyond their native country was in a manner terra in
cognita.
Such was the state of information and feeling with respect to
this interesting science, in the early part of the fifteenth century.
An interest still more intense was awakened by the discoveries
which began to be made along the Atlantic coasts of Africa; and
must have been particularly felt among a maritime and commer
cial people like the Genoese. To these circumstances may we
ascribe the enthusiastic devotion which Columbus imbibed in his
childhood for cosmographical studies, and which influenced all his
after fortunes.
The short time passed by him at the university of Pavia was
barely sufficient to give him the rudiments of the necessary sci
ences ; the familiar acquaintance with them, which he evinced in
after life, must have been the result of diligent self-schooling, in
casual hours of study amid the cares and vicissitudes of a rugged
and wandering life. He was one of those men of strong natural
* Andrea, Hist. B . Let., lib. iii. cap. 2.
CHAP. I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
27
genius, who, from having to contend at their very outset with pri
vations and impediments, acquire an intrepidity in encountering
and a facility in vanquishing difficulties, throughout their career.
Such men learn to effect great purposes with small means, sup
plying this deficiency by the resources of their own energy and
invention. This, from his earliest commencement, throughout
the whole of his life, was one of the remarkable features in the
history of Columbus. In every undertaking, the scantiness and
apparent insufficiency of his means enhance the grandeur of his
achievements.
28
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK 1.
C H A P T E R II.
EARLY VOYAGES OF COLUMBUS.
COLUMBUS, as has been observed, commenced his nautical career
when about fourteen years of age. His first voyages were made
with a distant relative named Colombo, a hardy veteran of the
seas, who had risen to some distinction by his bravery, and is
occasionally mentioned in old chronicles; sometimes as command
ing a squadron of his own, sometimes as an admiral in the Geno
ese service. He appears to have been bold and adventurous;
ready to fight in any cause, and to seek quarrel wherever it might
lawfully be found.
The seafaring life of the Mediterranean, in those days, was
hazardous and daring. A commercial expedition resembled a
warlike cruise, and the maritime merchant had often to fight his
way from port to port. Piracy was almost legalized. The fre
quent feuds between the Italian states; the cruisings of the Cata-
lonians; the armadas fitted out by private noblemen, who exer
cised a kind of sovereignty in their own domains, and kept petty
armies and navies in their pay ; the roving ships and squadrons
of private adventurers, a kind of naval Condottieri, sometimes
employed by hostile governments, sometimes scouring the seas in
CHAP. I I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
29
search of lawless booty; these, with the holy wars waged against
the Mahometan powers, rendered the narrow seas, to which navi
gation was principally confined, scenes of hardy encounters and
trying reverses.
Such was the rugged school in which Columbus was reared,
and it would have been deeply interesting to have marked the
early development of his genius amidst its stern adversities. All
this instructive era of his history, however, is covered with dark
ness. His son Fernando, who could have best elucidated it, has
left it in obscurity, or has now and then perplexed us with cross
lights; perhaps unwilling, from a principle of mistaken pride, to
reveal the indigence and obscurity from which his father so glori
ously emerged.
The first voyage in which we have any account of his being
engaged was a naval expedition, fitted out in Genoa in 1459 by
John of Anjou, Duke of Calabria, to make a descent upon Naples,
in the hope of recovering that kingdom for his father King Rei-
nier, or Renato, otherwise called Rene, Count of Provence. The
republic of Genoa aided him with ships and money. The bril
liant nature of the enterprise attracted the attention of daring and
restless spirits. The chivalrous nobleman, the soldier of fortune,
the hardy corsair, the desperate adventurer, the mercenary parti
san, all hastened to enlist under the banner of Anjou. The vete
ran Colombo took a part in this expedition, either with galleys of
his own, or as a commander of the Genoese squadron, and with
him embarked his youthful relative, the future discoverer.
The struggle of John of Anjou for the crown of Naples lasted
about four years, with varied fortune, but was finally unsuccessful.
The naval part of the expedition, in which Columbus was en
gaged, signalized itself by acts of intrepidity; and at one time,
30
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
when the Duke was reduced to take refuge in the island of Ischia,
a handful of galleys scoured and controlled the bay of Naples.*
In the course of this gallant but ill-fated enterprise, Columbus
was detached on a perilous cruise, to cut out a galley from the
harbor of Tunis. This is incidentally mentioned by himself in a
letter written many years afterwards. It happened to me, he
says, that King Reinier (whom God has taken to himself) sent
me to Tunis, to capture the galley Fernandina, and when I
arrived off the island of St. Pedro, in Sardinia, I was informed
that there were two ships and a carrack with the galley; by
which intelligence my crew were so troubled that they determined
to proceed no further, but to return to Marseilles for another ves
sel and more people; as I could not by any means compel them,
I assented apparently to their wishes, altering the point of the
compass and spreading all sail. It was then evening, and next
morning we were within the Cape of Carthagena, while all were
firmly of opinion that they were sailing towards Marseilles.†
W e have no further record of this bold cruise into the harbor
of Tunis; but in the foregoing particulars we behold early indi
cations of that resolute and persevering spirit which insured him
success in his more important undertakings. His expedient to
beguile a discontented crew into a continuation of the enterprise,
by deceiving them with respect to the ship's course, will be found
in unison with a stratagem of altering the reckoning, to which he
had recourse in his first voyage of discovery.
During an interval of many years we have but one or two
shadowy traces of Columbus. He is supposed to have been
* Colenuccio, Istoria de Nap. lib. vii. cap. 17.
† Letter of Columbus to the Catholic sovereigns, vide Hist. del Almirante,
cap. 4.
CHAP. I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
31
principally engaged on the Mediterranean and up the Levant;
sometimes in commercial voyages ; sometimes in the warlike con
tests between the Italian states; sometimes in pious and pre
datory expeditions against the Infidels. Historians have made
him in 1474 captain of several Genoese ships, in the service of
Louis X I of France, and endangering the peace between that
country and Spain by running down and capturing Spanish ves
sels at sea, on his own responsibility, as a reprisal for an irruption
of the Spaniards into Roussillon.* Again, in 1475, he is repre
sented as brushing with his Genoese squadron in ruffling bravado
by a Venetian fleet stationed off the island of Cyprus, shouting
“ Viva San Georgio !” the old war-cry of Genoa, thus endeavor
ing to pique the jealous pride of the Venetians and provoke a
combat, though the rival republics were at peace at the time.
These transactions, however, have been erroneously attributed
to Columbus. They were the deeds, or misdeeds, either of his
relative the old Genoese admiral, or of a nephew of the same, of
kindred spirit, called Colombo the Younger, to distinguish him
from his uncle. They both appear to have been fond of rough
encounters, and not very scrupulous as to the mode of bringing
them about. Fernando Columbus describes this Colombo the
Younger as a famous corsair, so terrible for his deeds against the
Infidels, that the Moorish mothers used to frighten their unruly
children with his name. Columbus sailed with him occasionally
as he had done with his uncle, and, according to Fernando's
account, commanded a vessel in his squadron on an eventful
occasion.
Colombo the Younger, having heard that four Venetian gal-
* Chaufepie, Suppl. to Bayle, vol. ii. article “ Columbus.”
32
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I .
leys richly laden were on their return voyage from Flanders, laid
in wait for them on the Portuguese coast, between Lisbon and
Cape St. Vincent. A desperate engagement took place; the ves
sels grappled each other, and the crews fought hand to hand, and
from ship to ship. The battle lasted from morning until evening,
with great carnage on both sides. The vessel commanded by
Columbus was engaged with a huge Venetian galley. They
threw hand-grenades and other fiery missiles, and the galley was
wrapped in flames. The vessels were fastened together by
chains and grappling irons, and could not be separated; both
were involved in one conflagration, and soon became a mere
blazing mass. The crews threw themselves into the sea; Colum
bus seized an oar, which was floating within reach, and being an
expert swimmer, attained the shore, though full two leagues
distant. It pleased God, says his son Fernando, to give him
strength, that he might preserve him for greater things. After
recovering from his exhaustion he repaired to Lisbon, where he
found many of his Genoese countrymen, and was induced to take
up his residence.*
Such is the account given by Fernando of his father's first
arrival in Portugal; and it has been currently adopted by modern
historians; but on examining various histories of the times, the
battle here described appears to have happened several years
after the date of the arrival of Columbus in that country. That
he was engaged in the contest is not improbable; but he had
previously resided for some time in Portugal. In fact, on refer
ring to the history of that kingdom, we shall find, in the great
maritime enterprises in which it was at that time engaged, ample
* Hist, del Almirante, cap. 5. See Illustrations at the end of this work,
article “ Capture of the Venetian Galleys.”
CHAP. I I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
33
attractions for a person of his inclinations and pursuits; and we
shall be led to conclude, that his first visit to Lisbon was not the
fortuitous result of a desperate adventure, but was undertaken
in a spirit of liberal curiosity, and in the pursuit of honorable
fortune.
34
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
C H A P T E R III.
PROGRESS OF DISCOVERY UNDER PRINCE HENRY OF PORTUGAL.
T H E career of modern discovery had commenced shortly before
the time of Columbus, and at the period of which we are treating
was prosecuted with great activity by Portugal. Some have attri
buted its origin to a romantic incident in the fourteenth century.
An Englishman of the name of Macham, flying to France with a
lady of whom he was enamored, was driven far out of sight of
land by stress of weather, and after wandering about the high
seas, arrived at an unknown and uninhabited island, covered with
beautiful forests, which was afterwards called Madeira.* Others
have treated this account as a fable, and have pronounced the
Canaries to be the first fruits of modern discovery. This famous
group, the Fortunate Islands of the ancients, in which they placed
their garden of the Hesperides, and whence Ptolemy commenced
to count the longitude, had been long lost to the world. There
are vague accounts, it is true, of their having received casual
visits, at wide intervals, during the obscure ages, from the wan
dering bark of some Arabian, Norman, or Genoese adventurer;
but all this was involved in uncertainty, and led to no beneficial
result. It was not until the fourteenth century that they were
* See Illustrations, article “ Discovery of Madeira.”
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
3b
CHAP. III]
effectually rediscovered, and restored to mankind. From that
time they were occasionally visited by the hardy navigators of
various countries. The greatest benefit produced by their dis
covery was, that the frequent expeditions made to them embold
ened mariners to venture far upon the Atlantic, and familiarized
them, in some degree, to its dangers.
The grand impulse to discovery was not given by chance, but
was the deeply meditated effort of one master mind. This was
Prince Henry of Portugal, son of John the First, surnamed the
Avenger, and Philippa of Lancaster, sister of Henry the Fourth
of England. The character of this illustrious man, from whose
enterprises the genius of Columbus took excitement, deserves
particular mention.
Having accompanied his father into Africa, in an expedition
against the Moors, at Ceuta he received much information con
cerning the coast of Guinea, and other regions in the interior,
hitherto unknown to Europeans, and conceived an idea that
important discoveries were to be made by navigating along the
western coast of Africa. On returning to Portugal, this idea
became his ruling thought. Withdrawing from the tumult of a
court to a country retreat in the Algarves, near Sagres, in the
neighborhood of Cape St. Vincent, and in full view of the ocean,
he drew around him men eminent in science, and prosecuted the
study of those branches of knowledge connected with the maritime
arts. He was an able mathematician, and made himself master
of all the astronomy known to the Arabians of Spain.
On studying the works of the ancients, he found what he
considered abundant proofs that Africa was circumnavigable.
Eudoxus of Cyzicus was said to have sailed from the Red Sea
into the ocean, and to have continued on to Gibraltar; and
VOL. I.
c
3G
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
BOOK I .
Hanno the Carthaginian, sailing from Gibraltar with a fleet of
sixty ships, and following the African coast, was said to have
reached the shores of Arabia.* It is true these voyages had
been discredited by several ancient writers; and the possibility
of circumnavigating Africa, after being for a long time admitted
by geographers, was denied by Hipparchus, who considered each
sea shut up and land-bound in its peculiar basin; and that Africa
was a continent continuing onward to the south pole, and sur
rounding the Indian sea, so as to join Asia beyond the Ganges.
This opinion had been adopted by Ptolemy, whose works, in the
time of Prince Henry, were the highest authority in geography.
The prince, however, clung to the ancient belief, that Africa was
circumnavigable, and found his opinion sanctioned by various
learned men of more modern date. To settle this question, and
achieve the circumnavigation of Africa, was an object worthy the
ambition of a prince, and his mind was fired with the idea of the
vast benefits that would arise to his country should it be accom
plished by Portuguese enterprise.
The Italians, or Lombards, as they were called in the north
of Europe, had long monopolized the trade of Asia. They had
formed commercial establishments at Constantinople and in the
Black Sea, where they received the rich produce of the Spice
Islands, lying near the equator; and the silks, the gums, the per
fumes, the precious stones, and other luxurious commodities of
Egypt and southern Asia, and distributed them over the whole of
Europe. The republics of Venice and Genoa rose to opulence
and power in consequence of this trade. They had factories in
the most remote parts, even in the frozen regions of Moscovy and
* See Illustrations, article “ Circumnavigation of Africa by the Ancients.”
CIIAF. Ill ] C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
3 7
Norway. Their merchants emulated the magnificence of princes.
All Europe was tributary to their commerce. Yet this trade had
to pass through various intermediate hands, subject to the delays
and charges of internal navigation, and the tedious and uncertain
journeys of the caravan. For a long time, the merchandise of
India was conveyed by the Gulf of Persia, the Euphrates, the
Indus, and the Oxus, to the Caspian and the Mediterranean seas ;
thence to take a new destination for the various marts of Europe.
After the Soldan of Egypt had conquered the Arabs, and restored
trade to its ancient channel, it was still attended with great cost
and delay. Its precious commodities had to be conveyed by the
Red Sea; thence on the backs of camels to the banks of the Nile,
whence they were transported to Egypt to meet the Italian mer
chants. Thus, while the opulent traffic of the East was engrossed
by these adventurous monopolists, the price of every article was
enhanced by the great expense of transportation.
It was the grand idea of Prince Henry, by circumnavigating
Africa to open a direct and easy route to the source of this com
merce, to turn it in a golden tide upon his country. He was,
however, before the age in thought, and had to counteract igno
rance and prejudice, and to endure the delays to which vivid and
penetrating minds are subjected, from the tardy co-operations of
the dull and the doubtful. The navigation of the Atlantic was
yet in its infancy. Mariners looked with distrust upon a boisterous
expanse, which appeared to have no opposite shore, and feared to
venture out of sight of the landmarks. Every bold headland,
and far-stretching promontory, was a wall to bar their progress.
They crept timorously along the Barbary shores, and thought
they had accomplished a wonderful expedition when they had
ventured a few degrees beyond the Straits of Gibraltar. Cape
c 2
38
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
Non was long the limit of their daring; they hesitated to double
its rocky point, beaten by winds and waves, and threatening to
thrust them forth upon the raging deep.
Independent of these vague fears, they had others, sanctioned
by philosophy itself. They still thought that the earth, at the
equator, was girdled by a torrid zone, over which the sun held his
vertical and fiery course, separating the hemispheres by a region
of impassive heat. They fancied Cape Bojador the utmost boun
dary of secure enterprise, and had a superstitious belief, that who
ever doubled it would never return.* They looked with dismay
upon the rapid currents of its neighborhood, and the furious surf
which beats upon its arid coast. They imagined that beyond it
lay the frightful region of the torrid zone, scorched by a blazing
sun; a region of fire, where the very waves, which beat upon the
shores, boiled under the intolerable fervor of the heavens.
To dispel these errors, and to give a scope to navigation, equal
to the grandeur of his designs, Prince Henry established a naval
college, and erected an observatory at Sagres, and he invited
thither the most eminent professors of the nautical faculties ; ap
pointing as president James of Mallorca, a man learned in navi
gation, and skillful in making charts and instruments.
The effects of this establishment were soon apparent. All
that was known relative to geography and navigation was gathered
together and reduced to system. A vast improvement took place
in maps. The compass was also brought into more general use,
especially among the Portuguese, rendering the mariner more
bold and venturous, by enabling him to navigate in the most
gloomy day, and in the darkest night. Encouraged by these
* Mariana, Hist. Esp., lib. ii. cap. 22.
CHAP. I I I ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
39
advantages, and stimulated by the munificence of Prince Henry,
the Portuguese marine became signalized for the hardihood of its
enterprises, and the extent of its discoveries. Cape Bojador was
doubled; the region of the tropics penetrated, and divested of
its fancied terrors; the greater part of the African coast, from
Cape Blanco to Cape de Verde, explored; and the Cape de Verde
and Azore islands, which lay three hundred leagues distant from
the continent, were rescued from the oblivious empire of the ocean.
To secure the quiet prosecution and full enjoyment of his dis
coveries, Henry obtained the protection of a papal bull, granting
to the crown of Portugal sovereign authority over all the lands it
might discover in the Atlantic, to India inclusive, with plenary
indulgence to all who should die in these expeditions; at the same
time menacing, with the terrors of the church, all who should
interfere in these Christian conquests.*
Henry died on the 13th of November, 1473, without accom
plishing the great object of his ambition. It was not until many
years afterwards, that Vasco de Gama, pursuing with a Portu
guese fleet the track he had pointed out, realized his anticipations
by doubling the Cape of Good Hope, sailing along the southern
coast of India, and thus opening a highway for commerce to the
opulent regions of the East. Henry, however, lived long enough
to reap some of the richest rewards of a great and good mind.
He beheld, through his means, his native country in a grand and
active career of prosperity. The discoveries of the Portuguese
were the wonder and admiration of the fifteenth century, and
Portugal, from being one of the least among nations, suddenly
rose to be one of the most important.
All this was effected, not by arms, but by arts; not by the
* Vasconcelos, Hist. de Juan II.
4 0 L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F [BOOK I .
stratagems of a cabinet, but by the wisdom of a college. It was the
great achievement of a prince, who has well been described “ full
of thoughts of lofty enterprise, and acts of generous spirit:” one
who bore for his device the magnanimous motto, “ The talent to
do good,“ the only talent worthy the ambition of princes.*
Henry, at his death, left it in charge to his country to prose-
cute the route to India. He had formed companies and associa-
tions, by which commercial zeal was enlisted in the cause, and it
was made a matter of interest and competition to enterprising in-
d i v i d u a l s . † From time to time Lisbon was thrown into a tumult
of excitement by the launching forth of some new expedition, or
the return of a squadron with accounts of new tracts explored,
and new kingdoms visited. Every thing was confident promise,
and sanguine anticipation. The miserable hordes of the African
coast were magnified into powerful nations, and the voyagers con-
tinually heard of opulent countries farther on. It was as yet the
twilight of geographic knowledge; imagination went hand in hand
with discovery, and as the latter groped its slow and cautious way,
the former peopled all beyond with wonders. The fame of the
Portuguese discoveries, and of the expeditions continually setting
out, drew the attention of the world. Strangers from all parts,
the learned, the curious, and the adventurous, resorted to Lisbon
to inquire into the particulars or to participate in the advantages of
these enterprises. Among these was Christopher Columbus, whe-
ther thrown there, as has been asserted, by the fortuitous result
of a desperate adventure, or drawn thither by liberal curiosity,
and the pursuit of honorable fortune.‡
* Joam de Barros, Asia, decad. i.
† Lafitau, Conquêtes des Portugais, tom. i. lib. i.
† Herrera, decad. i. lib. i.
CHAP. IV.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
41
C H A P T E R IV.
RESIDENCE OP COLUMBUS AT LISBON. - IDEAS CONCERNING
ISLANDS IN THE OCEAN.
COLUMBUS arrived at Lisbon about the year 1 4 7 0 . He was at
that time in the full vigor of manhood, and of an engaging
presence. Minute descriptions are given of his person by his son
Fernando, by Las Casas, and others of his contemporaries.*
According to these accounts, he was tall, well-formed, muscular,
and of an elevated and dignified demeanor. His visage was long,
and neither full nor meagre ; his complexion fair and freckled and
inclined to ruddy; his nose aquiline; his cheek-bones were rather
high, his eyes light gray, and apt to enkindle; his whole counte
nance had an air of authority. His hair, in his youthful days,
was of a light color; but care and trouble, according to Las Casas,
soon turned it gray, and at thirty years of age it was quite white.
He was moderate and simple in diet and apparel, eloquent in dis
course, engaging and affable with strangers, and his amiableness
and suavity in domestic life strongly attached his household to his
person. His temper was naturally irritable ; † but he subdued it
by the magnanimity of his spirit, comporting himself with a
* Hist, del Almirante, cap. 3. Las Casas, Hist. Ind. lib. i. cap. 2, M S .
† Illescas, Hist. Pontifical, lib. vi.
42
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I
courteous and gentle gravity, and never indulging in any intem-
perance of language. Throughout his life he was noted for strict
attention to the offices of religion, observing rigorously the fasts
and ceremonies of the church; nor did his piety consist in mere
forms, but partook of that lofty and solemn enthusiasm with which
his whole character was strongly tinctured.
While at Lisbon, he was accustomed to attend religious ser-
vice at the chapel of the convent of All Saints. In this convent
were certain ladies of rank, either resident as boarders, or in some
religious capacity. With one of these, Columbus became ac-
quainted. She was Dona Felipa, daughter of Bartolomeo Moñis
de Perestrello, an Italian cavalier, lately deceased, who had been
one of the most distinguished navigators under Prince Henry, and
had colonized and governed the island of Porto Santo. The
acquaintance soon ripened into attachment, and ended in mar-
riage. It appears to have been a match of mere affection, as the
lady was destitute of fortune.
The newly married couple resided with the mother of the
bride. The latter, perceiving the interest which Columbus took
in all matters concerning the sea, related to him all she knew of
the voyages and expeditions of her late husband, and brought him
all his papers, charts, journals, and memorandums.* In this way
he became acquainted with the routes of the Portuguese, their
plans and conceptions ; and having, by his marriage and residence,
become naturalized in Portugal, he sailed occasionally in the expe-
ditions to the coast of Guinea. When on shore, he supported his
family by making maps and charts. His narrow circumstances
obliged him to observe a strict economy; yet we are told that he
* Oviedo, Cronica de las Indias, lib. ii. cap. 2 .
CHAP. I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
43
appropriated a part of his scanty means to the succor of his aged
father at Genoa,* and to the education of his younger brothers.†
The construction of a correct map or chart, in those days,
required a degree of knowledge and experience sufficient to enti-
tle the possessor to distinction. Geography was but just emerg-
ing from the darkness which had enveloped it for ages. Ptolemy
was still a standard authority. The maps of the fifteenth century
display a mixture of truth and error, in which facts handed down
from antiquity, and others revealed by recent discoveries, are
confused with popular fables, and extravagant conjectures. A t
such a period, when the passion for maritime discovery was seek-
ing every aid to facilitate its enterprises, the knowledge and skill
of an able cosmographer, like Columbus, would be properly
appreciated, and the superior correctness of his maps and charts
would give him notoriety among men of science. ‡ W e accord-
* Oviedo, Cronica de las Indias, lib ii. cap. 2.
† Muñoz Hist, del, N . Mundo, lib. ii.
‡ The importance which began to be attached to cosmographical know-
ledge is evident from the distinction which Mauro, an Italian friar, obtained
from having projected an universal map, esteemed the most accurate of the
time. A fac-simile of this map, upon the same scale as the original, is now
deposited in the British Museum, and it has been published, with a geogra-
phical commentary, by the learned Zurla. The Venetians struck a medal in
honor of him, on which they denominated him Cosmographus incomparabilis
(Colline del Bussol. Naut. p. 2. c. 5 ) . Y e t Ramusio, who had seen this map
in the monastery of San Michele de Murano, considers it merely an improved
copy of a map brought from Cathay by Marco Polo (Ramusio, t. ii. p. 17. Ed.
Venet. 1606). W e are told that Americus Vespucius paid one hundred and
thirty ducats (equivalent to five hundred and fifty-five dollars in our time) for
a map of sea and land, made at Mallorca, in 1439, by Gabriel de Valseca
(Barros, D. 1 i. c. 15. Derroto por Tofino, Introd. p. 2 5 ) .
4 4
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I .
ingly find him, at an early period of his residence in Lisbon, in
correspondence with Paulo Toscanelli, of Florence, one of the
most scientific men of the day, whose communications had great
influence in inspiriting him to his subsequent undertakings.
While his geographical labors thus elevated him to a commu
nion with the learned, they were peculiarly calculated to foster a
train of thoughts favorable to nautical enterprise. From con
stantly comparing maps and charts, and noting the progress and
direction of discovery, he was led to perceive how much of the
world remained unknown, and to meditate on the means of
exploring it. His domestic concerns, and the connections he had
formed by marriage, were all in unison with this vein of specula
tion. He resided for some time at the recently discovered island
of Porto Santo, where his wife had inherited some property, and
during his residence there she bore him a son, whom he named
Diego. This residence brought him, as it were, on the very
frontier of discovery. His wife's sister was married to Pedro
Correo, a navigator of note, who had at one time been governor
of Porto Santo. Being frequently together in the familiar inter
course of domestic life, their conversation naturally turned upon
the discoveries prosecuting in their vicinity along the African
coasts; upon the long sought for route to India; and upon the
possibility of some unknown lands existing in the west.
In their island residence, too, they must have been frequently
visited by the voyagers going to and from Guinea. Living thus,
surrounded by the stir and bustle of discovery, communing with
persons who had risen by it to fortune and honor, and voyaging
in the very tracks of its recent triumphs, the ardent mind of
Columbus kindled up to enthusiasm in the cause. It was a period
of general excitement to all who were connected with maritime
CHAP. I V ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
4 3
life, or who resided in the vicinity of the ocean. The recent
discoveries had inflamed their imaginations, and had filled them
with visions of other islands, of greater wealth and beauty, yet to
be discovered in the boundless wastes of the Atlantic. The opin
ions and fancies of the ancients on the subject were again put in
circulation. The story of Antilla, a great island in the ocean,
discovered by the Carthaginians, was frequently cited, and Plato's
imaginary Atalantis once more found firm believers. Many
thought that the Canaries and Azores were but wrecks which
had survived its submersion, and that other and larger fragments
of that drowned land might yet exist, in remoter parts of the
Atlantic.
One of the strongest symptoms of the excited state of the
popular mind at this eventful era, was the prevalence of rumors
respecting unknown islands casually seen in the ocean. Many
of these were mere fables, fabricated to feed the predominant
humor of the public; many had their origin in the heated imagi
nations of voyagers, beholding islands in those summer clouds
which lie along the horizon, and often beguile the sailor with the
idea of distant lands.
On such airy basis, most probably, was founded the story told
to Columbus by one Antonio Leone, an inhabitant of Madeira, who
affirmed that sailing thence westward one hundred leagues, he had
seen three islands at a distance. But the tales of the kind most
positively advanced and zealously maintained, were those related
by the people of the Canaries, who were long under a singular
optical delusion. They imagined that, from time to time, they
beheld a vast island to the westward, with lofty mountains and
deep valleys. Nor was it seen in cloudy and dubious weather,
but in those clear days common to tropical climates, and with all
46
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I.
the distinctness with which distant objects may be discerned in
their pure, transparent atmosphere. The island, it is true, was
only seen at intervals: while at other times, and in the clearest
weather, not a vestige of it was to be descried. When it did
appear, however, it was always in the same place, and under the
same form. So persuaded were the inhabitants of the Canaries
of its reality, that application was made to the king of Portugal
for permission to discover and take possession of it; and it actu
ally became the object of several expeditions. The island, how
ever, was never to be found, though it still continued occasionally
to cheat the eye.
There were all kinds of wild and fantastic notions concerning
this imaginary land. Some supposed it to be the Antilla men
tioned by Aristotle; others, the Island of Seven Cities, so called
from an ancient legend of seven bishops, who, with a multitude
of followers, fled from Spain at the time of its conquest by the
Moors, and, guided by Heaven to some unknown island in the
ocean, founded on it seven splendid cities. While some consid
ered it another legendary island, on which, it was said, a Scottish
priest of the name of St. Brandan had landed, in the sixth century.
This last legend passed into current belief. The fancied island
was called by the name of St. Brandan, or St. Borondon, and
long continued to be actually laid down in maps far to the west
of the Canaries.* The same was done with the fabulous island
of Antilla; and these erroneous maps, and phantom islands, have
given rise at various times to assertions, that the New World
had been known prior to the period of its generally reputed
discovery.
* See Ilustrations, article “ Island of St. Brandan.“
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
CHAP. 1V.1
4 7
Columbus, however, considers all these appearances of land as
mere illusions. He supposes that they may have been caused by
rocks lying in the ocean, which, seen at a distance, under certain
atmospherical influences, may have assumed the appearance of
islands; or that they may have been floating islands, such as are
mentioned by Pliny and Seneca and others, formed of twisted
roots, or of a light and porous stone, and covered with trees, and
which may have been driven about the ocean by the winds.
The islands of St. Brandan, of Antilla, and of the Seven Cit
ies, have long since proved to be fabulous tales, or atmospherical
delusions. Yet the rumors concerning them derive interest, from
showing the state of public thought with respect to the Atlantic,
while its western regions were yet unknown. They were all
noted down with curious care by Columbus, and may have had
some influence over his imagination. Still, though of a visionary
spirit, his penetrating genius sought in deeper sources for the
aliment of its meditations. Aroused by the impulse of passing
events, he turned anew, says his son Fernando, to study the geo
graphical authors which he had read before, and to consider the
astronomical reasons which might corroborate the theory gradu
ally forming in his mind. He made himself acquainted with all
that had been written by the ancients, or discovered by the mod
erns, relative to geography. His own voyages enabled him to
correct many of their errors, and appreciate many of their theo
ries. His genius having thus taken its decided bent, it is inter
esting to notice from what a mass of acknowledged facts, rational
hypotheses, fanciful narrations, and popular rumors, his grand
project of discovery was wrought out by the strong workings of
his vigorous mind.
4 8
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
C H A P T E R V.
GROUNDS ON WHICH COLUMBUS FOUNDED HIS BELIEF OF THE
EXISTENCE OF UNDISCOVERED LANDS IN THE WEST.
IT has been attempted, in the preceding chapters, to show how
Columbus was gradually kindled up to his grand design by the
spirit and events of the times in which he lived. His son Fer
nando, however, undertakes to furnish the precise data on which
his father's plan of discovery was founded.* “ He does this,” he
observes, “ to show from what slender argument so great a scheme
was fabricated and brought to light; and for the purpose of satis
fying those who may desire to know distinctly the circumstances
and motives which led his father to undertake this enterprise.“
As this statement was formed from notes and documents
found among his father's papers, it is too curious and interesting
not to deserve particular mention. In this memorandum he
arranged the foundation of his father's theory under three heads:
1. The nature of things. 2 . The authority of learned writers.
3. The reports of navigators.
Under the first head, he set down as a fundamental principle,
that the earth was a terraqueous sphere or globe, which might be
traveled round from east to west, and that men stood foot to foot,
* Hist, del Almirante, cap. 6, 7, 8.
CHAP. V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
4 8
when on opposite points. The circumference from east to west,
at the equator, Columbus divided, according to Ptolemy, into
twenty-four hours of fifteen degrees each, making three hundred
and sixty degrees. Of these he imagined, comparing the globe
of Ptolemy with the earlier map of Marinus of Tyre, that fifteen
hours had been known to the ancients, extending from the Straits
of Gibraltar, or rather from the Canary Islands, to the city of Thi-
næ in Asia, a place set down as at the eastern limits of the known
world. The Portuguese had advanced the western frontier one
hour more by the discovery of the Azores and Cape de Verde
Islands. There remained, then, according to the estimation of
Columbus, eight hours, or one-third of the circumference of the
earth, unknown and unexplored. This space might, in a great
measure, be filled up by the eastern regions of Asia, which might
extend so far as nearly to surround the globe, and to approach
the western shores of Europe and Africa. The tract of ocean,
intervening between these countries, he observes, would be less
than might at first be supposed, if the opinion of Alfraganus, the
Arabian, were admitted, who, by diminishing the size of the
degrees, gave to the earth a smaller circumference than did other
cosmographers ; a theory to which Columbus seems at times to
have given faith. Granting these premises, it was manifest, that,
by pursuing a direct course from east to west, a navigator would
arrive at the extremity of Asia, and discover any intervening
land.
Under the second head, are named the authors whose writings
had weight in convincing him that the intervening ocean could be
but of moderate expanse, and easy to be traversed. Among
these, he cites the opinion of Aristotle, Seneca, and Pliny, that
one might pass from Cadiz to the Indies in a few days; of Strabo,
50
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
also, who observes, that the ocean surrounds the earth, bathing on
the east the shores of India; on the west, the coasts of Spain and
Mauritania; so that it is easy to navigate from one to the other
on the same parallel.*
In corroboration of the idea, that Asia, or, as he always terms
it, India, stretched far to the east, so as to occupy the greater part
of the unexplored space, the narratives are cited of Marco Polo
and John Mandeville. These travelers had visited, in the thir
teenth and fourteenth centuries, the remote parts of Asia, far
beyond the regions laid down by Ptolemy; and their accounts of
the extent of that continent to the eastward, had a great effect in
convincing Columbus that a voyage to the west, of no long dura
tion, would bring him to its shores, or to the extensive and wealthy
islands which lie adjacent. The information concerning Marco
Polo, is probably derived from Paulo Toscanelli, a celebrated
doctor of Florence, already mentioned, with whom Columbus
corresponded in 1474, and who transmitted to him a copy of a
letter which he had previously written to Fernando Martinez, a
learned canon of Lisbon. This letter maintains the facility of
arriving at India by a western course, asserting the distance to be
but four thousand miles, in a direct line from Lisbon to the
province of Mangi, near Cathay, since determined to be the
northern coast of China. Of this country he gives a magnificent
description, drawn from the work of Marco Polo. He adds, that
in the route lay the islands of Antilla and Cipango, distant from
each other only two hundred and twenty-five leagues, abounding
in riches, and offering convenient places for ships to touch at, and
obtain supplies on the voyage.
* Strab. Cos. lib. i. ii.
CHAP. V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S . 5 1
Under the third head, are enumerated various indications of
land in the west, which had floated to the shores of the known
world. It is curious to observe, how, when once the mind of
Columbus had become heated in the inquiry, it attracted to it
every corroborating circumstance, however vague and trivial.
He appears to have been particularly attentive to the gleams of
information derived from veteran mariners, who had been em
ployed in the recent voyages to the African coasts; and also from
the inhabitants of lately discovered islands, placed, in a manner,
on the frontier posts of geographical knowledge. All these are
carefully noted down among his memorandums, to be collocated
with the facts and opinions already stored up in his mind.
Such, for instance, is the circumstance related to him by
Martin Vicenti, a pilot in the service of the king of Portugal;
that, after sailing four hundred and fifty leagues to the west of
Cape St. Vincent, he had taken from the water a piece of carved
wood, which evidently had not been labored with an iron instru
ment. As the winds had drifted it from the west, it might have
come from some unknown land in that direction.
Pedro Correa, brother-in-law of Columbus, is likewise cited,
as having seen, on the island of Porto Santo, a similar piece of
wood, which had drifted from the same quarter. He had heard
also from the king of Portugal, that reeds of an immense size
had floated to some of those islands from the west, in the descrip
tion of which, Columbus thought he recognized the immense reeds
said by Ptolemy to grow in India.
Information is likewise noted, given him by the inhabitants of
the Azores, of trunks of huge pine trees, of a kind that did not
grow upon any of the islands, wafted to their shores by the wes
terly winds; but especially of the bodies of two dead men, cast
VOL. I.
D
52
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I.
upon the island of Flores, whose features differed from those of
any known race of people.
To these is added the report of a mariner of the port of St.
Mary, who asserted that, in the course of a voyage to Ireland, he
had seen land to the west, which the ship's company took for some
extreme part of Tartary. Other stories, of a similar kind, are
noted, as well as rumors concerning the fancied islands of St.
Brandan, and of the Seven Cities, to which, as has already been
observed, Columbus gave but little faith.
Such is an abstract of the grounds, on which, according to
Fernando, his father proceeded from one position to another, until
he came to the conclusion, that there was undiscovered land in the
western part of the ocean; that it was attainable; that it was fer
tile ; and finally, that it was inhabited.
It is evident, that several of the facts herein enumerated, must
have become known to Columbus after he had formed his opinion,
and merely served to strengthen it; still, every thing that throws
any light upon the process of thought, which led to so great an
event, is of the highest interest; and the chain of deductions here
furnished, though not perhaps the most logical in its concatenation,
yet, being extracted from the papers of Columbus himself, remains
one of the most interesting documents in the history of the human
mind.
On considering this statement attentively, it is apparent that
the grand argument which induced Columbus to his enterprise,
was that placed under the first head, namely, that the most east
ern part of Asia known to the ancients, could not be separated
from the Azores by more than a third of the circumference of the
globe; that the intervening space must, in a great measure, be
filled up by the unknown residue of Asia; and that, if the circum-
CHAP. V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
53
ference of the world was, as he believed, less than was generally
supposed, the Asiatic shores could easily be attained by a mode
rate voyage to the west.
It is singular how much the success of this great undertaking
depended upon two happy errors, the imaginary extent of Asia
to the east, and the supposed smallness of the earth; both, errors
of the most learned and profound philosophers, but without which
Columbus would hardly have ventured upon his enterprise. As
to the idea of finding land by sailing directly to the west, it is at
present so familiar to our minds, as in some measure to diminish
the merits of the first conception, and the hardihood of the first
attempt: but in those days, as has well been observed, the circum
ference of the earth was yet unknown; no one could tell whether
the ocean were not of immense extent, impossible to be traversed;
nor were the laws of specific gravity and of central gravitation
ascertained, by which, granting the rotundity of the earth, the
possibility of making the tour of it would be manifest.* The
practicability, therefore, of finding land by sailing to the west,
was one of those mysteries of nature which are considered incre
dible whilst matters of mere speculation, but the simplest things
imaginable when they have once been ascertained.
When Columbus had formed his theory, it became fixed in
his mind with singular firmness, and influenced his entire charac
ter and conduct. He never spoke in doubt or hesitation, but with
as much certainty as if his eyes had beheld the promised land.
No trial nor disappointment could divert him from the steady
pursuit of his object. A deep religious sentiment mingled with
his meditations, and gave them at times a tinge of superstition,
* Malte-Brun, Géographie Universelle, torn. xiv. Note sur le Découverte de
l'Amérique.
D 2
54
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I .
but it was of a sublime and lofty kind: he looked upon himself as
standing in the hand of Heaven, chosen from among men for
the accomplishment of its high purpose; he read, as he supposed,
his contemplated discovery foretold in Holy Writ, and shadowed
forth darkly in the mystic revelations of the prophets. The ends
of the earth were to be brought together, and all nations and
tongues and languages united under the banners of the Redeemer.
This was to be the triumphant consummation of his enterprise,
bringing the remote and unknown regions of the earth into com
munion with Christian Europe; carrying the light of the true
faith into benighted and Pagan lands, and gathering their count
less nations under the holy dominion of the church.
The enthusiastic nature of his conceptions gave an elevation
to his spirit, and a dignity and loftiness to his whole demeanor.
He conferred with sovereigns almost with a feeling of equality.
His views were princely and unbounded; his proposed discovery
was of empires; his conditions were proportionally magnificent;
nor would he ever, even after long delays, repeated disappoint
ments, and under the pressure of actual penury, abate what ap
peared to be extravagant demands for a mere possible discovery.
Those who could not conceive how an ardent and comprehen
sive genius could arrive, by presumptive evidence, at so firm a
conviction, sought for other modes of accounting for it. When
the glorious result had established the correctness of the opinion
of Columbus, attempts were made to prove that he had obtained
previous information of the lands which he pretended to discover.
Among these, was an idle tale of a tempest-tossed pilot, said to
have died in his house, bequeathing him written accounts of an
unknown land in the west, upon which he had been driven by
adverse winds. This story, according to Fernando Columbus,
CHAP. V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
55
had no other foundation than one of the popular tales about the
shadowy island of St. Brandan, which a Portuguese captain,
returning from Guinea, fancied he had beheld beyond Madeira.
It circulated for a time in idle rumor, altered and shaped to suit
their purposes, by such as sought to tarnish the glory of Colum
bus. At length, it found its way into print, and has been echoed
by various historians, varying with every narration, and full of
contradictions and improbabilities.*
An assertion has also been made, that Columbus was preceded
in his discoveries by Martin Behem, a contemporary cosmogra-
pher, who, it was said, had landed accidentally on the coast of
South America, in the course of an African expedition; and that
it was with the assistance of a map, or globe, projected by Behem,
on which was laid down the newly-discovered country, that
Columbus made his voyage. This rumor originated in an absurd
misconstruction of a Latin manuscript, and was unsupported by
any documents; yet it has had its circulation, and has even been
revived not many years since, with more zeal than discretion;
hut is now completely refuted and put to rest. The land visited
by Behem, was the coast of Africa beyond the equator; the globe
he projected was finished in 1492, while Columbus was absent on
his first voyage: it contains no trace of the New World, and thus
furnishes conclusive proof, that its existence was yet unknown to
Behem.†
There is a certain meddlesome spirit, which, in the garb of
learned research, goes prying about the traces of history, casting
down its monuments, and marring and mutilating its fairest tro-
* See Illustrations, article “ Rumor concerning the Pilot who died in the
House of Columbus.”
† See Illustrations, article “ Behem.”
5C
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S , E T C .
[BOOK I.
phies. Care should be taken to vindicate great names from such
pernicious erudition. It defeats one of the most salutary pur
poses of history, that of furnishing examples of what human
genius and laudable enterprise may accomplish. For this pur
pose, some pains have been taken in the preceding chapters, to
trace the rise and progress of this grand idea in the mind of Co
lumbus ; to show that it was the conception of his genius, quick
ened by the impulse of the age, and aided by those scattered
gleams of knowledge, which fell ineffectually upon ordinary
minds.
P A R T O F A T E R R E B T R I A L G L O D E ,
made at Nuremberg
in the year 1492,
by Martin Bchem
For description see reverse page.
The terrestrial globe, of which a segment is given on the reverse page,
was made at Nuremberg in the year 1492, the very year on which Columbus
departed on his first voyage of discovery. Martin Behem, the inventor, was
one of the most learned cosmographers of the time, and, having resided at
Lisbon in the employ of the king of Portugal, he had probably seen the map
of Toscanelli, and the documents submitted by Columbus to the consideration
of the Portuguese government. His globe may, therefore, be presumed
illustrative of the idea entertained by Columbus of the islands in the ocean
near the extremity of Asia, at the time he undertook his discovery.
CHAP. VI.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
57
C H A P T E R V I .
CORRESPONDENCE OF COLUMBUS W I T H PAULO TOSCANELLI. —
EVENTS IN PORTUGAL RELATIVE TO DISCOVERIES. PROPO
SITION OF COLUMBUS TO THE PORTUGUESE COURT.- D E
PARTURE FROM PORTUGAL.
IT is impossible to determine the precise time when Columbus
first conceived the design of seeking a western route to India. It
is certain, however, that he meditated it as early as the year
1474, though as yet it lay crude and unmatured in his mind.
This fact, which is of some importance, is sufficiently established
by the correspondence already mentioned with the learned Tos
canelli of Florence, which took place in the summer of that year.
The letter of Toscanelli is in reply to one from Columbus, and
applauds the design which he had expressed of making a voyage
to the west. To demonstrate more clearly the facility of arriving
at India in that direction, he sent him a map, projected partly
according to Ptolemy, and partly according to the descriptions of
Marco Polo, the Venetian. The eastern coast of Asia was de
picted in front of the western coasts of Africa and Europe, with
a moderate space of ocean between them, in which were placed
at convenient distances Cipango, Antilla, and the other islands.*
* This map, by which Columbus sailed on his first voyage of discovery,
Las Casas (lib. i. cap. 12) says he had in his possession at the time of writing
58
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
Columbus was greatly animated by the letter and chart of Tosca-
nelli, who was considered one of the ablest cosmographers of the
day. He appears to have procured the work of Marco Polo,
which had been translated into various languages, and existed in
manuscript in most libraries. This author gives marvelous ac
counts of the riches of the realms of Cathay and Mangi, or Man-
gu, since ascertained to be Northern and Southern China, on the
coast of which, according to the map of Toscanelli, a voyager
sailing directly west would be sure to arrive. He describes in
unmeasured terms the power and grandeur of the sovereign of
these countries, the Great Khan of Tartary, and the splendor
and magnitude of his capitals of Cambalu and Quinsai, and the
wonders of the island of Cipango or Zipangi, supposed to be
Japan. This island he places opposite Cathay, five hundred
leagues in the ocean. He represents it as abounding in gold,
precious stones, and other choice objects of commerce, with a
monarch whose palace was roofed with plates of gold instead of
lead. The narrations of this traveler were by many considered
fabulous; but though full of what appear to be splendid exagge
rations, they have since been found substantially correct. They
are thus particularly noted, from the influence they had over the
imagination of Columbus. The work of Marco Polo is a key to
many parts of his history. In his applications to the various
courts, he represented the countries he expected to discover as
those regions of inexhaustible wealth which the Venetian had
described. The territories of the Grand Khan were the objects
his history. It is greatly to be regretted that so interesting a document should
be lost. It may yet exist among the chaotic lumber of the Spanish archives.
Few documents of mere curiosity would be more precious.
CHAP. VI.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
59
of inquiry in all his voyages; and in his cruisings among the
Antilles, he was continually flattering himself with the hopes of
arriving at the opulent island of Cipango, and the coasts of Mangi
and Cathay.*
While the design of attempting the discovery in the west was
maturing in the mind of Columbus, he made a voyage to the
north of Europe. Of this we have no other memorial than the
following passage, extracted by his son from one of his letters:—
“ In the year 1477, in February, I navigated one hundred leagues
beyond Thule, the southern part of which is seventy-three degrees
distant from the equator, and not sixty-three, as some pretend;
neither is it situated within the line which includes the west of
Ptolemy, but is much more westerly. The English, principally
those of Bristol, go with their merchandise to this island, which is
as large as England. When I was there, the sea was not frozen,
and the tides were so great as to rise and fall twenty-six fathom.Ӡ
The island thus mentioned is generally supposed to have been
Iceland, which is far to the west of the Ultima Thule of the an
cients, as laid down in the map of Ptolemy.
Several more years elapsed, without any decided efforts on
the part of Columbus to carry his design into execution. He
was too poor to fit out the armament necessary for so important
an expedition. Indeed it was an enterprise only to be undertaken
in the employ of some sovereign state, which could assume
dominion over the territories he might discover, and reward him
with dignities and privileges commensurate to his services. It is
asserted that he at one time endeavored to engage his native
* A more particular account of Marco Polo and his writings is given
among the Illustrations.
† Hist. del Almirante, cap. 4.
GO
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I.
country, Genoa, in the undertaking, but without success. No
record remains of such an attempt, though it is generally believed,
and has strong probability in its favor. His residence in Portu
gal placed him at hand to solicit the patronage of that power, but
Alphonso, who was then on the throne, was too much engrossed
in the latter part of his reign with a war with Spain, for the suc
cession of the Princess Juana to the crown of Castile, to engage
in peaceful enterprises of an expensive nature. The public mind,
also, was not prepared for so perilous an undertaking. Notwith
standing the many recent voyages to the coast of Africa and the
adjacent islands, and the introduction of the compass into more
general use, navigation was still shackled with impediments, and
the mariner rarely ventured far out of sight of land.
Discovery advanced slowly along the coasts of Africa, and the
mariners feared to cruise far into the southern hemisphere, with
the stars of which they were totally unacquainted. To such
men, the project of a voyage directly westward, into the midst of
that boundless waste, to seek some visionary land, appeared as
extravagant as it would be at the present day to launch forth in
a balloon into the regions of space, in quest of some distant
star.
The time, however, was at hand, that was to extend the sphere
of navigation. The era was propitious to the quick advance
ment of knowledge. The recent invention of the art of printing
enabled men to communicate rapidly and extensively their ideas
and discoveries. It drew forth learning from libraries and con
vents, and brought it familiarly to the reading-desk of the student.
Volumes of information, which before had existed only in costly
manuscripts, carefully treasured up, and kept out of the reach of
the indigent scholar and obscure artist, were now in every hand.
CHAP. V I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
61
There was, henceforth, to be no retrogression in knowledge, nor
any pause in its career. Every step in advance, was imme
diately, and simultaneously, and widely promulgated, recorded in a
thousand forms, and fixed for ever. There could never again be
a dark age ; nations might shut their eyes to the light, and sit in
willful darkness, but they could not trample it out; it would still
shine on, dispensed to happier parts of the world, by the diffusive
powers of the press.
At this juncture, in 1481, a monarch ascended the throne
of Portugal, of different ambition from Alphonso. John II, then
in the twenty-fifth year of his age, had imbibed the passion for
discovery from his grand-uncle, Prince Henry, and with his reign
all its activity revived. His first care was to build a fort at St.
George de la Mina, on the coast of Guinea, to protect the trade
carried on in that neighborhood for gold dust, ivory, and slaves.
The African discoveries had conferred great glory upon
Portugal, but as yet they had been expensive rather than
profitable. The accomplishment of the route to India, how
ever, it was expected would repay all cost and toil, and open a
source of incalculable wealth to the nation. The project of
Prince Henry, which had now been tardily prosecuted for
half a century, had excited a curiosity about the remote parts
of Asia, and revived all the accounts, true and fabulous, of
travelers.
Beside the work of Marco Polo, already mentioned, there
was the narrative of Rabbi Benjamin ben Jonah, of Tudela, a
Spanish Jew, who set out from Saragossa in 1173, to visit the
scattered remnants of the Hebrew tribes. Wandering with un
wearied zeal on this pious errand, over most parts of the known
world, he penetrated China, and passed thence to the southern
62
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
islands of Asia.* There were also the narratives of Carpini and
Ascelin, two friars, dispatched, the one in 1246, the other in 1247,
by Pope Innocent IV, as apostolic ambassadors, for the purpose
of converting the Grand Khan of Tartary; and the journal of
William Rubruquis (or Ruysbroek), a celebrated Cordelier, sent
on a similar errand in 1253, by Louis I X of France, then on his
unfortunate crusade into Palestine. These pious but chimerical
missions had proved abortive ; but the narratives of them being
revived in the fifteenth century, served to inflame the public
curiosity respecting the remote parts of Asia.
In these narratives we first find mention made of the re
nowned Prester John, a Christian king, said to hold sway in a
remote part of the East, who was long an object of curiosity and
research, but whose kingdom seemed to shift its situation in the
tale of every traveler, and to vanish from the search as effectually
as the unsubstantial island of St. Brandan. All the speculations
concerning this potentate and his oriental realm were again put
in circulation. It was fancied that traces of his empire were
discovered in the interior of Africa, to the east of Benin, where
there was a powerful prince, who used a cross among the insignia
of royalty. John II partook largely of the popular excitement
produced by these narrations. In the early part of his reign
he actually sent missions in quest of Prester John, to visit
whose dominions became the romantic desire of many a religious
enthusiast.† The magnificent idea he had formed of the remote
* Bergeron, Voyages en Asie, tom. i. The work of Benjamin of Tudela,
originally written in Hebrew, was so much in repute, that the translation went
through sixteen editions. Andres, Hist. B. Let., ii. cap. 6.
† See Illustrations, article “ Prester John.”
CHAP. V I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
63
parts of the East, made him extremely anxious that the splendid
project of Prince Henry should be realized, and the Portuguese
flag penetrate to the Indian seas. Impatient of the slowness with
which his discoveries advanced along the coast of Africa, and of
the impediments which every cape and promontory presented to
nautical enterprise, he called in the aid of science to devise some
means by which greater scope and certainty might be given to
navigation. His two physicians, Roderigo and Joseph, the latter
a Jew, the most able astronomers and cosmographers of his king
dom, together with the celebrated Martin Behem, entered into a
learned consultation on the subject. The result of their confer
ences and labors was the application of the astrolabe to naviga
tion, enabling the seaman, by the altitude of the sun, to ascertain
his distance from the equator.* This instrument has since been
improved and modified into the modern quadrant, of which, even
at its first introduction, it possessed all the essential advantages.
It is impossible to describe the effect produced upon naviga
tion by this invention. It cast it loose at once from its long
bondage to the land, and set it free to rove the deep. The mari
ner now, instead of coasting the shores like the ancient navigators,
and, if driven from the land, groping his way back in doubt and
apprehension by the uncertain guidance of the stars, might adven
ture boldly into unknown seas, confident of being able to trace
his course by means of the compass and the astrolabe.
It was shortly after this event, which had prepared guides for
discovery across the trackless ocean, that Columbus made the first
attempt, of which we have any clear and indisputable record, to
procure royal patronage for his enterprise. The court of Portu
gal had shown extraordinary liberality in rewarding nautical dis-
* Barros, decad. 1, lib. iv. cap. 2. Maffei, lib. vi. p. 6 and 7.
64
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
covery. Most of those who had succeeded in her service had
been appointed to the government of the islands and countries
they had discovered, although many of them were foreigners by
birth. Encouraged by this liberality, and by the anxiety evinced
by King John II to accomplish a passage by sea to India, Co
lumbus obtained an audience of that monarch, and proposed, in
case the king would furnish him with ships and men, to undertake
a shorter and more direct route than that along the coast of
Africa. His plan was to strike directly to the west, across the
Atlantic. He then unfolded his hypothesis with respect to the
extent of Asia, describing also the immense riches of the island
of Cipango, the first land at which he expected to arrive. Of
this audience we have two accounts, written in somewhat of an
opposite spirit; one by his son Fernando, the other by Joam de
Barros, the Portuguese historiographer. It is curious to notice
the different views taken of the same transaction by the enthusi
astic son, and by the cool, perhaps prejudiced, historian.
The king, according to Fernando, listened to his father with
great attention, but was discouraged from engaging in any new
scheme of the kind, by the cost and trouble already sustained in
exploring the route by the African coast, which as yet remained
unaccomplished. His father, however, supported his proposition
by such excellent reasons, that the king was induced to give his
consent. The only difficulty that remained was the terms; for
Columbus, being a man of lofty and noble sentiments, demanded
high and honorable titles and rewards, to the end, says Fernando,
that he might leave behind him a name and family worthy of his
deeds and merits.*
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 10.
CHAP. V I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
65
Barros, on the other hand, attributes the seeming acquiescence
of the king, merely to the importunities of Columbus. He
considered him, says the historian, a vainglorious man, fond of
displaying his abilities, and given to fantastic fancies, such as
that respecting the island of Cipango.* But in fact, this idea of
Columbus being vain, was taken up by the Portuguese writers in
after years; and as to the island of Cipango, it was far from being
considered chimerical by the king, who, as has been shown by
his mission in search of Prester John, was a ready believer in
these travelers' tales concerning the East. The reasoning of
Columbus must have produced an effect on the mind of the
monarch, since it is certain that he referred the proposition to a
learned junto, charged with all matters relating to maritime
discovery.
This junto was composed of two able cosmographers, masters
Roderigo and Joseph, and the king's confessor, Diego Ortiz de
Cazadilla, bishop of Ceuta, a man greatly reputed for his learn
ing, a Castilian by birth, and generally called Cazadilla, from the
name of his native place. This scientific body treated the project
as extravagant and visionary.
Still the king does not appear to have been satisfied. A c
cording to his historian Vasconcelos,t he convoked his council,
composed of prelates and persons of the greatest learning in the
kingdom, and asked their advice, whether to adopt this new route
of discovery, or to pursue that which they had already opened.
It may not be deemed superfluous to notice briefly the discus
sion of the council on this great question. Vasconcelos reports
* Barros, Asia, decad. 1, lib. iii. cap. 2.
t Vasconcelos, Vida del Rey Don Juan II., lib. iv.
VOL. I.
E
66
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
a speech of the bishop of Ceuta, in which he not only objected
to the proposed enterprise, as destitute of reason, but even dis
countenanced any further prosecution of the African discoveries.
“ They tended,” he said, “ to distract the attention, drain the
resources, and divide the power of the nation, already too much
weakened by recent war and pestilence. While their forces were
thus scattered abroad on remote and unprofitable expeditions, they
exposed themselves to attack from their active enemy the king
of Castile. The greatness of monarchs,” he continued, “ did not
arise so much from the extent of their dominions, as from the
wisdom and ability with which they governed. In the Portuguese
nation it would be madness to launch into enterprises without first
considering them in connection with its means. The king had
already sufficient undertakings in hand of certain advantage,
without engaging in others of a wild, chimerical nature. If he
wished employment for the active valor of the nation, the war in
which he was engaged against the Moors of Barbary was suffi
cient, wherein his triumphs were of solid advantage, tending to
cripple and enfeeble those neighboring foes, who had proved
themselves so dangerous when possessed of power.”
This cool and cautious speech of the bishop of Ceuta, di
rected against enterprises which were the glory of the Portuguese,
touched the national pride of Don Pedro de Meneses, count of
Villa Real, and drew from him a lofty and patriotic reply. It
has been said by an historian that this reply was in support
of the proposition of Columbus; but that does not clearly appear.
He may have treated the proposal with respect, but his eloquence
was employed for those enterprises in which the Portuguese were
already engaged.
“ Portugal,“ he observed, ” was not in its infancy, nor were
CHAP. V I ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
C7
its princes so poor as to lack means to engage in discoveries.
Even granting that those proposed by Columbus were conjectural,
why should they abandon those commenced by their late Prince
Henry, on such solid foundations, and prosecuted with such happy
prospects ? Crowns,” he observed, “enriched themselves by
commerce, fortified themselves by alliance, and acquired empires
by conquest. The views of a nation could not always be the
same; they extended with its opulence and prosperity. Portu
gal was at peace with all the princes of Europe. It had nothing
to fear from engaging in an extensive enterprise. It would be
the greatest glory for Portuguese valor to penetrate into the
secrets and horrors of the ocean sea, so formidable to the other
nations of the world. Thus occupied, it would escape the idleness
engendered in a long interval of peace—idleness, that source of
vice, that silent file, which, little by little, wore away the strength
and valor of a nation. It was an affront,” he added, “ to the
Portuguese name to menace it with imaginary perils, when it had
proved itself so intrepid in encountering those which were most
certain and tremendous. Great souls were formed for great en
terprises. He wondered much, that a prelate, so religious as the
bishop of Ceuta, should oppose this undertaking; the ultimate
object of which was to augment the Catholic faith, and spread it
from pole to pole; reflecting glory on the Portuguese nation, and
yielding empire and lasting fame to its princes.“ He concluded
by declaring that, “ although a soldier, he dared to prognosticate,
with a voice and spirit as if from heaven, to whatever prince should
achieve this enterprise, more happy success and durable renown,
than had ever been obtained by sovereign the most valorous and
fortunate.”* The warm and generous eloquence of the count
* Vasconcelos, lib. iv. La Clede, Hist. Portugal, lib. xiii. tom. iii.
E 2
68
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I.
overpowered the cold-spirited reasonings of the bishop as far as
the project of circumnavigating Africa was concerned, which was
prosecuted with new ardor and triumphant success : the proposi
tion of Columbus, however, was generally condemned by the
council.
Seeing that King John still manifested an inclination for the
enterprise, it was suggested to him by the bishop of Ceuta, that
Columbus might be kept in suspense while a vessel secretly dis
patched in the direction he should point out might ascertain whe
ther there were any foundation for his theory. By this means
all its advantages might be secured, without committing the
dignity of the crown by formal negotiations about what might
prove a mere chimera. King John, in an evil hour, had the
weakness to permit a stratagem so inconsistent with his usual
justice and magnanimity. Columbus was required to furnish for
the consideration of the council a detailed plan of his proposed
voyage, with the charts and documents according to which he in
tended to shape his course. These being procured, a caravel was
dispatched with the ostensible design of carrying provisions to the
Cape de Verde islands; but with private instructions to pursue
the designated route. Departing from those islands the caravel
stood westward for several days, until the weather became stormy;
when the pilots, seeing nothing but an immeasurable waste of
wild tumbling waves still extending before them, lost all courage
and put back, ridiculing the project of Columbus as extravagant
and irrational.*
This unworthy attempt to defraud him of his enterprise
roused the indignation of Columbus, and he declined all offers of
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 8. Herrera, decad. 1, lib. i. cap. 7.
CHAP. VI.l
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
69
King John to renew the negotiation. The death of his wife,
which had occurred some time previously, had dissolved the
domestic tie which bound him to Portugal; he determined, there
fore, to abandon a country where he had been treated with so
little faith, and to look elsewhere for patronage. Before his
departure, he engaged his brother Bartholomew to carry propo
sals to the king of England, though he does not appear to have
entertained great hope from that quarter; England by no means
possessing at the time the spirit of nautical enterprise which has
since distinguished her. The great reliance of Columbus was on
his own personal exertions.
It was towards the end of 1484 that he left Lisbon, taking
with him his son Diego. His departure had to be conducted
with secrecy, lest, as some assert, it should be prevented by King
John; but lest, as others surmise, it should be prevented by his
creditors.* Like many other great projectors, while engaged
upon schemes of vast benefit to mankind, he had suffered his own
affairs to go to ruin, and was reduced to struggle hard with pov
erty ; nor is it one of the least interesting circumstances in his
eventful life, that he had, in a manner, to beg his way from court
to court, to offer to princes the discovery of a world.
* This surmise is founded on a letter from King John to Columbus, written
some years afterwards, inviting him to return to Portugal, and insuring him
against arrest on account of any process, civil or criminal, which might be
pending against him. See Navarrete, Collec. torn. ii. doc. 3.
BOOK II.
C H A P T E R I .
PROCEEDINGS OP COLUMBUS AFTER LEAVING PORTUGAL.-
HIS APPLICATIONS IN SPAIN.- CHARACTERS OF FERDINAND
AND ISABELLA.
[1485.]
T H E immediate movements of Columbus on leaving Portugal are
involved in uncertainty. It is said that about this time he made
a proposition of his enterprise, in person, as he had formerly
done by letter, to the government of Genoa. The republic, how
ever, was in a languishing decline, and embarrassed by a foreign
war. Caffa, her great deposit in the Crimea, had fallen into the
hands of the Turks, and her flag was on the point of being driven
from the Archipelago. Her spirit was broken with her fortunes;
for with nations, as with individuals, enterprise is the child of
prosperity, and is apt to languish in evil days when there is most
need of its exertion. Thus Genoa, disheartened by her reverses,
shut her ears to the proposition of Columbus, which might have
elevated her to tenfold splendor, and perpetuated within her
grasp the golden wand of commerce. While at Genoa, Columbus
is said to have made arrangements, out of his scanty means, for
7 2
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I
the comfort of his aged father. It is also affirmed, that about this
time he carried his proposal to Venice, where it was declined on
account of the critical state of national affairs. This, however, is
merely traditional, and unsupported by documentary evidence.
The first firm and indisputable trace we have of Columbus after
leaving Portugal is in the south of Spain, in 1485, where we find
him seeking his fortune among the Spanish nobles, several of
whom had vast possessions, and exercised almost independent
sovereignty in their domains.
Foremost among these were the dukes of Medina Sidonia and
Medina Celi, who had estates like principalities lying along the
sea-coast, with ports and shipping and hosts of retainers at their
command. They served the crown in its Moorish wars more as
allied princes than as vassals, bringing armies into the field led
by themselves, or by captains of their own appointment. Their
domestic establishments were on almost a regal scale; their pal
aces were filled with persons of merit, and young cavaliers of
noble birth, to be reared under their auspices, in the exercise of
arts and arms.
Columbus had many interviews with the duke of Medina
Sidonia, who was tempted for a time by the splendid prospects
held out; but their very splendor threw a coloring of improba
bility over the enterprise, and he finally rejected it as the dream
of an Italian visionary.
The duke of Medina Celi was likewise favorable at the outset.
He entertained Columbus for some time in his house, and was
actually on the point of granting him three or four caravels which
lay ready for sea in his harbor of Port St. Mary, opposite Cadiz,
when he suddenly changed his mind, deterred by the consideration
that the enterprise, if successful, would involve discoveries too im-
CHAP. I.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
73
portant to be grasped by any but a sovereign power, and that the
Spanish government might be displeased at his undertaking it on
his own account. Finding, however, that Columbus intended to
make his next application to the king of France, and loth that an
enterprise of such importance should be lost to Spain, the duke
wrote to Queen Isabella recommending it strongly to her atten
tion. The queen made a favorable reply, and requested that
Columbus might be sent to her. He accordingly set out for the
Spanish court, then at Cordova, bearing a letter to the queen
from the duke, soliciting that, in case the expedition should be
carried into effect, he might have a share in it, and the fitting out
of the armament from his port of St. Mary, as a recompense for
having waived the enterprise in favor of the crown.*
The time when Columbus thus sought his fortunes at the
court of Spain coincided with one of the most brilliant periods of
the Spanish monarchy. The union of the kingdoms of Arragon
and Castile, by the marriage of Ferdinand and Isabella, had con
solidated the Christian power in the Peninsula, and put an end
to those internal feuds, which had so long distracted the country,
and insured the domination of the Moslems. The whole force
of united Spain was now exerted in the chivalrous enterprise of
* Letter of the duke of Medina Celi to the grand cardinal. Navarrete, Col
lect. vol. ii. p. 2 0 .
N. B. In the previous editions of this work, the first trace we have of
Columbus in Spain is at the gate of the convent of La Rabida, in Andalusia.
Subsequent investigations have induced me to conform to the opinion of the inde
fatigable and accurate Navarrete, given in his third volume of documents, that
the first trace of Columbus in Spain was his application to the dukes of Medina
Sidonia and Medina Celi, and that his visit to the convent of La Rabida was
some few years subsequent.
74
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I .
the Moorish conquest. The Moors, who had once spread over
the whole country like an inundation, were now pent up within
the mountain boundaries of the kingdom of Granada. The vic-
torious armies of Ferdinand and Isabella were continually ad-
vancing, and pressing this fierce people within narrower limits.
Under these sovereigns, the various petty kingdoms of Spain
began to feel and act as one nation, and to rise to eminence in
arts as well as arms. Ferdinand and Isabella, it has been
remarked, lived together not like man and wife, whose estates
are common, under the orders of the husband, but like two mon-
archs strictly allied.* They had separate claims to sovereignty,
in virtue of their respective kingdoms; they had separate coun-
cils, and were often distant from each other in different parts of
their empire, each exercising the royal authority. Yet they were
so happily united by common views, common interests, and a
great deference for each other, that this double administration
never prevented a unity of purpose and of action. All acts of
sovereignty were executed in both their names ; all public writ-
ings were subscribed with both their signatures; their likenesses
were stamped together on the public coin; and the royal seal
displayed the united arms of Castile and Arragon.
Ferdinand was of the middle stature, well proportioned, and
hardy and active from athletic exercise. His carriage was free,
erect, and majestic. He had a clear serene forehead, which
appeared more lofty from his head being partly bald. His
eyebrows were large and parted, and, like his hair, of a bright
chestnut; his eyes were clear and animated; his complexion was
somewhat ruddy, and scorched by the toils of war; his mouth
moderate, well formed, and gracious in its expression; his teeth
* Voltaire, Essai sur les Mœurs, &c.
CHAP. I.] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S . 75
white, though small and irregular; his voice sharp; his speech
quick and fluent. His genius was clear and comprehensive; his
judgment grave and certain. He was simple in dress and diet,
equable in his temper, devout in his religion, and so indefatigable
in business, that it was said he seemed to repose himself by
working. He was a great observer and judge of men, and
unparalleled in the science of the cabinet. Such is the picture
given of him by the Spanish historians of his time. It has been
added, however, that he had more of bigotry than religion ; that
his ambition was craving rather than magnanimous; that he made
war less like a paladin than a prince, less for glory than for mere
dominion; and that his policy was cold, selfish, and artful. He
was called the wise and prudent in Spain; in Italy, the pious;
in France and England, the ambitious and perfidious.* He cer-
tainly was one of the most subtle statesmen, but one of the most
thorough egotists, that ever sat upon a throne.
While giving his picture, it may not be deemed impertinent
to sketch the fortunes of a monarch whose policy had such an effect
upon the history of Columbus and the destinies of the New
World. Success attended all his measures. Though a younger
son, he had ascended the throne of Arragon by inheritance ; Cas-
tile he obtained by marriage; Granada and Naples by conquest;
and he seized upon Navarre as appertaining to any one who
could take possession of it, when Pope Julius I I excommuni-
cated its sovereigns, Juan and Catalina, and gave their throne
to the first o c c u p a n t . † He sent his forces into Africa, and subju-
gated, or reduced to vassalage, Tunis, Tripoli, Algiers, and most
* Voltaire, Essai sur les Mœurs, ch. 14.
† Pedro Salazar di Mendoza, Monarq. de Esp. lib. iii. cap. 5. (Madrid,
1770, tom. i. p. 402.) — Gonzalo de Illescas, Hist. Pontif. lib. vi. cap. 23, § 3.
76
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
of the Barbary powers. A new world was also given to him,
without cost, by the discoveries of Columbus, for the expense of
the enterprise was borne exclusively by his consort Isabella. He
had three objects at heart from the commencement of his reign,
which he pursued with bigoted and persecuting zeal; the conquest
of the Moors, the expulsion of the Jews, and the establishment
of the Inquisition in his dominions. He accomplished them all,
and was rewarded by Pope Innocent V I I I with the appellation
of Most Catholic Majesty—a title which his successors have tena-
ciously retained.
Contemporary writers have been enthusiastic in their descrip-
tions of Isabella, but time has sanctioned their eulogies. She is
one of the purest and most beautiful characters in the pages of
history. She was well formed, of the middle size, with great dig-
nity and gracefulness of deportment, and a mingled gravity and
sweetness of demeanor. Her complexion was fair; her hair
auburn, inclining to red; her eyes were of a clear blue, with a
benign expression, and there was a singular modesty in her coun-
tenance, gracing, as it did, a wonderful firmness of purpose, and
earnestness of spirit. Though strongly attached to her husband,
and studious of his fame, yet she always maintained her distinct
rights as an allied prince. She exceeded him in beauty, in
personal dignity, in acuteness of genius, and in grandeur of soul.*
Combining the active and resolute qualities of man with the
softer charities of woman, she mingled in the warlike councils of
her husband, engaged personally in his enterprises,† and in some
* Garibay, Hist. de España, tom. ii. lib. xviii. cap. 1 .
† Several suits of armor cap-a-pié, worn by Isabella, and still preserved in
the royal arsenal at Madrid, show that she was exposed to personal danger in
her campaigns.
CHAP. I.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
77
instances surpassed him in the firmness and intrepidity of her
measures ; while, being inspired with a truer idea of glory, she
infused a more lofty and generous temper into his subtle and calcu
lating policy.
It is in the civil history of their reign, however, that the cha
racter of Isabella shines most illustrious. Her fostering and
maternal care was continually directed to reform the laws, and
heal the ills engendered by a long course of internal wars. She
loved her people, and while diligently seeking their good, she
mitigated, as much as possible, the harsh measures of her hus
band, directed to the same end, but inflamed by a mistaken zeal.
Thus, though almost bigoted in her piety, and perhaps too much
under the influence of ghostly advisers, still she was hostile to
every measure calculated to advance religion at the expense of
humanity. She strenuously opposed the expulsion of the Jews,
and the establishment of the Inquisition, though, unfortunately for
Spain, her repugnance was slowly vanquished by her confessors.
She was always an advocate for clemency to the Moors, although
she was the soul of the war against Granada. She considered that
war essential to protect the Christian faith, and to relieve her
subjects from fierce and formidable enemies. While all her pub
lic thoughts and acts were princely and august, her private habits
were simple, frugal, and unostentatious. In the intervals of state-
business, she assembled round her the ablest men in literature and
science, and directed herself by their counsels, in promoting let
ters and arts. Through her patronage, Salamanca rose to that
height which it assumed among the learned institutions of the
age. She promoted the distribution of honors and rewards for
the promulgation of knowledge; she fostered the art of printing
recently invented, and encouraged the establishment of presses in
7 8
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
every part of the kingdom; books were admitted free of all duty,
and more, we are told, were printed in Spain, at that early period
of the art, than in the present literary age.*
It is wonderful how much the destinies of countries depend at
times upon the virtues of individuals, and how it is given to great
spirits, by combining, exciting, and directing the latent powers of
a nation, to stamp it, as it were, with their own greatness. Such
beings realize the idea of guardian angels, appointed by Heaven
to watch over the destinies of empires. Such had been Prince
Henry for the kingdom of Portugal; and such was now for Spain
the illustrious Isabella.
* Elogio de la Reina Catholica, por Diego Clemencin. Madrid, 1821.
CHAP. I I . ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
79
C H A P T E R II.
COLUMBUS AT THE COURT OF SPAIN.
W H E N Columbus arrived at Cordova he was given in charge to
Alonzo de Quintanilla, comptroller of the treasury of Castile, but
was disappointed in his expectation of receiving immediate
audience from the queen. He found the city in all the bustle of
military preparation. It was a critical juncture of the war. The
rival kings of Granada, Muley Boabdil the uncle, and Moham
med Boabdil the nephew, had just formed a coalition, and their
league called for prompt and vigorous measures.
All the chivalry of Spain had been summoned to the field;
the streets of Cordova echoed to the tramp of steed and sound
of trumpet, as day by day the nobles arrived with their retainers,
vieing with each other in the number of their troops and the
splendor of their appointments. The court was like a military
camp; the king and queen were surrounded by the flower of
Spanish chivalry; by those veteran cavaliers who had distin
guished themselves in so many hardy conflicts with the Moors ;
and by the prelates and friars who mingled in martial council,
and took deep interest and agency in this war of the Faith.
This was an unpropitious moment to urge a suit like that of
Columbus. In fact the sovereigns had not a moment of leisure
80
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
throughout this eventful year. Early in the spring, the king
marched off to lay siege to the Moorish city of Loxa; and though
the queen remained at Cordova, she was continually employed in
forwarding troops and supplies to the army, and, at the same
time, attending to the multiplied exigencies of civil government.
On the 12th of June, she repaired to the camp, then engaged in
the siege of Moclin, and both sovereigns remained for some time
in the Vega of Granada, prosecuting the war with unremitting
vigor. They had barely returned to Cordova to celebrate their
victories by public rejoicings, when they were obliged to set out
for Gallicia, to suppress a rebellion of the count of Lemos.
Thence they repaired to Salamanca for the winter.
During the summer and autumn of this year Columbus re
mained at Cordova, a guest in the house of Alonzo de Quintanilla,
who proved a warm advocate of his theory. Through his means
he became acquainted with Antonio Geraldini, the pope's nuncio,
and his brother, Alexander Geraldini, preceptor to the younger
children of Ferdinand and Isabella; both valuable friends about
court. Wherever he obtained a candid hearing from intelligent
auditors, the dignity of his manners, his earnest sincerity, the
elevation of his views, and the practical shrewdness of his demon
strations, commanded respect even where they failed to produce
conviction.
"While thus lingering in idle suspense in Cordova, he be
came attached to a lady of the city, Beatrix Euriquez by name,
of a noble family, though in reduced circumstances. Their con
nection was not sanctioned by marriage; yet he cherished senti
ments of respect and tenderness for her to his dying day. She
was the mother of his second son, Fernando, born in the follow
ing year (1487), whom he always treated on terms of perfect
CHAF. I I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
81
equality with his legitimate son Diego, and who, after his death,
became his historian.
In the winter, Columbus followed the court to Salamanca.
Here his zealous friend, Alonzo de Quintanilla, exerted his influ
ence to obtain for him the countenance of the celebrated Pedro
Gonzalez de Mendoza, archbishop of Toledo and grand cardinal
of Spain. This was the most important personage about the
court; and was facetiously called by Peter Martyr, the " third
king of Spain." The king and queen had him always by their
side, in peace and war. He accompanied them in their cam
paigns, and they never took any measure of consequence without
consulting him. He was a man of sound judgment and quick
intellect, eloquent in conversation, and able in the dispatch of
business. His appearance was lofty and venerable; he was sim
ple yet curiously nice in his apparel, and of gracious and gentle
deportment. Though an elegant scholar, yet, like many learned
men of his day, he was but little skilled in cosmography. When
the theory of Columbus was first mentioned to him, it struck him
as involving heterodox opinions, incompatible with the form of
the earth as described in the Sacred Scriptures. Further expla
nations had their force with a man of his quick apprehension and
sound sense. He perceived that at any rate there could be
nothing irreligious in attempting to extend the bounds of human
knowledge, and to ascertain the works of creation: his scruples
once removed, he permitted Columbus to be introduced to him,
and gave him a courteous reception. The latter knew the impor
tance of his auditor, and that a conference with the grand cardinal
was almost equivalent to a communication with the throne; he
exerted himself to the utmost, therefore, to explain and demon
strate his proposition. The clear-headed cardinal listened with
VOL. I.
p
82
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[HOOK II.
profound attention. He was pleased with the noble and earnest
manner of Columbus, which showed him to be no common
schemer; he felt the grandeur, and, at the same time, the sim
plicity of his theory, and the force of many of the arguments by
which it was supported. He determined that it was a matter
highly worthy of the consideration of the sovereigns, and through
his representations Columbus at length obtained admission to the
royal presence.*
W e have but scanty particulars of this audience, nor can we
ascertain whether Queen Isabella was present on the occasion;
the contrary seems to be most probably the case. Columbus
appeared in the royal presence with modesty, yet self-possession,
neither dazzled nor daunted by the splendor of the court or the
awful majesty of the throne. He unfolded his plan with elo
quence and zeal, for he felt himself, as he afterwards declared,
kindled as with a fire from on high, and considered himself the
agent chosen by Heaven to accomplish its grand designs.†
Ferdinand was too keen a judge of men not to appreciate the
character of Columbus. He perceived that, however soaring
might be his imagination, and vast and visionary his views, his
scheme had scientific and practical foundation. His ambition
was excited by the possibility of discoveries far more important
than those which had shed such glory upon Portugal; and per
haps it was not the least recommendation of the enterprise to this
subtle and grasping monarch, that, if successful, it would enable
him to forestall that rival nation in the fruits of their long and
arduous struggle, and by opening a direct course to India across the
ocean, to bear off from them the monopoly of oriental commerce.
* Oviedo, lib. ii. cap. 4. Salazar, Cron G. Cardinal, lib. i. cap. 62.
† Letter to the Sovereigns in 1501.
CHAP. II.] C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS. 8 3
Still, as usual, Ferdinand was cool and wary, and would not
trust his own judgment in a matter that involved so many princi
ples of science. He determined to take the opinion of the most
learned men in the kingdom, and to be guided by their decision.
Fernando de Talavera, prior of the monastery of Prado and con
fessor of the queen, one of the most erudite men of Spain, and
high in the royal confidence, was commanded to assemble the
most learned astronomers and cosmographers for the purpose of
holding a conference with Columbus, and examining him as to
the grounds on which he founded his proposition. After they
had informed themselves fully on the subject, they were to con
sult together and make a report to the sovereign of their collective
opinion.*
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. xi.
F 2
84
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I .
C H A P T E R III.
COLUMBUS BEFORE THE COUNCIL AT SALAMANCA.
[1486.]
T H E interesting conference relative to the proposition of Colum
bus took place in Salamanca, the great seat of learning in Spain.
It was held in the Dominican convent of St. Stephen, in which
he was lodged and entertained with great hospitality during
the course of the examination.*
Religion and science were at that time, and more especially
in that country, closely associated. The treasures of learning
were immured in monasteries, and the professors' chairs were
exclusively filled from the cloister. The domination of the clergy
extended over the state as well as the church, and posts of honor
and influence at court, with the exception of hereditary nobles,
were almost entirely confined to ecclesiastics. It was even com
mon to find cardinals and bishops in helm and corslet at the head
of armies; for the crosier had been occasionally thrown by for
the lance, during the holy war against the Moors. The era was
distinguished for the revival of learning, but still more for the
prevalence of religious zeal, and Spain surpassed all other coun
tries of Christendom in the fervor of her devotion. The Inquisi-
* Hist. de Chiapa por Remesal, lib. ii. cap. 27.
CHAP. I I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
85
tion had just been established in that kingdom, and every opinion
that savored of heresy made its owner obnoxious to odium and
persecution.
Such was the period when a council of clerical sages was
convened in the collegiate convent of St. Stephen, to investigate
the new theory of Columbus. It was composed of professors of
astronomy, geography, mathematics, and other branches of sci
ence, together with various dignitaries of the church, and learned
friars. Before this erudite assembly, Columbus presented him
self to propound and defend his conclusions. He had been scoffed
at as a visionary by the vulgar and the ignorant; but he was
convinced that he only required a body of enlightened men to
listen dispassionately to his reasonings, to insure triumphant con
viction.
The greater part of this learned junto, it is very probable,
came prepossessed against him, as men in place and dignity are
apt to be against poor applicants. There is always a proneness
to consider a man under examination as a kind of delinquent, or
impostor, whose faults and errors are to be detected and exposed.
Columbus, too, appeared in a most unfavorable light before a
scholastic body: an obscure navigator, a member of no learned
institution, destitute of all the trappings and circumstances which
sometimes give oracular authority to dullness, and depending upon
the mere force of natural genius. Some of the junto entertained
the popular notion that he was an adventurer, or at best a vis
ionary ; and others had that morbid impatience of any innovation
upon established doctrine, which is apt to grow upon dull and
pedantic men in cloistered life.
What a striking spectacle must the hall of the old convent
have presented at this memorable conference ! A simple mari-
86
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I .
ner, standing forth in the midst of an imposing array of profess
ors, friars, and dignitaries of the church; maintaining his theory
with natural eloquence, and, as it were, pleading the cause of the
new world. We are told that when he began to state the grounds
of his belief, the friars of St. Stephen alone paid attention to
him ;* that convent being more learned in the sciences than the
rest of the university. The others appear to have intrenched
themselves behind one dogged position; that, after so many pro
found philosophers and cosmographers had been studying the
form of the world, and so many able navigators had been sailing
about it for several thousand years, it was great presumption in
an ordinary man to suppose that there remained such a vast
discovery for him to make.
Several of the objections proposed by this learned body have
been handed down to us, and have provoked many a sneer at the
expense of the university of Salamanca; but they are proofs, not
so much of the peculiar deficiency of that institution, as of the
imperfect state of science at the time, and the manner in which
knowledge, though rapidly extending, was still impeded in its
progress by monastic bigotry. All subjects were still contem
plated through the obscure medium of those ages when the lights
of antiquity were trampled out and faith was left to fill the place
of inquiry. Bewildered in a maze of religious controversy, man
kind had retraced their steps, and receded from the boundary line
of ancient knowledge. Thus, at the very threshold of the discus
sion, instead of geographical objections, Columbus was assailed
with citations from the Bible and the Testament: the book of
Genesis, the psalms of David, the prophets, the epistles, and the
gospels. To these were added the expositions of various saints
* Remesal, Hist de Chiapa, lib. xi. cap. 7.
CHAP. III.] C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
87
and reverend commentators: St. Chrysostom and St. Augustine,
St. Jerome and St. Gregory, St. Basil and St. Ambrose, and
Lactantius Firmianus, a redoubted champion of the faith. Doc
trinal points were mixed up with philosophical discussions, and
a mathematical demonstration was allowed no weight, if it ap
peared to clash with a text of Scripture, or a commentary of one
of the fathers. Thus the possibility of antipodes, in the southern
hemisphere, an opinion so generally maintained by the wisest of
the ancients, as to be pronounced by Pliny the great contest
between the learned and the ignorant, became a stumbling-block
with some of the sages of Salamanca. Several of them stoutly
contradicted this fundamental position of Columbus, supporting
themselves by quotations from Lactantius and St. Augustine, who
were considered in those days as almost evangelical authority.
But, though these writers were men of consummate erudition,
and two of the greatest luminaries of what has been called the
golden age of ecclesiastical learning, yet their writings were cal
culated to perpetuate darkness in respect to the sciences.
The passage cited from Lactantius to confute Columbus, is in
a strain of gross ridicule, unworthy of so grave a theologian.
“ Is there any one so foolish,” he asks, “ as to believe that there
are antipodes with their feet opposite to ours ; people who walk
with their heels upward, and their heads hanging down ? That
there is a part of the world in which all things are topsy
turvy : where the trees grow with their branches downward, and
where it rains, hails and snows upward ? The idea of the round
ness of the earth,” he adds, “ was the cause of inventing this
fable of the antipodes, with their heels in the air; for these
philosophers, having once erred, go on in their absurdities, defend
ing one with another.”
3 8
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
Objections of a graver nature were advanced on the authority
of St. Augustine. He pronounces the doctrine of antipodes to be
incompatible with the historical foundations of our faith; since,
to assert that there were inhabited lands on the opposite side of
the globe, would be to maintain that there were nations not de-
scended from Adam, it being impossible for them to have passed
the intervening ocean. This would be, therefore, to discredit the
Bible, which expressly declares, that all men are descended from
one common parent.
Such were the unlooked for prejudices which Columbus had to
encounter at the very outset of his conference, and which cer-
tainly relish more of the convent than the university. To his sim-
plest proposition, the spherical form of the earth, were opposed
figurative texts of Scripture. They observed that in the Psalms
the heavens are said to be extended like a hide,* that is, accord-
ing to commentators, the curtain or covering of a tent, which,
among the ancient pastoral nations, was formed of the hides of
animals ; and that St. Paul, in his Epistle to the Hebrews, com-
pares the heavens to a tabernacle, or tent, extended over the
earth, which they thence inferred must be flat.
Columbus, who was a devoutly religious man, found that he
was in danger of being convicted not merely of error, but of
heterodoxy. Others more versed in science admitted the globular
form of the earth, and the possibility of an opposite and habitable
hemisphere; but they brought up the chimera of the ancients,
and maintained that it would be impossible to arrive there, in
consequence of the insupportable heat of the torrid zone. Even
* Extendens cœlum sicut pellem. Psal. 103 In the English translation it
is Psal. 104, ver. 3.
CHAP. III.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
89
granting this could be passed, they observed that the circumfer
ence of the earth must be so great as to require at least three
years to the voyage, and those who should undertake it must
perish of hunger and thirst, from the impossibility of carrying
provisions for so long a period. He was told, on the authority of
Epicurus, that admitting the earth to be spherical, it was only
inhabitable in the northern hemisphere, and in that section only
was canopied by the heavens; that the opposite half was a chaos,
a gulf, or a mere waste of water. Not the least absurd objection
advanced was, that should a ship even succeed in reaching, in this
way, the extremity of India, she could never get back again; for
the rotundity of the globe would present a kind of mountain, up
which it would be impossible for her to sail with the most favora
ble wind.*
Such are specimens of the errors and prejudices, the mingled
ignorance and erudition, and the pedantic bigotry, with which
Columbus had to contend throughout the examination of his
theory. Can we wonder at the difficulties and delays which he
experienced at courts, when such vague and crude notions were
entertained by the learned men of a university ? W e must not
suppose, however, because the objections here cited are all which
remain on record, that they are all which were advanced; these
only have been perpetuated on account of their superior absur
dity. They were probably advanced by but few, and those per
sons immersed in theological studies, in cloistered retirement;
where the erroneous opinions derived from books, had little oppor
tunity of being corrected by the experience of the day.
There were no doubt objections advanced more cogent in
their nature, and more worthy of that distinguished university.
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 1 1 .
90
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I .
It is but justice to add, also, that the replies of Columbus had
great weight with many of his learned examiners. In answer to
the Scriptural objections, he submitted that the inspired writers
were not speaking technically as cosmographers, but figuratively,
in language addressed to all comprehensions. The commentaries
of the fathers he treated with deference as pious homilies, but not
as philosophical propositions which it was necessary either to
admit or refute. The objections drawn from ancient philosophers
he met boldly and ably upon equal terms; for he was deeply
studied on all points of cosmography. He showed that the most
illustrious of those sages believed both hemispheres to be inhabi
table, though they imagined that the torrid zone precluded com
munication ; and he obviated conclusively that difficulty; for he
had voyaged to St. George la Mina in Guinea, almost under the
equinoctial line, and had found that region not merely traversable,
but abounding in population, in fruits and pasturage.
“When Columbus took his stand before this learned body, he
had appeared the plain and simple navigator ; somewhat daunted,
perhaps, by the greatness of his task, and the august nature of
his auditory. But he had a degree of religious feeling which
gave him a confidence in the execution of what he conceived his
great errand, and he was of an ardent temperament that became
heated in action by its own generous fires. Las Casas, and others
of his contemporaries, have spoken of his commanding person,
his elevated demeanor, his air of authority, his kindling eye, and
the persuasive intonations of hi3 voice. How must they have
given majesty and force to his words, as, casting aside his maps
and charts, and discarding for a time his practical and scientific
lore, his visionary spirit took fire at the doctrinal objections of his
opponents, and he met them upon their own ground, pouring forth
CHAP. III.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
9 1
those magnificent texts of Scripture, and those mysterious predic
tions of the prophets, which, in his enthusiastic moments, he con
sidered as types and annunciations of the sublime discovery which
he proposed!
Among the number who were convinced by the reasoning, and
warmed by the eloquence of Columbus, was Diego de Deza, a
worthy and learned friar of the order of St. Dominick, at that
time professor of theology in the convent of St. Stephen, but who
became afterwards archbishop of Seville, the second ecclesiastical
dignitary of Spain. This able and erudite divine was a man
whose mind was above the narrow bigotry of bookish lore; one
who could appreciate the value of wisdom even when uttered by
unlearned lips. He was not a mere passive auditor; he took a
generous interest in the cause, and by seconding Columbus with
all his powers, calmed the blind zeal of his more bigoted brethren,
so as to obtain for him a dispassionate, if not an unprejudiced,
hearing. By their united efforts, it is said, they brought over
the most learned men of the schools.* One great difficulty
was to reconcile the plan of Columbus with the cosmography of
Ptolemy, to which all scholars yielded implicit faith. How would
the most enlightened of those sages have been astonished, had
any one apprised them that the man, Copernicus, was then in ex
istence, whose solar system should reverse the grand theory of
Ptolemy, which stationed the earth in the centre of the universe !
Notwithstanding every exertion, however, there was a prepon
derating mass of inert bigotry, and learned pride, in this erudite
body, which refused to yield to the demonstrations of an obscure
foreigner, without fortune or connections, or any academic honors.
* Remesal, Hist. de Chiapa, lib. xi. cap. 7.
92
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I .
“ I t was requisite,” says Las Casas, “before Columbus could
make his solutions and reasonings understood, that he should re
move from his auditors those erroneous principles on which their
objections were founded; a task always more difficult than that
of teaching the doctrine.” Occasional conferences took place, but
without producing any decision. The ignorant, or what is worse,
the prejudiced, remained obstinate in their opposition, with the
dogged perseverance of dull men; the more liberal and intelli
gent felt little interest in discussions wearisome in themselves, and
foreign to their ordinary pursuits; even those who listened with
approbation to the plan, regarded it only as a delightful vision, full
of probability and promise, but one which never could be realized.
Fernando de Talavera, to whom the matter was especially intrusted,
had too little esteem for it, and was too much occupied with the
stir and bustle of public concerns, to press it to a conclusion ; and
thus the inquiry experienced continual procrastination and neglect.
CHAP. I V . ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
93
C H A P T E R IV.
FURTHER APPLICATIONS AT THE COURT OF CASTILE.- COLUM
BUS FOLLOWS THE COURT IN ITS CAMPAIGNS.
T H E Castilian court departed from Salamanca early in the spring
of 1487 and repaired to Cordova, to prepare for the memorable
campaign against Malaga. Fernando de Talavera, now bishop
of Avila, accompanied the queen as her confessor, and as one of
her spiritual counselors in the concerns of the war. The consulta
tions of the board at Salamanca were interrupted by this event,
before that learned body could come to a decision, and for a long
time Columbus was kept in suspense, vainly awaiting the report
that was to decide the fate of his application.
It has generally been supposed that the several years which
he wasted in irksome solicitation, were spent in the drowsy and
monotonous attendance of antechambers ; but it appears, on the
contrary, that they were often passed amidst scenes of peril and
adventure, and that, in following up his suit, he was led into some
of the most striking situations of this wild, rugged, and moun
tainous war. Several times he was summoned to attend confer
ences in the vicinity of the sovereigns, when besieging cities in
the very heart of the Moorish dominions; but the tempest of
warlike affairs, which hurried the court from place to place and
94
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I .
gave it all the bustle and confusion of a camp, prevented those
conferences from taking place, and swept away all concerns that
were not immediately connected with the war. Whenever the
court had an interval of leisure and repose, there would again be
manifested a disposition to consider his proposal, but the hurry
and tempest would again return and the question be again swept
away.
The spring campaign of 1487, which took place shortly after
the conference at Salamanca, was full of incident and peril.
King Ferdinand had nearly been surprised and cut off by the
old Moorish monarch before Velez Malaga, and the queen and
all the court at Cordova were for a time in an agony of terror
and suspense until assured of his safety.
When the sovereigns were subsequently encamped before the
city of Malaga, pressing its memorable siege, Columbus was
summoned to the court. He found it drawn up in its silken
pavilions on a rising ground, commanding the fertile valley of
Malaga; the encampments of the warlike nobility of Spain
extended in a semicircle on each side, to the shores of the sea,
strongly fortified, glittering with the martial pomp of that
chivalrous age and nation, and closely investing that important
city.
The siege was protracted for several months, but the vigorous
defence of the Moors, their numerous stratagems, and fierce and
frequent sallies, allowed but little leisure in the camp. In the
course of this siege, the application of Columbus to the sovereigns
was nearly brought to a violent close; a fanatic Moor having
attempted to assassinate Ferdinand and Isabella. Mistaking one
of the gorgeous pavilions of the nobility for the royal tent, he
attacked Don Alvaro de Portugal, and Doña Beatrix de Boba-
CHAP. I V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
95
dilla, marchioness of Moya, instead of the king and queen. After
wounding Don Alvaro dangerously, he was foiled in a blow aimed
at the marchioness, and immediately cut to pieces by the attend
ants.* The lady here mentioned was of extraordinary merit and
force of character. She eventually took a great interest in the
suit of Columbus, and had much influence in recommending it to
the queen, with whom she was a particular favorite.†
Malaga surrendered on the 18th of August, 1487. There
appears to have been no time during its stormy siege to attend to
the question of Columbus, though Fernando de Talavera, the
bishop of Avila, was present, as appears by his entering the cap
tured city in solemn and religious triumph. The campaign being
ended, the court returned to Cordova, but was almost immediately
driven from that city by the pestilence.
For upwards of a year the court was in a state of continual
migration; part of the time in Saragossa, part of the time invad
ing the Moorish territories by the way of Murcia, and part of the
time in Valladolid and Medina del Campo. Columbus attended
it in some of its movements, but it was vain to seek a quiet and
attentive hearing from a court surrounded by the din of arms,
and continually on the march. Wearied and discouraged by
these delays, he began to think of applying elsewhere for patron
age, and appears to have commenced negotiations with King
John I I for a return to Portugal. He wrote to that monarch on
the subject, and received a letter in reply dated 20th of March,
1488, inviting him to return to his court, and assuring him of
protection from any suits of either a civil or criminal nature, that
* Pulgar, Cronica, cap. 87. P. Martyr,
† Retrato del Buen Vassallo, lib. ii. cap. 16.
96
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
might be pending against him. He received, also, a letter from
Henry V I I of England, inviting him to that country, and holding
out promises of encouragement.
There must have been strong hopes, authorized about this
time by the conduct of the Spanish sovereigns, to induce Colum
bus to neglect these invitations; and we find ground for such a
supposition in a memorandum of a sum of money paid to him by
the treasurer Gonzalez, to enable him to comply with a summons
to attend the Castilian court. By the date of this memorandum,
the payment must have been made immediately after Columbus
had received the letter of the king of Portugal. It would seem
to have been the aim of King Ferdinand to prevent his carrying
his proposition to another and a rival monarch, and to keep the
matter in suspense, until he should have leisure to examine it,
and, if advisable, to carry it into operation.
In the spring of 1489, the long-adjourned investigation ap
peared to be on the eve of taking place. Columbus was sum
moned to attend a conference of learned men, to be held in the
city of Seville ; a royal order was issued for lodgings to be pro
vided for him there; and the magistrates of all cities and towns
through which he might pass, on his way, were commanded to
furnish accommodations gratis, for himself and his attendants.
A provision of the kind was necessary in those days, when even
the present wretched establishments, called posadas, for the recep
tion of travelers, were scarcely known.
The city of Seville complied with the royal command, but as
usual the appointed conference was postponed, being interrupted
by the opening of a campaign, “ in which,” says an old chronicler
of the place, “the same Columbus was found fighting, giving
CHAP. I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
97
proofs of the distinguished valor which accompanied his wisdom
and his lofty desires."*
The campaign in which Columbus is here said to have borne
so honorable a part, was one of the most glorious of the war of
Granada. Queen Isabella attended with all her court, including
as usual a stately train of prelates and friars, among whom is
particularly mentioned the procrastinating arbiter of the preten
sions of Columbus, Fernando de Talavera. Much of the success
of the campaign is ascribed to the presence and counsel of Isa
bella. The city of Baza, which was closely besieged and had
resisted valiantly for upwards of six months, surrendered soon
after her arrival; and on the 22d of December, Columbus beheld
Muley Boabdil, the elder of the two rival kings of Granada, sur
render in person all his remaining possessions, and his right to
the crown, to the Spanish sovereigns.
During this siege a circumstance took place which appears to
have made a deep impression on the devout and enthusiastic
spirit of Columbus. Two reverend friars arrived one day at the
Spanish camp, and requested admission to the sovereigns on
business of great moment. They were two of the brethren of
the convent established at the holy sepulchre at Jerusalem.
They brought a message from the Grand Soldan of Egypt,
threatening to put to death all the Christians in his dominions, to
lay waste their convents and churches, and to destroy the sepul-
ehre, if the sovereigns did not desist from the war against Gra
nada. The menace had no effect in altering the purpose of the
sovereigns, but Isabella granted a yearly and perpetual sum of
* Diego Ortiz de Zuniga. Ann. de Sevilla, lib. xii, anno 1489, p. 404.
VOL. I.
a
98
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
one thousand ducats in gold,* for the support of the monks who
had charge of the sepulchre; and sent a veil, embroidered with
her own hands, to be hung up at its shrine.†
The representations of these friars of the sufferings and indig
nities to which Christians were subjected in the Holy Land, toge
ther with the arrogant threat of the Soldan, roused the pious
indignation of the Spanish cavaliers, and many burned with
ardent zeal once more to revive the contests of the faith on the
sacred plains of Palestine. It was probably from conversation
with these friars, and from the pious and chivalrous zeal thus
awakened in the warrior throng around him, that Columbus first
conceived an enthusiastic idea, or rather made a kind of mental
vow, which remained more or less present to his mind until the
very day of his death. He determined that, should his projected
enterprise be successful, he would devote the profits arising from
his anticipated discoveries, to a crusade for the rescue of the holy
sepulchre from the power of the Infidels.
If the bustle and turmoil of this campaign prevented the
intended conference, the concerns of Columbus fared no better
during the subsequent rejoicings. Ferdinand and Isabella en
tered Seville in February, 1490, with great pomp and triumph.
There were then preparations made for the marriage of their
eldest daughter, the Princess Isabella, with the Prince Don
Alonzo, heir apparent of Portugal. The nuptials were cele
brated in the month of April, with extraordinary splendor.
Throughout the whole winter and spring the court was in a
continual tumult of parade and pleasure, and nothing was to be
* Or 1423 dollars, equivalent to 4269 dollars in our time.
† Garabay, Compend. Hist. lib. xviii. cap. 36.
CHAP. I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
99
seen at Seville but feasts, tournaments, and torch-light proces
sions. What chance had Columbus of being heard amid these
alternate uproars of war and festivity ?
During this long course of solicitation he supported himself,
in part, by making maps and charts, and was occasionally assisted
by the purse of the worthy friar Diego de Deza. It is due to
the sovereigns to say, also, that whenever he was summoned to
follow the movements of the court, or to attend any appointed
consultation, he was attached to the royal suite, and lodgings
were provided for him and sums issued to defray his expenses.
Memorandums of several of these sums still exist in the book of
accounts of the royal treasurer, Francisco Gonzalez, of Seville,
which has lately been found in the archives of Simancas; and it
is from these minutes that we have been enabled, in some degree,
to follow the movements of Columbus during his attendance upon
this rambling and warlike court.
During all this time he was exposed to continual scoffs and
indignities, being ridiculed by the light and ignorant as a mere
dreamer, and stigmatized by the illiberal as an adventurer. The
very children, it is said, pointed to their foreheads as he passed,
being taught to regard him as a kind of madman.
The summer of 1490 passed away, but still Columbus was
kept in tantalizing and tormenting suspense. The subsequent
winter was not more propitious. He was lingering at Cordova
in a state of irritating anxiety, when he learnt that the sovereigns
were preparing to depart on a campaign in the Vega of Granada,
with a determination never to raise their camp from before that
city, until their victorious banners should float upon its towers.
Columbus was aware that when once the campaign was
opened and the sovereigns were in the field, it would be in vain
a 2
100
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
to expect any attention to his suit. He was wearied, if not
incensed, at the repeated postponements he had experienced, by
which several years had been consumed. He now pressed for a
decisive reply with an earnestness that would not admit of eva
sion. Fernando de Talavera, therefore, was called upon by the
sovereigns to hold a definitive conference with the scientific men
to whom the project had been referred, and to make a report
of their decision. The bishop tardily complied, and at length
reported to their majesties, as the general opinion of the Junto,
that the proposed scheme was vain and impossible, and that it
did not become such great princes to engage in an enterprise of
the kind on such weak grounds as had been advanced.*
Notwithstanding this unfavorable report, the sovereigns were
unwilling to close the door upon a project which might be pro
ductive of such important advantages. Many of the learned
members of the Junto also were in its favor, particularly Fray
Diego de Deza, tutor to Prince Juan, who from his situation and
clerical character had access to the royal ear, and exerted himself
strenuously in counteracting the decision of the board. A degree
of consideration, also, had gradually grown up at court for the
enterprise, and many men, distinguished for rank and merit, had
become its advocates. Fernando de Talavera, therefore, was
commanded to inform Columbus, who was still at Cordova, that
the great cares and expenses of the wars rendered it impossible
for the sovereigns to engage in any new enterprise; but that
when the war was concluded they would have both time and
inclination to treat with him about what he proposed.†
This was but a starved reply to receive after so many days
of weary attendance, anxious expectation, and deferred hope;
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 2. † Idem, ubi sup.
CHAP. I V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
1 0 1
Columbus was unwilling to receive it at second hand, and re
paired to the court at Seville to learn his fate from the lips of
the sovereigns. Their reply was virtually the same, declining to
engage in the enterprise for the present, but holding out hopes of
patronage when relieved from the cares and expenses of the war.
Columbus looked upon this indefinite postponement as a mere
courtly mode of evading his importunity, and supposed that the
favorable dispositions of the sovereigns had been counteracted by
the objections of the ignorant and bigoted. Renouncing all fur
ther confidence, therefore, in vague promises, which had so often
led to disappointment, and giving up all hopes of countenance
from the throne, he turned his back upon Seville, indignant at
the thoughts of having been beguiled out of so many precious
years of waning existence.
102
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
C H A P T E R V .
COLUMBUS AT THE CONVENT OF LA R A B I D A .
A B O U T half a league from the little sea-port of Palos de Moguer
in Andalusia there stood, and continues to stand at the present
day, an ancient convent of Franciscan friars, dedicated to Santa
Maria de Rabida. One day a stranger on foot, in humble guise,
but of a distinguished air, accompanied by a small boy, stopped
at the gate of the convent, and asked of the porter a little
bread and water for his child. While receiving this humble
refreshment, the prior of the convent, Juan Perez de Marchena,
happening to pass by, was struck with the appearance of the
stranger, and observing from his air and accent that he was a
foreigner, entered into conversation with him, and soon learned
the particulars of his story. That stranger was Columbus.* He
was on his way to the neighboring town of Huelva, to seek
his brother-in-law, who had married a sister of his deceased wife.†
* “ Lo dicho Almirante Colon veniendo á la Rabida, que es un monastério
de frailes en esta villa, el qual d e m a n d ó á la porteria que le diesen para aquel
niñico, que era niño, pan i agua que bebiese.” The testimony of Garcia Fer-
nandez exists in manuscript among the multifarious writings of the Pleito or
lawsuit, which are preserved at Seville. I have made use of an authenticated
extract, copied for the late historian, Juan Baut. Muñoz.
† Probably Pedro Correa, already mentioned, from whom he had received
information of signs of land in the west, observed near Puerto Santo.
CHAP. V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
103
The prior was a man of extensive information. His attention
had been turned in some measure to geographical and nautical
science, probably from his vicinity to Palos, the inhabitants of
which were among the most enterprising navigators of Spain, and
made frequent voyages to the recently discovered islands and
countries on the African coast. He was greatly interested by the
conversation of Columbus, and struck with the grandeur of his
views. It was a remarkable occurrence in the monotonous life
of the cloister, to have a man of such singular character, intent
on so extraordinary an enterprise, applying for bread and water
at the gate of his convent.
When he found, however, that the voyager was on the point of
abandoning Spain to seek patronage in the court of France, and
that so important an enterprise was about to be lost for ever to
the country, the patriotism of the good friar took the alarm. He
detained Columbus as his guest, and, diffident of his own judg
ment, sent for a scientific friend to converse with him. That
friend was Garcia Fernandez, a physician, resident in Palos, the
same who furnishes this interesting testimony. Fernandez was
equally struck with the appearance and conversation of the
stranger; several conferences took place at the convent, at which
several of the veteran mariners of Palos were present. Among
these was Martin Alonzo Pinzon, the head of a family of
wealthy and experienced navigators of the place, celebrated for
their adventurous expeditions. Facts were related by some of
these navigators in support of the theory of Columbus. In a
word, his project was treated with a deference in the quiet
cloisters of La Rabida, and among the seafaring men of Palos,
which had been sought in vain among the sages and philoso
phers of the court. Martin Alonzo Pinzon, especially, was so
1 0 4
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
convinced of its feasibility that he offered to engage in it with
purse and person, and to bear the expenses of Columbus in a
renewed application to the court.
Friar Juan Perez was confirmed in his faith by the concur
rence of those learned and practical councilors. He had once
been confessor to the queen, and knew that she was always ac
cessible to persons of his sacred calling. He proposed to write to
her immediately on the subject, and entreated Columbus to delay
his journey until an answer could be received. The latter was
easily persuaded, for he felt as if, in leaving Spain, he was again
abandoning his home. He was also reluctant to renew, in ano
ther court, the vexations and disappointments experienced in
Spain and Portugal.
The little council at the convent of La Rabida now cast
round their eyes for an ambassador to depart upon this momen
tous mission. They chose one Sebastian Rodriguez, a pilot of
Lepe, one of the most shrewd and important personages in this
maritime neighborhood. The queen was, at this time, at Santa
Fé, the military city which had been built in the Vega before
Granada, after the conflagration of the royal camp. The honest
pilot acquitted himself faithfully, expeditiously, and successfully,
in his embassy. He found access to the benignant princess, and
delivered the epistle of the friar. Isabella had always been
favorably disposed to the proposition of Columbus. She wrote in
reply to Juan Perez, thanking him for his timely services, and
requesting that he would repair immediately to the court, leaving
Christopher Columbus in confident hope until he should hear
further from her. This royal letter was brought back by the
pilot at the end of fourteen days, and spread great joy in the little
junto at the convent. No sooner did the warm-hearted friar
CHAP. V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
1 0 5
receive it, than he saddled his mule, and departed privately, before
midnight, for the court. He journeyed through the conquered
countries of the Moors, and rode into the newly-erected city of
Santa Fé, where the sovereigns were superintending the close in
vestment of the capital of Granada.
The sacred office of Juan Perez gained him a ready entrance
in a court distinguished for religious zeal; and, once admitted to
the presence of the queen, his former relation, as father confessor,
gave him great freedom of counsel. He pleaded the cause of
Columbus with characteristic enthusiasm, speaking, from actual
knowledge, of his honorable motives, his professional knowledge
and experience, and his perfect capacity to fulfill the undertaking;
he represented the solid principles upon which the enterprise was
founded, the advantage that must attend its success, and the glory
it must shed upon the Spanish crown. It is probable that Isabella
had never heard the proposition urged with such honest zeal and
impressive eloquence. Being naturally more sanguine and sus
ceptible than the king, and more open to warm and generous im
pulses, she was moved by the representations of Juan Perez,
which were warmly seconded by her favorite, the Marchioness of
Moya, who entered into the affair with a woman's disinterested en
thusiasm.* The queen requested that Columbus might be again
sent to her, and, with the kind considerateness which characterized
her, bethinking herself of his poverty, and his humble plight,
ordered that twenty thousand maravedies† in florins should be
forwarded to him, to bear his traveling expenses, to provide him
with a mule for his journey, and to furnish him with decent
* Retrato del Buen Vasallo, lib. ii. cap. 16.
† Or 72 dollars, and equivalent to 216 dollars of the present day.
1 0 6
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
raiment, that he might make a respectable appearance at the
court.
The worthy friar lost no time in communicating the result of
his mission; he transmitted the money, and a letter, by the hands
of an inhabitant of Palos, to the physician Garcia Fernandez,
who delivered them to Columbus. The latter complied with the
instructions conveyed in the epistle. He exchanged his thread
bare garb for one more suited to the sphere of a court, and, pur
chasing a mule, set out once more, reanimated by hopes, for the
camp before Granada.*
* Most of the particulars of this visit of Columbus to the convent of La
Rabida are from the testimony rendered by Garcia Fernandez in the lawsuit
between Diego, the son of Columbus, and the crown
CHAP. V I ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
1 0 7
C H A P T E R V I .
APPLICATION TO THE COURT AT THE TIME OF THE SURRENDER
OF GRANADA.
[1492]
WHEN Columbus arrived at the court, he experienced a favorable
reception, and was given in hospitable charge to his steady friend
Alonzo de Quintanilla, the accountant-general. The moment,
however, was too eventful for his business to receive immediate
attention. He arrived in time to witness the memorable surren
der of Granada to the Spanish arms. He beheld Boabdil, the last
of the Moorish kings, sally forth from the Alhambra, and yield
up the keys of that favorite seat of Moorish power; while the
king and queen, with all the chivalry, and rank, and magnificence
of Spain, moved forward in proud and solemn procession, to
receive this token of submission. It was one of the most brilliant
triumphs in Spanish history. After near eight hundred years of
painful struggle, the crescent was completely cast down, the cross
exalted in its place, and the standard of Spain was seen floating
on the highest tower of the Alhambra. The whole court and
army were abandoned to jubilee. The air resounded with shouts
of joy, with songs of triumph, and hymns of thanksgiving. On
every side were beheld military rejoicings and religious oblations;
for it was considered a triumph, not merely of arms, but of Chris-
1 0 8
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
tianity. The king and queen moved in the midst, in more than
common magnificence, while every eye regarded them as more
than mortal; as if sent by Heaven for the salvation and building
up of Spain.* The court was thronged by the most illustrious
of that warlike country, and stirring era; by the flower of its
nobility, by the most dignified of its prelacy, by bards and min-
strels, and all the retinue of a romantic and picturesque age.
There was nothing but the glittering of arms, the rustling of
robes, the sound of music and festivity.
Do we want a picture of our navigator during this brilliant
and triumphant scene? It is furnished by a Spanish writer.
“ A man obscure and but little known followed at this time the
court. Confounded in the crowd of importunate applicants, feed-
ing his imagination in the corners of antechambers with the pom-
pous project of discovering a world, melancholy and dejected in
the midst of the general rejoicing, he beheld with indifference,
and almost with contempt, the conclusion of a conquest which
swelled all bosoms with jubilee, and seemed to have reached the
utmost bounds of desire. That man was Christopher Columbus.”t
The moment had now arrived, however, when the monarchs
stood pledged to attend to his proposals. The war with the
Moors was at an end, Spain was delivered from its intruders,
and its sovereigns might securely turn their views to foreign
enterprise. They kept their word with Columbus. Persons of
confidence were appointed to negotiate with him, among whom
was Fernando de Talavera, who, by the recent conquest, had
risen to be archbishop of Granada. At the very outset of their
* Mariana, Hist. de España, lib. xxv. cap. 18.
† Clemencin, Elogio de la Reina Catolica, p. 20.
CHAP. V I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
109
negotiation, however, unexpected difficulties arose. So fully-
imbued was Columbus with the grandeur of his enterprise, that
he would listen to none but princely conditions. His principal
stipulation was, that he should be invested with the titles and
privileges of admiral and viceroy over the countries he should
discover, with one-tenth of all gains, either by trade or conquest.
The courtiers who treated with him were indignant at such a
demand. Their pride was shocked to see one, whom they had
considered as a needy adventurer, aspiring to rank and dignities
superior to their own. One observed with a sneer that it was a
shrewd arrangement which he proposed, whereby he was secure,
at all events, of the honor of a command, and had nothing to lose
in case of failure. To this Columbus promptly replied, by offer
ing to furnish one-eighth of the cost, on condition of enjoying an
eighth of the profits. To do this, he no doubt calculated on the
proffered assistance of Martin Alonzo Pinzon, the wealthy navi
gator of Palos.
His terms, however, were pronounced inadmissible. Fer
nando de Talavera had always considered Columbus a dreaming
speculator, or a needy applicant for bread ; but to see this man,
who had for years been an indigent and threadbare solicitor in
his antechamber, assuming so lofty a tone, and claiming an office
that approached to the awful dignity of the throne, excited the
astonishment as well as the indignation of the prelate. He rep
resented to Isabella, that it would be degrading to the dignity of
so illustrious a crown to lavish such distinguished honors upon a
nameless stranger. Such terms, he observed, even in case of
success, would be exorbitant; but in case of failure, would be
cited with ridicule, as evidence of the gross credulity of the
Spanish monarchs.
110
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
Isabella was always attentive to the opinions of her ghostly
advisers, and the archbishop, being her confessor, had peculiar
influence. His suggestions checked her dawning favor. She
thought the proposed advantages might be purchased at too great
a price. More moderate conditions were offered to Columbus,
and such as appeared highly honorable and advantageous. It
was all in vain; he would not cede one point of his demands, and
the negotiation was broken off.
It is impossible not to admire the great constancy of purpose
and loftiness of spirit displayed by Columbus, ever since he had
conceived the sublime idea of his discovery. More than eighteen
years had elapsed since his correspondence with Paulo Toscanelli
of Florence, wherein he had announced his design. The greatest
part of that time had been consumed in applications at various
courts. During that period, what poverty, neglect, ridicule, con
tumely, and disappointment had he not suffered! Nothing, how
ever, could shake his perseverance, nor make him descend to
terms which he considered beneath the dignity of his enterprise.
In all his negotiations he forgot his present obscurity, he forgot
his present indigence ; his ardent imagination realized the magni
tude of his contemplated discoveries, and he felt himself nego
tiating about empire.
Though so large a portion of his life had worn away in
fruitless solicitings; though there was no certainty that the same
weary career was not to be entered upon at any other court; yet
so indignant was he at the repeated disappointments he had
experienced in Spain, that he determined to abandon it for ever,
rather than compromise his demands. Taking leave of his
friends, therefore, he mounted his mule, and sallied forth from
Santa Fé in the beginning of February, 1492, on his way
CHAP. V I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
111
to Cordova, whence he intended to depart immediately for
France.
When the few friends who were zealous believers in the
theory of Columbus saw him really on the point of abandoning
the country, they were filled with distress, considering his depart
ure an irreparable loss to the nation. Among the number was
Luis de St. Angel, receiver of the ecclesiastical revenues in
Arragon. Determined if possible to avert the evil, he obtained
an immediate audience of the queen, accompanied by Alonzo de
Quintanilla. The exigency of the moment gave him courage and
eloquence. He did not confine himself to entreaties, but almost
mingled reproaches, expressing astonishment that a queen who
had evinced the spirit to undertake so many great and perilous
enterprises, should hesitate at one where the loss could be so
trifling, while the gain might be incalculable. He reminded her
how much might be done for the glory of God, the exaltation of
the church, and the extension of her own power and dominion.
What cause of regret to herself, of triumph to her enemies, of
sorrow to her friends, should this enterprise, thus rejected by her,
be accomplished by some other power! He reminded her what
fame and dominion other princes had acquired by their discove
ries ; here was an opportunity to surpass them all. He entreated
her majesty not to be misled by the assertions of learned men,
that the project was the dream of a visionary. He vindicated
the judgment of Columbus, and the soundness and practicability
of his plans. Neither would even his failure reflect disgrace
upon the crown. It was worth the trouble and expense to clear
up even a doubt upon a matter of such importance, for it belonged
to enlightened and magnanimous princes to investigate questions
of the kind, and to explore the wonders and secrets of the uni-
112
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
verse. He stated the liberal offer of Columbus to bear an eighth
of the expense, and informed her that all the requisites for this
great enterprise consisted but of two vessels, and about three
thousand crowns.
These and many more arguments were urged with that per
suasive power which honest zeal imparts, and it is said the Mar
chioness of Moya, who was present, exerted her eloquence to per
suade the queen. The generous spirit of Isabella was enkindled.
It seemed as if, for the first time, the subject broke upon her mind
in its real grandeur, and she declared her resolution to undertake
the enterprise.
There was still a moment's hesitation. The king looked coldly
on the affair, and the royal finances were absolutely drained by
the war. Some time must be given to replenish them. How
could she draw on an exhausted treasury for a measure to which
the king was adverse! St. Angel watched this suspense with
trembling anxiety. The next moment reassured him. With an
enthusiasm worthy of herself, and of the cause, Isabella ex
claimed, “ I undertake the enterprise for my own crown of Castile,
and will pledge my jewels to raise the necessary funds.” This
was the proudest moment in the life of Isabella; it stamped her
renown for ever as the patroness of the discovery of the New
World.
St. Angel, eager to secure this noble impulse, assured her
majesty that there would be no need of pledging her jewels, as
he was ready to advance the necessary funds. His offer was
gladly accepted; the funds really came from the coffers of Arra
gon ; seventeen thousand florins were advanced by the accountant
of St. Angel out of the treasury of King Ferdinand. That pru
dent monarch, however, took care to have his kingdom indemni-
CHAP. V I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S . 1 1 3
fied some few years afterwards ; for in remuneration of this loan,
a part of the first gold brought by Columbus from the New World
was employed in gilding the vaults and ceilings of the royal
saloon in the grand palace of Saragoza, in Arragon, anciently the
Aljaferia, or abode of the Moorish kings.*
Columbus had pursued his lonely journey across the Vega
and reached the bridge of Pinos, about two leagues from Gra
nada, at the foot of the mountain of Elvira; a pass famous in
the Moorish wars for many a desperate encounter between the
Christians and infidels. Here he was overtaken by a courier
from the queen, spurring in all speed, who summoned him
to return to Santa Fé. He hesitated for a moment, being loth
to subject himself again to the delays and equivocations of the
court; when informed, however, of the sudden zeal for the
enterprise excited in the mind of the queen, and the positive
promise she had given to undertake it, he no longer felt a doubt,
but, turning the reins of his mule, hastened back, with joyful alac
rity to Santa Fé, confiding in the noble probity of that princess.
* Argensola, Anales de Arragon, lib. i. cap. 1 0 .
VOL. I.
H
1 1 4
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
C H A P T E R V I I .
ARRANGEMENT W I T H THE SPANISH SOVEREIGNS.- PREPARA
TIONS FOR THE EXPEDITION AT THE PORT OF PALOS.
[ 1 4 9 2 . J
ON arriving at Santa Fé, Columbus had an immediate audience
of the queen, and the benignity with which she received him
atoned for all past neglect. Through deference to the zeal she
thus suddenly displayed, the king yielded his tardy concurrence,
but Isabella was the soul of this grand enterprise. She was
prompted by lofty and generous enthusiasm, while the king proved
cold and calculating in this as in all his other undertakings.
A perfect understanding being thus effected with the sove
reigns, articles of agreement were ordered to be drawn out by
Juan de Coloma, the royal secretary. They were to the follow
ing effect:—
1. That Columbus should have, for himself during his life,
and his heirs and successors for ever, the office of admiral in all
the lands and continents which he might discover or acquire in
the ocean, with similar honors and prerogatives to those enjoyed
by the high admiral of Castile in his district.
2. That he should be viceroy and governor-general over all
CHAP. V I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S . 1 1 5
the said lands and continents; with the privilege of nominating
three candidates for the government of each island or province,
one of whom should be selected by the sovereigns.
3. That he should be entitled to reserve for himself one-tenth
of all pearls, precious stones, gold, silver, spices, and all other
articles and merchandises, in whatever manner found, bought,
bartered, or gained within his admiralty, the costs being first
deducted.
4. That he, or his lieutenant, should be the sole judge in all
causes and disputes arising out of traffic between those countries
and Spain, provided the high admiral of Castile had similar juris
diction in his district.
5. That he might then, and at all after times, contribute an
eighth part of the expense in fitting out vessels to sail on this en
terprise, and receive an eighth part of the profits.
The last stipulation, which admits Columbus to bear an eighth
of the enterprise, was made in consequence of his indignant
proffer, on being reproached with demanding ample emoluments
while incurring no portion of the charge. He fulfilled this en
gagement, through the assistance of the Pinzons of Palos, and
added a third vessel to the armament. Thus one-eighth of the
expense attendant on this grand expedition, undertaken by a
powerful nation, was actually borne by the individual who con
ceived it, and who likewise risked his life on its success.
The capitulations were signed by Ferdinand and Isabella, at
the city of Santa Fe, in the Vega or plain of Granada, on the
17th of April, 1492. A letter of privilege, or commission to
Columbus, of similar purport, was drawn out in form, and issued
by the sovereigns in the city of Granada, on the thirtieth of the
H 2
1 1 6
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I .
same month. In this, the dignities and prerogatives of viceroy
and governor were made hereditary in his family; and he and
his heirs were authorized to prefix the title of Don to their names ;
a distinction accorded in those days only to persons of rank and
estate, though it has since lost all value, from being universally
used in Spain.
All the royal documents issued on this occasion bore equally
the signatures of Ferdinand and Isabella, but her separate crown
of Castile defrayed all the expense ; and, during her life, few per
sons, except Castilians, were permitted to establish themselves in
the new territories.*
The port of Palos de Moguer was fixed upon as the place
where the armament was to be fitted out, Columbus calculating,
no doubt, on the co-operation of Martin Alonzo Pinzon, resident
there, and on the assistance of his zealous friend the prior of
the convent of La Rabida. Before going into the business de
tails of this great enterprise, it is due to the character of the
illustrious man who conceived and conducted it, most especially to
notice the elevated, even though visionary spirit by which he was
actuated. One of his principal objects was undoubtedly the pro
pagation of the Christian faith. He expected to arrive at the
extremity of Asia, and to open a direct and easy communication
with the vast and magnificent empire of the Grand Khan. The
conversion of that heathen potentate had, in former times, been a
favorite aim of various pontiffs and pious sovereigns, and various
missions had been sent to the remote regions of the East for that
purpose. Columbus now considered himself about to effect this
great work; to spread the light of revelation to the very ends of
the earth, and thus to be the instrument of accomplishing one of
* Charlevoix Hist. S. Domingo, lib. i. p. 7 9 .
CHAP. VII.]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
1 1 7
the sublime predictions of Holy Writ. Ferdinand listened with
complacency to these enthusiastic anticipations. With him, how-
ever, religion was subservient to interest; and he had found, in
the recent conquest of Granada, that extending the sway of the
church might be made a laudable means of extending his own
dominions. According to the doctrines of the day, every nation
that refused to acknowledge the truths of Christianity, was fair
spoil for a Christian invader; and it is probable that Ferdinand
was more stimulated by the accounts given of the wealth of
Mangi, Cathay, and other provinces belonging to the Grand Khan,
than by any anxiety for the conversion of him and his semi-
barbarous subjects.
Isabella had nobler inducements; she was filled with a pious
zeal at the idea of effecting such a great work of salvation.
From different motives, therefore, both of the sovereigns accorded
with the views of Columbus in this particular, and when he after-
wards departed on his voyage, letters were actually given him for
the Grand Khan of Tartary.
The ardent enthusiasm of Columbus did not stop here. An-
ticipating boundless wealth from his discoveries, he suggested
that the treasures thus acquired should be consecrated to the
pious purpose of rescuing the holy sepulchre of Jerusalem from
the power of the infidels. The sovereigns smiled at this sally of
the imagination, but expressed themselves well pleased with it,
and assured him that even without the funds he anticipated, they
should be well disposed to that holy undertaking.* What the
* Protestè a vuestras Altezas que toda la ganancia desta mi empresa se
gastase en la conquista de Jerusalem, y vuestras Altezas se rieron, y dijeron
que les placia, y que sin este tenian aquella gana. Primer Viage de Colon
Navarrete, tom. i. p. 1 1 7 .
1 1 8
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
king and queen, however, may have considered a mere sally of
momentary excitement, was a deep and cherished design of Co
lumbus. It is a curious and characteristic fact, which has never
been particularly noticed, that the recovery of the holy sepulchre
was one of the great objects of his ambition, meditated throughout
the remainder of his life, and solemnly provided for in his will.
In fact, he subsequently considered it the main work for which he
was chosen by Heaven as an agent, and that his great discovery
was but a preparatory dispensation of Providence to furnish
means for its accomplishment.
A home-felt mark of favor, characteristic of the kind and
considerate heart of Isabella, was accorded to Columbus before his
departure from the court. An albala, or letter-patent, was issued
by the queen on the 8th of May, appointing his son Diego page to
Prince Juan, the heir apparent, with an allowance for his support;
an honor granted only to the sons of persons of distinguished rank.*
Thus gratified in his dearest wishes, after a course of delays
and disappointments sufficient to have reduced any ordinary man
to despair, Columbus took leave of the court on the 12th of May,
and set out joyfully for Palos. Let those who are disposed to
faint under difficulties, in the prosecution of any great and worthy
undertaking, remember that eighteen years elapsed after the time
that Columbus conceived his enterprise, before he was enabled to
carry it into effect; that the greater part of that time was passed
in almost hopeless solicitation, amidst poverty, neglect, and taunt
ing ridicule; that the prime of his life had wasted away in the
struggle, and that when his perseverance was finally crowned
with success, he was about his fifty-sixth year. His example
should encourage the enterprising never to despair.
* Navarrete, Colec. de Viages, tom. ii. doc. 11.
CHAP. V I I I . C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S . 1 1 9
C H A P T E R VIII.
COLUMBUS AT THE POET OF PALOS.- PREPARATIONS FOE
THE VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY.
ON arriving at Palos, Columbus repaired immediately to the
neighboring convent of La Rabida, where he was received with
open arms by the worthy prior, Fray Juan Perez, and again
became his guest.* The port of Palos, for some misdemeanor,
had been condemned by the royal council to serve the crown for
one year with two armed caravels; and these were destined to
form part of the armament of Columbus, who was furnished with
the necessary papers and vouchers to enforce obedience in all
matters necessary for his expedition.
On the following morning, the 23d of May, Columbus, accom
panied by Fray Juan Perez, whose character and station gave
him great importance in the neighborhood, proceeded to the
church of St. George in Palos, where the alcalde, the regidors,
and many of the inhabitants of the place had been notified to
attend. Here, in presence of them all, in the porch of the
church, a royal order was read by a notary public, commanding
the authorities of Palos to have two caravels ready for sea within
ten days after this notice, and to place them and their crews at
the disposal of Columbus. The latter was likewise empowered
* Oviedo, Cronica de las Indias, lib. ii. cap. 5.
120
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
to procure and fit out a third vessel. The crews of all three
were to receive the ordinary wages of seamen employed in armed
vessels, and to be paid four months in advance. They were to
sail in such direction as Columbus, under the royal authority,
should command, and were to obey him in all things, with merely
one stipulation, that neither he nor they were to go to St. George
la Mina, on the coast of Guinea, nor any other of the lately
discovered possessions of Portugal. A certificate of their good
conduct, signed by Columbus, was to be the discharge of their
obligation to the crown.*
Orders were likewise read, addressed to the public authorities,
and the people of all ranks and conditions, in the maritime bor
ders of Andalusia, commanding them to furnish supplies and
assistance of all kinds, at reasonable prices, for the fitting out of
the vessels; and penalties were denounced on such as should
cause any impediment. No duties were to be exacted for any
articles furnished to the vessels; and all criminal processes
against the person or property of any individual engaged in the
expedition was to be suspended during his absence, and for two
months after his return.†
With these orders the authorities promised implicit compli
ance ; but, when the nature of the intended expedition came to
be known, astonishment and dismay fell upon the little commu
nity. The ships and crews demanded for such a desperate ser
vice were regarded in the light of sacrifices. The owners of
vessels refused to furnish them; the boldest seamen shrank from
such a wild and chimerical cruise into the wilderness of the
ocean. All kinds of frightful tales and fables were conjured up
concerning the unknown regions of the deep; and nothing can be
* Navarrete, Colec. de Viages, torn. ii. doc. 6 † Idem, doc. 8, 9 .
CHAP. V I I I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
121
a stronger evidence of the boldness of this undertaking than the
extreme dread of it in a community composed of some of the
most adventurous navigators of the age.
Weeks elapsed without a vessel being procured, or any thing
else being done in fulfillment of the royal orders. Further
mandates were therefore issued by the sovereigns, ordering the
magistrates of the coast of Andalusia to press into the service any
vessels they might think proper, belonging to Spanish subjects,
and to oblige the masters and crews to sail with Columbus in
whatever direction he should be sent by royal command. Juan
de Peñalosa, an officer of the royal household, was sent to see
that this order was properly complied with, receiving two hun-
dred maravedis a day as long as he was occupied in the busi-
ness, which sum, together with other penalties expressed in the
mandate, was to be exacted from such as should be disobedient
and delinquent. This letter was acted upon by Columbus in
Palos and the neighboring town of Moguer, but apparently with
as little success as the preceding. The communities of those
places were thrown into complete confusion ; tumults took place;
but nothing of consequence was effected. At length Martin
Alonzo Pinzon stepped forward, with his brother Vicente Yañez
Pinzon; both navigators of great courage and ability, owners of
vessels, and having seamen in their employ. They were related,
also, to many of the seafaring inhabitants of Palos and Moguer,
and had great influence throughout the neighborhood. They
engaged to sail on the expedition, and furnished one of the ves-
sels required. Others, with their owners and crews, were pressed
into the service by the magistrates under the arbitrary mandate
of the sovereigns; and it is a striking instance of the despotic
authority exercised over commerce in those times, that respectable
122
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK II.
individuals should thus be compelled to engage, with persons and
ships, in what appeared to them a mad and desperate enterprise.
During the equipment of the vessels, troubles and difficulties
arose among the seamen who had been compelled to embark.
These were fomented and kept up by Gomez Rascon and Chris-
toval Quintero, owners of the Pinta, one of the ships pressed into
the service. All kinds of obstacles were thrown in the way, by
these people and their friends, to retard or defeat the voyage.
The calkers employed upon the vessels did their work in a
careless and imperfect manner, and on being commanded to
do it over again absconded.* Some of the seamen who had
enlisted willingly repented of their hardihood, or were dissuaded
by their relatives, and sought to retract; others deserted and
concealed themselves. Every thing had to be effected by the
most harsh and arbitrary measures, and in defiance of popular
prejudice and opposition.
The influence and example of the Pinzons had a great effect
in allaying this opposition, and inducing many of their friends
and relatives to embark. It is supposed that they had furnished
Columbus with funds to pay the eighth part of the expense which
he was bound to advance. It is also said that Martin Alonzo
Pinzon was to divide with him his share of the profits. As no
immediate profit, however, resulted from this expedition, no claim
of the kind was ever brought forward. It is certain, however,
that the assistance of the Pinzons was all-important, if not indis
pensable, in fitting out and launching the expedition.†
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 77, M S .
† These facts concerning the Pinzons are mostly taken from the testimony
given, many years afterwards, in a suit between Don Diego, the son of
Columbus, and the crown.
CHAP. V I I I ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
123
After the great difficulties made by various courts in patroniz
ing this enterprise, it is surprising how inconsiderable an arma
ment was required. It is evident that Columbus had reduced his
requisitions to the narrowest limits, lest any great expense should
cause impediment. Three small vessels were apparently all that
he had requested. Two of them were light barks, called caravels,
not superior to river and coasting craft of more modern days.
Representations of this class of vessels exist in old prints and
paintings.* They are delineated as open, and without deck in
the centre, but built up high at the prow and stern, with fore
castles and cabins for the accommodation of the crew. Peter
Martyr, the learned contemporary of Columbus, says that only
one of the three vessels was decked. The smallness of the ves
sels was considered an advantage by Columbus, in a voyage of
discovery, enabling him to run close to the shores, and to enter
shallow rivers and harbors. In his third voyage, when coasting
the Gulf of Paria, he complained of the size of his ship, being
nearly a hundred tons burthen. But that such long and perilous
expeditions, into unknown seas, should be undertaken in vessels
without decks, and that they should live through the violent tem
pests, by which they were frequently assailed, remain among the
singular circumstances of these daring voyages.
At length, by the beginning of August, every difficulty was
vanquished, and the vessels were ready for sea. The largest,
which had been prepared expressly for the voyage, and was
decked, was called the Santa Maria: on board of this ship Colum
bus hoisted his flag. The second, called the Pinta, was com
manded by Martin Alonzo Pinzon, accompanied by his brother
* See Illustrations, article “ Ships of Columbus.”
124
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S , E T C
[BOOK II.
Francisco Martin, as pilot. The third, called the Nina, had
latine sails, and was commanded by the third of the brothers,
Vicente Yañez Pinzon. There were three other pilots, Sancho
Ruiz, Pedro Alonzo Niño, and Bartolomeo Roldan. Roderigo
Sanchez of Segovia was inspector-general of the armament, and
Diego de Arana, a native of Cordova, chief alguazil. Roderigo
de Escobar went as royal notary, an officer always sent in the
armaments of the crown, to take official notes of all transactions.
There were also a physician and a surgeon, together with various
private adventurers, several servants, and ninety mariners;
making, in all, one hundred and twenty persons.*
The squadron being ready to put to sea, Columbus, impressed
with the solemnity of his undertaking, confessed himself to the
friar Juan Perez, and partook of the sacrament of the communion.
His example was followed by his officers and crew, and they
entered upon their enterprise full of awe, and with the most de-
vout and affecting ceremonials, committing themselves to the
especial guidance and protection of Heaven. A deep gloom was
spread over the whole community of Palos at their departure, for
almost every one had some relative or friend on board of the
squadron. The spirits of the seamen, already depressed by their
own fears, were still more cast down at the affliction of those they
left behind, who took leave of them with tears and lamentations,
and dismal forebodings, as of men they were never to behold
again.
* Charlevoix, Hist. St. Domingo, lib. i. Muñoz, Hist. Nuevo Mundo, lib. ii.
BOOK III.
C H A P T E R I.
DEPARTURE OF COLUMBUS ON HIS FIRST VOYAGE.
[1492.]
W H E N Columbus set sail on this memorable voyage, he com
menced a regular journal, intended for the inspection of the
Spanish sovereigns. Like all his other transactions, it evinces
how deeply he was impressed with the grandeur and solemnity
of his enterprise. He proposed to keep it, as he afterwards ob
served, in the manner of the Commentaries of Cesar. It opened
with a stately prologue, wherein, in the following words, were set
forth the motives and views which led to his expedition.
In nomine D. N. Jesu Christi. Whereas most Christian, most
high, most excellent and most powerful princes, king and queen
of the Spains, and of the islands of the sea, our sovereigns, in the
present year of 1492, after your highnesses had put an end to the
war with the Moors who ruled in Europe, and had concluded that
warfare in the great city of Granada, where, on the second of
January, of this present year, I saw the royal banners of your
highnesses placed by force of arms on the towers of the Alham
bra, which is the fortress of that city, and beheld the Moorish
king sally forth from the gates of the city, and kiss the royal
126
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I I .
hands of your highnesses and of my lord the prince; and imme
diately in that same month, in consequence of the information which
I had given to your highnesses of the lands of India, and of a
prince who is called the Grand Khan, which is to say in our lan
guage, king of kings; how that many times he and his predeces
sors had sent to Rome to entreat for doctors of our holy faith, to
instruct him in the same; and that the holy father had never pro
vided him with them, and thus so many people were lost, believ
ing in idolatries, and imbibing doctrines of perdition; therefore
your highnesses, as catholic Christians and princes, lovers and
promoters of the holy Christian faith, and enemies of the sect of
Mahomet, and of all idolatries and heresies, determined to send
me, Christopher Columbus, to the said parts of India, to see the
said princes, and the people and lands, and discover the nature
and disposition of them all, and the means to be taken for the
conversion of them to our holy faith; and ordered that I should
not go by land to the east, by which it is the custom to go, but by
a voyage to the west, by which course, unto the present time, we
do not know for certain that any one hath passed. Your high
nesses, therefore, after having expelled all the Jews from your
kingdoms and territories, commanded me, in the same month of
January, to proceed with a sufficient armament to the said parts
of India; and for this purpose bestowed great favors upon me,
ennobling me, that thenceforward I might style myself Don, ap
pointing me high admiral of the Ocean sea, and perpetual viceroy
and governor of all the islands and continents I should discover
and gain, and which henceforward may be discovered and gained
in the Ocean sea; and that my eldest son should succeed me, and
so on from generation to generation for ever. I departed, there
fore, from the city of Granada, on Saturday, the 12th of May, of
CHAP. I.]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
127
the same year 1492, to Palos, a seaport, where I armed three
ships, well calculated for such service, and sailed from that port
well furnished with provisions and with many seamen, on Friday,
the 3d of August, of the same year, half an hour before sunrise,
and took the route for the Canary Islands of your highnesses, to
steer my course thence, and navigate until I should arrive at the
Indies, and deliver the embassy of your highnesses to those
princes, and accomplish that which you had commanded. For
this purpose I intend to write during this voyage, very punctually
from day to day, all that I may do, and see, and experience, as
will hereafter be seen. Also, my sovereign princes, beside de-
scribing each night all that has occurred in the day, and in the
day the navigation of the night, I propose to make a chart, in
which I will set down the waters and lands of the Ocean sea in
their proper situations under their bearings ; and further, to com-
pose a book, and illustrate the whole in picture by latitude from
the equinoctial, and longitude from the west; and upon the whole
it will be essential that I should forget sleep and attend closely to
the navigation to accomplish these things, which will be a great
labor.”*
Thus are formally and expressly stated by Columbus the
objects of this extraordinary voyage. The material facts still
extant of his journal will be found incorporated in the present
work.†
* Navarrete, Colec. Viag., torn. i. p. 1.
† A n abstract of this journal, made by Las Casas, has recently been
discovered, and is published in the first volume of the collection of Señor
Navarrete. Many passages of this abstract had been previously inserted by
Las Casas in his History of the Indies, and the same journal had been copi-
onsly used by Fernando Columbus in the history of his father. In the present
128
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[Book III.
It was on Friday, the 3d of August, 1492, early in the morn-
ing, that Columbus set sail from the bar of Saltes, a small island
formed by the arms of the Odiel, in front of the town of Huelva,
steering in a southwesterly direction for the Canary islands,
whence it was his intention to strike due west. As a guide by
which to sail, he had prepared a map or chart, improved upon
that sent him by Paulo Toscanelli. Neither of those now exist,
but the globe or planisphere finished by Martin Behem in this
year of the admiral's first voyage is still extant, and furnishes an
idea of what the chart of Columbus must have been. It exhibits
the coasts of Europe and Africa from the south of Ireland to the
end of Guinea, and opposite to them, on the other side of the
Atlantic, the extremity of Asia, or, as it was termed, India.
Between them is placed the island of Cipango, or Japan, which,
according to Marco Polo, lay fifteen hundred miles distant from
the Asiatic coast. In his computations Columbus advanced this
island about a thousand leagues too much to the east, supposing
it to be about the situation of Florida ;* and at this island he
hoped first to arrive.
The exultation of Columbus at finding himself, after so many
account of this voyage, the author has made use of the journal contained in the
work of Señor Navarrete, the manuscript history of Las Casas, the History of
the Indies by Herrera, the Life of the Admiral by his son, the Chronicle of the
Indies by Oviedo, the manuscript history of Ferdinand and Isabella by Andres
Bernaldes, curate of Los Palacios, and the Letters and Decades of the Ocean
Sea, by Peter Martyr ; all of whom, with the exception of Herrera, were con-
temporaries and acquaintances of Columbus. These are the principal authori-
ties which have been consulted, though scattered lights have occasionally been
obtained from other sources.
* Malte-Brun, Geograph. Universelle, tom. ii. p. 283.
CHAP. I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
129
years of baffled hope, fairly launched on his grand enterprise,
was checked by his want of confidence in the resolution and per
severance of his crews. As long as he remained within reach of
Europe, there was no security that, in a moment of repentance
and alarm, they might not renounce the prosecution of the voy
age, and insist on a return. Symptoms soon appeared to warrant
his apprehensions. On the third day, the Pinta made signal of
distress; her rudder was discovered to be broken and unhung.
This Columbus surmised to be done through the contrivance of
the owners of the caravel, Gomez Eascon and Christoval Quin-
tero, to disable their vessel, and cause her to be left behind. As
has already been observed, they had been pressed into the service
greatly against their will, and their caravel seized upon for the
expedition, in conformity to the royal orders.
Columbus was much disturbed at this occurrence. It gave
him a foretaste of further difficulties to be apprehended from crews
partly enlisted on compulsion, and all full of doubt and fore
boding. Trivial obstacles might, in the present critical state of
his voyage, spread panic and mutiny through his ships, and
entirely defeat the expedition.
The wind was blowing strongly at the time, so that he could
not render assistance without endangering his own vessel. For
tunately, Martin Alonzo Pinzon commanded the Pinta, and
being an adroit and able seaman, succeeded in securing the rud
der with cords, so as to bring the vessel into management. This,
however, was but a temporary and inadequate expedient; the
fastenings gave way again on the following day, and the other
ships were obliged to shorten sail until the rudder could be
secured.
This damaged state of the Pinta, as well as her being in a
VOL. I.
i
130
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I I .
leaky condition, determined the admiral to touch at the Canary
islands, and seek a vessel to replace her. He considered himself
not far from those islands, though a different opinion was enter
tained by the pilots of the squadron. The event proved his
superiority in taking observations and keeping reckonings, for
they came in sight of the Canaries on the morning of the 9th.
They were detained upwards of three weeks among these
islands, seeking in vain another vessel. They were obliged,
therefore, to make a new rudder for the Pinta, and repair her
for the voyage. The latine sails of the Nina were also altered
into square sails, that she might work more steadily and securely,
and be able to keep company with the other vessels.
While sailing among these islands, the crew were terrified at
beholding the lofty peak of Teneriffe sending forth volumes of
flame and smoke, being ready to take alarm at any extraordinary
phenomenon, and to construe it into a disastrous portent. Colum
bus took great pains to dispel their apprehensions, explaining the
natural causes of those volcanic fires, and verifying his explana
tions by citing Mount Etna, and other well-known volcanoes.
While taking in wood and water and provisions in the island
of Gomera, a vessel arrived from Ferro, which reported that
three Portuguese caravels had been seen hovering off that island,
with the intention, it was said, of capturing Columbus. The
admiral suspected some hostile stratagem on the part of the king
of Portugal, in revenge for his having embarked in the service
of Spain; he therefore lost no time in putting to sea, anxious to
get far from those islands, and out of the track of navigation,
trembling lest something might occur to defeat his expedition,
commenced under such inauspicious circumstances.
CHAP. II.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
131
C H A P T E R II.
CONTINUATION OF THE VOYAGE.- FIRST NOTICE OF THE
VARIATION OF THE NEEDLE.
[1492.]
EARLY in the morning of the 6th of September, Columbus set
sail from the island of Gomera, and now might be said first to
strike into the region of discovery; taking leave of these frontier
islands of the old world, and steering westward for the unknown
parts of the Atlantic. For three days, however, a profound calm
kept the vessels loitering with flagging sails, within a short dis
tance of the land. This was a tantalizing delay to Columbus,
who was impatient to find himself far out of sight of either land
or sail; which, in the pure atmospheres of these latitudes, may
be descried at an immense distance. On the following Sunday,
the 9th of September, at daybreak, he beheld Ferro, the last of
the Canary islands, about nine leagues distant. This was the
island whence the Portuguese caravels had been seen; he was
therefore in the very neighborhood of danger. Fortunately a
breeze sprang up with the sun, their sails were once more filled,
and in the course of the day the heights of Ferro gradually faded
from the horizon.
On losing sight of this last trace of land, the hearts of the
I 2
132
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I I .
crews failed them. They seemed literally to have taken leave
of the world. Behind them was every thing dear to the heart
of man; country, family, friends, life itself: before them every
thing was chaos, mystery, and peril. In the perturbation of the
moment, they despaired of ever more seeing their homes. Many
of the rugged seamen shed tears, and some broke into loud
lamentations. The admiral tried in every way to soothe their
distress, and to inspire them with his own glorious anticipations.
He described to them the magnificent countries to which he was
about to conduct them: the islands of the Indian seas teeming
with gold and precious stones; the regions of Mangi and Cathay,
with their cities of unrivaled wealth and splendor. He promised
them land and riches, and every thing that could arouse their
cupidity, or inflame their imaginations, nor were these promises
made for purposes of mere deception; he certainly believed that
he should realize them all.
He now issued orders to the commanders of the other vessels,
that, in the event of separation by any accident, they should
continue directly westward; but that after sailing seven hundred
leagues, they should lay by from midnight until daylight, as at
about that distance he confidently expected to find land. In the
meantime, as he thought it possible he might not discover land
within the distance thus assigned, and as he foresaw that the
vague terrors already awakened among the seamen would in
crease with the space which intervened between them and their
homes, he commenced a stratagem which he continued throughout
the voyage. He kept two reckonings; one correct, in which the
true way of the ship was noted, and which was retained in secret
for his own government; in the other, which was open to general
inspection, a number of leagues was daily subtracted from the
CHAP. II.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
133
sailing of the ship, so that the crews were kept in ignorance of
the real distance they had advanced.*
On the 11th of September, when about one hundred and fifty
leagues west of Ferro, they fell in with part of a mast, which
from its size appeared to have belonged to a vessel of about a
hundred and twenty tons burthen, and which had evidently been
a long time in the water. The crews, tremblingly alive to every
thing that could excite their hopes or fears, looked with rueful
eye upon this wreck of some unfortunate voyager, drifting omi
nously at the entrance of those unknown seas.
On the 13th of September, in the evening, being about two
hundred leagues from the island of Ferro, Columbus for the first
time noticed the variation of the needle; a phenomenon which
had never before been remarked. He perceived about nightfall
that the needle, instead of pointing to the north star, varied about
half a point, or between five and six degrees, to the northwest,
and still more on the following morning. Struck with this cir
cumstance, he observed it attentively for three days, and found
that the variation increased as he advanced. He at first made
no mention of this phenomenon, knowing how ready his people
were to take alarm, but it soon attracted the attention of the
pilots, and filled them with consternation. It seemed as if the
very laws of nature were changing as they advanced, and that
they were entering another world, subject to unknown influ-
* It has been erroneously stated that Columbus kept two journals. It was
merely in the reckoning, or log-book, that he deceived the crew. His journal
was entirely private, and intended for his own use and the perusal of the
sovereigns. In a letter written from Granada, in 1503, to Pope Alexander
VII, he says that he had kept an account of his voyages, in the style of the
Commentaries of Cesar, which he intended to submit to his holiness.
134
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I I .
ences.* They apprehended that the compass was about to lose
its mysterious virtues, and, without this guide, what was to
become of them in a vast and trackless ocean ?
Columbus tasked his science and ingenuity for reasons with
which to allay their terror. He observed that the direction of
the needle was not to the polar star, but to some fixed and invisi
ble point. The variation, therefore, was not caused by any fallacy
in the compass, but by the movement of the north star itself,
which, like the other heavenly bodies, had its changes and revo
lutions, and every day described a circle round the pole. The
high opinion which the pilots entertained of Columbus as a pro
found astronomer gave weight to this theory, and their alarm
subsided. As yet the solar system of Copernicus was unknown:
the explanation of Columbus, therefore, was highly plausible and
ingenious, and it shows the vivacity of his mind, ever ready to
meet the emergency of the moment. The theory may at first
have been advanced merely to satisfy the minds of others, but
Columbus appears subsequently to have remained satisfied with
it himself. The phenomenon has now become familiar to us, but
we still continue ignorant of its cause. It is one of those myste
ries of nature, open to daily observation and experiment, and
apparently simple from their familiarity, but which on investiga
tion make the human mind conscious of its limits; baffling the
experience of the practical, and humbling the pride of science.
* Las Casas, Hist Ind.,lib. i. cap. 6.
CHAP. III] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
135
C H A P T E R III.
CONTINUATION OF THE VOYAGE.- VARIOUS TERRORS OF THE
SEAMEN.
[1492.]
ON the 14th of September, the voyagers were rejoiced by the
sight of what they considered harbingers of land. A heron, and
a tropical bird called the Rabo de Junco,* neither of which are
supposed to venture far to sea, hovered about the ships. On the
following night they were struck with awe at beholding a meteor,
or, as Columbus calls it in his journal, a great flame of fire, which
seemed to fall from the sky into the sea, about four or five leagues
distant. These meteors, common in warm climates, and especially
under the tropics, are always seen in the serene azure sky of
those latitudes, falling as it were from the heavens; but never
beneath a cloud. In the transparent atmosphere of one of those
beautiful nights, where every star shines with the purest lustre,
they often leave a luminous train behind them which lasts for
twelve or fifteen seconds, and may well be compared to a flame.
The wind had hitherto been favorable, with occasional though
transient clouds and showers. They had made great progress
each day, though Columbus, according to his secret plan, con
trived to suppress several leagues in the daily reckoning left open
to the crew.
* The water-wagtail.
1 3 G
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I I .
They had now arrived within the influence of the trade wind,
which, following the sun, blows steadily from east to west between
the tropics, and sweeps over a few adjoining degrees of ocean.
With this propitious breeze directly aft, they were wafted gently
but speedily over a tranquil sea, so that for many days they did
not shift a sail. Columbus perpetually recurs to the bland and
temperate serenity of the weather, which in this tract of the ocean
is soft and refreshing without being cool. In his artless and
expressive language he compares the pure and balmy mornings
to those of April in Andalusia, and observes that they wanted but
the song of the nightingale to complete the illusion. “ He had
reason to say so,” observes the venerable Las Casas; “ for it
is marvelous the suavity which we experience when half way
towards these Indies ; and the more the ships approach the lands,
so much more do they perceive the temperance and softness of
the air, the clearness of the sky, and the amenity and fragrance
sent forth from the groves and forests; much more certainly than
in April in Andalusia.”*
They now began to see large patches of herbs and weeds
drifting from the west, and increasing in quantity as they ad
vanced. Some of these weeds were such as grow about rocks,
others such as are produced in rivers; some were yellow and
withered, others so green as to have apparently been recently
washed from land. On one of these patches was a live crab, which
Columbus carefully preserved. They saw also a white tropical bird,
of a kind which never sleeps upon the sea. Tunny fish also
played about the ships, one of which was killed by the crew of
the Nina. Columbus now called to mind the account given by
Aristotle of certain ships of Cadiz, which, coasting the shores out-
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 3 6 , M S .
CHAP. I I I . ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
137
side of the straits of Gibraltar, were driven westward by an im
petuous east wind, until they reached a part of the ocean covered
with vast fields of weeds, resembling sunken islands, among which
they beheld many tunny fish. He supposed himself arrived in
this weedy sea, as it had been called, from which the ancient
mariners had turned back in dismay, but which he regarded with
animated hope, as indicating the vicinity of land. Not that he
had yet any idea of reaching the object of his search, the eastern
end of Asia; for, according to his computation, he had come but
three hundred and sixty leagues* since leaving the Canary islands,
and he placed the main land of India much farther on.
On the 18th of September the same weather continued; a soft
steady breeze from the east filled every sail, while, to use the
words of Columbus, the sea was as calm as the Guadalquiver at
Seville. He fancied that the water of the sea grew fresher as
he advanced, and noticed this as a proof of the superior sweet
ness and purity of the air.†
The crews were all in high spirits ; each ship strove to get in
the advance, and every seaman was eagerly on the look-out; for
the sovereigns had promised a pension of ten thousand marava-
dis to him who should first discover land. Martin Alonzo Pin
zon crowded all canvas, and, as the Pinta was a fast sailer, he
generally kept the lead. In the afternoon he hailed the admiral
and informed him, that, from the flight of a great number of birds,
and from the appearance of the northern horizon, he thought there
was land in that direction.
There was in fact a cloudiness in the north, such as often
* Of twenty to the degree of latitude, the unity of distance used throughout
this work.
† Las Casas, Hist. Ind. lib. i. cap. 36.
138
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK III.
hangs over land; and at sunset it assumed such shapes and masses
that many fancied they beheld islands. There was a universal
wish, therefore, to steer for that quarter. Columbus, however,
was persuaded that they were mere illusions. Every one who
has made a sea voyage must have witnessed the deceptions caused
by clouds resting upon the horizon, especially about sunset and
sunrise; which the eye, assisted by the imagination and desire,
easily converts into the wished-for land. This is particularly the
case within the tropics, where the clouds at sunset assume the most
singular appearances.
On the following day there were drizzling showers, unaccom
panied by wind, which Columbus considered favorable signs ; two
boobies also flew on board the ships, birds which, he observed, sel
dom fly twenty leagues from land. He sounded, therefore, with
a line of two hundred fathoms, but found no bottom. He sup
posed he might be passing between islands, lying to the north and
south; but was unwilling to waste the present favoring breeze by
going in search of them; beside, he had confidently affirmed that
land was to be found by keeping steadfastly to the west; his whole
expedition had been founded on such a presumption; he should,
therefore, risk all credit and authority with his people were he to
appear to doubt and waver, and to go groping blindly from point
to point of the compass. He resolved, therefore, to keep one
bold course always westward, until he should reach the coast of
India; and afterwards, if advisable, to seek these islands on his
return.*
Notwithstanding his precaution to keep the people ignorant
* Hist. del. Almirante, cap. 20. Extracts from Journal of Columb. Navar-
rete.T. i. p. 16.
CHAP. I I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
139
of the distance they had sailed, they were now growing extremely
uneasy at the length of the voyage. They had advanced much
farther west than ever man had sailed before, and though already
beyond the reach of succor, still they continued daily leaving vast
tracts of ocean behind them, and pressing onward and onward
into that apparently boundless abyss. It is true they had been
flattered by various indications of land, and still others were oc
curring ; but all mocked them with vain hopes : after being hailed
with a transient joy, they passed away, one after another, and the
same interminable expanse of sea and sky continued to extend
before them. Even the bland and gentle breeze, uniformly aft,
was now conjured by their ingenious fears into a cause of alarm;
for they began to imagine that the wind, in these seas, might
always prevail from the east, and if so, would never permit their
return to Spain.
Columbus endeavored to dispel these gloomy presages, some
times by argument and expostulation, sometimes by awakening
fresh hopes, and pointing out new signs of land. On the 20th of
September the wind veered, with light breezes from the south
west. These, though adverse to their progress, had a cheering
effect upon the people, as they proved that the wind did not al
ways prevail from the east.* Several birds also visited the ships;
three, of a small kind which keep about groves and orchards,
came singing in the morning, and flew away again in the even
ing. Their song cheered the hearts of the dismayed mariners,
who hailed it as the voice of land. The larger fowl, they ob-
* Mucho me fue necesario este viento contrario, porque mi gente andaban
may estimulados, que pensaban que no ventaban estos mares vientos para volver
a Espana. Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, tom. i. p. 12.
140
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I I
served, were strong of wing, and might venture far to sea; but
such small birds were too feeble to fly far, and their singing showed
that they were not exhausted by their flight.
On the following day there was either a profound calm, or
light winds from the southwest. The far as the eye could
reach, was covered with weeds; a phenomenon, often observed in
this part of the ocean, which has sometimes the appearance of a
vast inundated meadow. This has been attributed to immense
quantities of submarine plants, which grow at the bottom of the
sea until ripe, when they are detached by the motion of the waves
and currents, and rise to the surface.* These fields of weeds
were at first regarded with great satisfaction, but at length they
became, in many places, so dense and matted, as in some degree
to impede the sailing of the ships, which must have been under
very little headway. The crews now called to mind some tale
about the frozen ocean, where ships were said to be sometimes
fixed immovable. They endeavored, therefore, to avoid as much
as possible these floating masses, lest some disaster of the kind
might happen to themselves.† Others considered these weeds as
proof that the sea was growing shallower, and began to talk of
lurking rocks, and shoals, and treacherous quicksands ; and of the
danger of running aground, as it were, in the midst of the ocean,
where their vessels might rot and fall to pieces, far out of the
track of human aid, and without any shore where the crews
might take refuge. They had evidently some confused notion of
the ancient story of the sunken island of Atalantis, and feared
that they were arriving at that part of the ocean where naviga-
* Humboldt, Personal Narrative, book i. cap. I.
† Hist. del. Almirante, cap. 18.
CHAP. I I I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
141
tion was said to be obstructed by drowned lands, and the ruins of
an ingulfed country.
To dispel these fears, the admiral had frequent recourse to the
lead; but though he sounded with a deep-sea line, he still found no
bottom. The minds of the crews, however, had gradually become
diseased. They were full of vague terrors and superstitious fan
cies : they construed every thing into a cause of alarm, and
harassed their commander by incessant murmurs.
For three days there was a continuance of light summer airs
from the southward and westward, and the sea was as smooth as
a mirror. A whale was seen heaving up its huge form at a dis
tance, which Columbus immediately pointed out as a favorable
indication, affirming that these fish were generally in the neighbor
hood of land. The crews, however, became uneasy at the calm
ness of the weather. They observed that the contrary winds
which they experienced were transient and unsteady, and so light
as not to ruffle the surface of the sea, which maintained a sluggish
calm like a lake of dead water. Every thing differed, they said,
in these strange regions from the world to which they had been
accustomed. The only winds which prevailed with any constancy
and force, were from the east, and they had not power to disturb
the torpid stillness of the ocean ; there was a risk, therefore, either
of perishing amidst stagnant and shoreless waters, or of being
prevented, by contrary winds, from ever returning to their native
country.
Columbus continued with admirable patience to reason with
these fancies; observing that the calmness of the sea must un
doubtedly be caused by the vicinity of land in the quarter whence
the wind blew, which, therefore, had not space sufficient to act
upon the surface, and heave up large waves. Terror, however,
142
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK III.
multiplies and varies the forms of ideal danger, a thousand times
faster than the most active wisdom can dispel them. The more
Columbus argued, the more boisterous became the murmurs of
his crew, until, on Sunday, the 25th of September, there came on
a heavy swell of the sea, unaccompanied by wind. This phe-
nomenon often occurs in the broad ocean; being either the ex-
piring undulations of some past gale, or the movement given to
the sea by some distant current of wind; it was, nevertheless,
regarded with astonishment by the mariners, and dispelled the
imaginary terrors occasioned by the calm.
Columbus, who as usual considered himself under the imme-
diate eye and guardianship of Heaven in this solemn enterprise,
intimates in his journal that this swelling of the sea seemed provi-
dentially ordered to allay the rising clamors of his crew; com-
paring it to that which so miraculously aided Moses when con-
ducting the children of Israel out of the captivity of Egypt.*
* “ Como la mar estuviese mansa y liana murmuraba la gente diciendo que,
pues por alli no habia mar grande que nunca ventaria para volver á España ;
pero despues alzóse mucho la mar y sin viento, que los asombraba ; por lo cual
dice aqui el Almirante ; asi que muy necesario me fué la mar alta, que no
parecio, salvo el tiempo de los Judios cuando salieron de Egipto contra Moyses
que los sacaoa ae capriverio.” — Journal of Columb. Navarrete, tom. i. p. 12.
C H A P I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S
143
C H A P T E R IV.
CONTINUATION OF THE VOYAGE. - DISCOVERY OF LAND.
[1492]
T H E situation of Columbus was daily becoming more and more
critical. In proportion as he approached the regions where he
expected to find land, the impatience of his crews augmented.
The favorable signs which increased his confidence, were derided
by them as delusive; and there was danger of their rebelling, and
obliging him to turn back, when on the point of realizing the ob
ject of all his labors. They beheld themselves with dismay still
wafted onward, over the boundless wastes of what appeared to
them a mere watery desert, surrounding the habitable world.
What was to become of them should their provisions fail ? Their
ships were too weak and defective even for the great voyage they
had already made, but if they were still to press forward, adding
at every moment to the immense expanse behind them, how should
they ever be able to return, having no intervening port where
they might victual and refit.
In this way they fed each other's discontents, gathering toge
ther in little knots, and fomenting a spirit of mutinous opposition:
and when we consider the natural fire of the Spanish tempera
ment and its impatience of control; and that a great part of these
144
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[ B O O K I I I .
men were sailing on compulsion; we cannot wonder that there
was imminent danger of their breaking forth into open rebellion and
compelling Columbus to turn back. In their secret conferences
they exclaimed against him as a desperado, bent, in a mad phan
tasy, upon doing something extravagant to render himself noto
rious. What were their sufferings and dangers to one evidently
content to sacrifice his own life for the chance of distinction ?
What obligations bound them to continue on with him; or when
were the terms of their agreement to be considered as fulfilled ?
They had already penetrated unknown seas, untraversed by a
sail, far beyond where man had ever before ventured. They had
done enough to gain themselves a character for courage and hardi
hood in undertaking such an enterprise and persisting in it so far.
How much further were they to go in quest of a merely conjec
tured land ? Were they to sail on until they perished, or until
all return became impossible ? In such case they would be the
authors of their own destruction.
On the other hand, should they consult their safety, and turn
back before too late, who would blame them ? Any complaints
made by Columbus would be of no weight; he was a foreigner,
without friends or influence; his schemes had been condemned
by the learned, and discountenanced by people of all ranks. He
had no party to uphold him, and a host of opponents whose pride
of opinion would be gratified by his failure. Or, as an effec
tual means of preventing his complaints, they might throw him
into the sea, and give out that he had fallen overboard while
busy with his instruments contemplating the stars; a report
which no one would have either the inclination or the means to
controvert.*
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 19. Herrera, Hist. Ind , decad. i. lib. i. cap. 10.
CHAP. IV.J C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS. 145
Columbus was not ignorant of the mutinous disposition of his
crew, but he still maintained a serene and steady countenance;
soothing some with gentle words; endeavoring to stimulate the
pride or avarice of others, and openly menacing the refractory with
signal punishment, should they do any thing to impede the voyage,
On the 25th of September, the wind again became favorable,
and they were able to resume their course directly to the west.
The airs being light, and the sea calm, the vessels sailed near to
each other, and Columbus had much conversation with Martin
Alonzo Pinzon on the subject of a chart, which the former had
sent three days before on board of the Pinta. Pinzon thought that,
according to the indications of the map, they ought to be in the
neighborhood of Cipango, and the other islands which the admiral
had therein delineated. Columbus partly entertained the same
idea, but thought it possible that the ships might have been borne
out of their track by the prevalent currents, or that they had not
come so far as the pilots had reckoned. He desired that the chart
might be returned, and Pinzon tying it to the end of a cord,
flung it on board to him. While Columbus, his pilot, and several
of his experienced mariners were studying the map, and endeav
oring to make out from it their actual position, they heard a shout
from the Pinta, and looking up, beheld Martin Alonzo Pinzon
mounted on the stern of his vessel, crying " Land! land! Seiior,
I claim my reward!" He pointed at the same time to the south
west, where there was indeed an appearance of land at about
twenty-five leagues' distance. Upon this Columbus threw himself
on his knees and returned thanks to God; and Martin Alonzo
repeated the Gloria in excelsis, in which he was joined by his
own crew and that of the admiral.*
* Journal of Columb., Primer Viage, Navarrete, torn. i.
VOL. I .
K
146
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I I .
The seamen now mounted to the mast-head or climbed about
the rigging, straining their eyes in the direction pointed out.
The conviction became so general of land in that quarter, and
the joy of the people so ungovernable, that Columbus found it
necessary to vary from his usual course, and stand all night to
the southwest. The morning light, however, put an end to all
their hopes, as to a dream. The fancied land proved to be
nothing but an evening cloud, and had vanished in the night.
With dejected hearts they once more resumed their western
course, from which Columbus would never have varied, but in
compliance with their clamorous wishes.
For several days they continued on with the same propitious
breeze, tranquil sea, and mild, delightful weather. The water
was so calm that the sailors amused themselves with swimming
about the vessel. Dolphins began to abound, and flying fish,
darting into the air, fell upon the decks. The continued signs of
land diverted the attention of the crews, and insensibly beguiled
them onward.
On the 1st of October, according to the reckoning of the pilot
of the admiral's ship, they had come five hundred and eighty
leagues west since leaving the Canary islands. The reckoning
which Columbus showed the crew was five hundred and eighty-
four, but the reckoning which he kept privately, was seven
hundred and seven.* On the following day, the weeds floated
from east to west; and on the third day no birds were to be
seen.
The crews now began to fear that they had passed between
islands, from one to the other of which the birds had been flying.
* Navarrete, tom. i. p. 16.
CHAP. IV.J
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
147
Columbus had also some doubts of the kind, but refused to alter
his westward course. The people again uttered murmurs and
menaces; but on the following day they were visited by such
flights of birds, and the various indications of land became so
numerous, that from a state of despondency they pasged to one
of confident expectation.
Eager to obtain the promised pension, the seamen were con
tinually giving the cry of land, on the least appearance of the
kind. To put a stop to these false alarms, which produced
continual disappointments, Columbus declared that should any
one give such notice, and land not be discovered within three
days afterwards, he should thenceforth forfeit all claim to the
reward..
On the evening of the 6th of October, Martin Alonzo Pinzon
began to lose confidence in their present course, and proposed
that they should stand more to the southward. Columbus, how
ever, still persisted in steering directly west.* Observing this
difference of opinion in a person so important in his squadron as
Pinzon, and fearing that chance or design might scatter the ships,
he ordered that, should either of the caravels be separated from
him, it should stand to the west, and endeavor as soon as possible
to join company again: he directed, also, that the vessels should
keep near to him at sunrise and sunset, as at these times the state
of the atmosphere is most favorable to the discovery of distant
land.
On the morning of the 7th of October, at sunrise, several of
the admiral's crew thought they beheld land in the west, but so
indistinctly that no one ventured to proclaim it, lest he should be
* Journ. of Columbus, Navarrete, torn. i. p. 17.
K 2
148
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I I .
mistaken, and forfeit all chance of the reward: the Niña, how-
ever, being a good sailer, pressed forward to ascertain the fact.
In a little while a flag was hoisted at her mast-head, and a gun
discharged, being the preconcerted signals for land. New joy
was awakened throughout the little squadron, and every eye was
turned to the west. A s they advanced, however, their cloud-built
hopes faded away, and before evening the fancied land had again
melted into air.*
The crews now sank into a degree of dejection proportioned
to their recent excitement; but new circumstances occurred to
arouse them. Columbus, having observed great flights of small
field-birds going towards the southwest, concluded they must be
secure of some neighboring land, where they would find food and
a resting-place. He knew the importance which the Portuguese
voyagers attached to the flight of birds, by following which they
had discovered most of their islands. He had now come seven
hundred and fifty leagues, the distance at which he had computed
to find the island of Cipango; as there was no -appearance of it,
he might have missed it through some mistake in the latitude.
He determined, therefore, on the evening of the 7th of October,
to alter his course to the west-southwest, the direction in which
the birds generally flew, and continue that direction for at least
two days. After all, it was no great deviation from his main
course, and would meet the wishes of the Pinzons, as well as be
inspiriting to his followers generally.
For three days they stood in this direction, and the further
they went the more frequent and encouraging were the signs of
land. Flights of small birds of various colors, some of them such
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 20. Journ. of Columbus, Navarrete, tom. i.
CHAP. I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
1 4 9
as sing in the fields, came flying about the ships, and then con
tinued towards the southwest, and others were heard also flying
by in the night. Tunny fish played about the smooth sea, and a
heron, a pelican, and a duck, were seen, all bound in the same
direction. The herbage which floated by was fresh and green, as
if recently from land, and the air, Columbus observes, was sweet
and fragrant as April breezes in Seville.
All these, however, were regarded by the crews as so many
delusions beguiling them on to destruction ; and when on the
evening of the third day they beheld the sun go down upon a
shoreless horizon, they broke forth into turbulent clamor. They
exclaimed against this obstinacy in tempting fate by continuing on
into a boundless sea. They insisted upon turning homeward, and
abandoning the voyage as hopeless. Columbus endeavored to
pacify them by gentle words and promises of large rewards ; but
finding that they only increased in clamor, he assumed a decided
tone. He told them it was useless to murmur, the expedition had
been sent by the sovereigns to seek the Indies, and, happen what
might, he was determined to persevere, until, by the blessing of
God, he should accomplish the enterprise.*
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 20. Las Casas, lib. i. Journal of Columb.,
Navarrete, Colec. tom. i. p. 19.
It has been asserted by various historians, that Columbus, a day or two
previous to coming in sight of the New World, capitulated with his mutinous
crew, promising, if he did not discover land within three days, to abandon the
voyage. There is no authority for such an assertion either in the history of his
son Fernando or that of the Bishop Las Casas, each of whom had the admi
ral's papers before him. There is no mention of such a circumstance in the
extracts made from the journal by Las Casas, which have recently been brought
to light; nor is it asserted by either Peter Martyr or the Curate of Los Pala-
150
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I I I .
Columbus was now at open defiance with his crew, and his
situation became desperate. Fortunately the manifestations of
the vicinity of land were such on the following day as no longer
to admit a doubt. Beside a quantity of fresh weeds, such as grow
in rivers, they saw a green fish of a kind which keeps about rocks;
cios, both contemporaries and acquaintances of Columbus, and who could
scarcely have failed to mention so striking a fact, if true. It rests merely upon
the authority of Oviedo, who is of inferior credit to either of the authors above
cited, and was grossly misled as to many of the particulars of this voyage by a
pilot of the name of Hernan Perez Matheo, who was hostile to Columbus. In
the manuscript process of the memorable lawsuit between Don Diego, son
of the admiral, and the fiscal of the crown, is the evidence of one Pedro de
Bilbao, who testifies that he heard many times that some of the pilots and
mariners wished to turn back, but that the admiral promised them presents, and
entreated them to wait two or three days, before which time he should discover
land. (“ Pedro de Bilbao oyo muchas veces que algunos pilotos y marineros
querian volverse sino fuera por el Almirante que les prometio donos, les rogó
esperasen dos o tres dias i que antes del termino descubriera tierra.”) This,
if true, implies no capitulation to relinquish the enterprise.
On the other hand, it was asserted by some of the witnesses in the above-
mentioned suit, that Columbus, after having proceeded some few hundred
leagues without finding land, lost confidence and wished to turn back ; but was
persuaded and even piqued to continue by the Pinzons. This assertion carries
falsehood on its very face. It is in total contradiction to that persevering con
stancy and undaunted resolution displayed by Columbus, not merely in the pre
sent voyage, but from first to last of his difficult and dangerous career. This
testimony was given by some of the mutinous men, anxious to exaggerate the
merits of the Pinzons, and to depreciate that of Columbus. Fortunately, the
extracts from the journal of the latter, written from day to day with guileless
simplicity, and all the air of truth, disprove these fables, and show that on the
very day previous to his discovery, he expressed a peremptory determination to
persevere, in defiance of all dangers and difficulties.
CHAP. I V . l C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
151
then a branch of thorn with berries on it, and recently separated
from the tree, floated by them; then they picked up a reed, a
small board, and, above all, a staff artificially carved. All gloom
and mutiny now gave way to sanguine expectation; and through
out the day each one was eagerly on the watch, in hopes of being
the first to discover the long-sought-for land.
In the evening, when, according to invariable custom on board
of the admiral's ship, the mariners had sung the salve regina, or
vesper hymn to the Virgin, he made an impressive address to his
crew. He pointed out the goodness of God in thus conducting
them by soft and favoring breezes across a tranquil ocean, cheer
ing their hopes continually with fresh signs, increasing as their
fears augmented, and thus leading and guiding them to a promised
land. He now reminded them of the orders he had given on
leaving the Canaries, that, after sailing westward seven hundred
leagues, they should not make sail after midnight. Present ap
pearances authorized such a precaution. He thought it probable
they would make land that very night; he ordered, therefore, a vigi
lant look-out to be kept from the forecastle, promising to whomsoever
should make the discovery, a doublet of velvet, in addition to the
pension to be given by the sovereigns.*
The breeze had been fresh all day, with more sea than usual,
and they had made great progress. At sunset they had stood
again to the west, and were ploughing the waves at a rapid rate,
the Pinta keeping the lead, from her superior sailing. The
greatest animation prevailed throughout the ships; not an eye
was closed that night. As the evening darkened, Columbus took
his station on the top of the castle or cabin on the high poop of
* Hist. del. Almirante, cap. 21.
152
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I I I
his vessel, ranging his eye along the dusky horizon, and main
taining an intense and unremitting watch. About ten o'clock, he
thought he beheld a light glimmering at a great distance. Fear
ing his eager hopes might deceive him, he called to Pedro Gutier
rez, gentleman of the king's bed-chamber, and inquired whether he
saw such a light; the latter replied in the affirmative. Doubtful
whether it might not yet be some delusion of the fancy, Columbus
called Rodrigo Sanchez of Segovia, and made the same inqui
ry. By the time the latter had ascended the round-house, the
light had disappeared. They saw it once or twice afterwards in
sudden and passing gleams; as if it were a torch in the bark of a
fisherman, rising and sinking with the waves ; or in the hand of
some person on shore, borne up and down as he walked from
house to house. So transient and uncertain were these gleams,
that few attached any importance to them; Columbus, however,
considered them as certain signs of land, and, moreover, that the
land was inhabited.
They continued their course until two in the morning, when
a gun from the Pinta gave the joyful signal of land. It was first
descried by a mariner named Rodrigo de Triana; but the reward
was afterwards adjudged to the admiral, for having previously
perceived the light. The land was now clearly seen about two
leagues distant, whereupon they took in sail, and laid to, waiting
impatiently for the dawn.
The thoughts and feelings of Columbus in this little space of
time must have been tumultuous and intense. At length, in spite
of every difficulty and danger, he had accomplished his object.
The great mystery of the ocean was revealed; his theory, which
had been the scoff of sages, was triumphantly established; he had
secured to himself a glory durable as the world itself.
CHAP. I V ]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
153
It is difficult to conceive the feelings of such a man, at such a
moment; or the conjectures which must have thronged upon his
mind, as to the land before him, covered with darkness. That it
was fruitful, was evident from the vegetables which floated from
its shores. He thought, too, that he perceived the fragrance of
aromatic groves. The moving light he had beheld proved it the
residence of man. But what were its inhabitants ? Were they
like those of the other parts of the globe; or were they some
strange and monstrous race, such as the imagination was prone in
those times to give to all remote and unknown regions ? Had he
come upon some wild island far in the Indian sea; or was this
the famed Cipango itself, the object of bis golden fancies ? A
thousand speculations of the kind must have swarmed upon him,
as, with his anxious crews, he waited for the night to pass away;
wondering whether the morning light would reveal a savage
wilderness, or dawn upon spicy groves, and glittering fanes, and
gilded cities, and all the splendor of oriental civilization.
BOOK IV.
C H A P T E R I .
FIRST LANDING OF COLUMBUS IN THE N E W W O R L D .
IT was on Friday morning, the 12th of October, that Columbus
first beheld the new world. A s the day dawned he saw before
him a level island, several leagues in extent, and covered with
trees like a continual orchard. Though apparently uncultivated,
it was populous, for the inhabitants were seen issuing from all
parts of the woods and running to the shore. They were per-
fectly naked, and, as they stood gazing at the ships, appeared by
their attitudes and gestures to be lost in astonishment. Columbus
made signal for the ships to cast anchor, and the boats to be
manned and armed. He entered his own boat, richly attired in
scarlet, and holding the royal standard; whilst Martin Alonzo
Pinzon, and Vincent Jañez his brother, put off in company in
their boats, each with a banner of the enterprise emblazoned with
a green cross, having on either side the letters F. and Y., the
initials of the Castilian monarchs Fernando and Ysabel, sur-
mounted by crowns.
As he approached the shore, Columbus, who was disposed for
all kinds of agreeable impressions, was delighted with the purity
15G
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
and suavity of the atmosphere, the crystal transparency of the
sea, and the extraordinary beauty of the vegetation. He beheld,
also, fruits of an unknown kind upon the trees which overhung
the shores. On landing he threw himself on his knees, kissed
the earth, and returned thanks to God with tears of j o y . His
example was followed by the rest, whose hearts indeed overflowed
with the same feelings of gratitude. Columbus then rising drew
his sword, displayed the royal standard, and assembling round
him the two captains, with Rodrigo de Escobedo, notary of the
armament, Rodrigo Sanchez, and the rest who had landed, he
took solemn possession in the name of the Castilian sovereigns,
giving the island the name of San Salvador. Having complied
with the requisite forms and ceremonies, he called upon all
present to take the oath of obedience to him, as admiral and
viceroy, representing the persons of the sovereigns.*
The feelings of the crew now burst forth in the most extrava-
gant transports. They had recently considered themselves de-
voted men, hurrying forward to destruction; they now looked
upon themselves as favorites of fortune, and gave themselves up
to the most unbounded joy. They thronged around the admiral
with overflowing zeal, some embracing him, others kissing his
hands. Those who had been most mutinous and turbulent during
* In the Tablas Chronologicas of Padre Claudio Clemente, is conserved a
form of prayer, said to have been used by Columbus on this occasion, and
which, by order of the Castilian sovereigns, was afterwards used by Balboa,
Cortez, and Pizarro in their discoveries. “ Domine Deus æterne et omnipotens,
sacro tuo verbo cœlum, et terram, et mare creasti; benedicatur el glorificetur
nomen tuum, laudetur tua majestas, quæ dignita est per humilem servum tuum,
ut ejus sacrum nomen agnoscatur, et prædicetur in hac altera mundi parte.”
Tab. Chron. de los Descub., decad. i. Valencia, 1689.
CHAP. I.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
157
the voyage, were now most devoted and enthusiastic. Some
begged favors of him, as if he had already wealth and honors in
his gift. Many abject spirits, who had outraged him by their
insolence, now crouched at his feet, begging pardon for all the
trouble they had caused him, and promising the blindest obedi
ence for the future.*
The natives of the island, when, at the dawn of day, they
had beheld the ships hovering on their coast, had supposed them
monsters which had issued from the deep during the night. They
had crowded to the beach, and watched their movements with
awful anxiety. Their veering about, apparently without effort,
and the shifting and furling of their sails, resembling huge wings,
filled them with astonishment. When they beheld their boats
approach the shore, and a number of strange beings clad in glit
tering steel, or raiment of various colors, landing upon the beach,
they fled in affright to the woods. Finding, however, that there
was no attempt to pursue nor molest them, they gradually recov
ered from their terror, and approached the Spaniards with great
awe; frequently prostrating themselves on the earth, and making
signs of adoration. During the ceremonies of taking possession,
they remained gazing in timid admiration at the complexion, the
beards, the shining armor, and splendid dress of the Spaniards.
The admiral particularly attracted their attention, from his com
manding height, his air of authority, his dress of scarlet, and the
deference which was paid him by his companions; all which
pointed him out to be the commander.† When they had still fur
ther recovered from their fears, they approached the Spaniards,
touched their beards, and examined their hands and faces, ad-
* Oviedo, lib. i. cap. 6 . Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 40.
† Las Casas, ubi sup.
158
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
miring their whiteness. Columbus was pleased with their gentle
ness and confiding simplicity, and suffered their scrutiny with
perfect acquiescence, winning them by his benignity. They now
supposed that the ships had sailed out of the crystal firmament
which bounded their horizon, or had descended from above on
their ample wings, and that these marvelous beings were inhab
itants of the skies.*
The natives of the island were no less objects of curiosity to
the Spaniards, differing, as they did, from any race of men they
had ever seen. Their appearance gave no promise of either
wealth or civilization, for they were entirely naked, and painted
with a variety of colors. With some it was confined merely to a
part of the face, the nose, or around the eyes; with others it ex
tended to the whole body, and gave them a wild and fantastic
appearance. Their complexion was of a tawny or copper hue.
and they were entirely destitute of beards. Their hair was not
crisped, like the recently-discovered tribes of the African coast,
under the same latitude, but straight and coarse, partly cut short
above the ears, but some locks were left long behind and falling
upon their shoulders. Their features, though obscured and dis
figured by paint, were agreeable; they had lofty foreheads and
remarkably fine eyes. They were of moderate stature and well-
shaped ; most of them appeared to be under thirty years of age :
there was but one female with them, quite young, naked like her
companions, and beautifully formed.
* The idea that the white men came from heaven was universally enter
tained by the inhabitants of the New World. When in the course of subse
quent voyages the Spaniards conversed with the cacique Nicaragua, he inquired
how they came down from the skies, whether flying or whether they descended
on clouds. Herrera, decad. iii. lib. iv. cap. 5.
CHAP. I ]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
159
As Columbus supposed himself to have landed on an island at
the extremity of India, he called the natives by the general appel
lation of Indians, which was universally adopted before the true
nature of his discovery was known, and has since been extended
to all the aboriginals of the New World.
The islanders were friendly and gentle. Their only arms
were lances, hardened at the end by fire, or pointed with a flint,
or the teeth or bone of a fish. There was no iron to be seen, nor
did they appear acquainted with its properties; for, when a drawn
sword was presented to them, they unguardedly took it by the edge.
Columbus distributed among them colored caps, glass beads,
hawks' bells, and other trifles, such as the Portuguese were accus
tomed to trade with among the nations of the gold coast of Africa.
They received them eagerly, hung the beads round their necks,
and were wonderfully pleased with their finery, and with the sound
of the bells. The Spaniards remained all day on shore refresh
ing themselves after their anxious voyage amidst the beautiful
groves of the island ; and returned on board late in the evening,
delighted with all they had seen.
On the following morning, at break of day, the shore was
thronged with the natives; some swam off to the ships, others
came in light barks which they called canoes, formed of a single
tree, hollowed, and capable of holding from one man to the num
ber of forty or fifty. These they managed dextrously with pad
dles, and, if overturned, swam about in the water with perfect
unconcern, as if in their natural element, righting their canoes
with great facility, and baling them with calabashes.*
* The calabashes of the Indians, which served the purposes of glass and
earthenware, supplying them with all sorts of domestic utensils, were produced
on stately trees of the size of elms.
160
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
They were eager to procure more toys and trinkets, not, ap
parently, from any idea of their intrinsic value, but because every
thing from the hands of the strangers possessed a supernatural
virtue in their eyes, as having been brought from heaven ; they
even picked up fragments of glass and earthenware as valuable
prizes. They had but few objects to offer in return, except par
rots, of which great numbers were domesticated among them, and
cotton yarn, of which they had abundance, and would exchange
large balls of five and twenty pounds' weight for the merest trifle.
They brought also cakes of a kind of bread called cassava, which
constituted a principal part of their food, and was afterwards an
important article of provisions with the Spaniards. It was formed
from a great root called yuca, which they cultivated in fields. This
they cut into small morsels, which they grated or scraped, and
strained in a press, making a broad thin cake, which was after
wards dried hard, and would keep for a long time, being steeped
in water when eaten. It was insipid, but nourishing, though the
water strained from it in the preparation was a deadly poison.
There was another kind of yuca destitute of this poisonous quality,
which was eaten in the root, either boiled or roasted.*
The avarice of the discoverers was quickly excited by the
sight of small ornaments of gold, worn by some of the natives in
their noses. These the latter gladly exchanged for glass beads and
hawks' bells; and both parties exulted in the bargain, no doubt
admiring each other's simplicity. As gold, however, was an ob
ject of royal monopoly in all enterprises of discovery, Columbus
forbade any traffic in it without his express sanction; and he put
the same prohibition on the traffic for cotton, reserving to the
* Acosta, Hist. Ind., lib. iv. cap. 17.
CHAP. I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
1C1
crown all trade for it, wherever it should be found in any
quantity.
He inquired of the natives where this gold was procured.
They answered him by signs, pointing to the south, where, he
understood them, dwelt a king of such wealth that he was served
in vessels of wrought gold. He understood, also, that there was
land to the south, the southwest, and the northwest; and that the
people from the last mentioned quarter frequently proceeded to
the southwest in quest of gold and precious stones, making in
their way descents upon the islands, and carrying off the inhabit
ants. Several of the natives showed him scars of wounds re
ceived in battles with these invaders. It is evident that a great
part of this fancied intelligence was self-delusion on the part of
Columbus; for he was under a spell of the imagination, which
gave its own shapes and colors to every object. He was per
suaded that he had arrived among the islands described by Marco
Polo, as lying opposite Cathay, in the Chinese sea, and he con
strued every thing to accord with the account given of those opulent
regions. Thus the enemies which the natives spoke of as coming
from the northwest, he concluded to be the people of the main
land of Asia, the subjects of the great Khan of Tartary, who were
represented by the Venetian traveler as accustomed to make war
upon the islands, and to enslave their inhabitants. The country
to the south, abounding in gold, could be no other than the famous
island of Cipango; and the king who was served out of vessels
of gold, must be the monarch whose magnificent city and gorgeous
palace, covered with plates of gold, had been extolled in such
splendid terms by Marco Polo.
The island where Columbus had thus, for the first time, set his
foot upon the New World, was called by the natives, Guanahane.
VOL. I.
L
162
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
It still retains the name of San Salvador, which he gave to it,
though called by the English, Cat Island.* The light which he
had seen the evening previous to his making land, may have been
on Watling's Island, which lies a few leagues to the east. San
Salvador is one of the great cluster of the Lucayos, or Bahama
Islands, which stretch southeast and northwest, from the coast of
Florida to Hispaniola, covering the northern coast of Cuba.
On the morning of the 14th of October, the admiral set off at
daybreak with the boats of the ships to reconnoitre the island,
directing his course to the northeast. The coast was surrounded
by a reef of rocks, within which there was depth of water and
sufficient harbor to receive all the ships in Christendom. The
entrance was very narrow; within there were several sand-banks,
but the water was as still as in a pool.†
The island appeared throughout to be well wooded, with
streams of water, and a large lake in the centre. As the boats
proceeded, they passed two or three villages, the inhabitants of
which, men as well as women, ran to the shores, throwing them
selves on the ground, lifting up their hands and eyes, either giving
thanks to Heaven, or worshiping the Spaniards as supernatural
beings. They ran along parallel to the boats, calling after the
Spaniards, and inviting them by signs to land, offering them
various fruits and vessels of water. Finding, however, that
the boats continued on their course, many threw themselves
into the sea and swam after them, and others followed in canoes.
The admiral received them all with kindness, giving them glass
* Some dispute having recently arisen as to the island on which Columbus
first landed, the reader is referred for a discussion of this question to the Illus
trations of this work, article “ First Landing of Columbus.”
† Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, tom. i.
CHAP. I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
103
beads and other trifles, which were received with transport as
celestial presents, for the invariable idea of the savages was, that
the white men had come from the skies.
In this way they pursued their course, until they came to a
small peninsula, which with two or three days' labor might be se
parated from the main-land and surrounded with water, and was
therefore specified by Columbus as an excellent situation for a
fortress. On this were six Indian cabins, surrounded by groves
and gardens as beautiful as those of Castile. The sailors being
wearied with rowing, and the island not appearing to the admiral
of sufficient importance to induce colonization, he returned to the
ships, taking seven of the natives with him, that they might
acquire the Spanish language and serve as interpreters.
Having taken in a supply of wood and water, they left the
island of San Salvador the same evening, the admiral being impa
tient to arrive at the wealthy country to the south, which he flat
tered himself would prove the famous island of Cipango.
164
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK IV
C H A P T E R IT.
CRUISE AMONG THE BAHAMA ISLANDS.
[1492.J
ON leaving San Salvador, Columbus was at a loss which way to
direct his course. A great number of islands, green and level
and fertile, invited him in different directions. The Indians on
board of his vessel, intimated by signs that they were innumera
ble, well peopled, and at war with one another. They mentioned
the names of above a hundred. Columbus now had no longer a
doubt that he was among the islands described by Marco Polo as
studding the vast sea of Chin, or China, and lying at a great dis
tance from the main-land. These, according to the Venetian,
amounted to between seven and eight thousand, and abounded
with drugs and spices and odoriferous trees ; together with gold
and silver and many other precious objects of commerce.*
Animated by the idea of exploring this opulent archipelago, he
selected the largest island in sight for his next visit; it appeared
to be about five leagues' distance, and he understood from his
Indians, that the natives were richer than those of San Salvador,
wearing bracelets and anklets, and other ornaments of massive
gold.
* Marco Polo, book iii. chap. 4 ; Eng. translation by W . Marsden.
CHAP. I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
165
The night coming on, Columbus ordered that the ships should
lie to, as the navigation was difficult and dangerous among these
unknown islands, and he feared to venture upon a strange coast
in the dark. In the morning they again made sail, but meeting
with counter-currents, it was not until sunset that they anchored
at the island. The next morning (16th) they went on shore, and
Columbus took solemn possession, giving the island the name of
Santa Maria de la Concepcion. The same scene occurred with
the inhabitants as with those of San Salvador. They manifested
the same astonishment and awe; the same gentleness and simpli-
city, and the same nakedness and absence of all wealth. Colum-
bus looked in vain for bracelets and anklets of gold, or for any
other precious articles : they had been either fictions of his Indian
guides, or his own misinterpretations.
Returning on board, he prepared to make sail, when one of
the Indians of San Salvador, who was on board of the Niña,
plunged into the sea, and swam to a large canoe filled with
natives. The boat of the caravel put off in pursuit, but the
Indians managed in their light bark with too much velocity to be
overtaken, and, reaching the land, fled to the woods. The sailors
took the canoe as a prize, and returned on board the caravel.
Shortly afterwards a small canoe approached one of the ships,
from a different part of the island, with a single Indian on board,
who came to offer a ball of cotton in exchange for hawks' bells.
As he paused when close to the vessel, and feared to enter, seve-
ral sailors threw themselves into the sea and took him prisoner.
Columbus having seen all that passed from his station on the
high poop of the vessel, ordered the captive to be brought to
him; he came trembling with fear, and humbly offered his ball
of cotton as a gift. The admiral received him with the utmost
166
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK IV.
benignity, and declining his offering, put a colored cap upon his
head, strings of green beads around his arms, and hawks' bells in
his ears, then ordering him and his ball of cotton to be replaced
in the canoe, dismissed him, astonished and overjoyed. He
ordered that the canoe, also, which had been seized and was
fastened to the Niña, should be cast loose, to be regained by
its proprietors. When the Indian reached the shore, his coun-
trymen thronged round him, examining and admiring his
finery, and listening to his account of the kind treatment he
experienced.
Such were the gentle and sage precautions continually taken
by Columbus to impress the natives favorably. Another instance
of the kind occurred after leaving the island of Conception, when
the caravels stood for the larger island, several leagues to the
west. Midway between the two islands, they overtook a single
Indian in a canoe. He had a mere morsel of cassava bread and
a calabash of water for sea-stores, and a little red paint, like
dragon's blood, for personal decoration when he should land. A
string of glass beads, such as had been given to the natives
of San Salvador, showed that he had come thence, and was
probably passing from island to island, to give notice of the ships.
Columbus admired the hardihood of this simple navigator, making
such an extensive voyage in so frail a bark. As the island was
still distant, he ordered that both the Indian and his canoe should
be taken on board; where he treated him with the greatest kind-
ness, giving him bread and honey to eat, and wine to drink. The
weather being very calm, they did not reach the island until too
dark to anchor, through fear of cutting their cables with rocks.
The sea about these islands was so transparent, that in the day-
time they could see the bottom and choose their ground; and so
CHAP. I I ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
167
deep, that at two gun-shot distance there was no anchorage.
Hoisting out the canoe of their Indian voyager, therefore, and
restoring to him all his effects, they sent him joyfully ashore, to
prepare the natives for their arrival, while the ships lay to until
morning.
This kindness had the desired effect. The natives surrounded
the ships in their canoes during the night, bringing fruits and
roots, and the pure water of their springs. Columbus distributed
trifling presents among them, and to those who came on board he
gave sugar and honey.
Landing the next morning, he gave to this island the name
of Fernandina, in honor of the king; it is the same at present
called Exuma. The inhabitants were similar in every respect to
those of the preceding islands, excepting that they appeared more
ingenious and intelligent. Some of the women wore mantles and
aprons of cotton, but for the most part they were entirely naked.
Their habitations were constructed in the form of a pavilion or
high circular tent, of branches of trees, of reeds and palm leaves.
They were kept very clean and neat, and sheltered under spread
ing trees. For beds they had nets of cotton extended from two
posts, which they called hamacs, a name since in universal use
among seamen.
In endeavoring to circumnavigate the island, Columbus found,
within two leagues of the northwest cape, a noble harbor, suffi
cient to hold a hundred ships, with two entrances formed by an
island which lay in the mouth of it. Here, while the men landed
with the casks in search of water, he reposed under the shade of
the groves, which he says were more beautiful than any he had
ever beheld; “the country was as fresh and green as in the
month of May in Andalusia; the trees, the fruits, the herbs, the
168
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
flowers, the very stones for the most part, as different from those
of Spain as night from day.”* The inhabitants gave the same
proofs as the other islanders, of being totally unaccustomed to
the sight of civilized man. They regarded the Spaniards with
awe and admiration, approached them with propitiatory offerings
of whatever their poverty, or rather their simple and natural
mode of life, afforded; the fruits of their fields and groves, the
cotton, which was their article of greatest value, and their domes
ticated parrots. They took those who were in search of water to
the coolest springs, the sweetest and freshest runs, filling their
casks, and rolling them to the boats; thus seeking in every way
to gratify their celestial visitors.
However pleasing this state of primeval poverty might be to
the imagination of a poet, it was a source of continual disappoint
ment to the Spaniards, whose avarice had been whetted to the
quick by scanty specimens of gold, and by the information of
golden islands continually given by the Indians.
Leaving Fernandina, on the 19th of October, they steered to
the southeast in quest of an island called Saometo, where Colum
bus understood, from the signs of the guides, there was a mine of
gold, and a king, the sovereign of all the surrounding islands, who
dwelt in a large city and possessed great treasures, wearing rich
clothing and jewels of gold. They found the island, but neither
the monarch nor the mine; either Columbus had misunderstood
the natives, or they, measuring things by their own poverty, had
exaggerated the paltry state and trivial ornaments of some savage
chieftain. Delightful as the other islands had appeared, Columbus
declared that this surpassed them all. Like those it was covered
with trees and shrubs and herbs of unknown kind. The climate
* Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, lib. i.
CHAP. II.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
169
had the same soft temperature; the air was delicate and balmy;
the land was higher, with a fine verdant hill; the coast of a fine
sand, gently laved by transparent billows.
At the southwest end of the island he found fine lakes of fresh
water, overhung with groves, and surrounded by banks covered
with herbage. Here he ordered all the casks of the ships to be
filled. “ Here are large lakes,” says he, in his journal, “ and the
groves about them are marvelous, and here and in all the island
every thing is green, as in April in Andalusia. The singing of
the birds is such, that it seems as if one would never desire to
depart hence. There are flocks of parrots which obscure the
sun, and other birds, large and small, of so many kinds all differ
ent from ours, that it is wonderful; and beside, there are trees of
a thousand species, each having its particular fruit and all of mar
velous flavor, so that I am in the greatest trouble in the world not
to know them, for I am very certain that they are each of great
value. I shall bring home some of them as specimens, and also
some of the herbs.” To this beautiful island he gave the name
of his royal patroness, Isabella; it is the same at present called
Isla Larga and Exumeta. Columbus was intent on discovering
the drugs and spices of the east, and on approaching this island,
had fancied he perceived in the air the spicy odors said to be
wafted from the islands of the Indian seas. “ As I arrived at this
cape,” says he, “ there came thence a fragrance so good and soft
of the flowers or trees of the land, that it was the sweetest thing
in the world. I believe there are here many herbs and trees
which would be of great price in Spain for tinctures, medicines,
and spices, but I know nothing of them, which gives me great
concern.”*
* Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, cap. 1.
170
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
The fish, which abounded in these seas, partook of the novelty
which characterized most of the objects in this new world. They
rivaled the birds in tropical brilliancy of color, the scales of some
of them glancing back the rays of light like precious stones ; as
they sported about the ships, they flashed gleams of gold and sil
ver through the clear waves; and the dolphins, taken out of their
element, delighted the eye with the changes of colors ascribed in
fable to the chameleon.
No animals were seen in these islands, excepting a species of
dog which never barked, a kind of coney or rabbit called “ utia”
by the natives, together with numerous lizards and guanas. The
last were regarded with disgust and horror by the Spaniards,
supposing them to be fierce and noxious serpents; but they
were found afterwards to be perfectly harmless, and their flesh
to be esteemed a great delicacy by the Indians.
For several days Columbus hovered about this island, seeking
in vain to find its imaginary monarch, or to establish a communi
cation with him, until, at length, he reluctantly became convinced
of his error. No sooner, however, did one delusion fade away,
than another succeeded. In reply to the continual inquiries
made by the Spaniards, after the source whence they procured
their gold, the natives uniformly pointed to the south. Columbus
now began to hear of an island in that direction, called Cuba,
but all that he could collect concerning it from the signs of the
natives was colored by his imagination. He understood it to be
of great extent, abounding in gold, and pearls, and spices, and
carrying on an extensive commerce in those precious articles;
and that large merchant ships came to trade with its inhabitants.
Comparing these misinterpreted accounts with the coast of
Asia as laid down on his map, after the descriptions of Marco
CHAP. II ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
171
Polo, he concluded that this island must be Cipango, and the
merchant ships mentioned must be those of the Grand Khan,
who maintained an extensive commerce in these seas. He
formed his plan accordingly, determining to sail immediately for
this island, and make himself acquainted with its ports, cities, and
productions, for the purpose of establishing relations of traffic.
He would then seek another great island called Bohio, of which
the natives gave likewise marvelous accounts. His sojourn in
those islands would depend upon the quantities of gold, spices,
precious stones, and other objects of oriental trade which he
should find there. After this he would proceed to the main-land
of India, which must be within ten days' sail, seek the city Quin-
sai, which, according to Marco Polo, was one of the most magni
ficent capitals in the world; he would there deliver in person the
letters of the Castilian sovereigns to the Grand Khan, and, when
he received his reply, return triumphantly to Spain with this
document, to prove that he had accomplished the great object of
his voyage.* Such was the splendid scheme with which Colum
bus fed his imagination, when about to leave the Bahamas in
quest of the island of Cuba.
* Journal of Columbus. Navarrete, tom. i.
172
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK IV.
C H A P T E R III.
DISCOVERY AND COASTING OF CUBA.
[1492.]
F O R several days the departure of Columbus was delayed by
contrary winds and calms, attended by heavy showers, which last
had prevailed, more or less, since his arrival among the islands.
It was the season of the autumnal rains, which in those torrid
climates succeed the parching heats of summer, commencing
about the decrease of the August moon, and lasting until the
month of November.
At length, at midnight, October 24th, he set sail from the
island of Isabella, but was nearly becalmed until mid-day; a
gentle wind then sprang up, and, as he observes, began to blow
most amorously. Every sail was spread, and he stood towards
the west-southwest, the direction in which he was told the land
of Cuba lay from Isabella. After three days' navigation, in the
course of which he touched at a group of seven or eight small
islands, which he called Islas de Arena, supposed to be the pres
ent Mucaras islands, and having crossed the Bahama bank and
channel, he arrived, on the morning of the 28th October, in
sight of Cuba. The part which he first discovered, is supposed
to be the coast to the west of Nuevitas del Principe.
As he approached this noble island, ho was struck with its
CHAP. I I I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
173
magnitude, and the grandeur of its features; its high and airy
mountains, which reminded him of those of Sicily; its fertile
valleys, and long sweeping plains watered by noble rivers; its
stately forests; its bold promontories, and stretching headlands,
which melted away into the remotest distance. He anchored in
a beautiful river, of transparent clearness, free from rocks and
shoals, its banks overhung with trees. Here, landing, and taking
possession of the island, he gave it the name of Juana, in honor
of Prince Juan, and to the river the name of San Salvador.
On the arrival of the ships, two canoes put off from the shore,
but fled on seeing the boat approach to sound the river for
anchorage. The admiral visited two cabins, abandoned by their
inhabitants. They contained but a few nets made of the fibres
of the palm-tree, hooks and harpoons of bone, and some other
fishing implements, and one of the kind of dogs he had met with
on the smaller islands, which never bark. He ordered that
nothing should be taken away or deranged.
Returning to his boat, he proceeded for some distance up the
river, more and more enchanted with the beauty of the country.
The banks were covered with high and wide-spreading trees ;
some bearing fruits, others flowers, while in some both fruit and
flower were mingled, bespeaking a perpetual round of fertility :
among them were many palms, but different from those of Spain
and Africa; with the great leaves of these, the natives thatched
their cabins.
The continual eulogies made by Columbus on the beauty of
the country were warranted by the kind of scenery he was
beholding. There is a wonderful splendor, variety, and luxuri
ance in the vegetation of those quick and ardent climates. The
verdure of the groves, and the colors of the flowers and blossoms,
174 L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF [Book IV.
derive a vividness from the transparent purity of the air, and the
deep serenity of the azure heavens. The forests, too, are full of
life, swarming with birds of brilliant plumage. Painted varieties
of parrots and woodpeckers create a glitter amidst the verdure
of the grove, and humming-birds rove from flower to flower,
resembling, as has well been said, animated particles of a rain
bow. The scarlet flamingoes, too, seen sometimes through an
opening of a forest in a distant savanna, have the appearance
of soldiers drawn up in battalion, with an advanced scout on the
alert, to give notice of approaching danger. Nor is the least
beautiful part of animated nature the various tribes of insects
peopling every plant, and displaying brilliant coats of mail, which
sparkle like precious gems.*
Such is the splendor of animal and vegetable creation in
these tropical climates, where an ardent sun imparts its own lus
tre to every object, and quickens nature into exuberant fecundity.
The birds, in general, are not remarkable for their notes, for it
has been observed that in the feathered race sweetness of song
rarely accompanies brilliancy of plumage. Columbus remarks,
however, that there were various kinds which sang sweetly
among the trees, and he frequently deceived himself in fancying
that he heard the voice of the nightingale, a bird unknown in
these countries. He was, in fact, in a mood to see every thing
through a favoring medium. His heart was full to overflowing,
for he was enjoying the fulfillment of his hopes, and the hard-
earned but glorious reward of his toils and perils. Every thing
round him was beheld with the enamored and exulting eye of a
* The ladies of Havanna, on gala occasions, wear in their hair numbers
of those insects, which have a brilliancy equal to rubies, sapphires, or
diamonds.
CHAP. H I ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
175
discoverer, where triumph mingles with admiration; and it is
difficult to conceive the rapturous state of his feelings, while thus
exploring the charms of a virgin world, won by his enterprise
and valor.
From his continual remarks on the beauty of scenery, and
from his evident delight in rural sounds and objects, he appears to
have been extremely open to those happy influences, exercised
over some spirits, by the graces and wonders of nature. He
gives utterance to these feelings with characteristic enthusiasm,
and at the same time with the artlessness and simplicity of diction
of a child. When speaking of some lovely scene among the
groves, or along the flowery shores of these favored islands, he
says, “ one could live there for ever.”—Cuba broke upon him like
an elysium. “ It is the most beautiful island,” he says, “ that
eyes ever beheld, full of excellent ports and profound rivers.”
The climate was more temperate here than in the other islands,
the nights being neither hot nor cold, while the birds and crickets
sang all night long. Indeed there is a beauty in a tropical night,
in the depth of the dark blue sky, the lambent purity of the stars,
and the resplendent clearness of the moon, that spreads over the
rich landscape and the balmy groves, a charm more captivating
than the splendor of the day.
In the sweet smell of the woods, and the odor of the flowers,
Columbus fancied he perceived the fragrance of oriental spices ;
and along the shores he found shells of the kind of oyster which
produces pearls. From the grass growing to the very edge of the
water, he inferred the peacefulness of the ocean which bathes
these islands, never lashing the shores with angry surges. Ever
since his arrival among these Antilles, he had experienced nothing
but soft and gentle weather, and he concluded that a perpetual
176
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK IV.
serenity reigned over these happy seas. He was little suspicious
of the occasional bursts of fury to which they are liable. Charle
voix, speaking from actual observation, remarks, “ The sea of
those islands is commonly more tranquil than ours; but, like cer
tain people who are excited with difficulty, and whose transports
of passion are as violent as they are rare, so when the sea be
comes irritated, it is terrible. It breaks all bounds, overflows the
country, sweeps away all things that oppose it, and leaves fright
ful ravages behind, to mark the extent of its inundations. It is
after these tempests, known by the name of hurricanes, that the
shores are covered with marine shells, which greatly surpass in
lustre and beauty those of the European seas.”* It is a singular
fact, however, that the hurricanes, which almost annually devas
tate the Bahamas, and other islands in the immediate vicinity of
Cuba, have been seldom known to extend their influence to this
favored land. It would seem as if the very elements were
charmed into gentleness as they approached it.
In a kind of riot of the imagination, Columbus finds at every
step something to corroborate the information he had received, or
fancied he had received, from the natives. He had conclusive
proofs, as he thought, that Cuba possessed mines of gold, and
groves of spices, and that its shores abounded with pearls. He
no longer doubted that it was the island of Cipango, and weighing
anchor, coasted along westward, in which direction, according to
the signs of his interpreters, the magnificent city of its king was
situated. In the course of his voyage, he landed occasionally,
and visited several villages; particularly one on the banks of a
large river, to which he gave the name of Rio de los Mares.†
* Charlevoix, Hist. St. Domingo, lib. i. p. 20. Paris, 1730.
† Now called Savannah la Mer.
CHAP. III.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
1 7 7
The houses were neatly built of branches of palm-trees in the
shape of pavilions, not laid out in regular streets, but scattered
here and there, among the groves, and under the shade of broad
spreading trees, like tents in a camp ; as is still the case in many
of the Spanish settlements, and in the villages in the interior of
Cuba. The inhabitants fled to the mountains, or hid themselves
in the woods. Columbus carefully noted the architecture and
furniture of their dwellings. The houses were better built than
those he had hitherto seen, and were kept extremely clean. He
found in them rude statues, and wooden masks, carved with
considerable ingenuity. All these were indications of more art
and civilization than he had observed in the smaller islands, and
he supposed they would go on increasing as he approached terra
firma. Finding in all the cabins implements for fishing, he con
cluded that these coasts were inhabited merely by fishermen, who
carried their fish to the cities in the interior. He thought also he
had found the skulls of cows, which proved that there were cattle
in the island; though these are supposed to have been skulls of
the manati or sea-calf found on this coast.
After standing to the northwest for some distance, Columbus
came in sight of a great headland, to which, from the groves with
which it was covered, he gave the name of the Cape of Palms,
and which forms the eastern entrance to what is now known as
Laguna de Moron. Here three Indians, natives of the island
of Guanahani, who were on board of the Pinta, informed the
commander, Martin Alonzo Pinzon, that behind the cape there
was a river, whence it was but four days' journey to Cubanacan,
a place abounding in gold. By this they designated a province
situated in the centre of Cuba; nacan, in their language, signify
ing the midst. Pinzon, however, had studied intently the map of
VOL. I.
M
178
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
Toscanelli, and had imbibed from Columbus all his ideas respect
ing the coast of Asia. He concluded, therefore, that the Indians
were talking of Cublai Khan, the Tartar sovereign, and of certain
parts of his dominions described by Marco Polo.* He understood
from them that Cuba was not an island, but terra firma, extending
a vast distance to the north, and that the king who reigned in this
vicinity was at war with the Great Khan.
This tissue of errors and misconceptions, he immediately com
municated to Columbus. It put an end to the delusion in which
the admiral had hitherto indulged, that this was the island of Ci
pango ; but it substituted another no less agreeable. He con
cluded that he must have reached the mainland of Asia, or as he
termed it, India, and if so, he could not be at any great distance
from Mangi and Cathay, the ultimate destination of his voyage.
The prince in question, who reigned over this neighboring country,
must be some oriental potentate of consequence; he resolved,
therefore, to seek the river beyond the Cape of Palms, and dis
patch a present to the monarch, with one of the letters of recom
mendation from the Castilian sovereigns; and after visiting his
dominions, he would proceed to the capital of Cathay, the resi
dence of the Grand Khan.
Every attempt to reach the river in question, however, proved
ineffectual. Cape stretched beyond cape; there was no good
anchorage; the wind became contrary, and the appearance of
the heavens threatening rough weather, he put back to the Rio
de los Mares.
On the 1st of November, at sunrise, he sent the boats on
shore to visit several houses, but the inhabitants fled to the
* Las Casas, lib. i. cap. 44, M S .
CHAP. I I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
179
woods. He supposed that they must mistake his armament for
one of the scouring expeditions sent by the Grand Khan to make
prisoners and slaves. He sent the boat on shore again in the
afternoon, with an Indian interpreter, who was instructed to
assure the people of the peaceable and beneficent intentions of
the Spaniards, and that they had no connection with the Grand
Khan. After the Indian had proclaimed this from the boat to the
savages upon the beach, part of it, no doubt, to their great per
plexity, he threw himself into the water and swam to shore. He
was well received by the natives, and succeeded so effectually in
calming their fears, that before evening there were more than
sixteen canoes about the ships, bringing cotton yarn and other
simple articles of traffic. Columbus forbade all trading for any
thing but gold, that the natives might be tempted to produce the
real riches of their country. They had none to offer; all were
destitute of ornaments of the precious metals, excepting one, who
wore in his nose a piece of wrought silver. Columbus understood
this man to say that the king lived about the distance of four
days' journey in the interior; that many messengers had been
dispatched to give him tidings of the arrival of the strangers
upon the coast; and that in less than three days' time messengers
might be expected from him in return, and many merchants from
the interior, to trade with the ships. It is curious to observe how
ingeniously the imagination of Columbus deceived him at every
step, and how he wove every thing into a uniform web of false
conclusions. Poring over the map of Toscanelli, referring to the
reckonings of his voyage, and musing on the misinterpreted words
of the Indians, he imagined that he must be on the borders of Ca
thay, and about one hundred leagues from the capital of the Grand
Khan. Anxious to arrive there, and to delay as little as possible
M 2
180
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
in the territories of an inferior prince, he determined not to await
the arrival of messengers and merchants, but to dispatch two
envoys to seek the neighboring monarch at his residence.
For this mission he chose two Spaniards, Rodrigo de Jerez
and Luis de Torres; the latter a converted Jew, who knew He
brew and Chaldaic, and even something of Arabic, one or other
of which Columbus supposed might be known to this oriental
prince. Two Indians were sent with them as guides, one a
native of Guanahani, and the other an inhabitant of the hamlet
on the bank of the river. The ambassadors were furnished with
strings of beads and other trinkets for traveling expenses. In
structions were given them to inform the king that Columbus had
been sent by the Castilian sovereigns, a bearer of letters and a
present, which he was to deliver personally, for the purpose of
establishing an amicable intercourse between the powers. They
were likewise to inform themselves accurately about the situation
and distances of certain provinces, ports, and rivers, which the
admiral specified by name from the descriptions which he had of
the coast of Asia. They were moreover provided with specimens
of spices and drugs, for the purpose of ascertaining whether any
articles of the kind abounded in the country. With these provi
sions and instructions the ambassadors departed, six days being
allowed them to go and return. Many, at the present day, will
smile at this embassy to a naked savage chieftain in the interior
of Cuba, in mistake for an Asiatic monarch; but such was the
singular nature of this voyage, a continual series of golden
dreams, and all interpreted by the deluding volume of Marco
Polo.
CHAP. I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
181
C H A P T E R IV.
FURTHER COASTING OF CUBA.
W H I L E awaiting the return of his ambassadors, the admiral
ordered the ships to be careened and repaired; and employed
himself in collecting information concerning the country. On the
day after their departure, he ascended the river in boats for the
distance of two leagues, until he came to fresh water. Here
landing, he climbed a hill to obtain a view of the interior. His
view, however, was shut in by thick and lofty forests, of wild but
beautiful luxuriance. Among the trees were some which he
considered linaloes; many were odoriferous, and he doubted not
possessed valuable aromatic qualities. There was a general
eagerness among the voyagers to find the precious articles of
commerce which grow in the favored climes of the East; and
their imaginations were continually deceived by their hopes.
For two or three days the admiral was excited by reports of
cinnamon-trees, and nutmegs, and rhubarb; but, on examination,
they all proved fallacious. He showed the natives specimens
of those and various other spices and drugs, and understood from
them that those articles abounded to the southeast. He showed
them gold and pearls also, and several old Indians spoke of a
country where the natives wore ornaments of them round their
182 LIFE AND VOYAGES OF
[BOOK I V .
necks, arms, and ankles. They repeatedly mentioned the word
Bohio, which Columbus supposed to be the name of the place in
question, and that it was some rich district or island. They min
gled, however, great extravagancies with their imperfect accounts,
describing nations at a distance who had but one eye; others
who had the heads of dogs, and who were cannibals—cutting the
throats of their prisoners and sucking their blood.*
All these reports of gold, and pearls, and spices, many of
which were probably fabrications to please the admiral, tended to
keep up the persuasion that he was among the valuable coasts
and islands of the East. On making a fire to heat the tar for
careening the ships, the seamen found that the wood they burnt
sent forth a powerful odor, and, on examining it, declared that it
was mastic. The wood abounded in the neighboring forests,
insomuch that Columbus flattered himself a thousand quintals of
this precious gum might be collected every year; and a more
abundant supply procured than that furnished by Scios, and other
islands of the Archipelago. In the course of their researches in
the vegetable kingdom, in quest of the luxuries of commerce,
they met with the potato, a humble root, little valued at the time,
but a more precious acquisition to man than all the spices of the
East.
On the 6th of November, the two ambassadors returned, and
every one crowded to hear tidings of the interior of the country,
and of the prince to whose capital they had been sent. After
penetrating twelve leagues, they had come to a village of fifty
houses, built similarly to those of the coast, but larger; the whole
village containing at least a thousand inhabitants. The natives
* Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, lxxi. p 48.
CHAP. I V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
183
received them with great solemnity, conducted them to the best
house, and placed them in what appeared to be intended for
chairs of state, being wrought out of single pieces of wood, into
the forms of quadrupeds. They then offered them fruits and
vegetables. Having complied with the laws of savage courtesy
and hospitality, they seated themselves on the ground around
their visitors, and waited to hear what they had to communicate.
The Israelite, Luis de Torres, found his Hebrew, Chaldaic,
and Arabic, of no avail, and the Lucayen interpreter had to be
the orator. He made a regular speech, after the Indian manner,
in which he extolled the power, the wealth, and munificence of the
white men. When he had finished, the Indians crowded round
these wonderful beings, whom, as usual, they considered more than
human. Some touched them, examining their skin and raiment,
others kissed their hands and feet, in token of submission or adora
tion. In a little while the men withdrew, and were succeeded by
the women, and the same ceremonies were repeated. Some of
the women had a slight covering of netted cotton round the mid
dle, but in general both sexes were entirely naked. There seemed
to be ranks and orders of society among them, and a chieftain of
some authority ; whereas among all the natives they had previously
met with, a complete equality seemed to prevail.
There was no appearance of gold, or other precious articles,
and when they showed specimens of cinnamon, pepper, and other
spices, the inhabitants told them they were not to be found in that
neighborhood, but far off to the southwest.
The envoys determined, therefore, to return to the ships. The
natives would fain have induced them to remain for several days;
but seeing them bent on departing, a great number were anxious
to accompany them, imagining they were about to return to the
1 8 4
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK IV.
skies. They took with them, however, only one of the principal
men, with his son, who were attended by a domestic.
On their way back, they for the first time witnessed the use
of a weed, which the ingenious caprice of man has since converted
into an universal luxury, in defiance of the opposition of the
senses. They beheld several of the natives going about with fire
brands in their hands, and certain dried herbs which they rolled
up in a leaf, and lighting one end, put the other in their mouths,
and continued exhaling and puffing out the smoke. A roll of this
kind they called a tobacco, a name since transferred to the plant
of which the rolls were made. The Spaniards, although prepared
to meet with wonders, were struck with astonishment at this sin
gular and apparently nauseous indulgence.*
On their return to the ships, they gave favorable accounts of
the beauty and fertility of the country. They had met with many
hamlets of four or five houses, well peopled, embowered among
trees, laden with unknown fruits of tempting hue and delightful
flavor. Around them were fields, cultivated with the agi or sweet
pepper, potatoes, maize or Indian corn, a species of lupin or pulse,
and yuca, whereof they made their cassava bread. These, with the
* Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, torn. i. p. 51.
" Hallaron por el camino mucha gente que atravesaban a sua pueblos
mugeres y hombres: siempre los hombres con un tison en las manos y ciertos
yerbas para tomar sus sahumerios, que son unas yerbas secas metidas en una
cierta hqja seca tambien a. manera de mosquete hecho de papel de los que hacon
log muchachos la Pascua del Espiritu Santo, y encondido por una parte de el,
por la otra chupan 6 sorban 6 reciben con el resuello por adentro aquel humo ;
con el qual se adormecen las carnes y cuasi emborracho, y asi diz que no sien-
ten el caasancio. Estos mosquetos, 0 como los llamaremas, llamen ellos
tabacos."—Las Casas, Hist. Gen. Ind., lib. i. cap. 46.
C H A P . I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
185
fruits of the groves, formed their principal food. There were vast
quantities of cotton, some just sown, some in full growth. There
was great store of it also in their houses, some wrought into yarn,
or into nets, of which they made their hammocks. They had
seen many birds of rare plumage, but unknown species; many
ducks; several small partridges; and they heard the song of a
bird which they had mistaken for the nightingale. All that they
had seen, however, betokened a primitive and simple state of
society. The wonder with which they had been regarded, showed
clearly that the people were strangers to civilized man, nor could
they hear of any inland city superior to the one they had visited.
The report of the envoys put an end to many splendid fancies
of Columbus, about the barbaric prince and his capital. He was
cruising, however, in a region of enchantment, in which pleasing
chimeras started up at every step, exercising by turns a power
over his imagination. During the absence of the emissaries, the
Indians had informed him, by signs, of a place to the eastward,
where the people collected gold along the river banks by torch-
light, and afterwards wrought it into bars with hammers. In
speaking of this place they again used the words Babeque and
Bohio, which he, as usual, supposed to be the proper names of
islands or countries. The true meaning of these words has been
variously explained. It is said that they were applied by the
Indians to the coast of terra firma, called also by them Caritaba.*
It is also said that Bohio means a house, and was often used by the
Indians to signify the populousness of an island. Hence it was
frequently applied to Hispaniola, as well as the more general
name of Hayti, which means high land, and occasionally Quis-
queya (i. e. the whole), on account of its extent.
* Muñoz,Hist. N . Mundo, cap. 3 .
186
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
The misapprehension of these, and other words, was a source
of perpetual error to Columbus. Sometimes he supposed Babe-
que and Bohio to signify the same island; sometimes to be differ
ent places or islands; and Quisqueya he supposed to mean Quisai
or Quinsai, (i. e. the celestial city) mentioned by Marco Polo.
Hi3 great object was to arrive at some opulent and civilized
country of the East, with which he might establish commercial
relations, and whence he might carry home a quantity of oriental
merchandise as a rich trophy of his discovery. The season was
advancing; the cool nights gave hints of approaching winter; he
resolved, therefore, not to proceed further to the north, nor to lin
ger about uncivilized places, which, at present, he had not the
means of colonizing, but to return to the east-southeast, in quest
of Babeque, which he trusted might prove some rich and civilized
island on the coast of Asia.
Before leaving the river, to which he had given the name of
Rio de Mares, he took several of the natives to carry with him to
Spain, for the purpose of teaching them the language, that, in
future voyages, they might serve as interpreters. He took them
of both sexes, having learned from the Portuguese discoverers,
that the men were always more contented on the voyage, and ser
viceable on their return, when accompanied by females. With
the religious feeling of the day, he anticipated great triumphs to
the faith and glory to the crown, from the conversion of these
savage nations, through the means of the natives thus instructed.
He imagined that the Indians had no system of religion, but a
disposition to receive its impressions ; as they regarded with great
reverence and attention the religious ceremonies of the Spaniards,
soon repeating by rote any prayer taught them, and making the
sign of the cross with the most edifying devotion. They had an
CHAP. I V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
187
idea of a future state, but limited and confused. “ They confess
the soul to be immortal,” says Peter Martyr, “ and having put
off the bodily clothing, they imagine it goes forth to the woods
and the mountains, and that it liveth there perpetually in caves;
nor do they exempt it from eating and drinking, but that it should
be fed there. The answering voices heard from caves and
hollows, which the Latines call echoes, they suppose to be the
souls of the departed, wandering through those places.”*
From the natural tendency to devotion which Columbus
thought he discovered among them, from their gentle natures,
and their ignorance of all warlike arts, he pronounces it an easy
matter to make them devout members of the church, and loyal
subjects of the crown. He concludes his speculations upon the
advantages to be derived from the colonization of these parts by
anticipating a great trade for gold, which must abound in the
interior; for pearls and precious stones, of which, though he had
seen none, he had received frequent accounts; for gums and
spices, of which he thought he had found indubitable traces ; and
for the cotton, which grew wild in vast quantities. Many of
these articles, he observes, would probably find a nearer market
than Spain, in the ports and cities of the Great Khan, at which
he had no doubt of soon arriving. †
* P. Martyr, decad. viii cap. 9 ; M . Lock's translation, 1612.
† Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, tom. i.
188
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
C H A P T E R V.
SEARCH AFTER THE SUPPOSED ISLAND OF BABEQUE.—DESER
TION OF THE PINTA.
[1492.]
ON the 12th of November, Columbus turned his course to the
east-southeast, to follow back the direction of the coast. This
may be considered another critical change in his voyage, which
had a great effect upon his subsequent discoveries. He had
proceeded far within what is called the old channel, between
Cuba and the Bahamas. In two or three days more, he would
have discovered his mistake in supposing Cuba a part of terra
firma: an error in which he continued to the day of his death.
He might have had intimation also of the vicinity of the conti
nent, and have stood for the coast of Florida, or have been
carried thither by the gulf stream, or, continuing along Cuba
where it bends to the southwest, might have struck over to the
opposite coast of Yucatan, and have realized his most sanguine
anticipations in becoming the discoverer of Mexico. It was
sufficient glory for Columbus, however, to have discovered a
new world. Its more golden regions were reserved to give
splendor to succeeding enterprises.
He now ran along the coast for two or three days without
stopping to explore it, as no populous towns or cities were to be
C H A P . V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
189
seen. Passing by a great cape, to which he gave the name of
Cape Cuba, he struck eastward in search of Babeque, but on the
14th a head wind and boisterous sea obliged him to put back and
anchor in a deep and secure harbor, to which he gave the name
of Puerto del Principe. Here he erected a cross on a neighbor-
ing height, in token of possession. A few days were passed in
exploring with his boats an archipelago of small but beautiful
islands in the vicinity, since known as El jardin del Rey, or the
king's garden. The gulf, studded with these islands, he named
the sea of Nuestra Señora; in modern days it has been a lurk-
ing-place for pirates, who have found secure shelter and conceal-
ment among the channels and solitary harbors of this archipelago.
These islands were covered with noble trees, among which the
Spaniards thought they discovered mastic and aloes.
On the 19th Columbus again put to sea, and for two days
made ineffectual attempts, against head winds, to reach an island
directly east, about sixty miles distant, which he supposed to be
Babeque. The wind continuing obstinately adverse and the sea
rough, he put his ship about towards evening of the 20th, making
signals for the other vessels to follow him. His signals were
unattended to by the Pinta, which was considerably to the east-
ward. Columbus repeated the signals, but they were still unat-
tended to. Night coming on, he shortened sail and hoisted signal
lights to the mast-head, thinking Pinzon would yet join him,
which he could easily do, having the wind astern; but when the
morning dawned, the Pinta was no longer to be seen.*
Columbus was disquieted by this circumstance. Pinzon was
* Las Casas, Hist. lnd., torn. i. cap. 27. Hist. del Almirante, cap. 29.
Journal of Columbus. Navarrete, tom. i.
190
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
a veteran navigator, accustomed to hold a high rank among his
nautical associates. The squadron had in a great measure been
manned and fitted out through his influence and exertions; he
could ill brook subordination therefore to Columbus, whom he
perhaps did not consider his superior in skill and knowledge, and
who had been benefited by his purse. Several misunderstand
ings and disputes had accordingly occurred between them in the
course of the voyage, and when Columbus saw Pinzon thus part
ing company, without any appointed rendezvous, he suspected
either that he intended to take upon himself a separate command
and prosecute the enterprise in his own name; or hasten back to
Spain and bear off the glory of the discovery. To attempt to
seek him, however, was fruitless: he was far out of sight; his
vessel was a superior sailer, and it was impossible to say what
course he had steered. Columbus stood back, therefore, for
Cuba, to finish the exploring of its coast; but he no longer pos
sessed his usual serenity of mind and unity of purpose, and was
embarrassed in the prosecution of his discoveries by doubts of the
designs of Pinzon.
On the 24th of November he regained point Cuba, and
anchored in a fine harbor formed by the mouth of a river, to
which he gave the name of St. Catherine. It was bordered by
rich meadows; the neighboring mountains were well wooded,
having pines tall enough to make masts for the finest ships, and
noble oaks. In the bed of the river were found stones veined
with gold.
Columbus continued for several days coasting the residue of
Cuba, extolling the magnificence, freshness, and verdure of the
scenery, the purity of the rivers, and the number and commodi-
ousness of the harbors. Speaking in his letters to the sovereigns
CHAP. V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
191
of one place, to which he gave the name of Puerto Santo, he
says, in his artless but enthusiastic language, “ The amenity of
this river, and the clearness of the water, through which the sand
at the bottom may be seen; the multitude of palm-trees of vari
ous forms, the highest and most beautiful that I have met with,
and an infinity of other great and green trees ; the birds in rich
plumage and the verdure of the fields, render this country, most
serene princes, of such marvelous beauty, that it surpasses all
others in charms and graces, as the day doth the night in lustre.
For which reason I often say to my people, that, much as I
endeavor to give a complete account of it to your majesties,
my tongue cannot express the whole truth, nor my pen describe
it; and I have been so overwhelmed at the sight of so much
beauty, that I have not known how to relate it.”*
The transparency of the water, which Columbus attributed to
the purity of the rivers, is the property of the ocean in these
latitudes. So clear is the sea in the neighborhood of some of
these islands, that in still weather the bottom may be seen, as in
a crystal fountain; and the inhabitants dive down four or five
fathoms in search of conchs, and other shell-fish, which are visi
ble from the surface. The delicate air and pure waters of these
islands are among their greatest charms.
As a proof of the gigantic vegetation, Columbus mentions the
enormous size of the canoes formed from single trunks of trees.
One that he saw was capable of containing one hundred and fifty
persons. Among other articles found in the Indian dwellings
was a cake of wax, which he took to present to the Castilian
sovereigns, “for where there is wax,” said he, “there must be a
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 29.
192
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
thousand other good things.”* It is since supposed to have been
brought from Yucatan, as the inhabitants of Cuba were not
accustomed to gather wax.†
On the 5th of December he reached the eastern end of Cuba,
which he supposed to be the eastern extremity of Asia; he gave
it, therefore, the name of Alpha and Omega, the beginning and
the end. He was now greatly perplexed what course to take.
If he kept along the coast as it bent to the southwest, it might
bring him to the more civilized and opulent parts of India; but
if he took this course, he must abandon all hope of finding the
island of Babeque, which the Indians now said lay to the north
east, and of which they still continued to give the most marvelous
accounts. It was a state of embarrassment characteristic of this
extraordinary voyage, to have a new and unknown world thus
spread out to the choice of the explorer, where wonders and
beauties invited him on every side; but where, whichever way
he turned, he might leave the true region of profit and delight
behind.
* Journal of Columbus. Navarrete, tom. i.
† Herrera, Hist. Ind., decad. i.
CHAP. V I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
193
C H A P T E R V I .
DISCOVERY OF HISPANIOL.A.
[1492.]
WHILE Columbus was steering at large beyond the eastern extre
mity of Cuba, undetermined what course to take, he descried land
to the southeast, gradually increasing upon the view; its high
mountains towering above the clear horizon, and giving evidence
of an island of great extent. The Indians, on beholding it, ex
claimed Bohio, the name by which Columbus understood them to
designate some country which abounded in gold. When they saw
him standing in that direction, they showed great signs of terror,
imploring him not to visit it, assuring him, by signs, that the inha
bitants were fierce and cruel, that they had but one eye, and were
cannibals. The wind being unfavorable, and the nights long,
during which they did not dare to make sail in these unknown
seas, they were a great part of two days working up to the island.
In the transparent atmosphere of the tropics, objects are de
scried at a great distance, and the purity of the air and serenity
of the deep blue sky, give a magical effect to the scenery. Un
der these advantages, the beautiful island of Hayti revealed itself
to the eye as they approached. Its mountains were higher and
more rocky than those of the other islands; but the rocks rose
from among rich forests. The mountains swept down into luxu-
V O L . I.
N
194
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
riant plains and green savannas; while the appearance of culti
vated fields, of numerous fires at night, and columns of smoke by
day, showed it to be populous. It rose before them in all the
splendor of tropical vegetation, one of the most beautiful islands
in the world, and doomed to be one of the most unfortunate.
In the evening of the 6th of December, Columbus entered a
harbor at the western end of the island, to which he gave the
name of St. Nicholas, by which it is called at the present day.
The harbor was spacious and deep, surrounded with large trees,
many of them loaded with fruit; while a beautiful plain extended
in front of the port, traversed by a fine stream of water. From
the number of canoes seen in various parts, there were evidently
large villages in the neighborhood, but the natives had fled with
terror at sight of the ships.
Leaving the harbor of St. Nicholas on the 7th, they coasted
along the northern side of the island. It was lofty and moun
tainous, but with green savannas and long sweeping plains. At
one place they caught a view up a rich and smiling valley that
ran far into the interior, between two mountains, and appeared to
be in a high state of cultivation.
For several days they were detained in a harbor which they
called Port Conception ;* a small river emptied into it, after wind
ing through a delightful country. The coast abounded with fish,
some of which even leapt into their boats. They cast their nets,
* Now known by the name of the Bay of Moustique.
N O T E . — T h e author has received very obliging and interesting letters, dated
in 1847, from T . S. Heneken, Esq., many years a resident of St. Domingo,
giving names, localities and other particulars connected with the transactions of
Columbus in that island. These will be thankfully made use of and duly cited
in the course of the work.
CHAP. V I ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
1 9 5
therefore, and caught great quantities, and among them several
kinds similar to those of Spain,—the first fish they had met with
resembling those of their own country. The notes of the bird
which they mistook for the nightingale, and of several others to
which they were accustomed, reminded them strongly of the groves
of their distant Andalusia. They fancied the features of the sur
rounding country resembled those of the more beautiful provinces
of Spain, and, in consequence, the admiral named the island His-
paniola.
Desirous of establishing some intercourse with the natives,
who had abandoned the coast on his arrival, he dispatched six
men, well armed, into the interior. They found several cultivated
fields, and traces of roads, and places where fires had been made,
but the inhabitants had fled with terror to the mountains.
Though the whole country was solitary and deserted, Colum
bus consoled himself with the idea, that there must be populous
towns in the interior, where the people had taken refuge, and that
the fires he had beheld had been signal fires, like those lighted up
on the mountains of Spain, in the times of Moorish war, to give
the alarm when there was any invasion of the seaboard.
On the 12th of December, Columbus, with great solemnity,
erected a cross on a commanding eminence, at the entrance of the
harbor, in sign of having taken possession. As three sailors were
rambling about the vicinity, they beheld a large number of the
natives, who immediately took flight; but the sailors pursued
them, and captured a young female, whom they brought to the
ships. She was perfectly naked; a bad omen as to the civiliza
tion of the island; but an ornament of gold in the nose, gave hope
of the precious metal. The admiral soon soothed her terror by his
kindness, and by presents of beads, brass rings, hawks' bells, and
M 2
196
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
other trinkets, and, having had her clothed, sent her on shore ac
companied by several of the crew, and three of the Indian inter
preters. So well pleased was she with her finery, and with the
kind treatment she had experienced, that she would gladly have
remained with the Indian women whom she found on board.
The party sent with her returned on board late in the night, with
out venturing to her village which was far inland. Confident of
the favorable impression which the report given by the woman
must produce, the admiral, on the following day dispatched nine
stout-hearted, well armed men, to seek the village, accompanied
by a native of Cuba as an interpreter. They found it about four
and a half leagues to the southeast, in a fine valley, on the banks
of a beautiful river.* It contained one thousand houses, but the
inhabitants fled as they approached. The interpreter overtook
them, and assured them of the goodness of these strangers, who
had descended from the skies, and went about the world making
precious and beautiful presents. Thus assured, the natives ven
tured back to the number of two thousand. They approached the
Spaniards with slow and trembling steps, often pausing and put
ting their hands upon their heads, in token of profound reverence
and submission. They were a well-formed race, fairer and hand
somer than the natives of the other i s l a n d s . † While the Spa
niards were conversing with them by means of their interpreter,
another multitude approached, headed by the husband of the
female captive. They brought her in triumph on their shoulders,
and the husband was profuse in his gratitude for the kindness
* This village was formerly known by the name of Gros Morne, situated
on the banks of the river of “ Trois Rivieres,” which empties itself half a mile
west of Port de Paix. Navarrete, tom. i.
† Las Casas, lib. i. cap. 53., M S .
C H A P . V I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
197
with which she had been treated, and the magnificent presents
which had been bestowed upon her.
The Indians now conducted the Spaniards to their houses, and
set before them cassava bread, fish, roots, and fruits of various
kinds. They brought also great numbers of domesticated parrots,
and indeed offered freely whatever they possessed. The great
river flowing through this valley was bordered with noble forests,
among which were palms, bananas, and many trees covered with
fruit and flowers. The air was mild as in April; the birds sang
all day long, and some were even heard in the night. The
Spaniards had not learned as yet to account for the difference of
seasons in this opposite part of the globe; they were astonished
to hear the voice of this supposed nightingale singing in the midst
of December, and considered it a proof that there was no winter
in this happy climate. They returned to the ships enraptured
with the beauty of the country; surpassing, as they said, even
the luxuriant plains of Cordova. All that they complained of
was, that they saw no signs of riches among the natives. And
here it is impossible to refrain from dwelling on the picture given
by the first discoverers, of the state of manners in this eventful
island before the arrival of the white men. According to their
accounts, the people of Hayti existed in that state of primitive and
savage simplicity, which some philosophers have fondly pictured
as the most enviable on earth; surrounded by natural blessings,
without even a knowledge of artificial wants. The fertile earth
produced the chief part of their food almost without culture; their
rivers and sea-coast abounded with fish, and they caught the utia,
the guana, and a variety of birds. This, to beings of their frugal
and temperate habits, was great abundance, and what nature fur
nished thus spontaneously, they willingly shared with all the world.
1 9 8 L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F [BOOK I V .
Hospitality, we are told, was with them a law of nature univer
sally observed; there was no need of being known to receive its
succors; every house was as open to the stranger as his own.*
Columbus, too, in a letter to Luis de St. Angel, observes, “ True
it is that after they felt confidence, and lost their fear of us, they
were so liberal with what they possessed, that it would not be be
lieved by those who had not seen it. If any thing was asked of
them, they never said no, but rather gave it cheerfully, and showed
as much amity as if they gave their very hearts; and whether
the thing were of value, or of little price, they were content with
whatever was given in return. * * * In all these islands it
appears to me that the men are all content with one wife, but they
give twenty to their chieftain or king. The women seem to work
more than the men; and I have not been able to understand whe
ther they possess individual property ; but rather think that what
ever one has all the rest share, especially in all articles of provi
sions.Ӡ
One of the most pleasing descriptions of the inhabitants of
this island is given by old Peter Martyr, who gathered it, as he
says, from the conversations of the admiral himself. “ It is cer
tain,” says he, “ that the land among these people is as common as
the sun and water; and that ‘ mine and thine,’ the seeds of all
mischief, have no place with them. They are content with so
little, that in so large a country they have rather superfluity than
scarceness; so that they seem to live in the golden world, without
toil, living in open gardens; not intrenched with dykes, divided
with hedges, or defended with walls. They deal truly one with
* Charlevoix. Hist. St. Doming., lib. i.
† Letter of Columbus to Luis de St. Angel. Navarrete, tom. i. p. 167.
CHAP. VI.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
199
another, without laws, without books, and without judges. They
take him for an evil and mischievous man, who taketh pleasure in
doing hurt to another; and albeit they delight not in superfluities,
yet they make provision for the increase of such roots whereof
they make their bread, contented with such simple diet, whereby
health is preserved and disease avoided.”*
Much of this picture may be overcolored by the imagination,
but it is generally confirmed by contemporary historians. They
all concur in representing the life of these islanders as approach
ing to the golden state of poetical felicity; living under the abso
lute but patriarchal and easy rule of their caciques, free from
pride, with few wants, an abundant country, a happily-tempered
climate, and a natural disposition to careless and indolent enjoy
ment.
* P. Martyr, decad. i. lib. iii; Transl. of Richard Eden, 1555.
200
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
Galley coasting the island of Hispaniola, from an illustration of a letter written by Colum
bus to Don Raphael Xansis, treasurer of the King of Spain. A n extremely rare edition of
the letter exists in the library of Milan. The original sketch is supposed to have been made
with a pen by Columbus.
C H A P . VII.] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
201
C H A P T E R V I I .
COASTING OF HISPANIOLA.
[1492.]
W H E N the weather became favorable, Columbus made another
attempt, on the 14th of December, to find the island of Babeque,
but was again baffled by adverse winds. In the course of this at
tempt, he visited an island lying opposite to the harbor of Con
ception, to which, from its abounding in turtle, he gave the name
of Tortugas.* The natives had fled to the rocks and forests, and
alarm fires blazed along the heights. The country was so beauti
ful, that he gave to one of the valleys the name of Valle de
Paraiso, or the Vale of Paradise, and called a fine stream the
Guadalquiver, after that renowned river which flows through some
of the fairest provinces of Spain.†
Setting sail on the 16th of December at midnight, Columbus
steered again for Hispaniola. When half-way across the gulf
which separates the islands, he perceived a canoe navigated by a
single Indian, and, as on a former occasion, was astonished at his
hardihood in venturing so far from land in so frail a bark, and at
* This island in after times became the head-quarters of the famous Buc-
aniers.
† Journal of Columbus. Navarrete, Colec, tom. i. p. 91.
202 LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S O F [BOOK I V .
his adroitness in keeping it above water, as the wind was fresh,
and there was some sea running. He ordered both him and his
canoe to be taken on board; and having anchored near a village on
the coast of Hispaniola, at present known as Puerto de Paz, he
sent him on shore well regaled and enriched with various presents.
In the early intercourse with these people, kindness never
seems to have failed in its effect. The favorable accounts given
by this Indian, and by those with whom the Spaniards had com
municated in their previous landings, dispelled the fears of the
islanders. A friendly intercourse soon took place, and the ships
were visited by a cacique of the neighborhood. From this chief
tain and his counselors, Columbus had further information of the
island of Babeque, which was described as lying at no great dis
tance. No mention is afterwards made of this island, nor does it
appear that he made any further attempt to seek it. No such
island exists in the ancient charts, and it is probable that this was
one of the numerous misinterpretations of Indian words, which
led the first discoverers into so many fruitless researches. The
people of Hispaniola appeared handsomer to Columbus than any
he had yet met with, and of a gentle and peaceable disposition.
Some of them had ornaments of gold, which they readily
gave away or exchanged for any trifle. The country was finely
diversified with lofty mountains and green valleys, which stretched
away inland as far as the eye could reach. The mountains were
of such easy ascent, that the highest of them might be ploughed
with oxen, and the luxuriant growth of the forests manifested the
fertility of the soil. The valleys were watered by numerous clear
and beautiful streams; they appeared to be cultivated in many
places, and to be fitted for grain, for orchards, and pasturage.
While detained at this harbor by contrary winds, Columbus
CHAP. V I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
203
was visited by a young cacique, who came borne by four men on
a sort of litter, and attended by two hundred of his subjects. The
admiral being at dinner when he arrived, the young chieftain
ordered his followers to remain without, and entering the cabin,
took his seat beside Columbus, not permitting him to rise or
use any ceremony. Only two old men entered with him, who
appeared to be his counselors, and who seated themselves at his
feet. If any thing were given him to eat or drink, he merely
tasted it, and sent it to his followers, maintaining an air of great
gravity and dignity. He spoke but little, his two counselors
watching his lips, and catching and communicating his ideas.
After dinner he presented the admiral with a belt curiously
wrought, and two pieces of gold. Columbus gave him a piece of
cloth, several amber beads, colored shoes, and a flask of orange-
flower water; he showed him a Spanish coin, on which were the
likenesses of the king and queen, and endeavored to explain to
him the power and grandeur of those sovereigns ; he displayed,
also, the royal banners and the standard of the cross; but it was
all in vain to attempt to convey any clear idea by these symbols;
the cacique could not be made to believe that there was a region
on the earth which produced these wonderful people and won
derful things; he joined in the common idea that the Spaniards
were more than mortal, and that the country and sovereigns they
talked of must exist somewhere in the skies.
In the evening the cacique was sent on shore in the boat with
great ceremony, and a salute fired in honor of him. He departed
in the state in which he had come, carried on a litter, accompa
nied by a great concourse of his subjects; not far behind him
was his son, borne and escorted in like manner, and his brother
on foot, supported by two attendants. The presents which he
£ 0 4
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[Book IV.
h a d r e c e i v e d f r o m t h e a d m i r a l w e r e c a r r i e d t r i u m p h a n t l y b e f o r e
h i m .
T h e y p r o c u r e d b u t l i t t l e g o l d i n t h i s p l a c e , t h o u g h w h a t e v e r
o r n a m e n t s t h e n a t i v e s p o s s e s s e d t h e y r e a d i l y g a v e a w a y . T h e
r e g i o n o f p r o m i s e l a y s t i l l f u r t h e r o n , a n d o n e o f t h e o l d c o u n s e l -
o r s o f t h e c a c i q u e t o l d C o l u m b u s t h a t h e w o u l d s o o n a r r i v e a t
i s l a n d s r i c h i n t h e p r e c i o u s o r e . B e f o r e l e a v i n g t h i s p l a c e , t h e
a d m i r a l c a u s e d a l a r g e c r o s s t o b e e r e c t e d i n t h e c e n t r e o f t h e
v i l l a g e , a n d f r o m t h e r e a d i n e s s w i t h w h i c h t h e I n d i a n s a s s i s t e d ,
a n d t h e i r i m p l i c i t i m i t a t i o n o f t h e S p a n i a r d s i n t h e i r a c t s o f d e v o -
t i o n , h e i n f e r r e d t h a t i t w o u l d b e a n e a s y m a t t e r t o c o n v e r t t h e m
a l l t o C h r i s t i a n i t y .
O n t h e 1 9 t h o f D e c e m b e r t h e y m a d e s a i l b e f o r e d a y l i g h t ,
b u t w i t h a n u n f a v o r a b l e w i n d , a n d o n t h e e v e n i n g o f t h e 2 0 t h
t h e y a n c h o r e d i n a fine h a r b o r , t o w h i c h C o l u m b u s g a v e t h e n a m e
o f S t . T h o m a s , s u p p o s e d t o b e w h a t a t p r e s e n t i s c a l l e d t h e B a y
o f A c ù l . I t w a s s u r r o u n d e d b y a b e a u t i f u l a n d w e l l - p e o p l e d c o u n -
t r y . T h e i n h a b i t a n t s c a m e off, s o m e i n c a n o e s , s o m e s w i m m i n g ,
b r i n g i n g f r u i t s o f v a r i o u s u n k n o w n k i n d s , o f g r e a t f r a g r a n c e a n d
flavor. T h e s e t h e y g a v e f r e e l y w i t h w h a t e v e r e l s e t h e y p o s -
s e s s e d , e s p e c i a l l y t h e i r g o l d e n o r n a m e n t s , w h i c h t h e y s a w w e r e
p a r t i c u l a r l y c o v e t e d b y t h e s t r a n g e r s . T h e r e w a s a r e m a r k a b l e
f r a n k n e s s a n d g e n e r o s i t y a b o u t t h e s e p e o p l e ; t h e y h a d n o i d e a
o f t r a f f i c , b u t g a v e a w a y e v e r y t h i n g w i t h s p o n t a n e o u s l i b e r a l i t y .
C o l u m b u s w o u l d n o t p e r m i t h i s p e o p l e , h o w e v e r , t o t a k e a d v a n -
t a g e o f t h i s f r e e d i s p o s i t i o n , b u t o r d e r e d t h a t s o m e t h i n g s h o u l d
a l w a y s b e g i v e n i n e x c h a n g e . S e v e r a l o f t h e n e i g h b o r i n g c a -
c i q u e s v i s i t e d t h e s h i p s , b r i n g i n g p r e s e n t s , a n d i n v i t i n g t h e S p a n -
i a r d s t o t h e i r v i l l a g e s , w h e r e , o n g o i n g t o l a n d , t h e y w e r e m o s t
h o s p i t a b l y e n t e r t a i n e d .
C h a p . V I I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
205
O n t h e 22d o f D e c e m b e r , a l a r g e c a n o e filled w i t h n a t i v e s
c a m e o n a m i s s i o n f r o m a g r a n d c a c i q u e n a m e d G u a c a n a g a r i ,
w h o c o m m a n d e d a l l t h a t p a r t o f t h e i s l a n d . A p r i n c i p a l s e r v a n t
o f t h e c h i e f t a i n c a m e i n t h e c a n o e , b r i n g i n g t h e a d m i r a l a p r e s
e n t o f a b r o a d b e l t , w r o u g h t i n g e n i o u s l y w i t h c o l o r e d b e a d s a n d
b o n e s , a n d a w o o d e n m a s k , t h e e y e s , n o s e , a n d t o n g u e o f w h i c h
w e r e o f g o l d . H e d e l i v e r e d a l s o a m e s s a g e f r o m t h e c a c i q u e ,
b e g g i n g t h a t t h e s h i p s m i g h t c o m e o p p o s i t e t o h i s r e s i d e n c e ,
w h i c h w a s o n a p a r t o f t h e c o a s t a l i t t l e f u r t h e r t o t h e e a s t w a r d .
T h e w i n d p r e v e n t i n g a n i m m e d i a t e c o m p l i a n c e w i t h t h i s i n v i t a
t i o n , t h e a d m i r a l s e n t t h e n o t a r y o f t h e s q u a d r o n , w i t h s e v e r a l o f
t h e c r e w , t o v i s i t t h e c a c i q u e . H e r e s i d e d i n a t o w n , s i t u a t e d
o n a r i v e r , a t w h a t t h e y c a l l e d P u n t a S a n t a , a t p r e s e n t G r a n d e
R i v i e r e . I t w a s t h e l a r g e s t a n d b e s t b u i l t t o w n t h e y h a d y e t
s e e n . T h e c a c i q u e r e c e i v e d t h e m i n a k i n d o f p u b l i c s q u a r e ,
w h i c h h a d b e e n s w e p t a n d p r e p a r e d f o r t h e o c c a s i o n , a n d t r e a t e d
t h e m w i t h g r e a t h o n o r , g i v i n g t o e a c h a d r e s s o f c o t t o n . T h e
i n h a b i t a n t s c r o w d e d r o u n d t h e m , b r i n g i n g p r o v i s i o n s a n d r e f r e s h
m e n t s o f v a r i o u s k i n d s . T h e s e a m e n w e r e r e c e i v e d i n t o t h e i r
h o u s e s a s d i s t i n g u i s h e d g u e s t s ; t h e y g a v e t h e m g a r m e n t s o f
c o t t o n , a n d w h a t e v e r e l s e a p p e a r e d t o h a v e v a l u e i n t h e i r e y e s ,
a s k i n g n o t h i n g in r e t u r n , b u t i f a n y t h i n g w e r e g i v e n , a p p e a r i n g
t o t r e a s u r e it u p a s a s a c r e d r e l i c
T h e c a c i q u e w o u l d h a v e d e t a i n e d t h e m a l l n i g h t , b u t t h e i r
o r d e r s o b l i g e d t h e m t o r e t u r n . O n p a r t i n g w i t h t h e m , h e g a v e
t h e m p r e s e n t s o f p a r r o t s a n d p i e c e s o f g o l d f o r t h e a d m i r a l , a n d
t h e y w e r e a t t e n d e d t o t h e i r b o a t s b y a c r o w d o f t h e n a t i v e s ,
c a r r y i n g t h e p r e s e n t s f o r t h e m , a n d v y i n g w i t h e a c h o t h e r i n
r e n d e r i n g t h e m s e r v i c e .
D u r i n g t h e i r a b s e n c e , t h e a d m i r a l h a d b e e n v i s i t e d b y a g r e a t
206
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
number of canoes and several inferior caciques: all assured him
that the island abounded with wealth; they talked, especially, of
Cibao, a region in the interior, further to the east, the cacique of
which, as far as they could be understood, had banners of wrought
gold. Columbus, deceiving himself as usual, fancied that this
name Cibao must be a corruption of Cipango, and that this chief
tain with golden banners must be identical with the magnificent
prince of that island, mentioned by Marco Polo.*
* Journal of Columb. Navarrete, Colec, tom. i. Hist. del Almirante, cap.
32. Herrera, decad. i. lib. i. cap. 15, 16.
C H A P . V I I I . ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
207
C H A P T E R VIII.
SHIPWRECK.
[1492.]
ON the morning of the 24th of December, Columbus set sail
from Port St. Thomas before sunrise, and steered to the east
ward, with an intention of anchoring at the harbor of the cacique
Guacanagari. The wind was from the land, but so light as
scarcely to fill the sails, and the ships made but little progress.
At eleven o'clock at night, being Christmas eve, they were within
a league or a league and a half of the residence of the cacique;
and Columbus, who had hitherto kept watch, finding the sea calm
and smooth, and the ship almost motionless, retired to rest, not
having slept the preceding night. He was, in general, extremely
wakeful on his coasting voyages, passing whole nights upon deck
in all weathers; never trusting to the watchfulness of others,
where there was any difficulty or danger to be provided against.
In the present instance he felt perfectly secure; not merely on
account of the profound calm, but because the boats on the pre
ceding day, in their visit to the cacique, had reconnoitred the
coast, and had reported that there were neither rocks nor shoals
in their course.
No sooner had he retired, than the steersman gave the helm
in charge to one of the ship-boys, and went to sleep. This was
208
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
in direct violation of an invariable order of the admiral, that
the helm should never be intrusted to the boys. The rest of
the mariners who had the watch took like advantage of the ab
sence of Columbus, and in a little while the whole crew was
buried in sleep. In the meantime the treacherous currents, which
run swiftly along this coast, carried the vessel quietly, but with
force, upon a sand-bank. The heedless boy had not noticed the
breakers, although they made a roaring that might have been
heard a league. No sooner, however, did he feel the rudder
strike, and hear the tumult of the rushing sea, than he began to
cry for aid. Columbus, whose careful thoughts never permitted
him to sleep profoundly, was the first on deck. The master
of the ship, whose duty it was to have been on watch, next
made his appearance, followed by others of the crew, half awake.
The admiral ordered them to take the boat and carry out an
anchor astern, to warp the vessel off. The master and the sail
ors sprang into the boat; but, confused, as men are apt to be
when suddenly awakened by an alarm, instead of obeying the
commands of Columbus, they rowed off to the other caravel,
about half a league to windward.
In the meantime the master had reached the caravel, and
made known the perilous state in which he had left the vessel.
He was reproached with his pusillanimous desertion ; the com
mander of the caravel manned his boat and hastened to the relief
of the admiral, followed by the recreant master covered with
shame and confusion.
It was too late to save the ship, the current having set her
more upon the bank. The admiral, seeing that his boat had
deserted him, that the ship had swung across the stream, and
that the water was continually gaining upon her, ordered the
CHAP. V I I I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
209
mast to be cut away, in the hope of lightening her sufficiently to
float her off. Every effort was in vain. The keel was firmly
bedded in the sand; the shock had opened several seams; while
the swell of the breakers, striking her broadside, left her each
moment more and more aground, until she fell over on one side.
Fortunately the weather continued calm, otherwise the ship must
have gone to pieces, and the whole crew might have perished
amidst the currents and breakers.
The admiral and her men took refuge on board the caravel.
Diego de Arana, chief judge of the armament, and Pedro Gutier
rez, the king's butler, were immediately sent on shore as envoys
to the cacique Guacanagari, to inform him of the intended visit
of the admiral, and of his disastrous shipwreck. In the mean
time, as a light wind had sprung up from shore, and the admiral
was ignorant of his situation, and of the rocks and banks that
might be lurking around him, he lay to until daylight.
The habitation of the cacique was about a league and a half
from the wreck. When he heard of the misfortune of his guest,
he manifested the utmost affliction, and even shed tears. He
immediately sent all his people, with all the canoes, large and
small, that could be mustered ; and so active were they in their
assistance, that in a little while the vessel was unloaded. The
cacique himself, and his brothers and relatives, rendered all the
aid in their power, both on sea and land; keeping vigilant guard
that every thing should be conducted with order, and the prop
erty secured from injury or theft. From time to time he sent
some one of his family, or some principal person of his attend
ants, to console and cheer the admiral, assuring him that every
thing he possessed should be at his disposal.
Never, in a civilized country, were the vaunted rites of hos-
VOL. I.
0
210
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK IV.
pitality more scrupulously observed, than by this uncultivated
savage. All the effects landed from the ships were deposited
near his dwelling; and an armed guard surrounded them all
night, until houses could be prepared in which to store them.
There seemed, however, even among the common people, no
disposition to take advantage of the misfortune of the stranger.
Although they beheld what must in their eyes have been inesti
mable treasures, cast, as it were, upon their shores, and open to
depredation, yet there was not the least attempt to pilfer, nor, in
transporting the effects from the ships, had they appropriated the
most trifling article. On the contrary, a general sympathy was
visible in their countenances and actions; and to have witnessed
their concern, one would have supposed the misfortune to have
happened to themselves.*
“ So loving, so tractable, so peaceable are these people," says
Columbus in his journal, “that I swear to your Majesties, there
is not in the world a better nation, nor a better land. They love
their neighbors as themselves ; and their discourse is ever sweet
and gentle, and accompanied with a smile; and though it is true
that they are naked, yet their manners are decorous and praise
worthy."
* Hist. del Almirante, rap. 32. Las Casas lib. i. cap. 9.
CBAP. I X . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
2 1 1
C H A P T E R I X .
TRANSACTIONS W I T H THE NATIVES.
[1492.]
ON the 26th of December, Guacanagari came on board of the
caravel Nina, to visit the admiral, and observing him to be very
much dejected, was moved to tears. He repeated the message
which he had sent, entreating Columbus not to be cast down by
his misfortune, and offering every thing he possessed, that might
render him aid or consolation. He had already given three
houses to shelter the Spaniards, and to receive the effects landed
from the wreck, and he offered to furnish more if necessary.
While they were conversing, a canoe arrived from another
part of the island, bringing pieces of gold to be exchanged for
hawks' bells. There was nothing upon which the natives set so
much value as upon these toys. The Indians were extravagantly
fond of the dance, which they performed to the cadence of certain
songs, accompanied by the sound of a kind of drum, made from
the trunk of a tree, and the rattling of hollow bits of wood; but
when they hung the hawks' bells about their persons, and heard
the clear musical sound responding to the movements of the
dance, nothing could exceed their wild delight.
The sailors who came from the shore informed the admiral
that considerable quantities of gold had been brought to barter,
o 2
212
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
and large pieces were eagerly given for the merest trifle. This
information had a cheering effect upon Columbus. The attentive
cacique, perceiving the lighting up of his countenance, asked
what the sailors had communicated. When he learnt its purport,
and found that the admiral was extremely desirous of procuring
gold, he assured him by signs, that there was a place not far off,
among the mountains, where it abounded to such a degree as to
be held in little value, and promised to procure him thence as
much as he desired. The place to which he alluded, and which
he called Cibao, was in fact a mountainous region afterwards
found to contain valuable mines; but Columbus still confounded
the name with that of Cipango.*
Guacanagari dined on board of the caravel with the admiral,
after which he invited him to visit his residence. Here he had
prepared a collation, as choice and abundant as his simple means
afforded, consisting of utias, or coneys, fish, roots, and various
fruits. He did every thing in his power to honor his guest, and
cheer him under his misfortune, showing a warmth of sympathy,
yet delicacy of attention, which could not have been expected
from his savage state. Indeed there was a degree of innate dig
nity and refinement displayed in his manners, that often surprised
the Spaniards. He was remarkably nice and decorous in his
mode of eating, which was slow and with moderation, washing his
hands when he had finished, and rubbing them with sweet and
odoriferous herbs, which Columbus supposed was done to preserve
their delicacy and softness. He was served with great deference
by his subjects, and conducted himself towards them with a gra
cious and prince-like majesty. His whole deportment, in the en-
* Primer Viage de Colon, Navarrete, torn. i. p. 114.
C H A P . IX.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
213
thusiastic eyes of Columbus, betokened the inborn grace and dig
nity of lofty lineage.*
In fact, the sovereignty among the people of this island was
hereditary, and they had a simple but sagacious mode of main
taining, in some degree, the verity of descent. On the death of a
cacique without children, his authority passed to those of his
sisters, in preference to those of his brothers, being considered
most likely to be of his blood; for they observed, that a brother's
reputed children may by accident have no consanguinity with
their uncle; but those of his sister must certainly be the children
of their mother. The form of government was completely des
potic ; the caciques had entire control over the lives, the property,
and even the religion of their subjects. They had few laws, and
ruled according to their judgment and their will; but they ruled
mildly, and were implicitly and cheerfully obeyed. Throughout
the course of the disastrous history of these islanders, after their
discovery by the Europeans, there are continual proofs of their
affectionate and devoted fidelity to their caciques.
After the collation, Guacanagari conducted Columbus to the
beautiful groves which surrounded his residence. They were at
tended by upwards of a thousand of the natives, all perfectly
naked, who performed several national games and dances, which
Guacanagari had ordered, to amuse the melancholy of his guest.
"When the Indians had finished their games, Columbus gave
them an entertainment in return, calculated at the same time to
impress them with a formidable idea of the military power of the
Spaniards. He sent on board the caravel for a Moorish bow and
* Las Casas, lib. i. cap. 70, MS. Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, torn.
1. p. 114.
214
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
a quiver of arrows, and a Castilian who had served in the wars
of Granada, and was skillful in the use of them. When the
cacique beheld the accuracy with which this man used his weapons,
he was greatly surprised, being himself of an unwarlike charac
ter, and little accustomed to the use of arms. He told the admi
ral that the Caribs, who often made descents upon his territory,
and carried off his subjects, were likewise armed with bows and
arrows. Columbus assured him of the protection of the Castilian
monarchs, who would destroy the Caribs, for he let him know
that he had weapons far more tremendous, against which there
was no defence. In proof of this, he ordered a Lombard or
heavy cannon, and an arquebus, to be discharged.
On hearing the report the Indians fell to the ground, as though
they had been struck by a thunderbolt; and when they saw the
effect of the ball, rending and shivering the trees like a stroke of
lightning, they were filled with dismay. Being told, however,
that the Spaniards would defend them with these arms against
their dreaded enemies the Caribs, their alarm was changed into
exultation, considering themselves under the protection of the sons
of heaven, who had come from the skies armed with thunder and
lightning.
The cacique now presented Columbus with a mask carved of
wood, with the eyes, ears, and various other parts of gold; he
hung plates of the same metal round his neck, and placed a kind
of golden coronet upon his head. He dispensed presents also
among the followers of the admiral; acquitting himself in all
things with a munificence that would have done honor to an ac
complished prince in civilized life.
Whatever trifles Columbus gave in return were regarded with
reverence as celestial gifts. The Indians, in admiring the articles
CBAP- I X . ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
21S
of European manufacture continually repeated the word turey.
which in their language signifies heaven. They pretended to dis
tinguish the different qualities of gold by the smell; in the same
way, when any article of tin, of silver, or other white metal was
given them, to which they were unaccustomed, they smelt it and
declared it "turey," of excellent quality; giving in exchange
pieces of the finest gold. Every thing, in fact, from the hands
of the Spaniards, even a rusty piece of iron, an end of a strap,
or a head of a nail, had an occult and supernatural value and
smelt of turey. Hawks' bells, however, were sought by them
with a mania only equaled by that of the Spaniards for gold.
They could not contain their ecstasies at the sound, dancing and
playing a thousand antics. On one occasion an Indian gave half
a handful of gold dust in exchange for one of these toys, and no
sooner was he in possession of it, than he bounded away to the
woods, looking often behind him, fearing the Spaniards might
repent of having parted so cheaply with such an inestimable
jewel.*
The extreme kindness of the cacique, the gentleness of his
people, the quantities of gold which were daily brought to be ex
changed for the veriest trifles, and the information continually
received of sources of wealth in the interior of this island, all
contributed to console the admiral for his misfortune.
The shipwrecked crew, also, became fascinated with their
easy and idle mode of life. Exempted by their simplicity from
the cares and toils which civilized man inflicts upon himself by
his many artificial wants, the existence of these islanders seemed
to the Spaniards like a pleasant dream. They disquieted them-
* Las Casas, lib. i. cap. 70, MS.
216
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
selves about nothing. A few fields, cultivated almost without
labor, furnished the roots and vegetables which formed a great
part of their diet. Their rivers and coasts abounded with fish;
their trees were laden with fruits of golden or blushing hue,
and heightened by a tropical sun to delicious flavor and fra
grance. Softened by the indulgence of nature, and by a volup.
tuous climate, a great part of their day was passed in indolent
repose, and in the evenings they danced in their fragrant groves,
to their national songs, or the sound of their sylvan drums.
Such was the indolent and holiday life of these simple people;
which, if it had not the great scope of enjoyment, nor the high-
seasoned poignancy of pleasure which attend civilization, was
certainly destitute of most of its artificial miseries. The venera
ble Las Casas, speaking of their perfect nakedness, observes, it
seemed almost as if they were existing in the state of primeval
innocence of our first parents, before their fall brought sin into
the world. He might have added, that they seemed exempt
likewise from the penalty inflicted on the children of Adam, that
they should eat their bread by the sweat of their brow.
When the Spanish mariners looked back upon their own toil
some and painful life, and reflected on the cares and hardships that
must still be their lot if they returned to Europe, it is no wonder
that they regarded with a wistful eye the easy and idle existence
of these Indians. Wherever they went they met with caressing
hospitality. The men were simple, frank, and cordial; the
women loving and compliant, and prompt to form those connec
tions which anchor the most wandering heart. They saw gold
glittering around them, to be had without labor, and every enjoy
ment to be procured without cost. Captivated by these advan
tages, many of the seamen represented to the admiral the diff-
C H A P IX.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
217
culties and sufferings they must encounter on a return voyage,
where so many would be crowded in a small caravel, and en
treated permission to remain in the island.*
* Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, tom. i. p. 116.
218
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V .
C H A P T E R X .
BUILDING OF THE FORTRESS OF LA NAVIDAD.
[1492.]
T H E solicitude expressed by many of his people to be left behind,
added to the friendly and pacific character of the natives, now
suggested to Columbus the idea of forming the germ of a future
colony. The wreck of the caravel would afford materials to
construct a fortress, which might be defended by her guns, and
supplied with her ammunition; and he could spare provisions
enough to maintain a small garrison for a year. The people who
thus remained on the island could explore it, and make them
selves acquainted with its mines, and other sources of wealth;
they might, at the same time, procure by traffic a large quantity
of gold from the natives; they could learn their language, and
accustom themselves to their habits and manners, so as to be of
great use in future intercourse. In the meantime, the admiral
could return to Spain, report the success of his enterprise, and
bring out reinforcements.
No sooner did this idea break upon the mind of Columbus,
than he set about accomplishing it with his accustomed prompt
ness and celerity. The wreck was broken up and brought piece
meal to shore; and a site chosen, and preparations made for the
erection of a tower. "When Guacanagari was informed of the
C H A P . X . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
219
intention of the admiral to leave a part of his men for the defence
of the island from the Caribs, while he returned to his country
for more, he was greatly overjoyed. His subjects manifested
equal delight at the idea of retaining these wonderful people
among them; and at the prospect of the future arrival of the
admiral, with ships freighted with hawks' bells, and other pre
cious articles. They eagerly lent their assistance in building the
fortress; little dreaming that they were assisting to place on their
necks the galling yoke of perpetual and toilsome slavery.
The preparations for the fortress were scarcely commenced,
when certain Indians, arriving at the harbor, brought a report
that a great vessel, like those of the admiral, had anchored in a
river at the eastern end of the island. These tidings, for a time,
dispelled a thousand uneasy conjectures which had harassed the
mind of Columbus, for of course this vessel could be no other
than the Pinta. He immediately procured a canoe from Gua
canagari, with several Indians to navigate it, and dispatched a
Spaniard with a letter to Pinzon, couched in amicable terms,
making no complaints of his desertion, but urging him to join
company immediately.
After three days' absence the canoe returned. The Spaniard
reported that he had pursued the coast for twenty leagues, but
had neither seen nor heard any thing of the Pinta; he considered
the report, therefore, as incorrect. Other rumors, however, were
immediately afterwards circulated at the harbor, of this large
vessel to the eastward; but, on investigation, they appeared to
Columbus to be equally undeserving of credit. He relapsed,
therefore, into his doubts and anxieties in respect to Pinzon.
Since the shipwreck of his vessel, the desertion of that com
mander had become a matter of still more serious moment, and
220
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
had obliged him to alter all his plans. Should the Pinta be lost,
as was very possible in a voyage of such extent and exposed to
so many uncommon perils, there would then be but one ship
surviving, of the three which had set sail from Palos, and that
one an indifferent sailer. On the precarious return of that crazy
bark, across an immense expanse of ocean, would depend the
ultimate success of the expedition. Should that one likewise
perish, every record of this great discovery would be swallowed
up with it; the name of Columbus would only be remembered
as that of a mad adventurer, who, despising the opinions of the
learned and the counsels of the wise, had departed into the wilds
of the ocean never to return; the obscurity of his fate, and its
imagined horrors, might deter all future enterprise, and thus the
new world might remain, as heretofore, unknown to civilized
man. These considerations determined Columbus to abandon all
further prosecution of his voyage; to leave unexplored the mag
nificent regions which were inviting him on every hand; to give
up all hope for the present of finding his way to the dominions of
the Grand Khan, and to lose no time in returning to Spain and
reporting his discovery.
While the fortress was building, he continued to receive
every day new proofs of the amity and kindness of Guacanagari.
Whenever he went on shore to superintend the works, he was
entertained in the most hospitable manner by that chieftain. He
had the largest house in the place prepared for his reception,
strewed or carpeted with palm-leaves, and furnished with low
stools of a black and shining wood that looked like jet. When
he received the admiral, it was always in a style of princely
generosity, hanging around his neck some jewel of gold, or
making him some present of similar value.
CHAP. X . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
221
On one occasion, he came to meet him on his landing, attended
by five tributary caciques, each carrying a coronet of gold; they
conducted him with great deference to the house already men
tioned, where, seating him in one of the chairs, Guacanagari took
off his own coronet of gold and placed it upon his head: Colum
bus in return took from his neck a collar of fine-colored beads,
which he put round that of the cacique ; he invested him with his
own mantle of fine cloth, gave him a pair of colored boots, and
put on his finger a large silver ring, upon which metal the
Indians set a great value, it not being found in their island.
The cacique exerted himself to the utmost to procure a great
quantity of gold for the admiral before his departure for Spain.
The supplies thus furnished, and the vague accounts collected
through the medium of signs and imperfect interpretations, gave
Columbus magnificent ideas of the wealth in the interior of this
island. The names of caciques, mountains, and provinces, were
confused together in his imagination, and supposed to mean various
places where great treasure was to be found; above all, the name
of Cibao continually occurred, the golden region among the moun
tains, whence the natives procured most of the ore for their orna
ments. In the pimento or red pepper which abounded in the
island, he fancied he found a trace of oriental spices, and he
thought he had met with specimens of rhubarb.
Passing, with his usual excitability, from a state of doubt and
anxiety to one of sanguine anticipation, he now considered his
shipwreck as a providential event mysteriously ordained by heaven
to work out the success of his enterprise. Without this seeming
disaster, he should never have remained to find out the secret
wealth of the island, but should merely have touched at various
parts of the coast, and passed on. As a proof that the particular
222
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK I V .
hand of Providence was exerted in it, he cites the circumstance
of his having been wrecked in a perfect calm, without wind or
wave; and the desertion of the pilot and mariners, when sent to
carry out an anchor astern; for, had they performed his orders,
the vessel would have been hauled off, they would have pursued
their voyage, and the treasures of the island would have remained
a secret. But now he looked forward to glorious fruits to be
reaped from this seeming evil; “ for he hoped," he said, “ that
when he returned from Spain, he should find a ton of gold col
lected in traffic by those whom he had left behind, and mines and
spices discovered in such quantities, that the sovereigns, before
three years, would be able to undertake a crusade for the deli
verance of the holy sepulchre;” the grand object to which he had
proposed that they should dedicate the fruits of this enterprise.
Such was the visionary, yet generous, enthusiasm of Colum
bus, the moment that prospects of vast wealth broke upon his
mind. What in some spirits would have awakened a grasping
and sordid avidity to accumulate, immediately filled his imagina
tion with plans of magnificent expenditure. But how vain are
our attempts to interpret the inscrutable decrees of Providence!
The shipwreck, which Columbus considered an act of divine
favor, to reveal to him the secrets of the land, shackled and
limited all his after discoveries. It linked his fortunes, for the
remainder of his life, to this island, which was doomed to be to
him a source of cares and troubles, to involve him in a thousand
perplexities, and to becloud his declining years with humiliation
and disappointment.
C H A P . XI.] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
9 9 3
C H A P T E R X I .
REGULATION OF THE FORTRESS OF LA NAVIDAD.—DEPART
URE OF COLUMBUS FOR SPAIN.
So great was the activity of the Spaniards in the construction of
their fortress, and so ample the assistance rendered by the natives,
that in ten days it was sufficiently complete for service. A large
vault had been made, over which was erected a strong wooden
tower, and the whole was surrounded by a wide ditch. It was
stored with all the ammunition saved from the wreck, or that could
be spared from the caravel; and, the guns being mounted, the
whole had a formidable aspect, sufficient to overawe and repulse
this naked and unwarlike people. Indeed Columbus was of
opinion that but little force was necessary to subjugate the whole
island. He considered a fortress, and the restrictions of a garri
son, more requisite to keep the Spaniards themselves in order,
and prevent their wandering about, and committing acts of licen
tiousness among the natives.
The fortress being finished, he gave it, as well as the adjacent
village and the harbor, the name of La Navidad, or the Nativity,
in memorial of their having escaped from the shipwreck on
Christmas day. Many volunteered to remain on the island, from
whom he selected thirty-nine of the most able and exemplary,
and among them a physician, ship-carpenter, calker, cooper, tai-
224
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[ B O O K I V .
lor, and gunner, all expert at their several callings. The com
mand was given to Diego de Arana, a native of Cordova, and
notary and alguazil to the armament, who was to retain all the
powers vested in him by the catholic sovereigns. In case of his
death, Pedro Gutierrez was to command, and, he dying, Eodrigo
de Escobedo. The boat of the wreck was left with them, to be
used in fishing; a variety of seeds to sow, and a large quantity
of articles for traffic, that they might procure as much gold as
possible against the admiral's return.*
As the time drew nigh for his departure, Columbus assembled
those who were to remain in the island, and made them an ear
nest address, charging them, in the name of the sovereigns, to be
obedient to the officer left in command; to maintain the utmost
respect and reverence for the cacique Guacanagari and his chief
tains, recollecting how deeply they were indebted to his goodness,
and how important a continuance of it was to their welfare. To
be circumspect in their intercourse with the natives, avoiding
disputes, and treating them always with gentleness and justice;
and, above all, being discreet in their conduct towards the Indian
women, misconduct in this respect being the frequent source of
troubles and disasters in the intercourse with savage nations.
He warned them, moreover, not to scatter themselves asunder,
but to keep together, for mutual safety; and not to stray beyond
the friendly territory of Guacanagari. He enjoined it upon
Arana, and the others in command, to acquire a knowledge of the
productions and mines of the island, to procure gold and spices,
and to seek along the coast a better situation for a settlement, the
present harbor being inconvenient and dangerous, from the rocks
and shoals which beset its entrance.
* Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, torn. i. Hist, del Almirante, cap. 33.
C H A P . X I ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
225
On the 2d of January, 1493, Columbus landed to take a
farewell of the generous cacique and his chieftains, intending the
next day to set sail. He gave them a parting feast at the house
devoted to his use, and commended to their kindness the men
who were to remain, especially Diego de Arana, Pedro Gutier
rez, and Rodrigo de Escobedo, his lieutenants, assuring the
cacique that, when he returned from. Castile, he would bring
abundance of jewels more precious than any he or his people
had yet seen. The worthy Guacanagari showed great concern
at the idea of his departure, and assured him that, as to those
who remained, he should furnish them with provisions, and ren
der them every service in his power.
Once more to impress the Indians with an idea of the warlike
prowess of the white men, Columbus caused the crews to perform
skirmishes and mock-fights, with swords, bucklers, lances, cross
bows, arquebuses, and cannon. The Indians were astonished at
the keenness of the swords, and at the deadly power of the
cross-bows and arquebuses; but they were struck with awe
when the heavy Lombards were discharged from the fortress,
wrapping it in wreaths of smoke, shaking the forests with their
report, and shivering the trees with the balls of stone used in
artillery in those times. As these tremendous powers, however,
were all to be employed for their protection, they rejoiced while
they trembled, since no Carib would now dare to invade their
island.*
The festivities of the day being over, Columbus embraced the
cacique and his principal chieftains, and took a final leave of
them. Guacanagari shed tears; for while he had been awed by
the dignified demeanor of the admiral, and the idea of his super-
* Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, tom. i. p. 121.
vol. I.
v
226
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK I V
human nature, he had been completely won by the benignity of
his manners. Indeed, the parting scene was sorrowful on all
sides. The arrival of the ships had been an event of wonder and
excitement to the islanders, who had as yet known nothing but
the good qualities of their guests, and had been enriched by their
celestial gifts; while the rude seamen had been flattered by the
blind deference paid them, and captivated by the kindness and
unlimited indulgence with which they had been treated.
The sorest parting was between the Spaniards who embarked
and those who remained behind, from the strong sympathy caused
by companionship in perils and adventures. The little garrison,
however, evinced a stout heart, looking forward to the return of
the admiral from Spain with large reinforcements, when they
promised to give him a good account of all things in the island.
The caravel was detained a day longer by the absence of some
of the Indians whom they were to take to Spain. At length the
signal-gun was fired; the crew gave a parting cheer to the hand
ful of comrades thus left in the wilderness of an unknown world,
who echoed their cheering as they gazed wistfully after them from
the beach, but who were destined never to welcome their return.
NOTE about the localities in the preceding chapter, extracted from the letter
of T. S. Heneken, Esq.
Guacanagari's capital town was called Guarico. From the best information
I can gather, it was situated a short distance from the beach, where the village
of Petit Anse now stands ; which is about two miles southeast of Cape Haytien.
Oviedo says that Columbus took in water for his homeward voyage from a
small stream to the northwest of the anchorage ; and presuming him to have
been at anchor off Petit Anse, this stream presents itself falling from the Pico-
let mountain, crossing the present town of Cape Haytien, and emptying into
the bay near the Arsenal.
CHAP. X I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
227
The stream which supplied Columbus with water was dammed up at the
foot of the mountain by the French when in possession of the country, and its
water now feeds a number of public fountains.
Punta Santa could be no other than the present Point Picolet.
Beating up from St. Nicholas Mole along an almost precipitous and iron-
bound coast, a prospect of unrivaled splendor breaks upon the view on turning
this point; the spacious bay, the extensive plains, and the distant cordilleras
of the Cibao mountains, impose upon the mind an impression of vastness, fer
tility, and beauty.
The fort of La Navidad must have been erected near Haut du Cap, as it
could be approached in boats by rowing up the river, and there is no other
river in the vicinity that admits a passage for boats.
The locality of the town of Guacanagari has always been known by the
name of Guarico. The French first settled at Petit Anse ; subsequently they
removed to the opposite side of the bay and founded the town of Cape Fran
cois, now Cape Haytien ; but the old Indian name Guarico continues in use
among all the Spanish inhabitants of the vicinity. ,
p 2
BOOK V.
C H A P T E R I .
COASTING T O W A R D S THE EASTERN END OF HISPANIOLA.—
MEETING W I T H PINZON.—AFFAIR WITH THE NATIVES AT
THE GULF OF SAMANA.
[1493.]
IT was on the 4th of January that Columbus set sail from La
Navidad on his return to Spain. The wind being light, it was
necessary to tow the caravel out of the harbor, and clear of the
reefs. They then stood eastward, towards a lofty promontory
destitute of trees, but covered with grass, and shaped like a tent,
having at a distance the appearance of a towering island, being
connected with Hispaniola by a low neck of land. To this pro
montory Columbus gave the name of Monte Christi, by which it
is still known. The country in the immediate neighborhood was
level, but further inland rose a high range of mountains, well
wooded, with broad, fruitful valleys between them, watered by
abundant streams. The wind being contrary, they were detained
for two days in a large bay to the west of the promontory. On
the 6th, they again made sail with a land breeze, and, weathering
the cape, advanced ten leagues, when the wind again turned to
230
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK V .
blow freshly from the east. At this time a sailor, stationed at the
mast-head to look out for rocks, cried out that he beheld the Pinta
at a distance. The certainty of the fact gladdened the heart of
the admiral, and had an animating effect throughout the ship; for
it was a joyful event to the mariners once more to meet with their
comrades, and to have a companion bark in their voyage through
these lonely seas.
The Pinta came sweeping towards them, directly before the
wind. The admiral was desirous of having a conversation with
Martin Alonzo Pinzon, and seeing that all attempt was fruitless
from the obstinacy of the adverse wind, and that there was no
safe anchorage in the neighborhood, he put back to the bay a lit
tle west of Monte Christi, whither he was followed by the Pinta.
On their first interview, Pinzon endeavored to excuse his deser
tion, alleging that he had been compelled to part company by
stress of weather, and had ever since been seeking to rejoin the
admiral. Columbus listened passively but dubiously to his apolo
gies ; and the suspicions he had conceived appeared to be war
ranted by subsequent information. He was told that Pinzon had
been excited by accounts given him by one of the Indians on
board of his vessel of a region to the eastward, abounding in
gold. Taking advantage, therefore, of the superior sailing of his
vessel, he had worked to windward, when the other ships had been
obliged to put back, and had sought to be the first to discover and
enjoy this golden region. After separating from his companions
he had been entangled for several days among a cluster of small
islands, supposed to have been the Caicos, but had at length been
guided by the Indians to Hispaniola. Here he remained three
weeks, trading with the natives in the river already mentioned,
and collected a considerable quantity of gold, one half of which he
C H A P . I.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
231
retained as captain, the rest he divided among his men to secure
their fidelity and secrecy.
Such were the particulars privately related to Columbus; who,
however, repressed his indignation at this flagrant breach of duty,
being unwilling to disturb the remainder of his voyage with any
altercations with Pinzon, who had a powerful party of relatives
and townsmen in the armament. To such a degree, however, was
his confidence in his confederates impaired, that he determined to
return forthwith to Spain, though, under other circumstances, he
would have been tempted to explore the coast in hopes of freight
ing his ships with treasure.*
The boats were accordingly dispatched to a large river, in the
neighborhood, to procure a supply of wood and water, for the
voyage. This river, called by the natives the Yaqui, flows from
the mountains of the interior and throws itself into the bay; re
ceiving, in its course, the contributions of various minor streams.
Many particles of gold were perceived among the sands at its
mouth, and others were found adhering to the hoops of the water
c a s k s . † Columbus gave it, therefore, the name of Rio del Oro, or
the Golden River: it is at present called the Santiago.
In this neighborhood were turtles of great size. Columbus
also mentions in his journal that he saw three mermaids which
elevated themselves above the surface of the sea, and he observes
that he had before seen such on the coasts of Africa. He adds
that they were by no means the beautiful beings they had been
represented, although they possessed some traces of the human
* Hist. del Almirante, cap. 34.
† Las Casas suggests that these may have been particles of marcasite, which
abounds in this river, and in the other streams which fall from the mountains of
Cibao. Las Casas, Hist Ind.,lib. i. cap. 76.
232
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
countenance. It is supposed that these must have been manate
or sea-calves, seen indistinctly and at a distance; and that the
imagination of Columbus, disposed to give a wonderful character
to every thing in this new world, had identified these misshapen
animals with the sirens of ancient story.
On the evening of the 9th January they again made sail, and
on the following day arrived at the river where Pinzon had been
trading, to which Columbus gave the name of Rio de Gracia;
but it took the appellation of its original discoverer, and long
continued to be known as the river of Martin Alonzo.* The
natives of this place complained that Pinzon, on his previous
visit, had violently carried off four men and two girls. The
admiral, finding they were retained on board of the Pinta to be
carried to Spain and sold as slaves, ordered them to be imme
diately restored to their homes, with many presents, and well
clothed, to atone for the wrong they had experienced. This
restitution was made with great unwillingness, and many high
words, on the part of Pinzon.
The wind being favorable, for in these regions the trade wind
is often alternated during autumn and winter by northwesterly
breezes, they continued coasting the island, until they came to
a high and beautiful headland, to which they gave the name of
Capo del Enamorado, or the Lovers' Cape, but which at present
is known as Cape Cabron. A little beyond this, they anchored
in a bay, or rather gulf, three leagues in breadth, and extending
so far inland, that Columbus at first supposed it an arm of the
sea, separating Hispaniola from some other land. On landing
* It is now called Porto Caballo, but the surrounding plain is called the
Savanna of Martin Alonzo.—T. S. H E N E K E N .
CHAP. I.]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
233
they found the natives quite different from the gentle and pacific
people hitherto met with on this island. They were of a fero
cious aspect, and hideously painted. Their hair was long, tied
behind, and decorated with the feathers of parrots and other birds
of gaudy plumage. Some were armed with war-clubs; others
had bows of the length of those used by the English archers,
with arrows of slender reeds, pointed with hard wood, or tipped
with bone or the tooth of a fish. Their swords were of palm
wood, as hard and heavy as iron; not sharp, but broad, nearly
of the thickness of two fingers, and capable, with one blow, of
cleaving through a helmet to the very brains.* Though thus
prepared for combat, they made no attempt to molest the Span
iards ; on the contrary, they sold them two of their bows and
several of their arrows, and one of them was prevailed upon to
go on board of the admiral's ship.
Columbus was persuaded, from the ferocious looks and hardy
undaunted manner of this wild warrior, that he and his companions
were of the nation of Caribs, so much dreaded throughout these
seas, and that the gulf in which he was anchored must be a strait
separating their island from Hispaniola. On inquiring of the
Indian, however, he still pointed to the east, as the quarter where
lay the Caribbean islands. He spoke also of an island, called
Mantinino, which Columbus fancied him to say was peopled
merely by women, who received the Caribs among them once a
year, for the sake of continuing the population of their island.
All the male progeny resulting from such visits were delivered
to the fathers, the female remained with the mothers.
This Amazonian island is repeatedly mentioned in the course
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 77, M S .
234
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
of the voyages of Columbus, and is another of his self-delusions,
to be explained by the work of Marco Polo. That traveler
described two islands near the coast of Asia, one inhabited solely
by women, the other by men, between which a similar inter
course subsisted ;* and Columbus, supposing himself in that
vicinity, easily interpreted the signs of the Indians to coincide
with the descriptions of the Venetian.
Having regaled the warrior, and made him various presents,
the admiral sent him on shore, in hopes, through his mediation,
of opening a trade for gold with his companions. As the boat
approached the land, upwards of fifty savages, armed with bows
and arrows, war-clubs, and javelins, were seen lurking among the
trees. On a word from the Indian who was in the boat, they
laid by their arms and came forth to meet the Spaniards. The
latter, according to directions from the admiral, endeavored to
purchase several of their weapons, to take as curiosities to Spain.
They parted with two of their bows; but, suddenly conceiving
some distrust, or thinking to overpower this handful of strangers,
they rushed to the place where they had left their weapons,
snatched them up, and returned with cords, as if to bind the
Spaniards. The latter immediately attacked them, wounded two,
put the rest to flight, and would have pursued them, but were
restrained by the pilot who commanded the boat. This was the
first contest with the Indians, and the first time that native blood
was shed by the white men in the new world. Columbus was
grieved to see all his exertions to maintain an amicable inter
course vain: he consoled himself with the idea, however, that
if these were Caribs, or frontier Indians of warlike character,
* Marco Polo, book iii. chap. 34 ; Eng edit. of Marsden.
C H A P . I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
235
they would be inspired with a dread of the force and weapons of
the white men, and be deterred from molesting the little garrison
of Fort Nativity. The fact was, that these were of a bold and
hardy race, inhabiting a mountainous district called Ciguay, ex
tending five and twenty leagues along the coast, and several
leagues into the interior. They differed in language, look, and
manners from the other natives of the island, and had the rude,
but independent and vigorous character of mountaineers.
Their frank and bold spirit was evinced on the day after the
skirmish, when a multitude appearing on the beach, the admiral
sent a large party, well armed, on shore in the boat. The natives
approached as freely and confidently as if nothing had happened;
neither did they betray, throughout their subsequent intercourse,
any signs of lurking fear or enmity. The cacique who ruled over
the neighboring country was on the shore. He sent to the boat a
string of beads formed of small stones, or rather of the hard part
of shells, which the Spaniards understood to be a token and assu
rance of amity; but they were not yet aware of the full mean
ing of this symbol, the wampum belt, the pledge of peace, held
sacred among the Indians. The chieftain followed shortly after,
and entering the boat with only three attendants, was conveyed
on board of the caravel.
This frank and confiding conduct, so indicative of a brave
and generous nature, was properly appreciated by Columbus ; he
received the cacique cordially, set before him a collation such as
the caravel afforded, particularly biscuits and honey, which were
great dainties with the Indians, and after showing him the won
ders of the vessel, and making him and his attendants many
presents, sent them to land highly gratified. The residence of
the cacique was at such a distance that he could not repeat his
236
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK V .
visit; but, as a token of high regard, he sent to the admiral his
coronet of gold. In speaking of these incidents, the historians of
Columbus have made no mention of the name of this mountain
chief; he was doubtless the same who, a few years afterwards,
appears in the history of the island under the name of Mayo-
nabex, cacique of the Ciguayans, and will be found acquitting
himself with valor, frankness, and magnanimity, under the most
trying circumstances.
Columbus remained a day or two longer in the bay, during
which time the most friendly intercourse prevailed with the na
tives, who brought cotton, and various fruits and vegetables, but
still maintained their warrior character, being always armed with
bows and arrows. Four young Indians gave such interesting
accounts of the islands situated to the east, that Columbus deter
mined to touch there on his way to Spain, and prevailed on them
to accompany him as guides. Taking advantage of a favorable
wind, therefore, he sailed before daylight on the 16th of January
from this bay, to which, in consequence of the skirmish with the
natives, he gave the name of Golfo de las Flechas, or the Gulf
of Arrows, but which is now known by the name of the Gulf of
Samana.
On leaving the bay, Columbus at first steered to the northeast,
in which direction the young Indians assured him he would find
the island of the Caribs, and that of Mantinino, the abode of the
Amazons; it being his desire to take several of the natives of
each, to present to the Spanish sovereigns. After sailing about
sixteen leagues, however, his Indian guides changed their opinion,
and pointed to the southeast. This would have brought him to
Porto Rico, which, in fact, was known among the Indians as the
island of Carib. The admiral immediately shifted sail, and stood
C H A P . I.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
237
in this direction. He had not proceeded two leagues, however,
when a most favorable breeze sprang up for the voyage to Spain.
He observed a gloom gathering on the countenances of the sailors,
as they diverged from the homeward route. Reflecting upon the
little hold he had upon the feelings and affections of these men,
the insubordinate spirit they had repeatedly evinced, the uncer
tainty of the good faith of Pinzon, and the leaky condition of his
ships, he was suddenly brought to a pause. As long as he
protracted his return, the whole fate of his discovery was at the
mercy of a thousand contingencies, and an adverse accident might
bury himself, his crazy barks, and all the records of his voyage
for ever in the ocean. Repressing, therefore, the strong inclina
tion to seek further discoveries, and determined to place what he
had already made beyond the reach of accident, he once more
shifted sail, to the great joy of his crews, and resumed his course
for Spain.*
* Journal of Columb. Navarrete, torn. 1. Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i.
cap. 77. Hist. del Almirante, cap. 34, 35.
238
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
IDOOK V .
C H A P T E R II.
RETURN VOYAGE. VIOLENT STORMS. ARRIVAL AT THE
AZORES.
[1493.]
T H E trade-winds which had been so propitious to Columbus on
his outward voyage, were equally adverse to him on his return.
The favorable breeze soon died away, and throughout the remain
der of January there was a prevalence of light winds from the
eastward, which prevented any great progress. He was fre
quently detained also by the bad sailing of the Pinta, the foremast
of which was so defective that it could carry but little sail. The
weather continued mild and pleasant, and the sea so calm, that
the Indians whom they were taking to Spain would frequently
plunge into the water, and swim about the ships. They saw
many tunny fish, one of which they killed, as likewise a large
shark; these gave them a temporary supply of provisions, of
which they soon began to stand in need, their sea stock being
reduced to bread and wine and Agi peppers, which last they had
learnt from the Indians to use as an important article of food.
In the early part of February, having run to about the thirty-
eighth degree of north latitude, and got out of the track swept by
the trade-winds, they had more favorable breezes, and were ena
bled to steer direct for Spain. From the frequent changes of
C H A P . II.]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
239
their course, the pilots became perplexed in their reckonings,
differing widely among themselves, and still more widely from
the truth. Columbus, beside keeping a careful reckoning, was a
vigilant observer of those indications furnished by the sea, the
air, and the sky; the fate of himself and his ships, in the unknown
regions which he traversed, often depended upon these observa-
tions ; and the sagacity at which he arrived, in deciphering the
signs of the elements, was looked upon by the common seamen
as something almost supernatural. In the present instance, he
noticed where the great bands of floating weeds commenced, and
where they finished; and in emerging from among them, con-
cluded himself to be in about the same degree of longitude as
when he encountered them on his outward voyage; that is to
say, about two hundred and sixty leagues west of Ferro. On the
10th of February, Vicente Yañes Pinzon, and the pilots Ruiz
and Bartolomeo Roldan, who were on board of the admiral's
ship, examined the charts and compared their reckonings to
determine their situation, but could not come to any agreement.
They all supposed themselves at least one hundred and fifty
leagues nearer Spain than what Columbus believed to be the
true reckoning, and in the latitude of Madeira, whereas he knew
them to be nearly in a direction for the Azores. He suffered
them, however, to remain in their error, and even added to their
perplexity, that they might retain but a confused idea of the voy-
age, and he alone possess a clear knowledge of the route to the
newly-discovered countries.*
On the 12th of February, as they were flattering themselves with
soon coming in sight of land, the wind came on to blow violently,
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib i. cap. 70.
240
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK V .
with a heavy sea; they still kept their course to the east, but with
great labor and peril. On the following day, after sunset, the
wind and swell increased; there were three flashes of lightning
in the north-northeast, considered by Columbus as signals of an
approaching tempest. It soon burst upon them with frightful
violence: their small and crazy vessels, open and without decks,
were little fitted for the wild storms of the Atlantic; all night
they were obliged to scud under bare poles. As the morning
dawned of the 14th, there was a transient pause, and they made
a little sail; but the wind rose again from the south with redoubled
vehemence, raging throughout the day, and increasing in fury in
the night; while the vessels labored terribly in a cross sea, the
broken waves of which threatened at each moment to overwhelm
them, or dash them to pieces. For three hours, they lay to, with
just sail enough to keep them above the waves; but the tempest
still augmenting, they were obliged again to scud before the wind.
The Pinta was soon lost sight of in the darkness of the night.
The admiral kept as much as possible to the northeast, to approach
the coast of Spain, and made signal lights at the mast-head for the
Pinta to do the same, and to keep in company. The latter, how
ever, from the weakness of her foremast, could not hold the wind,
and was obliged to scud before it, directly north. For some time
she replied to the signals of the admiral, but her lights gleamed
more and more distant, until they ceased entirely, and nothing
more was seen of her.
Columbus continued to scud all night, full of forebodings of
the fate of his own vessel, and of fears for the safety of that
of Pinzon. As the day dawned, the sea presented a frightful
waste of wild broken waves, lashed into fury by the gale ; he looked
round anxiously for the Pinta, but she was nowhere to be seen.
CHAP. I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S . 2 4 1
He now made a little sail, to keep his vessel ahead of the sea,
lest its huge waves should break over her. As the sun rose, the
wind and the waves rose with it, and throughout a dreary day,
the helpless bark was driven along by the fury of the tempest.
Seing all human skill baffled and confounded, Columbus en
deavored to propitiate heaven by solemn vows and acts of penance.
By his orders, a number of beans, equal to the number of persons
on board, were put into a cap, on one of which was cut the sign
of the cross. Each of the crew made a vow, that, should he
draw forth the marked bean, he would make a pilgrimage to the
shrine of Santa Maria de Guadalupe, bearing a wax taper of five
pounds' weight. The admiral was the first to put in his hand, and
the lot fell upon him. From that moment he considered himself
a pilgrim, bound to perform the vow. Another lot was cast in the
same way, for a pilgrimage to the chapel of our Lady of Loretto,
which fell upon a seaman named Pedro de Villa, and the admiral
engaged to bear the expenses of his journey. A third lot was
also cast for a pilgrimage to Santa Clara de Moguer, to perform
a solemn mass, and to watch all night in the chapel, and this like
wise fell upon Columbus.
The tempest still raging with unabated violence, the admiral
and all the mariners made a vow, that, if spared, wherever they
first landed, they would go in procession barefooted and in their
shirts, to offer up prayers and thanksgivings in some church dedi
cated to the Holy Virgin. Beside these general acts of propitia
tion, each one made his private vow, binding himself to some pil
grimage, or vigil, or other rite of penitence and thanksgiving at
his favorite shrine. The heavens, however, seemed deaf to their
vows; the storm grew still more wild and frightful, and each man
gave himself up for lost. The danger of the ship was augmented
VOL. I.
4
249
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK V .
by the want of ballast, the consumption of the water and provi-
sions having lightened her so much, that she rolled and tossed
about at the mercy of the waves. To remedy this, and to render
her more steady, the admiral ordered that all the empty casks
should be filled with sea-water, which in some measure gave
relief.
During this long and awful conflict of the elements, the mind
of Columbus was a prey to the most distressing anxiety. He
feared that the Pinta had foundered in the storm. In such case
the whole history of his discovery, the secret of the New "World,
depended upon his own feeble bark, and one surge of the ocean
might bury it for ever in oblivion. The tumult of his thoughts
may be judged from his own letter to the sovereigns. “ I could
have supported this evil fortune with less grief," said he, “ had
my person alone been in jeopardy, since I am a debtor for my
life to the supreme Creator, and have at other times been within
a step of death. But it was a cause of infinite sorrow and trou
ble, to think that, after having been illuminated from on high with
faith and certainty to undertake this enterprise, after having victo
riously achieved it, and when on the point of convincing my oppo
nents, and securing to your highnesses great glory and vast in
crease of dominions, it should please the divine Majesty to defeat
all by my death. It would have been more supportable also, had
I not been accompanied by others who had been drawn on by my
persuasions, and who, in their distress, cursed not only the hour
of their coming, but the fear inspired by my words which pre
vented their turning back, as they had at various times determined.
Above all, my grief was doubled when I thought of my two sons,
whom I had left at school in Cordova, destitute, in a strange land,
without any testimony of the services rendered by their father,
CHAP. I I . ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
243
which, if known, might have inclined your highnesses to befriend
them. And although, on the one hand, I was comforted by faith
that the Deity would not permit a work of such great exaltation
to his church, wrought through so many troubles and contradic
tions, to remain imperfect; yet, on the other hand, I reflected on
my sins, as a punishment for which he might intend that I
should be deprived of the glory which would redound to me in
this world."*
In the midst of these gloomy apprehensions, an expedient
suggested itself, by which, though he and his ships should perish,
the glory of his achievement might survive to his name, and its
advantages be secured to his sovereigns. He wrote on parchment
a brief account of his voyage and discovery, and of his having
taken possession of the newly-found lands in the name of their
catholic majesties. This he sealed and directed to the king and
queen; superscribing a promise of a thousand ducats to whomsoever
should deliver the packet unopened. He then wrapped it in a
waxed cloth, which he placed in the centre of a cake of wax, and
inclosing the whole in a large barrel, threw it into the sea, giving
his men to suppose he was performing some religious vow. Lest
this memorial should never reach the land, he inclosed a copy in
a similar manner, and placed it upon the poop, so that, should the
caravel be swallowed up by the waves, the barrel might float off
and survive.
These precautions in some measure mitigated his anxiety, and
he was still more relieved when, after heavy showers, there ap
peared at sunset a streak of clear sky in the west, giving hopes
that the wind was about to shift to that quarter. These hopes
* Hist, del Almirante, cap. 36.
Q 2
244
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
were confirmed; a favorable breeze succeeded, but the sea still
ran so high and tumultuously, that little sail could be carried
during the night.
On the morning of the 15th, at daybreak, the cry of land
was given by Rui Garcia, a mariner in the main-top. The trans
ports of the crew, at once more gaining sight of the Old World,
were almost equal to those experienced on first beholding the
New. The land bore east-northeast, directly over the prow of the
caravel; and the usual diversity of opinion concerning it arose
among the pilots. One thought it the island of Madeira; another
the rock of Cintra near Lisbon; the most part, deceived by their
ardent wishes, placed it near Spain. Columbus, however, from
his private reckonings and observations, concluded it to be one of
the Azores. A nearer approach proved it to be an island: it was
but five leagues distant, and the voyagers were congratulating
themselves upon the assurance of speedily being in port, when
the wind veered again to the east-northeast, blowing directly from
the land, while a heavy sea kept rolling from the west.
For two days they hovered in sight of the island, vainly striv
ing to reach it, or to arrive at another island of which they caught
glimpses occasionally through the mist and rack of the tempest.
On the evening of the 17th they approached so near the first
island as to cast anchor, but parting their cable, had to put to sea
again, where they remained beating about until the following
morning, when they anchored under shelter of its northern side.
For several days, Columbus had been in such a state of agitation
and anxiety, as scarcely to take food or repose. Although suffer
ing greatly from a gouty affection to which he was subject, yet
he had maintained his watchful post on deck, exposed to wintry
cold, to the pelting of the storm, and the drenching surges of the
C H A P . II.]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
245
sea. It was not until the night of the 17th, that he got a little
sleep, more from the exhaustion of nature than from any tranquillity
of mind. Such were the difficulties and perils which attended
his return to Europe: had one-tenth part of them beset his out
ward voyage, his timid and factious crew would have risen in
arms against the enterprise, and he never would have discovered
the New "World.
246
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
C H A P T E R III.
TRANSACTIONS AT THE ISLAND OF ST. MART'S.
[1493.]
O N sending the boat to land, Columbus ascertained the island to
be St. Mary's, the most southern of the Azores, and a possession
of the crown of Portugal. The inhabitants, when they beheld
the light caravel riding at anchor, were astonished that it had been
able to live through the gale which had raged for fifteen days with
unexampled fury ; but when they heard from the boat's crew that
this tempest-tossed vessel brought tidings of a strange country be-
yond the ocean, they were filled with wonder and curiosity. To
the inquiries about a place where the caravel might anchor se-
curely, they replied by pointing out a harbor in the vicinity; but
prevailed on three of the mariners to remain on shore, and gratify
them with further particulars of this unparalleled voyage.
In the evening, three men of the island hailed the caravel,
and a boat being sent for them, they brought on board fowls,
bread, and various refreshments, from Juan de Castañeda, gov-
ernor of the island, who claimed an acquaintance with Columbus,
and sent him many compliments and congratulations. He apolo-
gized for not coming in person, owing to the lateness of the hour,
and the distance of his residence, but promised to visit the caravel
the next morning, bringing further refreshments, and the three
C H A P . III.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
247
men, whom he still kept with him to satisfy his extreme curiosity
respecting the voyage. As there were no houses on the neigh
boring shore, the messengers remained on board all night.
On the following morning, Columbus reminded his people of
their vow to perform a pious procession at the first place where
they should land. On the neighboring shore, at no great distance
from the sea, was a small hermitage or chapel dedicated to the
Virgin, and he made immediate arrangements for the perform
ance of the rite. The three messengers, on returning to the
village, sent a priest to perform mass, and one-half of the crew
landing, walked in procession, barefooted, and in their shirts, to
the chapel; while the admiral awaited their return, to perform
the same ceremony with the remainder.
An ungenerous reception, however, awaited the poor tempest-
tossed mariners on their first return to the abode of civilized
men, far different from the sympathy and hospitality they had
experienced among the savages of the New World. Scarcely
had they begun their prayers and thanksgivings, when the rabble
of the village, horse and foot, headed by the governor, surrounded
the hermitage and took them all prisoners.
As an intervening point of land hid the hermitage from the
view of the caravel, the admiral remained in ignorance of this
transaction. When eleven o'clock arrived without the return of
the pilgrims, he began to fear that they were detained by the
Portuguese, or that the boat had been shattered upon the surf-
beaten rocks which bordered the island. Weighing anchor, there-
fore, he stood in a direction to command a view of the chapel and
the adjacent shore; whence he beheld a number of armed horse
men, who, dismounting, entered the boat and made for the caravel.
The admiral's ancient suspicions of Portuguese hostility towards
248
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK V .
himself and his enterprises, were immediately revived; and he
ordered his men to arm themselves, but to keep out of sight,
ready either to defend the vessel or surprise the boat. The lat-
ter, however, approached in a pacific manner; the governor of
the island was on board, and, coming within hail, demanded
assurance of personal safety in case he should enter the caravel.
This the admiral readily gave, but the Portuguese still continued
at a wary distance. The indignation of Columbus now broke
forth; he reproached the governor with his perfidy, and with the
wrong he did, not merely to the Spanish monarchs, but to his own
sovereign, by such a dishonorable outrage. He informed him of
his own rank and dignity; displayed his letters patent, sealed
with the royal seal of Castile, and threatened him with the
vengeance of his government. Castañeda replied in a vein of
contempt and defiance, declaring that all he had done was in
conformity to the commands of the king his sovereign.
After an unprofitable altercation, the boat returned to shore,
leaving Columbus much perplexed by this unexpected hostility,
and fearful that a war might have broken out between Spain and
Portugal during his absence. The next day the weather became
so tempestuous that they were driven from their anchorage, and
obliged to stand to sea toward the island of St. Michael. For
two days the ship continued beating about in great peril, half of
her crew being detained on shore, and the greater part of those
on board being landsmen and Indians, almost equally useless in
difficult navigation. Fortunately, although the waves ran high,
there were none of those cross seas which had recently prevailed,
otherwise, being so feebly manned, the caravel could scarcely
have lived through the storm.
On the evening of the 22d, the weather having moderated,
C H A P . III.]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
249
Columbus returned to his anchorage at St. Mary's. Shortly
after his arrival, a boat came off, bringing two priests and a
notary. After a cautious parley and an assurance of safety, they
came on board, and requested a sight of the papers of Columbus,
on the part of Castañeda, assuring him that it was the disposition
of the governor to render him every service in his power, pro-
vided he really sailed in service of the Spanish sovereigns. Co-
lumbus supposed it a manoeuvre of Castañeda to cover a retreat
from the hostile position he had assumed; restraining his indig-
nation, however, and expressing his thanks for the friendly dispo-
sition of the governor, he showed his letters of commission, which
satisfied the priests and the notary. On the following morning,
the boat and mariners were liberated. The latter, during their
detention, had collected information from the inhabitants which
elucidated the conduct of Castañeda.
The king of Portugal, jealous lest the expedition of Columbus
might interfere with his own discoveries, had sent orders to his
commanders of islands and distant ports to seize and detain him
wherever he should be met with.* In compliance with these
orders, Castañeda had, in the first instance, hoped to surprise
Columbus in the chapel, and, failing in that attempt, had intended
to get him in his power by stratagem, but was deterred by finding
him on his guard. Such was the first reception of the admiral
on his return to the old world, an earnest of the crosses and
troubles with which he was to be requited throughout life, for
one of the greatest benefits that ever man conferred upon his
fellow-beings.
* Hist. del Almirante. cap. 39. Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 72.
250 L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F [BOOK V .
C H A P T E R IV.
ARRIVAL AT PORTUGAL.—VISIT TO THE COURT.
[1493.]
COLUMBUS remained two days longer at the island of St. Mary's,
endeavoring to take in wood and ballast, but was prevented by
the heavy surf which broke upon the shore. The wind veering
to the south, and being dangerous for vessels at anchor off the
island, but favorable for the voyage to Spain, he set sail on the
24th of February, and had pleasant weather until the 27th, when,
being within one hundred and twenty-five leagues of Cape St.
Vincent, he again encountered contrary gales and a boisterous
sea. His fortitude was scarcely proof against these perils and
delays, which appeared to increase, the nearer he approached his
home; and he could not help uttering a complaint at thus being
repulsed, as it were, “ from the very door of the house." He
contrasted the rude storms which raged about the coasts of the
old world, with the genial airs, the tranquil seas, and balmy
weather which he supposed perpetually to prevail about the
countries he had discovered. “ Well," says he, “ may the sacred
theologians and sage philosophers declare that the terrestrial
paradise is in the uttermost extremity of the East, for it is the
most temperate of regions."
After experiencing several days of stormy and adverse wea-
C H A P . IV.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
251
ther, about midnight on Saturday the 2d of March, the caravel
was struck by a squall of wind, which rent all her sails, and, con
tinuing to blow with resistless violence, obliged her to scud under
bare poles, threatening her each moment with destruction. In
this hour of darkness and peril, the crew again called upon the
aid of Heaven. A lot was cast for the performance of a bare
footed pilgrimage to the shrine of Santa Maria de la Cueva in
Huelva, and, as usual, the lot fell upon Columbus. There was
something singular in the recurrence of this circumstance. Las
Casas devoutly considers it as an intimation from the Deity to
the admiral that these storms were all on his account, to humble
his pride, and prevent his arrogating to himself the glory of a
discovery which was the work of God, and for which he had
merely been chosen as an instrument.*
Various signs appeared of the vicinity of land, which they
supposed must be the coast of Portugal: the tempest, however,
increased to such a degree, that they doubted whether any of them
would survive to reach a port. The whole crew made a vow, in case
their lives were spared, to fast upon bread and water the follow
ing Saturday. The turbulence of the elements was still greater
in the course of the following night. The sea was broken, wild,
and mountainous; at one moment the light caravel was tossed high
in the air, and the next moment seemed sinking in a yawning
abyss. The rain at times fell in torrents,—and the lightning
flashed and thunder pealed from various parts of the heavens.
In the first watch of this fearful night, the seamen gave the
usually welcome cry of land, but it now only increased the gene
ral alarm. They knew not where they were, nor where to look
for a harbor; they dreaded being driven on shore, or dashed upon
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 73.
252
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
rocks; and thus the very land they had so earnestly desired was
a terror to them. Taking in sail, therefore, they kept to sea as
much as possible, and waited anxiously for the morning light.
At daybreak on the 4th of March, they found themselves off
the rock of Cintra, at the mouth of the Tagus. Though enter
taining a strong distrust of the good-will of Portugal, the still
prevailing tempest left Columbus no alternative but to run in for
shelter; he accordingly anchored about three o'clock, opposite to
Rastello, to the great joy of the crew, who returned thanks to
God for their escape from so many perils.
The inhabitants came off from various parts of the shore, con
gratulating them upon what they considered a miraculous preser
vation. They had been watching the vessel the whole morning
with great anxiety, and putting up prayers for her safety. The
oldest mariners of the place assured Columbus they had never
known so tempestuous a winter; many vessels had remained for
months in port, weather-bound, and there had been numerous
shipwrecks.
Immediately on his arrival, Columbus dispatched a courier to
the king and queen of Spain, with tidings of his discovery. He
wrote also to the king of Portugal, then at Valparaiso, requesting
permission to go with his vessel to Lisbon; for a report had gone
abroad that his caravel was laden with gold, and he felt insecure
in the mouth of the Tagus, in the neighborhood of a place like
Rastello, scantily peopled by needy and adventurous inhabitants.
To prevent any misunderstanding as to the nature of his voyage,
he assured the king that he had not been on the coast of Guinea,
nor to any other of the Portuguese colonies, but had come from
Cipango and the extremity of India, which he had discovered by
sailing to the west.
C H A P . I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
253
On the following day, Don Alonzo de Acuña, the captain of a,
large Portuguese man-of-war, stationed at Rastello, summoned
Columbus on board his ship, to give an account of himself and
his vessel. The latter asserted his rights and dignities as admiral
of the Castilian sovereigns, and refused to leave his vessel, or to
send any one in his place. No sooner, however, did the com-
mander learn his rank, and the extraordinary nature of his voy-
age, than he came to the caravel with great sound of drums, fifes,
and trumpets, manifesting the courtesy of a brave and generous
spirit, and making the fullest offer of his services.
When the tidings reached Lisbon of this wonderful bark, an-
chored in the Tagus, freighted with the people and productions
of a newly-discovered world, the effect may be more easily con-
ceived than described. Lisbon, for nearly a century, had derived
its chief glory from its maritime discoveries, but here was an
achievement that eclipsed them all. Curiosity could scarcely
have been more excited had the vessel come freighted with the
wonders of another planet. For several days the Tagus pre-
sented a gay and moving picture, covered with barges and boats
of every kind, swarming round the caravel. From morning till
night the vessel was thronged with visitors, among whom were
cavaliers of high distinction, and various officers of the crown.
All hung with rapt attention upon the accounts given by Colum-
bus and his crew, of the events of their voyage, and of the New
World they had discovered; and gazed with insatiable curiosity
upon the specimens of unknown plants and animals, but above
all, upon the Indians, so different from any race of men hitherto
known. Some were filled with generous enthusiasm at the idea
of a discovery, so sublime and so beneficial to mankind; the ava-
rice of others was inflamed by the description of wild, unappro-
254
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK V .
priated regions, teeming with gold, with pearls and spices; while
others repined at the incredulity of the king and his councilors,
by which so immense an acquisition had been for ever lost to
Portugal.
On the 8th of March, a cavalier, called Don Martin de No-
roiia, came with a letter from King John, congratulating Colum
bus on his arrival, and inviting him to the court, which was then
at Valparaiso, about nine leagues from Lisbon. The king, with
his usual magnificence, issued orders at the same time that every
thing which the admiral required, for himself, his crew, or his ves
sel, should be furnished promptly and abundantly, without cost.
Columbus would gladly have declined the royal invitation,
feeling distrust of the good faith of the king; but tempestuous
weather had placed him in his power, and he thought it prudent
to avoid all appearance of suspicion. He set forth, therefore, that
very evening for Valparaiso, accompanied by his pilot. The first
night he slept at Sacamben, where preparations had been made
for his honorable entertainment. The weather being rainy, he
did not reach Valparaiso until the following night. On approach
ing the royal residence, the principal cavaliers of the king's house
hold came forth to meet him, and attended him with great cere
mony to the palace. His reception by the monarch was worthy
of an enlightened prince. He ordered him to seat himself in his
presence, an honor only granted to persons of royal dignity; and
after many congratulations on the result of his enterprise, assured
him that every thing in his kingdom that could be of service to
his sovereigns or himself, was at his command.
A long conversation ensued, in which Columbus gave an ac
count of his voyage, and of the countries he had discovered.
The king listened with much seeming pleasure, but with secret
C H A P . I V . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
255
grief and mortification: reflecting that this splendid enterprise
had once been offered to himself, and had been rejected. A casual
observation showed what was passing in his thoughts. He ex
pressed a doubt whether the discovery did not really appertain to
the crown of Portugal, according to the capitulations of the treaty
of 1479 with the Castilian sovereigns. Columbus replied that
he had never seen those capitulations, nor knew any thing of their
nature: his orders had been not to go to La Mina, nor the coast
of Guinea, which orders he had carefully observed. The king made
a gracious reply, expressing himself satisfied that he had acted
correctly, and persuaded that these matters would be readily ad
justed between the two powers, without the need of umpires.
On dismissing Columbus for the night, he gave him in charge as
guest, to the prior of Crato, the principal personage present, by
whom he was honorably and hospitably entertained.
On the following day, the king made many minute inquiries as
to the soil, productions, and people of the newly-discovered coun
tries, and the route taken in the voyage; to all which Columbus
gave the fullest replies, endeavoring to show in the clearest man
ner, that these were regions heretofore undiscovered and unappro
priated by any Christian power. Still the king was uneasy lest
this vast and undefined discovery should in some way interfere
with his own newly-acquired territories. He doubted whether
Columbus had not found a short way to those very countries which
were the object of his own expeditions, and which were compre
hended in the papal bull, granting to the crown of Portugal all
the lands which it should discover from Cape Non to the Indies.
On suggesting these doubts to his councilors, they eagerly
confirmed them. Some of these were the very persons who had
once derided this enterprise, and scoffed at Columbus as a dreamer.
25G
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
To them, its success was a source of confusion ; and the return of
Columbus, covered with glory, a deep humiliation. Incapable of
conceiving the high and generous thoughts which elevated him at
that moment above all mean considerations, they attributed to all
his actions the most petty and ignoble motives. His rational ex
ultation was construed into an insulting triumph, and they accused
him of assuming a boastful and vainglorious tone, when talking
with the king of his discovery; as if he would revenge himself
upon the monarch for having rejected his propositions.* With
the greatest eagerness, therefore, they sought to foster the doubts
which had sprung up in the royal mind. Some who had seen the
natives brought in the caravel, declared that their color, hair, and
manners, agreed with the descriptions of the people of that part
of India which lay within the route of the Portuguese discove
ries, and which had been included in the papal bull. Others ob
served that there was but little distance between the Tercera
Islands, and those which Columbus had discovered, and that the
latter, therefore, clearly appertained to Portugal. Seeing the king
much perturbed in spirit, some even went so far as to propose, as
a means of impeding the prosecution of these enterprises, that
Columbus should be assassinated; declaring that he deserved death
for attempting to deceive and embroil the two nations, by his pre-
* Vasconcelos, Vida de D. Juan II., lib. vi. The Portuguese historians in
general charge Columbus with having conducted himself loftily, and talked in
vaunting terms of his discoveries, in his conversations with the king. It is
evident their information must have been derived from prejudiced courtiers.
Faria y Souza, in his Europa Portuguesa (Parte iii, cap. 4 ) , goes so far as
to say that Columbus entered into the port of Rastello merely to make Portu
gal sensible, by the sight of the trophies of his discovery, how much she had
lost by not accepting his propositions.
C H A P . I V . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
257
tended discoveries. It was suggested that his assassination might
easily be accomplished without incurring any odium; advantage
might be taken of his lofty deportment to pique his pride, pro
voke him into an altercation, and then dispatch him as if in casual
and honorable encounter.
It is difficult to believe that such wicked and dastardly coun
sel could have been proposed to a monarch so upright as John II,
but the fact is asserted by various historians, Portuguese as well
as Spanish,* and it accords with the perfidious advice formerly
given to the monarch in respect to Columbus. There is a spu
rious loyalty about courts, which is often prone to prove its zeal by
its baseness; and it is the weakness of kings to tolerate the gross
est faults when they appear to arise from personal devotion.
Happily, the king had too much magnanimity to adopt the
iniquitous measure proposed. He did justice to the great merit
of Columbus, and honored him as a distinguished benefactor of
mankind; and he felt it his duty, as a generous prince, to protect
all strangers driven by adverse fortune to his ports. Others of
his council suggested a more bold and martial line of policy.
They advised that Columbus should be permitted to return to
Spain; but that, before he could fit out a second expedition, a
powerful armament should be dispatched, under the guidance of
two Portuguese mariners who had sailed with the admiral, to take
possession of the newly-discovered country; possession being
after all the best title, and an appeal to arms the clearest mode
of settling so doubtful a question.
This counsel, in which there was a mixture of courage and
* Vasconcelos, Vida del Rei, Don Juan II., lib. vi. Garcia de Resende.vida
do Dom Joam II. Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 74, M S .
VOL. I.
R
258
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
craft, was more relished by the king, and he resolved privately,
but promptly, to put it in execution, fixing upon Don Francisco
de Almeida, one of the most distinguished captains of the age, to
command the expedition.*
In the meantime, Columbus, after being treated with distin-
guished attention, was escorted back to his ship by Don Martin
de Noroña, and a numerous train of cavaliers of the court, a mule
being provided for himself, and another for his pilot, to whom the
king made a present of twenty espadinas, or ducats of g o l d . † On
his way, Columbus stopped at the monastery of San Antonio, at
Villa Franca, to visit the queen, who had expressed an earnest
wish to see this extraordinary and enterprising man, whose
achievement was the theme of every tongue. He found her
attended by a few of her favorite ladies, and experienced the
most flattering reception. Her majesty made him relate the
principal events of his voyage, and describe the countries he had
found; and she and her ladies hung with eager curiosity upon
his narration. That night he slept at Llandra, and being on the
point of departing in the morning, a servant of the king arrived,
to attend him to the frontier, if he preferred to return to Spain by
land, and to provide horses, lodgings, and every thing he might
stand in need of, at the royal expense. The weather, however,
having moderated, he preferred returning in his caravel. Put-
ting to sea, therefore, on the 13th of March, he arrived safely at
the bar of Saltes on sunrise of the 15th, and at mid-day entered
the harbor of Palos; whence he had sailed on the 3d of August
* Vasconcelos, lib. vi.
† Twenty-eight dollars in gold of the present day, and equivalent to seven-
ty-four dollars, considering the depreciation of the precious metals.
CHAP. I V . J C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
259
in the preceding year, having taken not quite seven months and
a half to accomplish this most momentous of all maritime enter
prises.*
* Works generally consulted in this chapter:—Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib.
i. cap. 17 ; Hist, del Almirante, cap. 39, 4 C , 4 i •„ Journal of Columb., Navar-
rete, torn. i.
n 2
2 6 0
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[ E O O K V.
C H A P T E R V.
RECEPTION OF COLUMBUS AT PALOS.
[1493.]
T H E triumphant return of Columbus was a prodigious event in
the history of the little port of Palos, where every body was
more or less interested in the fate of his expedition. The most
important and wealthy sea-captains of the place had engaged in
it, and scarcely a family but had some relative or friend among
the navigators. The departure of the ships, upon what appeared
a chimerical and desperate cruise, had spread gloom and dismay
over the place; and the storms which had raged throughout the
winter had heightened the public despondency. Many lamented
their friends as lost, while imagination lent mysterious horrors to
their fate, picturing them as driven about over wild and desert,
wastes of water without a shore, or as perishing amidst rocks and
quicksands and whirlpools; or a prey to those monsters of the
deep, with which credulity peopled every distant and unfrequent
ed sea. There was something more awful in such a mysterious
fate than in death itself, under any defined and ordinary form.*
* In the maps and charts of those times, and even in those of a much later
date, the variety of formidable and hideous monsters depicted in all remote
parte of the ocean, evince the terrors and dangers with which the imagination
CHAP. V . ]
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
261
Great was the agitation of the inhabitants, therefore, when
they beheld one of the ships standing up the river; but when
they learnt that she returned in triumph from the discovery of a
world, the whole community broke forth into transports of joy.
The bells were rung, the shops shut, all business was suspended:
for a time there was nothing but hurry and tumult. Some were
anxious to know the fate of a relative, others of a friend, and all
to learn the particulars of so wonderful a voyage. When Colum
bus landed, the multitude thronged to see and welcome him, and
a grand procession was formed to the principal church, to return
thanks to God for so signal a discovery made by the people of
that place,—forgetting, in their exultation, the thousand difficul
ties they had thrown in the way of the enterprise. Wherever
Columbus passed, he was hailed with shouts and acclamations.
What a contrast to his departure a few months before, followed
by murmurs and execrations; or, rather, what a contrast to his
first arrival at Palos, a poor pedestrian, craving bread and water
for his child at the gate of a convent!
Understanding that the court was at Barcelona, he felt dis
posed to proceed thither immediately in his caravel; reflecting,
however, on the dangers and disasters he had already experi
enced on the seas, he resolved to proceed by land. He dis
patched a letter to the king and queen, informing them of his
arrival, and soon after departed for Seville to await their orders,
taking with him six of the natives whom he had brought from
the New World. One had died at sea, and three were left ill at
Palos.
clothed it. The same may also be said of distant and unknown lands; the
remote parts of Asia and Africa have monsters depicted in them which it
would be difficult to trace to any originals in natural history.
262
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
It is a singular coincidence, which appears to be well authen
ticated, that on the very evening of the arrival of Columbus at
Palos, and while the peals of triumph were still ringing from its
towers, the Pinta, commanded by Martin Alonzo Pinzon, like
wise entered the river. After her separation from the admiral
in the storm, she had been driven before the gale into the Bay
of Biscay, and had made the port of Bayonne. Doubting whether
Columbus had survived the tempest, Pinzon had immediately
written to the sovereigns, giving information of the discovery he
had made, and had requested permission to come to court, and
communicate the particulars in person. As soon as the weather
permitted, he had again set sail, anticipating a triumphant recep
tion in his native port of Palos. When, on entering the harbor,
he beheld the vessel of the admiral riding at anchor, and learnt
the enthusiasm with which he had been received, the heart of
Pinzon died within him. It is said that he feared to meet Co
lumbus in this hour of his triumph, lest he should put him under
arrest for his desertion on the coast of Cuba; but he was a man
of too much resolution to indulge in such a fear. It is more
probable that a consciousness of his misconduct made him unwil
ling to appear before the public in the midst of their enthusiasm
for Columbus, and perhaps he sickened at the honors heaped upon
a man whose superiority he had been so unwilling to acknowledge.
Getting into his boat, therefore, he landed privately and kept out
of sight until he heard of the admiral's departure. He then
returned to his home, broken in health and deeply dejected, con
sidering all the honors and eulogiums heaped upon Columbus as
so many reproaches on himself. The reply of the sovereigns to
his letter at length arrived. It was of a reproachful tenor, and
forbade his appearance at court. This letter completed his humi-
C H A P . V ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
263
liation; the anguish of his feelings gave virulence to his bodily-
malady, and in a few days he died, a victim to deep chagrin.*
Let no one, however, indulge in harsh censures over the
grave of Pinzon! His merits and services are entitled to the
highest praise; his errors should be regarded with indulgence.
He was one of the foremost in Spain to appreciate the project of
Columbus, animating him by his concurrence and aiding him
with his purse, when poor and unknown at Palos. He after-
wards enabled him to procure and fit out ships, when even the
mandates of the sovereigns were ineffectual; and finally em-
barked in the expedition with his brothers and his friends, staking
life, property, every thing upon the event. He thus entitled
himself to participate largely in the glory of this immortal enter-
prise ; but unfortunately, forgetting for a moment the grandeur
of the cause, and the implicit obedience due to his commander, he
yielded to the incitements of self-interest, and committed that
act of insubordination which has cast a shade upon his name.
In extenuation of his fault, however, may be alleged his habits
of command, which rendered him impatient of control; his con-
sciousness of having rendered great services to the expedition,
and of possessing property in the ships. That he was a man of
great professional merit is admitted by all his contemporaries;
that he naturally possessed generous sentiments and an honorable
ambition, is evident from the poignancy with which he felt the dis-
grace drawn on him by his misconduct. A mean man would not
have fallen a victim to self-upbraiding for having been convicted
of a mean action. His story shows how one lapse from duty
may counterbalance the merits of a thousand services; how one
moment of weakness may mar the beauty of a whole life of vir-
* Muñoz, Hist. N . Mundo, lib. iv. § 14. Charlevoix, Hist. St. Domin. lib. ii.
2 6 4
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V.
tue; and how important it is for a man, under all circumstances,
to be true, not merely to others, but to himself.*
* After a lapse of years, the descendants of the Pinzons made strenuous
representations to the crown of the merits and services of their family, endeav-
oring to prove, among other things, that but for the aid and encouragement of
Martin Alonzo and his brothers, Columbus would never have made his dis-
covery. Some of the testimony rendered on this and another occasion was
rather extravagant and absurd, as will be shown in another part of this work.†
The Emperor Charles V, however, taking into consideration the real services
of the brothers in the first voyage, and the subsequent expeditions and discove-
ries of that able and intrepid navigator Vincente Yañez Pinzon, granted to the
family the well-merited rank and privileges of Hidalguia, a degree of nobility
which constituted them noble hidalgos, with the right of prefixing the title of
Don to their names. A coat of arms was also given them, emblematical of
their services as discoverers. These privileges and arms are carefully preserved
by the family at the present day.
The Pinzons at present reside principally in the little city of Moguer, about
a league from Palos, and possess vineyards and estates about the neighbor-
hood. They are in easy, if not affluent circumstances, and inhabit the best
houses in Moguer. Here they have continued, from generation to generation,
since the time of the discovery, filling places of public trust and dignity, enjoy-
ing the good opinion and good will of their fellow-citizens, and flourishing in
nearly the same state in which they were found by Columbus, on his first visit
to Palos. It is rare indeed to find a family, in this fluctuating world, so little
changed by the revolutions of nearly three centuries and a half.
Whatever Palos may have been in the time of Columbus, it is now a paltry
village of about four hundred inhabitants, who subsist chiefly by laboring in the
fields and vineyards. The convent of La Rabida still exists, but is inhabited
merely by two friars, with a noviciate and a lay brother. It is situated on a
hill, surrounded by a scattered forest of pine trees, and overlooks the low sandy
country of the sea-coast, and the windings of the river by which Columbus
sallied forth upon the ocean.
† Vide Illustrations, article “ Martin Alonzo Pinzon.”
C H A P . V I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
265
C H A P T E R V I .
RECEPTION OP COLUMBUS BY THE SPANISH COURT AT BARCE
LONA.
T H E letter of Columbus to the Spanish monarchs, had produced
the greatest sensation at court. The event he announced was
considered the most extraordinary of their prosperous reign, and
following so close upon the conquest of Granada, was pronounced
a signal mark of divine favor for that triumph achieved in the
cause of the true faith. The sovereigns themselves were for a time
dazzled by this sudden and easy acquisition of a new empire, of
indefinite extent, and apparently boundless wealth; and their first
idea was to secure it beyond the reach of dispute. Shortly after
his arrival in Seville, Columbus received a letter from them ex
pressing their great delight, and requesting him to repair imme
diately to court, to concert plane for a second and more extensive
expedition. As the summer, the time favorable for a voyage, was
approaching, they desired him to make any arrangements at Seville
or elsewhere that might hasten the expedition, and to inform them,
by the return of the courier, what was to be done on their part.
This letter was addressed to him by the title of “ Don Christopher
Columbus, our admiral of the ocean sea, and viceroy and gover
nor of the islands discovered in the Indies;” at the same time he
was promised still further rewards. Columbus lost no time in
266
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
TBOOK V .
complying with the commands of the sovereigns. He sent a me
morandum of the ships, men, and munitions requisite, and having
made such dispositions at Seville as circumstances permitted, set
out for Barcelona, taking with him the six Indians, and the
various curiosities and productions brought from the New World.
The fame of his discovery had resounded throughout the na
tion, and as his route lay through several of the finest and most
populous provinces of Spain, his journey appeared like the pro
gress of a sovereign. Wherever he passed, the country poured
forth its inhabitants, who lined the road and thronged the villages.
The streets, windows, and balconies of the towns were filled with
eager spectators, who rent the air with acclamations. His jour
ney was continually impeded by the multitude pressing to gain
a sight of him and of the Indians, who were regarded with as
much astonishment as if they had been natives of another planet.
It was impossible to satisfy the craving curiosity which assailed
him and his attendants at every stage with innumerable questions;
popular rumor, as usual, had exaggerated the truth, and had filled
the newly-found country with all kinds of wonders.
About the middle of April Columbus arrived at Barcelona,
where every preparation had been made to give him a solemn and
magnificent reception. The beauty and serenity of the weather
in that genial season and favored climate, contributed to give
splendor to this memorable ceremony. As he drew near the
place, many of the youthful courtiers, and hidalgos, together with
a vast concourse of the populace, came forth to meet and welcome
him. His entrance into this noble city has been compared to one
of those triumphs which the Romans were accustomed to decree
to conquerors. First, were paraded the Indians, painted accord
ing to their savage fashion, and decorated with their national
C H A P . V I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
267
ornaments of gold. After these were borne various kinds of live
parrots, together with stuffed birds and animals of unknown spe
cies, and rare plants supposed to be of precious qualities ; while
great care was taken to make a conspicuous display of Indian
coronets, bracelets, and other decorations of gold, which might
give an idea of the wealth of the newly-discovered regions.
After this, followed Columbus on horseback, surrounded by a
brilliant cavalcade of Spanish chivalry. The streets were almost
impassable from the countless multitude; the windows and balco
nies were crowded with the fair; the very roofs were covered
with spectators. It seemed as if the public eye could not be sated
with gazing on these trophies of an unknown world; or on the
remarkable man by whom it had been discovered. There was a
sublimity in this event that mingled a solemn feeling with the pub
lic joy. It was looked upon as a vast and signal dispensation of
Providence, in reward for the piety of the monarchs; and the
majestic and venerable appearance of the discoverer, so different
from the youth and buoyancy generally expected from roving en
terprise, seemed in harmony with the grandeur and dignity of his
achievement.
To receive him with suitable pomp and distinction, the sove
reigns had ordered their throne to be placed in public under a rich
canopy of brocade of gold, in a vast and splendid saloon. Here
the king and queen awaited his arrival, seated in state, with the
prince Juan beside them, and attended by the dignitaries of their
court, and the principal nobility of Castile, Valentia, Catalonia,
and Arragon, all impatient to behold the man who had conferred
so incalculable a benefit upon the nation. At length Columbus
entered the hall, surrounded by a brilliant crowd of cavaliers,
among whom, says Las Casas, he was conspicuous for his stately
368
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
and commanding person, which with his countenance, rendered
venerable by his gray hairs, gave him the august appearance of a
senator of Rome : a modest Smile lighted up his features, showing
that he enjoyed the state and glory in which he came ;* and cer
tainly nothing could be more deeply moving to a mind inflamed
by noble ambition, and conscious of having greatly deserved,
than these testimonials of the admiration and gratitude of a na
tion, or rather of a world. As Columbus approached, the sove
reigns rose, as if receiving a person of the highest rank. Bend
ing his knees, he offered to kiss their hands ; but there was some
hesitation on their part to permit this act of homage. Raising
him in the most gracious manner, they ordered him to seat him
self in their presence; a rare honor in this proud and punctilious
court.†
At their request, he now gave an account of the most striking
events of his voyage, and a description of the islands discovered.
He displayed specimens of unknown birds, and other animals;
of rare plants of medicinal and aromatic virtues; of native gold
in dust, in crude masses, or labored into barbaric ornaments; and,
above all, the natives of these countries, who were objects of in
tense and inexhaustible interest. All these he pronounced mere
harbingers of greater discoveries yet to be made, which would add
realms of incalculable wealth to the dominions of their majesties,
and whole nations of proselytes to the true faith.
When he had finished, the sovereigns sank on their knees,
and raising their clasped hands to heaven, their eyes filled with
tears of joy and gratitude, poured forth thanks and praises
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 78, M S .
† Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 78. Hist. del. Almirante, cap. 81.
C H A P . V I . ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
269
to God for so great a providence: all present followed their
example; a deep and solemn enthusiasm pervaded that splendid
assembly, and prevented all common acclamations of triumph.
The anthem Te Deum laudamus, chanted by the choir of the
royal chapel, with the accompaniment of instruments, rose in a full
body of sacred harmony; bearing up, as it were, the feelings and
thoughts of the auditors to heaven, “ so that," says the venerable
Las Casas, “ it seemed as if in that hour they communicated with
celestial delights." Such was the solemn and pious manner in
which the brilliant court of Spain celebrated this sublime event;
offering up a grateful tribute of melody and praise, and giving
glory to God for the discovery of another world.
When Columbus retired from the royal presence, he was
attended to his residence by all the court, and followed by the
shouting populace. For many days he was the object of univer
sal curiosity, and wherever he appeared, was surrounded by an
admiring multitude.
While his mind was teeming with glorious anticipations,
his pious scheme for the deliverance of the holy sepulchre was
not forgotten. It has been shown that he suggested it to the
Spanish sovereigns at the time of first making hi3 propositions,
holding it forth as the great object to be effected by the profits
of his discoveries. Flushed with the idea of the vast wealth now
to accrue to himself, he made a vow to furnish within seven
years an army, consisting of four thousand horse, and fifty thou
sand foot, for the rescue of the holy sepulchre, and a similar force
within the five following years. This vow was recorded in one
of his letters to the sovereigns, to which he refers, but which is
no longer extant; nor is it certain whether it was made at the
end of his first voyage, or at a subsequent date, when the magni-
270
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V.
tude and wealthy result of his discoveries became more fully
manifest. He often alludes to it vaguely in his writings, and he
refers to it expressly in a letter to Pope Alexander V I , written
in 1502, in which he accounts also for its non-fulfillment. It is
essential to a full comprehension of the character and motives of
Columbus, that this visionary project should be borne in recollec
tion. It will be found to have entwined itself in his mind with
his enterprise of discovery, and that a holy crusade was to be the
consummation of those divine purposes, for which he considered
himself selected by Heaven as an agent. It shows how much his
mind was elevated above selfish and mercenary views—how it
was filled with those devout and heroic schemes, which in the
time of the crusades had inflamed the thoughts and directed the
enterprises of the bravest warriors and most illustrious princes.
CHAP. VII.] CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
271
C H A P T E R VII.
SOJOURN OF COLUMBUS AT BARCELONA.—ATTENTIONS PAID
HIM BY THE SOVEREIGNS AND COURTIERS.
T H E joy occasioned by the great discovery of Columbus was not
confined to Spain; the tidings were spread far and wide by the
communications of ambassadors, the correspondence of the learn
ed, the negotiations of merchants, and the reports of travelers, and
the whole civilized world was filled with wonder and delight.
How gratifying would it have been, had the press at that time,
as at present, poured forth its daily tide of speculation on every
passing occurrence! With what eagerness should we seek to
know the first ideas and emotions of the public, on an event so
unlooked for and sublime! Even the first announcements of it by
contemporary writers, though brief and incidental, derive interest
from being written at the time; and from showing the casual
way in which such great tidings were conveyed about the world.
Allegretto Allegretti, in his annals of Sienna for 1493, mentions
ft as just made known there by the letters of their merchants who
were in Spain, and by the mouths of various travelers.* The
news was brought to Genoa by the return of her ambassadors
Francisco Marchesi and Giovanni Antonio Grimaldi, and was
* Diarj Senesi de Alleg. Allegretti. Muratori, Ital. Script., tom. xxiii.
272
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
recorded among the triumphant events of the year:* for the
republic, though she may have slighted the opportunity of making
herself mistress of the discovery, has ever since been tenacious
of the glory of having given birth to the discoverer. The tidings
were soon carried to England, which as yet was but a maritime
power of inferior importance. They caused, however, much
wonder in London, and great talk and admiration in the court of
Henry VII, where the discovery was pronounced “ a thing more
divine than human." W e have this on the authority of Sebastian
Cabot himself, the future discoverer of the northern continent of
America, who was in London at the time, and was inspired by
the event with a generous spirit of emulation.†
Every member of civilized society, in fact, rejoiced in the
occurrence, as one in which he was more or less interested. To
some it opened a new and unbounded field of inquiry; to others,
of enterprise; and every one awaited with intense eagerness the
further development of this unknown world, still covered with
mystery, the partial glimpses of which were so full of wonder.
W e have a brief testimony of the emotions of the learned in a
letter, written at the time, by Peter Martyr to his friend Pompo-
nius Laetus. “ You tell me, my amiable Pomponius," he writes,
“ that you leaped for joy, and that your delight was mingled with
tears, when you read my epistle, certifying to you the hitherto
hidden world of the antipodes. You have felt and acted as
became a man eminent for learning, for I can conceive no ali
ment more delicious than such tidings to a cultivated and ingenu
ous mind. I feel a wonderful exultation of spirits when I con-
* Foglieta, Istoria de Genova, lib. ii.
† Hackluyt, Collect. Voyages, vol. iii. p. 7.
CHAP. VII.]
C H R I S T O P H E R COLUMBUS.
273
verse with intelligent men who have returned from these regions.
It is like an accession of wealth to a miser. Our minds, soiled
and debased by the common concerns of life and the vices of
society, become elevated and ameliorated by contemplating such
glorious events.”*
Notwithstanding this universal enthusiasm, however, no one
was aware of the real importance of the discovery. No one had
an idea that this was a totally distinct portion of the globe, sepa
rated by oceans from the ancient world. The opinion of Colum
bus was universally adopted, that Cuba was the end of the Asiatic
continent, and that the adjacent islands were in the Indian seas.
This agreed with the opinions of the ancients, heretofore cited,
about the moderate distance from Spain to the extremity of India,
sailing westwardly. The parrots were also thought to resemble
those described by Pliny, as abounding in the remote parts of
Asia. The lands, therefore, which Columbus had visited were
called the West Indies; and as he seemed to have entered upon a
vast region of unexplored countries, existing in a state of nature,
the whole received the comprehensive appellation of “ The New
World."
During the whole of his sojourn at Barcelona, the sovereigns
took every occasion to bestow on Columbus personal marks of
their high consideration. He was admitted at all times to the
royal presence, and the queen delighted to converse with him on
the subject of his enterprises. The king, too, appeared occasion
ally on horseback, with Prince Juan on one side, and Columbus
on the other. To perpetuate in his family the glory of his
achievement, a coat of arms was assigned him, in which the royal
* Letters of P Martyr, let. 153.
VOL. I .
s
274
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
arms, the castle and lion, were quartered with his proper bear
ings, which were a group of islands surrounded by waves. T o
these arms was afterwards annexed the motto:
A Castilla y a Leon,
Nuevo mundo dio Colon.
(To Castile and Leon
Columbus gave a new world.)
The pension which had been decreed by the sovereigns to
him who in the first voyage should discover land, was adjudged
to Columbus, for having first seen the light on the shore. It
is said that the seaman who first descried the land, was so in
censed at being disappointed of what he conceived his merited
reward, that he renounced his country and his faith, and going
into Africa turned Mussulman ; an anecdote which rests merely on
the authority of Oviedo,* who is extremely incorrect in his nar
ration of this voyage, and inserts many falsehoods told him by the
enemies of the admiral.
It may, at first sight, appear but little accordant with the ac
knowledged magnanimity of Columbus, to have borne away the
prize from this poor sailor, but this was a subject in which his
whole ambition was involved, and he was doubtless proud of the
honor of being personally the discoverer of the land as well as
projector of the enterprise.
Next to the countenance shown him by the king and queen,
may be mentioned that of Pedro Gonzalez de Mendoza, the grand
cardinal of Spain, and first subject of the realm; a man whose
elevated character for piety, learning, and high prince-like quali-
* Oviedo, Cronico de las Indias, lib. ii. cap. 2.
CHAP. V I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S . 275
ties, gave signal value to his favors. He invited Columbus to a
banquet, where he assigned him the most honorable place at table,
and had him served with the ceremonials which in those puncti
lious times were observed towards sovereigns. At this repast is
said to have occurred the well-known anecdote of the egg. A
shallow courtier present, impatient of the honors paid to Colum
bus, and meanly jealous of him as a foreigner, abruptly asked him
whether he thought that, in case he had not discovered the Indies,
there were not other men in Spain, who would have been capable
of the enterprise ? To this Columbus made no immediate reply,
but, taking an egg, invited the company to make it stand on one
end. Every one attempted it, but in vain; whereupon he struck
it upon the table so as to break the end, and left it standing on the
broken part; illustrating in this simple manner, that when he had
once shown the way to the New World, nothing was easier than
to follow it.*
The favor shown Columbus by the sovereigns, insured him
for a time the caresses of the nobility ; for in a court every one
vies with his neighbor in lavishing attentions upon the man " whom
the king delighteth to honor." Columbus bore all these caresses
and distinctions with becoming modesty, though he must have felt
a proud satisfaction in the idea that they had been wrested, as
it were, from the nation by his courage and perseverance. One
can hardly recognize in the individual thus made the companion
of princes, and the theme of general wonder and admiration, the
* This anecdote rests on the authority of the Italian historian Benzoni,
(lib. i. p. 12, ed. Venetia, 1572). It has been condemned as trivial, but the sim
plicity of the reproof constitutes its severity, and was characteristic of the prac
tical sagacity of Columbus. The universal popularity of the anecdote is a
proof of its merit.
s 2
276
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK V .
same obscure stranger who but a short time before had been a
common scoff and jest in this very court, derided by some as an
adventurer, and pointed at by others as a madman. Those who
had treated him with contumely during his long course of solici
tation, now sought to efface the remembrance of it by adulations.
Every one who had given him a little cold countenance, or a few
courtly smiles, now arrogated to himself the credit of having been a
patron and of having promoted the discovery of the New World.
Scarce a great man about the court, but has been enrolled by his
historian or biographer among the benefactors of Columbus;
though, had one-tenth part of this boasted patronage been really
exerted, he would never have had to linger seven years soliciting
for an armament of three caravels. Columbus knew well the
weakness of the patronage that had been given him. The only
friends mentioned by him with gratitude, in his after letters, as
having been really zealous and effective, were those two worthy
friars, Diego de Deza, afterwards bishop of Palencia and Seville,
and Juan Perez, the prior of the convent of La Rabida.
Thus honored by the sovereigns, courted by the great, idolized
by the people, Columbus, for a time, drank the honeyed draught
of popularity, before enmity and detraction had time to drug it
with bitterness. His discovery burst with such sudden splendor
upon the world, as to dazzle envy itself, and to call forth the gene
ral acclamations of mankind. Well would it be for the honor of
human nature, could history, like romance, close with the consum
mation of the hero's wishes; we should then leave Columbus in
the full fruition of great and well-merited prosperity. But his
history is destined to furnish another proof, if proof be wanting,
of the inconstancy of public favor, even when won by distinguished
services. No greatness was ever acquired by more incontestable,
C H A P . V I I ]
C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
277
unalloyed, and exalted benefits rendered to mankind, yet none
ever drew on its possessor more unremitting jealousy and defama
tion ; or involved him in more unmerited distress and difficulty.
Thus it is with illustrious merit: its very effulgence draws forth
the rancorous passions of low and groveling minds, which too
often have a temporary influence in obscuring it to the world ; as
the sun emerging with full splendor into the heavens, calls up, by
the very fervor of its rays, the rank and noxious vapors, which,
for a time, becloud its glory.
2 7 8
LIFE A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
C H A P T E R VIII.
PAPAL BULL OF PARTITION.—PREPARATIONS FOR A SECOND
VOYAGE OF COLUMBUS.
[1493.]
IN the midst of their rejoicings, the Spanish sovereigns lost no
time in taking every measure necessary to secure their new acqui
sitions. Although it was supposed that the countries just disco
vered were part of the territories of the Grand Khan, and of
other oriental princes, considerably advanced in civilization, yet
there does not appear to have been the least doubt of the right
of their catholic majesties to take possession of them. During
the crusades, a doctrine had been established among Christian
princes extremely favorable to their ambitious designs. Accord
ing to this, they had the right to invade, ravage, and seize upon
the territories of all infidel nations, under the plea of defeating
the enemies of Christ, and extending the sway of his church
on earth. In conformity to the same doctrine, the pope, from
his supreme authority over all temporal things, was considered as
empowered to dispose of all heathen lands to such potentates as
would engage to reduce them to the dominion of the church, and
to propagate the true faith among their benighted inhabitants. It
was in virtue of this power, that Pope Martin V and his succes
sors had conceded to the crown of Portugal all the lands it might
C H A P . V I I I ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
279
discover from Cape Bojador to the Indies; and the catholic sove
reigns, in a treaty concluded in 1479 with the Portuguese monarch,
had engaged themselves to respect the territorial rights thus ac
quired. It was to this treaty that John II alluded, in his conver
sation with Columbus, wherein he suggested his title to the
newly-discovered countries.
On the first intelligence received from the admiral of his
success, therefore, the Spanish sovereigns took the immediate
precaution to secure the sanction of the pope. Alexander V I
had recently been elevated to the holy chair; a pontiff whom
some historians have stigmatized with every vice and crime that
could disgrace humanity, but whom all have represented as emi
nently able and politic. He was a native of Valencia, and being
born a subject of the crown of Arragon, it might be inferred, was
favorably disposed to Ferdinand; but in certain questions which
had come before him, he had already shown a disposition not the
most cordial towards the catholic monarch. At all events, Ferdi
nand was well aware of his worldly and perfidious character, and
endeavored to manage him accordingly. He dispatched ambas
sadors, therefore, to the court of Rome, announcing the new
discovery as an extraordinary triumph of the faith; and setting
forth the great glory and gain which must redound to the church
from the dissemination of Christianity throughout these vast and
heathen lands. Care was also taken to state, that the present
discovery did not in the least interfere with the possessions ceded
by the holy chair to Portugal, all which had been sedulously
avoided. Ferdinand, who was at least as politic as he was pious,
insinuated a hint at the same time, by which the pope might
perceive that he was determined, at all events, to maintain his
important acquisitions. His ambassadors were instructed to state
280
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S O F
[BOOK V .
that, in the opinion of many learned men, these newly-discovered
lands having been taken possession of by the catholic sovereigns,
their title to the same did not require the papal sanction; still,
as pious princes, obedient to the holy chair, they supplicated his
holiness to issue a bull, making a concession of them, and of such
others as might be discovered, to the crown of Castile.
The tidings of the discovery were received, in fact, with great
astonishment and no less exultation by the court of Rome. The
Spanish sovereigns had already elevated themselves to high
consequence in the eyes of the church, by their war against the
Moors of Spain, which had been considered in the light of a
pious crusade; and though richly repaid by the acquisition of the
kingdom of Granada, it was thought to entitle them to the grati
tude of all Christendom. The present discovery was a still
greater achievement; it was the fulfillment of one of the sublime
promises to the church; it was giving to it “ the heathen for an
inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for a posses
sion." No difficulty, therefore, was made in granting what was
considered but a modest request for so important a service;
though it is probable that the acquiescence of the worldly-minded
pontiff was quickened by the insinuations of the politic monarch.
A bull was accordingly issued, dated May 2d, 1493, ceding to
the Spanish sovereigns the same rights, privileges, and indul
gences, in respect to the newly-discovered regions, as had been
accorded to the Portuguese with regard to their African discov
eries, under the same condition of planting and propagating the
catholic faith. To prevent any conflicting claims, however, be
tween the two powers in the wide range of their discoveries,
another bull was issued on the following day, containing the
famous line of demarcation, by which their territories were
C H A P . V I I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
281
thought to be clearly and permanently defined. This was an
ideal line drawn from the north to the south pole, a hundred
leagues to the west of the Azores, and the Cape de Verd islands.
All land discovered by the Spanish navigators to the west of this
line, and which had not been taken possession of by any Chris
tian power before the preceding Christmas, was to belong to the
Spanish crown ; all land discovered in the contrary direction, was
to belong to Portugal. It seems never to have occurred to the
pontiff, that, by pushing their opposite careers of discovery, they
might some day or other come again in collision, and renew the
question of territorial right at the antipodes.
In the meantime, without waiting for the sanction of the court
of Rome, the utmost exertions were made by the sovereigns to
fit out a second expedition. To insure regularity and dispatch in
the affairs relative to the New World, they were placed under
the superintendence of Juan Rodriguez de Fonseca, archdeacon
of Seville, who was successively promoted to the sees of Bajadoz,
Palencia, and Burgos, and finally appointed patriarch of the
Indies. He was a man of family and influence; his brothers
Alonzo and Antonio were seniors, or lords, of Coca and Alaejos,
and the latter was comptroller-general of Castile. Juan Rodri
guez de Fonseca is represented by Las Casas as a worldly man,
more calculated for temporal than spiritual concerns, and well
adapted to the bustling occupation of fitting out and manning
armadas. Notwithstanding the high ecclesiastical dignities to
which he rose, his worldly employments seem never to have
been considered incompatible with his sacred functions. Enjoy
ing the perpetual, though unmerited, favor of the sovereigns, he
maintained the control of Indian affairs for about thirty years.
He must undoubtedly have possessed talents for business, to
282
L I F E A N D V O Y A G E S OF
[BOOK V .
insure him such a perpetuity of office: but he was malignant and
vindictive; and in the gratification of his private resentments, not
only heaped wrongs and sorrows upon the most illustrious of the
early discoverers, but frequently impeded the progress of their
enterprises, to the great detriment of the crown. This he was
enabled to do privately and securely by his official situation.
His perfidious conduct is repeatedly alluded to, but in guarded
terms, by contemporary writers of weight and credit, such as the
curate of Los Palacios, and the bishop Las Casas; but they
evidently were fearful of expressing the fullness of their feelings.
Subsequent Spanish historians, always more or less controlled by
ecclesiastical supervision, have likewise dealt too favorably with
this base-minded man. He deserves to be held up as a warning
example of those perfidious beings in office, who too often lie
like worms at the root of honorable enterprise, blighting, by their
unseen influence, the fruits of glorious action, and disappointing
the hopes of nations.
To assist Fonseca in his duties, Francisco Pinelo was associated
with him as treasurer, and Juan de Soria as contador, or comp
troller. Their office, for the transaction of Indian affairs, was
fixed at Seville; extending its vigilance at the same time to the
port of Cadiz, where a custom-house was established for this new
branch of navigation. Such was the germ of the Royal India
House, which afterwards rose to such great power and import
ance. A correspondent office was ordered to be instituted in His
paniola, under the direction of the admiral. These offices were
to interchange registers of the cargoes, crews, and munition of
each ship, by accountants who sailed with it. All persons thus
employed were dependants upon the two comptrollers-general,
superior ministers of the royal revenue; since the crown was to
C H A P . V I I I . ] C H R I S T O P H E R C O L U M B U S .
283
be at all the expenses of the colony, and to receive all the emolu
ments.
The most minute and rigorous account was to be exacted of
all expenses and proceeds; and the most vigilant caution observed
as to the persons employed in the concerns of the newly-dis
covered lands. No one was permitted to go there either to trade
or to form an establishment, without express license from the
sovereigns, from Columbus, or from Fonseca, under the heaviest
penalties. The ignorance of the age as to enlarged principles
of commerce, and the example of the Portuguese in respect
to their African possessions, have been cited in excuse of the
narrow and jealous spirit here manifested; but it always more
or less influenced the policy of Spain in her colonial regula
tions.
Another instance of the despotic sway maintained by