Chapter 1. DEPARTURE OF COLUMBUS ON HIS SECOND VOYAGE -DISCOVERY OF THE CARIBBEE ISLANDS. Τ' [1493.] HE departure of Columbus on his second voyage of discovery presented a brilliant contrast to his gloomy em barkation at Palos. On the 25th of September, at the dawn of day, the bay of Cadiz was whitened by his fleet. There were three large ships of heavy burden,* and fourteen caravels loitering with flapping sails and awaiting the signal to get under way. harbor resounded with the well-known note of the sailor, hoisting sail or weighing anchor; The * Peter Martyr says they were caracks (a large species of merchant vessel, principally used in coasting trade), of one hundred tons burden, and that two of the caravels were much larger than the rest, and more capable of bearing decks from the size of their masts. -Decad. i., lib. i. a motley crowd were hurrying on board and taking leave of their friends in the confidence of a prosperous voyage and triumphant return. There was the high-spirited cavalier bound on romantic enterprise; the hardy navigator ambitious of acquiring laurels in these unknown seas; the roving adventurer seeking novelty and excitement; the keen, calculating speculator, eager to profit by the ignorance of savage tribes; and the pale missionary from the cloister anxious to extend the dominion of the Church, or devoutly zealous for the propagation of the Faith. All were full of animation and lively hope. Instead of being regarded by the populace as devoted men bound upon a dark and desperate enterprise, they were contemplated with envy, as favored mortals bound to golden regions and happy climes where nothing but wealth, and wonder, and delights awaited them. Columbus, conspicuous for his height and his commanding appearance, was attended by his two sons, Diego and Fernando, the eldest but a stripling, who had come to witness his departure,* both proud of the glory of their father. Wherever he passed every eye followed him with admiration, and every tongue praised and blessed him. Before sunrise the whole fleet was under * Hist. del Almirante, cap. 44. way; the weather was serene and propitious, and as the populace watched their parting sails brightening in the morning beams, they looked forward to their joyful return laden with the treasures of the New World. According to the instructions of the sovereigns Columbus steered wide of the coasts of Portugal and its islands, standing to the southwest of the Canaries, where he arrived on the Ist of October. After touching at the Grand Canary he anchored on the 5th at Gomera, to take in a supply of wood and water. Here also he purchased calves, goats, and sheep, to stock the island of Hispaniola; and eight hogs, from which, according to Las Casas, the infinite number of swine was propagated with which the Spanish settlements in the New World subsequently abounded. A number of domestic fowls were likewise purchased, which were the origin of the species in the New World; and the same might be said of the seeds of oranges, lemons, bergamots, melons, and various orchard fruits* which were thus first introduced into the islands of the west, from the Hesperides or Fortunate Islands of the Old World. † *Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i., cap. 83. † Humboldt is of the opinion that there were wild oranges, small and bitter, as well as wild lemons, in |