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 toward 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. 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 Gutierrez, 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 render 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, crossbows, 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 superhuman nature, he had been completely won by the benignity of his manners. Indeed, the parting scene was sorrowful on all sides. The * Primer Viage de Colon. Navarrete, tom. i. p. 121. 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 handful 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. Nore about the localities in the preceding chapter, ex tracted 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 vil lage of Petit Anse now stands; which is about two miles south-east 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 Picolet mountain, crossing the present town of Cape Haytien, and emptying into the bay near the Arsenal. The stream which sup lied 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 unrivalled 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, fertility, 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 Francois, now Cape Haytien; but the old Indian name Guarico continues in use among all the Spanish inhabitants of the vicinity. CHAPTER I. BOOK V. 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, toward 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 promontory Columbus gave the name of Monte Christi, by which it is still known. The country in the immediate neighborhood was level, but farther 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. Ôn the 6th they again made sail with a land breeze, and weathering the cape, advanced ten leagues, when the wind again turned to blow freshly from the east. At this time a sailor, stationed at the masthead 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 toward 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 little west of Monte Christi, whither he was followed by the Pinta. On their first interview, Pinzon endeavored to excuse his desertion, 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 apologies; and the suspicions he had conceived appeared to be warranted 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 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 freighting 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, receiving 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-casks.† 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 countenance. it is supposed that these must have been manati or sea-calves, seen indistinctly and at a distance; and that the imagination of Columbus, disposed to give a wonderful character to everything in this new world, had identified these misshapen animals with the sirens of ancient story. On the evening of the 9th of 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 immediately 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 north-westerly 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' * Hist. del Almirante, cap. 34. particles of marcasite, which abounds in this river, Las Casas suggests that these may have been and in the other streams which fall from the mountains of Cibao. Las Casas, Hist. Ind. lib. i. cap. 76. It is now called Porto Caballo, but the surrounding plain is called the Savanna of Martin Alonzo.—T. S. HENEKEN. This was the pilot who commanded the boat. 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 they found the natives quite different from the gentle and pacific people hitherto met with on this island. They were of a ferocious 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 cleav- Their frank and bold spirit was evinced on the ing through a helmet to the very brains.* Though day after the skirmish, when a multitude appearthus prepared for combat, they made no attempting on the beach, the admiral sent a large party, to molest the Spaniards; 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 of the voyages of Columbus, and is another of his self-delusions, to be explained by the work of Marco Polo. That traveller described two islands near the coast of Asia, one inhabited solely by women, the other by men, between which a similar intercourse 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, upward 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 * Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 77, MS. Marco Polo, book iii. chap. 34; Eng. edit. of Marsden. 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 assurance of amity; but they were not yet aware of the full meaning 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 wonders 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 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 afterward, appears in the history of the island under the name of Mayonabex, 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 natives, 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 determined 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 north-east, in which direction the young Indians assured him he would find the island of the Ca ribs, 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 south-east. 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 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 uncertainty 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 forever in the ocean. Repressing, therefore, the strong inclination 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.* CHAPTER II. RETURN VOYAGE-VIOLENT STORMS-ARRIVAL AT THE AZORES. [1493.] THE 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 remainder of January there was a prevalence of light winds from the eastward, which prevented any great progress. He was frequently 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 enabled to steer direct for Spain. From the frequent changes of their course, the pilots became perplexed in their reckonings, differing widely among themselves, and still more widely from the truth. Columbus, besides 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 *Journal of Columb. Navarrete, tom. i. Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 77. Hist. del Almirante, cap. 34. 35. | which he traversed often depended upon these ob servations; 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 emerg ing from among them, concluded 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 Yañies 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 voyage, and he alone possess a clear knowl edge 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, 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 wer three flashes of lightning in the north-north-eas: considered by Columbus as signals of an ap proaching tempest. It soon burst upon then with frightful violence; their small and crazy ves sels, open and without decks, were little fitted fo the wild storms of the Atlantic; all night the were obliged to scud under bare poles. As th morning dawned of the 14th, there was a tran sient pause, and they made a little sail; but th wind rose again from the south with redouble vehemence, raging throughout the day, and in creasing in fury in the night; while the vessel labored terribly in a cross sea, the broken wave of which threatened at each moment to overwhel them or dash them to pieces. For three hour they lay to, with just sail enough to keep the above the waves; but the tempest still augmen ing, they were obliged again to scud before th wind. The Pinta was soon lost sight of in th darkness of the night. The admiral kept as muc as possible to the north-east, to approach the coa of Spain, and made signal lights at the masthea for the Pinta to do the same, and to keep in con pany. The latter, however, from the weakness her foremast, could not hold the wind, and w obliged to scud before it directly north. some time she replied to the signals of the a miral, but her lights gleamed more and mo distant, until they ceased entirely, and nothin more was seen of her. F Columbus continued to scud all night, full forebodings of the fate of his own vessel, and fears for the safety of that of Pinzon. As the d dawned, the sea presented a frightful waste wild broken waves, lashed into fury by the gal he looked round anxiously for the Pinta, but s was nowhere to be seen. He now made a little sa to keep his vessel ahead of the sea, lest its hu waves should break over her. As the sun rose, t wind and the waves rose with it, and throughout * Las Casas, Hist. Ind., lib. i. cap. 70. dreary day the helpless bark was driven along by the fury of the tempest. Seeing all human skill baffled and confounded, Columbus endeavored 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 likewise 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 dedicated to the Holy Virgin. Besides these general acts of propitiation, each one made his private vow, binding himself to some pilgrimage, 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 by the want of ballast, the consumption of the water and provisions 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 admirai 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 forever 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 trouble to think that, after having been illuminated from on high with faith and certainty to undertake this enterprise, after having victoriously achieved it, and when on the point of convincing my opponents, and securing to your highnesses great glory and vast increase 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 prevented 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, 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 contradictions, 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 appeared at sunset a streak of clear sky in the west, giving hopes that the wind was about to shift to that quarter. These hopes 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 maintop. The transports 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-north-east, 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-north-east, blowing directly irom the land, while a heavy sea kept rolling from the west. For two days they hovered in sight of the island, vainly striving 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 suffering greatly from a gouty affection to which he *Hist. del Almirante, cap. 36. |