A.

Item: As it becomes every man of property to serve God, either personally or by means of his wealth, and as all moneys deposited with St. George are quite safe, and Genoa is a noble cily, and powerful by sea, and as at the time that I undertook to set out upon the discovery of the Indies, it was with the intention of supplicating the king and queen, our lords, that whatever moneys should be derived from the said Indies, should be invested in the conquest of Jerusalem; and as I did so supplicate them; if they do this, it will be well; if not, at all events, the said Diego, or such person as may succeed him in this trust, to collect together all the money he can, and accompany the king our lord, should he go to the conquest of Jerusalem, or else go there himself with all the force he can command; and in pursuing this intention, it will please the Lord to assist towards the accomplishment of the plan; and should he not be able to effect the conquest of the whole, no doubt he will achieve it in part. Let him therefore collect and make a fund of all his wealth in St. George of Genoa, and let it multiply there till such time as it may appear to him that something of consequence may be effected as respects the project on Jerusalem; for I believe that when their highnesses shall see that this is contemplated, they will wish to realize it themselves, or will afford him, as their servant and vassal, the means of doing it for them.

Item: I charge my son Diego and my descendants, especially whoever may inherit this estate, which consists, as aforesaid, of the tenth of whatsoever may be had or found in the Indies, and the eighth part of the lands and rents, all which, together with my rights and emoluments as admiral, viceroy, and governor, amount to more than twenty-five per cent.; I say, that I require of him to employ all this revenue, as well as his person and all the means in his power, in well and faithfully serving and supporting their highnesses, or their successors, even to the loss of life and property; since it was their highnesses, next to God, who first gave me the means of getting and achieving this property, although, it is true, I came over to these realms to invite them to the enterprise, and that a long time elapsed before any provision was made for carrying it into execution; which, however, is not surprising, as this was an undertaking of which all the world was ignorant, and no one had any faith in it; wherefore I am by so much the more indebted to them, as well as because they have since also much favored and promoted me.

Item: I also require of Diego, or whomsoever may be in possession of the estate, that in the case of any schism taking place in the church of God, or that any person of whatever class or condition should attempt to despoil it of its property and honors, they hasten to offer at the feet of his holiness, that is, if they are not heretics (which God forbid!), their persons, power, and wealth, for the purpose of suppressing such schism, and preventing any spoliation of the honor and property of the church.

Item: I command the said Diego, or whoever may possess the said estate, to labor and strive for the honor, welfare, and aggrandizement of the city of Genoa, and to make use of all his power and means in defending and enhancing the good and credit of that republic, in all things not contrary to the service of the church of God, or the high dignity of our king and queen, our lords, and their successors.

Item: The said Diego, or whoever may possess or succeed to the estate, out of the fourth part of the whole revenue, from which, as aforesaid, is to be taken the tenth, when Don Bartholomew or his heirs shall have saved the two millions, or part of them, and when the time shall come of making a distribution among our relations, shall apply and invest the said tenth in providing marriages for such daughters of our lineage as may require it, and in doing all the good in their power.

Item: When a suitable time shall arrive, he shall order a church to be built in the island of Hispaniola, and in the most convenient spot, to be called Santa Maria de la Concepcion; to which is to be annexed an hospital, upon the best possible plan, like those of Italy and Castile, and a chapel erected to say mass in for the good of my soul, and those of my ancestors and successors, with great devotion, since no doubt it will please the Lord to give us a sufficient revenue for this and the aforementioned purposes.

Item: I also order Diego my son, or whomsoever may inherit after him, to spare no pains in having and maintaining in the island of Hispaniola, four good professors of theology, to the end and aim of their studying and laboring to convert to our holy faith the inhabitants of the Indies; and in proportion as, by God's will, the revenue of the estate shall increase, in the same degree shall the number of teachers and devout increase, who are to strive to make Christians of the natives; in attaining which no expense should be thought too great. And in commemoration of all that I hereby ordain, and of the foregoing, a monument of marble shall be erected in the said church of la Concepcion, in the most conspicuous place, to serve as a record of what I here enjoin on the said Diego, as well as to other persons who may look upon it; which marble shall contain an inscription to the same effect.

Item: I also require of Diego my son, and whomsover may succeed him in the estate, that every time, and as often as he confesses, he first show this obligation, or a copy of it, to the confessor, praying him to read it through, that he may be enabled to inquire respecting its fulfillment; from which will redound great good and happiness to his soul.

No. XXXVII.

Signature of Columbus.

As every thing respecting Columbus is full of interest, his signature has been a matter of some discussion. It partook of the pedantic and bigoted character of the age, and perhaps of the peculiar character of the man, who, considering himself mysteriously elected and set apart from among men for certain great purposes, adopted a correspondent formality and solemnity in all his concerns. His signature was as follows:

The first half of the signature, XPO, (for CHRISTO,) is in Greek letters; the second, FERENS, is in Latin. Such was the usage of those days; and even at present both Greek and Roman letters are used in signatures and inscriptions in Spain.

The ciphers or initials above the signature are supposed to represent a pious ejaculation. To read them one must begin with the lower letters, and connect them with those above. Signor Gio. Batista Spotorno conjectures them to mean either Xristus (Christus) Sancta Maria Yosephus, or, Salve me, Xristus, Maria, Yosephus. The Korth American Review, for April, 1827, suggests the substitution of Jesus for Josephus, but the suggestion of Spotorno is most probably correct, as a common Spanish ejaculation is "Jesus Maria y José."

It was an ancient usage in Spain, and it has not entirely gone by, to accompany the signature with some words of religious purport. One object of this practice was to show the writer to be a Christian. This was of some importance in a country in which Jews and Mahometans were proscribed and persecuted.

Don Fernando, son to Columbus, says that his father, when he took his pen in hand, usually commenced by writing "Jesus cum Maria sit nobis in via;" and the book which the admiral prepared and sent to the sovereigns, containing the prophecies which he considered as referring to his discoveries, and to the rescue of the holy sepulchre, begins with the same words. This practice is akin to that of placing the initials of pious words above his signature, and gives great probability to the mode in which they have been deciphered.

No. XXXVIII.

A Visit to Palos.

[The following narrative was actually commenced, by the author of this work, as a letter to a friend, but unexpectedly swelled to its present size. He has been induced to insert it here from the idea, that many will feel the same curiosity to know something of the present state of Falos and its inhabitants that led him to make the journey.]

Seville, 1828.

Since I last wrote to you, I have made what I may term an American pilgrimage, to visit the little port of Palos in Andalusia, where Columbus fitted out his ships, and whence he sailed for the discovery of the New World. Need I tell you how deeply interesting and gratifying it has been to me? I had long meditated this excursion, as a kind of pious, and, if I may so say, filial duty of an American, and my intention was quickened when I learnt that many of the edifices, mentioned in the History of Columbus, still remained in nearly the same state in which they existed at the time of his sojourn at Palos, and that the descendants of the intrepid Pinzons, who aided him with ships and money, and sailed with him in the great voyage of discovery, still flourished in the neighborhood.

The very evening before my departure from Seville on the excursion, I heard that there was a young gentleman of the Pinzon family studying law in the city. I got introduced to him, and found him of most prepossessing appearance and manners. He gave me a letter of introduction to his father, Don Juan Fernandez Pinzon, resident of Moguer, and the present head of the family.

As it was in the middle of August, and the weather intensely hot, I hired a calesa for the journey. This is a two-wheeled carriage, resembling a cabriolet, but of the most primitive and rude construction; the harness is profusely ornamented with brass, and the horse's hend decorated with tufts and tassels and dangling bobs of scarlet and yellow worsted. I had for calasero, a tall, long-legged Andalusian, in short jacket, little round-crowned hat, breeches decorated with buttons from the hip to the knees, and a pair of russet leather bottinas or spatterdashes. He was an active fellow, though uncommonly taciturn for an Andalusian, and strode along beside his horse, rousing him occasionally to greater speed by a loud malediction or a hearty thwack of his cudgel.

In this style, I set off late in the day to avoid the noontide heat, and, after ascending the lofty range of hills which borders the great valley of the Guadalquiver, and having a rough ride among their heights, I descended about twilight into one of those vast, silent, melancholy plains, frequent in Spain, where I beheld no other signs of life than a roaming flock of bustards, and a distant herd of cattle, guarded by a solitary herdsman, who, with a long pike planted in the earth, stood motionless in the midst of the dreary landscape, resembling an Arab of the desert. The night had somewhat advanced when we stopped to repose for a few hours at a solitary venta or inn, if it might so be called, being nothing more than a vast low-roofed stable, divided into several compartments for the reception of the troops of mules and arrieros (or carriers) who carry on the internal trade of Spain. Accommodation for the traveler there was none—not even for a traveler so easily accommodated as myself. The landlord had no food to give me, and as to a bed, he had none but a horse-cloth, on which his only child, a boy of eight years old, lay naked on the earthen floor. Indeed the heat of the weather and the fumes from the stables made the interior of the hovel insupportable; so I was fain to bivouac, on my cloak, on the pavement, at the door of the venta, where, on waking, after two or three hours of sound sleep, I found a contrabandista (or smuggler) snoring beside me, with his blunderbuss on his arm.

I resumed my journey before break of day, and had made several leagues by ten o'clock, when we stopped to breakfast, and to pass the sultry hours of mid-day in a large village; whence we departed about four o'clock, and after passing through the same kind of solitary country, arrived just after sunset at Moguer. This little city (for at present it is a city) is situated about a league from Palos, of which place it has gradually absorbed all the respectable inhabitants, and, among the number, the whole family of the Pinzons.

So remote is this little place from the stir and bustle of travel, and so destitute of the show and vainglory of this world, that my calesa, as it rattled and jingled along the narrow and ill-paved streets, caused a great sensation; the children shouted and scampered along by its side, admiring its splendid trappings of brass and worsted, and gazing with reverence at the important stranger who came in so gorgeous an equipage.

I drove up to the principal posada, the landlord of which was at the door. He was one of the very civilest men in the world, and disposed to do every thing in his power to make me comfortable; there was only one difficulty, he had neither bed nor bed-room in his house. In fact it was a mere venta for muleteers, who are accustomed to sleep on the ground, with their mule-cloths for beds and pack-saddles for pillows. It was a hard case, but there was no better posada in the place. Few people travel for pleasure or curiosity in these out-of-the-way parts of Spain, and those of any note are generally received into private houses. I had traveled sufficiently in Spain to find out that a bed, after all, is not an article of indispensable necessity, and was about to bespeak some quiet corner where I might spread my cloak, when fortunately the landlord's wife came forth. She could not have a more obliging disposition than her husband, but then—God bless the women!—they always know how to carry their good wishes into effect. In a little while a small room, about ten feet square, which had formed a thoroughfare between the stables and a kind of shop or bar-room, was cleared of a variety of lumber, and I was assured that a bed should be put up there for me. From the consultations I saw my hostess holding with some of her neighbor gossips, I fancied the bed was to be a kind of piecemeal contribution among them for the credit of the house.

As soon as I could change my dress, I commenced the historical researches which were the object of my journey, and inquired for the abode of Don Juan Fernandez Pinzon. My obliging landlord himself volunteered to conduct me thither, and I set off full of animation at the thoughts of meeting with the lineal representative of one of the coadjutors of Columbus.

A short walk brought us to the house, which was most respectable in its appearance, indicating easy, if not affluent, circumstances. The door, as is customary in Spanish villages during summer, stood wide open. We entered with the usual salutation or rather summons, "Ave Maria!" A trim Andalusian handmaid answered to the call, and, on our inquiring for the master of the house, led the way across a little patio or court, in the centre of the edifice, cooled by a fountain surrounded by shrubs and flowers, to a back court or terrace, likewise set out with flowers, where Don Juan Fernandez was seated with his family, enjoying the serene evening in the open air. I was much pleased with his appearance. He was a venerable old gentleman, tall, and somewhat thin, with fair complexion and gray hair. He received me with great urbanity, and on reading the letter from his son, appeared struck with surprise to find I had come quite to Moguer, merely to visit the scene of the embarkation of Columbus; and still more so on my telling him, that one of my leading objects of curiosity was his own family connection; for it would seem that the worthy cavalier had troubled his head but little about the enterprises of his ancestors.

I now took my seat in the domestic circle, and soon felt myself quite at home, for there is generally a frankness in the hospitality of Spaniards, that soon puts a stranger at his ease beneath their roof. The wife of Don Juan Fernandez was extremely amiable and affable, possessing much of that natural aptness for which the Spanish women are remarkable. In the course of conversation with them I learnt, that Don Juan Fernandez, who is seventy-two years of age, is the eldest of five brothers, all of whom are married, have numerous offspring, and live in Moguer and its vicinity, in nearly the same condition and rank of life as at the time of the discovery. This agreed with what I had previously heard, respecting the families of the discoverers. Of Columbus no lineal and direct descendant exists; his was an exotic stock which never took deep and lasting root in the country; but the race of the Pinzons continues to thrive and multiply in its native soil.

While I was yet conversing, a gentleman entered, who was introduced to me as Don Luis Fernandez Pinzon, the youngest of the brothers. He appeared between fifty and sixty years of age, somewhat robust, with fair complexion, gray hair, and a frank and manly deportment. He is the only one of the present generation that has followed the ancient profession of the family; having served with great applause as an officer of the royal navy, from which he retired, on his marriage, about twenty-two years since. He is the one, also, who takes the greatest interest and pride in the historical honors of his house, carefully preserving all the legends and documents of the achievements and distinctions of his family, a manuscript volume of which he lent to me for my inspection.

Don Juan now expressed a wish that, during my residence in Moguer, I would make his house my home. I endeavored to excuse myself, alleging, that the good people at the posada had been at such extraordinary trouble in preparing quarters for me, that I did not like to disappoint them. The worthy old gentleman undertook to arrange all this, and, while supper was preparing, we walked together to the posada. I found that my obliging host and hostess had indeed exerted themselves to an uncommon degree. An old rickety table had been spread out in a corner of the little room as a bedstead, on top of which was propped up a grandcama de luxo, or state bed, which appeared to be the admiration of the house. I could not, for the soul of me, appear to undervalue what the poor people had prepared with such hearty good-will, and considered such a triumph of art and luxury; so I again entreated Don Juan to dispense with my sleeping at his house, promising most faithfully to make my meals there whilst I should stay at Moguer, and as the old gentleman understood my motives for declining his invitation, and felt a good-humored sympathy in them, we readily arranged the matter. I returned therefore with Don Juan to his house and supped with his family. During the repast a plan was agreed upon for my visit to Palos, and to the convent La Kabida, in which Don Juan volunteered to accompany me and be my guide, and the following day was allotted to the expedition. We were to breakfast at a hacienda, or country-seat, which he possessed in the vicinity of Palos, in the midst of his vineyards, and were to dine there on our return from the convent. These arrangements being made, we parted for the night; I returned to the posada highly gratified with my visit, and slept soundly in the extraordinary bed which, I may almost say, had been invented for my accommodation.

On the following morning, bright and early, Don Juan Fernandez and myself set off in the caleea for Palos. I felt apprehensive at first that the kind-hearted old gentleman, in his anxiety to oblige, had left his bed at too early an hour, and was exposing himself to fatigues unsuited to his age. He laughed at the idea, and assured me that he was an early riser, and accustomed to all kinds of exercise on horse and foot, being a keen sportsman, and frequently passing days together among the mountains on shooting expeditions, taking with him servants, horses, and provisions, and living in a tent. He appeared, in fact, to be of an active habit, and to possess a youthful vivacity of spirit. His cheerful disposition rendered our morning drive extremely agreeable; his urbanity was shown to every one whom we met on the road; even the common peasant was saluted by him with the appellation ofcaballero, a mark of respect ever gratifying to the poor but proud Spaniard, when yielded by a superior.

As the tide was out, we drove along the flat grounds bordering the Tinto. The river was on our right, while on our left was a range of hills, jutting out into promontories, one beyond the other, and covered with vineyards and fig trees. The weather was serene, the air soft and balmy, and the landscape of that gentle kind calculated to put one in a quiet and happy humor. We passed close by the skirts of Palos, and drove to the hacienda, which is situated some little distance from the village, between it and the river. The house is a low stone building well whitewashed, and of great length; one end being fitted up as a summer residence, with saloons, bed-rooms, and a domestic chapel; and the other as a bodega or magazine for the reception of the wine produced on the estate.

The house stands on a hill, amidst vineyards, which are supposed to cover a part of the site of the ancient town of Palos, now shrunk to a miserable village. Beyond these vineyards, on the crest of a distant hill, are seen the white walls of the convent of La Babida rising above a dark wood of pine trees.

Below the hacienda flows the river Tinto, on which Columbus embarked. It is divided by a low tongue of land, or rather the sand-bar of Saltes, from the river Odiel, with which it soon mingles its waters, and flows on to the ocean. Beside this sand-bar, where the channel of the river runs deep, the squadron of Columbus was anchored, and thence he made sail on the morning of his departure.

The soft breeze that was blowing scarcely ruffled the surface of this beautiful river; two or three picturesque barks, called mystics, with long latine sails, were gliding down it. A little aid of the imagination might suffice to picture them as the light caravels of Columbus, sallying forth on their eventful expedition, while the distant bells of the town of Hnelva, which were ringing melodiously, might be supposed as cheering the voyagers with a farewell peal.

I cannot express to you what were my feelings on treading the shore which had once been animated with the bustle of departure, and whose sands had been printed by the last footstep of Columbus. The solemn and sublime nature of the event that had followed, together with the fate and fortunes of those concerned in it, filled the mind with vague yet melancholy ideas. It was like viewing the silent and empty stage of some great drama when all the actors had departed. The very aspect of the landscape, so tranquilly beautiful, had an effect upon me; and as I paced the deserted shores by the side of a descendant of one of the discoverers, I felt my heart swelling witfi emotions and my eyes filling with tears.

What surprised me was, to find no semblance of a sea-port; there was neither wharf nor landing-place—nothing but a naked river bank, with the hulk of a ferry-boat, which I was told carried passengers to Huelva, lying high and dry on the sands, deserted by the tide. Palos, though it has doubtless dwindled away from its former size, can never have been important as to extent and population. If it possessed warehouses on the beach, they have disappeared. It is at present a mere village of the poorest kind, and lies nearly a quarter of a mile from the river, in a hollow among hills. It contains a few hundred inhabitants, who subsist principally by laboring in the fields and vineyards. Its race of merchants and mariners is extinct. There are no vessels belonging to the place, nor any show of traffic, excepting at the season of fruit and wine, when a few mystics and other light barks anchor in the river to collect the produce of the neighborhood. The people are totally ignorant, and it is probable that the greater part of them scarce know even the name of America. Such is the place whence sallied forth the enterprise for the discovery of the western world!

We were now summoned to breakfast in a little saloon of the hacienda. The table was covered with natural luxuries produced upon the spot—fine purple and muscatel grapes from the adjacent vineyard, delicious melons from the garden, and generous wines made on the estate. The repast was heightened by the genial manners of my hospitable host, who appeared to possess the most enviable cheerfulness of spirit and simplicity of heart.

After breakfast we set off in the calesa to visit the convent of La Rabida, about half a league distant The road, for a part of the way, lay through the vineyards, and was deep and sandy. The calasero had been at his wit's end to conceive what motive a stranger like myself, apparently traveling for mere amusement, could have in coming so far to see so miserable a place as Palos, which he set down as one of the very poorest places in the whole world; but this additional toil and struggle through deep sand to visit the old convent of La Rabida completed his confusion—"Hombre!" exclaimed he, "es una ruina! no hay mas que dos frailes!"—"Zounds! why it's a ruin! there are only two friars there!" Don Juan laughed, and told him that I had come all the way from Seville precisely to see that old ruin and those two friars. The calasero made the Spaniard's last reply when he is perplexed—he shrugged his shoulders and crossed himself. After ascending a hill and passing through the skirts of a straggling pine wood, we arrived in front of the convent. It stands in a bleak and solitary situation, on the brow of a rocky height or promontory, overlooking to the west a wide range of sea and land, bounded by the frontier mountains of Portugal, about eight leagues distant. The convent is shut out from a view of the vineyard of Palos by the gloomy forest of pines already mentioned, which cover the promontory to the east, and darken the whole landscape in that direction.

There is nothing remarkable in the architecture of the convent; part of it is Gothic, but the edifice, having been frequently repaired, and being whitewashed, according to a universal custom in Andalusia, inherited from the Moors, has not that venerable aspect which might be expected from its antiquity.

We alighted at the gate where Columbus, when a poor pedestrian, a stranger in the land, asked bread and water for his child! As long as the convent stands, this must be a spot calculated to awaken the most thrilling interest. The gate remains apparently in nearly the same state as at the time of his visit, but there is no longer a porter at hand to administer to the wants of the wayfarer. The door stood wide open, and admitted us into a small court-yard. Thence we passed through a Gothic portal into the chapel, without seeing a human being. We then traversed two interior cloisters, equally vacant and silent, and bearing a look of neglect and dilapidation. From an open window we had a peep at what had once been a garden, but that had also gone to ruin; the walls were broken and thrown down; a few shrubs, and a scattered fig tree or two, were all the traces of cultivation that remained. We passed through the long dormitories, but the cells were shut up and abandoned; we saw no living thing except a solitary cat stealing across a distant corridor, which fled in a panic at the unusual sight of strangers. At length, after patrolling nearly the whole of the empty building to the echo of our own footsteps, we came to where the door of a cell, being partly open, gave us the sight of a monk within, seated at a table writing. He rose, and received us with much civility, and conducted us to the superior, who was reading in an adjacent cell. They were both rather young men, and, together with a novitiate and a lay-brother, who officiated as cook, formed the whole community of the convent.

Don Juan Fernandez communicated to them the object of my visit, and my desire also to inspect the archives of the convent, to find if there was any record of the sojourn of Columbus. They informed us that the archives had been entirely destroyed by the French. The younger monk, however, who had perused them, had a vague recollection of various particulars concerning the transactions of Columbus at Palos, his visit to the convent, and the sailing of his expedition. From all that he cited, however, it appeared to me that all the information on the subject contained in the archives had been extracted from Herrera and other well-known authors. The monk was talkative and eloquent, and soon diverged from the subject of Columbus, to one which he considered of infinitely greater importance—the miraculous image of the Virgin possessed by their convent, and known by the name of "Our Lady of La Rabida." He gave us a history of the wonderful way in which the image had been found buried in the earth, where it had lain hidden for ages, since the time of the conquest of Spain by the Moors; the disputes between the convent and different places in the neighborhood for the possession of it; the marvelous protection it extended to the adjacent country, especially in preventing all madness, either in man or dog, for this malady was anciently so prevalent in this place as to gain it the appellation of La Rabia, by which it was originally called; a name which, thanks to the beneficent influence of the Virgin, it no longer merited nor retained. Such are the legends and relics with which every convent in Spain is enriched, which are zealously cried up by the monks, and devoutly credited by the populace.

Twice a year, on the festival of our Lady of La Rabida and on that of the patron saint of the order, the solitude and silence of the convent are interrupted by the intrusion of a swarming multitude, composed of the inhabitants of Moguer, of Huelva, and the neighboring plains and mountains. The open esplanade in front of the edifice resembles a fair, the adjacent forest teems with the motley throng, and the image of our Lady of La Rabida is borne forth in triumphant procession.

While the friar was thus dilating upon the merits and renown of the image, I amused myself with those day-dreams, or conjurings of the imagination, to which I am a little given. As the internal arrangements of convents are apt to be the same from age to age, I pictured to myself this chamber as the same inhabited by the guardian, Juan Perez de Marchena, at the time of the visit of Columbus. Why might not the old and ponderous table before me be the very one on which he displayed his conjectural maps, and expounded his theory of a western route to India? It required but another stretch of the imagination to assemble the little conclave around the table; Juan Perez the friar, Garci Fernandez the physician, and Martin Alonzo Pinzon the bold navigator, all listening with rapt attention to Columbus, or to the tale of some old seaman of Palos, about islands seen in the western parts of the ocean.

The friars, as far as their poor means and scanty knowledge extended, were disposed to do every thing to promote the object of my visit. They showed us all parts of the convent, which, however, has little to boast of, excepting the historical associations connected with it. The library was reduced to a few volumes, chiefly on ecclesiastical subjects, piled promiscuously in the corner of a vaulted chamber, and covered with dust. The chamber itself was curious, being the most ancient part of the edifice, and supposed to have formed part of a temple in the time of the Romans.

We ascended to the roof of the convent to enjoy the extensive prospect it commands. Immediately below the promontory on which it is situated, runs a narrow but tolerably deep river, called the Domingo Rubio, which empties itself into the Tinto. It is the opinion of Don Luis Fernandez Pinzon, that the ships of Columbus were careened and fitted out in this river, as it affords better shelter than the Tinto, and its shores are not so shallow. A lonely bark of a fisherman was lying in this stream, and not far off, on a sandy point, were the ruins of an ancient watchtower. From the roof of the convent, all the windings of the Odiel and the Tinto were to be seen, and their junction into the main stream, by which Columbus sallied forth to sea. In fact the convent serves as a landmark, being, from its lofty and solitary situation, visible for a considerable distance to vessels coming on the coast. On the opposite side I looked down upon the lonely road, through the wood of pine trees, by which the zealous guardian of the convent, Fray Juan Perez, departed at midnight on his mule, when he sought the camp of Ferdinand and Isabella in the Vega of Granada, to plead the project of Columbus before the queen.

Having finished our inspection of the convent, we prepared to depart, and were accompanied to the outward portal by the two friars. Our calasero brought his rattling and rickety vehicle for us to mount; at sight of which one of the monks exclaimed, with a smile, "Santa Maria! only to think! A calesa before the gate of the convent of La Rabida!" And, indeed, so solitary and remote is this ancient edifice, and so simple is the mode of living of the people in this by-corner of Spain, that the appearance of even a sorry calesa might well cause astonishment. It is only singular that in such a by-corner the scheme of Columbus should have found intelligent listeners and coadjutors, after it had been discarded, almost with scoffing and contempt, from learned universities and splendid courts.

On our way back to the hacienda, we met Don Rafael, a younger son of Don Juan Fernandez, a fine young man, about twenty-one years of age, and who, his father informed me, was at present studying French and mathematics. He was well mounted on a spirited gray horse, and dressed in the Andalusian style, with the little round hat and jacket. He sat his horse gracefully, and managed him well. I was pleased with the frank and easy terms on which Don Juan appeared to live with his children. This I was inclined to think his favorite son, as I understood he was the only one that partook of the old gentleman's fondness for the chase, and that accompanied him in his hunting excursions.

A dinner had been prepared for us at the hacienda, by the wife of the capitaz, or overseer, who, with her husband, seemed to be well pleased with this visit from Don Juan, and to be confident of receiving a pleasant answer from the good-humored old gentleman whenever they addressed him. The dinner was served up about two o'clock, and was a most agreeable meal. The fruits and wines were from the estate, and were excellent; the rest of the provisions were from Moguer, for the adjacent village of Palos is too poor to furnish any thing. A gentle breeze from the sea played through the hall, and tempered the summer heat. Indeed I do not know when I have seen a more enviable spot than this country retreat of the Pinzons. Its situation on a breezy hill, at no great distance from the sea, and in a southern climate, produces a happy temperature, neither hot in summer nor cold in winter. It commands a beautiful prospect, and is surrounded by natural luxuries. The country abounds with game, the adjacent river affords abundant sport in fishing, both by day and night, and delightful excursions for those fond of sailing. During the busy seasons of rural life, and especially at the joyous period of vintage, the family pass some time here, accompanied by numerous guests, at which times, Don Juan assured me, there was no lack of amusements, both by land and water.

When we had dined, and taken the siesta, or afternoon nap, according to the Spanish custom in summer time, we set out on our return to Moguer, visiting the village of Palos in the way. Don Gabriel had been sent in advance to procure the keys of the village church, and to apprise the curate of our wish to inspect the archives. The village consists principally of two streets of low whitewashed houses. Many of the inhabitants have very dark complexions, betraying a mixture of African blood.

On entering the village, we repaired to the lowly mansion of the curate. I had hoped to find him some such personage as the curate in Don Quixote, possessed of shrewdness and information in his limited sphere, and that I might gain some anecdotes from him concerning the parish, its worthies, its antiquities, and its historical events. Perhaps I might have done so at any other time, but, unfortunately, the curate was something of a sportsman, and had heard of some game among the neighboring hills. We met him just sallying forth from his house, and, I must confess, his appearance was picturesque. He was a short, broad, sturdy little man, and had doffed his cassock and broad clerical beaver, for a short jacket and a little round Andalusian hat; he had his gun in hand, and was on the point of mounting a donkey which had been led forth by an ancient withered handmaid. Fearful of being detained from his foray, he accosted my companion the moment he came in sight. "God preserve you, Señor Don Juan! I have received your message, and have but one answer to make. The archives have all been destroyed. We have no trace of any thing you seek for—nothing—nothing. Don Rafael has the keys of the church. You can examine it at your leisure—Adios, caballero!" With these words the galliard little curate mounted his donkey, thumped his ribs with the butt end of his gun, and trotted off to the hills.

In our way to the church we passed by the ruins of what had once been a fair and spacious dwelling, greatly superior to the other houses of the village. This, Don Juan informed me, was an old family possession, but since they had removed from Palos it had fallen to decay for want of a tenant. It was probably the family residence of Martin Alonzo or Vicente Yafiez Pinzon, in the time of Columbus.

We now arrived at the Church of St. George, in the porch of which Columbus first proclaimed to the inhabitants of Palos the order of the sovereigns, that they should furnish him with ships for his great voyage of discovery. This edifice has lately been thoroughly repaired, and, being of solid mason-work, promises to stand for ages, a monument of the discoverers. It stands outside of the village, on the brow of a hill, looking along a little valley toward the river. The remains of a Moorish arch prove it to have been a mosque in former times; just above it, on the crest of the hill, is the ruin of a Moorish castle.

I paused in the porch, and endeavored to recall the interesting scene that had taken place there, when Columbus, accompanied by the zealous friar Juan Perez, caused the public notary to read the royal order in presence of the astonished alcaldes, regidors, and alguazils; but it is difficult to conceive the consternation that must have been struck into so remote a little community, by this sudden apparition of an entire stranger among them, bearing a command that they should put their persons and ships at his disposal, and sail with him away into the unknown wilderness of the ocean.

The interior of the church has nothing remarkable, excepting a wooden image of St. George vanquishing the Dragon, which is erected over the high altar, and is the admiration of the good people of Palos, who bear it about the streets in grand procession on the anniversary of the saint. This group existed in the time of Columbus, and now flourishes in renovated youth and splendor, having been newly painted and gilded, and the countenance of the saint rendered peculiarly blooming and lustrous.

Having finished the examination of the church, we resumed our seats in the calesa and returned to Moguer. One thing only remained to fulfill the object of my pilgrimage. This was to visit the chapel of the Convent of Santa Clara. When Columbus was in danger of being lost in a tempest on his way home from his great voyage of discovery, he made a vow, that, should he be spared, he would watch and pray one whole night in this chapel; a vow which he doubtless fulfilled immediately after his arrival.

My kind and attentive friend, Don Juan, conducted me to the convent. It is the wealthiest in Moguer, and belongs to a sisterhood of Franciscan nuns. The chapel is large, and ornamented with some degree of richness, particularly the part about the high altar, which, is embellished by magnificent monuments of the brave family of the Puerto Carreros, the ancient lords of Moguer, and renowned in Moorish warfare. The alabaster effigies of distinguished warriors of that house, and of their wives and sisters, lie side by side, with folded hands, on tombs immediately before the altar, while others recline in deep niches on either side. The night had closed in by the time I entered the church, which made the scene more impressive. A few votive lamps shed a dim light about the interior; their beams were feebly reflected by the gilded work of the high altar, and the frames of the surrounding paintings, and rested upon the marble figures of the warriors and dames lying in the monumental repose of ages. The solemn pile must have presented much the same appearance when the pious discoverer performed his vigil, kneeling before this very altar, and praying and watching throughout the night, and pouring forth heartfelt praises for having been spared to accomplish his sublime discovery.

I had now completed the main purpose of my journey, having visited the various places connected with the story of Columbus. It was highly gratifying to find some of them so little changed though so great a space of time had intervened; but in this quiet nook of Spain, so far removed from the main thoroughfares, the lapse of time produces but few violent revolutions. Nothing, however, had surprised and gratified me more than the contiuued stability of the Pinzon family. On the morning after my excursion to Palos, chance gave me an opportunity of seeing something of the interior of most of their households. Having a curiosity to visit the remains of a Moorish castle, once the citadel of Moguer, Don Fernandez undertook to show me a tower which served as a magazine of wine to one of the Pinzon family. In seeking for the key we were sent from house to house of nearly the whole connection. All appeared to be living in that golden mean equally removed from the wants and superfluities of life, and all to be happily interwoven by kind and cordial habits of intimacy. We found the females of the family generally seated in the patios, or central courts of their dwellings, beneath the shade of awnings and among shrubs and flowers. Here the Andalusian ladies are accustomed to pass their mornings at work, surrounded by their handmaids, in the primitive, or rather oriental style. In the porches of some of the houses I observed the coat-of-arms granted to the family by Charles V, hung up like a picture in a frame. Over the door of Don Luis, the naval officer, it was carved on an escutcheon of stone, and colored. I had gathered many particulars of the family also from conversation with Don Juan, and from the family legend lent me by Don Luis. From all that I could learn, it would appear that the lapse of nearly three centuries and a half has made but little change in the condition of the Pinzons. From generation to generation they have retained the same fair standing and reputable name throughout the neighborhood, filling offices of public trust and dignity, and possessing great influence over their fellow-citizens by their good sense and good conduct. How rare is it to see such an instance of stability of fortune in this fluctuating world, and how truly honorable is this hereditary respectability, which has been secured by no titles nor entails, but perpetuated merely by the innate worth of the race! I declare to you that the most illustrious descents of mere titled rank could never command the sincere respect and cordial regard with which I contemplated this stanch and enduring family, which for three centuries and a half has stood merely upon its virtues.

As I was to set off on my return to Seville before two o'clock, I partook of a farewell repast at the house of Don Juan, between twelve and one, and then took leave of his household with sincere regret. The good old gentleman, with the courtesy, or rather the cordiality, of a true Spaniard, accompanied me to the posada, to see me off. I had dispensed but little money in the posada—thanks to the hospitality of the Pinzons—yet the Spanish pride of my host and hostess seemed pleased that I had preferred their humble chamber, and the scanty bed they had provided me, to the spacious mansion of Don Juan; and when I expressed my thanks for their kindness and attention, and regaled mine host with a few choice segars, the heart of the poor man was overcome. He seized me by both hands and gave me a parting benediction, and then ran after the calasero, to enjoin him to take particular care of me during my journey.

Taking a hearty leave of my excellent friend Don Juan, who had been unremitting in his attentions to me to the last moment, I now set off on my wayfaring, gratified to the utmost with my visit, and full of kind and grateful feelings towards Moguer and its hospitable inhabitants.

Index.

Acuna, Don Alonzo de, summons Columbus to give an account of himself, on his return from the New World.

Address of an Indian of Cuba to Columbus.

Adelantado, title of, given to Christopher Columbus, confirmed by the king.

Adrian de Moxica.

Admiral, the, a title granted to Columbus and his descendants.

Africa, essay on the navigation of, by the ancients.

Aguado, Juan, recommended to the Spanish Government by Columbus; appointed commissioner to inquire into the conduct of Columbus; arrives at Isabella; his insolent behavior; his interview with Columbus: the Caciques having preferred complaints against Columbus, he determines on returning to Spain.

Alexander VI., pope, character of; famous bulls of, relative to the NewWorld; letter of Columbus to.

Aliaco, Pedro, work of, referred to, note.

Alligators, found in great numbers at Puerto Bello.

All Saints, discovery of the bay of.

Alonzo, Don, heir-apparent of Portugal, his marriage with the princessIsabella.

Alpha and Omega, the extreme point of Cuba.

Alva, duke of, Don Diego Columbus marries his daughter; he assists in obtaining justice for his son-in-law.

Alvaro, Don, de Portugal, attack upon, in the royal tent.

Amazons, an island of supposed; warlike women of the Caribbee islands.Amazons, river of, discovered by Vicente Pinzon.

Amber, specimens of, among the mountains of Cibao.

Anacaona, wife to Caonabo, retires with her brother Behechio, after the great battle of the Vega; composes legendary ballads; her admiration of the Spaniards; counsels her brother to conciliate the friendship of the Spaniards; her reception of the Adelantado; her wonder and delight at seeing a Spanish ship; her grief at the departure of the Adelantado; her conduct in respect to her daughter and Guevara; her admiration of the Spaniards turned into detestation; receives a visit from Ovando; is seized; carried in chains to St. Domingo; and ignominiously hanged; her fine character.

Anana, or the pine-apple, first met with.

Angel, Luis de St., his remonstrance with the queen relative to the project of Columbus; succeeds.

Antigua, island of, discovered.

Antilles, the, discovered; taken possession of.

Apparitions, ideas of the Haytiens in respect to.

Appendix, containing illustrations and documents.

Arana, Diego de, left in charge of Hispaniola, during the first absence of Columbus, history of the disaster which occurred to him after the departure of Columbus.

Arano, Pedro de, commander of one of Columbus's ships on his third voyage.

Areytos, or ballads, of the Haytiens.

Aristizabal, Don Gabriel de, solicits the removal of the remains ofColumbus.

Arriaga, Luis de, is shut up within the walls of Magdalena.

Astrolabe, the, applied to navigation.

Atalantis, Plato's observations on.

Audience, royal, court of, established.

Augustine, St., his arguments against the existence of Antipodes.

Augustine, St., Cape of, discovered by Pinzon.

Aurea Cheraonesus, the place whence Solomon is supposed to have had gold.

Azores, the, when discovered; arrival at by Columbus on his return from his first voyage.

Babeque, a supposed island, Columbus goes in search of.

Bahama Islands, discovery of; cruise among the.

Ballads of the Haytiens.

Ballester, Miguel, his conduct during the conspiracy of Roldan; receives a letter from Columbus; his character; interview with Roman; second interview: sends advice to the admiral; is besieged in the fortress of Conception; sails for Spain.

Barbas, Las, islands of, discovered.

Barrantes, Garcia de, sails for Spain.

Barros, Joam de, his account of Columbus's proposition to John II. king ofPortugal.

Basil, St., his description of Paradise.

Bastides, Rodrigo, of Seville, explores the coast of Terra Firma.

Baza, surrender of.

Beata, Cape, sailors of Columbus climb the rock of.

Behem, Martin, his planisphere; an account of; the assertion relative to his having discovered the western world previous to Columbus considered.

Behechio assists Caonabo, and kills one of the wives of Guacanagari; the only Cacique who does not sue for peace; receives a visit from Bartholomew Columbus; his reception of him; consents to pay tribute; invites the Adelantado to come and receive it; his astonishment at visiting a Spanish ship.

Bolen, river of, discovered; abounds in fish; Columbus commences a settlement on its banks.

Bell of Isabella, the superstitious ideas of the Haytiens in respect to it.

Belvis, Pablo, sent to Hayti in the place of Fermin Cedo.

Berahoma, condemned to death for having violated the wife of the Cacique of the Vega; is pardoned.

Bernaldez, Andres, a short account of his life and writings.

Bernardo of Valentia, his conspiracy at Jamaica.

Bloodhounds, first use of in the New World; employed by Columbus in his wars with the Haytiens.

Bobadilla, Don Francisco de, charged with a commission to Hispaniola to inquire into the conduct of Columbus; his character; instructions with which he is charged; sails; arrives at St. Domingo; his judgment formed before he leaves his ship; assumes power on landing; storms the fortress of St. Domingo; assumes the government before he investigates the conduct of Columbus; seizes his arms, gold, secret papers, etc.; summons Columbus to appear before him; his baseness in collecting evidence; puts Don Diego in chains; also Columbus; his fears in respect to the Adelantado; puts him in irons; his mal-administration; a saying of his; superseded in his government by Ovando; sails for Spain and is lost, with all his crew, in a violent hurricane.

Boca del Sierpe.

Borgonon, Juan, labors to convert the Haytiens.

Boyle, Bernardo, friar, appointed apostolical vicar for the New World; his advice to Columbus in respect to Guacanagari; confirms the accounts sent home by Columbus; consecrates the first church at Isabella; his character and conduct; his hatred of Columbus; encourages the misconduct of Margarite; forms the plan of seizing Bartholomew Columbus's ships and returning to Spain; sees sail; his accusations of Columbus at the court of Madrid.

Brandan, St., imaginary island of.

Brazils, the, discovered by Vicente Pinzon; a part discovered and taken possession of for the Portuguese crown by Cabral.

Breviesca, Ximeno de, a worthless hireling; his conduct and punishment.

Bucklers, used by the natives of Trinidad. Bull of Partition issued byPope Martin V.; relative to the New World, issued by Pope Alexander VI..

—— of Demarcation.

Burgos, the court held at.

Butios, the priests of the Haytiens.

Butterflies, clouds of, seen on the southern coast of Cuba.

Cabot, Sebastian, discovers Labrador, supposed to be the first that visited the main-land of the New World.

Cabral, Pedro Alvarez de, discovers part of the Brazils, and takes possession of it in the name of the king of Portugal. Cabron, Cape, or Capo del Enamorado.

Cacao, first known to the Spaniards.

Caciques, seizure of fourteen, in the night, by Bartholomew Columbus and his officers.

Canaries, an optical delusion seen by the people of the; arrival ofColumbus at, in his first voyage.

Canoes, capable of containing 150 persons, seen at Puerto Santo; large size of those at Jamaica.

Caonabo, character and conduct of; takes the fortress at La Navidad; and massacres the Spaniards; assembles his warriors; Columbus leaves directions with Margarite to surprise; besieges Ojeda; gives up the siege and retires; forms a plan of exterminating the Spaniards; invades the territories of Guacanagari; character of; is visited by Ojeda, with a design to entrap him; agrees to wait upon Columbus, and sets forward; is taken by stratagem; is chained; his conduct when in the presence of Columbus; embarks for Spain; a Guadaloupe woman falls in love with him; dies on the voyage.

Carocol, Island of.

Cariari, transactions at.

Caribbee Islands, discovered.

Caribs, character of the; origin of; cruelty to.

Caravajal, Don Garcia Lopez de, his embassy to Portugal.

Carvajal, Alonzo de, commander of one of Columbus's ships, on his third voyage; arrives at Hispaniola; volunteers to endeavor to bring the rebels of Xavagua to obedience; his ship strikes on a sand-bank; arrives at St. Domingo by land; suspicions entertained against him; takes a letter from the admiral to Roldan; takes propositions from Roldan to the admiral; another interview with Boldan; appointed factor to Columbus; his evidence relative to the discovery of the coast of Paria by Columbus.

Carracks, description of.

Casas, Las, his character of Don Diego Columbus; his observations relative to Hayti; his account of two Spaniards; his picture of the consequences of the administration of Ovando; his account of a combat between one Indian and two mounted cavaliers; is present at a battle in Higuey; his remark on the cold reception of Columbus by the king; his remark in respect to the injustice of Ferdinand; an account of; his zeal in behalf of the slaves; his dubious expedient to lessen the quantum of human misery; character of his General History of the Indies.

Castaneda, Juan de, his disgraceful reception of Columbus on his return from the New World; cause of his conduct.

Catalina, a Carib, her admiration of Guacanagari; proposes to her captive companions an attempt to regain their liberty; escapes by swimming.

Catalina, a female Cacique, falls in love with Miguel Diaz; imparts to him a knowledge of the gold mines of Hayna.

Cathay, accounts of Marco Polo in respect to; of Sir John Mandeville.

Catherine, St., discovery of.

Cavern, near Cape Francois, description of.

Caymans, islands of.

Cedo, Fermin, his opinion in respect to the gold found in Hispaniola;Belvis sent in Ms place.

Ceuta, the bishop of, his arguments against the proposition of Columbus; proposes to the council to keep Columbus in suspense, and in the mean time to send a ship in the route proposed; this advice acted upon; and fails.

Chanca, Dr., confirms the accounts sent home by Columbus.

Charles VIII., king of France, his kindness to Bartholomew Columbus.

Charles V. succeeds his grandfather, Ferdinand; recognizes the innocence of Don Diego Columbus; acknowledges the right of Don Diego to exercise the office of viceroy; his orders in respect to the claims of Don Diego's widow; his ordinances relative to the slave trade.

Charlevoix, his description of the sea of the Antilles, Chaufepic, JacquesGeorge, a passage from, in respect to the Coloinbos.

Chvistoval, St., fortress of, erected by Bartholomew Columbus; mountains of.

Cibao, Columbus's expedition to the mountains of; meaning of the wordCibao; Luxan's description of the mountains of.

Ciguayens, a warlike Indian tribe, account of.

Cintra, rock of, arrival at, by Columbus, on his return from the NewWorld.

Cipango (or Japan), Marco Polo's account of.

Cities, island of the seven.

Cladera, Don Christoval, his refutation of a letter written by M. Otto, toDr. Franklin.

Colon, Diego, acts as interpreter; his speech to the natives of Cuba; marries the daughter of the Cacique Guarionex.

Colombo, the old Genoese admiral, conveys the king of Portugal to theMediterranean coast of France.

Colombo, the younger (nephew of the old admiral), a famous corsair.

——, Balthazar, of Cuccaro, loses his cause in respect to the heirship ofColumbus.

——, Juan, commander of one of Columbus's ships on his third voyage.

Colombos, the navigators, an account of; capture of the Venetian galleys.

Columbus, Bartholomew, accompanies Bartholomew Diaz along the coast of Africa; an account of his proceedings; arrives at Valladolid; sent to assist his brother with three ships; character of; is invested by Columbus with the title and authority of Adelantado; attends his brother in his expedition against the Indians of the Vega; goes to the mines of Ilayna; is invested with the command on the return of Columbus to Spain; takes Porras prisoner; sails to meet his brother; account of his administration during the absence of Columbus; sends 300 Indians to Spain to be sold as slaves; erects the fortress of San Domingo; pays a visit to Behechio; his reception; demands a tribute; establishes a chain of military posts; causes several Indians who had broken some Christian images, etc., to be burnt; marches against the Caciques, who had formed a conspiracy against the Spaniards; causes them to be seized; pardons most of them; again visits Behechio to receive the tribute of cotton; his skill in government; a conspiracy formed against him by Roldan; narrowly escapes assassination; repairs to the Vega in relief of Fort Conception; his interview with Roldan; is shut up in Fort Conception; relieved by the arrival of Coronal; publishes an amnesty to all who return to their duty; marches against Guarionex, who has rebelled; his campaign in the mountains of Ciguay; releases the wife of one of the Caciques whom he had taken with Mayobanex; favorable consequences of this; his vigorous proceedings against the rebels engaged in the conspiracy of Guevara and Moxica; is put in irons by Bobadilla; accompanies Columbus on his fourth voyage; waits on the governor of Ercilla; takes possession of Cape Honduras in the name of the sovereigns of Castile; lands at Cariari; forms a plan to seize Quibian; does so, with his wives and children; Quibian escapes; and attacks in return; is finally compelled to remove the settlement to another place; is in great danger; compelled to embark with his brother and all his men; sets sail from St. Domingo for Spain with his brother; proceeds to court to urge the justice of the king; accompanies his brother to court; goes to represent his brother on the arrival of the new king and queen of Castile; is sent out to St. Domingo by Ferdinand to admonish his nephew, Don Diego; is presented with the property and government of Mona for life, etc.; dies at St. Domingo; his character.

Columbus, Christopher, account of his birth, parentage, and education; early life of; his first voyage; engages in the service of Reinier, king of Naples; alters the point of the compass of his ship to deceive his discontented crew; engaged in the Mediterranean and the Levant; said to be appointed captain of several Genoese ships in the service of Louis XI.; his gallant conduct when sailing with Colombo the younger; goes to Lisbon, where he takes up his residence; picture of his person; early character; becomes enamored of Doña Felipa Monis de Palestrello, whom he marries; becomes possessed of his father-in-law's charts, journals, etc.; removes to the island of Porto Santo; becomes acquainted with Pedro Correo, a navigator of note; is animated with a wish to make discoveries; grounds on which he founds his belief of the existence of undiscovered countries in the West; correspondence of Columbus with Paulo Toscanelli: makes a voyage to the north of Europe; the astrolabe having been applied to navigation, Columbus proposes a voyage of discovery to John II. king of Portugal; this proposition is referred to a junto charged with all matters relating to maritime discovery; who regard the project as visionary; the king then refers it to his council; by whom it is condemned; a ship is secretly sent in the direction proposed, but returns: Columbus's indignation; loses his wife; quits Portugal; goes to Genoa and proposes his project to the government; it is rejected; supposed by some to have carried his plan to Venice; visits his father; arrives in Spain, and requests a little bread and water at a convent of Franciscan friars; the prior detains him as a guest; and invites Garcia Fernandez to meet him; gives him letters of introduction to Fernando de Talavera, queen Isabella's confessor; sets out for Cordova; arrives there; finds it impossible to obtain a hearing; the queen's confessor regards his plan as impossible; maintains himself by designing maps and charts; is received into the house of Alonzo de Quintanilla; introduced to the archbishop of Toledo; who gives him an attentive hearing; becomes his friend and procures him an audience of the king; who desires the prior of Prado to assemble astronomers, etc. to hold conference with him; Columbus appears before the assembly at Salamanca; arguments against his theory; his reply; the subject experiences procrastination and neglect; is compelled to follow the movements of the court; his plan recommended by the marchioness of Moya; receives an invitation to return to Portugal from John II.; receives a favorable letter from Henry VII. of England; distinguishes himself in the campaign of 1489, and is impressed deeply with the arrival and message of two friars from the soldan of Egypt relative to the Holy Land; determines to devote the profits arising from his intended discovery to the purpose of rescuing the holy sepulchre from the hands of the infidels; council of learned men again convened; who pronounce the scheme vain and impossible; receives a message from the sovereigns; has an audience of the sovereigns: leaves Seville in disgust; forms a connection with Beatrix Enriquez; applies to the duke of Medina Sidonia, who rejects his plan; applies to the duke of Medina Celi, who is prevented from acceding to his plan from a fear of the court; returns to the convent of La Rabida; Alonzo Pinzon offers to pay his expenses in a renewed application to the court; returns at the desire of the queen; witnesses the surrender of Granada to the Spanish arms; negotiation with persons appointed by the sovereigns; his propositions are considered extravagant; are pronounced inadmissible; lower terms are offered him, which he rejects; the negotiation broken off; quits Santa Fé; Luis de St. Angel reasons with the queen; who at last consents; a messenger dispatched to recall Columbus; he returns to Santa Fé; arrangement with the Spanish sovereigns; his son appointed page to prince Juan; he returns to La Rabida; preparations at the Port of Palos, and apprehensions there relative to the expedition; not a vessel can be procured; they are at last furnished; Columbus hoists his flag; sails; prologue to his voyage; an account of the map he had prepared previous to sailing; difficulties begin to arise; arrives at the Canaries; comes in sight of Mount Teneriffe; arrives at Gomera; the news which reached him there; alarm of his sailors on losing all sight of land; begins to keep two reckonings; falls in with part of a mast; notices a variation of the needle; his opinion relative to that phenomenon; they are visited by two birds; terrors of the seamen; sees large patches of weeds; his situation becomes more critical; part of his crew determine, should he refuse to return, to throw him into the sea; false appearance of land; his crew become exceedingly clamorous; the assertion that he capitulated with them disproved; his address to the crew; sees a light; land discovered; the reward for land adjudged to him; lands on the island of St. Salvador; which he takes possession of in the name of the Castilian sovereigns; the surprise of the natives: gold first discovered; reconnoitres the island; takes seven of the inhabitants to teach them Spanish that they might become interpreters; discovers Santa Maria de la Conception; discovers Exuma; discovers Isabella; hears of two islands called Cuba and Bohio: sails in search of the former; discovers it; takes formal possession; sends two Spaniards up the country; coasts along the shore; return of the Spaniards with their report; goes in search of the supposed island of Babeque; discovers an archipelago, to which he gives the name of the King's Garden; desertion of Alonzo Pinzon; discovers St. Catherine, in which he finds stones veined with gold; specimen of his style in description; reaches what he supposes to be the eastern extremity of Asia; discovers Hispaniola; its transcendent appearance; enters a harbor, to which he gives the name of St. Nicholas; a female brought to him who wore an ornament of gold in her nose; coasts along the shores; is visited by a Cacique; receives a message from Guacanagari; his ship strikes upon a sand-bank in the night; some of his crew desert in a boat; the ship becomes a wreck, and he takes refuge on board a caravel; receives assistance from Guacanagari; transactions with the natives; is invited to the residence of Guacanagari; his affectionate reception of him; his people desire to have permission to remain in the island; he forms the plan of a colony and the design of constructing a fortress; and of returning to Spain for reinforcements; entertained in the most hospitable manner by Guacanagari; who procures for him a great quantity of gold previous to his departure; his address to the people; gives a feast to the chieftains; sails; coasts towards the eastern end of Hispaniola: meets with Pinzon; Pinzon's apology; account of the Ciguayens; the first native blood shed by the whites; account of the return voyage; encounters violent storms; the crew draw lots who shall perform pilgrimages; two lots fall to the admiral; vows made; commits an account of his voyage in a barrel to the sea; land discovered; which proves to be the Azores; transactions at St. Mary's; receives supplies and a message from the governor; attempted performance of the vow made during the storm; the seamen taken prisoners by the rabble, headed by the governor; the governor's disgraceful conduct; seamen liberated; cause of the governor's conduct; violent gales; lots for pilgrimages again cast; arrives off Cintra, in Portugal; writes to the sovereigns and the king of Portugal; is summoned by a Portuguese admiral to give an account of himself; effect of his return at Lisbon; receives an invitation from the king of Portugal; interview with the king; jealousy of the king excited; a proposition to the king by some of his courtiers to assassinate Columbus and take advantage of his discoveries; rejected by the king; disgraceful plot of the king to rob Spain of the newly-discovered possessions; his interview with the queen of Portugal; enters the harbor of Palos; account of his reception there; arrival of Pinzon; receives an invitation from the sovereigns at Barcelona; his reception on the road; is received in a magnificent manner by the courtiers; and the sovereigns; his vow in respect to the holy sepulchre; the manner in which his discoveries were received throughout Europe; a coat of arms given him; the manner in which he receives the honors paid to him; preparations for a second voyage; agreement made with the sovereigns; powers with which he is invested; takes leave of the sovereigns at Barcelona; arrives at Seville; prepares for the voyage; ideas of Columbus and the people relative to the New World; insolence of Juan de Soria; conduct of Fonseca: departure on his second voyage; anchors at Gornera; gives sealed instructions to the commander of each vessel; sees a swallow; encounters a storm; sees the lights of St. Elmo; discovers the Caribbee Islands; takes possession of them; discovers Guadaloupe; transactions there; cruises among the Caribbees; arrives at Hispaniola; at the gulf of Samana; anchors at Monte Christi; arrives at La Navidad; is visited by a cousin of the Cacique; learns a disaster which had occurred at the fortress; visits Guacanagari: abandons La Navidad: founds the city of Isabella at Monte Christi; falls sick; sends Alonzo de Ojeda to explore the interior of the island; dispatches twelve ships to Spain; requests fresh supplies; recommends Pedro Margarite and Juan Aguado to the patronage of the government; recommends a curious plan in respect to an exchange of Caribs for live stock; recommendation of Columbus in respect to the Caribs; his conduct in respect to Diaz's mutiny; consequences; sets out on an expedition to the mountains of Cibao; erects a fortress of wood among the mountains; returns to Isabella; receives unpleasant intelligence from Pedro Margarite; sickness in the colony; puts his people on short allowance, Sol; offends the Hidalgos, by making them share the common labors of the colony; distributes his forces in the interior; gives the command of them to Pedro Margarite; his instructions to that officer; instructs Margarite to surprise and secure Caonabo; his conduct in respect to Haytien thieves; sails for Cuba; visits La Navidad; arrives at St. Nicholas; lands at Guantanamo; anchors at St. Jago; sails in search of Bubeque; discovers Jamaica; received in a hostile manner: takes possession of the island; amicable intercourse with the natives; returns to Cuba; lands at Cabo de la Cruz; encounters a storm; becomes engaged in a most difficult navigation; discovers an archipelago, to which he gives the name of the Queen's Gardens; hears of a province called Mangon, which greatly excites his attention; coasts along the southern side of Cuba; encounters a dangerous navigation in A white pea; sends parties to explore the interior of the country; deceives himself in respect to what he wishes; fancies he has arrived on that part of Asia which is beyond the boundaries of the Old World, laid down by Ptolemy; anticipates returning to Spain by the Aurea Chersonesus, Taprobana, the Straits of Babelmandel, and the Red Sea, or the Coast of Africa; returns along the southern coast of Cuba, in the assurance that Cuba was the extremity of the Asiatic continent; discovers the island of Evangelista; his ship runs aground; sails along the province of Ornofay: erects crosses in conspicuous situations to denote his discoveries; is addressed by an Indian; takes an Indian with him: his ship leaks; reaches Santa Cruz; coasts along the south side of Jamaica; his ship visited by a Cacique and his whole family; who offer to accompany him to Spain to do homage to the king and queen; he evades this offer; coasts along the south side of Hispaniola; makes an error in reckoning; arrives at Mona; is suddenly deprived of all his faculties; arrives at Isabella; is joined by his brother Bartholomew; invests him with the title and authority of Adelantado; is visited by Guacanagari, who informs him of a league formed against him by the Haytien Caciques; his measures to restore the quiet of the island; wins over Guarionex, and prevails upon him to give his daughter in, marriage to Diego Colon; builds Fort, Conception in the territories of Guarionex; Caonabo is delivered into his hands by Ojeda; he puts him in chains; his interview with him; his anxiety relieved by the arrival of Antonio de Torres; sends home specimens of gold, plants, etc., and five hundred Indian prisoners to be sold as slaves; undertakes an expedition against the Indians of the Vega; a battle ensues; the Indians defeated; makes a military tour through various parts of the island, and reduces is to obedience; imposes a tribute; refuses the offer of Guarionex to cultivate grain, instead of paying in gold; erects forts; the natives having destroyed the crops, are hunted and compelled to return to their labors; account of the intrigues against Columbus in the court of Spain; charges brought against him; his popularity declines in consequence; measures taken in Spain; Aguado arrives at Isabella to collect information relative to the state of the colony; his dignified conduct at his first interview with Aguado; the Caciques prefer complaints against him: he resolves on returning to Spain; a violent hurricane occurs previous to his departure, which sinks six caravels; pleased with the discovery of the gold mines of Hayna; orders a fort to be erected; invests his brother with the command; fails for Spain; arrives at Guadaloupe; his politic conduct there; leaves Guadaloupe: a famine on board the ships; his magnanimous conduct; arrives in Spain.; his representation of things; writes instructions for ibe conduct of Bartholomew; invited to court; favorably received; proposes a third voyage of discovery; the king promises him ships; delays and their causes; refuses the title of duke or marquess, and a grant of lands in Hispaniola; terms on winch he was to sail: honors bestowed upon him; his respect and love for Genoa; makes his will; odium thrown upon his enterprises; plan to which he was compelled to resort to procure men for his third voyage; in consequence of delays, he almost resolves to give up all further enterprise; chastises a minion of Fonseca; consequences of this chastisement; sets sail; his opinion in respect to a continent in the Southern Ocean; arrives at Gomera; retakes a Spanish ship; is seized with a fit of the gout; arrives among the Cape de Verde Islands: sees the island Bel Fuego; arrives under the line; the heat becomes intolerable, and he alters his course; discovers Trinidad; discovers Terra Firma; steers along the coast of Trinidad; difficulty in respect to a rapid current; enters the Gulf of Paria; suffers from a complaint in the eyes; discovers the islands of Margarita and Cubagua; exchanges plates, etc., for pearls; his complaint in the eyes increases; arrives at Hispaniola; his brother soils to meet him; his constitution seems to give way; his speculations relative to the coast of Paria; polar star augmentation; doubts the received theory of the earth; accounts for variation of the needle; difference of climate, etc.; arrives at San Domingo; state of his health, on arriving at Hispaniola; state of the colony; negotiates with the rebels; offers free passage to all who desire to return to Spain; offers a pardon to Roldan, which is received with contempt; writes to Spain an account of the rebellion, etc., and requires a judge and some missionaries to be sent out: writes a conciliating letter to Roldan; interviews with Roldan; issues a proclamation of pardon; receives proposals, which he accedes to; goes on a tour to visit the various stations; receives a cold letter from the sovereigns, written by Fonseca; the former arrangement with Roldan not having been carried into effect, enters into a second; grants lands to Roldan's followers; considers Hispaniola in the light of a conquered country; reduces the natives to the condition of villains or vassals: grants lands to Roldan; determines on returning to Spain; but is prevented by circumstances; writes to the sovereigns, entreating them to inquire into the truth of the late transactions; requests that his son, Diego, might be sent out to him; sends Roldan to Alonzo de Ojeda, who has arrived on the western coast on a voyage of discovery; his indignation at the breach of prerogative implied by this voyage; hears of a conspiracy entered into against him by Guevara and Moxica; seizes Moxica; and orders him to be flung headlong from the battlements of Fort Conception; vigorous proceedings against the rebels; beneficial consequences; visionary fancy at night; representations at court against him; his sons insulted at Granada; the queen is offended at his pertinacity in making slaves of those taken in warfare; and consents to the sending out a commission to investigate his conduct; Bobadilla is sent out; and arrives at St. Domingo; his judgment formed before he leaves his ship; he seizes upon the government before he investigates the conduct of Columbus; Columbus is summoned to appear before Bobadilla; goes to St. Domingo without guards or retinue, and is put in irons and confined in the fortress; his magnanimity; charges against him; jubilee of miscreants on his degradation; his colloquy with Villejo, previous to their sailing; sails; arrives at Cadiz; sensation in Spain on his arrival in irons; sends a letter to Doña Juana de la Torre, with an account of his treatment; indignation of the sovereigns at reading this account; is invited to court; his gracious reception there; his emotion; is promised a full restitution of his privileges and dignities; disappointed in receiving them; causes; his interests ordered to be respected in Hispaniola by Ovando; remembers his vow to furnish an army wherewith to recover the Holy Sepulchre; endeavors to incite the sovereigns to the enterprise; forms a plan for a fourth voyage, which is to eclipse all former ones; writes to Pope Alexander VII.; manuscript copy of, note; takes measures to secure his fame by placing it under the guardianship of his native country; sails from Cadiz; arrives at Ercilla; at the Grand Canary; at St. Domingo; requests permission to shelter in the harbor, as he apprehends a storm; his request refused; a violent hurricane soon after sweeps the sea, in which he and his property are preserved, and several of his bitterest enemies overwhelmed; encounters another storm; discovers Guanaga; a Cacique eomes on board his ship with a multitude of articles, the produce of the country; selects some to send them to Spain; is within two days' sail of Yucatan; natives different from any he had yet seen; voyages along the coast of Honduras; encounters violent storms of thunder and lightning; voyage along the Mosquito shore; passes a cluster of islands, to which he gives the name of Limonares; comes to an island, to which he gives the name of La Huerta, or the Garden; transactions at Cariari; voyage along Costa Rica; speculations concerning the isthmus of Veragua; discovery of Puerto Bello; discovery of El Retrete; disorders of his men at this port, and the consequences; relinquishes the further prosecution of his voyage eastward; returns to Puerto Bello; encounters a furious tempest; is near being drowned by a water-spout; returns to Veragua; regards gold as one of the mystic treasures, note; is nearly being wrecked in port; gives his name to the mountains of Veragua; sends his brother to explore the country; which appears to be impregnated with gold; believes that he has reached one of the most favored ports of the Asiatic continent; commences a settlement on the river Belen; determines on returning to Spain for reinforcements; is stopped by discovering a conspiracy of the natives; sends his brother to surprise Quibian; who is seized; and afterwards escapes; disasters at the settlement stop his sailing; some of his prisoners escape, and others destroy themselves; his anxiety produces delirium; is comforted by a vision; the settlement is abandoned, and the Spaniards embark for Spain; departure from the coast of Veragua; sails for Hispaniola; arrives at Puerto Bello: at the entrance of the Gulf of Darien; at the Queen's Gardens; encounters another violent tempest; arrives at Cape Cruz; at Jamaica; runs his ships on shore; arranges with the natives for supplies of provisions; his conversation with Diego Mendez to induce him to go in a canoe to St. Domingo; Mendez offers to go; Columbus writes to Ovando for a ship to take him and his crew to Hispaniola; writes to the sovereigns; Mendez embarks; the Porras engage in a mutiny; the mutiny becomes general; is confined by the gout; rushes out to quell the mutiny, but is borne back to the cabin by the few who remain faithful; the mutineers embark on board ten Indian canoes; provisions become exceedingly scarce; employs a stratagem to obtain supplies from the natives; another conspiracy is formed; arrival of Diego de Escobar from Hispaniola on a mission from the governor, promising that a ship shall soon be sent to his relief; overtures of the admiral to the mutineers; not accepted; they send a petition for pardon; it is granted; two ships arrive from Hispaniola; departure of Columbus; arrives at Beata; anchors in the harbor of St. Domingo; is enthusiastically received by the people; is grieved at the desolation he sees everywhere around him; finds that his interests had been disregarded; sets sail for Spain; encounters several tempests; anchors in the barbor of St. Luear; finds all his affairs in confusion; is compelled to live by borrowing; writes to King Ferdinand; but, receiving unsatisfactory replies, would have set out for Seville, but is prevented by his infirmities: death of Queen Isabella; is left to the justice of Ferdinand; employs Vespucci; goes with his brother to court, then held at Segovia; is received in a very cold manner; Don Diego de Deza is appointed arbitrator between the king and the admiral; his claims are referred to the Junta de Descargos; is confined with a violent attack of the gout; petitions the king that his son Diego may be appointed, in his place, to the government of which lie bad been so long deprived; his petition remains unattended to; writes to the new king and queen of Castile; who promise a speedy and prosperous termination to his suit; his last illness; writes a testamentary codicil on the blank page of a little breviary; writes a final codicil; receives the sacrament; dies; his burial; his remains removed to Hispaniola, disinterred and conveyed to the Havana; epitaph; observations on his character; his remains removed with great ceremony to Cuba; reflections thereon; historical account of his descendants; an important lawsuit relative to the beirship (in the female line) to the family titles and property; decided in favor of Don Nuno Golves do Portugallo; an account of his lineage; an account of his birthplace; an account of the ships he used; an examination of his route in the first voyage; the effect of the travels of Marco Polo on his mind; his belief in the imaginary island of St. Brandan; an account of the earliest narratives of his first and second voyages; his ideas relative to the situation of the terrestrial paradise; his will; his signature.

Back to IndexNext