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AT THE GATE OF WHICH,COLUMBUS ASKED BREAD fc WATER. FOR. HIS CHILD.. VOYAGES AND DISCOVERIES
OF THE
COMPANIONS OF CHRISTOPHER
COLUMBUS.
By WASHINGTON IRVING.
Illustrated.
LONDON: WILLIAM TEG'G.
1861.I vINTRODUCTION.
The first discovery of the Western Hemisphere
has already been related by the Author in his
History of Columbus. It is proposed by him, in
the present work, to narrate the enterprises of
certain of the companions and disciples of the Ad-
miral, who, enkindled by his zeal, and instructed
by his example, sallied forth separately in the vast
region of adventure to which he had led the way.
Many of them sought merely to skirt the continent
which he had partially visited; to secure the first-
fruits of the pearl fisheries of Paria and Cubaga;
or to explore the coast of Veragua, which he had
represented as the Aurea Chersonesus of the an-
cients. Others aspired to accomplish a grand dis-
covery which he had meditated toward the close of
his career. In the course of his expeditions along
the coast of Terra Firma, Columbus had repeat-
edly received information of the existence of a vastIV
INTRODUCTION.
sea to the south. He supposed it to be the great
Indian Ocean, the region of the oriental spice
islands, and that it must communicate by a strait
with the Caribbean sea. His last and most disas-
trous voyage was made for the express purpose of
discovering that imaginary strait, and making his
way into this Southern Ocean. The illustrious
navigator, however, was doomed to die, as it were,
upon the threshold of his discoveries. It was re-
served for one of his followers, Vasco Nunez de
Balboa, to obtain the first view of the promised
ocean, from the lofty mountains of Darien, some
years after the eyes of the venerable Admiral had
been closed in death. The expeditions here nar-
rated, therefore, may be considered as springing
immediately out of the voyages of Columbus, and
fulfilling some of his grand designs. They may
be compared to the attempts of adventurous
knights-errant to achieve the enterprise left un-
finished by some illustrious predecessor. Neither
is this comparison entirely fanciful: on the con-
trary, it is a curious fact, well worthy of notice,
that the spirit of chivalry entered largely into the
early expeditions of the Spanish discoverers, giving
them a character wholly distinct from similar en-
terprises, undertaken by other nations. It willINTRODUCTION.
V
not, perhaps, be considered far-sought, if we trace
the cause of this peculiarity to the domestic history
of the Spaniards during the middle ages.
Eight centuries of incessant warfare with the
Moorish usurpers of the Peninsula, produced a
deep and lasting effect upon Spanish character and
manners. The war being ever close at home,
mingled itself with the domestic habits and con-
cerns of the Spaniard. He was born a soldier.
The wild and predatory nature of the war also
made him a kind of chivalrous marauder. His
horse and weapon were always ready for the field.
His delight was in roving incursions and extrava-
gant exploits ; and no gain was so glorious in his
eyes as the cavalgada of spoils and captives driven
home in triumph from a plundered province. Re-
ligion, which has ever held great empire over the
Spanish mind, lent its aid to sanctify these roving
and ravaging propensities, and the Castilian cava-
lier, as he sacked the ytowns, and laid waste the
fields of his Moslem neighbour, piously believed
he was doing God service.
The conquest of Granada put an end to the
peninsular wars between Christian and infidel: the
spirit of Spanish chivalry was thus suddenly de-
prived of its wonted sphere of action ; but it hadVI
INTRODUCTION.
been too long fostered and excited, to be as sud-
denly appeased. The youth of the nation, bred
up to daring adventure and heroic achievement,
could not brook the tranquil and regular pursuits
of common life, but panted for some new field of
romantic enterprise.
It was at this juncture that the grand project of
Columbus was carried into effect. His treaty with
the sovereigns was, in a manner, signed with the
same pen that had subscribed the capitulation of
the Moorish capital; and his first expedition may
almost be said to have departed from beneath the
walls of Granada. Many of the youthful cavaliers,
who had fleshed their swords in that memorable
war, crowded the ships of the discoverers, thinking
a new career of arms was to be opened to them—
a kind of crusade into splendid and unknown re-
gions of infidels. The very weapons and armour
that had been used against the Moors, were drawn
from the arsenals tp equip the heroes of these re-
moter adventures ; and some of the most noted of
the early commanders in the New World, will be
found to have made their first essay in arms, under
the banner of Ferdinand and Isabella, in their ro-
mantic campaigns among the mountains of An-
dalusia.INTRODUCTION.
Vll
To these circumstances may, in a great mea-
sure, be ascribed that swelling chivalrous spirit
which will be found continually mingling, or ra-
ther warring, with the technical habits of the sea-
man and the sordid schemes of the mercenary
adventurer, in these early Spanish discoveries.
Chivalry had left the land and launched upon the
deep. The Spanish cavalier had embarked in the
caravel of the discoverer. He carried among the
trackless wildernesses of the new world the same
contempt of danger and fortitude under suffering;
the same restless roaming spirit; the same passion
for inroad and ravage and vain-glorious exploit;
and the same fervent, and often bigoted, zeal for
the propagation of his faith, that had distinguished
him during his warfare with the Moors. Instances
in point will be found in the extravagant career of
the daring Ojeda, particularly in his adventures
along the coast of Terra Firma and the wild shores
of Cuba;—in the sad story of the “ unfortunate
Nicuesa,” graced as it is with occasional touches
of high-bred courtesy;—in the singular cruise of
that brave but credulous old cavalier, Juan Ponce
de Leon, who fell upon the flowery coast of Flo-
rida in his search after an imaginary fountain of
youth;—and above all, in the chequered fortunesvlll
INTRODUCTION.
of Vasco Nunez de Balboa, whose discovery of
the Pacific Ocean forms one of the most beautiful
and striking incidents in the history of the New
World, and whose fate might furnish a theme of
wonderful interest for a poem or a drama.
The extraordinary actions and adventures of
these men, while they rival the exploits recorded
in chivalric romance, have the additional interest of
verity. They leave us in admiration of the bold
and heroic qualities inherent in the Spanish cha-
racter, which led that nation to so high a pitch of
power and glory; and which are still discernible in
the great mass of that gallant people, by those who
have an opportunity of judging of them rightly.
Before concluding these prefatory remarks, the
Author would acknowledge how much he has been
indebted to the third volume of the invaluable
Historical Collection of Don Martin Fernandez de
Navarrete, wherein that author has exhibited his
usq^l industry, accuracy, and critical acumen. He
has likewise profited greatly by the second voluble
of Oviedo’s General History, which only exists in
manuscript, and a copy of which he found in the
Columbian Library of the Cathedral of Seville.
He has had some assistance also from the docu-
ments of the law case between Don Diego Colum*INTRODUCTION.
IX
bus and the crown, which exists in the archives of
the Indias, and for an inspection of which he is much
indebted to the permission of the government and
the kind attentions of Don Jozef de la Higuera y
Lara, the intelligent keeper of the Archives. These,
with the historical works of Herrera, Las Casas,
Gomara, and Peter Martyr, have been his authori-
ties for the facts contained in the following work,
though he has not thought proper to refer to them
continually at the bottom of his page.
While his work was going through the press, he
received a volume of Spanish Biography, written
with great elegance and accuracy, by Don Manuel
Josef Quintana, and containing a Life of Vasco
Nunez de Balboa. He was gratified to find that
his own arrangement of facts was generally corro-
borated by this work; though he was enabled to
correct his dates in several instances, and to make
a few other emendations from the volume of Senor
Quintana, whose position in Spain gave him the
mearfs of attaining superior exactness on these
points.CONTENTS.
ALONZO DE OJEDA,
HIS FIRST VOYAGE, IN WHICH HE WAS ACCOMPA-
NIED BY AMERIGO VESPUCCI.
Page
CHAP. I.—Some Account of Ojeda—of Juan de la
Cosa—of Amerigo Vespucci—Preparations for the
Voyage.—(A. D. 1499.)	  1
CHAP. II.—Departure from Spain—Arrival on the
Coast of Paria—Customs of the Nations...... 7
CHAP. III.—Coasting of Terra Firma—Military Ex-
pedition of Ojeda......................... 10
CHAP. IV.—Discovery of the Gulf of Venezuela—
Transactions there—Ojeda explores the Gulf—
Penetrates to Maracaibo ............   13
CHAP. V.—Prosecution of the Voyage—return to
Spain..................................... 17
/
PEDRO A. NINO and CHRIS. GUERRA.
A. D. 1499 .................................  20Xll
CONTENTS.
•	Page
VICENTE YANEZ PINZON.
A. D. 1499 ............................... 26
DIEGO DE LEPE AND R. DE BASTIDES.
A. D. 1500 ............................... 36
ALONZO DE OJEDA,
SECOND VOYAGE.
A. D. 1502 ............................... 40
ALONZO DE OJEDA,
THIRD VOYAGE.
CHAP. I.—Ojeda applies for a Command —Has a rival
Candidate in Diego de Nicuesa—His success (1509) 49
CHAP. II.—Feud between the Rival Governors Ojeda
and Nicuesa—A Challenge................. 54
CHAP. III.—Exploits and Disasters of Ojeda on the
Coast of Carthagena—Fate of the veteran Juan de la
Cosa..............................   60
CHAP. IV.—Arrival of Nicuesa—Vengeance taken
^ on the Indians ......................... 67
CHAP. V.—Ojeda founds the Colony of San Sebastian
—Beleagured by the Indians ............  72CONTENTS.
XIII
Page
CHAP. VI.—Alonzo de Ojeda supposed by the Sa-
vages to have a charmed life—Their experiment to
try the fact .......................... 75
CHAP. VII.—Arrival of a Strange Ship at San Sebas-
tian ...................................... 77
CHAP. VIII.—Factions in the Colony—A Conven-
tion made ................................. 80
CHAP. IX.—Disastrous Voyage of Ojeda in the Pirate
Ship ...................................... 82
CHAP. X.—Toilsome March of Ojeda and his Com-
panions through the morasses of Cuba ...... 84
CHAP. XI.—Ojeda performs his Vow to the Virgin 88
CHAP. XII.—Arrival of Ojeda at Jamaica—His Re-
ception by Juan de Esquibel ............... 90
CHAP. XIII.—Arrival of Alonzo de Ojeda at San
Domingo—Conclusion of his Story............ 95
DIEGO DE NICUESA.
CHAP. I.—Nicuesa sails to the Westward—His Ship-
wreck and subsequent Disasters ............ 97
CHAP. II. — Nicuesa and his men on a desolate
Island ................................... 101
CHAP. III.—Arrival of a Boat—Conduct of Lope de
Olano .................................... 103XIV
CONTENTS.
Page
CHAP. IV.—Nicuesa rejoins his Crews ......... 10&
CHAP. V.—Sufferings of Nicuesa and his men on the
Coast of the Isthmus....................... 107
CHAP. VI.—Expedition of the Bachelor Encisco in
search of the Seat of Government of Ojeda.. Ill
CHAP. VII.—The Bachelor hears unwelcome tidings
of his destined J urisdiction ............. 116
CHAP. VIII.—Crusade of the Bachelor Encisco
against the Sepulchres of Zenu............. 118
CHAP. IX.—The Bachelor arrives at San Sebastian
—His Disasters there, and subsequent Exploits at
Darien ..................................... 121
CHAP. X.— The Bachelor Encisco undertakes the
Command—His downfal........................ 125
CHAP. XI.—Perplexities at the Colony—-Arrival of
Colmenares ................................ 126
CHAP. XII.—Colmenares goes in quest of Nicuesa.. 128
CHAP. XIII.—Catastrophe of the unfortunate Ni-
cuesa ..................................... 132
VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
DISCOVERER OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN.
CHAP. I.—Factions at Darien—Vasco Nunez ele-
vated to the Command....................... 138CONTENTS.
XV
Page
CHAP. II.—Expedition to Coyba—Vasco Nunez re-
ceives the daughter of a Cacique as hostage . 141
CHAP. III.—Vasco Nunez hears of a Sea beyond the
Mountains.................................... 145
CHAP. IV.—Expedition of Vasco Nunez in quest of
the Golden Temple of Dobayba ................ 151
CHAP. V.—Disaster on the Black River—Indian plot
against Darian .............................. 157
CHAP. VI.—Further Factions in the Colony—Arro-
gance of Alonzo Perez and the Bachelor Corral.... 160
CHAP. VII.—Vasco Nunez determines to seek the
Sea beyond the Mountains .................... 166
CHAP. VIII.—Expedition in quest of the Southern
Sea ......................................... 168
CHAP. IX.—Discovery of the Pacific Ocean.... 173
CHAP. X.—Vasco Nunez marches to the shores of
the South Sea................................ 177
CHAP. XI.—Adventures of Vasco Nunez on the
Pacific Ocean .............................   182
CHAP. XII.—Further Adventures and Exploits of
Vasco Nunez................................   187
CHAP. XIII.—Vasco Nunez sets out on his return
across the Mountains—His contests with the Sa-
vages ..................................... •. 190XVI
CONTENTS.
Page
CHAP. XIV.—Enterprise against Tubanama, the
warlike Cacique of the Mountains—Return to Da-
rien ........................................ 195
CHAP. XV.—Transactions in Spain—Pedrarias Da- .
vila appointed to the command of Darien—Tidings
received in Spain of the Discovery of the Pacific
Ocean......................................... 200
CHAP. XVI.—Arrival and grand Entry of Don Pe-
drarias Davila into Darien ................. 208
CHAP. XVII.—Perfidious Conduct of Don Pedrarias
towards Vasco Nunes ........................ 212
CHAP. XVIII.—Calamities of the Spanish Cavaliers
at Darien.................................   216
CHAP. XIX.—Fruitless Expedition of Pedrarias.. .. 218
CHAP. XX.—Second Expedition of Vasco Nunez in
quest of the Gold Temple of Dobayba ........ 220
CHAP. XXI.—Letters from the King in favour of
Vasco Nunez—Arrival of Garabito—Arrest of Vasco
Nunez .................................. 224
CHAP. XXII.—Expedition of Morales and Pizarro to
the shores of the Pacific Ocean—Their Visit to the
Pearl Islands—Their disastrous Return across the
Mountains..................................... 228
CHAP. XXIII.—Unfortunate Enterprises of the Offi-
cers of Pedrarias—Matrimonial Compact between
the Governor and Vasco Nunez ................   237CONTENTS.
XVII
Page
CHAP. XXIV.—Vasco Nunez transports ships across
the mountains to the Pacific Ocean..... 240
CHAP. XXV.—Cruise of Vasco Nunez in the Southern
Sea—Rumours from Acla ................. 245
CHAP. XXVI.—Reconnoitring Expedition of Gara-
bito—Stratagem of Pedrarias to entrap Vasco Nunez 247
CHAP. XXVII.—Vasco Nunez and the Astrologer
—his return to Acla.................... 250
CHAP. XXVIII.—Trial of Vasco Nunez ...... 253
CHAP. XXIX.—Execution of Vasco Nunez..... 257
VALDIVIA and his Companions...............361
MICER CODRO, the Astrologer.....................275
JUAN PONCE DE LEON,
CONQUEROR OF PORTO RICO, AND DISCOVERER OF FLORIDA.
CHAP. I.—Reconnoitring Expedition of Juan Ponce
de Leon to the Island of Boriquen ......... 277
CHAP. II.—Juan Ponce aspires to the government
of Porto Rico ............................. 280
CHAP. III.—Juan Ponce rules with a strong hand—
Exasperation of the Indians—Their experiment to
prove whether the Spaniards were mortal ..'.. 283
cXV111
CONTENTS.
Page
CHAP. IV.—Conspiracy of the Caciques—fate ofSo-
tomayor................................ 285
CHAP. V.—War of Juan Ponce with the Cacique
Aguaybana ................................ 290
CHAP.. VI.—Juan Ponce de Leon hears of a wonder-
ful country and miraculous fountain ...... 295
CHAP. VII.—Cruise of Juan Ponce de Leon in
search of the Fountain of Youth........... 298
CHAP. VIII.—Expedition of Juan Ponce against the
Caribs—his Death ......................... 302
APPENDIX.
A Visit to Palos..........................309
Manifesto of Alonzo de Ojeda..............334
ILLUSTRATIONS.
Convent of La Rabida at Palos, where Columbus
asked bread and water for his child ........ Frontispiece.
Arms of the Pinzon Family (woodcut) ........... Title-page.
Town of Palos, with the Church of St. George,
to face page 309
Country Seat of the Pinzons (woodcut)................. 320
Old House belonging to the Pinzon Family (wood-
cut) ................................................. 328
Map ........................................... at the end.ALONZO DE OJEDA,*
HIS FIRST VOYAGE,
IN WHICH HE WAS ACCOMPANIED BY
AMERIGO VESPUCCI.f
CHAPTER I.
Some Account of Ojeda—of Juan de la Cosa—of Amerigo
Vespucci—Preparations for the Voyage.—(1499.)
Those who have read the History of Columbus
will, doubtless, remember the character and ex-
ploits of Alonzo de Ojeda; as some of the readers
of the following pages, however, may not have
perused that work, and as it is proposed at present
to trace the subsequent fortunes of this youthful
adventurer, a brief sketch of him may not be
deemed superfluous.
Alonzo de Ojeda was a native of Cuenca, in
New Castile, and of a respectable family. He was
brought up as a page or esquire, in the service of
Don Luis de Cerda, Duke of Medina Celi, one of
the most powerful nobles of Spain; the same who
* Ojeda is pronounced in'Spanish Oheda, with a strong
aspiration of the h.
t Vespucci, pronounced Vespuchy.2	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
for some time patronized Columbus during his
application to the Spanish court.*
In those warlike days, when the peninsula was
distracted by contests between the Christian king-
doms, by feuds between the nobles and the crown,
and by the incessant and marauding warfare with
the Moors, the household of a Spanish nobleman
was a complete school of arms, where the youth of
the country were sent to be trained up in all kinds
of hardy exercises, and to be led to battle under
an illustrious banner. Such was especially the
case with the service of the Duke of Medina Celi,
who possessed princely domains, whose household
was a petty court, who led legions of armed re-
tainers to the field, and who appeared in splendid
state and with an immense retinue, more as an ally
of Ferdinand and Isabella, than as a subject. He
engaged in many of the roughest expeditions of
the memorable war of Granada, always insisting
on leading his own troops in person, when the ser-
vice was of peculiar difficulty and danger. Alonzo
de Ojeda was formed to signalize himself in such
a school. Though small of stature, he was well
made, and of wonderful force and activity, with a
towering spirit and a daring eye that seemed to
make up for deficiency of height. He was a bold
and graceful horseman, an excellent foot soldier,
dextrous with every weapon, and noted for his ex-
traordinary skill and adroitness in all feats of
strength and agility.
He must have been quite young when he followed
* Varones IhiEtres, por F. Pizarro y Orellana, p. 41. Las,
Casas, Hist. Ind. 1. i. c. 82.1499.] ALONZO BE OJEDA—FIRST VOYAGE.	3
the Duke of Medina Celi, as page, to the Moorish
wars; for he was but about twenty-one years of
age when he accompanied Columbus in his second
voyage; he had already, however, distinguished
himself by his enterprizing spirit and headlong
valour; and his exploits during that voyage con-
tributed to enhance his reputation. He returned
to Spain with Columbus, but did not accompany
him in his third voyage, in the spring of 1498.
He was probably impatient of subordination, and
ambitious of a separate employment or command,
which the influence of his connections gave him a
great chance of obtaining. He had a cousin ger-
man of his own name, the reverend Padre Alonzo
de Ojeda, a Dominican friar, who was one of the
first inquisitors of Spain, and a great favourite with
the Catholic sovereigns.* This father inquisitor
was, moreover, an intimate friend of the bishop
Don Juan Rodriguez Fonseca, who had the chief
management of the affairs of the Indies, under
which general name were comprehended all the
countries discovered in the new world. Through
the good offices of his cousin inquisitor* therefore,
Ojeda had been introduced to the notice of the
bishop, who took him into his especial favour and
patronage. Mention has already been made, in
the History of Columbus, of a present made by
the bishop to Ojeda of a small Flemish painting of
the Holy Virgin. This the young adventurer
carried about with him as a protecting relic, invo-
king it at all times of peril, whether by sea or land;
and to the especial care of the Virgin he attributed
* Pizarro. Varoues Ilustres.4	SPANISH VOYAGES OP DISCOVERY. [1499.
tlie remarkable circumstance that he had never
been wounded in any of the innumerable brawls
and battles into which he was continually betrayed
by his rash and fiery temperament.
While Ojeda was lingering about the court, let-
ters were received from Columbus, giving an ac-
count of the events of his third voyage, especially
of his discovery of the coast of Paria, which he
described as abounding with drugs and spices, with
gold and silver, and precious stones, and, above
all, with oriental pearls, and which he supposed
to be the borders of that vast and unknown region
of the East, wherein, according to certain learned
theorists, was situated the terrestrial paradise.
Specimens of the pearls, procured in considerable
quantities from the natives, accompanied his epistle,
together with charts descriptive of his route. These
tidings caused a great sensation among the mara-
time adventurers of Spain; but no one was more
excited by them than Alonzo de Ojeda, who, from
his intimacy with the bishop, had full access to the
charts and correspondence of Columbus. He im-
mediately conceived the project of making a voy-
age in the route thus marked out by the admiral,
and of seizing upon the first fruits of discovery
which he had left ungathered. His scheme met
with ready encouragement from Fonseca, who, as
has heretofore been shown, was an implacable
enemy to Columbus, and willing to promote any
measure that might injure or molest him. The
bishop accordingly granted a commission to Ojeda,
authorizing him to fit out an armament and pro-
ceed on a voyage of discovery, with the proviso
merely that he should not visit any territories ap-1499.] ALONZO DE OJEDA-----FIRST VOYAGE.	5
pertaining to Portugal, or any of the lands dis-
covered in the name of Spain previous to the year
1495. The latter part of this provision appears
to have been craftily worded by the bishop, so as
to leave the coast of Paria and its pearl fisheries
open to Ojeda, they having been recently discovered
by Columbus in 1498.
The commission was signed by Fonseca alone,
in virtue of general powers vested in him for such
purposes, but the signature of the sovereigns did
not appear on the instrument, and it is doubtful
whether their sanction was sought on the occasion.
He knew that Columbus had recently remonstrated
against a royal mandate issued in 1495, permitting
Voyages of Discovery by private adventurers, and
that the sovereigns had in consequence revoked
their mandate wherever it might be deemed pre-
judicial to the stipulated privileges of the admiral.*
It is probable, therefore, that the bishop avoided
raising any question that might impede the enter-
prize ; being confident of the ultimate approbation
of Ferdinand, who would be well pleased to have
his dominions in the new world extended by the
discoveries of private adventurers, undertaken at
their own expense. It was stipulated in this, as
well as in subsequent licenses for private expedi-
tions, that a certain proportion of the profits, ge-
nerally a fourth or fifth, should be reserved for the
crown.
Having thus obtained permission to make the
voyage, the next consideration with Ojeda was to
find the means. He was a young adventurer, a
* Navarrete, t. ii. Document cxiii.6	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
mere soldier of fortune, and destitute of wealth ;
but he had a high reputation for courage and en-
terprise, and with these, it was thought, would
soon make his way to the richest parts of the
newly discovered lands, and have the wealth of
the Indies at his disposal. He had no difficulty,
therefore, in finding monied associates among the
rich merchants of Seville, who, in that age of dis-
covery, were ever ready to stake their property
upon the schemes of roving navigators. With such
assistance he soon equipped a squadron of four
vessels at Port St. Mary, opposite Cadiz. Among
the seamen who engaged with him were several
who had just returned from accompanying Colum-
bus in his voyage to this very coast of Paria. The
principal associate of Ojeda, and one on whom he
placed great reliance, was Juan de la Cosa; who
accompanied him as first mate, or, as it was termed,
chief pilot. This was a bold Biscayan, who may
be regarded as a disciple of Columbus, with whom
he had sailed in his second voyage, when he
coasted Cuba and Jamaica, and he had since ac-
companied Rodrigo de Bastides, in an expedition
along the coast of Terra Firma. The hardy ve-
teran was looked up to by his contemporaries as
an oracle of the seas, and was pronounced one of
the most able mariners of the day; he may be ex-
cused, therefore, if, in his harmless vanity, he con-
sidered himself on a par even with Columbus.*
Another conspicuous associate of Ojeda, in this
voyage, was Amerigo Vespucci, a Florentine mer-
chant, induced by broken fortunes and a rambling
* Navarrete, Collec. Viag. t. iii. p. 4.1499.] ALONZO DE OJEDA----FIRST VOYAGE.	7
disposition to seek adventures in the new world.
Whether he had any pecuniary interest in the ex-
pedition, and in what capacity he sailed, does not
appear. His importance has entirely arisen from
subsequent circumstances ; from his having written
and published a narrative of his voyages, and from
his name having eventually been given to the new
world.
CHAPTER II.
Departure from Spain—Arrival on the Coast of Daria—*
Customs of the Nations.
Ojeda sailed from Port St. Mary on the 20th of
May, 1499, and, having touched for supplies at
the Canaries, took a departure from Gomara, pur-
suing the route of Columbus in his third voyage,
being guided by the chart he had sent home, as
well as by the mariners who had accompanied him
on that occasion. At the end of twenty-four days
he reached the continent of the new world, about
two hundred leagues farther south than the part
discovered by Columbus, being, as it is supposed,
the coast of Surinam.*
From hence he ran along the coast of the Gulf
of Paria, passing the mouths of many rivers, but
especially those of the Esquivo and the Oronoko.
These, to the astonishment of the Spaniards, unac-
customed as yet to the mighty rivers of the new
world, poured forth such a prodigious volume of
water, as to freshen the sea for a great extent.
* Navarrete, t. iii. p» 5.8	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
They beheld none of the natives until they arrived
at the Island of Trinidad, on which island they
met with traces of the recent visit of Columbus.
Vespucci, in his letters, gives a long description
of the people of this island and of the coast of
Paria, who w ere of the Carib race, tall, well made
and vigorous, and expert with the bow, the lance
and the buckler. His description, in general, re-
sembles those which have frequently been given of
the Aboriginals of the new world; there are two
or three particulars, however, worthy of citation.
They appeared, he said, to believe in no reli-
gious creed, to have no place of worship, and to
make no prayers or sacrifices; but, he adds, from
the voluptuousness of their lives, they might be
considered Epicureans.* Their habitations were
built in the shape of bells ; of the trunks of trees,,
thatched with palm leaves, and were proof against
wind and weather. They appeared to be in com-
mon, and some of them were of such magnitude as
to contain six hundred persons : in one place there
were eight principal houses capable of sheltering
nearly ten thousand inhabitants. Every seven or
eight years the natives were obliged to change
their residence, from the maladies engendered by
the heat of the climate in their crowded habita-
tions.
Their riches consisted in beads and ornaments
made from the bones of fishes; in small white and
green stones strung like rosaries, with which they
adorned their persons, and in the beautiful plumes
of various colours for which the tropical birds are
noted.
* Viages de. Vespucci, Navarrete, t. iii. p. 211.9
1499.] ALONZO DE OJEDA-----FIRST VOYAGE.
The Spaniards smiled at their simplicity in at-
taching an extraordinary value to such worthless
trifles; while the savages, in all probability, were
equally surprised at beholding the strangers so
eager after gold, and pearls and precious stones,
which to themselves were objects of indifference.
Their manner of treating the dead was similar
to that observed among the natives of some of the
islands. Having deposited the corpse in a cavern
or sepulchre, they placed a jar of water and a few
eatables at its head, and then abandoned it without
moan or lamentation. In some parts of the coast,
when a person was considered near his end his
nearest relatives bore him to the woods, and laid
him in a hammock suspended to the trees. They
then danced round him until evening, when, hav-
ing left within his reach sufficient meat and drink
to sustain him for four days, they repaired to their
habitations. If he recovered and returned home,
he was received with much ceremony and rejoi-
cing ; if he died of his malady or of famine, no-
thing more was thought of him.
Their mode of treating a fever is also worthy of
mention. In the height of the malady they plunged
the patient in a bath of the coldest water, after
which they obliged him to make many evolutions
round a great fire, until he was in a violent heat,
when they put him to bed, that he might sleep : a
treatment, adds Amerigo Vespucci, by which we
saw many cured.10
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499‘
CHAPTER III.
Coasting of Terra Firma—Military Expedition of
Ojeda.
After touching at various parts of Trinidad and
the Gulf of Paria, Ojeda passed through the strait
of the Boca del Drago, or Dragon’s Mouth, which
Columbus had found so formidable, and then
steered his course along the coast of Terra Firma,
landing occasionally until he arrived at Curiana, or
the Gulf of Pearls. From hence he stood to the
opposite island of Margarita, previously discovered
by Columbus, and since renowned for its pearl
fishery. This, as well as several adjacent islands,
he visited and explored; after which he returned
to the main land, and touched at Cumana and Ma-
racapana, where he found the rivers infested with
alligators resembling the crocodiles of the Nile.
Finding a convenient harbour at Maracapana
he unloaded and careened his vessels there, and
built a small brigantine. The natives came to him
in great numbers, bringing abundance of venison,
fish, and cassava bread, and aiding the seamen in
their labours. Their hospitality was not certainly
disinterested, for they sought to gain the protection
of the Spaniards, whom they reverenced as super-
human beings. When they thought they had suf-
ficiently secured their favour, they represented to
Ojeda that their coast was subject to invasion from
a distant island, the inhabitants of which were
cannibals, and carried their people into captivity,
to be devoured at their unnatural banquets. They1499.] ALONZO DE OJEDA-------FIRST VOYAGE.	11
besought Ojeda, therefore, to avenge them upon
these ferocious enemies.
The request was gratifying to the fighting pro-
pensities of Alonzo de Ojeda, and to his love of
adventure, and was readily granted. Taking seven
of the natives on board of his vessels, therefore,
as guides, he set sail in quest of the cannibals.
After sailing for seven days he came to a chain of
islands, some of which were peopled, others un-
inhabited, and which are supposed to have been the
Carribee islands. One of these was pointed out by
his guides as the habitation of their foes. On run-
ning near the shore he beheld it thronged with
savage warriors, decorated with coronets of gaudy
plumes, their bodies painted with a variety of
colours. They were armed with bows and arrows,
with darts, lances, and bucklers, and seemed pre-
pared to defend their island from invasion.
This show of war was calculated to rouse the
martial spirit of Ojeda. He brought his ships to
anchor, ordered out his boats, and provided each
with a paterero or small cannon. Beside the oars-
men, each boat contained a number of soldiers,
who were told to crouch out of sight in the bottom.
The boats then pulled in steadily for the shore.
As they approached the Indians let fly a cloud of
arrows, but without much effect. Seeing the boats
continue to advance, the savages threw themselves
into the sea, and brandished their lances to prevent
their landing. Upon this, the soldiers sprang up
in the boats and discharged the patereroes. At
the sound and smoke of these unknown weapons
the savages abandoned the water in affright, while
Ojeda and his men leaped on shore and pursued
them. The Carib warriors rallied on the banks,12	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
and fought for a long time with that courage pe*
culiar to their race, but were at length driven to
the woods, at the edge of the sword, leaving many
killed and wounded on the field of battle.
On the following day the savages were seen on
the shore in still greater numbers, armed and
painted, and decorated with war plumes, and
sounding defiance with their conchs and drums.
Ojeda again landed with fifty-seven men, whom he
separated into four companies and ordered them
to charge the enemy from different directions. The
Caribs fought for a time hand to hand, displaying
great dexterity in covering themselves with their
bucklers, but were at length entirely routed and
driven, with great slaughter, to the forests. The
Spaniards had but one man killed and twenty-one
wounded in these combats,—such superior advan-
tage did their armour give them over the naked
savages. Having plundered and set fire to the
houses they returned triumphantly to their ships,
with a number of Carib captives; and made sail
for the main land, Ojeda bestowed a part of
the spoil upon the seven Indians who had accom-
panied him as guides, and sent them exulting to
their homes, to relate to their countrymen the
signal vengeance that had been wreaked upon their
foes. He then anchored in a bay where he re-
mained for twenty days until his men had recovered
from their wounds.*
* There is some discrepance in the early accounts of this
battle, as to the time and place of its occurrence. The author
has collated the narratives of Vespucci, Las Casas, Herrera,
and Peter Martyr, and the evidence given in the law suit of
Diego Columbus, and has endeavoured as much as possible
to reconcile them.1499.] ALONZO DE OJEDA---FIRST VOYAGE.
IS
CHAPTER IV.
Discovery of the Gulf of Venezuela—Transactions there—
Ojeda explores the Gulf—-Penetrates to Maracaibo.
His crew being refreshed and the wounded suffi-
ciently recovered, Ojeda made sail, and touched at
the island of Curazao, which, according to the
accounts of Vespucci, was inhabited by a race of
giants, “ every woman appearing a Penthesilea,
and every man an Antaeus.”* As Vespucci was a
scholar, and as he supposed himself exploring the
regions of the extreme East, the ancient realm of
fable, it is probable his imagination deceived him,
and construed the formidable accounts given by
the Indians of their cannibal neighbours of the
islands, into something according with his recol-
lections of classic fable. Certain it is that the
reports of subsequent voyagers proved the inha-
bitants of the island to be of the ordinary size.
Proceeding along the coast he arrived at a vast
deep gulf, resembling a tranquil lake; entering
which, he beheld on the eastern side a village, the
construction of which struck him with surprise.
It consisted of twenty large houses, shaped like
bells, and built on piles driven into the bottom of
the lake, which, in this part was limpid and of but
little depth. Each house was provided with a
drawbridge, and with canoes by which the com-
munication was carried on. From these resem-
* Vespucci.—Letter to Lorenzo de Pier Francisco de
Medicis.14?	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
blances to the Italian city, Ojeda gave to the bay
the name of the Gulf of Venice: and it is called at
the present day Venezuela, or little Venice: the
Indian name was Coquibacoa.
When the inhabitants beheld the ships standing
into the bay, looking like wonderful and unknown
apparitions from the deep, they fled with terror to
their houses, and raised the drawbridges. The
Spaniards remained for a time gazing with admira-
tion at this amphibious village, when a squadron of
canoes entered the harbour from the sea. On
beholding the ships they paused in mute amaze-
ment, and on the Spaniards attempting to approach
them, paddled swiftly to shore, and plunged into
the forest. They soon returned with sixteen young
girls, whom they conveyed in their canoes to the
ships, distributing four on board of each, either as
peace offerings or as tokens of amity and confi-
dence. The best of understanding now seemed to
be established; and the inhabitants of the village
came swarming about the ships in their canoes,
and others swimming in great numbers from the
shores.
The friendship of the savages, however, was all
delusive. On a sudden several old women at the
doors of the houses uttered loud shrieks, tearing
their hair in fury. It appeared to be a signal for
hostility. The sixteen nymphs plunged into the
sea and made for shore ; the Indians in the ca-
noes caught up their bows and discharged a flight
of arrows, and even those who were swimming
brandished darts and lances, which they had hitherto
concealed beneath the water.
Ojeda was for a moment surprized at seeing war15
1499.] ALONZO DE OJEDA—FIRST VOYAGE.
thus starting up on every side, and the very sea
bristling with weapons. Manning his boats, he
immediately charged amongst the thickest of the
enemy, shattered and sunk several of their canoes,
killed twenty Indians and wounded many more,
and spread such a panic among them, that most of
the survivors flung themselves into the sea and
swam to shore. Three of them were taken pri-
soners, and two of the fugitive girls, and were con-
veyed on board of the ships, where the men were
put in irons. One of them, however, and the two
girls succeeded in dexterously escaping the same
night.
Ojeda had but five men wounded in the affray;
all of whom recovered. He visited the houses,
but found them abandoned and destitute of booty;
notwithstanding the unprovoked hostility of the
inhabitants, he spared the buildings, that he might
not cause useless irritation along the coast.
Continuing to explore this gulf, Ojeda pene-
trated to a port or harbour, to which he gave the
name of St. Bartholomew, but which is supposed
to be the same at present known by the original
Indian name of Maracaibo. Here, in compliance
with the entreaties of the natives, he sent a de-
tachment of twenty-seven Spaniards on a visit to
the interior. For nine days they were conducted
from town to town, and feasted and almost idolized
by the Indiahs, who regarded them as angelic
beings, performing their national dances and games,
and chaunting their traditional ballads for their en-
tertainment.
The natives of this part were distinguished for the
symmetry of their forms, the females in particular1G	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
appeared to the Spaniards to surpass all others
that they had yet beheld in the new world for grace
and beauty. Neither did the men display in the
least degree that jealousy which prevailed in the
other parts of the coast; but, on the contrary, per-
mitted the most frank and intimate intercourse
with their wives and daughters.
By the time the Spaniards set out on their return
to the ship, the whole country was aroused, pouring
forth its population, male and female, to do them
honour. Some bore them in litters or hammocks,
that they might not be fatigued with the journey,
and happy was the Indian who had the honour of
bearing a Spaniard on his shoulders across a river.
Others loaded themselves with the presents that
had been bestowed on their guests, consisting of
rich plumes, weapons of various kinds, and tropical
birds and animals. In this way they returned in
triumphant procession to the ships, the woods and
shores resounding with their songs and shouts.
Many of the Indians crowded into the boats
that took the detachment to the ships; others put
off in canoes, or swam from shore, so that in a little
while the vessels were thronged with upwards of a
thousand wondering natives. While gazing and
marvelling at the strange objects around them,
Ojeda ordered the cannon to be discharged, at
the sound of which, says Vespucci, the Indians
“ plunged into the water like so many frogs from
a bank.” Perceiving, however, that it was done in
harmless mirth, they returned on board, and passed
the rest of the day in great festivity. The Spa-
niards brought away with them several of the
beautiful and hospitable females from this place, one17
1499.] ALONZO DE OJEDA---FIRST VOYAGE.
of whom, named by them Isabel, was much prized
by Ojeda, and accompanied him in a subsequent
voyage.*	s
CHAPTER V.
Prosecution of the Voyage—return to Spain.
Leaving the friendly port of Coquibacoa, Ojeda
continued along the western shores of the gulf of
Venezuela, and standing out to sea, and doubling
Cape Macaraibo, he pursued his coasting voyage
from port to port, and promontory to promontory,
of this unknown continent, until he reached that
* Navarrete, t. iii. p. 8. Idem, pp. 107,108.
It is worthy of particular mention that Ojeda, in his report
of his voyage to the Sovereigns, informed them of his having
met with English voyagers in the vicinity of Coquibacoa, and
that the Spanish government attached such importance to his
information as to take measures to prevent any intrusion into
those parts by the English. It is singular that no record
should exist of this early and extensive expedition of English
navigators. If it was undertaken in the service of the Crown,
some document might be found concerning it among, the ar-
chives of the reign of Henry VII. The English had already
discovered the continent of North America. This had been
done in 1497, by John Cabot, a Venetian, accompanied by his
son Sebastian, who was born in Bristol. They sailed under a
license of Henry VII, who wa,s to have a fifth of the profits of
the voyage. On the 24th June they discovered Newfoundland,
and afterwards coasted the continent quite to Florida, bringing
back to England a valuable cargo and several of the natives►
This was the first discovery of the mainland of America. The
success of this expedition may have prompted the one which
Ojeda encountered in the neighbourhood of Coquibacoa.
c18	SPANISH VOYAGES 0$ DISCOVERY. [1499.
long stretching headland called Cape de la Vela.
There the state of his vessels, and perhaps the dis-
appointment of his hopes at not meeting with abun-
dant sources of immediate wealth, induced him to
abandon all further voyaging along the coast, and
changing his course, he stood across the Caribbean
Sea for Hispaniola. The tenor of his commission
forbade his visiting that island; but Ojeda was not
a man to stand upon trifles when his interest or
inclination prompted the contrary. He trusted to
excuse the infraction of his orders by the alleged
necessity of touching at the island to caulk and
refit his vessels, and to procure provisions. His
true object, however, is supposed to have been to
cut dye-wood, which abounds in the western part
of Hispaniola.
He accordingly anchored at Yaquimo in Sep-
tember, and landed with a large party of his men.
Columbus at that time held command of the island,
and, hearing of this unlicensed intrusion, des-
patched Francesco Roldan, the quondam rebel, to
call Ojeda to account. The contest of stratagem
and management that took place between these two
adroit and daring adventurers, has been already
detailed in the History of Columbus. Roldan was
eventually successful, and Ojeda, being obliged to
leave Hispaniola, resumed his rambling voyage,
visiting various islands, from whence he carried off
numbers of the natives. He at length arrived at
Cadiz in June, 1500, with his ships crowded with
captives, whom he sold as slaves. So meager, how-
ever, was the result of this expedition, that we
are told, when all the expenses were deducted, but
500 ducats remained to be divided between fifty-19
1499.] ALONZO DE OJEDA-----FIRST VOYAGE.
five adventurers. What made this result the more
mortifying was, that a petty armament, which had
sailed some time after that of Ojeda, had returned
two months before him, rich with the spoils of the
New World. A brief account of this latter expe-
dition is necessary to connect this series of minor
discoveries.( 20 )
[1499.
PEDRO ALONZO NltfO*
AND
CHRISTOVAL GUERRA.—(1499.)
The permission granted by Bishop Fonseca to
Alonzo de Ojeda to undertake a private expedition
to the New World, roused the emulation of others
of the followers of Columbus. Among these was
Pedro Alonzo Nino, a hardy seaman, native of
Moguer in the vicinity of Palos, who had sailed
with Columbus, as a pilot, in his first voyage, and
also in his cruizings along the coasts of Cuba and
Paria.j- He soon obtained from the bishop a
similar license to that given to Ojeda, and like the
latter, sought for some monied confederate among
the rich merchants of Seville. One of these,
named Luis Guerra, offered to fit out a caravel for
the expedition; but on condition that his brother,
Christoval Guerra, should have the command.
The poverty of Nino compelled him to assent to
the stipulations of the man of wealth, and he sailed
as subaltern in his own enterprize ; but his nautical
skill and knowledge soon gained him the ascend-
* Pronounced Ninyo. The N in Spanish is always pro-
nounced as if followed by the letter y.
t Testimony of Bastides in the law suit of Diego Columbus.1499.] PEDRO A. NINO AND CHRIST. GUERRA. 21
ancy, he became virtually the captain, and ulti-
mately enjoyed the whole credit of the voyage.
The bark of these two adventurers was but of
fifty tons burthen, and the crew thirty-three souls,
all told. With this slender armament they under-
took to traverse unknown and dangerous seas, and
to explore the barbarous shores of that vast conti-
nent recently discovered by Columbus;—such was
the daring spirit of the Spanish voyagers of those
days.
It was about the beginning of June, 1499, and
but a few days after the departure of Ojeda, that
they put to sea. They sailed from the little port
of Palos, the original cradle of American discovery,
whose brave and skilful mariners long continued
foremost in all enterprizes to the New World.
Being guided by the chart of Columbus, they fol-
lowed his route, and reached the southern conti-
nent, a little beyond Paria, about fifteen days after
the same coast had been visited by Ojeda.
They then proceeded to the gulf of Paria, where
they landed to cut dye wood, and were amicably
entertained by the natives. Shortly after, sallying
from the gulf by the Boca del Drago, they en-
countered eighteen canoes of Caribs, the pirate
rovers of these seas, and the terror of the border-
ing lands. This savage armada, instead of being
daunted, as usual, by the sight of a European ship,
with swelling sails, resembling some winged mon-
ster of the deep, considered it only as an object of
plunder or hostility, and assailed it with showers
of arrows. The sudden burst of artillery, how-
ever, from the sides of the caravel, and the havoc
made among the Caribs by this seeming thunder,22	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
struck them with dismay, and they fled in all direc-
tions. The Spaniards succeeded in capturing one
of the canoes, with one of the warriors who had
manned it. In the bottom of the canoe lay an
Indian prisoner, bound hand and foot. On being
liberated he informed the Spaniards, by signs, that
these Caribs had been on a marauding expedition
along the neighbouring coasts, shutting themselves
up at night in a stockade which they carried with
them, and issuing forth by day to plunder the vil-
lages and to make captives. He had been one of
seven prisoners; his companions had been devoured
before his eyes at the cannibal banquets of these
savages, and he had been awaiting the same miser-
able fate. Honest Nino and his confederates were
so indignant at this recital, that, receiving it as
established fact, they performed what they consi-
dered an act of equitable justice, by abandoning
the Carib to the discretion of his late captive. The
latter fell upon the defenceless warrior with fist
and foot and cudgel; nor did his rage subside even
after the breath had been mauled out of his victim,
but, tearing the grim head from the body, he
placed it on a pole, as a trophy of his vengeance.
Nino and his fellow-adventurers now steered for
the island of Margarita, where they obtained a
considerable quantity of pearls by barter. They
afterwards skirted the opposite coast of Cumana,
trading cautiously and shrewdly, from port to port;
sometimes remaining on board of their little bark,
and obliging the savages to come off to them, when
the latter appeared too numerous ; at other times
venturing on shore, and even into the interior.
They were invariably treated with amity by the1499.] PEDRO A. NINO AND CHRIST. GUERRA. 23
natives, who were perfectly naked, excepting that
they were adorned with necklaces and bracelets of
pearls. These they sometimes gave freely to the
Spaniards, at other times they exchanged them for
glass beads and other trinkets, and smiled at the
folly of the strangers in making such silly bar-
gains.*
The Spaniards were struck with the grandeur
and density of the forests along this coast; for in
these regions of heat and moisture vegetation ap-
pears in its utmost magnificence. They heard also
the cries and roarings of wild and unknown ani-
mals in the woodlands, which, however, appeared
not to be very dangerous, as the Indians went
about the forest armed solely with bows and
arrows. From meeting with deer and rabbits,
they were convinced that that was a part of Terra
Firma, not having found any animals of the kind on
the islands.
Nino and Guerra were so well pleased with the
hospitality of the natives of Gumana, and with the
profitable traffic for pearls, by which they obtained
many of great size and beauty, that they remained
upwards of three months on the coast.
They then proceeded westward to a country
called Cauchieto, trading, as usual, for pearls, and
for the inferior kind of gold called guanin. At
length they arrived at a place where there was a
kind of fortress protecting a number of houses and
gardens situated on a river, the whole forming, to
the eyes of the Spaniards, one of the most delicious
* Las Casas. Hist. Ind. lib. i. c. 171.
f Navarrete, t. iii. p. 14.24	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
abodes imaginable. They were about to land and
enjoy the pleasures of this fancied Paradise, when
they beheld upwards of a thousand Indians, armed
with bows and arrows and war clubs, preparing to
give them a warm reception; having been probably
incensed by the recent visit of Ojeda. As Nino
and Guerra had not the fighting propensities of
Ojeda, and were in quest of profit rather than
renown, having moreover, in all probability, the
fear of the rich merchant of Seville before their
eyes, they prudently abstained from landing, and,
abandoning this hostile coast, returned forthwith to
Cumana, to resume their trade for pearls. They
soon amassed a great number, many of which were
equal in size and beauty to the most celebrated of
the east, though they had been injured in boring
from a want of proper implements.
Satisfied with their success, they now set sail for
Spain, and piloted their little bark safely to
Bayonne in Gallicia, where they anchored about
the middle of April, 1500, nearly two months
before the arrival of Ojeda and his associates, La
Cosa and Vespucci.*
The most successful voyagers to the New World
were doomed to trouble from their very success.
The ample amount of pearls paid to the treasury,
as the royal portion of the profits of this expedi-
tion, drew suspicion instead of favour upon the
two adventurers. They were accused of having
concealed a great part of the pearls collected by
them, thus defrauding their companions and the
* Peter Martyr. Other historians give a different date for
their arrival. Herrera says Feb. 6.1499.] PEDRO A. NINO AND CHRIST. GUERRA. 25
crown. Pedro Alonzo Nino was actually thrown
into prison on this accusation, but, nothing being
proved against him, he was eventually set free, and
enjoyed the enviable reputation of having per-
formed the richest voyage that had yet been made
to the New World.*
* Navarrete, Collect, t. iii. p. 11. Herrera, d. i. 1. iy. c. v.(	2(5	)
[1499.
VICENTE YANEZ PINZON. —(1499.)
Among the maritime adventurers of renown who
were roused to action by the licenses granted for
private expeditions of discovery, we find conspi-
cuous the name of Vicente Yahez Pinzon of Palos,
one of the three brave brothers who aided Colum-
bus in his first voyage, and risked life and fortune
with him in his doubtful and perilous enterprise.
Of Martin Alonzo Pinzon, the eldest and most
important of these three brothers, particular men-
tion has been made in the History of Columbus,
and of the unfortunate error in conduct which
severed him from the admiral, brought on him the
displeasure of the sovereigns, and probably contri-
buted to his premature and melancholy death.
Whatever cloud of disgrace may have over-
shadowed his family, it was but temporary. The
death of Martin Alonzo, as usual, atoned for his
faults, and his good deeds lived after him. The
merits and services of himself and his brothers
were acknowledged, and the survivors of the family
were restored to royal confidence. A feeling of
jealous hostility prevented them from taking a
part in the subsequent voyages of Columbus ; but
the moment the door was thrown open for indivi-
dual enterprise, they pressed forward for permis-
sion to engage in it at their own risk and expense
—and it was readily granted. In fact, their sup-1499.]	VICENTE YANEZ PINZON.	27
posed hostility to Columbus was one of the surest
recommendations they could have to the favour of
the Bishop Fonseca, by whom the license was
issued for their expedition.
Vicente Yanez Pinzon was the leader of this
new enterprize, and he was accompanied by two
nephews, named Arias Perez and Diego Fernan-
dez, sons of his late brother, Martin Alonzo Pin-
zon. Several of his sailors had sailed with Colum-
bus in his recent voyage to Paria, as had also his
three principal pilots, Juan Quintero, Juan de
Umbria, and Juan de Jerez. Thus these minor
voyages seemed all to emanate from the great
expeditions of Columbus, and to aim at realizing
the ideas and speculations contained in the papers
transmitted by him to Spain.
The armament consisted of four caravels, and
was fitted out at the port of Palos. The funds of
Vicente Yanez were completely exhausted before
he had fitted out his little squadron; he was
obliged therefore to purchase on credit the sea
stores and articles of traffic necessary for the en-
terprise. The merchants of Palos seem to have
known how to profit by the careless nature of
sailors and the sanguine spirit of discoverers. In
their bargains they charged honest Pinzon eighty
and a hundred per cent, above the market value of
their merchandize, and in the hurry and urgency
of the moment he was obliged to submit to the
imposition.*
The squadron put to sea in the beginning of
* Navarrete, vol. iii. See Doc. No. 7, where Vicente
Yanez Pinzon petitions for redress.28	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
December, 1499, and after passing the Canary and
Cape de Verde Islands, stood to the south-west.
Having sailed about seven hundred leagues, they
crossed the equator and lost sight of the north
star. They had scarcely passed the equinoctial
line when they encountered a terrible tempest,
which had well nigh swallowed up their slender
barks. The storm passed away, and the firma-
ment was again serene ; but the mariners remained
tossing about in confusion, dismayed by the turbu-
lence of the waves and the strange aspect of the
heavens. They looked in vain to the south for
some polar star by which to shape their course,
and fancied that some swelling prominence of the
globe concealed it from their view. They knew
nothing as yet of the firmament of that hemisphere,
nor of that beautiful constellation the southern
cross, but expected to find a guiding star at the
opposite pole, similar to the cynosure of the north.
Pinzon, however, who was of an intrepid spirit,
pursued his course resolutely to the west, and after
sailing about two hundred and forty leagues, and
being in the eighth degree of southern latitude, he
beheld land afar off on the 28 th of January, to
which he gave the name of Santa Maria de la Con-
solacion, from the sight of it having consoled him
in the midst of doubts and perplexities. It is now
called Cape St. Augustine, and forms the most
prominent part of the immense empire of Brazil.
The sea was turbid and discoloured as in rivers,
and on sounding they had sixteen fathoms water.
Pinzon landed, accompanied by a notary and wit-
nesses, and took formal possession of the territory
for the Castilian crown; no one appeared to dis-1499.]	VICENTE YANEZ PINZON.	29
pute his pretensions, but he observed on the beach
the print of footsteps, which seemed of gigantic
size.
At night there were fires lighted upon a neigh-
bouring part of the coast, which induced Pinzon
on the following morning to send forty men well
armed to the spot. A band of Indians, of about
equal number, sallied forth to encounter them,
armed with bows and arrows, and seemingly of
extraordinary stature. A still greater number
were seen in the distance, hastening to the support
of their companions. The Indians arrayed them-
selves for combat, and the two parties remained
for a short time eyeing each other with mutual
curiosity and distrust. The Spaniards now dis-
played looking glasses, beads, and other trinkets,
and jingled strings of hawks’ bells, in general so
captivating to an Indian ear; but the haughty
savages treated all their overtures with contempt,
regarding these offerings carelessly for a short
time, and then stalking off with stoic gravity.
They were ferocious of feature, and apparently
warlike in disposition, and are supposed to have
been a wandering race of unusual size, who roamed
about in the night, and were of the most fierce un-
tractable nature. By nightfall there was not an
Indian to be seen in the neighbourhood.
Discouraged by the inhospitable character of
the coast, Pinzon made sail and stood to the north-
west, until he came to the mouth of a river too
shallow to receive his ships. Here he sent his
boats on shore with a number of men well armed.
They landed on the river banks, and beheld a
multitude of naked Indians on a neighbouring hill.30
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499.
A single Spaniard armed simply with sword and
buckler, was sent to invite them to friendly inter-
course. He approached them with signs of amity,
and threw to them a hawks’ bell. They replied to
him with similar signs, and threw to him a small
gilded wand. The soldier stooped to pick it up,
when suddenly a troop of savages rushed down to
seize him; he threw himself immediately upon the
defensive, with sword and target, and though but
a small man, and far from robust, he handled his
weapons with such dexterity and fierceness, that
he kept the savages at bay, making a clear circle
round him, and wounding several who attempted
to break it. His unlooked-for prowess surprised
and confounded his assailants, and gave time for
his comrades to come to his assistance. The Indians
then made a general assault, with such a galling
discharge of darts and arrows that almost imme-
diately eight or ten Spaniards were slain, and many
more wounded. The latter were compelled to re-
treat to their boats disputing every inch of ground.
The Indians pursued them even into the water,
surrounding the boats and seizing hold of the oars.
The Spaniards made a desperate defence, thrusting
many through with their lances, and cutting down
and ripping up others with their swords, but such
was the ferocity of the survivors, that they per-
sisted in their attack until they overpowered the
crew of one of the boats, and bore it off in triumph.
With this they retired from the combat, and the
Spaniards returned defeated and disheartened to
their ships, having met with the roughest reception
that the Europeans had yet experienced in the
New World.1499.]	VICENTE YANEZ PINZON.	31
Pinzon now stood forty leagues to the north-
west, until he arrived in the neighbourhood of the
Equinoctial line. Here he found the water of the
sea so fresh that he was enabled to replenish his
casks with it. Astonished at so singular a pheno-
menon he stood in for the land, and arrived among
a number of fresh and verdant islands inhabited,
by a gentle and hospitable race of people, gaily
painted, who came off to the ships with the most
frank and fearless confidence. Pinzon soon found
that these islands lay in the mouth of an immense
river, more than thirty leagues in breadth, the
water of which entered upwards of forty leagues
into the sea before losing its sweetness. It was,
in fact, the renowned Maraiion, since known as
the Orellana and the Amazon. While lying in the
mouth of this river there was a sudden swelling of
the stream, which, being opposed by the current
of the sea, and straitened by the narrow channels
of the islands, rose more than five fathoms, with
mountain waves, and a tremendous noise, threat-
ening the destruction of the ships. Pinzon extri-
cated his little squadron with great difficulty from
this perilous situation, and finding there was but
little gold, or any thing else of value to be found
among the simple natives, he requited their hospi-
tality, in the mode too common among the early
discoverers, by carrying off thirty-six of them cap-
tive.
Having regained the sight of the Polar Star,
Pinzon pursued his course along the coast, passing
the mouths of the Oronoko, and entering the Gulf
of Paria, where he landed and cut Brasil wood.
Sallying forth by the Boca del Drago, he reached32	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1499v
the island of Hispaniola about the 23rd of June,
from whence he sailed for the Bahamas. Here, in
the month of July, while at anchor, there came
such a tremendous hurricane that two of the ca-
ravels were swallowed up with all their crews in
the sight of their terrified companions; a third
parted her cables and was driven out to sea, while
the fourth was so furiously beaten by the tempest
that the crew threw themselves into the boats and
made for shore. Here they found a few naked
Indians, who offered them no molestation; but,
fearing that they might spread the tidings of a
handful of shipwrecked Spaniards being upon the
coast, and thus bring the savages of the neighbour-
ing islands upon them, a council of war was held
whether it would not be a wise precaution to
put these Indians to death. Fortunately for the
latter, the vessel which had been driven from her
anchors returned and put an end to the alarm, and
to the council of war. The other caravel also
rode out the storm uninjured, and the sea subsi-
ding, the Spaniards returned on board, and made
the best of their way to the Island of Hispaniola.
Having repaired the damages sustained in the gale,
they again made sail for Spain, and came to an-
chor in the river before Palos, about the end of
September.
Thus ended one of the most chequered and
disastrous voyages that had yet been made to the
New World. Yahez Pinzon had lost two of his
ships, and many of his men; what made the loss
of the latter more grievous was, that they had
been enlisted from among his neighbours, his
friends, and relatives. In fact, the expeditions ta1500.]	VICENTE YANEZ PINZON.	S3
the New World must have realized the terrors
and apprehensions of the people of Palos by filling
that little community with widows and orphans.
When the rich merchants, who had sold goods to
Pinzon at a hundred per cent advance, beheld him
return in this sorry condition, with two shattered
barks and a handful of poor, tattered, weather-
beaten seamen, they began to tremble for their
money. No sooner, therefore, had he and his
nephews departed to Granada, to give an account
of their discoveries to the sovereigns, than the
merchants seized upon their caravels and cargoes,
and began to sell them, to repay themselves.
Honest Pinzon immediately addressed a petition
to the government, stating the imposition that had
been practised upon him, and the danger he wras
in of imprisonment and utter ruin, should his cre-
ditors be allowed to sacrifice his goods at a public
sale. He petitioned that they might be compelled
to return the property thus seized, and that he
might be enabled to sell three hundred and fifty
quintals of Brasil wood, which he had brought
back with him, and which would be sufficient to
satisfy the demands of his creditors. The sove-
reigns granted his prayer. They issued an order
to the civil authorities of Palos to interfere in the
matter, with all possible promptness and brevity,
allowing no vexatious delay, and administering
justice so impartially that neither of the parties
should have cause to complain.
. Pinzon escaped from the fangs of his creditors,
but, of course, must have suffered in purse from the
expenses of the law; which, in Spain is apt to bury
D34	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1500.
even a successful client, under an overwheliqjng
mountain of documents and writings. We infer this
in respect to Pinzon from a royal order issued in the
following year, allowing him to export a quantity
of grain, in consideration of the heavy losses he
had sustained in his voyage of discovery. He did
but share the usual lot of the Spanish discoverers,
whose golden anticipations too frequently ended
in penury; hut he is distinguished from among the
crowd of them by being the first European who
crossed the Equinoctial line, on the western ocean,
and by discovering the great kingdom of Brazil.*
* On the 5th of September, 1501, a Royal permission was
given to Vicente Yanez Pinzon to colonize and govern the lands
he had discovered, beginning a little north of the river Amazon,
and extending to Cape St. Augustine. The object of the go-
vernment in this permission was to establish an outpost and a
resolute commander on this southern frontier, that should
check any intrusions the Portugueze might make in conse-
quence of the accidental discovery of a part of the coast of
Brazil by Pedro Alvarez Cabral, in 1500. The subsequent
arrangement of a partition line between the two countries pre-
vented the necessity of this precaution, and it does not appear
that Vicente Yanez Pinzon made any second voyage to those
parts.
In 1506 he undertook an expedition in company with Juan
Diaz de Solis, a native of Lebrija, the object of which was to
endeavour to find the strait or passage supposed by Columbus
to lead from the Atlantic to a Southern Ocean. It was neces-
sarily without success, as was also another voyage made by
them, for the same purpose, in 1508. As no such passage
exists, no blame could attach to those able navigators for being
foiled in the object of their search.
In consequence of the distinguished merits and services of
the Pinzon family they were raised, by the Emperor Charles
V., to the dignity of a Hidalgula, or nobility, without anyVICENTE YANEZ PINZON.
35
1500.]
express title, and a coat of arms was granted them, on which
were emblazoned three caravels, with a hand at the stern
pointing to an island covered with savages. This coat of
arms is still maintained by the family, who have added to it
the motto granted to Columbus, merely substituting the name
of Pinzon for that of the Admiral,
A Castile y a Leon,
Nuevo Mundo dio Pinzon.(	36	)
[1600.
DIEGO DE LEPE
AND
RODRIGO DE BASTIDES.—(1500.)
Notwithstanding the hardships and disasters that
had beset the voyagers to the New World, and the pe-
nury in which their golden anticipations had too fre-
quently terminated, adventurers continued to press
forward, excited by fresh reports of newly disco-
vered regions, each of which, in its turn, was repre-
sented as the real land of promise. Scarcely had
Vicente Yaiiez Pinzon departed on the voyage re-
cently narrated, when his townsman Diego de
Lepe likewise set sail with two vessels from the
busy little port of Palos, on a like expedition. No
particulars of importance are known of this voy-
age, excepting that Lepe doubled Cape St. Au-
gustine, and beheld the southern continent stretch-
ing far to the southwest. On returning to Spain
he drew a chart of the coast for the Bishop Fon-
seca, and enjoyed the reputation, for upwards of
ten years afterwards, of having extended his disco-
veries further south than any other voyager.
Another contemporary adventurer to the New
World was Rodrigo de Bastides, a wealthy notary
ofTriana, the suburb of Seville inhabited by the
maritime part of its population. Being sanctionedDIEGO DE LEPE AND RODRIGO DE BASTIDES. 37
by the sovereigns, to whom he engaged to yield
a fourth of his profits, he fitted out two caravels
in October, 1500, to go in quest of gold and pearls.
Prudently distrusting his own judgment in nau-
tical matters, this adventurous notary associated
with him the veteran pilot Juan de la Cosa, the
same hardy Biscayan who had sailed with Colum-
bus and Ojeda. A general outline of their voyage
has already been given in the life of Columbus;
it extended the discoveries of the coast of Terra
Firma from Cape de la Vela, where Ojeda had left
off, quite to the port of Nombre de Dios.
Bastides distinguished himself from the mass
of discoverers by his kind treatment of the natives,
and Juan de la Cosa by his sound discretion and
his able seamanship. Their voyage had been ex-
tremely successful, and they had collected, by bar-
ter, a great amount of gold and pearls, when their
prosperous career was checked by an unlooked-rfor
evil. Their vessels to their surprise became leaky
in every part, and they discovered to their dis-
may, that the bottoms were pierced in innumera-
ble places by the broma, or worm, which abounds
in the waters of the torrid zone, but of which they,
as yet, had scarcely any knowledge. It was with
great difficulty they could keep afloat until they
reached a small islet on the coast of Hispaniola.
Here they repaired their ships as well as they
were able, and again put to sea to return to Cadiz.
A succession of gales drove them back to port;
the ravages of the worms continued, the leaks
broke out afresh; they landed the most portable
and precious part of their wealthy cargoes, and the
vessels foundered with the remainder. Bastides38	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1500.
lost, moreover, the arms and ammunition saved
from the wreck, being obliged to destroy them lest
they should fall into the hands of the Indians.
Distributing his men into three bands, two of
them headed by La Cosa and himself, they set
off for San Domingo by three several routes, as
the country was not able to furnish provisions for
so large a body. Each band was provided with a
coffer stored with trinkets and other articles of
Indian traffic, with which to buy provisions on the
road.
Francisco de Bobadilia, the wrong-headed op-
pressor and superseder of Columbus, was at that
time Governor of San Domingo. The report
reached him that a crew of adventurers had landed
on the island, and were marching through the
country in three bands, each provided with a cof-
fer of gold, and carrying on illicit trade with the
natives. The moment Bastides made his appear-
ance, therefore, he was seized and thrown into pri-
son, and an investigation commenced. In his de-
fence he maintained that his only traffic with the
natives was for the purpose of procuring provisions
for his followers, or guides for his journey. It
was determined, however, to send him to Spain
for trial, with the written testimony and the other
documents of his examination.
He was according conveyed in the same fleet
in which Bobadilia embarked for Spain, and which
experienced such an awful shipwreck in the sight
of Columbus. The ship of Rodrigo Bastides was
one of the few that outlived the tempest: it ar-
rived safe at Cadiz in September, 1502. Bastides
was ultimately acquitted of the charges advancedDIEGO DE LEPE AND RODRIGO DE BASTIDES. 39
against him. So lucrative had been his voyage,
that, notwithstanding the losses sustained by the
foundering of his vessels, he was enabled to pay
a large sum to the crown as a fourth of his profits,
and to retain a great amount for himself. In re-
ward of his services and discoveries the sovereigns
granted him an annual revenue for life, to arise
from the proceeds of the province of Uraba, which
he had discovered. An equal pension was like-
wise assigned to the hardy Juan de la Cosa, to
result from the same territory, of which he was
appointed Alguazil Mayor.* Such was the eco-
nomical generosity of King Ferdinand, who re-
warded the past toils of his adventurous disco-
verers out of the expected produce of their future
labours.
* Navarrete. Collec. t. iii.(	40	)
[1502.
SECOND VOYAGE
OF
ALONZO DE OJEDA.—1502.
The first voyage of Alonzo de Ojeda to the coast
of Paria, and its meagre termination in June, 1500,
has been related. He gained nothing in wealth
by that expedition, but he added to his celebrity
as a bold and skilful adventurer. His youthful
fire, his sanguine and swelling spirit, and the
wonderful stories that were told of his activity and
prowess, made him extremely popular, so that his
patron the Bishop Fonseca found it an easy matter
to secure for him the royal favour. In considera-
tion of his past services and of others expected
from him, a grant was made to him of six leagues
of land on the southern part of Hispaniola, and the
government of the province of Coquibacoa which he
had discovered. He was, furthermore, authorised
to fit out any number of ships, not exceeding ten,
at his own expense, and to prosecute the discovery
of the coast of Terra Firma. He was not to touch
or traffic on the pearl coast of Paria; extending as
far as a bay in the vicinity of the island of Margarita.
Beyond this he had a right to trade in all kinds of
merchandize, whether of pearls, jewels, metals, or
precious stones ; paying one fifth of the profits to1502.] ALONZO DE OJEDA---SECOND VOYAGE. 41
the crown, and abstaining from making slaves of
the Indians without a special license from the sove-
reigns. He was to colonize Coquibacoa, and, as a
recompense, was to enjoy one half of the proceeds
of his territory, provided the half did not exceed
300,000 maravedies : all beyond that amount was
to go to the crown.
A principal reason, however, for granting this
government and those privileges to Ojeda, was
that, in his previous voyage, he had met with Eng-
lish adventurers on a Voyage of Discovery in the
neighbourhood of Coquibacoa, at which the jea-
lousy of the sovereigns had taken the alarm. They
were anxious, therefore, to establish a resolute and
fighting commander like Ojeda upon this outpost,
and they instructed him to set up the arms of Cas-
tile and Leon in every place he visited, as a signal
of discovery and possession, and to put a stop to
the intrusions of the English.*
With this commission in his pocket, and the go-
vernment of an Indian territory in the perspective,
Ojeda soon found associates to aid him in fitting
out an armament. These were Juan de Vergara,
a servant of a rich canon of the cathedral of Se-
ville, and Garcia de Campos, commonly called
Ocampo. They made a contract of partnership to
last for two years, according to which the expenses
and profits of the expedition, and of the government
of Coquibacoa were to be shared equally between
them. The purses of the confederates were not
ample enough to afford ten ships, but they fitted
out four. 1st, The Santa Maria de la Antigua,
* Navarrete, t. iii. document x.42	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1502.
commanded by Garcia del Campo; 2d, The Santa
Maria de la Granada, commanded by Juan de
Vergara; 3d, The Caravel Magdalena, com-
manded by Pedro de Ojeda, nephew to Alonzo ;
and 4th, The caravel Santa Ana, commanded by
Hernando de Guevara. The whole was under the
command of Alonzo de Ojeda. The expedition
set sail in 1502, touched at the Canaries, according
to custom, to take in provisions, and then pro-
ceeded westward for the shores of the New World.
After traversing the gulf of Paria, and before
reaching the island of Margarita, the caravel Santa
Ana, commanded by Hernando de Guevara, was
separated from them, and for several days the
ships were mutually seeking each other in these
silent and trackless seas. After they were all re-
united they found their provisions growing scanty,
they landed therefore at a part of the coast called
Cumana by the natives, but to which, from its
beauty and fertility, Ojeda gave the name of Val-
fermoso. While foraging here for their immediate
supplies, the idea occurred to Ojeda that he should
want furniture and utensils of all kinds for his pro-
posed colony, and that it would be better to pillage
them from a country where he was a mere transient
visitor, than to wrest them from his neighbours in
the territory where he was to set up his govern-
ment. His companions were struck with the po-
licy, if not the justice, of this idea, and they all set
to work to carry it into execution. Dispersing
themselves, therefore, in ambush in various direc-
tions, they at a concerted signal rushed forth from
their concealment, and set upon the natives. Ojeda
had issued orders to do as little injury and damage43
1502.] ALONZO DE OJEDA-—SECOND VOYAGE.
as possible, and on no account to destroy the ha-
bitations of the Indians. His followers, however,
in their great zeal, transcended his orders. Seven
or eight Indians were killed and many wounded in
the skirmish which took place, and a number of
their cabins were wrapped in flames. A great
quantity of hammocks, of cotton, and of utensils of
various kinds, fell into the hands of the con-
querors ; they also captured several female In-
dians, some of whom were ransomed with the kind
of gold called guanin ; some were retained by Ve-
gara for himself and his friend Ocampo, others
were distributed among the crews, the rest, pro-
bably the old and ugly, were set at liberty. As to
Ojeda, he reserved nothing for himself of the spoil
excepting a single hammock.
The ransom paid by the poor Indians for some
of their effects and some of their women yielded
the Spaniards a trifling quantity of gold, but they
found the place destitute of provisions, and Ojeda
was obliged to despatch Vergara in a caravel to the
island of Jamaica to forage for supplies, with in-
structions to rejoin him at Maracaibo or Cape de
la Vela.
Ojeda at length arrived at Coquibacoa, at the
port destined for his seat of government. He
found the country, however, so poor and sterile,
that he proceeded along the coast to a bay which
he named Santa Cruz, but which is supposed to
be the same at present called Bahia Honda, where
he found a Spaniard who had been left in the pro-
vince of Citarma by Bastides in his late voyage
about thirteen months before, and had remained44
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1502.
ever since among the Indians, so that he had ac-
quired their language.
Ojeda determined to form his settlement at this
place ; but the natives seemed disposed to defend
their territory, for, the moment a party landed
to procure water, they were assailed by a galling
shower of arrows, and driven back to the ships.
Upon this Ojeda landed with all his force, and
struck such terror into the Indians, that they
came forward with signs of amity, and brought a
considerable quantity of gold as a peace-offering,
which was graciously accepted.
Ojeda, with the concurrence of his associates,
now set to work to establish a settlement, cutting
down trees, and commencing a fortress. They had
scarce begun, when they were attacked by a neigh-
bouring cacique, but Ojeda sallied forth upon him
with such intrepidity and effect as not merely to
defeat, but to drive him from the neighbourhood.
He then proceeded quietly to finish his fortress,
which was defended by lombards, and contained
the magazine of provisions and the treasure
amassed in the expedition. The provisions were
dealt out twice a-day, under the inspection of pro-
per officers; the treasure, gained by barter, by
ransom, or by plunder, was deposited in a strong
box secured by two locks, one key being kept by
the royal supervisor, the other by Ocampo.
In the mean time provisions became scarce. The
Indians never appeared in the neighbourhood of
the fortress, except to harass it with repeated
though ineffectual assaults. Vergara did not appear
with the expected supplies from Jamaica, and a ca-45
1502.] ALONZO DE OJEDA----SECOND VOYAGE.
ravel was despatched in search of him. The people,
worn out with labour and privations of various
kinds, and disgusted with the situation of the set-
tlement, which was in a poor and unhealthy country,
grew discontented and factious. They began to
fear that they should lose the means of departing,
as their vessels were in danger of being destroyed
by the broma or worms. Ojeda led them forth
repeatedly upon foraging parties about the ad-
jacent country, and collected some provisions
and booty in the Indian villages. The provision
he deposited in the magazine, part of the spoils he
divided among his followers, and the gold he
locked up in the strong box, the keys of which he
took possession of, to the great displeasure of the
supervisor and his associate Ocampo. The mur-
murs of the people grew loud as their sufferings
increased. They insinuated that Ojeda had no
authority over this part of the coast, having passed
the boundaries of his government, and formed his
settlement in the country discovered by Bastides.
By the time Vergara arrived from Jamaica, the
factions of this petty colony had risen to an alarm-
ing height. Ocampo had a personal enmity to the
governor, arising probably from some feud about
the strong box; being a particular friend of Vergara
he held a private conference with him, and laid a
plan to entrap the doughty Ojeda. In pursuance of
this the latter wras invited on board of the caravel
of Vergara, to see the provisions he had brought
from Jamaica; but no sooner was he on board than
they charged him with having transgressed the
limits of his government, with having provoked the
hostility of the Indians and needlessly sacrificed46	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1502.
the lives of his followers, and above all with having
taken possession of the strong box, in contempt of
the authority of the royal supervisor, and with the
intention of appropriating to himself all the gains of
the enterprise; they informed him therefore of their
intention to convey him a prisoner to Hispaniola,
to answer to the governor for his offences. Ojeda
finding himself thus entrapped, proposed to Vergara
and Ocampo that they should return to Spain with
such of the crews as chose to accompany them,
leaving him with the remainder to prosecute his
enterprise. The two recreant partners at first con-
sented, for they were disgusted with the enter-
prise which offered little profit and severe hardships.
They agreed to leave Ojeda the smallest of the
caravels with a third of the provisions and of their
gains, and to build a row boat for him. They
actually began to labour upon the boat. Before
ten days had elapsed, however, they repented of
the arrangement, the ship-carpenters were ill, there
were no caulkers, and moreover they recollected
that as Ojeda, according to their representations,
was a defaulter to the crown, they would be liable
as his sureties, should they return to Spain without
him. They concluded, therefore, that the wisest
plan was to give him nothing, but to carry him off
prisoner.
When Ojeda learned the determination of his
wary partners, he attempted to make his escape
and get off to St. Domingo, but he was seized,
thrown in irons, and conveyed on board of the
caravel. The two partners then set sail from
Santa Cruz, bearing off the whole community, its
captive governor, and the litigated strong box.1502.] ALONZO DE OJEDA—SECOND VOYAGE. 47
They put to sea about the beginning of Sep-
tember, and arrived at the western part of the
island of Hispaniola. While at anchor within a
stone’s throw of the land, Ojeda, confident in his
strength and skill as a swimmer, let himself quietly
slide down the side of the ship into the water
during the night, and attempted to swim for the
shore. His arms were free, but his feet were
shackled, and the weight of his irons threatened
to sink him. He was obliged to shout for help; a
boat was sent from the vessel to his relief, and
the unfortunate governor was brought back half
drowned to his unrelenting partners.*
The latter now landed and delivered their pri-
soner into the hands of Gallego, the commander of
the place, to be put at the disposal of the governor
of the island. In the mean time, the strong box,
which appears to have been at the bottom of all
these feuds, remained in the possession of Vergara
and Ocampo, who, Ojeda says, took from it what-
ever they thought proper, without regard to the
royal dues, or the consent of the royal supervisor.
They were all together, prisoner and accusers, in
the city of San Domingo, about the end of Septem-
ber, 1502, when the chief judge of the island, after
hearing both parties, gave a verdict against Ojeda
that stripped him of all his effects, and brought
him into debt to the crown for the royal proportion
of the profits of the voyage. Ojeda appealed to
the sovereign, and, after some time, was honour-
ably acquitted, by the royal council, from all the
charges; and a mandate wras issued in 1503,order-
* Hist, Gen. de Viages. Herrera, Hist. Ind.48	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1502.
ing a restitution of his property. It appears, how-
ever, that the costs of justice, or rather of the law,
consumed his share of the treasure of the strong
box, and that a royal order was necessary to liberate
him from the hands of the governor; so that like
too many other litigants, he finally emerged from
the labyrinths of the law a triumphant client, but a
ruined man.1509.]
( 49 )
THIRD VOYAGE
OF
ALONZO DE OJEDA.
Ojeda applies for a Command—Has a rival Candidate in
Diego de Nicuesa—His success.
For several years after his ruinous, though suc-
cessful lawsuit, we lose all traces of Alonzo de
Ojeda, excepting that we are told he made ano-
ther voyage to the vicinity of Coquibacoa, in 1505.
No record remains of this expedition, which
seems to have been equally unprofitable with the
preceding, for we find him in 1508, in the island of
Hispaniola, as poor in purse, though as proud in
spirit, as ever. In fact, however fortune might
have favoured him, he had a heedless squandering
disposition that would always have kept him poor.
About this time the cupidity of King Ferdinand
was greatly excited by the accounts which had
been given by Columbus of the gold mines of
Veragua, in which the admiral fancied he had
discovered the Aurea Chersonesus of the ancients,
from wdience King Solomon procured the gold,
u-sed in building the temple of Jerusalem. Sub-
sequent voyagers had corroborated the opinion of
Columbus as to the general riches of the coast of
Terra Firma; King Ferdinand resolved, therefore,.
E50	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
to found regular colonies along that coast, and to
place the whole under some capable commander.
A project of the kind had been conceived by
Columbus, when he discovered that region in the
course of his last voyage, and the reader may re-
member the disasters experienced by his brother
Don Bartholomew and himself, in endeavouring to
establish a colony on the hostile shores of Veragua.
The admiral being dead, the person who should
naturally have presented himself to the mind of
the sovereign for this particular service was Don
Bartholomew; but the wary and selfish monarch
knew the Adelantado to be as lofty in his terms as
his late brother, and preferred to accomplish his
purposes by cheaper agents. He was unwilling,
also, to increase the consequence of a family,
whose vast, but just, claims were already a cause
of repining to his sordid and jealous spirit. He
looked round, therefore, among the crowd of ad-
venturers, who had sprung up in the school of
Columbus, for some individual who might be
ready to serve him on more accommodating terms.
Among those, considered by their friends as most
fitted for this purpose, was Alonzo de Ojeda, for
his roving voyages and daring exploits had made
him famous among the voyagers; and it was
thought that an application on his part would be
attended with success, for he was known to pos-
sess a staunch friend at court in the Bishop Fon-
seca. Unfortunately he was too far distant to
urge his suit to the bishop, and what was worse, he
wras destitute of money. At this juncture there
happened to be at Hispaniola the veteran navigator
and pilot Juan de la Cosa, who was a kind of51
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.-----THIRD VOYAGE.
Nestor in all nautical affairs.* The hardy Biscayan
had sailed with Ojeda, and had conceived a great
opinion of the courage and talents of the youthful
adventurer. He had contrived, also, to fill his
purse in the course of his cruising, and now, in the
generous spirit of a sailor, offered to aid Ojeda
with it in the prosecution of his wishes.
His offer was gladly accepted; it was agreed
that Juan de la Cosa should depart for Spain, to
promote the appointment of Ojeda to the command
of Terra Firma, and, in case of success, should fit
out, with his own funds, the necessary armament.
La Cosa departed on his embassy; he called on
the Bishop Fonseca, who, as had been expected,
entered warmly into the views of his favourite
Ojeda, and recommended him to the ambitious and
bigot king, as a man well fitted to promote his em-
pire in the wilderness, and to dispense the blessings
of Christianity among the savages.
The recommendation of the bishop was usually
effectual in the affairs of the New World, and the
opinion of the veteran de la Cosa had great weight
* Peter Martyr gives the following weighty testimony to
the knowledge and skill of this excellent seaman :—“ Of the
Spaniards, as many as thought themselves to have any know-
ledge of what pertained to measure the land and sea, drew
cardes (charts) on parchment as concerning these navigations.
Of all others tney most esteem them which Juan de la Cosa,
the companion of Ojeda, and another pilot, called Andres
Morales, had set forth, and this, as well for the great experi-
ence which both had, (to whom these tracks were as well known
as the chambers of their own houses,) as also that they were
thought to be cunninger in that part of cosmography which
teacheth the description and measuring of the sea.”
P. Martyr, Decade ii. c. 10.
£ %52	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
even with the sovereign; but a rival candidate to
Ojeda had presented himself, and one who had the
advantage of higher connections and greater pecu-
niary means. This was Diego de Nicuesa, an ac-
complished courtier of noble birth, who had filled
the post of grand carver to Don Enrique Enriquez,
uncle of the king. Nature, education, and habit
seemed to have combined to form Nicuesa as a
complete rival of Ojeda. Like him he was small
of stature, but remarkable for symmetry and com-
pactness of form and for bodily strength and ac-
tivity; like him he was master at all kinds of
weapons, and skilled, not merely in feats of agility,
but in those graceful and chivalrous exercises,
which the Spanish cavaliers of those days had
inherited from the Moors; being noted for his
vigour and address in the jousts or tilting matches
after the Moresco fashion. Ojeda himself could
not surpass him in feats of horsemanship, and
particular mention is made of a favourite mare,
which he could make caper and caracole in strict
cadence to the sound of a viol; beside all this,
he was versed in the legendary ballads or ro-
mances of his country, and was renowned as a
capital performer on the guitar! Such were the
qualifications of this candidate for a command in
the wilderness, as enumerated by the reverend
Bishop Las Casas. It is probable, however, that
he had given evidence of qualities more adapted to
the desired post; having already been out to His-
paniola in the military train of the late Governor
Ovando.
Where merits were so singularly balanced as
those of Ojeda and Nicuesa, it might have been53
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.—THIRD VOYAGE.
difficult to decide; King Ferdinand avoided the
dilemma by favouring both of the candidates ; not
indeed by furnishing them with ships and money,
but by granting patents and dignities which cost
nothing, and might bring rich returns. He divided
that part of the continent which lies along the
Isthmus of Darien into two provinces, the boun-
dary line running through the Gulf of Ur aba. The
eastern part, extending to Cape de la Vela was
called New Andalusia, and the government of it
given to Ojeda. The other to the west, including
Veragua, and reaching to Cape Gracias a Dios,
was assigned to Nicuesa. The island of Jamaica
was given to the two governors in common, as a
place from whence to draw supplies of provisions.
Each of the governors was to erect two fortresses
in his district, and to enjoy for ten years the pro-
fits of all the mines he should discover, paying to
the crown one tenth part the first year, one ninth
the second, one eighth the third, one seventh the
fourth, and one fifth part in each of the remaining
years.
Juan de la Cosa, who had been indefatigable in
promoting the suit of Ojeda, was appointed his
lieutenant in the government, with the post of
Alguazil Mayor of the province. He immediately
freighted a ship and two brigantines, in which he
embarked with about two hundred men. It was a
slender armament, but the purse of the honest voy-
ager was not very deep, and that of Ojeda was
empty. Nicuesa, having ampler means, armed four
large vessels and two brigantines, furnished them
with abundant munitions and supplies, both for the
voyage and the projected colony, enlisted a much54	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
greater force, and set sail in gay and vaunting
style, for the golden shores of Veragua, the Aurea
Chersonesus of his imagination.
CHAPTER II.
Feud between the Rival Governors Ojeda and Nicuesa—
A Challenge.—(1509.)
The two rival armaments arrived at San Domingo
about the same time. Nicuesa had experienced
what was doubtless considered a pleasant little
turn of fortune by the way. Touching at Santa
Cruz, one of the Carribee islands, he had suc-
ceeded in capturing a hundred of the natives,
whom he had borne off in his ships to be sold as
slaves at Hispaniola. This was deemed justifiable
in those days, even by the most scrupulous divines,
from the belief that the Caribs were all anthropo-
phagi, or man-eaters; fortunately the opinion of
mankind, in this more enlightened age, makes but
little difference in atrocity between the cannibal
and the kidnapper.
Alonzo de Ojeda welcomed with joy the arrival
of his nautical friend and future lieutenant in the
government, the worthy Juan de la Cosa; still he
could not but feel some mortification at the in-
feriority of his armament to that of his rival
Nicuesa, whose stately ships rode proudly at anchor
in the harbour of San Domingo. He felt, too, that
his means were inadequate to the establishment
of his intended colony. Ojeda, however, was not55
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.—THIRD VOYAGE.
long at a loss for pecuniary assistance. Like many
free spirited men, who are careless and squandering
of their own purses, he had a facility at commanding
the purses of his neighbours. Among the motly
population of San Domingo there was a lawyer of
some abilities, the bachelor Martin Fernandez de
Enciso, who had made two thousand castillanos by
his pleading ;* for it would appear that the spirit
of litigation was one of the first fruits of civilized
life transplanted to the New World, and flourished
surprisingly among the Spanish colonists.
Alonzo de Ojeda became acquainted with the
Bachelor, and finding him to be of a restless and
speculative character, soon succeeded in inspiring
him with a contempt for the dull but secure and
profitable routine of his office in San Domingo,
and imbuing him with his own passion for adven-
ture. Above all he dazzled him with the offer to
make him Alcalde Mayor, or chief judge of the pro-
vincial government he was about to establish in
the wilderness.
In an evil hour the aspiring Bachelor yielded
to the temptation, and agreed to invest all his
money in the enterprize. It was agreed that Ojeda
should depart with the armament which had ar-
rived from Spain, while the Bachelor should re-
main at Hispaniola to beat up for recruits and
provide supplies; with these he was to embark
in a ship purchased by himself, and proceed to
join his high-mettled friend at the seat of his in-
tended colony. Two rival governors, so well
matched as Ojeda and Nicuesa, and both possessed
* Equivalent to 10,650 dollars of the present day.56	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
of swelling spirits, pent up in small but active
bodies, could not remain long in a little place like
San Domingo without some collision. The island
of Jamaica which had been assigned to them in
common, furnished the first ground of contention;
the province of Darien furnished another, each
pretending to include it within the limits of his
jurisdiction. Their disputes on these points ran
so high that the whole place resounded with them.
In talking, however, Nicuesa had the advantage;
having been brought up in the court he was more
polished and ceremonious, had greater self-com-
mand, and probably perplexed his rival governor
in argument. Ojeda was no great casuist, but he
was an excellent swordsman, and always ready to
fight his way through any question of right or dig-
nity which he could not clearly argue with the
tongue; so he proposed to settle the dispute by
single combat. Nicuesa, though equally brave was
more a man of the world, and saw the folly of such
arbitrement. Secretly smiling at the heat of his
antagonist, he proposed as a preliminary to the
duel, and to furnish something worth fighting for,
that each should deposit five thousand castillanos,
to be the prize of the victor. This, as he foresaw,
was a temporary check upon the fiery valour of
his rival, who did not possess a pistole in his trea-
sury ; but probably was too proud to confess it.
It is not likely, however, that the impetuous
spirit of Ojeda would long have remained in check,
had not the discreet Juan de la Cosa interposed
to calm it. It is interesting to notice the great
ascendancy possessed by this veteran navigator
over his fiery associate. Juan de la Cosa was a57
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.—THIRD VOYAGE.
man whose strong natural good sense had been
quickened by long and hard experience; whose
courage was above all question, but tempered by
time and trial. He seems to have been personally
attached to Ojeda, as veterans who have outlived
the rash impulse of youthful valour, are apt to
love the fiery quality in their younger associates.
So long as he accompanied Ojeda in his enter-
prizes he stood by him as a Mentor in council,
and a devoted partizan in danger.
In the present instance the interference of this
veteran of the seas had the most salutary effect:
he prevented the impending duel of the rival go-
vernors, and persuaded them to agree that the ri-
ver Darien should be the boundary line between
their respective jurisdictions.
The dispute relative to Jamaica was settled by
the Admiral, Don Diego Columbus himself. He
had already felt aggrieved by the distribution of
these governments by the king without his consent
or even knowledge, being contrary to the privi-
leges which he inherited from his father, the dis-
coverer. It was in vain to contend, however,
when the matter was beyond his reach and in-
volved in technical disputes. But as to the island
of Jamaica, it in a manner lay at his own door,
and he could not brook its being made a matter
of gift to these brawling governors. Without wait-
ing the slow and uncertain course of making re-
monstrances to the king, he took the affair, as a
matter of plain right, into his own hands, and or-
dered a brave officer, Juan de Esquibel, the same
who had subjugated the province of Higuey, to58	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [150©.
take possession of that island, with seventy men,
and to hold it subject to his command.
Ojeda did not hear of this arrangement until he
was on the point of embarking to make sail. In
the heat of the moment he loudly defied the power
of the admiral, and swore that if he ever found
Juan de Esquibel on the island of Jamaica he
would strike off his head. The populace present
heard this menace, and had too thorough an idea
of the fiery and daring character of Ojeda to doubt
that he would carry it into effect. Notwithstand-
ing his bravado, however, Juan de Esquibel pro-
ceeded according to his orders to take possession
of the island of Jamaica.
The squadron of Nicuesa lingered for some
time after the sailing of his rival. His courteous
and engaging manners, aided by the rumour of
great riches in the province of Veragua where he
intended to found his colony, had drawn numerous
volunteers to his standard, insomuch that he had
to purchase another ship to convey them.
Nicuesa was more of the courtier and the ca-
valier, than the man of business, and had no skill
in managing his pecuniary affairs. He had ex-
pended his funds with a free and lavish hand, and
involved himself in debts which he had not the
immediate means of paying. Many of his credi-
tors knew that his expedition was regarded with
an evil eye by the Admiral, Don Diego Colum-
bus ; to gain favour with the latter, therefore, they
threw all kinds of impediments in the way of
Nicuesa. Never was an unfortunate gentleman
more harassed and distracted by duns and de-1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.—THIRD VOYAGE.	59
mands, one plucking at his skirts as soon as the
other was satisfied. He succeeded, however, in
getting all his forces embarked. He had seven
hundred men, well chosen and well armed, toge-
ther with six horses. He chose Lope de Olano
to be his captain general, a seemingly impolitic
appointment, as this Olano had been concerned
with the notorious Roldan in his rebellion against
Columbus.
The squadron sailed out of the harbour and put
to sea, excepting one ship, which, with anchor a
trip and sails unfurled, waited to receive Nicuesa,
who was detained on shore until the last moment
by the perplexities which had been artfully multi-
plied around him.
Just as he was on the point of stepping into his
boat he was arrested by the harpies of the law,
and carried before the Alcalde Mayor to answer a
demand for five hundred ducats, which he was
ordered to pay on the spot, or prepare to go to
prison.
This was a thunderstroke to the unfortunate ca-
valier. In vain he represented his utter incapa-
city to furnish such a sum at the moment; in
vain he represented the ruin that would accrue to
himself and the vast injury to the public service,
should he be prevented from joining his expe-
dition. The Alcalde Mayor was inflexible, and
Nicuesa was reduced to despair. At this critical
moment relief came from a most unexpected
quarter. The heart of a public notary was melted
by his distress! He stepped forward in court and
declared that rather than see so gallant a gentle-
man reduced to extremity he himself would pay60	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
down the money. Nicuesa gazed at him with
astonishment, and could scarce believe his senses,
but when he saw him actually pay off the debt
and found himself suddenly released from this
dreadful embarrassment, he embraced his deliverer
with tears of gratitude, and hastened with all speed
to embark, lest some other legal spell should be
laid upon his person.
CHAPTER III.
Exploits and Disasters of Ojeda on the Coast of Cartha-
gena—Fate of the veteran Juan de la Cosa.—(1509.)
It was on the 10th of November, 1509, that
Alonzo de Ojeda set sail from San Domingo with
two ships, two brigantines, and three hundred men.
He took with him also twelve brood mares.
Among the remarkable adventurers who embarked
with him was Francisco Pizarro, who was after-
wards renowned as the conqueror of Peru.* Her-
* Francisco Pizarro was a native of Truxillo in Estrema-
dura. He was the illegitimate fruit of an amour between
Gonsalvo Pizarro, a veteran captain of infantry, and a damsel
in low life. His childhood was passed in grovelling occupa-
tions incident to the humble condition of his mother, and he
is said to have been a swineherd. When he had sufficiently
increased in years and stature he enlisted as a soldier. His
first campaigns may have been against the Moors in the war
of Granada. He certainly served in Italy under the banner
of the Great Captain, Gonsalvo of Cordova. His roving spirit
then induced him to join the bands of adventurers to the New61
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.-----THIRD VOYAGE.
nando Cortez had likewise intended to sail in the
expedition, hut was prevented by an inflammation
in one of his knees.
The voyage was speedy and prosperous, and
they arrived late in the autumn in the harbour of
Carthagena. The veteran Juan de la Cosa was
well acquainted with this place, having sailed as
pilot with Rodrigo de Bastides, at the time he dis-
covered it in 1501. He warned Alonzo de Ojeda
to be upon his guard, as the natives were a brave
and warlike race of Carib origin, far different from
the soft and gentle inhabitants of the islands.
They wielded great swords of palm wood, de-
fended themselves with osier targets, and dipped
their arrows in a subtle poison. The women as
well as the men mingled in battle, being expert in
drawing the bow and throwing a species of lance
called the azagay. The warning was well timed,
for the Indians of these parts had been irritated
by the misconduct of previous adventurers, and
flew to arms on the first appearance of the ships.
Juan de la Cosa now feared for the safety of the
enterprise in which he had person, fortune, and of-
ficial dignity at stake. He earnestly advised Ojeda
to abandon this dangerous neighbourhood, and to
commence a settlement in the Gulf of Uraba, where
the people were less ferocious, and did not use
World. He was of ferocious courage, and, when engaged in
any enterprise, possessed an obstinate perseverance that was
neither to be deterred by danger, weakened by fatigue and
hardship, or checked by repeated disappointment. After hav-
ing conquered the great kingdom of Peru, he was assassinated*
at an advanced age in 1541, defending himself bravely to the
last.62	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
poisoned weapons. Ojeda was too proud of spirit
to alter his plans through fear of a naked foe. It
is thought, too, that he had no objection to a skir-
mish, being desirous of a pretext to make slaves
to be sent to Hispaniola in discharge of the debts
he had left unpaid.* He landed, therefore, with
a considerable part of his force, and a number of
friars, who had been sent out to convert the In-
dians. His faithful lieutenant, being unable to
keep him out of danger, stood by to second him.
Ojeda advanced towards the savages, and or-
dered the friars to read aloud a certain formula
which had recently been digested by profound
jurists and divines in Spain. It began in stately
form. “ I, Alonzo de Ojeda, servant of the most
high and mighty sovereigns of Castile and Leon,
conquerors of barbarous nations, their messenger
and captain, do notify unto you and make you
know, in the best way I can, that God our Lord,
one and eternal, created the heaven and the earth,
and one man and one woman, from whom you and
we and all the people of the earth proceeded and
are descendants, as well as all those who shall come
hereafter.” The formula then went on to declare
the fundamental principles of the Catholic Faith;
the supreme power given to St. Peter over the
world and all the human race, and exercised by his
representative the Pope; the donation made by a
late pope of all this part of the world and all its
inhabitants to the Catholic sovereigns of Castile;
and the ready obedience which had already been
paid by many of its lands and islands and people
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind. 1. ii. c. 57. MS.1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.-----THIRD VOYAGE. 63
to the agents and representatives of those sove-
reigns. It called upon those savages present,
therefore, to do the same, to acknowledge the truth
of the Christian doctrines, the supremacy of the
Pope and the sovereignty of the Catholic King,
but, in case of refusal, it denounced upon them all
the horrors of war, the desolation of their dwell-
ings, the seizure of their property, and the slavery
of their wives and children. Such wras the extra-
ordinary document, wdiich, from this time forward,
was read by the Spanish discoverers to the won-
dering savages of any newly-found country, as a
prelude to sanctify the violence about to be in-
flicted on them.*
When the friars had read this pious manifesto,
Ojeda made signs of amity to the natives, and held
up glittering presents. They had already suffered,
however, from the cruelties of white men, and were
not to be w^on by kindness. On the contrary they
brandished their weapons, sounded their conchs,
and prepared to make battle.
Juan de la Cosa saw the rising choler of Ojeda,
and knew his fiery impatience. He again intreated
him to abandon these hostile shores, and reminded
him of the venomous weapons of the enemy. It
was all in vain : Ojeda confided blindly in the
protection of the Virgin. Putting up, as usual, a
short prayer to his patroness, he drew his weapon,
braced his buckler, and charged furiously upon the
savages. Juan de la Cosa followed as heartily as
if the battle had been of his own seeking. The
* The reader will find the complete form of this curious
manifesto in the Appendix.64	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
Indians were soon routed, a number killed, and
several taken prisoners; on their persons were
found plates of gold, but of an inferior quality.
Flushed by this triumph, Ojeda took several of
the prisoners as guides, and pursued the flying
enemy four leagues into the interior. He was
followed, as usual, by his faithful lieutenant, the
veteran La Cosa, continually remonstrating against
his useless temerity, but hardily seconding him in
the most hare-brained perils. Having penetrated
far into the forest, they came to a strong hold of
the enemy, where a numerous force was ready to
receive them, armed with clubs, lances, arrows and
bucklers. Ojeda led his men to the charge with
the old Castilian war cry, “ Santiago!” The
savages soon took to flight. Eight of their
bravest warriors threw themselves into a cabin,
and plied their bows and arrows so vigorously,
that the Spaniards were kept at bay. Ojeda cried
shame upon his followers to be daunted by eight
naked men. Stung by this reproach, an old Cas-
tilian soldier rushed through a shower of arrows
and forced the door of the cabin, but received a
shaft through the heart, and fell dead on the
threshold. Ojeda, furious at the sight, ordered
fire to be set to the combustible edifice; in a mo-
ment it was in a blaze, and the eight warriors
perished in the flames.
Seventy Indians were made captive and sent to
the ships, and Ojeda, regardless of the remon-
strances of Juan de la Cosa, continued his rash
pursuit of the fugitives through the forest. In the
dusk of the evening they arrived at a village called
Yurbaco; the inhabitants of which had fled to the65
1609 ] ALONZO DE OJEDA.---THIRD VOYAGE.
mountains with their wives and children and prin-
cipal effects. The Spaniards, imagining that the
Indians were completely terrified and dispersed,
now roved in quest of booty among the deserted
houses, which stood distant from each other, buried
among the trees. While they were thus scattered,
troops of savages rushed forth, with furious yells,
from all parts of the forest. The Spaniards en-
deavoured to gather together and support each
other, but every little party was surrounded by a
host of foes. They fought with desperate bravery,
hut for once their valour and their iron armour
were of no avail; they were overwhelmed by
numbers, and sank beneath war clubs and poisoned
arrows.
Ojeda on the first alarm collected a few soldiers
and ensconced himself within a small enclosure,
surrounded by palisades. Here he was closely
besieged and galled by flights of arrows. He
threw himself on his knees, covered himself with
his buckler, and, being small and active, managed
to protect himself from the deadly shower, but all
his companions were slain by his side, some of
them perishing in frightful agonies. At this fear-
ful moment the veteran La Cosa, having heard of
the peril of his commander, arrived, with a few
followers, to his assistance. Stationing himself at
the gate of the palisades, the brave Biscayan kept
the savages at bay until most of his men were
slain, and he himself was severely wounded. Just
then Ojeda sprang forth like a tiger into the midst
of the enemy, dealing his blows on eveiy side.
La Cosa would have seconded him, but was crip-
pled by his wounds. He took refuge wiih the66	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
remnant of his men in an Indian cabin ; the straw
roof of which he aided them to throw off, lest the
enemy should set it on fire. Here he defended
himself until all his comrades, but one, were de-
stroyed. The subtle poison of his wounds at
length overpowered him, and he sank to the
ground. Feeling death at hand, he called to his
only surviving companion. “ Brother,” said he,
“ since God hath protected thee from harm, sally
forth and fly, and if ever thou shouldst see Alonzo
de Ojeda, tell him of my fate! ”
Thus fell the hardy Juan de la Cosa, faithful
and devoted to the very last; nor can we refrain
from pausing to pay a passing tribute to his me-
mory. He was acknowledged by his contempo-
raries to be one of the ablest of those gallant
Spanish navigators who first explored the way to
the New World. But it is by the honest and
kindly qualities of his heart that his memory is
most endeared to us; it is, above all, by that
loyalty in friendship displayed in this his last and
fatal expedition. Warmed by his attachment for a
more youthful and a hot-headed adventurer, we see
this wary veteran of the seas forgetting his usual
prudence and the lessons of his experience, and em-
barking heart and hand, purse and person, in the
wild enterprises of his favourite. We behold him
watching over him as a parent, remonstrating with
him as a counsellor, but fighting by him as a
partizan ; following him, without hesitation, into
known and needless danger, to certain death itself,
and showing no other solicitude in his dying mo-
ments, hut to be remembered by his friend.
The history of these Spanish discoveries abounds67
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.----THIRD VOYAGE.
in noble and generous traits of character; but few
have charmed us more than this instance of loyalty
to the last gasp, in the death of the staunch Juan
de la Cosa. The Spaniard who escaped to tell the
story of his end was the only survivor of seventy
that had followed Ojeda in this rash and head-
long inroad.
CHAPTER IV.
Arrival of Nicuesa— Vengeance taken on the Indianss
While these disastrous occurrences happened on
shore, great alarm began to be felt on board of
the ships. Days had elapsed since the party had
adventured so rashly into the wilderness; yet
nothing had been seen or heard of them, and
the forest spread a mystery over their fate.
Some of the Spaniards ventured a little distance
into the woods, but were deterred by the distant
shouts and yells of the savages, and the noise of
their conchs and drums. Armed detachments
then coasted the shore in boats, landing occa-
sionally, climbing the rocks and promontories, firing
signal guns, and sounding trumpets. It was all
in vain; they heard nothing but the echoes of
their own noises, or perhaps the wild whoop of an
Indian from the bosom of the forest. At length,
when they were about to give up the search in
despair, they came to a great thicket of mangrove
trees on the margin of the sea. These trees grow
within the water, but their roots rise, and are in-
E £68	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
ter twined, above the surface. In this entangled
and almost impervious grove, they caught a glimpse
of a man in Spanish attire. They entered, and, to
their astonishment, found it to be Alonzo de
Ojeda. He was lying on the matted roots of the
mangroves, his buckler on his shoulder, and his
sword in his hand; but so wasted with hunger
and fatigue that he could not speak. They bore
him to the firm land; made a fire on the shore to
warm him, for he was chilled with the damp and
cold of his hiding place, and when he was a little
revived they gave him food and wine. In this
way he gradually recovered strength to tell his
doleful story.*
He had succeeded in cutting his way through
the host of savages, and attaining the woody skirts
of the mountains; but when he found himself
alone, and that all his brave men had been cut
off, he was ready to yield up in despair. Bitterly
did he reproach himself for having disregarded the
advice of the veteran La Cosa, and deeply did he
deplore the loss of that loyal follower, who had
* The picture here given is so much like romance, that the
author quotes his authority at length.—“ Llegaron adonde
havia, junto al agua de la mar, unos Manglares, que son
arboles, que siempre nacen, i crecen i permanecen dentro del
agua de la mar, con grandes raices, asidas, i enmaranadas
unas con otras, i alii metido, i escondido hallaron a Alonso
de Ojeda, con su espada en la mano, i la rodela en las es-
paldas, i en ella sobre trecientas senales de flechazos. Es-
tabo descaido de hambre, que no podia hechar de si la habla ;
i si no fuera tan robusto, aunque chico de cuerpo, fuera
muerto.”
Las Casas, 1. ii. c. 58. MS. Herrera, Hist. Ind. d. ;1.
1. vii. c. xv.69
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.------THIRD VOYAGE.
fallen a victim to his devotion. He scarce knew
which way to bend his course, but continued on,
in the darkness of the night and of the forest,
until out of hearing of the yells of triumph ut-
tered by the savages over the bodies of his men.
When the day broke, he sought the rudest parts
of the mountains, and hid himself until the night;
then struggling forward among rocks, and preci-
pices and matted forests, he made his way to the
sea side, but was too much exhausted to reach the
ships. Indeed it was wonderful that one so small
of frame should have been able to endure such
great hardships ; but he was of admirable strength
and hardihood. His followers considered his es-
cape from death as little less than miraculous, and
he himself regarded it as another proof of the spe-
cial protection of the Virgin; for, though he had,
as usual, received no wound, yet it is said his
buckler bore the dints of upwards of three hun-
dred arrows.*
While the Spaniards were yet on the shore, admi-
nistering to the recovery of their commander, they
beheld a squadron of ships standing towards the
harbour of Carthagena, and soon perceived them
to be the ships of Nicuesa. Ojeda was troubled
in mind at the sight, recollecting his late intem-
perate defiance of that cavalier; and, reflecting
that, should he seek him in enmity, he was in no
situation to maintain his challenge or defend him-
self. He ordered his men, therefore, to return on
board the ships and leave him alone on the shore,
* Las Casas, lib. ii. c. 58. MS. Herrera, Hist. Ind. decad
1. 1. vii. c. xv.70	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
and not to reveal the place of his retreat while Ni-
cuesa should remain in the harbour.
As the squadron entered the harbour, the boats
sallied forth to meet it. The first inquiry of Ni-
cuesa was concerning Ojeda. The followers of
the latter replied, mournfully, that their com-
mander had gone on a warlike expedition into the
country, but days had elapsed without his return,
so that they feared some misfortune had befallen
him. They intreated Nicuesa, therefore, to give
his word, as a cavalier, that should Ojeda really
be in distress, he would not take advantage of
his misfortunes to revenge himself for their late
disputes.
Nicuesa, who was a gentleman of noble and ge-
nerous spirit, blushed with indignation at such a
request. “Seek your commander instantly;’* said
he, “ bring him to me if he be alive; and I pledge
myself not merely to forget the past, but to aid
him as if he were a brother.”*
When they met, Nicuesa received his late foe
with open arms. “It is not,” said he, “for Hi-
dalgos, like men of vulgar souls, to remember past
differences when they behold one another in distress.
Henceforth, let all that has occurred between us
be forgotten. Command me as a brother. Myself
and my men are at your orders, to follow you
wherever you please, until the deaths of Juan de
la Cosa and his comrades are revenged.”
The spirits of Ojeda were once more lifted up
by this gallant and generous offer. The two go-
vernors, no longer rivals, landed four hundred of
* Las Casas, ubi sup.71
1509] ALONZO DE OJEDA.—THIRD VOYAGE.
their men and several horses, and set off with all
speed for the fatal village. They approached it
in the night, and, dividing their forces into two
parties, gave orders that not an Indian should be
taken alive.
The village was buried in deep sleep, but the
woods were filled with large parrots, which, being
awakened, made a prodigious clamour. The In-
dians, however, thinking the Spaniards all de-
stroyed, paid no attention to these noises. It was
not until their houses were assailed, and wrapped
in flames, that they took the alarm. They rushed
forth, some with arms, some weaponless, but were
received at their doors by the exasperated Spa-
niards, and either slain on the spot, or driven back
into the fire. Women fled wildly forth with chil-
dren in their arms, but at sight of the Spaniards
glittering in steel, and of the horses, which they
supposed ravenous monsters, they ran back,
shrieking with horror, into their burning habita-
tions. Great was the carnage, for no quarter was
shown to age or sex. Many perished by the fire,
and many by the sword.
When they had fully glutted their vengeance,
the Spaniards ranged about for booty. While
thus employed, they found the body of the unfor-
tunate Juan de la Cosa. It was tied to a tree,
but swoln and discoloured in a hideous manner
by the poison of the arrows with which he had
been slain. This dismal spectacle had such an ef-
fect upon the common men, that not one would
remain in that place during the night. Having
sacked the village, therefore, they left it a smok-
ing ruin, and returned in triumph to their ships.72 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
The spoil in gold and other articles of value must
have been great, for the share of Nicuesa and his
men amounted to the value of seven thousand cas-
tillanos.* The two governors, now faithful con-
federates, parted with many expressions of friend-
ship, and with mutual admiration of each other’s
prowess; and Nicuesa continued his voyage for
the coast of Veragua.
CHAPTER V.
Ojeda founds the Colony of San Sebastian—Beleaguered
by the Indians.
Ojeda now adopted, though tardily, the advica of
his unfortunate lieutenant, Juan de la Cosa, aid,
giving up all thoughts of colonising this disas-
trous part of the coast, steered his course for the
Gulf of Uraba. He sought for some time the
river Darien, famed among the Indians as abound*
ing in gold, but not finding it, landed in various
places, seeking a favourable site for his intended
colony. His people were disheartened by the dis-
asters they had already undergone, and the ap-
pearance of surrounding objects was not calcu-
lated to reassure them. The country, though fer-
tile and covered with rich and beautiful vegeta-
tion, was in their eyes a land of cannibals and
monsters. They began to dread the strength as
well as fierceness of the savages, who could trans-
Equivalent to 37,281 dollars of the present day.1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.-----THIRD VOYAGE. 73
fix a man with their arrows even when covered
with armour, and whose shafts were tipped with
deadly poison. They heard the howlings of tigers,
panthers, and, as they thought, lions in the forests,
and encountered large and venomous serpents
among the rocks and thickets. As they were pass-
ing along the banks of a river, one of their horses
was seized by the leg by an enormous alligator,
and dragged beneath the waves.*
At length Ojeda fixed upon a place for his town,
on a height at the east side of the Gulf. Here,
landing all that could he spared from the ships,
he began, with all diligence, to erect houses, giv-
ing this embryo capital of his province the name
of San Sebastian, in honour of that sainted martyr,
who was slain by arrows; hoping he might pro-
tect the inhabitants from the empoisoned shafts of
the savages. As a further protection he erected a
large wooden fortress, and surrounded the place
with a stoccade. Feeling, however, the inadequacy
of his handful of men to contend with the hostile
tribes around him, he despatched a ship to Hispa-
niola, with a letter to the Bachelor, Martin Fer-
nandez de Enciso, his Alcalde Mayor, informing
him of his having established his seat of govern-
ment, and urging him to lose no time in joining
him with all the recruits, arms and provisions he
could command. By the same ship he transmitted
to San Domingo all the captives and gold he had
collected.
His capital being placed in a posture of defence,
Ojeda now thought of making a progress through
* Herrera, Hist. Ind. d. 1. 1. vii. c. xvi.74	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
his wild territory; and set out, accordingly, with
an armed band, to pay a friendly visit to a neigh-
bouring cacique, reputed as possessing great trea-
sures of gold. The natives, however, had by this
time learnt the nature of these friendly visits, and
were prepared to resist them. Scarcely had the
Spaniards entered into the defiles of the sur-
rounding forest, when they were assailed by flights
of arrows from the close coverts of the thickets.
Some were shot dead on the spot, others, less
fortunate, expired raving with the torments of
the poison ; the survivors, filled with horror at
the sight, and losing all presence of mind, re-
treated in confusion to the fortress.
It was some time before Ojeda could again per-
suade his men to take the field, so great was their
dread of the poisoned weapons of the Indians.
At length their provisions began to fail, and they
were compelled to forage among the villages in
search, not of gold, but of food.
In one of their expeditions they were surprised
by an ambuscado of savages, in a gorge of the
mountains, and attacked with such fury and effect,
that they were completely routed, and pursued
with yells and howlings to the very gates of St.
Sebastian. Many died, in excruciating agony, of
their wounds, and others recovered with extreme
difficulty. Those who were well, no longer dared
to venture forth in search of food ; for the whole
forest teemed with lurking foes. They devoured
such herbs and roots as they could find, without
regard to their quality. The humours of their
bodies became corrupted, and various diseases,
combined with the ravages of famine, daily thinned1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.---THIRD VOYAGE. 75
their numbers. The sentinel who feebly mounted
guard at night, wTas often found dead at his post
in the morning. Some stretched themselves on
the ground and expired of mere famine and debi-
lity ; nor was death any longer regarded as an
evil, but rather as a welcome relief from a life of
horror and despair.
CHAPTER VI.
Alonzo de Ojeda supposed bp the Savages to have a
charmed life—Their experiment to try the fact.
In the mean time the Indians continued to harass
the garrison, lying in wait to surprise the fora-
ging parties, cutting off all stragglers, and some-
times approaching the walls in open defiance. On
such occasions Ojeda sallied forth at the head of
his men, and from his great agility was the first to
overtake the retreating foe. He slew more of
their warriors with his single arm than all his fol-
lowers together. Though often exposed to showers
of arrows none had ever wounded him, and the
Indians began to think he had a charmed life.
Perhaps they had heard from fugitive prisoners, the
idea entertained by himself and his followers of his
being under supernatural protection. Determined
to ascertain the fact, they placed four of their most
dexterous archers in ambush with orders to single
him out. A number of them advanced towards
the fort sounding their conchs and drums, and ut-
tering yells of defiance. As they expected, the76	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
impetuous Ojeda sallied forth immediately at the
head of his men. The Indians fled towards the
ambuscado, drawing him in furious pursuit. The
archers waited until he was full in front and then
launched their deadly shafts. Three struck his
buckler and glanced harmlessly off, but the fourth
pierced his thigh. Satisfied that he was wounded
beyond the possibility of cure, the savages re-
treated with shouts of triumph.
Ojeda was borne back to the fortress in great
anguish of body and despondency of spirit. For
the first time in his life he had lost blood in battle.
The charm in which he had hitherto confided was
broken; or rather, the Holy Virgin appeared to
have withdrawn her protection. He had the hor-
rible death of his followers before his eyes, who
had perished of their wounds in raving frenzy.
One of the symptoms of the poison was to shoot
a thrilling chill through the wounded part; from
this circumstance, perhaps, a remedy suggested
itself to the imagination of Ojeda, which few but
himself could have had the courage to undergo.
He caused two plates of iron to be made red hot
and ordered a surgeon to apply them to each
orifice of the wound. The surgeon shuddered and
refused, saying he would not be the murderer of
his general.* Upon this Ojeda made a solemn vow
that he would hang him unless he obeyed. To
avoid the gallows, the surgeon applied the glowing
plates. Ojeda refused to be tied down, or that
any one should hold him during this frightful
operation. He endured it without shrinking or
* Charlevoix, ut sup. p. 293.1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.----THIRD VOYAGE. 77
uttering a murmur, although it so inflamed his
whole system, that they had to wrap him in sheets
steeped in vinegar, to allay the burning heat which
raged throughout his body; and we are assured
that a barrel of vinegar was exhausted for the
purpose. The desperate remedy succeeded: the
cold poison, says Bishop Las Casas, was consumed
by the vivid fire.* How far the venerable historian
is correct in his postulate, surgeons may decide;
but many incredulous persons will be apt to ac-
count for the cure by surmising that the arrow was
not envenomed.
CHAPTER VII.
Arrival of a strange Ship at San Sebastian.
Alonzo de Ojeda, though pronounced out of
danger, was still disabled by his wound, and his
helpless situation completed the despair of his
companions; for while he was in health and vigour,
his buoyant and mercurial spirit, his active, rest-
less and enterprising habits, imparted animation,
if not confidence, to every one around him. The
only hope of relief was from the sea, and that was
nearly extinct, when one day, to the unspeakable
joy of the Spaniards, a sail appeared on the horizon.
It made for the port and dropped anchor at the foot
of the height of San Sebastian, and there was no
longer a doubt that it was the promised succour
from San Domingo.
* Las Casas. Hist. Ind. lib. ii. c. 59. MS.78
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [150&
The ship came indeed from the island of His-
paniola, but it had not been fitted out by the
Bachelor Enciso. The commander’s name was
Bernardino de Talavera. This man was one of
the loose heedless adventurers who abounded in
San Domingo. His carelessness and extravagance
had involved him in debt, and he was threatened
with a prison. In the height of his difficulties the
ship arrived which Ojeda had sent to San Domingo,
freighted with slaves and gold, an earnest of the
riches to be found at San Sebastian. Bernardo de
Talavera immediately conceived the project of
giving his creditors the slip, and escaping to this
new settlement. He understood that Ojeda was in
need of recruits, and felt assured that, from his own
reckless conduct in money matters, he would sym-
pathize with any one harassed by debt. He drew
into his schemes a number of desperate debtors
like himself, nor was he scrupulous about filling
up his ranks with recruits whose legal embarrass-
ments arose from more criminal causes. Never
did a more vagabond crew engage in a project of
colonization.
How to provide themselves with a vessel was
now the question. They had neither money nor
credit; but then they had cunning and courage,
and were troubled by no scruples of conscience ;
thus qualified, a knave will often succeed better
for a time than an honest man; it is in the long
run that he fails, as will be illustrated in the case
of Talavera and his hopeful associates. While
casting about for means to escape to San Sebastian,
they heard of a vessel belonging to certain Ge-
noese, which was at Cape Tiburon, at the western1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.-----THIRD VOYAGE. 79
extremity of the island, taking in a cargo of bacon
and Casava bread for San Domingo. Nothing
could have happened more opportunely : here was
a ship, amply stored with provisions, and ready to
their hand; they had nothing to do but seize it
and embark.
The gang, accordingly, seventy in number, made
their way separately and secretly to Cape Tiburon,
where, assembling at an appointed time and place,
they boarded the vessel, overpowered the crew,
weighed anchor and set sail. They were heedless,
hap-hazard mariners, and knew little of the manage-
ment of a vessel; the historian Charlevoix thinks,
therefore, that it was a special providence which
guided them to San Sebastian. Whether or not
the good father is right in his opinion, it is certain
that the arrival of the ship rescued the garrison
from the very brink of destruction.*
Talavera and his gang, though they had come
lightly by their prize, were not disposed to part
with it as frankly, but demanded to be paid down
in gold for the provisions furnished to the starving
colonists. Ojeda agreed to their terms, and taking
the supplies into his possession dealt them out
sparingly to his companions. Several of his hungry
followers were dissatisfied with their portions, and
even accused Ojeda of unfairness in reserving an
undue share for himself. Perhaps there may have
been some ground for this charge, arising, not
from any selfishness in the character of Ojeda, but
from one of those superstitious fancies with which
his mind was tinged; for we are told that, for many
* Hist. S. Domingo, lib. iv.80
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
years, he had been haunted by a presentiment that
he should eventually die of hunger.*
This lurking horror of the mind may have made
him depart from his usual free and lavish spirit
in doling out these providential supplies, and may
have induced him to set by an extra portion for
himself, as a precaution against his anticipated
fate; certain it is, that great clamours rose among
his people, some of whom threatened to return in
the pirate vessel to Hispaniola. He succeeded,
however, in pacifying them for the present, by
representing the necessity of husbanding their
supplies, and by assuring them that the Bachelor
Enciso could not fail soon to arrive, when there
would be provisions in abundance.
CHAPTER VIII.
Factions in the Colony—A Convention made.
Days and days elapsed but no relief arrived at
San Sebastian. The Spaniards kept a ceaseless
watch upon the sea, but the promised ship failed
to appear. With all the husbandry of Ojeda the
stock of provisions was nearly consumed; famine
again prevailed, and several of the garrison perished
through their various sufferings and their lack of
sufficient nourishment. The survivors now be-
came factious in their misery, and a plot was
* Herrera, decad. 1. 1. viii. c. 3.81
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.-----THIRD VOYAGE.
formed among them to seize upon one of the vessels
in the harbour and make sail for Hispaniola.
Ojeda discovered their intentions, and was re-
duced to great perplexity. He saw that to remain
here without relief from abroad was certain des-
truction, yet he clung to his desperate enterprise.
It was his only chance for fortune or command;
for should this settlement be broken up, he might
try in vain, with his exhausted means and broken
credit, to obtain another post or to set on foot
another expedition. Ruin in fact would overwhelm
him, should he return without success.
He exerted himself, therefore, to the utmost to
pacify his men; representing the folly of aban-
doning a place where they had established a foot-
hold, and where they only needed a reinforce-
ment to enable them to controul the surrounding
country, and to make themselves masters of its
riches. Finding they still demurred, he offered,
now that he was sufficiently recovered from his
wound, to go himself to San Domingo in quest of
reinforcements and supplies.
This offer had the desired effect. Such confi-
dence had the people in the energy, ability, and
influence of Ojeda, that they felt assured of relief
should he seek it in person. They made a kind
of convention with him, therefore, in which it was
agreed that they should remain quietly at Sebas-
tian’s for the space of fifty days. At the end of
this time, in case no tidings had been received
of Ojeda, they were to be at liberty to abandon
the settlement and return in the brigantines to
Hispaniola. In the mean time Francisco Pizarro
was to command the colony as Lieutenant of Ojeda,
G82	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
until the arrival of his Alcalde Mayor, the Bachelor
Enciso. This convention being made, Ojeda em-
barked in the ship of Bernardino de Talavera. That
cut-purse of the ocean and his loose handed crew
were effectually cured of their ambition to colonsie.
Disappointed in the hope of finding abundant
wealth at San Sebastian, and dismayed at the
perils and horrors of the surrounding wilderness,
they preferred returning to Hispaniola, even at
the risk of chains and dungeons. Doubtless they
thought that the influence of Ojeda would be suffi-
cient to obtain their pardon, especially as their
timely succour had been the salvation of the
colony.
CHAPTER IX.
Disastrous Voyage of Ojeda in the Pirate Ship.
Ojeda had scarce put to sea in the ship of these free-
booters, when a fierce quarrel arose between him
and Talavera. Accustomed to take the lead among
his companions, still feeling himself governor, and
naturally of a domineering spirit, Ojeda, on coming
on board, had assumed the command as a matter
of course. Talavera, who claimed dominion over
the ship, by the right no doubt of trover and con-
version, or, in other words, of downright piracy,
resisted this usurpation.
Ojeda, as usual, would speedily have settled the
question by the sword, but he had the whole
vagabond crew against him, who overpowered him1509-3 ALONZO DE OJEDA.----THIRD VOYAGE. 83
with numbers and threw him in irons. Still his
swelling spirit was unsubdued. He reviled Tala-
vera and his gang as recreants, traitors, pirates,
and offered to fight the whole of them successively,
provided they would give him a clear deck, and
come on two at a time. Notwithstanding his
diminutive size, they had too high an idea of his
prowess, and had heard too much of his exploits,
to accept his challenge; so they kept him raging
in his chains while they pursued their voyage.
They had not proceeded far, however, when
a violent storm arose. Talavera and his crew
knew little of navigation and were totally ignorant
of those seas. The raging of the elements, the
baffling winds and currents, and the danger of
unknown rocks and shoals filled them with con-
fusion and alarm. They knew not whither they
were driving before the storm or where to seek for
shelter. In this hour of peril they called to mind
that Ojeda was a sailor as well as soldier, and that
he had repeatedly navigated these seas. Making
a truce, therefore, for the common safety, they
took off his irons, on condition that he would pilot
the vessel during the remainder of the voyage.
Ojeda acquitted himself with his accustomed
spirit and intrepidity; but the vessel had been al-
ready swept so far to the westward that all his
skill was ineffectual in endeavouring to work up
to Hispaniola against storms and adverse cur-
rents. Borne away by the gulf stream, and tempest-
tost for many days, until the shattered vessel was
almost in a foundering condition, he saw no alter-
native but to run it on shore on the southern coast
of Cuba.
g 284
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
Here then the crew of free-booters landed from
their prize in more desperate plight than when
they first took possession of it. They were on a
wild and unfrequented coast, their vessel lay a
wreck upon the sands, and their only chance was
to travel on foot to the eastern extremity of the
island, and seek some means of crossing to His-
paniola, where, after all their toils, they might
perhaps only arrive to be thrown into a dungeon.
Such, however, is the yearning of civilized men
after the haunts of cultivated society, that they set
out, at every risk, upon their long and painful
journey.
CHAPTER X.
Toilsome March of Ojeda and his Companions through the
morasses of Cuba.
Notwithstanding the recent services of Ojeda,
the crew* of Talavera still regarded him with hos-
tility ; but, if they had felt the value of his skill
and courage at sea, they were no less sensible of
their importance on shore, and he soon acquired
that ascendancy over them which belongs to a
master-spirit in time of trouble.
Cuba was as yet uncolonised. It was a place
of refuge to the unhappy natives of Hayti, who
fled hither from the whips and chains of their Eu-
ropean task-masters. The forests abounded with
these wretched fugitives, who often opposed them-
selves to the shipwrecked party, supposing them1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.-----THIRD VOYAGE. 85
to be sent by their late masters to drag them back
to captivity.
Ojeda easily repulsed these attacks; but found
that these fugitives had likewise inspired the vil-
lagers with hostility to all European strangers.
Seeing that his companions were too feeble and
disheartened to fight their way through the popu-
lous parts of the island, or to climb the rugged
mountains of the interior, he avoided all towns
and villages, and led them through the close fo-
rests and broad green Savannahs which extended
between the mountains and the sea.
He had only made a choice of evils. The fo-
rests gradually retired from the coast. The Sa-
vannahs, where the Spaniards at first had to con-
tend merely with long rank grass and creeping
vines, soon ended in salt marshes, where the oozy
bottom yielded no firm foot hold, and the mud
and water reached to their knees. Still they
pressed forward, continually hoping in a little
while to arrive at a firmer soil, and flattering them-
selves they beheld fresh meadow land before
them; but continually deceived. The farther they
proceeded, the deeper grew the mire, until, after
they had been eight days on this dismal journey,
they found themselves in the centre of a vast mo-
rass, where the water reached to their girdles.
Though thus almost drowned, they wTere tormented
with incessant thirst, for all the water around them
was as briny as the ocean. They suffered too the
cravings of extreme hunger, having but a scanty
supply of Cassava bread and cheese, and a few po-
tatoes and other roots, which they devoured raw.
When they wished to sleep, they had to climb86 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
among the twisted roots of Mangrove trees, which
grew in clusters in the water. Still the dreary
marsh widened and deepened. In many places
they had to cross rivers and inlets ; where some,
who could not swim, were drowned, and others
were smothered in the mire.
Their situation became wild and desperate.
Their Cassava bread was spoiled by the water, and
their stock of roots nearly exhausted. The in-
terminable morass still extended before them,
while, to return, after the distance they had come,
was hopeless. Ojeda alone kept up a resolute
spirit, and cheered and urged them forward. He
had the little Flemish painting of the Madona,
which had been given him by the Bishop Fonseca,
carefully stored among the provisions in his knap-
sack. Whenever he stopped to repose among the
roots of the Mangrove trees, he took out this pic-
ture, placed it among the branches, and kneeling,
prayed devoutly to the Virgin for protection. This
he did repeatedly in the course of the day, and
prevailed upon his companions to follow his ex-
ample. Nay, more, at a moment of great despon-
dency, he made a solemn vow to his patroness
that if she conducted him alive through this peril,
he would erect a chapel in the first Indian village
he should arrive at; and leave her picture there,
to remain an object of adoration to the Gentiles.*
This frightful morass extended for the distance
of thirty leagues, and was so deep and difficult,
so entangled by roots and creeping vines, so cut
up by creeks and rivers, and so beset by quag-
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind. 1. ii. c. 60. MS.1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.------THIRD VOYAGE. 87
mires, that they were thirty days in traversing it.
Out of the number of seventy men that set out
from the ship but thirty-five remained. “ Certain
it is,” observes the venerable Las Casas, “ the suf-
ferings of the Spaniards in the New World, in
search of wealth, have been more cruel and severe
than ever nation in the world endured; but those
experienced by Ojeda and his men have surpassed
all others.”
They were at length so overcome by hunger
and fatigue, that some lay down and yielded up
the ghost, and others, seating themselves among
the Mangrove trees, waited in despair for death
to put an end to their miseries. Ojeda, with a
few of the lightest and most vigorous, continued
to struggle forward, and, to their unutterable joy,
at length arrived to where the land was firm and
dry. They soon descried a foot-path, and, follow-
ing it, arrived at an Indian village, commanded by
a cacique called Cueyb&s. No sooner did they
reach the village than they sank to the earth ex-
hausted.
The Indians gathered round and gazed at them
with wonder; but when they learnt their story,
they exhibited a humanity that would have done
honour to the most professing Christians. They
bore them to their dwellings, set meat and drink
before them, and vied with each other in discharg-
ing the offices of the kindest humanity. Finding
that a number of their companions were still in
the morass, the cacique sent a large party of In-
dians with provisions for their relief; with orders
to bring on their shoulders such as were too feeble
to walk. “The Indians,” says the Bishop Las88
SrANISII VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY.
[1509.
Casas, “did more than they were ordered; for
so they always do, when they are not exasperated
by ill treatment. The Spaniards were brought
to the village, succoured, cherished, consoled,
and almost worshipped as if they had been an-
gels.”
CHAPTER XI.
Ojeda performs his Vow to the Virgin.
Being recovered from his sufferings, Alonzo de
Ojeda prepared to perform his vow concerning
the picture of the Virgin, though sorely must it
have grieved him to part with a relique to which
he attributed his deliverance from so many perils.
He built a little hermitage or oratory in the vil-
lage, and furnished it with an altar, above which he
placed the picture. He then summoned the benevo-
lent cacique, and explained to him, as well as his
limited knowledge of the language, or the aid of
interpreters would permit, the main points of the
Catholic faith, and especially the history of the
Virgin, whom he represented as the mother of the
deity that reigned in the skies, and the great ad-
vocate for mortal man.
The worthy cacique listened to him with mute
attention, and though he might not clearly com-
prehend the doctrine, yet he conceived a pro-
found veneration for the picture. The sentiment89
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.----THIRD VOYAGE.
was shared by his subjects. They kept the little
oratory always swept clean, and decorated it with
cotton hangings, laboured by their own hands,
and with various votive offerings. They com-
posed couplets or areytos in honour of the Virgin,
which they sang to the accompaniment of rude
musical instruments, dancing to the sound under
the groves which surrounded the hermitage.
A further anecdote concerning this relique may
not be unacceptable. The venerable Las Casas,
who records these facts, informs us that he ar-
rived at the village of Cueybas some time after the
departure of Ojeda. He found the oratory pre-
served with the most religious care, as a sacred
place, and the picture of the Virgin regarded with
fond adoration. The poor Indians crowded to
attend mass, which he performed at the altar;
they listened attentively to his paternal instruc-
tions, and at his request brought their children to
be baptised. The good Las Casas having heard
much of this famous relique of Ojeda, was de-
sirous of obtaining possession of it, and offered to
give the cacique, in exchange, an image of the
Virgin which he had brought with him. The chief-
tain made an evasive answer, and seemed much
troubled in mind. The next morning he did not
make his appearance.
Las Casas went to the oratory to perform mass,
but found the altar stripped of its precious relique.
On inquiring, he learnt that in the night the ca-
cique had fled to the woods, bearing off with him
his beloved picture of the Virgin. It was in vain
that Las Casas sent messengers after him, assur-90
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
ing him that he should not be deprived of the
relique, but, on the contrary, that the image should
likewise be presented to him. The cacique re-
fused to venture from the fastnesses of the forest,
nor did he return to his village and replace the pic-
ture in the oratory until after the departure of the
Spaniards.*
CHAPTER XII.
Arrival of Ojeda at Jamaica—His Reception by Juan de
Esquibel.
When the Spaniards were completely restored to
health and strength, they resumed their journey.
The cacique sent a large body of his subjects to
carry their provisions and knapsacks, and to guide
them across a desert tract of country to the pro-
vince of Macaca, where Christopher Columbus
had been hospitably entertained on his voyage
along this coast. They experienced equal kind-
ness from its cacique and his people, for such
seems to have been almost invariably the case
with the natives of these islands, before they
had held much intercourse with Europeans.
The province of Macaca was situated at Cape
de la Cruz, the nearest point to the Island of Ja-
maica. Here Ojeda learnt that there were Spa-
niards settled on that island, being in fact the
party commanded by the very Juan de Esquibel,
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind. c. 61, MS.—Herrera, Hist. Ind.
d. 1, 1. ix. c. 15.91
1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.----THIRD VOYAGE.
whose head he had threatened to strike off, when
departing in swelling style from San Domingo.
It seemed to be the fortune of Ojeda to have his
bravadoes visited on his head in times of trouble
and humiliation. He found himself compelled to
apply for succour to the very man he had so vain-
gloriously menaced. This was no time, however,
to stand on points of pride ; he procured a canoe
and Indians from the cacique of Macaca, and one
Pedro de Ordas undertook the perilous voyage
of tw enty leagues in the frail bark, and arrived
safe at Jamaica.
No sooner did Esquibel receive the message of
Ojeda, than, forgetting past menaces, he instantly
despatched a caravel to bring to him the unfortu-
nate discoverer and his companions. He received
him with the utmost kindness, lodged him in his
own house, and treated him in all things with the
most delicate attention. He was a gentleman who
had seen prosperous days, but had fallen into ad-
versity and been buffeted about the world, and
had learnt how to respect the feelings of a proud
spirit in distress. Ojeda had the warm, touchy
heart to feel such conduct; he remained several
days with Esquibel in frank communion, and when
he sailed for San Domingo they parted the best
of friends.
And here we cannot but remark, the singular
difference in character and conduct of these Spa-
nish adventurers when dealing with each other,
or with the unhappy natives. Nothing could be
more chivalrous, urbane, and charitable; nothing
more pregnant with noble sacrifices of passion and
interest, with magnanimous instances of forgive-92	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
ness of injuries and noble contests of generosity,
than the transactions of the discoverers with each
other; but the moment they turned to treat with
the Indians, even with brave and high-minded
caciques, they were vindictive, blood-thirsty, and
implacable. The very Juan de Esquibel, who
could requite the recent hostility of Ojeda with
such humanity and friendship, was the same, who,
under the government of Ovando, laid desolate
the province of Higuey in Hispaniola, and in-
flicted atrocious cruelties upon its inhabitants.
When Alonzo de Ojeda set sail for San Domingo,
Bernaldino de Talavera and his rabble adherents
remained at Jamaica. They feared to be brought
to account for their piratical exploit in stealing the
Genoese vessel, and that, in consequence of their
recent violence to Ojeda, they would find in him
an accuser rather than an advocate. The latter,
however, in the opinion of Las Casas, who knew
him well, was not a man to make accusations.
With all his faults he did not harbour malice. He
was quick and fiery, it is true, and his sword was
too apt to leap from its scabbard on the least pro-
vocation; but after the first flash all was over,
and, if he cooled upon an injury, he never sought
for vengeance.1509.] ALONZO DE OJEDA.—THIRD VOYAGE.
93
CHAPTER XIII.
Airival of Alonzo de Ojeda at San Domingo— Conclusion
of his Stori/.
On arriving at San Domingo, the first inquiry of
Alonzo de Ojeda was after the Bachelor Enciso.
He was told that he had departed long before,
with abundant supplies for the colony, and that
nothing had been heard of him since his departure.
Ojeda waited for a time in hopes of hearing, by
some return ship, of the safe arrival of the Ba-
chelor at San Sebastian. No tidings, however,
arrived, and he began to fear that he had been
lost in those storms which had beset himself on
his return voyage.
Anxious for the relief of his settlement, and
fearing, that, by delay, his whole scheme of coloni-
sation would be defeated, he now endeavoured to
set on foot another armament, and to enlist a new
set of adventurers. His efforts, however, were all
ineffectual. The disasters of his colony were
known, and his own circumstances were con-
sidered desperate. He was doomed to experience
the fate that too often attends sanguine and bril-
liant projectors. The world is dazzled by them
for a time, and hails them as heroes while success-
ful ; but misfortune dissipates the charm, and they
become stigmatized wdth the appellation of ad-
venturers. When Ojeda figured in San Domingo94
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
as the conqueror of Coanabo, as the commander
of a squadron, as the governor of a province, his
prowess and exploits were the theme of every
tongue. When he set sail, in vaunting style, for
his seat of government, setting the vice-roy at
defiance, and threatening the life of Esquibel,
every one thought that fortune was at his beck,
and he was about to accomplish wonders. A few
months had elapsed, and he walked the streets
of San Domingo a needy man, shipwrecked in
hope and fortune. His former friends, dreading
some new demand upon their purses, looked
coldly on him; his schemes, once so extolled,
were now pronounced wild and chimerical, and
he was subjected to all kinds of slights and hu-
miliations in the very place which had been the
scene of his greatest vainglory.
While Ojeda was thus lingering at San Domingo,
the Admiral, Don Diego Columbus, sent a party
of soldiers to Jamaica to arrest Talavera and his
pirate crew. They were brought in chains to
San Domingo, thrown into dungeons, and tried for
the robbery of the Genoese vessel. Their crime
was too notorious to admit of doubt, and being
convicted, Talavera and several of his principal
accomplices were hanged. Such was the end of
their frightful journey by sea and land. Never
had vagabonds travelled farther or toiled harder
to arrive at a gallows!
In the course of the trial Ojeda had naturally
been summoned as a witness, and his testimony
must have tended greatly to the conviction of the
culprits. This drew upon him the vengeance of
the surviving comrades of Talavera, who still
lurked about San Domingo. As he was returning95
1509i] ALONZO DE OJEDA.-----THIRD VOYAGE.
home one night at a late hour, he was way-laid
and set upon by a number of these miscreants.
He displayed his usual spirit. Setting his back
against a wall, and drawing his sword, he de-
fended himself admirably against the whole gang;
nor was he content with beating them off, but
pursued them for some distance through the
streets; and having thus put them to utter route,
returned tranquil and unharmed to his lodgings.
This is the last achievement recorded of the
gallant but reckless Ojeda; for here his bustling
career terminated, and he sank into the obscurity
that gathers round a ruined man. His health was
broken by the various hardships he had sus-
tained, and by the lurking effects of the wound
received at San Sebastian, which had been but im-
perfectly cured. Poverty and neglect, and the
corroding sickness of the heart, contributed, no
less than the maladies of the body, to quench that
sanguine and fiery temper, which had hitherto been
the secret of his success, and to render him the
mere wreck of his former self; for there is no ruin
so hopeless and complete, as that of a towering
spirit humiliated and broken down. He appears to
have lingered some time at San Domingo. Gomara,
in his history of the Indies, affirms that he turned
monk, and entered in the convent at San Fran-
cisco, where he died. Such a change would not
have been surprising in a man, who, in his wildest
career, mingled the bigot with the soldier ; nor
was it unusual with military adventurers in those
days, after passing their youth in the bustle and li-
centiousness of the camp, to end their days in the
quiet and mortification of the cloister. Las Casas,
however, who was at San Domingo at the time,96	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
makes no mention of the fact, as he certainly
would have done, had it taken place. He con-
firms, however, all that has been said of the strik-
ing reverse in his character and circumstances ;
and he adds an affecting picture of his last mo-
ments, which may serve as a wholesome comment
on his life. He died so poor that he did not leave
money enough to provide for his interment; and
so broken in spirit, that, with his last breath, he
entreated his body might be buried in the monas-
tery of San Francisco, just at the portal, in hum-
ble expiation of his past pride, “ that every one who
entered might tread upon his grave.”*
Such was the fate of Alonzo de Ojeda,—and
who does not forget his errors and his faults at
the threshold of his humble and untimely grave!
He was one of the most fearless and aspiring of
that band of “ Ocean chivalry,” that followed the
footsteps of Columbus. His story presents a
lively picture of the daring enterprises, the ex-
travagant exploits, the thousand accidents, by flood
and field, that chequered the life of a Spanish
cavalier in that roving and romantic age.
“ Never,” says Charlevoix, “ was man more
suited for a coup-de-main, or to achieve and suffer
great things under the direction of another: none
had a heart more lofty, or ambition more aspiring;
none ever took less heed of fortune, or showed
greater firmness of soul, or found more resources
in his own courage ; but none was less calculated
to be commander in chief of a great enterprise.
Good management and good fortune for ever failed
him.”f
* Las Casas, ubi sup. t Charlevoix, Hist. S. Doming.1509.]
(	97	)
THE VOYAGE
OF
DIEGO DE NICUESA.
Nicuesa sails to the Westward—His Shipwreck and
subsequent disasters.
We have now to recount the fortunes experienced
by the gallant and generous Diego de Nicuesa,
after his parting from Alonzo de Ojeda at Cartha-
gena. On resuming his voyage, he embarked in a
caravel, that he might be able to coast the land and
reconnoitre ; he ordered that the two brigantines,
one of which was commanded by his Lieutenant
Lope de Olano, should keep near to him, while the
large vessels, which drew more water, should stand
further out to sea. The squadron arrived upon
the coast of Veragua, in stormy weather; and, as
Nicuesa could not find any safe harbour, and was
apprehensive of rocks and shoals, lie stood out to
sea at the approach of night, supposing that Lope
de Olano would follow him with the brigantines
according to his orders. The night was boisterous,
the caravel was much tossed and driven about, and
when the morning dawned, not one of the squadron
was in sight.
Nicuesa feared some accident had befallen the
brigantines; he stood for the land, and coasted
H98	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
along it in search of them until he came to a large
river, into which he entered and came to anchor.
He had not been here long when the stream sud-
denly subsided, having merely been swoln by the
rains. Before he had time to extricate himself, the
caravel grounded, and at length fell over on one
side. The current rushing like a torrent strained
the feeble bark to such a degree, that her seams
yawned and she appeared ready to go to pieces.
In this moment of peril a hardy seaman threw him-
self into the water to carry the end of a rope on
shore as a means of saving the crew. He was
swept away by the furious current and perished in
sight of his companions. Undismayed by his fate,
another brave seaman plunged into the waves and
succeeded in reaching the shore. He then fastened
one end of a rope firmly to a tree, and the other
being secured on board of the caravel, Nicuesa and
his crew passed one by one along it, and reached
the shore in safety.
Scarcely had they landed when the caravel went
to pieces, and with it perished their provisions,
clothing and all other necessaries. Nothing re-
mained to them but the boat of the caravel, which
was accidentally cast on shore. Here then they
were, in helpless plight, on a remote and savage
coast, without food, without arms, and almost
naked. What had become of the rest of the squa-
dron they knew not. Some feared that the bri-
gantines had been wrecked; others called to mind
that Lope de Olano had been one of the loose law-
less men confederated with Francisco Roldan in
his rebellion against Columbus, and, judging him
from the school in which he had served, hintedDIEGO DE NICUESA.
99
1509.]
their apprehensions that he had deserted with the
brigantines. Nieuesa partook of their suspicions,
and was anxious and sad at heart. He concealed
his uneasiness, however, and endeavoured to cheer
up his companions, proposing that they should pro-
ceed westward on foot in search of Veragua, the
seat of his intended government, observing that,
if the ships had survived the tempest, they would
probably repair to that place. They accordingly
set off along the sea shore, for the thickness of
the forest prevented their traversing the interior.
Four of the hardiest sailors put to sea in the boat
and kept abreast of them, to help them across the
bays and rivers.
Their sufferings were extreme. Most of them
were destitute of shoes, and many almost naked.
They had to clamber over sharp and rugged rocks,
and to struggle through dense forests beset with
thorns and brambles. Often they had to wade
across rank fens and morasses and drowned lands,
or to traverse deep and rapid streams.
Their food consisted of herbs and roots and shell
fish gathered along the shore. Had they even met
with Indians, they would have dreaded, in their
unarmed state, to apply to them for provisions,
lest they should take revenge for the outrages
committed along this coast by other Europeans.
To render their sufferings more intolerable, they
were in doubt whether, in the storms which pre-
ceded their shipwreck, they had not been driven
past Veragua, in which case each step would take
them so much the farther from their desired haven.
Still they laboured feebly forward, encouraged
by the words and the example of Nieuesa, who100	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
cheerfully partook of the toils and hardships of the
meanest of his men.
They had slept one night at the foot of impend-
ing rocks and were about to resume their weary
march in the morning, when they were espied by
some Indians from a neighbouring height. Among
the followers of Nicuesa was a favourite page, whose
tattered finery and white hat caught the quick eyes
of the savages. One of them immediately singled
him out, and taking a deadly aim, let fly an arrow
that laid him expiring at the feet of his master.
While the generous cavalier mourned over his
slaughtered page, consternation prevailed among
his companions, each fearing for his own life. The
Indians, however, did not follow up this casual act
of hostility, but suffered the Spaniards to pursue
their painful journey unmolested.
Arriving one day at the point of a great bay that
ran far inland, they were conveyed, a few at a time,
in the boat, to what appeared to be the opposite
point. Being all landed, and resuming their
march, they found to their surprise that they
were on an island, separated from the main land
by a great arm of the sea. The sailors who ma-
naged the boat were too weary to take them to the
opposite shore, they remained therefore all night
upon the island.
In the morning they prepared to depart, but, to
their consternation, the boat with the four mariners
had disappeared. They ran anxiously from point
to point, uttering shouts and cries, in hopes the
boat might be in some inlet; they clambered the
rocks and strained their eyes over the sea. It was
all in vain. No boat was to be seen: no voiceDIEGO DE NICUESA.
101
1509.]
responded to their call; it was too evident the
four mariners had either perished or had deserted
them.
CHAPTER II.
Nicuesa and his Men on a Desolate Island.
The situation of Nicuesa and his men was dreary and
desperate in the extreme. They were on a desolate
island, bordering upon a swampy coast, in a remote
and lonely sea, where commerce never spread a
sail. Their companions in the other ships, if still
alive and true to them, had doubtless given them
up for lost; and many years might elapse before
the casual bark of a discoverer might venture along
these shores. Long before that time their fate
would be sealed ; and their bones, bleaching on the
sands, would alone tell their story.
In this hopeless state many abandoned them-
selves to frantic grief, wandering about the island,
wringing their hands and uttering groans and
lamentations ; others called upon God for succour,
and many sat down in silent and sullen despair.
The cravings of hunger and thirst at length
roused them to exertion. They found no food
but a few shell fish scattered along the shore, and
coarse herbs and roots, some of them of an un-
wholesome quality. The island had neither springs
nor streams of fresh water, and they were fain to
slake their thirst at the brackish pools of the
marshes.102 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
Nicuesa endeavoured to animate his men with
new hopes. He employed them in constructing a
raft of drift wood and branches of trees, for the
purpose of crossing the arm of the sea that sepa-
rated them from the main land. It was a difficult
task, for they were destitute of tools; and when
the raft was finished they had no oars with which
to manage it. Some of the most expert swimmers
undertook to propel it, but they were too much en-
feebled by their sufferings. On their first essay,
the currents which sweep that coast bore the raft
out to sea, and they swam back with difficulty to
the island. Having no other chance of escape, and
no other means of exercising and keeping up the
spirits of his followers, Nicuesa repeatedly ordered
new rafts to be constructed; but the result was
always the same, and the men at length either
grew too feeble to work, or renounced the attempt
in despair.
Thus, day after day, and week after week elapsed,
without any mitigation of suffering or any prospect
of relief. Every day some one or other sank
under his miseries, a victim, not so much to hunger
and thirst, as to grief and despondency. His death
was envied by his wretched survivors, many of
whom were reduced to such debility, that they had
to crawl on hands and knees in search of the herbs
and shell fish which formed their scanty food.1509.]
DIEGO DE NICUESA.
103
CHAPTER III.
Arrival of a Boat—Conduc t of Lope de Olano.
When the unfortunate Spaniards, without hope of
succour, began to consider death as a desirable
end to their miseries, they were roused to new life
one day by beholding a sail gleaming on the hori-
zon. Their exultation was checked, however, by
the reflection how many chances there were against
its approaching this wild and desolate island.
Watching it with anxious eyes, they put up prayers
to God to conduct it to their relief; and at length,
to their great joy, they perceived that it was steer-
ing directly Tor the island. On a nearer approach
it proved to be one of the brigantines that had
been commanded by Lope de Olano. It came to
anchor : a boat put off, and among the crew were
the four sailors who had disappeared so myste-
riously from the island.
These men accounted in a satisfactory manner
for their desertion. They had been persuaded
that the ships were in some harbour to the east-
ward, and that they wTere daily leaving them far-
ther behind. Disheartened at the constant, and, in
their opinion, fruitless toil which fell to their share
in the struggle westward, they resolved to take
their own counsel, without risking the opposition
of Nicuesa. In the dead of the night, therefore,
when their companions on the island wTere asleep,
they had silently cast off their boat, and retraced
their course along the coast. After several days104 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
toil they found the brigantines under the command
of Lope de Olano, in the river of Belen, the scene
of the disasters of Columbus in his fourth voyage.
The conduct of Lope de Olano was regarded
with suspicion by his contemporaries, and is still
subject to doubt. He is supposed to have deserted
Nicuesa designedly, intending to usurp the com-
mand of the expedition. Men, however, were
prone to judge harshly of him from his having
been concerned in the treason and rebellion of
Francisco Roldan. On the stormy night when
Nicuesa stood out to sea to avoid the dangers of
the shore, Olano took shelter under the lee of an
island. Seeing nothing of the caravel of his com-
mander in the morning, he made no effort to seek
for it, but proceeded with the brigantines to the
river of Chagres, where he found the ships at
anchor. They had landed all their cargo, being
almost in a sinking condition from the ravages of
the worms. Olano persuaded the crews that
Nicuesa had perished in the late storm, and, being
his lieutenant, he assumed the command. Whether
he had been perfidious or not in his motives, his
command was but a succession of disasters. He
sailed from Chagres for the river of Belen,
where the ships were found so damaged that they
had to be broken to pieces. Most of the people
constructed wretched cabins on the shore, where,
during a sudden storm, they were almost washed
away by the swelling of the river, or swallowed up
in the shifting sands. Several of his men were
drowned in an expedition in quest of gold, and he
himself merely escaped by superior swimming.
Their provisions were exhausted, they sufferedDIEGO DE NICUESA.
105
1509.]
from hunger and from various maladies, and many
perished in extreme misery. All were clamorous
to abandon the coast, and Olano set about con-
structing a caravel, out of the wreck of the ships,
for the purpose, as he said, of returning to Hispa-
niola, though many suspected it was still his inten-
tion to persist in the enterprise. Such was the
state in which the four seamen had found Olano
and his party; most of them living in miserable
cabins and destitute of the necessaries of life.
The tidings that Nicuesa was still alive put an
end to the sway of Olano. Whether he had acted
with truth or perfidy, he now manifested a zeal to
relieve his commander, and immediately despatched
a brigantine in quest of him, which, guided by the
four seamen, arrived at the island in the way that
has been mentioned.
CHAPTER IV.
Nicuesa rejoins his Crews.
When the crew of the brigantine and the com-
panions of Nicuesa met, they embraced each other
with tears, for the hearts even of the rough ma-
riners were subdued by the sorrows they had un-
dergone ; and men are rendered kind to each other
by a community of suffering. The brigantine had
brought a quantity of palm nuts, and of such other
articles of food as they had been able to procure
along the coast. These the famished Spaniards de-
voured with such voracity that Nicuesa was obliged106	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509*
to interfere, lest they should injure themselves.
Nor was the supply of fresh water less grateful to
their parched and fevered palates.
When sufficiently revived, they all abandoned
the desolate island, and set sail for the river Belen,
exulting as joyfully as if their troubles were at an
end, and they were bound to a haven of delight,
instead of merely changing the scene of suffering
and encountering a new variety of horrors.
In the meantime Lope de Olano had been dili-
gently preparing for the approaching interview
with his commander, by persuading his fellow-
officers to intercede in his behalf, and to place his
late conduct in the most favourable light. He had
need of their intercessions. Nicuesa arrived, burn-
ing with indignation. He ordered him to be in-
stantly seized and punished as a traitor; attributing
to his desertion the ruin of the enterprise and the
sufferings and death of so many of his brave fol-
lowers. The fellow-captains of Olano spoke in
his favour; but Nicuesa turned indignantly upon
them: “You do well,” cried he, “ to supplicate
mercy for him; you, who, yourselves, have need
of pardon! You have participated in his crime;
why, else, have you suffered so long a time to
elapse without compelling him to send one of the
vessels in search of me ?”
The captains now vindicated themselves by as-
surances of their belief in his having foundered at
sea. They reiterated their supplications for mercy
to Olano; drawing the most affecting pictures of
their past and present sufferings, and urging the
impolicy of increasing the horrors of their situa-
tion by acts of severity. Nicuesa at length wasDIEGO DE NICUESA.
107
1509.]
prevailed upon to spare his victim; resolving to
send him, by the first opportunity, a prisoner to
Spain. It appeared, in truth, no time to add to
the daily blows of fate that were thinning the
number of his followers. Of the gallant armament
of seven hundred resolute and effective men that
had sailed with him from San Domingo, four hun-
dred had already perished by various miseries;
and, of the survivors, many could scarcely be said
to live.
CHAPTER V.
Sufferings of Nicuesa and his men on the Coast of the
Isthmus.
The first care of Nicuesa, on resuming the general
command, was to take measures for the relief of
his people, who were perishing with famine and
disease. All those who were xin health, or who
had strength sufficient to bear the least fatigue,
were sent on foraging parties, among the fields and
villages of the natives. It was a service of ex-
treme peril; for the Indians of this part of the
coast were fierce and warlike, and were the same
who had proved so formidable to Columbus and
his brother, when they attempted to found a settle-
ment in this neighbourhood.
Many of the Spaniards were slain in these expe-
ditions. Even if they succeeded in collecting pro-
visions, the toil of bringing them to the harbour
w as worse to men in their enfeebled condition, than108 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
the task of fighting for them; for they were obliged
to transport them on their backs, and, thus heavily
laden, to scramble over rugged rocks, through al-
most impervious forests and across dismal swamps.
Harassed by these perils and fatigues, they
broke forth into murmurs against their commander,
accusing him, not merely of indifference to their
sufferings, but of wantonly imposing severe and
unnecessary tasks upon them out of revenge for
their having neglected him.
The genial temper of Nicuesa had, in fact,
been soured by disappointment; and a series of
harassing cares and evils had rendered him ir-
ritable and impatient; but he was a cavalier of a
generous and honourable nature, and does not
appear to have enforced any services that were not
indispensable to the common safety. In fact, the
famine had increased to such a degree, that, we
are told, thirty Spaniards having on one occasion
found the dead body of an Indian in a state of
decay, they were driven by hunger to make a meal
of it, and were so infected by the horrible repast,
that not one of them survived.*
Disheartened by these miseries, Nicuesa deter-
mined to abandon a place which seemed destined to
be the grave of Spaniards. Embarking the greater
part of his men in the two brigantines, and the
caravel which had been built by Olano, he set sail
eastward in search of some more favourable situa-
tion for his settlement. A number of the men
remained behind, to await the ripening of some
maize and vegetables which they had sown. These
* Herrera, Hist. Ind. D. i. and viii. c. 2.DIEGO DE NICUESA.
1510.]
109
he left under the command of Alonzo Nunez, whom
he nominated his Alcalde Mayor.
When Nicuesa had coasted about four leagues
to the east, [a Genoese sailor, who had been
with Columbus in his last voyage, informed
him that there was a fine harbour somewhere in
that neighbourhood, which had pleased the old
admiral so highly, that he had given it the name of
Puerto Bello. He added, that they might know
the harbour by an anchor, half buried in the sand,
which Columbus had left there ; near to which was
a fountain of remarkably cool and sweet water,
springing up at the foot of a large tree. Nicuesa
ordered search to be made along the coast, and at
length they found the anchor, the fountain, and
the tree. It was the same harbour which bears
the name of Portobello at the present day. A
number of the crew were sent on shore in search
of provisions, but were assailed by the Indians;
and, being too weak to wield their weapons with
their usual prowess, were driven back to the vessels
with the loss of several slain or wounded.
Dejected at these continual misfortunes, Nicuesa
continued his voyage seven leagues further, until he
came to the harbour to which Columbus had given
the name of Puerto de Bastimientos; or, Port of
Provisions. It presented an advantageous situation
for a fortress, and was surrounded by a fruitful
country. Nicuesa resolved to make it his abiding
place. “ Here,” said he, “ let us stop, en el
nombre de Dios!” (in the name of God). His fol-
lowers, with the superstitious feeling under which
men in adversity are prone to interpret every thing
into omens, persuaded themselves that there was110 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
favourable augury in his words, and called the
harbour “ Nombre de Dios,” which name it after-
wards retained.
Nicuesa now landed, and drawing his sword,
took solemn possession in the name of the Catholic
sovereigns. He immediately began to erect a
fortress, to protect his people against the attacks of
the savages. As this was a case of exigency, he
exacted the labour of every one capable of ex-
ertion. The Spaniards, thus equally distressed by
famine and toil, forgot their favourable omen, cursed
the place as fated to be their grave, and called
down imprecations on the head of their commander,
who compelled them to labour when ready to sink
with hunger and debility. Those murmured no
less who were sent in quest of food, which was
only to be gained by fatigue and bloodshed; for
whatever they collected they had to transport from
great distances, and they were frequently waylaid
and assaulted by the Indians.
When he could spare men for the purpose, Ni-
cuesa despatched the caravel for those whom he had
left at the river Belen. Many of them had pe-
rished, and the survivors had been reduced to such
famine at times, as to eat all kinds of reptiles, until
a part of an alligator was a banquet to them. On
mustering all his forces when thus united, Nicuesa
found that but one hundred emaciated and de-
jected wretches remained.
He despatched the caravel to Hispaniola, to
bring a quantity of bacon which he had ordered
to have prepared there, but it never returned. He
ordered Gonzalo de Badajos, at the head of twenty
men, to scour the country for provisions; but theDIEGO DE NICUESA.
Ill
1510.]
Indians had ceased to cultivate: they could do
with little food, and could subsist on the roots and
wild fruits of the forest. The Spaniards, there-
fore, found deserted villages and barren fields, but
lurking enemies at every defile. So deplorably
were they reduced by their sufferings, that at
length there were not left a sufficient number in
health and strength to mount guard at night; and
the fortress remained without sentinels. Such
was the desperate situation of this once gay and
gallant cavalier, and of his brilliant armament,
which but a few months before had sallied from
San Domingo, flushed with the consciousness of
power, and the assurance that they had the means
of compelling the favours of fortune.
It is necessary to leave them for a while, and
turn our attention to other events which will ul-
timately be found to bear upon their destinies.
CHAPTER VI.
JExpedition of the Bachelor Enciso in search of the Seat
of Government of Ojeda. (1510.)
In calling to mind the narrative of the last expe-
dition of Alonzo de Ojeda, the reader will doubtless
remember the Bachelor Martin Fernandez de
Enciso, who was inspired by that adventurous
cavalier with an illstarred passion for colonising,
and freighted a vessel at San Domingo with rein-
forcements and supplies for the settlement at San
Sebastian.112	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
When the Bachelor was on the eve of sailing, a
number of the loose hangers-on of the colony, and
men encumbered with debt, concerted to join his
ship from the coast and the outports. Their cre-
ditors, however, getting notice of their intention,
kept a close watch upon every one that went on
board while in the harbour, and obtained an armed
vessel from the Admiral Don Diego Columbus, to
escort the enterprising Bachelor clear of the island.
One man, however, contrived to elude these pre-
cautions, and, as he afterwards rose to great im-
portance, it is proper to notice him particularly.
His name was Vasco Nunez de Balboa. He was
a native of Xeres de los Caballeros, and of a noble
though impoverished family. He had been brought
up in the service of Don Pedro Puerto Carrero,
Lord of Moguer, and he afterwards enlisted among
the adventurers who accompanied Rodrigo de Bas-
tides in his voyage of discovery. Peter Martyr,
in his Latin decades, speaks of him by the appel-
lation of “ egregius digladiator,” which has been
interpreted by some as a skilful swordsman, by
others, as an adroit fencing-master. He inti-
mates, also, that he was a mere soldier of
fortune, of loose prodigal habits; and the cir-
cumstances under which he is first introduced
to us justify this character. He had fixed him-
self for a time in Hispaniola, and undertaken
to cultivate a farm at the town of Salvatierra, on
the sea coast, but in a little time had completely
involved himself in debt. The expedition of
Enciso presented him with an opportunity of es-
caping from his embarrassments, and of indulging
his adventurous habits. To elude the vigilance ofDIEGO DE NICUESA.
113
1510.]
his creditors and of the armed escort, he concealed
himself in a cask, which was conveyed from his
farm on the sea coast on board of the vessel, as if
containing provisions for the voyage. When the
vessel was fairly out at sea, and abandoned by the
escort, Vasco Nunez emerged like an apparition
from his cask, to the great surprise of Enciso,
who had been totally ignorant of the stratagem.
The Bachelor was indignant at being thus outwitted,
even though he gained a recruit by the deception;
and, in the first ebullition of his wrath, gave the
fugitive debtor a very rough reception, threatening
to put him on shore on the first uninhabited
island they should encounter. Vasco Nunez, how-
ever, succeeded in pacifying him, “ for God,” says
the venerable Las Casas “ reserved him for
greater things.” It is probable the Bachelor beheld
in him a man well fitted for his expedition, for
Vasco Nunez was in the prime and vigour of his
days, tall and muscular, seasoned to hardships, and
of intrepid spirit.
Arriving at the main land, they touched at the
fatal harbour of Cartbagena, the scene of the san-
guinary conflicts of Ojeda and Nicuesa with the
natives, and of the death of the brave Juan de la
Cosa. Enciso was ignorant of those events, having
had no tidings from those adventurers since their
departure from San Domingo; without any hesi-
tation, therefore, he landed a number of his men
to repair his boat, which was damaged, and to
procure water. While the men were working
upon the boat, a multitude of Indians gathered at
a distance, well armed and with menacing aspect,
sounding their shells and brandishing their wea-
i114
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
pons. The experience they had had of the tre-
mendous powers of the strangers, however, ren-
dered them cautious of attacking, and for three
days they hovered in this manner about the
Spaniards, the latter being obliged to keep con-
tinually on the alert. At length two of the Spa-
niards ventured one day from the main body to
fill a water cask from the adjacent river. Scarcely
had they reached the margin of the stream, when
eleven savages sprang from the thickets and sur-
rounded them bending their bows and pointing
their arrows. In this way they stood for a moment
or two in fearful suspense, the Indians refraining
from discharging their shafts but keeping them
constantly pointed at their breasts. One of the
Spaniards attempted to escape to his comrades who
were repairing the boat, but the other called him
back, and, understanding something of the Indian
tongue, addressed a few amicable words to the
savages. The latter, astonished at being spoken to
in their own language, now relaxed a little from
their fierceness, and demanded of the strangers who
they were, who were their leaders, and what they
sought upon their shores. The Spaniard replied
that they were harmless people, who came from
other lands, and merely touched there through
necessity, and he wondered that they should meet
them with such hostility; he at the same time
warned them to beware, as there would come many
of his countrymen well armed, and would wreak
terrible vengeance upon them for any mischief they
might do. While they were thus parleying, the
Bachelor Enciso, hearing that two of his men were
surrounded by the savages, sallied instantly fromDIEGO DE NICUESA.
115
1510.]
his ship, and hastened with an armed force to their
rescue. As he approached, however, the Spaniard
who had held the parley made him a signal that
the natives were pacific. In fact the latter had
supposed that this was a new invasion of Ojeda
and Nicuesa, and had thus arrayed themselves, if
not to take vengeance for past outrages, at least
to defend their houses from a second desolation.
When they were convinced, however, that these
were a totally different band of strangers and
without hostile intentions, their animosity was at
an end; they threw by their weapons, and came
forward with the most confiding frankness. Dur-
ing the whole time that the Spaniards remained
there, they treated them with the greatest friend-
ship, supplying them with bread made from maize,
with salted fish, and with the fermented and spi-
rituous beverages common along that coast. Such
was the magnanimous conduct of men who were
considered among the most ferocious and warlike
of these savage nations ; and who, but recently,
had beheld their shores invaded, their villages
ravaged and burnt, and their friends and relations
butchered, without regard to age or sex, by the
countrymen of these very strangers. When we
recall the bloody and indiscriminate vengeance
wreaked upon this people by Ojeda and his fol-
lowers for their justifiable resistance of invasion,
and compare it with their placable and considerate
spirit when an opportunity for revenge presented
itself, we confess we feel a momentary doubt whe-
ther the arbitrary appellation of savage is always
applied to the right party.116
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
CHAPTER VII.
The Bachelor hears unwelcome tidings of his destined
Jurisdiction.
Not long after the arrival of Enciso at this event-
ful harbour he was surprised by the circumstance
of a brigantine entering, and coming to anchor.
To encounter an European sail in these almost
unknown seas was always a singular and striking
occurrence, but the astonishment of the Bachelor
was mingled with alarm when, on boarding the
brigantine, he found that it was manned by a num-
ber of the men who had embarked with Ojeda.
His first idea was, that they had mutinied against
their commander, and deserted with the vessel.
The feelings of the magistrate were aroused within
him by the suspicion, and he determined to take
his first step as Alcalde mayor, by seizing them and
inflicting on them the severity of the law. He
altered his tone, however, on conversing with their
resolute commander. This was no other than
Francisco Pizarro, whom Ojeda had left as his
locum tenens at San Sebastian, and who showed
the Bachelor his letter patent, signed by that un-
fortunate governor. In fact, the little brigantine
contained the sad remnant of the once vaunted
colony. After the departure of Ojeda in the
pirate ship, his followers, whom he had left behind
under the command of Pizarro, continued in the
fortress until the stipulated term of fifty days had
expired. Receiving no succour, and hearing no
tidings of Ojeda, they then determined to embarkDIEGO DE NICUESA.
117
1510.]
and sail for Hispaniola ; but here an unthought of
difficulty presented itself, they were seventy in
number, and the two brigantines which had been
left with them were incapable of taking so many.
They came to the forlorn agreement, therefore,
to remain until famine, sickness, and the poisoned
arrows of the Indians should reduce their
number to the capacity of the brigantines. A
brief space of time was sufficient for the purpose.
They then prepared for the voyage. Four mares
which had been kept alive, as terrors to the Indians,
were killed and salted for sea-stores. Then taking
whatever other articles of provision remained, they
embarked and made sail. One brigantine was
commanded by Pizarro, the other by one Valen-
zuela.
They had not proceeded far when, in a storm, a
sea struck the crazy vessel of Valenzuela with such
violence as to cause it to founder with all its crew.
The other brigantine was so near that the mariners
witnessed the struggles of their drowning compa-
nions, and heard their cries. Some of the sailors,
with the common disposition to the marvellous,
declared that they had beheld a great whale, or
some other monster of the deep, strike the vessel
with its tail, and either stave in its sides or shatter
the rudder, so as to cause the shipwreck.* The
surviving brigantine then made the best of its way
to the harbour of Carthagena, to seek provisions.
Such was the disastrous account rendered to
the Bachelor by Pizarro, of his destined juris-
diction. Enciso, however, was of a confident mind
* Herrera, Hist. Ind. d. 1.1. vii. c.10.118	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY; [1510.
and sanguine temperament, and trusted to restore
all things to order and prosperity on his arrival.
CHAPTER VIII.
Crusade of the Bachelor Enciso against the Sepulchres of
Zenu.
The Bachelor Enciso, as has been shown, was a
man of the sword as well as of the robe; having
doubtless imbibed a passion for military exploit
from his intimacy with the discoverers. Accord-
ingly, while at Carthagena, he was visited by an
impulse of the kind, and undertook an enterprise
that would have been worthy of his friend Ojeda.
He had been told by the Indians that about twenty-
five leagues to the west lay a province called
Zenu, the mountains of which abounded with the
finest gold. This was washed down by torrents
during the rainy season, in such quantities, that
the natives stretched nets across the rivers to
catch the largest particles; some of which were
said to be as large as eggs.
The idea of taking gold in nets captivated the
imagination of the Bachelor, and his cupidity was
still more excited by further accounts of this
wealthy province. He was told that Zenu was the
general place of sepulture of the Indian tribes
throughout the country, whither they brought
their dead, and buried them, according to their
custom, decorated with their most precious orna-
ments.DIEGO DE NICUESA.
119
1510.]
It appeared to him a matter of course, there-
fore, that there must be an immense accumulation
of riches in the Indian tombs, from the golden
ornaments that had been buried with the dead
through a long series of generations. Fired with
the thought, he determined to make a foray into
this province and to sack the sepulchres! Neither
did he feel any compunction at the idea of plunder-
ing the dead, considering the deceased as pagans
and infidels, who had forfeited even the sanctuary
of the grave, by having been buried according to
the rites and ceremonies of their idolatrous religion.
Enciso, accordingly, made sail from Cartha-
gena and landed with his forces on the coast of
Zenu. Here he was promptly opposed by two
caciques, at the head of a large band of warriors.
The Bachelor, though he had thus put on the
soldier, retained sufficient of the spirit of his for-
mer calling not to enter into quarrel without
taking care to have the law on his side ; he
proceeded regularly, therefore, according to the
legal form recently enjoined by the crown. He
caused to be read and interpreted to the caciques
the same formula used by Ojeda, expounding
the nature of the Deity, the supremacy of the
pope, and the right of the Catholic sovereigns
to all these lands, by virtue of a grant from his
holiness. The caciques listened to the whole
very attentively and without interruption, accord-
ing to the laws of Indian courtesy. They then
replied, that, as to the assertion that there was but
one God the sovereign of heaven and earth, it
seemed to them good, and that such must be the
case; but as to the doctrine that the pope was120 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
regent of the world in place of God, and that he
had made a grant of their country to the Spanish
king, they observed that the pope must have been
drunk to give away what was not his, and the
king must have been somewhat mad to ask at his
hands what belonged to others. They added, that
they wrere lords of those lands and needed no other
sovereign, and if this king should come to take
possession, they would cut off his head and put it
on a pole; that being their mode of dealing with
their enemies.—As an illustration of this custom
they pointed out to Enciso the very uncomfortable
spectacle of a row of grizly heads impaled in the
neighbourhood.
Nothing daunted either by the reply or the illus-
tration, the Bachelor menaced them with war and
slavery as the consequences of their refusal to believe
and submit. They replied by threatening to put his
head upon a pole as a representative of his sove-
reign. The Bachelor, having furnished them with
the law, now proceeded to the commentary. He
attacked the Indians, routed them, and took one
of the caciques prisoner, but in the skirmish two
of his men were slightly wounded with poisoned
arrows, and died raving with torment. *
* The above anecdote is related by the Bachelor Enciso
himself, in a Geographical Work entitled Suma de Geo-
graphia, which he published in Seville, in 1519. As the
reply of the poor savages contains something of natural logic,
we give a part of it as reported by the Bachelor. " Respon-
dieron me : que en lo que dezia que no avia sino un dios, y
que este governaba el cielo y la tierra, y que era senor de todo,
que les parecia y que asi debia ser : pero que en lo que dezia
que el papa era senor de todo el universo en lugar de dios, y
que el avia fecho merced de aquella tierra al rey de Castilla;1510.]	DIEGO DE NICUESA.	121
It does not appear, however, that his crusade
against the sepulchres was attended with any
lucrative advantage. Perhaps the experience he
had received of the hostility of the natives, and of
the fatal effects of their poisoned arrows, prevented
his penetrating into the land, with his scanty force.
Certain it is, the reputed wealth of Zenu, and the
tale of its fishery for gold with nets, remained un-
ascertained and uncontradicted, and were the cause
of subsequent and disastrous enterprises. The
Bachelor contented himself with his victory, and
returning to his ships, prepared to continue his
voyage for the seat of government established by
Ojeda in the Gulf of Uraba.
CHAPTER IX.
The Bachelor arrives at San Sebastian—His disasters
there, and subsequent Exploits at Darien.
It was not without extreme difficulty, and the
peremptory exercise of his authority as alcalde
mayor, that Enciso prevailed upon the crew of
Pizarro to return with him to the fated shores of
San Sebastian. He at length arrived in sight of
the long wished-for seat of his anticipated power
and authority; but here he was doomed like his
principal, Ojeda, to meet with nothing but mis-
dixeron que el papa debiera estar boracho quando lo hizo,
pues daba lo que no era suyo, y que el rey que pedia y tomava
tal merced debia ser algun loco pues pedia lo que era de
otros, &c.122 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
fortune. On entering the harbour his vessel struck
on a rock on the eastern point. The rapid cur-
rents and tumultuous waves rent it to pieces; the
crew escaped with great difficulty to the brigan-
tine of Pizarro; a little flour, cheese and biscuit,
and a small part of the arms were saved, hut the
horses, mares, swine and all other colonial supplies
were swept away, and the unfortunate Bachelor
beheld the proceeds of several years of prosperous
litigation swallowed up in an instant.
His dream of place and dignity seemed equally
on the point of vanishing; for, on landing, he found
the fortress and its adjacent houses mere heaps of
ruins, having been destroyed with fire by the In-
dians.
For a few days the Spaniards maintained them-
selves with palm nuts, and with the flesh of a kind
of wild swine, of which they met with several
herds. These supplies failing, the Bachelor sallied
forth with a hundred men to forage the country.
They were waylaid by three Indians, who dis-
charged all the arrows in their quivers with incre-
dible rapidity, wounded several Spaniards, and
then fled with a swiftness that defied pursuit.
The Spaniards returned to the harbour in dismay.
All their dread of the lurking savages and their
poisoned weapons revived, and they insisted upon
abandoning a place marked out for disaster.
The Bachelor Enciso was himself disheartened
at the situation of this boasted capital of San Se-
bastian ;—but whither could he go where the same
misfortunes might not attend him ? In this mo-
ment of doubt and despondency, Vasco Nunez, the
same absconding debtor who had been smuggled onDIEGO DE NICUESA.
1510.]
123
board in the cask, stepped forward to give counsel.
He informed the Bachelor that several years pre-
viously he had sailed along that coast with Rodrigo
de Bastides. They had explored the whole gulf of
Ur aba; and he well remembered an Indian village
situated on the western side, on the banks of a
river which the natives called Darien. The coun-
try around was fertile and abundant, and was said
to possess mines of gold; and the natives, though a
warlike race, never made use of poisoned weapons.
He offered to guide the Bachelor to this place,
where they might get a supply of provisions, and
even found their colony.
The Spaniards hailed the words of Vasco Nunez
as if revealing a land of promise. The Bachelor
adopted his advice, and, guided by him, set sail for
the village, determined to eject the inhabitants and
take possession of it as the seat of government.
Arrived at the river, he landed, put his men in
martial array, and marched along the banks. The
place was governed by a brave cacique named
Zemaco. When he heard of the approach of the
Spaniards, he sent off the women and children to
a place of safety, and, posting himself with five
hundred of his warriors on a height, prepared to
give the intruders a warm reception. The Bachelor
was a discoverer at all points, pious, daring, and
rapacious. On beholding this martial array he
recommended himself and his followers to God,
making a vow in their name to “ Our Lady of An-
tigua,” whose image is adored with great devotion
in Seville, that the first church and town which
they built should be dedicated to her, and that
they would make a pilgrimage to Seville to offer the124 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
spoils of the heathen at her shrine. Having thus
endeavoured to propitiate the favour of heaven,
and to retain the holy Virgin in his cause, he next
proceeded to secure the fidelity of his followers.
Doubting that they might have some lurking dread
of poisoned arrows, he exacted from them all an
oath that they would not turn their backs upon the
foe, whatever might happen. Never did warrior
enter into battle with more preliminary forms and
covenants than the Bachelor Enciso. All these
points being arranged, he assumed the soldier, and
attacked the enemy with such valour, that, though
they made at first a show of fierce resistance, they
were soon put to flight, and many of them slain.
The Bachelor entered the village in triumph, took
possession of it by unquestionable right of conquest,
and plundered all the hamlets and houses of the sur-
rounding country; collecting great quantities of
food and cotton, with bracelets, anklets, plates and
other ornaments of gold, to the value of ten thousand
Castellanos.* His heart was wonderfully elated by
his victory and his booty; his followers, also, after
so many hardships and disasters, gave themselves
up to joy at this turn of good fortune, and it was
unanimously agreed that the seat of government
should be established in this village; to which, in
fulfilment of his vow, Enciso gave the name of
Santa Maria de la Antigua del Darien.
Equivalent to a present sum of 53,259 dollars.1510.]
DIEGO DE NICUESA.
125
CHAPTER X.
The Bachelor Enciso undertakes the Command—His
downfall
The Bachelor Enciso now entered upon the ex-
ercise of his civil functions as Alcalde Mayor, and
Lieutenant of the absent governor, Ojeda. His
first edict was stern and peremptory; he forbade
all trafficking with the natives for gold, on private
account, under pain of death. This was in con-
formity to royal command; but it was little pa-
latable to men who had engaged in the enterprise
in the hopes of enjoying free trade, lawless liberty,
and golden gains. They murmured among them-
selves, and insinuated that Enciso intended to
reserve all the profit to himself.
Vasco Nunez was the first to take advantage of
the general discontent. He had risen to conse-
quence among his fellow-adventurers, from having
guided them to this place, and from his own in-
trinsic qualities, being hardy, bold, and intelligent,
and possessing the random spirit and open-handed
generosity common to a soldier of fortune, and
calculated to dazzle and delight the multitude.
He bore no good will to the bachelor, recollecting
his threat of landing him on an uninhabited island,
when he escaped in a cask from San Domingo.
He sought, therefore, to make a party against him,
and to unseat him from his command. He at-
tacked him in his own way, with legal weapons,
questioning the legitimacy of his pretensions. The126	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
boundary line, he observed, which separated the
jurisdictions of Ojeda and Nicuesa, ran through the
centre of the gulf of Uraba. The village of Darien
lay on the western side, which had been allotted to
Nicuesa. Enciso, therefore, as Alcalde Mayor
and Lieutenant of Ojeda, could have no jurisdic-
tion here, and his assumed authority was a sheer
usurpation.
The Spaniards, already incensed at the fiscal
regulations of Enciso, were easily convinced; so
with one accord they refused allegiance to him ;
and the unfortunate Bachelor found the chair of
authority to which he had so fondly and anxiously
aspired, suddenly wrested from under him, be-
fore he had well time to take his seat.
CHAPTER XI.
Perplexities at the Colony—Arrival of Colmenares.
To depose the Bachelor had been an easy matter,
for most men are ready to assist in pulling down;
but to choose a successor was a task of far more
difficulty. The people at first agreed to elect
mere civil magistrates, and accordingly appointed
'Vasco Nunez and one Zemudio as alcaldes, toge-
ther with a cavalier of some merit of the name of
Valdivia, as regidor. They soon, however, be-
came dissatisfied with this arrangement, and it
was generally considered advisable to vest the
authority in one person. Who this person should
be, was now the question. Some proposed Ni-DIEGO DE NICUESA.
127
1510.]
cuesa, as they were within his province; others
were strenuous for Vasco Nunez. A violent dis-
pute ensued, which was carried on with such
heat and obstinacy, that many, anxious for a quiet
life, declared it would be better to reinstate En-
ciso until the pleasure of the king should be
known.
In the height of these factious altercations the
Spaniards were aroused one day by the thunder-
ing of cannon from the opposite side of the gulf,
and beheld columns of smoke rising from the
hills. Astonished at these signals of civilized
man on these wild shores, they replied in the
same manner, and in a short time two ships were
seen standing across the gulf. They proved to be
an armament commanded by one Rodrigo de Col-
menares, and were in search of Nicuesa with sup-
plies. They had met with the usual luck of ad-
venturers on this disastrous coast, storms at sea
and savage foes on shore, and many of their number
had fallen by poisoned arrows. Colmenares had
touched at San Sebastian to learn tidings of Ni-
cuesa; but, finding the fortress in ruins, had made
signals, in hopes of being heard by the Spaniards,
should they be yet lingering in the neighbour-
hood.
The arrival of Colmenares caused a temporary
suspension of the feuds of the colonists. He
distributed provisions among them, and gained
their hearts. Then, representing the legitimate
right of Nicuesa to the command of all that part
of the coast as a governor appointed by the king,
he persuaded the greater part of the people to
acknowledge his authority. It was generally128	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
agreed, therefore, that he should cruise along the
coast in search of Nicuesa, and that Diego de
Albitez, and an active member of the law, called
the Bachelor Corral, should accompany him as
ambassadors, to invite that cavalier to come and
assume the government of Darien.
CHAPTER XII.
Colmenares goes in quest of Nicuesa.
Roderigo de Colmenares proceeded along the
coast to the westward, looking into every bay and
harbour, but for a long time without success. At
length one day he discovered a brigantine at a
small island in the sea. On making up to it, he
found that it was part of the armament of Nicuesa,
and had been sent out by him to forage for provi-
sions. By this vessel he was piloted to the port
of Nombre de Dios, the nominal capital of the un-
fortunate governor, but which was so surrounded
and over-shadowed by forests, that he might have
passed by without noticing it.
The arrival of Colmenares was welcomed with
transports and tears of joy. It was scarcely pos-
sible for him to recognise the once buoyant and
brilliant Nicuesa in the squalid and dejected man
before him. He was living in the most abject
misery. Of all his once gallant and powerful
band of followers, but sixty men remained, andDIEGO DE NICUESA.
1510.]
129
those so feeble, yellow, emaciated, and woe-be-
gone, that it was piteous to behold them.*
Colmenares distributed food among them, and
told them that he had come to convey them to a
plenteous country, and one rich in gold. When
Nicuesa heard of the settlement at Darien, and
that the inhabitants had sent for him to come and
govern them, he was as a man suddenly revived
from death. All the spirit and munificence of the
cavalier again awakened in him. He gave a kind
of banquet that very day to Colmenares and the
ambassadors, from the provisions brought in the
ship. He presided at his table with his former
hilarity, and displayed a feat of his ancient office
as royal carver, by holding up a fowl in the air
and dissecting it with wonderful adroitness.
Well would it have been for Nicuesa had the
sudden buoyancy of his feelings carried him no
further; but adversity had not taught him pru-
dence. In conversing with the envoys about the
colony of Darien, he already assumed the tone of
governor, and began to disclose the kind of po-
* The harbour of Nombrede Dios continued for a longtime
to present traces of the sufferings of the Spaniards. We are
told by Herrera, that several years after the time here men-
tioned, a band of eighty Spanish soldiers, commanded by Gon-
zalo de Badajos, arrived at the harbour with an intention of
penetrating into the interior. They found there the ruined
fort of N icuesa, together with sculls and bones, and crosses
erected on heaps of stones, dismal mementos of his followers
who had perished of hunger; the sight of which struck such
horror and dismay into the hearts of the soldiers that they
would have abandoned their enterprise, had not their intrepid
captain immediately sent away the ships and thus deprived
them of the means of retreating. Herrera, d. 11. 1. i.130 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
licy with which he intended to rule. When he
heard that great quantities of gold had been col-
lected and retained by private individuals, his ire
was kindled. He vowed to make them refund it,
and even talked of punishing them for trespassing
upon the privileges and monopolies of the crown.
This was the very error that had unseated the
Bachelor Enciso from his government, and it was
a strong measure for one to threaten who as yet
wras governor but in expectation. The menace was
not lost upon the watchful ambassadors Diego de
Albitez and the Bachelor Corral. They wrere put
still more on the alert by a conversation which
they held that very evening with Lope de Olano,
who was still detained a prisoner for his desertion,
but who found means to commune with the en-
voys, and to prejudice them against his unsuspect-
ing commander. “ Take warning,” said he, “ by
my treatment. I sent relief to Nicuesa and res-
cued him from death when starving on a desert
island. Behold my recompense. He repays me
with imprisonment and chains. Such is the gra-
titude the people of Darien may look for at his
hands!”
The subtle Bachelor Corral and his fellow en-
voy laid these matters to heart, and took their
measures accordingly. They hurried their depar-
ture before Nicuesa, and setting all sail on their
caravel, hastened back to Darien. The moment
they arrived they summoned a meeting of the
principal inhabitants. “ A blessed change we have
made,” said they, “ in summoning this Diego de
Nicuesa to the command! We have called in the
stork to take the rule, who will not rest satisfiedDIEGO DE NICUESA.
131
1510]
until he has devoured us.” They then related,
with the usual exaggeration, the unguarded threats
that had fallen from Nicuesa, and instanced his
treatment of Olano as a proof of a tyrannous and
ungrateful disposition.
The words of the subtle Bachelor Corral and his
associate produced a violent agitation among the
people, especially among those who had amassed
treasures which would have to be refunded. Ni-
cuesa, too, by a transaction which almost destroys
sympathy in his favour, gave time for their pas-
sions to ferment. On his way to Darien he
stopped for several days among a group of small
islands, for the purpose of capturing Indians to be
sold as slaves. While committing these outrages
against humanity, he sent forward Juan de Cayzedo
in a boat to announce his coming. His messenger
had a private pique against him, and played him
false. He assured the people of Darien that all
they had been told by their envoys concerning the
tyranny and ingratitude of Nicuesa was true; —that
he treated his followers with wanton severity; that
he took from them all they won in battle, saying
that the spoils were his rightful property; and
that it was his intention to treat the people of
Darien in the same manner. “ What folly is it in
you,” added he, “ being your own masters, and in
such free condition, to send for a tyrant to rule
over you !”
The people of Darien were convinced by this
concurring testimony, and confounded by the
overwhelming evil they had thus invoked upon
their heads. They had deposed Enciso for his
severity, and they had thrown themselves into the
k 2132
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
power of one who threatened to be ten times more
severe ! Vasco Nunez de Balboa observed their
perplexity and consternation. He drew them one
by one apart, and conversed with them in pri-
vate. “ You are cast down in heart,” said he,
“ and so you might well be, were the evil beyond
all cure. But do not despair; there is an effectual
relief, and you hold it in your hands. If you have
committed an error in inviting Nicuesa to Darien,
it is easily remedied by not receiving him when he
comes!” The obviousness and simplicity of the
remedy struck every mind, and it was unanimously
adopted.
CHAPTER XIII.
Catastrophe of the unfortunate Nicuesa.
While this hostile plot was maturing at Darien,
the unsuspecting Nicuesa pursued his voyage
leisurely and serenely, and arrived in safety at the
mouth of the river. On approaching the shore he
beheld a multitude, headed by Vasco Nunez,
waiting, as he supposed, to receive him with all
due honour. He was about to land when the
public procurator, or attorney, called to him with
a loud voice, warning him not to disembark, but
advising him to return .with all speed to his go-
vernment at Nombre de Dios.
Nicuesa remained for a moment as if thunder-
struck by so unlooked for a salutation. When he
recovered his self-possession he reminded them1511.]	DIEGO DE NICUESA.	133
that he had come at their own request; he en-
treated, therefore, that he might be allowed to
land and have an explanation, after which he
would be ready to act as they thought proper.
His entreaties were vain ; they only provoked in-
solent replies, and threats of violence should he
venture to put foot on shore. Night coming on,
therefore, he was obliged to stand out to sea, but
returned the next morning, hoping to find this
capricious people in a different mood.
There did, indeed, appear to be a favourable
change, for he was now invited to land. It was a
mere stratagem to get him in their power; for no
sooner did he set foot on shore than the multitude
rushed forward to seize him. Among his many
bodily endowments, Nicuesa was noted for swift-
ness of foot. He now trusted to it for safety,
and, throwing off the dignity of governor, fled for
his life along the shore, pursued by the rabble.
He soon distanced his pursuers, and took refuge
in the woods.
Vasco Nunez de Balboa, who was himself a
man of birth, seeing this high-bred cavalier re-
duced to such extremity, and at the mercy of a
violent rabble, repented of what he had done. He
had not anticipated such popular fury, and endea-
voured, though too late, to allay the tempest he
had raised. He succeeded in preventing the
people from pursuing Nicuesa into the forest,
and then endeavoured to mollify the vindictive
rage of his fellow alcalde, Zamudio, whose hosti-
lity was quickened by the dread of losing his
office, should the new governor be receivedand134 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1511.
who was supported in his boisterous conduct by
the natural love of the multitude for what are called
“ strong measures.” Nicuesa now held a parley
with the populace, through the mediation of Vasco
Nunez. He begged that, if they would not ac-
knowledge him as governor, they would at least
admit him as a companion. This they refused,
saying, that if they admitted him in one capacity,
he would end by attaining to the other. He then
implored that, if he could be admitted on no other
terms, they would treat him as a prisoner, and put
him in irons, for he would rather die among them
than return to Nombre de Dios, to perish of fa-
mine, or by the arrows of the Indians.
It was in vain that Vasco Nunez exerted his
eloquence to obtain some grace for this unhappy
cavalier. His voice was drowned by the vocifer-
ations of the multitude. Among these was a
noisy swaggering fellow named Francisco Benitez,
a great talker and jester, who took a vulgar tri-
umph in the distresses of a cavalier, and answered
every plea in his behalf with scoffs and jeers. He
was an adherent of the alcalde Zamudio, and un-
der his patronage felt emboldened to bluster. His
voice was ever uppermost in the general clamour,
until, to the expostulations of Vasco Nunez, he
replied by merely bawling, with great vocifera-
tion, “ No, no, no!—we will receive no such a
fellow among us as Nicuesa!” The patience of
Vasco Nunez was exhausted ; he availed himself
of his authority as alcalde, and suddenly, before
his fellow magistrate could interfere, ordered the
brawling ruffian to be rewarded with a hundredDIEGO DE NICUESA.
135
1511.]
lashes, which were taled out roundly to him upon
the shoulders.*
Seeing that the fury of the populace was not to
be pacified, he sent word to Nicuesa to retire to
his brigantine, and not to venture on shore until
advised by him to do so. The counsel was fruitless.
Nicuesa, above deceit himself, suspected it not
in others. He retired to his brigantines, it is true,
but suffered himself to be inveigled on shore by a
deputation professing to come on the part of the
public, with offers to reinstate him as governor.
He had scarcely landed when he was set upon by
an armed band, headed by the base minded
Zamudio, who seized him and compelled him, by
menaces of death, to swear that he would imme-
diately depart, and make no delay in any place
until he had presented himself before the king
and council in Castile.
It was in vain that Nicuesa reminded them that
he was governor of that territory and representa-
tive of the king, and that they were guilty of trea-
son in thus opposing him; it was in vain that he
appealed to their humanity, or protested before
God against their cruelty and persecution. The
people were in that state of tumult when they are
apt to add cruelty to injustice. Not content with
expelling the discarded governor from their shores,
they allotted him the worst vessel in the harbour ;
an old crazy brigantine totally unfit to encounter
the perils and labours of the sea.
Seventeen followers embarked with him ; some
being of his household and attached to his person ;
* Las Casas, Hist. Ind. 1. ii. c. 68.136 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1511.
the rest were volunteers, who accompanied him
out of respect and sympathy. The frail bark set
sail on the first of March, 1511, and steered
across the Caribbean sea for the island of Hispa-
niola, but was never seen or heard of more !
Various attempts have been made to penetrate
the mystery that covers the fate of the brigantine
and its crew. A rumour prevailed some years
afterwards, that several Spaniards, wandering
along the shore of Cuba, found the following in-
scription carved on a tree;—
Aqui fenecio el desdichado Nicuesa.*
Hence it was inferred that he and his followers
had landed there, and been massacred by the In-
dians. Las Casas, however, discredits this story.
He accompanied the first Spaniards who took
possession of Cuba, and heard nothing of the fact,
as he most probably would have done had it really
occurred. He imagines, rather, that the crazy
bark was swallowed up by the storms and cur-
rents of the Caribbean sea, or that the crew pe-
rished with hunger and thirst, having been but
scantily supplied with provisions. The good old
bishop adds, with the superstitious feeling preva-
lent in that age, that a short time before Nicuesa
sailed from Spain on his expedition, an astrologer
warned him not to depart on the day he had ap-
pointed, or under a certain sign; the cavalier re-
plied, however, that he had less confidence in the
stars than in God who made them. “ I recollect,
moreover,” adds Las Casas, “ that about this time
* Here perished the unfortunate Nicuesa.DIEGO DE NICUESA.
137
1511.]
a comet was seen over this island of Hispaniola,
which, if I do not forget, w as in the shape of a
sword; and it was said that a monk warned
several of those about to embark with Nicuesa,
to avoid that captain, for the heavens foretold he
was destined to be lost. The same, however,”
he concludes, “ might be said of Alonzo de Ojeda,
who sailed at the same time, yet returned to San
Domingo and died in his bed.”*
* Las Casas, ut sup. c. 68.( 138 )
[1511.
VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA,
DISCOVERER OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN.
CHAPTER I.
Factions at Darien — Vasco Nunez elevated to the
Command.
We have traced the disastrous fortunes of Alonzo
de Ojeda and Diego de Nicuesa;—we have now to
record the story of Vasco Nunez de Balboa, an ad-
venturer equally daring, far more renowned, and
not less unfortunate, who in a manner rose upon
their ruins.
When the bark disappeared from view which
bore the ill-starred Nicuesa from the shores of
Darien, the community relapsed into factions, as
to who should have the rule. The Bachelor Enciso
insisted upon his claims as paramount, but he met
with a powerful opponent in Vasco Nunez, who
had become a great favourite with the people, from
his frank and fearless character, and his winning
affability. In fact, he was peculiarly calculated to
manage the fiery and factious, yet generous and
susceptible, nature of his countrymen ; for the
Spaniards, though proud and resentful, and impa-
tient of indignity or restraint, are easily dazzled
by valour, and won by courtesy and kindness.
Vasco Nunez had the external requisites also to1511.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	139
captivate the multitude. He was now about thirty-
five years of age ; tall, well formed, and vigorous,
with reddish hair, and an open prepossessing coun-
tenance. His office of alcalde, while it clothed
him with influence and importance, tempered those
irregular and dissolute habits he might have in-
dulged while a mere soldier of fortune; and his
superior talent soon gave him a complete ascen-
dancy over his official colleague Zamudio. He was
thus enabled to set on foot a vigorous opposition to
Enciso. Still he proceeded according to the forms
of law, and summoned the Bachelor to trial, on
the charge of usurping the powers of alcalde mayor,
on the mere appointment of Alonzo de Ojeda,
whose jurisdiction did not extend to this province.
Enciso was an able lawyer, and pleaded his cause
skilfully; but his claims were, in fact, fallacious,
and, had they not been so, he had to deal with
men who cared little for law, wrho had been irri-
tated by his legal exactions, and who were dis-
posed to be governed by a man of the sword
rather than of the robe. He was readily found
guilty therefore, and thrown into prison, and all
his property was confiscated. This was a violent
verdict, and rashly executed ; but justice seemed
to grow fierce and wild when transplanted to the
wilderness of the new world. Still there is no
place where wrong can be committed with im-
punity ; the oppression of the Bachelor Enciso,
though exercised under the forms of law, and in a
region remote from the pale of civilized life, re-
dounded to the eventual injury of Vasco Nunez,
and contributed to blast the fruits of that ambition
it was intended to promote.140 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1511.
The fortunes of the enterprising Bachelor had
indeed run strangely counter to the prospects with
which he had embarked at San Domingo ; he had
become a culprit at the bar instead of a judge upon
the bench; and now was left to ruminate in a pri-
son on the failure of his late attempt at general
command. His friends, however, interceded warmly
in his behalf, and at length obtained his release
from confinement, and permission for him to return
to Spain. Vasco Nunez foresaw that the lawyer
would be apt to plead his cause more effectually at
the court of Castile than he had done before the
partial and prejudiced tribunal of Darien. He pre-
vailed upon his fellow alcalde Zamudio, therefore,
who was implicated with him in the late transac-
tions, to return to Spain in the same vessel with
the Bachelor, so as to be on the spot to answer his
charges, and to give a favourable report of the
case. He was also instructed to set forth the ser-
vices of Vasco Nunez, both in guiding the colonists
to this place, and in managing the affairs of the
settlement; and to dwell with emphasis on the
symptoms of great riches in the surrounding
country.
The Bachelor and the Alcalde embarked in a
small caravel; and, as it was to touch at Hispaniola,
Vasco Nunez sent his confidential friend, the
Regidor Valdivia, to that island to obtain provi-
sions and recruits. He secretly put into his hands
a round sum of gold as a present to Miguel de
Pasamonte, the royal treasurer of Hispaniola,
whom he knew to have great credit with the king,
and to be invested with extensive powers, craving
at the same time his protection in the new world
and his influence at court.1511.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	141
Having taken these shrewd precautions, Vasco
Nunez saw the caravel depart without dismay,
though bearing to Spain his most dangerous enemy;
he consoled himself, moreover, with the reflection
that it likewise bore off his fellow alcalde Zamudio,
and thus left him in sole command of the colony.
CHAPTER II.
Expedition to Coyba— Vasco Nunez receives the daughter
of a Cacique as hostage.
Vasco Nunez now exerted himself to prove his
capacity for the government to which he had
aspired ; and as he knew that no proof was more
convincing to King Ferdinand than ample remit-
tances, and that gold covered all sins in the new
world, his first object was to discover those parts
of the country which most abounded in the pre-
cious metals. Hearing exaggerated reports of the
riches of a province about thirty leagues distant,
called Coyba, he sent Francisco Pizarro with six
men to explore it.
The Cacique Zemaco, the native lord of Darien,
who cherished a bitter hostility against the Eu-
ropean intruders, and hovered with his warriors
about the settlement, received notice of this de-
tachment from his spies, and planted himself in
ambush to waylay and destroy it. The Spaniards
had scarcely proceeded three leagues along the
course of the river when a host of savages burst
upon them from the surrounding thickets, uttering142 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1511.
frightful yells, and discharging showers of stones
and arrows. Pizarro and his men, though sorely
bruised and wounded, rushed into the thickest of
the foe, slew many, wounded more, and put the
rest to flight; but, fearing another assault, they
made a precipitate retreat, leaving one of their
companions, Francisco Hernan, disabled on the
field. They arrived at the settlement crippled and
bleeding ; but when Vasco Nunez heard the parti-
culars of the action, his anger was roused against
Pizarro, and he ordered him, though wounded, to
return immediately and recover the disabled man.
u Let it not be said, for shame,” said he, “ that
Spaniards fled before savages, and left a comrade
in their hands !” Pizarro felt the rebuke, returned
to the scene of combat, and brought off Francisco
Hernan in safety.
Nothing having been heard of Nicuesa since his
departure, Vasco Nunez despatched two brigantines
for those followers of that unfortunate adventurer
who had remained at Nombre de Dios. They were
overjoyed at being rescued from their forlorn
situation, and conveyed to a settlement where there
was some prospect of comfortable subsistence.
The brigantines, in coasting the shores of the Isth-
mus, picked up two Spaniards, clad in painted
skins, and looking as wild as the native Indians.
These men, to escape some punishment, had fled
from the ship of Nicuesa about a year and a half
before, and had taken refuge with Careta, the caci-
que of Coyba. The savage chieftain had treated
them with hospitable kindness ; their first return
for which, now that they found themselves safe
among their countrymen, was to advise the latter1511.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA	14S
to invade the cacique in his dwelling, where they
assured them they would find immense booty.
Finding their suggestion listened to, one of them
proceeded to Darien, to serve as a guide to any
expedition that might be set on foot; the other
returned to the cacique, to assist in betraying him.
Vasco Nunez was elated by the intelligence re-
ceived through these vagabonds of the wilder-
ness. He chose a hundred and thirty well-
armed and resolute men, and set off for Coyba.
The cacique received the Spaniards in his man-
sion with the accustomed hospitality of a savage,
setting before them meat and drink, and what-
ever his house afforded; but when Vasco Nunez
asked for a large supply of provisions for the co-
lony, he declared that he had none to spare, his
people having been prevented from cultivating
the soil by a war which he was waging with the
neighbouring cacique of Ponca. The Spanish out-
cast, who had remained to betray his benefactor,
now took Vasco Nunez aside, and assured him that
the cacique had an abundant hoard of provisions
in secret; he advised him, however, to seem to
believe his words, and to make a pretended de-
parture for Darien with his troops, but to return
in the night and take the village by surprise. Vasco
Nunez adopted the advice of the traitor. He took
a cordial leave of Careta, and set off for the settle-
ment. In the dead of the night, however, when
the savages were buried in deep sleep, Vasco Nunez
led his men into the midst of the village, and, be-
fore the inhabitants could rouse themselves to
resistance, made captives of Careta, his wives, and
children, and many of his people. He discovered144 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1511.
also the hoard of provisions, with which he loaded
two brigantines, and returned with his booty and
his captives to Darien.
Whdn the unfortunate cacique beheld his family
in chains, and in the hands of strangers, his heart
was wrung with despair; “ What have I done to
thee,” said he to Vasco Nunez, “ that thou shouldst
treat me thus cruelly? none of thy people ever
came to my land that were not fed, and shel-
tered, and treated with loving kindness. When
thou earnest to my dwelling, did I meet thee with
a javelin in my hand ? Did I not set meat and
drink before thee, and welcome thee as a brother ?
Set me free, therefore, with my family and people,
and we will remain thy friends. We will supply
thee with provisions, and reveal to thee the riches
of the land. Dost thou doubt my faith ? Behold
my daughter, I give her to thee as a pledge of
friendship. Take her for thy wife, and be assured
of the fidelity of her family and her people!”
Vasco Nunez felt the force of these words, and
knew the importance of forming a strong alliance
among the natives. The captive maid, also, as
she stood trembling and dejected before him, found
great favour in his eyes, for she wTas young and
beautiful. He granted, therefore, the prayer of
the cacique, and accepted his daughter, engaging,
moreover, to aid the father against his enemies, on
condition of his furnishing provisions to the colony.
Careta remained three days at Darien, during
which time he was treated with the utmost kind-
ness. Vasco Nunez took him on board of his
ships, and showed him every part of them. He
displayed before him also the war horses, withVASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
145
1511.]
their armour and rich caparisons, and astonished
him with the thunder of artillery. Lest he should
be too much daunted by these warlike spectacles,
he caused the musicians to perform a harmonious
concert on their instruments, at which the cacique
was lost in admiration. Thus having impressed
him with a wonderful idea of the power and en-
dowments of his new allies, he loaded him with
presents, and permitted him to depart.*
Careta returned joyfully to his territories, and
his daughter remained with Vasco Nunez, willingly
for his sake giving up her family and native home.
They were never married, hut she considered her-
self his wife, as she really was, according to the
usages of her own country; and he treated her
with fondness, allowing her gradually to acquire
great influence over him. To his affection for
this damsel, his ultimate ruin is in some measure
to be ascribed.
CHAPTER III.
Vasco Nunez hears of a Sea beyond the Mountains.
Vasco Nunez kept his word with the father of
his Indian beauty. Taking with him eighty men,
and his companion in arms Rodrigo Enriquez de
Colmenares, he repaired by sea to Coyba the pro-
vince of the cacique. Here landing he invaded the
territories of Ponca, the great adversary of Careta,
and obliged him to take refuge in the mountains.
* P. Martyr, D. 3. c. vi-
L146
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1511.
He then ravaged his lands, aud sacked his villages,
in which he found considerable booty. Returning
to Coyba, where he was joyfully entertained by
Careta, he next made a friendly visit to the
adjacent province of Comagre, which was under
the sway of a cacique, of the same name, who had
3000 fighting men at his command.
This province was situated at the foot of a lofty
mountain in a beautiful plain, twelve leagues in
extent. On the approach of Vasco Nunez, the
cacique came forth to meet him, attended by seven
sons, all fine young men, the offspring of his vari-
ous wives. He was followed by his principal
chiefs and warriors, and by a multitude of his
people. The Spaniards were conducted with great
ceremony to the village, where quarters were as-
signed them, and they were furnished with abun-
dance of provisions, and men and women were
appointed to attend upon them.
The dwelling of the cacique surpassed any they
had yet seen for magnitude, and for the skill and
solidity of the architecture. It was one hundred and
fifty paces in length, and eighty in breadth, founded
upon great logs, surrounded with a stone wall;
while the upper part was of wood work, curiously
interwoven, and wrought with such beauty as to
fill the Spaniards with surprise and admiration. It
contained many commodious apartments. There
were store rooms also ; one filled with bread, with
venison, and other provisions ; another with various
spirituous beverages, which the Indians made from
maize, from a species of the palm, and from roots
of different kinds. There was also a great hall in
a retired and secret part of the building, wherein1511.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	147
Comagre preserved the bodies of his ancestors and
relatives. These had been dried by the fire, so as
to free them from corruption, and afterwards
wrapped in mantles of cotton, richly wrought and
interwoven with pearls and jewels of gold, and
with certain stones held precious by the natives.
They were then hung about the hall with cords of
cotton, and regarded with great reverence, if not a
species of religious devotion.
Among the sons of the cacique, the eldest was
of a lofty and generous spirit, and distinguished
above the rest by his superior intelligence and
sagacity. Perceiving, says old Peter Martyr, that
the Spaniards were a “ wandering kind of men,
living only by shifts and spoil,” he sought to gain
favour for himself and family by gratifying their
avarice. He gave Vasco Nunez and Golmenares,
therefore, 4000 ounces of gold, wrought into
various ornaments, together with sixty slaves,
being captives that he had taken in the wars.
Vasco Nunez ordered one fifth of the gold to be
weighed out and set apart for the crown, and the
rest to be shared among his followers.
The division of the gold took place in the porch
of the dwelling of Comagre, in the presence of the
youthful cacique who had made the gift. As the
Spaniards were weighing it out, a violent quarrel
arose among them as to the size and value of the
pieces which fell to their respective shares. The
high minded savage was disgusted at this sordid
brawl among beings whom he had regarded with
such reverence. In the first impulse of his disdain
he struck the scales with his fist, and scattered
the glittering gold about the porch. Before the
l 2148 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1511.
strangers could recover from their astonishment
at this sudden act, he thus addressed them, “ Why
should you quarrel for such a trifle ? If this gold
is indeed so precious in your eyes, that for it
alone you abandon your homes, invade the peace-
ful lands of others, and expose yourselves to such
sufferings and perils, I will tell you of a region
where you may gratify your wishes to the ut-
most. Behold those lofty mountains,” continued
he, pointing to the south; “ beyond these lies a
mighty sea, which may be discerned from their
summit. It is navigated by people who have
vessels almost as large as yours, and furnished, like
them, with sails and oars. All the streams which
flow down the southern side of those mountains
into that sea abound in gold; and the kings who
reign upon its borders eat and drink out of golden
vessels. Gold, in fact, is as plentiful and common
among those people of the south as iron is among
you Spaniards.”
Struck with this intelligence, Vasco Nunez in-
quired eagerly as to the means of penetrating to
this sea and to the opulent regions on its shores.
“ The task,” replied the prince, “ is difficult and
dangerous. You must pass through the territories
of many powerful caciques, who will oppose you
with hosts of warriors. Some parts of the moun-
tains are infested by fierce and cruel cannibals, a
wandering lawless race: but, above all, you will
have to encounter the great cacique Tubanam&,
whose territories are at the distance of six days
journey, and more rich in gold than any other
province; this cacique will be sure to come forth
against you with a mighty force. To accomplish1511.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	149
your enterprise, therefore, will require at least a
thousand men armed like those who follow you.”
The youthful cacique gave him further informa-
tion on the subject, collected from various cap-
tives whom he had taken in battle, and from one
of his own nation, who had been for a long time
in captivity to Tubanama, the powerful cacique of
the golden realm. The prince, moreover, offered
to prove the sincerity of his words by accompany-
ing Vasco Nunez, in any expedition to those parts,
at the head of his father’s warriors.
Such was the first intimation received by Vasco
Nunez of the Pacific Ocean and its golden realms,
and it had an immediate effect upon his whole
character and conduct. This hitherto wandering
and desperate man had now an enterprise opened
to his ambition, which, if accomplished, would
elevate him to fame and fortune, and entitle him
to rank among the great captains and discoverers
of the earth. Henceforth the discovery of the sea
beyond the mountains was the great object of his
thoughts, and his whole spirit seemed roused and
ennobled by the idea.
He hastened his return to Darien, to make the
necessary preparations for this splendid enter-
prise. Before departing from the province of Co-
magre he baptized that cacique by the name of
Don Carlos, and performed the same ceremony
upon his sons and several of his subjectsthus
singularly did avarice and religion go hand in hand
in the conduct of the Spanish discoverers.
Scarcely had Vasco Nunez returned to Darien
when the Regidor Valdivia arrived there from His-
paniola, but with no more provisions than could150	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1511.
be brought in his small caravel. These were soon
consumed, and the general scarcity continued. It
was heightened also by a violent tempest of thun-
der, lightning, and rain, which brought such tor-
rents from the mountains that the river swelled
and overflowed its banks, laying waste all the ad-
jacent fields that had been cultivated. In this
extremity Vasco Nunez despatched Valdivia a se-
cond time to Hispaniola for provisions. Animated
also by the loftier views of his present ambition,
he wrote to Don Diego Columbus, who governed
at San Domingo, informing him of the intelligence
he had received of a great sea and opulent realms
beyond the mountains, and entreating him to use
his influence with the king that one thousand men
might be immediately furnished him for the prose-
cution of so grand a discovery. He sent him also
the amount of fifteen thousand crowns in gold, to
be remitted to the king as the royal fifths of what
had already been collected under his jurisdiction.
Many of his followers, likewise, forwarded sums of
gold to be remitted to their creditors in Spain.
In the mean time, Vasco Nunez prayed the admiral
to yield him prompt succour to enable him to keep
his footing in the land, representing the difficulty
he had in maintaining, with a mere handful of
men, so vast a country in a state of subjection.1512.]
(	151	)
CHAPTER IV.
Expedition of Vasco Nunez in quest of the Golden Temple
of Dobayba.—(151*2.)
While Vasco Nunez awaited the result of this
mission of Valdivia, his active disposition prompt-
ed him to undertake foraging excursions into the
surrounding country.
Among various rumours of golden realms in the
interior of this unknown land, was one concern-
ing a province called Dobayba, situated about
forty leagues distant, on the banks of a great river
which emptied itself, by several mouths, into a
corner of the Gulf of Uraba.
This province derived its name, according to
Indian tradition, from a mighty female of the olden
time, the mother of the god who created the sun
and moon and all good things. She had power
over the elements, sending thunder and lightning to
lay waste the lands of those who displeased her,
but showering down fertility and abundance upon
the possessions of her faithful worshippers. Others
described her as having been an Indian princess,
who once reigned amongst the mountains of Do-
bayba, and was renowned throughout the land for
her supernatural power and wisdom. After her
death, divine honours were paid her, and a great
temple was erected for her worship. Hither the
natives repaired from far and near, on a kind of
pilgrimage, bearing offerings of their most valua-
ble effects. The caciques who ruled over distant
territories also sent golden tributes, at certain152 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512.
times of the year, to be deposited in this temple,
and slaves to be sacrificed at its shrine. At one
time, it was added, this worship fell into disuse,
the pilgrimages were discontinued, and the ca-
ciques neglected to send their tributes; where-
upon the deity, as a punishment, inflicted a
drought upon the country. The springs and foun-
tains failed, the rivers were dried up ; the inhabit-
ants of the mountains were obliged to descend into
the plains, where they digged pits and wells, hut
these likewise failing, a great part of the nations
perished with thirst. The remainder hastened to
propitiate the deity by tributes and sacrifices, and
thus succeeded in averting her displeasure. In
consequence of offerings of the kind, made for
generations from all parts of the country, the
temple was said to be filled with treasure, and its
walls to be covered with golden gifts.* In addition
to the tale of this temple, the Indians gave marvel-
lous accounts of the general wealth of this pro-
vince, declaring that it abounded with mines of
gold, the veins of which reached from the dwelling
of the cacique to the borders of his dominions.
To penetrate to this territory, and above all to
secure the treasures of the golden temple, was an
enterprise suited to the adventurous spirit of the
Spaniards. Vasco Nunez chose one hundred and
seventy of his hardiest men for the purpose. Em-
barking them in two brigantines and a number of
canoes, he set sail from Darien, and, after standing
about nine leagues to the east, came to the mouth
of the Rio Grande de San Juan, or the Great
River of St.John, also called the Atrato, which is
* P. Martyr, decad. 3. c. vi. Idem. d. 7. c., x.1512.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	153
since ascertained to be one of the branches of the
river Darien. Here he detached Rodrigo Enri-
quez de Colmenares with one third of his forces
to explore the stream, wdiile he himself proceeded
with the residue to another branch of the river,
which he was told flowed from the province of
Dobayba, and which he ascended, flushed with
sanguine expectations.*
His old enemy Zemaco, the cacique of Darien,
however, had discovered the object of his expe-
dition, and had taken measures to disappoint it:
repairing to the province of Dobayba, he had pre-
vailed upon its cacique to retire at the approach of
the Spaniards, leaving his country deserted.
Vasco Nunez found a village situated in a
marshy neighbourhood, on the banks of the river,
and mistook it for the residence of the cacique :
it was silent and abandoned. There was not an
Indian to be met with from whom he could obtain
any information about the country, or who could
guide him to the golden temple. He was disap-
* In recording this expedition, the author has followed the
old Spanish narratives, written when the face of the country
was but little known, and he was much perplexed to reconcile
the accounts given of numerous streams with the rivers laid
down on modern maps. By a clear and judicious explanation,
given in the recent work of Don Manuel Josef Quintana, it
appears that the different streams explored by Vasco Nunez
and Colmenares were all branches of one grand river, which,
descending from the mountains of the interior, winds about in
crystal streams among the plains and morasses bordering the
bottom of the great gulf of Darien, and discharges itself by
various mouths into the gulf. In fact, the stream which ran
by the infant city of Santa Maria de la Antigua was but one
of its branches, a fact entirely unknown to Vasco Nunez and
his companions.154 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512,
pointed, also, in his hopes of obtaining a supply of
provisions, but he found weapons of various kinds
hanging in the deserted houses, and gathered
jewels and pieces of gold to the value of seven
thousand Castellanos. Discouraged by the savage
look of the surrounding wilderness, which was
perplexed by deep morasses, and having no guides
to aid him in exploring it, he put all the booty he
had collected into two large canoes, and made his
way back to the GulfofUraba. Here he was as-
sailed by a violent tempest which nearly wrecked
his two brigantines, and obliged him to throw a
great part of their cargoes overboard. The two
canoes containing the booty were swallowed up
by the raging sea, and all their crews perished.
Thus baffled and tempest-tost, Vasco Nunez at
length succeeded in getting into what was termed
the Grand River, which he ascended, and rejoined
Colmenares and his detachment. They now ex-
tended their excursions up a stream which emptied
itself into the Grand River, and which, from the
dark hue of its waters, they called Rio Negro, or
the black river. They also explored certain other
tributary streams, branching from it, though not
without occasional skirmishes with the natives.
Ascending one of these minor rivers with a part
of his men, Vasco Nunez came to the territories
of a cacique named Abibeyba, who reigned over a
region of marshes and shallow lakes. The habita-
tions of the natives were built amidst the branches
of immense and lofty trees. They were large
enough to contain whole family connexions, and
were constructed partly of wood, partly of a kind
of wicker work, combining strength and pliability,VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
\
155
1512.]
and yielding uninjured to the motion of the
branches when agitated by the wind. The inha-
bitants ascended to them, with great agility, by
light ladders, formed of great reeds split through
the middle, for the reeds on this coast grow to the
thickness of a man's body. These ladders they
drew up after them at night, or in case of attack.
These habitations were well stocked with provi-
sions ; but the fermented beverages, of which
these people had always a supply, were buried in
vessels in the earth, at the foot of the tree, lest
they should be rendered turbid by the rocking of
the houses. Close by, also, were the canoes with
which they navigated the rivers and ponds of their
marshy country, and followed their main occupa-
tion of fishing.
On the approach of the Spaniards, the Indians
took refuge in their tree-built castles, and drew
up the ladders. The former called upon them to
descend and to fear nothing. Upon this the cacique
replied, entreating that he might not be molested,
seeing he had done them no injury. They threat-
ened, unless he came down, to fell the trees, or to
set fire to them and burn him and his wives and
children. The cacique was disposed to consent,
but was prevented by the entreaties of his people.
Upon this the Spaniards prepared to hew down
the trees, but were assailed by showers of
stones. They covered themselves however with
their bucklers, assailed the trees vigorously with
their hatchets, and soon compelled the inhabitants
to capitulate. The cacique descended with his
wife and two of his children. The first demand
of the Spaniards was for gold. He assured their156 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512.
he had none; for, having no need of it, he had
never made it an object of his search. Being im-
portuned, however, he assured them that if he
were permitted to repair to certain mountains at
a distance, he would in a few days return, and
bring them what they desired. They permitted
him to depart, retaining his w7ife and children as
hostages, but they saw no more of the cacique.
After remaining here a few days, and regaling on
the provisions wdiich they found in abundance,
they continued their foraging expeditions, often
opposed by the bold and warlike natives, and
suffering occasional loss, but inflicting great havoc
on their opposers.
Having thus overrun a considerable extent of
country, and no grand object presenting to lure
him on to further enterprise, Vasco Nunez at
length returned to Darien with the spoils and
captives he had taken, leaving Bartolome Hurtado
with thirty men in an Indian village on the Rio
Negro, or Black River, to hold the country in sub-
jection. Thus terminated the first expedition in
quest of the golden temple Dobayba, which, for
some time, continued to be a favourite object of
enterprise among the adventurers of Darien.1512.]
( 157 )
CHAPTER V.
Disaster on the Black River.—Indian plot against
Darien.
Bartolome Hurtado, being left to his own dis-
cretion on the banks of the Black River, occupied
himself occasionally in hunting the scattered na-
tives who straggled about the surrounding forests.
Having in this way picked up twenty-four captives,
he put them on board of a large canoe, like so
much live stock, to be transported to Darien and
sold as slaves. Twenty of his followers, who
were infirm either from wounds or the diseases of
the climate, embarked also in the canoe, so that
only ten men remained with Hurtado.
The great canoe, thus heavily freighted, de-
scended the Black River slowly, between banks
over hung with forests. Zemaco, the indefatigable
cacique of Darien, was on the watch, and waylaid
the ark with four canoes filled with warriors, armed
with war clubs and lances hardened in the fire.
The Spaniards, being sick, could make but feeble
resistance; some were massacred, others leaped
into the river and were drowned. Two only es-
caped, by clinging to two trunks of trees that
were floating down the river, and covering them-
selves with the branches. Reaching the shore in
safety, they returned to Bartolome Hurtado with
the tragical tidings of the death of his followers.
Hurtado was so disheartened by the news, and
so dismayed at his own helpless situation, in the
midst of a hostile country, that he resolved to158 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512.
abandon the fatal shores of the Black River, and re-
turn to Darien. He was quickened in this resolu-
tion by receiving intimation of a conspiracy form-
ing among the natives. The implacable Zemaco
had drawn four other caciques into a secret plan
to assemble their vassals and make a sudden at-
tack upon Darien: Hurtado hastened with the
remnant of his followers to carry tidings to the
settlement of this conspiracy. Many of the in-
habitants were alarmed at his intelligence ; others
treated it as a false rumour of the Indians, and no
preparations were made against what might be a
mere imaginary danger.
Fortunately for the Spaniards, among the female
captives owned by Vasco Nunez was an Indian
damsel named Fulvia; to whom, in consequence
of her beauty, he had shown great favour, and
who had become strongly attached to him. She
had a brother among the warriors of Zemaco, who
often visited her in secret. In one of his visits,
he informed her that on a certain night the settle-
ment would be attacked and every Spaniard de-
stroyed. He charged her, therefore, to hide her-
self that night in a certain place until he should
come to her aid, lest she should be slain in the
confusion of the massacre.
When her brother was gone, a violent struggle
took place in the bosom of the Indian girl, between
her feeling for her family and her people, and her
affection for Vasco Nunez. The latter at length
prevailed, and she revealed all that had been
told to her. The Spaniard prevailed upon her to
send for her brother under pretence of aiding her
to escape. Having him in his power, he extorted1512.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	159
from him all that he knew of the designs of the
enemy. His confessions showed what imminent
danger had been lurking round Vasco Nunez in
his most unsuspecting moments. The prisoner
informed him that he had been one of forty In-
dians sent some time before by the cacique
Zemaco to Vasco Nunez, in seeming friendship,
to be employed by him in cultivating the fields
adjacent to the settlement. They had secret
orders, however, to take an opportunity, when
the Spaniard should come forth to inspect their
work, to set upon him in an unguarded moment,
and destroy him. Fortunately, V*sco Nunez al«
ways visited the fields mounted on ms war horse,
and armed with lance and target. The Indians
were therefore so awed by his martial appearance,
and by the terrible animal he bestrode, that they
dared not attack him.
Foiled in this and other attempts of the kind,
Zemaco resorted to the conspiracy with which the
settlement was now menaced. Five caciques had
joined in the confederacy: they had prepared a
hundred canoes ; amassed provisions for an army;
and concerted to assemble five thousand picked
warriors at a certain time and place; with these
they were to make an attack on the settlement by
land and water, in the middle of the night, and to
slaughter every Spaniard.
Having learnt where the confederate chiefs
were to be found, and where they had deposited
their provisions, Vasco Nunez chose seventy of
his best men well armed, and made a circuit by
land, while Colmenares, with sixty men, sallied160 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512.
forth secretly in four canoes, guided by the Indian
prisoner. In this way they surprised the general
of the Indian army and several of the principal
confederates, and got possession of all their pro-
visions, though they failed to capture the for-
midable Zemaco. The Indian general was shot
to death with arrows, and the leaders of the con-
spiracy were hanged in presence of their captive
followers. The defeat of this deep laid plan, and
the punishment of its devisers, spread terror
throughout the neighbouring provinces, and pre-
vented any further attempt at hostilities. Vasco
Nunez, however, caused a strong fortress of wood
to be immediately erected, to guard against any
future assaults of the savages.
CHAPTER VI.
Further Factions in the Colony. Arrogance of Alonzo
Perez and the Bachelor Corral.
A considerable time had now elapsed since the
departure of Valdivia for Hispaniola, yet no
tidings had been received from him. Many began
to fear that some disaster had befallen him; while
others insinuated that it was possible both he and
Zamudio might have neglected the objects of their
mission, and, having appropriated to their own
use the gold with which they had been entrusted,
abandoned the colony to its fate.1512.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	161
Vasco Nunez himself was harassed by these
surmises; and by the dread lest the Bachelor
Enciso should succeed in prejudicing the mind of
his sovereign against him. Impatient of this state
of anxious suspense, he determined to repair to
Spain, to communicate in person all that he had
heard concerning the Southern Sea, and to ask for
the troops necessary for its discovery.
Every one, however, both friend and foe, ex-
claimed against such a measure, representing his
presence as indispensible to the safety of the
colony, from his great talents as a commander, and
the fear entertained of him by the Indians.
After much debate and contention, it was at
length agreed that Juan de Cayzedo and Rodrigo
Enriquez de Colmenares should go in his place,
instructed to make all necessary representations to
the king. Letters were written also, containing
the most extravagant accounts of the riches of the
country, partly dictated by the sanguine hopes of
the writers, and partly by the fables of the natives.
The rumoured wealth of the province of Dobayba,
and the treasures of its golden temple were not
forgotten; and an Indian was taken to Spain by
the commissioners, a native of the province of
Zenu, where gold was said to be gathered in nets
stretched across the mountain streams. To give
more weight to all these stories, every one con-
tributed some portion of gold from his private
hoard, to be presented to the king in addition to
the amount arising from his fifths.
But little time had elapsed after the departure of
the commissioners, when new dissentions broke out
in the colony. It was hardly to be expected that a
M162 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512.
fortuitous assemblage of adventurers could remain
long tranquil during a time of suffering, under
rulers of questionable authority. Vasco Nunez,
it is true, had risen by his courage and abilities ;
but he had risen from among their ranks; he was
in a manner of their own creation ; and they had
not become sufficiently accustomed to him as a
governor, to forget that he was recently but a
mere soldier of fortune, and an absconding
debtor.
Their factious discontent, however, was directed
at first against a favourite of Vasco Nunez, rather
than against himself. He had invested Bartolome
Hurtado, the commander of the Black River,
with considerable authority in the colony, and the
latter gave great offence by his oppressive conduct.
Hurtado had particularly aggrieved by his arro-
gance one Alonzo Perez de la Rua, a touchy cava-
lier, jealous of his honour, who seems to have
peculiarly possessed the sensitive punctilio of a
Spaniard. Firing at some indignity, whether real
or fancied, Alonzo Perez threw himself into the
ranks of the disaffected, and was immediately
chosen as their leader. Thus backed by a faction,
he clamoured loudly for the punishment of Hur-
tado; and, finding his demands unattended to,
threw out threats of deposing Vasco Nunez. The
latter no sooner heard of these menaces, than,
with his usual spirit and promptness, he seized
upon the testy Alonzo Perez, and threw him into
prison, to digest his indignities and cool his pas-
sions at leisure.
The conspirators flew to arms to liberate their
leader. The friends of Vasco Nunez were equally1512.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	163
on the alert. The two parties drew out in battle
array in the public square, and a sanguinary con-
flict was on the point of taking place. Fortunately
there were some cool heads left in the colony.
These interfered at the critical moment, repre-
senting to the angry adversaries that, if they fought
among themselves, and diminished their already
scanty numbers, even the conquerors must even-
tually fall a prey to the Indians.
Their remonstrances had effect. A parley en-
sued, and, after much noisy debate, a kind of
compromise was made. Alonzo Perez was libe-
rated, and the mutineers dispersed quietly to their
homes. The next day, however, they were again
in arms, and seized upon Bartolome Hurtado;
but after a little while were prevailed upon to set
him free. Their factious views seemed turned to
a higher object. They broke forth into loud
murmurs against Vasco Nunez, complaining that
he had not made a fair division of the gold and
slaves taken in the late expeditions, and threaten-
ing to arrest him and bring him to account. Above
all, they clamoured for an immediate distribution
of ten thousand Castellanos in gold, which yet re-
mained unshared.
Vasco Nunez understood too well the riotous
nature of the people under him, and his own pre-
carious hold on their obedience, to attempt to
cope with them in this moment of turbulence. He
shrewdly determined, therefore, to withdraw from
the sight of the multitude, and to leave them to
divide the spoil among themselves, trusting to
their own strife for his security. That very night
m 2164 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512.
he sallied forth into the country, under pretence of
going on a hunting expedition.
The next morning the mutineers found them-
selves in possession of the field. Alonzo Perez,
the pragmatical ringleader, immediately assumed
the command, seconded by the Bachelor Corral.
Their first measure was to seize upon the ten
thousand Castellanos, and to divide them among
the multitude, by way of securing their own popu-
larity. The event proved the sagacity and fore-
thought of Vasco Nunez. Scarcely had these
hot-headed intermeddlers entered upon the parti-
tion of the gold, than a furious strife arose.
Every one was dissatisfied with his share, con-
sidering his merits entitled to peculiar recompense.
Every attempt to appease the rabble only aug-
mented their violence, and in their rage they swore
that Vasco Nunez had always shown more judg-
ment and discrimination in his distributions to
men of merit.
The adherents of the latter now ventured to lift up
their voices; “Vasco Nunez,” said they, “ won the
gold by his enterprise and valour, and would have
shared it with the brave and the deserving; but
these men have seized upon it by factious means,
and would squander it upon their minions.” The
multitude, who, in fact, admired the soldier-like
qualities of Vasco Nunez, displayed one of the
customary reverses of popular feeling. The touchy
Alonzo Perez, his coadjutor the Bachelor Corral,
and several other of the ring leaders were seized,
put into irons, and confined in the fortress; and
Vasco Nunez was recalled with loud acclamations
to the settlement.1512.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	165
How long this pseudo-commander might have
been able to manage the unsteady populace, it is
impossible to say; but just at this juncture two
ships arrived from Hispaniola, freighted with sup-
plies, and bringing a reinforcement of one hun-
dred and fifty men. They brought also a com-
mission to Vasco Nunez, signed by Miguel de
Pasamonte, the royal treasurer of Hispaniola, (to
whom he had sent a private present of gold,) con-
stituting him captain-general of the colony. It is
doubtful whether Pasamonte possessed the power
to confer such a commission, though it is affirmed
that the king had clothed him with it, as a kind of
check upon the authority of the admiral Don
Diego Columbus, then governor of Hispaniola, of
whose extensive swray in the new world the
monarch was secretly jealous. At any rate, the
treasurer appears to have acted in full confidence
of the ultimate approbation of his sovereign.
Vasco Nunez was rejoiced at receiving a com-
mission which clothed him with at least the sem-
blance of royal sanction. Feeling more assured
in his situation, and being naturally of a generous
and forgiving temper, he was easily prevailed upon,
in his moment of exultation, to release and pardon
Alonzo Perez, the Bachelor Corral, and the other
ringleaders of the late commotions; and for a time
the feuds and factions of this petty community
were lulled to repose.166
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
CHAPTER VII.
Vasco Nunez determines to seek the Sea beyond the
Mountains.—(1513.)
The temporary triumph of Vasco Nunez was
soon overcast by tidings received from Spain. His
late colleague, the alcalde Zamudio wrote him
word, that the Bachelor Enciso had carried his
complaints to the foot of the throne, and succeeded
in rousing the indignation of the king, and had ob-
tained a sentence in his favour, condemning Vasco
Nunez in costs and damages. Zamudio informed
him in addition, that he would be immediately
summoned to repair to Spain, and answer in per-
son the criminal charges advanced against him on
account of the harsh treatment and probable death
of the unfortunate Nicuesa.
Vasco Nunez was at first stunned by this intel-
ligence, which seemed at one blow to annihilate
all his hopes and fortunes. He was a man, how-
ever, of prompt decision and intrepid spirit. The
information received from Spain was private and
informal; no order had yet arrived from the king;
he was still master of his actions, and had con-
troul over the colony. One brilliant achievement
might atone for all the past, and fix him in the
favour of the monarch. Such an achievement was
within his reach—the discovery of the southern
sea. It is true, a thousand soldiers had been re-
quired for the expedition, but were he to wait for
their arrival from Spain, his day of grace would
be past. It was a desperate thing to undertake1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	167
the task with the handful of men at his command,
but the circumstances of the case were desperate.
Fame, fortune, life itself, depended upon the suc-
cessful and the prompt execution of the enterprise.
To linger was to be lost.
Vasco Nunez looked round upon the crew of
daring and reckless adventurers that formed the
colony, and chose one hundred and ninety of the
most resolute, vigorous, and devoted to his person.
These he armed with swords, targets, cross bows,
and arquebusses. He did not conceal from them
the danger of the enterprse into which he was
about to lead them; but the spirit of these
Spanish adventurers was always roused by the
idea of perilous and extravagant exploit. To
aid his slender forces, he took with him a num-
ber of bloodhounds, wThich had been found to be
terrific allies in Indian warfare.
The Spanish writers make particular mention of
one of those animals, named Leoncico, which was
a constant companion, and as it were body guard
of Vasco Nunez, and describe him as minutely as
they would a favourite warrior. He was of a
middle size, but immensely strong : of a dull yel-
low or reddish colour, with a black muzzle, and
his body was scarred all over with wounds received
in innumerable battles with the Indians. Vasco
Nunez always took him on his expeditions, and
sometimes lent him to others, receiving for his
services the same share of booty allotted to an
armed man. In this way he gained by him in the
course of his campaigns upwards of a thousand
crowns. The Indians, it is said, had conceived168	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
such terror of this animal, that the very sight of
him was sufficient to put a host of them to flight.*
In addition to these forces, Vasco Nunez took
with him a number of the Indians of Darien, whom
he had won to him by kindness, and whose ser-
vices were important, from their knowdedge of the
wilderness, and of the habits and resources of
savage life. Such wras the motley armament that
set forth from the little colony of Darien, under
the guidance of a daring, if not desperate com-
mander, in quest of the great Pacific Ocean.
CHAPTER VIII.
Expedition in quest of the Southern Sea.
It was on the first of September that Vasco
Nunez embarked with his followers in a brigan-
tine and nine large canoes or pirogues, followed by
the cheers and good w islies of those who remained
at the settlement. Standing to the northwestward,
he arrived without accident at Coyba, the domi-
nion of the cacique Careta, whose daughter he had
received as a pledge of amity. That Indian beauty
had acquired a great influence over Vasco Nunez,
and appears to have cemented his friendship with
her father and her people. He was received by the
cacique with open arms, and furnished with guides
and warriors to aid him in his enterprise.
Vasco Nunez left about half of his men at
* Oviedo, Hist. Indies, p. 2. c. 3. MS.VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
169
1513.]
Coyba to guard the brigantine and canoes, while
he should penetrate the wilderness with the resi-
due. The importance of his present expedition,
not merely as affecting his own fortunes, but as it
were unfolding a mighty secret of nature, seems
to have impressed itself upon his spirit, and to
have given correspondent solemnity to his conduct.
Before setting out upon his march, he caused mass
to be performed, and offered up prayers to God
for the success of his perilous undertaking.
It was on the sixth of September, that he struck
off for the mountains. The march was difficult
and toilsome in the extreme. The Spaniards, en-
cumbered with the weight of their armour and
weapons, and oppressed by the heat of a tropical
climate, were obliged to climb rocky precipices,
and to struggle through close and tangled forests.
Their Indian allies aided them by carrying their
ammunition and provisions, and by guiding them
to the most practicable paths.
On the eighth of September they arrived at the
village of Ponca, the ancient enemy of Careta.
The village was lifeless and abandoned; the ca-
cique and his people had fled to the fastnesses of
the mountains. The Spaniards remained here
several days to recruit the health of some of their
number who had fallen ill. It was necessary also
to procure guides acquainted with the mountain
wilderness they were approaching. The retreat
of Ponca was at length discovered, and he was
prevailed upon, though reluctantly, to come to
Vasco Nunez. The latter had a peculiar facility
in winning the confidence and friendship of the
natives. The cacique w^as soon so captivated by
his kindness that he revealed to him in secret all170 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
he knew of the natural riches of the country.
He assured him of the truth of what had been told
him about a great pechry or sea beyond the
mountains, and gave him several ornaments inge-
niously wrought of fine gold, which had been
brought from the countries upon its borders.
He told him, moreover, that when he had attained
the summit of a lofty ridge, to which he pointed,
and which seemed to rise up to the skies, he
would behold that sea spread out far below him.
Animated by the accounts, Vasco Nunez pro-
cured fresh guides from the cacique, and prepared
to ascend the mountains. Numbers of his men
having fallen ill from fatigue and the heat of
the climate, he ordered them to return slowly to
Coyba, taking with him none but such as were in
robust and vigorous health.
On the 20th of September, he again set forward
through a broken rocky country, covered with a
matted forest, and intersected by deep and turbu-
lent streams, many of which it was necessary to
cross upon rafts.
So toilsome was the journey, that in four days
they did not advance above ten leagues, and in
the mean time they suffered excessively from
hunger. At the end of this time they arrived at
the province of a warlike cacique, named Quara-
qua, who was at war with Ponca.
Hearing that a band of strangers were entering
his territories, guided by the subjects of his in-
veterate foe, the cacique took the field with a
large number of warriors, some armed with bows
and arrows, others with long spears, or with double
handed maces of palm wood, almost as heavy and
hard as iron. Seeing the inconsiderable number1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	171
of the Spaniards, they set upon them with furi-
ous yells, thinking to overcome them in an instant.
The first discharge of fire-arms, however, struck
them with dismay. They thought they were con-
tending with demons who vomited forth thunder
and lightning, especially when they saw their com-
panions fall bleeding and dead beside them, with-
out receiving any apparent blow. They took to
headlong flight, and were hotly pursued by the
Spaniards and their blood-hounds. Some were
transfixed with lances, others hewn down with
swords, and many were torn to pieces by the
dogs, so that Quaraqua and six hundred of his
warriors were left dead upon the field.
A brother of the cacique and several chiefs
were taken prisoners. They were clad in robes
of white cotton. Either from their effeminate
dress, or from the accusations of their enemies,
the Spaniards were induced to consider them
guilty of unnatural crimes, and, in their abhor-
rence and disgust, gave them to be torn to pieces
by the blood-hounds.*
It is also affirmed, that among the prisoners
were several negroes, who had been slaves to the
cacique. The Spaniards, we are told, were in-
formed by the other captives, that these black men
came from a region at no great distance, where
there was a people of that colour, with whom they
were frequently at war. “ These,” adds the
Spanish writer, “ were the first negroes ever
found in the New World, and I believe no others
have since been discovered.^”
* Herrera, Hist. Ind. d. 1, 1. x, c. 1.
t Peter Martyr, in his third Decade, makes mention of172 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
After this sanguinary triumph, the Spaniards
marched to the village of Quaraqua, where they
found considerable booty in gold and jewels. Of
this Vasco Nunez reserved one-fiftli for the crown,
and shared the rest liberally among his followers.
The village was at the foot of the last mountain
that remained for them to climb; several of the
Spaniards, however, were so disabled by the wounds
they had received in battle, or so exhausted by
the fatigue and hunger they had endured, that
they were unable to proceed. They were obliged
therefore reluctantly to remain in the village,
within sight of the mountain-top that commanded
the long-sought prospect. Vasco Nunez selected
fresh guides from among his prisoners, who were
natives of the province, and sent back the sub-
jects of Ponca. Of the band of Spaniards who
had set out with him in this enterprise, sixty-
seven alone remained in sufficient health and
spirits for this last effort. These he ordered to
retire early to repose, that they might be ready to
set off at the cool and fresh hour of day-break, so
as to reach the summit of the mountain before the
noon-tide heat.
these negroes in the following words:—“ About two days’
journey distant from Quaraqua is a region inhabited only by
black moors, exceeding fierce and cruel. It is supposed that
in time past certain black moors sailed thither out of Ethiopia,
to rob, and that by shipwreck, or some other chance, they were
driven to these mountains.” As Martyr lived and wrote at
the time, he of course related the mere rumour of the day,
which all subsequent accounts have disproved. The other
historians who mentioned the circumstance, have probably
repeated it from him. It must have risen from some mis-
representation, and is not entitled to credit.1513.]
VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
173
CHAPTER IX.
Discovery of the Pacific Ocean.
The (lay had scarced dawned, when Vasco Nunez
and his followers set forth from the Indian village
and began to climb the height. It was a severe
and rugged toil for men so wayworn ; but they
were filled with new ardour at the idea of the tri-
umphant scene that was so soon to repay them for
all their hardships.
About ten o’clock in the morning they emerged
from the thick forests through which they had
hitherto struggled, and arrived at a lofty and airy
region of the mountain. The bald summit alone
remained to be ascended; and their guides pointed
to a moderate eminence from which they said the
southern sea was visible.
Upon this Vasco Nunez commanded his follow-
ers to halt, and that no man should stir from his
place. Then, with a palpitating heart, he as-
cended alone the bare mountain-top. On reach-
ing the summit the long-desired prospect burst
upon his view. It was as if a new world were
unfolded to him, separated from all hitherto known
by this mighty barrier of mountains. Below him
extended a vast chaos of rock and forest, and green
savannahs and wandering streams, while at a dis-
tance the waters of the promised ocean glittered
in the morning sun.
At this glorious prospect Vasco Nunez sank
upon his knees, and poured out thanks to God for
being the first European to whom it was given to
make that great discovery. He then called his174 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513-
people to ascend: “ Behold, my friends,” said he,
“ that glorious sight which we have so much de-
sired. Let us give thanks to God that he has
granted us this great honour and advantage. Let
us pray to him to guide and aid us to conquer
the sea and land wrhich we have discovered,
and which Christian has never entered to preach
the holy doctrine of the Evangelists. As to
yourselves, be as you have hitherto been, faithful
and true to me, and by the favour of Christ
you will become the richest Spaniards that have
ever come to the Indies; you will render the
greatest services to your king that ever vassal
rendered to his lord; and you will have the eter-
nal glory and advantage of all that is here dis-
covered, conquered, and converted to our holy
Catholic faith.”
The Spaniards answered this speech by em-
bracing Vasco Nunez and promising to follow
him to death. Among them was a priest, named
Andres de Vara, who lifted up his voice and
chaunted Te Deum laudamus—the usual anthem of
Spanish discoverers. The rest, kneeling down,
joined in the strain with pious enthusiasm and
tears of joy ; and never did a more sincere obla-
tion rise to the deity from a sanctified altar, than
from that wild mountain summit. It was indeed
one of the most sublime discoveries that had yet
been made in the New World, and must have
opened a boundless field of conjecture to the
wondering Spaniards. The imagination delights
to picture forth the splendid confusion of their
thoughts. Was this the great Indian ocean,
studded with precious islands, abounding in gold,1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	175
in gems, and spices, and bordered by the gorgeous
cities and wealthy marts of the East? or was it
some lonely sea locked up in the embraces of
savage uncultivated continents, and never traversed
by a bark, excepting the light pirogue of the savage ?
The latter could hardly be the case, for the natives
had told the Spaniards of golden realms, and popu-
lous and powerful and luxurious nations upon its
shores. Perhaps it might be bordered by various
people, civilized in fact, though differing from Eu-
rope in their civilization ; who might have peculiar
laws and customs and arts and sciences ; who might
form, as it were, a world of their own, intercom-
muning by this mighty sea, and carrying on com-
merce between their own islands and continents;
but who might exist in total ignorance and inde-
pendence of the other hemisphere.
Such may naturally have been the ideas sug-
gested by the sight of this unknown ocean. It
was the prevalent belief of the Spaniards, however,
that they were the first Christians who had made
the discovery. Vasco Nunez, therefore, called
upon all present to witness that he took possession
of that sea, its islands, and surrounding lands, in
the name of the sovereigns of Castile, and the
notary of the expedition made a testimonial of the
same, to which all present, to the number of sixty-
seven men, signed their names. He then caused
a fair and tall tree to be cut down and wrought
into a cross, which was elevated on the spot from
whence he had first beheld the sea. A mound of
stones was likewise piled up to serve as a monu-
ment, and the names of the Castilian sovereigns
were carved on the neighbouring trees. The In-176	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
dians beheld all these ceremonials and rejoicings
in silent wonder, and, while they aided to erect
the cross and pile up the mound of stones, mar-
velled exceedingly at the meaning of these monu-
ments, little thinking that they marked the subju-
gation of their land.
The memorable event here recorded took place
on the 26th of September, 1513; so that the
Spaniards had spent twenty days in performing the
journey from the province of Careta to the sum-
mit of the mountain, a distance which at present,
it is said, does not require more than six days’
travel. Indeed the isthmus in this neighbourhood
is not more than eighteen leagues in breadth in its
widest part, and in some places merely seven; but
it consists of a ridge of extremely high and rugged
mountains. When the discoverers traversed it,
they had no route but the Indian paths, and often
had to force their way amidst all kinds of ob-
stacles, both from the savage country and its
savage inhabitants. In fact, the details of this
narrative sufficiently account for the slowness of
their progress, and present an array of difficulties
and perils, which, as has been well observed, none
but those “ men of iron” could have subdued and
overcome.*
* Vidas de Espanoles Celebres, por Don Manuel Josef
Quintana. Tom. ii. p. 40.1513.]
VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
177
CHAPTER X.
Vasco Nunez marches to the shores of the South Sea.—
(1513.)
Having taken possession of the Pacific Ocean
and all its realms from the summit of the moun-
tain, Vasco Nunez now descended with his little
band, to seek the regions of reputed wealth upon
its shores. He had not proceeded far when he
came to the province of a warlike cacique, named
Cheapes, who, issuing forth at the head of his
warriors, looked with scorn upon the scanty num-
ber of straggling Spaniards, and forbade them to
set foot within his territories. Vasco Nunez de-
pended for safety upon his power of striking terror
into the ignorant savages. Ordering his arque-
busiers to the front, he poured a volley into the
enemy, and then let loose the blood hounds. The
flash and noise of the fire arms, and the sulphure-
ous smoke which was carried by the wind among the
Indians, overwhelmed them with dismay. Some
fell down in a panic as though they had been
struck by thunderbolts, the rest betook themselves
to headlong flight.
Vasco Nunez commanded his men to refrain
from needless slaughter. He made many prisoners,
and on arriving at the village, sent some of them
in search of their cacique, accompanied by several
of his Indian guides. The latter informed Cheapes
of the supernatural power of the Spaniards, as-
suring him that they exterminated with thunder
and lightning all who dared to oppose them, but
loaded all such as submitted to them with bene-
N178 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
fits. They advised him, therefore, to throw him-
self upon their mercy and seek their friendship.
The cacique listened to their advice, and came
trembling to the Spaniards, bringing with him
five hundred pounds weight of wrought gold as a
peace offering, for he had already learnt the value
they set upon that metal. Vasco Nunez received
him with great kindness, and graciously accepted
his gold, for which he gave him beads, hawks
bells, and looking glasses, making him in his own
conceit the richest potentate on that side of the
mountains.
Friendship being thus established between them,
Vasco Nunez remained at the village for a few
days, sending back the guides who had accom-
panied him from Quaraqua, and ordering his peo-
ple whom he had left at that place to rejoin him.
In the meantime, he sent out three scouting parties
of twelve men each, under Francisco Pizarro, Juan
de Escaray and Alonzo Martin de Don Benito, to
explore the surrounding country and discover the
best route to the sea. Alonzo Martin was the
most succesful. After two days journey, he came
to a beach, where he found two large canoes lying
high and dry, without any water being in sight.
While the Spaniards were regarding these canoes,
and wondering why they should be- so far on land,
the tide, which rises to a great height on that
coast, came rapidly in and set them afloat; upon
this, Alonzo Martin stepped into one of them, and
called his companions to bear witness that he was
the first European that embarked upon that sea;
his example was followed by one Bias de Etienza,1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	179
who called them likewise to testify that he was the
second.*
We mention minute particulars of the kind, as
being characteristic of these extraordinary enter-
prises, and of the extraordinary people who under-
took them. The humblest of these Spanish adven-
turers seemed actuated by a swelling and ambitious
spirit, that rose superior at times to mere sordid
considerations, and aspired to share the glory
of these great discoveries. The scouting party
having thus explored a direct route to the sea
coast, returned to report their success to their
commander.
Vasco Nunez being rejoined by his men from
Quarequa, now left the greater part of his fol-
lowers to repose and recover from their sickness
and fatigues in the village of Cheapes; and, taking
with him tw enty-six Spaniards, well armed, he set
out on the twenty-ninth of September, for the sea
coast, accompanied by the cacique and a number
of his warriors. The thick forests, which covered
the mountains, descended to the very margin of
the sea, surrounding and overshadowing the wide
and beautiful bays that penetrated far into the
land. The whole coast, as far as the eye could
reach, was perfectly wTild, the sea without a sail,
and both seemed never to have been under the
dominion of civilized man.
Vasco Nunez arrived on the borders of one of
those vast bays, to which he gave the name of
Saint Michael, it being discovered on that saint’s
day. The tide was out, the w7ater w7as above half
a league distant, and the intervening beach was
* Herrera, Hist. Ind. d. i. 1. x. c. 2.
N 2180	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
covered with mud; he seated himself, therefore,
under the shade of the forest trees until the tide
should rise. After a while, the water came rush-
ing in with great impetuosity, and soon reached
nearly to the place where the Spaniards were re-
posing. Upon this Vasco Nunez rose and took a
banner on which were painted the Virgin and child,
and under them the arms of Castile and Leon ; then
drawing his sword and throwing his buckler on
his shoulder, he marched into the sea until the
water reached above his knees, and waving his
banner, exclaimed with a loud voice; “ Long live
the high and mighty monarchs Don Ferdinand and
Donna Juana, sovereigns of Castile, of Leon, and
of Arragon, in whose name, and for the royal
crown of Castile, I take real, and corporal, and actual
possession of these seas, and lands, and coasts,
and ports, and islands of the south, and all there-
unto annexed ; and of the kingdoms and provinces
which do or may appertain to them, in whatever
manner, or by whatever right or title, ancient or
modern, in times past, present, or to come, without
any contradiction ; and if other prince or captain,
Christian or infidel, or of any law, sect or condition
whatsoever, shall pretend any right to these lands
and seas, I am ready and prepared to maintain
and defend them in the name of the Castilian so-
vereigns, present and future, whose is the empire
and dominion over these Indias, islands, and terra
firma, northern and southern, with all their seas,
both at the arctic and antarctic poles, on either
side of the equinoxial line, whether within or
without the tropics of cancer and capricorn, both
now and in all times, as long as the world en-1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	181
dures, and until the final day of judgment of all
mankind.”
This swelling declaration and defiance being
uttered with a loud voice, and no one appearing
to dispute his pretensions, Vasco Nunez called
upon his companions to bear witness of the fact
of his having duly taken possession. They all
declared themselves ready to defend his claim to
the uttermost, as became true and loyal vassals to
the Castilian sovereigns; and the notary having
drawn up a document for the occasion, they all
subscribed it with their names.
This done, they advanced to the margin of the
sea, and stooping down tasted its waters. When
they found, that, though severed by intervening
mountains and continents, they were salt like the
seas of the north, they felt assured that they had
indeed discovered an ocean, and again returned
thanks to God.
Having concluded all these ceremonies, Vasco
Nunez drew a dagger from his girdle and cut a
cross on a tree which grew within the water, and
made two other crosses on two adjacent trees, in
honour of the Three Persons of the Trinity, and
in token of possession. His followers likewise cut
crosses on many of the trees of the adjacent forest,
and lopped off branches with their swords to bear
away as trophies.*
Such was the singular medley of chivalrous and
religious ceremonial, with which these Spanish
adventurers took possession of the vast Pacific
Ocean, and all its lands—a scene strongly charac-
teristic of the nation and the age.
* Many of the foregoing particulars are from the unpub’'
lished volume of Oviedo’s History of the Indias.182
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
CHAPTER XI.
Adventures of Vasco Nunez on the borders of the Pacific
Ocean.—1513.
While he made the village of Chiapes his head
quarters, Vasco Nunez foraged the adjacent coun-
try, and obtained considerable quantity of gold
from the natives. Encouraged by his success, he
undertook to explore by sea the borders of a
neighbouring gulf of great extent, which pene-
trated far into the land. The cacique Chiapes
warned him of the danger of venturing to sea in
the stormy season, which comprises the months of
October, November, and December, assuring him
that he had beheld many canoes swallowed up in
the mighty waves and whirlpools, which at such
time render the gulf almost unnavigable.
These remonstrances were unavailing: Vasco
Nunez expressed a confident belief that God
would protect him, seeing that his voyage was
to redound to the propagation of the faith, and
the augmentation of the power of the Castilian
monarclis over the infidels; and in truth this
bigoted reliance on the immediate protection of
heaven seems to have been, in a great measure, the
cause of the extravagant daring of the Spaniards
in their expeditions in those days, whether against
Moors or Indians.
Finding his representations of no effect, Chiapes
volunteered to take part in this perilous cruise,
lest he should appear wanting in courage, or in
good will to his guest. Accompanied by the
cacique, therefore, Vasco Nunez embarked on the1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	188
17th of October with sixty of his men in nine
canoes, managed by Indians, leaving the residue
of his followers to recruit their health and strength
in the village of Chiapes.
Scarcely however had they put forth on the
broad bosom of the gulf when the wisdom of the
cacique’s advice was made apparent. The wind
began to blow freshly, raising a heavy and tu-
multuous sea, which broke in roaring and foaming
surges on the rocks and reefs, and among the nu-
merous islets with which the gulf was studded.
The light canoes were deeply laden with men un-
skilled in their management. It was frightful to
those in one canoe to behold their companions,
one instant tossed high on the breaking crest of a
wave, the next plunging out of sight, as if swal-
lowed in a watery abyss. The Indians them-
selves, though almost amphibious in their habits,
showed signs of consternation; for amidst these
rocks and breakers even the skill of the expert
swimmer would be of little avail. At length the
Indians succeeded in tying the canoes in pairs,
side by side, to prevent their being overturned,
and in this way they kept afloat, until towards
evening they were enabled to reach a small island.
Here they landed, and fastening the canoes to the
rocks, or to small trees that grew upon the shore,
they sought an elevated dry place, and stretched
themselves to take repose. They had but escaped
from one danger to encounter another. Having
been for a long time accustomed to the sea on the
northern side of the isthmus, where there is little,
if any, rise or fall of the tide, they had neglected
to take any precaution against such an occurrence.184	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
In a little while they were awakened from their
sleep by the rapid rising of the water. They shifted
their situation to a higher ground, but the waters
continued to gain upon them, the breakers rush-
ing and roaring and foaming upon the beach like
so many monsters of the deep seeking for their
prey. Nothing, it is said, can be more dismal and
appalling than the sullen bellowing of the sea
among the islands of that gulf at the rising and
falling of the tide. By degrees, rock after rock,
and one sand bank after another disappeared,
until the sea covered the whole island, and rose
almost to the girdles of the Spaniards. Their
situation was now agonizing. A little more and
the waters would overwhelm them: or, even as it
was, the least surge might break over them and
sweep them from their unsteady footing. Fortu-
nately the wind had lulled, and the sea, having
risen above the rocks which had fretted it, was
calm. The tide had reached its height and began
to subside, and after a time they heard the retiring
waves beating against the rocks below them.
When the day dawned they sought their canoes;
but here a sad spectacle met their eyes. Some
were broken to pieces, others yawning open in
many parts. The clothing and food left in them
had been washed away, and replaced by sand and
water. The Spaniards gazed on the scene in
mute despair; they were faint and weary, and
needed food and repose, but famine and labour
awaited them, even if they should escape with
their lives. Vasco Nunez, however, rallied their
spirits, and set them an example by his own
cheerful exertions. Obeying his directions, they1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	185
set to work to repair, in the best manner they
were able, the damages of the canoes. Such
as were not too much shattered they bound and
braced up with their girdles, with slips of the
bark of trees, or with the tough long stalks of cer-
tain sea weeds. They then peeled off the bark
from the small sea plants, pounded it between
stones, and mixed it with grass, and with this en-
deavoured to caulk the seams and stop the leaks
that remained. When they re-embarked, their
numbers weighed down the canoes almost to the
water’s edge, and as they rose and sank with the
swelling waves there was danger of their being
swallowed up. All day they laboured with the
sea, suffering excessively from the pangs of hunger
and thirst, and at nightfall they landed in a corner
of the gulf, near the abode of a cacique named
Tumaco. Leaving a part of his men to guard the
canoes, Vasco Nunez set out with the residue for
the Indian town. He arrived there about mid-
night, but the inhabitants were on the alert to
defend their habitations. The fire-arms and dogs
soon put them to flight, and the Spaniards pur-
suing them with their swords, drove them howling
into the woods. In the village were found pro-
visions in abundance, beside a considerable amount
of gold and a great quantity of pearls, many of them
of a large size. In the house of the cacique were
several huge shells of mother of pearl, and four
pearl oysters quite fresh, which showed that there
was a pearl fishery in the neighbourhood. Eager
to learn the sources of this wealth, Vasco Nunez
sent several of the Indians of Chiapes in search of
the cacique, who traced him to a wild retreat186	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
among the rocks. By their persuasions Tumaco
sent his son, a fine young savage, as a mediator.
The latter returned to his father loaded with pre-
sents, and extolling the benignity of these super-
human beings, who had shown themselves so
terrible in battle. By these means, and by a
mutual exchange of presents, a friendly inter-
course was soon established. Among other things
the cacique gave Vasco Nunez jewels of gold
weighing six hundred and fourteen crowns, and
two hundred pearls of great size and beauty, ex-
cepting that they were somewhat discoloured in
consequence of the oysters having been opened
by fire.
The cacique seeing the value which the Spa-
niards set upon the pearls, sent a number of his men
to fish for them at a place about ten miles distant.
Certain of the Indians were trained from their youth
to this purpose, so as to become expert divers, and
to acquire the power of remaining a long time
beneath the water. The largest pearls are gene-
rally found in the deepest water, sometimes in
three and four fathoms, and are only sought in
calm weather; the smaller sort are found at the
depth of two and three feet, and the oysters con-
taining them are often driven in quantities on the
beach during violent storms.
The party of pearl divers sent by the cacique
consisted of thirty Indians, with whom Vasco
Nunez sent six Spaniards as eye-witnesses. The
sea, however, was so furious at that stormy season
that the divers dared not venture into the deep
water. Such a number of the shell-fish, however,
had been driven on shore, that they collected1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	187
enough to yield pearls to the value of twelve
marks of gold. They were small, but exceed-
ingly beautiful, being newly taken and uninjured
by fire. A number of these shell-fish and their
pearls were selected to be sent to Spain as speci-
mens.
In reply to the inquiries of Vasco Nunez, the
cacique informed him that the coast which he saw
stretching to the west continued onwards without
end, and that far to the south there was a country
abounding in gold, where the inhabitants made
use of certain quadrupeds to carry burthens. He
moulded a figure of clay to represent these ani-
mals, which some of the Spaniards supposed to be
a deer, others a camel, others a tapir, for as yet
they knew nothing of the lama, the native beast
of burthen of South America. This was the se-
cond intimation received by Vasco Nunez of the
great empire of Peru; and, while it confirmed all
that had been told him by the son of Comagre, it
filled him with glowing anticipations of the glori-
ous triumphs that awaited him.
CHAPTER XII.
Farther adventures and exploits of Vasco Nunez on the
borders of the Pacific Ocean.—(1513.)
Lest any ceremonial should be wanting to secure
this grand discovery to the crown of Spain, Vasco
Nunez determined to sally from the gulf and
take posession of the main land beyond. The188	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
cacique Tumaco furnished him with a canoe of state,
formed from the trunk of an enormous tree, and
managed by a great number of Indians. The
handles of the paddles were inlaid with small
pearls, a circumstance which Vasco Nunez caused
his companions to testify before the notary, that
it might be reported to the sovereigns as a proof
of the wealth of this newly discovered sea.*
Departing in the canoe on the twenty-ninth of
October, he was piloted cautiously by the Indians
along the borders of the gulf, over drowned lands
where the sea was fringed by inundated forests
and as still as a pool. Arrived at the point of the
gulf, Vasco Nunez landed on a smooth sandy
beach, laved by the waters of the broad ocean, and,
with buckler on arm, swTord in hand, and banner
displayed, again marched into the sea and took
possession of it, with like ceremonials to those ob-
served in the Gulf of St. Michael’s.
The Indians now pointed to a line of land rising
above the horizon about four or five leagues dis-
tant, which they described as being a great island,
the principal one of an archipelago. The whole
group abounded with pearls, but those taken on the
coasts of this island were represented as being of
immense size, many of them as large as a man’s
eye, and found in shell-fish as big as bucklers.
This island and the surrounding cluster of small
ones, they added, were under the dominion of a
tyrannical and puissant cacique, who often, during
the calm seasons, made descents upon the main
land with fleets of canoes, plundering and deso-
lating the coasts, and carrying the people into
captivity.
* Oviedo, Hist. Gen. p. 2. MS.1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	189
Vasco Nunez crazed with an eager and wistful
eye at this land o' riches, and would have imme-
diately undertaken an expedition to it, had not the
Indians represented the danger of venturing on such
a voyage in that tempestuous season, in their frail
canoes. His own recent experience convinced
him of the wisdom of their remonstrances. He
postponed his visit, therefore, to a future occasion,
when, he assured his allies, he would avenge them
upon this tyrant invader, and deliver their coasts
from his maraudings. In the mean time he gave
to this island the name of Isla Rica, and the little
archipelago surrounding it the general appellation
of the Pearl Islands.
On the 3d of November Vasco Nunez departed
from the province of Tumaco, to visit other parts
of the coast. He embarked with his men in the
canoes, accompanied by Chiapes and his Indians,
and guided by the son of Tumaco, who had be-
come strongly attached to the Spaniards. The
young man piloted them along an arm of the sea,
wide in some places, but in others obstructed by
groves of mangrove trees, which grew within the
water and interlaced their branches from shore to
shore, so that at times, the Spaniards were obliged
to cut a passage with their swords.
At length they entered a great and turbulent
river, which they ascended with difficulty, and,
early the next morning surprised a village on its
banks, making the cacique Teaochan prisoner; who
purchased their favour and kind treatment by a
quantity of gold and pearls, and an abundant sup-
ply of provisions. As it wras the intention of
Vasco Nunez to abandon the shores of the South-190 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
ern Ocean at this place, and to strike across the
mountains for Darien, he took leave of Chiapes and
of the youthful son of Tumaco, who were to re-
turn to their houses in the canoes. He sent at the
same time, a message to his men, whom he had
left in the Village of Chiapes, appointing a place in
the mountains where they were to rejoin him on
his way back to Darien.
The talent of Vasco Nunez for conciliating and
winning the goodwill of the savages is often men-
tioned, and to such a degree had he exerted it in
the present instance that the twro chieftains shed
tears at parting. Their conduct had a favourable
effect upon the cacique Teaochan; he entertained
Vasco Nunez with the most devoted hospitality
during three days that he remained in his village ;
when about to depart he furnished him with a stock
of provisions sufficient for several days, as his
route would be over rocky and sterile mountains.
He sent also a numerous band of his subjects to
carry the burthens of the Spaniards. These he
placed under the command of his son, whom he
ordered never to separate from the strangers, nor to
permit any of his men to return without the consent
of Vasco Nunez.
CHAPTER XIII.
Vasco Nunez sets out on his return across the mountains.
His contests with the Savages.
Turning their backs upon the Southern Sea, the
Spaniards now began painfully to clamber the
rugged mountains on their return to Darien.1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	191
In the early part of their route an unlooked-for
suffering awaited them: there was neither brook
nor fountain nor standing pool. The burning heat,
which produced intolerable thirst, had dried up all
the mountain torrents, and they were tantalized by
the sight of naked and dusty channels where water
had once flowed in abundance. Their sufferings
at length increased to such a height that many
threw themselves fevered and panting upon the
earth, and were ready to give up the ghost. The
Indians, however, encouraged them to proceed, by
hopes of speedy relief, and after a while, turning
aside from the direct course, led them into a deep
and narrow glen, refreshed and cooled by a foun-
tain which bubbled out of a cleft of the rocks.
While refreshing themselves at the fountain, and
reposing in the little valley, they learnt from their
guides that they were in the territories of a pow-
erful chief named Poncra, famous for his riches.
The Spaniards had already heard of the golden
stores of this Croesus of the mountains, and being
now refreshed and invigorated, pressed forward
with eagerness for his village. The cacique and
most of his people fled at their approach, but they
found an earnest of his wealth in the deserted
houses, amounting to the value of three thousand
crowns in gold. Their avarice thus whetted, they
despatched Indians in search of Poncra, who found
him trembling in his secret retreat, and partly by
threats, partly by promises, prevailed upon him
and three of his principal subjects to come to
Vasco Nunez. He was a savage, it is said, so
hateful of aspect, so misshapen in body and de-
formed in all his members, that he w7as hideous to192 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
behold. The Spaniards endeavoured by gentle
means to draw from him information of the places
from whence he had procured his gold. He pro-
fessed utter ignorance in the matter, declaring that
the gold found in his village had been gathered by
his predecessors in times long past, and that as he
himself set no value on the metal, he had never
troubled himself to seek it. The Spaniards re-
sorted to menaces, and even, it is said, to tortures,
to compel him to betray his reputed treasures, but
with no better success. Disappointed in their ex-
pectations, and enraged at his supposed obstinacy,
they listened too readily to charges advanced
against him by certain caciques of the neighbour-
hood, who represented him as a monster of cruelty,
and as guilty of crimes repugnant to nature
whereupon, in the heat of the moment, they gave
him and his three companions, who were said to
be equally guilty, to be torn in pieces by the dogs.
—A rash and cruel sentence, issued on the evidence
of avowed enemies : and which, however it may
be palliated by the alleged horror and disgust of
the Spaniards at the imputed crimes of the cacique,
bears visibly the stamp of haste and passion, and
remains accordingly a foul blot on the character of
Vasco Nunez.
The Spaniards staid for thirty days reposing
in the village of the unfortunate Poncra, during
which time they were rejoined by their companions,
who had been left behind at the village of Cheapes.
They were accompanied by a cacique of the moun-
tains, who had lodged and fed them, and made
them presents of the value of two thousand crowns
* P. Martyr, d. iii. c. 2.1513.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	193
in gold. This hospitable savage approached
Vasco Nunez with a serene countenance, and tak-
ing him by the hand, “ Behold,” said he, “ most
valiant and powerful chief, I bring thee thy com-
panions safe and well, as they entered under my
roof. May he who made the thunder and light-
ning, and who gives us the fruits of the earth,
preserve thee and thine in safety !” So saying,
he raised his eyes to the sun, as if he worshipped
that as his deity and the dispenser of all temporal
blessings.*
Departing from this village, and being still ac-
companied by the Indians of Teaochan, the Spa-
niards now bent their course along the banks of
the river Comagre, which descends the northern
side of the Isthmus, and flows through the terri-
tories of the cacique of the same name. This
wild stream, which in the course of ages had worn
a channel through the deep clefts and ravines of
the mountains, was bordered by precipices, or
overhung by shagged forests ; they soon aban-
doned it, therefore, and wandered on without any
path, but guided by the Indians. They had to
climb terrible precipices, and to descend into deep
valleys, darkened by thick forests and beset by
treacherous morasses, where, but for their guides,
they might have been smothered in the mire.
In the course of this rugged journey they suf-
fered excessively in consequence of their own
avarice. They had been warned of the sterility of
the country they were about to traverse, and of
the necessity of providing amply for the journey.
When they came to lade the Indians, however,
* Herrera, d. i. 1. x. c. 4.
o194	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
who bore their burdens, their only thought was
how to convey the most treasure; and they
grudged even a slender supply of provisions, as
taking up the place of an equal weight of gold.
The consequences were soon felt. The Indians
could carry but small burthens, and at the same
time assisted to consume the scanty stock of food
which formed part of their load. Scarcity and
famine ensued, and relief was rarely to be pro-
cured, for the villages on this elevated part of the
mountains were scattered and poor, and nearly
destitute of provisions. They held no communi-
cation with each other; each contenting itself with
the scanty produce of its own fields and forest.
Some were entirely deserted; at other places, the
inhabitants, forced from their retreats, implored
pardon, and declared they had hidden themselves
through shame, not having the means of properly
entertaining such celestial visitors. They brought
peace-offerings of gold, but no provisions. For
once the Spaniards found that even their darling
gold could fail to cheer their drooping spirits.
Their sufferings from hunger became intense, and
many of their Indian companions sank down and
perished by the way. At length they reached a
village where they were enabled to obtain sup-
plies, and where they remained thirty days, to
recruit their wasted strength.1513.]
VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
195
CHAPTER XIV.
Enterprise against Tubanama, the warlike Cacique of the
Mountains.—Return to Darien.
The Spaniards had now to pass through the
territories of Tubanama, the most potent and
warlike cacique of the mountains. This was the
same chieftain of whom a formidable character
had been given by the young Indian prince, who
first informed Vasco Nunez of the southern sea.
He had erroneously represented the dominions of
Tubanama as lying beyond the mountains : and,
while he dwelt upon the quantities of gold to be
found in them, had magnified the dangers that
would attend any attempt to pass their borders.
The name of this redoubtable cacique was in fact
a terror throughout the country ; and when Vasco
Nunez looked round upon his handful of pale and
emaciated followers, he doubted whether even the
superiority of their weapons, and their military
skill, would enable them to cope with Tubanama
and his armies in open contest. He resolved,
therefore, to venture upon a perilous stratagem.
When he made it known to his men, every one
pressed forward to engage in it. Choosing seventy
of the most vigorous, he ordered the rest to main-
tain their post in the village.
As soon as night had fallen he departed silently
and secretly with his chosen band, and made his
way with such rapidity through the labyrinths of
the forests and the defiles of the mountains, that
he arrived in the neighbourhood of the residence
o2196 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
of Tubanama by the following evening, though at
the distance of two regular days’ journey.
There waiting until midnight he assailed the
village suddenly, and with success, so as to surprise
and capture the cacique and his whole family, in
which were eighty females. When Tubanama found
himself a prisoner in the hands of the Spaniards,
he lost all presence of mind, and wept bitterly.
The Indian allies of Vasco Nunez beholding their
once dreaded enemy thus fallen and captive, now
urged that he should be put to death, accusing
him of various crimes and cruelties. Vasco
Nunez pretended to listen to their prayers,
and gave orders that his captive should be
tied hand and foot, and given to the dogs. The
cacique approached him trembling, and laid his
hand upon the pommel of his sword. “ Who can
pretend,” said h.e, “ to strive with one who bears
this weapon, which can cleave a man asunder with
a blow ? Ever since thy fame has reached among
these mountains have I reverenced thy valour.
Spare my life, and thou shalt have all the gold I
can procure.”
Vasco Nunez, wdiose anger was assumed, was
readily pacified. As soon as the day dawned, the
cacique gave him armlets and other jewels of gold
to the value of three thousand crowns, and sent
messengers throughout his dominions ordering his
subjects to aid in paying his ransom. The poor
Indians, with their accustomed loyalty, hastened
in crowds, bringing their golden ornaments, until
in the course of three days they had produced an
amount equal to six thousand crowns. This done,
Vasco Nunez set the cacique at liberty, bestowing1513.]	YASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	197
on him several European trinkets, with which he
considered himself richer than he had been with
all his gold. Nothing would draw from him,
however, the disclosure of the mines from whence
this treasure was procured. He declared that it
came from the territories of his neighbours, where
gold and pearls were to be found in abundance;
but that his lands produced nothing of the kind.
Vasco Nunez doubted his sincerity, and secretly
caused the brooks and rivers in his dominions to'
be searched, where gold was found in such quan-
tities that he determined, at a future time, to found
two settlements in the neighbourhood.
On parting with Tubanama, the cacique sent his
son with the Spaniards to learn their language
and religion. It is said, also, that the Spaniards
carried off his eighty women; but of this parti-
cular fact Oviedo, who writes with the papers of
Vasco Nunez before him, says nothing. He af-
firms, generally, however, that the Spaniards,
throughout this expedition, were not scrupulous
in their dealings with the wives and daughters of
the Indians ; and adds, that in this their com-
mander set them the example.*
Having returned to the village where he had left
the greater part of his men, Vasco Nunez resumed
his homeward march. His people were feeble and
exhausted, and several of them sick ; so that some
had to be carried and others led by the arms. He
himself was part of the time afflicted by a fever*
and had to be borne in a hammock on the shoulders
of the Indians.
Proceeding thus slowly and toilfully, they at
* Oviedo, Hist. Gen. Part II. c. 4. MS.198 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
length arrived on the northern sea coast, at the
territories of their ally, Comagre. The old ca-
cique was dead, and had been succeeded by his son,
the same intelligent youth who had first given in-
formation of the southern sea and the kingdom of
Peru. The young chief, who had embraced
Christianity, received them with great hospitality,
making them presents of gold. Vasco Nunez gave
him trinkets in return, and a shirt and a soldier’s
cloak ; with which, says Peter Martyr, he thought
himself half a god among his naked country-
men. After having reposed for a few days, Vasco
Nunez proceeded to Ponca, where he heard that
a ship and caravel had arrived at Darien from
Hispaniola, with reinforcements and supplies.
Hastening, therefore, to Coyba, the territories of
his ally, Careta, he embarked on the 18th of Janu-
ary, 1514, with twenty of his men, in the bri-
gantine which he had left there, and arrived at
Santa Maria de la Antigua, in the river of Darien,
on the following day. All the inhabitants came
forth to receive him; and when they heard the
news of the great southern sea, and of his return-
ing from its shores laden with pearls and gold, there
were no bounds to their joy. He immediately
despatched the ship and caravel to Coyba for the
companions he had left behind, who brought with
them the remaining booty, consisting of gold and
pearls, mantles, hammocks, and other articles of cot-
ton, and a great number of captives of both sexes.
A fifth of the spoil was set apart for the crown ; the
rest was shared, in just proportions, among those
who had been in the expedition, and those who
had remained at Darien. All were contented with1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	199
their allotment, and elated with the prospect of
still greater gain from future enterprises.
Thus ended one of the most remarkable expe-
ditions of the early discoverers. The intrepidity
of Vasco Nunez in penetrating, with a handful of
men, far into the interior of a wild and mountain-
ous country, peopled by warlike tribes: his skill
in managing his band of rough adventurers, stim-
ulating their valour, enforcing their obedience, and
attaching their affections, show him to have pos-
sessed great qualities as a general. We are told
that he was always foremost in peril, and the last
to quit the field. He shared the toils and dangers
of the meanest of his followers, treating them
with frank affability; watching, fighting, fasting,
and labouring with them; visiting and consoling
such as were sick or infirm, and dividing all his
gains with fairness and liberality. He was charge-
able at times with acts of bloodshed and in-
justice, but it is probable that these were often
called for as measures of safety and precaution; he
certainly offended less against humanity than most
of the early discoverers ; and the unbounded amity
and confidence reposed in him by the natives,
when they became intimately acquainted with his
character, speak strongly in favour of his kind
treatment of them.
The character of Vasco Nunez had, in fact,
risen with his circumstances, and now assumed a
nobleness and grandeur from the discovery he had
made, and the important charge it had devolved
upon him. He no longer felt himself a mere
soldier of fortune, at the head of a band of adven-
turers, but a great commander conducting an200	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
immortal enterprise. “ Behold,” says old Peter
Martyr, “ Vasco Nunez de Balboa, at once trans-
formed from a rash royster to a politic and dis-
creet captain and thus it is that men are often
made by their fortunes ; that is to say, their latent
qualities are brought out, and shaped and strength-
ened by events, and by the necessity of every ex-
ertion to cope with the greatness of their destiny.
CHAPTER XV.
Transactions in Spain. Pedrarias Davila appointed to the
command of Darien. T'idings received in Spain of the
discovery of the Pacific Ocean.
Vasco Nunez de Balboa now flattered himself
that he had made a discovery calculated to silence
all his enemies at court, and to elevate him to the
highest favour with his sovereign. He wrote let-
ters to the king, giving a detail of his expedition,
and setting forth all that he had seen or heard of
this Southern Sea, and of the rich countries upon
its borders. Beside the royal fifths of the profits
of the expedition, he prepared a present for the
sovereign, in the name of himself and his com-
panions, consisting of the largest and most preci-
ous pearls they had collected. As a trusty and
intelligent envoy to bear these tidings, he chose
Pedro de Arbolancha, an old and tried friend,
who had accompanied him in his toils and dangers,
and was well acquainted with all his transactions.
The fate of Vasco Nunez furnishes a striking1514.]	YASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	201
instance how prosperity and adversity, how even
life and death hang balanced upon a point of time,
and are affected by the improvement or neglect of
moments. Unfortunately, the ship which was to
convey the messenger to Spain lingered in port
until the beginning of March; a delay which had a
fatal influence on the fortunes of Vasco Nunez.
It is necessary here to cast an eye back upon the
events which had taken place in Spain while he
was employed in his conquests and discoveries.
The Bachelor Enciso had arrived in Castile
full of his wrongs and indignities. He had friends
at court, who aided him in gaining a ready hearing,
and he lost not a moment in availing himself of it.
He declaimed eloquently upon the alleged usur-
pation of Vasco Nunez, and represented him as
governing the colony by force and fraud. It was
in vain that the Alcalde Zamudio, the ancient col-
league and the envoy of Vasco Nunez, attempted
to speak in his defence; he was unable to cope
wTith the facts and arguments of the Bachelor, who
was a pleader by profession, and now pleaded his
own cause. The king determined to send a new
governor to Darien, with power to inquire into
and remedy all abuses. For this office he chose
Don Pedro Arias Davila, commonly called Pedra-
rias.* He was a native of Segovia, who had been
brought up in the royal household, and had dis-
tinguished himself as a brave soldier, both in the
war of Granada and at the taking of Oran and
Bugia in Africa. He possessed those personal
* By the English historians he has generally been called
Davila.202 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
accomplishments which captivate the soldiery, and
wras called el Galdn, for his gallant array and
courtly demeanour, and el Justador, or the Titter,
for his dexterity in justs and tournaments. These,
it must be admitted, were not the qualifications
most adapted for the government of rude and
factious colonies in a wilderness; but he had an
all-powerful friend in the Bishop Fonseca. The
Bishop was as thoroughgoing in patronage as in
persecution. He assured the king that Pedrarias
had understanding equal to his valour; that he
was as capable of managing the affairs of peace as
of war, and that, having been brought up in the
royal household, his loyalty might be implicitly
relied on.
Scarcely had Don Pedrarias been appointed,
when Cayzedo and Colmenares arrived on their
mission from Darien, to communicate the intelli-
gence received from the son of the cacique Coma-
gre, of the Southern Sea beyond the mountains,
and to ask one thousand men to enable Vasco
Nunez to make the discovery.
The avarice and ambition of Ferdinand wTere
inflamed by the tidings. He rewarded the bearers
of the intelligence, and, after consulting with
Bishop Fonseca, resolved to despatch immediately
a powerful armada, with twelve hundred men,
under the command of Pedrarias, to accomplish
the enterprise.
Just about this time the famous Gonsalvo
Hernandez de Cordova, commonly called the
Great Captain, was preparing to return to Naples,
where the allies of Spain had experienced a signal
defeat, and had craved the assistance of this re-1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	203
nowned general to retrieve their fortunes. The
chivalry of Spain thronged to enlist under the ban-
ner of Gonsalvo. The Spanish nobles, with their
accustomed prodigality, sold or mortgaged their
estates to buy gorgeous armour, silks, brocades, and
other articles of martial pomp and luxury, that
they might figure, with becoming magnificence, in
the campaigns of Italy. The armament was on the
point of sailing for Naples with this host of proud
and gallant spirits, when the jealous mind of Fer-
dinand took offence at the enthusiasm thus shown
towards his general, and he abruptly counter-
manded the expedition. The Spanish cavaliers
were overwhelmed with disappointment at having
their dreams of glory thus suddenly dispelled;
when, as if to console them, the enterprise of Pe-
drarias was set on foot, and opened a different
career of adventure. The very idea of an unknown
sea and splendid empire, where never European
ship had sailed or foot had trodden, broke upon
the imagination with the vague wonders of an
Arabian tale. Even the countries already known,
in the vicinity of the settlement of Darien, were
described in the usual terms of exaggeration.
Gold was said to lie on the surface of the ground,
or to be gathered with nets out of the brooks and
rivers; insomuch that the region hitherto called
Terra Firma, now received the pompous and delu-
sive appellation of Castilla del Oro, or Golden
Castile.
Excited by these reports, many of the youthful
cavaliers, who had prepared for the Italian cam-
paign, now offered themselves as volunteers to
Don Pedrarias. He accepted their services, and204 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514*
appointed Seville as the place of assemblage.
The streets of that ancient city soon swarmed with
young and noble cavaliers splendidly arrayed, full
of spirits, and eager for the sailing of the Indian
armada. Pedrarias, on his arrival at Seville,
made a general review of his forces, and was em-
barrassed to find that the number amounted ta
three thousand. He had been limited in his first
armament to twelve hundred; on representing the
nature of the case, however, the number was ex-
tended to fifteen hundred ; but through influence,
entreaty and stratagem, upwards of two thousand
eventually embarked.* Happy did he think him-
self who could in any manner, and by any means,
get admitted on board of the squadron. Nor was
this eagerness for the enterprise confined merely
to young and buoyant and ambitious adventurers ;
we are told that there were many covetous old
men, who offered to go at their own expense,
without seeking any pay from the king. Thus
every eye was turned with desire to this squadron
of modern argonauts, as it lay anchored on the
bosom of the Guadalquiver.
The pay and appointments of Don Pedrarias-
Davila were on the most liberal scale, and no ex-
pense was spared in fitting out the armament; for
the object of the expedition were both coloniza-
tion and conquest. Artillery and powder were
procured from Malaga. Beside the usual weapons,
such as muskets, crossbows, swords, pikes, lances
and Neapolitan targets, there was armour devised
of quilted cotton, as being light and better adapted
* Oviedo, 1. ii. c. 7. MS.1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	205
to the climate, and sufficiently proof against the
weapons of the Indians; and wooden bucklers from
the Canary islands, to ward off the poisoned ar-
rows of the Caribs.
Santa Maria de la Antigua was, by royal ordi-
nance, elevated into the metropolitan city of
Golden Castile, and a Franciscan friar, named
Juan de Quevedo, was appointed as bishop, with
powers to decide in all cases of conscience. A
number of friars were nominated to accompany
him, and he was provided with the necessary fur-
niture and vessels for a chapel.
Among the various regulations made for the
good of the infant colony, it was ordained that no
lawyers should be admitted there, it having been
found at Hispaniola and elsewhere, that they vrere
detrimental to the welfare of the settlements, by
fomenting disputes and litigations. The judicial
affairs were to be entirely confided to the Licen-
tiate Gaspar de Espinosa, who was to officiate as
Alcalde Mayor or chief judge.
Don Pedrarias had intended to leave his wife in
Spain. Her name was Doha Isabella de Boba-
dilla; she was niece to the Marchioness de Moya,
a great favourite of the late Queen Isabella, who
had been instrumental in persuading her royal
mistress to patronize Columbus.* Her niece par-
took of her high and generous nature. She refused
to remain behind in selfish security, but declared
that she would accompany her husband in every
* This was the same Marchioness de Moya, who during
the war of Granada, while the court and royal army were en-
camped before Malaga, was mistaken for the queen by a
Moorish fanatic, and had nearly fallen beneath his dagger.206 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
peril, whether by sea or land. This self-devotion
is the more remarkable when it is considered that
she was past the romantic period of youth; and
that she had a family of four sons and four daugh-
ters, whom she left behind her in Spain.
Don Pedrarias was instructed to use great in-
dulgence towards the people of Darien, who had
been the followers of Nicuesa, and to remit the
royal tithe of all the gold they might have col-
lected previous to his arrival. Towards Vasco
Nunez de Balboa alone the royal countenance was
stern and severe. Pedrarias was to depose him
from his assumed authority, and to call him to
strict account before the Alcalde Mayor, Gaspar
de Espinosa, for his treatment of the Bachelor
Enciso.
The splendid fleet, consisting of fifteen sail,
weighed anchor at St. Lucar on the 12th of April,
1514, and swept proudly out of the Guadalquiver,
thronged with the chivalrous adventurers for
Golden Castile. But a short time had elapsed
after its departure, when Pedro Arbolancho ar-
rived with the tardy missions of Vasco Nunez.
Had he arrived a few’ days sooner how different
might have been the fortunes of his friend!
He was immediately admitted to the royal
presence, where he announced the adventurous
and successful expedition of Vasco Nunez, and
laid before the king the pearls and golden orna-
ments which he had brought as the first fruits of
the discovery. King Ferdinand listened with
charmed attention to this tale of unknown seas
and wealthy realms added to his empire. It
filled, in fact, the imaginations of the most sago1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	207
and learned with golden dreams, and anticipations
of unbounded riches. Old Peter Martyr, who
received letters from his friends in Darien, and
communicated by word of mouth with those who
came from thence, writes to Leo the Tenth in
exulting terms of this event. “ Spain,” says he,
“ will hereafter be able to satisfy with pearls the
greedy appetite of such as in wanton pleasures
are like unto Cleopatra and ^Lsopus; so that
henceforth we shall neither envy nor reverence the
nice fruitfulness of Trapoban or the Red Sea.
The Spaniards will not need hereafter to mine and
dig far into the earth, nor to cut asunder moun-
tains in quest of gold, but will find it plentifully,
in a manner, on the upper crust of the earth, or in
the sands of rivers dried up by the heats of sum-
mer. Certainly the reverend antiquity obtained
not so great a benefit of nature, nor even aspired
to the knowledge thereof, since never man before,
from the known world, penetrated to these un-
known regions.”*
The tidings of this discovery at once made all
Spain resound with the praises of Vasco Nunez;
and, from being considered a lawless and desperate
adventurer, he was lauded to the skies as awwthy
successor to Columbus. The king repented of
the harshness of his late measures towards him,
and ordered the Bishop Fonseca to devise some
mode of rewarding his transcendant services.
P. Martyr, decad 3. chap. iii0 Lok’s translation*208
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
CHAPTER XVI.
Arrival and grand Entry of Don Pedrarias Davila into
Darien.
While honours and rewards were preparing in
Europe for Vasco Nunez, that indefatigable com-
mander, inspired by his fortunes with redoubled
zeal and loftier ambition, was exercising the pater-
nal forethought and discretion of a patriotic go-
vernor over the country subjected to his rule.
His most strenuous exertions were directed to
bring the neighbourhood of Darien into such a
state of cultivation as might render the settlement
independent of Europe for supplies. The town
was situated on the banks of a river, and contained
upwards of two hundred houses and cabins. Its
population amounted to five hundred and fifteen
Europeans, all men, and fifteen hundred Indians,
male and female. Orchards and gardens had been
laid out, where European as well as native fruits
and vegetables were cultivated, and already gave
promise of future abundance. Vasco Nunez de-
vised all kinds of means to keep up the spirits of
his people. On holidays they had their favourite
national sports and games, and particularly tilting
matches, of which chivalrous amusement the Spa-
niards in those days were extravagantly fond.
Sometimes he gratified their restless and roving
habits by sending them in expeditions to various
parts of the country, to acquire a knowledge of its
resources, and to strengthen his sway over the
natives. He was so successful in securing the
amity or exciting the awe of the Indian tribes,
that a Spaniard might go singly about the land in1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	209
perfect safety; while his own followers were zeal-
ous in their devotion to him, both from admiration
of his past exploits and from hopes of soon being
led by him to new discoveries and conquests.
Peter Martyr, in his letter to Leo the Tenth, speaks
in high terms of these “ old soldiers of Darien,”
the remnants of those well tried adventurers
who had followed the fortunes of Ojeda, Nicuesa,
and Vasco Nunez. “ They were hardened,” says
he, “ to abide all sorrows, and were exceedingly
tolerant of labour, heat, hunger, and watching, in-
somuch that they merrily make their boast that
they have observed a longer and sharper Lent than
ever your Holiness enjoined, since, for the space
of four years, their food has been herbs and fruits,
with now and then fish, and very seldom flesh.” *
Such were the hardy and well seasoned veterans
that were under the sway of Vasco Nunez; and
the colony gave signs of rising in prosperity under
his active and fostering management, when, in the
month of June, the fleet of Don Pedrarias Davila
arrived in the gulf of Ur aba.
The Spanish cavaliers who accompanied the
new governor were eager to get on shore, and to
behold the anticipated wonders of the land; but
Pedrarias, knowing the resolute character of Vasco
Nunez, and the devotion of his followers, appre-
hended some difficulty in getting possession of the
colony. Anchoring, therefore, about a league and
a half from the settlement, he sent a messenger on
shore to announce his arrival. The envoy, having
heard so much in Spain of the prowess and ex-
* P. Martyr, decad 3. c. iii, Lok’s translation.
P£10 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
ploits of Vasco Nunez and the riches of Golden
Castile, expected, no doubt, to find a blustering
warrior, maintaining barbaric state in the govern-
ment which he had usurped. Great was his as-
tonishment therefore to find this redoubtable hero
a plain unassuming man, clad in a cotton frock
and drawers, and hempen sandals, directing and
aiding the labour of several Indians who were
thatching a cottage in which he resided.
The messenger approached him respectfully, and
announced the arrival of Don Pedrarias Davila as
governor of the country.
Whatever Vasco Nunez may have felt at this
intelligence, he suppressed his emotions, and an-
swered the messenger with great discretion ; “ Tell
Don Pedrarias Davila,” said he, “ that he is wel-
come, that I congratulate him on his safe arrival,
and am ready, with all who are here, to obey his
orders.”
The little community of rough and daring
adventurers was immediately in an uproar when
they found a new governor had arrived. Some
of the most zealous adherents of Vasco Nunez
were disposed to sally forth, sword in hand, and
repel the intruder; but they were restrained by
their more considerate chieftain, who prepared
to receive the new governor with all due sub-
mission.
Pedrarias disembarked on the thirtieth of
June, accompanied by his heroic wife, Dona Isa-
bella; who, according to old Peter Martyr, had
sustained the roarings and rages of the ocean with
no less stout courage than either her husband or
even the mariners who had been brought up
among the surges of the sea.1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	211
Pedrarias set out for the embryo city at the
head of two thousand men, all well armed. He
led his wife by the hand, and on the other side of
him was the bishop of Darien in his robes; while
a brilliant train of youthful cavaliers, in glittering
armour and brocade, formed a kind of body guard.
All this pomp and splendour formed a striking
contrast with the humble state of Vasco Nunez,
who came forth unarmed, in simple attire, accom-
panied by his councillors and a handful of the
“ old soldiers of Darien,” scarred and battered,
and grown half wild in Indian warfare, but with-
out weapons, and in garments much the worse for
wear.
Vasco Nunez saluted Don Pedrarias Davila
with profound reverence, and promised him implicit
obedience, both in his own name and in the name
of the community. Having entered the town he
conducted his distinguished guests to his straw-
thatched habitation, where he had caused a repast
to be prepared of such cheer as his means afforded,
consisting of roots and fruits, maize and cassava
bread, with no other beverage than water from
the river;—a sorry palace and a meagre banquet
in the eyes of the gay cavaliers, who had antici-
pated far other things from the usurper of Golden
Castile. Vasco Nunez, however, acquitted him-
self in his humble wigwam with the courtesy and
hospitality of a prince, and showed that the dignity
of an entertainment depends more upon the giver
than the feast. In the mean time a plentiful
supply of European provisions was landed from
the fleet, and a temporary abundance was diffused
through the colony.
p 2212
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
CHAPTER XVII.
Perfidious Conduct of Don Pedraricis towards Vasco
Nunez.
On the day after his entrance into Darien, Don
Pedrarias held a private conference with Vasco
Nunez in presence of the historian Oviedo, who
had come out from Spain as the public notary of
the colony. The governor commenced by assuring
him that he was instructed by the king to treat
him with great favour and distinction, to consult
him about the affairs of the colony, and to apply
to him for information relative to the surrounding
country. At the same time he professed the most
amicable feelings on his own part, and an inten-
tion to be guided by his counsels in all public
measures.
Vasco Nunez was of a frank confiding nature,
and was so captivated by this unexpected courtesy
and kindness, that he threw off all caution and
reserve, and opened his whole soul to the politic
courtier. Pedrarias availed himself of this com-
municative mood to draw from him a minute and
able statement in writing, detailing the circum-
stances of the colony, and the information col-
lected respecting various parts of the country; the
route by which he had traversed the mountains;
his discovery of the South Sea; the situation and
reputed wealth of the Pearl Islands ; the rivers
and ravines most productive of gold; together
with the names and territories of the various ca-
ciques with whom he had made treaties.1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	213
When Pedrarias had thus beguiled the unsus-
pecting soldier of all the information necessary for
his purposes, he dropped the mask, and within a
few days proclaimed a judicial scrutiny into the
conduct of Vasco Nunez and his officers. It was
to be conducted by the Licentiate Gaspar de
Espinosa, who had come out as alcalde mayor, or
chief judge. The Licentiate was an inexperi-
enced lawyer, having but recently left the univer-
sity of Salamanca. He appears to have been
somewhat flexible in his opinions, and prone to be
guided or governed by others. At the outset of
his career he was much under the influence of
Quevedo, the bishop of Darien. Now, as Vasco
Nunez knew the importance of this prelate in the
colony, he had taken care to secure him to his in-
terests by paying him the most profound deference
and respect, and by giving him a share in his
agricultural enterprises and his schemes of traffic.
In fact, the good bishop looked upon him as one
eminently calculated to promote his temporal pros-
perity, to which he was by no means insensible.
Under the influence of the prelate, therefore, the al-
calde commenced his investigation in the most fa-
vourable manner. He went largely into an exami-
nation of the discoveries of Vasco Nunez, and of
the nature and extent of his various services. The
governor was alarmed at the course which the
inquiry was taking. If thus conducted, it would
but serve to illustrate the merits and elevate the
reputation of the man whom it was his interest
and intent to ruin. To counteract it he immedi-
ately set on foot a secret and invidious course of
interrogatories of the followers of Nicuesa and214 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
Ojeda, to draw from them testimony which might
support the charge against Vasco Nunez of usur-
pation and tyrannical abuse of power. The bishop
and the alcalde received information of this inqui-
sition, carried on thus secretly, and without their
sanction. They remonstrated warmly against it,
as an infringement of their rights, being coadjutors
in the government; and they spurned the testi-
mony of the followers of Ojeda and Nicuesa, as
being dictated and discoloured by ancient enmity.
Vasco Nunez was therefore acquitted by them of
the criminal charges made against him, though he
remained involved in difficulties from the suits
brought against him by individuals, for losses and
damages occasioned by his measures.
Pedrarias was incensed at this acquittal, and in-
sisted upon the guilt of Vasco Nunez, which he
pretended to have established to his conviction by
his secret investigations ; and he even determined
to send him in chains to Spain, to be tried for the
death of Nicuesa, and for other imputed offences.
It was not the inclination or the interest of the
bishop that Vasco Nunez should leave the colony ;
he therefore managed to awaken the jealous ap-
prehensions of the governor as to the effect of his
proposed measure. He intimated that the arrival
of Vasco Nunez in Spain would be signalized by
triumph rather than disgrace. By that time his
grand discoveries would be blazoned to the world,
and would atone for all his faults. He would be
received with enthusiasm by the nation, with fa-
vour by the king, and would probably be sent
back to the colony clothed with new dignity and
power.1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	%\5.
Pedrarias was placed in a perplexing dilemma
by these suggestions ; his violent proceedings
against Vasco Nunez were also in some measure
restrained by the influence of his wife, Doha
Isabel de Bobadilla, who felt a great respect and
sympathy for the discoverer. In his perplexity,
the wily governor adopted a middle course. He
resolved to detain Vasco Nunez at Darien under
a cloud of imputation, which would gradually im-
pair his popularity; while his patience and means
would be silently consumed by protracted and ex-
pensive litigation. In the meantime, however, the
property which had been sequestrated was restored
to him.
While Pedrarias treated Vasco Nunez with this
severity, he failed not to avail himself of the plans
of that able commander. The first of these was
to establish a line of posts across the mountains
between Darien and the South Sea. It was his
eager desire to execute this before any order
should arrive from the king in favour of his pre-
decessor, in order that he might have the credit
of having colonised the eoast, and Vasco Nunez,
merely that of having discovered and visited it.*
Before he could complete these arrangements,
however, unlooked-for calamities fell upon the set-
tlement, that for a time interrupted every project,
and made every one turn his thoughts merely ta
his own security.
* Oviedo, Hist. Ind. p. 2. c. 8.216
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Calamities of the Spanish Cavaliers at Darien.
The town of Darien was situated in a deep
valley surrounded by lofty hills, which, while they
kept off the breezes so grateful in a sultry climate,
reflected and concentrated the rays of the sun,
insomuch, that at noontide the heat was insupport-
able ; the river which passed it was shallow, with
a muddy channel and bordered by marshes ; over-
hanging forests added to the general humidity,
and the very soil on which the town was built wras
of such a nature, that on digging to the depth of a
foot there would ooze forth brackish water.*
It is not matter of surprise that a situation of
this kind, in a tropical climate, should be fatal to
the health of Europeans. Many of those who had
recently arrived were swept off speedily ; Pedra-
rias himself fell sick and was removed, with most
of his people, to a healthier spot on the river Coro-
bari; the malady, however, continued to increase.
The provisions which had been brought out in the
ships had been partly damaged by the sea, the
residue grew scanty, and the people were put upon
short allowance; the debility thus produced in-
creased the ravages of disease ; at length the provi-
sions were exhausted and the horrors of absolute
famine ensued.
Every one was more or less affected by these
calamities ; even the veterans of the colony quailed
P. Martyr, decad 3. c. vi.1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	217
beneath them; but to none were they more fatal
than to the crowd of youthful cavaliers who had
once glittered so gaily about the streets of Seville,
and had come out to the new world elated with
the most sanguine expectations. From the very
moment of their landing they had been disheart-
ened at the savage scenes around them, and dis-
gusted with the squalid life they were doomed to
lead. They shrunk with disdain from the labours
with which alone wealth was to be procured in this
land of gold and pearls, and were impatient of the
humble exertions necessary for the maintenance of
existence. As the famine increased, their case
became desperate; for they were unable to help
themselves, and their rank and dignity commanded
neither deference nor aid at a time when common
misery made every one selfish. Many of them,
who had mortgaged estates in Spain to fit them-
selves out sumptuously for their Italian cam-
paign, now perished for lack of food. Some
would be seen bartering a robe of crimson silk,
or some garment of rich brocade, for a pound of
Indian bread or European biscuit; others sought
to satisfy the cravings of hunger with the herbs
and roots of the field, and one of the principal
cavaliers absolutely expired of hunger in the pub-
lic streets.
In this wretched way, and in the short space of
one month, perished seven hundred of the little
army of youthful and buoyant spirits who had
embarked with Pedrarias. The bodies of some
remained for a day or two without sepulture, their
friends not having sufficient strength to bury them.
Unable to remedy the evil, Pedrarias gave per-218	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
mission for his men to flee from it. A ship-load of
starving adventurers departed for Cuba, where
some of them joined the standard of Diego Ve-
lasquez, who was colonising that island; others
made their way back to Spain, where they arrived
broken in health, in spirits and in fortune.
CHAPTER XIX.
Fruitless Expedition of Pedrarias.
The departure of so many hungry mouths was
some temporary relief to the colony; and Pedrarias,
having recovered from his malady, bestirred him-
self to send expeditions in various directions for
the purpose of foraging the country and collecting
the treasure.
These expeditions, however, were entrusted to
his own favourites, and partizans; while Vasco
Nunez, the man most competent to carry them
into effect, remained idle and neglected- A judi-
cial inquiry, tardily carried on, overshadowed him,
and though it substantiated nothing, served to
embarrass his actions, to cool his friends, and to
give him the air of a public delinquent. Indeed
to the other evils of the colony was now added that
of excessive litigation, arising out of the disputes
concerning the government of Vasco Nunez, and
which increased to such a degree, that, according
to the report of the alcalde Espinosa, if the law-
suits should be divided among the people, at least
forty would fall to each man’s share.* This too
* Herrera, decad 2.1. i. c. 1,1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	219
was in a colony into which the government had
commanded that no lawyer should be admitted!
Wearied and irritated by the check which had
been given to his favourite enterprises, and confi-
dent of the ultimate approbation of the king,
Vasco Nunez now determined to take his fortunes
in his own hands, and to prosecute in secret his
grand project of exploring the regions beyond the
mountains. For this purpose, he privately des-
patched one Andres Garabito to Cuba to enlist
men, and to make the requisite provisions for an
expedition across the isthmus, from Nombre de
Dios, and for the founding a colony on the shores
of the Southern Ocean, from whence he proposed
to extend his discoveries by sea and land.
While Vasco Nunez awaited the return of Ga-
rabito, he had the mortification of beholding vari-
ous of his colonising plans pursued and marred by
Pedrarias. Among other enterprises the governor
despatched his lieutenant-general Juan de Ayora,
at the head of four hundred men, to visit the pro-
vinces of those caciques with whom Vasco Nunez
had sojourned and made treaties on his expedition
to the Southern Sea. Ayora partook of the rash
and domineering spirit of Pedrarias, and harassed
and devastated the countries which he pretended
to explore. He was received with amity and
confidence by various caciques who had formed
treaties with Vasco Nunez ; but he repaid their
hospitality with the basest ingratitude, seizing
upon their property, taking from them their wives
and daughters, and often torturing them to make
them reveal their hidden or supposed treasures.
Among those treated with this perfidy* we grieve220 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
to enumerate the youthful cacique who first gave
Vasco Nunez information of the sea beyond the
mountains.
The enormities of Ayora and of other captains
of Pedrarias produced the usual effect; the natives
were roused to desperate resistance ; caciques, who
had been faithful friends, were converted into fu-
rious enemies, and the expedition ended in disap-
pointment and disaster.
The adherents of Vasco Nunez did not fail to
contrast these disastrous enterprises with those
which had been conducted with so much glory
and advantage by their favourite commander; and
their sneers and reproaches had such an effect
upon the jealous and irritable disposition of Pe-
drarias, that he determined to employ their idol in
a service that would be likely to be attended with
defeat and to impair his popularity. None seemed
more fitting for the purpose than an expedition to
Dobayba, where he had once already attempted in
vain to penetrate, and where so many of his follow-
ers had fallen victims to the stratagems and assaults
of the natives.
CHAPTER XX.
Second Expedition of Vasco Nunez in quest of the Gold
Temple of Dobayba.
The rich mines of Dobayba, and the treasures
of its golden temple, had continued to form a fa-
vourite theme with the Spanish adventurers. It
was ascertained that Vasco Nunez had stopped1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	221
short of the wealthy region on his former expedi-
tion, and had mistaken a frontier village for the re-
sidence of the cacique. The enterprise of the tem-
ple was, therefore, still to be achieved; and it was
solicited by several of the cavaliers in the train of
Pedrarias, with all the chivalrous ardour of that
romantic age. Indeed common report had invested
the enterprise with difficulties and danger sufficient
to stimulate the ambition of the keenest seeker of
adventure. The savages who inhabited that part
of the country were courageous and adroit. They
fought by water as well as by land, forming am-
buscades with their canoes in the bays and rivers.
The country was intersected by dreary fens and
morasses, infested by all kinds of reptiles. Clouds
of gnats and musquitoes filled the air; there were
large bats also, supposed to have the baneful pro-
perties of the vampire ; alligators lurked in the
waters, and the gloomy recesses of the fens were
said to be the dens of dragons !*
Besides these objects of terror, both true and
fabulous, the old historian, Peter Martyr, makes
mention of another monstrous animal, said to infest
this golden region, and which deserves to be cited,
as showing the imaginary dangers with which the
active minds of the discoverers peopled the unex-
plored wilderness around them.
According to the tales of the Indians, there
had occurred, shortly before the arrival of the Spa-
niards, a violent tempest or rather hurricane in the
neighbourhood of Dobayba, which demolished
houses, tore up trees by the roots, and laid waste
whole forests. When the tempest had subsided
* P. Martyr.222	SPANISH VOYAGES OE DISCOVERY. (1514.
and the affrighted inhabitants ventured to look
abroad, they found that two monstrous animals
had been brought into the country by the hurri-
cane. According to their accounts they were not
unlike the ancient harpies, and one being smaller
than the other was supposed to be its young.
They had the faces of women, with the claws and
wings of eagles, and were of such prodigious size
that the very boughs of the trees on which they
alighted broke beneath them. They would swoop
down and carry off a man as a hawk would bear
off a chicken, flying with him to the tops of the
mountains, where they would tear him in pieces
and devour him. For some time they were the
scourge and terror of the land, until the Indians
succeeded in killing the old one by stratagem, and
hanging her on their long spears, bore her through
all the towns to assuage the alarm of the inhabi-
tants. The younger harpy, says the Indian tra-
dition, was never seen afterwards.*
Such were some of the perils, true and fabu-
lous, with which the land of Dobayba was said to
abound; and, in fact, the very Indians had such a
dread of its dark and dismal morasses, that, in
their journeyings, they carefully avoided them,
preferring the circuitous and rugged paths of the
mountains.
Several of the youthful cavaliers, as has been
observed, were stimulated rather than deterred by
these dangers, and contended for the honour of
the expedition; but Pedrarias selected his rival
for the task, hoping, as has been hinted, that it
would involve him in disgrace. Vasco Nunez
* P. Martyr, decad 7, c. 10.1514.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	22$
promptly accepted the enterprise, for his pride
was concerned in its success. Two hundred reso-
lute men were given to him for the purpose; but
his satisfaction was diminished when he found that
Luis Carrillo, an officer of Pedrarias, who had
failed in a perilous enterprise, was associated with
him in the command.
Few particulars remain to us of the events of
this affair. They embarked in a fleet of canoes,
and, traversing the gulf, arrived at the river which
flowed down from the region of Dobayba. They
were not destined, however, to achieve the enter-
prise of the golden temple. As they were pro-
ceeding rather confidently and unguardedly up
the river, they were suddenly surprised and sur-
rounded by an immense swarm of canoes, filled
with armed savages, which darted out from lurk-
ing places along the shores. Some of the Indians
assailed them with lances, others with clouds of
arrows, while some, plunging into the water, en-
deavoured to overturn their canoes. In this way
one half of the Spaniards were killed or drowned.
Among the number fell Luis Carillo, pierced
through the breast by an Indian lance. Vasco
Nunez himself was wounded, and had great diffi-
culty in escaping to the shore with the residue of
his forces.
The Indians pursued him and kept up a skirm-
ishing attack, but he beat them off until the night,
when he silently abandoned the shore of the river,
and directed his retreat towards Darien. It is
easier to imagine than to describe the toils and
dangers and horrors which beset him and the
remnant of his men as they traversed rugged224 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515*
mountains, or struggled through these fearful mo-
rasses of which they had heard such terrific tales.
At length they succeeded in reaching the settle-
ment of Darien.
The partizans of Pedrarias exulted in seeing
Vasco Nunez return thus foiled and wounded, and
taunted his adherents with their previous boast-
ings. The latter, however, laid all the blame
upon the unfortunate Carrillo. “ Vasco Nunez,”
said they, “ had always absolute command in his
former enterprises, but in this he has been em-
barrassed by an associate. Had the expedition
been confided to him alone, the event had been
far different.”
CHAPTER XXI.
Letters from the King in favour of Vasco Nunez.—
Arrival of Garabito.—Arrest of Vasco Nunez.—(1515.)
About this time despatches arrived from Spain
that promised to give a new turn to the fortunes
of Vasco Nunez and to the general affairs of the
colony. They were written after the tidings of
the discovery of the South Sea, and the subju-
gation of so many important provinces of the
Isthmus. In a letter addressed to Vasco Nunez,
the king expressed his high sense of his merits
and services, and constituted him Adelantado of
the South Sea, and Governor of the provinces of
Panama and Coyba, though subordinate to the
general command of Pedrarias. A letter was
likewise written by the king to Pedrarias, in-1515.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	225
forming him of this appointment, and ordering
him to consult Vasco Nunez on all public affairs
of importance. This was a humiliating blow to
the pride and consequence of Pedrarias, but he
hoped to parry it. In the meantime, as all
letters from Spain wTere first delivered into his
hands, he withheld that intended for Vasco Nu-
nez, until he should determine what course of
conduct to adopt. The latter, however, heard of
the circumstance, as did his friend the Bishop of
Darien. The prelate made loud complaints of
this interruption of the royal correspondence,
which he denounced, even from the pulpit, as an
outrage upon the rights of the subject, and an act
of disobedience to the sovereign.
Upon this the governor called a council of his
public officers; and, after imparting the contents
of his letter, requested their opinion as to the
propriety of investing Vasco Nunez with the dig-
nities thus granted to him. The Alcalde Mayor,
Espinosa, had left the party of the bishop, and
was now devoted to the governor. He insisted,
vehemently, that the offices ought in no wise to be
given to Vasco Nunez, until the king should be
informed of the result of the inquest which was
still going on against him. In this he was warmly
supported by the treasurer and the accountant.
The bishop replied, indignantly, that it wras pre-
sumptuous and disloyal in them to dispute the
commands of the king, and to interfere with the
rewards conscientiously given by him to a merito-
rious subject. In this way, he added, they were
defeating, by their passions, the grateful intentions
of their sovereign. The governor was overawed226	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
by the honest warmth of the bishop, and professed
to accord with him in opinion. The council lasted
until midnight; and it was finally agreed that the
titles and dignities should be conferred on Vasco
Nunez on the following day.*
Pedrarias and his officers reflected, however,
that if the jurisdiction implied by these titles were
absolutely vested in Vasco Nunez, the govern-
ment of Darien and Castilla del Oro would vir-
tually be reduced to a trifling matter; they re-
solved, therefore, to adopt a middle course ; to
grant him the empty titles, but to make him give
security not to enter upon the actual government
of the territories in question, until Pedrarias should
give him permission. The bishop and Vasco
Nunez assented to this arrangement; satisfied, for
the present, with securing the titles, and trusting
to the course of events to get dominion over the
territories.^
The new honours of Vasco Nunez were now
promulgated to the world, and he was every where
addressed by the title of Adelantado. His old
friends lifted up their heads with exultation, and
new adherents flocked to his standard. Parties
began to form for him and for Pedrarias; for it
was deemed impossible they could continue long
in harmony.
The jealousy of the governor was excited by
these circumstances; and he regarded the newly-
* Oviedo, part 2. c. 9. MS. Oviedo, the historian, was
present at this consultation, and says that he wrote down the
opinions given on the occasion, which the parties signed with
their proper hands.
t Idem..1515.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	227
created Adelantado as a dangerous rival and an
insidious foe. Just at this critical juncture, An-
dres Garabito, the agent of Vasco Nunez, arrived
on the coast in a vessel which he had procured at
Cuba, and had freighted with arms and ammu-
nition, and seventy resolute men, for the secret
expedition to the shores of the Pacific Ocean.
He anchored six leagues from the harbour, and
sent word privately to Vasco Nunez of his ar-
rival.
Information was immediately carried to Pe-
drarias, that a mysterious vessel, full of armed
men, was hovering on the coast, and holding secret
communication with his rival. The suspicious
temper of the governor immediately took the
alarm. He fancied some treasonable plot against
his authority; his passions mingled with his fears;
and, in the first burst of his fury, he ordered that
Vasco Nunez should be seized and confined in a
w ooden cage. The Bishop of Darien interposed
in time to prevent an indignity which it might have
been impossible to expiate. He prevailed upon
the passionate governor, not merely to retract the
order respecting the cage, but to examine the whole
matter with coolness and deliberation. The result
proved that his suspicions had been erroneous ;
and that the armament had been set on foot w ithout
any treasonable intent. Vasco Nunez was there-
fore set at liberty, after having agreed to certain
precautionary conditions; but he remained cast
dowrn in spirit and impoverished in fortune, by the
harassing measures of Pedrarias.228
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
CHAPTER XXII.
Expedition of Morales and Pizarro to the shores o f the
Pacific Ocean.— Their visit to the Pearl Islands.— Their
disastrous return across the mountains.
The Bishop of Darien, encouraged by the suc-
cess of his intercession, endeavoured to persuade
the governor to go still further, and to permit the
departure of Vasco Nunez on his expedition to
the South Sea. The jealousy of Pedrarias, how-
ever, was too strong to permit him to listen to such
counsel. He was aware of the importance of the
expedition, and was anxious that the Pearl Islands
should be explored, which promised such abundant
treasures ; but he feared to increase the popularity
of Vasco Nunez, by adding such an enterprise to
the number of his achievements. Pedrarias,
therefore, set on foot an expedition, consisting of
sixty men, but gave the command to one of his
own relations, named Gaspar Morales. The latter
was accompanied by Francisco Pizarro, who had
already been to those parts in the train of Vasco
Nunez, and who soon rose to importance in the
present enterprise by his fierce courage and do-
mineering genius.
A brief notice of the principal incidents of this
expedition is all that is necessary for the present
narration.
Morales and Pizarro traversed the mountains of
the isthmus by a shorter and more expeditious
route than that which had been taken by Vasco
Nunez, and arrived on the shores of the South1515.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	229
Sea at the territories of a cacique named Tutibra,
by whom they were amicably entertained. Their
great object was to visit the Pearl Islands : the
cacique, however, had but four canoes, which were
insufficient to contain their whole party. One
half of their number, therefore, remained at the
village of Tutibra, under the command of a captain
named Pehalosa; the residue embarked in the
canoes with Morales and Pizarro. After a stormy
and perilous voyage, they landed on one of the
smaller islands, where they had some skirmishing
with the natives, and thence made their way to
the principal island of the Archipelago, to which,
from the report of its great pearl fishery, Vasco
Nunez had given the name of Isla Rica.
The cacique of this island had long been the
terror of the neighbouring coasts, invading the
main land with fleets of canoes, and carrying off
the inhabitants into captivity. His reception of
the Spaniards was worthy of his fame. Four times
did he sally forth to defend his territory, and as
often was he repulsed with great slaughter. His
warriors were overwhelmed with terror at the
fire-arms of the Spaniards, and at their ferocious
bloodhounds. Finding all resistance unavailing,
the cacique was at length compelled to sue for
peace. His prayers being granted, he received
the conquerors into his habitation, which was well
built, and of immense size. Here he brought
them as apeace-offering a basket curiously wrought,
and filled with pearls of great beauty. Among
these were two of extraordinary size and value.
One weighed twenty-five carats ; the other was of
the size of a Muscadine pear, weighing upwards
of three drachms, and of oriental colour and lustre.230 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
The cacique considered himself more than repaid
by a present of hatchets, beads, and hawksbells:
and, on the Spaniards smiling at his joy, observed,
“ These things I can turn to useful purpose, but
of what value are those pearls to me ?”
Finding, however, that these baubles were pre-
cious in the eyes of the Spaniards, he took Morales
and Pizarro to the summit of a wooden tower, com-
manding an unbounded prospect. “ Behold before
you,” said he, “ the infinite sea, which extends
even beyond the sun-beams. As to these islands
which lie to the right and left, they are all subject
to my sway. They possess but little gold, but the
deep places of the sea around them are full of
pearls. Continue to be my friends, and you shall
have as many as you desire; for I value your
friendship more than pearls, and, as far as in me
lies, will never forfeit it.”
He then pointed to the main land, where it
stretched away towards the east, mountain beyond
mountain, until the summit of the last faded in the
distance, and was scarcely seen above the watery
horizon. In that direction, he said, there lay a vast
country of inexhaustible riches, inhabited by a
mighty nation. He went on to repeat the vague
but wonderful rumours which the Spaniards had
frequently heard about the great kingdom of Peru.
Pizarro listened greedily to his words, and while his
eye followed the finger of the cacique, as it ranged
along the line of shadowy coast, his daring mind
kindled with the thought of seeking this golden
empire beyond the waters.*
Before leaving the island, the two captains im-
Herrera, d. 2. 1. i. c. iv. P. Martyr, d. 3. c. x.1515.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	231
pressed the cacique with so great an idea of the
power of the King of Castile, that he agreed to
become his vassal, and to render him an annual
tribute of one hundred pounds weight of pearls.
The party having returned in safety to the main
land, though to a different place from that where
they had embarked, Gaspar Morales sent his rela-
tion, Bernardo Morales, writh ten men in quest of
Penalosa and his companions, who had remained
in the village of Tutibra.
Unfortunately for the Spaniards, during the ab-
sence of the commanders, this Penalosa had so
exasperated the natives by his misconduct, that a
conspiracy had been formed by the caciques along
the coast to massacre the whole of the strangers,
when the party should return from the islands.
Bernardo Morales and his companions, on their
way in quest of Penalosa, put up for the night in
the village of a cacique named Chuchama, who
was one of the conspirators. They were enter-
tained with pretended hospitality. In the dead of
the night, however, the house in which they were
sleeping was wrapped in flames, and most of them
were destroyed. Chuchama then prepared with
his confederates to attack the main body of the
Spaniards who remained with Morales and Pizarro.
Fortunately for the latter, there was among the
Indians who had accompanied them to the islands
a cacique named Chiruca, who was in secret cor-
respondence with the conspirators. Some circum-
stances in his conduct excited their suspicions;
they put him to the torture, and drew from him
a relation of the massacre of their companions, and
of the attack with which they were menaced.232	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
Morales and Pizarro were at first appalled by
the overwhelming danger which surrounded them.
Concealing their agitation, however, they compelled
Chiruca to send a message to each of the con-
federate caciques, inviting him to a secret con-
ference, under pretence of giving him important
information. The caciques came at the summons :
they were thus taken one by one to the number of
eighteen, and put in chains. Just at this juncture
Penalosa arrived with the thirty men who had re-
mained with him at Tutibra. Their arrival was
hailed with joy by their comrades, who had given
them up for lost. Encouraged by this unexpected
reinforcement, the Spaniards now attacked by sur-
prise the main body of confederate Indians, who,
being ignorant of the discovery of their plot and
capture of their caciques, were awaiting the return
of the latter in a state of negligent security.
Pizarro led the van, and set upon the enemy at
day-break wTith the old Spanish war-cry of San-
tiago ! It was a slaughter rather than a battle,
for the Indians were unprepared for resistance.
Before sun-rise, seven hundred lay dead upon the
field. Returning from the massacre, the com-
manders doomed the caciques who were in chains
to be torn in pieces by the bloodhounds ; nor was
even Chiruca spared from this sanguinary sentence.
Notwithstanding this bloody revenge, the vindic-
tive spirit of the commanders was still unappeased,
and they set off to surprise the village of a cacique
named Biru, who dwelt on the eastern side of the
Gulf of St. Michael. He was famed for valour
and for cruelty: his dwelling was surrounded by
the weapons and other trophies of those whom he1515 ]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	233
had vanquished; and he was said never to give
quarter.
The Spaniards assailed his village before day-
break with fire and sword, and made dreadful
havoc. Biru escaped from his burning habitation,
rallied his people, kept up a galling fight through-
out the greater part of that day, and handled the
Spaniards so roughly, that, when he drew off at;
night, they did not venture to pursue him, but re-
turned right gladly from his territory. According
to some of the Spanish writers, the kingdom of
Peru derived its name from this warlike cacique,
through a blunder of the early discoverers; the
assertion, however, is believed to be erroneous.
The Spaniards had pushed their bloody revenge
to an extreme, and were now doomed to suffer
from the recoil. In the fury of their passions,
they had forgotten that they were but a handful
of men surrounded by savage nations. Returning
wearied and disheartened from the battle with
Biru, they were waylaid and assaulted by a host
of Indians led on by the son of Chiruca. A ja-
velin from his hand pierced one of the Spaniards
through the breast, and came out between the
shoulders; several others were wounded, and the
remainder wrere harassed by a galling fire kept
up from among rocks and bushes.
Dismayed at the implacable vengeance they
had aroused, the Spaniards hastened to abandon
these hostile shores and make the best of their
way back to Darien. The Indians, however,
were not to be appeased by the mere departure of
the intruders. They followed them perseveringly234}	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
for seven days, hanging on their skirts, and harass-
ing them by continual alarms. Morales and Pi-
zarro, seeing the obstinacy of their pursuit, en-
deavoured to gain a march upon them by strat-
agem. Making large fires as usual one night about
the place of their encampment, they left them burn-
ing to deceive the enemy while they made a rapid
retreat. Among their number was one poor fel-
low named Velasquez, who was so grievously
wounded that he could not walk. Unable to ac-
company his countrymen in their flight, and dread-
ing to fall into the merciless hands of the savages,
he determined to hang himself, nor could the
prayers and even tears of his comrades dissuade
him from his purpose.
The stratagem of the Spaniards, however, was
unavailing. Their retreat was perceived, and
at day-break, to their dismay, they found them-
selves surrounded by three squadrons of sa-
vages. Unable, in their haggard state, to make
head against so many foes, they remained drawn
up all day on the defensive, some watching while
others reposed. At night they lit their fires and
again attempted to make a secret retreat. The
Indians, however, were as usual on their traces,
and wounded several with arrows. Thus pressed
and goaded, the Spaniards became desperate, and
fought like madmen, rushing upon the very darts
of the enemy.
Morales now resorted to an inhuman and fruit-
less expedient to retard his pursuers. He caused
several Indian prisoners to be slain, hoping that
their friends would stop to lament over them; but1515.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	235
the sight of their mangled bodies only increased
the fury of the savages and the obstinacy of their
pursuit.
For nine days were the Spaniards hunted in
this manner about the woods and mountains, the
swamps and fens, wandering they knew not
whither, and returning upon their steps, until, to
their dismay, they found themselves in the very
place where, several days previously, they had
been surrounded by the three squadrons.
Many now began to despair of ever escaping
with life from this trackless wilderness, thus teem-
ing with deadly foes. It was with difficulty their
commanders could rally their spirits, and encou-
rage them to persevere. Entering a thick forest
they were again assailed by a band of Indians, but
despair and fury gave them strength : they fought
like wild beasts rather than like men, and routed
the foe with dreadful carnage. They had hoped
to gain a breathing time by this victory, but a
new distress attended them. They got entangled
in one of those deep and dismal marshes which
abound on those coasts, and in which the wanderer
is often drowned or suffocated. For a whole day
they toiled through brake and bramble, and miry
fen, with the water reaching to their girdles. At
length they extricated themselves from the swamp,
and arrived at the sea shore. The tide was out,
but was about to return, and on this coast it rises
rapidly to a great height. Fearing to be over-
whelmed by the rising surf, they hastened to climb
a rock out of reach of the swelling waters. Here
they threw themselves on the earth panting with
fatigue and abandoned to despair. A savage wil-236 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
derness filled with still more savage foes, was on
one side, on the other the roaring sea. How were
they to extricate themselves from these surround-
ing perils? While reflecting on their desperate
situation, they heard the voices of Indians. On
looking cautiously round, they beheld four canoes
entering a neighbouring creek. A party was im-
mediately despatched who came upon the savages
by surprise, drove them into the woods, and seized
upon the canoes. In these frail barks the Spaniards
escaped from their perilous neighbourhood, and,
traversing the Gulf of St. Michael, landed in a less
hostile part, from whence they set out a second
time, across the mountains.
It is needless to recount the other hardships
they endured, and their further conflicts with the
Indians; suffice it to say, after a series of almost
incredible sufferings and disasters, they at length
arrived in a battered and emaciated condition at
Darien. Throughout all their toils and troubles,
however, they had managed to preserve a part of
the treasure they had gained in the islands; espe-
cially the pearls given them by the cacique of Isla
Rica. These were objects of universal admiration.
One of them was put up at auction, and bought by
Pedrarias, and was afterwards presented by his
wife Doha Isabella de Bobadilla to the Empress,
who, in return, gave her four thousand ducats.*
Such was the cupidity of the colonists, that the
sight of these pearls and the reputed wealth of
the islands of the Southern Sea, and the kingdoms
on its borders, made far greater impression on
* Herrera, Hist. Ind. d. 2,1. i. c. 4.1515.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	237
the public mind, than the tale told by the adven-
turers of all the horrors they had past; and every
one was eager to seek these wealthy regions
beyond the mountains.
CHAPTER XXIII.
Unfortunate Enterprises of the Officers of Pedrarias.—
Matrimonial Compact between the Governor and Vasco
Nunez.
In narrating the preceding expedition of Mo-
rales and Pizarro, we have been tempted into
what may almost be deemed an episode, though it
serves to place in a proper light the lurking diffi-
culties and dangers which beset the expeditions of
Vasco Nunez to the same regions, and his superior
prudence and management in avoiding them. It
is not the object of this narrative, however, to
record the general events of the colony under the
administration of Don Pedrarias Davila. We re-
frain, therefore, from detailing various expeditions
set on foot by him to explore and subjugate the
surrounding country; and which, being ignorantly
or rashly conducted, too often ended in misfortune
and disgrace. One . of these was to the province
of Zenu, where gold was supposed to be taken in
the rivers in nets; and where the Bachelor Enciso
once undertook to invade the sepulchres. A cap-
tain named Francisco Becerra penetrated into this
country at the head of one hundred and eighty
men, well armed and equipped, and provided with
three pieces of artillery ; but neither the com-238 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1515.
mander nor any of his men returned. An Indian
boy who accompanied them was the only one who
escaped, and told the dismal tale of their having
fallen victims to the assaults and stratagems and
poisoned arrows of the Indians.
Another band was defeated by Tubanama, the
ferocious cacique of the mountains, who bore as
banners the bloody shirts of the Spaniards he had
slain in former battles. In fine, the colony became
so weakened by these repeated losses, and the sa-
vages so emboldened by success, that the latter
beleaguered it with their forces, harassed it by
assaults and ambuscades, and reduced it to great
extremity. Such was the alarm in Darien, says
the Bishop Las Casas, that the people feared to be
burnt in their houses. They kept a watchful eye
upon the mountains, the plains, and the very
branches of the trees. Their imaginations were
infected by their fears. If they looked toward
the land, the long waving grass of the Savan-
nahs appeared to them to be moving hosts of
Indians. If they looked towards the sea, they
fancied they beheld fleets of canoes in the distance.
Pedrarias endeavoured to prevent all rumours
from abroad that might increase this fevered state
of alarm ; at the same time he ordered the smelting-
house to be closed, which was never done but in
time of war. This was done at the suggestion of
the Bishop, who caused prayers to be put up, and
fasts proclaimed, to avert the impending cala-
mities.
While Pedrarias was harassed and perplexed
by these complicated evils, he was haunted by con-
tinual apprehensions of the ultimate ascendancy of1515.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	239
Vasco Nunez. He knew him to be beloved by
the people, and befriended by the Bishop ; and he
had received proofs that his services were highly
appreciated by the king. He knew also that re-
presentations had been sent home by him and his
partizans, of the evils and abuses of the colony
under the present rule, and of the necessity of a
more active and efficient governor. He dreaded
lest these representations should ultimately suc-
ceed ; that he should be undermined in the royal
favour, and Vasco Nunez be elevated upon his
ruins.
The politic bishop perceived the uneasy state
of the governor’s mind, and endeavoured, by means
of his apprehensions, to effect that reconciliation
which he had sought in vain to produce through more
generous motives. He represented to him that
his treatment of Vasco Nunez was odious in the
eyes of the people, and must eventually draw on
him the displeasure of his sovereign. “ But why
persist,” added he, “ in driving a man to become
your deadliest enemy, whom you may grapple to
your side as your firmest friend? You have several
daughters—give him one in marriage; you will
then have for a son-in-law a man of merit and
popularity, who is a hidalgo by birth, and a fa-
vourite of the king. You are advanced in life and
infirm; he is in the prime and vigour of his days,
and possessed of great activity. You can make
him your lieutenant; and while you repose from
your toils, he can carry on the affairs of the colony
with spirit and enterprise ; and all his achieve-
ments will redound to the advancement of your
family and the splendour of your administration.’*240 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
The governor and his lady were won by the
eloquence of the bishop, and readily listened to his
suggestion; and Vasco Nunez was but too happy
to effect a reconciliation on such flattering terms.
Written articles were accordingly drawn up and
exchanged, contracting a marriage between him
and the eldest daughter of Pedrarias. The young
lady was then in Spain, but was to be sent for, and
the nuptials were to be celebrated on her arrival at
Darien.
Having thus fulfilled his office of peace-maker,
and settled, as he supposed, all feuds and jealousies
on the sure and permanent foundation of family
alliance, the worthy bishop departed shortly after-
wards for Spain.
CHAPTER XXIV.
Vasco Nunez transports ships across the mountains to the
Pacific Ocean.—(1516.)
Behold Vasco Nunez once more in the high ca-
reer of prosperity! His most implacable enemy
had suddenly been converted into his dearest
friend ; for the governor, now that he looked upon
him as his son-in-law, loaded him with favours.
Above all, he authorised him to build brigantines
and make all the necessary preparations for his
long desired expedition to explore the Southern
Ocean. The place appointed for these purposes
was the port of Careta, situated to the west of
Darien ; from whence there was supposed to be
the most convenient route across the mountains.1516.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	241
A town called Acla had been founded at this port;
and the fortress was already erected, of which
Lope de Olano was alcalde; Vasco Nunez was
now empowered to continue the building of the
town. Two hundred men were placed under his
command to aid him in carrying his plans into
execution, and a sum of money was advanced to
him out of the royal treasury. His supply of
funds, however, was not sufficient; but he re-
ceived assistance from a private source. There
was a notary at Darien, named Hernando de Ar-
guello, a man of some consequence in the com-
munity, and who had been one of the most furious
opponents of the unfortunate Nicuesa. He had
amassed considerable property, and now embarked
a great part of it in the proposed enterprise,
on condition, no doubt, of sharing largely in its
anticipated profits.
On arriving at Acla, Vasco Nunez set to wrork
to prepare the materials of four brigantines that
were to be launched into the South Sea. The
timber wras felled on the Atlantic seaboard; and
was then, with the anchors and rigging, trans-
ported across the lofty ridge of mountains to the
opposite shores of the Isthmus. Several Spa-
niards, thirty Negroes, and a great number of
Indians w7ere employed for the purpose. They
had no other roads but Indian paths, straggling
through almost impervious forests, across torrents,
and up rugged defiles, broken by rocks and pre-
cipices. In this way they toiled like ants up the
mountains, with their ponderous burthens, under
the scorching rays of a tropical sun. Many of
the poor Indians sank by the wTay and perished
R242 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
under this stupendous task. The Spaniards and
Negroes, being of hardier constitutions, were
better able to cope with the incredible hardships
to which they were subjected. On the summit of
the mountains a house had been provided for their
temporary repose. After remaining here a little
time to refresh themselves and gain new strength,
they renewed their labours, descending the op-
posite side of the mountains until they reached
the navigable part of a river, which they called
the Balsas, and which flowed into the Pacific.
Much time and trouble, and many lives were
expended on this arduous undertaking, before
they had transported to the river sufficient timber
for two brigantines; while the timber for the
other two, and the rigging and munitions for the
whole, yet remained to be brought. To add to
their difficulties, they had scarcely begun to work
upon the timber before they discovered that it
was totally useless, being subject to the ravages
of the worms from having been cut in the vicinity
of salt water. They were obliged, therefore, to
begin anew, and fell trees on the border of the
river.
Vasco Nunez maintained his patience and per-
severance, and displayed admirable management
under these delays and difficulties. Their supply
of food being scanty, he divided his people, Spa-
niards, Negroes, and Indians, into three bands;
one was to cut and saw the wood, another to
bring the rigging and iron work from Acla, which
was twenty-two leagues distant; and the third to
forage the neighbouring country for provisions.
Scarcely was the timber felled and shaped for1516.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	243
use when the rains set in, and the river swelled
and overflowed its banks so suddenly, that the
workmen barely escaped with their lives, by
clambering into the trees; while the wood on
which they had been working was either buried in
sand or slime, or swept away by the raging tor-
rent. Famine was soon added to their other dis-
tresses. The foraging party was absent and did
not return with food; and the swelling of the
river cut them off from that part of the country
from whence they obtained their supplies. They
were reduced, therefore, to such scarcity, as to be
fain to assuage their hunger with such roots as
they could gather in the forests.
In this extremity the Indians bethought them-
selves of one of their rude and simple expedients.
Plunging into the river they fastened a number of
logs together with withes, and connected them
writh the opposite bank, so as to make a floating
bridge. On this a party of the Spaniards crossed
with great difficulty and peril, from the violence
of the current, and the flexibility of the bridge,
which often sank beneath them until the water
rose above their girdles. On being safely landed
they foraged the neighbourhood, and procured a
supply of provisions sufficient for the present
emergency.
When the river subsided the workmen again re-
sumed their labours ; a number of recruits arrived
from Acla, bringing various supplies, and the
business of the enterprise was pressed with re-
doubled ardour, until at length, after a series of
incredible toils and hardships, Vasco Nunez had
the satisfaction to behold two of his brigantines
a 2244	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
floating on the river Balsas. As soon as they
could be equipped for sea, he embarked in them
with as many Spaniards as they could carry ; and,
issuing forth from the river, launched triumph-
antly on the great ocean he had discovered.
We can readily imagine the exultation of this
intrepid adventurer, and how amply he was repaid
for all his sufferings, when he first spread a sail
upon that untraversed ocean, and felt that the
range of an unknown world was open to him.
There are points in the history of these Spanish
discoveries of the western hemisphere, that make
us pause with wronder and admiration at the daring
spirit of the men who conducted them, and the
appalling difficulties surmounted by their courage
and perseverance. We know few instances, how-
ever, more striking than this piece-meal trans-
portation, across the mountains of Darien, of the
first European ships that ploughed the wraves of
the Pacific; and we can readily excuse the boast
of the old Castilian writers, when they exclaim,
“ that none but Spaniards could ever have con-
ceived or persisted in such an undertaking; and
no commander in the new wrorld but Vasco Nunez
could have conducted it to a successful issue.
Herrera, d. 2.1. ii. c. 11.1516.]
VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
245
CHAPTER XXV.
Cruise of Vasco Nunez in the Southern Sea.—Rumours
from Ada.
The first cruise of Vasco Nunez was to the groupe
of Pearl islands, on the principal one of which he
disembarked the greater part of his crews, and
despatched the brigantines to the main land to
bring off the remainder. It was his intention to
construct the other two vessels of his proposed
squadron at this island. During the absence of
the brigantines he ranged the island with his men,
to collect provisions, and to establish a complete
sway over the natives. On the return of his
vessels, and while preparations were making for
the building of the others, he embarked with a
hundred men, and departed on a reconnoitering
cruise to the eastward, towards the region pointed
out by the Indians as abounding in riches.
Having passed about twenty leagues beyond
the Gulf of San Miguel, the mariners were filled
with apprehension at beholding a great number of
whales, which resembled a reef of rocks stretching
far into the sea, and lashed by breakers. In an
unknown ocean like this every unusual object is
apt to inspire alarm. The seamen feared to ap-
proach these fancied dangers in the dark; Vasco
Nunez anchored, therefore, for the night under a
point of land, intending to continue in the same
direction on the following day. When the morn-
ing dawned, however, the wind had changed, and
was contrary; whereupon he altered his course,246 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
and thus abandoned a cruise, which, if persevered
in, might have terminated in the discovery of Peru!
Steering for the main land, he anchored on that
part of the coast governed by the cacique Chu-
chama, who had massacred Bernardo Morales
and his companions, when reposing in his village.
Here landing with his men, Vasco Nunez came
suddenly upon the dwelling of the cacique. The
Indians sallied forth to defend their homes, but
were routed with great loss; and ample vengeance
was taken upon them for their outrage upon the
laws of hospitality. Having thus avenged the
death of his countrymen, Vasco Nunez re-em-
barked and returned to Isla Rica.
He now applied himself diligently to complete
the building of his brigantines, despatching men
to Acla to bring the necessary stores and rigging
across the mountains. While thus occupied, a
rumour reached him that a new governor named
Lope de Sosa was coming out from Spain to super-
sede Pedrarias. Vasco Nunez was troubled at
these tidings. A new governor would be likely to
adopt new measures, or to have new favourites.
He feared, therefore, that some order might come
to suspend or embarrass his expedition; or that the
command of it might be given to another. In his
perplexity he held a consultation with several of
his confidential officers.
After some debate, it wTas agreed among them
that a trusty and intelligent person should be sent
as a scout to Acla, under pretence of procuring
munitions for the ships. Should he find Pedrarias
in quiet possession of the government, he was to
account to him for the delay of the expedition;1516.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	247
to request that the time allotted to it might be
extended, and to request reinforcements and
supplies. Should he find, however, that a new
governor was actually arrived, he was to return
immediately with the tidings. In such case it was
resolved to put to sea before any contrary orders
could arrive, trusting eventually to excuse them-
selves on the plea of zeal and good intentions.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Reconnoitering expedition of Garabito. Stratagem of
Pedrarias to entrap Vasco Nunez.
The person entrusted with the reconnoitering
expedition to Acla was Andres Garabito, in
whose fidelity and discretion Vasco Nunez had
implicit confidence. His confidence wras destined
to be fatally deceived. According to the asser-
tions of contemporaries, this Garabito cherished a
secret and vindictive enmity against his com-
mander, arising from a simple but a natural cause.
Vasco Nunez had continued to have a fondness
for the Indian damsel, daughter of the cacique
Careta, whom he had received from her father as a
pledge of amity. Some dispute arose concerning
her on one occasion between him and Garabito, in
the course of which he expressed himself in severe
and galling language. Garabito was deeply mor-
tified at some of his expressions, and, being of a
malignant spirit, determined on a dastardly re-
venge. He wrote privately to Pedrarias, assuring248 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
him that Vasco Nunez had no intention of
solemnizing his marriage with his daughter, being
completely under the influence of an Indian para-
mour ; that he made use of the friendship of Pe-
drarias merely to further his own selfish views,
intending, as soon as his ships were ready, to
throw off all allegiance, and to put to sea as an
independent commander.
This mischievous letter Garabito had written
immediately after the last departure of Vasco
Nunez from Acla. Its effects upon the proud
and jealous spirit of the governor may easily be
conceived. All his former suspicions were imme-
diately revived. They acquired strength during
a long interval that elapsed without tidings being
received from the expedition. There wrere design-
ing and prejudiced persons at hand, who perceived
and quickened these jealous feelings of the go-
vernor. Among these was the Bachelor Corral,
who cherished a deep grudge against Vasco Nunez
for having once thrown him into pi’ison for his
factious conduct; and Alonzo de la Puente, the
royal treasurer, whom Vasco Nunez had affronted
by demanding the repayment of a loan. Such
was the tempest that was gradually gathering in
the factious little colony of Darien.
The subsequent conduct of Garabito gives
much confirmation to the charge of perfidy that
has been advanced against him. When he arrived
at Acla he found that Pedrarias remained in pos-
session of the government; for his intended suc-
cessor had died in the very harbour. The conduct
and conversation of Garabito was such as to arouse
suspicions; he was arrested, and his papers and1516.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	249
letters were sent to Pedrarias. When examined,
he readily suffered himself to be wrought upon by
threats of punishment and promises of pardon,
and revealed all that he knew, and declared still
more that he suspected and surmised, of the plans
and intentions of Vasco Nunez.
The arrest of Garabito, and the seizure of his
letters, produced a great agitation at Darien. It
was considered a revival of the ancient animosity
between the governor and Vasco Nunez, and the
friends of the latter trembled for his safety.
Hernando de Arguello, especially, was in great
alarm. He had embarked the most of his fortune
in the expedition, and the failure of it would be
ruinous to him. He wrote to Vasco Nunez in-
forming him of the critical posture of affairs, and
urging him to put to sea without delay. He would
be protected at all events, he said, by the Jeroni-
mite Fathers at San Domingo, wdio were at that
time all-powerful in the new world, and who re-
garded his expedition as calculated to promote the
glory of God as well as the dominion of the king.*
This letter fell into the hands of Pedrarias, and
* In consequence of the eloquent representations made to
the Spanish government by the venerable Las Casas, of the
cruel wrongs and oppressions practised upon the Indians in
the colonies, the Cardinal Ximenes, in 1516, sent out three
Jeronimite Friars, chosen for their zeal and abilities, clothed
with full powers to inquire into and remedy all abuses,
and to take all proper measures for the good government,
religious instruction, and effectual protection of the natives.
The exercise of their powers at San Domingo made a great
sensation in the new world, and, for a time, had a beneficial
effect in checking the oppressive and licentious conduct of the
colonists.250	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
convinced him of the existence of a dangerous
plot against his authority, He immediately or-
dered Arguello to be arrested; and now devised
means to get Vasco Nunez within his power.
While the latter remained on the shores of the
South Sea with his brigantines and his band of
hearty and devoted followers, Pedrarias knew that
it would be in vain to attempt to take him by
force. Dissembling his suspicions and intentions,
therefore, he wrote to him in the most amicable
terms, requesting him to repair immediately to
Acla, as he wished to hold a conference with him
about the impending expedition. Fearing, how-
ever, that Vasco Nunez might suspect his motives
and refuse to comply, he at the same time ordered
Francisco Pizarro to muster all the armed force
he could collect, and to seek and arrest his late
patron and commander wherever he might be
found.
So great was the terror inspired by the arrest of
Arguello, and by the general violence of Pedrarias,
that, though Vasco Nunez was a favourite with
the great mass of the people, no one ventured to
warn him of the danger that attended his return
to Acla.
CHAPTER XXVII.
Vasco Nunez and the Astrologer.—His return to Acla.
The old Spanish writers who have treated of the
fortunes of Vasco Nunez, record an anecdote1516.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	251
which is worthy of being cited, as characteristic of
the people and the age. Among the motley crowd
of adventurers lured across the ocean by the re-
puted wealth and wonders of the New World, was
an Italian astrologer, a native of Venice, named
Micer Codro. At the time that Vasco Nunez held
supreme sway at Darien, this reader of the stars
had cast his horoscope, and pretended to foretel
his destiny. Pointing one night to a certain star,
he assured him that in the year in which he should
behold that star in a part of the heavens which he
designated, his life would be in imminent jeopardy;
but should he survive this year of peril, he would
become the richest and most renowned captain
throughout the Indies.
Several years, it is added, had elapsed since this
prediction was made; yet, that it still dwelt in the
mind of Vasco Nunez, was evident from the fol-
lowing circumstance. While waiting the return
of his messenger, Garabito, he was on the shore
of Isla Rica one serene evening, in company with
some of his officers, when, regarding the heavens,
he beheld the fated star exactly in that part of the
firmament which had been pointed out by the
Italian astrologer. Turning to his companions,
with a smile, “ Behold,” said he, “ the wisdom of
those who believe in soothsayers, and, above all,
in such an astrologer as Micer Codro ! According
to his prophecy, I should now be in imminent peril
of my life; yet, here I am, within reach of all my
wishes ; sound in health, with four brigantines and
three hundred men at my command, and on the
point of exploring this great southern ocean.”
At this fated juncture, say the chroniclers, ar-252	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
rived the hypocritical letter of Pedrarias, inviting
him to an interview at Acla ! The discreet reader
will decide for himself what credit to give to this
anecdote, or rather, what allowance to make for
the little traits of coincidence gratuitously added
to the original fact by writers who delight in the
marvellous. The tenor of this letter awakened no
suspicion in the breast of Vasco Nunez, who re-
posed entire confidence in the amity of the go-
vernor as his intended father-in-law, and appears
to have been unconscious of any thing in his own
conduct that could warrant hostility. Leaving his
ships in command of Francisco Companon, he de-
parted immediately to meet the governor at Acla,
unattended by any armed force.
The messengers who had brought the letter
maintained at first a cautious silence as to the
events which had transpired at Darien. They
were gradually won, however, by the frank and
genial manners of Vasco Nunez, and grieved to
see so gallant a soldier hurrying into the snare.
Having crossed the mountains, and drawn near to
Acla, their kind feelings got the better of their
caution, and they revealed the true nature of their
errand, and the hostile intentions of Pedrarias.
Vasco Nunez was struck with astonishment at the
recital; but, being unconscious, it is said, of any
evil intention, he could scarcely credit this sudden
hostility in a man who had but recently promised
him his daughter in marriage. He imagined the
whole to be some groundless jealousy which his
own appearance would dispel, and accordingly
continued on his journey. He had not proceeded
far, however, when he was met by a band of armed1516.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	253
men, led by Francisco Pizarro. The latter stepped
forward to arrest his ancient commander. Vasco
Nunez paused for a moment, and regarded him
with a look of reproachful astonishment. “ How
is this, Francisco ?” exclaimed he. “ Is this the
way you have been accustomed to receive me ?”
Offering no further remonstrance, he suffered him-
self quietly to be taken prisoner by his former
adherent, and conducted in chains to Acla. Here
he was thrown into prison, and Bartolome Hur-
tado, once his favourite officer, was sent to take
command of his squadron.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Trial of Vasco Nunez.
Don Pedrarias concealed his exultation at the
success of the stratagem by which he had ensnar-
ed his generous and confiding rival. He even
visited him in prison, and pretended deep concern
at being obliged to treat him with this temporary
rigour, attributing it entirely to certain accusations
lodged against him by the Treasurer Alonzo de la
Puente, which his official situation compelled him
to notice and investigate.
“ Be not afflicted, however, my son !” said the
hypocrite, “ an investigation will, doubtless, not
merely establish your innocence, but serve to ren-
der your zeal and loyalty towards your sovereign
still more conspicuous.”2 54	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
While Pedrarias assumed this soothing tone
towards his prisoner, he urged the Alcalde Mayor
Espinosa to proceed against him with the utmost
rigour of the law.
The charge brought against him of a treasonable
conspiracy to cast off all allegiance to the crown,
and to assume an independent sway on the bor-
ders of the Southern Sea, was principally sup-
ported by the confessions of Andres Garabito.
The evidence is also cited of a soldier, who stood
sentinel one night near the quarters of Vasco
Nunez onlsla Rica, and who, being driven to take
shelter from the rain under the eaves of the house,
overheard a conversation between that commander
and certain of his officers, wherein they agreed to
put to sea with the squadron on their own account,
and to set the governor at defiance. This testi-
mony, according to Las Casas, arose from a mis-
construction on the part of the sentinel, who only
heard a portion of their conversation, relating to
their intention of sailing without waiting for orders,
in case a new governor should arrive to supersede
Pedrarias.
The governor in the meantime informed himself
from day to day and hour to hour, of the progress
of the trial, and, considering the evidence suffici-
ently strong to warrant his personal hostility,
he now paid another visit to his prisoner, and,
throwing off all affectation of kindness, upbraided
him in the most passionate manner.
“ Hitherto,” said he, “ I have treated you as a
son, because I thought you loyal to your king,
and to me as his representative; but as I find you
have meditated rebellion against the crown ofCas-1516.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	255
tile, I cast you off from my affection, and shall
henceforth treat you as an enemy.”
Vasco Nunez indignantly repelled the charge,
and appealed to the confiding frankness of his con-
duct as a proof of innocence. 44 Had I been con-
scious of my guilt,” said he, 44 what could have
induced me to come here and put myself into your
hands ? Had I meditated rebellion, what prevented
me from carying it into effect? I had four ships
ready to weigh anchor, three hundred brave men
at my command, and an open sea before me.
What had I to do but to spread sail and press for-
ward? There was no doubt of finding a land,
whether rich or poor, sufficient for me and mine,
far beyond the reach of your controul. In the
innocence of my heart, however, I came here
promptly, at your mere request, and my reward
is slander, indignity and chains!”
The noble and ingenuous appeal of Vasco Nu-
nez had no effect on the prejudiced feelings of the
governor: on the contrary, he was but the more
exasperated against his prisoner, and ordered that
his irons should be doubled.
The trial was now urged by him with increased
eagerness. Lest the present accusation should not
be sufficient to effect the ruin of his victim, the old
inquest into his conduct as governor, which had
remained suspended for many years, was revived,
and he was charged anew with the wrongs inflicted
on the Bachelor Enciso, and with the death of the
unfortunate Nicuesa.
Notwithstanding all these charges the trial went
on slowly, with frequent delays, for the Alcalde256
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1516.
mayor, Gaspar de Espinosa, seems to have had but
little relish for the task assigned him, and to have
needed frequent spurring from the eager and pas-
sionate governor. He probably considered the
accused as technically guilty, though innocent of all
intentional rebellion, but was ordered to decide
according to the strict letter of the law. He there-
fore, at length, gave a reluctant verdict against
Vasco Nunez, but recommended him to mercy, on
account of his great services, or entreated that, at
least he might be permitted to appeal. “ No!” said
the unrelentingPedrarias, “If he has merited death,
let him suffer death!” He accordingly condemned
him to be beheaded. The same sentence was
passed upon several of his officers, who were im-
plicated in his alleged conspiracy; among these
was Hernando de Arguello, who had written the
letter to Vasco Nunez, informing him of the ar-
rest of his messenger, and advising him to put to
sea, without heeding the hostility of Pedrarias.
As to the perfidious informer Garabito, he was
pardoned and set at liberty.
In considering this case as far as we are enabled,
from the imperfect testimony that remains on re-
cord, we are inclined to think it one where passion
and self interest interfered with the pure admini-
stration of justice. Pedrarias had always consi-
dered Vasco Nunez as a dangerous rival, and,
though his jealousy had been for some time lulled
by looking on him as an intended son-in-law, it
wras revived by the suggestion that he intended to
evade his alliance, and to dispute his authority.
His exasperated feelings hurried him too far to re-1516.]	VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.	257
treat, and, having loaded his prisoner with chains
and indignities, his death became indispensable to
his own security.
For our own part, we have little doubt, that it was
the fixed intention of Vasco Nunez, after he had
once succeeded in the arduous undertaking of
transporting his ships across the mountains, to suf-
fer no capricious order from Pedrarias, or any
other governor, to defeat the enterprise which he
had so long meditated and for which he had so la-
boriously prepared. It is probable he may have
expressed such general determination in the hear-
ing of Garabito and of others of his companions.
We can find ample excuse for such a resolution in
his consciousness of his own deserts; his experi-
ence of past hindrances to his expedition, arising
from the jealousy of others; his feeling of some
degree of authority, from his office of Adelantado;
and his knowledge of the favourable disposition
and kind intentions of his sovereign towards him.
We acquit him entirely of the senseless idea of
rebelling against the crown; and suggest these
considerations in palliation of any meditated dis-
obedience of Pedrarias, should such a charge be
supposed to have been substantiated.
CHAPTER XXIX.
Execution of Vasco Nunez.—(1517.)
It was a day of gloom and horror at Acla, when
Vasco Nunez and his companions were led forth
s258 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1517.
to execution. The populace were moved to tears
at the unhappy fate of a man, whose gallant deeds
had excited their admiration, and whose generous
qualities had won their hearts. Most of them re-
garded him as the victim of a jealous tyrant; and
even those who thought him guilty saw something
brave and brilliant in the very crime imputed to
him. Such, however, was the general dread in-
spired by the severe measures of Pedrarias, that
no one dared to lift up his voice, either in murmur
or remonstrance.
The public crier walked before Vasco Nunez,
proclaiming, “ This is the punishment inflicted
by command of the king and his lieutenant, Don
Pedrarias Davila, on this man, as a traitor and an
usurper of the territories of the crown.”
When Vasco Nunez heard these words, he ex-
claimed, indignantly, “ It is false ! never did such
a crime enter my mind. I have ever served my
king with truth and loyalty, and sought to augment
his dominions.”
These words w ere of no avail in his extremity,
but they were fully believed by the populace.
The execution took place in the public square
of Acla; and we are assured by the historian,
Oviedo, who was in the colony at the time, that
the cruel Pedrarias was a secret witness of the
bloody spectacle; which he contemplated from
between the reeds of the wrall of a house, about
twelve paces from the scaffold! *
Vasco Nunez was the first to suffer death.
Having confessed himself and partaken of the sa-
* Oviedo, Hist. Ind. p. 2. c. 9. MS.VASCO NUNEZ DE BALBOA.
259
1517.]
crament, he ascended the scaffold with a firm step
and a calm and manly demeanour ; and, laying his
head upon the block, it was severed in an instant
from his body. Three of his officers, Valderra-
bano, Botello, and Hernan Munos, were in like
manner brought one by one to the block, and the
day had nearly expired before the last of them
was executed.
One victim still remained. It was Hernando de
Arguello, who had been condemned as an ac-
complice, for having written the intercepted letter.
The populace could no longer restrain their
feelings. They had not dared to intercede for
Vasco Nunez, knowing the implacable enmity of
Pedrarias; but they now sought the governor,
and, throwing themselves at his feet, entreated
that this man might be spared, as he had taken no
active part in the alleged treason. The day
light, they said, was at an end, and it seemed as if
God had hastened the night, to prevent the exe-
cution.
The stern heart of Pedrarias was not to be
touched. “ No,” said he, “ I would sooner die
myself than spare one of them.” The unfortunate
Arguello was led to the block. The brief tro-
pical twilight was past, and in the gathering gloom
of the night the operations on the scaffold could
not be distinguished. The multitude stood listen-
ing in breathless silence, until the stroke of the
executioner told that all was accomplished. They
then dispersed to their homes with hearts filled
with grief and bitterness, and a night of lamenta-
tion succeeded to this day of horrors.
The vengeance of Pedrarias was not satisfied
s 2260 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1517.
with the death of his victim; he confiscated his
property and dishonoured his remains, causing his
head to he placed upon a pole and exposed for
several days in the public square.*
Thus perished, in his forty-second year, in the
prime and vigour of his days and the full career of
his glory, one of the most illustrious and deserving
of the Spanish discoverers; a victim to the basest
and most perfidious envy.
How vain are our most confident hopes, our
brightest triumphs ! When Vasco Nunez from the
mountains of Darien beheld the Southern Ocean
revealed to his gaze, he considered its unknown
realms at his disposal. When he had launched his
ships upon its waters, and his sails were in a man-
ner flapping in the wind, to bear him in quest of
the wealthy empire of Peru, he scoffed at the pre-
diction of the astrologer, and defied the influence
of the stars. Behold him interrupted at the very
moment of his departure, betrayed into the hands
of his most invidious foe, the very enterprise that
was to have crowned him with glory wrested into
a crime, and himself hurried to a bloody and igno-
minious grave at the foot, as it were, of the moun-
tain from whence he had made his discovery ! His
fate, like that of his renowned predecessor, Colum-
bus, proves that it is sometimes dangerous even to
deserve too greatly.
* Oviedo, ubi sup.( 261 )
THE FORTUNES
OF
VALDIVIA AND HIS COMPANIONS.
It was in the year 1512 that Valdivia, the regidor
of Darien, was sent to Hispaniola by Vasco Nunez
de Balboa for reinforcements and supplies for the
colony. He set sail in a caravel, and pursued his
voyage prosperously until he arrived in sight of
the island of Jamaica. Here he was encountered
by one of the violent hurricanes which sweep
those latitudes, and driven on the shoals and
sunken rocks called the Vipers, since infamous for
many a shipwreck. His vessel soon went to pieces,
and Valdivia and his crew, consisting of twenty
men, escaped with difficulty in the boat, without
having time to secure a supply either of water or
provisions. Having no sails, and their oars being
scarcely fit for use, they were driven about for
thirteen days, at the mercy of the currents of those
unknown seas. During this time their sufferings
from hunger and thirst were indescribable. Seven
of their number perished, and the rest were nearly
famished when they were stranded on the eastern
coast of Yucatan, in a province called Maya. Here
they were set upon by the natives, who broke their
boat in pieces, and carried them off captive to the262
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512.
cacique of the province, by whose orders they
were mewred up in a kind of pen.
At first their situation appeared tolerable enough,
considering the horrors from which they had es-
caped. They were closely confined, it is true, but
they had plenty to eat and drink, and soon began
to recover flesh and vigour. In a little while, how-
ever, their enjoyment of this good cheer met with
a sudden check, for the unfortunate Valdivia, and
four of his companions, were singled out by the
cacique, on account of their improved condition, to
be offered up to his idols. The natives of this coast
in fact were cannibals, devouring the flesh of their
enemies and of such strangers as fell into their
hands. The wretched Valdivia and his fellow vic-
tims, therefore, were sacrificed in the bloody tem-
ple of the idol, and their limbs were afterwards
served up at a grand feast held by the cacique and
his subjects.
The horror of the survivors may be more readily
imagined than described. Their hearts died within
them when they heard the yells and howlings of the
savages over their victims, and the still more hor-
rible revelry of their cannibal orgies. They turned
with loathing from the food set so abundantly before
them, at the idea that it was but intended to fatten
them for a future banquet.
Recovering from the first stupor of alarm, their
despair lent them additional force. They suc-
ceeded in breaking in the night from the kind of
cage in which they were confined, and fled to the
depths of the forest. Here they wandered about
forlorn, exposed to all the dangers and miseries of
the wilderness; famishing with hunger, yet dread-263
1513.] VALDIVIA AND HIS COMPANIONS.
ing to approach the haunts of men. At length
their sufferings drove them forth from the woods
into another part of the country, where they were
again taken captive. The cacique of this province,
however, was an enemy to the one from whom
they had escaped, and of less cruel propensities.
He spared their lives and contented himself with
making them slaves, exacting from them the se-
verest labour. They had to cut and draw wood,
to procure water from a distance, and to carry
enormous burthens. The cacique died soon after
their capture, and was succeeded by another called
Taxmar. He was a chief of some talent and sa-
gacity, but he continued the same rigorous treat-
ment of the captives. By degrees they sank beneath
the hardships of their lot, until only two were left;
one of them a sturdy sailor named Gonzalo Guer-
rero, the other a kind of clerical adventurer named
Jeronimo de Aguilar. The sailor had the good
luck to be transferred to the service of the cacique
of the neighbouring province of Chatemal, by
whom he was treated with kindness. Being a
thorough son of the ocean, seasoned to all wea-
thers, and ready for any chance or change, he soon
accommodated himself to his new situation, fol-
lowed the cacique to the wars, rose by his hardi-
hood and prowess to be a distinguished warrior,
and succeeded in gaining the heart and hand of an
Indian princess.
The other survivor, Jeronimo de Aguilar, was of
a different complexion. He was a native of Ecija,
in Andalusia, and had been brought up to the
church, and regularly ordained, and shortly after-264 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1513.
wards had sailed in one of the expeditions to San
Domingo, from whence he had passed to Darien.
He proceeded in a different mode from that
adopted by his comrade, the sailor, in his dealings
with the Indians, and in one more suited to his
opposite calling. Instead of playing the hero
among the men, and the gallant among the women,
he recollected his priestly obligations to humility
and chastity. Accordingly, he made himself a
model of meekness and obedience to the cacique
and his warriors, while he closed his eyes to the
charms of the infidel women. Nay, in the latter
respect, he reinforced his clerical vows by a solemn
promise to God to resist all temptations of the
flesh, so he might be delivered out of the hands of
these Gentiles.
Such were the opposite measures of the sailor
and the saint, and they appear to have been equally
successful. Aguilar, by his meek obedience to
every order, however arbitrary and capricious,
gradually won the good will of the cacique and his
family. Taxmar, however, subjected him to many
trials before he admitted him to his entire confi-
dence. One day when the Indians, painted and de-
corated in warlike style, were shooting at a mark,
a warrior, who had for some time fixed his eyes on
Aguilar, approached suddenly and seized him by
the arm. “ Thou seest,” said he, “ the certainty
of these archers ; if they aim at the eye, they hit
the eye—if at the mouth, they hit the mouth—
what wouldst thou think, if thou wert to be placed
instead of the mark, and they were to shoot at and
miss thee ?”
Aguilar secretly trembled lest he should be the265
1513.] VALDIVIA AND HIS COMPANIONS.
victim of some cruel caprice of the kind. Dissem-
bling his fears, however, he replied with great
submission, “ I am your slave, and you may do
with me as you please; but you are too wise to
destroy a slave who is so useful and obedient.”
His answer pleased the cacique, who had secretly
sent this warrior to try his humility.
Another trial of the worthy Jeronimo was less
stern and fearful indeed, but equally perplexing.
The cacique had remarked his unexampled discre-
tion with respect to the sex, but doubted his sin-
cerity. After laying many petty temptations in his
way, which Jeronimo resisted with the self denial
of a saint, he at length determined to subject him
to a fiery ordeal. He accordingly sent him on a
fishing expedition accompanied by a buxom damsel
of fourteen years of age : they were to pass the
night by the sea-side, so as to be ready to fish at
the first dawn of day, and were allowed but one
hammock to sleep in. It was an embarrassing
predicament—not apparently to the Indian beauty,
but certainly to the scrupulous Jeronimo. He re-
membered, however, his double vow, and, suspend-
ing his hammock to two trees, resigned it to his
companion; while, lighting a fire on the sea-shore,
he stretched himself before it on the sand. It was,
as he acknowledged, a night of fearful trial, for his
sandy couch was cold and cheerless, the hammock
warm and tempting; and the infidel damsel had
been instructed to assail him with all manner of
blandishments and reproaches. His resolution,
however, though often shaken, was never over-
come ; and the morning dawned upon him still
faithful to his vow.266	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1514.
The fishing over, he returned to the residence
of the cacique, where his companion, being closely
questioned, made known the triumph of his self-
denial before all the people. From that time for-
ward he was held in great respect; the cacique
especially treated him with unlimited confidence,
entrusting to him the care, not merely of his house,
but of his wives, during his occasional absence.
Aguilar now felt ambitious of rising to greater
consequence among the savages, but this he knew
was only to be done by deeds of arms. He had
the example of the sturdy seaman, Gonzalo Guer-
rero, before his eyes, who had become a great cap-
tain in the province in which he resided. He
entreated Taxmar therefore to entrust him with
bow and arrows, buckler and war club, and to
enroll him among his warriors. The cacique com-
plied. Aguilar soon made himself expert at his
new weapons, signalized himself repeatedly in
battle, and, from his superior knowledge of the arts
of war, rendered Taxmar such essential service, as
to excite the jealousy of some of the neighbouring
caciques. One of them remonstrated with Tax-
mar for employing a warrior who was of a different
religion, and insisted that Aguilar should be sacri-
ficed to their gods. “ No,” replied Taxmar, “ I
will not make so base a return for such signal ser-
vices : surely the gods of Aguilar must be good,
since they aid him so effectually in maintaining a
just cause.”
The cacique was so incensed at this reply that
he assembled his warriors and marched to make
war upon Taxmar. Many of the counsellors of
the latter urged him to give up the stranger who267
1518.] VALDIVIA AND HIS COMPANIONS.
was the cause of this hostility. Taxmar, however,
rejected their council with disdain and prepared
for battle. Aguilar assured him that his faith in
the Christians’ God would be rewarded with vic-
tory ; he, in fact, concerted a plan of battle, which
was adopted. Concealing himself, with a chosen
band of warriors, among thickets and herbage, he
suffered the enemy to pass by in making their
attack. Taxmar and his host pretended to give
way at the first onset. The foe rushed heed-
lessly in pursuit; whereupon Aguilar and his am-
buscade assaulted them in the rear. Taxmar turned
upon them in front; they were thrown in con-
fusion, routed with great slaughter and many of
their chiefs taken prisoners. This victory gave
Taxmar the sway over the land, and strength-
ened Aguilar more than ever in his good graces.
Several years had elapsed in this manner, when
intelligence was brought to the province of the
arrival on the neighbouring coast of great vessels
of wonderful construction, filled with white and
bearded men, who fought with thunder and light-
ning. It was, in fact, the squadron of Francisco
Hernandez de Cordova, then on a voyage of dis-
covery. The tidings of this strange invasion
spread consternation through the country, height-
ened, if we may credit the old Spanish writers,
by a prophecy current among the savages of these
parts, and uttered in former times by a priest
named Chilam Cambal, who foretold that a white
and bearded people would come from the region
of the rising sun, who would overturn their idols
and subjugate the land.
The heart of Jeronimo de Aguilar beat quick268 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1518.
with hope when he heard of European ships at
hand; he was distant from the coast, however,
and perceived that he was too closely watched by
the Indians to have any chance of escape. Dis-
sembling his feelings, therefore, he affected to
hear of the ships with perfect indifference, and
to have no desire to join the strangers. The ships
disappeared from the coast, and he remained dis-
consolate at heart, but was regarded with increased
confidence by the natives.
His hopes were again revived in the course of
a year or two by the arrival on the coast of other
ships, which were those commanded by Juan de
Grijalva, who coasted Yucatan in 1518; Aguilar,
however, was again prevented by the jealous watch-
fulness of the Indians from attempting his escape,
and when this squadron left the coast he considered
all chance of deliverance at an end.
Seven years had gone by since his capture, and
he had given up all hopes of being restored to his
country and friends, when, in 1519, there arrived
one day at the village three Indians, natives of the
small island of Cozumel, which lies a few leagues
in the sea, opposite the eastern coast of Yucatan.
They brought tiding of another visit of white
and bearded men to their shores, and one of them
delivered a letter to Aguilar, which, being entirely
naked, he had concealed in the long tresses of his
hair which were bound round his head.
Aguilar received the letter with wonder and
delight, and read it in presence of the cacique and
his warriors. It proved to be from Hernando
Cortes, who was at that time on his great expedi-
tion, which ended in the conquest of Mexico. He269
1519.] VALDIVIA AND HIS COMPANIONS.
had been obliged by stress of weather to anchor at
the island of Cozumel, where he learned from the
natives that several white men were detained in
captivity among the Indians on the neighbouring
coast of Yucatan. Finding it impossible to ap-
proach the main land with his ships, he prevailed
upon three of the islanders, by means of gifts and
promises, to venture upon an embassy among their
cannibal neighbours, and to convey a letter to the
captive white men. Two of the smallest caravels
of the squadron were sent under the command of
Diego de Ordas, who was ordered to land the three
messengers at the point of Cotoche, and to wait
there eight days for their return.
The letter brought by these envoys informed
the Christian captives of the force and destination
of the squadron of Cortes, and of his having sent
the caravels to wait for them at the point of Co-
toche, with a ransom for their deliverance, invit-
ing them to hasten and join him at Cozumel.
The transport of Aguilar on first reading the
letter, was moderated when he reflected on the
obstacles that might prevent him from profiting
by this chance of deliverance. He had made him-
self too useful to the cacique to hope that he would
readily give him his liberty, and he knew the jea-
lous and irritable nature of the savages too well
not to fear that even an application for leave to
depart might draw upon him the severest treat-
ment. He endeavoured, therefore, to operate
upon the cacique through his apprehensions. To
this end he informed him that the piece of paper
which he held in his hand brought him a full
account of the mighty armament that had arrived270 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1519.
on the coast. He described the number of the
ships and various particulars concerning the squa-
dron, all which were amply corroborated by the
testimony of the messengers. The cacique and
his warriors were astonished at this strange mode
of conveying intelligence from a distance, and re-
garded the letter as something mysterious and
supernatural. Aguilar went on to relate the tre-
mendous and superhuman powers of the people
in these ships, who, armed with thunder and light-
ning, wreaked destruction on all who displeased
them, wrhile they dispensed inestimable gifts and
benefits on such as proved themselves their friends.
He, at the same time, spread before the cacique
various presents brought by the messengers, as
specimens of the blessings to be expected from
the friendship of the strangers. The intimation
was effectual. The cacique was filled with awe at
the recital of the terrific powers of the white men,
and his eyes were dazzled by the glittering trin-
kets displayed before him. He entreated Aguilar,
therefore, to act as his ambassador and mediator,
and to secure him the amity of the strangers.
Aguilar saw with transport the prospect of a
speedy deliverance. In this moment of exulta-
tion, he bethought himself of the only surviving
comrade of his past fortunes, Gonsalo Guerrero,
and, sending the letter of Cortes to him, invited
him to accompany him in his escape. The sturdy
seaman was at this time a great chieftain in his pro-
vince, and his Indian bride had borne him a nu-
merous progeny. His heart, however, yearned
after his native country, and he might have been
tempted to leave his honours and dignities, his.271
1519.] VALDIVIA AND HIS COMPANIONS.
infidel wife and half savage offspring behind him,
but an insuperable, though somewhat ludicrous,
obstacle presented itself to his wishes. Having
long since given over all expectation of a return to
civilized life, he had conformed to the customs of
the country, and had adopted the external signs
and decorations that marked him as a warrior and
a man of rank. His face and hands were indelibly
painted or tattooed; his ears and lips were slit to
admit huge Indian ornaments, and his nose was
drawn down almost to his mouth by a massy ring
of gold, and a dangling jewel.
Thus curiously garbled and disfigured, the ho-
nest seaman felt, that, however he might be ad-
mired in Yucatan, he should be apt to have a
hooting rabble at his heels in Spain. He made up
his mind, therefore, to remain a great man among
the savages, rather than run the risk of being shown
as a man monster at home.
Finding that he declined accompanying him,
Jeronimo de Aguilar set off for the point of Coto-
che, escorted by three Indians. The time he had
lost in waiting for Guerrero had nearly proved
fatal to his hopes, for when he arrived at the point,
the caravels sent by Cortes had departed, though
several crosses of reeds set up in different places
gave tokens of the recent presence of Christians.
The only hope that remained was, that the squa-
dron of Cortes might yet linger at the opposite island
of Cozumel; but how was he to get there ? While
wandering disconsolately along the shore, he found
a canoe, half buried in sand and water, and with
one side in a state of decay; with the assistance
of the Indians he cleaned it, and set it afloat, and272 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1519.
on looking further he found the stave of a hogs-
head which might serve for a paddle. It was a
frail embarkation in which to cross an arm of the
sea, several leagues wide, but there was no alter-
native. Prevailing on the Indians to accompany
him, he launched forth in the canoe and coasted
the main land until he came to the narrowest part
of the strait, where it was but four leagues across;
here he stood directly for Cozumel, contending, as
well as he was able, with a strong current, and
at length succeeded in reaching the island.
He had scarce landed when a party of Spaniards,
who had been lying in wait, rushed forth from their
concealment, sword in hand. The three Indians
would have fled, but Aguilar reassured them, and,
calling out to the Spaniards in their own language,
assured them that he was a Christian. Then,
throwing himself upon his knees, and raising his
eyes streaming with tears to heaven, he gave
thanks to God for having restored him to his
countrymen.
The Spaniards gazed at him with astonishment:
from his language he was evidently a Castilian, hut
to all appearance he was an Indian. He was per-
fectly naked; wore his hair braided round his head
in the manner of the country, and his complexion
was burnt by the sun to a tawny colour. He had
a how in his hand, a quiver at his shoulder, and a
net-work pouch at his side in which he carried his
provisions.
The Spaniards proved to be a reconnoitering
party, sent out by Cortes to watch the approach
of the canoe, which had been descried coming from
Yucatan. Cortes had given up all hopes of being273
1519.] VALDIVIA AND HIS COMPANIONS.
joined by the captives, the caravel having waited
the allotted time at Cotoche, and returned without
news of them. He had in fact made sail to pro-
secute his voyage, but fortunately one of his ships
had sprung a leak, which had obliged him to re-
turn to the island.
When Jeronimo de Aguilar and his companions
arrived in presence of Cortes, who was surrounded
by his officers, they made a profound reverence,
squatted on the ground, laid their bows and arrows
beside them, and touching their right hands, wet
with spittle on the ground, rubbed them about the
region of the heart, such being their sign of the
most devoted submission.
Cortes greeted Aguilar with a hearty welcome,
and raising him from the earth, took from his own
person a large yellow mantle lined with crimson,
and threw it over his shoulders. The latter, how-
ever, had for so long a time gone entirely naked,
that even this scanty covering was at first almost
insupportable, and he had become so accustomed
to the diet of the natives, that he found it difficult
to reconcile his stomach to the meat and drink set
before him.
When he had sufficiently recovered from the
agitation of his arrival among Christians, Cortes
drew from him the particulars of his story, and
found that he was related to one of his own friends,
the licentiate Marcos de Aguilar. He treated him,
therefore, with additional kindness and respect,
and retained him about his person to aid him as
an interpreter in his great Mexican expedition.
The happiness of Jeronimo de Aguilar at once
more being restored to his countrymen, was doomed
T274 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1519.
to suffer some alloy from the disasters that had
happened in his family. Peter Martyr records a
touching anecdote of the effect that had been pro-
duced upon his mother by the tidings of his mis-
fortune. A vague report had reached her in Spain,
that her son had fallen into the Iiands of cannibals.
All the horrible tales that circulated in Spain con-
cerning the treatment of these savages to their
prisoners rushed to her imagination, and she went
distracted. Whenever she beheld roasted meat,
or flesh upon the spit, she would fill the house
with her outcries. “ Oh, wretched mother! oh,
most miserable of women!” would she exclaim;
“ behold the limbs of my murdered son ! *
It is to be hoped that the tidings of his deliver-
ance had a favourable effect upon her intellects,
and that she lived to rejoice at his after fortunes.
He served Hernando Cortez with great courage
and ability throughout his Mexican conquests,
acting sometimes as a soldier, sometimes as inter-
preter and ambassador to the Indians, and in reward
of his fidelity, and services, was appointed regidor,
or civil governor of the city of Mexico.
* P. Martyr, decad. iv. c. 6.( 275 )
MICER CODRO, THE ASTROLOGER.
The fate of the Italian astrologer, Micer Codro,
who predicted the end of Vasco Nunez, is related
by the historian Oviedo, with some particulars
that border upon the marvellous. It appears
that, after the death of his patron, he continued
for several years rambling about the New World,
in the train of the Spanish discoverers ; but intent
upon studying the secrets of its natural history,
rather than searching after its treasures.
In the course of his wanderings he was once
coasting the shores of the Southern ocean, in a
ship commanded by one Geronimo de Valenzuela,
from whom he received such cruel treatment as to
cause his death, though, what the nature of the
treatment was, we are not precisely informed.
Finding his end approaching, the unfortunate
astrologer addressed Valenzuela in the most so-
lemn manner : “ Captain,” said he, “ you have
caused my death by your cruelty; I now summon
you to appear with me, within a year, before the
Judgment Seat of God! ”
The captain made a light and scoffing answer,
and treated his summons with contempt.
They were then off the coast of Veragua, near
the verdant islands of Zebaco, which lie at the
entrance of the Gulf of Parita or Paris. The poor
astrologer gazed wistfully with his dying eyes upon
the green and shady groves, and entreated the pilot
or mate of the caravel to land him on one of the
x 2276	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY.
islands, that he might die in peace. “ Micer
Codro,” replied the pilot, “ those are not islands,
but points of land: there are no islands here-
about.”
“ There are, indeed,” replied the astrologer,
“ two good and pleasant islands, wTell watered,
and near to the coast, and within them is a great
bay with a harbour. Land me, I pray you, upon
one of these islands, that I may have comfort in
my dying hour.”
The pilot, whose rough nature had been touched
with pity for the condition of the unfortunate as-
trologer, listened to his prayer, and conveyed him
to the shore, where he found the opinion he had
given of the character of the coast to be correct.
He laid him on the herbage in the shade, where
the poor wanderer soon expired. The pilot then
dug a grave at the foot of a tree, where he buried
him with all possible decency, and carved a cross
on the bark to mark the grave.
Some time afterwards, Oviedo, the historian,
was on the island with this very pilot, who showed
him the cross on the tree, and gave his honest
testimony to the good character and worthy con-
duct of Micer Codro. Oviedo, as he regarded the
nameless grave, passed the eulogium of a scholar
upon the poor astrologer: “ He died,” says he,
“ like Pliny, in the discharge of his duties, travel-
ling about the world to explore the secrets of na-
ture.” According to his account, the prediction of
Micer Codro held good with respect to Valen-
zuela, as it had in the case of Vasco Nunez.—The
captain died within the term in which he had sum-
moned him to appear before the tribunal of God !*
* Vide Oviedo, Hist. Gen. 1. xxxix. c. 2.( 277 )
JUAN PONCE DE LEON,
CONQUEROR OF PORTO RICO, AND DISCOVERER OF FLORIDA.
CHAPTER I.
Reconnoitering Expedition of Juan JPonce de Leon to the
Island of Boriquen.—(1508.)
Many years had elapsed since the discovery and
colonization of Hayti, yet its neighbouring island
of Boriquen, or as the Spaniards called it, St. Juan
(since named Porto Rico), remained unexplored.
It was beautiful to the eye as beheld from the sea,
having lofty mountains clothed with forest trees of
prodigious size and magnificent foliage. There
were broad fertile valleys also, always fresh and
green; for the frequent showers and abundant
streams in these latitudes, and the absence of all
wintry frost, produce a perpetual verdure. Va-
rious ships had occasionally touched at the island,
but their crews had never penetrated into the in-
terior. It was evident, however, from the number
of hamlets and scattered houses, and the smoke
rising in all directions from among the trees, that
it was well peopled. The inhabitants still con-
tinued to enjoy their life of indolence and free-
dom, unmolested by the ills that overwhelmed278 SPANISH VOYAGES OE DISCOVERY. [1508.
the neighbouring island of Hayti. The time had
arrived, however, when they were to share the
common lot of their fellow savages, and to sink
beneath the yoke of the white man.
At the time when Nicholas de Ovando, Go-
vernor of Hispaniola, undertook to lay waste the
great province of Higuey, which lay at the eastern
end of Hayti, he sent as commander of part of
the troops a veteran soldier, named Juan Ponce
de Leon. He was a native of Leon in Spain,
and in his boyhood had been page to Pedro
Nunez de Guzman, Senor of Toral.* From an
early age he had been schooled to war, and had
served in the various campaigns against the Moors
of Granada. He accompanied Columbus in his
second voyage in 1493, and was afterwards, it is
said, one of the partizans of Francisco Roldan, in
his rebellion against the admiral. Having distin-
guished himself in various battles with the Indians,
and acquired a name for sagacity as well as valor,
he received a command subordinate to Juan de
Esquibel in the campaign against Higuey, and se-
conded his chief so valiantly in that sanguinary
expedition, that, after the subjugation of the pro-
vince, he was appointed to the command of it, as
lieutenant of the Governor of Hispaniola.
Juan Ponce de Leon had all the impatience of
quiet life and the passion for exploit of a veteran
campaigner. He had not been long in the tran-
quil command of his province of Higuey, before
he began to cast a wistful eye towards the green
mountains of Boriquen. They were directly oppo-
* Incas, Garcilaso de la Vega, Hist. Florida, t. iv. c. 37.1508.]	JUAN PONCE DE LEON.	279
site, and but twelve or fourteen leagues distant, so
as to be distinctly seen in the transparent atmo-
sphere of the tropics. The Indians of the two
islands frequently visited each other, and in this
way Juan Ponce received the usual intelligence,
that the mountains he had eyed so wistfully
abounded with gold. He readily obtained per-
mission from Governor Ovando to make an ex-
pedition to this island, and embarked in the year
1508 in a caravel with a few Spaniards and several
Indian interpreters and guides.
After an easy voyage, he landed on the woody
shores of the island, near to the residence of the
principal cacique, Agueybana. He found the chief-
tain seated in patriarchal style, under the shade of
his native groves, and surrounded by his family,
consisting of his mother, step-father, brother and
sister, who vied with each other in paying homage
to the strangers. Juan Ponce, in fact, was received
into the bosom of the family, and the cacique ex-
changed names with him, which is the Indian
pledge of perpetual amity. Juan Ponce also gave
Christian names to the mother and step-father of
the cacique, and would fain have baptized them,
but they declined the ceremony, though they al-
ways took a pride in the names thus given them.
In his zeal to gratify his guests, the cacique
took them to various parts of the island. They
found the interior to correspond with the external
appearance. It was wild and mountainous, but
magnificently wooded, with deep rich valleys fer-
tilized by limpid streams. Juan Ponce requested
the cacique to reveal to him the riches of the
island. The simple Indian showed him his most280 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1508.
productive fields of Yuca, the groves laden with
the most delicious fruit, the sweetest and purest
fountains, and the coolest runs of water.
Ponce de Leon heeded but little these real bless-
ings, and demanded whether the island produced
no gold. Upon this the cacique conducted him to
two rivers, the Manatuabon and the Zebuco, where
the very pebbles seemed richly veined with gold,
and large grains shone among the sand through
the limpid water. Some of the largest of these
were gathered by the Indians and given to the
Spaniards. The quantity thus procured confirmed
the hopes of Juan Ponce; and leaving several of
his companions in the house of the hospitable
cacique, he returned to Hayti to report the success
of his expedition. He presented the specimens
of gold to the Governor Ovando, who assayed
them in a crucible. The ore was not so fine as
that of Hispaniola, but, as it was supposed to exist
in greater quantities, the governor determined on
the subjugation of the island, and confided the
enterprize to Juan Ponce de Leon.
CHAPTER II.
Juan Ponce aspires to the government of Porto Rico.—
(1509.)
Tiie natives of Boriquen were more warlike than
those of Hispaniola; being accustomed to the use
of arms from the necessity of repelling the frequent
invasions of the Caribs. It was supposed, therefore,1509.]	JUAN PONCE DE LEON.	281
that the conquest of their island would be attended
with some difficulty, and Juan Ponce de Leon
made another, and as it were, a preparatory visit,
to make himself acquainted with the country, and
with the nature and resources of the inhabitants.
He found the companions whom he had left there on
his former visit, in good health and spirits, and full
of gratitude towards the cacique Agueybana, who
had treated them with undiminished hospitality.
There appeared to be no need of violence to win
the island from such simple-hearted and confiding
people. Juan Ponce flattered himself with the
hopes of being appointed to its government by
Ovando, and of bringing it peaceably into subjec-
tion. After remaining sometime on the island, he
returned to San Domingo to seek the desired ap-
pointment, but to his surprise, found the whole
face of affairs had changed during his absence.
His patron, the governor Ovando, had been
recalled to Spain, and Don Diego Columbus,
son of the renowned discoverer, appointed in his
place to the command at San Domingo. To add
to the perplexities of Juan Ponce, a cavalier had
already arrived from Spain, empowered by the
king to form a settlement and build a fortress on
the island of Porto Rico. His name was Chris-
toval de Sotomayor ; he was brother to the Count
of Camina, and had been secretary to Philip I.
surnamed the Handsome, king of Castile and fa-
ther of Charles V.
Don Diego Columbus was highly displeased
with the act of the king in granting these powers
to Sotomayor, as it had been done without his
knowledge and consent, and of course in disregard282 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
of his prerogative, as viceroy, to be consulted as
to all appointments made within his jurisdiction.
He refused, therefore, to put Sotomayor in pos-
session of the island. He paid as little respect to
the claims of Juan Ponce de Leon, whom he re-
garded with an ungracious eye as a favourite of
his predecessor Ovando. To settle the matter
effectually, he exerted what he considered his
official and hereditary privilege, and chose officers
to suit himself, appointing one Juan Ceron to the
government of Porto Rico, and Miguel Diaz to
serve as his lieutenant.*
Juan Ponce de Leon and his rival candidate,
Christoval de Sotomayor, bore their disappoint-
ment with a good grace. Though the command
was denied them, they still hoped to improve their
fortunes in the island, and accordingly joined the
crowd of adventurers that accompanied the newly
appointed governor.
New changes soon took place in consequence of
the jealousies and misunderstandings between king
Ferdinand and the admiral as to points of privilege.
The former still seemed disposed to maintain the
right of making appointments without consult-
ing Don Diego, and exerted it in the present in-
stance ; for, when Ovando, on his return to Spain,
made favourable representation of the merits of
Juan Ponce de Leon, and set forth his services in
exploring Porto Rico, the king appointed him go-
* If the reader has perused the history of Columbus, he may
remember the romantic adventure of this Miguel Diaz with a
female cacique, which led to the discovery of the gold mines
of Hayna, and the founding of the city of San Domingo.JUAN PONCE DE LEON.
283
1509.]
vernor of that island, and signified specifically that
Don Diego Columbus should not presume to dis-
place him.
CHAPTER III.
Juan Ponce rules with a strong hand.—Exasperation of
the Indians.— Their experiment to prove whether the
Spaniards were mortal.
Juan Ponce de Leon assumed the command of
the island of Boriquen in the year 1509. Being a
fiery high-handed old soldier, his first step was to
quarrel with Juan Ceron and Miguel Diaz, the
ex-governor and his lieutenant, and to send them
prisoners to Spain.*
He was far more favourable to his late compe-
titor, Christoval de Sotomayor. Finding him to
be a cavalier of noble blood and high connexions,
yet void of pretension, and of most accommodating
temper, he offered to make him his lieutenant, and
to give him the post of alcalde mayor, an offer
which was very thankfully accepted.
The pride of rank, however, which follows a man
even into the wilderness, soon interfered with the
quiet of Sotomayor; he was ridiculed for descend-
ing so much below his birth and dignity, as to ac-
cept a subaltern situation to a simple gentleman
in the island which he had originally aspired to
govern. He could not withstand these sneers,
* Herrera, decad. 1. l.vii. c. 13.284 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
but resigned his appointment, and remained in
the island as a private individual; establishing
himself in a village where he had a large reparti-
miento or allotment of Indians assigned to him by
a grant from the king.
Juan Ponce fixed his seat of government in a
town called Caparra, which he founded on the
northern side of the island, about a league from
the sea, in a neighbourhood supposed to abound
in gold. It was in front of the port called Rico,
which subsequently gave its name to the island.
The road to the town was up a mountain, through
a dense forest, and so rugged and miry that it was
the bane of man and beast. It cost more to con-
vey provisions and merchandize up this league of
mountain, than it did to bring them from Spain.
Juan Ponce, being firmly seated in his govern-
ment, began to carve and portion out the island,
to found towns, and to distribute the natives into
repartimientos, for the purpose of exacting their
labour.
The poor Indians soon found the difference be-
tween the Spaniards as guests, and the Spaniards
as masters. They were driven to despair by the
heavy tasks imposed upon them; for to their free
spirits and indolent habits, restraint and labour
were worse than death. Many of the most hardy
and daring proposed a general insurrection, and a
massacre of their oppressors ; the great mass,
however, were deterred by the belief that the
Spaniards were supernatural beings and could not
be killed.
A shrewd and sceptical cacique, named Brayoan,
determined to put their immortality to the test.1509.]	JUAN PONCE DE LEON.	285
Hearing that a young Spaniard named Salzedo,
was passing through his lands, he sent a party of
his subjects to escort him, giving them secret in-
structions how they were to act. On coming to a
river they took Salzedo on their shoulders to carry
him across, but, when in the midst of the stream,
they let him fall, and, throwing themselves upon
him, pressed him under water until he was drowned.
Then dragging his body to the shore, and still
doubting his being dead, they wept and howled
over him, making a thousand apologies for having
fallen upon him, and kept him so long beneath the
surface.
The cacique Brayoan came to examine the body
and pronounced it lifeless; but the Indians, still
fearing it might possess lurking immortality and
ultimately revive, kept watch over it for three
days, until it showed incontestible signs of putre-
faction.
Being now convinced that the strangers were
mortal men like themselves, they readily entered
into a general conspiracy to destroy them.*
CHAPTER IV.
Conspiracy of the Caciques—Fate of Sotomayor.
The prime mover of the conspiracy among the
natives was Agueybana, brother and successor to
the hospitable cacique of the same name, who had
* Herrera, decad. 1.1. viii. c. 13.286 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
first welcomed the Spaniards to the island, and who
had fortunately closed his eyes in peace, before
his native groves were made the scenes of violence
and oppression. The present cacique had fallen
within the repartimiento of Don Christoval de Soto-
mayor, and, though treated by that cavalier with
kindness, could never reconcile his proud spirit to
the yoke of vassalage.
Agueybanh held secret councils with his con-
federate caciques, in which they concerted a plan
of operations. As the Spaniards were scattered
about in different places, it was agreed that, at a
certain time, each cacique should despatch those
within his province. In arranging the massacre of
those within his own domains, Agueybana assigned
to one of his inferior caciques the task of surprising
the village of Sotomayor, giving him 3000 warriors
for the purpose. He was to assail the village in
the dead of the night, to set fire to the houses, and
to slaughter all the inhabitants. He proudly, how-
ever, reserved to himself the honour of killing Don
Christoval with his own hand.
Don Christoval had an unsuspected friend in the
very midst of his enemies. Being a cavalier of
gallant appearance and amiable and courteous
manners, he had won the affections of an Indian
princess, the sister of the cacique Agueyban^. She
had overheard enough of the war council of her
brother and his warriors to learn that Sotomayor was
in danger. The life of her lover was more precious
in her eyes than the safety of her brother and her
tribe ; hastening, therefore, to him, she told him all
that she knew7 or feared, and warned him to be upon
his guard. Sotomayor appears to have been of theJUAN PONCE DE LEON.
287
1509.]
most easy and incautious nature, void of all evil and
deceit himself, and slow to suspect any thing of the
kind in others. He considered the apprehension of
the princess, as dictated by her fond anxiety, and
neglected to profit by her warning.
He received, however, about the same time, in-
formation from a different quarter, tending to the
same point. A Spaniard, versed in the language
and customs of the natives, had observed a number
gathering together one evening, painted and de-
corated, as if for battle. Suspecting some lurking
mischief, he stripped and painted himself in their
manner, and, favoured by the obscurity of the night,
succeeded in mingling among them undiscovered.
They were assembled round a fire performing one
of their mystic war dances, to the chaunt of an
Areyto or legendary ballad. The strophes and
responses treated of revenge and slaughter, and
repeatedly mentioned the death of Sotomayor.
The Spaniard withdrew unperceived, and has-
tened to apprize Don Christoval of his danger. The
latter still made light of these repeated warnings;
revolving them, however, in his mind in the still-
ness of the night, he began to feel some uneasiness,
and determined to repair in the morning to Juan
Ponce de Leon, in his strong hold at Caparra.
With his fated heedlessness, or temerity, however,
he applied to Agueybank for Indians to carry his
baggage, and departed slightly armed, and accom-
panied by but three Spaniards, although he had to
pass through close and lonely forests, where he
would be at the mercy of any treacherous or lurk-
ing foe.
The cacique watched the departure of his in-288 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. 1509.}
tended victim, and set out shortly afterwards, dog-
ging his steps at a distance through the forest, ac-
companied by a few chosen warriors. Agueybana
and his party had not proceeded far when they met
a Spaniard named Juan Gonzalez, who spoke the
Indian language. They immediately assailed him
and wounded him in several places. He threw
himself at the feet of the cacique, imploring his life
in the most abject terms. The chief spared him
for the moment, being eager to make sure of Don
Christoval. He overtook that incautious cavalier in
the very heart of the woodland, and stealing si-
lently upon him burst forth suddenly with his
warriors from the covert of the thickets, giving the
fatal wrar whoop. Before Sotomayor could put
himself upon his guard a blow from the war club
of the cacique felled him to the earth, when he
was quickly despatched by repeated blows. The
four Spaniards who accompanied him shared his
fate, being assailed, not merely by the warriors who
had come in pursuit of them, but by their own
Indian guides.
When Agueybana had glutted his vengeance on
this unfortunate cavalier, he returned in quest of
Juan Gonzalez. The latter, however, had reco-
vered sufficiently from his wounds to leave the
place where he had been assailed, and, dreading the
return of the savages, had climbed into a tree and
concealed himself among the branches. From
thence, with trembling anxiety, he watched his
pursuers as they searched all the surrounding fo-
rest for him. Fortunately they did not think of look-
ing up into the trees, but, after beating the bushes
for some time, gave up the search. Though he sawJUAN PONCE DE LEON.
289
1509.]
them depart, yet he did not venture from his conceal-
ment until the night had closed; he then descended
from the tree, and made the best of his way to the re-
sidence of certain Spaniards, where his wounds were
dressed. When this was done, he waited not to
take repose, but repaired by a circuitous route to
Caparra, and informed Juan Ponce de Leon of the
danger he supposed to be still impending over
Sotomayor, for he knew not that the enemy had
accomplished his death. Juan Ponce immediately
sent out forty men to his relief. They came to
the scene of massacre, where they found the body
of the unfortunate cavalier, partly buried, but with
the feet out of the earth.
In the meantime the savages had accomplished
the destruction of the village of Sotomayor. They
approached it unperceived, through the surround-
ing forest, and entering it in the dead of the night,
set fire to the straw-thatched houses, and attacked
the Spaniards as they endeavoured to escape from
the flames.
Several were slain at the onset, but a brave
Spaniard, named Diego de Salazar, rallied his
countrymen, inspirited them to beat off the enemy,
and succeeded in conducting the greater part of
them, though sorely mangled and harassed, to the
strong hold of the Governor at Caparra. Scarcely
had these fugitives gained the fortress, when others
came hurrying in from all quarters, bringing simi-
lar tales of conflagration and massacre. For once
a general insurrection, so often planned in savage
life, against the domination of the white men, was
crowned with success. All the villages founded by
u290 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
the Spaniards had been surprised, about a hundred
of their inhabitants destroyed, and the survivors
driven to take refuge in a beleaguered fortress.
CHAPTER V.
War of Juan Ponce with the cacique Aguaybana.
Juan Ponce de Leon might now almost be con-
sidered a governor without territories and a general
without soldiers. His villages were smoking ruins,
and his whole force did not amount to a hundred men,
several of whom were disabled by their wounds.
He had an able and implacable foe in Aguayban&,
who took the lead of all the other caciques, and
even sent envoys to the Caribs of the neighbouring
islands, entreating them to forget all ancient ani-
mosities and to make common cause against these
strangers—the deadly enemies of the whole Indian
race. In the meantime the whole of this wild
island was in rebellion, and the forests around the
fortress of Caparra, rang with the whoops and yells
of the savages, the blasts of their war conchs, and
the stormy roaring of their drums.
Juan Ponce was a staunch and wary old soldier,
and not easily daunted. He remained grimly en-
sconced within his fortress, from whence he des-
patched messengers in all haste to Hispaniola, im-
ploring immediate assistance. In the meantime,
he tasked his wits to divert the enemy and to keep
them at bay. He divided his little force into threeJUAN PONCE DE LEON.
291
1509.]
bodies of about thirty men each, under the com-
mand of Diego Salazar, Miguel de Toro, and
Luis de Anasco, and sent them out alternately
to make sudden surprises and assaults, to form
ambuscades, and to practise the other stratagems
of partizan warfare, which he had learnt in early
life, in his campaigns against the Moors of Gra-
nada.
One of his most efficient warriors was a dog
named Berezillo, renowned for courage, strength
and sagacity. It is said that he could distinguish
those of the Indians who were allies, from those
who were enemies of the Spaniards. To the former
he was docile and friendly, to the latter fierce and
implacable. He was the terror of the natives, who
were unaccustomed to powerful and ferocious ani-
mals, and did more service in this wild warfare,
than could have been rendered by several soldiers.
His prowess was so highly appreciated that his mas-
ter received for him the pay, allowance and share
of booty, assigned to a cross-bow man, which was
the highest stipend given.*
At length the stout old cavalier Juan Ponce was
reinforced in his strong hold, by troops from His-
paniola, whereupon he sallied forth boldly to take
revenge upon those who had thus held him in a kind
of durance. His foe Agueybana was at that time
* This famous dog was killed some years afterwards by a
poisoned arrow, as he was swimming in the sea in pursuit of a
Carib Indian. He left, however, a numerous progeny and a
great name behind him ; and his merits and exploits were long
a favourite theme among the Spanish colonists. He was father
to the renowned Leoncico, the faithful dog of Yasco Nunez,
which resembled him in looks and equalled him in prowess.
U 2292 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1509.
encamped in his own territories with more than five
thousand warriors, but in a negligent unwatchful
state, for he knew nothing of the reinforcements of
the Spaniards, and supposed Juan Ponce shut up
with his handful of men in Caparra. The old sol-
dier, therefore, took him completely by surprise,
and routed him with great slaughter. Indeed it
is said the Indians were struck with a kind of pa-
nic when they saw the Spaniards as numerous as
ever, notwithstanding the number they had mas-
sacred. Their belief in their immortality revived,
they fancied that those whom they had slain had
returned to life, and they despaired of victory over
beings who could thus arise with renovated vigour
from the grave.
Various petty actions and skirmishes afterwards
took place, in which the Indians were defeated.
Agueybana, however, disdained this petty warfare,
and stirred up his countrymen to assemble their
forces, and by one grand assault to decide the fate
of themselves and their island. Juan Ponce re-
ceived secret tidings of their intent, and of the place
where they were assembling. He had at that time
barely eighty men at his disposal, but then they
were cased in steel and proof against the weapons
of the savages. Without stopping to reflect, the
high mettled old cavalier put himself at their head,
and led them through the forest in quest of the
foe.
It was nearly sunset when he came in sight of
the Indian camp, and the multitude of warriors
assembled there made him pause, and almost repent
of his temerity. He was as shrewd, however, as
he was hardy and resolute. Ordering some of his1509.]	JUAN PONCE DE LEON.	293
men in the advance to skirmish with the enemy, he
hastily threw up a slight fortification with the assis-
tance of the rest. When it was finished he with-
drew his forces into it, and ordered them to keep
merely on the defensive. The Indians made repeated
attacks but were as often repulsed with loss. Some
of the Spaniards, impatient of this covert warfare,
would sally forth in open field with pike and cross
bow, but were called back within the fortification
by their wary commander.
The cacique Agueybana was enraged at find-
ing his host of warriors thus baffled and kept at
bay by a mere handful of Spaniards. He beheld the
night closing in, and feared that in the darkness
the enemy would escape. Summoning his choicest
warriors round him, therefore, he led the way in a
general assault, when, as he approached the for^
tress, he received a mortal wound from an arquebus
and fell dead upon the spot.
The Spaniards were not aware at first of the im-
portance of the chief whom they had slain. They
soon surmised it, however, from the confusion that
ensued among the enemy, who bore off the body
with great lamentations, and made no further aN
tack.
The wary Juan Ponce took advantage of the evi-
dent distress of the foe, to draw off his small forces
in the night, happy to get out of the terrible jeo^
pardy into which a rash confidence had betrayed
him. Some of his fiery spirited officers would have
kept the field in spite of the overwhelming force of
the enemy. “ No, no,” said the shrewd veteran ;
“ It is better to protract the war than to risk all
upon a single battle.”294	SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510.
While Juan Ponce de Leon was fighting hard to
maintain his sway over the island, his transient
dignity was overturned by another power, against
which the prowess of the old soldier was of no
avail. King Ferdinand had repented of the step
he had ill advisedly taken, in superseding the go-
vernor and lieutenant govenor appointed by Don
Diego Columbus. He became convinced, though ra-
ther tardily, that it was an infringement of the rights
of the admiral, and that policy, as well as justice,
required him to retract it. When Juan Ceron and
Miguel Diaz, therefore, came prisoners to Spain,
he received them graciously, conferred many fa-
vours on them to atone for their rough ejectment
from office, and finally, after some time, sent them
back, empowered to resume the command of the
island. They were ordered, however, on no ac-
count to manifest rancour or ill will against Juan
Ponce de Leon, or to interfere with any property
he might hold, either in houses, lands, or Indians;
but on the contrary, to cultivate the most friendly
understanding with him. The king also wrote to
the hardy veteran explaining to him, that this resti-
tution of Ceron and Diaz had been determined
upon in council, as a mere act of justice due to
them, but was not intended as a censure upon his
conduct, and that means should be sought to in-
demnify him for the loss of his command.
By the time the governor and his lieutenant
reached the island, Juan Ponce had completed its
subjugation. The death of the island champion,
the brave Agueybana, had in fact been a death-
blow to the natives, and shows how much, in savage
warfare, depends upon a single chieftain. TheyJUAN PONCE DE LEON.
295
1510.]
never made head of war afterwards; but, dispersing
among their forests and mountains, fell gradually
under the power of the Spaniards. Their subse-
quent fate was like that of their neighbours of
Hayti. They were employed in the labour of the
mines, and in other rude toils so repugnant to their
nature that they sank beneath them, and, in a little
while, almost all the aboriginals disappeared from
the island.
CHAPTER VI.
Juan Ponce de Leon hears of a wonderful country and
miraculous fountain.
Juan Ponce de Leon resigned the command of
Porto Rico with tolerable grace. The loss of one
wild island and wild government was of little mo-
ment, when there was a new world to be shared
out, where a bold soldier like himself, with sword
and buckler, might readily carve out new fortunes
for himself. Beside, he had now amassed wealth
to assist him in his plans, and, like many of the
early discoverers, his brain was teeming with the
most romantic enterprises. He had conceived the
idea that there was yet a third world to be dis-
covered, and he hoped to be the first to reach its
shores, and thus to secure a renown equal to that
of Columbus.
While cogitating these things, and considering
which way he should strike forth in the unex-
plored regions around him, he met with some old296 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1510,
Indians, who gave him tidings of a country which
promised, not merely to satisfy the cravings of his
ambition, but to realize the fondest dreams of the
poets. They assured him that, far to the north,
there existed a land abounding in gold and in all
manner of delights; but, above all, possessing
a river of such wonderful virtue, that whoever
bathed in it would be restored to youth! They
added, that in times past, before the arrival of the
Spaniards, a large party of the natives of Cuba
had departed northward in search of this happy
land and this river of life, and, having never re-
turned, it wras concluded that they were flourish-
ing in renovated youth, detained by the pleasures
of that enchanting country.
Here was the dream of the alchymist realised!
one had but to find this gifted land and revel in
the enjoyment of boundless riches and perennial
youth! nay, some of the ancient Indians declared
that it was not necessary to go so far in quest of
these rejuvenating waters, for that, in a certain
island of the Bahama groupe, called Bimini, which
lay far out in the ocean, there was a fountain
possessing the same marvellous and inestimable
qualities.
Juan Ponce de Leon listened to these tales with
fond credulity. He was advancing in life, and the
ordinary term of existence seemed insufficient for
his mighty plans. Could he but plunge into this
marvellous fountain or gifted river, and come out
with his battered war-worn body restored to the
strength and freshness and suppleness of youth,
and his head still retaining the wisdom and know-
ledge of age, what enterprises might he not ac-1512.]	JUAN PONCE DE LEON.	297
complish in the additional course of vigorous years
insured to him!
It may seem incredible, at the present day, that
a man of years and experience could yield any
faith to a story which resembles the wild fiction
of an Arabian tale ; but the wonders and novelties
breaking upon the world in that age of discovery
almost realised the illusions of fable, and the
imaginations of the Spanish voyagers had become
so heated that they were capable of any stretch of
credulity.
So fully persuaded was the worthy old cavalier
of the existence of the region described to him,
that he fitted out three ships at his own expense to
prosecute the discovery, nor had he any difficulty
in finding adventurers in abundance ready to cruise
with him in quest of this fairy-land.*
* It was not the credulous minds of voyagers and adven-
turers alone that were heated by these Indian traditions and
romantic fables. Men of learning and eminence were like-
wise beguiled by them: witness the following extract from
the second decad of Peter Martyr, addressed to Leo X., then
bishop of Rome :—
“ Among the islands on the north side of Hispaniola there
is one about 325 leagues distant, as they say which have
searched the same, in the which is a continual spring of
running water, of such marvellous virtue that the water
thereof being drunk, perhaps with some diet, maketh olde
men young again. And here I must make protestation to
your holiness not to think this to be said lightly or rashly,
for they have so spread this rumour for a truth throughout all
the court, that not only all the people, but also many of them
whom wisdom or fortune hath divided from the common sort,
think it to be true; but, if you will ask my opinion herein,
I will answer, that I will not attribute so great power to
nature, but that God hath no lesse reserved this prerogative
to himself than to search the hearts of men, &c.—P. Martyr,,
d. 2. c. x. Lok’s translation.298
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512.
CHAPTER VII.
Cruise of Juan Ponce de Leon in search of the Fountain
of Youth.—(1512.)
It was on the 3rd of March, 1512, that Juan
Ponce sailed with his three ships from the Port of
St. Germain in the island of Porto Rico. He
kept for some distance along the coast of His-
paniola, and then, stretching away to the north-
ward, made for the Bahama islands, and soon fell
in with the first of the groupe. He was favoured
with propitious weather and tranquil seas, and
glided smoothly with wind and current along that
verdant archipelago, visiting one island after an-
other, until, on the fourteenth of the month, he
arrived at Guanahani, or St. Salvador’s, where
Christopher Columbus had first put his foot on
the shores of the New World. His inquiries for
the island of Bimini were all in vain, and as to the
fountain of youth, he may have drank of every
fountain, and river, and lake, in the archipelago,
•even to the salt pools of Turk’s Island, without
being a whit the younger.
Still he was not discouraged; but, having re-
paired his ships, he again put to sea and shaped
his course to the north-west. * On Sunday, the
27th of March, he came in sight of what he sup-
posed to be an island, but was prevented from
landing by adverse weather. He continued hover-
ing about it for several days, buffeted by the ele-
ments, until, in the night of the second of April,
he succeeded in coming to anchor under the land,1512.]	JUAN PONCE DE LEON.	299
in thirty degrees eight minutes of latitude. The
whole country was in the fresh bloom of spring;
the trees were gay with blossoms, and the fields
covered with flowers; from which circumstance,
as well as from having discovered it on Palm
Sunday, (Pascua Florida,) he gave it the name of
Florida, which it retains to the present day. The
Indian name of the country was Cautio.*
Juan Ponce landed, and took possession of the
country in the name of the Castilian Sovereigns.
He afterwards continued for several weeks rang-
ing the coasts of this flowery land, and struggling
against the gulf-stream and the various currents
which sweep it. He doubled Cape Canaveral,
and reconnoitered the southern and eastern shores
without suspecting that this was a part of Terra
Firma. In all his attempts to explore the country,
he met with resolute and implacable hostility on
the part of the natives, who appeared to be a
fierce and warlike race. He was disappointed also
in his hopes of finding gold, nor did any of the
rivers or fountains, which he examined, possess the
rejuvenating virtue. Convinced, therefore, that
this was not the promised land of Indian tradition;
he turned his prow homeward on the fourteenth
of June, with the intention, in the way, of making
one more attempt to find the island of Bimini.
In the outset of his return he discovered a
groupe of islets abounding with sea-fowl and ma-
rine animals. On one of them, his sailors, in the
course of a single night, caught one hundred and
seventy turtles, and might have taken many more,
* Herrera, Hist. Ind., d. 1. 1. ix. c. 10.300 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. [1512,
had they been so inclined. They likewise took
fourteen sea wolves, and killed a vast quantity of
pelicans and other birds. To this groupe Juan
Ponce gave the name of the Tortugas, or Turtles,
which they still retain.
Proceeding in his cruise, he touched at another
groupe of islets near the Lucayos, to which he gave
the name of La Vieja, or the Old Woman groupe,
because he found no inhabitant there but one old
Indian woman.* This ancient sybil he took on
board his ship to give him information about the
labyrinth of islands into which he was entering,
and perhaps he could not have had a more suit-
able guide in the eccentric quest he was making.
Notwithstanding her pilotage, however, he was
exceedingly baffled and perplexed in his return
voyage among the Bahama islands, for he was
forcing his way as it were against the course of
nature, and encountering the currents which sweep
westward along these islands, and the trade-wind
which accompanies them. For a long time he
struggled with all kinds of difficulties and dangers;
and was obliged to remain upwards of a month in
one of the islands to repair the damages which his
ship had suffered in a storm.
Disheartened at length by the perils and trials
with which nature seemed to have beset the ap-
proach to Bimini, as to some fairy island in ro-
mance, he gave up the quest in person, and sent
in his place a trusty captain, Juan Perez de Or-
tubia, who departed in one of the other ships,
guided by the experienced old woman of the isles,
* Herrera, d. 1.1. ix.JUAN PONCE DE LEON.
301
1512.]
and by another Indian. As to Juan Ponce, he
made the best of his way back to Porto Rico,
where he arrived infinitely poorer in purse and
wrinkled in brow, by this cruise after inexhaustible
riches and perpetual youth.
He had not been long in port when his trusty
envoy, Juan Perez, likewise arrived. Guided by
the sage old woman, he had succeeded in finding
the long-sought-for Bimini. He described it as
being large, verdant, and covered with beautiful
groves. There were crystal springs and limpid
streams in abundance, which kept the island in
perpetual verdure, but none that could restore to
an old man the vernal greenness of his youth.
Thus ended the romantic expedition of Juan
Ponce de Leon. Like many other pursuits of a
chimera, it terminated in the acquisition of a sub-
stantial good. Though he had failed in finding
the fairy fountain of youth, he had discovered in
place of it the important country of Florida.*
* The belief of the existence, in Florida, of a river like that
sought by Juan Ponce, was long prevalent among the Indians
of Cuba, and the caciques were anxious to discover it. That a
party of the natives of Cuba once went in search of it, and re-
mained there, appears to be a fact, as their descendants were
afterwards to be traced among the people of Florida. Las
Casas says, that even in his days, many persisted in seeking
this mystery, and some thought that the river was no other
than that called the Jordan, at the point of St. Helena ; with-
out considering that the name was given to it by the Span-
iards in the year 1520, when they discovered the land of Chi-
cora.802
SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY. {^514*
CHAPTER VIII.
Expedition of Juan Ponce against the Caribs—His Heath.
(1514.)
Juan Ponce de Leon now repaired to Spain, to
make a report of his voyage to King Ferdinand.
The hardy old cavalier experienced much raillery
from the witlings of the court, on account of his
visionary voyage, though many wise men had been
as credulous as himself at the outset. The king,
however, received him with great favour, and con-
ferred on him the title of Adelantado of Bimini
and Florida, which last was as yet considered an
island. Permission was also granted him to recruit
men either in Spain or in the colonies for a settle-
ment in Florida; but he deferred entering on his
command for the present, being probably discou-
raged and impoverished by the losses in his last
expedition, or finding a difficulty in enlisting ad-
venturers. At length another enterprise presented
itself. The Caribs had by this time become a
terror to the Spanish inhabitants of many of the
islands, making descents upon the coasts and car-
rying off captives, who it was supposed were
doomed to be devoured by these cannibals. So
frequent were their invasions of the island of Porto
Rico, that it was feared they would ultimately
oblige the Spaniards to abandon it.
At length King Ferdinand, in 1514, ordered that
three ships, well armed and manned, should be
fitted out in Seville, destined to scour the islands
of the Caribs, and to free the seas from those can-1515.]	JUAN PONCE DE LEON.	303
nibal marauders. The command of the Armada
was given to Juan Ponce de Leon, from his know-
ledge in Indian warfare, and his varied and rough
experience which had mingled in him the soldier
with the sailor. He was instructed in the first
place to assail the Caribs of those islands most
contiguous and dangerous to Porto Rico, and then
to make war on those of the coast of Terra Firma,
in the neighbourhood of Carthagena. He was
afterwards to take the captaincy of Porto Rico,
and to attend to the repartimientos or distributions
of the Indians in conjunction with a person to be
appointed by Diego Columbus.
The enterprise suited the soldier-like spirit of
Juan Ponce de Leon, and the gallant old cavalier
set sail full of confidence in January, 1515, and
steered direct for the Caribbees, with a determi-
nation to give a wholesome castigation to the whole
savage Achipelago. Arriving at the island of
Guadaloupe, he cast anchor, and sent men on
shore for wood and water, and women to wash the
clothing of the crews, with a party of soldiers to
mount guard.
Juan Ponce had not been as wary as usual, or
he had to deal with savages unusually adroit in
wrarfare. While the people were scattered care-
lessly on shore, the Caribs rushed forth from an
ambuscade, killed the greater part of the men, and
carried off the women to the mountains.
This blow at the very outset of his vaunted ex-
pedition sank deep into the heart of Juan Ponce,
and put an end to all his military excitement.
Humbled and mortified, he set sail for the island
of Porto Rico, wdiere he relinquished all further304 SPANISH VOYAGES OF DISCOVERY, [1521.
prosecution of the enterprise, under pretext of
ill health, and gave the command of the squadron
to a captain named Zuniga; but it is surmised
that his malady was not so much of the flesh as of
the spirit. He remained in Porto Rico as go-
vernor ; but, having grown testy and irritable
through vexations and disappointments, he gave
great offence, and caused much contention on the
island by positive and strong-handed measures, in
respect to the distributions of the Indians.
He continued for several years in that island, in
a state of growling repose, until the brilliant ex-
ploits of Hernando Cortes, which threatened to
eclipse the achievements of all the veteran dis-
coverers, roused his dormant spirit.
Jealous of being cast in the shade in his old
days, he determined to sally forth on one more
expedition. He had heard that Florida, which he
had discovered, and which he had hitherto con-
sidered a mere island, was part of Terra Firma,
possessing vast and unknown regions in its bosom.
If so, a grand field of enterprise lay before him,
wherein he might make discoveries and conquests
to rival, if not surpass, the far-famed conquest of
Mexico.
Accordingly in the year 1521, he fitted out two
ships at the island of Porto Rico, and embarked
almost the whole of his property in the under-
taking. His voyage was toilsome and tempestuous,
but at length he arrived at the wished for land.
He made a descent upon the coast with a great
part of his men, but the Indians sallied forth with
unusual valour to defend their shores. A bloody
battle ensued, several of the Spaniards were slain,1521.]	JUAN PONCE DE LEON.	305
and Juan Ponce was wounded by an arrow, in the
thigh. He was borne on board his ship, and,
finding himself disabled for further action, set sail
for Cuba, where he arrived ill in body and dejected
in heart.
He was of an age when there is no longer prompt
and healthful reaction either mental or corporeal.
The irritations of humiliated pride and disap-
pointed hope, exasperated the fever of his wound,
and he died soon after his arrival at the island.
“ Thus fate” says one of the quaint old Spanish
writers, “ delights to reverse the schemes of man.
The discovery that Juan Ponce flattered himself
was to lead to a means of perpetuating his life, had
the ultimate effect of hastening his death.”
It may be said, however, that he has at least
attained the shadow of his desire, since, though
disappointed in extending the natural term of his
existence, his discovery has ensured a lasting dura-
tion to his name.
The following epitaph was inscribed upon his
tomb, which does justice to the warrior qualities of
the stout old cavalier.
Mole sub hac fortis requiescunt ossa Leonis,
Qui vicit factis nomina magna suis.
It has thus been paraphrased in Spanish by the
Licentiate Juan de Castellanos.
Aqueste lugar estrecho
Es sepulchro del varon,
Que en el nombre fue Leon,
Y mucho mas en el hecho.
“ In this sepulchre rest the bones of a man, who
was a lion by name, and still more by nature.”
xAPPENDIX.A VISIT TO PALOS.
[The following narrative was actually commenced, by the
author of this work, as a letter to a friend, but unexpect-
edly 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 Palos
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 disco-
very 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 descend-
ants 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 neigh-
bourhood.
The very evening before my departure from
Seville on the excursion, I heard that there was a310
APPENDIX.
[1828.
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, resem-
bling a cabriolet, but of the most primitive and
rude construction ; the harness is profusely orna-
mented with brass, and the horse’s head 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 but-
tons 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 that borders the great valley of the Gua-
dalquiver, 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 somewhatA VISIT TO PALOS.
311
1828.]
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 traveller there was none—
not even for a traveller 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 contra-
bandista (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 midday in a large village, from whence we de-
parted 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 ab-
sorbed 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-paved312
APPENDIX.
[1828.
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 ge-
nerally received into private houses. I had tra-
velled sufficiently in Spain to find out that a bed,
after all, is not an article of indispensible necessity,
and was about to bespeak some quiet corner where I
might spread my cloak, when fortunately the land-
lord’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, that 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 neigh-
bour gossips, I fancied the bed was to be a kind of
piece-meal contribution among them for the credit
of the house.A VISIT TO PALOS.
313
1828.]
As soon as I could change my dress, I com-
menced 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 cus-
tomary in Spanish villages, during summer, stood
wide open. We entered with the usual salutation
or rather summons, “ Ave Maria!” A trim Anda-
lusian 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 center 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 Fernan-
dez was seated with his family, enjoying the se-
rene 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 grey hair. He re-
ceived 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 ca-
valier had troubled his head but little about the
enterprises of his ancestors.314	APPENDIX.	[1828.
I now took my seat in the domestic circle, and
soon felt myself quite at home, for there is gene-
rally 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 ex-
tremely 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 di-
rect descendant exists; his was an exotic stock
that never took deep and lasting root in the coun-
try; but the race of the Pinzons continues to
thrive and multiply in its native soil.
While I was yet conversing, a gentleman enter-
ed, who was introduced to me as Don Luis Fer-
nandez Pinzon, the youngest of the brothers. He
appeared to be between fifty and sixty years of age,
somewhat robust, with fair complexion and grey
hair, and a frank and manly deportment. He is
the only one of the present generation that has fol-
lowed 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 his-
torical honours of his house, carefully preserving
all the legends and documents of the achievementsA VISIT TO PALOS.
1828.]
315
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 endeavoured to excuse myself, al-
leging, 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 gentlemen 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
ricketty table had been spread out in a corner of
the little room as a bedstead, on top of which was
propped up a grand ccima de luxo, or state bed,
which appeared to be the admiration of the house.
I could not, for the soul of me, appear to under-
value what the poor people had prepared with
such hearty good will, and considered such a tri-
umph 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-humoured
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 Rabida, in which Don Juan volun-
teered 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,316	appendix.	[1828.
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 accom-
modation.
On the following morning, bright and early,
Don Juan Fernandez and myself set off in the
calesa 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 vi-
vacity of spirit. His cheerful disposition rendered
our morning drive extremely agreeable; his ur-
banity was shown to every one whom we met on
the road; even the common peasant was. saluted
by him with the appellation of caballero, 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.A VISIT TO PALOS.
317
1828.]
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 humour. We
passed close by the skirts of Palos, and drove to
the hacienda, which is situated at some little dis-
tance from the village, between it and the river.
The house is a low stone building, well white-
washed, 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
\vine produced on the estate.
The house stands on a hill, amidst vineyards,
wrhich are supposed to cover a part of the site of
the ancient town of Palos, now shrunk to a mi-
serable village. Beyond these vineyards, on the
crest of a distant hill, are seen the white walls of
the convent of La Rabida rising above a dark
wood of pine trees.
Below the hacienda flows the river Tin to, 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 from hence 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 mysticks, 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, sallying318
APPENDIX.
[1828.
forth on their eventful expedition, while the dis-
tant bells of the town of Huelva, which were ring-
ing 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
by 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 fol-
lowed, 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 shore by
the side of a descendant of one of the discoverers,
I felt my heart swelling with 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 popu-
lation. 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 quar-
ter of a mile from the river, in a hollow among
hills. It contains a few hundred inhabitants, who
subsist principally by labouring in the fields and
vineyards. Its race of merchants and mariners areA VISIT TO PALOS.
319
1828.]
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 mysticks and
other light barks anchor in the river to collect the
produce of the neighbourhood. 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 from 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 hospi-
table host, who appeared to possess the most en-
viable cheerfulness of spirit and simplicity of heart.
After breakfast we set off in the calesa to visit
the Convent of La Rabida, which is 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
travelling 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 wTorld ; but this additional toil
and struggle through deep sand to visit the old
Convent of La Rabida, completed his confusion—
“ Hombre!” exclaimed lie, “ 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 way320
APPENDIX.
[1828.
from Seville precisely to see that old ruin and
those two friars. The calasero made the Spa-
niard’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, hounded by the frontier
mountains of Portugal, about eight leagues distant.
The convent is shut out from a view of the vine-
yard of Palos by the gloomy forest of pines which
I have 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 edi-
fice, having been frequently repaired, and being
whitewashed, according to a universal custom in
Andalusia, inherited from the Moors, it 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 re-
mains 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 vrants of the wayfarer.
The door stood wide open, and admitted us into a
small court yard. From thence we passed through
a Gothic portal into the chapel, without seeing aA VISIT TO PALOS.
321
1828.]
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 cor-
ridor, 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, to-
gether with a noviciate and a lay-brother, wrho
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 in-
spect 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 re-
collection of various particulars concerning the
transactions of Columbus at Palos, his visit to the
convent, and the sailing of his expedition. From322
APPENDIX.
[1828.
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 talk-
ative 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 of44 Our Lady of La Ra-
bida.” He gave us a history of the wonderful
way in wThich 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 neighbourhood for the possession of
it; the marvellous protection it extended to the
adjacent country, especially in preventing all mad-
ness, 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 origi-
nally called; a name which, thanks to the benefi-
cent influence of the Virgin, it no longer merited
or retained. Such are the legends and reliques
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 mul-
titude, composed of the inhabitants of Moguer, of
Huelva, and the neighbouring plains and moun-
tains. The open esplanade in front of the edifice
resembles a fair, the adjacent forest teems with theA VISIT TO PALOS.
323
1828.]
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 ar-
rangements 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 west-
ern 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 asso-
ciations connected with it. The library was re-
duced 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
Y 2324	APPENDIX.	[1828*
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 shel-
ter 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 watch tower. 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 cale-
sero brought his rattling and ricketty 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 bye-corner of Spain,A VISIT TO FALOS.
325
1828.]
that the appearance of even a sorry calesa might
well cause astonishment. It is only singular that
in such a bye-comer the scheme of Columbus
should have found intelligent listeners and coadju-
tors, after it had been discarded, almost with scoff-
ing 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 grey 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 w7as inclined to think his fa-
vourite 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 ha-
cienda, 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-hu-
moured old gentleman whenever they addressed
him. The dinner wras served up about twro o’clock,
and was a most agreeable meal. The fruits and
wines were from the estate, and wrere 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 playedAFFEMBIX.
me
[1828.
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 Pin-
zons. 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 sum-
mer 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 nu-
merous guests, at which times, Don Juan assured
me, there was no lack of amusements, both by
land and water.A VISIT TO PALOS.
327
1828.]
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 cu-
rate of our wish to inspect the archives. The vil-
lage 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, pos-
sessed of shrewdness and information in his limited
sphere, and that I might gain some anecdotes from
him concerning his parish, its worthies, its antiqui-
ties, 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 neighbouring 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, Senor Don Juan! I have received your
message, and have but one answer to make. The
archives have all been destroyed. We have no328
APPENDIX.
[1828.
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 Yanez Pinzon, in the time of Columbus.
We now arrived at the Church of St. George, in
the porch of which Columbus first proclaimed toA VISIT TO PALOS.
32 9
1828.]
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 endeavoured 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 con-
ceive the consternation that must have been struck
into so remote a little community, by this sudden
apparition of an entire stranger among them, bear-
ing 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 remark-
able, 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 groupe existed in the time of Columbus, and
now flourishes in renovated youth and splendour,
having been newly painted and gilded, and the
countenance of the saint rendered peculiarly bloom-
ing and lustrous.330	appendix.	[1828.
Having finished the examination of the church,
we resumed our seats in the calesa and returned to
Moguer. One thing only remained to fulfil 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 dis-
covery, 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 imme-
diately after his arrival.
My kind and attentive friend, Don Juan, con-
ducted 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 re-
nowned 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 in-
terior ; 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,A VISIT TO PALOS.
331
1828.]
kneeling before this very altar, and praying and
watching throughout the night, and pouring forth
heartfelt praises for having been spared to accom-
plish his sublime discovery.
I had now completed the main purpose of my
journey, having visited the various places connect-
ed 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 continued stability of the Pinzon family. On the
morning after my excursion to Palos, chance gave
me an opportunity of seeing something of the in-
terior of most of their households. Having a curio-
sity 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 connexion. All appeared to be living in
that golden mean equally removed from the wants
and superfluities of life, and all to be happily inter-
woven 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, be-
neath the shade of awnings and among shrubs and
flowers. Here the Andalusian ladies are accus-
tomed to pass their mornings at work, surrounded
by their handmaids, in the primitive, or rather, ori-
ental style. In the porches of some of the houses
I observed the coat of arms granted to the family by332
APPENDIX,
[1828.
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 coloured.
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 lit-
tle change in the condition of the Pinzons. From
generation to generation they have retained the
same fair standing and reputable name throughout
the neighbourhood, 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 honourable is this hereditary respectabi-
lity, which has been secured by no titles or 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 com-
mand the sincere respect and cordial regard with
which I contemplated this staunch 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 re-
gret. The good old gentleman, with the courtesy,
or rather the cordiality of a true Spaniard, accompa-
nied me to the posada, to see me off. I had dis-
pensed but little money in the posada—thanks to
the hospitality of the Pinzons—yet the SpanishA VISIT TO PALOS.
333
1828.]
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 cigars, 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 parti-
cular care of me during my journey.
Taking a hearty leave of my excellent friend
Don Juan, who had been unremitting in his atten-
tions 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 Mo-
guer and its hospitable inhabitants.334
APPENDIX.
MANIFESTO
OF
ALONZO DE OJEDA.
The following curious formula, composed by
learned divines in Spain, was first read aloud by
the friars in the train of Alonzo de Ojeda, as a
prelude to his attack on the savages of Carthagena,
and was subsequently adopted by the Spanish dis-
coverers in general, in their invasions of Indian
countries.
“ I, Alonzo de Ojeda, servant of the high and
mighty kings of Castile and Leon, civilizers of
barbarous nations, their messenger and captain,
notify and make known to you, in the best way I
can, that God our Lord, one and eternal, created
the heavens and earth, and one man and one wo-
man, from whom you, and we, and all the people
of the earth, were and are descendants, procreated,
and all those who shall come after us; but the vast
number of generations which have proceeded from
them in the course of more than five thousand
years that have elapsed since the creation of the
world, made it necessary that some of the human
race should disperse in one direction, and some in
another, and that they should divide themselvesMANIFESTO OF ALONZO DE OJEDA. 335
into many kingdoms and provinces, as they could
not sustain and preserve themselves in one alone.
All these people were given in charge, by God
our Lord, to one person, named Saint Peter, who
was thus made lord and superior of all the people
of the earth, and head of the whole human lineage;
whom all should obey, wherever they might live,
and whatever might be their law, sect, or belief:
he gave him also the whole world for his service
and jurisdiction; and though he desired that he
should establish his chair in Rome, as a place most
convenient for governing the world, yet he per-
mitted that he might establish his chair in any other
part of the world, and judge and govern all the
nations, Christians, Moors, Jews, Gentiles, and
whatever other sect or belief might be. This per-
son was denominated Pope, that is to say, Admi-
rable, Supreme, Father and Guardian, because he
is father and governor of all mankind. This holy
father was obeyed and honoured as lord, king, and
superior of the universe, by those who lived in his
time, and, in like manner, have been obeyed and
honoured all those who have been elected to the
pontificate; and thus it has continued unto the
present day, and will continue until the end of the
world.
“ One of these pontiffs, of whom I have spoken,
as lord of the world, made a donation of these
islands and continents of the ocean sea, and all
that they contain, to the Catholic kings of Castile,
who, at that time, were Ferdinand and Isabella, of
glorious memory, and to their successors, our so-
vereigns, according to the tenor of certain papers,
drawn up for the purpose (which you may see, if336
APPENDIX.
desire). Thus His Majesty is king and sovereign
of these islands and continents by virtue of the said
donation, and, as king and sovereign, certain islands,
and almost all, to whom this has been notified, have
received His Majesty, and have obeyed and served,
and do actually serve him. And, moreover, like
good subjects, and with goodwill, and without any
resistance or delay, the moment they were informed
of the foregoing, they obeyed all the religious men
sent among them to preach and teach our holy
faith; and these of their free and cheerful will,
without any condition or reward, became Chris-
tians, and continue so to be. And His Majesty re-
ceived them kindly and benignantly, and ordered
that they should be treated like his other subjects
and vassals. You also are required and obliged
to do the same. Therefore, in the best manner I
can, I pray and entreat you, that you consider well
what I have said, and that you take whatever time
is reasonable to understand and deliberate upon it,
and that you recognise the Church for sovereign
and superior of the universal world, and the su-
preme pontiff, called Pope, in her name, and His
Majesty, in his place, as superior and sovereign
king of the islands and terra firma by virtue of
the said donation ; and that you consent that these
religious fathers declare and preach to you the
foregoing: and if you shall so do, you will do well,
and will do that to which you are bounden and
obliged; and His Majesty, and I, in his name, will
receive you with all due love and charity, and will
leave you your wives and children free from servi-
tude, that you may freely do with them and with
yourselves whatever you please and think proper,,MANIFESTO OF ALONZO DE OJEDA.	337
as have clone the inhabitants of the other islands.
And, beside this, His Majesty will give you many
privileges and exemptions, and grant you many
favours. If you do not do this, or wickedly and
intentionally delay to do so, I certify to you that,
by the aid of God, I will forcibly invade and
make war upon you in ail parts and modes that I
can, and will subdue you to the yoke and obedience
of the Church and of His Majesty; and I will take
your wives and children, and make slaves of them,
and sell them as such, and dispose of them as His
Majesty may command : and I will take your effects,
and will do you all the harm and injury in my
power, as vassals who will not obey or receive
their sovereign, and who resist and oppose him.
And I protest that the deaths and disasters, which
may in this manner be occasioned, wall be the fault
of yourselves, and not of His Majesty, nor of me,
nor of these cavaliers who accompany me. And
of w hat I here tell you, and require of you, I call
upon the notary here present to give me his signed
testimonial.”
THE END.
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3s. 6d.28
Hunt’s Humorous Sketches. Coloured, each Is.
Adam’s Pale Ale.
The Rival Artists. 2 plates.
A Poser.
Too Hot.
The Pet Pig.
A Young Shaver.
Astonishment.
How are You ?
The Gleaner.
Long Sermon.
Sleeping Nymph.
Child’s Prayer.
Bubble.
Margate.
The First Cigar. 2 plates.
Master James Crow.
Miss Jemima Crow.
Domestic Felicity.
The Corn Question.
All Fours.
Master Isaac Walton.
The Pet Lamb.
The Young Shrimper.
Done up.
Saturday.
Sunday.
Merry Christmas.
Happy New Year.
It’s Like Him. Painted by Dubuse, 21 by 16. 5s.
It’s Sure to Come True. Painted by T. Dukes, 16 by 20.
8s.
Jeanie Deans. Painted by C. Leslie, R.A., 28 by Id.
3s. 6d.
Jenny Jones. Painted by J. Bateman, 20 by 17. 5s.
Juvenile (The) Toilet. Painted by Hennings, 15 by 11.
2s. 6d.
Keeper (The) Going Out. Painted by H. Barraud,
32 by 26. £1.
Lebrun’s Passions Delineated in a Series of 19 Studies,
admirably adapted for Students. Small folio, sewed. 6s.
Life Guards (The) Bands passing in Review. Painted
by H. Martens. Finely coloured, 29 by 25. 14s.
LANDSEER, SIR EDWIN, R.A.
A collection of Steel Engravings copied from his celebrated
Pictures. Produced in the first style of Art,
Alpino (An) Mastiff, 20 by 17. 8s.29
Bolton Abbey in the Olden Time, 20 by 17b- 8s.
------------------------ ■ - . ■ - Proofs on India paper,
£1.
Catherine Seyton, 19 by 15. 6s.
Death (The) of a Stag in Glen Tilt, 20 by 17*. 8s.
-------------------------------Proofs on India paper
before Letters 16s.
Dignity and Impudence, 22 by 17. 8s.
“ Islay,” Her Majesty’s Favourite Scotch Terrier, with
the Macaw, Love Birds, and Spanish Puppy, 23 by 13*. 7s.
Laying Down the Law, 21 by 21. 10s.
---------------------19 by 18, smaller pl^te, 7s.
Lion Dog of Malta.—“ The Last of /the Tribe,”—
16 by 14*. 5s.
Scotch Terrier.—“ Be it ever so humble, there’s no
place like Home,”—16 by 14*. 5s.
The Angler’s Daughter. From the celebrated picture
of Bolton Abbey, 21 by 14. 5s.
The Falconer’s Son. From the celebrated picture of
Bolton Abbey, 21 by 14. 5s.
The Highland Shepherd’s Home, 17* by 15*. 5s.
The Lady and Spaniels, 16 by 14*.	5s.
The Stag at Bay, 18 by 14. 5s.
Waiting for the Countess, 26 by 22. 12s.
Last (The) Supper. Painted by Leonardo da Yinci for
the Dominican Convent of Santa Madonna della Grazzia, at
Milan. Engraved on Steel in “pure line” by F. Bacon,
24 by 17. 8s.
«------------------- India Proofs. 16s.30
Last (The) Supper. Finely Coloured Page Plate, 31 by
20. 8s.
Love’s Stratagem. Painted by T. M. Joy, 19 by 15, 5s.
Madonna and Child. Painted by Jan. Hemling, 14 by
11. 3s.
Magdalene. Painted by Guido. Engraved by F. Bacon,
18 by 13). 5s.
► -	Proofs on India Paper. 10s.
Magna Charta of King John, 27 by 13. 2s.
Maidens at the Well. Painted by Bendeman, 19 by 15.
5s.
Manuscript ^The). From Sterne’s Sentimental Journey.
Painted by C. Leslie, R.A., 18 by 13. 3s. 6d.
Maternal Love. Painted by P. T. Van Wyngeard,
24 by 19. 5s.
Maternal Affection—(Mother and Child): Painted by
Tunbrell, 15 by 12. 2s. 6d.
Melancthon’s First Misgivings of the Church of Rome.
Painted by G. Lane, 24 by 191. 15s*
------------------------------------------Proofs on
India Paper. £1 10s.
Memorial (A) of the Great Exhibition, 1851. Painted
by Eugene Lam£, 30 by 22. 8s.
Mother’s (The) Grave. Painted by Henning, 15 by 11.
2s. 6d.
Mourner’s Comfort, and the Friend in Adversity. Painted
by E. Prentis, 16 by 21. The pair, 10s.
My Boy. Painted by W. Orchardson, 18 by 14. 3s.81
My First. Painted by Sir T. Lawrence, P.R.A.,
15	by 11. 2s. 6d.
My Own Fireside. Painted by Drummond, 15 by 12.
2s. 6d.
Nose (The) Out of Joint. Painted by A. Crowquill,
16	by 12. 3s.
Our Saviour. Painted by James Northcote, R.A., 29 by
22. 9s.
Our Saviour. Privately engraved for the late Duke of
Buckingham, from the celebrated picture by Carlo Dolce, in
the Stowe collection, 13$ by 10. 3s.
PORTRAITS.
Berghem (N.) Landscape Painter. Painted by Rem-
brandt, 20 by 16$. 5s.
Bright (John). Engraved by G. S. Shury, 20 by 15.
5s.
Brougham (Lord). Engraved by G. S. Shury, 28 by 15.
5s.
Bunyan (John)—Author of the Pilgrim’s Progress. From
an authentic portrait, 21$ by 19$. 8s.
Cardinal Gonsalvi. Painted by Sir T. Lawrence, P.R.A.,
18 by 12$. 3s. 6d.
Cobden (Richard, M.P.) Engraved by G. S. Shury,
23 by 15$. 5s.
Contemplation (Jenny Lind). Painted by Magnus,
20 by 16. 5s.32
Camming (Rev. John, D.D.) Painted by Tweedie,
21* by 17. 5s.
Denison (Edmund, Esq., M.P.) Painted by H. W.
Pickersgill, R.A., 20 by 15. 5s.
Duff (Rev. Alexander, D.D.) Painted by John Faed,
R.S.A., India Proofs, 16* by 21J. 5s.
Duke (The) of Wellington. Painted by Sir T. Lawrence,
P.R.A., 14* by 11. 3s.
Exeter (Right Rev. the Lord Bishop of). Painted by
T. A. Woolnoth, 19 by 15. 5s.
Garibaldi. Drawn on Stone, by Jesse Gardner, 18 by
17*. Is.
Gladstone (Right Hon. W. E.) Chancellor of the Ex- .
chequer, 20 by 15. 5s.
Hampden (John).—One of the Founders of English
Liberty. Painted by John Burnet, 21* by 19*. 7s.
Kemble (John Philip).—In the character of Hamlet.
Painted by Sir T. Lawrence, P.R.A., 18 by 12*. 3s.
La Sylphide (Taglioni). 23 by 18.	5s.
London (Right Rev. the Lord Bishop of). Engraved
by F. Bacon, 21 by 16. 5s.
Longfellow (Henry W.) Engraved by W. H. Mote,
14 by 10. 3s.
Overbeck (Fred.) Painted by Carl Kuchler, Is.
Palmerston (Lord). Engraved by G. S. Shury, 22 by 15 J.
5s.
\ Peabody (George). Drawn on Stone, 12 by 18. Is.88
Rubens. Painted by himself, 15* by 12. 8s.
Scott (Sir W.) Painted by C. Leslie, M.A., 17 by 12.
3s.
Siddons (Mrs.)—As the Tragic Muse. Painted by Sir
J Reynolds, 18 by 13. 3s.
■ ............ larger plate, 25 by 18. 7s.
Spurgeon (Rev. C. H.) Drawn by W. T. Davey,
12 by 9. Is. 6d.
Turner (J. M. W.) Making his Sketch for his celebrated
Picture of Mercury and Argus, 15* by 12. 3s.
West (Benjamin, P.R.A.) Painted by Sir T. Lawrence,
P.R.A., 24 by 18. 7s.
Zetland (Earl of)—Grand Master of the Freemasons.
20* by 16. 5s.
Pick a* Pack. Painted by F. Poole, R.A., 17 by 14.
3s.
Playful (The) Pets. Painted by W. Drummond, 17
by 14. 3s. 6d.
Pray God Bless Papa and Mamma. Painted by J. W.
King, 22 by 18. 5s.
Quiet Enjoyment. Painted by T. Woodward, 18* by 19*.
8s.
Repose. Painted by C. Baxter, 15 by 12.	8s. 6d.
Reynard. Painted by A. Cooper, R.A., coloured, 15
. by 12*. 4s.84
Bichard Cocur de Lion and Saladin at the Battle of
Ascalon. Painted by A. Cooper, R.A., 16 by 19. 5s.
Richard ILL and the Earl of Richmond at the Battle of
B'osworth Field. Painted by A. Cooper, R.A., 16 by 19.
5s.
Rival Fountains (The), or Gin and Water. Drawn by
G. Cruikshank, 12 by 18. Is.; coloured, Is. 6d.
Roman (The) Pilgrims. Painted by Paul Delaroche,
16	by 18. 5s.
Sad (A) Dog—“ Out all Night, and no Key.” Painted
by A. Crowquill, 16 by 12f. 3s.
Shake Hands. Painted by J. Spence, 22 by 17. 5s.
Sit up, Carlo. Painted by John Porter, 15 by 12. 3s.
Smugglers on the Watch. Painted by H. P. Parker,
14 by 17b 3s.
Sportsman's (The) Bothie. Painted by A. Cooper, R.A.
18 by 15. 5s.
Surprise (The). Painted by Dubuse, 15 by Ilf. 8s.
---------------coloured. 6s.
Tally-ho. Painted by C. Hancock, 15 by 17£,
coloured. 4s.
“ Thou Rulest the Raging of the Sea; when the Waves
thereof arise Thou stillest them/’ Painted by W. F. Tiffin,
22 by 17. 5s.
Tired (The) Chums. Painted by W. Drummond.
17	by 13. 3s. 6d.85
Toilet (The). Painted by Dubuse, 15 by Ilf •
------------— coloured. 6s.
!R)p of the Morning to You, 21 by 18. 5s.
Varmint (The). Painted by A. Cooper, B.A., 14 by H*
2s. 6d.
Vesper (The) Bell. Painted by C. Beuben, 17f by 15a*
5s.
Virgin (The) and Child. Painted by BafFaelle, 14 by 16.
- 5s.
Watermill (The). Painted by Sir W. A. Callcott, E.A.
26* by 17. 10s.
WINDSOB, ETON, AND ETON COLLEGE, &c.
Twelve Views of Windsor and its Neighbourhood,
printed on the finest paper, and coloured by the first artists.
Size 23 by 15. 4s. each.
The Series consist of:—
Windsor Castle—East Terrace.
V
Windsor Castle—The Quadrangle.
Windsor Castle from the Brocas Meadows.
Windsor Castle—Another View.
Windsor from Eton.
Eton College.
The Long Walk, Windsor Park.
The Glen in Windsor Park.36
VIEWS OF WINDSOR—CONTINUED,
The Aviary.
Virginia Water.
View from the Round Tower.
Windsor Castle from the River.
*#* A Complete Catalogue of Standard Popular Works sent free
to all parts of the World, see the Address on the first page
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Unwin Brothers, Gresham Steam Press, Bucklersbury, E.C.
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