Chapter XX: Section XIII (3)

After the rebels were departed, the admiral took every possible care that the sick should be furnished with all that could conduce towards their recovery, and that the Indians might be civilly treated, to induce them to continue to bring provisions in exchange for our commodities. All these things were so well managed that the Christians soon recovered, and the Indians continued to supply us plentifully for some time. But they being an indolent race, who take little pains in sowing, while every one of our people consumed as much provisions in one day as would have sufficed an Indian for twenty, and besides having no longer any inclination for our commodities, they began to listen to the advice of the mutineers, since they saw so many of our men had revolted, and therefore did not bring such plenty of provisions as we needed. This brought us into great distress, as if it had been necessary to take these by force, the greatest part of us must have gone on shore armed, leaving the admiral on board in great danger, as he was still very ill of the gout; and if we waited till the Indians brought provisions of their own accord, we must live in great misery, or have paid them ten times the price we did at first, as they were sensible of the advantages our necessities gave them. But God, who never forsakes those who put their trust in him, inspired the admiral with a device by which we became amply provided. Knowing that in three days there was to be an eclipse of the moon in the early part of the night, he sent an Indian of Hispaniola who was on board, to call the principal Indians of that province to talk with him upon a matter which he said was of great importance to them. These Indians came accordingly to wait upon him on the day before the eclipse was to happen, and he desired the interpreter to tell them, That we were Christians who believed in the God of Heaven, who took care of the good and punished the wicked. That God seeing the rebellion of the Spaniards against his faithful servant, would not permit them to go over to Hispaniola, as had been done by Mendez and Fiesco, but had visited them with all those sufferings and dangers which were manifest to the whole island: And that God was angry with the Indians for being negligent in bringing provisions for our commodities, and had determined to punish them with pestilence and famine; and lest they might not believe his words, had appointed to give them a manifest token of his wrath that very night, that they might plainly know whence their punishment was derived. Wherefore the admiral desired them carefully to observe the moon that night when she arose, and they would see her angry and of a bloody hue, as a sign of the punishments which were to fall on them from God. Upon this the Indians were dismissed and sent away, some of them rather afraid and others looking upon it as an idle threat. But on observing the moon to rise in part obscured, and the obscurity increasing as she rose higher, the Indians were so terrified that they hastened from all parts loaded with provisions, crying and lamenting and imploring the admiral to intercede for them with God not to make them undergo the weight of his wrath, and promising to bring him every thing he wanted for the future. The admiral pretended to be softened by their repentance, and said that he would speak to God in their favour. He accordingly shut himself up for some time, till he knew that the eclipse was about to go off, and then coming out of his cabin, he told the Indians that he had prayed to God for them, and had promised in their names that they would be good in future, would use the Christians well, and bring them plenty of provisions and other necessaries; that God therefore forgave them, of which they would he convinced when they saw the anger and bloody colour of the moon go off. And this beginning to take place while he was yet speaking, they gave the admiral many thanks for his intercession, and praised the mercy of the God of the Christians. From that time they always took care to provide every thing which we required; and though they had before seen eclipses, they believed they had portended evils that had befallen them, but thinking it impossible for any one to know on earth what was to happen in the heavens, they certainly concluded that the God of the Christians must have revealed all this to the admiral.

Eight months had passed after Mendez and Fiesco went away, without any intelligence of them, by which the men who remained with the admiral were much cast down and suspected the worst. Some alleged that they were lost at sea, some that they had been killed by the Indians of Hispaniola, and others that they had died with sickness and hardships; for from the point of that island which is next to Jamaica it is above 100 leagues to St Domingo where they had to go in quest of succour, the way by land being over uncouth mountains, and that by sea against the prevailing winds and currents. To confirm their fears some Indians assured them that they had seen a canoe overset and driven by the current on the coast of Jamaica; which report had probably been spread by the mutineers to make those who were with the admiral despair of getting off. Our people at length concluded that no relief was ever to be expected, and became exceedingly dispirited and discontented, and most of them conspired to revolt and join the mutineers, in which they were principally encouraged by one Bernard an apothecary from Valencia, and two others named Zamora and Villatoro. But the Almighty, who knew how dangerous this second mutiny must be to the admiral, was pleased to put a stop to it by the coming of a vessel sent by the governor of Hispaniola. This vessel came one morning to anchor near our grounded ships, and her captain, named James de Escobar, came on board in his boat, saying that he was sent by the governor of Hispaniola to the admiral with his commendations, and that as he had it not in his power to send a ship as yet that could carry off all the men, he had sent to inquire after his situation. Escobar then presented him with a cask of wine and two flitches of bacon, and sailed away again that same night without waiting for any letters.

Our men were somewhat comforted by the appearance of this vessel, and the assurance that Mendez and Fiesco had got safe to St Domingo, and dropt their intended conspiracy and revolt; yet they wondered much that Escobar should have stolen away so privately and suddenly, suspecting that the governor of Hispaniola was unwilling that the admiral should go to that island. As the admiral was aware that the hasty departure of Escobar might occasion speculations and inquiries among the people, he told them that it was by his own directions, because that caravel not being large enough to carry them all away, he would not go himself, as he was unwilling to leave them liable to the disorders that might be occasioned by the mutineers in his absence. But the truth is, that the governor was unwilling to aid the return of the admiral into Spain, lest their Catholic majesties might restore him to his authority as viceroy, by which he would lose his government; wherefore he would not provide as he might have done for the admirals voyage to Hispaniola, and had sent Escobar to Jamaica to espy the condition he was in, and to know whether he might contrive to destroy him with safety. He had learnt the situation in which the admiral was placed from James Mendez, who sent the following account of his proceedings in writing to the admiral by Escobar.

Mendez and Fuesco on the day they left Jamaica held on their way till night, encouraging the Indians to exert themselves with their paddles. The weather was extremely hot, so that the Indians sometimes leaped overboard to refresh themselves by swimming and then came fresh again to their paddles. At night they lost sight of the land, and half the Christians and Indians took watch and watch alternately to sleep and row, taking great care that the Indians might not prove treacherous. Advancing in this manner all night, they were very weary when day appeared; but the commanders encouraged the men, sometimes rowing themselves to give a good example; and after eating to recruit their strength, they fell to their work again, seeing nothing all around but the sky and the sea. Though this was enough to distress them sufficiently, yet they were besides in the predicament of Tantalus, who had water within a span of his mouth yet could not quench his thirst; such was their distress, for, through the improvidence of the Indians and the prodigious heat of the preceding day and night, all their water was drank up without any regard to the future. As heat and labour together are altogether intolerable without drink, and as the heat and thirst increased the second day the higher the sun ascended, their strength was entirely exhausted by noon. By good fortune the captains had reserved two casks of water under their own management, from which they sparingly relieved the Indians, and kept them up till the cool of the evening, and encouraged them by the assurance that they would soon see a small island called _Nabazza_, which lay in their way eight leagues from Hispaniola. This and their extraordinary thirst quite cast them down, and made them believe that they had lost their way, for according to their reckoning they had now run twenty leagues and ought to have been in sight of Hispaniola; but it was weariness that deceived them, for a canoe that rows well cannot in a day and night proceed above ten leagues, and they had been retarded by the currents which were adverse to their course.

Night being come on they had to throw one into the sea who had died of thirst, and others were lying stretched out in the bottom of the canoe perfectly exhausted, those who were still able to bear up a little being sunk almost in despair, and so weak and spent that they could hardly make any way at all. Some took sea water to refresh their thirst, which may be called a comfort of that kind which was offered to our Saviour when he complained of thirst upon the cross. In this manner they feebly held on their way at the commencement of the second night; but it pleased God to send them succour in their utmost need, for when the moon began to rise, James Mendez perceived that she got up over some land, as a little island covered her in the nature of an eclipse, neither could they have seen this island, it was so small, if it had not been for this circumstance, and without the timely relief of water which it afforded they must all have perished of thirst on the following day. Comforting and cheering them with the joyful tidings and shewing them the land, he so encouraged them, supplying them at the same time with a little water from the casks, that the next morning they were very near the small island of Nabazza. They found this island to be all round one hard rock, about half a league in circumference, without either spring or tree; but searching about they found rain water in holes and clefts of the rock, out of which they filled their calabashes and casks; and though those of knowledge and experience advised the rest to use moderation in drinking, yet thirst made some of the Indians exceed all bounds, whereof some died there and others fell into desperate distempers.

Having remained all day at this island to refresh themselves, and eating such things as they found along the shore, for Mendez had all materials for striking fire, by which they were enabled to cook the shell-fish, they rejoiced at being now in sight of Hispaniola, and fearful lest bad weather might arise to impede the prosecution of their voyage, about sun-set they took their departure from Nabazza for Cape St Michael, the nearest land in Hispaniola, where they happily arrived next morning. After resting there two days Fiesco, who was a gentleman that stood much upon his honour, would have returned to Jamaica in pursuance of the admirals commands and his own engagements to that effect; but the people, who were all sailors and Indians, being spent and indisposed by their past labour and by drinking sea-water, considered themselves like Jonas delivered from the whales belly, having been like him three days and three nights in tribulation, none of them would consent to go with him. Mendez, being most in haste, went up the coast of Hispaniola in his canoe, although suffering under a quartan ague, occasioned by his great sufferings by sea and land. After some time, quitting his canoe, he travelled over mountains and by bad roads till he arrived at Xaragua, in the west of Hispaniola, where the governor then was, who seemed rejoiced to see him, though he afterwards was extremely tedious in dispatching him, owing to the reasons already mentioned. After much importunity Mendez obtained permission to go to St Domingo, where he bought and fitted out a vessel from the private funds of the admiral, which was sent to Jamaica at the latter end of May 1504, and sailed thence for Spain by the admirals direction, to give their Catholic majesties an account of the incidents of the voyage[17].

The admiral and all his company had received much comfort from the knowledge that Mendez had arrived in Hispaniola, and entertained full assurance of being relieved through his exertions; he therefore thought fit to communicate the information to the mutineers, that laying their jealousies aside they might be induced to return to their duty. For this purpose he sent two respectable officers to them who had friends among the mutineers, and suspecting that they might disbelieve, or seem not to credit the visit of the caravel under the command of Escobar, he sent them part of the bacon which she had brought. When these two arrived where Porras and his chief confidant resided, he came out to meet them that he might prevent them from moving the men to return to their duty by the offer of a general pardon, which he justly suspected had been sent by the admiral. Yet it was not in the power of the two Porras to prevent their adherents from learning the coming of the caravel, the returned health of those who were with the admiral, and the offers which he sent them. After several consultations among themselves and with their principal confederates, the Porras refused to trust themselves to the offered pardon; but said they would go peaceably to Hispaniola if he would promise to give them a ship provided two came, or if only one, that he should assign them the half; and as they had lost their clothes and the commodities which they had for trade, they demanded that the admiral should share with them those which he had. The messengers answered that these proposals were utterly unreasonable and could not be granted. To which the Porras proudly replied, that since these were refused by fair means they would take them by force.

In this manner the ringleaders dismissed the admirals messengers, misinterpreting his conciliatory offers, and telling their followers that he was a cruel revengeful man; saying that they had no fears for themselves, as the admiral would not dare to wrong them because of their interest at court, yet they had reason to fear he would be revenged of the rest under colour of just punishment, on which account Roldan and his friends in Hispaniola had not trusted his offers, and it had succeeded well with them, as they had found favour at court, whereas the admiral had been sent home in irons. They even pretended that the arrival of the caravel with news from Mendez was a mere phantom produced by magic, in which the admiral was an adept; as it was not likely, had it been in reality a caravel, that the people belonging to it would have had no farther discourse with those about the admiral, neither would it have so soon vanished; and it was more probable, if it had been a real caravel, that the admiral would have gone on board of it with his son and brother. By these and other similar persuasions, they confirmed their adherents in their rebellion, and at length brought them to resolve upon repairing to the ships to secure the admiral and to take all they found there by force.

Continuing obstinate in their wickedness, the mutineers came to a town then named _Maima_, in the neighbourhood of the ships, at which place the Christians afterwards built a town called Seville. Upon learning this audacious procedure and their design to attack him, the admiral sent his brother against them, with orders to endeavour in the first place to persuade them to submission by fair words, but so attended that he might be able to oppose them by force if they attempted to attack him. For this purpose the lieutenant landed with fifty men well armed, and advanced to a hill about a bow-shot from the town in which the rebels had taken up their quarters, whence he sent the two messengers who had been with them before, requiring the captain of the mutineers to enter into a conference for ending all disputes. But they being equal in numbers to the party under the lieutenant, and almost all seamen, persuaded themselves that those who were come out against them were weak men and would not fight, and would not therefore permit the messengers to talk with them. They brandished their naked swords and spears calling out tumultuously, Kill! kill! and fell upon the lieutenants party immediately. Six of them had bound themselves by oath to stick close by each other, and to direct their united efforts against the lieutenant alone, being confident of an easy victory if they succeeded in killing him. But it pleased God that they were disappointed, for they were so well received that five or six of them fell at the first charge, most of whom were of the party who had sworn to slay the lieutenant. He now charged the rebels so manfully and was so well seconded by his party, that John Sanchez and John Barba were killed, some others were brought to the ground by severe wounds, and Francis de Porras their captain was made prisoner. Sanchez was the person from whom Quibio escaped in the river of Veragua, and Barba was the first man whom I saw draw his sword at the breaking out of this rebellion.

Finding themselves thus unexpectedly overpowered, the mutineers turned their backs and fled as fast as they could. The lieutenant would have pursued; but some of the principal people about him remonstrated, saying that it was good to punish, but not to carry severity too far, lest when he had killed many of the mutineers the Indians might think fit to fall upon the victors, as they were all in arms waiting the event without taking either side. This advice being approved of, the lieutenant returned to the ships with Porras and the other prisoners, where he was joyfully received by the admiral and those who remained with him, giving God thanks for the victory in which the guilty had received their just measure of punishment, while on our side the lieutenant was slightly wounded in the hand, and one of the gentlemen of the chamber to the admiral had a small wound in his hip from a spear, of which however he died.

Peter de Ledisma (that pilot who went with Vincent Yanez to Honduras, and who so bravely swam on shore at Belem,) in his flight from the lieutenant, fell down some steep rocks unperceived, where he lay all that day and the next until evening, unperceived by any except some of the Indians. They were amazed to see the terrible gashes which he had received in the fight, having no idea that our swords could cut in such a manner, and opened up his wounds with little sticks to examine them. One of his wounds was on the head and the brain was distinctly laid bare; another on his shoulder so large and deep that his arm hung as it were loose; the calf of one leg was so deeply cut that the flesh hung down to his ancle, and one foot was sliced open from the heel to the toe. Yet in this desperate state he would threaten to rise and destroy the Indians when they disturbed him, and they were so afraid as to fly away in consternation. His situation being reported at the ships, he was removed to a hut in the neighbourhood, where the dampness and the intolerable multitude of gnats were sufficient to have destroyed him. Yet being properly attended to, although the surgeon for the first eight days alleged that he discovered new wounds every day, he at last recovered, and the gentleman of the chamber in whom he apprehended no danger, died of his slight wound.

The day after the battle, 20th of May, all the mutineers who had escaped sent a petition to the admiral, humbly repenting of their disobedience, begging that he would mercifully pardon their past transgression, and declaring their readiness to submit to his authority. The admiral granted their request and passed a general pardon, on condition that their captain should remain a prisoner lest he might stir up another mutiny. And as he thought inconvenience might arise if they were admitted on board the ships, by quarrels among the meaner people, and that it might even be difficult to maintain the whole in one place, he sent out a person in whom he could confide to take the command of those who had been in the mutiny, with directions to go with them about the island and keep them in order till the ships came, which he daily expected, and supplied them with a sufficient quantity of commodities to exchange for provisions with the natives.

The mutineers having all returned to their duty, the Indians became more regular in their supply of provisions to us in exchange for our commodities. We had been some days more than a year at Jamaica when a ship arrived which had been fitted out at St Domingo by James Mendez from the admirals private funds, in which we all embarked, enemies as well as friends, and set sail from Jamaica on the 28th of June. Proceeding on our voyage with much difficulty on account of the adverse winds and currents, we arrived in great need of rest and refreshment at St Domingo on the 13th of August 1504. The admiral was received with great demonstrations of honour and respect by the governor, who lodged him in the palace, yet he set Porras who had headed the mutineers at liberty, and even attempted to punish those who had been instrumental in taking him prisoner, pretending to arrogate an authority of trying causes and offences which belonged solely to the jurisdiction of the admiral, who had been appointed by their Catholic majesties admiral and captain-general of their fleet. Notwithstanding of all this he fawned upon the admiral, using every demonstration of kindness in his presence, yet acting treacherously in undermining his character and authority; and this lasted all the time we remained at St Domingo. Our own ship being refitted and supplied with all necessaries for the voyage, and another hired in which the admiral and his kindred, friends, and servants, embarked, we sailed on the 2d of September, most of the other people who had been along with us in our late disastrous voyage remaining at St Domingo. We had scarcely got two leagues from the port when the mast of one of the ships came by the board, and was immediately sent back by the admiral to refit, while we held on our way in the other vessel to Spain.

Having run about a third part of the way, so terrible a storm arose that our ships were in imminent danger; and next day, 19th of October, when the weather was fair and the ship quite steady the mast flew into four pieces; but by the ingenuity of the admiral who was unable to rise from his bed on account of the gout, and by the exertions of the lieutenant, a jury-mast was constructed out of a spare yard, strengthened with some planks taken from the poop and stern, and firmly bound together with ropes. We lost our foremast in another storm; and yet it pleased God that we arrived safe at the port of St Lucar de Barrameda, and thence to Seville; where the admiral took some rest after the many fatigues he had undergone.

In May 1505 he went to the court of King Ferdinand, the glorious Queen Isabella having in the year before exchanged this life for a better. Her loss was severely felt by the admiral, as she had always favoured and supported him; whereas the king had proved unkind and adverse to his honour and interest. This plainly appeared by the reception he met with at court; for though King Ferdinand received him with the outward appearance of favour and respect, and pretended to restore him to his full power, he yet would have stript him of all if shame had not hindered, considering the engagements which both he and the queen had come under to him when he went out upon his last voyage. But the wealth and value of the Indies appearing every day more obvious, and considering how great a share of their produce would accrue to the admiral in virtue of the articles which had been granted previous to his discovery, the king was anxious to acquire the absolute dominion to himself, and to have the disposal of all the employments in the new world according to his own will and pleasure, which by the agreement were in the gift of the admiral as hereditary viceroy, admiral, and governor-general of the Indies. The king therefore began to propose new terms to the admiral by way of equivalent, which negociation God did not permit to take effect; for just when Philip the first came to reign in the kingdom of Castile, at the time when King Ferdinand went from Valladolid to meet him, the admiral, much broken down by the gout, and troubled to find himself deprived of his rights, was attacked by other distempers, and gave up his soul to God upon Ascension day, the 20th of May, 1506, at the city of Valladolid. Before his death he devoutly partook of the holy sacraments of the church, and these were his last words "_Into thy hands O Lord! I commend my Spirit._" And through his infinite mercy, we do not question but he was received into glory, to which may God admit us with him.

His body was conveyed to Seville, where it was magnificently buried in the cathedral by the order of the Catholic king, and the following epitaph in Spanish was engraven upon his tomb, in memory of his renowned actions and the great discovery of the Indies.

A CASTILIA YA LEON
NUEVO MUNDO DIO COLON.

_Columbus gave a New World to Castile and Leon._

These memorable words are worthy of observation, as nothing similar or any way equivalent can be found either in the ancients or among the moderns. It will therefore be ever had in remembrance, that he was the discoverer of the Indies; though since then Ferdinand Cortes and Francis Pizarro have found out many other provinces and vast kingdoms on the continent. Cortes discovered the province of Yucutan and the empire of Mexico now called New Spain, then possessed by the great emperor _Montezuma_; and Francis Pizarro found out the kingdom of Peru which is of vast extent and full of endless wealth, which was then under the dominion of the powerful king _Atabalipa_. From these countries and kingdoms there come every year to Spain many ships laden with gold and silver and rich commodities, as Brazil wood, cochineal, indigo, sugar, and other articles of great value, besides pearls and other precious stones: owing to which Spain and its princes at this time flourish and abound in wealth beyond all other nations.

[1] D. Ferdinand is surely mistaken here. Martinico, the island probably
indicated by the name of Matinino, is about ten leagues distant from
Dominca; but the course from the former to the latter is to the north,
with a very alight western tendency.--E.

[2] Now called Porto Rico.--E.

[3] He was formerly called Obando; and is named Nicholas de Ovando by
Herrera: Perhaps he had a commandary of the above name.--E.

[4] The historian of Columbus does not appear to have been at all
conversant in zoology. What the Saavina was cannot be conjectured from
his slight notices, unless a basking shark. The other, no way allied to
fish except by living in the water, is a real mammiferous quadruped,
the Trichechus Manati of naturalists, or the sea cow.--E.

[5] The author or his original translator, falls into a great error here.
The land first discovered in this voyage was the island of Guanaia off
Cape Casinas or Cape Honduras, therefore W.S.W. from Jamaica, not
south. Guanaia seems to be the island named Bonaea in our maps, about
ten leagues west from the isle of Ratan.--E.

[6] A blank is left here in the edition of this voyage published by
Churchill.--E.

[7] This is an obvious error, as New Spain is to the west of Cape Casinas,
off which the admiral now was. If bounds _for_ New Spain, the canoe
must have come from the eastwards; if going with commodities from the
westwards it was bound _from_ New Spain.--E.

[8] The papal authority for subjugating the Indians to the holy church,
prevented D. Ferdinand from perceiving either avarice or robbery in
the conduct of the Christians.--E.

[9] It would appear, though not distinctly enunciated, that Columbus had
learnt from some of the natives, perhaps from Giumbe, that a great sea
lay beyond or to the westwards of this newly discovered continent, by
which he imagined he was now in the way to accomplish the original
object of his researches, the route westwards to India.--E.

[10] Now called the Mosquito shore, inhabited by a bold race of savage
Indians, whom the Spaniards have never been able to subdue.--E.

[11] It is utterly impossible that these people could have the smallest
idea whatever of the European art of writing. But they might have
heard of the Mexican representations of people and things by a rude
painting, and of their frequent and distant excursions in quest of
human victims to sacrifice upon their savage altars. This may possibly
have been the origin of the terror evinced by the inhabitants of
Cariari at the sight of the materials of writing, conceiving that the
Spaniards were emissaries from the sanguinary Mexicans, and about to
record the measure of the tribute in human blood.--E.

[12] A more charitable construction might be put on all this. The refusal
to accept presents, perhaps proceeded from manly pride because their
own had been refused. The powder and the smoke might be marks of
honour to the strangers, like the rose water and other honorary
perfumings of the east.--E.

[13] The similitude is not obvious, but may have been intended to comprae
this mountain with the lofty sharp pinnacle on which the hermitage is
built near St Jago de Compostella in Spain.--E.

[14] This is probably the first time that Europeans had seen tobacco
chewed and the use of snuff; practices which have now become almost
necessaries of life among many millions of the inhabitants of Europe
and its colonies.--E.

[15] It is probable that the fish, here called pilchards were of one of
the kinds of flying fish, which is of the same genus with the herring
and pilchard. Voyagers ignorant of natural history are extremely apt
to name new objects after corresponding resemblances in their own
country.--E.

[16] This appears to have been near Panama, or the western point of the
Gulf of Darien in 78° 40' W. long. The pilots seem to have been
extremely ignorant, and the admiral to have yielded to their
importunity. The harbour of St Domingo being in 69° 50' W. long they
ought to have proceeded about nine degrees, or 180 marine leagues
farther east, to have insured their run across the trade winds and
currents of the Caribbean sea.--E.

[17] Though not mentioned in the text, this vessel would certainly bring
refreshments of various kinds, but was probably too small to bring off
the people. Mendez appears to have remained at St Domingo in order to
fit out a larger vessel, which he accordingly carried to Jamaica in
June, as will be seen in the sequel.--E.

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