Chapter VI: Part 6

This inscription meant that Vespucci's letter had opened the eyes of even the clerics to the fact that there was much in the world then undiscovered, and existing contrary to their preconceived notions. The interpreter was a Dominican friar of erudition for his times, one Giovanni Giocondo, an eminent mathematician of Verona, and an architect, who was then living in Paris, where, it is said, he was engaged in building the bridge of Notre Dame. It was a Giocondo, and perhaps this same man, who was sent by King Emanuel to persuade Vespucci to enlist in his service (as told by him on page 170); but whether the same, or one of his family, he was intimately acquainted with the famous Florentines, including Vespucci, the Medici, and Piero Soderini. He, doubtless, saw the letters written by Vespucci when in manuscript, and condensed them into his narration, giving full credit to the author in his publication. He was the unconscious cause of an injustice to Columbus, perhaps, and also of undue prominence being given to the name of Amerigo Vespucci, for it was through the issue of his book that, in a roundabout way, the appellation _America_ came to be bestowed upon the western continents.

We will elaborate this argument in another chapter; but (requesting the reader meanwhile to retain these premises in his mind) we will first follow Vespucci on his fourth, and last, important voyage to the southern hemisphere. In a passage appended to the letter quoted in the previous chapter, and which we herewith reproduce, Vespucci says:

"My three journeys I think I shall defer writing about in
full until another time. Probably when I have returned safe
and sound to my native country, with the aid and counsel of
learned men, and the encouragement of friends, I shall write
with care a larger work than this. Your excellency [Lorenzo
de Medici] will pardon me for not having sent you the
journals which I kept from day to day in this my last
navigation, as I had promised to do. The king has been the
cause of it, and he still retains my manuscripts. But,
since, I have delayed performing this work until the present
day, perhaps I shall add a _fourth journey_; for I
contemplate going again to explore that southern part of the
New World, and for the purpose of carrying out such
intention two vessels are already armed, equipped, and
supplied with provisions. I shall first go eastward, before
making the voyage south; I shall then sail to the southwest,
and when arrived there shall do many things for the praise
and glory of God, the benefit of my country, the perpetual
memory of my name, and particularly for the honor and solace
of my old age, which has nearly come upon me.

"There is nothing wanting in this affair but the leave of
the king, and when this is obtained, as it soon will be, we
shall sail on a long voyage; and may it please God to give
it a happy termination!"

This voyage was undertaken in the spring, or early summer, of 1503, and extended over twelve months, only terminating with the return to Lisbon on June 18, 1504. It was, perhaps, the least satisfactory of any Vespucci had undertaken, and his disgust is plainly apparent in the following account of it, contained in a letter to Piero Soderini, written in Lisbon a few months after his return:

"It remains for me to relate the things which were seen by
me in my fourth voyage; and by reason that I have now become
wearied, and also because this voyage did not result
according to my wishes (in consequence of a misfortune
which happened in the Atlantic Sea), I shall endeavor to be
brief.

"We set sail from this port of Lisbon, six ships in company,
for the purpose of making discoveries with regard to an
island in the east called Malacca, which is reported very
rich. It is, as it were, the warehouse of all the ships
which come from the Sea of Ganges and the Indian Ocean, as
Cadiz is the storehouse for all ships that pass from east to
west, and from west to east, by way of Calcutta. This
Malacca is farther east, and much farther south, than
Calcutta, because we know that it is situated at the
parallel of three degrees north latitude.

"We set out on the 10th of May, 1503, and sailed directly
for the Cape Verde Islands, where we made up our cargo,
taking in every kind of refreshment. After remaining here
three days, we departed on our voyage, sailing in a
southerly direction. Our superior captain [Coelho] was a
presumptuous and very obstinate man; he would insist upon
going to reconnoitre Sierra Leone, a southern country of
Ethiopia, without there being any necessity for it, unless
to exhibit himself as the captain of six vessels. He acted
contrary to the wishes of all our captains in pursuing this
course. Sailing in this direction, when we arrived off the
coast of this country we had such bad weather that though we
remained in sight of the coast four days, it did not permit
us to land. We were compelled at length to leave the
country, sailing from there to the south, and bearing
southwest.

"When we had sailed three hundred leagues through the Great
Sea, being then three degrees south of the equinoctial line,
land was discovered, which might have been twenty-two
leagues distant from us, and which we found to be an island
in the midst of the sea. We were filled with wonder at
beholding it, considering it a natural curiosity, as it was
very high, and not more than two leagues in length by one in
width. This island was not inhabited by any people, and was
an evil island for the whole fleet, because, by the evil
counsel and bad management of our superior captain, he lost
his ship here. He ran her upon a rock, and she split open
and went to the bottom, on the night of the 10th of August,
and nothing was saved from her except the crew. She was a
carrack of three hundred tons, and carried everything of
most importance in the fleet.

"As the whole fleet was compelled to labor for the common
benefit, the captain ordered me to go with my ship to the
aforesaid island and look for a good harbor, where all the
ships might anchor. As my boat, filled with nine of my
mariners, was of service, and helped to keep up a
communication between the ships, he did not wish me to take
it, telling me they would bring it to me at the island. So I
left the fleet, as he ordered me, without a small boat, and
with less than half my men, and went to the said island,
about four leagues distant. There I found a very good
harbor, where all the ships might have anchored in perfect
safety. I waited for the captain and the fleet full eight
days, but they never came; so that we were very much
dissatisfied, and the people who remained with me in the
ship were in such great fear that I could not console them.
On the eighth day we saw the ship coming, off at sea, and
for fear those on board might not see us, we raised anchor
and went towards it, thinking they might bring me my boat
and men. When we arrived alongside, after the usual
salutations, they told us that the captain had gone to the
bottom, that all the crew had been saved, and that my boat
and men remained with the fleet, which had gone farther to
sea. This was a grievous thing to us, as your magnificence
may well think, for it was no trifle to find ourselves far
distant from Lisbon, in mid-ocean, with so few men. However,
we bore up under adverse fortune, and, returning to the
island, supplied ourselves with wood and water, using the
boat of my consort.

"This island we found uninhabited. It had plenty of fresh
water, and an abundance of trees filled with countless
numbers of land and marine birds, which were so simple that
they suffered themselves to be taken with the hand. We took
so many that we loaded a boat with them. We saw no other
animals, except some very large rats, some snakes, and
lizards with two tails. Having taken in our supplies we
departed for the southwest, as we had an order from the king
that if any vessel of the fleet, or its captain, should be
lost, I should make for the land of my last voyage. We
discovered a harbor which we called the bay of All Saints,
and it pleased God to give us such good weather that we
arrived at it in seventeen days. It was distant three
hundred leagues from the island we had left, and we found
neither our captain nor any other ship of the fleet in the
course of the voyage. We waited full two months and four
days in this harbor, and, seeing that no orders came for us,
we agreed, my consort and myself, to run along the coast. We
sailed two hundred and sixty leagues farther and arrived at
a harbor, where we determined to build a fortress. This we
accomplished, and left in it the twenty-four men that my
consort had received from the captain's ship that was lost.

"In this port we stayed five months, building the fortress
and loading our ships with dye-woods. We could not proceed
farther for want of men, and besides, I was destitute of
many equipments. Thus, having finished our labors, we
determined to return to Portugal, leaving the twenty-four
men in the fortress, with provisions for six months, with
twelve pieces of cannon, and many other arms. We made peace
with all the people of the country--who have not been
mentioned in this voyage, but not because we did not see and
treat with a great number of them. As many as thirty men of
us went forty leagues inland, where we saw so many things
that I omit to relate them, reserving them for my _Four
Journeys_.

"This country is situated eighteen degrees south of the
equinoctial line, and fifty-seven degrees farther west than
Lisbon, as our instruments showed us. All this being
performed, we bade farewell to the Christians we left behind
us, and to the country, and commenced our navigation on a
northeast course, with the intention of sailing directly to
this city of Lisbon. In seventy-seven days, after many toils
and dangers, we entered this port on the 18th of June,
1504--for which God be praised! We were well received,
although altogether unexpected, as the whole city had given
us up for lost. All the other ships of the fleet had been
lost, through the pride and folly of our commander, and thus
it is that God rewards haughtiness and vanity.

"At present, I find myself here in Lisbon again, and I do
not know what the king wishes me to do, but I am very
desirous of obtaining repose. The bearer of this, who is
Benvenuto di Domenico Benvenuti, will tell your magnificence
of my condition, and of any other things which have been
omitted, to avoid prolixity, but which I have seen and
experienced. I have abbreviated the letter as much as I
could, and omitted to say many things very natural to be
told, that I might not be tedious.

"Allow me to commend to you Sr. Antonio Vespucci, my
brother, and all my family. I remain, praying God that he
may prolong your life, and prosper that exalted republic of
Florence,

"Your very humble servant,
"AMERIGO VESPUCCI.

"_Lisbon, 4th September, 1504._"

This was the last letter, so far as we can ascertain, written by Vespucci concerning his voyages--or, at least, the last that has been brought to light; though it is hoped that his manuscript journals, to which he repeatedly refers, may yet be found. They are, doubtless, buried in the secret archives of either the crown of Portugal or of Spain, as at different times he alludes to them as being in the hands of the kings, from whom he hopes to receive them at their pleasure. Both King Emanuel and King Ferdinand held Vespucci in great esteem; but, as consideration for their subjects, whether high or low, never entered their minds, they probably retained the manuscripts for years, and eventually these precious documents may have been buried beneath the vast accumulation of papers relating to the voyages and discoveries in both hemispheres.

Vespucci was in error respecting the remaining ships of the fleet engaged in his fourth voyage, for a few months later they came back to Lisbon in a shattered condition, but, so far as known, with their crews intact. They had sailed farther to the south than Vespucci went on this voyage, probably as far as the mouth of the great river La Plata, which Solis has the credit of discovering a few years later. It had been learned by that time that the coasts brought to view by the constantly lengthening voyages into the south were situated to the west of the great line of demarcation separating the discoveries of Spain and Portugal, and hence belonged to the former. This fact has a bearing upon the departure of Vespucci and other noted captains from Portugal about this time, as, if they would pursue these explorations to their logical conclusion, they must enlist beneath the banner of King Ferdinand. Hence we find our hero, towards the end of 1504, once again in Spain, and in high favor with the king.

XIV

KING FERDINAND'S FRIEND

1505-1508

The summer of 1504 Vespucci passed in Portugal, attending to matters connected with his last voyage, which had such an unsatisfactory ending; but in the latter part of that year we find him once again in Seville. It is presumed he was warmly welcomed by his wife, after this long absence of nearly four years; but nothing exists at all to indicate his marital relations, and so far as furnishing material for his biographers is concerned, he might as well have remained single all his life. In point of fact, Amerigo Vespucci, though sterling in his friendships, ardent and even affectionate, was a true celibate. He was wedded to Science, his whole nature was absorbed by the pursuits to which he had, perhaps fortuitously, devoted his maturer years. If we contrast him with Columbus, in respect to the higher qualities of his character, we cannot but be impressed by the difference between these two, for, while the latter was weak, impressionable, if not passionate, the former was strong, flawless in his morals, devoted ever to the star-eyed goddess in whose service he had enlisted for life.

He was humane, generous, unselfish, while Columbus, though of more heroic proportions than his rival, was at times selfish, ungenerous, cruel--as witness his treatment of the Pinzons, his claiming the reward for the discovery of land, which rightly belonged to Rodrigo de Triana, his massacres of Indians in Hispaniola and enslavement of the survivors. Against Amerigo Vespucci no such charges of immorality, cruelty, and bigotry can be brought as against Columbus, and the sole accusation against him, of falsifying the date of his "first" voyage, has not been sustained by the evidence.

His eulogist, Canovai, says of him, in somewhat extravagant terms: "Behold the transport of that lively emulation which springs from the indisputable consciousness of talents, and is nourished by the pure and delicate essence of virtue, which shines uncontaminated in every footstep of the hero. It seems enmity, but is laudable strife; it seems envy, but is a generous ambition. If Columbus had found rivals and enemies resembling Amerigo, I should not see, as now, the magnificent scene of his triumph so suddenly changed into mourning and horror, the gloomy night of ignominy and mockery succeed the brief light of ephemeral happiness, and that invincible leader, who redoubled the power and dominions of ungrateful Castile, groaning under the weight of infamous chains, while he asks for nothing but liberty to carry her arms to the most distant shores of the West.

"Go now, and turning your eyes from the atrocious metamorphosis, exclaim it is chance--it is fate; arbitrary sounds and sterile syllables, with which no distinct idea can ever be associated. Alas! are there not imperceptible threads by which a regulating hand guides us through a crooked labyrinth from causes to effects, and prepares in silence the events of the universe? Prostrated by implacable vengeance, and despoiled of the exclusive right to discoveries and honors, Columbus pines in inaction; but no new columns of Hercules, beyond which the pilot dares not pass, stand erect before the shores of Mexico. Amerigo Vespucci reunites the web of fortunate events. Amerigo succeeds Columbus!"

In simpler diction, Columbus brought all his troubles upon himself. He dared much, but he demanded more than he was, by merit of mere achievement, entitled to receive. He was constantly warring for his alleged rights--with the king, with Fonseca, with his fellow-explorers, and especially with such commanders of ships or expeditions as might by their discoveries belittle his accomplishments. Hence resulted untold misery to the natives of the New World, consequent upon the crushing despotism he inaugurated in order to gain gold with which to vindicate himself to his sovereigns. Hence came Bodadilla and Ovando, sent out to investigate his doings, one of whom despatched him in fetters to Spain, and the other hastened the extinction of the Indians, already begun by Columbus himself.

The aggressive insistence of Columbus in the matter of honors and privileges, which were in their nature but temporary, are in decided contrast to the modesty and simplicity of Vespucci, who indeed was ambitious to acquire an honorable name which should be "the comfort and solace of his old age," but who, "by his quiet and unobtrusive manners, made friends even among his rivals." He was scrupulously regardful of the rights of others, treating the helpless natives with especial tenderness. This statement may seem to be disproved by the fact that on two of his voyages he took home gangs of Indians to be sold as slaves; but it is not known that he himself was responsible for this, as he was not the real commander of the expeditions, though the actual scientific head and navigator.

He was as deeply devout as Columbus himself, always rendering thanks to the Almighty for His favors, but was by no means a fanatic in religion. While Columbus ascribes his discoveries to the especial favor of some particular saint, on occasions, or his deliverance from danger to the direct interposition of Providence, Vespucci makes no such superstitious claims for himself, though acknowledging his dependence upon God and expressing gratitude for divine support. He believed, evidently, in the precept of the Golden Rule--"Do unto others as you would have them do to you"; and this, alas, cannot be said of Christopher Columbus. Though he married late in life, and had no children of his own, Vespucci "was full of affectionate feeling for his family, as his care and attention to the education and advancement of his nephew, and his memory of relatives in Florence, from whom he had been so long absent, amply testify."

Finally, the structure which Columbus fain would have raised has crumbled to ruins, while that built by Vespucci, who labored without thought of himself, or hope of reward, has been strengthened by the lapse of time, and will stand so long as the world endures. Vespucci humbled himself, and was exalted, for the name bestowed upon the hemisphere which these two were instrumental in revealing to Europe was suggested by utter strangers to the Florentine--men of penetrating mind, who perceived an eternal fitness in calling it _America_.

These reflections arise from the fact that, soon after the return of Vespucci to Seville, he met, and was probably entertained by, Christopher Columbus. The old Admiral had but recently returned from his fourth and last voyage to the West Indies, where he had escaped death by a miracle, and had suffered humiliation at the hands of the atrocious Ovando. He had come back to Spain to find his friend and protectress, Isabella, on a bed of death; to encounter the ingratitude of Ferdinand and meet the charges of his enemies. He was never to make another voyage until he embarked on that last long journey into the world unknown.

Broken in fortune, worn by the ills of advancing age, crushed beneath the calumnies of his foes, Columbus felt the end approaching, probably, and perhaps looked upon Vespucci as, in a sense, his successor. At least he perceived that the latter's star was in the ascendant, for he knew him as a friend of King Ferdinand, who, mistrustful ever of the man who had discovered a new empire for him to rule, yet was inclined to favor Vespucci, whose sterling qualities he appreciated. He had always liked the Florentine for his manly, modest bearing, his sturdy good sense, his industry, patience, erudition, and eminent abilities in general. Here was a man who made voyages by which the pathways were opened to new countries, without stipulating in advance that he should be rewarded with the admiralty of the Ocean Sea, without bargaining for the viceroyship of the countries he discovered, or for a tenth of all their resources and trade. He seemed to have no thought of himself, so absorbed was he in performing a work which, he had every reason to believe, would redound to the honor of the land he was born in and the sovereigns he served.

He had, to be sure, carried his talents to a rival sovereign, and served him as faithfully as he had King Ferdinand; but the latter bore him no ill-will for that. It is not certain, in truth, that he had not connived at Vespucci's entering the service of Portugal for a time, as, in view of his return to Spain, he received all the benefit of his experience. It was by means of Vespucci's voyage, most probably, that it was definitely ascertained how far Portugal had encroached upon territory assigned by the pope to her great rival, Spain. Deep and crafty was the diplomacy of King Ferdinand, and it is within the bounds of probability that he himself sent the silent, observant, faithful Vespucci to take service with King Emanuel for a season.

The overlapping voyages of Vespucci and Pinzon, in 1499, 1500, 1501, and 1503, had decided the question of sovereignty in South America--at least its northern coasts--in favor of Spain. These two, then, were soon commissioned by Ferdinand to equip a fleet, of which they were to be the joint commanders. This fleet was to sail for Brazil, and thence, after establishing colonies, or forts, continue the explorations they had severally so auspiciously begun. On April 11, 1505 (it is on record), the king made Vespucci a grant of twelve thousand maravedis, and on the 24th of the same month letters of naturalization were issued in his behalf, "in consideration of Amerigo Vespucci's fidelity, and his many valuable services to the crown."

Before proceeding to relate the story of Vespucci's renewed service with King Ferdinand, let us, however, return to the subject of his intercourse with Columbus, with whom, as there is strong evidence in proof, he was on terms of intimate friendship. This proof is found in a letter written by Columbus, at a time (as already mentioned) when he was in disfavor at court, and after his return from the last and most unfortunate voyage. It furnishes evidence of the most positive character that Vespucci and Columbus did not consider themselves as rivals, but were actually on the best of terms. It was written nearly a year after the first publication of Vespucci's letter to Lorenzo de Medici, alluded to in the previous chapter; yet the relations between the two discoverers were such as might have existed between men united by fraternal ties.

"_To my very dear Son, Don Diego Columbus--at the Court._

"MY DEAR SON,--"Diego Mendez departed from this place on
Monday, the 3d of this month. After his departure I held
converse with Amerigo Vespucci, the bearer of this letter,
who goes to court on some business connected with
navigation. He has always been _desirous of serving me, and
is an honorable man_, though fortune has been unpropitious
to him, as to many others; and his labors have not been as
profitable as he deserves. He goes on my account, and with a
great desire to do something which may redound to my
advantage, if it is in his power.

"I know not here what instructions to give him that will
benefit me, because I am ignorant of what will be required
there; but he goes determined to do for me all that is
possible. See what can be done to advantage there, and labor
for it, that he may know and speak of everything, and devote
himself to the work; and let everything be done with
secrecy, that no suspicions may arise. I have said to him
all that I can say touching the business, and have informed
him of all payments which have been made me, and what is
due.

"This letter is also intended for the adelantado [Don
Bartholomew, Christopher's brother], that he may avail
himself of any advantage and advice on the subject. His
highness believes that the ships were in the best and
richest portion of the Indies, and if he desires to know
anything more on the subject, I will satisfy him by word of
mouth, for it is impossible for me to tell him by letter.

"May the Lord have you in His holy keeping.

"Done at Seville, the 5th of February, 1505.

"Thy father, who loves thee better than himself,
CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS.
"S.
"S. A. S.
"X. M. Y.
"Xpo. Ferens."

This precious document was found in the archives of Spain by Navarrete, whose volumes constitute a veritable mine of Spanish history. The superscription at the foot of the letter was adopted by Columbus after he became a "Don," and is supposed to mean: "Servus, Supplex Altissimi Salvatori; Christus, Maria, Josephus"; or, in English: "Humble Servant of the most high Saviour; Christ, Mary, Joseph." The original letter is contained in the collection of an indirect descendant of Columbus, the Duke of Veragua. It bears ample testimony to the important fact that, while the great Columbus was not permitted to present himself at court, his friend Vespucci not only had access to the throne but strong influence there.

XV

PILOT-MAJOR OF SPAIN

1508-1512

If Vespucci had been as heedful of posthumous fame as Columbus, who lost no opportunity for trumpeting his deeds to the world, we should be better prepared to present a continuous narrative of his life than it is possible to gather from the fragmentary material he has left behind him. "The transactions of Vespucci at court," says Mr. Fiske, the eminent historian, "and the nature of the maritime enterprises that were set on foot or carried to completion during the next few years, are to be gathered chiefly from old account-books, contracts, and other business documents, unearthed by the indefatigable Navarrete, and printed in his great collection.... Unfortunately, account-books and legal documents, having been written for other purposes than the gratification of the historian, are--like the 'geological record'--imperfect. Too many links are missing, to enable us to determine with certainty just how the work was shared among these mariners (Vespucci, La Cosa, Pinzon, and Solis), or just how many voyages were undertaken. But it is clear that the first enterprise contemplated (by King Ferdinand) was a voyage by Pinzon, in company with either Solis or Vespucci, or both, for the purpose of finding an end to the continent or a passage into the Indian Ocean. What Vespucci had failed to do in his last voyage for Portugal, he now proposed to do in a voyage for Spain."

While the large fleet for this purpose was being prepared, it is believed, Vespucci and La Cosa made two voyages, one in 1505 and another in 1507, to Darien and the Pearl Coast, which resulted more profitably to them than any others they had undertaken. As these voyages were simply for commercial purposes, and as Vespucci seems to have held in contempt the mere acquisition of riches, especially when the promotion of discovery was not the aim of his expeditions, he makes no mention of them whatever. In truth, but for the finding of two letters, sent to the Venetian senate by its diplomatic agents in Spain, dated 1505 and 1507, these fifth and sixth voyages of Vespucci would have been overlooked entirely. The omission illustrates his carelessness in respect to the chronicling of his deeds, his heedlessness as to fame and glory. As one of his eulogists truly says: "In none of his writings does Vespucci claim for himself advancement, honor, or emolument, nor does he seek to delude his patrons with visions of untold wealth. His letters are the easy effusions of a great mind filled with admiration at the fertile regions, balmy climate, and primitive races of the New World. Ever modest, he merges himself in the greatness of his undertaking; and if the civilized world with one accord gave his name to the regions he was the first in modern times to visit, it was a tribute which it deemed just and paid unasked."

Owing to the protests of Portugal, it is thought, the great fleet intended for the extension of discovery along the southern coast of Brazil was dispersed and its vessels diverted to other seas. Vespucci had been active in its equipment, and during the uncertainty existing in Spain after the death of Queen Isabella, and the consequent derangement of affairs at court, he appears prominently in the business. He was despatched to court by the board of trade of Seville, especially commissioned to extricate them from the dilemma in which they found themselves: unable to determine whether they were to act in the name of the crazy princess, Juana, her foreign consort, Philip, or the old king, Ferdinand. In order to be able to meet any emergency, Vespucci was furnished with three different letters and sets of instructions. "You will take," wrote the president of the board of trade to Amerigo, "three letters: for the king, Vila, his grand chamberlain, and the secretary, Gricio, besides five memorials: one upon the despatch of the armament, two others received from Hispaniola concerning the tower which King Ferdinand commanded to be built upon the Pearl Coast, and the remaining two upon the caravels which are on service in Hispaniola, and concerning what things are necessary for the fortress which is building there. If Gricio is at court, and attends to the affairs of the Indies, give him the letter, show him the memorials, and he will guide you to the ear of the king and obtain for you good despatch. We are informed, however, that the king has intrusted the business of the Indies to M. de Vila, his grand chamberlain, and if that is the case go directly to him. What we principally desire is a full understanding of the agreement which has been entered into between the king, our lord (Philip, the consort of Juana Loca), and King Ferdinand, in order that we may be able to give to each prince that which is his."

Without going further into the affairs of court at this period--merely pausing to remark that after the death of Philip the old king soon extricated his kingdom from the state of embarrassment into which it had been plunged--we cannot but note that Amerigo Vespucci must have been a man of weight and influence to be selected for such a mission. It was a visit to the court previous to this which Columbus had in mind when he gave him the letter to his son Don Diego. The biographer of Columbus, Mr. Irving, has tried to make it appear that he was used by Columbus to further his own ends, for he says: "Among the persons whom Columbus employed at this time in his missions to the court was Amerigo Vespucci. He describes him as a worthy but unfortunate man, who had not profited as much as he deserves by his undertakings, and who had always been disposed to render him a service. His object in employing him appears to have been to prove the value of his last voyage, and that he had been in the most opulent parts of the New World, Vespucci having since touched upon the same coast, in a voyage with Alonzo de Ojeda."

Now, this amiable apologist, in his persistent efforts to thrust Amerigo Vespucci into positions subordinate to Columbus, defeats his own purpose and disparages his own hero, for by his very words can he be discredited. He himself says: "The incessant applications of Columbus [at court], both by letter and by the intervention of friends, appear to have been listened to with cool indifference. No compliance was yielded to his requests, and no deference paid to his opinions.... In short, he was not in any way consulted in the affairs of the New World."

And this was at about the time that Amerigo Vespucci was intrusted with most important business at court by the board of trade of Seville; about the time that he was called to court and highly honored by the king; just before the time that he was made captain of a fleet, with a salary of thirty thousand maravedis per annum. There was, in truth, no man in the employ of Spain more highly regarded than Vespucci for his talents, for his honesty, for his loyalty to the government. At the settlement of accounts pertaining to the fleet which had been intended for South America, more than five million maravedis passed through his hands--and he was never charged with having diverted a single centavo to himself.

Nothing can so abundantly testify to the respect in which Vespucci was held as his relations with King Ferdinand. While he has the unique honor of being almost the only man that Columbus never quarrelled with, it is also to his credit that he acquired, and retained to the last, the respect and confidence of the king. Ferdinand was always mistrustful of Columbus, and with good reason, but never refused Vespucci a favor--if he asked one--or hesitated to give him an audience. The reason was, most probably, that, aside from his deceitfulness (which was a quality the crafty Ferdinand could tolerate in no one but himself), Columbus was constantly importuning him for further honors and emoluments; while Vespucci rarely, if ever, craved glory or riches for himself. Nothing came of Vespucci's intercession at court for Columbus, and soon the latter dropped out of sight. He died in 1506, utterly neglected by the court and king, and in such obscurity that he was unnoticed in the local annals of the day.

In the mean time, Amerigo Vespucci was at the height of his career, trusted by the sovereign and honored by all with whom he came in contact. On the return of King Ferdinand to absolute power in Spain, through the death of his son-in-law Philip and the regency for his insane daughter Juana, he called Vespucci and La Cosa to court in order to consult with them respecting nautical affairs and future discoveries. In February, 1508, Vespucci, Pinzon, and Solis, who, together with La Cosa, were then the most highly honored navigators in Spanish employ, were charged with the safe conduct to the king's treasury of six thousand ducats in gold, for which service they received six thousand maravedis each.

Another consultation was held with the king, whose favorable opinion of Vespucci was so strengthened that the year following he created for him the office of pilot-major, as the most eminent navigator in his kingdom. This position was given him in March, 1508, and from that time till his death, in February, 1512, he received a salary of seventy-five thousand maravedis per annum. He was charged to examine and instruct all pilots in the use of the astrolabe "to ascertain whether their practical knowledge equalled their theoretical, and also to revise maps, and to make one of the new lands which should be regarded as the standard.... He was to correct the errors carried into the charts by the teachings and the maps of Columbus and others. The inaccuracy of the Columbus charts was so notorious that their use was subsequently prohibited, and a penalty imposed upon the pilot who should sail by them." Vespucci was at the head of a government department pertaining to pilotage, navigation, and charts. It was then unique in the world, and the weight of authority behind it was adverse to the use of charts made by Columbus; notwithstanding which Mr. Irving says: "When the passion for maritime discovery was seeking to facilitate its enterprises, the knowledge and skill of an able cosmographer like Columbus would be properly appreciated, and the superior correctness [?] of his maps and charts would give him notoriety among men of science."

The importance of this position created for Vespucci will appear from the royal order, or commission, which reads: " ... We command that all pilots of our kingdom and lordships, who now are, shall henceforward be, or desire to be, pilots on the routes to the said islands and terra firma which we hold in the Indies, and other parts of the ocean sea, shall be instructed in and possess all necessary knowledge of the use of the quadrant and astrolabe; and in order that they may unite practice with theory, and profit thereby in the said voyages which they may make to the said lands, they shall not be able to embark as pilots in the said vessels, nor receive wages for pilotage, nor shall merchants be able to negotiate with them as such, nor captains receive them aboard their ships, without their _having been first examined by you, Amerigo Despuchi_, our pilot-major, and received from you a certificate of examination and approbation, certifying that they are possessed, each one, of the knowledge aforesaid; holding which certificate, we commend that they be held and received as expert pilots, wherever they shall show themselves--for it is our will and pleasure that you should be examiner of said pilots. And that those who do not possess the required knowledge shall the more easily acquire it, we command that you shall instruct, at your residence in Seville, all such as shall be desirous of learning and remunerating you for the trouble.... And as it has been told us that there are many different charts, by different captains, of the lands and islands of the Indies belonging to us, which charts differ greatly from each other--therefore, that there may be order in all things, it is our will and pleasure that a standard chart shall be made; and that it may be the more correct, we command the officers of our board of trade in Seville to call an assembly of our most able pilots that shall at that time be in the country, and, in the presence of you, Amerigo Despuchi, our pilot-major, there shall be planned and drawn a chart of all the lands and islands of the Indies, which have hitherto been discovered belonging to our kingdom; and upon this consultation, subject to the approval of you, our pilot-major, a standard chart shall be drawn which shall be called the Royal Chart, by which all pilots must direct and govern themselves. This shall remain in the possession of our said officers, and of you, our said pilot-major; and no pilot shall use any other chart, without incurring a penalty of fifty doubloons, to be paid to the board of trade in the city of Seville.... And it is our will and pleasure that, in virtue of the above, you, the said Amerigo Despuchi, shall use and exercise the said functions of our pilot-major, and shall be able to do, and shall do, all things pertaining to that office contained in this our letter."[14]

The remainder of Amerigo Vespucci's life may almost be summed up in the statement that he held this responsible post during the four years succeeding to his appointment, for he received his commission on March 22, 1508, and died on February 22, 1512. It was an onerous position, "and his appointment to it by Ferdinand was the highest proof of the estimation in which he was held by that monarch that could have been bestowed upon him." It was a recognition of his supereminent qualities, as cosmographer and navigator, at a time when Spanish enterprise was reaching out to every part of the western world; and as he discharged its duties with fidelity and skill, confining himself closely to his desk, no leisure was afforded him for further voyaging, for writing out the long-deferred accounts of his travels, or for recreation of any sort. He made one short visit to Florence, where he was received with honor, as the most distinguished son of a city world-famous for its great men, and where the portrait was painted which has been universally accepted as authentic, representing him as advanced in years.

As already mentioned, authentic information relating to the latter years of Vespucci is of a fragmentary character, and is contained mainly in the official papers found in the archives of Simancas and Seville, by Don Martin Fernandez de Navarrete, to whom the biographers of Columbus were so deeply indebted. The date of the first of these papers is July, 1494, and relates to payments made to Berardi, as outfitter of the ships for the voyages of Columbus. By royal decree, April 11, 1505, the queen's treasurer is commanded to pay to Vespucci twelve thousand maravedis. Another decree, of March 22, 1508, grants Vespucci, as chief pilot of the kingdom, a salary of fifty thousand maravedis, subsequently increased to seventy-five thousand. Then follows the royal declaration (from which we have quoted), setting forth the duties of the pilot-major, which was issued during the regency of the crazy queen, Juana, and addressed to "Amerigo Despuchi."

There is no reference to the date and place of Vespucci's death; but this is not considered singular, in view of the fact that the demise of Columbus was officially unnoticed at the time. There is, rather, no direct reference; though confirmation of that event occurs in the continuation of his accounts to the day of his death, and after, one of which relates to the payment of ten thousand nine hundred and thirty-seven maravedis to Manuel Catano, a canon of Seville, as the executor of Vespucci's will, "that amount being the balance of his salary due at the date of his death."

One of the very few references to the wife of Vespucci is contained in a royal decree of May 22, 1512, which grants a pension for life to his widow, Maria Cerezo, of ten thousand maravedis per annum. By a later decree, this pension is declared a fixed charge against the salary of the chief pilot and his successors. These were, in order of succession, Juan Diaz de Solis and Sebastian Cabot, after whom came others not so famous as these great navigators.

These papers are cited to show that Amerigo Vespucci was not looked upon as an adventurer by the dignitaries of Spain; that, on the contrary, he was held in great esteem, honored with the highest office in the gift of the king, in which his great accomplishments could have full scope. He filled that office with eminent ability, to the complete satisfaction of King Ferdinand, and when he died, on February 22, 1512, he left behind a name untarnished, a reputation for probity unsullied. Despite the honors accorded him by the kings of Spain and Portugal, however, and the high positions he occupied, he left no fortune for his heirs. His valuable papers were bequeathed to his nephew, Juan Vespucci, whom he loved like a son; but his widow was left in circumstances so straitened that she was actually dependent upon the pension granted her by the crown.

FOOTNOTES:

[14] From Navarrete's _Coleccion de los Viajes y Descubrimientos_.

XVI

HOW AMERICA WAS NAMED

1504-1541

If, in the foregoing narrative, the author has seemed to champion his hero unduly, going perhaps unnecessarily into the details of his voyages, it may have been owing to anticipated opposition on the part of his readers. There has always been a wide divergence of opinion respecting the merits of Amerigo Vespucci, and the world has never reconciled itself to his so-called usurpation of the glory rightly belonging to Columbus.

Even so great a writer as Emerson allowed himself to say: "Strange that broad America must wear the name of a thief! Amerigo Vespucci, the pickle-dealer at Seville, who went out in 1499, a subaltern with Hojeda, and whose highest naval rank was boatswain's mate, in an expedition that never sailed, managed in this lying world to supplant Columbus, and baptize half the earth with his own dishonest name!"

We, who have followed the career of Amerigo Vespucci from its beginning to its ending, know that he was not a thief; that--except by implication, as having been a purveyor of naval stores--he was not a "pickle-dealer"; that he held a far higher rank than boatswain's mate--as attested by the royal proclamation we have cited, naming him to be chief pilot of Spain; and that, so far as the evidence of his contemporaries and his own letters show, he made no attempt whatever to thrust his personality upon the world.

He did not "baptize half the earth with his own dishonest name," though it is true that the appellation by which a hemisphere is known to-day was derived from Americus, Amerigo, or Americo--whether we speak it in Latin, in Italian, or in Spanish.

How comes it then, the reader may well ask, that America derived its name from the Florentine, Vespucci, when it should, by right of "discovery," have been called after the Genoese, Columbus? The answer to this question involves the following of clews centuries old, through a labyrinth of falsehood and misstatement that was built up three hundred years ago. The first clew may be found on page 197 of this biography, where mention is made of the translation of Vespucci's letter to Lorenzo de Medici, by Giocondo, in 1504, and issued by him under the title _Mundus Novus_. This letter is said to have been first published in Lisbon and Augsburg in 1504, and in Strasburg in 1505.

Pick up this book and nail it to the wall, where it may be observed by all, for it was the very beginning of Vespucci's posthumous troubles. We have read the letter and known it to have been a plain, unvarnished account of Vespucci's third voyage, in which he chanced to say that he thought he had discovered the fourth part of the globe, and proposed to call it _Mundus Novus_, or the New World. He was quite right, and within bounds, when he did this, for he was thinking only of that portion of the _southern hemisphere_ which he had found, and not of the entire western hemisphere. He did not extend the term to cover the northern regions, discovered by Columbus, for the latter had no idea that they pertained to a new world; in fact--as we know--believed to the last that they belonged to Asia or India.

"At no time during the life of Columbus, nor for some years after his death," says a learned historian, "did anybody use the phrase 'New World' with conscious reference to his discoveries. At the time of his death their true significance had not yet begun to dawn upon the mind of any voyager or any writer. It was supposed that he had found a new route to the Indies by sailing west, and that in the course of this achievement he had discovered some new islands," etc.

We must, then, acquit Vespucci of any intention of depriving Columbus of his laurels, when he said he believed he had found a new world, for he referred only to that portion of South America now known as Brazil. Nor, so far as we know, was he either responsible for, or aware of, the publication of his letters to Medici and Soderini--for those to the latter were afterwards translated and printed--as he was, at that time, on the ocean. In truth, as the letters were merely epistles to friends, who would naturally be interested in his discoveries, and of course overlook any defects of diction, he openly stated that he was only waiting leisure for improving and elaborating them for issue in pamphlet form. He never acquired this leisure, and the world, tired of waiting, seized upon his material and brought it out in print, without so much as saying "by your leave."

The second person to take liberties with Vespucci's name was one Matthias Ringmann, a student in Paris, who was acquainted with Friar Giocondo, and of course saw the _Mundus Novus_, which he published in Strasburg in 1505. That same year he was offered the professorship of Latin in a college at Saint-Dié, a charming little town in the Vosges Mountains, which had long been a seat of learning. It is said to have been strangely associated with the discovery of America, from the fact that here was written, about 1410, the book called _Imago Mundi_, which Columbus read and probably took to sea with him on his first great voyage. In a double sense, this obscure town and college, nestling in a little-known valley of the Franco-German mountains, is known in connection with the name America, as will now be shown.

Young Professor Ringmann found at Saint-Dié a select and distinguished company of scholars, composed of Martin Waldseemüller, professor of geography; Jean Basin de Sendacour, canon and Latinist; Walter Lud, secretary to Duke René, patron of literature, and especially of the college of Saint-Dié, which was to him as the apple of his eye. He was the reigning Duke of Lorraine, and titular "King of Sicily and Jerusalem," but had never strayed far from his own picturesque province, though he had won a great victory over Charles the Bold in 1477. He is, no doubt, worthy an extended biographical sketch, but in this connection can only be referred to as the patron of these great teachers in Saint-Dié, who, soon after the appearance of Ringmann among them, conceived the plan of printing a new edition of _Ptolemy_.

One of them, Walter Lud, was blessed with riches, and as he had introduced a printing-press, about the year 1500, the college was amply equipped. So many discoveries had been made since the last editions of _Ptolemy_ had appeared, that the Saint-Dié coterie felt the need of new works on the subject, and sent Ringmann to Italy hunting for the same. He, it is thought, brought back, among other "finds" of great value, the letter written by Vespucci to Soderini from Lisbon, in September, 1504, a certified manuscript copy of which was made in February, 1505, and printed at Florence before midsummer, 1506.

No extended explanation is needed now to elucidate the scheme by which Vespucci's letters were incorporated in the treatise published by those wise men of Saint-Dié, entitled _Cosmographie Introductio_, or "Rudiments of Geography," and taken from the press on April 25, 1507.

It was a small pamphlet, with engravings of the crudest sort, but it made a stir in the world such as has been caused by but few books since. But one copy of this first edition is said to be extant, and that is in the Lenox Library, New York City. It caused a flutter in cosmographical circles, not alone at the time of its issue, but for centuries thereafter, for in it first occurs in print the suggestion that the "fourth part of the world," discovered by Amerigo Vespucci, should be called AMERICA.[15]

Professor Martin Waldseemüller was the culprit, and not Amerigo Vespucci, for he says, in Latin, which herewith find turned into English: "But now these parts have been more extensively explored and _another fourth part has been discovered by Americus Vespucius_ (as will appear in what follows): _wherefore I do not see what is rightly to hinder us from calling it Amerige, or America--i.e., the land of Americus, after its discoverer, Americus, a man of sagacious mind_, since both Europe and Asia have got their names from women. Its situation and the manners and customs of its people will be clearly understood from the twice two voyages of Americus, which follow."

It was a suggestion, merely, and by one who was a perfect stranger to Vespucci; but it promptly "took," for the word America was euphonious, it seemed applicable, and, moreover, it was to be applied only to that quarter in the southern hemisphere which had been revealed by Amerigo Vespucci. It was a suggestion innocently made, without any sort of communication from Amerigo himself, intended to influence the opinion of contemporaries or the verdict of posterity.