As He Could Not Get Sight Of The Place Where They Landed, As
The Hermitage To Which They Had Gone
Was covered by a point jutting out
into the sea, he removed the caravel right opposite the hermitage, where
he
Saw many people on the shore, some of whom went into his boat and put
off towards the caravel. Among these was the governor of the island, who,
when the boat was within speech of the caravel, stood up and demanded
security for coming on board; and though the admiral gave his word that he
should be safe, he would not venture to come on board. The admiral then
asked, why, since there was peace between the crowns of Spain and Portugal,
he had sent him fresh provisions, and a message inviting him on shore, and
yet had basely detained his men? adding, that he was ready to shew his
commission from the king and queen of Castile. The governor answered, that
he knew nothing of these sovereigns, of whom he did not stand in awe, and
whose commission he did not value, and that all he had done was by the
order of his own sovereign. After desiring his own men to bear witness of
these words, the admiral told him, if his boat and men were not
immediately restored, he would carry an hundred Portuguese prisoners into
Spain.
After this, the admiral brought his ship again to anchor, and as the wind
blew fresh, he caused all the empty casks to be filled with sea water to
ballast the vessel. The wind continued to increase, and as there was no
safe anchorage, he thought it safer to be out at sea, and therefore made
sail for the island of St Michael. During the whole night it blew a heavy
gale; and not being able to make the island of St Michael, the admiral
returned to St Marys. Soon afterwards a boat came off with two priests, a
notary, and five sailors; and, having received assurance of safety, the
notary and priests came on board and examined the admirals commission.
They returned to the shore, and shortly after, the governor sent back the
boat and Spanish seamen; saying he would have given any thing to have
taken the admiral, whom he had been ordered to seize by the king of
Portugal. Having recovered his men, and the wind being now fair for Spain,
the admiral set sail on an easterly course. On Saturday the 2d of March a
new storm arose, so that the ship drove under bare poles till four o'clock
on Monday, without hope of escaping. At that time, it pleased GOD that our
mariners discovered the Cape of Cintra, usually called the Rock of Lisbon;
and to avoid the tempest, the admiral resolved to put into the harbour,
being unable to come to anchor at Cascaes. He gave GOD thanks for his
deliverance from danger, and all men wondered how he had escaped, having
never witnessed so violent a tempest.
[1] The actual difference of longitude, between Ferro in 17 deg. 45' 50", and
the eastern side of Guanahani in 75 deg. 40', both west, is 57 deg. 54' 11" or
almost 58 degrees; which at 17-1/2 Spanish leagues to the degree, the
computation previously established by our present author, would extend
to 1015 leagues. - E.
[2] Some error has crept into the text, easily corrected. Columbus took
his departure from Gomera on Thursday the 6th September, and landed on
Guanahani on Friday the 12th October, both 1492. The time, therefore,
which was employed in this first passage across the Atlantic, not
including the 12th, because the land was observed in the night before,
was exactly 36 days. Had Columbus held a direct course west from
Gomera, in latitude 27 deg. 47' N. he would have fallen in with one of the
desert sandy islands on the coast of Florida, near a place now called
Hummock, or might have been wrecked on the Montanilla reef, at the
north end of the Bahama banks: his deflection therefore, to the S.W.
on the 7th October, was fortunate for the success of his great
expedition. - E.
[3] How infinitely better it had been for Columbus, and his precursors the
Portuguese, to have retained the native names, where these could be
learnt; or, otherwise, to have imposed single significant new names
like the Norwegian navigators of the ninth century, instead of these
clumsy long winded superstitious appellations. This island of St
Mary of the Conception seems to have been what is now called
Long-island, S.S.E. from St Salvador or Guanahani, now Cat-island. - E.
[4] A small Portuguese coin worth less than twopence. - Churchill.
[5] This sentence is quite inexplicable, and is assuredly erroneously
translated. It is possible the original meant, that Columbus was
misled by the opinion of Paul, to disregard the indications of the
Indians; and instead of sailing directly west, which would have led
him to the coast of Mexico, induced him to coast eastwards along Cuba,
which brought him to Hispaniola, always searching for Cipango or
Japan. - E.
[6] The author seems here not clear or well informed, as Haiti was the
real Indian name of the island now called Hispaniola or St Domingo. - E.
[7] In the original, the current is said to have made "so loud a noise
that it might have been heard a league off." This circumstance is
quite inconsistent with the careless security of the whole crew; as it
must necessarily have indicated their approach to rocks or shoals; and
is therefore omitted in the text. - E.
SECTION XI.
From the arrival of Columbus at Lisbon, till the commencement of his
second voyage to the New World.
The king of Portugal happened then to be at Valparayso, to which place
the admiral sent a letter informing the king of his arrival, and that he
had orders from their Catholic majesties to put into any of the Portuguese
harbours in case of need, that he might procure what he was in want of,
and requested permission to wait upon the king, to satisfy him that he had
not come from Guinea, but from the Indies.
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