These are all the circumstances worthy of
notice which occurred during our first voyage.
[1] It is highly probable that the date is here falsified by error, or
rather purposely to give a pretext for having discovered the continent
of the New World before Columbus; for we are assured by Harris, II. 37,
that the real date of this voyage was 1499. Alonzo Hojeda and Americus
Vespucius were furnished by Fonseca, bishop of Burgos, with charts and
projects of discovery made by Columbus, whose honour and interest the
bishop was eager to destroy by this surreptitious invasion of his
rights as admiral and viceroy of the West Indies. - E.
[2] In the original, having the wind between south and south-west. It is
often impossible to ascertain, as here, from the equivocal language of
the original, whether the author intends to express the course of the
voyage or the direction of the wind. The course of the voyage from
Cadiz to the Cananaries, whither Americus was now bound, certainly was
towards the direction expressed in the text, and to this course the
wind indicated is adverse.
[3] In the original, per Ponentem, sumpta una Lebeccio quarta. Ponente
is the West in Italian, and Lebeccio the south-west; but it is
difficult to express in English nautical language the precise meaning
of the original, which is literally translated in the text. - E.
[4] The latitude and longitude of the text would indicate the eastern
coast of Yucutan, near the bay of Honduras; but from other
circumstances, it is probable the coast now visited by Americus was
that of Paria or the Spanish main, between the latitudes of 10 deg. and
12 deg. N. and perhaps twenty-five degrees less to the west than
expressed in the text. But the geographical notices in this work of
Americus are scanty and uncertain. - E.
[5] Praeterquam regiuncula illa anterior, quam verecundiore vocabulo
pectusculum imum vocamus.
[6] The author appears to mean here that they were entirely destitute of
religious belief. - E.
[7] The expression of the author seems here ambiguous. He probably means
towns or collections of huts as containing such large numbers; and it
is hard to say whether he meant to say that these eight populous
habitations had 10,000 each, or altogether. - E.
[8] The expression of the original serpens, here translated serpent, had
been better expressed, perhaps, by the fabulous term dragon.
The animal in question was probably the lacerto iguana, or it may
have been a young alligator. - E.
[9] This is a most singularly mistaken account of the situation of the
coast of Paria, now Cumana or the Spanish main; which, beginning on
the east at the island of Trinidad, about lat. 10 deg. N. joins Carthagena
in the west about the same latitude, and never reaches above 12 deg. N.
Were it not that the author immediately afterwards distinctly names
the coast of Paria, the latitude of the text would lead us to suppose
that he had been exploring the northern coast of Cuba. - E.
[10] Even supposing Americus to have coasted along the whole northern
shore of South America, from Trinidad to Costa-rica, the distance does
not exceed twenty-three degrees of longitude, and the coast of Paria
or Cumana is scarce 15 degrees. The number of leagues, therefore, in
the text is greatly exaggerated, unless we suppose them only to have
been Italian miles. - E.
[11] The relation of this voyage is so exceedingly vague that we have no
means of determining any of the places which were touched at. From the
resemblance of the name in the text to Haiti, or Aiti, this island may
possibly have been Hispaniola. - E.
[12] The author affects classical names for modern fire-arms, naming what
we have translated hand-guns balistae colubrinae. Cannon are
sometimes called tormenta bellica, and at other times machina
saxivoma - E.
SECTION II.
The Second Voyage of Americas Vespucius.
We set sail from Cadiz on our second voyage on the 11th of May 1499,
taking our course past the Cape Verds and Canaries for the island of
Ignis, where we took in a supply of wood and water: Whence continuing
our voyage with a south-west wind for nineteen days, we reached a certain
undiscovered land, which we believed to be the continent, over against
that which we had explored in our former voyage, and which is situated in
the torrid zone upon the southern side of the equator, and in 5 deg. of south
latitude[1], being 500 leagues from the before-mentioned islands, to the
south-west. In this country we found the days and nights to be equal on
the 27th of June, when the sun was in the tropic of cancer[2]. We found
this country inundated and pervaded by large rivers, having a very verdant
appearance, with large tall trees, but with no appearance of any
inhabitants. Having anchored our ships, we went to land with some of our
boats, but after a long search we found the whole land so covered with
water that we could not land anywhere, though we saw abundant indications
of a numerous population, after which we returned to the ships. Hoisting
our anchors, we sailed along shore with the wind at S.S.E. for above forty
leagues, frequently endeavouring to penetrate into the land, but in vain,
as the flux of the sea was so rapid from the S.E. to the N.W. that it was
impossible for the vessels to stem the current. In consideration of this
circumstance, we resolved to steer a course to the N.W. in the course of
which we came to a harbour, where we found a beautiful island, and an
excellent creek at the entrance.
