"Given at Madrid, the twenty-first of May 1500.
"I the King. I the Queen."
"By command of their majesties. Mich. Perez de Almazan."
On seeing the letter of their Catholic majesties, the admiral came
immediately to St Domingo to Bovadilla, at the beginning of October 1500.
And Bovadilla being eager to assume the government, without any delay or
legal information, immediately sent the admiral and his brother James as
prisoners in irons on board ship under a strong guard, forbidding all
persons under severe penalties to hold any intercourse with them by word
or letter. After this, by Abington law[6], he drew up examinations
against them, admitting their enemies the rebels as witnesses in the
process, and publickly favouring all who came forwards to speak evil of
them. These gave in such villanous and incoherent depositions, that he
must have been blind indeed who did not plainly perceive their falsehood
and malice. For this reason, their Catholic majesties would not admit of
the truth of the charges, and afterwards cleared the admiral, sore
repenting that they had sent such a man as Bovadilla in that employment.
He ruined the island and squandered the royal revenues, that all men might
be his friends; saying that their majesties required no more than the
honour of the dominion, and that all the profits should belong to their
subjects.
