His Power In The Government Was No Way Greater Than That Which
Had Been Confided To His Predecessor, And Was
Soon afterwards considerably
circumscribed by the establishment of a new court at St Domingo, under the
title of the Royal
Audience, to which appeals were allowed from all parts
of the Spanish dominions in the New World.
While Ponce de Leon was occupied in the discovery of Porto Rico, Don James
Columbus came out to assume the government of Hispaniola in the room of
Obando, bringing with him from Spain a governor for the island of Porto
Rico. But Ponce de Leon, who had made the first settlement on that island,
disputed this new appointment; on which the young admiral set them both
aside, and appointed one Michael Cerron to the government, with Michael
Diaz as his lieutenant. De Leon, however, procured a new commission from
Spain, through the interest of his friend Obando with which he went over
to Porto Rico, and soon found pretext for a quarrel with Cerron and Diaz,
both of whom he sent prisoners to Spain. He now proceeded to make a
conquest of the island, which he found more difficult than he expected,
and had much ado to force the Indians to submit. This he at length
effected, reducing the natives to slavery, and employing them in the mines
till they were quite worn out, since which gold has likewise failed, which
many Spanish writers have considered as a judgment of God for that
barbarous proceeding, more especially as the same has happened in other
parts of their dominions.
SECTION IV.
Settlement of a Pearl-Fishery at the Island of Cubagua.
The court of Spain was at this time very solicitous to turn the
settlements already made in the New World to advantage, and was therefore
easily led into various projects which were formed for promoting the royal
revenue from that quarter. Among other projects, was one which recommended
the colonization of the island of Cabagua, or of Pearls, near Margarita,
on purpose to superintend the pearl-fishery there, and the young admiral
was ordered to carry that into execution. The Spanish inhabitants of
Hispaniola derived great advantage from this establishment, in which they
found the natives of the Lucayo or Bahama islands exceedingly useful, as
they were amazingly expert swimmers and divers, insomuch that slaves of
that nation became very dear, some selling for 150 ducats each. But the
Spaniards both defrauded the crown of the fifth part of the pearls, and
abused and destroyed the Lucayans, so that the fishery fell much off. The
island of Cubagua, which is rather more than 300 leagues from Hispaniola,
nearly in latitude 10 deg. N. is about three leagues in circumference,
entirely flat, and without water, having a dry barren soil impregnated
with saltpetre, and only producing a few guiacum trees and shrubs. The
soil does not even grow grass, and there are no birds to be seen, except
those kinds which frequent the sea.
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