The Article Here Indicated Was
Probably One Of The Many Species, Or Varieties Of The Capsicum; Called
Guinea Pepper, Cayenne Pepper, Bird Pepper, And Various Other Names.
- E.
[16] In the original this is called the country of Prester or Presbyter
John.
We have formerly, in the _First_ Part of this work, had occasion
to notice the strange idea of a Christian prince and priest, who was
supposed to have ruled among the pagan nations of eastern Tartary.
Driven from this false notion, by a more thorough knowledge of Asia,
the European nations fondly transferred the title of Prester John to
the half Christian prince or Negus of the semi-barbarous Abyssinians.
- E.
SECTION III.
_Summary of Discoveries made by the Spaniards and Portuguese, from the Era
of Columbus, in 1492, to the year 1555_.
In the year 1492, when Don Ferdinand king of Castile[1] was engaged in
the siege of Granada, he sent _one_ Christopher Columbus, a Genoese, with
three ships, for the discovery of Nova Spagna. This Columbus had first
offered his service lot a western discovery to John king of Portugal, who
refused to employ him. Being sufficiently furnished for his enterprize,
Columbus set out from the town of Palos on the third of August 1492,
having with him, as captains and pilots, Martin Alionzo Pinzon, Francis
Martinez Pinzori, Vincent Yannes Pinzon, and Bartholomew Columbus his
brother[2] with an hundred and twenty other persons in the three ships.
Some persons affirm, that this was the first voyage which was ever
conducted by the observation of latitudes[3]. They took the Canaries in
their way, whence shaping their course for Cipango, or towards Japan,
they were much amazed to find the sea all full of weeds, and with great
fear arrived at the Antilles on the tenth day of October; the first
island they descried, called Guanahany by the natives, they named San
Salvador. This island is in 25 deg. N. latitude. After that they found many
islands, which they called the Princes. The savages of those parts call
these islands by the name of Lucaios, having indeed several names for
them, and they stand on the north side of the line, almost under the
tropic of Cancer. The island of St James, or Jamaica, lies between the
16th and 17th degrees of northern latitude[4]. Thence they went to the
island which the natives call Cuba, named Ferdinando by the Spaniards,
after the king, which is in 22 degrees; from whence they were conducted
by the Indians to another island called Hayti, named Isabella by the
Spaniards, in honour of the queen of Castile, and afterwards Hispaniola,
or Little Spain.
In that island the admirals ship was wrecked, and Columbus caused a fort
to be constructed of her timbers and planks, in which he left Roderigo de
Arana with a garrison of thirty-eight men, to learn the language and
customs of the country. Columbus then returned to Spain, carrying with
him samples of gold and pearls, and other productions of the country,
with ten Indians, six of whom died on the voyage; the rest were brought
to Spain and baptized. On their way home, Columbus touched at the Acores;
and on the fourth of March 1493, entered the port of Lisbon. This
discovery gave much discontent to the king of Portugal. Immediately on
his arrival, Columbus went into Castile, where he informed the king of
his discoveries and of the dissatisfaction of the king of Portugal. On
this he and his queen Isabella sent word of the recent discovery to Pope
Alexander VI, at which information he and all the Italians were much
astonished, as they marvelled that there should be any land besides what
had been known to the Romans. Alexander made a grant of all these
countries to the crowns of Castile and Leon, under condition that they
should labour to extirpate idolatry, and establish the holy faith of
Christ among the natives.
On the report of this discovery, so universal a desire of travelling
arose among the Spaniards, that they were ready as it were to leap into
the sea, that they might swim if possible to the newly discovered islands.
After receiving the authority of the Pope, King Ferdinando sent Columbus
a second time to the newly-discovered country, of which he made him
admiral, giving him many other honours, and a particular coat of arms,
having this motto,
For Castile and for Leon
A new world discovered Colon[A].
[A] Gomara, I. 1. c. 15.
Columbus set out on his second voyage to the Antilles on the 25th October
1493, taking his course from Cadiz, with seventeen ships and fifteen
hundred men, accompanied by his brothers Bartholomew and Diego Columbus,
with many other knights, gentlemen of the law, and priests; having
chalices, crosses, and other rich religious ornaments, and with great
power and dignity from the Pope. The tenth day after commencing their
voyage, they reached the Canaries; and from thence, in twenty-five or
thirty days, they sailed to the Antilles, the first island they saw being
in 14 deg. N. due west from Cape de Verd in Africa. They called this island
Deseada[5], or the _desired island_, which is said to be 800 leagues from
the Canaries. They afterwards discovered many more islands, which they
called the Virgins, but which are named the Caribbee islands by the
natives, from a nation of that name, who are bold warriors, and excellent
marksmen with bows and arrows. They poison their arrows with the juice of
a certain herb, and whoever is wounded with these is sure to die, biting
himself like a mad dog. From thence they went to the principal island in
these parts, named Boriquen by the natives, and St John by the Spaniards;
and thence to Hispaniola, or Isabella, where they found all the men dead
whom they had left on returning from the former voyage. Columbus left
most of his people here to establish a colony, under the command of his
brothers; and went with two ships to continue his discovery of Cuba and
Jamaica.
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