Christopher Columbus Part 6

When the two vessels became separated in the storm off the Azores, he concluded just what the Admiral concluded--that the other ship had gone down. He considered it a miracle that even one of those mere sc.r.a.ps of wood, lashed about in a furious sea, should have stayed afloat; but both of them,--no! two miracles could never happen in one night!

And so when he scanned the horizon next morning and saw no _Nina_, and when he kept peering all that day through the storm and the little _Nina_ never came in sight, a mean idea made its way into Captain Pinzon's brain; and it grew and grew until it became a definite, well- arranged plan.

"The Admiral has gone down with all aboard," he reasoned to himself.

"Now, if my ship ever reaches Spain, why shouldn't I say that when Columbus failed to find land seven hundred leagues west of the Canaries, where he expected to find it, I persuaded him to accompany me still farther, and led him to c.i.p.ango."

Martin kept nursing this plan of robbing the dead Admiral of glory, until one morning he found himself off the Spanish coast just north of the Portuguese border. Into the little port of Bayona he put, and wrote a letter, and hired a courier to deliver it; that done, he sailed south along Portugal for Palos, probably pa.s.sing the mouth of the Tagus only a few hours after Columbus, bound for the same port, had turned out into the Atlantic. Martin Pinzon may thank his luck that the Nina started home before him. Imagine his utter shame and confusion had _he_ been the first to enter Palos with his perverted news!

As it was, things were bad enough. He heard the Palos bells ringing, and saw the people thronging along the sh.o.r.e to look at the wonderful little boat that had traveled in such far waters; his heart sank. The Admiral was home, and he, Martin Pinzon, _he_ had sent from Bayona to their Majesties a letter in which were certain false statements. No wonder he sneaked off of his ship in the dusk and wrapped his cape high around his face and hurried to his house. No wonder he felt no happiness in seeing his good wife again, and could only groan and groan.

Martin went to bed--his spirits were very low, and the stormy pa.s.sage had racked his old body as well; so he lay down; and the next day he could not get up, nor the next; and when, in due time, a royal letter came, thanking him for the aid he had given Columbus, but reproaching him for statements he had made which did not agree with those of the Admiral concerning the voyage, then Martin never wanted to get up again; he had himself carried to La Rabida, where he died in a few days, the good friars comforting him. So no more of Martin Alonzo Pinzon, whose end was inglorious, but whose courage and enterprise were later remembered gratefully by Spain; for Charles V., Queen Isabella's grandson, made public acknowledgment of Pinzon's great services in discovering the New World.

And now to pleasanter things. What has the Admiral been doing since the Palos bells pealed out their joyous welcome to him? First, of course, he greeted the good Friar Juan Perez. And next he dispatched another letter to court announcing his discovery. In fact, he sent several letters; for, as we know, he was an energetic letter-writer; one to their Majesties, one to Luis de Santangel, King Ferdinand's treasurer, who had urged the queen to help him, and one to another friend at court. Here is the beginning of the Santangel letter:--

Senor:

As I know you will have pleasure in the great success which Our Lord hath given me in my voyage, I write you this by which you shall know that in thirty-three days I pa.s.sed over to the Indies where I found very many islands peopled with inhabitants beyond number.

"I pa.s.sed over to the Indies." says the letter. The writer, we see, has decided to give his islands the vague general name that Europe applied to all unknown, distant lands--the Indies. Christopher was always ready to take a chance. If, as he had probably begun to hope, the western path might ultimately lead to India, why not at once adopt that important name?

His letters sent off to court by fast courier, the Admiral himself said good-by to Friar Juan and leisurely followed them. Ferdinand and Isabella, at this time, happened to be in the remotest possible point from Palos, in Barcelona, the great seaport of northeastern Spain. It was a long, long land journey for a seaman to make, but Christopher Columbus did not mind, for every step of it was glory and triumph. He who had once wandered over this same land from city to city, obscure, suspected of being either a visionary or an adventurer, had returned as a great personage, an Admiral of Spain, a Viceroy, a Governor; and, best of all, a practical discoverer instead of a mere dreamer. Every town he pa.s.sed through acclaimed him a most wonderful man.

Besides, he had brought them proofs of his discovery--those six strange people called "Indians"; these, along with an iguana and some red flamingoes, parrots, and unfamiliar plants, were exhibited in every town, and every town gaped in wonder, and crowded close to get a view of the Admiral and his _Indios_, and to whisper in awed tones, "and there is much gold, too, but he is not showing that!"

All this was very gratifying to the Admiral; but even more so was his reception when he arrived finally at Barcelona. Here he was met at the city gates by a brilliant company of _caballeros_, or Spanish n.o.bility, who escorted him and his extraordinary procession through the streets of the quaint old town. We may be sure that the authorities made the most of what the discoverer had brought back; the Indians were ordered to decorate themselves with every kind of color and every kind of feather. The tropical plants were borne aloft, and it was rumored that merely to touch them would heal any sort of malady.

Most imposing of all, there was shown a table on which was every golden bracelet and ornament that had been collected. To be sure, these were not numerous, but everybody hinted to everybody else that they were but a few articles out of Columbus's well-filled treasure-ship. The discoverer himself, richly clad, mounted on a fine horse, and surrounded by gorgeously accoutered _caballeros_, brought up the rear of this unique procession. What shouting as he pa.s.sed! and later what reverent thanksgiving! Barcelona was no insignificant little port like Palos, to be stupefied at the wonder of it; Barcelona was one of the richest and most prosperous seaports of Europe, and could look upon the discovery intelligently; and precisely because she herself had learned the lesson that trade meant wealth, she rejoiced that this wonderful new avenue of commerce had been opened for Spain.

The display over, the king and queen invited Columbus to tell his story.

Now had arrived the most critical moment since his return; but our Admiral, it is to be regretted, did not realize it, else he would have been more guarded in what he said. He should have told a straightforward tale of what he had done, without one word of exaggeration; but Christopher had a fervid Italian imagination and could never resist exaggerating. So, instead of dwelling on the one stupendous, thrilling fact that he had sailed three thousand miles into the fearsome west and discovered new lands; instead of making them feel that he was great because of what he _had_ done, and letting it go at that, the foolish man filled his narrative with absurd promises of miracles he would perform in the future. But none of it did seem absurd to him! He had persuaded himself, by this time, that west of his poor, uncivilized islands lay richer countries; and so he did not hesitate to a.s.sure the sovereigns that he had discovered a land of enormous wealth, and that if they would equip another expedition, he stood ready to promise them any quant.i.ty of gold, drugs, and cotton, as well as legions of people to be converted to Christianity.

Indeed, he went much further, and made a solemn vow that he, from his own personal profits in the discovery, would furnish, within seven years, an army of four thousand horse and fifty thousand foot for the purpose of reclaiming the Holy Sepulchre! Imagine a man pledging this, just because he had gathered a few gold bracelets! And yet, as he stood there in all the glamour of the court, with a whole nation regarding him as a wonder, he was so carried away by the situation that he probably actually saw himself leading a triumphant crusade! As for the king and queen, so deeply affected were they that they fell on their knees then and there and poured forth their thanks to G.o.d.

The good Bartolome de las Casas (the priest who devoted his life to the Indians) was present and has described this memorable interview.

Columbus, he says, was very dignified and very impressive with his snow- white hair and rich garments. A modest smile flitted across his face "as if he enjoyed the state and glory in which he came." When he approached the monarchs, they arose to greet him as though he were the greatest hidalgo in the land; and when he dropped on his knee to kiss their hands, they bade him rise and seat himself in their presence. Surely this was a great day for the humble Genoese sailor. He was _Don_ Cristobal henceforth, with the right to select a n.o.ble coat of arms. For his sake his brothers Bartholomew and Diego (James) were to receive appointments, and his son Diego was to be brought to court and educated.

Then, after securing the welfare of these members of his family, Columbus wrote to his old father, the wool-comber in Genoa, and sent him some money.

All this shows his good heart toward his own people; for toward one not his own was he guilty of an ign.o.ble act. It was to that sailor Rodrigo, of the _Pinta_, who had been the first to sight land early on the morning of October 12. When Columbus was asked to whom the queen's promised reward of ten thousand maravedis should go, he replied, "To myself." Surely it could not have been because he wanted the money for its own sake; it did not equal twenty-five dollars, and he had already received a goodly sum on arriving in Barcelona; it must have been that he could not bear to share the glory with another, and so told himself that the light he saw bobbing up and down early that night was carried by a human being, and the human being must have been in a canoe, near the island. On the strength of this argument he claimed the money Rodrigo had expected to receive.

CHAPTER XIII

PREPARING FOR A SECOND VOYAGE

Once the story of the first voyage had been digested, all thoughts were turned toward preparations for the next. Indeed, while Columbus was still in Sevilla on his way to Barcelona he had received a letter from the monarchs asking him what they could do to help him accomplish a second voyage, and he had sent them a list of his needs in the way of men, ships, and supplies. This the royal officers now brought out and the sovereigns went over it carefully with their new Admiral.

Now began the test of Don Cristobal Colon, _not_ as an intrepid mariner, but as a business man cooperating with other business men in the colonizing, Christianizing, and commercializing of the new territories. In this matter he was to be a.s.sociated with the powerful Juan de Fonseca. This Bishop Fonseca was very keen and efficient, but worldly, and vindictive toward those who opposed him in any way. To keep his good will needed much tact. He was not long in deciding that the great navigator had neither tact nor business ability; so he snubbed him accordingly, and made his path a hard one.

Knowing, as we do, that to-day Spain possesses not an inch of territory in the New World she discovered and opened up, that other nations have reaped where she sowed, we are p.r.o.ne to conclude that it was all bad management on her part. But this is not entirely true. So far as colonizing could be managed from the home country, Spain faced her new responsibility with great energy. Immediately a sort of board of trade, or bureau of discovery, was organized, with the capable Bishop Fonseca at its head. This was called the Casa de Contratacion and its headquarters were at Sevilla; for Sevilla, though fifty miles up the Guadalquivir River, is practically a seaport. Cadiz was appointed the official harbor for vessels plying between Spain and the Indies. This meant the decline of proud Barcelona, but naturally a port nearer the Atlantic had to be chosen. Customhouses were established in Cadiz, and special licenses were issued to intending traders. Botanists were called upon to decide which Spanish fruits and vegetables might best be transplanted to the new islands; arrangements were made for shipping horses (which were lacking there), also sheep and cows.

Plans were soon drawn up for towns and cities--not mere log-cabin villages such as the later English and Dutch colonists were content with--and a handsome cathedral was to be begun in Haiti, and filled with paintings and carvings and other works of art. In fact, no material detail was overlooked to make the new settlements worthy of their mother country. Where the effort failed was in selecting the men to be sent out, not in the things sent. If only the proper individuals had been sent to Columbus's islands, all these other details might have taken care of themselves in the course of time.

The second expedition was to be on a very large scale. It had to be a.s.sembled quickly lest other nations, learning of the discovery, or the one nation that had already learned of it, might get there first; wherefore Fonseca and Columbus were authorized to buy, at their own price, any boat lying in any port of Andalusia that was suitable for the long journey; if its owner protested against the price named, they had authority to seize it. The same system applied to provisions and other equipment for the voyage--these must be given at the government's price, else the government, represented by Columbus and Fonseca, would seize them. Lastly, these two could compel any mariner to embark on the fleet, and could fix his wages, whether he wished to go or not.

The money for this second expedition came from a source which Spain has no reason to be proud of today, but which she had small reason to be ashamed of in the sixteenth century. It was the confiscated wealth of the Jews who, as enemies of Christianity, had been banished from the kingdom the year before. Columbus's "one eighth of the expense," which by the contract of Santa Fe he was bound to supply, he had no means of furnishing, since he had not yet reached lands rich enough to yield it.

It was at the end of May that Columbus left Barcelona, hoping soon to embark again for his "Indies." There was indeed every reason for haste, since King John of Portugal had lost no time in presenting his claims to Rome.

We have already mentioned the important part which prelates played in the affairs of their countries. Similarly, the Pope played an important part in international affairs; and that is why a Pope had made the Portuguese treaty of 1470, and why King John now sought its enforcement by the present Pope. But Ferdinand and Isabella also were hurrying messengers to Rome. The pontiff at this time happened to be not an Italian but a Spaniard, Alexander Borgia, born a subject of Ferdinand's own kingdom of Aragon. Ferdinand knew well how to judge this shrewd Aragonese character, and what arguments were most likely to appeal to it. He told the Spanish amba.s.sadors to say that Spain would immediately set to work to convert the vast new lands to Christianity; that the Spanish explorers would take great care not to intrude into Portugal's African Indies, which shows how confused geography still was in everybody's mind; and that, whatever the Pope's decision, Spain would defend her discoveries from any other claimant. This being made clear, the amba.s.sadors were to present Ferdinand and Isabella's supplication that a papal bull, or decree, might be issued, granting them all lands discovered in the past and future by their Admiral Don Cristobal Colon.

Ferdinand of Spain being now a much more powerful king than John of Portugal, the Pope granted all that Spain asked, but was careful not to admit that Columbus had discovered the real India; for the bull refers only to "insulae et terra firma remota et incognita" or "islands and a remote and unknown mainland."

Meanwhile, all sorts of intrigues were going on between the two monarchs. John had spies at Ferdinand's court to discover the negotiations with Rome, and others to find out how Columbus's preparations were getting along; Ferdinand also sent spies to Portugal.

These reported a Portuguese plan for seizing the western lands before Columbus could return to them. This came to nothing, however, through John's fear of the Pope; and well for Spain that John did fear the power of Rome, for it took Columbus so long to gather his second fleet that there would have been ample time for the Portuguese mariners to cross the Atlantic ahead of him.

The very measures that had been devised to help the second departure r.e.t.a.r.ded it. Shipowners and provision dealers, in spite of royal orders, fought for fair prices and would not sell; and as for a.s.sembling crews for the ships, the difficulty was _not_, as in the first expedition, in getting men to go, but in keeping them back. If only Columbus had not talked gold, gold, gold! If only he could have refrained from exaggerating, and had simply stated that he had found some wild islands whose people had not a glimmering of civilization and who possessed but few golden trinkets! Had he not deceived the people and himself, only those would have joined the expedition who had the true, fine, adventurous spirit; or those who, seeking a new home, wished to settle down in new territory and develop it; but instead, men thought only of the vast wealth to be easily picked up--they would not even have to dig for it! Thus the expedition attracted mainly men of doubtful character who wanted to become rich quickly. Others offered themselves who wanted nothing more than excitement and novelty; others had dark schemes of breaking away from all restraint, once they reached the new land, and carrying on any sort of robbery or traffic that might offer profit; while still others were priests who thought only of converting the heathen. If ever men engaged upon an undertaking that required endurance, hard work, sound common sense, and a practical knowledge of how to tackle any task that might present itself, this was the occasion.

Yet the men who came forward lacked exactly these indispensable qualities.

No doubt Columbus and Fonseca picked the best of them; but the misfortune was that Columbus, who should have known what the business ahead of them required, did not know how to judge men; and the shrewd archbishop, who _did_ know how to judge men, had no idea what the occasion was going to demand of them; and thus they chose men for the second trip to the new lands who were utterly unsuitable.

Nearly all the two thousand who applied for permission to sail were personally interviewed by the Admiral, which must have taken much time; besides, he was busy buying wheat and flour, hard biscuit, salt pork and fish, cheese, peas, beans, lentils, wine, oil, and vinegar, as well as honey, almonds, and raisins for Don Cristobal's own table. It was just about the same food that a sailing vessel would carry to-day, with the exception of tea and coffee; for Portugal had not then discovered the lands from which these two beverages were to be introduced into Europe.

All these preparations were watched by two eager-faced boys who no doubt often said to each other, "I hope father will think us old enough to go with him on his next voyage!" For the Admiral had brought little Diego and Fernando along to Sevilla and Cadiz, so that he might see them every day before the long separation.

Finally, on September 25, 1493, all was ready and the anchors were hoisted. How different it was from that first fearful sailing out of Palos in 1492. This time the fleet was magnificent; seventeen vessels, all newly calked and painted; about fifteen hundred men, all happy and hopeful; and on sh.o.r.e, instead of a populace wringing its hands in dismay, a populace cheering and making music and flying banners, and actually envying the lucky ones who were starting off to the wonderful new lands where they could pick up gold!

CHAPTER XIV

FINDING NEW ISLANDS

With the departure of this second expedition for the "western lands"

Columbus's brief season of glory ended. Neither home-comings nor departures would ever be the same for him again; for behind him he left a few jealous enemies, potent to do him harm, and with him he took men of such unstable character that more enmity was sure to spring up. These last he held with a firm hand as long as the voyage lasted; Christopher could always control men at sea, but on land it was another matter. Even though _he_ might have clear notions of the difficulty of planting a colony in new territory, how would these adventurers, and these high- born young gentlemen who had never worked, and these hundred wretched stowaways who, after Columbus had refused to take them, had hidden in the vessels until well out to sea--how would all these behave when it was time to fell trees, build houses, dig ditches, and cut roads? And then again, good Admiral, why did you make the great mistake of bringing no women colonists with you? How could men found homes and work when there were no wives and little ones to be housed and fed?

Of the better sort who accompanied this second expedition there were a few, but only a few, solid, reliable individuals whose society must have been a comfort to the Admiral; among them, the faithful Juan de la Cosa, the Palos pilot; James Columbus, or as the Spaniards called him, Diego Colon, faithful to his celebrated brother, but unfortunately somewhat stupid; Antonio de las Casas, father of the young priest who later became the champion of the Indians and who wrote Columbus's biography; Juan Ponce de Leon, an intrepid aristocrat who was destined to discover Florida; and Doctor Chanca, a physician and botanist who was to write an account of the vegetables and fruits of the western lands. These vegetables included the "good tasting roots either boiled or baked"

which we know as potatoes. Most daring of all the company was a young n.o.bleman named Alonzo de Ojeda. Alonzo was a real adventurer, willing to face any danger or hazard.

Columbus, on leaving Spain, again headed for the Canaries, this time for the purpose of taking on sheep, goats, swine, and other domestic animals to stock the new lands; then off again for the real business of crossing the Atlantic. Gold being the thought uppermost in every mind--even in the mind of the Admiral--the rudders were set southwest for the Caribbean Islands.

These, the natives of Haiti had told him, were full of gold; at least, that is how Columbus interpreted the signs the Haitians made when he asked for gold; and so, instead of hurrying to cheer up those forty men he left at La Navidad, he steered to a point considerably south of Haiti and reached the Caribbeans precisely; which, it will be seen, was a far greater test of nautical skill than merely to sail anywhere into the west, as he had done on the first voyage.

The sea nearly all the way across was deliciously smooth and the trade wind soft and steady; only once was there bad weather; very bad while it lasted and very terrifying to those who had never before been at sea; but it happened that, during the storm, the electric phenomenon known as the Light of St. Elmo was seen over the rigging of the _Mari-ga- lan'te_, the Admiral's ship, and all that horde of superst.i.tious men were rea.s.sured and considered it a sign that the expedition was divine protection.