The Letters of Amerigo Vespucci Part 8

_Sabiduria_ " _Sapienza_.

_Corregemo_ " _Racconciamo_.

_Difesono_ " _Impedirono_.

_Uorata in un rio_. " _Incagliata in un fiume_.

_Dispopolato_ " _Disabitato_.

_d.a.m.nato_ " _Damaggiato_.]

[Footnote 35: He calls a bay _ensenada_ instead of _seno_, _surgemo_ for _gettamo_ (_l'ancora_), _calefatar_ and _brear_ instead of _spalmare_ and _impeciare_, _aquacero_ for _rovescio_, _serrazon_ for _oscurezza_, _tormento_ for _tempesta_, _palo_ for _legno_, _riscatto_ for _comprato_.

He uses the Spanish phrase _doblare un cabo_, and the Portuguese word _fateixa_ for a boat's anchor.]

[Footnote 36: See p. 11.]

[Footnote 37: See pp. 16, 17.]

[Footnote 38: See p. 39.]

[Footnote 39: See p. 55.]

[Footnote 40: In his second voyage he calls the cannibal tribe _Cambali_.

Columbus, in the Journal of his first voyage, frequently mentions the Caribas or Canibas.]

[Footnote 41: See p. 11.]

[Footnote 42: The name of Columbus is not once mentioned in the _Cosmographiae Introductio_, containing the Latin version of Vespucci. It occurs only once in the letter of Vespucci, where, in his second voyage, he mentions his arrival at Antiglia, formerly discovered by Columbus.]

[Footnote 43: See also _Navarrete_, iii, 474. Peter Martyr says, "in the year before the expedition of Nicuesa and Hojeda", which was in 1509.]

[Footnote 44: Ledesma was aged 37 in March 1513. (_Nav._, iii, 539.)]

[Footnote 45: A study of Harrisse, and reference to the original authorities (after writing the note on the Pinzon and Solis voyage at p.

284 of my _Life of Columbus_), has led me to make several corrections, especially as regards the date of 1506 given by Herrera. The true date of the voyage was 1508.]

[Footnote 46: _Dec. II._ Lib. vii, pp. 85-6, of Eden's translation (Willes' ed.).]

[Footnote 47: "That is, the Prince of Chiauaccha, for they call princes or kings _Chiaconus_."]

[Footnote 48: "The first year before the departing of the captains Nicuesa and Fogeda" (Hojeda), which was in 1509.]

[Footnote 49: Names on the coast-line from Paria to Cabo de la Vela:--

J. DE LA COSA. CANTINO MAP.

m. de S. eufemia. Tamarique.

soto de uerbos. ilha Rigua.

C. de la Vela. boacoya.

aguada.

lago venecuela. golfo del unficismo.

almedabra.

_m. alto._ _montansis albissima._ C. de espera.

_y. de Brasil._ _ylha do Brasil._ _y. de gigantes._ _ylha do Giganta._ C. de la mota. Costa de gente brava.

p. flechado.

aldea de turma.

costa pareja. Rio de fonseca.

m. tajado.

3 echeo. Cabo de las Perlas.

Campina. Ilha de la Rapossa.

ylhas de Sana.

_G. de las Perla._ _Golfo de las Perlas._ Margaleda. terra de paria.

_tres hr._ _I tres testigos._ _boca del drago._ _boca del drago._

Six of the names are the same, all the rest are different. Juan de la Cosa gives twenty-two, the Cantino map fifteen names.]

[Footnote 50: Vespucci calls Espanola by the name used in Portugal--Antilla. On the Cantino map the West Indian Islands are called Antillas.]

[Footnote 51: _Dec. II_, Lib. x (p. 92 in Eden's translation):--

"From the tyme, therefore, that I fyrste determined to obeye theyr requestes who wylled me fyrst in your name to wryte these thinges in the Latine tongue, I did my endevour that al things myght come foorth with due tryal and experience; whereupon I repayred to the Bishop of Burgos, beyng the cheafe refuge of this navigation. As we were therefore secretely togeather in one chamber, we had many instruments parteining to these affaires, as globes, and many of those mappes which are commonly called the shipmans cardes, or cardes of the sea. Of the which, one was drawen by the Portugales, wherunto Americus Vesputius is said to have put his hande, beyng a man most experte in this facultie, and a Florentine borne, who also under the stipende of the Portugales had sayled towarde the South pole many degrees beyonde the Equinoctial. In this carde we founde the first front of this lande to be broder then the kynges of Uraba had persuaded our men of theyr mountaynes."]

[Footnote 52: The Viscount Santarem, princ.i.p.al archivist of Portugal in 1826, searched all the original correspondence of King Emanuel from 1495 to 1503 inclusive, and many thousands of doc.u.ments of that time in the Torre de Tombo at Lisbon, and at Paris, but never once came across the name of Vespucci.]

[Footnote 53: Beseneque (?).]

[Footnote 54: A Portuguese pilot, who wrote an account of the voyage of Pedro Alvarez Cabral to India, says that on their return, on reaching the land near Cape Verde, called Beseneque, they met three Portuguese ships sent to discover the new land found by Cabral on the voyage out (_Coleccion de Noticias, etc._, Lisboa, 1812, cap. 21). It is very suspicious that Vespucci should not mention this meeting if he was on board one of these three ships. (_Nav._, iii, 310.)]

[Footnote 55: Varnhagen supposes this land to be South Georgia, in 54 S., discovered by Captain Cook in 1776. Navarrete suggested Tristan d'Acunha.]

[Footnote 56: Goes mentions an expedition to Brazil commanded by Gonzalo Coelho, which sailed from Lisbon on June 10th, 1503, and consisted of six ships. But Coelho returned safely with four out of his six ships, while Vespucci a.s.serts that the commander perished, in the expedition in which he served.]

[Footnote 57: Latin edition: "To the most ill.u.s.trious Rene, King of Jerusalem and Sicily, Duke of Lorraine and Bar."]

[Footnote 58: Supposed to be Pietro Soderini, Gonfaloniere of the Republic of Florence in 1504, who had studied with Vespucci. See _Bandini_, p. xxv.]

[Footnote 59: Fernando is never called King of Castille in any doc.u.ment of the period.]

[Footnote 60: The Latin version has 20th.]

[Footnote 61: _Inferno_, Canto 26, l. 116:

"Non vogliate negar l' esperienza Diretro al Sol, del mondo senza gente."]

[Footnote 62: The third climate of Hipparchus was between the parallels of Syene and Alexandria.]

[Footnote 63: The distance shows that, like Columbus, he reckons four miles to a league.]

[Footnote 64: "Ponente figliando una quarta di libeccio." Varnhagen makes this 0-1/4 S. O. A course W.S.W. for 1,000 leagues would have taken him to the Gulf of Paria, which is a little over 900 leagues W.S.W. from Grand Canary. He would not have reached land in 16[68] N.

and 70 W. even if he had steered the right course, and there had been no intervening land, by going 1,000 leagues. Such a distance would have left him 930 miles short of that position.]

[Footnote 65: Twenty-seven days (Latin version).]