FOURTH VOYAGE. THE INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN FOR THEVOYAGE--HE IS TO GO TO THE MAINLAND OF THE INDIES--ASHORT PASSAGE--OVANDO FORBIDS THE ENTRANCE OFCOLUMBUS INTO HARBOR--BOBADILLA'S SQUADRON ANDITS FATE--COLUMBUS SAILS WESTWARD1--DISCOVERSHONDURAS, AND COASTS ALONG ITS SHORES--THE SEARCHFOR GOLD--COLONY ATTEMPTED AND ABANDONED--THEVESSELS BECOME UNSEAWORTHY--REFUGE AT JAMAICA-MUTINY LED BY THE BROTHERS PORRAS--MESSAGES TOSAN DOMINGO--THE ECLIPSE--ARRIVAL OF RELIEF-COLUMBUS RETURNS TO SAN DOMINGO, AND TO SPAIN.
It seems a pity now that, after his third voyage, Columbus did notremain in Spain and enjoy, as an old man could, the honors which he hadearned and the respect which now waited upon him. Had this been so, theworld would have been spared the mortification4 which attends the thoughtthat the old man to whom it owes so much suffered almost everything inone last effort, failed in that effort, and died with the mortification offailure. But it is to be remembered that Columbus was not a man tocultivate the love of leisure. He had no love of leisure to cultivate. His lifehad been an active one. He had attempted the solution of a certain problemwhich he had not solved, and every day of leisure, even every occasion ofeffort and every word of flattery, must have quickened in him new wishesto take the prize which seemed so near, and to achieve the possibilitywhich had thus far eluded5 him.
From time to time, therefore, he had addressed new memorials to thesovereigns proposing a new expedition; and at last, by an instructionwhich is dated on the fourteenth of March, in the year 1502, a fourthvoyage was set on foot at the charge of the king and queen,--an instructionnot to stop at Hispaniola, but, for the saving of time, to pass by that island.
This is a graceful6 way of intimating to him that he is not to mix himself upwith the rights and wrongs of the new settlement.
The letter goes on to say, that the sovereigns have communicated with the King of Portugal, and that they have explained to him that Columbus ispressing his discoveries at the west. and will not interfere7 with those of thePortuguese in the east. He is instructed to regard the Portuguese8 explorersas his friends, and to make no quarrel with them. He is instructed to takewith him his sons, Fernando and Diego. This is probably at his request.
The prime object of the instruction is still to strike the mainland of theIndies. All the instructions are, "You will make a direct voyage, if theweather does not prevent you, for discovering the islands and the mainlandof the Indies in that part which belongs to us." He is to take possession ofthese islands and of this mainland, and to inform the sovereigns in regardto his discoveries, and the experience of former voyages has taught themthat great care must be taken to avoid private speculation9 in "gold, silver,pearls, precious stones, spices and other things of different quality." Forthis purpose special instructions are given.
Of this voyage we have Columbus's own official account.
There were four vessels3, three of which were rated as caravels. Thefourth was very small. The chief vessel2 was commanded by Diego Tristan;the second, the Santiago, by Francisco de Porras; the third, the Viscaina(Biscayan), by Bartholomew de Fiesco; and the little Gallician by Pedrode Torreros. None of these vessels, as the reader will see, was ever toreturn to Spain. From de Porras and his brother, Columbus and theexpedition were to receive disastrous11 blows.
It must be observed that he is once more in his proper position of adiscoverer. He has no government or other charge of colonies entrusted12 tohim. His brother Bartholomew and his youngest son Fernando, sail withhim.
The little squadron sailed from the bay of Cadiz on the eleventh ofMay, 1502. They touched at Sicilla,--a little port on the coast of Morocco,-to relieve its people, a Portuguese garrison13, who had been besieged14 by theMoors. But finding them out of danger, Columbus went at once to theGrand Canary island, and had a favorable passage.
From the Grand Canary to the island which he calls "the first island ofthe Indies," and which he named Martinino, his voyage was onlyseventeen days long. This island was either the St. Lucia or the Martinique of today. Hence he passed to Dominica, and thence crossed to SanDomingo, to make repairs, as he said. For, as has been said, he had beenespecially ordered not to interfere in the affairs of the settlement.
He did not disobey his orders. He says distinctly that he intended topass along the southern shore of San Domingo, and thence take adeparture for the continent. But he says, that his principal vessel sailedvery ill--could not carry much canvas, and delayed the rest of the squadron.
This weakness must have increased after the voyage across the ocean. Forthis reason he hoped to exchange it for another ship at San Domingo.
But he did not enter the harbor. He sent a letter to Ovando, now thegovernor, and asked his permission. He added, to the request he made, astatement that a tempest was at hand which he did not like to meet in theoffing. Ovando, however, refused any permission to enter. He was, in fact,just dispatching a fleet to Spain, with Bobadilla, Columbus's old enemy,whom Ovando had replaced in his turn.
Columbus, in an eager wish to be of use, by a returning messengerbegged Ovando to delay this fleet till the gale15 had passed. But the seamenridiculed him and his gale, and begged Ovando to send the fleet home.
He did so. Bobadilla and his fleet put to sea. In ten days a West Indiahurricane struck them. The ship on which Columbus's enemies, Bobadillaand Roldan, sailed, was sunk with them and the gold accumulated foryears. Of the whole fleet, only one vessel, called the weakest of all,reached Spain. This ship carried four thousand pieces of gold, which werethe property of the Admiral. Columbus's own little squadron, meanwhile-thanks probably to the seamanship of himself and his brother--weatheredthe storm, and he found refuge in the harbor which he had himself named"the beautiful," El Hermoso, in the western part of San Domingo.
Another storm delayed him at a port which he called Port Brasil. Theword Brasil was the name which the Spaniards gave to the red log-wood,so valuable in dyeing, and various places received that name, where thiswood was found. The name is derived18 from "Brasas,"--coals,--in allusion,probably, to the bright red color of the dye.
Sailing from this place, on Saturday, the sixteenth of June, they madesight of the island of Jamaica, but he pressed on without making any examination of the country, for four days sailing west and south-west. Hethen changed his course, and sailed for two days to the northwest andagain two days to the north.
On Sunday, the twenty fourth of July, they saw land. This was the keynow known as Cuyago, and they were at last close upon the mainland.
After exploring this island they sailed again on Wednesday, the twenty-seventh, southwest and quarter southwest about ninety miles, and againthey saw land, which is supposed to be the island of Guanaja or Bonacca,near the coast of Honduras.
The Indians on this island had some gold and some pearls. They hadseen whites before. Columbus calls them men of good stature19. Sailingfrom this island, he struck the mainland near Truxillo, about ten leaguesfrom the island of Guanaja. He soon found the harbor, which we still knowas the harbor of Truxillo, and from this point Columbus began a carefulinvestigation of the coast.
He observed, what all navigators have since observed, the lack ofharbors. He passed along as far as the river now known as the Tinto, wherehe took possession in the name of the sovereigns, calling this river theRiver of Possession. He found the natives savage20, and the country of littleaccount for his purposes. Still passing southward, he passed what we callthe Mosquito Coast, to which he found the natives gave the name ofCariay.
These people were well disposed and willing to treat with them. Theyhad some cotton, they had some gold. They wore very little clothing, andthey painted their bodies, as most of the natives of the islands had done.
He saw what he thought to be pigs and large mountain cats.
Still passing southward, running into such bays or other harbors asthey found, he entered the "Admiral's Bay," in a country which had thename of Cerabaro, or Zerabora. Here an Indian brought a plate of gold andsome other pieces of gold, and Columbus was, encouraged in his hopes offinding more.
The natives told him that if he would keep on he would find anotherbay which they called Arburarno, which is supposed to be the LagunaChiriqui. They said the people, of that country, lived in the mountains.
Here Columbus noticed the fact,--one which has given to philologists21 oneof their central difficulties for four hundred years since,--that as he passedfrom one point to another of the American shores, the Indians did notunderstand each other's language. "Every ten or twenty leagues they didnot understand each other." In entering the river Veragua, the Indiansappeared armed with lances and arrows, some of them having gold also.
Here, also, the people did not live upon the shore, but two or three leaguesback in the interior, and they only came to the sea by their canoes upon therivers.
The next province was then called Cobraba, but Columbus made nolanding for want of a proper harbor. All his courses since he struck thecontinent had been in a southeasterly direction. That an expedition forwestward discovery should be sailing eastward22, seemed in itself acontradiction. What irritated the crews still more was, that the windseemed always against them.
From the second to the ninth of November, 1502, the little fleet lay atanchor in the spacious23 harbor, which he called Puerto Bello, "the beautifulharbor." It is still known by that name. A considerable Spanish city grewup there, which became well known to the world in the last century by theattack upon it by the English in the years 1739 and 1742.
The formation of the coast compelled them to pass eastward as theywent on. But the currents of the Gulf24 flow in the opposite direction. Herethere were steady winds from the east and the northeast. The ships werepierced by the teredo, which eats through thick timbers, and is sodestructive that the seamen16 of later times have learned to sheath the hullsof their vessels with copper25.
The seamen thought that they were under the malign26 influence of someadverse spell. And after a month Columbus gave way to theirremonstrances, and abandoned his search for a channel to India. He wasthe more ready to do this because he was satisfied that the land by whichhe lay was connected with the coast which other Spaniards had alreadydiscovered. He therefore sailed westward again, retracing27 his course toexplore the gold mines of Veragua.
But the winds could change as quickly as his purposes, and now for nearly a fortnight they had to fight a tropical tempest. At one moment theymet with a water-spout, which seemed to advance to them directly. Thesailors, despairing of human help, shouted passages from St. John, and totheir efficacy ascribed their escape. It was not until the seventeenth thatthey found themselves safely in harbor. He gave to the whole coast thename of "the coast of contrasts," to preserve the memory of hisdisappointments.
The natives proved friendly, as he had found them before; but they toldhim that he would find no more gold upon the coast; that the mines werein the country of the Veragua. It was, on the tenth day of January that, aftersome delay, Columbus entered again the river of that name.
The people told him where he should find the mines, and were allready to send guides with his own people to point them out. He gave tothis river, the name of the River of Belen, and to the port in which heanchored he gave the name of Santa Maria de Belen, or Bethlehem.
His men discovered the mines, so called, at a distance of eight leaguesfrom the port. The country between was difficult, being mountainous andcrossed by many streams. They were obliged to pass the river of Veraguathirty-nine times. The Indians themselves were dexterous28 in taking outgold. Columbus added to their number seventy-five men.
In one day's work, they obtained "two or three castellianos" withoutmuch difficulty. A castelliano was a gold coin of the time, and the meaningof the text is probably that each man obtained this amount. It was one ofthe "placers," such as have since proved so productive in different parts ofthe world.
Columbus satisfied himself that there was a much larger populationinland. He learned from the Indians that the cacique, as he always calls thechief of these tribes, was a most important monarch29 in that region. Hishouses were larger than others, built handsomely of wood, covered withpalm leaves.
The product of all the gold collected thus far is stated precisely30 in theofficial register. There were two hundred and twenty pieces of gold, largeand small. Altogether they weighed seventy-two ounces, seven-eighths ofan ounce and one grain. Besides these were twelve pieces, great and small, of an inferior grade of gold, which weighed fourteen ounces, three-eighthsof an ounce, and six tomienes, a tomiene weighing one-third part of ourdrachm. In round numbers then, we will say that the result in gold of thiscruising would be now worth $1,500.
Columbus collected gold in this way, to make his expedition popular athome, and he had, indeed, mortgaged the voyage, so to speak, by pledgingthe pecuniary31 results, as a fund to bear the expense of a new crusade. But,for himself, the prime desire was always discovery.
Eventually the Spaniards spent two months in that region, pressingtheir explorations in search of gold. And so promising32 did the tokens seemto him, that he determined33 to leave his brother, to secure the country andwork the mines, while he should return to Spain, with the gold he hadcollected, and obtain reinforcements and supplies. But all these fond hopes.
were disappointed.
The natives, under a leader named Quibian, rallied in large numbers,probably intending to drive the colonists35 away. It was only by the boldestmeasures that their plans were met. When Columbus supposed that he hadsuppressed their enterprise, he took leave of his brother, as he hadintended, leaving him but one of the four vessels.
Fortunately, as it proved, the wind did not serve. He sent back a boat tocommunicate with the settlement, but it fell into the hands of the savages36.
Doubtful as to the issue, a seaman17, named Ledesma, volunteered to swimthrough the surf, and communicate with the settlement. The brave fellowsucceeded. By passing through the surf again, he brought back the newsthat the little colony was closely besieged by the savages.
It seemed clear that the settlement must be abandoned, thatColumbus's brother and his people must be taken back to Spain. Thiscourse was adopted. With infinite difficulty, the guns and stores which hadbeen left with the colony were embarked37 on the vessels of the Admiral.
The caravel which had been left for the colony could not be taken from theriver. She was completely dismantled38, and was left as the only memorialof this unfortunate colony.
At Puerto Bello he was obliged to leave another vessel, for she hadbeen riddled39 by the teredo. The two which he had were in wretched condition. "They were as full of holes as a honey-comb." On the southerncoast of Cuba, Columbus was obliged to supply them with cassava bread.
The leaks increased. The ships' pumps were insufficient40, and the menbailed out the water with buckets and kettles. On the twentieth of June,they were thankful to put into a harbor, called Puerto Bueno, on the coastof Jamaica, where, as it proved, they eventually left their worthless vessels,and where they were in exile from the world of civilization for twelvemonths.
Nothing in history is more pathetic than the memory that such a wasteof a year, in the closing life of such a man as Columbus, should have beenpermitted by the jealousy41, the cruelty, or the selfish ambition of inferiormen.
He was not far from the colony at San Domingo. As the reader will see,he was able to send a message to his countrymen there. But thosecountrymen left him to take his chances against a strong tribe of savages.
Indeed, they would not have been sorry to know that he was dead.
At first, however, he and his men welcomed the refuge of the harbor. Itwas the port which he had called Santa Gloria, on his first visit there. Hewas at once surrounded by Indians, ready to barter42 with them and bringthem provisions. The poor Spaniards were hungry enough to be glad ofthis relief.
Mendez, a spirited sailor, had the oversight43 of this trade, and in onenegotiation, at some distance from the vessels, he bought a good canoe ofa friendly chief. For this he gave a brass44 basin, one of his two shirts, and ashort jacket. On this canoe turned their after fortunes. Columbus refittedher, put on a false keel, furnished her with a mast and sail.
With six Indians, whom the chief had lent him, Diego Mendez,accompanied by only one Spanish companion, set sail in this little craft forSan Domingo. Columbus sent by them a letter to the sovereigns, whichgives the account of the voyage which the reader has been following.
When Mendez was a hundred miles advanced on his journey, he met aband of hostile savages. They had affected45 friendship until they had theadventurers in their power, when they seized them all. But while thesavages were quarreling about the spoils, Mendez succeeded in escaping to his canoe, and returned alone to his master after fifteen days.
It was determined that the voyage should be renewed. But this time,another canoe was sent with that under the command of Mendez. Hesailed again, storing his boats with cassava bread and calabashes of water.
Bartholomew Columbus, with his armed band, marched along the coast, asthe two canoes sailed along the shore.
Waiting then for a clear day, Mendez struck northward46, on the passage,which was long for such frail47 craft, to San Domingo. It was eight monthsbefore Columbus heard of them. Of those eight months, the history is ofdismal waiting, mutiny and civil war. It is pathetic, indeed, that a littlebody of men, who had been, once and again, saved from death in the mostremarkable way, could not live on a fertile island, in a beautiful climate,without quarrelling with each other.
Two officers of Columbus, Porras and his brother, led the sedition48.
They told the rest of the crew that the Admiral's hope of relief fromMendez was a mere49 delusion50. They said that he was an exile from Spain,and that he did not dare return to Hispaniola. In such ways they sought torouse his people against him and his brother. As for Columbus, he wassick on board his vessel, while the two brothers Porras were workingagainst him among his men.
On the second of January, 1504, Francesco de Porras broke into thecabin. He complained bitterly that they were kept to die in that desolateplace, and accused the Admiral as if it were his fault. He told Columbus,that they had determined to go back to Spain; and then, lifting his voice,he shouted, "I am for Castile; who will follow me?" The mutinous51 crewinstantly replied that they would do so. Voices were heard whichthreatened Columbus's life.
His brother, the Adelantado, persuaded Columbus to retire from thecrowd and himself assumed the whole weight of the assault. The loyal partof the crew, however, persuaded him to put down his weapon, and on theother hand, entreated52 Porras and his companions to depart. It was clearenough that they had the power, and they tried to carry out their plans.
They embarked in ten canoes, and thus the Admiral was abandoned byforty-eight of his men. They followed, to the eastward, the route which Mendez had taken. In their lawless way they robbed the Indians of theirprovisions and of anything else that they needed. As Mendez had done,they waited at the eastern extremity53 of Jamaica for calm weather. Theyknew they could not manage the canoes, and they had several Indians tohelp them.
When the sea was smooth they started; but they had hardly gone fourleagues from the land, when the waves began to rise under a contrary wind.
Immediately they turned for shore, the canoes were overfreighted, and asthe sea rose, frequently shipped water.
The frightened Spaniards threw overboard everything they could spare,retaining their arms only, and a part of their provisions. They evencompelled the Indians to leap into the sea to lighten the boats, but, thoughthey were skillful swimmers, they could not pretend to make land byswimming. They kept to the canoes, therefore, and would occasionallyseize them to recover breath. The cruel Spaniards cut off their hands andstabbed them with their swords. Thus eighteen of their Indian comradesdied, and they had none left, but such as were of most help in managingthe canoes. Once on land, they doubted whether to make another effort orto return to Columbus.
Eventually they waited a month, for another opportunity to go toHispaniola; but this failed as before, and losing all patience, they returnedwestward, to the commander whom they had insulted, living on the island"by fair means or foul," according as they found the natives friendly orunfriendly.
Columbus, meanwhile, with his half the crew, was waiting. He hadestablished as good order as he could between his men and the natives, buthe was obliged to keep a strict watch over such European food as he stillhad, knowing how necessary it was for the sick men in his number. On theother hand, the Indians, wholly unused to regular work, found it difficultto supply the food which so many men demanded.
The supplies fell off from day to day; the natives no longer presseddown to the harbor; the trinkets, with which food had been bought, hadlost their charm; the Spaniards began to fear that they should starve on theshore of an island which, when Columbus discovered it, appeared to be the abode54 of plenty. It was at this juncture55, when the natives were becomingmore and more unfriendly, that Columbus justified56 himself by the tyrant'splea of necessity, and made use of his astronomical57 science, to obtain asupernatural power over his unfriendly allies.
He sent his interpreter to summon the principal caciques to aconference. For this conference he appointed a day when he knew that atotal eclipse of the moon would take place. The chiefs met as they wererequested. He told them that he and his followers58 worshipped a God wholived in the heavens; that that God favored such as did well, but punishedall who displeased59 him.
He asked them to remember how this God had protected Mendez andhis companions in their voyage, because they went obedient to the orderswhich had been given them by their chief. He asked them to rememberthat the same God had punished Porras and his companions with all sortsof affliction, because they were rebels. He said that now this great Godwas angry with the Indians, because they refused to furnish food to hisfaithful worshippers; that he proposed to chastise60 them with famine andpestilence.
He said that, lest they should disbelieve the warning which he gave, asign would be given, in the heavens that night, of the anger of the greatGod. They would see that the moon would change its color and would loseits light. They might take this as a token of the punishment which awaitedthem.
The Indians had not that confidence in Columbus which they once had.
Some derided61 what he said, some were alarmed, all waited with anxietyand curiosity. When the night came they saw a dark shadow begin to stealover the moon. As the eclipse went forward, their fears increased. At lastthe mysterious darkness covered the face of the sky and of the world,when they knew that they had a right to expect the glory of the full moon.
There were then no bounds to their terror. They, seized on all theprovisions that they had, they rushed to the ships, they threw themselves atthe feet of Columbus and begged him to intercede62 with his God, towithhold the calamity63 which he had threatened. Columbus would notreceive them; he shut himself up in his cabin and remained there while the eclipse increased, hearing from within, as the narrator says, the howls andprayers of the savages.
It was not until he knew the eclipse was about to diminish, that hecondescended to come forth10, and told them that he had interceded64 withGod, who would pardon them if they would fulfil their promises. In tokenof pardon, the darkness would be withdrawn65 from the moon.
The Indians saw the fulfilment of the promise, as they had seen thefulfilment of the threat. The moon reappeared in its brilliancy. Theythanked the Admiral eagerly for his intercession, and repaired to theirhomes. From this time forward, having proved that he knew on earth whatwas passing in the heavens, they propitiated66 him with their gifts. Thesupplies came in regularly, and from this time there was no longer anywant of provisions.
But no tales of eclipses would keep the Spaniards quiet. Anotherconspiracy was formed, as the eight remaining months of exile passed by,among the survivors67. They meant to seize the remaining canoes, and withthem make their way to Hispaniola. But, at the very point of the outbreakof the new mutiny, a sail was seen standing68 toward the harbor.
The Spaniards could see that the vessel was small. She kept the offing,but sent a boat on shore. As the boat drew near, those who waited soeagerly recognized Escobar, who had been condemned69 to death, inIsabella, when Columbus was in administration, and was pardoned by hissuccessor Bobadilla. To see this man approaching for their relief was nothopeful, though he were called a Christian70, and was a countryman of theirown.
Escobar drew up to the ships, on which the Spaniards still lived, andgave them a letter from Ovando, the new governor of Hispaniola, withsome bacon and a barrel of wine, which were sent as presents to theAdmiral. He told Columbus, in a private interview, that the governor hadsent him to express his concern at his misfortune, and his regret that hehad not a vessel of sufficient size to bring off all the people, but that hewould send one as soon as possible. He assured him that his concerns inHispaniola were attended to faithfully in his absence; he asked him towrite to the governor in reply, as he wished to return at once.
This was but scant71 comfort for men who had been eight monthswaiting to be relieved. But Escobar was master of the position. Columbuswrote a reply at once to Ovando, pointed34 out that the difficulties of hissituation had been increased by the rebellion of the brothers Porras. He,however, expressed his reliance on his promise, and said he would remainpatiently on his ships until relief came. Escobar took the letter, returned tohis vessel, and she made sail at once, leaving the starving Spaniards indismay, to the same fate which hung over them before.
Columbus tried to reassure72 them. He professed73 himself satisfied withthe communications from Ovando, and told them that vessels large enoughfor them would soon arrive. He said that they could see that he believedthis, because he had not himself taken passage with Escobar, preferring toshare their lot with them. He had sent back the little vessel at once, so thatno time might be lost in sending the necessary ships.
With these assurances he cheered their hearts. In truth, however, hewas very indignant at Ovando's cool behavior. That he should have leftthem for months in danger and uncertainty74, with a mere tantalizingmessage and a scanty75 present of food--all this naturally made the greatleader indignant. He believed that Ovando hoped that he might perish onthe island.
He supposed that Ovando thought that this would be favorable for hisown political prospects76, and he believed that Escobar was sent merely as aspy. This same impression is given by Las Casas, the historian, who wasthen at San Domingo. He says that Escobar was chosen simply because ofhis enmity to Columbus, and that he was ordered not to land, nor to holdconversation with any of the crew, nor to receive letters from any exceptthe Admiral.
After Escobar's departure, Columbus sent an embassy on shore tocommunicate with the rebel party, who were living on the island. Heoffered to them free pardon, kind treatment, and a passage with him in theships which he expected from Ovando, and, as a token of good will, hesent them a part of the bacon which Escobar had brought them.
Francesco de Porras met these ambassadors, and replied that they hadno wish to return to the ships, but preferred living at large. They offered to engage that they would be peaceable, if the Admiral would promise themsolemnly, that, in case two vessels arrived, they should have one to departin; that if only one vessel arrived they should have half of it, and that theAdmiral would now share with them the stores and articles of traffic,which he had left in the ship. But these demands Columbus refused toaccept.
Porras had spoken for the rebels, but they were not so well satisfiedwith the answer. The incident gave occasion for what was almost anoutbreak among them. Porras attempted to hold them in hand, by assuringthem that there had been no real arrival of Escobar. He told them that therehad been no vessel in port; that what had been seen was a mere phantasmconjured up by Columbus, who was deeply versed77 in necromancy78.
He reminded them that the vessel arrived just in the edge of theevening; that it communicated with Columbus only, and then disappearedin the night. Had it been a real vessel would he not have embarked, withhis brother and his son? Was it not clear that it was only a phantom79, whichappeared for a moment and then vanished?
Not satisfied, however, with his control over his men, he marchedthem to a point near the ships, hoping to plunder80 the stores and to take theAdmiral prisoner. Columbus, however, had notice of the approach of thismarauding party, and his brother and fifty followers, of whose loyalty81 hewas sure, armed themselves and marched to meet them. The Adelantadoagain sent ambassadors, the same whom he had sent before with the offerof pardon, but Porras and his companions would not permit them toapproach.
They determined to offer battle to the fifty loyal men, thinking toattack and kill the Adelantado himself. They rushed upon him and hisparty, but at the first shock four or five of them were killed.
The Adelantado, with his own hand, killed Sanchez, one of the mostpowerful men among the rebels. Porras attacked him in turn, and with hissword cut his buckler and wounded his hand. The sword, however, waswedged in the shield, and before Porras could withdraw it, the Adelantadoclosed upon him and made him prisoner. When the rebels saw this resultof the conflict, they fled in confusion.
The Indians, meanwhile, amazed at this conflict among men who haddescended from heaven, gazed with wonder at the battle. When it was over,they approached the field, and looked with amazement82 on the dead bodiesof the beings whom they had thought immortal83. It is said, however, that atthe mere sound of a groan84 from one of the wounded they fled in dismay.
The Adelantado returned in triumph to the ships. He brought with himhis prisoners. Only two of his party had been wounded, himself and hissteward. The next day the remaining fugitives85 sent in a petition to theAdmiral, confessing their misdeeds and asking for pardon.
He saw that their union was broken; he granted their prayer, on thesingle condition that Francesco de Porras should remain a prisoner. He didnot receive them on board the ships, but put them under the command of aloyal officer, to whom he gave a sufficient number of articles for trade, topurchase food of the natives.
This battle, for it was such, was the last critical incident in the longexile of the Spaniards, for, after a year of hope and fear, two vessels wereseen standing into the harbor. One of them was a ship equipped, atColumbus's own expense, by the faithful Mendez; the other had beenfitted out afterwards by Ovando, but had sailed in company with the firstvessel of relief.
It would seem that the little public of Isabella had been made indignantby Ovando's neglect, and that he had been compelled, by public opinion tosend another vessel as a companion to that sent by Mendez. Mendezhimself, having seen the ships depart, went to Spain in the interest of theAdmiral.
With the arrival at Puerto Bueno, in Jamaica, of the two relief vessels,Columbus's chief sufferings and anxiety were over. The responsibility, atleast, was in other hands. But the passage to San Domingo consumed sixtedious weeks. When he arrived, however, it was to meet one of histriumphs. He could hardly have expected it.
But his sufferings, and the sense of wrong that he had suffered, had, intruth, awakened86 the regard of the people of the colony. Ovando took himas a guest to his house. The people received him with distinction.
He found little to gratify him, however. Ovando, had ruled the poor natives with a rod of iron, and they were wretched. Columbus's ownaffairs had been neglected, and he could gain no relief from the governor.
He spent only a month on the island, trying, as best he could, to bringsome order into the administration of his own property; and then, on thetwelfth of September, 1504, sailed for Spain.
Scarcely had the ship left harbor when she was dismasted in a squall.
He was obliged to cross to another ship, under command of his brother,the Adelantado. She also was unfortunate. Her mainmast was sprung in astorm, and she could not go on until the mast was shortened.
In another gale the foremast was sprung, and it was only on theseventh of November that the shattered and storm-pursued vessel arrivedat San Lucar. Columbus himself had been suffering, through the voyage,from gout and his other maladies. The voyage was, indeed, a harshexperience for a sick man, almost seventy years old.
He went at once to Seville, to find such rest as he might, for body andmind.
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| n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西 | |
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vessel
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| n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管 | |
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vessels
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| n.血管( vessel的名词复数 )；船；容器；（具有特殊品质或接受特殊品质的）人 | |
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mortification
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| n.耻辱，屈辱 | |
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eluded
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| v.（尤指机敏地）避开( elude的过去式和过去分词 )；逃避；躲避；使达不到 | |
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graceful
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| adj.优美的，优雅的；得体的 | |
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interfere
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| v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰 | |
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Portuguese
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| n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语 | |
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speculation
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| n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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disastrous
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| adj.灾难性的，造成灾害的；极坏的，很糟的 | |
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12
entrusted
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| v.委托，托付( entrust的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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garrison
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| n.卫戍部队；驻地，卫戍区；vt.派(兵)驻防 | |
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besieged
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| 包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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seamen
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| n.海员 | |
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seaman
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| n.海员，水手，水兵 | |
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18
derived
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| vi.起源；由来；衍生；导出v.得到( derive的过去式和过去分词 )；（从…中）得到获得；源于；（从…中）提取 | |
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19
stature
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| n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材 | |
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savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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philologists
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| n.语文学( philology的名词复数 ) | |
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eastward
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| adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部 | |
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spacious
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| adj.广阔的，宽敞的 | |
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gulf
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| n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂 | |
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copper
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| n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的 | |
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malign
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| adj.有害的；恶性的；恶意的；v.诽谤，诬蔑 | |
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retracing
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| v.折回( retrace的现在分词 )；回忆；回顾；追溯 | |
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dexterous
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| adj.灵敏的；灵巧的 | |
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monarch
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| n.帝王，君主，最高统治者 | |
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precisely
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| adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地 | |
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pecuniary
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| adj.金钱的；金钱上的 | |
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promising
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| adj.有希望的，有前途的 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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pointed
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| adj.尖的，直截了当的 | |
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colonists
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| n.殖民地开拓者，移民，殖民地居民( colonist的名词复数 ) | |
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savages
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| 未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 ) | |
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embarked
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| 乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事 | |
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dismantled
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| 拆开( dismantle的过去式和过去分词 )； 拆卸； 废除； 取消 | |
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riddled
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| adj.布满的；充斥的；泛滥的v.解谜，出谜题(riddle的过去分词形式) | |
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insufficient
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| adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的 | |
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41
jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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barter
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| n.物物交换，以货易货，实物交易 | |
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oversight
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| n.勘漏，失察，疏忽 | |
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brass
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| n.黄铜；黄铜器，铜管乐器 | |
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affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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northward
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| adv.向北；n.北方的地区 | |
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47
frail
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| adj.身体虚弱的；易损坏的 | |
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sedition
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| n.煽动叛乱 | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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delusion
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| n.谬见，欺骗，幻觉，迷惑 | |
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51
mutinous
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| adj.叛变的，反抗的；adv.反抗地，叛变地；n.反抗，叛变 | |
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entreated
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| 恳求，乞求( entreat的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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extremity
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| n.末端，尽头；尽力；终极；极度 | |
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54
abode
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| n.住处，住所 | |
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juncture
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| n.时刻，关键时刻，紧要关头 | |
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justified
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| a.正当的，有理的 | |
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57
astronomical
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| adj.天文学的，（数字）极大的 | |
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58
followers
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| 追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件 | |
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displeased
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| a.不快的 | |
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60
chastise
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| vt.责骂，严惩 | |
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61
derided
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| v.取笑，嘲笑( deride的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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62
intercede
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| vi.仲裁，说情 | |
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63
calamity
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| n.灾害，祸患，不幸事件 | |
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64
interceded
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| v.斡旋，调解( intercede的过去式和过去分词 )；说情 | |
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withdrawn
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| vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出 | |
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66
propitiated
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| v.劝解，抚慰，使息怒( propitiate的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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survivors
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| 幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 ) | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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69
condemned
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| adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词 | |
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Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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71
scant
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| adj.不充分的，不足的；v.减缩，限制，忽略 | |
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72
reassure
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| v.使放心，使消除疑虑 | |
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73
professed
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| 公开声称的，伪称的，已立誓信教的 | |
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74
uncertainty
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| n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物 | |
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scanty
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| adj.缺乏的，仅有的，节省的，狭小的，不够的 | |
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76
prospects
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| n.希望，前途(恒为复数) | |
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versed
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| adj. 精通，熟练 | |
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78
necromancy
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| n.巫术；通灵术 | |
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phantom
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| n.幻影，虚位，幽灵；adj.错觉的，幻影的，幽灵的 | |
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plunder
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| vt.劫掠财物，掠夺；n.劫掠物，赃物；劫掠 | |
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81
loyalty
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| n.忠诚，忠心 | |
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82
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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83
immortal
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| adj.不朽的；永生的，不死的；神的 | |
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84
groan
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| vi./n.呻吟，抱怨；(发出)呻吟般的声音 | |
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85
fugitives
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| n.亡命者，逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 ) | |
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86
awakened
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| v.（使）醒( awaken的过去式和过去分词 )；（使）觉醒；弄醒；（使）意识到 | |
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