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Monthly Review of Literature, 



[[APRIL, 



pended solely upon nothing but the reports 

 of the ancient geographers, for no one had 

 yet gone beyond the south of the equator. 



With a belief thus fixed, and his imagi- 

 nation inflamed, he dwelt upon the thought, 

 till he believed himself destined, and espe- 

 cially appointed, by Providence, to open this 

 western route to Asia, and he accordingly 

 moved heaven and earth to accomplish his 

 destiny. John II. of Portugal, though 

 himself not indisposed to adventures, was 

 urged in vain his counsel pronounced the 

 scheme chimerical, though an under-hand 

 attempt was made by certain influential 

 persons to ascertain the truth of his story, 

 and anticipate the glory, by despatching 

 vessels which, however, effected nothing. 

 Indignant at this treatment, Columbus ap- 

 pealed to Spain ; but Spain was otherwise 

 engaged the Moors were to be driven 

 from Granada ; but at length, overcoming 

 difficulties opposed to him on all sides 

 what will not perseverance like his over- 

 come ? after laying siege to the court for 

 seven years, Isabella herself undertook to 

 fit out three small vessels ; and, stipulating 

 for the appointment of viceroy over all the 

 lands he should discover, and a share of the 

 plunder, for such it must be termed, and 

 the title of admiral all which was finally 

 conceded in the year 1492, then in his 

 56th year, he sailed from the port of Palos. 



After encountering the frequent resist- 

 ance, and almost mutinies of his crews, and 

 when despair if despair could ever find a 

 seat in so sanguine a breast had perhaps 

 almost seized himself, he came suddenly 

 upon the Bahamas, and made his first land- 

 ing on what is now called Cat Island ; and 

 from thence, sailing along the northern 

 coast of Cuba, onward to the west, he came 

 to Hispaniola, where one of his vessels was 

 wrecked, and another, commanded by Pin- 

 zon, deserted him. Here, then, proposing 

 to return to Spain for reinforcements, he 

 built a fortress, by the name of La Navi- 

 dad uninterrupted by the natives. Every 

 where indeed he found them gentle, con- 

 fiding, easily conciliated in a state of ab- 

 solute nudity the country beautiful and 

 fertile, but wealth there was none. Small 

 pieces of gold were seen on their persons, 

 and with these they readily parted for toys ; 

 and observing the eagerness with which 

 gold was seized, they made signs that there 

 was abundance in the far off mountains. 

 Thus much accomplished, and with this intel- 

 ligence, Columbus lost no time in returning 

 to Spain leaving thirty-nine men at the 

 fortress, with special directions to survey the 

 island, and collect all the gold in their 

 power hoping, as he said, to find on his 

 return at least a ton of it, and that in three 

 years, wealth enough would be obtained to 

 conquer Jerusalem and the holy sepulchre. 



Narrowly escaping shipwreck, and some 

 treachery on the part of the Portuguese, he 

 at length reached Spain, and was received 



with the very highest marks of distinction 

 by his sovereigns even to seating him in 

 their presence and active preparations were 

 forthwith made to start him afresh with 

 augmented resources. Ferdinand's rapa- 

 city was now inflamed by Columbus's mag- 

 nificent anticipations no less than the 

 means of leading 50,000 foot and 10,000 

 horse against the infidels. In the following 

 spring he set sail with a fleet of seventeen 

 ships, and 1,500 men on board. The first 

 land he made, this time, was Dominica, 

 from discovering it on a Sunday ; and after 

 cruizing some time among what are now 

 termed the Windward Islands, he arrived at 

 La Navidad when he had the misery and 

 mortification to find nothing but destruc- 

 tion, and not a soul left to tell the tale of 

 their fate. From the natives it was ga- 

 thered, eventually, that no sooner had the 

 admiral quitted the shore than all subordi- 

 nation was at an end the passions of lust 

 and avarice raged uncontrolled till the pa- 

 tience of the mild and enduring natives 

 was exhausted, and plenary vengeance in- 

 flicted. 



The first step Columbus took nothing 

 repulsed was to choose another spot, on 

 the same coast, for settling a colony the 

 next, to despatch twelve of the vessels to 

 Spain, and solicit for farther reinforcements 

 and provisions. To break the disappoint- 

 ment of the king, he proposed, most ini- 

 quitously, if we are to judge of the act by 

 modern sentiments and we see not why we 

 should not, for Isabella's accorded with them 

 to make an exchange of the natives, as 

 slaves, for live stock and provisions, to be 

 furnished by merchants the settlement 

 would thus be benefitted, the king's exche- 

 quer replenished, and the natives them- 

 selves be made Christians, and put in the 

 way of salvation. In the meanwhile, de- 

 tachments were despatched to explore the 

 interior, and search for gold followed, for 

 quarrels soon ensued, by Columbus in per- 

 son. Returning from thence to the settle- 

 ment, he prosecuted his discoveries in the 

 direction of Cuba, and, sailing from the 

 eastern point of Cuba towards the south, 

 he dropped upon Jamaica, and from thence 

 reverting again to Cuba, he coasted along 

 the southern shore of that island, till it 

 trended to the south, and he could see no 

 termination. Concluding, with confidence, 

 that he had found the continent of Asia, he 

 returned to the settlement, where business 

 enough was prepared for him. Partly from 

 the just resentments of the chiefs, particu- 

 larly Canoabo, a chief of no common vigour, 

 and of the Caribbee race and partly from 

 the quarrels of the Spaniards among them- 

 selves, and the treacheries of Don Marga- 

 rite and Father Boyle, affairs were in sad 

 disorder. The presence of the admiral 

 quieted matters at the settlement ; and as 

 to the natives, prompt a.nd thorough-going 

 measures were taken, and the matter ended by 



