COLUMBIAN HISTORICAL EXPOSITION AT MADRID. 



239 



non in 1555, when the latter attempted to establish a French colony near the month 

 of the Rio de Janeiro, and returned the year following with Bois-le-Comte, seems to 

 have sailed northward, and Thevet speaks of Canada and Newfoundland as if he had 



been there himself. 



No. 65. THE PHILOPONO WOODCUT. 



Honorio Philopono, a monk of the Order of St. Benedict, published a book in 1621 

 based upon the narratives of the priests and monks who accompanied Columbus and 

 later explorers. The book had the following title : &quot;Voy 

 age to the New World of the Western Indies, given now to 

 the press, made by the Most Reverend Father Dom Bnell, 

 of Catalonia, abbot of Monserrate, and apostolic legate :i 

 latere of the Holy See for the whole America, or New 

 World, and patriarch of the same, and his associates or 

 brethren of the same Order of St. Benedict, sent by His 

 Holiness the Pope, Alexander VI, in 1492, to preach the 

 Gospel of Christ to the barbarous people of those regions, 

 written upon the notes and statements of several authors, 

 and illustrated with engravings.&quot; 



COLUMBUS IN CONVERSATION WITH AMERICUS VES 

 PUCCI. 



THE THEVET. 

 See page 233. 



W r hile at Seville in 1505, Columbus saw a good deal of 

 Americus Vespucci. They had become acquainted while 



the Admiral was fitting out his ships for his second voyage, the contract for furnish 

 ing the supplies having been awarded to a merchant named Beradi, by whom Vespucci 

 was employed, and the latter had active charge of the business. In the meantime 

 Vespucci had himself made two voyages to the Indies, cruising along a good deal of 



the northern coast of South America, and 

 down the east coast as far as Bahia, Brazil, 

 where the Portuguese had established a 

 trading post. It was at the conclusion of 

 his second voyage, in September, 1504, that 

 Americus had written the account of his 

 discoveries, which, three years later, caused 

 his name to be given to the New W r orld ; but 

 there is no reason to believe that he antici 

 pated or even hoped that his fame would be 

 so closely linked to the western hemisphere. 

 Nor is there evidence of the slightest rivalry 

 or jealousy between the two voyagers. On 

 the contrary, Columbus sent a letter to his 

 son, on the 5th of February, 1505, by Ameri 

 cus, of whom he wrote : 



&quot;Within two days I have talked with 

 Americus Vespucci, who will bear this to 

 you, and who is summoned to court on mat 

 ters of navigation. He has always mani 

 fested a disposition to be friendly to me. 



Fortune has not always favored him, and in this he is not different from many others. 

 His ventures have not always been as successful as he would wish. He left me fall 

 of the kindliest purposes toward me, and will do anything for me which is in his 

 power. I hardly knew what to tell him would be helpful in him to do for me, because 

 I did not know what purpose there was in calling him to court. Find out what he can 

 do, and he will do it; only let it be so managed that he will not be suspected of ren 

 dering me aid. I have told him all that it is possible to tell him as to my own affairs, 

 including what I have done and what recompense 1 have had. Show this letter to 

 the Adelantado, so that he may advise how Vespucci can be made serviceable to us,&quot; 



PHILOPOXO PORTRAIT. 



