286 THE SEA. 



Columbus was not to be beaten. He followed the court to Seville, and was again 

 repulsed. He resolved to write to the King of France, and, if unsuccessful there, follow 

 his brother to England. But at this juncture he acquired the friendship of the father 

 guardian of the monastery of Rabida, who, believing in his schemes, earnestly entreated 

 him to postpone his departure, saying that, as he was confessor to the Queen, he was 

 resolved to try his influence. All honour to Father Perez, the one sensible ecclesiastic of 

 his nation ! A fresh conference was held, but the demands of Columbus were deemed too 

 high, and again the matter fell to the ground. The admiral settled his affairs, and 

 prepared to leave for France. 



He had actually started on his journey, when an officer was despatched after him to- 

 induce him to return. The queen had at last listened to the good counsels of Santangel 

 (comptroller of the royal disbursements), who had before shown himself a friend to- 

 Columbus. He had pointed out to her majesty that the sum of money required was 

 small, and that she was missing an opportunity that might redound greatly to the honour 

 of her reign, and the credit of which now some foreign monarch would reap. From 

 comparative apathy Isabella rose to enthusiasm, and the treasury being pretty well ex- 

 hausted by the war with Granada, she offered to pawn her jewels in order to raise the 

 necessary funds. Santangel immediately replied that there was no occasion for this, and 

 that he himself would readily advance his own money in such a service. 



All the conditions which the admiral required having been conceded, he set out from 

 Granada on May 21st, 1492, for Palos, that seaport having been bound by the Crown to 

 furnish two caravels. Columbus fitted these and a third vessel with all speed. His own. 

 ship was the St. Mary ; the second, named the Pinta, was commanded by Martin Alonso 

 Pinzon ; and the third, the Nina, by the latter's brother, Vincent Yanez Pinzon. The 

 united crews comprised a force of ninety men. Columbus set sail on this, his first voyage 

 in the service of Portugal, on the 3rd of August, 1492, making direct for the Canaries. 



The day after leaving, the rudder of the Pint a broke loose, and, after being repaired, 

 as well as they were able at sea, the fastenings gave way a second time. Alonzo Pinzon 

 was more than suspected of having caused this damage purposely, as he had endeavoured 

 to avoid proceeding on this voyage before the expedition left Spain. Having again 

 repaired the rudder, they continued the voyage, and successfully came to an anchor at the 

 Canaries on August 12th. The admiral tried in vain to obtain another vessel for Pinzon. 

 At length the Pinta having been patched up, the little squadron set sail. "Now," says 

 Ferdinand, " losing sight of land, and stretching out into utterly unknown seas, many of 

 the people expressed their anxiety and fear that it might be long before they should see 

 land again; but the admiral used every endeavour to comfort them, with the assurance of 

 soon finding the land he was in search of, and raised their hopes of acquiring wealth and 

 honour by the discovery." He purposely under-stated the distance made each day, in order 

 to make his people believe that they were not so far from Spain after all; but he carefully 

 recorded the true reckoning in private. On September 12th they discovered in the water 

 the trunk of a large tree; and the people in the Nina, a few days later, observed a heron 

 Hying over them, and also a smaller bird. Next, a quantity of yellowish-green sea-weed 

 was observed floating in the water; a small lobster and a number of tunny fish were also 



