HISTORY. 3 



plates of fine gold suspended from the neck. These were the first examples of 

 pure gold the Spaniards had seen along that coast, and which also caused them 

 to commit the injustice of taking from two natives the ornaments which the latter 

 had refused to exchange for Spanish trinkets, a fact which proves that traffic by 

 force had some early precedents in the history of America." 



Diego de Porras, 1 who accompanied Columbus, is quoted as saying : " The number 

 of pieces of gold which we obtained, great and small, was 220, weighing alto- 

 gether 9 marcos, 3 ochavas, 7 tomines, and 1 grain (equal to about 80 ounces). 

 There were also 12 pieces of guani (gold much alloyed), weighing one mark and 

 six ounces. Two pieces were not weighed - - one a large tube, and the other a 

 plate like a mirror." Specimens of the latter class were worn suspended on the 

 breast by chiefs and important personages, who refused to part with them. 



All the inhabitants of the islands as well as of the mainland assured the 

 Spaniards that gold was to be found at a number of localities inland, one of 

 which was called Veragua. This name seems to have become the synonym of 

 wealth in the minds of the explorers, and has ever since been linked with the 

 fortunes of the house of Columbus. His grandson Luis Columbus, after having 

 been forced in 1536 to give up all claims to the title of viceroy, received in return, 

 among other things, an estate of twenty-five leagues square in Veragua and the 

 title Duke of Veragua. The land grant was finally given up after several 

 unsuccessful attempts to found settlements ; but the dukedom of Veragua still 

 exists, the title having come down through Francesca, a niece of Luis Columbus. 

 During the colonial period, Veragua (or Veraguas) corresponded to the western 

 part of the Isthmus, including the territory of Chiriqui (as well as of Burica). 



The 17th of October, Columbus continued his voyage as far as to the mouth 

 of the Guaiga river. Hundreds of natives rushed to the shore brandishing their 

 arms and threatening to prevent the Spaniards from landing. Finally assured of 

 the peaceful mission of the latter, they became quiet and somewhat reluctantly 

 consented to exchange their gold plaques, etc., for Spanish trinkets. 



Columbus next anchored in another river a few leagues away, called Cateba. 

 The inhabitants here were also warlike at first, but later bartered away their gold 

 ornaments for hawks'-bells, beads, etc. The Spaniards observed two things that 

 struck them as being worthy of record : One was that the chief, who here as 

 well as almost everywhere along the coast was called Quibi, was distinguished 

 from the other natives only by the fact that he protected himself from the con- 

 stantly falling rain (it was in October) by a great leaf of a tree; the other was 

 a piece of mortar, the first they had seen in America. 



Continuing his voyage, Columbus touched at the mouths of the Cobrara and 

 Cubiga rivers. According to the Cariay Indians, no gold was to be found beyond 

 the Cubiga. A few leagues further on, Columbus entered a port to which on 

 account of its beauty he gave the name Puerto Bello. This is but a short 

 distance east of Colon. They pushed still further eastward reaching in turn 

 Puerto de los Bastimientos and Puerto del Betrete. Finally deciding to return to 



1 E. G. Squier. More about the gold discoveries of the Isthmus. Harper's weekly, 

 Aug. 20th, 1859. 



