The Anchor of the Santa Maria. 193 



islands of the West Indies south of Puerto Rico, and were a 

 constant menace to the more peaceful Indians of the Greater 

 Antilles. 



Coasting northward, Columbus brought to view all those 

 beautiful islands between Guadeloupe and Santo Domingo and 

 finally arrived off the scene of his wreck and the site of the 

 fort he had erected. It was night, and all was still as death ; 

 the Spaniards fired a gun, but there was no response, and in the 

 morning they discovered thrift the fort had been destroyed and 

 the garrison massacred. Not a man survived, and not a timber 

 or gun has been found since to indicate the site of the ill-fated 

 Navidad. But I secured one relic two years ago that without 

 doubt once belonged to the Santa Maria and which was once 

 within the fort. 



I visited the coast of Haiti twice, and during my first visit 

 to the island secured evidence of the existence there of an 

 anchor of the caravel, which was in the possession of a blacic 

 man near cape Haitien. By a chain of evidence that led back 

 to the time of the wreck aiid established beyond a doubt the 

 authenticit}^ of the anchor in question, I have shown that this 

 relic is genuine. After a great deal of trouble and after a con- 

 test with the black man aforementioned I secured this anchor, 

 and it is now in the monastery of La Rabida. 



This anchor is especially noteworthy as it is the only authen- 

 ticated relic we possess of the first settlement in the New 

 World — -that of Navidad. Of the second attempt at settlement, 

 made immediately after, I secured many minor objects, which 

 are also in La Rabida. 



It was in December, 1493, that the first town was founded, 

 and it was soon after the discovery of the massacre at Navidad. 

 At Isabella, as this settlement was called, there were erected 

 but four or five structures that were intended to be permanent, 

 and the houses of the rank and file of the army have long since 

 disappeared. 



Of the few houses that were built of stone some traces still 

 remain, and when I went to Isabella two years ago I found 

 some hewn stones and tiles, but these were all that remained 

 of the town founded by Columbus four hundred 3^ears ago. 

 Though I staid there a week, and persistently hunted, I found 

 only the few stones you may now see in the monastery ; not 

 even the ghosts of the departed hidalgos, who arCiSaid to walk 



2(5— Nat. Geoq/Mag , voi„ V, 1803. 



