AMERICA. 219 



covered the continent ; but when he left the river, and found that the 

 land continued on the westward for a great way, he was convinced of it. 

 Satisfied with his discovery, he yielded to the uneasiness and dis- 

 tresses of his crew and bore away for Hispaniola. In the course of 

 this discovery, Columbus landed at several places, where in a friend- 

 ly manner he traded with the inhabitants, and found gold and pearl 

 in tolerable plenty. 



About this time the spirit of discovery spread itself widely, and many 

 adventurers all over Europe wished to acquire the reputation of Co- 

 lumbus, without possessing his abilities. The Portuguese discovered 

 Brazil, which makes at present the most valuable part of their pos- 

 sessions : Cabot, a native of Bristol, discovered the north-east coasts, 

 which afterwards composed the British empire in North America : 

 and Amerigo Vespuccio, a merchant of Florence, sailed to the south- 

 ern continent of America, and being a man of address, had the honour 

 of giving his name to half the globe. But no one is now imposed on 

 by the name ; all the world knows that Columbus, or Colon, was the 

 first discoverer. The being deprived of the honour of giving name to 

 the new world, was one of the smallest mortifications to which this 

 great man was compelled to submit ; for such were the clamours of 

 his enemies, and the ingratitude of the court of Spain, that after dis- 

 covering the continent, and making settlements in the islands of 

 America, he was treated like a traitor, and carried over to Europe in 

 irons. He enjoyed, however, the glory of rendering one half of the 

 world known to the other ; a glory so much the more precious, as it 

 was untainted by cruelty or plunder, which disfigured all the exploits 

 of those who came after him and accomplished the execution of his 

 plan. He fully vindicated himself at court, was restored to favour, 

 and undertook another voyage, in which he suffered great fatigues. 

 He returned to Spain, and died at Valladolid, in 1506, in the 59th 

 year of his age. The succeeding governors of Cuba and Hispaniola 

 endeavoured to purchase the same advantages by the blood of the na- 

 tives, which Columbus had obtained by his good sense and humanity. 

 These islands contained mines of gold. The Indians only knew were 

 they were situate : and the extreme avarice of the Spaniards, too fu- 

 rious to work by the gentle means of persuasion, hurried them to acts 

 of the most shocking violence and cruelty against those unhappy 

 men, who, they believed, concealed from them part of their treasure. 

 The slaughter once begun, they set no bounds to their fury ; in a few 

 years they depopulated Hispaniola, which contained three millions 

 of inhabitants; and Cuba, that had about 600,000. Bartholomew de 

 las Casas, a witness of those barbarous depopulations, says that the 

 Spaniards went out with their dogs to hunt after men. The unhappy 

 savages almost naked and unarmed, were pursued like deer into the 

 forests, devoured by dogs, killed with gun-shot, or surprised and 

 burnt in their habitations. 



The Spaniards had hitherto only visited the continent. From what 

 they saw with their eyes, or learned by report, they conjectured that 

 this part of the new world would afford a still more valuable conquest. 

 Fernando Cortez was dispatched from Cuba with 600 men, 18 horses, 

 and a small number of field-pieces. With this inconsiderable force, 

 he proposed to subdue the most powerful state on the continent of 

 America; this was the empire of Mexico, rich, powerful, and inha- 

 bited by millions of Indians passionately fond of war, and then headed 

 by Montezuma, whose fame in arms struck terror into the neighbour- 



