and he would proteft them : That they lliould pray to 
“ God to grant him a good Voyage, that he might 
“ foon return to them with a greater Power : That they 
“ ihould love and obey their Captain, becaiife it was re- 
“ quifite for their own Prefervation and he charged 
“ them fo to do in the Name of their Highneffes : That 
“ they Ihould refpeft Guacanagari^ and give no Offence 
“ to any of his People *, nor offer Violence to any Man 
or Woman, that the Opinion of their coming from 
“ Heaven might be confirmed : That they Ihould not 
‘‘ partj nor go up the Country, nor out of Giiacanagari^ 2, 
Dominions, fince he loved them fo well : That with 
his Confent they fhould furvey the Coaft: in Canoes 
and their Boat, endeavouring to difcover the Gold 
“ Mines, and fome good Harbour, becaufe he was not 
“ well pleafed with that, where they remained, which he 
called the Nativity and that they fliould endeavour to 
barter the moil they could fairly, without ihewing Co- 
“ vetoufnefs; and endeavour to learn the Language, 
fince it would be fo ufeful to them, to gain the Friend- 
fhip of the Natives, and very advantagious ; and he 
“ promifed to entreat their Catholic Majefties, to reward 
them, fince they had opened the Way to that new 
“ World They anfwered they would pundlually per- 
form all he oi'dered them. 
On the 2d of January^ 1493? he went on Shore to 
take his Leave, dined with Guacanagari and his Caziques ; 
recommended the Chriftians to him, whom he com- 
manded to ferve and defend him againft the Carihes. 
He gave him a fine Shirt, and faid he would foon return 
with Prefents from the King of Spain. He anfwered with 
great Tokens of Sorrow for his Departure. One of the 
King’s Servants then faid, he had fent Canoes along the 
Coaft to feek for Gold j and the Admiral anfwered, that 
if Martin Alonfo Pinzon had not left him, he would have 
ventured to fail round the Hand, and have carried a Ton 
of Gold into Spain.^ and would ftill do it, neverthelefs, 
were he not afraid that the Caravel Pint a would get home 
fafe, and give fome faife Information againft him, to 
conceal their own Crime. 
14. On the 4th of i 493 » The Admiral left 
the Port he had called Navidad., or the Nativity^ failing 
Eaftward towards a very high Mountain, without Trees, 
but covered with Grafs, looking like a Tent, which he 
called Mo?ite Chrijio., and lies to the Eaft eighteen Leagues 
from the Cape he called Santo.^ that was behind, and 
four Leagues from the Port called Navidad. That Night 
he anchored five Leagues from Monte Chrifto ; and on the 
5th of January he proceeded to a little Hand, where there 
were good Salt Pits •, he entered the Ports, and was fo 
much pleafed with the Soil, the Plenty of Wood, and the 
Plains he law, that he faid that was the Hand of Cipan- 
go-y and had he thought he was fo near the Mines of 
CibaOy whence fo much Wealth was brought, he would have 
affirmed it more pofitively. On the 6th he failed from 
Monte Chrifto y and foon after difcovered the Caravel Pinta^ 
failing towards him before the Wind ■, the)?" thought fit 
to return to Monte Chrijioy where Martin Alonfo Pinzon 
made his Excufe for having parted Company, and though 
there was no fatisfadfory Reafon for what he had done, 
the Admiral paffed it by, and underftood he had bartered 
for much Gold, and that he had taken one half for him- 
felf, and the other half for the Seamen. Alpeat River 
runs down into this Plarbour, which he called Rio de 
Oroy that is, the River of Gold ; becaufe the Sand looked 
like Gold, and there he watered. On the 9th he hoifted 
Sail, came to Ponta Roxa or Red Pointy which is thirty- 
fix Leagues Eaft of Monte Chriftoy and there they took 
Tortoifes as big as Bucklers, as they went to lay their 
Eggs a-fhore. The Admiral affirmed he had thereabouts 
feen three Mermaids that raifed theimfelves above the Water, 
and that they v/ere not fo handfome as they are painted, 
that' they had fomething like a Human Face, and that 
he had feen others on the Coaft of Guinea. He proceed- 
ed to the River de Gracia or of Graccy v/here Martin 
Alonfo had been, and v/as alfo called by his Name, and 
■caufed four Indiayis Martin Alonfo had taken Prifoners by 
force to be left there. 
On the nth he failed to a Cape he called Balpradoy 
VoL. II. Numb. 70.' 
from a Mountain appearing, v/liich being covered v/itli 
Snow, asdf it had been Silver, he called Monte de Plat a ^ 
or the Silver Mountain ; and a Port that is at the Foot oi 
it, Piierta de Platay or the Silver Harhoury which is liicc 
a Horfe-^fhoe ; and proceeding along the Coaft, v/ith the 
Currents and fair Weather, above ten Leagues, he dif- 
covered feveral Capes, which he called Angely Punt a del 
HierOy o\: Iron Pointy el Rodendoy or the Round Pointy el 
FranceSy the Frenchy el Caho de Buen FiempOy the fair 
Weather Capey and d Fajadoy the Craggy. On the 1 2th he 
advanced thirty Leagues farther, admiring the Bignefs of 
the Ifland, and called one Cape, de Pedrey Hijoy or Father 
and Sony and gave Names to Puerto SacrOy or the Holy Har- 
houfy and Caho de Los EnamoradeSy or the Lovers Capey 
and coming up with it, he difcovered a vaft Bay, which 
was three Leagues in Breadth, and in the Midft of it a 
fmall Hand. He ftayed there to obferve the Conjiindli- 
on, which was to be on the 1 7th, and the Oppofition 
of the Moon and Jupiter with Mercury, and the Sun in 
Oppofition with Jupiter, which occafions high Winds. 
He fent the Boat for Water, and they found fome 
Men with Bows and Arrows. They bought a Bow and 
fome Arrows, and defired one of the Indians to go and 
fpeak with the Admiral, to which he confented.. He 
alked him for the CaribeSy and he pointed that they were 
to the Eaftward •, and for Gold he pointed to the Ifland 
of St. Johny faying, There was Gunainy that is, pale Gold 
with a purpiifli Caft, which the Indians value very much. 
He ordered him fomething to eat, and to give him two 
Bits of green and yellow Cloth, and fome Glafs Beads, 
and the Boat to fet him afhore. Thofe who went with 
him found fifty-five naked Indians with long Hair, like 
the Women in Spainy Feathers, Bows, Arrows, Swords 
made of hard Palm Wood, and heavy Spears, with which 
they gave heavy Blows, lying in the Wood. Thelt In- 
dians made them lay down their Arms, and then came 
to the Boat ; v/here the Spaniards bought two Bows of 
them by the Admiral’s Order, and were fo far from fel- 
ling any more, that they began to lay about, to feize the 
Spaniardsy who being but feven, fell upon them, gave one 
a Cut upon the Buttocks, and another a Cut on theBreaft; 
whereupon they fled, leaving their Arms behind, and 
many might have been killed if they had purfued them. 
This was the firft time that the Spaniards and Indians came 
to Blows in this Ifland. The Admiral was forry for it, 
tho’, on the other hand, it did not difpleafe him, that they 
might be fenflble of the Weight of tho SpaniardsPheoAs,. 
On the 14th, in the Morning, abundance of People 
appeared on Shore. The Admiral ordered the Boats-crew 
to be upon their Guard ; but the Indians came as if no- 
thing had happened, and among them the King of the 
Country, and the Indians that had been aboard the Caravel, 
whither the King came with three Indians. The Admiral 
ordered to give them Bifleets and Honey to eat, and gave 
them red Caps, bits of Cloth, and Beads. The next 
Day the King fent his Gold Crown and Provifions: The 
Men were armed with Bows and Arrows, four Youths in 
Canoes came to the Caravel, and were Men of fuch good 
Senfe, that the Admiral refolved to carry them into Spain ; 
They acquainted him with many Particulars, and from 
thence fbewed him the Ifland of St. John. He failed from 
that Bay which he called d.e las Flechasy or of ArrowSy 
on the 1 6th, and would not make any long Stay becaufe 
the Caravels were very leaky. 
He advanced with the Wind at Weft North- weft, and 
when he had failed 16 Leagues the Indian which he had 
aboard pointed to the Iflalid of St. Johny that of Marti- 
nino and the CaribeSy where the Indians were that eat Men j 
and though hewas v/illing to take a View of thofe Hands, 
yet for fear of diffieartening the Men, the Wind frefhening, 
he ordered to fteer direflly for Spaing during feveral Days 
advancing fiiccelstully, they faw many Sea-gulls, and the 
Air v/as very drying, and they met with abundance of 
Weeds, but being acquainted with it, they wxre not 
afraid ; They killed a Tunny and a large Shark, which 
afforded them fomething to eat, for they had nothing but 
Bread and Wine. The Caravel Pint a was no good Sail- 
er, becaufe ihe had little Benefit of her Mizen, by reafon 
the Maft was not good, and the Adniiral being forced 
W to 
