"I Served As Captain From The 14th April 1494,
Till The 12th Of March 1498, When The Admiral Set Out
For Spain, and then
I began to act as governor till the 24th of August 1498, when the admiral
returned
From the discovery of Paria; after which, I again served as
captain till the 11th of December 1500, when I returned to Spain." On his
return from Cuba, the admiral appointed his brother governor of the
Indies; though controversies afterwards arose on this subject, as their
majesties alleged that they had not given authority to the admiral to
make any such appointment. But to end this difference, their highnesses
granted it a-new, under the title of adelantado, or lieutenant of the
Indies, to my uncle Don Bartholomew.
Having now the assistance and advice of his brother, the admiral took some
rest, and lived in quiet, although he met with sufficient troubles, both
on account of his sickness, and because he found that almost all the
Indians had revolted through the fault of Don Pedro Marguerite. He, though
obliged to respect and honour the admiral, who had left him the command of
360 foot and 14 horse, with orders to travel all over the island, and to
reduce it to the obedience of their Catholic Majesties and the Christians,
particularly the province of Cibao, whence the chief profit was expected;
yet acted in every thing contrary to his orders and instructions, insomuch,
that when the admiral was gone, he went with all his men to the great
plain called Vega Real, or the Royal Plain, ten leagues from Isabella,
where he remained without ever endeavouring to traverse and reduce the
island.
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