On Seeing This The Friendly Cacique Petitioned For
Their Lives With Many Tears, Promising That They Should Never Be Guilty
Of
any other offence; at length the admiral relented and discharged them all.
Soon afterwards a person came on horseback
From St Thomas, and reported
that he had found five Christian prisoners in the town of the cacique who
had just been pardoned, who had been taken by his subjects while going
from Isabella; that by frightening the Indians with his horse he had
obtained the relief of the prisoners, above 400 of the Indians running
away from him alone, two of whom he wounded in the pursuit; and that when
he crossed the river the Indians turned back upon the Christians to retake
them, but by making as if he would go against them, they all ran away lest
the horse should fly over the river.
Before proceeding on his intended voyage for discovering the continent,
the admiral appointed a council to govern the island in his absence, of
which he appointed his brother Don James Columbus president: the others
were F. Boyl and Peter Fernandez Coronell regents, together with Alonzo
Sanchez de Caravajal, rector of Bracca, and Juan de Luxan of Madrid,
gentleman to their Catholic majesties. That there might be no want of
flour for supporting the people, he hastened the building of the mills,
notwithstanding the rain and floods which very much obstructed the work.
Owing to these rains, in the admirals opinion, the great fertility of the
island proceeded. So wonderful is this fertility that they eat the fruits
of the trees in the month of November, while at the same time they are
blossoming afresh, by which it is evident that they bear fruit twice every
year. But herbs and seeds grow at all times indiscriminately, and nests
with eggs and young birds are found on the trees throughout the whole year.
As the fruitfulness of the island appeared so extraordinary, so daily
accounts arrived of its abundant wealth, and of the discovery of new mines,
which coincided with the reports of the Indians concerning the great
quantity of gold to be met with in several parts of the island[11a]. But
the admiral could not rest satisfied with these things, and resolved to
prosecute his discoveries by sea, beginning with the coast of Cuba, not
yet knowing whether it was an island or a continent.
In the afternoon of Thursday the 24th of April 1494 the admiral sailed
with three caravels from Isabella, and came to anchor that evening at
Monte Christo, having shaped his course to the west. On Friday he went to
Guacanagaris port, or the Nativity, thinking to find him there; but he
fled, though his subjects falsely affirmed that he would soon return. Not
caring to stay without sufficient cause, he departed on Saturday the 26th
of April, and went to the island of Tortuga 6 leagues to the westwards. He
lay here all that night in a calm with all his sails loose, the tide
running back against the current. Next day the N.W. wind and a strong
current setting to the west obliged him to go back to anchor in the river
Guadalquiver in the same island, to wait for a wind sufficient to stem the
current, which both then and the year before he found to run strong from
the east. On Tuesday the 29th of April, the wind became fair and he was
able to reach Cape St Nicholas, whence he crossed over to Cuba and run
along its southern coast a league beyond Cape Fuerte, where he put into a
large bay which he named Puerto Grande or the Great Harbour. The mouth
of this port was 150 paces across, and had abundant depth of water. He
cast anchor in this bay, where he procured refreshment of fish and oysters,
which the Indians had in great abundance. On the first of May he continued
his voyage along the coast, where he everywhere found commodious harbours,
fine rivers, and lofty mountains. After leaving Tortuga the sea everywhere
abounded with the same kind of weeds which he saw on the ocean in his
voyages to and from Spain. While sailing along the coast many of the
natives came off in their canoes, and thinking our people came down from
heaven, freely bestowed their country bread and fish without asking any
thing in return; but the admiral ordered them to be paid with beads, bells,
and such like baubles, and sent them away well pleased.
On Saturday the third of May, having heard that there was much gold in
Jamaica, he stood over for that island, which he discovered on Sunday the
fourth of May. Upon Monday he came to an anchor there, and thought it the
most beautiful of any island he had yet seen in the West Indies, and was
astonished at the multitudes of people who came off to the ships in large
and small canoes. Next day he ran along the coast in search of harbours.
The boats being sent in to examine a harbour which the admiral named
Puerto Bueno or the Good Port, so many canoes came out filled with armed
natives to defend their country, that our people thought proper to return
towards the ships, to avoid any quarrel with these people; but considering
that to shew any signs of fear would make the Indians proud, they returned
again towards the port; and as the Indians came to drive them off they
gave them a flight of arrows from their cross-bows, by which six or seven
of them were wounded, and they all retired. The fight ended upon this, and
afterwards many natives came off to the ships in a peaceable manner to see
our people and to barter provisions and other articles for such trifles as
our people offered. In this bay, which is in the form of a horse shoe, the
admiral repaired his ship which was leaky; and then sailed on the ninth of
May, keeping along shore to the westwards, the Indians following
continually in their canoes to trade or barter with our people.
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