These meffengers had prevailed with fome of the natives to accompany them, who informed Columbus, that the gold of which they made their ornaments was found in Cubanacan. By this word they meant the middle or inland part of Cuba; but Columbus, being ignorant of their language, as well as unaccustomed to their pronunciation, and his thoughts running continually upon his own theory concerning the discovery of the Eaft Indies, he was led, by the refemblance of found, to fuppofe that they fpoke of the Great Khan, and imagined that the opulent kingdom of Cathay, described by Marco Polo, was not very remote. This induced him to employ fome time in viewing the country. He vifited almost every harbour, from Porto del Principe, on the north coast of Cuba, to the eastern extremity of the ifland; but though delighted with the beauty of the scenes, which every where prefented themfelves, and amazed at the luxuriant fertility of the foil, both which, from their novelty, made a more lively impreffion upon his imagination*, he did not find gold in fuch quantity as was fufficient to fatisfy either the avarice of his followers, or the expectations of the court to which he was to return. The people of the country, as much astonished at his eagerness in quest of gold, as the Europeans were at their ignorance and fimplicity, pointed towards the eaft, where an island which they called Hayti was fituated, in which that metal was more abundant than among them. Columbus ordered his fquadron to bend its course thither; but Martin Alonfo Pinzon, impatient to be the first who should take poffeffion of the trea fures which this country was fuppofed to contain, quitted his come panions, regardless of all the admiral's fignals to flacken fail until they fhould come up with him. Columbus, retarded by contrary winds, did not reach Hayti till the fixth of December. He called the port where he firft touched St. * In a letter of the admiral's to Ferdinand and Ifabella, he defcribes one of the harbours in Cuba, with all the enthusiastic admiration of a difcoverer." I difcovered a river which a galley might easily enter; the beauty of it induced me to found, and I found from five to eight fathoms of water. Having proceeded a confiderable way up the river, every thing invited me to fettle there. The beauty of the river, the clearnefs of the water, through which I could see the fandy bottom, the multitude of palmtrees of different kinds, the tallest and finest 1 had feen, and an infinite number of other large and flourishing trees, the birds, and the verdure of the plains, are fo wonderfully beautiful, that this country excels all others as far as the day furpaffes the night in brightnefs and fplendour, fo that I often faid, that it would be in vain for me to attempt to give your highneffes a full account of it, for neither my tongue nor my pen could come up to the truth, and indeed I am fo much amazed at the fight of fuch beauty, that I know not how to defcribe it." Life of Columb. c. 30. Nicholas, and the island itself Efpagnola, in honour of the kingdom by which he was employed; and it is the only country, of those he had yet difcovered, which has retained the name that he gave it. As he could neither meet with the Pinta, nor have any intercourfe with the inhabitants, who fled in great confternation towards the woods, he foon quitted St. Nicholas, and failing along the northern coaft of the island, he entered another harbour, which he called the Conception. Here he was more fortunate; his people overtook a woman who was flying from them, and after treating her with great gentleness, difmiffed her with a prefent of such toys as they knew were most valued in those regions. The defcription which she gave to her countrymen of the humanity and wonderful qualities of the ftrangers; their admiration of the trinkets, which she shewed with exultation; and their eagerness to participate of the fame favours; removed all their fears, and induced many of them to repair to the harbour. The ftrange objects which they beheld, and the baubles, which Columbus beftowed upon them, amply gratified their curiofity and their wifhes. They nearly resembled the people of Guanahani and Cuba. They were naked like them, ignorant, and simple; and seemed to be equally unacquainted with all the arts which appear most neceffary in polished focieties; but they were gentle, credulous, and timid, to a degree which rendered it easy to acquire the afcendant over them, especially as their exceffive admiration led them into the fame error with the people of the other iflands, in believing the Spaniards to be more than mortals, and defcended immediately from Heaven. They poffeffed gold in greater abundance than their neighbours, which they readily exchanged for bells, beads, or pins; and in this unequal traffic both parties were highly pleafed, each confidering themselves as gainers by the tranfaction. Here Columbus was vifited by a prince or cazique of the country. He appeared with all the pomp known among a fimple people, being carried in a fort of palanquin upon the fhoulders of four men, and attended by many of his fubjects, who ferved him with great refpect. His deportment was grave and ftately, very reserved towards his own people, but with Columbus and the Spaniards extremely courteous. He gave the admiral fome thin plates of gold, and a girdle of curious workmansbip, receiving in return presents of small value, but highly acceptable to him. Columbus, ftill intent on discovering the mines which yielded gold, continued to interrogate all the natives with whom he had any intercourfe concerning their fituation. They concurred in pointing out a mountainous country, which they called Cibao, at fome distance from the fea, and farther towards the caft. Struck with this found, which appeared age, appeared to him the fame with Cipango, the name by which Marco Polo, and other travellers to the eaft, diftinguished the islands of Japan, he no longer doubted with refpect to the vicinity of the countries which he had discovered to the remote parts of Afia; and, in full expectation of reaching foon those regions which had been the object of his voyhe directed his courfe towards the east. He put into a commodious harbour, which he called St. Thomas, and found that diftrict to be under the government of a powerful cazique, named Guacanaḥari, who, as he afterwards learned, was one of the five fovereigns among whom the whole island was divided. He immediately fent meffengers to Columbus, who, in his name, delivered to him the prefent of a mask curiously fashioned, with the ears, nofe, and mouth of beaten gold, and invited him to the place of his refidence, near the harbour now called Cape Francois, fome leagues towards the east. Columbus difpatched fome of his officers to vifit this prince, who, as he behaved himself with greater dignity, feemed to claim more attention. They returned, with fuch favourable accounts both of the country and of the people, as made Columbus impatient for that interview with Guacanahari to which he had been invited. He failed for this purpofe from St. Thomas, on the twenty-fourth of December with a fair wind, and the fea perfectly calm; and as, amidft the multiplicity of his occupations, he had not shut his eyes for two days, he retired at midnight in order to take fome repofe, having committed the helm to the pilot, with ftrict injunctions not to quit it for a moment. The pilot, dreading no danger, carelessly left the helm to an unexperienced cabin boy, and the fhip, carried away by a current, was dafhed against a rock. The violence of the fhock awakened Columbus. He ran up to the deck. There, all was confufion and defpair. He alone retained prefence of mind. He ordered fome of the failors to take a boat, and carry out an anchor aftern; but, instead of obeying, they made off towards the Nigna, which was about half a league diftant. He then commanded the mafts to be cut down, in order to lighten the ship; but all his endeavours were too late; the vessel opened near the keel, and filled fo faft with water that its lofs was inevitable. The fmoothness of the fea, and the timely affiftance of beats from the Nigna, enabled the crew to fave their lives. As foon as the iflanders heard of this difafter, they crowded to the shore, with their prince Guacanahari at their head. Inftead of taking advantage of the diftrefs in which they beheld the Spaniards, to attempt any thing to their detriment, they lamented their misfortune with tears of fincere sondolance. Not fatisfied with this unavailing expreffion of their fympathy fympathy, they put to fea a number of canoes, and, under the direction of the Spaniards, affifted in faving whatever could be got out of the wreck; and by the united labour of fo many hands, almoft every thing of value was carried afhore. As fast as the goods were landed, Guacanahari in perfon took charge of them. By his orders they were all depofited in one place, and armed centinels were pofted, who kept the multitude at a distance, in order to prevent them not only from embez, zling, but from infpecting too curiously what belonged to their guests, Next morning this prince vifited Columbus, who was now on board the Nigna, and endeavoured to confole him for his lofs, by offering all that he poffeffed to repair it *. The condition of Columbus was fuch, that he flood in need of confo lation. He had hitherto procured no intelligence of the Pinta, and no Jonger doubted but that his treacherous affociate had fet fail for Europe, in order to have the merit of carrying the firft tidings of the extraordinary discoveries which had been made, and to pre-occupy fo far the ear of their fovereign, as to rob him of the glory and reward to which he was juftly entitled. There remained but one vessel, and that the smallest and most crazy of the squadron, to traverse such a vast ocean, and carry And, from time to time, he *The account which Columbus gives of the humanity and orderly behaviour of the natives on this occafion is very striking. "The king (fays he, in a letter to Ferdipand and Isabella) having been informed of our misfortune, expreffed great grief for our lofs, and immediately fent aboard all the people in the place in many large canoes; we soon unloaded the ship of every thing that was upon deck, as the king gave us great asfiftance: he himself, with his brothers and relations, took all poffible care that every thing fhould be properly done both aboard and on fhore. fent fome of his relations weeping, to beg of me not to be dejected, for he would give me all that he had. I can affure your highnesses, that so much care would not have been taken in fecuring our effects in any part of Spain, as all our property was put together in one place near his palace, until the houses which he wanted to prepare for the custody of it, were emptied. He immediately placed a guard of armed men, who watched during the whole night, and thofe op fhore lamented as if they had been much interefted in our lofs. The people are fo affectionate, so tractable, and so peaceable, that I fwear to your highneffes, that there is not a better race of men, nor a better country in the world. They love their neighbour as themselves; their conversation is the sweetest and mildest in the world, cheerful, and always accompanied with a smile, And although it is true that they go naked, yet your highneffes may be affured that they have many very commendable customs; the king is ferved with great state, and his behaviour is fa decent, that it is pleasant to fee him, as it is likewife to obferve the wonderful memory which these people have, and their defire of knowing every thing, which leads them to inquire into its caufes and effects." Life of Columbus, c. 32. It is probable that the Spaniards were indebted for this officious attention, to the opinion which the Indians enpertained of them as a fuperior order of beings. fo many men back to Europe. Each of thofe circumstances was alarming, and filled the mind of Columbus with the utmost folicitude. The defire of overtaking Pinzon, and of effacing the unfavourable impreffions which his mifreprefentations might make in Spain, made it neceffary to return thither without delay. The difficulty of taking such a number of perfons aboard the Nigna, confirmed him in an opinion, which the fertility of the country, and the gentle temper of the people, had already induced him to form. He refolved to leave a part of his crew in the island, that, by refiding there, they might learn the language of the natives, ftudy their difpofition, examine the nature of the country, search for mines, prepare for the commodious fettlement of the colony, with which he purposed to return, and thus fecure and facilitate the acquifition of thofe advantages which he expected from his discoveries. When he mentioned this to his men, all approved of the design; and from impatience under the fatigue of a long voyage, from the levity natural to failors, or from the hopes of amaffing wealth in a country which afforded fuch promifing fpecimens of its riches, many offered voluntarily to be among the number of those who should remain. Nothing was now wanting towards the execution of this fcheme, but to obtain the confent of Guacanahari; and his unfufpicious fimplicity foon prefented to the admiral a favourable opportunity of propofing it. Columbus having, in the best manner he could, by broken words and figns, expreffed fome curiofity to know the caufe which had moved the iflanders to fly with such precipitation upon the approach of his ships, the cazique informed him that the country was much infested by the incurfions of certain people, whom he called Carribeans, who inhabited feveral iflands to the fouth-eaft. Thefe he described as a fierce and warlike race of men, who delighted in blood, and devoured the flesh of the prisoners who were fo unhappy as to fall into their hands; and as the Spaniards, at their firft appearance, were fuppofed to be Carribeans, whom the natives, however numerous, durft not face in battle, they had recourfe to their usual method of fecuring their fafety, by flying into the thickest and most impenetrable woods. Guacanahari, while speaking of those dreadful invaders, discovered fuch fymptoms of terror, as well as fuch consciousness of the inability of his own people to refift them, as led Columbus to conclude that he would not be alarmed at the propofition of any scheme which afforded him the profpect of an additional fecurity againft their attacks. He inftantly offered him the affiftance of the Spaniards to repel his enemies; he engaged to take him and his people under the protection of the powerful monarch whom he ferved, and offered to leave in the inland fuch a number of his men as fhould be fufficient, not only |