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diff --git a/19997.txt b/19997.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..858bc1c --- /dev/null +++ b/19997.txt @@ -0,0 +1,6711 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of Amerigo Vespucci, by Frederick A. Ober + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: Amerigo Vespucci + +Author: Frederick A. Ober + +Release Date: December 3, 2006 [EBook #19997] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMERIGO VESPUCCI *** + + + + +Produced by Suzanne Shell, Richard J. Shiffer and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + + + + +[Transcriber's Note: Every effort has been made to replicate this +text as faithfully as possible, including obsolete and variant +spellings and other inconsistencies. Text that has been changed to +correct an obvious error by the publisher is noted at the end of this +ebook.] + + + + + AMERIGO VESPUCCI + + BY + + FREDERICK A. OBER + + + HEROES OF AMERICAN HISTORY + + + _ILLUSTRATED_ + + + [Illustration] + + + HARPER & BROTHERS PUBLISHERS + NEW YORK AND LONDON + 1907 + + + Copyright, 1907, by HARPER & BROTHERS. + + _All rights reserved._ + + Published February, 1907. + + + [Illustration: AMERIGO VESPUCCI] + + + + +CONTENTS + + + CHAP. PAGE + + I. YOUNG AMERIGO AND HIS FAMILY 1 + + II. AMERIGO'S FRIENDS AND TEACHERS 15 + + III. VESPUCCI'S FAVORITE AUTHORS 32 + + IV. IN THE SERVICE OF SPAIN 45 + + V. CONVERSATIONS WITH COLUMBUS 59 + + VI. VESPUCCI'S DEBATABLE VOYAGE 76 + + VII. VESPUCCI'S "SECOND" VOYAGE 101 + + VIII. WITH OJEDA THE FIGHTER 126 + + IX. CANNIBALS, GIANTS, AND PEARLS 138 + + X. FAMOUS FELLOW-VOYAGERS 148 + + XI. ON THE COAST OF BRAZIL 165 + + XII. THE "FOURTH PART OF THE EARTH" 179 + + XIII. THE FOURTH GREAT VOYAGE 194 + + XIV. KING FERDINAND'S FRIEND 209 + + XV. PILOT-MAJOR OF SPAIN 221 + + XVI. HOW AMERICA WAS NAMED 237 + + + + +ILLUSTRATIONS + + + AMERIGO VESPUCCI _Frontispiece_ + + A CONJECTURAL RESTORATION OF + TOSCANELLI'S MAP _Facing p._ 20 + + MARCO POLO " 40 + + OJEDA'S FIRST VOYAGE " 130 + + ROUTES OF THE DISCOVERERS " 166 + + NORTH AMERICA FROM THE GLOBE OF + JOHANN SCHOeNER " 244 + + + + +AUTHORITIES ON AMERIGO VESPUCCI + + +XVIth CENTURY. Vespucci's letters to Soderini and L. P. F. de' Medici, +reproduced in this volume. + +XVIIth CENTURY. Herrera, in his _Historia General_ (etc.), Madrid, +1601; "probably followed Las Casas, whose MSS. he had." + +XVIIIth CENTURY. Dandini, A. M., _Vita e Lettere di Amerigo Vespucci_, +Florence, 1745. + +Canovai, Stanislac, _Elogia di Amerigo Vespucci_, 1778. + +XIXth CENTURY. Navarrete, M. F. de, _Noticias Exactas de Americo +Vespucio_, contained in his Coleccion, Madrid, 1825-1837. + +Humboldt, Alexander von, _Examen Critique de l'Histoire de la +Geographie de Nouveau Continent_, Paris, 1836-1839. + +Lester, C. Edwards, _The Life and Voyages of Americus Vespucius_, New +York, 1846; reprinted, in de luxe edition, New York, 1903. + +Varnhagen, F. A., Baron de Porto Seguro, _Amerigo Vespucci, son +Caractere, ses Ecrits_ (etc.), Lima, 1865; Vienna, 1874. A collection +of monographs called by Fiske "the only intelligent modern treatise on +the life and voyages of this navigator." + +Fiske, John, _The Discovery of America_, Boston, 1899; contains an +exhaustive critical examination of Vespucci's voyages to which the +reader should refer for more extended information. + + + + +AMERIGO VESPUCCI[1] + + + + +I + +YOUNG AMERIGO AND HIS FAMILY + +1451-1470 + + +Cradled in the valley of the Arno, its noble architecture fitly +supplementing its numerous natural charms, lies the Tuscan city of +Florence, the birthplace of immortal Dante, the early home of Michael +Angelo, the seat of the Florentine Medici, the scene of Savonarola's +triumphs and his tragic end. Fame has come to many sons of Florence, +as poets, statesmen, sculptors, painters, travellers; but perhaps none +has achieved a distinction so unique, apart, and high as the subject +of this volume, after whom the continents of the western hemisphere +were named. + +Amerigo Vespucci was born in Florence, March 9, 1451, just one hundred +and fifty years after Dante was banished from the city in which both +first saw the light. The Vespucci family had then resided in that city +more than two hundred years, having come from Peretola, a little town +adjacent, where the name was highly regarded, as attached to the most +respected of the Italian nobility. Following the custom of that +nobility, during the period of unrest in Italy, the Vespuccis +established themselves in a stately mansion near one of the city +gates, which is known as the Porta del Prato. Thus they were within +touch of the gay society of Florence, and could enjoy its advantages, +while at the same time in a position, in the event of an uprising, to +flee to their estates and stronghold in the country. + +While the house in which Christopher Columbus was born remains +unidentified, and the year of his birth undecided, no such ambiguity +attaches to the place and year of Vespucci's nativity. Above the +doorway of the mansion which "for centuries before the discovery of +America was the dwelling-place of the ancestors of Amerigo Vespucci, +and his own birthplace," a marble tablet was placed, in the second +decade of the eighteenth century, bearing the following inscription: + + "_To AMERICO VESPUCCIO, a noble Florentine, + Who, by the discovery of AMERICA, + Rendered his own and his Country's name illustrious, + [As] the AMPLIFIER OF THE WORLD. + Upon this ancient mansion of the VESPUCCI, + Inhabited by so great a man, + The holy fathers of Saint John of God + Have placed this Tablet, sacred to his memory._ + A.D. 1719." + +At that time, about midway between the date of Vespucci's death and +the present, the evidence was strong and continuous as to the +residence in that building (which was then used as a hospital) of the +family whose name it commemorates. Here was born, in 1451, the third +son of Anastasio and Elizabetta Vespucci, whose name, whether rightly +or not, was to be bestowed upon a part of the world at that time +unknown. + +The Vespuccis were then aristocrats, with a long and boasted lineage, +but without great wealth to support their pretensions. They were +relatively poor; they were proud; but they were not ashamed to engage +in trade. Some of their ancestors had filled the highest offices +within the gift of the state, such as _prioris_ and _gonfalonieres_, +or magistrates and chief magistrates, while the first of the Vespuccis +known to have borne the praenomen Amerigo was a secretary of the +republic in 1336. + +It is incontestable that Amerigo Vespucci was well-born, and in his +youth received the advantages of an education more thorough than was +usually enjoyed by the sons of families which had "the respectability +of wealth acquired in trade," and even the prestige of noble +connections. No argument is needed to show that the position of a +Florentine merchant was perfectly compatible with great +respectability, for the Medici themselves, with the history of whose +house that of Florence is bound up most intimately, were merchant +princes. The vast wealth they acquired in their mercantile operations +in various parts of Europe enabled them to pose as patrons of art and +literature, and supported their pretensions to sovereign power. The +Florentine Medici attained to greatest eminence during the latter +half of the century in which Amerigo Vespucci was born, and he was +acquainted both with Cosimo, that "Pater Patriae, who began the +glorious epoch of the family," and with "Lorenzo the Magnificent," who +died in 1492. + +The Florentines, in fact, were known as great European traders or +merchants as early as the eleventh century, while their bankers and +capitalists not only controlled the financial affairs of several +states, or nations, but exerted a powerful influence in the realm of +statesmanship and diplomacy. The little wealth the Vespucci enjoyed at +the time of Amerigo's advent was derived from an ancestor of the +century previous, who, besides providing endowments for churches and +hospitals, left a large fortune to his heirs. His monument may be seen +within the chapel built by himself and his wife, and it bears this +inscription, in old Gothic characters: "The tomb of Simone Piero +Vespucci, a merchant, and of his children and descendants, and of his +wife, who caused this chapel to be erected and decorated--for the +salvation of her soul. Anno Dom. 1383." + +The immediate ancestors, then, of Amerigo Vespucci were highly +respectable, and they were honorable, having held many positions of +trust, with credit to themselves and profit to the state. At the time +of Amerigo's birth his father, Anastasio Vespucci, was secretary of +the Signori, or senate of the republic; an uncle, Juliano, was +Florentine ambassador at Genoa; and a cousin, Piero Vespucci, so ably +commanded a fleet of galleys despatched against the corsairs of the +Barbary coast that he was sent as ambassador to the King of Naples, by +whom he was specially honored. + +Another member of the family, one Guido Antonio, became locally famous +as an expounder of the law and a diplomat. Respecting him an epitaph +was composed, the last two lines of which might, if applied to +Amerigo, have seemed almost prophetic: + + "_Here lies GUIDO ANTONIO, in this sepulchre-- + HE WHO SHOULD LIVE FOREVER, + Or else never have seen the light._" + +This epitaph was written of the lawyer, who departed unknown and +unwept by the world, while his then obscure kinsman, Amerigo, +subsequently achieved a fame that filled the four quarters of the +earth. + +The youth of Amerigo is enshrouded in the obscurity which envelops +that of the average boy in whatever age, for no one divined that he +would become great or famous, and hence he was not provided with a +biographer. This is unfortunate, of course, but we must console +ourselves with the thought that he was not unusually precocious, and +probably said little that would be considered worth preserving. It +happened that after he became world-large in importance, tales and +traditions respecting his earliest years crept out in abundance; but +these may well be looked upon with suspicion. We know scarcely more +than that his early years were happy, for he had a loving mother, and +a father wise enough to direct him in the way he should travel. + +It does not always follow that the course the father prescribes is the +best one in the end, for sometimes a boy develops in unsurmised +directions; and this was the case with Amerigo Vespucci. The fortunes +of the family being on the wane, he was selected as the one to +retrieve them, and of four sons was the only one who did not receive a +college education. The other three were sent to the University of +Pisa, whence they returned with their "honors" thick upon them, and +soon lapsed into obscurity, from which they never emerged. That is, +they never "made a mark" in the world; save one brother, Girolamo, who +made a pilgrimage to Palestine, where he lived nine years, suffered +much, and lost what little fortune he carried with him. + +He may have thought, perhaps, in after years, that if he had not +belonged to a family containing the world-famed navigator his exploits +would have brought him reputation; but it is more probable that if he +had not written a letter to his younger brother, Amerigo, the world +would never have heard from him at all. However, he was the first +traveller in the family, and with his university education he should +have produced a good account of his adventures; but if he ever did so +it has not been preserved from oblivion. + +Amerigo was not given a college education, but something--as it +eventuated--vastly better. His father had a brother, a man of +erudition for his time, who had studied for the Church. This learned +uncle, Georgio Antonio Vespucci, was then a Dominican friar, respected +in Florence for his piety and for his learning. About the year 1450, +or not long before Amerigo was born, he opened a school for the sons +of nobles, and in the garb of a monk pursued the calling of the +preceptor. His fame was such that the school was always full, yet when +his brother's child, Amerigo, desired to attend, having arrived at the +age for receiving the rudiments of an education, he was greeted +cordially and given a place in one of the lower classes. It may be +imagined that he would have been favored by his uncle; but such seems +not to have been the case, for the worthy friar was a disciplinarian +first of all. He had ever in mind, however, the kind of education +desired by his brother for Amerigo, which was to be commercial, and +grounded him well in mathematics, languages, cosmography, and +astronomy. His curriculum even embraced, it is said, statesmanship and +the finesse of diplomacy, for the merchants of Vespucci's days were, +like the Venetian consuls, "very important factors in developing +friendly international relations." + +There was then a great rivalry between Venice, Florence, Genoa, and +Pisa for the control of trading-posts in the Levant, which carried +with them the vast commerce of the Orient, then conducted by way of +the Mediterranean, the Black, and the Caspian seas, and overland by +caravans with India and China. At the time our hero was growing into +manhood, in the latter half of the fifteenth century, Florence, "under +the brilliant leadership of the Medici and other shrewd merchant +princes, gained control of strategic trading-posts in all parts of the +[then known] world, and secured a practical monopoly in the trade +through Armenia and Rhodes.... It was from banking, however, that +Florence derived most of her wealth. For some time her bankers +controlled the financial markets of the world. Most of the great loans +made by sovereigns during this period, for carrying on wars or for +other purposes, were made through the agency of Florentine bankers. +Even Venetian merchants were glad to appeal to her banks for loans. In +the fifteenth century Florence had eighty great banking-houses, many +of which had branches in every part of the world."[2] + +It is evident, therefore, that the sagacious Anastasio Vespucci had +mapped out a great career for the son whom he had chosen to recreate +the fortunes of his house. He was to be a banker, a diplomat; +eventually he might attain, like the greatest of the Medici, to the +station and dignities of a merchant prince. To this end the worthy +Georgio Antonio ever strove, and as he found his nephew a tractable +and studious pupil, he congratulated himself and his family that in +Amerigo they had the individual who was to restore the prestige of +their ancient name. + +But alas! the sequel proved that Friar Georgio was too ambitious, and +had overshot the mark. In his desire to turn out a finished product, a +scholar that should be a credit to his school and an ornament to his +family, he not only inculcated the essentials for a commercial +education, but, as has already been mentioned, led his eager follower +into the wider fields of astronomy and cosmography. All he knew--and +that included all the ancients knew--of these abstruse sciences he +imparted to Amerigo, and in the end, so far as we can judge, the young +man became more proficient in them than any other person of his age +and time. So it eventuated that those studies, which were intended +merely as subsidiary to the more serious pursuit, became the prime +factors in shaping his career. They were his stepping-stones to +greatness, as were his mercantile transactions; but, anticipating +somewhat the events of his later life, we shall find that they did not +conduce to the acquisition of wealth. + +"In Florence," says the author previously quoted, "more than in any +other Italian city during the Middle Ages, was displayed the direct +influence of commerce upon the developments of all the finer elements +of material and immaterial civilization. She was the Athens of Italy, +and her art, literature, and science was the brightest gleam of +intellectual light that was seen in Europe during that age. It was +from Florence, more than from any other source, that came the +awakening influence known as the Renaissance." + +This truth we see exemplified in the formative period of Amerigo +Vespucci's life, for, in order to become qualified to adorn the high +position of a prince of commerce, he was as carefully trained as if to +fill a prelate's chair or grasp the helm of state. So reluctant was +his uncle, the good old monk Georgio, to relinquish his talented +nephew to the world, that we find them in company as late as 1471, as +attested by this letter, written in Latin by Amerigo to his father, in +October of that year: + + "_To the Excellent and Honorable Signor Anastasio Vespucci._ + + "HONORED FATHER,--Do not wonder that I have not written to + you within the last few days. I thought that my uncle would + have satisfied you concerning me, and in his absence I + scarcely dare to address you in the Latin tongue, blushing + even at my deficiencies in my own language. I have, besides, + been industriously occupied of late in studying the rules of + Latin composition, and will show you my book on my return. + Whatever else I have accomplished, and how I have conducted + myself, you will have been able to learn from my uncle, + whose return I ardently desire, that, under his and your own + joint directions, I may follow with greater facility both my + studies and your kind precepts. + + "George Antonio, three or four days ago, gave a number of + letters to you to a good priest, Signor Nerotto, to which he + desires your answer. There is nothing else that is new to + relate, unless that we all desire greatly to return to the + city. The day of our return is not yet fixed, but soon will + be, unless the pestilence should increase and occasion + greater alarm, which may God avert! + + "He, George Antonio, commends to your consideration a poor + and wretched neighbor of his, whose only reliance and means + are in our house, concerning which he addresses you in full. + He asks you, therefore, that you would attend to his + affairs, so that they may suffer as little as possible in + his absence. + + "Farewell, then, honored father. Salute all the family in + my behalf, and commend me to my mother and all my elder + relatives. + + "Your son, with due obedience, + "AMERIGO VESPUCCI."[3] + +The cause of Amerigo's absence from Florence was, it is said, the +terrible plague which swept over that city and for a time paralyzed +its activities. All who were able fled to the country, and, Friar +Georgio's school having been broken up by the scattering of his +pupils, he and Amerigo retired to their family estate, at or near +Peretola, there to await the subsidence of the epidemic. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] This name is variously spelled, as, for example: Albericus, +Alberico, Almerigo, Americo, Americus, Amerigo; Despuche, Vespuche, +Vespuchy, Vespuccio, Vespucius, Vespucci. The best writers use either +the Italian, Amerigo Vespucci, or the Latinized, Americus Vespucius, +with good authority for both. + +[2] From the _General History of Commerce_, by W. C. Webster, Ph.D. + +[3] This letter was discovered by Signor Bandini, author of the _Vita +e Lettre di Amerigo Vespucci_, 1745, in the Strozzi Library. Harrisse +says, "This, and two or three signatures added to receipts, which were +brought to light by Navarrete, constitute the only autographs of +Vespucius known." + +In the original paper he uses the Latin form, Vespucius; but in a +letter written in 1508, when he was pilot-major of Spain, he signs +himself "Amerigo Vespucci." + + + + +II + +AMERIGO'S FRIENDS AND TEACHERS + +1470-1482 + + +Florence, in Vespucci's day, was the home of genius, of culture, and +of art. Amerigo, doubtless, was acquainted with some of her sons whose +fame, like his own, has endured to the present day, and will last for +all time. The great Michael Angelo, who was born at or near Florence +in 1475, and whose patron was Lorenzo the Magnificent, was his +contemporary, although the artist and sculptor survived the discoverer +more than fifty years. Savonarola, who came to Florence in 1482, was +just a year the junior of Amerigo, and is said to have been an +intimate friend of his uncle, who, like himself, belonged to the +Dominican order. The young man may not have been touched by +Buonarroti's art, nor have been moved by Savonarola's preaching, but, +like the former, he possessed an artistic temperament, and, like the +latter, he was an enthusiast. + +The man, however, who, next to his uncle, shaped Amerigo's career and +turned him from trade to exploration, was a learned Florentine named +Toscanelli. If you have followed the fortunes of Christopher Columbus, +reader, you have seen this name before, for it was Toscanelli who, in +the year 1474, sent a letter and a chart to the so-called discoverer +of America, which confirmed him in the impression that a route to +India lay westward from Europe across the "Sea of Darkness." + +It is not known just when Amerigo first met "Paul the Physicist," as +Toscanelli was called in Florence; but it may have been in youth or +early manhood, for aside from the fact that "all the world" knew and +reverenced the famous _savant_, there was the inclination arising from +a mutual interest in cosmography and astronomy. Toscanelli was the +foremost scientist of his age, and as he was born in 1397, at the time +Amerigo met him he must have been a venerable man. He lived, however, +until the year 1482, and as the younger man was in Florence during the +first forty years of his life, and the last thirty of Toscanelli's, it +is more than probable that their intercourse was long and friendly. + +It is known, at least, that they were acquainted at the time the +learned doctor wrote Columbus, in 1474, and it does not require a +stretch of the imagination to fancy them together, and wondering what +effect that letter would have upon a man who entertained views similar +to their own. Columbus, it is thought, had then been pondering several +years over the possible discovery of land, presumably the eastern +coast of India, by sailing westward. "It was in the year 1474," writes +a modern historian, "that he had some correspondence with the Italian +savant, Toscanelli, regarding this discovery of land. A belief in such +a discovery was a natural corollary to the object which Prince Henry +of Portugal had in view by circumnavigating Africa, in order to find a +way to the countries of which Marco Polo had given golden accounts. It +was, in brief, to substitute for the tedious indirection of the +African route a direct western passage--a belief in the practicability +of which was drawn from a confidence in the sphericity of the +earth."[4] + +Later in life Columbus seems to have forgotten his indebtedness to +Toscanelli, and "grew to imagine that he had been independent of the +influences of his time," ascribing his great discovery to the +inspiration of one chosen to accomplish the prophecy of Isaiah. But +the venerable Florentine had pondered the problem many years before +Columbus thought of it. "Some Italian writers even go to the extent of +asserting that the idea of a western passage to India originated with +Toscanelli, before it entered the mind of Columbus; and it is highly +probable that this was the case." + +There is this in favor of Toscanelli: He was a learned man, while +Columbus was comparatively ignorant. He was then advanced in years, +and had given the greater portion of his life to the consideration of +just such questions, having had his attention called to them by +reading the travels of Marco Polo and comparing the information +therein contained with that derived from Eastern merchants who had +traded for many years in the Orient. He was not a sailor, nor a +corsair--though Columbus had been both, and had followed the sea for +years--but he was an astronomer, and he knew more of the starry +heavens, as well as of the earth beneath them, than any other +scientist alive. "It was Toscanelli who erected the famous solstitial +gnomon at the cathedral of Florence." For his learning he was honored, +when but thirty years of age, with the curatorship of the great +Florentine library, and for nearly sixty years thereafter he passed +his days amid books, charts, maps, and globes. + +As a speculative philosopher, he had arrived at a correct conclusion +respecting the sphericity of the earth, and, with all the generosity +of a humanitarian, he freely communicated his ideas to others. +Columbus would have excluded every other human being from +participating in his thoughts, and arrogated to himself alone the +right to navigate westerly. This was the difference between the +broad-minded philosopher and the narrow-minded sailor who by accident +had stumbled upon a theory. The philosopher said, "It belongs to the +world!" The ignorant sailor cried, "It is mine!" + +Toscanelli advanced the theory, but it was Columbus who put it to the +test, and reaped all the rewards, as well as suffered for the +mistakes. For mistakes there were, and the chief error lay in +supposing the country "discovered" by Columbus pertained to the +Indies. He died in that belief, and also Toscanelli, who passed away +ten years before the first voyage made to that land, subsequently +known as America. In one sense, perhaps, the Florentine doctor was the +means of that first voyage of Columbus having been accomplished, for +the chart he sent him made the distance between Europe and the western +country seem so short that it was undertaken with less reluctance, and +persisted in more stubbornly, than it might otherwise have been. But +this was a mistake in detail only, and not in theory. A line was +projected from about the latitude of Lisbon, on the western coast of +Europe, to the "great city of Quinsai," as described by Marco Polo, on +the opposite shores of Asia. This line was divided into twenty-six +spaces, of two hundred and fifty miles each, making the total distance +between the two points sixty-five hundred miles, which Toscanelli +supposed to be one-third of the earth's circumference. + +[Illustration: A CONJECTURAL RESTORATION OF TOSCANELLI'S MAP] + +In short, Toscanelli calculated the distance, made a conjectural chart +embodying the results of his readings of Aristotle, Strabo, and +Ptolemy, of his conversations during many years with Oriental +travellers, and his own observations. He sent this chart to Columbus; +the latter adopted it as his guide, and by means of it, faulty as it +was, achieved his great "discovery." Whose, then, is the merit of this +achievement? Does it not belong as much to Toscanelli as to Columbus? + +To whomsoever the credit may be given--whether to the man who +conceived the idea, or to him who developed it, and whether or not +Columbus intentionally appropriated the honor and glory +exclusively--by the irony of fate, there stood a man at Toscanelli's +elbow, as it were, when he wrote to the Genoese, who was destined to +rob him of his great discovery's richest reward. This man was Amerigo +Vespucci, after whom--though unsuggested by him and unknown to +him--the continents of America were named, by strangers, before +Christopher Columbus had lain a year in his grave! + +It is not at all improbable that Vespucci was aware of the +correspondence between Toscanelli and Columbus, as he was then +acquainted with the former, and at the age of twenty-three was +intensely interested in the pursuits of the learned physician. Next +to Toscanelli, in fact, he was probably the best-informed man then +living in Florence as to the studies to which his friend had devoted +the better part of his life, and it is not unreasonable to suppose +that he saw the letters before they were sent to Columbus. + +But this is a trivial matter compared with the importance of these +letters, in a consideration of the effect they produced upon the mind +of Columbus, for, if they did not suggest to him the idea of voyaging +westerly to discover the Indies, they certainly confirmed him in the +opinion that such a voyage could be successfully made. By a strange +freak of fate these letters were preserved in the _Life of Columbus_, +written by his son Fernando, and there can be no question of their +authenticity. They breathe the spirit of benevolence for which +Toscanelli was noted, and indicate the greatness of the man--a +greatness decidedly in contrast to the mean and petty nature of his +correspondent, who would have perished sooner than allow information +so precious to escape from him to the world. + +Toscanelli's first letter was written in Florence, June 25, 1474, and +is as follows: + + "_To Christopher Columbus, Paul the Physicist wishes + health._ + + "I perceive your noble and earnest desire to sail to those + parts where the spice is produced, and therefore, in answer + to a letter of yours, I send you another letter which, some + days since, I wrote to a friend of mine, a servant of the + King of Portugal before the wars of Castile, in answer to + another that he wrote me by his highness's order, upon this + same account. And I also _send you another sea-chart_, like + the one I sent to him, which will satisfy your demands. This + is a copy of the letter: + + "_'To Ferdinand Martinez, Canon of Lisbon, Paul the + Physicist wishes health._ + + "'I am very glad to hear of the familiarity you enjoy with + your most serene and magnificent king, and though I have + very often discoursed concerning _the short way there is + from hence to the Indies_, where the spice is produced, by + sea (which I look upon to be shorter than that you take by + the coast of Guinea), yet you now tell me that his highness + would have me make out and demonstrate it, so that it may be + understood and put in practice. + + "'Therefore, though I could better show it to him with a + globe in my hand, and make him sensible of the figure of the + world, yet I have resolved, to make it more easy and + intelligible, to show the way on a chart, such as is used in + navigation, and therefore I send one to his majesty, made + and drawn with my own hand, wherein is set down the _utmost + bounds of the earth, from Ireland in the west to the + farthest parts of Guinea_, with all the islands that lie in + the way; opposite to which western coast is described the + beginning of the Indies, with the islands and places whither + you may go, and how far you may bend from the North Pole + towards the Equinoctial, and for how long a time--that is, + how many leagues you may sail before you come to those + places most fruitful in spices, jewels, and precious stones. + + "'Do not wonder if I term that country where the spice + grows, _West_, that product being generally ascribed to the + _East_, because those who sail westward will always find + those countries in the west, and those who travel by land + eastward will always find those countries in the east! The + straight lines that lie lengthways in the chart show the + distance there is from west to east; the others, which cross + them, show the distance from north to south. I have also + marked down in the chart several places in India where ships + might put in, upon any storms or contrary winds, or other + unforeseen accident. + + "'Moreover, to give you full information of all those places + which you are very desirous to know about, you must + understand that none but traders live and reside in all + those islands, and that there is as great a number of ships + and seafaring people, with merchandise, as in any other part + of the world, particularly in a most noble port called + Zaitun, where there are every year a hundred large ships of + pepper loaded and unloaded, besides many other ships that + take in other spices. This country is mighty populous, and + there are many provinces and kingdoms, and innumerable + cities, under the dominion of _a prince called the Grand + Khan_, which name signifies king of kings, who for the most + part resides in the province of Cathay. His predecessors + were very desirous to have commerce and be in amity with + Christians, and two hundred years since sent ambassadors to + the Pope, desiring him to send them many learned men and + doctors, to teach them our faith; but by reason of some + obstacles the ambassadors met with they returned back, + without coming to Rome. Besides, there came an ambassador to + Pope Eugenius IV., who told him of the great friendship + there was between those princes and their people, and the + Christians. _I discoursed with him a long while_ upon the + several matters of the grandeur of their royal structures, + and of the greatness, length, and breadth of their rivers, + and he told me many wonderful things of the multitude of + towns and cities along the banks of the rivers, upon a + single one of which there were two hundred cities, with + marble bridges of great length and breadth, adorned with + numerous pillars. + + "'This country deserves as well as any other to be + discovered; and there may not only be great profit made + there, and many things of value found, but also gold, + silver, many sorts of precious stones, and spices in + abundance, which are not brought into our ports. And it is + certain that many wise men, philosophers, astrologers, and + other persons skilled in all arts and very ingenious, govern + that mighty province and command their armies. From Lisbon + directly westward there are in the chart twenty-six spaces, + each of which contains two hundred and fifty miles, to the + most noble and vast city of Quinsai, which is one hundred + miles in compass--that is, thirty-five leagues. In it there + are ten marble bridges. The name signifies a heavenly city, + of which wonderful things are reported, as to the ingenuity + of the people, the buildings, and the revenues. + + "'This space above mentioned is _almost the third part of + the globe_. The city is in the province of Mangi, bordering + on that of _Cathay_, where the king for the most part + resides. From the island of Antilla, which you call the + Island of the Seven Cities, and whereof you have some + knowledge, to the most noble island of _Cipango_ are ten + spaces, which make two thousand five hundred miles. This + island abounds in gold, pearls, and precious stones; and, + you must understand, they cover their temples and palaces + with plates of pure gold; so that, for want of knowing the + way, all these things are concealed and hidden--and yet may + be gone to with safety. + + "'Much more might be said; but having told you what is most + material, and you being wise and judicious, I am satisfied + there is nothing of it but what you understand, and + therefore will not be more prolix. Thus much may serve to + satisfy your curiosity, it being as much as the shortness of + time and my business would permit me to say. So, I remain + most ready to satisfy and serve his Highness to the utmost, + in all the commands he shall lay upon me.'" + +A second communication followed the reply of Columbus, in which +Toscanelli wrote: + + "I received your letters with the things you sent me, which + I take as a great favor, and commend your noble and ardent + desire of sailing from east to west, _as it is marked out + in the chart I sent you_, which would demonstrate itself + better in the form of a globe. I am glad it is well + understood, and that the voyage laid down is not only + possible, but certain, honorable, very advantageous, and + most glorious among all Christians. You cannot be perfect in + the knowledge of it but by experience and practice, as I + have had in great measure, and by the solid and true + information of worthy and wise men, who are come from those + parts to this court of Rome, and from merchants who have + traded long in those parts and who are persons of good + reputation. So that, when the said voyage is performed, it + will be to powerful kingdoms, and to most noble cities and + provinces, rich, and abounding in all things we stand in + need of, particularly all sorts of spice in great + quantities, and stores of jewels. This will, moreover, be + grateful to those kings and princes who are very desirous to + converse and trade with Christians, or else have + communication with the wise and ingenious men in these + parts, as well in point of religion as in all sciences, + because of the extraordinary account they have of the + kingdoms and government of these parts. For which reasons, + and many more that might be alleged, I do not at all wonder + that you, who have a great heart, and all the Portuguese + nation, which has ever had notable men in all undertakings, + be eagerly bent upon performing this voyage." + +In these letters we have outlined by Toscanelli the very voyage that +Columbus took in 1492, eighteen years after he had received this +precious information. In his journal of that voyage he makes mention +of "_the islands marked on the chart_"; he was constantly seeking the +island of Atlantis, and hoped eventually to arrive at the great and +noble city of Quinsai, as well as at Cipango and Cathay. As for the +"Grand Khan"--of whom he had been informed by Toscanelli, who obtained +his information from Marco Polo's works--he not only sent an embassy +in search of him, when in Cuba, but was looking for him throughout all +his voyages. + +It is well known that Columbus was not aware that he had really +discovered a new world, but to the end of his days believed he had +merely arrived at the eastern coast of India. So persistent was he in +this belief that he falsified documents, and forced his crew to swear +to what they did not know--namely, that Cuba was a continent, and not +an island! He believed he had arrived at Cipango, when he heard the +Indian word, _cibao_, on the coast of Hispaniola; and he says, in a +letter written to Luis Santangel in 1493, "In Espanola there are +gold-mines, and thence to terra firma, as well as thence to the Grand +Khan, everything is on a splendid scale." Also, "When I arrived at +Juana [Cuba], I followed the coast to the westward, and found it so +extensive that I considered it must be a continent and a _province of +Cathay_!" + +Columbus, it has been said by some investigators, was a man of one +idea--and that idea not his own! "It is impossible," says Washington +Irving, in his _Life of Columbus_--which is, throughout, an elegant +but labored apology for its hero--"to determine the precise time when +Columbus first conceived the design of seeking a western route to +India. It is certain, however, that he meditated it as early as the +year 1474, though as yet it lay crude and unmatured in his mind." + +The year 1474, as we know, was that in which Toscanelli sent him the +letter and the chart. In that letter the route to India was laid down, +and on that chart it was made clear to any seafaring man how Cathay +might be reached, by merely sailing westward! By setting his helm, and +persisting in a westerly course, any one might reach the coast that +was supposed to lie opposite to Europe and Africa. Columbus did that, +according to directions received from Toscanelli eighteen years +before. He did nothing more, and he reached, not the coast of India, +but the outlying islands of a new world since called America. + +The idea, then, which Columbus claimed as exclusively his own was +conveyed to him by Toscanelli--or, at least, it so appears--and +Toscanelli obtained it from the ancients. For, says one having +authority, "Eratosthenes, accepting the spherical theory, had advanced +the identical notion which nearly seventeen hundred years later +impelled Columbus to his voyage. He held the known world to span +one-third of the circuit of the globe, as Strabo did at a later day, +leaving an unknown two-thirds of sea; and if it were not that the vast +extent of the Atlantic Sea rendered it impossible, one might even sail +from the coast of Spain to that of India, along the same parallel." + +And again: "An important element in the problem was the statement of +Marco Polo regarding a large island, which he called Cipango, and +which he represented as lying in the ocean off the eastern coast of +Asia. This carried the eastern verge of the Asiatic world farther +than the ancients had known, and, on the spherical theory, brought +land nearer westward from Europe than could earlier have been +supposed.... Humboldt has pointed out that neither Christopher +Columbus nor his son Ferdinand mentions Marco Polo; still, we know +that the former had read his book."[5] + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[4] Justin Winsor, in _The Narrative and Critical History of America_. + +[5] _Narrative and Critical History of America._ + + + + +III + +VESPUCCI'S FAVORITE AUTHORS + +1485-1490 + + +Books of any sort were few and precious during the youthful period of +Amerigo Vespucci's life, for the art of printing by the use of movable +type was invented about the time he was born, and most of the great +discoverers, including himself and Columbus, were to pass away before +the printing-press was introduced into America.[6] + +In the library of Paul the Physicist, however, the ardent scholar, +Vespucci, must have seen many manuscripts which he was permitted to +read, and among them, doubtless, the account of Marco Polo's +wonderful journeys. It is thought that Toscanelli may have possessed, +indeed, one of the first copies of _Marco Polo_ ever printed, as it +issued from a German press in 1477; or at least of the second edition, +which appeared in 1481, the year before he died. A copy of the first +Latin edition was once owned by Fernando Columbus, and has marginal +marks ascribed to his father. This edition was printed in 1485, the +year in which Hernando Cortes was born, and when Vespucci was +thirty-four years old. Another Latin edition was brought out in 1490, +an Italian in 1496, and a Portuguese in 1502, followed by many others. + +Marco Polo, the Venetian, exercised a strong and lasting influence +upon the minds of Toscanelli, Columbus, Vespucci, and, through them, +upon others, although he died in the first quarter of the century in +which the first-named of this distinguished triad was born. All these +had this birthright in common: they were Italians; and, moreover, it +was in Genoa, the reputed birthplace of Columbus, that Marco Polo's +adventures were first shaped into coherent narrative and given to the +world. + +These adventures have been stigmatized as romances; but surely +nothing could be more romantic than the manner in which they came to +be published, finally, after existing many years in the crude form of +notes and journals made by the traveller during his journeyings. In +the year 1298, three years after he had returned from his wanderings +and settled down in Venice, Polo was called upon to assist in the +defence of Curzola, during the hostilities which existed between his +own republic and that of Genoa. To oppose the Genoese admiral, Doria, +who had invaded their seas with seventy galleys, the Venetians fitted +out a fleet under Andrea Dandolo, and a great battle was fought off +the island of Curzola. Marco Polo commanded a galley of his own, and +fought with valor; but, in common with the commanders of more than +eighty Venetian vessels, he was defeated, the Genoese winning an +overwhelming victory. + +Taken as a prisoner to Genoa, he was cast into prison, where he +remained immured for a year. That was the year in which his wonderful +travels were woven into a story, for the entertainment of the young +Genoese nobility, who, when they learned that the famous Marco Polo +was a prisoner, flocked to his cell to see and converse with him. +Yielding to their solicitations, he sent to Venice for his notes of +travel, and during the days of his captivity dictated an account of +his experiences to a fellow-captive, one Rusticiano, of Pisa. + +The delighted young nobles devoured his wonderful story with avidity, +and they could scarcely wait its unfolding from day to day, for it was +to them a veritable tale of the _Arabian Nights_. From the Italian, in +which the traveller dictated his story, it was translated into Latin +and French, and scattered over Europe for others to enjoy. Thus Marco +Polo acquired fame through the misfortune which befell him when +fighting for Venice, and long before printing was invented his name +became almost a household word in Europe. As one who, though +indirectly, stimulated by his Oriental researches the first great +ventures into the Occident, Marco Polo deserves a monument, or, at +least, should not be omitted from a memorial group that contains such +famous Italians as Columbus, Vespucci, Toscanelli, and Verrazano. +Admittedly, he deserves a chapter in this biography, and we cannot do +better, perhaps, than glance at his history. + +If Marco had been consulted in the choice of his immediate ancestry, +he could not have done better than fortune served him in the person of +his father, Nicolo Polo, who was a nobleman and a merchant of Venice. +He was a traveller prior to the birth of his son, for just previous to +that event, which occurred nearly two hundred years before Amerigo +Vespucci was born, he and his brother set out for Constantinople. +Thence they went into Armenia, and around the south coast of the +Caspian Sea to Bokhara, where they met some Persian envoys who were +bound for Cathay, or China, and who persuaded them to go along. + +At Peking, it is supposed, they met the great and powerful Kublai +Khan, Emperor of the Mongols, and Tartars, who received them kindly +and at whose court they remained a year. They were the first Europeans +he had ever seen, and such was his interest in their stories of +strange peoples and governments that he commissioned them as envoys to +the pope, giving them letters in which he expressed his desire that +Europeans learned in the arts and sciences should be sent for the +instruction of his people. Then they were reluctantly dismissed, with +gifts of gold and spices, and after many perilous adventures finally +reached their home in Venice. They had been gone almost ten years, and +when Nicolo Polo first saw his son, on his return to Venice, Marco was +a youth at school, well advanced in his studies. + +Two years later, when Marco was about twelve, the three Polos set out +on their return to Cathay, accompanied by two friars, who were +"endowed with ample powers and privileges, the authority to ordain +priests and bishops, and to grant absolution in all cases, as fully as +if the pope were personally present." They took with them rich +presents for the khan, including a bottle of precious oil from the +holy sepulchre in Jerusalem, which was supposed to possess miraculous +virtues. The journey was commenced in or about the year 1271, but, +owing to innumerable and vexatious delays on the way, the Polos did +not reach the court of the grand khan until the spring of 1275. They +were more than three years in making the journey, but in spite of +difficulties and dangers these remarkable men persisted until the +object of their travels was accomplished. The friars had become +alarmed at the prospect of peril to themselves, and early in the +undertaking beat a retreat to Acre, so the three Venetians alone +arrived at Chambalu, and delivered to the grand khan the letters and +presents from the pope. They were received with extreme cordiality by +the khan, who was especially pleased with young Marco, and accepted +the presents with delight, the holy oil from Jerusalem being +reverently cherished. + +Marco was introduced to the khan by Nicolo, as "your majesty's servant +and my son"; but had he been a son of the ruler himself he could not +have received greater honors than were bestowed upon him by the +emperor. Having a natural aptitude for acquiring languages, he soon +could read and write four different dialects, and being possessed of +great intelligence and shrewdness withal, he was sent by the khan on +important missions to various parts of his kingdom. He acquitted +himself so well on these embassies, some of which required his absence +from the capital for many months, and he brought back such interesting +accounts of the people he met and their customs, that he was +constantly employed. + +In this manner he acquired, during many years of service in high +positions, a most intimate acquaintance with the khan's dominions, and +became immensely rich. His father and uncle shared wealth and honors +with him, for they likewise were congenially employed; but the time +came at last when their desire to revisit Venice became too strong to +resist. They craved the khan's permission to depart; but when the old +monarch heard their request he flew into a passion, declaring that he +would never allow them to go. They should remain with him and become +the richest men in the world. + +Marco was sent off on another mission, this time by sea, and, +discovering that there was direct communication between Cathay and the +Indies, he entreated the khan to allow the Polos to go on a voyage, +promising faithfully that they would return after a short stay with +their friends in Venice. The old khan gave his consent reluctantly, +overwhelming them with gifts at their departure, among other things +giving them a tablet of gold, on which were engraved his orders to all +the subjects in his vast dominions to provide guides, escorts, +pilots--every convenience for their voyage and journey--without cost. +He also authorized them to serve as his ambassadors to the pope and +other European potentates, presented them with many precious stones, +including rubies of great value, and money enough to defray their +expenses for at least two years. From all this it will be seen that +the grand khan was a very munificent prince, whose deeds must have +made a lasting impression upon the minds of the generation in which he +lived. + +Fourteen large vessels were contained in the fleet he furnished the +Polos, for with them was embarked, with a train of ambassadors, a +noble maiden of Cathay who was to become the bride of a "king of the +Indies" known as Argon. The voyage was so protracted that the king had +died before she reached her destination, and whose bride she became +was never known to the Polos, though they faithfully acquitted +themselves of their charge, and then continued on towards the +frontiers of Persia. Two years had been consumed in voyaging to Java, +Sumatra, and along the coast of southern India. Three more elapsed +before they finally reached their native city, in 1295, after an +absence of nearly twenty-five years. Nobody in Venice knew them then, +except by name, for Niccolo and his brother were advanced in age, +and Marco had grown from a boy to manhood, while in their dress and +manners they were more like Tartars than Venetians, and had almost +completely lost their native speech. + +[Illustration: MARCO POLO] + +Many of their former friends and relations were dead, and the +survivors were at first inclined to denounce them as impostors, until +the fertile imagination of Marco hit upon an expedient. They were +invited to a magnificent banquet, at which the three Polos appeared +arrayed in robes of crimson velvet, which, after their guests had +arrived, they threw off and gave to their attendants. Then, after the +last course was served, they produced from their queer Tartarian +garments, which they ripped open for the purpose, precious gems by the +handful, and displayed them to the astonished guests as their +credentials. + +They were promptly received into the best Venetian society, Maffei, +the uncle, being appointed a magistrate, and Niccolo, the father, +espousing a beautiful young lady. Such Polos as still bear the +name--if there are any--must have descended from the children born of +this second marriage, for though Marco himself took a wife, several +years later, he left no male children to inherit the vast wealth that +gave him the title, in Venice, of "Marco Millioni." + +It was about three years after his return to Venice that Marco fell +into the hands of the Genoese, and a little later that, as narrated, +he wrote the story of his travels. His books abound in romantic +adventures, and many, probably, that are fabulous; but that it stamped +itself upon the times in which he lived and those of succeeding +generations, has been shown already. Nearly two hundred years after +the story was written, we find the Spaniards seeking the great island +of Cipango, of which the following is Marco Polo's description: + + "This is a very large island, fifteen hundred miles from the + continent [of Asia]. The people are fair, handsome, and of + agreeable manners. They are idolaters, and live quite + separate from all other nations. Gold is very abundant, and + no man being allowed to export it, while no merchant goes + thence to the main-land, the people accumulate a vast + amount. But I, Marco Polo, will give you a wonderful account + of a very large palace all covered with that metal, as our + churches are with lead. The pavements of its court, the + halls, windows, and every other part, have it laid on two + inches thick, so that the riches of this palace are + incalculable. Here are also pearls, large and of equal value + with the white, with many other precious stones. + + "Kublai, on hearing of this amazing wealth, desired to + conquer the island, and sent two of his barons with a very + large fleet containing warriors, both horsemen and on foot. + They sailed from Zaitun and Quinsai, reached the isle, + landed, and took possession of the plain and of a number of + houses; but they were unable to take any city or castle, + when a sad misadventure occurred. A storm threatened and + some of the troops were embarked; but about thirty thousand + were left upon a small and barren island by the sailing of + the ships. The sovereign and the people of the larger island + rejoiced greatly when they saw the host thus scattered and + many of them cast upon the islet. As soon as the sea calmed + they assembled a great number of ships, sailed thither and + landed, hoping to capture all those refugees. But when the + latter saw that their enemies had disembarked, leaving the + vessels unguarded, they skilfully retreated to another + quarter and continued moving about till they reached the + ships, when they went aboard without any opposition. They + then sailed direct for the principal island, where they + hoisted its own standards and ensigns. + + "On seeing these, the people believed their own countrymen + had returned, and allowed them to enter the city. Finding it + defended only by old men, the Tartars soon drove them out, + retaining the women as slaves. When the king and his + warriors saw themselves thus deceived and their city + captured, they were like to die of grief; but they assembled + other ships, and invested it so closely as to prevent all + communication. The Tartars maintained themselves thus seven + months, and planned day and night how they might convey + tidings to their master of their condition; but finding this + impossible, they agreed with the besiegers to surrender, + securing only their lives. This took place in the year 1269. + + "The grand khan ordered one of the commanders of the host + that had returned to lose his head, and the other to be sent + to the isle where he had caused the loss of so many men, and + there put to death. I have to relate, also, a very wonderful + thing: that these two barons took a number of persons in a + castle of Cipango, and because they had refused to surrender + ordered all their heads to be cut off. But there were eight + on whom they could not execute this sentence, because these + wore consecrated stones in their arms, between the skin and + the flesh, which so enchanted them that they could not die + by steel. They were therefore beaten to death with clubs, + and the stones, being extracted, were held very precious. + But I must leave this matter and go on with the narrative." + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[6] The first printing-press in America was set up in Mexico in 1535, +the first book printed on it was probably _La Escala de San Juan +Climaco_, date 1536, and the first printer was Juan Pablos. The oldest +existing example of this first Mexican printing is said to be the +_Manual de Adultos_, bearing date 1540. + + + + +IV + +IN THE SERVICE OF SPAIN + +1490 + + +Before we revert to the real hero of this biography, let us seek to +identify the various names we find in Marco Polo's book, and in +Toscanelli's letter to Columbus, with the objects to which they were +applied. We will imagine ourselves with the first-named in far Cathay, +with the second in his library at Florence, and with the third as he +gropes his way along the shores of islands for the first time then +revealed to European eyes. + +If Columbus had known--what we now know--that thousands of miles +intervened between the places he was seeking and those to which he +misapplied their names, he would not have died in the belief that he +had discovered a new way to the Old World. To anticipate a little what +will be revealed later in the unfolding of this story: it was Amerigo +Vespucci, and not Columbus, who first applied to this newly discovered +hemisphere the title _Mundus Novus_, or New World. However, we will +not discuss that question now, but merely remark that _Cathay_ was +identical with northern China, while _Mangi_ was the southern +territory of that vast empire which, in Marco Polo's time, was in +possession of Kublai Khan. _Chambalu_, or Peking, was its capital, +while the "most noble and vast city of _Quinsay_," or Cansay, is the +ancient _King-sze_ connected with Peking by the grand canal. + +The large island of _Cipango_, or _Zipangu_, outlying upon the coast +of Cathay, was probably Japan, or Formosa; though its golden-tiled +temples may never have been seen by the Polos, nor its red pearls have +come into their hands. Forty years after Columbus began his vain +search, Pizarro found and plundered the gold-plated temples of Cuzco, +which were as rich as any described by Marco Polo in his account of +Cipango; and in the Bahamas archipelago, through which the Spaniards +passed in the voyage of 1492, precious pink pearls have been +discovered in great numbers and of surpassing beauty. + +Vasco da Gama, in 1497, was to open the way by water to the vast +Oriental seas--to Calicut and Cathay--but until the last quarter of +the fifteenth century the commerce of the eastern hemisphere depended +mainly upon transportation by land. "Voyages of much extent were +almost unknown, and the mariner confined himself to inland waters, or +hovered along the shores of the great Western Ocean, without venturing +out of sight of land.... The thriving republics of Italy were the +carriers of the world. For many centuries their citizens were almost +the only agents for commercial communication with the countries of the +East. Venice and Genoa maintained establishments on the farthest +shores of the Mediterranean and Black seas. + +"Immense caravans crossed the deserts of Arabia and Egypt, their +camels laden with the costly fabrics of the Indies, which were +received by the Italian traders from the hands of the Mahometans and +distributed over Europe. Here and there upon the deserts a green +oasis, with its bubbling spring or rippling rivulet, served these +mighty trains for a resting-place, where man and beast halted to +recover from the fatigues of their weary journeys. Occasionally, on +these spots where the soil was of sufficient fertility to sustain a +population, villages grew up. In rarer instances and in earlier ages, +large cities had been built upon these stopping-places and were for +the time the centres of the traffic.... Travellers of the present day +occasionally visit their sites, and tell wonderful tales of the +gigantic ruins of some Baalbec or Palmyra of the wilderness. + +"It was not to be supposed that the shrewd spirit of mercantile +enterprise and speculation would remain dormant in this state of +affairs. Traders in every part of Europe were alive to the advantages +to be derived from the discovery of a new route of transportation. +Several efforts were made, and in some cases attended with immense +profit and success, to communicate with India by the long and arduous +journey round the Black Sea, and through the almost unexplored regions +of Circassia and Georgia. The far-off shores of the Caspian were +reached by some travelling traders, and the geographical knowledge +they circulated on their return gave a new impulse to the growing +spirit of adventure. Apocryphal as the narratives of Marco Polo and +Mandeville appeared, there was a sufficient mixture of truth with +exaggeration to stimulate the minds of men, ever greedy of gain, and +the endless wealth of the grand khan and his people were the subjects +of many eager and longing anticipations."[7] + +The Polos were merely the forerunners, the pioneers, to the far +Cathay, and in the fourteenth century missionaries and merchants +followed on their trail with varying success. The death of Kublai Khan +had relieved them from their obligation to return; but soon after they +had reached Venice, in 1295, a Franciscan monk, John of Monte Corvino, +penetrated to Chambalu and established missions there. In the year +1338 an ambassador arrived at Avignon from the then reigning Khan of +Cathay, and in return John de Marignoli, a Florentine, was sent to the +court at Chambalu, where he remained four years as legate of the holy +see. Commercial travellers followed after them, and about 1340 a +guide-book was written by another Florentine, Francesco Pelotti, who +was a clerk in the great trading-house of Bardi, or Berardi, with +which, at a later date, Amerigo Vespucci was connected in Spain. + +"When the throne of the degenerate descendants of Ghengis Khan began +to totter to its fall, missions and merchants alike disappeared from +the field. Islam, with all its jealousies and exclusiveness, had +recovered its grasp over Central Asia. Night again descended upon the +farther East, covering Cathay, with those cities of which the old +travellers had told such marvels, Chambalu and Cansay, Zaitun and +Chinkalan. And when the veil rose before the Portuguese and Spanish +explorers of the sixteenth century those names were heard of no +more.... + +"But for a long time all but a sagacious few continued to regard +Cathay as a region distinct from any of the new-found Indies; while +map-makers, well on into the seventeenth century, continued to +represent it as a great country lying entirely to the north of China +and stretching to the Arctic Sea. It was Cathay, with its outlying +island of Zipangu, that Columbus sought to reach by sailing westward, +penetrated as he was by his intense conviction of the smallness of the +earth and of the vast extension of Asia to the eastward. To the day of +his death he was full of the imagination of the proximity of the +domain of the grand khan to the islands and coasts which he had +discovered. And such imaginations are curiously embodied in some maps +of the early sixteenth century, which intermingle on the same +coast-line the new discoveries, from Labrador to Brazil, with the +provinces and rivers of Marco Polo's Cathay."[8] + +Having shown the state of European geographical knowledge in the +fifteenth century, in the hope thereby of throwing light upon the +conditions which surrounded Vespucci at the time, we will now follow +as closely as possible the career which was then opening before him. +He was, as we have stated, keenly alive to what was taking place in +the world around him, and especially interested in geographical +discoveries. Although it is not likely that he had an abundance of +ready money, having been so many years engaged in preparation for his +great pursuit, without immediate recompense of any sort, yet we learn +from the records of his life that he was already making a collection +of all the charts, maps, and globes that he could find. He had +assembled the best works of the most distinguished projectors, and for +one of the finest then available, "a map of sea and land," made in +1439 by one Gabriel de Valesca, he paid the large sum of one hundred +and thirty ducats, equivalent to more than five hundred dollars at the +present day. There was danger then, his parents and friends thought, +of the abstruse and unprofitable science of cosmography absorbing him +entirely; but, though he may have indulged in the hope of devoting his +life to the studies which had so enriched the mind of his friend +Toscanelli, he was rudely awakened from his day-dream by a family +catastrophe. + +Mention has been made of one of his brothers, Girolamo, who, about the +year 1480, left home and went to Asia Minor, including in his travels +a trip to Palestine. He finally established himself in one of the +Grecian cities, and, being of a hopeful turn, sent for and obtained +the greater portion of his father's money, with which he engaged in +trade. All went well for a time, and the Vespuccis congratulated +themselves upon having a son of the family finally embarked on the +full tide of commercial prosperity. + +Nine years went by, and nothing but good news came from the absent +Girolamo; but one day, in 1489, disastrous tidings arrived. A +Florentine pilgrim, returning from a pious visit to the holy sepulchre +in Jerusalem, brought Amerigo a letter from his brother. It was dated +July 24th, and contained information to the effect that while Girolamo +was attending religious services at a convent in his neighborhood his +house was broken open and robbed. "At one fell swoop," he wrote, he +had been deprived of all his earnings during those nine years of toil, +besides the money his father had sent him, which represented the +accumulations of a lifetime. + +He did not explain how his entire capital was in cash at the time, +when he was supposed to be in trade; but even if derelict, he was too +far away to be sought out and his story investigated, so the loss was +accepted by the family as an indication that Providence was not +inclined to smile upon the substitution of the eldest for the youngest +son as a retriever of the Vespucci fortunes. All looked now towards +Amerigo to take up the distasteful business of money-making, for which +he had been so long in training, but which hitherto he had so +successfully evaded. In sorrow, it is said, but without a murmur, he +turned his back upon his maps, globes, books, and astrolabes and faced +the situation manfully. + +A position had long been open to him with the great trading-house of +Lorenzo de Medici, who was own cousin to the world-famous Lorenzo the +Magnificent, and he had only to apply in order to receive it. For the +Medici well knew the value of men--good and faithful men--trained, as +Amerigo was, in the diplomacy as well as the routine of commercial +life in that age. They needed just such a man as he in their foreign +agency, and bidding farewell to his family he set sail from Leghorn +for the Spanish city of Barcelona. + +The Iberian peninsula afforded at that time a most attractive field +for commercial as well as military adventure. The protracted wars with +the Moors, which had been carried on for generations, were drawing to +a close, but they had taken thither many a man athirst for glory, and +the demand for supplies gave the merchants great opportunities for +profits. The commerce of that day was, as we have seen, mainly in the +hands of Italian merchants, and as early as 1486 the Florentine +trader, Juan Berardi, obtained a safe conduct from Barcelona to +Seville, where, a few years later, we find Amerigo busily engaged in +outfitting vessels for the Spanish voyages of discovery. + +It was in the year 1490, or 1491, that Amerigo Vespucci went to Spain, +accompanied by his nephew Giovanni, and several other young +Florentines, who were placed in his charge by their parents that they +might receive the benefit of his experience and the advantages of +foreign travel. Giovanni, or Juan, was greatly attached to his uncle, +and subsequently went with him on his voyages to America. Many years +later the historian, Peter Martyr, wrote of him: "Young Vespucius is +one to whom Americus, his uncle, left the exact knowledge of the +mariner's faculties, as it were by inheritance, after his death, for +he is a very expert master in the knowledge of the compass and the +elevation of the pole star by the quadrant. He is my particular +friend, a witty young man in whose company I take great pleasure, and +therefore have him often for my guest." + +Whether Giovanni was associated with Amerigo in business is not +exactly known, nor can we tell just when the latter removed from +Barcelona into southern Spain; but there is a letter extant, written +at Cadiz in 1492, signed jointly by himself and a young Florentine, +Donato Nicollini, as agents either of the Medici or the house of +Berardi. The following extract was copied by his biographer, Bandidi, +from this manuscript in Amerigo's handwriting: + + "As it is necessary for one of us, either Amerigo or Donato, + to proceed in a short time to Florence, we shall be able to + give you better information on all points by word of mouth + than can possibly be done by letter. As yet, it has been + impossible to do anything respecting the freight of salt, + for want of a vessel, as for some time past, we are sorry to + say, no ship has arrived here which was not chartered. Be + assured that if one arrives we shall be active for your + interests. + + "You will have learned from the elder Donato the + good-fortune which has happened to his highness the king. + Assuredly the most high God has given him His aid; but I + cannot relate it in full. God preserve him many years--and + us with him. + + "There is nothing new to communicate. Christ preserve you. + + "DONATO NICOLLINI. + "AMERIGO VESPUCCI. + + "We date this January 30, 1492." + +The last decade of the fifteenth century, which Amerigo was to pass +chiefly in Spain, has been termed by historians the most important +epoch in modern history. It was, admittedly, the most important for +Spain, also for that country (then unknown) which her sailors were to +discover and explore, and which was to receive the name of the +Florentine merchant then living obscurely in Cadiz or Seville. + +"The foreign intercourse of the country," says the renowned author of +_Ferdinand and Isabella_, "was every day more widely extended. Her +agents and consuls were to be found in all the ports of the +Mediterranean and the Baltic. The Spanish mariner, instead of creeping +along the beaten track of inland navigation, now struck boldly across +the great Western Ocean. The new discoveries had converted the land +trade with India into a sea trade, and the nations of the peninsula, +which had hitherto lain remote from the great highways of commerce, +now became the factors and carriers of Europe. + +"The flourishing condition of the nation was seen in the wealth and +population of its cities, the revenue of which, augmented in all to a +surprising extent, had increased in some forty and even fifty fold +beyond what they were at the commencement of Ferdinand and Isabella's +reign: the ancient and lordly Toledo; Burgos, with its bustling +industrious traders; Valladolid, sending forth thirty thousand +warriors from its gates; Cordova, in the south, and the magnificent +Granada, naturalizing in Europe the arts and luxuries of the East; +Saragossa, 'the abundant,' as she was called from her fruitful +territory; Valencia, 'the beautiful'; Barcelona, rivalling in +independence and maritime enterprise the proudest of the Italian +republics; Medina del Campo, whose fairs were already the great mart +for the commercial exchanges of the peninsula; and Seville, the golden +gate of the Indies, whose quays began to be thronged with merchants +from the most distant countries of Europe." + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[7] _The Life and Voyages of Americus Vespucius_, by C. Edwards +Lester, 1845. + +[8] Article, "China," in the _Encyclopaedia Britannica_. + + + + +V + +CONVERSATIONS WITH COLUMBUS + +1492 OR 1493 + + +While we cannot affirm that Christopher Columbus and Vespucci were +acquainted previous to the voyage which made America known to Europe, +it is well established that Amerigo was in Spain when his favored +rival sailed from Palos, in August, 1492, and also when he returned, +in March, 1493. In the very month of January, 1492, in which Vespucci +wrote the letter quoted in the previous chapter, Columbus and the +Spanish sovereigns signed the "capitulation" that set forth the +demands of the discoverer and the concessions of the king and queen. +That paper was signed and sealed in the palace of the Alhambra, not +far distant from Cadiz, and still nearer to Seville, whither Vespucci +removed soon after. He may have been there when Columbus passed +through the latter city on his way to Palos, Seville being in the +direct route between Granada and the Rio Tinto; but if he then saw and +conversed with him there is no record of the fact. + +What must have been his feelings, though, when he learned of the +transaction between Columbus and the sovereigns? Columbus had gained +permission to make--what he himself was far better equipped for--a +voyage across the Sea of Darkness, to the islands that lay on the +route of Marco Polo's Cathay. And Columbus had merely corresponded +with his master, Toscanelli, at whose feet he, Vespucci, had sat, and +during days and hours discussed the problem that his rival was now +going forth to solve! + +While Vespucci plodded, almost hopelessly, at Cadiz and Seville, +Columbus pushed forward preparations for his voyage, and finally set +sail. Did not Amerigo, then, send a sigh after him and his caravels, +and think regretfully of his maps, his charts, globes, and nautical +instruments lying dusty and disused in Florence? They were more to him +than anything else in the world. With their aid, and countenanced by +royal favor, _he_ might have been the fortunate one to adventure upon +the ocean, and seek the unknown regions which he was positive lay +there veiled from human sight. But he was pledged to repair the family +fortune, he was committed to the interests of his employers, and even +if the suggestion of embarking on a voyage of discovery came to him he +could not entertain it for an instant. He could not then; but perhaps +opportunity might yet offer, he thought, and so sent for his books, +charts, and instruments, in order to perfect himself in cosmography +and nautical science. He became so proficient that some years after he +was appointed by King Ferdinand pilot-major of Spain, and even the +charts that Columbus made were brought to him for correction or +verification. + +The months went by, spent by Columbus in "making history," by Vespucci +in lading ships for others to sail in, and in the intervals of +business poring over his books and charts. At last, in the spring of +1493, one day a courier came dashing into Seville with the news of +Columbus's return, by way of Portugal, a letter having arrived from +Lisbon addressed to the sovereigns, and another for Santangel, +secretary to the king. Then Vespucci knew his opportunity had taken +flight, for the New World had been discovered, the glory belonged to +Columbus! + +Soon after the return of the voyagers to Palos, he may have seen the +triumphal procession led by Columbus to Barcelona, and probably had +speech with him and with some of his sailors. He saw the six Indians +who had been made captive in the islands and were brought to Seville, +for they remained there some time while Columbus was awaiting orders +from Barcelona. A letter from the sovereigns came at last, addressed +to "Don Cristobal Colon, Admiral of the Ocean Sea and Viceroy of the +Indies," which probably Amerigo himself perused--with what a sickening +of heart may be imagined--for it contained a memorandum from the +sovereigns referring to the equipment of a second expedition, and his +firm received the contract. Vespucci was then connected with the house +of Berardi (having left the employ of the Medici), either as +contracting agent or partner. Whatever relation he stood in to the +firm, it was a most responsible one, for to him was committed the +furnishing of a large fleet without delay. + +It was about the last of March, or early in April, that Columbus +delivered to him the order from the king and queen, and then set out +for Barcelona overland. He arrived there duly, to be received with +almost royal honors, and meanwhile the house of Berardi, under the +active supervision of Vespucci, was busy with the preparation of the +fleet. Ships were sought and chartered; caravels built, bought, and +repaired; munitions provided and crews of sailors assembled, which +Vespucci was obliged to hold and keep together against the sailing of +the squadron. + +And what was the personal appearance of these two great navigators, +thus so strangely brought into business relations, and whose fame in +after times was to fill the world? Although there is no portrait +existing of Columbus which we can affirm to be authentic, still verbal +portraits have been left by his contemporaries which convey to us the +impression that the "Admiral" was tall and stalwart, dignified in +bearing, with fair complexion, blue eyes, and hair then silvery gray. + +Amerigo Vespucci was his exact opposite, in superficial +characteristics, for he was under rather than above the middle height, +"thick-set and brawny," with a dark complexion, black hair mixed with +gray, and flashing black eyes. An authentic portrait, painted at a +later date, shows him with head nearly bald, encircled only by a +fringe of hair, prominent cheek-bones, aquiline nose, a firm, sweet +mouth, and without the thick black beard he wore when he first met +Columbus. His temper was mild, while that of Columbus was hasty, +though firmly controlled, save on a few occasions when, tried beyond +measure, it burst its bounds and swept away all opposition. But both +great men were courteous in speech, the dignified demeanor of Columbus +commanding admiration, while the modesty of Vespucci won the +friendship of all with whom he came in contact. + +The following dialogue between the two, or the purport of it, is +thought to have taken place soon after the return of Columbus from +Barcelona, either at Cadiz or Seville. It was but natural that the two +should meet, that they should exchange views and compare notes, for, +while Columbus had made the great discovery--through having been the +first to apply the theories of Toscanelli and the ancients--Vespucci +had for many years been thinking on the subject, and had enjoyed the +friendship of the physicist, whom both revered. Whether this +conversation is apocryphal or not, at least it embodies the divergent +views of the two, and does no violence to their sentiments, as can be +shown by their writings. It is adapted from Lester's _Americus +Vespucius_. + +Having with him, it is believed, the charts and books from which he +deduced his theories, Vespucci probably invited Columbus to his +lodgings, where the two spent many an hour in good-natured +controversy. Nearly twenty years had elapsed since the learned doctor +sent the chart and letter to Columbus, and now the latter, with the +laurels of the great "discovery" on his brow, was to engage in +argument with the person best acquainted with his life-work--who had +followed it from its very inception, and who was to enjoy its usufruct +forever. + +Let us try to imagine them within the walls of Vespucci's +house--whether in golden Seville or crystal Cadiz cannot be told; but +it is easy to find one like it to-day, for the architecture of neither +city has changed much since that time. The house is of stone, with +thick white walls and roof of tiles. The rooms are large and dreary, +but open on a court, or Moorish patio, around which they are ranged, +and where a fountain tinkles merrily. The floor of Vespucci's room is +tiled and damp, the furniture is scanty, but in the centre of the +apartment is a large and massive table, upon which are spread his +charts, while a globe--perhaps one of Behaim's, recently +constructed--stands in a corner. + +The arrival of the distinguished stranger at Vespucci's modest +lodgings causes a flutter of excitement, not only in the household, +but in the street, which is lined with gaping citizens, anxious to see +the new admiral, who has already taken on the dignities of his +station, is costumed in velvet, wears a sword at his side, and is +accompanied by a retinue of hired retainers. Vespucci, on the +contrary, shows no ostentation in his garb, for he is but a man of +business, and, entirely unconscious of any discrepancy in their +apparel, conducts his guest to the room where lie his treasures. + +To the credit of Columbus, it should be said, he sees in Vespucci only +the man of science, the student, the cosmographer, and, with the +gentle dignity inseparable from this man who had appeared before +kings and at courts, he compliments his host upon his collection. +They are soon in earnest consultation, scanning the sea-charts, +quoting authorities, advancing theories, becoming so absorbed as to +ignore the yawning hangers-on of the admiral's staff, who soon retire, +one after another, leaving the two geographers alone. + +Finally, Columbus says, looking up from the chart upon which he had +been sketching the route of his voyage: + +"It grieves me much, worthy Signor Vespucci, to learn from our friend +the Signor Berardi that you do not estimate as I do the result of our +recent navigation to the west. With your well-known skill in +cosmography, I fear me, you combine more of doubt than would be +becoming to a Christian navigator." + +"Your excellency mistakes my views greatly, or has been misinformed of +them," replies Vespucci, courteously. "Far from undervaluing the +effect of the discoveries which your genius has accomplished, I am the +rather disposed to place a greater estimate upon them than does the +Admiral Colon himself. If I judged them in the light in which they are +viewed by the most of those who hope to profit by them, then, indeed, +the imputation would be just; but I look not to such things, and well +I know that your own mind is above them." + +"In that respect you only do me justice. If I look for gain in aught +that I have undertaken, it is only that I may devote it to a holy +purpose. Have I not, even within the last few days, recorded my solemn +oath that I would, in the event of my prosperous arrival at the court +of the grand khan--whom, by the favor of God, I hope to convert to the +true faith--employ the riches I shall acquire in the equipment of a +force of four thousand horse and fifty thousand foot, for the recovery +of the holy sepulchre from the hands of the infidels? I am unwilling +to think that your speech tends to the end of imputing to me mercenary +motives; but wherein do we differ? Is not the way opened, and will not +the intercourse I mean to establish with the pagan monarch contribute +greatly to the purpose I keep ever in view? The holy father at Rome +himself lends me encouragement in my undertaking, and regards with +approbation my efforts to lead into the true Church so mighty a +potentate." + +"With all the deference that is due to your excellency's superior +wisdom and experience, I would state that therein lies the very point +of our difference. I deem it by no means certain that your ships have +touched the territories of the grand khan at all, but rather land that +has hitherto been alike unknown to him and to us. Thousands of leagues +may yet intervene between that land and his dominions, whether of sea +or earth remains to be discovered; and I judge in this wise as well +from the accounts of cosmographers who have written on the subject, as +from the description of the barbarous natives which you yourself have +fallen in with in recent discoveries. + +"The accounts of those who have penetrated to distant regions of the +East lead us to understand that the subjects of the grand khan live in +the midst of the most profuse wealth and luxury, and bedeck themselves +with superfine garments, gold, and jewelry. These people, however, are +wild and naked, little if any superior to the beasts, and cannot, I +think, be in any wise connected with a monarch of such magnificence. +My own thoughts carry me to the conviction that there exists near unto +the lands you have visited an immense country, which may possibly +belong to and be part of the grand khan's dominions, though I doubt if +such be the case. Marco Polo himself speaks of an island lying far out +in the ocean which washes the eastern shores of Asia--the great +Cipango, abounding in riches and precious stones, which has never been +subdued by the sovereign of Cathay, although he has made attempts to +conquer it. This island I deem it necessary to discover, in the first +place; then, even after it is circumnavigated or passed over--and the +last may be the easier way--a voyage of long duration will still have +to be accomplished before the empire of Cathay is reached. When I +speak of a passage over this unknown island, I do so in view of its +great extent, as I estimate it to be of such size that it might more +properly be designated _Terra Firma_,[9] being, according to my +calculations, as large as, if not larger than, the whole of Europe. +And herein do I estimate most highly the worth of the discoveries +which your excellency has made, and their importance to this realm, as +it will now be comparatively easy to pass the lands you have fallen +in with by sailing either in a more northerly or a more southerly +direction, in either case striking the country I have in my mind." + +"Nay, nay, good Signor Vespucci. I have the confidence in my heart +that you are mistaken. I feel, indeed, persuaded, by the many and +wonderful manifestations of divine Providence in my especial favor, +that I am the chosen instrument of God in bringing to pass a great +event: no less than the conversion of millions who are now existing in +the darkness of paganism. I would, indeed, provide for the good of the +poor natives we have already met, as well by building cities on their +islands and cultivating their lands, as by the erection of churches +and the establishment of Christian worship. But I would by no means +forget the greater end in view--namely, that of bringing to bear upon +the infidels the wealth and power of the vast kingdom of Cathay, that +thus being encompassed, by the armies from Europe on the one side, and +by the innumerable hosts of Asia on the other, they may be utterly +destroyed, and the tomb of our Lord be again placed in the possession +of the true believers.... In these things I marvel much at your +incredulity, Signor Vespucci, seeing that you have often had +opportunities of conversing with the learned physicist Paolo, your own +countryman--peace to his ashes!--who in his lifetime so nearly +coincided with me in opinion." + +"I have, indeed, as your excellency observes, oftentimes disputed and +argued with the venerable Toscanelli, and to him is due much of the +little knowledge I have been able to acquire in cosmography and +astronomy. But from him I also learned that the descriptions which are +given by Marco Polo were considered by many wise men as not altogether +beyond the reach of doubt. If, then, he is in error in some +particulars, how shall we draw the line, and say wherein he speaks the +truth of his own knowledge? And how could he know the distance which +exists between Cathay and the western shores of Europe, save by +hearsay, and the reports of mariners on that unknown shore, who +themselves must have been falsifiers, as it is well known that not one +of them has ever appeared here who might have estimated the distance? +I cannot, then, think that we are so near to Cathay as your excellency +supposes, and had much rather follow the opinion that you have +possibly approached the shore that has been hitherto represented as +inaccessible to mortals." + +"You speak of the paradise, which so many sound and able divines +assert to be still in existence on earth." + +"I do, though not so firmly believing in the relation as they do. If +there be such a place existing, as described by the learned St. Basil, +methinks it must be near unto those balmy isles which you have +discovered, so similar in climate and in verdancy." + +"Such, in sooth, has often been my opinion, and I deem it not to be +inconsistent with the other, which holds to the proximity of Cathay. +Oh, that I might, through the grace of God and intercession of the +saints, ever arrive at that blessed spot, where all is happiness and +beauty; where the harmonious songs of birds ever fall gratefully on +the ear; where the air is filled with the fragrance of flowers, and a +perpetual spring, combining with its own beauties those of every other +season of the year, continually prevails; where the limpid waters flow +smoothly and gently, or gush forth in purest fountains; where all is +suggestive of perennial youth, and decay and death are unknown! + +"But I perceive, Signor, that you are incredulous, as to this region +of bliss, and even smile at my belief. Remember, then, that herein I +only follow the opinions of the wise and learned fathers of our +Church, but that in regard to Cathay I am supported by ample proof, +from the discoveries of travellers and the relations of +cosmographers." + +"I am ever willing to yield to proofs; but methinks that the +foundation of the error under which your excellency seems to labor is +this: that you do not make sufficient allowance for exaggeration in +the accounts of the great traveller Marco Polo. It appears to me that +he has deceived himself as to the extent to which he penetrated +Cathay, and that he has thereby carried out the eastern coast too far +into the ocean. That being so, the learned Paolo, my countryman, in +following him, finds it necessary to shorten the extent of ocean which +intervenes between Cathay and Europe, in order to render accurate his +estimate of the circumference of the globe." + +"I note your objections, but cannot deem them correct, and yet hope to +deliver the letters of my sovereigns, with which I was charged in my +recent voyage, to the grand khan in person. But let us examine this +question of longitude, for therein I am interested deeply, and have +small doubt that I can turn you to my opinions." + +"Most gladly will I do so, most noble admiral, for I am strongly moved +to tempt the ocean myself, in the hope of adding something to the +knowledge of mariners." + +Within four or five years from the conjectural date of this dialogue, +Vespucci made his first voyage, and saw for himself some of those +"isles of paradise" which had so charmed Columbus. This was either in +the year 1497 or 1499, depending upon whether we accept his own +statement or the opinion of those who have challenged the authenticity +of his narrative. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[9] In this sense, the main-land, or continent, as opposed to islands, +the Latin form, _terra_, is almost invariably used by the Spaniards, +instead of _tierra_. + + + + +VI + +VESPUCCI'S DEBATABLE VOYAGE + +1497-1498 + + +It has been said that the house of Berardi, with which Vespucci was +connected as a partner, outfitted the large fleet for the second +voyage of Columbus in 1493; but this is true only in the sense that it +served the crown in the capacity of sub-contractor. The real head of +Indian affairs was the archdeacon of Seville, Juan Rodriguez de +Fonseca, who first rose to prominence at this time as general +superintendent of all the New-World business, and for thirty years +controlled the same. Invested by King Ferdinand with great, almost +unlimited, power, he has the credit of having founded the royal India +house, which was of such importance in the colonizing of new +territory, and by the favor of which alone any voyage of discovery +could be projected and carried to a successful conclusion. + +Fonseca has been held up to obloquy by the admirable eulogist of +Columbus, Mr. Irving, "as a warning example of those perfidious beings +in office, who too often lie like worms at the root of honorable +enterprise, blighting by their unseen influence the fruits of glorious +action and disappointing the hopes of nations." This denunciation he +incurred by thwarting the schemes of Columbus, in their minor details +at first, afterwards becoming his open and determined enemy. The first +instance in which the two great men fell out occurred when Fonseca +opposed the pretensions of Columbus and attempted to check his +extravagance in the matter of personal retinue. Among other +requisitions which Columbus sent in, those for ten footmen and twenty +menials for his domestic establishment were objected to by the +superintendent as superfluous. + +In connection with the treasurer, Francisco Pinelo, and the +_contador_, Juan de Soria, Fonseca used his utmost efforts to raise +the necessary funds for the expedition, to provide for the vast +expenses of which, says Mr. Irving himself, "the royal revenue arising +from two-thirds of the Church tithes was placed at the disposition of +Pinelo; and other funds were drawn from a disgraceful source--from +the jewels and other valuables, the sequestrated property of the +unfortunate Jews, banished from the kingdom according to a bigoted +edict of the previous year. As these sources were still inadequate, +Pinelo was authorized to supply the deficiency by a loan. Requisitions +were likewise made for provisions of all kinds, as well as for +artillery, powder, muskets, lances, corselets, and crossbows.... The +military stores which had accumulated during the war with the Moors of +Granada furnished a great part of these supplies." + +Having great difficulty, therefore, in meeting the really needful +demands of the expedition, it was quite natural that Fonseca should +desire to cut down those he deemed extravagant, and it must be +admitted that among these he might rightfully class the requisitions +of Columbus intended merely to support his newly acquired dignity as +admiral and grandee. He was supported by the sovereigns, however, and +Fonseca was rebuked for denying him anything he desired. He was +reminded that the expedition was intended solely to extend the power +and prestige of the crown, and that but for Columbus it would never +have been assembled, hence he was to study his wishes and comply with +his demands. This implied reproof cut the haughty prelate to the +heart, and from these trivial differences, remarks Mr. Irving, "we +must date the rise of that singular hostility which he ever afterwards +manifested towards Columbus, which every year increased in rancor, and +which he gratified in the most invidious manner by secretly +multiplying impediments and vexations in his path." + +But for the fact that this enmity existing between Fonseca and +Columbus made possible the first voyage of Amerigo Vespucci, we should +not feel called upon to more than mention the first named in +connection with an expedition in which all three were so deeply +interested. The fleet finally sailed away, pursued by the maledictions +of Fonseca, and followed by the heart-felt longings of Vespucci. Some +historians have stated that the Florentine sailed with Columbus on +this second voyage; but there are no records to prove this assertion, +and he himself never made the claim. We have every reason for +believing that he continued in his employment as purveyor to the crown +and contractor for the furnishing of fleets, with his residence +sometimes at Seville and sometimes at Cadiz, as occasion demanded, the +office of the India house being at the former city, and the port of +customs and sailing at the latter. He was, undoubtedly, brought into +more or less intimate contact with Fonseca, whose supervision of +colonial affairs and control of expeditionary fleets demanded his +constant attention for many years. He probably appreciated such a man +as Vespucci, whose even temper and mastery of detail, combined with +great sagacity and learning, were invaluable to the man who was +building up a government beyond the ocean. They were nearly of the +same age--Fonseca having been born in 1441--and at this time in the +fulness of their natural powers. + +Just what Vespucci was doing in the two years succeeding to the +departure of Columbus is not definitely known; but in December, 1495, +we find him actively engaged in settling the estate of Juan Berardi, +who had died in that month and year. He was then, it appears, the most +influential if not the sole member of the firm then resident in Spain, +and after Berardi's death he undertook and carried out the contracts +entered into by the senior partner with the government. + +About three hundred years after the death of Vespucci, some ancient +documents were discovered by a Spanish historian, in which it was +shown that on January 12, 1496, the royal treasurer, Pinelo, had paid +to Vespucci the sum of ten thousand maravedis on account. He advanced +pay and furnished subsistence for the mariners of an expedition which +sailed on February 3, 1496, and was wrecked two weeks later, with the +loss of several lives. The fragmentary records also show, apparently, +that in the year 1497 and the early part of 1498, Vespucci was "busily +engaged at Seville and San Lucar, in the equipment of the fleet with +which Columbus sailed on his third voyage"; and yet, according to a +letter which he wrote a former friend in 1504, he was himself upon the +ocean at that very time, seeking to rival Columbus in the discovery of +a continent! + +The exact truth may never be learned as to this reputed voyage of +Vespucci, which he calls his "first," and which his enemies say was +never made! It seems incredible that he should be the "sole authority" +for this voyage, and that all contemporary history "is absolutely +silent in regard to it"; yet, so far as we can ascertain, it is the +truth. Leaving for future discussion, however, the proof and disproof +of this voyage--merely pausing to remark that at the period mentioned +a man holding his relations to Fonseca would have had no difficulty in +obtaining permission to make such a voyage, even without the sanction +of royal authority--we will now peruse the famous letter. It is +addressed to "Piero Soderini, Perpetual Gonfaloniere of the Republic +of Florence," and was written in 1504. + + "MOST EXCELLENT SIR,-- ... The principal reason why I am + induced to write is the request of the bearer, Benvenuto + Benvenuti, the devoted servant of your Excellency and my + particular friend. He happened to be here in this city of + Lisbon, and requested that I would impart to your Excellency + a description of the things seen by me in various climes, in + the course of four voyages which I have made for the + discovery of new lands, two by the authority and command of + Don Ferdinand, King of Castile, in the great Western Ocean, + and the other two by order of Dom Manuel, King of Portugal, + towards the south. So I resolved to write, as requested, and + set about the performance of my task, because I am certain + that your Excellency counts me among the number of your most + devoted servants, remembering that in the time of our + youth, we were friends, going daily to study the rudiments + of grammar, under the excellent instruction of the venerable + brother of St. Mark, Friar Georgio Antonio Vespucci, my + uncle, whose counsels would to God I had followed! for then, + as Petrarch says, I should have been a different man from + what I am. + + " ... Your Excellency will please to observe that I came + into the kingdom of Spain for the purpose of engaging in + mercantile affairs, and that I continued to be thus employed + about four years [six or seven], during which I saw and + experienced the fickle movements of fortune, and how she + ordered the changes of these transitory and perishing + worldly goods, at one time sustaining a man at the top of + the wheel, and at another returning him to the lowest part + thereof, and depriving him of her favors, which may truly be + said to be lent. Thus having experienced the continual labor + of one who would acquire her favors, subjecting myself to + very many inconveniences and dangers, I concluded to abandon + mercantile affairs and direct my attention to something more + laudable and stable. For this purpose I prepared myself to + visit various parts of the world, and see the wonderful + things which might be found therein. Time and place were + very opportunely offered me when I came to this conclusion. + + "King Ferdinand of Castile had ordered four ships to go in + search of new lands, and I was selected by his highness to + go in that fleet, in order to assist in the discoveries. We + sailed from the port of Cadiz on the 10th of May, A.D. + 1497, and steering our course through the great Western + Ocean, spent eighteen months in our expedition, discovering + much land and a great number of islands, the largest part of + which were inhabited. As these are not spoken of by the + ancient writers, I presume they were ignorant of them. If I + am not mistaken, I well remember to have read in one of + their books, which I possessed, that this ocean was + considered unpeopled. In this voyage I saw many astonishing + things, as your Excellency will perceive by the following + relation. + + "We had sailed so rapidly that at the end of twenty-seven + days we came in sight of land, which we judged to be a + continent, being about a thousand leagues west of the + Fortunate Islands, now called the Grand Canaries. Here we + anchored our ships at a league and a half from the shore, + and, having cast off our boats and filled them with men and + arms, proceeded to land. Before we landed we were much + cheered by the sight of many people rambling along the + shore. We found that they were all in a state of nudity, and + they appeared to be afraid of us, as I suppose from seeing + us clothed and of a different stature from themselves. They + retreated to a mountain, and, notwithstanding all the signs + of peace and friendship we could make, we could not bring + them to parley with us; so, as the night was coming on and + the ships were anchored in an insecure place, we agreed to + leave there and go in search of some port or bay where we + could place our ships in safety. + + "We sailed two days along the coast, and on the morning of + the third day, as dawn appeared, we saw on shore a great + number of men, with their wives and children, all laden + with provisions. Before we reached the land many of them + swam to meet us, the distance of a bow-shot into the sea (as + they are most excellent swimmers), and they treated us with + as much confidence as if we had had intercourse with them + for a long time, which gratified us much. All that we know + of their life and manners is that they go entirely naked, + not having the slightest covering whatever; they are of + middling stature and very well proportioned, and their flesh + is a reddish color, like the skin of a lion; but I think if + they had been accustomed to wear clothing they would have + been as white as we are. They have no hair on the body, + except very long hair on the head; but the women especially + derive attractiveness from this. Their countenances are not + handsome, as they have large faces, which might be compared + with those of the Tartars. Both men and women are very + agile, easy in their carriage, and swift in running or + walking, so that the women think nothing of speeding a + league or two, as we have many a time beheld. + + "Their weapons are bows and arrows beautifully wrought, but + unfurnished with iron or any other hard metal, in place of + which they make use of the teeth of animals, or fish, or + sometimes a slip of hard-wood, made harder at the point by + fire. They are sure marksmen, who hit whatever they wish, + and in some parts the women also use the bow with dexterity. + They have other arms, such as lances and staves, with heads + finely wrought. When they make war they take their wives + with them--not to fight, but to carry provisions on their + backs, a woman frequently carrying a burden in this manner + for thirty or forty leagues, which the strongest man among + them could not do, as we have witnessed many times. + + "These people have no captains, neither do they march in + order, but each one is his own master. The cause of their + wars is not a love of conquest, or of enlarging their + boundaries, neither are they incited to engage in them by + inordinate covetousness [unlike the Spaniards], but from + ancient enmity which has existed among them in times past; + and having been asked why they made war, they could give us + no other reason than that they did it to avenge the deaths + of their ancestors. Neither have these people kings or + lords, nor do they obey any one, but live in their own + entire liberty; and the manner in which they are incited to + go to war is this: when their enemies have killed or taken + prisoners any of their people, the oldest relative rises and + goes about proclaiming his wrongs aloud, and calling upon + them to go with him to avenge the death of his relation. + Thereupon they are moved with sympathy and make ready for + the fight. + + "They have no tribunals of justice, neither do they punish + malefactors; and what is still more astonishing, neither + father nor mother chastises the children when they do wrong; + yet, astounding as it may seem, there is no strife between + them; or, to say the least, we never saw any. They appear + simple in speech, but in reality are very shrewd and cunning + in any matter which interests them. They speak but little, + and that little in a low tone of voice, using the same + accentuation that we use, and forming the words with the + palate, teeth, and lips; but they have a different mode of + diction. There is a great diversity of language among them, + inasmuch as every hundred leagues or so we found people who + could not understand one another. Their mode of life is most + barbarous; they do not eat at regular intervals; but it is a + matter of indifference to them whether appetite comes at + midnight or at mid-day, and they eat upon the ground at all + hours, without napkin or table-cloth, having their food in + earthen basins, which they manufacture, or in half-gourd + shells or calabashes. They sleep in nets of cotton, very + large and suspended in the air; and although this may seem a + very bad way of sleeping, I can vouch for the fact that it + is extremely pleasant, and one sleeps better thus than on a + mattress. They are neat and clean in their persons, which is + a natural consequence of their perpetual bathing; but some + of their habits are unmentionable.... + + " ... We are not aware that these people have any laws. + Neither are they like Moors or Jews, but worse than Gentiles + or Pagans, because we have never seen them offer any + sacrifice, and they have no houses of prayer. From their + voluptuous manner of life, I consider them as Epicureans. + Their dwellings are in communities and their houses are in + the form of huts, but strongly built of large tree-trunks + and covered with palm leaves, secure from winds and storms. + In some places they are of such great length that in a + single house we saw six hundred people, and we found that + the population of thirteen houses only amounted to four + thousand. They change their location every seven or eight + years, and on being asked why they did so they said it was + on account of the intense heat of the sun upon the soil, + which by that time became infected and corrupted, and caused + pains in their bodies, which seemed to us reasonable. + + "The riches of these people consist in birds' feathers of + beautiful colors, of beads, which they fabricate from + fish-bones or colored stones, with which they decorate their + cheeks, lips, and ears, and of many other things which are + held in little or no esteem by us. They carry on no + commerce, neither buying nor selling, and, in short, live + contentedly with what nature gives them. The riches which we + esteem so highly in Europe and other parts--such as gold, + jewels, pearls, and other wealth--they have no regard for at + all. They are liberal in giving, never denying one anything, + and, on the other hand, are just as free in asking.... + + "In case of death they make use of various funeral + obsequies. Some bury their dead with water and provisions + placed at their heads, thinking they may have occasion to + eat and drink, but they make no parade in the way of funeral + ceremonies. In some places they have a most barbarous mode + of interment, which is thus: When one is sick or infirm, and + nearly at the point of death, his relatives carry him into a + large forest, and there attaching one of their + sleeping-hammocks to two trees, they place the sick person + in it, and continue to swing him about for a whole day, and + when night comes, after placing at his head water and + provisions sufficient to sustain him for five or six days, + they return to their village. If the sick person can help + himself to eat and drink, and recovers sufficiently to be + able to return to the village, his people receive him again + with great ceremony; but few are they who escape this mode + of treatment, as most of them die without being visited, and + that is their only burial. + + "They use in their diseases various kinds of medicines, so + different from any in vogue with us that we are astonished + that any escaped. I often saw, for instance, that when a + person was sick with a fever, which was increasing upon him, + they bathed him from head to foot with cold water, and + making a great fire around him, they made him turn round in + a circle for about an hour or two, until they fatigued him + and left him to sleep. Many were cured in this way. They + also observe a strict diet, eating nothing for three or four + days. They practise blood-letting; not on the arm, unless in + the arm-pit, but generally taking it from the thighs and + haunches. Their blood or phlegm is much disordered on + account of their food, which consists mainly of the roots of + herbs, of fruit, and fish. They have no wheat or other + grain, but instead make use of the root of a tree [shrub] + from which they manufacture flour, which is very good and + called _huca_ [yucca]; the flour from another root is called + _kazabi_, and from another _igname_. + + "They eat little meat except human flesh, and you will + notice that in this particular they are more savage than + beasts, because all their enemies who are killed or taken + prisoners, whether male or female, are devoured with so much + fierceness that it seems disgusting to relate, much more to + see it done, as I, with my own eyes, have many times + witnessed this proof of their inhumanity. Indeed, they + marvelled much to hear us say that we did not eat our + enemies. + + "And your Excellency may rest assured that their other + barbarous customs are so numerous that it is impossible + herein to describe them all. As in these voyages I have + witnessed so many things at variance with our own customs, I + prepared myself to write a collection, which I call _The + Four Voyages_, in which I have related the major part of the + things I saw as clearly as my feeble capacity would permit. + This work is not yet published, though many advise me to + publish it. In it everything will appear minutely, therefore + I shall not enlarge any more in this letter, because in the + course of it we shall see many things which are peculiar. + Let this suffice for matters in general. + + "In this commencement of discoveries we did not see anything + of much profit in the country, owing as I think to our + ignorance of the language, except some few indications of + gold. We concluded to leave this place and go onward, and + coasted along the shore, making many stops, and holding + discourses with many people, until after some days we came + into a harbor, where we fell into a very great danger, from + which it pleased the Holy Spirit to deliver us. It happened + in this manner: We landed in a port where we found a village + built over the water, like Venice. There were about + forty-four houses, shaped like bells, built upon very large + piles, having entrances by means of draw-bridges, so that by + laying the bridges from house to house the inhabitants could + pass through the whole. + + "When the people saw us they appeared to be afraid of us, + and, to protect themselves, suddenly raised all their + bridges and shut themselves up in their houses. While we + were looking at them and wondering at this proceeding, we + saw, coming in from the sea, about two and twenty canoes, + which are the boats they make use of, and are carved out of + a single tree. They came directly towards our boats, + appearing to be astonished at our figures and dress, and + keeping at a little distance from us. This being the case, + we made signals of friendship to induce them to approach, + endeavoring to reassure them by every token of kindness; but + seeing that they did not come we went towards them. They + would not wait for us, however, but fled to the land, making + signs to us to wait, and giving us to understand that they + would return. They fled to a mountain, but did not tarry + long there, and when they returned brought with them sixteen + of their young maidens, and entering into their canoes came + near and put four of them into each boat, at which we were + very much astonished, as your Excellency may well imagine. + Then they mingled with their canoes among our boats, and we + considered their coming to us in this manner to be a token + of friendship. Taking this for granted, we saw a great crowd + of people swimming towards us from the houses without any + suspicion. At this juncture some old women showed themselves + at the doorways of the huts, wailing and tearing their hair, + as if in great distress. From this we began to be + suspicious, and had recourse to our weapons, when suddenly + the young girls, who were in our boats, threw themselves + into the sea, and the canoes at the same time moved away, + the people in them assailing us with their bows and arrows. + + "Those who came swimming towards us brought each a lance, + concealed as much as possible under the water, and their + treachery being thus discovered, we began not only to defend + ourselves, but to act severely on the defensive. We + overturned many of the canoes with our boats, and making + considerable slaughter among them they soon abandoned the + canoes altogether and swam for the shore. Fifteen or twenty + were killed, and many wounded, on their side, while on ours + five were slightly wounded, all the rest escaping by divine + Providence, and these five being quickly cured. We took + prisoners two of their girls and three men, and on entering + their huts found one sick man and two old women. Returning + to our boats and thence to the ships, with the five + prisoners, we put irons upon the feet of each, excepting the + two young females; yet when night came the two girls and one + of the men escaped, in the most artful manner in the world. + + "The next day we concluded to depart from this port, and at + length came to anchor at about eighty leagues distance, and + found another tribe of people whose customs and language + were very different from those we had last seen. We + determined to land, seeing there a great multitude numbering + about four thousand. They did not wait to receive us, but + fled precipitately to the woods, abandoning all their + things. We leaped ashore, and taking the path which led to + the wood, found their tents within the space of a bow-shot, + where they had made a great fire and two of them were + cooking their food, roasting many animals of various kinds. + + "We noticed that they were roasting a certain animal that + looked like a serpent; it had no wings, and was so + disgusting in appearance that we were astonished at its + deformity. As we went through their huts or tents, we found + many of these serpents alive. Their feet were tied, and they + had a cord about their snouts so that they could not open + their mouths, as dogs are sometimes muzzled so they may not + bite. These animals had such a savage appearance that none + of us durst turn one over, thinking they might be + poisonous.[10] They are about the size of a kid, about the + length and a half of a man's arm, and have long, coarse feet + armed with large nails. Their skin is hard, and they are of + various colors. They have the snout and face of a serpent, + and from the nose there runs a crest, passing over the + middle of the back to the root of the tail. We finally + concluded that they were serpents, and poisonous; yet, + nevertheless, they were eaten by the natives. + + " ... Finally these people became very friendly, told us + that this was not their place of dwelling, but that they had + come there only to carry on their fishery. They importuned + us so much to go to their village that, having taken + counsel, twenty-three of us Christians concluded to go with + them, well prepared, and with firm resolution to die + manfully if such was to be our fate. Three leagues from the + coast we arrived at a well-peopled village, where we were + received with so many and such barbarous ceremonies that no + pen is equal to the task of describing them. There was + dancing and singing, weeping mingled with rejoicing, and + great feasting. After having passed the night and half of + the next day, an immense number of people visiting us from + motives of curiosity, we determined to proceed still farther + inland, having been desired to visit other villages. And it + is impossible to tell how much honor they did us there. We + visited so many villages that we spent nine days in the + journey. On our return we were accompanied by a wonderful + number of both sexes, quite to the sea-shore; and when any + of us grew weary with walking, they carried us in their + hammocks, much at our ease. Many of them were laden with the + presents they made us, consisting of very rich plumage, many + bows and arrows, and an infinite variety of parrots, + beautiful and varied in colors. Others carried loads of + provisions and animals. For a greater wonder, I will tell + your Excellency that when we had to cross a river they + carried us on their backs. + + "Having arrived at the sea and entered the boats, which had + come ashore for us, we are astonished at the crowd which + endeavored to get into the boats to go to see our ships, for + they were so overloaded that they were ofttimes on the point + of sinking. We carried as many as we could on board, and so + many more came by swimming that we were quite troubled at + the multitude, although they were all naked and unarmed. + They marvelled greatly at the size of our ships, our + equipments, and implements. Here quite a laughable + occurrence took place, at their expense. We concluded to try + the effect of discharging some of our artillery, and when + they heard the thunderous report the greater part of them + jumped into the sea from fright, acting like frogs sitting + on a bank, who plunge into the water on the approach of + anything that alarms them. Those who remained on the ship + were so timorous that we repented of having done this. + However, we reassured them by telling them that these were + our arms, with which we killed our enemies. After they had + amused themselves on the ship all day, we told them that + they must go, as we wished to depart in the night; so they + took leave of us with many demonstrations of friendship, + even affection, and went ashore. + + "I saw more of the manners and customs of these people while + in their country than I care to dwell on here. Your + Excellency will notice that in each of my voyages I have + noted the most extraordinary things which have occurred, and + have compiled the whole into one volume, in the style of a + geography, and entitled it _The Four Voyages_. In this work + will be found a minute description of the things which I + saw; but, as there is no copy of it yet published, owing to + my being obliged to examine it carefully and make + corrections, it becomes necessary for me to impart them to + you herein. + + "This country is full of inhabitants and contains a great + many rivers. Very few of the animals are similar to ours, + excepting the lions, panthers, stags, hogs, goats, and deer, + and even these are a little different in form. They have + neither horses, mules, nor asses; neither cows, dogs, nor + any kind of domestic animals. Their other animals, however, + are so very numerous that it is impossible to count them, + and all of them so wild that they cannot be employed for + serviceable uses. But what shall I say of the birds, which + are so numerous and of so many species and varieties of + plumage that it is astounding to behold them? The country is + pleasant and fruitful, full of woods and forests which are + always green, as they never lose their foliage. The fruits + are numberless and totally different from ours. The land + lies within the torrid zone, under the parallel which + describes the Tropic of Cancer, where the pole is elevated + twenty-three degrees above the horizon. + + "A great many people came to see us and were astonished at + our features and the whiteness of our skins. They asked us + where we came from, and we gave them to understand that we + came from heaven, with the view of visiting the world, and + they believed us. In this country we established a baptismal + font, and great numbers were baptized. They called us, in + their language, _Carabi_, which means men of great wisdom. + The natives call this province _Lariab_. We left the port + and sailed along the coast, in sight of land, until we had + run, calculating our advances and retrogressions, eight + hundred and seventy leagues towards the northwest, making + many stops by the way and having intercourse with many + people. In some places we found traces of gold, but in small + quantities, it being sufficient for us to have discovered + the country and to know that there was gold in it. + + "We had now been thirteen months on the voyage, and the + ships and rigging were much worn, the men very weary. So by + common consent we agreed to careen our ships on the beach in + order to calk and pitch them anew, as they leaked badly, and + then to return to Spain. When we took this resolution we + were near one of the best harbors in the world, entering + which we found a vast number of people, who received us most + kindly. We made a breastwork on shore with our boats and + casks, and placed our artillery so it would play over them; + then, having unloaded and lightened our ships, we hauled + them to land and repaired them wherever they needed it. The + natives were of great assistance to us, continually + providing food, so that in this port we consumed very little + of our own. This served us a very good turn, for our + provisions were poor and the stock so much reduced at this + time that we feared it would hardly last us on our return to + Spain. + + "Having stayed here thirty-seven days, visiting their + villages many times, where they paid us the highest honors, + we wished to depart on our voyage. Before we set sail the + natives complained to us that at certain times in the year + there came from the sea into their territory a very cruel + tribe, who, either by treachery or force, killed many of + them and captured others, whom they ate, for they were + man-eaters. They signified to us that this tribe were + islanders, and lived at about one hundred leagues distance + at sea. They narrated this to us with so much simplicity and + feeling that we credited their story and promised to avenge + their great injuries; whereat they were rejoiced, and many + offered to go with us. We did not wish to take them for + many reasons, and only carried seven, on the condition that + they should come back in their own canoes, for we could not + enter into obligations to return them to their own country. + With this they were content, and then we parted from these + gentle people, leaving them very well disposed towards us. + + "Our ships having been repaired, we set sail on our return, + taking a northeasterly course, and at the end of seven days + fell in with some islands. There were a great many of them, + some peopled, others uninhabited. We landed at one of them, + where we saw many people, who called the island _Iti_. + Having filled our boats with good men, and put three rounds + of shot in each boat, we proceeded towards the land, where + we saw about four hundred men and many women, all naked, + like those we had seen before. They were of good stature and + appeared to be very warlike men, being armed with bows and + arrows and lances. The greater part of them carried staves + of a square form, attached to their persons in such a manner + that they were not prevented from drawing the bow. As we + approached within bow-shot of the shore, they all leaped + into the water and shot their arrows at us to prevent our + landing. They were painted with various colors and plumed + with feathers, and the interpreters with us said that when + they were thus painted and plumed they showed a wish to + fight. They persisted so much in their endeavors to deter us + from landing that we were at last compelled to fire on them + with our artillery. Hearing the thunder of our cannon and + seeing some of their people fall dead, they all retreated to + the shore. Having consulted together, forty of us resolved + to leap ashore and, if they waited for us, to fight them. + Proceeding thus, they attacked us and we fought about two + hours, with little advantage, except that our bow-men and + gunners killed some of their people and they wounded some of + ours. This was because we could not get a chance to use + lance or sword. We finally, by desperate exertion, were + enabled to flash our swords, and as soon as they had a taste + of our weapons they fled to the woods and mountains, leaving + us masters of the field, with many of their people killed or + wounded. This day we did not pursue them, because we were + much fatigued, but returned to our ships, the seven men who + had come with us being highly rejoiced. + + "The next day we saw a great number of people coming through + the country, still offering us signs of battle, sounding + horns and shells, and all painted and plumed, which gave + them a strange and ferocious appearance.[11] Whereupon all + in the ships held a grand council, and it was determined + that, since these people were determined to be at enmity + with us, we should go to meet them and do everything to + engage their friendship; but in case they would not receive + it, resolved to treat them as enemies and to make slaves of + all we could capture. Having armed ourselves in the best + manner possible, we immediately rowed ashore, where they did + not resist our landing, from fear, as I think, of our + bombardment. We disembarked in four squares, being + fifty-seven men, each captain with his own men, and then + engaged them in battle. After a protracted fight, having + killed many, we put them to flight and pursued them to their + village, taking about two hundred and fifty prisoners. We + then burned the village and returned victorious to the ships + with our prisoners, leaving many killed and wounded on their + side, while on ours only one died and not more than + twenty-two were wounded. The rest all escaped unhurt, for + which God be thanked! + + "We soon arranged for our departure, and the seven men, of + whom five were wounded, took a canoe from the island and, + with three male and four female prisoners that we gave them, + returned to their own country, very merry and greatly + astonished at our power. We also set sail for Spain, with + two hundred and twenty-three prisoners, and arrived at the + port of Cadiz on October 15, 1498, where we were well + received and found a market for our slaves. This is what + happened to me on this, my first voyage, that may be + considered worth relating." + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[10] These "serpents" were iguanas, and were seen and described by +Christopher and Bartholomew Columbus, long before Vespucci made his +voyages. + +[11] The fierce islanders, so accurately described by Vespucci, were +doubtless the Caribs, and the numerous islands were probably Grenada +and the Grenadines, perhaps including St. Vincent, in the north, where +descendants of those Caribs live to-day. + + + + +VII + +VESPUCCI'S "SECOND" VOYAGE + +1499-1500 + + +That letter from Vespucci to the friend of his youth, Soderini, +purporting to narrate the events of his first voyage, has proved a +prolific source of doubt and perplexity. Although it was written +before Columbus died, and although it was published while most of the +actors therein mentioned were yet living, its authenticity was +unchallenged until nearly a century after its appearance. Herrera, it +is believed, was the first to accuse Vespucci of "artfully and +wilfully falsifying in his narrative, with a view to stealing from +Columbus the honor of being the discoverer of America." This charge +was made public in his work on the West Indies, published in 1601, and +ever since Vespucci has been stigmatized as an impostor. + +There is no official record of the voyage he claimed to have made in +1497-1498, and historians are silent as to his actions, in fact, +during the period between 1496 and 1504. This signifies little, +according to the historian Gomara, who says: "Learning that the +territories which Columbus had discovered were very extensive, many +persons proceeded to continue the exploration of them. Some went at +their own expense, others at that of the king, all thinking to enrich +themselves, to acquire honor, and to gain the royal approbation. But, +as most of these persons did nothing but discover, memorials of them +all have not come to my knowledge, especially of those who went in the +direction of Paria, from the year 1495 to the year 1500." + +Some writers have sought to "establish an alibi" by showing that +Vespucci was in Spain throughout the period which, he says, was passed +by him at sea, on this "first" voyage; but they have not been +successful in doing so. Some, again, have declared that the narrative +of the "four" voyages, beginning in May, 1497, was made up of that on +which Vespucci certainly sailed with Ojeda, in May, 1499. "The points +of resemblance"--as the reader may see for himself--"are so many and +so striking as to seem not only conclusive, but to preclude any other +theory," says Alexander Humboldt, who, in his _Examen Critique_, made +an exhaustive research into the Vespucci letters. Humboldt completely +vindicated the character of Vespucci, leaving no shade of doubt upon +his integrity, but he did not unravel the mystery. + +How happens it that Vespucci could make a voyage of which no record +exists or was ever known to exist? Why did he not mention the names of +the fleet's commander? Why do his descriptions of scenery and people +so closely resemble those of scenery and people seen on the second +voyage? He alludes several times to his forthcoming book, _The Four +Voyages_ (_Quattro Giornate_); but no trace has ever been found of +that book, while the fragmentary letters to his "patrons," Soderini +and Francesco de Medici, have survived to the present day. + +Men of the keenest acumen and perfectly equipped for historical +research, such as Humboldt, Irving, and Navarrete, have devoted +themselves to the solution of this problem, but without complete +success. The first and the last named have cleared his name from the +aspersions of centuries; the second and third, in their endeavors to +magnify Columbus by belittling Vespucci, have not convinced posterity +that the Florentine was a liar and a villain. He was neither one nor +the other; and that he was far more humane than his friend Columbus +has been amply shown in his treatment of the Indians. He and his +companions made a few slaves; they attacked the cannibals in behalf of +rival natives; but they did not, in their lust for gold, put Indians +to the torture, enslave whole tribes and communities, and commit +massacres. + +Vespucci's character is comparatively free from the stain of +blood-guiltiness; from his dealings with men at all times, we infer +him upright and honorable; yet he rests under a cloud of suspicion, +because that so-called first voyage, which he says he took in +1497-1498, cannot be explained. Suspicion also attaches to his name +because it was chosen as an appellation for the New World, which +Columbus was the means of revealing to Europe; but for this (as will +be shown in a succeeding chapter) he was not accountable. + +Professor Fiske, following Vespucci's ardent defender, the Viscount +Varnhagen, deduces from the vague generalizations in this letter that +the voyage was made chiefly along the Honduras, Yucatan, Mexican, and +Florida coasts, as far north, perhaps, as Chesapeake Bay. The +cannibals attacked by the Spaniards were found, he says, in the +Bermudas--where no Indians were ever seen, so far as known, and no +cannibals inhabit, save, perhaps, the great Shakespeare's "Caliban." +He accounts for the lost voyage by declaring that it may have been +taken with Pinzon and Solis, who were said to have been on the coast +of Honduras in 1506. There is no certainty as to that date, and the +voyage may as well have been made in 1497-1498, as indirectly shown by +a passage in Oviedo's history, as follows: "Some persons have +attributed the discovery of the bay of Honduras to Don Christopher +Columbus, the first admiral; but this is not true, for it was +discovered by the pilots Vicente Yanez Pinzon, Juan Diaz de Solis, and +Pedro de Ledesma, with three caravels; and that was before Vicente +Yanez had discovered the river Amazon." + +The Amazon and a portion of the Brazil coast were discovered by Pinzon +in January, 1500; and as the historian has proved to his own +satisfaction that the gallant Vicente Yanez was in Spain during the +years 1505 and 1506, it is probable that Oviedo is right. It is also +probable, or at least possible, that Vespucci was with Pinzon on that +Honduras voyage as consulting navigator, having been sent by the king, +as he says, to "assist," in his capacity of astronomer and +cosmographer. In this capacity, in fact, he went on all his voyages, +for he rarely, if ever, held command. Captains, commanders, chief +mates, and admirals there might be in plenty, but such a pilot and +navigator as Vespucci was hard to find. + +It is not unreasonable to presume that they were together, for the one +was a skilful sailor, the other a great navigator, and both renowned +for their hardihood and daring. King Ferdinand had no more loyal +servants than these two, and as they had served him faithfully in +their respective professions, the one on land, the other at sea, and +inasmuch as both were intimately acquainted with Columbus and his +plans, it was like the crafty old king to send them off to scour the +seas his exacting "Admiral" claimed to control. Thereafter--whether +Pinzon and Vespucci sailed together or not--their voyages alternated +along the coast of South America, first one and then the other, and in +1505-1506 an expedition was actually projected, in which the king +intended both should share. It did not sail, because the Portuguese +objected, as its object was the exploration of the Brazilian coast +south of the Tropic of Capricorn, to all which the great rivals of the +Spaniards then made claim. + +A seeming confirmation of this voyage is found in the map Juan de la +Cosa made, in the year 1500, after he had been in company with Ojeda +and Vespucci to the coast of pearls. He was with Columbus, in 1494, +when the Admiral forced all his men to swear that Cuba was, to the +best of their belief, part of the Asian continent. Yet, within six +years, La Cosa depicts it on his map as an island--and that was before +Ocampo had proved it one, by sailing around it, in 1508. It is thought +that La Cosa obtained his information as to the insular character of +Cuba from Vespucci, when they voyaged together on the coast of Terra +Firma, which we now know as the northern shores of South America. + +Admitting, still, the critics say, that Vespucci made the voyage he +claimed, with Pinzon or with some one else, in 1497-1498, how does +that affect the claim of Columbus? It does not affect it at all, for, +though Vespucci may have discovered the continent a few months +previous to his rival--and he never put forth the claim that he did +so--Columbus, by his voyages of 1492 and 1493, led the way thither. If +Vespucci, as some have asserted, claimed to have sailed in 1497, in +order to establish a priority of discovery, he did it in a very +bungling manner, and at a time when it might easily have been refuted, +so many of his companions were then living. Besides, though his name +was bestowed upon the newly discovered continent--perhaps as a +consequence of the writing of this very letter--it was done without +his knowledge and without the remotest suggestion of such a thing from +him. This should be made clear: that Amerigo Vespucci had no thought +of depriving his friend, Christopher Columbus, of a single leaf of his +laurels, hard-won and well-deserved as he knew them to be. + +There is no doubt whatever that Vespucci made a voyage in 1499-1500, +along with Alonzo de Ojeda and the great pilot Juan de la Cosa, but +whether this may be styled his first or his second must be left to the +intelligence of the reader, for the historians are at odds themselves, +and it might seem presumptuous in the biographer to assume to decide. +This voyage was narrated by him in the following letter, written +within a month of his return, to Lorenzo di Pier Francesco de Medici, +of Florence. It is dated, "Seville, July 18, 1500," and has been +called by one of his countrymen "the oldest known writing of Amerigo +relating to his voyages to the New World." Mr. John Fiske, in _The +Discovery of America_, denounces this letter as a forgery; but why, +and for what reason it should have been written by another, he does +not state. + + "MOST EXCELLENT AND DEAR LORD,--It is a long time since I + have written to your Excellency, and for no other reason + than that nothing has occurred to me worthy of being + commemorated. This present letter will inform you that about + a month ago I arrived from the Indies, by way of the great + ocean, brought by the grace of God safely to this city of + Seville. I think your Excellency will be gratified to learn + the results of my voyage, and the most surprising things + which have been presented to my observation. If I am + somewhat tedious, let my letter be read in your more idle + hours, as fruit is eaten after the cloth is removed from the + table. + + "You will please to note that, commissioned by his highness + the King of Spain, I set out with two small ships, the 18th + of May, 1499, on a voyage of discovery to the southwest, by + way of the Fortunate Isles, which are now called the + Canaries. After having provided ourselves there with all + things necessary, first offering our prayers to God, we set + sail from an island which is called Gomera, and, turning our + prows southwardly, sailed twenty-four days with a fresh + wind, without seeing any land. At the end of that time we + came within sight of land, and found that we had sailed + about thirteen hundred leagues, and were at that distance + from the city of Cadiz, in a southwesterly direction. When + we saw the land we gave thanks to God, and then launched our + boats and, with sixteen men, went to the shore, which we + found thickly covered with trees, astonishing both on + account of their size and their verdure, for they never lose + their foliage. The sweet odors which they exhaled (for they + were all aromatic) highly delighted us, and we were rejoiced + in regaling our senses. + + "We rowed along the shore in the boats to see if we could + find any suitable place for landing; but, after toiling from + morning till night, we found no way of passage, the land + being low and densely covered with trees. We concluded, + therefore, to return to the ships and make an attempt to + land at some other spot. + + "One very remarkable circumstance we observed in these seas, + which was that, at fifteen leagues distance from the land, + we found the water fresh, like that of a river, and we + filled all our empty casks with it. Sailing in a southerly + direction, still along the coast, we saw two larger rivers + issuing from the land; and I think that these two rivers, by + reason of their magnitude, caused the freshness of the water + in the sea adjoining. Seeing that the coast was invariably + low, we determined to enter one of these rivers with the + boats, and did so, after furnishing them with provisions for + four days, and twenty men well armed. We entered the river + and rowed up it nearly two days, making a distance of about + eighteen leagues; but we found the low land still continuing + and so thickly covered with trees that a bird could scarcely + fly through them. + + "We saw signs that the inland parts of the country were + inhabited; nevertheless, as our vessels were anchored in a + dangerous place, in case an adverse wind should arise, at + the end of two days we concluded to return. Here we saw an + immense number of birds, including parrots in great variety, + some crimson in color, others green and lemon, others + entirely green, and others again that were black and + flesh-colored [these last were probably toucans]. And oh! + the songs of other species of birds, so sweet and so + melodious, as we heard them among the trees, that we often + lingered, listening to their charming music. The trees, too, + were so beautiful and smelled so sweetly that we almost + imagined ourselves in a terrestrial paradise; yet none of + those trees, or the fruit of them, were similar to anything + in our part of the world. + + "On our way back we saw many people of various descriptions + fishing in the river. Having arrived at our ships, we raised + anchor and set sail in a southerly direction, standing off + to sea about forty leagues. While sailing on this course, we + encountered a current running from southeast to northwest, + so strong and furious that we were put into great fear and + were exposed to imminent peril. This current was so strong + that the Strait of Gibraltar and that of the Faro of Messina + appeared to us like mere stagnant water in comparison with + it. We could scarcely make headway against it, though we had + the wind fresh and fair; so, seeing that we made no + progress, or but very little, we determined to turn our + prows to the northwest.[12] + + "As, if I remember aright, your Excellency understands + something of cosmography, I intend to describe to you our + progress in our navigation by the latitude and longitude. We + sailed so far to the south that we entered the torrid zone + and penetrated the circle of Cancer.... Having passed the + equinoctial line and sailed six degrees to the south of it, + we lost sight of the north star altogether, and even the + stars of Ursa Major--or, to speak better, the guardians + which revolve about the firmament--were scarcely seen. Very + desirous of being the author who should designate the other + polar star of the firmament, I lost, many a time, my night's + sleep, while contemplating the movement of the stars about + the southern pole. I desired to ascertain which had the + least motion, and which might be nearest to the firmament; + but I was not able to accomplish it with such poor + instruments as I used, which were the quadrant and + astrolabe. I could not distinguish a star which had less + than ten degrees of motion; so that I was not satisfied, + within myself, to name any particular one for the pole of + the meridian, on account of the large revolution which they + all made around the firmament. + + "While I was arriving at this conclusion, I recollected a + verse of our poet Dante, which may be found in the first + chapter of his "Purgatory," where he imagines he is leaving + this hemisphere to repair to the other and attempting to + describe the antarctic pole, and says: + + "'To the right hand I turned, and fixed my mind + On the other pole attentive, where I saw + Four stars ne'er seen before, save by the ken + Of our first parents. Heaven of their rays + Seemed joyous. O! thou northern site, bereft + Indeed, and widowed, since of these deprived!' + + "It seems to me that the poet wished to describe in these + verses, by the four stars, the pole of the other firmament, + and I have little doubt, even now, that what he says may be + true. I observed four stars in the figure of an almond which + had but little motion; and if God gives me life and health I + hope to go again into that hemisphere and not to return + without observing the pole. In conclusion I would remark + that we extended our navigation so far south that our + difference in latitude from the city of Cadiz was sixty + degrees and a half, because, at that city, the pole is + elevated thirty-five degrees and a half, and we had passed + six degrees beyond the equinoctial line. Let this suffice as + to our latitude. You must observe that this our navigation + was in the months of July, August, and September, when, as + you know, the sun is longest above the horizon in our + hemisphere and describes the greatest arch in the day and + the least in the night. On the contrary, while we were at + the equinoctial line, or near it, the difference between the + day and night was not perceptible. They were of equal + length, or very nearly so.... + + "It appears to me, most excellent Lorenzo, that by this + voyage most of the philosophers are controverted who say + that the torrid zone cannot be inhabited on account of the + great heat. I have found the case to be quite the contrary. + The air is fresher and more temperate in that region than + beyond it, and the inhabitants are more numerous here than + they are in the other zones, for reasons which will be given + below. Thus, it is certain, that practice is more valuable + than theory. + + "Thus far I have related the navigation I accomplished in + the South and West. It now remains for me to inform you of + the appearance of the country we discovered, the nature of + the inhabitants and their customs, the animals we saw, and + of many other things worthy of remembrance which fell under + my observation. After we turned our course to the north, the + first land we found inhabited was an island at ten degrees + distant from the equinoctial line [island of Trinidad]. When + we arrived at it we saw on the sea-shore a great many + people, who stood looking at us with astonishment. + + "We anchored within about a mile of land, fitted out the + boats, and twenty-two men, well armed, made for the land. + The people, when they saw us landing and perceived that we + were different from themselves (because they have no beards + and wear no clothing of any description, being also of a + different color--brown, while we were white), began to be + afraid of us and all ran into the woods. With great + exertion, by means of signs, we reassured them and found + that they were a race called cannibals, the greater part, or + all of whom, live on human flesh. Your Excellency may be + assured of this fact. They do not eat one another, but, + navigating with certain barks which they call canoes, they + bring their prey from the neighboring islands or countries + inhabited by those who are their enemies, or of a different + tribe from their own. They never eat any women, unless they + consider them as outcasts. These things we verified in many + places where we found similar people. We often saw the bones + and heads of those who had been eaten, and they who had made + the repast admitted the fact and said that their enemies + stood in greater fear of them on that account. + + "Still, they are a people of gentle disposition and fine + stature, of great activity and much courage. They go + entirely naked, and the arms which they carry are rare bows, + arrows, and spears, with which they are excellent marksmen. + In fine, we held much intercourse with them, and they took + us to one of their villages, about two leagues inland, and + gave us our breakfast. They gave whatever was asked of them, + though I think more through fear than affection; and after + having been with them all one day we returned to the ships, + sailing along the coasts, and finding another large village + of the same tribe. We landed in the boats and found they + were waiting for us, all loaded with provisions, and they + gave us enough to make a very good breakfast, according to + their ideas. + + "Seeing they were such kind people and treated us so well, + we did not take anything from them, but made sail until we + arrived at a body of water which is called the Gulf of + Paria. We anchored off the mouth of a great river, which + causes the gulf to be fresh, and saw a large village close + to the sea. We were surprised at the great number of people + to be seen there, though they were without weapons and + peaceably disposed. We went ashore with the boats, and they + received us with great friendship and took us to their + houses, where they had made good preparations for a feast. + Here they gave us three sorts of wine to drink; not the + juice of the grape, but made of fruits, like beer, and they + were excellent. Here, also, we ate many fresh acorns, a most + royal fruit, and also others, all different from ours, and + all of aromatic flavor. + + "What was more, they gave us some small pearls and eleven + large ones, telling us that if we would wait some days they + would go and fish for them and bring us many of the kind. We + did not wish to be detained, so, with many parrots of + different colors, and in good friendship, we parted from + them. From these people it was we learned that those of the + before-mentioned island were cannibals and ate human flesh. + We issued from the gulf and sailed along the coast, seeing + continually great numbers of people; and when we were so + disposed we treated with them, and they gave us everything + we desired. They all go as naked as they were born, without + being ashamed, and if all were related concerning the little + shame they have it would be bordering on impropriety, + therefore it is better to suppress it. + + "After having sailed about four hundred leagues, continually + along the coast, we concluded that this land was a + continent, which might be bounded by the eastern parts of + Asia, this being the commencement of the western parts of + the continent, because it happened that we saw divers + animals, such as lions, stags, goats, wild hogs, rabbits, + and other land animals which are not found in islands, but + only on the main-land. Going inland one day with twenty men, + we saw a serpent all of twenty-four feet in length and as + large in girth as myself. We were very much afraid, and the + sight of it caused us to return immediately to the sea. + Ofttimes, indeed, I saw many ferocious animals and enormous + serpents. When we had navigated four hundred leagues along + the coast, we began to find people who did not wish for our + friendship, but stood waiting for us with their bows and + arrows. When we went ashore they disputed our landing in + such a manner that we were obliged to fight them, and at the + end of the battle they found they had the worst of it, for, + as they were naked, we always made great slaughter. Many + times not more than sixteen of us fought with no less than + two thousand, in the end defeating them, killing many, and + plundering their houses. + + "One day we saw a great crowd of savages, all posted in + battle array, to prevent our landing. We fitted out + twenty-six men, well armed, and covered the boats on account + of the arrows which were shot at us and which always + wounded some before we landed. After they had hindered us as + long as they could, we leaped on shore and fought a hard + battle with them. The reason why they had so much courage + and made such great exertion against us was that they did + not know what kind of a weapon the sword was, or how it + cuts! So great was the multitude of people who charged upon + us, discharging at us such a cloud of arrows that we could + not withstand the assault, and, nearly abandoning the hope + of life, we turned our backs and ran for the boats. While + thus disheartened and flying, one of our sailors, a + Portuguese, who had remained to guard the boats, seeing the + danger we were in, leaped on shore and with a loud voice + called out to us: 'Face to the enemy, sons, and God will + give you the victory!' Throwing himself upon his knees, he + made a prayer, then rushed furiously upon the savages, and + we all joined him, wounded as we were. On that they turned + their backs and began to flee; and finally we routed them, + killing more than a hundred and fifty. We burned their + houses also--at least one hundred and eighty in number. + Then, as we were badly wounded and weary, we went into a + harbor to recruit, where we stayed twenty days, solely that + the physician might cure us. All escaped save one, who was + wounded in the left breast and died. + + "After we were cured we recommenced our navigation; and + through the same cause we were often obliged to fight with a + great many people, and always had the victory over them. + Thus continuing our voyage, we came to an island fifteen + leagues distant from the main-land. As at our arrival we + saw no collection of people, eleven of us landed. Finding a + path inland, we walked nearly two leagues and came to a + village of about twelve houses, in which were seven women + who were so large that there was not one among them who was + not a span and a half taller than myself. When they saw us + they were very much frightened, and the principal one among + them, who seemed certainly a discreet woman, led us by signs + into a house and had refreshments prepared for us. They were + such large women that we were about determining to carry off + two of the younger ones as a present to our king; but while + we were debating this subject, thirty-six men entered the + hut where we were drinking. They were of such great stature + that each one was taller when upon his knees than I when + standing erect. In fact, they were giants; each of the women + appeared a Penthesilia, and the men Antei. When they came + in, some of our number were so frightened that they did not + consider themselves safe, for they were armed with very + large bows and arrows, besides immense clubs made in the + form of swords. Seeing that we were small of stature they + began to converse with us, in order to learn who we were and + from what parts we came. We gave them fair words, and + answered them, by signs, that we were men of peace and + intent only upon seeing the world. Finally, we held it our + wisest course to part from them without questioning in our + turn; so we returned by the same path in which we had + come--they accompanying us quite to the sea-shore, till we + went aboard the ships. + + "Nearly half the trees on this island are of dye-woods, as + good as any from the East. Going from this island to another + in the vicinity, at ten leagues distance, we found a very + large village, the houses of which were built over the sea, + like those of Venice, with much ingenuity. While we were + struck with admiration at this circumstance, we determined + to go to see them; and as we went into their houses the + people owning them attempted to prevent us. They found out + at last the sharpness of our swords, and thought it best to + let us enter. Then we found these houses filled with the + finest cotton, and the beams of their dwellings are made of + dye-woods. In all the parts where we landed we found a great + quantity of cotton, and the country filled with + cotton-trees. All the vessels of the world, in fact, might + be laden in these parts with cotton and dye-wood. + + "We sailed three hundred leagues farther along this coast, + constantly finding savage but brave people, and very often + fighting with and vanquishing them. We found seven different + languages among them, each of which was not understood by + those who spoke the others. It is said that there are not + more than seventy-seven languages in the world; but I say + that there are _more than a thousand_, as there are more + than forty which I have heard myself. After having sailed + seven hundred leagues or more our ships became leaky, so + that we could hardly keep them free, with two pumps going. + The men also were much fatigued, and the provisions growing + short. We were then within a hundred and twenty leagues of + the island called Hispaniola, discovered by the Admiral + Columbus six [eight] years before. So we determined to + proceed to it and, as it was inhabited by Christians, to + repair our ships there, allow our men a little repose, and + recruit our stock of provisions; because, from this island + to Castile there are three hundred leagues of ocean, without + any land intervening. In seven days we arrived at this + island, where we stayed two months, refitted our ships, and + obtained a supply of provisions. + + "We afterwards sailed through a shoal of islands, more than + a thousand in number. We sailed in this sea nearly two + hundred leagues, directly north, until our people had become + worn with fatigue, through having been already nearly a year + at sea. Their allowance per diem was only six ounces of + bread for eating, and three small measures of water for + drinking. Whereupon we concluded to take some prisoners as + slaves, and loading the ships with them to return at once to + Spain. Going, therefore, to certain islands, we possessed + ourselves by force of two hundred and thirty-two, and then + steered our course for Castile. In sixty-seven days we + crossed the ocean, arriving at the Azores, thence sailed by + way of the Canary Islands and the Madeiras to Cadiz. + + "We were absent thirteen months on this voyage, exposing + ourselves to awful dangers, discovering a very large country + of Asia, and a great many islands, the largest of them all + inhabited. According to the calculations I have made with + the compass, we have sailed about five thousand leagues.... + We discovered immense regions, saw a vast number of people, + all naked, and speaking various languages, numerous wild + animals, various kinds of birds, and an infinite quantity of + trees, all aromatic. We brought home pearls in their + growing state, and gold in the grain; we brought two stones, + one of emerald color, the other of amethyst, which was very + hard, at least half a span long, and three fingers thick. + The sovereigns esteem them most highly and have preserved + them among their jewels. We brought home also a piece of + crystal, which some jewelers say is beryl, and, according to + what the Indians told us, they had a great quantity of the + same. We brought fourteen flesh-colored pearls, with which + the queen was highly delighted. We brought many other stones + which appeared beautiful to us; but of all these we did not + bring a large number, as we were continually busied in our + investigations and did not tarry long in any place. + + "When we arrived at Cadiz we sold many slaves, two hundred + then remaining to us, the others having died at sea. After + deducting the expense of transportation we gained only about + five hundred ducats, which, having to be divided into + fifty-five parts, made the share of each very small. + However, we contented ourselves with life, and rendered + thanks to God that during the whole voyage, out of + fifty-seven Christian men, which was our number, only two + had died, they having been killed by Indians. I have had two + quartan agues since my return; but I hope, by the favor of + God, to be well soon, as they do not continue long now and + are without chills. I have passed over many things worthy of + being remembered, in order not to be more tedious than + necessary, all of which are reserved for the pen, and in the + memory. + + "They are fitting out three ships for me here, that I may + go on a new voyage of discovery, and I think they will be + ready by the middle of September. May it please our Lord to + give me health and a good voyage, as I hope again to bring + very great news and discover the island of Trapobana, which + is between the Indian Ocean and the Sea of Ganges. + Afterwards I intend to return to my country and seek repose + in the days of my old age.... I have resolved, most + excellent Lorenzo, that as I have thus given you an account + by letter of what has occurred to me, to send you two plans + and descriptions of the world, made and arranged by my own + hand and skill. There will be a map on a plain surface, and + the other a view of the world in a spherical form, which I + intend to send you by sea, in care of one Francesco Lotti, a + Florentine, who is here. I think you will be pleased with + them, particularly the globe, as I made one, not long since, + for these sovereigns, and they esteem it highly. I could + have wished to come with them personally; but my new + departure for making other discoveries will not permit me + that great pleasure.... + + "I suppose your excellency has heard the news brought by the + fleet which the King of Portugal sent two years ago to make + discoveries on the coast of Guinea. I do not call such a + voyage as that one of discovery, but only a visit to + discovered lands; because, as you will see by the map, their + navigation was continually within sight of land, and they + sailed round the whole southern part of the continent of + Africa, which is proceeding by a way spoken of by all + cosmographical authors. It is true that the navigation has + been very profitable, which is a matter of great + consideration here in this kingdom, where inordinate + covetousness reigns. + + "I understand they passed from the Red Sea and extended + their voyage into the Persian Gulf, to a city called + Calicut, which is situated between the Persian Gulf and the + river Indus. More lately, the King of Portugal has received + from sea twelve ships very richly laden, and he has sent + them again to those parts, where they will certainly do a + profitable business, if they arrive in safety. + + "May our Lord preserve and increase the exalted state of + your excellency, as I desire. + + "AMERIGO VESPUCCI. + + "_July 18th, 1500_." + +Respecting the letter in which the so-called first voyage is +described, the same great authority, Mr. Fiske, from whom we have +already quoted, says: "The perplexity surrounding the account of the +first voyage of Vespucius is chiefly due to the lack of intelligence +with which it has been read. There is no reason for imagining +dishonesty in his narrative, and no reason for not admitting it as +evidence on the same terms upon which we admit other contemporary +documents." Perhaps we may be allowed to claim the same privilege for +the foregoing letter; yet another historian, the amiable biographer of +Columbus, Mr. Irving, while freely quoting from it, in his account of +the voyage made with Alonzo de Ojeda, by imputation discredits it, and +loses no occasion to disparage its author. + +In order that nothing may be lacking, for the purpose of forming an +accurate estimate of Vespucci's character and doings, Mr. Irving's +account of the Ojeda voyage, somewhat condensed, is presented in the +succeeding chapter. In constructing this story he, to use his own +words, "collated the narratives of Vespucci, Las Casas, Herrera, and +Peter Martyr, and the evidence given in the lawsuit of Diego Columbus, +and has endeavored as much as possible to reconcile them." That he did +not altogether succeed is the opinion of Mr. Fiske, who says, rather +caustically, that "from its mixing the first and second voyages of +Vespucci [the account] is so full of blunders as to be worse than +worthless to the general reader." + +However this may be, the story is interesting, and in a sense +valuable, as it corroborates the statements of one to whom Mr. Irving +was not favorably inclined. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[12] The river was the Orinoco, the currents caused by which set with +great force in the direction given by Vespucci. + + + + +VIII + +WITH OJEDA THE FIGHTER + +1499 + + +Those who have read the _History of Columbus_ will doubtless remember +the character and exploits of Alonzo de Ojeda. He was about twenty-one +years of age when he accompanied Columbus on his second voyage (1493); +he had, however, already distinguished himself by his enterprising +spirit and headlong valor, and his exploits during that voyage +contributed to enhance his reputation. He returned to Spain with the +Admiral, but did not go with him on his third voyage, in 1498. He had +a cousin-german of his own name, Padre Alonzo de Ojeda, a Dominican +friar, who was a great favorite with the Spanish sovereigns, and on +intimate terms with Don Juan Rodriguez Fonseca, who had the chief +management of affairs in the Indies. + +Through the good offices of this cousin, young Alonzo was introduced +to Fonseca, to whose especial favor and patronage he was warmly +recommended. While Ojeda was lingering about the court, letters were +received from Columbus giving an account of the events of his third +(1498) voyage, accompanied by charts descriptive of his route, +specimens of pearls, gold, etc., in order to impress the sovereigns +with the great value of his most recent discovery. The Admiral had +good and sufficient reasons for making the most of this discovery, as +his enemies in Spain and in the West Indies were seeking to belittle +his great deeds, hence his indiscretion in placing the proofs of his +achievement in the hands of his implacable foe, Bishop Fonseca. He +could not return at that time, owing to the terrible condition of +affairs in Hispaniola, which demanded his continued presence there--as +narrated in his _Life_. + +The tidings he sent caused a great sensation among the maritime +adventurers of Spain; but no one was more excited by them than Alonzo +de Ojeda, who, from his intimacy with Fonseca, had full access to the +charts and correspondence of Columbus, and who immediately conceived +the project of making a voyage in the route thus marked out by the +Admiral, and of seizing upon the first fruits of discovery which he +had left ungathered. This scheme met with ready encouragement from +Fonseca, who, as has heretofore been shown, was opposed to Columbus +and willing to promote any measure that might injure or molest him. +The bishop accordingly granted a commission to Ojeda, authorizing him +to fit out an armament and proceed on a voyage of discovery, with the +proviso merely that he should not visit any territories appertaining +to Portugal, or any of the lands discovered in the name of Spain +previous to the year 1495. The latter part of this provision appears +to have been craftily worded by the bishop, so as to leave the coast +of Paria and its pearl fisheries open to Ojeda, they having been +recently discovered by Columbus in 1498. + +The commission was signed by Fonseca alone, in virtue of general +powers vested in him for such purposes; but the signature of the +sovereigns did not appear on the instrument, and it is doubtful +whether their sanction was sought on the occasion. He knew that +Columbus had recently remonstrated against a royal mandate issued in +1495, permitting voyages of discovery by private adventurers, and that +the sovereigns had in consequence revoked that mandate wherever it +might be deemed prejudicial to the stipulated privileges of the +Admiral.... Having thus obtained permission to make the voyage, the +next consideration with Ojeda was to find the means. He was a young +adventurer, a mere soldier of fortune, and destitute of wealth; but he +had a high reputation for courage and enterprise, and hence had no +difficulty in finding moneyed associates among the rich merchants of +Seville, who, in that age of discovery, were ever ready to stake their +property upon the schemes of roving navigators. With such assistance +he soon equipped a squadron of four vessels, at Port St. Mary, +opposite Cadiz. + +Among the seamen who engaged with him were several who had just +returned from accompanying Columbus in his voyage to this very coast +of Paria. The principal associate of Ojeda, and one on whom he placed +great reliance, was Juan de la Cosa, who went with him as first mate, +or, as it was termed, chief pilot. This was a bold Biscayan who may be +regarded as a disciple of Columbus, with whom he had sailed on his +second voyage, when he coasted Cuba and Jamaica, and he had also +accompanied Rodrigo de Bastidas, in his expedition along the coast of +Terra Firma. The hardy veteran was looked up to by his contemporaries +as an oracle of the seas, and was pronounced one of the most able +mariners of the day. He may be excused, therefore, if in his harmless +vanity he considered himself on a par even with Columbus. + +Another conspicuous associate of Ojeda on this voyage was Amerigo +Vespucci, _a Florentine merchant, induced by broken fortunes and a +rambling disposition to seek adventures in the New World_. Whether he +had any pecuniary interest in the expedition, and in what capacity he +sailed, does not appear. His importance has entirely arisen from +subsequent circumstances--from his having written and published a +narrative of his voyages, and from his name having eventually been +given to the New World. + +[Illustration: OJEDA'S FIRST VOYAGE] + +Ojeda sailed from Port St. Mary on May 20, 1499, and, having touched +for supplies at the Canaries, took a departure from Gomera, pursuing +the route of Columbus in his third voyage, being guided by the +chart he had sent home, as well as by the mariners who had accompanied +him on that occasion. At the end of twenty-four days he reached the +continent of the New World, about two hundred leagues farther south +than the part discovered by Columbus, being, as it is supposed, on the +coast of Surinam. Hence he ran along the coast to the Gulf of Paria, +passing the mouths of many rivers, but especially those of the Esquivo +and the Orinoco. These, to the astonishment of the Spaniards, +unaccustomed as yet to the mighty rivers of the New World, poured +forth such a prodigious volume of water as to freshen the sea for a +great extent. They beheld none of the natives until they arrived at +the island of Trinidad, on which island they met with traces of the +recent visit of Columbus. Vespucci, in his letters, gives a long +description of the people of this island and of the coast of Paria, +who were of the Carib race, tall, well-made, and vigorous, and expert +with the bow, the lance, and the buckler. His description in general +resembles those which have frequently been given of the aboriginals of +the New World; there are two or three particulars, however, worthy of +citation. [Here follows the narrative of Vespucci, as given in the +preceding chapters, pages 82-124.] + +After touching at various parts of Trinidad and the Gulf of Paria, +Ojeda passed through the strait of the Boca del Drago, or Dragon's +Mouth, which Columbus had found so formidable, and then steered his +course along the coast of Terra Firma, landing occasionally until he +arrived at Curiana, or the Gulf of Pearls. From hence he stood to the +opposite island of Margarita, previously discovered by Columbus, and +since renowned for its pearl fishery. This, as well as several +adjacent islands, he visited and explored, after which he returned to +the main-land, and touched at Cumana and _Maracapana_, where he found +the rivers infested with alligators resembling the crocodiles of the +Nile. Finding a convenient harbor at Maracapana, he unloaded and +careened his vessels there, and built a small brigantine. The natives +came to him in great numbers, bringing abundance of venison, fish, and +cassava bread, and aiding the seamen in their labors. Their +hospitality was not certainly disinterested, for they sought to gain +the protection of the Spaniards, whom they reverenced as superhuman +beings. + +When they thought they had sufficiently secured their favor, they +represented to Ojeda that their coast was subject to invasion from a +distant island, the inhabitants of which were cannibals, and carried +their people into captivity, to be devoured at their unnatural +banquets. They besought Ojeda, therefore, to avenge them upon these +ferocious enemies. The request was gratifying to the fighting +propensities of Alonzo de Ojeda, and to his love of adventure, and was +readily granted. Taking seven of the natives on board of his vessels, +therefore, as guides, he set sail in quest of the cannibals. After +sailing for seven days he came to a chain of islands, some of which +were peopled, others uninhabited, and which are supposed to have been +the Caribbee Islands. [Then ensues Vespucci's account of the fight, +with the substitution of Ojeda as captain in command.] + +His crew being refreshed, and the wounded sufficiently recovered, +Ojeda made sail and touched at the island of Curacao, which, according +to the accounts of Vespucci, was inhabited by a race of giants, "every +woman appearing a Penthesilia, and every man an Antei." As Vespucci +was a scholar, and as he supposed himself exploring the regions of +the extreme East, the ancient realm of fable, it is probable his +imagination deceived him, and construed the formidable accounts given +by the Indians of their cannibal neighbors of the islands into +something according with his recollections of classic fable. Certain +it is that the reports of subsequent voyagers proved the inhabitants +of the island to be of the ordinary size. + +Proceeding along the coast, he arrived at a vast, deep gulf, +resembling a tranquil lake, entering which he beheld, on the eastern +side, a village, the construction of which struck him with surprise. +It consisted of twenty large houses, shaped like bells, and built on +piles driven into the bottom of the lake, which in this part was +limpid and of but little depth. Each house was provided with a +draw-bridge, and with canoes, by which the communication was carried +on. From these resemblances to the Italian city, Ojeda gave to the bay +the name of the Gulf of Venice, and it is called at the present day +Venezuela, or Little Venice. The Indian name was _Coquibacoa_. [In +this connection Irving quotes freely from Vespucci's account of the +Lake Dwellers, and also gives entire his description of the +Spaniards' entertainment by Indians of the interior.] + +Continuing to explore this gulf, Ojeda penetrated to a port or harbor, +to which he gave the name of St. Bartholomew, supposed to be the same +at present known by the original Indian name of _Maracaibo_.... The +Spaniards brought away with them several of the beautiful and +hospitable females of this place, one of whom, named by them Isabel, +was much prized by Ojeda, and accompanied him on a subsequent voyage. +Leaving the friendly port of Coquibacoa, Ojeda continued along the +western shores of the Venezuelan gulf, and standing out to sea, +doubling Cape Maracaibo, he pursued his voyage from port to port, and +promontory to promontory, of this unknown continent, until he reached +that long stretching headland called Cape de la Vela, or Cape of the +Sail. There the state of his vessels--and perhaps the disappointment +of his hopes at not meeting with abundant sources of immediate +wealth--induced him to abandon all further voyaging along the coast, +and, changing his course, he stood across the Caribbean Sea for +Hispaniola. The tenor of his commission forbade his visiting that +island; but Ojeda was not a man to stand upon trifles when his +interests or inclinations prompted him to the contrary. He trusted to +excuse the infraction of his orders by the alleged necessity of +touching at the island to calk and refit his vessels and to procure +provisions; but his true object is supposed to have been to cut +dye-wood, which abounds in Hispaniola. + +Columbus, at that time, held command of the island, and, hearing of +this unlicensed intrusion, despatched Francesco Roldan, the quondam +rebel, to call Ojeda to account. The contest of stratagem and +management that took place between these two adroit and daring +adventurers has already been detailed. Roldan was eventually +successful, and Ojeda, being obliged to leave Hispaniola, resumed his +rambling voyage. He at length arrived at Cadiz, in June, 1500, his +ships crowded with captives, whom he sold as slaves. So meagre, +however, was the result of this expedition that we are told [by +Vespucci] that when all the expenses were deducted but five hundred +ducats remained to be divided between fifty-five adventurers. What +made this result the more mortifying was that a petty armament, which +had sailed some time after that of Ojeda, had returned two months +before him rich with the spoils of the New World. + +The successful armament alluded to was that of Pedro Nino, who had +sailed with Columbus on his first voyage and on his third. With a +caravel of only fifty tons, and a crew of thirty-three men, he sailed +from Palos in June, 1499, returning in April, 1500, with a richer +cargo of pearls than any other that had been brought from the new +country. He had steered directly for the Pearl Coast, and at or near +Cumana and Margarita, had amassed a fortune from the sea. + +In this connection it should be mentioned, that the country adjacent +to the Pearl Coast, opposite Cumana, was known to the natives as +_Amaraca-pan_; that the name _Amaraca_ occurs frequently in this +region, as (_A_)_mar-aca-ibo_, the great gulf where the Lake-Dwellers +live. It is regarded only as a coincidence that a name so nearly like +that which was bestowed upon the continent by Europeans should be +found applied to portions of that continent by the aborigines; but +some enthusiasts have undertaken to show that it was from this native +appellation the cartographers and cosmographers derived the first +"America" placed upon the maps. + + + + +IX + +CANNIBALS, GIANTS, AND PEARLS + +1499-1500 + + +Besides the letter written by Vespucci to Lorenzo de Medici, he sent +an account of the second voyage to his friend Soderini, in which are +some incidents not mentioned in the first, with very little repetition +of others. He wrote: + + "We set out from the port of Cadiz, three ships in company, + on the 18th of May, and steered directly for the Cape de + Verdes, passing within sight of the Grand Canary, and soon + arriving at an island called De Fuego, or Fire Island, + whence, having taken wood and water, we proceeded on our + voyage to the southwest. In forty-four days we arrived at a + new land, which we judged to be a continent, and a + continuation of that mentioned in my former voyage. It was + situated within the torrid zone, south of the equinoctial + line, where the south pole is elevated five degrees and + distant from said island, bearing south, about five hundred + leagues. Here we found the days and nights equal on the + 27th of June, when the sun is near the tropic of Cancer. + + "We did not see any people here, and, having anchored our + ships and cast off our boats, we proceeded to the land, + which we found to be inundated by very large rivers. We + attempted to enter these at many points, but from the + immense quantity of water brought down by them we could find + no place, after hard toiling, that was not over-flowed. We + saw many signs of the country's being inhabited, but as we + were unable to enter it we concluded to return to the ships + and make the attempt on some other part of the coast. We + raised our anchors accordingly, and sailed along southeast + by east, continually coasting the land which ran in that + direction. We found the currents so strong on this part of + the coast that they actually obstructed our sailing, and + they all ran from the southeast to the northwest. Seeing our + navigation was attended with so many inconveniences, we + concluded to turn our course to the northwest; and having + sailed some time in this direction we arrived at a very + beautiful harbor, which was made by a large island at the + entrance, inside of which was a very large bay. While + sailing along parallel with the island with a view of + entering the harbor, we saw many people on shore, and, being + much cheered, we manoeuvred our ships for the purpose of + anchoring and landing where they appeared. We might have + been then about four leagues out at sea. While proceeding on + our course for this purpose, we saw a canoe quite out at + sea, in which were several natives, and made sail on our + ships in order to come up with and take possession of them, + steering so as not to run them down. We saw that they stood + with their oars raised--I think either through astonishment + at beholding our ships, or by way of giving us to understand + that they meant to wait for and resist us; but as we neared + them they dropped the oars and began to row towards the + land. + + "Having in our fleet a small vessel of forty-five tons, a + very fast sailer, she took a favorable wind and bore down + for the canoe. When the people in it found themselves + embarrassed between the schooner and the boats we had + lowered for the purpose of pursuing them, they all jumped + into the sea, being about twenty men, and at the distance of + two leagues from the shore. We followed them the whole day + with our boats, and could only take two, which was for them + an extraordinary feat; all the rest escaped to the shore. + Four boys remained in the canoe who were not of their tribe, + but had been taken prisoners by them, and brought from + another country. We were much surprised at the gross + injuries they had inflicted upon these boys, and, having + been taken on board the ships, they told us they had been + captured in order to be eaten. Accordingly, we knew that + those people were cannibals, who eat human flesh. + + "We proceeded with the ships, taking the canoe with us + astern, and following the course which they pursued, + anchored at half a league from the shore. As we saw many + people on the shore, we landed in the boats, carrying with + us the two men we had taken. When we reached the beach all + the people fled into the woods, and we sent one of the men + to negotiate with them, giving them several trifles as + tokens of friendship--such as little bells, buttons, and + looking-glasses--and telling them that we wished to be their + friends. He brought the people all back with him, of whom + there were about four hundred men and many women, who came + unarmed to the place where we lay with the boats. Having + established friendship with them, we surrendered the other + prisoner and sent to the ships for the canoe, which we + restored. This canoe was twenty-six yards long and six feet + wide, made out of a single tree and very well wrought. When + they had carried it into a river near by, and put it in a + secure place, they all fled, and would have nothing more to + do with us, which appeared to us a very barbarous act, and + we judged them to be a faithless and evil-disposed people. + We saw among them a little gold, which they wore in their + ears. + + "Leaving this place, we sailed about eighty leagues along + the coast and entered a bay, where we found a surprising + number of people, with whom we formed a friendship. Many of + us went to their village, in great safety, and were received + with much courtesy and confidence. In this place we procured + a hundred and fifty pearls (as they sold them to us for a + trifle) and some little gold, which they gave us + gratuitously. We noticed that in this country they drank + wine made of their fruits and seeds, which looked like beer, + both white and red; the best was made from acorns, and was + very good. We ate a great many of these acorns and found + them a very good fruit, savory to the taste and healthy to + the body. The country abounded with means of nourishment, + and the people were well disposed and pacific. + + "We remained at this port seventeen days, with great + pleasure, and every day some new tribe of people came to see + us from inland parts of the country, who were greatly + surprised at our figures, at the whiteness of our skins, at + our clothes, at our arms, and the form and size of our + ships. We were informed by them of the existence of another + tribe, still farther west, who were their enemies, and that + they had great quantities of pearls. They said that those + which they had in their possession were some they had taken + from this other tribe in war. They told us how they fished + for pearls, and in what manner they grew, and we found that + they told us the truth--as your excellency shall hear. + + "Sailing along the coast again, and finding an island about + fifteen leagues from it at sea, we resolved to see if it + were inhabited. We found on this island the most bestial and + filthy people that were ever seen, but at the same time + extremely pacific, so that I am able to describe their + habits and customs. Their manners and their faces were + filthy, and they all had their cheeks stuffed full of a + green herb which they were continually chewing, as beasts + chew the cud, so that they were scarcely able to speak. Each + one of them wore, hanging at the neck, two dried + gourd-shells, one of which was filled with the same kind of + herb they had in their mouths, and the other with a white + meal, which appeared to be chalk-dust. They also carried + with them a small stick, which they wetted in their mouths + from time to time and then put in the meal, afterwards + putting it into the herb with which both cheeks were filled, + and mixing the meal with it. We were surprised at their + conduct, and could not understand for what purpose they + indulged in the strange practice. + + "As soon as these people saw us, they came to us with as + much familiarity as if we had been old friends. Walking with + them along the shore, and wishing to find some fresh water + to drink, they made us to understand by signs that they had + none, and offered us some of their herbs and meal; hence we + concluded that water was very scarce in this island, and + that they kept these herbs in their mouth in order to allay + their thirst. We walked about the island a day and a half + without finding any living water, and noticed that all they + had to drink was the dew which fell in the night upon + certain leaves that looked like asses' ears. These leaves + being filled with dew-water the islanders use it for their + drink, and most excellent water it was; but there were many + places where the leaves were not to be found. + + "They had no victuals or roots, such as we found on the + main-land, but lived on fish, which they caught in the sea, + of which there was an abundance, and they were very expert + fishermen. They presented us with many turtles, and many + large and very good fish. The women did not chew the herb as + the men did, but carried a gourd with water in it, of which + they drank. They had no villages, houses, or cottages, + except some arbors which defended them from the sun, but not + from the rain; this appearing needless, for I think it very + seldom rained on that island. When they were fishing out at + sea, they each wore on the head a very large leaf, so broad + that they were covered by its shade. They fixed these leaves + also in the ground on shore, and as the sun moved turned + them about, so as to keep within the shadow. The island + contained many animals of various kinds, all of which drank + the muddy water of the marshes. + + "Seeing there was no gain in staying there, we left and went + to another island, which we found inhabited by people of + very large stature. Going into the country in search of + fresh water, without thinking the island inhabited (as we + saw no people), as we were passing along the shore we + remarked very large footprints on the sands. We concluded + that if the other members corresponded with the feet they + must be very large men. While occupied with these + conjectures, we struck a path which led us inland, and after + we had gone about a league we saw in a valley five huts or + cottages which appeared to be inhabited. On going to them we + found only five women, two quite old, and three girls, all + so tall in stature that we regarded them with astonishment. + When they saw us they became so frightened that they had not + even courage to flee, and the two old women began to invite + us into the huts, and to bring us many things to eat, with + many signs of friendship. They were taller than a tall man, + and as large-bodied as Francisco of Albizzi, but better + proportioned than we are. While we were consulting as to the + expediency of taking the three girls by force and bringing + them to Castile to exhibit as wonders, there entered the + door of the hut thirty-six men, much larger than the women, + and so well made that it was a pleasure to look at them. + They put us in such perturbation, however, that we would + much rather have been in the ships than have found ourselves + with such people. They carried immense bows and arrows, and + large-headed clubs, and talked among themselves in a tone + which led us to think they were deliberating about attacking + us. + + "Seeing we were in such danger, we formed various opinions + on the subject. Some were for falling upon them in the hut, + others thought it would be better to attack them in the + field, and others that we should not commence the strife + until we saw what they wished to do. We agreed, at length, + to go out of the hut and take our way quietly to the ships. + As soon as we did this they followed at a stone's-throw + behind us, talking earnestly among themselves, and I think + no less afraid of us than we were of them; for whenever we + stopped they did the same, never coming nearer to us. In + this way we at length arrived at the shore, where the boats + were waiting for us. We entered them, and as we were going + off in the distance they leaped forward and shot many arrows + after us; but we had little fear of them now. We discharged + two arquebuses at them, but more to frighten them than + injure, and on hearing the report they all fled to the + mountain. Thus we parted from them, and it appeared to us + that we had escaped a perilous day's work. These people were + quite naked, like the others we had seen, and on account of + their large stature I called this island the Island of + Giants. We proceeded onward in a direction parallel with the + main-land, on which it happened that we were frequently + obliged to fight with the people, who were not willing to + let us take anything away. + + "When we had been at sea about a year, our minds were fully + prepared for returning to Castile, as we had then but little + provision left, and that little damaged, in consequence of + the great heat through which we had passed. From the time we + left Cape de Verde until then we had been sailing + continually in the torrid zone, having twice crossed the + equinoctial line (as before stated), having been five + degrees beyond it to the south, and then fifteen degrees + north of it. Being thus disposed for our return, it pleased + the Holy Spirit to give us some repose from our great + labors. + + "Going in search of a harbor, in order to repair our ships, + we fell in with a people who received us with friendship, + and we found that they had a great quantity of Oriental + pearls, which were very good. We remained with them + forty-seven days and procured from them one hundred and + nineteen marks of pearls, in exchange for mere trifles of + our merchandise, which I think did not cost us the value of + forty ducats. We gave them nothing whatever but bells, + looking-glasses, beads, and brass plates; for a bell one + would give all he had. + + "We learned from them how and where they fished for these + pearls, and they gave us many oysters in which they grew. We + procured one oyster in which a hundred and thirty pearls + were growing, but in others there were less number. The one + with the hundred and thirty the queen took from me, but the + others I kept to myself, that she might not see them. Your + excellency must know that if the pearls are not ripe and + loose in the shell they do not last, because they are soon + spoiled. Of this I have seen many examples. When they are + ripe they are loose in the oyster, mingled with the flesh, + and then are good. Even the bad ones which they had, which + for the most part were rough, were nevertheless worth a + considerable sum. + + "At the end of forty-seven days we left these people, in + great friendship with us, and from the want of provisions + went to the island of Antilla [meaning Hispaniola], which + was discovered some years before by Christopher Columbus. + Here we obtained many supplies and stayed two months and + seventeen days. We passed through many dangers and troubles + with the Christians, who were settled in this island with + Columbus (I think through their envy), the relation of + which, in order not to be tedious, I omit. We left there on + the 22d of April, and, after sailing a month and a half, + entered the port of Cadiz, where we were received with much + honor on the 8th day of June. Thus terminated, by the favor + of God, my second voyage." + + + + +X + +FAMOUS FELLOW-VOYAGERS + +1497-1500 + + +Though Amerigo Vespucci was on occasions intimately associated with +Christopher Columbus, conversed with him, corresponded, and had much +to do with the outfitting of his ships, it cannot be shown that the +two ever went on a voyage together. Some have asserted that the +Florentine accompanied the Genoese on his second voyage, in 1493, but +such is not the case. From the friendship that existed between the +two, it would doubtless have been gratifying to both could they have +explored the New World in company, for each was a complement of the +other, and much might have resulted from their conjoined efforts. + +Still, while the great Admiral himself was not favored by the presence +of Vespucci on any of his voyages, it chanced that several of those +who were with him at different times afterwards accompanied his +rival, either as captains or pilots of his expeditions. Notable among +these was Vicente Yanez Pinzon, one of the noble family that came to +the rescue of Columbus when in straits at Palos, and furnished the +funds with which the impecunious navigator provided and equipped the +vessel he had promised his sovereigns to contribute. The Pinzons +actually provided and manned this vessel, the _Nina_, though Columbus +had the credit of it, and Vicente Yanez was its captain throughout the +first voyage to America, in 1492-1493. + +The eldest of the three brothers, who "risked their lives and fortunes +with Columbus in his doubtful enterprise," the first voyage to the +unknown hemisphere, was Martin Alonzo, who commanded the _Pinta_. He +ran counter to the commands of Columbus when off the coast of Cuba, +and as a result fell into disgrace with the Spanish sovereigns, and +died of chagrin soon after the first voyage was over. Columbus seemed +to consider himself released from any obligations to the Pinzons, +owing to the defection of Martin Alonzo, and they never received a +single maravedi for their assistance at the most critical juncture of +the Admiral's fortunes. As captain of the _Nina_, Vicente Yanez, the +younger brother, stood by Columbus loyally, all through the voyage, +and after the wreck of the flag-ship, off the north coast of Haiti, +took his commander aboard the little caravel and brought him safely +back to Spain. + +He seems to have received no recognition from Columbus, either for his +pecuniary aid or loyal support to him in time of disaster, and after +the voyage was accomplished he sank out of sight for a while, to +emerge again in 1494 or 1495. About that time, says a learned +historian, "Ferdinand and Isabella began to feel somewhat disappointed +at the meagre results obtained by Columbus. The wealth of Cathay and +Cipango had not been found; the colonists who had expected to meet +with pearls and gold growing on bushes were sick and angry; Friar +Boyle was preaching that the Admiral was a humbug, and the expensive +work of discovery was going on at a snail's pace. Meanwhile, Vicente +Yanez Pinzon and other bold spirits were grumbling at the monopoly +granted to Columbus, and begging to be allowed to make ventures +themselves. + +"Now, in this connection, several documents preserved in the archives +of the Indies at Seville are very significant. On April 9, 1495, the +sovereigns issued their letter of credentials to Juan Aguado, whom +they were about sending to Hispaniola to inquire into the charges +against Columbus. On that very day they signed the contract with +Berardi [Vespucci's partner], whereby the latter bound himself to +furnish twelve vessels, four to be ready at once, four in June, and +four in September. On the next day they issued the decree throwing +open the navigation to the Indies and granting to all native +Spaniards, on certain prescribed conditions, the privilege of making +voyages to the newly found coasts. + +"On the 12th they instructed Fonseca to put Aguado in command of the +first four caravels, ... and it started off in August. The second +squadron of four, which was to have been ready in June, was not yet +fully equipped in December, when Berardi died. Then Vespucci, +representing the house of Berardi, took up the work, and sent the four +caravels to sea February 3, 1496. They were only two days out when a +frightful storm overtook and wrecked them, though most of the crews +were saved. The third squadron of four caravels was, I believe, that +which finally sailed May 10, 1497. While it was getting ready, Vicente +Yanez Pinzon returned from the Levant, whither he had been sent on +important business by the sovereigns in December, 1495. Columbus, who +had returned to Spain in June, 1496, protested against what he +considered an invasion of his monopoly, and on June 2, 1497, the +sovereigns issued a decree which for the moment was practically +equivalent to a revocation of the general license accorded to +navigators by the decree of April 10, 1495. Observe that this +revocation was not issued until after the third squadron had sailed. +The sovereigns were not going to be balked in the little scheme which +they had set on foot two years before, and for which they had paid +out, through Vespucci, so many thousand maravedis. So the expedition +sailed, with Pinzon chief in command and Solis second; with Ledesma +for one of the pilots, and Vespucci as pilot and cosmographer." + +In the foregoing the historian accounts for the sailing of Pinzon and +Vespucci in company, on that "debatable voyage" described in chapter +VI. In the year 1499 both Pinzon and Vespucci were to sail--though in +separate fleets--for the coasts of the continent which Columbus had +accidentally revealed in his voyage of 1498. Vespucci was to coast its +northern shores, while Pinzon, with a confidence born of successive +ventures on the ocean, was to strike farther southward than any had +done before him (in the western hemisphere), cross the equinoctial +line, and reveal to the knowledge of civilized man the great river, +afterwards called the Amazon, and the country of Brazil. The fleet in +which Vespucci took passage left Spain in the month of May, 1499, that +commanded by Pinzon left in December; and it is still a moot question +whether the first or the second was the first to arrive on the coast +of Brazil. But Pinzon sailed beyond Vespucci on that voyage, though he +was to be surpassed, the next year, in the generous rivalry that +existed for making the "farthest south." + +Another companion of Vespucci worthy of note is the man called by Las +Casas the best pilot of his day, Juan de la Cosa. He had been with +Columbus on his first voyage, as owner and pilot of the _Santa Maria_, +and also on his second, and may have had good grounds for believing +himself as good a navigator as the Admiral, while as a cosmographer he +was probably his superior. The historian, Peter Martyr, asserts that +La Cosa and another pilot, Andres Morales, "were thought to be more +cunning in that part of cosmography which teacheth the description and +measurement of the sea" than any others in the world. In truth, the +first map of importance made within a decade of the discovery of 1492 +was that produced by La Cosa, in the summer of 1500, after his return +from the voyage (his third to the New World) with Ojeda and Vespucci. +It is thought that he embodied in that map the results of Vespucci's +voyage of 1497-1498, as communicated to him during their intimate +companionship of thirteen months. La Cosa, the Biscayan pilot, was a +man cast in the same generous mould as Vespucci, and shared none of +the narrow notions of Columbus. His great regard for Columbus is shown +in the vignette to his map, which represents the giant Christopher +(the "Christ-bearer") carrying the infant Jesus on his shoulders. +Beneath this vignette is the legend, "Juan de la Cosa made this map, +in the port of Santa Maria [near Cadiz], year 1500." It is the best +map that had been put forth up to that date, and for a long time +thereafter remained as a guide to mariners. + +His services were in great request at that time, and in the month of +October, 1500, he was engaged by Rodrigo Bastidas, a lawyer of +Seville, to pilot a small expedition he had fitted out to search for +gold and pearls. This was the expedition in which Vasco Nunez de +Balboa first embarked for the New World, and which was so profitable +that the leaders returned (though their vessels had sunk at their +anchors in a harbor of Haiti) with sufficient pearls to give them each +a fortune. If they had been content to live at ease in Spain, they +might have done so during the remainder of their days; but both +Bastidas and La Cosa were lured back to the coast of Terra Firma by +the prospect of further enrichment, and there they came to untimely +ends. + +La Cosa was created _alguazil mayor_ of the territory he and Vespucci +had coasted, and finding Ojeda in want--both of money and an +opportunity to display his prowess as a fighter--he generously shared +his fortune with him and fitted out a fleet containing a ship and two +small brigantines. Thenceforth, as fate willed it, the great-hearted +pilot and the fiery cavalier were inseparable until cut down by death. +In the month of November, 1509, they set sail from Santo Domingo with +their three vessels and three hundred men. La Cosa piloted the little +fleet into a safe harbor, as he knew the coast well from two previous +visits to Terra Firma, but he endeavored to induce Ojeda to attempt a +settlement farther on towards the Isthmus of Darien, as the Indians of +this region were very ferocious and used poisoned arrows. + +Ojeda, however, would not be turned from his purpose, which was to +acquire a large number of slaves, either by stratagem or force. After +the monks who accompanied his command had read a requisition to the +savages, requiring them to submit gracefully and be converted, if they +did not wish to incur the vengeance of the King of Spain, the Pope of +Rome, and their emissaries there assembled, finding them obdurate, +Ojeda gave the command to attack. The Indians, by this time, had +assembled in great force, and if they understood the message (which +was not likely, as it was in Spanish, a language they had never heard +before) they manifested no inclination to heed its warnings. They +brandished their spears, shot their arrows, and yelled defiance to the +invaders. This was more than the rash Ojeda could endure, and he +dashed headlong at the naked enemy without waiting for his men to +follow. + +Only the gallant La Cosa was with him at first, continually +remonstrating with his friend for his temerity, but fighting bravely +at his side. The old pilot was a man of peace, but he was destined to +die a violent and a horrible death. While pressing forward in advance +of their men, the retreat of Ojeda and La Cosa was cut off by the wily +savages, who had pretended to retire to the hills, whence they soon +returned in great force. La Cosa took refuge in a hut, where he +gallantly defended himself until a poisoned arrow pierced his breast +and he fell to the ground. One companion survived, to whom he said, as +he felt the chill of death creeping over him, "Brother, since God hath +protected thee from harm, sally out and fly; and if ever thou shouldst +see Alonzo de Ojeda, tell him of my fate." + +Thus expired Juan de la Cosa, former companion of Columbus and +Vespucci, able pilot, skilled cartographer, loyal till death to the +man who had led him into the forest where he met that fatal arrow. + +It is claimed by some that Vespucci and La Cosa made two voyages +together, in the years 1505 and 1507, but this is doubtful. After +their return from the voyage of 1499-1500 they separated, Amerigo to +take service with the King of Portugal, and La Cosa, upon the +completion of his chart and after his return from the Bastidas +expedition of 1500-1501, settling down to the enjoyment of his +fortune. The third famous member of the trio, Alonzo de Ojeda, +obtained authority from the king to colonize Coquibacoa, on the coast +of Terra Firma, and received in addition a grant of land six leagues +square in the island of Hispaniola. + +The former venture had not been considered a success, but the +merchants of Seville and Cadiz were persuaded to once more try their +fortunes with the brave cavalier Ojeda, and fitted out for him a fleet +of four large vessels. In command of these he set sail, in the year +1502, and after touching at Cumana, where he pillaged the Indians and +took many prisoners, he proceeded to Coquibacoa. Finding the place +unsuited for a settlement, he went farther westward and attempted a +colony at Bahia Honda, building there a fortress and huts for his +people. The Indians were hostile at first, but gold was found in +abundance--so much of it, in fact, that the adventurers began to +quarrel over it, and soon came to blows. Ojeda, as usual, was foremost +in the fight that followed, and, as his company turned against him, he +was entrapped on one of the caravels and placed in irons. Then the +entire company sailed for Hispaniola, intending to submit the cause of +their dissension, which was their strong-box full of gold, to the +courts of that island for a decision. They arrived at a port on the +western coast of Hispaniola, and in the night the manacled Ojeda +slipped overboard into the water, intending to swim ashore and make +his escape. The fetters on his feet were heavy, however, though his +arms were free, and he was nearly drowned before his companions, +hearing his cries for help, pulled him out of the water and again +confined him in the hold of the vessel. + +Taken to the city of Santo Domingo, he was placed on trial for +attempting to defraud the government, and the decision was against +him. He was not only deprived of his lands, but was stripped of +everything he owned. For several years thereafter he roamed about the +island, and made occasional voyages, but as a penniless, rather than +an influential, adventurer. His good friend, the "ungodly bishop," +Fonseca, was still in power, but inaccessible through the great +distance that separated them. One happy day, however, Ojeda met La +Cosa, who was then in the enjoyment of a considerable fortune, and +who, with the reckless generosity for which sailors are proverbial, +placed all his means at his disposal. He went to Spain, where he saw +the bishop, secured a fleet (as already mentioned), and in it sailed +for Santo Domingo, where he was met by his partner, and together the +soldier and the sailor set out for Terra Firma. + +Before they left the island, however, Ojeda must needs plunge himself +into another difficulty by picking a quarrel with a rival discoverer, +Nicuesa, whom he challenged to fight a duel. It seems that King +Ferdinand had granted territory in Terra Firma to both these men; and, +though there was certainly room enough and to spare in that vast +region, they began to dispute over their perspective boundaries before +they had staked them out. The hot-headed Ojeda was a skilled +swordsman, but Nicuesa was artful enough to avoid an encounter, in +which there was little doubt he would be killed, by insisting that +each contestant should deposit five thousand castellanos with an +umpire before engaging in the fight. As this was a larger sum than +poor Ojeda could raise--which, of course, Nicuesa knew full well--the +irate cavalier was obliged to sail without having obtained +satisfaction. + +This was the expedition that ended so disastrously, as narrated in a +previous chapter. The Spaniard who was charged with La Cosa's last +message to Ojeda was the only survivor of seventy who had followed the +rash commander in his headlong attack. What had become of Ojeda +himself none of the survivors could tell, for several days passed +without news of him. His body was not to be found among the slain, and +no one who knew him believed that the Indians could have captured him +alive. He had fought like a tiger to reach and defend his friend La +Cosa, but had been borne back by the thronging savages, and since +then nothing had been heard of him. The woods and shore were searched +by scouts, and he was finally found extended on some mangrove roots on +the borders of the forest. He was in such an exhausted state that he +could not speak, but, intrepid to the last, still clung to his +buckler, and in his right hand grasped the good sword with which he +had cut his way through the savage hordes. + +Although famished, and so weak that he could not stand, it was +discovered that he had not received a single wound; but on his shield +were seen the dents made by more than three hundred arrows. His rescue +had scarcely been effected before the ships of his deadly rival, +Nicuesa, sailed into the harbor; but, instead of taking advantage of +Ojeda's defenceless condition, the high-minded hidalgo offered to join +with him in an attack upon the savages, in order to avenge his defeat. +Combining their forces, the two erstwhile enemies fell upon the +Indians while they were asleep, slaughtered an immense number, and +then, after plundering their dwellings set them on fire. + +Thus the unfortunate pilot and his comrades were avenged, and the +ships sailed on, leaving behind hundreds of mangled corpses and huts +reduced to ashes. It was not strange, then, that the surviving savages +should ceaselessly attack the settlement soon after founded by Ojeda +on their coast, and with such persistency that finally it had to be +abandoned. It was in one of these attacks that Ojeda received his +first wound. He had hitherto considered himself invulnerable, but, +falling into an Indian ambush, a poisoned arrow pierced his thigh. +After wrenching it from the wound, he ordered his surgeon, on pain of +death for refusal, to burn out the venom with red-hot irons, and by +this means, though his life was saved, he received injuries that made +him permanently lame. + +At last conditions in the settlement became so desperate that Ojeda +seized the occasion of a pirate ship touching there to depart for +Hispaniola in search of assistance. Leaving his company in charge of +Francisco Pizarro--who in this manner began his conquering career--he +embarked in the pirate ship, but had hardly cleared the harbor before +he began a fierce quarrel with the commander, Talavera, by whose +orders he was seized and fettered. Even when chained to the deck, the +undaunted cavalier dared Talavera and his crew to fight him, two at a +time, and when they refused denounced them all as cowards. + +A violent gale arose, with the result that their ship was wrecked on +the southern coast of Cuba. Escaping to shore, they endured terrible +sufferings for weeks, wandering half famished in forests and through +swamps, until finally rescued by a tribe of Indians who had not heard +of Spanish atrocities and who gave them freely all the provisions they +needed. A canoe was despatched to Jamaica with the tidings of +disaster, and in the end Ojeda reached Hispaniola, where he had the +satisfaction of seeing his late companions hung for their crimes, and +where he passed the remainder of his life in poverty. He died in 1515, +so poor, says Bishop Las Casas, "that he did not leave money enough to +provide for his interment, and so broken in spirit that, with his last +breath, he entreated his body might be buried in the monastery of San +Francisco [the ruins of which may still be seen in Santo Domingo], +just at the portal, in humble expiation of his past pride, 'that every +one who entered might tread upon his grave.'" + + + + +XI + +ON THE COAST OF BRAZIL + +1501-1502 + + +The New World, subsequently to be called America, did not reveal +itself to navigators during the lifetime of any one of those first +engaged in its discovery. Its islands and coast-lines were brought to +view one by one, and bit by bit, so that many years elapsed between +the voyage of Columbus, in 1492, and that which finally enabled the +map-makers to complete the outlines of the continents. It is +interesting and instructive to trace the movements of the explorers, +and note how, after the initial work of Columbus, they emulate one +another in pushing farther and farther into the great ocean of +darkness, their voyages overlapping at times, but ever extending, +until at last the islands of the West Indies are all revealed and the +vast southern continent is circumnavigated. + +Columbus, in his first three voyages, brought to view most of those +islands now known as the Antilles, and on his fourth and last he +skirted the eastern coast of Central America; but he left gaps here +and there which it took many years to fill. On his third voyage, in +1498, he discovered the island of Trinidad and the pearl islands off +the coast of Cumana; but he did not proceed, as he should have done, +along the coast of Terra Firma, and hence Ojeda, Vespucci, and La Cosa +slipped in, guided by the very chart made by him and so treacherously +furnished them by Fonseca. + +[Illustration: ROUTES OF THE DISCOVERERS] + +While doubts may be entertained as to the "first" voyage of Vespucci, +none can exist as to that made by him in 1499-1500, as we have the +sworn testimony to that effect by Ojeda himself, who, when called to +give the same, in the great suit brought by Diego Columbus against the +crown, declared that he had with him on that voyage both La Cosa and +the Florentine. This testimony was given in 1513, a year after +Vespucci's death, and its object was to show that the coast of Terra +Firma, so called, had been first seen by Columbus. By establishing the +fact of his priority, it disposed of any claim Vespucci or his +friends may have made, as he and Ojeda were sailing with the +track-chart of Columbus as their guide. Thus they picked up the route +pursued by the Admiral, and extended it several degrees, Bastidas and +La Cosa, the next year, carrying it still farther. + +In December, 1499, in June of which year Ojeda and Vespucci had set +out together, Vicente Pinzon sailed along the Brazilian coast to a +point eight degrees south of the equinoctial line. He returned to +Spain in September, 1500, and in April of that year Pedro Alvarez +Cabral, in command of a Portuguese fleet bound for the Spice Islands, +over the route discovered by Da Gama, accidentally came in sight of +land on the coast of the country since known as Brazil, in latitude +sixteen degrees south of the line. Unable to prosecute explorations +there, as he was bound for the East, around the Cape of Good Hope and +along the west coast of Africa, Cabral sent a vessel of his fleet back +to Portugal with the news, and proceeded on his way. + +Casting about for a navigator eminently qualified as pilot and +cosmographer to pursue the exploration indicated by Cabral, along the +coast of the country he had so strangely revealed, King Emanuel of +Portugal made up his mind that Amerigo Vespucci was the man he wanted. +Just when he came to this decision, and when Vespucci shifted his +allegiance from Spain to Portugal, is not exactly known, but it was +probably late in the year 1500, after his return, of course, from the +voyage with Ojeda and La Cosa. The particulars of this transaction we +will let him relate in the following letter contained in this chapter. +He does not quite satisfactorily explain how he came to break with +King Ferdinand, especially as both the sovereign and Fonseca had +received him with marked attention, the latter having presented him at +court, where he was consulted as to new expeditions, and "his accounts +of what he had already seen listened to with the greatest interest." +The affair is all the more inexplicable from the fact that during the +interval between his return from the second voyage and his going to +Portugal he was married to a charming lady of Seville. This lady, Dona +Maria Cerezo, was his betrothed during the time he was engaged with +the house of Berardi, but the mania for exploring having seized him, +their marriage was not consummated until after the two voyages had +been made. She went with him to the court, sharing there the honors +heaped upon him by the king; but after this little is heard of her, +though it is known that she survived him several years, and on account +of his distinguished services to Spain received a liberal pension from +the government. + +Leaving his newly wedded wife in Seville, Vespucci went to Portugal, +"where he was received with open arms by King Emanuel, and commenced +with ardor the preparation of the fleet." Respecting his sudden +departure from Spain, his Italian eulogist, Canovai, has this to say: +"It does not appear that King Ferdinand considered himself wronged by +the sudden flight and, to say the least, apparent discourtesy of +Amerigo in leaving the kingdom and the king, his patron, without +salutation or leave-taking. It was probably looked upon as a trait of +his reserved character, or an evidence of his aversion to idle and +slanderous rumors, which he was unwilling to take the pains to +contradict. Rumors and whisperings soon die away when they have +nothing to feed upon, and when Vespucci returned, as though from a +journey, the slight was forgotten, and he was treated with greater +honor than before." + +To what cause King Emanuel owed this acquisition of King Ferdinand's +skilled navigator does not appear; but he was not to retain him very +long. He made, however, two voyages under the flag of Portugal, the +first of which is outlined in this letter to his friend, the +Gonfaloniere of Florence, Piero Soderini: + + "I was reposing myself in Seville, after the many toils I + had undergone in the two voyages to the Indies, made for his + Serene Highness Ferdinand, King of Castile, yet indulging in + a willingness to return to the Land of Pearls, when Fortune, + not seeming to be satisfied with my former labors, inspired + the mind of his Majesty Emanuel, King of Portugal (I know + not through what circumstances), to attempt to avail himself + of my services. There came to me a royal letter from his + majesty, containing a solicitation that I would come to + Lisbon to speak with him, he promising to show me many + favors. I did not at once determine to go, and argued with + the messenger, telling him I was ill and indisposed for the + undertaking, but that when recovered, if his highness wished + me to serve him, I would do whatever he might command. + + "Seeing that he could not obtain me thus, he sent Juliano di + Bartolomeo del Giocondo, who at that time resided in Lisbon, + with a commission to use every means to bring me back with + him. Juliano came to Seville, and on his arrival, and + induced by his urgent entreaties, I was persuaded to go, + though my going was looked upon with ill favor by all who + knew me. It was thus regarded by my friends, because I had + abandoned Castile, where I had been honored, and because + they thought the king had rightful possession of me; and it + was considered still worse that I departed without taking + leave of my host. + + "Having, however, presented myself at the court of King + Emanuel, he appeared to be highly pleased with my coming, + and requested that I would accompany his three ships, which + were then ready to set out for the discovery of new lands. + Thus esteeming a request from a king as equivalent to a + command, I was obliged to consent to whatever he asked of + me. + + "We set sail from the port of Lisbon with three ships in + company, on the l3th of May, 1501, and steered our course + directly for the Grand Canary Islands, which we passed + without stopping, and coasted along the western shores of + Africa. On this coast we found excellent fishing, taking + fish called porgies, and were detained three days. From + there we went to the coast of Ethiopia, arriving at a port + called Beseneghe, within the torrid zone, and situated on + the fourteenth degree of north latitude, in the first + climate. Here we remained eleven days, taking in wood and + water--as it was my intention to sail south through the + great Atlantic Ocean. Leaving this port of Ethiopia, we + sailed on our course, bearing a quarter south, and in + ninety-seven days we made land, at a distance of seven + hundred leagues from said port. + + "In those ninety-seven days we had the worst weather that + ever man experienced who navigated the ocean, in a + succession of drenching rains, showers, and tempests. The + season was very unpropitious, as our navigation was + continually drawing us nearer the equinoctial line, where, + in the month of June, it is winter, and where we found the + days and nights of equal length, and our shadows falling + continually towards the south. It pleased God, however, to + show us new land, on the 17th day of August, at half a + league distance from which we anchored. We launched our + boats and went ashore, to see if the country was inhabited, + and, if so, by what kind of people, and we found at length a + population far more degraded than brutes. + + "It should be understood that at first we did not see any + inhabitants, though we knew very well, by the many signs we + saw, that the country was peopled. We took possession of it, + in the name of his most serene majesty, and found it to be + pleasant and verdant, and situated five degrees south of the + equinoctial line. This much we ascertained and then returned + to the ships. On the next day, while we were ashore, we saw + people looking at us from the summit of a mountain, but they + did not venture to descend. They were naked, and of the same + color and figure as those heretofore discovered by me for + the King of Spain. We made much exertion to persuade them to + come and speak with us, but could not assure them + sufficiently to trust us. Seeing their obstinacy, as it was + growing late we returned to the ships, leaving on shore for + them many bells, looking-glasses, and other things, in + places where they could find them. When we had gone away + they descended from the mountain and took possession of the + things we had left, appearing to be filled with wonder while + viewing them. The next morning we saw from the ships that + the people of the land were making many bonfires, and, + taking them for signals to go ashore, we went and found that + many had arrived; but they kept always at a distance, though + they made signs that they wished us to accompany them + inland. Whereupon two Christians were induced to ask the + captain's permission to brave the danger and go with them, + in order to see what kind of people they were, and whether + they had any kind of riches, spices, or drugs. They + importuned him so much that he finally consented, and after + having been fitted out with many articles for trade they + left us, with orders not to be absent more than five days, + as we should expect them with great anxiety. So they took + their way into the country, and we returned to the ships to + wait for them, which we did for six days; but they never + came back, though nearly every day there came people to the + shore, who would not, however, speak with us. + + "On the seventh day we landed and found that they had + brought their wives with them, whom they commanded, as we + reached the shore, to speak with us. We observed that they + hesitated to obey the order, and accordingly determined to + send one of our people, a very courageous young man, to + address them. In order to encourage them, we entered the + boats while he went to speak with the women. When he arrived + they formed themselves into a great circle around him, + touching and looking at him as with astonishment. While all + this was going on, we saw a woman coming from the mountains + carrying a large club in her hands. When she arrived where + our young Christian stood she came up behind him and, + raising the bludgeon, gave him such a blow with it that she + laid him dead on the spot, and immediately the other women + took him by the feet and dragged him away towards the + mountain. The men ran towards the shore forthwith and began + to assail us with their arrows, throwing our people into a + great fright, in consequence of the boats having grounded, + many arrows reaching them. No one resorted to arms, but for + a time all was terror and panic. After a while, however, we + discharged four swivels at them, which had no other effect + than to make them flee towards the mountain, when they heard + the report. There we saw that the women had already cut the + young Christian in pieces, and at a great fire which they + had made were roasting him in our sight, showing us the + several pieces as they ate them. The men also made signs to + us indicating that they had killed the other two Christians + and eaten them in the same manner, which grieved us very + much. + + " ... We departed from this place and sailed along in a + southeasterly direction, on a line parallel with the coast, + making many landings, but never finding any people with whom + to converse. Continuing in this manner, we found at length + that the line of the coast made a turn to the south, and + after doubling a cape, which we called St. Augustine, we + began to sail in a southerly direction. This cape is a + hundred and fifty leagues distant, easterly, from the + aforementioned land where the three Christians were + murdered, and eight degrees south of the equinoctial line. + While sailing on this course, we one day saw many people + standing on the shore, apparently in great wonder at the + sight of our ships. We directed our course towards them, + and, having anchored in a good place, proceeded to land in + the boats, and found the people better disposed than those + we had passed. Though it cost us some exertion to tame them, + we nevertheless made them our friends and treated with them. + In this place we stayed five days, and here we found + cassia-stems very large and green, and some already dried on + the tops of the trees. We determined to take a couple of men + from the place, in order that they might learn the language, + and three of them came with us voluntarily, wishing to visit + Portugal. + + "Being already wearied with so much writing, I will delay no + longer the information that we left this port and sailed + continually in a southerly direction in sight of the shore, + making frequent landings and treating with a great number of + people. We went so far to the south that we were beyond the + tropic of Capricorn, where the south pole is elevated + thirty-two degrees above the horizon. We had then entirely + lost sight of Ursa Minor, and even Ursa Major was very low, + nearly on the edge of the horizon; so we steered by the + stars of the south pole, which are many, and much brighter + than those of the north. I drew the figures of the greater + part of them, particularly those of the first and second + magnitude, with a description of the circles which they made + around the pole, and an account of their diameters and + semi-diameters, as may be seen in my _Quattro Giornate_, or + _Four Journeys_. + + "We ran on this coast about seven hundred and fifty leagues: + one hundred and fifty from Cape St. Augustine towards the + west, and six hundred towards the south. If I were to relate + all the things that I saw on this coast, and others that we + passed, as many more sheets as I have already written upon + would not be sufficient for the purpose. We saw nothing of + utility here, save a great number of dye-wood and cassia + trees, and also of those trees which produce myrrh. There + were, however, many natural curiosities, which cannot be + recounted. + + "Having been already full ten months on the voyage, and + seeing that we had found no minerals in the country, we + concluded to take leave of it, and attempt the ocean in some + other part. It was determined in council to pursue whatever + course of navigation appeared best to me, and I was invested + with full command of the fleet. I ordered that all the + people and the fleet should be provided with wood and water + for six months--as much as the officers of the ship should + deem prudent to sail with. Having laid in our provisions, we + commenced our navigation with a southeasterly wind, on the + 15th of February, when the sun was already approaching the + equinoctial line, and tending towards this, our northern + hemisphere. We were in such high southern latitude at this + time that the south pole was elevated fifty-two degrees + above the horizon, and we no longer saw the stars either of + Ursa Minor or Major. + + "On the 3d of April we had sailed five hundred leagues from + the port we had left, and on this day commenced a storm so + violent that we had to take in all our sails and run under + bare poles. It was so furious that the whole fleet was in + apprehension. The nights were very long, being fifteen hours + in duration, the sun then being in Aries, and winter + prevailing in this region. While driven by this storm, on + the 7th of April, we came in sight of new land, and ran + within twenty leagues of it, finding the coast wild, and + seeing neither harbor nor inhabitants. The cold was so + severe that no one in the fleet could withstand or endure + it--which I conceive to be the reason for this want of + population. Finding ourselves in great danger, and the storm + so violent that we could scarce distinguish one ship from + another, on account of the high seas that were running and + the misty darkness of the weather, we agreed that the + superior captain should make signals to the fleet to turn + about, leave the country, and steer direct for Portugal. + + "This proved to be very good counsel, for certain it is, if + we had delayed that night, we should all have been lost. We + took the wind aft, and during the night and next day the + storm increased so much that we were apprehensive for our + safety, and made many vows of pilgrimage, and the + performance of other ceremonies usual with [superstitious] + mariners in such weather. We ran five days, making about two + hundred and fifty leagues, and continually approaching the + equinoctial line, finding the air more mild and the sea less + boisterous; till at last it pleased God to deliver us from + this our great danger. + + "It was our intention to go and reconnoitre the coast of + Ethiopia, which was thirteen hundred leagues distant from + us, through the great Atlantic sea, and by the grace of God + we arrived at it, touching at a southern port called Sierra + Leone, where we stayed fifteen days, obtaining refreshments. + From this place we steered for the Azore Islands, about + seven hundred and fifty leagues distant, where we arrived in + the latter part of July, and stayed another fifteen days, + taking some recreation. Then we departed for Lisbon, three + hundred leagues farther, which port we entered on the 7th of + September, 1502--for which the All-Powerful be + thanked!--with only two ships, having burned the other in + Sierra Leone because it was no longer sea-worthy. + + "In this voyage we were absent about fifteen months, and + sailed eleven of them without seeing the north star, or + either of the constellations Ursa Major and Minor (which are + called the "horn"), steering meanwhile by the stars of the + other pole. The above is what I saw in this my third voyage, + made for his Serene Highness the King of Portugal." + + + + +XII + +THE "FOURTH PART OF THE EARTH" + + +The following letter from Vespucci to Lorenzo di Pier Francesco de +Medici, his friend and patron in Florence, was probably written in the +spring of 1503. + + "_To my most Excellent Patron, Lorenzo:_ + + "My last letter to your excellency was written from a place + on the coast of Guinea called Cape Verde, and in it you were + informed of the commencement of my voyage. The present + letter will advise you of its continuation and termination. + + "We started from the above-mentioned cape, having first + taken in all necessary supplies of wood, water, etc., to + discover new lands in the ocean. We sailed on a + southwesterly course until, at the end of sixty-four days, + we discovered land, which, on many accounts, we concluded to + be Terra Firma. We coasted this land about eight hundred + leagues, in a direction west by south. It was well + inhabited, and I noticed many remarkable things, which I + will attempt to narrate. + + "We sailed in those seas until we entered the torrid zone, + and passed to the south of the equinoctial line and the + tropic of Capricorn, so that we were fifty degrees south of + the line. We navigated four months and twenty-seven days, + seeing neither the arctic pole nor Ursa Major or Minor. We + discovered here many beautiful constellations, invisible in + the northern hemisphere, and noted their marvellous + movements and their grandeur.... To proceed, now, to a + description of the country, the plants therein, and of the + customs of the inhabitants, I would observe that this region + is most delightful, and covered with immense forests which + never lose their foliage, and throughout the year yield + aromatic odors and produce an infinite variety of fruit, + grateful to the taste and healthful for the body. In the + fields flourish so many sweet flowers and herbs, and the + fruits are so delicious and fragrant, that I fancied myself + near the terrestrial paradise. What shall I tell you of the + birds and the brilliant colors of their plumage? What of + their variety, their sweet songs, and their beauty? I dare + not enlarge upon this theme, for I fear I should not be + believed. How shall I enumerate the infinite variety of + sylvan animals: lions, catamounts, panthers--though not like + those of our regions--wolves, stags, and baboons of all + kinds? We saw more wild animals--such as wild hogs, kids, + deer, hares, and rabbits--than could ever have entered the + ark of Noah; but we saw no domestic animals whatever. + + "Now, consider reasoning animals. We found the whole region + inhabited by people who were entirely naked, both men and + women. They were well proportioned in body, with black, + coarse hair, and little or no beard. I labored much to + investigate their customs, remaining twenty-seven days for + that purpose, and the following is the information I + acquired. They have no laws and no religious beliefs, but + live according to the dictates of nature alone. They know + nothing of the immortality of the soul; they have no private + property, but everything in common; they have no boundaries + of kingdom or province; they obey no king or lord, for it is + wholly unnecessary, as they have no laws, and each one is + his own master. They dwell together in houses made like + bells, in the construction of which they use neither iron + nor any other metal. This is very remarkable, for I have + seen houses two hundred and twenty feet long and thirty feet + wide, built with much skill, and containing five or six + hundred people. They sleep in hammocks made of cotton, + suspended in the air, without any covering; they eat seated + upon the ground, and their food consists of roots and herbs, + fruits and fish. They eat also lobsters, crabs, oysters, and + many other kinds of mussels and shell-fish which are found + in the sea. As to their meat, it is principally human flesh. + It is true that they devour the flesh of four-footed animals + and birds; but they do not catch many, because they have no + dogs, and the woods are thick and so filled with wild beasts + that they do not care to go into them, except in large + bodies and armed. The men are in the habit of decorating + their lips and cheeks with bones and stones, which they + suspend from holes they bore in them. I have seen some of + them with three, seven, and even as many as nine holes, + filled with white or green alabaster--a most barbarous + custom, which they follow in order, as they say, to make + themselves appear ferocious.... They are a people of great + longevity, for we met with many who had descendants of the + fourth degree. Not knowing how to compute time, and counting + neither days, months, nor years--excepting in so far as they + count the lunar months--when they wanted to signify to us + any particular duration of time, they did it by showing us a + stone for each moon; and, computing in this manner, we + discovered that the age of one man that we saw was seventeen + hundred moons, or about one hundred and thirty-two years, + reckoning thirteen moons to the year. + + "They are a warlike race and extremely cruel. All their + weapons are, as Petrarch says, "committed to the winds"--for + they consist of spears, arrows, stones, and javelins. They + use no shields for the body, going to battle almost wholly + naked. There is no order or discipline in their fights, + except that they follow the counsels of the old men. Most + cruelly do they combat, and those who conquer in the field + bury their own dead, but cut up and eat the dead of their + enemies. Some who are taken prisoners are carried to their + villages for slaves. Females taken in war they frequently + marry, and sometimes the male prisoners are allowed to marry + the daughters of the tribe; but occasionally a diabolical + fury seems to come over them, and, calling together their + relations and the people, they sacrifice these slaves, the + children with the parents, accompanied by barbarous + ceremonies. This we know of a certainty, for we found much + human flesh in their huts, hung up to smoke, and we + purchased ten poor creatures from them, both men and women, + whom they were about to sacrifice, to save them from such a + fate. Much as we reproached them on this account, I cannot + say that they amended at all. The most astounding thing in + all their wars and cruelty was that we could not find out + any reason for them. They made war against each other, + although they had neither kings, kingdoms, nor property of + any kind, without any apparent desire to plunder, and + without any lust for power--which always appeared to me to + be the moving causes of wars and anarchy. When we asked them + about this they gave no reason other than that they did so + to avenge the murder of their ancestors. To conclude this + disgusting subject: one man confessed to me that he had + eaten of the flesh of over two hundred bodies, and I believe + it was the truth. + + "In regard to the climate of this region, I should say it + was extremely pleasant and healthful; for in all the time + that we were there, which was ten months, not one of us + died, and only a few were sick. They suffer from no + infirmity, pestilence, or corruption of the atmosphere, and + die only natural deaths, unless they fall by their own hands + or in consequence of accident. In fact, physicians would + have a bad time in such a place. + + "As we went solely to make discoveries, and started with + that view from Lisbon, without intending to look for any + profit, we did not trouble ourselves to explore the country + much, and found nothing of great value; though I am inclined + to believe that it is capable, from its climate and general + appearance, of containing every kind of natural wealth. It + is not to be wondered at that we did not discover at once + everything that might be turned to profit there, for the + inhabitants think nothing of gold or silver or precious + stones, and value only feathers and bones. But I hope that I + shall be sent again by the king to visit these regions, and + that many years will not elapse before they will bring + immense profits and revenue to the kingdom of Portugal. + + "We found great quantities of dye-wood, enough to load all + the ships that float, and costing nothing. The same may be + said of cassia, crystals, spices, and drugs; but the + qualities of the last are unknown. The inhabitants of the + country tell of gold and other metals; but I am one of those + who, like St. Thomas, are slow to believe. Time will show + all, however. Most of the time of our stay the heavens were + serene and adorned with numerous bright and beautiful stars, + many of which I observed, with their revolutions. + + "This may be considered a schedule, or, as it were, a + _capita rerum_, of the things which I have seen in these + parts. Many things are omitted which are worthy of being + mentioned, in order to avoid prolixity, and because they are + found in my account of the voyage. As yet I tarry at Lisbon, + waiting the pleasure of the king to determine what I shall + do. May it please God that I do whatever is most to His + glory and the salvation of my soul." + +A third and fuller account of the third voyage, written to Lorenzo di +Pier Francesco de Medici: + + "In days past I gave your excellency a full account of my + return, and, if I remember aright, wrote you a description + of all those parts of the New World which I had visited in + the ships of his Highness the King of Portugal. Carefully + considered, they appear truly to form another world, and + therefore we have, not without reason, called it the _New + World_. + + "Not one of all the ancients had any knowledge of it, and + the things which have been lately ascertained by us + transcend all their ideas. They thought there was nothing + south of the equinoctial line but an immense sea and some + poor and barren islands. The sea they called the Atlantic, + and if sometimes they confessed that there might be land in + that region, they contended that it must be sterile, and + could not be otherwise than uninhabitable. The present + navigation has controverted their opinions, and openly + demonstrated to all that they were very far from the truth. + For, beyond the equinoctial line I found countries more + fertile and more densely inhabited than I have ever found + anywhere else, even in Asia, Africa, and Europe--as will be + more fully manifested by duly attending to the following + narration. Setting aside all minor matters, I shall relate + only those of the greatest importance, which are well worthy + of commemoration, and those which I have _personally seen_, + or heard of from men of credibility. I shall now speak with + much care concerning those parts most recently discovered, + and without any romantic addition to the truth. + + "With happy omens of success, we sailed from Lisbon with + three armed caravels, on the 13th of May, 1501, to explore, + by command of the king, the regions of the New World. + Steering a southwest course, we sailed twenty months in a + manner which I shall now relate. In the first place, we went + to the Fortunate Islands, which are now called the Grand + Canaries. After navigating the ocean we ran along the coast + of Africa and the country of the blacks as far as the + promontory which is called by Ptolemy Etiopia, by our people + Cape Verde, and by the negroes Biseneghe, while the + inhabitants themselves call it Madanghan. The country is + situated within the torrid zone, in about fourteen degrees + south latitude, and is inhabited by the blacks. Here we + reposed awhile to refresh ourselves, took in every kind of + provision, and set sail, directing our course towards the + antarctic pole.... + + "To shorten my relation as much as possible, your excellency + must know that we sailed ninety-seven days, experiencing + harsh and cruel fortune. During forty-four days the heavens + were in great commotion, and we had nothing but thunder and + lightning and drenching rains. Dark clouds covered the sky, + so that by day we could see but little better than we could + in ordinary nights without moonshine. The fear of death came + over us, and the hope of life almost deserted us. After all + these heavy afflictions at last it pleased God in His mercy + to have compassion on us and save our lives. On a sudden, + the land appeared in view, and at the sight of it our + courage, which had fallen very low, and our strength, which + had become weakness, immediately revived. Thus it usually + happens to those who have passed through great afflictions, + and especially to those who have been preserved from the + rage of evil fortune. + + "On the 17th of August, in the year 1501, we anchored by the + shore of that country, and rendered to the Supreme Being our + most sincere thanks, according to the Christian custom. The + land we discovered did not appear to be an island, but a + continent, as it extended far away in the distance, without + any appearance of termination. It was beautifully fertile + and very thickly inhabited, while all sorts of wild animals, + which are unknown in our parts, were there found in + abundance.... We were unanimously of the opinion that our + navigation should be continued along this coast and that we + should not lose sight of it. We sailed, therefore, till we + arrived at a certain cape, which makes a turn to the south, + and which is perhaps three hundred leagues distant from the + place where we first saw land. In sailing this distance we + often landed and held intercourse with the natives, and I + have omitted to state that this newly discovered land is + about seven hundred leagues distant from Cape Verde, though + I was persuaded that we had sailed at least eight hundred. + This was partly owing to a severe storm, our frequent + accidents, and partly to the ignorance of the pilot. + + "We had arrived at a place which, if I had not possessed + some knowledge of cosmography, by the negligence of the + pilot would have finished the course of our lives. There was + no pilot who knew our situation within fifty leagues, and we + went rambling about, and should not have known whither we + were going if I had not provided, in season for my own + safety and that of my companions, the astrolabe and + quadrant, my astrological instruments. On this occasion I + acquired no little glory for myself, so that from that time + forward I was held in such estimation by my companions as + the learned are held in by people of quality.... + + "This continent commences at eight degrees south of the + equinoctial line, and we sailed so far along the coast that + we passed seventeen degrees beyond the winter tropic, + towards the antarctic pole, which was here elevated fifty + degrees above the horizon. The things which I saw here are + unknown to the men of our times. That is, the people, their + customs, their humanity, the fertility of the soil, the + mildness of the atmosphere, the celestial bodies, and, above + all, the fixed stars of the eighth sphere, of which no + mention has ever been made. In fact, until now they have + never been known, even by the most learned of the ancients, + and I shall speak of them, therefore, more particularly.... + The climate is very temperate and the country supremely + delightful. Although it has many hills, yet it is watered by + a great number of springs and rivers, and the forests are so + closely studded that one cannot pass through them, on + account of the thickly standing trees. Among these ramble + ferocious animals of various kinds.... The country produces + no metal except gold; and though we in this first voyage + have brought home none, yet all the people certified to the + fact, affirming that the region abounded in gold, and saying + that among them it was little esteemed and nearly valueless. + They have many pearls and precious stones, as we have + recorded before. Now, though I should be willing to describe + all these things particularly, yet, from the great number + of them and their diverse nature, this history would become + too extensive a work. Pliny, a most learned man, who + compiled histories of many things, did not imagine the + thousandth part of these. If he had treated of each one of + them, he would have made a much larger but in truth a very + perfect work.... + + "If there is a terrestrial paradise in the world, it cannot + be far from this region. The country, as I have said before, + facing the south, has such a temperate climate that in + winter they have no cold and in summer are not troubled with + heat. The sky and atmosphere are seldom overshadowed with + clouds, and the days are almost always serene. Dew sometimes + falls, but very lightly, and only for the space of three or + four hours, and then vanishes like mist. They have scarcely + any vapors, and the sky is splendidly adorned with stars + unknown to us, of which I have retained a particular + remembrance, and have enumerated as many as twenty whose + brightness is equal to that of Venus or Jupiter. I + considered also their circuit and their various motions, + and, having a knowledge of geometry, I easily measured their + circumference and diameter, and am certain, therefore, that + they are of much greater magnitude than men imagine. Among + the others, I saw three _Canopi_, two being very bright, + while the third was dim and unlike the others. + + "The antarctic pole has not the Ursa Major and Minor, which + can be seen at our arctic pole; neither are there any bright + stars touching the pole, but of those which revolve around + it there are four, in the form of a quadrangle. While these + are rising, there is seen at the left a brilliant Canopus, + of admirable magnitude, which, having reached mid-sky, forms + the figure of a triangle. To these succeed three other + brilliant stars, of which the one placed in the centre has + twelve degrees of circumference. In the midst of them is + another brilliant Canopus. After these follow six other + bright stars, whose splendor surpasses that of all others in + the eighth sphere.... These are all to be seen in the Milky + Way, and when they arrive at the meridian show the figure of + a triangle, but have two sides longer than the other. I saw + there many other stars, and carefully observed their various + motions, composing a book which treats of them particularly. + In this book I have related almost all the remarkable things + which I have encountered in the course of my navigation, and + with which I have become acquainted. The book is at present + in the possession of the king, and I hope he will return it + soon into my hands. + + "I examined some things in that hemisphere very diligently, + which enables me to contradict the opinions of philosophers. + Among other things, I saw the rainbow--that is, the + celestial arch--which is white near midnight. Now, in the + opinion of some, it takes the color of the four elements: + the red from fire, the green from the earth, the white from + the air, and blue from the water. Aristotle, in his book + entitled _Meteors_, is of a very different opinion. He says: + 'The celestial arch is a repercussion of the sun's rays in + the vapors of the clouds where they meet, as brightness + reflected from the water upon the wall returns to itself. + By its interposition it tempers the heat of the sun; by + resolving itself into rain it fertilizes the earth, and by + its splendor beautifies the heavens. It demonstrates that + the atmosphere is filled with humidity, which will disappear + forty years before the end of the world, which will be an + indication of the dryness of the elements. It announces + peace between God and man, is always opposite the sun, is + never seen at noon, because the sun is never in the north.' + + "But Pliny says that after the autumnal equinox it appears + every hour. This I have extracted from the _Comments of + Landino_ on the fourth book of the _AEneid_, and I mention it + that no man may be deprived of the fruits of his labors, and + that due honors may be rendered to every one. I saw this bow + two or three times; neither am I alone in my reflections + upon this subject, for many mariners are also of my opinion. + We saw also the new moon at mid-day, as it came into + conjunction with the sun. There were seen also, every night, + vapors and burning flames flashing across the sky. A little + above, I called this region by the name of hemisphere, + which, if we would not speak improperly, cannot be so called + when comparing it with our own. It appeared to present that + form only partially, and it seemed to us speaking improperly + to call it a 'hemisphere.' + + "As I have before stated, we sailed from Lisbon--which is + nearly forty degrees distant from the equinoctial line + towards the north--to this country, which is fifty degrees + on the other side of the line. The sum of these degrees is + _ninety_, and is the fourth part of the circumference of the + globe, according to the true reckoning of the ancients. It + is therefore manifest to all _that we measured the fourth + part of the earth_.[13] + + "We who reside in Lisbon, nearly forty degrees north of the + equinoctial line, are distant from those who reside on the + other side of the line, in angular meridional length, ninety + degrees--that is, obliquely. In order that the case may be + more plainly understood, I would observe that a + perpendicular line starting from that part in the heavens + which is our zenith strikes those obliquely who are fifty + degrees beyond the equinoctial line: whence it appears that + we are in the direct line, and they, in comparison with us, + are in the oblique one, and this situation forms the figure + of a right-angled triangle, of which we have the direct + lines, as the figure more clearly demonstrates. + + "Such are the things which in this, my last navigation, I + have considered worthy of being made known; nor have I, + without reason, called this work my _Third Journey_. I have + before composed two other books on navigation which, by + command of Ferdinand, King of Castile, I performed in the + West, in which many things not unworthy of being made known + are particularly described: especially those which appertain + to the glory of our Saviour, who, with marvellous skill, + built this machine, the world. And, in truth, who can ever + sufficiently praise God? I have related marvellous things + concerning him in the aforesaid work. I have stated briefly + that which relates to the position and ornaments of the + globe, so that when I shall be more at leisure I may be + able to write out, with greater care, a work upon + cosmography, in order that future ages may bear me in + remembrance. Such works teach me more fully, from day to + day, to honor the Supreme God, and finally to arrive at the + knowledge of those things with which our ancestors and the + ancient fathers had no acquaintance. With most humble + prayers I supplicate our Saviour, whose province it is to + have compassion upon mortals, that he prolong my life + sufficiently for me to perform what I have purposed to do." + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[13] See Chapter XVI. + + + + +XIII + +THE FOURTH GREAT VOYAGE + +1503-1504 + + +Doubtless our readers share our wish that the personality of Vespucci +could appear more strongly depicted than it has been presented in this +volume; but that is a fault, not of the biographer so much as the hero +of this biography. It must have been noticed, indeed, that Vespucci +says little or nothing of his companions on these voyages, not even +mentioning the commanders; but at the same time he makes rare mention +of himself; so we cannot ascribe it to a desire for making himself +prominent at their expense. It is simply a fault of style, or a result +of his endeavor to be concise, and bring forward the most interesting +events of the voyages and discoveries, with the least waste of time +and effort. + +He was engaged in exploring new regions; his time was occupied in +noting the salient features of the scenery, the traits of the barbaric +peoples, and especially closely observing and enumerating the stars. +Astronomy was a passion with him, and he passed many nights without +sleep, during both voyages to the southern hemisphere, in rapt +contemplation of the glorious constellations. As he rightly observed +in one of his letters, his observations would surely bring him fame, +and no worthier object could claim his attention, even to the +exclusion of all other work. So it is as the self-absorbed astronomer, +the open-minded man of science, seeking to penetrate the secrets of +nature and achieve immortal fame, that we must regard our hero at this +time. + +On his return from the third voyage, Vespucci was royally received by +King Emanuel, even though he had come back almost empty-handed, +without gold or gems, silver, spices, or pearls. He had sailed farther +south than any of his predecessors, having gone beyond the latitude of +the Cape of Good Hope, discovered the beautiful bay which he called +Rio de Janeiro, and perhaps looked into the mouth of the River de la +Plata. He had not discovered the "secret of the strait"--that passage +through the land-mass which confronted all the voyagers from Columbus +to Magellan; nor was it revealed until the last-named, in 1520, +penetrated the great strait that now bears his name, and sailed +through into the Pacific. + +It may be argued that not Vespucci, but another (name unknown), was +the commander of this expedition; but while this other was nominally +in command, the Florentine was the chief pilot, the navigator, and +directed the ships along their courses without mishap. In fact, one of +his biographers has pointed out that the navigating of this fleet, +especially the sailing in almost a straight line from the northern +coast of Brazil to Sierra Leone, on the northwest coast of Africa, was +a triumph of scientific navigation. There is no question that Amerigo +Vespucci was the greatest navigator of his time, and a recognition of +this fact is found in his appointment by King Ferdinand, a few years +later, as the chief pilot of his kingdom. + +Not alone King Emanuel and his court recognized the genius of +Vespucci, but the people of Portugal and of Florence. He was received +in Lisbon with transports of enthusiasm, and one of his ships, which +had worn itself out in the voyage, was dismantled, "and portions of it +were carried in solemn procession to a church, where they were +suspended as precious relics." His fame extended far and wide, and in +Florence, the city of his birth, public ceremonies were held, and +honors bestowed upon his family. + +He returned to Lisbon in September, 1502, and eight months later, at +the urgent request of the king, started on another voyage in +continuation of the last, in the hope of finally finding a strait +through the continent by which India might be reached. About this time +two events took place which are worthy of note. His patron, Lorenzo, +died in June, 1503, and a year later a Latin version of his letter to +him was published under the title _Mundus Novus_, or New World. + +We must not lose sight of this title and this publication, for (as +will be more fully explained in a succeeding chapter) they had much to +do with the future defamation of Vespucci. He, it will be observed, +was pursuing his voyage to, or from, that "New World," while that +little quarto of only four leaves, with its significant title, was +being printed and circulated in Europe. Both Vespucci and Columbus +were then absent from Europe, and both engaged in a desperate struggle +with adverse elements, at the time this pamphlet was published: the +one on the coast of Brazil, the other on his last voyage to the West +Indies, in which he suffered shipwreck and nearly perished of +starvation. + +Both Columbus and Vespucci were innocent of promulgating this title, +or this pamphlet, except that the latter had used the term "new world" +as possibly applying to his discoveries in the south Atlantic. But, +while they were perilling their lives in the service of their +sovereigns, each striving for a common goal, though neither envious of +the other, capricious Fame was weaving a web in which both were to be +enmeshed, and from which Vespucci was not to escape until after the +lapse of centuries. + +The inscription in this pamphlet states: "The interpreter Giocondo +translated this letter from the Italian into the Latin language, that +all who are versed in the latter may learn how many wonderful things +are being discovered every day, and that the temerity of those who +want to probe the Heavens and their majesty, and to know more than is +allowed to know, be confounded: as, notwithstanding the long time +since the world began to exist, the vastness of the earth and what it +contains is still unknown." + +This inscription meant that Vespucci's letter had opened the eyes of +even the clerics to the fact that there was much in the world then +undiscovered, and existing contrary to their preconceived notions. The +interpreter was a Dominican friar of erudition for his times, one +Giovanni Giocondo, an eminent mathematician of Verona, and an +architect, who was then living in Paris, where, it is said, he was +engaged in building the bridge of Notre Dame. It was a Giocondo, and +perhaps this same man, who was sent by King Emanuel to persuade +Vespucci to enlist in his service (as told by him on page 170); but +whether the same, or one of his family, he was intimately acquainted +with the famous Florentines, including Vespucci, the Medici, and Piero +Soderini. He, doubtless, saw the letters written by Vespucci when in +manuscript, and condensed them into his narration, giving full credit +to the author in his publication. He was the unconscious cause of an +injustice to Columbus, perhaps, and also of undue prominence being +given to the name of Amerigo Vespucci, for it was through the issue of +his book that, in a roundabout way, the appellation _America_ came to +be bestowed upon the western continents. + +We will elaborate this argument in another chapter; but (requesting +the reader meanwhile to retain these premises in his mind) we will +first follow Vespucci on his fourth, and last, important voyage to the +southern hemisphere. In a passage appended to the letter quoted in the +previous chapter, and which we herewith reproduce, Vespucci says: + + "My three journeys I think I shall defer writing about in + full until another time. Probably when I have returned safe + and sound to my native country, with the aid and counsel of + learned men, and the encouragement of friends, I shall write + with care a larger work than this. Your excellency [Lorenzo + de Medici] will pardon me for not having sent you the + journals which I kept from day to day in this my last + navigation, as I had promised to do. The king has been the + cause of it, and he still retains my manuscripts. But, + since, I have delayed performing this work until the present + day, perhaps I shall add a _fourth journey_; for I + contemplate going again to explore that southern part of the + New World, and for the purpose of carrying out such + intention two vessels are already armed, equipped, and + supplied with provisions. I shall first go eastward, before + making the voyage south; I shall then sail to the southwest, + and when arrived there shall do many things for the praise + and glory of God, the benefit of my country, the perpetual + memory of my name, and particularly for the honor and solace + of my old age, which has nearly come upon me. + + "There is nothing wanting in this affair but the leave of + the king, and when this is obtained, as it soon will be, we + shall sail on a long voyage; and may it please God to give + it a happy termination!" + +This voyage was undertaken in the spring, or early summer, of 1503, +and extended over twelve months, only terminating with the return to +Lisbon on June 18, 1504. It was, perhaps, the least satisfactory of +any Vespucci had undertaken, and his disgust is plainly apparent in +the following account of it, contained in a letter to Piero Soderini, +written in Lisbon a few months after his return: + + "It remains for me to relate the things which were seen by + me in my fourth voyage; and by reason that I have now become + wearied, and also because this voyage did not result + according to my wishes (in consequence of a misfortune + which happened in the Atlantic Sea), I shall endeavor to be + brief. + + "We set sail from this port of Lisbon, six ships in company, + for the purpose of making discoveries with regard to an + island in the east called Malacca, which is reported very + rich. It is, as it were, the warehouse of all the ships + which come from the Sea of Ganges and the Indian Ocean, as + Cadiz is the storehouse for all ships that pass from east to + west, and from west to east, by way of Calcutta. This + Malacca is farther east, and much farther south, than + Calcutta, because we know that it is situated at the + parallel of three degrees north latitude. + + "We set out on the 10th of May, 1503, and sailed directly + for the Cape Verde Islands, where we made up our cargo, + taking in every kind of refreshment. After remaining here + three days, we departed on our voyage, sailing in a + southerly direction. Our superior captain [Coelho] was a + presumptuous and very obstinate man; he would insist upon + going to reconnoitre Sierra Leone, a southern country of + Ethiopia, without there being any necessity for it, unless + to exhibit himself as the captain of six vessels. He acted + contrary to the wishes of all our captains in pursuing this + course. Sailing in this direction, when we arrived off the + coast of this country we had such bad weather that though we + remained in sight of the coast four days, it did not permit + us to land. We were compelled at length to leave the + country, sailing from there to the south, and bearing + southwest. + + "When we had sailed three hundred leagues through the Great + Sea, being then three degrees south of the equinoctial line, + land was discovered, which might have been twenty-two + leagues distant from us, and which we found to be an island + in the midst of the sea. We were filled with wonder at + beholding it, considering it a natural curiosity, as it was + very high, and not more than two leagues in length by one in + width. This island was not inhabited by any people, and was + an evil island for the whole fleet, because, by the evil + counsel and bad management of our superior captain, he lost + his ship here. He ran her upon a rock, and she split open + and went to the bottom, on the night of the 10th of August, + and nothing was saved from her except the crew. She was a + carrack of three hundred tons, and carried everything of + most importance in the fleet. + + "As the whole fleet was compelled to labor for the common + benefit, the captain ordered me to go with my ship to the + aforesaid island and look for a good harbor, where all the + ships might anchor. As my boat, filled with nine of my + mariners, was of service, and helped to keep up a + communication between the ships, he did not wish me to take + it, telling me they would bring it to me at the island. So I + left the fleet, as he ordered me, without a small boat, and + with less than half my men, and went to the said island, + about four leagues distant. There I found a very good + harbor, where all the ships might have anchored in perfect + safety. I waited for the captain and the fleet full eight + days, but they never came; so that we were very much + dissatisfied, and the people who remained with me in the + ship were in such great fear that I could not console them. + On the eighth day we saw the ship coming, off at sea, and + for fear those on board might not see us, we raised anchor + and went towards it, thinking they might bring me my boat + and men. When we arrived alongside, after the usual + salutations, they told us that the captain had gone to the + bottom, that all the crew had been saved, and that my boat + and men remained with the fleet, which had gone farther to + sea. This was a grievous thing to us, as your magnificence + may well think, for it was no trifle to find ourselves far + distant from Lisbon, in mid-ocean, with so few men. However, + we bore up under adverse fortune, and, returning to the + island, supplied ourselves with wood and water, using the + boat of my consort. + + "This island we found uninhabited. It had plenty of fresh + water, and an abundance of trees filled with countless + numbers of land and marine birds, which were so simple that + they suffered themselves to be taken with the hand. We took + so many that we loaded a boat with them. We saw no other + animals, except some very large rats, some snakes, and + lizards with two tails. Having taken in our supplies we + departed for the southwest, as we had an order from the king + that if any vessel of the fleet, or its captain, should be + lost, I should make for the land of my last voyage. We + discovered a harbor which we called the bay of All Saints, + and it pleased God to give us such good weather that we + arrived at it in seventeen days. It was distant three + hundred leagues from the island we had left, and we found + neither our captain nor any other ship of the fleet in the + course of the voyage. We waited full two months and four + days in this harbor, and, seeing that no orders came for us, + we agreed, my consort and myself, to run along the coast. We + sailed two hundred and sixty leagues farther and arrived at + a harbor, where we determined to build a fortress. This we + accomplished, and left in it the twenty-four men that my + consort had received from the captain's ship that was lost. + + "In this port we stayed five months, building the fortress + and loading our ships with dye-woods. We could not proceed + farther for want of men, and besides, I was destitute of + many equipments. Thus, having finished our labors, we + determined to return to Portugal, leaving the twenty-four + men in the fortress, with provisions for six months, with + twelve pieces of cannon, and many other arms. We made peace + with all the people of the country--who have not been + mentioned in this voyage, but not because we did not see and + treat with a great number of them. As many as thirty men of + us went forty leagues inland, where we saw so many things + that I omit to relate them, reserving them for my _Four + Journeys_. + + "This country is situated eighteen degrees south of the + equinoctial line, and fifty-seven degrees farther west than + Lisbon, as our instruments showed us. All this being + performed, we bade farewell to the Christians we left behind + us, and to the country, and commenced our navigation on a + northeast course, with the intention of sailing directly to + this city of Lisbon. In seventy-seven days, after many toils + and dangers, we entered this port on the 18th of June, + 1504--for which God be praised! We were well received, + although altogether unexpected, as the whole city had given + us up for lost. All the other ships of the fleet had been + lost, through the pride and folly of our commander, and thus + it is that God rewards haughtiness and vanity. + + "At present, I find myself here in Lisbon again, and I do + not know what the king wishes me to do, but I am very + desirous of obtaining repose. The bearer of this, who is + Benvenuto di Domenico Benvenuti, will tell your magnificence + of my condition, and of any other things which have been + omitted, to avoid prolixity, but which I have seen and + experienced. I have abbreviated the letter as much as I + could, and omitted to say many things very natural to be + told, that I might not be tedious. + + "Allow me to commend to you Sr. Antonio Vespucci, my + brother, and all my family. I remain, praying God that he + may prolong your life, and prosper that exalted republic of + Florence, + + "Your very humble servant, + "AMERIGO VESPUCCI. + + "_Lisbon, 4th September, 1504._" + +This was the last letter, so far as we can ascertain, written by +Vespucci concerning his voyages--or, at least, the last that has been +brought to light; though it is hoped that his manuscript journals, to +which he repeatedly refers, may yet be found. They are, doubtless, +buried in the secret archives of either the crown of Portugal or of +Spain, as at different times he alludes to them as being in the hands +of the kings, from whom he hopes to receive them at their pleasure. +Both King Emanuel and King Ferdinand held Vespucci in great esteem; +but, as consideration for their subjects, whether high or low, never +entered their minds, they probably retained the manuscripts for years, +and eventually these precious documents may have been buried beneath +the vast accumulation of papers relating to the voyages and +discoveries in both hemispheres. + +Vespucci was in error respecting the remaining ships of the fleet +engaged in his fourth voyage, for a few months later they came back to +Lisbon in a shattered condition, but, so far as known, with their +crews intact. They had sailed farther to the south than Vespucci went +on this voyage, probably as far as the mouth of the great river La +Plata, which Solis has the credit of discovering a few years later. It +had been learned by that time that the coasts brought to view by the +constantly lengthening voyages into the south were situated to the +west of the great line of demarcation separating the discoveries of +Spain and Portugal, and hence belonged to the former. This fact has a +bearing upon the departure of Vespucci and other noted captains from +Portugal about this time, as, if they would pursue these explorations +to their logical conclusion, they must enlist beneath the banner of +King Ferdinand. Hence we find our hero, towards the end of 1504, once +again in Spain, and in high favor with the king. + + + + +XIV + +KING FERDINAND'S FRIEND + +1505-1508 + + +The summer of 1504 Vespucci passed in Portugal, attending to matters +connected with his last voyage, which had such an unsatisfactory +ending; but in the latter part of that year we find him once again in +Seville. It is presumed he was warmly welcomed by his wife, after this +long absence of nearly four years; but nothing exists at all to +indicate his marital relations, and so far as furnishing material for +his biographers is concerned, he might as well have remained single +all his life. In point of fact, Amerigo Vespucci, though sterling in +his friendships, ardent and even affectionate, was a true celibate. He +was wedded to Science, his whole nature was absorbed by the pursuits +to which he had, perhaps fortuitously, devoted his maturer years. If +we contrast him with Columbus, in respect to the higher qualities of +his character, we cannot but be impressed by the difference between +these two, for, while the latter was weak, impressionable, if not +passionate, the former was strong, flawless in his morals, devoted +ever to the star-eyed goddess in whose service he had enlisted for +life. + +He was humane, generous, unselfish, while Columbus, though of more +heroic proportions than his rival, was at times selfish, ungenerous, +cruel--as witness his treatment of the Pinzons, his claiming the +reward for the discovery of land, which rightly belonged to Rodrigo de +Triana, his massacres of Indians in Hispaniola and enslavement of the +survivors. Against Amerigo Vespucci no such charges of immorality, +cruelty, and bigotry can be brought as against Columbus, and the sole +accusation against him, of falsifying the date of his "first" voyage, +has not been sustained by the evidence. + +His eulogist, Canovai, says of him, in somewhat extravagant terms: +"Behold the transport of that lively emulation which springs from the +indisputable consciousness of talents, and is nourished by the pure +and delicate essence of virtue, which shines uncontaminated in every +footstep of the hero. It seems enmity, but is laudable strife; it +seems envy, but is a generous ambition. If Columbus had found rivals +and enemies resembling Amerigo, I should not see, as now, the +magnificent scene of his triumph so suddenly changed into mourning and +horror, the gloomy night of ignominy and mockery succeed the brief +light of ephemeral happiness, and that invincible leader, who +redoubled the power and dominions of ungrateful Castile, groaning +under the weight of infamous chains, while he asks for nothing but +liberty to carry her arms to the most distant shores of the West. + +"Go now, and turning your eyes from the atrocious metamorphosis, +exclaim it is chance--it is fate; arbitrary sounds and sterile +syllables, with which no distinct idea can ever be associated. Alas! +are there not imperceptible threads by which a regulating hand guides +us through a crooked labyrinth from causes to effects, and prepares in +silence the events of the universe? Prostrated by implacable +vengeance, and despoiled of the exclusive right to discoveries and +honors, Columbus pines in inaction; but no new columns of Hercules, +beyond which the pilot dares not pass, stand erect before the shores +of Mexico. Amerigo Vespucci reunites the web of fortunate events. +Amerigo succeeds Columbus!" + +In simpler diction, Columbus brought all his troubles upon himself. He +dared much, but he demanded more than he was, by merit of mere +achievement, entitled to receive. He was constantly warring for +his alleged rights--with the king, with Fonseca, with his +fellow-explorers, and especially with such commanders of ships +or expeditions as might by their discoveries belittle his +accomplishments. Hence resulted untold misery to the natives of the +New World, consequent upon the crushing despotism he inaugurated in +order to gain gold with which to vindicate himself to his sovereigns. +Hence came Bodadilla and Ovando, sent out to investigate his doings, +one of whom despatched him in fetters to Spain, and the other hastened +the extinction of the Indians, already begun by Columbus himself. + +The aggressive insistence of Columbus in the matter of honors and +privileges, which were in their nature but temporary, are in decided +contrast to the modesty and simplicity of Vespucci, who indeed was +ambitious to acquire an honorable name which should be "the comfort +and solace of his old age," but who, "by his quiet and unobtrusive +manners, made friends even among his rivals." He was scrupulously +regardful of the rights of others, treating the helpless natives with +especial tenderness. This statement may seem to be disproved by the +fact that on two of his voyages he took home gangs of Indians to be +sold as slaves; but it is not known that he himself was responsible +for this, as he was not the real commander of the expeditions, though +the actual scientific head and navigator. + +He was as deeply devout as Columbus himself, always rendering thanks +to the Almighty for His favors, but was by no means a fanatic in +religion. While Columbus ascribes his discoveries to the especial +favor of some particular saint, on occasions, or his deliverance from +danger to the direct interposition of Providence, Vespucci makes no +such superstitious claims for himself, though acknowledging his +dependence upon God and expressing gratitude for divine support. He +believed, evidently, in the precept of the Golden Rule--"Do unto +others as you would have them do to you"; and this, alas, cannot be +said of Christopher Columbus. Though he married late in life, and had +no children of his own, Vespucci "was full of affectionate feeling for +his family, as his care and attention to the education and advancement +of his nephew, and his memory of relatives in Florence, from whom he +had been so long absent, amply testify." + +Finally, the structure which Columbus fain would have raised has +crumbled to ruins, while that built by Vespucci, who labored without +thought of himself, or hope of reward, has been strengthened by the +lapse of time, and will stand so long as the world endures. Vespucci +humbled himself, and was exalted, for the name bestowed upon the +hemisphere which these two were instrumental in revealing to Europe +was suggested by utter strangers to the Florentine--men of penetrating +mind, who perceived an eternal fitness in calling it _America_. + +These reflections arise from the fact that, soon after the return of +Vespucci to Seville, he met, and was probably entertained by, +Christopher Columbus. The old Admiral had but recently returned from +his fourth and last voyage to the West Indies, where he had escaped +death by a miracle, and had suffered humiliation at the hands of the +atrocious Ovando. He had come back to Spain to find his friend and +protectress, Isabella, on a bed of death; to encounter the ingratitude +of Ferdinand and meet the charges of his enemies. He was never to make +another voyage until he embarked on that last long journey into the +world unknown. + +Broken in fortune, worn by the ills of advancing age, crushed beneath +the calumnies of his foes, Columbus felt the end approaching, +probably, and perhaps looked upon Vespucci as, in a sense, his +successor. At least he perceived that the latter's star was in the +ascendant, for he knew him as a friend of King Ferdinand, who, +mistrustful ever of the man who had discovered a new empire for him to +rule, yet was inclined to favor Vespucci, whose sterling qualities he +appreciated. He had always liked the Florentine for his manly, modest +bearing, his sturdy good sense, his industry, patience, erudition, and +eminent abilities in general. Here was a man who made voyages by which +the pathways were opened to new countries, without stipulating in +advance that he should be rewarded with the admiralty of the Ocean +Sea, without bargaining for the viceroyship of the countries he +discovered, or for a tenth of all their resources and trade. He seemed +to have no thought of himself, so absorbed was he in performing a work +which, he had every reason to believe, would redound to the honor of +the land he was born in and the sovereigns he served. + +He had, to be sure, carried his talents to a rival sovereign, and +served him as faithfully as he had King Ferdinand; but the latter bore +him no ill-will for that. It is not certain, in truth, that he had not +connived at Vespucci's entering the service of Portugal for a time, +as, in view of his return to Spain, he received all the benefit of his +experience. It was by means of Vespucci's voyage, most probably, that +it was definitely ascertained how far Portugal had encroached upon +territory assigned by the pope to her great rival, Spain. Deep and +crafty was the diplomacy of King Ferdinand, and it is within the +bounds of probability that he himself sent the silent, observant, +faithful Vespucci to take service with King Emanuel for a season. + +The overlapping voyages of Vespucci and Pinzon, in 1499, 1500, 1501, +and 1503, had decided the question of sovereignty in South America--at +least its northern coasts--in favor of Spain. These two, then, were +soon commissioned by Ferdinand to equip a fleet, of which they were to +be the joint commanders. This fleet was to sail for Brazil, and +thence, after establishing colonies, or forts, continue the +explorations they had severally so auspiciously begun. On April 11, +1505 (it is on record), the king made Vespucci a grant of twelve +thousand maravedis, and on the 24th of the same month letters of +naturalization were issued in his behalf, "in consideration of Amerigo +Vespucci's fidelity, and his many valuable services to the crown." + +Before proceeding to relate the story of Vespucci's renewed service +with King Ferdinand, let us, however, return to the subject of his +intercourse with Columbus, with whom, as there is strong evidence in +proof, he was on terms of intimate friendship. This proof is found in +a letter written by Columbus, at a time (as already mentioned) when he +was in disfavor at court, and after his return from the last and most +unfortunate voyage. It furnishes evidence of the most positive +character that Vespucci and Columbus did not consider themselves as +rivals, but were actually on the best of terms. It was written nearly +a year after the first publication of Vespucci's letter to Lorenzo de +Medici, alluded to in the previous chapter; yet the relations between +the two discoverers were such as might have existed between men united +by fraternal ties. + + + "_To my very dear Son, Don Diego Columbus--at the Court._ + + "MY DEAR SON,--"Diego Mendez departed from this place on + Monday, the 3d of this month. After his departure I held + converse with Amerigo Vespucci, the bearer of this letter, + who goes to court on some business connected with + navigation. He has always been _desirous of serving me, and + is an honorable man_, though fortune has been unpropitious + to him, as to many others; and his labors have not been as + profitable as he deserves. He goes on my account, and with a + great desire to do something which may redound to my + advantage, if it is in his power. + + "I know not here what instructions to give him that will + benefit me, because I am ignorant of what will be required + there; but he goes determined to do for me all that is + possible. See what can be done to advantage there, and labor + for it, that he may know and speak of everything, and devote + himself to the work; and let everything be done with + secrecy, that no suspicions may arise. I have said to him + all that I can say touching the business, and have informed + him of all payments which have been made me, and what is + due. + + "This letter is also intended for the adelantado [Don + Bartholomew, Christopher's brother], that he may avail + himself of any advantage and advice on the subject. His + highness believes that the ships were in the best and + richest portion of the Indies, and if he desires to know + anything more on the subject, I will satisfy him by word of + mouth, for it is impossible for me to tell him by letter. + + "May the Lord have you in His holy keeping. + + "Done at Seville, the 5th of February, 1505. + + "Thy father, who loves thee better than himself, + CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS. + "S. + "S. A. S. + "X. M. Y. + "Xpo. Ferens." + +This precious document was found in the archives of Spain by +Navarrete, whose volumes constitute a veritable mine of Spanish +history. The superscription at the foot of the letter was adopted by +Columbus after he became a "Don," and is supposed to mean: "Servus, +Supplex Altissimi Salvatori; Christus, Maria, Josephus"; or, in +English: "Humble Servant of the most high Saviour; Christ, Mary, +Joseph." The original letter is contained in the collection of an +indirect descendant of Columbus, the Duke of Veragua. It bears ample +testimony to the important fact that, while the great Columbus was not +permitted to present himself at court, his friend Vespucci not only +had access to the throne but strong influence there. + + + + +XV + +PILOT-MAJOR OF SPAIN + +1508-1512 + + +If Vespucci had been as heedful of posthumous fame as Columbus, who +lost no opportunity for trumpeting his deeds to the world, we should +be better prepared to present a continuous narrative of his life than +it is possible to gather from the fragmentary material he has left +behind him. "The transactions of Vespucci at court," says Mr. Fiske, +the eminent historian, "and the nature of the maritime enterprises +that were set on foot or carried to completion during the next few +years, are to be gathered chiefly from old account-books, contracts, +and other business documents, unearthed by the indefatigable +Navarrete, and printed in his great collection.... Unfortunately, +account-books and legal documents, having been written for other +purposes than the gratification of the historian, are--like the +'geological record'--imperfect. Too many links are missing, to enable +us to determine with certainty just how the work was shared among +these mariners (Vespucci, La Cosa, Pinzon, and Solis), or just how +many voyages were undertaken. But it is clear that the first +enterprise contemplated (by King Ferdinand) was a voyage by Pinzon, in +company with either Solis or Vespucci, or both, for the purpose of +finding an end to the continent or a passage into the Indian Ocean. +What Vespucci had failed to do in his last voyage for Portugal, he now +proposed to do in a voyage for Spain." + +While the large fleet for this purpose was being prepared, it is +believed, Vespucci and La Cosa made two voyages, one in 1505 and +another in 1507, to Darien and the Pearl Coast, which resulted more +profitably to them than any others they had undertaken. As these +voyages were simply for commercial purposes, and as Vespucci seems to +have held in contempt the mere acquisition of riches, especially when +the promotion of discovery was not the aim of his expeditions, he +makes no mention of them whatever. In truth, but for the finding of +two letters, sent to the Venetian senate by its diplomatic agents in +Spain, dated 1505 and 1507, these fifth and sixth voyages of Vespucci +would have been overlooked entirely. The omission illustrates his +carelessness in respect to the chronicling of his deeds, his +heedlessness as to fame and glory. As one of his eulogists truly says: +"In none of his writings does Vespucci claim for himself advancement, +honor, or emolument, nor does he seek to delude his patrons with +visions of untold wealth. His letters are the easy effusions of a +great mind filled with admiration at the fertile regions, balmy +climate, and primitive races of the New World. Ever modest, he merges +himself in the greatness of his undertaking; and if the civilized +world with one accord gave his name to the regions he was the first in +modern times to visit, it was a tribute which it deemed just and paid +unasked." + +Owing to the protests of Portugal, it is thought, the great fleet +intended for the extension of discovery along the southern coast of +Brazil was dispersed and its vessels diverted to other seas. Vespucci +had been active in its equipment, and during the uncertainty existing +in Spain after the death of Queen Isabella, and the consequent +derangement of affairs at court, he appears prominently in the +business. He was despatched to court by the board of trade of Seville, +especially commissioned to extricate them from the dilemma in which +they found themselves: unable to determine whether they were to act in +the name of the crazy princess, Juana, her foreign consort, Philip, or +the old king, Ferdinand. In order to be able to meet any emergency, +Vespucci was furnished with three different letters and sets of +instructions. "You will take," wrote the president of the board of +trade to Amerigo, "three letters: for the king, Vila, his grand +chamberlain, and the secretary, Gricio, besides five memorials: one +upon the despatch of the armament, two others received from Hispaniola +concerning the tower which King Ferdinand commanded to be built upon +the Pearl Coast, and the remaining two upon the caravels which are on +service in Hispaniola, and concerning what things are necessary for +the fortress which is building there. If Gricio is at court, and +attends to the affairs of the Indies, give him the letter, show him +the memorials, and he will guide you to the ear of the king and obtain +for you good despatch. We are informed, however, that the king has +intrusted the business of the Indies to M. de Vila, his grand +chamberlain, and if that is the case go directly to him. What we +principally desire is a full understanding of the agreement which has +been entered into between the king, our lord (Philip, the consort of +Juana Loca), and King Ferdinand, in order that we may be able to give +to each prince that which is his." + +Without going further into the affairs of court at this period--merely +pausing to remark that after the death of Philip the old king soon +extricated his kingdom from the state of embarrassment into which it +had been plunged--we cannot but note that Amerigo Vespucci must have +been a man of weight and influence to be selected for such a mission. +It was a visit to the court previous to this which Columbus had in +mind when he gave him the letter to his son Don Diego. The biographer +of Columbus, Mr. Irving, has tried to make it appear that he was used +by Columbus to further his own ends, for he says: "Among the persons +whom Columbus employed at this time in his missions to the court was +Amerigo Vespucci. He describes him as a worthy but unfortunate man, +who had not profited as much as he deserves by his undertakings, and +who had always been disposed to render him a service. His object in +employing him appears to have been to prove the value of his last +voyage, and that he had been in the most opulent parts of the New +World, Vespucci having since touched upon the same coast, in a voyage +with Alonzo de Ojeda." + +Now, this amiable apologist, in his persistent efforts to thrust +Amerigo Vespucci into positions subordinate to Columbus, defeats his +own purpose and disparages his own hero, for by his very words can he +be discredited. He himself says: "The incessant applications of +Columbus [at court], both by letter and by the intervention of +friends, appear to have been listened to with cool indifference. No +compliance was yielded to his requests, and no deference paid to his +opinions.... In short, he was not in any way consulted in the affairs +of the New World." + +And this was at about the time that Amerigo Vespucci was intrusted +with most important business at court by the board of trade of +Seville; about the time that he was called to court and highly +honored by the king; just before the time that he was made captain of +a fleet, with a salary of thirty thousand maravedis per annum. There +was, in truth, no man in the employ of Spain more highly regarded than +Vespucci for his talents, for his honesty, for his loyalty to the +government. At the settlement of accounts pertaining to the fleet +which had been intended for South America, more than five million +maravedis passed through his hands--and he was never charged with +having diverted a single centavo to himself. + +Nothing can so abundantly testify to the respect in which Vespucci was +held as his relations with King Ferdinand. While he has the unique +honor of being almost the only man that Columbus never quarrelled +with, it is also to his credit that he acquired, and retained to the +last, the respect and confidence of the king. Ferdinand was always +mistrustful of Columbus, and with good reason, but never refused +Vespucci a favor--if he asked one--or hesitated to give him an +audience. The reason was, most probably, that, aside from his +deceitfulness (which was a quality the crafty Ferdinand could tolerate +in no one but himself), Columbus was constantly importuning him for +further honors and emoluments; while Vespucci rarely, if ever, craved +glory or riches for himself. Nothing came of Vespucci's intercession +at court for Columbus, and soon the latter dropped out of sight. He +died in 1506, utterly neglected by the court and king, and in such +obscurity that he was unnoticed in the local annals of the day. + +In the mean time, Amerigo Vespucci was at the height of his career, +trusted by the sovereign and honored by all with whom he came in +contact. On the return of King Ferdinand to absolute power in Spain, +through the death of his son-in-law Philip and the regency for his +insane daughter Juana, he called Vespucci and La Cosa to court in +order to consult with them respecting nautical affairs and future +discoveries. In February, 1508, Vespucci, Pinzon, and Solis, who, +together with La Cosa, were then the most highly honored navigators in +Spanish employ, were charged with the safe conduct to the king's +treasury of six thousand ducats in gold, for which service they +received six thousand maravedis each. + +Another consultation was held with the king, whose favorable opinion +of Vespucci was so strengthened that the year following he created for +him the office of pilot-major, as the most eminent navigator in his +kingdom. This position was given him in March, 1508, and from that +time till his death, in February, 1512, he received a salary of +seventy-five thousand maravedis per annum. He was charged to examine +and instruct all pilots in the use of the astrolabe "to ascertain +whether their practical knowledge equalled their theoretical, and also +to revise maps, and to make one of the new lands which should be +regarded as the standard.... He was to correct the errors carried into +the charts by the teachings and the maps of Columbus and others. The +inaccuracy of the Columbus charts was so notorious that their use was +subsequently prohibited, and a penalty imposed upon the pilot who +should sail by them." Vespucci was at the head of a government +department pertaining to pilotage, navigation, and charts. It was then +unique in the world, and the weight of authority behind it was adverse +to the use of charts made by Columbus; notwithstanding which Mr. +Irving says: "When the passion for maritime discovery was seeking to +facilitate its enterprises, the knowledge and skill of an able +cosmographer like Columbus would be properly appreciated, and the +superior correctness [?] of his maps and charts would give him +notoriety among men of science." + +The importance of this position created for Vespucci will appear from +the royal order, or commission, which reads: " ... We command that all +pilots of our kingdom and lordships, who now are, shall henceforward +be, or desire to be, pilots on the routes to the said islands and +terra firma which we hold in the Indies, and other parts of the ocean +sea, shall be instructed in and possess all necessary knowledge of the +use of the quadrant and astrolabe; and in order that they may unite +practice with theory, and profit thereby in the said voyages which +they may make to the said lands, they shall not be able to embark as +pilots in the said vessels, nor receive wages for pilotage, nor shall +merchants be able to negotiate with them as such, nor captains receive +them aboard their ships, without their _having been first examined by +you, Amerigo Despuchi_, our pilot-major, and received from you a +certificate of examination and approbation, certifying that they are +possessed, each one, of the knowledge aforesaid; holding which +certificate, we commend that they be held and received as expert +pilots, wherever they shall show themselves--for it is our will and +pleasure that you should be examiner of said pilots. And that those +who do not possess the required knowledge shall the more easily +acquire it, we command that you shall instruct, at your residence in +Seville, all such as shall be desirous of learning and remunerating +you for the trouble.... And as it has been told us that there are many +different charts, by different captains, of the lands and islands of +the Indies belonging to us, which charts differ greatly from each +other--therefore, that there may be order in all things, it is our +will and pleasure that a standard chart shall be made; and that it may +be the more correct, we command the officers of our board of trade in +Seville to call an assembly of our most able pilots that shall at that +time be in the country, and, in the presence of you, Amerigo Despuchi, +our pilot-major, there shall be planned and drawn a chart of all the +lands and islands of the Indies, which have hitherto been discovered +belonging to our kingdom; and upon this consultation, subject to the +approval of you, our pilot-major, a standard chart shall be drawn +which shall be called the Royal Chart, by which all pilots must direct +and govern themselves. This shall remain in the possession of our said +officers, and of you, our said pilot-major; and no pilot shall use any +other chart, without incurring a penalty of fifty doubloons, to be +paid to the board of trade in the city of Seville.... And it is our +will and pleasure that, in virtue of the above, you, the said Amerigo +Despuchi, shall use and exercise the said functions of our +pilot-major, and shall be able to do, and shall do, all things +pertaining to that office contained in this our letter."[14] + +The remainder of Amerigo Vespucci's life may almost be summed up in +the statement that he held this responsible post during the four years +succeeding to his appointment, for he received his commission on March +22, 1508, and died on February 22, 1512. It was an onerous position, +"and his appointment to it by Ferdinand was the highest proof of the +estimation in which he was held by that monarch that could have been +bestowed upon him." It was a recognition of his supereminent +qualities, as cosmographer and navigator, at a time when Spanish +enterprise was reaching out to every part of the western world; and as +he discharged its duties with fidelity and skill, confining himself +closely to his desk, no leisure was afforded him for further voyaging, +for writing out the long-deferred accounts of his travels, or for +recreation of any sort. He made one short visit to Florence, where he +was received with honor, as the most distinguished son of a city +world-famous for its great men, and where the portrait was painted +which has been universally accepted as authentic, representing him as +advanced in years. + +As already mentioned, authentic information relating to the latter +years of Vespucci is of a fragmentary character, and is contained +mainly in the official papers found in the archives of Simancas and +Seville, by Don Martin Fernandez de Navarrete, to whom the biographers +of Columbus were so deeply indebted. The date of the first of these +papers is July, 1494, and relates to payments made to Berardi, as +outfitter of the ships for the voyages of Columbus. By royal decree, +April 11, 1505, the queen's treasurer is commanded to pay to Vespucci +twelve thousand maravedis. Another decree, of March 22, 1508, grants +Vespucci, as chief pilot of the kingdom, a salary of fifty thousand +maravedis, subsequently increased to seventy-five thousand. Then +follows the royal declaration (from which we have quoted), setting +forth the duties of the pilot-major, which was issued during the +regency of the crazy queen, Juana, and addressed to "Amerigo +Despuchi." + +There is no reference to the date and place of Vespucci's death; but +this is not considered singular, in view of the fact that the demise +of Columbus was officially unnoticed at the time. There is, rather, no +direct reference; though confirmation of that event occurs in the +continuation of his accounts to the day of his death, and after, one +of which relates to the payment of ten thousand nine hundred and +thirty-seven maravedis to Manuel Catano, a canon of Seville, as the +executor of Vespucci's will, "that amount being the balance of his +salary due at the date of his death." + +One of the very few references to the wife of Vespucci is contained in +a royal decree of May 22, 1512, which grants a pension for life to his +widow, Maria Cerezo, of ten thousand maravedis per annum. By a later +decree, this pension is declared a fixed charge against the salary of +the chief pilot and his successors. These were, in order of +succession, Juan Diaz de Solis and Sebastian Cabot, after whom came +others not so famous as these great navigators. + +These papers are cited to show that Amerigo Vespucci was not looked +upon as an adventurer by the dignitaries of Spain; that, on the +contrary, he was held in great esteem, honored with the highest office +in the gift of the king, in which his great accomplishments could have +full scope. He filled that office with eminent ability, to the +complete satisfaction of King Ferdinand, and when he died, on February +22, 1512, he left behind a name untarnished, a reputation for probity +unsullied. Despite the honors accorded him by the kings of Spain and +Portugal, however, and the high positions he occupied, he left no +fortune for his heirs. His valuable papers were bequeathed to his +nephew, Juan Vespucci, whom he loved like a son; but his widow was +left in circumstances so straitened that she was actually dependent +upon the pension granted her by the crown. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[14] From Navarrete's _Coleccion de los Viajes y Descubrimientos_. + + + + +XVI + +HOW AMERICA WAS NAMED + +1504-1541 + + +If, in the foregoing narrative, the author has seemed to champion his +hero unduly, going perhaps unnecessarily into the details of his +voyages, it may have been owing to anticipated opposition on the part +of his readers. There has always been a wide divergence of opinion +respecting the merits of Amerigo Vespucci, and the world has never +reconciled itself to his so-called usurpation of the glory rightly +belonging to Columbus. + +Even so great a writer as Emerson allowed himself to say: "Strange +that broad America must wear the name of a thief! Amerigo Vespucci, +the pickle-dealer at Seville, who went out in 1499, a subaltern with +Hojeda, and whose highest naval rank was boatswain's mate, in an +expedition that never sailed, managed in this lying world to supplant +Columbus, and baptize half the earth with his own dishonest name!" + +We, who have followed the career of Amerigo Vespucci from its +beginning to its ending, know that he was not a thief; that--except by +implication, as having been a purveyor of naval stores--he was not a +"pickle-dealer"; that he held a far higher rank than boatswain's +mate--as attested by the royal proclamation we have cited, naming him +to be chief pilot of Spain; and that, so far as the evidence of his +contemporaries and his own letters show, he made no attempt whatever +to thrust his personality upon the world. + +He did not "baptize half the earth with his own dishonest name," +though it is true that the appellation by which a hemisphere is known +to-day was derived from Americus, Amerigo, or Americo--whether we +speak it in Latin, in Italian, or in Spanish. + +How comes it then, the reader may well ask, that America derived its +name from the Florentine, Vespucci, when it should, by right of +"discovery," have been called after the Genoese, Columbus? The answer +to this question involves the following of clews centuries old, +through a labyrinth of falsehood and misstatement that was built up +three hundred years ago. The first clew may be found on page 197 of +this biography, where mention is made of the translation of Vespucci's +letter to Lorenzo de Medici, by Giocondo, in 1504, and issued by him +under the title _Mundus Novus_. This letter is said to have been first +published in Lisbon and Augsburg in 1504, and in Strasburg in 1505. + +Pick up this book and nail it to the wall, where it may be observed by +all, for it was the very beginning of Vespucci's posthumous troubles. +We have read the letter and known it to have been a plain, unvarnished +account of Vespucci's third voyage, in which he chanced to say that he +thought he had discovered the fourth part of the globe, and proposed +to call it _Mundus Novus_, or the New World. He was quite right, and +within bounds, when he did this, for he was thinking only of that +portion of the _southern hemisphere_ which he had found, and not of +the entire western hemisphere. He did not extend the term to cover the +northern regions, discovered by Columbus, for the latter had no idea +that they pertained to a new world; in fact--as we know--believed to +the last that they belonged to Asia or India. + +"At no time during the life of Columbus, nor for some years after his +death," says a learned historian, "did anybody use the phrase 'New +World' with conscious reference to his discoveries. At the time of his +death their true significance had not yet begun to dawn upon the mind +of any voyager or any writer. It was supposed that he had found a new +route to the Indies by sailing west, and that in the course of this +achievement he had discovered some new islands," etc. + +We must, then, acquit Vespucci of any intention of depriving Columbus +of his laurels, when he said he believed he had found a new world, for +he referred only to that portion of South America now known as Brazil. +Nor, so far as we know, was he either responsible for, or aware of, +the publication of his letters to Medici and Soderini--for those to +the latter were afterwards translated and printed--as he was, at that +time, on the ocean. In truth, as the letters were merely epistles to +friends, who would naturally be interested in his discoveries, and of +course overlook any defects of diction, he openly stated that he was +only waiting leisure for improving and elaborating them for issue in +pamphlet form. He never acquired this leisure, and the world, tired +of waiting, seized upon his material and brought it out in print, +without so much as saying "by your leave." + +The second person to take liberties with Vespucci's name was one +Matthias Ringmann, a student in Paris, who was acquainted with Friar +Giocondo, and of course saw the _Mundus Novus_, which he published in +Strasburg in 1505. That same year he was offered the professorship of +Latin in a college at Saint-Die, a charming little town in the Vosges +Mountains, which had long been a seat of learning. It is said to have +been strangely associated with the discovery of America, from the fact +that here was written, about 1410, the book called _Imago Mundi_, +which Columbus read and probably took to sea with him on his first +great voyage. In a double sense, this obscure town and college, +nestling in a little-known valley of the Franco-German mountains, is +known in connection with the name America, as will now be shown. + +Young Professor Ringmann found at Saint-Die a select and distinguished +company of scholars, composed of Martin Waldseemueller, professor of +geography; Jean Basin de Sendacour, canon and Latinist; Walter Lud, +secretary to Duke Rene, patron of literature, and especially of the +college of Saint-Die, which was to him as the apple of his eye. He was +the reigning Duke of Lorraine, and titular "King of Sicily and +Jerusalem," but had never strayed far from his own picturesque +province, though he had won a great victory over Charles the Bold in +1477. He is, no doubt, worthy an extended biographical sketch, but in +this connection can only be referred to as the patron of these great +teachers in Saint-Die, who, soon after the appearance of Ringmann +among them, conceived the plan of printing a new edition of _Ptolemy_. + +One of them, Walter Lud, was blessed with riches, and as he had +introduced a printing-press, about the year 1500, the college was +amply equipped. So many discoveries had been made since the last +editions of _Ptolemy_ had appeared, that the Saint-Die coterie felt +the need of new works on the subject, and sent Ringmann to Italy +hunting for the same. He, it is thought, brought back, among other +"finds" of great value, the letter written by Vespucci to Soderini +from Lisbon, in September, 1504, a certified manuscript copy of which +was made in February, 1505, and printed at Florence before midsummer, +1506. + +No extended explanation is needed now to elucidate the scheme by which +Vespucci's letters were incorporated in the treatise published by +those wise men of Saint-Die, entitled _Cosmographie Introductio_, or +"Rudiments of Geography," and taken from the press on April 25, 1507. + +It was a small pamphlet, with engravings of the crudest sort, but it +made a stir in the world such as has been caused by but few books +since. But one copy of this first edition is said to be extant, and +that is in the Lenox Library, New York City. It caused a flutter in +cosmographical circles, not alone at the time of its issue, but for +centuries thereafter, for in it first occurs in print the suggestion +that the "fourth part of the world," discovered by Amerigo Vespucci, +should be called AMERICA.[15] + +Professor Martin Waldseemueller was the culprit, and not Amerigo +Vespucci, for he says, in Latin, which herewith find turned into +English: "But now these parts have been more extensively explored and +_another fourth part has been discovered by Americus Vespucius_ (as +will appear in what follows): _wherefore I do not see what is rightly +to hinder us from calling it Amerige, or America--i.e., the land of +Americus, after its discoverer, Americus, a man of sagacious mind_, +since both Europe and Asia have got their names from women. Its +situation and the manners and customs of its people will be clearly +understood from the twice two voyages of Americus, which follow." + +It was a suggestion, merely, and by one who was a perfect stranger to +Vespucci; but it promptly "took," for the word America was euphonious, +it seemed applicable, and, moreover, it was to be applied only to that +quarter in the southern hemisphere which had been revealed by Amerigo +Vespucci. It was a suggestion innocently made, without any sort of +communication from Amerigo himself, intended to influence the opinion +of contemporaries or the verdict of posterity. + +[Illustration: NORTH AMERICA FROM THE GLOBE OF JOHANN SCHOeNER] + +"But for these nine lines written by an obscure geographer in a little +village of the Vosges," says Henry Harrisse, "the western hemisphere +might have been called 'The Land of the Holy Cross,' or 'Atlantis,' +or 'Columbia,' 'Hesperides,' 'Iberia,' 'New India,' or simply 'The +Indies,' as it is designated officially in Spain to this day." ... "As +it was, however," says another writer, "the suggestion by +Waldseemueller was immediately adopted by geographers everywhere; the +new land beyond the Atlantic had, by a stroke of a pen, been +christened for all time to come." + +The full title of the _Cosmographie Introductio_ reads: "An +Introduction to Cosmography, together with some principles of Geometry +necessary to the purpose. Also four voyages of Americus Vespucius. A +description of universal Cosmography, both stereometrical and +planometrical, together with what was unknown to Ptolemy and has been +recently discovered." + +Notwithstanding the name was "promptly adopted" by the geographers, at +the same time it "came slowly into use," for geographical knowledge +was then in an inchoate state, especially as respected the New World. +It is said to have first appeared on a map ascribed to Leonardo da +Vinci in 1514; but in a pamphlet accompanying "the earliest known +globe of Johann Schoener," made in 1515, the new region is described as +the "fourth part of the globe named after its discoverer, Americus +Vespucius, who found it in 1497." Vespucci did not find it, and he +never made the claim that he discovered more than is given in his +letters; but this misstatement by another caused him to be accused of +falsifying the dates of his voyages in order to rob Columbus of his +deserts. + +It will be perceived, however, that the name was not applied at first +to the entire land masses of America, but merely to that portion now +known as Brazil, called by Cabral "_Terra Sanctae Crucis_," or "Land of +the Holy Cross," and by Vespucci, who continued his explorations, +"_Mundus Novus_." Further than this Vespucci never went, and, +moreover, he passed away "before his name was applied to the new +discoveries on any published map." He was living, of course, when the +_Cosmographie_ appeared, and may have seen a copy of the book; but the +argument advanced by some that he dedicated this work to Duke Rene of +Lorraine, and hence must have written it, falls to the ground when +that dedication is examined. The worthy canon who translated +Vespucci's letter to Soderini into Latin, copied the dedication in the +original, which was addressed to "His Magnificence, Piero Soderini, +etc.," but substituted for the last-named his patron, Duke Rene. This +is proved by the title "His Magnificence," which was used in +addressing the Gonfaloniere of Florence, and never in connection with +Duke Rene of Lorraine. + +It was not until near the middle of the sixteenth century that +"America" was recognized "as the established continental name," when, +after Mexico had been conquered by Cortes, Peru by Pizarro, and the +Pacific revealed by Balboa and Magellan, it first appears on the great +Mercator map of 1541. The appellation "America" had superseded _Mundus +Novus_ on several maps previous to this, but only as a term applied to +restricted regions. "The stage of development," says the learned +author of the _Discovery of America_, "consisted of five distinct +steps.... 1. Americus called the regions visited by him _beyond the +equator_ a 'New World,' because they were unknown to the ancients; 2. +Giocondo made this striking phrase, _Mundus Novus_, into a title for +his translation of the letter, which he published at Paris (1504) +while the author was absent from Europe, and probably without his +knowledge; 3. The name _Mundus Novus_ got placed upon several maps as +an equivalent for _Terra Sanctae Crucis_, or what we call Brazil; 4. +The suggestion was made that _Mundus Novus_ was the Fourth Part of the +Earth, and might properly be named America, after its discoverer; 5. +The name America thus got placed upon several maps as an equivalent +for what we call Brazil, and sometimes came to stand alone for what we +call South America, but still signified _only a part of the dry land +beyond the Atlantic to which Columbus had led the way_." + +That there was no evil intention on Vespucci's part is amply proved by +the fact that, while he himself lived four years after the +_Introductio_ was published, a certain contemporary of his, one +Ferdinand Columbus, who was most acutely interested in seeing justice +done the name and deeds of his father, survived Vespucci twenty-seven +years. He not only saw this book, but owned a copy, which, according +to an autograph note on the flyleaf, he had bought in Venice in July, +1521, "for five _sueldos_." This book is still contained in the +library he founded at Seville, and as it was copiously annotated by +him, it must have been carefully read; yet, though he has the credit +of having written a life of his father, Christopher Columbus, he makes +no mention whatever of the "usurpation" by Vespucci. + +Ferdinand Columbus knew the Florentine, and was an intimate friend of +his nephew, Juan Vespucci; yet the question seems never to have arisen +between them as to the great discoverers' respective shares of glory. +The explanation lies in this fact: that Vespucci's name had been +bestowed upon a region far remote from that explored by his father, +who had never sailed south of the equator. Notwithstanding the good +feeling that prevailed between them, however, long after Ferdinand's +death, when the name America had become of almost universal +application, the veteran Las Casas, in writing his great history, +marvels that the son of the old Admiral could overlook the "theft and +usurpation" of Vespucci. The old man's indignation was great, for he +was a stanch friend of Columbus, and revered his memory. He made out a +very strong case against Vespucci--being in ignorance of the manner in +which his name came to be given to the lands discovered by +Columbus--and when, in 1601, the historian Herrera, who made use of +the Las Casas manuscripts, repeated his statements as those of a +contemporary, all the world gave him credence. + +Vespucci's name rested under suspicion during more than three +centuries, and was not even partially cleared until 1837, when +Alexander von Humboldt undertook the gigantic task of vindication. It +was not so much to vindicate Vespucci, however, as to ascertain the +truth, that Humboldt made the critical and exhaustive examination +which appeared in his Examen _Critique de l'Histoire de la Geographie +de Nouveau Continent_. + +Even Humboldt, however, did not secure all the evidence available, but +by the discovery of valuable documents the missing links in the chain +were supplied: by Varnhagen, Vespucci's ardent eulogist, by Harrisse, +and finally by Fiske. The last-named truthfully says: "No competent +scholar anywhere will now be found to dissent from the emphatic +statement of M. Harrisse--'After a diligent study of all the original +documents, we feel constrained to say that there is not a particle of +evidence, direct or indirect, implicating Amerigo Vespucci in an +attempt to foist his name on this continent.'" And moreover, "no shade +of doubt is left upon the integrity of Vespucci. So truth is strong, +and prevails at last." + +This is the conclusion arrived at by the impartial historian, who, +without disparaging the deeds of Columbus, without detracting in any +manner from his great discoveries, has restored Amerigo Vespucci to +the niche in which he was placed by the German geographers four +hundred years ago, and from which he was torn by injudicious +iconoclasts, fearful for the fame of Spain's great Admiral. + +It is enough for Columbus to have discovered America; it was far more +than Amerigo Vespucci deserved to have this discovery given his name, +by which it will be known forever; but this honor, though unmerited, +was at the same time unsought. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[15] For an excellent article on Saint-Die and the naming of America, +see _Harper's Magazine_, vol. lxxxiv., p. 909 (1892). + + + + +INDEX + + + Aborigines, described by Vespucci, 84-95; + seen in Vespucci's third voyage, 180-183. + + Aguado, Juan, 151. + + Amaraca, aboriginal name of province in South America, 137. + + Amaraca-pan, the land of Amaraca, 137. + + Amazon River discovered by Pinzon, 105. + + America, may have been derived from _Amaraca_, 137; + when bestowed upon western continents, 200; + derivation of name, 238; + first applied to continents in 1507, 243, 244. + + Antilla, island of, 26. + + Arno, valley of the, 1. + + + Bahia Honda, reference to, 159. + + Bastidas, Rodrigo de, reference to, 130; + expedition of, 155. + + Berardi, trading-house of, 49, 76; + estate of Juan, 80. + + Book, the first printed in America, 32. + + + Cabral, Pedro Alvarez, coasts South America, 167. + + Cannibals, giants, and pearls, chap. ix. + + Canopi seen by Vespucci, 189. + + Canovai eulogizes Vespucci, 210, 211. + + Carabi, aboriginal word, 96. + + Caravans of the desert, 47. + + Carib Indians described, 99. + + Cathay, kingdom of, 26, 29, 36, 39, 46, 50. + + Cerezo, Maria, married to Vespucci, 168, 235; + dependent upon pension, 237. + + Chambalu, or Peking, 38, 46, 49, 50. + + Cibao, Indian word of Haiti, 28. + + Cipango, island of, 26, 28, 30, 42, 44, 50. + + Coelho, Goncalo, reference to, 202. + + Columbus, Christopher, compared with Toscanelli, 18; + uses Toscanelli's chart in crossing Atlantic, 1492, 22; + letter to, from Toscanelli, 23-27; + adopts Toscanelli's ideas, 30; + conversations with, chap. v.; + personal appearance of, 63; + second voyage of, 76; + extravagances of, 77; + and Bishop Fonseca, 77-79; + and the Pinzons, 149, 150; + in friendly rivalry with Vespucci, 198; + and Vespucci contrasted, 210-214; + misfortunes of, 215; + letter written by, with reference to Vespucci, 218. + + Columbus, Diego, suit of, against the crown, 166. + + Columbus, Ferdinand, books owned by, 248; + acquainted with Juan Vespucci, 249. + + Commerce, European, of the fifteenth century, 47, 48; + of Spain, fifteenth century, 57, 58. + + Constellations of the southern hemisphere, 189, 190. + + Coquibacoa, coast of Venezuela, 134, 135, 158, 159. + + Cosa, Juan de la, with Columbus in Cuba, 107; + sails with Ojeda, 129; + the great pilot, 153; + chart made by, in year 1500, 154; + sails with Bastidas, 155; + second voyage with Ojeda, 156; + horrible death of, 157. + + _Cosmographie Introductio_, the first book containing name + of America, 243, 245. + + Cumana, on coast of Venezuela, 132, 137. + + Curiana, or Gulf of Pearls, 132. + + + Dragon's Mouth, strait of the, 132. + + + Emanuel, King of Portugal, 168; + invites Vespucci to Portugal, 169; + receives Vespucci at court, 171; + sends him on two voyages to the Indies, 170; + recognizes his genius, 196, 207. + + Emerson, R. W., calls Vespucci a "thief and pickle-dealer," 237. + + _Examen Critique_, the, by Humboldt, 103, 250. + + + Ferdinand, King of Spain, and Fonseca, 76; + parts with Vespucci, 168, 169; + diplomacy of, 216; + prefers Vespucci to Columbus, 227; + calls Vespucci to court, 228; + appoints him pilot-major, 229. + + Fiske, John, explains "debatable voyage," 104; + on Vespucci's letter of July, 1500, 109; + quotations from, 124, 125; + on historical records, 221. + + Florence, Vespucci's birthplace, 2, 3; + in the Middle Ages, 12. + + Florentines, the, as merchants in fifteenth century, 5. + + Fonseca, Bishop, reference to, 76, 77, 79, 82, 126, 127; + authorizes Ojeda's voyage, 128. + + Fortunate Islands, or Grand Canaries, 186. + + _Four Voyages_, or _Journeys_, of Vespucci, 90, 95; + no trace of book containing the, 103; + further reference to, 176, 200, 205. + + "Fourth Part of the Earth," the, chap. ii. + + + Ghengis Khan, 50. + + Giacondo, Giovanni, translator of Vespucci's letter, 1504, 198, 199. + + Giants seen in Curacao, 119. + + Gomara, historian, on explorations, 102. + + + Harrisse, Henry, observations on the naming of America, 244. + + Herrera, Antonio de, accuses Vespucci of stealing from Columbus, 101. + + Humboldt, Alexander von, vindicates Vespucci, 103. + + + _Igname_, Indian word, 89. + + Iguana, described by Vespucci, 93. + + _Imago Mundi_, book owned by Columbus, 241. + + India house, the great, 80. + + Irving, Washington, and his _Life of Columbus_, 29; + denounces Fonseca, 77; + narrates Vespucci's voyage with Ojeda, 125; + seeks to disparage Vespucci, 225, 226. + + Iti, an island in the Caribbean Sea, 98. + + + _Kazabi_, or cassava, 89. + + Khan, the Grand, 24, 28. + + Kublai Khan, Mongol emperor, 36-40, 49. + + + Lake Dwellers, the, described by Vespucci, 90-95, 120. + + Lariab, conjectural province of, 96. + + Las Casas denounces Vespucci, 249. + + Lud, Walter, 242. + + + Mandeville, Sir John, 49. + + Mangi, province of, 26, 46. + + Maracaibo, Gulf of, discovered by Ojeda, 135. + + Maracapana (see Amaraca-pan), 132, 137. + + Marco Polo's _Travels_, 33. + + Marignoli, John de, traveller, 49. + + Medici, the Florentine, 4, 5, 10. + + Medici, Lorenzo de, letter written to, by Vespucci in 1501, 109; + in 1503, 179. + + Michael Angelo, birthplace of, 15. + + Monte Corvino, John of, 49. + + _Mundus Novus_, or New World, 46, 239, 246, 248; + title of pamphlet containing first account of + Vespucci's voyage, 197; + when published, 239. + + + Navarrete, Spanish historian, 219, 221, 232, 233. + + New World, the, southern hemisphere of America, so called + by Vespucci, 185. + + Nicollini, Donato, Vespucci's friend, 56. + + Nicuesa, explorer, quarrels with Ojeda, 160; + whom he rescues, 162. + + Nino, Pedro, successful voyage of, 137. + + + Ojeda the Fighter, chap. viii.; + with Columbus, 126; + friend of Fonseca, 127; + receives authority for a voyage, 128; + accompanied by Vespucci, 130; + visits Trinidad, Pearl Islands, and Curacao, 132, 133; + finds Lake Dwellers, 134; + takes cargo of slaves to Spain, 136; + second voyage of (1502), 158; + placed in irons, 159; + makes third voyage (1509), 156, 160; + wounded by poisoned arrow, 163; + poverty and death of, 164. + + Oviedo, historian, on discovery of Bay of Honduras, 105. + + + Paria, Gulf of, 131, 132. + + Paul the Physicist, 16. + + Pearls, Gulf of, 132. + + Pearls obtained by Vespucci, 122, 141, 146. + + Pelotti, Francesco, 49. + + Peretola, home of the Vespuccis, 2. + + Pinelo, Francisco, 77, 78, 81. + + Pinzon brothers, the, 149, 150, 152. + + Pinzon, Vicente Yanez, discovers the Amazon, 167. + + Pliny quoted by Vespucci, 191. + + Polo, Marco, Vespucci's countryman, 33; + taken captive, 34; + _Travels_, 36-42. + + Polo, Maffei, 41. + + Polo, Nicolo, 36. + + Prescott, historian, quotation from, 57. + + Printing-press, the first in America, 32. + + _Ptolemy_, an improved, 242. + + + _Quattro Giornate_ (Four Journeys), 176. + + Quinsai, city of, 25, 43, 46. + + + Rene, Duke of Lorraine, 242, 246, 247. + + Ringmann, Matthias, contemporary of Vespucci, 241. + + Roldan, Francesco, combats Ojeda, 136. + + + Saint-Die, town in which pamphlet was printed containing first + reference to America, 241, 242. + + Savonarola, mention of, 15. + + Schoener, Johann, globe made by, 245. + + Sierra Leone, 178. + + Soderini, Piero, letter written to, by Vespucci, 82, 101; + second letter, 170; + third letter, 201. + + + _Terra Firma_, definition of term, 70; + coast of, 166. + + _Terra Sanctae Crucis_, 246, 248. + + Toscanelli, Florentine astronomer, 16; + friendly with Vespucci, 16; + great attainments of, 19; + corresponds with Columbus, 17, 23-27; + sends chart to Columbus, 21; + ideas of, adopted by Columbus, 30. + + Trapobana, island of, 123. + + Trinidad, visited by Columbus, 131; + by Vespucci, 132. + + + Varnhagen, Viscount, explains Vespucci's "second" voyage, 105. + + Vela, Cape de la, 135. + + Venezuela, origin of name, 134. + + Veragua, Duke of, 220. + + Vespucci, Amerigo, spelling of the name, 1; + birthplace of, 2; + parents, 3, 4; + ancestors, 5, 6; + birthplace of, 2; + parents, 3, 4; + ancestors, 5, 6; + youth, 7, 8, 9, 12-14; + favorite authors, chap. iii.; + begins his career, 51; + enters service with the Medici, 54; + goes to Spain, 55; + letter of, from Spain, 56; + personal appearance of, 63; + characteristics of, 64; + debatable voyage of, chap. vi.; + outfits fleet for Columbus, 76; + in pay of Spain, 81; + letter of, on alleged first voyage, 82-100; + letters to Soderini, 82, 101, 170, 201; + his _Four Voyages_, 90; + accused of purloining from Columbus, 101; + vindicated by Humboldt, 103; + more humane than Columbus, 104; + second voyage of, chap. vii.; + oldest known writing relating to his voyages, 109; + describes constellations of southern hemisphere, 112, 113; + in fight with Indians, 117, 118; + mentions giants, 119; + discovers Lake Dwellers, 120; + takes slaves to Spain, 121, 122; + with Ojeda in 1499, 130; + quoted by Irving, 134; + aborigines seen by, 140-144; + finds pearls, 146; + fellow-voyagers of, chap. x.; + head of house of Berardi, 151; + projected voyage with Pinzon, 153; + invited to Portugal, 168; + married to Maria Cerezo, 168; + leaves Spain for Portugal, 169; + makes two voyages under Portuguese flag, 170; + account of third voyage, 170-177; + encounters cannibals, 180-183; + calls his discovery the New World, 185; + royally received in Portugal, 195; + renowned navigator, 196; + first-published letter of, 197; + makes a "fourth" voyage to America, 200; + returns to Spain, 209; + contrasted with Columbus, 209-214; + mentioned in a letter by Columbus, 218; + pilot-major of Spain, chap. xv.; + at court, 224; + corrects charts made by Columbus, 229; + official papers relating to, 233; + last will and testament, 234; + death of, 235. + + Vespucci, Anastasio, Amerigo's father, 3, 6. + + Vespucci, Elizabetta, Amerigo's mother, 3. + + Vespucci, Georgio Antonio, 8, 11. + + Vespucci, Giovanni, or Juan, Amerigo's nephew, 55; + is bequeathed his uncle's valuable papers, 235. + + Vespucci, Girolamo, Amerigo's brother, 52, 53. + + Vespucci, Guido Antonio, epitaph of, 6. + + + Waldseemueller, Martin, German geographer, who gave the name + to America, 241-243. + + + Yucca, flour made from, 89 + + + Zaitun, city of Cathay, 43, 50. + + Zipangu. _See_ Cipango. + + +THE END + + + * * * * * + + +[Transcriber's Notes: + +The transcriber made the following changes to the text: + + 1. p. 44, The grand Khan ordered --> "The grand Khan ordered + 2. p. 69, The accounts of those --> "The accounts of those + 3. p. 74, But I perceive, Signor --> "But I perceive, Signor + 4. p. 77, "Fonesca" --> "Fonseca" + 5. p. 137, "Ojeba" --> "Ojeda" + 6. p. 143, They had no victuals --> "They had no victuals + 7. p. 170, There came to be a royal --> "There came to be a royal + 8. p. 205, In this part --> "In this part + 9. Index, Columbus Ferdinand, books owned by, 268; --> + Columbus Ferdinand, books owned by, 248; + +End of Transcriber's Notes] + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Amerigo Vespucci, by Frederick A. Ober + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK AMERIGO VESPUCCI *** + +***** This file should be named 19997.txt or 19997.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/1/9/9/9/19997/ + +Produced by Suzanne Shell, Richard J. Shiffer and the +Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net + + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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