here supported, that the island of San Salvador is the point where Columbus first landed upon the new world. Herrera, who is considered the most faithful and authentic of Spanish historians, wrote his history of the Indias towards the year 1600. In describing the voyage of Juan Ponce de Leon made to Florida in 1512, he makes the remarks of which the following is the substance. "Leaving Aguada in Porto Rico, they steered to the N. W. by N. and in 5 days arrived at an island called el Viejo in latitude 22° 30 N. The next day they reached an island of the Lucayos, called Caycos. On the 8th day they anchored at another island called Yaguna in 249. Thence they passed to the island of Manuega in 24° 30, and on the 11th day they reached Guanahani, which is in 25° 40 N. This island of Guanahani was first discovered by Columbus on his first voyage, and which he called San Salvador." These remarks of Herrera are entirely conclusive as to the location of San Salvador. The altitudes it is true are all placed higher than we now know them to be, that of San Salvador being such as to correspond with no other land than the dangerous cluster of the Berry islands which are 70 leagues distant from the nearest part of Cuba. But these latitudes are of no weight, for in those infant days of navigation the instruments for measuring the latitudes of the heavenly bodies, and the tables of declinations for deducing the latitude must have been so imperfect as to place the most scientific navigator of the time below the most mechanical one of the present day. To return-the second island arrived at by Ponce de Leon in his N. western course was one of the Caycos, the first one then called el Viejo must have been Turks-island which lies S. E. of the Caycos. The third island they came to was probably Mariguana; the fourth

Crooked-island, and the fifth Long-island. Lastly, they came to Guanahani, the San Salvador of Columbus and of the present day. If this be supposed identical with Turksisland, where do we find the succession of intervening islands touched at by Ponce de Leon on his way from Porto Rico to San Salvador ?*

.

No stress has been lain in these remarks on the identity of name between some of the points visited by Columbus, and those which continue to bear the same names at the present day, as San Salvador, Conception, and Port Principe, though traditional usage must ever be of vast weight in such matters. Geographical proof of a conclusive kind it is thought has been advanced to enable the world to remain in its old hereditary belief that the present island of San Salvador is the spot where Columbus first set foot upon the new world. Established opinions of the kind ought not to be lightly molested; it is a good old rule that should be kept in mind in curious research as well as territorial dealings, "do not disturb the ancient land marks."

No. XVII.

PRINCIPLES UPON WHICH THE SUMS MENTIONED IN THIS WORK HAVE BEEN REDUCED INTO MODERN CURRENCY.

IN the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella the mark of

* In the first chapter of Herrera's discription of the Indias, appended to his history, is another scale of the Bahama islands, which corroborates the above. It begins in the opposite end, at the north west, and runs down to the south east. It is thought unnecessary to cite it particularly.

silver, which was equal to 8 ounces or to 50 castillanos was divided into 65 reals, and each real into 34 maravadis; so that there were 2210 maravadis in the mark of silver. Among other silver coins there was the real of 8, which, consisting of 8 reals, was within a small fraction the eighth part of a mark of silver or one ounce. Of the gold coins then in circulation the castillanos or doblar de la vanda was worth 490 maravadis, and the ducado 393 maravadis,

If the value of the maravadi had remained unchanged in Spain down to the present day, it would be easy to reduce a sum of the time of Ferdinand and Isabella into a correspondent sum of current money; but by the successive depreciations of the coin of Vellon, or mixed metals, issued since that period, the real and maravadi of Vellon, which have replaced the ancient currency, were reduced towards the year 1700, to about a third of the value of the old real and maravadi, now known as the real and maravadi of silver. As, however, the ancient piece of 8 reals was equal approximately to the ounce of silver, and the duro or dollar of the present day is likewise equal to an ounce, they may be considered identical. Indeed, in Spanish America, the dollar instead of being divided into 20 reals as in Spain, is divided into only 8 parts called reals, which evidently represent the real of the time of Ferdinand and Isabella, as the dollar does the real of 8. But the ounce of silver was anciently worth 276 1-4 maravadis, the dollar, therefore, is likewise equal to 276 1-4 maravadis. By converting then the sums mentioned in this work into maravadis, they have been afterwards reduced into dollars by dividing by 276 1-4.

There is still, however, another calculation to be made before we can arrive at the actual value of any sum of gold and silver mentioned in former times. It is necessary to

notice the variation which has taken place in the value of the metals themselves. In Europe, previous to the discovery of the new world, an ounce of gold commanded an amount of food or labour which would cost 3 ounces at the present day; hence an ounce of gold was then estimated at three times its present value. At the same time an ounce of silver commanded an amount which at present costs 4 ounces of silver. It appears from this, that the value of gold and silver varied with respect to each other, as well as with respect to all other commodities. This is owing to there having been much more silver brought from the new world, with respect to the quantity previously in circulation, than there has been of gold. In the 15th century one ounce of gold was equal to about 12 of silver; and now, in the year 1827, it is exchanged against 16.

Hence giving an idea of the relative value of the sums mentioned in this work, it has been found necessary to multiply them by 3 when in gold, and by 4 when expressed in silver*.

It is expedient to add that the dollar is reckoned in this work at 100 cents of United States of North America, and four shillings and six pence of England.

* See Caballero. Pesos y Medidas. J. B. Say. Economie Politique.

No. XVIII.

MARCO POLO.

The travels of Marco Polo, or Paolo, furnish a key to many parts of the voyages and speculations of Columbus, which without it will hardly be comprehensible.

Marco Polo was a native of Venice, who in the thirteenth century made a journey into the remote, and at that time unknown regions of the east, and filled all christendom with curiosity by his account of the countries he had visited; he was preceded in his travels by his father Nicholas and his uncle Matteo Polo. These two brothers were of an illustrious family in Venice, and embarked in the year 1250,* on a commercial voyage to the east. Having traversed the Mediterranean and the strait of Bosphorus, they stopped for a short time at Constantinople. From hence they proceeded by the Euxine to Armenia, where they remained for a year entertained with great favour at the court of a Tartar prince. A war breaking out between their patron and a neighbouring potentate, and the former being defeated,they were embarrassed how to extricate themselves from the country, and return home in safety. After various wanderings, they at length reached Bochara in the gulf of Persia, where they resided for three years. While here, there ar rived an ambassador from one of the inferior Tartar powers on his way to the court of the great Khan. Finding that the two brothers were well acquainted with the tartar tongue he prevailed upon them to accompany him. After a march of several months, being delayed by snows and inundations, they arrived at the coast of Cublai, otherwise called the great Khan, which signifies king of kings, being

*Ramusio. T. 2, L. 17. ed Venetian, 1606.