healthy situation than that of Navidad. He traced out the plan of a town in a large plain before a spacious bay, and made every person put his hand to work on which their common safety depended; the houses and ramparts were soon so far advanced by their united labour, as to afford them shelter and security. This being the first city founded in the new world, by the Europeans, Columbus named it Isabella, in honour of his patroness, the queen of Castile. Columbus had to sustain all the hardships in carrying on this necessary work, and encounter all the difficulties to which infant colonies are exposed, when they settle in an uncultivated country: he had also to contend with what was more difficult and insuperable, the laziness, the impatience, and the mutinous disposition, of his followers. The natural inactivity of the Spaniards, seemed to increase under the enervating influence of a hot climate. Some of them were gentlemen unused to bodily fatigue; they had engaged in the enterprize with the sanguine hopes, excited by the splendid and exaggerated accounts, of those who had returned with Columbus from his first voyage, conceiving that it was either the Cipango of Marco Polo, or the Opher from whence Solomon imported those precious commodities, which suddenly diffused such immense riches through his kingdom. But when, instead of that golden harvest, which they expected to reap without much toil or pains, they found their prospect of wealth was remote and uncertain : and, if attained, it must be by slow and persevering efforts of industry: the disappointment of their hopes occasioned such dejection of mind, as led to gen eral discontent. In vain did Columbus endeavour to revive their spirits by expatiating on the fertility of the soil, and displaying the specimens of gold daily brought in from the different parts of the island. Their patience was too much exhausted to wait the gradual returns of the former, and they despised the latter as scanty and inconsiderable. A conspiracy was formed, which threatened fatal consequences to Columbus, and the colony. Fortunately he discovered it, and seized the ring leaders; some of them he punished, and sent the others prisoners to Spain; with these he sent twelve ships, which had served as transports, with an earnest request for a reinforcement of men, and a large supply of provisions. That the people might not have leisure to brood over their disappointments, and nourish a spirit of discontent, he sent them on several expeditions into the interior part of the country. One detachment he sent under the command of Alonzo de Ojeda, an enterprising officer, to visit the district of Cibao, which was said to yield the greatest quantity of gold; and followed himself with the main body of the troops. He displayed in this expedition, all the pomp of military parade, in order to strike the ima found in their habitations the relics of those horrid feasts, which they had made upon the bodies of their enemies taken in war. Columbus, eager to know the state of the colony he had left, proceeded directly to Hispaniola. When he arrived off Navidad, where he had left the thirty-eight men under the command of Arada, he was astonished that none of them appeared, and expected every moment to see them running with transports of joy to welcome their countrymen. Foreboding in his mind what had befallen them, he rowed instantly to land. All the natives, from whom he might have received information, fled at his approach. The fort which he had built was demolished, and the tattered garments, the broken arms and utensils scattered about it, left no room to doubt concerning the unhappy fate of the garrison. While the Spaniards were lamenting over the sad memorials of their countrymen, a brother of the cazique Guacanahari arrived, who gave Columbus a particular detail of what had happened after his departure from the island. The conduct of the Spaniards, and their familiar intercourse with the Indians, tended to diminish that veneration with which they at first inspired them. As soon as the powerful restraints, which the presence and authority of Columbus imposed, was withdrawn, the garrison threw of all subordination to the officer whom he had left in command. They roamed as freebooters through the country; the gold, the women, the provisions, were all the prey of these licentious oppressors: they extended their rapacity to every corner of the island. Gentle and timid as the inhabitants were, unprovoked injuries at length rouzed their courage. The cazique of Cibao, whose territories the Spaniards chiefly infested, on account of the gold which they contained, surprized and cut off several straggling parties. He next assembled his subjects, surrounded the fort, and set it on fire. Some of the Spaniards were killed in defending it, the rest perished in attempting to escape, by crossing an arm of the sea. Guacanahari, who still retained his affection for the Spaniards, took up arms in their defence, and received a wound by which he was still confined. Columbus, although he entertained some suspicions of the fidelity of Guacanahari, yet he considered that this was not a proper time to inquire into his conduct: he, therefore, rejected the advice of several of his officers, who urged him to seize the person of that prince, and revenge the death of their country. men by attacking his subjects. He considered it necessary to secure the friendship of some potentate of the country, in or der to facilitate the settlement which he intended. Therefore, in order to prevent any future injury, he made choice of a more healthy situation than that of Navidad. He traced out the plan of a town in a large plain before a spacious bay, and made every person put his hand to work on which their common safety depended; the houses and ramparts were soon so far advanced by their united labour, as to afford them shelter and security. This being the first city founded in the new world, by the Europeans, Columbus named it Isabella, in honour of his patroness, the queen of Castile. Columbus had to sustain all the hardships in carrying on this necessary work, and encounter all the difficulties to which infant colonies are exposed, when they settle in an uncultivated country: he had also to contend with what was more difficult and insuperable, the laziness, the impatience, and the mutinous disposition. of his followers. The natural inactivity of the Spaniards, seemed to increase under the enervating influence of a hot climate. Some of them were gentlemen ullused to bodily fatigue; they had engaged in the enterprize with the sanguine hopes, excited by the splendid and exaggerated accounts, of those who had returned with Columbus from his first voyage, conceiving that it was either the Cipango of Marco Polo, or the Opher from whence Solomon imported those precious commodities, which suddenly diffused such immense riches through his kingdom. But when, instead of that golden harvest, which they expected to reap without much toil or pains, they found their prospect of wealth was remote and uncertain: and, if attained, it must be by slow and persevering efforts of industry: the disappointmen of their hopes occasioned such dejection of mind, as led to gen eral discontent. In vain did Columbus endeavour to revive their spirits by expatiating on the fertility of the soil, and displaying the specimens of gold daily brought in from the different parts of the island. Their patience was too much exhausted to wait the gradual returns of the former, and they despised the latter as scanty and inconsiderable. A conspiracy was formed, which_threatened fatal consequences to Columbus, and the colony. Fortunately he discovered it, and seized the ring leaders; some of them he punished, and sent the others prisoners to Spain; with these he sent twelve ships, which had served as transports, with an earnest request. for a reinforcement of men, and a large supply of provisions. That the people might not have leisure to brood over their disappointments, and nourish a spirit of discontent, he sent them on several expeditions into the interior part of the country. One detachment he sent under the command of Alonzo de Ojeda, an enterprising officer, to visit the district of Cibao, which was said. to yield the greatest quantity of gold; and followed himself with the main body of the troops. He displayed in this expedition, all the pomp of military parade, in order to strike the ima gination of the natives: he marched with colours flying, martial music and a small body of cavalry, that sometimes appeared in front, and sometimes in the rear. The horses were objects of terror, no less than admiration, to the Indians, who were unacquainted with that vast accession of power, which man had acquired by subjecting them to his dominion. They considered them as one animal with their riders: they were astonished at their speed, and deemed their strength and impetuosity irresistable. Notwithstanding this display of power, wisely intended to inspire the natives with a high idea of the strength of the Spaniards, Columbus did not neglect the art of gaining their love and cofidence. He adhered strictly to the principles of integrity and justice, in all his transactions with them, and treated them on every occasion, with humanity and indulgence. The district of Cibao was mountainous and uncultivated: in every brook and river gold was gathered, either in dust or grains; some of which were of considerable size. The Indians had never penetrated into the bowels of the earth, in search of gold; they had neither capacity nor inclination to refine the rude ore; these were operations too complicated for their talents or industry: neither did they wish to put their ingenuity and invention upon the stretch, in order to obtain it. The Spaniards, however, no longer doubted that the country contained rich treasures in its bowels. of which they soon expected to be masters. The account of these promising appearances of wealth, in the country of Cibao, comforted the desponding colony, which was afflicted with distresses of various kinds. Provisions became scarce, and what remained was corrupted by the heat and humidity of the climate, so as to render it unfit for use. The ground the natives cultivated, was insufficient for their own subsistence, and the Spaniards had neither time nor leisure, to reap any considerable fruits from their own industry. They now became afraid of perishing with hunger, and were reduced to live at short allowance. Diseases prevalent in the torrid zone, began to spread amongst them; alarmed at their violence and unusual symptoms, they exclaimed against Columbus and the con panions of his former voyage, who by their exaggerated descriptions of Hispaniola, had allured them from their native country, to settle in a barbarous uncultivated land, to die either by famine, or of unknown distempers. These complaints came not only from the common people, but several officers and persons of note, joined in these seditious complaints; father Boyle, the apostolic vicar, was one of the most turbulent and outrageous. It required all the authority and address of Columbus, to re-establish order and tranquility in the colony. But the prospect of weaith, from the mines of Cibao, contributed to ments. soothe the malecontents, which they hoped would be a recompense for all their sufferings, and efface the memory of past disappointWhen concord and order, were in a good degree estab lished, Columbus resolved to pursue his discoveries, that he might be able to ascertain whether those new countries with which he had opened a communication, were connected with any region of the earth already known, or whether they were to be considered as a separate part of the globe, hitherto unvisited. He appointed his brother, Don Diego Columbus, and a council of officers, to assist to govern the island in his absence. To Don Pedro Margarita, he gave the command of a body of troops, with whom he was to visit the different parts of the island, and endea vour to establish the authority of the Spaniards. Having left them particular instructions with respect to their conduct, he weighed anchor the twenty-fourth of April, taking with him one ship and two small vessels. During this voyage, he experienced all the hardships to which persons of his profession are commonly exposed, and notwithstanding he was out five months, made no additional discovery, except the island of Jamaica, which appeared beautiful in the extreme. As he sailed on this unknown course, he was entangled among rocks and shelves, retarded by contrary winds, assaulted by furious storms, and with terrible thunder and lightning, which is almost incessant, between the tropics. To add to his distress, his provisions fell short. His crew, exhausted with fatigue and hunger, murmured and threatened; and were ready to proceed to the most desperate extremities against him. In this Danger appearing, in various forms, kept him on continual watch; to issue every order, and superintend the execution of it. At no time his skill and experience were more severely tried; to these the squadron owed its safety. Though naturally of a vigorous and robust constitution, such unremitted fatigue of body, and intense application of mind, brought on a pestilential fever, terminating in a lethargy, which considerably impaired his reason and his memory, and nearly deprived him of his life. dilemma, the crew determined to return with all possible haste to Isabella, which they effected in five days: Columbus recovered his senses. on the abating of the fever, but he remained a considerable time in a feeble state. Here, to his inexpressible joy, he found his brother Bartholomew, which greatly contributed to his recovery. It was now thirteen years, since the two brothers had separated, and during that space had no intercourse with each other. Bartholomew, after concluding his negociation at the court of England, had set out for Spain, by the way of France. At Paris he first received the account of the discoveries his brother had made, in his first voyage, and that he was preparing to embark D |