CHAPTER XII.
"Yet he to whom each danger hath become A dark delight, and every wild a home, Still urges onward--undismayed to tread Where life's fond lovers would recoil with dread."
The Abencerrage.
The intelligence that Martin Alonzo Pinzon was to make one of thefollowers of Colon, spread through the village of Palos like wild-fire.Volunteers were no longer wanting; the example of one known andrespected in the vicinity, operating far more efficiently on the mindsof the mariners, than the orders of the queen or the philosophy ofColumbus. Martin Alonzo they knew; they were accustomed to submit to hisinfluence; they could follow in his footsteps, and had confidence in hisjudgment; whereas, the naked orders of an unseen sovereign, however muchbeloved, had more of the character of a severe judgment than of agenerous enterprise; and as for Columbus, though most men were awed byhis dignified appearance and grave manner, when out of sight he was asmuch regarded as an adventurer at Palos, as he had been at Santa Fe.
The Pinzons set about their share of the expedition after the manner ofthose who were more accustomed to execute than to plan. Several of thefamily entered cordially into the work; and a brother of MartinAlonzo's, whose name was Vincente Yanez, also a mariner by profession,joined the adventurers as commander of one of the vessels, while anothertook service as a pilot. In short, the month that succeeded theincidents just mentioned, was actively employed, and more was done inthat short space of time toward bringing about a solution of the greatproblem of Columbus, than had been accomplished, in a practical way,during the seventeen long years that the subject had occupied his timeand engrossed his thoughts.
Notwithstanding the local influence of the Pinzons, a vigorousopposition to the project still existed in the heart of the littlecommunity that had been chosen for the place of equipment of thedifferent vessels required. This family had its enemies as well as itsfriends, and, as is usual with most human undertakings, two partiessprang up, one of which was quite as busily occupied in thwarting theplans of the navigator, as the other was engaged in promoting them. Onevessel had been seized for the service, under the order of the court,and her owners became leaders of the dissatisfied faction. Many seamen,according to the usage of that day, had been impressed for duty on thisextraordinary and mysterious voyage; and, as a matter of course, theyand their friends were not slow to join the ranks of the disaffected.Much of the necessary work was found to be imperfectly done; and whenthe mechanics were called on to repair these omissions, they abscondedin a body. As the time for sailing approached, the contention grew moreand more violent, and even the Pinzons had the mortification ofdiscovering that many of those who had volunteered to follow theirfortunes, began to waver, and that some had unequivocally deserted.
Such was the state of things, toward the close of the month of July,when Martin Alonzo Pinzon again repaired to the convent of Santa Mariade Rabida, where Columbus continued to pass most of the time that wasnot given to a direct personal superintendence of the preparations, andwhere Luis de Bobadilla, who was altogether useless in the actualcondition of affairs, also passed many a weary hour, chafing for activeduty, and musing on the loveliness, truth, and virtues of Mercedes deValverde. Fray Juan Perez was earnest in his endeavors to facilitate theexecution of the objects of his friends, and he had actually succeeded,if not in absolutely suppressing the expression of all injurious opinionon the part of the less enlightened of the brotherhood, at least inrendering the promulgation of them more cautious and private.
When Columbus and the prior were told that the Senor Pinzon sought aninterview, neither was slow in granting the favor. As the hour ofdeparture drew nigh, the importance of this man's exertions became moreand more apparent, and both well knew that the royal protection ofIsabella herself, just at that moment and in that place, was of lessaccount than that of this active mariner. The Senor Pinzon, therefore,had not long to wait for his audience, having been ushered into the roomthat was commonly occupied by the zealous Franciscan, almost as soon ashis request was preferred.
"Thou art right welcome, worthy Martin Alonzo!" exclaimed the prior, themoment he caught a glimpse of the features of his old acquaintance--"Howget on matters at Palos, and when shall we have this holy undertaking ina fair direction for success?"
"By San Francisco, reverend prior, that is more than it will be safe forany man to answer. I have thought we were in a fair way to make sail, ascore of times, when some unforeseen difficulty hath arisen. The SantaMaria, on board which the admiral and the Senor Gutierrez, or de Munos,if he will have it so, will embark, is already fitted. She may be setdown as a tight craft, and somewhat exceedeth a hundred tons in burthen,so that I trust his excellency, and all the gallant cavaliers who mayaccompany him, will be as comfortable as the holy monks of Rabida--moreespecially as the good caravel hath a deck."
"These are, truly, glad tidings," returned the prior, rubbing his handswith delight--"and the excellent craft hath really a deck! SenorAlmirante, thou mayst not be in a vessel that is altogether worthy ofthy high aim, but, on the whole, thou wilt be both safe and comfortable,keeping in view, in particular, this convenient and sheltering deck."
"Neither my safety nor my convenience is a consideration to bementioned, friend Juan Perez, when there is question of so much gravermatters. I rejoice that thou hast come to the convent this morning,Senor Martin Alonzo, as, being about to address letters to the court, bymeans of an especial courier, I desire to know the actual condition ofthings. Thou thinkest the Santa Maria will be in a state for service bythe end of the month?"
"Senor, I do. The ship hath been prepared with due diligence, and willconveniently hold some three score, should the panic that hath seized onso many of the besotted fools of Palos, leave us that number, who maystill be disposed to embark. I trust that the saints look upon our manyefforts, and will remember our zeal when we shall come to a jointdivision of the benefits of this undertaking, which hath had no equal inthe history of navigation!"
"The benefits, honest Martin Alonzo, will be found in the spread of thechurch's dominion, and the increased glory of God!" put in the prior,significantly.
"Out of all question, holy Fray Juan Perez--this is the common aim;though I trust it is permitted to a pains-taking mariner to bethink himof his wife and children, in discreet subordination to those greaterends. I have much mistaken the Senor Colon, if he do not look for somelittle advantage, in the way of gold, from this visit to Cathay."
"Thou hast not mistaken me, honest Martin Alonzo," returned Columbus,gravely. "I do, indeed, expect to see the wealth of the Indies pouringinto the coffers of Castile, in consequence of this voyage. In sooth,excellent prior, in my view, the recovery of the holy sepulchre isdependent mainly on the success of our present undertaking, in the wayof a substantial worldly success."
"This is well, Senor Admiral," put in Martin Alonzo, a little hastily,"and ought to gain us great favor in the eyes of all goodChristians--more especially with the monks of la Rabida. But it is hardenough to persuade the mariners of the port to obey the queen, in thismatter, and to fulfil their engagements with ourselves, withoutpreaching a crusade, as the best means of throwing away the fewmaravedis they may happen to gain by their hardships and courage. Theworthy pilots, Francisco Martin Pinzon, mine own brother, Sancho Ruiz,Pedro Alonzo Nino, and Bartolemeo Roldan, are all now firmly tied to usby the ropes of the law; but should they happen to find a crusade attheir end, all the saints in the calendar would scarce have influence tomake them hesitate about loosening themselves from the agreement."
"I hold no one but myself bound to this object," returned Columbus,calmly. "Each man, friend Martin Alonzo, will be judged by his owndeeds, and called on to fulfil his own vows. Of those who pledge naught,naught will be exacted, and naught given at the great final account ofthe human race. But what are the tidings of the Pinta, thine own vessel?Hath she been finally put into a condition to buffet the Atlantic?"
"As ever happeneth with a vessel pressed into the royal service,
Senor,work hath gone on heavily, and things in general have not borne thatmerry activity which accompanieth the labor of those who toil of a freewill, and for their own benefit."
"The silly mariners have toiled in their own behalf, without knowingit," observed Columbus. "It is the duty of the ignorant to submit to beled by the more enlightened, and to be grateful for the advantages theyderive from a borrowed knowledge, albeit it is obtained contrary totheir own wishes."
"That is it, truly," added the prior; "else would the office of uschurchmen be reduced to very narrow limits. Faith--faith in thechurch--is the Christian's earliest and latest duty."
"This seemeth reasonable, excellent sirs," returned Master Alonzo,"though the ignorant find it difficult to comprehend matters that theydo not understand. When a man fancieth himself condemned to anunheard-of death, he is little apt to see the benefit that lieth beyondthe grave. Nevertheless, the Pinta is more nearly ready for the voyage,than any other of our craft, and hath her crew engaged to a man, andthat under contracts that will not permit much dispute before a notary."
"There remaineth only the Nina, then," added Columbus; "with herprepared, and our religious duties observed, we may hope finally tocommence the enterprise!"
"Senor, you may. My brother, Vicente Yanez, hath finally consented totake charge of this little craft; and that which a Pinzon promiseth, aPinzon performeth. She will be ready to depart with the Santa Maria andthe Pinta, and Cathay must be distant, indeed, if we do not reach itwith one or the other of our vessels."
"This is right encouraging, neighbor Martin Alonzo," returned the friar,rubbing his hands with delight; "and I make no question all will comeround in the end. What say the crones and loose talkers of Moguer, andof the other ports, touching the shape of the earth, and the chances ofthe admiral's reaching the Indies, now-a-days?"
"They discourse much as they did, Fray Juan Perez, idly and withoutknowledge. Although there is not a mariner in any of the havens who dothnot admit that the upper sails, though so much the smallest, are thefirst seen on the ocean, yet do they deny that this cometh of the shapeof the earth, but, as they affirm, of the movements of the waters."
"Have none of them ever observed the shadows cast by the earth, in theeclipses of the moon?" asked Columbus, in his calm manner, though hesmiled, even in putting the question, as one smiles who, having dippeddeeply into a natural problem himself, carelessly lays one of its morepopular proofs before those who are less disposed to go beneath thesurface. "Do they not see that these shadows are round, and do they notknow that a shadow which is round can only be cast by a body that isround?"
"This is conclusive, good Martin Alonzo," put in the prior, "and itought to remove the doubts of the silliest gossip on the coast. Tellthem to encircle their dwellings, beginning to the right, and see if, byfollowing the walls, they do not return to the spot from which theystarted, coming in from the left."
"Ay, reverend prior, if we could bring our distant voyage down to thesefamiliar examples, there is not a crone in Moguer, or a courtier atSeville, that might not be made to comprehend the mystery. But it is onething to state a problem fairly, and another to find those who canunderstand it. Now, I did give some such reasoning to the Alguiazil, inPalos here, and the worthy Senor asked me if I expected to return fromthis voyage by the way of the lately captured town of Granada. I fancythat the easiest method of persuading these good people to believe thatCathay can be reached by the western voyage, will be by going there andreturning."
"Which we will shortly do, Master Martin Alonzo," observed Columbus,cheerfully--"But the time of our departure draweth near, and it is meetthat none of us neglect the duties of religion. I commend thee to thyconfessor, Senor Pinzon, and expect that all who sail with me, in thisgreat enterprise, will receive the holy communion in my company, beforewe quit the haven. This excellent prior will shrive Pedro de Munos andmyself, and let each man seek such other holy counsellor and monitor ashath been his practice."
With this intimation of his intention to pay a due regard to the ritesof the church before he departed--rites that were seldom neglected inthat day--the conversation turned, for the moment, on the details of thepreparations. After this the parties separated, and a few more dayspassed away in active exertions.
On the morning of Thursday, August the second, 1492, Columbus enteredthe private apartment of Fray Juan Perez, habited like a penitent, andwith an air so devout, and yet so calm, that it was evident his thoughtswere altogether bent on his own transgressions and on the goodness ofGod. The zealous priest was in waiting, and the great navigator knelt atthe feet of him, before whom Isabella had often knelt, in the fulfilmentof the same solemnity. The religion of this extraordinary man wascolored by the habits and opinions of his age, as, indeed, in a greateror less degree, must be the religion of every man; his confession,consequently, had that admixture of deep piety with inconsistent error,that so often meets the moralist in his investigations into thephilosophy of the human mind. The truth of this peculiarity will beseen, by adverting to one or two of the admissions of the greatnavigator, as he laid before his ghostly counsellor the catalogue of hissins.
"Then, I fear, holy father," Columbus continued, after having made mostof the usual confessions touching the more familiar weaknesses of thehuman race, "that my mind hath become too much exalted in this matter ofthe voyage, and that I may have thought myself more directly set apartby God, for some good end, than it might please his infinite knowledgeand wisdom to grant."
"That would be a dangerous error, my son, and I carefully admonish theeagainst the evils of self-righteousness. That God selecteth his agents,is beyond dispute; but it is a fearful error to mistake the impulses ofself-love, for the movements of his Divine Spirit! It is hardly safe forany who have not received the church's ordination, to deem themselveschosen vessels."
"I endeavor so to consider it, holy friar," answered Columbus, meekly;"and, yet, there is that within, which constantly urgeth to this belief,be it a delusion, or come it directly from heaven. I strive, father, tokeep the feeling in subjection, and most of all do I endeavor to seethat it taketh a direction that may glorify the name of God and servethe interests of his visible church."
"This is well, and yet do I feel it a duty to admonish thee against toomuch credence in these inward impulses. So long as they tend, solely, toincrease thy love for the Supreme Father of all, to magnify hisholiness, and glorify his nature, thou may'st be certain it is theoffspring of good; but when self-exaltation seemeth to be its aim,beware the impulse, as thou wouldst eschew the dictation of the greatfather of evil!"
"I so consider it; and now having truly and sincerely disburdened myconscience, father, so far as in me lieth, may I hope for the church'sconsolation, with its absolution?"
"Canst thou think of naught else, son, that should not lie hid frombefore the keeper of all consciences?"
"My sins are many, holy prior, and cannot be too often or too keenlyrebuked; but I do think that they may be fairly included in the generalheads that I have endeavored to recall."
"Hast thou nothing to charge thyself with, in connection with that sexthat the devil as often useth as his tempters to evil, as the angelswould fain employ them as the ministers of grace?"
"I have erred as a man, father; but do not my confessions already meetthose sins?"
"Hast thou bethought thee of Dona Beatriz Enriquez? of thy son Fernando,who tarrieth, at this moment, in our convent of la Rabida?"
Columbus bowed his head in submission, and the heavy sigh, amountingalmost to a groan, that broke out of his bosom, betrayed the weight ofhis momentary contrition.
"Thou say'st true, father; that is an offence which should never beforgotten, though so often shrived since its commission. Heap on me thepenance that I feel is due, and thou shalt see how a Christian can bendand kiss the rod that he is conscious of having merited."
"The spirit thus to do is all that the church requireth; and thou artnow bent on a service too important to her interests to be d
rawn asidefrom thy great intentions, for any minor considerations. Still may not aminister of the altar overlook the offence. Thou wilt say a pater,daily, on account of this great sin, for the next twenty days, all ofwhich will be for the good of thy soul; after which the church releaseththee from this especial duty, as thou wilt, then, be drawing near to theland of Cathay, and may have occasion for all thy thoughts and effortsto effect thy object."
The worthy prior then proceeded to prescribe several light penances,most of which were confined to moderate increases of the daily duties ofreligion; after which he shrived the navigator. The turn of Luis camenext, and more than once the prior smiled involuntarily, as he listenedto this hot-blooded and impetuous youth, whose language irresistiblycarried back his thoughts to the more meek, natural, and the more gentleadmissions of the pure-minded Mercedes. The penance prescribed to Luiswas not entirely free from severity, though, on the whole, the youngman, who was not much addicted to the duties of the confessional,fancied himself well quit of the affair, considering the length of theaccount he was obliged to render, and the weight of the balance againsthim.
These duties performed in the persons of the two principal adventurers,Martin Alonzo Pinzon and the ruder mariners of the expedition appearedbefore different priests and gave in the usual reckoning of their sins.After this came a scene that was strictly characteristic of the age, andwhich would be impressive and proper, in all times and seasons, for menabout to embark in an undertaking of a result so questionable.
High mass was said in the chapel of the convent, and Columbus receivedthe consecrated bread from the hands of Fray Juan Perez, in humblereliance on the all-seeing providence of God, and with a devoutdependence on his fostering protection. All who were about to embarkwith the admiral imitated his example, communing in his company; forthat was a period when the wire-drawn conclusions of man had not yetbegun so far to supplant the faith and practices of the earlier churchas to consider its rites as the end of religion, but he was stillcontent to regard them as its means. Many a rude sailor, whose ordinarylife might not have been either saintly or even free from severecensure, knelt that day at the altar, in devout dependence on God, withfeelings, for the moment, that at least placed him on the highway tograce; and it would be presumptuous to suppose that the omniscient Beingto whom his offerings were made, did not regard his ignorance withcommiseration, and even look upon his superstition with pity. We scoffat the prayers of those who are in danger, without reflecting that theyare a homage to the power of God, and are apt to fancy that thesepassages in devotion are mere mockery, because the daily mind and theordinary life are not always elevated to the same standard of godlinessand purity. It would be more humble to remember the general infirmitiesof the race; to recollect, that as none are perfect, the question isreduced to one of degree; and to bear in mind, that the Being who readsthe heart, may accept of any devout petitions, even though they comefrom those who are not disposed habitually to walk in his laws. Thesepassing but pious emotions are the workings of the Spirit, since goodcan come from no other source; and it is as unreasonable as it isirreverent to imagine that the Deity will disregard, altogether, theeffects of his own grace, however humble.
Whatever may have been the general disposition of most of thecommunicants on this occasion, there is little doubt that there knelt atthe altar of la Rabida, that day, one in the person of the greatnavigator himself, who, as far as the eye could perceive, livedhabitually in profound deference to the dogmas of religion, and who paidan undeviating respect to all its rites. Columbus was not strictly adevotee; but a quiet, deeply seated enthusiasm, which had taken thedirection of Christianity, pervaded his moral system, and at all timesdisposed him to look up to the protecting hand of the Deity and toexpect its aid. The high aims that he entertained for the future havealready been mentioned, and there is little doubt of his havingpersuaded himself that he had been set apart by Providence as theinstrument it designed to employ in making the great discovery on whichhis mind was so intently engaged, as well as in accomplishing other andulterior purposes. If, indeed, an overruling Power directs all theevents of this world, who will presume to say that this conviction ofColumbus was erroneous, now that it has been justified by the result?That he felt this sentiment sustaining his courage and constantly urginghim onward, is so much additional evidence in favor of his impression,since, under such circumstances, nothing is more probable than that anearnest belief in his destiny would be one of the means most likely tobe employed by a supernatural power in inducing its human agent toaccomplish the work for which he had actually been selected.
Let this be as it might, there is no doubt that Colon observed the ritesof the church, on the occasion named, with a most devout reliance on thetruth of his mission, and with the brightest hopes as to its successfultermination. Not so, however, with all of his intended followers. Theirminds had wavered, from time to time, as the preparations advanced; andthe last month had seen them eager to depart, and dejected withmisgivings and doubts. Although there were days of hope and brightness,despondency perhaps prevailed, and this so much the more because theapprehensions of mothers, wives, and of those who felt an equally tenderinterest in the mariners, though less inclined to avow it openly, werethrown into the scale by the side of their own distrust. Gold,unquestionably, was the great aim of their wishes, and there weremoments when visions of inexhaustible mines and of oriental treasuresfloated before their imaginations; at which times none could be moreeager to engage in the mysterious undertaking, or more ready to risktheir lives and hopes on its success. But these were fleetingimpressions, and, as has just been said, despondency was the prevalentfeeling among those who were about to embark. It heightened the devotionof the communicants, and threw a gloom over the chastened sobriety ofthe altar, that weighed heavily on the hearts of most assembled there.
"Our people seem none of the most cheerful, Senor Almirante," said Luis,as they left the convent-chapel in company; "and, if truth must bespoken, one could wish to set forth on an expedition of this magnitude,better sustained by merry hearts and smiling countenances."
"Dost thou imagine, young count, that he hath the firmest mind whoweareth the most smiling visage, or that the heart is weak because thecountenance is sobered? These honest mariners bethink them of theirsins, and no doubt are desirous that so holy an enterprise be nottainted by the corruption of their own hearts, but rather purified andrendered fitting, by their longings to obey the will of God. I trust,Luis"--intercourse had given Columbus a sort of paternal interest in thewelfare of the young grandee, that lessened the distance made by rankbetween them--"I trust, Luis, thou art not, altogether, without thesepious longings in thine own person."
"By San Pedro, my new patron! Senor Almirante, I think more of Mercedesde Valverde, than of aught else, in this great affair. She is my polarstar, my religion, my Cathay. Go on, in Heaven's name, and discover whatthou wilt, whether it be Cipango or the furthest Indies; beard the greatKhan on his throne, and I will follow in thy train, with a poor lanceand an indifferent sword, swearing that the maid of Castile hath noequal, and ransacking the east, merely to prove in the face of theuniverse that she is peerless, let her rivals come from what part of theearth they may."
Although Columbus permitted his grave countenance slightly to relax atthis rhapsody, he did not the less deem it prudent to rebuke the spiritin which it was uttered.
"I grieve, my young friend," he said, "to find that thou hast not thefeelings proper for one who is engaged, as it might be, in a work ofHeaven's own ordering. Canst thou not foresee the long train of mightyand wonderful events that are likely to follow from this voyage--thespread of religion, through the holy church; the conquest of distantempires, with their submission to the sway of Castile; the settling ofdisputed points in science and philosophy, and the attainment ofinexhaustible wealth; with the last and most honorable consequence ofall, the recovery of the sepulchre of the Son of God, from the hands ofthe Infidels!"
"No doubt, Senor Colon--no doubt, I
see them all, but I see the DonaMercedes at their end. What care I for gold, who already possess--orshall so soon possess--more than I need? what is the extension of thesway of Castile to me, who can never be its king? and as for the HolySepulchre, give me but Mercedes, and, like my ancestors that are gone, Iam ready to break a lance with the stoutest Infidel who ever wore aturban, be it in that, or in any other quarrel. In short, SenorAlmirante, lead on; and though we go forth with different objects anddifferent hopes, doubt not that they will lead us to the same goal. Ifeel that you ought to be supported in this great and noble design, andit matters not what may bring me in your train."
"Thou art a mad-brained youth, Luis, and must be humored, if it wereonly for the sake of the sweet and pious young maiden who seemeth toengross all thy thoughts."
"You have seen her, Senor, and can say whether she be not worthy tooccupy the minds of all the youth of Spain?"
"She is fair, and virtuous, and noble, and a zealous friend of thevoyage. These are all rare merits, and thou may'st be pardoned for thyenthusiasm in her behalf. But forget not, that, to win her, thou mustfirst win a sight of Cathay."
"In the reality, you must mean, Senor Almirante; for, with the mind'seye, I see it keenly, constantly, and see little else, with Mercedesstanding on its shores, smiling a welcome, and, by St. Paul! sometimesbeckoning me on, with that smile that fires the soul with its witchery,even while it subdues the temper with its modesty. The blessed Mariasend us a wind, right speedily, that we may quit this irksome river andwearying convent!"
Columbus made no answer; for, while he had all consideration for alover's impatience, his thoughts turned to subjects too grave, to belong amused even by a lover's follies.