CHAPTER XIV.
"O'er the glad waters of the dark blue sea, Our thoughts as boundless, and our souls as free, Far as the breeze can bear, the billows foam, Survey our empire, and behold our home."
Byron.
As Columbus sought his apartment, soon after he reached the deck of theHoly Maria, Luis had no farther opportunity to converse with him thatnight. He occupied a part of the same room, it is true, under theassumed appellation of the admiral's secretary; but the great navigatorwas so much engaged with duties necessary to be discharged previously tosailing, that he could not be interrupted, and the young man paced thenarrow limits of the deck until near midnight, thinking, as usual, ofMercedes, and of his return, when, seeking his mattress, he foundColumbus already buried in a deep sleep.
The following day was Friday; and it is worthy of remark, that thegreatest and most successful voyage that has ever occurred on thisglobe, was commenced on a day of the week that seamen have long deemedto be so inauspicious to nautical enterprises, that they have oftendeferred sailing, in order to avoid the unknown, but dreadedconsequences. Luis was among the first who appeared again on deck, andcasting his eyes upward, he perceived that the admiral was alreadyafoot, and in possession of the summit of the high poop, or castle,whose narrow limits, indeed, were deemed sacred to the uses of theprivileged, answering, in this particular, to the more extendedpromenade of the modern quarter-deck. Here it was that he who directedthe movements of a squadron, overlooked its evolutions, threw out hissignals, made his astronomical observations, and sought his recreationin the open air. The whole space on board the Santa Maria might havebeen some fifteen feet in one direction, and not quite as much in theother, making a convenient look-out, more from its exclusion andretirement, than from its dimensions.
As soon as the admiral--or Don Christoval, as he was now termed by theSpaniards, since his appointment to his present high rank, which gavehim the rights and condition of a noble--as soon as Don Christovalcaught a glance of Luis' eye, he made a sign for the young man to ascendand take a position at his side. Although the expedition was soinsignificant in numbers and force, not equalling, in the latterparticular, the power of a single modern sloop of war, the authority ofthe queen, the gravity and mien of Columbus himself, and, most of all,its own mysterious and unwonted object, had, from the first, thrownaround it a dignity that was disproportioned to its visible means.Accustomed to control the passions of turbulent men, and aware of thegreat importance of impressing his followers with a sense of his highstation and influence with the court, Columbus had kept much aloof fromfamiliar intercourse with his subordinates, acting principally throughthe Pinzons and the other commanders, lest he might lose some portion ofthat respect which he foresaw would be necessary to his objects. Itneeded not his long experience to warn him that men, crowded together inso small a space, could only be kept in their social and professionalstations, by the most rigid observance of forms and decorum, and he hadobserved a due attention to these great requisites, in prescribing themanner in which his own personal service should be attended to, and hispersonal dignity supported. This is one of the great secrets of thediscipline of a ship, for they who are incapable of reasoning, can bemade to feel, and no man is apt to despise him who is well entrenchedbehind the usages of deference and reserve. We see, daily, the influenceof an appellation, or a commission, even the turbulent submitting to itsauthority, when they might resist the same lawful commands issuing froman apparently less elevated source.
"Thou wilt keep much near my person, Senor Gutierrez," said the admiral,using the feigned name which Luis affected to conceal under that ofPedro de Munos, as he knew a ship was never safe from eaves-droppers,and was willing that the young noble should pass as the gentleman of theking's bedchamber, "this is our station, and here we must remain much ofour time, until God, in his holy and wise providence, shall have openedthe way for us to Cathay, and brought us near the throne of the GreatKhan. Here is our course, and along this track of pathless ocean it ismy intention to steer."
As Columbus spoke, he pointed to a chart that lay spread before him onan arm-chest, passing a finger calmly along the line he intended topursue. The coast of Europe, in its general outlines, was laid down onthis chart, with as much accuracy as the geographical knowledge of theday would furnish, and a range of land extended southward as far asGuinea, all beyond which region was _terra incognita_ to the learnedworld at that time. The Canaries and the Azores, which had beendiscovered some generations earlier, occupied their proper places, whilethe western side of the Atlantic was bounded by a fancied delineation ofthe eastern coast of India, or of Cathay, buttressed by the island ofCipango, or Japan, and an Archipelago, that had been representedprincipally after the accounts of Marco Polo and his relatives. By afortunate misconception, Cipango had been placed in a longitude thatcorresponded very nearly with that of Washington, or some two thousandleagues east of the position in which it is actually to be found. Thiserror of Columbus, in relation to the extent of the circumference of theglobe, in the end, most probably saved his hardy enterprise frombecoming a failure.
Luis, for the first time since he had been engaged in the expedition,cast his eyes over this chart, with some curiosity, and he felt a nobledesire to solve the great problem rising within him, as he thus saw, ata glance, all the vast results, as well as the interesting naturalphenomena, that were dependent on the issue.
"By San Gennaro of Napoli!" he exclaimed--The only affectation the youngnoble had, was a habit of invoking the saints of the different countrieshe had visited, and of using the little oaths and exclamations ofdistant lands, a summary mode of both letting the world know how far hehad journeyed, as well as a portion of the improvement he had derivedfrom his travels--"By San Gennaro, Senor Don Christoval, but this voyagewill be one of exceeding merit, if we ever find our way across thisgreat belt of water; and greater still, should we ever manage toreturn!"
"The last difficulty is the one, at this moment, uppermost in the mindsof most in this vessel," answered Columbus. "Dost thou not perceive, DonLuis, the grave and dejected countenances of the mariners, and hearestthou the wailings that are rising from the shore?"
This remark caused the young man to raise his eyes from the chart, andto take a survey of the scene around him. The Nina, a light felucca, infact, was already under way, and brushing past them under a latineforesail, her sides thronged with boats filled with people, no smallportion of whom were females and children, and most of whom werewringing their hands and raising piteous cries of despair. The Pinta wasin the act of being cast; and, although the authority of Martin AlonzoPinzon had the effect to render their grief less clamorous, her sideswere surrounded by a similar crowd, while numberless boats plied aroundthe Santa Maria herself; the authority and dignity of the admiral alonekeeping them at a distance. It was evident that most of those whoremained, fancied that they now saw their departing relations for thelast time, while no small portion of those who were on the eve ofsailing, believed they were on the point of quitting Spain forever.
"Hast looked for Pepe, this morning, among our people?" demandedColumbus, the incident of the young sailor recurring to his thoughts,for the first time that morning; "if he prove false to his word, we mayregard it as an evil omen, and have an eye on all our followers, whilethere is a chance of escape."
"If his absence would be an omen of evil, Senor Almirante, his presenceought to be received as an omen of good. The noble fellow is on thisyard, above our heads, loosening the sail."
Columbus turned his eyes upward, and there, indeed, was the youngmariner in question, poised on the extreme and attenuated end of thelatine yard, that ships even then carried on their after-masts, swingingin the wind while he loosened the gasket that kept the canvas in itsfolds. Occasionally he looked beneath him, anxious to discover if hisreturn had been noted; and, once or twice, his hands, usually so nimble,lingered in their employment, as he cast glances over the stern of thevessel, as if one also drew his attention
in that quarter. Columbus madea sign of recognition to the gratified young mariner, who instantlypermitted the canvas to fall; and then he walked to the taffrail,accompanied by Luis, in order to ascertain if any boat was near theship. There, indeed, close to the vessel, lay a skiff, rowed by Monicaalone, and which had been permitted to approach so near on account ofthe sex of its occupant. The moment the wife of Pepe observed the formof the admiral, she arose from her seat, and clasped her hands towardhim, desirous, but afraid, to speak. Perceiving that the woman was awedby the bustle, the crowd of persons, and the appearance of the ship,which she was almost near enough to touch with her hand, Columbusaddressed her. He spoke mildly, and his looks, usually so grave, andsometimes even stern, were softened to an expression of gentleness thatLuis had never before witnessed.
"I see that thy husband hath been true to his promise, good woman," hesaid; "and I doubt not that thou hast told him it is wiser and bettermanfully to serve the queen, than to live under the disgrace of arunaway."
"Senor, I have. I give Dona Isabella my husband, without a murmur, ifnot cheerfully, now I know that you go forth to serve God. I see thewickedness of my repinings, and shall pray that he may be foremost, onall occasions, until the ears of the Infidel shall be opened to thewords of the true faith."
"This is said like a Spanish wife, and a Christian woman! Our lives arein the care of Providence, and doubt not of seeing Pepe, in health andsafety, after he hath visited Cathay, and done his share in itsdiscovery."
"Ah! Senor--when?" exclaimed the wife, unable, in spite of her assumedfortitude, and the strong feelings of religious duty, to suppress theimpulses of a woman.
"In God's time, my good--how art thou named?"
"Monica, Senor Almirante, and my husband is called Pepe; and the boy,the poor, fatherless child, hath been christened Juan. We have noMoorish blood, but are pure Spaniards, and I pray your Excellency toremember it, on such occasions as may call for more dangerous duty thancommon."
"Thou may'st depend on my care of the father of Juan," returned theadmiral, smiling, though a tear glistened in his eye. "I, too, leavebehind those that are dear to me as my own soul, and among others amotherless son. Should aught serious befall our vessel, Diego would bean orphan; whereas thy Juan would at least enjoy the care and affectionof her who brought him into the world."
"Senor, a thousand pardons!" said the woman, much touched by the feelingthat was betrayed by the admiral in his voice. "We are selfish, andforget that others have sorrows, when we feel our own too keenly. Goforth, in God's name, and do his holy will--take my husband with you; Ionly wish that little Juan was old enough to be his companion."
Monica could utter no more, but dashing the tears from her eyes, sheresumed the oars, and pulled the little skiff slowly, as if theinanimate machine felt the reluctance of the hands that propelled it,toward the land. The short dialogue just related, had been carried on invoices so loud as to be heard by all near the speakers; and whenColumbus turned from the boat, he saw that many of his crew had beenhanging suspended in the rigging, or on the yards, eagerly listening towhat had been said. At this precise instant the anchor of the SantaMaria was raised from the bottom, and the ship's head began to inclinefrom the direction of the wind. At the next moment, the flap of thelarge square foresail that crafts of her rig then carried, was heard,and in the course of the next five minutes, the three vessels werestanding slowly but steadily down the current of the Odiel, in one ofthe arms of which river they had been anchored, holding their coursetoward a bar near its mouth. The sun had not yet risen, or rather itrose over the hills of Spain, a fiery ball, just as the sails were set,gilding with a melancholy glory, a coast that not a few in the differentvessels apprehended they were looking upon for the last time. Many ofthe boats clung to the two smaller craft until they reached the bar ofSaltes, an hour or two later, and some still persevered until they beganto toss in the long waves of the breathing ocean, when, the wind beingfresh at the west, they reluctantly cast off, one by one, amid sighs andgroans. The liberated ships, in the meanwhile, moved steadily into theblue waters of the shoreless Atlantic, like human beings silentlyimpelled by their destinies toward fates that they can neither foresee,control, nor avoid.
The day was fine, and the wind both brisk and fair. Thus far the omenswere propitious; but the unknown future threw a cloud over the feelingsof a large portion of those who were thus quitting, in gloomyuncertainty, all that was most dear to them. It was known that theadmiral intended making the best of his way toward the Canaries, thenceto enter on the unknown and hitherto untrodden paths of the desert oceanthat lay beyond. Those who doubted, therefore, fixed upon those islandsas the points where their real dangers were to commence, and alreadylooked forward to their appearance in the horizon, with feelings akin tothose with which the guilty regard the day of trial, the condemned themorning of execution, or the sinner the bed of death. Many, however,were superior to this weakness, having steeled their nerves and preparedtheir minds for any hazards, though the feelings of nearly allfluctuated; there being hours when hope, and anticipations of success,seemed to cheer the entire crews; and then, moments would occur, inwhich the disposition was to common doubts, and a despondency that wasnearly general.
A voyage to the Canaries or the Azores, in that age, was most probablyto be classed among the hardiest exploits of seamen. The distance wasnot as great, certainly, as many of their more ordinary excursions, forvessels frequently went, even in the same direction, as far as the Capede Verdes; but all the other European passages lay along the land, andin the Mediterranean the seaman felt that he was navigating within knownlimits, and was apt to consider himself as embayed within the boundariesof human knowledge. On the contrary, while sailing on the broadAtlantic, he was, in some respects, placed in a situation resemblingthat of the aeronaut, who, while floating in the higher currents of theatmosphere, sees beneath him the earth as his only alighting place, theblue void of untravelled space stretching in all other directions abouthim.
The Canary Isles were known to the ancients. Juba, the king ofMauritania, who was a contemporary of Caesar, is said to have describedthem with tolerable accuracy, under the general name of the FortunateIsles. The work itself has been lost, but the fact is known through theevidence of other writers; and by the same means it is known that theypossessed, even in that remote age, a population that had made somerespectable advances toward civilization. But in the process of time,and during the dark period that succeeded the brightness of the Romansway, even the position of these islands was lost to the Europeans; norwas it again ascertained until the first half of the fourteenth century,when they were discovered by certain fugitive Spaniards who were hardpressed by the Moors. After this, the Portuguese, then the most hardynavigators of the known world, got possession of one or two of them, andmade them the starting points for their voyages of discovery along thecoast of Guinea. As the Spaniards reduced the power of the Mussulmans,and regained their ancient sway in the peninsula, they once more turnedtheir attention in this direction, conquering the natives of several ofthe other islands, the group belonging equally to those two Christiannations, at the time of our narrative.
Luis de Bobadilla, who had navigated extensively in the more northernseas, and who had passed and repassed the Mediterranean in variousdirections, knew nothing of these islands except by report; and as theystood on the poop, Columbus pointed out to him their position, andexplained their different characters; relating his intentions inconnection with them, dwelling on the supplies they afforded, and ontheir facilities as a point of departure.
"The Portuguese have profited much by their use of these islands," saidColumbus, "as a place for victualling, and wooding, and watering, and Isee no reason why Castile may not, now, imitate their example, andreceive her share of the benefits. Thou seest how far south ourneighbors have penetrated, and what a trade and how much riches areflowing into Lisbon through these noble enterprises, which,notwithstanding, are but as a bucket of water in the ocean, whencompared
with the wealth of Cathay and all the mighty consequences thatare to follow from this western voyage of ours."
"Dost thou expect to reach the territories of the Great Khan, DonChristoval," demanded Luis, "within a distance as small as that to whichthe Portuguese hath gone southwardly?"
The navigator looked warily around, to ascertain who might hear hiswords, and finding that no one was within reach of the sound of hisvoice while he used a proper caution, he lowered its tones, and answeredin a manner which greatly flattered his young companion, as it provedthat the admiral was disposed to treat him with the frankness andconfidence of a friend.
"Thou know'st, Don Luis," the navigator resumed, "the nature of thespirits with whom we have to deal. I shall not even be certain of theirservices, so long as we continue near the coast of Europe; for naught iseasier than for one of yonder craft to abandon me in the night, and toseek a haven on some known coast, seeking his justification in somefancied necessity."
"Martin Alonzo is not a man to do that ignoble and unworthy act!"interrupted Luis.
"He is not, my young friend, for a motive as base as fear," returnedColumbus, with a sort of thoughtful smile, which showed how truly andearly he had dived into the real characters of those with whom he wasassociated. "Martin Alonzo is a bold and intelligent navigator, and wemay look for good service at his hands, in all that toucheth resolutionand perseverance. But the eyes of the Pinzons cannot be always open, andthe knowledge of all the philosophers of the earth could make noresistance against the headlong impetuosity of a crew of alarmedmutineers. I do not feel certain of our own people while there is a hopeof easy return; much less of men who are not directly under my own eyeand command. The question thou hast asked, Luis, may not, therefore, bepublicly answered, since the distance we are about to sail over wouldfrighten our easily alarmed mariners. Thou art a cavalier; a knight ofknown courage, and may be depended on; and I may tell thee, without fearof arousing any unworthy feeling, that the voyage on which we are nowfairly embarked, hath never had a precedent on this earth, for itslength, or for the loneliness of its way."
"And yet, Senor, thou enterest on it with the confidence of a mancertain of reaching his haven?"
"Luis, thou hast well judged my feelings. As to all those common dreadsof descents, and ascents, of the difficulties of a return, and ofreaching the margin of the world, whence we may glide off into space,neither thou, nor I, shall be much subjected."
"By San Iago! Senor Don Christoval, I have no very settled notions aboutthese things. I have never known of any one who hath slidden off theearth into the air, it is true, nor do I much think that such a slide islikely to befall us and our good ships; but, on the other hand, we haveas yet only doctrine to prove that the earth is round, and that it ispossible to journey east, by sailing west. On these subjects, then, Ihold myself neuter; while, at the same time, thou may'st steer directfor the moon, and Luis de Bobadilla will be found at thy side."
"Thou makest thyself less expert in science, mad-brained young noble,than is either true or necessary; but we will say no more of this, atpresent. There will be sufficient leisure to make thee familiar with allmy intricate reasons and familiar motives. And is not this, Don Luis, amost heavenly sight? Here am I in the open ocean, honored by the twosovereigns with the dignity of their viceroy and admiral; with a fleetthat is commissioned by their Highnesses to carry the knowledge of theirpower and authority to the uttermost parts of the earth; and, most ofall, to raise the cross of our blessed Redeemer before the eyes ofInfidels, who have never yet even heard his name, or, if they have,reverence it as little as a Christian would reverence the idols of theheathens!"
This was said with the calm but deep enthusiasm that colored the entirecharacter of the great navigator, rendering him, at times, equally thesubject of distrust and of profound respect. On Luis, as, indeed, onmost others who lived in sufficient familiarity with the man to enablethem to appreciate his motives, and to judge correctly of theuprightness of his views, the effect, however, was always favorable, andprobably would have been so had Mercedes never existed. The young man,himself, was not entirely without a tinge of enthusiasm, and, as is everthe case with the single-minded and generous, he best knew how to regardthe impulses of those who were influenced by similar qualities. Thisanswer was consequently in accordance with the feelings of the admiral,and they remained on the poop several hours, discoursing of the future,with the ardor of those who hoped for every thing, but in a manner toodiscursive and general to render a record of the dialogue easy ornecessary.
It was eight o'clock in the morning when the vessels passed the bar ofSaltes, and the day had far advanced before the navigators had lostsight of the familiar eminences that lay around Palos, and the otherwell-known land-marks of the coast. The course was due south, and, asthe vessels of that day were lightly sparred, and spread comparativelyvery little canvas, when considered in connection with the more dashingnavigation of our own times, the rate of sailing was slow, and far frompromising a speedy termination to a voyage that all knew must be longwithout a precedent, and which so many feared could never have an end.Two marine leagues, of three English miles, an hour, was good progressfor a vessel at that day, even with a fresh and favorable wind; thoughthere are a few memorable days' works set down by Columbus himself,which approach to a hundred and sixty miles in the twenty-four hours,and which are evidently noted as a speed of which a mariner might wellbe proud. In these days of locomotion and travelling, it is scarcelynecessary to tell the intelligent reader this is but a little more thanhalf the distance that is sailed over by a fast ship, under similarcircumstances, and in our own time.
Thus the sun set upon the adventurers, in this celebrated voyage, whenthey had sailed with a strong breeze, to use the words of Columbus' ownrecord, some eleven hours, after quitting the bar. By this time, theyhad made good less than fifty miles, in a due south course from theplace of their departure. The land in the neighborhood of Palos hadentirely sunk behind the watery margin of the ocean, in that direction,and the coast trending eastward, it was only here and there that themisty summits of a few of the mountains of Seville could just bediscovered by the experienced eyes of the older mariners, as the glowingball of the sun sunk into the watery bed of the western horizon, anddisappeared from view. At this precise moment, Columbus and Luis wereagain on the poop, watching, with melancholy interest, the last shadowscast by Spanish land, while two seamen were at work near them, splicinga rope that had been chafed asunder. The latter were seated on the deck,and as, out of respect to the admiral, they had taken their places alittle on one side, their presence was not at first noted.
"There setteth the sun beneath the waves of the wide Atlantic, SenorGutierrez," observed the admiral, who was ever cautious to use one orthe other of Luis' feigned appellations, whenever any person was near."There the sun quitteth us, Pero, and in his daily course I see a proofof the globular form of the earth; and of the truth of a theory whichteacheth us that Cathay may be reached by the western voyage."
"I am ever ready to admit the wisdom of all your plans, expectations,and thoughts, Senor Don Christoval," returned the young man,punctiliously observant of respect, both in speech and manner; "but Iconfess I cannot see what the daily course of the sun has to do with theposition of Cathay, or with the road that leads to it. We know that thegreat luminary travelleth the heavens without ceasing, that it cometh upout of the sea in the morning, and goeth down to its watery bed atnight; but this it doth on the coast of Castile, as well as on that ofCathay; and, therefore, to me it doth appear, that no particularinference, for or against our success, is to be drawn from thecircumstance."
As this was said, the two sailors ceased working, looking curiously upinto the face of the admiral, anxious to hear his reply. By thismovement Luis perceived that one was Pepe, to whom he gave a nod ofrecognition, while the other was a stranger. The last had everyappearance of a thorough-bred seaman of that period, or of being, whatwould have been termed in English, and the more northern lang
uages ofEurope, a regular "sea-dog;" a term that expresses the idea of a man socompletely identified with the ocean by habit, as to have had hisexterior, his thoughts, his language, and even his morality, colored bythe association. This sailor was approaching fifty, was short, square,athletic, and still active, but there was a mixture of the animal withthe intellectual creature about his coarse, heavy features, that is veryusual in the countenances of men of native humor and strong sense, whosehabits have been coarse and sensual. That he was a prime seaman,Columbus knew at a glance, not only from his general appearance, butfrom his occupation, which was such as only fell to the lot of the mostskilful men of every crew.
"I reason after this fashion, Senor," answered the admiral, as soon ashis eye turned from the glance that he, too, had thrown upon the men;"the sun is not made to journey thus around the earth without asufficient motive, the providence of God being ruled by infinite wisdom.It is not probable that a luminary so generous and useful should beintended to waste any of its benefits; and we are certain already thatday and night journey westward over this earth as far as it is known tous, whence I infer that the system is harmonious, and the benefits ofthe great orb are unceasingly bestowed on man, reaching one spot on theearth as it quits another. The sun that hath just left us is stillvisible in the Azores, and will be seen again at Smyrna, and among theGrecian Islands, an hour, or more, before it again meets our eyes.Nature hath designed naught for uselessness; and I believe that Cathaywill be enlightened by that ball which hath just left us, while we shallbe in the deepest hour of the night, to return by its eastern path,across the great continent of Asia, and to greet us again in themorning. In a word, friend Pedro, that which Sol is now doing with suchnimble speed in the heavens, we are more humbly imitating in our owncaravels; give us sufficient time, and we, too, might traverse theearth, coming in from our journey by the land of the Tartars and thePersians."
"From all of which you infer that the world is round, wherein we are tofind the certainty of our success?"
"This is so true, Senor de Munos, that I should be sorry to think anyman who now saileth under my command did not admit it. Here are twoseamen who have been listening to our discourse, and we will questionthem, that we may know the opinions of men accustomed to the ocean. Thouart the husband with whom I held discourse on the sands, the pastevening, and thy name is Pepe?"
"Senor Almirante, your Excellency's memory doth me too much honor, innot forgetting a face that is altogether unworthy of being noticed andremembered."
"It is an honest face, friend, and no doubt speaketh for a true heart. Ishall count on thee as a sure support, let things go as they may."
"His Excellency hath not only a right to command me, as her Highness'admiral, but he hath now the good-will of Monica, and that is much thesame as having gained her husband."
"I thank thee, honest Pepe, and shall count on thee, with certainty, infuture," answered Columbus, turning toward the other seaman--"And thou,shipmate--thou hast the air of one that the sight of troubled water willnot alarm--thou hast a name?"
"That I have, noble admiral," returned the fellow, looking up with afreedom that denoted one used to have his say; "though it hath neither aDon, nor a Senor, to take it in tow. My intimates commonly call outSancho, when pressed for time, and when civility gets the better ofhaste, they add Mundo, making Sancho Mundo for the whole name of a verypoor man."
"Mundo is a large name for so small a person," said the admiral,smiling, for he foresaw the expediency of having friends among his crew,and knew men sufficiently to understand that, while undue familiarityundermined respect, a little unbending had a tendency to win hearts. "Iwonder that thou shouldst venture to wear a sound so lofty!"
"I tell my fellows, your Excellency, that Mundo is my title, and not myname; but that I am greater than kings, even, who are content to taketheir titles from a part of that, of which I bear all."
"And were thy father and thy mother called Mundo, also? Or, is this nametaken in order to give thee an occasion to show thy smartness, whenquestioned by thy officers?"
"As for the good people you deign to mention, Senor Don Almirante, Ishall leave them to answer for themselves, and that for the simplereason that I do not know how they were called, or whether they had anynames at all. They tell me I was found, when a few hours old, under aworn-out basket at the ship-yard gate of old"--
"Never mind the precise spot, friend Sancho--thou wert found with abasket for a cradle, and that maketh a volume in thy history, at once."
"Nay, Excellency, I would not leave the spot a place of disputehereafter--but it shall be as you please. They say no one here knowethexactly where we are going, and it will be more suitable that the likeignorance should rest over the places whence we came. But having theworld before me, they that christened me gave me as much of it as was tobe got by a name."
"Thou hast been long a mariner, Sancho Mundo--if Mundo thou wilt be."
"So long, Senor, that it sickeneth me, and taketh away the appetite towalk on solid ground. Being so near the gate, it was no great matter toput me into the ship-yard, and I was launched one day in a caravel, andgot to sea in her, no one knows how. From that time I have submitted tofate, and go out again, as soon as possible, after I come into port."
"And by what lucky chance have I obtained thy services, good Sancho, inthis great expedition?"
"The authorities of Moguer took me under the queen's order, yourExcellency, thinking that this Voyage would be more to my mind thananother, as it was likely never to have an end."
"Art thou a compelled adventurer, on this service?"
"Not I, Senor Don Almirante, although they who sent me here fancy asmuch. It is natural for a man to wish to see his estates, once in hislife, and I am told that we are bound on a voyage to the other side ofthe world. God forbid that I should hold aloof, on such an occasion."
"Thou art a Christian, Sancho, and hast a desire to aid in carrying thecross among the heathen?"
"Senor, your Excellency, Don Almirante, it matters little to Sancho withwhat the barque is laden, so that she do not need much pumping, and thatthe garlic is good. If I am not a very devout Christian, it is the faultof them that found me near the ship-yard gate, since the church and thefont are both within call from that very spot. I know that Pepe, here,is a Christian, Senor, for I saw him in the arms of the priest, and Idoubt not that there are old men at Moguer who can testify to as much inmy behalf. At all hazards, noble Admiral, I will take on myself to saythat I am neither Jew, nor Mussulman."
"Sancho, thou hast that about thee, that bespeakest a skilful and boldmariner."
"For both of these qualities, Senor Don Colon, let others speak. Whenthe gale cometh, your own eyes may judge of the first; and when thecaravel shall reach the edge of the earth, whither some think it isbound, there will be a good occasion to see who can, and who cannot,look off without trembling."
"It is enough: I count both thee and Pepe as among my truest followers."As Columbus said this, he walked away, resuming the dignified gravitythat usually was seated in his countenance, and which so much aided hisauthority, by impressing the minds of others with respect. In a fewminutes he and Luis descended to their cabin.
"I marvel, Sancho," said Pepe, as soon as he and his messmate were leftalone on the poop, "that thou wilt venture to use thy tongue so freely,even in the presence of one that beareth about with him the queen'sauthority! Dost thou not fear to offend the admiral?"
"So much for having a wife and a child! Canst thou not make anydifference between them that have had ancestors and who havedescendants, and one that hath no other tie in the world than his name?The Senor Don Almirante is either an exceeding great man, and chosen byProvidence to open the way into the unknown seas of which he speaketh;or he is but a hungry Genoese, that is leading us he knoweth notwhither, that he may eat, and drink, and sleep, in honor, while we aretoiling at his heels, like patient mules dragging the load that thehorse despiseth. In the one case, he is too great and exalted to heedid
le words; and in the other, what is there too bad for a Castilian totell him?"
"Ay, thou art fond of calling thyself a Castilian, in spite of theship-yard and the basket, and notwithstanding Moguer is in Seville."
"Harkee, Pepe; is not the queen of Castile our mistress? And are notsubjects--true and lawful subjects, I mean, like thee and me--are notsuch subjects worthy of being the queen's countrymen? Never disparagethyself, good Pepe, for thou wilt ever find the world ready enough to dothat favor for thee. As to this Genoese, he shall be either friend orenemy to Sancho; if the first, I expect much consolation from it; if thelast, let him hunt for his Cathay till doomsday, he shall be never thewiser."
"Well, Sancho, if words can mar a voyage, or make a voyage, thou art aready mariner; none know how to discourse better than thou."
Here the men both rose, having completed their work, and they left thepoop, descending among the rest of the crew. Columbus had notmiscalculated his aim, his words and condescension having produced amost favorable effect on the mind of Sancho Mundo, for so the man wasactually called; and in gaining one of as ready a wit and loose a tonguefor a friend, he obtained an ally who was not to be despised. Of suchmaterials, and with the support of such instruments as this, is successtoo often composed; it being possible for the discovery of a world,even, to depend on the good word of one less qualified to influenceopinions than Sancho Mundo.