CHAPTER XXV.
"For now, from sight of land diverted clear, They drove uncertain o'er the pathless deep; Nor gave the adverse gale due course to steer, Nor durst they the design'd direction keep: The gathering tempest quickly raged so high, The wave-encompass'd boat but faintly reach'd my eye."
Vision of Patience.
Such was the state of things on the morning of the 15th, and shortlyafter the sun arose, the joyful cry of land was heard from aloft. It isworthy of being mentioned that this land was made directly ahead, soaccurate were all the admiral's calculations, and so certain did he feelof his position on the chart. A dozen opinions, however, prevailed amongthe pilots and people concerning this welcome sight; some fancying itthe continent of Europe, while others believed it to be Madeira.Columbus, himself, publicly announced it to be one of the Azores.
Each hour was lessening the distance between this welcome spot of earthand the adventurers, when the gale chopped directly round, bringing theisland dead to windward. Throughout a long and weary day the little barkkept turning up against the storm, in order to reach this much-desiredhaven, but the heaviness of the swell and the foul wind made theirprogress both slow and painful. The sun set in wintry gloom, again, andthe land still lay in the wrong quarter, and apparently at a distancethat was unattainable. Hour after hour passed, and still, in thedarkness, the Nina was struggling to get nearer to the spot where theland had been seen. Columbus never left his post throughout all theseanxious scenes, for to him it seemed as if the fortunes of hisdiscoveries were now suspended, as it might be, by a hair. Our hero wasless watchful, but even he began to feel more anxiety in the result, asthe moment approached when the fate of the expedition was to be decided.
As the sun arose, every eye turned inquiringly around the watery view,and, to the common disappointment, no land was visible. Some fancied allhad been illusion, but the admiral believed they had passed the islandin the darkness, and he hove about, with a view to stand further south.This change in the course had not been made more than an hour or two,when land was again dimly seen astern, and in a quarter where it couldnot have been previously perceived. For this island the caravel tacked,and until dark she was beating up for it, against a strong gale and aheavy sea. Night again drew around her, and the land once more vanishedin the gloom.
At the usual hour of the previous night, the people of the Nina hadassembled to chant the _salve fac_, _regina_, or the evening hymn to theVirgin, for it is one of the touching incidents of this extraordinaryvoyage, that these rude sailors first carried with them into the unknownwastes of the Atlantic the songs of their religion, and the Christian'sprayers. While thus employed, a light had been made to leeward, whichwas supposed to be on the island first seen, thus encouraging theadmiral in his belief that he was in the centre of a group, and that bykeeping well to windward, he would certainly find himself in a situationto reach a port in the morning. That morning, however, had produced noother change than the one noted, and he was now preparing to passanother night, or that of the 17th, in uncertainty, when the cry of landahead suddenly cheered the spirits of all in the vessel.
The Nina stood boldly in, and before midnight she was near enough to theshore to let go an anchor; so heavy were both wind and sea, however,that the cable parted, thus rejecting them, as it were, from the regionsto which they properly belonged. Sail was made, and the effort to get towindward renewed, and by daylight the caravel was enabled to run in andget an anchorage on the north side of the island. Here the wearied andalmost exhausted mariners learned that Columbus was right, as usual, andthat they had reached the island of St. Mary, one of the Azores.
It does not belong to this tale to record all the incidents thatoccurred while the Nina lay at this port. They embraced an attempt toseize the caravel, on the part of the Portuguese, who, as they had beenthe last to harass the admiral on his departure from the old world, werethe first to beset him on his return. All their machinations failed,however, and after having the best portion of his crew in their power,and actually having once sailed from the island without the men, theadmiral finally arranged the matter, and took his departure for Spain,with all his people on board, on the 24th of the month.
Providence seemed to favor the passage of the adventurers, for the firstfew days; the wind being favorable and the sea smooth. Between themorning of the 24th and the evening of the 26th, the caravel had madenearly a hundred leagues directly on her course to Palos, when she wasmet by a foul wind and another heavy sea. The gale now became violentagain, though sufficiently favorable to allow them to steer east, alittle northerly, occasionally hauling more ahead. The weather wasrough, but as the admiral knew he was drawing in with the continent ofEurope, he did not complain, cheering his people with the hopes of aspeedy arrival. In this manner the time passed until the turn of theday, Saturday, March 2d, when Columbus believed himself to be within ahundred miles of the coast of Portugal, the long continuance of thescant southerly winds having set him thus far north.
The night commenced favorably, the caravel struggling ahead through atremendous sea that was sweeping down from the south, having the windabeam, blowing so fresh as to cause the sails to be reduced withinmanageable size. The Nina was an excellent craft, as had been thoroughlyproved, and she was now steadier than when first assailed by thetempests, her pilots having filled still more of the casks than they hadbeen able to do during the late storm.
"Thou hast lived at the helm, Sancho Mundo, since the late galescommenced," said the admiral, cheerfully, as, about the last hour of thefirst watch, he passed near the post of the old mariner. "It is no smallhonor to hold that station in the cruel gales we have been fated toendure."
"I so consider it, Senor Don Almirante; and I hope their illustrious andmost excellent Highnesses, the two sovereigns, will look upon it withthe same eyes, so far as the weight of the duty is concerned."
"And why not as respects the honor, friend Sancho?" put in Luis, who hadbecome a sworn friend of the seaman, since the rescue of the rocks.
"Honor, Senor Master Pedro, is cold food, and sits ill on a poor man'sstomach. One dobla is worth two dukedoms to such a man as I am, sincethe dobla would help to gain me respect, whereas the dukedoms would onlydraw down ridicule upon my head. No, no--Master Pedro, your worship,give me a pocket full of gold, and leave honors to such as have a fancyfor them. If a man must be raised in the world, begin at the beginning,or lay a solid foundation; after which he may be made a knight of St.James, if the sovereigns have need of his name to make out their list."
"Thou art too garrulous for a helmsman, Sancho, though so excellentotherwise," observed the admiral, gravely. "Look to thy course; doblaswill not be wanting, when the voyage is ended."
"Many thanks, Senor Almirante; and, as a proof that my eyes are notshut, even though the tongue wags, I will just desire your Excellency,and the pilots, to study that rag of a cloud that is gathering up here,at the south-west, and ask yourselves if it means evil or good."
"By the mass! the man is right, Don Christopher!" exclaimed BartolemeoRoldan, who was standing near; "that is a most sinister-looking cloud,and is not unlike those that give birth to the white squalls of Africa."
"See to it--see to it--good Bartolemeo," returned Columbus, hastily. "Wehave, indeed, counted too much on our good fortune, and have culpablyoverlooked the aspect of the heavens. Let Vicente Yanez and all ourpeople be called; we may have need of them."
Columbus now ascended to the poop, where he got a wider and a betterview of the ocean and the skies. The signs were, indeed, as portentousas they had been sudden in their appearance. The atmosphere was filledwith a white mist, that resembled a light smoke, and the admiral hadbarely time to look about him, when a roar that resembled the tramplingof a thousand horses passing a bridge at full speed, came rushing downwith the wind. The ocean was heard hissing, as is usual at such moments,and the tempest burst upon the little bark, as if envious demons weredetermined she should never reach Spain with the gloriou
s tidings shebore.
A report like that of a heavy discharge of musketry, was the firstsignal that the squall had struck the Nina. It came from the rentcanvas, every sail having given way at the same instant. The caravelheeled until the water reached her masts, and there was a breathlessinstant, when the oldest seaman feared that she would be forced overentirely upon her side. Had not the sails split, this calamity mighttruly have occurred. Sancho, too, had borne the tiller up in season, andwhen the Nina recovered from the shock, she almost flew out of the wateras she drove before the blast.
This was the commencement of a new gale, which even surpassed inviolence that from which they had so recently escaped. For the firsthour, awe and disappointment almost paralyzed the crew, as nothing wasor could be done to relieve them from the peril they were in. The vesselwas already scudding--the last resource of seamen--and even the rags ofthe canvas were torn, piece by piece, from the spars, sparing the menthe efforts that would have been necessary to secure them. In thiscrisis, again the penitent people resorted to their religious rites; andagain it fell to the lot of the admiral to make a visit to some favoriteshrine. In addition, the whole crew made a vow to fast on bread andwater, the first Saturday after they should arrive.
"It is remarkable, Don Christopher," said Luis, when the two were againalone on the poop; "it is remarkable that these lots should fall sooften on you. Thrice have you been selected by Providence to be aninstrument of thankfulness and penitence. This cometh of your exceedingfaith!"
"Say, rather, Luis, that it cometh of my exceeding sins. My pride,alone, should draw down upon me stronger rebukes than these. I fear me,I had forgotten that I was merely an agent chosen by God, to work hisown great ends, and was falling into the snares of Satan, by fancyingthat I, of my own wisdom and philosophy, had done this great exploit,which cometh so truly of God."
"Do you believe us in danger, Senor?"
"Greater hazard besets us now, Don Luis, than hath befallen us since weleft Palos. We are driving toward the continent, which cannot be thirtyleagues distant; and, as thou seest, the ocean is becoming more troubledevery hour. Happily, the night is far advanced, and with the light wemay find the means of safety."
The day did reappear as usual; for whatever disturbances occur on itssurface, the earth continues its daily revolutions in the sublimity ofits vastness, affording, at each change, to the mites on its surface,the indubitable proofs that an omnipotent power reigns over all itsmovements. The light, however, brought no change in the aspects of theocean and sky. The wind blew furiously, and the Nina struggled alongamid the chaos of waters, driving nearer and nearer to the continentthat lay before her.
About the middle of the afternoon, signs of land became quite apparent,and no one doubted the vicinity of the vessel to the shores of Europe.Nevertheless, naught was visible but the raging ocean, the murky sky,and the sort of supernatural light with which the atmosphere is so oftencharged in a tempest. The spot where the sun set, though known by meansof the compass, could not be traced by the eye; and again night closedon the wild, wintry scene, as if the little caravel was abandoned byhope as well as by day. To add to the apprehensions of the people, ahigh cross sea was running; and, as ever happens with vessels so small,in such circumstances, tons' weight of water were constantly fallinginboard, threatening destruction to the gratings and their frailcoverings of tarred cloth.
"This is the most terrible night of all, son Luis," said Columbus, aboutan hour after the darkness had drawn around them. "If we escape thisnight, well may we deem ourselves favored of God!"
"And yet you speak calmly, Senor; as calmly as if your heart was filledwith hope."
"The seaman that cannot command his nerves and voice, even in the utmostperil, hath mistaken his calling. But I _feel_ calm, Luis, as well as_seem_ calm. God hath us in his keeping, and will do that which mostadvanceth his own holy will. My boys--my two poor boys trouble mesorely; but even the fatherless are not forgotten!"
"If we perish, Senor, the Portuguese will remain masters of our secret:to them only is it now known, ourselves excepted, since, for MartinAlonzo, I should think, there is little hope."
"This is another source of grief; yet have I taken such steps as willprobably put their Highnesses on the maintenance of their rights. Therest must be trusted to heaven."
At that moment was heard the startling cry of "land." This word, whichso lately would have been the cause of sudden bursts of joy, was now thesource of new uneasiness. Although the night was dark, there weremoments when the gloom opened, as it might be, for a mile or two aroundthe vessel, and when objects as prominent as a coast could be seen withsufficient distinctness. Both Columbus and our hero hastened to theforward part of the caravel, at this cry, though even this commonmovement was perilous, in order to obtain the best possible view of theshore. It was, indeed, so near, that all on board heard, or fancied theyheard, the roar of the surf against the rocks. That it was Portugal,none doubted, and to stand on in the present uncertainty of theirprecise position, or without a haven to enter, would be inevitabledestruction. There remained only the alternative to ware with thecaravel's head off shore, and endeavor to keep an offing until morning.Columbus had no sooner mentioned this necessity, than Vicente Yanez setabout its execution in the best manner circumstances would allow.
Hitherto the wind had been kept a little on the starboard quarter, thecaravel steering east, a point or two north, and it was now the aim tolay her head so far round as to permit her to steer north, a point ortwo west. By the manner in which the coast appeared to trend, it wasthought that this variation in the direction might keep them, for a fewhours, at a sufficient distance from the shore. But this manoeuvrecould not be effected without the aid of canvas, and an order was issuedto set the foresail. The first flap of the canvas, as it was loosened tothe gale, was tremendous, the jerk threatening to tear the fore-mastfrom its step, and then all was still as death forward, the hull sinkingso low behind a barrier of water, as actually to becalm the sail. Sanchoand his associate seized the favorable moment to secure the clews, and,as the little bark struggled upward again, the canvas filled with somesuch shock as is felt at the sudden checking of a cable. From thismoment the Nina drew slowly off to sea again, though her path laythrough such a scene of turbulent water, as threatened, at each instant,to overwhelm her.
"Luis!" said a soft voice, at our hero's elbow, as the latter stoodclinging to the side of the door of the cabin appropriated to thefemales--"Luis--Hayti better--Mattinao better--much bad, Luis!"
It was Ozema, who had risen from her pallet to look out upon theappalling view of the ocean. During the mild weather of the first partof the passage, the intercourse between Luis and the natives on boardhad been constant and cheerful. Though slightly incommoded by hersituation, Ozema had always received his visits with guileless delight,and her progress in Spanish had been such as to astonish even herteacher. Nor were the means of communication confined altogether to theadvance of Ozema, since Luis, in his endeavors to instruct her, hadacquired nearly as many words of her native tongue, as he had taught herof his own. In this manner they conversed, resorting to both dialectsfor terms, as necessity dictated. We shall give a free translation ofwhat was said, endeavoring, at the same time, to render the dialoguecharacteristic and graphic.
"Poor Ozema!" returned our hero, drawing her gently to a position wherehe could support her against the effects of the violent motion of thecaravel--"thou must regret Hayti, indeed, and the peaceful security ofthy groves!"
"Caonabo there, Luis."
"True, innocent girl; but even Caonabo is not as terrible as this angerof the elements."
"No--no--no--Caonabo much bad. Break Ozema's heart. No Caonabo--noHayti."
"Thy dread of the Carib chief, dear Ozema, hath upset thy reason, inpart. Thou hast a God, as well as we Christians, and, like us, must putthy trust in him; he alone can now protect thee."
"What protect?"
"Care for thee, Ozema. See that thou dost not come to harm. L
ook to thysafety and welfare."
"Luis protect Ozema. So promise Mattinao--so promise Ozema--so promiseheart."
"Dear girl, so will I, to the extent of my means. But what can I doagainst this tempest?"
"What Luis do against Caonabo?--Kill him--cut Indians--make him runaway!"
"This was easy to a Christian knight, who carried a good sword andbuckler, but it is impossible against a tempest. We have only one hope,and that is to trust in the Spaniard's God."
"Spaniards great--have great God."
"There is but one God, Ozema, and he ruleth all, whether in Hayti or inSpain. Thou rememberest what I have told thee of his love, and of themanner of his death, that we might all be saved, and thou didst thenpromise to worship him, and to be baptized when we should reach mycountry."
"God!--Ozema do, what Ozema say. Love Luis' God already."
"Thou hast seen the holy cross, Ozema, and hast promised me to kiss it,and bless it."
"Where cross? See no cross--up in heaven?--or where? Show Ozema cross,now--Luis' cross--cross Luis love."
The young man wore the parting gift of Mercedes near his heart, andraising a hand he withdrew the small jewel, pressed it to his own lipswith pious fervor, and then offered it to the Indian girl.
"See"--he said--"this is a cross; we Spaniards revere and bless it. Itis our pledge of happiness."
"That Luis' God?" enquired Ozema, in a little surprise.
"Not so, my poor benighted girl"--
"What benighted?" interrupted the quick-witted Haytian, eagerly, for noterm that the young man could or did apply to her, fell unheeded on hervigilant and attentive ear.
"Benighted means those who have never heard of the cross, or of itsendless mercies."
"Ozema no benighted now," exclaimed the other, pressing the bauble toher bosom. "Got cross--keep cross--no benighted again, never. Cross,Mercedes"--for, by one of those mistakes that are not unfrequent in thecommencement of all communications between those who speak differenttongues, the young Indian had caught the notion, from many of Luis'involuntary exclamations, that "Mercedes" meant all that was excellent.
"I would, indeed, that she of whom thou speakest had thee in her gentlecare, that she might lead thy pure soul to a just knowledge of thyCreator! That cross cometh of Mercedes, if it be not Mercedes herself,and thou dost well in loving it, and in blessing it. Place the chainaround thy neck, Ozema, for the precious emblem may help in preservingthee, should the gale throw us on the coast, ere morning. _That cross isa sign of undying love._"
The girl understood enough of this, especially as the direction wasseconded by a little gentle aid, on the part of our hero, to comply, andthe chain was soon thrown around her neck, with the holy emblem restingon her bosom. The change in the temperature, as well as a sense ofpropriety, had induced the admiral to cause ample robes of cotton to befurnished all the females, and Ozema's beautiful form was now closelyenveloped in one, and beneath its folds she had hidden the jewel, whichshe fondly hugged to her heart, as a gift of Luis. Not so did the youngman himself view the matter. He had merely meant to lend, in a moment ofextreme peril, that which the superstitious feeling of the age seriouslyinduced him to fancy might prove a substantial safeguard. As Ozema wasby no means expert in managing the encumbrance of a dress to which shewas unaccustomed, even while native taste had taught her to throw itaround her person gracefully, the young man had half unconsciouslyassisted in placing the cross in its new position, when a violent rollof the vessel compelled him to sustain the girl by encircling her waistwith an arm. Partly yielding to the motion of the caravel, which wasconstantly jerking even the mariners from their feet, and probably asmuch seduced by the tenderness of her own heart, Ozema did not rebukethis liberty--the first our hero had ever offered, but stood, inconfiding innocence, upheld by the arm that, of all others, it was mostgrateful to her feelings to believe destined to perform that office forlife. In another moment, her head rested on his bosom, and her face wasturned upward, with the eyes fastened on the countenance of the youngnoble.
"Thou art less alarmed at this terrific storm, Ozema, than I could havehoped. Apprehension for thee has made me more miserable than I couldhave thought possible, and yet thou seemest not to be disturbed."
"Ozema no unhappy--no want Hayti--no want Mattinao--no want anything--Ozema happy now. Got cross."
"Sweet, guileless innocent, may'st thou never know any otherfeelings!--confide in thy cross."
"Cross, Mercedes--Luis, Mercedes. Luis and Ozema keep cross forever."
It was, perhaps, fortunate for this high-prized happiness of the girl,that the Nina now took a plunge that unavoidably compelled our hero torelease his hold of her person, or to drag her with him headlong towardthe place where Columbus stood, sheltering his weather-beaten form froma portion of the violence of the tempest. When he recovered his feet, heperceived that the door of the cabin was closed, and that Ozema was nolonger to be seen.
"Dost thou find our female friends terrified by this appalling scene,son Luis?" Columbus quietly demanded, for, though his own thoughts hadbeen much occupied by the situation of the caravel, he had noted allthat had just passed so near him. "They are stout of heart, but even anamazon might quail at this tempest."
"They heed it not, Senor, for I think they understand it not. Thecivilized man is so much their superior, that both men and women appearto have every confidence in our means of safety. I have just given Ozemaa cross, and bade her place her greatest reliance on that."
"Thou hast done well; it is now the surest protector of us all. Keep thehead of the caravel as near to the wind as may be, Sancho, when itlulls, every inch off shore being so much gained in the way ofsecurity."
The usual reply was made, and then the conversation ceased; the ragingof the elements, and the fearful manner in which the Nina was compelledto struggle literally to keep on the surface of the ocean, affordingample matter for the reflections of all who witnessed the scene.
In this manner passed the night. When the day broke, it opened on ascene of wintry violence. The sun was not visible that day, the darkvapor driving so low before the tempest, as to lessen the apparentaltitude of the vault of heaven one-half, but the ocean was anundulating sheet of foam. High land soon became visible nearly abeam ofthe caravel, and all the elder mariners immediately pronounced it to bethe rock of Lisbon. As soon as this important fact was ascertained, theadmiral wore with the head of the caravel in-shore, and laid his coursefor the mouth of the Tagus. The distance was not great, some twentymiles perhaps; but the necessity of facing the tempest, and of makingsail, on a wind, in such a storm, rendered the situation of the caravelmore critical than it had been in all her previous trials. At thatmoment, the policy of the Portuguese was forgotten, or held to beentirely a secondary consideration, a port or shipwreck appearing to bethe alternative. Every inch of their weatherly position became ofimportance to the navigators, and Vicente Yanez placed himself near thehelm to watch its play with the vigilance of experience and authority.No sail but the lowest could be carried, and these were reefed asclosely as their construction would allow.
In this manner the tempest-tossed little bark struggled forward, nowsinking so low in the troughs that land, ocean, and all but the frowningbillows, with the clouds above their heads, were lost to view; and nowrising, as it might be, from the calm of a sombre cavern, into theroaring, hissing, and turbulence of a tempest. These latter moments werethe most critical. When the light hull reached the summit of a wave,falling over to windward by the yielding of the element beneath her, itseemed as if the next billow must inevitably overwhelm her; and yet, sovigilant was the eye of Vicente Yanez, and so ready the hand of Sancho,that she ever escaped the calamity. To keep the wash of the sea entirelyout, was, however, impossible; and it often swept athwart the deck,forward, like the sheets of a cataract, that part of the vessel beingcompletely abandoned by the crew.
"All now depends on our canvas," said the admiral, with a sigh; "if thatstand, we are safer than when scudding,
and I think God is with us. Tome it seemeth as if the wind was a little less violent than in thenight."
"Perhaps it is, Senor. I believe we gain on the place you pointed out tome."
"It is yon rocky point. _That_ weathered, and we are safe. That notweathered, and we see our common grave."
"The caravel behaveth nobly, and I will still hope."
An hour later, and the land was so near that human beings were seenmoving on it. There are moments when life and death may be said to beequally presented to the seaman's sight. On one side is destruction; onthe other security. As the vessel drew slowly in toward the shore, notonly was the thunder of the surf upon the rocks audible, but thefrightful manner in which the water was tossed upward in spray, gaveadditional horrors to the view. On such occasions, it is no uncommonthing to see _jets d'eau_ hundreds of feet in height, and the drivingspray is often carried to a great distance inland, before the wind.Lisbon has the whole rake of the Atlantic before it, unbroken by islandor headland; and the entire coast of Portugal is one of the most exposedof Europe. The south-west gales, in particular, drive across twelvehundred leagues of ocean, and the billows they send in upon its shores,are truly appalling. Nor was the storm we are endeavoring to describe,one of common occurrence. The season had been tempestuous, seldomleaving the Atlantic any peace; and the surges produced by one gale hadnot time to subside, ere another drove up the water in a new direction,giving rise to that irregularity of motion which most distresses avessel, and which is particularly hazardous to small ones.
"She looks up better, Don Christopher!" exclaimed Luis, as they gotwithin musket-shot of the desired point; "another ten minutes of asfavorable a slant, and we do it!"
"Thou art right, son," answered the admiral, calmly. "Were any calamityto throw us ashore on yonder rocks, two planks of the Nina would nothold together five minutes. Ease her--good Vicente Yanez--ease her,quite a point, and let her go through the water. All depends on thecanvas, and we can spare that point. She moves, Luis! Regard the land,and thou wilt now see our motion."
"True, Senor, but the caravel is drawing frightfully near the point!"
"Fear not; a bold course is often the safest. It is a deep shore, and weneed but little water."
No one now spoke. The caravel was dashing in toward the point withappalling speed, and every minute brought her perceptibly nearer to thecauldron of water that was foaming around it. Without absolutelyentering within this vortex, the Nina flew along its edge, and, in fiveminutes more, she had a direct course up the Tagus open before her. Themainsail was now taken in, and the mariners stood fearlessly on, certainof a haven and security.
Thus, virtually, ended the greatest marine exploit the world has everwitnessed. It is true that a run round to Palos was subsequently made,but it was insignificant in distance, and not fruitful in incidents.Columbus had effected his vast purpose, and his success was no longer asecret. His reception in Portugal is known, as well as all the leadingoccurrences that took place at Lisbon. He anchored in the Tagus on the4th of March, and left it again on the 13th. On the morning of the 14th,the Nina was off Cape St. Vincent, when she hauled in to the eastward,with a light air from the north. At sunrise on the 15th she was againoff the bar of Saltes, after an absence of only two hundred andtwenty-four days.