Read Patrañas; or, Spanish Stories, Legendary and Traditional Page 25

  III.

  THE FLOATING CHEST.

  Cardinal Ximenez, who founded the celebrated University of Alcala,was desirous to spread the knowledge of these commentaries, which werefalling into oblivion; and he thought to render a service to religionby having a new edition of them published. As the art of printing wasat that time more developed in the Republic of Venice than in Spain,he found he could bring it out more advantageously there; accordinglythe manuscripts were packed and sent thither.

  It happened, however, that crossing the Mediterranean, the ship inwhich they were was overtaken by a tremendous gale; and to save thelives of the passengers, the captain ordered all the merchandize tobe thrown overboard, so as to lighten the ship. The chest containingAlfonso Tostato's works was cast into the sea with the rest.

  Next morning, when the danger was past, the person who had beenentrusted by Ximenez with the care of the manuscripts was in greatdistress at the irreparable loss: not daring to return to Spain,he wandered along the shore, hardly knowing what he did, when,lo and behold! to his intense delight, there appeared suddenly,floating in the sea, the identical chest, the loss of which wasthe cause of his mortification. A boat was quickly despatched tohaul it in with great joy, and the event was commonly regarded as amarvellous interposition. But it would seem that the sagacious Ximenez,foreseeing the possible calamity, had ordered that the chest shouldbe constructed of the lightest wood; and all who have ever had a swimin the Mediterranean know the peculiar buoyancy of its waters. Perhapswe may now account for the chest floating.