1543. 1633. a This was seventy years before Copernicus announced his theory of the form and motion of the planets, and one hundred and sixty years before Galileo was obliged, before the court of the Inquisition at Rome, to renounce his belief in the diurnal revʊlution of the earth.b Columbus divided the circumference of the earth at the equator, according to Ptolemy's system, into twenty-four hours of fifteen degrees each, making three hundred and sixty degrees. Of these he imagined that fifteen hours had been known to the ancients, extending from the Fortunate or Canary Islands to the city of Thinc in Asia, the western and eastern boundaries of the known world. By the discovery of the Cape de Verd and the Azore Islands, the Portuguese had advanced the western frontier one hour, leaving about one eighth of the circumference of the globe yet to be explored. The extent of the eastern region of Asia was yet unknown, although the travels of Polo in the fourteenth century had extended far beyond the Oriental boundary of Ptolemy's map. Columbus imagined that the unexplored part of Asia might occupy a large portion of the yet undefined circumference of the earth, and that its eastern headlands might approach quite near to those of Western Europe and Africa. He therefore concluded that a navigator, pursuing a direct course from east to west, must arrive at the extremity of Asia by a far easier and shorter route than following the coast of Africa around the Cape of Good Hope. Fortunately, he adopted the opinions of Aristotle, Pliny, and other writers, who considered the ocean as but of moderate breadth, so that it might be crossed from Europe in the space of a few days. A knowledge or suspicion of its actual extent would have deterred even the bold enterprise of Columbus from attempting an exploration of its waters in the small ships of that day. Reports of strange trees, reeds of immense size, curiously-carved pieces of wood, and the bodies of two men—un. like, in color and visage, any of the known races extant-having drifted ashore upon the Canary and Azore Islands, by westerly winds, confirmed him in his belief, and a desire and determination to undertake a demonstration of his theory by an exploring voyage absorbed his whole attention. "He never spoke in doubt or hesitation," says Irving, "but with as much certainty as if his eyes had beheld the Promised Land. A deep religious sentiment mingled with his thoughts, and gave them at times a tinge of superstition, but of a sublime and lofty kind. He looked upon himself as standing in the hand of Heaven, chosen from among men for the accomplishment of its high purpose. He read, as he supposed, his contemplated discovery foretold in Holy Writ, and shadowed forth darkly in the prophecies. The ends of the earth were to be brought together, and all nations, and tongues, and languages united under the banner of the Redeemer."1 The prophetic passage in Pulci's "Morgante Maggiore" was to him full of promise: "Know that this theory is false; his bark The daring mariner shall urge far o'er Man was in ancient days of grosser mold, And Hercules might blush to learn how far Beyond the limits he had vainly set The dullest sea-boat soon shall wing her way. Men shall descry another hemisphere, Since to one common center all things tend. So earth, by curious mystery divine 1 Life and Voyages of Columbus. Calpe and Abila, or Gibraltar, on the Spanish, and Cape Serra, on the African shore of the Straits of Gibraltar, were called the Pillars of Hercules; it being said, in ancient fable, that Hercules placed them there as monuments of his progress westward, and beyond which no mortal could pass. Well balanced, hangs amid the starry spheres. And thronged empires, ne'er divined of yore. PRESCOTT'S TRANSLATION OF STANZA 229, 230, CANTO XXV. While maturing his plans, Columbus extended the bounds of his observation and study by a voyage to Thule, or Iceland, from which remote point he says he advanced one hundred leagues northward, penetrated the polar circle, and convinced himself of the fallacy of the popular belief that the frozen zone was uninhabitable.' Whether he saw, in Iceland, written accounts of the voyages of the Northmen to America, or heard of them as related by tradition or chanted in songs, we have no means of determining. If he did, it is singular, as Prescott remarks, that they were not cited by him in support of his hypothesis, while earnestly pressing his suit for aid before the courts of Portugal and Spain; and it is equally surprising that he did not, in his first voyage to America, pursue the route traversed by those early navigators. He probably heard little more than vague rumors of their voyages, such as presented insufficient data even for a plausible opinion. His magnificent idea was all his own, sustained by the opinions of a few learned men, and confirmed by his observations while on this northern voyage. Filled with his noble resolutions and lofty anticipations, Columbus submitted the theory on which rested his belief in a practicable western route to Asia, to King John the Second of Portugal. That monarch's sagacity perceived the promised advantages to be derived from such an enterprise, and he eagerly sought the counsel of his ministers and wise men. But his court and the college of scientific sages could not comprehend the sublime project; and after a long and fruitless negotiation, during which the Portuguese meanly attempted to avail themselves clandestinely of his information, Columbus quitted Lisbon in disgust, determined to submit his proposals to Ferdinand and Isabella, the Spanish sovereigns, whose wisdom and liberal views were the admiration of men of science and learning. His wife was dead; his feelings had no hold upon Portugal, and he quitted it forever. It was toward the close of 1484 when Columbus appeared at the Spanish court." It was an unpropitious hour, for the whole resources of the nation were then employed in prosecuting a war with the Moors. For a long time he awaited the decision of the sovereigns, employing his leisure in the alternate pursuits of science, and engagements in some of the military campaigns. He was treated with great deference, and, after much delay, a council of learned men were convened at Salamanca to consider his plans and propositions. After mature deliberation, they pronounced his scheme "vain, impracticable, and resting on grounds too weak to merit the support of government." A minority of the council were far from acquiescing in this decision, and, with the Cardinal Mendoza and other officers of government, and Fray Juan Perez de Marchena, guardian of the ancient monastery of La Rabida, 1 In the age of Columbus, Greenland was laid down upon the maps as a continuation or projection westward of Scandinavia. Columbus discovered this error in his northern voyage, which discovery was a new fact in support of his theory of a continent lying westward from Europe, or at least a proximity of the eastern coast of Asia. At that time the climate of Iceland and Greenland was far more genial than at present, and there is reason to believe that those portions of the latter country which for two or three hundred years have been ice-bound and uninhabitable, were then tillable. Philosophers of our day, who have studied the phenomena of terrestrial magnetism with care, have advanced a plausible theory whereby to explain this fact. "It is asserted, but without positive proof, that Columbus, before going to Spain, made application to the authorities of his native city, Genoa, for aid in his enterprise; but failing in this he went to Venice, and also sent his brother Bartholomew to England, to lay his plans before Henry the Seventh. If these statements are true, they exhibit his perseverance in a still stronger light than truthful history presents it. they induced the sovereigns to soften the decisions of the council by a promise to give the proposition a fair audience when their pressing state engagements should be ended. Columbus, wearied by procrastination, at length lost all hope of effecting any thing with the Spanish court. He turned from it with disgust, and made application to two wealthy and enlightened Southern dukes, who had ample means at command. He was unsuccessful, and with a heavy heart he left Spain, to carry his proposals to the King of France. Isabella of Castile and Leon, sister of the profligate Henry the Fourth, was the successor of that monarch to the throne. She married Ferdinand, the son of old John the Second of Aragon, and, associating him with herself in the government, united the two monarchies into one great kingdom, the renowned modern Spain. Isabella was emi Ootober 19, 1469. nently virtuous, and her piety and daily goodness were the fruit of a deep religious feeling. Ferdinand was ambitious, and, in the midst of his perplexity with the Moors, he felt a strong desire to advance the interests and glory of the new kingdom, by maritime discoveries; yet he could not comprehend the vast plans of Columbus, and he looked coldly upon the project. To the pious sentiments of the queen, Father Perez, a former confessor of Isabella and a friend of Columbus, appealed with success; and before the navigator had entered the dominions of France, he was summoned back to the court, then in the camp at Santa Fé. He arrived in time to witness the surrender of Grenada. Joy and exultation pervaded all classes. Columbus took advantage of this state of things, and while he excited the acquisitiveness of the nobles by reciting wonderful tales of the riches of Cipangi and Cathay, he eloquently portrayed to the queen the glorious prospect of extending the influence of the Gospel over benighted heathens, promising to devote the profits of the enterprise to the recovery of the Holy Sepulcher at Jerusalem from the hands of the Paynim. His eloquence was seconded by that of Louis de St. Angel, a favorite officer of the crown. ligious zeal of Isabella was fired, and, notwithstanding the extravagant demands of Columbus, she resolved, in opposition to the wishes of Ferdinand, to aid him in fitting out an ex ISABELLA OF CASTILE. The re 1 Isabella was of middle size, and well formed, with a fair complexion, auburn hair, and clear, blue eyes. There was a mingled gravity and sweetness in her countenance, and a singular modesty, gracing, as it did, great firmness of purpose and earnestness of spirit. Though strongly attached to her husband, and studious of his fame, yet she always maintained her distinct rights as an allied prince. She exceeded him in beauty, personal dignity, acuteness of genius, and grandeur of soul. Combining the active and resolute qualities of man with the softer charities of woman, she mingled in the warlike councils of her husband, and, being inspired with a truer idea of glory, infused a more lofty and generous temper into his subtile and calculating policy.-Washington Irving. Columbus, in the demands set forth in his proposition, stipulated for himself and heirs the title and authority of admiral and viceroy over all lands discovered by him. This demand was inadmissible, yet the navigator persisted in it, though it appeared an effectual bar to any arrangement with the queen. His stipulations were finally acceded to, and Columbus always regarded the queen with feelings of the liveliest gratitude. "In the midst of the general incredulity," he said in a letter, "the Almighty infused into the queen, my lady, the spirit of intelligence and energy, and while every one else, in his ignorance, was expatiating only on the inconvenience and cost, her highness approved it, on the contrary, and gave it all the support in her power." pedition. These demands almost frustrated his designs, and Columbus had again turned his back upon the Spanish court, when, through the wise counsels of friends, the queen's objections were overcome, and the warmest impulses of her nature aroused. "I will assume the undertaking," she said, when opposed by her husband and his counselors, for my own crown of Castile, and am ready to pawn my jewels to defray the expense of it, if the funds in the treasury shall appear inadequate." All preliminaries being arranged, the queen lost no time in fitting out two ves sels, and Columbus, aided chiefly by the wealthy and enterprising family of the Pinzons VIEW OF PALOS.2 equipped a third. With this fee ble squadron, manned with timid mariners, Columbus left the little port of Palos, upon the Tinto River, in Andalusia, on Friday, the third of August, 1492, and, spreading his sails to an easterly breeze, turned his prow toward the waste of waters in the direction of the setting sun. He had no reliable chart for his guidance, no director in his course but the sun and stars, and the imperfect, mariner's compass, then used only by a few in 'The vessels furnished by Isabella were only caravels, light coasting ships, without decks, and furnished with oars like the ancient galleys. The picture here given is from a low relief sculpture, on the tomb of Fernando Columbus, a son of the navigator, in the Cathedral of Seville. Such a vessel would be considered quite inadequate to perform a coasting voyage at the present day. The larger vessel, with a deck, fitted out by Columbus and his friends, was called the Santa Maria; the caravels were named respectively Pinta and Miña. Martin Alonzo Pinzon commanded the Pinta, and Vincent Yanez Pinzon the Miña. Garcia Fernandez, the physician of Palos, accompanied the expedition as steward. The whole number of persons that embarked was one hundred and twenty. The whole expenditure of the queen in fitting out the caravels amounted to only seventeen thousand florins, or between eight and nine thousand dollars. These were small preparations for an exploring expedition of such vast extent and importance. The descendants of the Pinzons are still quite numerous in the vicinity of Palos. When Mr. Irving visited that town in 1828, he saw the ruins of a family mansion which belonged to one of the two Pinzons who sailed with Columbus on his first voyage. Mr. Irving was accompanied in his visit to Palos, the monastery of Ribida, and other localities in the vicinity, by Juan Fernandez Pinzon, a descendant of one of the companions of Columbus. THE PINZON MANSION. The pile of buildings in this view, standing upon the bluff, is the ancient Church of St. George. For some misdemeanor, the people of Palos were obliged to serve the crown for one year with two armed car This is the amount given by Muñoz, one of the most reliable of Spanish authors. Others have named a much higher sum Dr. Robertson rates the amount at £4000 sterling, or about $20,000, but does not give his authority. September, navigating the pleasant seas of the Old World. After various delays at the Canary Islands, they passed and lost sight of Ferro, the most westerly one of the group, on Sunday, the ninth of September. Now Europe was left behind, and the broad Atlantic, mysterious and unknown, was before them. As the space widened between them and their homes, the hearts of the mariners failed; and when, on the thirteenth, the commander and his 1492. pilots discovered the variations of the magnetic needle, misgivings arose in the stout hearts of the explorer and his friends, the Pinzons. They were now six hundred miles westward of the Canaries, in an unknown sea. It was a phenomenon unknown to the world of science, and Columbus tried in vain to satisfy himself respecting the cause. He could not long conceal the fact from his seamen. It filled them with consternation and awe; for they believed they were entering another world, subject to the influence of laws. unknown and dreadful.. Columbus quieted their apprehensions by telling them that the needle did not point to the north star, but to an invisible point around which that star revolved daily. Thus he explained a phenomenon now well known; and his companions, relying upon his astronomical knowledge, received his theory as truth, and their alarm subsided. September 25. For several days after this event they were wafted pleasantly by the trade winds, which blow continually from east to west. The air was balmy, and soon vast fields of sea-weeds, and an occasional petrel upon the wing, heralded an approach to land; but head winds and days of profound calm deferred the joyful consummation of their hopes; and the seamen, wearied and home-sick, resolved to retrace their path, and seek the shores of Spain. Even the little land birds that came upon the spars, and sung merrily their welcome to the New World, and then left at evening for their distant perches in the orange groves, failed to inspire the mariners with confidence in the truth of their commander's reasonings, and open mutiny manifested itself. With gentle words, promises of rewards, and threats of punishment against the most refractory, Columbus kept them from actual violence for several days. One evening, just at sunset, Martin Alonzo Pinzon, mounted on the stern of the Pinta, shouted, "Land! land! Señor, I claim the reward!"" Along the southwestern horizon was stretched an apparent island. Columbus, throwing himself upon his knees, with all the crews, chanted Gloria in Excelsis! In the morning the island had vanished, for it was nothing but a cloud. For a fortnight longer they floated upon an almost unruffled sea, when land birds came singing again, and green herbage floated by; but days passed on, and the sun, each evening, set in the waves. Again the seamen mutinied, and Columbus was in open defiance with his crew; for he told them that the expedition had been sent by their sovereigns, and, come what might, he was determined to accomplish his purpose. They were on the point of casting him into the sea, when, just at sunset, a coast-fish glided by; a branch of thorn, with berries upon it, floated near; and a staff, artificially carved, came upon the waters to tell them of human habitations not far off. The vesper hymn to the Virgin was now sung, and Columbus, after recounting the blessings of God thus far manifested on the voyage, assured the crews that he confidently expected to see land in the morning. On the high poop of his vessel he sat watching until avels. They were under this penalty when Columbus made his arrangement with Isabella, and they were ordered to fit out the two caravels for the expedition. In the porch of the old Church of St. George, Columbus first proclaimed this order to the inhabitants of Palos. Mr. Irving, who visited Palos in 1828, says of this edifice, "It has lately been thoroughly repaired, and, being of solid mason-work, promises to stand for ages, a monument of the discoverers. It stands outside of the village, on the brow of a hill, looking along a little valley to the river. The remains of a Moorish arch prove it to have been a mosque in former times. Just above it, on the crest of the hill, is the ruin of a Moorish castle." 1 Columbus agreed to give a silk waistcoat, besides the royal pension of thirty dollars, to the person who first discovered land.-Muñoz |