Thursday, 11 October. Steered west-southwest; and encountered a heavier
sea than they had met with before in the whole voyage. Saw pardelas and a green
rush near the vessel. The crew of the
Pinta saw a cane and a log; they also picked up a stick which appeared to have been carved with an
iron tool, a piece of cane, a
plant which grows on land, and a board. The crew of the Nina saw other signs of
land, and a stalk loaded with rose berries. These signs encouraged them, and
they all grew cheerful. Sailed this day till sunset, twenty-seven leagues.
After sunset
steered their original course west and sailed twelve miles an hour till two
hours after midnight, going ninety miles, which are twenty-two leagues and a
half; and as the Pinta was the swiftest sailer, and kept ahead of the Admiral,
she discovered land and made the signals which had been ordered. The land
was first seen by a sailor called
Rodrigo de Triana, although the Admiral at ten o'clock that evening standing on
the quarter-deck saw a light, but
so small a body that he could not affirm it to be land; calling to Pero Gutierrez, groom of the King's
wardrobe, he told him he saw a
light, and bid him look that way, which he did and saw it; he did the same to
Rodrigo Sanchez of Segovia, whom
the King and Queen had sent with the squadron as comptroller, but he was unable
to see it from his situation. The Admiral again perceived it once or twice,
appearing like the light of a wax
candle moving up and down, which some thought an indication of land. But the Admiral held it for certain that
land was near; for which reason, after they had said the Salve which the seamen
are accustomed to repeat and chant after their fashion, the Admiral directed
them to keep a strict watch upon
the forecastle and look out diligently for land, and to him who should first discover it he promised a
silken jacket, besides the reward
which the King and Queen had offered, which was an annuity of ten thousand maravedis. At two
o'clock in the morning the land was discovered, at two leagues' distance; they
took in sail and remained under the square-sail lying to till day, which was
Friday, when they found themselves near a small island, one of the Lucayos,
called in the Indian language Guanahani. Presently they descried people, naked,
and the Admiral landed in the boat, which was armed, along with Martin Alonzo
Pinzon, and Vincent Yanez his brother, captain of the Nina. The Admiral bore
the royal standard, and the two captains each a banner of the Green Cross,
which all the ships had carried; this contained the initials of the names of
the King and Queen each side of the cross, and a crown over each letter Arrived
on shore, they saw trees very
green many streams of water, and diverse sorts of fruits. The Admiral called upon the two Captains, and the
rest of the crew who landed, as
also to Rodrigo de Escovedo notary of
the fleet, and Rodrigo Sanchez, of Segovia, to bear witness that he before all others took possession
(as in fact he did) of that island
for the King and Queen his sovereigns, making the requisite declarations, which are more at large set down
here in writing. Numbers of the
people of the island straightway collected together. Here follow the precise
words of the Admiral: "As I saw that they were very friendly to us, and
perceived that they could be much more easily converted to our holy faith by
gentle means than by force, I presented them with some red caps, and strings of
beads to wear upon the neck, and many other trifles of small value, wherewith
they were much delighted, and became wonderfully attached to us. Afterwards
they came swimming to the boats, bringing parrots, balls of cotton thread,
javelins, and many other things which they exchanged for articles we gave them,
such as glass beads, and hawk's bells; which trade was carried on with the
utmost good will. But they seemed on the whole to me, to be a very poor people.
They all go completely naked, even the women, though I saw but one girl. All
whom I saw were young, not above thirty years of age, well made, with fine
shapes and faces; their hair short, and coarse like that of a horse's tail,
combed toward the forehead, except a small portion which they suffer to hang
down behind, and never cut. Some paint themselves with black, which makes them
appear like those of the Canaries, neither black nor white; others with white,
others with red, and others with such colors as they can find. Some paint the
face, and some the whole body; others only the eyes, and others the nose.
Weapons they have none, nor are acquainted with them, for I showed them swords
which they grasped by the blades, and cut themselves through ignorance. They
have no iron, their javelins being without it, and nothing more than sticks,
though some have fish-bones or other things at the ends. They are all of a good
size and stature, and handsomely formed. I saw some with scars of wounds upon
their bodies, and demanded by signs the of them; they answered me in the same
way, that there came people from the other islands in the neighborhood who
endeavored to make prisoners of them, and they defended themselves. I thought
then, and still believe, that these were from the continent. It appears to me,
that the people are ingenious, and would be good servants and I am of opinion that
they would very readily become Christians, as they appear to have no religion.
They very quickly learn such words as are spoken to them. If it please our
Lord, I intend at my return to carry home six of them to your Highnesses, that
they may learn our language. I saw no beasts in the island, nor any sort of
animals except parrots." These are the words of the Admiral.
Saturday, 13
October. "At
daybreak great multitudes of men came to the shore, all young and of fine
shapes, very handsome; their hair not curled but straight and coarse like
horse-hair, and all with foreheads and heads much broader than any people I had
hitherto seen; their eyes were large and very beautiful; they were not black,
but the color of the inhabitants of the Canaries, which is a very natural
circumstance, they being in the same latitude with the island of Ferro in the
Canaries. They were straight-limbed without exception, and not with prominent
bellies but handsomely shaped. They came to the ship in canoes, made of a
single trunk of a tree, wrought in a wonderful manner considering the country;
some of them large enough to contain forty or forty-five men, others of
different sizes down to those fitted to hold but a single person. They rowed
with an oar like a baker's peel, and wonderfully swift. If they happen to
upset, they all jump into the sea, and swim till they have righted their canoe
and emptied it with the calabashes they carry with them. They came loaded with
balls of cotton, parrots, javelins, and other things too numerous to mention;
these they exchanged for whatever we chose to give them. I was very attentive
to them, and strove to learn if they had any gold. Seeing some of them with
little bits of this metal hanging at their noses, I gathered from them by signs
that by going southward or steering round the island in that direction, there
would be found a king who possessed large vessels of gold, and in great
quantities. I endeavored to procure them to lead the way thither, but found
they were unacquainted with the route. I determined to stay here till the
evening of the next day, and then sail for the southwest; for according to what
I could learn from them, there was land at the south as well as at the
southwest and northwest and those from the northwest came many times and fought
with them and proceeded on to the southwest in search of gold and precious
stones. This is a large and level island, with trees extremely flourishing, and
streams of water; there is a large lake in the middle of the island, but no
mountains: the whole is completely covered with verdure and delightful to
behold. The natives are an inoffensive people, and so desirous to possess any
thing they saw with us, that they kept swimming off to the ships with whatever
they could find, and readily bartered for any article we saw fit to give them in return, even
such as broken platters and
fragments of glass. I saw in this manner sixteen balls of cotton thread
which weighed above twenty-five pounds, given for three Portuguese ceutis. This
traffic I forbade, and suffered no one to take their cotton from them, unless I
should order it to be procured for your Highnesses, if proper quantities could
be met with. It grows in this island, but from my short stay here I could not
satisfy myself fully concerning it; the gold, also, which they wear in their
noses, is found here, but not to lose time, I am determined to proceed onward
and ascertain whether I can reach
Cipango. At night they all went on shore with their canoes.
Sunday, 14 October. In the morning, I ordered the
boats to be got ready, and coasted along the island toward the north-northeast
to examine that part of it, we having landed first at the eastern part.
Presently we discovered two or three villages, and the people all came down to
the shore, calling out to us, and giving thanks to God. Some brought us water,
and others victuals: others seeing that I was not disposed to land,
plunged nto the sea and swam out
to us, and we perceived that they
interrogated us if we had come from heaven. An old man came on board my
boat; the others, both men and women cried with loud voices--"Come and see
the men who have come from heavens. Bring them victuals and drink." There
came many of both sexes, every one bringing something, giving thanks to God,
prostrating themselves on the earth, and lifting up their hands to heaven. They
called out to us loudly to come to land, but I was apprehensive on account of a
reef of rocks, which surrounds the whole island, although within there is depth
of water and room sufficient for all the ships of Christendom, with a very
narrow entrance. There are some shoals withinside, but the water is as smooth
as a pond. It was to view these parts that I set out in the morning, for I
wished to give a complete relation to your Highnesses, as also to find where a
fort might be built. I discovered a tongue of land which appeared like an
island though it was not, but might be cut through and made so in two days; it
contained six houses. I do not, however, see the necessity of fortifying the
place, as the people here are simple in war-like matters, as your Highnesses
will see by those seven which I have ordered to be taken and carried to Spain
in order to learn our language and return, unless your Highnesses should choose
to have them all transported to Castile, or held captive in the island. I could
conquer the whole of them with fifty men, and govern them as I pleased. Near
the islet I have mentioned were groves of trees, the most beautiful I have ever
seen, with their foliage as verdant as we see in Castile in April and May.
There were also many streams. After having taken a survey of these parts, I
returned to the ship, and setting sail, discovered such a number of islands
that I knew not which first to visit; the natives whom I had taken on board
informed me by signs that there were so many of them that they could not be numbered; they repeated the
names of more than a hundred. I
determined to steer for the largest, which is about five leagues from San
Salvador; the others were some at a greater, and some at a less distance from
that island. They are all very level, without mountains, exceedingly fertile
and populous, the inhabitants living at war with one another, although a simple race, and with delicate
bodies.