The island elysium which Columbus had discovered, and of which he wrote
and conversed in the most glowing terms, seemed like a fairy-land of
promise to the people of Spain, and hundreds of adventurers soon crossed
the seas, hopeful of winning gold and ready for deeds of peril and daring
in that wonderful unknown land. Some of them were men of wealth, who were
eager to add to their riches, but the most of them had little beyond their
love of adventure and their thirst for gold to carry them across the seas,
needy but bold soldiers and cavaliers who were ready for any enterprise,
however perilous, that might promise them reward. The stories of many of
these men are full of romantic interest, and this is especially the case
with one of them, the renowned Hernando Cortez.
We propose here to deal with the interesting early history of this most
famous of the New World conquerors. The son of a Spanish captain, of good
family, his buoyant spirit and frolicsome humor led him into many wild
escapades while still a boy. The mystery and romance of the strange land
beyond the sea and the chance to win gold and glory which it offered were
fascinating to a spirit like his, and he was prevented from taking part in
an expedition when but seventeen years of age only by an unlucky accident.
As he was scaling a wall one night, in an adventure like that of Romeo and
Juliet, the stones gave way and he was thrown violently to the ground and
buried under the ruins. Before he got out of bed from his hurts the fleet
had sailed.
Two years longer the ambitious boy remained at home, engaged, perhaps, in
similar pranks, but at length another chance offered, and in 1504 he set
sail for the land of promise, still a youth of only nineteen years of age.
He did not get across the sea without adventure. Quintero, the captain of
his ship, bound for Hispaniola and a market, stole away from the rest of
the squadron, hoping to reach port and sell his cargo before the others
arrived. But fierce gales came to punish him; for many days the vessel was
tossed about, the sailors not knowing where they were, and furious at the
treachery of their captain. At length, one morning, hope returned to them,
in the form of a white dove that lighted on the foremast-top. When the
bird had rested it took to flight again, and by following its course the
weary mariners finally came to the port they sought. But the captain was
paid for his treachery by finding that the other vessels had arrived
before him and sold their cargoes.
The young adventurer was full of ambitious hope. When the governor's
secretary told him that no doubt he would be given a good estate to settle
on, he replied, "But I came to get gold; not to till the soil, like a
peasant."
As no gold offered, however, he was glad enough to accept the land, but
his fondness for active deeds clung to him, and he took part in the
military expeditions sent out to fight with the rebel natives. He had his
quarrels, too, and his duels about the love of fair ladies, and received
wounds whose scars he carried to the grave. A nobler opening for his valor
came in 1511, when an expedition set out for the conquest of Cuba. Cortez
enlisted under the leader, Diego Velasquez, whose favor he won by his
courage and activity, his cordial and lively disposition, and the good
humor and ready wit which made him a favorite with all he met.
After the island had been conquered, Velasquez was made its governor,
Cortez still being his close friend. But for some reason this friendship
did not last, and when at length a party of discontented men formed a plan
to complain of the acts of the governor to the higher authorities in
Hispaniola, Cortez took part in the conspiracy, and was chosen, from his
fearless spirit, to act as their envoy, it being necessary to perform the
perilous exploit of crossing an arm of the sea over fifty miles wide in an
open boat.
In some way the plot got wind, and, before he could leave the island,
Cortez was arrested by order of the governor and thrown into prison, his
limbs being loaded with fetters. Velasquez even intended to hang him, as
we are told, but was persuaded by his friends not to go so far. These
Spanish governors had the power to do almost anything they pleased, their
distance from home enabling them to act the despot at will, and their
influence at court saving them from evil consequences.
[Illustration: CATHEDRAL OF SAN DOMINGO.]