Palos Canary precious monsters
Niña Santa Maria anxious venture
Pinta Perez mysterious expanse
One morning in August, 1492, there was a great stir in the little seaport
town of Palos in Spain. At break of day the streets were full of people.
Long before sunrise the shore was lined with anxious men, women, and
children. All were talking about the same thing; some were weeping; some
appeared to be angry; some were in despair.
“Only think of it,” said one. “Think of sailing into seas where the water
is always boiling hot.”
“And if you escape being scalded,” said another, “then there are those
terrible sea beasts that are large enough to swallow ships and sailors at
a mouthful.”
“It is all on account of that Italian sailor who says that the world is
round,” said a third. “He has persuaded several persons, who ought to
know better, that he can reach the East by sailing west.”
Moored near the shore were three small ships. They were but little larger
than fishing boats; and in these frail vessels Columbus was going to
venture into the vast unknown sea, in search of strange lands and of a new
and better way to distant India.
Two of the ships, the “Niña” and the “Pinta,” had no decks and were
covered only at the ends where the sailors slept. The third, called the
“Santa Maria,” was larger and had a deck, and from its masthead floated
the flag of Columbus. It was toward these three ships that the eyes of the
people on shore were directed; it was about these ships and the men on
board of them that all were talking.
On the deck of the largest ship stood Columbus, and by his side was good
Father Perez, praying that the voyagers might be blessed with fair winds
and a smooth sea, and that the brave captain might be successful in his
quest. Then the last good-bys were spoken, the moorings were cast loose,
the sails were spread; and, a little before sunrise, the vessels glided
slowly out of the harbor and into the vast western ocean. The people stood
on the shore and watched, while the sails grew smaller and smaller and at
last were lost to sight below the line of sea and sky.
“Alas! We shall never see them again,” said some, returning to their
homes. But others remained all day by the shore talking about the strange
idea that there were unknown lands in the distant West.
Two hundred miles southwest of Palos there is a group of islands called
the Canary Islands. These were well known to the people of that time,
and belonged to Spain. But sailors seldom ventured beyond them, and no
one knew of any land farther to the west. It was to these islands that
Columbus first directed his course. In six days the three little vessels
reached the Canary Islands. The sailing had been very slow. The rudder of
one of the ships had not been well made and had soon been broken. And so,
now, much time was wasted while having a new rudder made and put in place.
It was not until the 6th of September that Columbus again set sail,
pushing westward into unknown waters. Soon the sailors began to give way
to their fears. The thought that they were on seas where no man had before
ventured filled them with alarm. They remembered all the strange stories
that they had heard of dreadful monsters and of mysterious dangers, and
their minds were filled with distress.
But Columbus showed them how unreasonable these stories were; and he
aroused their curiosity by telling them wonderful things about India--that
land of gold and precious stones, which they would surely reach if they
would bravely persevere.
And so, day after day, they sailed onward. The sea was calm, and the wind
blowing from the east drove the ships steadily forward. By the first of
October they had sailed more than two thousand miles. Birds came from the
west, and flew about the ships. The water was full of floating seaweed.
But still no land could be seen.
Then the sailors began to fear that they would never be able to return
against the east wind that was blowing. “Why should we obey this man,
Columbus?” they said. “He is surely mad. Let us throw him into the sea,
and then turn the ships about while we can.”
But Columbus was so firm and brave that they dared not lay hands on him;
they dared not disobey him. Soon they began to see signs of the nearness
of land. Weeds, such as grow only in rivers, were seen floating near the
ships. A branch of a tree, with berries on it, was picked up. Columbus
offered a reward to the man who should first see land.
“We must be very near it now,” he said.
That night no one could sleep. At about two o’clock the man who was on the
lookout on one of the smaller vessels cried: “Land! land! land!” Columbus
himself had seen a distant light moving, some hours before. There was now
a great stir on board the ships.
“Where is the land?” cried every one.
“There--there! Straight before us.”