CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS
In the year 1447, or about that time, there was born in the city of
Genoa in Italy a boy named Christopher Columbus. He was the son of a
wool weaver named Domenico Columbus, and spent his early boyhood in the
dark and busy weaver's quarter of Genoa, always within hearing of the
sound of the loom. His father was an industrious and hard-working man,
and designed that Christopher should become a wool weaver like himself.
It was a good business, he thought, and all his sons might enter it
with credit and profit; and though they must work hard, they would have
an honest business and an occupation for their lives.
But Christopher was an adventurous boy and preferred the crowded harbor
and the busy docks of Genoa to the stuffy weaving room. In his spare
time he was constantly beside the water, talking with the sailors from
all parts of the earth and hearing wonderful tales of adventure that
stirred his blood. The sea was a dangerous place in those days, for not
only were the ships small and badly built so that they could only with
the greatest difficulty weather the gales that beat in vain against the
steel sides of our great ships to-day, but there were many outlaws and
pirates who followed the sea and made every voyage a peril. There were
dark-skinned Moslems or Moors who would swoop in their swift boats upon
Christian craft to kill or capture all on board, selling their
prisoners into the horrible slavery of the Far East. There were also
fearful tales of serpents and dragons that lived in the far waters of
the "Sea of Darkness," for so the Atlantic Ocean was known among the
seafaring men of Italy, Spain and Portugal, and stories galore of gold
and undiscovered land. And many of the more adventurous youths of those
days became sailors to see with their own eyes the marvels that the
mariners would describe, while splicing rope upon the docks.
When ten years old, however, Christopher was made to work in the wool
shop and became his father's apprentice, with little free time from the
loom to go about his own affairs. It is thought that he did not take
kindly to this business and he may have run away, for a few years later
we hear rumors of him in the University of Pavia, where, although a lad
in his teens, he was greatly interested in the studies of geography and
astronomy. He had already learned all that was then known about the
science of navigation and the use of the few rude instruments with
which mariners determined their position on the sea. He had also
mastered the science of making maps and was so skilful at drawing them
that he could earn his living by this means. He had taken his first
trips as a sailor and visited many ports in the immediate vicinity of
Genoa and perhaps he had gone even farther, for the love of adventure
and of a wandering life were in his blood.
When a very young man the wanderings of Columbus brought him to
Portugal, where he lived for a time, at Lisbon, with his brother
Bartholomew, who already had made his home there and was drawing maps
for a living. The Portuguese were the best sailors of Europe and the
boldest explorers. Perhaps that was the reason why Columbus went to
Portugal to live. But another story, later told by his son, says that
he was attacked by pirates when in command of a vessel not far from the
Portuguese coast, and saved his life by swimming to the shore.
While Columbus was drawing maps in Lisbon, he used to go to a church
that was visited by a beautiful girl called the Lady Philippa, the
cousin to no less a person than the Archbishop of Lisbon himself.
Columbus fell in love with her and attended the church whenever he
believed that it would be possible to see her there. She, in turn,
began to look with kindness upon him and at last Columbus and the Lady
Philippa were married and the marriage proved to be a very happy one.
Philippa's grandfather had himself been a bold sailor and an
adventurous explorer and discovered the Madeira Islands, where his
granddaughter owned some property. As she did not like the idea of
having her husband work constantly making maps, the young couple went
to live on the Madeira Islands at a place called Porto Santo, where
Philippa's brother was Governor.
Porto Santo was on the edge of the Sea of Darkness and was full of the
most terrible and mysterious tales concerning it. While a few learned
men of the time began to think that the world was round, most of the
sailors and even the scholars thought that it was flat and that by
sailing westward on the Atlantic you would eventually fall off of the
rim of the world. The west was also thought to be inhabited by fearful
monsters. Sea serpents were there, of a size so great that they could
easily crush a sailing vessel in their jaws; there were dragons and
giant devil fish; in one place there was a burning belt, where the air
was like molten flame and the sea a mass of fire; in another there
lived evil spirits and demons, and a fate worse than death would befall
any sailor that ventured there. If you sailed to the south, so the
mariners believed, you would come to a land where the air was too hot
to support life, while if you sailed to the north you would arrive at a
clime so frigid that you would certainly freeze to death. The sailors
believed these things because the air grew warmer as they ventured down
the coast of Africa toward the equator, and colder when they sailed
past England and the Scandinavian peninsula to the chill seas that
border on the Arctic Circle.
While Columbus lived at Porto Santo, however, he heard other tales that
interested him greatly and made him believe that the world was round
and that all the legends of the Sea of Darkness were idle fancies--or
at least that it would be possible to sail across this sea and come to
the wonderful countries of India and China and Japan.
For the Governor of Porto Santo had told him of strange things that had
been washed on shore when the wind had blown for many days from the
west--of a cane so thick through that it would hold a gallon of wine,
of a piece of wood carved in a manner that never had been seen
before,--and once of a canoe, which had been made by hollowing out a
giant tree, in which were the dead bodies of two strange men such as
the European world had never seen,--yellow in color with flat, broad
faces.
Columbus thought greatly about these things and studied again what
little was known of the world's geography; and he became convinced that
by sailing to the westward he would reach Japan and China, and
determined to set out upon this marvelous and brave adventure.
First he went to the King of Portugal in whose dominions he had made
his home, and asked the King for ships and men to undertake a trip that
would make Portugal the richest and most powerful kingdom in the entire
world,--for once the new lands were discovered, said Columbus, there
would be gold for all and land a plenty,--to say nothing of the
opportunity for carrying the religion of the Holy Catholic Church into
far lands and saving the souls of the heathen.
The King of Portugal was greatly interested in Columbus' words, but he
thought that Columbus was too greedy in what he demanded for himself,
for the ambitious sailor desired a tenth part of all the profits that
would be gained by his voyaging and wanted also to be considered as
King in the countries that he would discover. Therefore, without saying
anything about it to Columbus, the King of Portugal tried to cheat him
out of the fruits of his great idea by secretly sending a sailing
vessel with another captain on a voyage to that part of the ocean where
Columbus thought that China and Japan could be found.
This boat sailed into the west for many days, but encountered terrible
gales and turned back; and the captain, to save his face among the
mariners, exaggerated the difficulties that he had encountered,
declaring that it was idle nonsense to think that anything could be
gained by sailing westward.
Columbus soon heard how the King had deceived him and determined to
leave Portugal forever. In addition to the deceit that had been
practised upon him in which others had so basely tried to rob him of
the rewards of his great design, a far greater sorrow had come into his
life by the death of his good wife, whom he had loved tenderly. So,
with his little son, Diego, Columbus went to Spain, thinking that
perhaps the Spanish King and Queen would listen to him, and give him
ships and money to carry out his plan.
The King and Queen of Spain, or rather the rulers of the two related
kingdoms of Castile and Aragon, were named Ferdinand and Isabella. A
terrible war was going on between these Spanish kingdoms and the Moors,
who had overrun Spain hundreds of years before. Queen Isabella,
however, was deeply interested in the words of Columbus,--particularly
because she was a devout Catholic, and desired to spread the Catholic
religion in the Far East. She told Columbus that she was too busily
engaged in fighting the Moors to help him then and that he must wait
until the wars were finished when, she assured him, he should have the
money and ships he needed to carry out his design for the glory of
Spain and the Catholic faith.
But the war against the Moors lasted for years, and Columbus, vainly
waiting at Court, seemed no nearer to getting the ships and crews that
he so ardently desired than when in Portugal being cheated by the
Portuguese King. He had no money, and in following the Court it was
hard for him to earn anything to pay for his needs. His garments became
worn and tattered,--so much so that he became known as "the man with
the cloak full of holes." At one time he went into the army and battled
against the Moors, but as he received no pay, he was compelled at last
to take up his map drawing once again to earn enough money for food and
clothing. Disappointed and discouraged he sent his brother Bartholomew
to the Court of the King of England, but the ship was robbed by pirates
and Bartholomew was obliged to return.
After compelling Columbus to wait for seven long years, the King and
Queen of Spain went back on their word and refused to have anything to
do with his adventure. Scientists had ridiculed it and told them that
they might just as well cast their gold into the sea as to give it to
Columbus. So the unhappy Columbus was compelled to leave Court, his
hopes extinguished and plunged into the lowest depths of despair.
With him was his son who was now old enough to accompany him in his
wanderings. Together they passed a monastery called La Rabida where
Columbus paused to beg a mouthful of bread and a drink of water for his
boy,--and here there came an absolute change in his fortunes, for here
there dwelt a friar who had formerly been confessor to Queen Isabella
with whom he still had a great deal of influence; and after going over
Columbus' plans with a shipbuilder named Martin Pinzon and an
astronomer named Hernandez, the good friar promised to ask the Queen to
grant Columbus' request. At all speed he went to the Spanish Court and
brought back word that Columbus was to receive another interview with
the Queen, with the additional good news that he was to be of good
heart in the meantime, for his request was to be granted. And Queen
Isabella also sent Columbus a sum of money with which to buy decent
raiment and pay his expenses in coming back to the Court.
In this way it befell that, after weary years of waiting, the great
idea of Columbus was finally received, and he was allowed to set out on
his wonderful voyage; and he was so sure of success that he almost
seemed to see the new lands that lay thousands of miles across the Sea
of Darkness.
Columbus went back to Court and made certain demands of King Ferdinand
and Queen Isabella that they finally consented to--namely that he was
to be the "Admiral of the Ocean Sea"--for so he called the
Atlantic--and should rule over all new lands that he discovered. One
tenth of all future profits from these lands were to be his, and he
alone should have the right to settle trade disputes that might arise.
In addition to these things he was to receive one-eighth of the profit
of his first voyage, as he was willing, and in fact his agreement with
the Queen demanded, that he should pay one-eighth of the expenses of
the venture.
Once the consent of the King and Queen had been given and the money
provided, Columbus set about collecting his vessels and their crews.
This last, however, was a difficult undertaking, for so many and
terrible were the stories about the Sea of Darkness and the monsters
that lived near the far edge of the world that the boldest mariners
refused to venture with him on such an errand, and finally his crew was
gathered by proclaiming in the jails that any criminal who accompanied
him was to receive full pardon on his return to Spain--a means that
filled his ships with the most worthless and evil men.
Three ships were provided. They were called the _Santa Maria_, the
_Pinta_ and the _Nina_,--the last of which was so small that it seemed
in size little more than a modern life boat as it only had room for
eighteen men. The _Pinta_ carried twenty-seven men and was under the
command of the same Martin Pinzon who had aided Columbus in gaining the
ear of Queen Isabella--a man whom Columbus trusted completely, but who
was to betray that trust long before Columbus returned from his
perilous voyage. The _Santa Maria_ was the largest of the three ships,
and held fifty-seven men. This was Columbus' flagship.
At a seaport called Palos these vessels were made ready for their
voyage and on the Third of August, 1492, they might have been seen with
the sunlight gleaming on their white sails, on which were painted the
huge red Crosses of the Catholic faith, as they made their way into the
open sea and bore to the westward under a favoring breeze. They stopped
at the Canary Islands, where food and water were taken aboard, and
then, leaving behind them the entire civilized world, they sailed
boldly out into the Sea of Darkness toward that far region where not
only the Unknown but all the fears that superstitious seamen could
invent awaited them.
It was not long before Columbus saw that among his crew of desperate
ruffians and jailbirds there were many who would betray him on the
first opportunity. On the way to the Canaries and while stopping there,
the rudder of the _Pinta_ was twice broken; and now that the open sea
was reached and they were sailing into the far west, the helmsmen tried
to alter the course of the vessels so that they might not go any
further. When Columbus slept, the men at the tillers of all three ships
would steer into the northeast instead of the west, so that the
vessels, unperceived, might turn upon their own course and eventually
return to the Canary Islands and to Spain. But Columbus was too shrewd
a sailor to be tricked by any such clumsy means and placed the few men
that he could trust in charge of the helm. Fortunately for his design a
breeze came from the eastward and bore them rapidly along their course.
Columbus, moreover, did not let the men know how far they had sailed,
but every day gave out a distance far less than what had actually been
completed, so that his sailors might think themselves nearer to Spain
than was the reality.
On the Thirteenth of September, however, something took place that
caused even Columbus' bold heart to beat quicker with fear, for the
compass, that infallible instrument of direction, which was trusted by
the mariners of those days even more than it is in the present time,
began to veer around from the north and no longer pointed steadily to
the pole. Only a few of Columbus' men were aware of this, and Columbus
strengthened their resolution by telling them that it was not the
compass which was at fault,--but rather the Pole Star that was
changing, so that the compass still pointed truly--and on and on they
sailed into the west.
As days and weeks went by a great fear gripped the hearts of the
sailors. Never had any men been so far from shore as they. Day after
day they saw nothing but roaring waves and the empty sky. They believed
that even if they turned their vessels about it would be almost
impossible for them to return, and anger and bitterness arose in their
hearts against their brave leader whose strong will and steady hand
forced them to continue the perilous voyage.
At last, however, they began to see signs of land that cheered them
greatly. Terns and sea gulls appeared about their vessel, diving for
the scraps of food that they tossed overboard. One day some little
birds that came from the land rested in their rigging and sang. With
their hearts high they watched for land, but it did not appear. On and
on they sailed and still nothing was to be seen but the wide sky and
the watery horizon. But more signs of land soon appeared. A branch from
a wild rose bush floated past. Weeds were seen in the water. A careful
lookout was kept and a large reward was promised to that sailor who
might first see land.
On the night of October eleventh, Columbus believed that he saw a light
directly in front of his vessel. It moved, glimmered, and disappeared,
only to appear again a moment later. Some of the lookouts also thought
that they had seen it, and the watch for land became keener than ever.
At about two in the morning the cry of land was raised. One of the
sailors had seen a sandbar and a low line of land. At once the vessels
anchored, and with beating hearts the sailors waited for the morning
that was to be fraught with such tremendous adventures.
Sure enough the rising sun disclosed green hills from which the breeze
brought a most delicious perfume and where, as they drew closer, the
birds could be heard singing. And on the shore a crowd of savages was
gazing with astonishment upon the mysterious ships that floated with
sails furled on the smooth waters of the bay. Hardly able to speak for
excitement and joy the sailors leaped into their rowboats. First of all
was Columbus, richly appareled, with the banner of Spain in his hand.
And as the prow of his boat grounded in the sand he sprang ashore and
took possession of the land in the name of King Ferdinand and Queen
Isabella, unfurling the gorgeous banner to the breeze. Then he and his
men kneeled and said a prayer of thankfulness, and they also planted in
the earth a great wooden cross, to show that the new land had come
under the power of the Christian Church.
The natives, who had gazed with wonder upon these actions, now
approached timidly but with every sign of friendship, offering Columbus
gifts of flowers and fruits and gay colored parrots, and lances tipped
with bone and feather belts. They seemed to have no difficulty in
understanding the sign language that the Spaniards used to make their
wants understood, and they worshipped the newcomers as though they were
more than human, and indeed their simple minds were convinced that
these gorgeous strangers in velvet and armor were no less than
superhuman beings.
By the sign language the savages made Columbus understand that there
were other lands not far off, and he believed that he had arrived at
India and could sail in the course of a few days to the rich countries
of China and Japan. And he called the natives "Indians," as a token of
his belief--a name that they and all the other natives of the American
continent have borne to the present time. To his dying day Columbus
believed that he had reached India and the Far East. How great would
have been his astonishment had he known that another ocean nearly twice
as broad as the one that he had crossed, lay between him and the
Orient, and that he had come upon an entirely New World where no
civilized men had ever set foot before!
Columbus named the island that he first set foot upon San Salvador.
After he had remained there for some time he gathered his crews and set
sail once more to discover other lands. He came to the island of Cuba
and he discovered Haiti, but he thought that these were islands or part
of the mainland of Japan, China or India, and so reported them in his
writings. And now came his first bitter taste of the treachery that was
to wreck his fortunes, for Martin Pinzon in command of the _Pinta_
deserted him to search for gold, sailing away in the _Pinta_ to cruise
where he pleased.
Then, through the carelessness of a helmsman, the _Santa Maria_ was
wrecked upon a reef,--and Columbus was left with only the _Nina_, which
could carry at most eighteen men, to bear the news of his great
discovery back across the ocean to the Kingdom of Spain. A native king,
however, came to his aid and with his tribe helped Columbus to save
everything that was aboard the _Santa Maria_, and trusting in his
kindness Columbus decided to found a colony where the greater part of
his followers could remain, while he with a few men sailed back to
Spain in the _Nina_ to carry the word of what had been accomplished.
This was done and Columbus founded his colony after building a fort
from the timbers of the _Santa Maria_; and he cautioned his men to
treat the natives kindly and to respect in every way their rights and
their property. Then, with a few men, he boarded the _Nina_ and set
sail for Spain.
On his way he encountered the treacherous Martin Pinzon in the _Pinta_,
and the voyage across the ocean recommenced. It was a terrible voyage,
for a hurricane fell upon the tiny vessels and they were almost
destroyed. The seas, said Columbus, ran first in one direction and then
in another, and at times completely submerged his ships. Convinced that
he was going to be drowned and that the news of his discovery would die
with him, he placed an account of it in a water-tight keg which he
tossed overboard with his own hands, preparing another one which he
left upon the deck of the vessel to be floated off when it sank beneath
the waves.
In the nick of time, however, the waves moderated, and after a weary
voyage and many adventures Columbus dropped anchor in the harbor at
Palos from which he had sailed months before. He then sent word to
Ferdinand and Isabella of his discovery, and was received with the
utmost pomp and ceremony. The King and Queen were overjoyed at his
achievement and granted him honors which hitherto had never been
allowed to any of their subjects. Columbus sat with them enthroned
beneath a canopy of cloth of gold and he rode at the side of the King
in a triumphal procession. He gave the King and Queen who had so
greatly befriended him many gay-colored parrots and rich fruits and
spices that he had brought with him from the west, and he showed
Isabella a number of the Indians whom he had brought back across the
sea. His fame quickly penetrated beyond Spain and the entire Christian
world rang with the deeds he had accomplished and the wonders he had
seen. And Columbus' triumph was in no way marred by the treachery of
Martin Pinzon who once again had sought to betray his master and
leader. For when the vessels reached Spain, Pinzon had hastened to send
to the Queen word of their arrival and had represented the discovery as
the result of his own courage and sagacity. He was, however, coldly
received, and shortly afterward died beneath a cloud of disgrace that
he richly deserved.
Then Queen Isabella bade Columbus prepare for another voyage to the
west and add to his discoveries,--particularly to find gold that the
Kingdom of Spain was in great need of. This time it was not difficult
to raise a crew, and soon Columbus once more set sail into the west
with many vessels under his command.
When he arrived at the spot where his colony had been founded he
learned that terrible things had happened in his absence. The Spaniards
had abused the unsuspecting natives until these had risen in revolt and
attacked the fort, and of all the Spaniards that Columbus had left
behind not a single man remained alive.
And this was only the beginning of the trouble that was to pursue
Columbus until the end of his life. Quarreling and strife broke out
among the men that were under him. When he sent a part of his fleet
back to Spain his enemies and those who were jealous of his greatness
hastened to spread evil reports about him that came to the ears of the
King and Queen. Still, however, they continued to trust him, and when
Columbus returned they sent him forth on a third voyage in which he was
to bend all his efforts to find the mainland of Asia, which he believed
lay only a short distance beyond the colony that he had founded.
On this voyage, however, strife broke out to such an extent among his
followers and so many and so lawless were their ill deeds in their
commander's absence--for the need of further discovery had forced
Columbus to leave the governing of the colony in the hands of others
than himself--that the King and Queen finally sent out a man named
Bobadilla to succeed Columbus and take over his powers.
Bobadilla hated Columbus and forced upon him an indignity that it is
pitiful to think of,--for the discoverer of the New World and the
Admiral of the Ocean Sea was compelled to return to Spain wearing
chains that had been locked upon his wrists at Bobadilla's orders.
When the Captain of the vessel that bore Columbus homeward was about to
remove the fetters, Columbus haughtily refused to take them off, saying
that he would not part with them until he had knelt in chains before
his sovereigns and given them this proof of the ingratitude with which
they had treated him. And Columbus at last came before Queen Isabella,
ill in body and broken in mind from the hardships and indignities that
he suffered.
When the Queen saw how her commands had been twisted and the shame that
had come upon the man who had served her so splendidly, she wept and
asked his forgiveness,--and Columbus wept also at the memory of what he
had suffered.
Unhappily the full measure of Columbus' misfortune was yet to come.
Queen Isabella died, and Ferdinand, who, at the best, had been no more
than lukewarm toward the achievements of the great sailor, refused to
take any further interest in Columbus or what might become of him. The
pension that Columbus had earned was never given to him, nor did he get
the share in the profits of his venture that rightfully should have
been his. So ill that he could not walk, he entreated Ferdinand at
least to pay his sailors for their last voyage,--but this was never
done. Deserted, old and broken-hearted, Columbus, who had aged before
his time as a result of his hard life, died in 1506 in a room where he
had hung his chains as a sign of the ingratitude of his sovereign. He
knew, however, that he had accomplished something that would make his
name immortal and he died with this consolation. He did not know,
however, that he had done something far mightier than his original
design of crossing the Atlantic Ocean to Asia--namely that he had
discovered a New World that was to give birth to a great nation,
greater one thousandfold than the Spain that he had served.