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taught Columbus, that he must prepare to ftruggle, not only with the unavoidable difficulties which might be expected from the nature of his undertaking, but with fuch as were likely to arife from the ignorance and timidity of the people under his command; and he perceived that the art of governing the minds of men would be no lefs requifite for ac-, complishing the difcoveries which he had in view, than naval skill and undaunted courage. Happily for himfelf, and for the country by which he was employed, he joined to the ardent temper and inventive genius of a projector, virtues of another fpecies, which are rarely united with them. He poffeffed a thorough knowledge of mankind, an infinuating addrefs, a patient perseverance in executing any plan, the perfect government of his paffions, and the talent of acquiring an afcendant over thofe of other men. All these qualities, which formed him for command, were accompanied with that fuperior knowledge of his profeffion, which begets confidence in times of difficulty and danger. To unfkilful Spanish failors, accustomed only to coafting voyages in the Mediterranean, the maritime fcience of Columbus, the fruit of thirty years experience, improved by an acquaintance with all the inventions of the Portuguese, appeared immenfe. As foon as they put to fea, he regulated every thing by his fole authority; he fuperintended the execution of every order; and allowing himself only a few hours for fleep, he was at all other times upon deck. As his courfe lay through feas which had not formerly been vifited, the founding-line, or inftruments for obfervation, were continually in his hands. After the example of the Portuguese discoverers, he attended to the motion of tides and currents, watched the flight of birds, the appearance of fishes, of fea-weeds, and of every thing that floated on the waves, and entered every occurrence, with a minute exaftnefs, in the journal which he kept. As the length of the voyage could not fail of alarming failors habituated only to fhort excursions, Columbus endeavoured to conceal from them the real progrefs which they made. With this view, though they run eighteen leagues on the fecond day after they left Gomera, he gave out that they had advanced only fifteen, and he uniformly employed the fame artifice of reckoning fhort during the whole voyage. By the fourteenth of September, the fleet was above two hundred leagues to the weft of the Canary Isles, at a greater diftance from land than any Spaniard had been before that time. There they were ftruck with an appearance no lefs aftonishing than new. They obferved that the magnetic needle, in their compaffes, did not point exactly to the polar ftar, but varied towards the weft; and as they proceeded, this variation increased. This appearance, which is now familiar, though it ftill remains one of the mysteries of nature, into the'

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cause of which the fagacity of man hath not been able to penetrate, filled the companions of Columbus with terror. They were now in a boundless unknown ocean, far from the ufual courfe of navigation; nature itself feemed to be altered, and the only guide which they had left was about to fail them. Columbus, with no lefs quickness than ingenuity, invented a reafon for this appearance, which, though it did not fatisfy himself, feemed fo plaufible to them, that it difpelled their fears, or filenced their murmurs.

He ftill continued to fleer due weft, nearly in the fame latitude with the Canary islands. In this courfe he came within the fphere of the trade wind, which blows invariably from cast to west, between the tropics and a few degrees beyond them. He advanced before this fteady gale with fuch uniform rapidity, that it was feldom neceffary to fhift a fail. When about four hundred leagues to the weft of the Canaries, he found the fea fo covered with weeds, that it refembled a meadow of vast extent; and in fome places they were fo thick, as to retard the motion of the veffels. This ftrange appearance occafioned new alarm and difquiet. The failors imagined that they were now arrived at the utmoft boundary of the navigable ocean; that thefe floating, weeds would obftruct their farther progrefs, and concealed dangerous rocks, or fome large tract of land, which had funk, they knew not how, in that place. Columbus endeavoured to perfuade them, that what had alarmed, ought rather to have encouraged them, and was to be confidered as a fign of approaching land. At the fame time, a brifk gale arofe, and carried them forward. Several birds were feen hovering about the fhip*, and directed their flight towards the weft. The defponding crew refumed fome degree of fpirit, and began to entertain fresh hopes.

As the Portuguese, in making their discoveries, did not depart far from the coaft of Africa, they concluded that birds, whofe flight they obferved with great attention, did not venture to any confiderable diftance from land. In the infancy of navigation, it was not known, that birds often ftretch their flight to an immenfe distance from any fhore. In failing towards the Weft-Indian islands, birds are often feen at the distance of two hundred leagues from the nearest coaft. Sloane's Nat. Hift, of Jamaica, vol. i. p. 30. Catesby faw an owl at fea, when the fhip was fix hundred leagues diftant from land. Nat. Hift. of Carolina, pref. p. 7. Hift. Naturelle de M. Buffon, tom. xvi, p. 32. From which it appears, that this indication of land, on which Columbus feems to have relied with fome confidence, was extremely uncertain. This obfervation is confirmed by Captain Cook, the moft extensive and experienced navigator of any age or nation."No one yet knows (fays he) to what diftance any of the oceanic birds go to fea; for my own part, I do not believe that there is one in the whole tribe that can be relied on in pointing out the vicinity of land." Voyage towards the South Pole, vel, i P. 275.

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Upon the first of October they were, according to the admiral's reckoning, feven hundred and feventy leagues to the weft of the Canaries; but left his men fhould be intimidated by the prodigious length of navigation, he gave out that they had proceeded only five hundred and eighty-four leagues; and, fortunately for Columbus, neither his own pilot, nor those of the other fhips, had fkill fufficient to correct this error, and difcover the deceit. They had now been above three weeks at fea; they had proceeded far beyond what former navigators had attempted or deemed poffible; all their prognoftics of discovery, drawn from the flight of birds and other circumftances, had proved fallacious; the appearances of land, with which their own credulity or the artifice of their commander had from time to time flattered and amused them, had been altogether illufive, and their profpect of fuccefs feemed now to be as diftant as ever. Thefe reflections occurred often to men, who had no other object or occupation, than to reafon and difcourfe concerning the intention and circumftances of their expedition. They made impreffion, at firft, upon the ignorant and timid, and extending, by degrees, to fuch as were better informed or more refolute, the contagion spread at length from fhip to fhip. From fecret whispers or murmurings, they proceeded to open cabals and public complaints. They taxed their fovereign with inconfiderate credulity, in paying fuch regard to the vain promifes and rafh conjectures of an indigent foreigner, as to hazard the lives of fo many of her own fubjects, in profecuting a chimerical fcheme. They affirmed that they had fully performed their duty, by venturing fo far in an unknown and hopeless course, and could incur no blame, for refufing to follow, any longer, a defperate adventurer to certain deftruction. They contended, that it was neceffary to think of returning to Spain, while their crazy veffels were ftill in a condition to keep the fea, but expreffed their fears that the attempt would. prove vain, as the wind, which had hitherto been fo favourable to their courfe, muft render it impoffible to fail in the oppofite direction. All agreed that Columbus fhould be compelled by force to adopt a measure on which their common fafety depended. Some of the more audacious propofed, as the most expeditious and certain method for getting rid atonce of his remonftrances, to throw him into the fea, being perfuaded. that, upon their return to Spain, the death of an unfuccefsful projector would excite little concern, and be inquired into with no curiofity. Columbus was fully fenfible of his perilous fituation. He had obferved, great uneafinefs, the fatal operation of ignorance and of fear in producing difaffection among his crew, and faw that it was now ready.

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to burst out into open mutiny. He retained, however, perfect prefence of mind. He affected to seem ignorant of their machinations. Notwithstanding the agitation and folicitude of his own mind, he appeared with a cheerful countenance, like a man fatisfied with the progress which he had made, and confident of fuccefs, Sometimes he employed all the arts of infinuation to foothe his men. Sometimes he endeavoured to work upon their ambition or avarice, by magnificent defcriptions of the fame and wealth which they were about to acquire. On other oc cafions, he affumed a tone of authority, and threatened them with vengeance from their fovereign, if, by their daftardly behaviour, they fhould defeat this noble effort to promote the glory of God, and to exalt the Spanish name above that of every other nation. Even with feditious failors, the words of a man whom they had been accustomed to reverence, were weighty and perfuafive, and not only reftrained them from thofe violent exceffes, which they meditated, but prevailed with them to accompany their admiral for fome time longer.

As they proceeded, the indications of approaching land feemed to be more certain, and excited hope in proportion. The birds began to appear in flocks, making towards the fouth-weft. Columbus, in imitation of the Portuguese navigators, who had been guided, in feveral of their difcoveries, by the motion of birds, altered his courfe from due weft towards that quarter whither they pointed their flight. But, after holding on for feveral days in this new direction, without any better success than formerly, having feen no object, during thirty days, but the sea and the fky, the hopes of his companions fubfided fafter than they had rifen; their fears revived with additional force; impatience, rage, and despair, appeared in every countenance. All fenfe of fubordination was loft: the officers, who had hitherto concurred with Columbus in opinion, and fupported his authority, now took part with the private men; they affembled tumultuously on the deck, expoftulated with their commander, mingled threats with their expoftulations, and required him inftantly to tack about and to return to Europe. Columbus perceived that it would be of no avail to have recourfe to any of his former arts, which having been tried fo often, had loft their effect; and that it was impoffible to rekindle any zeal for the fuccefs of the expedition among men, in whose breafts fear had extinguished every generous fentiment. He faw that it was no lefs vain to think of employing either gentle or fevere measures, to quell a mutiny fo general and fo violent. It was neceffary, on all thefe accounts, to foothe paffions which he could no longer command, and to give way to a torrent too impetuous to be checked. He pro

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mifed folemnly to his men that he would comply with their request, provided they would accompany him, and obey his commands for three days longer, and if, 'during that time, land were not difcovered, he would then abandon the enterprife, and direct his courfe towards Spain. Enraged as the failors were, and impatient to turn their faces again. towards their native country, this propofition did not appear to them unreasonable. Nor did Columbus hazard much in confining himself to a term fo fhort. The prefages of discovering land were now fo numerous and promifing, that he deemed them infallible. For fome days the founding line reached the bottom, and the foil which it brought up indicated land to be at no great distance. The flocks of birds increased, and were compofed not only of fea fowl, but of fuch land birds as could not be fuppofed to fly far from the fhore. The crew of the Pinta obferved a cane floating, which feemed to have been newly cut, and likewife a piece of timber artificially carved. The failors aboard the Nigna took up the branch of a tree with red berries, perfectly fresh. The clouds around the fetting fun affumed a new appearance; the air was more mild and warm, and, during night, the wind became unequal and variable. From all these fymptoms, Columbus was fo confident of being near land, that on the evening of the eleventh of October, after public prayers for fuccefs, he ordered the fails to be furled, and the fhips to lie to, keeping ftrict watch, left they fhould be driven afhore in the night. During this interval of fufpence and expectation, no man fhut his eyes, all kept upon deck, gazing intently towards that quarter where they expected to discover the land, which had been fo long the object of their wishes,

About two hours before midnight, Columbus ftanding on the forecaftle, obferved a light at a distance, and privately pointed it out to Pedro Guttierez, a page of the queen's wardrobe. Guttierez perceived it, and calling to Salcedo, comptroller of the fleet, all three faw it in motion, as if it were carried from place to place. A little after midnight, the joyful found of land, land, was heard from the Pinta, which kept always ahead of the other fhips. But, having been fo often deceived by fallacious appearances, every man was now become flow of belief, and waited, in all the anguifh of uncertainty and impatience, for the return of day. As foon as morning dawned, Friday, October 12, all doubts and fears were difpelled. From every fhip an island was feen about two leagues to the north, whofe flat and verdant fields, well ftored with wood, and watered with many rivulets, prefented the afpect of a delightful country. The crew of the Pinta inftantly began the Te Deum, as a hymn of thanksgiving to God, and were joined by thofe

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