CHAPTER XVII.
"Whither, 'midst falling dew, While glow the heavens with the last steps of day, Far, through their rosy depths, dost thou pursue Thy solitary way?"
Bryant.
The slumbers of Columbus were of short duration. While his sleep lastedit was profound, like that of a man who has so much control over hiswill as to have reduced the animal functions to its domination, for heawoke regularly at short intervals, in order that his watchful eye mighttake a survey of the state of the weather, and of the condition of hisvessels. On this occasion, the admiral was on deck again, a little afterone, where he found all things seemingly in that quiet and inspiringcalm that ordinarily marks, in fine weather, a middle watch at sea. Themen on deck mostly slumbered; the drowsy pilot, and the steersman, witha look-out or two, alone remaining erect and awake. The wind hadfreshened, and the caravel was ploughing her way ahead, with an untiringindustry, leaving Ferro and its dangers, at each instant, more and moreremote. The only noises that were audible, were the gentle sighing ofthe wind among the cordage, the wash of the water, and the occasionalcreaking of a yard, as the breeze forced it, with a firmer pressure, todistend its tackle and to strain its fittings.
The night was dark, and it required a moment to accustom the eye toobjects by a light so feeble: when this was done, however, the admiraldiscovered that the ship was not close by the wind, as he had orderedthat she should be kept. Walking to the helm, he perceived that it wasso far borne up, as to cause her head to fall off toward the north-east,which was, in fact, in the direction to Spain.
"Art thou a seaman, and disregardest thy course, in this heedlessmanner?" sternly demanded the admiral; "or art thou only a muleteer, whofancieth he is merely winding his way along a path of the mountains. Thyheart is in Spain, and thou thinkest that a vain wish to return may meetwith some relief in this idle artifice!"
"Alas, Senor Almirante! your Excellency hath judged rightly in believingthat my heart is in Spain, where it ought to be, moreover, as I haveleft behind me at Moguer seven motherless children."
"Dost thou not know, fellow, that I, too, am a father, and that thedearest objects of a father's hopes are left behind me, also? In what,then, dost thou differ from me, my son being also without a mother'scare?"
"Excellency, he hath an admiral for a father, while my boys have only ahelmsman!"
"And what will it matter to Don Diego"--Columbus was fond of dwelling onthe honors he had received from the sovereigns, even though it were alittle irregularly--"what will it matter to Don Diego, my son, that hisparent perished an admiral, if he perish at all; and in what will heprofit more than your children, when he findeth himself altogetherwithout a parent?"
"Senor, it will profit him to be cherished by the king and queen, to behonored as your child, and to be fostered and fed as the offspring of aviceroy, instead of being cast aside as the issue of a namelessmariner."
"Friend, thou hast some reason in this, and in-so-much I respect thyfeelings," answered Columbus, who, like our own Washington, appears tohave always submitted to a lofty and pure sense of justice; "but thouwouldst do well to remember the influence that thy manly and successfulperseverance in this voyage may produce on the welfare of thy children,instead of thus dwelling on weak forebodings of ills that are littlelikely to come to pass. Neither of us hath much to expect, should wefail of our discoveries, while both may hope every thing should wesucceed. Can I trust thee now, to keep the ship on her course, or must Isend for another mariner to relieve the helm?"
"It may be better, noble admiral, to do the last. I will bethink me ofthy counsel, and strive with my longings for home; but it would be saferto seek another for this day, while we are so near to Spain."
"Dost thou know one Sancho Mundo, a common seaman of this crew?"
"Senor, we all know him; he hath the name of the most skilful of ourcraft, of all in Moguer."
"Is he of thy watch, or sleepeth he with his fellows of the reliefbelow?"
"Senor, he is of our watch; and sleepeth not with his fellows below, forthe reason that he sleepeth on deck. No care, or danger, can unsettlethe confidence of Sancho! To him the sight of land is so far an evil,that I doubt if he rejoice should we ever reach those distant countriesthat your Excellency seemeth to expect we may."
"Go find this Sancho, and bid him come hither; I will discharge thyoffice the while."
Columbus now took the helm with his own hands, and with a light play ofthe tiller brought the ship immediately up as near the wind as she wouldlie. The effect was felt in more quick and sudden plunges into the sea,a deeper heel to leeward, and a fresh creaking aloft, that denoted arenewed and increased strain on all the spars and their tackle. In thecourse of a few minutes, however, Sancho appeared, rubbing his eyes, andyawning.
"Take thou this duty," said the admiral, as soon as the man was nearhim, "and discharge it faithfully. Those who have been here already,have proved unfaithful, suffering the vessel to fall off, in thedirection of Spain; I expect better things of thee. I think, friendSancho, I may count on thee as a true and faithful follower, even inextremity?"
"Senor Don Almirante," said Sancho, who took the helm, giving it alittle play to feel his command of it, as a skilful coachman brings histeam in subjection on first assuming the reins, "I am a servant of thecrown's, and your inferior and subordinate; such duty as becometh me, Iam ready to discharge."
"Thou hast no fear of this voyage--no childish forebodings of becomingan endless wanderer in an unknown sea, without hope of ever seeing wifeor child again?"
"Senor, you seem to know our hearts as well as if your Excellency hadmade them with your own hands, and then put them into our miserablebodies!"
"Thou hast, then, none of these unsuitable and unseamanlikeapprehensions?"
"Not as much, Excellency, as would raise an ave in a parish priest, or asigh in an old woman. I may have my misgivings, for we all haveweaknesses, but none of them incline to any dread of sailing about theocean, since that is my happiness; nor to any concern about wife andchildren, not having the first, and wishing not to think I have thelast."
"If thou hast misgivings, name them. I could wish to make one firm asthou, wholly my friend."
"I doubt not, Senor, that we shall reach Cathay, or whatever countryyour Excellency may choose to seek; I make no question of your abilityto beard the Great Khan, and, at need, to strip the very jewels from histurban--as turban he must have, being an Infidel; nor do I feel anymisgivings about the magnitude and richness of our discoveries andfreights, since I believe, Senor Don Almirante, you are skilful enoughto take the caravels in at one end of the earth and out at the other;or, even to load them with carbuncles, should diamonds be wanting."
"If thou hast this faith in thy leader, what other distrust can givethee concern?"
"I distrust the value of the share, whether of honor or of jewels, thatwill fall to the lot of one Sancho Mundo, a poor, unknown, almostshirtless mariner, that hath more need of both than hath ever crossedthe mind of our gracious lady, Dona Isabella, or of her royal consort."
"Sancho, thou art a proof that no man is without his failings, and Ifear thou art mercenary. They say all men have their prices; thouseemest clearly to have thine."
"Your Excellency hath not been sailing about the world for nothing, oryou could not tell every man his inclinations so easily. I have eversuspected I was mercenary, and so have accepted all sorts of presents tokeep the feeling down. Nothing appeases a mercenary longing like giftsand rewards; and as for price, I strive hard to keep mine as high aspossible, lest it should bring me into discredit for a mean andgrovelling spirit. Give me a high price, and plenty of gifts, and I canbe as disinterested as a mendicant friar."
"I understand thee, Sancho; thou art to be bought, but not to befrightened. In thy opinion a single dobla is too little to be dividedbetween thee and thy friend, the Portuguese. I will make a league withthee on thine own terms; here is another piece of gold; see that thouremainest true to me thr
oughout the voyage."
"Count on me, without scruple, Senor Don Almirante, and with scruples,too, should they interfere. Your Excellency hath not a moredisinterested friend in the fleet. I only hope that when the share-listshall be written out, the name of Sancho Mundo may have an honorableplace, as will become his fidelity. And now, your Excellency, go sleepin peace; the Santa Maria shall lie as near to the route to Cathay, asthis south-westerly breeze will suffer."
Columbus complied, though he rose once or twice more, during the night,to ascertain the state of the weather, and that the men did theirduties. So long as Sancho remained at the helm, he continued faithful tohis compact; but, as he went below with his watch, at the usual hour,successors were put in his place, who betrayed the original treachery ofthe other helmsman. When Luis left his hammock, Columbus was already atwork, ascertaining the distance that had been run in the course of thenight. Catching the inquiring glance of the young man, the admiralobserved, gravely, and not altogether without melancholy in his manner--
"We have had a good run, though it hath been more northerly than I couldhave desired. I find that the vessels are thirty leagues further fromFerro than when the sun set, and thou seest, here, that I have writtenfour-and-twenty in the reckoning, that is intended for the eyes of thepeople. But there hath been great weakness at work this night among thesteersmen, if not treachery: they have kept the ship away in a manner tocause her to run a part of the time in a direction nearly parallel tothe coast of Europe, so that they have been endeavoring to deceive me,on the deck, while I have thought it necessary to attempt deceiving themin the cabin. It is painful, Don Luis, to find such deceptions resortedto, or such deceptions necessary, when one is engaged in an enterprisethat surpasseth all others ever yet attempted by man, and that, too,with a view to the glory of God, the advantage of the human race, andthe especial interests of Spain."
"The holy churchmen, themselves, Don Christopher, are obliged to submitto this evil," answered the careless Luis; "and it does not become uslaymen to repine at what they endure. I am told that half the miraclesthey perform are, in truth, miracles of but a very indifferent quality;the doubts and want of faith of us hardened sinners rendering suchlittle inventions necessary for the good of our souls."
"That there are false-minded and treacherous churchmen, as well asfalse-minded and treacherous laymen, Luis, I little doubt," answered theadmiral; "but this cometh of the fall of man, and of his evil nature.There are also righteous and true miracles, that come of the power ofGod, and which are intended to uphold the faith, and to encourage thosewho love and honor his holy name. I do not esteem any thing that hathyet befallen us to belong very distinctly to this class; nor do Iventure to hope that we are to be favored in this manner by an especialintervention in our behalf; but it exceedeth all the machinations of thedevils to persuade me that we shall be deserted while bent on soglorious a design, or that we are not, indirectly and secretly, led, inour voyage, by a spirit and knowledge that both come of Divine grace andinfinite wisdom."
"This may be so, Don Christopher, so far as you are concerned; though,for myself, I claim no higher a guide than an angel. An angel's purity,and, I hope I may add, an angel's love, lead me, in my blind path acrossthe ocean!"
"So it seemeth to thee, Luis; but thou canst not know that a higherpower doth not use the Dona Mercedes as an instrument in this matter.Although no miracle rendereth it apparent to the vulgar, a spirit isplaced in my breast, in conducting this enterprise, that I should deemit blasphemy to resist. God be praised, my boy, we are at last quit ofthe Portuguese, and are fairly on our road! At present all our obstaclesmust arise from the elements, or from our own fears. It gladdeneth myheart to find that the two Pinzons remain true, and that they keep theircaravels close to the Santa Maria, like men bent on maintaining theirfaith, and seeing an end of the adventure."
As Luis was now ready, he and the admiral left the cabin together. Thesun had risen, and the broad expanse of the ocean was glittering withhis rays. The wind had freshened, and was gradually getting further tothe south, so that the vessels headed up nearly to their course; and,there being but little sea, the progress of the fleet was, inproportion, considerable. Every thing appeared propitious; and the firstburst of grief, on losing sight of known land, having subsided, thecrews were more tranquil, though dread of the future was smothered, likethe latent fires of a volcano, rather than extinguished. The aspect ofthe sea was favorable, offering nothing to view that was unusual tomariners; and, as there is always something grateful in a lively breeze,when unaccompanied with danger, the men were probably encouraged by astate of things to which they were accustomed, and which brought with itcheerfulness and hope. In the course of the day and night, the vesselsran a hundred and eighty miles still further into the trackless waste ofthe ocean, without awakening half the apprehensions in the bosoms of themariners that they had experienced on losing sight of land. Columbus,however, acting on the cautious principle he had adopted, when he laidbefore his people the result of the twenty-four hours' work, reduced thedistance to about one hundred and fifty.
Tuesday, the 10th of September, brought a still more favorable change ofwind. This day, for the first time since quitting the Canaries, theheads of the vessels were laid fairly to the west; and, with the oldworld directly behind them, and the unknown ocean in their front, theadventurers proceeded onward with a breeze at south-east. The rate ofsailing was about five miles in the hour; compensating for the want ofspeed, by the steadiness of their progress, and by the directness oftheir course.
The observations that are usually made at sea, when the sun is in thezenith, were over, and Columbus had just announced to his anxiouscompanions that the vessels were gradually setting south, owing to thedrift of some invisible current, when a cry from the mast-head announcedthe proximity of a whale. As the appearance of one of these monsters ofthe deep breaks the monotony of a sea life, every one was instantly onthe look-out, some leaping into the rigging and others upon the rails,in order to catch a glimpse of his gambols.
"Dost thou see him, Sancho?" demanded the admiral of Mundo, the latterbeing near him at the moment. "To me the water hath no appearance of anysuch animals being at hand."
"Your Excellency's eye, Senor Don Almirante, is far truer than that ofthe babbler's aloft. Sure as this is the Atlantic, and yonder is thefoam of the crests of the waves, there is no whale."
"The flukes!--the flukes!" shouted a dozen voices at once, pointing to aspot where a dark object arose above the froth of the sea, showing apointed summit, with short arms extended on each side. "He playeth withhis head beneath the water, and the tail uppermost!"
"Alas!--alas!" exclaimed the practised Sancho, with the melancholy of atrue seaman, "what these inexperienced and hasty brawlers call the flukeof a whale, is naught but the mast of some unhappy ship, that hath lefther bones, with her freight and her people, in the depths of the ocean!"
"Thou art right, Sancho," returned the admiral. "I now see that thoumeanest: it is truly a spar, and doubtless betokeneth a shipwreck."
This fact passed swiftly from mouth to mouth, and the sadness that everaccompanies the evidences of such a disaster, settled on the faces ofall the beholders. The pilots alone showed indifference, and theyconsulted on the expediency of endeavoring to secure the spar, as aresource in time of need; but they abandoned the attempt on acccount ofthe agitation of the water, and of the fairness of the wind, the latterbeing an advantage a true mariner seldom likes to lose.
"There is a warning to us!" exclaimed one of the disaffected, as theSanta Maria sailed past the waving summit of the spar; "God hath sentthis sign to warn us not to venture where he never intended navigatorsto go!"
"Say, rather," put in Sancho, who, having taken the fee, had ever sinceproved a willing advocate, "it is an omen of encouragement sent fromheaven. Dost thou not see that the part of the mast that is visibleresembleth a cross, which holy sign is intended to lead us on, filledwith hopes of success?"
"This is true, Sanc
ho," interrupted Columbus. "A cross hath been rearedfor our edification, as it might be, in the midst of the ocean, and weare to regard it as a proof that Providence is with us, in our attemptto carry its blessings to the aid and consolation of the heathen ofAsia."
As the resemblance to the holy symbol was far from fanciful, this happyhit of Sancho's was not without its effect. The reader will understandthe likeness all the better, when he is told that the upper end of amast has much the appearance of a cross, by means of the trussel-trees;and, as often happens, this particular spar was floating nearlyperpendicular, owing to some heavy object being fast to its heel,leaving the summit raised some fifteen or twenty feet above the surfaceof the sea. In a quarter of an hour this last relic of Europe and ofcivilization disappeared in the wake of the vessels, graduallydiminishing in size and settling toward the water, until its faintoutlines vanished in threads, still wearing the well-known shape of therevered symbol of Christianity.
After this little incident, the progress of the vessels wasuninterrupted by any event worthy of notice for two days and nights. Allthis time the wind was favorable, and the adventurers proceeded duewest, by compass, which was, in fact, however, going a little north ofthe real point--a truth that the knowledge of the period had not yetmastered. Between the morning of the 10th September, and the evening ofthe 13th, the fleet had passed over near ninety leagues of ocean,holding its way in a line but a little deviating from a direct oneathwart the great waste of water, and having consequently reached apoint as far, if not further west than the position of the Azores, thenthe most westerly land known to European navigators. On the 13th, thecurrents proved to be adverse, and, having a south-easterly set, theyhad a tendency to cause the ships to sheer southwardly, bringing them,each hour, nearer to the northern margin of the trades.
The admiral and Luis were at their customary post, on the evening of the13th--the day last mentioned--as Sancho left the helm, his tour of dutyhaving just ended. Instead of going forward, as usual, among the people,the fellow hesitated, surveyed the poop with a longing eye, and, findingit occupied only by the admiral and his constant companion, he ascendedthe ladder, as if desirous of making some communication.
"Wouldst thou aught with me, Sancho?" demanded the admiral, waiting forthe man to make certain that no one else was on the narrow deck. "Speakfreely: thou hast my confidence."
"Senor Don Almirante, your Excellency well knoweth that I am nofresh-water fish, to be frightened at the sight of a shark or a whale,or one that is terrified because a ship headeth west, instead of east;and yet I do come to say that this voyage is not altogether withoutcertain signs and marvels, that it may be well for a mariner to respect,as unusual, if not ominous."
"As thou sayest, Sancho, thou art no driveller to be terrified by theflight of a bird, or at the presage of a drifting spar, and thouawakenest my curiosity to know more. The Senor de Munos is myconfidential secretary, and nothing need be hid from him. Speak freely,then, and without further delay. If gold is thy aim, be certain thoushalt have it."
"No, Senor, my news is not worth a maravedi, or it is far beyond theprice of gold; such as it is, your Excellency can take it, and think nomore of my reward. You know, Senor, that we old mariners will have ourthoughts as we stand at the helm, sometimes fancying the smiles and goodlooks of some hussy ashore, sometimes remembering the flavor of richfruits and well-savored mutton; and then, again, for a wonder,bethinking us of our sins."
"Fellow, all this I well know; but it is not matter for an admiral'sear."
"I know not that, Senor; I have known admirals who have relished muttonafter a long cruise; ay, and who have bethought them, too, of smilingfaces and bright eyes, and who, if they did not, at times, bethink themof their sins, have done what was much worse, help to add to the greataccount that was heaping up against them. Now, there was"--
"Let me toss this vagabond into the sea, at once, Don Christopher,"interrupted the impatient Luis, making a forward movement as if toexecute the threat, an act which the hand of Columbus arrested; "weshall never hear a tale the right end first, as long as he remaineth inthe ship."
"I thank you, my young Lord of Llera," answered Sancho, with an ironicalsmile; "if you are as ready at drowning seamen, as you are at unhorsingChristian knights in the tourney, and Infidels in the fray, I wouldrather that another should be master of my baths."
"Thou know'st me, knave? Thou hast seen me on some earlier voyage."
"A cat may look at a king, Senor Conde; and why not a mariner on hispassenger? But spare your threats, and your secret is in safe hands. Ifwe reach Cathay, no one will be ashamed of having made the voyage; andif we miss it, it is little likely that any will go back to relate theprecise manner in which your Excellency was drowned, or starved todeath, or in what other manner you became a saint in Abraham's bosom."
"Enough of this!" said Columbus, sternly; "relate what thou hast to say,and see that thou art discreet touching this young noble."
"Senor, your word is law. Well, Don Christopher, it is one of the tricksof us mariners, at night, to be watching an old and constant friend, thenorth star; and while thus occupied an hour since, I noted that thisfaithful guide and the compass by which I was steering, told differenttales."
"Art certain of this?" demanded the admiral, with a quickness andemphasis that betrayed the interest he felt in the communication.
"As certain, Senor, as fifty years' looking at the star, and fortyyears' watching of the compass can make a man. But there is no occasion,your Excellency, to depend on my ignorance, since the star is stillwhere God placed it; and there is your private compass at yourelbow--one may be compared with the other."
Columbus had already bethought him of making this comparison; and by thetime Sancho ceased speaking, he and Luis were examining the instrumentwith eager curiosity. The first, and the most natural, impression, was abelief that the needle of the instrument below was defective, or, atleast, influenced by some foreign cause; but an attentive observationsoon convinced the navigator that the remark of Sancho was true. He wasboth astonished and concerned to find that the habitual care, andprofessional eye of the fellow had been active, and quick to note achange as unusual as this. It was, indeed, so common with mariners tocompare their compasses with the north star--a luminary that wassupposed never to vary its position in the heavens, as that positionrelated to man--that no experienced seaman, who happened to be at thehelm at nightfall, could well overlook the phenomenon.
After repeated observations with his own compasses, of which he kepttwo--one on the poop, and another in the cabin; and having recourse alsoto the two instruments in the binnacle, Columbus was compelled to admitto himself that all four varied, alike, from their usual direction,nearly six degrees. Instead of pointing due north, or, at least, in adirect line toward a point on the horizon immediately beneath the star,they pointed some five or six degrees to the westward of it. This wasboth a novel and an astounding departure from the laws of nature, asthey were then understood, and threatened to render the desired resultsof the voyage so much the more difficult of attainment, as it at oncedeprived the adventurers of a sure reliance on the mariner's principalguide, and would render it difficult to sail, with any feeling ofcertainty as to the course, in cloudy weather, or dark nights. The firstthought of the admiral, on this occasion, however, was to prevent theeffect which such a discovery would be likely to produce on men alreadydisposed to anticipate the worst.
"Thou wilt say nothing of this, Sancho?" he observed to the man. "Hereis another dobla to add to thy store."
"Excellency, pardon a humble seaman's disobedience, if my hand refuse toopen to your gift. This matter toucheth of supernatural means; and, asthe devil may have an agency in the miracle, in order to prevent ourconverting them heathen, of whom you so often speak, I prefer to keep mysoul as pure as may be, in the matter, since no one knoweth what weaponswe may be driven to use, should we come to real blows with the Father ofSin."
"Thou wilt, at least, prove discreet?"
Columbus dismissed the man, and then he turned toward Luis, who had beena silent but attentive listener to what had passed.
"You seem disturbed at this departure from the usual laws of thecompass, Don Christopher," observed the young man, gaily. "To me itwould seem better to rely altogether on Providence, which would scarcelylead us out here, into the wide Atlantic, on its own errand, and desertus when we most need its aid."
"God implants in the bosom of his servants a desire to advance his ends,but human agents are compelled to employ natural means, and, in order touse such means advantageously, it is necessary to understand them. Ilook upon this phenomenon as a proof that our voyage is to result indiscoveries of unknown magnitude, among which, perhaps, are to benumbered some clue to the mysteries of the needle. The mineral riches ofSpain differ, in certain particulars, from the mineral riches of France;for, though some things are common to all lands, others are peculiar toparticular countries. We may find regions where the loadstone abounds,or may, even now, be in the neighborhood of some island that hath aninfluence on our compasses that we cannot explain."
"Is it known that islands have ever produced this effect on the needle?"
"It is not--nor do I deem such a circumstance very probable, though allthings are possible. We will wait patiently for further proofs that thisphenomenon is real and permanent, ere we reason further on a matter thatis so difficult to be understood."
The subject was now dropped, though the unusual incident gave the greatnavigator an uneasy and thoughtful night. He slept little, and often washis eye fastened on the compass that was suspended in his cabin as a"tell-tale," for so seamen term the instrument by which the officeroverlooks the course that is steered by the helmsman, even when thelatter least suspects his supervision. Columbus arose sufficiently earlyto get a view of the star before its brightness was dimmed by the returnof light, and made another deliberate comparison of the position of thisfamiliar heavenly body with the direction of the needles. Theexamination proved a slight increase of the variation, and tended tocorroborate the observations of the previous night. The result of thereckoning showed that the vessels had run nearly a hundred miles in thecourse of the last twenty-four hours, and Columbus now believed himselfto be about six times that distance west of Ferro, though even thepilots fancied themselves by no means as far.
As Sancho kept his secret, and no other eye among the helmsmen was asvigilant, the important circumstance, as yet, escaped general attention.It was only at night, indeed, that the variation could be observed bymeans of the polar star, and it was yet so slight that no one but a veryexperienced and quick-eyed mariner would be apt to note it. The whole ofthe day and night of the 14th consequently passed without the crew'staking the alarm, and this so much the more as the wind had fallen, andthe vessels were only some sixty miles further west than when theycommenced. Still, Columbus noted the difference, slight as was thechange, ascertaining, with the precision of an experienced and ablenavigator, that the needle was gradually varying more and more to thewestward, though it was by steps that were nearly imperceptible.
Mercedes of Castile; Or, The Voyage to Cathay Page 18