Civilizations

by Laurent Binet

  Monday 5 November

  At dawn, I ordered the ship to be careened, and afterwards the other vessels, but not all at the same time so that for reasons of safety there would always be two in anchorage. Although it must be said that these people are very dependable, and we could without fear have careened all the boats at the same time.

  Monday 12 November

  Yesterday, a boat with six young men inside came alongside the ship; five of them came on board. I ordered them to be held and I am bringing them with me. Afterwards, I sent some men to a house on the western bank of the river. They brought me back six women, some young and some old, and three children. I did this because the men will behave better in Spain if they have women from their own land.

  That night, a man came aboard. He was the husband of one of the women and the father of the three children: one boy and two girls. He asked me to let him come with them. This gave me great pleasure. Now they all seem relieved, which makes me conclude that they must all indeed be related. The man is forty or forty-five years old.

  Friday 16 November

  The Indians I brought with me fished some very large shells from the sea. So I told my men to examine the shells that the Indians had fished to see if there was any mother-of-pearl, which is in the shells where pearls grow. They found a great deal, but no pearls.

  Saturday 17 November

  The two eldest of the six boys I took from the river of seas, who were on the caravel Nina, have escaped.

  Sunday 18 November

  I have been out again with the rowing boats, taking many men with me, to plant the great cross that I ordered to be built from two large trunks and set in a visible spot cleared of trees. It was planted high up and looked beautiful.

  Tuesday 20 November

  I do not want the Indians that I took from Guanahani to escape, because I need to take these men with me to Castile. They are convinced that, once I have found gold, I will let them return home.

  Wednesday 21 November

  This day, Martín Alonso Pinzón set off with the caravel Pinta, in defiance of my orders and against my wishes, out of avarice, because he believed that an Indian I had sent aboard his caravel could show him where there was much gold. So it was that he left us, not because of bad weather, but because he so chose.

  He has betrayed and insulted me too many times.

  Friday 23 November

  I sailed all day towards land, steering south with little wind. Beyond this headland there stretched out another land where, the Indians said, live people with one eye in the middle of their foreheads and others who are cannibals, and of whom they are much afraid.

  Sunday 25 November

  Before sunrise, I got into a boat and went to inspect a headland, because there appeared to be a good river there. Presently, near the point of the cape, at a distance of two crossbow shots, I saw a large stream of very clear water falling from the mountains above with a loud roar. I went to this stream and saw some stones shining in it, spangled with gold-coloured patches. I remembered then that at the mouth of the river Tagus, close to the sea, there was gold to be found, and it seemed certain to me that there must be gold here too. I ordered some of these stones to be collected, so that I might bring them to Your Highnesses. Looking up towards the mountains, I saw pine trees of such size and splendour that it would be impossible to exaggerate their height, like vast, slender spindles. It occurred to me that here was material for an endless store of planks and masts for the largest ships in Spain. I saw oaks and strawberry trees, and a good river, and a place for a water-powered sawmill.

  On the beach, I saw many iron-coloured stones and others that some said came from silver mines, all brought down by the river.

  No man who has not seen these things for himself will be able to believe what I have witnessed here, and yet I can assure Your Highnesses that I am not exaggerating in the slightest.

  I kept sailing along the coast, to get a good view of it all. This whole land is covered in very high and very beautiful mountains, neither arid nor rocky, but easily accessible and with magnificent valleys. Like the mountains, the valleys are filled with tall and fine trees that it is a joy to behold.

  Tuesday 27 November

  From the south side, I saw a very remarkable port that the Indians call Baracoa, and from the south-east some marvellously beautiful lands, like a valley among the mountains. I saw much smoke rising, large villages and cultivated fields. For these reasons, I decided to put in at this port and to see if we could speak with the inhabitants. As soon as the ship was at anchor, I jumped into a boat to take soundings in the port and found the mouth of a river wide enough for a galley to enter it. As we navigated this river, the beauty of the trees and the coolness of the air, the clearness of the water, the birds made it all so delightful that I never wanted to leave.

  Your Highnesses will send orders to build a city and fortress here, and the natives will be converted.

  Here, as in all the places that I have discovered and that I hope to discover before my return to Castile, I say that if Christendom will find profit, how much more will Spain, to whom the whole country should be subject?

  Wednesday 28 November

  I decided to stay in the port because it was raining and overcast. The crew went to visit the land, and some of them walked inland to wash their clothes. They found large villages, but the houses were empty because the inhabitants had fled. They returned by the banks of another river, but one of the ship’s boys was missing. Nobody knew what had happened to him. Perhaps he was taken by a crocodile or a lizard of the kind that populate the island.

  Thursday 29 November

  As it was still raining and overcast, I did not leave the port.

  Friday 30 November

  We cannot leave because the wind, blowing from the east, is against us.

  Saturday 1 December

  It is raining a lot and the east wind is still blowing.

  I ordered that a cross be planted at the entrance to the port, on some bare rocks.

  Sunday 2 December

  The wind is still against us and we cannot leave. At the mouth of the river, a ship’s boy found some stones that appear to contain gold.

  Monday 3 December

  As the weather was still foul, I decided to visit a very beautiful headland. I went with the boats and some armed men. I entered a river and found a small cove with five very large boats, which the Indians call canoas. We gained a foothold under some trees and followed a path that led to a very well-built boathouse. Within it there was another canoa, made from a single tree trunk like the others, and as large as a galley with seventeen benches. There was a forge to extract iron from peat, and next to it some baskets containing arrowheads and fishhooks.

  We climbed a mountain with a flat top, where we found a village. As soon as they saw us, the inhabitants started to run away. I saw that they had no gold or any other precious things, so I resolved to leave them in peace.

  But when we returned to the place where we had left the boats, we were unpleasantly surprised to discover that they were not there, and nor were the canoas. I was astonished by this because the people of this region had never showed such temerity. On the contrary, they were so fearful and cowardly that they almost always fled when they saw us arriving, and when they did let us approach, they always willingly gave us their belongings in return for a few little bells. It had seemed to me that they did not understand the concept of property and thus that they were incapable of stealing, since whenever you ask them for something of theirs, they never refuse it.

  However, some Indians appeared. They were all painted red, and naked as the day they were born. Some of them had tufts of feathers on their head and all held bundles of darts. They remained at a distance, but from time to time they raised their hands to the sky and shouted. With signs, I asked them if they were praying. They said they were not. I told them that they had to give us back our boats. The Indians seemed not to understand. I asked them where their canoas
were, hoping that we could take them to leave the river and return to the ship.

  So it was that something strange happened. A whinnying sound suddenly arose and the Indians fled.

  I sent four men to find the rest of the crew by land, to warn them of this mishap. But for my part, I resolved to walk, with the men who remained in my company, in the direction of the whinnying noise.

  We came out into a clearing that I took for a cemetery because it was strewn with standing stones, carved with inscriptions in an unknown alphabet, the letters composed of lines like little sticks, some of them straight and others leaning.

  As it was getting dark, I ordered my men to set up camp, because it would have been too dangerous to find our way back on land in darkness, particularly since – having come by boat – we had no horses. I also judged it prudent not to light a fire. And so we went to sleep, my men and I, amid those gravestones, without any fear of the cold since the ground was more temperate than ever.

  All through the night, we listened to the strident sound of whinnying.

  Tuesday 4 December

  When the sky lightened, I planted a cross in the middle of some stones. The cross was made of a soft wood, like elm. My men wanted to dig under the gravestones to see if there was any gold, but I thought it wiser to return immediately to the ship.

  I walked along the riverbank with my men but the path was steep and in certain places we had to wade waist-deep in the water to avoid becoming tangled in the dense vegetation. Red-headed vultures flew above us. The whinnying continued behind us, irritating my men because it reminded us that we were deprived of our horses at a moment when they would have been very useful. I tried to distract them by pointing out pebbles that gleamed in the water and telling them that there was certainly gold in this river, something I am almost convinced is true. I promised myself that I would return in order to verify this for Your Highnesses.

  But as we were struggling onwards, an arrow hit one of our men, who was killed instantly. This caused panic in our ranks and I had to use my authority to restore calm. I warn you there is no man so vile as a coward who never risks his life face to face, and you know that if the Indians find one or two isolated men, it will not be surprising if they kill them. The arrow had an iron head. After that, we were on our guard. I ordered each man to wear his helmet and to personally check that the laces of his breastplate were tightly tied.

  Wednesday 5 December

  As I did not wish to take any risks, we advanced carefully, clearing a path through what the natives here call mangrove, after a sort of tree that grows in the water. (Or at least that is what I was told by an Indian whom I took from the island of Guanahani, and to whom we are teaching Castilian so that he may serve us as a spokesman, since it appears that everyone here speaks and understands the same language.) Our progress was slow because of the river mud, but we did not suffer any further incidents. At one point, we saw the body of a man dressed like a Christian floating along the river. We couldn’t reach the corpse, so we had no choice but to let it continue to drift with the current.

  Tomorrow, by the grace of the Lord who watches over us constantly, we will reach the port where we left the ship, the Nina and the rest of the crew.

  Nevertheless, the whinnying continues.

  Thursday 6 December

  We set off before daybreak because the men were nervous and impatient. When we arrived on the beach, all was calm: a light breeze was blowing in the gulf; in the sky, the red-headed vultures were circling; the whinnying had ceased.

  The ship was still at anchor, but the Nina was no longer there.

  We could see a one-man canoa moving around on the water, and it was wondrous that this single man was able to stay afloat because the wind was blowing quite strongly now. We called out to him but he refused to come closer, and we had no means of reaching him without our boats. I sent two men to swim out to the ship. But they were not even one-third of the way there when some boats were dropped into the water to come towards us, and these were the very boats that had been taken from us. We saw Indians aboard, and they struck me as more alert and worldly than any of the others we had encountered up to that time. Using signs, they offered to row us to our vessel. I got in one of the boats with my men. These Indians had iron-bladed axes.

  Back at the ship, I was received by an Indian whom the others called cacique and whom I take to be the governor of this province, given the respect that his people show him despite the fact that they are all entirely naked. A strange thing: I found no trace of my crew. The cacique invited me to dine with him in the poop deck. When I was seated at the table where I usually eat, he made a sign with his hand for his men to remain outside, and this they did with the greatest haste and the most humble marks of obedience. They all went to sit on the deck, with the exception of two older men, whom I took to be his counsellors, who sat at his feet. I was served food of their making, as if I were their guest on my own ship.

  The situation was extremely odd, but I did not let my feelings show, as I was naturally concerned to represent Your Highnesses with dignity. To honour my host, I tasted each dish, and drank some of the wine that they had taken from my reserves. I tried to find out where the rest of my crew was and why the Nina had gone back to sea. The cacique did not speak much, but his counsellors assured me that tomorrow they would take me to the caravel. At least, that is what I gathered, since unfortunately we still did not understand their language. I also asked if they knew any places where we might find gold, because I do not think they collect a great deal of that metal here, even though I know there is a vast amount of gold in their neighbouring territories. He spoke to me of a great king named Cahonaboa who lives on a nearby island that I think must be Cipango.

  I noticed that he seemed taken by a hanging that I had on my bed, so I gave it to him, along with a very beautiful amber necklace that I was wearing, a pair of red shoes and a phial of orange blossom water. He was so pleased by these gifts that it was wondrous to behold. He and his counsellors found it very frustrating that they could not understand me and I could not understand them. Despite these difficulties, I knew that they were telling me that tomorrow I would be taken back to my men and my boat.

  ‘What great lords Your Highnesses must be,’ he said to his counsellors, ‘to have sent me so far without fear.’ They said many other things that I could not understand, but I could see that they were always smiling.

  Late that night, he retired with his people, taking with him the gifts I had offered, and left me to sleep in my bed.

  Friday 7 December

  Our Lord, who is the light and the strength of all those on the path of righteousness, has decided to test His and Your Highnesses’ most faithful servant.

  At daybreak, the Indian returned, in the company of seventy men. With many signs and demonstrations, he offered to lead me to the Nina. As he was pointing towards the east, I set sail and, with my reduced crew, navigated along the coast in that direction, escorted by canoas. The Indians on board the ship observed us without a word, but I could tell that they were admiring the way we were steering a ship bigger than any they had ever seen before, despite our insufficient numbers. They did not yet know that this vessel was capable of travelling further in a single day than they could in a whole week. For my part, I was at that moment far from doubting their duplicity.

  The cacique led us to a village by the sea, sixteen miles distant, where, finding good anchorage, I dropped anchor in front of the adjacent beach. There stood the Nina, which had been dragged on to land, to the puzzlement of myself and my men. But when we wished to disembark on the beach to visit the caravel, the cacique and his men absolutely refused to leave the ship. Unwilling to waste any more time in pointless discussions, I chose to leave three men on board to ensure that the Indians did not steal or damage anything.

  As soon as we reached the beach, we were joined by five hundred naked, painted men, armed with axes and lances. These Indians did not seem to act like the others, who were d
riven by curiosity and happy to exchange their belongings for little trinkets. On the contrary, they quickly surrounded us with as much order and efficiency as a regiment of landsknechts. Our backs were to the sea, the way to the ship blocked by canoas, and the ship itself in the hands of the cacique and his men, whom we had left on board.

  Other Indians appeared, riding bareback on small horses and armed with lances, escorting a king whose horse wore a gold caparison. The animal was so proudly dressed that it was impossible to doubt the quality of its rider.

  This king, who possesses a gravitas that years of experience have added to his natural authority, is named Béhéchio. He claims to be related to the great king Cahonaboa, about whom everyone here speaks. (I suppose Cahonaboa is the Great Khan.)

  Not wishing to show any fear or weakness, even though at that instant our situation did not seem to me ideal, I strode forward and, addressing the king, told him in the most solemn terms that I had been sent by the monarchs of the most powerful kingdom on earth, on the other side of the ocean, to whom he must pledge allegiance, in return for which he would benefit from their protection and indulgence. But I think that the Indian who accompanied me as a spokesman told him how the Christians had come from the sky and that they were searching for gold, because this was the speech that he gave to everyone we met, unable as he was to depart from this belief, which, for that matter, had served us well up to this point.

  Then I asked where my men were. At a signal from the king, the men of my crew (although I could see that some were missing) and those of the Nina were brought forward, all of them in a lamentable state. I showed my indignation at the visible mistreatment of good Christian men and threatened Béhéchio with the most terrible reprisals, assuring him that my masters would never tolerate such an affront. I do not know what the king understood, but he responded by raising his voice. If I am to believe my spokesman, he reproached the Christians for having abducted several Indians against their will, having torn them from their families, and having raped their women.