 CHAPTER XXV. It was but natural that the Portuguese, flushed with victory, should at once dispatch another expedition to India. Was there some vexation in the heart of the admiral of India, when the command of the new fleet was given to Pedro Cabral? History is silent. Anyhow, in the March of 1500, we find this gentleman of great merit, starting off with 13 powerfully armed ships, and some 1500 men, amongst them the veteran explorer Bartolom Udias, a party of eight Franciscan friars, to convert the Mohammedans, eight chaplains, skilled gunners, and merchants to buy and sell in the king's name at Calicut. The king himself accompanied Cabral to the waterside. He had already adopted the magnificent title, King, by the grace of God, of Portugal and of the Algarves, both on this side the sea and beyond it in Africa, Lord of Guinea and of the Conquest, navigation and commerce of Ethiopia, Arabia, Persia and India. Then Cabral, flying a banner with the royal arms of Portugal, started on a voyage which was to secure for Portugal an empire destined to be richer and greater than all her dominions in Asia. Sailing far to the west, he fell in with the South American continent, and was carried to a new land. The men went on shore and wrought word, that it was a fruitful country, full of trees and well inhabited. The people were swarthy and used bows and arrows. That night a storm arose, and they ran along the coast to seek a port. Here mass was set, and parrots exchanged for paper and clothes. Then Cabral erected a cross, which was still shown when Lindley visited Brazil three hundred years later, and named the country the land of the Holy Cross. This name was, however, discarded later when the newfound land was identified with Brazil, already sighted by Pinzón in one of the ships of Christopher Columbus. Meanwhile, unconscious of the importance of this discovery, Cabral sailed on towards the Cape of Good Hope. There in no time to tell of the great comet that appeared, heralding a terrific storm that suddenly burst upon the little fleet. In the darkness and tempest four ships went down, with all hands, amongst them old Bartomelum Udias, the discoverer of the Cape of Good Hope, who thus perished in the waters he had been the first to navigate. September found Cabral at last an anchor of Calicut. He found the king yet more resplendent than Vasco da Camas the year before. The old historians revel in their descriptions of him. On his head was a cap of cloth of gold, at his ears hung jewels composed of diamonds, sapphires and pearls, two of which were larger than walnuts. His arms from the elbow to the wrist and from the knees downwards were loaded with bracelets set with infinite precious stones of great value. His fingers and toes were covered with rings. In that on his great toe was a large ruby of a surprising lustre. Among the rest there was a diamond bigger than a large bean. But all this was nothing, in comparison to the richness of his girdle, made with precious stones set in gold, which cast a lustre that dazzled everybody's eyes. He allowed Cabral to establish a depot at Calicut for European goods, so a house was selected by the waterside, and a flag bearing the arms of Portugal erected on the top. For a time all went well, but the Mohammedans proved to be a difficult customer, and disputes soon arose. A riot took place. The infuriated native traders stormed the depot and killed the Portuguese with them. Cabral in revenge bombarded the city, and, leaving the wooden houses in flames, he sailed away to Cochin and Cananor, on the coast of Malabar. Soon after this he returned home, with only six out of the thirteen ships, and from this time he disappears from the pages of history. Just before his return, the king of Portugal, thinking trade was well established between India and his own country, dispatched a valiant gentleman in command of four ships to carry merchandise to the newly discovered country. But his voyage and adventures are only important in as much as he discovered the island of Ascension, when outward bound on the island of St Helena on the way home. So favorable was the account of this island, that all Portugal admirals were ordered for the future, to touch their four refreshments. The news of Cabral's adventures at Calicut inspired a yet larger expedition to the east, and Vasco da Gama, now admiral of the eastern seas, was given command of some fifteen ships, which sailed from the Tagus in February 1502. The expedition, though avowedly Christian, was characterized by injustice and cruelty. Near the coast of Malabar, the Portuguese fleet met with a large ship, full of Muhammed and pilgrims from Mecca. The wealth on board was known to be enormous, and on Vasco commanded the owners to yield up their riches to the king of Portugal. They somewhat naturally refused to do, whereupon the Portuguese fired, standing calmly to watch his blazing ships with their human freight of men, women and children. True, one historian declares, that all the children were removed to the Portuguese ship to be converted into good little Catholics. Another is more nearly concerned with the money. We took a Mecca ship on board of which were three hundred and eighty men and many women and children, and we took from it fully twelve thousand dukets, with goods worth at least another ten thousand, and we burned the ship and all the people on board with gunpowder on the first day of October. Their instructions to banish every Muhammedan in Calicut was facefully obeyed. Don Vasco seized and hanged a number of helpless merchants, quietly trading in the harbor. Moving off their heads, hands and feet, he had them flung into a boat, which was allowed to drift ashore with the cruel suggestion that the severe limbs would make an Indian curry. Once more Calicut was bombarded, and Don Vasco sailed on to other ports on the Malabar coast, where he loaded his ships with spices taken from poor folk who dared not refuse. He then sailed home again, reaching Portugal safe and sound, deogratius. But leaving behind him hatred and terror, and the very quaint idea of these Christians, who felt it their duty to exterminate all followers of Muhammed. Confust usually succeeds discovery, and the Portuguese, having discovered the entire coast of west, south, and a good deal of east Africa, and western coast of India, now proceeded to conquer it for their own. It was a far cry from Portugal to India in these days, and the isolated depots on the coast of Malabar were obviously in danger, when the foreign ships laden with spoil left their shores. True, Vasco da Gama had left six little ships, this time under Sodrez, to cruise about the Indian seas. But Sodrez wanted treasure, so he cruised northwards, and found the southern coast of Arabia, as well as the island of Sokotra. He had been warned of the tempestuous seas, that raged about these parts at certain seasons. But heeding not the warning, he perished with all his knowledge and treasure. Expedition after expedition now left Portugal, for the east coast of Africa and India. There were the two cousins, Albuquerque, who built a strong fort of wood and mud at Cochin, leaving a garrison of one hundred and fifty trained soldiers, and there's the command of one Pacheco, who saved the fort and kept things going under great difficulties. Under the return of Albuquerque, the hero of Cochin, the king decided to appoint a Viceroy of India. He would feign have appointed Tristan da Cunha, the discoverer of the island, that still veers his name, but he was suddenly struck with blindness, and in his stead Don Francisco Almeida, a nobleman of carriage and experience, sailed off with the title of Viceroy. Not only was he to conquer, but to command, not only to sustain the sea power of Portugal, but to form a government. There is a story told of the ignorance of the men, sent to man the ships under Almeida. So raw were they, that they hardly knew their right hand from their left, still less the difference between starboard and larboard, till their captain hit on the happy notion of tying a bundle of garlic, or one side of the ship, and a handful of onions, or the other. So the pilot gave orders to the helmsman's us, onion your helm, or garlic your helm. On the way out, Almeida built a strong fortress near Zanzibar, organized a regular Portuguese Indian pilot service, and established his seat of government at Cochin. Then he sent his son, a daring youth of eighteen, to bombard the city of Quilon, whose people were constantly intriguing against the Portuguese. Having carried out his orders, young Lorenzo, ordered to explore the Maldives islands, was driven by a storm, to an island opposite Cape Comorin, called Ceylon, and separated from thence by a narrow sea, where he was warmly received by the native king, whose dress sparkled with diamonds. Lorenzo erected here a marigold pillar, with the arms of Portugal carved thereon, and took possession of the island. He also sent back to Portugal, the first elephant ever seen thither. Ceylon was now the farthest point, which flew the flag of Portugal towards the east, doubtless young Lorenzo would have carried it farther, but he was killed at the early age of twenty-one, his legs being shattered by a cannonball during a sea fight. He sat by the main mast, and continued to direct the fighting, till a second shot ended his short but brilliant career. The Viceroy, whose whole being was centered in his devotion to his only son, received the tidings with outward stoicism. Regrets, he merely remarked, regrets are for women. Nevertheless, he avenged the death of his son, by winning a victory over the opposing fleet, and bidding his captains rejoice, over the good vengeance our lord has been pleased, of his mercy to grant us. But the days of Almeida were numbered. He had subdued the Indian coast. He had extended Portuguese possessions in various directions. His term of office was over, and he was succeeded by the famous Alpoa Querque, who had already distinguished himself in the service of Portugal, by his efforts to obtain Ormus for the Portuguese. Now Viceroy of India, he found full scope for his boundless energy and vast ambition. He first attacked Calicut, and reduced it to ashes. Then he turned his attention to Goa, which he conquered, and which became the commercial capital of the Portuguese in India for the next hundred years. Not only this, but it was soon the wealthiest city on the face of the earth, and the seat of the government. Albuquerque's next exploit was yet more brilliant, and yet more important. In 1509, he had sent a Portuguese explorer, Sekira, with a small squadron to make discoveries in the east. He was to cross the Bay of Bengal, and explore the coast of Malacca. Sekira reached the coast, and found it a center for trade from east and west, most rich and populous. But he had reason to suspect the demonstrations of friendship by the king of these parts, and refused to attend a festival prepared in his honor. This was fortunate, for some of his companions who landed for trade were killed. He sailed about the island of Sumatra, the first land in which we know of man's flesh being eaten by certain people in the mountains, who gilded their teeth. In their opinion the flesh of the blacks is sweeter than that of whites. Many were the strange tales, brought back to Cochin by Sekira from the new lands. Rivers of oil, hands with flesh as black as ink, people with tales like sheep. Anyhow, Albuquerque resolved that Malacca should belong to the Portuguese. On the night in ships, and 1400 fighting men, he arrived of the coast of Sumatra, spreading terror and dismay among the multitudes that covered the shore. The work of destruction was short, though the king of Pahan and King Mahomet came out in person on huge elephants to help in the defense of their city. At last every inhabitant of the city was driven out or slain, and the Portuguese plundered the city to their heart's content. The old historian backs his eloquent on the wealth of the city, and the laden ships started back, leaving a fort at the church under the care of Portuguese conquerors. The amount of booty mattered little, as a violent storm of the coast of Sumatra disposed of several ships, and a good deal of treasure. The fall of Malacca was one of vast importance to the Portuguese. Was it not the key to the eastern gate of the Indian Ocean, the gate through which the whole commerce of the Spice Islands, the Philippines, Japan, and Farkathi passed on its road to the Mediterranean? Was it not one of the largest trade markets in Asia, where rode the strange ships of many a distant shore? The fame of Albuquerque spread through the eastern world, but he was not content with Malacca. The Spice Islands lay beyond, the Spice Islands with all their clubs and nutmicks, and their counter stretches must yet be won for Portugal. Up to this year, 1511, they had not been reached by the Portuguese. But now, Francisco Serrano was sent off from Malacca to explore farther. Skirting the north of Java, he found island after island, rich in cloves and nutmeg. So struck was he with his new discoveries that he wrote to his friend Magellan. I have discovered yet another new world, larger and richer than that, found by Vasco de Gama. It's curious to remember how vastly important was this little group of islands, now part of the Malai archipelago and belonging to the Dutch, to the explorers of the 16th century. Strange tales as usual reached Portugal about these newly found lands. Here lived men with spores on their ankles like cocks, hogs with horns, hens that laid their eggs nine feet underground, a reverse with living fish, yet so hot that they took the skin of any man that bathed in their waters. The crabs, oysters with shells so large that they served as fonts for baptizing children. Truly these mysterious spice islands held more attractions for the Portuguese explorers than did the new world of Columbus and Vespucci. Their possession meant riches and wealth, and this was not the end. Was there not land beyond? Indeed, before the spice islands were conquered by Portugal, trade had already been opened up with China, and, before the century was half over, three Portuguese seamen had visited Japan. End of Chapter 25 Chapter 26 of A Book of Discovery This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. A Book of Discovery by M. B. Singh. Chapter 26 Balboa Sees the Pacific Ocean It is said that Ferdinand Magellan, the hero of all geographical discovery, with his circumnavigation of the whole round world, had cruised about the spice islands, but what he really knew of them from personal experience no one knows. He had served under Almeida and with Albuquerque had helped in the conquest of Malacca. After seven years of a vivid life of adventure by sea and land, a life of siege and shipwreck of war and wandering, inaction became impossible. He busied himself with charts and the art of navigation. He dreamed of reaching the spice islands by sailing west, and after a time he laid his schemes before the king of Portugal. Whether he was loved at as a dreamer or as fool, we know not. His plans were received with cold refusal. History repeats itself. Like Christopher Columbus twenty years before, Magellan now said good-bye to Portugal and made his way to Spain. Since the first discovery of the new world by Spain, that country had been busy sending out explorer after explorer to discover and annex new portions of America. Bold navigators, Pinzón, Mendoza, Bastidas, Rón de la Cosa and Soles. These and others had almost completed the discovery of the east coast, indeed. Soles might have been the first to see the great Pacific Ocean, had he not been killed and eaten at the mouth of River Lakplata. This great discovery was left to Vasco Nunes de Balboa, who first saw beyond the strange new world from the peak of Darien. Now his discovery threw a lurid light on to the limitation of land that made up the new country and illuminated the scheme of Magellan. Balboa was a gentleman of good family, great parts liberal education of a fine person and in the flower of his age. He had emigrated to the new Spanish colony of Haiti, where he had got into debt. No adapter was allowed to leave the island, but Balboa, the gentleman of good family, yearned for further exploration. He yearned beyond the skyline where the strange roads go down. And one day the yearning grew so great that he concealed himself in a bread-cask on a board a ship, leaving the shores of Haiti. For some days he remained hidden. When the ship was well out to sea, he made his appearance. Angry indeed was the captain, so angry that he threatened to land the stowaway on the desert island. He must have ever touched by the entreaties of the crew and Balboa was allowed to sail on in the ship. It was a fortunate decision, for when, soon after, the ship ran heavily upon a rock, it was the Spanish stowaway Balboa who saved the party from destruction. He led the shipwrecked crew to a river of which he knew, named Darien by the Indians. He did not know that they stood on the narrow neck of land, the Isthmus of Panama, which connects North and South America. The account of the Spanish intrusion is typical. After having performed their devotions, the Spaniards fell resolutely on the Indians, whom they soon rooted, and then went to the town, which they found full of provisions to their wish. Next day they marched up the country among the neighboring mountains, where they found houses replenished with a great deal of cotton, both spun and unspun, plates of gold in all to the value of 10,000 pieces of fine gold. A trade in gold was set up by Balboa, who became a governor of the new colony formed by the Spaniards. But the greed of these foreigners quite disgusts the native princes of these parts. What is this, Christians? Is it for such a little thing that you quarrel? If you have such a love of gold, I will show you a country where you may fulfill your desires. You will have to fight your way with great kings, whose country is distant from our country's six sons. So, saying he pointed away to the south, where he said, lay a great sea. Balboa resolved to find this great sea. It might be the ocean sought by Columbus in vain, beyond which was the land of great riches, where people drank out of golden cups. So he collected some 200 men and started forth on an expedition, full of doubt and danger. He had to lead his troops, worn with fatigue and disease, through deep marshes rendered impassable with heavy rains, or mountains covered with trackless forest, and through defiles from which the Indians showered down poisoned arrows. At last, led by native guides, Balboa and his men struggled up the side of a high mountain. When near the tops, he bade his men's top. He alone must be the first to see the great sight that no European had yet beheld. With transports of delight, he gained the top, and, silent upon a peak in Darien, he looked down on the boundless ocean based in tropical sunshine. Falling on his knees, he thanked God for his discovery of the southern sea. Then he called up his men, you see here, gentlemen and children mine, the end of our labours. The notes of the Tedeum then rang out on the still summer air, and having made a cross of stones, the little party hurried to the shore, finding two canoes, they sprang in, crying aloud joyously that they were the first Europeans to sail on the new sea, whilst Balboa himself plunked in, sword in hand, and claimed possession of the southern ocean for the king of Spain. The natives told him that the land of the south was without end, and that this was possessed by powerful nations who had abundance of gold, and Balboa thought this referred to the Indies, knowing nothing as yet as the riches of Peru. It is melancholy to learn that the man who made this really great discovery was publicly hanged four years later in Darien, but his news had reached Magdalene. There was then a great southern ocean beyond the new world. He was more certain now than ever that by this sea he could reach the spice islands. Moreover, he persuaded the young king of Spain that his country had a right to these valuable islands, and promised that he would conduct a fleet around the south of the great new continent, westward to these islands. His proposal was accepted by Charles V, and the useful Spanish monarch provided Spanish ships for the great enterprise. The voyage was not popular, the pay was low, the way unknown, and in the streets of Seville, the public crier called for volunteers. Hence it was a motley crew of some 280 men, composed of Spaniards, Portages, Genoese, French, Germans, Greeks, Malays, and one Englishman only. There were five ships. They are very old and patched, says a letter addressed to the king of Portugal, and I would be sorry to sail even for the canneries in them, for their ribs are soft as butter. Magdalene hoisted his flag on board the Trinidad of 110 tons burden. The largest ship, St. Antonio, was kept in by a Spaniard, Cartagena, the conception 90 tons by Gaspar Quezada, the Victoria of 85 tons, who alone bore home the news of the circumnavigation of the world, was at first commanded by the Tritor Mendoza and the little Santiago, 75 tons, under the brother of Magdalene's old friend Serrano. What if the commander himself left a young wife and a son of six months old? The fever of discovery was upon him, and flying the Spanish flag for the first time in his life, Magdalene, on board the Trinidad, let his little fleet away from the shores of Spain. He never saw a wife or child again. Before three years had passed, all three were dead. Carrying a torch or faggot of burning wood on the poop, so that the ships should never lose sight of it, the Trinidad sailed onwards. Follow the flagship and ask no questions. Such were his instructions to his not-too-loyal captains. End of Chapter 26. Chapter 27 of A Book of Discovery. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. A Book of Discovery by M.B. Singh, Chapter 27, Magdalene sails round the world. They had left Seville on 20 September 1519. A week later, they were at the Canaries, then passed Cape Verde, and land faded from their sight as they made for the southwest. For some time, they had a good run in fine weather. Then the upper air burst into life and a month of heavy gales followed. The Italian Count, who accompanied the fleet, writes long accounts of the sufferings of the crew during these terrific Atlantic storms. During these storms, he says, the body of Saint Anselm appeared to us several times. One night, that it was very dark on account of the bad weather, the Saint appeared in the form of a fire lighted at the summit of the main mast and remained there near two hours and a half, which comforted us greatly, for we were in tears only expecting the hour of perishing. And when that holy light was going away from us, it gave out so great a brilliancy in the eyes of each that we were like people blinded and calling out for mercy. For without any doubt, nobody hoped to escape from that storm. Two months of incessant rain and diminished rations added to their miseries. The spirit of mutiny now began to show itself. Already the Spanish captains had murmured against the Portuguese commander, be they false men or true, I will fear them not, I will do my appointed work, said the commander firmly. It was not till November that they made the coast of Brazil in South America, already sighted by Cabral and explored by Pinzón. But the disloyal captains were not satisfied and one day the captain of the Saint Antonio boarded the flagship and openly insulted Magellan. He must have been a little astonished when the Portuguese commander seized him by the collar, exclaiming, you're my prisoner, giving him into custody and appointing another in his place. Food was now procureable and the quantity of sweet pineapples must have had a soothing effect on the discontented crews. The natives traded uneasy terms. For a knife, they produced four or five falls for a comb, fish for ten men. For a little bell, a basket full of sweet potatoes. A long draft had preceded Magellan's visit to these parts, but rain now began with the advent of the strangers and the natives made sure that they had brought it with them. Such an impression once made, there was little difficulty in converting them to the Christian face. The natives joined in prayer with the Spaniards, remaining on their knees and with their hands joined in great reverence so that it was a pleasure to see them, writes one of the party. The day after Christmas again found them sailing south by the coast and early in the new year, they anchored at the mouth of the Rio de la Plata where Solis had lost his life at the hands of the cannibals some five years before. He had succeeded with Pucci in the service of Spain and was exploring the coast when a body of Indians with a terrible cry and most horrible aspect suddenly rushed out upon them, killed, roast and devoured them. Through February and March, Magellan led his ships along the shores of Bleak Patagonia seeking for an outlet for the Spice Islands. Winter was coming on and no straights had yet been found. Storm after storm now burst over the little ships, often accompanied by a thunder and lightning, poops and four castles were carried away and all expected destruction when the holy body of St. Anselm appeared and immediately the storm ceased. It was quite impossible to proceed further to the unknown south so finding a safe and roomy harbor Magellan decided to enter there. Port St. Julian he named it and he knew full well that they must remain there for some four or five months. He put the crew on diminished rations for fear the food should run short before they achieved their goal. This was the last straw. Mutiny had long been smouldering. The hardships of the voyage, the terrific Atlantic storms, the prospect of a long and tactic winter of inaction on that wild Patagonian coast. These alone caused officers and men to grumble and to demand an immediate return to Spain. But the stout heart of Magellan was undaunted. On Easter day the mutiny began. Two of the Spanish captains boarded the St. Antonio, seized the Portuguese captains thereof and put him in chains. Then stores were broken open, bread and wine generously handed round and a plot hatched to capture the flagship, kill Magellan, seize his faithful Serrano and sail home to Spain. The news reached Magellan's ears. He at once sent a messenger with five men bearing hidden arms to summon the traitor captain on board the flagship. Of course he stoutly refused. As he did so, the messenger sprung upon him and stabbed him dead. As the rebellious captain fell dead on the deck of his ship, the dazed crew at once surrendered. Thus Magellan, by his prompt measures, quelled a mutiny that might have lost him the whole expedition. No man ever tried to mutiny again while he lived and commanded. The fleet had been two whole months in the port St. Julian without seeing a single native. However one day, without anyone expecting it, we saw a giant who was on the shore of the sea, dancing and leaping and singing. He was so tall that the tallest of us only came up to his waist. He was well built, he had a large face, painted red all round, and his eyes were also painted yellow around them, and he had two hearts painted on his cheeks. He had but little hair on his head, and it was painted white. The great Patagonian giant pointed to the sky to know whether these Spaniards had descended from above. He was soon joined by others, evidently greatly surprised to see such large ships and such little men. Indeed, the heads of the Spaniards hardly reached the giant's waist, and they must have been greatly astonished when two of them ate a large basketful of biscuits and rats without skinning them and drank half a bucket of water at each sitting. With the return of spring weather in October 1520, Magalind led the little fleet upon its way. He was rewarded a few days later by finding the straits for which he and others had been so long searching. It was the strait, says the historian simply, now called the strait of Magalinds. A struggle was before them. For more than five weeks, the Spanish mariners fought their way through the winding channels of the unknown straits. On one side rose high mountains covered with snow. The weather was bad, the way unknown. Do we wonder to read that one of the ships stole away privately and returned to Spain, and the remaining men begged piteously to be taken home? Magalind spoke in measured and quiet tones. If I have to eat the leather of the ships, yards, yet will I go on and do my work? His words came troughs and he knew. On the southern side of the strait, constant fires were seen, which led Magalind to give the land the name it bears today, Tierra del Fuego. It was not visited again for a hundred years. At last the ships fought their way to the open sea, bulbous southern ocean, and then the captain Magalind was passed the strait and saw the way open to the other main sea. He was so glad thereof that for joy the tears fell from his eyes. The expanse of calm waters seemed so pleasant after the heavy, tiring storms that he called the still waters before him, the Pacific Ocean. Before following him across the unknown waters, let us recall the quiet lands of Camoans. Along these regions, from the burning zone to deepest south, he dares the course unknown. A land of giants show his eyes behold, of Camel's strength surpassing human mold, and onward still thy fame his proud heart's guide, beneath the southern stars called Gleam he braves, and stemmed the whirls of land-surrounded waves, forever sacred to the hero's fame. These filming straits shall bear his desolate name. Through these dread jaws of rock he presses on, another ocean's breast immense unknown, beneath the south, called wings, unmeasured wide, received his vessels through the dairy tide, Indartling shades were never manned before, heard the waves howl, he dares the nameless shore. Three little ships had now emerged, battered and worn, manned by a cruise gaunt and thin and shivering. Magellan took a nurserly course to avoid the intense cold before turning to cross the strange obscure ocean, which no European had yet realized. Just before Christmas the course was altered and the ships were turned to the northwest, in which direction they expected soon to find the Spice Islands. No one had any idea of the vastness of the Pacific Ocean. Well was it named the Pacific, remarks the historian, for during three months and 20 days were met with no storm. Two months passed away and still they sailed peacefully on, day after day, week after week, across a vast of desolate waters. Alone, alone, all, all alone, alone on a wide, wide sea. At last one January day they sighted a small wooden island, but it was uninhabited. They named it St. Paul's Island and passed on their way. They had expected to find the shores of Asia close by those of America. The size of the world was astounding. Another island was passed, again no people, no consolation, only many sharks. There was bitter disappointment on board. They had little food left. We ate biscuit, but in truth it was biscuit no longer, but a powder full of worms. Though great was the want of food, that we were forced to eat the hides, with which the main yard was covered, to prevent the chafing against the rigging. These hides were exposed to the sun, first to soften them by putting them overboard, for four or five days, after which we put them on the embers and ate them thus. We had also to make use of sawdust for food, and rats became a great delicacy. No wonder scurvy broke out in its worst form. Nineteen died, and thirteen lay too ill to work. For ninety-eight days they sailed across the unknown sea. A sea so vast that the human mind can scarcely grasp it, till at last they came on a little group of islands, peopled with savages of the lowest type, such expert thieves, that Maggillan called the new islands ladrones, or Isle of Robbers. Still there was fresh food here, and the crews were greatly refreshed, before they sailed away. The food came just too late to save the one Englishman of the party, Master Andrew of Bristol. He died just as they moved away. Then they found the group afterwards known as the Philippines, after Philip II of Spain. Here were merchants from China who assured Maggillan that the famous spice islands were not far off. Now Maggillan had practically accomplished that he set out to do, but he was not destined to reap the fruits of his victory. With a good supply of fresh food the sailors grew better, and Maggillan preferred cruising about the islands, making friends of the natives and converting them to Christianity, to pushing on for the spice islands. Here was gold too, and he busied himself making the native rulers pay tribute to Spain. Easter was drawing near, and the Easter services were performed on one of the islands. A cross and a crown of thorns was set upon the top of the highest mountain, that all might see it and worship. Thus April passed away, and Maggillan was still busy with Christians and gold. But his enthusiasm carried him too far. Aquarel arose with one of the native kings. Maggillan landed with armed men, only to be met by thousands of defiant natives. A desperate fight ensued, again and again the explorer was wounded, till at last the Indians threw themselves upon him with iron pointed bamboo spears, and every weapon they had, and ran him through, our mirror, our light, our comforter, our true guide, until they killed him. Such was the tragic fate of Ferdinand Maggillan, the greatest of ancient and modern navigators. Tragic because, after down-less resolution and unburied courage, he died in a miserable skirmish at the last on the very eve of victory. With grief and despair in their hearts, the remaining members of the crew, now only 115, crowded on the Trinidad and Victoria for the homeward voyage. It was September 1522, when they reached the Spice Islands, the goal of all their hopes. Here they took on board some precious clothes and birds of paradise, spent some pleasant months, and laden the spices resumed their journey. But the Trinidad was too overladen with clothes and two rotten, to undertake so long a voyage, till she had undergone the repair. So the little Victoria alone sailed for Spain, with sixty men aboard, to carry home their great and wonderful news. Who shall describe the terrors of that homeward voyage, the suffering, starvation, and misery of the very crew? Men after men drooped and died, till by the time they reached the Cappeverde, the islands, there were but eighteen left. When the welcome shores of Spain at length appeared, eighteen gaunt, famine-stricken survivors, with their captains staggered ashore, to tell their proud story of the first circumnavigation of the world, by their lost commander Ferdinand Magellan. They missed the triumphal return of the conqueror, the audiences the king of Spain, the heaped owners the crowded streets, the titles and the riches. The proudest crest ever granted by a sovereign, the world with the warts, though hast encompassed me, fell to the lot of Delcano, the captain who brought home the little Victoria. For Magellan's son was dead, and his wife Beatrix, grievously sorrowing, had passed away when hearing the news of her husband's tragic end. End of Chapter 27 Chapter 28 of a Book of Discovery This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. A Book of Discovery by M.B. Singh. Chapter 28 Cortez explores and conquers Mexico. One would have thought that the revelation of this immense sheet of water on the far side of America would have drawn other explorers to follow, but news was slowly assimilated in those days, and it was not till 53 years later that the Pacific was crossed a second time by Sir Francis Drake. In the maps of the day, Newfoundland and Florida were both placed in Asia, while Mexico was identified with the Quincy of Marco Polo. For even while Magellan was fighting the gales of the Atlantic and root, for his long thought straight, another strange and wonderful country was being unveiled, and its unsurpassed wealth laid at the feet of Spain. The starting place for further Spanish exploration had been from the days of Columbus, the West Indies. From this center, the coast of Florida had been discovered in 1513. From here, the same year, Balboa had discovered the Pacific Ocean. From here, in 1517, a little fleet was fitted out under Francisco Hernando de Cordova, a man very prudent and courageous and strongly disposed to kill and kidnap Indians. A pilot he had been with Columbus on his fourth voyage some 14 years before. He suggested that his master had heard rumors of land to the West, and sure enough, after sailing past the peninsula of Yucatan, they found signs of the eastern civilization so long salt in vain. Strange-looking towers or pyramids, ascended by stone steps, greeted their eyes, and the people who came out in canoes to watch the ships were glad and kilted cotton doublets, and wore cloaks and brilliant plumes. They had heard of the Spaniards. Indeed, only 100 miles of sea divided Yucatan from Cuba, and they were anything but pleased to see the strangers off their coast. Coins Catoche come to my house, they cried, for which reason Cordova called the place Cape Catoche, as it is marked in our maps today. Along the coast sailed the Spaniards to a place called by the Indians Quimpeche, now known as Cambeshi Bay. They were astonished to find how civilized were these natives and how unlike any others they had met in these parts. But the inhabitants resented the landing of Cordova and his men, and with arrows and stones and darts they killed or wounded a great number of Spaniards, including the commander himself, who sent an account of his voyage to the governor of Cuba and died a few days later. His information was interesting and inspiring, and soon young Joan Grialva was on his way to the same land, accompanied by 250 stout soldiers and the old pilot, Alvarado, who had led both Columbus and Cordova. Grialva explored for the first time the coast of this great new country. Mexico, Mexico, repeated the Indians with whom they conversed. Gold, too, was produced, gold ornaments, gold workmanship, until the young handsome Grialva was fitted out completely with a complete suit of gold armor. He returned enthusiastic over the new land, where lived a powerful ruler over many cities. Surely this was none other than the great Khan of Marco Polo fame with the riches and magnificence of an eastern potate, a land worthy of further exploration. The conqueror of Mexico now comes upon the scene, young, bold, devout, unscrupulous, a respectable gentleman of good birth, Hernando Cortés. Great was the enthusiasm in Cuba to join the new expedition to the long lost lands of the great Khan. Men sold their lands to buy horses and arms, pork was salted, armor was made, and at last Cortés, a plume of feathers and a gold medal in his cap, erected on board his ship a velvet flag with the royal arms embroidered in gold and the warts. Brothers, follow the cross in faith, for under its guidance we shall conquer. His address to his men called forth their devotion. I hold out to you a glorious prize, but it is to be won by incessant toil. Great things are achieved only by great exertions, and glory was never the reward of sloth. If I have labored hard and staked my all on this undertaking, it is for the love of that renown, which is the noblest recompense of man. But if any among you covet riches more, be but true to me, as I will make you masters of such as our countrymen have never dreamed of. You are few in number, but strong in resolution. Doubt not, but that the almighty, who has never deserted the Spaniard in his contest with the infidel, will shield you, for your cause is a just cause, and you are to fight under the banner of the cross. In this spirit of enthusiasm, the fleet sailed for the shores of Cuba on 18th February, 1519, and was soon on its way to the land of Mexico. The pilot Alvarado was with this expedition also, rounding Cape Catoche and coasting along the southern shores of Campeche Bay, with a pleasant breeze blowing off the shore. Cortes landed with all his force, some 500 soldiers, on the very spot where now stands the city of Veracruz. Little did the conqueror imagine that the desolate beach on which he first planted his food was one day to be covered by a flourishing city, the great marked of European and Oriental trade, the commercial capital of New Spain. On a wide-level plane, Cortes encamped, his soldiers driving in stakes and covering them with boughs to protect themselves from the scorching rays of the fierce tropical sun. Natives came down to the shore, bringing their beautiful feather-work cloaks and golden ornaments. Cortes had brought presents for the great king, the Khan, as he thought, and as he sent with a message that he had come from the king of Spain and greatly desired an audience with the great Khan. The Indians were greatly surprised to hear that there was another king in the world, as powerful as their Montezuma, who was more god than king, who ate from dishes of gold, on whose face none dared look, in whose presence none dared speak without leave. To impress the messengers of the king, Cortes ordered his soldiers to go through some of their military exercises on the wet sands. The bold and rapid movement of the troops, the glancing of the weapons, and the shrill cry of the trumpet filled the spectators with astonishment. But when they heard the thunder of the cannon and witnessed the volumes of smoke and flame eschewing from these terrible engines, the rushing of the boughs as they hissed through the trees of the neighboring forest, shivering their branches. They were filled with consternation. To the intense surprise of the Spaniards, these messengers sketched the whole scene on canvas with their pencils, not forgetting the Spanish ships or water houses, as they called them, with their dark hulls and snow-white sails reflected in the water, as they swung lazily at anchor. Then they returned to the king and related the strange doings of the white strangers, who had landed on their shores. They showed him their picture writing, and Montezuma, king of the great Mexican empire, which stretched from sea to sea, was sore-troubled. He refused to see the Spaniards. The distance of his capital was too great since the journey was beset with difficulties. But the presents he sent were so gorgeous, so wonderful, that Cartes resolved to see who were himself the city, which produced such wealth, whatever its ruler might decree. Here was a plate of gold, as large as a coach-wheel, representing the sun, one in silver, even larger, representing the moon. There were numbers of golden toys, representing dogs, lions, tigers, apes, ducks, and wonderful plumes of green feathers. The man who had sailed across 2,000 leagues of ocean held lightly the idea of a short land journey, however difficult, and Cartes began his preparations for the march to Mexico. He built a little settlement at Veracruz, the rich town of the True Cross, on the seashore as the basis for operations. Although the wealth allured them, there were many who viewed with dismay the idea of the long and dangerous march into the heart of the hostile land. After all they were but a handful of men, pitted against a powerful nation. Murmurs arose, which reached the ears of Cartes. He was equal to the occasion, and resolutely burned all the ships in the harbor, say one. The panic ensued, mutiny threatened. I have chosen my part, cried Cartes. I will remain here while there is one to beer me company. If there be any so craven as to shrink from sharing the dangers of our glorious enterprise, let them go home. There is still one vessel left, let them take that and return to Cuba. They can tell there how they have deserted their commander and their comrades, and patiently wait till we return loaded with the spoils of Mexico. He touched the right cord. Visions of future wealth and glory rose again before them. Confidence in their leader revived and shouting bravely to Mexico, to Mexico. The party started off on their perilous march. It was 16th August, 1519, when the little army, buoyant with high hopes and lofty plans of conquest, set forth. The first part of the way laced through a beautiful country, rich in Cojinal and Vanilla, with groves of many colored birds and insects, whose enameled wings glistened like diamonds in the blazing sun of the tropics. Then came the long and tedious ascent of the Cordilleras, leading to the table land of Mexico. Higher and higher grew the mountains, heavy poles of sleet and hail, icy winds and driving rain drenched the little Spanish party, as they made their way bravely upwards, till at last they reached the level of 7000 feet to find the great table land rolling out along the crest of the Cordilleras. Here, too, they had met with no opposition among the natives they had met. Indeed, as the little army advanced, it was often found that the inhabitants of the country fled our strug from before them. Now the reason was this. The Mexicans believed in a god called the bird serpent, around whom many a legion had grown up. Temples had been built in his honor and horrible human sacrifices offered to appease him. For was he not the ruler of the winds, the lord of the lightning, the gatherer of the clouds? But the brave god had sailed away one day, saying he would return with fair-skinned men to possess the land in the fullness of time. Surely then, the time had come and their god had come again. Here were the fair-skinned men in shining armor, marching back to their own again. And Cortés at their head, was he not the god himself? The cross, too, was a Mexican symbol. So Cortés was allowed to put it up in the heathen temples without opposition. The inhabitants of Tlaxcala, fierce republicans, who refused to own this way of Montezuma, alone offered resistance. And how Cortés fought and defeated them with his handful of men is truly a marvel. It was three months before they reached the goal of all their hopes, even the golden city of Mexico. The hardships and horrors of the march had been unsurpassed, but as the beautiful volley of Mexico unfolded itself before them, in the early light of the July morning, the Spaniard shouted with joy, it is the promised land, Mexico, Mexico. Many of us were disposed to doubt the reality of the scene before us, and to suspect we were in a dream, says one of the party. I thought we had been transported by magic to the terrestrial paradise. Water, cultivated plains, shining cities with shadowy hills beyond, lay like some gorgeous fairly land before and below them. At every step some new beauty appeared in sight, and the wonderful city of the waters with its towers and shining palaces arose out of the surrounding mists. The city was approached by a three solid cause-base, some five miles long. It was crowded with spectators, eager to behold such men and animals as had never been seen in that part of the world. At any moment the little army of 450 Spaniards might have been destroyed, surrounded as they were by overwhelming numbers of hostile Indian foes. It was a great day in the history of European discovery when the Spaniard first set foot in the capital of the western world. Everywhere was evidence of a crowded and thriving population and a high civilization. At the walls of the city they were met by Montezuma himself. Amid a crowd of Indian nobles, preceded by officers of state, bearing golden wands, was the royal palanquin blazing with burnished gold. It was born on the shoulders of the nobles, who, barefooted, walked slowly with eyes cast to the ground. Descending from his litter, Montezuma then advanced under a canopy of gaudy featherwork, powdered with juice and fringed with silver. His cloak and sandals were studded with pearls and precious stones, among which emeralds were conspicuous. Cortez dismounted, greeted the king, and spoke of his mission to the heathen and of his master, the mighty ruler of Spain. Everywhere Cortez and his men were received with friendship and reverence. For was he not the long-lost child of the sun? The Spanish explorer begged Montezuma to give up his idols and to stop his terrible human sacrifices. The king somewhat naturally refused. Cortez grew angry. He was also very anxious. He felt the weakness of his position, the little handful of men in this great populous city, which he had sworn to win for Spain. The king must go. Why do we waste time on this barbarian? Let us seize him and, if he resists, plunge our swords into his body, he cries the exasperated commander. This is no place for the pathetic story of Montezuma's downfall. Prescott's conquest of Mexico is within the reach of all. It tells of the Spanish treachery, of the refusal of the Mexican ruler to accept the new face, of his final appeal to his subjects, of chains, degradation, and death. It tells of the three great heaps of gold, pearls, and precious stones, taken by Cortez, of the final siege and conquest. The news of this immense Mexican empire, discovered and conquered over Spain, brought honors from the king, Charles V, to the triumphant conqueror. Nor did Cortez stop even after this achievement. As governor and captain general of Mexico, he sent off ships to explore the neighboring coasts, hearing that Honduras possessed rich mines and that a strait into the Pacific Ocean might be found. Cortez led an expedition by land. Arrived at Tabasco, he was provided with an Indian map of cotton clothes, whereon were painted all the towns, rivers, mountains, as far as Nicaragua. With this map and the mariners compass, he led his army through gloomy woods, so thick that no sun ever penetrated. And after a march of 1,000 miles, he reached the sea coast of Honduras. Took over the country for Spain to be governed with Mexico by himself. This enormous tract of country was known to the world as New Spain. End of Chapter 28. Chapter 29 of a book of discovery. This is the LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. A Book of Discovery by M.B. Singh, Chapter 29, Explorers in South America. The success of Cortez and his brilliant conquest of Mexico gave a new impulse to discovery in the new world. The spirit of exploration dominated every adventurous young Spaniard. And among those living in the West Indies, there were many ready to give up all for the golden countries in the West, rumors of which were always reaching their ears. No sooner had these rich lands been realized that the news of Magdalene's great voyage revealed the breadth of the ocean between America and Asia, and destroyed forever the idea that the Spice Islands were near. Spanish enterprises, therefore, lay in the same direction as heretofore. And we must relate the story of how Pizarro discovered Peru for the king of Spain. He had accompanied Balboa to Darien and had with him gazed out on to the unknown waters of the Pacific Ocean below. With Balboa after crossing the Isthmus of Darien, he had reached Panama on the South Sea, where he heard of a great nation far to the South. Like Mexico, it was spoken of as highly civilized and rich in minds of gold and silver. Many an explorer would have started off straight away for this new country, but there was a vast tract of dark forest entangled underwood between Panama and Peru, which had downed the ardor of even the most ardent of Spanish explorers. But Pizarro was a man of courage and downedless resolution, and he was ready to do undare the impossible. He made a bad start. A single ship with some hundred men aboard left Panama under the command of Pizarro in 1526. He was ignorant of southern navigation. The Indians along the shore were hostile. His men died one by one. The rich land of Peru was more distant than they had sought. And having at length reached the island of Galo near the equator, they awaited reinforcements from Panama. Great Zen was the disappointment of Pizarro when only one ship arrived and no soldiers. News of hardships and privations had spread through Panama, and none would volunteer to explore Peru. By this time, the handful of wretched men who had remained with Pizarro, living on crabs picked up on the shore, begged to be taken home, they could endure no longer. Then came one of those tremendous moments that left the born leader of men above his fellows. Drawing his sword, Pizarro traced a line on the sand from east to west. Friends, he cried, turning to the south. On that side are toil, hunger, nakedness, the drenching storm, desertion, and death. And on this side is an pleasure. There lies Peru with its riches, here Panama and its poverty. For my part, I go south. So saying, he stepped across the line. Twelve stout-hearted men followed him. The rest turned verily homewards. They reduced with resolute little parties and sailed south, and the voyage of two days brought them within sight of the long-sought land of Peru. Communication with the natives assured them that there was wealth and fortune to be made, and they hurried back to Panama when Pizarro sailed for Spain for permission to conquer the empire of Peru. It's interesting to find Cortez contributing some of his immense wealth from Mexico towards this new quest. In February 1531, three small ships with 180 soldiers and 36 horses sailed south under Pizarro. It was not till the autumn of 1532 that he was ready to start on the great march to the interior. A city called Cusco was a capital, the holy city, with its great temple of the sun. The most magnificent building in the new world had never yet been seen by Europeans. But the residence of the king was at Caxamalea, and this was the goal of the Spaniards for the present. Already the news was spreading through the land that white and bearded strangers were coming up from the sea, clad in shining panoply, riding upon an earthly monsters and wielding deadly thunderbolts. Pizarro's march to the heart of Peru with a mere handful of men was not unlike that of Cortez's expedition to Mexico. Both coveted the rich empire of unknown monarchs and dared all to possess. Between Pizarro and his goal lays the stupendous mountain range of the Andes or South American Cordilleras. Rock piled upon rock, their crests of everlasting snow glittering high in the heavens. Across these and over narrow mountain passes the troops had now to pass. So steep were the sides that the horsemen had to dismount and scramble up, leading their horses as best they might. Frightful chasms yowned below them, terrific peaks rose above, and at any moment they might be utterly destroyed by bodies of Peruvians in overwhelming numbers. It was bitterly cold as they mounted higher and higher up the dreary heights, till at last they reached the crest. Then began to descend, precipitous and dangerous, until after seven days of this, the volley of Caxamalea unrolled before their delighted eyes, and the little ancient city with its white houses leg-littering in the sun. But this may filled the stoutest heart when, spread out below for the space of several miles, tense as sick as snowflakes covered the ground, it was the Peruvian army. And it was too late to turn back. So with a bold accountants as we could, we prepared for our entrance into Caxamalea. The Peruvians must already have seen the cavalcade of Spaniards, as with banners streaming and armor glistening in the rays of the evening sun, Pizarro led them towards the city, as they drew near the king Atahualpa, covered with plumes of feathers and ornaments of gold and silver blazing in the sun, with carried force on a throne, followed by 30,000 men to meet the strangers. It seemed to the Spanish leader that only one course was open. He must seize the person of this great ruler at once. He waved his white scarf. Immediately the cavalry charged, and a terrible fight took place around the person of the ruler of Peru until he was captured and taken prisoner. Atahualpa tried to regain his liberty by the offer of gold, for he had discovered amid all their outward show of religious seal a greed for wealth among those strange white men from over the stormy seas. He suggested that he should fill with gold the room in which he was confined as high as he could reach. Standing on tiptoe, he marked the wall with his hand. Pizarro accepted the offer, and the Spaniards greedily watched the arrival of their treasure from the roofs of palace and temple. They gained a sum of something like three million sterling and then put the king to death. Pizarro was the conqueror of Peru, and he had no difficulty in controlling the abstract Peruvians, who regarded their relentless Spaniards as supernatural, the children of the sun indeed. A year later, these children of the sun entered the old town of Cusco, the capital of this rich empire, where they found a city of treasure surpassing all expectation. Meanwhile, Almagro, one of the most prominent among the Spanish explorers, had been granted a couple of hundred miles along the coast of Chile, which country he now penetrated. But the cold was so intense that men and horses were frozen to death, while the Chileans, clad in skins, were difficult to subdue. Almagro decided that Cusco belonged to him, and miserable disputes followed between him and Pizarro, ending in the tragic end of the veteran explorer Almagro. As the shiploads of gold reached the shores of Spain, more and more adventurers flocked over to the new world. They swarmed into golden castile, about the city of Panama, and journeyed into the interior of the yet new and unknown world. There are terrible stories of their greed and cruelty to the native Indians. One story says that the Indians caught some of these Spaniards, tied their cans and feet together, threw them on the ground and peered liquid gold into their mouths, crying, eat, eat, gold, Christian. Amongst other adventurers into South America at this time was Orellana, who crossed the continent from ocean to ocean. He had accompanied one of Pizarro's brothers into the land of the cinnamon forests, and with him had crossed the Andes in search of another golden kingdom, beyond Cuito. The expedition under Pizarro, consisting of some 350 Spaniards, half of whom were horsemen, and four southern Indians, set forward in the year 1540 to penetrate to the remote regions in the hinterland, on the far side of the Andes. Their sufferings were intense, while in thunderstorms and earthquakes terrified man and beast. The earth opened and swallowed up 500 houses. Rain fell in such storms as to flood the land and cut off all communication between the explorers and cultivated regions. While crossing the lofty ridge of the Andes, the cold was so intense that numbers of the party were literally frozen to death. At length, they reached the land of the cinnamon trees, and still plashing on came to a river which must be crossed to reach the land of gold. They had finished their provisions and had nothing to subsist on, now saves wild fruit of the country. After following the course of the river for some way, Pizarro decided to build a little vessel to search for food along the river. All set to work, Pizarro and Orelana, one of his chief captains, working as hard as the men. They set up a forge for making nails and burnt carcule with endless trouble owing to the heavy rains, which prevented the tinder from taking fire. They made nails from the shoes of the horses, which had been killed to feed the sick. For tar, they used resin from the trees. For oakum, they used blankets and old shirts. Then they launched a little homemade boat, thinking their troubles would be at end. For some 400 miles, they followed the course of the river, but the supply of roots and berries grew scarcer and men perished daily from starvation. So Pizarro ordered Orelana to go quickly down the river with 50 men to some inhabited land of which they had heard, to fill the boat with provisions and return. Off started Orelana down the river, but no villages or cultivated lands appeared. Nothing was to be seen, so floated plains and gloomy, impenetrable forests. The river turned out to be a tributary of a much larger river. It was indeed the Great River Amazon. Orelana now decided to go on down this Great River and to desert Pizarro. True, his men were utterly weary, the current was too strong for them to row against, and they had no food to bring to their unhappy companions. There was likewise the possibility of reaching the Kingdom of Gold for which they were searching. There were some amongst his party who objected strongly to the course proposed by Orelana, to whom he responded by landing them on the edge of the dense forest and there leaving them to perish of hunger. It was the last day of 1540 that, having eaten their shoes and saddles boiled with a few wild herbs, they set out to reach the Kingdom of Gold. It was truly one of the greatest adventures of the age and historic, for here we get the word El Dorado, used for the first time in the history of discovery. The legendary land of gold, which was never found, but which attracted all the Elizabethan sailors to this romantic country. It would take too long to tell how they had to fight Indian tribes in their progress down the fast flowing river, how they had to build a new boat, making bellows of their leather buskins and manufacturing 2,000 nails in 20 days, how they found women on the banks of the river, fighting as valiantly as men and named the new country the Amazon land. And how it long lost, after incredible hardship, they reached sea in August 1541. They had navigated some 2,000 miles. They now made the rigging and ropes of grass and sails of blankets and sails sailed out into open sea, reaching one of the West India Islands a few days later. And the deserted Pizarro, tired of waiting for Oralana, he made his way sorrowfully home, arriving after two years absence in peril, with 80 men left out of 4,350, all the rest having perished in the disastrous expedition. And so we must leave the Spanish conquerors for the present, exploring, still conquering in these parts, ever adding glory and riches to Spain. Indeed, Spain and Portugal, as we have seen, entirely monopolize the horizon of geographical discovery till the middle of the 16th century, when other nations enter the arena. End of chapter 29, Chapter 30 of a Book of Discovery. This is the LibriVox Recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. A Book of Discovery by M.B. Singh, Chapter 30, Cabot Sails to Newfoundland. It was no longer possible for the old world to keep secret the wealth of the new world. English eyes were already straining across the seas. English hands were ready to grasp the treasure that had been spain's for the last 50 years. While Spain was sending Christopher Columbus to enthrow across the Atlantic to the West Indies, while Portugal was rejoicing in the success of Bosco de Gama, John Cabot, in the service of England, was making his way from Bristol to the new world. News of the first voyage of Columbus had been received by the Cabots, John and his son, Sebastian, with infinite admiration. They believed with the rest of the world that the coast of China had been reached by sailing westward. Bristol was at this time the chief sea port in England and the center of trade for the Iceland fisheries. The merchants of the city had already ventured far onto the Atlantic and various little expeditions had been fitted out by the merchants for possible discovery westward, but one after another failed, including the most scientific mariner in all England, who started force to find the island of Brazil to the west of Ireland. But after nine miserable weeks at sea was driven back to Ireland again by foul weather. Now Columbus had crossed the Atlantic. Cabot got leave from the English king, Henry VII, to sail to the east, west or north, with five ships carrying the English flag to seek and discover all the islands, countries, regions, or provinces of Pagans in whatever part of the world. Further, the king was to have one-fifths of the prophets and that all risks and a conflict with Spain must be avoided. Nothing doubted, Cabot started off to fulfill his lord's commands in a tiny ship with 18 men. We have the barest outlines of his proceedings. Practically all is contained in this one paragraph. In the year 1497, John Cabot, a Venetian, and his son, Sebastian, discovered on the 24th of June, about five in the morning, that land to which no person had before ventured to sail, which they named Primavista, or first seen, because as I believe it was the first part seen by them from the sea. The inhabitants used the skins and furs of wild beasts for garments, which they hold in as high estimation as we do our finest clothes. The soil yields no useful production, but it abounds in white beards and deer much larger than ours. Its coasts produced vast quantities of large fish, great seals, salmons, souls above a yard in lengths, and prodigious quantities of cod. So much was a contemporary account of this historic voyage. A letter from England to Italy describes the effect of the voyage on England. The Venetian, our countryman, who went with the ship from Bristol in quest of new islands, is returned, and says that 700 leagues hence, he discovered land with the territory of the Great Khan. He coasted for 300 leagues and landed, he saw new human beings, but he has brought hither to the king, certain snares, which had been set to catch game and a needle for making nets. He also found some found trees, therefore he supposed there were inhabitants and returned to his ships in alarm. He was there three months on the voyage, and on his return he saw two islands to starboard, but would not land, time being precious, as he was short of provisions. He says the tides are slack and do not flow as they do here. The king of England is much pleased with this intelligence. The king has promised that in the spring our countrymen shall have 10 ships to his order, and that his request has conceded to him all the prisoners to man his fleet. The king has also given him money, where ways to amuse himself till then, and he is now at Bristol with his wife and sons. His name is Cobbott, and he is styled the great admiral. Whilst honour is paid to him, he dresses in silk and the English run after him like mad people. Yet another letter of the time tells how Master John Cobbott has won a part of Asia without a stroke of the sword. This master John too has the description of the world in a chart and also in a solid globe which he has made, and he shows where he landed. And they say that it is a good and temperate country, and they think that Brazil wood and silks grow there, and they affirm that that sea is covered with fishes. But Master John had set his heart on something greater. Constantly hugging the shore of America, he expected to find the island of Kippango, Japan, in the Equinoctial region, where he should find all the spices of the world and any amount of precious stones. But after all this great promise, Master John disappears from the pages of history and his son Sebastian continues to sail across the Atlantic, not always in the service of England, though in 1502 we find him bringing to the king of England three men taken in the newfound land, clothed in beast skins and eating raw flesh, and speaking a language which no man could understand. They must have been kindly dealt with by the king, for two years later the poor savages are closed like Englishmen. Though England claimed the discovery of this newfound land, the Portuguese declared that one of their countrymen, Corte Real, a gentleman of the royal household, had already discovered the land of the codfish in 1463, but then cut not the Vikings already discovered this country 500 years before. End of chapter 30. Chapter 31 of a Book of Discovery. This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org. A Book of Discovery by M. B. Singh, chapter 31. Jacques Cartier explores Canada. All the nations of Europe were now straining westward for new lands to conquer. French sailors had fished in the seas washing the western coast of North America, Verrazano, a Florentine, in the service of France, had explored the coast of the United States, and a good deal was known when Jacques Cartier, a Frenchman, steps upon the scene and wins for his country a large tract of land about the river St. Lawrence. His object was to find a way across America to Cathy. With two little ships of 60 tons and 61 chosen men, Cartier left St. Molo on 20th of April, 1584. With prosperous weather, he tells us he made the coast of Newfoundland in three weeks, which would mean sailing over 100 miles a day. He was a little too early in the season, for the easterly winds which had helped him on his way had blocked the east coast of the island with arctic ice. Having named the point at which he first touched land, Cape Bonavista, he cruised about till, the ice having melted, he could sail down the straits of Belle Isle between the mind land of Labrador and Newfoundland, already discovered by Breton Heath Fisherman. Then he explored the now familial gulf of St. Lawrence, the first European to report on it. All through June, the little French ships sailed about the gulf, darting across from island to island and Cape to Cape. Prince Edward Island appealed to him strongly. It's very pleasant to behold, he tells us. We found sweet-smelling trees as cedars, juice, pines, ash, willow. Where the ground was bare of trees, it seemed very fertile and was full of wild corn, red and white, gross berries, strawberries and blackberries, as if it had been cultivated on purpose. It now grew hotter, and Cartier must have been glad of a little heat. He sighted Nova Scotia and sailed by the coast of New Brunswick without naming or surveying them. He describes accurately the bay still called Chalor Bay. We named this the warm bay, for the country is warmer even than Spain and exceedingly pleasant. They sailed up as far as they could, filled with hope that this might be the long-sought passage to the Pacific Ocean. Hope Cape, they named the southern point, but they were disappointed by finding only a deep bay and today by a strange coincidence, the point opposite to northern shore is known as Cape Despair, the capital spore of the early French mariners. Sailing on to the north, amid strong currents and a heavy sea, Cartier had lost boot into a shelter, Gaspe Bay. Here on the 24th of July, we made a great cross 30 feet high, on which we hung up a shield with three floors to lease and inscribed the cross with this motto, Vive l'eroi de France. When this was finished, in presence of all the natives, we all kneeled down before the cross, holding up our hands to heaven and praising God. Storms and strong tides now decided Cartier to return to France. He knew nothing of the Cabot Strait between Newfoundland and the land afterwards called Nova Scotia, so he guided his little ships right through the Straits of Billy Isle and after being much tossed by a heavy tempest from the east, which we weathered by the blessing of God, he arrived safely home on 5th of September, after his six months adventure. He was soon commissioned to continue the navigation of these new lands and in May 1535, he safely led three ships, slightly larger than the last, across the stormy Atlantic. Contrary winds, heavy gales and thick fogs turned the voyage of three weeks into five. The ships losing one another not to meet again till the coast of Labrador was reached. Coasting along the southern coast, Cartier now entered a very fine and large bay, full of islands and with channels of entrance and exit in all winds. Cartier named it Bay St. Lawrence because has entered it on 10th of August, the Feast of St. Lawrence. Do any of the Englishmen and women who steam up the Gulf of St. Lawrence and the great ocean steamers today on their way to Canada ever give a thought to the little pioneer French ships that four hundred years ago saw they were sailing toward Cathy? Savages, as Cartier calls the Indians, told him that he was near the mouth of the great river, Hohe Laga, now the St. Lawrence, which became narrower as we approached towards Canada where the water is fresh. On the first day of September, says Cartier, we set sail from the said harbor of Fort Canada. Canada was just a native ward for a town or village. It seems strange to read of the Lord of Canada coming down the river with 12 canoes and many people to greet the first white men he had ever seen. Strange, too, to find Cartier arriving at the place called Hohe Laga, 25 leagues above Canada, where the river becomes very narrow with a rapid current and very dangerous on account of rocks. For another week, the French explorers sailed on up the unknown river. The country was pleasant, well-wooded, with wines as full of grapes as they would hang. On 2nd of October, Cartier arrived at the native town of Hohe Laga. He was welcomed by hundreds of natives, men, women, and children, who gave the travelers as friendly a welcome as if we had been of their own nation, come home after a long and perilous absence. The woman carried their children to him to touch them for they evidently thought that some supernatural being had come up from the sea. All night, they danced to the light of fires and pulled it up on the shore. The next morning, Cartier, having dressed himself splendidly, went ashore with some of his men. All were well-armed, though the natives seemed peacefully disposed. They marched along a well-beaten track to the Indian city, which stood in the midst of cultivated fields of Indian corn and maize. Against the inhabitants met them with signs of joy and gladness, and the king was carried shoulder-high, seated on a large deerskin with a red breath round his head, made of the skins of hedgehogs instead of a crown. A curious scene then took place. The king placed his crown on the head of the French explorer, before whom he humbled himself as before a god. Thus evidently did the people regard him, for they brought to him their blind, their lame, and their diseased folk that he might cure them. Touched with pity at the groundless confidence of these poor people, Cartier signed them with the sign of the cross. He then opened a service book and read the Passion of Christ in an audible voice, during which all the natives kept a profound silence, looking up to heaven and imitating all our gestures. He then caused our trumpets and other musical instruments to be sounded, which made the natives very merry. Cartier and his men then went to the top of the neighboring mountain. The extensive view from the top created a deep impression on the French explorer. He grew enthusiastic over the beauty of the level wally below and called the place Montréal, a name communicated to the busy city of Montréal that lies below. Winter was now coming on and Cartier decided against attempting the homeward voyage so late in the year. But to winter in the country he chose a spot between Montréal and Quebec, little thinking what the long winter months would bring forth. The little handful of Frenchmen had no idea of the severity of the Canadian climate. They little dreamt of the intermeable months of ice and snow when no navigation was possible. Before Christmas had come round, the men were down the scurvy by the middle of February. Out of 110 persons composing the companies of our three ships, there were not ten in perfect health. Eight were dead already. The sickness increased to such a pitch that there were not above three sound men in the whole company. We were obliged to bury such as died under the snow as the ground was frozen quite hard. And we were all reduced to extreme weakness and we lost all hope of ever returning to France. From November to March four feet of snow lay upon the decks of their little ships. And yet shut up as they were in the heart of a strange and unknown land with their ships eyes bound and naught but savages around. There is no sound of murmur or complaint. It must be allowed that the winter that year is uncommonly long is all we hear. May found them three once more and making for home with the great news said though they had not found the way to Cassie they had discovered and taken a great new country for France. A new map of the world in 1586 marks Canada and Labrador and gives the river St. Lawrence just beyond Montreal. A map of 1550 goes further and calls the sea that washes the shores of Newfoundland and Labrador the sea of France. While to the south it is avowedly the sea of Spain. End of Chapter 31 Chapter 32 of a Book of Discovery This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information or to volunteer visit LibriVox.org A Book of Discovery by M. B. Singh Chapter 32 Search for a North East Passage England was now awakening from her sleep too late to possess the Spice Islands too late for India and the Cape of Good Hope too late it would seem for the New World. The Portuguese held the eastern route the Spaniards the western route to the Spice Islands but what if there were a northern route all ways apparently led to Cathy why should England not find a way to that glorious land by taking a northern course If the seas towards the north be navigable we may go to these Spice Islands by a shorter way than Spain and Portugal said Master Thorn of Bristol a friend of the Cabots but the northern seas are blocked with ice and northern lands are too cold for man to dwell in objected some There is no land uninhabitable nor sea unnavigable was the heroic reply It was in this belief and in this heroic temper that England set herself to take possession of her heritage the North but it was not till the reign of Edward the Sex that a company of merchant adventurers was formed a country of regions, dominions, islands and places unknown was old Sebastian Cabot as its first governor and not till the year 1553 that three little ships and their seer Hugh Willoughby and Richard Canceler were fitted out for a northern cruise they carried letters of introduction from the boy king of England to all kings, princes, rulers judges and governors of the earth in all places and there's universal heaven including those inhabiting the north-east parts of the world towards the mighty empire of Cassie Sir Hugh Willoughby a most valiant gentleman hoisted the English flag on the Bona Esperanza a good little ship of 120 tons the next in command was Richard Canceler a man of great estimation for many good parts of Witt and him who sailed the Edward Bonadventure which so not so fast as the flagship was slightly larger so certain were the promoters that the ships would reach the hot climates beyond Cassie that they had them sheathed with lead to protect them from worms which had proved so destructive in the tropics before the account of the start of these first English Arctic explorers is too quaint to be passed in silence it was so best said by the 20th of May the captains and mariners should take shipping and depart if it pleased God they, having still looted their acquaintance one his wife, another his children another his skinsfolk another his friend's deers and his skinsfolk were ready at the day appointed the greater ships are towed down with boats and oars and the mariners being all apparelled in sky colored clothes made way with diligence and being come near to Greenwich where the court then lay the courtiers came running out and the common people flocked together standing very thick upon the shore the private council they looked out of the windows of the court and the rest ran up to the tops of the towers and the mariners shouted in such sort that the sky rang again with the noise thereof but alas the good king Edward by reason of his sickness was absent from the show the ships dropped down to Woolwich with the tide and coasted along the east coast of England till at the last with the good wind they hoisted up sail and committed themselves to the sea giving their last adieu to their native country many of them could not refrain from tears Richard Cancelor himself had left behind two little sons and his poor mind was tormented with sorrow and care by the middle of July the North Sea has been crossed and the three small ships were off the shores of Norway coasting among the islands and fjords that lined that indented kingdom coasting still northward will be led his ships to the Lofoten islands plentifully inhabited by very gentle people under the king of Denmark they sailed on to the west of them was the ocean the desolate shore till they had passed the North Cape already discovered by other the old sea captain who dwelt in Helgoland a terrible storm no arose and the sea was so outrageous that the ships could not keep their intended course but some were driven on one way and some another way to their great peril and hazard then Sir Hugh Willoughby shouted across the roaring sea to Richard Cancelor begging him not to go far from him but the little ships got separated and never met again Willoughby was blown across the sea to Nova Zemla the sea was rough and stormy the tempest hold and wailed and the sea fog like a ghost haunted the dreary coast but onward still I sailed the weather grew more and more arctic and he made his way over to Ahavan in Lapland where he decided to winter he sent men to explore the country but no signs of mankind could be found there were bears and foxes and all manner of strange beasts but never a human being it must have been desperately dreary as the winter advanced with ice and snow and freezing winds from the North what this little handful of Englishmen did how they endured the bitter winter on the desolate shores of Lapland no man knows Willoughby was alive in January 1554 then all is silent and what of Richard Cancelor on board the Bonadventure pensive heavy and sorrowful but resolute to carry out his orders Master Cancelor held on his course towards that unknown part of the world and sailed so far that he came at last to the place where he found no night at all but the continual light and brightness of the sun shining clearly upon the huge and mighty sea after a time he found and entered a large bay where he anchored making friends with the fisher folk on the shores of the White Sea to the north of Russia so frightened were the natives at the greatness of the English ships that at first they ran away half dead with fear soon however they regained confidence and throwing themselves down began to kiss the explorer's feet but he according to his great and singular courtesy looked pleasantly upon them by signs and gestures he comforted them until they brought food to the newcom guests and went to tell their king of the arrival of a strange nation of singular gentleness and courtesy then the king of Russia or Muscovy Ivan Vasilyevich sent for Master Cancelor to go to Moscow the journey had to be made in sledges over the ice and snow a long and weary journey it must have been for his guide lost the way and they travelled nearly 1500 miles before Master Cancelor came at last to Muscovy, the chief city of the kingdom as great as the city of London with all its suburbs arrived at the king's palace Master Cancelor was received by 100 Russian cartiers dressed in clothes of gold to the very ankles the king sat aloft on a high throne with a crown of gold on his head holding in his hand a glittering sceptre studded with precious stones the Englishman and his companion saluted the king who received him graciously and read the letter from Edward VI with interest they did not know that the boy king was dead and that his sister Mary died the king was much interested in the long beards grown by the Englishman set of one of the company was 5 foot 2 inches in length thick, broad and yellow of coloured this is God's gift said the Russians to Edward VI of England the king sent a letter by the hands of Richard Cancelor giving leave readily for England to trade with Russia Master Cancelor seems to have arrived home again safely to the count of Russia which encouraged the merchant adventurers to send forth more ships to develop trade with this great new country of which they knew so little to this end Anthony Jenkinson a resolute and intelligent gentleman was selected and with four tall, well appointed ships he sailed on 12th of May 1557 towards the land of Russia he reached Cape North 2nd July and a few days later he passed the spot where Sir Hugh Willoughby and all his company had perished anchoring in the bay of St. Nicholas he took a sledge for Moscow where he delivered his letter safely to the king so ice bound was the country that it was April 1558 before he was able to leave Moscow for the south to accomplish if possible the orders of the merchant adventurers an overland route to Kassi with letters of introduction from the Russian king to the princes and kings through whose dominions he was to pass Master Jenkinson made his way to the Volga once he continued his voyage with the Russian captain who was travelling south in great style to take up a command at Astrakhan with 500 boats laden with soldiers stores, food and merchandise after three months travelling and having passed over some 1200 miles the Englishman reached the south the city of Astrakhan offered no attractions and no hope of trade so Jenkinson boldly took upon himself to navigate the mouth of the Volga and to reach the Caspian Sea he was the first Englishman to cross Russia from the white sea to the Caspian never before on the Caspian had the red cross of St. George seen flying from the must head of a ship sailed by Englishman after three weeks buffeting by contrary winds they found themselves on the eastern shores and getting together a caravan of 1000 camels they went forward no sooner had they landed than they found themselves in land of sieves and robbers Jenkinson hastened to the Sultan of these parts and noted robber himself to be kindly received by the Tartar Prince who said before him the flesh of a wild horse and some Mars milk then the little English party travelled on for three weeks through desolate land with no rivers, no houses no inhabitants till they reached the banks of the Oxos here we refreshed ourselves says the explorer having been three days without water and drink and tarried there all the next day making merry with our slain horses and camels for 100 miles they followed the course of this great river until they reached another desert where they were again attacked by bands of thieves and robbers it was Christmas Eve when they at last reached Bokhara only to find that the merchants were so poor that there was no hope of any trade worth following so the city was full of caravans from India and the Far East and there they heard that the way to Cassie was barred by reason of grievous wars which were going on winter was coming on so Jenkinson remained for a couple of months before starting on his long journey home with a caravan of 600 camels he made his way back to the Caspian and on 2nd September he had reached Moscow safely with presents of a white-cold stale of Cassie and a drum of tartary for the king which seemed to give that monarch the greatest pleasure he evidently stayed for a time in Russia for it is not till the year 1560 that we find him writing to the merchant adventurers that at the next shipping I embarked myself for England while Jenkinson was endeavouring to reach the Far East by land a portugies named Pinto had succeeded in reaching it by sea the discovery of Japan is claimed by three people Antonio de Mota had been thrown by a storm onto the island of Nissan called by the Chinese Japan in the year 1542 Pinto claims to have discovered it's the same year it seems that the Japanese were expecting the return of a god and as the white men who in sight they exclaimed these are certainly the chinky kogies spoken of in our records who flying over the waters shall come to be lords of the lands where God has placed the greatest riches of the world it will be fortunate for us if they become as friends now men of the time refuse to believe in the travels of Mendex Pinto he should be called Mendex Pinto said one whose book is one continued chain of monstrous fiction which deserves no credit while 150 years later angry you wrote Ferdinando Mendex Pinto was but a type of thee the liar of the first magnitude end of chapter 32 chapter 33 of a book of discovery this is a LibriVox recording all LibriVox recordings are in the public domain for more information or to volunteer please visit LibriVox.org a book of discovery by M.B. Sing chapter 33 Martin Frobisher searches for a north-west passage so far the expeditions of Willoughby, Cancelor and Jenkinson had all failed to reach the far east the Spanish had a way as the Therbe Magdalene Strait the portrait used by the Cape of Good Hope England in the middle of the 16th century had no way what about the north-west passage leading round Labrador from the Atlantic to the Pacific England was waking up to possibilities of future exploration she was also ready and anxious to annoy Spain for having monopolized the riches and wealth of the new world and so it was that Queen Elizabeth turned with interest to the suggestions of one of her subjects Martin Frobisher a mariner of great experience and ability when he enthusiastically insulted her on the navigation of the north-west passage for the last 15 years he had been trying to collect ships and men for the enterprise it is the only thing in the world left undone whereby a notable mind might be made famous and fortunate he affirmed but it was not till the year 1576 that he got a chance of fitting out two small ships two very small ships the Gabriel of 20 tons the Mikhail of 25 tons to explore the icy regions of the north a wave of the Queen's hand gladdened his heart as he sailed past the Palace of Greenwich where the quarter sighed and he was soon sailing northward harassed and battered by many storms his little ten-ton penis was lost and the same storms of our took little fleet to the north of Scotland was the captain of the Mikhail that he deserted and turned home with the news that Robisher had perished with all hands meanwhile Robisher resolute in his undertaking was nearing the coast of Greenland alone in the little Gabriel was a mere handful of men all inexperienced in the art of navigating the polar seas and now there came both mist and snow and its grew wondrous cold and Robisher sailed his storm-beaten ship across the ventury seas but I will sacrifice my life to God rather than return home without discovering a north-west passage to Cassie he told his 18 men with sublime courage passing Cape Farewell he sailed north-west with the Greenland current which brought him to the ice-bound shores near Hudson Bay he did not see the straits afterwards but finding an inlet farther north he sailed some hundred miles in the firm belief that this was the passage for which he was searching that America lay on his left and Asia on his right Magalan had discovered straits in the extreme south Robisher made sure that he had found corresponding straits to the extreme north and Robisher's straits they were accordingly named and as such they appeared on the maps of the day till they had to be renamed Blumleys Inlet the snow and ice made further navigation impossible for this year and full of their great news they returned home accompanied by an Eskimo these natives had been taken for purposes by our English explorers but later they were reported to be strange infidels whose like was never seen, read or heard of before Martin Robisher was received with enthusiasm and highly commanded of all men for his great and notable attempt but specially famous for the great hope he brought of the passage to Cassie besides the Eskimo the explorers carried home a black stone which, when thrown on the fire by one of the sailors' wives glittered like gold the gold refiners of London were hastily called in and they reported that it contained a quantity of gold a new incentive was now given to polar exploration the queen herself contributed a tall shape of some 200 tons to the new expedition that was eagerly fitted out and the high admiral of all seas and waters countries, lands and isles as Robisher was now called sailed away again for the icy north more to search for gold in the north-west passage he added nothing more to the knowledge of the world and though he sailed through the strait afterwards known as Hudson's he never realized his discovery his work was hampered by the quest for gold for which England was eagerly clamoring and he disappears from our history of discovery the triumphant return of Francis Drake in 1580 laden with treasure from the Spice Islands put into the shade all schemes for a north-west passage for the moment nevertheless this voyage of Martin Robisher is important in the history of exploration it was the first attempt of an Englishman to make search amid the eyes of the Arctic regions a search in which so many were yet to lay down their lives End of chapter 33