TH E

Le t t e r

o n the

f C o lu m b u s
Disc o v e r y

A M ERIC A
A Fa cs imile R ep r in t of th e Pictor ia l Edition of 1 4 9 3 ,

Liter a l Tr a n sla tion , a n a a n In tr odu c tion

PR INT ED B "

O R DER

O F TH E T RU S T EES

LENO "

LIB RA R"

S econb Eb ttion

N EW " O RK ,

M DC C C

" C III

O F TH E

The p resen t fac s imile of

the C olumbus

on e

Letters belong ing to the Len ox Library is p ublished

by the Tr ns tees

at

to the memory

this time

r o r iate tr ibute

pp p

as an a

f the g rea t dis c overer

H
5
O
N
j

KENNED"

Presz den t

New -" or k ,

W ay

I,

1 89 3

INTRO DU C TIO N

H E letter

of

Columbus giving t he earliest info r ma

t ion of his gr ea t discove ry was rst prin t ed in

Spanish a t Bar celona in April 4 9 3
I t was imm e di
a t ely t ransla t ed in t o La t in and sen t t o Rome for publi
ca t ion where it appeared in a t leas t t hree editions and
was reprin t ed at Basle Paris and An t we rp
O ne of
the rarest and mos t in t eres ting of these is t he pic t orial
edi t ion complete in t en leaves which is r eproduced
here in exac t facsimile accomp anied b y a li t eral t rans
la t ion The c u rl ou s woodcu t s wi t h which i t is illus
trate d are supposed b y some t o have been copied from
,

drawings made

or1g 1n all

b
y y

C olumbus himself

They

give remarkable representations of the admiral s

caravel of his rst landing

,

on

ow n

H ayti and mee t ing wi t h

the na t ives and of t he di ffe r ent islands which he visi t ed

,

The memorable voyage which t his le tt e r describes

las t ed two hundred and twen t y four days from t he 3 d
o f Augus t
14 2
when
C
olumbus
sailed
from
t
he
har
9
bor of Palos on t he sou t hern coas t of Spain wi t h t hree
small caravels and about nine t y men t o t he i 5th of
M ar ch 1 4 9 3 when he r e t u r ned in a single vessel t o
,

I N T R O DU CTI O N

vi

t he same po rt Nine days aft e r leaving Palos he

r eached the Canary Islands where he remained until
t he 6 th of September t aking in p r ovisions and making
o ther preparations O n t he 8th after lying becalmed
for t wo days he left t hese islands and s t eered his way
di r ec t ly across t he A t lan t ic wi t h t h e expecta t ion of
reaching India or China O n t he morning of F riday
the 2 th of O c t ober corresponding to the presen t z st
of O c t ober he came in sigh t of one o f the Bahama
I slands where he landed and t ook possession in t he
names of t he Spanish sovereigns O n t he 5t h he
visi t ed ano t her island which he named San t a M aria
de la Concepcion ; on the following day he reached
the island Fernandina ; and on t he 9 th Isabella
Supposing t hat he was in t he neighborhood of Cipango
or Japan he sailed t oward t he sou t h and on t he 8th
of O c t obe r landed on Cuba which he named Juana
H ere h e r emained exploring t he no rt heas t coas t un t il
Decembe r sth when he sailed over t o H ay t i called by
him Esp a ola Aft er explo ring t he no rt hern shore of
this island where he lost his own vessel by shipwreck
on t he 2 4 th he sailed in the Ni h a fo r Spain on t he
reaching
t
he
Azores
on
t
he
6 t h o f J anuary
49 3
Lisbon on t he 4 th of M arch and
i 8th of February
Palos on the 5th of t he same mon t h
The following lis t comp rises all t he edi t ions and
.

I N T R O DU CTI O N

vii

tr anslations O f t he C olumbus le tt e r known t o have been

printed before t he year I 50 0 :
I ) The orig i nal folio edi t ion in Spanish ad dr essed
(
t o the Escribano de Racion Luis de San t angel and
supposed t o have been printed a t Bar celona in April
r
I
t
is
comple
t
e
in
t
wo
leaves
four pages
o
49 3
The only known copy now in t he L enox Library was
,

discovered only a few years ago in Spain

2
The
quar
t
o
edi
t
ion
in
Spanish
also
addressed
t
o
( )
.

the
or

Escribano de Racion

eigh t pages

and containing four leaves

I t was probably prin t ed in Spain in

The only known copy was discove r ed abou t

thir t y years ago in the Biblio t eca Amb r osiana at M ilan
A facsimile by pho t ozinco gr aphy made from an in
1

49 3

accurate hand -tracing of t his copy was published a t

Milan in 1 86 6 an d from t his facsimile several recen t
,

forgeries seem t o have been copied

The
edi
t
ion
in
Latin
with
K
ing
F
e
r
d
i
n
n
a
d
s
3
( )
name alone in the t itle described by M r H arrisse as
.

NO

I Of

his list and by Mr M aj or as NO

,

I t is in

fou r leaves or eight pages and is supposed t o have

been prin t ed a t Rome by S t ephen Plan n c k in 1 4 9 3
,

A copy is in the Lenox Library

O
f
The
edi
t
ion
in
La
t
in
with
t
he
names
Ferdi
4
( )
nand and Isabella in t he t i t le described by M r H ar
risse as NO 4 and by M r M aj o r as NO I of t heir
.

I N T RO DU C TI O N

viii

r espec t ive li sts In o the r r espec t s it is almost identical

wi t h t he p r eceding page for page and line for line and
probably was printed a t Rome by Plan n c k in 1 4 9 3
.

The Lenox Library possesses a copy

Th
e
edi
t
ion
in
La
t
in
prin
t
ed
a
t
ome
by
R
( 5)
Eucha rius Ar g en teu s or Silbe r in 1 4 9 3 complete in
t hree leaves or six pages A copy is in the Lenox
Library
6
The
pictorial
edition
in
La
t
in
reproduced
here
( )
in facsimile from t he original in t he Lenox Libra ry
,

which is t he only p erfect copy known As the same

woodcuts appea r in a reprin t app ended t o t he dr ama
Of Carolus V erardu s published by B ergmann de O lp e
a t Basle in 1 4 9 4 i t is supposed t ha t t his edi t ion was
also prin t ed a t Basle by t he same p rinte r in 1 4 9 3
i
t
ola a e in s n lis
s
The
edi
t
ion
in
La
t
in
en
t
i
t
led
E
p
(7)
r ep er tis a e n ou o prin t ed a t Paris by Guyo t M archand
probably in 1 4 9 3
I t is in four leaves or eigh t pages
and con t ains only t he name O f Ferdinand in t he t i t le
Two copies are known one in t he Royal Library a t
Tur in t he other in t he U niversi t y Libra ry a t G Ot
t ingen
E
i
s tola a e in s u lis
The
edi
t
ion
in
La
t
in
en
t
i
t
led
p
8
( )
a o n on o r e er tis
prin
t
ed
a
t
Paris
by
Guyo
t
M
archand
p
in 1 4 9 3 or I4 9 4 I t is eviden t ly a reprin t of t he p re
ceding wi th which i t agr ees in the numbe r Of the
.

I N T RO DU C TI O N

ix

leaves and in con t aining only t he name of King Fer

,

in the ti t le O nly two copies a r e known one

in t he J ohn Carte r B r own Library at Providence R I
din an d

and t he othe r ( imperfec t ) in t he N a t ional Lib r ary at

Pa ris A facsimile is in t he Leno x Lib r ary
i
The
edi
t
ion
in
La
t
in
entitled
E
p
s tola ae in s u lis
(9 )
.

n on iter r e er tis ,

prin t ed a t Pa ris by Guyo t M archand

in 1 4 9 3 or 1 4 9 4 I t is also in four leaves and agr ees

closely wi th the two p r eceding Two copies only a r e
known bo th in t he B odleian Lib r ary at O xford A
facsimile is in t he Leno x Librar y
The
edi
t
ion
in
Latin
beginning
E
p
i
s tola C r is
IO
( )
.

supposed t o have b een printed a t Ant

It con t ains
w erp by Thi err y M a rt ens in I4 9 3 or 1 4 9 4
only t he name Of Fe r dinand in the title and is in four
leaves The only known copy is in the R oyal Lib r ar y
top lz or i C olom,

at Brussels
1 I
The
pic
t
orial
edition
in
Latin
app
ended
t
o
t
he
( )
.

d r ama Of V erardus published by B ergmann de O lpe

a t Basle in 1 4 9 4 I t is evidently a r eprint O f t he
,

separa t e pic t orial edi t ion alr eady described The r e is

a copy in t he Lenox Lib r ar y
The
edi
t
ion
in
I
t
alian
ve
r
se
en
t
i
t
led
1 2
t
o
r
a
i
S
( )
,

a ella

in ven tion e

a elle n n on e

in su le

ai

C /z an a r ia in a ia n e,

prin t ed a t Rome on t he I sth Of J une 1 4 9 3

The
ve r sion was made by Giuliano Dati The discovery
,

I N T RO DU C TI O N
Of

Mr

t he only known c opy was announced recen t ly by

.

H arr isse
I3

t
The
edi
t
ion
in
I
t
alian
verse
en
t
itled
u
e
s
a
Q
)

la hy s tor ia

'

in n en tioe

a ella

a elle

a ies e

[ sole

ai

C an n a r ia

prin t ed a t Florence on the 2 5th O f O ctober

I4
in
fou
r
leaves
being
a
reprin
t
of
the
preced
ng
i
3
9
The only known copy lacking t he second and third
leaves is in the library Of t he B ri t ish M useum A fac
simile is in t he Lenox Library
14
The
edition
in
I
t
alian
verse
en
t
i
t
led
etter a
L
a
l
( )

In a ia n e,

a ellisole

t he

ha

tr on a to

n n on a

men te il Re

a is

ag n a ,

p rinted a t Florence on the 2 6 th O f O c t ober 1 4 9 3

It
is another edition of t he preceding The only known
copy comple t e in four leaves is in the libra ry Of t he
British Museum A facsimile is in t he L eno x Library
1
Th
e
edi
t
ion
in
I
t
alian
verse
entitled
[
s
o
l
e
( 5)
Tr ona te N on a men te Per El Re a i Spag n a prin t ed a t
Florence and da t ed 2 6 th O f O ctober 1 4 9 5 It is in
four leaves The only known copy is in the Biblio t eca
Trivulziana a t Milan
a letter a
The
edi
t
ion
in
I
t
alian
verse
en
t
i
t
led
L
1 6
( )
,

a ellis ole

t he

ha

tr ona to

n n on a

men te

el

Re

( lis

ag n a ,

prin t ed a t Florence and da t ed 2 6 th of O c t ober 1 4 9 5

The only known copy comple t e in four leaves is in a
,

p riva t e library in N ew -" ork

The
edi
t
ion
in
Ge
r
man
p
r
in
t
ed
a
t
S
t
rasbu
r
g
by
I
( 7)
.

I N T RO DU C TI O N
Ba rtholome w K iistler in
,

I4 9

xi

in seven leaves

There

is a copy in the Lenox Librar y

B esides the printed edi t ions mentioned above
.

there
are ex t an t seve r al manuscript copies in Spanish O ne
in t he Archives of Simancas add r essed to t h e Esc ri
bano de Racion was prin t ed by N av arrete in his
,

C oleeeion a e

i ag es

M
adrid
(

V ol

I8 2

I pp
,

6 7- 1 7 5
.

I t is also described and an English synopsis given by

'
G A B erg e n ro th in t he C a len aa r of L etter s Desp a teb es
,

ana

Sta te Papers ,

Eng la n a

ana

r ela ting

Spa in

N eg otia tion s betw een

to th e

London
(

V ol

I pp
,

43 48

Ano t her manuscript in Spanish addressed t o Don

Gabriel Sanchez was discovered by V arnhagen in the
C olegio M ayo r at Cuenca and published by him a t
C olumbus also made a full report
V alencia in I 8 58
,

Of his voyage in the form O f a diary which he sent t o

the Spanish sovereigns The original O f this has no t
been found but an abridgmen t or synopsis made by
,

Bar t olome de Las Casas is ex t an t and has been printed

,

in N av arrete s

C oleeeion

The t ranscrip t Of t his manu

scrip t which was probably used by M u noz and N avar

re t e is now in the Lenox Library An English t rans

la t ion O f t his Personal N arra t ive made by Samuel

K e tt ell w as printed a t B os t on in 1 8 2 7
.

WI L B ER FO R C E EA MES

A ssis ta n t Libr a r ia n
ENO "

IB RA R" ,

May

I,

89 3

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mamas (q ap nd Ib iumoiitax at : nncnif) tan

op bilato
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it : inandita flint multo tamemaiora foz cnt ii
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mantis cofeq u: no p aterat intellectus zidb tiae
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locut: ftzos p amb ages e p iecmras m m( c
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b ac animas ialnatnmiri p z euidet L ettinur e
nos z tii p p tcr et aitgtioii e noitre dei tnm,p e
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b z iitianitas eitfume
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t a pticepa lb ec vt gcita inn: iic b z euiter snare

v
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Mercer s
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(EpigramaJRJLme iCozb ariaiEp iicopi

lniii
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Eliasp arumtantis virib loz b'is erat

inunc l onge iEois r egio oepz enia inb vndis :

etice magne tuos
uctura eit titulos
C
( zlndc rep ertoz imcrito r efer enda oliibo
ratiazi} fummo cit maioz b ab daoeo:
@ uivinceda p arat nona regnatlblCBiibiqs;
Z ea: iimulfoz icmpz citat aeiieplum.

TRA NSLATI ON

TH E

DI SC O V ERED I SLA N DS

L ette r O f Ch ristophe r Columbus to whom our age

ow es much concerning the islands recently discove r ed
1
in the I ndian sea
For the sea r ch Of which eight
month s b efo r e h e w as sent unde r th e auspices and at
the cost O f th e most in v incible Ferdinand king O f
2
Spain
Add r essed to th e magnicen t lord Rapha el
3
San x is t r easu r e r O f th e same most illust rious king an d
w hich th e noble and lea rned man Leande r de C O SC O
has tr anslated from th e Spanish language into La t in
4
14 3
the
rst
on the thi r d O f the kalends of May
9
year Of the p on tic ate of Ale x ander t he Six th
,

EC A U SE my undertakings have a t tained

su c

ess I know tha t it will b e pleasing to you :

thes e I have determined to rela t e so that
u may be made acquainted with every t hing done
o
y
and discov ered in this ou r voyage O n the thi rt y -t hird
5
day afte r I depa r ted from Cadiz I came to th e In
dian sea w here I found many islands inhabited by
c

In t he o the r ed ti ons th i s pa rt of the sen tence reads concern i n g the i s

l ands f Ind i a beyond the G an g es recen tly d i sco e red
The name f Isabe ll a ( H li b ) i s al so om itted i n the titl e of one f
Pl
k ed iti ons it i s found i n th e w ot he r R o man ed iti ons
The co rrec t fo rm i s G ab ri el S anche
A p ril 9 h
A m i s tak e o f th e La ti n t ansla t or C olumbus sail ed fro m Palo s o n the 3 d
of A u g us t 49 o n the 8th o f S ep t embe r he l e ft the Cana i es and o n the h
of O c tobe r or thirty-th ree days l a te r h e reach ed th e B ahamas
1

an n c

sa

et

T RA N S LA TI O N

men without numbe r O f all w hich I took p os session

for our most fo rtunate king w i t h p r oclaiming he r alds
and ying standa r ds n o on e obj ecting TO th e rst
O f these I gave the name of the blessed Saviou r 1
on wh ose aid r elying I had r eache d this as w ell as
the othe r islands B ut the Indians c all it Guana
h an y
I also called each on e of th e others by a new
name For I o r de r ed on e island to be called Santa
2
3
M aria O f th e Conception anothe r F ern an din a an
4
5
oth er Isab ella anothe r Juana and so on with t he
rest As soon as we had a rrived at t ha t island which
I have j ust n ow said was called Juana I proceeded
along its coast towa rds th e w est fo r some dis t ance ; I
found it so large and wi thout p e r ceptible end that
I believed it to b e not an island but the con t inen t al
6
country Of C athay ; seei ng howeve r no towns or
cities si t ua t ed on the sea -coas t but only some villages
and r ude farms wi t h whose inhabitants I was u n abl e
to conve rse because as soon as t hey saw us t hey took
ight I proceeded farthe r thinking that I would dis
cover some C ity or large r esidences At leng th per
that no thing
c eiv in g that we had gone fa r enough
new app eared and t hat this way was leading us to t he
nort h which I wished to avoid because i t was win t e r
,

In S pan i sh S an S al ad or o ne f the B ahama i slands I t has been a i

d
ly i den ti ed w ith G r and Tu rk Ca t W li g Ma ri uana S amana
A ck li n i sl ands W li g Island seems to ha e much i n its fa or
Pe rh aps C rook ed Is l and o r acco r d i n g t o o the rs N o rth Ca i c o
Iden ti ed by some with L on g Isl and by o the rs ith Littl e Inag ua
Iden tied a ri ous l y w ith Fo tune Island and Great Inag ua
The i s l and of Cuba
Chi na
1

ou s

at

ai

an

T RA N SLA TION

th e lan d an d it w as my intention to go to the s ou th

mo r eove r th e w inds we r e becoming violent I the r e fo r e
dete rmined that no oth e r plans we r e p r acticable and
so going back I r eturned to a ce r tain bay tha t I had
no t iced from which I sent tw o o f ou r men to the land
that they migh t nd ou t whether th ere was a king in
this count ry or any C ities The se men t r aveled for
th r ee days and they found people and h o uses witho u t
n umbe r but t hey we r e small and without any gove r n
ment t herefo r e they r eturned N ow in th e meantime
I had lea r ned fr om ce r tain Indians w hom I had
s eized the r e that this count r y was indeed an islan d
and t he r efo r e I p r oceeded towa rds t h e east keeping
all the time nea r th e coast for 3 2 2 miles to the e x
t r eme ends O f t his island
From this place I sa w
anothe r island to th e east distant from this J uana
1
miles
which
I
called
fo
r
thwith
H
ispana
and
I
4
;
5
sailed to it ; and I stee r e d along t he no r thern coast as
at J uana t o w a r ds th e east 564 miles And the said
J uana and th e othe r islands the r e appear very fe rtile
This island is su rr ounded by many ve ry safe and wide
ha rbo r s n ot e x celled by any othe r s t hat I have eve r
seen M any gr eat and salub rious rivers ow t hrough
it The r e a r e also many ve ry high mountains the r e
All these islands a r e ve ry b eau tiful and distinguishe d
by va rious qualities ; they a r e accessible an d full Of a
h
t
e
f
o
r
e
t
va
r
ie
t
y
t
r
ees
st
r
etching
up
th
e
sta
r
s
a
o
t
;
g
le aves of which I b elieve a r e neve r shed for I sa w them
as g r e en an d ou rishing as th ey a r e usually in Spai n
1 H ispa io la
H ay ti
on

or

A N SLA TION

TR

month of M ay ; some O f them w e r e blos soming

some were bea ring fr ui t some were in othe r condi
tions ; each on e was th riving in its own way The
nightingale and va rious oth e r bi r ds wi t hout numb e r
were singing in the mon t h Of N ovember when I w as
explo ring them There ar e besides in the said islan d
J uana seven or eight kin ds Of palm trees which fa r
excel ours in height and beauty j ust as all the o t he r
t r ees herbs and fruits do The r e a r e also excellent
pine t rees vast plains and meadows a va riety ofbirds
a va rie t y of honey and a varie t y of metals excepting
i r on I n the on e which w as calle d Hispana as w e
said above th ere are g r eat and b eautiful mountains
vast elds groves fe rtile plains very suitable for
n g Of h ouses
lanting
and
cultivating
and
fo
r
the
buildi
p
The convenience Of t he ha rbo rs in this island and th e
r ema rkable number Of rive r s contributing to t he health
fulness of man e x ceed belief unless on e has seen them
The t r ees pastu r age and fruits Of this island di ffe r
greatly from t hose Of Juana This H ispana mo r eove r
abounds in different kinds Of spice s in gold and in
me t als O n this island indeed and on all the o t he r s
which I have seen and Of which I have knowledge
th e inhabi t an t s Of both se x es go always naked j ust as
they came into the wo rl d e x cept some Of the women
wh o use a covering O f a lea f or some foliage or a
co t ton C loth which t hey make t hemselves for that pu r
p ose All these people lack as I said above eve ry
kind Of i ron ; they a r e also with out weapons wh ich
indeed a r e unkno w n ; n or a r e they comp eten t to use
in th e

T RANSL A TION

them n ot on ac c ount O f de fo rmity O f body fo r t hey

a r e well fo r med but b ecause they a r e timid and full Of
fear They carry for weapons ho wever reeds baked
in the sun on th e lowe r ends O f which they fasten
some shaft s O f dried wood r ubbed down t o a point ;
and indeed they do not venture t o u se these always ;
for it frequently happ ened w hen I sent t wo or t hree Of
my men to some Of the villages that they might speak
with t he natives a compact tr oop of th e Indians would
ma r ch out and as soon as th ey saw our men approach
ing they would quickly t ake ight C hildren being
pushed aside by th ei r fathers and fathers by thei r
child r en And this was not b ecause any hu r t o r inj ury
had been inicted on any on e of them fo r t o eve ry
on e whom I visited and wi t h whom I was able to
converse I dist ributed whatever I had cloth and
many o t her things no re t urn b eing made to me ; but
they a r e by nature fearful and t imid " et wh en t hey
p erceive t hat th ey are safe putting aside all fear t hey
are of simpl e manners and t r us t wor t hy and ve r y lib
eral with eve rything they have r efusing no one who
asks fo r any t hing they may possess and even them
selves inviting us to ask for things They sho w greate r
love for all othe rs t han for th emselves ; they give val
n able things fo r tri es b eing satised even wi t h a ve r y
small r e t urn or with nothing ; however I forbade that
things s o small and Of no value should be given to
t hem such as pieces of plates dishes and glass like
wise keys an d shoe-straps ; alth ough if they we r e able
to Obtain these it seeme d to them like getting the most
,

T RA N SL A T ION

b ea uti ful

j e w els in the w orld I t hap p en ed, in deed ,

that a ce rtain sailo r Obtained in e x change for a shoe
st r ap as much w o r th O f gold as w ould equal th r e e
n coins ; and likewise othe r things f
d
ol
e
articles
O
f
o
r
g
ve ry little value especially for ne w silve r coins an d
for some gold coins to Obtain w hich t hey gave what
ever the selle r desi r ed as for instance an ounce and a
hal f and two ounces O f gold or thi rty an d fo rty pound s
Of cotton with which they we r e al r eady acquainted
They also traded cotton and gold for pieces Of bows
bottles j ugs and j ars like pe r sons wi t hout r easo n
which I fo rbade because it was ve r y wro n g ; and I
gave to them many beau t i ful and pleasing things that
I had b r ought with me no value being take n in ex
change in order tha t I might the more easily mak e
them friendly to me that they migh t b e made wor
sh ippe r s O f Ch rist and that they might b e full o f lov e
to w a r ds our king queen and p rince and the w hol e
Spanish nation ; also t hat they might b e zealous t o
search ou t and collect and delive r to us those things
O f which they had plenty and which we g r eatly needed
These people p ractice no kind of idolat ry ; on th e c on
trary th ey rmly believe that all s tr eng th and power
and in fact all good th ings are in heaven and that I
had come down from thence wi t h t hese ships an d
s ailo r s ; and in this belie f I was r eceive d th e r e afte r
they had put aside fear Nor a r e they slo w or u n
skilled b u t of e x cellent and acute unde rstanding ; an d
th e men wh o have navigated that sea give an ac c ou n t
of everything in an admi r abl e m an n e r ; b u t th ey n ev er
.

T RA N SL A T ION

n or these kind of ship s

A
eo
le
clothe
oo
d
S
s
n
p p
as I r eached that sea I seized by fo r ce seve r al Indian s
o n the rst island in o r de r that they might lea r n fr om
us and in like manne r tell us about those things in
t hese lands O f w hich they themselves had knowledge ;
and the plan succeeded fo r in a sho r t t ime we under
stood the m and they us some t imes by gestu r es and
signs some t imes by w ords ; and it was a great a dv an
t age to us Th ey a r e coming wi t h me now yet al
ways believing that I descended from heaven although
they have b een living with us for a long time and are
living with us to -day And these men were the r st
wh o announced it whereve r we landed continually

proclaiming to the others in a loud voice

Come
Whe r e
come and you w ill see the celestial peopl e
upon both women and men bo t h children and adul t s
bo t h young men and Old men layin g aside th e fear
caused a lit t le before visited us eagerly lling the
r oad with a g r eat crowd some bringing food and
some drink wi t h g r eat love and ex t raordinary good
will O n every island there are many cano es Of a
S ingle piece Of wood ; and t hough narrow yet in
leng t h and S hape simila r t o ou r row -boats bu t swift er
in movement Th ey stee r only by oa rs Some O f
these boats are large some small some O f medium
size " et they ro w many Of th e larger row -boa t s wi t h
eighteen cross -benches with which they cross to all
those islands which are innumerable and wi t h these
boats they p er fo rm thei r trading and ca rry on commerce
amon g them I saw some O f these row-boa t s o r canoes
s aw

T RA N SLA T ION

w hich w er e carrying seventy and eighty r o w e rs In all

these i slan ds the r e is n o di ffe r ence in the appearance Of
th e p eople no r in the manners an d language but all
understand each othe r mutually ; a fact t hat is ve ry
imp o rt ant for th e end which I suppose to be ea r nes tly
desired by ou r most illust rious king that is thei r c on
ve r sion to the holy religi on Of Ch rist to which in tru t h
as fa r as I can pe r ceive they are ve ry r eady and favo r
ably inclined I said befo r e how I p r oceeded along
the island Juana in a st r aight line from wes t to east
.

miles
according
which
course
and
the
length
t
o
3
Of th e way I am able to say that this J u ana is la r ger
than England and Scotland together ; fo r b esides t he
said 3 2 2 thousand paces th e r e are two more provinces
in that part which lies towards the west w hich I did
not visit ; on e Of these th e Indians call Anan whose
inhabi t an t s a r e bo rn with tails They e x tend to 1 80
miles in leng t h as I have lea r ned from those Indians I
have w i th me who are all acquainted with th ese islands
But t he circumference O f Hispana is gr eater than all
1
This is easily
Spain from C olonia to Fon tarab ia
proved because i t s four t h side which I myself passed
along in a straight line from west to eas t ex t ends 54 0
miles This island is to b e desi r ed and is ve ry desirable
and n ot to be despised in which although as I have
said I solemnly took possession Of all the o t he r s for
and thei r government is
ou r most invincible king
entirely committed to the said king yet I especially
to ok possession O f a certain large to w n in a ve ry con
1 Fr om Ca t lo n i a by th e seacoas t t o F t b i i B i scay
22

on ara

T RA N SL A TION
v en ien t

location and adapted to all kinds O f gain and

comme r ce t o which we give the name Of o ur Lord O f
t he N a tivi t y And I commanded a fort to be buil t
there forthwith which must b e comple t ed by this t ime ;
in which I left as many men as seemed neces sary wi t h
all kinds O f a rms and plenty Of food fo r more t han a
year Likewise one caravel and for the cons t ruc t ion
Of o t hers men Skilled in t his trade and in o ther p r ofes
sions ; and also t he e x traordinary good will and friend
ship O f the king O f t his island toward us For those
people a r e very amiable and kind t o such a degree t hat
the said king gloried in calling me his bro t her And if
t hey sh ould change their mi nds and S hould wish to hurt
t hose who remained in th e for t they would not be able
because t hey lack weapons they go naked and are too
cowardly For that reason t h ose w ho hold t he said
fort are at least able to resist easily this whole island
withou t any imminen t dange r t o themselves SO long
as t hey do not transgress th e regula t ions and com
mand which we gave In all t hese islands a s I have
understood each man is content wi t h only one wife
excep t the princes or kings who a r e permi t ted t o
have twenty
Th e women appea r to work more
than t he men
I was not able to nd ou t surely
whe t her th ey have individual property for I saw t ha t
on e man had the du t y O f dis tribu t ing t o t he others
especially refreshmen t s food and t hings O f that kind
I found no monstrosities among t hem as ve ry many
supposed but men Of great reverence and friendly
N or a r e t h ey black lik e th e Ethiopians
They have
,

T R A N S LA TI O N

IO

st raight hai r hanging down

They do n ot r emain
w here th e sola r r ays send out the heat for the str eng th
Of th e sun is ve ry great he r e because it is distan t fr om
th e equinoctial line as it seems only twenty -si x de
grees O n t he tops of the mountains too the cold is
s evere but t he Indians howeve r mode rate it pa rtly
by being accustomed to the place and partly by the
help Of very h ot victuals O f which they eat frequently
and immode r a t ely And so I did n ot see any m on
str osity n or did I have knowledge Of them any w he r e
1
w hich is the
ex cepting a certai n island named Cha ris
This island
second in passing fr om Hispana to India
is inhabited by a certain p eople wh o are considered
ve ry w arlike by their neighbors
These eat human
esh The said people have many kinds Of r ow-boats
in which they cross over to all the o ther Indian is
lands and seize and carry away every thing that they
can They diffe r in no way fr om the othe r s only that
they wear long hai r like the w omen They use b ows
and darts made of reeds wi t h sha rpened shafts fas
tened to the large r end as we have desc ribed O n
this account t hey are considered warlike wh erefore th e
other Indians are a ficted wi t h con t inual fear but I
regard th em as Of no more account than the o t he r s
These are th e people w h o visit ce r tain women wh o
alone inhabit the islan d Mateun in w hich is the rst
in passing from Hispana to India
These women
moreover p e rfo rm no kind Of work O f th ei r sex for
t hey u se b ows an d da rts like those I have described
1 Iden ti ed wit h Dom i n i ca
2 S upp o sed t o be Ma tin i q ue
.

T RA N S LA TI O N

I1

Of thei r husbands ; they p r otect themselves w ith S heets

of C oppe r o f which there is g r eat abundance among
them They tell me O f anothe r island g r eate r than t he
aforesaid H ispana w hose inhabi t ants are without hair
and which abounds in gold above all t he o thers I
am bringing with me men o f t his island and O f t he
others that I have seen who give proof Of th e t hings
tha t I have describ ed Finally t hat I may compress
in few words the brief accoun t O f o u r depar t ure and
quick retu rn and the gain I promise t his t ha t if I am
supported by ou r most invincible sovereigns wi t h a lit
t le O f th ei r help as much gold can be supplied as t hey
will need indeed as much O f S pices Of cot t on O f chew
ing gum ( which is only found in Chios ) also as much
Of aloes wood and as many slaves for t he navy as
their maj esties will wish to demand
Likewise rhu
barb and othe r kinds Of S pices which I suppose these
men whom I left in the said fort have already fou n d
and will continue t o nd ; since I remained in no
place longe r than th e winds forced me except in the
t own O f th e N ativi ty while I provided for the building
O f t he for t and for the safety Of all Which th ings
although they a r e very g r ea t and r emarkable ye t t hey
would have been much g r ea t er if I had b een aided
by as many ships as the occasion r equired
Truly
great and wonderful is this and not corresponding t o
o ur me rits but t o the holy Chris t ian religion and to
the piety and r eligion O f our sovereigns because what
t he human understanding could not attain t hat th e
divine will has granted to human effor t s For God is
,

T RA N S LA TI O N

I2

wont to listen to his servants who love his p r ecepts

even in impossibilities as has happened to us on t he
resen
t
occasion
who
have
a
tt
ained
tha
t
w
hich
hither
t
o
p
mo r t al men have neve r reached For if any one has
written or said any thing about these islands i t was all
with Obscu rities and conj ectu r es ; no one C laims tha t
he had seen them ; fr om which they seemed like fables
The r efore let the king and queen the p rinces and t hei r
most fo rt unate kingdoms and all other countries Of
Chris t endom give t hanks to o ur Lord and Saviour
J esus Ch ris t who has bes t owed upon us so great a
v ictory and gift
Let religious p r ocessions be solem
n iz e d ; let sacred festivals be given ; let t he church es be
Let Chris t rej oice on
c overed wi t h festive garlands
e ar t h as h e rej oices in h eaven when he foresees com
in g t o salvation so many souls Of people hither t o los t
Let us b e glad also as well on account Of t he exal t a
tion Of our faith as on account Of th e increase Of our
temporal affairs of which n ot only Spain but universal
Ch ris t endom will b e pa rtake r These things that have
b een done are thus b riey r ela t ed Fa r ewell Lisbon
1
the day before the ides of M arch
,

Christophe r Columbus admiral Of the

,

a rc h 4th

1 49 3

O cean eet

T RA N SL A T IO N
Epigram

Pe loso

of

I3

R L de Corba ria , bishop

of

M on t e

TO

the most invincible K ing

of

Spain

NO region now can add to Spain s great deeds :

To such men all the wo rld is yet too small

An Orien t land found fa r beyond the waves
Will add great B etica t o thy renown
Then to Columbus the t r ue nde r give
Du e t hanks ; b ut greater s t ill to Go d on high ;
Wh o makes new kingdoms for himself and thee :
B oth rm and pious let thy conduct be
.