Part 17 (1/2)

It is curious to reroup of islands--now part of the Malay Archipelago and belonging to the Dutch--to the explorers of the sixteenth century Strange tales as usual reached Portugal about these newly found lands Here lived s with horns, hens that laid their eggs nine feet under ground, rivers with living fish, yet so hot that they took the skin off any man that bathed in their waters, poisonous crabs, oysters with shells so large that they served as fonts for baptizing children

Truly these uese 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

CHAPTER XXVI

BALBOA SEES THE PACIFIC OCEAN

It is said that Ferdinand Magellan, the hero of all geographical discovery, with his circuation 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 shi+pwreck, of war and wandering,” inaction became iation He drea _west_, and after a tial Whether he was laughed at as a dreamer or a fool we know not His plans were received with cold refusal History repeats itself Like Christopher Colual 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 Aators, Pinzon, Mendoza, Bastidas, Juan de la Cosa, and Solis--these and others had almost coht have been the first to see the great Pacific Ocean had he not been killed and eaten at the reat discovery was left to Vasco Nunez de Balboa, who first saw beyond the strange New World froht on to the limitation of land that ellan

Balboa was ”a gentlereat parts, liberal education, of a fine person, and in the flower of his age” He had eot into debt No debtor was allowed to leave the island, but Balboa, the gentleood family, yearned for further exploration; he ”yearned beyond the sky-line where the strange roads go down” And one day the yearning grew so great that he concealed hi the shores of Hayti For some days he remained hidden

When the shi+p ell out to sea he ry that he threatened to land the stoay on a desert island He was, however, touched by the entreaties of the crew, and Balboa was allowed to sail on in the shi+p It was a fortunate decision, for when, soon after, the shi+p ran heavily upon a rock, it was the Spanish stoay Balboa who saved the party from destruction

He led the shi+pwrecked 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 routed, and then went to the tohich they found full of provisions to their wish Next day theyreat deal of cotton, both spun and unspun, plates of gold in all to the value of ten thousand pieces of fine gold”

A trade in gold was set up by Balboa, who becaovernor of the new colony forners quite disgusted the native prince 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 ht your ith great kings whose country is distant fro, he pointed away to the south, where he said lay a great sea Balboa resolved to find this great sea It ht by Colureat riches where people drank out of golden cups So he collected some two hundred er He had to lead his troops, ith fatigue and disease, through deep marshes rendered impassable with heavy rains, over h defiles from which the Indians showered down poisoned arrows

At last, led by native guides, Balboa and his h mountain When near the top he bade his ht 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, bathed in tropical sunshi+ne Falling on his knees, he thanked God for his discovery of the Southern Sea Then he called up his entlemen and children mine, the end of our labours”

The notes of the ”Te Deu 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 hied in, sword in hand, and clai of Spain The natives told him that the land to the south ithout end_, and that it was possessed by powerful nations who had abundance of gold And Balboa thought this referred to the Indies, knowing nothing as yet of the riches of Peru

[Illustration: ONE OF THE FIRST MAPS OF THE PACIFIC Froo Ribero's map, 1529]

It is reat discovery was publicly hanged four years later in Darien But his news had reached Magellan There was then a great Southern Ocean beyond the New World He was more certain than ever now 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 proreat new continent ard to these islands His proposal was accepted by Charles V, and the youthful Spanish reat 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 hty uese, Genoese, French, Gerlishman only There were five shi+ps ”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 Canaries in theellan hoisted his flag on board the _Trinidad_ of one hundred and ten tons' burden The largest shi+p, _S Antonio_, was captained by a Spaniard--Cartagena; the _Conception_, ninety tons, by Gaspar Quesada; the _Victoria_ of eighty-five tons, who alone bore hoation of the world, was at first coo_, seventy-five tons, under the brother of Magellan's old friend Serrano

What if the co wife and a son of sixthe Spanish flag for the first tiellan, on board the _Trinidad_, led his little fleet away froain Before three years had passed all three were dead

Carrying a torch or faggot of burning wood on the poop, so that the shi+ps should never lose sight of it, the _Trinidad_ sailed onwards