Porto Rico, where they put in to the sunny
harbour which they had discovered on a former voyage.

It was at this point that Columbus determined, contrary to his precise
orders, to stand across to Espanola. The place attracted him like a
magnet; he could not keep away from it; and although he had a good enough
excuse for touching there, it is probable that his real reason was a very
natural curiosity to see how things were faring with his old enemy
Bobadilla. The excuse was that the Gallega, Bartholomew's ship, was so
unseaworthy as to be a drag on the progress of the rest of the fleet and
a danger to her own crew. In the slightest sea-way she rolled almost
gunwale under, and would not carry her sail; and Columbus's plan was to
exchange her for a vessel out of the great fleet which he knew had by
this time reached Espanola and discharged its passengers.

He arrived off the harbour of San Domingo on the 29th of June in very
threatening weather, and immediately sent Pedro de Terreros ashore with a
message to Ovando, asking to be allowed to purchase or exchange one of
the vessels that were riding in the harbour, and also leave to shelter
his own vessels there during the hurricane which he believed to be
approaching. A message came back that he was neither permitted to buy a
ship nor to enter the harbour; warning him off from San Domingo, in fact.

With this unfavourable message Terreros also brought back the news of the
island. Ovando had been in San Domingo since the 15th of April, and had
found the island in a shocking state, the Spanish population having to a
man devoted itself to idleness, profligacy, and slave-driving. The only
thing that had prospered was the gold-mining; for owing to the licence
that Bobadilla had given to the Spaniards to employ native labour to an
unlimited extent there had been an immense amount of gold taken from the
mines. But in no other respect had island affairs prospered, and Ovando
immediately began the usual investigation. The fickle Spaniards, always
unfaithful to whoever was in authority over them, were by this time tired
of Bobadilla, in spite of his leniency, and they hailed the coming of
Ovando and his numerous equipment with enthusiasm. Bobadilla had also by
this time, we may suppose, had enough of the joys of office; at any rate
he showed no resentment at the coming of the new Governor, and handed
over the island with due ceremony. The result of the investigation of
Ov