caravels coming here, who shall forbid the said caravels to stop at
any other place or island than this place, where the loading and
unloading of all the merchandise must be done. And further, their
Highnesses will be able to establish their rights over these slaves
which are taken from here yonder to Spain. And you will bring or
send a reply to this, in order that the necessary preparations may
be made here with more confidence if it appears well to their
Highnesses.

["This project must be held in abeyance for the present until
another method is suggested from there, and the Admiral may
write what he thinks in regard to it.]

"Item. Also you will say to their Highnesses that it is more
profitable and costs less to hire the vessels as the merchants hire
them for Flanders, by tons, rather than in any other manner:
therefore I charged you to hire the two caravels which you are to
send here, in this manner: and all the others which their Highnesses
send here can be hired thus, if they consider it for their service
but I do not intend to say this of those vessels which are to come
here with their licence, for the slave trade.

["Their Highnesses order Don Juan de Fonseca to hire the
caravels in this manner if it can be done.]

"Item. You will say to their Highnesses, that to avoid any further
cost, I bought these caravels of which you are taking a memorandum
in order to retain them here with these two ships: that is to say
the Gallega and that other, the Capitana, of which I likewise
purchased the three-eighths from the master of it, for the price
given in the said memorandum which you are taking, signed by my
hand. These ships not only will give authority and great security
to the people who are obliged to remain inland and make arrangements
with the Indians to gather the gold, but they will also be of
service in any other dangerous matter which may arise with a strange
people; besides the caravels are necessary for the discovery of the
mainland and the other islands which lie between here and there: and
you will entreat their Highnesses to order the maravedis which these
ships cost, paid at the times which they have been promised, because
without doubt they will soon receive what they cost, according to
what