.S.
.S.A.S.
XMY
Xpo FERENS."

Document of COLUMBUS addressed to his Son, DIEGO, and intended to
accompany the preceding letter.

"A memorandum for you, my very dear son, Don Diego, of what occurs
to me at the present time which must be done:--The principal thing
is, affectionately and with great devotion to commend the soul of
the Queen, our Lady, to God. Her life was always Catholic and Holy
and ready for all the things of His holy service, and for this
reason it must be believed that she is in His holy glory and beyond
the desires of this rough and wearisome world. Then the next thing
is to be watchful and exert one's self in the service of the King,
our Lord, and to strive to keep him from being troubled. His
Highness is the head of Christendom. See the proverb which says
that when the head aches, all the members ache. So that all good
Christians should entreat that he may have long life and health: and
those of us who are obliged to serve him more than others must join
in this supplication with great earnestness and diligence. This
reason prompts me now with my severe illness to write you what I am
writing here, that his Highness may dispose matters for his service:
and for the better fulfilment I am sending your brother there, who,
although he is a child in days, is not a child in understanding; and
I am sending your uncle and Carbajal, so that if this, my writing,
is not sufficient, they, together with yourself, can furnish verbal
evidence. In my opinion there is nothing so necessary for the
service of his Highness as the disposition and remedying of the
affair of the Indies.

"His Highness must now have there more than 40,000 or 50,000 gold
pieces. I learned when I was there that the Governor had no desire
to send it to him. It is believed among the other people as well
that there will be 150,000 pesos more, and the mines are very rich
and productive. Most of the people there are common and ignorant,
and care very little for the circumstances. The Governor is very
much hated by all of them, and it is to be feared that they may at
some tim