the northeast, and the current setting to the northeast. The people
in the Nina told the admiral that they had seen the day before a heron,
and another bird which they called _rabo-de-junco._ These were the first
birds which had been seen during the voyage, and were considered as
indications of approaching land. But they were more agreeably surprised
next day, Sunday, September 16th, by seeing great abundance of yellowish
green sea-weeds, which appeared as if newly washed away from some rock
or island. Next day the seaweed was seen in much greater quantity, and a
small live lobster was observed among the weeds; from this circumstance
many affirmed that they were certainly near the land.

The sea-water was afterward noticed to be only half so salt as before;
and great numbers of tunny-fish were seen swimming about, some of which
came so near the vessel that one was killed by a bearded iron. Being now
three hundred sixty leagues west from Ferro, another of the birds called
rabo-de-junco was seen. On Tuesday, September 18th, Martin Alonso Pinzon,
who had gone ahead of the admiral, in the Pinta, which was an excellent
sailer, lay to for the admiral to come up, and told him that he had seen
a great number of birds fly away westward, for which reason he was in
great hopes to see land that night;

Pinzon even thought that he saw land that night about fifteen leagues
distant to the northward, which appeared very black and covered with
clouds. All the people would have persuaded the admiral to try for land
in that direction; but, being certainly assured that it was not land,
and having not yet reached the distance at which he expected to find the
land, he would not consent to lose time in altering his course in that
direction. But as the wind now freshened, he gave orders to take in the
topsails at night, having now sailed eleven days before the wind due
westward with all their sails up.

All the people in the squadron being utterly unacquainted with the seas
they now traversed, fearful of their danger at such unusual distance from
any relief, and seeing nothing around but sky and water, began to mutter
among themselves, and anxiously observed every appearance. On September
19th a kind of sea-gull called _alcatras_ flew over the admiral's ship,
and several others were seen in the afternoon of that day, and, as the
admiral conceived that these birds would not fly far from land, he
entertained hopes of soon seeing what he was in