the admiral,
lived at the little coast village of Quinto, near Genoa, and had three
sons--Juan Antonio, Mateo, and Amighetto. When these cousins heard of the
greatness and renown of Christopher, they thought at least one of them
might get some benefit from his prosperity. So the younger ones gave all
the little money they could scrape together to enable the eldest to go to
Spain. His illustrious kinsman welcomed him with affection, and as he
was a sailor he received charge of a caravel, in which trust he proved
himself, as Las Casas tells us, to be careful, efficient, and fit for
command. The three vessels sailed from Gomera direct for Espanola on June
21st. Columbus continued his voyage of discovery with one vessel and two
caravels. Pero Alonzo Nino, the pilot of the Nina in the first voyage,
was with him. Herman Perez Matteos was another pilot, and there were a
few other old shipmates in the squadron. The admiral touched at Buena
Vista, one of the Cape de Verd Islands, remaining at anchor for a few
days, and on July 5th he sailed away into the unknown ocean, for many
days on a south-west course. His intention was to go south as far as the
latitude of Sierra Leone, 8 deg. 30' N., and then to steer west until he
reached land.

After ten days the vessels were in regions of calms, and the people began
to suffer from the intense heat. The sun melted the tar of the rigging,
and the seams of the decks began to open. For days and days the scorching
heat continued, but at length there were some refreshing showers, and
light breezes sprang up from the west. But their progress was very slow,
and their stock of water nearly exhausted. So the admiral ordered the
course to be altered to northwest, in hopes of reaching Dominica. It was
July 31st, the people were parched with thirst, and yet no land had been
seen. In the afternoon of that day the admiral's servant, Alonzo Perez
of Huelva, went to the masthead, and reported land in the shape of three
separate peaks. Columbus had declared his intention of naming the first
land sighted after the Holy Trinity, and the coincidence of its appearing
in the form of three peaks made a deep impression on his mind. The island
of Trinidad retains its name to this day. The admiral gave heartfelt
thanks to God, and all the crews chanted the _Salve Regina_ and other
hymns of prayer and praise. Meanwhile the little squadron glided through
the water, approaching the newly discovered land, and Columbus