on he resolved upon a policy of
conciliation. The unsettled state of affairs was bringing ruin on the
island, and the restoration of peace was an absolute necessity. The
magnanimous Genoese was incapable of personal resentment. The men
themselves were, indeed, beneath his contempt; but he felt bound to treat
with them, and even to make great concessions, if necessary, for the good
of the public service. The welfare of the colony was his sole object, and
he did not hesitate to sacrifice every personal feeling to his sense of
duty. It is with some impatience that one finds the grand schemes of
discovery and colonization interrupted by such contemptible means, and
the course of the narrative checked by the necessity for recording,
however briefly, the paltry dissensions of vile miscreants such as Roldan
and his crew.

The mutineers were most unwilling to make any agreement. They were
leading the sort of lawless and licentious life that exactly suited them,
and were disinclined to submit to any authority. The interests of
their leaders, however, were not quite the same, and the acceptance of
advantageous terms would suit them. Carbajal was employed by the admiral
to conduct the negotiations, while the veteran Ballester returned to
Spain in November, 1498, with the news of the rebellion, and a request
from the admiral that a learned and impartial judge might be sent out to
decide all disputes.

It was finally agreed that Roldan should return to his duty, still
retaining the office of chief justice; that all past offences should be
condoned, and that he and his followers should receive grants of land,
with the services of the Indians. The admiral consented to these terms
most unwillingly, and under the conviction that this was the only way to
avoid the greater evil of civil dissension. He resolved, however, that
any future outbreak must be firmly and vigorously suppressed by force.
Although Roldan had now resumed his position as a legitimate official
ready to maintain order, it could hardly be expected that his fatal
example would not be followed by other unprincipled men of the same stamp
when the opportunity offered.

Trouble arose owing to the conduct of a young Castilian named Hernando
de Guevara. Roldan was established in Xaragua, when the youthful gallant
arrived at the house of his cousin, Adrian de Mujica, one of the
ringleaders in Roldan's mutiny, and fell in love with Higueymota, the
daughter of Anacaona. Guevara