h, steering to the westward and touching
at La Navidad before he bore away to the island of Cuba, the southern
shore of which it was now his intention to explore. At one of his first
anchorages he discovered a native feast going on, and when the boats from
his ships pulled ashore the feasters fled in terror--the hungry Spaniards
finishing their meal for them. Presently, however, the feasters were
induced to come back, and Columbus with soft speeches made them a
compensation for the food that had been taken, and produced a favourable
impression, as his habit was; with the result that all along the coast he
was kindly received by the natives, who supplied him with food and fresh
fruit in return for trinkets. At the harbour now known as Santiago de
Cuba, where he anchored on May 2nd, he had what seemed like authentic
information of a great island to the southward which was alleged to be
the source of all the gold. The very compasses of Columbus's ships seem
by this time to have become demagnetised, and to have pointed only to
gold; for no sooner had he heard this report than he bore away to the
south in pursuit of that faint yellow glitter that had now quite taken
the place of the original inner light of faith.

The low coast of Jamaica, hazy and blue at first, but afterwards warming
into a golden belt crowned by the paler and deeper greens of the foliage,
was sighted first by Columbus on Sunday, May 4th; and he anchored the
next day in the beautiful harbour of Saint Anne, to which he gave the
name of Santa Gloria. To the island itself he gave the name of Santiago,
which however has never displaced its native name of Jamaica. The dim
blue mountains and clumps of lofty trees about the bay were wonderful
even to Columbus, whose eyes must by this time have been growing
accustomed to the beauty of the West Indies, and he lost his heart to
Jamaica from the first moment that his eyes rested on its green and
golden shores. Perhaps he was by this time a little out of conceit with
Hayti; but be that as it may he retracted all the superlatives he had
ever used for the other lands of his discovery, and bestowed them in his
heart upon Jamaica.

He was not humanly so well received as he had been on the other islands,
for when he cast anchor the natives came out in canoes threatening
hostilities and had to be appeased with red caps and hawks' bells. Next
day, however, Columbus wished to careen his ships, and sailed a little to