tell Columbus. But by the "narrow place" they meant narrow land, not
narrow water; not a strait which connected but an isthmus which divided
the two seas, not the Strait of Malacca, but the Isthmus of Darien![613]
Columbus, of course, understood them to mean the strait for which he was
looking, and in his excitement at approaching the long-expected goal he
pressed on without waiting to verify the reports of gold mines in the
neighbourhood, a thing that could be done at any time.[614] By the 5th
of December, however, having reached a point on the isthmus, a few
leagues east of Puerto Bello, without finding the strait, he yielded to
the remonstrances of the crews, and retraced his course to Veragua. If
the strait could not be found, the next best tidings to carry home to
Spain would be the certain information of the discovery of gold mines,
and it was decided to make a settlement here which might serve as a base
for future operations. Three months of misery followed. Many of the
party were massacred by the Indians, the stock of food was nearly
exhausted, and the ships were pierced by worms until it was feared there
would be no means left for going home. Accordingly, it was decided to
abandon the enterprise and return to Hispaniola.[615] In order to allow
for the strong westerly currents in the Caribbean sea, the Admiral first
sailed eastward almost to the gulf of Darien, and then turned to the
north. The allowance was not enough, however. The ships were again
carried into the Queen's Gardens, where they were caught in a storm and
nearly beaten to pieces. At length, on St. John's eve, June 23, 1503,
the crazy wrecks--now full of water and unable to sail another
league--were beached on the coast of Jamaica and converted into a sort
of rude fortress; and while two trusty men were sent over to San Domingo
in a canoe, to obtain relief, Columbus and his party remained
shipwrecked in Jamaica. They waited there a whole year before it proved
possible to get any relief from Ovando. He was a slippery knave, who
knew how to deal out promises without taking the first step toward
fulfilment.

[Footnote 612: Navarrete, _Coleccion de viages_, tom. i. p.
299.]

[Footnote 613: _Vita dell' Ammiraglio_, cap. lxxxix.; Humboldt,
_Examen Critique_, tom. i. p. 350.]

[Footnote 614: "Nothing could evince more clearly his generous
ambition than hurrying in this brief manner along a coast whe