. Their Highnesses approve; and the note in the margin is, "This is
well, and so it must be done."

Then comes a paragraph about provisions, and a marginal order from the
sovereigns, "that Juan de Fonseca is to provide for that matter."

Again, there comes another paragraph about provisions, complaining,
amongst other things, that the casks, in which the wine for the armada had
been put, were leaky. Their Highnesses make an order in the margin, "that
Juan de Fonseca is to find out the persons who played this cheat with the
wine casks, and to make good from their pockets the loss, and to see that
the canes" (sugar canes for planting, possibly) "are good, and that all
that is here asked for, be provided immediately."

CASTILIAN INTERPRETERS.

So far, nothing can run more pleasantly with the main document than the
notes in the margin. Columbus now touches upon a matter which intimately
concerns the subject of slavery. He desires his agent to inform their
Highnesses that he has sent home some Indians from the Cannibal Islands as
slaves, to be taught Castilian, and to serve afterwards as interpreters,
so that the work of conversion may go on. His arguments in support of this
proceeding are weighty. He speaks of the good that it will be to take
these people away from cannibalism and to have them baptized, for so they
will gain their souls, as he expresses it. Then, too, with regard to the
other Indians, he remarks, "we shall have great credit from them, seeing
that we can capture and make slaves of these cannibals, of whom they (the
peaceable Indians) entertain so great a fear." Such arguments must be
allowed to have much force in them; and it may be questioned whether many
of those persons who, in these days, are the strongest opponents of
slavery, would then have had that perception of the impending danger of
its introduction which the sovereigns appear to have entertained, from
their answer to this part of the document. "This is very well, and so it
must be done; but let the admiral see whether it could not be managed
there" (i.e. in the Cannibal Islands) "that they should be brought to our
Holy Catholic Faith, and the same thing with the Indians of those islands
where he is."

SLAVERY PROPOSED.

The admiral's despatch goes much further: in the next paragraph he boldly
suggests that, for the advantage of the souls of these cannibal Indians,
the more of them that could be taken the better; and that, considering