to investigate matters, and give me a true report; and, if
necessary, to put limits to the authority which you were accused of
overstepping. If you were found guilty of the charges, he was to relieve
you of the government and to send you to Spain to give an account of your
stewardship. This was the extent of his commission. I find that I have
made a bad choice in my agent; and I will take care to make an example of
Bobadilla, which shall serve as a warning to others not to exceed their
powers. I cannot, however, promise to re-instate you at once in your
government. People are too much inflamed against you, and must have time
to cool. As to your rank of admiral, I never intended to deprive you of
it. But you must bide your time and trust in me."

THE QUEEN'S DECISION; BOBADILLA'S TYRANNY

It was arranged that the appointment of the new governor should be for two
years only, at the expiration of which period, as Isabella thought, the
administration of the colonies might be again entrusted to Columbus; while
Ferdinand doubtless considered that some pretext might be found in the
meantime for omitting to re-appoint him at all. And though Columbus may
have been told verbally that it was their Highnesses' intention to
re-instate him after the lapse of two years, it is noteworthy that the
document appointing Ovando makes no mention of any limitation of the term
of his (Ovando's) government. The words are, "that he is to be governor as
long as it is their Highnesses' will and pleasure." Bobadilla, fortunately
for the islanders, was forthwith to be superseded; for, if Columbus had
chastised them with whips, Bobadilla was chastising them with scorpions.
His first object was the discovery of gold; and to secure this he took a
census of the natives, and assigned them all as slaves to the colonists. A
large proportion of the latter, as we have seen, were simply the scourings
of Spanish prisons; and the brutality with which these men treated their
wretched helots was very terrible. Some estimate of the amount of pressure
employed may be formed from the fact that, although Bobadilla had reduced
the royalty payable to the Sovereigns from one-third to one-eleventh of
the gold found, this smaller proportion produced a larger revenue. In
other words, about four times as much gold was discovered under
Bobadilla's system as under that of Columbus.

OVANDO AS GOVERNOR

But when the Sovereigns heard of the cruelties which that system