northward that he saw land west from that island. Vincent Diaz, a
Portuguese pilot of Tavira, said that one morning, on his return from
Guinea, he thought he saw an island under the parallel of Madeira. Diaz
discovered the secret to a merchant, who procured the leave of the king of
Portugal to fit out a ship for the discovery, and sent advice to his
brother Francis de Cazana to fit out one at Seville, and put it under the
command of Diaz. But Francis Cazana refusing, Diaz returned to Tercera,
where he procured a ship, with the assistance of Luke de Cazana, and went
out two or three times above an hundred leagues to the west, but found
nothing. To these may be added, the attempts made by Caspar and Michael de
Cortereal, sons to him who discovered the island of Tenera; but they were
lost in searching for this land. Yet all these particulars contributed to
encourage Columbus to undertake the enterprise; for, when Providence has
decreed the accomplishment of any thing, it disposes the means, and
provides the proper instruments.

[1] This is the person usually called Behain.--E.

[2] Rather Newfoundland.--E.

SECTION III.

_Columbus proposes his Design to the King and Queen of Spain; which, after
many Repulses, is adopted by the Queen_[1].

The reason why Columbus gave the name of Indies to those new found
countries, was on purpose to excite the princes he had to deal with to
fall into his proposals, as he proposed to find gold, silver, and pearls,
and those drugs and spices which are not produced in our countries, and
therefore he concluded, that his discoveries might vie with the East
Indies, give reputation to his design, and add weight to his proposals.
Besides, it was his design to discover the east by way of the west; and as
the East Indies lay in the remotest part of the east, going eastwards,
which he meant to discover in a western course, it might well be called
India. After the actual discovery, and when both New Spain and Peru were
found out, the name was made plural, and the new world was called the West
Indies. These West Indies are the countries comprehended within the limits
assigned to the crown of Castile and Leon, consisting of one hemisphere,
or half the globe, being 180 degrees of longitude. These limits commenced
at a meridian, 30 or 40 degrees westwards from that of the city of Toledo,
and proceeded from thence to the west; so that allowing 17-1/2 leagues to
a degree, this allotment conta