d that night. On purpose farther to rouse their vigilance, besides
putting them in mind of the promised annuity of 10,000 maravedies from the
king to him who might first see land, he engaged to give from himself a
velvet doublet to the discoverer.

_About ten o'clock at night of Thursday the 11th October_ 1492, as
Columbus was sitting on the poop of his vessel, he espied a light; on
which he privately called upon Peter Gutierrez, a groom of the kings privy
chamber, and desired him to look at the light, which he said he saw. He
then called Roderigo Sanchez de Segovia, inspector of the fleet, who could
not discern the light; but it was afterwards seen twice, and looked like a
candle which was lifted up and then held down; so that Columbus had no
doubt of it being a real light on land, and it afterwards turned out to
have been a light carried by some people who went from one house to
another.

About two the next morning, the caravel Pinta, being always foremost, made
a signal of seeing land, which was first descried by a sailor named
Roderick de Triana, and was then about two leagues distant. But the
annuity of 10,000 maravedies, promised in reward to him who should first
discover land, was afterwards decreed by their majesties to belong to the
admiral, and was always paid him from the rents of the shambles of Seville;
because _he saw the light in the midst of darkness_; typical of the
spiritual light they were bringing among those barbarous people: For God
so ordered it, that, as soon as the wars with the Moors of Granada were
ended, after 720 years from their first coming into Spain, this great work
should begin; by which the crown of Castile and Leon might be continually
employed in the good work of bringing infidels to the knowledge of the
Catholic faith.

When day appeared, on Friday the 12th October, they perceived a flat
island, fifteen leagues in length, covered with wood, abundantly supplied
with good water, having a fresh lake in the middle, and full of people.
The natives stood on the shore in great admiration of the ships, which
they believed to be some monstrous unknown animals, and were as impatient
to be better informed respecting them, as the Spaniards were to go on
shore. The admiral went on shore in his boat well manned, and having the
royal standard displayed, accompanied by the two captains of the other
ships, Martin Alonzo Pinzon, and Vincent Yannez Pinzon, in their own boats
carrying the peculiar co