A CASTILIA YA LEON NUEVO MUNDO DIO COLON. _Columbus gave a New World to Castile and Leon._ These memorable words are worthy of observation, as nothing similar or any way equivalent can be found either in the ancients or among the moderns. It will therefore be ever had in remembrance, that he was the discoverer of the Indies; though since then Ferdinand Cortes and Francis Pizarro have found out many other provinces and vast kingdoms on the continent. Cortes discovered the province of Yucutan and the empire of Mexico now called New Spain, then possessed by the great emperor _Montezuma_; and Francis Pizarro found out the kingdom of Peru which is of vast extent and full of endless wealth, which was then under the dominion of the powerful king _Atabalipa_. From these countries and kingdoms there come every year to Spain many ships laden with gold and silver and rich commodities, as Brazil wood, cochineal, indigo, sugar, and other articles of great value, besides pearls and other precious stones: owing to which Spain and its princes at this time flourish and abound in wealth beyond all other nations. [1] D. Ferdinand is surely mistaken here. Martinico, the island probably indicated by the name of Matinino, is about ten leagues distant from Dominca; but the course from the former to the latter is to the north, with a very alight western tendency.--E. [2] Now called Porto Rico.--E. [3] He was formerly called Obando; and is named Nicholas de Ovando by Herrera: Perhaps he had a commandary of the above name.--E. [4] The historian of Columbus does not appear to have been at all conversant in zoology. What the Saavina was cannot be conjectured from his slight notices, unless a basking shark. The other, no way allied to fish except by living in the water, is a real mammiferous quadruped, the Trichechus Manati of naturalists, or the sea cow.--E. [5] The author or his original translator, falls into a great error here. The land first discovered in this voyage was the island of Guanaia off Cape Casinas or Cape Honduras, therefore W.S.W. from Jamaica, not south. Guanaia seems to be the island named Bonaea in our maps, about ten leagues west from the isle of Ratan.--E. [6] A blank is left here in the edition of this voyage published by Churchill.--E. [7] This is an obvious error, as New Spain is to the west of Cape Casinas, off which the admiral now was. If bounds _for_ New Spain, the canoe must have come from the eastwards; if going with commodities from the westwards it was bound _from_ New Spain.--E. [8] The papal authority for subjugating the Indians to the holy church, prevented D. Ferdinand from perceiving either avarice or robbery in the conduct of the Christians.--E.