Or four and twenty times the pilot's glass Hath told the thievish minutes how they pass. ] [Footnote 4: Capt. Parker, in _Goldthwaithe's Geographical Monthly_, argues ably that the myth that a light was seen by Columbus at 8 P. M. of the night of the discovery should be dropped simply as rubbish; it is incredible. More than one hundred men in the three vessels were anxiously looking for signs of land, and two "think" they see a light. To say that Columbus felt sure that he saw a light is to pronounce him an imbecile. For if ahead, he would have stopped; if abeam, stood for it. His log does not say where or in what direction the light was--an important omission--and Columbus _ran forty sea miles after he saw this mythical light_. We may safely decide that Watling Island, named after a buccaneer or pirate of the seventeenth century, is best supported by investigation as the landfall of Columbus. Cronau, who visited Watling Island in 1890, supposes that Columbus' ships, after making the land, continued on their course, under the reduced sail, at the rate of four or five miles an hour; and at daylight found themselves off the northwest end of the island. Mr. Cronau evidently is not a seafaring man or he would know that no navigator off an unknown island at night would stand on, even at the rate of one mile an hour, ignorant of what shoal or reefs might lie off the end of the island.] [Footnote 5: The following from Las Casas' epitome of the log is all the information we have concerning the "sighting" of the New World: "THURSDAY, October 11, 1492.--_Navego al Ouesudueste, turvieron mucho mar mas que en todo el viage habian tenido. Despues del sol puesto navego a su primer Camino al Oueste; andarian doce millas cada hora. A las dos horas despues de media noche parecio la tierra, de la cual estarian dos leguas. Amainaron todas las velas y quedaron con el treo que es la vela grande sin bonetas, y pusierouse a la corda temporizando hasta el dia viernes que llegaron a una isleta de los Lucayos que se llamaba en lengua de indios Guanahani._" That is: "They steered west-southwest and experienced a much heavier sea than they had had before in the whole voyage. After sunset they resumed their former course west, and sailed twelve miles an hour. At 2 o'clock in the morning the land appeared (was sighted), two leagues off. They lowered all the sails and remained under the storm sail, which is the main sail without bonnets, and hove to, waiting for daylight; and Friday [found they had] arrived at a small island of the Lucayos which the Indians called Guanahani." It will be observed that these are the words of Las Casas, and they were evidently written some years after the event.]