History of Central America, Volume 1, 1501-1530: The Works of Hubert Howe Bancroft, Volume 6Bancroft, Hubert Howe
History
History of Central America, Volume 1, 1501-1530: The Works of Hubert Howe Bancroft, Volume 6
Bancroft, Hubert Howe
Central America -- History
The events of the voyage, and the description of the coast visited
by Vespucci as given in his letter, furnish no evidence whatever for
or against the authenticity of the expedition; but if it be admitted
from outside evidence that the voyage was actually made, and was
distinct from that of Ojeda, while the narrative has nothing except the
occurrence of the name Paria in favor of a South American destination,
from it may be gathered the following points in support of the theory
that a more northern coast was the one explored. The course sailed
from the Canaries, W. ¼ SW.; the time thirty-seven days; the distance
1,000 leagues, taking the distance from Lisbon to the Canaries, 280
leagues, as a scale of measurement; the latitude of the landing 16°,
and longitude 75° west of the Canaries; and the arrival by sailing up
the coast at a province situated in about 23°, and near the tropic of
Cancer, are worthy of consideration, since a series of blunders such
as these is hardly probable. The natives of Lariab were of different
language from and hostile to the nations passed further south, as the
Huastecs of the Pánuco region are known to have been with respect to
the Mexicans. Moreover, Lariab has a slight claim to being a Huastec
word, since Orozco y Berra gives three names of places in that language
containing an _l_ and ending in _ab_; but of course this would interfere
sadly with the theory that Lariab is a misprint of Caria. Vespucci's
description of the natives, criticised by Navarrete as incorrect when
applied to the people of Paria, agrees better, as M. Varnhagen thinks,
with the aborigines of Honduras. Other parts of Vespucci's vague and
rambling descriptions apply well enough to the North American coasts,
or in fact to any part of tropical America, north or south.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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