The friends of the honest notary, among them Juan de Ledesma, were ready enough to join him, pecuniarily, in a venture to the famous Pearl Coast, as the South American shore of the admiral's third voyage was now called. Obtaining from Fonseca's office a royal license,[III-3] and enlisting the coöperation of Juan de la Cosa, already veteran in western pilotage, Bastidas equipped two caravels,[III-4] embarked at Cádiz in October, 1500, took on board wood, water, meat, and cheese at Gomera, and steering a little north of the admiral's last track, came to a green isle, which he called Isla Verde, and reached the mainland near Venezuela. Coasting westward, he passed Santa Marta, and arrived at the Magdalena River in March, 1501, so naming it on arrival from the day, which was that of the woman's conversion. There he narrowly escaped shipwreck. Continuing, and trading on the way, he found the ports of Zamba and Coronados—the latter so called because the natives wore large crowns—the islands of San Bernardo, Barú, and the Arenas, off Cartagena Bay. Next he saw Fuerte and tenantless Tortuga, touched at the port of Cenú, passed Point Caribana, entered the gulf of Urabá, and saw the _farallones_, or craggy islet peaks, rising abruptly from the water near the Darien shore. Thus far from Cape de la Vela he had discovered one hundred and fifty leagues[III-5] of new seaboard. And because when the tide was low the water was fresh, he called the place Golfo Dulce. Thus came the Spaniards upon the isthmus that unites the two Americas; and along it they sailed to Point Manzanilla, in which vicinity were El Retrete and Nombre de Dios.[III-6] [Sidenote: GLORIES OF THE ISTHMUS.]