Narrative and Critical History of America, Vol. 2 (of 8): Spanish Explorations and Settlements in America from the Fifteenth to the Seventeenth Century
History
Narrative and Critical History of America, Vol. 2 (of 8): Spanish Explorations and Settlements in America from the Fifteenth to the Seventeenth Century
America -- Discovery and exploration; America -- History; United States -- History
His nephew Diego succeeded to the rights, silencing those of the
daughter of Don Luis by marrying her. They had no issue; and on his
death, in 1578, various claimants brought suit for the succession
(as shown in the table), which was finally given, in 1608, to the
grandson of Isabella, the granddaughter of Columbus. This suit led to
the accumulation of a large amount of documentary evidence, which was
printed.[362] The vexations did not end here, the Duke of Berwick still
contesting; but a decision in 1790 confirmed the title in the present
line. The revolt of the Spanish colonies threatened to deprive the Duke
of Veraguas of his income; but the Spanish Government made it good by
charging it upon the revenues of Cuba and Porto Rico, the source of the
present Duke’s support.[363]
POSTSCRIPT.
After the foregoing chapter had been completed, there came to hand the
first volume of _Christophe Colomb, son origine, sa vie, ses voyages,
sa famille, et ses descendants, d’après des documents inédits tirés
des Archives de Gênes, de Savone, de Séville, et de Madrid, études
d’histoire critique par Henry Harrisse_, Paris, 1884.
The book is essentially a reversal of many long-established views
regarding the career of Columbus. The new biographer, as has been
shown, is not bound by any respect for the Life of the Admiral which
for three hundred years has been associated with the name of Ferdinand
Columbus. The grounds of his discredit of that book are again asserted;
and he considers the story as given in Las Casas as much more likely
to represent the prototype both of the _Historia general_ of this last
writer and of the _Historie_ of 1571, than the mongrel production which
he imagines this Italian text of Ulloa to be, and which he accounts
utterly unworthy of credit by reason of the sensational perversions
and additions with which it is alloyed by some irresponsible editor.
This revolutionary spirit makes the critic acute, and sustains him in
laborious search; but it is one which seems sometimes to imperil his
judgment. He does not at times hesitate to involve Las Casas himself
in the same condemnation for the use which, if we understand him,
Las Casas may be supposed, equally with the author or editor of the
_Historie_, to have made of their common prototype. That any received
incident in Columbus’ career is only traceable to the _Historie_ is
sufficient, with our critic, to assign it to the category of fiction.
This new Life adds to our knowledge from many sources; and such points
as have been omitted or slightly developed in the preceding chapter,
or are at variance with the accepted views upon which that chapter has
been based, it may be well briefly to mention.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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