f he should afterward actually prove the first discoverer. All on
board the admiral's ship, being thus forewarned, were exceedingly careful
not to cry out "Land!" on uncertain tokens; but those in the Nina, which
sailed better and always kept ahead, believing that they certainly saw
land, fired a gun and hung out their colors in token of the discovery;
but the farther they sailed, the more the joyful appearance lessened,
till at last it vanished away. But they soon afterward derived much
comfort by observing great flights of large fowl and others of small
birds going from the west toward the southwest.

Being now at a vast distance from Spain, and well assured that such small
birds would not go far from land, the admiral now altered his course
from due west which had been hitherto, and steered to the southwest. He
assigned as a reason for now changing his course, although deviating
little from his original design, that he followed the example of the
Portuguese, who had discovered most of their islands by attending to the
flight of birds, and because these they now saw flew almost uniformly in
one direction. He said likewise that he had always expected to discover
land about the situation in which they now were, having often told them
that he must not look to find land until they should get seven hundred
fifty leagues to the westward of the Canaries, about which distance he
expected to fall in with Hispaniola, which he then called Cipango;[17]
and there is no doubt that he would have found this island by his direct
course, if it had not been that it was reported to extend from north to
south. Owing therefore to his not having inclined more to the south, he
had missed that and others of the Caribbee islands, whither those birds
were now bending their flight, and which had been for some time upon his
larboard hand. It was from being so near the land that they continually
saw such great numbers of birds; and on Monday, October 8th, twelve
singing birds of various colors came to the ship, and after flying round
it for a short time held on their way. Many other birds were seen from
the ship flying toward the southwest, and that same night great numbers
of large fowl were seen, and flocks of small birds proceeding from the
northward, and all going to the southwest. In the morning a jay was seen,
with an alcatras, several ducks, and many small birds, all flying the
same way with the others, and the air was perceived to be fresh a