and all. From the first
there was straying in the woods with Indian women. Doubtless now, in the
San Salvador islands, in Cuba and in Hispaniola, among those Guaricos
fled from us to the mountains, would be infants born of Spanish fathers.
Juan Lepe contemplated that filling in the sea between Asia and Europe
with the very blood.

Sickness broke out. It was not such as that first sickness at La
Navidad, but here were many more to lie ill. Besides Juan Lepe, we now
possessed three physicians. They were skillful, they labored hard, we
all labored. Men died of the malady, but no great number. But now among
the idle of mind and soul and the factious arose the eternal murmur. Not
heaven but hell, these new lands! Not wealth and happy ease, but poverty
and miserable toil! Not forever new spectacle and greedy wonder, but
tiresome river, forest and sea, tiresome blue heaven, tiresome delving
and building, tiresome rules, restrictions, commandments, yeas and nays!
Parties arose, two main parties, and within each lesser differings.

The Viceroy stiffly withstood the party that was not his, and upon some
slur and insolence took from a man his office. Followed a week of glassy
smoothness. Then suddenly, by chance, was discovered the plot of Bernal
Diaz de Pisa--the first of many Spanish conspiracies. It involved
several hundred men and was no less a thing than the seizure in the dark
night of the ships and the setting sail for Spain, there to wreck the
fame of Christopherus Columbus and if possible obtain the sending out
of some prince over him, who would beam kindly on all hidalgos and never
put them to vulgar work. A letter was found in Bernal Diaz's hand, and
if therein any ill was left unsaid of the Admiral and Viceroy, I know
not what it might be! The "Italian", the "Lowborn", the "madly arrogant
and ambitious", the "cruel" and "violent", the "tyrant" acted. Bernal
Diaz was made and kept prisoner on Vicente Pinzon's ship. Of his
following one out of ten lay in prison for a month. Of the seamen
concerned three were flogged and all had their pay estopped.

One might say that Isabella was builded. Columbus himself stood and
moved in better health. Now he would go discovering on dry land, to
Alonso de Ojeda's glee, glee indeed of many. The mountains of Cibao,
where might be the gold,--and gold must be had!

And we might find Caonabo, and what peoples were behind our own
mountains, and perhaps come upon Guacanagari. We went, fou