there just after the death of
Alba. He found the Peninsula in great commotion which even interrupted
the regular routine of overseas traffic. But a man of daring puts his
trust in chance, and chance favored the venturesome youth by an
extraordinary opportunity.

There was at that time a noble Dominican monk in Lisbon, Fra Vincente
Fonseca, scion of a distinguished family. He had been a preacher to King
Sebastian of Portugal, had done missionary work in Africa and been later
attached to the court of Madrid as confessor of Philip II. The
archbishopric of the West Indies having become vacant, Fonseca was
appointed, but he was unwilling to accept this position, dreading the
long voyage and a repetition of some unpleasant experiences which he had
had in Africa. The king, however, insisted, promised to recall him in
four or five years and held out to him the lure of rich revenues. So Fra
Fonseca finally accepted, and Jan Huygens van Linschoten succeeded in
obtaining a position in the retinue of the prelate. Linschoten's
brother, who was secretary to the king, being tired of court life, had
also asked to be sent overseas and was about to sail as scribe on board
a vessel going to the Levant. But on learning of his brother's luck, he
decided also to go to the West Indies and joined the fleet waiting to
embark in some professional capacity. There were five vessels; the
Admiral ship called _San Felipe_, the Vice-Admiral _San Diego_, the
third was _San Laurente_, the fourth _San Francisco_ and the fifth _San
Salvador_. The two brothers boarded the latter, and set sail on Good
Friday, the eighth of April, 1583.

Jan Huygens van Linschoten has this to say of Cuba:

"Cuba is a very large island belonging to the Antille group, first
discovered by Christopher Colomb in 1492, and called by him Jeanne
et Ferdinande and also Alpha and Omega. It has also by others been
called Island of Santiago, after the name of the principal town, so
considered on account of the great harbor and big trade. To the
east it has the island of San Domingo, to the west Yucatan, to the
north the extremity of Florida and the Lucaya islands, to the South
the island of Jamaica. The island of Cuba is greater in length than
in width; it measures from one end to the other three hundred
leagues, from North to South seventy and in width it is only
fifteen and in some places nineteen leagues. The center of the