Quite a neat little town was presently built, with
church, marketplace, public granary, and dwelling-houses, the whole
encompassed with a stone wall. An exploring party led by Ojeda into the
mountains of Cibao found gold dust and pieces of gold ore in the beds of
the brooks, and returned elated with this discovery. Twelve of the ships
were now sent back to Spain for further supplies and reinforcements, and
specimens of the gold were sent as an earnest of what was likely to be
found. At length, in March, 1494, Columbus set forth, with 400 armed
men, to explore the Cibao country. The march was full of interest. It is
upon this occasion that we first find mention of the frantic terror
manifested by Indians at the sight of horses. At first they supposed the
horse and his rider to be a kind of centaur, and when the rider
dismounted this separation of one creature into two overwhelmed them
with supernatural terror. Even when they had begun to get over this
notion they were in dread of being eaten by the horses.[561] These
natives lived in houses grouped into villages, and had carved wooden
idols and rude estufas for their tutelar divinities. It was ascertained
that different tribes tried to steal each other's idols and even fought
for the possession of valuable objects of "medicine."[562] Columbus
observed and reported the customs of these people with some minuteness.
There was nothing that agreed with Marco Polo's descriptions of Cipango,
but so far as concerned the discovery of gold mines, the indications
were such as to leave little doubt of the success of this
reconnaissance. The Admiral now arranged his forces so as to hold the
inland regions just visited and gave the general command to Margarite,
who was to continue the work of exploration. He left his brother, Diego
Columbus, in charge of the colony, and taking three caravels set sail
from Isabella on the 24th of April, on a cruise of discovery in these
Asiatic waters.

[Footnote 561: For an instance of 400 hostile Indians fleeing
before a single armed horseman, see _Vita dell' Ammiraglio_,
cap. lii.; Las Casas, _Hist._ tom. ii. p. 46.]

[Footnote 562: Compare the Fisherman's story of Drogio, above,
pp. 246, 252.]

[Illustration: Discoveries made by Columbus in his first and second
voyages.]

[Sidenote: Cape Alpha and Omega.]

A brief westward sail brought the little squadron into the Windward
Passage and in sight of C