te
his enemies at Court.

Those who have read the instructions to Columbus given by the Catholic
monarchs will naturally be curious to know how the news of the arrival of
these vessels laden with slaves, the fruit of the admiral's first victory
over the Indians, was received by the Sovereigns, recollecting how tender
they had been about slavery before. This, however, was a very different
case from the former one. Here were people taken in what would be called
rebellion--prisoners of war. Still we find that Ferdinand and Isabella
were heedful in their proceedings in this matter. There is a letter of
theirs to Bishop Fonseca, who managed Indian affairs, telling him to
withhold receiving the money for the sale of these Indians that Torres had
brought with him until their Highnesses should be able to inform
themselves from men learned in the law, theologians and canonists, whether
with a good conscience these Indians could be ordered to be sold or not.
The historian Munoz, who has been indefatigable in his researches amongst
the documents relating to Spanish America, declares that he cannot find
that the point was decided; and if he has failed, we are not likely to
discover any direct evidence about the decision. We shall hereafter,
however, find something which may enable us to conjecture what the
decision practically came to be.

DISTRESS OF NATIVES.

Many of the so-called free Indians in Hispaniola had, perhaps, even a
worse fate than that which fell to the lot of their brethren condemned to
slavery. These free men, seeing the Spaniards quietly settling down in
their island, building houses, and making forts, and no vessels in the
harbour of Isabella to take them away, fell into the profoundest sadness,
and bethought them of the desperate remedy of attempting to starve the
Spaniards out, by not sowing or planting anything. But this is a shallow
device, when undertaken on the part of the greater number, in any country,
against the smaller. The scheme reacted upon themselves. They had intended
to gain a secure though scanty sustenance in the forests and upon the
mountains; but though the Spaniards suffered bitterly from famine, they
were only driven by it to further pursuit and molestation of the Indians,
who died in great numbers, of hunger, sickness, and misery.

SPANISH COMMISSIONER.

About this period there arrived in the Indies from the Court of Spain a
Commissioner of Inquiry, his mission being doubtless