epress the mind....

At length the Quarequanos, who served as guides, showed them, at a
distance, the height from whose summit the desired sea might be
discovered. Balboa immediately commanded his squadron to halt, and
proceeded alone to the top of the mountain; on reaching it he cast an
anxious glance southward, and the Austral Ocean broke upon his
sight.[3] Overcome with joy and wonder, he fell on his knees,
extending his arms toward the sea, and with tears of delight, offered
thanks to heaven for having destined him to this mighty discovery. He
immediately made a sign to his companions to ascend, and, pointing to
the magnificent spectacle extended before them, again prostrated
himself in fervent thanksgiving to God. The rest followed his example,
while the astonished Indians were extremely puzzled to understand so
sudden and general an effusion of wonder and gladness. Hannibal on the
summit of the Alps, pointing out to his soldiers the delicious plains
of Italy, did not appear, according to the ingenious comparison of a
contemporary writer, either more transported or more arrogant than the
Spanish chief, when, risen from the ground, he recovered the speech of
which sudden joy had deprived him, and thus addrest his Castilians:
"You behold before you, friends, the object of all our desires and the
reward of all our labors. Before you roll the waves of the sea which
has been announced to you, and which no doubt encloses the immense
riches we have heard of. You are the first who have reached these
shores and these waves; yours are their treasures, yours alone the
glory of reducing these immense and unknown regions to the dominion of
our King and to the light of the true religion. Follow me, then,
faithful as hitherto, and I promise you that the world shall not hold
your equals in wealth and glory."

All embraced him joyfully and all promised to follow whithersoever he
should lead. They quickly cut down a great tree, and, stripping it of
its branches, formed a cross from it, which they fixt in a heap of
stones found on the spot from whence they first descried the sea. The
names of the monarchs of Castile were engraven on the trunks of the
trees, and with shouts and acclamations they descended the sierra and
entered the plain.

They arrived at some bohios, which formed the population of a chief,
called Chiapes, who had prepared to defend the pass with arms. The
noise of the muskets and the ferocity of the war-dogs dispe