s purpose by any motive or any
suffering, but inflexibly persisting to its end. Well might his
despairing sailors come to the conclusion that they had entered on a
trackless waste of waters, endless before them and hopeless in a return.
"But, though the Church hath evermore from Holy Writ affirmed that the
earth should be a wide-spread plain bordered by the waters, yet he
comforted himself when he considered that in the eclipses of the moon
the shadow cast of the earth is round; and as is the shadow, such, in
like manner, is the substance." It was a stout heart--a heart of triple
brass--which could thus, against such authority, extract unyielding
faith from a shadow.

[Sidenote: Succeeds in his attempt, and dies.] This unparalleled
resolution met its reward at last. Magellan reached a group of islands
north of the equator--the Ladrones. In a few days more he became aware
that his labours had been successful; he met with adventurers from
Sumatra. But, though he had thus grandly accomplished his object, it was
not given to him to complete the circumnavigation of the globe. At an
island called Zebu, or Mutan, he was killed, either, as has been
variously related, in a mutiny of his men, or as they declared--in a
conflict with the savages, or insidiously by poison. "The general," they
said, "was a very brave man, and received his death wound in his front;
nor would the savages yield up his body for any ransom." Through treason
and revenge it is not unlikely that he fell, for he was a stern man; no
one but a very stern man could have accomplished so daring a deed.
Hardly was he gone when his crew learned that they were actually in the
vicinity of the Moluccas, and that the object of their voyage was
accomplished. On the morning of November 8, 1521, having been at sea two
years and three months, as the sun was rising they entered Tidore, the
chief port of the Spice Islands. The King of Tidore swore upon the Koran
alliance to the King of Spain.

[Sidenote: Circumnavigation of the earth.] I need not allude to the
wonderful objects--destined soon to become common to voyagers in the
Indian Archipelago--that greeted their eyes: elephants in trappings;
vases, and vessels of porcelain; birds of Paradise, "that fly not, but
be blown by the wind;" exhaustless stores of the coveted spices,
nutmegs, mace, cloves. And now they prepared to bring the news of their
success back to Spain. Magellan's lieutenant, Sebastian d'Elcano,
directed