Nine against the unknown

NINE AGAINST THE UNKNOWN
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companions. Next day many birds were seen in the sky and a
great massing of clouds. Drizzling rains—land rains—came
with nightfall. Land was certainly near.
But still there came no land. Columbus was made privy
to a plot hatched on his own ship—“that it would be the
best plan to throw him quietly into the sea, and say he
unfortunately fell in while he stood absorbed in looking at
the stars”. He guarded himself accordingly, knowing that
his companions’ fears were like to mount into madness because
of that very wind which drove them still steadily westwards.
They had come to the conclusion that there were no winds
on those seas to take them back to Spain.
But a contrary wind arose, calming this fear, and with
lessened speed the three small ships beat forward into it.
Drifting grass patched the sea. Far in the south-west arose
a great shadow on the sky. Columbus altered his course to
make it. Land was near.
But it was no land, only a cloud-shape that altered and
melted as the Santa Maria drew nigh.
On the 3rd of October there were again signs of land,
and the crew would have had Columbus stop and beat about
in search of it. But he had been deceived too often. In later
days he was to ascribe that determination to sail still further
west to his determination to reach the “Indies”. Rather we
may be certain it was merely a confusion of his own un¬
certainties.
But now the crew of the Santa Maria at least was quite
definitely mutinous, and Columbus had to set himself to pacify¬
ing them by as strange a collection of threats and promises and
lies as ever the commander of an expedition addressed to his
followers. What would happen to them in Spain should they
indeed sail back without him—or against his orders ? What
would their women-folk say of them ? Think of the riches of
these lands in the west that awaited their conquest. . . .
Day after day, and hour after hour, between the times of
those nervous pacings of the deck, he argued and soothed the
mutineers. But at last it seems that they refused the direct
westwards course. Martin Alonzo Pinzon came from the
Pinta and headed the mutineers. A compromise was arrived
at. On the 7th of October the course of the vessels was altered
to the south-west.
Four days later, and still the seas were untenanted. Then,