whether the ocean were not of too vast extent to be traversed; nor were the laws of specific gravity, and of central gravitation, ascertained, by which, granting the earth to be a sphere, the possibility of making the tour of it would be manifest.

When Columbus took his stand before this learned body, he had appeared the plain and simple navigator, somewhat daunted, perhaps, by the greatness of his task, and the august nature of his auditory; but he had a degree of religious feeling, which gave him a confidence in the execution of what he conceived his great errand, and he was of an ardent temperament, that became heated in action by its own generous fires. All the objections drawn from ancient philosophers he met boldly and upon equal terms, for he was deeply studied on all points of cosmography, and he disproved many by his own experience, gathered in the course of his extensive voyages, in which he had penetrated both the torrid and the frozen zone. Nor was he to be daunted by the scriptural difficulties opposed to him, for here he was peculiarly at home. His contemporaries have spoken of his commanding person, his elevated demeanour, his air of authority, his kindling eye, and the persuasive intonations of his voice. How must they have given majesty and force to his words, as, casting aside his maps and charts, and discarding, for a time, his practical and scientific lore, his visionary spirit took fire, and he met his doctrinal opponents upon their own ground, pouring forth those magnificent texts of scripture, and those mysterious predictions of the prophets, which, in his enthusiastic moments, he considered as types and annunciations of the sublime discovery which he proposed!

It is but justice to add, that many of his learned hearers were convinced by his reasoning, and warmed by his eloquence; among the number of these was Diego de Deza, a worthy friar of the order of St. Dominic, at that time professor of theology in the convent of St. Stephen, but who became afterwards Archbishop of Seville, the second ecclesiastical dignity of Spain. He was an able and erudite man, above the narrow bigotry of bookish lore, and could appreciate the value of wisdom, even when uttered by unlearned lips. He seconded Columbus with all his powers and influence, and by their united efforts they brought over several of the most intelligent men of the assembly. Still there was a preponderating mass of inert bigotry, and learned pride, in the erudite body, which refused to yield to the demonstrations of an obscure foreigner, without fortune or connexions, or any academic honours. After this celebrated examination of Columbus, the board held occasional conferences, but without coming to any decision: Fernando de Talavera, to whom the matter was especially intrusted, had too little esteem for it, and was too much occupied by the stir and bustle of public concerns, to press it to a conclusion; his departure with the court from Cordova, early in the spring of 1487, put an end to the consultations, and left Columbus in a state of the most tantalizing suspense.

For several years he followed the movements of the court, continually flattered with hopes of success. Conferences were appointed at various places, but the tempest of warlike affairs, which hurried the court from place to place, and gave it the bustle and confusion of a camp, continually swept away all matters

of less immediate importance. It has generally been supposed that these years of irksome solicitation were spent by Columbus in the drowsy attendance of antechambers; but, on the contrary, they were passed amidst scenes of peril and adventure, and in following the court, he was led into some of the most striking situations of this wild, rugged, and mountainous war. In one of the severest campaigns, he is said to have distinguished himself by his personal prowess. He was present at the sieges and surrenders of Malaga and Baza, and beheld El Zagal, the elder of the two rival kings of Granada, yield up his crown and possessions to the Spanish sovereigns. During the siege of Baza, two reverend friars, guardians of the holy sepulchre at Jerusalem, arrived in the Spanish camp, bearing a menace from the Grand Soldan of Egypt, that he would put to death all the Christians in his dominions, and destroy the sepulchre, if the sovereigns did not desist from the war against the Moslems of Granada. It is probable that the pious indignation excited by this threat in the bosom of Columbus gave the first rise to a resolution which he entertained to the day of his death; this was, to devote the profits which he anticipated from his discoveries to a crusade for the rescue of the holy sepulchre.

During this long course of application, Columbus partly defrayed his expenses by making maps and charts. He was occasionally assisted, also, by the purse of the worthy Friar Diego de Deza, and was sometimes a guest of Alonzo de Quintanilla. It is due to the sovereigns to say, also, that he was attached to the royal suite, and sums issued to defray his expenses, and lodgings provided for him, when summoned to follow this rambling and warlike

court. Whenever the sovereigns had an interval of leisure, there seems to have been a disposition to attend to his proposition; but the hurry and tempest of the war returned, and the question was again swept away.

At length, in the winter of 1491, when the sovereigns were preparing to depart on their final campaign in the vega of Granada, Columbus, losing all patience, pressed for a decisive reply, and Fernando de Talavera was ordered, therefore, to hold a final conference, and to report the decision of his learned brethren. He obeyed, and informed their majesties that the majority of the junto condemned the scheme as vain and impossible, and considered it unbecoming such great princes to engage in an undertaking of the kind, on such weak grounds as had been advanced.

A degree of consideration, however, had gradually grown up at court for the enterprise, and notwithstanding this unfavourable report, the sovereigns were unwilling to close the door on a project which might be of such important advantages. They informed Columbus, therefore, that the great cares and expenses of the war rendered it impossible for them to engage in any new enterprises for the present; but that, when the war should be concluded, they would have leisure and inclination to treat with him concerning his propositions.

This was but a starved reply to receive after so many years of weary attendance: Columbus considered it a mere evasion of the sovereigns to relieve themselves from his importunity, and giving up all hope of countenance from the throne, he turned his back upon Seville, filled with disappointment and indignation.

CHAPTER VIII.

Columbus seeks Patronage amongst the Spanish Grandees —Returns to the Convent of La Rabida—Resume his Negotiations with the Sovereigns.

[1491.]

COLUMBUS now looked round in search of some other source of patronage. He had received favourable letters both from the Kings of England and of France; the King of Portugal, also, had invited him to return to his court; but he appears to have become attached to Spain, probably from its being the residence of Beatrix Enriquez, and his children. He sought, therefore, to engage the patronage of some one of those powerful Spanish grandees, who had vast possessions, exercised feudal rights, and were petty sovereigns in their domains. Among these were the Dukes of Medina Sidonia, and Medina Celi: both had principalities lying along the seaboard, with armies of vassals, and ports and shipping at their command. Columbus had many interviews with the Duke of Medina Sidonia, who was tempted for a time by the splendid prospects held out; but their very splendour threw a colouring of exaggeration over the enterprise, and he finally rejected it as the dream of an Italian visionary.

The Duke of Medina Celi was still more favourable, and was actually on the point of granting him three or four caravals which lay ready for sea, in