Arizona weekly citizen., 1892-09-24
CHAPTER VII DISCOVERY AND CoAsTING OF CUBA.

T UT SeFtEdl udyS the departure or CO !. lumbus was delayed by contrary winds f and calms, attended by heavy showers t which last had prevailed more or les. 1 since his arrival among the islands. Il , was the season of the autumnal rains l which in those torrid climates succeed
 the parching heats of summer-commenc ing about the decrease of the August . moon and lasting until the month of No vember
 At length at midnight. Oct. 24, he sci sail from the island of Isabella, but was nearly becalmed until midday; a gentle wind then sprang up, and, as he observes, began to blow most amorously Every
 sail was spread. and he stood towarl the west-sOuthwest, the direction iu which he was told the land of Cuba lay from
 Isabella After three days navigation,
 in the course of which he touched at a
 group Of seven or eight small islands,
 which he called islaS de Arena-surpOsed
 to be the present Mucaras islands-and
 having crossed the Bahama bank and
 channel. he arrived on the morning of
 the 2Sth of October ill sight of Cuba. The
 part which he first discovered is supposed
 t0 be the coast to the west of Nuevitas del
 Principe.
 As he approached this noble island he
 was struck with its magnitude and the
 grandeur of its features: its high and airy mountains, which reminded him of
 those of Sicily; its fertile valleys and
 long sweeping plains, watered by noble rivers: its stately forests. it's hold pro
 montories and stretching headlands.
 which melted away into the remotest distaure. He anchored in a beautiful
 river of transparent clearness. free from
 rocks and shoals, its banks overhung with trees Here landing, and taking ] possession of the island he gave it the
 name of Juana, in honor of Prince Juan. and to the river the name of San | Salvador
 On the arrival of the ships two canoes | put off from the shore, but fled on see ing the boat approach to sound the river 1 for anchorage The admiral visited two cabins. abandoned by their inhabitants i They contained but few nets made of
 the iibers of the palm tree, hooks and i harpO"ns of bone, and some other fish ! ing implements. and one of the kind of
 dogs he had met with on the smaller ! islands, which never bark He ordered that nothing should be taken away or deranpAd
 Returning to his boat he proceeded for some distance up the river, more and more enchanted with the beauty of the country. The banks were covered with high and widespreading trees; some
 bearing fruits, others flowers, while in some both fruit and flower were min- gled, bespeaking a perpetual round of fertility; among them were many palms,
 but different from those of Spain and Africa. With the great leaves of these the natives thatched their cabins.
 The continual eulOgies made by Co- lumbus on the beauty of the country were warranted by the kind of scenery he was beholding. There is a wonderful splendor, variety and luxuriance in the vegetation of those quick and ardent climates. The verdure of the groves, and the colors of the flowers and blos- sons, derive a viyidness from the trans parent purity of the air and the deep se- renity of the azure heavens. The for ests, too, are full of life, swarning with birds of brilliant plumage. Painted va- rieties of parrots and woodpeckers create a glitter amid the verdure of the grove, and humming birds rove from flower to flower, resembling, as has we'll been said, animated particles of a rainbow. The scarlet famingOes, too, seen sometimes through an opening of forest in a dis tant savanna, have the appearance of soldiers drawn up in battalion, with an advanced scout on the alert to give no- | tice of approaching danger. Nor is the l least beautiful part of animated nature | the various tribes of insects peophng | every plant and displaying brilliant | coats of mail, which sparkle like pre- cious gems.
 Such is the splendor of animal and | vegetable creation in these tropical eli | mates. where an ardent sun imparts it's | own luster to every object and quickens l nature into exuberant fecundity. The | birds in general are not remarkable for l their notes, for 1t has been observed that | in the feathered race sweetness of song | rarely accompanies brilliancy of plu | mage. Columbus remarks, however, | that there were various kinds which | sang sweetly among the trees, and he frequently deceived himself in fancying that he heard the voice of the nightin- gale, bird unknown in these countries | He was, in fact, in a mood to see every thing through favoring medium. His | heart was full to overhowing, for he | was enjoying the fulfllment of his | hopes and the hard earned but glorious reward of his tolls and perils. Every thing around him was beheld with the Il enamored and exulting eye of a discov- erer, where triumph mingles with ad- miration, and 1t is difficult to conceive the rapturous state of his feelings while thus exploring the charms of a virgin world, won by his enterprise and valor.
 From his continual remarks on the | beauty of scenery and from his evident delight in rural sounds and objects, he appears to have been extremely open to those happy influences exercised over some spirits by the graces and wonders of nature. He gives utterance to these feelings with characteristic enthusiasm, and at the same time with the artless- ness and simplicity of diction of child. When speaking of some lovely scene among the groves, or along the howery shores of these favored islands, he says, lone could live there forever" Cuba broke upon him like an elysium- 1t is tho YnOet baautiful island he aavs Ggthat ! eyes ever beheld, full of excellent ports and profound rivers" The climate Was