The times., 1898-10-09
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thought had never seen so enhancing a
picture-of green hill-spurs trending down
TO the sea, and on their gentle slopes sill
houetted against a background of darker
heights the quaint red roofs of the town
with here and there stately palm lifting
its plumed head between; the broad bay
crowded with transports. war vessels and
craft of all description, mirroring the sur
rounding greenery along its edges
This is the same sheltered harbor which
Columbus named Ell Aguadifla-"the wat
ering place"-because he went ashore and
hlled his casks before sailing to Santo
Domingo, 60 miles away 1t was on his
second voyage to the New World that the
great admiral and his crew, sailing in a
southwesterly direction from the Carib-
bean, sighted this larger and lovelier is
land, before the group of Virgins had
fairly faded from view
Coasting in aud out among the many
little bays along its southern coast-aH
fringed with cocoa palms above beeches
OF glistening sand-the Spaniards feasted
their eyes upon a succession of hills and
mountains, clothed to the tops with mag
nificent forests; and though surfeited
with the beauty of hundreds of islands
before discovered. they unhesitatingly
pronounced this one the most beautiful
OF all.
Today, as then, cool, sweet waters gush
forth in great volume from the fair ISL
and, and miles of cocoa palms fringe its
shores, backed by softly rounded hills
the only visible change after four hun
dred years. being that the hills are now
cultivated to their SUBMITS.
Here, too, came Juan Ponce de Leon,
governor of Santa Domingo, TO inyesti-
gate the reports he had heard concern
ing the mineral wealth of Porto Rico.
Landing at this very spot with his sol
diers, he was Hospitality received by the
Carib Caicque, who simple soul showed
the greedy Spaniards some rivers with
gold dust and tiny nuggets in them, and
thus. unwittingly sealed his own doom
and that of his people.
History tells us how Leon hastened
back to Santo Domingo, whence he soon
returned with an armament and estab-
lished the city of Caparra-across the
bay, southwest from the present capti-
tal-and then proceeded 10 distribute the
wondering natives among his rough fol-
lowers, for slaves, as he had done in
Santo Domingo But the 100000 Indians
of Borinquin, the aboriginal name of the
island who had never been subjected to
restraint revolted when they realized
what was going on and killed many of
the Spaniards, being almost eXterminated
themselves in the unequal contest.
Ponce de LeOn's Career.
BY the way, Ponce de Leon is unde-
servedly famed for being one of the
most generous and chivalrous of all those
iron-hearted Conquistadores-perh be-
cause he is so often confounded with
his equally illustrious namesake, Luis
Ponce de Leon. the priest and poet, who
died in Madrigal late in the same CEN
tury.
Juan Ponce, though a religious enthu-
siast who never neglected the ''conver-
sion'' of Indian souls. while converting
their persons and property to his own
uses, employed the most barbarous meth
DDS for subjugating the peaceful people
who had shown him nothing but kind
ness.
The fame of his ferocious bloodhound,
the great dog Berezillo. which, at the
masters command, sprang upon men,
women and children, and tore them in
pieces, has survived nearly four centu-
ries, while millions of mere human be-
ings have lived their little day and died
and been forgotten.
For some unexplained reason Caparra
now known as Puerto Viejo (Old PortS,
was abandoned after a time: and in 15l1
Leon founded another city, the same San
Juan Batista de Puerto Rico that
stands today, the capital and Chief town
of the island. But it is by no means the
leading one in point of population, having
only about q, 600 in time of peace: while
Ponce, on the other side of the island, is
credited with about 3S.O0O according TO
the latest census, and San Germain with
something over 10000.
Owing to the course of trade and the great
ocean liners. the world heard less about
this island than others of the West In
dies until the war with Spain brought
Ii into our possession. Yet il is only a
few days pleasant sailing from New
York, and perhaps a thousand miles
southeast from Havana. Owing to its ia
yorable position, the hurricanes that so
often visit Martinique, ST. Vincent, and
other islands to the southwark do not
disturb Porto Rico.
In normal times it is an ideal Winter
resort, with the very perfection of cli-
mate, where the thermometer never falls
below 80 degrees and seldom rises above
So Earthquakes and volcanoes are un-
known here. Snakes and other venomous