Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1914-07-23
CHAPTER 10.
By WILLIAM r. SCOTT
The Spanish In Panama.

made TO ind passage 10 the
W East Indies he ,cruised along
the isthmian coast from Sep
TENDER. 1902. to January, 1903. enter
ing and naming the rharbor Of Porto
Bello on Nov. = 1902. and visiting
Nombre de Dios on Nov. 0. in what is
now the republic of Panama.
Columbus. however. was not the dis
coverer of Panama. as Spaniard.
named Rodrigo de Bastides. had pre-
coded him to this coast. in 1901. so that
the period of the Spanish in Panama
dates from that year. BastideS visited
Nombre de Dios. where eight years la
ter the first Spanish settlement on the
isthmus was planted. in 1909, as a
base for the search for gold.
Vasco Eunez de Balboa had been
with Bastides on his trip Of exploration.
and he became the head of the new
colony at Panama. For, a few years
the mountains with their dense jungle
growth stood as a barrier to explora
tions farther inland. but the stories Of
the marvellous wealth of the inhabi-
tants on the other side. told to Balboa
by the Indians. so excited his cupidity
that. in 1913. he gathered band Of 100
men and started across. -
Balboa discovered the Pacific on
Sept. pa. 1913. Calling his men to him,
they had religious ceremony. claim
ing all they surveyed rs the dominions
Of bfs majesty the king Of Spain. r. -
Gold be found in abundance and
pearls of fabulous size and value. Aft
er five months absence he returned to
Nombre de Dios by more direct
course and found that he had been sue
Ceeded as governor at Eombre de Dios
by soldier named Pedrarias. Be-
tween them n hatred sprang up which.
In 151I. resulted In the untimeIy and
unjust execution of Balboa on trumped
up charges. Prior to this. Balboa had
made other trips to the Pacific. carry
ing across with Incredible labor the
parts Of ships which were rebuilt In
the Pacific. In 1911 the Americans
found cannon Of immense weight
about halfway across. which evidently
had been abandoned by Balboa. and
an anchor of great size also has been
found.
Pedrarias in 1915 had sent exploring
parties to the Pacific side to select
site for settlement on that coast.
The San Francisco exposition there
fore In 1915 will he exactly 400 years
after this event. 1t was not until 1919
that the settlement was started. and
the founding Of the city OF Panama
dates historically from that year.
With the founding of town on the
Pacific side began the interoceanic
traffic which ever since has empha-
sized the need of easier and swifter
communication between the Atlantic
and Pacific. At a huge expense Of la
Dor and life paved road WAS con-
structed from Nombre de Dios to Pan
anna, portions of which may be seen in
the canal zone today. f.. f. .. .
1t may be noted that Panama was
founded a full hundred years before
the landing Of the pilgrims at PIym-
outh. Nombre de Dios was Il town
ninety-eight years before the first Eng
lish settlement in North America. at
jamestown. in 160T. St Augustine,
Fla. the oldest town in North America,
was not founded until forty-Six years
after Panama.
After nearly century at Nombre de
Dios the Spanish in the year 1884
found Porto Bello healthier site for
settlement and moved bag and bag
gage to that Incompatible port.
Porto Bello at once became the depot
Of Spanish treasure accumulated from
Peru or other South and Central Amer
lean countries and brought across the
isthmus from Panama with incredible
hardship From this port the Spanish |
galIeons ran, the gantlet of English |
pirates to Spain. Drake had been one
OF the mostintrepid of this crew. Hen
ryi Morgan, a century later. was an
other. 49,.
In 1868 Henry Morgan collected a
motley crew Of sea ragabonds with the |
object of capturing Porto BelIo. The
operations Of the English buccaneers |
usually were plain piracy. but they
justified themselves i'm their own minds |
by the quarrelsome state Of the re-
lations that existed between England |
and Spain.
Porto Bello was captured after a
fight not surpassed in history for in
The treasure they found
here whetted their lust for gold. with
the result that three years later a still