Next morning the talk begins in earnest, and Christopher, never a very
reserved man, finds in the friendly curiosity of the monks abundant
encouragement to talk; and before very long he is in full swing with his
oft-told story. The Prior is delighted with it; he has not heard
anything so interesting for a long time. Moreover, he has not always
been in a convent; he was not so long ago confessor to Queen Isabella
herself, and has much to communicate and ask concerning that lady.
Columbus's proposal does not strike him as being unreasonable at all;
but he has a friend in Palos, a very learned man indeed, Doctor Garcia
Hernandez, who often comes and has a talk with him; he knows all about
astronomy and cosmography; the Prior will send for him. And meanwhile
there must be no word of Columbus's departure for a few days at any rate.

Presently Doctor Garcia Hernandez arrives, and the whole story is gone
over again. They go at it hammer and tongs, arguments and
counter-arguments, reasons for and against, encouragements, and
objections. The result is that Doctor Garcia Hernandez, whose learning
seems not yet quite to have blinded or deafened him, thinks well of the
scheme; thinks so well of it that he protests it will be a thousand
pities if the chance of carrying it out is lost to Spain. The worthy
Prior, who has been somewhat out of it while the talk about degrees and
latitudes has been going on, here strikes in again; he will use his
influence. Perhaps the good man, living up here among the pine trees
and the sea winds, and involved in the monotonous round of Prime, Lauds,
Nones, Vespers, has a regretful thought or two of the time when he moved
in the splendid intricacy of Court life; at any rate he is not sorry to
have an opportunity of recalling himself to the attention of Her
Majesty, for the spiritual safety of whose soul he was once responsible;
perhaps, being (in spite of his Nones and Vespers) a human soul, he is
glad of an opportunity of opposing the counsels of his successor,