would give them up for dead and sail without them.

A week having now been passed among the cannibals, Columbus decided to
give up gold-hunting and go and greet the colony at La Navidad. His
captives told him that the mainland lay south, and had he not grown
anxious about the men he had left the year before, he might have sailed
south and found South America; but instead he headed north, stopping
sometimes at intermediate islands. Once again they tried capturing some
natives whom they saw on the shore, but these Carib women were wonderful
archers, and a number of them who managed to upset their canoe and swim
for liberty shot arrows as they swam. Two of the Spaniards were thus
wounded.

Not until the 22d of November did the fleet come in sight of Haiti--
about a month later than if they had come direct from the Canaries. Many
islands, including Porto Rico, had been discovered and named before they
finally touched Espanola and began sailing along its northern coast to
where the _Santa Maria_ had been wrecked. Although no gold had been
found, all the men on the boats were confident that quantities of it
would have been collected during the year by the men at La Navidad; and
so great content reigned on all the ships.

While the fleet was still some distance away, one of the captured Haiti
Indians who had made the voyage to Spain and back was sent ashore to
tell Chief Guacanagari and the colony of the Admiral's return. This
Indian messenger, having been converted to Christianity and having
learned to speak Spanish, was expected to be of great use in the present
expedition. Before sending him ashore they dressed him handsomely and
covered him with showy trinkets that would impress his countrymen. But
the real impression was to come from his telling his tribe what a