Pigafetta was no Munchausen, but he had a love of marvelous stories, and there never was a voyage that offered to a European a greater number of curious events and superstitions. Some of the incidents that excited our Chevalier's wonder were natural events which have been since explained. The superstitious legends of the people were, however, for the most part but the growth of folklore through the imagination.

One of these accounts relates to the wise old women who prepared the sacrifices of the wild boar as offerings to the sun. It shows how small may be the real meaning of pompous and pretentious ceremonies. The rites took place in the Philippines.

Says Pigafetta in his narrative prepared for the Grand Master of the Knight of Rhodes:

"Since I have spoken of the idols, it may please your illustrious Highness to have an account of the ceremony with which, in this island, they bless the pig. They begin by sounding some great drums (tamburi); they then bring three large dishes; two are filled with cakes of rice and cooked millet rolled up in leaves, with roast fish; in the third are Cambay cloths and two strips of palm cloth. A cloth of Cambay is spread out on the ground; then two old women come, each of whom has in her hand a reed trumpet. They step upon the cloth and make an obeisance to the sun; they then clothe themselves with the above-mentioned cloths. The first of these puts on her head a handkerchief which she ties on her forehead so as to make two horns, and taking another handkerchief in her hand, dances and sounds her trumpet and invokes the sun.

"The second old woman takes one of the strips of palm cloth and dances, and also sounds her trumpet; thus they dance and sound their trumpets for a short space of time, saying several things to the sun. The first old woman then drops the handkerchief she has in her hand and takes the other strip of cloth, and both together sounding their trumpets, dance for a long time round the pig which is bound on the ground. The first one always speaks in a low tone to the sun, and the second answers her. So the sun and the two old women had a luminous partnership.

"The second old woman then presents a cup of wine to the first, who, while they both continue their address to the sun, brings the cup four or five times near the mouth as though going to drink, and meanwhile sprinkles the wine on the heart of the pig. She then gives up the cup, and receives a lance which she brandishes, while still dancing and reciting, and four or five times directs the lance at the pig's heart; at last, with a sudden and well-aimed blow, she pierces it through and through. She withdraws the lance from the wound, which is then closed and dressed with herbs.

"During the ceremony a torch is always burning, and the old woman who pierced the pig takes and puts it out with her mouth; the other old woman dips the end of her trumpet in the pig's blood, and with it marks with blood the forehead of her husband and of her companion, and then of the rest of the people. But they did not come and do this to us.

"That done the old women took off their robes and ate what was in the two dishes, inviting only women to join them. After that they get the hair off the pig with fire. Only old women are able to consecrate the boar, and this animal is never eaten unless it is killed in this manner."

Pigafetta saw wonderful things in Borneo, among them a wild boar whose head was two and a half spans long, and oysters as large as turtles. He says that the flesh of one of these oysters weighed forty-five pounds.

But the thing there which probably must have most greatly excited his curiosity was the walking leaves. There were certain trees on the islands that had very animated leaves. When one of these leaves fell from the tree, it did not lie where it fell, to rot or to be shuffled by the winds, but it lifted itself up and walked away.

Here was a sight indeed to make the young Italian fly to his memoranda book, which he did.

Other travelers later saw the same curious thing, but they examined the miracle more closely than the credulous Chevalier. They found that the leaves were moved by an insect that lived inside of them, like the Mexican bean, which is used as a toy, and will jump about a table.

The islands of the Indian Ocean abound in sandalwood. Of the sandal trees Pigafetta heard other curious legends. One of them tells us that when the people of the Timor went out to cut sandalwood, the devil appeared to them, and demanded them to bargain with him for the wood. This they did, for those who cut the wood are otherwise likely to fall sick; a poisonous miasma is exhaled from the wounded wood.

Pigafetta heard also marvelous tales of the Emperor of China, who seemed to live amid human walls. There may be some truths in these incidents; if so, what a remarkable condition must have been that of the Chinese court four hundred years ago!

He says:

"The kingdom of Cocchi lies next; its sovereign is named Raja Seri Bummipala. After that follows Great China, the king of which is the greatest sovereign of the world, and is called Santoa Raja. He has seventy crowned kings under his dependence; and some of these kings have ten or fifteen lesser kings dependent on them. The port of this kingdom is named Guantan, and among the many cities of this Empire, two are the most important, namely, Nankin and Comlaha, where the King usually resides.

"He has four of his principal ministers close to his palace, at the four sides looking to the four cardinal winds; that is, one to the west, one to the east, to the south, and to the north. Each of these gives audience to those that come from his quarter. All the kings and lords of India major and superior obey this King, and in token of their vassalage, each is obliged to have in the middle of the principal palace of his city the marble figure of a certain animal named Chinga, an animal more valuable than the lion; the figure of this animal is also engraved on the King's seal, and all who wish to enter his port must carry the same emblem in wax or ivory.

"If any lord is disobedient to him, he is flayed, and his skin, dried in the sun, salted, and stuffed, is placed in an eminent part of the public place, with the head inclined and the hands on the head in the attitude of doing zongu; that is obeisance to the King.

"He is never visible to anybody; and if he wishes to see his people he is carried about the palace on a peacock most skillfully manufactured and very richly adorned, with six ladies dressed exactly like himself, so that he can not be distinguished from them. He afterward passes into a richly adorned figure of a serpent called Naga, which has a large glass in the breast, through which he and the ladies are seen, but it is not possible to distinguish which is the King. He marries his sisters in order that his blood should not mix with that of others.

"His palace has seven walls around it, and in each circle there are daily ten thousand men on guard, who are changed every twelve hours at the sound of a bell. Each wall has its gate, with a guard at each gate. At the first stands a man with a great scourge in his hand, named Satuhoran with satubagan; at the second, a dog called Satuhain; at the third, a man with an iron mace, called Satuhoran with pocumbecin; at the fourth, a man with a bow in his hand, called Saturhoran with anatpanan; at the fifth, a man with a lance, called Satuhoran with tumach; at the sixth, a lion, called Saturhorimau; at the seventh, two white elephants, called Gagiapute.

"The palace contains seventy-nine halls, in which dwell only the ladies destined to serve the King; there are always torches burning there. It is not possible to go round the palace in less than a day. In the upper part of it are four halls where the ministers go to speak to the King; one is ornamented with metal, both the pavement and the walls; another is all of silver, another all of gold, and the other is set with pearls and precious stones. The gold and other valuable things which are brought as tribute to the King are placed in these rooms; and when they are there deposited, they say, 'Let this be for the honor and glory of our Santoa Raja.' All these things and many others relating to this King, were narrated to us by a Moor, who said that he had seen them."

A palace of seven walls, seventy-nine halls, and ten thousand men on guard! A hall of silver, another of gold, and one of precious stones! It took a day to encompass it. We may well wonder how much of truth there was in this brief Oriental story!

When the adventurers came to Java they heard some tales that were marvelous, and that quite equaled those which Queen Scheherezade of the Arabian Nights told of Sinbad the Sailor.

One of these fabulous stories, told them by a pilot, had an Oriental charm and coloring. It was of a giant bird, like the roc of the Arabian Nights.

According to this fanciful legend which we give with some freedom, there was a land called Java Major on the north of the Gulf of China, where grew an enormous tree, seemingly as big as a mountain – one of the greatest trees in all the world. In this tree, which might have shaded a hill, lived a colony of birds, with wings like clouds, so broad and powerful that they could lift an elephant or a buffalo into the air and bear him away to the mountainous tree. The fruit of this tree was larger than the largest melons.

There were Moors on the ship where this story of the great tree and the great bird was told. One of them said:

"I have seen the great bird with my own eyes!"

Another Moor said:

"One of the birds was once captured, and sent as a present to the King of Siam!"

An account of the capture of such a bird would have been very interesting!

There were great whirlpools around the mountainous tree. So that no ship could approach within three or four leagues of it.

But once, according to the legend, some adventurous sailors sailed near the great tree. They had a little boy on board their boat, and he must have surveyed the giant of the forest with wonder.

They sailed too near, for presently their boat began to go round and round, and they found themselves in the power of the whirlpool.

Round and round went the junk until it struck against a rock, and all on board perished, except the little boy, who was supple.

This child caught a plank and held on to it. He was carried hither and thither among the eddies and breakers, but he found himself drawing nearer and nearer the great tree. At last he was cast on shore at the foot of the tree.

"Here must be my home," said he, for he thought he never could get away again. No boat could come to him, and he could not fly.

The tree had great masses of bark, so that he could climb up into it. He mounted up to its high limbs. He could not starve, for the fruit of such a tree must have been sufficient to have supplied a colony.

So cast away on the tree, he here expected to live and to die.

Toward sunset great wings like clouds darkened the shining air. The birds were coming home to-night in the tree. Their nests were there as big as houses.

They settled down, causing a great wind, and put their great heads under their wings and went to sleep.

The boy was bright, and a plan of getting away from the tree came to him. He reasoned that if he could not fly the bird could, and what would be the weight of a little boy to a bird who could carry away an elephant?

So he marked the largest and most powerful bird with his eye, and crept up to it and got under his wing, and into his great feathers.

The bird was asleep and did not wake!

Morning came, and with the first red dawn, as we may fancy, the bird threw up his head and begun to stir. He lifted himself up and shook himself, but he did not shake off the boy, who was safely nestled among the little forest of its feathers.

The sun was brightening the islands, and the bird mounted up and flew away in search of food, carrying the little boy under his wing.

After traversing the sunrise air for a long time, the bird flew over a land of buffaloes.

He here descended to capture a buffalo, to bear him away to the mountainous tree for food. As he alighted on the back of the buffalo with a wild scream of delight, the little boy dropped out from under his wing, and so found his way to his own island.

It was the little boy that told this large story, quite like Sinbad's.

There were found mysterious fruits floating on the sea, which were supposed to have fallen from the tree.

"I have seen the bird myself," said a third Moorish pilot, and with the testimony of the little boy, and the three pilots and the floating fruit, this story ought to be as trustworthy as the one of Sinbad the Sailor.

The voyage back to the Cape of Good Hope and thence to the Cape Verde Islands was one for strange reflections. Del Cano now was the leader of the returning mariners. The expedition had gone out from the port of Seville amid shouting quays and towers, with some two hundred and seventy men. Only one ship was returning and she was bringing home hardly as many men as composed her own crew.

We can imagine Del Cano on deck, with the lantern of Magellan still swinging above him, talking with his officers on a tropical night off the African coast.

"Magellan has found an unknown grave," we may hear him say.

"But humanity will mourn for him, and honor him, and the grave matters not," answers a padre.

"We shall never see Mesquita again," continues Del Cano.

"We can not be sure," replies the padre. "We can know nothing that we do not see."

"We surely shall never meet Carthagena again. I can see in my memory those last biscuits and bottles of wine. He needs none of them now."

"He may have them all," answers the padre.

"We are yet rich in spices. We shall surprise the world when we drop anchor at Seville."

"And Seville may have surprises for us," says the hopeful padre.

They drifted on under favoring airs. The soul of Del Cano was lost to common events in the wonderful revelations of the sea. Should he reach Seville, he would be the living hero of the most marvelous voyage ever made by any mariner.

Such were the scenes and tales that crowded upon the mind of Pigafetta, who wished "to see the wonders of the world." The story of the Emperor of China's palace is associated with objects so marvelous that the meaning of their names is lost to-day.

CHAPTER XXIV
THE LOST DAY

When they reached the Cape Verde Islands, the sailors found that a very strange thing had happened.

They had lost a day – or, the islanders had gained a day!

They met the ships from Seville there, and doubtless disputed with the traders in regard to what day of the week it was.

"This is the 6th of September," they said; "a day that we shall ever have occasion to celebrate."

"It is the 7th of September," said their joyous friends.

The sailors consulted with each other. All agreed that it was the 6th of September. Nowhere had they failed to make a daily memorandum. The people of Seville must have lost a day.

The solar year consists of three hundred and sixty-five days and six hours, and if one sails West three years one will gain a day, and if one sails East, one will lose a day.

If the reader will note the following dates of this wonderful voyage, he will solve the mystery of the "lost day:"

CHRONOLOGY OF THE FIRST VOYAGE ROUND THE WORLD

Примечание 1⁵

Примечание 2⁶

They sought provisions of the Portuguese colony at Cape Verde.

The Portuguese persecution of the expedition, which Magellan had made for Spain, did not cease even here. The Victoria sent out boats for rice. One of the sailors could not restrain his joy, and told the Portuguese who he was and whence he came.

The jealousy of the Portuguese was aroused again.

"The expedition carries glory to Spain," said they. "Did not the King tear the arms from Magellan's door?"

One of the boats sent out for rice did not return. The Victoria knew why they were detained, and sailed away while she could, to bear the glorious news of the discovery to Seville.

CHAPTER XXV
IN THE CHURCH OF OUR LADY OF VICTORY. – PIGAFETTA

The Victoria cast anchor in the Port of Seville on September 8, 1522. Joy filled the city on that day, and heralds went forth to proclaim the news.

What news it was!

That Magellan had found a new way to the Pacific.

That he had discovered the Pacific to be a mighty ocean.

That he had sailed over it and found a new ocean world.

That he was dead.

That he had made immortal discoveries, and that one of his ships had sailed around the world.

The hero of the day was Del Cano, the commander of the Victoria.

There was a most beautiful church in Seville, called Our Lady of Victory. To that the returning mariners were summoned to give thanks for their discovery on the day after their arrival, September 9, 1522.

Bells rang out on the shining air. The remnant of the happy crews entered the church amid the joyous music to hear the songs of thanksgiving for victory:

"We praise thee, O God!
We believe thee to be
The Father everlasting!"

They had returned in the Victoria, and the service had to them a special significance in the church of that name.

Mesquita must have heard the acclaiming city.

To the prisoner who had waited in hope, the trumpets of the heralds must have been sweet after his release! Juana, the demented Queen, was yet watching by the tomb in view of her window, hoping at each dawn of the morning that she would find that the dust had awakened to life again. Charles was mapping Europe; his fire of ambition was glowing, and the news of the new fields of the ocean that these discoveries had brought to him filled him with pride and exultation.

He resolved on giving Del Cano and his mariners a splendid reception, after the manner that Isabella had received Columbus.

Del Cano was now the living representative of Magellan. In publicly receiving him with heralds, music, and festival he would do honor to Magellan, whose name was now immortal. So Charles spread his tables of silver and gold to those who had lived on the open sea on scraps of leather, and magnanimously welcomed as knights of the sea those who had followed the sun around the world.

Spain opened the prison doors of Mesquita.

How must Del Cano have welcomed Mesquita as he came forth from his prison, vindicated on these festal days!

Mesquita was a hero now, and a hero among heroes, for he had been a martyr to the cause. The people's hearts overflowed toward him.

So the islands of the new ocean world came to be the possessions of Spain, and from Philip, who succeeded Charles, were called the Philippines. They were to be governed, robbed, taxed, and, in part, reduced to slavery for the enrichment of Spain for nearly four hundred years. Then Spain was to vanish from their history in the smoke of Admiral Dewey's guns, and over them was to float the flag of the republic of the West.

It is a strange allotment of events that these islands should introduce the republic of the West into the Asiatic world. A half century ago the subject of Europe in Asia excited the attention of mankind, but no one ever dreamed that a like topic of America in Asia would ever become one of the political problems of the world.

The future of these islands must be one of civilization, education, and development, and we may hope that these will be brought about under the divine law of American institutions, that "all governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed." Justice alone is the true sword of power, perpetuity, and peace. To lead the natives of these islands to desire to receive all that is best in civilized life, is one of the great missions of the republic of the West; and that republic, governed by the conscience of the people, will be true to the cause of human rights.

Pigafetta? We must let him tell the story of his life on his return. "Leaving Seville I repaired to Valladolid, where I presented his sacred Majesty, Don Carlos, neither gold nor silver, but other things far more precious in the eyes of so great a sovereign. For I brought to him, among other things, a book written in my own hand, giving an account of all the things which had happened day by day on the voyage.

"Then I went to Portugal, where I related to King John the things that I had seen.

"Returning by the way of Spain, I came to France, where I presented treasures that I had brought home to the regent mother of the most Christian King Don Francis.

"Then I turned my face toward Italy, where I gave myself to the service of the illustrious Philip de Villiers l'Isle Adams, the Grand Master of Rhodes."

The scene of the presentation of the parchment story of Magellan to Charles V is most interesting. That manuscript was like the return of Magellan himself; it told what the hero of the sea had been and what he had done. It was in itself a work of genius, and the world has never ceased to read it in the spirit of sympathy in which it was written.

We may fancy the scene: the young King surrounded by his court, in his happiest days; the Italian Knight amid the splendors of the audience room, placing in the hands of the new Cæsar the roll of the narrative of the voyage around the world! Such a story no pen had ever traced before. That must have been one of the proudest moments in the life of Charles as he took from the Knight the map of the round world.

To the last Pigafetta was true to the Admiral; and one of the best things that can be said of any man is, "He is true hearted."

A wooden statue of Del Cano was found at Cavite on the surrender of that port to Commodore Dewey. It was sent to Washington. It should be replaced by some worthy work of art.

The island of Guam, of the Ladrones, which broke the long voyage of Magellan over the Pacific, and which is some fifteen hundred miles from Luzon, was captured by Captain Glass, of the United States cruiser Charleston, July 21, 1898. It is a connecting link between the West and the Orient. A memorial of Magellan, Del Cano, and Pigafetta might be suitably placed there.

The author of the Songs of the Sierras has described the spirit of Columbus in a poem which has been highly commended. The interpretation applies as well to Magellan. We quote two verses: genius must overcome obstacles, and all obstacles, to be made divine.

THE PORT

Behind him lay the gray Azores,
Behind, the gates of Hercules.
Before him not the ghosts of shores,
Before him only shoreless seas.
The good mate said: "Now must we pray,
For, lo! the very stars are gone.
Brave Admiral, speak – what shall I say?"
"Why say – Sail on, sail on, sail on!"

They sailed, they sailed. Then spoke the mate:
"This mad sea shows her teeth to-night;
She curls her lip and lies in wait
With lifted teeth as if to bite.
Brave Admiral, say but one good word,
What shall we do when hope is gone?"
The words leaped as a leaping sword —
"Sail on, sail on, sail on and on!"

5. The 10th of August was Wednesday, and Monday was the 8th of August: all the other dates of the week and month agree and are consistent with each other.

6. According to ship's time.