Vasco Nuñez de Balboa

by Frederick A. Ober

Full of his new project, Balboa broached it to his counsellors without delay, but to his surprise they would not hear of it, neither would any person whatever in the colony. "No, no," they all exclaimed. "You shall not leave us, Vasco Nuñez. You are not alone our governor, but our guide and leader. You, only, are respected by the soldiers, feared by the savages, and we cannot do without you. Stay here with us you must; but we will send deputies to acquaint the king with the condition of the colony, to entreat the necessary military aid, and to plead your cause as though it were yourself in person, Vasco Nuñez."

They proved their sincerity by electing two deputies, one of them Juan de Caicedo, who had been inspector on the unfortunate Nicuesa expedition, and the other Rodrigo de Colmenares, "both men of weight, expert in negotiation, and held in general esteem." It was believed that they would satisfactorily execute their commission, and that both would return, since Caicedo left a wife behind him at Darien, and Colmenares had acquired much property, including a farm which he tilled with Indian labor, when not engaged in military operations. Balboa gladly relieved him from command of the fort at Tichiri, and rejoiced that he could send one who would so well represent his cause at court. By him he forwarded letters to the king, containing most extravagant accounts of the country's riches, not forgetting to mention the famed temple of Dobaybe, filled with gold, and the tales the Indians told respecting the gathering of gold in nets. He showed this precious epistle to the colonists, and they were all so greatly impressed with it that, one and all, they contributed gold to the extent of their hoardings, which, added to the amount sent by the government to the king, represented a goodly sum.

Balboa's commissioners left Darien del Antigua about the end of October, 1512, and arrived in Spain, after a long and tempestuous voyage, in the early part of 1513. Had they been the only messengers from that isolated colony on the isthmus, all might have gone well with its governor; but, unfortunately for him, as we know, his enemies had preceded them and spread broadcast the most pernicious tales respecting the doings of the gallant adventurer, Vasco Nuñez de Balboa.

Leaving them for a time, while the ferment is working that eventuated in the downfall of Balboa, let us continue in his company until he has accomplished that great achievement due to his heroic efforts, and with which fame has inseparably linked his name—the discovery of the Pacific Ocean.

By the information conveyed through his friend at court, Zamudio, he was assured that lawyer Enciso had obtained a judgment against him in which he was condemned for costs and damages to a large amount. This was not all, for the king was very much incensed, and had issued a summons for him to repair to Spain without delay, there to stand trial on criminal charges respecting the outrageous treatment of Nicuesa, which had probably caused his death.

It will be admitted that Vasco Nuñez was then in a terrible predicament, and that there seemed no way out of it save by a desperate venture, by which he might perhaps retrieve his fortunes, win fame, and recover the lost favor of the king. Fortunately for him, the news conveyed by Zamudio's letter had been informal, and in advance of tidings direct from the throne, so there was still time for action. When the authoritative summons should come, it would be too late; hence he could not await the reinforcements so anxiously expected from Spain, and must accomplish whatever he did before their arrival. Thus the intrepid Balboa was thrown directly upon his own resources, and resolved to set forth without the assistance from his sovereign which he had every right to expect in an undertaking so vast and venturesome as his.

Desultory and apparently aimless as had been his doings hitherto, Balboa had never for a moment lost sight of that grand scheme he had formed for exploring beyond the mountains and revealing the existence, if possible, of the great "southern sea." Cacique Comogre's son had assured him that he would need at least a thousand men to assist him, and acting upon this sage advice he had waited for reinforcements before attempting the great adventure. But now, if he waited longer, he might forever lose the opportunity, for with the reinforcements from Spain would also come the order for his arrest and transportation, or at least his dismissal from office. What he did, then, must be done quickly as well as effectually, and he lost no time in perfecting his plans.

"While another and less intrepid spirit might have been overwhelmed by the prospects before him, Balboa was animated to new daring, and impelled to yet higher enterprises. Should he permit another to profit by his toils, to discover the great South Sea, and to ravish from him the wealth and glory which were almost within his grasp? No, a thousand times no! He had won the information at risk of his life; he would realize the profit of it, even at the risk of his life. At least, no other man should avail of it, to cheat him of his dues. He did, indeed, still want the thousand men who were necessary to the projected expedition; but his enterprise, his experience, and his constancy impelled him to undertake it, even without them. He would thus, by so signal a service, blot out the original crime of his primary usurpation, and if death should overtake him in the midst of his exertions, he would die laboring for the prosperity and glory of his native land, and freed from the persecutions which then threatened him."[3]

As he would be obliged to absent himself from the colony for a long period, he made every effort to weld the various elements into a civic body that should work harmoniously and resist the disintegrating forces from within as well as from without. His first step was to set free the ringleaders of the late insurrection, which done, and assured of their co-operation, he proceeded to select his soldiers. There was no lack of volunteers when it became noised about that Balboa was to set out on the grand expedition to which all the others had been in a sense merely preliminary, and he was at greater trouble to reject than to accept those who offered for the service. Desiring none but the most dauntless spirits, he put every man applying to the severest tests. In the first place, they must be capable of enduring fatigue and hunger; in the second, they must be unflinchingly courageous, for the route of march would lie through regions occupied by hostile Indians who were said to be cannibals and gave no quarter.

"My men," he said to them one day, when haranguing them for the last time, assembled on parade, "I shall not attempt to conceal from you the perils of this enterprise. In truth, they could not, in my opinion, be greater. And, while I shall always lead, as hitherto, asking no man to go where I would not venture in advance, yet you may not have the great incentive that moves me. So far as spoils and captives are concerned, ye shall share alike with me; but there is a greater motive than mere spoils. My ambition, as ye all have known for many months, is to achieve the discovery of that great ocean said to lie beyond the mountains. That is—that shall be—the object of my endeavors, and to that the getting of captives and the plundering of natives shall be subordinate. There will be, doubtless, vast spoil, for the country we are to enter has the reputation of being rich in gold and gems. There will be danger; there will be fatigues, deaths, wounds—but, above all, there will be glory—the glory of accomplishing something of which men have dreamed for many years, but have never achieved!"