Children's Stories in American History

by Henrietta Christian Wright

One day, when he was quite a big lad, a stranger came to the little valley; he was an old, weather-beaten sailor, and had sailed across distant seas and journeyed through many strange lands, and at night, when the peasant boys were through with their day's work, they all gathered around him and listened to his tales of the great world that lay beyond the mountains that shut in their quiet little valley, just as the stone wall shut in the duke's palace.

Francisco listened with the others, but his heart beat wildly, for, as the old man talked, it seemed that he was again in the land of his dreams. And no wonder, for the sailor's stories were very wonderful and quite true, for he was one of the men that sailed across the ocean with Columbus on his first great voyage. He had seen with his own eyes that far-off, beautiful land, where the air was always soft as the spring in the valleys, and where the flowers bloomed forever, and the trees bore delicious fruits; he had heard the reports of its mountains of gold and mines of precious stones, and rivers whose waves tossed gleaming pearls upon the beach. And it was all true, and all this wealth and beauty lay there waiting for bold hearts and brave hands to claim and keep, for the people of that far country were only poor savages, knowing nothing of the value of the gold and gems they wore, and were so ignorant that they thought the Spaniards were the children of some great god, and were ready to fall down and worship their beauty and strength and courage.

And the old man talked till the stars came out, and the moon had climbed far up the sky, for never before had there been told such wonderful news as this, for all the stories of the fabulous wealth of the East had come true at last, and no one could doubt any more. By and by, as the days passed, the sailor told other stories of other countries, where the soldiers of Spain were winning great victories, and although his words were forgotten by most of the boys, yet Francisco and one or two others thought of them often and pondered over them, and thought what a fine thing it must be to be a soldier fighting for honor and glory. And as time went on they talked more and more about this, and at last they resolved to leave their old miserable life behind them forever, and go out into the world and seek their fortune. But they had to be very careful and secret, for they meant to run away; the summer was gone and the autumn had come to the valley before the three boys found a chance to carry out their plan, and one morning when Francisco and his friends were called to go to their distasteful work, they did not answer, for they were far on their way up the mountains, and had said farewell to the valley forever. It was pleasant travelling through the hospitable country roads, and after they had gone so far that they had no fear of being overtaken, they went on merrily enough. Francisco's heart was the lightest and bravest. He had most detested his old life, and now he most rejoiced that it was past.

So the boys journeyed on and crossed the mountains and passed through the fertile valleys and then climbed other mountains, and everywhere the kind country folk gave them food and drink and shelter, and the young travellers thought they had never had grapes and chestnuts and goat's milk taste as good before, as they ate and drank under the trees by the road-side or in some peasant's cottage; and by and by the journey was over, and they were in Seville. And now the runaways found they were out in the world indeed. No one in all that great, splendid city cared in the least whether they lived or died, whether they suffered from hunger or thirst, or whether they had a place to lay their heads at night. But they kept brave hearts, got what they could to eat, slept where they could at night, and spent the days in wandering through the streets and getting acquainted with the life of a great city. And although they were not sure where bread and cheese were to come from and where they were to lie down at night, still the wonderful sights of this new life, the magnificent houses, splendid palaces, costly dresses, and, above all, the companies of mounted soldiers that were continually parading the streets, all drove thoughts of home from their minds, and they did not regret in the least that they had exchanged the village of Truxillo for the glitter and show of Seville.

In a few days Francisco decided that he would join the army and go to Italy, where the Spaniards were then fighting, and as the king wanted all the soldiers he could get, and as he was large and well developed for his age, he had no trouble in enlisting in one of the regiments, and when he put on the gaudy uniform and began to live in camp, he felt, indeed, that his old life was over and that Francisco Pizarro was quite a different person from the ragged little urchin that tended pigs at Truxillo.

But there was one sad thing about it, and that was the parting from his two friends, for Pizarro's regiment sailed very soon for Italy, and it was with great sorrow that he said farewell to the two companions who had shared the excitement and danger of his escape from home. However, the noise of war soon drove sad thoughts from his mind, and so eagerly did he enter into his new life that he soon became one of the best soldiers in the regiment, and so renowned for bravery that by the time the war was over and the army ready to return to Spain he had been made a lieutenant. This only made him more ambitious, and as he found life in the city very stupid for the next few years, because there was no fighting to be done, he was very glad when he heard one day that a great expedition was to be sent out to America, and that any one who was brave and daring might join it and so have a chance of gaining riches and fame. He hastened to Cadiz at once, and as his courage and bravery were well known, had no trouble in being made one of the company; and when, in a few days, the ships left Cadiz and started on their long voyage across the Atlantic, Pizarro thought with great joy that he was on his way to those strange lands at last, and that perhaps his old dreams might come true.

The voyage was a stormy one, but at last they came safely to Hispaniola, and there Pizarro learned, what all newly-arrived Spaniards were not slow to learn, that of all restless, roving lives, those of Spanish adventurers were the most so. They were never content to remain in one place, but went hither and thither in their mad search for gold, always hoping to find something better, and always ready to risk their lives for the sake of bettering their fortunes. And so, no sooner had Pizarro become a little acquainted with the country at Hispaniola than he straightway caught the mad fever for moving on to some new place; and as there were constant reports of the wealth of the countries of Central America and Mexico, he decided that those places would suit him better than Hispaniola, and he accepted an offer to go to Darien, meaning to explore the country and see for himself what riches it contained.

At that time Balboa was also living in Darien, and Pizarro was one of the company who went with him across the isthmus to discover the Pacific. In this expedition Pizarro noted the country well, and was rejoiced to see the gold and gems which were bestowed upon him by the friendly chiefs, and when he returned to Darien he was very willing to become the leader of an expedition that the governor of the colony was fitting out, to conquer lands on the Pacific. The party reached the ocean in safety, and Pizarro immediately resolved to get all the treasure he could before any other Spaniards should have a chance to come there. On his former visit he had heard from the natives that there were great quantities of pearls to be found on some islands lying out from the land, and now he at once called part of his men together, and leaving the rest on the shore, started out in canoes to reach the islands. The sea was heavy, and the canoes were capsized more than once, but they reached the islands at last, only to find that the natives were thronging the beach ready to drive them off as quickly as they should land. But Pizarro was not to be driven back, and after a hard fight, the Indians retreated to the woods and left the Spaniards in peace. They began their search for pearls at once, and found them in such quantities that Pizarro named the spot the "Isle of Pearls," and after gathering a great store of these precious gems, and securing also a great deal of gold, he went back to Darien with his treasures and reported that the country was as rich as Cathay or Mexico.

The governor of Darien, on hearing this news, thought it would be a very good plan to move his capital from Darien across the isthmus so that he would be nearer the riches of the land, and in a short time the greater part of the colony were living in Panama, and eagerly watching for opportunities of gathering gold and gems.

Here Pizarro lived like a great man. He had a fine house and a long train of Indian servants, and flocks, and fields, and was looked upon as a rich man and a brave soldier. But he was not quite satisfied. Often, as he walked in his broad fields, he would look toward the north, where lay the land of Montezuma, the land that Cortez had conquered, thus winning for himself lasting honor and glory, besides great wealth, greater than Pizarro could ever expect to gain in his quiet home in Panama. And then he sometimes looked southward, too, and wondered what lay there beyond the blue, misty horizon. It could not be possible, he thought, that Cortez and Balboa had made all the great discoveries; perhaps there were other lands away there in the south as rich and great as Mexico. Perhaps it might be his good fortune some day to discover an empire as boundless and wonderful as that of Montezuma. So he pondered, day after day, over what the future might bring, and always listened eagerly for tales of the lands to the southward, where lay the great ocean that Balboa had discovered. And one day a visitor came to his home, who told him just what he wanted to hear, that there was a very great and powerful empire far south of Panama, and that with a good band of resolute soldiers, and a brave leader, it might be easily conquered. And as Pizarro listened he resolved that he would be the leader if he could only find men enough to follow him on his perilous undertaking.