The life of Las Casas, "the apostle of the Indies".

Front matter

THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY

Helps; Arthur, Sir, 1813-1875.

Life of Las Casas, "the apostle of

Contents

Cuaprer I.

Page 9G HARACTER of Las Casas—His Parentage " Ve and Education—He joins with Narvaez

(A in an Expedition to Cuba—He is summoned to Xagua. : : A a

Chapter I

Character of Las Casas—His Parentage and Education— He joins with Narvaez in an Expedition to Cuba—He is summoned to Xagua.

% Fay ARTHOLOMEW de Las Casas was a 0) a the son of Antonio de Las Casas, one voyage. Bartholomew was born at Seville in 1474, His father became rich, and sent him as a student to Salamanca, where he remained till of Columbus’s shipmates in his first he was eighteen, and took a licentiate’s degree. We then hear nothing of importance concerning him till 1498, when he accompanied his father in an expedition under Columbus to the West Indies, returning to Cadiz with the expedition in 1500.

In 1502 he accompanied Nicholas de Ovando, a distinguished knight of Alacantara, who was going

B

Character of Las Casas.

2 CHARACTER OF LAS CASAS.

out to Hispaniola as governor of the Indies, was afterwards ordained priest,* and now, at the age of thirty-six, eight years after his arrival in the Indies, began to make his appearance on the stage of history. He was a very notable person, of that force of character and general ability, that he would have excelled in any career. Indeed, he did fulfil three or four vocations, being an eager man of business, a laborious and accurate historian, a great reformer, a great philanthropist, and a vigorous ecclesiastic. The utmost that friends or enemies, I imagine, could with the slightest truth allege against him, was an over-fervent temperament. If we had to arrange the faculties of great men, we should generally, according to our easy-working fancies, combine two characters to make our men of. And, in this case, we should not be sorry, if it might have been so, to have had a little of the wary nature of such a man as King Ferdinand the Second intermixed with the nobler elements of Las Casas. Considering, however, what great things Las Casas strove after, and how much he

* He sang the first “new mass” in the Indies, from which it appears that he was the first priest ordained there.

accomplished, it is ungracious to dwell more than is needful upon any defect or superfluity of his character. If it can be proved that he was on any occasion too impetuousin word or deed, it was in a cause that might have driven any man charged with it beyond all bounds of prudence in the expression of his indignation. His nature had the merit of being as constant as it was ardent. He was eloquent, acute, truthful, bold, self-sacrificing, pious. We need not do more in praise of such a character than show it in action.

In the whole course of West Indian colonization, a wise and humane forethought never could have been more wanted than at this period. Hispaniola was rapidly becoming depopulated of Indians, and on the mode of renewing the population, we may almost say, depended the future destinies of slavery.

In the year 1511 the Admiral Don Diego Columbus, Ovando’s successor as governor of Hispaniola, undertook the subjection of Cuba. He chose for his Captain, Diego Velazquez, one of the original conquerors, a man of wealth, whose possessions in Hispaniola were in that part of the island nearest to Cuba.

A critical period in the West Indies.

Las Casas joins Velazquez in an expedition to pacificate Cuba.

The earliest mention made of Las Casas in connection with West Indian history, is his being summoned by Diego Velazquez, to proceed to Cuba, where he arrived at the same time as Pamphilo de Narvaez, who had been selected by Velazquez as his lieutenant to joi with Las Casas in the population and _ pacification—for such were the terms in vogue—of the island of Cuba.

One of the first expeditions of Narvaez was unsuccessful: it was in the province of Bayamo. He himself was nearly killed, and would never have escaped, but for the terror which his horse, an animal not hitherto seen by these Indians, inspired. These Indians, however, who had fled at the approach of the Spaniards, returned to beg pardon, and to be received into subjection. This appears astonishing, but may be easily explained. The territories into which they fled were occupied by other Indians, who had food enough for themselves only; and, therefore, after a brief sojourn, the unhappy fugitives, becoming most unwelcome guests, were tempted to return to their own country; for the Spaniards, though terrible visitors in other respects, did not at once create a famine in those parts which they occupied, by reason of the comparative smallness of their numbers,

By these means the province where the Spaniards first landed, called Maici, and the adjacent one of Bayamo, were brought into complete subjection; and the inhabitants were then divided into repartimientos,* and apportioned by Velazquez amongst his followers. After this Velazquez, who was about to be married, went to receive his bride, leaving his nephew, Juan de Grivalva, as his lieutenant (for Narvaez had not yet returned), and Las Casas as an adviser to the lieutenant. On the return of Narvaez, orders from Velazquez reached the place where Narvaez and Las Casas were stationed, directing them to make an expedition into the country of Camaguey, for the purpuse of “ assuring” it, to use their phrase. The

* A repartimiento was a deed that ran thus :—“ To you (such a one) is given an encomienda (or commandery) of so many Indians with such a Cacique, and you are to teach them the things of our Holy Catholic Faith.” With respect to the implied condition of teaching the Indians the “ Holy Catholic Faith,” it was no more attended to from first to last than any formal clause in a deed which is supposed by the parties concerned to be a mere formality.

Expedition of Las Casas and Narvaez, 1515 or 1514.

Nature of his testimony.

narrative of this expedition, which is given in full detail by Las Casas, an eye-witness and principal actor in the scene he describes, is very instructive.

And here I must say for Las Casas, that I have not the slightest doubt of the truth of any statement which he thus vouches for. He manifests throughout his writings, in various little things, his accuracy and truthfulness. For instance, he is careful to point out the exact pronunciation of the Indian names, and shows a fair appreciation of those persons he is most bitterly opposed to.

Before they reached the province of Camaguey they came to a place called Cueyba. This was the very spot where Ojeda—one of the explorers who followed Columbus—when shipwrecked, had left an image of the Virgin. Ojeda had been received with great kindness by the Indians in that vicinity, and the image which he left was now held in the highest reverence by the natives, who had built a church, adorning it inside with ornamental work made of cotton, and had set up an altar for the image. Moreover, they had composed couplets in honour of the Virgin, which they sang to sweet melodies, and accompanied with dancing, This image was also held in especial reverence by the Spaniards, and Las Casas being anxious on that account to obtain it in exchange for another image which he had brought with him, entered into treaty with the Cacique for that purpose. The Indian chief, however, was so alarmed at these overtures, that he fled by night, taking the beloved image with him. Las Casas, when he heard of this, was greatly disconcerted, fearing lest the neighbouring population should take up arms on behalf of their image. He managed, however, to quiet them, assuring them, that he would not only let them keep their own image, but that he would bestow upon them the one which he had brought with him.

Such gentle means as these were invariably pursued by Las Casas with the greatest effect ; and it is evident from this story how very easy the conversion of the Indians would have been by mild means, instead of which it was made the pretext with some, and the real justification with others, for the greatest inhumanities.

The commands of Las Casas met with so much reverence from these simple people, that when he sent by a messenger any bit of paper inserted at

Las Casas reverenced by the natives of Cuba.

the end of astick, and the messenger declared that the paper bore such and such orders, they were implicitly obeyed. The Indians had in general the greatest respect and wonder for the communication among the Spaniards by letter, for it appeared to them quite a miracle, how the information of what had been done in one place was made known in another by means of these mysterious pieces of paper.

One of the chief cares of the Clerigo (the title by which Las Casas describes himself) was, whenever they halted in any Indian town or village, to assign separate quarters to the Indians and the Spaniards. By this means he prevented many disorders and much cruelty. But his principal business was to assemble the children in order to baptize them; and, as he observes, there were many that God bestowed his sacred baptism upon in good time; for none, or scarcely any, of all those children remained alive a few months afterwards.

The ; In the course of this journey of pacification, Spaniards : approach the Spaniards approached a large town of the /a40nao.

Indians called Caonao, where an immense number of the natives had congregated together, chiefly to see the horses which the Spaniards brought with them. In the morning of the day on which the Spaniards under Narvaez and Las Casas, amounting to about a hundred men, arrived at Caonao, they stopped to breakfast in the dry bed of a stream where there were many stones suitable for grindstones; and they all took the opportunity of sharpening their swords. From thence a wide and arid plain led them to Caonao. They would have suffered terribly from thirst, but that some Indians kindly brought them water on the road. At last they reached Caonao at the time of vespers. Here they halted. The chief population of this Indian town and the vicinity was assembled together in one spot, sitting on the ground, and gazing, no doubt with wonder, at the horses of the Spaniards. Apart, in a large hut, were five hundred of the natives, who, being more timid than the others, were content to prepare victuals for their visitors, but declined any nearer approaches. The Spaniards had with them about a thousand of their own Indian attendants. The Clerigo was preparing for the division of the rations amongst the men, when suddenly a Spaniard, prompted, as was

Massacre of the Indians at Caonao.

thought, by the Devil, drew his sword: the rest drew theirs; and immediately they all began to hack and hew the poor Indians, who were sitting quietly near them, and offering no more resistance than so many sheep. At the precise moment when the massacre began, the Clerigo was in the apartment where the Spaniards were to sleep for the night. He had five Spaniards with him: some Indians who had brought the baggage were lying on the ground, sunk in fatigue. The five Spaniards hearing the blows of the swords of their comrades without, immediately fell upon the Indians who had brought the baggage. Las Casas, however, was enabled to prevent that slaughter, and the five Spaniards rushed out to join their comrades. The Clerigo went also, and, to his grief and horror, saw heaps of dead bodies already strewed about, “like sheaves of corn,” waiting to be gathered up. “ What think you these Spaniards have been doing?” exclaimed Narvaez to Las Casas; and Las Casas replied, “I commend both you and them to the Devil.”* The Clerigo did not stop, however, to

* “Que os ofresco 4 vos y 4 ellos el Diablo.”—Las Casas, Hist. de las Indias, MS. lib, ui. cap. 29.

bandy words with the Commander, but rushed hither and thither, endeavouring to prevent. the indiscriminate slaughter which was going on, of men, women, and children. ‘Then he entered the great hut, where he found that many Indians had already been slaughtered, but some had escaped by the pillars and the woodwork, and were up aloft. ‘To them he exclaimed, “ Fear not, there shall be no more slaughter —no more;” upon which, one of them, a young man of five-andtwenty, trusting to these words, came down. But, as Las Casas justly says, the Clerigo could not be in all places at once, and, as it happened, he left this hut directly, indeed, before the poor young man got down, upon which a Spaniard drew a short sword, and ran the Indian through the body. Las Casas was back in time to afford the last rites of the Church to the dying youth. To see the fearful wounds that were made, it seemed, the historian says, as if the Devil had guided the men that day to those stones in the dry bed of the river.

When inquiry was made as to who had been the author of this massacre, no one replied. This shows how causeless the massacre was, for if there

The massacre at Caonao causeless.

War, when most fatal In its consequences.

had been any good reason for it, the Spaniard who first drew his sword would have justified himself, and perhaps claimed merit for the action. It may have been panic in this one man; it may have been momentary madness, for such things are taken much less into account than is requisite; but, whatever the cause, the whole transaction shows the conduct of the Spaniards towards the Indians in a most unfavourable light.

The maxim, that the evil consequences of war depend, not so much upon the nature of the victory, or the rage of the combatants, or the cause of the quarrel, as upon the contempt, justifiable or not, which the victorious side has for the vanquished, seems to me applicable throughout history. The wars between nations that respect one another may have most sanguinary and cruel results, but not so injurious to humanity as when Spartan conquers Helot, Mahomedan conquers Christian, Spaniard conquers Moor or Indian; or as, in general, when one nation with much civilization, or much bigotry, conquers another nation of little civilization, or of another creed. The Romans may in some instances have offered a splendid exception to this rule; but in the general history of the world it holds good. On the news of this massacre at Caonao,* all the inhabitants of the province deserted their towns, flying for refuge to the innumerable islets on that coast, called the “ Garden of the Queen.” The Spaniards, leaving the Indian town of Caonao, which they had desolated in the manner related above, formed a camp in the vicinity, or rather ordered the Indians to form it for them, for each Spaniard had at least eight or ten native attendants. Amongst those of Las Casas was an old Indian of much repute in the island, called Camacho, who had accompanied the Clerigo voluntarily, to be under his protection. One day, while the Spaniards were at this camp, a young Indian, sent as a spy from the former inhabitants of Caonao, came into the camp, and making his way directly to the Clerigo’s tent, addressed Camacho, begging to be taken into the Clerigo’s service, and requesting that he might be allowed

* “No quedé piante ni mamante.”—Las Casas. A proverbial expression—“ There remained neither the child that sucks nor the one that chirrups.”

The Indians fly to the

** Garden of the Queen.”

People of Caonao return.

to bring his younger brother also. Camacho informed Las Casas of this, who was delighted with the news, as it gave an opportunity of communicating with those Indians who had fled. Accordingly he received the Indian very kindly, made him some trifling presents, and besought him to bring back his countrymen to their homes, and to assure them that they should not be further molested. The young man, to whom Camacho gave the name of Adrianico, took his leave, promising to bring his brother and the rest of the Indians. Some days passed away, and Las Casas began to think that Adrianico would not be able to perform his promise, when one evening he made his appearance with his brother and a hundred and eighty Indian men and women. Children are not mentioned, and I conjecture these Indians would not run the risk of bringing them within the power of the Spaniards.

It was a melancholy sight to see the little band of fugitives, with their small bundles of household things on their shoulders, and their strings of beads as presents for the Clerigo and the Spaniards, returning, perforce, for want of food— and perhaps too with some of that inextinguishable fondness for home which endears so large a part of the world to its inhabitants—to the spot where they had but lately seen such cruelties perpetrated on their friends and relations. The Clerigo was delighted to see them, but very sad too, when he considered their gentleness, their humility, their poverty, and their sufferings. Pamphilo de Narvaez united with Las Casas in doing all he could to assure these poor people of their safety ; and they were dismissed to their empty homes. This example of good treatment reassured the Indians of that vicinity, who in consequence returned to their houses.

The Spaniards pursued their purpose of pacifieating Cuba, now taking to their vessels and coasting along the northern shore, and now traversing the interior of the country. When they came to the province of Havana, they found that the Indians, having heard of the massacre at Caonao and other such proceedings, had all fled; upon which Las Casas sent messengers to the different Caciques, the messengers bearing mysterious pieces of paper inserted at the end of sticks, which had before been found so efficacious, and assuring these Caciques of safety and protec-

Las Casas sends to the Caciques to assure them of safety.

joins Velazquez at Xagua.

tion. The result was, that eighteen or nineteen of these Caciques came and placed themselves in the power of the Spaniards; and it is an astonishing instance of the barbarity and folly of the Spanish captain Narvaez, that he put them in chains, and expressed an intention of burning them alive. Probably he thought that the pro-. vince by this means, losing all its chiefs at one blow, would become hopeless and obedient. The Clerigo in the strongest manner protested against this monstrous treachery, to which he would have been so unwilling a party; and partly by entreaties, partly by threats, succeeded in procuring the release of all these Caciques except one, the most powerful, who was carried to Velazquez, but was afterwards set at liberty.

This seems a strange method of assuring and pacificating the Indians; but their want of resources, and the absence of any experience of such war as they had now to encounter, if they made any resistance, caused them easily to succumb. The island of Cuba was now considered to be pacificated, and Pamphilo de Narvaez and Las

Casas were ordered to join Velazquez at Xagua.

CHAPTER: II.

The Conversion of Las Casas—His Voyage to Spain—He goes to Court—The Death of King Ferdinand.

< SAS CASAS, as the reader will herefz.) after see, had many troubles and sor-

= /& rows to bear; but at this particular period he was blessed with that which is always one of the greatest blessings, but which, like hospitality in a partially civilized country, seems to have flourished more, as being more needed, in rude, hard times. In a word, he had a real friend. This friend’s name was Pedro de la Renteria. Their friendship was most intimate, and had subsisted for many years. De Renteria, as often happens in friendship, presented a curious contrast to Las Casas. He was a man who might well have been a monk—a devout, contemplative person, given much to solitude and

Cc

Las Casas had a friend.

Partnership between Las Casas and Renteria.

prayer; and Las Casas mentions a trait in his character which exactly coincides with the rest of it, namely, that he was a most liberal man; but that his liberality seemed rather to flow from habit and a carelessness about worldly goods than from a deliberate judgment exercised in matters of benevolence. This good man’s occupations, however, were entirely secular, and he was employed by Diego Velazquez as Alcalde.

When the island was considered to be settled and the Governor began to give repartimientos, knowing the friendship that existed between Las Casas and Renteria, he gave them a large village in common, and Indians in repartimiento.* ‘This land of theirs was about a league from Xagua, on the river Ariméo; and there they lived, the Clerigo

* “Didle (4 Pedro de Renteria) Indios de repartimiento juntamente con el Padre, dando 4 ambos un buen Pueblo y grande, con los cuales el Padre comenzé 4 entender en hacer grangerias y en echar parte de ellos en las minas, teniendo harto mas cuidado de ellas que de dar doctrina 4 los Indios, habiendo de sér como lo era principalmente aquel su oficio; peroen aquella materia tan ciego estaba por aquel tiempo el buen Padre como los Seglares todos que tenia por hijos.”—Las Casas, Hist. de las Indias, MS., lib, il. cap. 32.

having the greater part of the management of the joint affairs, as being much the more lively and the busier man. Indeed, he confesses that he was as much engaged as others in sending his Indians to the mines and making as large a profit of their labour as possible. At the same time, however, he was kind to them personally, and provided carefully for their sustenance; but, to use his own words, “he took no more heed than the other Spaniards to bethink himself that his Indians were unbelievers, and of the duty that there was on his part to give them instruction, and to bring them to the bosom of the Church of Christ.”* 7

As there was but one other clerigo in the whole island, and no friar, it was necessary for Las Casas occasionally to say mass and to preach. It happened that he had to do so on “ the Feast of Pentecost,” in the year 1514; and studying either the sermons that he preached himself, or that he heard the other clerigo preach at this time, he began to ponder over certain passages ( authorities” he calls them) of Scripture.

* Las Casas, Hist. de las Indias, MS., lib. iii. cap. 78.

Las Casas a busy, moneymaking man,

Las Casas communes with himself.

The 34th chapter of Ecclesiasticus, the 18th, 19th, 20th, 21st and 22nd verses, first arrested, and then enchained, his attention :—

“He that sacrificeth of a thing wrongfully gotten, his offering is ridiculous: and the gifts of unjust men are not accepted.

«The Most High is not pleased with the offerings of the wicked: neither 1s he pacified for sin by the multitude of sacrifices.

«¢ Whoso bringeth an offering of the goods of the poor doeth as one that killeth the son before his father’s eyes.

«The bread of the needy is their life; he that defraudeth him thereof is a man of blood.

«He that taketh away his neighbour’s living slayeth him ; and he that defraudeth the labourer of his hire is a bloodshedder.”

I think that the Clerigo might have dwelt upon one of the remaining verses of the chapter with great profit :—

‘* When one prayeth, and another curseth, whose voice will the Lord hear ?”

In recounting the steps which led to his conversion, Las Casas takes care to say, that what he had formerly heard the Dominicans preach in

Hispaniola was, at this critical period of his life, of great service to him. ‘Then he had only slighted their words; but he now particularly remembers a contest he had with a certain Religioso, who refused to give him absolution, because he possessed Indians. This is an instance of the great mistake it may be to hold your tongue about the truth, for fear it should provoke contest and harden an adversary in his opinion. The truths which he has heard sink into a man at some time or other: and, even when he retires from a contest, apparently fixed in his own conceits, it would often be found that if he had to renew the contest the next day, he would not take up quite the same position that he had maintained before. The good seed sown by the Dominicans had now, after having been buried for some years, found a most fruitful soil; and it shot up in the ardent soul of the Clerigo like grain in that warm land of the tropics upon which he stood. Las Casas studied the principles of the matter: from the principles he turned to considering the facts about him; and, with his candid mind thus fully aroused, he soon came to the conclusion that the system of repartz-

Good argument not lost upon men.

Las Casas convinced of the evil of repartimientos.

Las Casas resolves to give up his own Indians.

no bo

CONVERSION OF LAS CASAS.

mientos was iniquitous,* and that he must preach against it.

What, then, must he do with his own Indians? Alas, it was necessary to give them up! Not that he grudged giving them up for any worldly motive, but he felt that no one in Cuba would be as considerate towards them as he, even in the days of his darkness, had been; and that they would be worked to death—as indeed they were. But still, the answer to all the sermons he might preach would be his own repartimiento of Indians. He resolved to give them up.

Now, as Las Casas was not only the friend, but the partner, of Pedro de Renteria, this determination on the part of the Clerigo was a matter which would affect the interests of his friend; and, unluckily, Renteria happened to be absent from home at this time, having gone to Jamaica

* « Pasados pues algunos dias en aquesta consideracion, y cada dia mas y mas certificandola por lo que leia cuanto al derecho, y via del hecho, aplicandolo uno al otro, determiné en si mismo convencido de la misma verdad, ser injusto y tiranico todo cuanto cerca de los Indios en estas Indias se cometia.”"—Las Casas, Hist. de las Indias, MS., lib. iii. cap. 78.

upon their joint affairs, Las Casas, however, went to the Governor Velazquez, and laid open his mind to him upon the subject of the repartimientos, putting the matter boldly as it concerned his lordship’s own salvation, as well as that of Las Casas and the rest of the Spaniards. The Clerigo added, that he must give up his own slaves, but wished that this determination might be kept secret till Pedro de Renteria should return.

The Governor was greatly astonished ; for Las Casas, who, no doubt, took warmly in hand anything he did take up at all, passed for a man fond of gain, and very busy in the things of this world. Velazquez, in replying, besought the Clerigo to consider the matter well—to take fifteen days, indeed, to think of it—and to do nothing that he would repent of afterwards. Las Casas thanked his lordship for his kindness, but bade him count the fifteen days as already past; and added, that if he, Las Casas, were to repent, and were to ask for the Indians again, even with tears of blood, God would punish the Governor severely if he were to listen to such a request. Thus ended the interview ; and it is to the Governor’s credit

He informs the Governor.

Las Casas preaches against repartimientos.

that he ever afterwards held the Clerigo in greater esteem than before.

Las Casas, however, did not long confine his efforts at conversion to the Governor alone, nor did he conceal his intention until his partner had returned home; for, when preaching on the day of “ The Assumption of Our Lady,” he took occasion to mention publicly the conclusion he had come to as regards his own affairs, and also to urge upon his congregation in the strongest manner his conviction of the danger to their souls if they retained their repartimientos of Indians. All were amazed; some were struck with compunction; others were as much surprised to hear it called a sin to make use of the Indians as if they had been told it was sinful to make use of the beasts of the field.

After Las Casas had uttered many exhortations both in public and in private, and had found that they were of little avail, he meditated how to go to the fountain head of authority, the King of Spain. The Clerigo’s resources were exhausted: he had not a maravedi,* or the means of getting one, ex-

* Equal to about two-thirds of a farthing.

cept by selling a mare which was worth a hundred pesos.* Resolving, however, to go, he wrote to Renteria, telling him that business of importance was taking him to Castille, and that unless Renteria could return immediately, he, Las Casas, could not wait to see him—a thing, as he adds, not imaginable by the good Renteria, so firm was their friendship.

It was a singular coincidence that, not long before this time, the services of the Church had also brought into active existence very serious thoughts in the breast of Pedro de Renteria. There may be a community of thought not expressed in language; and, perhaps, these two good men, | while apparently engaged in their ordinary secular business, had, unknown to themselves, been communicating to each other generous thoughts about their poor Indians, which had not hitherto been embodied in words. While Renteria was waiting in Jamaica for the despatch of his business, he went into a Franciscan monastery to spend his Lent in “retreat” (these pauses from the world are not to be despised !); and there thinking over the miseries