Note 82 — Chapter V · SAILING OF THE EXPEDITION. 1518-1519.

The ownership of the expedition has been a moot question, some authors regarding it as pertaining chiefly to Velazquez, while others accord it wholly to Cortés and his friends. According to Gomara, after receiving the vessel brought by Alvarado, and another provided by Velazquez, Cortés, aided by his friends, bought two large and two small vessels before leaving Santiago; and at least two more were bought after this with bills forced upon the owners. The rest of the fleet appears to have been made up from the transport spoken of and from Grijalva’s vessels. The latter is to be regarded as Velazquez’ contribution, for in the testimony before the royal council in Spain, Montejo, the trusted friend of the commander, declares that on delivering them over to the governor he received the order to join Cortés, with the vessels, of course. His statements, and those of the captain Puertocarrero, confirmed by the letter of the ayuntamiento of Villa Rica to the emperor, agree that, from their own observations and the accounts given by others, Cortés must have contributed not only seven vessels, but expended over 5000 castellanos on the outfit, beside procuring goods and provisions, while Velazquez furnished only one third, chiefly in clothes, provisions, wines, and other effects, which he sold through an agent to the company, the witnesses included, at exorbitant prices. Montejo had heard that Velazquez contributed three vessels, but whether these were exclusive of Grijalva’s fleet is not clear. He is also supposed to have lent Cortés 2000 castellanos, and to have given twelve or thirteen hundred loads of bread, and 300 tocinos, beside 1800 castellanos in goods, to be sold to the party at high prices. Every other supply was furnished by Cortés, who maintained the whole force without touching the ship’s stores, while remaining in Cuba, no doubt. Col. Doc. Inéd., i. 487-90. Puertocarrero adds that Cortés’ liberality to men in advancing means and outfits was generally admitted. He himself had received a horse from the commander. He gives a list of the outrageously high prices charged by Velazquez for his supplies. Id., 491-5. Another member of the expedition states that Cortés furnished seven vessels, and Velazquez three, two more belonging to the latter joining the fleet afterward. Cortés paid for all the outfit. Extract appended to Carta del Ayunt. de V. Cruz, in Col. Doc. Inéd., i. 419-20: ‘Casi las dos partes ... á su (Cortés) costa, asi en navios como en bastimentos de mar.’ ‘Todo el concierto de la dicha armada se hizo á voluntad de dicho Diego Velazquez, aunque ni puso ni gastó él mas de la tercia parte de ella.... La mayor parte de la dicha tercia parte ... fué emplear sus dineros en vinos y en ropas y en otras cosas de poco valor para nos lo vender acá (V. Cruz) en mucha mas cantidad de lo que á él le costó.’ Carta de la Justicia de Veracruz, 10 de julio, 1519, in Cortés, Cartas, 8; Pacheco and Cárdenas, Col. Doc., xiv. 37. Claiming to have no ready money of his own, Velazquez took for the expedition 1000 castellanos from the estate of Narvaez in his charge. Gomara, Hist. Mex., 12-13. ‘Salió de la Isla de Cuba ... con quince navíos suyos.’ Cortés, Memorial, 1542, in Cortés, Escritos Sueltos, 310. Peter Martyr assumes that Cuban colonists furnished the fleet with the governor’s consent, and elected Cortés commander. Dec. iv. cap. vi. Solis, Hist. Mex., i. 61, considers that Velazquez held only a minor share in the expedition. Montejo stated in a general way that he spent all his fortune on joining the expedition. Cent. Am., 1554-55, 127-30, in Squiers MS. In De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii it is asserted that Cortés expended 6000 pesos of his own, and 6000 ducats borrowed money, beside what Velazquez lent him; his expenditures being in all 15,000 pesos. Velazquez gave not one real, but merely sold goods at exorbitant figures, or made advances at a high interest, even the vessels provided by him being transferred to the commander under an expensive charter. ‘Sunt pretereà, multi Hispani viri boni qui et nunc vivunt, et qui cum ea classis de qua agimus, apparabatur, aderant. Hi in hujus causæ defensione, cujus apud Consilium Regium Indicum Cortesius est accusatus, testes jurati asserunt Velazquium nihil omnino ex propriâ facultate in Cortesii classem impendisse.’ This would indicate that Montejo and Puertocarrero’s testimony was confirmed by many others. The agent, Juan Diaz, who attended to the sale of the goods and the collection of the advances, fell in the retreat from Mexico, and his money was lost. Icazbalceta, Col. Doc., i. 345-9. This testimony by members of the expedition merits the foremost attention in the question, particularly since the fewer statements on the other side are based wholly on supposition. It is somewhat qualified, however, by the consideration that both Montejo and Puertocarrero were stanch friends of Cortés, and that the letter of the ayuntamiento was prepared in his presence. It must also be borne in mind that a goodly proportion of the share attributed to him consisted of vessels and effects obtained upon his credit as captain-general of the fleet, and also in a semi-piratical manner. The statements in Cortés, Memorial, and in De Rebus Gestis Ferdinandi Cortesii, indicate, beside, a hardly warranted attempt to regard Velazquez’ contribution chiefly as a loan to the commander or to the party, his vessels being spoken of as chartered. Another proportion belonged to wealthy volunteers. On the whole, however, it may be concluded that Cortés could lay claim to a larger share in the expedition than Velazquez; but the latter possessed the title of being not only the discoverer, through his captains, of the regions to be conquered, but the projector of the expedition. Oviedo, while believing that the fleet belonged with more right to the governor, feels no pity for the treatment he received, in view of his own conduct to Diego Colon. Complacently he cites the proverb: ‘Matarás y matarte han: y matarán quien te matare.’ As you do unto others, so shall be done unto you. Oviedo asserts that he has seen testimony showing that Cortés and his men did not sail at their own expense, but from his own statement it appears that the instructions of Velazquez, wherein he speaks of the expedition as sent in his name, is the chief feature in this so-called testimony; i. 538-9. Las Casas naturally sides with Velazquez, and estimates that he expended over 20,000 castellanos; he had no need for, nor would he have stooped to a partnership, at least with a man like Cortés. Hist. Ind., iv. 448. Herrera, dec. ii. lib. iii. cap. xi., copies this, and Torquemada, i. 359, reverses this figure in favor of Cortés.