Read Online Aboard Cabrillo's Galleon by Christine Echeverria Bender - Free Book Online

voice carried the sincerity of a man who had overseen the birth of all three ships, who had planned, watched, corrected, worried, and occasionally bellowed and cursed, from their inception to the threading of the last sheet of sail. Though he had built other ships before these, his earlier attempts had not caused his heart to swell as it did now. The San Salvador , his masterpiece, dominated the small fleet as she floated restfully at anchor. Here was a vessel about which Spain and its subjects could rightfully boast.
    Measuring 74 feet in length and 24 feet abeam at the waterline, her distinct design exhibiting the marvelous technology of her age, she was a galleon built to sail undauntedly into wild open seas. Her trim had been painted red and blue, highlighting the deep browns of her pitch-treated hull and masts. Every line and knot aboard was rightly placed, and every plank and block was smoothly scrubbed.
    Fluttering now and again from her main masthead, a bright cloth emblem honored the royal oversight of King Charles I, who held the additional august title of Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. This particular standard was much simpler than the king’s extravagantly crowded coat of arms, however, and reflected none of his holdings in the lands of Aragon, Navarre, Sicily, Naples, Granada, Flanders, Austria, Brabant, Tyrol, and both old and new Burgundy. Instead, this flag displayed New Spain’s particular approbation for his grandmother Queen Isabella I by bearing only the red and yellow castles of Castile and lions of León . The viceroy’s banner, adopted from the red and white Burgundy cross, decorated the flagship’s foremast, as did the fluted crimson cross of Santiago. From the top of the mizzenmast astern, Cabrillo’s own pennant depicted the simple yet stylishly arrayed initials JRC in dark blue upon a golden field.
    Though the sails were furled at the moment, both levels of main and fore yards would carry precisely cut rectangular planes of canvas. Only the mizzenmast would sport a triangular lateen sail. In addition to her sails and lines, the San Salvador would be steered by a whipstaff that attached perpendicularly to her tiller and rose up through the planks of the main deck to extend its nearly six-foot height into steerage. She was capable of carrying 200 toneladas of cargo, equivalent to 400 barrels of about 117 gallons each.
    Cabrillo’s flagship had proven herself commendably during her maiden voyage to Peru over a year ago, and he had made small improvements to her since then. Even during that first sailing, there had been times while braving a storm or flying before a bold wind and current when she’d seemed to possess a daring soul of her own. She had responded to his wishes as if she’d discerned them before her whipstaff or lines had been touched.
    Today she rode a little lower in the water with each new load of cargo she accepted, but her forward, quarter, and upper stern decks continued to stand tall and willing. Ah yes, she was a lady of the very finest order. With this affectionate and satisfying thought, Cabrillo turned his gaze to his other ships.
    La Victoria had nearly equal total square footage to that of the San Salvador , but her somewhat broader beam and deeper body sacrificed a measure of mobility for cargo capacity. Cabrillo looked upon her as the mother duckling of the fleet: sure, steady, and protective of the greatest share of their supplies. The spry, dependant bergantine San Miguel was significantly smaller and sleeker than the sister ships. Her oars and shallow draft provided fine maneuverability, and she had repeatedly confirmed her usefulness during the earlier transportation of goods to the larger ships.
    This was his fleet. As he looked upon it, the tide continued to tease each prow toward the beckoning sea, making the ships appear more than ready to sail whenever he commanded. Under the heat of the strengthening morning sun he wiped his sweating