> ships had sailed along the coast to the north, finding much of it bleak

and uninviting. The caravels of Columbus had threaded the glowing line

of tropic isles, and later ships had borne settlers to these lands of

promise. But the rich southlands of the continent had never before been

seen, and well was this unknown realm of beauty named Florida by the

Spanish chief, whether by this name he meant to call it the "land of

flowers" or referred to the Spanish name for Easter, Pascua Florida.

However that be, he was the first of the discoverers to set foot on the

soil of the great coming republic of the United States, and it is of

interest that this was done within the domain of the sunny South.



The weight of half a century of years lay upon the shoulders of Juan

Ponce de Leon, the discoverer, but warm hope burned in his heart, that

of winning renewed boyhood and youthful strength, for it was a magic

vision that drew him to these new shores, in whose depths he felt sure

the realm of enchantment lay. Somewhere amid those green copses or along

those liquid streams, he had been told, a living fountain sprang up

clear and sparkling from the earth, its waters of such a marvellous

quality that whoever should bathe in them would feel new life coursing

through his veins and the vigor of youth bounding along his limbs. It

was the Fountain of Youth he sought, that fabled fountain of which men

had dreamed for centuries, and which was thought to lie somewhere in

eastern Asia. Might not its waters upspring in this new land, whose

discovery was the great marvel of the age, and which men looked upon as

the unknown east of Asia? Such was the new-comer's dream.



Ponce de Leon was a soldier and cavalier of Spain in those days when

Spain stood first among the nations of Europe, first in strength and

enterprise and daring. Brave as the bravest, he had fought with

distinguished courage against the Moors of Granada at the time when

Columbus was setting out on his famous voyage over the unknown seas of

the West. Drawn by the fame of the discovery of the New World, De Leon

sailed with Columbus in his second voyage, and proved himself a gallant

soldier in the wars for the conquest of Hispaniola, of whose eastern

half he was made governor.



To the eastward lay another island, the fair tropic land ever since

known as Porto Rico. De Leon could see from the high hills of Hispaniola

the far green shores of this island, which he invaded and finally

subdued in 1509, making himself its governor. A stern oppressor of the

natives, he won great wealth from his possessions here and in

Hispaniola. But, like many men in his position, his heart was sore from

the loss of the youthful vigor which would have enabled him to enjoy to

the full his new-found wealth.






Could he but discover the wondrous fountain of youth and plunge in its

life-giving waters! Was not this the region in which it was said to lie?

He eagerly questioned the Indians about it, and was told by them that

they had often heard of such a fountain somewhere not far to the north.

It is probable enough that the Indians were ready to tell anything,

false or true, that would rid them of the unwelcome Spaniards; but it

may be that among their many fables they believed that such a fountain

existed. However that may be, De Leon gladly heard their story, and lost

no time in going forth like a knight errant in quest of the magic fount.

On March 3, 1513, he sailed with three ships from Porto Rico, and, after

threading the fair Bahama Islands, landing on those of rarest tropic

charm, he came on Easter Sunday, March 27, in sight of the beautiful

land to which he gave the name of Florida.



Bad weather kept him for a time from the shore, and it was not until

April 9 that he was able to land. It was near the mouth of the St. John

River, not far from where St. Augustine now stands, that he set foot on

shore, the first white man's foot to tread the soil of the coming United

States since the days of the Northmen, five centuries before. He called

his place of landing the Bay of the Cross, and took possession of the

land for the king of Spain, setting up a stone cross as a sign of

Spain's jurisdiction.



And now the eager cavalier began the search for that famous fount which

was to give him perpetual youth. It is not likely he was alone in this,

probably most of his followers being as eager as he, for in those days

magic was firmly believed in by half of mankind, and many wild fancies

were current which no one now accepts. Deep into the dense woodland they

plunged, wandering through verdant miles, bathing in every spring and

stream they met, led on and on by the hope that some one of these might

hold the waters of youth. Doubtless they fancied that the fountain

sought would have some special marks, something to distinguish it from

the host of common springs. But this might not be the case. The most

precious things may lie concealed under the plainest aspect, like the

fabled jewel in the toad's forehead, and it was certainly wisest to let

no waters pass untried.



Months passed on. Southward along the coast they sailed, landing here

and there and penetrating inland, still hopeful of finding the enchanted

spring. But wherever it might lie hidden, they found it not, for the

marks of age which nature had brought clung to them still, and a

bitterly disappointed man was Juan Ponce de Leon when he turned the

prows of his ships away from the new-found shores and sailed back to

Porto Rico.



The Will-o'-the-wisp he sought had baffled him, yet something of worth

remained, for he had made a discovery of importance, the "Island of

Florida," as he called it and thought it to be. To Spain he went with

the news of his voyage, and told the story of his discovery to King

Ferdinand, to whom Columbus had told his wonderful tale some twenty

years before. The king at once appointed him governor of Florida, and

gave him full permission to plant a colony in the new land--continent or

island as it might prove to be.



De Leon may still have nourished hopes in his heart of finding the

fabled fountain when, in 1521, he returned to plant the colony granted

by the king. But the natives of Florida had seen enough of the Spaniards

in their former visit, and now met them with arrows instead of flowers

and smiles. Fierce fights ensued, and their efforts to establish

themselves on the new shores proved in vain. In the end their leader

received so severe an arrow wound that he withdrew and left to the

victorious Indians the ownership of their land. The arrow was poisoned,

and his wound proved mortal. In a short time after reaching Cuba he

died, having found death instead of youth in the land of flowers.



We may quote the words of the historian Robertson in support of the

fancy which led De Leon in the path of discovery: "The Spaniards, at

that period, were engaged in a career of activity which gave a romantic

turn to their imagination and daily presented to them strange and

marvellous objects. A new world was opened to their view. They visited

islands and continents of whose existence mankind in former ages had no

conception. In those delightful countries nature seemed to assume

another form; every tree and plant and animal was different from those

of the ancient hemisphere. They seemed to be transported into enchanted

ground; and, after the wonders which they had seen, nothing, in the

warmth and novelty of their imagination, appeared to them so

extraordinary as to be beyond belief. If the rapid succession of new and

striking scenes made such impression on the sound understanding of

Columbus that he boasted of having found the seat of Paradise, it will

not appear strange that Ponce de Leon should dream of discovering the

fountain of youth."



All we need say farther is that the first attempt to colonize the shores

of the great republic of the future years ended in disaster and death.

Yet De Leon's hope was not fully amiss, for in our own day many seek

that flowery land in quest of youthful strength. They do not now hope to

find it by bathing in any magic fountain, but it comes to them by

breathing its health-giving atmosphere and basking in its magic clime.