Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. And this brings us to the second purpose Of our publica tion. The broad facts that constitute the history of the dis covery of the New World, are not and have never been a matter of controversy. There may be variations in minor details, but they affect neither the nature of the achievement nor the character of the hero. Winsor and Fisk, for instance discredit the romantic story of Columbus' reception by Fray Juan Perez at the convent of La Rabida, an incident which as told in Irving's pages, so moves and stirs the reader. But blot out the incident and neither the originality of Columbus' conception, nor his resourcefulness, skill, and learning as a navigator, neither his unwavering firmness of purpose, nor hisiii introduction.

And this brings us to the second purpose Of our publica tion. The broad facts that constitute the history of the dis covery of the New World, are not and have never been a matter of controversy. There may be variations in minor details, but they affect neither the nature of the achievement nor the character of the hero. Winsor and Fisk, for instance discredit the romantic story of Columbus' reception by Fray Juan Perez at the convent of La Rabida, an incident which as told in Irving's pages, so moves and stirs the reader. But blot out the incident and neither the originality of Columbus' conception, nor his resourcefulness, skill, and learning as a navigator, neither his unwavering firmness of purpose, nor hisiii introduction.