Domingo to escape the oppression of its invaders, made a
desperate resistance, for which he was condemned by Velasquez to be
burned alive. It was he who made that memorable reply, more eloquent
than a volume of invective. When urged at the stake to embrace
Christianity, that his soul might find admission into heaven, he
inquired if the white men would go there. On being answered in the
affirmative, he exclaimed, "Then I will not be a Christian; for I
would not go again to a place where I must find men so cruel!" The
story is told by Las Casas in his appalling record of the cruelties of
his countrymen in the New World.
After the conquest, Velasquez, now appointed governor,
diligently occupied himself with measures for promoting the prosperity
of the island. He formed a number of settlements, bearing the same
names with the modern towns, and made St. Jago, on the south-east
corner, the seat of government. He invited settlers by liberal
grants of land and slaves. He encouraged them to cultivate the soil,
and gave particular attention to the sugar-cane, so profitable an
article of commerce in later times. He was, above all, intent on
working the gold mines, which promised better returns than those in
Hispaniola. The affairs of his government did not prevent him,
meanwhile, from casting many a wistful glance at the discoveries going
forward on the continent, and he longed for an opportunity to embark
in these golden adventures himself.
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