I need help to write my discussion post, please write 300 words

When we first put in at the island which I have just said was named Juana [i.e, Cuba], I proceeded along its shore westward a little way, and found it so large (for no end to it appeared) that I believed it to be no island but the continental province of Cathay [i.e., China]; without seeing, however, any towns or cities situated in its coastal parts except a few villages and rustic farms, with whose inhabitants I could not talk because they took to flight as soon as they saw us. I went on further, thinking that I would find a city or some farmhouses. Finally, seeing that nothing new turned up, though we had gone far enough, and that this course was carrying us off to the north (a thing which I myself wanted to avoid, for winter prevailed on those lands, and it was my hope to hasten to the south) and since the winds too were favorable to our desires, I concluded that no other means of accomplishment offered, and thus reversing my course I returned to a certain harbor which I had marked and from that point sent ashore two men of our number to find out whether there was a king in that province, or any cities. These men proceeded afoot for three days and found countless people and inhabited places, but all small and without any government; and therefore they returned. In the meantime I had already learned from some Indians whom I had taken aboard at this same place that this province was in fact an island; and so I went on toward the east, always skirting close to its shores, for 322 miles, where is the extremity of the island. From this point I observed another island to eastward, 54 miles from this island Juana, which I immediately called Hispana [i.e., Hispaniola (San Domingo or Haiti). Columbus’ estimates of these islands’ sizes were mistaken]. I withdrew to it, and set my course along its northern coast, as I had at Juana, to the east for 564 miles. The before-mentioned island Juana and the other islands of the region, too, are as fertile as they can be. This one is surrounded by harbors, numerous, very safe and broad, and not to be compared with any others that I have seen anywhere; many large, wholesome rivers flow through this land; and there are also many very lofty mountains in it. All these islands are most beautiful and distinguished by various forms; one can travel through them, and they are full of trees of the greatest variety, which brush at the stars; and I believe they never lose their foliage. At any rate, I found them as green and beautiful as they usually are in the month of May in Spain; some of them were in bloom, some loaded with

fruit, some flourished in one state, others in the other, each according to its kind; the nightingale was singing and there were countless other birds of many kinds in the month of November when I myself was making my way through them. There are furthermore, in the before- mentioned island Juana, seven or eight kinds of palm trees, which easily surpass ours in height and beauty, as do all the other trees, grasses, and fruits. There are also remarkable pines, vast fields and meadows, many kinds of birds, many kinds of honey, and many kinds of metals, except iron. There are moreover in that island which I said above was called Hispaniola fine, high mountains, broad stretches of country, forests, and extremely fruitful fields excellently adapted for sowing, grazing, and building dwelling houses. The convenience and superiority of the harbors in this island and its wealth in rivers, joined with wholesomeness for man, is such as to surpass belief unless one has seen them. The trees, coverage, and fruits of this island are very different from those of Juana. Besides, this Hispaniola is rich in various kinds of spice and in gold and mines, and its inhabitants (and those of all the others which I saw, and of which I have knowledge) of either sex always go as naked as when they were born, except some women who cover their private parts with a leaf or a branch of some sort, or with a skirt of cotton which they themselves prepare for the purpose. They all of them lack, as I said above, iron of whatever kind, as well as arms, for these are unknown to them; nor are they fitted for weapons, not because of any bodily deformity, for they are well built, but in that they are timid and fearful. However, instead of arms they carry reeds baked in the sun, in the roots of which they fasten a sort of spearhead made of dry wood and sharpened to a point. And they do not dare to use these at close quarters; for it often happened that when I had sent two or three of my men to certain farmhouses to talk with their inhabitants a closely packed body of Indians would come out and when they saw our men approach they would quickly take flight, children deserted by father and vice versa; and that too not that any hurt or injury had been brought upon a single one of them; on the contrary, whenever I approached any of them and whenever I could talk with any of them I was generous in giving them whatever I had, cloth and very many other things, without any return being made to me; but they are naturally fearful and timid.

However when they see that they are safe and all fear has been dispelled they are exceedingly straightforward and trustworthy and most liberal with all that they have; none of them denies to the asker anything that he possesses; on the contrary they themselves invite us to ask for it. They exhibit great affection to all and always give much for little, content with very little or nothing in return. However I forbade such insignificant and valueless things to be given to them, as pieces of platters, dishes, and glass, or again nails and lace points [i.e., the tips of the laces used to secure hose to the upper garments worn by the Europeans] . . . I forbade this, because it was clearly unjust, and gave them free many pretty and acceptable objects that I had brought with me, in order more easily to win them over to me and that they might become Christians, and be inclined to love our King and Queen and Prince and all the peoples of Spain, and to make them diligent to seek out and accumulate and exchange with us the articles in which they abound and which we greatly need. They know nothing of idolatry; on the contrary they confidently believe that all might, all power, all good things, in fact, are in the heavens; they thought that I too had descended thence with these ships and sailors, and in that opinion I was received everywhere after they had rid themselves of fear. Nor are they slow or ignorant; on the contrary, they are of the highest and keenest wit; and the men who navigate that sea give an admirable account of each detail; but they have never seen men wearing clothes, or ships of this sort. As soon as I came to that sea I forcibly seized some Indians from the first island, so that they might learn from us and similarly teach us the things of which they had knowledge in those parts; and it came out just as I had hoped; for we quickly taught them, and then they us, by gestures and signs; finally they understood by means of words, and it paid us well to have them. The ones who now go with me persist in the belief that I leaped down out of the skies, although they have associated with us for a long time and are still doing so today; and they were the first to announce that fact wherever we landed, some of them calling out loudly to the others, “Come, come, and you will see the men from heaven.” And so women as well as men, children and grown people, youths and old men, laying aside the fear they had conceived shortly before, vied with each other in coming to look at us, the great crowd of them clogging the road, some bringing food, others drink, with the greatest manifestation of affection and unbelievable good will.

************** In all those islands, as I understood it, each man is content with only one wife, except the princes or kings, who may have twenty. The women seem to do more work than the men. I could not clearly make out whether they have private property, for I noted that what an individual had he shared with others, especially food, meats, and the like. I did not find any monsters among them, as many expected, but men of great dignity and kindliness.