He had promised them so much; he had brought them so little.

He had sailed away so hopefully; he had come back humbled and hated.

The greatest man in the world, he had been in 1492; and in 1496 he was unsuccessful, almost friendless and very unpopular.

So you see, boys and girls, that success is a most uncertain thing, and the man who is a hero to-day may be a beggar to-morrow.
But, as is often the case, Columbus was too full of fear.

He was not really in such disgrace as he thought he was.