At court, the stories of the Porras brothers were told on the one side, while Diego Mendez and Carvajal represented Columbus.
In this period of the fading life of Columbus, we have eleven letters addressed by him to his son.

These show that he was in Seville as late as February, 1505.

From the authority of Las Casas, we know that he left that part of Spain to go to Segovia in the next May, and from that place he followed the court to Salamanca and Valladolid, although he was so weak and ill.
He was received, as he had always been, with professions of kindness; but nothing followed important enough to show that there was anything genuine in this cordiality.

After a few days Columbus begged that some action might be taken to indemnify him for his losses, and to confirm the promises which had been made to him before.

The king replied that he was willing to refer all points which had been discussed between them to an arbitration.