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 Augustine"), was conferred by its monarch; that here the cross was first planted; that from the Papal chair itself rescripts were addressed to its governors; that the first great efforts at Christianizing the fierce native tribes proceeded from this spot; that the martyrs' blood was first here shed; that around these walls the clash of arms and the battle-cry have been heard, we may well feel a greater interest in this ancient city than is possessed by mere brick and mortar, rapid growth or unwonted prosperity.

The first European who visited this spot, so far as we know, was that sturdy cavalier, Juan Ponce de Leon, who in 1513 came to Florida in search of the fountain of youth, but, failing to find it, gave to Florida its name and perpetuated his own by the romantic quest upon which he came.

More than fifty years afterwards, St. Augustine was visited by Menendez with a Spanish fleet, and a permanent settlement was made. Admiral Coligny, a distinguished leader of the Huguenot party in France, harassed by the religious animosities which prevailed between the Roman Catholics and Protestants, conceived the idea of planting a colony of his