The doctor of Colon, Alfonso de Toledo. (3rd part)

November 11^th 1492.

Now when we are getting back to Spain, I want to describe the main affections that we have suffered in the voyage. Some sailors have suffered diarrhoea, possibly caused by the food. Some of them nearly died because of the lose of water, but finally I could cure all of them. Other men had scurby too. It is a very frequent illness among the sailors, when they don't consume fresh food, such as fruit and vegetables.

November 12^th 1492.

During the voyage the captain Colon suffered blepharitis, maybe caused by the effort to watch land from the caravel for many days. Now that we are going back home, some men present fever and breathing troubles. This is an illness that I saw very few times, called influenza.

November 13^th 1492.

The relations with the Indian people have allowed me to know some diseases usual among them, that we had never seen before. I have written the symptoms I observed and I am going to prepare an exposition to talk about them with other doctors and try to look for possible solutions for them. For me it has been a very interesting experience.