Tonight eyes turn skyward to see that marvel of natural phenomenon: a total lunar eclipse. I did a little poking around the tubes today and came across this passage regarding Lunar eclipses in history:
A more modern turn of history hinged on a lunar eclipse that auspiciously occurred not only in the leap year of 1504, but on February 29th of that year.
That February found the famous explorer Christopher Columbus on the small island of Jamaica, where he had been marooned for several months. Though the island natives had originally brought food and provisions to Columbus while he awaited rescue, the arrogant and overbearing Columbus had alienated the natives to the point that they ceased to provide food to Columbus and his crew.
Facing starvation, the resourceful Columbus came up with a desperate ploy: Consulting a shipboard almanac and finding that a lunar eclipse was due, he called together the native chiefs and announced to them that God would punish them if they did not supply his crew with food. And as an omen of Gods intent to punish them, there would be a sign in the sky: God would darken the Moon.