The landing of Columbus. When in 1492 Columbus sailed into the West with the idea that the world was round; and that he would be able to reach China that way; his men were terrified and mutinous; and had he not sighted land he would certainly have been made to turn back. He thought it was Japan; his landfall is now generally identified as Watling Island in the West Indies. Columbus was the first to land; followed by his standard-bearer; and as he stepped from his boat; sword in hand; with the wondering natives perfectly friendly; he knelt down and kissed the sand of the New World. Illustration for one of a set of 50 cigarette cards on the subject of Sea Adventure; issued by Hignett Brothers in 1939.