Commentaries of Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca, governor of the Rio de la Plata.

CHAPTER THE FIRST.

Of the Commentaries of Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca.

SINCE it pleased God to deliver Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca from captivity, and from the troubles that he underwent for ten years in Florida, he came to these kingdoms in the year of our Lord 1537, where he remained till the year 1540; in which year there came to this court of His Majesty some persons from the river La Plata to inform His Majesty of what had happened to the army which Don Pedro de Mendoza had taken there, and of the danger those were in who had survived, and to supplicate that His Majesty would be pleased to aid and succour them before they perished (as but few of them remained). And when His Majesty knew of it, he ordered that a certain arrangement and capitulation should be made with Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca, in order that he might go to their relief. This arrangement and capitulation was there effected, the said Cabeza de Vaca offering to go to their assistance, and undertaking to expend for that journey and relief, in horses, arms, apparel and provisions, as well as other things, eight thousand ducats. And in consideration of this treaty thus entered into, His Majesty favoured him with the governorship and general captaincy of that land and province, and with the title of Adelantado.[297] It pleased also His Majesty to grant to him the twelfth part of everything that was in that land and province, and of all that entered and went out of it, provided that the aforesaid Alvar Nuñez expended on that expedition the sum of eight thousand ducats as aforesaid. And so, in fulfilment of the agreement entered into with His Majesty, he started immediately for Seville in order to put the agreement into execution, and to make provision for the aforesaid assistance and armament. And to this effect he bought two vessels and a caravel, together with another that was in waiting for him at Canaria. One of these vessels was newly arrived from her first voyage and was of three hundred and fifty tons burden, and the other was of one hundred and fifty tons. He equipped these vessels very well and supplied them with plenty of commodities, and engaged pilots and sailors, and four hundred soldiers well trained to the use of arms, and such as were wanted for that relief; and all that volunteered for that expedition were provided with a double set of arms. In order to complete his purchases and supplies he remained there from the month of May till the end of September, when the ships were ready to sail. But the weather being unfavourable, he was detained in the city of Cadiz from the end of September till the 2nd of November, on which day he set sail and made his voyage, and in nine days arrived at the island of La Palma, where he disembarked with all his people, and remained there twenty-five days, waiting for a favourable wind to continue his voyage. At the end of this time he sailed towards Cape Verde. In this voyage the ship, the Capitana, made so much water that it rose to the height of ten spans in the hold of the vessel. Five hundred quintals of biscuits were damaged, and much oil was lost, besides other commodities. This accident caused them great trouble, and they kept at the pumps day and night till they arrived at the island of St. Iago (one of the Cape Verde Islands). Here they disembarked and landed the horses, in order that they might refresh themselves and rest from their fatigues, and because it was necessary to unload the vessel in order to stop the leak. And after she had been unloaded the master stopped the leak (for he was the best diver in Spain). They sailed from La Palma to Cape Verde in ten days, for they are 300 leagues apart. In this island the harbour is very bad because of the many sharp, sunken rocks that fray the cables attached to the anchors, and when they pull on them in order to raise the anchors these remain in the rocks. And for this reason the sailors have a saying that there are many rats in that harbour, which gnaw the cables asunder; and because of this, it is a very dangerous harbour for vessels stationed there in the event of a storm. This island is unhealthy and full of infections in the winter, so much so that the greater part of those who go ashore there die in a few days, soon after their arrival. The armada, however, remained there twenty-five days, during which not a single man died; and the inhabitants were much astonished at this, and took it as a great marvel. And the inhabitants gave them a good reception; and this island is very rich, and there are more doubloons in it than reales,[298] for those who traffic there for negroes were giving a doubloon for twenty reales.

CHAPTER THE SECOND.

How we departed from the island of Cabo Verde.

WHEN we had repaired the leak of the Admiral ship, and purchased the necessary supplies, such as water, meat, and other things, we embarked and pursued our voyage and crossed the equinoctial line, and, continuing our navigation, the master took stock of the water that was on board the Admiral, and, out of a hundred barrels that had been stored, he found no more than three left, and four hundred men and thirty horses had to drink. And the governor, having seen the necessity we were in, ordered the ship to land; and they were in search of it three days, and the fourth day, one hour before dawn, a wonderful thing happened, and as it is not beyond our purpose, I will relate it. It happened, as the vessels were going towards land, they were on the point of striking some very high rocks, and nobody would have seen or been aware of them had not a cock began to crow which one of the soldiers had put on board at Cadiz, being desirous of listening to the music of the cock; during two months and a half, however, we had neither heard it nor known of its existence; and the soldier was grieved at its silence. That morning, however, the bird felt the land and began to crow, and its music woke all the people on the vessel, who saw the rocks an arrow-flight off, and shouted to let go the anchors, as we were drifting towards the rocks. And so they lowered the anchors, and this saved us, for had not the cock crowed our four hundred men and thirty horses would assuredly have been drowned; and we all thought it a miracle of God for us. And while we navigated more than one hundred leagues along the coast, the cock gave us his music every night, and so the armada arrived at an harbour which is called Cananea,[299] which lies beyond Cape Frio,[300] and is twenty-four degrees of elevation. It is a good harbour, and there are several islands at its entrance. The water is clear and eleven fathoms deep. Here the governor took possession in the name of His Majesty, and having done so, he left that harbour and passed over the river and the bay called San Francisco,[301] which is twenty-five leagues from Cananea, and thence the armada proceeded to the island of Santa Catalina, which is twenty-five leagues from the Rio de San Francisco, and they anchored at the island of Santa Catalina, after encountering many troubles and reverses on the voyage, arriving there on the 29th of March 1541. The island of Santa Catalina is barely in the twenty-eighth degree of latitude.

CHAPTER THE THIRD.

Which treats of how the governor arrived with his armada at the island of Santa Catalina, in Brazil, and disembarked his troops there.

WHEN the governor had arrived with his army at the island of Santa Catalina, he ordered the disembarkation of all the people that he had brought with him, and the twenty-six horses, being all that had survived the sea voyage of the forty-six taken on board in Spain, in order that they might all recover on land from the hardships they had undergone in their long sea voyage, and that he might take command and inform himself of the native Indians of that land who might, perhaps, know how the Spaniards whom he had come to succour were circumstanced in the province of Rio de la Plata. And he gave the Indians to understand that he was sent by His Majesty to bring help, and he took possession of the land in the name and on behalf of His Majesty, and also of the harbour called Cananea, which is on the coast of Brazil, in twenty-five degrees, more or less. This harbour is fifty leagues from the island of Santa Catalina, and during all the time that the governor remained in that island he treated all the Indians, natives of that and other parts of the coast of Brazil (vassals of His Majesty) with great kindness. By these Indians he was informed that at fourteen leagues from the island, at the place called Mbiaça[302] there were two Franciscan monks, named Friar Bernardo, a native of Cordova, and Friar Alonzo Lebron, a native of Gran Canaria; and in a few days these monks came to where the governor and his people were, in great fear of the Indians, who sought to kill them, because certain of the dwellings of the Indians having been burned, these had in revenge killed two Christians living in that land. And the governor, well informed of all that had happened, did his best to appease the Indians, and gave refuge to the monks, and established peace among them; and he charged the monks to teach the Christian doctrine to the Indians of that land and island.

CHAPTER THE FOURTH.

How nine Christians came to the island.

AND the governor, in furtherance of his expedition to succour the Spaniards, in the month of May 1541, sent a caravel with Philip de Caceres, accountant of His Majesty, with orders to enter the river La Plata, and visit the colony founded there by Don Pedro de Mendoza, and called Buenos Ayres. And because the season of the year was winter, and the weather unfavourable to navigation, he was unable to enter that river, and returned to the island of San Catalina, where the governor was.[303] And about this time there arrived nine Spanish Christians, who came in a boat, having fled from the colony of Buenos Ayres because of the ill-treatment used towards them by the captains residing in the province; and from these Spaniards he obtained information of the state in which the Spaniards were who lived in that country. They told him that the colony of Buenos Ayres was inhabited and provided with people and commodities; and how Juan de Ayolas, whom Don Pedro de Mendoza had sent on an expedition of discovery into the interior, while returning from his discovery, and intending to take refuge in certain brigantines which he had left in the harbour, named by him Candelaria, in the river Paraguai, had been killed by a certain nation of Indians living on the same river, called Payaguás[304]; and all the Christians, with many other Indians whom he had brought with him from the interior of the country to carry the loads, belonging to the tribe of Chameses, were also slain; and that of all the Christians and Indians only one boy of the Chameses had escaped; and all this had happened because he (Juan de Ayolas) had not found in the said harbour of Candelaria the brigantines which he had left to be guarded till his return, according to the orders he had given a certain Domingo de Irala of the province of Biscay in Spain, whom he had left in the capacity of captain; who, before the return of Juan de Ayolas, had withdrawn and abandoned the harbour of Candelaria, so that Juan de Ayolas, not finding the brigantines as he had expected, had fallen a victim to the Indians, who had stripped and slain all his party because of the fault of the said Domingo de Irala, the Biscayan captain of the brigantines. They also told him that on the shore of the river Paraguai, one hundred and twenty leagues below the harbour of Candelaria, a colony had been formed which was called the town of Ascension,[305] having a good understanding and friendship with a tribe of Indians called Carios, and that most of the Spaniards in that province resided there. They further informed him that in the colony and harbour of Buenos Ayres, situated on the rio del Parana, there were seventy Christians, and the distance from that harbour to the city of the Ascension, on the Paraguai, was three hundred and fifty leagues, of very difficult navigation, up the river. Here, in the capacity of locum tenens of the governor of the land and province, resided Domingo de Irala of Biscay, through whose fault happened the death of Juan de Ayolas, and all the Christians whom he had brought with him. They also told him that Domingo de Irala had gone from the town of the Ascension up the river Paraguai with certain brigantines and people, saying that he was going to search out and relieve Juan de Ayolas, and had entered a land, much troubled with rains and marshes, and because of this he had been unable to explore that land, and had returned with six Indian captives of the same tribe of Payaguás as those who had killed Juan de Ayolas and the Christians. From these prisoners he had obtained information and sure knowledge of the death of Juan de Ayolas and of the Christians, as well as from an Indian of the tribe of Chameses, named Gonzalo, who had escaped when his tribesmen and the Christians, whose loads they were carrying, were slain; who had lived ten years in captivity among those Payaguás. And Domingo de Irala had withdrawn from that country, having lost sixty men from sickness and fatigue. And they also told him that the officials of His Majesty, residing in that land and province, had done and were doing great wrongs to the Spaniards, colonists and conquerors, and to the Indian natives, vassals of His Majesty, and that there was much dissatisfaction and disgust. For this reason, and also because of the ill-treatment they had suffered from these captains, they had stolen a boat from the harbour of Buenos Ayres, and had taken to flight with the intention and determination to inform His Majesty of all that had passed in that land and province. To those nine Christians, who came naked, the governor gave clothing, and took them under his protection in order to bring them back with him to the province, for they were useful men, good sailors, and one of them was a pilot who knew the navigation of the river.

CHAPTER THE FIFTH.

How the governor hastened his journey.

HAVING listened to the statement of those nine Christians, the governor thought that, in order to succour as speedily as possible the Spaniards residing in the town of the Ascension, as well as those in the port of Buenos Ayres, he would discover a road by terra firma from the island, and so make his way to those parts already mentioned where the Christians were, and that he would send the vessels round by sea to Buenos Ayres. He therefore, against the will and opinion of the accountant Philip de Caceres, and of the pilot Antonio Lopez, who advised that they should all go together to Buenos Ayres, sent from the island of St. Catalina, Pedro Dorantes (the factor) to explore a road by land into the interior of the country where formerly many vassals of the King of Portugal had been killed by the native Indians. This Pedro Dorantes, by order of the governor, started with one hundred Spaniards, and some Indians who acted as guides; and at the end of three months and a half he returned to the island of St. Catalina, where the governor was awaiting him, and this, among other things, was what he reported: having crossed great sierras, and mountains, and much desert country, he had arrived at a place called “el Campo” (the plain), where the country began to be inhabited, and that the natives of the island had told him that the route he had taken was the safest to enter that country. He had followed a river called the Ytabucú,[306] which is opposite the point of the island at eighteen or twenty leagues from the harbour. When the governor knew of this, he sent immediately to reconnoitre the country watered by this river, through which he decided to make his journey; and having done this, he determined to enter the country by that route, in order to explore a region that had never before been seen, and carry relief, in the shortest possible time, to the Spaniards in that province. Having thus decided upon his plans, he told the friars, Bernardo de Armenta and Alonzo Lebron his companion, to remain in the island of St. Catalina and instruct the native Indians in the Christian doctrine, directing and confirming those already baptized. But these monks declined to obey, assigning as a pretext that they wished to accompany the governor

CHAPTER THE SIXTH.

How the governor and his people advanced into the interior.

THE governor, having full information concerning those parts through which he had to enter in order to discover the land and relieve the Spaniards, and being supplied with all things necessary for his journey, on the eighteenth of October of the same year ordered the embarkation of the people that were to follow him in the discovery, with the twenty-six horses and mares which had survived the sea voyage; and he ordered them to cross the river Ytabucu and subdue it, and take possession of it in the name of His Majesty, as newly discovered land. He left in the island of St. Catalina one hundred and forty persons, who were to embark and go by sea to the river La Plata, where the port of Buenos Ayres is situated; and he charged Pedro Estopiñan Cabeza de Vaca, whom he left there in the capacity of captain of the said people, that before leaving the island he should supply and furnish the vessel with provisions both for the people he was taking with him, as well as for those in Buenos Ayres; and before his departure he gave many presents to the natives of the island, in order that they might remain, and some of them readily offered their services to accompany the governor and his people, to show the road and be useful in other ways; and their assistance happened to be very handy. On the 2nd November of the said year the governor ordered that all his people, besides the provisions carried by the Indians, should each take what he could carry for the road. And the same day he began his march, with two hundred and fifty arquebusiers and crossbowmen, very well trained in arms, twenty-five horses, the two Franciscan friars, and the Indians of the island; then he sent the vessel back to the island of St. Catalina in order that Pedro de Estopiñan Cabeza de Vaca might embark and go with his people to Buenos Ayres; and so the governor went on his way into the interior of the land, where he and his people underwent many troubles. In nineteen days they crossed great mountains, cutting roads through forests, to enable the men and the horses to pass, for all the land was uninhabited. And at the end of these nineteen days, having exhausted the provisions which they had carried when they began their march, and having nothing left to eat, it pleased God that, without the loss of a man, they discovered the first inhabitants, who are called “del campo”, where they found certain villages of Indians, whose chief lord was called Añiriri, and at one day’s journey from this people there was another whose chief was Cipoyay. And beyond this people again there was a third tribe of Indians, whose chief said that he was called Tocanguasú. And when the Indians knew of the arrival of the governor and his people, they went out to meet him laden with plenty of provisions, showing great joy at their arrival. The governor received them affably, and, besides paying the value of the provisions into the hands of the chiefs, he graciously gave them many shirts and other things, with which they remained satisfied. This is a people and tribe called Guaranís; they are cultivators, sowing maize twice in the year, and also cassava. They rear fowls as in our Spain, and geese; keep many parrots in their houses, and occupy much land, and the whole are of one language. They eat human flesh, as well that of their Indian enemies as of Christians; they also eat one another. This people is very fond of war, and they seek it; they are very vindictive. Of this people and their territory the governor took possession, in the name of His Majesty, as newly discovered land, and called it the province of Vera,[307] as it appears from the deeds of possession that were drafted before Juan de Aroaz, notary royal. And this being done on the 29th of November, the governor and his people left Tocanguasu. And after two days’ march, on the 1st of December, they arrived at a river called by the Indians Yguazu,[308] which means big water; here the pilots took the depth.

CHAPTER THE SEVENTH.

Which treats of what happened to the governor and his people in his journey, and of the nature of the land.

FROM this river Yguazu the governor and his people advanced on their discovery; and on the 3rd of December they arrived at a river called by the Indians Tibagi.[309] Its bed is paved with large stones, placed in such order and regularity as though by hand. In crossing to the other side of this river there was great trouble, because the people and the horses slipped on the stones and could not keep their footing, and to remedy this they joined hands. And although the river was not very deep, the water ran with great force. At about two leagues beyond this crossing the Indians came with great delight, and brought the army provisions, so that they were never short of food, and had sometimes even more than they could take, and left it on the road. This caused the governor to give the Indians much, and to be generous with them, especially with their chief, to whom, besides paying the price of the commodities which they brought, he gave many presents, and did them many favours and treated them so well that the fame went through the land and the province, and all the natives laid aside their fear and came to see and to bring all they had, and they were paid for it as aforesaid. The same day, being near another Indian settlement, whose chief said he was called Tapapirazú, there arrived a newly converted native Indian whose name was Miguel, who came from the town of the Ascension, where the Spaniards resided who were to be relieved. This Indian was returning to the coast of Brazil, as he had been a long time with the Spaniards. The governor conversed for some time with him, and informed himself of the condition in which were the province, the Spaniards and the natives, and of the great danger in which the Spaniards were because of the death of Juan de Ayolas, and of other captains and people killed by the Indians. Having given full information, this Indian, of his own wish, offered to return in company with the governor to the town of the Ascension, whence he had come, to guide and show the Spaniards the road they had to take. Then the governor discharged the Indians that came with him from the island of St. Catalina, and ordered them to return. These Indians, owing to the good treatment and many presents they had received, returned well satisfied and merry. As the people that the governor brought with him were wanting in experience, and for fear lest they should do wrong or mischief to the Indians, he ordered that they should neither traffic nor communicate with them, nor visit their houses and villages, for the Indians are of so easily excitable a nature, and shocked at the least thing, that great inconvenience might have resulted in all the land. He therefore ordered that only those persons who understood the Indians should have dealings with them, and buy the provisions for all the people at the governor’s cost. And so every day he distributed the provisions himself, and gave them gratis without any interest. It was curious to see how feared were the horses by the Indians of that land and province, that for the terror they had of them they dropped on the road, and set food for them, such as fowls and honey, saying that, provided they would not be angry, they would give them plenty to eat; and to tranquillize them they said that they would not abandon their settlements. But fearing lest the Christians should use violence with them they fixed their camps at some distance off. Owing to the good order that was kept, and seeing that the governor punished everyone who offended them, all the Indians, with their wives and children, had such confidence that it was a sight to see. And from very distant parts they came, laden with provisions, only to see the Christians and their horses, as a thing that had never before been seen in the land.

The governor and his people, continuing their journey through the land and province, arrived at a settlement of Indians of the tribe of Guaranís, and the chief of this tribe went out with all his people in great joy to receive and welcome him. And they brought with them honey, geese, fowls, flour, and maize. And the governor, through the medium of interpreters, spoke to them affably, and told them he was pleased at their coming, and ordered that they should be paid for what they brought, which gave them great satisfaction. Moreover, he sent as a present to the chief of this tribe, whose name was Pupebaie, some presents, such as knives and scissors and other articles. We left the Indians of this tribe so merry and pleased that they danced and sang for joy all through the settlement.

On the seventh of December they arrived at a river known to the Indians as the Taquari.[310] This river has a copious stream and a strong current; and they found its banks inhabited by a tribe of Indians whose chief was called Abangobi. This chief, in company with all the Indians of his tribe, together with their wives and children, came out to receive the governor, showing great joy at his arrival; and they brought plenty of provisions, for which they were paid as usual. All these Indians belong to one tribe, and all speak one language. From this place they went on, leaving the natives so well satisfied that they carried the news from place to place of the good treatment used towards them, and showed everything they had received, so that wherever the governor and his people had to pass, the natives were friendly and came to meet them laden with provisions, receiving payment according to their satisfaction. On the 14th December, having passed through some tribes of Guaranís, by whom he was well received and entertained, the governor and his people arrived at a settlement whose chief said he was called Tocangusir. Here they halted one day to rest, because the people were tired; and the direction they were following was west north-west a quarter north. And at this place the pilots observed for latitude in twenty-four and a half degrees, at a distance of one degree from the tropic. Since entering the inhabited region they had found the country to be very pleasant, with large plains, forests, and many rivers, streams and rivulets, with abundance of good drinking water. In fact, it is a land very suitable for cultivation and stock-rearing.

CHAPTER THE EIGHTH.

Of the troubles that the governor and his people underwent on their way, and of a kind of pine tree, and of the fruits of that land.

FROM the place called Tuguy, the governor and his people continued their journey to the 19th December, without finding any settlements; this circumstance, and the many rivers and bad passages that had to be crossed by men and horses, caused them much trouble. They had to make as many as eighteen bridges in a single day, across rivers as well as over marshes, many of which were dangerous; and they had to pass great sierras and steep mountains and large thickets of reeds that had hard, sharp points, and other jungle. Twenty men had to be constantly in advance, cutting and clearing a road; and it took many days to pass through these forests, which were so thick that the sky could not be seen overhead. And on the said nineteenth day of the said month they arrived at a certain settlement of Guaranís, who with their chief, their wives and children, showing great pleasure, came forth to meet the Spaniards, two leagues from their settlement, bearing many commodities, such as fowls, geese, honey, potatoes and other fruits, maize, and flour of the pine tree, of which they make great quantity.

There are many pine trees in that land so great that four men with their hands joined cannot compass one. They are tall and straight, and very suitable for masts of ships and caracks, according to their length. Their fruit is large, and the kernel about the size of an acorn. The husk is like that of chesnuts, yet they differ in flavour from those of Spain. The Indians gather them, and make of them a great quantity of flour for their nourishment. There are many wild boar and monkeys in that country, which feed on those kernels in the following way: the monkeys climb to the tops of the pine trees, and suspend themselves by their tails; then with hands and feet they detach a number of these fruits and let them fall to the ground. And when they have thrown down a quantity of these fruits they descend and eat them; but it often happens that the wild beasts are watching while the monkeys pull down the fruit, and when they have thrown them down, while the monkeys are descending from the pine trees, the boars come out against them; and they steal and eat the fruit, the monkeys all the while uttering cries from the branches of the trees. There are also other fruits, of different kinds and taste, that ripen twice a year. In this place of Tuguy the governor remained during the feast of the nativity, both to celebrate this feast as well as to rest the people. They found here an abundance of provisions, for the Indians supplied them with all commodities. So the Spaniards, partly owing to the festivities, and partly to the good treatment they received from the Indians, were much refreshed, although such repose was very prejudicial to them, because, taking no exercise and eating plentifully, they could not digest what they ate, and they immediately caught fevers, which did not happen while they were marching. As soon as they resumed their march, after the first two days they got rid of the disease, and regained their health. At first the people importuned the governor, entreating that he might stop and rest some days, but he would not consent to it, for he had already experienced what would be the consequence; but the people thought that he declined because he wished to give them more trouble, till at length they were fain to acknowledge he had so acted for their good, since by eating much they suffered; and of this the governor had great experience.

CHAPTER THE NINTH.

How the governor and his people found themselves starving, and appeased their hunger with worms from reeds.

THE twenty-eighth day of December the governor and his people departed from the village of Tuguy, where they left the Indians well pleased, and, pursuing their route by land the whole day without finding any inhabitants, they came to a wide and deep river with a strong current, and along it were forests of cypress and cedar, and other trees; in crossing this river they had plenty of trouble that and the three following days. Marching through the land, they passed by five villages of the Guaraní Indians, all of whom came forward and greeted us, with their wives and children, bringing plenty of provisions, so that our people were always well supplied, and the Indians very pacific, owing to the good treatment and the payment they received. All this is a very pleasant land, abounding in water and woods. The inhabitants sow maize, cassava and other seeds, and three kinds of potatoes, white, yellow, and reddish, very large and well flavoured. They rear geese and fowls, and gather much honey from the hollows of the trees.

The first of January of the year A.D. 1542, the governor and his people left the Indian settlements, and advanced across a mountainous region, through dense thickets of reeds, where our people underwent much trouble, because, up to the fifth of the month, they met with no settlement, and had to suffer much from hunger; and they kept themselves alive with great difficulty, besides having to open roads through the reed jungle. In the hollows of these reeds there were some white worms,[311] about the length and thickness of a finger; the people fried these for food, obtaining sufficient fat from them to fry them in very well; all ate of them, and thought it excellent food. And from the hollows of other reeds they collected good drinking water, and were much comforted by it. They used to search for these worms during their march, in order that they might have enough to eat, and so provide for their necessities and hunger in their journey through that inhospitable region. They crossed, with great difficulty, two wide and very deep rivers, flowing towards the north; and the following day, being the sixth of January, after marching through uninhabited country, they encamped for the night on the bank of another deep river, with a very strong current and with plenty of reed thickets, where the people gathered the worms and subsisted upon them. So they pursued their journey, and the next day they passed through a very good region, well watered and abounding in game, such as boar and deer, and they killed some and divided it among the people. That day they crossed two small rivers, and it pleased God that none of the Christians fell sick, and everybody kept on marching in good condition, cheered by the hope that they would soon reach the town of the Ascension, and the Spaniards whom they were going to relieve. From the sixth to the tenth of January they passed many Indian Guaraní settlements, all of whom received them peacefully, and greeted them joyfully; the inhabitants of each village, with their chief, accompanied by their wives and children, came laden with provisions, from which the Spaniards derived great help. But the monks Bernardo de Armenia and Alonzo his companion went in advance to collect provisions; and when the governor and his people arrived, it happened that the Indians had nothing more to give; and the people complained to the governor of this, as they had oftentimes done before, and he warned the monks not to do so, and not to take along with them certain Indians, of all ages, who were of no use, and to whom they gave food; but the monks declined to obey. Then all the people were ill-disposed towards them; but the governor favoured them, as they were engaged in the service of God and His Majesty. At length the monks separated themselves from the people, and, against the will of the governor, took another road. He directed that they should be brought back from the Indian settlements, where they had taken refuge; and had he not so ordered their withdrawal, they would have come to grief. The tenth of January, continuing their march, they passed many rivers and rivulets, and other bad passages, great sierras and mountains, and thickets of reeds abounding with water; every sierra[312] having a fertile valley and a river, besides other streams and forests. In all this land there is plenty of water, because it is under the tropic, and the direction of their route on these days was west.

CHAPTER THE TENTH.

Of the fear the Indians had of the horses.

THE fourteenth of January, continuing their journey among settlements of Indians of the nation of Guaranís, all of whom came to meet the Spaniards with much pleasure, bringing maize, fowls, honey, and many other commodities; and as the governor always paid them to their contentment, they brought such a profusion that the surplus remained on the road. All their people go naked, men as well as women; they had a great fear of the horses, and asked the governor to tell the horses not to be angry with them; and in order to appease them they brought them food. So they arrived at a wide river of mighty waters called Yguatú,[313] a very noble river, abounding in fish and bordered by forests; on its shore there is a settlement of Guaranís, who sow maize and cassava, as in other parts they had already passed through; and they came out to receive the governor, being aware of his coming, and of the good treatment they would receive; and they brought plenty of provisions. In all that land there are pine trees of many different kinds, with fruits like those I have spoken of. And the Indians waited upon the governor and his people, because he always treated them well. The Yguatú flows due west in the twenty-fifth degree, and may be as large as the Guadalquivir. Its banks (according to the accounts of the natives, and as I saw with my own eyes) are populous, and the inhabitants are the richest people of all that land and province, both for agriculture and stock-raising. They rear plenty of fowls, geese, and other birds; and they have abundance of game, such as boar, deer, dantas,[314] partridges, quails, and pheasants; and they have great fisheries in this river. They grow plenty of maize, potatoes, cassava, mandubies, and many other fruits; and from the trees they collect a great quantity of honey. From this settlement the governor decided to write to the officials of His Majesty, and to the captains and people residing in the town of the Ascension, to let them know that by order of His Majesty he was on the way to relieve them, and sent two native Indians of that land with the letter. While staying on the river Pequiry,[315] a dog bit a certain Francisco Orejon, citizen of Avila in Spain, in the leg; and fourteen other Spaniards fell sick because of the long journey. These remained with Orejon, in order to follow by short stages. The governor recommended them to the natives, in order that these might favour them, and guide them on the way to follow him when they recovered their health. And in order that they might do this the more willingly, he gave many presents to the chief and other natives, who were much pleased with them. All this country, through which the governor was marching with his people making his discoveries, is filled with large fields abundantly watered by rivers, rivulets, and springs, well shaded by trees and cultivated. It is the most fertile land in the world, adapted for cultivation and colonization. Many parts of it are conveniently situated for sugar refineries; and the country is full of game. The inhabitants are of the nation of the Guaranís, who eat human flesh, and are all agriculturists and rear geese and fowls. They are a domesticated people, friendly towards the Christians, and with a little trouble would accept our holy Catholic faith, as experience has proved. And, judging from the nature of the soil, it is certain that if there are mines of silver anywhere, it is here they may be found.

CHAPTER THE ELEVENTH.

How the governor navigated the river Yguazú, in canoes, and how, in order to avoid a cataract of that river, he carried the canoes one league by hand.

THE governor having left the Indians of the Pequiry very friendly and peaceful, continued his journey with his people through the interior, passing many settlements of Guaranís, all of whom came to meet him with plenty of provisions, showing great joy at his coming. And to all their chiefs he distributed presents, and even the old women and children came to greet them, laden with maize and potatoes. And the inhabitants of villages which were one and even two days off along his line of march did the same, and all brought commodities; and for some distance before the villages were reached they cleared and swept the road, dancing and making great merriment on seeing the Spaniards. What increases their pleasure and contentment is to see their old women merry, because they are wont to do as these tell them, and are more obedient to them than to the old men. The last day of January, continuing to advance into the interior of the province, they arrived at the river Yguazú, and before arriving at this river they traversed an uninhabited region without finding any settlement of Indians. This is the same river they crossed at the beginning of their journey, when they left the coast of Brazil. It is also called in that part Yguazú. It flows from east to west, and there are no settlements on its banks. Here they took the altitude and found it to be twenty-five and a half degrees. Before arriving at the river Yguazú, they learned from the natives that it fell into the Paraná, also called Rio de la Plata; and that between this river Paraná and the Yguazú the Indians killed the Portuguese whom Martin Alfonzo de Sosa[316] had sent to discover that land, who were slaughtered while crossing the river in canoes. Some of these Indians who had so killed the Portuguese warned the governor that the Indians of the Pequiry river were bad people and our enemies, and that they were lying in wait to seize and kill us during our passage of the river. Because of this the governor held a council, and decided to secure both banks of the river, he with part of his people descending the Yguazú in canoes, and entering the Paraná, while the remainder of the people with the horses went by land, and took up a position on the bank in order to overawe the Indians; all the people were then to pass to the other side in the canoes, and this was accordingly effected. The governor himself with eighty men embarked in canoes and descended the Yguazú, the remainder of the people and the horses proceeded by land, as we have said, and all joined on the river Paraná. The current of the Yguazú was so strong that the canoes were carried furiously down the river, for near this spot there is a considerable fall, and the noise made by the water leaping down some high rocks into a chasm may be heard a great distance off, and the spray rises two spears high and more above the fall.[317] It was necessary, therefore, to take the canoes out of the water and carry them by hand past the cataract for half a league with great labour. Having left that bad passage behind, they launched their canoes and continued their voyage down to the confluence of this river with the Paraná. And it pleased God that the people and the horses that went by land, as well as those in the canoes with the governor, all arrived at one time. On the bank of the Paraná there had assembled a great number of Indian Guaranís, all decked with parrots’ feathers, painted red and a variety of other colours, holding their bows and arrows and all massed together for battle. The arrival of the governor and his people in the manner we have described caused much fear among them and threw them into confusion. We began to speak with them through interpreters and to distribute a number of presents among their chiefs; and as they were covetous people, delighting in novelties, they began to be appeased and to approach us. And many of them helped us to cross to the opposite bank.[318] When we had passed, the governor ordered rafts to be made by lashing the canoes by twos together; and in two hours they were ready, all the people and the horses reaching the other side without being interfered with by the natives. This river Paraná, at the place where we crossed it, was a long cross-bow shot wide, very deep and rapid; in passing it one of the canoes upset and one Christian was drowned, the current having drawn him under, and he never rose to the surface. The strength of the current and great depth form many whirlpools.

CHAPTER THE TWELFTH.

Which treats of the rafts that were made to carry the sick.

WHEN the governor had passed the river Paraná he was greatly disappointed at not finding the two brigantines which he had ordered by letter the two captains who were at the Ascension to send, these vessels being much needed to protect the passage for the transport of the sick and those who were fatigued with the long journey. As there were many incapable of marching who could not safely be left behind in the midst of so many enemies, who might soon pluck up courage to attempt some of their treasonable practices, he arranged to send the sick down the Paraná on the rafts, entrusting them to the care of an Indian chief named Yguaron, to whom he gave presents. This man offered to take charge of the sick in person and bring them to the village of Francisco, a servant of Gonzalo de Acosta, in the expectation that by the way they would meet the brigantines, and would be received and entertained by them; meanwhile this Indian, Francisco, who had been brought up among Christians and who lived on the bank of the Paraná, four days’ journey from the point of their departure, according to the information of the natives, would look after them. So the governor ordered them to embark, and they were about thirty men, and he sent with them fifty arquebusiers and crossbowmen for their protection. And as soon as he had sent them, the governor, with the remainder of his people, continued his journey by land towards the town of the Ascension, to reach which he would have to travel nine days according to the information given by the Indians inhabiting the banks of the Paraná. Possession was taken of this river in the name of His Majesty, and the pilots took the altitude and found it to be twenty-four degrees.[319]

The governor and his people advanced across the country, passing settlements of the Guaranís, all of whom received him well, and came forth to meet him laden with provisions, as usual. In this march they crossed large marshes, and other bad places, and rivers, and had to build bridges and overcome many difficulties. After the passage of the Paraná the Indians accompanied them from village to village, showing great friendship and goodwill; they did them many good offices, both in serving as guides, and providing them with food. For all this the governor rewarded them generously, and made them well satisfied. During the march a Spaniard came from the town of Ascension to meet the governor, and took back tidings to his fellow-countrymen, and the people there, of his arrival; for, owing to the straits they were in, their desire to see him and his people was very great; and they could hardly believe that he would do them such a service until they had seen him with their own eyes, even though they had read the letters he had written to them. This Christian informed the governor of the situation, and of the danger the people were in, of the deaths that had happened both of those who went with Juan de Ayolas, as well as many others slain by the natives, and of their great tribulation and discouragement, especially since the evacuation of Buenos Ayres; for they had long expected relief from Spain, and when at length that port was abandoned, they had given up all hope of deliverance. He also related many other losses that had been sustained in the country.

CHAPTER THE THIRTEENTH.

How the governor arrived at the Ascension, where the Spaniards lived whom he had come to relieve.

HAVING learned of the above-mentioned Spaniard of the death of Juan de Ayolas and his companions, and of the deaths of other Christians, of the extremity of the survivors in the town of Ascension, and of the abandonment of Buenos Ayres, whither he had left orders that the ship Capitana should proceed with the one hundred and forty men from the island of St. Catalina; considering, too, the danger in which those might be who arrived by sea, when they found that port deserted by the Christians and in the hands of a large number of Indians, he made all the haste he could to reach Ascension in the quickest time possible, in order that he might infuse new courage into those who remained there, and restore confidence among the friendly Indians. All the natives of the parts he was now travelling through make their houses of straw and wood, and many of those from the district round Ascension spoke to the governor in our own Castilian tongue, bidding him and his Spaniards welcome. Their reception of him was as cordial as any met with heretofore. They cleared and swept the road, formed processions with their wives and children, waited his arrival with presents of provisions: maize, wine, bread, potatoes, fowls, fish, honey, and game, all prepared; and they distributed these gifts among his men. In token of peace they raised their hands, and, in their own language, some, too, in ours, welcomed the governor and his people. Along the route they entered into conversation with us, and were as cordial and familiar as though they were our own countrymen, born and bred in Spain.

Travelling in this way, it pleased God that on the eleventh of March, being one Saturday, at nine o’clock in the morning, in the year of grace 1542, we arrived at the city of Ascension, where we found the Spaniards living whom we had come to relieve.

This town is situated on the bank of the Paraguay, in twenty-five degrees south latitude. Before entering it the governor was met by all the captains and people resident there, who showed incredible joy at his arrival, declaring they had never believed, or even expected that they would be relieved, so great were the dangers and difficulties of the road never before explored; as for the sea-route viâ Buenos Ayres, by which they had hoped succour might have reached them, their expectations from this quarter had also vanished since the Indians had taken the aggressive with the idea of soon capturing and making an end of them. Moreover, so long a time had elapsed since any Spaniards had landed there, that they were in despair.

The governor received them all at an interview, spoke very kindly with them, and informed them that he had come by His Majesty’s orders to succour them. Thereupon he showed his credentials and powers to Domingo de Irala, and the officers Alonzo Cabrera, controller, a native of Loja; Philip de Caceres, accountant, of Madrid; Pedro Dorantes, factor, of Bejar, and to other captains and inhabitants of that province. These documents were read out to the clergy and soldiers present, and by virtue of them they recognized him as governor, and signified their obedience as to a captain-general of the province, appointed by His Majesty. The insignia of justice were given up to him, and were redelivered, in the name of His Majesty, to the magistrates who should administer civil and criminal law in the said province.

CHAPTER THE FOURTEENTH.

How the Spaniards, left behind through sickness, on the river Pequiry, arrived at the town of Ascension.

THIRTY days after the arrival of the governor at the town of Ascension, as we have related, the Christians, both sick and sound, whom he had sent on rafts from the river Paraná, arrived at the harbour, one only being missing; and he had been killed by a tiger. They reported to the governor how the Indians of the river assembled in great numbers with their canoes, and while our men were descending on the rafts, came out and attacked them with loud cries and beating of drums, shooting a storm of arrows at them. Two hundred canoes surrounded them at one time, trying to board and take possession of the rafts in order to kill the Spaniards. For fourteen days and nights they never ceased fighting, being exposed all that time to a constant fire of arrows, both from those on shore as well as those in the canoes. The natives tried with long hooks to seize hold of the rafts, and drag them towards the shore, while the incessant shouting and cries of these men made so much din that one would have said the powers of light and darkness were at war with one another. They gave them no rest, for those in the canoes changed places with those on shore, these continuing the fight while the others rested. Twenty Spaniards were wounded, but not seriously; and all this time the rafts kept drifting down stream, borne along by a strong current. They descended so rapidly that rowing was unnecessary, and all their efforts were directed to prevent their being drawn to land, where the danger was greatest. Nevertheless, they were now and then exposed to great peril, owing to the whirlpools which caught the rafts and twirled them round; and it required all the skill of those that navigated them to prevent them being taken inshore by the eddies. In this way they continued their voyage for fourteen days without the possibility of finding succour or protection, always pursued by the Indians in their canoes, and a constant target for their arrows. At length they arrived near the village of Francisco, the Indian, who, with some of his men, came out to meet and succour the Christians. He brought them to an island near his village, and gave them food, for they were weary with the fatigues they had undergone, and starving. Here the wounded recovered from their wounds, and all rested, for the enemy had not dared to pursue them farther, and had withdrawn. Meanwhile the two brigantines sent for their relief arrived at the village. In these they embarked and arrived at the Ascension.

CHAPTER THE FIFTEENTH.

How the governor, wishing to re-people Buenos Ayres, sent reinforcements to those who had come there in the ship ‘Capitana’.

ALVAR NUNEZ ordered two brigantines to be equipped with all diligence, and to be loaded with provisions and other commodities; and having manned them with some of the former colonists of Buenos Ayres who were acquainted with the navigation of the Paraná, he sent them to relieve the one hundred and forty Spaniards who were to have embarked at St. Catalina in the ship Capitana for Buenos Ayres; for, owing to the abandonment of this port, these people would be exposed to great danger. He ordered that the port should be immediately rebuilt in the most convenient place, as the colony was necessary for the safety and welfare of all the Spaniards in the province, as well for those who might come there in future, ships being obliged to anchor in this part of the river; here, too, brigantines have to be built to navigate the river for three hundred and fifty leagues to the town of Ascension.

The first two brigantines set out on the sixteenth of April. After they had started, the governor ordered two more to be built, and laden with provisions and people, to proceed also to the relief of the Spaniards, and to re-establish the port of Buenos Ayres. He gave special injunctions to the captains of these two vessels to treat the natives of the Paraná with kindness, and induce them by fair means to acknowledge the sovereignty of the King. He, moreover, directed them to take note of everything that occurred, in order that a full report might be sent to His Majesty. Having made these dispositions, Alvar Nuñez turned his attention to the service of God, and His Majesty, and to the pacification of the province. For the better accomplishment of these duties, he summoned a meeting of the monks and clergy residing in that province, as well as those that had come with him, and, in the presence of all the officers, the captains and the people, he entreated them, in kind but earnest words, to bestow special attention to the teaching of the Christian doctrines to the natives, subject to the King, and he caused certain passages of the Royal Charter to be read aloud, in which special mention was made of the treatment of the Indians. He further enjoined the monks, clergy, and other ecclesiastics, to take the Indians under their particular care, and to protect them from ill-treatment, and to inform him of anything done contrary to these orders—promising to supply all things necessary for this holy cause, and for the celebration of the sacraments in the churches and monasteries. And for this purpose he supplied them with wine and flour, and distributed among them the vestments he had brought for use in divine service; and he also gave them a barrel of wine for this use.

CHAPTER THE SIXTEENTH.

How the natives kill and eat their enemies.

SOON after the arrival of the governor at the Ascension the natives and conquistadores brought serious charges against the officers of His Majesty. Alvar Nuñez therefore ordered all the native subjects of the king to assemble, and in the presence of the monks and clergy told them he had been sent to protect them, and that they should come to the knowledge of God and accept Christianity at the hands of the monks and clergy who had come as the ministers of God, and should subject themselves to His Majesty. If they did this they would be better treated and protected. He warned them to give up eating human flesh, as that was a sin and grave offence in the sight of God. The monks and the clergy repeated this warning, and the governor concluded by distributing presents among them, such as shirts, stuffs, caps, and other things they delighted in.

These Guaranís speak a language common to all the tribes of this province. They eat the flesh of their enemies whom they take captive in war, bringing them to their settlements and making great merriment and rejoicing with them, dancing and singing till the captive grows fat. They give him their wives and daughters, in order that he may have every pleasure. It is these wives who take the trouble to fatten him. Those held in the greatest honour among them admit him to their couches, adorn him in various ways according to their custom, and bedeck him with feathers and necklaces of white beads and stones, which are much prized among them. When he begins to grow fat they redouble their efforts; the dancing, singing, and pleasures of all kinds increase. Then the men come; they adorn and make ready three boys of the age of six or seven, placing a little hatchet in their hands. The Indian considered the bravest among them now takes a wooden sword in his hand, called in their language macana, and leads the captive to a place where he is made to dance for one hour; the Indian then advances, and with both hands deals him a blow in the loins, and another on the spine to knock him down. It happens sometimes that after striking him six blows on the head they cannot kill him, so hard are their heads, though this two-handed sword is made of very tough, heavy, black wood, and the executioner is strong enough to kill an ox with a single blow. When they have knocked him down the three boys come with their hatchets, and the eldest of them, usually the son of the chief, begins striking blows on his head, the others do the same till the blood flows; the Indians meanwhile exhorting them to be brave and learn to kill their enemies and make war upon them, and to remember that this victim has killed many of their own people, and that they should revenge themselves upon him. As soon as he is dead the one that gave him the first blow takes the name of the dead man and keeps it henceforward in token of his bravery. Then the old women cut the body in pieces and cook it in their earthenware pots, distributing the flesh among themselves. They eat it and consider it excellent food. Afterwards they resume their dancing and pleasures, which last several days, saying that now the enemy who had slain their relatives is dead, they will take their rest and make merry.

CHAPTER THE SEVENTEENTH.

Of the peace which the governor concluded with the Indian Agazes.

ON the banks of this river Paraguai there is a nation of Indians named Agazes; it is a people most feared in all that country, for besides being valiant they are well practised in war and very treacherous. Under pretext of making a treaty of peace they ravaged other tribes, not sparing even their own relatives, wishing to make themselves masters in the land, so that nobody trusts them. They are men of great size and gigantic limbs; they lead piratical lives in their canoes on the river, landing to pillage and capture the Guaranís, who are their principal enemies. They live by fishing and the chase, and do not cultivate the soil. When they capture the Guaranís they tie their hands together and drag them into the canoes and carry them away. Then they return to the relatives of their captive, who come forth and offer to ransom him; and they strike him cruel blows in the presence of his father, children, or wives, as the case may be, and demand food, threatening to slaughter their prisoner if this is not brought. Having taken as much provisions as their canoes will hold, they return to their houses, carrying their captive along with them. And this is their usual practice, for it rarely happens that the captives are actually ransomed. After they are tired of keeping them in their canoes and beating them, the Agazes cut off their heads and hoist these on poles on the bank of the river. Before the governor’s arrival the Spaniards had made war against these Indians and killed a number of them; peace had afterwards been concluded, but this had been broken with characteristic perfidy by the Agazes, who had done much injury to the Guaranís and carried off a quantity of their provisions. A few days before the governor’s arrival at the Ascension the Agazes had violated the peace, having attacked and ravaged certain villages of the Guaranís, besides keeping the town of Ascension daily on the alert. When the Agazes knew of the governor’s arrival, their chiefs, named Abacoten, Tabor, and Alabos, accompanied by a large number of their people, arrived in their canoes, and presented themselves before him, saying they wished to swear allegiance to His Majesty, and to be friendly with the Spaniards; they declared that if they had not kept the peace hitherto, that was owing to the audacious conduct of some foolish youths, who had begun hostilities without their leave, causing it to be supposed that the chiefs had broken the peace, but that they had been well punished for it; and they entreated the governor to receive them into his amity, and make peace between them and the Spaniards, promising they would keep it. This promise they repeated in the presence of the monks, clergy, and officials. Having heard this message, the governor received them kindly, and replied that he was pleased to receive them as vassals of His Majesty, and as friends of the Christians, provided that they would keep the peace, and not break it as heretofore. He gave them to understand that, should they misbehave in future, they would be regarded as enemies, and be made to suffer accordingly. In this way he made peace between them and the Spaniards. He gave orders in the meanwhile that they should be well treated and receive provisions. The conditions of peace were that the said Indians, the chiefs of the Agazes and others of that nation, should agree that whenever they descended the Paraguai in canoes as far as the Ascension, they should not enter upon territory belonging to the Guaranís otherwise than all together, and never separately, nor by night, but always in the daytime; that they should only land on the opposite side of the river, not on this side, where the Guaranís and Spaniards have their fields and establishments; that they should not ravage the country and harass the Guaranís, and that they should terminate their war against them, and cease from troubling them any more, as these people were now vassals of His Majesty; that they should deliver up certain of their Guaraní captives, of both sexes, who had been captured during the time of peace, because they were Christians, and their relatives were much distressed at it; that they should not interfere with the Spaniards and Guaranís when they fished in the river and hunted on the land; and, lastly, that such of their wives, daughters, and relatives who had been converted to Christianity should be allowed to persevere in that holy work, and not be carried away or compelled to absent themselves. Provided that these conditions were kept, the Agazes would be treated as friends, but if any article of the treaty were broken they would be proceeded against as enemies. These terms having been well explained and understood by them, they promised to observe them, and thus was peace restored and their submission brought about.

CHAPTER THE EIGHTEENTH.

Of the complaints addressed to the governor by the pobladores against the officers of His Majesty.

A FEW days after his arrival at the Ascension, Alvar Nuñez, having seen that there were many poor and needy, supplied them with clothing, shirts, trowsers, and other necessaries. Many of them that were unarmed received arms; and all this at his expense, and without interest. He then begged the officers of His Majesty to discontinue vexing and wronging these unfortunate people, as they had hitherto done, for many complaints had been made by both conquistadores and pobladores. They tried to enforce a new tax lately imposed on fisheries, butter, honey, maize, and other commodities; on the skins with which they clothed themselves, and which they bought of the Indians; and this besides the collection of debts due to His Majesty. The officers urged the governor to allow them to continue these taxes, but he would not consent to it, and in this way incurred their animosity. Prompted by a bad spirit towards him, they strove to do him all the harm they could by indirect means. He therefore had them arrested and thrown into prison, in consequence of evidence brought against them.

CHAPTER THE NINETEENTH.

How the governor received complaints against the Indian Guaycurús.

THE riparian chiefs, and those inhabiting the vicinity of the Paraguai, near the town of the Ascension, vassals of His Majesty, came and presented themselves before the governor, and complained of a tribe of Indians that dwelt near their borders. These Indians are great warriors, and valiant men, who live on venison, butter, honey, fish, and wild boar, eating nothing besides, neither they nor their wives and children. They go daily to the chase for it is their only occupation. They are nimble and vigorous, swift of foot, and so long-winded that they tire out the deer, and catch them with their hands, besides slaying many more with their arrows, as well as tigers and other fierce animals. They are kind to their wives, and not only to those of their own tribe, who are greatly esteemed by them, but also to women generally; thus, if any fall into their hands when they are making war, they set them at liberty, and do them no wrong. They are much feared by all the other tribes. They never remain more than two days in one place, but quickly remove their houses, made of matting, to distances of one or two leagues when they are in pursuit of game. This tribe, and others that live by fishing, eat of a certain bean[320] that grows in that country; they search for it in the mountains where the trees are that produce this fruit; and the wild boar climb the hills at the same time, and for the same purpose. It ripens in November and the beginning of December, and they make flour of it, and wine strong enough to intoxicate themselves.

CHAPTER THE TWENTIETH.

How the governor informed himself concerning the complaint.

THE chiefs of the Indians complained to the governor that the Guaycurús had dispossessed them of their land, and killed their fathers, brothers and relatives, and since they were vassals of His Majesty, they claimed protection and restitution of their property. They had hunted on the mountains, they had fished in the lagoons and rivers, they had collected honey for their own support and that of the Christians. Moreover, the wrongs and murders they complained of had taken place since the governor’s arrival in the country. He examined into the complaints of these chiefs, whose names were Pedro de Mendoza, Juan de Salazar, Cupirati, Francisco Ruis Mayraru, Lorenzo Moquirasi, Gonzalo Mayraru, and other newly converted Christians, in order to satisfy himself of the truth of their allegations, and to proceed according to law; and he said that they must bring good evidence of their alleged wrongs. They then presented as witnesses a large number of Spanish Christians, who had been present, and seen the injuries done by the Guaycurús; how these people had driven them from their lands, and laid waste a large stockaded settlement named Caguazú. Having heard this information, the governor sent for the monks and clergy—friar Bernardo de Armenta, and friar Alonzo Lebron, his companion; the bachelor Martin de Almenza, and Francisco de Andrada, priests; and commanded them to inquire into the affair, and report as to whether war could be justly made against the Guaycurús. They wrote their opinion, and signed it with their names, to the effect that he (the governor) might, with armed hand, march against the said Indians, and wage war against them, since they were implacable enemies. The governor then ordered two Spaniards, who knew their language, and Martin de Almenza, with an escort of fifty Spaniards, to go in search of the Guaycurús, and summon them to submit to His Majesty, and desist from making war against the Guaranís, that these might freely go about their land, and enjoy their chase and fisheries. If they would do this, he promised to consider them as friends, but if they refused, he should make war upon them as mortal enemies. So the ambassadors set out, having been specially charged to repeat their message and warning two or three times calmly and deliberately. Eight days afterwards they returned, and declared that they had warned the Indians, but that these had taken up arms against them, saying that they did not choose to obey, or to be friends with the Spaniards and Guaranís, and told them to withdraw immediately from the land. At the same time they shot a number of arrows, and wounded many of them. The governor, having been informed of all that had happened, ordered two hundred arquebusiers and crossbowmen to be in readiness, and twelve horsemen, and with these he left the town of Ascension on Thursday the twelfth of July 1542.

As he had to pass to the other side of the Paraguai, he bade them make ready two brigantines, to ferry the men and horses across, and he ordered all to assemble at a certain village of the Guaranís, called Tapuá,[321] on the bank of the Paraguai. Its chief, Mormosen, is a brave man, much feared in that country, who had already become a Christian, and bore the name of Lorenzo. He had been master of Caguazú when the Guaycurús took it. All the soldiers and the horses marched to Tapuá by land, a distance of four leagues from the town of Ascension, passing, on the way, large troops of the Guaranís, who had orders to rendezvous at the same place, and accompany the governor on his expedition. It was wonderful to see the order they kept, and their preparations for war, all of them armed with bows and arrows, adorned with parrots’ feathers, and painted with divers colours. They had musical instruments, which they use in battle, such as timbals and trumpets, cornets, etc. All arrived on the same day at Tapuá, and found here large numbers of the Guaranís, bivouacking under the trees along the river bank. The chief, Mormosen, and his relatives, accompanied by a number of the people, advanced to meet the governor, a bow-shot from the village, and brought with them a large quantity of venison and ostrich-flesh which they had killed on that and the previous day, in such plenty that there was more than sufficient for all the people. The Indian chiefs then held a council, and decided that it would be necessary to send out scouts to reconnoitre the country and position of the enemy, and ascertain if tidings had reached him of the advance of the Spaniards, and whether he kept watch at night. This advice was followed, and two Spaniards, together with Mormosen and other brave Indians who knew the country, went forward. The following day being Friday, they returned before nightfall, and reported that the Guaycurús had gone a-hunting in the plains and mountains, having fired the grass in several places, as is their wont. Our people had seen them moving their camp, accompanied by their wives and children, to settle in a new place, where they might subsist by hunting and fishing, and they seemed to be unaware of our coming. From our camp to the place where the Indians had probably fixed their abode might be five or six leagues, judging from the fires they had kindled to drive the game.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-FIRST.

How the governor and his people crossed the river, and how two Christians were drowned.

THAT same Friday the brigantines arrived for the passage of the river, and the Indians brought a number of their canoes. Being now fully informed as to what should be done, and having taken counsel with his captains, the governor arranged that the army should cross the following morning, Saturday, and proceed in quest of the Guaycurús. He ordered rafts to be made of the canoes, to convey the horses over, and as soon as it was daylight the embarkation began in good order, the soldiers in the brigantines, and the Indians in their canoes. The zeal displayed by the Spaniards, and the loud cries of the Indians, were remarkable. From six in the morning to two o’clock in the afternoon the crossing went on, though there were two hundred canoes engaged in the passage.

A sad accident happened at this juncture. As the Spaniards vied with one another who should be first, one of the vessels was overloaded and capsized, the keel floating above water with all her living freight clinging to it. They would certainly all have been drowned, had not a number of Indians who saw the occurrence from the bank jumped at once into the water and righted the vessel. But the current was so strong at this place that two of the Spaniards were swept down the river, whom it was impossible to rescue, their bodies being recovered lower down; and their names were Diego de Ysla, a citizen of Malaga, and Juan de Valdez, a citizen of Palencia.

When all the people and the horses had crossed to the other side, the principal Indians came to the governor, and told him that it was their invariable custom, whenever they were about to make war, to give their captain a present, accordingly they begged him to accept it. The governor, wishing to humour them consented. Then all the chiefs, one after the other, brought him a prettily painted bow and arrow; and all the Indians, one by one, presented a painted arrow adorned with parrots’ feathers; and the remainder of that day was taken up by the presentation of these offerings, so that it was necessary to pass the night on the bank of the river, stationing sentries to keep watch.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-SECOND.

How the spies, by order of the governor, went in search of the Guaycurús.

ON Saturday, the governor, with the advice of his captains and monks, arranged that before beginning the march, scouts should be sent in advance to reconnoitre the movements of the Guaycurús, in order that dispositions might be made to attack and drive them from the lands of the Guaranís. So the Indian spies and Christians set forth, and returned at four o’clock in the morning, with the report that the Indians had been hunting the whole day, and that their wives and children were in front of them, and that they did not appear to have any fixed idea of settling anywhere. Upon this being known, it was decided to march at once, as secretly as possible, in pursuit of the enemy, observing the precaution of not lighting fires, and not breaking the ranks for the purpose of hunting or any other motive, in order not to give the enemy an inkling of their whereabouts. These dispositions having been taken, they started in good order, on Sunday morning, and marched at the foot of the forested slopes of the mountains, so as to conceal their movements. The Indian scouts, all picked men and swift of foot, led the advance, returning every now and again to report what they could discover of the enemy.

The order of march was as follows: the Indians went together in a troop extending over a league in length, all arrayed in parrots’ feathers, and with bows and arrows. In front of them was the advanced guard, and behind came the main body, the governor and the cavalry, followed by the Spanish infantry, arquebusiers and crossbowmen. After these came the women, bearing the munitions and provisions of the Spaniards. The Indians carried their own supplies. In this order they marched till mid-day, when they rested under some large trees, where they all halted and partook of some refreshment. After this, they resumed the march, led by the Indian guides, along footpaths, where the quantity of deer and ostriches was amazing. Neither Indians nor Spaniards, however, ventured to hunt for fear of discovering themselves to the enemy; but all kept their ranks, the Guaranís in advance numbering some ten thousand men, all painted and bedizened with necklaces of beads and plumes, and plates of copper, which glistened marvellously well in the sun. And many of them had bows, and a great number of arrows.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-THIRD.

How the governor, pursuing the enemy, was informed that he was marching in front.

THE governor and his people, marching in this order all day, there happened, shortly after sunset, at the hour of Ave Maria,[322] a tumult among the Indians. And a dispute arose in this wise. A spy came back from the Guaycurús, and brought back word that they were retiring for fear of the Guaranís, and that he had seen them hunting the whole day; and that their wives and children were in advance, and he believed they would settle that evening. The Guaranís had been informed, on the other hand, by some female slaves, whom they had captured a few days previously of another tribe called Merchireses, that the report current among that tribe was that the Guaycurús were engaged in war with the Guatatas, and were about to attack this tribe, and that was why they were advancing with such haste through the country.

The scouts continued to follow the enemy closely, in order to see where he would halt, and give the governor information. And he, having heard all this from the last spy, and seeing that it was a fine night, ordered the march to be continued in the same order as before, a strict watch being kept, the archers with their crossbows strung, and the arquebusiers with their arquebuses loaded and fuses lighted, as the occasion required, for although the Guaranís were marching with us and were our allies, it was prudent to observe every precaution, and place as little confidence in them as an enemy, for they are wont to be treacherous if too much trusted.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-FOURTH.

Of a panic among the Spaniards and Indians, caused by a tiger.

THE governor and his army were marching through the skirts of a thick forest, and night was approaching, when a tiger passed through the midst of the Indians, causing a great panic and confusion among them, so that the Spaniards took to their arms, and, thinking the Indians were in revolt, fell upon them, calling on Santiago. In that affray several Indians were wounded, and their companions, seeing the attack made upon them, fled to the mountains. The governor himself narrowly escaped being wounded by two gunshots, the bullets having grazed the skin of his face; and these shots were certainly fired maliciously with intent to kill him, and to please Domingo de Irala, whom he had deprived of the command of the province.

Alvar Nuñez, seeing the Indians had fled, and anxious to put an end to the disorder, dismounted and rushed into the forest after them. He called to them that it was nothing more than a tiger had caused the confusion, that he and his Spaniards were their friends, and that they were all brothers and subjects of His Majesty, and that all should advance together and drive the enemy from the country. The Indians, seeing the governor in person among them, and hearing all he said, became appeased, and descended the hill with him. It is certain that things were at one time so critical as to endanger our men, because, if the Indians had fled and returned to their homes, they would never again have had confidence in the Spaniards. The governor then summoned the chiefs by name, and told them to follow him in perfect security, and have no fear. “If the Spaniards were about to kill you,” he added, “you were yourselves to blame, for you took up arms, and made them believe you intended to kill them; let it be clearly understood that the tiger was the cause of this panic, and let us all be friends once more. You know that the war we are about to engage in is in your interest and on your behalf only, for the Guaycurús have never seen the Spaniards, or had any trouble or grievance with them. We are proceeding against them to protect and defend you.”

Yielding to the governor’s entreaties and encouraging words, the Guaranís returned, and placed themselves under his orders, though still frightened. They said they had been thrown into confusion by the fear that the enemy was upon them, and had fled for protection into the midst of the Spaniards, and this was the only cause of their fear. When the chiefs were pacified, all the people came together, without anyone having been killed. When all were re-united, the governor ordered that henceforth the Indians should pass to the rear, and the Spaniards should march in front, the cavalry being in advance of all, so that the Indians might see with what goodwill the Spaniards marched against the enemy, and lay aside any fears they might still have left; for the Spaniards in that province depended entirely upon the Indians for their means of subsistence, and without this would have had to abandon it altogether. So they marched for two hours after sunset, and halted to sup under some trees on the provisions they carried with them.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-FIFTH.

How the governor and his people overtook the enemy.

AT eleven o’clock at night, when the Indians and Spaniards were resting, without light or fire for fear of betraying their presence to the Guaycurús, one of the spies, who had been sent to observe the enemy’s movements, came into camp, and reported that he had seen them setting up their village. The governor was much pleased on hearing this news, as he had feared that they might have heard the reports of the firing that had taken place in the confusion of the night. Having learned from this spy that the spot they had fixed upon for their settlement was three leagues off, he gave orders to strike the camp, and march slowly forward, in order not to arrive at the place too early, so as to be ready to begin the attack at daybreak. As a security to the friendly Indians, and to distinguish them from the enemy, he ordered them all to paint white crosses on their chests and shoulders, so that the Spaniards might recognise them as friends, and not kill them by mistake for Guaycurús. Although this precaution was adopted, it did not avail much in the obscurity of night, when friend and foe became mixed up in hand to hand fighting, and the quick blows of the sword could not be arrested.

We marched till break of day, and then reached the enemy’s habitations, waiting till daylight before delivering the attack. In order that the horses might not, by their neighing, give the enemy warning, the governor ordered their mouths to be filled with grass; meanwhile the Indians were directed to surround the enemy’s position, leaving a passage for his escape to the mountains, so that the carnage might not be too great.

While waiting in expectation, the Guaranís were almost paralysed with fear; nothing would induce them to begin the attack, notwithstanding the entreaties and persuasion of the governor. Soon after the drums of the Guaycurús were heard beating to arms, and challenging anybody to come and fight them, saying they were few in numbers, but more valiant than any other tribe in the land; that they were masters of it, and of all the animals contained in it; they were lords also of the rivers and the fish. These people, who are accustomed to keep watch every night, a little before daybreak came forward and threw themselves on the ground, and in this position saw the host of our army, and the lighted fuses of the arquebuses. And when they saw this they cried aloud, “Who are you that dare come to our houses?” And a Christian who knew their language answered: “I am Hector (this was his name) and I have come with my people to barter (the corresponding word in their language meaning revenge) the death of the Batates[323] whom you slaughtered.” Then they answered, “Cursed be your coming, for you shall be served as they were.” Having thus spoken, they threw the burning logs they held in their hands at the Spaniards, and then rushed into their huts, seized their bows and arrows, and attacked our people with such impetuosity and courage that they appeared to make no account of them. The Indians who had come with the governor showed great cowardice, and would have fled had they dared to do so. Alvar Nuñez, seeing this, entrusted the artillery to Don Diego de Barba; Captain Salazar was placed in command of the Spanish infantry and Indians, these latter being in two divisions. He ordered the breastplates to be put on the horses, and, thus arrayed in order of battle, our forces charged the enemy with cries of “Santiago!” The governor, on horseback, led the van, and cut down all that opposed him. When the enemy saw the horses for the first time, a great fear fell upon them, and they fled to the mountains as quickly as they could. Passing through their village, they set fire to their houses, and these being made of mats of rush and grass, caught fire at once, the flames spreading to the others, about twenty in number, all portable, and each having a length of five hundred paces. Their owners, numbering about four thousand warriors, retired behind the smoke caused by the burning houses, and whilst so concealed killed two Christians, and decapitated twelve of our friendly Indians. This operation is performed by the aid of two or three teeth of a fish called the palometa, which bites fish-hooks in two. These teeth are attached to a small stick. The Guaycurús, holding their prisoners by the hair of the head, pass this instrument round their neck, and with a twist or two of the head, completely sever it from the body, and carry it off by the hair. They will perform this operation while they are running, as if it were the easiest thing possible.[324]

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-SIXTH.

How the governor pursued the enemy.

HAVING defeated the Guaycurús, the governor pursued them. As one of the horsemen was following him, an Indian of the enemy seized hold of the mare he was riding by the neck, and pierced her through and through with three arrows he held in his hand; nor could they make him loose his hold of the animal before they had killed him. If the governor had not been present at this fight the victory would have been doubtful.

These Indians are very tall, swift of foot, valiant and strong. They are Gentiles, having no fixed abode, and subsist by hunting and fishing. No nation had ever conquered them before the Spaniards, and their idea is, if anyone should vanquish them, to serve them as slaves. Their women are allowed the right of delivering a prisoner who has fallen into their hands, so that he shall neither be killed nor enslaved, and if he choose to remain among them, he is treated as one of their own people. These women have certainly more liberty than that bestowed on our women in Spain by Queen Isabella, our Sovereign Lady. The governor and his people, being tired of pursuing the enemy, returned to camp, and having assembled his army, began his march towards Ascension, followed by the Guaycurús a great distance, arms in hand; and the governor had much trouble to keep his men together, and prevent them being cut down by those of the enemy who had escaped in the fighting; for a Guaraní having possessed himself of a feather, an arrow, or a mat of the enemy’s, will return home alone without taking the precaution of waiting for his companions. In this way it happened that one thousand of the Guaranís were caught and killed singly by about twenty Guaycurús. Four hundred prisoners, men, women and children, were made in that expedition.

During the return march the horsemen speared a number of deer, and the Indians were surprised to see the swiftness of the horses, which could overtake the deer. They, too, killed very many with their arrows. At four o’clock in the afternoon a halt was made under some large trees, and they passed the night here, having stationed sentinels to keep a good watch.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-SEVENTH.

How the governor and all his people returned to the town of Ascension.

THE following day, in broad daylight, they set out in good order, hunting as they marched, and a number of deer and ostriches were killed. Some of the former were even killed by the Spaniards with their swords, as they fled from the horsemen and Indians and sought refuge in the ranks of the infantry. It was a strange and very pleasant sight to see the chase that day. One hour-and-a-half before nightfall they arrived on the river Paraguai, where the governor had left the two brigantines and the canoes. And that day they began passing the men and horses over to the other side, and continued this the following day from morn till midday, by which time all had been ferried across, and the governor and his people marched on to the town of Ascension, where he had left a garrison of two hundred and fifty men, under the orders of Gonzalo de Mendoza. This captain had made prisoners six Indians of the tribe of Yapirús,[325] who are tall and valiant men, good warriors and runners. They neither cultivate the land nor rear animals, but live exclusively by the chase and fishing; they are enemies of the Guaranís and Guaycurús. Gonzalo de Mendoza informed the governor that these Indians had arrived the previous day, having crossed the Paraguai; and had said that their tribesmen had heard of the war waged against the Guaycurús, and that they and all the other tribes were dismayed on hearing of this, and that their chief had sent them to make it known that they wished to be friendly with the Christians, and to offer their help, should it be wanted, against the Guaycurús. Gonzalo de Mendoza had suspected treachery in all this, and that their real object was to spy out the place; he had therefore detained them prisoners till he could satisfy himself of their sincerity of purpose. The governor ordered them to be brought at once before him, and having sent for a Spanish interpreter who knew their language, questioned them separately as to the objects of their coming. Having seen that it would be to the advantage of His Majesty’s service, he treated them kindly, and gave them many presents for them and their chief, promising he would receive them into his amity as subjects of His Majesty, and would protect and defend them, provided that they desisted from making war on the Guaranís, who were vassals of His Majesty, and that this had been the cause of the war he had made against the Guaycurús; then he dismissed them, well satisfied.

CHAPTER THE TWENTY-EIGHTH.

How the Indian Agazes broke the peace.

GONZALO DE MENDOZA, besides what has been related in the previous chapter, also told the governor that the tribe of Agazes with whom a peace had been made, that very night on which he had started on his campaign against the Guaycurús, had come armed to set fire to the town, and make war upon the Spaniards. These Indians, however, had been seen by the sentries, who had sounded the alarm. Perceiving that they were discovered, they had then taken to flight, and made a raid upon the cultivated land and establishments of the Spaniards, from whom they had taken a number of Guaraní women newly converted to Christianity. Since then they had come every night to maraud and pillage the land, causing much injury to the natives, and had thus broken the peace. The women of their own tribe, whom they had given as hostages for their good behaviour, had that same night of their arrival escaped, and were believed to have informed their people that the town was short of defenders, and that now was the time to kill the Christians. Following the advice of these women they had begun the war, and, as they are wont to do, had laid waste the dwellings of the Spaniards, where they kept their provisions, and had carried away upwards of thirty Guaraní women. The governor caused an inquiry to be made into this, and convoked the monks, clergy, officers and captains, whom he informed of the acts of the Agazes, and how they had broken faith, ordering them in the name of His Majesty to give their opinion in writing as to what they advised should be done, and to sign it with their names. And all agreed to follow this advice, whatever it might be. Then, having discussed and considered the affair thoroughly, they were all of one accord, that war should be made with fire and sword to punish the Agazes for the wrongs and injuries they had committed, and were still committing, in the country. This opinion was unanimous, and signed by all.