Bernal Diaz del Castillo
The Memoirs of the Conquistador Bernal Diaz del Castillo, Vol 2 (of 2)
We three then set out from our camp, and followed the course of a rivulet to some considerable distance, until we came in view of a hill lying on the opposite side of the water, and on which we observed several branches of trees that had been stuck in the ground as if to serve for some signal. We now marched in this direction for upwards of an hour, and after finding our way out between the rivers, we came to some small huts, which had a short time previously been deserted by their owners. Continuing our course in this direction, we observed at some distance from us, on the slope of a hill, some maise plantations lying about an isolated dwelling, in which we distinctly heard the sound of human voices. As the sun was by this time nearly gone down, we concealed ourselves among the bushes until late in the night, when we thought the inmates of the house were all fast asleep. We then moved forward in the utmost silence up to this habitation, broke suddenly into it, and captured three Indians, an old woman, and two other young females, who were uncommonly pretty. We only found two fowls and a small quantity of maise, with which, and the whole of these Indians, we returned highly rejoiced to our encampment. Sandoval had kept a look out for us until late in the evening, and he was the first to observe us at a distance, on our return. He could scarcely contain himself for joy when he recognized us, and he hastened to inform Cortes, to whom no news could be more acceptable than the fact of our safe return. "Indeed," said Sandoval, on this occasion, to Pedro de Ircio, "Bernal Diaz del Castillo remarked well some time ago, on going out in search of provisions, that this required men of great activity, and not people who thought of nothing else on the road but of their pretty stories of the count of Ureña and his son Don Pedro Giron!" for this was the constant theme of friend Ircio. "He had good reasons for saying so, and you need not reproach him, for speaking in your dispraise to our general and myself."
These words caused a general laughter at Ircio's expense, and Sandoval purposely procured me this little triumph, because he knew I owed the former a grudge.
When I came into the presence of Cortes, he thanked me in the kindest terms, and said: "I have never found you at a loss in time of need!"
But why should I repeat these flattering sentences? for at most they are mere empty sounds, and little profit to any one: at least, I gained nothing by these fine words, excepting that when this perilous expedition was subsequently the topic of conversation in Mexico, my name was always mentioned with praise.
Cortes, on questioning the Indians respecting the country, learnt from them, that if we followed the course of a certain rivulet we should arrive, after two days' journey, in a township called Oculizti, which consisted of upwards of two hundred houses, but had been deserted a few days previously by its inhabitants. We accordingly marched down the rivulet, and arrived at several large huts belonging to Indian merchants, who rested here on their journeys. We passed the night in these dwellings, and the following day we continued our march along the same stream for two miles, when we came to a good road, which brought us before sunset to Coliste, where we found maise and plenty of vegetables, and, suspended in a temple, an old Spanish cap and a shoe, which had been dedicated to the idols there. Several of our men searched some hollows in the neighbourhood, and soon discovered two aged Indians and four women, who were immediately brought into the presence of our general. On being questioned by Doña Marina about the town where the Spaniards had settled, they answered, that it lay on the sea coast, about five days' journey from our camp, but that on our road thither we should not see a single Indian township.
On this information, Cortes instantly despatched Sandoval, with six men on foot, to the sea coast, in the direction the Indians had pointed out, in order to learn, if possible, what number of Spanish troops Christobal de Oli had under his command, for at that time we were still ignorant of what had taken place there.
Our general's plan was to fall upon Oli during the night, when he least dreamt of our approach, and to take him prisoner, with all his troops. Sandoval took three Indian guides with him from Oculizti, and set out on his journey. When he had arrived on the north coast, and was marching along the beach, he espied a canoe making for the land with sails and paddles. He therefore hid himself behind a rising ground until the vessel should have run ashore. This canoe belonged to some Indian merchants, was laden with salt and maise, and was destined for the large river which flows into the Golfo Dulce.
In the night time Sandoval sallied forth from his hiding place, captured all the crew, then stepped into the canoe with two of his companions and the three guides, and desired the Indian merchants to row him along the coast, while the four other Spaniards followed by land. Sandoval was sure the great river could not be far distant, and in this he was not deceived, for he entered it soon after, and he had the good fortune to come up with four Spaniards of the new town founded by Gil Gonsalez de Avila. These men had just arrived in a canoe from an excursion in search of provisions, of which there was an uncommon scarcity in the colony. The whole of the inhabitants were suffering from ill health, and durst not venture into the neighbourhood of the town to search for provisions, as they were at enmity with the Indians, who had already killed ten of their number since Avila's departure for Mexico.
When Sandoval was approaching in the canoe, he found these Spaniards busily occupied in gathering cocoa nuts. Two of them, who had climbed up the tree, were the first to observe the strange vessel, and they immediately called out to their companions below. The whole of them were so astonished and alarmed, that they scarcely knew whether they should run away or stop where they were; but on Sandoval coming up, and addressing them in a friendly manner, they took courage, and related to him the whole history of the foundation of their colony, the misfortune which befel the fleet of Las Casas, his and Avila's capture by Oli, the execution of the latter at Naco, and the subsequent departure of the two first-mentioned officers for Mexico: then gave him a full description of the miserable condition of the colony mentioned, the number of the inhabitants, and their great suffering from want of food; and stated, that a few days previously they had hung the commandant of the town, Armenta, because he had refused to grant them permission to return to Cuba.
Sandoval considered it best to take these men along with him to Cortes, in order that our approach might not be made known to the colony. One of Sandoval's soldiers, named Alonso Ortiz, a native of the town San Pedro, begged that he might be allowed to start an hour before the rest, to gain a handsome reward, by being the first to announce this joyful news to our troops. This favour Sandoval readily granted him, and certainly no news could have been more welcome to us all; for we now fully believed that all our fatigues and perils were at an end, and we never thought for a moment that we should have to suffer even greater hardships than we had hitherto. Alonso de Ortiz was well rewarded for the haste he had made, for Cortes presented him with a fine gray horse, which we generally termed the Moor's head; besides this, every one of us gave him some other little presents. Shortly after, Sandoval himself arrived, with the other Spaniards, who told Cortes what I have above mentioned. They also informed him that two miles further on there was a harbour, in which a vessel was being fitted out, to convey the colonists to Cuba. The commandant Armenta, they added, had obstinately refused to allow them to depart; for which reason, and because he had scourged a Spanish priest, who had caused an insurrection in the town, the inhabitants rebelled against him, hung him, and appointed a certain Antonio Nieto commandant in his stead. In the meantime, at the town of San Gil de Buena Vista, there was nothing but lamentation and grief, when the Spaniards, who had been sent out in quest of provisions, did not return in the evening, and every one thought they must either have been massacred by the Indians or devoured by the wild beasts. One of the Spaniards who had returned with Sandoval was a married man, and his wife broke out into loud lamentations at his supposed death. The whole of the inhabitants went to the church, and a funeral sermon was preached by the priest Velasquez, and prayers were offered up for the souls of the dead.
Cortes now marched, with the whole of his troops, in the direction of the sea coast, the distance to which was full twenty-four miles, but our further progress was retarded for a considerable time by a deep arm of the sea, where we were obliged to wait until low water before we could pass over, partly swimming and partly wading across, which detained us until noon. In this way we at length arrived at the broad river of the Golfo Dulce, which Cortes and six soldiers were the first to cross, in order to reach the new town. Two canoes, one which Sandoval had captured on the coast, and the other belonging to the colonists, were fastened together, in which our general, with six men, and a few of his servants, embarked, and was ferried across the water. Upon this a few of the horses were swum across, the grooms holding the animals by the bridles, which were kept as short as possible, for fear of the former upsetting the canoes.
Cortes left strict commands that no one was to pass the river until further orders, which he would send in writing. The passage across this rapid stream was indeed excessively dangerous, and Cortes himself regretted that he had thus risked his life unnecessarily.
CHAPTER CLXXIX
How Cortes entered the town founded by Gil Gonsalez de Avila; the great joy of the inhabitants at his arrival, and what he further did there.
The town of Buena Vista, which Avila had founded in this neighbourhood, lay about eight miles from the broad river of the Golfo Dulce, near to the sea shore, whither Cortes immediately repaired with his small body of men, after crossing the river. When he entered the town, the arrival of strangers on horseback and others on foot, in the first moments, spread a great consternation among the inhabitants, but as soon as they learnt that it was the man whose fame was spread through the whole of these provinces and New Spain, they were almost overcome with joy. All the inhabitants instantly assembled to wait upon him and to congratulate him upon his safe arrival. Our general received them in the kindest manner possible, and then ordered the commandant Nieto to load the two boats belonging to the town, and all the canoes he could get with cassave bread, and despatch them to Sandoval. The commandant immediately set about to fulfil these commands, but was unable to collect more than fifty pounds of this bread, as the colonists had had no other food than the fruits which they gathered from the trees, some vegetables, and what fish they could catch. Even this small quantity of cassave bread had been set apart for their voyage to Cuba.
With these provisions the two boats, manned with eight sailors, left for the place where Sandoval was encamped with our troops. Cortes, in a letter to the latter officer, desired that he, with Luis Marin, should cross the last over the broad river, and was particularly cautioned not to allow more than a certain number of the men to be ferried across at a time on account of the rapidity of the stream. No horses were to be taken across by the canoes, and even the boats were not to take more than two at a time.
When these vessels arrived there immediately rose a dispute as to whom should be ferried across first, and Saavedra, with his brother Avalos, pretended to have a prior claim, because they happened to be related to Cortes, but Sandoval maintained that this honour was unquestionably due to the three reverend monks. Saavedra persisted, however, that as a relation of Cortes the precedence was due to him, and answered Sandoval in very unbecoming terms, whose blood now also began to boil, and the dispute rose to so high a pitch that Saavedra drew his dagger. Sandoval, who was standing up to his knees in the water to prevent the boats being overloaded, rushed upon his antagonist, and, seizing him by the hand in which he held the dagger, he dragged him headlong into the water. If the rest of us had not hastened up and parted them, Saavedra would most likely have ended his life in this affray, for the troops, almost to a man, were on Sandoval's side.
Four whole days were consumed before all our men had crossed over, during which time we had nothing to eat but the nuts we gathered from some low palm-trees, which we roasted on the fire and ate the kernels. One of our soldiers, named Tarifa, ventured across the river with his horse in a canoe, was upset, and both were most likely drowned, for no traces could be found of either. Two other horses met with a similar fate, one of which was the property of Solis Casquete, who behaved like a madman when he found his horse was lost, and wished our general, with the whole expedition, in the infernal regions.
The excessive hunger we endured during the time we were occupied in ferrying across, created altogether great discontent among the troops, and they murmured loudly against Cortes, and this dreadful march. When we arrived in the town we found our condition very little bettered, for there was neither any bread in the storehouses nor in the dwellings of the colonists; who, in the bargain, were even unacquainted with the surrounding neighbourhood, and only knew the way to two townships, which had long ago been deserted by the inhabitants. Cortes' first care was to adopt some means for obtaining provisions; he, therefore, instantly despatched Luis Marin, with the soldiers of Guacasualco into the country, in search of maise. How far we succeeded in this I will relate in the following chapter.
CHAPTER CLXXX
How eighty of us on the second day after our arrival in Buena Vista, marched out under the command of Luis Marin to explore the country and to search for provisions.
The population of the town of Buena Vista consisted of forty Spaniards, four Spanish ladies and two mulattoes. The whole of these people were suffering from ill health, and had a yellow sickly appearance about them. They had no provisions, and suffered as much from hunger as we did ourselves, nor could any one tell where we were to go in search of maise for this purpose. Cortes, therefore, saw that there was not a moment to be lost, and he despatched Luis Marin, with the men of Guacasualco, into the country.
We were altogether eighty in number, and we all set out on foot, in order first to see whether horses would be able to traverse the country. An Indian, of Cuba, accompanied us as guide to some townships which lay thirty-two miles further up the country. When we reached these we found, to our inexpressible joy, that they contained great abundance of maise, beans, and other vegetables; besides that, the whole neighbourhood was literally sown with cocoa-nut trees. We first feasted sumptuously ourselves and then despatched a courier to our general, desiring him to send us all the Mexican troops to fetch away the maise, forwarding him in advance ten bushels of the latter as a supply for the moment, and begged of him to send our horses to us.
When Cortes learnt that we had arrived in so fertile a neighbourhood, and was told by some Indian merchants that the road to Naco, where Christobal de Oli was beheaded, led through the township where we were staying, he ordered Sandoval to follow us with the greater part of the remaining troops, and not to leave this township until he should receive further instructions.
Sandoval, on arriving in our camp, was not a little delighted to find us thus surrounded by plenty, and he immediately despatched the Mexicans with thirty bushels of maise to Cortes, who distributed this welcome supply among the colonists, and as they had not been accustomed for a length of time to any other nourishment than fruit and a little cassave bread, they ate so ravenously of the maise that the greater part fell ill in consequence, and seven of them died.
During this great distress for want of provisions, it pleased the Almighty that a vessel should run into the harbour from Cuba, having on board seven passengers, seven horses, forty pigs, eight barrels of pickled meat, and a large quantity of cassave bread. The cargo belonged to a certain Antonio de Comargo, and Cortes purchased the whole of it upon credit, distributing a great part of the provisions among the colonists; but the consequences again proved fatal to many of these unfortunate persons, for they had become so enfeebled, that their stomachs were unable to bear this very nourishing food, which brought on dysentery, and ten more of them died.
As this vessel had brought a few soldiers and had eight sailors on board, Cortes determined to embark in her and sail up the river to visit the townships which lay on the banks, and to explore the interior of the country. He also ordered one of the brigantines of Gil Gonsalez de Avila to be repaired, and a boat to be constructed in the shape of those used in unloading vessels; also four canoes, to be securely fastened together. On board these vessels Cortes embarked with thirty soldiers, the eight sailors, and twenty Mexicans. He may have sailed up the river to the distance of about forty miles, when he came to a large lake, which, to judge from the measurement of the eye, was about twenty-four miles in breadth, and its banks were quite uninhabited, as the whole surrounding country was subject to frequent inundations. Further up, the river continually became more rapid, until the vessels arrived at some cataracts, which none of them were able to pass; Cortes, therefore, landed his men here, and, after leaving six Spaniards in charge of the vessels, he commenced his march up the country along a very narrow path. First, he arrived at some townships which were deserted by the inhabitants, and then to a few maise plantations, in which he captured three Indians, whom he took along with him as guides. These people conducted him to several small villages, where there was abundance of maise and fowls. The inhabitants here also kept pheasants, (which they call sacachueles,) tame partridges, and pigeons. This breeding of partridges as domestic birds I never observed in any other part of the country but in the townships on the Golfo Dulce. From this place Cortes took new guides, and next arrived in some townships which are called Cinacatan-Tencintle. The whole surrounding neighbourhood was covered with maise, cacao, and cotton plantations. When Cortes had approached within a short distance, he heard the sound of drums, trumpets, and a noise as if the Indians were in the midst of some festive orgie. Our general then concealed himself with his men on a rising ground, in order to watch for a favorable opportunity of falling upon these Bacchanalians. This he accordingly did before they were in the least aware of it, and captured ten men and fifteen women. The rest of the Indians fled to their town, armed themselves, and commenced flying their arrows at us. Cortes immediately fell upon them, and very soon cut down eight of their chiefs, which brought the others to their senses, and they despatched four old men, of whom two were papas, to our general, with a trifling present in gold, and begged hard that the prisoners might be restored to them. Cortes spoke to them through Doña Marina, who had accompanied the detachment with her husband Juan Xaramillo, and gave them to understand that they should send maise, fowls, salt, and a large supply of other provisions to our vessels. If they complied with this he would immediately restore the prisoners to their families. They accordingly set their canoes afloat, which lay in a hollow communicating with the river, and loaded them with the required provisions; but as Cortes did not release all the prisoners at once, and detained three men with their wives to bake some bread, the whole of the inhabitants again flew to arms, and showered forth their arrows, stones, and darts upon our troops, wounding twelve men, and Cortes himself in the face. During this skirmish one of the canoes upset, by which part of the provisions was lost, and one Mexican killed.
There were such swarms of moschitoes along the banks of this river as to render it impossible for a person to live there; but Cortes bore everything with patience, and returned to Buena Vista, which had never before been so well supplied with provisions. The last township, where the inhabitants had attacked Cortes, was called Cinacan, and considered to be about 280 miles from Guatimala. In this expedition up the river our general had spent twenty-six days; but, notwithstanding the fertility of the soil, he did not consider it an eligible spot for a colony, as the population of the country was too small. He therefore wrote word to Sandoval that he would shortly march to Naco himself, but that he was first desirous of making a short expedition to Puerto de Caballos, for which purpose he would require ten of the veterans of Guacasualco, without whom it was impossible to undertake anything which required activity and perseverance.
