1565. souldiers newely come thither, and were not able to by one Negro: whereupon hee asked for a watring place, and they pointed him a place two leagues off, called Santa Fe, where we found marveilous goodly Santa Fe. watering, and commodious for the taking in thereof : for that the fresh water came into the Sea, and so our shippes had aboord the shore twentie fathome water. Neere about this place, inhabited certaine Indians, who the next day after we came thither, came down to us, presenting mill and cakes of breade, which they had made of a kinde of corne called Maiz, in bignesse of a pease, the eare whereof is much like to a teasell, but a spanne in length, having thereon a number of granes. Also they brought down to us Hennes, Potatoes and Pines, which we bought for beades, pewter whistles, glasses, knives, and other trifles. These Potatoes be the most delicate rootes that may be eaten, and doe farre exceed our passeneps or carets. Their pines be of the bignes of two fists, the outside whereof is of the making of a pine-apple, but it is soft like the rinde of a Cucomber, and the inside eateth like an apple, but it is more delicious then any [III. 508.] sweet apple sugred. These Indians being of colour The descriptawnie like an Olive, having every one of them both tion of the men and women, haire all blacke, and no other colour, Indians of Terra firma. the women wearing the same hanging downe to their shoulders, and the men rounded, and without beards, neither men nor women suffering any haire to growe in any part of their body, but dayly pull it off as it groweth. They goe all naked, the men covering no part of their body but their yard, upon the which they weare a gourd or piece of cane, made fast with a thrid about their loynes, leaving the other parts of their members uncovered, whereof they take no shame. The women also are uncovered, saving with a cloth which they weare a hand-breath, wherewith they cover their privities both before and behind. These people be very small feeders, for travelling they cary but two 1565. Sorrell. small bottels of gourdes, wherein they put in one the The use of juice of Sorrell whereof they have great store, and in the other flowre of their Maiz, which being moist, they eate, taking sometime of the other. These men cary every man his bowe and arrowes, whereof some arrowes are poisoned for warres, which they keepe in a Cane together, which Cane is of the bignesse of a mans arme, other some with broad heades of iron wherewith they stricke fish in the water: the experience whereof we saw not once nor twise, but dayly for the time we taried there, for they are so good archers that Armour of the Spaniards for feare thereof arme themselves and quilted canvas their horses with quilted canvas of two ynches thicke, two ynches thicke. and leave no place of their body open to their enemies, saving their eyes which they may not hide, and yet oftentimes are they hit in that so small a The making of scantling their poyson is of such : is of such a force, that a their poison. man being stricken therewith dyeth within foure and twentie howers, as the Spaniards do affirme, & in my judgement it is like there can be no stronger poyson as they make it, using thereunto apples which are very faire and red of colour, but are a strong poyson, with the which together with venemous Bats, Vipers, Adders and other serpents, they make a medley, and therewith anoint the same. The maners of the yong women. The Indian women delight not when they are yong in bearing of children, because it maketh them have hanging breastes which they account to bee great deforming in them, and upon that occasion while they bee yong, they destroy their seede, saying, that it is fittest for olde women. Moreover, when they are delivered of childe, they goe straight to washe themselves, without making any further ceremonie for it, not lying in bed as our women doe. The beds which they have are made of Gossopine cotton, and wrought artificially of divers colours, which they cary about with them. when they travell, and making the same fast to two trees, lie therein they and their women. The people be surely gentle and tractable, and such as desire to live peaceably, or els had it bene unpossible for the Spaniards to have conquered them as they did, and the more to live now peaceably, they being so many in number, and the Spaniards so few. From hence we departed the eight and twentie, and the next day we passed betweene the maine land, and 1565. the Island called Tortuga, a very lowe Island, in the The Isle of yeere of our Lorde God one thousande five hundred Tortuga. sixty five aforesaide, and sayled along the coast untill the first of Aprill, at which time the Captaine sayled along in the Jesus pinnesse to discerne the coast, and saw many Caribes on shore, and some also in their Canoas, which made tokens unto him of friendship, and shewed him golde, meaning thereby that they would trafficke for wares. Whereupon he stayed to see the maners of them, and so for two or three trifles they gave such things as they had about them, and departed: but the Caribes were very importunate to have them come on shore, which if it had not bene for want of wares to trafficke with them, he would not have denyed them, because the Indians which we saw before were very gentle people, and such as do no man hurt. But as God would have it, hee wanted that thing, which if hee had had, would have bene his confusion: for these were no such kinde of people as wee tooke them to bee, but more devilish a thousand partes and are eaters and devourers of any man they can catch, as it was afterwards declared unto us at Burboroata, by a Caravel comming out of Spaine with certaine souldiers, and a Captaine generall sent by the king for those Eastward parts of the Indians, who sayling along in his pinnesse, as our Captaine did to descry the coast, was by the Caribes called a shoore with sundry tokens made to him of friendshippe, and golde shewed as though they desired trafficke, with the which the Spaniard being mooved, suspecting no deceite at all, went ashore amongst them: who was no sooner ashore, but with foure or five 1565. more was taken, the rest of his company being invaded by them, saved themselves by flight, but they that were The crueltie of taken, paied their ransome with their lives, and were the Caribes. presently eaten. And this is their practise to toll with their golde the ignorant to their snares: they are bloodsuckers both of Spaniards, Indians, and all that light in their laps, not sparing their owne countreymen if they can conveniently come by them. Their policie in fight with the Spaniards is marvelous: for they chuse for their refuge the mountaines and woodes where the Spaniards with their horses cannot follow them, and if [III. 509.] they fortune to be met in the plaine where one horseman may over-runne 100. of them, they have a devise of late practised by them to pitch stakes of wood in the ground, and also small iron pikes to mischiefe their horses, wherein they shew themselves politique warriers. They have more abundance of golde then all the Spaniards have, and live upon the mountaines where the Mines are in such number, that the Spaniards have much adoe to get any of them from them, and yet sometimes by assembling a great number of them, which happeneth once in two yeeres, they get a piece from them, which afterwards they keepe sure ynough. Thus having escaped the danger of them, wee kept our course along the coast, and came the third of April Burboroata. to a Towne called Burboroata, where his ships came to an ancker, and hee himselfe went a shore to speake with the Spaniards, to whom hee declared himselfe to be an Englishman, and came thither to trade with them. by the way of marchandize, and therefore required licence for the same. Unto whom they made answere, that they were forbidden by the king to trafique with any forren nation, upon penaltie to forfeit their goods, therfore they desired him not to molest them any further, but to depart as he came, for other comfort he might not looke for at their handes, because they were subjects and might not goe beyond the law. But hee replied that his necessitie was such, as he might not so do: for being in one of the Queens Armadas of England, and having many souldiours in them, hee had neede both of some refreshing for them, and of victuals, and of money also, without the which hee coulde not depart, and with much other talke perswaded them not to feare any dishonest part of his behalfe towards them, for neither would hee commit any such thing to the dishonour of his prince, not yet for his honest reputation and estimation, unlesse hee were too rigorously dealt withall, which hee hoped not to finde at their handes, in that it should as well redound to their profite as his owne, and also hee thought they might doe it without danger, because their princes were in amitie one with another, and for our parts wee had free trafique in Spain and Flanders, which are in his dominions, and therefore he knew no reason why he should not have the like in all his dominions. To the which the Spaniards made answere, that it lay not in them to give any licence, for that they had a governour to whom the government of those parts was committed, but if they would stay tenne dayes, they would send to their governour who was threescore leagues off, and would returne answere within the space appointed, of his minde. In the meane time they were contented hee should bring his ships into harbour, and there they would deliver him any victuals he would require. Whereupon the fourth day we went in, where being one day and receiving all things according to promise, the Captaine advised himselfe, that to remaine there tenne dayes idle, spending victuals and mens wages, and perhaps in the ende receive no good answere from the governour, it were meere follie, and therefore determined to make request to have licence for the sale of certaine leane and sicke Negros which hee had in his shippe like to die upon his hands if he kept them ten dayes, having little or no refreshing for them, whereas other men having them, they would bee recovered well ynough. And 1565. |