Of the road between the city of San Sebastian and the city of Antioquia,
and of the wild beasts, forests, rivers, and other things in the way;
and how and in what season it can be passed.
I found myself in this city of San Sebastian de Buena Vista in the year
1536, and in 1537 the licentiate Juan de Vadillo, Juez de
Residencia,[199] and at that time governor of Carthagena, set out from
it with one of the finest armies that had been seen in Tierra Firme. We
were the first Spaniards who opened a road from the North to the South
Sea. I journeyed from this town of Uraba as far as the town of Plata, at
the furthest extremity of Peru, and made a point of seeing all the
provinces on my road, that I might be better able to note down what was
worthy of remark. I will, therefore, relate from this place forward all
that I saw, without desiring to exaggerate or depreciate anything, and
of this my readers may receive my assurance.
I say, then, that on leaving San Sebastian de Buena Vista, which is the
port of Uraba, to go to the city of Antioquia, the road runs by the
coast for five leagues as far as the banks of a small river called Rio
Verde, whence the distance to the city of Antioquia is forty-eight
leagues. The whole country, from this river to certain mountains called
Abibe, of which I shall speak presently, is flat, but covered with very
dense forests, and traversed by many rivers. The district near the road
is uninhabited, as the natives have retired to a distance from it. After
reaching Rio Verde, the road keeps close to the banks of the river, the
rest of the country being very densely covered with forest; and to pass
safely, it is necessary to travel in January, February, March, or April.
After April the rains set in, and the rivers are swollen and rapid, so
that even if it is possible to pass at all, it is at the cost of much
danger and difficulty. At all times those who travel by this road must
take good guides, and must understand how to cross the rivers. In all
these forests there are great herds of pigs, sometimes more than a
thousand together, counting their young ones, and they make a great
noise, so that those who travel with good dogs will not be in want of
food. There are also great tapirs, lions, bears, and tigers. In the
trees are to be seen the most beautifully marked wild cats that can be
found in the world, and large monkeys, that make such a noise that,
from a distance, those who are new to the country would think they were
pigs. When the Spaniards pass under the trees where the monkeys are,
these creatures break off branches, and throw them down, making faces
all the time. The rivers are so full of fish that with any net a great
haul may be drawn. When we were going with the Captain Jorge Robledo
from Antioquia to Carthagena, we saw so many fish that we could kill
them with sticks. On the trees near the rivers, there is a creature
called _yguana_, which looks like a serpent, or like one of the large
lizards of Spain, except that it has a larger head and longer tail, but
in colour and shape it is exactly like. When skinned and roasted these
creatures are as good to eat as rabbits; to my mind they are even
better, especially the females, which have many eggs. But those who are
not accustomed to them would be so frightened at the sight of them, that
they would have no desire to eat them. No one can say for certain
whether they are fish or flesh, for we see them run down the trees into
the water, where they are quite at home; and they are also found in the
interior, where there are no rivers. There are other creatures called
_Hicoteas_,[200] like turtles, which are also good eating. There are
many turkeys, pheasants, and parrots of all kinds, as well as
_Guacamayas_,[201] with very bright plumage; some small eagles, pigeons,
partridges, doves, besides night-birds and other birds of prey. In these
forests there are very large snakes. I must here relate a circumstance
which I hold to be certainly true, for it is attested by many men who
are worthy of belief. It is that when the Lieutenant Juan Greciano was
travelling by this road, by order of the licentiate Santa Cruz, in
search of the licentiate Juan de Vadillo, in company with certain
Spaniards, among whom were Manuel de Peralta, Pedro de Barros, and Pedro
Ximon, they met with a snake or serpent, which was so large that it
measured more than twenty feet in length, and of great girth. Its head
was a clear red, its eyes green and protruding, and, when they saw it,
it levelled its head to strike at them, and, indeed, gave Pedro Ximon
such a blow that he died. They found an entire deer in its belly; and I
heard it said that some of the Spaniards, owing to the hunger they felt,
ate the deer and even a part of the snake. There are other snakes, not
so large as this one, which make a noise when they walk like the sound
of bells. If these snakes bite a man they kill him. The Indians say that
there are many other kinds of serpents and wild animals in these
forests, which I do not describe as I have not seen them. There are
abundance of the palm-trees of Uraba, and many wild fruits.