Of the cacique Nutibara, and of his territory: and of other caciques
subject to the city of Antioquia.
When we entered this valley with the Licentiate Juan de Vadillo, it was
scattered over with very large houses of wood thatched with straw, and
the fields were full of all kinds of food. In the hills several
delightful rivers rise, whose banks were covered with many kinds of
fruit trees, with very tall slender palm trees, thorny, with a bunch of
fruit called _Pixibaes_ growing at the top. They make both bread and
wine from this fruit, and when the tree is cut down, they take from it a
good-sized _palmito_, which is both sweet and wholesome. There are also
many trees which we call _aguacates_, _guavas_, _guayavas_, and very
fragrant pines.
The lord or king of this country was one named Nutibara, son of
Anunaybe. He had a brother called Quinuchu, who was then his lieutenant
over the Indians that lived in the mountains of Abibe (which we had just
crossed) and in other parts. This lieutenant supplied his lord with many
pigs, fish, birds, and other things from that land, and sent him gold
and apparel as tribute. When the lord went to war, he was followed by
many people with their arms. When he travelled through the country, he
sat on a litter inlaid with gold, which was borne on the shoulders of
his principal men. He had many wives. Near the door of his house, and
the same thing was done at the houses of his captains, there were many
heads of his enemies whom he had eaten, which were kept there as
trophies. All the natives of this country eat human flesh. There are
many large burial places which must needs be very rich. They had, in the
first place, a great house or temple dedicated to the Devil. At the time
that the Captain Francisco Cesar entered the valley, the natives rose in
arms near that house or temple, thinking that, as his followers were
such bad christians they might easily kill them. Thus, more than 20,000
Indians came out to war with much noise; but, although the Spanish party
numbered no more than twenty-nine or thirty horse, they showed so bold a
front that the Indians fled after the battle had lasted a long time,
leaving the field in possession of the christians, and on this occasion
Cesar certainly showed himself to be worthy of so great a name. Those
who may write respecting Carthagena will have plenty to say of this
captain; but it will not behove me to write more concerning him than is
necessary for the clearness of my narrative.[203] If the Spaniards who
entered this valley with Cesar were not numerous, they certainly all
became rich, and got plenty of gold; but, afterwards, when we came, the
Indians concealed their gold by the advice of the devil, as they
themselves affirm. Before these Indians gave battle to Captain Cesar,
they took their gold to the temple which they had built (according to
their own account) in honour of the devil; and, when the Spaniards came
there, digging in a certain part, they found a vault with the entrance
towards the setting sun, in which there were many vases full of very
fine ornaments of gold, altogether more than 21 quintals,[204] worth
upwards of 40,000 ducats. They related that further on there was another
house that contained more treasure, and they also stated that they found
others still more rich in the valley. Afterwards, when we arrived with
Vadillo, we found the burial places opened, and the house or temple
burnt. An Indian woman, who belonged to one Baptista Zimbron, said to me
that after Cesar returned to Carthagena, all the lords of these valleys
assembled and performed sacrifices, when the devil appeared in the form
of a very fierce tiger, (which in their language is called _guaca_), and
said that those christians had come from the other side of the sea, and
that soon many more would arrive to occupy and take possession of the
land, and that they must prepare for war. He then disappeared, and the
Indians began to prepare, first taking a great quantity of treasure out
of the burial places.