_We continue our march, and what further happened to us._
After we had quitted this fortified township, we came into an extensive
open plain, on which, as far as the eye could reach, there was not a
tree to be seen, and the heat was more excessive than we had ever
experienced before. This plain abounded with wild deer, which were so
little shy that we could easily catch them with our horses, and in a
very short time we killed upwards of twenty. On questioning our guides
how it came that these animals were neither afraid of our horses nor
anything else, and so easily to be caught, they answered that the
Mazotecs revered them as beings of a superior nature, because they
appeared such to them from their external form, and their idols had
strictly commanded the people not to kill or in any way to scare them.
One of Cortes' relatives, named Palacios Rubios, lost his horse in
chasing these deer, for he galloped up and down the plain until the fat
melted in its body, and the poor animal dropped down dead all of a
sudden.[47]
It was not long before we came to the townships which had been
destroyed, and certainly they presented a most miserable picture to the
eye. On our further march, our scouts came up with two Indians who
belonged to a town which lay in advance of us. These men were returning
from the chase, and had killed a large lion and a number of iquanas,[48]
which resemble small serpents, and are excellent food. Our scouts then
inquired of these Indians whether there was any township in the
neighbourhood, to which they answered in the affirmative, and offered
their services to conduct them thither. This place lay on an island in
the fresh water, and could only be approached by means of canoes on the
side we were advancing, which compelled us to march to the distance of
two miles along the water until we came to a spot where the latter was
sufficiently shallow for us to wade through, though even then it reached
almost up to our arms. Only a few of the inhabitants had remained in the
town, the rest having fled immediately on our approach, with all their
property which they concealed among the reeds in the neighbourhood of
their cultivated fields; but several of our men quartered themselves for
the night among the maise plantations, feasted plentifully off the
fruit, and took care to provision themselves for the next day's march.
Adjoining this township lay a fresh water lake of considerable extent,
which abounded with large fish covered with sharp prickles, and very
much resembled the disgusting-looking and insipid-flavoured fish called
the shad. By means of a few old cloaks and tattered nets which we found
in the deserted habitations, we dragged the lake from one end to the
other, and succeeded in taking above 1000 of these ugly fish. Among the
fields we likewise captured a few of the inhabitants, who were requested
by Dona Marina to guide us to the towns where the men with the beards
and horses had settled. With this they readily complied, for they soon
perceived it was not our intention to harm them in any way, and five of
them immediately accompanied us. At first the road along which we
marched was very broad, but this gradually became narrower as we
approached a broad river or estuary, which was much frequented by
canoes. Here the inhabitants ferried across to the opposite township of
Tayasal, situated on an island, and of which the houses and temples were
covered with white plaster, so that they could be seen to a vast
distance. All the lesser townships in this neighbourhood were subject to
the first mentioned.
As our road was becoming very narrow, and we found that it terminated in
a small path, we resolved to encamp for the night in the vicinity of
some elevated mountains. During the night-time Cortes despatched four
companies along the footpaths which led to the estuary, in search of
guides; and, indeed, they had the good fortune to capture ten Indians
and two females, with two canoes laden with maise and salt. When these
people were brought into the presence of Cortes, he spoke to them in the
most affectionate terms, through Dona Marina, whom they informed that
they were inhabitants of a township which lay on an island sixteen
miles further on. Our general then despatched the lesser of the two
canoes, with four of the Indians and two Spaniards, thither, in order to
request the caziques to come with their canoes and ferry us over the
water, and our men were to present them with some Spanish toys, and
assure them that no harm should be done their persons.
The whole of the troops now marched forward until they arrived on the
banks of the broad river, where, to our great joy, we found the
caziques, besides several other distinguished personages waiting for us
with five canoes, a supply of maise, and a number of fowls. Our general
addressed the caziques very affectionately; and, after they had held
some excellent discourses with him, he embarked with thirty crossbow-men
in the canoes, and so proceeded with the chiefs to their town. When
arrived there, they set before him the best of everything in the shape
of provisions, and presented him with several of their cloaks and a
small quantity of gold, though of inferior quality. According to their
assurances, there were men like ourselves in two different townships,
namely, in Nito, which we called San Gil de Buena Vista, lying on the
north coast, and in Naco, which lay in the interior of the country.
According to their account, these two towns were ten days' journey
distant from each other. We were very much surprised that Oli should
thus have divided his troops, we being at that moment ignorant of the
existence of Buena Vista, founded by Avila.
The whole of our troops passed the broad river in canoes, and we
encamped for the night eight miles further on to wait for Cortes, who
still continued at the township above mentioned. On returning to the
main body, he ordered one of the horses, which had likewise been
overheated in chasing the deer, to be left behind. While we were staying
here, one of our negroes and two female slaves ran away. Even three
Spaniards chose rather to stay here and run the risk of being murdered
by the Indians than to undergo the fatigues of our march for another
three days. I myself was far from well; the excessive heat of the sun
had affected my head, and I scarcely knew how to bear myself. But even
this distressing heat was more welcome to us than the torrents of rain
which began to fall, and lasted, without intermission, for three days;
nevertheless, we were obliged to continue our march, as we had not a
morsel of food left. In the space of two days we arrived at some small
hills, which were completely covered with stones, and these so sharp
that they cut like razors. Our men gave themselves considerable trouble
in searching for some other road in order to avoid these stones, but all
their endeavours were fruitless, though they went to a distance of
above four miles. This part of our march was most dangerous for the
horses; for, as it still continued to rain, they constantly stumbled,
and were sure to cut their knees, and even their bellies in the most
dreadful manner on the pointed stones; but the descent was still more
difficult, eight of the horses being killed and many others shockingly
lacerated, and one of the soldiers named Palacios Rubios, a relative of
Cortes, had the misfortune to break his leg. We could not, therefore,
feel sufficiently thankful to the Almighty when at last we got clear of
this mountain of flint, as we ever after termed it.
As we had now advanced within a short distance of the township Taica, we
were not a little rejoiced at the thoughts that we should again get some
food. In the neighbourhood of this place we came to a river which poured
down over the precipices of a very high mountain, and was so much
swollen by the rain of the three last days that it rolled down in
immense volumes, and the roaring noise of the flood, as it dashed from
one precipice to another, could be distinctly heard at the distance of
eight miles. There was no other possibility of passing this turbulent
river but by throwing a bridge across from one rock to the other. We
accordingly set to work with the utmost diligence, and in the space of
three days we constructed a bridge of the largest trees, and the whole
of us passed safely to the other side of these cataracts. While we were
engaged in building this bridge, the Indians of Taica had gained
sufficient time to run off and conceal all their provisions. When,
therefore, we arrived in this township and met not a single inhabitant,
nor found the smallest particle of food to still our hunger, we stared
at each other in dismay when we considered our dreadful position. The
hope of soon obtaining food had alone inspired us with sufficient
courage and strength to undertake the construction of this bridge. For
myself I do not hesitate to acknowledge that I never, in the whole
course of my life, felt so distressed in mind as on this occasion, when
I found that I could neither procure food for my men nor myself. Added
to all this, we had overheated ourselves by marching about the
neighbourhood in a burning sun for a couple of hours in search of the
inhabitants. It happened to be the eve of Easter day, and I shall never
forget this day as long as I live; and the reader can easily imagine
what a pleasant Easter we spent without a morsel of food. We should have
considered ourselves blessed and happy if we had only had a handful of
maise.
In this great distress Cortes despatched all his servants and grooms
with our guides to traverse the hills in search of maise plantations. On
the first day of Easter they indeed returned with some maise, but all
they had was scarcely a bushel, and what was this among so many mouths!
Cortes, seeing that our distress was each moment increasing, ordered
myself and several other soldiers, mostly of those who had settled in
Guacasualco, into his presence, and told us our condition was at present
so lamentable, that he must beg of us to search the whole country round
to procure some kind of provisions or other. Pedro de Ircio happened to
be present when Cortes was thus soliciting us; and as he was always
ready with a mouthful of words, he supplicated Cortes to give him the
command of this foraging party. As far as regards myself, replied our
general, go, and may God be with you! But as I was well aware that Ircio
was a miserable pedestrian, and, instead of being any assistance to us,
would only be a troublesome companion, I secretly communicated what I
thought to Cortes and my friend Sandoval, and requested that he might
not be sent with us, as a person with splay feet as he had was least of
all able to make his way through bogs and marshes; added to which, he
was all talk, but seldom acted, and altogether unable to bear the
fatigues of a long march. Our general, accordingly, followed my advice,
and he countermanded the order he had given to Ircio.
I now set out with four soldiers and two guides. First we passed several
rivers of considerable depth, then crossed some marshes until we arrived
at a small village, whither most of the inhabitants of the deserted
township had fled. Here we had likewise the good fortune to find four
houses, completely filled with maise, also about thirty fowls, and a few
melons. We captured four Indians and three women, and we now celebrated
Easter right jollily. Above a thousand Mexicans whom Cortes had sent
after us arrived in the night, and we immediately loaded as much of the
maise on them as they could carry, with which they returned to our camp:
we at the same time sent above twenty fowls for Cortes and Sandoval,
besides the prisoners we had taken, and then placed a watch over these
storehouses in order that the inhabitants might not set fire to them
during the night, or carry off their contents. The following day we
continued our march, and discovered some more buildings full of maise,
fowls, and various kinds of vegetables. Here I made myself a little ink,
and I wrote a letter to our general on a small piece of drum skin,
requesting him to send me a detachment of Indian troops, as we had found
another storehouse full of provisions. The next day, accordingly, above
thirty Spaniards and 500 Indians arrived, and each took as heavy a load
of provisions as he could possibly carry. In this way God in his great
mercy again relieved us in the utmost distress, and we halted five days
in Taica to rest from our fatigues.
The bridges which we threw across the numerous rivers we passed on our
march had been so strongly put together that several of them were still
to be seen for many years after; and subsequently, when all these
provinces were subjected to the Spanish crown, our countrymen regarded
them in astonishment, and exclaimed, _These are the bridges of Cortes!_
in the same way as people say, _These are the columns of Hercules!_
After marching forward for two more days, we arrived at a township
called Tania, which was also deserted by its inhabitants, though we
found some maise and other provisions, but not in sufficient quantity
for our troops. On thoroughly exploring the country round about, we
discovered that we were now completely surrounded by rivers and small
streams; the guides we had brought with us ran away in the night from
the soldiers who had charge of them. These men had but recently arrived
from New Spain, and it appears had been overtaken by sleep; our general,
on receiving the first information of their neglect of duty, was going
to have them severely punished; however, he was at length induced to
pardon them, and he sent out another party to explore our route; but as
this neighbourhood abounded with rivers, and it continued to rain very
fast, almost the whole of the country was inundated; besides which, we
could have no hopes of meeting with any of the inhabitants. Thus
situated, in the midst of the waters, we scarcely knew which way to
turn, and our distress and alarm were each moment increasing. Cortes
himself appeared considerably disheartened, and said, with a good deal
of ill humour, to Ircio, and other officers who came with him from
Mexico: "I should like to know which of you will volunteer to go out in
search of some Indian guide, or to discover a way out of these waters;
for it is shameful to leave everything to the veterans, who have
accompanied us from Guacasualco!"
After this reproach, Ircio, with some of his friends and acquaintances,
offered himself, and he actually marched out for this purpose.
Marmolejo, a person of distinction, likewise went out with six men; so
also Santacruz Burgales, with a like number. Each of these three small
detachments went off in a different direction, and they wandered about
for three days, but returned with the disheartening news, that wherever
they came there was nothing but water to be seen. Cortes was ready to
burst with vexation when they told him this, and he desired Sandoval to
go and speak with me, and request me, in his name, to try if I could not
discover some road, to rescue the army from its present perilous
position. All this he said in an affectionate and begging tone of voice,
as he very well knew that I was by no means in good health: and indeed
I was suffering with a bad fever, for which reason I had refused to
accompany my intimate friend Marmolejo, to whom I said: "You expect me
to do everything; let others bestir themselves as well!" First I refused
Sandoval also, but he came a second time to my hut, and begged very hard
of me to comply with our general's request, who had said, that next to
God he could only expect assistance from me at this juncture. Though I
felt very ill, yet my honour would not allow me to refuse any longer,
and I desired that Hernando de Aguilar and a certain Hinojosa might
accompany me, both of whom were men I well knew could bear any fatigues.
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 Urena 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 Dona 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.