how the gouernour sent donna isabella with the ships to hauana, and he with some of his people went thither by land.
the gouernour sent from s. iago his nephew don carlos with the ships in company of donna isabella to tarrie for him at hauana, which is an hauen in the west part toward the head of the island, 180. leagues from the citie of saint iago. the gouernour and those which staied with him bought horses and proceeded on their iournie. the first towne they came vnto was bayamo: they were lodged foure and foure, and sixe and sixe, as they went in company, and where they lodged they tooke nothing for their diet, for nothing cost them ought saue the maiz or corne for their horses, because the gouernour went to visit them from towne to towne, and seased them in the tribute and seruice of the indians. bayamo is 25. leagues from the citie of s. iago. neere vnto the towne passeth a great riuer, which is called tanto; it is greater then guadiana, and in it be very great crocodiles, which sometimes hurt the indians, or the cattell which passeth the riuer. in all the countrie are neither wolfe, foxe, beare, lion, nor tiger. there are wild dogges which goe from the houses into the woods and feed vpon swine. there be certaine snakes as bigge as a mans thigh or bigger, they are very slow, they doe no kind of hurt. from bayamo to puerto dellos principes are 50. leagues. in al the iland from towne to towne, the way is made by stubbing vp the vnderwood: and if it bee left but one yeere vndone, the wood groweth so much, that the way cannot be seene, and the paths of the oxen are so many, that none can trauell without an indian of the countrie for a guide: for all the rest is very hie and thicke woods. from puerto dellos principes the gouernour went to the house of vasques porcallo by sea in a bote, (for it was neere the sea) to know there some newes of donna isabella, which at that instant (as afterward was knowne) was in great distresse, in so much that the ships lost one another: and two of them fell on the coast of florida, and all of them endured great want of water and victuals. when the storme was ouer, they met together, without knowing where they were: in the end they descried the cape of s. anton, a countrie not inhabited of the island of cuba: there they watered; and at the end of 40. daies, which were passed since their departure from the city of s. iago, they arriued at hauana. the gouernour was presently informed thereof, and went to donna isabella. and those which went by land which were one hundred and fiftie horsemen, being diuided into two parts, because they would not oppresse the inhabitants, trauelled by s. espirito, which is 60. leagues from puerto dellos principes. the food which they carried with them was ca?abe bread, which is that whereof i made mention before: and it is of such a qualitie, that if it be wet, it breaketh presently, whereby it happened to some to eate flesh without bread for many daies. they carried dogges with them, and a man of the country, which did hunt; and by the way, or where they were to lodge that night, they killed as many hogges as they needed. in this iourney they were well prouided of beefe and porke: and they were greatly troubled with muskitos, especially in a lake, which is called the mere of pia, which they had much adoe to passe from noone till night, the water might be some halfe league ouer, and to be swome about a crosse bowe shot, the rest came to the waste, and they waded vp to the knees in the mire, and in the bottome were cockle shels, which cut their feete very sore; in such sort, that there was neither boote nor shoe sole that was hole at halfe way. their clothes and sandels were passed in baskets of palme trees. passing this lake, stripped out of their clothes, there came many muskitos, vpon whose bitting there arose a wheale that smarted very much: they strooke them with their hands, and with the blow which they gaue they killed so many, that the blood did runne downe the armes and bodies of the men. that night they rested very little for them, and other nights also in the like places and times. they came to santo espirito, which is a towne of thirtie houses; there passeth by it a little riuer: it is very pleasant and fruitfull, hauing great store of oranges and citrons, and fruites of the countrie: one halfe of the companie were lodged here, and the rest passed forward 25. leagues to another towne called la trinidad of 15 or 20 households. here is an hospitall for the poore, and there is none other in all the island. and they say, that this towne was the greatest of all the countrie and that before the christians came into this land, as a ship passed along the coast, there came in it a very sicke man which desired the captaine to set him on shore: and the captaine did so, and the ship went her way: the sicke man remained set on shore in that countrie, which vntill then had not bene haunted by christians; wherevpon the indians found him, carried him home, and looked vpon him till he was whole; and the lord of that towne maried him vnto a daughter of his, and had warre withall the inhabitants round about, and by the industrie and valour of the christian, he subdued and brought vnder his command all the people of that island. a great while after, the gouernour diego velasques went to conquer it, and from thence discouered new spaine: and this christian which was with the indians did pacifie them, and brought them to the obedience and subiection of the gouernour. from this towne della trinidad vnto hauana are 80. leagues, without any habitation, which they trauelled. they came to hauana in the end of march; where they found the gouernor, and the rest of the people which came with him from spaine. the gouernour sent from hauana iohn danusco with a carauele and two brigantines with 50. men to discouer the hauen of florida; and from thence hee brought two indians, which he tooke vpon the coast, wherwith (aswell because they might be necessarie for guides and for interpretours, as because they said by signes that there was much gold in florida) the gouernour and all the companie receiued much contentment, and longed for the houre of their departure, thinking in himselfe that this was the richest countrie, that vnto that day had been discouered.
